Cover Reveal: Mick & Michelle by Nina Rossing
Mick & Michelle
Nina Rossing
Published by: Harmony Ink Press
Publication date: October 31st 2017
Genres: Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Young Adult
Fifteen-year-old Mick Mullins has a great life: his parents are sweet, his sister is tolerable, and his friendships are solid. But as summer descends on Queens, he prepares to turn his carefree existence upside down by disclosing a secret he has kept long enough. It’s time to work up the courage to reveal that he is not a boy, but a girl—and that her name is Michelle. Having always been the perfect, good boy, Michelle is terrified that the complicated truth will disappoint, hurt, or push away the people closest to her. She can’t continue hiding for much longer, though, because her body is turning into that of a man’s, and she is desperate to stop the development—desperate enough to consider self-medicating with hormones.
Most of all, Michelle fears that Grandpa, who is in a nursing home after a near fatal stroke, won’t survive the shock if he finds out that his favorite grandchild, and the only boy, is a girl. If she kills her beloved Grandpa by leaving Mick behind, she isn’t sure embracing her real identity will be worth the loss.
Author Bio:
Nina Rossing lives in Norway, where the winters are long and the summers short. Despite the brilliant nature surrounding her, she spends more time in front of her computer, or with a book in her hands, than in the great outdoors (though you may find her out on her mountain bike if the weather is good). She works as a high school teacher, which in her opinion is probably the best job in the world.
Stepping out of Line (Wayback Texas) by Linda Carroll-Bradd
Stepping out of Line by Linda Carroll-Bradd
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Roxie Starr has moved back to Wayback, Texas two years ago to open up her styling salon after retiring from her life as a Vegas showgirl. Roxie would claim she had come back to Texas to help with her younger sister but the truth is her age was catching up with her and it was time to give up the dancing.
Dev Laredo is determined to finish one last rodeo but he has been fighting a bad injury. When Dev meets Roxie and she finds he’s injured she swears she has just the answer back at her salon and offers to help even though she normally steers clear of the cowboys.
Stepping Out of Line by Linda Carroll-Bradd is a fairly quick read at novella length so the romance in the book is also at a very quick pace. The entire relationship develops over the course of a week so I would warn those that like more of a built up pace to stay away from this one as it does move very very fast.
Roxie and Dev made a likable couple but I would say it took a bit of sexy out of the story with the pair coming together due to sharing injury stories. Still we all know being a cowboy would be a rough thing to do and Dev still was a sexy cowboy despite the sore muscles. Overall, 3.5 stars for this rugged fast paced romance.
I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
The Right Fit by Daphne Dubois blitz with giveaway
The Right Fit
Daphne Dubois
Publication date: April 12th 2017
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
She’s sworn off love, he’s sworn off sex, but together they’ll score the goal of a lifetime.
When Maxine Nicholls discovers her fiancé is cheating, she turns to fast food and nighttime soap operas, but her sister has a plan—unbridled rebound sex with a stranger.
As one of Toronto’s hottest players, Antony Laurent tallies scores on and off the ice, but when the chiseled defense man hits a slump, rumors of a trade to the minor league send him to ambush a managers meeting at a posh club.
That night a chance encounter ends up as an unforgettable evening of passion. But Maxine and Antony are about to discover a game of casual hook ups can lead to something neither one of them thought they deserved—the right fit.
Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo
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EXCERPT:
She dropped her gaze and stared at his hands. God, they are big hands. Big hands, big… “Do you want a coffee?” she blurted out.
“A coffee? Non.”
“Or maybe you need the washroom?” She pointed down the short hallway that lead to her bedroom.
He looked down the hallway, then back to Maxine. “You want me to use washroom?” he asked seriously.
“No.” She backed up a few steps until she reached the kitchen counter. The heat under her dress was now slick and uncomfortable. She glanced down and saw a mint leaf sticking out of her cleavage. Classy lady.
The romance cover model ran a hand through his hair again, making his biceps strain under the t-shirt sleeve. Maxine suspected he’d practiced that move in the mirror a few times. “Then what do you want?” he asked.
A burst of nervous laughter escaped, but then her smile faded. “No one has asked me that in a very long time,” she said. Slipping off his jacket, she laid it on the counter, letting her finger trace the stitching along the zipper, trying to build up her courage. “Why did you follow me into the cab?”
“Because no one has ever run away from me before.”
Rolling her eyes, Maxine looked up and saw that he was smirking. “Rejection is a new thing for you, I’m guessing.”
“Is that what you call inviting me here?” He tossed the ball cap and it landed perfectly on the dining table. The floorboard creaked as he took a step closer to her. There was a spark of anticipation in his eyes.
“Hold on, cowboy,” she said, putting a hand on his chest. My God! His muscles are rock hard under his shirt. Who the hell is this guy? She cleared her throat. “What makes you think you can kiss me again?”
He was still as stone under her touch, but Maxine could feel herself falling into his stare. “You kissed me,” he said, his voice ridiculously smooth. “There is a difference, I promise.”
It wasn’t only the French accent, but the confidence in his voice that made her knees almost unhinge. Her hand was flat on his chest; his racing heart was keeping time with hers. “That sounds like a proposition,” she said.
“It can only be decided one way.” Then he repeated his earlier question. “What do you want?”
He was so close she could see the faint brown and black colors of his stubble. There was a cleft in his chin. What do you want? An image of the long white box hidden in the closet was ignored; all Maxine wanted at that moment was to mold herself into his arms and forget about the last four years. “Kiss me,” she said.
His fingers grazed her cheek, tucking a wave of hair behind her ear. “Un moment,” he said. “A man should be prepared.” He peeled the last mint leaf off her chest then placed it in his mouth.
Maxine giggled through a surprised expression, which faded into a sigh.
Then, with deliberate care, he brought his lips down to hers, perfectly fitting their mouths together. He gently moved his chin starting a slow pace, controlled but with a sense of held back urgency.
This was nothing like the hastily stolen kiss at the club.
The cautious seduction was almost too much for Maxine. She wanted to taste him fully, kiss him back hard—tackle this moment like Alexis Colby.
Author Bio:
Daphne Dubois writes contemporary romance and believes the right book at the right time can make all the difference. When she’s not putting her characters in compromising positions (ahem), she works as a registered nurse. A member of the Writer’s Federation of Nova Scotia, she lives in Eastern Canada, the most romantic place in the world.
You can also find her writing for teens as B.R. Myers.
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A Life Removed by Jason Parent
A Life Removed by Jason Parent
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Detectives Bruce Marklin and Jocelyn Beaudette have been called in to catch a new killer that seems to hunt their victims at random. With no clues as to how or why the victims are being chosen or just how the killer is managing to complete the murders the detectives find themselves chasing down clues.
Officer Aaron Pimental has been in a bit of a personal spiral with his girlfriend pulling away and depressed with life. Aaron was at the scene of one of the killings and finds himself really losing faith in humanity but then finds himself right in the middle of the chase for justice from the ritualistic killings.
A Life Removed was a completely different type of story than I’ve experienced from Jason Parent before which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing but I found myself not as big of a fan of this one than ones I’d read earlier leaving me to rate the story at 3.5 stars. This book is more heavily a police procedural than the horror reads I’d experienced before from Mr. Parent. Once getting more into the killings and suspects I saw the tinges of horror but had wished there were more to it than I found. I would warn though that the story can be a bit graphic for those that would shy from that but not too terrible with serial killings involved. Overall, a good read but I wasn’t quite wowed with this one.
I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
Beware the Ranger (In the Long Arms of the Law #1) by Debra Holt Release Blast with giveaway
Will they be able to lay the past to rest and rekindle their love from the ashes?
BEWARE THE RANGER
In the Long Arms of the Lawman #1
Debra Holt
Releasing June 28, 2017
Tule Publishing
Twelve
years ago, Kaitlyn Russell had a dream: living happily ever after with
Clay Morgan. Except her grandmother had bigger plans for her beloved
granddaughter and they didn’t include life in the small town of McKenna Springs
as the wife of a young, poor deputy. Kaitlyn’s heart was broken when Clay and
her grandmother convinced her to pursue her second love, Broadway stardom.
Texas
Ranger Clay Morgan is a widower with a young son to raise. A dozen years
before, he had to make the most difficult decision of his life when he agreed
to let go of the only woman he’d ever loved so that she could pursue her
dreams.
Now, fate
and an old woman’s guilty conscience conspire to bring Clay and Kaitlyn back
together once more. Will they be able to lay the past to rest and rekindle
their love from the ashes?
“Miss Russell,” he said as he handed back her license. “Can you step out of the car, please?”
“What is the problem, Deputy…Trooper, I mean?” Angie asked as she leaned across the center console to look up at the man who turned his officious smile in her direction.
“There’s someone on his way that will let you know what it’s all about. Miss Russell, if you would please…?” His hand went to the door handle.
Popping the door’s release, Kaitlyn opened it and stood. Her patience was beginning to grow thin.
Not one to leave her friend without support, Angie exited her own side and watched the scene from there, lending her friend her support.
“How long is this going to take? I really would like to know what this is about.” Kaitlyn fought to keep her voice controlled. She never liked guessing games.
“Well, ma’am, I think you’re about to get some answers.” As he spoke the words, he nodded over her shoulder.
They all turned to look. What the—? She was surprised to see a sleek, dark blue helicopter moving swiftly toward them. Kaitlyn raised her hand above her eyes to block the glare of the sun. She tried to make out the markings on the craft, but to no avail. What on earth was going on?
“This day is finally getting interesting again,” Angie spoke up. “Do you think they could give us a lift to New Mexico?”
“I’m glad you’re finding this amusing because I’m not.”
“That’s because you always like to be the one in control,” Angie responded with a slight toss of her head and a knowing grin.
“Yes, I do. I admit it. This person better have a quick explanation so we can be back on our way.”
The helicopter made a pass overhead then descended and swung back in a wide arc. In a few brief minutes, the pilot had easily set it down a few hundred yards distant on the side of roadway.
As the blades began to slow, the passenger side door opened. Another trooper stepped down from the craft. She moved toward them, the other trooper acknowledging her arrival with a slight nod of the head.
She nodded to both Kaitlyn and Angie before moving to stand beside her male counterpart. Obviously, this was not the person with the answers for them.
“Well, well…hellooo, handsome!”
Angie’s comment, spoken in a low voice, made Kaitlyn swing her attention back to see what Angie was talking about or, more precisely, who had elicited such a breathless compliment from her friend.
In that moment, the world imploded. Everything she had trusted to not change was shattered. Time came to a screeching halt. She literally froze in place. It would be sometime later when she tried to remember if she even managed a breath of air. Everything waited…waited on the tall male figure who had stepped out of the pilot’s side door and was advancing slowly toward her.
Born
and raised in the Lone Star state of Texas, Debra Holt grew up
among horses, cowboys, wide open spaces, and real Texas Rangers. Pride in her
state and ancestry knows no bounds and it is these heroes and heroines she
loves to write about the most. She also draws upon a variety of life
experiences including working with abused children, caring for baby animals at
a major zoo, and planning high-end weddings (ah, romance!).
Debra’s real pride and joys, however, are her son, an aspiring film actor, and
a daughter with aspirations to join the Federal Bureau of Investigation. (more
story ideas!) When she isn’t busy writing about tall Texans and feisty
heroines, she can be found cheering on her Texas Tech Red Raiders, or heading
off on another cruise adventure. She read her first romance…Janet Dailey’s
Fiesta San Antonio, over thirty years ago and became hooked on the genre.
Writing contemporary western romances, is both her passion and dream come true,
and she hopes her books will bring smiles…and sighs… to all who believe in
happily-ever-after’s.
Debra invites you to visit her website. She loves to hear from
other aspiring authors or readers via her email.
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