Tag: Riptide Publishing

ARC, Books

Book 241: Mindscape – Tal Valante

Geoff W

Valante, Tal - MindscapeWhat a brief and moving novella. I’m not sure what spurred me on to request it (probably the military aspect – I grew up in a military town), as I’ve tried to limit the number of ARC, and even more so romance based ARCs, that I request, but it was a quick and enthralling read. I could easily see Valante creating a longer novel with greater detail, but this novella worked well enough for me as it was.

I received a copy of Mindscape (link to the publisher’s website) directly from the publisher in return for my honest response; no compensation was received.

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ARC, Books

Book 240: After the Fall (Tucker Springs #6) – L. A. Witt

Geoff W

Witt, L.A. - After the Fall (Tucker Springs #6)Now this is how you write a romance novel! There was one line that captured this for me, “A first kiss was usually a one-way ticket to a one-night stand or an awkward exit, but this one…I didn’t know where anything was going now.”

I was worried about where the Tucker Springs series was going, but L. A. Witt single-handedly brought the series back to a great, if predictable (it is romance after all), place and pace. I was so impressed with this addition to the series that I’m convinced I should probably look into whether Witt has written any other MM romances and it left me hoping she will contribute more to the series! I received a copy of After the Fall (link to the publisher’s site) from the publisher in return for my honest opinion of the novel. I received no compensation.

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Book 232: Good Boy (Theta Alpha Gamma #4) – Anne Tenino

Geoff W

Tenino, Anne - Good BoyTo be completely honest this book was a waste of time for me. It had so much potential going into it, but I didn’t realize how short it was. I will say that if I had paid for a copy of this book, or waited for a long time on a hold list I would have been that much more disappointed than I was. However, I received a copy of Good Boy from the publisher and received no compensation for my honest opinion of the work.

What bothered me about this book was that it seemed to be a hold over until the next book in the series could be released. And this wouldn’t have bothered me anywhere near as much, but the story brings up quite a few things that I assume are answered in a later story in the series, but why bring them up now in 77 pages, why not write a longer book? I would rather have waited much longer and had this book fully fleshed out, rather than be subjected to the short-story/novella form of this book in its current format.

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Book 213: Sweet Young Thang (Theta Alpha Gamma #3) – Anne Tenino

Geoff W

Tenino, Anne - Sweet Young ThangFor the third installment of Anne Tenino’s Theta Alpha Gamma series she definitely made an impression. Although I despise the title, Sweet Young Thang (link to publisher’s website – semi-NSFW, but if you’re reading this blog at work you’re probably okay) was an enjoyable read and had me laughing out loud and saying ‘awwwww’ on more than one occasion. I received a copy of this book from the publisher in response for my honest opinion and received nothing in return.

Overall, I felt this was a great addition to the series and I enjoyed reading it. I loved learning more about Collin and felt Eric was a great addition to the TAG universe. In addition I loved the hilarity the other frat brothers provided under the guise of sensitivity training! (Plus who doesn’t love a Project Runway/Tim Gunn reference.) I’m assuming the next book will focus on Jock, openly gay, or Noah, potentially gay, two characters introduced in this novel.

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ARC, Books

Book 196: The Laird’s Forbidden Lover – Amelia C. Gormley

Geoff W

Gormley, Amelia - The Laird's Forbidden Lover Where to start with this book… It’s not that it was a bad book, but it wasn’t a great book either. Overall the story was good and the writing was better than many of the romance novels I’ve read, but at the same time I felt the author could have done better.

I have to partially wonder if I stack the decks against this type of novel when I generally read them after having finished a tome of a classic (this time it was Middlemarch). But at the same time I have to think that it should still hold up regardless of what precedes or follows it. I will say that this book was definitely further along in the editing process than many of the galley’s I’ve read previously which was a nice change. I received a copy of this book from the publisher and received no compensation for my honest response.

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