Romance reviews, writing meta and the occasional rant from a couple of techie readers/writers.
Woooo hooooo! Just got the galley for Charlotte Featherstone’s upcoming release, Seduction & Scandal. I have high hopes for this book, y’all. Ms. Featherstone wrote the delicious, decadent, sensual Lust, for HQ’s Spice line, which I adored, and I’m waiting to discuss w/Shelly and Katie. If you like historicals and you’re tired of just plain old boinking in books…and you want to savor a sensual tome, Featherstone’s Lust is definitely your book. I should probably stfu and give it a proper review, but it’s an A read for me. Featherstone is an autobuy for the Sins & Virtues series now.
Impromptu Romance Review: The Goddess Test, by Aimee Carter
I have a soft spot for Hades/Persephone stories. While The Goddess Test is not a conventional Hades/Persephone story, (and I can’t explain that more without spoilers), it is absolutely wonderful. Seriously, I read it start to end in one reading.
The Goddess Test is the story of Kate, an 18-year-old who has spent most of her young life caring for her mother, who has cancer. Her mom’s dying wish is to go home to the town where she was born, Eden, Michigan. There she meets a mean girl, who decides to pull a prank. When the prank goes wrong, Henry helps Kate out, but at a price. When the time comes, Kate is skeptical, but in time she accepts his challenge, though it may cost her life.
I am not a huge YA reader, but even if you don’t like YA, this is a great book. Carter doesn’t spend it dwelling on high school mundane crap, nor does she waste her high school scenes. While you’re reading them, you don’t realize how much she’s setting up, and the payoff at the end of the book is totally worth it.
The Goddess Test gets an A+, and I definitely ordering a copy to keep when it releases on April 26th.
Read it, loved it, and promptly downloaded the next Dragon Kin book. Annwyl is a badass heroine (I know, I know, you’re rolling your eyes if you read a lot of paranormal, but hear me out). Her nickname is Annwyl the Bloody, and she earns it on the battlefield against her brother, who is a tyrant who wants her dead, and the kingdom under his complete rule.
Our hero, Fearghus, finds her dying on the battlefield, toasts her enemies, takes her to his home and helps her heal. He’s fascinated by the little human who should have run from him in fear. When she asks for his help to defeat her brother, he decides to train her. In the book, it’s an unknown that a dragon may take a human form, so Fearghus tells her that he has a knight who will teach her to control her temper, which is her downfall on the battlefield. Meanwhile, Annwyl is torn by her love for the dragon and her desire for the knight. There’s also humor in the form of Fearghus’ siblings, one of whom gets a bad case of indigestion from eating too many bad guys. The end of the book is a little choppy compared to the rest of the story, which is the only thing that detracted from it getting an A+. Also, if you’re used to your fantasy titles building slowly, you’ll find that Dragon Actually unfurls at a breakneck pace. This ain’t Lord of the Rings, guys.
Note: I read the nookBook version of this title, and it has two stories in one. I am not certain if the paperback version is the same. The second story is the backstory of Fearghus’ parents and their courtship, which was tumultuous. It’s a bit naughtier than Fearghus and Annwyl’s story – there’s some light bondage, so reader be aware. All in all, I give Dragon Actually an A…because I don’t want Fearghus to eat me.
-Heather
