Rise of Skywalker and the final episode of season one of The Mandalorian under our belts, we had a Star Wars packed weekend!
Now, first things first, I'm a HUGE Legends fan. I've read all the books that follow Return of the Jedi and love that story line. Yes, some of the books are difficult to get through, but I love them. That being said, I did enjoy Rise of Skywalker. I cried, I wanted to scream, I cried some more, my mind was blown even though I was close to the mystery being solved on my own, and did think they did a good job with the movie. I saw old faces that made me jump in my seat and embarrass the warden, and saw that they may have taken a few things from the books to put into this final movie of the Skywalker saga. That's all I'll say about that. And for The Mandalorian? I loved it! I love the gunslinger vibe to the show and can't wait to see more next fall. Okay, Star Wars out of the way, I spent time with family yesterday at my niece's baby shower. I teared up seeing her. She's grown into such a beautiful person, I can't wait to see her as a mom. I wrapped up re-outlining the third Powder River Pack book and will start writing it tomorrow. I'm scraping everything I wrote before and love the new story I came up with. That's all I have for now. See you Friday. x Brooke
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My Monday morning is off to a wonderful start. I'm being sarcastic as well as truthful. I woke up feeling like crap, great way to kick off winter break with my kiddos, but it is thanks to my youngest that I'm this way. And it's good because I'm entering my final week of writing Squid. The rough draft should be done by Friday. I'm loving how this story is turning out to be, but I have other projects ready to pop into my mind and get into a world document.
More werewolves, cowgirls, and a dark story are all bursting to come out. I'm not the type who can write multiple stories at once, so I've been storing up ideas like crazy. I'm going to be offline a little more in the next couple of days due to the holiday and having to work earlier than normal tomorrow. I hope you and yours have a great week with many new memories made that are filled with love, happiness, and so much warmth. See you Friday. x Brooke I have three books for you this week!
Wolf Signs by Vivian Arend was my first read. Werewolf and wolf shifters are my favorite to read, so it shouldn't be a surprise why I picked this one up. Blurb: Talk about getting your signals crossed… When her brother cancels their backcountry ski trip, Robyn Maxwell takes it in stride. The fact she’s deaf doesn’t make her survival skills any weaker, and she’s been craving the chance to escape into the Yukon wilderness. Only the sexy beast of a man she bumps into at the cabin starts cravings of another kind, setting her hormones raging as well as raising strange questions about wolves, and mates, and pack challenges. All wilderness guide Keil Lynus wanted was a nice quiet retreat before challenging for the Alpha position of his Alaskan pack. He wasn’t planning on meeting his destined mate, or finding out she’s not aware she has the genes of a wolf. Between dealing with his accident-prone younger brother, a deaf mate with an attitude and an impending duel to the death, his week—and his bed—is suddenly full. Far from the relaxing getaway any of them had in mind… Warning: Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “talking with your hands”. Includes dangerous use of sarcasm and hot nookie in a remote wilderness sauna. Goodreads Amazon Barnes and Noble My next read was Picture Perfect Lie by Marquita Valentine. A sweet story that I fell in love with. This book would have been five stars but, unfortunately, there were too many typos that sometimes took away from the story. Blurb: Fall in love with the Kings of Castle Beach! All Campbell Faircloth wanted was a safe place to call home. All Knight King wanted was to leave his hometown behind. I never expected to end up in Castle Beach, surrounded by a family who believes that I’m not only their brother’s wife, but the mother of his infant daughter. I can’t tell them the truth—Knight and I met only three days earlier, during a layover in Atlanta. He was headed out to fight in a war that hardly anyone talked about anymore, and I was headed back home to a family who pretended that I didn’t exist. He helped me with my baby. He kept us safe while we slept. We shared lunch and dinner… and I spilled all my secrets to him. Then he gave me an address, along with an offer I couldn’t refuse. *** Six months later he’s back to bury his brother, and my lie is about to be exposed. Only Knight doesn’t say a word. He goes along with the charade, and each day we spend together, pretending to be husband and wife, it’s getting harder and harder not to believe in our lie. Could our picture perfect lie turn into a picture perfect forever? Goodreads Amazon Barnes and Noble My last book for this week is Love, Chocolate, and Beer by Violet Duke. Blurb: Chocolatier and town newcomer Luke Bradford loves his shop's new home. Mostly because it means he gets to do his new favorite thing every day, which is to lock horns with the feisty beer-brewing beauty next door, both business-wise and otherwise. But to be fair, in his defense -- Just kidding. He has no defense. Brewmaster and town sweetheart Dani Dobson is declaring war against her hot, maddening new menace of a neighbor. And his shop. He absolutely started it. She's just picking up the chocolate-covered gauntlet he unintentionally threw down. The terms? Her business versus his in the arena of romance. The stakes? Very likely, her heart. Goodreads Amazon That's all I have for you this week. I'm going to be baking this weekend with my kids, wish me luck. Have a wonderful weekend. x Brooke It's Monday and that means ManCrush Monday in my readers group. I picked out celebrities this week. And you guessed it, Ryan Reynolds is one of them.
This past weekend was a busy one. Well, at least on Saturday. I had my signing for Love, Mercy at Sheridan Stationery Books and Gallery. It was great getting to talk to and connect with fellow book lovers and I thank not only Robby and everyone at Sheridan Stationery, but everyone who came in to support me. It truly means the world to me. I barely got home and we were off again. We decided to go to Jumanji that afternoon rather than yesterday and I loved it! Funnier than the first, but way more cussing. So, if that bothers you with your kids I recommend you go see it first and judge for yourself. That led me on a tangent about swearing in kid friendly movies anymore. It is becoming more acceptable and I don't care for it. Sure, I cuss a lot, but I do my best to watch my mouth around my kids. And then, later that night, we caught up on The Mandalorian and once again, there was cussing. I remember watching the original trilogy and the worse ever said was when Han said "Then I'll see you in hell." Disney is supposed to be kid friendly and now they are letting Star Wars, which as done wonderfully without swearing, do it now? Yeah, thanks a lot. Okay, I'm off the soap box now. I'm back to work with Squid. I'm kind of hoping to have the rough draft done by the end of the month but I'm not holding my breath. Don't forget that I have giveaways posted daily on my readers group from now until the 20th. Until Friday. Kick ass this week. x Brooke This was not my week when it came to reading. I tried several books on and nothing felt like I good size. Except one, A Violet by Any Other Name by Shaye Marlow is most definitely not your typical romantic story and it was so refreshing! An off the wall, unique romance that will leave the reader in stitches and wanting more. Entertaining from page one. Blurb: Roses are red, violets are blue. There’s this guy I like. But I kinda hate him, too. I’m too old for this sh*t. My name is JoBette, and as a crazy plant lady, I'd long since given up on men. Enter Deke, a man nowhere near as ridiculous as his name would have you believe. He’s hot as a fluorescent grow light, sexy as a perfectly symmetrical show violet. He has the body (of knowledge) I want. But, I want to win more. With the national African violet show coming up, we’ll be in the same hotel for a week. Nothing to keep us from each other’s throats except the width of a salty French fry, the length of a white rose petal… and a secret that’ll make me question everything. *Mature romance, over 40. *No cliffhanger. Satisfying HFN/HEA. Sorry I don't have anymore for you. Hopefully next week will be better.
x Brooke How about an older cowboy hottie for this ManCrush?
He kind of has a vibe to me for one of my mountain lion shifter cowboys. Yeah, that was a mouthful to even think. Anyway, after a weekend of passing out flyers with my youngest, Christmas shopping with the warden, and daydreaming about werewolves and mountain time, I'm back to work with Squid. Even though, right now, it feels like I have four tabs open that I can't settle on which one to stay on and freeze every few seconds. Do I want to keep working on Squid? Yes, I do. I'm at a point where it is starting to heat up between Levi and Kindle. But I also want to work on a Russian Mafia/Darker romance I have an idea to do a duet on. And then there is the Powder River Pack (which I have scheduled to work on after I'm done with Squid.) I have a rough draft of book three, but I do not like how it turned out and am playing a complete overhaul. Macy and Brandon will have the story they deserve. And lastly, I have My Cowboy universe. As you might know, I'm working on the kiddos now. Stories with cussing but no naughty scenes because I can't handle that. I see them as my kids too. Hunter's story is coming this coming year and now I'm looking toward the future with Tori's story. It will be a bully romance. Well, I've unloaded enough for this Monday morning. I'm going to do my best to find some sort of focus this week while juggling a five-month-old and taking meat out to get turned into burger. See you Friday with my weekly reads. x Brooke Three books for you this week!
It was almost four, but I don't have that one finished yet so it will be up for next week. I started the week with Smolder by Tracy Solheim. Like most authors lately, she is new to me and hey, what can I say, I'm drawn to books set in Montana and Wyoming. Just like the titles implies, this book will make you smolder page after page and leave you satisfied at the end. Blurb: Former Army Ranger, Sam Gaskill, is starting over in Glacier Creek, Montana - far away from the plains of Texas and the memories of his late wife. Taking charge as the new captain of a squad of smoke jumpers should provide him with enough adrenaline to chase away the ghosts from his past. Until a sexy, green-eyed temptress with a sassy mouth enters the picture… Laurel Keenan, champion horsewoman, couldn’t wait to escape her hometown. But instead, an ailing mother and an unplanned pregnancy landed the impetuous dreamer right back on her father’s ranch. Laurel has managed to lead a quiet life with her young son—until she sets eyes on the tough guy with the sexy ass. Sam already failed one woman; he won’t trust his heart with another. And Laurel is determined not to risk her heart—or her son’s—on another thrill-seeker. Can their slow burn lead to a love that lasts? Goodreads Amazon Barnes and Noble Next, I read The Baby Maker by Lili Valente. Another new-to-me author and boy was it enjoyable! Entertaining plot with relatable characters and tons of off the charts chemistry. From beginning to end, The Baby Maker was an enjoyable read. Blurb: Some men are troublemakers or dealmakers. The men in my family? We're baby makers. For six generations, the women of wine country have had a saying: don’t bang a Hunter man unless you want a bun in your oven. Yeah, well. I’ve got a saying too: no thanks. The last thing I need is baby makes three. My business is expanding and the only thing I’m interested in getting knocked up is my bottom line. But then one night Emma Haverford makes me an offer I can’t refuse—she backs away from the land I have my eye on in exchange for a favor… A big, fat, baby making favor… ****** When I hear women have gotten pregnant shaking hands with Hunter men, I know I need Dylan Hunter’s…ahem, special skills…way more than I need to expand my vineyard. I’m ready to give my heart to a child and I’m tired of waiting for my late-to-the-party Prince Charming to make my dreams come true. So I promise Dylan—three months of hot, heavy, baby-making s-e-x and then I’m out of his hair forever. But what if when it comes time to say good-bye, all I want to do is keep bottling up more memories with this big-hearted man? Goodreads Amazon Barnes and Noble And the third book for the week is Eye of the Beholder by Nana Malone. Intense desire and a story to sink your teeth into and get lost in. A non-stop read until you are able to figure out the mystery laced within the words. Entertaining and enjoyable read. Blurb: Go to Vegas… Accidentally marry a good girl… Logan Cross has nearly destroyed his career with his bad boy antics, and marrying his best friend’s little sister, Jezebel, has to be the stupidest thing he’s ever done. Now he needs a quickie divorce so that he can get back to cutting ties with his father’s record label. But when he discovers that the only way to get free of Dad is to be married, Logan is forced to hold on to that curvy wife. How far will he go for money? Go to Vegas… Accidentally marry a Rockstar… When plus sized model, Jezebel Donovan goes to Vegas for a job, the last thing she expects is to wake up married to the one man she loathes. Now she needs a quickie divorce and all will be right with her world. But when a family crisis leaves her niece in an orphanage, Jezebel is forced to hold on to that rock star husband. How far will she go for family? Goodreads Amazon Barnes and Noble I've already showed this on my Facebook page and group, but thought I'd do it here too.
Last week, while watching the Bills Thanksgiving game, my family and I were talking about the quarterback, Josh Allen. I looked him up because we knew he played at the University of Wyoming, hey! I went there! And I got a good look at him without his gear on. I thought he looked like a good match for Hunter Masters, son to Emma and Cade in My Cowboy, and star of his own book, She's No Cowgirl coming the end of next year. So, he's the reason for the mancrush this week. I hope you had a great Thanksgiving weekend and if you did Black Friday or Cyber Monday shopping, I hope you found great deals! I got my son a phone and that's about all of my Black Friday shopping. I'm gearing back up to work on Squid for the week and babysitting my adorable baby niece. See you Friday. x Brooke |
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