REVIEW - Crown of One Hundred Kings (Nine Kingdoms Trilogy #1) by Rachel Higginson

 The Book

Release Date: 27 October 2020

Goodreads Link

A lost princess…

Tessana Allisand had a family once. A home. A title. A future. Until one night when everything she loved was taken from her. Secreted away to an isolated monastery in the farthest region of the realm, Tess was raised in the silence of monks and the loneliness of tragedy. And there she would have stayed if the dark magic that killed her family hadn’t finally found her.

An impossible quest…

With her identity discovered, Tessana must face the home she fled all those years ago. The Crown of Nine must return to its rightful place and Tess must be the one to carry it across the nine kingdoms. And when she arrives? She’ll need to convince a dying kingdom that the crown that has belonged to one hundred kings should be given to a queen.

A rebellious prince…

Taelon Treskinat was in love once. With a princess. The daughter of a slaughtered king. He risked everything to save her, to make sure she survived. When that same princess tumbles back into his life no longer the scared little girl he remembers from childhood, he must decide where his duty lies. With the girl that will threaten everything he knows and loves. Or the kingdom he will do anything to protect.adult 

My Review  5 STARS

**My thanks to the author for providing me with a free copy for an honest review**

This is the first young adult book that i have read by this author and i am certainly not disappointed.  Along with a brilliantly written story, the world building is credible enough to make it feel real.

Tessana was only young when her immediate family was murdered leaving her bereft and in peril.  Tessana was spirited away to another kingdom and looked after by silent monks for many years before she starts having dreams of needing to go back home.

Tess takes along her best friend Oliver who lightens things up and also keeps her company.  The world is not what it used to be, danger is around every corner and the world is in unrest.  It is not long before Tess and Oliver find things are very different to what they were expecting and there spirit and determination will be tested.  She is also a very strong character in both will and the determination to do what she was born for, she stand up for those around her and of those she feels need her help.

I guessed who the guy who comes into the picture was very quickly and was glad to be right and was glad that Tess may only be 17, but she was not an immature 17, therefore was more relatable to me, or it may just have been the authors incredible writing.

Tess's journey is the main plot of the story with an undercurrent of romance with he new male character and although the book does not end in a cliff hanger, it does leave many questions unanswered leading into the next book of the series, which i seriously cannot wait for.

REVIEW - Protecting His Pregnant Lover (Southern Soldiers of Fortune Book 1) by Leslie North

The Book
Release Date: 4 October 2020
Goodreads Link

 Self-proclaimed nerd Olive Owen can’t believe it when Levon Asher, sexy, nothing-but-muscle Navy SEAL admits to having had a crush on her in high school. She hasn’t seen him in ten years, and reconnecting with him at their high school reunion is a bit of a surprise. A bigger surprise is that after one night of passionate love-making, Olive is pregnant, and Levon has long since left town on a final SEAL mission. When he returns seven months later, he’s a member of the private security group Southern Soldiers of Fortune, who are in town for a joint operation with the local police to stop a gang from infiltrating the school where Olive works. When Olive accidentally stumbles onto a gang meeting, the threats on her doorstep leave no doubt—she’s being targeted. And when she agrees to move in with Levon for her own safety, it soon becomes clear her heart is in danger too.

Knowing Olive’s at risk is driving Levon crazy. He realizes he’s being overbearing, but he just can’t stop himself. The thought of anything happening to her or his unborn child is enough to make him more than a little controlling. But what’s safer—keeping her close, where he can protect her, or pushing her back, out of harm’s way? He needs Olive to be okay, but his impulses are giving him mixed signals even as the clock starts counting down to a confrontation with the gang. A shocking reveal of a gang member’s identity could drive Olive away from Levon for good, leaving him wondering if solving the crime will come too late to resolve the mystery that matters most to him—how to hold on to Olive’s heart.

My Review  4 STARS
**My thanks to the author and Hidden Gems for providing me with a free copy for an honest review**

 Olive and Levon first reunite for their school reunion when Levon is back briefly before his last mission with the Navy SEALS.  When he sees Olive again after all these years, the want for her ramps up and they share a night of passion knowing it is just one night.

Seven moths later, Levon is back in a new job investigating a drugs ring in the area around the school they both went to and the school Olive now works at, when he sees that Olive is seven months pregnant, both are shocked at seeing each other and Olive does confess that that baby is his.

When Olive sees something that puts her in danger, Levon is quick to be there and ensures that Olive stays with him for her safety.  Both help each other get to the bottom of the trouble, however both of them have their insecurities get in the way both thinking their brains stop them or with Olive her looks.

Close to the end both mistake what the other means, both ending up alone for a while before friends or family point out the truth and they then make an effort to communicate and get what they want.

Its a good read and certainly has some action, but the actual bust for the drama is not as exciting as i was expecting.

REVIEW - Going to the Chapel (Welcome to Matrimony #1) by Rita Herron

The Book
Release Date: 11 November 2014
Goodreads Link

If there’s a naughty list, Izzy Sassafras is on it—but she’s ready to make a new start this Christmas. Especially after leaving her lying, cheating, no-good husband and fleeing to her old hometown of Matrimony, Georgia. Izzy’s made herself a promise: no more men. All she wants to do is get her wedding business up and running—and mend fences with her estranged sisters. But Izzy knows she’s in trouble when her very first client, a smooth-talking Texan, makes her light up like a Christmas tree.

Desperate for business, private investigator Levi Fox reluctantly takes a case involving a runaway wife in a town called Matrimony. When he meets sweet, sexy Izzy, he decides she can’t possibly be as innocent as she seems. At first, posing as her client is the perfect cover; but he soon imagines himself as a groom—with Izzy as his Christmas bride! Will this case end with a trip to the chapel…or the jailhouse?

My Review  4 STARS
**Copy Provided by Netgalley and Montlake Romance for an honest review**

This is a cute quick read based near the Christmas season and is based on Izzy, who has runaway from her husband and Levi who has been tasked to find her.

Izzy has come back home to her little town of Matrimony in Texas and is surprised to find her sister tending to her aunt, both of which she has not seen for many years and all have not talked to each other due to a fight many years ago.

 Levi knows something is fishy about Izzy's husband the moment he meets him, he just does not know if Izzy is in league with her husband or if she is an innocent victim.

There is almost instant chemistry between Levi and Izzy, but at least Izzy keeps her head and her honest viewss.  She also at the end manages to make up with her sisters and mend the broken bridges between them.

REVIEW - Gift Wrapped by Romy Sommer

The Book
Release Date: 6 December 2018
Goodreads Link

 An anthology of short, feel-good holiday romances to warm the heart this winter, from RITA®-nominated author Romy Sommer.

Naughty or Nice
A panto actress receives a pleasant surprise when Santa comes down the chimney.
​
Under the Mistletoe
Lissa may be the youngest financial director her company has ever had, but she's not so successful in the dating department...until she accidentally kisses the wrong man under the mistletoe.
​
The Perfect Gift
Nannying was only ever supposed to be a temporary gig for Jessie - if only she could figure out what it is she really wants to do with her life. But maybe this Christmas, her future will arrive gift-wrapped in the form of sexy single dad Cole.

My Review  4 STARS
**My thanks to the author for providing me with a free copy for an honest review**

 This is a collection of short stories based around the festive period and only the first two of the stories are linked.  If the third story had been linked i would probably have added the other star.

These stories are light and fun and flirty and are certainly the kind of thing we need after a strange 2020 to lighten our spirits.

The stories in order that we in my novella were Under the Mistletoe, The perfect Gift (both are linked), then Naughty or Nice.

REVIEW - Everything Changes (Creek Canyon #3) by Catherine Bybee

The Book
Release Date: 10 November 2020
Goodreads Link

A woman proving herself in a man’s world finds love in the suspenseful and emotional conclusion to the Creek Canyon series from New York Times bestselling author Catherine Bybee.

As the only female civil engineer in her department, Grace Hudson needs space from men. Her last love interest traumatized her in ways she never saw coming; with that behind her, she is determined to focus on her career. Even so, a little flirting with a handsome stranger over coffee can’t hurt, right?

In their short interaction, Grace dazzles Dameon Locke. But he’s focused on his newest development project and keeping his company afloat after his biggest investor pulled out. So during the planning huddle with the city board, he’s stunned to find the petite spitfire he met at the coffee shop running the show.

Grace can’t ignore Dameon’s charm, but when a disgruntled developer accuses Grace of taking bribes, her world is upended. Worse still, something much more important than her job may be in peril.

With her career in shambles and her life in danger, Grace turns to Dameon…but will she risk putting him in danger too?

My Review  5 STARS
**Copy Provided by Netgalley and Montlake Romance for an honest review**

This book focuses on Grace Hudson, the little sister of Colin and Matt from the previous books and happens after Matt and Erin get their happy ending in book two.

Grace has gone off men for a while after the debacle with Desmond and is getting on with a job that she likes, but with a boss that treats her as unworthy as she is a woman in a mans job.

Dameon is taken by Grace from the moment that he first see's her, let alone meets her.  He finds a way to keep seeing her and pushes his way into her life, even if once he has to hand his man card back for a pedicure.

Dameon and Grace just click together, the chemistry there almost instantly with Grace showing him a side of her that is not often on display, she also trusts him when she needs help, but does not want to get her family involved.  Both end up helping each other in ways they never expected and Dameon does well in helping Grace with an issue that comes up at work.

Another brilliantly written book from Catherine Bybee that gives you all the feels where you just cannot help but root for the couple to get together and for the bad stuff to end and the good stuff to begin.