Tuesday, February 20, 2018

I am so caught up in this story: Release Tour Fresh Catch by Kate Canterbary


His walls might be tall,
but I wasn't afraid of the climb.


Title: Fresh Catch
Author: Kate Canterbary
Release Date: February 20, 2018


Take a vacation, they said. Get away from Silicon Valley's back-stabbing and power-grabbing. Recharge the innovative batteries. Unwind, then come back stronger than ever.

Instead, I got lost at sea and fell in love with an anti-social lobsterman.

There's one small issue:

Owen Bartlett doesn't know who I am. Who I really am.

~~

I don't like people.

I avoid small talk and socializing, and I kick my companions out of bed before the sun rises.

No strings, no promises, no problems.

Until Cole McClish's boat drifts into Talbott's Cove, and I bend all my rules for the sexy sailor.

I don't know Cole's story or what he's running from, but one thing is certain:

I'm not letting him run away from me.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35919933-fresh-catch


We want to be loved. Whether or not we go looking for it, think we have time for it, or even deserve it, weighs in on the effort. These men have a (somewhat) comfortable existence in their lives. They know what they want and need. It the joy and heartache of a romantic relationship they feel is for other men. It's just the tide hasn't washed in the right man yet. 

Both characters are out. Not out and loud out. But out. Kate Canterbary though shows these men as not 'out' with who they really want to be - this is Owen and Cole's story.  Circumstances bring them together. There is a draw. However, too much unsaid hangs between them. Can they both take a chance at exposing their soft underbellies to the other? Are they willing to risk the hurt to gain the deep affection they deserve? 

There is so much more to these characters then what you can see from the top of the waters. Kate takes the reader's hand down the distance line and dives deeper than their surface. You understand the characters hesitation and missteps. But after you reach near the end of your line, Kate guides the readers and characters to a perfect break in the surface to have something to hold onto forever. 

Once again, Ms Canterbary amazes me with the depth of her characters, brilliance in writing a story that will touch you and linger there for days. It's a love story to be savored not devoured. If you are a new reader to Kate, this is a great introduction to her writing genius and devotion to telling a fantastic story. If you are a fan but new to MM genre,  you'll see its all love.  For fans of her Walsh series, she gives us an Easter egg that is always fun to read from another characters POV.  Regardless, this is a story not to be missed. 

5 plus stars and on my personal favorite's bookshelf




Interested in bonus and deleted scenes, excerpts and original stories?

Follow Kate Canterbary at Book+Main for exclusive content!

https://bookandmainbites.com/katecanterbary



Or Read for #FREE on KU



Kate Canterbary doesn't have it all figured out, but this is what she knows for sure: spicy-ass salsa and tequila solve most problems, living on the ocean-Pacific or Atlantic-is the closest place to perfection, and writing smart, smutty stories is a better than any amount of chocolate. She started out reporting for an indie arts and entertainment newspaper back when people still read newspapers, and she has been writing and surreptitiously interviewing people-be careful sitting down next to her on an airplane-ever since.

Kate lives on the water in New England with Mr. Canterbary and the Little Baby Canterbary, and when she isn't writing sexy architects, she's scheduling her days around the region's best food trucks.




Wednesday, February 14, 2018

I have been #LoveShamed and I wear my scarlet "L" heart proudly

Not slut shamed but love shamed. Let me explain how one is shamed by love. Not surprisingly I read reviews on books. Often I read them to see insight by others in a story I enjoyed.  As of late I've noticed a - distasteful to me -  habit of bloggers and reviewers using the word 'insta-love' like it's a swear word. It has suddenly taken on a life of negativity in our romance book world. Yes, romance books.  

Seriously?

As I am reading these reviews, I am struck with a song now playing in my head because I happen to like - no wait - LOVE what these individuals refer to as 'insta-love' trope. 


After reading not one, but many reviews using this term in the negative for again - romance books- I feel on the defense. I am now feeling like the roommate taking the walk of shame after a one-night stand hookup. 

One thing you do need to know about me is this: I am a walking, talking insta-love story. I dated my husband for six days, he proposed on the seventh, we married six months later and have been so blissfully for 30 years.  So you understand my confusion as to why this is a 'bad' thing. I turned to the Brain Trust to discuss. 

Happily I can report they are equally baffled. We discussed rationally about what could be defined as insta-love versus not. Like all good books, there is not a prescribed cookie cutter for this to fit. We've all read romance where the main characters timeline moves three days well into 50% of the book. And equally, we've read books that the timeline moves three weeks or months at 15% of the book. It can't be based on percentage read. So is it when they declare monogamy.  When the first 'I like you' or *gasp* 'I love you'?  Because these poor reviewers have got to hating it when all of us declare our love of Wesley as he states VERY early on...



If there is a queen of insta-love for me, I will have to say it is the talented and lovely Katy Regnery. I have read everything she has written. If anyone falls into the type-cast, I guess her Blueberry Lane novels would. But then again, there is history for the character's relationships for some books, a connection of attraction in others and even a frenmies theme in Kiss Me Kate. However, just because I don't enjoy emotional retching reading - I am a two on the angst preference meter - doesn't mean that all the stories I read are the now hated insta-love. Example: Never Let You Go. Before I rest my argument, let me discuss the two books that got my feathers ruffled. 

Bentley by Melanie Moreland



Alright, in full disclaimer, huge fan and have been for many moons before I became head cheerleader.  I loved this story to pieces. Biggest appeal was the natural connection and progression of the main characters.  And yet, a few reviewers scoffed at the story for being insta-love. I'm not sure what book they read, but obviously not the same one as I or For The Love of Fictional Worlds did. Because this blogger explains it best, I'll let them explain what I think these other reviewers missed:
"Do you have any idea what it is like to read about a good adult relationship is supposed to be like? I get it, no readers actually want something fun and exciting to get away from their reality – BUT I HAVE A RELATIONSHIP LIKE BENTLEY & EMMY; and I know that no matter what, two people who have enough sense to understand that drama doesn’t make relationship fun, it’s how the two people interact with each other and THAT’s EXACTLY HOW THE AUTHOR SHOWED THE RELATIONSHIP IN THIS BOOK!"
Yeah, that's not insta-love folks.

The Baby Maker by Lili Valente



Once again, a huge FAN.  More silent for her than others. But she is definitely a go-to when I plan on being entertained.  And again reviews with the dirty word of insta-love.

That's me  >>  SMH

Avoiding being spoilery, first off, they have an enemy stance that has been developed prior to the story's onset. The author does a stellar job of introducing the history without bogging down the pace. So yes, they are instantly in love. And more to the point, if you are attempting to plant the seeds of human kind, well, you are going to form an attachment if you spend every evening together.  Sorry, these are also mature characters so they aren't going to fall into the hate-sex or manipulation of a younger, less experienced with life characters.  It's not a bad thing to develop a friendship and fall easily into a committed type relationship. 

So what do I ask of my fellow bloggers and reviewers? 

Use your words. Stop using 'insta-love' like a swear word and defining as something to be left out of romance if declarations are made before 91%. If you don't like the story, explain why the relationship lacked appeal or characters didn't connect with you. We expect our romance writers to give us vivid descriptions. Do them a favor: write a constructive review.  And please for goodness sake, we are reading romance. Whether they fall in love page 2 or page 222, let's celebrate the joy of it. 








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Thursday, February 8, 2018

Time to Invest in Romance: Bentley by Melanie Moreland - swooning for the alpha male.



Today we are sharing the release of BENTLEY, the first book in the Vested Interest series by Melanie Moreland. Check out the teasers and buy links below.

The Vested Interest series includes 3 books: Bentley, Aiden, and Maddox.

Purchase Now!

Amazon | iBooks | Kobo | Nook

Follow Melanie's newsletter for exclusive details about the series.

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MEET THE MEN OF VESTED INTEREST

Three young men meet in university and form a lifelong friendship.

Their pasts dictate the men they are, but their present shapes their future.

What happens when these men meet the one person they are destined to be with? Can they fight their feelings and walk away? Or will they each succumb and learn the sweet agony of love?

                               

Bentley (Vested Interest, #1) by Melanie Moreland

Now Live! Add it to Goodreads

Purchase Now!

Amazon | iBooks | Kobo | Nook

Blurb:

The leader of the group. He is uptight, formal, and cold. Rigid and set in his ways, always following the same path. Until the day, he stumbles upon her.

Emmy.

She brings with her spontaneity and light. The world she lives in is so different from his, yet he cannot control the draw to her. Nor can he explain the way she makes him feel.

Happy.

Protective.

Loved.

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MY REVIEW

This story made me fall in love with romance genre all over again. It's something about a well crafted story that complete immerses and surprises you with every turn. And Ms. Moreland delivers again with humor, tension and heart gasps - you know those swoon moments with every chapter. This story begins as you would expect. Bentley is driven. In his drive, you see a man who sees the world as his oyster and is willing to make a pearl from hard work. He's focused. Then Emmy steps in and he can't avoid the gravitational pull she has on him.

What happened to me being an ass?”
 “Oh, I still think you are, but you have a great smile when you relax. So, let’s try this again.” 
 She raised her hand higher. “Hi, stranger, sitting at my table. I’m Emmy.” 

She is sassy and smart. She is goodness and light to his world. She isn't part of his plan. But damn if he doesn't feel compelled to make her a place there. Their love story is one that you want - need - them to have a HEA. But it's not just the primary characters that draw you into the story. Once again, Ms Moreland has interesting and delightful secondary characters you wish to know more about. Their presence isn't just to add color to the emotional love story but breathes into each plot turn with necessity. Emmy, Cami and Dee have a girlfriend bond that's all things you want good in your tribe. Whereas the men of BAM - Bentley, Aiden and Maddox - seriously. This bromance is panty melting, ovary combusting stuff.

Melanie Moreland's shining talent is in her male characters and she delivers what her readers expect and more. Bentley can be definitely read as a standalone. However, I dare the reader who reads book 1 and isn't the least bit interested in the next two. Just not possible in my eyes. If you've never read Ms Moreland, this is where her story telling shines and you want to gobble up all her catalog.
 5 plus out of 5 stars


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Aiden (Vested Interest, #2) by Melanie Moreland

Coming May 2018! Add it to Goodreads

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Maddox (Vested Interest, #3) by Melanie Moreland

Coming August 2018! Add it to Goodreads

 

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AUTHOR INFORMATION:

Melanie Moreland - Bio:


New York Times/USA Today bestselling author Melanie Moreland, lives a happy and content life in a quiet area of Ontario with her beloved husband of twenty-seven-plus years and their rescue cat Amber. Nothing means more to her than her friends and family, and she cherishes every moment spent with them.

While seriously addicted to coffee, and highly challenged with all things computer-related and technical, she relishes baking, cooking, and trying new recipes for people to sample. She loves to throw dinner parties, and also enjoys travelling, here and abroad, but finds coming home is always the best part of any trip.

Melanie loves stories, especially paired with a good wine, and enjoys skydiving (free falling over a fleck of dust) extreme snowboarding (falling down stairs) and piloting her own helicopter (tripping over her own feet.) She's learned happily ever afters, even bumpy ones, are all in how you tell the story.

 
AUTHOR LINKS:

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Friday, February 2, 2018

Get your poles ready: This Book You'll Want to Have Caught on your eReader


No strings, no promises, no problems.


Title: Fresh Catch
Author: Kate Canterbary
Cover Design: Anna Crosswell, Cover Couture
Release Date: February 20, 2018


Take a vacation, they said. Get away from Silicon Valley's back-stabbing and power-grabbing. Recharge the innovative batteries. Unwind, then come back stronger than ever.

Instead, I got lost at sea and fell in love with an anti-social lobsterman.

There's one small issue:

Owen Bartlett doesn't know who I am. Who I really am.

~~

I don't like people.

I avoid small talk and socializing, and I kick my companions out of bed before the sun rises.

No strings, no promises, no problems.

Until Cole McClish's boat drifts into Talbott's Cove, and I bend all my rules for the sexy sailor.

I don't know Cole's story or what he's running from, but one thing is certain:

I'm not letting him run away from me.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35919933-fresh-catch




Kate Canterbary doesn't have it all figured out, but this is what she knows for sure: spicy-ass salsa and tequila solve most problems, living on the ocean-Pacific or Atlantic-is the closest place to perfection, and writing smart, smutty stories is a better than any amount of chocolate. She started out reporting for an indie arts and entertainment newspaper back when people still read newspapers, and she has been writing and surreptitiously interviewing people-be careful sitting down next to her on an airplane-ever since.

Kate lives on the water in New England with Mr. Canterbary and the Little Baby Canterbary, and when she isn't writing sexy architects, she's scheduling her days around the region's best food trucks.