Anthology Reviews

Page Seven

Added May 18, 2004

Shifters

Authors: Jane Toombs, Myra Nour, Jennifer Dunne and Robin Bayne
Publisher: New Concepts Publishing
Available At: www.newconceptspublishing.com
Publishing Date: Available Now
Genre: Fiction: Paranormal
Format: Trade Paperback and Ebook download in PDF/HTML
Price: $7.99 paperback, $3.50 ebook
ISBN: 1-58608-552-2 paperback, 1-58608-401-1 ebook
Author Email/Website: www.janetoombs.com
Author Email/Website: www.myranour.com
Author Email/Website: www.jenniferdunne.com
Author Email/Website: nbayne.com
Reviewer: Lisa Lambrecht

Shifters is a paranormal anthology made up of four wonderfully different stories written by some of today's best authors.

Midnight's Door by Jane Toombs

Dara has always been haunted by her dead twin, always hearing her voice inside her head, driving her to the point of madness. That is why a few years ago she left her home and moved away. Why then is she coming back with her fanatic friends who are determined to open the midnight door and let the evilness out?

Hearing strange howling changed everything, making her friends frantically flee and leaving her and a man named Eric behind. Will Dara finally be able to put her past to rest? And what is up with this man Eric? He is very helpful and considerate to Dara, but is he hiding something?

Midnight's Door by Jane Toombs is a wonderful story filled with much suspense. And in the end we find that the love one has for another could be what heals us all.

Demon Killer by Myra Nour

Azra is a young woman who is half human and half fairy. While caring for her very sick mother, her town is attacked by the evil and violent Hessitor warriors. One of these warriors invaded her home and attacked her. While she is raped, her mother dies and her father comes in and kills the Hessitor warrior before he could harm her even more. Unfortunately the Hessitor warrior impregnated Azra.

Azra is determined to kill the demon baby before it's even born, but something stops her and when she has the baby she could feel much greatness in the child and falls instantly in love with it. But poor Bretuck was born with the red demon eyes of the Hessitor race. These children are supposed to be killed instantly. Determined to keep her son alive, Azra flees with her young child even though he is already possesses some of the Hessitors' powers. Can Azra keep her son safe and find a place where they can be happy?

Demon Killer by Myra Nour is a very sentimental story. This story shows us the intense love a very young mother has for her child and the determination to see him grown and happy. This is a great story that will pull on every reader's heartstrings.

The Tower by Jennifer Dunne

General Bayard was sent to the newly taken town (and surrounding areas) of Kittern. He hopes that if he stabilizes the castle and surrounding areas and wins over the townsfolk, the King will allow him to stay on as Baron. But he is a very suspicious man and when some of the castle workers try to keep him from the woods that are next to the castle he is becomes more suspicious of them.

At a run down fort in the middle of the forest he encounters a beautiful injured woman. This woman touches something deep inside Bayard. She says the forest is hers and she is its protector. She is defiant but beautiful and Bayard can't help but fall in love with her. Can Bayard be able to convince this beautiful mysterious woman to marry him? But once the King finds out what she really is will he order her to be killed?

The Tower by Jennifer Dunne is an enchanting story. We are shown that the power of love can change the most suspicious and hardened man and make him into one that we all can't help but like.

Honor Bound by Robin Bayne

Dek is a man from another planet that is so advanced that they are able to travel to different parts in time. He and his crew were sent to Earth to observe and record Earth and some of its different notable honorable time periods. Dek was in the process of being transported back to his ship when something malfunctions, leaving him stranded in Virginia in the twentieth century.

Thinking Dek to be one of those Civil War re-enactors, he is sent to the home of Karen White who hosts reenactments at her house. Karen is a single mom trying to hold onto the big house and surrounding land she had inherited. When Dek came to her house, she feels a bit sorry for him and decides to give him some work and a place to stay. Karen never met a man like Dek. A man who was a bit different but honest and very considerate. Soon their feelings for one another grows. Will Karen still feel deeply for Dek when she finds out what he really is? Will Dek stay on Earth with Karen or go back to his own planet?

Honor Bound by Robin Bayne is a wonderful story giving the readers a taste of both time travel and futuristic genre. The hero is a man who has very admirable traits and the heroine is a strong woman. A great read.

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Added November 9, 2004

Ellora's Cavemen: Tales from the Temple 2

Authors: Tielle St. Clare, Angela Knight, R. Casteel, Alicia Sparks, J.C. Wilder and Patrice Michelle
Publisher: Ellora's Cave
Available At: www.ellorascave.com
Publishing Date: June 2004
Genre: Romance: Erotic/Werewolf/Vampire/Shape-shifter/Paranormal/Fantasy
Format: Ebook download in PDF/HTML/LIT
Price: $9.99
ISBN: 1-84360-927-4
Author Email/Website: tielle@alaska.net
Author Email/Website: www.angelasknights.com/
Author Email/Website: www.patricemichelle.net
Author Email/Website: www.rcasteel.net
Author Email/Website: www.jcwilder.com
Author Email/Website: www.aliciasparks.com
Reviewer: Lisa Lambrecht

Six of today's great authors come together in one book to tantalize romance readers with tales of wonderful romance and erotic, heartwarming love.

BY MOON RISE by Tielle St Clare

Caitlin, a human, has been Luc's assistant for three years and during that time has secretly fallen in love with him. But it was a love that would never come to fruition because Luc was a werewolf and he was promised to another of his kind. But being quarantined for forty-eight hours together just might change their relationship. A full moon was almost upon them and the Pack leader knew of Caitlin's devotion to the pack and asked her to do everything in her power to help Luc from shifting. Everything including using her body to tame the beast. Will Caitlin survive the next forty-eight hours with her heart intact?

Author Tielle St Clare did a wonderful job bringing a hot erotic tale to life in By Moon Rise. This story is filled with hot sex and romance. Caitlin is to be admired for her dedication and internal strength and Luc is one hot, sexy man and you can't help but love him.

DREAM WALKER by Patrice Michelle

Erin was a very smart, talented scientist who just invented time traveling. But there were people after her and her secret that would use her invention for nefarious means. She runs to the only man she feels she could trust, a man she met online who had been trying to talk her out of finishing her time traveling product for months now. When Erin finds out that this man is from another world, another time....Will she be able to look past the warm feelings he stirs in her and trust what he tells her about the future and the devastation her invention brings to his world? Will Erin be able to save her life, his world and find happiness ever-after?

Dream Walker is a wonderfully unique romance story that'll keep the readers enthralled in the hero and heroines story until the very end. Author, Patrice Michelle does a wonderful job in blending the paranormal genre with a science fiction one. Action, adventure, steaming sex and heartwarming romance.....what else could a reader want in one story?

ONE NIGHT STAND by J.C. Wilder

Rachel was a vampire afraid of giving over her heart again after losing her lover over forty years ago. But she had needs and she was bound and determined to take care of them. And what better choice than with the notoriously, sexy vampire Lucius deVille? Lucius was a sexy man and had a great reputation of bringing his lovers the ultimate pleasure in bed. Rachel doesn't want much, just one night of steaming, out-of-this-world sex with a man who turns her insides to mush. The question is can this average CPA woman catch the attentions of said hot, sexy man? And if so, can she keep her heart out of the equation?

Author J.C. Wilders spins an erotically hot tale in One Night Stand. The heroine is a woman alot of us can identify with. Even though she is a vampire she is insecure but strong once she puts her mind to something. The hero is a man who surprises you with his feelings, intentions and determination despite what we know of his reputation. This is a heart warming romance story that brings two lonely hearts together.

TAIL OF THE TIGER by R. Casteel

Cedric Deverone's famous scientific father just passed away. While going through his father's notes and things Cedric found out that father and his life were not as they seemed. His father, in trying to perfect cloning, made some mistakes in the experimenting. Mistakes that he kept secretly on a private island away from society to protect his reputation. Cedric determinedly sails off to see if what he read and found out was true. Upon reaching the island Cedric feels as if he has finally come home. What will Cedric do, how will he feel when he comes face to face with the two women who were the product of his father's experimentations?

Tail of the Tiger is one of the most unique romance stories I have ever read. I have to congratulate author, R. Casteel for his wickedly wild imagination and writing talents. His hero and heroine are quite different than the norm and very likable. The story is well written and flows very quickly. All in all, this is a great story that most readers who like romance and the use of imagination will like.

DRAGON'S LAW: MACE by Alicia Sparks

Eleanora was a virgin who was to be sacrificed by her village to appease the thirst of dragons that combed the land. Eleanora was determined not to be a victim like her sisters before her. She was determined not to cower and face the destiny that fate had decreed for her. Then he came, the dragon that she was meant to be sacrificed to. Before she could use the magic she learned to escape the bonds holding her another dragon came. The two dragons began to fight over her. In the mist of the fight Eleanora lost consciousness and when she woke she found a beautiful man laying next to her unconscious and with a raging fever. This man must have saved her from the two dragons. She was bound and determined to return the favor and help this man back to good health. But Eleanora was in for a shock. This wasn't an ordinary man but a dragon who thought she was sent there by his brother to spy and betray him. Will Eleanora be able to over come the odds that were stacked against her?

Dragon's Law: Mace is a heart warming romance written by author Alicia Sparks. While the heroine is a bit naive, she is a strong and determined woman with a big heart. The hero is a tormented man who finds that with the right woman his cold heart can be thawed. And that just maybe he can achieve a happily-ever-after for himself. This was a wonderfully written tale that tugs on the reader's heart strings.

TAMING JACK by Angela Knight

Jack was a man who had everything, a nice job and engaged to a great woman. All this changed when Jack's sister was viciously murdered. Jack was devastated and bound and determined to do everything in his power to find his sister's murderer. So determined and tortured that he put life as he knew it aside even forsaking his relationship with his fiance. Jack would do anything to find the killer and in his desperation he embraced this alien being who would make him stronger and more powerful than before. But fighting the extreme evil in the world was wearing on Jack and slowly taking over his soul. Will Jack's fiancee, Lark, be able to save him from self destructing? She does the only thing she knows how to do, she embraces the alien that comes to her to offer its help in saving the man she loves. But is she too late?

Talented author Angela Knight writes a heart felt tale of a grief stricken man and the woman determined to save him in Taming Jack. This is one story that will make you teary eyed at the grief and devastation the hero goes through. While reading this you can almost feel the pain Jack is feeling. But we are given a light at the end of that dark tunnel in the form of love. The endless and all-giving love the heroine has for the hero. This story helps reinforce the belief that alot of times love CAN conquer all.

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Added April 20, 2004

Bad Boys Next Exit

Review 2

Authors: Shannon McKenna, Donna Kauffman, E.C. Sheedy
Publisher: Kensington Brava
Available At: Bookstores everywhere
Publishing Date: April 2004
Genre: Romance: Contemporary
Format: Trade Paperback
Price: $14.00
ISBN: 0-7582-0556-2
Author Email/Website: www.shannonmckenna.com
Author Email/Website: www.donnakauffman.com
Author Email/Website: www.ecsheedy.com
Reviewer: Lisa Lambrecht

Three of today's best authors come together to give us three hot stories about those "bad boys" who are every woman's fantasies. Those men who are very sexy, very confident and not afraid to push the boundaries to go after what they want.

Meltdown by Shannon McKenna

Jane was extremely good at her job as a "headhunter" for one of the top headhunting firms around. So good in fact that demand for her skills are great amongst those in the company, leaving her little time for the joys in life such as eating lunch in peace and quiet. Her newest assignment was to go to the Crowne Royale Group and lure their General Manager away to work at another competitive hotel. Jane's cover was to pretend to be a magazine writer in hopes of getting past the secretary and secure an appointment with the General Manager. But no matter how well laid out Jane's planes were, things became complicated when the general manager was out and the secretary took her straight to the hotels CEO, Mac MacNamara. From the first steamy, sensual look Mac gave her, Jane was lost. The air crackled and the pull of attraction was unstoppable. What will Jane do if this big, imposing but very sexy man finds out that she is not who she said she was?

Meltdown was a very intense and very erotic story. Shannon McKenna gives us one very arrogant hero, those men that you love to hate. But in the telling of this story, Ms McKenna shows us that while some men maybe hard on the outside, if you are willing to dig enough you just might find something more and worth keeping; all it takes is a strong, patient and special woman to unlock the secrets of the heart.

Exposed by Donna Kauffman

Take one man who had a rough childhood and one woman who was orphaned from birth; throw in a long train ride that stopped in the middle of nowhere because of severe drifting from the snow storm that hit and what do you have? A very hot and exciting sexual interlude that will bring down the most harden shields protecting a heart.

Austin was a professional photographer, who traveled the world taking photos of beautiful women. The last thing he wanted to do was go back home for Christmas to take care of some family business and resurrect all those hurtful feelings he thought he left behind years ago. When the train he was on was stopped because of a snowstorm all he had to keep him busy was thinking of his old life at home...that is until he met a beautiful and intriguing woman standing outside the last train car in the snow taking pictures. Old memories were put to the back burner and he hoped new erotic memories would soon take their place. Will two people who very much love their independence be able to find a lasting happiness?

Exposed is a sinfully hot story. Donna Kauffman brings us both a hero and heroine that alot of people can relate to. They have a strong likeable character and they are able to put their fears of taking risks aside in order to have a better and happier future. I just wish that some of my train rides in the past could have been as exciting as this one was for Austin and Del. *g*

Pure Ginger by E.C. Sheedy

Ginger Cameron was a woman who loved sex but she was extremely tired of being burned by men. Why was she so attracted to those men who ended up being the scum of the earth? Wasn't there any man out there that was sexy, loving, trusting and wanted to settle down? Ginger was fed up and decided to change her image and swore off sex for the next two years. Now if she can contain her lust and stick to her plan. Weeks go by and Ginger was doing well in keeping her vow. She changed her image from a sexy siren to a woman who was a throw back to olden days, wearing plain and large buttoned-to- the neck clothes that hid her womanly curves quite well. That is, she was doing good until fate threw a wrench in her well laid plans in the form of super sexy and an ex-soap opera star, Cal Beaumann. Will Ginger be able to stick to her convictions and resist this sexy man who was determined to learn and find the real Ginger she was hiding? Will this man be different from all the others or will he too break her heart?

Pure Ginger was a fun romantic read. Author E.C. Sheedy did a great job of luring the readers in and holding their attentions with a great plot, funny dialog and great characters that seemed so down to earth. You have to love a hero who is strong and sexy but very down to earth given his past super star job and willing to look past the outside packaging in order to get to know what is inside. The heroine was a strong woman willing to do what it takes to get the job. It was funny how she went from one extreme to another and didn't care what others thought which is something to be admired.

All three stories in Bad Boys Next Exit were well-written, sizzling hot and great reads. I highly and enthusiastically recommend this story.

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