Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

RITA Reader Challenge Review: Deadly Fear by Cynthia Eden

Joan Swan wrote this RITA® Reader Challenge review. This novel finaled in the Romantic Suspense category.

Plot Summary: FBI Special Agent Monica Davenport has made a career out of profiling serial killers. But getting inside the twisted minds of the cruel and the sadistic has taken its toll: She’s walled herself off from the world. Yet Monica can’t ignore fellow agent Luke Dante, the only man who ever broke through her defenses.

Luke has the unique ability to put victims at ease . . . professionally, he and Monica made a perfect team. Now they’re reunited to catch a murderer who uses his victims’ deepest, darkest fears for sport - but their investigative skills aren’t enough. Luke and Monica will have to face the secrets from their past, the ones that terrify them the most, if they are to have a future together.

And here is Joan’s review:

RITA Reader Challenge Review: Nothing But Trouble by Rachel Gibson

It’s Lindlee, reading one book from every category for the RITA® Reader Challenge. This book finaled in the Best Contemporary Romance category.

Plot Summary: Chelsea Ross’s acting career has been a total bust. The closest she ever came to stardom was her brilliant performance as “Pretty Dead Girl #1.” But leaving Hollywood to become the personal assistant to a famous hockey player could be her stupidest career move ever.

Injured superstar Mark Bressler’s glory days are over. The bad-boy ex-jock could at least be civil to the pint-sized, pink-haired bombshell who the Seattle Chinooks hired to be his P.A. If Chelsea didn’t need the money, she’d be running from the world’s biggest jerk as fast as her feet could carry her.

Chelsea can deal with Mark’s rotten attitude and dark moods. The problem is those biceps and that red-hot bod! And when the bad boy starts to put the moves on her, Chelsea knows it’s… read more »

RITA Reader Challenge Review: The Wedding Garden by Linda Goodnight

This is a new one for the RITA® Reader Challenge: Reina tried to read it, and couldn’t get through the book. So it’s a DNF/ Did Not Finish for her. But the description and her review might signal that it’s a book that may appeal to you.

Plot Summary: “Are You My Dad?”

The young boy’s question shocks Sloan Hawkins. Until Sloan realizes he is this child’s father. Years ago, the former bad boy was run out of Redemption, Oklahoma, where, ironically, he was thought unredeemable. The only people who believed in him were his beloved aunt and Annie Markham, the girl he loved and left behind. Now Sloan is back to face his past and help keep his aunt’s cherished garden thriving. But when he discovers his secret child—and that single mother Annie never stopped loving him—he’s determined that a wedding will take place in the garden nurtured by faith and love.

And here… read more »

RITA Reader Challenge Review: To Surrender to a Rogue by Cara Elliott

No review was submitted for this book for the RITA® Reader Challenge, so I have searched out other strong reviews to supplement. I am not, however, assigning a grade to this review. This book finaled in the Regency Historical Romance category.

Plot Summary: An expert in antiquities, Lady Alessandra della Giamatti arrives in Bath to excavate newly discovered Roman ruins-only to find herself caught in a web of evil intrigue by a blackmailer threatening to expose her scandalous past. The one man who can help her is Lord James “Black Jack” Pierson, a fellow member of the expedition and a sinfully handsome rogue whose tempting presence ignites a different sort of danger. Jack has clashed with Alessandra in the past, so when she suddenly surrenders her body he can’t help being suspicious. Is she a scheming temptress? Or is she truly a lady in trouble? As desire and deceptions swirl around them, Alessandra and Jack… read more »

RITA Reader Challenge Review: In Harm’s Way by Irene Hannon

Lindlee, who is like Iron Chef RITA Reviews over here, read this novel for the RITA® Reader Challenge. It finaled in the Best Inspirational Romance category.

Plot Summary: How can she expect anyone to believe her—when she can hardly believe it herself?

FBI special agent Nick Bradley has seen his share of kooks during his fifteen years with the Bureau. But Rachel Sutton is an enigma. She seems normal when she shows up at his office—until she produces a tattered Raggedy Ann doll and tells him about a strange feeling of terror it gives her when she touches it. Nick dismisses her, only to stumble across a link between the doll and an abducted child, setting in motion a chain of events that uncovers startling connections—and puts Rachel’s life on the line.

And here is Lindlee’s review:

Warped by Maurissa Guibord, A Guest Review by Tina

Every now and again I post Book Rants, where people email me for many, many kilobytes about a book that set their pants on fire in a bad way. Today I have a guest review that is mostly in the form of a Book Squee, lest you think we don’t squee enough around these here parts. Tina C. would probably flail her arms and jump up and down if forced to give this review out loud.

Tina wrote, I just finished a book, Warped, by Maurissa Guibord, that I downloaded from our local library.  It is a YA, which I don’t usually read, but I’m so glad I picked this up!  It’s one of the best books that I’ve read in a really long time.  I loved the hero and the heroine and I thought the plot was engrossing and original.  The summary on the Amazon page doesn’t do it justice.

To which I said, “TELL ME MORE.” This was Tina’s response:

Well, I just tried to describe the story to my husband—complete with, “No, it’s really good!” interjections—and realized that it’s difficult to describe without it sounding a lot more… read more »

RITA Reader Challenge Review: The Baby’s Guardian by Delores Fossen

This RITA® Reader Challenge review was written by…me. No one signed up for this book so I read it. Oh, boy.

Plot Summary: In the past twenty-four hours Sabrina Carr had been shot at, kidnapped and held hostage. As if being eight months pregnant wasn’t stressful enough!

Now, after narrowly escaping the clutches of masked gunmen, Sabrina and her baby needed a protector. That’s when hot Texas cop Shaw Tolbert came to her rescue. As the surrogate mother to his child, Sabrina couldn’t help the sizzling attraction to Shaw that the danger stirred up…or the kiss that told her she meant more to him than she ever realized. With her attackers still on the loose, Sabrina’s priority was keeping the baby safe. But how could she keep her cool when things were so hot?

And now, my review:

Rushed to the Altar by Jane Feather: A Book Rant from Dora

Every now and again, I receive an epic rant about a book that not only displeased the reader but set her off in a truly hilarious fit of rage. I call them ‘Book Rants,’ because sometimes ranting about a book that made you furious is the only way to squeeze a little good out of an altogether horrific reading experience. Today’s Book Rant comes from Dora, who was not pleased by this book.

This book just got me so angry I started typing this, and before I knew it… well, I thought maybe you might be interested in hearing what I thought about it. Here’s the review with my admittedly shameful grade of DNF.

Whenever I dislike a romance novel, I always have to try to temper my reaction with the knowledge that it probably wasn’t for me. I’m an intermittent bodice-ripper gal at best, and a lot of my purchases in the genre tend to be made on impulse on the “Best Seller” wall in the local supermarket, a stop I usually make on my way for kitty litter and inappropriate carbohydrates. Rushed to the Altar by Jane Feather was one… read more »

RITA Reader Challenge Review: Finding Her Way Home by Linda Goodnight

Lisa reviewed this book for the RITA® Reader Challenge, and unfortunately found it to be a difficult review to write in some respects.

Plot Summary: Welcome To Redemption, Oklahoma

The idyllic little town Cheyenne Rhodes has chosen for her fresh start is almost too welcoming. After all, she’s come here to hide from her past—not to make new friends.

But single dad Trace Bowman isn’t about to let Cheyenne hide away her heart. He can’t ignore the special way she has with his daughter, Zoey—or how she’s reminded him of the power of real love. Now he needs to convince Cheyenne that Redemption is more than a place to hide—it’s also a way to be found….

NB: I think we need to start keeping track of all these unbelievably cute and eerie small town names for posterity’s sake. They’re like plot moppets (™RedHeadedGirl) only town names. In fact, I bet Prosperity is the name of… read more »

The Twisted Tale Of Stormy Gale by Christine Bell - Guest Review by Carrie S

Another guest review from Carrie S, who loves sci fi romance, and things steampunk as well.

I love steampunk sooooo very much.  Something about all those gears and goggles and mad scientists running around in improbable corsetry just enchants my very soul.  So, I was very excited to read The Twisted Tale of Stormy Gale, by Christine Bell. Given the subject matter of a time traveler with a fondness for The Wizard of Oz, a character named “The Loony Duke of Leister”, and steampunk elements galore, I was hoping it would be a lot of fun.  Given the brevity of the book (really more of a novella, at only 25,900 words) I was concerned that it would feel too rushed.  As it turns out, I was right on both counts, but it was also more emotionally moving than I expected it to be. 

Once upon a time there were these two Victorian guttersnipe brother and sister orphans who were rescued from the streets by a time traveler from our present day.  Now, in 2010 (ok, slightly previously to now, which is 2011, which is why time travel themes give me headaches), the… read more »

RITA Reader Challenge Review: Twice Tempted by a Rogue by Tessa Dare

SusiB reviewed this book for the RITA® Reader Challenge. This novel was nominated for best Regency historical romance.

Plot summary: The daring members of the Stud Club are reckless gamblers and no strangers to risk—until love raises the stakes in Twice Tempted by a Rogue. Luck is a double-edged sword for brooding war hero Rhys St. Maur. His death wish went unanswered on the battlefield, while fate allowed the murder of his good friend in the elite gentlemen’s society known as the Stud Club. Out of options, Rhys returns to his ancestral home on the moors of Devonshire, expecting anything but a chance at redemption in the arms of a beautiful innkeeper who dares him to take on the demons of his past—and the sweet temptation of a woman’s love.

Meredith Maddox believes in hard work, not fate, and romance isn’t part of her plan. But when… read more »

RITA Reader Challenge Review: Maid to Match by Deeanne Gist

Emily signed up to review four books for the RITA® Reader Challenge, and she really liked this one quite a bit. She also said that she would “like to thank my library which had a copy of Maid to Match.” Thank you, Emily’s library!

Plot Summary? Why yes! From the day she arrives at the Biltmore, Tillie Reese is dazzled—by the riches of the Vanderbilts and by Mack Danvers, a mountain man turned footman. When Tillie is enlisted to help tame Mack’s rugged behavior by tutoring him in the ways of refined society, the resulting sparks threaten Tillie’s efforts to be chosen as Edith Vanderbilt’s lady’s maid. But the stakes rise even higher when Mack and Tillie become entangled in a cover-up at the town orphanage. They could both lose their jobs…and their hearts.

And here is Emily’s review:

RITA Reader Challenge Review: Not That Kind of Girl by Susan Donovan

Onward with the RITA® Reader Challenge reviews! I had an email this morning asking why I didn’t do any last week. Sorry! There’s plenty more a-comin’, fear not!

This review is by Julie C. She read Not That Kind of Girl by Susan Donovan. Behold, ye plot summary: Roxanne Bloom is through with love. Fresh on the heels of a bad break-up, she’s decided to devote all her time to her man-slamming website—and her man-hating dog, Lilith. But this pit-bull-Boxer is so good at unleashing her fury (and her owner’s) that the male victims keep piling up…and now it’s time to get some sensitivity training. Enter Eli Gallagher, one of the best—and hottest—canine experts in town.

The more Eli gets to know Roxie, the more he senses that she’s been hurt by men in the past—just like her dog. With a little gentle prodding, and a whole lot of patience, Eli hopes to… read more »

Dark Prince: Uncut Edition by Christine Feehan

Recently, I was sent a giant hardcover book. A book I had already read. And I read it. AGAIN.

I am as amazed as you.

Such is the power of the crack, and specifically the crack that is Dark Prince. I’ve written before about the Carpathian series, which I gobbled until I began to see the “psychic chick makes dude see color commence doggy style” pattern and had to stop. Dark Prince, however, rocked my world when I read it, and when people talk about Christine Feehan as the author whose work established the paranormal vampire romance genre, I nod and agree.

The edition that arrived (THUNK) on my doorstep is bigger than the original edition. Touted as an “Author’s Cut”, it has 100 extra pages of material, and that frilly deckled pages thing, and new cover art. And it’s a hardback. So it’s huger than big - or, at least, bigger than I’m used to (snort).

Ahoy, plot summary, if you’ve never read the first of the Carpathian series: Mikhail Dubrinsky is on the verge of ending is very, very long existence when he is contacted telepathically by… read more »

Paramour by Margaret Ethridge

This book came to my attention based on a reader recommendation. I’ve been trying to figure out how to approach this review since I finished the book this weekend and immediately said out loud and on Twitter, “You have got to be fucking kidding me.”

When I look at a small press book, I think about whether I’d buy another book from them, if the book I read is indicative of the quality of the books the press plans to produce in the future. Based upon this book, I am not impressed with the quality of the editing or the press itself. But the story and the concept were enough to keep me reading, and I wanted to finish it because I wanted to know how it ended - I cared enough to want to see the resolution, in other words. But when I got to the ending, I was far from satisfied, and am not impressed with the author or the decision to end the book in this manner.

The opening of the story focuses on the painful death of Frank, whose ghost is attempting to touch or… read more »