BeckyBookstore

Book Blitz: A Haunted Love by Dakota Star

A Haunted Love
Dakota Star
Publication date: August 14th 2020
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Ash detests Halloween. Three years ago, her husband’s death during the same week left her scarred. Now, all she desires is a simple, ordered life in the small town of Humble, Connecticut and time with the cutest boy ever – her nephew. That becomes impossible when her sister brings a handsome soldier, Cole, to her door. From the moment they meet, Ash has a hard time ignoring his good looks and those intense gray eyes that have seen enough war and heartbreak to fill a lifetime. What starts as a mutual attraction and a romp in bed leads Ash to face her demons. War has left Cole with more than just physical scars as well. But does serendipity, a ghost, or something sinister have other plans for them? When someone starts stalking Ash, Halloween turns to horror. Does Cole have what it takes to incinerate Ash’s doubts and keep her safe?

Goodreads / Amazon / Kobo

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EXCERPT:

“Do you mind if I stay and finish my coffee out here?” Cole asked.

Was this another significant decision in her life?

She could go on the way she had been for the past three years and ask for her privacy or admit to herself she was curious about and attracted to Cole. If she let him stay, it meant that she wanted to explore what might be between them.

Was she ready to move on and think about a date? If she allowed him to stay, this had the makings of more than an accidental meeting.

She decided she was overthinking. “Sure. Rambo appreciates your company.”

“And you?”

“I can tolerate it.”

He grinned at her snark. “How was the rest of your day after we met at the beach?”

“Rather boring. I did some grocery shopping and took Rambo to the dog park. You?”

“I went to the gym and explored a little bit. There are some excellent parks and hiking trails not too far away. Do you hike?”

Memories flashed before her eyes before she answered. “I used to hike often when my husband was alive. Rambo was just a puppy and even crazier than he is now. Not so much lately.”

“Do you think you’d want to? I love to hike and learn more about the area but could use a guide.”

“Maybe.” She didn’t want to make a commitment she couldn’t keep.

“This is the perfect time of year with the foliage and the cooler temps,” he pressed. “You should take at least one trek in the woods.”

Author Bio:

Dakota Star lives in Connecticut with her husband and two daughters. Both her daughters have finished college and moved away so her dogs, cats, and retired horse now keep her busy. When not outside hiking or horseback riding, she loves to read and travel.

She has worked as an editor, a freelance writer for local newspapers, and an educator at local environmental non-profits like aquariums and The National Audubon Society.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

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Blog Tour: Last Chance Summer by Shannon Klare

Last Chance Summer
Shannon Klare
Publication date: May 26th 2020
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult

In Shannon Klare’s fun and sexy YA novel Last Chance Summer, a teen is shipped off to work as a counselor at a summer camp―only to butt heads with her co-counselor.

Alex is a sheriff’s daughter with a less than pristine reputation. When she’s caught drinking at a party by her dad’s deputy, she’s in deep trouble. With an already incriminating incident in her past, Alex’s parents ship her off to her aunt’s summer camp to work as a counselor.

What’s worse than spending your summer deep in the mosquito-infested woods of Texas?

Being paired with an obnoxious co-counselor who wants nothing to do with you.

Alex is determined to make the best of her summer, even if it means putting up with Grant, who has secrets of his own that he’s determined to protect. Can Alex and Grant put their egos to the side and find the bright side of a summer that neither of them signed up for?

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

Author Bio:

Shannon Klare is a writer, teacher, reality TV fanatic, and movie connoisseur. When she isn’t writing or daydreaming new plots, Shannon can be found frequenting Starbucks or hanging out with her family. SURVIVING ADAM MEADE is her debut novel.

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Instagram

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My Thoughts

3.5 Stars – Last Chance Summer was a fun YA romance where we follow Alex who has recently gotten into some trouble as well as recovering from an accident. Her parents decide that since she failed her senior year that before she starts it over she is going to spend the summer as a camp counselor at her Aunt’s camp in Texas. Alex who is still dealing with the guilt and trauma from her accident the previous fall does not want to be there and is making things a little difficult for her co-counselor Grant. I really enjoyed following Alex as she learned to trust others around her all while trying to deal with her accident. I really enjoyed the banter between Alex and Grant and their relationship was fun to see grow, it wasn’t quite enemies to lovers but it was close. My one real complaint was that I felt it was too short. In the beginning there are references to a person and an accident that Alex was involved in and she had some strong feelings about this person but it is never explained at all. I felt that having that information could have helped understand Alex’s character a little more. I also wanted some more from Grant because I really liked his character. Over all it was a fun read and I will be picking more up from this author in the future.

Book Review: Engagement and Espionage by Penny Reid

Engagement and Espionage, an all-new fun and witty cozy mystery featuring The Winston Brother fan favorites Jenn and Cletus Winston from New York Times bestselling author Penny Reid is available now!

Jennifer Sylvester made her deal with the devil . . . and now they’re engaged!

But all is not well in Green Valley. A chicken choker is on the loose, 61 dead birds most “fowl” need plucking, and no time remains for Jennifer and her devilish fiancé. Desperate to find a spare moment together, Jenn and Cletus’s attempts to reconnect are thwarted by one seemingly coincidental disaster after another. It’s not long before Cletus and Jenn see a pattern emerge and the truth becomes clear.

Sabotage!

Will an undercover mission unmask the culprit? Or are these love-birds totally plucked?

‘Engagement and Espionage’ is the first book in the Solving for Pie: Cletus and Jenn Mysteries series, is a full-length cozy mystery, and is a spin-off of Penny Reid’s Winston Brothers series. This novel is best read after ‘Beard Science,’ Winston Brothers #3.

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Download your copy today!

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3auZzqI Apple Books: https://apple.co/33ONMAK Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/engagementespionage Nook: https://bit.ly/3dvV8hf Kobo: https://bit.ly/2wxWreY Google Play: https://bit.ly/3aqIT3h

Add ENGAGEMENT AND ESPIONAGE to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2UoVpea

Meet Penny Reid

Penny Reid is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Best Selling Author of the Winston Brothers, Knitting in the City, Rugby, and Hypothesis series. She used to spend her days writing federal grant proposals as a biomedical researcher, but now she just writes books. She’s also a full time mom to three diminutive adults, wife, daughter, knitter, crocheter, sewer, general crafter, and thought ninja.

Connect with Penny

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PennyReidWriter/ Amazon: http://amzn.to/2lakzsD Twitter: @ReidRomance Mailing List: http://pennyreid.ninja/newsletter/ www.pennyreid.ninja

My Review

Cletus and Jenn have got to be one of my favorite couples I have read about! From the very first appearance of Cletus in one of Penny’s books I have loved him and his sneaky revenge filled plots! This book takes up pretty soon after Beard Science but before Roscoe and Billy’s books.

Jenn is a baker and works for her mother’s bakery and with the baking competition coming up tensions are running high. As Jenn and her mother try to gather her ingredients for her cakes they find out that all her suppliers are being targeted and she can not get what she needs. She inlists the help of Cletus to find out what is happening and hopefully stop it before someone gets hurt.

This was my first cozy mystery book and I don’t have anything to compare it to except other Penny books. With that said I loved this one, I loved the mystery that Jenn and Cletus are trying to figure out but still giving us the things that make us love her books! I loved seeing other characters from her past books as well. Shelly has always been a favorite of mine as well and I loved getting to see her help Cletus and Jenn and her scene at the end was perfect! I also loved the mentions of the Armadillo and the tie in to past books with that. While I think it would be helpful to have read other books in the Winston series I don’t think its necessary because Penny does a good job of giving plenty of background on the characters. Overall another great book by Penny Reid! Highly recommend if you are looking for a fun mystery that is also pretty steamy. 5 Stars!!! Thank you to Social Butterfly PR for my advanced copy in exchange for my review.

Reading Round Up June 21st-30th

The Marriage Game by Sara Desai – 4 Stars Love a good enemies to lovers trope and this one did not disappoint. Layla Patel moves back home after a bad break up and her father says she can use the office above the family restaurant for her new business of helping people finding job placements. That night her father has a heart attack and is not able to tell the person who previously rented the office that he will need to find somewhere else to work. They both show up to work and neither is going to back down. To make matters more interesting Layla finds a list of suitors her father picked out on a Desi match website. Layla decides to go on the 10 dates and Sam her new office mate goes along as a chaperone. This book was fun to read and I love Layla’s family.

Real Men Knit – by Kwana Jackson – 3.5 stars Real Men Knit was a fun read about 4 foster brothers who just recently lost their adoptive mother and are trying to come to terms with the loss and what to do with her knit shop located in Harlem. One of the brothers, Jesse wants to keep it open and with the help of longtime friend and employee of the sho, Kerry. Together with the reluctant help of the other brothers they try and make a go of keeping the shop open. I enjoyed the story but didn’t really feel the chemistry between the two characters. I did enjoy the writing and will definitely be picking up more from Kwana Jackson in the future.

Head Over Heels by Hannah Orenstein -3.5 Stars Head Over Heels follows Avery who was once an Olympic hopeful but suffered an injury that cut short her career. Struggling with life after the injury, Avery returns home after her boyfriend broke up with her. After returning home she gets a call from a fellow gymnast Ryan who is now coaching an Olympic hopeful and needs Avery’s help with coaching her. Taking this job really pushes Avery and helps to get her life back on track. Things are going well till Ryan decides he wants to work with Avery’s old abusive coach, he was verbally and emotionally abusive and she is still trying to come to terms with how this effects her even now. I really enjoyed this book, it was a very fun and fast read. I liked the journey that Avery went thru to get herself back on track, she talks about how when your entire life is focused on one thing and then it goes away you are left floundering. I enjoyed the relationship with her and Ryan and how they both came from the same background so they got each other. My one critique would be that I didn’t enjoy the extreme detail in the gymnastic routines. I appreciate the depth that the author went into with this but I personally could have done with a little less. This book also deals with sexual assault, it is not one of the main characters but more on the side characters. Over all I really enjoyed this one and if you are looking for cute read I would recommend this one. Thank you Netgalley and Atria books for my copy to review, my opinions are my own.

If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane – 4 Stars Another fun rom com read! This one has a mix of fake dating trope and a little enemies to lovers. Laurie was recently dumped by her long time partner who also happen to work at the same law firm, to try and get back on her feet she helps fellow co worker Jamie who is need of looking like he is in a stable relationship so he can make partner. I loved their relationship so much! Both trying to figure out who they are after being someone else for so long. Can’t wait to read more by Mhairi McFarlane.

The Boyfriend Project by Farrah Rochon – 3 Stars We start out in this story with the main character Samiah listening to her sister read about a disastrous first date on twitter. Samiah soon realizes that this is her boyfriend on another date at the same place he had just canceled theirs for, she then decides to go confront him and soon learns he was playing her and two other woman at the same time. The three woman soon form a friendship and decide to take some time off from men and pursue something for themselves. Immediately after this Samiah meets Daniel, the new guy at work and instantly there is an attraction between them. Samiah struggles with this attraction as she is also trying to focus on an app that she is creating. Overall, I was a little underwhelmed with this book, I didn’t really feel the chemistry between the two main characters. The setting is also set in the tech industry and uses a lot of the terminology and I wasn’t really into that. I do appreciate seeing a woman in a stem field as we don’t get that all the time. The friendshipbetween Samiah and the other two women was also nice to read, instead of blaming each other the banded together and helped support each other thru difficult times in the book. Daniel’s story line was also a fun part to read in the story and I found that to be more interesting than the romance. I did enjoy the author’s writing style and will definitly check out more books from her in the future. Over all the book was enjoyable and I loved the audio narration for it. If you are looking to read books with more women in stem I highly recommend this one. Thank you Netgalley, librofm and Forever Publishing for my early copies to review, my opinions are my own.

Reading Round Up: June 11th-20th

Hello Book Friends! I hope everyone is having a good summer! I am finding it really hard to concentrate on things. My reading is really good for the month but Im finding it hard to write down any of my thoughts about the books. So this month I am just going to dive very brief reviews except for the books that I needed to do actual reviews for. Hopefully next month is better.

Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall – 4.5 Stars I basically went in to this book blind, all I knew was that Christina Lauren loved it so I needed to read it. So I was not expecting this to be a fake dating story, which I have previously said is not my favorite trope. However, this was also a little enemies to lover which is my favorite! Here we are following Luc who is struggling at his job for fundraising for dung beetles because of some bad press. In order to make sure he is not fired he has come up with a plan to have a respectable fake boyfriend. Enter Oliver, a somewhat uptight Barrister. The two have known of each other for a couple of years due to a mutual friend, so when Luc needed a boyfriend Oliver was willing to help out! I loved their relationship from the start. The animosity was just the right amount! Both Luc and Oliver have personal things that they need to overcome in this story and I thought it added some great depth. This books was at times both funny and heartbreaking and I could not put it down! I read this in less than 24 hours, it was so good!! I also loved the reference of Happy Hippos which happens to be my all time favorite candy! I can’t wait to read more from Alexis in the future! Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for my review copy!

Feels Like Falling by Kristy Woodson Harvey – 4 Stars This was my first book by Kristy Woodson Harvey and I enjoyed it so much I went and bought two other books by her. This was a story about two women who come together under weird circumstances and form a friendship that they both needed. I enjoyed the friendship between the two as well as their romantic relationships. If you are looking for an enjoyable beach read I highly recommend this one.

Long Bright River by Liz Moore – 2 Stars I am not sure what I can say about this one except the more I think about it the less I like it. This book follows a cop outside Philadelphia who works the area where a lot drug abuse goes on also while looking for her missing sister who is a user. I believe I am in the minority with my feelings on this book but for whatever reason it just didn’t work for me.

The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa – 5 Stars I absolutely loved this book! It featured my favorite trope of enemies to lovers! Loved this book and all of the family dynamics in it. Can’t wait to read more books from her.

Barefoot Season by Susan Mallery – 3.5 stars Fun, easy read about a woman who moves back home after serving in the military to run her family’s bed and breakfast. When she gets home things are not what she thought and she has to figure out where to go from there all while dealing with PTSD from the War.

Book Blitz: The Salvation Duet byEvelyn Montgomery

Resurrection
Evelyn Montgomery
(The Salvation Duet, #1)
Publication date: May 29th 2020
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense

Rose
My husband is gone and all that remains are his clothes, his shoes, our memories.
The bathroom is filled with his shaver, his toothbrush, his hair brush – but the last thing he left behind was a folded flag that now sits in the living room.
My children will never know their father.
I will never know how it feels to grow old with him.
All that I have left are the voices.
The voices that haunt me day and night and never leave me alone. The ones telling me I’d be better off six feet under instead of him.
But they stop when he comes along.
Justin Gatz.
My boss.
My new best friend, and a savior I never expected.

Justin
I left Knoxville for a reason.
I promised myself I’d never get close to anyone ever again.
All I do is ruin, damage, destroy everything I touch.
But she sees me. Through me. To the place I don’t let anyone into.
She sucks me in and I suddenly find myself playing house with her and her two kids wondering how the hell I got here and when I am finally going to stop.
All I do is ruin.
I know all too well her demons, having served my country like her late husband and still concealing secrets of my own.
I watch her fall apart. I watch her wrestle with her mind. I see her struggle and know I have to help, if only for a while.
Rose Gables.
I can’t get enough of her.
She might need a savior, but what she doesn’t know is she is the one doing all the saving and I’m a damn fool to think I can ever walk away.

Awakening
Evelyn Montgomery
(The Salvation Duet, #2)
Publication date: June 19th 2020
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense

Justin

A dark past.

A secret identity.

A future ruined by the one thing I can never control.

My curse.

I swore to protect them.

I promised to always stand by her side.

But how can I do that when all I have ever run from comes crashing back into my life and steals away all the hope I had for a future.

I swore to protect them, and I will.

I will do all I have to do to keep them safe.

Always.

Even if in the end, it is over my dead body.

Rose

Fear.

Regret.

Voices I fear I will never overcome.

The final battle for my soul rages inside and I am suddenly paralyzed from stopping it.

But I finally see the light.

The truth.

Find my strength.

The enemy doesn’t stand a chance when the victim finally chooses to survive.

When I finally learn it has no power over me.

My will is stronger now with him by my side.

Always has been. Always will be.

Forever.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

ROSE
One. Two. Three.

Breathe.

I will the voices to stop. The ones that haunt me day and night and every second they can in between. I hear my daughter’s cry echoed by my son’s laughter and know I need to go out there. I know I need to make sure everything is alright, but damn it if I can’t pull myself up off this floor in the tiny closet me and Michael used to call our own.

I look up and see his fatigues. Tears prick the back of my eyes as a burn quickly rises in my chest.

It’s not possible.

A little more than 6 months later and I still can’t believe he is never coming back. Never coming home to me and our son and will never get the chance to meet his daughter who came just three short weeks after his passing.

It’s quiet in my mind for the first time in hours, but the noises that rage out in our little living room have me finally pushing myself up off the carpet and slowly putting one foot in front of the other. The scene that unfolds when I turn the corner makes me wish I could turn right back around and continue to hide where I finally found peace, if only for a few seconds.

Worthless. You have to hide from your own children? What kind of fucked up mother are you? Michael would be so ashamed.

I shake my head and try to will the voice to stop as I blink back the tears that finally decide to fall and I make my way over to Olivia in her highchair. Hanging over the edge, she is screaming at the top of her lungs while her little brother, Liam, spins in circles in front of her with his favorite truck making all sorts of loud noises.

Wiping my eyes, I pick her up and try and steady my nerves.

Quiet. The voices are quiet. But for how long, I wonder as anxiety kicks in and I walk with my daughter in my arms to sit in Michael’s favorite recliner. The tears fall harder as I clutch my daughter to my chest and swear I can almost smell him, hear him, feel him in the small house we used to call our home.

Author Bio:

From the beaches of California to the hollers in Central Kentucky, I always knew one thing I wanted out of life – I wanted to write!
Growing up on the West Coast, I started on that journey but didn’t publish my first book until me and my family of 5 moved to Central Kentucky to start a new life.
Although I miss my old world in sunny California, I have found a new love for the south that I always knew existed and you can see throughout my novels.

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How is it June Already!! I feel like the time in self isolation really flew by and we are almost half way thru June. I do not know where the time goes by I have been enjoying my summer so far! I have done a lot of reading already for the first part of the month. Do you have any plans for summer that you are looking forward too?

Love’s Recipe by Mila Nicks – 3 Stars In Love’s Recipe we follow Rosalie who after leaving her home when she was 17, returns 7 years later with her 5 year old daughter. Rosalie does not have a great relationship with her mom but is left with no choice but to return home when her husband disappears on her. On her first night back in town Rosalie takes a job at Ady’s, where she meets the owner Nick. The restaurant is a far cry from what it used to be when she lived there before but but with Nick’s reluctant help they start to turn it back around. I found this to be a pretty straight forward contemporary, the love story was cute with two little 5 years old thrown in to the mix, things progress nicely until a miscommunication and the everything is solved. It was definitely a fun read but not one that really wowed me. At times I also found the language a bit jarring, curse words would randomly be thrown into the dialogue. I have no problem with this type of language but just felt like it was a little out of character. The book was also a bit steamy at times so be warned if you are not into that. Over all the book was a fun read and loved the parts that dealt with the cooking. Thank you Netgalley and KDP for my copy to review.

Island Affair by Priscilla Oliveras – 3.5 Stars I have read the fake dating tropes a few times and I have to say that I am just not a fan. I don’t like all the lying that always comes with it. With that being said Island Affair was still a fun one to pick up and read. It follows Sara Vance who is supposed to be introducing her boyfriend to her family on a vacation in the Florida Keys, once she gets there she finds out he is not coming. Luis Navarro a Key West firefighter just got the news he has to take a week off after being involved in a call that left him a little rattled. Over hearing the conversation Luis offers to help which Sara took to mean fake boyfriend. What follows is the two trying to pretend for her family while trying to avoid his who all live on the island. Eventually the two mix and the truth comes out. This book is not just about Sara and Luis but also Sara and her family learning to find a new normal after years of family tension. Luis also has a journey with learning to forgive his brother for a betrayal that leaves Luis a little broken. (Trigger Warning for Eating Disorders). I absolutely loved the setting of this book, I have been reading a few books that take place in the Keys and it sounds amazing! And the food!! The author made me want to eat everything she talked about. While the trope is not one of my favorites, I really liked the author’s writing and will definitely be picking up the next in this series! Thank you Netgalley and Kensington books for my advance copy in return for my honest review.

Alpha Night by Nalini Singh – 5 Stars The Psy-Changling books are some of my all time favorites and this one did not disappoint. This is the 4th book in the new series and 19th in the overall world. Here we follow Ethan who is a Psy Arrow and Salenka who is the alpha of her wolf pack. I loved Ethan so much! He is up there with Judd, Vasic and Valentin for favorite males in the series. I love any book that deals with the empaths and this one is centered around someone using the empaths to wreak havoc in the psy-net using their abilities. We learn a little more about who the Architect is and what their plans are. I can’t wait to see what the next book brings!

The Weekend Wedding Assistant by Rachel Gladstone – 3.75 Stars I am not someone who gets excited about weddings, I never have been so I wasn’t sure if I was going to enjoy this one. Then in the first chapter the main character Julia’s fiance dies. This is a hard no for me, I do not enjoy books about grief of a spouse or partner but this was a buddy read so I pushed thru. I am so glad I did! The author’s writing was so good. I loved the journey that Jalia went on to learn about herself and who she really is. This is still a romance but the book really focuses on her growth. TW for death of a partner.

A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight – 3 Stars I did not really care for this one. I thought the ending was just ok, I really wanted more of a wrap up for a few of the characters instead of the book just ending. I am not a fan of open ended endings especially when you are at the end of a murder book! I did think the writing was good and I was engaged in the story till the end. I just wished the ending was a little cleaner.

Until Next Time, Happy Reading