New Releases: November/December 2010

Wow, almost end of year! Again I've decided to combine new releases I'm looking forward to reading for the next couple of months: November and December. I don't have too many books on my list, but the ones I do have are the sure thing.

When it comes to genres, this time it seems as if I have one of each and some books are by some of my very favorite authors. In my list I'm including Happy Ever After, the last book in Nora Roberts' gorgeous contemporary romance Bridal Quartet series; Play of Passion, another installment in Nalini Singh's Psy/Changling paranormal romance series; the amazing looking cross-genre anthology Songs of Love and Death, which includes fantasy, science fiction and romance, edited by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois, this is not one I'm missing; Marry Me by Jo Goodman, a historical romance that looks sweet and it's set in the West; and The Duke & The Pirate Queen by Victoria Janssen an erotic romance by an author whose writing style I enjoyed earlier this year and want to try again.

Happy Ever After by Nora Roberts (Bridal Quartet, Book 4)
Release Date: November 2, 2010

As the public face of Vows wedding planning company, Parker Brown has an uncanny knack for fulfilling every bride's vision. She just can't see where her own life is headed. Mechanic Malcomb Kavanaugh loves figuring out how things work, and Parker is no exception. Both know that moving from minor flirtation to major hook-up is a serious step. Parker's business risks have always paid off, but now she'll have to take the chance of a lifetime with her heart...

Visit Nora Roberts here.

Play of Passion by Nalini Singh
Release Date: November 2, 2010

Passion and reason collide with explosive force in the newest installment of Nalini Singh’s “mesmerizing”* Psy/Changeling series. As a conflict with Pure Psy looms on the horizon, two powerful wolves fight a far more intimate war of their own…

In his position as tracker for the SnowDancer pack, it’s up to Drew Kincaid to rein in rogue changelings who have lost control of their animal halves—even if it means killing those who have gone too far. But nothing in his life has prepared him for the battle he must now wage to win the heart of a woman who makes his body ignite…and who threatens to enslave his wolf.

Lieutenant Indigo Riviere doesn’t easily allow skin privileges, especially of the sensual kind—and the last person she expects to find herself craving is the most wickedly playful male in the den. Everything she knows tells her to pull back before the flames burn them both to ash…but she hasn’t counted on Drew’s will.

Now, two of SnowDancer’s most stubborn wolves find themselves playing a hot, sexy game even as lethal danger stalks the very place they call home…

Visit Nalini Singh here.

Songs of Love and Death: All-Original Tales of Star-Crossed Love [Hardcover]
Release Date: November 16, 2010

In this star-studded cross-genre anthology, seventeen of the greatest modern authors of fantasy, science fiction, and romance explore the borderlands of their genres with brand-new tales of ill-fated love. From zombie-infested woods in a postapocalyptic America to faery-haunted rural fields in eighteenth- century England, from the kingdoms of high fantasy to the alien world of a galaxy-spanning empire, these are stories of lovers who must struggle against the forces of magic and fate.

Award-winning, bestselling author Neil Gaiman demonstrates why he’s one of the hottest stars in literature today with “The Thing About Cassandra,” a subtle but chilling story of a man who meets an old girlfriend he had never expected to see. International blockbuster bestselling author Diana Gabaldon sends a World War II RAF pilot through a stone circle to the time of her Outlander series in “A Leaf on the Winds of All Hallows.” Torn from all he knows, Jerry MacKenzie determinedly survives hardship and danger, intent on his goal of returning home to his wife and baby—no matter the cost. New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher presents “Love Hurts,” in which Harry Dresden takes on one of his deadliest adversaries and in the process is forced to confront the secret desires of his own heart.

Discover the many realms of the heart with this extraordinary cast of acclaimed authors: Peter S. Beagle, Jo Beverly, Jim Butcher, Jacqueline Carey, Diana Gabaldon, Neil Gaiman, Yasmine Galenorn, M.L.N. Hanover, Robin Hobb, Cecelia Holland, Tanith Lee, Marjorie M. Liu, Mary Jo Putney, Linnea Sinclair, Melinda Snodgrass, Lisa Tuttle, Carrie Vaughn. This exquisite anthology, crafted by the peerless editing team of George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois, is sure to leave you under its spell.

The Duke & the Pirate Queen by Victoria Janssen
Release Date: December 1, 2010

Aboard her privateering ship Seaflower, Captain Imena Leung is the law. Ashore she answers only to her employer, Duke Maxime. They are a powerful couple, with an intense attraction neither can disguise or deny. As a nobleman, Maxime is destined to wed strategically, so his seductive advances must be purely for pleasure. And what self-respecting pirate denies herself any pleasure?

Their delicious dalliance is prolonged when Imena is forced to abduct Maxime to foil a political plot against him. At sea, with a stunningly virile man bound in her private quarters, Imena can imagine--and enact--any number of intoxicating scenarios.

The heat between captain and captive is matched only by the perils that beset Seaflower and her crew. Violent storms, marauding corsairs and life-or-death sex games on a desert island--how fortunate for the seemingly insatiable lovers that danger and desire go hand-in-hand.

Visit Victoria Janssen here.

Marry Me by Jo Goodman
Release Date: December 7, 2010

HER HEART WAS LOCKED AWAY

Rhyne Abbott is fierce, brave, and used to a life of isolation on her father's spread on the outskirts of Reidsville, Colorado. But when, overcome with sickness, she collapses, she knows she must return to town if she is to have any hope of recovery. Only there is no place for her but the new doctor's home, and he wants more than just to heal Rhyne. He wants her hand in marriage.

UNTIL ONE MAN FOUND THE KEY

Doctor Cole Monroe's hands are already more than full with his orphaned little sister to look after, and yet somehow he can't resist the magnetic pull of Rhyne's bewitching eyes—or her tempting kiss. But convincing her to trust him won't be easy. For Rhyne's heart needs as much tender care as her ailing body. And the only cure is the thing she most fears: to let herself fall in love...

Visit Jo Goodman here.

As you can see I've highlighted a bit of everything on my list. What about you, any good recommendations for November and December? What books are you looking foward to reading?

Review: Never Love a Lawman by Jo Goodman

Never Love a Lawman is set in the small mining town of Reidsville, Colorado and the events take place in 1882. A spur of the California & Colorado Railroad Company (the C&C) is the only thing keeping it from becoming a ghost town. Those short railway miles linking Denver to Reidsville give the miners and townspeople access to goods. In turn they use the railway as a fast and efficient way to transport their gold and silver.

Clinton Maddox, owner of the C&C and a partner with interest in the Reidsville's mines, is dead. This death sets up a chain of events and like falling dominoes, plans set up by a clever and manipulative Maddox start falling into place. The import of this death to the people of Reidsville is enormous as his grandson and presumed heir, Foster Maddox, has been making questionable changes to the company and is an unknown.

Wyatt Cooper, the Sheriff of Reidsville came west following his father's footsteps. He is sharp and tough -- a lawman through and through -- but also a man of layers whose sense of humor and responsibility kick him a notch above the hero whose obvious passions rule the day. Wyatt takes care of the town and its people as if they were his own, and is willing to do what it takes to ensure their safety and future. Rachel Bailey is about to find out just how far he's willing to go.

Rachel is Reidsville's newest resident. She moved to town over a year ago and although readily accepted, she remains a self-contained woman who prefers her own company. A talented seamstress, she is both admired by the men for her beauty and respected by the women for her skills. She is friendly, but not too friendly, to all except for the Sheriff -- she avoids him at all costs. Unfortunately for Rachel, Clinton Maddox's death is about to change all that. Upon Maddox's death Rachel becomes the unexpected heir to both his interest in the mine and the railroad spur with one condition: in order to inherit, she must marry none other than Wyatt.

Jo Goodman develops Rachel and Wyatt's relationship slowly. These two people don't know or trust each other when they are thrown together by these unexpected circumstances. They circle each other, get to know one another and in the process become friends before acting on their attraction. The dialogue between them is witty and sharp enough to keep the story interesting throughout.

Wyatt is the type of man who makes his moves deliberately at times and goes by the seat of his pants at others, but he has enough insight to know how to deal with Rachel. He seems to know when to use his sense of humor, determination, sensitivity or just plain common sense to win more than one argument and smooth more than one awkward moment. Rachel on the other hand, doesn't really seem to know what to make of Wyatt.

I loved that Rachel was portrayed as an intelligent, independent woman with a sharp-tongue and a dry sense of humor. A woman who was willing to pay a painful price for maintaining her loyalty to a friend, Rachel was an admirable heroine whose past made her strong, but whose vulnerabilities I could also understand. She was the type of woman who was not easily convinced, but whose love was worth winning and waiting for.

Wyatt was just right too. He pushed Rachel but didn't really expect to get away with anything. He knew she would put him in his place sooner rather than later. He was both tough and vulnerable. This was a great couple. I loved the sexual tension and passionate interludes, their witty and joyful relationship... but most of all the friendship that got them to their happy ending.

Having said that, Never Love a Lawman would not be the same without the well-defined secondary characters that abound in the story. From "that no-account Beatty boy" to Rose, Adele and Molly, you'll find a full set of characters in this book that make a whole town come alive. They are the ones that make this romance and the story complete.

The events set off by Clinton Maddox's death are convoluted and the twists, turns and action are well done. The resolution at the end had the drama expected of a western with the Sheriff and his posse, a villain, trains and lots of happy endings.

A western romance with all the ingredients to satisfy my taste, Never Love a Lawman, with Rachel, Wyatt and company, is already a favorite.

You can visit Jo Goodman here.