Cowboys & More Cowboys!

I mentioned in my last weekly post that I was reading Kathleen Eagle's, Once A Father and as it turned out I took it with me on my vacation, well.. that story stayed with me. In that same post I mentioned Wendy's great post Contemporary Cowboys: The New Black? and sure enough that also stayed in my mind throughout last week. I'm a huge fan of westerns, cowboys and ranchers, both in historical and contemporary romances. I've already read or have some of the books Wendy highlighted in my "to be read" pile... but there's more, Wendy said! So when I returned home I went hunting..., and sure enough I found some. :D

In addition to Kathleen Eagle's series and the great books Wendy posted, I found a few upcoming October releases by the Harlequin Silhouette Special Editions line that caught my eye. There are more out there, but I think the following are great additions. These authors have some great backlists, and the upcoming books are part of series about well-loved cowboys and ranchers. Well, the contemporary type, anyway.

Kathleen Eagle

Once a Father is the fourth book and Kathleen Eagle's new addition to her latest contemporary Western American series. The first book in this series features a sheriff, the second a washed-up rodeo cowboy, the third a Native American medicine man, or rodeo physician's assistant, and this last story an "Indian cowboy" as a hero. The female protagonists are also quite interesting: a hardworking nurse, two female ranchers and an army sargeant. So if you enjoy this current release, there are three other books out there to read and hopefully love. In order:

• In Care of Sam Beaudry - 2010 RITA Award Finalist
• One Cowboy, One Christmas
• Cool Hand Hank
• Once a Father - September 2010 release

You can visit Kathleen Eagle at her website for more information on her impressive backlist.

As far as October goes, Silhouette Special Edition has a quite a few new releases about those glorious cowboys and ranchers we all love. I'm highlighting three of them.

RaeAnne Thayne

New October 2010 Release

From RaeAnne Thayne, a personal favorite, there's a new release and the last book about the Wilder Ranch from her latest Cowboys of Cold Creek trilogy. In order:

• A Cold Creek Homecoming 
• A Cold Creek Secret
• A Cold Creek Baby - excerpt here.

I've read a few of the older books from this series and enjoyed them and Thayne's writing style. I already have "A Cold Creek Homecoming" and will read it soon. Now I just need to catch up and purchase both "A Cold Creek Secret" and "A Cold Creek Baby." :)

You can find a complete list of RaeAnne Thane's Cowboys of Cold Creek series and other books by visiting her website.

Crystal Green

New October 2010 Release

From Crystal Green, there's a new addition to the Montana Mavericks: Thunder Canyon Cowboys series. This is the fourth installment in a continuity series written by different authors. In order:

• McFarlane’s Perfect Bride by Christine Rimmer  
• Taming the Montana Millionaire by Teresa Southwick 
• From Doctor…to Daddy by Karen Rose Smith
• When the Cowboy Said, “I Do” by Crystal Green - Excerpt here.

AND, if you like the Harlequin Blaze line, this author has a tempting back title that I'll definitely be checking out, featuring a sexy cowboy... One for the Road. Excerpt here.

You can find out more about Crystal Green, plus a complete list of her books by visiting her website here.

Lois Faye Dyer

New October 2010 Release

And from Lois Faye Dyer you can get in on the first book of what looks like the start of the new Big Sky Brothers miniseries. This looks like a great story about the prodigal cowboy returning to the ranch and his old love. It's set in Montana, one of my favorite places! So yeah... definitely going to get this one. :)

• Cade Coulter's Return - summary here.

Additionally, Lois Faye Dyer has other series and single title books featuring ranchers/cowboys including a series she began writing in 2006 and was still actively adding titles to in 2009, The McClouds of Montana.

You can find a list of those titles by visiting Lois Faye Dyer's website here.

I think that's plenty to keep me happy for a little while. :)

Hi! Back from the Shore!

Sunset Walk

Hi everyone! Thank you all for the lovely send off and the great wishes. I'm back from my brief time away... I had a lovely time and except for a couple of cloudy and breezy days, the weather was fantastic! Hot and sunny days and cool evenings. Lovely.

I didn't do much more than vegetate and take walks in the mornings, during sunset and one evening during the full moon. That night the beach was so bright, a flashlight was not needed. The sight was so beautiful I wish I'd been able to capture it to share with you.

I came back just in time, it's raining today and it seems as if Fall was just waiting for my last day to arrive to make itself felt -- great break for me. :)

I did take a few pictures and as you can see, Long Beach Island, New Jersey is a beauty of nature and my favorite place when visiting the Shore. It's beautiful and quaint.

Seagulls at the Jetty

Seagrass and Roses

The Lighthouse

Dunes and Seagrass

Dunes at Sunset

As far as reading goes, did I read while I was there? Well... not really... can you believe it? I really DID take a break from it all! I finished Once A Father by Kathleen Eagle, and quickly skimmed Shamara by Catherine Spangler (re-read), a 2001 sci-fi romance from a favorite series -- I'll tell you all about those books later -- I wasn't in the mood for reading. Instead, I enjoyed nature, great conversation, walks and music. I went on this little jaunt with two of my brothers and had a wonderful time with them. But now with the rainy days of Autumn ahead, I look forward to reading and getting back to the daily routine. It's good to be back.

As you can see I didn't read much last week, what about you?

Hilcia's Weekly Reads, and Gone Swimming...

Down to the Jersey Shore I go...

See you all in a week or so. :D

I'm taking a well-earned personal and blogging, end of summer break! In the meantime I'll leave you with my weekly reads post -- it's a long one, so you can take your time reading it. *g* I seem to be on a reading roll this month and don't want to fall behind.

I began my week by reading a few Linda Howard books I have on my TBR pile. My first pick was the suspense romance, Up Close and Dangerous. This was not a favorite. Bailey, a rich young widow in charge of her spoiled adult stepchildren's trustfunds and Cam, pilot and co-owner of the plane, crash on a mountain, survive, find out the plane crash was no accident, and fall in love. This book is more about survival after a plane crash than anything else. The romance was lukewarm at best, there was no real tension or suspense to the story, and the ending was rushed and a disappointment. The characters are likable and there are still moments where Howard's talent for writing great dialogue is present, plus survival details are provided in spades, but hmm... not a favorite. Grade C

Followed up with two short stories by Linda Howard. The first one was Blue Moon from the anthology Under the Boardwalk. In this short, Sheriff Jackson Brody is lured to rescue Lilah, a reclusive woman who's thought to be a witch and might be in danger. His trip down the Southern bayou river, during a hot and humid Summer day will lead him to a lover and murder. This short story was fast, electric and although not quite suspenseful, I thought it was a good short, Summer read. Grade B-

The second short by Linda Howard I chose was Overload from the Summer Sensations anthology. Tom and Elizabeth get caught up and locked down in their office building during a blackout that lasts about 24 hours. These two are ex-lovers but haven't seen each other for about six months. Tom will do anything to get her back, and Elizabeth just wants to keep her control. Well now... this story is HOT! And not just because of the heatwave that caused the overload and the blackout, lol! Overload is basically all about Tom and Elizabeth working out their issues, but Howard doesn't skimp on the sexual tension or the steamy scenes either. Pheww! Grade B

I then switched to some M/M Romance re-reads and kept Mariana company for a a bit longer during her Re-read Month. I began my re-reads with StarCrossed 1: Demon Tailz and StarCrossed 2: Opposite Ends of the Spectrum by Reno MacLeod and Jaye Valentine. Considered Paranormal/Horror the first two books in this series are my favorite and perfect pre-Halloween reads!

In Demon Tailz involving the demon Jace Burton and hunter Cash Rowan is the creepiest of the two. Cash is in pain and Jace is attracted to his darkness. From there a tale of love, loss and horror unfolds. In Opposite Ends of the Spectrum, MacLeod and Valentine continue their series by having a sex demon and an angel fall in love while held captive by humans. Jace Burton again makes an appearance and provides some of the darkness in this installment, as he's not your every day type of demon. However reading between the lines, the real monsters in this story are the humans. I love the thick, heavy atmosphere found in both these books and the pop and sizzle I get from the unexpected. Even when I knew what was going to happen, the suspense was still there... and the shock no less effective. For better enjoyment I listen to Darkness, Darkness by the Youngbloods while reading Demon Tailz, this song is highlighted in the book and the lyrics fit perfectly! Both books, Grade: B+

I continued my M/M Romance re-reads with two lighter romances by Amanda Young: Reckless Seduction and Reckless Behavior. I love a good May/December story and this is a good one. This is the romance between Cody and Dante. Cody is a young man who knows what he wants and goes after it in Reckless Seduction, and I still like the way Amanda Young writes the continuation of their story in Reckless Behavior, there's conflict and doubt between the couple, but it's not over done. Plus we can't forget that Dante is one hot dude! Combined Grade: B

And finished up my M/M Romance re-reads with an all time favorite, Tabula Rasa by Tori Temple. Cowboys, I love my cowboys! Teagan needs a heeler to join the rodeo and Cash is the man. They hit it off between the sheets, but Cash doesn't want more than that. After an argument and a misunderstanding, their affair comes to an end but their partnership continues. After Cash has an accident and suffers partial memory loss, Teag takes him home to his ranch and a real relationship evolves. But what will happen when Cash returns to normal? There's just something about Teagan and Cash that I love... maybe it's the way Teag falls for Cash without meaning to, the hurt and most of all the hope. His willingness to take what he can, while he can have it. I loved this story. Grade B+

I then switched to a category romance and read the fourth installment in Fiona Brand's SAS/Lombard series (2001), Marrying McCabe. I've read the first three books in this series and loved them. This is the story about the sister, Roma Lombard and Ben McCabe one of her brother's SAS friends. Someone tried to kill Roma and her brother Gray hires Ben as her bodyguard. This was one STEAMY book! The suspense was really well done and I enjoyed that part of it. McCabe and Roma fall in lust with each other immediately and then after that it's lust to love pretty quickly. There's a lack of communication between the two that's not quite resolved by the end. But what disturbed me about this book was the way condoms are addressed. Roma seems to have a problem with them... a BIG problem - she thinks of them as "dehumanizing." This condom theme is carried through for a while and truthfully I couldn't put it aside. Condoms weren't portrayed as being the "responsible" thing to do, but as kind of a dehumanizing, icky barrier used as a wall between a man and a woman. Her thoughts on this subject pulled me out of key scenes more than once. Grade C

And finished the week with Truly, Madly by Heather Webber! Review to come...

I'm actually reading a Silhouette Special Edition, Once a Father by Kathleen Eagle at the moment and will also review that book. The hero is a Native American cowboy and the heroine an army sergeant. Doesn't that sound like an interesting pairing? ETA: I saw this book and immediately thought of Wendy's blog post Contemporary Cowboys: The New Black? Check it out, I think it's true! At least I hope so. ;P

What are you all reading? I'm taking lots of books with me, let's see if they get read. :)

Review: Burning Up by Susan Andersen

Though it's been years since the infamous Macy O'James stepped foot in Sugarville, Washington, everyone remembers what she supposedly did. The tiny town is still buzzing about her crime and lack of punishment.

Now back to lend her family a hand, Macy vows to hold her head high—especially at her high school reunion. But forget about the hottest man in Sugarville escorting her. Though she and fire chief Gabriel Donovan generate enough sparks to burn down the town, he's a law-abiding, line-toeing straight arrow. So not her type.

But maybe—just maybe—he can change her mind about that.

I'm going to begin by saying that my first reaction when I flipped that last page to Susan Andersen's latest contemporary romance Burning Up was "that was such a fun book!"

Macy O'James is returning to Sugarville, Washington to temporarily care for her cousin Janna. She left town right after graduation and made a success of her life as a music video star. Unfortunately, although she considers Sugarville her home, there won't be a welcome mat for Macy. A gorgeous woman with a body and face that make men drool, she was the victim of nasty rumors back in High School that began when she rejected a popular jock. But our Macy doesn't wear her heart on her sleeve and instead of shying away she dressed up to kill, rubbed her assets on everyone's faces, and let them all talk and wonder. That's our Macy! Of course there was also the car accident where three jocks were hurt... and Macy was the one behind the wheel of the car that hit them.

The situations presented in the plot are not necessarily new and some of the characters have a familiar feel to them at times, however it's all in the execution and Andersen definitely does that well in this novel. Macy is one of those characters, except that with Macy what you first see is not necessarily what you get. As Macy returns to town years later, she seems to be the same old girl, rubbing everyone the wrong way and flaunting her looks around the insular little town of Sugarville, the more bizarre her outfits the better. Andersen then proceeds to develop this character's public persona, as well as the real, vulnerable Macy as seen only by her family and close friends.

When Macy first drives into town, the first person she meets is the new fire chief, Gabriel Donovan and by the look in his eyes, she can tell exactly what he's thinking... "here's trouble." Gabriel is definitely attracted to Macy, but she's right... he immediately places her in the category of a "party girl" and decides to stay away from her. He's the type of man who's done sowing his wild oats, making mistakes and is ready to settle down with a nice, sweet woman. Gabriel is an uptight, stick-in-the mud who makes assumptions at-a-glance about Macy based on her looks and initially treats her accordingly.

And the fun begins! The best part of this book for me was reading how Macy drives Gabriel crazy and then how he goes from being uptight and reluctant, to a desperate, hot, steamy sexy man. The dialogue between the central characters is excellent and it's what made Burning Up a fun contemporary romance. Andersen uses sexual tension as a build up to the steamy sexual scenes that top it all off.

There is a secondary romance that was developed rather too quickly and although it provided some fun moments, I'm afraid it didn't quite hold my attention. Gabriel does get to show off his skills as a fire chief during an arson investigation and I thought that part of the storyline fit well with the rest. The secondary characters were a wonderful addition to the story, especially Sheriff Johnny and Macy's cousin Janna.

Burning Up is a well developed, hot and steamy, fun contemporary romance with a female protagonist I truly liked. Set in a small town, with judging and preconceived ideas that are shattered, some old plotting devices cleverly used by the author and great secondary characters, this is a book I really enjoyed.

Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: None
Released: August 31, 2010

Source: Requested from NetGalley

Grade: Solid B

Visit Susan Andersen here.

New Release - Tented: Gay Erotic Tales from under the Big Top edited by Jerry L. Wheeler

Hurray! Hurray! Hurray! Step right up and read stories both salacious and miraculous! Only fifteen dollars for the Grand Tour of Tented! That's three fins to meet the Great Masturbator! Three Lincolns to explore a post–apocalyptic future where every clown has his very own catamite! Yes, my friends, these stories are guaranteed to amaze, beguile, and captivate. That's the ABC's, my boy. Stay close, you might learn something.

We have acrobats ready to assume positions, knife–throwers blade in–hand, the stickiest cotton candy around, and a Hall of Mirrors to reflect your deepest desires!

Okay, you all know I love my anthologies, right? Here's a new release from Lethe Press I couldn't help but feature. How could I?  Tented: Gay Erotic Tales from under the Big Top edited by Jerry L. Wheeler.

There's the great cover that fits perfectly with the title and that blurb! However, the big draw to this anthology is that it includes excellent writers: Gavin Atlas, Steve Berman, 'Nathan Burgoine, Tom Cardamone, Dale Chase, Hank Edwards, William Holden, Sean Meriweather and more...  hmmm... definitely a tempting anthology. ;)

You can find it here and here.