After the shocking events at the end of book one, Anna finds herself carefully watched by the Dukes and their demon whisperers. She is forced to work - to encourage her friends to drink too much too often - or be punished by the Dukes (which probably means death). Anna does a lot of growing up in this book, and really questions her feeling for Kaidan. It doesn't help that the very handsome and very handsome Kopano has been spending so much time with her.

A lot happens in the lives of all the Nephilim this time around. A strange prophecy surfaces that gives them some hope for a future that doesn't have to involve returning to Hell. But there's more to it than that, and Anna and all her friends will put their lives and souls at risk to find a way to win their freedom. With another perfect, yet heartbreaking, ending I'm finding it hard to wait for book three to come out this fall.
- See more at: http://hotofftheshelves.blogspot.com/2013/06/review-sweet-peril-by-wendy-higgins.html#sthash.IRC54rJn.dpuf

The thing that I loved most about this book was the characters. They were all so life like and very real. The relationship between Lottie and her twin, Will, was beautifully touching with all their little quirks and special traditions. Simon was an amazing best friend, and the friends Lottie made while in her first year at college were friends that may just last a lifetime.

On the flip side we have Zach and Zan, the two brothers responsible for the accident that left Lottie's best friend severely brain damaged. Zach is the epitome of a party boy - taking advantage of his friends and family and always looking for the next good time. Striking an amazing contrast, Zan is thoughtful and quiet. Trying to make up for something that he feels is all his fault.

The story of Lottie and Zan's relationship isn't simple, no relationship ever is. But is beautiful and crazy and amazing. The way they interact with all the other people in their lives and how everyone seems to end up right where they belong, was a great read that was sweet and heartfelt from every angle. The only thing that really rubbed be the wrong way was Zan's nickname for Lottie - my mind kept changing it to "pretty bird" and picturing a parrot - but I'm sure other people loved it.

If I had knows this was going to be a tragedy ahead of time, I would have judged this book very differently. There is not a HEA in this book, I say that as a warning, not trying to give anything away. The writing itself was very beautiful. The character were very alive. Isabelle was a little too determined to stay in a horrible situation instead of finding a way at times, but otherwise she was a true woman of her times - trying to make the best of what life had given her.

Ethan was a gallant gentleman, wanting to protect a woman from having a harder life than necessary. He just happened to fall in love with her at the same time and it only made things harder for awhile. Where there is a sad part of the ending, there is also hope and hint at a new life ahead.

Warning: This book contains some content readers may choose to avoid. There is one scene describing how horrible one of the bad guys is that involves forced incest. I skimmed over that scene and moved on without seeming to have hurt the story by doing so.

Aislinn is still distraught over losing Donovan. But she knows she must bide her time and search for him once he has been reincarnated. Book two focuses on Aislinn learning her powers and discovering herself. Her time spent with the "evil" vampiresses solidifies her disgust of the way the vampires live and encourages her to find the strength to follow her own path. She holds out hope that she will one day see Donovan again, and while she doesn't find her happily ever after in this edition, it feels as if she is one step closer to finishing her journey.

There is a lot of f/f as well as f/m/f in this book that is super hot. Rosalind doesn't hold any punches and gives amazing detail of all her scenes. Please keep in mind the warning from the beginning of this review. As I stated then, I don't feel that you will lost much of the story line by skipping over this part of the story.

A Counterfeit Betrothal is a fantastic story - it would have gotten 5 stars if it had been by itself. Lady Sophia and Lord Francis are the perfect couple, and have been since they were kids tormenting each other. When Sophia gets the crazy idea to pretend to be betrothed to him to try and get her parents back together after 14 years apart, he's more than happy to help with her scheme. But things take an interesting turn when they realize they may actually like each other. God forbid either admits it - in fact Lady Sophia is quite humorous when she tries to convince herself and Francis - I was laughing so hard I nearly cried. It was the perfect young romance blooming between childhood friends (sort of). There was even a bit of a side story with Sophia's parents, but the young ones outshone them hands down.

The Notorious Rake was a little too much of what I consider to be a stereotypical historical romance. Roguish gentleman meets stand up lady and tries to get her into bed - only he ends up falling in love instead. This second story in the book is what brought the overall rating down for me. I had a hard time relating to either character, and it seemed like it was a story I had heard many times before.

As an avid player of role-playing games (both table top and computer based), I totally understand the closet nerd mentality. Reagan West is the perfect example of the popular gamer girl - one persona in life, another in game. It can take a lot to merge them together and be who you truly are - it took an in game friend showing up as a new student at school for Reagan to find herself. Her adventure in discovery and finding who she really wants to be was at times amusing and others thought provoking. She will have to make the choice between her horribly awful "best friend" and fellow cheerleader, and the sweet and thoughtful boy that she talks to online every chance she can. - See more at: http://hotofftheshelves.blogspot.com/2013/06/review-pwned-by-shannen-crane-camp.html#sthash.STQUhZxb.dpuf

Obsession has several layers to it (much like an onion as Shrek would say). On the top we have the story of a series of kidnappings of young women that are unrelated on the surface. Thankfully some characters follow their guy and keep looking - the kidnappings are very related in a very twisted way. The police need Special Agent Jess Harris to put the pieces together - and it's a very interesting and disturbed ride that she has to take to get there.

The next layer we have is Jess, herself. She is running away in a sense. Running away from a career quickly going under, and from the serial killer that helped put it there. This theme hovers in the background, occasionally making itself known so you don't forget it about it (it's important later).

We also have the layer that is Jess and Dan, the police chief. With quite the history between them they struggle with their feelings for each other and how to act together so many years later. Theirs is a turbulent relationship throughout the book, never quite sure what they are to each other.

A very exciting read, with a very HUGE cliffhanger - please have book two ready to go or you will be up all night waiting to go get it and wondering what happens next.
- See more at: http://hotofftheshelves.blogspot.com/2013/06/review-obsession-by-debra-webb.html#sthash.W3Tbpmmb.dpuf

The Reluctant Marquess put a unique twist on an old storyline. When Robert and Charity marry to satisfy the terms of a will so Robert can inherit, they aren't quite sure what to expect from each other. Charity and Robert decide to make a go of it, if only to satisfy both of their material needs, if not emotional ones. Charity is a blast of fresh air for the London ton, who isn't quite sure what to make of her and her strange country ways. Charity is trying to make the best of her marriage and find some semblance of love with Robert, but he seems to be against the thought from the very beginning. The ending of the story was very touching, with a bit of humor thrown in as well.

While most of this story is potentially a stand alone that can be read outside of the series, there were repeated referenced to some incident that they had all been sworn to secrecy that lost me. The characters were also a little hard to keep straight without more background on them, but once the trial started it became much easier. I really didn't like Brittany. She used men and then casually tossed them aside - but after several horrible encounters with Rick Jessup, ending with her being raped, she really became a different person. Her growth was one of the highlights of the story. Dismas Hardy would be a fantastic defense attorney if he were real. The story wrapped up the trial and the book with quite a twist - I'm still trying to decide what I think of it all. Most of this story moves very quickly with very few slow points. The conspiracy theories from sides of the case were classic and fit right in with the story - enhancing it in the perfect way. This would have been a home run book if I had a little more background and could have kept the characters straight easier. I would recommend reading at least some of the previous books to help. - See more at: http://hotofftheshelves.blogspot.com/2013/06/review-ophelia-cut-by-john-lescroart.html#sthash.aHS1iDRA.dpuf

Light the Shadows is the story of a second chance at life - for many people. Our main lady (we'll call her Micah since we don't know her original name) freaks out when she finds out she's dead and runs away into a new body. This isn't supposed to happen, and when Sully accidentally runs into her one day, he knows something is up. But Micah isn't the same, not with another person in her body - and she latches onto her new life with gusto, has a makeover, and decides to make a go of her second chance. Anna, the guide she met in her brief time on the other side, keeps popping up and trying to offer advice and help out in her own little way (she was a wonderful character!).

Micah's relationship with Sully gets off the a rough start, especially since he thinks she a poltergeist or vengeful spirit. It doesn't take all that long for the sparks to fly between them, but they have a lot to overcome first, including an impossibly strong shadow bent on destroying the world of the living - starting with Micah and Sully.

There were very few slow spots in this book, but it was never very overwhelming. I loved that it seemed to move along on its own without me needing to push through parts of it. The ghost story helping to drive things along was a great mystery, with a few surprises along the way as well.