Review – Just For Today by Emmie Dark

She’s not that kind of girl!

Veterinarian Jess Alexander doesn’t have one-night stands with the best man at a coworker’s wedding. But thirtysomething divorcée Jess is definitely in a rut that a night of reckless passion with a younger man just might break. And what better candidate than criminally good-looking Sean Paterson?

Being with Sean is exhilarating. But where could this relationship possibly go? Expecting anything more than a good time from Sean is a one-way ticket to heartbreak. Against her better judgment, Jess can’t walk away from whatever this is…not yet.

Just For Today is a story that won’t stay with you just for today (pardon the pun). It’s one of those books you’ll think about down the track and remember just how lovely it was.

Jess is in her thirties, fresh from a divorce and not sure about re-entering the dating pool. Sean is the younger man, cocky and confident and very sure of the effect he has on the opposite sex. They meet at the wedding of her co-worker, Hailey to his brother, Rob. Sparks fly instantly and they have a hot night together. However, what is originally intended as a “one-night-only” quickly turns into something much more.

What I loved so much about Just For Today was Jess and Sean. They are both such vibrant and real characters. They matched each other so beautifully when it came to intelligence, compassion and love for what they do. The physical connection between them is also really well done.

Both Jess and Sean are flawed – they have and have had problems and issues to deal with in their lives. However, upon meeting each other, it seems to me as if they are finally finding that missing piece of the puzzle they need to move onwards and upwards from their pasts. However, with Jess not wanting to settle for being someone’s second best again and Sean’s somewhat nomadic life, the road to their happy ending may not be as smooth as one would want.

Just For Today left a real smile on my face. It was funny, sweet, smart and emotional. Emmie Dark is definitely one wonderful Australian author to watch out for!

My rating: 4.5 out of 5

Release Date: 1 June 2013

Purchase Links: Amazon – Nook – Harlequin

Note: I was provided with an advanced reader copy of this book by the author, Emmie Dark in return for an honest review.

Review – Italian Affair by Annie Seaton

Free-spirited sex therapist Brianna Ballantine has four days to find a fiancé so she can inherit her birth mother’s Italian villa. Commitment is not on the agenda. Writing her sex therapy book and signing legal papers are. And once all is said and done, she’ll return home to Scotland.

For finance guru Tomas Richards, relationships have been a bad investment—give him stocks and shares any day. When Tomas offers a marriage of convenience to help Brianna secure her inheritance, the sizzle between the sheets promises an affair to remember, despite family complications at every turn.

But Tom must convince Brianna to stay, and make this Italian affair a lifelong commitment.

I’ll tell you, people, after reading this wonderful book, I felt like taking a holiday to Lipari Island. Oh my, it sounds just wonderful. Annie Seaton has such a marvellous and vivid way of describing the characters and the location, you feel as if you are right there on the journey with them.

In this, the second of the Affair series, we revisit the Richards brothers – this time, it’s Tomas. He’s the straight-laced finance guy, a planner to the core, a lover of lists. He makes a break from his life by taking over his aunt’s marina on his mother’s home island of Lipari. At the airport and on the flight, he encounters Brianna Ballantyne, a vibrant sex therapist/writer from Scotland.

Brianna has come halfway across the world and back to find out more about her birth mother. Upon arriving in Sydney, she discovered that her now-late mother has left her a villa on Lipari, but she has a limited time to claim her inheritance.

It turns out there is a provision in her mother’s will that Brianna needs to be married to inherit the villa. Knowing no one and with a very tight timeline, Brianna asks Tom to act as her fiancé. Somehow they end up actually tying the knot, and this kicks off a set of events that neither was expecting……..especially falling in love.

Sometimes, marriage of convenience stories can seem a little far-fetched or silly, but I didn’t get that with this one. Each finds the other attractive (and admits it), but there are no instant declarations of love. The attraction builds after the marriage.

Tom and Brianna has such a wonderful chemistry, and you can believe that this could be real. Ms Seaton does a wonderful job of building the tension between them, a tension which at times sparks from the pages of the book. If you want to know what I mean by that, check out the scene after the dinner at Nonno’s. Hot!!

I love that Tom has respect for what Brianna does for a job, and doesn’t come over all giggly when she tells him what her book is about. Take note, fellas, that’s sexy in my book.

I particularly loved that only hints of the Scottish were dropped with Brianna. Those of you who read my reviews regularly will know that books written in some bizarre faux-Scots dialect get me irritated. So, thank you, Ms Seaton, for allowing your readers to use their imagination here.

This was such a lovely story and when the HEA comes, it is tied up romantically without being too sickly sweet. I am very much looking forward to the next instalment in the Affair series, Outback Affair, which is Alex’s story.

My rating: 4.5 out of 5

Release Date: 10 June 2013

Purchase Links: Amazon – iBookstore – Nook

Note: I was provided with an advanced reader copy of this book by Entangled Publishing, LLC in return for an honest review.

Review – Untamed by Anna Cowan

Outspoken and opinionated, Katherine Sutherland is ill at ease amongst the fine ladies of Regency London. She is more familiar with farmers and her blunt opinions and rough manners offend polite society. Yet when she hears the scandalous rumours involving her sister and the seductive Duke of Darlington, the fiercely loyal Katherine vows to save her sister’s marriage – whatever the  cost.

Intrigued by Katherine’s interference in his affairs, the manipulative Duke is soon fascinated. He engages in a daring deception and follows her back to her country home. Here, their intense connection shocks them both. But the Duke’s games have dangerous consequences, and the potential to throw both their lives into chaos…

If I was only allowed one word to describe what I thought about Untamed, it would have to be “extraordinary”.

I don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like it, in fact. When I saw the blurb on NetGalley, I thought it sounded like just the type of historical romance I love – strong and ballsy heroine, roguish cheeky hero – perfect! Untamed has that and oh so much more. It plays with regular romantic conventions, smashes them and seems to create a whole set of its own.

Review – Paradise Island by Charmaine Ross

It is Dartmouth Cove, Nova Scotia, 1853 and Captain Estelle Stonebridge is consumed with revenge against the man that killed her father. Captain Gregory Marshall is lulled to sleep by the fiery-haired valkrie’s magical song when she kidnaps him. Upon waking he finds himself in chains staring at the beautiful Estelle. Estelle is taking him to her Island of Paradise to face trial for a murder he didn’t commit.

Attacked by the notorious pirate, Jack Cutlass, and magically appearing in a land they know nothing about, Estelle soon realizes there is more at stake than fighting her arch enemy. With the unsettling notion that there is something otherworldly manipulating them all, Estelle is torn between taking Gregory with her to Paradise, battling her powerful attraction to him, and fighting the magical curse —Amor Fati—that Cutlass has unleashed on the world.

As Estelle and Gregory work together, albeit begrudgingly at first, and are drawn closer to the evil source, the battle intensifies as an evil power takes over minds of many men and eventually Estelle herself. Estelle must use her magical gift to defeat the terrible power that is close to being unleashed on the world, overcome her deep mistrust of men, and realize her powerful love for Gregory.

As I have mentioned before, this year for me has been about reading outside my comfort zone. When I was approached with the opportunity to read Paradise Island, I thought this is perfectly outside my comfort zone – pirates, curses, otherworldly powers, you name it. So I grabbed a copy and started to read. I’m really glad that I did.

Review – Real Men Don’t Quit by Coleen Kwan

Serial bachelor. Celebrity author. Her perfect forever?

When famous author Luke Maguire decides to write his next novel in the small town of Burronga, Australia, he’s sure he can ignore the fiery redhead next door. Not only has he just been burned from a high-profile breakup, but he’s never been one to set down roots. No, he’ll finish his novel and leave Burronga. And soon.Tyler Jones just wants to run her business with her best friend, Ally, and take care of her three-year-old daughter, Chloe. She’s never needed help from anyone, especially not a man, and the brooding, rugged writer next door can’t tempt her. Not in the least.

Only Tyler and Luke can’t stay away from each other. So they set rules. No staying overnight, no future plans, no sappy good-byes when Luke inevitably quits town. But the chemistry between them is too strong to contain in a rulebook. Are Luke and Tyler ready to risk their lives of independence for something more?

Real Men Don’t Quit is a sweet, feel-good romance that will leave you with a smile on your face.

Luke, a renowned writer, is struggling with the loss of his mother six months previously, as well as a loss of passion for his work – he has discovered he can’t stand the character that made him well-known. I wonder how many writers go through that. He’s also avoiding commitment because he thinks he’s going to be like his father, who left his mother to raise five children alone.

Tyler, a single mum, is trying to work and run a business as well as raising her daughter Chloe. Tyler’s life to date has not been all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows and thanks to her own mother and a drug-addicted ex-boyfriend, she has a really major-league issue with being able to trust people. I sensed that Tyler was hardest on herself when it came to trust.