Giveaway: Maiden Lane Series

If you haven't caught my reviews on any of Elizabeth Hoyt's work, let me tell you how much I enjoy her Maiden Lane books.  Thief of Shadows was one of my favorite books of 2012, and the latest Lord of Darkness is a great read too! 

Now is your chance to give the series a try! The great folks at Forever are offering ALL FIVE books in the Maiden Lane series to one lucky winner (US Only.)  Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below to win.


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Review: Lord of Darkness

Reviewed by Jen
 

It's been two years since Megs has last seen her husband.  She and Godric didn't marry for love.  Her brother knew his darkest secret --that he was the mysterious and deadly Ghost of St. Giles-- and used that information to blackmail him into the marriage.  Megs was pregnant and her fiance, dead. She needed a husband.  But sadly, she lost the baby right after the wedding and quickly went away to the country to convalesce.

Now she is back in London with two missions: to track down her lover's killer and to convince her husband to give her the baby she's always wanted.  Neither task will be an easy one.

Godric has never gotten over the death of his first wife, Clara.  Moving on --even with his new wife-- feels like a betrayal of his first love.  But when he finds out that Megs is plotting to ferret out a killer in St Giles, he agrees to father her child, to keep her distracted and to keep her safe.  Of course, despite their best intentions to stay true to the memories of their lost loved ones... they end up falling for one another.

I liked Godric a lot. He loved his Clara so much.  It was nice to see a hero who isn't a rake. He isn't an alpha. Not a virgin. Not a brother's best friend. Not even a duke or an earl.  He's 37 years-old.  He's known love and loss and sacrifice.  He fights for the downtrodden. And he mourns.  He's so serious and sad, but he hasn't lost his humanity. He generously welcomes Megs and her entourage into his home.  He gives her everything she needs and he never lets her down.

Megs has a harder time letting go of her past than Godric does.  Maybe it's because he is older and more mature that he can allow himself to open his heart again.  But though she is a little slower on the uptake, Megs does come through.  The love story is sweet and the sex is satisfying.

There is also a scintillating set up for the third Ghost's story, featuring Artemis and the Duke of Wakefield.  I am intrigued in her and her twin's story --and I am excited to find out what Wakefield's single-minded focus is.

Another solid installment from a great series.

Rating: B

*ARC Provided by Forever via NetGalley

Click to purchase: Amazon

Lord of Darkness

by Elizabeth Hoyt

Release Date: February 26, 2013

Publisher: Forever

Favorites From... Elizabeth Hoyt

 Elizabeth Hoyt

Jen: What are your favorite genres to read in fiction?

Elizabeth: I read mostly romance—historical, paranormal, contemporary, and suspense—and mystery/thrillers. Once in a while I’ll pick up a popular mainstream fiction novel.

Jen: Who are your favorite authors and do you have a particular title or series from them that you love?

Elizabeth: I love Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files books and Nalini Singh’s Psy-Changeling series. I haven’t read the second book in Loretta Chase’s Dressmakers trilogy (? I think it’s a trilogy) but the first one blew me away. I’ve been really eager for Eloisa James’ historical romances based on fairy tales, but I don’t know if they’re considered a series or not ;-). And! I’m positively chomping at the bit for Jo Nesbo’s next Harry Hole mystery.

Jen: Talk to me about why they appeal to you and why you think new readers should give them a try.

Elizabeth: Loretta Chase and Eloisa James are two of the best historical romance authors writing today. Their characters are fresh and exciting and their voices—dear God, their voices! Reading them is like listening to Adele hit that one note just right and hold it.

Jim Butcher has everything: humor, twisty plots, angst, snark, characters that leap off the page, and incredible world building.

Nalini Singh is one of the few paranormal authors who manages to combine a so-real-you-can-touch-it world with really hot, visceral romance.

And Jo Nesbo is very, very dark. I’ve been reading dark thrillers/mysteries for decades and he still manages to shock, while at the same time combining prose that sings (not Adele. More like Jim Morrison.) Since he writes in Norwegian, I have to give credit to his English translator, Don Bartlett. 

A big thank you to Elizabeth Hoyt for sharing these great suggestions! I asked Elizabeth to be part of this feature because I absolutely loved her latest Maiden Lane book, Thief of Shadows.  It features a sexy virgin hero who a mild-mannered school-master by day and a masked vigilante at night. Click here if you would like to know more about it.

In the meantime, you can enter to win some of Elizabeth's recommendations.  Just fill out the Rafflecopter forms below. Up for grabs: the first book in Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling series, Slave to Sensation; Silk is for Seduction by Loretta Chase; and A Kiss at Midnight by Eloisa James. US residents only.

Be sure to check out all of the Favorites From My Favorites posts and giveaways this month, by clicking here.
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5 for Friday - July 6

Happy Friday! I'm finally over my Magic Mike hangover and I have learned two very important lessons.  One: it's bad enough to drunk-dial or drunk-tweet, but it's even less of a good idea to pull out the camcorder and post your drunken monologue-slash-movie-review online... even if your enabler-friends say it is funny.  And two: if you are foolish enough to do this anyway, for the love of God, disable the comments on YouTube.  Days after my review posted, someone left the comment, "Lonely drunk older woman. Yuck."  I wanted to shout, "I'm not lonely!!" But I thought better of a flame war with some kid out in cyberspace. (I'm still crying on the inside and the comments are, indeed, now disabled.)

In other news, I decided to go ahead and start the Crossfire series and I really ended up enjoying Bared to You. Thanks to everyone who encouraged me to give it a try!!

5. I read and Loved Elizabeth Hoyt's Thief of Shadows with a capital-L. Now she is spilling the deets on the next Maiden Lane book, Lord of Darkness, out in February.

WHEN STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT
He lives in the shadows. The mysterious masked avenger known as the Ghost of St. Giles, his only goal is to protect the innocent of London. Until the night he confronts a fearless lady pointing a pistol at his head—and realizes she is his wife . . .

BECOME LOVERS...
Lady Margaret Reading has vowed to kill the Ghost of St. Giles—the man who murdered her one true love. Returning to London, and the man she hasn’t seen since their wedding day, Margaret does not recognize the man behind the mask. Fierce, commanding, and dangerous, the notorious Ghost of St. Giles is everything she feared he would be—and so much more . . .

DESIRE IS THE ULTIMATE DANGER
When passion flares these two intimate strangers can't keep from revealing more of themselves than they had ever planned. But when Margaret learns the truth—that the Ghost is her husband, Godric St. John—the game is up and the players must surrender . . . to the temptation that could destroy them both.

4. A tidbit for fans of Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series.  According to her Facebook page, her next Dark Hunter book may be about Acheron's brother Styxx.

This excites me. I'm ready to get back into the Acheron side of the DH world!!

3. Laura Wright's 4th book in her Mark of the Vampire series, Eternal Beast,  is coming soon.  Now she has released a book trailer.

I'm excited to read Gray & Dillon's story!  It's out August 7.

2. I love Kelly Meding's Dreg City books.  But I've never tried her MetaWars series.  There's no time like the present, though. Pocket After Dark is featuring book one, Trance, for free on their website this month!

Kelly Meding’s war-ravaged Los Angeles is ground zero for the ultimate Meta human showdown in this sexy, action-packed new series.

Fifteen years ago, Teresa “Trance” West was a skilled telepath and a proud member of the Ranger Corps. But ever since the Rangers were inexplicably rendered powerless at the climax of the devastating Meta War, she’s bounced from one dead-end job to another. Now her powers have reappeared just as mysteriously as they vanished— only they’re completely transformed and more potent than ever. And they’re threatening to destroy her.

Trance heads to Los Angeles to track down the surviving Rangers and discover who restored her powers—and why—but a phantom enemy is determined to kill them before they can reassemble. As they dodge his deadly attacks and come to terms with their new role as heroes, Trance and the rest of the team set out to annihilate the sinister madman . . . only to discover their own powers are his greatest weapons.

If you like it, book two, Changeling, just came out June 26.

1. Here's a big one for Guild Hunter fans. Nalini Singh is holding a giveaway for three ARCs of Archangel's Storm.

I love the Guild Hunter covers, don't you?? This is Jason's book, out September 4th. Scoot over to her blog to enter. The contest runs through July 20th.

*Bonus Items*
Thea Harrison has revealed the cover art for her next Elder Races novella. And Moira Rogers has a new one in the Last Call series.

What do we think?  Hunter's Season is out September 18th.  No release date yet for Firecracker.


Have a great weekend!

XOXO
Jen

P.S. The contest winner is JenM.  Jen, send me an email and I'll hook you up with your prize.

Review: Thief of Shadows

Reviewed by Jen
 

I loved this book. It's easily one of my favorite historical romances of 2012!

The best thing about the story: the hero, Winter Makepeace.  He is, by all outward appearances, this drab, stuffy, severe man who runs a home for foundling children. But there is so much more to him than meets the eye.  While he toils away for the orphans by day... by night, he is a masked protector of the downtrodden... the Ghost of St. Giles.

Lady Isabel happens across Winter's alter-ego after he has been injured. She finds him unconscious in the road and rescues him from an angry mom.  Isabel brings him home and tends his injuries, having no idea that it's really Winter she is attending.  Once he regains consciousness, however, Winter recognizes her as one of the patronesses of his orphanage.  He sees her in a whole new light, but he doesn't stick around to get to know her better.

In fact, with his attraction towards her, Winter thinks distance is the best option. After all, he has stayed celibate on purpose, devoting all of his energies into his mission to help the helpless.  A relationship would only weaken his devotion to his cause. His plans to avoid Isabel fail spectacularly, however. When one of the other patronesses suggests he needs some social tutoring, Isabel is nominated for the job. Either he cooperates or he could lose the orphanage that he holds so dear.

It's almost like Winter has two distinct personalities: his headmaster side and his Ghost side.  Both are so fascinating and well developed.  He was so well-crafted, he felt like a real person.  An honorable, driven, loyal, sexy, virgin-person. (*fans self*)  I loved watching him struggle with his growing feelings for Isabel. His concerns about being beneath her in station; his worries about failing the children who need him; his sexual awakening.  It was all. So. Good.

I didn't love Isabel quite so much, but I didn't dislike her.  She has had to harden herself in the wake of tough blows.  She, too, struggles with her feelings in the relationship.  It takes her a little longer than Winter to come around, but she gets there.  The sexual tension is fantastic --and the sex is really, really hot.

I would definitely recommend this one.

Rating: A

*ARC Provided by NetGalley

Click to purchase: Amazon

Thief of Shadows

by Elizabeth Hoyt

Release Date: June 26, 2012

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

5 for Friday - June 22

This week has really flown by! Of course, I spent half of it getting a healthy dose of sunshine and extended family during my vacation at Fontainebleau State Park.  It was gorgeous out there and I was happily surprised that they had wi-fi in the cabins, so I wasn't completely cut off from the blog and my Twitter addiction.  Hours of play knocked the kids out at night and mixed drinks did the same for the hubs, so I even got a little reading time in!  But there is no place like home and I'm glad to be back with Tumblr you guys.


5. Tuesday is a huge, huge release day.  It's like the publishers decided to save up a ton of big books to drop on us all on the same day.  Some of the best coming out this week: Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost, Thief of Shadows by Elizabeth Hoyt, and Wicked Nights by Gena Showalter.

I also enjoyed Chasing Magic by Stacia Kane and Tempest's Fury by Nicole Peeler.  Oh! And Consumed by Rebecca Zanetti.  But really, those are just the tip of the iceberg.  What big June 26th release tickles your fancy?  Tell me what you're looking forward to *or* which books you wanna spread the word about.

4. A couple of tidbits from the awesome Jennifer Estep.  The next book in her Elemental Assassin book, Widow's Web is out in August, but if you can't stand the wait, she's got Chapter 1 up on her blog. In the meantime, she has revealed the cover for her next YA Mythos Academy book Crimson Frost.

That one is out in January. And Estep says the name of the book after that will be Midnight Frost (out August 2013.)

3. The amazing Ilona Andrews is giving us a sneak peek of the next Edge book. You can find chapter 1 of Steel's Edge up on her blog.  This is the last contracted book in the series from what I understand and I must say I am sad. I really was hoping for a Jack and/or a George book. (**sniff**) I shall keep hope alive.

2.  By now, everybody and their mama has seen the Breaking Dawn Part 2 trailer. But you could be living under a rock. Or just itching for a chance to talk about it.  Either way, here it is:

  

Yes. I will go see it.

1. And speaking of guilty pleasures. Dallas is back.

I was a huge fan of the original recipe Dallas, back in the 80's.  Of course, I was around 10 years old and I didn't even realize how much of it I didn't "get" until I watched the episodes again during a CMT re-airing while I was in college.  So, have any of you seen the new version? Is it worth watching?  Here's the trailer if you've missed it.  I need opinions before I commit.

**Bonus Item**

 
I saw this cover reveal on Harlequin's Facebook page and Rrraw. 

Badly disfigured Lady Isobel Dalceann has fought fiercely to defend her keep, with little thought for her safety. Why, then, has she let a stranger within her walls? While he threatens danger, his battered body marked by war mirrors her own scars and tempts her to put her faith in him.

Marc de Courtenay is a mercenary and a loner, although he is drawn to damaged—beautiful—Isobel. But in taking him into her highly defended, buttressed walls, she has unwittingly given him secrets that will enable him to betray her. What would she do if she were ever to find out who he really is…?

XOXO
Jen