Book Review: Magically Delicious Kisses

Warning: I read this book over a year ago, so the review might not be so detail driven.

Magically Delicious Kisses (Anthology)

Magically Delicious Kisses is an Anthology with three different authors contributing to the book.  All three stories have a theme of food and some kind of magical properties.  The book was published in 2002 and I read it in 2014.  The three authors that contributed to this book are: Jo Goodman, Hannah Howell and Linda Madl.  I believe I purchased this book when I was working at the book store ages ago, and I can quite remember why I picked it up and bought it.  Because out of all of the authors I've only heard of one, but I had never read anything by her.  In all I remember the stories being quick reads, and fun for little brain dusters.

A Basket of Magic by Jo Goodman is about a girl named Abby Winslow who makes bread that is specific for a person.  When she runs into Dylan Kincannon, she's inspired to bake him a special loaf and travels to the isolated place he calls home.  Dylan who is a Yankee, living in the south shortly after the civil war just wants to be alone, but when an avalanche strands her with him sparks fly.

I found that the story had a nice and easy flow, it was quick but had a good amount of back story with action that pulled me in.  Out of the three stories this was the only one set in America where as the other two were set in Great Britain.  You find that Dylan is suffering from what we know not today as PTSD, after serving as a doctor to Union and Confederate soldiers during the civil war.  I loved that the author wasn't afraid to put in history of the characters and found that it was important to understand them.

The Magic Garden by Hannah Howell is a story set in Scotland where Rose Keith comes from a long like of Keith women who is in charge of the family garden, that many believe hold magical properties.  The new Laird Sir Adair Dundas takes a liking to Rose and finds her quirky and interesting.

Out of the two stories, this one had the most humor, which a lot of times in a romance story is refreshing.  The idea of which craft was an interesting take, and the character Rose is being harassed by another women in the village, which during those earlier times is not something you want to be accused of.  But I do have to say the dialogue was kind of hard to read because it was written like a Scottish brogue would sound.  So I found myself slowing down and trying to follow the story when there was dialogue between the characters.

The Orange Tree by Linda Madl is set in England, where Lady Emmalyn travels to the Isle of Sully to get some of Lord Hughes rare oranges.  She believes that they are an aphrodisiac and wants them for her daughters wedding so that she doesn't suffer the same heartbreaking fate that Lady Emmalyn had when she was married.

What stood out to me the most in this story was that the lead female character wasn't a virgin maid.  In a lot of historical romance stories, the female is always a virgin.  So it was nice and refreshing to read where one wasn't.  But if I remember correctly, this story was one of the most boring.

In the end all of the stories were quick and easy reads with a few minor slow downs, like the language.  For the most part I enjoyed the book.  It was neat to that the stories all had a common theme with food and magic.

Rating: 4 out of 5 (this was the rating that I gave it on goodreads.com)

On Deck: Until I catch up on reviews I won't be posting on decks although I am constantly reading.

Book Review: The Warrior

The Warrior by Kinley MacGregor

The Warrior by Kinley MacGregor (the pen name for Sherrilyn Kenyon) is a historical romance novel set in Scotland during the Christian Crusades.  This book is part of her Brotherhood of the Sword series and also her MacAllister series.  This book follows Taming the Scotsman in this series.

The Warrior follows Laird Lochlan MacAllister and Catarina.  Lochlan embarks on a quest to find the truth about his younger brother Kierian.  There are mysteries surrounding the disappearance of this younger brother.  Catarina wants to be free but as the illegitimate daughter of the king of France she's used as a pawn to strengthen to alliances.  On his quest, Lochlan runs into Catarina and vows to help her reunite with her uncle, but he can't help be feel attracted to the free spirit.

So I have to be honest.  I read this book way back in February of 2014 and I'm now finally getting to the review.  I know I'm a slacker.  But I have to be honest.  I don't remember a lot of details about this book.  Compared to the other Kinley MacGregor books that I have read, this one didn't hold the same level of magic that I felt the other ones from this series did.  While I did enjoy the book and the relationship development between Lochlan and Catarina this book just didn't stick with me.  But this was a good book to read in between heavier content books and a great summer romance read.  The one thing that I do love about this authors writing though is that she has a great ability to draw you in and feel for the characters.  Lochlan feels a massive amount of guilt over the death of his younger brother where as Catarina has been running from her father since she was old enough to marry.  MacGregor weaves a tale that intertwines Lochlan and Catarina's story together while also adding some loose ends with the mystery or his younger brother.  As I said, while the story was enjoyable I felt that it didn't have nearly as much of a punch as some of her other stories in the MacAllistar series.

Rating:

3.5 out of 5

On Deck:

I'm not doing an on deck until I catch up reviews.

Bakers Dozen 2013: 11

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith

So this is another one of those books that I reviewed about a year and a half ago.  And this was another one that I LOVED and I gave it a 5 out of 5.  So this is another book that I don't have in my collection because I borrowed it from my step-brother.  Now along with me writing a book review for this book I also did a book vs. movie comparison.  Yes they made this book into a movie.  But this is a clear example where the book is always better than the movie.

Now because this book uses a very well known historical figure, the author had to use a lot of historic points to make the plot seem plausible.  The book follows Abe from childhood to his assassination.  And the author was very descriptive when it came to explaining what was going on during the time period.  Also, this was a completely different take on vampires, but they author kept the classic ideal of what a vampire is.  Lately the images of what vampires are suppose to be have slipped away from the classic ideal and have gone to nice ones that sparkle.  So in a sense this was a very refreshing book to read just because of that aspect.  Plus as someone who enjoys learning about history this was an interesting way to introduce history to the avid fiction writer.

Even though as I mentioned before I don't have this book in my collection, a lot of the vivid details still remain in my head.  The author tied in historical fact this fiction so seamlessly that I at times wondered if I was reading real fact.

Bakers Dozen 2013: 5

Secrets of the Ancient Goddess by Brenda Gates Smith

If you have never heard of Brenda Gates Smith or Secrets of the Ancient Goddess well I don't blame you.  This author is pretty much an unknown,  and I think I stumbled upon her first book Secrets of the Ancient Goddess several years ago.  It was published in 1999 but I think I read it a few years later.  I was probably around 15 years-old at the time.  This book does have a sequel, Goddess of the Mountain Harvest.  But I feel that out of the two this was the better book.  In fact I really didn't like the sequel a whole lot.  Now I just found out that this author as released a third book but I don't know if it goes with this one or the sequel or if it is a stand alone.  This was definitely more historical than anything else.  I guess I could say this book is some what similar to Clan of the Cave Bear.  But not quite.  The author took time to study the historical time period to make the setting seem authentic.

The book is set in a prehistoric land which is now Turkey.  And follows two different women.  One is the mate of a high priest of the Goddess, exiled from her people for giving birth to her second deformed son.  To survive she becomes adopted by a group of people who help straighten out her sons leg which was the deformity.  But one of their own was captured by a violent and war-driven clan.  Forced to become one of the many wives for the leader of the tribe, she's subjected to a more brutal way of life which is the opposite of the peaceful life she was brought up with.  The story follows both to where the women who was kidnapped joins back with her tribe.

This was definitely one of those books where the author didn't have to write a sequel, because the sequel didn't do anything for the book.  I wonder if maybe she felt the need to since the Clan of the Cave Bear book is in a series?  But anyway, the first book, Secrets of the ancient Goddess was amazing.  I don't know if they're still printing new copies, but if you look on amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com there are a lot of used copies that you can find cheap.  I definitely suggest picking up this book if you want to read a historical book that doesn't have romance.

Book Review: Return of the Warrior

Return of the Warrior by Kinley MacGregor

Return of the Warrior by Kinley MacGregor is a historical romance novel.  As I've mentioned before MacGregor is actually Sherrilyn Kenyon's pseudonym.  All of the books written under Kenyon's pseudonym is of a historical romance nature.  As you know I'm a sucker for historical romance so of course I had to read this book.  Return of the Warrior is a part of the Brotherhood of the Sword series where a lot of the characters reoccur in the books, either by written presents or by name.  Even though this book is a part of the series, you do not need to read them in order.  You wont get lost because MacGregor is really good about making the book about the two main characters.

So while there are a huge amount of different characters the two main characters are Queen Adara of Taagaria and Christian of Acre.  Both knew each other in their childhood and were married at a young age.  Through deceit and jealousy, Christian's family started to go after each other and leaving him the only soul survivor for his crown.  After the death of Adara's family she is the only one left to her thrown.  The shady protagonist Selwyn is after her crown and lands and was the advisor to Christian's grandfather wants the power.  He tries to claim that Christian is dead but in reality is that he is alive and well.  Adara not convinced that her husband is dead goes in search of him.  They finally meet up, but Selwyn is after Christian to kill him.  During the time it takes them to go back Christian is fighting his feelings for Adara afraid of falling in love.

This book had so many details and action through out the book that kept me interesting.  The whole journey back they are constantly getting attacked by Selwyn's men trying to kill Christian but there is also a huge conflict with the relationship with Adara.  Because of Christian's parents murder, he is afraid of letting Adara in his heart.  Kinley MacGregor did a wonderful job with balancing all of the conflicts that were happening in the story.

Almost all of MacGregor/Kenyon's books have the same theme where at least one (sometimes both) main characters has had a hard life and gets redemption.  In this story it's about Christian's redemption.  Even though the story was written in third person point of view it's written so well that you understand what is going on with the characters.

I really enjoyed this book and it was a really quick read and it was fun and exciting to read.  I would recommend this book for anyone who loves reading any kind of romance and historical romance.  There are descriptive love making scenes but they aren't vulgar in my opinion.  There is definitely plenty of action in this book if you aren't a huge fan of just straight romance.

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Rating:
4.5 out of 5

On Deck:
Charmed Thirds by Megan McCafferty
Retribution by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Secrets VOL. 3 - Anthology (various authors)
Bubble's A Broad by Sarah Strohmeyer
Grand Avenue by Joy Fielding

Bakers Dozen 12

Ransom by Julie Garwood

So this was probably one of the first historical romance books that I had read, or at least in the wave of historical romance that I started.  And you might find it weird but I remember clearly how I came about getting this book.  I had read a little snippet of another book by this author, Mercy, in a Cosmo magazine.  I hadn't bought that book but I found this book in the bargain book section at Borders for around 2 dollars.  This book didn't have a cover wrap (it is a hard cover book) so there was no synopsis.  But I figured for 2 bucks I can take a gamble.  I think this was one of the first book that I fell in love with because it was about Scotland, and it totally made me think about a hunky Scottish warrior (I know kind of dorky, but hey I was like 15 when I got the book.)

The story starts off with Lady Gillian as a child and she is trying to escape from her manor with her sister after their father is killed by a greedy baron.  The story then time warps to about 15 years later where Gillian is ordered to find her sister whom she hasn't seen for that time.  She finds out that her sister is now living in the highlands and she must go to find her.  She also sees that the greedy barons captured a boy that they plan to kill.  But instead they escape and go into the highlands to bring the boy to his family.  Gillian pretends to be the boys Uncle's, Laird Brodrick Buchanan's, bride in order to insure a safe return for the boy and to also get help finding her sister.  Brodrick, feels the need to protect Gillian and soon sparks fly and they become married.  There are so many plot twists and turns that keep you interested and I honestly couldn't put the book down.

This story is in theory a sequel to The Secret but the book has enough detail to stand on its own and you can read it with out reading The Secret first.  I love how Julie Garwood mixed in the humor and to romance together and it seemed so seamless that they humor didn't feel out of place in the setting and time period of the novel.

Again, I just love this book.  I have read several of Julie Garwood's other books and I have to say, I have never been disappointed by what I had read.  If you're in the mood for a book that has a romance, humor and some action, I definitely suggest one of her novels.

Bakers Dozen 11

Shadow's Kiss by Joan Hohl

This is a historical/paranormal/romance novel, that really struck me as unique.  Now I know that there are a million different historical romance novels and paranormal romance novels, but I have to say, this is the first that I have read that combined the two genres.  Again, this author was another one suggested by Kristi and whenever she has suggested something to me I have never been disappointed (this is a reason why she is so awesome.)

Anyway, the story starts off with Darcy Flynn, leaving her Philadelphia home to Denver to help her mother for what she thought was a boarding house.  When she gets there she found out that her mother had passed away and the boarding house is actually a whore house.  Darcy who had lived in a all girls catholic school all her life, is shocked that her mother ran a whore house, but after she gets to know the girls, she realizes that her mother actually helped the girls by helping them escape from horrible upbringings.  Being inspired by these girls stories, she decides to transforms the whore house into a school for ladies so that they can learn skills and be accepted into society.

The romance starts when two days prior to Darcy's arrival Jonathan Stuart is murdered in the whore house.  He has unfinished business and his spirit walks the house.  Only Darcy can see and feel his presence, she soon starts to fall in love, but obviously because he is a ghost it seems impossible.  Or is it?

I just loved how this story was written.  It was the perfect combination of romance/historical/paranormal, and it kind of had a little bit of girl power.  Even though the character Darcy falls in love and that is a huge factor in the book, I just loved how Joan Hohl wrote this character to be very self-aware and very much empowered to help these women.  I also felt the that the love story was very sweet, and you find yourself rooting for this couple even though it seems impossible.

Bakers Dozen 10

So I couldn't do this list with out also adding The Wolf and the Dove by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss.  As I stated in the previous post, this was one of two books that Kristi suggested.

The story is set in the year 1066 in England during the transition from a Saxon England to a Norman England.  The fierce warrior Wulfgar is in charge of an army to claim the land and residents of Darkenwald in the name of William, the Conqueror.  But the conniving Ragnor gets there first, killing the Lord of Darkenwald, and he wishes to posses his beautiful daughter Aislinn.  Fortunately for Aislinn, Wulfgar takes possession of Darkenwald and becomes their new Lord.  Refusing to bow, she becomes Wulfgar's slave and mistress.  Through out the story Aislinn and Wulfgar struggle with their feelings for each other but you see their love blossom.

Also I loved the the plot twist of Wulfgar's vengeful and evil sister, Gwyneth.  Her presence in the story makes for an interesting plot and drama.

I have to say when I first read this story and The Flame and the Flower I actually preferred the other one more.  Only because the speech is written how we would perceive 1066 English would be spoken.  So as a 16 year old it was a little hard to follow.  As I've gotten older though, this has become another one of the books that I pick up on a frequent basis and re-read over and over again.

If you are interested in reading historical romance, you can not go wrong with Kathleen E. Woodiwiss.

Bakers Dozen 9

The Flame and the Flower by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss

This book was recommended to me years ago by Kristi when she found out that I was starting to get into romance novels.  In fact I remember her saying point blank, "If you love romance novels you have to read The Flame and the Flower and The Wolf and the Dove by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss."  So I remember going to Boarders and buying them right away and LOVING them.  Kathleen E. Woodiwiss is definitely the queen of historical romance.

This book is set in the 1800's in post revolutionary war America.  The story starts of with Heather, going with her abusive aunts brother to London to hopefully get a job at Lady Cabot's school for women.  But the man has other plans and tries to rape Heather.  Scared and frightened she runs from him after she accidental stabs him and comes across two men whom she thinks is a part of law enforcement but turns out they went out on their Captains orders to find a "pretty wench to spend the night with."  After spending a couple of nights with the Captain Brandon Birmingham she flees back to her aunt.  Unfortunately, Heather is with child and is forced to marry Brandon.  They set sail to America where the antagonist Louisa is and she finds out that the conniving women is Brandon's former fiance.

The drama builds into a wonderful crescendo, and you can not put the book down.  Seriously, every few months I find myself picking this book up and re-reading it from front to back cover repeatedly.  I would love to go on and on about how much I love this book but I have to be honest words just don't describe how awesome this book is.

Bakers Dozen 5

The Ghost by Danielle Steel

This novel has made my list because I think this was one of the first romance authors that I had ever read.  This happened during my search for different authors time of life after I had read my 30th V.C. Andrews book.  Now I'm not the biggest fan of Danielle Steel and I honestly can count on one hand how many of her books that I have read, but there was a couple that has stuck with me through the years and The Ghost is my ultimate favorite book by Steel.  I also believe this is one that kind of kick started my love for historical romances also (I should go back and read my other baker dozens because I feel I'm repeating myself, but as I've said this list is mostly about my firsts.)

This book to me was unique because I actually had two different story lines that ended up tying together.  The story starts off with Charlie, separated from his wife and going through a divorce, rents a house in New England.  In the house he feels the presence of another and finds out that it is the spirit of Sarah who lived and died (of old age) in the house.  He finds her diaries and starts to read them.  Her story starts in England, in the late 1700's, as a young wife of a aristocrat who is abusive and she suffered numerous miscarriages.  She flees to America and there meets and falls in love with a French noble man who was adopted by the Native Americans and became a liaison between the tribes and European settlers.  They fall in love and get married (by a Native American ceremony since she is still legally married to husband in England) and start a family.  Her story helps heal Charlie and helps him find love with a divorced women of a French celebrity who publicly shamed her by flaunting his mistress.  Sarah's story and journey help give Charlie and the women he is pursuing the strength that they need to accept their love for each other.

One of the strongest things that I remember about this story was the non-graphic love scenes.  They were written so that you know that the couple was being intimate but not so graphic that as a 15 year-old would have been exposed to too much.  I loved the tie of the two different love stories and it wasn't hard to follow. Steel wrote each time line clearly so I was never thrown off.

Even though this isn't one of the books that I constantly pick up (because it was borrowed) I still remember little details of this book and I read it over 10 years ago.  Crazy right?

Book Review: Knight of Darkness

Knight of Darkness by Kinley MacGregor

Well I finished another story, and I have to say, this was a very exciting book.  And I'm more than likely being bias because I adore anything that this author writes.  Kinley MacGregor is a pseudonym for Sherrilyn Kenyon.  MacGregor's books are historical.  The bulk of her books are centered in Great Britain.

Knight of Darkness is part of the Lords of Avalon series, which is MacGregor's take on Arthurian legends. The story takes place several centuries after the final battle that King Arthur had with his nephew Mordred.  The novel follows Varian duFey who is the son of an evil demon and Sir Lancelot.  Throughout the story he is in constant battle between good and evil within himself but also outside powers as well.  He rescues a young maiden Merewyn who was his mother's servant/prisoner.  The tale follows them through their quest to get away from Varian's mother and Morgen le Fey.  During the journey, Merewyn finds herself falling for the man Varian is but he refuses to allow himself to have any feelings for her.

This story is a beautiful blend of romance, historical ideas, fantasy, and action.  This is I believe the second book in the Lords of Avalon series, but there is no need to read them in order.  There's enough back history to follow along with the story but basically it is centered around the characters Merewyn and Varian and their conflicts.

In all of Kenyon/MacGregor's book there is a theme of a rough childhood, which Varian had.  You feel his pain and sorrow, but she has such a way of writing that it doesn't linger with you after you've finished a book.  It's enough to make you feel the emotion while you're reading but it doesn't weigh you down.  Plus she always finds away for her main characters to have a resolution even if the main issue that she's telling during the series isn't resolved.

In the end I loved this book.  But then anything that Sherrilyn Kenyon/Kinley MacGregor writes I suck it up like my favorite dessert.  Her Lords of Avalon series is different than what I have read before by any other author.  She made me become enthralled in the story/plot/and characters with her writing style.

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Rating:
5 out of 5

On Deck:
Slow Burn by Julie Garwood
Infinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Book Review: Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter By Seth Grahame-Smith

So I just finished This book and I have to be honest, I didn't think that this book was going to be good.  In fact, I thought that this was just a movie since I've been seeing previews for the movie, it wasn't until I was at my Dad's house that my Step-Mom was telling me that it was a really good book.  Now In all the years that I've known my step-mom I never heard her talk about the book the way she was talking about this one.  So I knew I had to give it a go.

The basis of the story starts off when young Abe found out that it was vampires that killed his mother, not sickness.  Because of that he grew a hatred towards the vampires and vows to hunt and kill every last one of them.  The story follows his life from childhood to his assasination.  The author ties in actual historical facts with the fiction of vampire mythology so seamlessly that you find yourself enthralled into the story and believe the tale.

While there is so many different vampire stories out there, this one finds a spot in the vampire genre that suits it.  The Author was able to bring in the facts of Abraham Lincoln's life into the book and weave a tail that was very captavating.  I had a hard time putting the book down once I started reading in and spent a lot of late nights (early mornings) reading this book.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is a different story than all of the vampires tales out there.  While the vampires in a sense are more traditional, they story itself is different.  It ties in historical facts with fiction that will keep you interested until the story is over.

Rating: 5 out of 5

On Deck:
Sweet Anger by Sandra Brown
Glass Houses By Stella Cameron
Elora's Caveman VOL. 4 (anthology)