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Taking Flight (Code of Honor Book 2) by Brooke May – Review by Pippa Woods

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Taking FlightTaking Flight by Brooke May
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

If you read Courage of Us and saw my review, I’m basically feeling the same way. I love May’s world-building and character development skills. Not that I “like” all her characters, but she develops them really well, in that they feel like real people with feelings, thoughts, and a personality that drives them. So, I’m giving it 3 Stars for May’s writing skills and her ability to build a vibrant, full world. But once again, I feel the premise of the plot was completely unrelatable (to me). From the opening scene, I found Jody weak, whiny, and frustrating. She wanted to be her own person and she knew she was being treated poorly by her family and could have gotten away, but she always chose to be the “victim” and went along with their schemes. Then she only gets a backbone to change her life and go after what she wants once Holt is there and he starts pushing back. So, I had to wonder what would have happened to Jody if she hadn’t met Holt? Would she have stuck with her sister or gotten into even more self-destructive behavior to act out against her perceived cage? I think it’s easy to blame Jilly and Jody’s parents for being mean, neglectful vultures, BUT Jody is a grown woman who can stop the relationships and neglect/abuse at any time. So why hasn’t she? While I appreciate the fact that love can and does change people for the better, when it’s real, I also have to say that people who ONLY grow and change because they have someone “stronger” than them to push and cause the change is called co-dependency. I’m not blaming Jody for wanting a relationship with her family or for getting caught in a rut she hates, but I just didn’t interpret the growth she was supposed to have in this story in the same way I think the author intended it to be viewed. But as I said in my other review, I just may not be May’s target audience. I am totally sure that tons of people will love this story and find themselves relating to Jody and Holt. So don’t discount it because of my review, just because it’s not MY thing doesn’t mean it won’t 100% be yours!
Pippa

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Courage of Us (Code of Honor Book 1) by Brooke May – Review by Pippa Woods

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Courage of UsCourage of Us by Brooke May
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was my first May novel and I was super excited to start a new (to me) author! May is an excellent world-builder and is a gifted character-developer when it comes to feeling like you know the characters and that they are well-rounded people you could “see/know” in your mind. (Plus, I have family in that area of MT so it was a fun location to read about.) When it comes to the plot and speed, I found the pace to be a slow build that jumped into warp speed rather than maybe a faster start with a more realistic time frame for the romance. I was totally enjoying the book and rocking along with Duke and Patience until 55% and then it just became really unbelievable and unrelatable to me. The idea of young love that is true, real, and healthy, even if it’s immature with not-so-great problem-solving skills, is such a beautiful love story to me. So, on that, I would give May great credit. Where I found the downfall was in the jump back in after 7 yrs part. The real-est, truest love requires trust and stability to actually work. I don’t understand how Patience could have either with Duke for a significant amount of time after he returned. How they could go through the trauma that they did and for her to just say, “it’s ok we’ll pretend like nothing ever happened because you apologized” just makes zero sense and the book lost me. I completely understand that others might find the fast forgiveness acceptable and be willing to go along with it, but I just couldn’t ever relate to either person after that. I am giving May 3 stars for her writing ability even if I think the plotline is unbelievable. But please give it a shot, because this is just my opinion and thoughts and not a representation of how everyone might feel about the plot.
@pippawoods

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Mr. Nice Guy (Pierce Brothers Book 1) by Belinda Williams – Review by Pippa Woods

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Mr. Nice Guy (Pierce Brothers, #1)Mr. Nice Guy by Belinda Williams
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my first Williams’ book and I am totally invested in the Pierce brothers! The romance is real, relatable, super slow burn with a little steam, and what healthy relationships look like. I’ve always been a fan of friends-to-lovers, but the nice guys always get me! I’ve been married to my best friend for 22 years and really enjoyed reading about love blooming between two amazing people. Most modern romance stories have a ton of angst and unhealthy behaviors, but Williams kept these super well-developed characters on a healthy path but allowed real life and real hurts to shape how they came to their HEA. I can’t wait until book 2, I don’t know why but I’m feeling more angst, more snark, and possibly more steamy bits scattered in!!

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Kingdom of War (Kingdom Journals Volume 4) AUDIO BOOK by Tricia Copeland – Review by Pippa Woods

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Kingdom of War (Kingdom Journals #4)Kingdom of War by Tricia Copeland
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Action, adventure, drama, and a coming of age all rolled into one! What a wonderful audiobook to have selected for our family road trip this summer! While my kids are older teens, it had enough excitement and mystery to keep the whole car on edge and following along. I think it even helped make the bathroom breaks shorter, because everyone wanted to know what happened next!! The author is a master at world-building, it is fast-paced in a good way, and the narrator had a wonderful way of making the book come alive! I highly recommend this series and only wish I would have found it when my son was younger.
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Shield & Shade (Ascended Guardians Book 1) by Misty Hayes – Review by Pippa Woods

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Shield & ShadeShield & Shade by Misty Hayes
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

FYI: This was my first Hayes novel and I learned this is a spinoff series from the author’s The Blood Dagger Trilogy AFTER I read it. So be warned it won’t make for a good read, in my opinion, if you haven’t read that triplet first. If I have time this summer, I will go back and read the original series, because it has awesome ratings, and then update this review. With that said, I read this book believing it was the beginning of a new series since it isn’t linked to the other in any way or sold as a spinoff. With that said, Hayes had a really FREAKING cool plot/world idea and I was truly excited to get into the meat of it, but (and here it comes), BUT the book could have spent about 100-150 pages filling the reader in on the world and characters, rather than on more battle scenes. I’m sure a lot of my questions and frustrations would have been answered had I read The Blood Dagger Trilogy first, but since I didn’t it just felt like the first 20% was crazy jumpy, going from several people’s POVs that didn’t quite make sense at first but really set the stage for an awesome adventure with a possible romance in the making. Once all the players were a little more fleshed out and the world was built as well as it was going to get, it became a really intriguing and fresh idea…super intense action, angels/demons/vampires/”magic”/mystery, a feeling like you didn’t know what the climax was going to be, but you were on the edge of your seat to get there, and more action!! Then around 50% it was all action (no world or character building) and descriptions of everyone’s eye color/hair/what they were wearing and was it her brother or not her brother? Throw in an excessive amount of lightning bolts knocking people (mostly the humans) across the room where they landed in a ball on the floor, but SHOCKER they live through a serious butt-kicking from freaking demons, for hours on end…and you have the basics of the story down. So, having not read the original stories and understanding the different rules of Hayes’ world/characters, I just truly felt lost, annoyed, and disappointed that this storyline had sooo much potential but didn’t ever get there if that makes sense. Maybe I’m not the reading demographic she was writing for, and it really should NOT be considered a standalone, but it was just ok for me. I am hoping to go back and read the first 3 books because I think I could have loved this action-packed adventure had I understood her world better. Who knows…Hayes has a way of sucking you in and I did finish the book, I just wish the selling page stated that it was a spinoff of another series.
@pippawoods

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The Don (Her Three Immortals Book 1) by Hazel Storm – Review by Pippa Woods

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The DonThe Don by Hazel Storm
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my first Hazel Storm novel and my first novel based on Greek Mythology, needless to say, I am hooked on both! While it has 220 pages, The Don felt like a shorter story in all the best ways! When it comes to the character development, plot speed, and world-building, Storm dives straight in to give you an immediately vivid experience from the first page. The story has a quick but well-developed arch that keeps moving without feeling rushed at all and the perfect amount of steam to keep you wanting more. My only head-scratcher came when Raef explained gods to Van, she asked a legitimate question and was given an honest answer, but it didn’t shock her in the least…which it should have unless gods are an accepted part of society in her world…but they weren’t to my knowledge. So that made me wonder, but I decided maybe gods weren’t a complete unknown and went with it. Overall, it is a great quick read, and I CAN NOT wait to read The God, The Bow, and The Box!!
For The Don, Van is my favorite character, she seems real, relatable, genuine, and has some snarky internal dialogue. She is full of love for her family and has a huge heart towards all her salon’s clients, but more than that she is just a genuinely good person that you want to succeed in life. But this is where Storm decided to have some fun! A beautiful heroine with a heart of gold meets three half-brothers who shake up her life completely. The Don of the Underworld, an Angel, and a demi-god of Earth oh my! Grey is sexy, intriguing, and frustrating, Raef is thoughtful, handsome, a true gentleman, and we don’t know a lot about Aroz yet, but a little fat baby cupid has nothing on this tall drink of water! Like I already said, I cannot wait to read The God next because I have to find out what happens between Van and her men! (FYI: So far this is not a menage’ book or even really a reverse harem or really a love triangle…I’m not sure what it is exactly…but I’m loving it!!)

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Forbidden Wolf (The Shadow Chronicles Book 1) by CR Robertson – Review by Pippa Woods

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Forbidden WolfForbidden Wolf by C.R. Robertson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ummm HECK YES! This was my first CR Robertson book and honestly my first experience with an almost otherworldly vamp/wolf/something else dark and unknown (but in reality very well known) combo, so I was excited to see how it went. I have to say I am truly left with a gnawing need to know what happens next! Forbidden Wolf is a fantastic weaving of Lycan/vamp lore, action, romance, mystery, and has a slight dystopian feel. Where life is dangerous, unknown, more darkness than light, more obstacle than opportunity but mixed in with an absolutely beautiful love that goes beyond words and sex to something eternal. The steam is amazing, the characters are 3D and full of life, and the world is stunning and devastating at the same time. It has more angst than I normally read, but I am totally down for this type of push and pull, especially when Levi’s wolf gets involved! Something in me is drawn to his absolute certainty and claiming of Tasha, it’s the kind of devotion human women are drawn to…darned wolves and vamps get all the animalistic mating intensity. I will definitely be reading Part 2 and have found a new author to follow, watch, read!
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Mountains Wanted (Mountains Series #1) by Phoebe Alexander – Review by Pippa Woods

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Mountains Wanted (Mountains #1)Mountains Wanted by Phoebe Alexander
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was my first Phoebe Alexander book and my first read about swingers/open marriages and relationships. I’m not 100% sure how I feel about the book because I truly enjoyed getting to know Sarah and her family, but I also found aspects of the book extremely frustrating and hard to believe. I guess I will share what I liked and then what I wasn’t so excited about. I personally love people watching/Sociology/the study of behaviors and cultures so for me that part of Sarah’s life was incredibly interesting. I loved her willingness to be open about her life and choices with her kids, friends, lovers, etc. because it made her a much stronger, more developed character in my opinion. I personally wouldn’t want an open relationship, but the concept doesn’t bother me at all, and I enjoyed reading about Sarah’s experiences of being with who she was attracted to. I also loved the fact that the main heroine is in her late thirties, with kids, AND a little curvy to boot, it just made it so relatable!! Alexander is a gifted world-builder and has great character development skills, so that is always a huge plus!
Now for the part, I didn’t enjoy as much, the steam with James is fan-freaking-tastic, but I just couldn’t understand the absolute lack of basic communication between the two of them. In my mind, there is nothing “open” about having zero real talk, and it just made Sarah a beck and call girl, in my opinion, which tainted my feelings for James as the leading man. Since the whole story is first-person POV from Sarah, we don’t know what James was thinking. In the end, good sex just wouldn’t be worth it for me.
So, I guess what I’m trying to say is, YOU may love this book if open relationships, some interesting characters, and good steam are what you are looking for, I just couldn’t dive all the way in with Alexander on this one.

@pippawoods

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Dirty Kisses and Conflicting Wishes (Kiss Me Series Book 1) by Danielle Jacks – Review by Pippa Woods

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Dirty Kisses and Conflicting WishesDirty Kisses and Conflicting Wishes by Danielle Jacks
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have no clue how to review this story. This was my first Jacks’ novel so I’m not sure if this is par for the course or different from her other tales. Either way, the story had a lot of potential, some genuinely likable characters, and a bit of steam, but it just felt rushed and forced in some areas and then ran smooth like honey in others. I guess it’s like there was an understood creation of the initial relationship of the story that didn’t feel genuine or successful, and you were just supposed to jump on the train that was already going 70mph, rather than getting on the train and being allowed to watch the relationship/situation unfold around you. But then it did flow into a relatively successful story, once you just accepted that you knew nothing about the main characters and why they would agree to the main plotline in the first place. It would be rocking along and then occasionally; the awkward forced feeling came back. I don’t know how to explain it and maybe it was a personal thing? I truly don’t know. I gave it 3 stars because Jacks created a great world to pull the reader in and characters that you wanted to like and root for, but you never felt like you truly knew them, their motives, or found clarity about how they ended up in the weird agreement in the first place. So, I’m going with 3 stars-ok for me personally, but other people might love the notion and give it a 5! I will definitely give it another go at Jacks’ writing because I did enjoy her world-building and plot idea immensely.
@pippawoods

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The Way to Storey by L. B. Anne – Review by Pippa Woods

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The Way to StoreyThe Way to Storey by L.B. Anne
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was my first L.B. Anne story, and I am sooo excited to have found it! Anne is a gifted author; her imagery and vivid world-building are out of this world! You will fall in love with the characters, Luella is my favorite! She is brave, strong, adventurous, and an ultimate tomboy who loves nature more than pretty dresses. The entire story is full of mystery, action, and following what you know is right. I can’t wait to suggest this to all my teacher friends, I think it’s a great read for entertainment purposes, but I also love the message behind it!
@pippawoods

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Love Unexpected by Marina Hanna – Review by Pippa Woods

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Love UnexpectedLove Unexpected by Marina Hanna
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Holy Smokes this was one of the most fully developed romance/steamiest short stories I’ve ever read! At only 172 pages it is a fast read, but Hanna packed so much passion, character development, sizzle, and angst into it that it feels like a full-length novel. An older sexy billionaire meets a 20 something, snarky, focused hottie and the pages fly by before you know it. Not ultra-realistic but where would be the fun in that? Hanna is a gifted writer and kept my attention and the plot moving so that this had a full arch in relationship building, sexy panty-melting intensity, and plotline. I was pleasantly surprised to find a well-developed cast with side plots and dramas going on. I can’t wait to read Mark and Lauren’s story!
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Blue Summer Part One by Everly Taylor – Review by Pippa Woods

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Blue Summer Part OneBlue Summer Part One by Everly Taylor
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3 out of 5 stars!

Blue Summer Part One is a flirty re-telling of a childhood favorite cartoon that comes to life. I won’t spoil the fun, but it’s full of sexy blue men who don’t have any females of their kind! Taylor drops you into a beautifully steamy blue world where you have to suspend belief and just go with it. Her characters are developed, for such a quick read, and her world is bright and vivid. I kinda wish this had been extended into a longer story so that it encompassed a longer period than 48 hrs., so that it was more believable, but as it reads it’s still a fun little quickie! (pun totally intended!) This does end on a cliffhanger, but it truly just makes you need to one-click Blue Summer Part 2!
@pippawoods

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Walker Pride (The Walker Family Series Book 1) by Bernadette Marie – Review by Pippa Woods

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Walker Pride (The Walker Family, #1)Walker Pride by Bernadette Marie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my first Bernadette Marie book, and I am so very impressed with how each character had such a unique, distinct voice and personality. With such a large group of characters, mainly handsome gentlemen, it can easily become smeared talking heads, but Marie is very skilled in her character development. This is a love at first sight, heroine standing on her own two feet, love story that happens to have a rugged, loner cowboy as the hero! Throw in some mouth-watering descriptions of yummy food, a mystery, and some good old-fashioned southern charm and you have the makings of a great late-night read. I can’t wait to see what the next Walker brother has in store!
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Fake Fiancé (A Second Chance Office Romance) AUDIO BOOK by Amy McKinley – Review by Pippa Woods

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4 out of 5 stars!!

This was my first McKinley Audiobook, so I had no idea what to expect other than I loved the synopsis and the cover.   I’m so glad I judged this book by the beautiful cover and snatched it up!  McKinley’s skill with world-building was just as beautiful as the Italian setting she describes, and don’t get me started on the characters!!  STONE!! Holy Smokes!! Handsome, wealthy, set in his ways Alpha with a “pretend” soft spot for his assistant!  Adeline is strong, beautiful, confident, and really dang good at her job especially when her role became loving “fiancé” to her boss.  I truly loved McKinley’s attention to making both of the leads independent, mentally healthy, confident individuals who truly formed a mutually beneficial bond.  That doesn’t mean it always goes well for them, but you feel that both Stone and Adeline are a true catch worthy of finding love, even if it isn’t with the other.  I can’t wait to find my next McKinley read!!

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Jake the Growling Dog Goes to Doggy Daycare: A Children’s Book about New Experiences, Friendship, Stress Relief, and Kindness by Samantha Shannon Reviewed by Pippa Woods

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Jake the Growling Dog Goes to Doggy DaycareJake the Growling Dog Goes to Doggy Daycare by Samantha Shannon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 out of 5 Stars!
Who wouldn’t love a book where a dog and a squirrel are best friends? While this is a bright eye-catching book with fun illustrations and a great story about trying new things and friendship, the really amazing part is at the end of the book! Shannon has provided a wonderful tool to talk with young children about how they may feel just before trying something new or when they are stressed. It has age-appropriate explanations for what the child may be feeling, how they can manage those feelings, and how to turn it around with self-confidence and imaginative play, and drawing/writing. This is such a wonderful conversation starter to help children learn confidence, bravery, and great mental health habits. Shannon created an interactive “guide” that allows children to learn that they are in charge of their body and can manage their feelings, and how their body responds so that they can practice mindfulness and go through life with tools to help them grow into confident, happy, kind, amazing human beings. I can’t recommend this enough to teachers and families of little ones! Your child will love Jake’s adventures with Neet, and the adult will love knowing they are preparing their child for a bright future!!
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Try Right (Aloha Series Book 3) by Jill Brashear- Reviewed by Pippa Woods

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Try RightTry Right by Jill Brashear
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

First and foremost, I want to say while this is the third book in this series, it totally works as a stand-alone in my opinion, but it will make you want to read the others if you haven’t already!!

With that in mind, this was my first Brashear novel, and I am genuinely so pleased to have found a new author to add to my “Must Read” list! I’d also never read a book set in Hawaii or the 1960’s and I wasn’t sure how I would like the combo, but Brashear is a gifted world builder, and her character development is second to none! I felt like I was walking the beach with Claudia at sunset with our platform shoes slung over our shoulders eating a shaved ice! Having never truly been to Hawaii, it was a wonderful escape into Brashear’s world, especially getting to meet the leading man!! Holy Smokes is he swoon-worthy!!
Overall, the book was a true joy to read, and I did it all in one sitting because I just couldn’t put it down. Flirty, nostalgic, romantic, and totally what true love is all about…well if you don’t count the angst and sorrow thrown in. But that’s what makes it real and relatable. My only hesitance in giving it the 5th star was the sporadic use of Hawaiian dialect. I’ve read books written in dialect before and find it helpful/enjoyable if used very sparingly. In Try Right I felt key phrases were overused and too many characters would speak traditional English and then randomly break into dialect, so it pulled me out of the conversation to figure out what they were saying or to remember “oh yeah, another reminder we are in Hawaii,” which I hadn’t forgotten. I understand this is a very personal reading preference and others may not even notice what I’m referring to. So, know I gladly and highly recommend this to lovers of love and true romantics.
Reviewed by @pippawoods

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