To Sin with a Viking by Michelle Willingham

To Sin with a Viking by Michelle Willingham

Forbidden Vikings Series, Book 1

Publisher: Harlequin Historical (July 2013)

283 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $1.99)

Book Rating: 3 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Caragh and her small village are starving, many of the men including her two elder brothers have gone off in search of food, when a Viking ship appears, and assuming they mean to attack the village, there is a struggle, ending in Caragh taking the leader, Styr, captive. Unbidden, captor and captive grow closer to each other than either of them intended. Even if it didn't go beyond small touches, embraces and kisses, and wasn't technically adultery, it nonetheless, for me, crossed the line. And when Styr was struggling so hard to remain true and faithful, I didn't think it said much for Caragh to force a kiss upon him and continue pursuing him, ensuring his betrayal of his vows, regardless of her initial intentions. Once Styr was free of entanglement is one thing, but before . . . no, regardless of his wife's actions or their estrangement, he was not free and nothing should have happened other than perhaps words. I thought their slowly developing relationship was so beautifully orchestrated, that I wish it could have been achieved without the betrayal of his vows. Caragh's continued pursuit of a married man made it difficult for me to remain her proponent, though I admit I found her very likable and sympathized with her plight. I was also disappointed in Styr for giving into weakness. I enjoyed the brooding picturesque quality of the writing, and found the melding of the Viking and Irish worlds intriguing. The next book in this series is To Tempt a Viking, due out next year.

McKenna's Honor by Suzan Tisdale

McKenna's Honor by Suzan Tisdale

The Clan MacDougall Series, Book 4

Publisher: Suzan Tisdale (July 2013)

99 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $1.99)

Book Rating: 4 Stars

Angus and Duncan are accused of treason, are facing death, and have confessed to the charges, meanwhile their wives and Duncan's children are missing, so the Seven Clans immediately take it upon themselves to do what they can to help the men and clear their names. Along the way the MacDougalls gain the assistance of Lady Arline in attempting to foil the plot. An entertaining sideline adventure that introduces Lady Arline in preparation for Rowan's Lady, due out in October 2013. I had hoped she would end up with Daniel, but it seems her attention lies elsewhere . . . pity. This novella is not a romance story, more an action/adventure segue between full length books within the series, entertaining nonetheless.

Trudy by Debra Holland

Trudy by Debra Holland

Mail-Order Brides of the West, Book 2

The Montana Sky Series, Prequel

Publisher: Debra Holland (July 2013)

210 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $2.99)

Book Rating: 4 Stars

Sensuality: White Heart

Believing himself in love with a saloon girl, Seth sets out to propose to her only to find out she's left town with another man, and in the process he invents a fictitious bride to save face and manages to get himself involved in a bet between saloon patrons as to the mystery girl's existence, leaving him with no option but to write for a mail-order bride and try to produce the woman he made up. Trudy is looking for adventure out west and happens to match the physical description of Seth's mystery girl. The playful banter between Seth and Trudy was great, but I felt bad for her, unwittingly getting tied to a man who believed himself in love with another woman, especially after all the effort she put into their relationship. In the end Seth came through, but I'd have liked him to come clean and see the light a little sooner, poor Trudy. Trudy was such a strong, independent woman, and despite her unfamiliar surroundings, she jumped right in with both feet and I thought she really shined as a capable woman, destined to be a pillar of their small community. I'm interested to read further tales in the Montana Sky Series, and I hope that a few more Mail-Order Brides of the West tales for Sweetwater are to follow!

Evie by Caroline Fyffe

Evie by Caroline Fyffe

Mail-Order Brides of the West, Book 1

The McCutcheon Family Series, Book 3

Publisher: Caroline Fyffe (July 2013)

179 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $2.99)

Book Rating: 5 Stars

Sensuality: White Heart

Evie works as a maid for a Mail-Order Bride Agency, and decides she'd like to become a mail-order bride herself, but fears her background wouldn't make her a very good candidate and secretly takes matters into her own hands, corresponding with prospective husband, Chance. This was a sweet story about two people, who knew virtually nothing about one another, yet desperately wanted a life mate, and were willing to ride out a few bumps along the way to get it. It was nice to get a glimpse of some characters from the McCutcheon Family Series, and I look forward to reading Trudy's Montana Sky story.

Rock Chick Regret by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Regret by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Series, Book 7

Publisher: Kristen Ashley (December 2011)

502 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $4.99)

Book Rating: 5 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Isolated by her Drug Lord father for most of her life, with whom she had a distant and cold relationship, Sadie chose to cope with her loneliness by arming herself with the Ice Princess persona, keeping people at a distance in order to protect herself, but Hector seemed to be unaffected by the ice as he pushed past her defenses determined to get to the real Sadie hiding inside. Hector was great in this, taking things slow after her rape, but keeping at it with determination, not letting her push him away. I also liked that despite a few icy episodes, Sadie was a little more acquiescent and less catty then previous women in this series. This story, like the one before, was told from multiple points of view, unlike the first few books in the series that were all told in first person from the heroine's point of view, and I liked being able to get the Hot Bunch's take now and then. Ally's up next in the last book of the series, Rock Chick Revolution, due out next month. I can't wait!

Rock Chick Reckoning by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Reckoning by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Series, Book 6

Publisher: Kristen Ashley (November 2011)

470 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $4.99)

Book Rating: 5 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

When the entire Rock Chick group comes under fire as a warning to the Hot Bunch, Stella is confused about her inclusion in that group since Mace broke up with her over a year ago, only it seems he's changed his mind under the circumstances and has decided they are very much together once again, but Stella doesn't want her heart broken again. Though this story was definitely centered on Mace and Stella, it was heavily sprinkled with the viewpoint of other couples from the series, which I thought gave it a new interesting feel. Once Stella got over her stubbornness, she and Mace were great together and I enjoyed the comfortable relationship that they had. With nearly all previous couples either married or engaged, this book more than any of the previous really brought home the cohesion of the group as a whole, in light of all they'd been through together. I enjoyed the epilogue's look at the crew five years out, curiously seeming like a wrap up to the series, despite the two books that follow, but an enjoyable look nonetheless. The next book in this series is Rock Chick Regret, about Hector and Sadie.

Rock Chick Revenge by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Revenge by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Series, Book 5

Publisher: Kristen Ashley (April 2011)

486 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $4.99)

Book Rating: 4 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Ava has been in love with Luke since they were kids growing up across the street from each other, but she was the overweight girl with glasses and saw Luke as far beyond her reach, but when her best friend has a problem with her cheating husband, Ava decides to go to Luke for help in getting dirt to use for her friend's divorce, though she quickly has second thoughts about the idea. I didn't like Ava much in the beginning, her good and bad angel advisors I thought were annoying and she could be frustratingly secretive. However, she got much better as the story went on, and I really liked her in the end. Luke, was frightening in his pursuit, especially in the beginning, almost to the point of crossing the line of acceptability, but thankfully he eased up along the way and I really liked him in the end, too. It was great to meet The Zanos (Uncle Vito, Ren, Dom and Sissy) and I thought their involvement was great! The next book in this series is Rock Chick Reckoning, about Mace and Stella.

Rock Chick Renegade by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Renegade by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Series, Book 4

Publisher: Kristen Ashley (March 2011)

449 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $4.99)

Book Rating: 5 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Jules is a social worker that has gotten particularly close to three runaway teenage boys, so when one of them ends up dead from drugs she sets out on a crusade against the drug dealers in town, only to run into Vance who is adamant about taking her back while she does so. This is by far, my favorite book of the series thus far. Jules is tough, without being catty and though she was definitely a risk-taker, she did it in a much more controlled, careful way then previous Rock Chicks in this series. Vance was awesome and Jules innocence ironically meshed perfectly with his jaded past and the hardened man he had become because of it. Her purity was just the thing Vance needed to bring out his softness. Awesome! The next book in this series is Rock Chick Revenge, about Luke and Ava.

Rock Chick Redemption by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Redemption by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Series, Book 3

Publisher: Kristen Ashley (March 2011)

428 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $4.99)

Book Rating: 4 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Running away from an ex-boyfriend, and his trouble, who just refuses to believe their relationship is over, Roxie, heads to Denver to meet her long lost uncle Tex and quickly gets wrapped up in the Rock Chick and Hot Bunch crowd at Fortnum's, particularly catching Hank's eye. I wasn't sure about Roxie at first, she almost had a bit too much attitude for me at the outset, but as the story went along and you got to know her better, I really liked her. Like the girls that came before her in this series, she had commitment issues, but luckily she came around in the end. Hank of course was great, as all in the Hot Bunch are, and I like that she didn't fight him too hard along the way, just enough to keep him hopping. The next book in this series is Rock Chick Renegade, about Vance and Jules.

Rock Chick Rescue by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Rescue by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Series, Book 2

Publisher: Kristen Ashley (March 2011)

500 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $1.99)

Book Rating: 3 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Eddie becomes attracted to the new Fortnum's employee, Jet, just as a serious situation involving her father's shady dealings crops up and Eddie decides to move in and help her with her problems, whether she wants the help or not. Jet's commitment issues got old after a while, and though I'm glad there wasn't a sudden unexplained change of heart to fix it, the ending did seem to lax resolution without it, leaving me a bit more unsure about their fate then I'd like to be. If I was Eddie, I'd have thrown in the towel a long way back . . . pretty isn't worth that much trouble. That said, the characters as always were very entertaining, you never know what's going to happen next with this crew, you just have to follow along as the soap opera continues. I hope to see Eddie and Jet better settled as the series goes on, and look forward to reading Hank's story in Rock Chick Redemption.

Rock Chick by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Series, Book 1

Publisher: Kristen Ashley (March 2011)

412 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $4.99)

Book Rating: 4 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Indy's been in love with Lee since she was a little kid, but he never gave her the time of day until she found herself the target of certain criminal elements, then all of the sudden he shows up more than interested and very protective and she's not sure how to feel about that. This was quite similar to other books I've read by this author. A cool girly girl in danger, claimed and protected by a macho man. I've never been much into girly stuff (fashion, makeup, girl time, etc.) but it's nice to have a little sneak peek into that world once in a while anyway. Indy was a bit flighty and dramatic, okay maybe more than a little bit, but she had serious guts and a great ability to take things in stride, which I thought was awesome. Lee was great, but how can a badass, macho man whose a softy on the inside not be great? I felt bad for Lee having to deal with Indy and her antics, but he signed up for it so, it was better just to focus on enjoying the soap opera as it unfolded, because you never knew what she and Ally were going to get themselves into next. I'm looking forward to reading Eddie and Jet's story in the next book in this series, Rock Chick Rescue.

Cabin Bound Breeding Sex: Bred by the Lumberjack by Arthur Mitchell

Cabin Bound Breeding Sex: Bred by the Lumberjack by Arthur Mitchell

Publisher: Red Ice Press (April 2013)

62 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $2.99)

Book Rating: 5 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Looking to escape the stark reality of the city, Kim heads out into the woods to lose herself in the tranquility of the forest and ends up getting lost in the cold woods, before stumbling upon Paul's isolated cabin. The natural simplicity of his life and his work as a lumberjack was great, resembling in many ways a romanticized version of pioneer cabin life, but with all the basic modern conveniences. The security he provides gives her a freedom to seek what her city life lacks, and I found Kim very easy to relate to. Great Read!

Fertile Sex Exam by Arthur Mitchell

Fertile Sex Exam by Arthur Mitchell

Publisher: Red Ice Press (December 2012)

36 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $2.99)

Book Rating: 4 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

After a move to the big city, Sherry's inability to find fulfillment begins to worry her and she seeks medical help. Dr. Noyes helps her with her problem, but only in exchange for what he wants - her having his baby. This short story is an interesting take on the doctor/patient fantasy, with a bit of BDSM and breeding mixed in. I thought the good doctor was slightly creepy, but then again Sherry was a little odd herself, so they made a good pair.

Dark Prairie Fire by Arthur Mitchell

Dark Prairie Fire by Arthur Mitchell

Publisher: Red Ice Press (June 2013)

99 pages, eBook (purchased myself for $2.99)

Book Rating: 4 Stars

Sensuality: Red Heart

Fresh out of college, Cat returns to run the family ranch after her father is murdered, and finds a helping hand, supportive companion and fierce protector in neighboring rancher, Ethan. This novella length tale provides a bit of mystery with some modern day vigilante justice and wild west bravado, with a little BDSM mixed in. I liked the isolated setting on the Dakota plains and thought Ethan and Cat were great together. Great Read!