This Chick Read: Complicated by Kristen Ashley

Hixon Drake has just gone through a divorce when he meets Greta Dare. Caught up in a fiery moment, he has to be “that” guy and walks away before he can get drawn in any further. He needs to concentrate on his kids and create a stable home for them when he has custody. An admirable reason, definitely. However, as the sheriff of this small town, his actions are noticed by everybody and that one night stand is not as secret as he’d like it to be. When his ex decides to try to mess with Greta’s livelihood, Dixon gets involved and the statement he makes to help resolve the issue cements their relationship status in the eyes of the community even if the status between the two of them is a little more muddy.  There are many ups and downs to the beginning of their relationship, but when Dixon makes a decision he is decided in his actions.

Greta is used to being treated poorly by men. Growing up in a trailer park, with an alcoholic troublemaker for a mother has created a difficult climb out of that life. She is also the guardian of her brother who has special needs, and doesn’t have time for a sheriff who treats her poorly also. I really liked Greta’s personality! She was a giver to the 100th degree and yet didn’t let herself get walked on by others. When Dixon finally see’s the light, theirs is a love story that is solid and real. Actually,the most real of any that I’ve read by this author. Did I like the way the book started? No, but it definitely created an immediate hurtle that Dixon needed to resolve before he could get to the point where he’d fight for the relationship. When he got there, he was all in and I loved that.

Just with all of Kristen Ashley’s books, the chemistry between the two main characters was sizzling, but what I always like are their relationships to the people that surround them. The relationship between Hixon and his kids, between Greta and her co-workers, and then Greta and her brother was the mashed potatoes to the meat loaf of their love story. OK, not a very romantic analogy, but you can’t have a good meat loaf with out that mound of mashed potatoes! The same goes for characters in a story. Theirs was the heart, but you need the comparison of their friendships to realize these two people were perfect for each other.

Complicated, was full of complications but these characters and the story were wonderful.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️

Complicated Click this link to purchase! Complicated Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

This Chick Read: Invictus by Ryan Graudin

Invictus is the tale of Farway Gaius McCarthy adventurer and thief extraordinaire. After failing his final exam he is given the chance to captain a ship and put together his own crew to work for black marketer Lux. Working with his cousin Imogene, best friend Gram and girlfriend Priya, they travel through time stealing objects for Lux to sell. Even though dangerous, they are reveling in a girl named Eliot who is the reason he failed his final exam at the Academy. Eliot blackmails her way onto his crew and they set off on adventure that they hope they can return from alive.

Invictus is a mash-up of action adventure, science fiction/fantasy, and romance. Three of my favorite genre’s! Far reminded me of Nathan Fillion’s character in Firefly, at least that is how I pictured him. Far is a bit cocky, good looking and has an energy that doesn’t allow him to stay still for long. When he and his crew are blackmailed into allowing Eliot to become part of their crew that cockiness starts to fade. When he finds out his own history is threatening the lives of his crew, his confidence in his decision is heartbreaking.

The crews antics were fun, their interactions were warm, and the climax was heartbreaking. If you are looking for a novel that has a great story, good characters, makes you bite your nails and cry a few tears, this is the book for you. Oh yeah, and Invictus is a stand alone novel! Although, I could easily read another book or two about this crew and their adventures.

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Invictus Click this link to purchase! Invictus

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

This Chick Read: Hooking Up by Helena Hunting

Hooking Up begins at Amie’s wedding. Her brand new husband is humiliating her by cheating on her and everyone hear’s it on the sound system at the reception. Amie downs a bottle of champagne and throws herself at the first man she see’s… our hero, Lexington. This novel is off to a rocky start! However, when Lex turns down her offer, I’m intrigued and  truthfully a bit relieved. As their story continues that integrity shines through in Lexington and combined with Amie’s quirkiness, they grew into a couple I wanted to see find their HEA.

The only other novel of this author’s I’ve read is Pucked, which I liked.  If you haven’t read one of her novels, just beware. Helena Hunting’s style is pretty raunchy. Hooking Up definitely follows that format, but what makes her novels so popular are that her characters have heart and she throws them into laugh out loud situations that make these stories about the characters. I love a good sex scene just as much as the next gal, but what I really love is when I’m caught off guard by a scene and start laughing. Hooking Up is filled with these kind of moments.

OK, let’s talk characters. When I read that scene from the wedding reception, I thought, Oh No! I am not a huge fan of women as victims, however I quickly saw that there was more to Amie’s character than what we were seeing on the surface. This was a woman who had hidden depths! (Totally apparent when I read that HILARIOUS airport x-ray scene!) Lexington was actually just as swoon-worthy as you’d want your male lead to be. He was charming, attractive, honorable and very sexy.

Hooking Up was a fun, sexy, heart-warming love story. I know it’s the second in the series, so if you’re like me and you haven’t read the first, Shacking Up, you’re going to want to jump right in and read it.

Hooking Up- ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Hooking Up Click this link to purchase! Hooking Up Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

This Chick Read: Death Below Stairs (A Below Stairs mystery) by Jennifer Ashley

Kat Holloway has taken a new post as Cook for Lord Rankin an eccentric gentleman, when her kitchen maid turns up murdered in her pantry. With the help of sometime deliveryman Daniel McAdam Kat investigates and finds herself embroiled in a treasonous plot against the crown. Death Below Stairs while providing an entertaining mystery, also unveils aspects of the working class in historical London that gives the novel depth and heart.

This novel was set up previously in a novella, A Soupcon of Poison, which I immediately read upon finishing Death Below Stairs. Kat was not necessarily happy to see Daniel show up on Lord Rankin’s doorstep, this time disguised as a gentleman. When the maid turned up dead, Kat begrudgingly turned to Daniel for help, implying something had happened in their past that put him in the doghouse. The fact that Daniel was a chameleon, changing roles in her life, created a mystery within the mystery, giving their relationship a little tension adding depth to the danger of the mystery.

If you like light mysteries, Death Below Stairs will be right up your alley. As a heroine, Kat is very easy to like, and the light romance between she and Daniel added an element of romantic suspense to the already mysterious plot. An added bonus is you won’t have a long wait for the next mystery, as it comes out in July. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I was given a copy of this ARC for my honest review and it was honest!

Death Below Stairs Click the link to purchase! Death Below Stairs (A Below Stairs Mystery) Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

Release Day! The Hookup by Kristen Ashley #Excerpt

✮✮✮From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Ashley, comes the first standalone title in the exciting, new Moonlight and Motor Oil series, THE HOOKUP! A rich, emotional love story, THE HOOKUP is available now!✮✮✮

 

Jump into THE HOOKUP and grab your copy today!

About THE HOOKUP (Moonlight and Motor Oil Series #1):

When the new girl in town, Eliza “Izzy” Forrester decides to hit the local drinking hole, she’s not ready to meet the town’s good, solid guy. She’s definitely not prepared to engage in her very first hookup with him.

Then Izzy wakes up the next morning in Johnny Gamble’s bed and good girl Izzy finds she likes being bad for Johnny.

Even so, Izzy feels Johnny holding her at arm’s length. But Johnny makes it clear he wants more and Izzy already knows she wants as much of hot-in-bed, sweet-out-of-it Johnny Gamble.

Floating on air thinking this is going somewhere, Izzy quickly learns why Johnny holds distant.

He’s in love with someone else. Someone who left him and did it leaving him broken. Whoever was up next would be runner up, second best. Knowing the stakes, Izzy will take what she can get from the gentleman that’s Johnny Gamble. And even knowing his heart might never mend, Johnny can’t seem to stay away from Izzy.

Until out of nowhere, his lost love comes back to town. He’s not going back, but Johnny still knows the right thing to do is let Izzy go.

And Izzy knew the stakes, so she makes it easy and slips though his fingers.

But that’s before Johnny realizes Eliza moved to town to escape danger that’s been swirling around her.

And that’s why Johnny decides to wade in.

That and the fact Eliza Forrester makes breakfast with a canary singing on her shoulder and fills out tight dresses in a way Johnny Gamble cannot get out of his head.

Pick up your copy of THE HOOKUP today!

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EXCERPT:“Izzy?” she answered.

“Hey, I’m home,” I told her.

“Okay, well…how are you?”

How was I?

Johnny’s behavior explained by the sad fact it was the anniversary of his father’s death, but still explained, and he was coming over for dinner the next night, not to mention, after not being affectionate (at all, unless you counted sitting me on the countertop, which I kind of did) after the last time we’d had sex, he made out with me at the door of my car for a good, long, happy while—I was great.

“I’m great,” I told her, opening Serengeti’s stall and moving in, lifting a hand to pat her jaw while she moved her nose to snuffle my neck and blow at my hair.

“Damn,” Deanna muttered.

My hand arrested on Serengeti and I focused on Deanna.

“What?” I asked.

“Damn,” she repeated.

“Damn what?” I asked.

“Well, just to say Johnny Gamble is Johnny Gamble.”

A specific area in my chest squeezed at the way she imparted that obvious but still confusing information.

“What’s that mean?” I asked.

“He’s Johnny Gamble of Gamble Garages. Did he tell you that?”

No he didn’t tell me that.

And suddenly I was embarrassed about something that I hadn’t liked all along.

But it was worse since Deanna knew more about a man I’d slept with than I did.

Serengeti was getting fidgety, so I used my hand on her to lead her out of her stall, and once in the corridor, she trotted out the open bay at the back, directly into her pasture.

I moved to Amaretto as I shared with Deanna, “No, he didn’t tell me that. I mean, we talked but we were also doing other things.” I let that lie. It did, weighty between us on the phone, before I went on, “I don’t know what that means.”

Even though it seemed like I did. Something seemed familiar about that.

“You haven’t lived here long enough,” she murmured while I opened Amaretto’s stall and moved in for some quick pats before I let him loose. Louder, Deanna said, “You know the gas station in town?”

Oh yes.

That was where I’d seen it.

“He owns that?”

“That and seven more of them across three counties. None in the city, just in the counties. Some of them are like mini-mart stores. All of them sell gas and do work on cars.”

Wow.

That was impressive.

About Kristen Ashley:Kristen Ashley was born in Gary, Indiana, USA and nearly killed her mother and herself making it into the world, seeing as she had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck (already attempting to accessorize and she hadn’t taken her first breath!). Her mother said they took Kristen away, put her Mom back in her room, her mother looked out the window, and Gary was on fire (Dr. King had been assassinated four days before). Kristen’s Mom remembered thinking it was the end of the world. Quite the dramatic beginning.

Nothing’s changed.

Kristen grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana and has lived in Denver, Colorado and the West Country of England. Thus, she’s blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her family was (is) loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write. They all lived together on a very small farm in a small farm town in the heartland. She grew up with Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Whitesnake (and the wardrobes that matched).

Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music, clothes and love was a good way to grow up.

And as she keeps growing, it keeps getting better. 

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This Chicks Sunday Commentary: 2017 Top 5 Book to Movie (or tv show) Adaptations

A pretty common topic of conversation among book bloggers is whether a book is better than the movie they make about that book. I’m a book junkie, so my opinion is always going to sway towards the book being better, however there were some outstanding attempts in 2017. I don’t see every movie ever made, nor do I read every book written, but I think this is a good representation of what was popular in 2017, according to IMDB.

5) Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon

A teenager who’s spent her whole life confined to her home falls for the boy next door.

I gave this book a 5 rating because of the emotions packed into his story and the big twist revealed at the end of the book. I have not seen the movie because I didn’t want to be disappointed.

4) A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

A dog looks to discover his purpose in life over the course of several lifetimes and owners.

I heard more about this movie than I did the book, mostly because of the video that was released about a scene with a dog in it that may have treated the dog poorly. This didn’t have anything to do with why I didn’t see the movie. I have a rule. No movies or books with dogs. They tear my heart out and leave me bleeding.

3) Wonder by R. J. Palacio

Based on the New York Times bestseller, WONDER tells the incredibly inspiring and heartwarming story of August Pullman, a boy with facial differences who enters fifth grade, attending a mainstream elementary school for the first time.

I didn’t read or see the movie, however the promotional department did a great job with this movie and book. I have a Little Free Library in my front yard and they used those LFL’s to spread word of mouth about the book, and had a movie premier giveaway contest attached. Very clever!

2) It by Stephen King

A group of bullied kids band together when a shape shifting monster, taking the appearance of a clown, begins hunting children.

I remember when this book was made into a mini series years ago and it scared the bejeezus out of me then. I have not read the book recently and did NOT see this movie. However, it was supposed to be great!

1) Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

The apparently perfect lives of three mothers of first graders unravel to the point of murder.

I did read this book and it was fabulous! I tried to watch the series and just couldn’t get into it, however several Golden Globes and another season says that I may have been in the minority!

What did you think of my Top 5? Did I miss one of your favorite book to movie (or tv show) adaptations? Shout it out in the comments and let’s talk!

Until next Sunday,

Deb

This Chick Read: An Uncommon Honeymoon (Librarian and Spy Escapade #3) by Susan Mann

While on their honeymoon, spies, Quinn and James are asked to go undercover at a party to see if they can gather information on a human trafficking suspect. While undercover, Quinn meets two of the kidnapped children and her heart strings are tugged. She is determined to stop this ring and save these kids, with the help of her husband and fellow spy, James. As with her other novels, Susan Mann brings a human element into what could’ve been a rather mundane romantic story line. Human trafficking is a real issue and here in the state of Tennessee (where I live), you see posters in bathrooms and rest stops. I thought the balance of such a serious subject matter was relieved by the lighthearted romance between Quinn and James.

This is the third novel featuring these two main characters and we know them pretty well. Quinn’s skills are in her knowledge and researching skills. James is the more physical spy of the two, although that structure seems to have changed with An Uncommon Honeymoon. In the past Quinn seemed to know everything, spouting interesting facts and tidbits, but the Russian setting seemed to throw her off her stride, although her confidence in her budding spy skills was strong. She was firing a gun and kicking Russian butt like she’d been doing it for years.

The Indian setting was one of the things I liked best about A Covert Affair, and I missed that librarian curiosity that Quinn portrayed previously. She was more spy-ish than librarian-ish in this novel, which seemed a bit out of character. The romance between Quinn and James sizzled, as it should with newlyweds, and this novel had a lot more sexy scenes than the previous two books. Am I interested in reading and learning more about Quinn and James? I think I am, although I believe this author needs to share the growth more evenly over those two characters. Unless she wants to write a novel where Quinn becomes James’ boss?

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

❤️❤️❤️❣️

An Uncommon Honeymoon

Click this link to purchase! An Uncommon Honeymoon (Librarian/Spy Escapade)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

This Chick Read: King’s Cage (Red Queen #3) by Victoria Aveyard

Warning! Slight spoiler ahead.

King’s Cage, the third book in the Red Queen series, starts with Mare being held prisoner by King Maven Calore. At the end of  Glass Sword, when their airplane was grabbed out of the sky and Maven’s forces threatened to kill Cal and Mare’s family she gave herself up for their freedom. Maven, surprisingly true to his word, let them go free and used Mare to convince the Red’s that the Scarlet Guard was a terrorist group. Mare, actually held captive by special manacles that inhibited her powers was helpless to stop his plans.

What is it about the villain being so fascinating? I thought the first half of this book when Mare was with Maven to be endlessly fascinating. Here was a boy king who was obsessed with this girl, yet at one point he had her! He betrayed her, but somehow he still wanted her to love him. The psychology behind that obsession, the torture at the hands of his own mother in his childhood. It was so good! I almost wish Mare had wanted him back. I think that would’ve made this book so much more interesting. Imagine if instead of hating him, she loved him and fought with his evil side to do the right thing and become who the country needed. Instead, Mare falls for the older brother, Cal, and fights against Maven’s tyranny. For The Whole Book. Tiring.

I will admit that as I was reading this book I kept thinking this was the final book in the series., and that totally threw me off. As I got to about 50 pages from the end I figured that out and I was so mad at myself.  Why? Why did I think this was the final book?  Why did I read this book before the next one came out? Oh well. Despite wishing Mare had fallen for the other brother, I felt slightly redeemed that things didn’t go quite as planned in the romance department for Mare. Not that I want her to be doomed to disappointment, but it at least made having to read one more book before finding out the resolution to the battle between the bloods and also the battle between brothers.  ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Kings Cage

Click this link to purchase!  King’s Cage (Red Queen)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

This Chick Read: The Theory of Second Best (Cake #2) by J. Bengtsson

The series, Cake, centers on an incident that happened to Jake, the protagonist of the first book Cake. Jake was kidnapped and held captive as a child until he escaped his abductor, returning to his family. These books are love stories, but this incident has shaped this families psyches and how they interact with people, including those that they love. Don’t get me wrong, both Cake and The Theory of Second Best are very funny and mostly light hearted, but the depths in these characters are often dark and deeply emotional.

Kyle, Jake’s brother, has surfed through life, letting others make his choices for him. He tours with his brother (Jake’s a rock star), and basically mooches off him, not really holding any kind of job. He decides to become a contestant on a Survivor type program, where the players live off the land and vote each other off each week. Kyle is the comic relief, and truly, he is funny. J. Bengtsson has written some great dialog! Kyle charms everyone, including the reader. More interstingly are the things Kyle learns about himself by isolating himself on an island with a bunch of strangers.

Kenzie is from a very small town in northern California. When her mother dies giving birth to her triplet siblings Kenzie was thrust into a mother type role at a very young age. She enters the show because she hopes to win the money so she can become independent from her family. When she meets Kyle, she is just as charmed and they join forces, also starting a light flirtation that is fun to read. It’s when they get back to the real world that the work in their relationship starts.

Even though the first part of this book is a recap of some of the events from Cake, but seen through Kyle’s eyes, you really do need to read this series in order. In fact, that recap to me was a time waster. I would’ve been happy if the author had just started with the island escapades because I think Kyle and Kenzie gave us plenty of insights into their characters by their reasons for entering that contest. Other than the slow start, I really enjoyed this novel. Kyle was a funny guy, and the two of them together were sweet!  ❤️❤️❤️❣️

Click link to purchase! The Theory Of Second Best: Cake Series Book Two (Volume 2)

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

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This Chick Read: The Duchess Deal (Girl Meets Duke #1) by Tessa Dare

The Duke of Ashbury was disfigured in the war by a bomb blast. Hiding away from the world, he glowers at his staff from the safety of his library only venturing out at night to vent his temper on the miscreants of London. Emma Gladstone, a vicar’s daughter, now seamstress living on her own in London, dares to brave the Duke in order to gain payment for the wedding gown she tailored for his ex fiancee. Although he is scarred, she isn’t frightened by his appearance, and bravely negotiates payment. The Duke, not one to look a gift seamstress, er horse in the mouth, decides that she will do as a wife and strikes a deal. After all, he must see that his line continues since he doesn’t want his idiot relative to inherit his estate.

This tale takes on the beauty and the beast theme but crosses it with a more modern wounded warrior trope that is now popular in more contemporary novels. I liked the novelty of a historical romance novel exploring the wounded warrior theme. Tessa Dare did not scrimp on the adjectives used to describe this Duke. He was burned down one side with patches of hair on his head. His looks were not romanticized and yet Emma was not frightened, nor turned off by his looks. In fact, she still viewed him as strong, intelligent and Duke-ish, despite those scars. I really liked Emma’s attitude!  She flirted, teased, and yes vamped it up for this Duke. She made him love her, despite viewing himself as a “monster”. Just as the beast in the fairy tale “Beauty and the Beast”, he braved showing himself off to the world and in his mind facing ridicule and worse in order to make sure she was safe from harm. This is a hero I can get behind!

I loved these two as a couple. Their verbal sparring was fun, and the heat factor, oh my!  These two burned up the pages!

❤️❤️❤️❤️

The Duchess Deal

Click this link to purchase! The Duchess Deal: Girl Meets Duke

Copyright 2017 Deborah Kehoe The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved