HARD RULES by Lisa Renee Jones

      HARD RULES by Lisa Renee Jones

Hard Rules is the first instalment of the Dirty Money series by Lisa Renee Jones.

Shane Brandon, a corporate Harvard graduate, is summoned home by his ailing father to save the only legitimate scrap of the family empire that’s left from the corrupt clutches of his brother Derek who is deeply involved with the cartel.

Emily is hiding secrets and has relocated to NYC to escape her past and start over. She meets Shane in a coffee shop and the chemistry is instant and undeniable. A second-chance meeting leads to a hot one-nighter which develops into a deeper connection neither wanted or expected. Jobless, and to Shane’s surprise and utter disdain, Emily accepts an assistant position working for Shane’s detestable father. So what exactly is Emily’s angle?

This book was just mediocre for me. For starters, there was no hook. Usually this type of genre opens up with a steamy encounter to bait you before diving into the backstory, but there was nothing, nada. No encounter and not much backstory. The coffeehouse scene was hardly titillating. By about 25%, it started to get better and there were a couple scenes that were steamy but it didn’t last long and started to drag on and become repetitive. On the whole, this book had no verve or appeal. I rate it 2.5 out of 5 stars. I can say quite confidently that I won’t be reading any more of the upcoming books in the series.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: July 22, 2017. Novel Publish Date: August 9, 2017.

Link to purchase: Goodreads

 

 

 

 

LUCA by SARAH CASTILLE

       LUCA by SARAH CASTILLE

Luca is the second instalment of the Ruin & Revenge series by Sarah Castille. A Mafia capo and a police detective lives intersect and the connection and the chemistry is instantaneous and too powerful to deny even though their professions are polar opposites and the danger of being together should be enough to keep apart. Gabrielle lost everything that matters to her and revenge is her only goal. Luca, a mafioso, is after the same target but for different reasons. An alliance is formed and a forbidden love blooms. This book will not disappoint!

I loved this book! It was so much more than I expected. I loved that it had some real meat and took awhile to get going which gave me time to become invested in the characters and see their relationship develop, not just wam-bam-thank-you-mam. This story has some grit, a few twists, and of course, a few smouldering love scenes. Everything this gal loves in a great romance novel. I didn’t read the first novel in this series and therefore feel that this book could be read as a standalone. I rate this novel 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: July 3, 2017. Novel Publish Date: June 27, 2017.

Link to purchase: Goodreads

EXPOSED by LISA SCOTTOLINE

     EXPOSED by LISA SCOTTOLINE

Exposed by Lisa Scottoline is a mystery/thriller about a criminal lawyer, Mary DiNunzio who wants to represent an old friend Simon Pensiera in a wrongful termination case, however, a conflict of interest arises when Mary realizes that Bennie Rosato, her firm partner represents the parent company. Mary must decide which is more important, representing justice and truth, loyalty to her firm, or her longtime friendship with Simon.

Once again Lisa Scottoline does not disappoint. The beginning is a little slow to start but quickly picks up pace maintaining suspense and mystery throughout the rest of the story. This is the first book I’ve read in the Rosato & DiNunzio series (Exposed is the 5th) and quite frankly, didn’t realize it was part of a series until I went to post in Goodreads, therefore you can read it as a standalone novel. Perhaps if I had read the other novels first, I would’ve enjoyed this one more. I rate it 4 out of 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: June 25, 2017. Novel Publish Date: August 15, 2017.

Link to purchase: Goodreads

BEST INTENTIONS by Erica Raskin

       BEST INTENTIONS by Erica Raskin

Marti Trainer is an obstetrician’s wife, mother of three, and a senator’s daughter. After years of being a stay-at-home mom, she makes a spur-of-the-moment decision to go back to social work which ends up having an irrevocable and life changing impact on all of their lives forever.

This women’s fiction novel, Best Intentions by Erica Raskin, is a very easy and quick read, has a plausible plot line, and relatable developed characters. I rate this novel 4 out of 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: June 10, 2017. Novel Publish Date: August 15, 2017.

Link to purchase via Goodreads

RAW NEED by Cherrie Lynn

     RAW NEED by Cherrie Lynn

The premise of this story is about a grieving pregnant widow who falls for the brother of the man who accidentally killed her husband in a MMA cage fight. Rowan Dugas is first introduced to Zane Larson, her all-time favourite musician, at her husband’s funeral by her sister-in-law Savannah who happens to be dating Mike the “Red Reaper,” the famous MMA fighter who took Tommy’s life. Rowan realizes that it was a freak accident, but is torn between honouring her husband’s memory and moving on to being truly happy again.

Raw Need by Cherrie Lynn is the second instalment of the Larson Brothers series. This is not your typical storyline, right? I mean, who would start dating while pregnant and recently widowed? Turns out that Zane is more of a friend and support system then a wannabe lover and one can’t help but root for the pair even though the circumstances are less than desirable. Bravo to Cherrie Lynn who can wrote such a believable story. I totally lapped it up and am now a devoted fan! Can’t wait for what’s next!

This is a standalone novel, but if you want a little more background on how Zane and Rowan first met, I would recommend reading Raw Deal where they are first introduced (to read my 5 star review, visit https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/2016/12/22/raw-deal-by-cherrie-lynn/). Cherrie Lynn does a great job of developing the characters so you can read this book without having read the first. I rate this novel 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: June 2, 2017. Novel Publish Date: June 27, 2017.

Link to purchase via Goodreads

THE BREAKDOWN by B. A. PARIS

    THE BREAKDOWN by B. A. PARIS

The Breakdown by B. A. Paris is a mystery/thriller about a young woman named Cass who feels terribly guilty that she could have prevented the murder of an acquaintance after stopping to help her when her vehicle was sitting on the side of a secluded road on a stormy night. After stopping, she gets an uneasy feeling that it could possibly be an ambush and frightened, drives away leaving the woman alone. Cass finds out the next day that the woman was brutally murdered. Cass has also been forgetting things lately, but she cannot forget about leaving the woman alone. What other secrets are waiting to be exposed?

This book had me hooked from the get go and had a promising start full of intrigue and suspense; but lost some of its lustre about a quarter of the way through. There was a bit of a lull in the middle, but it picked up towards the end again. There were no shocking revelations or twists. It’s a pretty typical mystery, and a bit predictable, but still interesting enough to finish. Would make for a good beach read. I rate it 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: May 27, 2017. Novel Publish Date: July 18, 2017.

Link to purchase via Goodreads

BEWARE THE CUCKOO by Julie Newman

   BEWARE THE CUCKOO by Julie Newman

Beware the Cuckoo by Julie Newman is not your typical mystery/thriller. It has very sensitive issues at the heart of the story which can be very disturbing for some to read (see below, if you don’t mind a spoiler) .

The story flashes back and forth between the past and present of two women who were best friends as young teenage girls who reconnect at at a funeral where secrets and lies from the past are about to be dredged up and painfully relived.

Karen has a loving husband, two adoring children and a seemingly wonderful life; however, she also has an incomprehensible and painful secret that could potentially ruin it all.

Sandra had a perfect life which is now in a shambles as her business is gong under, the man she loves has a cunning dark side, and Sandra knows a secret that could help her reclaim what is rightfully hers if she uses it to her advantage.

*Spoiler Alert* This novel was certainly not what I was expecting. I almost stopped reading it when I realized that a young girl was being groomed by her best friend’s father, and was frankly, hard to get through. After reading just over half the book, I did abandon it, which is something I very rarely do. I just couldn’t get through it as it. It took a long time for the story to progress and then it just stalled, there were grammatical errors that were hard to overlook, and I didn’t overly enjoy the writing style or author’s voice I guess you could say; it was written rather simplistically. I did love the book cover however; it was very eye-catching. I rate this novel 2 stars out of 5.

Thank you NetGalley and Urbane Publishers for providing a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review. https://moesbookblog.wordpress.com/

Reviewed: May 22, 2017. Novel Publish Date: May 18, 2017.

Link to purchase via Goodreads