I’m always eager to read romances in unusual settings, so Catherine Mann’s latest military romance, Defender, set entirely in Turkey, appealed to me. While I found most of the characters interesting, there are too many separate threads to give it a hearty recommendation. Captain Jimmy Gage is a pilot for a dark ops squadron in…
Finders Keepers by Linnea Sinclair is a book I find myself re-reading at regular intervals, three times in three years so far. The first time I read it I considered it a guilty pleasure, with its dramatic plotline and the so very obvious Cinderella theme. It was only on rereading it that I discovered how…
Janice Kay Johnson is one of my few auto-buy category romance writers. Snowbound not only reinforces her status, it moves the book to the top of my list for the author. The book begins with a vivid, terrifying drive through the Cascade Mountains. Fiona MacPherson, a teacher at a private high school in Portland, is…
After finishing Linnea Sinclair’s novel, I felt a strong urge to go on a marathon of Star Trek episodes. However, despite its similarities to the TV series, the plot of Games of Command is its own, a thoroughly entertaining one and toward the end, an incredibly exciting, thrilling read Long-time enemies, The United Coalition and…
Kathleen Korbel’s RITA-winning A Soldier’s Heart has long been considered a classic of the genre, and it continues to hold up as a most excellent read. A book that is perhaps even more timely and relevant today than when it was first published, it’s a moving exploration of war’s lingering effects, not only on those…
For me, there are usual several telltale clues that a book just isn’t working. One, it takes me a long time to read. I’m a pretty fast reader and can usually polish off a category romance in a day or so. Two, I keep misplacing and forgetting about it, then, I find it days later…
Rebecca York is an author who’s specialized in writing some unusual stories over the years. Nowhere Man is one of the very best of her roughly five dozen releases. Part military action thriller, part mystery, part poignant romance, it also creates a compelling and unique hero unlike any other in the title character. Targeted for…
I’ve only read a few books by Merline Lovelace, but in my limited experience she either writes books with richly developed romance and somewhat weak plots, or richly developed plots and somewhat weak romance. Even though After Midnight is an example of the latter, the intriguing mystery in this story is strong enough to make…
If you like fast-moving stories that combine James Bond-like intrigue with romance, have I got a treat for you! Hot as Ice, the latest in retired Air Force officer Merline Lovelace’s Code Name: Danger series, is a fun story that I devoured in one sitting, and requires only a bit of suspension of disbelief. Major…
The Older Woman certainly started my series romance reading on a high note for 2002. Much as I enjoy them, I have to admit that many series romances are not all that distinctive when it comes to style. This one is. Cheryl Reavis is an original writer with her own unique voice. There is no…