Sandy M’s review of If You Hear Her (Ash Trilogy, Book 1) by Shiloh Walker
Romantic Suspense published by Ballantine 25 Oct 11

As most of you know, Shiloh Walker is an absolute favorite of mine. I have a feeling with this new trilogy, a lot more fans are going to be coming out of the woodwork to follow this very talented author.

Ezra King has come to Ash, Kentucky to recuperate in both body and spirit. His grandmother left her home to him, so he’s healing amid a bit of grief and nostalgia. He’s been content to piddle around the place – until he meets Lena Riddle. The woman not only shoots lust through his system, but she demands respect and admiration for her determination and love of life.

Finally living on her own with no one to tell her how to do it, Lena is happy in every aspect of her life – she’s a chef for the local B&B and she’s surrounded by loving friends. When a man with a sexy voice shows interest in her lasagna, his interest in her piques even further after they share a meal or two together. But then Ezra puts on the brakes, and for a little while is one of those men who says he’ll call but doesn’t. He has his reasons, and once you learn of them you can understand why he’s so hesitant to start up a relationship with this fascinating and beautiful woman. Lena tries to forget the man, even when they run into each other in town, but after so many meetings and too much temptation, Ezra gives in and pursues Lena into a wonderful blossoming relationship.

What brings them together finally is the scream Lena hears one night outside her home at the edge of the forest. The only people who believe her are Ezra and Law, one of Lena’s best friends, and the local sheriff. But on investigation, no evidence is found of anything untoward. Lena can’t let it rest, however, and makes a trip to the sheriff’s office, where Ezra is making his own unrelated complaint. While the deputy helping Lena doesn’t believe a word she says, it’s Ezra who gets things moving to further investigate the matter, but everyone is baffled at the lack of evidence.

The reader knows exactly what’s happening, though, and sees what an evil villain lives and breathes in these pages. What he does to the women he kidnaps slowly weakens and breaks them until they’re praying to die. It’s his latest victim who Lena hears from her bedroom this fateful night that changes life for all concerned – including our villain. And from this point on, you are immersed so deeply in both the romance between Ezra and Lena and the deceptive and evil mind of a madman whose identity is kept from you the entire book. And the second book. You won’t know who it turns out to be until the last book. Talk about tension!

I love Ezra and Lena. Their romance is swift and sure. Ezra turns into the typical alpha cop he is when danger is unveiled around them and their friends. Lena is a sassy, smart, and independent woman, but she knows when to let go and do as she’s asked so everyone survives whatever situation is going on at the moment. Their lovemaking is vintage Shiloh Walker – steamy, intense, and loving. We also meet Remy and Hope, who are featured in the next book, and you love them on sight just as much as you do Ezra and Lena.

Pins and needles having nothing on this storyline. Tenterhooks is more apropos for all the goings-on, especially the suspenseful aspects of the story. If you’re ready for an edge-of-your-seat read that you can’t put down until it’s read, this is it. And do be sure to read this trilogy in order. They’re tied too closely together and left open ended to start in the middle or, heaven forbid, with the last book.

Grade: A+

Summary:

The scream Lena Riddle hears in the woods behind her house is enough to curdle her blood—she has no doubt that a woman is in real danger. Unfortunately, with no physical evidence, the local law officers in small-town Ash, Kentucky, dismiss her claim. But Lena knows what she heard—and it leaves her filled with fear and frustration.

Ezra King is on leave from the state police, but he can’t escape the guilty memories that haunt his dreams. When he sees Lena, he is immediately drawn to her. He aches to touch her—to be touched by her—but is he too burdened by his tragic past to get close?

When Ezra hears her story of an unknown woman’s screams, his instincts tell him that Lena’s life is also at risk—and his desire to protect her is as fierce as his need to possess her.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Laura C’s review of If You See Her (Ash Trilogy, Book 2) by Shiloh Walker
Romantic Suspense published by Ballantine 31 Jan 12

First things first: if you haven’t already read the first book in this series—If You Hear Her—you should run out and do so before you pick this up. The books are tied much more closely together than the usual trilogy. In fact, you may find the beginning of this a bit confusing if you haven’t read the first one. You’ll adjust quickly though, so if you find yourself a bit lost, just forge ahead; the rest will definitely be worth your while!

Hope Carson has the kind of past that should make me shudder as a reader. I’ve mentioned before how overdone I think the “abused wife running for her life” thing is. But Shiloh Walker doesn’t follow the formula here. Sure, Hope is an abuse survivor. But she’s not hiding from her ex, even though he went so far as to have her committed to an asylum to keep control over her. As anyone would, Hope has moments where she doubts her own sanity, and more where she doubts her own worth. But she’s not self-pitying about it.

“So it doesn’t bother you that I was hospitalized?” she said, tossing it out like a challenge.

Carefully, Remy laid the knife down. Then, not trusting himself to speak just yet, he reached for his wine, but he didn’t go for sipping it. He tossed it back, but it didn’t do a damn thing to cool the rage burning inside, He’d be doing better if it was tequila. Or whiskey—straight, burning a path down to his stomach, and maybe burning through the fog of rage in his brain.

Looking at her, he bit off, “Oh, hell, yes it bothers me. But not for the reasons you think. You didn’t belong in there and we both know it. That bastard you were married to somehow managed to manipulate the system to put you in there and keep you in there and that pisses me off in more ways that you can imagine. Yeah, it bothers me. But not like you think.”

“Thank you.” She glanced down at her glass and then back up at him.

“Don’t thank me.” He reached for his knife and went to work on the rest of the vegetables, chopping up red bell peppers with a vengeance. “Don’t thank me, okay?”

It seemed kind of weird, but as he stood there, the sleeves of his blue dress shirt rolled up, the silver knife flashing as he cut up the vegetables, Hope felt her heart flutter.

Remy’s fury is doubled because Hope’s ex used the system—a system he, as a prosecutor, is an integral part of—to abuse her. If this book has one weakness it is that we don’t get to see enough of Remy’s personality away from Hope. He’s a great guy, no doubt about it, and he’s obviously just what Hope needs, but I didn’t feel as if I quite knew him the way I wanted to.

The romance progresses very slowly, as one would expect for a character like Hope, and the suspense is a slow build, too. There are double villains at work, both the serial killer who haunts the whole trilogy and another criminal specific to this book. But even with the dual threats, if I were going to categorize this book in some way, I would say that it’s more about Hope’s growth and self-realization than it is about either the mystery or the romance. That is possibly a function of this being the middle book in the trilogy—like the middle child, it finds its way in the shadow of the one before, which was strongly romance-centered (I didn’t review that here, but it’s one of very few books I’d give an A), and the final book, which I suspect will be villain-focused since the killer has escaped detection in the first two books.

Don’t get me wrong: there’s plenty to fear here and plenty of emotion. The relationship between Hope and her friend Law (who will be the hero of the third book) is gut-wrenching in and of itself, even before you add in her romance with Remy. So settle back in front of a roaring fire and read the first two books of this series. Then you can wait along with me for the third!

Grade: B+

Summary:

Hope Carson may not look like a survivor, but she has escaped an abusive ex-husband and recovered from a vicious assault. Now she endures the painful memories and suspicious rumors surrounding her involvement in the attack. Her ex is a cop, so the last people she trusts are law enforcement officials—and she certainly doesn’t trust how the local DA makes her feel inside.

Remy Jennings should know better. He has no business falling for a woman who he suspects may have a deeply troubled mind. And even if he did make a move, she’d bolt like a frightened rabbit. But how can he deny a burning desire that threatens to consume him? As Hope’s past catches up with her in the worst way, Remy is determined to break through her defenses, earn her trust, and keep her safe in his arms—before it’s too late.

Other books in this series:

This is the second year in a row I’ve not been able to decide which of two terrific books should be my No. 1. So I have a tie once again. Last year it was two fantasies that made the top spot. This year one of those authors has maintained her position, but she’s now sharing it with an historical author who never lets me down in story or character. And who rounds out the rest of my list? Think I can surprise you? Hmmmmm. Maybe not totally, but I think a few of my picks just might!

10. A Forever Kind of Love by Shiloh Walker – emotion is going to be the word of the day for this list. Combined with an alpha hero and a romance to die for, an author has a life-long fan in me if she can pull that off. Shiloh Walker is definitely one of those authors. This book is chockful of emotion, pulling on your heartstrings so much you’re sure they’ll definitely break. Just what I’ve come to expect from her.

9. Saddled and Spurred/Wrangled and Tangled & Chasin’ Eight/Cowboy Casanova by Lorelei James – I’m not sure how she does it, releasing these four books, plus others, in one year, but I’m sure glad Ms. James does. I couldn’t leave any of these books off the list over another, they’re all so good. My favorite, I think, is W&T – I love Renner and Tierney, they’re such fun. Her cowboys from both of her current series will keep you hot and bothered long after you’ve finished reading them!

8. Hidden Embers by Tessa Adams – sigh. Dragons. I love’em. And this edition of Tessa Adams’ Dragon’s Heat series is right on target for me with the emotion the hero goes through and all those alpha dragons breathing fire everywhere. The aerial fight scenes are as intense as the lovemaking, and with a mysterious disease that could end their clan, this is one all-consuming read. And how can you not lust over that cover, for heaven’s sake?

7. Touch of Crimson by Sylvia Day – I so enjoy an author who can write in more than one genre, and Sylvia Day is a master. I love her paranormals every bit as much as I love her historicals. This new series featuring angels is spectacular. ToC is the perfect opening, and I can’t wait for more, especially since next up is a werewolf hero. Shifters do it for me every time.

6. Pride and Pleasure by Sylvia Day – this is the first time an author has made my list in two different genres. Doesn’t surprise me it’s Ms. Day. Both hero and heroine in this book are fascinating characters, something this author excels at like no other. I can’t imagine anyone reading this list hasn’t read Sylvia Day before, but if so, you have to pick up one of her books like yesterday. Seriously.

5. Breaking Point by Pamela Clare – another author who writes alpha heroes and gives them the perfect heroine for our reading pleasure. And who can insert emotion that breaks your heart and then shows you action until you’re ready to collapse with exhaustion. You get everything in a Pamela Clare book. The hero in this story goes through hell, but his heroine, of course, helps pull him through.

4. Hidden Away by Maya Banks – If you’ve read my reviews of Ms. Banks’ KGI series books, you know I love these Kelly boys. They go through hell to find love, but that makes it all the more sweet and pleasurable in the end. It’s also the family aspect of these stories that I love. You mess with one Kelly, you mess with them all. The brothers tease and fight like boys do, but they back each other up no matter what. Heroes, every one of them.

3. The Many Sins of Lord Cameron by Jennifer Ashley – more brothers that have burrowed into my heart. This book is my second favorite so far, right behind The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie. We find out what drives Cam, how his past has shaped him. And what a past it is. I also like the father-son aspect of this book. I was hoping that would be a good part of it when we met Daniel in earlier stories, and Ms. Ashley gave me that hope in spades, and then some.

2. Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh – there’s not a thing about Ms. Singh’s Psy-Changeling series that I don’t like. I like/love certain books over others, especially the ones that made me cry – but every one of them calls to and satisfies the paranormal/shifter fan in me. Hawke and Sienna live up to the expectations in my mind, I loved every single word.

1. Waking Up with the Duke by Lorraine Heath – all three books in this trilogy are wonderful, but this one, this one was the most emotional of all, and that’s saying something after the very talented Ms. Heath turned a not-so-nice character into a hero you couldn’t help but love on the very first page of his book. The untenable situation in WUwtD, the characters who live it, and the love they share is what puts this book in the No. 1 position for me.

1. Haunting Desire and Haunting Embrace by Erin Quinn – this series has been, well, haunting to read. Ms. Quinn has given this reader a whole new lo ok at Ireland and paranormal stories the like of which I’ve never read before. So beautifully written.

The series has ended with Haunting Embrace, so if you’re looking for something different, these books will hit the spot perfectly.

I always give a few honorable mentions, because it’s such a difficult time whittling down the list of all the great books I’ve read in a year’s time. So I want to share those with you too. Here they are in no particular order:

Second Chance at the Sugar Shack/Any Given Christmas by Candis Terry – what fun these books are! I’m glad I discovered Ms. Terry. She’s a joy to read. Great sense of humor and a mama ghost. You can’t go wrong!

A Light at Winter’s End by Julia London – I’m so glad this book was written. I was very upset at the ending of Summer of Two Wishes. The heroine picked the wrong man, as far as I’m concerned. And when he walked off into the sunset, so to speak, with no other information about where he went, what he did, how he coped, well, I wasn’t happy at all. Here we find out. And now I’m happy. (You should read SoTW first!)

The King’s Mistress by Sandy Blair – it’s nice to have a new book by Sandy Blair on the shelves. And she’s done one heck of a job weaving her hero and heroine into Scottish history to give readers a wonderful romance. No one does it better.

Making Waves by Tawna Fenske – I enjoy an author who can make me laugh out loud. There aren’t many out there who can. Tawna Fenske is a new voice on the scene, and she knows how to write humor. Her characters and storylines are just plain old fun! I still chuckle thinking about that black thong…

What I Did for a Duke by Julie Anne Long – this was my first Julie Anne Long book and I can certainly say I’m hooked. I really enjoyed these characters and just had fun with them. I look forward to reading a lot more of her books in the future. With all of the historicals on my list this year, this one didn’t miss the cut by much at all. So very close!

Well, now we go from my Best of the Year to my Worst of the Year reads. I’m teased by some of the reviewers here at the Pond that I like everything I read. Well, that’s not technically true, because there are those books that sometimes don’t do it even for me. So I have a few. One doesn’t surprise me, one does, and the others just surprised me as I read them. And the biggest surprise is they’re all Scottish historicals, which I love to read. Now you know really how painful these were for me!

~ Must Love Kilts by Allie Mackay – I always try to give an author a second chance when one of their books doesn’t work for me. I believe I’ve given Ms. MacKay a third and fourth chance. I doubt there will be another chance in the offing any time soon. So this one didn’t surprise me at all. And that’s really too bad, because I wouldn’t mind getting a look at the covers on her books. Those I love. You can see my review here, if you’d like.

~ In Bed with a Highlander by Maya Banks – needless to say, this one surprised the ever livin’ hell out of me, as much as I love Ms. Banks’ romantic suspense novels. Honestly, I’m still flabbergasted at my reaction to this book. I expected to love it, every last word. But something went horribly wrong for me. I didn’t grade it super low just because of who the author is – at least the characters worked for me – but I just couldn’t get past other things. I feel another tear coming on. My review is here.

~ Captured by the Highlander/Claimed by the Highlander by Julianne MacLean – I’ve not read Ms. MacLean before these books, and I now know I shouldn’t have started here. I have a lot of her books in the TBR mountain, so it definitely surprised me during reading that these books just don’t work for me on any level, except maybe her characters. Despite their sounding like modern-day people and the books being nearly mirror images of each other, I do like the heroes and heroines. It’s everything else that needs work. I have yet to try the third book, and I don’t know how soon, if at all, that’s going to happen. My reviews can be read here and here.

So how do your 2011 reads stack up to my list? Any you agree with? How about vehemently disagree with?

Sandy M’s review of The Departed (FBI Psychics, Book 2) by Shiloh Walker
Paranormal Romance published by Berkley Trade 3 Jan 12

This is the second book in Shiloh Walker’s FBI Psychics series and I’m hooked. Along with her characters, it’s Ms. Walker’s ability to make the reader feel emotion that draws me back to her books time after time. Add in the paranormal element, and these books are awesome.

Taylor Jones and Desiree Lincoln work together in a special branch of the FBI. He’s her boss. They’re attracted to one another, but they’ve kept that attraction under control for quite a while now. Dez is able to communicate with the dead, try to help them overcome whatever issue it is keeping them from crossing over. Taylor has no psychic ability, he’s just always honed in on what to do and how to do it when a case comes to his attention. And he has ghosts of his own, the tragic loss of his young sister so many years ago, something that still haunts him to this day.

Everything changes between them in the blink of an eye – or the speed of a bullet. Dez is shot just as she and Taylor are about to make their escape with a child they’ve rescued. The image of her lying on the floor bleeding tears Taylor apart. His determination to take care of her after being released from the hospital goes south. They spend a night of passion together, but afterward Taylor puts distance between them again. Dez has no success in breaking down his barriers, so she walks away from it all – the job and Taylor.

Working on her own, Dez takes cases wherever spirits call her. Then she meets Nathan, a young ghost who needs Dez to help him save a girl in Taylor Jones’ hometown. As she discovers more about the girl and the boys who want to hurt her, Dez calls for backup – the only man she knows who will drop everything to help. Heading home for an anniversary he dreads but gets through every year, Taylor is close by when he learns Dez needs him. It’s been more than a year since he’s seen her, and not one thing has changed when he gets his first glimpse of her.

Taylor and Dez work together to solve her case, all the while an underlying smoldering surrounds them. When they finally come together again, it’s as raw and intense as the first time. Now Taylor is determined to keep Dez in his life, no matter what he has to do. Breaking through the field of feigned indifference will be the most difficult. Dez has learned not to hope where Taylor is concerned. Even when it seems he’s sincere and wants her with him, she has a hard time letting go to believe him.

The emotion in this book is spectacular. From the exhaustion that dogs Dez as she goes from case to case for months to the fear of the victims she helps to the confusion of the spirits who need her to the sensuality and longing between Taylor and Dez, nearly every page tugs at your heart, drags you deep into despair, tosses you into the throes of passion, pulls anger and grief in equal measure from the depths of your soul. Especially after all is said and done in Dez’s current case but another spirit is keeping her nearby, and this time it’s Taylor who has to live through tragedy and heartache once again.

I hope this series goes on for several more books, that Ms. Walker has plenty of stories in mind for these FBI psychics. It’s intriguing as hell and I love it all. I’m very anxiously awaiting the next book, though this one just hit the shelves and it’s going to be a long wait. It’s definitely worth the wait, however.

Grade: A+

Summary:

A LIFELONG OBSESSION

FBI Special Agent Taylor Jones has made it his mission to save those in harm’s way by any means necessary—including employing psychic agents like Desiree “Dez” Lincoln, who can communicate with the disembodied spirits of the dead. Taylor is haunted by his own ghost, his kid sister, gone missing at age six. For a quarter of a century he has been tortured by her loss and the mystery of her disappearance.

A NIGHT’S INDISCRETION

When Dez is seriously wounded, Taylor can no longer hide his feelings for her. Getting involved could spell disaster for both of them—not to mention those who rely on them for help—but once Dez lays her hands on him, he can’t resist the fierce attraction. But after giving in to his desires, Taylor pulls back, and Dez strikes out on her own.

AN INESCAPABLE PASSION

Responding to the call of another anguished spirit, Dez is led to Taylor’s old hometown. As the two are forced to come together to save a girl in peril, Dez may be able to help Taylor finally find the answers he’s been looking for…

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Well, in the excerpt earlier today, you got to meet Elias and Nessa. But you also need to meet Dominic.

Over such a period of time apart, of course, both of these characters have changed, but it’s Dom who’s changed the most. Though Nessa gets a pretty darned good makeover herself, when all is said and done.

But no matter what, they recognize each other just because of their love and need for one another.

So take the time to read this first chapter of Hunter’s Fall. I can guarantee you’ll make a trip to the old bookstore when you’re done…

Present Day

There was smoke.

And there was blood.

The air was thick, and he was going to choke on all the blood. Even if he didn’t have it pooling in his throat, he wouldn’t have been able to take a breath.

The pain wouldn’t let him.

It stole through him, turning everything to ice.

She was crying. He could hear her. She cried and wept and pleaded with him not to leave her. But he had no choice. Death was coming, coming to rip him away from the one person who mattered.

Even though he slept, he felt the sting of tears. Felt them well up under his eyes, felt them burn their way down his cheeks. He wanted to wipe them away. Wanted to wake from this awful dream.

But he was helpless, locked in his slumber.

Ah, Nessa . . . my beautiful, foolish, wonderful girl. I love you so much. I will come back . . . I will find you again . . .

Browning, Idaho

“You’re too pretty.”

“Am I?” he asked, a grin tugging at his lips. It was a mouth made for kissing.

“Yes.”

She was dreaming. Nessa knew she was dreaming. If she had any sense, she would lie back and just enjoy it.

Well, I already did that. And she had—three, no, four times over.

There was no way any red-blooded, straight woman could lie in bed with this man, dream or no dream, and not enjoy it. Not enjoy him.

His eyes were dark, rich as melted chocolate, framed by thick, curly eyelashes. His skin gleamed a soft, mellow gold. In the sun, she imagined that smooth, sleek skin would deepen to a darker gold. His hair was black, blacker than onyx, and thick. It had just the slightest curl to it and when she ran her hands through it, the jet strands twined her fingers.

She knew that from experience—she’d spent half the night with her hands buried in his hair.

They hadn’t spent much time standing up, but she guessed he was about five ten. He had a long, lean build, and she sensed strength inside him. Massive strength, but when he touched her, he did it with gentleness. Reverence.

As well a dream lover should, she supposed.

He reached up and traced the line of her mouth with his fingertip. She shivered under that light touch and felt heat flicker through her. Catching his finger in her mouth, she bit lightly.

Hunger blazed in his eyes.

She felt a response and leaned forward, pressing her lips to his. “Well, if I had to dream you, I must say, it turned out rather well,” she mused.

He laughed against her mouth and asked, “How do you know I’m not the one who dreamed you up?”

“Oh, believe me, I’m the one who is dreaming. There is no man out there pining for me.”

No man waiting. No man longing. No man searching. No matter what was promised.

I will come back . . . I will find you again . . .

“You’re so sad,” he whispered. “Why are you so sad?”

Nessa forced a smile. “Of course I’m not . . . well, I won’t be for long. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”

~*~

“I will find you. No matter where you go. No matter how far.”

With a snort, Nessa looked away from the TV and focused on Mei-Lin’s hair. The teenager grinned up at her. “It’s romantic, Nessa. You can’t snort like that when Daniel Day Lewis is on the screen saying a line like that.” With a sigh, the girl rested a hand on her heart and gazed at the TV with rapt eyes.

The Last of the Mohicans was the girl’s favorite movie. They usually watched it once a month.

Unless Nessa could see a way out. Today was Mei-Lin’s seventeenth birthday, though, and she’d wanted to watch the silly film before she went out with some friends.

Weaving the girl’s silky hair into a tight braid, Nessa glanced at the screen. Spectacular scenery. Strong, sexy men with big guns, innocent-looking girls with simpering eyes. Romantic bits like, I will find you.

It struck a knife in her heart.

Although it had been five hundred years, she could still hear Elias’s voice.

I will come back . . . I will find you again . . .

Only God Himself could keep me from you, love.

And God Himself had spent the last five centuries doing just that. Nessa couldn’t watch this damn film without reliving her memories. A time when she was torn away from her husband.

Not by pissed off Natives, but by death.

By God.

He had taken her lover from her, and had kept her from joining him.

She was alone, and empty. So empty inside. Not even her dream lover could ease that ache. At least not for long.

She blew out a sigh and used an elasticized band to keep Mei-Lin’s braid from unraveling. Rising from the couch, she gathered up the ice cream cartons from the floor and carted them into the kitchen to dump them in the trash.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Mei-Lin and despite herself, she had to smile.

This girl had pulled Nessa back from the edge of madness, despair.

Even as she tried to draw her mind away from the memories, she found herself caught in them again. It had been a few years since her life had been turned upside down.

One last battle . . . she’d been so sure when she went to face the young witch that it would be her last.

And after more than five hundred years, she was so very, very tired. So empty inside, but she’d become accustomed to that. The exhaustion, though, weighed on her more and more, with each and every year.

The thought of just being done had been such a . . . sweet relief. She’d yearned for it, ached for it. Longed for it. She’d gone to battle with a young woman who used her magic to steal life and power from others—Morgan Wakefield. She had practiced blood magic, and it was addictive. Once a witch gave in to that lure, it became a hunger, a need. Fighting it was almost impossible, and Morgan hadn’t wanted to.

The only way to keep her from killing was to end her life—a sad, sorry fact, but one Nessa had been prepared to handle. She’d been prepared for all likely outcomes—including her own death.

She hadn’t been prepared to live. She certainly hadn’t been prepared to live like this.

Absently, she glanced at the ornamental mirror hanging over the sofa and studied her face.

Morgan’s face.

No. She hadn’t been prepared for this. She’d fought the young, deceptive, blood-thirsty witch, and as she’d expected, her body hadn’t survived the battle. But somehow, her spirit had. She hadn’t planned for it—hadn’t done a damn thing to make this happen—at least not consciously. Nessa had wanted death, craved it. Craved it the way Morgan had craved blood. The way a drug addict craved their next fix. She’d needed it.

But instead of the sweet relief of death, she lived. In Morgan’s body.

For so long after it had happened, Nessa had been lost—trapped in a muddle of depression, despair, memories and madness. Even as she began to emerge from that fog, she’d hated it—she’d yearned for the sweet, oblivious cloud where she’d lived.

Until Mei-Lin.

They had met just a few months ago, but already, this girl had settled inside Nessa’s heart, forged a place there. Given Nessa a reason to believe again. A reason to hope. A reason to live.

She looked at Mei-Lin and saw the echo of her own youth. Kindred spirits, she supposed. That was why she’d felt so drawn to the girl, why she’d taken Mei-Lin under her wing instead of shipping her off to Excelsior.

Almost a year earlier, Mei-Lin’s mother had died and the girl had ended up in foster care, only to run away after one of the other foster kids had tried to molest her.

The night they met, Nessa had been walking through the dark streets, looking for a fight, a drink, both . . . anything to occupy her mind.

What she found was Mei-Lin. Or rather, Mei-Lin found her. The girl had quick hands—she might not have even noticed the theft if the girl hadn’t unconsciously used her magic as well.

Untrained witches—they were a danger to themselves. Nessa had planned to dump the girl back at Excelsior. She needed training, that was for certain, and she also needed to finish high school. She could do both at Excelsior. Kelsey and the other Hunters would see to it that Mei-Lin was trained and care for.

But in the end, it was Nessa who took the girl in. It hadn’t taken but a few hours to realize she needed the girl as much as the girl needed her. Perhaps more.

The two of them, they were both lost, lonely souls.

Meeting the girl had pulled Nessa back from the brink—she’d reminded Nessa of who she was.

She’d reminded Nessa of what she was.

She might be a lonely witch still pining over her lost lover, but she was also a fighter.

Nessa was a Hunter—a warrior, a witch. She’d devoted her life to protecting the innocent from the monsters in the world. She’d never given up in her whole damned life.

Mei-Lin helped her remember that about herself.

She owed the girl.

More, she loved her.

Leaning against the counter that separated the kitchen and the living room, she tucked her hair behind one ear and watched as the teen finished watching the movie. As the credits started to roll, Mei-Lin patted her heart and said, “If you’re still wanting to find me another birthday present, I want that. Gimme a man like that.”

“I looked but they’d already sold out at the mall.” Nessa rolled her eyes. “Darling, you are seventeen. You have plenty of time to find a man.”

“They do still make them like that, right?” She wrinkled her nose and said, “I want a real man, not one who spends more time messing with his hair than I do. I don’t want some dumb boy, either. Real men still exist, right?”

Nessa grinned and thought of some of the men she knew. Chortling, she tried to picture Malachi messing with his hair. The vampire had seen millennia come and go, and while he was a vain bastard, he wasn’t one to primp.

Images of other men, other friends—Hunters she’d worked with over the years—flashed through her mind. Would they stand in front of a mirror and primp? Tobias, Declan, Vax . . . no. Not a one of them.

Eli, perhaps, but he had always been a peacock.

She had a quick flash of her dream lover. That thick, silken hair, tousled by her hands. He wouldn’t spend his time studying his reflection, either, she knew.

Of course, he wouldn’t . . . he isn’t real. He was just her dream lover, a man her imagination created to help with the emptiness inside her, to help wile away long, lonely nights.

A dream lover . . . and he belongs in those dreams, only those dreams, so for the love of all things holy, stop thinking about him during the day.

She shoved off the counter and went to turn off the television. “Yes, Mei-Lin. I promise, there are plenty of men who are less than enamored with their pretty reflections.”

Outside, Nessa heard footsteps and she tugged on one of Mei-Lin’s braids. “Your friends are here.”

“How can you hear them?” she asked, cocking her head. She squinted her eyes as though it might help her hear better.

“Practice.” Nessa shrugged a shoulder. “You’ll get there.”

The doorbell rang and Mei-Lin moved to answer it. As a gaggle of giggling girls entered the small house, Nessa tidied up the living room. Living with a teenage girl, she was constantly picking up, straightening up, doing laundry.

She didn’t mind, oddly enough.

Other than Mei-Lin’s training, this was the closest to normal Nessa had ever known.

Mei-Lin reappeared in the door, surrounded by her friends.

“Hi, Ms. Chandler!”

Nessa managed not to make a face. Ms. Chandler was only one of the many names she’d used during her life—she’d much rather be called Agnes or Nessa than anything Ms. Made her feel as old as she truly was. Ancient.

Giving them a smile, she said, “How are you this evening, Kim?”

“Oh, you know.” She rolled eyes heavily made up with black liner and said, “I’m sort of on probation. Brought home a C on my final and Mom said if it happened again, I’d lose the car until I brought home something better.”

“You could have a better grade if you wanted.” Nessa knew the line she should use and she did. Mei-Lin’s friends, the teachers, all the people they knew thought Nessa was Mei-Lin’s stepsister. They even had legal papers to document it. “Your mother just wants you to do your best.”

“I know.” Kim sighed and shrugged. “Chemistry is just so boring. I can’t wait until I’m done with school and don’t have to worry about that sh . . . uh, crap anymore.”

Dryly, Nessa said, “Paying bills is quite boring as well. You’ll have to do things you don’t enjoy the rest of your life. The good comes with the bad.” She gave Mei-Lin a bright smile and said, “Speaking of which . . .”

She dumped the armful of shoes, books, iPod and socks into Mei-Lin’s arms. “Before you go out, please put these away.”

Mei-Lin rolled her eyes and obediently trucked up the stairs.

One of the newer girls asked Nessa about her accent, and another started rambling on about how sssexxxy accents were. Kim enviously told the others how Nessa had taken Mei-Lin to France for spring break.

The new girl—Ashlyn—rolled her eyes and said, “Man, Mei. You’ve got the coolest mom. Mine would never let me go that far away without her.”

Mei-Lin appeared on the stairs and pain flashed across her face. Nessa gave her a gentle smile and whispered mind-to-mind, Are you okay?

Mei-Lin gave her a tight smile.

An awkward silence fell, and one of the girls leaned in and in a loud whisper said, “Way to go, Ashlyn. Mei’s mom died last year. Ms. Chandler is Mei’s stepsister—her guardian.”

Ashlyn went white. Nessa patted the girl on the shoulder. “It’s okay, Ashlyn. You didn’t know, now did you?” Then she gave her a smile and said, “I imagine your mum is quite the protective one. I’m sure you find it quite irritating, but she loves you. Enjoy it . . . enjoy her, because you never know how long you’ll have her.”

Ashlyn gave Mei-Lin a slightly sick smile. “I’m sorry, Mei. I didn’t . . .”

“It’s cool,” Mei-Lin said, shaking her head.

Changing the subject, Nessa looked at Kim and said, “So, what plans do you girls have tonight?”

Mei-Lin gave Nessa an exasperated look while Kim smiled. In a singsong voice, she replied, “We’re going to get some dinner at Applebee’s, then we’re going to a movie. The movie is at the Multiplex and it starts at 9:15. It should be over by 11:30. I have to drop the other girls off first, but we’ll be here by midnight and I’m spending the night. And yes, Ms. Chandler, my mother will be calling at midnight so I hope you’re awake.”

“Cheeky girl,” Nessa murmured. She looked at Mei-Lin. “You have your phone?”

A few minutes later, Nessa shut the door behind them. Alone in the house, she rested her head back against the door and sighed. Alone . . . and it was too quiet.

When silence came, the voice was louder.

The voice . . . Morgan’s voice. Yes, she had Morgan’s body, and she also had Morgan’s . . . ghost, for lack of a better word.

“This is just too cute for words, you old hag. Look at you, playing house.”

It was a taunting, angry jibe, but Nessa pretended to ignore it. Once she had noise, once she had something to occupy her hands, the voice of the dead woman would fade.

For a time.

How much longer, she wondered. How much longer would Morgan linger?

Even now, months, years later, the girl haunted her.

Damn her. Even in death, she’d managed to ruin things. If the woman’s body had just died, then Nessa could have died as well.

“Is this the reason you stole my body, so you could play Holly Homemaker?”

Nessa shoved away from the door and reached out. With the slightest flex of her magic, she turned on some music. Loud. But Morgan wasn’t going to go quiet that easily.

“This is a fucking waste. Why did you take my body if this is all you’re going to do? Shit, can’t you even go out, find a guy, get drunk, get fucked? Something—anything—would be better than watching you play mama witch to that little idiot.”

Nessa smirked. “Not while I’ve got a dead witch whining in the back of my head.”

“I don’t see why not. It’s my body.”

“Actually, no, it’s not. If it was your body, you’d be able to take it back. But you can’t.” She knew what the girl was about—Morgan wanted to make Nessa feel guilty, wanted to exploit any and every little weakness.

“It damn well is my body,” Morgan snarled, her mental voice an angry, ugly growl. “Your body died. That old bag of bones is gone. Hypocritical bitch. How in the hell can you condemn me for taking blood when you took my damn body?”

Narrowing her eyes, Nessa turned to the mirror and stared at her reflection. She saw her face—the face that had once belonged to Morgan. “You didn’t just take blood, child. You took lives. You ended lives. When I came upon you, you stank of death. How many have you killed? Can you even remember?”

“The strong kill the weak. It’s the way of the world.”

“We could write your death off that way if you like.” Malicious cow—she knew just what words to use, when to use them. Guilt tried to settle inside Nessa but she cast it off. “And here’s another way of the world. You can call it karma. I prefer ‘you shall reap what you sow.’ You killed. Blindly, indiscriminately and you enjoyed it. You would have sucked my body dry of magic, sucked me dry of life, and then moved on to your next victim and your next. But you couldn’t beat me. And I didn’t take your body. Trust me, precious, I didn’t want your body. I didn’t want this life. You don’t like it, and I understand that. I don’t like it either. But we’re both stuck with it.”

“I’ll find a way to get my body back.”

“No.” Nessa shook her head. “You won’t. You’re just a ghost, Morgan, clinging to life. You need to let go and move on. It’s not like there’s much of anything keeping you here now, is there?”

“There’s plenty keeping me here. My body, for one.”

Nessa stared at her reflection, knowing the ghost in the back of her mind would see the insolent smile on her face. That was where Morgan existed now—that was the only place Morgan existed.

“It’s not your body. You went and got greedy, precious. Tried to take things that don’t belong to you. This is rather karmic, don’t you think? You took power, you took blood . . . and your body was taken from you. It’s mine now.”

“Because you stole it.”

Nessa sighed. “No, I didn’t.”

After all, stealing another’s body would imply that Nessa wanted to live. She’d wanted anything but. She’d gone into that battle with her eyes wide open, knowing that after more than five hundred years, she could finally rest. She would die, and on the other side, she’d find Elias. Finally.

But fate hadn’t worked out that way.

Nobody else knew. Nessa had told no one about Morgan. Morgan was her burden, her problem. And she’d learned how to deal with the problem relatively well.

Smiling at her reflection, she leaned in and kissed the mirror. “I must get to work now. Toddle off now, precious. We living witches have things to do.”

In the back of her mind, she heard Morgan shriek . . . just before she blocked her off.

Her workroom was tucked away down in the basement, and she might as well spend some time working on Mei-Lin’s next lesson—the poor girl was still having trouble with basic grounding and shielding. Until they had down, they couldn’t start even the more rudimentary magics.

Focusing on the work, she lost track of time. It wasn’t until she felt a brush against her senses that she looked up with a glance at the clock. Nearly ten. Time enough.

“You might as well come in, Mal. I’m alone for now.”

The vampire appeared in front of her, materializing out of thin air. He cast a look around the small, dimly lit room and grimaced. “Fuck me, love. You could do far better than this, you know.”

“This will do me fine, thank you.” She made a few more notes in the margin of the paper and tossed her pencil down. Rising from the chair, she moved around the desk and rose on her toes to kiss Malachi’s cool cheek.

The vampire was her oldest friend—in more ways than one. He was so old, he’d forgotten just how old he was. Nessa knew he’d been a Roman slave at some point during his human life.

She had met him shortly after she’d returned to Excelsior after Elias had died. Five hundred years of friendship.

She knew his moods. Though that pale, poetically handsome face showed no expression, something was bothering him.

He was worried.

“Where is Kelsey?”

“At the school.” He brushed an absent hand down her hair and turned away. Restless, he roamed around the small room for a few moments before coming to a stop in front of the shelf of books.

Many of the books were old. Not a few decades or even a couple of hundred years. They’d belonged to Nessa for several centuries. He studied them and then turned around, looking at Nessa with an unreadable expression.

Nessa sighed. “What it is, Mal?”

“I don’t know.” Dark, deep red hair fell to hide his face as he lowered his gaze to the floor. He stood in silence for long, long moments.

Her skin started to buzz and adrenaline started to course through her. She didn’t feel anything. But something had Malachi on edge. The bastard had walked this earth for even longer than Nessa—whatever bothered him, it wasn’t going to be some mild little annoyance.

Finally, he lifted his head and pinned her with midnight blue eyes. “Kelsey wanted me here, pet. I don’t know why. She doesn’t know why. But she wanted me here.”

“That doesn’t sound quite good.” Nessa rubbed her eyes and then lowered her head, mentally extending her senses. She felt nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

No nasty, hideous supernatural monster creeping close—that she would feel, just as she’d sensed Malachi’s presence. The small town of Browning, Idaho, had a nearly nonexistent paranormal population. It was why Nessa had chosen to live here after she’d made the decision to take care of Mei-Lin. She didn’t need to worry about any vampires or werewolves. The nearest wolf pack was close to a hundred miles away, and the nearest vamp was even farther. There were one or two lesser witches, a family of cat shifters, and the odd random psychic.

If anything new had moved in, Nessa would have felt it.

“I don’t feel anything,” she pointed out, although she knew it was unnecessary. Malachi might be a vampire and she a witch, but they were both Hunters, which meant they were tuned into the monsters—the non-mortals that hunted and preyed on the innocent.

“Neither do I.” A muscle twitched in his jaw.

Nessa felt the bottom of her stomach drop out. The look in his eyes, it nearly froze her to the bone. She closed her eyes and reached out, extending her mind until it brushed up against Mei-Lin’s. She sensed the younger witch, sensed her surprise as Mei-Lin felt Nessa’s presence.

She gave the nonverbal equivalent of Shhh . . . it’s okay. Just wanted to check on you. And that she did—the girl was most definitely in the theater, as were her friends.

Feeling a bit reassured, she opened her eyes and focused on Malachi’s face. “Mei-Lin will be here shortly. It’s her birthday and she’s gone to the pictures.” She paused and took a deep breath. “She was to have a friend spend the night, but I guess I should reschedule that.”

Malachi just watched her.

“She’ll be cross with me,” Nessa said, forcing a smile.

“She’s a good lass. She’ll understand.”

“Hmmm. Perhaps. Although if I knew whatever the trouble was, it might make it easier to explain, wouldn’t you agree?”

They left Nessa’s small house to drive to the theater. Malachi wouldn’t go for remaining at the house. Truthfully, Nessa was glad he came along, and not just because it was amusing to watch as the big vampire forced his large body into the front seat of her Ford Fusion.

“I’d have more room in a tin can, love.”

“Oh, nonsense. Besides, you can’t drive a tin can.” She started the car and backed up, zipping along the roads with careless speed.

“You can’t crash a tin can, either,” Malachi muttered, maintaining a white-knuckled grip on the doorframe.

Plastic cracked and she shot him a disapproving glance. “If you make a mess of my car, vampire, I’ll have your arse.”

She could almost see how much it took for him to ease up. “How did you get any sort of license, driving like this?” He gave her a sour look. “You didn’t magic some fool into it, did you?”

“Of course not.” Nessa smiled serenely. “I don’t have a license.”

She checked the opposite lane of the narrow two-lane highway and darted around a semi, grinning as the driver laid on the horn when she squeezed in front of him.

“Fuck me,” Malachi mumbled. He closed his eyes and rested his head against the back of the passenger seat. “Damn good thing I’m not mortal—you’d give me a heart attack.”

As they neared the interstate, she reached over and patted the white-knuckled fist he had resting on his knee. “You worry too much, my friend. Turning into a boring old fusspot.”

He shot her a narrow glance. “Very few people would dare call me a fusspot.”

She opened her mouth but the words locked in her throat.

Blood roared in her ears. She barely had the presence of mind to pull the car onto the narrow shoulder before she wrecked it. Her hands shook, cold and clammy on the steering wheel.

“Mal . . .”

It came as a cold wind.

Death. Uncaring, unstoppable.

Malachi felt it as well—she could tell by the tight expression on his face, the blue light glowing in his eyes.

She shot him a dazed look. For a few short moments, she could hardly breathe.

The sound of her mobile phone buzzing hit like a fist, stealing the breath from her lungs. She grabbed it, recognizing Mei-Lin’s picture on the display.

“Nessa, hey, you didn’t answer the home phone.”

“Mei-Lin, what’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing.” Then she paused.

In the background, Nessa could hear the girls talking and their voices lacked the excited, happy tone from earlier. Then Mei-Lin sighed and said, “Kim ran into this guy she was dating at the theater. He started being a real jerk and I told him to back off. He started yelling at me and some guy in the row in front of us told him to back off and then . . .” Her voice trailed off. She was quiet for a minute and then said, “Kim just wanted to leave. So we left. I wanted to let you know we’d be there soon and—”

There was a scream.

A crash.

And Nessa felt it as death came in and claimed yet more lives.

~*~

She cried.

His pretty little witch was crying.

Standing in a field of stone, surrounded by people, yet utterly alone.

Day bled into night and the people drifted from her side and still she cried. She was alone now, save for one woman and one man.

Anger bit into him as the man—the vampire—dared to lift a hand to touch the witch. Dared to wrap a big arm around her slender shoulders and draw her close.

Tears choked him.

Her pain racked him.

He wanted to reach out to her. He wanted to be the one to comfort her, to hold her against him as she wept.

But when he whispered her name, she didn’t hear him.

~*~

Dominic came awake with her name on his lips and a tearing pain in his heart.

Snarling, he fought free of the covers and dashed a hand over his damp face. Crying. Damn it. Again. Dreams of some woman he’d never met and he wakes up crying. He stared at the pink smears on his fingertips and stormed into the bathroom to wash away the blood-tinged tears.

With water dripping from his face, he looked at the mirror. A muscle worked in his jaw and he gripped the edge of the marble counter.

“This is fucking ridiculous,” he muttered.

He was obsessed. Obsessed, dreaming about the same woman, night after night, year after year. And now he was even crying like some fucking pansy in his dreams.

“What in the hell is this?” Shoving away from the counter, he strode to the enclosed shower and turned on the water with an angry flick of his wrist. He needed a damn hot shower, he needed a good hard run, maybe even a down and dirty fight—if he could get all three of those, it might lighten his dark mood.

But somehow he doubted it.

The dreams were getting worse, and he had a bad feeling he knew why.

Dominic Ralston was going crazy.

I recently said in a review that I’m currently, slowly but surely, making my way through Shiloh Walker‘s backlist. That includes her Hunters series. Unfortunately for me, this is the first book of that series that I’ve read. And it’s made me very hungry to read the ones before it. Fortunately for those of you who are up to date with the series – and even if you’re not, like me! – you’re in for a very compelling read with Hunter’s Fall.

Elias and Nessa lost each other centuries ago, Elias promising Nessa he will find her once again. This is a love that survives everything, death, heartache, time, loneliness, danger, and so much more that a Hunter can experience over the years.

And when that love is finally to be reunited, nothing can stand in its way. And it comes just in time for Nessa.

Summary:

UNKNOWN PAST

Something strange is happening to Nessa. Ever since she survived a near-death experience she’s not exactly who she used to be—and enjoying every minute of it. Then she’s called upon to go to battle against darkness. If only she could remember why.

UNEXPECTED LOVER

Dominic is having his own problems with memory, sanity, and hallucinations. Sent to Excelsior, the covert Hunter training facility, he senses a female presence that seems so hauntingly familiar. That’s because he and Nessa share a forgotten past.

UNSEEN EVIL

As Nessa and Dominic regain their memories, their strange mission against evil becomes clearer. And all the more dangerous because whether they should trust each other is the still the greatest unknown of all.

First meet Elias and Nessa…

Prologue

Oneoak, England
1506

He was watching her again, the old bugger. She could feel his eyes on her and they made her feel dirty. She quickened her steps and slipped out of the village, melting into the shadows of the forest.

William—why in the hell had he been out this late? It was past midnight. No reason for any sane soul to be awake.

Of course, she was awake. But there were things she needed to do. Out in the forest—the sort of things the good people of the village were better off not knowing about. The sort of things that would likely have her branded a witch, if they knew what she was doing.

And of course, she was a witch. She took no shame in it, either. It was a God-given gift—a gift that saved lives, a gift that helped people.

The skin on the back of her neck crawled. She could still feel the weight of his stare. Casting a look over her shoulder, Agnes stared through the trees, but she could not see him.

He was not there now.

But he had been.

He always seemed to be watching her. There was something about it that made her feel tainted, foul. Almost as bad as that one time he’d touched her.

Damn that bastard. She should have taught him a lesson then. Nessa moved deeper into the forest, trying to shrug off the nervy, twitchy feeling between her shoulder blades.

She was uneasy.

Not afraid, she insisted, squaring her shoulders as she continued to move through the night. Agnes was a Hunter of the Council. She did not fear the dark. She did not fear the monsters lurking there.

The darkness feared her. And she was quite certain if she told herself that enough, she would even believe it.

But something was not quite right tonight. She could feel it. Scent it. All but taste it. She wanted to go back to her home, cuddle in bed beside her man, Elias, and hold him tight. But she could not.

Something evil was afoot, and it called her.

Called her from the safety of her bed into the darkness of night.

Part of her still feared, no matter how much she might insist otherwise.

She did not rightly know if she would ever get over that fear. After all, she knew what monsters hid in the darkness—she knew them truly and well—she knew their names, their faces, the blood and their magic. She was right to fear them.
But fear or not, she had responsibilities. Uneasy or not, she had a sworn duty.

Agnes was more than just a witch.

She was a Hunter, called to protect others. She had been sent to this small village to deal with the rogue werewolves roaming in the forest, preying on the villagers. It had been the first task assigned to her and she knew she had done well.
The werewolves were gone.

They were not responsible for this uneasiness inside her. Perhaps it was just William, she thought. He always made her feel twitchy and jumpy. Dirty.

Not for much longer, though. Soon, she would be away from him and she would never have to see that nasty man again.
Soon she and Elias would be leaving Oneoak. First they would go to Brendain, the home of the Hunters. It had been home to her for nearly six years, since she was twelve. She was almost eighteen now. Although she had lived in Oneoak for the past year, it was not home. Not for her. No, Brendain was home and soon, she would return there, and this time, she would take her man with her.

The two of them would take a bit of a rest. Nessa would see if there was some place she was needed.

Needed . . . it warmed her heart to think of it.

Nessa was needed.

Absently, she fingered the tip of her braid, lost in thought. It was not just by the Hunters, either. She helped people. She had saved people. A grin lit her face as she thought of one person in particular—she had saved his arse, even if Elias tried to argue.

She knew the truth.

Elias could tease her and call her a foolish girl all he wanted.

He knew the truth. She had saved his life. It had been almost a year since she had met him, just one week after she’d come to Oneoak. The wolves would have torn him apart that night. There had just been too many of them—his silver dagger could kill them, but not if there were ten of them and only one of him.

They would have killed him if she had not come and burned them to nothing but dust and ashes.

The entire pack was gone now, the bloodthirsty monsters sent straight to hell where they belonged. A new pack would come here, a healthy pack, one that would roam this land and care for it the way it deserved to be cared for.

The taint in the land would be cleansed. And it was in part because of one little witch, a Hunter called Agnes.
Nessa. Elias called her that, said that Agnes just did not suit her. It was his mother’s name also, and she knew that was partly why he did not think it suited her. Thinking of him made that uneasiness return, stronger, more powerful.

“Stop it,” she muttered to herself. With a sigh, Nessa started to head south. One last trip through, just to be certain.

They would leave in the morning.

But she froze. Icy fear wrapped a fist around her heart.

Pain plunged a fist into her stomach.

Fire danced before her eyes.

A cacophony of voices assaulted her mind.

Witches—we have to kill them.

Do not kill him yet. We need him to get her back here. To make her confess before she dies.


She is just a girl—be sensible. A nice girl. We cannot do this. We will take them before the priests. If there is something wrong, they will know what to do.

Be silent, woman!

She is a witch . . . oh, aye. I have seen her, using fire, casting spells—she has tried to bewitch me. Tried to seduce me, that witch.

Rage wrapped its fiery grip around her. She knew that voice. It belonged to Sir William. Oh, she would tear his eyes out. Slamming a hand against the trunk of a tree, she braced herself to keep from stumbling as everything struck her at once.

Adrenaline surged through her and she spun around, running through the trees. The very night had fallen silent—too silent. The forest was never this still.

A voice rasped through her head and she heard him speak even though he was far away.

Run, Nessa. Do not come back here, Elias said in her mind. Elias had no magic, no power, nothing save the bond their love gave him. But he knew that if he spoke out to her, she would hear him.

And likely, he knew she would not listen.

The anger and fear in his voice added to her own fear, but it spurred the part inside her that made her warrior as well as witch. She only ran faster. If he thought she would run away when he was in danger, then Elias did not know his wife very well at all.

She tore into Oneoak looking exactly like what she was. One very angry witch.

William had been watching her—watching to make sure she left before he sprung this nasty trap.

Nessa knew she was losing control of her magic but she did not care. And then she saw that they had tied Elias to a pole, hay and branches at his feet.

Sir William, the sodding sheriff, stood at her husband’s side, ready to burn him. Nessa’s grasp on her control fractured even more.

Elias lifted his head, glaring at her. It was dark, but her eyesight had always been keen. Even in the dim light of the torches, she could see him well. They had beaten him. One eye was black, and both his nose and mouth had been busted, blood painting gory streaks on his handsome face.

“Nessa . . .”

She met his eyes and shook her head.

“Let him go,” she said quietly, clenching her hands into fists. There was nothing she wanted more than to release the power flooding her right now. Release it all, into the smug face of Sir William.

Oh, he would pay for this, Nessa swore, her body trembling with anger and fear. He’d pay for this.

William folded his face into pious lines. “Agnes, you and Elias have fallen into a dark path, practicing magic, worshipping dark, foul monsters.”

“We worship no monsters.” She arched a brow. “Elias practices no magic.”

But she’d be damned if she would lie about herself.

They leaped on the one simple thing that she left out. “So you admit it! Witch!”

They moved closer, and Nessa narrowed her eyes. “Stay back, you blind fools,” she said softly. “Let him go.”

William dared to take one step forward. “You say he is no witch—we cannot take the word of a woman who openly admits she uses the dark powers. If we let him go, will you let us bind you? Will you go through our tests? Cleanse yourself?”

She’d openly admitted nothing. She just had not denied it. Looking at William, she suppressed the urge to snort as she stared at him. Cleanse myself? “I do not fear your tests, William. Let Elias go. He has done nothing wrong.”

William smirked. “If he has done nothing wrong, then by all means . . .” He glanced at one of the men and nodded. “But first you must agree. You will be bound. You will submit to the tests. You will be cleansed.”

“Your men will untie him as I come to you. If you dare be foolish, Sir William, you will know pain like nothing you have ever felt,” she warned.

“Nessa!”

She lifted her head and stared across the distance separating them. They use ropes, Elias. You think I cannot get rid of a few paltry ropes? Run into the forest—to our cave. I will meet you there. And these simpletons can rot. We wasted months protecting them.

His dark brown eyes stared into hers with fury and desperation. Do not let him touch you, Nessa. I do not trust him—

She just shook her head. She would not risk Elias. She would not. She walked arrogantly toward William, holding her wrists out in front of her. He just smiled benevolently and gestured to one of his men.

“I shall deal with your husband,” William said, his voice quiet and dignified. His eyes gleamed though, with something she did not like, not one bit. He would deal with her husband? Lower himself to free him? Instead of ordering his men . . . ?
Her ears pricked at those words. Her instincts screamed.

Rough rope bit into her wrists but she barely even noticed as she watched William walk over the uneven ground to where his men were cutting Elias free.

Elias shrugged away from them and started toward Nessa. She shook her head at him and she could see the argument in his eyes. Run, she said into his mind. Now.

She heard the argument in his head. Felt his refusal.

And then there was nothing but icy, sharp pain. She felt the brutal echo of it in her own heart.

They were soul mates—meant for each other even before birth. It would have been better if that blade had killed her as well as Elias.

“No!” she screamed out. She shoved at the sheriff’s man, pushing away from him as though he was naught more than a child.

“Grab her—cover her eyes,” one of the men bellowed.

All around her people shouted—although some screamed in horror as they realized what one of William’s men had done.

She barely even heard them. She was aware of nothing.

Nothing but the screams . . . and the blood.

It was Elias’s blood, dripping from the dagger of a treacherous snake.

Without even looking at her wrists, she gave in to the rage and used her magic to set fire to the ropes, and they fell to the ground still flaming. Nessa didn’t remember closing the distance between her and Elias, just catching him as he sagged to the ground.

William stood behind him, his thin mouth curved up in a smile. In his hand, he held a jeweled dagger and the blade dripped with dark, dark red blood.

“You will be mine now, Agnes.”

“Not even in hell,” she whispered hotly, lifting her eyes from Elias’s face for one second. “And hell awaits you.”

William fell back a step as he looked at her. Behind her, she heard people moving up. Power exploded through her and then heat surrounded her. Fire now wrapped a deadly ring around the three of them, Elias, William and Agnes. He paled, his eyes widening as the fire seemed to reach out and grab him.

“Help me!”

Elias laughed, the sound choked and full of pain. “Listen to him scream for help, love. You came and answered their cries. And this is what they have done.”

Nessa looked down at Elias, pressing her fingers to his lips. “Hush,” she whispered, forcing the words past the tears that were threatening to choke her.

Then she looked back at William. “Filthy swine—there is no help for you. Murderer, filthy, evil murderer. Rot in hell.”

William shrieked, the stench of his burning flesh heavy in the air. All around people screamed, and then they scattered. Their fear was ripe—she should have been choking on it, but she didn’t care.

Nothing mattered.

Nothing but the sight of Elias lying so still in her arms, his face growing more and more pale as his blood flowed so hotly from his body.

She reached under Elias, pressing her hand to the wound. It was too close to his heart, though. “Elias . . . God, please,” she sobbed, hugging him to her. His breath rattled in and out of his chest. “Do not leave me!”

“Hush.”

“Do not tell me to hush, you fool!” she shrieked. Magic sparked out of her and she tried to focus it. Witches could heal.

Damn it, she could heal him. She had not yet learned that magic, but she had to try.

She couldn’t focus it, though, not to save her life.

Or his, it seemed. More and more blood drained from him as she tried to use her wild magic to heal that nasty, jagged wound. “You cannot leave me, Elias,” she whispered. “You cannot leave me. You are my life.”

He reached up, touching his hand to her face. Nessa gave up trying to hold the jagged edges of the wound together and caught his hand, pressing it to her cheek. “Ah, Nessa . . . my beautiful, foolish, wonderful girl. I love you so much. I will come back . . . I will find you again.”

He coughed and a sob wracked her body as she saw the blood trickle from his lips. “Promise me!” she choked. “You promise me! Promise me you’ll come back.”

“Only God Himself could keep me from you, love,” Elias whispered. He sighed and his entire body trembled. She could feel the pain tearing through him and she forced herself in between, using her power to separate him from the pain as she filtered it away. She could not heal him, could not save him—but she could damn well stop him from hurting.

The tension eased from his body and he breathed a little easier.

“Elias . . .” she moaned, wrapping her arms around him.

“Just hold me, Nessa,” he murmured. His voice was weaker. Lifting her head, she stared down at him, brushing his hair back from his battered face. “I do wish I had listened to you, my beautiful witch.”

Closing her eyes, she whispered, “Just come back, Elias.”

“My Nessa.”

Challenging Characters

I think it was 2006 or 2007 when I initially signed a contract to write this story.

Then there came problems.  Problems in the form of my heroine, Nessa.  You see, she wasn’t ready. I put her through ten different kinds of hell in Hunters Heart and Soul, and I admit, it was fun.

So I guess this was her payback.

Photo: http://ayricabishopimages.com

Because I couldn’t write her book then.  After banging my head—figuratively speaking, and maybe literally—I emailed my editor, desperate, panicking.  Either this is a common occurrence or she was expecting this from me.  But she said I could wait.  I had other stories I could tell and she was fine with one of those.
So I waited.  I wrote a different book, although it might have been two?? Hunter’s Need, Fragile???

I finished up that contract and with the next one, I was going to write that dang book.

Then I had to do it again—was going to try it again in 2008.  But nooooo.  Then I think Veil of Shadows got in the way, although it could have been Broken.  Those characters were ready.

Finally in 2009, I was able to start working on it.  But the heroine fought me every step of the way. Now the hero, Dominic, he wasn’t so bad.  I can’t explain why, except maybe he just wasn’t playing a game of payback the way his heroine was.

Now, he was easy.  Even when his heroine was driving me nuts, Dominic just settled back and smiled. I only wish all characters were that laid back.  Although I guess if they were, the process of telling of a story would get too easy and maybe I’d take it for granted.

It would be nice, though, if they sometimes remembered who is in charge…

Oh, wait.  Groan…the characters are.

Sandy M’s review of Hunter’s Fall (The Hunters, Book 13) by Shiloh Walker
Paranormal Romance published by Berkley 7 Jun 11

Of all the series to not have started reading yet, this shouldn’t be one of them. But for me it is, and after reading this book, I am very unhappy with myself for leaving the series till later. Of course, I started collecting these books before I actually read any Shiloh Walker, and now that I’ve become a fan of her work, I should have known better before even beginning Hunter’s Fall. Should have known I would love getting to know Nessa and Dom, learning about all they’ve been through to find each other again, living through their heartache and vacillating emotions. I should have known Ms. Walker would suck me into a story that I likely will remember for a very long time to come.

As with any of my reviews of her books, it’s the emotional depth of the characters as they go through a hell only the strongest would survive that gets to me every time. It’s taken Nessa, the strongest witch the Hunter Council has ever known, five hundred years to finally let go of her grief over losing the love of her life and waiting for him to find her again. Especially when she also recently loses another she loves with all her heart. Her answer to a life of loneliness is to just give up, let life pass her by, stay away from those few friends she may inadvertently hurt after barely surviving a battle against a dark witch that leaves Nessa with a thirst she’s never before experienced.

Dominic is a young vampire, only ten years turned, and is on his way to becoming a Master if he so desires. He’s always dreamed of a woman he’s never met. She seems very real, but he’s not sure she’s really out there, though there’s something in his soul that tells him he has to find her. When the voices in his head become too much, he’s sent back to Excelsior, the Hunter school, to try to find a solution to this craziness. It’s there he finds the first clue that his dream woman really does exist, and now nothing will stop him from finding her. Well, only after Malachi, the most infamous of vampires, satisfies himself Dom means his oldest friend no harm.

As fate would have it, as Dominic is regaining his memories of his long-ago life with Nessa, she’s just battled a blood-thirsty witch and is left with no memories of her past. Dom now must fight Nessa herself for the future that’s been so long in coming. I thought at first I might be a tad miffed that Dom and Nessa are only aware of each only in their dreams, they don’t come face to face until late in the book, but Ms. Walker makes those dreams as real for the reader as she does for the characters themselves. It also makes their lovemaking much sweeter when it happens in real time.

What I really like is how Dom and Nessa can feel each other’s pain when they’re together. We also, of course, get to see their individual pain as they remember their shared past, and even more so from Dom’s POV when he’s not sure why he’s looking for his dream woman. He keeps rubbing the heel of his palm over his heart, and I felt for him every time. I also like how the Hunters are there for one another, taking no bullshit from each other when one needs help.

I enjoyed meeting those other Hunters throughout this book. I look forward to eventually reading about how each couple met and their conflict they had to overcome to finally be together. I know each book will keep me captivated until the very last word. I’ve come to expect nothing less of Shiloh Walker.

Grade: A+

Summary:

UNKNOWN PAST

Something strange is happening to Nessa. Ever since she survived a near-death experience she’s not exactly who she used to be—and enjoying every minute of it. Then she’s called upon to go to battle against darkness. If only she could remember why.

UNEXPECTED LOVER

Dominic is having his own problems with memory, sanity, and hallucinations. Sent to Excelsior, the covert Hunter training facility, he senses a female presence that seems so hauntingly familiar. That’s because he and Nessa share a forgotten past.

UNSEEN EVIL

As Nessa and Dominic regain their memories, their strange mission against evil becomes clearer. And all the more dangerous because whether they should trust each other is the still the greatest unknown of all.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Sandy M’s review of Chains by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Romance published by Berkley 5 May 09

As some of you know, I’m a huge, huge Shiloh Walker fan, as my review of one of her latest, A Forever Kind of Love, earlier this week attests. I’ve vowed I’m going to read her backlist when I can, and this time I chose Chains. I love everything about this book, of course. I had one teeny tiny issue, but in the end it really didn’t mean all that much, because the story Ms. Walker gives readers hits hard, hits low, and the way these heroines survive the blows is beyond incredible.

These three heroines are brought together by violence in one tragic night, and it’s amazing to see how they triumph over it all. They come from very different areas of life, so while in high school, where their lives take a turn no one could have ever imagined, they don’t interact or run in the same circles. But they all end up at the same party, all for different reasons, and then end up uniting together when things get out of control and one of them is in dire trouble. I like that the other two come to her aid because it’s the right thing to do, as well as they do with what happens afterward. But it’s more that they help because only another woman can understand this type of violence.

Renee is the girl most of us hated in high school. Perfect everything, but not is all as it seems. Lacey is the athlete, everyone loved her and knew she was going places. Sherra is the wrong-side-of-the-tracks girl.

It’s the party girl Sherra who attends a rowdy blowout given by the mayor’s son and it’s her reputation that instigates harassment by some guys, one of whom won’t take no for an answer. Renee and Lacey come to her rescue, even though the culprit is a guy who her parents approve of and who Renee came to the party with. But things get even worse when a gun comes into play during this horrible night. The ensuing nightmares for all three girls send them fleeing, never to return until fifteen years later.

Each of the women has prospered in the intervening years, though still haunted by that one awful night. They get their own new story with their heroes, who eventually bring them peace as well as love, and there’s a lot of sizzling hot sex, which shouldn’t surprise anyone if they’ve read Ms. Walker before this. There’s still danger out there amidst their reunion, and the suspense and mystery of this stalker only gives the book another layer which weaves everything together into one immensely satisfying read.

My one tiny issue? I was a little off balance with the way the book ended. I even asked Sybil to try to get me another e-copy, just in case mine had inadvertently lost a couple of pages. But it hadn’t and I moved on. It really didn’t change anything for me at all and I laughed at myself afterward, asking why I’d been so nitpicky in and among such awesome writing. No idea. Maybe I just wanted the book to go on and on. That, I wouldn’t have raised an eyebrow at.

Grade: A

Summary:

They weren’t friends. They weren’t enemies. The only thing the three girls had in common was the high school they went to in Madison, Ohio—until one tragic night. Now, fifteen years later, they’re returning home where passion—and danger—await…

Renee Lincoln was the homecoming queen—with the perfect boyfriend and the perfect life. After that horrible night, she rebelled the only way she knew how: by submitting to her wildest fantasies…

Tall, blonde, and athletic, Lacey Talbot was a golden girl with a bright future. She’s found success as a photographer, but no man has ever been able to satisfy her. No man but the bad boy she left behind…

Sherra Salinger has always looked like a princess out of some fairy tale. The books she writes, though, stem from the nightmare of that one night. And she shrinks from any man’s attention—especially the one stalking her…

They’re coming back to Madison—and it won’t be happy reunion. There are three men, all dangerous in a different way. And when each of them surrender their bodies to the heat, when they succumb to desire, they’ll find the safety they desperately need…

Read an excerpt.

Sandy M’s review of A Forever Kind of Love by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Romance ebook short story published by Samhain 26 Apr 11

I’m fast coming to the conclusion that I could read a Shiloh Walker book every day of the week. I’d never get the same or similar story twice. I’d be drawn into the lives of her characters from the very beginning, knowing their lives will have to survive a turmoil so emotional, the ride will affect me just as much as it does them. That’s the main pull for me when I read one of her books. I want that emotional punch. I want to feel the despair so that the unparalleled joy and the love that comes out on the other side is so much more satisfying for and appreciated by the reader.

Chase left town the day after his high school graduation. He needed to get out, change his destiny so he wouldn’t end up like his father in their small town. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, it just wasn’t for Chase. In his haste to make tracks, however, he left Zoe behind. The one person who meant the world to him. But selfishly he needed to find himself more than he needed her at that time. Now he’s back in town with the hope that Zoe still lives here and may be available. Chase realizes and regrets his mistakes, but he’s ready to make amends if she’s ready to give him the chance.

Things don’t go as Chase hopes, though. Zoe isn’t available. She’s married to his best friend, a huge kick in the gut for Chase. Especially when he sees them together and sees their love. He’s run into them over the months he’s been home but hasn’t had a chance to really talk to Zoe. Until the day he finds her sitting in the rain, staring at nothing. Seeing her home, worried about her and no sight of her husband, Chase stays with her until Roger comes through the door.

And the tragedy has started. Zoe and Roger go through the unimaginable. It’s heartbreaking and so very moving. Chase puts aside his want of Zoe as best he can to help out, but it’s hell on him too seeing two of the people he loves most in a non-winning struggle. And when Chase gets a taste of his own medicine, his hope seemingly dies a slow death.

When I got to the one and only love scene in this book, I realized that’s all we get. I didn’t miss not having more, and what’s given is at just the right moment. More emotion on top of such emotion already. That’s what I love about Ms. Walker’s stories. You’re so involved in the feelings and other sensations that you don’t see what you’re missing until it’s too late and it just doesn’t matter. You’ve gotten so much more instead.

This is a sad but beautiful story of second chances, friendship, and a love that’s meant to last forever. Ms. Walker has broken my heart once again and then saved it at the very last minute. My faith in her is forever sealed.

Grade: A

Summary:

You can always come home. Second chances come a little harder.

Chase and Zoe were the high school golden couple. Football captain, cheerleader, prom royalty.

After graduation, though, Chase couldn’t resist the urge to experience life outside their small town. He didn’t exactly expect Zoe to wait twelve years for him, but now that he’s back, he finds some small part of him hoping she did.

It’s no big surprise she’s married. The kick in the face is she married his best friend.

Zoe was devastated when Chase left, but she’s filed those bittersweet memories under “Moved On”. She loves her life, and loves her husband. She has all she needs. And Chase keeps an honorable distance.

One cold, wet, miserable day, tragedy turns Zoe’s world upside down. Chase never expected her to simply fall into his arms, but a man can dream. Except his dream doesn’t include the fact that this time, she’s the one hitting the road…and he’s the one left behind.

Read an excerpt.

I always have such a hard time pulling out the books I really like from a previous year. Yes, there’s too many, but it’s also difficult because sometimes you can’t choose because you can’t compare books in different genres. Though I read mostly historical and paranormal, I also enjoy contemps and romantic suspense a lot. Thus, I poured over my entire 2010 review list, chose those that I really loved, and then the difficulty began in whittling it down. My biggest hurdle is books from a series, if an author released more than one book in the year. Sometimes one of many stood out. Sometimes I couldn’t choose one over the other and sometimes I could. In that case, I’ve cheated and listed all the books I loved in that series.     It’s my list and I can do what I want!

So here they are:

10.  The Taming of the Wolf by Lydia Dare

While I’ve so far enjoyed all of the books in this series, it’s the hero, Dashiel, who stole my heart and has ended up my favorite of the series. Lydia Dare has stayed true to her characters and given readers solid, consistent, and intriguing stories. See my TTotW review here.

9.   Lessons From a Scarlet Lady by Emma Wildes

As I said in in my review of this book, it’s a breath of fresh air. Emma Wildes writes a terrific couple who I loved to read about. They kept my interest the entire book, and I wanted more of them when I was done reading. I’m a new fan for sure.

8.   Broken by Shiloh Walker

It would be surprising to me if a Shiloh Walker book didn’t make my Top 10. She’s become a favorite very quickly and she’s never once disappointed me. Though I also enjoyed Fragile, it was Quinn who caught my interest and I anxiously awaited his story. I love a broken, tortured hero and Quinn fit the bill to a T. Read about him here.

7. The Fire Lord’s Lover by Kathryne Kennedy

I became a huge fan of Kathryne Kennedy from the first book of her Relics of Merlin series and was really disappointed when I found she’s not been able to write more it at this point in time. But with her imagination, I shouldn’t have worried at all. Ms. Kennedy has given us another series that is simply awesome. The Fire Lord’s Lover is a perfect start and I can’t wait for more. My review is here.

6.  Raising Kane by Lorelei James – Shoulda Been a Cowboy, Cowgirls Don’t Cry & Slow Ride short story

I can never get enough of Lorelei James. Her stories are real, as are her characters. She doesn’t pretty up a book if tragedy is called for, and in doing so she tugs so hard on your heartstrings it ain’t funny. Her cowboys walk the walk and talk the talk. Her love scenes range from intense and raw to fun and lighthearted. You get everything in a Lorelei James book. Every book she released in 2010 is a Top 10, but Raising Kane is my fave. See my RK review here.

5.   Pleasures of a Notorious Gentleman by Lorraine Heath

Lorraine Heath has been a favorite of mine since I read her Texas trilogy and nothing changed when I read her first Regency. She’s simply and truly wonderful. I loved this entire London’s Greatest Lovers trilogy, but it’s Stephen’s story that I really remember. I had my doubts about him, as I said in my review, but he turned out to be one of those heroes you’ll never, ever forget.

4.   Moon Craving by Lucy Monroe

You know those books you wait for? And wait for? Forever, it seems? Moon Craving is one of those for me. I fell in love with Lucy Monroe’s werewolves in her first book, Moon Awakening, in her Children of the Moon series, and I wanted more. But it took a few years for that next one. The wait was worth it, however. Another terrific story for Monroe and paranormal fans. Read my review here.

3.   The Darkest Hour by Maya Banks – No Place to Run

I have so fallen in love with the Kelly Family in Maya Banks’ KGI series. Especially those Kelly boys. They’re alpha and yummy and they still obey their parents. And they fall hard when they find their heroines. So, hell, what’s not to love?? Read about those Kelly boys here.

2.   Bonds of Justice by Nalini Singh – Play of Passion & Blaze of Memory

Nalini Singh is one of those authors who you’re going to love no matter what she puts on the page. I can’t imagine anyone arguing with that, if they’ve read any of her books. Bonds of Justice takes the No. 1 spot – by a very narrow margin over Play of Passion – for me of her books in 2010 because I sobbed reading this book. I very, very rarely cry when reading. It takes something so very special for me shed a tear while reading, but when it happens, I remember it. So due to my full-out sobbing near the end of BoJ, I’ll never forget Max and Sophia. Read my review about them here.

Now for my No 1. pick, I couldn’t decide between these two books, so they’re co-winners. They win not only for the story, the worlds the authors have created, but also for the beautiful, lyrical, haunting writing these authors possess. It takes an awesome author to be able to keep momentum and creativity and imagination in a series going, to make the next book better than the last. Both of these authors have those things down pat. I never have to hope the next book will disappoint me because it won’t be as good as the first or the one just prior. I know the next book will be even better.

1.  Haunting Warrior by Erin Quinn & Crown of Crystal Flame by C.L. Wilson

Erin Quinn’s Haunting series is just that, haunting. In storyline. In characters. In writing. Absolutely stunning all the way around. I am breathlessly waiting for the next installment this April. I will have myself locked in my room until that book is finished.

C.L. Wilson’s Tairen Soul series was a treat and a treasure to read. This last installment brought everything together for an absolutely stunning ending that left readers gasping. The way this woman strings words together is just amazing. I’m sad this series is now complete, but readers of the series know that their favorite characters will be featured in future books. That’s worth waiting for.

Notice I used “absolutely stunning” for each of these authors. Wasn’t a mistake. Completely intentional. Cuz it just is.

Because I had a huge list picked out before I cut it down to my Top 10, I do want to give mention to those that just barely missed the cut.  So here are my Honorable Mentions in no particular order :

Drink of Me & Stealing Kathryn by Jacquelyn Frank – An imagination that is just awesome!

Shadows at Midnight by Elizabeth Jennings – I know Ash didn’t care for this one, but it’s on my keeper shelf!

Taming the Highland Bride & The Hellion and the Highlander by Lynsay Sands – I love Lynsay Sands! I need to start reading her vamps…

Legend of the White Wolf, Seduced by the Wolf & Wolf Fever by Terry Spear – Yuuuuuuuuuuumy werewolves!

A Highlander’s Homecoming by Melissa Mayhue – Time travel. Scottish Highlanders. One of the best at both!

Marked & Entwined by Elisabeth Naughton – Zodiac warriors to die for! Also try her Stolen series.

Naked Edge by Pamela Clare – Hawt love scenes! Oh, and a great mystery and thrilling suspense too!

A Kiss to Kill by Nina Bruhns – Oh my! I want more, more, more!

Infamous by Suzanne Brockmann – I love her romances within a romance. And I love this cowboy!

The Chief by Monica McCarty – I love this concept of Highlander Special Ops! Fun, intense, and so romantic!

Shadow Bound by Erin Kellison – Debut author done good. Terrific and dark!

Shut Up & Kiss Me by Christie Craig – Only humorous book on my list. There’s a reason for that. She’s one of the very best!

Destined to Last by Alyssa Johnson – Beautifully written with such engaging characters. Can’t wait to see what she does next!

The Treasure Keeper by Shana Abe – Dragons! ‘Nuff said.

And even I have a few books that didn’t make the grade for me in 2010. Mikey really doesn’t like everything!

4.   Mad, Bad and Blonde by Cathie Linz

Waaaaaaaaaay too much snipping and sniping and insulting going on between the hero and heroine for me. It went on and on. And on. And on. And on. And that’s too bad because the first part of the book is good. Right up until the heroine went blonde. See my review here.

3.    Time Storm by Samanta Winston

Sigh. Even the time travel didn’t help this book. We only get to know the characters through their fucking. Pirates and danger and all that goes with it was okay, as was the time travel, but it just wasn’t put together to keep my interest. I remember being glad it’s a short story. My review can be read here.

2.   Tomorrow is Another Day novella by Sandra Hill in the Ladies Prefer Rogues anthology

Even the play on Gone with the Wind didn’t save this novella. The characters didn’t work for me either all because of their attitudes. At least the time travel element worked. Guess I should be grateful for that. My review is here.

1.   Passionate Pleasures by Bertrice Small

This book is just a mess all the way around. The characters are likable but that’s about it. It felt like Ms. Small just tried too hard to write erotic romance. I think her niche is historicals and she should stick with that. You can read my review here.

Sandy M’s review of Playing for Keeps by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Romance ebook published by Samhain 13 Jan 09

Yes, I’ve had this ebook tucked away on the computer for a year and a half now. Shame on me. But I’m actually glad. Shiloh Walker is one of those authors whose books I know I’m going to like no matter what, even if there’s the smallest, niggling doubt that creeps into my mind on one page that I may not care for what’s happening.  Then on the very next page she’s sucked me in and I’m lost in the story, the characters, and most of all the emotion.

In this case that little doubt came early on, when during a storm Jacob heads over to Dana’s house to make sure she’s okay, finds her and her lover at the back of the house in the rain, but before he can hightail it out of there, Dana is as plastered to him as her clothes are to her, asking him to join in their play. Jake has always loved Dana, she’s always been a part of his life, and if the only way he can have her is to be part of a threesome, so be it.

What’s wrong with that, you ask, that caused my doubt? I had to read a little further past the threesome bit to learn of Jake’s want, desire, love for Dana. Most of the time when I read menage books, it seems they’re written just because the author can write them, no substance or feeling to them. Well, I felt Jake’s emotion surrounding Dana’s invitation and then his acceptance of it, and Ms. Walker gave me huge amounts of substance and emotion.

And that’s just the beginning between these two characters. The heart of this story is surrounding the unplanned pregnancy when the condom breaks during one of their one-on-one love making scenes. Coming to grips with the situation, happier about it than she thought she’d be, Dana hopes Jake is happy about it too. Of course, he is. He’s always wanted a life with Dana, so this is a dream come true, a new beginning.

Dana ousts the other man in her life, asks Jake to move in with her, and begins to plan for the future. Then one of those awful, horrible moments in life happen and their baby is in danger. The gut-wrenching fear this couple goes through and then later their raw grief and anger is palpable. Dana turns inward with her emotion while Jake wants to be together for comfort and love, but our hearts and minds don’t always work the way we hope and want, and these two find that out in such mind-numbing ways.

What makes this story more poignant is the author’s note at the end. Ms. Walker and her husband went through this very thing (though in a very different way), and you can feel their pain and loss in every word on every page. I hope it was somehow cathartic for Ms. Walker, and I admire her for putting her experience into such a beautiful piece of work. I appreciate it that much more for it.

If you’re a Shiloh Walker fan and haven’t read this one yet, do so soon. This is one story you don’t want to miss.

Grade: B+

Summary:

Jacob has always been part of Dana Cochran’s life. They’ve lived next door to each other for years, they’ve dated on and off and now they see each other through work.

But their timing has just never been right, and when Dana invites Jacob over to play with her and Mason Caldwell…things get complicated.

Doctor Jacob McCoy loves Dana. So much so, that he’s even willing to share her with Mason Caldwell. But a red-hot threesome isn’t all that Jacob wants from Dana.

When tragedy strikes their fledging relationship, Jacob has to convince Dana that pushing him away isn’t the answer.

He wants to be in her life forever. And some things are worth fighting for.

Read an excerpt.

I haven’t had a good long blog title in a while. I love the meaty ones but learned early on to shorten them because of link issues. And spacing. Also short and pithy gets more attention, right? I should know – I have the attention span of a two year old. No really. I’m happy to be having five different conversations at the same time. With a single person. (The other person is generally less thrilled.)

But! This is a post/review/defense of reading out of order. Exhibit A: Broken by Shiloh Walker. (And for any of you who think I’m biased – which is the good thing, not prejudiced- which is bad – I read this book before I ever met her. In fact, in the interest of honest disclosure, I bought this book to enter a contest to try to win a nook. A nook! I really wanted it. I didn’t win.) But the blurb looked good and I’d thought the previous titles I’d read by Ms. Walker were okay as well, so I gave it a go.

This is the premise/blurb:

Quinn Rafferty is working as a bounty hunter and bail bondsman in St. Louis when a new neighbor catches his eye. He’s tempted by her beauty—but he knows from experience that anyone desperate enough to live in his building is damaged goods. Besides, he has his own soul to mend before he can worry about anyone else.

Desperate
Sara Davis is on the run, but not for the usual reasons a woman goes on the lam. She’s not an abused wife, and she’s not a criminal. But she does have a plan for her future. And as much as she finds herself attracted to her gruff, tough neighbor, she can’t risk telling him the secrets she’s hiding. There’s just too much at stake.

Driven to desire…
But Quinn must get closer to Sara when she turns out to be the target of his new missing persons case, and he discovers that there is something more complex and dangerous to her than he thought. Now, both Quinn and Sara will have to expose their true feelings—as well as their fragile hearts—if they hope their love will survive…

Admittedly, parts interested me, and others didn’t. Bounty Hunter and bondsman didn’t really move me one way or the other. But the fact that Quinn fell in love with his target, Sara… well I love the forbidden romance stories. The angst and yearning – the delicious wanting… I eat it up.

So, we have the characters. First of all, Quinn is incredibly likable, which is strange because… he’s definitely not a people person. In fact, he’s down right surly and mean. I’d say that’s part of his charm, but it really isn’t. He’s a brick wall. What saves him, is that he has a huge heart. It just takes a lot of digging – and it’s not easy going. I liked that Ms. Walker kept him true to himself. Quinn isn’t friendly. He doesn’t want to be friends, and rather dislikes people. But in all that, you know he’s a good and decent human being. That his coldness isn’t complete. He’s definitely not a marshmallow, but he isn’t soulless.

Sara… I like, in a way because she fooled me. I won’t go into spoilers here, but Ms. Walker tricked me but good. I generally figure out books quickly. Too quickly, which is yet another reason why I don’t go for romantic suspense. Ms. Walker, however, had me snowed. I definitely didn’t suspect right off the bat. I also like Sara because when we meet her, she’s taking charge, and ready to make a change. She’s also lived and is living a hard life, and you just want good things for her.

A reason for that is because Sara is so real. She’s definitely not perfect, and makes mistakes. She isn’t always put together, but she’s driven. Part of that is clear in how disciplined she is.

Suffice it to say, I really liked the characters, and the plot, and the book. It’s one of my favorite reads of the year. I’d give it an “A.”

Because I enjoyed the book so much I immediately bought the book that actually comes first in the series. Actually, I was enjoying Broken so much, I bought Fragile about halfway in, riding the high of a good read.

I did not like Fragile as much. At all. The beginning of Fragile was very different to me. The whole tone, everything. Of course the setting was different, but for Broken it was authentic, and made sense. For Fragile I felt that I was expected to suspend my relief more often that I’m prepared to. I also felt that Quinn stole the show – pretty much as soon as we met him. And, the problem is that Luke Rafferty’s story comes first. Yes, there were some slight spoilers in Broken (which I obviously picked up on) that may have contributed to my less than love of Fragile. However, I contend that it didn’t truly matter.

Here is the blurb/premise of Fragile:

Sometimes the last thing you want is exactly what you need…

BATTLE SCARRED

Six years after trading in his combat gear for hospital scrubs, Luke Rafferty still hasn’t found what he’s been searching for: a normal life. At his job, Luke is faced with things just as heartbreaking as those on the battlefield, none more so than the abused children brought in by a pretty red-headed social worker.

HEARTBROKEN

For Devon Manning, being a social worker is a rewarding job, but also a constant reminder of her own troubled youth. Devon takes everything one day at a time—unable to form a relationship with anyone except the children she rescues.

A DESIRE TO HEAL…

When Luke meets Devon, he thinks he might have found what he’s been looking for, but in order to get the life he wants, Luke has to break through Devon’s emotional barriers and make her realize that his healing touch might be just the complication her life needs…

I started out liking Devon a lot. Liked her more than Sara, even, and was all in. And then… she got hit with a stupid stick. It’s a phrase that I think should come back. Because, she really and truly was. Yes, there were parts I liked, but Devon essentially cut off her nose to spite her face. She decided to avoid Luke, and was just awful… for no good reason. In fact, she knew it was the wrong choice and was unhappy. Generally, I can respect such stubbornness. In fact, that was fine.

And here, we come upon spoilers. I’ve whited them out for you if you haven’t read the series and/or can’t stand spoilers. (If you’d like to see the text, just highlight it.)

Devon is/was attacked. She’s a social worker and had a crazy dad out to get her. Not. Cool. She sensed it, and knew something was out there, but sneaks around because “she can handle herself” and avoids the people trying to protect her. Maybe I’m just overly paranoid, but if I felt that someone was stalking me, I’d be keeping close to whoever was assigned to protect me. And ask a security guard to walk me to my car, instead of trying to brazen it out. Seriously – it’s not fun walking at night from point A to point B wondering if someone is going to stab you. Devon understand this… but doesn’t follow it. *Even though she knows there’s a threat.*

Even more… crazy stalker dad dies. She passes out, and (to my mind) didn’t think she killed him – yet somehow crazy stalker dad is dead. So… she obviously did it, right? Even the book doesn’t spell out a third party does the deed, but come on now, Miss Devon. I’m getting frustrated just writing about this.

And then – to make it all worse, Devon breaks up with Luke. She thinks he’s attacking her. Well, you know what? Ok fine. Our girl is finally showing some survival and protective instincts. But, things don’t get better. In fact, they get worse. She dreams someone is doing horrible things to her. She wakes up with her clothes off. Now I don’t know about you, but I’ve never stripped off my clothes while I was asleep. And I’m not one of those sleeps like the dead people either. Strange occurrences like that don’t give her a clue. I could not believe that. It was too much for me. The fact that she had “waking nightmares” – couldn’t distinguish dreams from reality it seemed… but the fact that physical objects were moving – things she hadn’t done, when she was supposed to be the only person in the house?

Anyway, the ending was fine. It was great and everything was resolved and happy. Unfortunately at that point I wanted to smack Devon upside the head and say “look, you idiot, if you had any sense at all you wouldn’t have let it escalate to this degree. Set up a nanny cam. Something. Anything.” I suppose she did suffer enough… but it annoyed me. And so… if I had read Fragile first… I’m not sure that I would have read Broken. I likely would have suspected a similar story or device… which would have been a shame because Broken is fantastic.

So there you have it. And, if you don’t have the book? Go buy it. Honestly. I think you should. And then come back and discuss the plot with me.

Now, your turn. Will you read books out of order? Do you read the end before reading the book? Did you ever have a good experience reading out of order? Bad?

Sandy M’s review of Broken by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary romance published by Berkley Trade 2 Mar 10

After reading about Quinn in his brother’s book, Fragile, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on Broken. From the moment we meet this man, our hearts are broken just as much as his has been up to the point his life actually starts when his mother dies and his father brings him home, when he meets his twin. You want him to reach out and grab the love of his new family, but he’s got so much hurt and distrust, it’s a total unknown if he’ll ever be able to put all the pieces back together again.

We get to see the same scenes from Fragile now from Quinn’s point of view as a child, and you can’t help but weep for the boy whose mother never loved him, who beat him at the drop of a hat. Though later he witnesses the loving relationship between Luke and their father, he still can’t trust enough to drop the I-don’t-give-a-damn attitude, to stop pushing his father to provoke that first punch he just knows will come. But in time Quinn does learn life doesn’t have to be bruises and stealing to keep himself fed.

Twenty years later he has a good relationship with his father and sibling, he’s left the army and is now a bounty hunter, bringing those who abuse to justice. What he still needs in his life is that person who can heal him inside and out, who can soothe his soul, who can love him no matter what. When he least expects it is when such a person literally falls into this arms.

Sarah has her own problems, ones that have kept her on the run for the past two years. She moves from city to city, gets lost in the crowds whenever possible, never lets herself get too attached to those who are nice to her so someplace feels like home. She’s thinking of moving into an apartment offered by a woman who seems to look straight into her heart and know what Sarah’s all about, though she knows that’s not possible. Accidentally falling into the arms of the woman’s other tenant is one more reason she should turn around and keep running. But the lure of safety and friendship, against her better judgment, is difficult to resist.

The attraction is instant between Quinn and Sarah, but they both know they can’t get involved. They have too much distrust, too much of a past to let themselves even think of starting a new relationship. But what’s between them is stronger than they are. Thoughts and dreams of each other plague them and fate seems intent on throwing together whenever possible. They eventually do give in to their needs and the resulting lust and sex is explosive.

Little by little they learn more about one another. Not the huge things in life since they both hide from such disclosure, but it’s the small things that bring them closer. And, of course, the sex. Sizzle, burn, hot, the above explosive, any of those adjectives barely cover the surface when these two characters are together. But I digress. For Quinn, the little things he’s learned is enough to acknowledge his feelings for Sarah. It takes a little longer for her. And neither of them can bring  themselves to say it out loud. And that made me want to scream every time. Just say it before she leaves! Say it before he walks away!

The ending is a huge surprise. Never in a lifetime would I have figured out what Ms. Walker so cleverly comes up with. And amid it all is when both Quinn and Sarah realize they have to begin to trust each other to make their love work, though one last time they’re still stubborn in admitting those feelings, which made me scream again. And it wasn’t screams of frustration due to a ruse to keep the characters apart as you see in a lot of romances. It’s more of NO! Don’t give up! Now’s your chance for all you’ve been missing in your life! Sigh. These two exhausted me. But it’s a good exhaustion.

This book is everything I thought it could and would be and then some. I think Quinn Rafferty has become my favorite Shiloh Walker hero. And that’s saying something considering all of her heroes.

Grade: A+

Summary:

Quinn Rafferty is working as a bounty hunter for a private detective agency in St. Louis when a new neighbor catches his eye. He’s drawn to her-but he has his own soul to mend before he can worry about anyone else.

Sarah McElyea is on the run, but not for the usual reasons a woman goes on the lam. She has a plan for her future. And as much as she finds herself attracted to her gruff, tough neighbor, she can’t risk telling him the secrets she’s hiding.

But Quinn must get closer to Sarah when she turns out to be the target of his new missing persons case, and both Quinn and Sarah will have to expose their true feelings-as well as their fragile hearts-if their love is to survive.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Sandy M’s review of Fragile by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Romance published by Berkley 3 Feb 09

I take every chance I get to read a Shiloh Walker book. I don’t have my own copy of Fragile yet, so when a friend mentioned she had a copy, you guessed it. I wasn’t shy one bit in asking to borrow it from her – even before she’d read it. I’m glad I did. I once again got lost in a compelling and emotional read.

I really liked the beginning of the book when we get a taste of Luke’s background first when he finds the twin brother he never knew about and then seeing him wind down in his military career, realizing it’s not what he wants any longer. We learn that though his twin, Quinn, pretty much hates the world when he comes to live with Luke and their father, they do end up with a good relationship, experiencing that twin thing over the years.

Leaving the service, Luke becomes a doctor and trades one version of hell for another. Instead of seeing his buddies either shot up or die in the field, he now sees abused women and children, and that’s how he comes in contact with Devon. She’s a social worker who puts her heart and soul into helping the abused because she once walked in their shoes and was lucky enough to have someone care enough to help get her on her way to where she is today.

Finally getting a chance to meet Devon outside the hospital, Luke takes the chance and asks her out. Once they begin to learn about each other, he very quickly puts together what happened to her as a child, so he uses kid gloves to court her, refuses to rush her. However, he finds out just as quickly Devon isn’t as fragile as she appears. Suddenly a stalker is after Devon and a nightmare ensues for both of them.

They each have their scars from their pasts, Devon more so than Luke, of course. He has to work against both her walls she’s built around herself and the stalker to make sure they have a life together. While all of this is going on, we also get a bit of a look into Quinn and all he went through as a child, how a screw-up on a mission is currently affecting him and his relationship with Luke. I’m actually very intrigued by Quinn and look forward to his story.

The love scenes between Luke and Devon are quite hot and intense, once Luke knows Devon can handle him in the bedroom without the kid gloves. I like his tenderness, especially because he figures out Devon’s issues on his own, knows he has to take care in his wooing of her. And her fierceness in life, from the kids she helps to surviving hell again, makes her a great heroine. The mystery with the stalker takes an unexpected turn and I was caught off guard when he’s finally revealed.

Once again, Ms. Walker had me hooked in a very short time and I devoured this book in no time at all. Broken is up next, and I can’t wait.

Grade: A-

Summary:

BATTLE SCARRED

Six years after trading in his combat gear for hospital scrubs, Luke Rafferty still hasn’t found what he’s been searching for: a normal life. At his job, Luke is faced with things just as heartbreaking as those on the battlefield, none more so than the abused children brought in by a pretty red-headed social worker.

HEARTBROKEN

For Devon Manning, being a social worker is a rewarding job, but also a constant reminder of her own troubled youth. Devon takes everything one day at a time—unable to form a relationship with anyone except the children she rescues.

A DESIRE TO HEAL…

When Luke meets Devon, he thinks he might have found what he’s been looking for, but in order to get the life he wants, Luke has to break through Devon’s emotional barriers and make her realize that his healing touch might be just the complication her life needs…

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

I have read a few of Shiloh’s books, not nearly as many as I’d like. Unfortunately, of those few books I’ve read only one Hunters book, The Huntress. Yeah, shame on me. Especially because I so enjoy Shiloh’s work.

So whether you’ve read most of her backlist or this is your first Shiloh book, here’s an excerpt from Hunter’s Need, the latest Hunters book, which will be released December 1. We’re teasing you and whetting your appetite, you will be so very hungry by release day, you’ll be first in line at your local bookstore.

Guarantee it.

Duke is bitter. A shapeshifter betrayed by the psychic powers of Analise Morell, he cannot forgive her for putting him in the clutches of a feral vampire, but he also can’t shake his desire for her. And when she needs a Hunter, Duke must face his demons-and hers.

With her eyes and her heart heavy, she turned down the gravel drive and trudged towards her apartment. She kicked a small rock and sent it flying. Absently, she lowered her gaze, watched as it came to a stop a few inches away. Kicked it again. Again—

A pair of booted foot appeared in her line of vision and a hand caught her arm. Hissing out a breath, she reacted instinctively, jabbing towards the neck with her free hand and lifted her foot. But before she could smash it down on the man’s instep, he moved.

Moved too quick—

She found herself whirled around, her back pressed up against a hard male body. Panic welled.

“Ana!”

That voice—

She stilled, sucked in a breath. As she did, the panic inside her started to ease, her body relaxed, before she even realized why.

She could smell him…and she knew that smell.

Licking her lips, she whispered, “Duke?”

He let her go, quick, as though he couldn’t stand to have his hands on her, and she figured he probably couldn’t. Instinctively, she tightened her shields, unwilling to pick anything up from him. Even if she deserved to have his disgust with her filling her head, she’d rather not, thanks very much. Edging away, she turned and looked at him.

The sight of him hit her straight in her core, a punch of heat that left her legs weak and her skin tight and itchy. She let go of her carryon and folded her arms across her middle. “What are you doing here?”

“Whatever in the hell the problem is, it isn’t important enough to keep you from taking off for a weekend?” He glanced down at the carryon and then up at her face.

Ana narrowed her eyes. “You’re the damn Hunter, not me. Playing avenging angel, guardian angel, that’s your business, not mine.” Exhaustion, unrequited lust, and fear were sheer hell on a person’s willpower, she realized, clamping her mouth shut before she could say anything else.

“So you got no problem announcing that there’s a problem, but then disappearing?”

“You told me to handle it myself, if I recall correctly.” She almost said something else, but decided it against it. Almost told him that she’d tried and utterly failed. It didn’t matter. He was here now, he could handle it. Hooray for him. No reason for her to sink another couple hundred dollars into this mess, no reason to take off personal time and try to handle something that was way beyond her reach, no reason to lay awake at night, afraid to sleep because she feared the nightmares.

Let him deal with this bullshit. That’s what he was supposed to do.

Aren’t you feeling bitchy today? she thought darkly. Without another word, she grabbed the handle of her carryon and headed towards the staircase by the garage door.

“Yeah, taking off when things get dicey, that’s your way of handling things,” he said, sardonically, following along behind her.

Too close, too. She could feel him, feel that big, warm body, the heat he put off, shadowing along close enough that he just lifted a hand, he’d touch her. Halfway the steps, she stopped and shot him a narrow look over her shoulder. “What are you doing?”

“Following you. What are you doing?”

“I’m going to my apartment. I’m tired. I want to take a shower and go to bed.”

He glanced over her shoulder towards the door at the top of the stairs. “Sorry, princess but you go some explaining to do before you can go to bed.”

“Explaining.” Ana sighed and then started back up the steps. She’d already tried explaining to him and he’d mocked her, laughed at her. Told her to handle it herself and she’d tried, failed miserably, and now he was here. Hell, that had likely been his plan all along—get her worked up and then show up in the flesh and save the day.

Of course, she doubted he really would have expected her to actually try to handle it. Abruptly, she was pissed.

Not just irritated, not just tired and grouchy, and not just edgy because she felt so damned guilty for what she’d done to him. She’d made huge mistakes in her life, but damn it, she’d done her best to rectify them and she was sick and damned tired of having to pay for it in their eyes. Seething, she stormed up the rest of the stairs and jammed her key into the lock, undoing the lock with a vicious twist of her wrist.

He followed her inside and she shot him a dirty look as he dropped down on the couch, settling down with lazy, feline grace.

“Make yourself at home,” she drawled. She left the carryon by the door and shut it, turning the lock on the doorknob and then the deadbolt.

“Those locks suck,” he said, flicking a glance at her door.

“I’ll make a note of it.” Crossing her arms over her chest, she glared at him. “Whatever you need me to explain, fine. Ask away so I can explain and get your ass out of my home.”

A grin curled his lips. “Ana, you’re swearing. What’s got you so pissed?”

“I’m not pissed,” she lied.

“You know, even if you did do some kind of number on my instincts, I don’t know why in the hell I ever fell for any of your lines,” he mused, shaking his head. “You’re a lousy liar.”

“I didn’t hand you lines.” Then she wished she hadn’t said a damn thing. The last thing she needed to do was think about ancient history, not when he was here. Not when he was so close. Not when he could smell every subtle change in her body, whether it was because she told a little white lie, or because her body went all hot and achy with need, getting worse with very damn second he was there.

“Sure you did.” He came off the couch and paced towards her, that big, hard body all fluid, sexy grace and long, powerful muscles. His golden hair fell around his face and his gray eyes glittered in the dim light. “You fed me all sorts of lines and then I get a knife shoved into my chest and I wake up and find out the pretty blonde princess who had me twisted up inside was the puppet of a fucking psycho. Maybe that’s the difference…when somebody’s pulling your strings you do just as you’re told. Did Cat tell you to get hot for me? Is that why you seemed to want me so bad?”

Stop it. Duke stared at her, watched as the blood drained from her face, leaving her pale, her haunted, dark purple eyes all but black. Stop.

Cat was dead. She didn’t fucking matter any more and if Ana was any kind of threat to them, every single last Hunter around would know. She’d be watched—or already dead. She wasn’t a threat and he knew it. At least not that kind of threat. Not any more.

The kind of threat she posed to him was a different story, but one didn’t really have anything to do with the other.

She’d screwed up and even Duke wasn’t so blind to the fact that she had tried to make amends. She was guilty, never claimed otherwise, didn’t offer excuses or any other lame shit to try and help explain away what she’d done. Even the more plausible reason—her fear for her brother, she never used that card.

If it was anybody but Ana, he probably even could have found some reluctant admiration.

But with Ana…

Even as he told himself to stop, to back away, find out what he needed to know and get the hell away from her, he couldn’t. Even as he lifted a hand to touch her, curling it around her neck and tugging her close, he told himself to quit and he couldn’t. “No answer, Ana?” he whispered, rubbing his thumb across her full lower lip.

Let it go—none of that matters.

Except it did. It did matter, why she’d all but melted in his arms, melted around him, over him, so damned hot she’d almost burned him. Had she really wanted him? Or had it been because she had psycho-bitch pulling her strings? How deep had Cat’s control on Ana gone?

She shook, her body all but vibrating. She was afraid, he could scent it on her, but it wasn’t just fear. His lids drooped over his eyes, a growl rumbling in his chest, as he realized he had his answer right there.

Ana didn’t have to say a damn thing.

She wanted him. All but burned with it.

It was enough to make his mouth water and his cock swell. Enough to make him want to haul her against him and finish the dance they’d started five years earlier. He didn’t, though. Because of her fear. He didn’t like her being afraid of him. Heat—he just wanted to smell heat coming off of her, just the desire.

“You’re hot now,” he whispered, lowering his head until his lips hovered just a breath away from hers. “I can smell it, almost taste it. Why are you so hot, princess?”

“Leave me alone, Duke.”

He should. He knew he should. He needed to back away, get the hell away from her, before the anger took control, before the hunger burning inside him flared too hot for him to handle, before it spilled out onto them and scorched them both. Inside, he dipped his head and nuzzled her neck, breathed in the soft, warm scent of her. She smelled of lavender, soft and subtle, something that clung to her hair and skin.

“You know something that’s eaten me up for the past five years?” he whispered, raking his teeth along the curve of her neck. “Five years ago, I had you this close…this close to heaven and I would have done just about anything to get inside you. This close…and then I realize I’m closer to hell than I am to heaven—and I never even had the chance to fuck you. If you were going to send me to hell, Ana, you could have at least given me a send-off.”

“Duke…don’t.”

“Why not?” He straightened, staring down at her averted face. He toyed with the top button of her shirt and wondered what she’d do, how she’d react if he bent his head and tore the buttons off with his teeth. “Why shouldn’t I touch you? You want me. You can’t lie about that.”

She reached up and caught his wrist and shoved him away.

He let her, although he was tempted not to. And when she stepped back, he let her, even though he didn’t want to. “Why shouldn’t I touch you?” he asked again, his voice low, harsh with the hunger tearing into him.

And another little teaser:

Ignoring Brad, Neal lifted a hand and stroked Ana’s cheek.  “I keep hearing how much you’re into blood…why don’t you—oomph—”

Ana felt it, a punch of psychic energy, blasting through the air.  She grabbed Brad as Neal went flying backward and crashed into one of the glass-fronted media cabinets.  Glass, DVDs, and CDs exploded around him at the impact and he fell to the floor—seconds later he was up, moving quicker than the eye could track.

She felt the punch of Brad’s power again and she shook him, distracted him for just a second, long enough for the swell of power to fade.  “Brad, stop.  Now.”

He shrugged her off and squared off with the vampire.  Once, whenever he used a power display like that, it would show on his face, in his eyes as he pushed his limits.  The nosebleeds had stopped more than two years ago, and Ana wondered if just how far those limits had expanded.  She sure as hell didn’t want to find out now, though.

“You little fuck, I’m gonna knock the shit out of you.”

Ana whirled and glared at him.  “The hell you will!”  She might be a coward, but nobody threatened her baby brother.

He sneered at her.  “Get out of my way, bitch—you know you want to.  Weak-assed bitch.”

From the depths of the room, people started to stir.

“Neal, back off…”

“Come on, man…”

“Backing off sounds like a damn good idea.” Bradley shoved around her, once more planting his skinny butt in front of her, protecting her—damn it, she was supposed to protect him.  It was her job, one she failed at, miserably.

Welcome to Duck Chat!

Shiloh Walker is a busy woman, and though she’s working right this moment on her next project, she’s taken a few moments to chat with us today.

Married to her high school sweetheart, Shiloh and her family live in the mid-west. She quit her nursing job in 2004 to begin writing full time. I’m sure her fans are more than thankful for that. If you haven’t read one of her books yet, Shiloh has an impressive backlist in a number of genres, from suspense to erotic to paranormal and then some, so there’s something there for everyone. Take your pick, you’ll enjoy every last word.

But first spend a few minutes with Shiloh to get know her a little better. Be sure to leave her a comment or question and we’ll put you  in the running for an autographed copy of the winner’s choice from Shiloh’s backlist! Now let’s chat!

DUCK CHAT: Shiloh, let’s jump right in and talk about your upcoming release, Hunter’s Need, along with the Hunters series. First, would you tell our readers about the series as a whole? Has it evolved as you originally envisioned it?

SHILOH WALKER: Well, asking if it evolved from an original vision kind of implies I had some planned-out mental image of the world. And I didn’t. The series started with just one character—Tori from the first book, Hunters: Declan and Tori. I didn’t have any thoughts about making an ongoing series at the time. I just wanted to tell her story. Once I finished, I realized there were a lot of stories in that world.

The Hunters are basically paranormal cops—the world they live in has plenty of paranormal creatures and not all of them are the good guys. The Hunters work to keep those people in line.

DC: If you could retire any question and never, ever have it asked again, what would it be? Feel free to answer it.

SW: Oh, that’s easy…. So, do you write your books from personal experiences?

I once had this very, very weird guy ask me that at a signing and trust me, he wasn’t asking about whether or not my nursing background plays into my writing, or whether I write about romance because I’m living a happy-ever-after with my high school sweetheart, either.

*G* I did answer him. I smiled sweetly and said, “Well, no. I mean, after all, I haven’t killed anybody yet.”

DC: I’ve heard writers often say their stories take them in surprising directions, or dialogue flows from some unknown place. Is it the same with you? Do your characters surprise you sometimes?

SW: My characters frequently surprise me, but I’m not a plotter by nature. I’ve got a vague idea of where I want the story to end and as I write the book, things happen to push me toward that goal. Very frequently, events happen that are nothing like what I’d thought was going to happen.

DC: Do you ever argue with your characters while you’re writing? Who usually wins?

Oh, I frequently argue with my characters. And who wins depends on what the argument was over. But a lot of the time, the characters win. 

DC: What is sure to distract you from sitting down and working/writing?

SW: Laundry. Email. Twitter. Phone calls. Website junk. Blog stuff. Clutter. An empty stomach. Facebook. I’m easily distracted—staying on task requires me to frequently kick myself in the tail.

DC: Do you have the next Hunters book in the works yet? How many more books will be in the series?

SW: I just finished the next in the series…Hunter’s Fall, which will be out in either late 2010 or early 2011. I don’t have any idea how many more Hunter’s books I’ll write, though. It might be just be one or two, or it might be a lot more. I just don’t know.

DC: What has been your favorite book cover from all of your releases and why?

SW: The cover for the romantic suspense that came out earlier this year, Fragile. I just love and adore that cover. It’s shiny. It’s pretty. What’s not to love? 

DC: How about your least favorite cover? Why?

SW: That one is harder to answer—some of the earlier covers from Ellora’s Cave I haven’t liked as much because they were the computer-generated images and I’m just not as big a fan of the CGI stuff.

DC: How do you feel your male or female characters have evolved over your career? Do you think you write them differently now than you did when you started?

SW: Well, I try to make the characters deeper, more complex. I think that’s just natural for a writer to do, though.

DC: Is there a genre you haven’t tackled but would like to try?

SW: Well, sooner or later, I’m going to try more traditional fantasy stuff, I think. Possibly urban fantasy, without as much romance. Maybe some thrillers. And horror-I have one idea for a horror story that I’ve wanted to write forever…I just haven’t managed to do it, yet.

DC: What advice would you give to your younger self?

SW: Hmmmm. Nothing. Choices I made when I was younger led me here and I love my life—wouldn’t want to do anything that might change it.

DC: Next March Broken will be released. Can you give us a sneak peek into Quinn and Sarah?

SW: Quinn is a complicated bastard and he gave me ten kinds of hell writing his book. Sarah is equally complicated. I fought the two of them tooth and nail.

DC: If you were a book, what would your blurb be?

SW: Oh, I’m a lousy person to ask about blurbs… I hate and abhor blurbs. Writing a blurb about me? I’d just suggest you skim the first few pages instead…

DC: What would be your “voice’s” tagline?

SW: Smartass…

DC: One of my favorite books of yours is The Missing. Where did the story idea for Cullen and Taige come from? Can you tell everyone a little bit about it?

SW: The story for The Missing stemmed from the little girl, Jillian. She was the first character I ‘met’ from that story, so to speak. Cullen and Taige emerged later. I woke up one morning with this mental image of a girl sitting in an airport, drawing. She showed the drawing to her dad. There were three kids in the drawing, one in each corner of the page. He asks who they are and she tells him, “They are the missing.” Then she tells him that each of them had disappeared.

That’s was the bare bones of the book, as it first came to me.

DC: If you had never become an author, what do you think you would be doing right now?

SW: Nursing. That’s what I did before I focused on writing full-time. I keep my license current and still work on occasion. Just in case.

DC: For a reader who may not have picked up one of your books yet, where would you recommend them to start to get the full effect of Shiloh Walker?

SW: The full effect…LMAO. Well, one of my personal favorites is Fragile. Or Candy Houses, an urban fantasy/paranormal erotic romance that came out from Samhain Publishing in October. [LOL, okay, so it was really early morning when getting Shi's interview together, the brain apparently was having fun at my expense! - SM]

DC: What’s on the horizon for Shiloh Walker?

SW: Right now, I’m working on a romantic suspense trilogy for a new publisher. My current plan is to write paranormal for Berkley and romantic suspense for Ballantine.

Lightning Round:

- dark or milk chocolate?     -Dark
- smooth or chunky peanut butter?     -Not a peanut butter person…unless it’s with chocolate.
- heels or flats?     – Bare feet. 
- coffee or tea?     – Both, depends on my mood.
- summer or winter?     – Fall. (It’s my favorite season)
- mountains or beach?     – Mountains, absolutely.
- mustard or mayonnaise?    – Mustard.
- flowers or candy?     – Why do I have to choose?
- pockets or purse?     – Purse.
- Pepsi or Coke?   – Coke.
- ebook or print?   – Both.

And because we still enjoy the answers we get:

1. What is your favorite word?    -Love.
2. What is your least favorite word?     -Cunt
3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?     -Sunsets. Kids laughing. Hugs.
4. What turns you off creatively, spiritually or emotionally?     -Cruelty. Neglect.
5. What sound or noise do you love?   – The sound of my kids laughing.
6. What sound or noise do you hate?     – Fingernails on a chalkboard.
7. What is your favorite curse word?     – Don’t have one.
8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?     -  None…I’m doing what I always wanted.
9. What profession would you not like to do?     – Teacher. I lack the patience.
10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?    – Oh, I absolutely believe heaven exists…and I expect to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

DC: Thanks for spending the day with us, Shiloh!

This just in…

Shiloh Walker is starting a book drive for the Louisville Free Public Library which has been devastated by recent flooding. Your help is needed.

~ On August 4, heavy rains caused flooding in Louisville, Kentucky and the surrounding areas. Damage to the main library branch is estimated at $1 million.

~ Readers, this is where you come in: donations of new books of every genre are desperately needed.

~ Check here for info about monetary donations.

~ Authors and publishers: donations of both signed and unsigned books iin all genres, from children’s books to romance to non-fiction and everything in between, will be greatly appreciated.

~ The library cannot store books at this time, so Shiloh is making arrangements to keep them at both her home and a friend’s home until the library is once again ready.

~ There’s two ways you can make your donations. Via the United States Postal Service, send your books to:  Shiloh Walker, PO Box 97, Jeffersonville, IN 47131

~ If you wish to send books via Fed Ex or UPS, please send your books here: LFPL Book Drive, C/O Jennifer Kennedy, 20813 State Rd # 62, Marysville, IN 47141

Consider yourself flashed.

Sandy M’s review of Belonging by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Paranormal Romance ebook published by Ellora’s Cave 25 Feb 09

Shiloh Walker has become a favorite author of mine over the last couple of years. I always find myself pulled into her stories, intrigued by her characters, and enjoying myself immensely.

This is a story of wrong timing for all the characters involved. They grew up together, Cori and cousins Levi and Owen. It’s Owen and Cori who find a love match, Levi doesn’t declare his intentions when he should. During Owen and Cori’s engagement one Christmas when caught under the mistletoe, everything changes for Cori and Levi after they exchange a quick kiss. Cori knows she truly doesn’t love Owen and Levi can’t do a thing about his feelings without hurting Owen. But Cori calls off the wedding leaving Owen devastated. But she and Levi know they still can’t be together because that would only wound Owen further.

They can ignore their want for each other for only so long and nearly take what’s between them to the next level, until a call from Owen disrupts the moment and sends Cori to his side to talk things over. Things go from bad to worse, though, when they are attacked by vampires later that night, Owen left for dead and Cori nowhere to be found, later assumed to be dead also. Owen is never the same, always talking about the monsters who have Cori and how he has to save her. Guilt wracks Levi when Owen is killed in another mysterious attack years later, more guilt to go with that he’s harbored when he let Cori leave him on that fateful night.

In a haze of grief and alcohol Levi goes to the rescue of a woman in an alley, only to find she can take care of herself. But there’s something familiar about her, something that calls to him. Cori is in a haze of her own. Now a vampire, she’s been teaching at the school where she learned how deal with her new life. She’s still the shy, introverted woman she’s always been, but when she doesn’t feed on a regular basis, the need in her grows too strong. Stumbling around in the night to find anyone to ease her sexual ache, she and Levi come together and fiercely slake their need.  But once again she must leave him, and that only makes him hungrier for the mystery woman he can’t get out of his mind.

Though a short story, this book has so much packed into it. This is only a small part of it.  And then there’s all those secondary characters from throughout the series that I didn’t even touch. But it’s a very satisfying read whether you’ve read any of that series or not. I’ve only read a couple of books from the series, I’m not that familiar with all the characters, and I still enjoyed this one quite a bit.

Grade: B+

Summary:

Being a vampire sucks. Just ask Cori Lewis. The “Change” didn’t change her enough. She’s still shy, quiet and she never feels as though she belongs anywhere. Not even with the people who took her in after the vampire attack that left her near death. But other things have changed a lot. Cori needs sex — now!

She goes in search of a one-night stand — hot sex with an anonymous man in a dark alley — and her life changes yet again. He’s a connection to the past she thought was lost and he’s everything she’s ever dreamed. But when he finds out who she is, he might never be able to forgive her.

Read an excerpt.

Other books in this series:

Want to win $100 in free books?
To help promote her upcoming release, Chains, author Shiloh Walker is doing a dash through some of the blogs in romanceland, leaving behind excerpts. If you’d like to get entered to win a gift certificate for $100 (your choice from the online booksellers), all you have to do is visit the blogs, read the excerpts and leave a comment. The excerpts are in order, just visit the first blog, Karen Knows Best and go on from there!

Chains
An all new novel of erotic suspense
They weren’t friends. They weren’t enemies. The only thing the three girls had in common was the high school they went to in Madison, Ohio—until one tragic night. Now, fifteen years later, they’re returning home where passion—and danger—await…
Renee Lincoln was the homecoming queen—with the perfect boyfriend and the perfect life. After that horrible night, she rebelled the only way she knew how: by submitting to her wildest fantasies…
Tall, blonde, and athletic, Lacey Talbot was a golden girl with a bright future. She’s found success as a photographer, but no man has ever been able to satisfy her. No man but the bad boy she left behind…
Sherra Salinger has always looked like a princess out of some fairy tale. The books she writes, though, stem from the nightmare of that one night. And she shrinks from any man’s attention—especially the one stalking her…
They’re coming back to Madison—and it won’t be happy reunion. There are three men, all dangerous in a different way. And when each of them surrender their bodies to the heat, when they succumb to desire, they’ll find the safety they desperately need…

Excerpt (part two)

Fifteen Years Later
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Lacey tried to block out the sound of the leaky water faucet, closing her eyes and resting her back against the wall.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Muttering under her breath, she surged out of the hard, ladder-backed chair and stomped across the waiting room, into the bathroom. It was small, with nothing more than a toilet, a mirror and a sink. A sink with a faucet that kept going…drip. Drip. Drip.
Clenching her jaw, she turned the knobs until that infernal dripping stopped. “There.” Spinning around, she headed out of the bathroom—and crashed straight into Seth Salinger’s chest.
Seth—shit.
One of the main reasons she rarely came back home for more than a day or two. Enough time had passed. Lacey would have thought that maybe she could handle seeing him.
Obviously not.
Get over it. It was one fucking night. Five years ago!
One long, blissful night…one night…and the last damn time a guy touched me and made me feel much of anything—
A night where her brain had actually shut down on her. A night that haunted her dreams. A night that still had the power to make her belly get all hot and shaky. There you go, making things seem bigger than they really are. It was one night—the earth didn’t move, you didn’t fall head over heels in love, and there’s no reason you can’t act like an adult here.
No reason. Adult. Got it. She forced herself to look in his eyes and reminded herself, It’s been five years since that night, kid. It was a fluke—
She might have even succeeded if he hadn’t touched her. His hands came up, cupped over her upper arms and steadied her and heat flared along her skin. Her heart skipped a few beats and started to slam in a sexy little rumba against her breastbone while she tried to get her breathing to level.
“Hey. You okay?”
Easing back, she forced herself to smile at him. “Just peachy, Sheriff.”
A smile tugged at his mouth. His very nice mouth…
“You look exhausted.”
But Lacey barely heard the words at first—she was too busy focusing on that mouth and remembering. Lacey groaned inwardly and gave herself a mental kick in the ass. This was why she hadn’t come back home much since then. At Christmastime, always in and out, a few quick weekends where she stayed with her parents and didn’t leave the house.
Because of him.
What had he been saying…
Oh. Yeah.
Exhausted…smothering a laugh, she edged around him and said, “I am exhausted.” Just barely, she managed to keep enough distance between them so that her arm didn’t brush up against his. She felt his heat though, caught a trace of his scent and wanted to press her face against his neck and just breathe him in.

Visit Book Binge for the next excerpt. You can also visit Shiloh’s blog for details. The blog will be updated to include the live links for each of the participating blogs.

Disclaimer: Only one entry per household. Open to everybody, as long as the author is able to purchase/email you a gift certificate for one of the major online booksellers-Amazon, BN.com, Borders, Powell’s, etc. Winner’s name to be posted on Shiloh’s blog-author will ATTEMPT to notify the winner via email, but cannot be held accountable if her email bounces back- please make sure you enter the correct email and that you add Shiloh to your addy book to prevent problems. Void where prohibited. Please do not post to sweepstakes sites-the author reserves the right to end the contest at anytime, and likely will end it early if the contest ends up posted to sweepstakes sites.

Sandy M’s review of For the Love of Jazz by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Romance published by Samhain 25 Nov 08

This is my monthly open-a-drawer-and-see-what-you-find read. Ever since I read and reviewed Ms. Walker’s The Missing, I’ve wanted to read something else by her, so when I pulled this book out of the drawer, I put all the others that came before it back for another day. I have to let you know, though, my copy of this book is from 2004. It has since been republished by Samhain and it has been revised and expanded, according to their website. ‘Course, didn’t know that until just now, but I’m assuming the gist of the book is the same and I’m hopefully not missing anything super critical. At least I hope so.

What I like the most so far about Ms. Walker’s books are her characters and how she draws me into their lives, their families, their loves, their hurts, their joys, their tragedies, and all of those things happen at the beginning of this book. Jasper, aka Jazz, goes through hell as a kid with a stepfather who beats him and his mother until his mother finally can’t take anymore, her actions leaving Jazz alone in the world. He’s taken in by his best friend’s, Alex Kincaid, family. He loves them as he did his own mother, except for Anne-Marie. He could never look at her as a sister, she was so much more to him, even at their young age.

Tragedy strikes again when Jazz and Alex are in a major car accident. Alex dies and Jazz is left with the guilt because he’s told he was behind the wheel, although he can’t remember what truly happened. Soon after the funeral Jazz leaves town and it’s sixteen years before he comes back to Briarwood to find out what really happened that night. He’s lost his wife to cancer, but she gave him Mariah, his daughter. Mariah becomes ill and Jazz takes her to the local pediatrician, and that brings him face to face with Anne-Marie once more. She thought she’d never see Jazz again. She always believed he’d never been responsible for the accident that killed her brother and seeing him after all these years, she knows she’s right.

Thus begins the love between them as well as the nightmare that is working to tear them apart. Now that Jazz is back in town, people are dying and it’s a good thing he has an alibi each time because the killer is trying to frame Jazz for the murders. If the unexpected hadn’t happened each time the bodies were found, Jazz would be in jail. With the help of Anne and his cousin Tate, the sheriff, he’s determined to find out who despises him so much they’d kill to be rid of him. The author does a great job of keeping you guessing who done it. My suspect, the one I’m sure she wanted me to suspect, was eventually killed and then I was as stumped as I was when the whole thing started.

Jazz and Anne-Marie are a wonderful couple and I’m glad they found each other after so long and after so much heartache. Watching Jazz not want to hurt those he loves just by being near them, especially Dr. Kincaid, his second father, is so emotional for him each time they come in contact. But love triumphs and Jazz once again has his family back.

I’m glad I picked this book up. I’ll be doing the same each time I come across one of Ms. Walker’s books when digging through the TBR pile,  with no hesitation whatsoever.

Grade: B+

Summary:
.
Someone wants a secret to stay buried—even if it means murder.
.
Since waking up in a hospital at age eighteen, accused of driving the car that killed his best friend, Jazz McNeil has lived with a guilty heart. Now, more than a decade later, he has returned to his hometown to raise his daughter and to uncover the truth about what happened that fateful summer. And gaze into the eyes of the girl whose life he shattered.
.
Though Anne-Marie Kincaid was told that Jazz was responsible for her brother’s death all those years ago, she has never quite believed it. The facts don’t quite fit; they never did. All she knows is, she still feels loved and safe when she’s with Jazz, and that he misses her brother just as much as she.
.
Read an excerpt.

Sybil’s review of Fragile by Shiloh Walker
Romantic Suspense released by Berkley Trade 3 Feb 09

Suspense was one of my first book crushes. It is really rather shocking I didn’t fall into reading romantic suspense right away or that I don’t do more of it now. I think it falls under ‘too many books too little time’ and that I have found too few authors I think do it really well. Or it could be I have gotten seriously jaded in my old age and find most of it too hard to believe. And at the same time, I almost didn’t pick up Fragile to read because it sounded too depressing. I am just all sorts of shades of difficult like that.

There hasn’t been a good opening over the past five or six months for Dr Rafferty to ask Devon Manning out. Generally the social worker’s visits to the hospital don’t leave a lot of room for romance to develop. After six years in combat he is used to working around difficult situations.  Mix in a way dysfunctional brother, along with no relationship with his mom and Luke has more than his fair share dealing with personal demons. The bonus here is Luke isn’t a man who scares off easily. When Devon is handed to him on a dinner plate, well, as a dinner ‘date’ when they run into each other one night he jumps at the chance to get to know her better. Sadly all doesn’t go well and he almost blows it before he has a chance to ask her out on a real date.

Devon confronts the situation in the parking lot head on and they talk about it – like adults. And it sets the stage for a great romance to develop. The suspense has a slow enough build up that the reader is given a chance to wonder which direction it is coming from, at least at first. I have to say I kept waiting for Luke to be accused because he was becoming almost ‘stalkerish’ in his, I am the hero, hear me roar ways. But I would be lying if I didn’t say he was yummy, in an ex army ranger way. But after the first 10 times it started to be a bit much.

And the thing I hate more than anything in romantic suspense is the heroine who knows she is being stalked, who knows she can’t go it alone, resisting help. And Devon isn’t dumb. She hates she has to give up some of her hard won independence and self reliance. And she has reason to fight giving it up; the fight is with herself as much as with Luke. But she does eventually give in. Luke and Devon are a fabulous couple together and I really enjoyed the book. Although I did find it dragged a bit in the middle. Parts felt repeated and I am not sure if that was suppose to be that way due to what was happening to Devon or not. But it slowed the book down for me.

Saying that I thought the end was interesting and can’t wait for Quinn’s book. Quinn will be getting a book… yes?  Shiloh Walker wears quite a few different genre hats and does it well.  I look forward to reading more romantic suspense from her and would love to read some contemporary romance as well, if anyone is taking suggestions or anything.  Oh and as always historical romance .

Grade: B

Summary:

Six years after trading in his combat gear for hospital scrubs, Luke Rafferty is faced with things just as heartbreaking as those on the battlefield. The abused children being brought in by the pretty redheaded social worker tug at his soul like nothing he’s ever known.

For Devon Manning, being a social worker is a rewarding job, but also a constant reminder of her own troubled youth. Devon takes everything one day at a time—unable to form a relationship with anyone except the children she rescues.

When Luke meets Devon, he thinks he might have found what he’s been looking for, but in order to get the life he wants, Luke has to break through Devon’s emotional barriers and make her realize that his healing touch might be just the complication her life needs…

Read an excerpt.

I liked C2′s idea of a Best of 2008 list.  Then Liv got into the action, so thought I’d give it a try too.  (Of course, mine are the best of the bunch.)  I was never one to keep track of my reads, and 2008 was the first time I’ve done that; therefore, this list, though difficult to choose just a few in the long run, was easy for me since I didn’t have to rely on a twelve-month memory.

So here’s my Best of 2008, in no particular order.

Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas
Contemporary Romance Audiobook released by Brilliance Audio 25 Mar 08

Actually, I drooled over Hardy Cates while listening to him with the audiobook of Blue-Eyed Devil. My first foray (including Sugar Daddy) into Kleypas books and I loved every darned minute of it!

Weddings Can Be Murder by Christie Craig
Contemporary Romance released by Love Spell 27 May 08

I never thought I would fall in love with a hero who’s a sympathy puker.  Don’t wrinkle your nose!  Read the book, it’s hilarious! Christie Craig is making a huge name for herself and her wonderful humor.
Double Enchantment by Kathryne Kennedy
Historical Paranormal Romance released by Love Spell 26 Aug 08

A breath of fresh air with a new take on the English social castes.  Fun, intriguing, and very romantic. And loads of magic along with shapeshifting, both of which give readers a different look at old favorites.

Superb and Sexy by Jill Shalvis
Contemporary Romance released by Brava 1 Jun 08

Really, you can interchange any one of the three Sexy books in here. Just love those Sky High Men! Ms. Shalvis has a way with humor, romance, mystery, and fun.

Killer Charms by Marianne Stillings
Contemporary Romance released by Avon 26 Aug 08

I enjoyed all three books about the Darling family, but it’s the hero of this one that gave it top honors for me in 2008. I’ll definitely be reading more of Ms. Stillings.

King of Sword and Sky (Tairen Soul, Book 3) by C.L. Wilson
Paranormal Fantasy Romance released by Leisure Books 30 Sep 08

With just one more book to go, this series is now my favorite of all time. Ms. Wilson has created a world that is just absolutely fantastic and she’s giving us a love story like no other.

Hostage to Pleasure by Nalini Singh
Release by Berkley 2 Sep 08

I’ve loved every book in this series.  They’re all incredible.  But Dorian has always been my favorite from the very first book and I’d anticipated his story for so long.  Ms. Singh did not disappoint!

Scandalous by Night by Barbara Pierce
Historical Romance released by St. Martin’s Paperbacks 29 Jul 08

Barbara Pierce has become an all-time favorite historical author for me.  This book she gave readers a darker side of her writing and Everod is her best hero yet.

With Every Breath by Lynn Kurland
Time Travel Romance released by Jove 27 May 08

Beautiful writing, sweeping Scottish vistas, love and romance that crosses time boundaries, and characters you’ll love forever. What’s not to love?

The Missing by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Paranormal Romance released by Berkley Trade 4 Nov 08

As I said in my review of this book, Ms. Walker has outdone herself with this one.  Absolutely mesmerizing.  If you haven’t read it, you should.  You’re missing out, big time.

Honorable mentions:

Ask Adam by Jess Dee
Contemporary Romance released by Samhain 29 Jul 08

Ms. Dee is a first-time author for me and I enjoyed her writing and storytelling immensely.  I have a feeling she’s really going to go places!

The Hot Line by Cathryn Fox
Contemporary Romance released by NAL 4 Mar 08

Another first-time author for me. Had to love the idea of the Hot Line, firefighters just waiting to help a lady out. And those boys know what they’re doing!

Sandy M’s review of The Missing by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Paranormal Romance published by Berkley Trade 4 Nov 08

Wow.  I tried to think of some way to start this review and I ran through the story again in my head.  Once I did that, all that ever came to me again was, “Wow.”  I’ve really only read a few of this author’s books before this one, but I can safely say without a doubt that Shiloh Walker has outdone herself with this book.

We meet Cullen and Taige as they meet when they’re teenagers near Taige’s home where Cullen’s family vacation every year.  They see each other around, but it’s not until Taige is attacked by some local boys and Cullen comes to her rescue that their relationship truly begins.  They continue to see each other the rest of that summer and then each year as Cullen and his family return to the area, and each year their relationship progresses, despite Taige’s fear he’ll leave her when he discovers her psychic gift.  But love does eventually bloom for them both and then tragedy strikes, and Cullen blames Taige for his loss and cuts her out of his life.

Their lives go on, of course, in the intervening years, each going in a direction they hadn’t expected in those years together.  When they do meet again, it is due to tragedy one more time.  Cullen’s daughter has been kidnapped and when the police waste precious time looking at him as a suspect, his only hope to find his little girl before it’s too late is to go back to Taige.  He knows now that it was his grief that pushed her out of his life years ago and he prays she’ll help him.

Thinking she would always stay holed up in her hometown where folks are used to her and her gift, it was her guilt from not being able to help the one person who meant the most to her that caused her to hone her abilities to help others, mostly children.  So when Cullen comes to her she has a chance to make things right with him.  What neither of them expected is a connection to Taige’s dreams and visions she’s had most of her life are wrapped up in the hell Cullen is currently going through.  So begins their journey to find his daughter, other missing, and the evil villain who preys on the innocent.

Though they both realize their feelings still exist for one another, Taige tries to keep Cullen at arm’s length just as much as he tries to bring her closer.  Even their dreams are more real than even they could imagine. When they finally come together again, especially as adults instead of kids, it’s worth all the time they were apart.  Cullen and Taige are an awesomely dynamic couple.  The scenes when Taige has her visions are perfectly described, you feel like you’re right there in the middle of it all.  And the villain they have to fight personifies evil to the core.  Bringing that bastard down is not only satisfying to Cullen and Taige, but the reader as well.

This is a terrific story starting with a teenage love that grows over time, even when they’re apart, endures tragedy, and triumphs over evil in the world.  It’s a story of being accepted for who you are and loved anyway, having those you love not judge you, and it’s a story of forgiveness and faith that the love you lost and long for will be yours once again.

Wow.

Grade: A+

Summary:

Her psychic gift drove away the man she loved— and years later has drawn him back to her…

As a teenager, Taige Branch hated her psychic gift. No one could understand—except for Cullen Morgan, the boy who stole her heart. He did his best to accept her, until his mother was brutally murdered—and he couldn’t forgive Taige for not preventing it.

Now a widowed father, Cullen Morgan has never forgotten Taige. But what brings her back into his life is another tragedy. His beloved little girl has been kidnapped, and Taige is his only hope of finding her. Working together against the clock, Cullen and Taige can’t help but wonder whether—if they find his daughter in time—it isn’t too late for the overpowering love that still burns between them…

Read an excerpt.

Liviania’s review of Private Places by Robin Schone, Claudia Dain, Allyson James, and Shiloh Walker
Historical Erotic Romance Anthology released by Berkley Trade 5 Aug 08

Private Places gathers together four talents in erotic romance for a strong anthology. Each has a different style and theme, but all but one fit together well. Walker’s is a nice palate-cleanser. Only one of the novellas disappointed me, though I’m sure there are many who would enjoy it.

The Decidedly Devilish Duke by Allyson James

Years ago Michael and Amelia might have married, but their pride got in the way. Now Michael finally has the chance to marry her since her husband died and left her dependent on a despicable relative. But someone is claiming that Michael’s wife is not really dead. James doles out the secrets of their past at a good pace and develops them well. The plot involving Michael’s wife seems more rushed since most of the character’s actions to bring about the resolution occur off-screen. While I found A Night at the Theater to be a better story, I think Michael and Amelia were a better couple.

Grade: B+

Summary:
A wickedly erotic card game has high stakes: marriage. And a cunning widower and a desperate young widow learn that passion is the ultimate wild card . . .
Read an excerpt here

A Night at the Theater by Claudia Dain

Zoe lost her position as an actress to Miranda and wants revenge. Experienced courtesan Sophia knows how to do it: set Zoe up with Miranda’s former lover Duke Aldreth. He’s also rich enough to keep Zoe well if she pulls of the seduction. Sophia wants to convince Lord Dalby (enemy of her former lover Lord Westlin) to marry her. Dain includes a number of entanglements among the characters and two relationships but makes it all work. Sophia and Zoe are practical woman and very different from the normal romantic heroine. I enjoyed watching Sophia’s plots unfold as the night progressed. Definitely my favorite of the anthology.

Grade: A-

Summary:
Revenge is on the playbill for two young courtesans attending the theater in London. And far more entertaining than the play is the off-stage drama of a very public seduction or two . . .
Read an excerpt here

Hunter’s Mercy by Shiloh Walker

Shape-shifter Jack returns home to take care of his dead best friend’s sister, Mercy. In the since he left other creatures moved into his territory and killed her husband, causing her to hunt them despite being severely outclassed. I liked Jack’s voice and enjoyed the story, but it seemed a little out of place in this anthology. It’s both the only paranormal and the only one not set in London. However, Walker manages some worldbuilding in about one hundred pages and develops interesting supporting characters. My favorite was former slave Lydia who knows a more about what’s happening than she let’s on.

Grade: B

Summary:
In America’s early days, a woman is out to kill the demons who destroyed her life. But when she becomes the prey, a shape-shifter turns up to save her. Now, if only she could think of a way to repay him . . .
Read an excerpt here

The Men and Women’s Club by Robin Schone

Robin Schone headlined the anthology but I found her entry the least satisfying. Joseph Manning lost his virginity to Ardelle Dennison and wants to repeat the experience, now that their club for talking frankly about sex has been discovered. Ardelle has a number of demons to work through regarding her sexual history and she gets over them too quickly for my taste. It’s also hard to tell what is going on with the club since it isn’t actually featured in the story. Apparently a widow in it told her son about it and is not on trial (with Ardelle and Joseph witnessing against her – Schone goes for subtle, but hits obtuse (in my opinion). I didn’t care enough about the characters to read it again and try to follow the plot.

Grade: D

Summary:
Their private vice is a club that explores the boundaries of passion – but when it’s exposed in an 1887 London trial, a man and a woman learn how very dangerous desires of the flesh can be . . .
Read an excerpt here

Overall Grade: B-

Overall Summary:
Four all-new hot tales of yore, by the queens of erotic fiction.

USA Today bestselling author Robin Schone shares a tale of a man and a woman in a notorious club, who learn how very dangerous desires of the flesh can be. Claudia Dain heats up this collection with the story of two voyeuristic young courtesans who might just take part in a very public seduction at the theatre. Allyson James has a card-playing, cunning widower and a desperate young widow learn that passion is the ultimate wild card. And finally, Shiloh Walker introduces a short story of a woman saved by a shapeshifter. Now, if only she could think of a way to repay him…

Rarely does such blush-worthy, heated erotica exist—and almost never all in one book.

Sandy M’s review of Guilty Needs by Shiloh Walker
Contemporary Paranormal Romance eBook released by Ellora’s Cave 1 Sep 08

This is a book full of love, romance, friendship, pain, and a host of emotions.  We’ve heard the concept before — dying woman asks best friend to love and take care of her husband when she’s gone — but Ms. Walker definitely gives us a few twists to test that love and romance, throws a little of the paranormal in to complicate an already tenuous situation, and gives us pause to doubt a happily ever after is imminent.

She weaves guilt and need together into her hero, Colby, so well that I wasn’t sure for the longest time if he’d ever get his life back and if he’d ever be able to love again.  And just when he makes it that far, his actions take happiness right out his hands and tosses it to the wind.  Colby has known Alyssa and Bree for most of their lives.  Although one of those geeky boys in high school, he won the friendship of the two girls before they fell in love with him and it was Alyssa who eventually won his heart, who he married.  Now after eight years, she’s gone and buried just hours ago and he’s appalled that he’s thinking of his wife’s best friend in the most inappropriate ways.   Not knowing how to deal with such a situation, he leaves town for parts unknown to try to handle his grief on his own and to get Bree out of his head.

Bree has loved Colby every minute Alyssa has, but Alyssa spoke up first years ago and won his heart before Bree could.  She buried those feelings, though, during the eight years her friends were married, never once thinking about acting on them.  So when Alyssa, just hours before her death, asks Bree to take care of Colby, to love him like she always has, Bree only agrees at first to avoid causing her friend any extra undue stress and further heartache.  It’s later when Colby finally breaks down, when the grief overwhelms him and he needs her that she knows she can’t hide her love any longer.  But Colby isn’t able to handle such thoughts and actions, so when he returns home a year later, she’s determined to once again keep her feelings to herself and be the friend she’s always been.  Even though her best friend’s ghost wants her to do otherwise.

What I liked most about these characters is the love and friendship you felt between them all the time.  Both Bree and Colby are devastated, of course, when Alyssa finally succumbs to her cancer.  Bree was there for her friend every minute of her illness, as well as Colby.  He loves his wife with all his heart and he loves Bree for giving of herself so freely to both of them, something their other friends couldn’t do.

Even when Colby comes home after his soul-search sojourn, he tries his damnedest to keep feelings of friendship between himself and Bree, and as much as his need cries out for her, his guilt eats at him with the same desperation.  It’s when he finally lets go of the past that his friendship has a chance to turn into love, something he never thought to experience again after Alyssa.

Just when you think all is well and happily ever after is right around the corner, a little piece of the past rises up to throw Colby for a loop, so much so that his rage is totally out control and he does something that knocks the foundation of happiness for both he and Bree so off kilter it seems impossible for them to go on.  We then get to experience lasting friendship and how truly deep love can be despite their separate reactions to his uncharacteristic behavior.

The characters in this book will tug and pull at your heart just as much as they they’ll make you smile and laugh.  The emotion in the story packs a punch, whether from anguish and grief to full-out fury to crushing despair, lonely unhappiness and guilty needs.

Grade: B+

Summary:

The day his wife died, Colby knew his life was over. At least, that’s how he wanted it to be. He didn’t want to feel anything, not even when his wife’s best friend, Bree, offered him solace. He just took off. But he couldn’t outrun the pain and he couldn’t outrun the dreams. Hot, sweaty dreams that threaten to drive him mad. He can’t stop thinking about Bree.

A year later, he returns home, determined to close the book on his old life. But those dreams — those dark, guilty needs — haven’t gone away. They threaten to consume him. And it doesn’t help that his wife’s ghost is haunting him…encouraging him…

Read an excerpt.

This just in…

Shiloh Walker is asking for your help. The hurricanes, the flooding, the destruction, people losing everything they own in the blink of an eye. So what can you do to help these folks who so desperately need it? Donate.

~ You can pick and choose your charity, but Shiloh asks that you pick one that specifies the money will go to the areas so hard hit by the hurricanes and tropical storms that have been so devastating over the past few weeks.

~ “One of my fave charities is World Vision. 86% of all monies received go directly to their programs, not into the pockets of the board members, not in administration, not in whatever, but to the programs. They also let you specify what programs, like US Disaster Relief,” Shiloh said.

~ Once you donate, all you need to do is send her the confirmation number, the amount you donated and which charity you chose. Per Shiloh, there is no set minimum. You can give $5 or you can give $50 or you can give $500.

~ In return Shiloh is offering an ARC of her latest book, The Missing, due out in November, a $40 GC from Borders, and a couple of books from her backlist.

~ The contest will run for the next few weeks.

~ Check her site for more info.

Consider yourself flashed.

That’s right my little duckies, the Private Places excerpts continue to rain down on the Pond.  Shiloh Walker adds another chapter to her continuing Hunters series, with her contribution to the anthology titled Hunter’s Mercy.  Enjoy!

E-X-C-E-R-P-T

“You started sneaking out of the house again, Mercy.”

No. I didn’t start. I never stopped so it’s hard to start again. But Mercy kept that to herself. “You can’t keep doing this. It’s too dangerous.”
Mercy said nothing.

“It’s been a year. Whatever or whoever killed your man is long gone.” When Mercy continued her silence, Lydia sighed. She gave Mercy’s hair a final brush and the bed shifted a little as Lydia got to her feet. “Come on now, Mercy. Lets get you something to eat.”

Mercy opened her mouth to object only to close it without saying a word. Lydia was glaring at her, her dark eyes narrowed. “You are going to eat something. You ate no dinner. You need to eat.”

Mercy’s retort died on her lips as she heard a voice from outside her room. A deep voice-her unexpected visitor and judging by how loud the voice had gotten, he was coming to her room. “I will leave after I’ve spoken with Mercy, Theo.”

That voice-it was familiar. As the doorknob turned, Lydia grabbed her wrap from the foot of Mercy’s bed. Mercy shoved her arms into it, swearing under her breath. Lydia grinned. “Your mama would blush if she could hear you right now.”

Mercy retorted, “If some strange man was about to intrude on her while she was wearing nothing but her bedclothes then she would have done more than swear.” The door opened and Mercy turned to face the intruder. Her hands, in the act of tying her robe closed, fell limp to her side as she met deep, dark green eyes. She knew those eyes-Lord forgive her, she had dreamed about the eyes for more than half of her life. Even when her husband had been lying in bed beside her, she had dreamed of him.

“Jack.”

He cocked a brow at her but said nothing. Instead, he studied her, that faint, mocking grin on his lips as he started at the top of her head and went down. His gaze lingered on the loose neckline of her chemise. Mercy felt a blush start, low along her breasts, right where he seemed to be staring and as his gaze went lower, her blush climbed higher, along her collarbone, up her neck, until her cheeks felt painfully hot.

Once he’d finished his perusal, he looked back at her face. “A strange man, Mercy? Does that mean since I am no stranger, I’m allowed to intrude on you while you’re in a state of undress?”

Undress? Mercy thought wildly. I’m practically naked. Her hands shook as she reached for the belt of her wrap and tied it tightly around her waist. She hoped he couldn’t see just how much they shook, but there was little Jack didn’t notice. His forest green gaze locked on her left hand, on the wedding ring that she simply couldn’t part with, and he glanced around the room. “And where is your husband, Mercy? Should I fear being challenged to a duel for interrupting your privacy?” He didn’t look at all concerned about it as he sauntered into the room and settled his long, lean frame in one of the chairs placed by the fireplace. “I hadn’t realized that you had wed.”

Mercy closed her eyes. She wasn’t going to cry, not in front of Jack Callahan. “Simon was killed last winter.”

If you haven’t noticed Shiloh is a personal favorite of mine. This was suppose to go up on Friday but I was trying to close out the contests before opening more .

Read on to see who Shi’s Dream Team is…. and let her know who yours is *g*

I’ve got a big booksigning coming up this weekend (June 6-8) in Cincinnati, Ohio. It’s the Lori Foster and Dianne Castell yearly get-together.

This event is always cool…some of the authors attending include:

• Lori Foster

• Dianne Castell

• Lucy Monroe

• LuAnn McLane

• Erin McCarthy

• Toni Blake

• …me…

And the list goes on. I can’t list all of them because there are 100+ authors attending, authors from big and small presses, authors of contemp romance, paranormal romance, erotic romance, sweet romance, you name it.

I have to include me, because it’s just so cool seeing my name up there with other authors. Let me tell you, five years ago, if somebody had told me I’d be at events signing books with authors like Lori Foster & Dianne Castell, I would have laughed my tail off. So it actually happening still seems a little surreal to me.

But since I’m all for the surreal, lets venture in Shiloh’s lalaland and put together a ‘dream team’ of authors gathered in one place for a booksigning.

Who would be on your team?

Mine would include:

• Me (this would add to the surrealism)
• Nora Roberts/JD Robb
• Mercedes Lackey
• SL Viehl/Lynn Viehl
• Meryl Sawyer
• Linda Howard
• Lora Leigh
• Lori Foster
• Dianne Castell

So who would be at your dream team signing?

Prize:

Gift bag with books and goodies. This prize will be given away at the end of June mid August… prolly…

This excerpt is from the unedited ARC of Through the Veil, so of course it goes without saying that is is RAW. And there are some extras too.

Click here for ShannonC’s review.

Click here for the interview with Kalen.

Click here for a link to a fun scavenger hunt on Shiloh’s website.

And keep an eye out for there could be something fun and surprising with Shiloh come Friday.

Lee Ross always knew she was not entirely human. But when the man who has plagued her dreams her entire life appears in the flesh, can she give up everything she knows to follow him to another realm?

E-X-C-E-R-P-T

Her safe, secure world may be lost to her, forever. Selfishly, Kalen hoped it was. He hoped she couldn’t ever go back because even if by some miracle, they could send the Warlords screaming into hell, he didn’t want her to leave. Ever. If that happened, he wanted her to accept it willingly. To come to him because she had the same need for him that he had for her, not just because she wanted some sex and comfort, of the skin to skin variety.

But he did have to touch her. Instead of pulling her to him, he went to her, stepping behind her. Kalen rested a hand on the nape of her neck, felt the tension mounted there. He dug his fingers into the tight muscles and almost immediately, Lee moaned and dropped her head forward. He brought up his other hand, massaging until the tension slowly eased from her neck and shoulders. “I saw you come in last night,” he murmured.

“I bet I looked like something the cat dragged in.”

His mouth quirked. He didn’t quite understand the words, but he grasped the sentiment easy enough. “Today won’t be so bad.”

“Yeah, but what about tomorrow?”

He smiled at the grouchy, surly tone and wished he could say something that would make her smile. “It will get a little easier, with Eira, at least.” The rest of it, though? Her problems were only beginning.

“At least?” Lee asked warily. She wanted to look at him and try to decipher the meaning of those words, but that would involve pulling away from his hands. Those heavenly, wonderfully strong hands—no way in hell was she pulling away. At least not willingly.

When he didn’t answer, she just shut her eyes. “What have I gotten myself into?” she mumbled.

Kalen didn’t answer her. He did that a lot and even though it irritated her, on some level, she was relieved. He didn’t try to offer false comfort or promises. Things were bad around here. When things were bad, people tended to say all sorts of meaningless things, just to make a person feel better. But Lee wasn’t much into falsehoods, even those that were well-meant.

He slid his hands down her shoulders, massaging her upper arms, then back up. One hand cupped over the back of her neck, lingering there for a minute. Then he stepped away. Lee shivered a little at the loss of his warmth and then she focused on the mostly full cup she still held in one hand. It wasn’t quite like coffee—sweeter, darker and it had the same kick that espresso would have. . She licked her lips and looked up to see him watching her.

For just the briefest second, there was a look in his eyes. A hungry, greedy look that made her heart skip a beat, a look that turned her muscles into putty. Then it was gone.

Good thing, too, because if he looked at her like that for too long, Lee wasn’t sure what she’d do. And she had enough problems right now, thank you very much. She sure as hell didn’t need to get tied into emotional knots over the fallen angel with the silver eyes.