Sunday, February 20, 2011

icebreaker.

Attorney Sinead O'Brien's new client is Adam Perry, the star of the New York Blades. It's a good thing she doesn't date clients, especially jocks. Charged with assault on another player, the private, no-nonsense Adam knows this is his last shot at Stanley Cup glory. Sinead quickly discovers that there's a wounded man under that helmet, and she's falling for him-hard. Can they play on their feelings without penalties?

I knew going into this one that I wouldn't like it. But I wanted to be surprised. I really wanted Martin to give me something worth reading.

She didn't.

Icebreaker played out the way the last few NY Blades books have - poorly. I didn't care about the characters and didn't especially like them, either. The last Blades story I liked was Chasing Stanley. That added to the first two makes a total of 3/9 that I've enjoyed in this series. Those are terrible odds. She doesn't use the sport to really enhance the story at all. It's just... there. Susan Elizabeth Philips (Chicago Stars, football) and Lori Foster (SBC, MMA) have done well with sports series. Head there if you're interested.

Martin doesn't do anything different or fantastic here. There's no great sex, no great emotions, no jokes. The friendship between Anthony Dante and the hero Adam Perry is odd and comes out of nowhere. I felt like the author just wanted a reason to have Anthony in the story. Or needed a friend for Adam to talk to and plugged him in. I don't know why I continue to read her books after being burned so many times. This will be the last though. I refuse to be bamboozled again!

Seriously... recommendations, anyone?

Thursday, February 10, 2011

into the night.

A former Marine and Las Vegas vice copy, Nathan Fox has seen it all and then some. Heading up security for the Onyx Casino is tame compared to his past, but it's not his only job. Working for The Reliance Group is his real passion project. His current case: a missing woman. His mission: to find her. But soon Nathan must deal with a stubborn, and stunning, journalist who's nosed her way into the investigation . . . and into Nathan's fantasies.

To reporter Nicole Hutton, exposing a ruthless, twisted criminal who abuses vulnerable teens isn't just a job. In fact, this story has become very personal, especially now that she's gotten tangled up with sexy Nathan Fox. But before she can break the story, and help rescue a missing girl, she and Nathan must brave the labyrinth of Vegas's dark underbelly . . . where the heat simmering between them is about to burst into flames.


It's been awhile since I've read a Janelle Denison book. This one wasn't too bad. Nathan and Nicole are instantly attracted to each other after meeting at a speed dating event. Both believe the instance will be one night only, until Nathan's case brings them back together again.

As with most Denison stories, the sex scenes are frequent and well detailed. Not as risque as her Wilde series, though. For me, that's a bonus. The kidnapping case that the characters are working on plays out well throughout with Nathan and Nicole going undercover to extract a teenage runaway. Denison does a great job pacing the story, but it ends without any true excitement. The pages after the initial ending seem to have been added for an extra thrill. The characters each have backgrounds that relate to the case and they're brought up accordingly. Nicole's issues were repeated a few times too many, but eh, I'll let it slide. I could have used a bit more emotion between Nicole and Nathan, but I'm not going to be too picky after all the duds I've been reading lately.

As I haven't kept up with Denison, I'm not sure if this is the first in the TRG books or if it's already started. I wouldn't mind continuing with the series, especially to read about bartender Sean O'Brien. If you think you have similar tastes, go ahead and give it a read.

Monday, February 7, 2011

i'm really not grumpy.

In addition to the reviews already posted, a few more not so nice reviews are coming up. I'm not a grumpy person and I love to read. Love it. I have just been unlucky enough to have read a bunch of unfortunate stories. Furthermore, the ones that I have liked were for the review site. And, as I've mentioned before, that means I can't review them here.

I received three books today that are unrelated to the site. I'm sure they'll make their way here. I already have the next few reviews planned out, so these won't make an appearance until March, at least.

But I'm trying! Please believe that. :c)

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

roadkill.

It's time to lock, load, and hit the road...

Once, while half-human Cal Leandros and his brother Niko were working on a case, an ancient gypsy queen gave them a good old-fashioned backstabbing. Now, just as their P.I. business hits a slow patch, the old crone shows up with a job.

She wants them to find a stolen coffin that contains a blight that makes the Black Death seem like a fond memory. But the thief has already left town, so the Leandros brothers are going on the road. And if they're very, very lucky, there might even be a return trip...
This review contains spoilers.

I can not say, in good conscience, that this was a good book. It was without a doubt the worst of the series so far. As I regard Deathwish (the book immediately preceeding this one) as the best of the series, I felt completely let down and disappointed.

Very quickly, I will run down the problems I had with Roadkill. First, it was a long, drawn out story with no boom at the end. Cal, Niko, Robin, Delilah, Rafferty, and Catcher (Rafferty's cousin) are hunting down Suyolak, the Plague of the World. When they finally get to him with all of 1 page left (I'm exaggerating, but really it might've been 20-30), the battle is short and, at the risk of being redundant, boring. Not your typical Cal + Nik type of showdown.

Another problem I had is directly related to the first. This installment seemed to serve no purpose other than informing us of the progression of relationships. We learn about Cal + Delilah, Robin + Ishiah, and Rafferty + Catcher. And Cal's flirtation with his Auphe side. Otherwise, the book seemed pointless.

Next up - Delilah. I've been passive, indifferent even about this particular character. I should have hated her, because of her part in the continued absence of Georgina (where is Georgina?!), but I decided to let it go. Well, no more. I don't like her and I wish one of the characters would put her out of my misery already. Seriously.

The ending was just... there. My expectations for Roadkill were high, I can admit that. Very, very high. Partly because I loved Deathwish so much and partly because readers seemed really into this book (or so I gleaned from Twitter). Apparently, Thurman's goal was to make people cry. Me? I rolled my eyes at the end. I have waited almost a year to read this book. Because I feared character death or some tragic situation (neither occurred) , I waited until I got my hands on Blackout before reading Roadkill. Well, guess what? I need not have spent that time waiting. There was absolutely no need for me to do so.

[insert sigh here] Since I have a TBR pile a mile high, I'm sliding Blackout down a few spots. The only thing that might have made me rush to read the next book is the fact that Cal frighteningly becomes more Auphe in this book. I mean, he's turning into a true killer. But even that is just not enough. As I write this, I am starting a book I am almost certain I won't like. [insert second sigh here] If you have a book suggestion for me, please share. I've been reading nothing but duds here! Save me!