reecaspieces

Overview 

New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Liliana Hart’s first book in her suspenseful Gravediggers series, featuring an elite group of mysterious men who might be dead to the world, but are also tasked with saving it—and no one can ever know.

The Gravediggers aren’t exactly what they seem. They’re the most elite of the world’s fighting forces—and all they have in common is that they’ve been betrayed by the countries they’ve died for. Because they are dead. To their country, their military, and their families.
Sometimes the dead do rise…

Solomon Lange is a dead man walking. A former black ops agent, he was disavowed and stripped of all honor before being recruited as a Gravedigger. But his honor and good name no longer matter, because no one knows he’s alive, and he’ll never get the recognition he deserves. His mission is simple: save the world or die trying. And for God’s sake, don’t ever fall in love. That’s a rule punishable by death. The kind of death a man can’t be brought back from.

Tess Sherman is the only mortician in Last Stop, Texas. She has no idea how Solomon Lange ended up in her funeral home, but she’ll eat her hat if he’s only a funeral home assistant. Solomon is dangerous, deadly, and gorgeous. And she knows her attraction to him can only end in heartache.

Solomon is on a mission to stop the most fatal terror attack the world has ever known—what’s known as The Day of Destiny—a terrorist’s dream. But when he discovers Tess has skills he can use to stop them, he has to decide if he can trust her with secrets worth dying for. And, most important, he has to decide if he can trust her with his heart. 

Review

Tess manages a funeral home…yes she is a mortician! Who writes a book about a mortician???? Liliana Hart did! And she did a pretty good job of it! Of course, it helps that the funeral home has an active amount of good-looking, HOT, black ops agents living and working in it! These good-looking, HOT, black ops agents are gravediggers. You need to read the book to find out exactly what that means! 

Tess lives in a small town of Last Stop, Texas.  No, this place does not exist….I looked. It is the perfect place for these good-looking, HOT, black ops agents to pull off their stunts. (Did I mention they are HOT!)  Tess is not really a happy camper about this. The funeral home was bought out from under her. She was supposed to be the next owner. Then, she is not! This leads to some tense situations, especially between her and Solomon.  And boy oh boy, do things heat up NICELY between these two! 

As most of you already know….romantic suspense is one of my guilty pleasures. This book was more romance and less suspense. I don’t think any action took place till the last quarter of the book. Kudos to the author for keeping me entertained enough to give it 4 stars. This is all because I adored Tess and her friends and family. Her mother is a piece of work..she could have a book devoted to her antics! 

I received this novel from Simon and Schuster as part of XOXPERTS for a honest review.

Purchase here 

Barnes and Noble 

Amazon

Overview 

From #1 New York Times bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Strout comes a brilliant latticework of fiction that recalls Olive Kitteridge in its richness, structure, and complexity. Written in tandem with My Name Is Lucy Barton and drawing on the small-town characters evoked there, these pages reverberate with the themes of love, loss, and hope that have drawn millions of readers to Strout’s work.

“As I was writing My Name Is Lucy Barton,” Strout says, “it came to me that all the characters Lucy and her mother talked about had their own stories—of course!—and so the unfolding of their lives became tremendously important to me.” Here, among others, are the “Pretty Nicely Girls,” now adults: One trades self-respect for a wealthy husband, the other finds in the pages of a book a kindred spirit who changes her life. Tommy, the janitor at the local high school, has his faith tested in an encounter with an emotionally isolated man he has come to help; a Vietnam veteran suffering from PTSD discovers unexpected solace in the company of a lonely innkeeper; and Lucy Barton’s sister, Vicky, struggling with feelings of abandonment and jealousy, nonetheless comes to Lucy’s aid, ratifying the deepest bonds of family.

With the stylistic brilliance and subtle power that distinguish the work of this great writer, Elizabeth Strout has created another transcendent work of fiction, with characters who will live in readers’ imaginations long after the final page is turned.

Review

I really don’t know how to do an overview for this read.  This is a tale which is more about a small town and its myriad of people.  There are a good many characters and it is disjointed in places. But the stories surrounding each of these players keep you moving along and wanting to know more. The characters each have their own hang-ups and personal issues. Each one struggling to over come, well, life! The novel doesn’t have a main character unless it is Lucy Barton but, she has a minor role.  

I probably would have enjoyed this book more if I had read My Name is Lucy Barton first. I have it in my TBR pile. Just have not picked it up yet. I did not realize this novel was a sequel, or contained the same characters. However, no one writes a story quite like Elizabeth Strout. I love how she weaves love of friends and family along with pain, loss and sometimes abuse. She creates stories impossible to forget and the tales stay with you long after the book is finished. 

I received this novel from Netgalley for a honest review.

Purchase here

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Overview

Fall in love with The Simplicity of Cider, the charming new novel about a prickly but gifted cider-maker whose quiet life is interrupted by the arrival of a handsome man and his young son at her family’s careworn orchard by the author of The Coincidence of Coconut Cake and Luck, Love & Lemon Pie.
Focused and unassuming fifth generation cider-maker Sanna Lund has one desire: to live a simple, quiet life on her family’s apple orchard in Door County, Wisconsin. Although her business is struggling, Sanna remains fiercely devoted to the orchard, despite her brother’s attempts to convince their aging father to sell the land.
Single dad Isaac Banks has spent years trying to shield his son Sebastian from his troubled mother. Fleeing heartbreak at home, Isaac packed up their lives and the two headed out on an adventure, driving across the country. Chance—or fate—led them straight to Sanna’s orchard.
Isaac’s helping hands are much appreciated at the apple farm, even more when Sanna’s father is injured in an accident. As Sanna’s formerly simple life becomes increasingly complicated, she finds solace in unexpected places—friendship with young Sebastian and something more deliciously complex with Isaac—until an outside threat infiltrates the farm.
From the warm and funny Amy E. Reichert, The Simplicity of Cider is a charming love story with a touch of magic, perfect for fans of Sarah Addison Allen and Gayle Forman.

Review 

Sanna and her father run an apple orchard.  It is a hard job but both of them love it and are tied to the land and the trees. The orchard is in financial trouble.  They are also being sabotaged. Issac and Bass are really running away from home. They end up at the orchard and sparks fly.  

Sanna is a hard working, rough and tough gal. She is not one of the best characters though. I love strong female leads but I am not a fan of her rudeness and her temper. Issac and Bass make up for Sanna, especially Bass. Bass is Issac’s 10 year old son and BOY  is he a mess! 

The setting of an apple orchard is certainly unique.  I enjoyed reading about the apple trees and the making of cider. However, the story is not as fast-paced as I like. But, it is a good read, especially for travel. It is simple. I know this sounds like a bad thing, but it is not. Sometimes you need a book like this.  It does not take too much focus but keeps you immersed in the story. 
I received this novel from Netgalley for a honest review.

Purchase here 

Barnes and Noble

Amazon

Overview

All’s fair in love and work. The first standalone romance by New York Times and #1 international bestselling author Christina Lauren (Beautiful Bastard) is a sexy, compulsively readable romantic comedy that dives headlong into the thrill and doubt of modern love.

Despite the odds against them from an embarrassing meet-awkward at a mutual friend’s Halloween party, Carter and Evie immediately hit it off. Even the realization that they’re both high-powered agents at competing firms in Hollywood isn’t enough to squash the fire.

But when their two agencies merge—causing the pair to vie for the same position—all bets are off. What could have been a beautiful, blossoming romance turns into an all-out war of sabotage. Carter and Evie are both thirtysomething professionals—so why can’t they act like it?

Can Carter stop trying to please everyone and see how their mutual boss is really playing the game? Can Evie put aside her competitive nature long enough to figure out what she really wants in life? Can their actor clients just be something close to human? Whether these two Hollywood love/hatebirds get the storybook Hollywood ending or just a dramedy of epic proportions, you will get to enjoy Christina Lauren’s heartfelt, raucous, and hilarious romance style at its finest.

Review

Evie and Carter meet at a party. Well, maybe they are “set up” at a party.   Their relationship starts out with great promise.   Then their companies merge.  The competition and sexual tension begin to OOZE and turns them into 7th graders on steroids! 

Evie and Carter have exceptional chemistry….OOOOOOOOLALA!! I just swoon every time Carter walks into a room! He is smart, hard working and down right FINE! Their relationship takes a turn and they just cannot stop themselves from niggling each other..in more ways than one. They are competing for the same job. This puts them in a do or die mode. Plus, their boss, Brad is a real (ok, I will try not to curse) “piece of work” (insert your own expletive).  You have to read the book to find out how sexist,  condescending and criminal Brad really is. 

This is childish in some places, especially when Carter and Evie are in the midst of their petty backstabbing. But, this just adds to the fun experience of reading this story.  This is a joyous, laugh out loud,  HOT AND STEAMY ride. 

I received this novel from Simon and Schuster as part of XOXPERTS. 

Purchase Here 

Barnes and Noble

Amazon