Blog Tour: Naughty or Nice with Linda Goodnight and Giveaway!

Welcome to my tour stop for the Harlequin Naughty or Nice Tour! We have a great post (that will make you hungry) from Linda Goodnight! Welcome Linda!

The Greatest Christmas Gift
by Linda Goodnight
About The Christmas Family:
Goodreads
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Contractor Brady Buchanon can’t wait to surprise single mom Abby Webster with his company’s Christmas home makeover prize. But once he does, the struggling waitress turns him down flat! Raised in foster care, Abby won’t accept charity. Yet when her dilapidated porch almost injures her daughter, Abby finally agrees to Brady’s offer. As the hardworking bachelor pushes to finish the house in time for Christmas, he starts falling for Abby and her little girl. With the holidays in sight, Brady wonders if Abby will not only accept her beautiful new home, but also his wish to make her his wife…

Candy Day, A Holiday Tradition from Linda Goodnight

Christmas candy. The words alone stir up a powerful nostalgia in most of us. Whether it’s hard ribbon candy in our stockings or sugarplums dancing in our dreams, candy is a big part of the Christmas holidays.

Years ago, a friend and I unintentionally started a tradition that I continue to this day with my daughters. A week or two before Christmas, we set aside one day to get together and make Christmas candy. In reality, the candy is a delicious by-product of a special day of fellowship and fun with people I love during an otherwise hectic season. The resulting goodies become gifts, party and church treats, and feed the masses at my house on Christmas Day. Some recipes are relatively easy. Others take two people and hours. All are so worth it!

For best results, choose a day of low humidity (except for bonbons, which can be made anytime). Recipes come and go, but at my house we always make these four: Bonbons, Peanut Brittle, Marshmallow Fudge and Aunt Bill’s Brown Candy. For the sake of space, I’ll share the relatively easy no-cook bonbons here and post the rest on my blog. www.lindagoodnight.com/#!lindas-blog/c213k

Coconut Bonbons

No cooking required, so these are perfect for beginners. Bonbons need time to freeze before dipping in chocolate, so allow time in your schedule. Sometimes I make the balls the day before, freeze overnight and dip the next day.

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 cube (½ cup) butter or margarine

1 cup pecans, chopped very fine

2 lbs powdered (confectioners’) sugar

1 large pkg (14 oz) coconut flakes

1 pkg (12 oz) chocolate chips

Paraffin—optional, but helpful to make the chocolate set nicely. Available in the baking section.

Sprinkles or extra nuts for decoration, optional

1. Mix condensed milk with softened margarine or butter.
2. Gradually stir in sugar, coconut and pecans. Mixture will be very stiff. You may have to use clean hands.
3. Form into small balls (dime or nickel size). Place single file on cookie sheets or foil, and freeze.
4. Once frozen, melt chips in microwave or over a double boiler. If you have it, add a small piece of paraffin wax, approximately 2 inches by 3 inches, and melt with the chips. (I have used half this much with good results to avoid the waxy taste.)
5. Using two forks, quickly dip frozen bonbons into the melted chocolate and return to cookie sheet. Don’t linger in the chocolate or the bonbon will fall apart. Dipping takes some time, so having helpers is great! Chill.
6. If desired, roll in ground nuts or sprinkles and place into small cupcake liners before chilling.

I’m always looking for new recipes. Do you have a special candy you make for the holidays? I lost my perfect “foolproof” microwave divinity recipe and haven’t been able to find another like it. Anyone who has one that really works, please post!

Happy holidays,

Linda

Giveaway!

One grand prize winner will receive:

• 2 copies of each print title (one for yourself and one for a friend!): Christmas in Mustang Creek by Linda Lael Miller, The Christmas Family by Linda Goodnight, When Secrets Strike by Marta Perry, A Cold Creek Christmas Story by RaeAnne Thayne and Evergreen Springs by RaeAnne Thayne
• An ebook copy of Act Like It by Lucy Parker
• 2 Harlequin Classics limited edition notebooks
• 100,000 Harlequin MyRewards points
• 1 Brenda Jackson Westmorelands notebook

Please enter via the Rafflecopter form below:

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Tour Schedule:

Monday, Novemer 9th – Book Gossip
Tuesday, November 10th – The Book Cellar
Wednesday, November 11th – Books and Things
Thursday, November 12th – Romancing Rakes For The Love of Romance
Friday, November 13th – The Reading Cow

Monday, November 16th – As the Pages Turn
Tuesday, November 17th – Peace Love Books
Wednesday, November 18th – Romancebookworms Reviews
Friday, November 20th – Blushing Reads

Monday, November 23rd – Rustys Reading
Wednesday, November 25th – Polished Bookworm
Friday, November 27th – Toot’s Book Reviews

Dark and Wild Night by Christina Lauren

Series: Wild Seasons #3
338 p.
Publisher: Gallery Books
Published: 9/15/15
Source: From publisher for review

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. 

But what didn't happen in Vegas seems to follow them everywhere.

Lola and Oliver like to congratulate themselves on having the good sense to not consummate their drunken Las Vegas wedding. If they’d doubled-down on that mistake, their Just Friends situation might not be half as great as it is now. 

... Or so goes the official line. 

In reality, Lola’s wanted Oliver since day one—and over time has only fallen harder for his sexy Aussie accent and easygoing ability to take her as she comes. More at home in her studio than in baring herself to people, Lola’s instinctive comfort around Oliver nearly seems too good to be true. So why ruin a good thing? 

Even as geek girls fawn over him, Oliver can’t get his mind off what he didn’t do with Lola when he had the chance. He knows what he wants with her now ... and it’s far outside the friend zone. When Lola’s graphic novel starts getting national acclaim—and is then fast-tracked for a major motion picture—Oliver steps up to be there for her whenever she needs him. After all, she’s not the kind of girl who likes all that attention, but maybe she’s the kind who’ll eventually like him. 

Sometimes seeing what’s right in front of us takes a great leap of faith. And sometimes a dark wild night in Vegas isn’t just the end of a day, but the beginning of a bright new life...

My thoughts:

I've heard so much about this author and have wanted to try her books. When this came in the mail for me to review I was excited. I was a bit worried that jumping into the series would confuse me but not worries, you can jump into this book without having read the others that preceded it.

Well, Lola is an artist of graphic novels and Oliver is a proprietor of comic books and the like. It made sense that they would have so much in common and it was no surprise that they would have crushes on each other. There is tension and there is frustration at the beginning for the reader because you can see both like each other but don't know how to proceed. Neither wants to ruin the friendship they have currently. Oh and yes, we get both POVs so we can see and not just guess how much Oliver likes, loves and respects Lola.

It is here where the book shines. I think Oliver's POV made the book for me. I loved Lola and how she was intelligent about what she was going through with her career but she lacked in emotional intelligence when it came to relationships. Oliver is aware and takes it slowly. What made me love him isn't how he took care when it came to Lola (although it did help) but when he respected and trusted her enough to save herself when she got herself in a bind. He wanted to save her but knew she could do it on her own and what that would mean to her. He was content to just be a sounding board and support. Oh yea, swoon worthy indeed!

I give this book 4 1/2 stars. It also has a LOT of sizzle for those that like it hot and steamy but also has a great relationship story with all the frustrations and victories that we enjoy in a romance. I highly recommend it and it is a great addition to the romantic genre.

The Girl Who Could Not Dream by Sarah Beth Durst

384 p.
Publisher: Clarion Books
Published: 11/3/15
Source: From author for review

Sophie loves the hidden shop below her parents' bookstore, where dreams are secretly bought and sold. When the dream shop is robbed and her parents go missing, Sophie must unravel the truth to save them. Together with her best friend—a wisecracking and fanatically loyal monster named Monster—she must decide whom to trust with her family’s carefully guarded secrets. Who will help them, and who will betray them?

My thoughts:

This is listed as an MG book but I do think that younger kids would enjoy it. Either by reading to them or when they are ready for chapter books. Also, I only review books in the MG realm on occasion but since I loved this author's other works it convinced me to give it a go.

While there were some areas where I thought the plot could be tightened up a bit, and some of the sections could be shorter, I still found myself captivated by the storyline. The characters are great and you really like Sophie as the unlikely heroine. As much as I loved Sophie and the other humans (her mom and dad were a hoot) in the book who I really loved was Monster. Monster came out of a dream Sophie drank while snooping in her parents dream shop. She changed him and he is a nice monster (although don't tell him that) and he protects Sophie fiercely. He is the humor in he book and really the personality. I want a Monster! LOL I have no doubt that everyone who reads this book will feel exactly the same way.

I give this book 4 stars. I think it is a delightful book for young kids. There are some dark parts to it (nightmares coming to life) but I don't think it would be too scary for most kids. I suggest you read it first and fall for Monster before determining if it is appropriate for your child.

Book info:

First two chapters

Audiobook Link (Amazon/Audible)

The Geomancer by Clay Griffith and Susan Griffith

Series: Vampire Empire: A Gareth and Adele Novel
321 p.
Publisher: Pyr
Published: 11/3/15
Source: From author for review

The uneasy stalemate between vampires and humans is over. Adele and Gareth are bringing order to a free Britain, but bloody murders in London raise the specter that Adele's geomancy is failing and the vampires might return. A new power could tilt the balance back to the vampire clans. A deranged human called the Witchfinder has surfaced on the Continent, serving new vampire lords. This geomancer has found a way to make vampires immune to geomancy and intends to give his masters the ability to kill humans on a massive scale. 

The apocalyptic event in Edinburgh weakened Adele's geomantic abilities. If the Witchfinder can use geomancy against humanity, she may not have the power to stop him. If she can't, there is nowhere beyond his reach and no one he cannot kill. 

From a Britain struggling to rebuild to the vampire capital of Paris, from the heart of the Equatorian Empire to a vampire monastery in far-away Tibet, old friends and past enemies return. Unexpected allies and terrible new villains arise. Adele and Gareth fight side-by-side as always, but they can never be the same if they hope to survive.

My thoughts:

I was so surprised when I got this one for review. I hadn't realized that the authors heard the cry for more books in this world and responded with The Geomancer. The first three books do feel complete and I will say this: do not skip those 3 books before you get into this book. It is a fantasy book and often it is hard to skip around in the fantasy genre. This one is no exception and you wouldn't want to miss the goodness in the first three books anyway.

The book continues shortly after the last book and while you knew everything was settled into a perfect situation for our couple, but I wasn't sure where the storyline would take them. You find out that there are still threats and a balance has still yet to surface for the vampires and humans. It is also more than that. It is also both Gareth and Adele's inner growth that still needs to be explored. While Adele does not need to grow into a good leader she still has much to learn about geomancy and her part in it. Gareth still needs to find himself and his place in the world. They both get help from unlikely alliances and that is what makes this book good. Everyone in the book seemed to learn something even if they are secondary characters. So the authors are not only thinking of the adventure but how the characters in the book grow, expand or devolve.

I give this book 4 stars. It is a great addition to the story and also an interesting direction the characters take in their personal lives. If you are looking for steampunk with vicious vampires, impossible relationships, and lots of adventure, this is your storyline. Pick up the series and enjoy!

List of books in the series

The Greyfriar

The Rift Walker

The Kingmakers

The Geomancer

The Anatomical Shape of a Heart by Jenn Bennett

Standalone
304 p.
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Published: 11/3/15
Source: NetGalley and publisher for review

Artist Beatrix Adams knows exactly how she's spending the summer before her senior year. Determined to follow in Leonardo da Vinci’s footsteps, she's ready to tackle the one thing that will give her an advantage in a museum-sponsored scholarship contest: drawing actual cadavers. But when she tries to sneak her way into the hospital’s Willed Body program and misses the last metro train home, she meets a boy who turns her summer plans upside down. 

Jack is charming, wildly attractive . . . and possibly one of San Francisco’s most notorious graffiti artists. On midnight buses and city rooftops, Beatrix begins to see who Jack really is—and tries to uncover what he’s hiding that leaves him so wounded. But will these secrets come back to haunt him? Or will the skeletons in Beatrix’s own family’s closet tear them apart?

My thoughts:

One thing that can get me to read contemporary fiction is art. This one has at least 2 artists in it so I knew I was good to go. Plus, Jen Bennett? I ADORED her Arcadia Bell series (adult) so picking this book up with those two things going for it was a no brainer.

I was not disappointed with this book. While there were things in it that made you want to check the Bex and Jack's IQ, there were also times when I thought... "well, they are more mature than I would have been!" Both have lots of love and compassion going for them so they make a great couple. I found the romance to be a bit fast but I wouldn't say it was insta-love. You really root for them in the end and yes, I will say this... you do get an HEA that feels solid.

I give this book 4 1/2 stars. If you enjoy contemporary with an arty slant, pick up this book! I would say that this is YA (both HS seniors) but it does deal with some adult issues. I would say this is for the older YA crowd as well as NA. I recommend it to those that enjoy a good contemporary romance.