Video Trailer for Ever After by Samantha Chase

This is the video trailer for Samantha Chase's latest novella, "Ever After".  Check it out exclusively on Kindle for only .99 cents!  
 

"Ever After" by Samantha Chase

"She walked away from her fairytale wedding in search of her true happily ever after.

She hadn't counted on it coming searching for her first.

Eight months after canceling her wedding, Ava Callahan finally has her life in order and sees nothing but blue skies ahead. A chance encounter with the man responsible for ruining her wedding has her newly organized world in chaos.

Brian McCabe had persevered for eight long months seeking the woman he loves and his patience was about to expire. Purposely putting himself in every path Ava was on might not always work to his advantage, but he wanted to make sure that she truly saw him for who he was.

Her happily ever after..."
 
"Ever After" is the follow up to Samantha Chase's best seller, "The Christmas Cottage".  Picking up where "The Christmas Cottage" left off (well, maybe 8 months later) we now get to read Ava's story.  Ava was the best friend in the previous book - a modern day Bridezilla who had some pretty definite ideas on how she wanted her fairytale wedding to be.  There were binders...it was wild!

Now, eight months later, she is planning her future but the reappearance of sexy Brian McCabe into her life has her feeling confused.  After all, it isn't every day a man proclaims that he loves you and then disappears for almost a year!  Feeling like it would be wrong to get involved with him, Ava does her best to discourage Brian but the man is suddenly persistent!

Ava was a high-maintenance woman in "The Christmas Cottage" and was a little more than over the top, Samantha Chase stays true to that character and has Ava still a little hard to handle.  While some were seemingly put off by her character, if you had read the first book, you knew that this was clearly her personality.  And Brian?  He is just yummy.

A great, light romantic novella; perfect for a weekend read.  "Ever After" is currently available exclusively through Amazon on Kindle for only .99 cents!  Enjoy!  

The Best Man by Kristan Higgins

Sometimes the best man is the one you least expect…

 Faith Holland left her hometown after being jilted at the altar. Now a little older and wiser, she's ready to return to the Blue Heron Winery, her family's vineyard, to confront the ghosts of her past, and maybe enjoy a glass of red. After all, there's some great scenery there….

Like Levi Cooper, the local police chief—and best friend of her former fiancé. There's a lot about Levi that Faith never noticed, and it's not just those deep green eyes. The only catch is she's having a hard time forgetting that he helped ruin her wedding all those years ago. If she can find a minute amidst all her family drama to stop and smell the rosé, she just might find a reason to stay at Blue Heron, and finish that walk down the aisle.

This book should totally come with a warning label:  WARNING - DO NOT READ IN QUIET SURROUNDINGS - UNCONTROLLABLE LAUGHTER MAY ENSUE.  "The Best Man" by Kristan Higgins was just an amazingly incredible surprise.  Not that I'm surprised that it was a good book but I was surprised at just how good it was and how I could not put it down!

I chose to start reading this on a road trip with my family to visit my older son at school and after several laugh out loud moments, my husband informed me that I was distracting.  I finished it over the weekend and didn't care how much I bothered him.

"The Best Man" is, at heart, a family oriented story with a great romance thrown in.  Kristan Higgins is fabulous with creating heroines who we all would want to hang out with because they are fabulous and flawed.  No Victoria's Secret models who have beauty, brains, money AND get the guy!  Love her stories and this one was just above and beyond entertaining! 

The King Next Door by Maureen Child

Single mom Nicole Baxter is perfectly fulfilled without a man in her life. But when billionaire Griffin King moves in next door, she considers a fling. Not only is he gorgeous and exciting, but he's not staying. It's an ideal situation, as long as she doesn't fall in love….

Griffin King never met a woman he couldn't leave. But desire sparks with Nicole like lightning: quick and hot. It's just what this workaholic commitment-phobe needs. But why does the thought of summer's end have Griffin longing for more with the one woman he shouldn't have?

Can I just say how much I LOVE Maureen Child and her Kings of California series?  She hooked me from the get-go with "Bargaining for Kings Baby" - which, FYI, is still my favorite - and still has me coming back with each new book in the series.

What she does that is so wonderful is that she keeps the series fresh.  She doesn't feel the necessity to keep mentioning the thirteen or so King's that have come before and overwhelm her readers, each story is it's own and I so appreciate her for that!  So Maureen, if no one tells you that, know that I, as a loyal reader, appreciate you!

Nicole is your typical single mom and you totally feel her vulnerability and her indecision on what she is supposed to do where men are concerned.  I like that she was not made to be someone who has a child but conveniently forgets that fact because she's too busy sleeping with the sexy neighbor!

And Griffin?  He's a King of the Kings of California!  Need I say more??  

"The King Next Door" is another great read and it's one of the only series that I'll pay the Kindle price of $3.82 for.  Totally worth it!   

Candy Store by Bella Andre

On the verge of losing her candy store, Callie Moore decides to blot out her troubles with a tall, dark, handsome stranger. Derek McNear isn't about to turn down a cute, curvy woman at his best friend's wedding reception. But the next day, when Callie discovers that Derek is the consultant she has hired to save her store, they find it difficult to concentrate on business...

CANDY STORE, by New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Bella Andre, is a 25,000 word / 150 page sexy contemporary romance novella.

Romance and chocolate. It doesn't get cuter than that. A good quick read, nothing that I got too attached to but made for a nice distraction.  While it would have been nice for the story to have been fleshed out a little more and for there to have been more substance than sex, it's still another great book by Bella Andre.

Video Trailer for The Christmas Cottage by Samantha Chase

While admittedly short, I think this makes for a cute attachment for Samantha Chase's holiday novella, "The Christmas Cottage".  Currently it is a best seller on Amazon in several categories and it's not only a great holiday story, but a great romance.

Available on Amazon in both paperback and Kindle (only .99 cents!), you can also find it on Smashwords and Barnes and Noble.  

Instant Temptation by Jill Shalvis

T.J. Wilder is the perfect package of breathtaking adventure and raw sex appeal. Even better, he's about to reconnect with the one woman he's never been able to forget. . . 

Get Your Pulse Racing

To Harley, the landscape around Wishful, California, is exhilarating, untamed, and more than a little dangerous. The same could be said for T.J. Wilder, who's invited himself along on her trek to study a rare coyote. Harley's career is riding on this trip, and she doesn't need a stubborn, incredibly sexy distraction tagging along. But T.J. is a professional guide who knows when to stay back and when to provide invaluable expertise--just like he's done since they were in high school. And Harley, as usual, is torn between throttling him and giving in to the raw attraction that's been smoldering all these years.

After waiting so long, it's all about timing. . .

"Instant Temptation" is the third book in the Wilder series by Jill Shalvis and like the others, thoroughly enjoyable.  I mean, you know when it's a trilogy that all three brothers are going to find love - even when they claim that they aren't interested and so you go into it with a predictable premise.

The description really says it all and while I did enjoy this one more than "Instant Gratification", I still found "Instant Attraction to be my favorite.  T.J. Wilder is just as yummy as his brothers and your typical alpha male and he is what Jill Shalvis does best.

A great ending to an entertaining trilogy.  I am never truly disappointed when Jill Shalvis is telling a story!  

Under the Mistletoe by Jill Shalvis

There's no place like home for the holidays. And the Lucky Harbor Bed & Breakfast is bursting with festive lights and good cheer. But for Mia, Christmas is turning out to be anything other than merry and bright. Her recent break-up with her boyfriend Nick has made her return bittersweet. But then a surprise arrives, when Nick follows her to town bearing gifts-and asking for forgiveness.

Nick grew up without a family of his own so he's overwhelmed by the love that Mia receives from all her relatives, gathered together to celebrate the season. Under their watchful eyes, Nick finds earning back her trust the hardest thing he's ever had to do. If he succeeds, he will receive the greatest gift of all, Mia's love for a lifetime.

 

“Under the Mistletoe” by Jill Shalvis is a sweet little holiday novella for those of us who were hungry for some interaction with our friends in Lucky Harbor.  This was a great way to catch up with some of our favorite residents as well as get to know Mia a little bit better. 

With her three sisters all settling into their lives in Lucky Harbor, Mia is a little like the outsider, even more so now that she’s broken up with Nick.  But her alone time with her family is cut short by Nick’s arrival.  Watching Nick come to grips with her close-knit family as well as Mia’s first love and ex-boyfriend makes for some entertaining reading.

While this was a great story, I guess my issue is that it was so short and at times felt a little rushed.  I don’t think this was something that could have supported a full-length novel, it certainly had the potential to be a longer, more satisfying novella.  At 14,000 words, it could have easily been stretched to 20,000 words and been a better story.

Overall, it was a great holiday story because Jill Shalvis is so good at what she does.  It’s not something I was happy to spend $1.99 on; it should have been offered as a .99 cent download.  Just a way for the publishers to get more money because they can.

Instant Gratification by Jill Shalvis

Stone Wilder is no less a daredevil bad boy than the rest of his brothers, especially when the thrill of a lifetime is about to arrive in a surprising package. . . 

The Doctor Is In Deep...

Wishful, California, is 3000 miles from Dr. Emma Sinclair's last job in a New York City ER. Running her father's clinic for a summer, Emma treats bee stings, stomach flu, and the occasional pet cat. Then there's Stone Wilder: gorgeous, laid-back, and irritating beyond belief. Emma loathes him. Almost as much as she wants to throw him on her examining table and break every doctor-patient rule in the book. . .

Paging Dr. Sinclair...

 

I’m not going to lie to you, “Instant Gratification” was not a favorite.  Jill Shalvis does really amazing men in her stories and Stone Wilder is no exception.  Her females, however, sometimes are annoying. 

Dr. Emma Sinclair is unlikable and annoying.

She’s running her father’s clinic for the summer even though the two have a very distant relationship.  She’s not trusting, she’s a bit of a snob and all in all she’s just not likable.  I get the concept of creating characters who are flawed and redeemable but I had a hard time remembering that about her.

Stone was just sexy and yummy to read about.

A bit of a disappointing follow up to “Instant Attraction” but still a good read.

Instant Attraction by Jill Shalvis

Accountant Katie Kramer is a quintessential good girl—working hard, recycling diligently, all the while trying to ignore the feeling that she doesn't fit in anywhere. That's all she wants. Well, that—and amazing sex, and the kind of daredevil escapade she can look back on when she's crunching numbers in a dusty cubicle. Which explains why she just took a job in Wishful, California, working for Wilder Adventures and Expeditions. Waking up to find a magnificently built stranger towering over her bed—that part defies explanation...

After wandering the planet for months following a life-changing accident, Cameron Wilder has come back to the only home he knows. Under other circumstances, he might be thrilled to find a gorgeous woman sleeping in his cabin, but now, while he'll risk his body taking clients on adrenaline-drenched excursions, his heart is off limits. Still, Katie's killer smile triggers something deep in his gut...among other places. Showing her how exhilarating it can be to stop balancing her life as if it was a checkbook is the biggest rush he's ever felt—and an adventure Katie's wishing would never end. . .

This story grabbed me from the get-go!  “Instant Attraction” by Jill Shalvis was the perfect title for this book.  While the attraction for Katie and Cam was instant, it took them a long time to actually act on it willingly.  They are two complex characters which made them interesting on their own to read about.  What bothered me in this story was that while having a couple get interrupted once when they are about to get busy is one thing, when it happens almost every time, it gets tiresome.  By the third time it happened in this book, I almost called it quits.

I’m glad I didn’t.

Fans of Jill Shalvis won’t be disappointed.  This promises to be a great series and I’m looking forward to the next ones for sure!