Review - - Recipe for Disaster

Recipe for Disaster
By Tracy Solheim
Men of the Secret Service - Book One
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Release Date: May 7, 2018
Reviewed by PJ

An elusive group of international counterfeiters has escaped Secret Service agent Griffin Keller's net long enough. He's determined to bring them to justice, especially the one known as The Artist, and, finally, he's found a clue that might help him do that. The clue leads him to the White House and executive pastry chef, Marin Chevalier whose family owns hotels around the world that have been used as drop sites for the counterfeit bills. Add to that the strange events and growing body count around Marin, and Griffin is sure he's found a link to the counterfeiters...even as his growing desire for the chef has him hoping he's wrong. Using his legendary good looks - dimples rule - and charm, he sticks close to her until he can determine for certain if she's on the right, or wrong, side of the law but as desire ramps up and unexpected feelings deepen, will they cloud his judgment and hamper his ability to solve the case before it's too late?

White House executive pastry chef, Marin Chevalier is dealing with stress on all sides. With Easter weekend almost upon them, the oven in the pastry kitchen burns up, her sous chef seems distracted, her condescending cousin - for whom Marin is maid of honor - has turned into a bridezilla, insisting Marin bring a date to the upcoming wedding, and there's no likely candidate in sight. And that's before things begin to spiral out of control. Suddenly, a handsome Secret Service agent is romancing her and Marin, who has always been all work and no play, begins to believe she may have finally found "the one." But people around her start dying, the man to whom she could easily give her heart hasn't been completely truthful, and the lurking danger now has Marin in its sights. 

I thoroughly enjoyed this first book in Tracy Solheim's new romantic suspense series centered around the Secret Service. There's great characterization, plenty of action, danger, and twists and turns that kept me guessing throughout while also being well balanced by romance, emotion, humor, and sizzle.  I especially enjoyed Solheim's attention to detail in setting scenes and describing the interior of her White House. It enabled me to not just read about what was happening but become immersed in the journey of these characters as if I were there with them each step of the way. 

Being the first book in a series, there are a number of characters introduced but I never felt confused or overwhelmed by them. I especially enjoyed Otto, a working K-9 who is critical to the plot and won my heart as surely as he did Marin's. Griffin and Marin have terrific chemistry, the obstacles they must overcome are relevant and believable, and their HEA is hard-won and satisfying. I'm hopeful that we'll see more of them in the next two books which will feature Griffin's two pals and fellow Secret Service agents, Ben and Adam. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Q&A with Tracy Solheim

Welcome, Tracy! Thanks so much for visiting with us today.

Thanks so much for inviting me to stop by the Dish. It’s always fun to catch up with my friends here.

Recipe for Disaster launches your new Men of the Secret Service series. What should readers expect from this book?

This is the first book in a trilogy about three Secret Service agents who have been friends since their days at West Point. While it’s definitely a suspenseful “Whodunit” I tried to give my readers the same amount of heat and romance they’ve come to know in my previous books. There’s also a pooch for readers to fall in love with. But I’ll warn you up front, Otto is a working K-9 who, like the other heroes in this series, puts his life on the line every day. Just keep in mind as you’re reading about Otto that I’m in the business of writing happy endings. 😊

I was impressed with your understanding of the inner workings of the White House as well as your attention to detail in describing areas within the building that typically are off-limits to the public. How did you obtain your White House store of knowledge?

You caught me! I’m a huge history buff particularly if it involves Washington, DC since I spent nearly half my life living there. I’ve been inside the White House numerous times for holiday tours—including one time when my younger brother decided to play with the dimmer switch in the Green Room and turn out the lights! You should have seen the Secret Service agents that night! For this book, however, I needed more behind the scenes info and that’s where my friend Google came to the rescue. The White House Museum has a fabulous website complete with an interactive map of the entire White House. It was invaluable helping me to navigate my characters' steps from one place to another on the grounds and within the House itself. Information on the artwork and decorations came from The White House Historical Association website. For details on the pastry kitchens, I watched a C-SPAN documentary on the White House and its staff. Where would we be without the Internet? Any mistakes in the book are mine and there’s no excuse because the information is out there! 😊

I adored Marin even though her pastry and culinary creations throughout the book had me drooling all over my Kindle. 😉 Do you enjoy getting creative in the kitchen? And, I have to ask: Is the butternut squash ravioli (such a sigh-worthy scene) actually on the menu at Old Ebbitt Grill? If so, I see a trip to Washington, DC in my future!

I enjoy cooking, but baking is my jam. I look for any excuse I can to bake a cake, cookies or breads for my family and friends. They are always grateful, but my thighs, not so much. I didn’t have a go-to recipe for lemon bars when I had Marin bake them, so of course, I had to try out multiple recipes. As it turns out with most things, the simpler recipe ended up being the best.

Since it’s been over a decade since I’ve eaten there, I took some liberties with the menu from Old Ebbitt Grill. When I wrote the dinner date on the Truman balcony, I could still taste the butternut squash ravioli I had at a restaurant the evening before. It was so delicious, I had to memorialize it in a book.

What was your favorite scene to write in this book? What was the most difficult?

It’s hard to pick a favorite. This was one of those books where the scenes seemed to come easily. I enjoyed writing the parts that took place in various rooms of the White House because it gave me a chance to pretend I was actually there! The most difficult scene for me to write is always the Black Moment. Griffin was a bit of a dunderhead and wasn’t sure what he was losing until he walked away. I didn’t want to make him too much of a clod that Marin would be better off without him!

Griffin’s my new book boyfriend. I fell so hard for this guy. How would he describe himself to our readers?

“I’m much more than just a pair of dimples. Women can’t seem to see past them or my wavy hair.  But I’m a guy who works hard, plays hard, loves my family, and is loyal to my friends. Serving my country is my number one mission in life. There’s no room for any other commitments. Period.”

What can you share about future books in the series and when do you expect them to be published? Will Adam and Ben both have books? What about a certain female FBI agent?

I’m finishing up Ben’s story right now. It’s called Between Love and Honor and readers can expect it in the fall. Writing this one has been a bit like walking on a tightrope. Quinn, the heroine, has hurt Ben before and I needed to make her worthy of not only Ben’s trust, but the readers’ as well. The friendship between the three men gets tested in this book, too.  Adam, the sniper, will get his story in Shot in the Dark when he is injured on the job and has to serve on the protective detail of the First Lady’s younger half-sister, an animal-rights activist who is against guns. Needless to say, the sparks fly from the get go. I can’t leave Leslie hanging either. She might have to meet up with another FBI agent who has dropped into several of my other books. Ava, Marin’s cousin, could also kick-off another series involving the Chevalier Hotel chains. But only after she’s matured a bit.

Otto (a Belgian Malinois) was one of my favorite characters in this book. Do you share your life with any four-legged family members?  How do they inspire you?

I do! Harper, my sweet black Labrador retriever, will be four next week. She keeps me healthy by providing a ready excuse to get out of my chair to take lots of walks—not to mention the exercise from vacuuming up the dog hair!

Summer is almost upon us. If money and time were no issue, where in the world would you choose to visit and what would you most want to see/do while there?

I really want to spend some time in Glacier National Park where my book, Smolder, is set. I’m headed to Jackson Hole, Wyoming in July to hike and visit the national parks there, so maybe next summer. Of course, I seem to remember your photos and blogs from the Amalfi Coast being spectacular. That’s a place on my list, too!

Where can readers connect with you online?

Website: https://www.tracysolheim.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TracyKSolheim

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/solheim0062/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6519003.Tracy_Solheim

BoobBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/tracy-solheim

Will you be attending any events this year where readers can meet you in person?

I’ll be in Denver July 21^st signing at Romance Writers of America’s Readers for Life Literacy Autographing.

October 6th, I’ll signing at Georgia Romance Writer’s Moonlight and Magnolias’ book fair at the Atlanta Hilton.

Thanks so much for visiting with us today, Tracy! Do you have anything else to add? Would you like to ask our readers a question?

Have you ever been to Washington, DC? If so, what was your favorite place to visit?

The prize (U.S. winner) is a White House apron and a print copy of Recipe for Disaster. (International winner will receive a digital copy of Recipe for Disaster only.)

Review - - The Family Gathering

The Family Gathering

By Robyn Carr

Publisher: Harlequin Mira

Release Date: April 17, 2018
Reviewed by Janga

Dakota Jones parted ways with the United States Army three years before he was due to retire and spent some time with a Ranger buddy in Australia, but now he is ready for an overdue visit with two of his siblings who have settled near Timberlake, Colorado, his older brother Cal (What We Find) and sister Sierra, the youngest of the four Jones siblings (Any Day Now). All of the siblings reacted differently to their schizophrenic father and their unusual upbringing. Dakota’s response was to escape as soon as possible. He left home as soon as he graduated from high school, enlisted in the Army, and has visited his parents only four times in the years since. Although he has remained independent of his brother and sisters, the bond they share has endured long separations and distance, physical and emotional. He is ready to spend some time with them, although he expects his stay to be relatively brief.

But a few days turns into a few weeks. Dakota likes the place and its people, and his time with family is unexpectedly satisfying. Soon he has a job, a rented cabin, and no departure date. There’s no shortage of women interested in Dakota, but bartender Sidney is the only woman in whom he is interested. The more he knows about her, the more interested he becomes. But Sid is hardly the simple bartender that she seems to be, and the baggage she carries makes her wary of men and distrustful of her own judgment. The chemistry between her and Dakota is undeniable, but neither is sure they have a future together.

This third novel in Carr’s Sullivan’s Crossing series may focus on the third of the four Jones siblings, but Dakota’s story is only part of the book. Cal and Maggie with baby Elizabeth and Maggie’s father, Sully, are much in evidence. The whole family gathers for Sierra and Connie’s wedding, and the couple’s life provides a plot thread, as does that of the number two sibling, Sedona. Fans of the series will also be pleased to see further development in the romance of handyman Tom Canaday and Lola Anderson.

In addition to the theme of family indicated by the title and exemplified not only through the Jones family but also through Sid’s relationship with her brother and nephews and through Tom and Lola’s blended family, mental illness is a recurring issue. It is only as Dakota reaches thirty-five that he believes he has escaped inheriting his father’s illness, Sierra fears passing the illness on to children, and Sedona’s struggle is the most painful of all. Sid’s history includes a breakdown, and a minor character who is a sociopath. These multiple threads keep the reader invested in the story.

Nobody mixes family and community dynamics with romance better than Robyn Carr. She gives her readers layered characters whose voices ring true and places them in rich contexts with stories that are engaging and authentic.  There is so much going on in The Family Gathering that some readers may feel overwhelmed at times, but Carr’s devoted fans will feel at home with the family in Colorado and look forward to the next visit.

Review - - The Sometimes Sisters

The Sometimes Sisters

By Carolyn Brown

Publisher: Montlake

Release Date: February 27, 2018

Reviewed by Janga

The three Clancy sisters return to Annie’s Place, the lakeside resort (consisting of twelve cabins and a combination convenience store-café) owned by their late grandmother, Annie Clancy, loaded with guilt over their neglect of their grandmother in recent years. Growing up, the sisters spent a month each summer with their grandmother, the only time that Dana, “the bastard sister,” shared with her father’s legitimate daughters, Harper, a decade younger, and her younger sister Tawny. Granny Annie shared her love and wisdom with them indiscriminately, and Uncle Zed, their grandmother’s life-long best friend, served as a grandfather figure. But the “sometimes sisters” grew apart, and it has been a decade since the three of them gathered at the north Texas resort. They don’t even like each other much now, but they all loved their grandmother. They are all also devoted to Uncle Zed and to Dana’s fourteen-year-old daughter Brooke.

Annie’s will gives her property to the three sisters jointly, but they cannot sell it. They are obligated to work on the property for a year, drawing a salary. Annie knows her granddaughters well, and she assigns them tasks to capitalize on their strengths. Even Brooke is instructed to work on weekends. If they leave, they forfeit their inheritance. Each of the women is burdened with secrets and regrets, and each doubts that the three of them can get along well enough to run a business together. But with Annie’s instructions to “either live in harmony or get on down the road” sounding in their heads, they determine to give it a try.

The Sometimes Sisters is more women’s fiction than romance. The story includes a romance thread for each of the sisters and even one for young Brooke, but the focus of the story is the relationships among the sisters and their journeys to healing, forgiveness, and real sisterhood. None of the sisters comes across as particularly likable in the first part of the book. They spend a lot of time in defensive posturing and in shooting verbal arrows at one another. Their grief for their grandmother and their love for Uncle Zed gave me hope that they could change, and they did. Still, Annie and Zed are the most sympathetic characters, and their story has the most powerful emotional punch. Even though Annie dies in the opening pages, her presence is very much a part of the story. Tender-hearted readers should be prepared to read the final chapters with a box of tissues close at hand.

If your taste in fiction tends toward the steamy, the sophisticated, or the edgy, this is not the book for you. It is frankly sentimental, and its appeal will be greatest for those who can enjoy a certain folksy quality that seems to be characteristic of Brown’s fiction. Country music fans will appreciate all the musical references. I enjoyed the soundtrack that played in my imagination. My favorite allusion was to an old K. T. Oslin song, “80s Ladies.” Harper remembers the lines “One was pretty, one was smart, / And one was a borderline fool” and thinks they aptly describe her sisters and her since Tawny is the beauty, Dana is the brain, and she is the borderline fool. I’m not sure how believable it is that lyrics from a song older than she is would so easily come to Harper’s mind, but I like the song and the reference anyway.

If you like women’s fiction that is light on romance but filled with heart and emphases on second chances and the importance of family, I think you will enjoy this book. I did.

Unclaimed Giveaway Winners

Maybe the third time will be the charm! 

The new winners of two unclaimed giveaways are:

Lil

(Kindle copy of Lights Out Lucy)

and

Carol L

(Moonlight Harbor prize package)

Please send your email address (Lil) and

full name and mailing address (Carol) to:

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

Review - - Someone to Care

Someone to Care

By Mary Balogh

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: May 1, 2018

Reviewed by Janga

Viola Kingsley has handled the revelation of her late husband’s bigamy, the change in her children’s status from the son and daughters of an earl to bastards with no claims on their father’s name or fortune, and her own transformation from proper countess to scandal fodder with strength and grace. She is fond of the Westcotts who remain loyal to her and still insist that she is a member of their family. But when the family (more than two dozen of them) gathers in Bath for the christening of Viola’s grandson, the child of her daughter Camille and Joel Cunningham, the anger and bewilderment that she has suppressed surface. Instead of the two weeks of family festivities that Viola was expected to participate in, she leaves after two days. Ordering her concerned family to leave her alone and insisting on leaving her carriage and maid for her younger daughter, Abigail, she sets out in a hired carriage for Hinsford Manor in Hampshire, the home that her “husband’s” legitimate daughter and heiress, Anna Snow (now Duchess of Netherby), insists she retain. To her dismay, a broken carriage axel forces her to stop at an inn in some nameless country village.

Marcel Lamarr, Marquess of Dorchester, long-time widower and well-known rake, and his brother André, leave a house party in Somerset when one of the marquess’s flirtations develops awkward consequences. They head for Redcliffe Court in Northhamptonshire, an estate Dorchester inherited with his title two years ago, for the marquess to pay his semi-annual visit to his son and daughter, twins about to turn eighteen. The twins are near strangers to their father who turned them over to his sister-in-law and her husband to rear after his wife’s death when the twins were one. Dorchester is none too eager to arrive since his home is inhabited not only by his children but also by an assortment of unprepossessing relatives and connections. Nevertheless, he is not pleased when a loose horseshoe forces a stop in a country village with nothing to recommend it but a local festival.

Dorchester is surprised to see Viola alone in an humble country inn. It has been almost fifteen years since her aloof beauty tempted him to break his own rules and attempt to seduce a married lady. She sent him away then, but perhaps an older Viola, no longer the dutiful Countess of Riverdale, will be more open to his advances. It turns out that the attraction between them has lost none of its potency, and a newly rebellious Viola accepts the marquess’s invitation first for one night together and then for a limited-engagement liaison at a secluded Devonshire cottage. But as one week moves into another, they realize, albeit reluctantly, that more than lust is involved in their relationship. Their situation becomes more complicated when their families show up at the cottage. Will the forty-something lovers cling to their idea that their affair is a moment’s indulgence, or will they accept the familial consensus that marriage is in their future?

The fourth entry in Balogh’s Westcott series pairs two older protagonists. Viola is forty-two with three adult children and grandchildren; Marc is turning forty with two children on the threshold of adulthood. Both characters are seasoned adults with their share of scars and disillusionment. They are flawed but sympathetic, and readers will root for this second chance at love story to end in an HEA.

Balogh inserts poignancy and humor into this character-driven tale, a combination that will appeal to most historical romance readers, although some may find that internal monologues make for a slower paced read than they prefer. Although Balogh was including sizzle when sizzle was not the norm in Regency-set historicals, the sensuality level of her books is mild by today’s standards. Some readers may see this as a fault; others will be so captivated by the appeal of her lead characters and their sprawling families that they will scarcely notice the lower heat.

I admit that I am a long-time, whole-hearted Balogh fan. She continues to amaze me with her capacity to create stories that engage me fully when I am reading them and move to a keeper shelf to be reread when I turn the final page. I count any writer who has consistently done this for more than three decades one of the genre’s treasures. Someone to Care is filled with the kind of family connections that made the Bedwyns favorites among Balogh fans. Fans of the Westcott series will be happy to see Viola find happiness and delighted with the bonus reconciliation between Marc and his children. The cast of characters is large, but I had no problem keeping them straight. And I enjoyed the geographical range of the novel. Balogh includes enough of Viola’s back story for a reader new to the series to follow the story without difficulty.

If you like historical romance with complex, deeply human characters whose story plays out against a backdrop of family ties and responsibilities, I suggest you make sure Someone to Care is on your TBR list. With a May 1 release date, it is a great way to begin a stellar month in romance fiction. Balogh fans like me who are always eager for her next book will want to note that the fifth Westcott novel, Someone to Trust (an older woman-younger man tale), which will feature Elizabeth, Lady Overfield, the widowed sister of Alexander, the new Earl of Riverdale, will be released November 28.

Last Chance Winners

The people listed below have not claimed their giveaways. 

Teresa Warrick

Candice Mast

Please send your full name and mailing address to:

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

 If I do not receive your information by 11:00 PM, May 6, I will choose new winners. 

Winners - - On the Road with Anna Campbell

The two random winners from Anna Campbell's 

April On the Road feature are:

Amy Higgins

and 

Katie Chapman

Please send your email address to me at

theromancedish (at) gmail (dot) com

and let me know if you would like Anna's 

Dashing Widows Boxed Set 

or

Lord Garson's Bride.

Review Tour - - A Duke Like No Other

A Duke Like No Other
By Valerie Bowman
Playful Brides - Book 9
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Release Date: May 1, 2018
Reviewed by PJ

General Mark Grimaldi, spymaster extraordinaire, is in line to be the next Home Secretary, the golden ring for which he's spent his entire career striving. Things are going swimmingly until his superior drops a news bomb: the Home Secretary must be settled. Married. With a wife. Of course, those in charge don't see any problem with this directive. Plenty of women in London would be delighted to marry the man. If only it were that easy.

Nicole Huntington Grimaldi was deeply in love when she married her husband and certain her feelings were returned. But she miscalculated the depth of his enmity toward the ton and his estranged family in particular. Mere months into their marriage, a misunderstanding tore them apart and Nicole moved to France where she has lived for the past ten years. She's content, with good friends surrounding her, but even though anger with her estranged husband lives in her heart, there's also love for the man she thought she would be with forever. And loneliness. She wants more than a solitary existence.

When Mark arrives on Nicole's doorstep and asks her to pretend to be happily married to him, she seizes the opportunity to have what her heart most desires and agrees to accompany him back to London temporarily if he will grant her request in return. It should be easy. Swan about London acting like they're in love, secure Mark's appointment, and return to France, hopefully, with her deepest wish realized. But unexpected news throws Mark's life into chaos and both Mark and Nicole into the middle of a murder investigation. Will they find the killer before one of them becomes the next victim? Will Mark finally mend fences with the family he's spent his life resenting? Will pretending to be in love give Mark and Nicole the second chance they both want, even if one of them won't admit it?

I've enjoyed all of the books in Valerie Bowman's Playful Brides series but A Duke Like No Other is one of my favorites and, in my opinion, one of Bowman's best. Nicole and Mark are both compelling, complex characters who have allowed pride and stubbornness to keep them apart for ten years. Young when they married, they had desire and love but, for Mark, there was an absence of trust and, for Nicole, it was easier to walk away than stay and fight for her marriage. Both they and their relationship are compelling and complex, with obstacles that must be overcome and emotional wounds that must be healed before a happy ending can be realized. Bowman takes readers on their shared journey from past to present, allowing us to delve more deeply into their thoughts and emotions, and the events that separated them. The pace never lags and the investigation of the murder moves their relationship forward while also bringing resolution to familial events that Mark has allowed to define his life. The secondary cast is vibrantly portrayed and includes two characters who surely will have a story of their own - at least, I hope they will! 

With mystery, sensual romance, witty banter, and a depth of emotion that will have you yearning for a happy ending as Mark and Nicole yearn for one another, A Duke Like No Other is a welcome addition to Valerie Bowman's Playful Brides series and a historical romance not to be missed. 

Are you reading the Playful Brides books? Do you have a favorite book or couple in the series?

One randomly chosen person who leaves a comment on today's post before 11:00 PM, May 6 will receive a print copy of A Duke Like No Other. (U.S. addresses only)

Valerie Bowman grew up in Illinois with six sisters (she's number seven) and a huge supply of historical romance novels. After a cold and snowy stint earning a degree in English with a minor in history at Smith College, she moved to Florida the first chance she got. Valerie now lives in Jacksonville with her family including her mini-schnauzer, Huckleberry (and the newest addition, Violet). When she's not writing, she keeps busy reading, traveling, or vacillating between watching crazy reality TV and PBS. She is the author of the Secret Brides and Playful Brides series.

Buy Links:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Books-A-Million

Indie Bound

Powells

Social Links:

Author Website

Twitter: @Valeriegbowman

Facebook @ValerieBowmanAuthor

Pinterest

Review - - Lady Rogue

Lady Rogue

By Theresa Romain

Publisher: Kensington / Zebra

Release Date: April 24, 2018

Reviewed by Janga 

 

More than a year into her widowhood, Lady Isabel Morrow is still discovering things about her late husband. One of the most disturbing is the stash of original art stored in a secret room while the aristocrats and wealthy merchants to whom Andrew Morrow sold the purported originals are displaying excellent forgeries. The problem becomes pressing when London buzzes about the Duke of Ardmore’s trade of the Botticelli he purchased from Morrow to the notorious crime lord Angelus for gambling debts. Lady Isabel fears the truth of her husband’s illegal practice will be revealed just as her ward, Lucy Wallace, makes her debut. The resulting scandal will make it impossible for Lucy to marry well.

Isabel decides that the solution to her problem is to exchange the paintings and for this risky deed she needs help. She contacts Callum Jenks, the Bow Street runner who investigated her husband’s suspicious death and with whom she shared one passionate night several months later. Callum, the son of a grocer, has not forgotten the beautiful Lady Isabel even though they move in different worlds. He knows that it is not uncommon for officers of the police to accept private cases, but he initially rejects Isabel’s request for help. He believes law is a tool of justice, and, however noble the motive, he sees stealing the forged painting as a violation of his duty. But when the man responsible for his brother’s murder is freed from prison due to money and influence, Callum acknowledges that the law can be used to pervert justice and that justice can be served beyond the law. He agrees to help Isabel.

Isabel is just coming to terms with how unhappy her marriage was and realizing that she has the freedom as a wealthy widow to become her own person rather than hiding behind the facade of a pretty, conventional ornament to society. As she and Callum work together, they become friends, sharing an emotional intimacy that has been missing in both their lives. Of course, the attraction that flamed that one memorable evening still simmers. Is what they share strong enough to bridge their class differences?

Lady Rogue introduces Romain’s Roguish Runners Duo, but it has strong connections to Passion Favors the Bold, the second book in the Royal Rewards set. Callum’s brother Henry was one of the guards killed when newly minted gold sovereigns were stolen, a crime that is central to that book. Callum was a secondary character in the novel, and his disillusionment when the mastermind behind the robbery goes free in Lady Rogue leads directly to his involvement in Isabel’s theft of the forged painting. Readers who are familiar with Passion Favors the Bold will have fewer questions while reading Lady Rogue than will those who have not read the earlier book.

I have often said that I can forgive almost any flaw in a book if I love the characters. Romain is adept at creating interesting, layered characters, and she does so again in this book. Watching Isabel break free of some of the restraints that have limited her for most of her life is rewarding. Callum is a man of honor forced to reexamine some of the basic truths of his adult life, and his struggle makes him fascinating and sympathetic. I thought it had greater resonance because he is not an aristocrat. Family members add interest and show the reader more of the people Isabel and Callum are. Other secondary characters provide color and substance. I found the beagle Briley; Butler, the artist who copied the great works; and Angelus, the crime lord, particularly appealing.

Unfortunately, the plot falls short of the standard set by characterization. The story line about the switching of the paintings ends well before the book does, and it is replaced with threads that are dropped. The twist that comes at the end is a radical turn that leaves the reader unprepared. The cross-class relationship is handled with a deftness that approaches Balogh at her best with this trope, but some may think that Romain fails to make the reader believe in the passionate connection that drives the risks.

Overall, if expert characterization is your first requirement, you will likely find enough to love in this book to make you glad you read it. If superb pacing and coherent plot structure are more important to you, you may find the novel unequal to Romain’s best.

Release Day Blitz Review - - When a Scot Gives His Heart

When a Scot Gives His Heart
by Julie Johnstone
Highlander Vows:Entangled Hearts - Book 7
Self-Published
Release Date: May 2, 2018
Reviewed by PJ

When Marsaili Campbell met Callum Grant, she was convinced she had found the man who would love her, protect her, and help her escape her controlling father's plots. Callum left her at her father's castle with a vow of forever and a promise to return for her but he never did and she later discovered he had already been betrothed to someone else. Three years later, when Marsaili learns that she was also betrayed by her father, she escapes from his dungeon where she's awaiting a forced marriage and sets out to find that which was stolen from her. But a kidnapping and a wager lands her in the middle of a Grant celebration and brings her face to face with the only man who has ever held her heart, the man she believes betrayed her, the only man who can possibly save her. 

Maisaili isn't the only person who was betrayed. Callum has grieved for three years after being told that the woman he loved had drowned. He had broken a betrothal for her and thrust his clan into war by doing so only to lose her forever. Only now, when he has finally come to terms with his responsibility to his clan and agreed to marry the daughter of a neighboring clan's laird, does he discover that the woman he believed dead actually lives. When she finally tells him about the desperate quest on which she has embarked he knows he has to help her. It doesn't take long for both Marsaili and Callum to realize that neither the desire nor the feelings between them have lessened. But with his clan's safety dependent on the alliance that his marriage will bring, which will he choose: his clan or the woman who means more to him than his beating heart? 

Medieval Romance is one of my favorite sub-genres and Julie Johnstone has become one of my favorite authors writing in this era. The books in her Highlander Vows:Entangled Hearts series are filled with intrigue, adventure, and deep emotion and When a Scot Gives His Heart is no exception. Fans of the series who have followed Marsaili's journey will be happy to learn more about her past and what has motivated her actions in previous books while readers new to the series should have no difficulty reading this book as a standalone. I've been intrigued with Marsaili since she was first introduced and have enjoyed watching the evolution of her character. Callum, on the other hand, is a new character but Johnstone takes time to give him the depth and complexity I've come to expect in her characters. I both ached for him and cheered for him. I liked Callum and Marsaili both individually and as a couple and was deeply invested in their journey and their happiness. They are honorable characters faced with potentially heartbreaking circumstances. As with previous books in this series, both the hero and heroine are presented with difficult, life-altering challenges and decisions and given no easy answers by the author. But, for me, that makes the book more interesting and the conclusion that much more satisfying. 

When a Scot Gives His Heart has my enthusiastic recommendation.

Excerpt

When a Scot Gives His Heart

“Marsaili?” The undeniable concern in Callum’s tone, almost undid Marsaili. “What is it, lass? What’s vexing ye? Are ye afraid? I’ll protect ye, dunnae fash yerself.”

The emotions she’d been holding within her roiled. “Stop!” she barked, his concern shredding the invisible binds that held her together. “I kinnae—” She gulped. “I kinnae take yer kindness. I dunnae—” She shook her head, choking on her words. Gulping again, she continued, tears now streaming down her cheeks. “I dunnae ken what to think or what to do. Or what is truly right. I’m alone, all alone in this. I have to be strong.” She pressed her lips together on saying more, on saying too much.

Suddenly, she was being turned around to face Callum. His hands felt like fire pokers on her skin. Or perhaps it was her? Was she feverish? Her heart pounded a desperate beat, and that same frenzied desperation sent her blood rushing through her veins to roar in her ears. Her stomach felt hollow, and as his gaze pierced her very soul, he said, “Let me help ye. Tell me what ye fear.”

The truth clawed its way up, and she worried she’d not be able to hold it in, so she did the only thing she could. She rose up on her tiptoes and kissed him. Her heart lurched as he stiffened. He was going to push her away! But a growl seemed to come from deep within him, and he delved his hands into her hair to cradle her head and slant his mouth over hers. The kiss tore through every defense she possessed. It was violent in its passion and blissful in the way it seared her from the inside out.

Her hands had been clenched at her sides, but as his tongue slid inside her mouth and his heat consumed her, she could not hold back. She ran her hands up his thick arms to his shoulders and dug her fingers into the muscle there. Their tongues met, swirled, and retreated, as he ravished her mouth and her senses. Every memory she had worked so hard to repress flooded her. Each touch they had shared. Each kiss. The moment they had become one. She whimpered, when his lips found her neck, and then he stilled and jerked away.

Coming Attractions

Wow, how did it get to be May already? Wasn't it just Christmas? I hope that all of you are finally enjoying some spring temperatures and the beautiful flowers this season usually brings. This year, the merry month of May is also bringing great books and lots of fun! Here's what's happening at the blog.

We open the month on Wednesday, May 2 with the Julie Johnstone When a Scot Gives His Heart review blitz. The seventh book in Johnstone's Highlander Vows:Entangled Hearts series, this medieval romance brings all the adventure and emotion for which Johnstone is known. 






On Friday, May 4 we welcome the Valerie Bowman A Duke Like No Other blog tour. This final book in Bowman's popular Playful Brides series tells the story of spymaster General Mark Grimaldi and his long-estranged wife. 

Tracy Solheim joins us for a Q&A on Wednesday, May 9. Her new book, Recipe for Disaster, launches an exciting new Men of the Secret Service romantic suspense series with a story about a charming Secret Service agent, a White House executive pastry chef, and a band of international 
counterfeiters determined to leave no witness alive.






Monday, May 14 brings the Jill Shalvis The Good Luck Sister review tour to the blog. This novella takes readers back to Wildstone, the setting of Shalvis' current series, and gives a couple a second chance at love. 

Janga brings us another On Second Thought review on Tuesday, May 15. 




Wednesday, May 30, Anna Campbell returns with the final installment of On the Road with Anna Campbell as her four-month adventure draws to a close. I've had so much fun following her journey through Europe! 

We close out the month with Kat Martin on Thursday, May 31. She'll be joining us to chat about her next book, Beyond Control. The romantic suspense novel closes out Martin's action-packed, romantic suspense Texas Trilogy.





What are you looking forward to this month?

I have a box of books for one randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM (eastern), May 2, 2018. 
U.S. addresses only.