Book Review: The Carnelian Legacy By Cheryl Koevoet

Title: The Carnelian Legacy

Series: Carnelian #1

Author: Cheryl Koevoet

Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy / Romance

My Rating: ★ ★

Synopsis:

Marisa MacCallum always believed that the man of her dreams was out there somewhere. The problem is—he’s in another dimension.

After the death of her father, eighteen-year-old Marisa's life is on the verge of imploding. She seeks comfort on her daily ride through the woods of Gold Hill, but when a mysterious lightning storm strikes, she is hurled into the ancient, alternate dimension of Carnelia where she is discovered by the arrogant but attractive nobleman, Ambassador Darian Fiore.

Stranded in a world teeming with monsters, maniacs and medieval knights, Marisa is forced to join Darian on a dangerous mission to negotiate peace with his cousin and archenemy, Savino da Rocha. Along the way, she starts to see Darian's softer side and finds herself falling in love. But once she learns that he is locked into an arranged marriage, her heart shatters.

When Savino falls for her charms and demands her hand in exchange for peace, Marisa is faced with an impossible choice: marry the enemy of the man she loves or betray them both and become the catalyst for a bloody war. 

Book Review: The Devil Takes A Bride By Julia London

Title: The Devil Takes A Bride

Series: The Cabot Sisters #2

Author: Julia London

Genre: Historical Romance / Regency

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ½

From powerful love to sizzling passion, Julia London always delivers an incomparable reading experience. Returning to her acclaimed Cabot Stepsisters series, we meet an earl who can only be tamed by one wicked lady…

A plan born of desperation…

Once the toast of society, Grace Cabot and her sisters now await the shame of losing high status and fine luxuries upon the death of the Earl of Beckington. The dire circumstances are inevitable unless, of course, Grace's wicked plot to seduce a wealthy viscount into marriage goes off without a single hitch. But once a stolen embrace with the wrong man leads her to be discovered in the arms of Jeffrey, the Earl of Merryton, her plan takes a most unexpected—and scorching—twist.

…and altered by passion.

Governed by routine and ruled by duty, Jeffrey had no desire for a wife before he succumbed to Grace's temptation. Though his golden-haired, in-name-only bride is the definition of disorder, he can't resist wanting her in every way. But once her secrets meet his, society might consider their lives to be ruined beyond repair…while Jeffrey might just see it as a new beginning. 

Book Review: #Swag By Cambria Hebert

Title: #Swag

Series: GearShark #3

Author: Cambria Hebert

Genre: Romance/New Adult

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ½

These drivers got #swag... Racing is in her DNA. Right alongside money and power. When you're the daughter of one of the most powerful men in the country, you have to work harder for success. Joey Gamble's a girl on a male-dominated track. With a daddy who can buy whatever she wants. But she doesn't want anything... except to EARN her reputation. Racing is his passion. Trouble follows him everywhere. Some even say he invites it. When you're nipping at the taillights of the best driver in the new NRR, you have to fight and claw for each and every success. It's never been easy for Lorhaven. That's why he doesn't play by the rules. He's a man with a serious chip on his shoulder against the pro racing circuit. We at GearShark want to know what's up with that. We've also been hearing rumblings... of a pro who wants to go indie. We've invited racing royalty and the driver from the wrong side of the tracks to sit down and talk to us about a possible crossover. We expected sparks to fly when Joey and Lorhaven crossed paths. Will those sparks ignite into a full-on inferno?

Book Review: A Different Light By Morningstar Ashley

Title: A Different Light

Series: Begin Again #1

Author: Morningstar Ashley

Genre: Romance / MM Romance / contemporary

My Rating: ★ ★

Bennett Cole had lived next door to Mitchell “Mac” Campbell, III for eighteen years of his life, in the small town of White Acre. They’d never gotten along, never seen eye to eye, and never understood one another…not that they’d ever cared to try.

But when Bennett’s so-called buddies ditched him at a party in the woods where he was assaulted and left for dead, Bennett pulled through. The emotional scars rendered him too terrified to go back to school and face his “friends” or his attackers. With little choice, his family packed up and left town.

Ten years later—at the request of his mother—Bennett returned to the place he’d grown up and the home he’d once felt safe, to oversee the repairs before his childhood house was sold. The contractor? None other than Mac, the once annoying boy next door, who still lives there in the home his parents gifted him.

Being in such close proximity—working together every day, to repair the Coles’ family home—Bennett and Mac’s contentious relationship goes from bad to worse as their personalities continue to clash. But their heated exchanges may not be as antagonistic as they seem. And when new information is revealed, can the men begin to see each other in a different light?

Book Review: Spellslinger By Sebastien de Castell

Title: Spellslinger

Series: Spellslinger #1

Author: Sebastien de Castell

Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

There are three things that earn you a man’s name among the Jan’Tep. The first is to demonstrate the strength to defend your family. The second is to prove you can perform the high magic that defines our people. The third is simply to reach the age of sixteen. I was a few weeks shy of my birthday when I learned that I wouldn’t be doing any of those things.

Magic is a con game.

Kellen is moments away from facing his first mage's duel and the start of four trials that will make him a spellcaster. There's just one problem: his magic is gone. As his sixteenth birthday approaches, Kellen falls back on his cunning in a bid to avoid total disgrace. But when a daring stranger arrives in town, she challenges Kellen to take a different path. Ferius Parfax is one of the mysterious Argosi - a traveller who lives by her wits and the three decks of cards she carries. She's difficult and unpredictable, but she may be Kellen's only hope...

Book Review: The Trouble With Honor By Julia London

Title: The Trouble With Honor

Series: The Cabot Sisters #1

Author: Julia London

Genre: Historical Romance / Regency

My Rating: ★ ★ ★

Desperate times call for daring measures as Honor Cabot, the eldest stepdaughter of the wealthy Earl of Beckington, awaits her family's ruin. Upon the earl's death she and her sisters stand to lose the luxury of their grand home - and their place on the pedestal of society - to their stepbrother and his social-climbing fiancée. Forced to act quickly, Honor makes a devil's bargain with the only rogue in London who can seduce her stepbrother's fiancée out of the Cabots' lives for good. An illegitimate son of a duke, George Easton was born of scandal and grows his fortune through dangerous risks. But now he and Honor are dabbling in a perilous dance of seduction that puts her reputation and his jaded heart on the line. And as unexpected desire threatens to change the rules of their secret game, the stakes may become too high even for a notorious gambler and a determined, free-spirited debutante to handle.