Eight Reasons: The Boy in the Bubble

 Timothy’s mental powers are limitless in this story that will keep you awake long past midnight.

 About The Boy in the Bubble:

Timothy Bergendorf suffers from so many potentially fatal allergies that he’s forced to live in a self-contained bubble. Greatly loved by his parents he must be protected from everything that might end his fragile life at the drop of a hat. Throughout his lonely childhood, nature compensates by giving him telekinetic and psychic powers.

     As he reaches puberty, his secret talents increase in power so he can travel the world in his mind. Using his power while juggling numerous cars in the air, Timothy suffers a ruptured hernia and is rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery.

     But the operation goes wrong, Tim awakens in agony, and the arrogant, incompetent surgeon can't help. Enraged, Timothy unleashes the full power of his ability—and no one in his path is safe.

 Our Review: Devotees of Stephen B King’s ability to keep his readers enthralled will adore this short contemporary morality tale as they read what happens when an infant is exposed to the vagaries of fate and medical mysteries, then how his frantic parents cope with his enforced disabilities. Having done all they can, sacrificed everything to give him a chance at ‘normal’, after his true character is revealed, they are horrified—as anyone would be. While some might see Timothy as a monster—fear not, there is a happy ending to this morality tale.

 Based on a scale of 1-5, Boy in the Bubble merits a 7.

  Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

Gaming Hell Christmas, Vol 4

 She was sold to settle a debt. Now she’s ready to reclaim her life—on her own terms.

In The Courtesan’s Christmas Redemption, written by Kathy L. Wheeler, Faustina Clara, once one of the eight jewels of Miss Greensley’s School, has spent the last four years as the enigmatic mistress of the mysterious London hell known as La Sous Rose.

     Through wit and will, she’s carved out a life of independence and power. But when a ghost from her past resurfaces to threaten all she’s built—as well as the seven other women she calls sisters—Faustina must confront secrets she believed long buried in the icy depths of the Thames.

     Henry Ashcombe, her fiercest protector and most persistent suitor, has vowed to uncover the truth and keep Faustina safe—even if it means risking his heart and his own secrets. But the closer they get to the truth, the more dangerous their world becomes.

Sometimes the heart leads where the crown cannot follow.

     In The Princess’s Christmas Romp, by Amanda McCabe, a blizzard strands the Queen’s daughter, in London just days before the annual Christmastide fête at la Sous Rose. Seizing the opportunity to escape royal duty, Princess Augusta dons a maid’s apron if only for a bit of fun and relief from the tedium associated with being a royal. She doesn't know her royal parents have sent someone to guard her over the holidays.

     What starts as a lark becomes a lesson in freedom—and attraction—when the unflappable Sir Brent Spencer mistakes her for a clever new hire, not the princess he's meant to protect. But as their mutual secrets pile up faster than snow on the eaves, their growing feelings could melt more than their covers. Brent knows what he wants but with Augusta’s heart hanging in the balance, she must choose between the life she was born into—or the one she’s only just begun to imagine...

Our Review: Volume 4 of Gaming Hell Christmas offers a most fitting end to the adventures of the Greensley Girls—bringing closure to the most mysterious of the eight women who as young teenagers forged long standing bonds that withstood the passage of time—and whatever life chose to throw at each.

     Faustina has more guts and grit than any ten women of that time and age while Augusta, who dreams of a “normal” life, understands and accepts what is expected of her—until life, as it always will, tosses a monkey into the works. Do Not Miss this entire series. It’s a winner. 

 On a scale of 1-5. Gaming Hell Christmas, Vol 4 merits a 7.

 Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

 

Highlander's Holly and Ivy

           Bound by prophecy, yet torn by loyalty, love becomes a spark that could protect Scotland’s destiny or reduce it to ruins.

In Margaret Izard’s Highlander’s Holly and Ivy, the latest in the Stones of Iona series, a forbidden love between a Highlander and an English lady becomes intertwined with magic, betrayal, and the fate of a nation while both fight to unite their worlds and reclaim Scotland’s legacy.

About the Book: In a land torn by politics and heritage, Alex MacDougall—Scotland’s Lord Justice Clerk—balances loyalty to the British crown and his secret role in preserving outlawed Scottish traditions. When tasked with retrieving a mystical stone tied to Scotland’s destiny, he crosses paths with Lady Iris Erskine, an Englishwoman captivated by Scottish culture. Disguised as Ivy, Iris masquerades as a highland lassie to be close to the dashing highlander.

Love blossoms between Alex and Ivy as tensions simmer between the English and Scots. While Iris vexes over revealing the truth to her handsome Scot, Alex grapples with his family’s secret duty to protect magic Fae stones. With his beloved targeted and hidden truths emerging, the world he once knew dissolves before his eyes.

 Two hearts, bound by fate, must stave off an evil Fae intent on destroying the MacDougall Clan before both lose all they love.

Our Review: Readers have been entertained for years by the entire Stones of Iona series, yet Highlander’s Holly and Ivy takes things one step further. The author’s talents are many. This story shines in three important areas: her mastery of dialogue, paying close attention to dialects for each specific character’s place in society; detailed descriptions of the centuries long turbulence between England and Scotland and the long-term effects on both cultures; and creating bad guys—Fae and human—terribly vile and thoroughly delicious.

Based on a scale of 1-5, Highlander’s Holly and Ivy merits a 7.

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

 

 

 

 

Broken Branches by Darlene Fredette

 …where hearts once shattered, love dares to bloom again.

 About Broken Branches:

Police officer Tyler Kringle has kept his heart guarded since Maripier Nadeau disappeared from his life years ago. A devastating family tragedy forced her to leave Redford Falls as a teenager, leaving him to pick up the pieces of their broken relationship. Now as she returns to care for her father—and honor her late mother—memories, good and bad, reignite emotions Tyler thought he had buried.

As long-hidden truths emerge, Maripier must choose whether to prune the past or nurture a future with the man she has always loved. No longer the shy girl, Maripier is now strong and prepares to confront their shared, complicated and painful history. 

Our Review: Author Darlene Fredette brings her loyal fans—and hopefully a few new ones—on a trip back to Redford Falls where a few changes have occurred—small businesses are cropping up thanks to the insurgence of activities surrounding the local ski resort—and some old one, such as the enterprising rabbit Thumper, who is still working his matchmaking skills on those in most need of love.

          This short contemporary romance is more than the reincarnation of a beloved small town populated by a community always at the ready to help those in need. It is a vivid showcase of the issues suffered by adult children of alcoholics and untreated or undiagnosed mental illness.

While the story will threaten to break readers’ hearts for those affected by tragedy, at the same time it will warm the heart for the resilience and ability to forgive on the parts of those same characters.

 Based on a scale of 1-5, Broken Branches merits a 7.

  Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

 

 

 

 

Gaming Hell Christmas, Volume 3

 Continuing our Books in a Series events, Wild Women Authors presents Gaming Hell at Christmas, Volume 3, with two short Georgian era romances set in and around London during a wicked snowstorm.

 
In The Other Face of the Christmas Shilling by Kathy L Wheeler, Lady Thomasina Staunton takes refuge in an abandoned house as far from London, her friends, and her family, as she can get. But her ruse of an absent husband fighting the French backfires most horribly when when Florentine Comier, former Duc of Bouchard, returns unexpectedly from months of travel.

Not only is he shocked to find a strange woman—who claims to be his wife—living in his home, but learns he’s about to become a father. Hmm.

In About A Christmas Ha'penny's Worth of Love, author Amanda McCabe introduces Lady Elizabeth Rathburn, the shy introvert who hates being separated from her best friends at Miss Greensley's School of Comportment for Young Ladies of Quality—aka Miss Greensley’s Girls—and is forced to remain at her abusive father's cold, lonely estate. Her only respite are the hours she spends with her friend, a handsome young man she only knows as "Mick" who hails from the neighboring estate, but who suddenly takes his leave for the East Indies, never to be heard from again.

Now, years later, after her bully of a father insists she must marry the son of her father’s sworn enemy, to seal a new business deal, she flees to the safety of her beloved Greensley’s Girls. There, trapped in a snowstorm, she rediscovers “Mick”. Joy turns to horror when she learns the only man who ever loved her for herself is about to become her husband—because he too is trapped by the demands of society and a manipulative father. Can they overcome parental machinations and rediscover what matters most to them?

Our Review: There are several things we could say about The Other Face of the Christmas Shilling, starting with when one has a mother like Thomasina Staunton’s, one does not need an enemy. We might also say, there is clearly something special about being a twin, especially an identical twin, with those undefinable ESPish feelings. Last, and most important, is the clear and obvious heroic qualities of Florentin, the Duc de Bouchard. He is the mid-wife we all wished we had, the post-partum nurse we desperately needed, the father every child deserves. This one’s a toe-curling, heart breaker of a romance—and if a smile doesn’t threaten to crack your face while you read this darling story, you might want to check your pulse.

The main theme of About A Christmas Ha'penny's Worth of Love is betrayal—how to overcome, get past it, and survive. Eliza will break your heart while “Mick” warms it. She is the child you want to take into your arms and love for the rest of her days while he is the child who warms that heart, making it burst with pride. Author McCabe explains the not so charming practice of arranged marriages then goes one step beyond, showing us how two deserving people can move on, thrive, and form a more perfect union. Well done!

Based on a scale of 1-5, Gaming Hell at Christmas, vol 3 merits an 8.

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews

 

 

 

 

Gaming Hell Christmas, Volume 2

Mysteries abound at the newest Hell in town

In keeping with our Books In A Series events, Wild Women Authors is pleased to offer Gaming Hell Christmas, volume 2, two short Georgian romances plus an epilogue for volume 2/prologue to volume 3.

In Amanda McCabe’s The Thief Who Stole Christmas, the reader meets Rhys Neville, a man who has never broken the rules and Victoria Lanford. a woman who just might break his heart.

As one of Miss Greensley's Girls and [in]famous author Lady L, few people realize how Victoria’s unhappy childhood and anxiety led her to a compensating habit of picking pockets. When she comes face-to-face with a flame from that same miserable childhood, Rhys Neville, Earl of Hammond, she comes to realize the kind-hearted but strait-laced young man is the right man for her—especially when her past comes back to haunt them.

Kathy L. Wheeler reintroduces readers to two intriguing characters from Volume 1 in The Kerse Who Saved Christmas: Davin Barlowe, Viscount Kerse, he of the no nonsense approach to life and Philomena Staunton, one of Miss Greensley’s Girls, a woman long past prime marriageable age. Feeling he needs a keeper more than he requires a wife, the dreamy-eyed and impractical Philomena steals his heart despite her unrealistic beliefs and trust in fortune tellers. Then, the fun really begins.

Last, but not least, in The Front Side of the Christmas Shilling, a very short, sweet bridge between Volumes 2 and 3, Lady Philomena's happy ending is marred by the disappearance of her twin, Thomasina. It's been almost a year since anyone has seen Thom and Phil misses her desperately. The pain of that loss brings Philomena to her knees, literally and physically.

 Our Review: Gaming Hell Christmas, Volume 2, is more than two well written, cleverly plotted romances between two women and the men who love them beyond distraction. It is a love story between The Greensley Girls—eight young women from drastically different backgrounds who, at a crucial time in their lives, forge bonds that go on to last a lifetime. Bonds which every woman searches for and, for a few, are lucky enough to find, then cherish forever.

Based on a scale of 1-5, Gaming Hell Christmas, Vol 2, merits an 8.

 Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Authors 

Gaming Hell Christmas, Vol 1

                 Mysteries abound at the newest Hell in town.

 In keeping with our Books In A Series, Wild Women Authors presents a two in one offering with Gaming Hell Christmas, Vol 1.

In A Gift for the Duke's Illegitimate Daughter, Alexandra Blessing, the Duke of Winsome’s illegitimate daughter, longs for anonymity and a home of her own where her younger half-siblings don’t commandeer every moment of her day. Escape is imminent—right after her family’s annual Christmas fete. But Alexandra goes missing from the ball, and Theodore Millburn must find her before he loses something important: his chance for love.

Following Alexandra’s adventures is The Merry Christmas Adventure, where Alex’s best friend Belle, Lady Ranstruther, is ready for new love after a year of lonely widowhood. In spite of the machinations of her nasty stepson, she knows exactly who she wants—the gorgeous William, Lord Deansley—whom she fears doesn't want her. When they meet again at the exclusive, discreet gaming hell la Sous Rose, will it turn into a future of love—or the end to the dreams of both Will and Belle?

Our Review: Ordinarily, this die-hard contemporary romantic suspense/political thriller devotee wouldn’t be caught dead reading a romance populated by dry as dust characters constrained by the stagnant and rigid rules of Georgian England. But…during an afternoon by a roaring fire, our favorite adult beverage at hand, we discovered two fun, fast-paced romances set in London’s gaming hells during the Christmas season. This looks like a series that is based on the adventures of eight girls who became fast, loyal friends while attending Lady Greensley’s School of Comportment for Young Ladies of Quality—and the men who come to love them to be an adventure with each succeeding story.

Volume 1 is loaded with fun, lively characters who literally jump off the pages, and features romance that is sensual and real. The gorgeous setting is described in detail right down to the hovering servants, street wise miscreants, and a few ne’er do wells. Enjoy this one—it’s a beauty.

Based on a scale of 1-5, Gaming Hell Christmas, Vol 1 merits a 7.

Kat Henry Doran, Wild Women Reviews