CIAO BELLA by Empress LaBlaque

Publisher: Whisper Publishing
Date published: September 16, 2011
ISBN: Not Assigned
ASIN: B005N0PNM2
Interracial Romance
E-Book
Reviewed by Lynne
Obtained via publisher.


Treva Reece has a new boss, Gavin Hess. Unfortunately, he turns out to be the same gangster who killed her brother, Theo. As former leader of the Inner City Warriors, Hess is ruthless and cold, in her opinion. And having him replace the former VP of Superior Technologies, a man who was easy to work for and easy to please, is the last thing Treva wants. Finding Hess a repulsive thug, she is strongly considering ‘getting out of Dodge’ as quickly as possible.

But try as she might, Treva cannot ignore her strong attraction to Hess. He is sleek, and muscular, and built like a stallion. Despite this, Treva tries convincing herself that she dislikes him immensely. Unfortunately, she soon finds herself caught between a rock and a hard place when co-workers starts buzzing around, intent on snagging Hess for themselves, in one way or another.

It isn’t until Hess steps in to halt the sexual harassment of Treva by one of her annoying co-workers that Treva begins having doubts about her boss. Soon, all she has ever believed of him draws her into a confused, passionate relationship with an enemy she is helpless to avoid.

As their relationship grows, it is then the barriers between them crumble, and the truth regarding her brother’s death is revealed. As Treva lays aside her negative feelings toward Hess, she is surprised to discover the kind, considerate person he truly is. A strong man who, despite their racial differences, will stand by her forever and love her the way she truly deserves.

CIAO BELLA by Empress LaBlaque is a charming love story between two individuals, from different backgrounds and different races. It is fast-paced, with snappy dialogue. Since it is set in a modern office, it is easy for the reader to relate to.

I loved how Ms. LaBlaque set the stage in CIAO BELLA. The hero and heroine, Treva and Gavin, lead two separate lives, yet Ms. LaBlaque skillfully weaves them together. This adds to the conflicting and sometimes confused feelings between our two main characters.

I find both Treva and Gavin very likeable and enjoyed how they were brought together. Treva’s inner display of seething anger at having Gavin arrive as her new boss was fun to read and brought a great deal of interesting happenings to CIAO BELLA. And the unique, interesting personality of Treva’s unwanted boss added a lot of spark which kept me turning the pages to see what would happen next.

The other, various characters were well-written and added spice to this story of forbidden love between a woman of color and a man of Italian ancestry. They, too, added some fun and understandable conflict to CIAO BELLA, especially when Gavin’s mother enters the story and quickly shares her nasty attitude and personality with Treva.

I was surprised, however, that Treva jumped into bed with Gavin so quickly. I believe that more could have led up to that happening. A little more tension between them would have been a good thing before they actually fulfilled their desire for one another. Overall, I do understand why it was written as it was. It just seemed to lack the sexual tension one would normally expect during that point in the lives of the hero and heroine.

Gee-gee was a pleasant surprise I never saw coming and gives credence to Ms. LaBlaque’s talents as a writer.

I thoroughly enjoyed CIAO BELLA. I would recommend it to anyone in need of some romance, a bit of afternoon delight, and a light, fast-paced read.

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

CHANCES TAKEN by J. Paulette Forshey

Publisher: Whispers Publishing
Published by: June 2011
ISBN: 830603201102
Ebook
Contemporary Romance
Reviewed by Tammy
Obtained via: publisher


CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE! J. Paulette Forshey takes readers on a romantic trip to Ireland where two lives intersect and anything is possible.

When millionaire Ian Cathmor tries to help his cousin with her Irish B&B by sponsoring a contest through his company with an Irish retreat as the prize, no one is more surprised than Ian when he is drawn to the winner, Jacquelyn Tracer, from the moment he first lays eyes on her. But when she doesn’t recognize him as her boss, maybe letting her think he is a local farmer isn’t the best of plans.

This reader firmly believes that writing a really good short story (and at under sixty pages, CHANCES TAKEN, certainly qualifies) is probably far harder to accomplish than writing a 300-page novel. The reason is that the author must grab readers’ interest immediately, create a connection between readers and characters and tell an interesting story in only a few short chapters. Writing good short stories is a niche and very few authors can really pull it off. Unfortunately, J. Paulette Forshey took a chance with CHANCES TAKEN and it simply doesn’t pay off for her.

The story reads like it follows a recipe for what a good story should be. It has a rich man who wants a woman to love him for him and not his money. Check. It has the young, naïve virgin who mistakes him for a local farmer. Check. The two meet and instantly fall for each other and fall into bed. Check. A conflict inevitably arises. Again check. Our heroine flees, our hero gives chase, misunderstandings are explained and they end up living happily ever after. Check. In theory it should have worked. It doesn’t. It is all too pat. It is all too expected. It is all too flat.

On the positive side, this reader is not ready to give up on this author just yet. As stated earlier in this review, it is difficult to succeed at writing a good short story. This reader truly hopes that J. Paulette Forshey gives a longer story that has the time and opportunity to develop and flesh out the characters a try. Just because short stories aren’t her forte, doesn’t mean she doesn’t show promise.

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

ASSASSIN MASTER by C.L. Scholey

Publisher: Whispers Publishing
Date publishing: February 2011
ISBN: none listed
Erotic Suspense
Ebook
Reviewed by Tammy
Obtained via: publisher


CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE! Erotic suspense author, C.L. Scholey’s ASSASSIN MASTER takes readers into the dark and oppressive world of human slavery. After surviving a childhood of one horrific foster home after the next before finally being adopted by loving parents, Carrie is now once again alone after the death of her adopted mother. But Carrie is doing well and set to graduate from university at the top of her class with a bright future ahead of her.

Then, in one moment of concern for a man who appears to be having a medical emergency, Carrie’s world is turned upside down. Kidnapped, drugged and flown who knows where to be sold to sex slavers, Carrie sees her opportunity for escape dwindling by the hour.

In C.L. Scholey’s ASSASSIN MASTER, we follow Carrie’s emotional journey as she goes from independent woman to scared captive to sex slave. And that is just the beginning of the surprises in store for her. If nothing else, this story will leave readers thinking, and that in this reader’s opinion, is one of the best signs of a good story. What makes this story so unusual is not the life of sexual slavery that Carrie is forced into with one simple act of kindness, but the many twists and turns and surprise reveals that readers will not see coming.

The hero in this story is likewise not your typical hero. He is an assassin by trade and as such has access to the seedier element, including sexual slavers and their ilk. When it falls on our hero to nurse Carrie back to health after a botched escape attempt from her abductor, no one is more surprised than him to find that he is growing attached to Carrie and her to him. He sets out to help Carrie, but not in any expected way.

Then bigger surprises surface for our heroine and again her world spins. The pace of the story is fast and furious. The characters are colorful and exotic. The suspense is constant and through it all a dark and erotic thread keep readers enthralled.

This reader finished reading the story not quite sure what to think of it. But days and even weeks later, this story still lingers in the mind provoking thought. Is there really anything more an author can hope for than to linger long after the last page is read?

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

THE LAST STALLION by Christine DePetrillo

Publisher: Whispers Publishing
Date published: February 2009
ISBN: Not Assigned
Genre: Erotica/Romance/Erotic Romance
Format: eBook
Reviewed by Belinda
Obtained via publisher


CLICK TO PURCHASE! I enjoyed reading THE LAST STALLION it was a very good book that I will put on my shelf to read again. It is a short story with a very good plot. The author Christine has a couple surprises for her readers, and I love that she hints at them but doesn’t revel them until the end of the book. It kept me guessing and made me want to skip ahead and see if I had guessed correctly at the secret that Blake was keeping.

Dr. Cassie Stone, veterinarian to large animals has decided to stop dating cowboys. They are bad news and she’s tired of having her heart broken. To help her get over her latest heart break she decides to go visit her sister in New York. Her sister Melany and Mel’s fiancé Kevin decide to take Cassie out dancing at a club to help her forget about her ex. I had to laugh at the differences between the two sisters as Cassie is a country girl vet and her sister Mel is a city girl fashion plate. Their interaction when they were getting ready to go club hopping was really interesting. It’s always fun to watch or read about the interaction between two people that are the complete opposite of each other, and this book did a great job.

Blake is in New York with his horses to do a photo shot, and stops at a club for a drink. He sees Cassie at the edge of the dance floor and can’t take his eyes off her. He goes over to meet her and everything seems to be going fine until he gets close enough for Cassie to smell, then all hell breaks loose as she realizes he’s a cowboy. Blake had no idea what was going on and Cassie didn’t explain she just kept up her tirade about Blake being a cowboy. This part of the story cracked me up as Christine the author portrayed this perfect. It was the classic man has no clue what is going on scenario.

When Cassie and Blake next meet they talk and Blake tells her what he’s doing there and about his horses. When she expresses her concern for his horses, he offers to introduce her to them. This is the first hint you get of what Blake’s secret might be but the author just hints at it here she doesn’t really tell you. From here on out things between Cassie and Blake heat up pretty quickly, but Blake has yet to tell Cassie about his secret. Then something happens and his secret is exposed and we get to see how Cassie deals with it. Christine even has a couple of lessons for her characters. Cassie learns you can’t run from your problems no matter where you go and Blake learns you can’t always hide your secrets but sometimes it doesn’t matter. The old saying that you can’t judge a book by its cover applies here but it should be you can’t judge a man by his smell. Cassie may not admit it but it applies to Blake in this book.

PLEASE BE ADVISED THIS IS AN ADULT BOOK WITH GRAPHIC SEX SCENES.

THIS IS NOT AN ENDORSEMENT OF THIS BOOK. THIS IS AN OBJECTIVE UNBIASED REVIEW.

HEALER’S FATE by Beth Caudill

Publisher Whispers Publishing
Date published October 2009
ISBN 83-1002200901
Shapeshifter romance
E-book
Obtained via: Publisher
Reviewed by Tammy








































CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE! Beth Caudill’s HEALER’S FATE is a werewolf love story filled with dominance and magic.

Corliss has been in love with Liam forever. But her family’s status in the pack is poor and Liam is to be Alpha one day. So when she is told that she is to be wed to a second tier wolf, her family is pleased and Corliss is left dreading the day. Luckily for her, her intended fails to show up for the ceremony and Liam steps in to take his place.

HEALER’S FATE starts out well. The scene is set out nicely. Readers can almost feel Corliss’ distress over her impending marriage and embarrassment at being left at the altar. And when Liam shows up instead of her intended, this reader could feel Corliss’ relief and surprise.

From there, the story gets a bit bumpy and problems abound. Liam and Corliss’ biggest fear is that Liam’s parents will try to have the marriage annulled before the waiting period is over. So naturally, you would expect some problems from that front. Ironically, Liam’s parents never show up in the book at all.

At some point in the story Liam goes from Alpha-in-waiting to Alpha, no explanation given. And the threat to them comes from a wizard who is fairly easily beaten. A wolf from another pack shows up on the scene, makes a half-hearted attempt at seducing Corliss and then ends up asking for her healing help for two pups from his pack. It was almost as if the author wasn’t sure which direction she wanted to take this story and ended up going halfway in several directions. This caused the storyline to become disjointed at times and made the ending fall flat.

Perhaps if Ms. Caudill was to lengthen this story and follow all the different directions to their conclusions, this book would be a better read. Unfortunately, as it stands, Beth Caudill’s HEALER’S FATE is fated for lackluster sales without a serious rewrite.


THIS IS NOT AN ENDORSEMENT OF THIS BOOK. THIS IS AN OBJECTIVE UNBIASED REVIEW