REVIEW: Andromeda's Fall by Abigail Owen

If you enjoyed this book, don't miss the Svatura series: Blue Violet, Hyacinth, Crimson Dahlia, & Black Orchid!

From the Inside Flap

 

Mountain lion shifters have allied into ten groups called Dares which together form the Shadowcat Nation. A rocky alliance at best, its success is vital to their survival against other species of shifters who threaten their very existence.

REVIEW:

5 Stars

‘Andromeda’s Fall’ is one of the very best shape shifter novels I have ever read.  One of the strongest points is that Owens doesn’t waste a lot of time showing how the shifting happens or how shifters fit into the non-shifting population. The subject matter she concentrates on are the politics within a ‘Dare’, or family of cougar shifters, and between separate Dares, and also some of the differences between species.  After all, in nature, cougars are solitary animals, and therefore it was hard for cougar shifters to adapt to living as a group, unlike wolves, who are used to their packs.  Because shifters frequently hunt other species, solitary cougars wouldn’t survive very long.  So there are now several different Dares, all part of the Shadowcat Nation.

 

Love and matrimony is different within a cougar Dare than among non-shifting humans, including the possibility of predestined mates which also forms a major plot point.  Andromeda Reynolds is a strong member of the Carstairs Dare, so strong that the Alpha wants to force her to be his mate, because it would increase his power. Andromeda definitely doesn’t want that, so she decides to go to the Keller Dare and ask for asylum. She hopes she could mate with their Alpha, Jaxon Keller, to guarantee her safety.  Instead, she is put under the watchful eye of A.J., one of the Alpha’s Protectors, to be tested and trained, and before she even gets to meet Jaxon Keller, Andromeda finds herself strongly attracted to A.J.

 

Things get even messier when Kyle Carstairs figures out where Andromeda has gone, so he organizes an attack to get her back.  But there are secrets everywhere.  A.J. has a big one.  Certain of the Carstairs cougars have a few of their own.  And Andromeda has some; she surprises everyone after the attack. The battle brings a lot of serious disputes, and some pretty spectacular action, into the story, along with a few other species of shifters.  One of these shifters is Zac Montclair, a character I just love!

 

There is a lot of action in this book, involving many very well drawn characters and a lot of strong, beautiful romance, with the shape shifting details carefully blended in.  I think this is the way a shape shifter story should be told, and I highly recommend ‘Andromeda’s Fall’ to anyone who likes paranormal romance.  I’m looking forward to other books about the Shadowcat Nation.

 

‘Andromeda’s Fall’, in my opinion, well deserved 5 Stars.  I am very, very grateful for the reviewer’s copy I received.

Reviewed by: Roberta 

 

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REVIEW: Sizzle and Bang by Keta Diablo

A collection of four novellas
Blood Oath
Kale travels to Savannah to find his destiny. Instead, he's attacked by rogue vampires and saved by the most beautiful man he's ever laid eyes on. Questions about who killed his parents years ago are answered, but more arise about his future. Action/Adventure/ in sultry Savannah.
Hot and Sticky
An attorney must call in his paralegal at the midnight hour to locate an important file. Both men finally surrender to the passion and lust they've stifled for months. An office romance that will leave you breathless.
Valentine's Vindication
Deke attends Val's party with the intent of winning him back after their breakup. Deke knows he'll never find another Dom like Val. Now he must convince the man he's sorry for hurting him.
Lip Service
Navarre sets out to surprise Bryan when he arrives at his hotel room. Instead, he finds another man in the room! Who is the stranger, and what does he do now?

REVIEW

 

Rating: 4 Stars

Keta has done a great job with her compilation of 4 Hot short stories. All have their own unique story line that stirs the senses and the characters reach out to you in a quest to bring you along on the journey. Hot, Sizzling Sex with a touch of BDSM in a couple of them. Definitely worth the read.

Blood Oath - A vampire who meets his destiny, who loves him and saves him...Vampire to Vampire....Hot!
 
Hot and Sticky - Boss/employee lust turns into more...Much, much more....Hot
 
Valentine's Vindication - DOM/Sub brought back together after infidelity, and the HOT BDSM in asking for forgiveness. Hot! HOT!

Lip Service - Surprise anniversary visit turns to jealousy, but ends into another forgiving act of submission.
 
These stories are very enjoyable reads. If you love MM Romance and Love. you will like these. Enjoy!  

 

REVIEWED BY: Pam

 

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REVIEW: Dream Lover by Nancy Fraser

When offered the position of nanny for widowed Eric Garrison’s young children, Haley Parker hesitates only a moment before accepting what could be the perfect job.
Despite a hectic workload as a defense attorney, Eric does his best to spend time with his family. The more he gets to know Haley, the more he admires how she handles his kids. And the more insistent his attraction for the lovely, young nanny becomes.
Despite Haley’s resolve to not become involved, at night she dreams of him. Dreams far too steamy to share with even her closest friend Chloe.
On a family vacation to Paris, they spend an incredible night together, but will her dream lover disappear in the light of day?

REVIEW

 

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Haley Parker had to withdraw from her university studies to take care of her dying mother.  Now, she needs to find a job, hopefully one that will give her some evenings free so she can take night classes, get her degree in Education, and become a teacher.  Her friend Chloe has already done so, and helps Haley get a position as a nanny.  Widowed criminal defense lawyer Eric Garrison needs help caring for his two children, and Haley fits his requirements very well.

And so begins ‘Dream Lover’, a very traditional love story by Nancy Fraser.  The story takes place in 1959, set primarily in Boston but including a beautiful family vacation in Paris, to visit Eric Garrison’s widowed step-mother.  Now, by traditional, I mean that this book feels very much like the romances that I read and loved in college, back in the early ‘70’s.  The characters are nicely drawn, and quite likeable.  There is no real villain, although there are suggestions that Eric’s younger brother is somewhat less than a gentleman, and you may suspect his step-mother at first, also.  Primarily, though, Fraser has built a straight-forward romance between Haley, a lonely woman without any surviving family, and Eric, a widower who loves his children very much and wants them properly cared for.  You really want this pair to end up together, especially after the one less-traditional night they spend together, including a very powerful, and enjoyable, sexual romantic sequence.  Yes, these two are quite definitely in love.  The only question remaining is, can they make room in their life plans for each other?

There is nothing complicated, mysterious, or suspenseful about ‘Dream Lover’.  It is a lovely, enjoyable romance. You meet two very attractive but somewhat lonely people, from different backgrounds; a pair of adorable children; and some other characters who are important to the lovers’ lives.  Kick off your shoes, curl up in a comfortable chair, and meet some new imaginary friends.  I give this book a 4.5 rating, for any readers who yearn for a relaxing love story.

I am very grateful for the reviewer’s copy I was sent.

 

REVIEWED BY: Roberta 

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REVIEW: Light a Candle for the Beast by Echo Shea

If you’ve ever been caught in a riptide, pulled down into the water, then you know me. Or, more accurately, what
 
Delia was beautiful, smart, and kind. He wasn’t. He said he loved her, but he didn’t know what love was. He was manipulative and cruel—more than a thief. A beast.
 
All she wanted was a rose…
 
These are the words on my sister’s grave. Her sadness, her obsession, forever a reminder I didn’t--couldn’t save her.
 
I’m not vindictive or cruel. I’m simply as the river--my memory is winding and my reach is long. I watched him steal her beauty, her essence. Watched him become a beast. He thought he'd get away with it, thought he'd go free.
 
I lay a rose upon my sister's grave.
 
Light a candle for the beast.

I’m like when I’m angry.




 
Purchase Links: 
http://www.amazon.com/Light-Candle-Beast-Echo-Shea-ebook/dp/B00Q0FO550
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/light-a-candle-for-the-beast-echo-shea/1120812975?ean=2940150731523

REVIEW

 

Rating: 3.5 Stars

  

Eden’s sister, Delia was a victim of love for the wrong man.  Andrew was possessive, cruel, violent, and intolerant, and finally, in 1734, Delia died.  But Eden, unlike her sister, was a Naiad, goddess-touched so she could live on land, and using her own special strengths, she took revenge, condemning Andrew to a cage in the land of the dead, transformed to a beast, a never-ending punishment.

But now, over 200 years later, Delia wants his punishment to end.  She loved Andrew, after all, and she is in pain knowing of his agony, so she is doing everything she can to make Eden forgive him.  After all, vengeance doesn’t just punish the guilty; Delia can’t rest while he suffers, and Eden herself is damned, if only from the memories, from knowing that she hadn’t been able to save her sister.  But she does not believe in forgiveness.

And this is the theme of this tightly-written short story: revenge punishes everyone, and no one can be freed from that punishment until the guilty is forgiven.  ‘Light a Candle for the Beast’ is an interesting recreation of Greek mythology, only 23 pages long but still a complete story.  Yes, there were times I would have liked a few more details, perhaps more description or characterization, but I also respect Echo Shea’s ability to tell a complete story without stretching anything out, accepting that her readers have their own knowledge and imagination.

Although I did enjoy reading this story, I still had a few questions I would have liked answered, so I rate it 3.5 stars.  Still, I recommend it to anyone who enjoys delving into Greek myth. If you’ve studied any of these legends, you are quite likely to have a few interesting dreams after you finish the story.

I’m grateful for the reviewer’s copy I was given.

 

REVIEWED BY: Roberta 

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