We can’t thank you enough, but we’d especially like to thank the women that helped create RNTV each week, Kati Dancy, Buffie Johnson, PJ  Ausdenmore, Stacy Ahlgren. Stacey Agdern, Gannon Carr,  Andrea Williamson and Kate Garrabant.  We couldn’t have done it with out them and it certainly wouldn’t have been half the fun.  Thank you ladies one and all for your tremendous contributions to the site. We also want to give special thanks to authors Anna Campbell, J.R. Ward and Trish Milburn – amazing authors and amazing women! Class acts every one.  A huge thank you for everything.

We certainly won’t disappear from the blogosphere – but we’ll be putting more of our efforts into our television productions and social media projects. You can visit Maria at her TV production website – www.marialokken.com, or follow her on Twitter @Maria_56.

Thank you all for giving us the opportunity to laugh together, read together, and have terrific discussions.

With love,
Maria & Marisa

Confession: I’ve been experiencing the longest reading slump in probably 15 years. It’s been excruciating. Over and over I’ve opened books and tried to engage, only to find my attention wandering. That is, until I picked up Skin Game by Ava Gray. Ava Gray is the alter ego of Ann Aguirre, one of the most talented romantic sci-fi authors writing in the genre. I’ve read and enjoyed Ann’s Sirantha Jax series, and quite enjoyed the slow building romance between those two main characters, and knew that if Ann decided to, she could write a heck of a romance. Turns out, I was right. Ava Gray has written a very hot romance between two incredibly fascinating characters.

Kyra Beckwith is on the run. You see, she is a thief, one who is able to borrow a mark’s talents for a short period of time in order to part them from some money. Usually, Kyra runs these cons on people who aren’t very upstanding, and she cons them into playing pool or cards or darts with her. She steals a couple thousand dollars, and leaves. But, recently, Kyra began the biggest con of her life. She decided to seduce the man who had her father, also a small time crook, killed. Kyra’s mission was successful; she seduced Gerard Serrano, a casino owner and big time crook. And now that he’s realized that he’s been duped into falling in love with her, and robbed blind of a lot of money, he’s put a hit out on Kyra. The man who has been hired to kill Kyra in Reyes, one of the most effective hit men in the world — known both for his efficiency and his quickness.

But when Reyes meets Kyra, he knows almost immediately that he’s in trouble. First, there’s something about Kyra. She runs the best cons he’s ever seen. Often looking like an absolute amateur until she beats whomever she’s gambling against. Second, there was that fight that they got dragged into the first night they met. Kyra literally used every fighting move he had. And frankly, he is among the best he knows at hand to hand combat. Third, and probably most important, was the sex they had that first night, as the haze of battle had diminished. It soon becomes apparent to Reyes that this hit is going to be the most difficult of his life.

Simply put, I loved this book. Ava Gray has an incredibly strong voice. It’s not a voice that in any way overwhelms the story, but it’s one that clearly gives a sense of place, and more importantly, establishes a clear voice for each of her characters. Kyra, the heroine is both funny, and devious. She’s a heroine who was bound and determined to avenge her father, and is now in running for her life. She’s smart, distrustful, and can be pretty selfish. But she’s remarkably likeable. For his part Reyes, is one of my favorite hero types. He’s dark and broody. Oh yes. Who wouldn’t be? He’s been ordered to kill a woman who has captivated his interest, and given him some mind blowing sex. He’s ruthless and intelligent and really tortured by the fact that he’s to kill this woman who fascinates him.

The characters have a remarkably strong chemistry between them. Gray never skimps on the connection between the two, even as the story barrels long, full of action and excitement. The sex scenes are well choreographed, and enhance the intimacy and emotional bond between the characters each time they have sex. Skin Game is a fast paced, exciting story featuring fascinating characters, a terrific romance and a thrilling conclusion. I’m already desperately awaiting the next book in the series, Skin Tight.

Reviewed by Anna Campbell
Publisher: Leisure Books
Release Date: March 6, 2005

I must admit when I stayed up far too late one night to read this brilliant story, I had images of gorgeous Daniel Day-Lewis running through the forests going through my head. You know, that long lean streak in his buckskins with his black hair flying behind like a banner and his steely eyes fixed unflinchingly on the heroine! Not a bad thing at all!

This book marked a number of firsts for me. It’s the first Pamela Clare I’ve ever read – and it certainly won’t be the last. It’s also the first romance I’ve read set during the Indian Wars in mid-18th century America. I’ve been saying for a while that I’d like to see some settings other than the Regency and Victorian eras in Britain – it was so refreshing to read about somewhere different.

This is one of the most powerful books I’ve read in a long time. And man, does Pamela Clare know how to torture a hero! Her guy clearly did something wrong in a previous life because he suffers in this one. And so nobly and bravely too. Sigh! Mind you, I can’t say her heroine exactly has an easy ride of it either. When these two suffering, courageous creatures come together and get their happy ending, I can tell you, it’s SOOOOO satisfying. A perfect emotional arc of a story!

Since he was captured by Indians and tortured, Nicholas Kenleigh has turned his back on his army career and his rich family. He suffers bitter survivor guilt because the two young soldiers he was attempting to save didn’t make it. He also suffers guilt over what happened to him while with the Wyandot (I won’t go into too much detail – one of the marvelous things about this story is the way Pamela Clare unfolds the back story for each character). He’s become a grim loner who traverses the wilderness, trapping to pay for supplies, and generally avoiding other people.

But his life changes forever the day he stumbles upon heavily pregnant widow Elspeth (Bethie) Stewart who has been left alone after her husband’s death in her isolated cabin on the frontier. Nicholas has been seriously wounded and reluctantly forces the frightened young woman to give him shelter and care.

Bethie has her own secrets to hide and she has no reason to like men. But gradually these two wounded souls develop a wary trust, a trust underscored with burgeoning desire. Most of the first half of the book covers Nicholas and Bethie trapped together in the cabin and it develops an intensity that is absolutely breathtaking. We watch the barriers between them begin to crumble and there’s an amazing scene when Bethie has her baby with only Nicholas to help her. What a man!

The Indians are uniting to force the Europeans from the Ohio Valley and the cabin isn’t safe for Bethie and her daughter. For the first time since his capture, Nicholas heads east towards the family and friends he abandoned after his ordeal. But for all Nicholas’s bravery and skill, they’re too late to escape war and danger and the ghosts of the past.

This book has everything – great sexual tension, an action-packed story, high stakes, compelling characters, beautiful writing and a historical authenticity that you can almost touch, it’s so vivid. But the main thing I took away from it was the emotional intensity. You really go through the wringer with these characters – believe me, get tissues, and then the bit that really made me break up was right at the end when I thought they’d come through the worst of it all! A truly magnificent story! Pamela Clare, take a bow!

Blaze of Memory by Nalini Singh
A review by Kati Dancy
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: November 3, 2009
4.25 stars of 5

Regular readers of Nalini Singh’s marvelous Psy-Changeling series might remember Dev Santos. He was an ancillary character in Singh’s fifth book, Hostage to Pleasure. So, when Nalini announced that Blaze of Memory would be about Dev finding his love, I was stymied. Why on earth would she write about Dev when there are so many Psy (Kaleb, anyone?) or Changeling (Hawke, Hawke, Hawke, Hawke) stories that I so desperate for. What I should have done, is had more confidence in Nalini as an author. Once again, she delivers an emotionally charged, gripping and well imagined love story that enhances the mythology of the world she has created and propels ongoing story lines ahead.

Dev Santos comes home one day to find an unconscious, beaten woman on his doorstep. He knows she’s Psy and is immediately suspicious of the why of it, but also can’t seem to help himself from helping her. When she awakens, his worst fears are confirmed. She is dangerous to him, and the all important mission of the organization that he runs. He knows she’s dangerous, because she flat out tells him. Her memories may have been stripped, but she is certain of her mission: to kill Dev Santos. However, as he spends time with her, he finds a woman of strength and character and finds himself very attracted. Katya Haas knows that her Psy blocks are failing, she knows that she’s been programmed to do something terrible, and she is bound and determined not to carry out her orders. But that fight is stripping her of her mental blocks, weakening her, and making her even more of a threat to the man she’s been ordered to eliminate. As Dev races to find answers about how to fix Katya’s issues, he finds himself overwhelmingly attracted to this strong, determined woman who is nothing like he first thought. Will he be able to help her?

As always, I gobbled up Blaze of Memory, even though I began it with a lot of trepidation. I wasn’t sure why Nalini had chosen to write this book. Plus, Dev is human and Katya Psy. Where were my beloved Changelings? And how could I care at all about a character that I barely knew anything about? I should have had more confidence in one of my very favorite authors. Although human, and certainly not a physically strong as the Changeling heroes I adore, Dev is every bit as powerful and ruthless when his woman is endangered. As far as Katya goes, she is an interesting character who is fighting tooth and nail against the mission she’s been assigned. As a general rule, I don’t connect as strongly with Singh’s Psy heroines as I do with the Changelings, and this is true of Katya as well. My only other niggle is a scene right at the end of the book where Singh employed a literary device that I felt was unnecessary. But within the scope of the mythology it works, although I very much hope she doesn’t go to that particular well again. Readers should be advised that Blaze of Memory is not a good starting point for the series. They should begin with the first Psy/Changeling book, Slave to Sensation, mostly because the mythology builds slowly and in a complex manner throughout the seven books. But for those who know and love the series, Blaze of Memory is another incredibly strong entry in the Psy/Changeling series, my very favorite in paranormal romance.

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 story of Maggie MacDonald, a woman facing an unwanted marriage to a despicable clansman and Logan Douglas, a wounded Jacobite returning home from battle as the new laird of his clan, following his brother’s death.  A sparkling brooch in the snow leads Logan to discover Maggie, unconscious and half-frozen after escaping a kidnapping by the man her cousin, the laird, plans for her to wed.  Taking shelter in a nearby cottage, Logan and Maggie fall in love as she nurses his wounds but his responsibility to his clan and her laird’s insistence that she marry another threaten to tear them apart.  Has Maggie’s brooch really led her to her lifelong soul mate or were her mother’s words just a silly, superstitious tale?   In Winter Heat, Halliday (who also writes as Jennifer Haymore) gives us an intense, fast-paced story that, while not quite as racy as her other books, is sexy and very enjoyable.

Yuletide Enchantment by Sophie Renwick

“Be warned, miss.  Those who go into the woods at night don’t come out.”

Isobel was six years old the first time she saw the White Hart and has felt a magical bond with the stag ever since.  She has heard the tales of the Sidhe who inhabit the otherworld and has heeded the warnings to never enter the woods at night but when the stag is wounded by her brother’s arrow Isobel is drawn to the woods to make sure he is okay.  As Prince of the Sidhe and future King of Annwyn, Daegan can take the shape of both the White Hart and a human man.  Expected to wed one of his own, he has resisted as Isobel, a human woman, has held his heart from the day he first saw her.  When they finally meet as man and woman, the feelings that have grown within their hearts over the years are set free to flourish but they come from different worlds where each has responsibilities, commitments and family.  Will the sacrifices required to be together be too great for them to overcome?   I thoroughly enjoyed this sensuous historical paranormal tale and was delighted to discover that Renwick intends to return to Annwyn in 2010 with the story of Bran, one of the characters readers will meet in Yuletide Enchantment.

A Christmas Spirit by Cindy Miles

“A strange, pleasurable sensation tingled the sensitive skin, turning her lips warm, and making her heart race…She’d never felt so alive, so wanted.  All from a ghostly kiss, without any real contact.”

Determined to not spend another Christmas alone, Paige MacDonald is on her way to Inverness, Scotland when her car breaks down in a snowstorm and she ends up on the doorstep of the seemingly deserted Gorloch B&B where she is greeted by a gorgeous, but decidedly inhospitable, Gabriel Munro.  Gabriel reluctantly agrees to give her a room for the night but won’t help her with anything, making her get her own room key from the rack, carry her own luggage and even fix her own meals.  The reason for this becomes clear when Paige trips and falls…right through the man standing in front of her!  Unless the storm clears, it appears that, this year, Paige will be spending Christmas with the ghostly spirit of a centuries-old Highland warrior.  I wasn’t sure if I could suspend belief enough to accept a love story between a woman and a ghost but Paige and Gabriel’s story is so finely crafted that I had no problem.  In fact, it was my favorite of the three.  Miles did a superb job of creating a life-like man with the limitations of a spirit.  The romantic scenes in particular were simmering with sensuality while, at the same time, very poignant.  A Christmas Spirit is, by turns, a humorous, heartbreaking and heartwarming gift not to be missed.

What new holiday romances are you anticipating?  Do you keep and re-read the ones from previous years?  Any tried and true favorites you would recommend?

I loved this book and was enchanted with both the characters, the time period and the locale.  I’d like to start off by asking everyone what appeals to you about Victorian England and the concepts of ghosts?

For the next five days, join other readers and author Leanna Renee Hieber for our book club discussion on Leanna’s new release, The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker.  Click here to join the discussion

Bed of Roses by Nora Roberts
Book #2 in The Bride Quartet Series
Reviewed by Marisa O’Neill
Publisher: Penguin
3.5 stars

Dear Reader:

Short Review: Bed of Roses, is the second book in Nora Roberts Bride Quartet series. However, those of you who have not read the first book, Vision in White, can read the second book with out missing a step. It’s a solid book with well developed characters and if you always buy every book that Nora Roberts writes I’m not writing this review for you. If however, you’re a romance reader, or just a reader looking for a book to read, perhaps this review is for you. I liked this book. Am I glad I read it? Yes. Would I re-read it? I don’t think so. And just so you know, re-reading a book is the ‘gold standard’ for every book I read. That’s just me – I’m passing the information on to you.

Long Review: Nora Roberts can write. That is so not in dispute. She has legions of fans for a good reason. Am I a fan? You betcha! Do I buy all of her books? Pretty much.  Am I biased? Not so much. Unlike her alter ego, J.D. Robb who writes the In Death series, (this series is like crack cocaine, I can’t get enough and rush to buy every new book and have re-read every single one)  the books she writes under Nora Roberts I always read on a case by case, or book by book basis. I know, strange huh? But let’s just say I’m more of a coca cola gal then a diet coke gal and leave it at that. So now you now where I’m coming from and you can read my review a bit more enlightened.

For me Nora Roberts’ books always, and I do mean always (no equivocation), have fully developed characters that you want to sit down and have dinner with.  Even her paranormal trilogies have characters you want as your best friends. She is in a class many aspire to and few attain when it comes to fleshing out and developing characters and writing dialogue.  Bed of Roses is no exception.  This quartet of books features four different women, best friends, Parker, Laurel, Emma and Mac,  who own and run a ‘premier wedding planning company’ called Vows. Each woman is responsible for a different aspect of the business. All four women are people you want to get to know. Ms. Roberts is at her best here in regards to the tenor, tone and timbre of these four women. You either want to be them, see a bit of yourself in them, or want to befriend them.

The same holds true for the men in this series. Not that you want to be them (unless of course you do, because I’m thinking most of my readers are women – but I could be wrong), but you certainly want to get to know them. As per usual, Ms. Roberts is amazing at writing her male characters. She gets it right every time. She’s one of the best and I love her books for that alone; her ability to write the ‘male voice’.

Bed of Roses focuses on Emma Grant, a talented florist who is responsible for that particular aspect of Vows. She loves her work and making some one’s dreams come true when it comes to their wedding and all the hoopla that surrounds it gives her joy. Emma is beautiful, smart, funny, and dates — a lot. Jack Cooke, an architect, has been friends with Emma and the woman of Vows for many years. So yes, this is a “friends to lovers” romance, certainly one of my favorite scenarios.  Basically the book is about Emma and Jack and how they begin to see each other in a different light, act upon their feelings, and then deal with the consequences. Becoming lovers after being friends for a long time is not an easy feat; particularly when there are other friends involved.  The particular dynamic that lovers have invariably changes the dynamic for the whole group, and of course if the couple breaks up there is the question of who gets custody of the friends.

In both Vision in White and Bed of Roses, Roberts takes great care to give us a glimpse into the wedding planning business as seen through the eyes of these four friends. The anecdotes and peripheral characters she introduces are fun. The way each woman deals with her aspect of the business is drawn in loving detail.  The relationships between the women are crafted with exceptionally well written dialogue.  And… however, the tension that I so long for is a bit lacking here. Bed of Roses is a sweet romance with strong characters and a simple plot. After all my whining about how much angst I’ve been reading in my books lately you think I’d be happy with a plot that runs true to course. A plot where there isn’t much angst but rather some normal and relatable internal struggles.  Truth be told, I should be happy. I enjoyed reading this one and I’m going to read the next book in the series (I must find out what happens to Laurel). Perhaps that is the understated beauty of this series.  It doesn’t hit you right between the eyes like a sledgehammer, but rather gently warms your heart.

So dear reader, if you like a ‘friends to lovers’ romance, with strong dialogue, fully developed and relatable characters and you like it simple and sweet, might I suggest Bed of Roses.

Until next time, happy reading.

Marisa

Reviewed by Gannon Carr
Publisher: Penguin
4 stars

I really have enjoyed this series of Emma Holly’s, but I have found it difficult to write the review for Saving Midnight. Not because I didn’t like it, but because it’s incredibly difficult not to give too much away.  So, dear readers, forgive me if this review is brief.

Edmund is back with his family after being rescued by them in Breaking Midnight, but he is obsessed with tracking down his captors, Frank and Li-Hua, who escaped while the Fitz Clares were saving him.  Edmund is also plagued with guilt because his eldest son, Graham, became a vampire in order to save him.  Added to that is the fact that his senses Graham’s mark on Estelle (Edmund’s fiancé).  In his heart, Edmund knows that Estelle only let Graham feed from her because she was the only one able to handle a young vampire, but he can’t stop the feelings of jealousy that sometimes overtake him.  But he must not let himself be ruled by these emotions, because his primary mission is to hunt down Frank and Li-Hua and destroy them!

Little does Edmund know that Frank and Li-Hua are growing more powerful each day and killing them will not be easy, even for a master umpyr.  Li-Hua and Frank have obtained a small brass box, which allows them to capture the souls of their victims.  With each soul they take they become stronger—virtually unstoppable.  Hoping to draw Edmund out—and the rest of the Fitz Clare family—Frank and Li-Hua attack Pen, Graham’s lover, at her deceased mother’s plantation home.  The Fitz Clares come to her rescue and begin planning their hunt for their enemies.  It is imperative that they band together, for only with their combined strength can they hope to finally destroy Frank and Li-Hua.

Ms. Holly has given her readers another fast paced paranormal tale filled with her trademark erotic love scenes.  If you like your romances hot, fast and filled with vamps and shapeshifters, this series is for you.

Reviewed by Buffie Johnson
Release Date:  October 6, 2009
Publisher: Penguin
Rating:   4.75

Trace Coleman has felt the joy of being on top of his sport – competitive bull riding.  Unfortunately, just as like the last bull threw him to the ground, Trace’s career has fallen into the dirt.  Battered and scarred from his last tango with a bull, Trace has left the sport he loves and is currently the manager of the local marina on Pine Hollow Lake.   Content to be out of the spotlight and the prying eyes of the fans, Trace has settled into his quiet country life only to have his world set on its end when Dakota Dunn, the owner of the marina, comes blowing into town.

Teen pop princess Dakota Dunn has outgrown her teen image. With her songs missing the charts entirely, her management team has advised her to “sex up” her image and think about country music.  Leaving the glitz and glamour of Hollywood behind, Dakota heads to her family cabin on Pine Hollow Lake in the hills of Tennessee.  Praying the seclusion of her Southern hometown can help Dakota find her new image and figure out just who Dakota Dunn really is.   Maybe, just maybe one tall, strapping, and scarred cowboy can help her.

From the very first scene in the book, I was hooked.  Dakota finds herself in a dusty, dirty old cabin.  As she walks through the front door, she is greeted by the film of a spider’s web.   Scared to death of creepy crawlers of any kind, Dakota quickly swipes away the web and then just as quickly wonders where the spider is now located.   Totally freaked out to find the big, black spider on her back, Dakota frantically pulls off her shirt and screams at the top of her lungs.  This is how Trace first meets Dakota, and thus the journey to love begins.  What a funny and touching journey it is!

Dakota and Trace are two people who have been the best in their respective fields and who have felt the blow of fate when their careers have coming crashing down around them.   I found it intriguing that both characters lacked a certain amount of self confidence in one aspect of their lives even though both of them had been the best of their fields at one point.   But when you find someone to love you unconditionally and you see their confidence in you, your own self confidence grows by leaps and bounds.   This is what happens with Dakota, but more so with Trace.  Trace is a man who wants to be needed without being asked, as you can tell by this quote from the book.

“When was the last time someone needed him? God, how he wanted to be valued, to be desired, and to be missed when he was gone.  When his bull riding days ended so abruptly, it was as if his personal stock plummeted and he became worthless.  And although Trace loved the sport and missed the glory, he wanted to be respected for more than his ability to ride a bucking bull for the required eight seconds.”

LuAnn McLane is a master at creating sensitive love stories while intertwining humorous threads throughout her novels.  I literally found myself laughing on one page and sighing on the next page.   Ms. McLane is a puppet master who plucks my strings with every chapter and every little detail.  I really enjoyed the chapter titles at the beginning of each chapter – such as Hit Me With Your Best Shot, Slip Slidin’ Away, and In the Still of the Night.  These small, seeming insignificant titles added to my overall pleasure of reading this novel.

I have heard LuAnn McLane’s novels described as Southern fried romance, and I would have to agree.   Her novels bring to mind a yummy, country fair funnel cake.   Sweet, sinful, and utterly satisfying!

I highly recommend this novel for one and all.  It is a great pleasure read that will have you smiling throughout and leave with a satisfied sigh.