A Review & Excerpt of Good Time Cowboy by Maisey Yates

Good Time Cowboy (Gold Valley #3) by Maisey Yates

Genre: Adult Fiction (Contemporary Romance)
Date Published: August 21, 2018
Publisher: HQN Books

In Gold Valley, Oregon, forbidden desire just might turn into the love of a lifetime…

When Lindy Parker lost her cheating husband, she gained a vineyard. She’ll do anything for Grassroots Winery, including teaming up with the hottest devil she knows, rancher Wyatt Dodge. Wyatt is her ex’s friend and has an ego as big as the bulls he rides. But in spite of that, disciplined Lindy has always wanted him…

Lightning struck Wyatt Dodge the first time he saw Lindy Parker. But there were two problems with that: she was married to his friend, and Wyatt doesn’t do strings. But now Lindy is free, and the two of them can finally explore the heat that’s burned between them for so long. But can Lindy make this good time cowboy decide on forever?

Good Time Cowboy is the third book in the Gold Valley series by Maisey Yates. Somehow I missed the release of the second book. Each book stands alone just fine, but I'll still have to go back and grab that one. This was Wyatt and Lindy's story. These two have been let down by important people in their lives, and it's impacted them greatly. Without giving too much away, neither one of them wants anything to do with love let alone a relationship that is any kind of serious. So, they start a fling of sorts. It's not that easy though. This story really pulls at the heartstrings. When it's not pulling, it's steaming up the pages. Lindy and Wyatt are electric, and that really comes through as you read. Their chemistry and the attraction is palpable. I was hooked on this book from the beginning and couldn't put it down. 

Good Time Cowboy by Maisey Yates was kindly provided to me by InkSlinger PR for review. The opinions are my own.

She wasn’t sure what was worse: letting everyone know just what an idiot she was, or letting them continue to believe that she was a heartless gold digger.
She had a feeling that public opinion on her was split down the middle.
But Wyatt thought that Damien was an idiot.
Which was perhaps why she felt even the tiniest bit charitable toward him. Was perhaps why she wasn’t so completely opposed to going on a trail ride with him today.
She ruminated on that while she got dressed. She found a pair of nice jeans—much more casual than she would normally wear—and a dark-colored button-up top that wouldn’t show any dirt she might pick up during the ride.
She pinned her blond hair back in a low bun and looked at her reflection critically. She was hardly recognizable as the person she used to be. The person she’d been before she had started dating Damien.
She was sleeker now. Much more sophisticated.
She used to be proud of that. The distance she had put between herself and what she’d been. Now, it felt a little bit like a poisoned chalice. After all, she was partly who she was because of Damien. And she… In the end, she despised what he stood for. What he could allow. What had been acceptable to him.
He had asked her one time to forgive him. Had told her that she was making a big mistake throwing their marriage away over a physical relationship.
He had said that sex didn’t matter.
But sex had mattered when she’d been a twenty-year-old virgin, cautiously giving him her body. He had said that it meant the world then. And that even though he had been with a couple of other women they didn’t matter, not in light of what sex between them meant. Because he’d said that with her it had been love. It had been everything.
After being married to the man for ten years she was supposed to believe that sex could also be nothing. As long as it was shared with someone else. Even though he had made vows to her.
She had wanted to scream. She had wanted to cry. To let her inner trailer park out, throw something at him, call him a string of foul names. But she hadn’t been able to. She’d been frozen. Frozen inside the body, inside the image that they had created together.
She hadn’t shed a single tear. Not then, not after.
She had simply told him no. That there was nothing left for them. That there would be no future for the two of them. Not after a betrayal like that.
He had gotten angry after that. He had blamed the dissolution of their marriage on her.
And after that…he had told her there was no other chance to get back with him. That he was leaving her for the other woman. That he was in love with her, and it didn’t mean nothing. That she was the most important relationship in his life.
Not Lindy. 

Have you read the first book in this series?

Check out my reviews of other books by this author!

USA Today Bestselling author Maisey Yates lives in rural Oregon with her three children and her husband, whose chiseled jaw and arresting features continue to make her swoon. She feels the epic trek she takes several times a day from her office to her coffee maker is a true example of her pioneer spirit.

In 2009, at the age of twenty-three Maisey sold her first book. Since then it’s been a whirlwind of sexy alpha males and happily ever afters, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. Maisey divides her writing time between dark, passionate category romances set just about everywhere on earth and light sexy contemporary romances set practically in her back yard. She believes that she clearly has the best job in the world.

To learn more about Maisey Yates and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.

A Book Review of Rewrite the Stars by Julieann Dove with Excerpt & Teaser

Rewrite the Stars by Julieann Dove
Genre: New Adult (Contemporary Romance)
Date Published: August 23, 2018
Publisher: Self

For ten summers Claire and her mother had been guests at the Prescott’s beach house at Kelly’s Cove. And for ten years she played with Mallory and her twin brother, Colin. But it wasn’t until she returned after college graduation for her last summer there, that she realized Colin had grown into a guy who made her knees knock just by smiling at her. Being from different worlds, she knew nothing would come from her attraction to him.

Having returned to the states from studying abroad for four years, the last person Colin thought he’d find staying in his bedroom was Claire Ashton. Lanky and awkward during her adolescent years, he had to look twice to make sure this was the same girl. After a week together it was obvious he’d overlooked something before, because he felt things for her he’d never experienced before. There was only one problem—his last name and all that came with it would never permit him to be with her. 

In the end, it’s either love or prestige that will win in the game of love.

Rewrite the Stars by Julieann Dove. This is a hard one to talk about, because there were moments I loved it, and there were moments I hated it. 

Claire is mourning her Mom's death, and this place and these people hold so many memories that include her mom. So, it's hard for her. Claire and Colin are childhood friends who haven't seen each other in years. I know they have known each other forever, but it's been a while, and the romance happened super fast. Too fast to feel much of the chemistry, but the lust was definitely there. Shortly after, things get serious, the story takes a darker turn. My heart broke for all the characters. Seriously. The soul of every single one of them is dying. Their lives are all interconnected tragedies. Then something happens to completely changes everything. I like the whole concept, but I needed more from that ending. It all changed and wrapped up so quickly, but there were more things I needed to know about the future of these characters. It desperately needed an epilogue. Overall, I'm not sure how I feel about the book just yet. Too many feels still. I really hope there's an epilogue extra out there in the future, because that could really make a difference in the reading experience of this book.   

Rewrite the Stars by Julieann Dove was kindly provided to me by Indie Sage PR for review. The opinions are my own.

He swam closer to her, reaching out in the dark recesses of the water and brushing against her arm. Thoughts of having accidently touched her in other places began sending messages to his mind, thus sending a wave of heat through his already cooling off body. She situated herself in front of him, holding onto his arms. They were face to face with one another. Her wet hair smelled like strawberries.
            “That’s better,” she said.
            He watched as she looked in his eyes. Her lips were glistening in the light of the moon. Her hair was completely soaked and pulled back from her face. A smile broke out on her face. He was barely able to make out the dimple on her right cheek that he’d known was there. “You have a pretty smile.”
            “Does that mean you purposely looked at me changing out of my gown and now feel guilty about it? By saying something nice?”
            “Man, has anyone ever paid you a complement that you didn’t think had an ulterior motive behind it?”
            “Says the guy who climbed up in a tree to watch me swim naked?”
            “Jeez, that was years ago, Claire. We’re grown up now. You’ve definitely grown up.”
            “What does that mean?” She stopped twirling him around in circles.
            “Just that you’ve matured. You’re very pretty. Some might say alluring. Maybe not me, but some might.”
            “Okay. Thank you…I think. And why not you?”
            “Oh, you know. I’ve seen your skinny body—pre-college years. It’s not for me to say something like that. We have history…snakes, frogs…you know.”
            “I see.”
            No, she didn’t. He wanted to say he did find her alluring. Captivating even. He wanted to tell her how she made him feel at ease, or how at dinner he thought several times that she’d caught him watching her, or even how the sight of her body made him wish they were two different people in a different time.
            “I dare you to swim to the beacon.”
            “Now?” He held tighter to her arms. She was drifting from his grasp.
            “Sure.”
            “Okay.”
            Without hesitation, he swam in the direction of that stupid beacon. “Hey, wait, I was kidding. Not tonight,” she yelled out to him.
            It was too late, he was headed for it. Something of a challenge for his male ego. He’d taken up swimming as a sport in college and knew he could do it without a problem. That was until he heard Claire’s scream.
            “Colin, come quick.”
            He whipped around and did long breaststrokes to back to her.
            “Something brushed up against me. God, it’s going to eat me alive! I felt it.” She was hysterical, flailing her arms and panting wildly.
            He finally made it to her. She grabbed his neck and pulled him closer. He noticed she was shaking, her lips even quivering.
            “It’s okay. I’ve got you.” He stroked her hair, trying his best to calm her down.
            “It was something big. I thought it was going to grab my legs and take me under. Colin, I’m serious.”
            He felt her breasts press against him, her breathing rising and lowering with rapidness. Her legs had become locked around his waist. He felt his own heart, palpitating like a man who’d just swam thirty laps in less than two minutes. But, it wasn’t from the swim. It was from the touch of her skin on his. He had to get some space between them.
            “Let’s get you out of here. Come on.”
            When they got to shallow water she un-gripped the vice she had put on him. He escorted her to the sandy beach. The moon temporarily had ducked behind a cloud, making it difficult to see their way back to the pier.
            “Stand here, I’ll go and get your gown.”
            Claire stood there and waited for him to return, her arms crossed in front of her. He was glad for the opportunity to get himself in check before standing close to her again. When he returned with the gown, he’d already put on his shorts. He handed her clothes to her, with his other hand over his eyes. “Here.”
            It took her only a second to get dressed. “You can open your eyes now,” she said quietly.
            He removed his hand and looked at her. Even in the dimmer light, she looked so much better with nothing on. He knew he better get it together before morning came and he had to face her in the daylight. His mother had always told him how transparent his feelings about things showed on his face.
            “I might actually get some sleep after all that exercise in screaming and flailing for my life.”
            He laughed and took her hand in his. It felt like the natural thing to do now that they’d done it in the water, but she seemed puzzled by it. Her big brown eyes squinted, almost questioning his. It was too late to let it go. He figured if she didn’t want to hold his, she would’ve let go first. But she didn’t, she squeezed harder.
            They returned to the creaking back porch door. Before she grabbed for it, he took her other hand and held it in his. “I had a great time with you tonight, Claire. Even if all you did was scream like a girl and think an eel was eating at your legs.”
            “That was an—“
            Before she could finish her sentence, he lightly pulled her by the neck and kissed her. Her lips were moist and chilled like the water they’d just come from—salty, too. He wasn’t sure if she was going to kiss back or smack him for getting fresh. When he pulled away he saw her eyes were still closed. She seemed more relaxed than earlier. He’d wagered correctly. Claire Ashton was receptive to what this summer could turn out to be for the both of them. 

Julieann lives in Virginia, where she loves collecting houseplants, sewing cute little quilts, and writing about messy love. She fell in love with reading at a young age, after following Nancy Drew in solving the mysteries of the world. This carries on today, as crime shows are among her favorite to watch. Well those and the Hallmark channel love stories and mysteries. Keeping busy with soon-to-be six children, she needs time to unwind!

To learn more about Julieann Dove and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.

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Book Review! The Crimson Throne by Christi Stallard

The Crimson Throne (Crimson Throne #1) by Christi Stallard
Genre: Young Adult (Paranormal/Fantasy Romance)
Date Published: February 10, 2017
Publisher: Self

Nearly a decade ago, the supernatural creatures hidden in the shadows conquered the world with unspeakable power. The mass takeover became known as the great fall of civilization and the most devastating event in recorded history. 18-year-old Sadie Carlisle has never seen past the walls of Section 18. After a city siege forces Sadie into a fight for survival, an unlikely ally turns her life into a thrilling and terrifying whirlwind. Peter is the ultimate drug; exciting, addictive, and highly dangerous. The war raging between dark creatures threatens everything they’ve discovered in one another. Loyalties are tested, and the fate of humanity rests in the balance. How far would you go for the one you love most? 

The Crimson Throne by Kristi Stallard is a gem that needs more recognition. Seriously guys, we need to get the word out about this one. 

The characters had character, their world had substance, and the story as a whole had depth. I was unsure about the insta-love in the beginning. It happened so fast, but I enjoyed Sadie and Peter as individual characters, so the relationship grew on me. I would like to get to know Peter a little more though. He still feels a little bit like a stranger to me in many ways. Sadie was great. I love her spunky independence. She didn't let being a little human hold her back one bit.  

I was completely intrigued by the supernaturals. I loved the dragons. That goes without say. The vampires were VAMPIRES. Sure, there were some nice ones, but the others? Well, they were nasty little beasties, and that's really putting it nicely. I hope we get to to see even more of the supernaturals in upcoming books. The Crimson Throne truly had a little bit of everything I like to find in a book with its crazy creatures, action, drama, romance, and humor, not to mention a bad guy who's brutal yet interesting and a main character I want to root for!

The Crimson Throne by Kristi Stallard was kindly provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

Christi Stallard is a notorious bookworm, an incurable romantic, and an endless dreamer. She currently resides in the Pacific Northwest and favors long rainy days at home curled up with a good book. Since early childhood, she dreamt of writing stories that readers would fall in love with. As a young freshman in college, she released her debut novel "The Crimson Throne".

To learn more about Kristi Stallard and her books, visit her on Goodreads.

Book Review! On a Tuesday by Whitney G.

On a Tuesday (One Week #1) by Whitney G. 

Genre: New Adult (Contemporary Romance)
Date Published: September 19, 2017
Publisher: Self

We met on a Tuesday. 

Became best friends, then lovers, on a Tuesday. 

And everything fell apart on a Tuesday... 

Charlotte Taylor has three automatic strikes in my book: 1) She hates me. She also claims that I'm a "domineering jerk with a huge, overbearing ego." (I do have something huge. It's not my ego, though.) 2) She takes our mandatory tutoring sessions way too seriously. 3) She's sexy as hell...And a virgin. 

At least, those were her strikes before our study sessions started lasting longer than they were supposed to. Until one innocent kiss became a hundred dirty ones, and until she became the first woman I ever fell hard for. 

Our future together after graduation was supposed to be set: 

Professional football for me. Law school for her. 

But she left me at the end of the semester with no explanation, and then she completely disappeared from my life. 

Until tonight.

We met on a Tuesday. 

Became everything, then nothing, on a Tuesday. 

And now it's seven years later, on a Tuesday... 

**This is a full length second chance romance, inspired by Adele's "When We Were Young"** 

On a Tuesday is the first book in the One Week series by Whitney G.. It was a cute and touching story about a second chance at love. Charlotte and Grayson were complete opposites, but somehow they worked... until they didn't. We're given point of views from both characters, both in the past and the present. So, you get the full picture of how they met, where they are now, and everything in between. I'm so glad this was an audio book, so I could listen at work. If not? I might have gone a little crazy or taken a sick day. *wink* There was a time or two where I wanted to kick both characters, because they really needed to talk it out when they first reunited. They could have fixed so much that night. But, then it would have been a shorter story, and I enjoyed the reading experience of this book too much for it to have been shortened. I didn't realize this was a series until after I finished reading, but now I'll have to grab the next one once it's released.

On a Tuesday by Whitney G.  was kindly provided to me by IndieSagePR for review. The opinions are my own.

When Grayson Connors walked by my table, I picked up my headphones.

“Are you Charlotte Taylor?” he asked, his voice deep.

What? “Um…What did you just say?”

“Charlotte Taylor,” he said, pointing to his phone. “I’m supposed to meet my tutor here, unless there’s another Thackeray Coffee shop around somewhere. So, are you Charlotte Taylor?”

“I’m not sure yet.”

“Your necklace says Charlotte.” He glanced at it, smirking. “Are you sure now?”

“No…” My mind was blown. There was no way he was assigned to me for this semester. “My advisor would know better than to do this to me.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that the university must have made a mistake.” I pulled out my phone to check my email, making damn sure I’d read my advisor’s pairing as “Elizabeth Woods, English Writing” and not “Grayson Connors.”

The second I opened my inbox, I saw that my advisor had emailed me half an hour earlier. 

Whitney G. is a twenty-eight-year-old optimist who is obsessed with travel, tea, and great coffee. She’s also a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author of several contemporary novels, and the cofounder of The Indie Tea–an inspirational blog for indie romance authors.

When she’s not chatting with readers on her Facebook Page, you can find her on her website, or on instagram. (If she’s not in either of those places, she’s probably locked away working on another crazy story.)

Don’t forget to sign up for Whitney’s monthly newsletter here: http://bit.ly/1p9fEY

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Release Day Blitz! Rewrite the Stars by Julieann Dove

Rewrite the Stars by Julieann Dove
Genre: New Adult (Contemporary Romance)
Date Published: August 23, 2018
Publisher: Self

For ten summers Claire and her mother had been guests at the Prescott’s beach house at Kelly’s Cove. And for ten years she played with Mallory and her twin brother, Colin. But it wasn’t until she returned after college graduation for her last summer there, that she realized Colin had grown into a guy who made her knees knock just by smiling at her. Being from different worlds, she knew nothing would come from her attraction to him.

Having returned to the states from studying abroad for four years, the last person Colin thought he’d find staying in his bedroom was Claire Ashton. Lanky and awkward during her adolescent years, he had to look twice to make sure this was the same girl. After a week together it was obvious he’d overlooked something before, because he felt things for her he’d never experienced before. There was only one problem—his last name and all that came with it would never permit him to be with her. 

In the end, it’s either love or prestige that will win in the game of love.

Check out my review!

“Colin, where are you taking me?” Claire saw he’d taken a right at the intersection, rather than the left that led downtown.

“I hooked us up with a private flight around the island. The instructor told me I can even take the controls to feel what it’s like to pilot the plane by myself.” His eyes became as large as fifty cent pieces, just like the little boy who’d gotten excited when his mother brought home a model plane for him to drive remotely around the side field of the house. Mallory and Claire saw very little of him that summer.

Claire’s anxiety level began to soar, higher than she ever wanted to experience from the air. “I’m not so good in planes, Colin. And that’s usually the commercial ones, with two hundred or so seats and a locked cockpit where I’m unable to see the pilot and all the buttons it takes to lift off into the clouds and stay lifted. I’m not so sure I can do two-seater tin-can models.”

“Do it for me?” He took her hand in his and pleaded, trying to stay on his side of the road.

She took a deep breath, teetering on thoughts of plummeting into the earth’s atmosphere and touching again on soil with all body parts intact. The last thing she wanted was to disappoint Colin. His father did enough of that already, and he looked so happy. His foot was tapping to the song playing on the radio and his smile was completely infectious. “All right, but the first time I’m scared, you’ll tell the pilot it’s time to come back?”

“Promise.” He crossed his heart.

“All right then. Let’s go earn you some wings!” she yelled.

He pulled into the parking space and grabbed her face for a quick kiss. “I love you.”

She opened her eyes quickly right before the contact of lip on lip. What did he just say? He must have caught that slipup, too. Instead of following through with the kiss, he was doing somewhat of a staring-off contest, and neither one was blinking.

“Did you just—”

“I did. It wasn’t planned, I promise, and if it freaked you out…” He didn’t finish his sentence.

She didn’t know what to think. She thought of her mother instantly, and what advice she’d give her. Stop being so guarded, more than likely. Claire had a problem with letting people get close to her. Especially now that she knew how completely lost she was without her mother. But she knew if she was ever going to find love, she’d have to open herself for the possibility of having her heart broken, too.

“Aren’t we still in the trying out period?” She eased back a few inches from his beautiful intense blue eyes. Not that she hadn’t already fallen madly in love with him. But she was waiting it out, for him to figure whether it was something he wanted, too. Guys usually didn’t figure it out until years into a relationship. This was sudden and completely a pinch-me moment for her.

“I mean, did you mean what you said, or was it just sheer excitement and adrenaline over being able to fly a plane and me agreeing to go with you? Risking life and limb.”

His eyes didn’t waver with his answer. They stared at her, to the very core of her, and his words rang inside her ears. “I meant it. I do love you.”

Her heart leapt with joy. A thousand fireworks exploded inside her, setting off tinier ones for the smaller parts, like her pinky fingers and piggy toes. “I love you, too.” She tried her best not to sound fourteen when she said it.

There it was—spoken to the universe. Like a corked bottle finally getting release. Lightning could strike her if it was untrue. But it was true. And a secret. Like the ones Frieda told her the house held. A secret that had been burning inside her since high school. It was in those years after Colin had grown out of a little boy playing pranks and into a young man who was hell-bent on spending his time challenging Claire to swim out to the first beacon. Although both wore the guise of feeling indifferent, inside she wanted him to want her as much as she wanted him. The mask was now off and it felt wonderful to say it out loud.

He moved forward to kiss her again. This time slower, with a hundred percent more passion. His tongue fought to get at her. His chest heaved in and out, as he touched her breasts, straddling across the center console to do so.

“Colin, are you going to be late?” She backed away slightly, wiping her lips. “Not that I’m not enjoying this immensely and maybe hoping a little tiny bit,” she held up two fingers, “that the flight will get canceled and we can return to the guesthouse. But I don’t want you to miss this opportunity.”

“You’re right.” He adjusted his shirt from riding his neckline. “We’re supposed to be in there now. Thanks again, Claire, for coming with me.” He jumped out and ran to her side and escorted her to the tarmac.

Julieann lives in Virginia, where she loves collecting houseplants, sewing cute little quilts, and writing about messy love. She fell in love with reading at a young age, after following Nancy Drew in solving the mysteries of the world. This carries on today, as crime shows are among her favorite to watch. Well those and the Hallmark channel love stories and mysteries. Keeping busy with soon-to-be six children, she needs time to unwind!

To learn more about Julieann Dove and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.

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