ARC Review: The Mark of the Tala by Jeffe Kennedy ~ 4.5 Wines!

Title: The Mark of the Tala

Series: The Twelve Kingdoms #1
Author: Jeffe Kennedy
Format: Paperback, 352 pages
Published: May 27th 2014 by Kensington
ISBN13: 9780758294432
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Source: ARC courtesy of author in exchange for honest review
Reviewer: Lexi
Rating: 4.5/5 Wines

Queen Of The UnknownThe tales tell of three sisters, daughters of the high king. The eldest, a valiant warrior-woman, heir to the kingdom. The youngest, the sweet beauty with her Prince Charming. No one says much about the middle princess, Andromeda. Andi, the other one.Andi doesn't mind being invisible. She enjoys the company of her horse more than court, and she has a way of blending into the shadows. Until the day she meets a strange man riding, who keeps company with wolves and ravens, who rules a land of shapeshifters and demons. A country she'd thought was no more than legend--until he claims her as its queen.In a moment everything changes: Her father, the wise king, becomes a warlord, suspicious and strategic. Whispers call her dead mother a traitor and a witch. Andi doesn't know if her own instincts can be trusted, as visions appear to her and her body begins to rebel.For Andi, the time to learn her true nature has come. . .

#BookReview: Hunter's Moon by Lisa Kessler - 5 Wine Glasses

Title: Hunter's Moon 
Series: Moon #2
Author: Lisa Kessler
Format: ebook, 340 pages
Published: October 21st 2013 by Entangled: Edge
ISBN: 1622662148
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Source:
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 5/5

Sasha’s future was stolen from her the moment she was bitten. Now she's on the run from the Nero Organization that transformed her from a human detective into a shape shifting jaguar assassin.
When a rogue bounty hunter threatens her younger sister, she'll be forced to fight, and with nowhere else to turn, Sasha will need to trust the one man who has every reason to want her dead.
Aren is a werewolf with a secret. While protecting his twin brother and Alpha of the Pack, he found his one mate for life. Sadly she's also the jaguar assassin who tried to kill them both. Now Aren is struggling between his animal nature to love and protect her, and his loyalty to the Pack.

Thoughts:

#BookReview: Moonlight by Lisa Kessler - 5 Wine Glasses

Title: Moonlight
Series: Moon #1
Author: Lisa Kessler
Format: ebook, 331 pages
Published: July 15th 2013 by Entangled: Edge
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Source:
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 5/5

Rancher Adam Sloan is more than meets the eye. As the heir to his Pack, the sexy werewolf’s biggest challenge is keeping his kin’s true nature under wraps. But a group of jaguar shifters threatens to reveal the pack, blasting into town killing humans in plain sight. And when he smells one at the local diner, his standing orders are to take her out.
Lana Turpin doesn’t realize she’s a moving target. Raised in the foster system, she only knows that she blacks out during the new moon and wakes up without remembering a thing. But now she’s being tracked by some strange organization that wants her back—even though she’s never stepped foot inside their compound. And the stranger across the diner is watching her like an enemy.
It should be a simple mission for Adam, but when he touches the frustratingly beautiful Lana, his inner wolf howls…mate. Now, the two must find and stop the people who hunt her…and Adam must keep his own family from killing the only woman he will ever love.

Thoughts:

BAREFOOT IN WHITE by Roxanne St. Claire (Interview/Giveaway)

 

Raise your wine glass if you enjoy spinoffs! Our guest today has a new release of a trilogy that is a spinoff of sorts from her Barefoot Bay series...welcome Roxanne St. Claire!

Roxanne: So happy to be here! My wine glass is always full and raised to good books.  Thank you for inviting me to talk about my latest release, BAREFOOT IN WHITE.

Lexi: Yay more Barefoot! And what an emotional packed book you have to introduce to us today, Barefoot In White is a sweet second chance romance. And the best part, it takes place in Barefoot Bay! You must have fallen hard for this place to continue writing about it. What is your favorite part of Barefoot Bay?

Elizabeth Lee's WHERE THERE'S SMOKE (Excerpt/Giveaway) .@Elwrites .@InkSlingerPR

We're happy to share an excerpt with you from Elizabeth Lee's recent release of WHERE THERE’S SMOKE, a New Adult Romantic Suspense. Enjoy!

Where There's Smoke
by Elizabeth Lee 
eBook/Paperback
Published May 20th 2014 
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

There is something to be said for letting go. Ryland Roberts knows that better than anyone. He'd let go of his ambitions, of his family and—most of all—of her. He'd perfected the art of putting his past behind him and accepted the fact that the town he wanted to leave in his rearview was the place where he was going to live out his days. But sometimes the past doesn't just go away. Sometimes it comes back to haunt you.
Piper Jameson convinced herself that she left for all the right reasons. She'd saved people by leaving—made sure that they weren't tainted by her rebellious ways. When her little sister asks her to come home and say goodbye to their ailing mother, she's forced to see that things aren't always as they seem. The people who she'd left behind might not have been saved at all. 
In the amount of time it takes a bullet to travel from point A to point B, Piper and Ryland will have to put their feelings for each other aside and make a choice. Forced on the run with Piper's sister, they begin to understand that the future they thought was gone was never really lost.

#BookReview: Honor Reclaimed by Tonya Burrows - 5 Wine Glasses!

Title: Honor Reclaimed
Series: HORNET #2
Author: Tonya Burrows
Format: eBook/Paperback, 350 pages
Published: May 27th 2014 by Entangled: Select
ISBN: 1622662547
Links: Goodreads | B&N | Amazon
Source: Publisher
Reviewer: Crystal
Rating: 5 out of 5 Wine Glasses

Former Marine sniper Seth Harlan is determined to prove that he can still do his job despite his ongoing battle with PTSD. When an old friend contacts HORNET to rescue a black ops soldier, Seth's stability is strained. He knows all too well what it's like to rot inside an enemy camp, praying for rescue and waiting for death. And he's not about to leave a man behind.
Photojournalist Phoebe Leighton just stumbled into the middle of an arms deal. Teaming up with a ragtag team of mercenaries is the last thing she wants to do--especially when she realizes Seth Harlan is assigned to the mission. He may ignite a passion in her she thought long dead, but Phoebe's hiding a secret that could destroy him.
With a bomb in the mix, HORNET's mission is suddenly about a lot more than an abandoned soldier. Racing against the clock, Seth, Phoebe, and the rest of the team struggle to stop a ruthless warlord bent on power, revenge...and death.

Thoughts:

The Echoes of Love by Hannah Fielding (Guest Post/Giveaway)

Please give a warm welcome to author, Hannah Fielding! 

For the love of legends

For me, researching a book is just as enjoyable as writing it. I set each of my novels in a passionate, romantic country, and so that I can really transport my readers there, I immerse myself in the setting: its history, its scenery, its cuisine, its culture. Top of my research list are local legends – I love colourful, age-old stories; the more fantastical, the better! 

#CoverReveal: Forever Ride and One Ride by Chelsea Camaron

We are so excited to share with you not one, but two new covers from author Chelsea Camaron's Hellions Ride contemporary romance series!

#AudioBook #Review: The Deadly Fae by Terry Spear - 5 Wine Glasses

Title: The Deadly Fae
Series: The World of Fae #2
Author: Terry Spear
Published: 08-23-13 by Terry Spear
Narrated by: Jeanne Whitehouse
Length: 5 hrs and 1 min
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Kindle | Audible | B&N
Source: Author
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 5/5

Lady Sessily is a dark fae, an assassin, and she fully intends to retire and take up some other occupation so she can live more of a normal life. Have a boyfriend. Visit the human world to hassle humans like many of her kind do. Attend fae kingdom parties, not as the mystery woman who is scoping out her next intended victim, but just to have fun.

Until Lord Fairhaven arrives on the scene, thwarts her last assigned mission, and intends to hire her for his own job. She refuses, but he doesn't take no for an answer.
Tall, dark, handsome, and deadly. Just her type, if she'd ever considered the kind of guy who could be her type.
But he's not just any old nobleman. He's the crown prince of the cobra fae, and that means trouble.

Thoughts:

#AudioBook #Review: The Dark Fae by Terry Spear - 5 Wine Glasses

Title: The Dark Fae 
Series: The World of Fae #1
Author: Terry Spear 
Format: Audiobook, 184 pages
Published: April 1st 2013 (first published May 12th 2011)
Narrated by: Jeanne Whitehouse
Length: 4 hrs and 24 mins 
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | Audible
Source: Author
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 5/5

Alicia has planned a vacation at South Padre Island with her girlfriend Cassie in forever. But just as they're enjoying a day on the beach, here comes a dark fae to spoil their holiday, except only she can see what he truly is. Alicia has no idea how upside down her world can turn with a chance meeting with one of the dark fae from the royal house of the Denkar. Alicia's always known she's different - that she can recognize the mischievous fae when they show up to "play" with the humans. Only now she's faced with one highly annoyed dark fae and she's certain he knows the truth about her. She can see him, which means her life is forfeit.

Add to that, his sister arrives, who wants to play, too. And their mother, the queen of the Denkar, will want Alicia's head, once she learns what Alicia can do. And all because Alicia was attempting to rescue her friend, Cassie, on their beach excursion at South Padre Island, from the wicked fae. Now, Alicia has really gone and done it - and she's thinking she should have let the fae have his fun. Her friend's broken heart would be a lot easier to deal with, than Alicia losing her life. But it is too late for regrets. As soon as she threw the soda at the dark fae's chest, she had declared war on the fae. And he is happy to take up the challenge.

Thoughts:

Right Click by Lisa Becker (Excerpt/Giveaway)

Today we'd like to share with you an excerpt from Lisa Becker's latest book and the last in the Click: An Online Love Story trilogy - RIGHT CLICK! Enjoy!

Right Click is the third and final installment in the Click: An Online Love Story trilogy by author Lisa Becker.  Click: An Online Love Story, Double Click and Right Click, which all unfold exclusively in emails, marry the friendships of “Sex and the City,” the epistolary nature of “Bridget Jones’ Diary” and the online love story of “You’ve Got Mail” to be light and breezy stories for anyone who's ever been dumped, been in love, had a bad date or is still searching for "the one."  

Lisa Becker had endured her share of hilarious and heinous cyber dates, many of which inspired Click: An Online Love Story and Double Click.  She is now happily married to a wonderful man she met online and lives in Manhattan Beach with him and their two daughters.  So, if it happened for her, there’s hope for you! http://www.lisawbecker.com/

Elley Arden's MARRYING THE WRONG MAN (Spotlight/Giveaway)

We have an excerpt from Elley Arden's contemporary romance, MARRYING THE WRONG MAN, to share with you. Enjoy!

Title: MARRYING THE WRONG MAN
Author: Elley Arden
Author Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: May12th, 2014
Word Count: 50,000 words
Publisher: Crimson Romance
Format: Digital eBook
ISBN:9781440579639
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Morgan Parrish returns to Harmony Falls after her spectacle of an almost wedding and her father’s colossal fall from grace. She’s broke and infamous. But that’s nothing compared to the secret she’s been keeping.
Life is finally on the upswing for Charlie Cramer. He’s sober and chef of Chargrilled Bistro. But his peace is shattered, when the woman he loves—the woman who left him—shows up in town with shocking cargo: the baby he’d begged her to keep and raise with him.
When fate steps in and Morgan takes a job working in Charlie’s bistro, things heat up—in and out of the kitchen. Can they learn to trust each other enough to love again? And is that love enough to keep them up when everyone else is trying to tear them down?

#BooKReview: Darkest Flame by Donna Grant - 5 Wine Glasses

Title: Darkest Flame 
Series: Dark Kings #1
Author: Donna Grant 
Format: eBook/Paperback, 384 pages
Published: April 29th 2014 by St. Martin's Paperbacks
ISBN: 1250041368 
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Kindle | B&N
Source: Netgalley
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 5 out of 5 Wine Glasses

The Dark Kings have fought for centuries to preserve their dragon magic. But one of the most powerful warriors of his kind will be put to the ultimate test. Is he strong enough to resist his greatest temptations? Or will he be forced to surrender - body and soul?

Her beauty is a weapon

Denae Lacroix is a beautiful MI5 agent on a deadly mission. Sent to the Scottish Highlands to spy on the mysterious Dreagan Industries, she discovers too late that she’s been set up - as human bait. She is an irresistible lure for a man who has not seen or touched a woman for centuries. He is a man with a destiny - and a desire - that could destroy them both... 

His passion is a curse...

It’s been twelve hundred years since Kellan has walked among humans - and there’s no denying the erotically charged attraction he feels for Denae. But as a Dragon King, he is sworn to protect his secrets. Yet the closer he gets to this smart, ravishing woman, the more her life is in danger. 

All it takes is one reckless kiss to unleash a flood of desire, the fury of dragons…and the fiercest enemy of all. 

Thoughts: 

FACEBOOK TAKEOVER: #ParanormalRomance author Lisa Kessler - Happening Now!

Paranormal romance author, Lisa Kessler, is taking over Reading Between the Wines Book Club's Facebook Page for the next hour where she'll be chatting with readers, sharing about her recent release of NIGHT CHILD, and she may even be giving away some prizes. Stop by! 

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Goddess Born by Kari Edgren (Guest Post/Giveaway)

Please welcome Kari Edgren joining us with her book, GODDESS BORN, a New Adult Historical Paranormal Romance being published by Carina Press.

Have Imagination, Will Travel 

I am passionate for history. My children might even use the word ‘fanatic’ after a family vacation to France. Not that I blame them entirely, stumbling upon me as I gazed in awed reverence at an old stone privy. But, hello, Richard the Lion Heart had once sat there—in that exact spot. Who in their right mind wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the very place he’d set his naked buttocks and perhaps contemplated his next military maneuver?  

BABY IT'S YOU by Jane Graves (Top5/Giveaway)

Please give a warm welcome to contemporary romance author, Jane Graves!

My Top 5 Favorite Wines

1. La Crema Chardonnay. A decent white that I find on the wine lists of a lot of restaurants.
2. Yellow Tail Shiraz. Really cheap wine that tastes pretty good, which is a nice combination for a person who drinks a lot of wine but doesn’t want to spend fifteen or twenty bucks a pop. That person would be me.
3. That Chardonnay we drank after a Romance Writers of America board meeting—or tried to drink. We were in a hotel room and didn’t have a decent corkscrew. We finally managed to make a big enough hole in the cork to let the wine dribble out. After all that work, every sip tasted golden. 
4. Boone’s Farm Strawberry Hill. When you’re a teenager, any alcohol you’re able to score is the nectar of the gods. Haven’t tried it recently. I’m betting my taste has changed slightly over the years. 
5. Dirty Laundry, Sassy Bitch, Herding Cats. All of them are pretty bad, but sometimes I’ll buy a wine just because the label makes me laugh.

All this being said, I doubt I could recognize any wine in a blind taste test. (Okay—maybe the Boone’s Farm.) And I’m not the only one. I once read about a test where wine experts were given two wines to sample, and none of them noticed both wines were the same, only one glass was presented at a warmer temperature than the other. Another test was done where red food coloring was added to a white wine, and the experts proceeded to describe it in intimate detail with adjectives that suggested a red wine, not a white. In a blind taste test run by the Dallas Morning News, Gallo wines won gold medals. My point: From what I’ve been able to tell, nobody really knows a damned thing about wine. They only know what they like at the moment they drink it. Cheers!

Savage Secrets by Cristin Harber (Spotlight)

We'd like to share with your a romantic suspense from Christin Harber today, available now. 

Savage Secrets 
(Titan #4)
by Cristin Harber 
Published February 24th 2014 by Mill Creek Press 
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

When the past is impossible to ignore, love may be the only way to survive.

Caterina Cruz has no home. No loyalties. No objection to exacting torturous revenge. Her life’s mission is to destroy the terrorist who murdered her family. Then she steps into an elaborate game of charades alongside a Titan Group operative posing as an arms dealer—and her newlywed husband. The sexy distraction may be more than she can handle.

Attacked with a psychedelic drug weeks before, Rocco Savage is plagued with hallucinations that threaten his new rank as Titan’s second-in-command. No one knows and he wants to keep it that way. Throwing him further off his game, he now has a wife with her own secrets he can’t crack and an agenda he can’t control.

Their mission—an elaborate deception of heated glances and passionate kisses—spins out of control. With Rocco’s mind already compromised, can he keep his secret and his distance? And with Caterina’s tragic past controlling her every move, can she keep the con up long enough to secure her revenge? Or will both go down in flames?

#AudioBook #Review: Mail-Order Brides of the West: Evie by Caroline Fyffe - 4 Wine Glasses

Title: Evie 
Series: Mail-Order Brides of the West #2/McCutcheon Family #3
Author: Caroline Fyffe 
Format: Paperback/eBook/AudioBook, 232 pages
Published: July 23rd 2013
Narrated by: Lara Asmundson
Length: 6 hrs and 5 mins 
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Kindle | Audible | B&N
Source: Author
Reviewer: Linda
Rating:  4/5

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF THE WEST is a new series created in collaboration by USA Today Bestselling Authors Caroline Fyffe and Debra Holland. 

Well-bred socialite and bride-to-be Trudy Bauer arrives at the St. Louis based Mail-Order Brides of the West agency full of excitement for an adventure of a lifetime. She befriends the agency’s maid, Evie Davenport, and the two form a strong and lasting friendship. They vow to stay in contact through letters when Evie takes hold of her destiny and arranges a marriage on the sly. Each brave young woman is ready to face whatever an unknown groom and life in Montana can throw her way. 

In Fyffe’s Novel, house servant Evie Davenport travels by stagecoach to Y Knot, Montana in a McCutcheon Family Novel. In Holland’s book, bride-to-be Trudy Bauer rides the train to Sweetwater Springs, in a Montana Sky Novel. Through their correspondence, the friends keep each other abreast of their hardships, trials and tribulations—some of heartbreak, some of love. 

Thoughts:

#BookReview: Pleasure Satellite by Danielle Monsch - 4 Wine Glasses

Title: Pleasure Satellite
Author: Danielle Monsch 
Format: eBook, 147 pages
Published: May 4th 2014 by Romantic Geek Publishing (first published May 2011)
ISBN: 139781938593161
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Source: Author
Reviewer: Linda
Rating: 4/5

Nevan's life is nothing but duty and honor. The eldest son of a prestigious House, he has a life mapped out ahead of him, including mating a woman for whom he feels nothing but brotherly affection. But then one night he discovers a woman who makes his blood boil and his body hard. Seena has known nothing but blood and pain in her life. A fighter for the BloodRing, she is nothing more than spectacle, her life and death meaningless except as entertainment for the masses. Then one night a male comes to her in secret with a bargain the likes of which she has never been confronted with. The ultimate fight, which will lead her either to freedom...or to his bed. Nevan will allow nothing to stop him from possessing the human. On the Pleasure Satellite anything is permissible, and to the strongest goes everything.

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Release Day Blitz: Kristen Ashley's THE GAMBLE (#Giveaway)

Happy Book Birthday to Kristen Ashley's THE GAMBLE! Read more about the book below and then be sure to pick up your copy today! 

THE GAMBLE by Kristen Ashley 
Colorado Mountain #1
May 27, 2014; Forever Mass Market
Goodreads | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | iTunes

Love is the greatest gamble of all . . .

Nina Sheridan desperately needs a timeout vacation. With a fiancé who can't even remember how she takes her coffee, Nina wants some distance to rethink her engagement. Flying halfway around the world from England to a mountain town in Colorado should do the trick. But when she finds a gorgeous man at her rental cabin, Nina's cold, lonely adventure suddenly heats up.

The owner of the house, Holden "Max" Maxwell is surprised by the beautiful woman who turns up at his door. But when Nina becomes ill, Max spends days nursing her back to health. A private man with a broken heart, Max finds himself drawn to the strong-willed woman. Soon it becomes impossible for Nina and Max to deny their growing attraction to one another. Yet even as these two wounded lovebirds think about taking a chance on a relationship, a dangerous secret from Max's past emerges-and threatens to end their love for good.

Excerpt:

Release Day Blitz: Cassia Leo's Forever Ours

Happy Release Day Cassia Leo! 

Today we're celebrating the release of Forever Ours. 

Forever Ours is the highly anticipated prequel to the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Shattered Hearts Series. This should be before Relentless.

Sexy Snippets: Lorraine Heath's The Gunslinger

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Tuesdays have never been so sexy!

Sexy Snippets is a weekly feature hosted by Reading Between the Wines for the 18+ crowd. Want to join in? Just grab the button, post a sexy paragraph or two from your current read and share the author & title so other participants can add the book to their TBR list if they like, and then leave a comment with a link to your post. And don't forget to have a sexy good time!

#BookReview & #BlogTour: MENDED by Kim Karr - 4 Wine Glasses + #Giveaway

We are excited to join Kim Karr's blog tour for MENDED, the third book in her amazing New Adult Romance series, Connections. Find out more about the book below and check out our review of the title, then enter to win your own copy! 

Title: Mended 
Series: Connections #3
Author: Kim Karr
Format: eBook/Paperback, 304 pages
Expected publication: June 3rd 2014 by NAL
ISBN: 139780698163041
Links: Goodreads | Kindle | Amazon | B&N
Source: NetGalley/Publisher
Reviewer: Crystal
Rating: 4/5

MUSIC HAS THE POWER TO HEAL ALL…BUT NOT ALL BROKEN HEARTS CAN BE MENDED.

Always in control, Xander Wilde considered life on the road to be a perfect fit for him. But when disaster strikes on the Wilde Ones’ latest tour, fate intervenes…and a newly single Ivy Taylor, the only girl he has ever loved, steps back into his life.

After moving past her painful breakup with Xander years ago, Ivy was poised to become the next big name in pop music…when suddenly she withdrew from the limelight—the same day she announced her engagement to her controlling agent, Damon Wolf.

Xander knows he should keep his distance. But once they’re on the road, he can’t resist pursuing her for a second chance. Yet a jealous Damon can’t let her go—and he’s keeping dangerous secrets that could destroy them all. 

When the three of them come together, everything falls apart. But if Xander and Ivy can hold tight to the bond that connects them, they just might have a chance at reclaiming the powerful love they thought they had lost forever....

Panthers and Precincts by D.F. Krieger (Spotlight/Giveaway)

We'd like to share with you a paranormal romance from author D.F. Krieger - PANTHERS AND PRECINCTS. Enjoy!

Panthers and Precincts 
(Faxfire, #1)
by D.F. Krieger
ebook
Published February 7th 2014 by Breathless Press
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Meet Zeara—zoologist, crime solver, and crazy cat lady. Throw a literate panther and a sexy detective into the mix and watch the trouble ensue.

People didn't just happen to "drop by for a visit" at midnight. Whoever was on the other side of that door either had a good reason, one that she probably didn't want to hear, or would wish they had once she finished tearing them apart.

Dr. Zeara Faxfire and her side-kick cat, Magic, are on the case when a panther is discovered during a police investigation of a missing boy. The fact the panther can write is only slightly scarier than Zeara's attraction to Detective Markovich. Add a little magic, some mayhem, and scientific proof of the paranormal, and she ends up knee-deep in trouble. Can she find the missing boy, solve the riddle of the panther, and face her own past before time runs out? Or will the only way to give everyone a happy ending come at the expense of the job she loves?