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Three Reasons You Should Read This New Adult Vampire Romance:
Blood Kiss by J.R. Ward is a great look into a different side of the Black Dagger Brotherhood that feels a little more like urban fantasy and lighter on the romance.
The Black Dagger Brotherhood characters and their mates make some appearances, but this is really about a whole new cast of characters that are younger and in training.
We get our first look at Paradise – a young female that has entered the training program – and I loved her character so much.
Paradise, blooded daughter of the king’s First Advisor, is ready to break free from the restrictive life of an aristocratic female. Her strategy? Join the Black Dagger Brotherhood’s training center program and learn to fight for herself, think for herself…be herself. It’s a good plan, until everything goes wrong. The schooling is unfathomably difficult, the other recruits feel more like enemies than allies, and it’s very clear that the Brother in charge, Butch O’Neal, a.k.a. the Dhestroyer, is having serious problems in his own life.
And that’s before she falls in love with a fellow classmate. Craeg, a common civilian, is nothing her father would ever want for her, but everything she could ask for in a male. As an act of violence threatens to tear apart the entire program, and the erotic pull between them grows irresistible, Paradise is tested in ways she never anticipated—and left wondering whether she’s strong enough to claim her own power…on the field, and off.
Blood Kiss by J.R. Ward is a new look into the world of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, a younger look as Ward takes us into the training academy with a class of new recruits. And included in these recruits, for the first time, are females, some from important families. I liked this twist and modernization of the brotherhood, especially after many of them fought alongside powerful females in their own books.
The new trainees are introduced as they complete an incredibly difficult obstacle-style course to see who can make the cut – and who can’t. They form some bonds along the way, and they find some rivals. The initiation is brutal, and knowing what the brotherhood has to face, I can understand why.
The romance between the trainees is a little sweeter and more innocent than what was typical in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, but it was still very intense and surrounded by a very major life and death situation. I really enjoyed most things about the story, but it isn’t really a new entry point for readers that haven’t read the original series. There is a lot of background that you will need to know to fully understand what is going on.
Can an unexpected extended stay in a small Alaska town show them that God brings the one we need to us when we most need them?
Whitney The trip was supposed only for exploring the campsite for my outdoor wilderness excursion charity for foster kids. As the CEO of the company, every mile I log is for the children and I won’t let them down.
But my stubborn rental car doesn’t care about my list of plans and appointments.
The handsome town mechanic comes to my rescue and drives me around for the day, showing me the sites and revealing his broken heart … and a few other surprises I didn’t see coming.
Then my father calls with news I never expected, and I realize I might need to put my own plans for happiness on hold.
Drew
Ever since my wife passed away, I’ve devoted myself into being the best dad I could be.
This stranger is a ray of sunshine, only outshined by my bubbling and spirited five-year-old daughter. My little girl instantly takes a liking to her, and I wonder if God’s brought her into my life for more than just a day or two.
Whitney is supportive, successful, and sweet, everything I didn’t think I deserved again.
But when my worst nightmare as a father comes true, I realize yet again that I’ve got to put my daughter’s needs above everything else.
If I can’t be strong enough for Bailey, how will I ever be the man Whitney needs, too?
Inspiring the Mountain Man is short – like really short. So if you aren’t a fan of 30 minutes or less, instant-love romances, then you may want to stay away. But if you’re looking for a quick sweet story with all the good feels, then you may want to take a look.
Whitney is in the area to scope out campsites for a youth trip when she meets Drew and his daughter – with the help of a little matchmaking at the inn. Their relationship and getting to know you period is fast – but it doesn’t gloss over Drew’s loss of his affection for his daughter. Drew would do anything for her – even leave love behind.
The biggest thing I didn’t like about the story was how quickly the little bit of danger was wrapped up. I feel the story would have been better without it, as the story was too short to really fit it in well.
**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**
Years ago, Flora fled the quiet Scottish island where she grew up — and she hasn’t looked back. What would she have done on Mure? It’s a place where everyone has known her all her life, where no one will let her forget the past. In bright, bustling London, she can be anonymous, ambitious… and hopelessly in love with her boss.
But when fate brings Flora back to the island, she’s suddenly swept once more into life with her brothers — all strapping, loud, and seemingly incapable of basic housework — and her father. Yet even amid the chaos of their reunion, Flora discovers a passion for cooking — and find herself restoring dusty little pink-fronted shop on the harbour: a café by the sea.
But with the seasons changing, Flora must come to terms with past mistakes — and work out exactly where her future lies…
What starts as a story of a small-town girl who moves to the city and then comes home again, quickly became a much larger story about the island of Mure, its people, and the changes that are about to come. Mure is an island – very remote – and very set in its ways. Life has slowed down and fallen behind what most of us would consider modern, but Mure doesn’t really care. The people, for the most part, like it that way.
But change is on its way in the form of a rich American. And the small-town girl that’s just returned home – her job is to convince the island that this change is the best thing for everyone. To add a layer of romance, Flora is in love with her boss and is hoping this job will somehow bring them closer together. Her boss is a little different, and I enjoyed some of his unique outlooks on how things worked.
As Flora begins to settle in to life on the island, she discovers a new joy – the joy of sharing good food with friends and family. Her perspective begins to shift and her priorities realign. It was wonderful going on this journey with her and discovering what life on a remote island might really be like. Following the lives and the residents and watching as they go about their lives and adjust to times may not sound like the most exciting story – but it is far more than I expected and I loved every page.
