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Book Review: It's All Greek To Me by Katie MacAlister


Title: It's All Greek To Me

Author: Katie MacAlister

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Description: When Eglantine "Harry" Knight sets off for Greece at the last minute to step in as manager of a friend's touring band, the last thing she expects is to meet a billionaire Greek playboy. Iakovos Papaionannou is perfection on every level, except for his unpronounceable name. And Harry can't stop herself from falling hard and fast for him.
Iakovoos knew his sister hired her favorite band to perform at her birthday party; he's just not sure where this six-foot-tall, wild-haired, tempestuous woman fits in, or how she's already ended up in his bed-and in his heart. Harry is so not his type. She's as infuriating as she is intriguing, and she can't keep her hands off his butt. But she just may be the woman who knocks him off the world's most eligible bachelor list for good . . .

Review: This newest contemporary story by Katie MacAlister is very fast paced, even a bit too much I'm afraid. Everything happens really quick in this story. I know it's not unusual in these kind of stories for the two main characters to end up in bed at the beginning, but then usually there are some struggles or reasons why they can't be together etc. Here this is absolutely not the case. A real whirlwind romance, that has Harry moving in with her Greek Adonis by the 10th chapter. The only "problem" is Iakovoos brother, who has a drinking problem and likes to harass Harry. That and an ex-girlfriend of his looking to cause some trouble between Harry and Iakovoos is about all the drama you will get.
Harry on her own is definitely a force to be reckoned with. Not knowing when to shut up and rant after rant leads to some hilarious situations. So there is some humor in the story and Harry and Iakovoos have two opposite characters, which causes for some serious fireworks between them, keeping it entertaining.
It's All Greek To Me is not a bad story, but I feel it could have been so much more. I absolutely love the other Katie MacAlister books, both the contemporary as the paranormal, unfortunately I find this one lacking. Comparing this story with the others, you know she can do so much better. I would definitely recommend all her other books, but I'm afraid I don't believe this one is a must read.

★★☆☆☆


Book Review: Yours To Keep by Shannon Stacey


Title: Yours To Keep (Kowalski Family #3)

Author: Shannon Stacey

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Description: Sean Kowalski no sooner leaves the army than he’s recruited by Emma Shaw to be her fake fiancé. Emma needs to produce a husband-to-be for her grandmother’s upcoming visit, and, though Sean doesn’t like the deception, he could use the landscaping job Emma’s offering while he decides what to do with his civilian life. And, despite his attraction to Emma, there’s no chance he’ll fall for a woman with deep roots in a town he’s not planning to call home.
Emma’s not interested in a real relationship either; not with a man whose idea of home is wherever he drops his duffel bag. No matter how amazing his “pretend” kisses are…

Review: First of all when I read this book I didn't know it was the third in a series, but I had no problem following and it's obvious these books can be read separately. Of course if you read the others first you'll have more background on the Kowalski family and it might be easier to keep all the names straight as there are a lot of Kowalski's and in this book they're even adding more.
Sean is the cousin and before moving on or deciding what he'll do now that he's out of the army, he visits his extended family. Barely inside of his apartment and there is woman knocking on his door claiming he's her fiancé. Considering Sean has never met Emma, he just think she's batshit crazy, hot but crazy. Emma explains to Sean how her grandma whom lives in Florida is always worried about her and was thinking of moving back in with Emma, so she came up with a fake boyfriend namely him. It was all going well until her grandma decided to come for a visit, so now Emma needs Sean's help to play her fake fiancé for a month. Sean decides to go for it, not really knowing why himself, but pretty much everyone around them believe they are out of their mind. Now they are sharing a bedroom, working together all day, pretending to be in love and those practice kisses certainly feel more like real kisses.
So the story is a bit predictable, but it doesn't make it any less fun to see the two main characters squirm through all that drama and "pretend". The crazy situation Sean and Emma have to put themselves through just so they can convince her grandma are hilarious. Of course the sexual tension between those two almost jumps out of the pages and makes it kind of hot in here. A good combination of humor, not too heavy drama and the Kowalski family makes this truly an enjoyable read!

★★★½☆


Book Review: The Darkest Seduction by Gena Showalter


Title: The Darkest Seduction (Lords Of The Underworld #9)

Author: Gena Showalter

Genre: Adult Paranormal Romance

Description: Possessed by the demon of Promiscuity, immortal warrior Paris is irresistibly seductive-but his potent allure comes at a terrible price. Every night he must bed someone new, or weaken and die. And the woman he craves above all others is the one woman he'd thought was forever beyond his reach…until now.
Newly possessed by the demon of Wrath, Sienna Blackstone is racked by a ruthless need to punish those around her. Yet in Paris's arms, the vulnerable beauty finds soul-searing passion and incredible peace. Until a blood feud between ancient enemies heats up.
Will the battle against gods, angels and creatures of the night bind them eternally-or tear them apart?

Review: This story is one many fans (myself included) have been waiting for. Paris has changed so much since the first Lord of the Underworld book. From lighthearted sex addict (that part is mostly because of his demon) to depressed ambrosia (drugs) addict, with only one goal in his life: to get Sienna back no matter what. Sienna is technically dead, but because she is paired with the demon of Wrath she still has some corporal presence. Paris seeks the help of the minor goddess Viola who is paired with the demon of Narcissism and she can also see the dead, which is what he needs. When he finally finds Sienna that's when the trouble only starts. It seems like everyone needs Sienna on their side in the ultimate fight for power; Zacharel needs to protect her so she can fight with the angels, Cronos wants her infiltrating the Hunters' camp and be his spy, Gaea wants to turn her against Cronos, Galen just wants to kill her and all Paris wants is Sienna to be safe by his side.
Once again Gena Showalter gives us a book filled with action, romance and fierce droolworthy warriors. Finally it was Paris' turn and I'm glad that he got his chance at happiness, but what I liked most about this book was that the background story (that continues through all the books) got an epic turn in events. As in, from this moment on everything will be different and I absolutely didn't saw this coming, which I like.
One of my new favorite characters in Zacharel, he's a warrior angel who has to protect Sienna and convince her to fight for the Heavens. This guy gives stoic a whole new meaning. He doesn't believe in emotions or even just lust and doesn't understand how other people can . The most wonderful news is, he gets his own book (Wicked Nights) where we will learn all his dark secrets. Like why he always has snow falling around him? Why doesn't he believe in love? What did he do wrong to be punished like that?...
So if you like not so angelic angels, demon warriors, scheming Titans, wacky gods and brainwashed humans, you should definitely read this book! I do recommend reading the other eight books first, otherwise it might get very confusing to follow what is going on.

★★★☆☆