Mini-view: Fanning the Flames - Victoria Dahl

Burning for you 

Some men are off-limits. Close friends of your ex-husband, for instance. Or firefighters who work in the same building as you. Yet despite her best judgment, librarian Lauren Foster can't help noticing fire captain Jake Davis whenever he jogs by…shirtless. They've always been friends, but all it takes is one not-so-chance meeting at a local bar and one not-quite-innocent walk home to ignite a fierce, uncontrollable desire between them. 

Widower Jake Davis has tried to ignore the spark he feels whenever Lauren's around, but once he sees her curves in a little black dress, there's no turning back. No matter how often she says she's all wrong for him, the sexy, outspoken divorcée is driving him wild in the best possible way. Maybe she's just blowing off steam. Or maybe he can convince her to fan these flames into something deeper, hotter and truer than they ever expected….

Fanning the Flames is the novella prequel, or taster if you will, to Dahl's new Girl's Night Out series set in Jackson. As an avid Dahl fan I couldn't resist this little snippet to whet my appetite before the release of the first in the series, Looking for Trouble.

Bargain Read: Do You Remember the First Time - Jenny Colgan

As her best friend Tashy cuts into her wedding cake, 32-year-old Flora realises she is disillusioned with life. Suddenly, her well-paid job, cosy flat and stable relationship with sensible Olly don't amount to a whole lot. Flora wants to be 16 again. She closes her eyes and wishes. Her wish has come true. 

Waking up the next morning is a shock. But now Flora has the chance to right some wrongs. Trading crows feet for pimples, love handles for a torso Britney Spears would kill for and dull dinner parties for house parties where White Lightning and snogging are the order of the day, Flora revels in a life where things are far less complicated and just much more… FUN. 

It's not all laughs though. Will what she does change the future? How can she get back to the present and her ordinary life? And does she even want to?

What are you still doing here? Jenny Colgan is only 99p! Go now! Sprint to Amazon and then come back and read the review (obviously).

Review: The Country Escape - Fiona Walker*

Hidden amid lush Herefordshire parkland, Eardisford is the ultimate English country retreat and it's just been sold for the first time in its history. Romantic daredevil Kat Mason has been bequeathed the estate's lakeside sanctuary, Lake Farm, until she dies or marries. But the new owners want her out now . . .  

In rides charming playboy Dougie Everett, the man hired to sweep Kat off her feet and off the property. Although pursuing the Hollywood dream has not been all he'd hoped, Dougie loves nothing more than the thrill of the chase, but does he risk losing his heart along the way?

Anyone who's been reading my blog for a while will know that Fiona Walker was one of the first romance authors I read and her books hold a special place in my heart (if you missed this you can read those posts here and here). You can imagine my excitement when I received an advanced copy of Walker's latest.

Review: You Don't Have to Say You Love Me - Sarra Manning

Sweet, bookish Neve Slater always plays by the rules. And the number one rule is that good-natured fat girls like her don't get guys like gorgeous, handsome William, heir to Neve's heart since university. But William's been in LA for three years, and Neve's been slimming down and re-inventing herself so that when he returns, he'll fall head over heels in love with the new, improved her.

So she's not that interested in other men. Until her sister Celia points out that if Neve wants William to think she's an experienced love-goddess and not the fumbling, awkward girl he left behind, then she'd better get some, well, experience.What Neve needs is someone to show her the ropes, someone like Celia's colleague Max. Wicked, shallow, sexy Max. And since he's such a man-slut, and so not Neve's type, she certainly won't fall for him. Because William is the man for her... right?Somewhere between losing weight and losing her inhibitions, Neve's lost her heart - but to who?

A few weeks ago I reviewed my first ever Manning novel It Felt Like a Kiss and since then I have been predictably squeezing in a few of her older reads in between everything else that has been languishing on my TBR pile. It has to be said that You Don't Have to Say You Love Me could have over taken It Felt Like a Kiss as my favourite Manning novel to date.

Review: Run to You - Rachel Gibson*

Ex-marine Beau Junger likes fast cars and loud music. His body is covered in tattoos and makes girls go weak at the knees. But Beau's not interested in love this year: No women. No sex. No complications. His only worry is saving Stella Leon.

Stella doesn't need saving. She's always been independent, confident, strong. At least on the outside. And she definitely doesn't need a man. After all, she's never known one she could depend on.

But when Beau turns up and spirits her across state to meet her estranged sister, everything changes. They've both got their demons to face, but as the southern heat brings tensions sizzling to the surface, something sparks between them. This tough guy has finally met his match - and they're both about to fall harder than a ton of red-hot bricks...

Rachel Gibson is one of my go to authors as she always guarantees a fun and romantic read and Run to You is no different.

Mini-view: Three Little Words - Jessica Thompson

They are just words but they mean so much. 

As a dark evening draws in, the lives of three women are changed forever. 

The worlds they have been living in, the people they thought they knew - in an instant it all changes.

But when everything seems to shatter around them, could three little words be enough to help put the pieces back together again?

After having devoured Jessica Thompson's debut novel This is a Love Story in a mere evening, I couldn't wait to get my hands on Three Little Words. While completely different from This is a Love Story, Three Little Words is no less gripping or enjoyable.

Review: It Felt Like a Kiss - Sarra Manning

Ellie manages a swank Mayfair gallery, but it’s her life that’s a real work of art. Great job, really good hair, loyal friends, loving family. It’s only her succession of lame duck boyfriends that ruin the picture. 

Oh, and the world-famous rock-star father she’s never met, who won’t even acknowledge her existence. 

Then Ellie’s perfect life is smashed to pieces when her secret is sold to the highest bidder and her name, face (and pictures of her bottom) are splashed across the tabloids. Suddenly everyone thinks she’s a gold-digging, sex-crazy, famewhore. 

Enter David Gold. Charming and handsome David Gold. On paper he’s even more perfect than Ellie, if only he wasn’t her father’s ruthlessly ambitious lawyer whose job is to manage the crisis – and her. He certainly doesn’t think that Ellie’s the innocent party and she doesn’t trust him at all. So why is it that every time they’re alone together, damage limitation is the last thing on their minds?

New favourite author alert! Brit-lit (as I like to call it) has been going from strength to strength recently and I am so pleased to be discovering new authors to add to my hallowed hall of "favourite reads". Whilst Sarra Manning isn't a new author, she's new to me and I love finding someone that I love who has a whole back catalogue for me to devour.

Mini-view: A Rake's Guide to Pleasure (Huntington #2) - Victoria Dahl

True Pleasure. . .

Raised by a titled, yet degenerate, father, Emma Jensen never imagined the gambling lessons she learned as a child would one day serve her well. When she finds herself in dire need of money, she concocts the alias of Dowager Lady Denmore and sets off to bewitch London's noblemen by engaging them in games of chance. The fact that respectable ladies do not gamble does not intimidate her in the least. But the darkly handsome Duke of Somerhart does--for he's awakened a deep, sensual hunger in her. . .  

Is Always Worth The Gamble. . .

The dashing Duke of Somerhart has the notorious reputation of being one of London's most incurable rogues. When he meets the alluring Lady Denmore, he is immediately intrigued. Her recklessness and innocence intertwined titillates him as no other woman ever has. But what secret is the lovely Lady Denmore hiding? He's determined to find out. But first he must seduce her until she surrenders completely to his most wicked desires...

Victoria Dahl is a force to be reckoned with and her contemporary romances are amongst my favourites and any new releases are an automatic read for me. Having just released a new novel in her Jackson series that I can't seem to get hold of in the libraries or on the Kindle over here (grrr...), I decided to pick up one of her early, historical romance novels in its place. 

RARM: My Favourite Romances #2

I did say I was indecisive. After reading over my last post I noticed that I hadn’t included any historical romance, what an oversight! So, since it’s still Read-a-Romance Month, and will continue to be so until the end of August, I thought I’d sneak another wee favourites post in.

RARM: My Favourite Romance Reads

 

So here it is, my favourite romance reads. I hope you all appreciate the agonising effort that went into picking my favourites.