Monday, April 25, 2011

WINTER WISHES by Moira Rogers, Vivi Andrews, Vivian Arend

Publisher: Carina Press
Date published: December 2010
ISBN: 9781426890840
ASIN: B004CJ811K
Paranormal Romance
E-book
Reviewed by Valerie
Obtained by publisher


Tangled Tinsel by Vivian Arend
Kyle Branegan works for the Cougar Corp. This is a secret department of the Shifter Enforcer League and he has kept to a hidden lifestyle because of the job. But now he’s out on the prowl, looking for a bit of fun and games with definitely no strings attached. When Eloise Scott crosses his path he thinks he’s got the cream of the milk and when he’s about to get down and dirty, she pulls out a pair of cuffs! Eloise is an undercover cop for the human police force and she’s been given the job to babysit the big cat, until a court hearing comes up where he must attend as a witness. Things head south when she takes him home for Christmas and amidst prowling cats and misunderstandings they are suddenly engaged!

I loved this story and it was a good kick off for the anthology. I just loved how Kyle turned totally macho and went on the prowl cat-style when Eloise came on the scene. I would have turned that tabby…I mean cougar on his back any day and given him a tummy-rub. Meow!! These two were just sparking all through the book. The sexual tension was on boiling point and the sex scenes, were almost too hot for my monitor. I loved Eloise. She was sassy, big mouthed and wasn’t afraid of anyone, not even the leader of the cougar clan. And Kyle loved her for it!

There were a couple of questions that popped up about the plot while I was reading, but these two über-characters just blew them out of my head!

No Angel by Vivi Andrews
Sasha was baking cookies when her boyfriend, Jay showed up and tried to explain something to her. But just as he was getting to the point, a vortex appeared and sucked him up and judging by the smell of brimstone, he was going down. Then an angel appears and tells Sasha she has a mission, to go into the depths of hell and bring Jay back. Well, she believes that Jay is a lost soul who needs redeeming. It turns out, however that he is no less than a demon prince, a half demon mind you. Now she has to fight her way in, fight her way out and then decide if she can love the demon.

This is another fabulous story. Ms. Andrews brings demons and angels into the real world. Angels appear to people, there are angel groupies and well, Sasha is a bit fed up with it all.

I loved how Ms. Andrew wove these elements into the story and made them seem real and believable within this setting. Her characters are great. I especially liked Sasha. She was no nonsense, clever and witty. The world of the demons was well written too. Ms. Andrews certainly knows how to write a story that captures her readers from the first word. Another great story in this anthology.

Freeze Line by Moira Rogers
Shane Sullivan is quite content to live the life of a lone wolf above the freeze line. The magic is not there and there is no danger of him shifting and turning into a monster. One day, he finds a woman half frozen and he rescues her. She is a witch and needs to get back to the south and her magic before she dies. She had been kept in a northern lab and although she is normally powerful, her magic and eventually she will die if she stays in the frozen north. Shane decides to help her return, but as they get closer to the magic, Shane might go out of control. The only thing that could save them is their growing love.

Another fantastic story in this anthology, wow! I loved it. There is a lot of emotion in this one, from Shane’s avid aversion to having to change into a werewolf, to Nadia’s aversion of the north. Both are very strong characters and both need each other. The road to love is strewn mostly with snow and ice and, well…who wouldn’t want to cuddle up to a hot man to stay warm. Ms. Rogers gives her characters some difficult situations, some hard choices but they come through with flying colors albeit with a few cuts and bruises too.

This is a highly recommendable anthology with three fantastic stories by three very talented authors. You can read this one any time, not just at Christmas.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.

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