Claiming Nina by Leslie Johnson

Claiming Nina by Leslie Johnson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I received an Advanced Read Copy to submit an honest review.

I have always enjoyed books that Leslie Johnson writes. But this one “Claiming Nina” was a huge surprise from the start. The start already had suspense in it. Fleeing Nina from her rehearsal dinner, you gotta understand that her father was controlling her life and was forcing her into an arranged marriage. The fact she runs into a car and her getaway driver is her best friend hopeful for her not to get caught, being a Chicagoan, I could see them racing down the Kennedy to get to the bus station. But Nina had no idea where she was going but she got set up by her best friend and barely made it. Destination was a small town where everyone know’s your name. Got a job real quick, to only drop soda all over a very good looking man.

The book then goes into this dashing man trying to get to know Nina. (Who by that time changed her name to Amanda.) Adventures of playing cat and mouse, with some really sexy sex scenes in the middle, “Amanda” had to keep her guard up. She was trying to avoid the inevitable. Which is hard on everyone, yet everyone could predict where this story was going. She falls for Adam and his kids, but Adam can sense she’s hiding something.

Then BAM, surprise, the best friend comes back into the spectrum, but the surprise is he’s psycho. And want Nina to fall in love with him. Without spoiling it, I really did enjoy this story. Not only for the hot sex scenes, lol, but how the whole time you had no idea where this story was going. And I don’t explain everything because I want the reader to be as hooked as I was for finding out how is Ms. Johnson going to end the story, when she just brought in a completely different character than the lover and the psycho best friend.




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Billionaire in Vegas by Summer Cooper

Billionaire in Vegas by Summer Cooper
Whenever you see that "Vegas" is in the title, you know everything in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Well sort of....Lacey was lost in the world, had nothing no money, no job, no boyfriend. Thought she was done with love. And just by chance her temp agency calls her to put her on assignment. To a really really really rich old man. But his son, the hottest thing ever, I mean his name his Jude, he's gotta be hot is a complete jerk to her. But she stays with the job anyways even though Jude only sees her as a gold digger.
Her boss sends her off to Vegas with her friends in one of his hotels and of course madness ensues when she finds out Jude is there. Lacey clashed with Jude, but after a drunken night in Vegas, as typical spoilers go in Vegas they get married. So Lacey had to make a decision to stay married to Jude to help him keep his inheritance, where he would give her half. A Billion dollars (yes we're getting high up there now, use to be a million, now it's a billion. She agrees, but only if they don't have to see each other.

As clique as it is, this story does have some pretty hot moments in it. Jude and Lacey have some fun, but Lacey tries to guard her emotions. And doesn't want to fall for the Billionaire, but she slowly sees the true Jude and how he was more than the money. Jude develops feeling for Lacey because he saw her as not being with him just for the money.

Besides some hot bedroom scenes, Ms. Cooper also puts some heart into the characters, that made me invested into them and the story. Of course that would never happen in a million years to have a job fall right into your lap for a Billionaire. Or course you're not going to fall in love with the assy son. But finding out more and more about the heart of the Billionaire, makes you want to feel good at the end. Yes, it was obvious that Vegas was going to get them together, but the end wasn't about being a Billionaire to Lacey. It was the heart of soul of a man, that just happen to be really hot, and trustworthy of Lacey and the reader.

Sam Shepard RIP

"I hate endings. Just detest them." -- Sam Shepard pic.twitter.com/itu4IGaZnW

— Tim O'Brien (@TimOBrien) July 31, 2017

Jenna's Cookie Award: Sin and Cider by Kimberly Reese

Sin and Cider by Kimberly Reese

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Not only am I a Chicagoan, love Cider, and love to sin, but Kimberly Reese I loved your novel! This debut novel is the quintessential way an Erotic Romance should be written. Not only do you have a unique setting at an Orchard, but you wrote REAL characters in your story. The sexual tension from the very beginning of the book, to the heartbreak, to the sex scenes, you will need to fan yourself because they are so hot, to the HEA that leaves you teary eyed. Reese gave us emotion that you can imagine seeing on her character's faces. I say bravo for this being your first book and being so enjoyable and made me happy you're coming out with the adventures of Langley next....can't wait. And P.S. I would go for a cider at anytime before I go for a beer!



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Jenna Snap Theatre Review: Bright Half Life by Tanya Barfield

Bright Half Life by Tanya Barfield

About Face Theatre

If you are anywhere need Theatre Wit in Chicago, if you live in a suburb, if you live hours away, you NEED to see this show. This beautifully done show Bright Half Life is so complex, but yet the simplest of storytelling about two women who are caught up in what comes to them. The simple stage forms the illusion of different levels of life as we watch these two women go through the beginning, the middle, and the end. We find out within minutes that the play brings us back and forth, up and down, backwards and forwards on how time makes this Lesbian couple fly through their life. They go in reverse and forward observing what happens to them when they share their life goals, to jumping on beds, to learning about a father dying, to falling in love, fighting about their children, to going back to when they first met. This 1 1/2 hour running time doesn't need an intermission. These women take over the full stage with such gusto, yet they feel like they are floating in the air dangling their feet down watching their lives like they are riding the Peter Pan ride at Disneyworld.

With the brilliant direction of Keira Fromm, these glorious women glide through the stage, changing in seconds to another scene, and then changing back to the scene they were in 3 minutes ago with the same dynamics as it was 3 minutes ago. Elizabeth Ledo (Erica) travels around with go with the flow, and wants to do things spontaneously, while Patrese McClain (Vicky) is much more of a planner and very straight forward. Both actresses magnificently battle this story to make the tangled web even worse. But you follow them throughout the whole show hoping and wishing it will end jumping out of a plane.

Conveniently placed in Pride Month for Chicago, you need to go and see what two very, very talented actresses can do to a beautiful story while we coast with them into the unknown. And make all your friends go, make it a weekend trip if you do not reside in Chicago.
There is no break for breath what so ever which makes this production so fascinating on how a story about love could be told so backwards and forwards and yet just letting go to fly into the sky.

Jenna's Cookie Award: Tomorrow by Haylee Thorne

LOVED IT- 

so carefully written to not know what is happening til the end

There is always an author that surprises you, there's twists and turns and you have no idea where this is going but you want more. Haylee Thorne's book Tomorrow is a perfect example of this. She starts off with a simple story of Raeva Ray starting the first day of her dream job as a nurse. And trouble was in her patients room when she entered. This beautiful man, Mika Kingsley and he totally sweeps her off her feet. What else are you suppose to do when this beautiful man is telling you that your beautiful, and that you will end up his. Raeva is blinded by his charm, his toe curling kisses, and how he just takes her and doesn't hear no for an answer. This man gets what he wants. And treats her like a princess. Of course you're going to ignore that he's a little creepy the way he has all her cosmetics she uses in his bathroom. Of course she joins the mile high club in his private jet. Of course you're going to ignore that something fishy is going on. I'm sorry but I was Raeva, I would milk it for what it's worth.  Raeva is so sweet and charming and innocence that she has blinders on. You don't care because their sex scenes is literary toe curling and super hot. Thorne writes so sneaky that you don't even know that she is giving you clues throughout the whole book. It's brilliant how you don't find out about Mika's past until the very end. And that's what is so awesome.

I know this is a series but I was not upset when it ended. It ended like how I like a book of a series ended. You're not pissed on the cliffhanger, even though more can be told in this story. Loved it.

Haylee's Amazon Page

Shameless M. Malone

Shameless by M. Malone

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Whoa! This book was crazy. And a perfect start of the adventure we're going to through with Lucia and Noah.
It did start a little slow. It did introduce Lucia very well and how she was a strong, independent woman who had something tragic happen to her when she was 15.
I personally think there were too many characters that were introduced with Noah's "security" team. I think not all of them needed to be named, but then again this is book one. So I don't know if all 4-5 of them needed to be introduced or not.
I started to really enjoy the book in the middle when Noah had so many urges to just grab her and kiss her and Lucia kept trying to avoid him and her feelings for him. A lot of tension, which worked very well.
Then what really got me is M. Malone mentioned that Lucia was 21. And I personally think it didn't needed to be added in. She was written so strong and had passion to find out who killed her brother, or take care of her Nonna, making herself grow in her career. I felt she was so much older than she was presented. It kind of ruined it for me a little when her age was mentioned.
The sex scenes were hot, but then again how did Lucia know all these things if she was only 21. I guess I'm just thinking of personal experience myself. I wish I knew what I was doing back then.
Once I got into the book and things were happening, I really was getting into it. I felt this is going in the right direction and I can't wait to read the next one.



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M Malone Author Page