Marie Reviews What The Heck Dec by Elizabeth Dudak

What the Heck, Dec?! by Elizabeth Dudak
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Marti Karnawski is waiting in the front office of Noteah Middle School trying to land first her teaching position, not a man. Yet one casual glance at Declan Reed - the school’s droolicious social worker with bad boy looks and cocky attitude - and she can’t help but fall head over in heels in crush. The fact he returns her interest, despite the other woman on his arm, poses a problem. Marti spent a lifetime trying to forgive a philandering father and understanding a mother in constant denial. She will not be the other woman - not even for one Declan Reed. Now all she has to do is convince her heart.

MY REVIEW:

I started reading this book and liked Marti right off the bat. Her off the cuff, say what ever is on your mind attitude is awesomely refreshing. The fact that she is a little awkward makes her human. I was definitely able to relate to her sarcastic wit and sense of humor. The settings and people are so well described you can picture them as if you are sitting amongst the characters while the story unfolds. The chemistry between Marti and Dec is explosive. He is portrayed as very much the romance hunk that is required for a convincing male lead in an "Awwwww" inspiring love story. Even though the real sex scenes don't come in until toward the end of the book, the culmination of their need for each other is palpable through each chapter. You can experience it, as though you are the heroine yourself.
I absolutely loved this book. I found myself tugged by the desire to ignore obligations, and even the call of my rumbling stomach when I had missed breakfast by several hours because I did not want to put it down, and picked it back up as quickly as I could thereafter. I look forward to future titles by this author.
I was given this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

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Marie Reviews Meant for her By Amy Gamet

Meant for Her by Amy Gamet

Blurb:
A code that only she can break…
A man that only she was made for…
A raging fire consumes a Floridahotel room, leaving behind the charred remains of a mystery man and the key to a safe deposit box. What’s inside leads investigators to Julie Trueblood, a woman who is not what she seems, and a secret that only she can decipher.
Julie’s life has been devastated once before, and she has spent the last ten years trying to separate herself from history. The fire forces open the door to her past, bringing her face-to-face with her greatest fears, and her only hope for the future.
As the Navy investigator on the case, Hank Jared realizes he’s three steps behind the moment he walks in the door. While he works to unravel the truth behind his assignment, passion ignites between him and Julie. Will he choose the love of a woman he doesn’t completely trust, or the Navy career he has worked for his entire life?
 
 
 
 
 
 
MY REVIEW:
 
 

Julie's father had been labeled a traitor for decoding top secret military information and handing it over to the enemy, which led to disaster for the Navy. She has been living under her mother's maiden name to escape the scrutiny of her father's infamy. When a man turns up dead in a torched motel room that is assumed to be her father, she is the only one who can decode his final message. Hank Jared is the Naval Investigator, who happens to be falling for Julie, but doesn't know if she was sympathetic to her father's cause or not. Julie doesn't know if she can trust Hank, or if he is just using her to decode the message and solve the case. I don't want to give too many details to spoil the story.

I enjoyed this book. The mystery aspect was compelling. The story was interesting. It held my attention and kept me reading. I especially liked Gwen. I look forward to reading her story. There was enough of the plot left open for developing further on the characters. It was romantic, without sexual detail. I don't mind reading a book with or without the detail, but it has to work. I was sold on the chemistry between Hank and Julie.

I was given this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

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Marie Reviews About Last Night By Ruthie Knox

About Last Night by Ruthie Knox
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Book DescriptionPublication Date:June 11, 2012

Sure, opposites attract, but in this sexy, smart, eBook original romance from Ruthie Knox, they positively combust! When a buttoned-up banker falls for a bad girl, "about last night" is just the beginning.Cath Talarico knows a mistake when she makes it, and God knows she’s made her share. So many, in fact, that this Chicago girl knows London is her last, best shot at starting over. But bad habits are hard to break, and soon Cath finds herself back where she has vowed never to go . . . in the bed of a man who is all kinds of wrong: too rich, too classy, too uptight for a free-spirited troublemaker like her.
Nev Chamberlain feels trapped and miserable in his family’s banking empire. But beneath his pinstripes is an artist and bohemian struggling to break free and lose control. Mary Catherine—even her name turns him on—with her tattoos, her secrets, and her gamine, sex-starved body, unleashes all kinds of fantasies.
When blue blood mixes with bad blood, can a couple that is definitely wrong for each other ever be perfectly right? And with a little luck and a lot of love, can they make last night last a lifetime?

MY REVIEW:

In this story, the heroine, Cath, aka Mary Catherine, is truly a tortured soul. As a "favor" to an acquaintance in order to get a coveted straight jacket for her museum exhibit, she goes on a blind date with a stranger. Because the date is so boring and because sad memories of her past are brought back by a Patsy Cline impersonator, she drinks too much. Then, of all the big mistakes to make, tries to get home on her own via public transportation.
Thank goodness she runs into City, aka Nev, who comes to her rescue even though she is not that friendly. They had crossed paths for quite a while, several times a week at the train station, and jogging in the park, but they had never formally met, and don't even know the other's name. She gave him a nickname as she did all the people she regularly saw at the train station. For him, she chose "City".
He brings her back safely to his apartment, and plays the perfect gentleman while she is incapacitated. When she wakes up the next morning, she finds how truly considerate he is when he leaves her a clean towel and new toothbrush in the bathroom, and cooks her breakfast. The sparks soon start to fly as she sees him in his home environment, as a hot and sexy artist, not the business suit stuffy City.
She has a set of rules, and an array of tattoos to remind her of her past mistakes and keep her from making them again, reigning her in to her "new Cath" persona. Gradually City breaks down those defenses, little by little until she realizes she is in love with him.
City has his own issues to deal with. He has an inability to stand up to his mother. He is pushed around by his older brother Winston, who you can totally love to hate. One of my favorite parts of the story is when City finally stands up to them and tells them to "Shut up."
Although Cath has had a very painful life, filled with tragedies that she blames herself for, I still like the idea that even as screwed up as she is, she manages to overcome it with the help of Nev. With all her emotional handicaps, she still manages to snag a hero. The hero was definitely my favorite character. He was hot, sexy, charismatic, and had the patience of a saint. Once he cleared up his mommy issues, he was the whole package. The book contained A LOT of sex, but with a heart throb who was so good at it, that isn't a bad thing.
I was given this book for free in exchange for a review.

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Marie Reviews The Great Gift by Misty Wright

The Great Gift by Misty Wright

BOOK DESCRIPTION :

Alyssa is 26 and doesn't like the way all men mistreat her. She decides a change is needed and applies to be a jillaroo on a cattle station named The Oasis, which is located in outback Australia.

She meets a cowboy, Kent, who is a rodeo champion. They agree on a bet. Eventually both want out, but neither wants to be first.

Through a series of adventures that stretch from the city to a fast-flowing river in the outback where Kent must save Alyssa from drowning, love germinates in the middle of a storm.

In her heart, Alyssa is a woman who adores the city's nightlife, but as the sun sets on each day, the Australian outback becomes more enticing and the excitement of the city fades. Then she inadvertently saves The Oasis.
Love is growing between Alyssa and Kent, but then Brandt, Alyssa's obsessive ex-boyfriend, tracks her down. Can Kent save her one last time?

MY REVIEW:


 
When I started reading this book, I thought the beginning was a struggle. I didn't like the way Brandt seemed to be this fairytale romance believer, he fell in love with an angel he saw on a passing train and then it shifted gears abruptly, and he was a cheating womanizer. I didn't feel like I knew the character Alyssa very well, or that she knew herself. She actually came off as spoiled and bratty. She talks about how she is tired of men and their mistreatment, but she immediately begins fantasizing about a relationship with Kent, a second after she meets him. The relationship seemed forced.
A little more effort could have been put into Kaite and Mitch's romance as well. Alyssa's best friend comes to The Oasis, and the very next day is engaged to Kent's brother?

On a good note, once Alyssa got to the Oasis, and spent some time with Ken'ts family there, the story got better. Who doesn't love a hunky cowboy hero? I enjoyed the characters, Kent's family and neighbors, and his relationships with them. The aspects of the story where Kent saves Alyssa from drowning, she saves The Oasis with her skills in tax law, and when Brandt reenters as a would be kindnapper and murderer and gets shut down, were great. Unfortunately, they were over too quickly.
I liked the final realization that they are in fact in the future, Kent and Alyssa's son was actually reading this story about their past and how they met and saved The Oasis, written down by his sister, in order to get him to reconcile with his family.
I did enjoy the book, overall, but I would have enjoyed it more if the story had started at the point where she took the job as a jillaroo, and the relationship between Alyssa and Kent was developed more slowly.
I was given this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

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Marie Reviews Murder In Mumbai By K.D. Calamur

Murder in Mumbai by K.D. Calamur
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Mumbai, India: a city of beauty and squalor, old and new, wealth and poverty, honest work and deep corruption… and inevitable target of scandal and condemnation if Inspector Vijay Gaikwad doesn’t solve the murder of American businesswoman Liz Barton, and quickly. Just as invested is newspaper reporter Jay Ganesh, looking for the one big story to repair his once-prestigious reputation. Both men soon discover, however, that the case is as difficult to navigate as Mumbai’s infamous traffic. From her cheating husband to the billionaire industrialist with whom she was “close”; from her jealous colleague to the environmentalist protesting her company, Barton was not short on potential enemies… and nor are they short on lies. But the pressure is on for Gaikwad, the family man trying to do right on an often unscrupulous force, to place the blame on someone, anyone, and Jay is determined to be the first with the scoop—no matter how deadly.

MY REVIEW:

The overall plot was interesting. The descriptions about the setting, classes, its customs and traditions, I have to admit, felt like I was reading a textbook. That isn't necessarily bad, I felt like I learned some things. I found myself skipping through some of the descriptions , as I felt like it was repetitive information. I admired the integrity and honesty of the main characters Gaikwad and Ganesh on their journey to solve the mystery of who murdered Liz Barton, not willing to just come up with an answer, but wanted to come up with the right answer. I would have liked them to have more personality though. I had no idea who the murderer was, and couldn't even guess. At the end, it's like "Ohhh, now I get it." There were motives for her murder presented through the story, but the actual motive wasn't revealed until the end.
It definitely wasn't a waste of time, but I didn't find it to be exceptional.
I was given this book for free in exchange for a review.

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Marie Reviews Love Unscripted by Tina Reber

Love Unscripted by Tina Reber
My rating: 5 of 5 stars


BOOK DESCRIPTION:
An A-List Movie Star… Ryan Christensen just wanted to be an actor. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine a life where fans would chase him, paparazzi would stalk him, and Hollywood studios would want to own him. While filming in Seaport, Rhode Island, Ryan ducks into a neighborhood bar for a quick escape from legions of screaming fans…and finds much more than he expected. A Small Town Girl…

Nursing a recent heartbreak, Taryn Mitchell believes men are best kept at a safe distance. But when Ryan Christensen unexpectedly bursts through the front door of her pub, she can’t help but be drawn in by his humor, charm, and undeniable good looks. At six foot two, with dirty blond hair, blue eyes, and an incredible body, Ryan has every girl in Seaport swooning. But Taryn isn’t every other girl. A Relationship that Doesn’t Follow the Script…

Despite her better judgment, Taryn soon finds herself falling hard for Ryan. But is their bond strong enough to survive the tabloid headlines, the relentless paparazzi, and the jealous fans who seem determined to tear them apart?

MY REVIEW:
 
I started reading this book and was immediately drawn in by the characters. I love the way Ryan and Taryn established a friendship that developed into love. The chemistry was definitely there, and you just knew it was going to reach the boiling point. By the time they actually had sex, I was thinking "Sleep with him already." The build up lead to a wonderful physical relationship. The couple had their ups and downs, and it was interesting to see how they worked through their past heart breaks and trust issues. It was intelligent, very comical at times, and there were moments of grief that were palpable. I cried. There is nothing sexier than a story about a man who could have any woman he wanted, and is totally devoted to one.
The book was really long. I read a lot and it took me almost a whole week to read it.
I was given this book for free in exchange for a review.

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Marie reviews For Love and Vengeance By Johnny Ray

FOR LOVE AND VENGEANCE by Johnny Ray
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

That Royce has it all, being smart, handsome, charming, successful, and tough. After losing his last girlfriend to a kidnapping in which she was tortured and killed, he starts a new life under cover of an executive dating service. On a surfing escape he meets Victoria and even though they only spend one night together, he experiences an amazingly strong connection with her. He doesn't give up on his new love interest after she is the supposed victim of a shark attack. Somewhere in his heart he believes she is still alive. When things don't add up, he goes looking for answers to new questions and settles old scores. I loved the story, it was action packed, and the romantic scenes were very well written.
One thing I would recommend, a stronger editing. I found myself rereading in places because of grammatical errors or typos.

I was given this book for free in exchange for a review.

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Marie Reviews Celestine: The House on rue du Maine

Celestine: The House on rue du MaineCelestine: The House on rue du Maine by F.J. Wilson

The story starts out with Celestine as a young girl who seeks refuge in the orphanage to avoid becoming a prostitute like her mother. She wants nothing to do with men and is disgusted with the thought of sex. This book was described to me as a romance novel, but I didn't find it romantic. In my opinion, in a hypnotizing love story, where the characters find eachother, feel great passion for one another, overcome obstacles to be together, and are commited to one another, sex is a great additive to this mixture. I am all for a good sex scene in a romance novel. In this book, however, the sex was not a spice added to magnify the reader's sense of a building relationship.
In order to get into a book and enjoy a romance, the main characters, hero and heroine have to be liked. I found it too difficult to like Celestine. She claimed great love for her husband, but he died, and within a few months she was in the bed of a pirate, whom she immediately claimed to love. Then she was hopping into bed with anyone , including her best friend's husband, performing the same oral sex scene repetetively , which each different man reacted the exact same way to. Several times I found myself saying out loud "Seriously?"
I think I would have enjoyed this story more as historical fiction, without most of the sex scenes, although many of the other events in the book were too unbelievable as well. Sorry, it just didn't work for me.
I was given this book for free in exchange for a review.



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Marie reviews Death In The Haight by Ronald Tierney

Death In The HaightDeath In The Haight by Ronald Tierney

Book Description

From Amazon

Publication Date:August 21, 2012

When Michael Vanderveer goes missing in San Francisco, Private Investigator Noah Lang assumes it’s just another runaway escaping to the Haight, San Francisco’s home to the displaced… until the homicide cops pay him a visit. Fifteen-year-old Michael has been implicated in the murder of a prostitute, and the police don’t want Lang mucking up their investigation — especially Inspector Stern, who has strong opinions about Lang’s questionable past. But Lang becomes inextricably involved when he is hired by Michael’s parents: Michael is being ransomed, and they want Lang to ensure the exchange goes smoothly.

As everyone waits for the kidnappers to make their next move, Lang struggles with the Vandeveers’, impatient with waiting and far from their Michigan home; with the twisted, confusing details of the case; with the moral implications of rescuing Michael, only to have to turn him in for murder; and with Stern, who’s increasingly volatile behavior may just put Lang’s life in as grave danger as Michael’s.
MY REVIEW:

I found this book witty, smart, and brimming with mystery all the way to the last chapter. It had strong descriptions, an interesting and diverse cast of characters, and I loved the depth of the on going grudge Stern has with Lang. The plot was well devised, and kept me guessing as to what really happened, or what could have happened. A great story. I read it all the way through in one sitting.
The only place I had a little bit of trouble was in the way the dialogue was written. It was difficult to decipher who was speaking at points. It may have been the formatting in my e-copy.

I received this book for free in exchange for a review.

 
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Marie Reviews "The Gingerbread House" by Nell Carson

The Gingerbread HouseThe Gingerbread House by Nell Carson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Book Description From Amazon:
Publication Date: April 6, 2012 | Series: Avalon Romance
After a tumultuous past, Greta Kendall has focused mainly on her bridal shop, located on the first floor of her beloved Queen Anne Victorian near Aspen. For two years she's fought to save her house from Stephanie Harwood of Harwood Development, who is intent on razing her home to build a new mall. But now Greta's running out of time. The town council is about to approve the final plans for the mall.
When Gray Daniels walks into her shop, Greta is immediately attracted to his rugged good looks and midnight blue eyes, until she learns he's Stephanie Harwood's fiancé. She's furious to find they've tricked her into a publicity stunt aimed at garnering support for the mall. So now her little war has a new front: Gray Daniels. If only she could also fight her growing attraction to him.
A knock on the door brings a return of old danger, and Greta must now put aside her anguish over the house to discover if she's at last capable of looking the past in the eye and overcoming it -- and if she's finally free to love again.



MY REVIEW:
I was absolutely captivated by this compelling small town story. That little gingerbread house became a character itself and I fell in love with it. Filled with romance, and brimming with emotions, the writing brought me to tears on more than one occasion. Truly heart warming, I loved it. I highly recommend this book.

I was given this book for free in exchange for a review.

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