March Weekly Kindle Haul #1

I’m checking in a little later than usual with my weekly Kindle haul. I plan on going into a little more detail in my February wrap up but I was suffering a relapse of my disease and I’m now taking medicine to stop it. I’m not bouncing back as quickly as I would like but my husband told me this afternoon that he thinks that I look stronger today so I’m hoping this week will be a better one for me. With that being said I was still able to buy a few books this week. I would say at least half of them are free romances but to be honest last week was a long one so I’m not even sure anymore. The rest of them I bought based off of recommendations.

Anahera Rawiri left New Zealand at twenty-one, fleeing small-town poverty and the ghosts of her childhood with no plans to look back. But eight years later, she returns, seeking familiarity as respite from the shattered remains of her new life. And despite the changes brought on by a bump in tourism–the shiny new welcome sign at the town line and a decidedly less shiny new police presence–Golden Cove appears much as it ever was: a small settlement on the savage West Coast of the South Island, populated by all the remembered faces and set against a backdrop of lush greenery, jagged cliffs, and crashing waves.

Detective Will Gallagher knows all about ghosts; his own chased him out of a promising career in Christchurch, landing him as the sole cop in a quaint town where his most pressing concerns are petty theft and the occasional drunk. When Golden Cove resident Miri Hinewai goes out for a run and fails to return, Will finds himself heading up a missing person’s search that rapidly escalates into an official investigation after this case is connected with similar ones from the past. As an outsider, Will begins to rely on Anahera’s knowledge of the area and its residents to help him delve into Golden Cove’s secrets, and to determine whether it shelters something far more dangerous than just an unforgiving landscape.

A Country House Murder Mystery with a Supernatural Twist

Ishmael Jones is someone who can’t afford to be noticed, someone who lives under the radar, who drives on the dark side of the road. He’s employed to search out secrets, investigate mysteries and shine a light in dark places. Sometimes he kills people. Invited by his employer, the enigmatic Colonel, to join him and his family for Christmas, Ishmael arrives at the grand but isolated Belcourt Manor in the midst of a blizzard to find that the Colonel has mysteriously disappeared. 
As he questions his fellow guests, Ishmael concludes that at least one of them not least Ishmael himself – is harbouring a dangerous secret, and that beneath the veneer of festive cheer lurk passion, jealousy, resentment and betrayal. As a storm sets in, sealing off the Manor from the rest of the world, Ishmael must unmask a ruthless murderer they strike again.

In 1935 three women are forever changed when one of the most powerful hurricanes in history barrels toward the Florida Keys in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton’s captivating new novel.

Everyone journeys to Key West searching for something. For the tourists traveling on Henry Flagler’s legendary Overseas Railroad, Labor Day weekend is an opportunity to forget the economic depression gripping the nation. But one person’s paradise can be another’s prison, and Key West-native Helen Berner yearns to escape. 

The Cuban Revolution of 1933 left Mirta Perez’s family in a precarious position. After an arranged wedding in Havana, Mirta arrives in the Keys on her honeymoon. While she can’t deny the growing attraction to the stranger she’s married, her new husband’s illicit business interests may threaten not only her relationship, but her life. 

Elizabeth Preston’s trip from New York to Key West is a chance to save her once-wealthy family from their troubles as a result of the Wall Street crash. Her quest takes her to the camps occupied by veterans of the Great War and pairs her with an unlikely ally on a treacherous hunt of his own.

Over the course of the holiday weekend, the women’s paths cross unexpectedly, and the danger swirling around them is matched only by the terrifying force of the deadly storm threatening the Keys.

Aria Saint-James has planned the perfect getaway: sweatpants, takeout and two weeks alone with her sister and nephew. Nowhere on that list is wearing a low-cut dress and uncomfortable heels to attend a wedding where she knows neither the bride nor the groom. Toss in her nemesis, Brody Carmichael, and her road trip to Arizona is officially a bust.

But at least there is champagne.

She blames the bubbly for falling into bed with Brody that night. Enemy or no, the billionaire is irresistible in a tux. But after their one-night tryst, Aria has no choice but to cut her vacation short, returning home to escape his devilish smile, vowing never to see Brody again.

Except Aria gets a surprise a few weeks later—she’s pregnant. When he learns that she’s carrying his child, Brody offers Aria the chance of a lifetime. The catch? She has to live under his roof until the baby is born.

Either they’ll kill each other in nine months. Or discover love buried beneath their hate.

Clara Saint-James is completing a journey started by an old friend. She’ll return a Cadillac to California, a place she’s avoided for more than a decade. But it’s time for closure and to put old ghosts to rest. And it’s time to find out if the feelings she’s cherished for the boy from her past are just fanciful memories—or if there’s a chance they are real.

Timing was never on her side, especially when it came to Karson Avery. The two of them lived in a junkyard as runaway teens, and though she wanted more than his friendship, he always belonged to another—until that one night when he was hers.

When Clara finds Karson living in a small, coastal town, she’s not surprised the beautiful boy from her past grew into a stunning man. His smile is as captivating as ever. His eyes have the same roguish glint. But timing is still working against her. 

Clara must decide how far she’s willing to go to battle for Karson’s heart. Or if it’s time to let him go and surrender to the dotted lines that have always kept them apart.

The arrival of a meteorite in a small Finnish town causes chaos and crime in this poignant, chilling and hilarious new thriller from the King of Helsinki Noir

*** The Times BOOK OF THE YEAR***

‘With moral dilemmas, plenty of action, and the author’s trademark mixture of humour and melancholy, this is Tuomainen’s best yet’ Guardian

‘Scandinavia’s answer to Carl Hiaasen delivers another hectically silly crime caper involving a military chaplain, a suicidal rally driver and a very expensive meteorite’ The Times

‘Finnish criminal chucklemeister Tuomainen is channelling Carl Hiaasen in this hilarious novel’ Sunday Times Crime Club

_________________

A man with dark thoughts on his mind is racing along the remote snowy roads of Hurmevaara in Finland, when there is flash in the sky and something crashes into the car. That something turns about to be a highly valuable meteorite. With euro signs lighting up the eyes of the locals, the unexpected treasure is temporarily placed in a neighbourhood museum, under the watchful eye of a priest named Joel.

But Joel has a lot more on his mind than simply protecting the riches that have apparently rained down from heaven. His wife has just revealed that she is pregnant. Unfortunately Joel has strong reason to think the baby isn’t his. As Joel tries to fend off repeated and bungled attempts to steal the meteorite, he must also come to terms with his own situation, and discover who the father of the baby really is.

Transporting the reader to the culture, landscape and mores of northern Finland Little Siberia is both a crime novel and a hilarious, blacker-than-black comedy about faith and disbelief, love and death, and what to do when bolts from the blue – both literal and figurative – turn your life upside down.

Have you ever heard of the old Celtic legends of the Fae – beautiful, magical, deadly and a love of messing with humans just for kicks and giggles? 
Welcome to my world. 
What started out as a strange assignment, leads to one of the most gruesome murder mysteries of our times and my friends and I are set and determined to find out who is killing off Fae and Witches alike. 
Couple of problems in the way – I hate the Fae and the Prince of the Dark Fae is bound and determined that I work for him. He’s a rude, overbearing egotistical ass with a compulsive need to possess, dominate and control me. Oh – did I mention that he is absolutely sex-on-a-stick gorgeous and he makes me feel things that I never ever wanted to feel for a Fae…every time he touches me or looks at me with those golden eyes seems to pull me further in under his spell, despite my better judgment. 
My friends and I can’t trust anyone and nothing is as it seems on the surface – not even me. 

Warning: Mature content and language not intended for anyone under the age of eighteen. 

This book is not intended for anyone under the age of 18, or anyone who doesn’t like lip biting, throw your ass on the bed, tear your clothes off and leave you panting dominant alpha male characters. This is a dark, dangerous, intense, gritty and raw. Scenes are dark, disturbing, and scorching HOT. This book is a soul crushing, tear jerking, and leave you hanging on the edge of your seat fast paced book. 
Side Effects may include, but are not limited to: Drooling, lip biting, wet panties, crying, and screaming at the author. If any of these things happen, do not seek medical attention—get the next book in the series and enjoy the ride! 

We were meant to be seductive. We were designed to lure humans in. 

Fortuna Sworn is the last of her kind.

Her brother disappeared two years ago, leaving her with no family or species to speak of. She hides among humans, spending her days working at a bar and her nights searching for him. The bleak pattern goes on and on… until she catches the eye of a powerful faerie.

He makes no attempt to hide that he desires Fortuna. And in exchange for her, he offers something irresistible. So Fortuna reluctantly leaves her safe existence behind to step back into a world of creatures and power. 

It soon becomes clear that she may not have bargained with her heart, but her very life.

TRIGGER WARNING: This novel contains scenes or themes of sexual harassment, toxic relationships, and slavery.

The golden skies, the translucent twilight, the white nights, all hold the promise of youth, of love, of eternal renewal. The war has not yet touched this city of fallen grandeur, or the lives of two sisters, Tatiana and Dasha Metanova, who share a single room in a cramped apartment with their brother and parents. Their world is turned upside down when Hitler’s armies attack Russia and begin their unstoppable blitz to Leningrad.

Yet there is light in the darkness. Tatiana meets Alexander, a brave young officer in the Red Army. Strong and self-confident, yet guarding a mysterious and troubled past, he is drawn to Tatiana—and she to him. Starvation, desperation, and fear soon grip their city during the terrible winter of the merciless German siege. Tatiana and Alexander’s impossible love threatens to tear the Metanova family apart and expose the dangerous secret Alexander so carefully protects—a secret as devastating as the war itself—as the lovers are swept up in the brutal tides that will change the world and their lives forever.

On a winter night on a remote Nebraska road, twenty-seven-year-old Mark Schluter has a near-fatal car accident. His older sister, Karin, returns reluctantly to their hometown to nurse Mark back from a traumatic head injury. But when Mark emerges from a coma, he believes that this woman–who looks, acts, and sounds just like his sister–is really an imposter. When Karin contacts the famous cognitive neurologist Gerald Weber for help, he diagnoses Mark as having Capgras syndrome. The mysterious nature of the disease, combined with the strange circumstances surrounding Mark’s accident, threatens to change all of their lives beyond recognition. In The Echo Maker, Richard Powers proves himself to be one of our boldest and most entertaining novelists.

*No synopsis since they are book 2 and 3 in a 8 book novella series.

A picture hides a thousand words …

On a hot July day in 1967, Odelle Bastien climbs the stone steps of the Skelton gallery in London, knowing that her life is about to change forever. Having struggled to find her place in the city since she arrived from Trinidad five years ago, she has been offered a job as a typist under the tutelage of the glamorous and enigmatic Marjorie Quick. But though Quick takes Odelle into her confidence, and unlocks a potential she didn’t know she had, she remains a mystery – no more so than when a lost masterpiece with a secret history is delivered to the gallery.

The truth about the painting lies in 1936 and a large house in rural Spain, where Olive Schloss, the daughter of a renowned art dealer, is harbouring ambitions of her own. Into this fragile paradise come an artist and revolutionary, Isaac Robles, and his half-sister Teresa, who immediately insinuate themselves into the Schloss family, with explosive and devastating consequences …

Seductive, exhilarating and suspenseful, The Muse is an addictive novel about aspiration and identity, love and obsession, authenticity and deception – a magnificent creation and a story you will never forget.

When rescue looks like a whole lot of trouble . . . 

The road trip was definitely a bad idea. Having already flambéed her culinary career beyond recognition, Rita Clarkson is now stranded in God-Knows-Where, New Mexico, with a busted-ass car and her three temperamental siblings, who she hasn’t seen in years. When rescue shows up—six-feet-plus of hot, charming sex on a motorcycle—Rita’s pretty certain she’s gone from the frying pan right into the fire . . . 

Jasper Ellis has a bad boy reputation in this town, and he loathes it. The moment he sees Rita, though, Jasper knows he’s about to be sorely tempted. There’s something real between them. Something raw. And Jasper has only a few days to show Rita that he isn’t just for tonight—he’s forever.

In Regency London, the only way for a woman to succeed is to beat men at their own game. So when Mary Anne Clarke seeks an escape from her squalid surroundings in Bowling Inn Alley, she ventures first into the scurrilous world of the pamphleteers. Her personal charms are such, however, that before long she comes to the notice of the Duke of York. With her taste for luxury and power, Mary Anne, now a royal mistress, must aim higher. Her lofty connections allow her to establish a thriving trade in military commissions, provoking a scandal that rocks the government – and brings personal disgrace. A vivid portrait of overweening ambition, MARY ANNE is set during the Napoleonic Wars and based on du Maurier’s own great-great- grandmother.

A grumpy lumberjack

Former Army Ranger Harrison Wilkes isn’t actually a lumberjack, but he’s doing his best impression while hiding out in the mountains of East Tennessee. He needs to rest, recharge, and stay the hell away from people, while he wrestles with ghosts from his past and figures out his future. Neither includes a snowbound rescue of his favorite author.

A runaway writer

Ivy Blake is on a deadline. Her hero is MIA, and she’s desperate to find some peace, quiet, and inspiration to get her book—and her life—back on track. She doesn’t plan on driving off a mountain. Or the mysterious stranger who shows up to save her.

Who’s rescuing who?

When Winter Stormageddon traps them together, Ivy finds the inspiration she didn’t know she needed in her real-life hero. As more than the fireplace heats up his one-man cabin, they both find far more than they bargained for. This intuitive author just might have the answers Harrison’s looking for, but will their newfound connection survive past the storm?

Abby Davison only wants to focus on her career as a nurse, as she has no time for dating after a bad breakup over a year ago. When her mother presses her about settling down, Abby tells her a little white lie: she’s dating Mark Thornton, the handsome and gruff rancher who both frustrates and makes her heart flutter every time they meet.

When Mark overhears Abby’s lie, he decides to cut her a deal: to keep his silence regarding their make-believe relationship, she’ll come to live with him on his ranch until his broken arm heals.

Despite her wounded pride and initial trepidation, Abby can’t help but begin to fall for the guarded Thornton brother as the days pass on his ranch.

The black sheep of the family, Mark makes no secret that he prefers horses over people. His brusque exterior, though, only conceals hidden depths and a wounded heart that Abby understands all too clearly.

As feelings start to bloom between them, neither is sure what is real and what’s make-believe. Yet the sizzling attraction between them is anything but fake, and with every kiss and every touch, they fall harder for each other.

But as their pasts begin to creep toward them, unearthing secrets both would rather keep buried, Abby and Mark must learn to trust each other — or risk losing the love both never knew they needed.

A Standalone Enemies to Lovers Romance

Amazon Bestselling Author Mickey Miller, brings you a sexy new enemies-to-lovers standalone romance.
Recklessly cocky. Brutally handsome. Exceptionally Talented. Utterly Ruthless.  Meet my childhood crush, everybody.
Except “little” Shane North is all grown up now, and he’s out for revenge…on me.

Before I moved away, Shane was my best friend’s older brother. But Shane isn’t the lanky, spindly boy I used to know. He’s been replaced by a handsome man with broad, muscular shoulders and hockey scouts lining up to get him to play for their team.

When he “accidentally” sends me a selfie one night after a chance phone call, then shows up at my house per my mother’s request, a passion ignites inside me that I’ve never felt once in my life.

But there’s one big problem: Shane is holding onto an enormous secret. Something everyone in town seems to know but won’t tell me. My father was the richest man in Black Mountain, and had his share of enemies, as reading his diary informs me.

The more I fight my attraction to Shane, the more I fall for him. Despite his secrets, recklessness, and temper, he’s got a protective streak a mile wide for those he cares about. Which, after one very hot night, includes me.

My attraction to him comes on strong and without warning. But this is no fairy tale. This is a nightmare.

I just pray the big bad ice wolf known Shane North is on my side.

And before I make it out of Black Mountain, I’m going to have to confront the secrets about my father this town has tucked away.

Or should I say, if I make it out of this town.

Mason Hall, Navy SEAL, knows all about difficult assignments, but his current mission is one for the record books. Not only must he find a wife—and get her pregnant—or forfeit the ranch his family has prized for generations, he must also convince his three brothers to marry, too—before the year is up. Who knew one city girl and three wayward brothers could put up such a fight? 

Regan Anderson can’t wait any longer to meet Mr. Right, so she’s taken matters into her own hands. She’s quit her job, given up her nice apartment and undergone all the preliminary appointments to prepare for artificial insemination. Still, becoming a single mother is daunting, so when she spots Mason’s Wife Wanted ad on the Internet one night, she’s ready for a few laughs. She’s sure the ad must be fake, but when Mason answers back, she soon finds herself wanting more than a long distance relationship. 

If Mason can just keep her talking until he makes it home from Afghanistan, he’s sure he can convince Regan he’s her man. But when he whisks her off for a trial run in Chance Creek, they’re in for an unpleasant surprise. The ranch is in ruins, the house has been stripped, and they’re going to have to work day and night to beat Mason’s deadline to win it back. 

Can two strangers pull together against all odds? Or is this mission doomed to fail? 

Ged, the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, was called Sparrowhawk in his reckless youth. Hungry for power and knowledge, Sparrowhawk tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death’s threshold to restore the balance.

The Princess Bride is a true fantasy classic. William Goldman describes it as a “good parts version” of “S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure.” Morgenstern’s original was filled with details of Florinese history, court etiquette, and Mrs. Morgenstern’s mostly complimentary views of the text. Much admired by academics, the “Classic Tale” nonetheless obscured what Mr. Goldman feels is a story that has everything: “Fencing. Fighting. Torture. Poison. True love. Hate. Revenge. Giants. Hunters. Bad men. Good men. Beautifulest ladies. Snakes. Spiders. Beasts of all natures and descriptions. Pain. Death. Brave men. Coward men. Strongest men. Chases. Escapes. Lies. Truths. Passion. Miracles.”

A collection of the year’s best mystery short fiction selected by New York Times best-selling and Edgar Award–winning author C. J. Box.

C. J. Box , #1 New York Times best-selling author of the hugely popular Joe Pickett series, selects the best short mystery and crime fiction of the year in this annual “treat for crime-fiction fans”

Piper was raised in a cult. 
She just doesn’t know it. 

Seventeen-year-old Piper knows that Father is a Prophet. Infallible. The chosen one. 

She would do anything for Father. That’s why she takes care of all her little sisters. That’s why she runs end-of-the-world drills. That’s why she never asks questions. Because Father knows best. 

Until the day he doesn’t. Until the day the government raids the compound and separates Piper from her siblings, from Mother, from the Aunts, from all of Father’s followers–even from Caspian, the boy she loves. 

Now Piper is living Outside. Among Them. 

With a woman They claim is her real mother–a woman They say Father stole her from. 

But Piper knows better. And Piper is going to escape.

USA TODAY Bestselling Author Claudia Burgoa presents an engaging love story full of mistaken identity, drunk texts, and hysterical mishaps.

Sex talk is my job. I’m an influencer. I run a popular blog where I give all kinds of dating tips, and girls all over the world thank me for helping them with their love lives.

I wish I could follow my own advice because my love life is totally dead. I just drunk texted my ex-boyfriend… except, I didn’t. That text ended up going to someone else.

Oops.

This new relationship is almost picture-perfect, just like my online life. I guess I give good… text.
He doesn’t have to put up with my colorful personality — as my hot next-door neighbor describes me. Or my messy schedule.
This long-distance relationship is the best thing that’s happened to me and I plan to keep it that way.

Until we agree to meet up, and I’m freaking out.
When he meets the real me, will he hate me forever?
Or will we be one day telling our grandkids about that wrong text, right love?

***

Wrong Text, Right Love is a cute rom-com of two secret lovers who prepare to risk it all for love. Claudia Burgoa brings the flirty fun in this cozy novel of risking it all for romance.

This is a standalone story with an HEA.

Cleo Garcia had the world at her feet: a lucrative position with the top media company in the country, a healthy bank balance, and the support of her beloved family. Her life was perfect. She was set for greatness. . . until she approved an article on the No1 singer in the country doing a stint in rehab when he was fighting for his life in an Intensive Care Unit. 

That was the very first kink in a downward spiral that saw Cleo slip from grace. Her desk was moved to the basement, her six-figure income stripped away, and a tragic accident no one saw coming impacted her in ways you could never envision. 

So imagine her surprise when four years after the mishap that downgraded her from Chief Executive of Entertainment to Flamboyant Obituary Writer she was personally selected by billionaire Jack Carson to investigate what was being touted as the story of the century. 

With a stream of luxury perks thrown into the deal, and the guarantee of a stable income for years to come, the dreams that slipped from Cleo’s grasp four years ago were returning stronger than ever. It was the ideal situation, a perfect way to show her top-ranked journalism studies were being wasted in the basement. She was determined. Nothing was going to stand in her way. . . until she discovered who she was set to investigate. 

Can Cleo push aside the demons of her past to bring the story of the century to fruition? Or is she being lured into a world determined to swallow her whole?

From the author who brought you the Perception and Enigma series comes the next tantalising instalment. This is the story you’ve been waiting for. The one I deemed too risqué to write. Sit back and enjoy the story about two people in vastly contradicting roles come together in a fire-sparking showdown. Just be warned: it is the shy ones you need to watch the closest.

Should he stay, or go…

Nurse Dee McNamara knew heartbreak and tragedy. She’s a survivor but has built high walls to protect her heart. She takes care of everyone but herself, yet never imagined finding another man she’d be able to trust until one day she offered a ride to a tall, darkly handsome cowboy whose eyes hold the same pain and mistrust.

Rio Montez is a man with secrets, and he arrives at Braxton Ranch on a mission to find answers about his father. He thinks the truth will finally give him the peace to finally move on. He never counted on finding the woman who offered answers to his questions.

Rio’s always had a plan until now. Does he leave Braxton Ranch or stay and build a life he never dreamed possible with a woman he’s afraid he’s falling hard for.

In this beautifully written novel of historical fiction, bestselling author Susan Holloway Scott tells the story of Alexander Hamilton’s wife, Eliza—a fascinating, strong-willed heroine in her own right and a key figure in one of the most gripping periods in American history.

“Love is not easy with a man chosen by Fate for greatness . . .”

As the daughter of a respected general, Elizabeth Schuyler is accustomed to socializing with dignitaries and soldiers. But no visitor to her parents’ home has affected her so strongly as Alexander Hamilton, a charismatic, ambitious aide to George Washington. They marry quickly, and despite the tumult of the American Revolution, Eliza is confident in her brilliant husband and in her role as his helpmate. But it is in the aftermath of war, as Hamilton becomes one of the country’s most important figures, that she truly comes into her own.

In the new capital, Eliza becomes an adored member of society, respected for her fierce devotion to Hamilton as well as her grace. Behind closed doors, she astutely manages their expanding household, and assists her husband with his political writings. Yet some challenges are impossible to prepare for. Through public scandal, betrayal, personal heartbreak, and tragedy, she is tested again and again. In the end, it will be Eliza’s indomitable strength that makes her not only Hamilton’s most crucial ally in life, but his most loyal advocate after his death, determined to preserve his legacy while pursuing her own extraordinary path through the nation they helped shape together.

~Cassie