Book Review:  A Highlander Christmas
An Anthology from Dawn Halliday, Cindy Miles and Sophie Renwick
Reviewed by:  PJ Ausdenmore
4 Stars

I love Christmas romances.  Every year I anticipate the new books that will be released even as I’m unpacking ones from previous years to re-read.  Nothing gets me into the holiday spirit more than feel-good, happy-ending Christmas stories.  Toss in sexy Highlanders in kilts and I’m giddy with joy!  A Highlander Christmas, which will be released November 3rd, brings us the following three stories from authors Dawn Halliday, Cindy Miles and Sophie Renwick.

Winter Heat by Dawn Halliday

“On her deathbed, Maggie’s mother had handed her daughter the brooch, saying Maggie must keep it with her always; for it possessed the magical ability to detect a MacDonald woman’s lifelong soul mate.”

This steamy historical is the…

Reviewed by:  PJ Ausdenmore
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
4 Stars

If you’re in the mood for laugh-out-loud humor, steamy romance, quirky characters and   sigh-worthy happy endings then this is the book for you.  So Into You goes back to the Louisiana Bayou for the story of Grace O’Brien and Angel Sabato, two secondary characters from Hill’s Jinx series.

“The angel was wild tonight…”

Grace O’Brien is stunned to learn that Angel Sabato, her long-time best friend, thinks he’s in love with her.  After running from a troubled childhood, the former nun, professional poker player and treasure hunter has finally found peace in the bayou as Tante Lulu’s folk healing apprentice.  She doesn’t want to hurt Angel and possibly lose her best friend but secrets from her past make it impossible for Grace to ever marry.  Besides,…

Reviewed by:  PJ Ausdenmore
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
4.5 Stars

Venice, Italy is one of my favorite cities.  Beautiful during the day, Venice epitomizes romance with grand palaces, elaborate bridges and, of course, gondolas but when the sun goes down a faintly sinister atmosphere cloaks her dark alleys and canals.  When I wander through Venice in the daylight I can appreciate her history while remaining firmly in the 21^st century but when I walk her narrow, shadowy streets at night I can almost believe that I have been transported back to the 15^th century.   Those qualities make this ancient city by the sea the perfect setting for Loucinda McGary’s exciting new romantic suspense story, one with an intriguing paranormal twist.

Pretending to be the handsome Irishman’s girlfriend for the afternoon is Librarian, Samantha Lewis’s second impulsive act. …

The Pendragon Legacy – Book 1
Reviewed by:  PJ Ausdenmore
4.5 Stars

No children have been born on Earth for two generations.  Pollution has left her inhabitants sterile and the human race faces certain extinction but one man, archeologist and linguist, Lucan Rourke believes there is a way to reverse the sterility.  He’s heard the legends of King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table and the mythical Holy Grail, a cup supposedly containing healing properties that legend says Arthur left in Avalon.  Explorers have searched for Avalon for centuries without success but now, deep in a cave in the shadow of Cadbury Castle, Lucan has found a star map, thousands of years old, yet more accurately detailed than if it had been produced with today’s space telescopes – a map detailing the…

I began reading romances more than 40 years ago but Julie Garwood’s wonderful medieval romance, Saving Grace is the first story I can remember reading that featured a heroine who was a victim of domestic abuse.  Wed to an English baron at a young age, Lady Johanna entered her marriage filled with all the hopes and dreams of any young bride, hopes and dreams that were shattered by the words and fists of her handsome, evil-hearted husband and his equally evil priest.  Isolated from her family and friends, Johanna eventually became resigned to her fate.  As she explains later in the book;

“I was much, much younger then.  The beating didn’t start right after we were wed.  He set about destroying my confidence first.  I was naïve, and frightened, too, and when…

Reviewed by PJ Ausdenmore
Publisher: HQN Books
4 Stars

I enjoy historical western romance and, for my money, Linda Lael Miller’s books are some of the best on the market.  Her latest release, The Bridegroom, is the fourth book in her Stone Creek series and tells the story of Lydia Fairmont and Gideon Yarbro.  Lydia and Gideon were first introduced to readers two years ago in A Wanted Man and although they were only eight and sixteen, respectively it was apparent that a strong bond had formed between the two.  Fate separated them when Lydia’s wealthy aunt arrived to take her orphaned niece to Phoenix to live but Gideon couldn’t turn his back on the frightened little girl even though he knew chances were good he would never see her again.  He gave her…