Release Day Launch: Intrepid by Keri Lake

Today we have the release blitz for Keri Lake’s INTREPID. We are so excited to share this new release with you! Grab your copy today!

Title: Intrepid

Author: Keri Lake

Genre: Contemporary Romance

About Intrepid:

In the corner house of an empty street, there is a boy inside a box. In that boy, there lives a secret, one so dark, it’s sealed with locks. Nearly ten years have passed since the night I was captured. Tricked and betrayed, I suffered the hours of brutal torment with death’s cold whisper across my skin. And when the nameless faces that haunted my nightmares took everything and everyone I loved, I feared I’d never be free of the darkness. But that's the thing about fear. Over time, it breeds anger, and when anger fills the box, vengeance bleeds out. It's been almost a decade since I escaped their hell, staying in the shadows, hiding my demons, and God help them now that I've tasted retribution and crave more of it. Blood is the price for pain, and I vow to take everything and everyone they love. I’m no longer a frightened boy, but the intrepid vigilante, a ruthless executioner, who will stop at nothing to punish the depraved few that stole my life and walked free. The plan is perfect, except for her. The one woman I'm forbidden to have, whose soothing touch settles my fractured mind. My angel of mercy sent to silence the voices. Yet, not even she can save me from the black void wherein my skeletons lie buried beneath the truth. Because in order to feed my thirst for revenge, I have to destroy the very thing that gives me purpose. Tooth for a tooth, heart for a heart.

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  EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT: 

I stepped inside, struck by the cold air that nearly stole my breath. Moonlight shone in on the small apartment, where only a mattress lay on the floor, the wrinkled sheets strewn atop of it. A chair set off to the side held a hard hat and a pair of jeans draped across the arm. To the right, a door sat opened, onto what I assumed was a small bathroom.

A crunch beneath my shoe pulled my attention to the floor, where small glistening specks of glass lay scattered about a smashed bottle of whiskey.

“This is where you live.” I turned to see him leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed.

He pushed off, stepped past me, into the room, and spun around to face me, arms outstretched. “Home sweet home.”

The place stood nearly vacant and dark, nothing but a cold, hollow room where he slept.

“It looks temporary.”

“It is temporary. Everything is temporary, Sera. Homes. Life. Love. What’s the point of getting attached to anything, if it all ends the same?”

“Because that’s the beauty of life. It doesn’t all end the same. And even if it’s all temporary, it’s worth it.” I thought about the short time with my mother, how I wouldn’t have traded a second of it for anything else in the world. “Love is always worth it.”

“The pain is worth it to you? The struggle to wake up every morning and breathe, after you lost everything that ever mattered to you. That’s worth it?”

A shield of tears blurred him to an indistinct figure. “Every second.”

“So, if I fucked you tonight and walked away tomorrow. Would I be worth it? Would that be worth it to you?”

“Yes.”

His lip curled, as if my response had repulsed him, and for one brief moment, I felt like a whore for my honesty.

In the next breath, he strode toward me, scooping me up into his arms.

 

OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES:

RICOCHET (VIGILANTES, #1):

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BACKFIRE (VIGILANTES, #2):

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About Keri Lake:

 

Keri Lake is a dark romance writer who specializes in demon wrangling, vengeance dealing and wicked twists. Her stories are gritty, with antiheroes that walk the line of good and bad, and feisty heroines who bring them to their knees. When not penning books, she enjoys spending time with her husband, daughters, and their rebellious Labrador (who doesn’t retrieve a damn thing). She runs on strong coffee and alternative music, loves a good red wine, and has a slight addiction to dark chocolate.

Connect with Keri:

Facebook Group: http://bit.ly/2lWjOFg

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kerilakeauthor

Website: http://www.kerilake.com/

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Review: Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody

Title: Ace of Shades

Series: The Shadow Games #1

Author: Amanda Foody

Release date: April 10, 2018

Cliffhanger: yes

Rating: 3.5 stars

Synopsis
Welcome to the City of Sin, where casino families reign, gangs infest the streets…and secrets hide in every shadow.

Enne Salta was raised as a proper young lady, and no lady would willingly visit New Reynes, the so-called City of Sin. But when her mother goes missing, Enne must leave her finishing school—and her reputation—behind to follow her mother’s trail to the city where no one survives uncorrupted.

Frightened and alone, her only lead is a name: Levi Glaisyer. Unfortunately, Levi is not the gentleman she expected—he’s a street lord and con man. Levi is also only one payment away from cleaning up a rapidly unraveling investment scam, so he doesn’t have time to investigate a woman leading a dangerous double life. Enne’s offer of compensation, however, could be the solution to all his problems.

Their search for clues leads them through glamorous casinos, illicit cabarets and into the clutches of a ruthless Mafia donna. As Enne unearths an impossible secret about her past, Levi’s enemies catch up to them, ensnaring him in a vicious execution game where the players always lose. To save him, Enne will need to surrender herself to the city…

And she’ll need to play.



Praise for Ace of Shades
“House of the Rising Sun meets Six of Crows in Ace of Shades. Thieves, rogues, and shady characters have always fascinated me, and so I enjoyed my dive into the morally ambiguous world of New Reynes.” – Cinda Williams Chima, NYT Bestselling Author of The Seven Realms and The Shattered Realms series

“Ace of Shades has it all–incredible world building, cinematic set-pieces, heart-pounding pacing, and unpredictable, deliciously messy characters. Foody’s impressive and ambitious vision for the City of Sin will linger in my senses for a long time. An utter delight.” – Claire Legrand, author of Winterspell

“A positive take on sexuality…the relationship between Enne and Levi simmers, and dangers pile up to an exciting climax. Readers will eagerly wish for a sequel that will allow them to revisit New Reynes.” – Kirkus Reviews

“The world in this promising series debut is dark but enticing.” – School Library Journal

“I was completely enthralled with New Reynes–it was dark and frightening, but at the same time completely alluring. An elaborate plot coupled with exceptional world-building and fully developed characters.” – Heather Herbert, bookseller, Children’s Book World in Haverford, PA

“Its cinematic, action-packed plot contains enough romance to satisfy readers of that genre while piling on danger, thrills, and plot twists. A shocking conclusion sets the stage for book two in the series.” – Booklist
“A rich, satisfying, complicated story… One of the best YA fantasy books I’ve read in years.” – Christine Lynn Herman, author of The Devouring Gray

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About the Author

Amanda Foody has always considered imagination to be our best attempt at magic. After spending her childhood longing to attend Hogwarts, she now loves to write about immersive settings and characters grappling with insurmountable destinies. She holds a Masters in Accountancy from Villanova University, and a Bachelors of Arts in English Literature from the College of William and Mary. Currently, she works as a tax accountant in Philadelphia, PA, surrounded by her many siblings and many books.

ACE OF SHADES is the first novel of THE SHADOW GAME series, releasing April 10, 2018. Her debut, DAUGHTER OF THE BURNING CITY, released in July 2017.

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REVIEW

Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

[HFN (hide spoiler)]

I was so excited to snag a copy of this book that was getting so much buzz. I'm always on the lookout for a new (to me) YA fantasy author to try, and this synopsis held a lot of promise. A SOC feel? Count me in! There ARE some general parallels, but it stands on its own two feet. Yes, there are rival street gangs, the hero is troubled with a dark past, but I never felt like I was reading the same story. This is not a heist book...the story is powered by Enne's search for her missing mother, and the danger that crops up as a result of her search. Some skeletons are better staying buried, but she doesn't realize that until it's too late. Mommy dearest has been hiding some explosive, wicked secrets, and now she's gone and left Enne to stumble upon the hidden trip wire.

To be perfectly honest, Enne wasn't impressing me all that much in the beginning. I was starting to wonder if I would even feel invested about what happened to her. Raised in a very conservative and wealthy background, it has shaped her to be pretty prissy and judgemental. She was also naive, sheltered, and more than a bit of a snob. So you can see why I wasn't immediately welcoming her with open arms.

    This city was no place for children. And, she reminded herself, staring up at the sinister, smog stained sky, it was no place for her, either.

If you feel similarly, no worries, because Enne pulls off one mother of a transformation. Or a metamorphosis might be a more apt word. She was like a completely different person by the end of the book after the City of Sin got its claws into her. *big gusty sigh of relief* It's amazing what stepping outside of your pampered upbringing and jumping into a pool of sharks will do to you.

Amanda Foody's world consists of Mizer Kings, blood/split talents, volts and orbs, mafia families, warring street gangs, and omertas. The city reeks of bad decisions and despair, and Levi is just another lost soul trapped by his circumstances. He may appear to be in a position of power because of being the head of the Irons gang, but no one knows how low he has sunk. Enne shows up on his doorstep looking for help at just about the worst moment imaginable. He's scrambling to climb out of the hole he's dug himself into before he's buried alive. The last thing he needs is a girl who's ignorant to the danger that surrounds her. But she brings with her a surprising lifeline that could be the answer to all of his prayers.

Enne's staunch morals are stretched and bent until there's nothing left. Not just through seeing the seedy side of humanity, but experiencing the world from a whole new desperate perspective. When you're downtrodden, helpless, and attacked, you either put your gloves on and fight, or you get dealt a blow that there's no coming back from. She chooses to adjust...to fight. And along the way, she makes discoveries about herself that change the rules of the game she never could have been prepared for.

    She’d faced the witch. She’d poisoned the wolf. She’d strolled into the land of death with her head held high and left it a lord. She was an impossible player in a fixed game, the only person not playing to win.

I thought the concept was a solid one, the fantasy world composed on many interesting facets. However, it took me a while to become emotionally invested, and that's not just purely because of the information dump or the unlikable character traits. The romance felt rather abrupt as opposed to organic. And I'm not entirely sure that I was ever shown that Levi had it in him to have led the Irons to be the top gang on the streets before he hit rock bottom. I was told that he had the brains and cunning to once lead them to the top of the pack. What I was shown was something else entirely. He seemed to be stumbling through every day without a solid plan in place. When he finally did have success within his reach, well...let's just say that he has a way of self-destructing without even trying.

This wasn't quite at the level I was hoping for, however, I'm definitely curious where the story will go after how things left off. Once you're situated in the intricacies of the politics, and the magic, it makes for some fast paced reading. I would recommend this to fantasy fans who enjoy strong elements of magic and suspense.

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Blog Tour with Review: The Birthday List by Devney Perry

     

Happily married to her college sweetheart, Poppy lived a blessed life with the husband of her dreams. Then everything changed. She is no longer a wife. She is no longer the envy of her single friends. Now, people look at her with pity as they whisper a single word behind her back.

Widow.

Years after her husband’s tragic death, years of pain and sorrow and wishing for the life she’ll never get back, Poppy decides to finish Jamie’s birthday list. She’ll do the things he wanted to most. Because maybe, just maybe, if she can complete his list, she can start to live again.

Poppy expects going through the birthday list will be hard. She expects it to hurt. But what she doesn’t expect is Cole. Could the man who delivered the news of her husband’s death and shattered her heart be the one to help her put it back together again?

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Excerpt

Turning to the door, I smiled, ready to greet my late-evening customer, but faltered as the door closed behind him. Cole Goodman was walking my way. My belly dipped as I took him in. His aviator sunglasses were perched on top of his chocolate-brown hair. A black polo stretched across his broad shoulders and pulled tight across his muscled arms. His pale-blue jeans molded to his Herculean thighs before draping down to his black, square-toed boots. The leather belt on Cole’s trim waist held both a shining badge and a holstered gun. Cole smiled and locked his light-green eyes on mine as he crossed the room. His straight, white teeth made my breath hitch—something that had happened last night more times than I wanted to admit. Molly, who had turned around from her seat to greet our customer, spun around so her back was to Cole. Her cheeks flushed as she whispered, “Wow.” Wow was right. Cole Goodman was—simply put—gorgeous. He could give a woman a speeding ticket and get a thank-you in return. He inspired women to attempt push-ups in a karate class just for the chance to watch him sweat through his gi. Cole made grown women blush like teenagers and giggle in corners, like those girls at the dojo last night.

             

 Devney is the USA Today bestselling author of the Jamison Valley series. She lives in Montana with her husband and two children. After working in the technology industry for nearly a decade, she abandoned conference calls and project schedules to enjoy a slower pace at home with her kids. She loves reading and, after consuming hundreds of books, decided to share her own stories. Devney loves hearing from readers! Connect with her on social media.

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REVIEW

Title: The Birthday List

Series: Standalone

Author: Devney Perry

Release date: April 3, 2018

Cliffhanger: No

My Rating: 4 stars

    He was a dream. How had I found a man who was so understanding and patient, who saw me so clearly? It was nothing short of a miracle.

Believe it or not, this is my very first read by Devney Perry. I've heard so many good things about her writing, but somehow never got around to checking out any of her books. When the early praise and excitement for The Birthday List started to flood in, I knew it was time to go for it.

I don't shy away from a highly emotional book, in fact, if an author can make me feel so intensely for her characters, I know that they've created something really special and meaningful. I was expecting a more weighty narrative due to the subject matter, but honestly, it felt more uplifting than anything. Perry managed to infuse a lot of humor and lightness into Poppy's journey that made for a really fast-paced read.

This is the story of a woman's rebirth in a sense, how she discovered that there was the possibility of life after loss. Poppy thought she had everything she could ever hope for when she married the love of her life right out of college, and they started to build a home together. She took for granted that the future promised years of laughter and love with her husband Jamie. Then in the blink of an eye, that future suddenly dawned dark and grim.

Logically it makes sense that he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time when he was stolen from her. But the guilt gnawing at her seems to contradict that. After four years of surviving a unrelenting grief and living in limbo, she's finally at a place where she feels ready to try to give herself permission to find happiness again. So she comes up with the birthday list plan.

The birthday list was Jamie's own version of a bucket list. Things that he wanted to accomplish and experience in his lifetime by each of his birthdays. Poppy decided that completing his goals would give her a sense of peace and freedom, and fearlessly jumped into each challenge in order to honor the man she loved.

    I wanted to do this for Jamie and let it go. Every day, I was getting stronger. I was getting back on my feet. I was starting to live again—for me. And until the list was done, I’d still be living for Jamie.

Despite her brother Finn trying to talk her out of such an emotional upheaval, she knew it was the right thing to do. She was taking steady steps to reach a happier future. Until she walked into her next challenge at the karate dojo, and the past confronted her in the form of Cole Goodman. He was the man who once shattered her entire world. The irony was, he was going to be the one to help her glue all of her pieces back together again. This man was so perfect for her, and so deserving of the fragile woman that needed to be handled with extreme care.

Cole was so utterly patient and understanding of her need to keep things slow, and sensitive to what she needed to feel comfortable with him. He knew that there was a powerful attraction brewing between them, but he needed to help her to see past her guilt for feeling it. One of the things I thought was really amazing was the fact that he realized that he had fallen in love with her before their first kiss. Not because of insta-love, but because he put their physical relationship on hold until she gave him the signal that she was ready.

    When I pictured kissing another man, it was Cole. When I imagined sleeping with another man, it was Cole. He was the man of the future, patiently waiting on the other side of the line. I could imagine him standing there, holding out his hand.

Poppy was such an incredibly strong character. She faced each task on Jamie's list with courage and grace, all while managing to launch her new restaurant and make it a huge success. Her budding feelings terrified the living daylights out of her, but she faced her fears and put one foot in front of the other in order to let love in her life again. There was an additional conflict involving the unsolved murder of her husband Jamie. Cole worked his fingers to the bone in order to bring Poppy closure, but what he uncovered was something that neither of them could have anticipated.

I'm really glad I gave this story a chance, and I know without a doubt that I will be reading more from this author. My reason for a four instead of a five was partly because I was expecting more of an ugly cry book, and while it had some sad moments, it didn't really delve into the darkest days of her struggle. I really appreciated the overall tone, but I wouldn't have minded seeing her work through those initial stages of grief. Also, there were a couple of things in the book that occurred that I thought were a little bit too coincidental or convenient to be 100% realistic towards the end. However, if you're looking for a slowburn romance with a heartwarming message about love and new beginnings you can't go wrong with The Birthday List.

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Review: Sky In The Deep by Adrienne Young

Title: Sky In The Deep

Series: Standalone 

Author: Adrienne Young

Release date: April 24, 2018

Rating: 5 stars

SYNOPSIS

OND ELDR. BREATHE FIRE.

Raised to be a warrior, seventeen-year-old Eelyn fights alongside her Aska clansmen in an ancient, rivalry against the Riki clan. Her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.

Faced with her brother's betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki, in a village where every neighbor is an enemy, every battle scar possibly one she delivered. But when the Riki village is raided by a ruthless clan thought to be a legend, Eelyn is even more desperate to get back to her beloved family.

She is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend, who sees her as a threat. They must do the impossible: unite the clans to fight together, or risk being slaughtered one by one. Driven by a love for her clan and her growing love for Fiske, Eelyn must confront her own definition of loyalty and family while daring to put her faith in the people she’s spent her life hating.

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About the Author

Adrienne Young is a born and bred Texan turned California girl. She is a foodie with a deep love of history and travel and a shameless addiction to coffee. When she’s not writing, you can find her on her yoga mat, scouring antique fairs for old books, sipping wine over long dinners, or disappearing into her favorite art museums. She lives with her documentary filmmaker husband and their four little wildlings beneath the West Coast sun.

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REVIEW

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

    It was the same sea. The same beach. But then I looked back to the village and the truth resurfaced in my mind. Nothing would ever be the same again.

This book. This book HAS ME IN ITS CLUTCHES AND WON'T LET GO. I finished reading it yesterday, thought about it all day, and fell asleep thinking about it. I woke up this morning thinking about it. Now as I sit here, I'm still lost in my head. Wandering the battlefield in Aurvanger, and listening to the axes clang and the warriors roar. Feeling the crisp, briny breeze blowing through my hair from the fjord, and the wintry air stinging my cheeks on the snowy mountainside. The world was so richly depicted, with such precision, that it becomes home. Your mind takes up residence there and holds you hostage.

Adrienne Young is an exciting new voice in the fantasy genre. Her words are evocative and powerful, connecting you to the pulse of the character's hearts and the deep reaches of their minds. Making you feel things you hadn't anticipated feeling, and aren't entirely sure you want to feel. Nothing is glossed over, or romanticized about Viking life, yet I loved it all the more for its unmerciful honesty.

Sky in the Deep is about a war that spans centuries and generations. It nurtures a hatred between the Riki and the Aska clans with no conceivable end in sight. Every five years like clockwork they meet, and prepare for the eventuality that their loved ones may be leaving them for the afterlife. Eelyn is one of the fierce who fight to defend her people, and uphold their honor. She's raised to be strong, and her pride for the Aska courses through every inch of her veins. Her strength and courage will soon be all she has to hold on to, and not once does she let it slip. I loved Eelyn so, so much. The betrayal that broke her heart laid heavy on my chest, and made me suffer right along with her. She brushes off stab wounds, arrow punctures, countless indignities, and the loss of her freedom. But it was the betrayal that wounded her so visibly, more than anything else could.

    I’d felt the absence of my mother as soon as she stopped breathing. As if with that last breath, her soul had let go of her body. But with Iri, it had never been that way. I still felt him. Maybe I always would.

In the last fighting season, she lost her beloved brother, Iri. The memory of his broken body beneath the cliffs feeds the fire burning in her blood. Vengeance sits at the end of her battle axe, but nothing soothes the ache that's left from his loss. The last thing she expected was to see him once again. Walking, breathing, and possibly most shocking of all, fighting with their sworn enemy against their people. When she sees him run out of the fog and lock eyes with her, she has no idea in that moment what his return will bring about.

In her confusion, Eelyn is captured, and her life is forever changed while living with Iri's new family. The family that took her and her father's place. Eventually, when she can see past her bitterness and anger, she faces some hard truths about her way of life, and the prejudices she's been raised on. I'm going to be honest, I can't say that I completely forgive her brother. For the most part, I understand it, and even agree with his ability to see past the old beliefs. It's even admirable. What I can't wrap my mind around is that he turned against his family and clansmen. [It's one thing to see past divisions to humanity. But he was attacking his own people!! I get it, he had to prove his loyalty and earn their trust...but I can not get past that. Eelyn never once considered killing her people for the sake of love or a new found loyalty. It still angers me to think about it, even though I know I am supposed to have let it go. (hide spoiler)]

Fiske seems harsh and brutal at first, certainly not someone I could imagine ever pairing with Eelyn. But as time wears on, you see that his actions are motivated by his need to protect Iri and the rest of his family. If her identity is discovered, no one's safety is guaranteed. She suffers cruelty there, but also sees the love. The families. Eelyn begins to thaw, her hardened heart softening a little bit more every day. But when a powerful enemy rains terror and destruction upon the land, their plan may be their salvation or the end of life as they know it.

    My heart pulsed in my veins as the fear pressed down on me, making me feel heavier. It was terrifying—that feeling—like there was something tying me to him. Because if one of us fell into the darkness, the other would too.

There's no way I can properly explain how incredible this story is. I had so many overwhelming emotions for much of the book. So many!!! One thing I have to mention is how much I LOVED the gender equality of Eelyn's people. Men and women were trained side by side, and never once was a female coddled or believed to be less worthy. The fight scenes....mah gawd...I was sitting on the edge of my seat seeing the epicness go down. Fingernails were chewed, reading position shifted repeatedly as the action escalated. All I can say is, this is going on my yearly favorite list. It was that good. After a little stalking, I discovered that there WILL BE A COMPANION BOOK SET IN THIS WORLD next year! Day. Made. Now excuse me while I go obsess a little bit more, and nurse my book hangover.

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Blog Tour with Giveaway and Review: Twice Bitten by Lynsay Sands

Thrilling, witty, and oh-so-sexy, Lynsay Sands’ Argeneau novel brings together a beautiful Immortal and the man who is her destiny…

For someone who’s been around for over a hundred and forty years, immortal Elspeth Argeneau hasn’t done a whole lot of living. Now that she’s moved away from her controlling mother, she’s tracking down rogue vampires and enjoying some overdue freedom. A fling would be fun. A life mate can wait. Yet to Elspeth’s surprise, her landlady’s hot grandson checks both boxes.

Wyatt fell instantly in love with Elspeth four years ago. He’s stunned to run into her again, especially as she has no memory of him. Then again, there are a lot of things about Elspeth that don’t make sense, like the miraculous speed with which her wounds heal. And the chemistry that transforms every touch into an explosion of desire. But with mysterious “accidents” besieging Elspeth, the ex-Special Forces soldier appoints himself her bodyguard. But time is running out to uncover the truth about her enemies—and rediscover the man determined to love her for eternity.

Each book in this series can be read as a standalone story.

About the Book

Twice Bitten

by Lynsay Sands

Series: Argeneau #27

Genre: Adult Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Avon Books

Publication Date: March 27, 2018

Amazon  |  Avon Romance  |  Barnes & Noble  |  Google Play  |  iBooks

EXCERPT:


“Wyatt?” she said, surprised at how breathless her voice was.
She was panting, Elspeth realized. The man hadn’t even touched her and she was panting like an overheated dog . . . or a horny one.
“I’m sorry,” Wyatt growled, and turned away to quickly search the room, and then spotting the bath towel over the towel rack, he grabbed it and turned back to offer it to her.
Elspeth reached for it, but froze when their hands touched. For a minute, they just remained like that, both silent and still as shockwaves rolled through them, and then Wyatt cleared his throat. His voice was husky as he said, “I know you’re not ready for a life mate, and I-“
That was as far as he got before Elspeth finished taking the towel from him, let it drop to the floor, and reached for him instead.

Tour Wide Giveaway

To celebrate the release of TWICE BITTEN, we’re giving away five paperback copies of A QUICK BITE, the first installment in the Argeneau series by Lynsay Sands!

GIVEAWAY TERMS & CONDITIONS:  Open to US shipping addresses only. Five winners will each receive a paperback copy of A Quick Bite by Lynsay Sands.  This giveaway is administered by Pure Textuality PR on behalf of Avon Romance.  Giveaway ends 4/6/2018 @ 11:59pm EST. Avon Romance will send the winning copies out to the winner directly. Limit one entry per reader and mailing address.  Duplicates will be deleted. 

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About Lynsay Sands

LYNSAY SANDS is the nationally bestselling author of the Argeneau/Rogue Hunter vampire series, as well as numerous historicals and anthologies. She’s been writing stories since grade school and considers herself incredibly lucky to be able to make a career out of it. Her hope is that readers can get away from their everyday stress through her stories, and if there’s occasional uncontrollable fits of laughter, that’s just a big bonus. Please visit her on the web at http://www.lynsaysands.net.

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This promotion is brought to you by Pure Textuality PR.

REVIEW

Twice Bitten by Lynsay Sands
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When I first started exploring the paranormal genre years ago, Lynsay Sands' Argeneau series is one of the first I discovered. (We're on book twenty seven, guys. This series is no joke.) You would think after all of this time taking a hiatus from the long continuing storyline, there would be some confusion. I admit, I was wondering if that issue would arise here. If you're like me and want to return to the Argeneau world, don't hesitate. Ms. Sands did a wonderful job integrating me back into recent events, and refreshing me about her immortals without affecting my interest in the central plot. 

I liked the fact that the immortal in this scenario was the female. It's not exactly uncommon, but more often, it's the other way around. Elspeth Argeneau was strong, level-headed, and intelligent with a sense of humor to boot. She's a heroine that I really enjoyed getting to know. Over hundred and forty years old, she's considered young in comparison to the other ancient family members like her mother. But even in her "youth" she's way past the time when she should be leaving the nest and struggling for her own independence. That's exactly what she did when she moved from England to Canada...or perhaps a more apt description would be escaped to Canada.

Elspeth has been nothing short of enslaved by her mother for more than a century. Think about the most controlling and overbearing parent you know, then multiply that by a million. Add mind control, and incredible power and influence? You have Martine. After tragically losing her husband and children centuries before, she took the role of protective mother to a whole new, scary level.

Heaving a sigh, Elspeth shook her head. Honestly, having a mother who could read your mind was a real pain. It made for extremely well-behaved and miserable children.

Her free will had been taken away for years, her ability to choose her own path. Just when she was attempting to spread her wings and finally fly, her mother shows up with the intent to drag her home. You'd better believe that she wasn't just going to fall in line and go meekly. Elspeth sets out to outsmart her, and hold onto her new life and freedom.

Wyatt MacKay is the landlady's grandson who's visiting her in the downstairs apartment. When Elspeth comes face to face with the ex-special forces man for the first time, she finds him attractive, but had more important matters weighing on her mind. The same couldn't be said for Wyatt, who seemed to be at a loss for words and struggling to contain his shock. Searching for something in her eyes that doesn't seem to be there. There's more to this brooding man than meets the eye...but then again she has a few secrets of her own. I loved Wyatt for her almost immediately. He had a calmness, and a strong and capable presence about him without being "alpha" or bossy. His one weakness was the power this woman had to leave him breathless without even trying.

“I dated a lot of women before you. It was a different girl in every port kind of a deal. But none of them even touched my heart, while you flat-out owned it before I even kissed you,”

Elspeth struggles to come to terms with the fact that her independence could be threatened in more ways than one. She's not in any way, shape or form looking for a life mate, but that doesn't stop fate from intervening when we least expect it. On top of that, mysterious "accidents" keep piling up, and the tension is mounting with the rogue hunters who are already dealing with their own mess. With her extensive family and a very protective Wyatt standing as bodyguard, they race to find the person responsible as the attacks gain momentum. I enjoyed this little mystery, and the moments of suspense thrown in, though I could have perhaps done with a little bit less of them. The book dragged a shade in the middle, and I feel like the emotional punch could have been stronger between the main couple. But overall, I found Twice Bitten to be quite the refreshing and entertaining read.

If you're looking for a paranormal book that has plenty of action with a little mystery thrown in, pick this one up. It could be just what you're in the mood for. I'll be keeping my eye on the series in the hopes that G.G. eventually gets his own full length story!

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