Romance Book Review: The Inherited Bride By Maisey Yates

Book Review: The Inherited Bride
By Maisey Yates
Harlequin Presents Extra - May 2011
3 Heart Review (It could have been 4!)

Princess Isabella was cetain of three things...

She desperately didn't want to marry the sheikh to whom she was betrothed...

There was more to the darkly handsome, dark-hearted stranger escourting her back to the alter than met the eye...

And, having kissed that stranger once, she was never going to be the same again...

 
Cheeky Summary: What I really enjoyed about this book was the glimpse of insight author Maisey Yates gave us into what it could be like growing up in royalty or anywhere were a person was heavily protected. The heroine Isabella's desire to find out who she is would have seemed like a very small thing except for how expertly the author goes about explaining the kind of life Isabella had grown up living. This book has definitely made Mrs. Yates an auto-buy for me in spite of the fact that Harlequin Presents aren't usually my go-to Harlequins.

The story is very well written and as I mentioned, I really enjoyed this heroine. The hero Adham was well done as well and more likable than some of the alpha Presents heros one ususally reads. What kept this book as a 3 heart review was that the love scene between them just didn't feel right to me. It's hard to explain without spoilers, but I felt the hero went against his moral code and did so seemily without fighting against it too much.

I mean you kind of knew reading the book what would have to happen, but when it did I just expected something BIGGER to have pushed the two of them past their own control. Something about the scene just didn't feel like they resisted that much and it let me down.

Even with that let-down, this was a really enjoyable read and I really loved this heroine. I actually thought that the end of the book was immensly satisfying as it let the heroine shine and not be just some witless woman who falls at a man's feet. I know some readers who don't read Presents stories very often might at first believe that all the heroines are pushovers, but I think that you would really be happy to meet the heroine in this book.

Mrs. Yates has a writing style that I greatly enjoyed and I cannot wait to see if that comes through in her other Presents stories or if it was just the heroine who won me over so much in this book. Either way, I’m reading more of her Harlequin Presents books!

Have you read a Harlequin Presents by Maisey Yates yet? If so, what did you think? HA - I guess I should ask: Do you read Harlequin Presents books? Why or why not? What appeals or doesn't appeal to you about the line?

Monday Morning Cuteness!

funny pictures - Ders nuttin lyke fallin  asleep wit a gud book
see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!

When Loins Attack: Need Help From Linda Howard Fans

MacKenzie's Mission by Linda Howard
Audiobook - Brilliance Audio
DNF

For the very first time I picked up a Linda Howard Audiobook to listen to. It's not only my first audio version of hers I've listened to, but also the first book of hers for me period. The problem? I'm having MAJOR issues with it. This was unexpected because she's a big name author that I assumed would have to be half-way readable to a vast majority of readers in order to have made her books so popular. I'm not seeing that in this book at all. So now I have to ask: Is is just me?

Okay, so the book is MacKenzie's Mission and it will officially be my first ever DNF book or audiobook. A few months ago I talked about not finishing an audiobook but I had managed to work my way to the end. This time, I just can't take it anymore and I turned it off and ejected it this morning on my way to work. Which is saying something because I HATE morning radio and the nimwits who hosts shows and yet that was prefereable to me over this audiobook.

So what's the issue? There are many and I talked about a few of them with some awesome readers on twitter yesterday.

The first might be that I really don't like the hero and heroine and that might be clouding my opinon. In addition, there is a male narrarator and I'm not so hot on male narrators. Why? Because they always make the female voices sound ridiculous. They make them whiney and shakey and little girl sounding instead of like an adult woman.

So those are the issues to start with.

BUT then come the things I started to get riled up over.

The hero grew up on a horse farm and so the reader is treated to EVERY SINGLE reference of the hero to the heroine is full of horse metaphors. I stopped counting how many times he spoke of mounting her, taming her, breaking her spirit, etc. Give me a break already. We get it - you don't have to beat those phrases into the ground.

The heroine is a virgin. Okay. I have no problem with that and had no issue with how it was explained that she is 28 and still hasn't been with a man. Those things were explained well. What did I have an issue with? She has sex 5 TIMES in one night on her first night. NOT ONE SINGLE time is described as gentle and yet the next morning they immediately wake up and she's all "Oh, I'm only sore a little we can get it on" and off they go for more marathon sex. THAT LASTS AN ENTIRE WEEKEND. As a virgin with a supposedly huge, rough man.

Now, maybe this would have been more believable if this was an erotic romance or erotica but this was a plain old romance with a naieve woman and I just didn't buy it.

What else was wrong with that? The entire thing is told through the hero's POV and it's all about getting his pleasure, slating his lust, etc. Not really any mention of caring more about how she feels and if she is hurting than "relieving the tighness in his loins."

Yes, loins are everywhere in this book. Yet another romance book with a built-in drinking game. I mean it's the male POV and all he can think to himself about his man junk is loins?

Then IT happened. The part of the story in which I could take no more. The heroine is accused of something and instead of going with her character's obvious personality traits, she decides to do the most insane, stupid thing ever and it completely flies in the face of everything you know about this character. WTF! STOP. EJECT. I just couldn't take it anymore.

So Dear Readers, I'm asking for any Linda Howard fans out there to help me understand. Is this a one-off bad book? Did you read this book and love it and apparently I'm just not going to like her writing but there are plenty of others who love it? If you've read this book what did you think?

Lastly, what Linda Howard book would you recommend that I read as her best work? I've heard from Twitter to try Mr. Perfect - would that be the "perfect" one to read? (Insert groan over my silliness here)

Hot Book Cover Alert!

Romance author Carrie Lofty revealed her new cover for FLAWLESS on twitter today and boy howdy is it stricking. Check it out for yourself...



So what do you think? Do you love the flowing dress and the hint of sparkle? Or is it just me!?

Win A Sony Pocket Reader or Other Awesome Goodies From Author Maureen O. Betita!

My kick-ass author friend Maureen O. Betita is hosting a pretty cool contest and giveaway right now so I wanted to share it with you. Here are the details, but make sure to visit Maureen's site or a site she is visiting to leave your comments for entry. Here's the direct link to her site to enter!

From Maureen:

Between the electronic edition of The Kraken’s Mirror and the print edition of The Kraken’s Mirror…my kraken disappeared. Now, he’s a responsible beast and I choose to believe he has a reason and a place he was driven to go… (Yes, there was a reason and it wasn’t on purpose…these things happen.)



I’m making the most of a sad situation and having a CONTEST! What am I giving away? 1st prize is a Sony Pocket Reader! 2nd prize is A kick-ass kraken parasol and…a 3rd prize is a Betsy Johnson ‘kraken’ ring! When does the contest run? From May 1st to May 31st! So… Where did the Kraken go?




Here are the options: Where did the Kraken go?
1.) He’s in Scotland, wooing Nessie
2) He’s outside the Mines of Moria at Gandalf’s request, fighting off the menace in the waters
3) Sharing rum with the monster in the lake at Hogwarts
4) ? Your idea?


How to enter the contest?
1) Comment on my blog at www.maureenobetita.com and pick an option, or create your own.
2) Friend my author page on Facebook, Maureen O. Betita Author and leave a comment, telling me which option you’ve picked, or where you think the Kraken went.
3) Find me on any blog I guest at during the month of May and tell me your option. (Be sure to leave an e-mail address in the comment section.)


I’ll award the three biggies on the 31st…during the month I’ll give away smaller prizes…free books, pirate perch hats and kraken jewelry. Amuse me with clever ideas and you might win something!

Book Review: Animal Magnetism by Jill Shalvis - 4 Heart Review


Book Review: Animal Magnetism
By Jill Shalvis 
4 Heart Review
Berkley Sensation - Contemporary Romance
Sunshine, Idaho, is a small and sunny town – the perfect home for man and beast. Well, maybe not for man, as pilot-for-hire Brady Miller discovers when his truck is rear-ended by what appears to be Noah's Ark.

As the co-owner of the town's only kennel, Lilah Young has good reason to be distracted behind the wheel – there are puppies, a piglet, and a duck in her Jeep. But she doesn't find it hard to focus on the sexy, gorgeous stranger she's collided with.

Lilah has lived in Sunshine all her life, and though Brady is just passing through, he has her abandoning her instincts and giving in to a primal desire. It's Brady's nature to resist being tied down, but there's something about Lilah and her menagerie – both animal and human – that keeps him coming back for more...

Cheeky Summary: Animal Magnetism by Jill Shalvis is exactly the type of contemporary romance I lust after and wish for more of! Lilah is a fresh heroine who I completely identified with and Brady is a complicated but lovable special forces hero that readers will eat up with a spoon. This book proves yet again that Jill Shalvis is one of our most exceptional contemporary romance authors and that we need more authors like her!

There was so much to love about this book that nothing I could write would be able to include all of the many things done right. The characters are wonderfully developed and I really enjoyed Brady's emotional journey. The townspeople and the vet clinic made for a delightful cast of supporting charactes and I'm so looking forward to Brady's “brothers” books.

There was only one thing about this book that slightly felt off to me and that's because it was built-up so much throughout the story that when it comes out in the story I felt cheated. From the start of the story everyone alludes to something in Lilah's past that made her give up her dreams and come back to her hometown. Eventually you will learn what happened and it is something bad, but there was almost too much build up for how Lilah calmly explains it to Brady. She almost shrugs it off and that bothered me for something that made such an impact on her life. Others might not feel as put out by this as I was, so I wouldn't overlook this book because of it. In fact, you might see her shrugging off her past as oart of her emotional development, but it just didn't strike it that way to me.

That one aspect to the story came very close to the end of the book so it didn't take away from how much I enjoyed reading it. It did leave me feeling the book was close to perfect, but just shy of getting a perfect rating for me. I mean this is a REALLY good book. :)

Even with the issue I had, I recommend romance readers give this one a try and if they haven't read Jill Shalvis before then please do. If you don't normally read contemporary romance then Jill Shalvis is a great place to start and Animal Magnetism is a great series to start with!

Covers That Make You Go WOW!

I ran across this cover on Shelf Awareness the other day and it instantly struck me and I found myself staring at it:

















Let's also not forget this cover that set twitter on fire when it released:




















I think Jaci Burton will have a hit with the next cover too:



















Now Cheeky Readers, I want to hear what covers made you stop and pay attention. Let me know the best covers you've run across lately, or your favorite covers of all time. I'll search them up and add them to this post so we can all behold the beauty that is an awesome book cover.

Happy Reading!
Cheeky Girl Sabrina

A Steal of a Deal - Bid on a Awesome Book Package!

So today's Bria GH Auction Items have gone live and there is one that I really wanted to highlight for Cheeky Readers followers:

A book package from author Leslie Dicken - Either Print or EPub
OPEN: 2:30pm

CLOSE: 4:30pm


Leslie Dicken has offered up her three books – A Tarnished Heart, Beauty Tempts the Beast, and The Price of Discovery — for auction, as well as a lovely heart pendant.
Here's what I've previously said about Leslie's book Beauty Tempts the Beast right here on Cheeky Reads:

I read Beauty Tempts the Beast in one sitting and really loved it. In fact, when I went to draft the questions for this interview I found myself completely re-reading the story - less than a month later! If you are a historical romance fan I cannot recommend this book enough. On the Cheeky Reads scale I give it a 4 Heart Review - It really is a fantastic read! -- Cheeky Girl Sabrina
You can go bid on Leslie's package by clicking here!

Amazing Auctions Ahoy!

I met the lovely and amazing writer Bria Quinlan at RWA Nationals last year and was super excited when she was nominated for the Golden Heart this year! Unfortunately Bria can't afford to pay for it this year so Bria's GH Auction was born!

Read all about Bria and check out the auction items by clicking here. Today's items go live at 2:30pm EST. Some items yesterday went super cheap!

There are some pretty awesome things there - from Critiques for writers, books for readers, pretty awesome looking steampunk jewelry and more! Please stop by and consider bidding to help a writer not miss her possible big award day! :) *crossing fingers*

Cheeky Girl Sabrina

Back From Vacation!

So yesterday I got back from my Caribbean vacation and had to spend the day getting settled back into work before I could start posting again. I thought I would post a pic of the beach or me reading on the beach this morning, but my camera is not coorperating. :(

As a blogger, you always say you are going to write up some blogs to auto-post while you are gone, but in the hetic days leading up to your vacation it never seems to really happen. Usually I can also ask for guest bloggers and authors while I'm out but the day job has been crazy lately so I ran out of time for even that!

So, all that is to say I'm sorry I left you hanging in the lurch!

I have a few blogs coming up later today about some really awesome auctions going on right now for great causes and I hope you will come back to check them out.

I miss you all and hope you read something awesome this past week!

Cheeky Girl Sabrina

Fun With Book Trailers!

Nowhere Near Respectable by Mary Jo Putney



Savage Nature by Christine Freehan



When You Dare by Lori Foster

4 Heart Book Review: Caught on Camera by Meg Maguire

Caught on Camera
by Meg Maguire
Harlequin Blaze April 2011
4 Heart Review

How to Survive the Night with the Hottest Guy on Camera

Wilderness survival television star Dominic Tyler (TY) and his assistant Kate Somersby are stranded in a remote cabin during a freak winter storm. Things look pretty bleak – until they make a fire and strip off their wet clothes...

Act 1 – Set Up
Survive This! Is Kate's life...as are the unscripted fantasies about Ty, her boss and best friend. But when Kate is suddenly injured, Ty decides filming is too dangerous for her. This will be Kate's last adventure for a while.

Act II- Plot Point

Kate is furious and threatens to quit. But Ty needs her. So what can he do? Keep her occupied by filming every minute of their intense and definitely unrehearsed sex!

Act III – Cliff-Hanger
It's Kate's choice now: Her hard-won career? Or end credits featuring dangerously wild sex with Ty? Ha. Some choice. But either way, the final cut is guaranteed to be a thrilling ride!

The Cheeky Nutshell:
Meg Maguire is an exciting new Harlequin Blaze author who'll be on my auto-buy list for her emotionally complicated but totally realistic characters that I loved from page one. Caught on Camera was a tightly structured book that kept the entire focus on the emotional struggles of the hero and heroine. The intense focus on the internal conflicts in this story raised it above the average Blaze, which with how much I love Blazes says quite a lot.

I liked the fun tone of the back cover copy on this book and actually feel like the book is both slightly different than the blurb describes, and also much better. The blurb doesn't give the reader even a hint of the deep emotions these two characters have for each other from before the story even begins.

That was something else about this story that I loved, that the love fully existed on page one and the reader got to spend the entire book wrapped in those emotions.

This was happily a nicely hot and steamy book and I enjoyed the interaction between Kate and Ty. Both their verbal sparring and hot and heavy moments. Ms. Maguire can sure write a kick-ass love scene. :)

One thing that pulled me out of the story slightly was this thing Ty did about almost kissing Kate. Maybe it was something in the description. Maybe it was that it was from Kate's point of view and our understanding of it was muddled up with her not understanding it. It just seemed slightly off. Made me go "What?" You'd have to read the story to fully get it, I'm just not able to fully explain why it threw me off.

Lastly, there were a few points in this book where I thought "Oh no, it's going to be predictable. I know exactly what is going to happen." And guess what? It totally didn't go there. It surprised me and that was great.

I definitely recommend this book to any reader who's ever watched those adventure survival shows and caught yourself thinking about those men. You'll love Ty! I also think Blaze lovers are going to eat up this new author addition to the line and I think we'll see many more books from Ms. Maguire.


You can check out more info on Caught on Camera here

Monday Morning Cuteness!

Funny Pictures - Cute Kittens
see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!

I love this photo! Also, I wanted to post an update that my eye procedure went great and my vision is awesome. I'm still having a little haziness looking at lights (including my computer monitor) so I won't be online much the next day or so, but I'm doing well and can't wait to get back to reading!

Happy Reading!
Sabrina

When Word Of Mouth Doesn't Disappoint

Sometimes you hear so much awesomeness about a book that it really never has a chance to live up to the expectations that have been built up about it. Then, there are those books that deserve every single bit of purple prose that they've received.

I've found one of those books and I can't even wait to finish it before coming on here to tell you I LOVE IT!

What's the book? It's actually a book released last year and up for TWO Rita Awards this year - When Harry Met Molly by Kieran Kramer.

Now, for as many people who sang the praises of this book, there were just as many who thought it fun but too unbelievable. For me, it was the fact that it was so over the top that made it so much fun and I'm loving the happy mood this book is putting me in.

I still have about 50-75 pages to go, but I have to say this book does not disappoint. So...FUN. Just can't keep from saying that word over and over. I also can't wait to read the next books in the series which lucky for me are already out!

When The Lights Go Dark...

This weekend I'm doing something completely insane in my mind. I'm having LASIK eye surgery after 20 years in glasses and contacts. It has taken me about 5 years of researching, visiting doctors, talking to friends, etc in order to come to this decision and I have to say that I'm extremely excited about it.

I'm also get REALLY nervous. Like watch crazy grahic videos of surgeries during my lunchbreak nervous. I 1000 times over do not recommend you do this if you are ever having a procedure done. Do NOT look it up on YouTube no matter how much you want to know. :)

But this post isn't about my being nervous of the surgery. It's really about being nervous about the What Ifs. Now, let me start by saying that I'm fully prepared and knowledgeable about what I'm going to do and am going to a great doctor.

BUT, there is always that chance that the worst could happen and I would lose my vision. As someone whose biggest pleasure in life is reading I'm nervous about how this decision might turn out.

What would I do if I could no longer read the words on the written page?
If you have read Cheeky Reads for some time, you might know that I'm a huge lover of AudioBooks. Like HUGE. (Insert Trump voice over here) But what if that was the only way I had to enjoy books? Would it be enough for me or would I curse my decision to have an elective eye procedure for the rest of my life? It's a daunting question for this book lover and once I can't get out of my mind.

One thing is certain. These thoughts have given me a brand new appreciation for those services available for visually imparied people and a desire to learn more about how books are being transformed into audio and other mediums for them.

If something happened to you tomorrow and you could no longer read your favorite books, would you try out audio books? Do you currently listen to audio books? Hell, have you had LASIK and everything turned out fine and you can tell me to quit being silly?!?

Secondary Characters That Draw You In

So I've been listening to the second book in Sabrina Jeffries' School of Heiresses series and even with this second story, I'm still hit with the same feelings I had in the first. I care way more about Charlotte Harris and Michael's story than I do about the one I'm supposed to be reading/listening to!

I find myself waiting impatiently for each chapter to end so that the next chapter can open with another series of correspondance between Charlotte and Michael. THEY are the couple I long for and I eat up each little morsel of thier story as the chapters go by.

It does bother me slighly that the main story hasn't engrossed me enough to hold it's own against this so far very slight budding relationship between Charlotte and Michael. Is that because the stories aren't perfect for me, or is it that the Charlotte/Michael mystery is just so umm...mysterious that I can't help it!

I know that the final book in the series is their story, but I can't skip ahead! I feel like I need to see the exchanges between them through all the books or the final book won't be as compelling for me.

This got me thinking about other books and series that have secondary characters that take over the spotlight. Twitter seemed to agree with me last night that there are so many series where these characters become more of an interest than the main story itself.

What about you...What story have you read where you wanted the romance to focus on a character off to the side instead of the main hero and heroine? Is there a series you follow only for a chance to glimpse some small character's life? Have you read Sabrina Jeffries' series and felt the same way I did?