Review - - Darkest Before Dawn

Darkest Before Dawn
By Maya Banks
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: October 27, 2015

What can I tell you readers?    I am so damn confused.   Never in my life have I had such a tug-o-war with a book.

Do I love it?  Hate it?   Why am I sobbing?   And now I’m annoyed.   

Number one:  Maya Banks is a good writer.  She is.   Let’s just get it straight.  That’s why I always raise my hand when THE DISH gets one of her books.

But this book?   I just wish I had read the entire KGI series before picking this one up.

Guy Hancock is a warrior watching over America’s safety--the sort America will never thank.   The country’s disowned him, after all, but that doesn’t stop Hancock. He does the dirty work: the kind that involves things so loathsome, a person could lose their soul over it.   But he does it for the greater good so when he’s asked to kidnap an innocent woman to stop an evil man, he does it.  This evil man is responsible for killing thousands, maybe even tens of thousands.   He needs to be eliminated.  That is the right thing to do, isn’t it?

Everything about Honor Cambridge is about goodness and quiet strength.  She’s an aid worker in a dangerous land doing her best to help the innocent victims of war.  But when her relief center is bombed by a terrorist group, she must flee for her life because the survival of a mere woman is a blot on the terrorists’ success-rate.   Injured, terrified, and now cornered in a village, she’s run through all her options until Hancock shows up.  He’s seems to be an answer to her prayers.  Surely he’ll see her to safety.

Hancock immediately recognizes Honor for who she is and nothing about her makes his job easy.  Courageous, bright, and giving are not the qualities he wishes she had because it would be so much easier to sacrifice a repugnant person for the greater good than to sacrifice lovely Honor.    

So much of this book was trying to catch me up on the past books in the series, I had to dig through reams of information that meant nothing to me.    And I know this information was an effort to make DARKEST BEFORE DAWN stand alone, but I didn’t need it.   I just wanted Hancock and Honor’s story.  That’s it.   I don’t care about who or what Hancock was in the previous novels.  I just wanted to know who he was now.

And yet, I must admit, there were great sections in the novel that moved me as none before.   I’m a VERY jaded reader.   I don’t cry.  I rarely laugh out loud.  I’ve read too much.  And there’s too much schmaltz out there that makes me roll my eyes so I’m resistant going in.    But there I was, heart in my throat, reading a section so heart-breakingly wrenching, I had tears streaming down my face.  For the first time in forever.   I think it’s safe to say Honor Cambridge is one of the loveliest female characters I’ve ever encountered. 

And even Hancock was interesting and suitably tortured.  That was until the epilogue when he became something quite different and I was left with a bad taste in my mouth.  Because who Hancock became, I felt, didn’t revere Honor’s character—the best thing in this book--though he certainly loved her.

I don’t know what to tell you.  I am still a loyal Banks reader.   She has the power to overwhelm me when I’m rarely overwhelmed.  And yet I had several issues with DARKEST BEFORE DAWN, not so much that I didn’t stay with it or ignore visiting family members so I could read in peace, but enough that I felt the book fell short of what I expect of this extraordinary writer.

~J Perry Stone

Review - - Safe at Last

SAFE AT LAST

By Maya Banks

Publisher: Avon

Release Date: June 23, 2015

I once read a blog written by Maya Banks discussing book reviews.  Reviews, she said—and I’m paraphrasing—were for readers.  NOT for writers.  She stated she never reads any of her own book reviews, whether they be glowing or awful.  The awful explains itself because who among us wants to have our shortcomings waved in front of our faces?   But it was what she said about the glowing reviews that interested me; she said she won’t read them because they distract her as basking, tweeting, and Facebooking about said adulation can suck up quite a lot of time… time better spent writing an actual book. 

Well, I’m sorry, Ms. Banks.  This is a 5 star review.

SAFE AT LAST, the third book in Bank’s Slow Burn Series, was fun, fun, FUN!   Granted, I was on vacation at the beach with my family when I picked up the book.  And yes, I was already in a great mood…  but as soon I read the first couple pages, I wanted to read the book more than I wanted to look at my surroundings.   That’s how fun. 

Zack Covington has spent his whole adult life agonizing over the disappearance of his high-school sweetheart, the only woman he’s ever loved, his “Gracie”—a special girl with unusual psychic gifts from the wrong side of town.  Zack loved her so much, he planned his whole life around building a future for the two of them, accepting a football scholarship in an out-of-state university only because it represented an opportunity to make something of himself… for her.   But when he comes home to visit her one weekend, he finds she has vanished without a trace.    It’s a cruel rejection, to his thinking, one without any real closure.

12 years later and football is a thing of the past.   Zach, a shell of what he used to be, is now working for Devereaux Security, a dangerous job that sometimes allows him to exorcise his demons.   It is on his next job assignment at a well-known art gallery when Zach sees it:  a painting that is the exact replica of a special place from his past, a secret place only he and Gracie would know.    She’s clearly alive!  And in HIS city, but when he finally sees her, she’s so terrified of him, she starts trembling and does everything she can to run away from him.   From him!   From the man whose life lost all it’s meaning once she left.   Something is very wrong.    

What’s more, dangerous people are now targeting Zack and colleagues.   And when they find out Zack’s weakness, Gracie is targeted as well.    Zack must do everything he can to keep her safe, even if that means forcing her to be with him, a situation that sets her into such a panic, she keeps trying to get away from him.   He has to earn her trust--and fast!--if he’s to ever hope to keep her safe.  

He has to earn her love—and fast!—if he’s to ever hope to make his life mean anything again.   

I don’t know why I said “fun, fun, FUN,” about the book when it deals with such serious subjects but it was fun.    I got sucked in so completely because the pacing was stellar.  I think pacing may be Banks super-writer skill.  The story itself was well-crafted and I enjoyed the subtle inclusion of Gracie’s mind-reading skills, which played such a minor role in the thick of the novel, but still did not feel as though it were a last minute addition.

My only quibble, if I were to grasp at one, is that there were limits as to how much I felt for the characters, the heroine in particular.  And Banks doesn’t soften any blows. It is a well-known hypothesis that the more suffering a character endures, the more the reader feels for that character.  But even after discovering the horror Gracie’s survives, I still cared more for Zack.   But it really was his story, his journey, and his hero-making.   And oh, what a hero.

My strong recommendation is to buy SAFE AT LAST because it’s a safe bet you won’t be coming up for any air—no matter if that air smells of the ocean or home-cooking—until you’ve completely devoured the whole of it.   

And I’m sort of glad Maya Banks won’t be reading this review because I’m eagerly awaiting her next book and she needs to stick to the writing of it.  

~J Perry Stone

Sneak Peek Sunday Maya Banks Winner

The winner of a copy of Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks is

Betty Hamilton

Congratulations, Betty!  Please send your full name and mailing address to us at

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Don't forget!  We'll be drawing the winner of a copy of The Recruit by Monica McCarty on October 30th!

Sneak Peek Sunday

Men in kilts, the rugged Scottish Highlands and a romance to warm any reader's heart.  What's not to love? Today we have sneak peeks at two new medieval romances from authors who never fail to give me an enjoyable read.  First up is Never Seduce a Scot by Maya Banks, first in her new trilogy, The Montgomerys and Armstrongs. (9/25/12).  

 Eveline Armstrong is fiercely loved and protected by her powerful clan, but considered “touched” to outsiders. Beautiful, fey, with a level, intent gaze, she doesn’t speak. No one, not even her family, knows that she cannot hear. Eveline taught herself to read lips and allows the outside world view her as daft, content to stay with her family. But when an arranged marriage with a rival clan makes Graeme Montgomery her husband, she accepts her duty—unprepared for the delights to come. Graeme is a rugged warrior with a voice so deep and powerful she can hear it, and hands and kisses so tender and skilled he awakens her deepest passions.

Graeme is intrigued by his new bride, whose silent lips are ripe with temptation, whose bright, intelligent eyes can see into his soul. As intimacy deepens, he learns her secret. But when clan rivalries and dark deeds threaten the wife he has only begun to cherish, the Scottish warrior will move heaven and earth to save the woman who has awakened his heart to the beautiful song of a rare and magical love.





Next up is The Recruit, the much anticipated sixth book in Monica McCarty's highly acclaimed Highland Guard series. (10/30/12)

Scotland's King Robert the Bruce is retaking his kingdom from the invading English. To win, he'll need all the grit and courage of his elite band of warriors, the Highland Guard, men who fight without fear and love without limits.

Fiery, aggressive, and bold, Kenneth Sutherlandis a true champion—skilled with any weapon and driven to win. Now Kenneth is ready for his greatest challenge: joining Robert the Bruce’s secret army to fight among the elite. Kenneth’s best chance to attain that honor is by winning the Highland Games. Focused and prepared for victory, he is caught off guard by a lovely wisp of a woman—and a stolen moment of wicked seduction. Her innocent arousal and her shameless hunger fire his blood. He will win his place in the guard—and in Mary of Mar’s bed.

The ruggedly handsome hero-in-the-making stirs a heart that should know better. Mary vows her surrender will be sport only—no promises, no heartbreak, just one night of incredible passion. Nothing, she swears, will persuade her to give up her hard wrought independence and put her fate in the hands of another powerful man. But with every gentle touch and heart-pounding kiss, Kenneth makes her want more. Now Mary wants his heart. But is this determined champion willing to surrender everything for love?

Random House Giveaway! 

 Two randomly selected people leaving a comment on today's blog will receive a copy of Never Seduce a Scot. (U.S. only - winner will be selected October 10th) 

One randomly selected person leaving a comment will receive a copy of The Recruit. (U.S. only - winner will be selected October 30th) 

~PJ

Stock Up Saturday

Seduction of a Highland Lass
McCabe Scottish Historical Trilogy - Book 2
By Maya Banks
Publisher: Ballantine
Release Date: September 27, 2011

In medieval Scotland, most marriages are made to acquire land or strengthen alliances. Rarely, are they a matter of love. Highland warrior, Alaric McCabe, a man of honor and fierce loyalty, knows he must marry Rionna McDonald to secure the alliance with her father's clan that will help the McCabes defeat their enemy and live in safety and peace. The fact that he barely knows Rionna and feels no attraction to her, nor she to him has no bearing on the matter. They both know their duty. But, on the way to formalize the betrothal, Alaric is attacked near the border of the McDonald lands and left for dead, only to be rescued by a woman who will test his patience, his heart, his loyalty and the honor that defines him.


Betrayed by her family, Keeley McDonald has been on her own since she was a young girl. Cast out by the McDonald chieftain and his wife, the healer lives quietly, supporting herself by tending members of the same clan that refuses to claim her. Stumbling upon a beautiful (her word), unconscious warrior in the forest near her home, she cannot turn her back on him, dragging him into her home and using her healing skills to save his life. When Alaric's older brother, Ewan (clan laird and hero of In Bed With a Highlander) finds them, he decides to bring Keeley back to the McCabe keep along with his brother and keep her there to help his wife, Mairin safely deliver their child. (The rugged warrior is a wee bit protective of his pregnant bride.)

The fiercely independent young woman isn't happy about being taken from her home (it's all she has) but, over the winter months, as she continues to nurse Alaric back to health, she slowly finds a place for herself within the McCabe clan as well as a place in Alaric's heart. Love, deep and true, blossoms between them but a heartbreaking decision looms ahead and when word comes of the impending arrival of the McDonald chieftain and his daughter, Alaric and Keeley are both forced to make the impossible choice between their love for one another and their love for, and loyalty to, the McCabe clan.

Banks has written another fast-paced, emotional and deeply sensual story that kept me up reading way beyond my normal bedtime. I fell in love with the members of the McCabe clan while reading In Bed With a Highlander and this book only reinforced those feelings. Catching up with them during the course of reading Seduction of a Highland Lass was like a long overdue visit with cherished family and friends. Keeley and Alaric broke my heart and, yes, tears were shed before I finally reached the end of the story but the journey was well worth the tears and I'd happily do it all over again. In fact, I probably will but right now my sights are set on the third and final book of the trilogy, Never Love a Highlander. It will be released next Tuesday, October 25th and I'm happily anticipating being back in the Highlands of Maya Banks' imagination before that day has ended!

~PJ

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In Total Surrender
Secrets series—Book 3
By Anne Mallory
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: September 27, 2011

Andreas Merrick and his brother, Roman, own and run a popular and extremely profitable gaming hell in London’s underworld. That’s not to say that they don’t have their problems. Andreas is hell-bent on revenge against someone from his past (for good reason), so he fends off assassination attempts on a regular basis. When Phoebe Pace boldly walks into his office asking for help and doesn’t leave when he tells her to, Andreas is slightly taken aback.

“Leave.”

... “I say, you are most abusive with that word, Mr. Merrick. Poor Bertrand. Do most people hop to do your bidding?”

“Yes.”

“Well, that is not good. It builds character to be told no.”

“You must have a lot of character then.”

“That is kind of you.” Warm smile.

“I was being rude.”

“Well, then at least I can say you are an honest man.”

He stared at her. She smiled back.

Phoebe needs Andreas’s help. Her father owns Pace & Co., the finest carriage makers in London, but lately, her father’s health has been declining. Because of that, he has been duped into making bad investments that have racked up enough debt to lose control of the company. Combined with her brother’s mysterious disappearance, Phoebe is desperate and knows that Andreas Merrick has the means and the power to aid her. But what starts off as a cry for help turns into something neither can resist.

In Total Surrender is another winner from Anne Mallory. Her stories are paced perfectly, full of secrets, and just when you think things are coming together, Ms. Mallory throws in a line that makes you say, What?! –in a good way. Andreas and Phoebe have opposing personalities—he is dangerous and gruff while she is upbeat and happy—yet both are intelligent and fiercely loyal. I love that Andreas is constantly unsettled by Phoebe’s smiles and teasing, but doesn’t become mushy. As Phoebe describes him, Andreas Merrick is an intense man, but ruthlessly fair. I enjoyed seeing Roman (from One Night is Never Enough) again and the scene between he and Andreas upon Roman’s return from his honeymoon is priceless. This book had a lot of great lines, but my favorite is from Andreas’s POV while kissing Phoebe: Could it be called a kiss, this meeting of skin where one person pulled the soul from another? Beautiful. As is this rest of this incredible story. I highly recommend it!

~Andrea


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The Captain’s Mission
by Debby Giusti
Publisher: Harlequin, Love Inspired
Release Date: October 4, 2011


Criminal Investigations Division agent Kelly McQueen is called to investigate the death of a solider during a live ammunition training exercise on the local Army base. The officer over the training exercise, Captain Phil Thibodeaux, is certain there must have been a lapse in the safety check during the exercise. But Agent McQueen has a gut feeling that something went wrong, terribly wrong, and she is pretty sure it wasn’t an accident.

Upon meeting Agent McQueen, Captain Thibodeaux wonders if she is the right person for the job. While her no-nonsense approach and business-only manners may work in some investigations, this particular one involves the loss of one of Captain Thibodeaux’s own men. So it not just business, it’s personal. Captain Thibodeaux has had enough of business-minded women, beginning with his career-driven mother who didn’t care for the little boy she left at home during those long days as the office.

Agent McQueen has spent her career in the military dealing with soldiers and officers full of male attitude. Add to that feelings of abandonment and bitterness towards her nearly non-existent, deadbeat father and you can see why Kelly is all about her work. She knows she can only count on herself.

As the puzzle pieces of the investigation begin to fall in place, the close working relationship between Captain Thibodeaux and Agent McQueen grows more personal and feelings slowly arise to the surface. Both are unsure how to acknowledge the bud of love blooming, but when danger encircles Agent McQueen and evil suspects come to light, they both realize they need to lean on each other and on God.

This is a wonderful romantic suspense! And though there is intrigue and evil throughout the story, it is also filled with sweet moments between the hero and heroine. While Ms. Giusti keeps you guessing the identity of the murderer, she generously sprinkles the novel with touches of faith that adds richness to the story.


~ Buffie

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What are you reading these days? Any recommendations?

Review - - In Bed with a Highlander

In Bed with a Highlander
Highlander Series - Book 1
By Maya Banks
Publisher:  Ballantine
Release Date:  August 30, 2011







I'm a huge fan of medieval romance and of Julie Garwood in particular.  Her book, Saving Grace has been my all-time favorite comfort read for many years and until now, I hadn't found a book to rival it in my reading affection.  Saving Grace now has a new neighbor on my keeper shelf:  In Bed with a Highlander by Maya Banks.  I've already read this book three times and have found new things to love about it with each reading.  If you read medieval romance, buy this book now.  If you don't read medieval romance, now's a great time to start and I highly recommend you begin with In Bed with a Highlander.

 

Mairin Stuart knelt on the stone floor beside her pallet and bowed her head in her evening prayer. Her hand slipped to the small wooden cross hanging from a bit of leather around her neck, and her thumb rubbed a familiar path over the now smooth surface.


For several long minutes, she whispered the words she’d recited since she was a child, and then she ended it as she always did. Please, God. Don’t let them find me.








The bastard daughter of a king, Mairin Stuart has spent most of her life hidden in an abbey.  Endowed with a rich dowry that will bring her future husband wealth and power, Mairin is well aware that she must be very careful whom she chooses to marry for many unscrupulous men would do anything to hold that power, even kidnap her from the abbey and beat her to within an inch of her life to force her to marry.  But the villain of our story, Duncan Cameron, has met his match in Mairin Stuart.  She refuses to marry Cameron and manages to escape him with the help of young Crispen McCabe, a lost 8-year-old boy Mairin encounters during the  journey from the abbey to Cameron's home.  Mairin saves the boy's life and he, in turn, promises her the protection of his father, Laird McCabe if they can escape and make their way to McCabe land.

Ewan McCabe lives for the day he can make Cameron pay for the near destruction of the McCabe clan and the deaths of Ewan's wife and father.  He has neither the time nor the desire to take another wife but when his lost son is found and returned to him in the company of a young woman who could bring his clan the money they desperately need, he knows marriage is the only answer for both the McCabe clan's survival and Mairin Stuart's protection.  He makes the logical decision for the sake of his clan and the lass, never expecting his heart to become part of the equation. 

Mairin is a wonderful heroine!  She has an innate kindness, a stubbornness to rival any Highland laird and a core of strength that serves her well during her perilous journey to love. Pair that with the innocence and  vulnerability of someone who was raised by nuns and she's hard to resist. She also has the unfortunate habit of saying whatever she's thinking which leads to a number of humorous situations with Ewan, his brothers and other members of the McCabe clan such as this encounter with Ewan before their marriage.

His gaze narrowed and she could see his hands twitching again like he'd love nothing more than to throttle her.  She was beginning to think it was an affliction of his.  Did he go around wanting to choke the life out of everyone or was she special in that regard?

"I'm afraid 'tis an urge that is entirely original to you," the laird barked.

She clamped her mouth shut and closed her eyes.  Mother Serenity had vowed one day Mairin would regret her propensity to blurt out her least little thought.  Today just might be that day.

Ewan is my favorite kind of hero.  Of necessity, he's a hard man.  Responsibility for his family and his clan rides on his shoulders and duty is all-important.  As laird, he demands complete loyalty and trust from his clan and is thrown for a loop when Mairin doesn't meekly fall in with his plans.

"You are under my protection.  You will obey me without question."  

"Not bloody likely," she muttered.  

I just love it when a strong, alpha male is thrown off kilter by a slip of a girl who turns out to be so much more than anyone expects.  As Ewan fell in love with Mairin, I fell in love with Ewan.  To watch this battle-hardened warrior slowly discover, and ultimately accept, his feelings for her melted my heart.  There were a few scenes that brought me to tears but the one with the most impact occurs when they are torn apart and don't know if they will ever see one another again.

Mairin was being pulled away, her eyes filled with tears, her arms outstretched to Ewan.

"Mairin!" Ewan called hoarsely.  "Listen to me.  Survive.  You survive!  Endure.  No matter what.  Endure what you must but survive for me."

I get chills every time I read that scene.

Surrounding the hero and heroine is a wonderful cast of secondary characters.  Crispen, especially, is so endearing and we learn much about Ewan and Mairin through their interactions with him. 

This is my first book by Maya Banks and I can hardly wait to read the next.  She has a way of writing that pulled me right into the story and into the thoughts and emotions of the characters.  The words flowed with nary a hiccup, touching all of my emotions, and the story held me captive until I finally turned the last page with a deep, heartfelt sigh.  I can't wait to return to Scotland for the stories of Ewan's brothers, Alaric and Caelen. Luckily, I won't have to wait long and neither will you!  Seduction of a Highland Lass will be released September 27th followed by Never Love a Highlander on October 25th. 

~PJ