Recommendations from Karin for June 2015.

In order to bring some more variety to my blog, I have asked some of my bookish friends to tell about the books they have in the past month, and to give us a recommendation. Today’s post is made by Karin from Austria.

Karin:

This month I have hit the jackpot so to speak. I’ve read so many good books that I would have a hard time to choose only three of them to recommend to you. So I have decided to name some of my favourite writers and recommend one or two of their books.
To continue the post of last month I once again would mention

Nalini Singh and her new book “Shards of Hope”



Awakening wounded in a darkened cell, their psychic abilities blocked, Aden and Zaira know that they must escape. But when the lethal soldiers break free from their mysterious prison, they find themselves in a harsh, inhospitable landscape far from civilization. Their only hope for survival is to make it to the hidden home of a predatory changeling pack that doesn't welcome outsiders.
And they must survive. Aden will cross any line to keep his people safe for this new future, where even an assassin might have hope of a life beyond blood and death and pain. Zaira has no such hope. She knows that she's too damaged to return from the abyss. Her driving goal is to protect Aden, to protect the only person who has ever come back for her no matter what. But this time, even Aden's passionate determination may not be enough - because the emotionless chill of Silence existed for a reason. For the violent, and the insane, and the irreparably broken . . . like Zaira.


I don’t know how she does that but this book is up to the high standards that I have set for Nalini Singh. Of course I wanted to know more about Aden as he was one of the important supporting characters in the last few books and what can I say? – I loved him, I enjoyed his heroine, I was so invested in the beginning of the new story arc that I’m on pins and needles to know what and whom the next book will be about. (And it’s a year until the next book hopefully will be published!!)
In this book we meet most of the characters of the previous books in short scenes, it’s a thrill ride to find out what else the “ordinary field medic” can really do – in short: I highly recommend this book to readers of the series. I don’t however recommend it for newbies – you could read it as a stand alone but I don’t think you would enjoy it as much as you’d do when you know all the background.

Then I would like to mention

Thea Harrison and her new book “Midnight’s Kiss”



Ever since their scorching affair ended years ago, Julian, the Nightkind King, and Melisande, daughter of the Light Fae Queen, have tried to put the past behind them - and distance between them. But when a war breaks out between Julian and Justine, a powerful Vampyre of the Nightkind council, they find themselves thrown together under treacherous circumstances....
Kidnapped as leverage against Julian, Melly is convinced that her former lover won't be rushing to her rescue. But when Julian gives himself up to save her, they both end up Justine's captives. Armed only with their wits and their anger, Melly and Julian must work together to escape. But will they be able to ignore their complicated history, or will the fiery passion that once burned them blaze again?


I love the Elder Races series, I enjoyed meeting Thea Harrison in Berlin at the LLC, she is such a lovely person. I guess this book could be read as a stand alone but once again you will enjoy it more if you know about the background.
I especially enjoyed this book because aside from all the roller coaster ride of how Julian and Melly save each other – and how I enjoy a heroine who isn’t a simpering miss waiting to be rescued – there is character development in this book. The main characters have bad history between them but they don’t cling to it with teeth and claws. Of course it is part of the conflict but they talk about it (eventually, but what are a few years for immortals?), they come to compromises and they have one of the sweetest happy endings I’ve read in a long time – I just want to mention chocolate cake!

I don’t want to bore you with writing too much but there is another writer I would like to mention:

Mary Balogh and her “Survivor’s Club”- series and especially the book “Only Enchanting”



A New York Times Bestselling AuthorThe Survivors? Club: Six men and one woman, all wounded in the Napoleonic Wars, their friendship forged during their recovery in Cornwall. Flavian, Viscount Ponsonby, was devastated by his fiancée’s desertion after his return home. Now the woman who broke his heart is back ? and all are eager to revive their engagement. Except Flavian, who, in a panic, runs straight into the arms of a most sensible yet enchanting young woman.


This is the opposite end of what I’ve been describing before. It’s historical romance but not your run of the mill topics. You could start reading with any of the books in the series but of course it is always wise to start at the beginning. Sometimes I still wonder why I like this series so much because there’s not really a lot happening on the outside. Of course there are some conflicts between the hero and the heroine but mostly there are internal dialogues. You get to know what the people think, the conclusions they draw and this does not make for a fast, fluffy reading. Sometimes it’s a challenge for me to be patient and continue orderly but it’s always worth the effort.

To conclude this long post I would like to recommend to you an author I have never mentioned before (or so I believe). It’s

Sarah Mayberry and her book “Anticipation”



Blue Sullivan knows a player when she sees one. And Eddie Oliveira - charm and sex personified - was born to play. She never wanted him to say goodbye, so for the last ten years she's ignored the sizzling attraction between them and focused on being the best sidekick a guy could have. Smart girl, right?
Then Blue has a serious accident, and overnight Eddie changes. Suddenly he's more intense and singularly devoted...to her. With all this sexy attention, it's hard to stay within the boundaries she's scrupulously drawn. The temptation, the anticipation builds and, finally, she has to have what he's offering. Of course Eddie proves to be brilliant. Now, she worries he's ruined her forever, as well as the friendship that is so important to her....



This is another leap in my reading habits. She writes contemporary romance sometimes with an edge. One or both of the main characters bring a lot of baggage to the story. In this case it’s the heroine. I was truly fascinated with how Blue and Eddy made the journey to their happily ever after – and it was a long and bumpy one.
I’m not always comfortable with how Mayberry deals with sex as the first and main attraction in some of her books. In truth this something I almost despise – instant attraction, let’s burn up the sheets, and then we’ll see how things develop. I don’t know why but I cannot only live with that plot, I really want to know how they can find something more than “only” joy in bed.

This is such a long post that I had better stop now or you could be bored. I wish you all happy reading with lots of good books!



Aurian: Thanks for the recommendation Karin! I haven’t read the new Nalini Singh book yet, but hope to get to it soon. And the rest sure sound interesting. Anyone familiar with the lesser known authors on this list?

© 2015 Reviews by Aurian