Roses & Thorns

Roses & Thorns

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

When Lightning Strikes by Brenda Novak


Blurb:

Simon O'Neal's causing trouble again. And it's up to Gail DeMarco to stop him.



Gail DeMarco left Whiskey Creek, California, to make a name for herself in Los Angeles. Her PR firm has accumulated a roster of A-list clients, including the biggest box office hit of all—sexy and unpredictable Simon O'Neal. But Simon, who's just been through a turbulent divorce, is so busy self-destructing he won't listen to anything she says. She drops him from her list—and he retaliates by taking the rest of her clients with him.


Desperate to save her company, Gail has to humble herself by making a deal with Simon. The one thing he wants is custody of his son, but that's going to require a whole new image. He needs to marry some squeaky-clean girl who'll drag him off to some small, obscure place like Whiskey Creek….

Gail's the only one he can trust. She agrees to become his wife—reluctantly. But she isn't reluctant because he's too hard to like. It's because he's too hard not to love!



Review:

Brenda Novak is a very talented writer. Her romance novel, When Lightning Strikes, starts out with a bang and continues to arouse curiosity in every chapter.  It is a suspense-filled tale of ego conflicts and rehabilitated narcissistic behaviors set in the modern world of power and money. The story has a certain beauty in its unfolding and it kept me cheering for the underdog, with whom I could identify in many ways.  Novak neatly ties it all together using sensible, and believable, solutions. I particularly enjoyed this book and recommend it without reservation.

Thanks for visiting, Rose, Julie & Rochelle

Length:  448 Pages
Prices:
Print:  $6.39
Digital:  $1.59
Buy Link:


Sunday, September 28, 2014

Back on Track by Donna Cummings





Blurb:

What's a little lie between strangers?

A Strangers on a Train Story

Allie Whittaker is in a dating slump, too busy getting her fledgling marketing company off the ground to have a personal life. All that could change, though, if she can get baseball superstar Matt Kearns on the cover of a charity calendar. Except Matt won't even talk to her.


Matt’s in a slump, worried his career might be over. A Napa Valley wine tour isn't enough to take his mind off his troubles—until sexy, funny Allie plops into the adjacent seat and tells him three things about herself. One of them, she says, is a lie.



Matt can't resist playing along, and soon the afternoon getaway becomes an interlude with lies, truths, and desire flowing as fast as the wine. Then Allie lets slip one truth too many...and they both realize they're playing for keeps.

Warning: A handsome hunk, a determined lady and a few glasses of wine. Throw in a little on-the-run action, and what more do you need to while away an afternoon?

Review:

Back on Track was a funny romp through an excursion train. When Allie first joins Matt at his table, she doesn’t recognize him. As they’re playing the, “I’ll tell you three things about me and one of them is a lie” game, he tells her his name hoping she knows nothing about baseball and will think that’s the lie. Allie recognizes him, but seizes on that, saying, “You’re not Matt Kearns. I dated him, and he was way hotter than you.”

Matt goes along with it and finds himself trying to compete with Allie’s fictitious version of him while they run through the train dodging avid fans with cameras and looking for places to make-out, until she slips about the calendar and reveals herself. When he comes to his senses and realizes he doesn’t want to lose her, will he find Allie again on the crowded train?  I’m not telling.  I recommend you grab this warm, funny, short story with just enough shades of grey to keep you pleasantly toasty.

Length:  55 Pages
Digital Price:  $2.50

You’ll notice we always include the publisher’s buy link. That’s because authors usually receive 40% of the book price from the publisher. Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%. When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left. So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40. If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $0.83.

Downloading the file from your computer to your Kindle is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive. Plug the larger USB end of your chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from your “Downloads” box to your Kindle/Documents/Books directory. You can download your books onto your computer using “Save As” to a “Books” file you create and sort them into sub-folders by genre, author, or however you wish before transferring them to your Kindle. That way, if there’s a glitch with your Kindle, the books are on your computer. Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting. Rose, Julie & Rochelle

Sunday, September 21, 2014

K9 Blue: Ground Zero by Matt McCredie




Blurb:



Police dog handler Mike Winters and his furry partner Falcon love a good chase. They’ll do anything to protect the streets of Sydney, whether it’s tracking a murderer through the woods or breaking up a bar brawl. It’s all fun and games until the bad guy gets hurt. And then it’s just fun.



Lately though, it seems that violent incidents are on the rise. When Mike and Falcon’s beloved commander is killed in action, Mike is determined to bring the perpetrators to justice, but he has no idea just how deep this malevolent plot runs. A terrorist organisation has devised a plan to attack the city from all sides, and they have taken over a refueling ship in Sydney Harbour.



Mike and Falcon must use all of their wit and courage to battle the killers, expose police corruption, and, if they’re lucky, save a city from obliteration.



Review:



I love animals as long as they have legs, but I especially love furry ones. And I deeply respect Service Animals, especially the ones who put their lives on the line along with their partners—Police and War Dogs. So how could I resist a book about a K-9 Officer and his four-legged partner? With Australia on my bucket list, what could be better than a book about an Aussie K-9 team?



The time during which this book takes place, however, would not be the best time to visit Sydney. Try as they might, Mike and Falcon are unable to stop the entire terrorist attack on their beloved city. There are only two of them and they can’t be everywhere at once stopping a multi-pronged attack. But, they’re in the thick of it, and between Mike’s quick thinking and Falcon’s iron jaws they give a pretty good account of themselves.



Mr. McCredie, the dog on your book cover caught my attention. Your excellent writing kept it. The only reason I did not give you five stars is that your editor needs to go back to school and learn a bit more basic grammar. I would have expected better from a major publisher like HarperCollins. I received this book from NetGalley. Was it a proof copy? Were some of the glitches I noticed caught and fixed before the actual release? I fervently hope so.



Length:  241 Pages

Digital Price:  $2.99




Thanks for visiting. Rose, Julie & Rochelle

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Dave Barry’s Money Secrets by Dave Barry


Blurb:

Did you ever wish that you really understood money? Well, Dave Barry wishes that he did, too. But that hasn’t stopped him from writing this book. In it, Dave explores (as only he can) such topics as:



• How the U.S. economy works, including the often overlooked role of Adam Sandler

• Why it is not a good idea to use squirrels for money

• Strategies that will give you the confidence you need to try for a good job, even though you are—let’s be honest—a no-talent loser

• How corporate executives, simply by walking into their offices, immediately become much stupider

• An absolutely foolproof system for making money in the stock market, requiring only a little effort (and access to time travel)

• Surefire tips for buying and selling real estate, the key being: Never buy—or, for that matter, sell—real estate

• How to minimize your federal taxes, safely and legally, by cheating

• Why good colleges cost so much, and how to make sure your child does not get into one

• How to reduce the cost of your medical care by basically not getting any

• Estate planning, especially the financial benefits of an early death

• And many, many pictures of Suze Orman



But that’s only the beginning! Dave has also included in this book all of the important points from a book written by Donald Trump, so you don’t have to read it yourself. Plus he explains how to tip, how to negotiate for everything (including bridge tolls), how to argue with your spouse about money, and how much allowance to give your children (three dollars is plenty). He also presents, for the first time in print anywhere, the Car Dealership Code of Ethics (“Ethic Seven: The customer is an idiot”). Also, there are many gratuitous references to Angelina Jolie naked. You can’t afford not to buy this book! Probably you need several copies.



What kind of financial shape are you in right now? This scientific quiz will show you.



Be honest in your answers: If you lie, you’ll only be lying to yourself! The place to lie is on your federal tax return.



What is your annual income?

1. More than $50,000.

2. Less than $50,000.

3. However much I get when I return these empties.



Not counting your mortgage, how much money do you currently owe?

1. Less than $10,000.

2. More than $10,000.

3. Men are threatening to cut off my thumbs.



How would you describe your portfolio?

1. Conservative, mainly bonds and blue-chip equities.

2. Aggressive, mainly options and speculative stocks.

3. My what?



When analyzing an investment, what do you consider to be the most important factor?

1. The amount of return.

2. The degree of risk.

3. The name of the jockey.



How do you plan to finance your retirement?

1. Savings.

2. Social security.

3. Sale of kidneys.



Review:



If you already know Dave Barry as an author, I need say no more.  He is one of the funniest writers of modern times, perhaps of all times. My only caution with his book, Dave Barry’s Money Secrets, is to beware that the reader may find himself feeling self-conscious about laughing out-loud in serious contexts, such as I did while sneaking moments of reading time during a boring meeting. I highly recommend this book for all the fun of it!



Thanks for visiting, Rose, Julie & Rochelle



Length:  240 Pages

Prices:

Print:  $13.95

Digital:  $9.99

 Buy Link: