Book Review: Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacey

 Shannon Stacey- Exclusively Yours (Kowalski Family #1)

 Format- ebook

 Source- Review copy

 Publisher- Netgalley/ Harlequin

Synopsis: When Keri Daniels’ editor finds out she has previous carnal knowledge of reclusive bestselling author Joe Kowalski, she gives Keri a choice: get an interview or get a new job.

Joe’s never forgotten the first girl to break his heart, so he’s intrigued to hear Keri’s back in town—and looking for him. Despite his intense need for privacy, he’ll grant Keri an interview if it means a chance to finish what they started in high school.

He proposes an outrageous plan—for every day she survives with his family on their annual camping and four-wheeling trip, Keri can ask one question. Keri agrees; she’s worked too hard to walk away from her career.

But the chemistry between them is still as potent as the bug spray, Joe’s sister is out to avenge his broken heart and Keri hasn’t ridden an ATV since she was ten. Who knew a little blackmail, a whole lot of family and some sizzling romantic interludes could make Keri reconsider the old dream of Keri and Joe 2gether 4ever

Review:  What I love about Shannon Stacey romance novels is that she has a great way of putting two people with fantastic chemistry in situations that are highly unlikely and realistic and make it seem like the most natural thing in the world. I mean, who would go away on a two-week vacation with their ex-high-school-sweetheart’s whole family just to write an article?? But, it somehow worked.

Keri is determined to write an eye-grabbing piece for her stubborn editor who has wanted the dirt on author, Joe Kowalski for a long time. When she discovers Keri and Joe’s history, Keri must put their adolescent relationship behind her, swallow her pride and ask Joe for his help. Joe agrees to an interview on one condition… she must come along to the family camping spot for two weeks.

Joe plans to make Keri fall back in love with him so they can resume their ‘happily ever after’ and Keri is determined to finish the article and return to her city lifestyle, leaving Joe behind, again. Sharing a cabin, copping flack from Joe’s twin sister (Keri’s ex-best friend) and putting up with the Kowalski family antics does not make the time pass quickly for Keri. They both have undeniable chemistry and I enjoy seeing them both squirm, wanting to be together but afraid of what the consequences may be.

I’ve previously read Yours To Keep, #3 in the Kowalski family saga and so it was nice to start at the beginning. Shannon Stacey has remarkable skill in observing people, relationships and family and it shows in her writing. There are plenty of sub-plots with Joe’s siblings and they are all interwoven so it feels like you are following a story of a whole family, not just Joe and Keri.

A really enjoyable romance read, starring a smart, confident female protagonist.

5/5 rating

Purchase book @

Amazon/ Book Depository/ Fishpond

More titles by Shannon Stacey:

Indie Author Corner: Meet SR Johannes + GIVEAWAY

The Indie Author Corner, is a tool to help independently published authors promote their writing by introducing themselves and their books on my blog. If you are an indie author and would like to be included as a book feature please read this sign-up post.

Meet SR Johannes

S.R. Johannes is the author of Untraceable (a teen wilderness thriller) and On The Bright Side ( a tween paranormal). She lives in Atlanta Georgia with her dog, British-accented husband, and the huge imaginations of their little prince and princess, which she hopes- someday- will change the world. After earning an MBA and working in corporate america, S.R. Johannes traded in her expensive suits, high heels, and corporate lingo for a family, flip-flops, and her love of writing.

@ Goodreads 

@ Author blog

@ Twitter

@ Facebook

About the book:

 Title: On the Bright Side

Genre: Humour/ Tween/ Paranormal

Publisher: Coleman & Stott

Synopsis: Gabby is a disgruntled tween angel who has just been assigned to protect her school nemesis and ex-beffie. Problem is her ex-beffie is dating Gabby’s longtime crush. Instead of protecting Angela, Gabby pranks her (since when is sticking toilet paper to her shoe or spinach in her teeth a sin?) Soon, Gabby gets out of control and is put on probation by her SKYAgent, who has anger management issues of his own. Determined to right her wrongs, Gabby steals an ancient artifact that allows her to return to Earth for just one day. Without knowing, she kicks off a series of events and learns what can happen when you hate someone to death.

Purchase @ Amazon

See reviews @ Goodreads

Giveaway

The author has kindly offered ONE ebook copy (winner’s choice of mobi, epub or PDF) of On the Bright Side to a follower of The Australian Bookshelf.

This is an international giveaway.

To enter, simply leave a comment at the end of this post with your email address. You must be a follower of The Australian Bookshelf to enter.

Entries close Tuesday 28th February, 2012 (Syd time). Winner will be drawn via random.org and your email details will be forwarded to the author.

Aussie Book Review: The Trader’s Wife by Anna Jacobs

 Anna Jacobs- The Trader’s Wife

 Format- Paperback

 Source- Review copy

 Publisher- Hodder & Stoughton (Hachette)

 Synopsis: Singapore in the 1860s is exotic and yet terrifying for a penniless Englishwoman, alone and vulnerable after her mother’s death. Too pretty to obtain a governess’s job, Isabella Saunders accepts an offer from a Singapore merchant to teach him English and live with his family.
Two years later Bram Deagan arrives in Singapore, determined to make his fortune as a trader. Mr Lee sees a way to expand his business connections and persuades Isabella to marry Bram.
Bravely, she sets sail for a new land and life. But the past casts a long shadow and together they face unexpected dangers. Will they find a way to achieve their dreams of a successful trading business?

 Review: The Trader’s Wife is the first book of the Trader Series which is a spinoff of the Swan River Series. I recently read Farewell to Lancashire and Beyond the Sunset in that series. Unfortunately I haven’t yet read Destiny’s Path and it seems a romantic connection that would be examined in the final book in the Swan River Series is touched on in the Trader’s Series (so kind of spoiled it a bit for me!). But that doesn’t matter I will still read Destiny’s Path shortly and enjoy finding out how the couple came to be.

Penniless and homeless in Singapore, Englishwoman Isabella Saunders takes a live-in job with Mr Lee and his family to help teach him English and therefore better his business transactions. Her living arrangements cause speculation about her reputation and when someone attempts to kidnap Isabella, she realises after two years with the family it is time for her to move on and leave Singapore.

Irishman, Bram Deagon arrives on the shore of Singapore after a voyage from Australia with the aim to make trade partnerships and purchase materials to take back to WA with the hope of opening his own Bazaar. Bram comes across the stunning red head Isabella and rescues her from the kidnappers. Mr Lee is very impressed by this young man and comes to the conclusion that he should marry Isabella and return to Australia with him. It is a marriage of practicalities albeit the underlying attraction between Isabella and Bram. Reluctant to marry someone she hardly knows, Isabella does agree in the hopes of finding her long lost cousin Alice, who is believed to have gone to Australia.

This arranged marriage blossoms beautifully and it turns out they are matched well for far more than business practicalities. Like many of Jacobs’ books there are many characters and various sub-plots which all seem to overlap at some stage and makes for interesting dramas. Despite the vast number of characters, they are all well developed and unique which is a credit to the author.

What I especially like about Anna Jacobs’ books is that she works with strong protagonists who are smart and determined and make the most of the societal limitations of the times (1860’s). It seems I would recommend any of Anna Jacob’s novels that I have read so far because I have found them so enjoyable.

4/5 rating

Purchase book @

Fishpond/ Amazon/ Book Depository

About the author: Anna Jacobs grew up in Lancashire and emigrated to Australia, but still visits the UK regularly to see her family and do research, something she loves. Her novel Pride of Lancashire won the Australian Romantic Book of the Year Award in 2006.

This book was read as part of the these three challenges:

In My Mailbox #30

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.

Here, i share the books i received in the mail for review, or books i bought or won

Just click on the covers to go to the Goodreads blurb about each title.

For review: 

This title has been compared to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night- Time which I really enjoyed, so fingers crossed this one is just as fun. It turned up on my doorstep with a personified postcard from the publicist which i thought was pretty cool. It’s released on February 28th, so hopefully i will have read and reviewed it within a week or two of the release date

Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend by Matthew Green

Swaps

Braiden @ Book Probe Reviews, kindly offloaded a bunch of pre-loved books which I very happily accepted Divergent has been on my TBR list since I first picked up The Hunger Games and discovered the world of dystopia.

What books arrived in your mailbox this week?

Book Review: Everneath by Brodi Ashton

 Brodi Ashton- Everneath

 Format- Paperback

 Source- Review copy

Publisher- Simon & Schuster

Synopsis: Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she’s returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld… this time forever.
She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can’t find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.
Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there’s a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he’ll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen.
As Nikki’s time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she’s forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole’s…

Review: Nikki is released from the grasps from the Everneath, but she only has six months to say goodbye to her family and friends, again. After one hundred years of longing for her ex-boyfriend Jack, when she returns home and to school, she realises there isn’t much she can say that would explain her sudden disappearance six months prior. Cole is always hanging around reminding her that she must return to the Everneath, but as she begins to live her life again she realises that she doesn’t want to go back and must find a loophole to keep her from being sucked dry of all her energy for another century.

When I first picked up this book and started to read it, I thought it was going to resemble The Goddess Test, another YA paranormal book that examines the Persephone/ Hades mythology. But it seemed Everneath was kind of starting from the other end of the story- where Nikki has just been spat out by the Everneath after 100 years (or 6 months human time) of being fed off by Everliving, Cole. He convinced her to go under with him 6 months prior at a time when Nikki felt she had nothing to live for. He promised to take away the pain that tore through her following the death of her mother and then the perceived betrayal of her boyfriend Jack. Only, Cole wasn’t counting on Nikki having any remaining ties to the human world, let alone Jack.

I think if I hadn’t read The Goddess Test, Everneath would seem like a unique read, but for me there wasn’t anything specific that stood out for me about this story. Nikki is a grief-stricken teen who is quite flat on the pages for most of the story with feigned helplessness and low self-esteem. I was frustrated with her that it took so long for her to open up to Jack. He was so patient with her, having known how tough it is to break down her defences. In the second half of the book, the characters seem to come alive and there’s a fighting spirit in Nikki that made her more likeable.

I had mixed feelings about the ending, somewhat disappointed for the outcome for Jack and Nikki, but also felt a little hopeful too. I didn’t love this book, but I didn’t dislike it either and I am interested to see what happens next when the sequel is released.

3/5 rating

Purchase book @

Fishpond/ Amazon/ Book Depository UK

Aussie Book Review: Beyond the Sunset by Anna Jacobs

Anna Jacobs- Beyond the Sunset (#2, Swan River Colony series)

Format- Paperback

Source- Self-purchase

Synopsis: In the untamed outback of Western Australia, the Blake sisters are together again despite what seemed like unsurmountable odds.For Cassandra – reunited again with the man she loves – the Swan River Colony is a refuge that seems like a miracle after her ordeals. And two of her sisters have fallen in love with their new way of life. But then a messenger arrives from faraway England, and it is the fourth sister, Pandora, who jumps at the chance to make her way back to the Lancashire moors that she misses so badly.The way home, though, will be even harder than the voyage to Australia. The only ship that can take her and her new protector back to England lies many days’ journey away, across country that would daunt even a hardened explorer.And when she reaches Outham, a devious, dangerous enemy will do anything to prevent her from taking charge of her family’s inheritance …

Review: The second instalment in the Swan River saga, Beyond the Sunset delves further into the life of Pandora Blake, the youngest sister who has terrible homesickness in Australia and longs to return toLancashire,England. After the sisters were driven out of their town and home country by their evil aunt, Pandora fears she could never return. Until, handsome young Zachary Blake arrives with big news- their aunt has died and their uncle left them a small but comfortable inheritance.

Zachary has travelled the long voyage by ship toAustraliaat the request of the sisters’ lawyer to fetch them and bring them back toLancashire to claim their inheritance. Along the way, Zachary has befriended unintelligent, but harmless Leo who he saved from an abusive employer and has travelled with him to the Swan River colony where they hope to find the sisters.

Pandora makes the bold choice to return to England with Zachary, and leaves her three sisters behind. Cassandra, who was the protagonist in Farewell to Lancashire, is expecting child and trying to establish a home with her new husband, Reece.

Pandora has a rocky start to her journey to Albany where she will board the ship to England; she falls ill and is concerned they will miss the ship. Zachary is very gentle, kind and protective of Pandora who he quickly falls in love with. He is very rigid with his morals and feels he could never court or offer marriage to Pandora now that she is considered ‘wealthy.’ Pandora also falls for Zachary but has to convince him that her feelings are true.

I thought Beyond the Sunset started a little slow, but I did like to read what was happening with Cassandra as I had become fond of her from the first novel. Pandora was a strong-willed and passionate young woman and very likeable. She’s pretty and smart and wants to marry someone who appreciates her brains as well as her looks.

There are a lot of characters in this series, which could easily lead you astray, but surprisingly it just made me enjoy the story even more. Plenty of sub-plots and interesting characters that reside in Lancashire and the swan river colony which for me, made it feel like I could envision both communities quite vividly. I could almost imagine walking down the main street in Outham, Lancashire as well as striding across the Southerhams property to Reece and Cassandra’s abode.

Very enjoyable series, I have ordered (and just received!) the third and final book, Destiny’s Path to read very soon.

4/5 rating

Purchase book @

Fishpond/ Amazon/ Book Depository

About the author: Anna Jacobs grew up in Lancashire and emigrated to Australia, but still visits the UK regularly to see her family and do research, something she loves. Her novel Pride of Lancashire won the Australian Romantic Book of the Year Award in 2006.

This book was read as part of the these two 2012 challenges:

Feature & Follow Friday #28 and book release: Intuition

Firstly, I want to share a sneak peak of my brand new book, Intuition, Book One of the Elite Series. It is due for release on March 1st, 2012 with a book release party on March 23rd!

 Olive Morgan is not your typical psychologist. She can also access the memories of anyone she comes into contact with. After an explosion in a Sydney shopping mall, Olive is enlisted alongside a team of ‘Elite’ consultants. She joins Canan Jones who can attune to the emotions of other people, including Olive. Initially, she distrusts the agency, but when another explosion threatens more lives Olive has no choice but to use her skill to prevent another disaster.
Is terrorism really at play or is the agency hiding the real reason behind these attacks?
Olive wants to solve the case, but her personal life is suffering. Despite having a boyfriend, she feels a connection brewing with Canan, who has an uncanny way of making her feel calm when life becomes overwhelming…
Intuition is a tale of supernatural suspense and the first book in the Elite Series.

Add Intuition to your TBR list at Goodreads

It will be available as an ebook for $2.99 from Amazon, Barnes n’ Noble and iBookstore! Paperbacks available from April 2012.

Feature and Follow Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read

Q: BeefcakeandBabes Asks: I like unique names for characters and am looking forward to coming up with some when I start writing. What’s the most unique character name you’ve come across?

I’d probably have to say Katniss from the Hunger Games!

I like experimenting with unusual names in my writing too. I loved the name Makenna which I used for my protagonist in A Season of Transformation and Olive which I have used in Intuition.

What has been the most unusual name you have come across in stories??

* * *

This week @ The Australian Bookshelf

Post- On Writing: Ideas, Identity and the Inner Critic (@ my author page)

Book Review: Fated by Sarah Alderson

Book Review: Pure by Julianna Baggot (4/5)

Free Valentine’s Day Romance reads

What was In My Mailbox this week?

Indie Book Review: Bitten by Dan O’Brien (3.5/5)

Indie Author Corner: Meet Tom Jackson+ GIVEAWAY (international) of Devil’s Legacy

Please feel free to leave a comment with a link to your blog.  If you click the facebook and twitter links to follow me, I will follow you back!

Giveaway Winner for Dan O’Brien’s novel

Thank you to everyone who entered the ebook giveaway to win one of four Dan O’Brien titles

The winner is: Nadine

The winner was drawn via random.org and will be contacted by the author shortly.

Book Review: Pure by Julianna Baggott

Julianna Baggott- Pure

Format- Paperback

Publisher- Hachette

Source- Review copy

Synopsis: We know you are here, our brothers and sisters . . .
Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run.
Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . .
There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it’s his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her.
When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.

Review: Pure is a rather bleak YA dystopian novel. There are two living communities- the wretches who are disfigured as the result of the detonation and the pure who live inside a controlled society called the dome.

Pressia is a wretch; she has a doll head fused to her wrist in place of a hand from the detonation. She is nearing the day of her sixteenth birthday when the OSR, the army will take her away and she will likely disappear. With only her grandfather to protect her, she escapes on her sixteenth birthday and stumbles across Partridge, a pure who has escaped the dome and is in search of his mother who he believes is alive.

She saves his life and takes him to see Bradwell, an eighteen year old who is known as ‘the dead’ as he is yet to be captured by the OSR and he runs an underground group of escapees. Bradwell has a soft spot for Pressia and when she is captured trying to help Partridge, he enlists the pure to help him find her. In the meantime they begin to uncover the truth about Partridge’s mother, his family and the connection with Pressia. Pressia has an endearing innocent quality to her and sees the light in the darkness; she is optimistic and ignites hope in the pessimistic Bradwell.

There are minor characters such asEl Capitanand Lyda and the author shares their perspective intermittently, I suspect they will play a larger role in the sequel. It started out slow but the world-building is essential to the story.

Baggott has created a vivid setting and as a reader I could easily envision the ash sky, the hazy air and the disfigured characters in this unique world. It is a stark contrast to the ‘pure’ realm with inhabitants who have clear air, clear skin and clear paths to follow in life. I believe Pure is being made into a movie and I am really intrigued to see how this would play out.

4/5 rating

Purchase book @

Fishpond/ Amazon/ Book Depository

Indie Author Corner: Meet Tom Jackson + GIVEAWAY

The Indie Author Corner, is a tool to help independently published authors promote their writing by introducing themselves and their books on my blog. If you are an indie author and would like to be included as a book feature please read this sign-up post.

Meet Tom Jackson

Tom Jackson hails from cold and wet Manchester, England and was with a British bank for over 30 years. He moved to Greece in 1977, met his wife (who is Greek and an artist) and decided to remain in Homer’s land of sun and sea. He has a daughter, Natalie, who is a lawyer, and the inspiration behind the protagonist in his debut novel, ‘The Devil’s Legacy’.

Tom maintains his close links to the Greek shipping community, posts occasional articles on financial and shipping related matters, is enjoying his new Kindle, has started to cultivate roses, and is an avid Manchester United supporter.

@ Goodreads  

About the book:

 Title: Devil’s Legacy

Genre: Mystery/ Adventure/ Crime

Synopsis: The opening of Pandora’s Box creates pandemonium in the office of the British Prime Minister. A team is assembled to solve a two hundred year old conspiracy in order to prevent the Box’s incredible secrets from being revealed to the world and plunging British society into chaos. Will the search for truth be successful? And will it result in the restoration of a country’s stolen heritage?

What is the bizarre umbilical cord that links the 200-year old theft of the Parthenon Marbles to the Turkish Governor of Athens, Jack the Ripper, Winston Churchill, the Titanic, Napoleon Bonaparte, the British Royal family, an obscure nineteenth century Italian artist and a Koala bear?

The British government’s decision to return the Parthenon Marbles to Greece triggers the opening of Pandora’s Box, covertly held for over 100 years in the vaults of the British Museum. And thus the first appalling secret is revealed–the Parthenon Marbles are counterfeit.

A team comprising archaeological experts and secret service agents is assembled under the leadership of a young female lawyer and Parthenon expert. The team’s mission is to find the real Marbles, and ensure their return to Greece within a six-month deadline.

Success must be achieved against an intensifying background of treason, competition from an American billionaire collector, and the intervention of the Greek mafia.

Failure would threaten the very fabric of British society.

The clock is ticking!

Purchase @ Amazon

See reviews @ Goodreads

Giveaway

The author has kindly offered ONE ebook copy (winner’s choice of mobi, epub or PDF) of Devil’s Legacy to a follower of The Australian Bookshelf.

This is an international giveaway.

To enter, simply leave a comment at the end of this post with your email address. You must be a follower of The Australian Bookshelf to enter.

Entries close Tuesday 21st February, 2012 (Syd time). Winner will be drawn via random.org and your email details will be forwarded to the author.