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8.0 (1 Ratings)
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This is my very first Sara Brookes novel and I have to say, I'm pleasantly surprised by it. I was browsing NetGalley when this book stood out to me. I'm glad that I was accepted to read this book.

I will admit, mfm is one of my favorite genres on the more taboo side of romance. Unfortunately, not many authors know how to write the book where it is believable and sexy. Sara Brooks, seemed to find that medium where everything was good and a little more believable.

I loved the fact that this book took place over a long period of time. There was instant connection but not insta love which i really appreciated. The characters were fun to read though I would have liked a little more growth when it came to the main characters. For some reason though I know there was growth, I just feel like there should have been more.

I will admit that this book was a change up because it features two bisexual men and one woman. I'm not one for the male on male scenes so those were interesting to read even though they're not my cup of tea.

All in all, I enjoyed it. I liked the concept. Loved the fact that two of the characters were geeks and I will definitely add Sara Brookes to my "author to follow" list.

*If you didn't already catch it, I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
  
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David McK (3270 KP) rated Waylander in Books

Jan 19, 2019 (Updated Dec 31, 2019)  
Waylander
Waylander
David Gemmell | 2012 | Fiction & Poetry
9
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
“There is evil in all of us, and it is the mark of a man how he defies the evil within.”

The third of David Gemmell's Drenai books, this is also chronologically the first, set (as it is) centuries before the events of Legend.

I think I first read this in the mid-to-late 90s, not that long after discovering Gemmell as an author.

As an early work by Gemmell, this also has several of what-would-become-known-as his trademark: the main character of Waylander himself, for instance (who he would return to twice more in Waylander II and Hero in the Shadows) is not a clean-cut hero (perhaps more of an anti-hero), only rescuing the priest Dardalian (who would go on to have a VERY important impact on the history of the Drenai) at the very start of the novel as the renegades who are torturing that priest have also stolen Waylander's horse.

Full of powerful imagery (Waylander standing alone against the robbers in the dusk with the sun setting behind him for one, not that long after this rescue) and Gemmell's contemplation on the Source, Waylander would become - I feel - second only to Druss amongst his most popular creations.


That's not to say this is perfect: like Legend, the romance between Waylander and Danyal does seemingly come out of nowhere, although Gemmell is (was) getting better at organically growing those relationships compared to his first work.
  
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Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post

Mar 12, 2020  
Today on my blog, author Amanda Cabot stops by for a fantastic interview where she discusses her writing as well as her new historical Christian romance novel OUT OF THE EMBERS. Check it out, and enter the GIVEAWAY to win a $25 Barnes & Noble or $10 Starbucks GIFT CARD as well as a copy of Hill Country Sweets Cookbook and Out of the Embers. https://alltheupsandowns.blogspot.com/2020/03/book-blog-tour-and-giveaway-out-of.html

**BOOK SYNOPSIS**
Ten years after her parents were killed, Evelyn Radcliffe is once more homeless. The orphanage that was her refuge and later her workplace has burned to the ground, and only she and a young orphan girl have escaped. Convinced this must be related to her parents' murders, Evelyn flees with the girl to Mesquite Springs in the Texas Hill Country and finds refuge in the home of Wyatt Clark, a talented horse rancher whose plans don't include a family of his own.

At first, Evelyn is a distraction. But when it becomes clear that trouble has followed her to Mesquite Springs, she becomes a full-blown disruption. Can Wyatt keep her safe from the man who wants her dead? And will his own plans become collateral damage?

Suspenseful and sweetly romantic, Out of the Embers is the first in a new series that invites you to the Texas Hill Country in the 1850s, when the West was wild, the men were noble, and the women were strong.
     
This book was fantastic in its complexity. I have never read a book by Carla Laureano before, even though I know she is a well-known Christian Fiction romance author. I just have not picked up her books. Now I am definitely going back and reading them. In this fantasy novel, I found so much depth, intrigue, and growth. The characters were very well laid out, had fantastic arcs, and the first part of the story was told from a male POV, which I had never read before.

The world in which Carla Laureano immersed me was like no other. I loved the Isle of Seare and how it was intricately built through the pages, and I liked the different cultures of the four different kingdoms. I for one have always been fascinated by our faith in a theological sense and I loved how Carla Laureano wove different aspects of it into this story. It added a touch of realism that was interesting.

Overall, this book was one fantastic read that left me breathless with wanting more (bring on the next book soon please!), had some twists I did not see coming and filled me with a sense of wonder. I definitely recommend putting this one on your soon to be read list. 4 out of 5 stars!

*I volunteered to read this book in return for my honest feedback. The thoughts and opinions expressed within are my own.