First Date Disasters In This Book Review & Giveaway!

Today's book review is Wish Me Love by Michele Ashman Bell. There are so many laugh out loud moments in this one, you won't want to put it down!

Charlotte Wells is trying to get through the day---what would have been her second wedding anniversary---if her best friend hadn't married her ex-fiance. Luckily, her co-worker Jack looks out for her and encourages her to put herself out there again. They strike a bargain over a wishing bracelet---Charlotte will go on fifty first dates, if Jack will wear a wishing bracelet. He agrees and I love how that wishing bracelet figures in the story for both of them. Charlotte gives out her phone number to friends and goes on so many disastrous first dates that were funny and groan-worthy at the same time.

I really enjoyed the banter and connection Charlotte has with Jack, as they're starting a business together, and trying to help each other. They are such close friends and he's so sweet, always looking out for what's best for Charlotte. Loved him. (And how respectful they were of Jack's engagement.)

When Charlotte goes to her cousin's wedding in Brazil, things start to change for her on the romance front and the author has made Charlotte so relatable and realistic that you will definitely be hoping she gets the happy ending she deserves. I loved the Brazilian setting and how the author really makes it feel like you're there, experiencing it all with Charlotte. This was such a cute romance! A fun afternoon read.

Don't forget to scroll down and enter the giveaway!

Here's the back copy:

Charlotte Wells does not date. After surviving a broken engagement, she’s taken a leave of absence from the social scene. So when her best friend and coworker, Jack, challenges her to get back in the game, she’s not so sure she’s ready to play. But ultimately, curiosity gets the best of her, and Charlotte accepts the daunting challenge: she will attempt to have fifty first dates in her effort to find “the one.” Unfortunately, she quickly realizes that the dating pool mostly holds clown fish as she goes on one lousy outing after another. Without a good man in sight as summer ends, Charlotte cuts her losses and sets her sights on a fun-filled trip to her cousin’s destination wedding in Brazil.

Brazil is a land of beautiful sights and delicious offerings—including Max, the charming brother of her cousin’s new husband. Max has all the makings of a Prince Charming in soccer cleats, and Charlotte’s happily ever after seems to be within reach. But love is a funny thing, and soon Charlotte finds herself wondering: could it be that her true love has been right in front of her all along?

a Rafflecopter giveaway .

Tour schedule:

*Sept. 18th: http://reviewsfromtheheart.blogspot.com/, http://mybookaday.blogspot.com/, http://ldswritermom.blogspot.com/, http://melsshelves.blogspot.com/

*Sept. 19th: http://www.wishfulendings.com/, http://gettingyourreadonaimeebrown.blogspot.com/, http://www.rockinbookreviews.com/, http://thethingsilovemost.com/, http://empowermoms.net/

*Sept. 20th: http://booksaresanity.blogspot.com/, http://lisaisabookworm.blogspot.com/, http://www.kindleandme.com/, http://readingismysuperpower.org/

*Sept. 21st: http://katiescleanbookcollection.blogspot.com/, http://www.singinglibrarianbooks.com/, http://bonnieharris.blogspot.com/

*Sept. 22nd: http://whynotbecauseisaidso.blogspot.com/, http://fireandicereads.com/, http://literarytimeout.blogspot.com/

Freebie Friday For Romance Fans!

It's a rainy, drizzly day here which means I want to curl up in a soft blanket with a good book. Sigh. Maybe even have some chocolate chip cookies and a roaring fire in the fireplace? Too much?

Well, I can at least have the blanket and book part. I've read Lucy McConnell books before and enjoyed them, and she is offering her sweet romance of A Reclusive Billionaire for free today! 

If you need a new book to read, too, you can get your free copy here (and I'll give you bonus points if you can spot the typo on the back copy that made me smile just because of the context of it.)

Here's the back copy:

Lucas Scott, a world-renowned microbiologist, is desperate to find a cure for the butterfly flu before it spreads. Hounded by the media, he escapes to his houseboat in Santa Barbara where he meets a vivacious veterinarian with a penchant for taking in strays. While he searches for the key to unlocking the butterfly flu, Becca somehow unlocks his analytical heart.

Becca Lee isn't impressed with her new neighbor. His clothes are constantly wrinkled and he's grumpier than a cat with digestive problems. However, Luke isn't easy to brush off. He's always around, has a magnificent mind, and is full of surprises. But, what she can't figure out is why her instincts tell her to trust this rouge billionaire. It doesn't take long to realize he is the only one alive who can save the world and Becca has to make a choice--open her heart or watch Luke sail off into the sunset.

This is the first book in the Destination Billionaire Romance series. Included is a sneak peek at the next two books in the series, Almost Everything, by Taylor Hart, and The Lucky Billionaire, by Jeanette Lewis.

Freebies for Western Romance Fans!

There's a great deal being offered today if you love western romance. The first TWO books in Liz Isaacson's Brush Creek Brides romance series are free!

You can download your copy here

Here's the back copy:

A Wedding for the Widower:

Former rodeo champion and cowboy Walker Thompson trains horses at Brush Creek Horse Ranch, where he lives a simple life in his cabin with his ten-year-old son, Michael. A widower of six years, he's just trying to provide a life for Michael that his late wife would've approved of. He's worked with Tess Wagner, a widow who came to Brush Creek to escape the turmoil of her life to give her seven-year-old son, Graham, a slower pace of life. Together, they run a cotton candy stand at the town's Heritage Festival every fall, donating the money they raise to the National Widows & Widowers Foundation to help those who've suffered the way they have.

Walker's boss and best friend, ranch owner Landon Edmunds, has encouraged him to start dating, and Walker looks no further than Tess. She's interested in him too, but neither of them wants to inflict more sorrow and suffering on the other than they've already endured. So when Tess confesses that her breast cancer has flared up again, Walker backs off. Way off.

In the end, he'll have to decide if he'd rather spend even a short time with Tess and Graham than not have them in his life at all. Tess wants to feel God's love and power, but she'll have to discover and accept God's will in order to find her happy ending.

A Companion for the Cowboy:

Cowboy and professional roper Justin Jackman has found solitude at Brush Creek Horse Ranch, preferring his time with the animals he trains over dating. With two failed engagements in his past, he's not really interested in getting his heart stomped on again. But when flirty and fun Renee Martin picks him up at a church ice cream bar--on a bet, no less--he finds himself more than just a little interested.

Renee's living with her cousin in Brush Creek, having just graduated from college. She's not ready to be an adult, has no idea what she wants to do for a career, and generally wishes everyone would just let her figure things out. She starts working for Dinosaur National Park, which has an hour-long commute that she spends thinking about Justin. With a decade separating their ages, she comes to realize that they're from different generations.

His Gen-X attitudes are attractive to her; her Millennial behaviors drive him nuts. Can Justin look past their differences and take a chance on another engagement? And if he does, will Renee be mature enough and ready for a serious relationship? Justin and Renee will have to figure out how to pray and how to listen to God to find a way to their happily-ever-after.

Love Remains Review And A Giveaway!

As you all know, I am a huge Sarah Eden fan, but for her Hope Springs series, I am firmly in the TeamTavish camp. He's had a rough time of it in all the books, so I was SO happy to hear that her new book, Love Remains, is Tavish's love story. And oh, it was so worth the wait.

In the last book there was a horrific fire that injured the youngest O'Connor brother, Finbarr, and rendered him blind. That terrible night changed the O'Connor's forever, and Tavish has been valiantly trying to hold his family together at the expense of his own happiness and well-being. Nearly at the end of his rope, the family decides to hire a tutor for Finbarr that could help him navigate his new world, and Cecil Attwater arrives---only it's not Cecil, but Cecily, a beautiful Englishwoman.

Cecily has known heartache of her own as she is slowly losing her own eyesight. She wants to help Finbarr, but he is lost in self-pity and sure he'll never be able to have a life of his own. But the more she gets to know the O'Connor family, the more she comes to love them, especially Finbarr's older brother Tavish. Surprisingly, old wounds and hurts from her background as an Englishwoman and theirs as Irish surface and threaten to tear down the fragile foundation Cecily has built. Can she move past the prejudice of those she's become attached to, or will she forever be on the outside of a family looking in?

I loved everything about this book. The gentle teasing and witty repartee between Cecily and Tavish made me laugh, and the emotions of everything the O'Connor's have been through made me cry. Cecily and Tavish's love story was so sweet and tender, slowly coming to know each other in a way that didn't rely on looks, but sounds, smells, emotions, and touch was sigh-worthy. There were so many wonderful scenes that stood out to me, I don't think I could pick a favorite, but I loved the way that Tavish opened his heart to heal the wounds of the past and allowed himself to see a future. It was so realistic and well-written that I wanted to cry with happiness for him. And that Cecily was such a big part of that, even though she had her own demons to face, made the whole thing complete. Sarah Eden is well-known for her ability to tug at the heartstrings, and this book is no exception. It's the kind of romance that immerses you in the time and place, and makes the characters seem so real that you want to sit and visit with them yourself. This is one of my favorite stories of hers. Well, to tell the truth, the entire Hope Springs series has an honored place on my rainy day shelf. It's that good!

If you haven't read this series yet, you need to run out and get your copy right away!

You can download your copy of Love Remains here

Don't forget to scroll down and enter the giveaway.

Here's the back copy:

For nearly a year, Tavish O’Connor has carried the crushing weight of his family’s future on his shoulders. He has taken on the care of his youngest brother, Finbarr, who lost his eyesight in a terrible accident. But the lad needs more than Tavish can provide. Finbarr needs hope.

Cecily Attwater specializes in hope. As a tutor to the newly blind, she has dedicated her life to helping others overcome the obstacles she herself has conquered. Her new assignment in a remote corner of Wyoming proves trickier than usual: Finbarr refuses to learn. To make matters worse, his family—and the other Irish townspeople—are less than thrilled to discover an Englishwoman in their haven.

Cecily’s only hope lies in securing the cooperation of her pupil’s brother Tavish, who happens to be her harshest critic and quite possibly the most frustrating man she’s ever known.

For Finbarr’s sake, Tavish and Cecily forge an uneasy alliance that, as the weeks pass, tiptoes toward something deeper than either dares admit or face, and toward a future they know to be impossible. There can be no hope of a happy outcome for an Irish man and an English woman amongst a people reeling from violence and centuries of hatred between their two homelands.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Griffin Force Series Boxed Set Is Here!

It took longer than expected, but Griffin Force series boxed set is finally here including The Captive, The Captain, and The Capture! (Say that fast three times, haha!)

I can't even tell you how excited I am to see all three of these books together. It was a long time coming. And now you can binge-read all the action, adventure, and romance all over again!

Download your copy here

My House Is Haunted Whenever I Have A Stephanie Black Book To Read (And A Giveaway!)

Well, as most of you know, I'm a scaredy-cat when it comes to reading Stephanie Black books, but they're just so good I can't resist them! So I was brave and dove into her new one called Mind Games. Oh. My. Goodness. You will not even believe what happened.

A little history, first of all. Years ago when I was reading one of Stephanie's first books that came out, it was late at night and it was at an extremely tense part of the book. I sat up in bed because I couldn't stand it anymore and there was just enough light for me to see MY ROCKING CHAIR START TO ROCK. By itself.

Yeah, I freaked out. Totally.

And then my cat walked out from behind it with no idea of how badly she'd scared me. But after that, I read the rest of the book with the lights on, I'll tell you what.

Fast forward to today. I'm at the climax of Stephanie's new release Mind Games, in the family room with my entire family and there's A HUGE CRASH IN MY BASEMENT.

We all look at each other and then send my husband down to investigate. A headboard in the storage room just fell over. By itself. A reasonable explanation, right? But I was still a little freaked out, so I turned all the lights on to finish the book. And I mean ALL the lights. But I've still been jittery all day!

Stephanie Black books do that to me. I don't ever watch horror shows or anything like that because I'm a scaredy-cat. Stephanie's books aren't scary, but they are TENSE! Just when I think I know who the culprit is, she has me thinking that maybe it could actually be this other person I really like! Turn a few pages more and it could totally be this other person. I can never guess who it is and believe me, that's hard to do. I can usually guess the villains in other books. Mind Games is particularly creepy, though, because there's this woman Heather who seems to be able to predict the future and it's never a good thing. And then there's these shocking twists that will seriously make you say, NO WAY THAT JUST HAPPENED.

I guess I better back up a little bit and tell you about the book. I'm still so rattled! (Which you can tell by the all caps. I NEVER use those in reviews.) Our main heroine Natalie has finally accomplished her dream of  providing mental health services in a newly renovated 19th century building, but things seem to be going wrong from the start. At their opening, a woman who says that the ghost who lives in the building isn't happy about what's going on, tries to jump to her death. Natalie and her friends stop her, but she seems to know where they live and a lot of information about them and doesn't ever really go away. Then there's these robberies happening at the mental health clinic employees' apartments and people getting followed, but that's just the beginning of the spooky stuff. Natalie and her boyfriend Gideon get pulled into this web of lies and murder that seems to pull them tighter and tighter into someone's plot that could leave them dead as well. (And you'll never guess who it is!) It's so completely absorbing, you won't be able to put the book down, but yeah, my advice is to keep the lights on at all times! And lock your doors!

Be sure to scroll down and enter the giveaway, IF YOU DARE!

Here's the back copy:

Psychologist Natalie Marsh’s dream is now reality: her mental health services clinic has opened and is housed in an elegant, newly renovated nineteenth-century building. Unfortunately, not everyone is happy with the clinic’s presence, including Heather Osbourne, a troubled young woman who wholly objects to the occupation of the building. Heather has spent years wandering the halls of the abandoned structure, convinced she’s communing with her ancestor’s ghost. When Natalie thwarts Heather’s attempt to leap from a window, the shaken psychologist soon realizes Heather’s failed jump is merely one piece of a disturbing puzzle. Greed and deceit are weaving a web around Natalie, and someone will stop at nothing—not even murder—to get what they want. Stretched to her breaking point, Natalie struggles to learn the truth, but only one thing is clear: nothing is as it seems.

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

Book Tour Schedule:

*Sept. 11th: http://bonnieharris.blogspot.com/, http://ldswritermom.blogspot.com/

*Sept. 12th: http://melsshelves.blogspot.com/, http://empowermoms.net/

*Sept. 13th: http://mybookaday.blogspot.com/, http://reviewsfromtheheart.blogspot.com/

*Sept. 14th: http://gettingyourreadonaimeebrown.blogspot.com/, http://katiescleanbookcollection.blogspot.com/, http://lisaisabookworm.blogspot.com/, http://whynotbecauseisaidso.blogspot.com/

*Sept. 15th: http://booksaresanity.blogspot.com/, http://brooklynberrydesigns.com/, http://minreadsandreviews.blogspot.com/, http://literarytimeout.blogspot.com/

TWO Freebies for You Today!

I'm so excited to pass along two freebies to you today!

The first one is a fantasy with fairies and mortals, war and romance, called Of Ice and Snow by Amber Argyle.

Here's the back copy:

Never bargain with the fae . . .

The fourth, throwaway son of the clanchief, Otec witnesses his faraway mountain village come under attack by raiders while all the other men are off to war. Cut off from his clan, he must trust a foreign woman stalked by a dark, mysterious magic as they race to save his people.

Dodging enemies, Otec soon discovers that what he thought was a mere raid is actually a full-scale invasion. The woman helping him—the one he’s developing feelings for—is not only one of the raiders, she’s also his best chance of survival.

You can download your free Kindle copy here

The second freebie is a regency romance by GG Vandagriff called The Taming of Lady Kate. This marriage of convenience might not be so convenient after all!

Here's the back copy:

Lady Kate Derramore and the Marquis of Northbrooke have one thing in common: In order to receive their inheritances, they must marry. Lady Kate, prevented from marrying the man she loves by her father's will, determines to marry for convenience. With the forthrightness for which she is noted, she sets her sights on Jack--aforesaid Marquis. Jack, meanwhile, has tumbled into love with Kate at their first meeting.

All might have gone swimmingly, were it not for his "other life," the mysterious job that calls him out of town at the most inopportune moments. Unwittingly, he puts Lady Kate's life in danger, and while attempting to rescue her comes up against her "reins-grabbing" nature.

Will he ever be able to master Lady Kate? Will he ever be able to oust another man from her heart? And, despite Kate's penchant for disaster, will he be able to save her life and his own?

You can download your free copy here