Found by Evangeline Anderson (Book 4 in the Brides of the Kindred series)

Official Book Summary:

A warrior with a scarred heart who doesn’t know how to love. And the woman who must teach him how before it’s too late…

The son of the evil AllFather, Xairn is filled with conflicting emotions. On one hand, he has finally gained his freedom and cut the ties that bound him to his race and the sadistic male who is his father. But doing so has unleashed feelings in him Xairn would rather keep buried. Desires that he prayed would never manifest now rage through him and they are centered on one woman alone…

Lauren Jakes is the long lost cousin Liv and Sophie never knew they had. Abducted by the Scourge, she formed a connection with Xairn more meaningful than any other in his life. But though Lauren thinks she knows him, there is more to the huge Scourge warrior than she comprehends. A nightmare childhood and a cruel father have scarred Xairn’s heart almost past the point of healing. But that is nothing to the secret inside him—the forbidden desires coded into his very DNA itself, which urge him to commit unspeakable acts in order to sate his newly awakened hunger.

Now a conflict is brewing—both in Xairn’s soul, and aboard the Fathership where the twisted AllFather has hatched a new, malicious plot to bring his estranged son home. Can Xairn resist the brutal lust growing within him? Can he fight against his very nature which urges him to dominate and control any female he mates? Can Lauren heal his heart before the AllFather’s trap closes on both of them?
And can she teach him how to love before it’s too late?

I have been anticipating this story from the moment Lauren was introduced into this series. I can admit I was super excited mainly because Lauren is half African-American. I was able to identify more with her. I will start this review by saying if you are unfamiliar with the Brides of the Kindred series go back to the beginning and start with Claimed. You, speaking to the interested readers, will be lost if you have not read at least the first or second book in this series. Some books can be read as stand-alones, but this is not one of them. For maximum appreciation of the characters, their struggles and the climax of this book it’d be best to have some familiarity with the characters.

The best thing about this book is the price. With the increase in e-book piracy Evangeline Anderson has tried her best to make it unnecessary for people to pirate her material. You can’t beat $2.99. And with that being said on with the review.

The length of this book is a hard core fan’s wet dream. Long, strong and full of the delicious bits that categorize a book as re-readable. What are the juicy bits? SEX. ACTION. MURDER. CONFLICT.FRICTION.PRESSURE.DREAD. It’s all in here. One thing that Evangeline Anderson is good at is breaking up predictability. After reading the book summary, some may be under the impression that the book is about Xairn and Lauren exclusively. It’s not just about Lauren and Xairn finding a way for her to get home to Earth and for them to be together. It’s so much more than that. Yes, the end game is for Lauren to be reunited with her family on Earth and for Xairn to be free of his enemy of the galaxy evil father, but there is so much that happens in between. If you are familiar with this series then you will appreciate the reappearance of characters from the previous books in the series. If you wanted updates on the lives of these characters, as I sure did, they have their moments.

Out of all of the books in the series, this one and Claimed are a tie for my favorites. I went into reading this book with the idea that this was a hopeless love affair. Xairn’s father, the Scourge AllFather, was pure evil and he had deep-seated issues thinking that he was hard-wired the same way. Xairn was my favorite character in the entire series. The struggle outside of him had nothing on the struggle going on inside of him. There was such pressure and fear that he would turn out to be like his father that it made him such a perfect mate for Lauren.

As far as Xairn being Scourge (a despised and reviled race), I give Evangeline Anderson major kudos for incorporating BDSM into the Scourge culture. I thought how the Scourge distorted the idea of Alpha males and dominate personalities into this cruel, misshapen society was a great angle to work. And because Xairn had never acted on his the BDSM lifestyle that is so much a part of his race I could not wait to see how he’d unleash it on Lauren.

The one thing I do have to mention is that the number of “complete” sexual encounters between Xairn and Lauren is not plentiful. There’s a lot of sexual suffering and abstinence going on between the two before they finally get down to the get down. In my opinion this was not a bad thing, but it was more than a little frustrating. I do understand the why of it, but that didn’t make it any easier to deal with. When they finally do handle it let me tell you sparks are flying off the page. Those two are hot as Hell. Xairn is Alpha to the T and Lauren is submissive enough to make things interesting.

I for one enjoyed this book and after contacting her via email I’ve discovered the series will continue. So I will stick around for the next in the series.

Available for purchase at All Romance Ebooks

In Bed with a Highlander by Maya Banks



To be completely honest I have read Maya Banks before, but was never really impressed. I definitely changed my opinion after reading In Bed with a Highlander.

IBwaH is the story of Mairin Stuart and Ewan McCabe. Mairin is the niece of the King of Scotland and has been living her life in hiding. This all comes to an end when she is stolen from the convent she lived in and held hostage for her dowry and holdings. She escapes with a help of a young boy Crispen, only to be rescued by the clan McCabe.

The first thing I noticed was the similarities between this book and Julie Garwood’s “Ransom.” I can’t go into too many details without posting a spoiler, but suffice to say I thought the two were very similar. Not carbon copies, but pretty similar.

I loved Mairin’s sassiness and her determination to not back down. She was brave without being foolhardy. I fell in love with her character as soon as she put herself between harm’s way and Crispen. When she was introduced to the clan I appreciated how fast the clan did NOT warm up to her. In many stories the heroine is introduced to her new or future family and is opened with loving arms regardless of her connection to the villain of the story. For this book, that was not the case and I appreciated that realism. A group of people struggling to survive shouldn’t be so accepting of someone they do not know. Another piece of realism I appreciated and applauded was how fast Laird McCabe presented himself as a suitor for Mairin. Once it became known who she was and her importance, Laird McCabe became as ruthless and as opportunistic as expected. I didn’t want his character to beat around the bush and act as if he didn’t really need Mairin and the resources she provided when he actually did. The best thing about Ewan’s character was his honesty. He was always truthful even when it could better aid his cause. The villain was everything you expect him to be. Sneaky, conniving, dishonest and cowardly. The best thing about this book is that every problem did not have an easy solution.  The discord between McCabe and the villain Laird Cameron and Mairin’s part in it all was not easily solved by the King of Scotland. In fact, the “King’s” involvement only adds to the struggle between these three.

I enjoyed this book and plan to continue the series to see how Ewan’s brothers end up.

*Sorry for the short review, but life currently has its claws in me.

Storm's Heart by Thea Harrison

Storm’s Heart is the story of Niniane (Tricks) and Tiago (Dr. Death). Tiago is a member of the King of Wyr’s security team and is a powerful ancient in his own right. Niniane aka Tricks is the former head of PR for the King of Wyr whom also happens to be the sole heir to the Dark Fae kingdom. Niniane has been in hiding ever since she was 18 when her family was assassinated. After the death of the former King of the Dark Fae, Niniane must return to claim the throne as the rightful heir. Tiago travels with her as protection and along the way their attraction builds until the only thing that will satisfy it – is a mating.

My most favorite thing about this book is the humor and the WTF situations the characters found themselves in. Case in point, the newsfeed of Niniane kicking the crap out of her family as they attacked her. This may not sound funny, but the way the author set it up the result was ultimate comedy. The second best thing in this book is Niniane herself. Her character is so likeable and so easy to identify with. There were so many times in the book where I would think to myself I couldn’t handle this and I would just run away. Niniane had the same thoughts. It made her so much more believable and realistic. Piggybacking off the first in the series I knew to be prepared for some brutal, straightforward honesty. So far that is a consistent character trait with these ancient Wyr men. They are honest to the point of cruelty, but also no nonsense and men of action. Tiago follows closely behind his Wyr king in these characteristics.

One piece of information I think it’s important to understand is that when thinking of the Wyr you need to recognize that they are all ancient beings and are not subservient to Dragos. My interpretation is that Dragos is just the most organized and the most willing to lead.

I knew from Niniane’s introduction in the first book of the series that when she did decide to claim her birthright there would be a great deal of espionage and court backstabbing involved. I felt for Niniane not knowing who she could and couldn’t trust, but I was glad to see that she had a discerning eye for possible enemies. The fact that the only people she could trust were the Wyr, but she couldn’t rely on them to help her was so frustrating. The politics is easy to understand, every race minds their own business, but I still felt bad for Niniane’s situation. So when Tiago made himself her chief of security I did a fist pump in satisfaction. Once the characters were in place I couldn’t wait until the sexual sparks flew. And did they fly? I loved how Tiago cut right through Niniane’s manipulative sexpot persona. Once they pledged themselves to each other they were like the dynamic duo. He watched her back while she cut through all the bureaucratic bullsh*t, but at the same time he was able to lend his experience at spotting dishonesty and recognizing deceptive people.

As much as I enjoyed the entire book the end was the ultimate for me. The reader is already rooting for Tiago/Niniane and when they overcome it all, but not without casualties L , you can’t help but take a much needed breath. Can’t wait to read the next one.

Kendra Leigh Castle "Dark Awakening"

Dark Awakening is the story of Tynan MacGillivray and Lily Quinn. Tynan is a hunter for the Ptolemy clan in search of a seer that will help them solve murders that are happening inside of their clan.

Going into this book I had preconceived notions that Tynan would be this powerful shifter whom was greatly respected by his clan. Not. This is the first thing I enjoyed about this book. The author instantly snatches you out of normalcy. She introduces you to a male character that is not the biggest and baddest around. I am not saying Tynan isn’t tough and a force to be reckoned with, because he is, but most readers are used to the main male character being someone of importance within the core group. In this case Tynan is the lowest of the low, in Ptolemy clan pecking order that is. This, in itself, was enough to put me on Tynan’s side.

[Lily Quinn starts off as a regular human that may be of importance to the Ptolemy Queen who sends Tynan to find and return with her.]

The book begins with a definition of the different clans and bloodlines. After seeing this I was a bit apprehensive that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with the clans without having to flip back and forth. After the fact I can say I only had to flip to the front twice. To further support this idea of clans Kendra Leigh Castle (KLC) inserted the concept of sigils. These were tattoos that each clan member that identified which bloodline they belonged to.  In the case of Tynan he possessed one that marked him as a low caste and intertwined with this one was the Ptolemy symbol, which identified him as a servant of that clan. It was very reminiscent of Blade, but instead of only familiars wearing them everyone had one.

I enjoyed the character make up of Lily as well as Tynan. There were aspects of Tynan that were hard to stomach, but further supported how loyal his character was. i.e. his blind devotion to Queen Arinsoe. I loved Lily because she wasn’t content to be led around by Tynan and blindly accept his assistance. She wanted to know where she was going, why she was in danger, etc. It took over two pages for Tynan to talk her into accepting his help. To me her reactions and responses were extremely realistic. I found myself thinking that is exactly what I’d say.

In my opinion, the most important plot device the author employed was the use of boogeyman characters we are already familiar with i.e., Dracula, Nero, and Lilith. She stayed true to their reputations except for Lilith. (Going any further would require me to put up a Spoiler alert).

Although, it’s going to sound cliché my favorite part of the book was the end. Things fell into place exactly as I hoped. Throughout all of the running and trying to discover the truth of Lily’s background, KLC found time to insert supporting characters that I hope will have their own stories. The last thing I will mention is the subject of the love scenes. There aren’t a lot of love scenes, but at the point in your reading when you notice there hasn’t been one it happens. I give this a high rating just for the world KLC created.

Cynthia Eden "Never Cry Wolf"



Never Cry Wolf is the story of Lucas Simone and Sarah King. Lucas is the Alpha of the Los Angeles wolf pack and Sarah is in desperate need of his protection.

I give this book my highest of high ratings. Not because the love scenes were hot – THEY WERE NUCLEAR. Not because Lucas was the ultimate Alpha bad ass whom did not GAF. And not because Sarah held her own with this legend of wolf shifters. But because CE stuffed, Thanksgiving turkey stuffed, this book with sexy shifters and non-stop action with enough tension to send you into instant cardiac arrest. I loved the fact that espionage was her main plot devices. If you like spy movies and dream of Ethan Hunt you’ll love this book. (I’ll leave it at that so I don’t have to splash Spoiler Alert across this review)

Cynthia Eden did an excellent job with her character development, especially with Lucas. The book starts off with Lucas being a badass, but I personally wanted to know what happened to him to make him this ultimate BA and she gave it to me. If you like having a back story on your main characters – it’s there. I enjoyed the fact that Cynthia Eden wasn’t afraid to pump her characters full of flaws. It was great that there wasn’t the obligatory one main character is perfect while the other isn’t.  In my opinion, it helped me “root for” and support Sarah and Lucas better knowing that they weren’t “fine upstanding citizens.” This is real life and in this reality Sarah was a serial liar and Lucas had no problem with offing someone when there was a need.  The character development is so good that even when secondary and other background characters are introduced I wanted to veer off topic and delve into their stories as well. Way to go building the need to continue reading this series.

Dimension and a road that splits many ways. I say this because there is more than one villain and the driving force behind each is not the same. They are not all out for the same thing. Revenge. Power. Domination. All of these are a part of each villain’s end game, but their motivations are different.  Yes they all want power, but some desire revenge and some just want to show how strong they are.  All of these different motivations make for a multi-dimensional “villain.” It drives the anticipation and tension sky high because you have no clue in which direction each villain is going to go.

One thing that I wish had been changed, even though I know why she did it, was the fact that Lucas’s pack wasn’t larger. I was expecting this semi-large pack led by the ultimate BA, but that was not the case. Maybe it was my own preconceived notion that a shifter’s strength is in how large his pack is. Maybe it’s more along the lines of how strong your pack is and not the size of it.  Revelation. Light bulb. J



Demon Hunting in Dixie by Lexi George



I’m going to start this review off by saying Lexi George must be my long lost cousin or best friend. I started to question our relation at the wonderful use of the word ‘coochie.’ Hilarious!! Demon Hunting in Dixie is the story of Addy, a florist, and Brand, a member of a demon hunting sect called The Dalvahni. The two meet up while Addy is out jogging with her dog Dooley Anne (I LOVE THIS DOG) when he saves her from a run in with a demon.

The first thing I can say about Lexi George and her writing style is she is a master of plain speech and present day vernacular. Quite a few times I found myself saying “Did she really put that in there?” Her characters are well thought out and beautifully developed, so much so that you can just feel their personalities jumping off the page. Each character is so different. I did notice that the friendships in this book compliment each other. Addy and her best friend Evie are perfect examples. An outgoing ‘tell it like it is’ blonde and a shy, reserved redhead. Brand is a dark-haired, sword-wielding warrior and Ansgar is a blonde, bow and arrow carrying warrior. Two sides to a coin.

I love when authors can wow and shake up my somewhat jaded reading palette. I appreciate fresh ideas and new plot directions. Ms. George takes a different approach and stays away from the played out ideas. The complexity of her character’s personalities makes them stick to your memory. Every time a new character was introduced I loved them (even bitchy Meredith aka The Death Starr). Addy’s dog Dooley and her aunt Muddy share the silver medal for my favorite characters. Muddy was a force of nature and her comments were off the wall and a level ten on the TMI meter. 

Ms. George builds the anticipation and tension like a seasoned veteran. I was on the edge of my seat, biting my nails with my eyes moving across the pages like a ping pong match.  I love the way she inserted pertinent pieces of information. Her timing was A+. Her dialogue is genius.  
“Boom boom boom. Drums in the deep….We cannot get out.”

I love the Lord of the Rings references. I started to think that Brand was patterned after Aragorn and Ansgar was meant to be a buff Legolas. Regardless, the characters really stick.

The love scenes weren’t over done, but at the same time were very steamy. The story itself is so engaging I almost wanted to skim through the love scenes and the development of Brand and Addy’s relationship just so I could see how they’d defeat the demons. And that right there is the heart of it all. Her story is strong enough that if she were to cut out the love scenes, hopefully she’d never do such a thing ‘cause they were HOT, I would still read her book and purchase more. Great job! She is now a member of my auto-buy list.