FTC: I received a free copy of this book from Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours in exchange for my honest review. I received no other compensation and the opinions expressed in this review are one hundred percent true and my own.
The Wayward Assassin by Susan Ouellette was an exciting book. The author did a great job of making me want to read this book. There was just the right amount of suspense that made me want to read this book until I had finished it. I could tell that the author knew what she was writing about, which made the book even more enjoyable. This is the second book in the series, and this is the first one that I have read. You don’t have to read the first book to understand this book, but if you want to know the back story, I would recommend reading that one first. I will probably go back and read that one when I have some time in the future. I loved that I could see what happens in this book happening in the real world. I fell in love with Maggie right from the start, and I couldn’t want to see what was going to happen next and how she was going to solve everything. This book did keep me guessing as I was reading, and I loved that about this book as well. If you love spy thrillers, I think you will love this book.
About The Book
Genre: Thriller Published by: CamCat Books Publication Date: March 15, 2022 Number of Pages: 416 ISBN: 0744304784 (ISBN13: 9780744304787) Series: The Wayward Series, Book 2 || Each is a Stand Alone Book
Revenge knows no deadline.
Although told to stand down now that the Chechen rebel who killed her fiancé is dead, CIA analyst Maggie Jenkins believes otherwise and goes rogue to track down the assassin. Soon it becomes clear that failure to find Zara will have repercussions far beyond the personal, as Maggie uncovers plans for a horrific attack on innocent Americans. Zara is the new face of terrorism–someone who doesn’t fit the profile, who can slip undetected from attack to attack, and who’s intent on pursuing a personal vendetta at any cost.
Chasing Zara from Russia to the war-torn streets of Chechnya, to London, and finally, to the suburbs of Washington, D. C., Maggie risks her life to stop a deadly plot.
Praise for The Wayward Assassin:
“Ouellette, herself a former intelligence analyst for the CIA, imbues the exciting action with authenticity. Readers will want to see more of the wily Maggie . . .”
—Publishers Weekly
“Every once in a decade you read a book like The Wayward Spy, which is thrilling, addictive, and sends you reading more thrillers, but you’ll go back to this stunning book by Susan Ouellette and reread this tour de force.”
—The Strand Magazine, a Top 12 Book of the Year
About The Author
Susan Ouellette is the author of The Wayward Spy, a thriller that Publishers Weekly calls a “gripping debut and series launch.” She was born and raised in the suburbs of Boston, where she studied international relations and Russian as both an undergraduate and graduate student. As the Soviet Union teetered on the edge of collapse, she worked as a CIA intelligence analyst. Subsequently, Susan worked on Capitol Hill as a professional staff member for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI). Since her stint on Capitol Hill, she has worked for several federal consulting firms. Susan lives on a farm outside of Washington, D.C. with her family.
This is a giveaway hosted by Partners in Crime Tours for Susan Ouellette and CamCat Books. See the widget for entry terms and conditions. Void where prohibited.
Get Your First Look at FAST RIDE by Michelle Dayton!
Here’s your FIRST LOOK at FAST RIDE by Michelle Dayton! Join us as we get our first peek at this spicy, surprisingly emotional, contemporary romance. Check out the excerpt and enter to win a $30 Amazon gift card!
FAST RIDE is a spicy, surprisingly emotional, contemporary romance, the first in a brand-new series by Michelle Dayton. Find out what happens when Jen Appleton says yes to a one-night stand in a roadside motel with the hot, hot, hot Garrett Tracy. Fans of NO MORE MR. NICE GUY by Amy Andrews and BEAUTIFUL SECRET by Christina Lauren will devour this friends-with-benefits, fake relationship romance.
Title: Fast Ride
Author: Michelle Dayton
Published: April 30, 2018
Publisher: Crimson
Series: Tracy Brothers
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Word Count: 53K
Jen Appleton is the woman who always says yes. To her boss. To her employees. To charity. To everyone except herself. But when she rear-ends a red Porsche on her way home from a nasty day at work, and the man driving the midlife-crisis cliché turns out to be hot, hot, hot, Jen decides tonight’s the night to say yes to things she’s never said yes to before.
Yes, to a one-night stand in a motel.
Yes, to the hottest night on record.
Yes, to anything Garrett Tracy wants to do to her body.
Garrett knows the chemistry between them can only be described as extreme. But it’s just one night. And then he can get back to work convincing his ex-girlfriend to give him another shot.
When Jen approaches Garrett as the only person in Chicago who might solve her massive work problem, he agrees to help—on the condition that Jen will coach him in winning back his ex. As they work on their projects, Jen and Garrett can’t resist the incredible attraction sparking between them. It’s the perfect friends-with-benefits situation. Until Jen’s heart finally forces her to start saying no
She fished in her purse for her insurance card and looked at the Porsche again. She’d definitely scratched its paint and dented its bumper.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck.” This time the curse did escape her usually prim lips, and she felt marginally better.
Ridiculous mid-life-crisis mobile. What kind of self-respecting adult male actually drove around in that kind of thing? Clearly a total cheeseball. He was probably five-foot-two with a bald head and a big belly. And had thick, black chest hair tangled with gold chains. She braced herself as the door opened.
Faded jeans molded muscled thighs and were topped by a U2 T-shirt that looked like it had been bought at a concert long ago, not recently at some trendy boutique. He pulled himself to his full height, and she had to tilt her head back to look at him.
Holy wow.
She cleared her throat. “I’m s-so sorry I h-hit you.”
She cringed at her stuttering. But it sure wasn’t every day she encountered such a specimen of pure male gorgeousness on her way home. Well over six feet tall with wavy, sandy hair, he was lean with broad shoulders and well-muscled in the way of a tennis player or surfer. He was maybe a bit older than she was, but nothing except the car screamed “mid-life crisis.” If his expression hadn’t been twisted in annoyance, he would have been perfect.
“Are you blind? Do you have any idea how much this car cost?”
There are only three things Michelle Dayton loves more than sexy and suspenseful novels: her family, the city of Chicago, and Mr. Darcy. Michelle dreams of a year of world travel – as long as the trip would include weeks and weeks of beach time. As a bourbon lover and unabashed wine snob, Michelle thinks heaven is discussing a good book over an adult beverage
Rosa Fernandez isn’t impulsive, but she’s had a long-time crush on dreamy Jeremy Taylor and it’s time to take action. When their situation gets complicated, all they’ve worked for seems threatened. Can forever really grow from just-one-night? Find out in this sweet friends become lovers title releasing March 27 from Kensington Publishing.
Rafflecopter for Her Perfect Affair Blitz Giveaway:
Priscilla is offering one (1) lucky Grand Prize winner a prize pack containing a $50 Amazon Gift Card, an XL shirt featuring the book cover, a Spanish fan with Priscilla’s website, and a coffee mug and coaster with Priscilla’s logo. Two (2) Runner-Up winners will receive an eCopy of His Perfect Partner (Matched to Perfection #1)! To enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter below:
The Fernandez sisters have always had big dreams, and the talent and drive to pursue them. And in this sunny, spicy new series, each one will discover that success is that much sweeter when love follows . . .
Rosa Fernandez doesn’t act on impulse—she’s the responsible one, planning her career with precision, finally landing a job as the librarian at conservative Queen of Peace Academy, confining her strongest emotions to her secret poetry journal. But she’s been harboring a secret crush on dreamy Jeremy Taylor, and after one dance with him at her sister’s wedding, Rosa longs to let loose for the first time. She deserves some fun, after all. So what if she doesn’t have a shot with Jeremy, not with his wealthy pedigree and high profile lifestyle. But one dance leads to one kiss, and soon Rosa is head-over-heels . . .
The adopted son of a prominent Chicago lawyer, Jeremy has a lot to live up to—especially with his birth father in prison—the perfect example of a bad example. With a big promotion and a move to Japan in the works, Jeremy is worlds away from settling down. But sweet, steady Rosa is a temptation he doesn’t want to deny himself, at least for now. Yet when their simple fling turns complicated, everything they’ve both worked for is threatened—except the red-hot intimacy they’ve found together. Can forever really grow from just-for-now?
She gave him a shy smile of thanks as she reached for the proffered champagne flute, then sidled away from the bar.
Jeremy fell into step alongside her and her heart rate blipped with glee.
“What did he say when he handed you your drink?” he asked. “Good something, right?”
She nodded, remembering Jeremy’s recent decision to start learning Spanish. “Literally it means, ‘enjoy your meal,’ but in this sense, it’s more like, ‘enjoy.’”
“Well then”—leaning closer to her, he clinked his flute against hers—“buen pro-pro—”
“Provecho,” she finished, her belly flip-flopping at his chagrined smile.
They walked a few more steps before she worked up the courage to ask, “So, um, where’s your date?”
The tall blonde who’d been his plus-one was the epitome of old money and high class, a glaring reminder that Jeremy came from a wealthy, established Chicago family. Rosa, on the other hand, came from a small town on the Island, her parents having transplanted from Puerto Rico to the Humboldt Park area of Chicago when they were first married, then later to Oakton in the suburbs.
She and Jeremy, not to mention his date, weren’t quite the same pedigree.
“Cecile?”
“Uh-huh. Is she your . . . ?” Rosa let her voice trail off, wondering what his response might be.
“Family friend. I mean, we dated years ago, but decided we’re better as friends.”
Rosa breathed a soft sigh of relief.
“Anyway, she ditched me a while ago.” Jeremy brushed it off like his date leaving him behind didn’t bother him. “Her parents are hosting a charity event over on Michigan Avenue and she wanted to put in an appearance.”
“You didn’t want to go?”
“And miss this fun?” He jutted his chin out at the people dancing to a well-known merengue hit. Couples packed the floor, some more seasoned and coordinated than others, but all having a great time.
They reached an empty table and Jeremy pulled out a chair for her.
“I haven’t seen you out there,” he said. “How come?”
He sat down to join her, his muscular thigh inadvertently brushing against hers. Tingles of awareness danced a cha-cha down her leg.
“Um, well.” Hyper-attuned to his nearness, it took Rosa a second to find her words. “This is more Yazmine and Lilí’s scene. I guess I tend to be a much better party planner than a partygoer.”
“I wouldn’t necessarily say that.” Jeremy’s lips quirked as he slid her a teasing glance. “I seem to recall you play a mean game of charades.”
Rosa laughed, remembering Lilí’s birthday this past spring. It’d been their first family celebration since Papi’s death, so Lilí had kept it an intimate affair at home with the three sisters; Tomás; his six-year-old daughter, Maria; Jeremy; and a few other close friends.
She and Jeremy had wound up on the same charades team. That night, they’d been on a similar wavelength or something, quickly guessing each other’s clues before anyone else.
Lilí had cried foul play.
Yaz had dubbed them the dynamic duo.
Rosa had soaked up the shared moment, their uncanny connection. Later, she’d composed a few verses about it in her private poetry journal.
“By the way, Yaz mentioned how you stepped in to help so she wouldn’t stress as much today. Everything turned out great.” The pleasure in his bright smile, directed right at her, made Rosa’s pulse skip.
She ducked her head, embarrassed by his praise. “It wasn’t that much.”
“Right,” Jeremy answered, his tone dripping with disbelief.
She peeked at him from under her lashes. At some point in the evening, he’d shed his suit jacket and rolled up his shirt sleeves, revealing his muscular forearms. As always, she was drawn by his ruffled dark blond hair and square jaw. But even more so by his friendly eyes and the easy camaraderie they shared.
He took a swig of his champagne, eyeing her over the rim.
What did he see when he looked at her?
Other Books in the Matched to Perfection series:
His Perfect Partner
Ad executive Tomás Garcia shouldn’t even be thinking about his daughter’s alluring dance teacher, Yazmine Fernandez. Burned by a shattering divorce, he’s laser-focused on his career and giving his young daughter, Maria, the secure home she deserves. Plus, he’s certain that with her talent, Yaz will be leaving Chicago and heading back to Broadway as soon as she can. But Yaz’s generous spirit and caring concern are sparking a desire Tomás can’t resist and doesn’t want to let go . . .
For Yaz, good-looking workaholics like Tomás simply can’t be part of her life ever again. She owes it to herself to get back her confidence and fulfill the dreams her papa could not. She’s glad to spend time with Maria and taste the family life she feels she can never have. And she’s sure that she and Tomás can keep their attraction under control because there’s so much at stake. But each unexpected intimacy, each self-revelation, makes the fire between them grow hotter with every step and every risk to their hearts . . .
Now a double finalist for the 2018 RWA RITA Award — Best First Book and Contemporary Romance: Mid-Length categories!
PRISCILLA OLIVERAS writes sweet contemporary romance with a Latinx flavor. Proud of her Puerto Rican-Mexican heritage, she strives to bring authenticity to her novels by sharing her Latinx culture with readers. Her debut release, His Perfect Partner, and the second book in her Matched to Perfection series, Her Perfect Affair, both earned Starred Reviews from Publishers Weekly and Booklist. Since earning an MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University, she serves as English adjunct faculty at her local college and teaches an on-line course titled “Romance Writing” for ed2go. Priscilla is a sports fan, a beach lover, a half-marathon runner and a consummate traveler who often practices the art of napping in her backyard hammock. To follow along on her fun-filled and hectic life, visit her on the web at http://prisoliveras.com/, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/prisoliveras or on Twitter via @prisoliveras.
Audiobook Review Tour for LEVEL ME UP by Lauren Helms
I’m so excited for you to join us for the review tour for the audiobook of LEVEL ME UP by Lauren Helms. Follow along with the tour for reviews, plus enter to win a $25 Amazon gift card!
~~~
Can the gamer win the girl in LEVEL ME UP by Lauren Helms? Dex Roberts falls hard and fast for Morgan Lawson, but the last thing Morgan is looking for while attending Comic-Con, is love. Fans of R.S. Grey and Gaming the System series by Brenna Aubrey will love this nerdy and flirty story about what happens when a sweet and sexy pro gamer meets the girl-next-door. Now available on audiobook!
Title: Level Me Up
Author: Lauren Helms
Release Date: February 2018
Narrator: Lacey Gilleran
Series: Gamer Boy #1
Genres: New Adult Romance
Length: 5 hours and 42 minutes
Format: Audiobook, paperback, eBook
The last thing Morgan Lawson is looking for when attending Comic-Con is love. But even prior to exchanging first words, Morgan is drawn to Dex, a drop-dead sexy gamer boy who lives and breathes video games. Before she realizes it, Morgan finds herself caught up in all things Dex.
Dex Roberts knows from the moment he first sees Morgan, he wants more. He falls hard and fast but isn’t surprised when his job as a professional video gamer takes a toll on their relationship.
Once Morgan decides what truly makes her happy, there’s no time to waste. But without warning, life threatens to destroy what both Morgan and Dex want most… each other.
Lacey is a voice actor and audiobook narrator/producer from Connecticut. Her credits include audiobooks like Level Me Up, Up for Grabs, The After of Us, The Summer of Lost Wishes, and The Boy I Hate. She has over 12 years of experience in audio and video production, and holds a Masters degree in Digital Multimedia Production from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield Connecticut. When Lacey isn’t recording audiobooks, she’s managing social media and marketing at LeftField Media for events like Awesome Con and Rose City Comic Con, or fangirling about Star Wars.
Author Lauren Helms has been an avid reader from a young age. After starting a book review site, that launched her fully into the book world, she decided to take the plunge and write her first novel. Since she was working for a video game strategy guide publisher at the time, she decided to mix what she knew best, video games and romance. Jumping all in, she joined NaNoWrimo and a month later had a 50K word first draft. Lauren lives in Indianapolis, IN with her video game playing husband, two little girl book nerds, and a little boy who will hopefully be a gamer boy too some day!
A secret group, marked with a single golden W; it is a place where these deliciously devious earls can indulge in their darkest desires. Though fate may have something else planned for them entirely.
Out March 20th – Regency Romance, Earl of St Seville by Christina McKnight.
Follow the tour and enter to #win a $100 Amazon Gift Card and a special gift basket!
Title: Earl of St Seville Series: Wicked Earls Club Author: Christina McKnight Genre: Historical Romance, Regency Release Date: March 20, 2018
When a bluestocking spinster sets her mind to something…
Lady Patience Lane, daughter of the Earl of Desmond and legendary boxer Ivory Bess, grew up learning to fight, not how to mind her manners. She always expected she’d become a trainer like her mother, until injuries from the ring led to her mother’s untimely death. Now, she’s determined to save other families from the same heartache, by teaching others about the dangers of boxing. Nothing could bring her back to the world she left—until she meets a mysterious stranger who sets her pulse racing.
And a dark, dangerous lord interferes…
Sinclair Chambers, the Earl of St. Seville and known as “Sin” to his cohorts, inherited an insolvent estate. He has to make money, and fast, or his tenants will starve. The prize purses from the bareknuckle mills will go a long way to solving his problems, if he can win them. To be a success in the ring, he needs the best trainer, and Patience Lane is the best there is—all he has to do is convince her that he’ll only fight once.
They just might find their happily ever after in each other’s arms.
The more time Sin and Patience spend together, the closer they become. Soon, Sin’s thoughts are less about winning in the ring, and more about winning Patience’s heart. But can a relationship born out of wicked deception stand the test of time?
Before her stood a man, not one of her brothers that she still pictured as boys even though they were two and four years her senior, but instead a true man—stripped to the waist, his back to her.
Thank the heavens above for small miracles.
But to deny that her heart skipped a beat—or ten—would be preposterous. In fact, as Patience stood, unnoticed, studying the man now looking out Merit’s open window, she wondered if her heart would ever beat a normal, steady rhythm again or if her skin would ever cool enough to need an overcoat or shawl. It was only when her lungs began to burn that she realized she’d held her breath since opening the door, a call of greeting stuck in her throat.
One utterly forgotten.
So intent on the window, the man failed to notice he was no longer alone.
There was no denying the stranger’s presence—an unfamiliar masculine air filled the room. It was both intriguing and frightening. Certainly, she’d witnessed men in various stages of undress, but this goliath was different. Never had Patience been so utterly aware of her own body, while distracted by the sight of another’s chiseled form. Her hands itched to reach out at the same time they should be raising to cover her exposed flesh, veiled only by her thin nightshift.
Author Bio: USA TODAY Bestselling Author Christina McKnight writes emotional and intricate Regency Romance with rebellious women and maverick heroes.
Her books combine romance and mystery, exploring themes of redemption and forgiveness. When not writing she enjoys coffee, wine, traveling the world, and watching television.
We are excited to celebrate the release of PLAYING THE PAUSES by Michelle Hazen. This is the second installment in her Sex, Love, and Rock & Roll series. Follow the tour for reviews, excerpts, guest posts, plus enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card!
“Hazen’s use of the frantic energy of a rock band’s tour contrasts perfectly with the slow and seductive dance this couple engages in. Readers are sure to enjoy following The Red Letters on their drama-fueled climb to fame. “ —RT Book Reviews
“To call Playing the Pauses an erotic novel alone would be to belie its equally strong explorations of the boundaries between personal, career, and sexual growth.” —Midwest Book Review
When an ultra-independent tour manager meets the one musician she can’t resist, their kinks fit together perfectly, but their lives don’t. Michelle Hazen is back with PLAYING THE PAUSES, the second, stand-alone installment in her Sex, Love, and Rock & Roll series. Fans of Kylie Scott’s Stage Dive Series and YOU REALLY GOT ME by Erika Kelly, will love this bad boy, friends with benefits romance with a dash of BDSM mixed in.
Title: Playing the Pauses
Author: Michelle Hazen
Release Date: March 5, 2018
Publisher: Self-published
Series: Sex, Love, and Rock & Roll #2
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Page Count: 290
Rock Star Dom + his Queen of the Spreadsheet employee = KRYPTONIT
Kate is a globe-trotting tour manager who can’t be tied down.
Danny is a Dominant rock star and tattoo artist who needs her help to explore his true kinks.
Kate just got her big break, running an international tour for a rising band. Her job is everything to her…at least until she meets the band’s enigmatic bass player.
After they collide in one unforgettably erotic night on a hotel balcony, he comes to her with a proposition. As a former BDSM club performer, Danny’s spent so long fulfilling other people’s fantasies that now he wants to reclaim his own—and he says she’s the only one who can help.
Getting caught in bed with her rock star boss could cost her career, and yet there’s something about Danny’s quiet intensity that she can’t resist. He steals her heart, hard. But the end of the tour is approaching, and their jobs are headed two different directions.
To be together one of them will have to stop touring, but the only thing they crave as much as each other is music.
** This book can be read and understood as a standalone, but does contain spoilers for earlier books in the series. **
Michelle Hazen is a nomad with a writing problem. Years ago, she and her husband ducked out of the 9 to 5 world and moved into their truck. As a result, she wrote most of her books with solar power in odd places, including a bus in Thailand, a golf cart in a sandstorm, and a beach in Honduras. Currently, she’s addicted to The Walking Dead, hiking, and Tillamook cheese.
The funny thing about Danny is that he already existed.
With most of my characters, I start with a glimmer and then start to fill it out. Brainstorm flaws, hobbies, the unique way they speak. This time, I invented Jera for A Cruel Kind of Beautiful (Book 1) and the first thing I knew about her was that she was a drummer and her best friend was a bassist who was also a tattoo artist and his name was Danny. Just like that, all those pieces of information wound up together like it was a single fact. Like they were a single fact. I didn’t even know Jera’s name at that point but I knew Danny’s.
He came fully formed. I always knew exactly what he would do; the challenge was explaining it to other people because he doesn’t think like anyone else. Half the time, he doesn’t think at all. His brain is this silent, beautiful plane. It’s why I didn’t write his book from his perspective: it wouldn’t make any sense. I had to let Kate tell it for him. There’s a novella later in the series half-told from his perspective and it’s an utterly exotic experience. Remember that old movie Being John Malkovich? It’s like that. It’s tourism into the brain of a person so different from you and I that it’s hard to comprehend.
The most frustrating thing about Danny is that he’s an artist and I know what his tattoos look like. They’re described in his book and they sound so pretty but I myself can’t draw a stick figure without a ruler. Which means all those gorgeous tattoo designs are always going to stay locked up in my head with no way to get out.
It’s also frustrating that I always know WHAT he does, but sometimes it takes me a bit of time to get him to tell me WHY.
Like for instance, Danny’s a vegetarian who hates vegetables. And fruit. I always knew that, from his first scene where he walks in eating Cheetos, but I didn’t know why until I wrote his book and I literally watched my fingers type the story behind his vegetarianism without having any idea what I was about to say (It’s a crazy weird story, too, you guys).
Danny’s real in a way none of my other characters quite are, and that would creep me out if it didn’t feel so…utterly natural.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2022 Margaret Margaret
