Destiny’s Choices Amira Press

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Author: Regina Paul
Publisher: Amira Press

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Tiana owns an art gallery. Some thefts have taken place, and a man she’d rather not see again, James, has arrived to investigate. Tiana is less than pleased, and her abrupt way of greeting him made me giggle. She says it how it is. How I long to be like her!

Tiana and James knew each other six years ago, but he chose to attend an out of state college. Unable to go with him, Tiana was also unable to tell James why. They haven’t seen one another in all that time. He loved her then and loves her now. Her attitude towards him when he meets her again leaves him believing there is no chance of reconciliation.

Tiana has been holding a tribal object for the past six years. Someone found out she had it and trashed her cabin. Only a select few know who she is and why she would have the object. Somehow, her identity has leaked out. How will she tell James who she really is: a carrier of sacred objects? Will he understand why she couldn’t go with him out of state, or will he hold it against her?

Find out in Destiny’s Choices, a tale of two people brought back together by fate. Sometimes a man and a woman are just meant to be together! I must also say that the blurb doesn’t do this tale justice. It doesn’t even begin to touch on the excitement factor—and I’m not being derogatory by saying that, but urging readers to give it a read.

An exciting tale which propelled me to the edge of my seat at times, Destiny’s Choices is a keeper for this reader. Nice work, Ms. Paul! Also, Ms. Paul? I loved Tiana’s surname. Slickpoo. I mean, that is just so funny and so darn refreshing! Beats Jones or Brown any day!

No Matter What Amira Press

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Author: Jordana Ryan
Publisher: Amira Press

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Cassandra spends far too much time in the arms of strange men. Waking up after yet another night with an unknown man, she wonders what the hell she’s playing at. She doesn’t even know his name. She gets out of bed and gazes at her young daughter, Becca, still fast asleep, and realises she has neglected her in some ways. Too many evenings with the babysitter, not enough time with Cassandra.

Cassandra had Becca while still quite young and ran away from her empty life to start again. However, life hadn’t turned out as she had hoped, and Cassandra knows that to patch up the past she must return to it.

With low self-esteem and a wonder at how anyone could love her, Cassandra thought sleeping with various men would fill the void in her life. How wrong could she be. She returns to her old life and comes to terms with the fact that people do love and care for her. If only she could believe that wholeheartedly…

Brenden Carter is Becca’s father. Though angry that Cassandra upped and left for four years, taking their daughter with him, when he sees her again he finds his feelings towards Cass aren’t as angry as he thought…

A charming tale that at times forces the reader to examine things in their own life. I sympathised with Cass’ self-esteem problems and that she deemed herself ‘not worthy’. To learn to love yourself is one of the hardest things to do sometimes, and I wanted Cass to do just that. I don’t usually go for the happy endings, but this time I cheered it on!

Good Girls Do It Badder Amira Press

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Author: Sabrina Luna
Publisher: Amira Press

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Gina Adams has a thing for cowboys. One evening she decides to have a drink at the Silver Dollar Saloon, and when she spies hunky cowboy Clint, it’s not long before she takes him for a long, enjoyable ride in the bedroom.

A short, very hot erotic story, Good Girls Do It Badder stands out from the crowd due to its good humour and irrepressible sense of fun. This exchange between Gina and Clint had me giggling:

Clint grinned down at her, taking a sip from his bottle of beer, then added, “And I like your sense of humor.” “How can you like my sense of humor when you hadn’t met me until now?” Gina raised an eyebrow, perplexed.

With his beer still in his hand, he pointed a finger to her chest.

“What? My boobs?” A sudden rush of color burned her cheeks.

“Oh no, honey. I like your shirt,” he added simply.

That sets the tone for their night of passion, which is very sexy yet never loses the fun. One night stands should be fun and daring, and the author manages to convey Gina’s excitement at doing something naughty and uninhibited. She also deals with the morning after very well, too.

I really enjoyed reading this and happily recommend it to anyone seeking a short, sizzling and fun book.

Little Kunoichi Amira Press

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Author: Tania Walsh
Publisher: Amira Press

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Mika is waiting for a man:

It was 4am when he stumbled in, off his face. I hated to wait, and by the time he showed up, I was more than ready to kill him.

Which is what she proceeds to do, after distracting him with her body first.

In the post-apocalyptic city of Naru, the world is ruled by a sinister organisation known as the MOB, that manipulates people’s lives and rules through terror. Mika is an assassin, orphaned as a child and raised by Shiro, the owner of a brothel. But the whorehouse is a front for Shiro’s real job – he has a network of assassins who stalk and kill members of the MOB.

Scarred both physically and emotionally, Mika fears she is becoming complacent – or that she’s losing her taste for killing. A couple of close calls have put her on edge, and when her next target is a woman, she realises she can’t go through with it.

Shiro is angry at her refusal, but when Mika goes to confront him, she discovers that her world is changing and betrayal is everywhere. When Irie, a fellow assassin, comes to her with an offer of help, Mika has to decide where the truth and her loyalties lie.

This is a different kind of story to the average e-book. For one, it’s not a romance. Possibly it’s a futuristic urban fantasy mixed in with erotic mainstream. That’s quite a cocktail, but it hangs together well.

The erotic encounters are graphic and unapologetic, low-down and dirty with more than a hint of nihilism. The strongest element in this tale is Mika’s voice. She’s a fascinating character who craves sex (although we’re never fully told why), particularly sex with the men she’s about to kill. This can sometimes land her in trouble, but she doesn’t care. She just gets on with the job.

Mika is like a film noir private eye. She gets roughed up, she swears, she kills guys and she makes wisecracks. Her attitude is one of weary acceptance to her life, and her dark humour is a consistent theme: I met all the great looking ones on that job, but never got to keep them.

She’s tough but she does have an intense vulnerability that is touched upon with her responses to Shiro and Irie.

Some readers may be uncomfortable with the violence in the story, but I felt it deserved its place. Mika’s reaction to her injuries says a lot about her character.

I noticed a couple of editorial mistakes, but my main gripe with this story is that it wasn’t long enough to do justice to the characters or background. While I like the brief, detached style of Mika’s voice, we zip through the plot at breakneck speed when really, there needs to be more development and tension to make this story really shine.

As it is, Little Kunoichi is an intriguing read that hints at the possibility of a sequel or perhaps a whole series. I hope Ms Walsh writes more about Mika, Irie and the mysterious MOB. These characters and the set-up have a lot of potential and I’d love to see it explored further in other, longer, stories.

Speed and Need Amira Press

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Author: Robin Wright
Publisher: Amira Press

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Erik, a cop, is on patrol when he spots a customised car bearing the licence plate ‘Baaaad’. Street racing is on the increase and Erik knows just how dangerous it can be. He met his lover when she came to bail out her street racer brother.

Lately Erik has been having problems with his girlfriend. She supports him but worries about his career. Now Erik wonders if she’s right to be so anxious about his job as he chases down ‘Baaaad’.

The driver of the car is a sexy Native American woman who seems to love flirting with danger as much as flirting with Erik.

Fast cars, a faster woman and a pair of handcuffs all make this short story a spicy little read.
Favourite line: Living in a virtual sea of testosterone for eight to ten hours a day was a breeding ground for male angst.

I also loved the closing lines of the story, but it might give away the ending if I quoted them here. They’re witty and kicky and fitted the story perfectly.

However – the plot is predictable, the characters are under-developed and there’s way too much telling rather than showing at the start. This is a shame, because the street racing background is great and could easily justify a much longer story. But since this is a nibble rather than a novel, the focus of the action is the sex, which is very hot.

Ms Wright has a nice way with words and I’d be interested to read something longer from her. Speed and Need delivers what the title promises; I just wish it went that one mile further.

Rebuffing The Bishop Amira Press

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Author: Christina Greene-Macone
Publisher: Amira Press

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The story began with a drunken Rebecca being seduced by her ex boyfriend Greg, at his pregnant wife’s birthday party! The two were caught in the act by Greg’s father, a lecherous, perverted old git, with more than a few problems in the head department! I found the way he spoke teeth grindingly irritating - “Well, I’m glad to hear ya say that, my dear. Real glad. Ya have to look to the future, Rebecca. Ya need to find a mature man who is gonna take care of ya. Forget these young twenty-something’s. Ya wasting your time.” AAAAARGH!

Rebecca and Greg’s families went back a long way, Rebecca’s parents and Greg’s parents knew each other for years. Rebecca’s widowed mother, Teresa, at the tail end of cancer treatment, employed Greg’s father, Lester, to paint the family home to keep her mind off the arduous medical treatments, thus giving him access to every room in the house.

I have to admit to finding this uncomfortable reading, the thought of this man’s obsession with Rebecca. A young woman who isn’t remotely interested in him, and his dogged persuance of her despite her pleas for him to leave her alone sickened me. He is a thoroughly revolting individual who even resorts to blackmail. For an author to inspire such feelings is an indication of their writing ability, in my opinion.

The events in this story and how Rebecca feels are what I would imagine it is like to have a stalker, and sadly these things do go on, people have to endure the unwanted attentions of another person, sometimes for years.

As the story progressed, Lester’s fantasies became more and more deranged. Rebecca met up with an old flame and they rekindled their relationship, which sent Lecherous Lester into a jealous frenzy.

The more I read, the more I cringed at the behaviour of the revolting Lester, I’d happily have sorted out his tackle between two housebricks; that’d put a stop to his perverted ways!

Rebecca’s cat, Bootsie, got my seal of approval, gotta love that cat for what she did whilst Lester was perving in Rebecca’s room! (BMWAHAHAHAHA!)

Rebecca’s friends concocted a plan to hopefully teach Lecherous Lester a lesson he wouldn’t forget.

There was also a twist at the end that I wasn’t expecting!

I give this four flutes.

Visiting Donna Dee Amira Press

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Author: Zinnia Hope

Publisher: Amira Press

 

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A hurricane approaches the Ohio Valley. Arnold Cuttshaver, jaded and cynical from fifty years in prison, starts work at a bookstore managed by Regina, a young woman who reminds him of his wife, Donna Dee, and of his old self: full of faith and hope. She believes he is innocent, and, although they clash at first, mainly because of his anachronistic views and cynical attitude, they form a bond. As flood waters rise and they are imprisoned together she breaks through his hard outer shell and learns something of the man inside.

This is an accomplished and vivid story set amid the rising tension and humidity of an approaching storm and containing believable and interesting characters. Arnold Cuttshaver is a man out of time, with no connection to the current world besides golden oldies on the radio and a distant thirst for knowledge. His views clash with Regina’s, his apparent racism and atheism shocking her. He is cranky and belligerent, but these traits only serve to deepen his character as we sense it’s a show, a defence built to protect him from further hurt.

He helps a young black kid, Tyrell, with his homework, and for a while we see something of the real man, but it’s quickly hidden away, lest anyone get too close. The same is true of his relationship with Regina, who reaches out to him, believing him innocent, and who he tries to keep at a distance. But eventually they are forced together by the rising waters, and he has to confront her likeness to his long deceased ex-wife, on whom he forced a divorce out of a desire to protect her.

It’s an interesting and touching tale, and the characters are handled well, particularly Arnold, who manages to be both endearing and frustrating. It is pacey and well written, with nice descriptive flourishes, such as the following, describing his detachment from the world: ‘Arnold examined the toes of his wing tip shoes. Dust settled upon their shiny noses. He felt like those shoe tips–dust-coated, out-of-date, and obsolete. He drifted in the world like a small boat escaped from its mooring.’

Now personally I’m not one for similes, but this, I felt, was an example of how to use one subtly and effectively to paint a character. My favourite line however, was very short and sharp, coming after Regina has been accused of pre-judging Arnold and has answered him, denying it: ‘She shrugged into her lie like an ill-fitted jacket.’

My only complaint plot-wise was Regina’s shock at Arnold’s apparent atheism. A nineteen year old being shocked at someone’s disbelief in God struck me as a little unlikely, but maybe that’s due to who I am and where I live. I’m willing to believe there are places where this applies and would be entirely believable. It certainly didn’t spoil the story.

As it is this is a heart-warming, though slightly sad, tale, told very well with interesting characters and plenty of style. Four flutes. Recommended.