December 2022 Book of the Month Giveaway
January 23, 2023 04:21 PM Posted by juliannadouglas
During the month of December, I read four full-length novels, one children’s book, and three novellas, most of which had a Christmas theme. Overall, it was a good month, with nearly all of them being enjoyable. However, the romance that came out on top with a five-star rating happened to be one of only two non-holiday themed books I read. It’s by a newer favorite author of mine, from one of my now top-favorite, small-town romance series. In this one we have Grant, the second-oldest McCarthy sibling, paired with Stephanie, the young woman his parents hired to run their Beachcomber restaurant during the summer season. As an award-winning screenwriter, Grant had been in Los Angeles, but he returned home for his sister’s wedding with intentions of wooing back Abby, the woman he’s always believed to be the love of his life. However, Abby is now engaged to someone else, and when Grant meets Stephanie, sparks fly. At the end of the previous book, these two were headed toward a one-night stand, and this book opens in the awkward aftermath of their steamy night together. Overnight a powerful Nor’easter blows in, leaving the residents of the island cut off from the mainland and in the dark, without power, for several days. Grant and Stephanie thought it would only be the one night, but with everything closed down and not much else to do, they get to know each other better, leading to many more passionate encounters that rock both their worlds. Grant learns of Stephanie’s plight with regards to her imprisoned stepfather and decides he wants to help in any way he can. He also comes to the realization that Abby wasn’t the woman for him after all, and that he feels more strongly for Stephanie in just a few days than he ever did for Abby over years. But convincing Steph of his sincerity could be a challenge especially when he’s offered a new, potentially lucrative screenwriting deal that requires him to be back in L.A. in a few short days.
Categories: Book of the Month, Giveaways
Tags: Marie Force
September 2021 Book of the Month Giveaway
October 17, 2021 12:24 PM Posted by juliannadouglas
I completed four novels and two short stories in September, but once again, only one received the necessary five stars from me to feature here. It’s the third in a favorite series by a favorite author who I featured once before. Luke and Sydney were teenage sweethearts who were madly in love, but at nineteen, Sydney left their Gansett Island summer paradise for college without ever saying goodbye to Luke. She completely moved on with her life, marrying another man and having two great kids, but an unthinkable tragedy brings her back to the island to heal both her body and mind. About a year later, Sydney and Luke finally reconnect and quickly discover that the old spark is still there. Luke has never stopped loving Sydney, so he’s all in pretty much from the start. However, Sydney is a little more gun-shy, loving their time together, but wanting to take things slow when it comes to making major decisions about their future. She also feels some guilt about having such strong feelings for Luke with her husband only gone a year. Then there’s the possibility of her parents, who’ve always disapproved of Luke, getting in the way of their budding reunion romance, while Luke is playing a few things close to the vest for fear of getting hurt again, which stirs up a little trouble in paradise, too.
Categories: Book of the Month, Giveaways
Tags: Marie Force
November 2020 Book of the Month Giveaway
December 19, 2020 03:59 PM Posted by juliannadouglas
November was a very busy reading month for me. I actually read the most individual stories I believe I’ve ever read in a single month, which was ten total. Of course, they were split evenly between full-length books and short stories. Otherwise, this slow reader never could have managed it.:-) Nearly all of them were enjoyable reads, though, and two even made it to five-star status. I loved both of them and thought they were equally as good, which made my choice on which to feature as my Book of the Month a difficult one. After much consideration, though, I finally decided that one just barely edged out the other, because of its strong emotional connection both between the hero and heroine and with me as the reader. It’s a steamy contemporary romance by an author I’m featuring for the first time and that’s not unlike my own Loving Hearts stories in that it features a vet tech heroine who wants to become a full-fledged veterinarian and a menagerie of cute animals, so hopefully you’ll enjoy my selection.
Categories: Book of the Month, Giveaways
Tags: Marie Force
