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Search tags: Ava-Ashley
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review 2021-09-03 23:38
Revengeful Romeo (Cocky Hero Club) by: Ashley Bostock
Revengeful Romeo (Cocky Hero Club) - Ashley Bostock

 

 

 

 

 

Revengeful Romeo by Ashley Bostock

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



Young love, adult heartache and a life that seems to be plagued with regret. Holden and Julie bring a haunting tale of a friendship gone wrong and a love story that never quite began. Bostock grabs the heart by the senses and sets about tempting the soul. Revengeful Romeo is a walk down memory lane that stirs up deep emotion. A second chance story with quite a few twists that will pull you under it's spell.



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review 2020-07-16 21:25
Review: Murder in the East End by Jennifer Ashley
Murder in the East End - Jennifer Ashley

3.75 stars - Reviewed for Wit and Sin

 

I always love entering Kat Holloway’s world. In Murder in the East End my favorite no-nonsense cook and amateur sleuth is on the hunt to find out what happened to children who have gone missing from London’s Foundling Hospital. She’s brought into this case by Daniel McAdam and his foster brother, a vicar who is more than he seems. As the trio and their unlikely band of allies (the bold and kindhearted Cynthia, adorable and brilliant Thanos, and mysterious newcomer Judith) delve deeper into the Foundling Hospital’s practices they’ll find themselves in the slums, where danger and heartbreak await.

Kat is the heart of the Below Stairs mysteries and she continues to be a fantastic heroine. She’s got a way of getting people to open up and I like watching her put the puzzle pieces together. And as you might guess from the introduction of a man from Daniel’s past, we do finally learn a bit more about the mysterious Mr. McAdam. I practically gobbled up these crumbs of information alongside Kat, though of course I still wanted more. I cannot wait until the day Daniel’s full history is revealed. As for the supporting cast, author Jennifer Ashley continues to flesh out these wonderful characters. Everyone’s voice is unique and their trials and tribulations make the world of the story feel rich.

I thoroughly enjoyed Murder in the East End but I struggled with rating it because the mystery itself fell a bit short for me. Even though they’re hunting for missing children who are in terrible danger, there’s an almost meandering quality to this story that didn’t quite go with the dire situation. The mystery lacked intensity and wasn’t as well defined as I’m used to. And though I won’t spoil the plot, I will say I didn’t feel quite satisfied by the revelations that occurred. Of course, part of the reason for that is due to an overarching plotline that will continue in future books so I’ll be content to wait and see what happens there. Even with these issues, I love spending time with Kat, Daniel, and their friends and I am always sucked into their world and their developing relationships. I cannot wait to see where Ms. Ashley takes these characters next!


FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

 

Source: witandsin.blogspot.com/2020/07/review-murder-in-east-end-by-jennifer.html
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review 2020-06-18 21:26
Not Quite Snow White - Ashley Franklin,Ebony Glenn

For more reviews, check out my blog: Craft-Cycle

A gorgeous picture book centered on body image and positivity.

The illustrations are absolutely fantastic. They wonderfully portrayed Tameika's movement and emotion. Adorable art style.

The plot of the book was also well done. It is simple and entertaining enough that children would be interested in it, while still getting across an important message. I loved the emphasis on actions and skills over appearance. While Tameika may not look like the traditional image of Snow White, she proved that she was the right fit through her talent and passion, demonstrating that appearance isn't everything.

A wonderful book with adorable illustrations and a heartfelt story. I really enjoyed it.
 

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review 2020-06-07 15:44
Dream Maker by Kristen Ashley
Dream Maker - Kristen Ashley
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Dream Maker is the start of a new series but characters from the author's previous series, Dream Man and Rock Chick (some Chaos) heavily feature in it. I've read books in Dream Man but none in Rock Chick, I was able to hang in there in regards to who was who and connections but barely. If you're completely new to Kristen Ashley, this probably isn't where you should start.

One could say I was correct in my concerns about Daniel Magnusson. I didn’t know if he was toxic. But he was a bossy damned alpha. And meddling.

If you're not new to Ashley, you'll recognize her writing style but with some tweaking. Danny speaks in full sentences but “Babe” and a controlling nature that make Ashley heroes a love them or hate them, was still evident in the character. Evie was the klutzy nerd that makes her adorable to the hero and because of how forced and jammed in it felt at times, she super duper cares about the environment (she drives a Prius and wears shoes from recycled bottles!) in what I think was probably added to make her seem more Millennial/Gen Z. Evie broaches pushing back at Danny's controlling nature, he's a “commando” so he wants to run the show in regards to protecting her, but Danny ends up pretty much doing what he wants. There's insta attraction between the two and I think all the “babes” and whispered talk was supposed to be the evidence for these deep feelings. I can't say these two left a lasting impression on me.

“Mac is no fool. This isn’t about you sorting my shit. It’s her setting me up to sort yours.”

Lottie, Evie's friend, set-up Danny with Evie and told Evie Danny was sleeping his way through Denver because he was having a hard time emotionally. However, Danny sees how crappy Evie's family treats her and then reads a text message that shows how much danger Evie is being put in because of her brother and he thinks Lottie put them together to help Evie. The plot involving Evie's brother, drugs, and danger was supposed to be the continuing thread throughout the book but it never gets filled out enough and gets ignored for the majority of the time in favor of Evie and Danny whispering at each other in short sentences that “Ooh that must have meant something, they really care about me!”. The suspense plot felt ignored, was slow, and never filled out to create any semblance to a plot.

“I’m a little scared, Danny,” I admitted.
“I am too,” he surprised me by saying. “But you’re worth the risk.”


The whole series gets laid out, Evie was set-up with Danny through Lottie and we learn that three other women that Evie works with at the strip club and she realizes are her friends, are lined up and paired off with Danny's friends and co-workers. There isn't any surprise or suspense in who the couples will be in the coming books. There was a couple that interested me but the utter lack of plot in this has me very tentative to try another in this series.

These people. These crazy, kindhearted people.

Evie felt like a fully formed character but Danny's background was absent and it left his character a bit vapid. Evie gets kidnapped twice and their first sex scene is after Danny was shot and was previously in a lot of pain. There's enough of Ashley's tried and true elements that previous readers could find enjoyment and enough tweaking that it could bring in new readers, for me, I really just needed more plot.
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text 2020-06-05 17:02
Reading Update: 20%
Dream Maker - Kristen Ashley

Starting the new Ashley, prepared for a wild ride :)

 

Stay safe and strong this weekend, friends.

 

Dream Maker by Kristen Ashley purchase link

 

Irish Lemon Pudding recipe

Definitely add the powder sugar and whip cream to sweeten this one up

 

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