Today's Special - - The Outback Bachelor Ball Review & Giveaway

The Outback Bachelor Ball

By Joan Kilby, Karina Bliss, and Sarah Mayberry

Release Date: October 20, 2015

 

The Outback Bachelor Ball consists of three connected novellas. Ellie McFarlane, Jen Tremaine, and Beth Walker have been besties since their boarding school days fourteen years ago. Now each needs to conclude a chapter in her life. Ellie has declared a moratorium on pining for a cowboy who treats her like a kid sister, Jen has just been dumped by a colleague who has fallen in love with his ex-wife, and Beth has been publically humiliated by a country music-star ex-husband whose cheating ways are notorious. When Ellie proposes a reunion that includes attending the annual Dubbo Outback Bachelor and Spinster Ball, they not only agree but add a dare for each of them to make things more interesting. Ellie agrees to a makeover, Jen plans to attend in a cow costume, and Beth promises to dance with every half-way decent male who asks her. None of them expects to find their very own Prince Charming at the Outback ball.

Win Me by Joan Kilby

Ellie McFarlane has been in love with Rick Drummond, the manager of her father’s cattle station, for what seems like forever, but Rick persists in treating her like a younger sister. Ellie still cringes with embarrassment when she remembers the one time she tried to prove to him she was no longer a kid. She returns home to Australia after six years in Wyoming to discover that absence has not made Rick’s heart grow fonder. He not only still treats her with the casual affection of an older brother but he is considering buying the homestead that had been in his family for generations before it was sold after his father’s death and leaving Coolibah. Ellie knows it is time to move on. And the Outback Bachelor and Spinster Ball is just the place to prove she’s all woman and not anyone’s kid sister.

When Rick arrived at Coolibah fourteen years ago, Ellie was just a kid. He understood when Ellie’s father warned that the five years separating Rick and Ellie made her off limits. Even when Ellie was no longer a kid, Rick found it easier to think of her as one. She was still his boss’s daughter, and he was a guy with nothing much to offer. But seeing just how sexy Ellie is dressed for the ball and just how jealous he is at the thought of her with someone else threatens his resolution. But even stargazing and hot sex aren’t enough to ensure an HEA. Sometimes a man has to speak his heart to win his lady.

Woo Me by Karina Bliss

Scarred by her parents’ acrimonious divorce, Jen Tremaine has made sure her head was in control when it came to matters of the heart. She was careful not to date her co-worker Karl until two years after his divorce, after his rebound flings. She still ended up feeling like the other woman when Karl and his ex-wife got together again. She even resigned from a job she loved to keep his children from being confused and hurt. Although she is thrilled to be reunited with Ellie and Beth, she has no interest in hooking up at the ball. Of course, dressed as Clarabelle the cow, she probably won’t find that an issue anyway. But then she meets the luscious Logan Turner, a security guard who wreaks havoc on the guards cautious Jen has set in place.

Logan agreed to security guard duty only after his youngest sister begged for his help. A former Special Forces soldier, he is at loose ends, unsure of his future. The only thing he is certain of is that the Outback Bachelor and Spinster Ball is a terrific site for a man who has been celibate too long. When he first sees the person in a cow costume, he thinks the creature is male; his interest is focused on the two beauties with the cow. But by the time he comes to the rescue on three occasions, he is charmed by her wit and humor; and by the end of the night, Logan is thinking of a future with Jen.

But what Logan sees as a beginning, Jen sees as a single, perfect night. After all, she’s leaving Australia for New Zealand and a new job, and everyone knows that long-distance relationships never work. And she is afraid to risk her heart. But what if the biggest risk is losing all the happiness that love and Logan promise?

Wait for Me by Sarah Mayberry

Beth Walker is in serious need of distraction. She returned to Australia after her four-year marriage to a country music star imploded under the weight of his numerous infidelities. Not only is Beth broken-hearted and disillusioned, but she is also filled with self-recrimination and weary of running from the relentless paparazzi. Australia offers the unwavering love and support of her best friends. But beer and half a dozen dances have done nothing to make her more attuned to the festive spirit of the Outback Bachelor and Spinster Ball. Beth is ready to leave when she spots Jonah Masters, an old friend who, along with his band, was once an opening act for her ex.  The last thing she wants is to see pity in the eyes of Jonah, who was on the scene when Beth heard the first rumor of her ex’s unfaithfulness and refused to believe it. But Jonah insists they have coffee, and Beth, who is finally and unexpectedly distracted by the feelings Jonah awakens in her, agrees.

Jonah knew from the moment he met Beth that she was the woman his heart was seeking, but since she was married, he settled for being her friend. Now that Beth is free and fate has placed them both at the ball, he feels as if he has been given a second chance. But even though their one night together ends with her agreeing to go with him to inspect the home he is thinking of buying, Jonah knows Beth is still not ready for a new relationship. Waiting may be wise, but it is hell—and there is no guarantee  that it will end in lovers meeting. Regardless, Jonah is willing to wait, and Beth is eager to heal.

I love a well-written novella, and I was intrigued by the three-blackbird idea of connected stories occurring simultaneously. I also loved the modern Cinderella-at-the-ball motif with best friends instead of wicked step-sisters, a ute instead of a carriage, and a trio of hot, rugged Aussie heroes instead of a pretty prince. Then, there was the fact that the stories were written by authors who had added books to my keeper shelves. Nevertheless, I was a bit concerned that the length would mean lots of insta-lust and scant character development.  I’m happy to say my fears were groundless.

Win Me and Wait for Me feature couples who have a history when their stories begin, and although Jen and Logan in Woo Me do meet at the ball, they develop a friendship with a surprising degree of intimacy before they become lovers. I found all three couples engaging, and the enduring friendship of the three women was not just a device for getting them to the ball but an integral part of all three stories. The Outback Bachelor Ball  was a winner for me. If you like contemporary romance with characters who are likeable and real and whose stories truly are about love rather than merely lust, you should add these three novellas to your to-be-read list ASAP.   

Note: I don’t know if it was intentional or coincidental, but I got a giggle out of the fact that all three heroes gave articles of their clothing to the heroines. In one case, it was literally the shirt off his back. :)

~Janga

Cowboy, musician or ex-Special Forces? Which hot Aussie would do it for you?

Jen attends the Outback Bachelor and Spinster Ball dressed as a cow. If you were attending a ball in costume, what costume would you choose?

One randomly chosen person leaving a comment will receive the awesome Outback Bachelor Ball Survival Pack below! Deadline for giveaway comments is 11:59 pm (PST) October 22nd.

The Outback Bachelor Ball Survival Pack includes: an e-copy of each of our novellas: a bar of Whittakers chocolate (New Zealand's finest) to enjoy while you're reading them; and an Outback Bachelor Ball branded mousepad (note: you'll have to catch your own mouse).


Click on each name for more information about Joan Kilby, Karina Bliss and Sarah Mayberry.

My Top 10!

by Anna Campbell

If any of you read my review of BLACK SHEEP and ARABELLA by Georgette Heyer last month, you'll know that I'm hanging up my ballet slippers here on Christmas Eve and going off to seek new pastures!

Before I go, I want to do a round-up of some favorites that I've reviewed over the last five years - although basically anything I've talked about here, I've loved. That was part of the column's raison d'etre.

So these are the really special books that stuck in my memory. By the way, the order doesn't indicate anything except that there are 10 books on this list! They're all winners in my opinion!

I thought I'd start with some mystery/romance combos. This genre has become my reading of choice over the last few years, partly because of recommendations from readers here. Thank you!

The first is the Amelia Peabody series from the late, great Elizabeth Peters. I've been eking out this wonderful series for the last few years - I've got three to go.

These books are funny and quirky and full of information about Ancient Egypt. They also feature a string of fabulous romances, starting with the opinionated Amelia and her beloved Emerson, "the greatest Egyptologist of this or any age." There's a long and very passionate relationship spread across several books, featuring Amelia's dashing and enigmatic son, Ramses, who makes a wonderful romantic hero.

Next I'd like to mention the charming Daisy Dalrymple  mysteries by Carola Dunn. These are set in the 1920s and they're absolutely delightful. You'll so enjoy the impetuous Daisy's adventures and especially her romance with police Inspector Alec Fletcher.

Whatever you do, try this next recommendation if you haven't already. I discovered Julia Spencer-Fleming's fabulous Claire Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne mysteries through this site, so thank you, thank you, thank you. I think they're just extraordinary. Romantic and suspenseful and atmospheric and beautifully written, I can't recommend these books featuring a vicar and the local police chief of a small town in upstate New York highly enough. Start with IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER, and I bet you're ordering the rest straightaway! I've recommended these to friends high and low and everybody turns into a convert!

If you're regulars, you'll know that I've been on a bit of a Nora Roberts kick lately. I particularly like her stand-alone romantic suspense books and of those, my favorite is THE WITNESS. This features a geeky and very appealing heroine who witnesses a Russian mafia murder as a teenager and spends the rest of her life trying to stay alive. What happens when she falls in love, much against her better instincts, with the local police chief of the town she's chosen as her latest bolthole? If she stays, she risks discovery. If she leaves, she'll break her heart. Wonderful characters and writing and a nail-biting situation. NORTHERN LIGHTS was another favorite!

One of the things I wanted to do when I started here was talk about category romance. Some of the best stories out there are series books and I was keen to share some of my favorite writers with you. I've read some wonderful category romances in the last five years, but I thought I'd pick out three particularly memorable stories from authors who never fail me.

The first is A WEDDING AT LEOPARD TREE LODGE by Liz Fielding. Liz Fielding is an absolutely exquisite writer whose books always make me laugh and cry and then sigh with joy at the end. A WEDDING AT LEOPARD TREE LODGE is about finding love where you least expect it and gathering the courage to risk everything to gain happiness. Highly recommended.

The next book on my top 10 is Aussie author Sarah Mayberry's HOT ISLAND NIGHTS. Another one to make you laugh and cry - and man, is it sexy! There's a fantastic sequel called HER BEST WORST MISTAKE that I think might be even hotter. Well worth checking out. Sarah has such a wonderful understanding of the human heart, and her characters are so real, you expect them to pop around for a cup of tea after you've finished reading the book!

My final category recommendation is Sarah Morgan's RITA-Award winning DOUKAKIS'S APPRENTICE. This one's such fun. It takes the tried and true Harlequin premise of the heroine falling in love with the guy who makes a hostile takeover of her father's ailing business, and then turns it on its head. Full of surprises and laughs and lovely emotion. All of Sarah's books are good, but this one really lingers in my memory as a classic.

My list wouldn't be complete without a couple of historical romances - you knew they were coming up, didn't you?

The first one is among my all time faves ever - Loretta Chase's MR. IMPOSSIBLE. People regularly pick her wonderful LORD OF SCOUNDRELS (also reviewed on this site) as one of the best romances ever written, but for me, there's just a tad extra goodness in MR. IMPOSSIBLE. It's funny, it's sweet, it's steamy, it's clever, and I lay good money that you'll fall in love with Rupert Carsington, the hero.

The next writer on my list is Liz Carlyle who I think would currently be my favorite historical writer. Picking a book of hers to recommend was really difficult, so I thought I'd go with the first one of hers I read, the one that started the addiction. THE DEVIL TO PAY is another book full of unexpected takes on a tried and true formula, a feisty heroine making a rake account for his myriad sins. One of the many things I love about Liz's books is that they create such a rich world. It's wonderful revisitng characters from earlier stories and seeing how the various strands of the series plots intersect and enrich the current book.And don't you love that cover?

My last choice is one of the all-time great romances, historical or otherwise. Laura Kinsale's immortal FLOWERS FROM THE STORM. This is unlike any other book I've ever read and its intensity is amazing. Absolutely unforgettable! If anyone ever tries to tell you that romance is trivial and brainless, steer them in the direction of this book. Actually, don't - it's too good for the naysayers! It's a story of redemption and risk and forbidden love triumphing against impossible odds. A masterpiece.

So that's my top 10 of the books I've reviewed here on The Romance Dish. All are VERY highly recommended.

So what would your top 10 romance novels be? I'd love to see your lists!

Harlequin Roundup

by Anna Campbell

I haven't done a Harlequin roundup for ages and given we've just had Valentine's Day, it seemed like a nice opportunity to review a couple of category romances that I've recently really enjoyed. 

The first one is a real charmer from an author I hadn't read before. Nikki Logan happens to be the current president of Romance Writers of Australia and I've met her many times. I even did a crit on the start of a romantic suspense that she'd written before she was published. But I'd never read one of her Harlequins until I picked up HOW TO GET OVER YOUR EX (January 2013), one of the new Harlequin Kiss line. 

Poor Georgia Stone! She proposes to long-time boyfriend Daniel over the air as part of a radio station's Valentine's Day promotion. And he knocks her back. Ouch! Station manager Zander Rush decides to rescue this stunt gone wrong by instituting something called "The Year of Georgia" where he escorts Georgia to a whole range of new experiences including a makeover and a trip to Turkey. Georgia gradually comes to realize that, despite Daniel's rejection, there actually wasn't anything wrong with her in the first place and she doesn't need to become a new person. Through sharing all these experiences and getting to know Georgia, Zander realizes that he has taken a few wrong turns in his life. I love a romance where the hero and heroine grow into more fulfilled, better people at the end, and that's the case here. I smiled the whole way through this lovely book!

My next selection is also by an Aussie author, the fabulous Sarah Mayberry. THE OTHER SIDE OF US (SuperRomance, January 2013) revisits a familiar theme from Sarah's work about how sometimes life's unexpected turns can at first seem a catastrophe but in the end, become opportunities for growth and fulfillment.

Mackenzie Williams is the sort of woman who makes most workaholics look like complete slackers. She's achieved major success as the producer of a television drama when she has a horrific car crash on the way to a location shoot. When we meet her, Mackenzie is holed up in her beach house on the Mornington Peninsula near Melbourne after a 12 month convalescence. She's angry and bitter and worried that she might lose her place in the dog eat dog world of television production. She's also pushing her body beyond where she should in her attempt to return to the woman she was before her accident.

Oliver Barrett, ex rock muso and current music producer, has just discovered that his wife of six years has been cheating on him the whole time with her ex. Devastated, angry, confused, he retreats to a beach house he inherited with the idea of taking a few weeks to sort through his late aunt's possessions and preparing the house for sale. Guess who's next door? Yup, prickly, difficult, intriguing Mackenzie. These two have a rocky road to romance, with quite a few hairpin bends relating to their baggage. But in typical Sarah Mayberry style, they're wonderful, complex, interesting characters who leap breathing and arguing and loving from the pages. Highly recommended!

My last book for this roundup is prodigious talent Sarah Morgan's sexy and intense LOST TO THE DESERT WARRIOR (Harlequin Presents, September 2013). I love Sarah's books - don't miss her first single title SLEIGH BELLS IN THE SNOW that came out last October. I love how Sarah takes the classic Presents style - the alpha hero, the glamor, the drama, the high stakes emotions - and makes it completely her own. It's no accident that she's won the RITA award two years in a row for best short category romance!

Princess Layla's only hope of escaping an odious arranged marriage is to flee into the desert in search of the true heir to Tazkhan's throne, Sheikh Raz Al Zahki, and propose herself as his bride. The problem is that Raz has lost a beloved wife to Layla's evil family's machinations and he's sworn never to wed again. Not to mention he's convinced that Layla is just a chip off the old rotten block of her father and cousin.

I love marriage of convenience stories and this one's a doozy! Raz is wonderful: brooding and grieving, but passionate, wise and kind. Sigh. Layla is a fantastic character. She's spent her life learning things from books so she's got all this arcane knowledge rattling around in her head, knowledge that proves of very little use when it comes to managing the man she rapidly falls head over heels in love with. This one's very much a fairytale, romantic and fun and steamy.

So have you read any good Harlequins lately?

Guest Review - - Her Favorite Rival

Her Favorite Rival

By Sarah Mayberry

Publisher: Harlequin (Superromance)

Release Date: September 3, 2013

  

For fourteen years Audrey Mathews has focused on working her way up in the hardware company where she started in the warehouse. Her intelligence, her work ethic, and her ambition have helped her advance to the position of buyer, but a new CEO known as the Executioner has everyone uneasy. Audrey knows that she’s good at her job, but her closest competition and bête noire is also good. He works as hard as she does, and he has the advantage of impressive degrees and to-the-manner-born appearance that she is sure is the result of a privileged background.

Zach Black, known to his female co-workers as “The Man with the Golden Ass,” may look as if he has always belonged to the elite class, but in reality he has worked with incredible single-mindedness and perseverance for most of his life to get where he is. Where he came from is no one’s business but his. Where he is going is the top, and if giving up a life beyond his job is the price, it is one he is prepared to pay.

Both Audrey and Zach are aware of the attraction that simmers between them, but they are equally determined not to act on it. Not only are these two workaholics too focused on the job to have time and energy for a personal relationship but they are also aware of the all the potential evils of an office romance. But when they are assigned a project that requires them to collaborate, they discover the false impressions they had nourished of one another and the reality of a friendship based on common interests, shared humor, and easy conversations. Add this to the attraction that heats up with every meeting, and the combination is irresistible. But when the competition gets down to the wire, will Audrey and Zach be willing to risk the promotion that has been their goal for so long for the sanctuary they have found in one another’s arms?

Once again Sarah Mayberry proves her ability to craft believable contemporary adult characters with emotional baggage, careers that matter, and personalities that are a credible blend of strengths and weaknesses and place them in situations that manage to be both funny and poignant. Audrey and Zach have histories that define “dysfunctional family” in very different ways but which produced high-achieving individuals in both cases. There are no characters who are evil incarnate here, just flawed human beings whose own experiences and weaknesses lead them into bad choices and hurtful actions.

For readers who like their romances with lots of sizzle, Mayberry provides some hot love scenes. More remarkable is that they never seem gratuitous but serve to reveal character and advance the story.  I also really liked the female relationships in this novel. Even Audrey’s relationship with her assistant seemed true and necessary. I found the relationship between Audrey and her sister Leah interesting, and I’m sorry that Mayberry doesn’t show more of its development here or in “Her Favorite Temptation,” the enovella that is Leah’s story (available free at the usual outlets). Audrey’s friendship with her bestie Megan is filled with the kind of teasing and sharing and mutual support that characterizes solid female friendships. One scene where Audrey and Megan meet for drinks after work to talk about what’s going on in the office is enough to make me glad I read the book.

He’s just a man, Megsy. He takes his pants off one leg at a time. He probably has trouble finding the clitoris like every other male on the planet.”

“Honey, Zach knows exactly where the clitoris is. All you have to do is look into his eyes to know that.”

An odd little shiver ran down Audrey’s spine. She knew what Megan was talking about—the knowing, dirty glint in Zach’s eyes that spoke of tangled sheets and roaming hands and healthy earthy curiosity.

“Stop it. I don’t want to think about Zach in relation to my clitoris or any other body part.”

“Ahem.”

The sound came from behind her, and had a distinctly masculine tone. Belatedly she noticed the cool brush of air on the nape of her neck—as though someone had recently entered—and the tide of color rising up Megan’s chest and into her face.

Everything in her went very still. She closed her eyes. “Please tell me Zach isn’t standing behind me.”

Her Favorite Rival may not be quite as blow-me-out-of-the-water good as the best of Sarah Mayberry, but even a Mayberry book that is just good is a reading experience not to be missed. Mayberry is one of the most gifted voices in contemporary romance fiction today. I definitely recommend this book.

~Janga

http://justjanga.blogspot.com 

A Great Mistake!

by Anna Campbell

Wonderful Aussie author Sarah Mayberry  has ventured into self-publishing with HER BEST WORST MISTAKE, a sequel to her 2010 Blaze HOT ISLAND NIGHTS. I loved HOT ISLAND NIGHTS so much that I gave it a glowing review here on the Romance Dishes in September 2010.

In that book, repressed English girl Elizabeth Morgan discovers her father isn’t dead as she believed but is very much alive and living on Phillip Island outside Melbourne. This turns her life upside down. She ditches her polite, decorous life and her polite, decorous fiancé and takes off for the other side of the world where she finds love with gorgeous surfer (and tortured hero) Nate.

HER BEST WORST MISTAKE tells the fiance’s love story and is mostly based back in chilly London during the winter that Elizabeth is in Australia soaking up romance and sunshine. Sarah writes beautiful friends into lovers stories. This one is a twist on that – it’s an enemies into lovers story and it’s brilliant.

Martin St. Clair is one of my favorite sorts of heroes, the stuffed shirt who discovers his inner fire when he falls in love with the last person he ever saw himself wanting. Laura Lee Guhrke does a great line in this sort of hero too and it’s always delicious watching their pompous ways melt away to reveal the passionate man beneath the buttoned-down facade. What’s lovely about this style of hero is that he starts as a man of principle and he remains that in essence; he just discovers his inner tiger along the way!

Elizabeth’s best friend Violet Sutcliffe and Martin have always hated one another. She thinks he’s an old-before-his time stick-in-the-mud. He thinks she’s a flighty, promiscuous flake who’s been born with a silver spoon in her mouth and has had life far too easy. But when Elizabeth runs away, Violet and Martin are thrown together and it rapidly becomes clear that all that sniping and hatred was outward manifestation of frustrated attraction. The first kiss in this book is a doozy – all that repressed longing comes out and how!

The dialogue crackles – I love the way Martin and Violet snark at each other, neither giving an inch. And all the time while they’re fighting so hard to keep the other one at a distance, they’re falling helplessly and completely in love. It’s also wonderful to watch how both Martin and Violet reluctantly and sometimes inadvertently reveal their vulnerable souls. This book could be retitled Pride and Preconceptions! And man, are the love scenes hawt! Martin and Violet can’t keep their hands off each other. No matter how unacceptable they both find this heady attraction, neither can resist the sizzling chemistry between them.

HER BEST WORST MISTAKE is funny, wildly sexy, surprisingly moving as emotional truths emerge when a relationship that’s meant to be purely physical develops in directions neither Martin nor Violet imagined, and beautifully wise. One of the best books I’ve read in ages and I highly recommend it. You can buy it on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Her-Best-Worst-Mistake-ebook/dp/B00807FKPA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338160417&sr=8-1 For other stockists, check out Sarah’s website: http://www.sarahmayberry.com/herbestworstmistake

So are you a fan of enemies into lovers books? What about books featuring repressed heroes who break out into a whole new world when they fall in love? Any favorites in either style?

Harlequin Round-up! Yee-ha!

by Anna Campbell

Hello, everyone! It's been quite a while since I've done a Harlequin roundup (checked and seems to be way back in June last year). So I thought I'd do a quick swing around some short contemporaries that I've recently really enjoyed, and either share some favorites of yours or introduce you to some new authors and lines you may not have previously considered. All of these books are still available from online retailers and as e-books so they shouldn't be too hard to find.

So buckle your seatbelts!

First up is one of the best Harlequins I can remember reading for ages. I grew up reading the equivalent of Harlequin Presents. Oh, how my heart would beat faster at the thought of a new Anne Mather or Violet Winspear. Sarah Morgan's books have that same classic feeling of alpha male meeting his match in the strong, clever woman he falls in love with. In DOUKAKIS'S APPRENTICE, mega-millionaire and all round bossy boots, Damon Doukakis, thinks he's inherited an absolute airhead assistant in Polly Prince with her new age ideas of staff creativity and plants and pets in the office. But Polly is a woman of hidden depths and Damon finds himself completely at sea with this brilliant, unconventional dynamo who teaches him a breathtaking lesson in love. Seriously, even if you generally don't like Harlequin Presents because of the occasionally overbearing heroes, you'll love this book. It's a real hoot and the chemistry between Damon and Polly sizzles like a goldfish in a frypan. I can't recommend this one highly enough!

While I'm on the subject of Presents, have you read Annie West's books? Annie and I work together as critique partners, but when a book's as good as GIRL IN THE BEDOUIN TENT (isn't that a gorgeous cover?), I don't feel I'm doing any special pleading for a friend. Innocent Australian traveler Cassie Denison and dashing Prince Amir find themselves trapped in dangerous proximity in the wild desert. Annie does some of the best Sheikh books around and this is one of my favorites of hers. There's the thrill of forbidden love about the relationship between these two proud, wary people, and the sexual tension when they're trapped in a tent together with no escape on the horizon is heart-stopping. Really great stuff! GIRL IN THE BEDOUIN TENT is out in America in March.

While I'm on the subject of great Aussie writers, do you know Bronwyn Jameson's work? A couple of years ago, three of Bronwyn's exquisitely crafted Silhouette Desires were up together for the RITA. Now that's some serious kudos. Bronwyn writes so beautifully, I find myself just stopping to re-read her sentences and glory in her prose. And nobody does that delicate advance and retreat of sexual tension better than she does. It's wonderful watching her characters fall in love, usually against their better judgment. But they just can't help it! In MAGNATE'S MAKE-BELIEVE MISTRESS, Isabelle Brown works as a freelance housekeeper to the rich and famous, but finds herself entangled in a dangerous game of mistaken identities when she takes a job for intriguing, sexy Argentinean playboy Cristo Veron. You'll have great fun with this one. Cristo and Isabelle are great characters who will linger in your mind.

Sarah Mayberry is one of my favorite authors and her latest SuperRomance ALL THEY NEED is one of her best, I think. There's such depth of emotion in this story. Melanie Porter was once a vivid, vibrant woman but years with a bullying husband have sapped her spirit. She decides to abandon the high society where she's never felt at home and set up a bed and breakfast on the beautiful Mornington Peninsula near Melbourne. Rich boy Flynn Randall belongs to that luxurious world Melanie has fought so hard to escape and his arrival in her life threatens all her dreams of independence and finding herself again. Or does it? Perhaps Flynn is deeper and more worthy than she believes. Perhaps he offers Melanie the chance of personal fulfilment that she came so close to losing. A beautiful story of two people who have to take dangerous emotional risks to achieve their happiness.

Liz Fielding is another of my favorite authors and she's never let me down yet. But even a favorite author occasionally writes a book that slams that ball out of the park and into the next suburb. TEMPTED BY TROUBLE is longer than most Harlequin Romances as it was originally written to launch the new Riva line in the U.K. There's a definite Cinderella touch to this story of Elle Amery who has put her life on hold to raise her sisters. But what's nice about this story is that it never quite goes where you think it's going to - for example, Elle's sisters really aren't ugly either inside or out, and in fact emerge as wonderful characters in their own right. Into Elle's life rides Prince Charming Sean McElroy. And seriously, girls, he is CHARMING with a capital 'ch'! One of the nicest heroes I've ever read - I wish he lived next door to me! Sean's gallant steed isn't a white charger but a pink ice-cream van called Rosie who also becomes a character in her own right. This book is such a charmer. You won't be able to resist it! It's as delicious as Rosie's ice-cream!

I don't read a lot of Mills and Boon Medical Romances and I know they can be difficult to find in America, but there are a couple of authors who are auto-buys for me. Strangely they're all Aussies! Don't know what it is about Australians and sexy doctors!

Sharon Archer writes heartfelt romances set in Australian country towns. A large part of the pleasure of reading one of her books is getting to know the bush community where the story is set. One of my favorites of hers is BACHELOR DAD, GIRL NEXT DOOR which is a story about second chances and forgiveness and finding your place in the world. After his wife's death, Dr. Luke Daniels brings his young daughter back to the beautiful seaside town of Port Cavil while he wonders how to rebuild his life. He doesn't count on meeting the girl who enchanted him as a young man. Even more troubling, he finds himself still attracted to her. Terri Mitchell is now an A&E doctor and she's far from sure she wants to risk her heart again with her teenage crush, Luke. Especially as it's perfectly clear that Luke never wants to fall in love again after losing his wife so tragically. You'll close this one with a happy sigh and a smile.

Amy Andrews, another Aussie, is a practicing nurse who writes dramatic and very sexy books that buck the stereotype of Medicals being all sweetness and light. So please don't be fooled by the rather corny title of this book (seriously, Harlequin, this has to be one of the WORST titles ever!). ALESSANDRO AND THE CHEERY NANNY is the first in a two-parter with VALENTINO'S PREGNANCY BOMBSHELL (which isn't much better as a title, frankly!). It's another story about a father bringing up his child, in this case a four-year-old son, after the death of his wife. When brooding Italian A&E doctor Alessandro Lombardi encounters vibrant nurse Natalie Davies, he doesn't realize just how profoundly Nat will change his life and that of his withdrawn son Julian. Another one you'll close with a smile and a sigh of pleasure.

So do you read Harlequins? What are your favorite lines? Why? Have you read any good category romances lately?

Is it a Bird? Is it a Plane?

by Anna Campbell

No, it's a SuperRomance!

As I said last month, I've been on a bit of a Harlequin kick lately. And I must say it's been blissful. There have been all those Sarah Morgans (check out last month's review if you missed it - highly recommended reads!). There were a stack of India Greys and the wonderful week where I managed to knock over five Liz Fieldings in a row.

As you've probably gathered from the title of this piece, I've also read some great SuperRomances so I thought I'd share a couple of them with you. I'm delighted to say that all these books are still available from Amazon.

Since I discovered Aussie Sarah Mayberry a couple of years ago, she's moved into the position of a must-buy for me. I love her books - they're full of so much heart. And her books are heartbreakingly real, full of people you could imagine meeting and liking if they lived next-door (as in fact, the hero and heroine here do). I think that's one of the strengths of the SuperRomance line - these wonderful love stories are based so closely in the here and now. You KNOW I love a larger-than-life story like a passionate historical or a Harlequin Presents - but occasionally it's nice to touch base with the everyday and discover it can be as magical as any romance featuring arrogant dukes or managing millionaires.

In HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS, widower Joe Lawson is seeking to put down roots in Melbourne for him and his kids after a really rough couple of years. He falls in love with his free-spirited neighbor Hannah Napier who hasn't had an easy time of it lately either, what with her fiance dumping her just before the wedding in favor of her sister. All she wants to do is leave the humiliations of the past behind and get outta Dodge (well, Melbourne). Joe and Hannah are just so darn likeable so you cheer every uncertain step they take toward love. The first date scene in particular is poignant. You'll love this!

I reviewed another Karina Bliss (WHAT THE LIBRARIAN DID) back in June last year. At the time, I commented on the rich emotion and the wonderful cast of characters, not just the hero and heroine (this was the rockstar going back to uni and falling in love with the outwardly-repressed librarian, lovely story!). There's equally rich emotion in HERE COMES THE GROOM and you'll fall in love with the residents of this small New Zealand town. They perform like a Greek chorus on the increasingly madcap courtship of childhood best friends Dan Jansen and Jocelyn Swann. Barry, the owner of the local menswear store, is a particular favorite. I was snickering into my morning cup of tea when I read his scenes and you will be too.

Friends into lovers is one of my favorite themes and this is a lovely exploration of that often fraught process. After facing tragedy in Afghanistan, ex-Special Forces officer Dan returns to his home town determined to establish a family and a fulfilling life. An essential element of that life is his childhood friend Jocelyn who runs the local newspaper. Jocelyn has had trauma of her own to deal with in the past years (trauma Dan doesn't know about and when he finds out, it's a heartbreaking scene). She's unwilling to risk the one stable relationship in her life for the possibility of romance with Dan, especially as she recognizes that he's still shell-shocked from his army experiences. When Dan sets out to change her mind, there's some wonderful comedy but at the heart of this book, it's a moving story of healing and forgiveness and love finally brought out into the open. Recommended!

Two of the authors in this review are already auto-buys for me. Molly O'Keefe was a new writer to me when I picked up THE SON BETWEEN THEM.

One word - wow!

The tone of this one is darker and more intense than a lot of Supers. And the story was really unusual - don't be fooled by that secret baby tag on the front. Yeah, there is a secret baby but it's handled in such a different, intriguing way, you'll be drawn in from the first page.

Sam and J.D. (Sam's the heroine and J.D. is the hero) have been in an uncommitted but passionate relationship for years when suddenly everything in their world tuns upside down. It's not just the existence of their child, it's events in the outside world that suddenly impinge on their affair and threaten either to destroy it or to carry them towards an emotional fulfillment both always believed beyond their reach. Sam is my favorite sort of romance heroine - she's smart and capable and strong and she acts like an adult in even the most trying of circumstances. J.D. is a genuinely tortured hero and he's gorgeous. His unforgettable struggle to emerge from the dark into the light will touch your heart. Molly O'Keefe was a major discovery for me.

So what's been your genre of choice lately? Are you a SuperRomance reader? Can you recommend any other authors I should try in this line?

Good Girls Gone Bad!

by Anna Campbell

Hmm, perhaps I should start this review by admitting I've gone to Blazes.

Harlequin Blazes, that is!

I'm a fairly recent convert to this particular line in Harlequin. I read a few of the first ones out - hey, it's a hot, sensual line of romances, of COURSE I tried them! But sadly, they weren't really me.

Then a couple of years ago, I met wonderful Bandita Tawny Weber and fell in love with her writing. Then a good friend (Sharon Archer, an Aussie Medical Romance writer who's great!) recommended Sarah Mayberry's books to me. Add Kathleen O'Reilly to that mix (my Second Helping review of her wonderful LONG SUMMER NIGHTS is here) and you've basically got three of my favorite contemporary authors. And they all write for Blaze!

Recentlly I handed a book in and as my reward, I pulled Tawny and Sarah's latest off the tottering TBR pile. And found to my surprise that the two books shared a common theme, one I always love in a romance - the nerdy Plain Jane who discovers her inner siren under the influence of the passion she finds in the arms of a gorgeous stranger. Who almost always ends up being more than the sexy drifter he appears on the outside.

I think there's a couple of themes most of us find irresistible. One is the bad guy who falls for the 'good' girl and in the process finds redemption (think of all those Regency rake heroes!). Another is the 'good' girl who casts away her inhibitions and finds a completely new side of herself when she surrenders to the wild boy.

One of the lovely parts of the 'good girl' romance is that often it becomes clear that the guy she falls in loves with learns to love her in all her nerdy glory too. There's a deeper connection than suddenly wearing a skimpy bikini or drinking too much and dancing on the tables would immediately suggest.

In HOT ISLAND NIGHTS, Sarah Mayberry's latest, repressed upper-crust English girl (she's not a maiden but she may as well be!) Elizabeth Morgan suddenly discovers the existence of a father she never knew she had and she abandons her restricted life in search of him. This means cancelling her wedding to her boring fiance and flying across the world to Phillip Island in Australia. Actually I had to giggle here! HOT ISLAND NIGHTS conjures up the image of the Barrier Reef or somewhere equally tropical. Phillip Island is south of Melbourne and is so cold, penguins nest there!

However, in spite of this adverse weather report, Elizabeth's island nights become very hot indeed when she starts a reluctant flirtation with handsome drifter Nathan Jones while she waits for her father to get back from preparing for a major yacht race in Sydney. It's not long before she sees beneath Nathan's sham facade of casual, easygoing layabout who is interested in nothing but surfing. And then the real trouble starts!

This book lures you in with its tale of a woman learning to let herself go and you're enmeshed by the time it delves the depths of human emotion. I found myself laughing a few times but at other times, I found myself with tears in my eyes, especially as we discover more about Nathan's past. I'm in awe that Sarah manages to pack such a profound variety of human experience into 215 pages. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Tawny's book RIDING THE WAVES also starts with our nerdy heroine deciding to take a holiday, this time to Mexico. Where you guessed it, she meets a guy she assumes is a toyboy interested purely in sex and surfing (surfing seems to be the new black!). Believing that what happens in Mexico stays in Mexico, she embarks on a wild fling that she intends to leave behind when she returns to her real life.

But what happens when her fling follows her home and turns out to be her new colleague?

As you can imagine, sparks fly!

Drucilla is an astronomer (great career for a romance heroine!) who has submerged her sexuality in her career. Her relationships with nerdy fellow scientists never go anywhere and the only place she sees stars is when she's looking through a telescope. All that changes when she meets the gorgeous Alex in Mexico. Little does she know the man she's selected for an unforgettable week of passion followed by a final good-bye is A.A. Maddow, hotshot darling of the astronomy set.

When Alex and Dru meet up again in her lab, he's eager to pursue the relationship. He's glimpsed more than just physical passion in his interactions with Dru. So has she and she's terrified out of her brain! So we're set up for a delicious push-pull between these two smart-mouthed characters. In the process, both Alex and Dru will discover they each have much more to offer than they've ever believed possible.

Like Sarah's, Tawny's books have a surface glitter of wit and humor and sexy fun, but they deal with questions deeply important to all of us. How can we be our best? Can we let go of the past to trust love? How much fun can we have in bed? Yeah, I know, but honestly, they're Blazes after all!

Again, RIDING THE WAVES is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

So do you have a favorite good girl gone bad romance? Is it a theme you enjoy?

Authors Who Put the Super in SuperRomance

I’m a huge fan of category books. There are several lines that I enjoy reading, with stories that range from sweet to spicy to blazing hot. Today, let’s talk about Harlequin’s SuperRomance line. Written by some of the most talented authors around, these often family oriented books are shorter than single-titles, coming in at around 250 pages, which make them quick reads and easy to tuck in my purse. (I always carry a book with me.) But, while short in length, when I pick up a SuperRomance I never feel like I’m being short-changed. These heartwarming and emotional stories give readers the full romance experience. As they say at eharlequin.com, Super Romance is “More than a romantic relationship, it's mainstream romance with the promise of happy ever after!”

There are many SuperRomance authors whose books I enjoy reading but today I’m going to spotlight three authors: Kay Stockham (a long-time favorite), Beth Andrews (a new, rising star) and Sarah Mayberry (a new-to-me author).

I was introduced to Kay Stockham’s books three years ago when a blog I visited recommended A Christmas to Remember (Nov 2007). I read the entire book in one sitting and, as soon as I finished wiping away the tears, I drafted an e-mail to the author, then immediately set about finding her backlist of books. Kay has a gift for drawing me into a story, to the extent that I become “friends” with her characters, have a vested interest in their lives and care deeply about their happiness. She isn’t afraid to tackle difficult topics, writing with a depth of emotion that never fails to touch my heart, and taking both her characters and me (the reader) on emotional roller coaster rides that leave us stronger, better people in the end.

Many of Kay's books are on my keeper shelves and, like old, dear friends, are visited time and again. One of my favorites, Man With A Past, was a much-deserved 2007 RITA finalist. 

Kay’s current release, She’s the One (Mar 2010), is the final book in her heartwarming Tulanes of Tennessee series and brings us the story of Alexandra Tulane, the only daughter of the Tulane family.  In She's the One, Stockham takes us to a remote lodge in Alaska where she brings together a man and his son hiding from the world and a woman who thinks she has life figured out but discovers that she's been running from it instead.   Once again, this talented author has written a story that will have you thinking about these characters long after you turn the final page.

You can find more information about Kay at her website.





As a regular visitor to the Romance Bandits blog, I had heard about Beth Andrews long before her debut book, Not Without Her Family, was published by Harlequin SuperRomance in June 2008. All it took was reading that first book for me to know that Beth was on her way to being a star in the world of category romance – a fact that was confirmed this year when her second book, A Not-So-Perfect Past, was named as a RITA finalist for Best Contemporary Series Romance.

In this story, the author gives us a hero who served prison time for killing his abusive step-father and pairs him with a mother of two who is trying to heal from an abusive marriage. It’s to the author’s credit that there were no easy answers in this relationship. Both the hero and heroine had to grow and learn to open themselves to love but, more importantly, they had to learn to love, and forgive, themselves. With her flawless writing, Andrews not only made me believe in this unlikely pair but had me cheering for them the entire way.

Beth Andrews’ next release, Do You Take This Cop?” will be released May 11th. You can find more information about Beth at her website.

The author of sixteen published novels, Sarah Mayberry is an author I managed to miss until earlier this year. On the one hand, I’m disappointed that I hadn’t read her books until recently but, on the other hand, I’m thrilled to know there are fifteen more Sarah Mayberry books out there that I’ve yet to enjoy! In Home for the Holidays, Mayberry brings us the poignant story of a widower and his two children struggling to find their way after the death of their beloved wife and mother two years earlier.

Moving the family from Sydney to Melbourne to be near his mother, Joe hopes a new house in a quiet neighborhood will help them begin to heal but the motorcycle-riding mechanic next door throws a monkey wrench into his plans. Hannah has sworn off men since her fiancé ran off with her younger sister and wants nothing to do with the man and children who have moved in next door but life, and children, have a habit of interfering with our best laid plans. Home for the Holidays is another emotion-packed story with realistic characters and situations to which I could easily relate. Mayberry has created not just a hero and heroine, but also children, who must learn to overcome pain and grief and open themselves to love and new beginnings. Keep the tissues handy for this one!  Mayberry's beautifully flowing writing is a joy to read and her heartwarming story captured my heart.

Mayberry's most recent SuperRomance, Her Best Friend, was released April 13th.  You can find more information about Sarah at her website.














You can also check out these, and other, SuperRomance authors, and their books, at eharlequin.com.

Do you read Harlequin SuperRomances?  Who are your favorite SuperRomance authors?  Favorite books?  What SuperRomance authors have I missed that I need to try?   


~PJ