Happy New Year's Eve

So do you have big plans for the evening? Me, not really; I'm planning to  hang out at home with my husband and kids.  We  have a bottle of champagne to pop open at midnight...though in all honesty we'll probably open it earlier...otherwise I'll be drinking it all by myself. o.O

...WINNERS.... CHRISTMAS EVE AT FRIDAY HARBOR .... WINNERS....!!!!!

Congratulations to Leagh , TerryF, Linda Henderson , and Harlie Reader!!! 

I hope you enjoy CHRISTMAS EVE AT FRIDAY HARBOR as much as I did.

Review: SWITCHBLADE GODDESS by Lucy A. Snyder

Jessie Shimmer #3 Sci-Fi
Del Rey

Picking right up where SHOTGUN SORCERESS ended, Jessie and Pal are off to save Cooper from the goddess Miko, who is still pissed that Jessie refused to join her. Jessie has her work cut out for her, as she and Pal are still healing from exhaustion and their injuries. Can they save Cooper ...and the world or will Miko triumph?

*****

Wow, what an awesome ride Lucy A. Snyder took me on with, SWITCHBLADE GODDESS, a twisted erotic tale that took Jessie to some very dark places, as we learned more about what made Miko tick, and watched Miko drag Jessie into some of those very spots. Jessie's only concern was to save Cooper, but in the process she had to face some very messed up crap.

If you read SHOTGUN SORCERESS (I hope you have, or a lot of this wouldn't make much sense) you will remember that Miko started screwing with Jessie, Cooper and the Warlock's minds, twisting their relationships into something dark and difficult to come to grips with. Well Miko did NOT let up at all. She continued to take Jessie on a distortedly erotic journey, throwing in plenty of horror, action, and finally some tender relief to bring the story to a satisfactory end.

I loved this latest installment to the Jessie Shimmer series and am absolutely thrilled to hear that there could be more to come!!!!

Rating: 4.5

Guest Post and Contest with author Donna Grant : New Years Resolutions

Bestselling author Donna Grant writes historical paranormal romances for St. Martin’s Press. She lives in Texas with her husband and two kids.

Towards the end of one year I always look to the next and think of things that I’d like to do. Some call them resolutions. I try not to since that usually means they don’t last more than a month.

So, I make goals. Sometimes its as simple as excising three times a week. I always slack off during the holidays, so I make this one of my top goals.

I also try to be realistic in my goal setting. I’d love to add getting to see more readers via conferences or book signings, but I know what my schedule is next year, and I’m barely going to have time for a family vacation. So, I know that one is pretty low on the list and will probably hold off until the next year.

Since I know I won’t be getting to readers in person as much as I want, I’ll make other ways to reach them. One is my Virtual Signings. This is when a reader buys the book and pays for postage from my website, the books are ordered, sent to me, and I sign them and get them sent out to the reader on release day.

I did my first Virtual Signing last year and it was a great success, and something I plan on continuing as long as readers want it.

Another of my goals for next year is taking more time for me. I always forget to schedule that into my time. lol. My hubby and kiddos often remind me of it, so I’m going to make it a priority for next year.

So, tell me what is/are your resolutions (goals) for the coming new year?

**I’ll be giving away an ebook copy of ECHOES OF MAGIC, the second in the Sisters of Magic trilogy to one lucky commenter!**

Here’s the blurb and cover for DANGEROUS MAGIC that just released!

.

Dangerous Magic

Never tempt magic…

With the darkness holding firmly onto his soul, Cade knows he’s destined for Hell. Men like him don’t perform the deeds he has, regardless if they came by order of the king, and not elude the darkness…

A loner, Cade takes what the land provides and vows to keep the two men he thought of as brothers alive from the great evil after them. He knows his time is short and the evil is looking for him, but there is just enough humanity left in him to aid his friends. When the flame-haired witch finds him, Cade is instantly spellbound by her beauty. He can either forget her – or give in to the reckless, impossible love that could destroy her…

ISBN-13: 978-1600883996

Ebook Only

Sisters of Magic #3

December 27, 2011 Rerelease

To learn more about the Sisters of Magic trilogy or my other series, see book trailers, and sign up for my newsletter please visit me at www.DonnaGrant.com.

Hugs,

D

Thank you so much for visiting us here on Rambling Reads today, and don't for get to comment for a chance to win!

Review: HOLD ME IF YOU CAN by Stephanie Rowe

SoulFire #3

Paranormal

Sourcebooks Casablanca

After spending more than a century held prisoner in the Den of Womanly Pursuits, Nigel Aquarian has found a sense of peace by sketching, but now it seems to be the one most dangerous pursuit he could follow. Whomever he draws is being pulled back into the Den. There is only one person who can help him, the delectable chocolatier, Natalie. 

 

After surviving a deadly deedub bite, Natalie Fleming has a new lease on life. But that doesn't mean she's going crazy and living it up. She refuses to lose control ever again, because the last time she lost control she nearly died. As she is readying her shop Scrumptious, for the reviewers of Michelin-O, the premier judges of fine foods, she realizes that she has lost her mojo. Her sensuous magic is not working AT ALL. Then she discovers that she is the newest attraction on the deedub tour as the only Sweet to have ever survived there bite, oh and to just top everything off, she finds out that she is being used as a vessel to receive the residual smut from Mari's dark magic, making Natalie turn into the one demon she most despises, a deedub.

Can Nigel convince Natalie that what she really needs to do is to let loose of a little of that control, to find release, and reopen her magic for herself and to help him rescue his fellow warriors from the Mari and the Den. 

 

*****

Stephanie Rowe takes us back to her slap-stick SoulFire world with her latest addition to the series, HOLD ME IF YOU CAN. I really enjoyed the humorous roller-coaster of a story she penned. There was enough action and adventure thrown in with the silly to keep the story moving. Not to mention the delicious sexual tension between Nigel and Natalie. I loved that while they really wanted to indulge, they held back. I know that most of it was because of Natalie's fears of losing control, but I think it helped to keep the story moving, to show that not everything can be answered by a romp in the sack...though it sure didn't hurt anything.

I look forward to visiting the SoulFire series again in the future, just to see how these guys are going t o continue to heal...and to see what else the Den of Womanly pursuits may hold. 

Rating: 3.5

SQUEEEEEEEE

I just received this:

in my mail box!!! I'm so excited, that as soon as I catch up my emails I'm going to find a place to hide in my house so that I can read this. ( I'm thinking my safest spot will be locked in my bathroom in the bathtub!)

Don't forget that I'm still running a contest to win a copy of CHRISTMAS EVE AT FRIDAY HARBOR, where we first meet Sam, the hero of RAINSHADOW ROAD.

*~*~*~*~*~*ho ho ho*~*~*~*~*

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a New Year filled with blessings and many many great reads!

Lookie what I just found!!!! I WANT :)

Set on the gritty streets of Baltimore, You Belong to Me kept readers “on the edges of their seats.” Now, Karen Rose returns to the world of Baltimore’s cops and prosecutors with a new tale of danger and desire…

 

A car crashes in front of rookie PI Paige Holden’s home. And suddenly, she finds one of her pro bono clients dying in her arms—from a gunshot wound. With her last breath, the woman whispers cryptic words into her ear and hands her a blood-smeared flash drive.

Five years ago, State’s Attorney Grayson Smith put a murderer behind bars. But when Paige Holden shares the flash drive with him, its contents cast doubts on the conviction—and lead him and Paige into a world of blackmail, dark secrets, and a decades-long string of murders. An investigation they’ll survive only by trusting each other—and the truth.

Karen Rose is one of my favorite authors, so I'm thrilled she has something new coming out...just sucks that we have to wait until June. :(

A chance to win a copy of Lisa Kleypas's CHRISTMAS EVE AT FRIDAY HARBOR

Entrusted with the guardianship of his orphaned niece Holly, Mark Nolan plans to marry his longtime girlfriend Shelby. But an unwelcome and tantalizing distraction appears in the form of Maggie Conroy, a young widow who has recently opened a toy shop at Friday Harbor. Mark is a cynic and a realist, but Maggie is a dreamer who hopes to make him believe in magic . . .

I've got 4 copies of CHRISTMAS EVE AT FRIDAY HARBOR that I'm offering up for grabs!!!!! 

We'll keep it easy...just comment to win, and I'll pick 4 winners.

(due to my limited funds, I can only offer this to US residents)

Easy Christmas junk food!!!! *~*~WHITE CHOCOLATE POPCORN~*~*

This is soooo good, and so easy to mix...and put it in the right packaging and you have a cute delicious gift.

WHITE CHOCOLATE POPCORN

• 2 squares almond bark or white chocolate
• 1 tsp oil
• 2 bags microwave popcorn OR 8 cups air popped popcorn
• sprinkles for color

Slowly melt the almond bark and oil, either in a double boiler or in the microwave, be careful not to burn. Coat the popcorn and add sprinkles.  Lay out until chocolate has hardend.

There is never any left-overs around...as a matter of fact if you see it, you better eat it then, because it won't be there when you come back. :-)

Get it while it's HOT HOT HOT!!!!!!

 

Amazon / nook / Sony / kobo 

If you haven't yet ventured into Lisa Renee Jones's Zodius series NOW is the time to start!  For a very limited time (December 20 - January 3rd) you can get the first book, THE LEGEND OF MICHAEL for only $1.99. 

Review: DAYBREAK by Ellen Connor

Dark Age Dawning #3
Post-Apocalyptic / Sci-Fi / Paranormal / Romance
Berkley Sensation

Penelope “Pen” Sheehan was determined to stop General O'Malley and his followers from their tyrannical rule. When her latest mission is thwarted, she is startled by the realization that she knows her “rescuer”.

Tru Daugherty is a loner whose only goal is to disrupt O'Malley as much as possible. He takes pleasure when he can with no strings attached, and he is not above using a little hero worship as he trolls for gratification.

Pen and Tru survived the beginning of the new dark ages together with the guidance of Jenna and Mason who did their best to raise and protect them, until Tru decided it was time to strike out on his own. It's been years since they've seen one another, yet they both remember the connection they shared as kids.

In the years since they've last met, much has changed. Tru learned to embrace skinwalking in his lion form, and he loved and lost big. Pen is determined to ignore her powers, afraid that if she embraces them she may lose her mind. Both are leery of any attachment, scared of the pain caused by a loss, yet Pen takes the fear of commitment to a higher level, while Tru recognizes that love is not something to be wasted.

*****

I LOVE this series, so it should come to no great surprise that I was thrilled with Pen and Tru's story. Their intense chemistry, along with the energetic plot kept me turning the pages. I enjoyed their banter and their struggles as they learned that each other was a strong person with their own life goals. And their passions sizzled up the pages as they couldn't deny what their bodies wanted.


I love how I was able to not only be sucked into Pen and Tru's storyline, but I also connected with the other characters, who were all well fleshed-out. I liked meeting Finn and his island. It was cool to see that Pen's “imaginary” childhood friend was an actual person, one who could help change their new world with some nudges in the correct direction.

I would love to see Jenna, Mason, Chris, Rosa, Pen and Tru all able to meet up. I was concerned by a few comments Pen made as to Jenna and Mason's safety-- a few times she seemed to allude to them not surviving, yet in other places she talked about wanting to be closer to them, so I was a bit confused. I loved this series so much that I really hope that the writing team that makes up Ellen Connor (Ann Aguirre and Carrie Lofty) decides to continue in this world.

Rating: 4.5

More Christmas yummies ~*~*Magic Cookie Bars*~*~

These are soooo easy to make...and so delicious!

MAGIC COOKIE BARS

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 pkg chocolate chips*
• 1 cup flaked cocunt
• 1 cup nuts

Mix graham cracker crumbs and sugar. Melt butter in 9x13 inch pan. Press crumb mix into pan to form a crust. Top with remaining ingredients; pat down. Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes. Cool before cutting...or you'll have an ooey-gooey mess!

*I've substituted Heath bar chips before and it was awesome...so really any sort will work, play with the recipe and see what is your favorite variation!

Christmas Goodies...the edible kind *~*Hawaiian Kielbasa*~*

With Christmas fast approaching I thought I would share some of my favorite recipes for the holiday gatherings! Since I'm a bookworm and am always babbling about what I've read, this first recipe is the only thing I've ever written that has been published! :)  I submitted it to Gooseberry Patch a few years ago, and they published it in their 101 Slow-Cooker Recipes

HAWAIIAN KIELBASA

• 3 packages (3 lbs) kielbasa, sliced into 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices (which ever you prefer...I usually cut them a bit on the smaller side)
• 1 can (15.25oz) crushed pineapple
• 18 oz bottle barbeque sauce (I prefer Sweet Baby Ray's)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1 Tbs. ground ginger
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder 

 Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Mix well, cover and cook on high for about 2 hours, or until warmed all the way through.

This is my go-to dish to take to any potluck.  I usually don't bring anything home...and am always sharing the recipe, because so many people ask for it. 

The Friday 56 ...something fun...

 My husband's book was sitting closest to me. :)

"Everyone clapped and gave me a send-off."

from SEAL TEAM SIX Memoirs of an Elite Navy Seal Sniper by Howard E Wasdin and Stephen Templin.

ABOUT THE FRIDAY 56

• Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
• Turn to page 56.
• Find the fifth sentence.
• Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog...or in the comment section here if you don't have a blog
• Post a link, along with your post back to this blog.
• Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

I got this from  Shiloh Walker's blog today. :)

Review: TO WED A WILD LORD by Sabrina Jeffries

Hellions of Halstead Hall #4 Historical Romance (Regency)
Pocket Books

Lord Gabriel Sharpe, a/k/a the Angel of Death, is known for his reckless attitude. Infamous for having caused the death of his best friend while “threading the needle” Gabe has learned to show the world a devil-may-care attitude, little do they know how wrong they really are.

Virginia Waverly detest Gabe, blaming him solely for the death of her brother. She challenges him to a race. But is unprepared for his rejoinder. 

In an effort to convince his grandmother to give up on her ridiculous ultimatum to him and his siblings, he is determined to marry the delectable Virginia, though first he must prove that he's not as detestable as she believes. How can she love the man responsible for her brother's fatal accident?

*****

Sabrina Jeffries has once again entranced me into the Hellions of Halstead Hall's storyline. I think that Gabe has been my favorite sibling so far...though there is some real potential for Celia and Pinter! I loved the verbal play between Virginia and Gabe, as the sparks flew between them, leading to much steamier emotions, as they fell in love with each other.

Gabe was so sweet, he's lived these last years mourning his friend, and thinks that he's found a perfect way to honor him, and to save his own sister. He feels responsible for Virginia, and as he gets to know her, he knows that she is the one for him. I also like how how he didn't want his sister Celia to be forced into a marriage like him and his siblings...even if they all ended well. 

Virginia has a harder shell to crack. She has hated Gabe for years, she wasn't going to just forget her past feelings. I like how hard Gabe worked to win her and her Grandfather over. And I liked her stubbornness, I felt that she got a bit ridiculous with her challenging, but it flowed with her character.

There were also some great side-story lines going on. The romance between Hetty Plumbtree and the Genreal was amusing. And I like that we were brought closer to finding the answer to Oliver, Jared, Minerva, Gab and Celia's parents' murder. I can't wait to see how Celia and Pinter unravel the rest of that mystery and fall in love with each other. Seeing Celia fight her emotions should be fun, I wonder how long she will hold up against Pinter? I'm sure he will have some surprising things up his sleeve.

Rating: 4

Review: THE NORSE KING'S DAUGHTER by Sandra Hill

Viking I #10
Historical (Viking)
Avon, an imprint of Harper Collins

Sidroc Guntersson almost wooed Princess Drifa into marrying him 5 years ago. When Drifa learned his motive to court her, she let her temper get a hold of her and (accidentally) nearly killed him. Sidroc never forgave her for her actions. 
When they meet again in Byzantium, Drifa finds herself in danger, yet when she sees her guard, she knows that she is not exactly safe, for what will Sidroc demand in return for his protection.

*****

THE NORSE KING'S DAUGHTER was one of my favorite Sandra Hill books. She successfully weaved comedy and drama without missing a beat or making the story stumble.

Sidroc and Drifa both had good reason to be upset with one another, and Ms. Hill made me root for both of them. Having knowledge of Sidroc's background with his despicable father made it easy for me to understand him and his motives. He had good reason (or so he thought) to hate Drifa. Yet he couldn't deny the passion and chemistry that sparked between them.

Drifa tried to explain and apologize, for her actions (which I didn't feel to be at all out of line--she didn't mean to almost kill him. o.O) but of course, it's never that easy. I was pleased that their angst didn't go to the extent that the turn around from hating each other to loving each other wasn't so far out of the realm of believability. And I especially loved how the story played out in the end because it was such an “awww that's so sweet” moment.

Ms. Hill is one of my favorite authors to read and reread, and I will be rereading THE NORSE KING'S DAUGHTER. If you are looking for a laugh, along with some somber moments to get to the happily ever after, this is not to be missed.

Rating: 5

Getting into Christmas

I'm trying to get into the spirit of the holiday, but it's just not hitting me.  I hoped putting the tree and decorations up would help.