J.K. Coi

A book about two lawyers. That's what jumped out at me. However there is more going on than a forbidden love affair. There is a battle to save a relationship in turmoil. Leo is ruthless in his career. He knows how to get what he needs to procure the outcome he wants. What he can't figure out is how to save the one thing he treasures most his marriage. Bria is falling apart and the only way to protect herself is distance from the disappointment and heartbreak her relationship represents. Sleeping With the Opposition is overwrought with tons of emotions. It was hard to keep up. This is my first book by J.K. Coi and it was powerful. Who wouldn't want someone to love them enough to fight the way Leo did for Bria?… (mais)

Reviewed by Melissa D
Book provided by Ellora’s Cave Publishing
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book

Dark Immortal is the third book in the Immortal Warriors series by J. K. Coi. I chose this book because the summary pecked my interest. I have also read one of the other books in the series and I enjoyed it.

Diana has overcome many struggles in life. Her daughter died and then she struggled with alcoholism and depression to cope with the loss. While she had had a hard life, she still has not let life beat her down. She had spunk. She is an emotionally strong woman.

Alric was imprisoned years ago underground. He was there over a hundred years before Diana found him. She brings him back from the brink. Alric becomes to strong warrior he once was.

The chemistry between Alric and Diana is off the charts. I enjoyed the struggle they both had to not act on the physical chemistry while Diana was getting her memory back. The sex scene was very hot.

What is apparent in this story is that Diana in her relationship with Alric, she lost some to most of her independence in an effort to please Alric. What Alric did not notice was that he was killing a part of her because he did not want to leave the house unprotected. It’s a no brainier that when she lost her memory in the attack she went back to a time when she felt most in control. Now that she has no memory, Alric will have to deal with not just her memory returning but her spirit as well.

I would have liked to see Alric and Diana a few months or years down the road to see how they adjust as a couple with Diana’s new found independence. Overall, this is an enjoyable story and a great addition to the series.… (mais)

We're still within the 12 days of Christmas, aren't we? I mean, this is my last day of Christmas break (as is The Husband's and the kids) so I think I'm good in getting this review posted in the nick of time for the holiday season. Not that it really matters, because even though A Clockwork Christmas is billed as "A Steampunk Christmas Anthology," there isn't very much in the way of the yuletide in these four novellas that comprise this collection. Trust me when I say you're good to go if you want to read this in the middle of July.

A Clockwork Christmas does, however, deliver in regards to the steampunk elements - which I had to look up, being that I'm very new to the steampunk genre. I requested A Clockwork Christmas from NetGalley because I thought a Christmas-themed collection of novellas would be a good introduction to the genre as well as be a fun, entertaining book to read on my Kindle during our 6 hour drive (each way) to and from Philadelphia for the holidays. And that it absolutely was.

(For those who, like me, are unfamiliar with steampunk, here's how Wikipedia describes it: a sub-genre of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, and speculative fiction that involves a setting where steam power is used, most often in Victorian era Britain or the Wild West era of the United States. Works of steampunk often feature anachronistic technology or futuristic innovations as Victorians might have envisioned them, based on a Victorian perspective on fashion, culture, architecture, etc.)

Now, there's an added element in A Clockwork Christmas that certain readers might want to know about beforehand and that bears mentioning. Carina Press is a publisher of romance novels - some of them on the steamy side, from some of the descriptions of ones I've seen - and the first two steampunk novellas (and even the fourth) in A Clockwork Christmas are definitely powered by that particular type of ... uh, steam. From what I understand and can gather from reading other reviews, this isn't typical of most steampunk works. (Or maybe it is. I don't know. I don't have enough experience with the genre, truthfully, but I do know that it is definitely present here. In great - sometimes, often graphic - detail.)

So, some readers may not appreciate that added romantic element. As for me? Well, that didn't bother me nor did it take away from my enjoyment of these four novellas.

Take Crime Wave in a Corset by Stacy Gail, the first novella in the anthology and my favorite of the four. This is the story of Cornelia, a beautiful professional thief who grew up knowing no other way of life and who keeps her physical and emotional scars hidden from anyone who tries to get close to her. When Roderick discovers that Cornelia has stolen a valuable (and sentimental) Faberge egg from him, he demands that she return it - or he'll make certain that she won't live to see Christmas Day. The tension between the two is delicious and makes for a fun and entertaining (and steamy!) story.

Then we have This Winter Heart, by PG Forte, which I also liked. Destitute, Ophelia has returned (from eastern Pennsylvania!) to her husband Dario's estate in the Wild West, after being away for eight years during the Civil War. (An interesting twist there: in this tale, the Civil War happens to have been won by the South.) Lia, as she is known, doesn't return alone; she arrives with her 8 year old son, whose father happens to be (you guessed it) the cad Dario. This comes as somewhat of a surprise to Dario, who believed Lia to be barren - and, because of her father's inventor interventions - inhuman as well. He treats her callously, refusing to admit that he once had feelings for her - and perhaps, still does.

Esme Smith is the protagonist of Wanted: One Scoundrel, Jenny Schwartz's novella about a suffragette in Australia who hires Jed Reeve ("a scoundrel") to promote her feminist agenda in the male social clubs that she's denied access to because she's a woman. I gotta say ... I loved Esme, who was my favorite of all the strong female lead characters presented here. I just adored her independence, smarts, and spunk in a time when women's voices were often silenced and that made Wanted: One Scoundrel a fun story to read. (Plus, there was a twist at the end that I didn't see coming.) And while I liked the romance between Cornelia and Roderick in Crime Wave in a Corset, I really liked the relationship with Esme and Jed.

Finally, JK Coi's Far From Broken was a heartbreaking story about a accomplished ballerina who suffers a horrible crime as revenge for her husband's work as a government spy, the lengths that one will go to save a life, and what it means to be human. There are some similar thematic elements to This Winter Heart in this one, but it is different enough to stand alone. This one had me riveted to my Kindle, as it was the novella I spent New Year's Eve with.

While I thought the Christmas aspect of A Clockwork Christmas was definitely lacking, overall this was an enjoyable, entertaining, turbo-charged romantic read with strong characters and good writing. I'm glad I gave it a try, as it was one of my most surprising reads of 2011. These four novellas were a great introduction to steampunk and while I don't think I'll be abandoning my regular preferences anytime soon, I would certainly consider reading additional works by these talented authors.

Originally posted on http://bettyboochronicles.blogspot.com
… (mais)