Review: Secrets of the Rich and Famous – Charlotte Phillips

Posted on May 19, 2013 by juliemt

Fun, feel-good and simply irresistible, readers will adore Charlotte Phillips’ debut novel for Mills and Boon Riva, Secrets of the Rich and Famous!

Ambitious journalist Jen Brown has got great plans for her future – plans which do not involve spending the rest of her life working for the local rag writing articles about lost pets or village fetes. Jen dreams of breaking into the cutthroat world of women’s magazines and becoming one of the UK’s leading feature writers, so she decides to pack her bags, leave her mum and her friends behind and head off to the bright lights of London where she lands an internship on one of the country’s most popular glossies. Jen is determined to ensure that her internship turns into a full-time position and comes up with an idea for an article that has her editor chomping at the bit: an expose of how to bag a Chelsea millionaire. With her entire career depending on this article, Jen is not about to let anything or anybody stand in her way. But there’s just one tiny problem: how is a small town girl like Jen going to write her article when she doesn’t know the first thing about the glamorous world which she has found herself in?

Jen is absolutely elated when she manages to land a part-time house-sitting job. Her first assignment takes her right into the heart of Chelsea where she finds herself taking up temporary residence in a luxurious apartment. Jen is able to get first-hand experience about what life is like for the posh residents of Chelsea, however, her plan to get up close and personal with the jet-set looks set to come to a sudden end when the owner of the apartment unexpectedly returns and makes it perfectly clear that he wants Jen out of his flat and out of his life! However, Jen is not about to get thrown out onto the streets – especially as the owner of the apartment is none other than drop dead gorgeous film director, Alex Hammond whose love life is regularly splashed all over the gossip pages!

Having found himself embroiled in a shocking scandal that could jeopardise the career which he’s worked so hard to build up, Alex is under strict instructions from his management team to lie low and give members of the press as wide a berth as possible. Finding a determined journalist sleeping in his bed was certainly not what his PR team envisaged, but Alex’s initial fury at discovering Jen in his apartment quickly gives way to a sizzling attraction which simply cannot be denied…

Distraction might be the last thing Jen needs, but keeping Alex Hammond at arm’s length proves easier said than done. The more time Jen spends with Alex, the more she finds herself falling madly in love with him. But is Alex willing to let down the barriers which he has built around his heart? Or will his misgivings about journalists cost him the only woman he will ever love?

Fans of sassy contemporary romantic fiction are going to love Charlotte Phillips! Hilarious, heart-warming and absolutely impossible to put down, Secrets of the Rich and Famous is a zesty-paced romp sparkling with rib-tickling humour, witty repartee, sizzling sensuality and red-hot romance. Jen is a terrifically nuanced heroine readers will cheer for and I defy anyone not to fall in love with gorgeous Alex!

Wonderfully written, deliciously readable and fabulously romantic, Secrets of the Rich and Famous is an exceptional debut from a fantastic new voice in romance: Charlotte Phillips!

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Review: Forbidden Jewel of India – Louise Allen

Posted on March 22, 2013 by juliemt

A sumptuously written tale simmering with exotic splendor illicit desires and secret passions, Forbidden Jewel of India is an enthralling and engrossing historical romance from the immensely gifted pen of award-winning author Louise Allen!

Anusha Laurens has spent most of her life sheltered and cossetted in her uncle’s luxurious palace in Rajasthan. The illegitimate daughter of an Indian princess and an English nobleman, Anusha still bears the scars of her father’s devastating betrayal. Anusha has never managed to forgive her father for sending her mother to an early grave nor has she managed to forget the heartbreaking pain which she had to endure when she had been forced to leave the only home she had never known and seek shelter in her uncle’s palace. Anusha had vowed never to have anything more to do with the father who had so brutally abandoned her ever again. However, when her life is placed in imminent danger, Anusha realizes that her only chance of survival is if she consents to travelling halfway across India to her father’s house in Calcutta. Swallowing her pride is not something which the proud Anusha finds easy to do – and indeed the journey to Calcutta is made even more challenging when she encounters the man charged with protecting her: the devastatingly handsome Major Nicholas Herriard!

There is absolutely nothing that Nicholas would not do for the man who had rescued him from the brink of despair and given him a reason to live: Sir George Laurens. Anusha’s father had treated him like his own and made him the strong, intelligent and dependable man he is today. Nicholas had felt honoured and privileged when the man he respected most in the world had asked him to bring his beloved daughter to safety. However, Nicholas hadn’t counted on how aggravating and infuriating Anusha Laurens could be – nor had he imagined that he would find himself attracted to her…

With danger lurking round every corner, Anusha and Nicholas must keep their wits about them if they are to survive and reach their destination. Although the two of them had resolved to keep their feelings for one another firmly under wraps, resistance quickly proves futile. Surrendering to temptation might have been inevitable, but does Anusha and Nicholas’ love stand a chance of surviving when there is so much standing in their way?

Forbidden Jewel of India continues to assert Louise Allen’s standing as one of the most exceptional writers of historical romance writing today. Daring, innovative and wonderfully passionate, this sublimely romantic tale of forbidden love sweeps readers away to an exquisitely rendered and fabulously recreated eighteenth century India. Expertly melding her meticulous historical knowledge with her astounding storytelling prowess, Louise Allen has written a dramatic, dazzling and engrossing historical romance which I couldn’t bear to put down!

Atmospheric, captivating and simply breath-taking, Forbidden Jewel of India is a powerful historical romance readers will never forget!

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Review: The Couple Behind the Headlines – Lucy King

Posted on March 19, 2013 by juliemt

If you like fun and flirty contemporary romances that pack plenty of emotional punch, then you will absolutely adore Lucy King’s latest Modern Romance, The Couple Behind the Headlines. Sexy, sassy and absolutely impossible to put down, this award-winning author has struck gold once again with a terrific romance that is simply irresistible!

Socialite Imogen Christie’s life had once been a dizzying whirl of champagne parties, designer handbags and luxurious holidays. With lots of money in the bank, a gorgeous fiance and a fantastic best friend, Imogen had once had the world at her feet. But when the man she thought she was going to be spending the rest of her life with jumped into bed with the one woman she thought she could trust with her life, Imogen quickly realizes that money is no substitute for love and friendship. Determined to put this devastating betrayal behind her and to make a new life for herself, Imogen decides to throw herself into her charitable foundation and to try and forget about her snake of an ex-fiance and her traitorous best friend – but that’s easier said than done when she is constantly tripping over them at the various social events and parties which she attends! Imogen realises that the only way she is going to stop being the recipient of pitying glances and sympathetic platitudes is if she has a no-strings affair with somebody who baulks at the mere mention of the word commitment – which is why hotshot playboy Jack Taylor is the perfect candidate for the job!

Jack Taylor is the kind of man who works hard and plays even harder. Intelligent, charismatic and as sexy as sin, Jack Taylor can have any woman he wants – and when he claps eyes on Imogen Christie, the gorgeous financier realises that he’s found his next conquest! Jack is the sort of man who is more than willing to share his bed, but he’s vowed never to allow anyone to breach the defenses which he has built around his head. Yet, he cannot stop himself from wishing that his temporary fling with Imogen could lead to something more permanent. However, he is just too scared to let anyone in to scratch beneath the sophisticated exterior which he projects to the rest of the world…

Imogen has already had her heart broken once and she is not prepared to subject herself to that kind of pain ever again! Despite her resolve to keep things casual with Jack, Imogen finds herself falling for the hunky playboy. But how can they possibly contemplate a future together when they are both so scared of getting hurt again?

Will Imogen and Jack find the courage to admit the truth about their feelings for one another? Or will they continue to let fear rule their lives and destroy this final chance at happiness?

A gripping tale about healing from the past, putting your heart on the line and taking a chance on love, The Couple Behind the Headlines is a fast-paced and feel-good page turner that I gobbled up in one sitting! I loved Imogen and Jack and their explosive chemistry, wickedly funny repartee and red-hot affair kept me enthralled from start to finish!

Packed with characters you cannot help but love, delicious humour, blazing passion and poignant romance, Lucy King’s The Couple Behind the Headlines has got winner written all over it!

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Review: The Greek’s Acquisition – Chantelle Shaw

Posted on March 19, 2013 by juliemt

Sexy, delicious and oh so compelling, Chantelle Shaw’s The Greek’s Acquisition is vintage Modern Romance!

Louise Frobisher is desperate. She needs to raise enough money for her terminally ill mother to have a life-changing operation that could give her the much needed second chance she so desperately craves. Having exhausted all other avenues, Louise realizes that the time has come for her to swallow her pride and come face to face with the one man who had shattered her heart and destroyed her confidence: handsome Greek billionaire Dimitri Kalakos. Louise has never managed to forgive Dimitri for his cruel betrayal – nor has ever managed to vanquish him from her heart. Yet, Louise is prepared to do anything to save her mother’s life – even beg the one man she has never stopped loving for mercy!

Dimitri had been gobsmacked when Louise had walked through the doors of his luxurious offices – and he was absolutely stunned when she made him a business proposition for the one thing he thought his money couldn’t buy: the beautiful island of Eirenne. Dimitri had been yearning to possess Eirenne for years yet Louise had always refused to sell it to him. So what had prompted this sudden change of heart? Wearing a designer dress straight off the Parisian catwalk, eye-wateringly expensive shoes and exclusive items of jewelry, Louise does not look like she is desperate need of cash. Dimitri is convinced that his former flame is keeping something from him, but Louise is remaining tight-lipped. Determined to reclaim Eirenne and desperate to uncover the secrets Louise is hiding, Dimitri decides to play the long game with Louise and begins his ruthless punishment by claiming a passionate kiss that leaves them both breathless!

Louise is adamant that she will not allow Dimitri’s tempting kisses to distract her from her goal of selling Eirenne and giving her mother a chance of survival. However, resisting Dimitri is easier said than done. As old passions rekindle and long-buried emotions come rushing back to the surface, Louise and Dimitri find themselves falling madly in love with one another all over again.

But are they prepared to give their relationship another chance? Or will they continue to let past mistakes, old wounds and devastating secrets to stand in the way of their happiness?

The Greek’s Acquisition is a sensuous contemporary romance that simmers with blazing passion, intense drama and heart-pounding emotion. Chantelle Shaw never fails to grab her readers’ attention from the very first page and keep them engrossed until the last word and in The Greek’s Acquisition she has penned another hugely enjoyable contemporary romance that will keep readers gleefully turning the pages late into the night.

With an intrepid and resourceful heroine, a gorgeous Greek hero who will make readers swoon, a vivid exotic setting, enthralling twists and turns and feel-good romance, The Greek’s Acquisition is another Chantelle Shaw keeper fans of Mills and Boon Modern Romance will definitely not want to miss!

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Review: A Bond Between Strangers – Scarlet Wilson

Posted on February 13, 2013 by juliemt

An unexpected twist of fate gives way to a love that will last a lifetime in Scarlet Wilson’s enjoyable and emotional Medical Romance, A Bond Between Strangers.

When his wife Tabitha had walked out on their marriage after she had discovered that she couldn’t give him the family he had always wanted, John Carter had felt nothing except relief that he no longer had to pretend to love the high maintenance woman whom he knew he should never have married. John didn’t miss Tabitha or her incessant spending and constant hissy fits, but not having a child of his own is a regret which wounds his heart. With a failed marriage behind him and his fortieth birthday looming, John fears that he has missed his chance of making his dream of having a family a reality.

John had resigned himself to spending the rest of his life on his own – until one day a letter from an IVF clinic drops through his letterbox and informs him that there’s been a mix up and a stranger he’s never met is carrying his baby! John is absolutely floored by this bombshell, but shock quickly gives way to a determination not to lose this last chance at fatherhood. However, before he can claim his miracle baby, John must first find Lily Grayson, the woman whom years ago he had selected as an egg donor to give him and Tabitha the child they couldn’t conceive naturally. John hires a private detective to track down Lily, however, when he finally claps eyes on the woman who could make his fantasy of being a dad come true, he is stunned by the sheer force of attraction that draws him to the courageous, intelligent and heartbreakingly beautiful nurse.

Lily was flabbergasted when she had learned that an administrative mix-up had resulted in a complete stranger to be wrongly implanted with her eggs. With the paparazzi camping out on her doorstep and the media desperate to splash her turmoil all over the newspapers, Lily needs to keep a low profile and to find a safe place to hide from the unscrupulous glare of the spotlight. Turning to John Carter – the only person in the world who could possibly understand what she is going through – seems natural. But their convenient arrangement quickly leads to an all-consuming attraction which they simply weren’t prepared for…

Are John and Lily strong enough to face up to their feelings for one another? Or will they allow the obstacles standing in their way to tear them apart?

Scarlet Wilson has penned a tender, heartbreaking but wonderfully uplifting story of renewal, redemption, sacrifice and the power of love which I absolutely loved. As always, she writes with great depth and understanding about the human heart and creates terrifically nuanced characters that leap off the page and linger in the mind long after the last page is turned, and Lily and John’s strength, maturity and vulnerability are sure to make them firm favourites with readers everywhere.

Scarlet Wilson is a talented rising star in category romance who is not scared of stretching barriers and pushing the envelope and in A Bond Between Strangers she has penned a compelling, emotionally believable and wholly engrossing romantic tale which readers will not be able to put down!

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