Texas Hold 'Em by Kay David

Title: Texas Hold ‘Em (Smokin’ ACES)
Author: Kay David
Length: 219 pages
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62266-707-9

Synopsis:

Part law enforcement. Part criminal. And all deliciously bad… Working undercover as part of an elite team of Rangers disguised as the Smokin’ ACES biker gang, Timothy Santos walks the thin line between law-enforcer and law-breaker. With one of his informants missing—and possibly dead—at the hands of vicious cartel leader El Brujo, Santos will do whatever it takes to find justice. Even if it means heading to Rio County to look up his former lover…who’s not only the sheriff, but Santos’s only lead.

Rose Renwick is not happy to see Santos. In the past, their chemistry had been explosive—raw, sensual, and unforgettable—but she’d been burned. Now Santos is back in town, looking just as lethal and as irresistible as she remembered. But Santos wants something from her—and suddenly Rose’s family is in danger and her town is under attack. The only way out is to trust the one man she swore never to trust again. Ante up…

Review:
What a great suspense book! From West Texas to Mexico you go on a journey with the Smokin' ACES and Sheriff Rose the goes from lovers to murders. An action packed book that puts the readers on the edge of their seat, one you WON'T want to put down!

Texas Hold 'Em has a great suspenseful story line! It makes it easy to love this book! The characters were complex but easy to relate to, understand and root for!

I absolutely loved the undercover biker gang. It was amazing to see how the characters morphed into people they didn't want to be to carry out their jobs.

Pick up the book today! Don't wait, you really don't want to miss this awesome book by Kay David. Learn to love and forgive like Rose and Santos and admire their dedication and strength.

Skin in the Game by Jackie Barbosa

Title: Skin in the Game
Author: Jackie Barbosa
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 9781622667932

Synopsis:

Angela Peterson was always the quiet, shy kid growing up in Harper Falls, crushing on the high school quarterback and honing her football strategy skills. Now grown up and coaching the high school team, she’s shocked when that same sexy quarterback returns to Harper Falls asks her back to his hotel room. And then tries to steal her job.

Injured NFL quarterback Cade Reynolds is in Harper Falls to take over as interim head coach, and he never thought the tall, blond bombshell he propositioned would offer up any resistance. Not to a repeat of the amazingly wild night they shared and certainly not to his coaching position. 

But the Harper Falls High Eagles are Angie’s team, and even the hometown hero won’t take that away from her, no matter how hot he is. As the two engage in a battle of wits and wills, this is one game neither is prepared to lose.

Review:

I love stories where the women are the go to characters for sports!This story was sweet and well written! I really liked not only the characters but I really liked the community feeling in the book. The feeling you only get from a small town!

It was great to see how the characters, both major and minor, lives were wound together coming around full circle. It was a terrific story about following your dreams and altering them when the time was appropriate. Cade and Angela were a great couple, and I loved the dynamic between the two especially when they were coaching the high school football team. It didn't matter that Cade was the NFL player, Angela had the brains and the love of football. 

All in all, if your looking for a good story with a twist I would definitely read Skin in the Game! It's worth picking up! You won't regret it!

Talking Dirty with the CEO by Jackie Ashenden

Title: Talking Dirty With the CEO (A Talking Dirty Series Book)
Author: Jackie Ashenden
Length: 205 pages
Publisher: Entangled Publishing LLC
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-62266-066-7


Synopsis:
Gadget journalist Christie St. John is more geek than chic. But when research for an article she has to write on online dating leads to the bed of the hottest guy she’s ever met, she knows that if the geek is to keep the hottie CEO, she’s going to have to come out of her digital shell.

Tech mogul Joseph Ashton never expected an Internet blind date to end in the best sex of his life. Yet as the chemistry between him and Christie burns out of control, he can’t help but think this woman is out for his money like all the rest. She claims she wants his heart instead – but that’s the one thing he can never give.

Review:
Talking Dirty with the CEO has a great story line! It was fun to read and made me laugh out loud a few times! After all, laughing just might be the best thing about life!

Christie and Joseph made a great couple in the book and the friendship between the two become very endearing as it progressed in the story! It was easy to like Joseph Ashton, with his constant worry about his ADHD and Christie was awkward enough to be completely loveable in this book! One character that I wished would have gotten more time in the book was Joseph's no nonsense sister. She was great in this story.

I really liked the story line and how it progressed throughout. The characters were some of my favorites that I have read recently! I highly recommend checking out the book! It would be well worth your time!

Dream Nights With The CEO by Kathy Lyons

Title: Dream Nights With The CEO

Author: Kathy Lyons

Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC

ISBN: 9781622667802

Description:
Hotel chain CEO and millionaire Wyatt Monroe is a stick in the mud. Sure, he's hot as sin, even with the tie, but free-spirited assistant Megan Bradford refuses to jeopardize their perfect working relationship. Why mess that up with sex? She knows he's the love 'em and leave 'em type, and she's determined to find a family man.

Wyatt would never cross the line between boss and employee with Megan, no matter how hard it might be to resist the temptation. But when they visit a mysterious B&B in a bid to acquire the property, he starts having erotic dreams about the sexy brunette that make it hard to resist her in daylight.

Soon the line between reality and dreams further blurs when they learn they were sharing the same erotic dreams…  

Review:
A sweet love story with a matchmaking ghost. Don't worry, it's not exactly a paranormal romance; I know a lot of people aren't fans of that genre.

Well developed and intriguing characters are the heart of this story. I loved how the author wove folklore into the story to help give the environment more depth and the lessons taught to the characters are ones that everyone would benefit from. 

Dream Nights With The CEO is well written, fun, and witty. If your looking for a sweet romance to talk away your bad week, pick up this book and settle in. You won't be disappointed! 

I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Tall, Dark and Divine by Jenna Bennett

Title: Tall, Dark, and Divine

Author: Jenna Bennett

Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC

ISBN: 9781622669530

Description: 

Being the Greek god of love doesn’t mean you believe--or want--anything to do with that sappy emotion. Sure, Eros runs his matchmaking business, Made in Heaven, but finding his own love has never been part of the equation. When he spots the sweet baker who works across the street, he vows to match her with someone else before she stirs his sullen heart.

Annie Landon has given up on finding Mr. Right. What she needs is Mr. Right Here, Right Now, and this so-called “Greek God” she’s heard is on the rebound sounds like the perfect kind of distraction. But picking up the bitter workaholic is easier said than done…especially when he seems unreasonably determined to match her with someone else.

Can a woman looking for love—and the matchmaking god who wants her to find it with someone who isn’t him—have a shot at a happy ending? May the best god—or mortal—win.

Review:

Here is a little known secret about me, I love the Dark Hunter series. By love I mean that I own every single one written, on iBooks and in actual books. I was incredibly surprised to pick up this book and find so many similarities between that series and this book. Jenna Bennett wrote an excellent book book that was funny and romantic. I like books with a lot of humor mixed in and I was glad this one fit right in with my taste. I like to laugh out loud while reading! 

Annie was a a good character who was extremely approachable. I wish she wouldn't have been such a push over at times, but overall she was great, likeable, and sweet. Eros, was a little more developed and was a great character as well. It was nice to see him written as the underdog in the story. Normally when Greek gods are written into the stories, mere mortals don't stand a chance. His character in this book was endearing. I just wish he would have actually hit Harry like he wanted too. 

I liked the authors approach on mixing Greek gods into the story. Make them approachable and almost like real people, except for the drop dead gorgeous looks and the immortality. It was a fantastic approach on the story.

For me, it was an entertaining and quick read. If you like the Dark Hunter series, don't miss out on this book. If you have never liked them, you will still like this story with its loveable characters and well written humor.

I obtained this ARC through NetGalley in exchange for a review. 

Succulents Simplified by Debra Lee Baldwin

Title: Succulents Simplified Growing, Designing, and Crafting with 100 Easy-Care Varieties

Author: Debra Lee Baldwin

Publisher: Timber Press

Pages: 272

ISBN: 978-1604693935

Description:

Succulent plants are easy to grow and design with once you know the basics.  And Debra Lee Baldwin, the bestselling author of Designing with Succulents and Succulent Container Gardens, is the ideal guide for gardeners, crafters, and DIYers looking for an introduction to these trendy, low-maintenance plants.

Succulents Simplified is a complete primer on choosing, growing and designing with succulents. Along with gorgeous photos packed with design ideas, Debra offers her top 100 plant picks and explains how to grow and care for succulents no matter where you live. Step-by-step projects, including a cake-stand centerpiece, special-occasion bouquets, a vertical garden, and a succulent topiary sphere, will inspire you to express your individual style.

Whether you’re a novice or veteran, have an acre to fill or a few pots, live in Calexico or Canada, Succulents Simplified is a dazzling primer for success with succulents wherever you live!

Review:

What an amazingly informative book on succulents. The knowledge this book offers is fantastic! It is amazing the different things that she shows you can do with them. I am an avid gardener and love my cacti and succulents, but I never thought of some of the things she did with them! I am excited to try some of the different projects out and see how they come out.

Her photographs in the book are amazing too! She really captures the beauty of these plants. I loved her description of beautifully stressed succulents. A lot of people unfamiliar with succulents wouldn't understand why theirs look different than photographs but that one section helps sum it up! This book will be helpful to a novice gardener as well as an experienced one!

The first thing I am trying out is the succulent topiary!

About The Author:

Debra Lee Baldwin is a photojournalist whose passion is succulents---plants that store water in fleshy leaves and stems in order to survive drought. Besides being intriguing to look at and to collect, succulents are low-maintenance, low-water and fire-retardant.

Debra's book, "Designing with Succulents" (Timber Press) spent 19 weeks on Amazon's Top Ten Bestselling Gardening Books and was Amazon's Editors' Choice Best of 2007 Gardening Book. A French translation came out in 2009. The sequel, "Succulent Container Gardens" is a January, 2010 release.

Debra's goal is to help her readers better understand how to create and nurture waterwise, easy-care gardens. More about her as well as using succulents to create beautiful gardens and containers is at www.debraleebaldwin.com.

About the author, description, and book photo taken from here.

Washington Post Cookbook Edited by Bonnie S. Benwick

Title: The Washington Post Cookbook

Publisher: Time Capsule Press LLC

Pages: 252

ISBN: 0982324286

Description:
The first cookbook from the award-winning Food section of The Washington Post is a unique collection of more than 150 readers' favorite recipes from the last 50 years, ranging from classics to the experimental. It reflects the best of cooking from area chefs, Food staff members, and home cooks. Whether it's trendy kale chips or traditional fudge from Mamie Eisenhower, you'll see why the award-winning Food section is widely recognize as one of the best in the country. This cookbook is a must-have for any cook. ABOUT THE WASHINGTON POST FOOD SECTION: The Food section and its writers have won Association of Food Journalists' awards for writing, visual presentation, blogging and general excellence in 24 of the 26 years since the awards were initiated.

Review:
This cookbook has such an amazing array of recipes! The recipes are detailed, easy to follow and appeal to many different tastes. The photographs are well done and look fantastic, they make you want to jump up and cook them immediately.

One of my favorite recipes out of this book was Pasta and Lentils, Sicilian Style. I followed the recipe to a T, and it came out perfect and was a huge hit! I even got my picky nieces and nephews to try it out. I can't wait to try more out of here!

I loved the simplicity of the layout and how the whole book was organized! It is a fantastic cookbook! Once you try these recipes out, you are going to want to pass them around!