Saturday, January 30, 2010

Preordered books for February

Here are the books I have so far preordered for February, all of them will be released on the 2nd and I have to say that all of the covers look great.
For US readers February finally brings the release of the new J.D. Robb (on the 23rd) and I can't wait to finally discuss the book with others.


Back in Black - Lori Foster
SBC president Drew Black is as controversial as they come. But the hot-headed entrepreneur is a perfect match for his popular sports club venture: u
ncompromising and extreme. Maybe too extreme. With a reputation for saying what he thinks, Drew's been causing a lot of friction. That's why someone's been called in to clean up his image—before he does any permanent damage.
The lucky lady is Gillian Noode, a PR expert who's smoothed out the rough edges on many a man. But Drew is rougher than anyone she's ever met, and he refuses to change for any woman, for any reason. To make matters more complicated, Gillian's starting to like him raw. Now, opposites aren't only attracting, they're igniting. But in the rising heat, which one of them will end up on top?



Sleeping with Anemone - Kate Collins
Maybe Abby Knight shouldn't have chosen a home and garden show sponsored by Uniworld Food as the venue for her protest against the corporation's harmful farming practices. But being bodily removed from the event won't stop her campaign. Nor will a burning brick thrown t
hrough her flower shop's window.
After she narrowly escapes being kidnapped three times, Abby calls in the big guns-her ex-Ranger boyfriend Marco and her friends and family. And then the stakes are raised by murder...




Slow Heat - Jill Shalvis
After a woman claims she’s pregnant with Wade O’Riley’s love child, Major League Baseball’s most celebrated catcher and ladies’ man is slapped on the
wrist by management and ordered to improve his image. His enforcer is the team’s publicist, the tough and sexy Samantha McNead.
When Wade needs a date for a celebrity wedding, Sam steps up to the plate as his “girlfriend.” But given her secret crush on him and that one awkward
night a year ago in a stuck elevator with too much scotch, the whole thing is an exercise in sexual tension.
Wade is thrilled when the pretense turns into an unexpected night of hot passion. But the next day Sam is back to her cool self. As a catcher, Wade’s
used to giving the signals, not struggling to read them. Now, to win the love of his “pretend” girlfriend, he needs a homerun–even it involves
stealing a few bases…



Moon Craving - Lucy Monroe
If it were up to him, Talorc—laird of the Sinclair clan and leader of his werewolf pack— would never marry. But when the king orders that Talorc wed an Englishwoman, the lone wolf is shocked to find his mate in the strong-willed Abigail. And after an intensely climactic wedding night, the two fiercely independent souls sense an unbreakable bond…
Deaf since childhood, Abigail hopes to keep her affliction from Talorc as long as possible. And for his part, he has no intention of telling her about being a werewolf. But when Abigail learns that the husband she’s begun to love has deceived her, it will take all of his warrior’s strength—and his wolf’s cunning—to win his wife back. And Talorc will have to face his biggest challenge yet: the vulnerability of a man in love…




Nauti Deceptions - Lora Leigh
Caitlyn "Rogue" Walker left her life in Boston to become a teacher in a small Kentucky town. But her dream was shattered when she was framed in a sex scandal. Refusing to be run out of town, Caitlyn shed the identity she had and became Rogue. Sheriff Zeke Mayes knows there's more to her than meets the eye, though what meets the eye is pretty smoking. He's prepared for a long struggle getting Rogue to drop her defenses-and give in to desire. But soon Zeke will become embroiled in a deadly game that sweeps Rogue up in its wake. And when everything seems to be a matter of life and death, there is no reason to hold back...



And for my american friends:
Fantasy in Death - J.D. Robb

Bart Minnock, founder of the computer-gaming giant U-Play, enters his private playroom, and eagerly can't wait to lose himself in an imaginary world, to play the role of a sword-wielding warrior king, in his company's latest top-secret project, Fantastical.
The next morning, he is found in the same locked room, in a pool of blood, his head separated from his body. It is the most puzzling case Eve Dallas has ever faced, and it is not a game. . . .
NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas is having as much trouble figuring out how Bart Minnock was murdered as who did the murdering. The victim's girlfriend seems sincerely grief-stricken, and his quirky-but-brilliant partners at U-Play appear equally shocked. No one seemed to have a prob lem with the enthusiastic, high-spirited millionaire. Of course, success can attract jealousy, and gaming, like any business, has its fierce rivalries and dirty tricks-as Eve's husband, Roarke, one of U- Play's competitors, knows well. But Minnock was not naive, and quite capable of fighting back in the real world as well as the virtual one.
Eve and her team are about to enter the next level of police work, in a world where fantasy is the ultimate seduction-and the price of defeat is death. . . .

Thursday, January 28, 2010

RIP J.D. Salinger


RIP J.D. Salinger.
Thank you for writing "Franny and Zooey", one of my all time favourite books.
You were a real genius with words and enriched so many lifes.
So thank you for choosing to be an author and taking the time to write down your thoughts.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Review: Magnate's Mistress ... Accidentally Pregnant! - Kimberly Lang

When sensible and reliable Ally Smith meets sexy Chris Wells she feels lucky for the first time in months. After ending the relationship with her cheating ex-fiance she decided to go on her honeymoon - even though there is no husband!
She spends some relaxed, care-free and hot days and nights with Chris, but when she has to go home because of a family emergency she leaves without saying goodbye or giving him her telephone number. Ally wants to enjoy her newfound freedom some more before thinking about a new relationship.
Six weeks after Ally left him Chris contacts her (he found out her address) because he wants more than just a few nights. But when he realizes that they are going to be parents things change. He is furious with Ally for not informing him about the baby and he is also very interested in being a hands-on daddy to his child.
Ally has to deal with the changes in her life and also with the growing feelings for Chris, who turns out to be so much more than the relaxed guy she met on vacation. In real life he is a thrill-loving shipping tycoon, but his money, power and adventures don't impress Ally. To the contrary she hopes for a quieter life than Chris offers her.
In the end Chris has to rethink his priorities in life if he wants to have a future with Ally and their child.

"Magnate's mistress ... accidentically pregnant" by Kimberly Lang is just the way I like books by Harlequin. It's funny, sweet, sexy and both main characters are great.
Ally is a great heroine who changes into a strong woman throughout the book. At the beginning she is a bit of a doormat and her family takes advantage of her regularly. But because of her pregnancy and Chris she realizes that it's time to concentrate on her own life and needs. Chris is a typical Harlequin hero. A bit arrogant and when he wants something he does everything to get it. Together they are a great pair because both can learn things from each other. Ally to stand up more for herself and Chris to consider other people's feelings before acting.

So all in all this was a great read and I will definitely look for more books by Kimberly Lang in the future.

Contest info

Check out this new contest by Maya Banks. For more info and the chance to join her newsletter just go to http://www.mayabanks.com/contest.php

Contests

A Sinfully Sweet Contest from Maya Banks!

Maya is celebrating her Sweet series with a Sinfully Sweet Contest that's easy...

and includes a Sweetheart Prize of a Kindle eBook Reader and a $50 Gift Certificate to Amazon for eBooks!

HOW DO YOU ENTER TO WIN? It's very simple. Join Maya's Newsletter before Valentine's Day and sometime in March you may be notified that you're the SinfullySweet WINNER!

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***please note - if the winner does not respond with their mailing address within 10 days of notification (Winner's partial email will be announced in Maya's newsletter), then their win is forfeited and another winner will be chosen. If the winner already has a Kindle or lives in a country where the Kindle is not available, then that winner may choose a $200 gift certificate to Amazon, Borders or Barnes and Noble instead of the Kindle and Amazon Gift Certificate. Not valid where prohibited by law.***

Monday, January 25, 2010

Synopsis and excerpt for Jaci Burton's new book "Bound, Branded and Brazen"

Check out the synopsis and an excerpt for "Bound, Branded and Brazen" by Jaci Burton, coming March 2. I already have my copy preordered and after reading the excerpt I'm even more excited to get the book.

Bound, Branded, and Brazen
Bound by passion, branded by love, brazen enough to take it all…
In the wilds of Oklahoma, three sisters have a hot date with destiny. Valerie, Brea, and Jolene McMasters reunite on the family ranch that should have been called the Bar Nothing…
Bound
When Valerie left for the big city, she kissed her foreman husband, Mason, goodbye—along with the best sex she ever had. Now, seeing him brings back sizzling memories. But their rekindled fire threatens to burn them both.
Branded
Watching Gage wrangle untamed horses with a gentle but firm touch leaves Brea hot and bothered. But can she live out her fantasy with a man who may ask more than she’s willing to give?
Brazen
Ranch hand Walker Morgan can’t afford to lose his job by getting too close to his new boss, Jolene, no matter how much she tempts him. But Jolene’s prepared to take the first step, because what Jolene wants, Jolene gets. And Jolene wants Walker.
excerpt after the jump ...

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Review: Fantasy in Death - J.D. Robb

When Bart Minnock, co-owner of a popular video game firm, is found brutally murdered Eve Dallas takes the case. And it's not an easy one for Eve.
Bart seemed to be a great, happy guy that nobody had trouble with. But finding a motive is not the only problem for Eve. Another is to find out how Bart was decapitated without anybody else in the room.
Eve must get past her own convictions about what is possible in the real world to close this case and find justice for Bart.

What I love about "Fantasy in Death" is that it concentrates on friendship. So there are lots of interactions between Eve and her colleagues, especially Peabody and Nadine. The scenes between Nadine and Eve are awesome and I like how the dynamics in their friendship are portrayed.
I was relieved that the new case is not so dark and hard to read like the ones in "Kindred in Death".
Another thing I love about "Fantasy in Death" is that this time Eve is the strong one in the relationship with Roarke. Roarke has some trouble to deal with the case because he knew the victim but Eve is there for him just like he is always there for her. It's awesome to see how she handles the fights with him and is understanding even when he hits her below the belt (for once Roarke is not 100% perfect!). But of course there are also some sexy and very sweet scenes between Eve and Roarke and whenever I read about them as a pair I'm just happy.
The mystery part of the story was very interesting and I didn't know who the bad guy was until it was revealed.

So, "Fantasy in Death" is another awesome book by J.D. Robb and I'm already excited to read "Indulgence in Death", coming in November 2010.

Friday, January 22, 2010

New shopoholic book by Sophie Kinsella: "Mini Shopoholic" - coming September

Woho, September is bringing a new book in the Shopoholic series by Sophie Kinsella. It's called "Mini Shopoholic" and it sounds great. Can't wait to read how Becky manages to get in trouble (again) because she wants the best for everyone.

Synopsis:
Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) thought motherhood would be a breeze – but it’s trickier than she thought. Two-year-old Minnie is a little tearaway who has created havoc everywhere from Harrods to Harvey Nicks to her own christening. She hires taxis at random, her favourite word is ‘Mine’, and she already has a penchant for Balenciaga bags. Becky is at her wits’ end.On top of this, she and Luke are still living with her Mum and Dad, there’s a big financial crisis so everyone’s having to Cut Back – including all her personal shopping clients – and her husband Luke is feeling low after the death of his beloved stepmother. To cheer Luke up, Becky decides to throw him a surprise birthday party – on a budget – and that’s when things become really complicated. As Becky tries to keep the arrangements secret, misunderstandings and excuses sprout everywhere, and soon she’s told so many fibs she can’t keep track of them. Will Becky pull off the surprise? Will Minnie give everything away? Will Minnie’s godparents ever stop arguing? Who will end up on the naughty step and who will get a gold star? And what will happen when Becky discovers Luke is keeping a big secret too?

Sounds great!!!

Monday, January 18, 2010

Woho - Fantasy in Death (UK version) is coming this week!!!



Finally it's time for a new book by Nora Roberts.
"Fantasy in Death" (no. 31) is published this Thursday!!!
If you are lucky and can get your hands on the UK edition (US edition is coming February 23rd), then this week is going to be a great one.
My copy is preordered and should be on it's way right on time. I have a presentation on Thursday and when I'm back home from university this will be my reward.
This also means that the next book by my queen is "Savour the Moment" and that is making me so happy. Only 98 more days until I can finally read it (I will do my best to get it earlier but right now it looks as if I have to wait until the publication date - damn).


What "Fantasy in Death" is about:
Bart Minnock, founder of the computer-gaming giant U-Play, enters his private playroom, and eagerly can't wait to lose himself in an imaginary world, to play the role of a sword-wielding warrior king, in his company's latest top-secret project, Fantastical.
The next morning, he is found in the same locked room, in a pool of blood, his head separated from his body. It is the most puzzling case Eve Dallas has ever faced, and it is not a game. . . .

NYPSD Lieutenant Eve Dallas is having as much trouble figuring out how Bart Minnock was murdered as who did the murdering. The victim's girlfriend seems sincerely grief-stricken, and his quirky-but-brilliant partners at U-Play appear equally shocked. No one seemed to have a prob lem with the enthusiastic, high-spirited millionaire. Of course, success can attract jealousy, and gaming, like any business, has its fierce rivalries and dirty tricks-as Eve's husband, Roarke, one of U- Play's competitors, knows well. But Minnock was not naive, and quite capable of fighting back in the real world as well as the virtual one.

Eve and her team are about to enter the next level of police work, in a world where fantasy is the ultimate seduction-and the price of defeat is death. . . .

Here's a link if you want to read the first chapter:


Sounds awesome - hopefully I will be able to present you my review this weekend.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Review: Forbidden Heat - Opal Carew

"Forbidden Heat" by Opal Carew is a very sexy and lovely erotic romance that left me happy and with a warm and fuzzy feeling.

Danielle Rayne's quiet and simple life is about to change.
When she meets two of her former best friends, Jack and Trey, again, she realizes how much she missed their friendship. Trey and Jack were a pair when Danielle last met them and she always admired their great relationship. But when she learns that they broke up years ago she realizes that things have changed.
In college she was in love with both men but never did something about it. But now it's her chance to spend an exciting night with both of them.
What starts as a casual and very hot reunion soon changes when Danielle, Jack and Trey continue their unusual relationship and love finds it way into their hearts.

I enjoyed "Forbidden Heat" a lot. The characters are great and the relationship that develops between them is so fascinating, hot and also sweet.
There are a lot of very erotic and sexy scenes, so be prepared. The chemistry between Danielle, Jack and Trey is amazing and I loved every scene with the three of them.
Danielle is the focus of the relationship. She is a very sweet and caring person, who doesn't believe in love for herself. She wants to get Jake and Trey back together but can't stop from falling in love with both of them.
Jake and Trey are two hot and great guys, both need to accept that their realtionship has changed and that Danielle is the best thing that ever happened to them.

If you are a fan of erotic romances with strong characters you will love this book. I'm already excited for the next book by Opal Carew, which is coming in June 2010 and is called "Bliss".

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Cover and content info for "The Search" by Nora Roberts - coming in July






Here's the cover (from Putnam) for "The Search" by Nora Roberts, the book will be published in July this year.
I love the cover and it makes me even more excited to read the book.
Let's wait and see what Piatkus has created for the cover and then I will decide which version to buy.




Some content info about the book:
It's been a few years since Fiona Bristow has moved to Orcas Island. Within the small, tight-knit island community she's built up her business, a canine rescue centre that trains dogs to track missing persons. Whether they are lonely travellers on a hiking trip gone wrong or disappearances of a more sinister nature, more than once Fiona has been the last hope for those lost in Washington's vast wilderness. Other than her work, Fiona doesn't ask for much: the peace of the landscape, the companionship of her dogs, the safe haven of friends and family. Romantic entanglements are very far down on her list - and certainly not with Simon Doyle, an artist newly arrived from the mainland. Impossible rude, and impossibly handsome, he suddenly seems to be around an awful lot. But he doesn't know that Fiona harbours a terrible secret, and as her past unexpectedly catches up with her, she has to decide whether past grief will keep her from ever loving again ...Nora Roberts: Fall into her grip and she'll never let you go ...

I can't wait to get the book, because it sounds like another great story created by my queen.

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

You have to read this excerpt!!!

Here's a link to check out an excerpt of the upcoming book by Rhonda Pollero "Slightly Irregular".


The excerpt made me so excited for the book, it's so hilarious to read what's going on in Finleys life and how she stumbles in yet another embarassing situation.
So if you are already a fan of FAT have fun with it and if not check out the series by Rhonda Pollero because it's a great one.

xoxo
Sabrina

Posting more often

As you may have noticed I started with posting more regularly to make visiting my blog a bit more interesting.
I also thought about changing what books to review so I can post more often, but decided against changing anything int his area. I just don't want to write reviews about books that weren't great. Of course I could write reviews about medicore or even bad books but I just don't see the fun in it (and this blog is all about fun for me).
So, when I post a review you can still be sure that it's about a book I loved and nothing else.
To still be able to post more often I will talk about things surrounding my favourite authors and books and other stuff regarding books that interest me.
Hope you will enjoy the little changes I already made and will make in the next days.

xoxo
Sabrina

Monday, January 4, 2010

Time to say goodbye but also time to say hello

In 2009 I stopped reading two authors that I enjoyed for years (sad face).
I always liked their books but last year I suddenly realized that I just don't enjoy them anymore.
It seems that I have changed in a certain direction and the two authors changed their way to write in the exactly opposed direction.
Both authors started to let their heroines go through more and more horrible situations (like rape, unspeakable brutality and so on) and I realized that this is nothing I want to read in my romances. Especially if half of a book is made up by rape scenes but at the end the victim is all of a sudden ok again.
So even if I had a bad feeling about it I decided to stop reading the authors and also put their most brutal books in the trash (and I normally hate to throw away books).

Right now there are two other authors that I also think about stopping to read. One published the worst four book series I have ever read last year (highlights: hero 1 who didn't care about his own daughter for years, heroine 2 who was too stupid to use a condom when having sex with the man (about 30 years older than her) her father tried to force her to marry - of course she ended up pregnant and then married the old guy although she was in love with a guy her age (sex with him was of course always with a condom) and to make things even worse, hero 4 was so mean and criminal through books 1-3 but of course at the end he really was a good guy - just thinking about it makes me want to throw up). So you see why I'm thinking about stopping to read this author.

The other authours seems to care more about scenery and technical details than characters and that's a major problem for me.
I will give them both another chance and really hope that I will fall in love with their new books just the way I did with their older ones (which I still love to reread).


So, I could be sad (and I was for some time) but then realized that it's only natural to change the authors you read. You change, authors change and you have to determine for yourself if you and the author still are on the same page.

And even though I lost two authors last year and may loose two more this year I found about 10 new authors to read.
Authors that create the heroines I like (strong and not pathetic), heroes I adore (strong and caring) and stories that I want to read again and again.
So in the end I'm really excited about the new authors I already discovered and about the ones that will follow (I'm checking my recommendations on amazon nearly daily!).

I'm sure you can relate to changing the authors you read and hope that you also are excited to try out books by authors you never have heard about. Let's celebrate discovering new authors and don't be sad or disappointed about letting old ones go.

Friday, January 1, 2010

Happy New Year

to everyone. Hope you will have a great 2010 filled with love, happiness and fun.
I also hope that 2010 is full of great books and by many hours spend in fantastic worlds created by the authors you love.

I'm not going to bore you with the details of my New Year Resolutions - but just want to share with you the motto of my life:

Make your own luck!!!

I adopted this motto after reading "The good luck girl" last year (the title of the US version is "Leaving unknown", pub date is March 10) by Kerry Reichs. This book inspired me to take the direction of my life in my own hands and change what I want to be changed. The book is although a lot of fun so get it and read it if you can.

2010 is full of new challenges and I'm already excited for them. There will be a lot of studying and working, but also a lot of time to read and just enjoy life.
2010 is the year in which I want to receive my first ARC from a publisher because of my blog and reviews, and I'm already excited to reach this next step.
2010 is a chance for everyone to give life a new direction and meaning, so take that chance and work on becoming a happier person.

I try not to look back, but want to thank all the great authors out there, who made 2009 such a joy. Thanks to my queen, Nora Roberts, who created the Bride Quartet - series, which is already one of my all time favs after only two books. 2010 will bring "Savour the Moment" and "Happy Ever after" and that alone is a reason to be excited and happy.
And thanks to all the other authors I love. Your hard work brought so much joy and fun in my life and I couldn't be more thankful for it.
May 2010 continue in the same way.

So, hello 2010, I'm sure you will bring me lots of new chances to make the most out of my life.

xoxo Sabrina