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Title:  A Risk Worth Taking Author: Victoria James

May Contain Spoilers

From Amazon:

Review:

This book had me invested in Holly’s life by the end of the first chapter.  It was heart-breaking.  It’s her big day at work, and she has worked the last ten years for this moment.  Her wardrobe was carefully picked out, and she is glowing with happiness. She is finally going to be made a partner at the prestigious design firm where she’s employed when she gets the call that makes her realize how pointless her achievement really is.  Her sister and brother-in-law have been killed in an accident, and now she’s left reeling, the guardian of her infant niece.  How can she raise a child alone?  How will she recover from yet another loss?  Everyone she has loved has died – her parents,  the grandparents who raised her and her sister, and now her sister’s gone, too.  It’s just too much, and Holly is devastated.

Returning to her rural hometown to renovate and then flip her grandparents’ house, she is confronted with painful memories of her past.  She has loved Quinn for a lifetime, but he rejected her when she was eighteen.  Now she has to put on a brave front and face him, and all of her childhood memories.  All she wants to do is get the house finished and get out of town, and back to her life in the city where she’s so busy she doesn’t have time to dwell on the emptiness of her life.

I enjoyed A Risk Worth Taking very much.  I loved the interactions between Holly and Quinn, and even enjoyed Emma, Holly’s little niece.  I usually am not a big fan of babies in romances, but Emma wasn’t just window-dressing here.  She was central to the storyline, and she helped both Holly and Quinn’s hearts to heal.  Despite her best efforts to not get caught up in her feelings for Quinn, which still burned bright, Holly’s resolve crumbled as he became an important addition to her new family.  And Quinn, though he didn’t feel worthy of Emma’s love or trust, was able to put his painful past behind him with the baby and Holly’s help. 

A Risk Worth Taking is a feel good read.  You’ll get caught up in Quinn and Holly’s romance, and cheer along as they both learn to trust again.   As Holly puts aside her sadness, she begins to remember all of the happiness she has turned her back on. As she remembers what is really important in life, she is willing to face the risks, and the rewards, of loving Quinn. 

Grade:  B+

Review copy provided by publisher

May Contain Spoilers

From Amazon:

Review:

I am a huge fan of superheroes, and when I saw that Entangled was publishing a series of novellas about super heroes, I had to read them. It was a little scary at first, because I was afraid I’d be disappointed, but Playing with Fire by Tamara Morgan is a fun, action-packed introduction to the Holding out for a Hero anthology series. I loved this story, and it even featured one of my favorite tropes – the second chance.  This read kept me entertained from the first page to the last, and I can hardly wait to read more of the anthology.

Fiona is a character I could immediately sympathize with.  She has the ability to hurl fire balls, but it comes at a steep price.  When her emotions get out of control, her powers do too.  She’s afraid of getting close to anyone because she is terrified of hurting them, and her last, failed attempt at intimacy ended disastrously, with her lover being badly burned.  To make this situation even worse, she didn’t even want the superhuman abilities to begin with.  Her manipulative boyfriend coerced her into it, and now she’s resigned herself to a sad and solitary life.

Into her life steps Ian, her childhood friend and the boy who broke her heart.  He was also responsible for her being bullied at school, so I did have a few issues warming up to him.  To be fair, Ian tried to rectify his past mistakes, but there were times when I felt that he didn’t do enough.  When it was his friend taunting Fiona, he quickly tried to put an end to the hurtful name calling, but when all Fiona wanted was for Ian to trust and believe her, he fell a little short.  In the end, he does gallantly redeem himself, but of the two of them, Fiona is obviously the more heroic. 

I enjoyed the world building, and am interested to see how other authors tackle a new world where superheroes , and super villains, could live next door. 

If you are looking for a fast-paced read with gobs of action, romance, and danger, look no further.  Playing with Fire was quickly gobbled up, followed by a “Please, sir, may I have some more?” plea from me.

Grade:  B+

Review copy provided by publisher

Amanda Usen is the author of Luscious, a sexy romp through Italy, featuring yummy food and star-crossed lovers.  Amanda dropped by the virtual offices for a chat about her book.  After the interview, enter for your chance to win a copy of Luscious!

[Manga Maniac Cafe] Describe yourself in 140 characters or less.

[Amanda Usen] Pastry chef, word geek, romance writer, mom of three, caffeine addict, hot chef lover – all at the same time, not necessarily in that order!

[Manga Maniac Cafe] Can you tell us a little about Luscious?

[Amanda Usen] Chef heroine Olivia Marconi is balanced on the knife-edge of a major meltdown. Her marriage is over. She hates her job. Her two best friends have fallen in love with each other. She wants to start over, but first she has to go to Italy and tell her parents she doesn’t want to run the family restaurant anymore. Sean Kindred rejected Olivia’s indecent proposal while she was still married, but now that she’s free, he’s determined to take her up on her offer. Wherever. Whenever. Italy would be perfect. Luscious is the story of star-crossed lovers searching for a new beginning while eating amazing food, drinking fantastic wine and making incredible love.

[Manga Maniac Cafe] How did you come up with the concept and the characters for the story?

[Amanda Usen] I was sitting in a doctor’s office editing the first draft of Scrumptious. When the doctor came in and learned I was a chef, he started telling me about his fabulous vacations at a cooking school in Italy. Villa Farfalla was born! A cooking school/spa/vineyard in Verona, Italy seemed like the perfect place for the next book. I knew Olivia, the restaurant owner from Scrumptious, would be the main character. Since she made a pass at her divorce lawyer and got shot down in the first book, it made sense that he would become her love interest in the second book. The storyline fell into place in my subconscious and was born, page by page, on the computer screen. There was a LOT of coffee involved in the writing of Luscious and more wine than I will ever admit.

[Manga Maniac Cafe] What three words best describe Olivia?

[Amanda Usen] Hungry for love!

[Manga Maniac Cafe] What are three ingredients Olivia would never, ever use?

[Amanda Usen] Strawberries, inferior quality olive oil, box wine

[Manga Maniac Cafe] What are three things that Sean would never have in his bedroom?

[Amanda Usen] Best question ever! It’s going to take me ages to answer because I keep mentally trying on items and giggling. Okay…deep breath… a television. No hero I write will ever spend his time in the bedroom watching TV. Mementos from other women; it’s always been Olivia for Sean. Pajamas. No explanation needed.

[Manga Maniac Cafe] What are your greatest creative influences?

[Amanda Usen] I belong to the Western New York Romance Writers and the Romance Writers of America. I’m constantly inspired by the hard work of my colleagues, and I’m grateful to the authors who write books that make me reach deeper and work harder to write my own stories. Food plays a big part in my books. I met my husband in culinary school, and he’s my own, personal, hot chef hero. He cooks, cleans and loves to play with our kids – now that is inspiring! I love to read t

May Contain Spoilers

From Amazon:

Review:

This is actually a story that needed more pages for me to be won over by the tragically flawed heroine.  The jumps in time and attitude near the end left me confused or wishing for more details as Brenna, coming to grips with all of the baggage she has lugged around since she was thirteen, attempts to cope with the guilt that overwhelms her.  The guilt has shaped her adult life, destroyed her relationship with her estranged father, and twisted her responsibilities for her younger brother.  I found Brenna an interesting character because she was such a mess, but I didn’t feel that her struggle to finally accept that she needed help and that she needed to learn to trust again, was adequately explored.  Instead, it was glossed over, which made her attempts to repair all of the damaged relationships in her life seem unconvincing.

Brenna fled from Boston six years ago, after her father’s mug shot was splashed on the front of every newspaper in town, chronicling his latest indiscretion.  When Luke, her wealthy boyfriend, was caught on the arm of another girl, Brenna had had enough.  No longer able to trust Luke, she packed her meager belongings and moved to Florida without giving him the opportunity to explain.  It’s only when her grandmother, who is suffering from dementia, requires more care than Brenna can provide, that she finds herself back in Boston, temporarily living with her great-aunt Tess.  Now with a dwindling bank account, she needs to find a job so she can provide for herself and her grandmother.

I loved the set up.  Luke has never gotten over Brenna, and he sees her reappearance in Boston as a second chance to win her back.  Hurt that she thought so poorly of him six years ago, he has come to realize that he wasn’t blameless in their breakup.  He didn’t make a great enough effort to explain, and when he finally did get over his anger and hurt, she shut him down when he did try to tell his side of the story.  While Luke was a bit too stalkerish for my liking, he was a really nice guy, and that’s what Brenna needed, even if she didn’t recognize it.  She needed nice.  She needed supportive.  She needed the patience of a saint to help her work though some of her hang-ups over relationships and trust and love.  Being Mr Fix It, that’s all Luke wanted to do. He wanted to shelter and protect her, but every instinct told Brenna to run before she was let down again.

Brenna is hard