{Review} The Look-Alike by Erica Spindler

About The Book

Title: The Look-Alike
Author: Erica Spindler
Genres: Psychological Thriller

Description

From Erica Spindler, the New York Times bestselling author of The Other Girl and Justice for Sara comes The Look-Alike, a thrilling psychological drama about a woman who believes she escaped a brutal murder years ago—but does anyone else believe her?

Sienna Scott grew up in the dark shadow of her mother’s paranoid delusions. Now, she's returned home to confront her past and the unsolved murder that altered the course of her life.

In her mother’s shuttered house, an old fear that has haunted Sienna for years rears its ugly head—that it was she who had been the killer’s target that night. And now, with it, a new fear—that the killer not only intended to remedy his past mistake—he’s already begun. But are these fears any different from the ones that torment her mother?

As the walls close in, the line between truth and lie, reality and delusion disintegrate. Has Sienna’s worst nightmare come true? Or will she unmask a killer and finally prove she may be her mother’s look-alike, but she’s not her clone?

Favorite Quote

"Minutes passed; her heart slowed, her vision cleared. Her panic retreated, leaving the strong of the cold--- and the heat of embarrassment."

Review

The Look-Alike is the Brenda Novak February Book Club book for February. I was very excited to read my first book by Erica Spindler, as I had heard great things about her writing. 

Through Sienna, a compelling character, the author allows a fitful plot to unravel. I read this story in a single sitting and loved every page. The supporting cast, aka the suspect list, is comprised of amazing people. 

This psychological-suspenseful thriller twists everything...!

This book was provided to me free of charge for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.

{Review} Ignite on Contact (Brotherhood by Fire, #2) by Jaci Burton

About The Book

Title: Ignite on Contact
Series: Brotherhood by Fire, #1
Author: Jaci Burton 
Genres: Contemporary, Romance

Description

New York Times bestselling author Jaci Burton is back with a friends-to-lovers romance sure to melt hearts as one smokin'-hot fireman turns up the heat on love.

Relationships. Firefighter Rafe Donovan avoids them whenever possible. He loves dating women, but he makes sure they know up front that he's in it for fun, great sex and nothing more.

Fun. As an ER nurse and official caretaker of her disabled grandfather, Carmen Lewis doesn't have time for fun. But Rafe has been there for Carmen--and her grandfather--time and again, and he's clearly interested in her. She knows he's a player, but she's tempted by his charm and incredible body. And maybe a little fun isn't a bad thing, as long as she keeps her heart away from this fiery game she's enjoying with a very hot man.

Love. It doesn't take Rafe long to realize that until now he's only been playing at romance. With Carmen he feels searing passion and heart-tugging emotion for the first time. Now he has to convince Carmen that what they have together is the real deal.

Favorite Quote

"She tasted salty, like the ocean, but her kiss was damn sweet on his lips."

Review

Firefighters and Jaci Burton - equal auto-buy!

I enjoy friends-to-lovers stories, and these two were delightful, as a couple. Rafe is so easygoing, which offsets how uptight Carmen. Ignite on Contact is a smooth read with just a bit of unnecessary drama near the end. Once again, Jaci Burton shows that family is more the blood. 

The author allows the emotions of the characters to progress the story – often exposing their vulnerabilities naturally.

This book was provided to me free of charge for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.

The Books In The Series

{Review} Hot to the Touch (Brotherhood by Fire #1) by Jaci Burton

About The Book

Title: Hot to the Touch
Series: Brotherhood by Fire, #1
Author: Jaci Burton 
Genres: Contemporary, Romance

Description

Love burns white-hot in this first scorching romance in an all-new trilogy about a family of firefighters from the New York Times bestselling author of the Play-by-Play novels and the Hope series.

Firefighter Jackson Donovan doesn't look back—as a rule. So when his past comes roaring back to life in the form of not-so-damsel-in-distress Becks Benning, the last thing he wants to do is relive old times. No matter how tempting she makes it seem...

Now thanks to his two interfering brothers, Becks is living with them while she looks for a new place and tries to pick up the pieces of her tattoo business that went up in flames. Which means a grown up, smokin' hot Becks is in his house, sharing meals, and digging up old wounds. And despite his better judgement, the more time he spends with this smart, artistic, incredible woman the more he wants her in his bed—and his future.

Becks always had it bad for Jackson. Unfortunately for her, not much has changed—he's still honorable, hard-working, sexy as sin—and closed off. But there's more than one way to get to a man's heart and if Jackson doesn't want to recall old memories, she'll just have to help him make new ones. Because now that she's found Jackson again, she's not letting him go.

Favorite Quote

"She'd bet Jackson was really good at sex. He had that fuming, smoldering intensity that signaled pent-up sexual frustration." 

Review

Firefighters and Jaci Burton -  Yes, Please!

However, once I got started I struggled with the heroine, Becks. She was simply too wimpy...her feelings were too easily trampled; it drove me crazy. So although, the story featured Becks and Jackson -- it was the bond between Jackson, Rafe and Kal that kept me entertained.

Jackson is adorable, even when he gets all grumpy with Becks. Cannot wait to read about Rafe and Kal finding 'the one'.

This book was provided to me free of charge for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.

The Books In The Series

{Review} One Perfect Kiss (Hope #8) by Jaci Burton

About The Book

Title: One Perfect Kiss
Series: Hope, #8
Author: Jaci Burton 
Genres: Romance, Sports

Description

The New York Times bestselling author of Love Me Again returns to the town of Hope, Oklahoma where school is in session and love rules the playbook.

Josie Barnes has always craved a sense of home. She's found that in Hope, Oklahoma--she bought a house, has a new job as an English teacher at Hope High, she's made wonderful friends, and she's taking in stray animals that no one else wants. Now she's flirting with fellow teacher and hot high school football coach Zach Powers. But he's almost too good to be true, and Josie learned long ago not to trust in the too-good-to-be-true, because it has always let her down.

A former pro football player, Zach had to pull back when a career-ending knee injury forced him to rethink his future. Now he's happy calling plays as Coach. If he could just get Josie Barnes to stop benching his players for their poor grades, life would be perfect. Instead, she drives him crazy as the stern teacher at school and the sexy woman of his dreams outside of the classroom. He knows she's been hurt in the past, but he wants to be that guy she can trust.

The one thing Josie has never been able to count on is the people closest to her. But Zach intends to show her that what they have between them is a textbook case of love.

Favorite Quote

"...took her mouth in a kiss that made her forget about everything except the fire and passion he always seemed to be able to ignite with in her." 

Review

I was excited to visit with the folks (and animals) that live in Hope, Oklahoma. This series reflects everything I love about small towns, especially the friendships that thrive. Zach and Josie have very different views on love which, oddly, makes them an even more awesome couple. As expected, we get to spend time with previous characters, get updates - thanks Jaci Burton.

This book was provided to me free of charge for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.

The Books In The Series

{Review} The Final Score (Play by Play, #13) by Jaci Burton

About The Book

Title: The Final Score
Series: Play-by-Play, #13
Author: Jaci Burton 
Genres: Romance, Sports

Description

In the new Play-by-Play novel by the New York Times bestselling author of Rules of Contact, a star quarterback is torn between his love of the game—and the woman who may be the love of his life.

Nathan Riley is ready to follow in the footsteps of his famous football player father. He’s been drafted as quarterback for his dad’s former team, and his sports future is bright. When his friend Mia Cassidy moves to the same city, their years-long friendship suddenly sparks hot, reminding him of the one night they had together in college that he can never forget.

Like Nathan, Mia is from a sports dynasty family and embarking on an incredible new career—as founder of her own sports management company. Her friendship with Nathan means everything to her, and tossing sex into the mix again could jeopardize it all. But the chemistry between them has always sizzled, and it isn’t long before Mia realizes she wants more with Nathan than just late-night talks and pizza.

Passion has a funny way of changing the rules, and soon Nathan and Mia realize that to win it all, they’ll have to make an unexpected play for love.

Review

Jaci Burton is an auto-buy author for me but, I seriously considered skipping this book. Firstly, The Prefect Play, featuring Nathan's parents, is one of my go-to comfort reads. So in my mind, Nathan is just a teenager but, I realized the author could (and did) age him. Secondly, Mia is my absolute least favorite Cassidy...and I was not sure there was anything that would make her heroine material.

After finishing the story, I still do not like Mia but, I was glad that Nathan got a happily ever after. I do wish that his story had been saved for last. Do not misunderstand, I do not want the Play-By-Play series to end...it just would have been special to have Mick's HEA start the series and his son's, Nathan, to close it out. 

This book was provided to me free of charge for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.

The Books In The Series

 

{Review} Rules of Contact (Play-by-Play #12) by Jaci Burton

About The Book

Title: Rules of Contact
Series: Play-by-Play, #12
Author: Jaci Burton
Genres: Romance, Suspense

Description

In the new Play-By-Play novel by the New York Times bestselling author of Unexpected Rush, a football player with all the right moves on the field needs a better game plan for his love life. 

A defensive end for the San Francisco Sabers, Flynn Cassidy is used to being in the spotlight—he just doesn’t enjoy it. But if getting in front of the cameras will help his new restaurant succeed, he’s willing. Now if he could just meet a woman who loved him and not his fame…

After her divorce, Amelia Lawrence is thrilled to start over as head chef at Ninety-Two. It’s just the opportunity she needs to heat up her career—if only she wasn’t wildly attracted to her sexy new boss. Their chemistry might be sizzling hot, but Amelia has no intention of being burned again.

Amelia is genuine and fun and Flynn can’t get enough of her—and Amelia loves every second she spends with the tough but tender Flynn. But trust is a hard fought battle for both of them. Breaking the rules of contact and surrendering to their passion was easy, but are they willing to risk their hearts to win at the game of love?

Favorite Quote

“Tell me what you need.” - Flynn to Amelia
“An orgasm would be nice.”- Amelia to Flynn

Review

The Prefect Play, the first book in this series is one of my go-to comfort reads.. Jaci Burton is an auto-buy author for me; has been since I discovered her Wild Ride series.  Amelia and Flynn both have trust issues but, the passion between is them is sizzling hot. I have never been a fan of the boss/employee troupe but, these characters made it work. I appreciated that the romance was easy-going and that the drama was kept to a minimum. Spending time with the Cassidy family is no hardship, lots of fun times.

This book was provided to me free of charge for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.

The Books In The Series

{Review} Ghost of a Chance (Wilde Ways #7) by Cynthia Eden

About The Book

Title: Ghost of a Chance
Series: Wilde Ways, #7
Author: Cynthia Eden
Genres: Romance, Suspense

Description

How well do you know the lover in your bed?

It was the hottest hookup of her life. When Tess Barrett spent the night in the arms of the too sexy to be real stranger, she knew she was walking on the wild side. Sex with James Smith was the best EVER. How was she supposed to walk away from that? From him? So…she didn’t. They planned secret dates. More body-melting hookups. The white-hot sex should have been enough.

So why does she start wanting more?

But they have rules. She has rules. No emotions. No ties. She has a past that is dark and twisted, and she’s worked hard to become a new person. She’s a doctor now. Respected. Controlled. Except…there is no control when she’s around James.

A bad guy…might be falling for the good girl.

James can’t keep his hands off his sexy little doctor. She’s buttoned down for everyone else but goes absolutely wild for him. Sure, she doesn’t know his history. Doesn’t know that the man she lets touch every inch of her body used to spend his days working for Uncle Sam and doing some seriously dirty deeds. What she doesn’t know can’t hurt her, right? And if she ever did learn the truth about him, he knew it would terrify his sweet doc right to her core. Terror would make her run. He doesn’t want her running. He just wants her in his bed.

But then…something happens. Danger sneaks up on Tess. She needs help—a very particular expertise and protective skill set. She needs someone lethal and strong…and James is just the man for the job. After all, lethal is his middle name.

Hello, dangerous times.

When James steps in, Tess doesn’t know if she should be grateful or scared to death. Because her gorgeous lover? Turns out he has plenty of mad and dangerous skills. She’s been hooking up with a superhero or…maybe a super villain. It’s sort of hard to tell the difference.

For the moment, she’s going to go with feeling grateful…but as she learns all of his secrets, Tess wonders what will happen next between them. Will they crash and burn? Burn, baby, burn. Or maybe, just maybe, they’ll actually have a GHOST OF A CHANCE at getting a happily ever after ending.

Author’s Note: James Smith is one mad, bad, dangerous guy…but sometimes, bad guys fall hard for good girls. GHOST OF A CHANCE is super hot, charged with lots of feels, and, it’s got some pulse-pounding action for you. Dirty words and dirty deeds are dead ahead. Oh, and there’s plenty of fun thrown in, too. Mystery, humor, sexy times, and danger—all of my favorite things in a book.

Favorite Quote

"You fell asleep in my arms last night. Like I was a guardian angel or some shit." - James to Tess

Review

These two are explosive together. James Smith is dangerously sexy...the author blended all my favorite elements into a single character .- "Possessive. Protective. Primitive." And I love that Tess can make him lose control. Tess's mouth has no filter which leads to some interesting moments. There seems to be danger coming at them from all directions...kept this reader wondering what was going to happen next. 

Review Copy Provided By: Cynthia Eden, the author.

This book was provided to me free of charge for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.

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