Day / June 20, 2011

by mvbookreviewer

Requested Review: The Dome by Nova Sparks

Format: E-bookthedome
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Science Fiction
Series: The Dome trilogy, Book 1
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: NA
Heroine: NA
Sensuality: NA
Date of Publication: April 30, 2011
Started On: June 18, 2011
Finished On: June 20, 2011

What would you do if you knew that the entire world as we know it is coming to an end and know exactly when it is going to happen? That is the dilemma faced by Sam Tucker when he starts getting realistically visual dreams of an apocalypse that is just around the corner.

Fearing that he is losing his mind, Sam does what he thinks is all that he can do in the short period of time available and tries to save as many people as he can without alerting them to what was going on. The only other person who knows the truth is his best friend Mark who is apprehensive about everything that takes place right from the very beginning.

When the annihilation begins, their savior comes in the form of an alien race who seemingly go out of their way to make their planet Syri habitable by the humans. The lucky escape from a certain death makes Sam rethink his priorities in life; a life which he had been taking for granted until now.

For Emma, Sam’s daughter, Syri opens up the possibility of a new love which she tries to embrace in her usual take-charge attitude. But on a planet where everything is not what they seem to be, Emma finds that even falling in love has its price which could get deadly with one wrong turn.

Told on first person basis by both Sam and Emma, the 1st book in The Dome trilogy is one intense, edge-of-the-seat read. Ms. Novak does a brilliant job on capitalizing on the emotions as well as the nature of us human beings, whose instinct for survival always comes into play when that is all we are left with.

Mark’s instinctive distrust with anything that has got to do with Syri certainly rings true with our inquisitive natures and our need for absolute freedom from any sort of shackles that may bind us. For Mark, the truth that he finds out turns out to be a deadly and costly one, leaving Sam a changed man, a man on a mission on the quest for truth and a way out of picture perfect Syri.

For someone who mostly reads and enjoys romances, this one was certainly a delightfully riveting surprise. With a nightmare inducing kind of prologue that reeled me in, I couldn’t help but be fascinated with the story as it unfolded and all my gratitude lays with Ms. Sparks who approached me for a review which otherwise would have had me missing out on this great sci-fi installment. I am definitely looking forward to the next book in the trilogy which cannot come out soon enough as far as I am concerned.

Recommended for fans of the genre. You won’t be disappointed.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Smashwords

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Grace Under Pressure by Melissa Schroeder

Format: E-bookgraceunderpressure
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Hero: Renaldo Morello
Heroine: Grace Beatrice Michael
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: February 1, 2007
Started On: June 19, 2011
Finished On: June 19, 2011

I am someone who always loves a good romance between a warm, sexy and accident prone heroine with a bit of an aloof and controlled hero who finds his hard earned control shattered all around him. As I read Grace Under Pressure, I couldn’t help but think to myself that I have read this earlier in my pre-review phase. Even if that were the case, I am really glad that I picked this up and enjoyed it, a story that left me wanting more of all the characters that cropped up as it unfolded.

33 year old Grace Michaels lives in the small town of Cannon, Texas and is a history professor at the local college. Accident-prone by nature, her first encounter with the town’s new and sexy as hell Chief of Police Ren Morello happens with her ass up in the air stirring up Ren’s amusement and his libido as well in the process.

Ren is a man who has closed and bolted the door on any sort of relationship with the opposite sex that requires his commitment ever since his divorce from the wife from hell. When Grace comes into the picture, even though his over-active libido begs him to bury himself deep within her, his emotions that are a bit more in control than his libido warn him to run the other way and never look back.

When Grace’s home is ransacked and it is clear that her life is in danger, all protective instincts that Ren harbors deep inside comes out demanding that he keep Grace safe at any cost. Being at such close proximity to a woman whose mere existence befuddles his thinking cells plays havoc with the rigid control that Ren exerts on his baser emotions until it all explodes in his face in the most sinfuly delicious ways possible.

Neatly tying in with the main story is the story of Julia, Grace’s best friend and that of her brother Gabriel that served as an equally interesting romantic interlude in this wickedly good romantic suspense of the erotic variety. Though the scenes of passion are erotic in nature, there is none of the overly kinky stuff taking place in the story. Grace Under Pressure is a hot little addition for your TBR pile if you love a steamy romantic suspense in a small town setting with all the antics that go along with small town life. Loved every single minute of this delectable story and I am definitely going to wade through Ms. Schroeder’s back list and see what I can come up with to keep me entertained in the future.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Samhain

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