Book Review: Paris, My Sweet by Amy Thomas

Book Review: Paris, My Sweet: A Year in The City of Light (and Dark Chocolate)
By: Amy Thomas
Published By: Sourcebooks
Non-Fiction Memoir
4 Heart Review

Blurb From Goodreads: 
Part love letter to New York, part love letter to Paris, and total devotion to all things sweet. Paris, My Sweet is a personal and moveable feast that’s a treasure map for anyone who loves fresh cupcakes and fine chocolate, New York and Paris, and life in general. It’s about how the search for happiness can be as fleeting as a sliver of cheesecake and about how the life you’re meant to live doesn't always taste like the one you envisioned. Organized into a baker’s dozen of delicacies (and the adventures they inspired) that will tempt readers’ appetites, Paris, My Sweet is something to savor.

Yes, I know. This isn't really a romance but it is a love letter to Paris and New York and after my first trip to Paris last Fall I've been fantasizing about going back. I LOVED Paris and tried to soak up every second of time while I was there. So when this book came to my attention I just had to read it and I thought I would share it with you even if it isn't my typical book to review. 

Amy Thomas writes in such a way that even though I spent an idyllic week in Paris, I could so easily see the nuances of the city and the People that were both amazing and that later made her feel lonely. She picked up and conveyed so well those small little things that can throw you off in Paris. For instance, it just felt so alien to me not to smile at everyone I met and walked past on the street. I love Amy's inclusion of instances of how Parisians reacted to her smiling since I had the same experience. 

But what really drew me to this book, and I think you will love, are the amazing descriptions of the perfect desserts to be had all over Paris and their sometimes up to par counterparts in New York. You can read Amy's love of fine pastry and the work that goes into each small bite on every page. 

I mean this is the ultimate guide to eating in Paris (and New York) and you can bet I'll be using this as my sweet tooth guide the next time the hubby and I make it to Paris. A few of the places she includes in the book are ones we actually managed to find when we went and it was fun to relive the experience we had there. Others, I wish we had found! 

If you've ever wanted to go to Paris, or if you've been before, I think you'll enjoy this book that includes not only so much detail on Sweets in Paris, but also a taste of life living in the city as a foreigner and the awe that is discovering this city over and over. 

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Ever Feel This Way About Your Friends & Family?

It's DABWAHA Nomination Time!

Every year as March approaches I get more and more excited...not for March Madness, but for DABWAHA the Romance Book World's bracket madness eviqavlent!


The insanely awesome brainchild of Sarah from Smart Bitches Trashy Books and Jane from Dear Author, the DABWAHA is the romance readers ultimate battle of the books.


Basically, it's a line up of the best romance books for the past year based on different categories and you create a bracket of who you think will win in each round.


Check out all the details at the DAWAHA site and play along with us!

Monday Morning Cuteness!

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Romance Book Review Round Up!

There are a lot of books that I read and somehow never manage to write a review for them at the time. This could be because I was busy, the book just didn't speak to me either way, or a handful of other reasons. Some of these books were really good and some not so much so just because these are shorter reviews doesn't automatically reflect how I felt about them.

So, I thought I would start doing occassional posts with short reviews of these books. Think of it like book review cliff notes. Most of these are not new books, but that's the beauty of finding a new book or author - who cares if it's a new release...It's new to you!

Coming Clean by Inez Kelley - 4 Heart Review
Coming clean never felt so good...
Grant and Vivi Michaelson share everything in their marriage: love, commitment--and their wildest sexual desires. But their relationship is tested when Vivi admits she wants a threesome with Grant's old friend Cade, proposing their annual trip to the lake as the perfect opportunity to fulfill her fantasy.

All three of them are aroused by the idea. Vivi and Cade have long felt a smoldering attraction to each other...and Grant and Cade have hidden an illicit desire for decades. Going through with the ménage will test their boundaries, reveal old secrets...and maybe tear them apart. After all, there might be room for Cade in bed, but is there room for a third in their marriage?

I had my doubts about this book because to be honest, I've never read a menage involving a married couple and the idea of it made me slightly uncomfortable with how I could enjoy this book. But wow. Inez Kelley can seriously write. This novella is insanely full of deep emotion and insight and so much of it just felt "right" for the characters. Which is really the difference between good and bad writing with any menege. These characters and their story just felt natural and because of how stellar this book is, Inez is on my auto-buy list.

The Scent of Jade by Dee DeTarsio - 2 Heart Review
Julie Fraser is the least adventurous person she knows…until she hops on a plane to surprise her husband who’s on a business trip in Costa Rica. Reeling from the discovery that her husband isn’t who she thought he was, she embarks on an unexpected rainforest adventure that leaves her not knowing where to turn, literally, or whom to trust. She knew she should have stayed home! Can a monkey, a Latin hunk, and a mysterious ‘love potion’ help Julie on her mission to find and forgive her husband?

Not a typical romance, this one kept me reading because I really wanted to figure out where it was going with it's plot, but in the end I wasn't happy with the outcome. I can't tell you the major reason I didn't enjoy the book without giving away a spoiler, but I can tell you that I was half way through the book and still wondering it is was really going to turn into a romance. The heroine had some good points in that I liked how she handled herself at first, but I felt like halfway through her actions and responses didn't fit with the character that has been introduced at first. I will give this story credit for being very creative and engaging since I never did put it down, but in the end, it really came down to not buying into the hero/heroine really belonging together.

Building Magic by Lilly Caine - 3 Heart Review
When architecture student and summertime welder Tina Moreland develops a reputation as a peeping Tom, it isn’t the first time she’s been teased for being different. Catching a glimpse of the man of her dreams is worth the aggravation. But when she witnesses him doing something stranger than stripping in his hightower office, it’s enough to make her forget that when working unharnessed on the fifth floor, the first step is a long way down.

Sent to Earth to find a power source strong enough to end the civil war at home, Devin Ken’Draga doesn’t have time to rescue a damsel in distress. But since she is literally falling at his feet, he can’t help but to save her. Bringing her home wasn’t part of the plan, but once they fall through the magical portal together, there is no going back. It is only when he spreads his wings in his true dragon form that Devin realizes something he hadn’t anticipated – the woman is a virgin, a temptation no dragon can resist. Together Devin and Tina create a sensual bond, gladly sacrificing virginity to find love and a solution to the bloody war.

I was plesantly surprised by this book and thought it was highly unique and I thoroughly enjoyed the heroine. If you are looking for more Dragon shifter romances I would suggest putting this one on your list. There were a few things about the writing that would occassionally pull me out of the story. Nothing big, or it wouldn't have still received 3 Hearts, but the occassional word choice here and there felt off to me. Again, this book suprised me with how creative the story was and I enjoyed the world-building very much.

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Love In a Nutshell by Janet Evanovich & Dorien Kelly - AudioBook Review

Audiobook Review: Love In a Nutshell
By: Janet Evanovich & Dorian Kelly
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Narrator: Loreli King
Contemporary Romance
3 Heart Review

Kate Appleton needs a job. Her husband has left her, she’s been fired from her position as a magazine editor, and the only place she wants to go is to her parents’ summer house, The Nutshell, in Keene’s Harbor, Michigan. Kate’s plan is to turn The Nutshell into a Bed and Breakfast. Problem is, she needs cash, and the only job she can land is less than savory. 

Matt Culhane wants Kate to spy on his brewery employees. Someone has been sabotaging his company, and Kate is just new enough in town that she can insert herself into Culhane’s business and snoop around for him. If Kate finds the culprit, Matt will pay her a $20,000 bonus. Needless to say, Kate is highly motivated. But several problems present themselves. Kate despises beer. No one seems to trust her. And she is falling hard for her boss.

Can these two smoke out a saboteur, save Kate’s family home, and keep a killer from closing in…all while resisting their undeniable attraction to one another? Filled with humor, heart, and loveable characters, Love in a Nutshell is delicious fun.

Classic Evanovich, this story features a quirky heroine who's a little off balance and a left of fitting in with regular society slightly. Also per usual it was the characters themselves that made this story stay with me and kept me listening to the audio.

I thought the mystery plot of the book was well paced and as the reader I didn't figure it out until much later in the story, which was really nice since some romances tend to very thinly veil the villain. The balance between the mystery and the romance was well done and both unfolded together in the story.

All in all, this is a average fun and cute read. BUT. Evanovich definitely has character traits that seem to almost always be present in all her characters and that makes them all start to run together. This is made worse by the fact that ALL of her stories include the same narrator and it makes the similarities of the characters that much more noticeable. It feels like all her heroines are Stephanie Plum, just in a new situation.

I will say that narrator Loreli King is ALWAYS excellent. It's not her fault as she does a really great job, which I'm sure is how she keeps getting hired to narrate Evanovich's books. But the audio publisher should really take note that this may not be the smartest decision.

Yes, there are some fans who will love the amazing job that Loreli does and not give a care about all of the books sounding like they have the same exact characters, but there are those of us who do. There are those of us who want something different from Evanonich, yet still "her". But by having the same narrator you are not helping readers to make that distinction between books and characters.

Again, this is a really nice read and works on both the romance and mystery sides of the plot. I liked the characters, but kept being drawn out of the book every time I thought to myself, "That's something Stephanie would say."

If you haven't tried any of the Plum series on audio then you should really stay away from them and just listen to all the non-Plum stories on audio - then they'll be excellent and would deserve 4+ Hearts.

Click here to listen to the audio excerpt, watch the book trailer or read an excerpt.

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

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Welcome Tom & Lexie From Ruthie Knox's New Release Ride With Me & Giveaway!

Cheeky Reads is super excited to welcome Tom and Lexie, the hero and heroine of Ruthie Knox's new contemporary romance to our site! I hope you enjoy meeting them as much as I did and don't forget to comment on their interview to enter to win a copy of their story!

How We Met: An Interview with Tom and Lexie

TOM: So what are we supposed to be talking about, again?

LEXIE: How we met, I think.

TOM [scowling]: I don’t want to talk about that.

LEXIE: Why not?

TOM: Because I was a jerk.

LEXIE: Actually, I wouldn’t say you were a jerk.

TOM [hopeful]: You wouldn’t?

LEXIE: No, I’d say you were a dick.

TOM: Oh, thanks, babe. That’s great.

LEXIE: Well, it wasn’t great at the time. It worked out okay.

TOM: I was trying to do the right thing.

LEXIE [smiling a little]: You were. You couldn’t bear to think of what might happen to me if I rode across the country by myself, so you let me ride with you. And then you wouldn’t talk to me.

TOM: You’re the one who gave me the silent treatment for three days.

LEXIE: Only because you deserved it.

TOM [reluctantly]: True. But in my defense, you’re kind of a lot to get used to. All that yammering. [smiles]

[Lexie punches Tom in the shoulder]

TOM: Plus, you were pretty awful to me, too. You told me you were married.

LEXIE: Only because you were so cocky. Like, [pitches voice low] I’m not going to sleep with you, sweetheart, so don’t even think about it.

TOM: So you were, like, Screw you, buddy, and the horse you rode in on.

LEXIE: Exactly. Except you rode in on a bike.

TOM: We both rode in on bikes.

LEXIE [smiling fondly]: Yeah. And you have such a nice ass. That was really my downfall—the view. That, and it turned out you have unforeseen charms.

TOM: I do?

LEXIE: Sure. I unearthed them. I had to dig around in your pants for a while, but—

[Tom covers Lexie’s mouth with his hand]

LEXIE: Mphm-bmbh mm hmubph mbuh.

TOM: We’re done here. They’ll have to read the book if they want to know the rest. [winks at CheekyReads] Thanks for having us.

CHEEKY [blushing]: You’re welcome. Thanks for stopping by.

[Tom pushes Lexie out of the room, keeping one hand firmly over her mouth.]

Curtain falls.

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Ride with Me, available from Loveswept on February 13, 2012!

BOOK LINK:

In this fun, scorching-hot eBook original romance by Ruthie Knox, a cross-country bike adventure takes a detour into unexplored passion. As readers will discover, Ride with Me is not about the bike!

When Lexie Marshall places an ad for a cycling companion, she hopes to find someone friendly and fun to cross the TransAmerica Trail with. Instead, she gets Tom Geiger — a lean, sexy loner whose bad attitude threatens to spoil the adventure she’s spent years planning.

Roped into the cycling equivalent of a blind date by his sister, Tom doesn’t want to ride with a chatty, go-by-the-map kind of woman, and he certainly doesn’t want to want her. Too bad the sight of Lexie with a bike between her thighs really turns his crank.

Even Tom’s stubborn determination to keep Lexie at a distance can’t stop a kiss from leading to endless nights of hotter-than-hot sex. But when the wild ride ends, where will they go next?

BIO

RUTHIE KNOX'S WEBSITE:

Ruthie Knox figured out how to walk and read at the same time in the second grade, and she hasn’t looked up since. She spent her formative years hiding romance novels in her bedroom closet to avoid the merciless teasing of her brothers and imagining scenarios in which someone who looked remarkably like Daniel Day Lewis recognized her well-hidden sex appeal and rescued her from middle-class Midwestern obscurity. After graduating from Grinnell College with an English and history double major, she earned a Ph.D. in modern British history that she’s put to remarkably little use.

These days, she writes contemporary romance in which witty, down-to- earth characters find each other irresistible in their pajamas, though she freely admits this has yet to happen to her. Perhaps she needs more exciting pajamas. Ruthie abhors an epilogue and insists a decent romance requires at least three good sex scenes.

GIVEAWAY - One lucky commenter will be randomly chosen to win a digital copy of Ride with Me. Winners will pick up their copy through Net Galley. Good luck to all!

Winner of The Valentine's Day Giveaway!

The winner of the Cheeky Reads Valentine's Day blog giveaway is...

Kletch1

I'll email you soon for your shipping details. Congrats and happy reading!

Happy Valentine's Day Romance Lovers!

Cheeky Reads has multiple contests going on right now where you can win Romance books!

Check out this post here on the blog and comment with why you love to read romances and you'll be entered into the 1st contest.

Head over to my shiny new Facebook Page and enter to win 2 Free Books of your genre choice by commenting on my V-Day wall post.

Lastly, I'll be doing random Twitter Contests througout the day so follow me there!

Monday Morning Cuteness!

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Win Free Books In The Cheeky Reads Valentine's Day Giveaway!

The First giveaway is right here on the blog and will run until Feb. 14th. Comment below telling me why you love Romance Books and you'll be entered to win. Please include your email address so I can contact the winner.

I'll pick the top 2 comments to each win a book from my personal selection - the romance genre of your choice! If we managed to get over 50 entries, I'll pick the top 3 comments to win! Over 100 and I'll pick 5 winners and up the winnings to 2 books each.

Make sure to follow me on Twitter and Facebook for additional contests!

Contest open to US and Canada Addresses only. Blog winners will be announced Feb. 15th.

Cheeky Reads Launches a Facebook Page - Hell Has Officially Frozen Over

I'm putting my toes in the water over on Facebook and trying it out - I hope you'll stop by and say hi and give me a little advice on what in the world to do! Here's a link to my page.

That Facebook page will feature various links and posts that seemed to fit that format better than here on the blog, so there'll be something different on each site.


And don't forget to chat me up on Twitter - I'm such a twitter fan girl!

Kim Harrison's A Perfect Blood Arrives February 21st!

My countdown clock is tick tocking away as I wait for A Perfect Blood, the next book in the Rachel Morgan Series from Kim Harrison, to arrive. It releases on February 21st and I cannot wait!

I even went ahead and read chapters 1-5...and you can too! The publisher Harper Voyager has posted those first chapters on their website for fans to get a taste of A Perfect Blood a little early.

Head over to this link to read chapters 1-5 of A Perfect Blood.

Yes I know, my cheerful little blog doesn't scream out "HUGE fan of gritty Urban Fantasy" but I do adore Kim Harrison's writing and think the Rachel Morgan series is fantastic. Her world-building alone makes this a highly readable series, but she trumps that with insanely amazing characters and a pitch perfect balance between the dark stuff and lighter humor. Sigh - I'm such a fan girl!

If you haven't read this series I so highly recommend it. Even if you aren't normally a huge Urban Fantasy fan. This really is one of the best series of the genre and a great way to see if you would love Urban Fantasy. 

Have you read any books in this series? What did you think ? Tell us what you loved or didn't love (I can't imagine!) about them.

Monday Morning Cuteness!

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Congrats to Author Maureen O Betita on Her Latest Release The Pirate Circus!

Disclaimer: Author Maureen O. Betita is a very good friend of mine - I haven't read her latest release yet, but I have read her other books and greatly enjoyed them. I'm taking the liberty of congratulating Maureen today - she has no idea I'm doing this post - because if I can't congratulate an amazing friend and writer on a new release then how is this MY blog? :) I'm not giving my opinion on this book today - that will come later - I'm just sharing the new release news and hope you respect my disclosure of being Maureen's friend.

Without further ado, here's the rundown on Maureen's latest book that I'll be ordering today!

The Pirate Circus
By: Maureen O. Betita
The Kraken's Carribean Book #3
Decadent Publishing

Book Blurb:
Bosun Janey knows who and what she is. A pirate. And a damned good one at that. Living a life of excitement, adventure, and sailing the seas of the Kraken’s Caribbean is enough for her. But when the Quill is stuck in dry dock, Janey is left to search for distraction along Tortuga’s waterfront. How does a pirate occupy herself? Certainly not by making friends with a six-year-old boy or mooning after the boy’s father. That’s not how a pirate behaves!
Widower Benjamin Silvestri arrived in Tortuga seeking a fresh start. At first, the pirate haven doesn’t seem like a safe sanctuary for second chances, but life is full of surprises. The sun breathes life into his little boy, and new freedoms help his errant niece embrace her true nature. And then there's Janey. A pirate and most unconventional woman, she stirs feelings in Benjamin that are far from proper—but who’s to say what is proper in Tortuga?

However, before he and Janey can explore the possibilities, Benjamin's son and niece disappear onto the high seas. Together, the couple set out to rescue them—because only a loving father and a cutthroat pirate stand a chance against the dangerous Pirate Circus.
Genre: Paranormal romance, erotic romance, action/adventure
Heat level: 4
Word count – 70k
Read An Excerpt Here.

Check out the 1st 2 books in The Kraken's Carribean series on Maureen's author page by clicking here.

Book Review: Wanna Get Lucky by Deborah Coonts

Book Review: Wanna Get Lucky by Deborah Coonts
Mystery/Contemporary Romance  
Published By: Forge Books
4 Heart Review 

A young woman plunges from a Las Vegas sightseeing helicopter, landing in the Pirate’s lagoon in front of the Treasure Island Hotel in the middle of the 8:30 Pirate Show.  Almost everyone writes her off as another Vegas victim.
 
But Lucky O’Toole smells a rat.  She’s head of Customer Relations at The Babylon, the newest, most opulent mega-casino and resort on the Strip, so she’s got a lot on her plate: the Adult Film industry’s annual awards banquet, a spouse-swapping convention, sex toy purveyors preying on the pocket-protector crowd attending ElectroniCon….  Still, Lucky can’t resist turning over a few stones. 


When a former flame is one of the snakes she uncovers, Lucky’s certain she’s no longer dealing with an anonymous Sin City suicide.  To top it all off, Lucky’s best friend Teddie—Las Vegas’ finest female impersonator—presses to take their relationship to the next level.  Leave it to Lucky to attract a man who looks better in a dress than she does.


Lucky must manage the Babylon’s onslaught of outrageous festivities, solve a murder, and struggle to keep her life and libido from spinning out of control… not to mention keep her balance in six inch heels.

Wanna Get Lucky is the first book in a new-to-me series that I wanted to catch up on before book #3 releases this February. After finishing this one, I'm itching to start on book #2.

I really enjoyed almost everything about this story. It takes off at a quick pace and doesn't slow down - which is fitting since that's exactly the way the main charcters life is like and I felt the story matched up to that perfectly.

One of my favorite new author blogs is called Wonk-O-Mance and this book is perfect for them!  Their blog focuses on Romances with wonky heroes and heroines - stories with characters and plots that just shouldn't work but totally do. Characters so over the top that instead of not believing in them, you heart them so hard.

That's exactly how I felt about this book. It's totally a wonky little mystery/romance and I heart  Wanna Get Lucky and it's heroine hard. Lucky is a force of nature bit with every action you can really envision her taking on all the crazy things that happen in her Vegas world. The crazy works.

Add in a cross-dressing hero who's also trying to make the move from best friend to lover and the crazy becomes amped up 10 more notches. But, and I was truly surprised at this one, it totally works. Yep - a cross-dressing hero worked for me. In this insane little story it all works and that is in large part to the author's ability to create characters of depth that I connected with instantly.

As I mentioned above this is also a fast-paced mystery that keeps you pushing forward as the pages fly by. That is yet another reason Wanna Get Lucky works. Everything about this book worked for me.

I did see the twist at the end coming but I think the reader was meant to - or at least the author meant to instill the hope in the reader that what is revealed is what they were hoping for all along. Sigh. I really loved that last twist and had hoped for it as I got further along in the story.

I'm off to read book #2 in this series - Lucky Stiff - this weekend so I'm ready for the newly released novella Lucky in Love and the 3rd full book in the series So Damn Lucky which releases on February 28th.

I'm so lucky to have found the Lucky O'Toole series! Yes, you can go ahead and groan. I did, but it was too good to pass up.

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

Monday Morning Cuteness!

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Ride With Me By Ruthie Knox Book Excerpt Preview!

Random House was awesome enough to offer a few bloggers a free preview excerpt of their upcoming release Ride With Me by Ruthie Knox and I'm excited to be one of the few who gets to share this book excerpt with my readers!

Ride With Me is on my e-Reader and you'll be seeing a review here soon, as well as have a chance to chat with the author when she stops by for a visit on February 21st!

I'm seeing great comments from some of my favorite authors about this book. Check these out:

“A sweet yet sultry, honest and heart-tugging ride. Everything a love story should be!” Carly Phillips, New York Times Bestselling Author

"A fantastic, sexy, and fun story! Ruthie Knox’s, RIDE WITH ME, was a delight to read."Jill Shalvis, NYT Best Selling Author

“Ride With Me, is a unique kind of road trip with the best kind of bumps and curves!”Sandra Hill, New York Times Best Selling Author

“Smart, sexy, and downright fun–I loved every moment of the ride!”Julie James, National Bestselling Author

“Ruthie Knox writes a devil of a good book! Ride With Me is one wild and fun ride you’ll enjoy from the first page to the last!”
Christie Craig, award winning author of romances with heart, humor and suspense.

Pretty awesome reviews there huh? Now, check out this excerpt and if you like it the book is available for order from this Random House link and releases on February 13th.

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina
Scribd.Ride With Me Excerpt - by author RuthieKnox

Monday Morning Cuteness Tuesday Edition - Bring It On!

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What's The Last Book You Really Enjoyed?

Yesterday I asked Twitter what their last good book was and got some new to me suggestions so I thought I'd do a post here asking the same question.

Comment and share what the last book you read and really enjoyed was - maybe you'll introduce a new author or book to our other readers!

Here are a few of the titles mentioned on Twitter yesterday to get the ball rolling:

Dragon Actually by G.A. Aiken

The Pleasure Of Your Kiss by Teresa Medeiros

Warrior by Zoe Archer

What about you - What was your last good book? It doens't have to be a new release, just the last book you really didn't want to put down or end!

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Monday Morning Cuteness!

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Want a Sneak Peek At The Demon Lover by Juliet Dark? Get it here!

Check out this Exclusive Excerpt from Random House:

A must-read for paranormal romance fans: THE DEMON LOVER: A Novel by Juliet Dark (excerpt)


If you enjoyed that, you can purchase the book from Random House from this link.

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

Monday Morning Cuteness...On Tuesday!

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Looking Forward to 2012 - Reading Resolution

With every new year, there inevitably comes the need to start fresh and "fix" those parts of our life we either don't like, want to tweak or just plain want to accomplish.

We've all created the lists year after year. Even here on Cheeky Reads I've listed the things I would like to see change about the blog in the coming year, but this year I want to do something different.

This year I want to select just 1 thing in a few areas of my life that I love and just focus more on that. Instead of focusing on changing designs, writing more blogs, doing more contests, etc, I want my resolution this year to focus on what I love and then to just do more of it this year.

So, in the area of my life this blog fits into I'm making my resolution to be to focus on selecting and choosing books to read and review that I think fit the genres and storylines I love most.

 Most bloggers know what I'm talking about. As a reviewer you can be bombarded with requests to review books and for me there can be a lot of pressure to say yes to everyone! I really hate saying no to anyone who contacts me because I feel so honored that they've contacted me.

But, what ends up happening is that I get overwhelmed and can't keep up. I even decided this past year to add additional reviewers to Cheeky Reads. A decision I'm so happy I made! But I found myself making sure I sent them the books that best matched their personal preferences and then left myself the "other" books.

Sop this year I'm pledging to myself to make sure I take on books I really want to read. I'll still send my reviewers the books that suit them as well, but I'll have to say no to some authors who I don't think their books match our reviewers tastes - because I believe you should give a book the best chance by only having someone really interested read it.

I mean how can a review be fair if from the beginning you aren't at least mildly interested in reading it?

I have to admit that's why I haven't posted a ton of reviews lately - I just couldn't do the books justice and felt the author deserved a reviewer more fit to their story.

In 2012, you'll see more reviews from me simply because I'll be back to reading books I'm really interested in. That might not mean they'll all be good, but I'll be giving the book, author and my readers the best reviews possible.

Oh, and I'll get back to the joy of reading, because that's what it's really all about.


Cheers to a Happy New Year! Do you have a reading goal or resolution for 2012? Are you a blogger with blog goals or reading goals? Please share!

Monday Morning Cuteness - Holiday Hangover Edition!

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FREE Holiday Tale From Kieran Kramer

One of my absolute fav new authors I've discovered this past year is Kieran Kramer. She writes historicals that make me a very, very happy reader. For the Holiday this year, she has released a short Regency Christmas tale for readers and I thought I would share it with you.

Here's the link to her blog where the story is posted. It's not very long and short, fun read!

*Image used from Kieran Kramer's website

Winner Of The Romancing Christmas Giveway Hop!

Thank you to everyone who came and entered to win in the Romancing Christmas Giveaway Hop! I hope you'll continue to come back and check out the blog and chat with us.

The winner of a selection of audio and print books based on the genre she indicated is...

Comment #9 is Shari Jung! Congrats!

Shari - an email is coming your way asking for your mailing information. Happy Reading and thanks again to all the entries!

Want to Win a Romantic New Year's Eve Weekend Getaway?

On twitter this past week I was tweeted some information about a really nice giveaway for a spectacular New Year's Eve celebration and I asked for more information to share with you.

Here are some details from the Turnberry Isle Resort representative:

The winner of THE MOMENT receives a romantic New Year’s Eve package at the resort, valued at $1400. The package includes a two night stay, two tickets to Turnberry’s black-tie New Year’s Eve masquerade ball (hello little black dress!), and brunch for two at the Cascata Grille.

To enter, contestants would visit Turnberry Isle Resort’s Facebook contest tab (https://www.facebook.com/TurnberryIsleMiami?sk=app_150911685012246) and complete the entry form. 

The contest will be open until December 23^rd. 

I did go and check out the facebook contest for myself and also the resort and it really does look like an awesome place to have a romantic weekend for New Years! Living in Florida myself, this sounds exactly like how I'd like to spend New Years. If you can get yourself down to Florida or live here already, then don't wait - go enter on that facebook page! 

 

Winner of Holiday Romances..

The winner of All I Want For Christmas and Holly's First Noel is:

Unknown aka Gena R!

Gena, I've sent your email address to Entangled and you should hear from them soon.

Congrats and Happy Reading!

Cheeky Girl Sabrina

Monday Morning Cuteness Holidays Edition!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!

Welcome Authors Ros Clarke & Faye Robertson & Enter To Win 2 Holiday Romances!

Entangled Publishing is pleased to offer new imprints, Flirts and Ever Afters.  All I Want for Christmas (So nice of Mariah Carey and Justin Bieber to do the promo single for this title), by Ros Clarke, and Holly’s First Noel, by Faye Robertson, are paving the way for these two lines. We hope you enjoy our holiday gifts to you with these Christmas novellas. Flirts are priced at just .99 cents and enjoy Ever Afters for only $2.99.

Meet the authors behind the Christmas magic…

Meet Ros Clarke:

This year, I have two jobs which means two office Christmas parties.  Two Secret Santa presents bought (must remember to wrap them up).  Two menus to choose from. Two outfits to select. Two opportunities to embarrass myself in front of my work colleagues.

Fortunately, I have never embarrassed myself as much as the heroine of my Christmas novella, Anna Gardner. The office party is the one night in the year when she lets her hair down, with alarmingly predictable consequences. One too many glasses of punch and Anna always ends up at the karaoke machine. Anna has a great repertoire of Christmas classics, including Mariah Carey's hit (reprised this year with Justin Bieber!), "All I Want For Christmas Is You.”  Have you seen this fun version featuring the crew of a Royal Navy warship as they come home after eight months of deployment?  So much better than the Bieber version!

 About All I Want for Christmas:

Last night, Anna Gardner was the life of the office Christmas party—right up until she threw herself at gorgeous advertising executive playboy, Hugh Munro. Again. Last year, Hugh let her pretend their passionate kiss never happened, but this year he’s determined to make Anna admit she wants him as much as he wants her.

 Except, Hugh doesn’t know the office party is the only night of the year his friend lets her hair down. That every hour she’s away from the office is spent caring for her sickly mother. That her mother’s condition, early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, is hereditary.

When Hugh finds out what she’s been hiding, he’s forced to do some serious soul-searching. It’s not fair to Anna or her mother for him to get involved casually, but casual relationships are all he knows. Can he prove to himself—and to Anna—that she’s all he wants for Christmas?

About Ros:

Ros Clarke is a writer, a student, a church worker, a crafter, a blogger, a twitterer, a lazy gardener, and an appalling housekeeper. She is interested in almost everything except cricket and football (US and UK) and mostly she likes happy endings in fiction and in real life.

You can find Ros at her website and follow her on Twitter!
Get a copy of All I Want For Christmas at Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books On Board | Amazon UK

Meet Faye Robertson:

Coming up with a catchy title for a book is never easy, and the title for this one went through several incarnations before we settled on the final choice. I wanted something Christmas related, and liked the idea of echoing a carol. I considered setting the story in a hospital so I could call it Holly and the I.V. Actually my first idea was to echo a line in the book where Holly comments on the amount of snow that will fall overnight, but my editor assured me “Six Inches by Morning” was more of an erotica title. Likewise, I steered clear of anything to do with the North Pole and O Come all ye Faithful, not wanting to give the wrong impression.

But eventually we settled on Holly’s First Noel, and even though a dear friend has asked, “Does that mean she’s going to have a second one when she’s finished with him?” I think the title suits the story very well. It’s a sweet and sexy tale with, I hope, an uplifting emotional message—that the magic of Christmas isn’t to be found by making a traditional dinner and creating a perfect day, but that—without being too mushy—it’s what’s in your heart that counts, and love can turn any day into a celebration.

About Holly’s First Noel:

Music teacher Holly Jones is in a festive predicament. Her boyfriend just dumped her the week before Christmas, so why is she only depressed he made off with the mince pies? When the charming science teacher next door overhears the dreaded call and suggests she accompany him on his Scottish holiday retreat, she accepts, eager to spend a quiet week rediscovering herself.

Noel Coward’s wife died on Christmas Eve three years ago. To bury the memories of that day, he spends the holidays getting drunk and watching action movies—which makes him perfect company for a fellow teacher in need of solitude. Except, instead of wallowing in his grief, Noel finds himself comforted by Holly’s presence, fascinated by her mind, and after one innocent kiss, on fire for her touch. As the snow piles up outside, the temperature inside soars, while together, they discover the human heart’s amazing capacity to heal…and love.

About Faye:
Faye Robertson lives in the sub-tropical Northland of New Zealand with her wonderful husband and gorgeous teenage son. She writes fun, flirty, and sexy contemporary romances for the modern woman who likes intelligent, spirited heroines, and hunky but approachable heroes. She’s won several romance writing competitions and is a member of the Romance Writers of New Zealand. She would much rather immerse herself in reading or writing romance than do the dusting and ironing, which is why it’s not a great idea to pop round if you have any allergies. She also writes romance under the name Serenity Woods.

You can find Faye at her website, on Twitter or connect on Facebook!

Get your copy of Holly’s First Noel at Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books On Board | Amazon UK

So tell us, what's your favorite Christmas carol and why? Leave a comment and be entered to win an ebook of both of these awesome holiday stories!

Contest is open internationally! The contest ends at 11:59 on 12/18 and a winner will be announced 12/19 so you'll have plenty of time to read these stories while you're still in the holiday spirit!

It's The Loveswept Holiday Hop Giveaway!

Good Luck & Happy Holidays to all!

INCREASE your chances to win by visiting all of the participating 'Loveswept - Holiday Hop' sites! 

Winners will be contacted after 1/10/12. US Only.

Monday Morning Cuteness!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!

Welcome To The Romancing Christmas Giveaway Hop!

The Romancing Christmas Giveaway Hop is being hosted by Reading Romances!

What you can win here: A Selection of Print and Audio Books Tailored To The Genres You Love! 

You'll win at least 2 Audio Books and 2 Print Books - but maybe more!

How to enter: Just leave a comment with your favorite genres, types of stories or fav authors. That's it! If you like my blog, I hope you'll follow, but it's not required. 

Open to: US Addresses Only.

Enter the other giveaways for this event!

Book Review: The Mistress' House by Leigh Michaels

Book Review: The Mistress' House
By: Leigh Michaels
Published By: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Released: Februrary 2011
Historical Romance
3 Heart Review

The rules are meant to be broken…

When the handsome, rakish Earl of Hawthorne buys the charming house across the back garden from his town home, he never expects the lovely lady he installs there to ensnare him completely…

Again…

After Lady Keighley marries the earl, it seems a shame to leave the house empty, so she offers it to her childhood friend Felicity Mercer, who discovers the earl’s gorgeous cousin…

and again…

Finally, feisty Georgiana Baxter moves into the house to escape an arranged marriage and encounters the earl’s friend Major Julian Hampton late one night in the back garden. The handsome soldier is more than willing to give her the lessons she asks for…

Plenty of gossip, scandal, and torrid speculations surround the “mistress house,” but behind closed doors, passions blaze…

I feel I need to preface this review by letting it be known that I don’t like books under 100 pages, known characters from a series in a novella excluded. And while this book is just over 300 pages, it is actually 3 separate stories independent of each other. I just don’t think it gives the author enough time to build the characters, and I like my books to have a good plot.

That being said, The Mistress' House fell short on a lot of points I am very adamant about. I didn’t really get to know the characters like I would have liked. Each story had a plot – sort of – but the intimate scenes were obviously the focal point of the stories. And, the characters’ decisions and actions weren’t believable, especially for the era.

On the good side, I really enjoyed the characters in this book. They had so much potential. I was able to connect with them, even in the short timeframe. I also really liked how each story flowed into the next. The characters’ interactions and relationships, not just the romantic ones, are often my favorite part of a book.

If you’re looking for a steamy little summer read, this is just the ticket. However, if you like your books with depth and a driving, intricate plot, you might want to skip this one. I really wish Leigh, the author, would have separated each story into its own book so the characters had the opportunity to grow, and things didn’t seem so rushed. With strong personalities like these, I just know they would have come to life right off the page.

What do you think of novellas? Do you think it really depends on who the author is as to if you think they can create a whole world and draw you in with so few words?

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl L.A.

Awesome New Video - Dangerous Books For Girls...

You might have already seen it, but this is just too awesome not to share for those who might have missed it!

More Cuteness From Bergdorf Goodman!

So I've watched this super cute video a million times and thought I should totally share it with you all. It's from Bergdorf Goodman, the upscale department store in NYC, who is not only dog friendly but is also promoting dog and cat adoptions in their holiday promos.

Watch the video and smile. Oh, and I love that the doorman in the video is really the doorman in real life!

Monday Morning Cuteness!

see more dog and puppy pictures

Super Cute Christmas Giveaway From Author Maureen O. Betita!

My friend, and awesome author, Maureen O. Betita is having a fun contest to win what I think is one of the most original and cute Christmas ornaments I've ever seen - It's a Kraken! Check out the photo to the left. Super cute right?

Head over to Maureen's blog for all the details on how you can enter to win that little guy for your very own tree - and she's also giving away free books along the way too!

I'm happy to be back from my trip and hope to have the blog back up and running next week! Hope you've been reading some fabulous books!

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

Happy Thanksgiving from Cheeky Reads!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!