Seducing Cinderella & Rules of Entanglement by Gina L. Maxwell

Mixed martial arts fighter Reid Andrews's chance to reclaim his title as light heavyweight champ is shattered when he's injured only months before the rematch. To make sure he's healed in time, his trainer sends him to recuperate under a professional's care — Reid's best friend's little sister, all grown up.

Disorganised and bookish Lucie Miller needs some professional help of her own. She'd do anything to catch the eye of a doctor she's crushed on for years, so when Reid offers seduction lessons in exchange for 24/7 conditioning for the biggest fight of his career, Lucie jumps at the chance.

Soon Reid finds himself in the fight of his life ... winning Lucie's heart before she gives it to someone else.



Reid gets sent to a new Physio, turns out it's his best friend's little sister. He tries to get her to agree to be his personal physio for the next 2 months but when she says no, he says he'll give her lessons in seduction so she can catch the attention of the doctor she likes. You can guess where it goes from there.

I've read a few books lately that have the whole "best friend's sister" thing going on, it seems to be a popular storyline at the moment. I guess it'd because it's seen as a no-go area with guys? Not being a guy, I'm unsure and it's a concept I don't understand to be honest.

I find it hard to believe that an MMA fighter would give a woman a makeover, but the author at least tries to explain it away with Reid's artistic side. And I completely believe that he can seduce the pants of any woman but I find the concept of seduction training a bit weird. But, while some parts of the story are a bit hard to believe, the characters and the connection between them as they build a relationship sort of makes up for it.

Seven days. And seven rules to break...

District Attorney Vanessa McGregor firmly believes that structure and order are the stuff that dreams are made of. Happiness can be planned - and it starts with seven rules she's laid out for her future. But as she's organising her best friend's wedding in Hawaii, all of Vanessa's best-laid plans are about to meet their match in a wickedly hot MMA fighter...

Jackson "Jax" Maris is focused on surfing, training and fighting. That is, until he opens up his big mouth, and finds himself having to pretend he's engaged to his little sister's best friend, Vanessa. When they're forced to share a romantic bungalow, however, their little charade suddenly takes a turn for the seriously sexy. And while Jax is definitely not part of Vanessa's long-term plan, he has seven days - and seven naughty nights - to turn her seven-rule plan upside down.

Vanessa goes to Hawaii to help with last minute wedding things 'cos Lucie's too ill to do it herself, she's working with Jackson for the week. Immediately Jackson riles her and there's tension ... which quickly turns to sexual tension. He tells a little lie that gets bigger the longer he leaves it until it threatens to rip everything apart.

Jackson has that whole Alpha male dominance things going on which I can't help but love, so of course I like him more than Reid. I liked the actual story more 'cos it wasn't about getting someone ready to love someone else. They both knew from the start what they were dong, they just didn't count on it turning serious. And of course, because I like the story more it means I like Vanessa more than Lucie - I know, weird logic but it's how my brain works.

The heat between Vanessa and Jackson is AMAZING! It's the type of sex every woman wants, or at least I do - fast, hard and Alpha male dominated.


Book Depository: Seducing Cinderella
Amazon UK: Seducing Cinderella and Rules of Entanglement

Rebel Child by Kate Eden

Raven really doesn't see what all the fuss is about. All she did was kidnap a mortal and try to sabotage one of the most important developments in the history of the vampire race. For some reason, though, her father, who is the leader of the vampire race, is seriously pissed. He gives her an ultimatum: Spend 200 years in exile or submit to a last ditch crash-course in vampire etiquette.

As the poster boy for upstanding, modern vampires, Callum Murdoch stands for everything the rebellious Raven loathes. He's also the brother of the man Raven recently targeted. But this very odd couple is about to find out that opposites don't just attract — they smolder.

In order to avoid a 200 year exile to a country that has months of daylight with no break, Raven agrees to a strange kind of rehab programme with Callum Murdoch to try and change her ways. If, at the end, she's still judged guilty by her father she has to do the exile so she's determined to pass his test. She didn't expect to fall for Callum while she did it though, a man that stands for everything Raven is against.

This sequel starts up immediately where The Hot Scot left off and we get to find out what Raven's reaction at the end of THS was all about when she heard she was going to see Orpheus, he's Raven's father and he's a mighty dickhead! I have to say that I far preferred Raven & Callum over Sydney & Logan, I think it's just Raven's attitude - she's so much more fun & spunky than Sydney.

Again, we get a lot of Kira, Logan & Callum's mother, in this one and I still love her. We also see a bit more of Jorge as he gives Raven a makeover and he's also the wedding planner, along with Geraldine, for Sydney & Logan. I've also discovered I really like Alaric, I was kind of hoping that he and Raven would have hooked up but it wasn't to be - I'm still hoping to see more of him in a later book, perhaps a book of his very own?

If this book is anything to go by, I expect they'll get better as the series goes on.


Amazon UK: Rebel Child

Love & Zombies by Eric Shapiro

The zombie apocalypse has already ended. The government nipped the problem in the bud before it got out of hand. But now Henry, an aspiring filmmaker in Los Angeles, is getting a request from his old friend Sam Kranson. Sam Kranson says they need to go run an errand in Las Vegas. There's a hefty payday for the job. And it involves capturing a real live zombie.

But that can't be true, can it? Are there zombies out there in the Nevada desert? Or has Sam Kranson finally lost his mind? And more importantly: Will Henry's loving girlfriend Teresa strangle him if he goes on this adventure with Sam?

Part horror, part comedy, all madness and suspense, Love & Zombies is a lunatic burn through three days in the life of Henry—days in which he battles to stay alive, and get back to his love without becoming (un)dead.

Release Date: 25th June 2013

Henry gets roped into going to Nevada to capture a zombie by his friend Sam. Henry believe the media when they say there are no zombies left, that they've all been killed, but he goes along with Sam 'cos there's money involved. The zombie is wanted by someone who makes zombie porn, all they need to do it wait for a girl to get infected then grab her before the infection becomes full on. That's not as simple as it all seems.

The cover for this is delightfully awesome and very old-school tattoo looking - I love it, it's what caught my eye. The story sounded like it would be fun as well, and it really was, I mean what can you expect from a book about zombie porn. Shapiro gives you enough detail to help with the story but doesn't go so overboard with it that it bores you.

This book was very quick to read and I found it to be extremely entertaining. Dark Fuse are proving themselves to be a publisher that aren't scared of the weird and unusual and what few books I've read from them, have been great.

If you don't mind books that don't take themselves seriously then I recommend this one. It's brill.


I can't find this book on any of my regular sites and it doesn't seem to be up for pre-order on the Dark Fuse site but keep and eye on it on release date if you want to get it.

The Hot Scot by Kate Eden

Logan Murdoch hates complications. All he wants to do is work in his lab and create products to help vampires blend into mortal society. But when his mother begs him to get her painting back from the museum, he discovers a very attractive complication in the form of curator Sydney Worth. She buys his lie that he's the descendant of the man in the three-hundred-year-old painting, but refuses to give it to him. What's worse? She's immune to his mind control.

Sydney couldn't believe her eyes when the spitting image of the Hot Scot walked into the museum. But her attraction to Logan Murdoch suffers a huge blow when he demands the painting. Losing the piece could threaten her job and she senses Logan is hiding something from her. But this vampire who hates complications and the ambitious curator with trust issues are about to learn the fine art of love.

Sydney has the hots for a man in a painting dubbed The Hot Scot, imagine her surprise (and delight) when he walks into her museum, then imagine her anger when he wants to take the painting away. She agrees to work with him to confirm his ownership of the painting, little knowing that she's actually putting herself in the middle of vampire politics. They try to deny their feelings for one another for their own reason - Sydney has bad relationship history and Logan is a vampire with bad relationship history. Is Sydney willing to give up her life as she knows it for a chance with Logan?

First things first, as much as liked this book, the story and the characters - the editing mistakes were numerous throughout and I find that drags me away from the story. There's nothing worse than being in a story and having a spelling mistake or double word or wrong word wrench you out mid sentence.

That being said, I know it has nothing to do with the book and doesn't affect my GR rating. I just feel it has to be mentioned as I know a lot of other readers are like me and the little errors niggle at you.

Logan's mother is, by far, my favourite character - I definitely like her more than Sydney and Logan combined, that's saying something when I can also say that I loved them both. Sydney does let her boss walk all over her (which I hate) but she's still a good leading lady.

The story is well written and has just the right amount of action in it to keep interesting but not take away from the real reason for this books - the romance and potential smexy times between Sydney and Logan.

Thankfully, Eden doesn't write her Scottish characters as stereotypical Scots (there's reason I don't touch all those Highlander romance/paranormal books), I was willing to give this a try since Jaye Wells is one of my favourite authors. I'm glad I didn't let my prejudice get in the way.

Recommended if you're a Jaye Wells fan, also if you like your books to be light, funny and quick to read.


Amazon UK: The Hot Scot

Deep Deception by Cathy Pegau

Colonial Mining Authority agent Natalia Hallowell doesn't always play by the rules, but she wouldn't compromise a case either. Put on administrative leave under a cloud of accusation, with no support from her boss, Natalia seeks a little anonymous companionship at her favourite bar. But she's surprised when the woman who catches her fancy starts buying her drinks.

Desperate, Genevieve "Gennie" Caine had no choice but to seduce, drug and tie Natalia to the bed to get her attention. With the Reyes Corporation after something she has, Gennie needs Natalia to open an investigation and distract them long enough for her to get off Nevarro.

Natalia doesn't trust Gennie — despite the growing attraction between them — but the corporation's suspiciously high profits convince her that they must be hiding something. But she has no idea just how deep the deceptions run...

Natalia is framed, accused of sleeping with the enemy - until she can prove different, she's on leave. At the bar Gennie catches her eye, unfortunately Gennie has plans for Natalia - she needs her help. They go undercover to a mining colony to try and find the evidence that Gennie needs to get the Reyes family off her back but the close living arrangements don't help their attraction to one another.

This is the follow up to Caught in Amber (although I don't think the series actually has a name? Not that I can find anyway) where we first met Natalia & Gennie, the former helping Spencer and Sasha (who make an appearance in this book) while the latter first hindered then helped them.

I liked both leads in this, they both have their problems but don't let it get in their way. In fact, Gennie is risking everything to get Natalia's help - she's willing to risk her life to help her kids and get out from under the Reyes radar. Natalia is willing to help Gennie despite their initial meeting being a farce. I enjoyed the storyline, well paced and well written with a lot of action. And Natalia and Gennie's relationship is sweet, they're both scared and they both have their reasons for not pursuing it but, of course, they can't stop it from happening.

Recommended, and I discovered there was a book before Caught in Amber called Rulebreaker that I have just downloaded to my Kindle.


Amazon UK: Deep Deception

Gaming for Keeps by Seleste deLaney

Pen Holloway's done with men — in real life. Guys in game are so much less drama. But when her partner from　Heroes of Fallen Gods invites her to the convention of the year, she panics. What if he's another jerk? What if he's not?
Cal Burrows is living his dream of being a spy. One of TRAIT's misfit spies, but still a spy. It's the perfect job ... until an arms dealer with a taste for blood invades his not-so-secret geek haven. All Cal wanted from ConDamned was to meet his on-line girl. Now, with the threat of mass murder looming, he's forced to choose between keeping his mission a secret and protecting the girl of his dreams.
Despite their attraction, Pen can't help but suspect Cal's hiding something. She also can't shake the feeling he's not as much of a stranger as he seems.

Release Date 10th June 2013

Pen gets an invite to ConDamned from an online gaming friends/flirting partner and agrees to go and meet up with him. Cal plans on going to ConDamned but gets roped into working when an arms dealer is discovered to be there. They bump into one another and sparks fly, they fuck, there's a misunderstanding and then there's an arms dealer trying to ruin a screening.

Yet another great book by my very awesome friend, Seleste. I swear the woman can't write a bad sex scene ..... and I suppose the other parts are OK as well!

I liked Pen as a character, she has problems plus she'd rather be online than deal with real life people (much like me - my friends all live in this little box in front of me). I wasn't enamoured with Cal straight away but I got to like him as the story went on - not sure what it was but he just didn't gel with me at the beginning.

I loved all the geeky references - made all the better by the fact that I know the author actually loves all the stuff she was writing. With some authors I sometimes feel like they're trying to have a character be "cool" by referencing things but I know for a fact that this isn't the case this time.

Of course I'm going to recommend this - I can't say anything bad about my best girl so go out and buy it (when it comes out), pre-order links are up at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iTunes but not Amazon UK at the time of writing this. I think you can also buy it direct from the publisher, Entangled Publishing.

Losing It by Cora Carmack

Virginity.

Bliss Edwards is about to graduate from college and still has hers. Sick of being the only virgin among her friends, she decides the best way to deal with the problem is to lose it as quickly and simply as possible - a one-night stand. But her plan turns out to be anything but simple when she freaks out and leaves a gorgeous guy alone and naked in her bed with an excuse that no one with half-a-brain would ever believe. And as if that weren't embarrassing enough, when she arrives for her first class of her last college semester, she recognises her new theatre professor. She'd left him naked in her bed about 8 hours earlier.

Bliss is 22 and feels she is too old to be a virgin so she lets her friends talk her into going out for the sole purpose of getting laid. Turns out the guy she takes home is her new professor - awkward! So they have to ignore their feelings for one another ('cos you know - his job) and get on with it. But of course, that's an impossibility.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, the story is actually quite good with the whole one night stand turns out to be quite embarrassing when you realise you have to face the guy all the time now. But on the other hand, it adds to the stigma of being an older virgin. I realise that's probably not what the author was doing (or at least, I bloody hope she wasn't) but it's still a weird storyline.

Bliss is a "meh" leading lady, she honestly didn't make that much of an impression on me. Garrick (what?!?) is a decent (if slightly possessive) leading man - what annoyed me was that the author described him as British at the beginning and it took a while before we found out what she meant by that. I like to have a character's voice in my head but I didn't know which accent he should have so it was weird for me.

All in all, the book was OK. I might give the next one a read - at least it's not about being ashamed of being a virgin and feeling the need to screw a random stranger so ... bonus!


Book Depository: Losing It
Amazon UK: Losing It

Lament for the Living by David Nicol

What happens after the zombie apocalypse?

Set three years after the Outbreak that destroyed their lives, 'Lament for the Living' follows the inhabitants of the Sanctuary as their safe and secluded existence is threatened by a group of nomadic survivors.

When the Rangers of the Sanctuary head out to investigate a mysterious fire, they find the true nature of humanity and the societies that evolve after the zombie apocalypse.

Ultimately everyone has to choose: Survivor, or Nomad?

Sacks is one of the Sanctuary survivors, she patrols the area surrounding the Sanctuary every day but wants to be a Ranger (who travel further). When she finally gets her chance to go out with the Rangers, another group threatens the very existence of the Survivors and the peace they've created.

Nicol has created a world full of uncertainty and fear. He makes us feel for the zombies with the first chapter following a man that eventually gets Infected, this same man is also how we're introduced to Sacks and the Sanctuary. Sacks was saved when the outbreak first began and has only really known the Sanctuary as home since so seeing the Sanctuary being attacked through her (and other survivors' eyes) is particularly heart-string-tugging (if you're so inclined). It's like seeing your own home being terrorised.

Nicol's zombies are more old school than some of the ones in literature lately. They're slow and shambling, moaning and groaning and completely driven towards to people for feeding - they don't have thoughts and feelings like a lot of the modern ones do, and I really enjoyed reading them this way. Also, and I told Nicol this already as I was beta reading it, the character of Alex is so maniacally unhinged that I can't help but liken him to Begby from Trainspotting.

If you like old-school zombies and indie authors, this is recommended.


Amazon UK(Kindle only): Lament for the Living
Paperback copy from Createspace: Lament for the Living

Tempest Reborn by Nicole Peeler

Anyan may be trapped in an evil dragon and Blondie may be gone, but Jane knows one thing: she's not about to give up. She's ready to tear down heaven and earth to save her lover, despite those who believe he's lost.

Luckily for Jane, those who've given up on Anyan do not include those closest to her. Defying The Powers That Be, Jane and Company form their own crack squad of misfits, in whose hands the fate of the world may well rest.

With a little help from her friends, the Universe, and lots of snacks, Jane embarks on her greatest adventure yet, confident that with great sacrifice comes great reward. The question is, who will be that sacrifice?

Jane has just lost Anyan and Blondie and now she's expected to keep on fighting to get rid of the Red and the White. Unfortunately, nobody is entirely certain how to do that and whether she can get Anyan back. She fights on and the Creature helps her find someone who can help and she has hope that she can save Anyan while defeating the Red and the White.

Ah, the last book ..... wait that should say, Aaargh! It's the last book *sob*

OK, I think I have that out of my system. Peeler is on top form as usual with her writing, this last book is just as funny as the last five but also as serious as you would expect a possible "end of the world" book to be (well, an end of the world book that involved Jane True and her varying friends).

I was both looking forward to and fearing reading this book - I wasn't disappointed, it was a great ending to the series. Peeler is good at not leaving lots of open storylines so she didn't have a lot of things to tie off in this one. I have to say I wasn't in love with the ending - I won't say why but I just wasn't feeling it.

I loved this series and will continue to recommend it to people - I can also get my tattoo idea into play now that all the books are out.


Book Depository: Tempest Reborn
Amazon UK: Tempest Reborn

The Accidental Demon Slayer by Angie Fox

It's never a good day when an ancient demon shows up on your toilet bowl. For Lizzie Brown that's just the beginning. Soon her hyperactive terrier starts talking and her long-lost biker witch Grandma is hurling Smuckers jars filled with magic. Just when she thinks she's seen it all Lizzie learns she's a demon slayer - and all hell is after her.

Of course that's not the only thing after her. Dimitri Kallinikos a devastatingly handsome shape-shifting griffin needs Lizzie to slay a demon of his own. But how do you talk a girl you've never met into going straight to the underworld? Lie. And if that doesn't work how dangerous could a little seduction be...?

Lizzie's adopted so when her maternal grandmother contacts her, she's excited to meet her ... until she locks her in her bathroom and then a demon attacks (from the toilet?). Turns out she's a demon slayer and her grandmother needs her help - her coven (yup, granny's a witch - a biker witch) needs Lizzie to slay a demon that they've been hiding from for several decades. When she comes into her powers, she also gets a protector - one she has the hots for - who also needs her help but, of course, doesn't just ask for it.

OK, so I wavered in my rating for this one - the beginning had me groaning at how horrid it was. Jars filled with random crap that happen to be spells? Demons coming from the toilet? And an annoying little talking dog? *groan* I had to really think about whether I wanted to keep reading it.

I stuck with it and, thankfully, the fairly interesting story sort of made it readable. Don't get me wrong all those things I listed, still exist and still make it annoying. Granny's biker covenmates are horrible characters, I just didn't like them at all. The dog gets a little less annoying but makes me glad my dog doesn't talk if that's what they're like.

This is not a book for anyone that likes something to sink their teeth into. It's a very light and fluffy read, not to be taken seriously. I've added the 2nd book to my GR TBR list 'cos I really just want to see what happens.


Amazon UK: The Accidental Demon Slayer