Friday, February 28, 2014

review: Saving Toby by Suzanne McKenna Link

Saving TobySaving Toby 
by Suzanne McKenna Link
4 of 5 stars

Loving someone through their hard fall from grace takes a lot of grit.

Hired on as a caretaker to the ailing Mrs. Faye, Claudia Chiatmetti is drawn into the lives of the widow and her son — a world where sadness lingers and old wounds run deep. Empathetic to the family's plight, Claudia is powerless against the emerging feelings she has for the unruly Toby Faye. Up close, Toby’s blue-grey eyes expose a need she cannot ignore. His dark past will test her fortitude and expose her to danger. Does Claudia have the grit to love Toby through it?

Saving Toby is a powerful and moving debut novel set on the south shore of Long Island. It is the first book of a two-part story that follows the emotional and inspirational tale of a young couple's journey to find themselves.

*Contains strong language and explicit scenes. 

http://www.amazon.com/Saving-Toby-Suzanne-McKenna-Link/dp/1432799851/ref=la_B00HGWI05W_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1393609259&sr=1-1 



My Thoughts - 

Saving Toby is a great heart-wrenching story about love and family. I absolutely just loved this story. I really enjoyed the characters, the storyline and over all just everything!!

I felt so horribly for Toby, that his mother just kind of gave up on everything after his father died. She wasn't really a good mother, but Toby was an awesome son. He dropped everything to take care of his mother and I think that was awesome. In his past he was a thug, but he'd changed. Being around old friends was not good for him though – eventually he saw that, but almost too late. Claudia was really what saved Toby.

Claudia was pursuing and admirable career and wanted nothing more than to escape her controlling father. When she met him, she really didn't want anything to do with Toby. With a lot of determination, he worked his way into her heart and life.

I liked this story so, so much. I enjoyed that fact that it wasn't a “love at first sight” kind of story – which are so unbelievable. This book I could imagine so vividly and realistically. There were gritty, horrible parts, sweet tender parts and heart-breakingly sad parts. I think a good song for this book's playlist (if it has one) is Coldplay's Fix You. Great job to the author - I loved it!!

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Hearts Under Seige & Risking It All for Her Boss



Risking It All For Her Boss
by: Sharron McClellan
Release Date: 2/24/24
Genre: Romantic Suspense

Synopsis:

When High Risk Securities (HRS) agent, Eva Torres, botches an undercover job by failing to rescue both of the kidnap victims she was sent to retrieve, Quinn Blackwood—her former lover and the man who broke her heart—pulls her and one of the victims out of harm’s way. As a penalty for her sins, she’s offered the dull job of escorting a former bio-chemical warfare scientist to Washington D.C. to reunite with his daughter. Much to her displeasure, the job of monitoring her assignment is given to Quinn.

Quinn isn’t thrilled with the situation either. He taught Eva everything he knew about secrets, sex, and lies—but the biggest lie of all was the one he’d told himself: that his missions for HRS were more important than anything, including his relationship with Eva. Because now that they’re working together again, the urge to put his hands on her, to feel her beneath him, is killing him.

Things only get worse when their current operation goes wrong, and the scientist they’re guarding is kidnapped mid-air. Now, Eva and Quinn have to work together to find him before he is forced to create a monstrous weapon that could destroy entire cities. A hard task made more difficult when they find themselves fighting both the enemy and their building desire for each other. Can they work together for the sake of the mission without reigniting the passion between them—or will passion be the salvation of them all?


Tagline: Big Risk. Big Reward. No Regrets.




Author Bio:

I always planned to be a writer of some sort. However, when I went to college, I took journalism and creative writing and sadly, the teacher’s sucked the love of writing out of me. So I turned to my next love–science. At first, I wanted to be a marine biologist, but there was the whole shark issue. Frankly, they freak me out.

Instead, I discovered the joys of playing in the dirt-a profession more commonly known as archaeology. For years, I focused on excavating ancient sites that included projectile points, burn pits and the occasional burial.

My focus returned to writing when I took a position during the archaeological off-season and ended up answering phones for Princess cruise line AKA The Love Boat. Which, when you consider I write romance, is somewhat ironic. It was during that time that I took to reading romance. It wasn’t long before I fell in love with the genre and returned to my first love-writing.

Five years later, I sold to Silhouette.Five years after that, I landed at Entangled Publishing–Huzzah!  Today, I live in San Diego, also known as the City of Perfect Weather. I have an awesome husband who supports my passion for the written word in every way possible.   We both love to travel so don’t be surprised to find locales I’ve visited appearing in my books and pictures popping up on the website. It’s a big world—both in my head and out there!

Email: sharron@sharronmcclellan.com









Hearts Under Siege

by: Natalie J. Damschroder
Release Date: 2/24/14
Genre: Romantic Suspense

Synopsis:

Brady Fitzpatrick has spent a decade burying the pain of a broken heart while working for SIEGE, an information-gathering spy agency. That it kept him away from his family as well as his best friend Molly has been an unfortunate side effect. But when his brother, also an agent, is killed during a foreign op, Brady is drawn into a web of intrigue that threatens the lives of everyone he loves…

Molly Byrnes has loved Brady forever. As his best friend and a de facto member of the Fitzpatrick family, she holds them together in their crushing grief. But as a member SIEGE’s ground team, she doesn't buy the official line about Brady’s brother’s “accidental” death and launches her own investigation—only to uncover a shocking secret that she and Brady must get to the bottom of before their target finds them.

Tangled emotions land them in bed together, opening Brady’s eyes to the incredible, fearless woman who’s been there for him all his life. But after a lifetime of disappointment, how can Molly trust the possibility of a future with him…or if they can count on any future at all?

Tagline: Will the truth bring them together?



Author Bio:
Natalie J. Damschroder is an award-winning author of contemporary and paranormal romance, with an emphasis on romantic adventure. Her 11 novels, 7 novellas, and 15 short stories have been published by Avid Press, Echelon Press, and Amber Quill Press. She currently publishes romantic adventure with Carina Press and urban fantasy romance with Entangled Publishing. Her paranormal romance series, The Soul Series, is self-published.

Natalie grew up in Massachusetts, and loves the New England Patriots more than anything. (Except her family. And writing and reading. And popcorn.) When she’s not writing, she does freelance editing and works part time as a chiropractic assistant. She and her husband have two daughters they’ve dubbed “the anti-teenagers,” one of whom is also a novelist. (The other one prefers math. Smart kid. Practical.)

Email:  nujii@aol.com



Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Drive Me Crazy by Tracy Wolff + giveaway!!



Title: Drive Me Crazy
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Tracy Wolff
Publisher: Entangled Brazen
Pages: 210
Language: English
Format: Ebook


His rival’s in his bed, and this rocker is ready to play.

Former rivals Quinn Bradford and Elise McKinney are not friends, at least not anymore. As teens, all they cared about was psyching each other out before concerts. But when Quinn—now the keyboardist for Shaken Dirty, the hottest rock band on the scene—returns to his hometown and hears about the car accident that shattered Elise’s career, he’s determined to make things right.

Elise wants nothing to do with an arrogant rock star, despite how bad she so clearly wants him, so Quinn kidnaps the stubborn little piano player and whisks her back to his mansion. A little seduction might be just the thing to keep Elise under his care…and in his bed. But amid pranks both childish and very adult, their past comes rearing back to haunt them. And it might be more than either of them can forget.



ABOUT TRACY WOLFF

Tracy Wolff collects books, English degrees and lipsticks and has been known to forget where—and sometimes who—she is when immersed in a great novel. At six she wrote her first short story—something with a rainbow and a prince—and at seven she forayed into the wonderful world of girls lit with her first Judy Blume novel. By ten she’d read everything in the young adult and classics sections of her local bookstore, so in desperation her mom started her on romance novels. And from the first page of the first book, Tracy knew she’d found her life-long love. Now an English professor at her local community college, she writes romances that run the gamut from contemporary to paranormal to erotic suspense.

 

Pump Up Your Book and Tracy are teaming up to give away a $50 Amazon Gift Card and an ecopy of Shredded & Ruined!

Terms & Conditions:
  • By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
  • 2 winners will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive each of the prizes
  • This giveaway begins February 24 and ends on March 7.
  • Winners will be contacted via email on March 8, 2014.
  • Winner has 48 hours to reply.
Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!