Blood Hunt is the second book in the Midnight Hunters Series by Radclyffe, writing as L. L. Raand. Raand has built a complex world inhabited by werewolves, vampires, and other paranormal beings. In her world, a Practern Coalition is fighting for legal acceptance of the 'non-human' species. Fighting the coalition are humans who are determined to never allow legal acceptance, and who hope to destroy the non-human species. Blood Hunt finds alpha werewolf, Sylvan, and her pack teaming with vampire Jody Gates to find female were adolescents who are missing.
In this richly told story, the search is just part of the plot as Jody finds herself very attracted to a human, and Sylvan and her mate are in a breeding frenzy. Raand has given her readers a complex plot filled with wonderful characters as well as insight into the hierarchy of Sylvan's pack and vampire clans. There are many plot twists and turns, as well as erotic sex scenes in this riveting novel which keeps the pages flying until its satisfying conclusion.
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Reviewed by RLynne
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Title: Devil's Rock
Author: Gerri Hill
ISBN: 10: 1594932182; 13: 978-1594932182
Publisher: Bella Books
Available At: Bella Books
Price: $14.95
Pages: 245
Genre: Romance Mystery |
Deputy Andi Sullivan is respected for her past experience as a Los Angeles cop. She’s living and working in Sedona now in a more stress-free environment. That is, until women start turning up dead on remote hiking trails in the area. She’s put on the case because of her familiarity with the kind of forensics that will be needed.
FBI Agent Cameron Ross is a bit of an enigma, driving from assignment to assignment in a large motorhome and working on cases solo. She’s good at what she does, and there’s a reason she’s out there by herself.
When Andi and Cameron meet, sparks fly, but only because Andi finds Cameron’s charms and advances more annoying and intrusive than attractive. Still, they find working together proves to be a plus—and little by little Cameron becomes more to Andi than a studly woman looking for a one-night-stand—and Cameron finds herself feeling more than she bargained for with Andi.
Other agents are involved remotely until one of them gets in trouble with the deadly killer and the two women have to pick up the pace of the investigation to try to prevent another killing from happening. All the while they try to outmaneuver the killer, they are trying to outfox themselves regarding their own growing emotional attachment.
Once again, Hill has worked the superb story telling magic that we’ve come to expect from her. The characters are interesting and complex, the story spine-tingling—both from the romantic and the thriller aspect. Devil’s Rock contains heart-pounding action and mystery interwoven with magnetic attraction to keep Hill fans entertained once more. New readers are sure to be enthralled.
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Reviewed by Anna Furtado
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Title: Dying to Live
Author: Kim Baldwin & Xenia Alexiou
ISBN: 1-60282-200-X
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Available At: Bold Strokes Books
Price: $16.95
Pages: 382
Genre: Romantic Intrigue
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Baldwin and Alexiou have given their fans a gripping read that's difficult to put down. Dying to Live has a complex plot with a pandemic created by an arch villain, and a rescue from Columbian guerrillas. Zoe Anderson-Howe, the daughter of the owner of an English airline, has been captured by a Columbian guerrilla group and is being held for ransom. In a fortunate coincidence, Fetch, an Elite Operative, has infiltrated the group in an effort to rescue their hostages. What follows is a hair raising adventure as Fetch and Zoe try to escape from their brutal guards. Meanwhile, the descriptions of the deadly virus which is sweeping the globe are truly frightening, and the Elite Operatives help is needed in determining how it started.
Dying to Live is the fourth book in the Elite Operatives Series. One of the enjoyable things about this book is that all of the Elite Operatives from the previous novels play a role in this story, and readers have a chance to catch up on what's happening in their lives. In addition, Baldwin and Alexiou just get better and better at creating exciting action while at the same time they fully develop their characters. This is a thoroughly enjoyable read, and I can't wait for their next adventure.
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Reviewed by RLynne
Barbara Davies pays homage to Jane Austen in this story of a sheltered country girl and a worldly, wayward noble woman.
Frederica Bertram feels it is her duty to walk over to Thornbury Park each day to visit her neighbors and the gentleman who is staying with them. Everyone expects that there will be a marriage proposal soon and that Frederica will accept. Her family is in financial difficulties and this marriage could solve their problems. Frederica isn't excited by the idea, but she is resigned to it until her neighbor's notorious sister, Joanna, Viscountess of Norland, blows into the area. Joanna's fondness for wild escapades has preceded her, but Frederica quickly realizes that there is more to the woman than her reputation and she soon becomes the reason for Frederica's visits. Unfortunately, Joanna's friend Lord Peregrine is a total cad and creates an uproar that could ruin the good name of the Bertrams. As the women dash across England to try and correct the situation, Joanna realizes that this latest adventure may cost her the person she cares about more than anyone.
The book also contains two short stories about a pirate named Murdering Meg. Meg is determined to get vengeance on the man who abused her many years before and his disgusting sons. Her intention is to kidnap the man's daughter Alice who is at the center of his plans. When they were much younger Alice and Meg were lovers and only the cruelty of Alice's father has kept them apart. Meg promised she would come back for Alice one day and that is exactly what she intends to do, no matter what the consequences are.
Davies does an excellent job of emulating Austen's style and mannerisms in the story of the viscountess. The influence of Pride and Prejudice will be obvious to any reader who is familiar with that book. The nice thing about the book is that Davies stays true to the period in dealing with the love affair between the women. They're not running around in the early 19th century pretending that no one would have a problem with a lesbian couple. Instead, they come to an accommodation that allows them to disguise their relationship in a perfectly acceptable manner. A method that was probably actually used by women of that period. The story could have been longer and not have such a rushed ending, but overall it's a pleasant tale. The stories of Murdering Meg are just good pirate romps and make nice companion pieces to the larger story.
This is a fun book to read, especially for fans of Austen. The fact that it's broken into three parts makes it convenient for short periods of reading.
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Reviewed by Lynne Pierce
Keeping Up Appearances is about people who struggle. Set in a middle school, the reader is taken on an exploration of the difficulties faced by lesbian teachers, the battles that revolve around special education students and the unhappiness of a child who tries to relieve her pain by cutting herself.
Faye Burton is the principal of Cedar Hills Elementary, but that may not last for long. There is a rumor that the new school superintendent is going to try to fire her because she's a lesbian. Faye isn't "out" at school because that alone would be grounds for firing her, but everyone seems to "know." It totally complicates the relationship Faye begins with the new special education director Andrea Loomis because Andi is totally closeted and doesn't "look the part." Where Faye is about ready to reveal herself and take the consequences, Andi isn't. Their lives are further complicated because of Constance Richardson and her autistic nephew, AJ. The school can no longer meet AJ's needs and he is becoming disruptive to the program. Constance is a high powered lawyer however and she's determined he is going to stay at Cedar Hills where she feels he will get the best education. If that means using a private detective to gather information on Faye and Andi to blackmail them into what she wants, then she'll do it. AJ's one real friend is Pandy Webber. She understands struggling with life since she was abandoned by her neglectful mother and lives with her grandfather. Working with AJ helps ease her depression and gives her a sense of purpose.
The interactions between the characters send several messages. Sometimes in schools and life decisions are made not in the best interests of the people involved, but because they are politically expedient. People can get so caught up in their own interests and concerns that they fail to see or understand what other people are coping with. People with good intentions can often disagree on a course of action because of their own perspectives or because they fail to comprehend another person's motivations. Prejudice comes in many forms, whether racial, sexual, economic or involving those with special needs. Finally, the life that evolves in a school is extremely complex in its relationships and subtleness. Anyone who thinks there are easy solutions to any of these situations has failed to grasp what is going on.
Ann Roberts has created a book that could be dismissed as a romance that takes place in a school, but there is a lot more going on in this story. She blends the stories together in a seamless manner. Someone might read this and only see the plot lines while missing the connections between them. That would be a shame. There is a lot to think about in this book and it deserves more attention than to just be considered another romance.
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Reviewed by Lynne Pierce
Even if you're not a fan of erotica, Larkin Rose is an expert at knowing how to keep you turning the pages. Her two main characters, Eve Harris and Jodi Connelly are interesting, likeable, and real. Eve, a highly successful fashion designer, is driven by her career. She has no desire nor time for a relationship. She satisfies her physical needs with phone sex and has the highly competent Lexi on speed dial.
Jodi Connelly is a very successful paid escort. While her best friend teases her about providing sex for a fee, Jodi enjoys her life. She does dream of someday finding "the right one," but meanwhile, she's able to handily pay the bills.
Kiss the Rain is the story of what happens when Jodi and Eve meet during London's Fashion Week. It also tells how lives can change in seven days. The sex is extremely hot, and the tension is high. This is an enjoyable read which is perfect for a beautiful spring day.
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Reviewed by RLynne
Carlisle Crowley is a different kind of vampire. She feeds off of humans only when she has to and then she chooses those who prey on the weak and innocent. One night she goes out for a walk and discovers a small child named Bronwyn Hunter. The vampire takes Bronwyn home to her parents not realizing that she has set in motion events that will change both of their lives. When they meet again Bronwyn is seventeen, rebellious and determined to make a life with Carlisle. Because her parents have rejected her and to get her off of the streets, Carlisle agrees to let Bronwyn come live with her. Carlisle thinks they'll just be friends, but Bronwyn is alluring and knows what she wants. Soon they are showing each other that there is a greater possibility for them. Unfortunately, Crowley is being hunted by other vampires because she is trying to overcome her instincts. She will have to determine what Bronwyn means to her before she involves her in this battle.
Falconer's book is another one of those about the "good" vampire. Carlisle is trying to reject the normal life associated with the creatures and live like a "regular" person. The reader gets a chance to see a person fighting against her inherent nature. The story between Carlisle and Bronwyn reveals the tension between two characters who shouldn't be together, but can't resist the pull. The real conflict in the book comes at the end, but is very intense.
Knight Predator is a good story about unconventional characters. It falls in among the many books that seem to revolve around this subject right now, but that doesn't detract from it being a good way to be entertained.
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Reviewed by Lynne Pierce
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Title: Leaving L.A.
Author: Kate Christie
ISBN: 10: 9781594932212 13: 978-1594932212
Publisher: Bella Books
Available At: Bella Books
Price: $14.95
Pages: 288
Genre: Romance
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When Tessa Flanagan, retired Hollywood star, meets the kindergarten teacher her daughter, Laya, is totally smitten with, something about Eleanor Chapin intrigues Tessa. As Tessa goes about her business of establishing a new philanthropic foundation, she can’t seem to get Eleanor out of her mind.
When Tessa’s live-in housekeepers and “adopted” grandparents to Laya announce that they have decided to return to the Philippines, Tessa must find someone to help take care of her daughter for the summer. It must be someone who understands the need to respect their privacy because, as a former star, the paparazzi use any excuse to intrude. When she realizes that Eleanor, who plans to leave L.A. for post-graduate school in September, would make the perfect nanny for Laya for the summer, she proposes terms to Eleanor that she can’t refuse. Eleanor loves Laya, but then, there’s also the strong desire Eleanor has to spend time with Tessa.
As the summer progresses, Tessa and Eleanor give the paparazzi something to take notice of, which starts a buzz that neither woman wants. As a result, the budding relationship begins to flounder, and information from Tessa’s long-hidden past begins to surface, complicating matters ever further.
Leaving L.A. is a well written, absorbing story. The attraction of the two women lingers long in the reader’s thoughts. The relationship between them is haunting, and the character of Laya is entertaining and delightful. This is not another “glamorous actress in Hollywood” story. It is about interesting characters that goes beyond Hollywood and allows us to see a star as a real person with desires and foibles. A love story well worth the read.
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Reviewed by Anna Furtado
Van Hollinger has a good life. She has plenty of friends and a woman who loves her, Patsy. Jill, one of her friends, is a bit of a mad scientist who thinks she can build a time travel machine… in an RV. Different members of their group try to humor her when she wants to do tests and they take turns sitting in the vehicle, watching lights blink but nothing happens. Except this time something is different and Van finds herself thrown twenty years into the future into 2008. Everyone has aged except Van and she suddenly finds herself with no home, no money, no lover and trying to cope with a twenty year gap in her knowledge base. Although Jill swears she will find a way to undo the mistake, Van decides to try to make a life for herself in 1988. Her disappearance had consequences though and it's confusing to know how to deal with them. When the women discover that government agents are trying to find out the secret of time travel, the situation becomes more dire. Van and her friends have to find a way to send her back before the agents find her, but this time the machine may not work.
Rip Van Dyke is more reminiscent of the movie "It's A Wonderful Life" than the "Rip Van Winkle" short story written by Washington Irving. Van is given a chance to see the consequences of her not being in the lives of her friends and to assess her importance in their world. Her lover Patsy has become a wasted alcoholic, and Jill has been written off by everyone as a crazy old woman, while other friends have seen significant changes in the courses their lives would have taken. Like Van Winkle though, Van finds herself coping with technology she doesn't understand and history that she was never part of. If anything the character should have demonstrated more confusion than she did.
This book is fine for a few hours of reading. The plot is well developed, although based on a somewhat silly idea. The characters tend to be stereotypical in some cases: Bennie is a typical lesbian skirt chaser who hasn't done much in twenty years except age, and others seem unaware to the point of being dense. However, this makes the story work as far as showing the impact of Van's absence.
This book is fine entertainment for an afternoon or evening.
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Reviewed by Lynne Pierce
Rebecca Lapp and Dylan Mahoney have been friends most of their lives, but they come from two different worlds. Rebecca belongs to an Amish family that follows the Ordnung, the rules that govern their way of life, completely. Dylan is an "English" and lives in the larger world. Both of them are looking forward to Rebecca's rumspring when she will be allowed to spend more time in the modern world to decide where she wants to spend the rest of her life. Dylan wants to show Rebecca everything possible to try and convince Rebecca that they can make a life for themselves. Rebecca loves Dylan, but she also loves her family and the security that their way of life offers. She doesn't believe that she can have them both, but she can't let go of Dylan either. As they move through their experiences, the over looming question remains, how do you combine two worlds that can't be combined?
Wallace has chosen a very different setting for this book. Since the Amish culture is so foreign to most people, it's difficult to know how accurate the portrayal is in this book, but there certainly is an air of things being different. The casual reader might develop the opinion that the Amish are narrow minded and unfair beyond being reasonable, but it's difficult to accept that as true when so many people choose to follow that lifestyle. Although they are supposed to be close followers of the Ordnung, the Lapps seem to find it convenient to let the outside world in at times; however, this may be the way that society functions. For a person who lives in such close contact with the Amish, Dylan doesn't seem to really understand the depths of what she is expecting Rebecca to do. Her persistence in courting one of their members can either be viewed as true dedication to love or a mulish insistence to lead Rebecca away from her family. The reader will have to decide which she feels it is.
This is a complex romance because of the clash between the two societies. There is never any doubt that Rebecca is driving the story, except that Dylan keeps pushing her in the direction that Dylan hopes to take. How the story will end is never really in question, which deprives the book of some of the tension it could have possessed. Another disconcerting fact is that, for someone who has been so sheltered, Rebecca seems to know exactly what to do when she is with another woman. There doesn't seem to be enough hesitation between these two characters to coincide with their very different cultures.
Rum Spring is an interesting, easy to read story and perfectly fine for some pleasant reading.
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Reviewed by Lynne Pierce
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Title: Something to Believe
Author: Robbi McCoy
ISBN: 10: 159493214X 13: 978-1594932144
Publisher: Bella Books
Available At: Bella Books
Price: $14.95
Pages: 275
Genre: Romance
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A trip down China’s Yangtze River proves to hold more than just tourist attractions and absorbing the local culture. When Lauren Keegan and Cassie Burkett meet on a cruise, they are traveling with their respective partners. It quickly becomes clear that Cassie and her partner Jennifer have issues. Faith and Lauren, on the other, hand seem to be in a stable, loving relationship. Lauren, who’s always been a bit of an introvert, really hits it off with Cassie, and the two spend a lot of time together during the trip.
When the couples go their separate ways, Cassie and Lauren continue a long-distance friendship, which is a cause for concern, especially to Faith. However, Faith has her own issues as a university professor with an adoring graduate student to mentor.
As the story progresses and the women’s attraction grows, even from a distance, trouble brews when Cassie and Lauren, along with their respective partners, come together for a week-long vacation. As Cassie and Lauren find that their attraction is more than just a friendship, they panic and their friendship comes to an abrupt end.
The story fast-forwards ten years. Relationships have changed. The estranged women have a chance encounter in an airport and they begin to communicate again. Cassie struggles with her relationship with her son as the two women fight with their renewed feelings for one another. As they try to figure out where they stand with one another, it becomes clear that the old feelings have not died.
Something to Believe is a story about the certainty that when love is meant to be, it cannot be denied and about the hope every person harbors deep down inside that there is a soul mate out there for each of us. McCoy has given us a story filled with bittersweetness and hope in the end. Although the story spans many years, it moves quickly and keeps the interest of the reader. The initial scenes of the attractions on the Yangtze River journey are beautifully drawn and make us appreciate the beauty of the river and the countryside. It also gives us an appreciation of history and culture, both experienced in the story, and wiped out by the building of the dam that claimed whole towns along the river. Then, there is the love story that Cassie and Lauren are convinced is not meant to be. But soul mates with a destiny cannot be denied. A truly enjoyable read.
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Reviewed by Anna Furtado
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Title: Stepping Stone
Author: Karin Kallmaker
ISBN: 10: 1-9493-160-7
Publisher: Bella Books
Available At: Bella Books
Price: $14.95
Pages: 243
Genre: Romance
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Karin Kallmaker is definitely one of the queens of lesbian romance. Her fans will not be disappointed with Stepping Stone, a novel set in the glamorous world of motion pictures. Selena Ryan is a producer with a solid reputation for fairness, honesty, and quality in her independent films. Now, Selena has a script and a cast that just might bring an Oscar to her studio.
Gail Welles is an aspiring actor who is making do with a job waiting on tables in a diner. When Gail auditions for a supporting role in Selena's film, magic happens, and she is aspiring no longer.
Kallmaker has given her readers an insider's look at the "nuts and bolts" of how films are made. She has also written some very real and likeable characters. Selena has been hurt and betrayed in the past and chooses to bury herself in work she loves: making movies. Gail is about to give up and go back home. How these two women work through their fears is a wonderful story. The other characters are just as real and easy to care about.
Stepping Stone is extremely well written and filled with warmth and humor. This is another fine novel by an award-winning author.
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Reviewed by RLynne
After more than twenty years as a Parole Officer in Philadelphia, Alana Blue has decided it's time to retire and try something else. All she wants to do is tie up loose ends and that includes overseeing the probation of Rafe Ortiz, another PO who has trouble following the boundaries of her profession. When a college student is murdered, Detective Johnetta Jones comes to Alana's office to check on her parolees and there are instant sparks. As the action unfolds, the murder, family problems and confusion over her future swirl around Alana. It doesn't help that she finds herself attracted to both Rafe and Johnnie. Life was supposed to be getting simpler for Alana, but it sure doesn't seem to be happening.
The Butterfly Moments calls to mind the philosophical discussion about a butterfly beating its wings in one part of the world leading to a hurricane in another area. There are several events in the book that seem to have no relevance to each other, but eventually everything swirls together around Alana.
What makes the book especially appealing is that it deals with mature characters who approach the creation of a relationship that way. Alana and Johnnie don't get sexual three pages after meeting each other. The reader will get the sense that these women have experienced life and know that there's more to being a couple than getting into bed. What happens between them develops in a very realistic manner. Early in the book, Alana is analyzing what she wants and opens with, "At first, I was convinced I wanted to be loved." Then she goes on through several paragraphs to describe in a very evocative manner the way many older women, especially lesbians who don't have partners, feel. The way that Bess develops these characters will remind the reader of people she knows. Rafe, for example, is typical of the child-woman who refuses to admit that she's too old to play the games she can't seem to resist and so she's self-destructive.
The Butterfly Moments is a murder mystery, a romance and a study of character development that's very well written. It would be difficult to find more reasons to read a book
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Reviewed by Lynne Pierce
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Title: Third Time's a Charm
Author: Linda Kay Silva
ISBN: 10: 1935226444 13: 978-1935226444
Publisher: Bella Books
Available At: Bella Books
Price: $14.95
Pages: 264
Genre: Historical/Paranormal |
In the third installment of the Across Time series, Jesse Ferguson has come into her own person and starts to take seriously her calling and her training as a Druid priestess. Her little brother has grown into a teenager with problems he cannot solve on his own. The unresolved voices that plagued him in the previous installment (Second Time Around) have become more insistent and even a little belligerent. It’s up to Jesse to not only solve the mystery by answering who these ghosts are and what they want, but she must also travel across time, once again, to do it. Not only that, but we discover many interesting things in this new offering, one of which is that Ceara’s houseboat is actually sea-worthy. She, Jesse, and friend Tanner, travel from the Oregon coast to San Francisco to meet with the descendent of the previous owner of the Inn now owned by Jesse’s parents.
Jesse’s travels take her well beyond San Francisco as she travels back through the time portal to visit with her former Celtic self, Cate, and Cate’s soul mate, Maeve, in the first century A.D., and then back even further to the fourteenth century B.C.E, to another former life as an Egyptian priestess who has a relationship with a Maeve counterpart in the leader of the palace guard, Tarik. Together this group from across time must figure out how to protect the beautiful Queen Nefertiti from harm and prevent a malevolent priest from entering the portal to make his own journey into the twenty-first century.
In the most engrossing tale yet from Linda Kay Silva’s pen, find out if Jesse will succeed—and discover many other interesting details about Jesse and all of the recurring characters, as well as facts about the Inn and the truth about Jesse’s destiny. Scenes across time are painted beautifully. The characters seem like old friends—and new enemies—as this story unfolds.
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Reviewed by Anna Furtado
This anthology was created to raise money for the Marriage Equality movement for gays and lesbians. All of the profits go to that movement instead of to the authors or publisher.
The book includes submissions from a number of familiar authors: Jean Roberta, Allison Wonderland, Lara Zielinsky, Stephanie Rose, Jolene Hui, Kissa Starling, Adrianne Brennan, Moondancer Drake, Ann Cory, Jessie Taylor Quinn, Meg Leigh, Dalia Craig, Adrianna Kraft and Beth Wylde. The stories are divided into three sections called On Bended Knee, With This Ring and Lives and Wives. Those make up the three books of the eBook versions.
As with most anthologies, the quality of the stories varies among the selections and they cover a number of topics based around gay marriage. There are the inevitable stories about prejudice, family conflict and wedding preparations and healthy doses of erotic fantasy and reality. Some of the stories are real jewels. The Art of Communication by Jean Roberta deals with that careful dance in a relationship when one partner has more wealth than the other one and the less wealthy partner is conscious of it. It will be impossible for anyone to read Stephanie Rose's The Anti-Proposal and not collapse in laughter as her main character tries to pull off the perfect event only to have everything possible go wrong. Just a hint, both women end up in hospital beds, but still very much in love. Adrianne Brennan deals with combining cultures and the importance of communication in My Big Fat Greek Pagan Lesbian Wedding. This Magic by Meg Leigh reveals the love that lasts forever and transcends death. This story also demonstrates that it doesn't take a lot of words to express something beautiful.
Most people will probably buy this book in order to contribute to the movement. The fact that they will receive several hours of enjoyable reading will be the bonus.
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Reviewed by Lynne Pierce
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