Sunday 30 April 2017

Release Day Spotlight & Review: Aces Wild by Emmy Curtis



ACES WILD 
by Emmy Curtis 
(April 30, 2017; Forever Yours eBook; $4.99; Elite Ops series #1)



In the heat of the Nevada desert, the most elite military pilots in the world are about to engage in some friendly competition. Only this year, someone is changing all the rules...

RAF pilot Dexter Stone has been through his fair share of sticky situations. After living through a crash in enemy territory where no one expected him to walk away, the Red Flag training exercises should be a piece of cake-assuming he can keep his mind on the mission and not on the smart mouth of his gorgeous American competition.

As one of the few women in a sky full of hotshot flyboys, Maj. Eleanor Daniels has worked day and night to earn a coveted spot at Red Flag. And she's not about to let some cocky British bad boy distract her from winning. But when the games take a deadly turn, he may be her only hope for survival.




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My first Emmy Curtis novel doesn't disappoint in this fast paced romance.

RAF pilot Dexter 'Dex' Stone is in Las Vegas to take part in the Red Flag training exercise, a collaboration between air forces from NATO countries and other allied forces. It's a chance for him to prove he still has the skills that made him one of the best military pilots...or determine whether he still has a career in the RAF.

Major Eleanor Daniels has earned every single career accolade, but as the daughter of General Daniels, she constantly having to prove her worth as a top air force pilot. When she overhears a conversation her father has, it puts Eleanor on high alert with suspicions about the training exercise she's taking part in.

The timeline for the narrative is short, so the action comes fast and furious. The attraction between Dex and Eleanor is instant, neither not knowing who they are flirting with. In the adrenaline fuelled backdrop of Nellis Air Force Base it becomes apparent they are opponents in the training exercise but that doesn't deter the pair. When Eleanor becomes a target, Dex comes to her rescue, throwing them both into a life threatening situations.

The banter between the protagonists is playful and sexy. Whilst recurring talks of a beach wedding sound crazy between two people who have just met, it fits the mindset of people involved in dangerous careers...living in the moment. It's tongue-in-cheek and not serious but offers Dex and Eleanor a light, happy thought to hang onto as they fly in the Las Vegas desert. 
"Then maybe we need to go back to discussing our beach wedding?"

The author has written a suspenseful military romance which kept my attention for the duration of the novel. With an intriguing storyline, engaging protagonists and a fascinating cast of secondary characters I loved the contrast between the glamour of Las Vegas and the surrounding desert.  I was instantly drawn into this book from the very beginning and look forward to reading more from Ms Curtis soon.

***arc generously received courtesy of Forever Publisher via NetGalley***





ACES WILD by Emmy Curtis
Blog Excerpt
There was little that would keep them warm tonight, except each other’s body heat. Dex tried not to smile, reminding himself that they were stranded in the middle of a desert with little water.
Water. He bent to get the half bottle that was left. A small piece of rock jumped, blowing a tiny amount of dust in the air. He was moving before his brain had caught up with what he’d seen. He jumped at Eleanor, yanking her to the ground. “Sniper!” he yelled, even though she was underneath him.
Another sliver of rock exploded, close to his knee. “We’re pinned.” Adrenaline spiked through his blood.
“We’ve got company,” he said, moving his body fractionally so she could turn her head to see the truck steaming across the flat base of the valley. Dust spat up behind it like it was on fire.
“Can you reach the backpack?” she asked.
Nope. Not without being target practice. “Sure. Wait a moment.” He slid off her and crawled, flat-out like a crab, toward the bag. He hooked it in his elbow and made his way back. He knew he was a wide open target. But there was no shot. No chipped off rocks, and no dust.
“The sniper is not trying to kill us,” he said.
“Care to test that theory?” she asked rooting around in the backpack.
“Not really.”
“Okay, I will.” Before he could say anything, she sat up bag between her legs and looked at the truck coming toward them.
“Damn, do you have a death-wish?” Now he just felt like a complete tool, lying down, as if he were cowering from something she wasn’t scared of. He sat up and joined her.
“He’s pinning us down all right, but I think he’s just keeping us in place so that these guys can get us.” She pulled a Maglite from the bag they had taken.
“And that’s your weapon of choice?”
She turned and smiled at him. “Only for the sniper.”
Then he understood what she was doing. He pulled out his weapon and chambered a round. “It’s going to be tricky.”
“What have we got to lose?” She cocked an eyebrow.
“A beautiful wedding in Gretna Green?” he asked.
“What’s Gretna Green?” She took her weapon from her pocket and charged it.
“It’s where we are will be eloping to. A town in Scotland where you can get married without any ceremony, or registration. It’s like the Vegas of Europe.”
“What makes you think I want to elope? What makes you think I don’t want a huge dress, a huge cake, and eight attendants?”
“Well I’m certainly up for a huge cake.” He shrugged. “Whatever gets you to the altar.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Wait a minute, you don’t think we getting out of this alive, do you? You think we’re going to die here in the desert at the hands of these…whoever is trying to kill us, and you’ll never have to marry me. We’ll be dead, won’t we?”
“I’m hurt by your cynicism. And yes, maybe you’re right, but it’s got to say something that I’m at death’s door and the only woman I want to marry is you.” He tried not to smile.
“I’m the only woman here.” She reached over and shoved him.
A rock exploded at their feet. “Shit. Now you’re just trying to get me killed, so you don’t have to marry me.”


Emmy Curtis is an editor and a romance writer. An ex-pat Brit, she quells her homesickness with Cadbury Flakes and Fray Bentos pies. She's lived in London, Paris and New York, and has settled for the time being, in North Carolina. When not writing, Emmy loves to travel with her military husband and take long walks with their Lab. All things considered, her life is chock full of hoot, just a little bit of nanny. And if you get that reference...well, she already considers you kin.


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Release Day Spotlight: Riot Street by Tyler King



RIOT STREET 
by Tyler Kind
(April 30, 2017; Forever Yours eBook; $3.99)



Sometimes, getting in too deep is the only way to survive…
As darkly charismatic as he is unpredictable, Ethan Ash knows me better than I know myself.  He’s spent years unraveling the family scandal I’ve tried desperately to escape.  I once thought that made us adversaries.  Now he’s the closest ally I have left.  
Ethan’s both the chaos around me and the deep, calm center where I feel safe.  People warn me about him, tell me he’s dangerous.  Don’t fall for him.  But its too late.  Beacuase I can’t tell where my addiction ends…and his obsession begins.



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RIOT STREET by Tyler King
Excerpt:

“You awake?” Ethan shifts next to me in bed beneath the blankets. “Something wrong?”
“I’m fine. Go back to sleep.”
He rolls to his side, wrapping his arm around my waist. “Talk to me.”
“Really, it’s nothing. I’m just restless.”
“You’re safe with me.” His fingers slide under the hem of my tank top to lightly brush bare skin. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“No, I know. It isn’t that, I’m just…”
I don’t have the words to articulate it. Even if I could, I’m not sure it’d make sense.
“What can I do?” he asks, trying to understand.
Ethan needs a problem he can fix. Something with bolts and buttons. Something he can take apart, reassemble, or knock with a hammer. People aren’t as easy.
Instead, I kiss him. My lips against his, it isn’t a solution, but it makes me feel better. Wrapped in blankets, secluded in darkness, he overwhelms my senses. The taste of mint on his tongue, the clean, rich scent of his skin—they drive all other thoughts from my mind. I feel only his mouth, his tongue teasing mine, and his heart beating under my palm.
“Avery,” he hums against my lips. “Wait a minute.”
My fingers comb into his hair, tugging. I don’t want him to speak. To let words break the illusion. I just want him, everywhere, all at once and nothing else.
“Listen to me.” He breaks away. “I want you to hear this.”
Hand caressing the side of my face, he runs his thumb under my bottom lip until I settle.
“I mean it. Whenever you’re scared or hurting, I want you to feel safe with me. I want to be the person you talk to, not the one you hide from. Anything at all, or nothing, whatever it is that gets inside your head and makes you want to run, give it to me. I’ll take it away. I’ll bury it in the ground, and never let it hurt you again. I promise, Avery, with all my heart. You never have to be afraid of anything when you’re with me.”
The darkness turns liquid and my chest clenches.
“Why do you say things like that?” I barely whisper.
“Because they’re true. And because I love you.”


Tyler King was born and raised in Orlando, Florida and graduated from the University of Central Florida with a degree in Creative Writing. As a journalist, her work has appeared in Orlando magazine and Orlando Business Journal, among other publications. She is a proud army spouse currently living in Virginia with her husband.


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New Release Spotlight: LIVE OUT LOUD by Marie Meyer



LIVE OUT LOUD 
by Marie Meyer 
(April 30, 2017; Forever Yours eBook; $3.99)



I thought I'd live in silence forever . . . and then I met him.

I'll never be able to hear, but music has always been a source of comfort for me. Rather than listen to the rhythm, I can actually feel the beat pulsing through me. It's pure bliss. So the moment I saw Thorin playing his guitar, I was mesmerized. I'd never seen anything more beautiful . . . or intimate. I couldn't tell where his body ended and the song began. He's everything I need in my life . . . I'm falling fast, hard, and deep.

I want him more than anything. But while I live in silence, Thor lives in secrets. He's holding something back-something that's keeping this intensity, this longing from being real. And the silence may be too loud to bear . . .



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LIVE OUT LOUD by Marie Meyer

Excerpt: 
Shit, sweetheart, where’s the fire?
Hey, Red, hold up,” I say, trying to get her attention. I don’t want to startle her, but it’s no use, she can’t hear me over the noise of the club. If I don’t stop her now, she’ll leave and I won’t get her number. I drop my hand onto her shoulder and she goes rigid under my touch.
Smooth, Kline. Way to scare the poor girl.
Very slowly, she turns around, almost as if she’s expecting to see the Grim Reaper standing behind her. When our gazes meet, her shoulders relax and she lets out a deep breath. Up close, she’s even more beautiful. And Jesus…her eyes. When I caught her gaze for a few seconds on stage, I knew there was something special about her eyes; I just couldn’t see them clearly. Up close, they’re extraordinary. I’ve never seen eyes like hers before…the color of emerald sea glass. A long forgotten memory surfaces, one of my earliest…walking along the beach as a kid…with my dad…before everything went to hell.
I shake off the phantom thought and focus on the girl. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you. It’s just…I…” I stumble over my words like I’m a thirteen-year-old boy. What the hell’s my problem? She’s not the first chick you’ve ever talked to. Spit the damn words out, Thor. “I saw you while I was up on stage, and I was hoping to get your number, I’d really like to take you out sometime.”
There. I said it. Not hard.
She smiles widely and nods. Lifting her hands between us, I notice her fingers move. Graceful and deliberate hand motions. Is she using sign language?  
She can read your lips.”
I glance to my right. A tall girl with long, half black, half blond hair flanks her side. Pretty, but pales in comparison to her friend.
Read my lips?” I shake my head, not understanding. I point to the redheaded beauty and direct my question to her friend. “She’s deaf?”
There’s a tap on my shoulder and my eyes snap back to Red’s. Moving her hands again, she signs something, and I’m clueless. Her lips move, but she doesn’t speak. And apparently, I’m shit at lipreading. But at least her expression is playful. That’s a plus, right?
She lowers her arms and smiles. Damn, I love how the right side of her lips pulls up higher than the left.
I’ve never had to chase down a girl. For some reason, chicks dig guys in a band. They’ve always pursued me. But, the one time I see a girl so gorgeous, and take the time to run after her, she can’t even hear me.
I look at her friend. “What did she just say?”
Red’s friend folds her arms over her chest, wearing the same beatific smile she did when I stopped them. “She answered your question. Yes, she’s deaf. She also asked if you still want her number.”
I stare at the girl. With wild red curls framing her face and a mischievous smirk, she waits for my answer. Hell yeah, I do.

Marie Meyer is a teacher who spends her days in the classroom and her nights writing heartfelt romances. She is a proud mommy and enjoys helping her oldest daughter train for the Special Olympics, making up silly stories with her youngest daughter, and bingeing on weeks of DVR'd television with her husband.





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Friday 28 April 2017

The Friday 56: Hinged by Char Sharp




Rules:
*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your ereader (If you have to improvise, that's ok.)
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it)
*Post it.
* Head over to Frida's Voice to find more #Friday56




56% on Kindle from Hinged, Soul Mate Rescued #2 by Char Sharp.

Throw your clothes around my apartment all you want. Pile them on the bed while I'm sleeping in it. As long as I can crawl out from under the heap to get to the fridge, then crawl back under it to make love to you.”

From Goodreads:

She can’t remember him.

He’ll never forget her.

When Robin Finch is abducted and tortured by an evil cybercriminal, her salvation comes in an unlikely hero, Dr. Ramsey Gunn, trauma surgeon and computer genius. Developing amnesia after enduring her captor’s sadistic torture, Robin has no memory of her previous life. Dr. Gunn rescues Robin away from their captor and goes off the grid to keep her safe for years. But Dr. Ram Gunn may not be the savior he claims to be.

Upon his return from a mission, Navy SEAL Cooper Baron discovers his fiancée missing and presumed dead. Not believing she’s dead and hell-bent on discovering the truth about Robin’s disappearance, he will stop at nothing until she is back in his arms. Through the long years, searching for her in every woman’s face, he’s determined to locate the woman who haunts him. But finding Robin may put her in more danger than she’s ever faced before. Can Cooper’s love help her restore her memories without forcing her to confront the horrific reality of her abduction?

Once the reality is known, can their love survive the truth?