Tag: overdrive

This Chick Read: Year One (Chronicles of the One #1) by Nora Roberts

I’m going to admit, I bought this novel in 2018 and let it sit on my shelf. Then the pandemic hit and the last thing I wanted to do was read a novel about a virus that wipes out half of the population of the world. Time has moved on and I thought I might be able to separate the topic from the world I was living in.

This novel starts with the person who was the original spreader of the virus and seeing how it happened made me realize that this novel will be more fantasy than reality and as the book moved on and I read how the world divided between those who survived with change and those who survived still human I was able to even more immerse myself in this novel and the new world it was building. Following a few different story arc’s I came to care for these characters not caring if they were human or enhanced with inhuman traits caring more if they were good people or bad. A natural feeling when you are reading a novel that pits good versus evil.

Nora Roberts follows a formula she’s been very successful with throughout her career, especially when writing fantasy novels. She gives us several story arc’s, and in Year One I learn to love Max and Lana and then again Rachel and Jonah, as well as some other characters who help them survive and build new lives. What surprises me is that this plot is leading us to a hero and heroine who can lead them in the fight against evil, the children that they fight so hard to protect.

While there are elements of love throughout this story this novel is not a typical Nora Roberts romance novel. This is a three book series about a fight to come against good and evil. I am curious enough about where it’s headed to pick up the second book in the series but I will give one bit of criticism, I hope it starts off fast because Year One was a bit on the slow side and I like a quicker pace. ❤️❤️❤️❣️

Click this link to purchase!* Year One

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This Chick Read: Nightwork by Nora Roberts

When Harry Booth was twelve he stole for the first time. His mother had been diagnosed with cancer and the bills were piling up. He eventually graduated from picking pockets to identifying a target and specific item and breaking into a home to steal. He never took more than was needed, greed not being the reason he stole. When he was eighteen he went to college and fell in love with Miranda Emerson. He worries about giving too much of himself away but he should be worried about his past. Someone he once came in contact with wants his talents for his own use and he isn’t afraid to threaten those that Booth loves. Booth cuts ties with Miranda and runs to Europe trying to lose himself but he never forgets the girl he left behind.

Years later Booth runs into Miranda in the small town where he’s teaching high school, on hiatus from his “night work”. He’s still in hiding but finds that his love for her is still strong.

I can always rely on a romantic thriller by Nora Roberts to be an easy read, enjoyable, and have great characters. I’ll admit, when Nightwork started and I realized that the point of view was through Booth’s eyes, I was hesitant about it, but despite his occupation, Booth was incredibly easy to like. I think it’s because he was a thief with a code of honor. He researched what to steal and only took that item, never falling prey to greediness. It also helped to have a serious bad guy in LaPorte as a comparison. Booth’s escapades were the lesser evil for sure! I liked that we met Miranda pretty far into Booth’s story. I really needed to know him for the obvious reason that he is a thief, but also because he was male. I don’t read too many novels with a male protagonist, which I’ll admit is totally happenstance and kind of weird. Once Miranda entered the story, I really liked him, felt for his circumstances and wanted to see him settle down- which of course didn’t happen. They were both super smart and perfect for each other, more as adults than teenagers.

I really liked the Ocean’s 11 aspects of this book. This is a novel about good vs. evil and I’ll pick good every time. I’ll admit, this good was a bit tarnished but pairing Booth with Miranda gave them a luster that might have been absent if it were only Booth trying to overcome the odds against LaPorte. There were some other great characters in this novel, Booth’s aunt Mags was a gypsy-ish new-ager was a fun addition and his Creole friends added additional color. Friendships are something else that Nora Robert does well and I’m always eager to visit with a new cast of characters.

If you love heist novels with a bit of romance I think you’ll really enjoy Nightwork. There’s some drama, romance, and mystery all rolled into one adventurous package. It was a great book to read on my beach vacation- I read it all in one day! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase this book!* Nightwork

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*Amazon Associate-if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: Eclipse the Moon (Starlight’s Shadow #2) by Jessie Mihalik

Ever since her ship took on a group of Valoff’s permanently Kee Ildiz has been aware of the silent and deadly weapons specialist Varro Runkow. She’s been determined to keep her attitude cheerful even under his dark and slightly uncomfortable gaze. While sifting through data on the net she becomes suspicious of a gathering on a nearby planet and asks her captain and best friend to drop her off for a few weeks to check it out. Thinking this would give her a break from her feelings for the dangerous Valovian and sniff out any trouble while on the ground. Little does she know that Varro is determined to keep her safe and follows her. That distance she needs soon becomes a bit crowded when he’s sharing the small apartment she finds for her few weeks away. When she stumbles into the trouble she felt was brewing she’s thankful the tough guy is by her side.

This second series by Jessie Mihalik has grabbed my attention so much quicker than her first, Polaris Rising. I’m not sure the difference but she’s sharpened her skills in creating fun dialog, interesting characters, a hint of danger, and that little bit of tension that all good space romances need. Kee is an interesting character because on the surface she’s colorful and bright which really hides a depth of emotion and strength that’s surprising. Although being the best friend of her Captain should give away the facts that this woman’s character is true to its core. Varro is a much harder character to get to know. He really is very quiet and exudes danger and a I want to be alone vibe. When we find out his reasons for keeping that wall in place the reader can only like him more and be sympathetic to his finding someone who will be his match. I think they balanced each other out really good and loyalty was a trait that they both shared.

I found the dangerous mission aspect of this story a lot of fun. It starts off light-hearted with a fashion show and zips into guns blazing and bombs bursting pretty quickly. Our two favorite protagonists are soon the hero’s to be and their actions provide a lot of entertainment as well as eye-opening reveals about their characters. This was a really well written, fun, space opera romance. I loved every bit of it.

❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for my honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase!* Eclipse the Moon

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: Gossamer in the Darkness(Fantasyland #5.5) by Kristen Ashley

The Count of Derryman has a secret. His daughter, who has been betrothed since birth to the handsome and powerful Marquess of Remington, fell and hit her head when she was six and has the mental acuity of a child. Not wanting to give up that association with such a powerful house, the Count of Derryman hears of an alternate universe that twins this universe. Determined to find his daughters twin and bring her over he hires a witch, who succeeds. What the Count doesn’t realize is that this Maxine is no pushover.

The Fantasyland series is one of my favorites by this author so when I heard she was writing a novella set in that world I was excited to get my hands on it. This fairytale proves that every woman can find her prince and the modern Maxine wishes Loren could be hers. It wouldn’t be a true fairytale without an evil character and the Count certainly fits the bill. Holding her mother and “twin” sister hostage in order to make Maxine do as he pleases the author didn’t take long to resolve that short conflict. Which was great because we got to spend the rest of the book with fun characters who were falling in love, learning their new world, and spreading the joy of living in a world full of color.

What I love about Kristen Ashley’s novellas is that they are the length of a short full length novel. Her real novels are very long. You’d think she’d have a tough time get the full story arc in this short length novel but she really does a great job of developing the characters, letting the reader in on the storyline quickly, and cut down on some of the descriptions that make her regular novels so lengthy. I really enjoyed this novella a lot and didn’t feel like I was missing anything that would lead to that overall enjoyment.

Now, if you have never read a Fantasyland novel, you may have some difficulty falling into a world where cats and birds speak to women, but if you have an open mind you may find yourself totally enjoying the experience. You’ll never know unless you pick it up and give it a shot. It is very different than her contemporary romances in the best way possible, but you’ll find similar character types that will help get you settled into another amazing KA story. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase this novel!* Gossamer in the Darkness

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: Dearest Rogue (Maiden Lane #8) by Elizabeth Hoyt

You all know my love for historical fiction. For me it’s the perfect diversion after reading a mystery or too many contemporary romances back to back. Dearest Rogue is an older book, written in 2015 and I do think that the genre has made a shift that is on trend with what has gone on in the world today. The MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements have made diversity, equality, and historical truthfulness important to both writers and readers. So, this novel from 2015 is a little more old school. However, it does divert from the normal heroine has Duke fall in love with her theme. Our heroine, Lady Phoebe Batten, is the sister of a Duke, and is blind. Our hero is her guard, former Dragoon, Captain James Trevillion. Honorably discharged after being wounded in service. He is the security hired to keep her safe, which of course becomes an issue when someone is out to kidnap her.

Phoebe was fed up with being cushioned from life and wants to explore and live. She is a beautiful young woman whose eyesight disappeared in her teens. Capt. Trevillion has been her security for awhile but it’s only been recently that she has become curious about him. Most definitely because he’s the only man she’s allowed to be around since he’s a pretty surly guy. As we get to know the two of them together you appreciate his protective nature but also how he disagrees with the Duke’s instructions to keep Phoebe insulated from life. It’s because of him that she’s in situations where people can actually try to kidnap her but you can’t fault him for wanting her to have a life.

Other than the fact that someone is trying to kidnap her, the other conflict is more of an internal one. The Captain, with his bad leg, doesn’t feel like he’s good enough for Phoebe. It’s up to her to convince him that their class differences and his leg (and her being blind!) don’t make a difference. He’s the man for her. I really enjoyed their sweet conflict and the length of time it took for them to fall in love. This was a little bit more of a slow burn romance than you’d normally see in a historical novel.

Despite this novel being #8 in the Maiden Lane series, it can be read as a stand alone novel. It doesn’t really have anything to do with the St. Charles Robin Hood underlying plot that some of the other novels have played out. I enjoyed it and if you have a love for older historical novels I think you might too! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase this book!* Dearest Rogue

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*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: Sometime in Summer by Katrina Leno

Anna Bell has just turned fourteen, leaving her most unlucky year behind. After a fight with her best friend and her parents separating she’s happy to be starting fresh. Taking a trip with her mom to the east coast for two months might be stretching it but once Anna arrives in Rockport she feels immediately refreshed and the once in a lifetime meteor shower makes this visit seem magical. Anna meets two new friends who help her navigate her parents split and the loneliness she feels being away from home.

Katrina Leno’s novels are always super easy to read with characters that are easy to identify with and Sometime in Summer is no different. Anna reminded me of all of those anxious moments from my own childhood, meeting new friends, starting my period, and navigating the emotions of my parents split. The Kit-Hale meteor shower definitely adds an unreal atmosphere for her time spent in this beach town. Anna is a girl who is at that awkward stage where she feels everything deeply but doesn’t show her emotions, hiding all of her troubles from parents who are going through their own issues.

I loved the unexplained moments that this author shared in this book. Slightly magical and definitely supernatural they added an air of mystery and hope that I just couldn’t help but love. Katrina Leno definitely knows how to create magical moments in her novels. There were moments that were just lovely.

If you love young adult novels that send you back in time to your own youth and also has elements of mysticism I think you’ll love this novel, please give it a try! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest.

Click this link to purchase this book!* Sometime in Summer

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this novel through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: The Last Dress From Paris by Jade Beer

When Lucille’s Granny Sylvie asks for her help in collecting a dress in Paris from an old friend she gladly takes on this errand. When she arrives in Paris she finds not one but eight dresses, each with a written note card and a quote, but the one dress she is expecting to find is missing. With the help of two new friends she visits each place noted on the cards to try to discover the mystery of why her granny has sent her on this mission. This story follows both Lucille’s journey and flashes back to the 1950’s where a woman named Alice wears each dress.

Alice’s story is the more dramatic of the two storylines but Lucille’s introspection and self-discovery is the raison d’être that binds the two stories together. Her new friendship with Veronique, the daughter of the woman who was holding the dresses for Sylvie, provides a parallel for Lucille to view her own life and the impetus for her to change her path. Her flirtation with Leon provides fun and joy, and a comparison to Alice’s story as it unfolds. I loved how all three of these characters interacted and the friendships they made.

Alice’s story told through her wearing each of these fabulous Dior gowns was a fascinating look into the political social scene during the 1950’s. Her job as the wife of the British Ambassador to France was to provide a setting where their peers would gather and gossip. That life sounded romantic and glamorous but as the story unfolds we see how structured and trapped that life would be. The mystery of each note card and quote tells a story that holds romance and sadness. I’ll admit to shedding a few tears and hoping for a happy outcome.

The Last Dress From Paris did what my favorite historical novels do, it took me away from my own world and dropped me into another setting in a fascinating place and allowed me to play voyeur. Like I said above I found Alice’s story more riveting but it was a great comparison to Lucille’s current day life and the journey that she herself could possibly take. The mystery of why her granny Sylvie sent her to find these dresses is the greatest story of them all and one that each reader should unwind on their own by reading this story. I would hate to unwrap this present and reveal anything that would spoil your own enjoyment of this story. It’s a good one! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Please click this link to purchase!* The Last Dress From Paris

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend

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This Chick Read: Flirting with Fifty by Jane Porter

Paige Newson is comfortable with her life. She’s a divorced mom to three grown daughters and has a fabulous job as a professor at a Southern California college. Her comfortable life gets upended when she is paired with Professor Jack King to teach a brand new course that pairs math and biology. The catch? She knows Jack King, or at least she did when she was 20 years old. She had a short fling with him when she was a student in England for a semester. Something that affected her deeply and changed the course of her life. Will Paige allow Jack to challenge her comfortable world?

There aren’t too many romance novels written for characters in their 50’s, so I was a bit curious about how this author was going to portray the journey of Paige and Jack. I wasn’t disappointed at all to find that this was a slow burn romance. It made sense to me because at 50 you have lived a lot and have expectations for your life. I know I have and I’m 54. So, I wasn’t at all disappointed that Paige may have to work through the hangups she has from a failed marriage, her children still needing their mom although they are all grown up, and the fact that she is uncomfortable with her body. Unless you still have the body of your 20 year old self, of course you would be. Also, Jack is somewhat intimidating. She found him so attractive when she was 20 but she lacked confidence in herself at that age. Does she now have that confidence at 50?

Jack was wonderful. He was charming, charismatic,and felt real instead of like a caricature which he could so easily have been. He was also still as attracted to Paige at 50 as he was when he was in his mid 20’s. He has a surprising amount of patience for someone that is so active and is always on the go. However, in this case, opposites do make the best partners and I could easily see why these two would be so good for each other. It made it easy to buy into their love story.

At times this novel felt a little bit like a christian romance. I don’t think it’s actually classified that way, but if you like a tamer romance story then this may be a great fit for you. I find that I like both cool and warm temps when it comes to romance novels so I didn’t have any issues with the pace, or heat level of this novel. It was just right. So, how did this 54 year old like a romance about 50 somethings reconnecting? I enjoyed it a lot! It’s nice to not be reading about 20 or 30 somethings living in a world I’ve already lived. I found myself eager to read more!

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase this book!* Flirting with Fifty

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*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: A Thousand Miles by Bridget Morrissey

Dee Matthews is used to airing her personal laundry on the podcast she co-hosts, well everything except what happened between she and her best friend who she has nicknamed Name Redacted. She references him all the time but hasn’t talked to him at all in a decade. When Ben Porter shows up outside her apartment door asking her to go on a roadtrip to his Gam’s he bases the impulse on a promise he made to her ten years ago, after their last road trip. In ten years time they would take the same road trip to visit his Gam, but in this case it’s to clean out her house because she’s died. Despite Ben leaving a gaping hole in her life, Dee agree’s. Ben wants his best friend Dee back in his life and Dee wants something much more, to find out the truth about why they never spoke again after that fateful trip.

A Thousand Miles had clever characters, a wonderful premise of regaining a lost friendship, and beautifully written dialog. Dee Matthews brought life to these pages with her will to say and be what Ben needed despite having huge feelings over the ending of their best-friend status in high school. Ben’s grandmother dying and a secret she revealed to him is the impetus behind him asking Dee to go on this trip with him. She was his most supportive person, the one that was always there for him despite her quirkiness and anti-social personality. He was the staid, steady popular kid that was drawn to this bright person from early childhood. Not to say that their relationship was one-sided, that steadiness was something that Dee was drawn to as well. Her childhood was filled with uncertainty, no money, and low social status. When he shows up at her door, she doesn’t really even think twice about it, she packs a bag and agrees to go. You’ve got to admire that ability to make a hard choice based on a thread of hope that they would find their way back together.

Despite their fun adventures and the moments of giddiness, this was kind of a hard book for me to read. There were just so many feelings! Dee’s feelings of abandonment, Ben’s realization that he never takes chances, their lost ten years. Aargh! I just wanted to skip through the discovery and get to the why! I was really impatient with this novel through no faults of it’s own. I just really wanted to see if this author was going to take me where I wanted this plot to go. I reigned myself in and vowed patience. I would allow this story to unfold at the pace it was meant to be read, and I was so happy that I allowed myself to do that. Dee and Ben’s trip was funny, fun, sad, and again, made me feel everything I was meant to feel.

A large part of this novel is about Dee’s podcast. Ben, as Name Redacted, is an integral character that Dee references all the time. Each chapter starts with an episode of a podcast where we get to know Dee but we also get to know Ben, or at least her underlying feelings for him. Some of these podcasts were hilarious and her co-host Javi is a guy I’d love to know in real life. Anyway, these episodes are a great tool for the reader to learn her feelings without seeing her go through all of the emotions. It’s also integral to her personality and character. Even with Ben she speaks as if she’s recording an episode. I found it really interesting to see her journey on her show at the same time as the journey they were taking in the car. Well done!

Despite my own awkward feelings while reading this novel, I thought it was great. There was humor, drama, and love that practically made my chest explode with feelings. All of the qualifications of a good romance novel, isn’t it? ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley or my honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* A Thousand Miles

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: The Taellaneth Series by Vanessa Nelson

This series was recommended to me but I could never remember the author in order to look it up. It just so happened that it was recommended to me AGAIN and I was getting ready to look for my next book. It’s a Kindle Unlimited series, which I do subscribe to, so I thought “no harm no foul” if I don’t like it I’ll just close the book and send it back. Little did I know that I would read non-stop, with only breaks to go to work, eagerly reading this fun series until I turned that last page in book #5.

Our hero Arrow is half human and half Erith, a race that is magical with elf-like physical traits. Having been determined to have magical talent at a young age she is entered into an Academy where she overcomes the odds and becomes a war mage despite all sorts of discrimination from the Erith for her half-human blood. As we get to know Arrow she is oath-bound to the Taellen to solve any task she is given. In the first novel she is given the task of investigating the death of the mate of the highest ranked shape-shifter, traveling to human lands to complete her task.

In Concealed, Arrow eventually solves the mystery but reveals an even bigger dilemma that all three races need to work together to solve, each book leading to Arrow becoming a stronger mage, important ally of the shifters, and eventually free from her ties to the Taellen- the committee of law-makers among the Erith. Her identity is also revealed in stages that keep the reader fascinated and the plot draws you in deeper until you have to read until the end to see how Arrow and the mystery resolves.

If you, like I, have never heard of this author then you are in for a treat! This series is fantasy-candy. There is only a hint of romance, it is pretty much straight up magical-fantasy. There are some very likable characters and you’ll certainly have your pick of who you want to follow but there is no better than our heroine Arrow. Misguided, misunderstood, and straight-up bad-@$$. I loved her to death and hope that this author’s other series are just as addictive. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️

Click this link to purchase the first book!* Concealed

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*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads