contemporary - No Apology Book Reviews

Interview with Maisey Yates (Cowboy to the Core and Lone Wolf Cowboy)

August 10, 2019

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Cowboy to the Core and Lone Wolf Cowboy by Maisey Yates are the latest in the “Gold Valley series.” What these novels have in common, a Yates specialty, is showing how individuals make their own choices and can choose love over being broken. Both books delve into the lives of the Dalton brothers and how their father’s imperfection affected them regarding relationships. Jamie Dodge is the heroine in Cowboy to the Core. She is …

How to Hack a Heartbreak by Kristin Rockaway

November 4, 2019July 29, 2019

Title: How to Hack a Heartbreak Author: Kristin Rockaway Series: N/A Earnest but unexciting and perhaps a bit self-righteous I would like to thank Kristin Rockaway, Harlequin/Graydon House, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Okay, so I am not the ideal reader for this kind of story. Subject matter-wise, I mean; genre-wise—women’s fiction/romance—it’s right up my alley, but I don’t give a rat’s about dating apps, social media, or the …

Gothic Ghost Stories, Historical Mysteries, Scottish and Vampire Romance – Review Roundup Spring and Summer 2019

November 4, 2019July 29, 2019

There may be tiny spoilers for some of the books I mention, so here’s your warning. This spring I was craving Simone St. James. She put out one book a year from 2012 to 2016, but then it was two years between Lost Among the Living and The Broken Girls and will now be two years between The Broken Girls and The Sun Down Motel. I don’t know why there has been longer waits between books, if St. James has …

Interview with Alison Gaylin (Never Look Back)

July 14, 2019

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper Never Look Back by Alison Gaylin is a suspenseful psychological thriller. Her readers will not be disappointed with this latest novel based on a true murder crime spree. The plot delves into how, in 1976, teenage murderers April Cooper and Gabriel LeRoy terrorized Southern California’s Inland Empire, killing a dozen victims before perishing in a fire. More than forty years later, a True Crime podcast gets an unexpected tip that April did not die …

Interview with Julia London (The Charmer in Chaps)

May 19, 2019

Article and Interview by Elise Cooper The Charmer in Chaps by Julia London is a heartwarming novel. This relationship story emphasizes the need for a little more acceptance in society today, as both the main female and male characters struggle with handicaps. Luca Prince has grown up without a care in the world or so it seems. He is part of Texas’ high society where his family is regarded as one of the wealthiest in the state. Contrast that with …

Elise’s Review – The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer

March 16, 2019

Book Review by Elise Cooper The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer delves into how loved ones are never forgotten within the backdrop of WWII. At the drop of a hat someone’s life can change all of sudden, which is what happened to a family after the Nazis occupied Poland. Based on her own family, Rimmer tells how “my grandparents were Polish Catholic. They never spoke a lot about what happened to them before they immigrated to Australia. We …

The Dysasters by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast (No Spoilers)

November 4, 2019February 25, 2019

Title: The Dysasters Author: P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast Series: The Dysasters #1 Liked but didn’t love I would like to thank P. C. Cast, Kristin Cast, and Michelle Cashman at St. Martin’s Press for inviting me to participate in the blog tour. I received a free ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This is the abridged non-spoiler version. Find the full spoiler review here. Jumping right in—the illustrations were my biggest problem with the book. …

The Dysasters by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast (Spoilers)

November 4, 2019February 25, 2019

Title: The Dysasters Author: P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast Series: The Dysasters #1 Liked but didn’t love I would like to thank P. C. Cast, Kristin Cast, and Michelle Cashman at St. Martin’s Press for inviting me to participate in the blog tour. I received a free ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Don’t want to be spoiled? See my non-spoiler review. Jumping right in, my biggest problem with the book didn’t have anything to do …

Elise’s Review – Stroke of Luck by B. J. Daniels

February 22, 2019

Book Review by Elise Cooper Stroke of Luck by B.J. Daniels is the first of three in this new series. Known for mixing romance and danger this one concentrates more on the relationship than the danger, a slight change from her past novels. “I wrote it as more of a romance than a mystery. My editor suggested I do this. I tried it but feel it is not what I really want to do. I think people read me for …

Moonlight & Whiskey by Tricia Lynne

November 4, 2019February 14, 2019

Title: Moonlight & Whiskey Author: Tricia Lynne Series: N/A Choking on angst and cliches I would like to thank Tricia Lynne, Loveswept/Penguin Random House, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. This book definitely wasn’t to my taste. I requested it several months ago and can’t remember what appealed to me about it to begin with, but I don’t usually get into the sexually graphic, angsty, uber urban young-and-free type of …