Review! Enemy Within by Marcella Burnard

Enemy Within

Marcella Burnard

Berkley Trade

November 2, 2010

ISBN-10: 0425236854 

ISBN-13: 978-0425236857

An intergalactic cold war-and some heated passion- from an inventive new voice in futuristic romance.

After a stint in an alien prison, Captain Ari Rose wonders why she even bothered to survive. Stripped of her command and banished to her father's scientific expedition to finish a Ph.D. she doesn't want, Ari never planned to languish quietly behind a desk. She wasn't built for it, either. But when pirates commandeer her father's ship, Ari once again becomes a prisoner.

As far as pirate leader Cullin is concerned, Ari's past imprisonment puts her dead center in Cullin's sights. If she hasn't been brainwashed and returned as a spy, then he's convinced she must be part of a traitorous alliance endangering billions of lives. Cullin can't afford the desire she fires within him and he'll stop at nothing, including destroying her, to uncover the truth. 

Captain Alexandra Rose - or Ari - has had it rough lately. After being held prisoner in an alien prison for three torturous months, she was thought a spy and dismissed by her own government. Now she's working with her father on his scientific expedition and this is definitely not Ari's idea of a good time. At all. Especially when pirates hijack her father's ship, things to go to hell quick in a hand basket.

Cullin Seaghdh is the pirate leader or so it seems. His main focus is Ari and what happened in her imprisonment because he thinks either she's a spy or she's part of a horrifying alliance made to destroy millions of beings. Either way, he's not about to let her out of his sights. No matter how their close proximity might ignite a hot chemistry that might burn them both.

Enemy Within is Burnard's debut novel and a huge hit! If you like futuristic romances in which the heroine is majorly kickass and yet so vulnerable at the same time, you'll love this story! I know I did. Neither Ari or Cullin pull their punches and it was highly entertaining seeing them interact and slowly but surely develop a super steamy relationship. Ari killed me at times, I was tearing up! She has been through hell and while yes, she's insanely damaged now, she's so determined to live and there were a few times when her vulnerability just broke my heart. But Cullin was fabulous, he was there with her all the way and I loved him too!

The one complaint I have is that the terminology confused the bejesus out of me. However, I complain about this in pretty much every futuristic romance I read. I'm not that tech-savy and admittedly all the made-up terms just annoyed me at times. Apart from that, I highly enjoyed Enemy Within. The characters are absolutely wonderful, Ari and Cullin will dig their little place in your heart and you'll be cheering for them in no time, the action-packed plot is super fun to read and I'm definitely going to be reading more of Burnard's stories in the future!

Lush Rating: 4!

Quickie Review! Just One Taste by Louisa Edwards

Just One Taste

(Recipe for Love, book 3)

Louisa Edwards

St. Martin's Paperbacks

August 31, 2010 

ISBN-10: 0312356471 

ISBN-13: 978-0312356477

Bad-boy chef Wes Murphy is dreading his final-semester cooking class—Food Chemistry 101—until he meets the new substitute teacher. Dr. Rosemary Wilkins is a feast for the eyes, though her approach to food is strictly academic. So Wes decides to rattle her Bunsen burner by asking for her hands-on advice—on aphrodisiacs… 

Rosemary is a little wary about working with Wes, whose casual flirtations make her hot under the collar. But once they begin testing the love-enhancing power of chocolate, oysters, and strawberries, it becomes scientifically evident that the brainy science nerd and the boyish chef have some major chemistry together—and it’s delicious…

 From beginning to end, Just One Taste is one delicious desert! Wes and Rosemary meet in chef school and from the get-go, their attraction and chemistry is exploding. I love how while Wes sounded pretty smooth, he was really such a cute dork which is perfect for such brainy girl genius Rosemary. They're both great characters that the reader will come to love easily. 

But it's not all fun and games because due to their student-professor statuses, some people are against their relationship and when they try to tear Wes and Rosemary apart, things are about to get serious.

I had such a good time reading this book! Awesome characters, delicious food and even more fabulous sex makes for a super sexy and fun read! Edwards does it again. Her stories are fun but so meaningful and I will definitely be reading her next book in this delicious series.


Lush Rating: 4.5!

Bayou Moon Winner!

... Three days later! My bad. I blame school and work though. Anyway! The lucky winner of a brand-spankin' new copy of Bayou Moon is.. Stephanie! Congrats!! I'll be emailing you with details in a few.

Thanks to everyone who entered!

Review! Me, Myself and Why? by MaryJanice Davidson

Me, Myself and Why?

MaryJanice Davidson

St. Martin's Press 

September 28, 2010

ISBN-10: 0312531176

ISBN-13: 978-0312531171

I have always, always loved every single Davidson book I've ever read. Mostly because they feature her awesome sense of humor and Me, Myself and Why? is no exception! Seriously, at times I was snorting while laughing out loud, much to my dismay when I'm at campus and a cute boy walks by. Oh, well.

In this book, our main heroine is Cadence and she's a triple threat. Literally. She's got multiple personalities and she works for a special branch of the FBI who only hires people with some psychiatric problems, to put it mildly. So Cadence and her crazy (Literally) partner, George, have been trying to catch the Threefer killer with no luck. He, or she, likes to kill in threes and lately, he's been leaving messages in his crime scenes. And these messages seem to be directly for Cadence and as the scenes get more gruesome, his messages get more menacing and unless Cadence and George find him soon, the next victim might just be Cadence.

Something I really enjoy about this story was that while Cadence is the main character, her multiple personalities are a very important part of the story. We meet Shiro, a super-analytical killer and Adrienne, who's just down-right nutso. I loved that it wasn't all about Cadence, even though it was. And she's got the best partner ever. I know George is a totally psycho but oh, lord, his character is insanely hilarious! Love him. All the characters are so unique and interesting and I enjoyed reading about every single one. And you can't have a book without the main heroine having a love interest. Cadence meets her best friend's brother and it's attraction from the get-go and what's even greater is the fact that he knows about her wee problem and still asks her out! I think he might be crazy too. They do have really good chemistry together and it was fun to see them interact.

Me, Myself and Why? is full of awesome and I had a blast reading this book! The characters are insanely unique and you won't see the bad guy coming until the very end. I really hope this is only the first book in an exciting new series because I would love to read more about Cadence and her crazy co-workers!

Lush Rating: 4.5!

Nancy's (Awesome) Theory of Style!

A while back I reviewed a book called Nancy's Theory of Style (Review) and I pretty much loved this book! The author Marta Acosta (pen-name Grace Coopersmith) recently emailed about something awesome - You can read the draft for this book online! FOR FREE! It "can read it at the Scribd site, download it onto their computers, or download it to e-readers and mobile devices."

Here's the link: http://www.scribd.com/doc/37115908/Nancy-s-Theory-Draft

Yes, it has typos but it's totally free and since I loved this book, you might too!

Enjoy!

Quickie Review! Only the Good Spy Young by Ally Carter

Only the Good Spy Young
(Gallagher Girls, book 4)
Ally Carter
Hyperion Books
June 29, 2010
ISBN-10: 1423128206 
ISBN-13: 978-1423128205

When Cammie Morgan enrolled at the Gallagher Academy, she knew she was preparing for the dangerous life of a spy. What she didn’t know was that the serious, real-life danger would start during her junior year of high school. But that’s exactly what happened two months ago when Cammie faced off against an ancient terrorist organization dead set on kidnapping her.

Now the danger follows her everywhere, and even Cammie “The Chameleon” can’t hide.  When a terrifying encounter in London reveals that one of her most-trusted allies is actually a rogue double-agent, Cammie no longer knows if she can trust her classmates, her teachers—or even her own heart.

In this fourth installment of the New York Times best-selling series, the Gallagher Girls must hack, spy, steal, and lie their way to the truth.as they go searching for answers, recognizing that the key to Cammie’s future may lie deep in the past.

Only the Good Spy Young is the fourth book in this girl-spy series and while I hadn't had the opportunity to read the previous books because I read this, I highly enjoyed the story! Cammie is such a great character, she's smart and strong but definitely has her vulnerabilities and it's a nice balance. Along with her two best friends, they made an awesome group and I loved reading their adventures.

While I was a bit confused in some parts - And I'm sure this is due to the fact I hadn't read the other installments - it's easy enough to get the gist of things and I wasn't lost one bit. Only the Good Spy Young is a quick read with a little of everything - action, romance, suspense, and comedy - and it all combines to make a great read! I highly enjoyed the story and I'm definitely going to be reading Carter's future - and previous! - books.

Lush Rating: 4

Bayou Moon by Ilona Andrews Giveaway!

One lucky winner will get a spankin' new copy of Bayou Moon, the second book of The Edge series! (Little hint: I already read this story and BELIEVE ME, you want to read it. For serious.)

The Edge lies between worlds, on the border between the Broken, where people shop at Walmart and magic is a fairytale–and the Weird, where blueblood aristocrats rule, changelings roam, and the strength of your magic can change your destiny…

Cerise Mar and her unruly clan are cash poor but land rich, claiming a large swathe of the Mire, the Edge swamplands between the state of Louisiana and the Weird. When her parents vanish, her clan’s long-time rivals are suspect number one.

But all is not as it seems. Two nations of the Weird are waging a cold war fought by feint and espionage, and their conflict is about to spill over into the Edge—and Cerise’s life . William, a changeling soldier who left behind the politics of the Weird, has been forced back into service to track down a rival nation’s spymaster.

When William’s and Cerise’s missions lead them to cross paths, sparks fly—but they’ll have to work together if they want to succeed…and survive.

To enter, just leave a comment. If you are/become a follower, that's an extra point for you! Giveaway ends Sept. 24th. Open to US only. Good luck!