REVIEW: Festive In Death by J.D. Robb

Title: Festive In Death by J.D. Robb (In Death #39)
Author: J.D. Robb
Publisher: Putnam
Publication Date: September, 2014
Genre: Mystery / Thriller / Romantic Suspense / Urban Fantasy
Buy The Book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

Description: Eve Dallas deals with a homicide—and the holiday season—in the latest from the #1 New York Times bestselling author.

Personal trainer Trey Ziegler was in peak physical condition. If you didn't count the kitchen knife in his well-toned chest.

Lieutenant Eve Dallas soon discovers a lineup of women who'd been loved and left by the narcissistic gym rat. While Dallas sorts through the list of Ziegler's enemies, she's also dealing with her Christmas shopping list—plus the guest list for her and her billionaire husband's upcoming holiday bash.

Feeling less than festive, Dallas tries to put aside her distaste for the victim and solve the mystery of his death. There are just a few investigating days left before Christmas, and as New Year's 2061 approaches, this homicide cop is resolved to stop a cold-blooded killer.

My Thoughts: This series just keeps getting better and better and hands down, I can’t think of another series that delivers everything in one package the way this series does. With Eve Dallas and her posse, you get murder, mayhem, chaos, nail-biting suspense, action, adventure, humor and romance. You get kick-ass characters like Eve that have your back and will stand for justice regardless of how despicable the victim was, swoon-worthy Irish brogue accent having characters like Roarke that make the reader fan themselves, strong and loyal characters like Peabody and Mavis that you want to be friends with, characters like Summerset and Trina that drive Eve up the wall which makes for some very funny moments and compassionate, kind and loving characters like Dr. Mira that you just want to hug. This series has it all and each book brings these characters together seamlessly. When I am among them, I feel like I am with friends and family.

With Festive In Death, we join Dallas and Peabody as they investigate the murder of personal trainer, Trey Ziegler. Unfortunately for Trey, eating right and exercising did not prolong his life. I felt no compassion for him and the list of suspects is long as Eve discovers Trey was a despicable and narcissistic bastard who used people to get what he wants. As the investigation proceeds and more about Trey’s activities come to light, I decided that it’s a good thing he’s dead because if Eve could get her hands on him, she would throw his worthless behind in an off-planet cage for the rest of his life. Eve Dallas’s world is definitely much better without Trey Ziegler in it.

Additionally, Eve finds herself trying to juggle the investigation, finish her Christmas shopping and prepare for Roarke’s major Christmas party. Fans of this series will be delighted to see how Eve manages Christmas shopping on her own and having to endure Trina’s attention to her hair and skin for the party. She even gets roped into an agreement with Summerset in exchange for his assistance with wrapping presents.

The plot and dialogue moves at a wonderful pace and kept me thoroughly entertained up to the end. It took me to very nearly the end of the book to finally make a correct guess of the identity of the killer. It surprised me but I am often surprised with this series because the author does a brilliant job of dangling just enough details at the reader to draw them in and hook them without spoiling the suspense too soon.

My Final Verdict: There is no way to recommend this book without sounding like a broken record, so please bear with me. This amazing series is one not to be missed. Great storylines and wonderful character and relationship dynamics will provide many hours of reading entertainment and enjoyment and will make the reader hungry for more.

REVIEW: A Hopeaholic's Hallelujah by Vanessa Stevenson

Title: A Hopeaholic’s Hallelujah
Author: Vanessa Stevenson
Publisher: Amazon
Publication Date: July, 2014
Genre: Chick-Lit
Buy The Book: Amazon

Description: “URGINT!
SINERS needed NOW for a Wroking Holliday in Cyprus!
Work six nites/week. Injoy sites in the day. And sun and beech.
3 munth kontrakt. Start ASAP.”

Only desperate people answer dodgy ads . . .

Enter reckless optimist Jessica Hollingberry.

The gamble is audacious. The stakes are high. But all Jess sees is the chance to win back her fiancé and turn her life around. Anyway, it’s not like it’s a life-or-death situation; it’s just a short stint on an exotic island. What’s the worst that could happen?

Then she meets delectable, irresistible Aidan Reynolds, and she suddenly realizes the odds were stacked against her from the start. She doesn't have a prayer.

My Thoughts: Aspiring singer Jessica moves to Cyprus to accept a contract to perform for the tourists. Unfortunately, Jessica’s experience does not go the way she envisions. Her accommodations are atrocious, the people who hired her are awful, her schedule is a stand-by on call position and she finds herself attracted to Aidan, one of her singing partners. I liked Jessica, Aidan and the other singers but I really struggled with staying connected to the story. I kept waiting for Jessica to make a decision about her future, whether it would be with Aidan or her fiancé, Peter; whether to stay in Cyprus or return to London. By the time she made the decisions, the book was over and I felt like the ending was rushed.

My Final Verdict: Though I found parts of this story enjoyable and entertaining, overall the storyline dragged on far too long with a rushed resolution.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of The Hopeaholic’s Hallelujah from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

BLOG TOUR: Her SEALed Fate by Lori Ryan

Logan Stone should be happy. More than happy, in fact. He’s Sutton Capital’s newest executive, working side-by-side with Samantha Page, the sexy, brilliant woman of his dreams. He’s no longer overseas in the line of fire, fighting alongside his brothers-in-arms as a Navy SEAL, but Logan is fighting a different kind of battle. One no one realizes he’s in. While he was focused on managing his PTSD, something much more sinister enters his world and he must battle to save Samantha’s life and their growing love.

REVIEW: Dead Romantic by Ruth Saberton

Title: Dead Romantic
Author: Ruth Saberton
Publisher: Notting Hill Press
Publication Date: October, 2014
Genre: Chick-Lit / Paranormal Romance
Buy The Book: Amazon

Description: What do you do if you come face to face with a ghost?

Put it down to a bump on the head and work stress if you’re a respected academic like Cleo Carpenter. With Christmas approaching, professional rivalry afoot and a best friend determined to interfere in her love life the strain is clearly starting to get to her.

Guilt-stricken and deceased, Alex Thorne is desperate to make amends with his brother, Rafe, a tortured musician trapped in a spiral of destruction. When an encounter with Cleo forges a link between them she becomes his only hope. So what if the only person who can see him is a sceptic?

As Cleo starts to doubt her sanity, the safe world she takes for granted crumbles around her. Setting out to regain control and prove once and for all ghosts don’t exist, she embarks on a journey of self-discovery and surprise, learning that love really does defy science, logic and maybe even death itself…

My Thoughts: Dead Romantic by new to me author Ruth Saberton is a charming and entertaining story about a woman named Cleo Carpenter who discovers after a head injury that there is much more to life than her work as an Egyptologist. The arrival of the ghost of deceased rock star, Alex Thorne forces Cleo not only to reevaluate her priorities in life, but also to question her sanity. Alex is determined to enlist Cleo’s help in helping his brother, Rafe, climb out of his pit of self-destruction since Alex’s death. Never mind that Alex believes Cleo and Rafe are destined for one another and hopes that bringing these two together will benefit more than just Rafe.

I really enjoyed this story. Cleo, Alex and Rafe are wonderful characters that I quickly liked and found easy to relate to. They are the type of characters that would be a lot of fun to hang out with. I also liked Cleo’s roommate, Susie. So many times I wished Alex weren’t a ghost because it was so tragic that someone so vibrant with love, life and energy was dead. Cleo was great as a skeptic of the paranormal and I really enjoyed seeing the numerous ghosts reaching out to her trying to communicate with her, especially when she finally does see them. I found the background story of Cleo’s work and her research into the death of a boy Pharaoh very interesting and the work-place sabotage and rivalry was intriguing. The story moves at an excellent pace and I was on pins and needles with anticipation of what would happen next.

My Final Verdict: Though this book has a Christmas setting, I highly recommend reading it anytime of the year. I am now a fan of Ruth Saberton’s work and look forward to reading more from her.

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of Dead Romantic from the author in exchange for an honest review.

New Additions To The TBR Pile In July

Unfortunately, I hit a major reading slump at the end of June that extended through most of July. Thank Goodness I was ahead of my reading goal, otherwise I would now be behind. Hopefully, I will be able to make up for this now that I'm back to reading again. The slump did not affect the arrival of new books in July and August is already looking to be a busy month for new arrivals too.

Title: First Time With A Highlander by Gwyn Cready
Description: Second in a new Scottish time travel romance series perfect for readers of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander...

Serabeth’s no-good fiancé is dead, and she needs a husband fast, or she’ll be ruined. Her indignant and handsome captive will do just fine, if she can keep her mind focused on the business at hand...

Gerard is a love-'em-and-leave-'em ad exec who opens the door to a wild party in 21st century New York and wakes up in 18th century Edinburgh with a hangover and a beautiful, disinterested new “wife” who says he has “served his purpose.”

What the kilt?

Title: Love Muffin And Chai Latte by Anya Wylde
Description: Love Muffin and Chai Latte follows the journey of Tabitha Lee Timmons as she deals with financial stress, loony relatives, some crooks, an unhappy bride to be, a grumpy old man and two heartbreakingly handsome men.

Clear your calendar, turn on your voicemail and get cozy on the sofa as Anya Wylde has decided to dip her toes into the world of contemporary romance …

Tabby believes she has found the one in Chris. Chris appears to think the same for he pops the question, and soon Tabby finds herself engaged.

Tabby thinks her biggest problem is picking out the wedding dress and refining the dinner menu. Chris begs to differ. He thinks her biggest problem is convincing his wealthy grandfather that she is perfect for the family or he risks losing a big fat inheritance.

Convincing his grandfather turns out to be more complicated than she anticipates. For one, he wants her to seek the blessings of his spiritual adviser. The trouble is . . . his adviser lives in India.

So, for the sake of love, Tabby journeys into the heart of India and battles monkeys, crooks, Delhi belly and the advisor himself in order to win over Chris’s family.

But while she is trying to make sense of an exotic new world, she begins to wonders why her heart beats madly for a man who is not her fiancé but his very handsome cousin….

Title: Miss Wrong And Mr. Right by Robert Bryndza
Description: Natalie Love has worked hard to have it all: she runs a successful theatre in Soho that’s about to host one of Hollywood’s leading stars. Her biggest supporter is her eccentric Hungarian Gran, and she even has the ‘perfect’ yoga teacher boyfriend – Namaste!

Life in the bright lights of London has always been Natalie’s escape from her chaotic country family in rural Devon and Jamie, the childhood sweetheart she left at the altar 15 years ago. And then he turns up at her theatre door…

With rivalry clouding old feelings, events in Soho bring Jamie and Natalie together in hilarious ways. Gran is loose in the city once more, it seems to be raining sandwiches and records are broken for Burlesque flash mobs. If she can keep her world together, will Natalie discover who is really Mr Right, and that perhaps she isn’t Miss Wrong?

From bestselling author Robert Bryndza comes this hilariously heartfelt comedy!