Book Review: Saving Grace (Fox River Romance #4) by Jess B. Moore

Saving Grace

 (Fox River Romance #4)

 by Jess B. Moore

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA / B&N

Brandt Grace is trouble no matter what he says or does, always getting in his own way, and trying to prove he can do better and be better only to fall on his face.

Saving Grace follows Brandt's unintentional fall for Lola Donovan, the previously friendly girl turned quiet ghost of a girl. They connect at rock bottom, finding an unexpected source of strength in each other.

Can they find a way to leave the past behind and build a future together?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Growing up, everyone had a secret crush on a Grace brother. A whispered admission followed by all the reasons it was a bad idea.

If I’d been a cartoon, my jaw would have dropped open and flies would have flown into my mouth. He walked in heels? For a good cause?

Right. Wrong. They had lost some of their meaning over the years, words worn soft from constant use and too much thought. I had too often done the wrong thing, knowing it, and unable to climb my way out. When I tried to do the right thing, it often turned out to be wrong, and I had lost all concept of which was which.

What must it be like to see the world in lines and color? I imagined a mix of vibrancy and shadows, but couldn’t fathom translating objects or people or ideas into art.

I adored my baby brothers, but they drove me nuts. Did not care they were technically adults with good reputations. To me, they were brats who made too many fart jokes and cut the hair off my Barbie dolls.

My Review:

I don’t know how she does it but Jess B. Moore makes angst palatable rather than painful. She has to be some sort of magical being as she has now pulled off this miraculous and mystifying feat four times, I can think of no other explanation. Her writing is poignant, perceptive, and cunningly emotive; it stings my eyes, squeezes my heart, and plays me like a finely tuned Dobro while hitting all the feels as well as the notes to a haunting and evocative melody. 

Written in my favorite dual POV, Saving Grace was a heartrending and deftly penned tale occurred during the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas and dealt with addition, regrets, abuse, shame, small-town gossip, and a load of family drama while an unexpected fledgling romance was slowly gathering speed between two silently struggling acquaintances. The characters were endearingly flawed and realistically drawn with real-world issues. Brandt had a dark history and tainted reputation and Lola was a girl with magic eyes, and in more ways than one as she could see Brandt when his own family couldn’t. Sigh, I adored them but am now more curious than ever about Hudson, the last remaining Grace brother.

About The Author

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Jess B. Moore is a writer of love stories. When she’s not writing, she’s busy mothering her talented and stubborn children, reading obscene numbers of books, and knitting scarves she’ll likely never finish. 

Jess lives in small-town North Carolina with her bluegrass obsessed family. She takes too many pictures of her cats, thinking the Internet loves them as much as she does. She is a firm believer of swapping stories over coffee or wine, and that there should always be dark chocolate involved. 

Her novels combine her interests in family, music, and small towns into thoughtful tales of growing up and falling in love. 

Book Review: Shadows (Bayou Magic #1) by Kristen Proby

Shadows

(Bayou Magic #1)

by Kristen Proby

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA / 

B&N / Apple

From New York Times Bestselling Author, Kristen Proby, comes an all new paranormal romance set in the mystical city of New Orleans…

I am never alone. Not even when I am alone.
I see the unquiet dead, the souls that wander through the French Quarter.

They can’t move on, and I can’t stop seeing them.
I wear malachite for protection, and I control what I let in. It’s the only way to stay sane. 

Everything changes the day Cassian Winslow joins my ghost walking tour and knocks my world off its axis with green eyes the color of the stone around my neck.

An unspeakable evil is loose in New Orleans, taking young women and leaving a bloodbath in his wake. More shadows lurking for me. More unhappy dead. There might be a way to stop it.
Open myself up to Cassian.

If I do, it could spell his death.

But if I don’t, it’s mine.


My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:


“It’s a hell of a first date,” Millie mumbles. “I mean, most people just get naked and have sex and then regret their life choices in the morning. This is on a whole different level.” I smirk and then shrug. “The night’s not over yet.”

“For you,” she says to Cash, passing him a coffee. “There’s a protection spell in there.” “Does it have eye of newt?” he asks, flashing a smile. “Not this time,” Millie replies with a wink, making Cash’s smile slide from his face.



My Review:


I’m not much of a paranormal reader but I’ve recently discovered this smooth and talented wordsmith named Kristen Proby and thought I’d give it a perusal. Somewhere on page one, her cunning word voodoo sucked me right into her character’s vortex while her strong and crafty juju held me enthralled. I was spellbound by her well-crafted and shrewdly plotted tale.

The engaging storylines and writing were absorbing and swirling with atmosphere and cast with oddly intriguing characters. I couldn’t put my Kindle down despite the chilling and gruesome nature of the crimes depicted. It was spine-tingling. I am definitely hooked and while I may not be much of a paranormal reader, I certainly seem to be one when Kristen Proby throws it down.

About The Author

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Kristen was born and raised in a small resort town in her beloved Montana. In her mid-twenties, she decided to stretch her wings and move to the Pacific Northwest, where she made her home for more than a dozen years.


During that time, Kristen wrote many romance novels and joined organizations such as RWA and other small writing groups. She spent countless hours in workshops and more mornings than she can count up before the dawn so she could write before going to work. She submitted many manuscripts to agents and editors alike but was always told no. In the summer of 2012, the self-publishing scene was new and thriving, and Kristen had one goal: to publish just one book. It was something she longed to cross off of her bucket list.

Not only did she publish one book, she’s since published close to thirty titles, many of which have hit the USA Today, New York Times and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists. She continues to self publish, best known for her With Me In Seattle and Boudreaux series and is also proud to work with William Morrow, a division of HarperCollins, with the Fusion Series.

Kristen and her husband, John, make their home in her hometown of Whitefish, Montana.

Book Review: The House That Alice Built by Chris Penhall

The House That Alice Built

by Chris Penhall

Amazon US / UK / AU / CA /

 B&N / Kobo / GP / Ruby Fiction

Home is where the heart is … 

Alice Dorothy Matthews is sensible. Whilst her best friend Kathy is living it up in Portugal and her insufferable ex Adam is travelling the world, Alice is working hard to pay for the beloved London house she has put her heart and soul into renovating. 

But then a postcard from Buenos Aires turns Alice’s life upside down. One very unsensible decision later and she is in Cascais, Portugal, and so begins her lesson in ‘going with the flow’; a lesson that sees her cat-sitting, paddle boarding, dancing on top of bars and rediscovering her artistic talents. 

But perhaps the most important part of the lesson for Alice is that you don’t always need a house to be at home.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

You wouldn’t know nonchalant if it knocked on your door and said hello, I’m nonchalant, whispered the voice in her head.



Bricks and mortar. They can’t protect you from everything, can they? They can protect you from the wind and the rain and the cold, but they can’t protect you from your emotions.



I look like I’ve been living in a cave all my life surviving on a diet of pasties and washing my hair with lard.

My Review:

Poor Alice, she couldn’t seem to climb out of her gloom as it kept coming at her from all sides, including her own inner voice. Her ex-boyfriend, who had left her with debts, was back and wanting to claim half of her home; she had lost her job and her sparkle; and her inner voice was berating her at every turn. Alice’s tale was insightfully written with clever observational humor, a quirky cast of characters, angst, loss of self, a pyramid full of insecurities, lots of waffling and indecision, a blossoming romance, rekindling of old friendships, high anxiety, self-rediscovery, adventures in a foreign land, paddle boarding, pet-sitting, ambling, jewelry making, photography, artistry, home renovation, and an empowering evolution with defiantly vibrant trousers - which I greedily coveted. I frequently alternated between empathy for Alice and wanting to give her a smack to the back of the head, but I was proud of her and for her by the end.

About The Author

Chris Penhall is a freelance writer and radio producer.

Her book, The House That Alice Built, won the Choc-Lit Search for a Star Competition 2019. 

Born in South Wales, she has also lived near London and in Portugal, which is where The House That Alice Built is set. It was whilst living in Cascais near Lisbon that she began to dabble in writing fiction, but it was many years later that she was confident enough to start writing her first novel, and many years after that she finally finished it! She is now working on her second. 

A lover of books, music, and cats, she is also an enthusiastic salsa dancer, a keen cook, and loves to travel. She is never happier than when she is gazing at the sea. 

Chris has two grown-up daughters and lives in the Essex countryside. 

Chris is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association. 

Social Media Links 

www.chrispenhall.co.uk 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChrisPenhall 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChrisPenhallBroadcasterWriter 

Book Review: Love in Due Time (Green Valley Library #1) by L.B. Dunbar

Love in Due Time, an all-new second chance romantic comedy from L.B. Dunbar is available now!

Love in Due Time

(Green Valley Library #1)

by L.B. Dunbar

Download your copy today!

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2kwBn29

AppleBooks: https://apple.co/2m24uuN

Amazon Worldwide: 

http://mybook.to/LoveinDueTime

Nook: http://bit.ly/2kv2FpK

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2kx2n1t

Google Play: http://bit.ly/2m2Wytn

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Naomi Winters will be forty—soon-ish—and she’s only been with one man. One night. One time. Long ago. She believes everything happens for a reason, and the universe spoke about Nathan Ryder.

Nathan Ryder isn’t the same man who hightailed his bike out of Green Valley eighteen years ago. As a rule breaker, women are one area he acts a fool. Case in point…the local librarian. He can’t get a read on her, but she’s one risk he’s willing to take. Again.

What do an eccentric librarian and a sexy silver biker have in common? More than you think.

The due date on their love might not be expired after all.

'Love in Due Time' is a full-length, contemporary romantic comedy, can be read as a standalone, and is book#1 in the Green Valley Library series.

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:


I don’t want any second-guesses about my intentions. Only second chances.

My Review:

This captivating tale was unusually cast and singularly crafted. It featured a second chance romance for a tenderhearted small-town Wiccan librarian that was circling forty, socially awkward, peculiarly clad, and practically a virgin - how more original or creative could a premise be? Written in my favorite dual POV, the writing was thoughtfully observant, painstakingly insightful, and fraught with angst, interpersonal and familial conflicts, throbbing loins, sexual tension, and decades of regret as well as unexpected slivers of amusing and smirk-worthy levity amidst all that other stuff. The wily Ms. Dunbar has brought her uniquely gifted skill set to Smartypants Romance for an engaging, somewhat arduous, highly evocative, and uncommonly satisfying fusion of synergy.

About L.B. Dunbar

L.B. Dunbar loves the sweeter things in life: cookies, Coca-Cola, and romance. Her reading journey began with a deep love of fairy tales, medieval knights, Regency debauchery, and alpha males. She loves a deep belly laugh and a strong hug. Occasionally, she has the energy of a Jack Russell terrier. Accused—yes, that’s the correct word—of having an overactive imagination, to her benefit, such an imagination works well. Author of over two dozen novels, she’s created sweet, small-town worlds; rock star mayhem; MMA chaos; sexy rom-coms for the over 40; and intrigue on an island of redemption. In addition, she is earning a title as the “myth and legend lady” for her modernizations of mythology as elda lore. Her other duties in life include mother to four children and wife to the one and only.

Connect with L.B. Dunbar

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Website: https://www.lbdunbar.com/

Connect with Smartypants Romance

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Book Review: Happy Trail (Park Ranger #1) by Daisy Prescott

Happy Trail (Park Ranger #1) 

by Daisy Prescott

Download today!

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2jXmYvE

AppleBooks: https://apple.co/2lB3BJv

Amazon Worldwide:

 http://mybook.to/HappyTrail

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Kobo: http://bit.ly/2lEAwww

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Amazon Print: https://amzn.to/2ku05Al

"Happy Trail was a feel good, funny and heartwarming adventure with the usual Daisy Prescott charm.."-- T. Gephart, USA Today bestselling author

Happy Trail, an all-new opposites attract standalone romance from USA Today bestselling author Daisy Prescott, is available now!

A man of few words, Ranger Jay Daniels values the calm, quiet solitude of the Great Smoky Mountains. Never quite fitting in with either side of his family, he prefers the company of birds and trees to people.

Yeah, he’d most definitely prefer a bird—any bird, any bird at all, take a vulture for instance—to the human-tornado hybrid that just blew onto his peaceful stretch of the Appalachian Trail.

The path of true love never has run smooth for Olive Perry. After getting dumped and promptly abandoned in the middle of her multi-month hike, Olive swears off men. Determined to finish the long trek by herself, she doesn’t need a prince—or broody and taciturn ranger—to save her.

Yet, when an early snowstorm threatens the mountains, and Ranger Daniels is charged with getting hikers to safety, that includes hot-tempered Olive Perry. Snowed in and forced to share an abandoned cabin, can Olive’s heated intensity melt Jay’s cool reserve?

And if so, will this happy trail lead to true love? Or will their time together be just another bump in the road?

'Happy Trail' is a full-length contemporary romantic comedy, can be read as a standalone, and is book#1 in the Park Ranger series.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:


My parents each have four siblings. Big families are like living inside a circus run by the monkeys…


Tye had a strong aversion to the South, based solely on watching the movie Deliverance when he was nine during a sleepover with his older cousins. He also hated all banjo and fiddle music. Made me wonder if his cousins were also musical sadists.


Is there some sort of chemical stored in testicles, that compels men to explain things to women?


He has a drawl I automatically want to mimic. The slow pace of his words is molasses and I’m a housefly with a sugar addiction.


“You can keep the mayo, AKA the devil’s mucus.” Her eyes widen. “No, you’re one of those people.” “Exactly which kind of person am I?” I challenge, my tone playful. “The kind who hate mayonnaise.”


Smugness rarely looks good on anyone, but I think I wear it well.

My Review:

Happy Trails was a slow-burn romantic comedy with weather and hygiene challenged, mosquito-bitten, sore-footed, and socially awkward characters. Hikers are an odd breed and definitely not one I share a gene pool with, as I likes my creature comforts such as running water, ice, and high thread count sheets. While I wouldn’t have lasted for even a few miles or an afternoon of the intrepid Olive’s trek, I was well entertained by her adventure. Written in my favorite dual POV, the storylines were original and insightfully penned with well-crafted layers of angst, clever levity, and complicated yet endearingly quirky characters with a love of pop-tarts, a predilection that I also share.

About Daisy Prescott

Born and raised in San Diego, Daisy currently lives in a real-life Stars Hollow in the Boston suburbs with her husband, their rescue dog, Mulder, and an imaginary house goat. When not writing about herself in the third person, Daisy can be found traveling, gardening, baking, or lost in a good book.

Connect with Daisy

Facebook: http://bit.ly/2lzD4fw

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Amazon: https://amzn.to/2lXqZAU

Instagram: http://bit.ly/2m2eVhW

Website: https://www.daisyprescott.com/

Connect with Smartypants Romance

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Book Review: One Week Stand by M. Mabie

One Week Stand 

by M. Mabie

READ for FREE with KindleUnlimited!

Amazon US https://amzn.to/31G5gfV

Amazon UK https://amzn.to/2W8f9lF

Amazon CA https://amzn.to/2qIPS5V

Amazon AU https://amzn.to/342UcLp

Publication Date: October 24, 2019
Genre: Contemporary Romance/ Romantic Comedy/New Adult

A hilariously steamy, classmates-neighbors-enemies to lovers romantic comedy with a fun internet celebrity twist.

Was it too much to ask for one wild week away from college, away from the cold weather, and away from my classmates? That's all I wanted. A spring break vacation where I could live my best life with my friends and get a little crazy for once. Possibly, drink too many cocktails on the beach, wear the skimpy bikini I bought, and have a no-strings-attached, tropical escapade with a co-ed.

Sounds perfect, right?

Well, it didn't happen because my dumbass missed the nonrefundable flight.

And if it wasn't bad enough that I was stranded on an empty, snow-covered campus over my senior year spring break, it was about to get a whole lot worse…because he's still here too.

The tall, dark smart ass. The cocky classmate I've been rolling my eyes at since freshman year. The annoying internet star who everyone thinks is hilarious.

Julien Carson.

So you know what? Screw it.

It's just a few days, and nobody has to know. Plus, I guess he's not so bad to look at when he's saying all the right things and making all the right moves. Maybe I don't have to fly thousands of miles for a spring fling because I can't come up with a single reason why Julien shouldn't be my... One Week Stand.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

“I’m sorry. You’re so pretty. Don’t be mad.” He’s backtracking. “I’ll never do it again.”



Honestly, someone should write the software engineers over at the makers of mobile devices to come up with some kind of fucking warning when you're getting hate on a viral level. Like when you open the screen, it could say, “Hey, just so you know, you should probably take a Xanax and a shot of tequila before going any further. Because what’s going on with you online today isn’t cute.”

My Review:

Turn up all the fans and air conditioning as high as possible as this one is a scorcher that had me gasping and smirking, then gasping some more. Oh! My! This New Adult Romantic Comedy will be a boon for condom sales. I am chartreuse with envy over this sweary and snarky couple’s stamina and sensual expertise as the only time my bedroom has seen my body “flushed, ears to ankles” has been during a craptastic illness with a high fever.



I adore Ms. Mabie’s clever and irreverent humor and I loved her City Limits rom/com series. Her storylines and writing were lively and fun, super-steamy, and laced with sharp wit and spicy levity. Long after finishing I am continuing to sip ice water in attempts to cool down and calm my breath, and it seems my face is still oddly sporting a naughty grin that I just can’t seem to wipe away.

About M. Mabie

M. Mabie lives in Illinois with her husband. She writes everything from steamy romantic comedies to angst-filled, pull your hair out drama. She enjoys it all. With her unconventional love stories, she tries to embody "real-life romance."

She cares about politics, but will not discuss them in public. She uses the same fork at every meal, watches Wayne's World while cleaning, and lets her dog sleep on her head. She has always been a writer. In fact, she was born with a pen in her hand, which almost never happens. Almost. 

M. Mabie usually doesn't speak in third-person. She promises.

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