Sinful Scottish Laird by Julia London (thoughts)

Summary from Goodreads:

"Widowed and forced to remarry in three years' time or forfeit her son's inheritance, Daisy Bristol, Lady Chatwick, has plenty of suitors vying for her hand and her fortune. But a letter from a long-lost love sends Daisy and her young son to her Scottish Highland estate to buy time for his return. Along the way she encounters the powerful Cailean Mackenzie, laird of Arrandale and a notorious smuggler, and she is utterly and unwillingly bewitched.

Cailean has no use for any Sassenach in his glen. But Daisy's brazen, flirtatious nature and alluring beauty intrigue him. When her first love appears unexpectedly at her estate, Cailean knows that a passionate woman like Daisy cannot marry this man. And to prevent the union, Cailean must put his own life at risk to win her heart."

My Thoughts:

I am so glad that I picked this book up and finally gave this author a try!  I've got numerous books by Julia London on my TBR list but this is actually my first book by her.  It won't be my last though as I really enjoyed this book.  This series is titled The Highland Grooms series and I can honestly say that I haven't read a lot of highlander books.  Why not though?  This book had everything that I enjoy in a good historical romance including that feeling of just being swept away to another time and place.  I loved how easily I was able to immerse myself in this world where a widow is being forced to marry in order to not lose her son's inheritance.  Something that doesn't seem possible nowadays but back then was probably the norm.  Crazy!  I felt for Daisy so much because of all the struggles that she had to deal with because of this.  She couldn't trust any of the men that paid attention to her in any way without wondering if they were just trying to get at her money.  It was just sad and it was a reminder on how lucky I am.  

I haven't even talked about how much I loved the relationship that developed between Daisy and Cailean yet.  Oh goodness but I adored them together so much!  Daisy especially was a character near and dear to my heart because she was so strong willed.  She did what she wanted and didn't apologize ever for who she was.  I especially loved this about her but I also appreciated how comfortable that she was with her sexuality.  She was a widow and never pretended to be some innocent who didn't know her own wants or desires.  What a refreshing change of pace from the historical romances with virginal heroines or those who need the hero to bring about their sexual awakening.  I just liked everything about Daisy's character and then you add in a strong hero like Cailean and it equaled perfection.  I also really liked the fact that I didn't know how their happy ever after was going to happen.  The author did a really amazing job of creating realistic obstacles to their happiness- there was a point where I didn't see how it could possibly work itself all out.  The ending of this book was just perfect though and I was sad to see it end.  What a great romance and great read!

Overall, I obviously really enjoyed this book and am left ready for more.  Luckily I have the next book ready for me on my Kindle so I won't wait too long before continuing on.  I'm also lucky enough to have many more books by this author to look forward to so I'm excited about that.  This was the perfect change of pace in between the mysteries and thrillers that I've been reading.  I really loved every minute of it!  I would recommend this book to both romance and historical romance fans alike.  If strong heroines are your romance cat-nip then definitely give this book a try!

Bottom Line:  A wonderful read and I want more books just like this!

Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book thanks to the publisher and NetGalley as part of a TLC Book Tour.

 

Fudge and Jury by Ellie Alexander (thoughts)

Summary from Goodreads:

"It’s almost spring in Ashland, Oregon, and the town is preparing for the Shakespeare and the annual Chocolate Festival. Business is cookin’ at Torte, and the store is expanding as Jules’ team whips up crèpes filled with mascarpone cheese and dark chocolate. Torte stands a chance of being this year’s confectionery belle of the ball! Life couldn’t be sweeter—unless murder taints the batter.


Evan Rowe, of Confections Couture, makes a chocolate fountain that would put Willy Wonka to shame, and his truffles are to die for—literally? Yes, the world-renowned chocolatier has just turned up dead…right after sampling a slice of Jules’ decadent four-layer chocolate cake. Now all eyes are on Jules as she tries to find the mysterious ingredient in her own recipe. Can she sift out the truth before another contestant bites the buttercream?"

My Thoughts:

Fudge and Jury is the latest installment in one of my favorite cozy mystery series! I have so been looking forward to this book and it didn't disappoint in the least.  I was so excited when I managed to snag a copy on NetGalley but I had to wait to read it just so that I could savor it.  Because we all know how impatient I am and the wait for the next book is going to feel SO long!  This book had everything that I love about this series, and I enjoyed every minute while I was reading it.  I read this series for the characters and the food period.  Both are so great and something that I just can't get enough of!  After five books now, I've come to really love the characters in this series but especially Jules.  I love that throughout the series we have watched her both struggle and grow as she tries to figure out her life and what she wants out of it.  In this book, we got the chance to see her struggle with the decision on whether or not to expand Torte.  With everything still up in the air in regards to Carlos, expanding Torte will be a major commitment to her life in Ashland.  I won't say what is decided as that would definitely be a spoiler but as always I love how real this series feels.  Jule's life isn't perfect but it comes to life in the pages of these books.  

Of course I can't share my thoughts on this book without talking about the food that is described throughout.  Every book in this series has just left me craving desserts of any and all kinds and this book was no different.  I would gain thirty plus pounds if I attempted baking all of the wonderful recipes that Jules creates throughout the books.  They all sound so delicious and it is no wonder that I'm constantly hungry while reading.  This book was particularly decadent as chocolate played such a prominent role in the Chocolate Festival that Jules is participating in.  I have a particular weakness when it comes to anything chocolate so this was right up my alley.  I could read all day long about the different types of cakes and pastries that are baked in Torte.  Yum, yum yum!  The mystery portion of this book was also intriguing.  I find that with this series that I'm sometimes less interested in the actual mystery than I am with everything else that is going on.  I guess that is what happens when you come to adore a series so much!  The actual mystery is secondary to everything else.  LOL!  It was still an intriguing story line though and I liked the way it ended as it just felt true to life.  I'm trying not to spoil anything so I won't say any more than that.

Overall this was another amazing addition to this series and one that I can highly recommend.  I cannot say enough good things about this series- each book is just so, so good!  I'm just bummed that I now have to begin the long wait for book six.  This book was worth the wait though and I'm sure that one will be as well.  With such great characters and delicious food, what else could I ask for in a cozy series like this?  For those readers who haven't tried this series yet, I do think that you could probably read this book without having read the beginning books.  The author does a great job of giving bits of the back story in each book so you could read this by itself.  I would recommend reading them all though because they are just that good.  Highly recommended to fans of mysteries and cozies alike!!

Bottom Line:  Another amazing addition to one of my favorite series.  Read it!

Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.

#COYER Blackout (Reading Fun Begins)

One of my favorite reading challenges is starting up again and I am pumped.  I know that I've been a bit absent (STILL) around the blogging world lately but that doesn't mean that I'm not going to participate in #COYER.  Heck no!  It just means that I need to work on changing the whole not blogging thing starting now.  Being realistic, I might still be on the quieter side until after the holidays are over....after that though, game on!  I'm getting a bit off topic though.  #COYER has new rules this time around and I'm pretty pumped about them:

"This time COYER is going to be a 12 week Blackout, where you have to dedicate yourself to reading the books YOU ALREADY  have acquired for less than $1.00.
That’s right,  you have between now and the start of COYER, December 17th, to acquire the books you’ll be reading during COYER. And they must be books you got for less than $1.00. The only exception is audio books, which you must have purchased for less than $5. They must either be eBooks or audio books."

I have a ridiculous number of books on my e-reader currently.  Seriously ridiculous.  I buy books like they are going out of style (and especially those $0.99 finds) but then never seem to read them.  And don't even get me started on my NetGalley/Edelweiss addictions.  I'm more than ready to focus on getting some of these books read thanks to this challenge.  My goal is to read 10 books during this challenge.  As always I will consider any more that I read a bonus but I would really, really like to get at least ten books knocked off my overloaded Kindle.  Here are some of the possibilities that I am considering:

 

 

 

It was so hard to even narrow down my list of possibilities to just these.  I have SO MANY books calling my name lately so anything else that is on my e-reader is also thrown into the pool of my potential reads.  I am so excited about this challenge and cannot wait to begin!  If you are interested in signing up yourself or want to know more go here.  Now I'm off to work on my endless laundry piles while watching the snow fall outside.  If your participating in this challenge, let me know so that I can cheer you on. 

Happy Sunday and Happy Reading!