BLOG TOUR REVIEW, EXCERPT & GIVEAWAY: More Than a Feeling (Rock Star Romance #4)

It's time for more Rock Star Romance from Erika Kelly! Check out my review and an excerpt from MORE THAN A FEELING, then enter the giveaway!

More Than a Feeling (Rock Star Romance #4), by Erika Kelly
Publish Date: April 4, 2017
Publisher: EK Publishing LLC
Format: e-ARC, provided by the author and Inkslinger PR
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: 5 STARS

(Synopsis) When Cooper Hood left Snowberry, Montana ten years ago, he swore he’d never go back to the town that painted him with the same brush as his addict mother. But right in the middle of his band’s national tour he gets a call to come home: his mom’s got a whopper of a secret to reveal.

Daisy Charbonneau’s in trouble. The talent she hired for her resort’s annual Huckleberry Festival’s just bailed on her, and she’s desperate to find a replacement act. Luck turns her way when she discovers her high school crush is back in town—and he happens to be a rock star.

As they work together, a crush deepens into so much more—but who falls in love in two weeks?

Especially when Cooper’s never coming back to town, and Daisy’s never going to leave it.

More Than a Feeling put quite an exclamation point on this awesome series surrounding the members of the rock band Blue Fire. It was all the things I love in a good romance book - a bunch of hunky mountain men, a spunky heroine who kicks ass and takes names, hot sex and a sign-inducing HEA, and it's all rolled up in a fantastic second-chance romance story. 

Cooper is the last man standing in Blue Fire - the only one still unattached. And his lack of a significant other and a family has left him feeling lonely and unwanted. During a two-week break, he has an opportunity to feel useful by finding the group a new opening act. Unfortunately, his dead-beat mother interrupts his plans by asking him to come see her in the town he grew up in and swore he'd never return to again. 

Meanwhile, Daisy is trying to save her business venture and her friend Ethan's ranch thanks to the hometown mayor being a total douche canoe. She needs a big act to headline a local festival and bring tourists in to the ranch so that investors back their resort plans. When Cooper rolls into town, it's like the heavens opened up and angels sang. Not only does he play guitar for a big rock band, but he's the boy that got away for her. 

Daisy's and Cooper's story was everything a second-chance love story should be. And, I guess it's not exactly a second-chance love story since Daisy and Cooper never actually dated in high school. They ran in different circles, but they each secretly pined for the other. For years. But, then Cooper left and Daisy stayed and that was that. These two were absolutely adorable in this book. They are each confident on their own, but when it came to the other person, they were shy and unsure and nervous. I loved it. 

But, there's a lot more going on in this book than Daisy and Cooper finally trying to find a way to be together despite their very different lifestyles, jobs and plans. Cooper has to finally face the demons from his past. He doesn't know who his father is, and when he finds out, it completely upends his whole world. Cooper grew up poor and neglected. He's now the hometown hero. It's hard for him to separate the two personas in his head, and it's hard for him to accept that he's come a long way. It takes a lot of soul-searching and some help from Daisy to show him how to be okay with his life, both in the past and in the present. 

We see the other band members and how they're doing throughout the book. But, as this is the last book in this series, the epilogue ties everything up in a perfect bow. It was so incredible, it brought tears to my eyes. I'm sorry to see this series go, but it was an awesome ride to get to this point. 

Closing her eyes, Daisy bit into the crunchy drizzle, her teeth sinking through the buttery rich goodness of the bread. Oh, dear God. Her mom made the world’s best cinnamon rolls. With a sigh, she looked up to find someone heading toward her on the path.

Of course her childhood crush would show up the moment she’d stuffed her mouth full of pastry. Leaning against the hood of her car, Daisy chewed quickly—which sucked because, basically, time should stand still while savoring her mom’s desserts.

But Cooper wasn’t looking at her. Scowling at his phone, he stopped on the path, fingers furiously typing. Was he dealing with his mom?

Or maybe a girlfriend. Instantly her skin tightened, and her heart thudded. If Cooper had a girlfriend…God. Last night she’d gone on and on about how much he’d meant to her.

She looked away, mortification crashing through her system.

First, she’d bumped into him wearing waders and a fishing hat, and then she’d forced him to go out with her. Awesome.

He couldn’t have been clearer that he didn’t want to spend the day with her, but she’d gone and made an offer she knew he couldn’t turn down. Not if he wanted to get his mom’s house built and get himself back on tour.

Feeling a little sick to her stomach, she licked the sticky drizzle off her fingers and shoved the treat back into the bag.

As he paused on the path, thumbs working over the phone’s keypad, she took in his powerful physique. A white T-shirt strained across broad shoulders, hugging his thickly rounded biceps, and worn blue jeans cupped his hard, muscular thighs.

The colorful ink covering his body made him look like a total badass. She’d noticed a strange symbol on his inner wrist and a cartoon image on his forearm of a pin-up girl holding a barbell, a sexy slash of red for her lips.

The man he’d grown into made her soul wake up, and God, she couldn’t even remember the last time she’d felt this kind of fluttery attraction for a guy.

As if he felt someone watching him, he looked up sharply and found her. The worry lines eased. But he didn’t smile. “Hey.”

She pushed off her car. “You ready?” Forced or not, her plan was good for both of them. She was sticking to it.

Award-winning author Erika Kelly has been spinning romantic tales all her life--she just didn't know it. Raised on the classics, she didn't discover romantic fiction until later in life. From that moment on, she's been devouring the genre and has found her true voice as an author. Over three decades she's written poems, screenplays, plays, short stories, and all kinds of women's fiction novels. Married to the love of her life and raising four children, she's lived in two countries and seven states, but give her pen and paper, a stack of good books, and a steaming mug of vanilla chai latte and she can make her home anywhere.

Website ** Facebook ** Twitter ** Newsletter Signup ** Erika Kelly Goodreads

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COVER REVEAL: All Closed Off (Rusk University #4)

It's finally happening!! Stella Santos is finally getting her book, and it's coming on May 1! The highly-anticipated fourth book in the Rusk University series is almost here, and I get to show you the cover today. Check it out!

All Closed Off (Rusk University #4), by Cora Carmack
Publish Date: May 1, 2017
Publisher: self-published
Genre: new adult contemporary romance

(Synopsis) Stella Santos is fine.

Maybe something terrible happened to her that she can’t even remember. And maybe it drives her crazy when her friends treat her like she’s on the verge of breaking because of it. Maybe it feels even worse when they do what she asks and pretend that it never happened at all. And maybe she’s been getting harassing emails and messages for months from people who don’t even know her, but hate her all the same.

But none of that matters because she’s just fine.

For Ryan Blake, Stella was always that girl. Vibrant and hilarious and beautiful. He wanted her as his best friend. His more than friends. His everything and anything that she would give him. Which these days is a whole lot of nothing. She gets angry when he’s there. Angry when he’s not there. Angry when he tries to talk and when he doesn’t.

When Stella devises an unconventional art project for one of her classes all about exploring intimacy—between both friends and strangers—Ryan finds himself stepping in as guinea pig after one of her subjects bails. What was supposed to be an objective and artistic look at emotion and secrets and sex suddenly becomes much more personal. When he hits it off with another girl from the project, Stella will have to decide if she’s willing to do more than make art about intimacy. To keep him, she’ll have to open up and let herself be the one thing she swore she’d never be again.

Vulnerable.

Cora Carmack is a twentysomething New York Times bestselling author who likes to write about twentysomething characters. Raised in a small Texas town, she now lives in New York City and spends her time writing, traveling, and marathoning various TV shows on Netflix. She lives by one rule: embrace whatever the world throws at you and run with it (just not with scissors).

Links:

Website: http://www.coracarmack.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CoraCarmackBooks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CoraCarmack
Cora Carmack Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6535659.Cora_Carmack

TOP TEN TUESDAY

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This is one meme I can get on board with - I LOVE lists! I'll show you mine if you show me yours!

Top Ten Authors I've Not Met... Yet

Although I've never met these 10 authors that are on my favorites list, I do have plans to meet a few of them at signings later in 2017!!

1. Richelle Mead

 

2. Lauren Blakely

 

3. J.R. Ward

 

4. J.A. Huss

 

5. Sawyer Bennett

 

6. Chloe Neill

 

7. Patricia Briggs

 

8. Lorelei James

 

9. Emma Chase

 

10. Katy Evans

BLOG TOUR REVIEW: Hot for the Fireman (Boston Heat #1)

Hot for the Fireman (Boston Heat #1), by Gina Maxwell
Publish Date: March 27, 2017
Publisher: Entangled Select
Format: e-ARC, provided by the author and Inkslinger PR
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: 4.5 STARS

(Synopsis) Ex-Army Ranger Erik Grady lives for the job. So when his chief at the Boston Fire Department offers him two choices—mandated therapy for supposed PTSD or a permanent desk job at the station, he reluctantly agrees to see a shrink. Only this doctor is unlike anything he expected. Female and curved in all the right places? Check. Hotter than a four-alarm fire? Check. The kind of woman that can heat his blood in and out of bed? Check, check. And oh, yeah, he just happens to have first hand experience...

Of all the men to walk into psychologist Olivia Jones' office, why did it have to be him? Her one-night stand isn't playing by the rules of just. One. Night. She’s had her heart broken in the past, and no way is she going there again. And now he's blackmailing her into three dates? Well, if that's what it takes to make him see a different therapist, fine. She can handle it. So what if the chemistry between them is combustible? She's a professional, damn it. She'll date Mr. I'm Too Sexy For My Bunker Pants. But it won’t end in the fun he expects.

It’s time to see how much heat this fireman can take...

Hot for the Fireman is another sexy winner from Gina Maxwell. It has all the deliciousness of a forbidden romance with a strong alpha hero, like Gina Maxwell does so well.

Erik is a Boston firefighter, and he loves what he does. Unfortunately, a recent fire call triggered PTSD from his time in the Army, so he has to go to mandated therapy before he can go back out on calls. The night he learns he's going to be riding the desk for a few months, he runs into a woman that stirs something in him he hasn't felt in a long time. And when she's gone the following morning, he is really disappointed that he'll never see her again. Until he realizes that she's his new therapist.

Olivia is still recovering from her previous relationship and a string of really bad dates when she runs into Erik. After her awesome night with him, she doesn't want to tempt fate, and decides to just leave it at that one wonderful night. Imagine her shock when Erik walks into her office (what a great scene that was). Erik gets a new therapist and three dates with Olivia out of the deal, which is all he needed in order to show her that they could be awesome together.

Initially, I have to say that Olivia wasn't my favorite person. She wasn't always very nice to Erik, even though he was always good to her. It took awhile for him to wear her down and to get her to trust him, and during that time, I found myself pretty frustrated with her. But, Erik was a persistent man, which is just one of about a million things I loved about him.

One of the best parts about this book is the relationship Erik has with his fellow firefighters. They also served in the Army with him, so they have a uniquely brother-like relationship. They're super close - they would die for each other without a hesitation. And that kind of camaraderie and friendship is really special and endearing. We see lots of these guys, which is great because they'll each get a book at some point. It was a fantastic introduction to all of them.

Olivia grew on me though. What really won my affection toward her was the fact that, once she made up her mind that she was going to give it a go with Erik, she never, ever wavered. She gave him her time, her attention, her support and her love. She stood by her man, even when he asked her not to. And I loved that about her. I hate it when characters waffle back and forth and back and forth.

And of course there was Gina Maxwell's amazing brand of sexiness. Erik and Olivia had awesome chemistry and they acted on it frequently. It was hot and sweet and romantic - I loved everything about these two.

I can't wait for the rest of these guys to get their stories, now. 

QUARTER 1 WRAP-UP: Audiobook Challenge 2017

It's time to do my first Audiobook Challenge recap of 2017! I signed up for the Marathoner (50+) level, and I'm well on my way to reaching it. Check out what I've listened to so far...

1. In Bed With a Highlander (McCabe Trilogy #1), by Maya Banks
2. King of Wall Street, by Louise Bay
3. Reckless (Renegades #1), by Skye Jordan
4. The Dom Who Loved Me (Masters and Mercenaries #1), by Lexi Blake
5. Dangerous Highlander (Dark Sword #1), by Donna Grant
6. Stuck-up Suit, by Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward
7. Bossman, by Vi Keeland
8. Forbidden Highlander (Dark Sword #2), by Donna Grant
9. Beyond Shame (Beyond #1), by Kit Rocha
10. Wicked Highlander (Dark Sword #3), by Donna Grant
11. Cut and Run (Cut & Run #1), by Madeline Urban and Abigail Roux

This quarter, I became a big fan of Vi Keeland's books. The duo of Joe Arden and Maxine Mitchell are brilliant together, and I loved their narration. In addition to that, the books are just plain awesome.

I've also discovered Donna Grant and her Dark Sword series. I love a good PNR, and these are it. And I love listening to Antony Ferguson's accent while he's narrating it.

It's been a great quarter with some great books. What about you? What are you listening to?

BLOG TOUR REVIEW: Love, Honor and Ink (Montgomery Ink #6.6)

Love, Honor and Ink (Montgomery Ink #6.6), by Carrie Ann Ryan
Publish Date: February 14, 2017
Publisher: Pink Ink Books
Format: e-ARC, provided by the author and Inkslinger PR
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: 4.5 STARS

(Synopsis) Wedding planner Arianna King had everything planned out down to the last detail until her father’s ultimatum changed everything. Now she’s alone, trying to open her own business, and seemingly failing at every corner. Just when things start to look even bleaker, she’ll find out just how much she can rely on her best friend—and herself.

Being in love with your best friend isn’t always easy as Harper Rosso knows. He’s been by her side since the beginning, but now that she finally has time to breath, he might just be able to show her what he could be for her. Only he’ll have to make sure he’s ready to take that chance and perhaps lose her forever.

Sparks fly between the two of them once they finally take their relationship to the next level. Only the burning temptation than fills them might not be enough in the face of what they left behind and what threatens their future.

Love, Honor, and Ink was originally found in the Once Upon a Valentine Anthology.

Love, Honor and Ink was a fantastic short story told in the Montgomery Ink world. It read like a full-length book, chock full of awesome friends-to-lovers goodness. 

Arianna's father is absolutely the worst of the worst in the parental hall of fame. I promise you will want to murder death kill the dude in about two pages flat. He denies her the promotion she deserves in his big-time wedding planning company unless she marries a slime ball. Thank goodness she has the presence of mind to tell him to stuff it and quits. So, she starts her own company and decides to run it the way she always wanted to. 

Her biggest cheerleader, support system, shoulder to cry on is her BFF, neighbor and the slime ball's brother, Harper. Harper has secretly been in love with Arianna forever, but of course has never told her so. Now that she's away from her father and needs some help - so, Harper is there ready to step in and be her knight in shining armor. 

Harper suffers in silence. He sees Ari every day. He loves everything about her. But, he's spent years dating other women and watching her date other men because he's afraid that if he makes a move and she shoots him down, it will ruin what they have. But, all of a sudden, it seems like Ari might return his feelings. And if that's even possible, he's going to go for it. 

And because Harper went for it, I was totally in his corner all the way. Even when Ari tried to resist him - I was cheering for Harper. Because it was SO OBVIOUS these two were totally meant for each other. Even though the story was short, it had a great lead-in to the story, a substantial amount of sexual tension, some pretty great drama and mystery, and of course some super hot sexy times. And also some appearances from some of our favorite Montgomeries. 

Regardless of whether you're a die-hard Montgomery Ink fan or if you've never read a single book in this story, this novella will take you away for an hour and leave you with a smile on your face when you're done.

EXCERPT REVEAL: Easy Magic (Boudreaux #5)

From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Proby, comes the next sexy and captivating standalone title in the Boudreaux Series, EASY MAGIC. Take a trip to the Big Easy and fall in love with Beau and Mallory’s passionate story on April 4, 2017 in this upcoming contemporary romance. Check out the excerpt below and preorder your copy today!

Easy Magic (Boudreaux #5), by Kristen Proby
Publish Date: April 4, 2017
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

(Synopsis) As the co-CEO of Bayou Enterprises, and the eldest of the Boudreaux clan, Beau is the epitome of these. Now that his baby sister Gabby is happily settled down, Beau has moved into the company loft in the heart of the French Quarter to be closer to his office while his own home is built. He doesn’t have time for anything but the family he adores and the company that drives him.

If only the bewitching owner of the herb shop downstairs from Beau’s loft wasn’t so damn tempting.

Mallory Adams is living the life. The good life. The best life for her. After years of hiding who she is, and the gifts she’s been cursed with, Mallory opened her little shop in the French Quarter, offering herbs and lotions for anything from soothing a sunburn to chasing those pesky ghosts New Orleans is known for out of a client’s home. Some call her eccentric, and some say she’s simply odd, and that’s okay with her. She is a bit odd, but in her experience, all of the best people are.

When an old pipe bursts in the loft above her store, flooding her storeroom, Mallory comes face to face with Beau Boudreaux, and she doesn’t need the clairvoyant abilities that have been passed down through generations to know that she’ll never be the same. Beau is her exact opposite; serious, straitlaced. He wears suits for Pete’s sake and probably wouldn’t know the difference between arnica and flaxseed if his life depended on it. But when he touches her, the electricity is through the roof and she’s smart enough to know that a chemistry like theirs doesn’t happen every day.

Can two people so very different possibly find their way to happily ever after?

I turn to look at him and he’s leaning against the door jamb, watching me with lust written all over his face.

I don’t have to be psychic to see it.

He wants me.

He slowly pushes away from the door and moves toward me, his shoulders broad in the white button down shirt, his arms hard where the shirt is rolled to his elbows. His jaw tightens as he gets closer, towering over me because he’s so damn tall, but I’m not afraid of him in the least.

He doesn’t say a word as he lifts his hand to cup my cheek, his thumb brushing under my eye. I wrap my hand around his wrist and lean into his touch, soaking up his warmth. God, I’ve missed being touched.

Being touch by Beau is like being touched for the first time in my life, and I never want him to stop.

He lowers his lips to mine, brushes them lightly, nibbles the corner, and then sinks in for the kiss of my life. He gently urges my mouth open, and licks my lips, and devours me. His hand dives into my hair, and the wall is suddenly at my back as he continues to explore me in ways I didn’t even know existed.

He braces his free hand on the wall above my head, and I fist my hands in his shirt at his sides, holding on for dear life.

Finally, he pulls back, breathing hard, his eyes bright and dilated.

And in the moment, I know. His touch is safe. I can trust it. Him. I’m not bombarded with someone else’s emotions, and I am free to simply feel my own while being intimate with him.

“So that’s what all the hoopla’s about.”

He smirks, and I realize I spoke aloud again, but I’m not embarrassed. Not in the least.

He takes a deep breath and drags his knuckles down my cheek.

“I want to keep you here all night,” he murmurs before kissing my forehead. “So I’d better take you home.”

I smile. He could talk me into staying. But he’s not. And I’ll be damned if that doesn’t make me like him even more.

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Kristen Proby is the author of the bestselling With Me In Seattle and Love Under the Big Sky series. She has a passion for a good love story and strong, humorous characters with a strong sense of loyalty and family. Her men are the alpha type; fiercely protective and a bit bossy, and her ladies are fun, strong, and not afraid to stand up for themselves.

Kristen lives in Montana, where she enjoys coffee, chocolate and sunshine. And naps.

Learn more about Kristen --> Website**Facebook**Twitter**Newsletter Sign Up**Author Goodreads

REVIEW: The Lawrence Browne Affair

The Lawrence Browne Affair, by Cat Sebastian
Publish Date: February 7, 2017
Publisher: Avon Impulse
Format: e-ARC, provided by the publisher
Genre: adult historical m/m romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: 4.5 STARS

(Synopsis) An earl hiding from his future . . . 

Lawrence Browne, the Earl of Radnor, is mad. At least, that’s what he and most of the village believes. A brilliant scientist, he hides himself away in his family’s crumbling estate, unwilling to venture into the outside world. When an annoyingly handsome man arrives at Penkellis, claiming to be Lawrence’s new secretary, his carefully planned world is turned upside down.
A swindler haunted by his past . . .

Georgie Turner has made his life pretending to be anyone but himself. A swindler and con man, he can slip into an identity faster than he can change clothes. But when his long-dead conscience resurrects and a dangerous associate is out for blood, Georgie escapes to the wilds of Cornwall. Pretending to be a secretary should be easy, but he doesn’t expect that the only madness he finds is the one he has for the gorgeous earl.
Can they find forever in the wreckage of their lives?

Challenging each other at every turn, the two men soon give into the desire that threatens to overwhelm them. But with one man convinced he is at the very brink of madness and the other hiding his real identity, only true love can make this an affair to remember.

The Lawrence Browne Affair was a fantastic new book in the m/m historical romance genre. I'm thoroughly enjoying these books of hers - I didn't hesitate to pick this one up after loving The Soldier's Scoundrel.

Lawrence Browne is a super smart guy. He also has severe anxiety issues and is socially awkward. As a result, he is content to spend his days completely alone in the study of his crumbling mansion working on his inventions. In 1800s England, it is completely unheard of for a gentleman of Lord Radnor's position to act like this, so there are those that think he might be completely nuts.

Then there is Georgie Turner, whom we met in The Soldier's Scoundrel. He's a grifter who is asked to pose as Lord Radnor's assistant as a way to determine if he is, in fact, insane. Georgie needs to get out of London anyway since a job he was working went south and he now has some bad guys looking for him. It's a win-win for Georgie.

It doesn't take long for Georgie to realize that Lawrence is only an eccentric genius, and his social anxiety actually rouses some protective instincts in Georgie that he didn't even know he had. Not to mention Georgie loves the way Lawrence looks in his dressing gown.

I LOVE that Cat Sebastian has created a hot nerd for the 19th century. If you take away the fancy-pants clothes and the high-falooting language, what you have is a brilliant guy who had a crappy childhood and likes other men, which in this time, is not even remotely acceptable. It's no wonder he's squirreled himself away in his big house with only a skeleton crew of servants.

Georgie was the biggest surprise, though. He is absolutely an anti-hero. He cheats, steals and lies for a living, and was perfectly happy about it. Until Lawrence. He actually respects him. Then, he likes him. Then, he more than likes him, and that's when Georgie realizes he's in trouble. He can't cheat someone he loves. And THAT was when I fell in love with him.

This series is one of my favorite historical romance series ever. These men are sexy and complicated and awesome. I love the mysteries that are solved and the fears that are being overcome. And I can't wait for the next one to come out. 

RELEASE DAY REVIEW: The Struggle (Titan #3)

The Struggle (Titan #3), by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publish Date: March 20, 2017
Publisher: self-published
Format: e-ARC, provided by the author
Genre: new adult paranormal/fantasy romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: 5 STARS

(Synopsis) A bloody path has been chosen… 
The war against the Titans continues, and they remain determined to wreak havoc on the world, but Seth has become something all gods fear. Now the most dangerous, most absolute power no longer resides in those who have been freed from their tombs.

The Great War fought by the few is coming…

All may doubt and fear what Seth has become. All except the one woman who might be his final chance at redemption. Josie will do anything to prove that Seth is on their side, but fate has a nasty way of changing lives, of changing people.

In the end, the sun will fall…

The only way they can save the future and save themselves is by facing the unknown together. It will take more than trust and faith. It will take love and the kind of strength not easily broken. No matter what, their lives will never be the same.

For what the gods have feared has come to pass. The end of the old is here and the beginning of the new has been ushered in…

Words cannot adequately express how much I loved The Struggle. The Seth we see in it is the one I've been waiting to see ever since he was introduced in the beginning of the Covenant series. He's taking responsibility for his actions, owning his feelings, and being a total snarky badass while doing it. 

Seth spends the first part of the book figuring out and coming to terms with what he has become and what he is now capable of since  he unleashed some crazy power and killed a Titan at the end of The Power. But, Seth still thinks that Josie is safer without him in her life, despite the fact that both of them are miserable without the other. 

While Seth is miserable by the sea in Greece, Josie and the gang are trying to tackle their very big to-do list: 1) Find the other demigods, 2) Figure out how to get rid of the Titans, 3) Find Seth. Josie is obviously mostly concerned with the last item, and while working on it, she runs into a rather big problem, and as a result of that problem, Seth realizes he has to take his head out of his ass and go back to the team of awesome which includes Josie, Alex, Aiden, Luke and Deacon. 

"I will do what I feel is right, and finding Seth is what I need to do. I love Seth. I love him when no one else believes in him and I will still love him when everyone realizes who and what he truly is. That will never change."

The one thing his time away from Josie taught him was Seth was how much he needs her and loves her. When Seth goes all in, he goes ALL. IN. In The Power, we got angsty, tormented Seth who wouldn't allow himself to be happy, and it punched me in the feels. In The Struggle, we got overprotective, sensitive, devoted Seth who is dedicated to doing what he needs to in order to be with Josie forever. And it swelled my heart to overflowing. 

The need for her, all that wanting, was endless, and it pounded through me relentlessly. There was no fighting it. I could leave a million times, but I would always come back. The truth of that would've swept my legs right out from under me if I wasn't sitting already. 

The team runs into so many additional roadblocks on their way to containing the Titans forever. It keeps them on their toes and brings them face-to-face with more gods. Josie and Seth encounter their own difficulties on their road to happiness. Seth has trouble coming clean to Josie about all the aspects of his new abilities. Josie has trouble overcoming the memories of when she tangled with the bad guys. But their love is stronger than ever. And their sexy times are hotter than ever. 

The end of The Struggle leaves us with a huge revelation and lots of questions about how things will go down in the final book in the Titans series. Rest assured - there's no cliffhanger this time around. Events wrap up pretty nicely for now and the new revelations will leave you crazy excited for the next and final book in this incredible series. 

Why couldn't he be wearing a shirt?
But, it was Seth, so of course not. 

BUZZ TOUR CHAPTER REVEAL: The Struggle (Titan #3)

The release of Jennifer L. Armentrout's THE STRUGGLE is only one day away.

I KNOW. I can't wait either. Want some even better news? Today you can get a jump start and read Chapter 1. Right. Here.

The Struggle (Titan #3), by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publish Date: March 20, 2017
Publisher: self-published
Genre: new adult paranormal romance
To Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

(Synopsis) A bloody path has been chosen… 

The war against the Titans continues, and they remain determined to wreak havoc on the world, but Seth has become something all gods fear. Now the most dangerous, most absolute power no longer resides in those who have been freed from their tombs.

The Great War fought by the few is coming…

All may doubt and fear what Seth has become. All except the one woman who might be his final chance at redemption. Josie will do anything to prove that Seth is on their side, but fate has a nasty way of changing lives, of changing people.

In the end, the sun will fall…

The only way they can save the future and save themselves is by facing the unknown together. It will take more than trust and faith. It will take love and the kind of strength not easily broken. No matter what, their lives will never be the same.

For what the gods have feared has come to pass. The end of the old is here and the beginning of the new has been ushered in…

Chapter 1

SETH

Doing the right thing had never felt more wrong than it did right then.

Maybe that was how it always felt. I wouldn’t know.

It was so rare when I actually did the right thing.

My knuckles ached from clenching the steering wheel. Every cell in my body demanded that I turn the vehicle around and go back—go back to Josie, because she was mine, and I belonged with her, in her and beside her.

But I couldn’t.

Everything had changed now.

Heady, deadly power churned deep inside me, and it was nothing like what being an Apollyon felt like. Oh no, this was like the Apollyon on steroids. I had a feeling that the unexpected awakening, the even more surprising subsequent ability to kill Atlas, was just the beginning of what I was capable of, because the entire world was different to me now.

The sky was a shade I’d never seen before. The sea off the Pacific Coast Highway was a dizzying kaleidoscope of blues.

Skin sensitized, I could feel the dampness in the air. I inhaled and it tasted of sea and salt. I was going damn near a hundred in this SUV, and I felt like I could still go faster—that I should be going faster.

And I was hungry.

Not for food.

For what lived and breathed inside of the pures and the halfs, the demigods and gods, and inside of Josie.

I couldn’t be around her.

It was too dangerous.

Miles were between Josie and me now, and soon there’d be thousands, and it had to stay that way, but I... I could still feel her body beneath mine, her skin soft against mine, and I could still hear her soft cries echoing in my ears.

I love her.

Pressing my boot down on the gas, I knew where to go. A place far from here, far from everything. A place where I could think and plan, because I was going to take out every single motherfuc—

“You’re making a mistake.”

“Shit,” I cursed as I jerked the steering wheel to the right. The tires squealed. Dust along the embankment flooded the air as my gaze flew to the passenger seat.

That godsdamn nymph was sitting beside me.

He was shirtless, as usual, wearing his doeskin pants, and he was as glittery as a damn disco ball.

“What the hell?” I exploded, straightening the wheel before we careened off the highway. A crash wouldn’t kill me, but I really didn’t feel like testing out how indestructible my skin could be. “You could’ve caused me to wreck.”

“As if your life isn’t already a wreck?” he replied, smiling slightly. “The answer would be yes—yes, your life is a wreck.”

I gripped the steering wheel. “What in the fuck of all fucks do you want?”

“We need to talk.”

Anger rippled under my skin. “There is nothing we need to talk about.”

“Oh, there is.” The nymph waved his hand, and the engine cut out without any additional warning.

Cursing in every language I knew, I was able to coast the SUV to the narrow side of the road, between two large boulders. I dropped my hands and twisted toward him. “You know I could kill you with a snap of my two fingers.”

“You could. And maybe you will one day.” Those purplish eyes glimmered. “But not today.”

“I don’t know about that.” Akasha crackled over my skin, casting a whitish-amber glow over the interior of the SUV. It came to me so easily. I barely even had to think about it. “I’m really not in the mood.”

“Because you left Josie?” he replied.

Exhaling roughly, I worked a kink out of my neck. “Careful, nymph.”

“You’ve chosen to leave, correct? Even though she’s unprotected?”

“She is not unprotected.” Unease brewed deep in my gut, because even though she was with the incredibly happy duo known as Alex and Aiden, and even though she was a demigod, the Titans were dangerous. However, I knew from previous experience that the Titans would retreat for a while. After losing Atlas, they wouldn’t come after Josie for a bit, giving me time to search them down and end them.

Besides, I was more dangerous to her.

There was something inside me, and it was cold and cruel. I could taste it. I could feel it, and it wanted to devour Josie.

“You’ve made your choice, God Killer?”

About to tell him that he could dive head-first out of the window, something occurred to me—a memory from when he magically appeared at the Covenant and warned about what was inside of me. “You knew.”

“Knew what?”

“That I was the God Killer.”

“That you could become the God Killer,” he corrected. “We all knew there was a chance. After all, it became your destiny when the other passed.”

I shot him a quick look. “What destiny crap are you talking about?”

A secretive smile curved the corners of his lips. “There is so much you do not know.”

Why I hadn’t blasted the glittery fuck-face out the window yet was anyone’s guess.

“She loves you,” he said quietly. “Do you even realize what that means?”

My throat closed off. Within a traitorous heartbeat, I could see Josie in my mind’s eye—her stricken face when I’d admitted to feeding on her. I saw her after I’d taken out Atlas and was about to turn Aiden into a Slurpee. Her and all that hair, all that blonde and brown hair owing around her beautiful face as she’d nicked me with the blade tainted with the blood of a Pegasus.

I saw her staring at me like she had no idea what I was.

And then I saw what a dark part of me knew I was capable of doing to her. Closing my eyes, I swore under my breath. I didn’t want to see her.

“No,” he murmured. “No, you do not.” There was a pause. “But you will.”

Scrubbing my hand across my jaw, I opened my eyes and stared out at the ocean as cars raced past us on the highway. “I’m only going to ask you one more time. What do you want?”

“Do you understand what it means to be a God Killer?” 

“That I can pretty much kill anything?”

“That was an unintelligent response. And I mean that as no insult. The knowledge of what you are capable of exists deep inside of you. It is what led you to force the awakening.”

It was that thing inside me.

“You have made your choice,” he stated again.

“Yes,” I answered. “I can’t . . . I can’t be around any of them.” 

The leather seats crackled as the nymph leaned toward me. I didn’t need to look at him to know he was way too close. “And you know where you want to go?” When I didn’t answer, he asked, “Why would you need to drive there?”

Looking over at him, I raised my brows. “Because I figured I’d drive and then I’d have to fly there.”

The nymph’s ultra-bright red lips curved into a smile. “You are the God Killer. You merely need to picture where you want to go and go there.”

I stared at him. “You’re shitting me.”

“Try it.” He sat back, his eyes like jewels. “And you will learn you are not just capable of death. You are capable of so much more.”

My first inclination was to simply throat-punch him right through the car door, but I decided to humor him. “Like what?”

“Like creating life.”

A harsh laugh burst out of me. “Yeah, you’re about a second away from ceasing to exist.”

“Try it,” he cajoled, completely unafraid. “Picture where you want to go. Try it just once.”

Glaring at him, I shook my head, but I did it. I don’t even know why, but I did. I pictured the rocky coasts and blue-green seas, and I could almost feel the golden sun on my skin, but it was more than that. ere was another voice that sounded like mine, but wasn’t. It told me where I needed to go.

Andros.

Warmth soaked into my skin, and my eyes flew open. “Holy . . .”

Shock nearly bowled me over. I was no longer sitting inside the SUV. Stumbling back a step, I realized I was staring at the frothy sea—the sea I hadn’t seen in years. My jaw unhinged. Impossible. I had to be hallucinating.

“See,” the nymph said, and I jerked to the side. He was also beside me. “You are capable of a lot, God Killer.”

I shook my head. “I don’t... How is this possible?”

The nymph turned to the ocean and then his lifted his hands, spreading his arms out. “Everything is possible.”

This couldn’t be real, but as I turned around, I knew... Dear gods, it was real, and I was half the world away from Josie in less than a second. I could barely process it.

We stood on the thin strip of white sand and rock of Andros, the northernmost island in the Cyclades. Mountainous and full of water-fed valleys that bore the fruit I used to sneak as a child, it was barely tame.

The weirdest damn sensation itched under my skin as I took in the path leading to the stairs climbing the steep hill. Taking a deep breath, I lifted my gaze to the sprawling sandstone home that was perched atop the highest peak. It was a monstrous building, three stories with several wings that, if it were the same, contained nothing more than marble statues and oil paintings depicting the gods. Balconies surrounded the upper two levels, with many nooks and crannies to hide in.

The veranda wasn’t empty.

“What the . . . ?” I trailed off.

There were people out on it, scores of them staring down at where we stood, and I could sense the aether in the pures and the fainter traces in the halfs.

The house should’ve been vacant. There was no reason for any of the staff to have remained after Mother had died.

“Who are these people?” I demanded.

The nymph inclined his chin. “Some were your mother’s staff, her servants... her confidants. They are now yours. Others came when you awakened. They are also yours.”

What the hell? “I don’t want them here.”

“Their master has finally come home.”

Master?

“Did you think it would be different?”

“Yes.” I frowned as those on the veranda, one by one, lowered themselves onto their knees and bowed their heads. Oh hell. “I thought it would be empty, for starters.”

The nymph chuckled.

Crossing my arms, I exhaled roughly. “I have no use of them.”

“Oh, you will find use of them, I am sure.”

I slid him a sidelong glance. “I’m really going to get tired of repeating myself. I have no need of servants. Gods. Those halfs should be freed.”

“Those halfs are here of their own volition. They are here because it is where you are, as I am here because of you,” the nymph said. “I am here to help you.”

“Why? Why would you help me?”

The nymph smiled. “My kind has walked this realm long before man—before the gods from Olympus overthrew the Titans. We were here even before the Titans ruled.”
Well, that sounded like a really long time ago, in a time period called I Don’t Give a Fuck. “What does that have to do with anything?”

Those odd eyes twinkled. Actually twinkled, like a pair of tiny stars. “We believe that the time for change has arrived once more.”

The question of what kind of change was due to arrive died on the tip of my tongue. I wanted no part of whatever the nymphs believed in or wanted. I had my own goals. I would ferret out whatever foxhole the Titans were hiding in and I would gladly destroy each one. They would be no threat to Josie.

“What is your name?” I did ask. One eyebrow rose. “Ewan.”

I snickered. “Ewan the Ewok.” The nymph frowned.

“Never mind,” I sighed and started forward. “Goodbye, Ewan.”

“Do you want to know about love?” he asked.

Rolling my eyes, I kept walking.

“Love is the root of all that is good, and the root of all things that are evil,” he called out. “Love is the root of the Apollyon.” The fine hairs on my arms rose, and I stopped. The pures and halfs on the veranda waited, the women’s pale blue and rose-colored dresses billowing in the breeze. Something about what the nymph was saying rang eerily familiar.

“Fate is afoot,” he continued. “Things cannot be undone. Fate has looked into the past and into the future. History is on repeat.”

Slowly, almost against my will, I turned around. The nymph stood where I’d left him, but there was something ancient and wise in his gaze.

“Know the difference between need and love.” Ewan’s voice carried on the salty breeze. Those amethyst eyes rolled back, revealing all-white pupils.

“Oh hell no,” I muttered, actually wanting to take a step back to stop what I knew was coming.

The nymph glided forward and spoke the words that had been meant for the first Apollyon—for Alex—and brought life to a prophecy once unfinished.

“For what the gods have feared has come to pass. The end of the old is here and the beginning of the new has been ushered in.” His voice rose, carrying out to sea and over the clffs. “For the sun child and the new god will give birth to a new era and the great creators will fall one by one, reshaping our homes and hearths, reaping man and mortal alike.”

Oh, fuck me sideways.

Sun Child? New God? Give birth, and reapings? Yeah, I wanted no part of this. “You know, you can—”

“A bloody path has been chosen,” he went on, because of course. There apparently was no stopping this. “The Great War fought by the few is coming, and in the end, the sun will fall and the moon will reign until the new sun rises.”

My brows rose. Sort of sounded like a normal day to me.

“Know this,” the nymph seemed to bellow. “The strength of the sun will be needed to conquer, for the strength of war and cunning will not be enough. Love and need must be reconciled. If not, the great land will perish, for the bull is in the house of the lion.”
Well.

I officially had no words. At all. None.

Ewan the nymph dropped to one knee. “Goodbye Seth, the God of Life ...”

A shiver blasted down my spine as a bolt of lightning struck off the coast, slamming into the ocean.

The nymph bowed its head. “The God of Death.”

# 1 New York Times and #1 International Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing, she spends her time reading, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.

Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her Covenant Series has been optioned for TV. Her young adult romantic suspense novel DON’T LOOK BACK was a 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA.

She also writes Adult and New Adult contemporary and paranormal romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

Links:
Website: http://jenniferlarmentrout.com/
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Jennifer L. Armentrout Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4476934.Jennifer_L_Armentrout

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BLOG TOUR REVIEW & EXCERPT: Shade's Lady (Reapers MC #6.5)

 Check out my review of Joanna Wylde's SHADE'S LADY, and then read the excerpt!

Shade's Lady (Reapers MC #6.5), by Joanna Wylde
Publish Date: March 14, 2017
Publisher: Evil Eye Concepts, Inc.
Format: e-ARC, provided by the author and Inkslinger PR
Genre: adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon

Rating: 5 STARS

(Synopsis) Looking back, none of this would’ve happened if I hadn’t dropped my phone in the toilet. I mean, I could’ve walked away from him if I’d had it with me. 

Or maybe not. 

Maybe it was all over the first time he saw me, and he would’ve found another way. Probably—if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that Shade always gets what he wants, and apparently he wanted me. 

Right from the first.

The thing about bad boys that we all love is not the fact that they're bad. It's that when they are good, it is so much more meaningful. Right? 

Shade is the baddest of the bad. He's the president of the Reapers. All of them in the entire world are expected to obey him. You know he has to be a pretty bad dude. Nothing phases him. Nothing scares him. And he always gets what he wants. Except... Mandy. 

Mandy knows losers. She was married to one. Her sister was married to one. She's casually dating one. And after he burns her in a really skeevy way, Shade makes his intentions to have her in his bed known. Although Mandy is super attracted to him, she turns him down flat. Men are trouble. Bad men are even worse. And Shade is the baddest of the bad.

Shade was all badass and sunglasses and hair that'd been swept in the wind. I was just small town white trash with a good push-up bra.

Shade's Lady is everything I love about the Reaper's MC series. There's a bunch of MC togetherness in the form of secret meetings, family barbecues and bonding over torture. Shade is like many of the members of his MC - he loves the perks of loose women, the open road and freedom from the law (since most of the cops are paid off). So, when Mandy turns him down, he thinks maybe he just wants  her for the challenge. That once he has her, he can move on. 

Except, he actually LIKED spending time with her. While fully clothed. Mind. Blown. And when Mandy and her sister need his help to fix some really bad problems, Shade and his club don't hesitate even for a second to help. And that's the good in Shade that made him SO. AWESOME.

If you're a fan of the Reaper's MC series, you've got to add this novella to your TBR. It includes a badass heroine, motorcycle club business and a hero that you will love to read about being bad. 

“You get to travel,” I told him, frustrated. “In a few weeks or a month or whatever you’ll leave this place. You’ll go see things and do things, and for some reason you seem to have enough money to live on without taking a shitty job waiting tables.”

Shade snorted. “Mandy, you don’t wanna know how I get my money.”

“Let me guess—it’s bad?” I asked, rolling my eyes. “I’m starting to think I’m genetically incapable of being attracted to a good guy. No offense.”

“None taken,” he replied, offering a slow smile. “I’m not a good man. But I’m not a man who’ll drag you down into the dirt, either. Or let you get caught up in club business. The Reapers have been around for a long time and we’re real good at taking care of our people. I’m not sayin’ I’ll never need a getaway car, but if I do, I sure as shit won’t trick my woman into driving it.”

God, how was he so sexy when he was saying such terrible things? And that knowing, naughty look in his eyes...it wasn’t fair.

“This is crazy,” I said, trying hard not to smile back at him. “I need to get to work and you need to go do whatever it is that you do that may or may not involve getaway cars"

Joanna Wylde started her writing career in journalism, working in two daily newspapers as both a reporter and editor. Her career has included many different jobs, from managing a homeless shelter to running her own freelance writing business, where she took on projects ranging from fundraising to ghostwriting for academics. During 2012 she got her first Kindle reader as a gift and discovered the indie writing revolution taking place online. Not long afterward she started cutting back her client list to work on Reaper’s Property, her breakout book. It was published in January 2013, marking the beginning of a new career writing fiction.

Joanna lives in the mountains of northern Idaho with her family.

Visit Joanna Wylde’s website and follow her on:  Website | Facebook | Twitter