Review: "How to Worship a Goddess" by Stephanie Julian

"How to Worship a Goddess"
Author: Stephanie Julian
Series: Forgotten Goddesses #2
Genre: Erotica, Paranormal Romance
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9781402251504
Author's Website: http://www.stephaniejulian.com
Source: Author for review.
Published: December 1st 2011 by Sourcebooks Casablanca




Goodreads Blurb:

He's exactly what she's always wanted. And she unleases him like a force of nature...
Lucy was once the beloved Goddess of the Moon, and she could have any man she wanted. But these days, the goddesses of the Etruscan pantheon are all but forgotten. The only rituals she enjoys now are the local hockey games, whereone ferociously handsome player still inflames her divine blood...
Brandon Stevenson is one hundred percent focused on the game, until he looks up and sees a celestial beauty sitting in the third row. A man could surely fall hard for a distraction like that...

My Review: 
This is the second book in the series and I loved it even more than the first and if you read my review of the first book you'll know thats saying a whole lot about this one. You do need to read the first book before this one to completely understand whats going on in this story. Lucy is goddess of the moon and is one of the few that retained some of her powers. She is also the creator of the werewolves and is still worshiped by them. She is also a big fan of hockey and has had a crush on one of the players so she is not very upset when one day he shows up in her remote bar. Brandon is a quick tempered hockey player and tough as nails with a smoking hot body. What's more sexy than that? At least thats what Lucy and I think. Lucy and Brandon can't help but be drawn together no matter how hard Lucy tries to fight it. Their relationship progresses fast and is very intense it'll keep you up late at night just to see what happens next. And did I say HOT? The relationship is not the only good part about this book the actual story is awesome as well. We find out about a hidden secret of Brandon's that helps him fight off the demon that comes after Lucy and she has to make the ultimate sacrifice for her people, the werewolves. I would highly recommend this book to erotica, paranormal romance and werewolf fans. I gave this book my highest rating of 5 hearts and its a must read. I can't wait to see what Stephanie comes up with next.

  


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Review: "What a Goddess Wants" by Stephanie Julian

"What a Goddess Wants"
Author: Stephanie Julian
Series: Forgotten Goddesses #1
Genre: Erotica, Paranormal Romance
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9781402251474
Source: Author for review.
Published: July 2011 by Sourcebooks Casablanca





Goodreads Blurb:

It's OK no one remembers Etruscan Sun goddess Tessa. But when a demon threatens her life, she must turn to mythology's darkest warrior for protection...
Caligo of the Cimmerians has never met a woman as warm, sunny and inviting as Tessa. Their sizzling mutual attraction quickly sweeps the two of them into a love story that's worthy of the gods...

My Review: 
Can you say hot? This book is not for the weak of heart. Its hot, heavy and fast when it comes to the lovin. Tessa is goddess of the sun and of course is a blonde bombshell thats being harrassed by a demon so she seeks out the help of a Cimmerian named Caligo who happens to be super sexy. Right from when they first meet the fireworks are flying between these two. Caligo is the ultimate warrior but is still unsure if he's tough enough to defend her.
I loved this book being a paranormal romance fan this book has just the right amount of action and sex to make it a great read. Stephanie does such a great job writing this book. You don't even notice her worldbuilding but she gets it in there and her character development was awesome. I totally fell in love with the characters and didn't get enough both were super hot and sexy but you could still relate to them. I highly recommend this book to erotica and paranormal romance fans but definitely not for the shy. Stephanie Julian is a new to me author but I will definitely be checking out some of her other books.

  


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2012 Historical Romance Challenge - Sign up now!

<a border="0" href="http://romancebookjunkies.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="<a href="http://s742.photobucket.com/albums/xx62/RomanceBookJunkies/?action=view&current=photo-castle-p8984-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx62/RomanceBookJunkies/photo-castle-p8984-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>"/></a>

Do to popular demand I have decided to host the Historical Romance Reading Challenge again for 2012. Although I am making some changes from last year so make sure you read all the details before signing up.

1. Please post the challenge button on your blog sidebar.

2. Sign up using the linky tool below. Please put your name and your blog name in the linky tool. (example: Danielle @ Romance Book Junkies)

3. The challenge is to read 12 Historical Romance novels in a year. Each month you will post your review using the linky tool in that months post. Your book can be a paranormal, fantasy, erotica etc. as long as it takes place in history and is a romance novel. If you have a question as to whether your book qualifies you can email me at romancebookjunkiesdanielle@yahoo.com. You can also use the same review for other challenges as long as its ok with the other blog.

4. Every month there will be a chance to win a bookmark made by Miss Bohemia similar to the ones pictured on her website here so go check them out.

5. At the very end of the challenge who ever has read their 12 books will be entered to win a grand prize. 

6. All the giveaways will be international.
7. Be prepared to have some fun. :)

Winners: Gratitude Giveaway Hop

I have counted up all the entries and used random.org to pick two lucky winners for the Gratitude Giveaways Hop. And the winners are:




Prize Pack #1

Ruth

Prize Pack #2

Seriousreader

Congratulations to the winners! I will be emailing both winners. If I do not hear back from them within 48 hours I will be picking a new winner. Thanks to everyone who participated and welcome to all my new followers.

Book Promo: "Bound to Remember" by Lola James

Bound to Remember

Book One of the Spellbound Series

By: Lola James

Vampires and Witches and Greek gods, oh my!

Toni is a young doctor that doesn’t remember she’s on the run from her past as the lover of the Greek god Hades!

Ben is a nurse and vampire is trying to escape his recent heroism and finds himself working with Toni. Ben can’t believe his eyes; Toni has an uncanny resemblance to an old friend of his, Joanna. And Toni well she can’t help but find Ben irresistible.

Enter Kevin, Toni’s sexy but arrogant Ex. Kevin’s jealousy of Ben blinds him from his main objective, Toni.

With an unexpected kiss between Ben and Toni in front of Kevin heats things up for everyone, but cools when Ben’s “vampire” secret is revealed to Toni.

Ben insists that Toni is in danger for knowing he’s a vampire and Toni knows that she’s not in danger; But to make Ben happy she enlists the help of her best friend, a self-proclaimed witch named of Annie. Annie is eager to help but she has a little more than magic up her sleeve and the results well you’ll just have to read and see…. 

INTERVIEW

1.  I know you get asked this question over and over but can you tell us a little about yourself? Maybe something juicy. ;)

Ok my name is Lola, I was named after a song (the Barry Manilow one). I am married with three beautiful children and I live in Southern California.

Something juicy, well Shhh (don’t my husband) I have secret a girl crush on Pam, from True Blood! Is that juicy enough? LOL

2. When did you first start writing? Are you a full time author or do you do it on the side?

I was twelve when I wrote my first story and amazingly, I still have it. Anytime I need a good laugh I read those stories. They were full of mistakes and the main characters always died but I love them. That was also the time I started watching soap operas so a lot of the story lines mimicked those of All My Children. LOL

I am only a part-time author but I plan to become a full-time author. This is not a hobby it’s my passion!

3. How long did it take you to write Bound to Remember?

Can you believe it took me a month? I was in the middle of editing another book that I wrote and that book took months to write when the main character of Bound to Remember, Toni, just came to me. I stopped editing the other book and started typing Bound to Remember and a month later, I was done.

4. Try to describe your book in one sentence?

A girl (Toni) that cannot remember her past because of a magic spell meets and falls in love with someone that unknowingly brings her back to her past. Whew, that was almost a run-on…

5. What do you think makes a story great?

I personally think it character development makes a story great. I mean when the author makes the character (s) real and likeable you almost feel like you know them personally. That’s when it’s a great story!

6. Did you do a lot of research for your book or did the story just come to you?
I did have to research places and certain things but the character came first and the story shortly followed.  I mostly researched details.

7. What are you currently working on?

I currently working on the next book in the Spellbound Series, Unbound that picks up were Bound to Remember left off. That should be out this winter.

8. Is there anything that I didn't cover that you would like to talk about or say to your potential readers?

Yes, I have another book called Fates Design that is the start of another series. Fates Design should be available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Smashwords by the end of November or Beginning of December. Fates Design is about twin sisters that go on a vacation to Italy and both love and disaster happens to them. Fate’s Design is the book I was editing when Bound to Remember came to me.

9. Where can we find you on the web, twitter, facebook etc.?

Visit my Website: www.lolajames.com
Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/1lola_james

View my Blog: http://lolajames-author.blogspot.com

Friend me on Facebook: http://facebook.com/LolaJamesAuthor

 Just for fun:

Hardback or Paperback? Paperback, I love that I can fold the pages back as I read but I must confess I love my Kindle too!

Dog-ears or Bookmarks? Bookmarks, I love when they have cute or funny sayings.

YA novels or Adult novels? Both, I love the romantic gestures of YA novels but I love the steamy sex scenes in the Adult novels.

Library or Bookstore? The bookstore, I like to keep my books and re-read them years, months or weeks later.

Reading glasses or No glasses? No glasses needed for reading.
Snack while reading or No snacks? No, I do not eat while I am reading.

Beach or Mountain? Ah, I love the beach. I love the calming sound of the ocean and the smell of the salt water.
Vampire or Werewolf? Vampires, in fact I secretly wish I was one!
Hot or Flirty? Flirty, because flirty can turn to HOT!
Movie 1st or Book 1st? Book first I like to fall for them before they have a “Hollywood” face.
Contemporary or Historical? I love contemporary with historical flashbacks.
Page-Turner or Tear Jerker? Oooh, I love a page-turner when I cannot put the book down! Loves it!

Thank you Lola for joining me on my blog for the interview and I wish you all the best of luck.

REMINDER: November Historical Romance Reading Challenge Giveaway

IMPORTANT:

This months giveaway ends on the 30th in just 3 days and I don't even have any participants who have entered a review link in the comments section in order to be able to be entered into the November giveaway. I know the holidays have kept us busy so this is a reminder to link up your reviews in order to be entered for the giveaway. This month and December is your last chance to catch up on your reading so that you can have a chance to win the Grand Prize of a box of 13 romance novels. I just thought of this but if we have a international winner I will have to do $25 worth of books from Book Depository instead. If you need to know how close you are to reaching the goal of 12 books read in a year you can email me at romancebookjunkiesdanielle@yahoo.com and I will tell you how close you are.

These are the people that have already reached their goal of 12 books or more for the year:
Alex @ A Girl, Books & Other Things
Crystal @ Reading Between the Wines
Deb @ Debbie's Book Bag
Gina @ Hott Books
Kylie @ Talking Teacups
Congratulations to you all and Good Luck!

In My Mailbox

Weekly meme from The Story Siren. The idea is to post the books you got this week,whether you bought them, got them as a gift, from the library, or received them to review.

All I got this week is a ebook I won on Queentutt's World of Escapism:

"Eternal Pleasure" by Nina Bangs


What did you get in your mailbox this week?

Winter Warmer Deals from Felicity Heaton

Winter Warmer Deals from Felicity Heaton / F E Heaton – Paranormal Romances with Passion

Between now and 15th January 2012, you can get your hands on some of Felicity Heaton and F E Heaton’s hot heroes at bargain prices! What better way to pass a chilly winter or relax in the sunshine if you're down under, than curled up in the arms of some paranormal heroes, letting yourself be swept along in their romance and adventures?

There are plenty of fantastic reads to choose from, all priced between $0.99 and $2.99 and in a range of lengths between novella and long novels, and a variety of paranormal romance sub-genres including sinful angels, sexy vampires, seductive werewolves, and even a super-hot demon and sassy witch pairing.

You can snap up the first book in Felicity Heaton’s best selling angel romance series, Her Dark Angel, for only $0.99, a saving of $2. Or indulge in some urban fantasy romance with Ascension for only $0.99, a saving of $3. Or perhaps get in the seasonal spirit with Vampire for Christmas for only $0.99. If you like your vampire romances packed with emotion and full of twists to keep you on your toes, then Forbidden Blood is only $2.99.

Her other persona, F E Heaton, is offering great savings on her popular Vampires Realm series. You can buy all three books in the epic Prophecy Trilogy for only $0.99 each. That’s a saving of $6! What’s more, you can get your hands on two more books in the series, Seventh Circle, a vampire romance novel, and Winter’s Kiss, a vampire/werewolf romance novel, for just $2.99 each.

These great deals are available at Amazon Kindle Stores, Smashwords, Barnes and Noble Nook, Sony Reader Store, Apple iBookstore and Kobo Books, as well as the author’s website! See the offer page for availability of individual books. Some books are still in the process of changing price at certain retailers but you can buy epub ebooks direct from the author or Smashwords for your Nook, Sony Reader or Kobo eReader if you can’t wait.

So snap these up quick to avoid disappointment! Prices will change back on 15th January 2012.

Find out more about the books and these great offers at: http://www.felicityheaton.co.uk/paranormal-romance-ebook-offers.php

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm thankful for a lot of things this year including my followers, authors and everyone else that make my blog a labor of love. You guys make it all worth it. So, thank you. :)

Review: "Genie Knows Best" by Judi Fennell

"Genie Knows Best"
Author: Judi Fennell
Series: Bottled Magic #2
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Pages: 384
ISBN: 9781402241901
Source: Publisher for review.
Published: November 2011 by Sourcebooks Casablanca





Goodreads Blurb:

In a world where genies grant three wishes, each one is bound to come with complications!
An impulse buy in a bazaar turns recently jilted Samantha Blaine into the master of cursed genie Kal. Before he can say, "Yes, Master" Kal finds himself falling for the woman standing between him and the freedom he's dreamed of for centuries...

My Review: 
This is book 2 in the series but can be read as a standalone. To be totally honest this book was just ok for me. It starts out with Samantha a heartbroken heroine who has just lost her father and finds his magic lamp. Samantha is a weak, pampered, spoiled person in the beginning of the book but is changed throughout the story into a smart, strong, independent person at the end. Kal is our hero and also our genie in the beginning he seems to be a little depressed from all his years as a genie and obeying all his masters wishes for forever but then he meets Samantha which happens to be his very last master he has to have before he's free of this curse so things are looking up for him. The beginning of the story was great and I was really into it then Samantha does the stupidest thing you could ever do and wishes that she can't say the word "wish" anymore therefore giving up all her genie privileges. This is were the story gets boring for me in the middle. There is a lot going on but I had a hard time getting through it all. Then the ending picks back up and is fantastic. It even made me cry which is rare so what do I say? I don't know. Maybe it was me and you should give it a shot, but like I said it was just ok for me. 

  


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Top Ten Romance Books of the Year

I found this list on Amazon and wanted to share with everyone the top ten romance books of 2011. I thought that some of us might be interested to know. I discovered a few I never heard of before. We can also add some to our Christmas list.

 

Gratitude Giveaways Hop!

Hello Everyone! And Welcome to my Gratitude Giveaways Hop hosted by our lovely ladies at I am a Reader, Not a Writer and  All Consuming Books. This giveaway hop is our chance for us to thank all our followers for their contribution to our blogs. We would be nobody without our followers and we appreciate each and every one of you. So to say thanks we are going to be giving away some awesome book related prizes. There are currently over 300 blogs participating in this hop and the great thing about this hop is that we are only allowed to require one entry per person so less work for you and everyone has the same chance of winning. So lets get to the good stuff and see what I'm giving away on my blog.

I am going to be giving away two prize packs one is for adults and one is for my YA readers.

Prize Pack #1 (Adult) 

3 Janet Evanovich Novels

Prize Pack #2 (YA)

The first 2 books in the YA series "13 to Life"

Rules of the Giveaway:

1. This giveaway is US only due to shipping costs.

2. Giveaway is from November 17th to November 27th at 11:59PM.

3. My one requirement to enter is that you be a follower of my blog.

4. Leave a comment with your follower name, email and which prize pack you would like to win. You can pick both. 

5. If you don't want to leave your email address on the comments you can email it to me at romancebookjunkiesdanielle@yahoo.com.

6. I am not responsible for any packages that are lost or damaged in the mail. I do purchase delivery confirmation.

Review: "The Virtuoso"

"The Virtuoso"
Author: Grace Burrowes
Series: Duke's Obsession #3
Genre: Historical Romance
Pages: 416
ISBN: 9781402245701
Source: Publisher for review.
Published: November 2011 by Sourcebooks Casablanca





Goodreads Blurb:
The highly praised trilogy of Regency romances by award-winning author Grace Burrowes concludes with gifted pianist Valentine Windham, youngest son of the Duke of Moreland. Val retreats to the country after an injury robs him of his musical ability, only to learn from impoverished widow Ellen Markham that he can be loved even when his music falls silent.

My Review: 
This is book 3 in the Duke's Obsession series but it can be read as a stand alone. In fact I haven't read any of the other books in this series and I was very pleased with the whole book. It was a great story, a average historical romance. The story is about Ellen and Valentine. Ellen is recently widowed and now is somewhat under the control of her cousin Fredrick. Valentine is a musician who has come down with a condition causing him to lose the use of his hand preventing him from playing music among other things. Valentine ends up winning a home from Fredrick in a game of cards and this brings Ellen and Valentine together. Ellen is hesitant to have feelings for him because nothing but bad things have been happening to things and people she loves. Valentine finds that he also has nothing but bad things happening to the home he won and is trying to fix up so the book is definitely part mystery which I love. I think all good books need a great sub plot to it besides the actual love story. So the romantic development is slow  but sweet. I would have to say it was a page turner for me and I read through it very quickly. The author did a great job writing this book. She wrote some of the most vivid descriptions. I can even recall a scene where she is describing the gardens and I felt like I was there. I would definitely recommend this book to Historical Romance readers.

  


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2011 Historical Romance Challenge - Grand Prize Info

I wanted to make a post to let you all know what the grand prize is going to be and to give you all a little pep talk. It seems like I am getting less and less participants each month and we only have two months left, so get back into the game of reading your historical novels. I am also going to list the people who have completed all 12 books for a chance at the grand prize. If you don't see your name you can email me (romancebookjunkiesdanielle@yahoo.com) and I'll let you know how may books you have read so far. 

First, the Grand Prize is going to be a box of used Historical Romance Books, 13 books in total. 

1. ARC of The Highlander's Heart by Amanda Forester
2. Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult
3. ARC of Miss Darcy Falls in Love by Sharon Lathan
4. The Wild Swans by Kate Holmes
5. Wild Roses by Hannah Howell
6. Promise me Forever by Lorraine Heath
7. Highland Honor by Hannah Howell
8. One Night is Never Enough by Anne Mallory
9. The Chaperon Bride by Nicola Cornick
10. Claiming the Highlander by Kinley MacGregor
11. The de Burgh Bride by Deborah Simmons
12. Mastered by Love by Stephanie Laurens
13. ARC of The Virtuoso by Grace Burrowes

Congrats to the two participants who have all ready reached their goal of 12 books in a year.

1. Alex @ A Girl, Books & Other Things
2. Crystal @ Reading Between the Wines

There are quite a few of you who are extremely close to reaching the goal of 12 books in a year so lets try to catch up so you can have a chance at the Grand Prize. We need to give Alex and Crystal a little more competition.

In My Mailbox

Weekly meme from The Story Siren. The idea is to post the books you got this week,whether you bought them, got them as a gift, from the library, or received them to review.

I Got For Review:

"Heart of Darkness" by Felicity Heaton

Books I Bought:

"Possess Me" by R.G. Alexander

"A Vampire for Christmas" by Laurie London, Michele Hauf, Caridad Pineiro and Alexis Morgan

"Silk is for Seduction" by Loretta Chase

What did you get in your mailbox this week?

Hottie of the Week

For this weeks Hottie of the Week I went cowboy style with this peice of eye candy. 

What do you think? Any suggestions for future Hotties is greatly appreciated.