k.a. tucker – GoodeyReads

Rating: ☆☆☆
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 634 pages
Author: K.A. Tucker
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: May 25th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Gifted thief Romeria has flourished from her days as a street kid pilfering wallets to survive. Now she thrives, stealing jewels from the rich under the involuntary employ of New York City’s most notorious crime boss. But when an enigmatic woman secures her services at swordpoint, Romeria is plunged into a startling realm of opposing thrones, warring elven, and elemental magic she cannot begin to fathom.

Her quest is straightforward: Steal a stone from Islor’s sacred garden without anyone discovering her true identity, which would earn her certain death. But the identity she has inexplicably assumed is that of the captured Ybarisan princess—an enemy to Islor after she poisoned their beloved king and queen on the day she was to marry the prince.

Her betrothed, the newly crowned King Zander, detests her with every grain of his handsome being. Fortunately for Romeria, she is more valuable to him alive than dead. Zander gives her a choice: life in a cell, or an acquittal of all charges in exchange for her help in exposing the growing plot against him.

Romeria sees no other option and embraces the tricky role of smitten queen-to-be until she can escape, a ruse that brings her far closer to the king than she anticipated and threatens more than her safety. As she digs deeper into this sacred garden and the ancient feud between Ybaris and Islor, she discovers monstrous truths that could spell ruin for all.

She would know the world of vengeful gods and monsters, and the lengths one would go for love. And nothing would ever be the same for her again.

TOOK AN UNEXPECTED TWIST.

Was it a good twist?

Not from my perspective.

Sooooooo I’m feeling a bit disappointed over this. I was SO EXCITED for this fantasy by one of my favorite authors, and maybe I hyped it too much? Maybe this fantasy just didn’t click? Maybe some combination of a handful of things.

I liked the romance between Romy and Zander. It’s a slowwww burn, but works so well here. I thought the chemistry was there (would have loved even more) and the banter was great too. I look forward to more of them based on how this ended so I’m definitely looking towards the sequel for a lift.

What fell really flat was the world-building and the magic system. Romy spent most of the time in the dark, so I spent even more time in the dark. I have SO MANY QUESTIONS. I could form a list for you, but it would probably spoil most of the story, ha. There’s some info dumping pages where I kind of caught up on what was happening, but frankly, I have no idea what’s going on. The whole quest to get the stone wasn’t even the plot of this book. Many mixed messages.

Speaking of mixed message, I’m still upset over the twist. It felt like it only added to the confusion. Why was it added? Why do they need to be that way? And once again, many more questions.

Even though the story wasn’t the necessarily like the summary led me to believe, I did like most of it. It was entertaining most of the time and I’m still curious enough to see what’s next.

Overall audience notes:

Fantasy romance
Language: some
Romance: kisses to open door scenes
Violence: sword battles, physical altercations, poison
Trigger/Content Warnings: slavery

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Book Review

ARC Book Review: Running Wild (The Simple Wild #3) by K.A. Tucker

January 14, 2022January 12, 2022 GoodeyReads

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: TBD pages
Author: K.A. Tucker
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: January 25th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From the internationally bestselling author of The Simple Wild comes the story of a woman at a crossroads in her life, struggling between the safe route and the one that will only lead to more heartbreak.

Veterinarian Marie Lehr knows unrequited love all too well after pining for her best friend, only to watch him marry another woman. It’s a mistake she will never make again, especially not when she can practically hear the clock ticking on her childbearing years.

The trouble is, she can’t seem to find anyone who appeals to her even a fraction as much as that burly bush pilot did. Competitive musher Tyler Brady certainly doesn’t, especially not after the heated altercation with the handsome but arrogant, spiteful man.

Or so she thinks.

While volunteering at the Iditarod Sled Dog Race, Marie discovers that first impressions may have been false, and her attraction to Tyler is very real. But his heart belongs to someone else, leaving him with nothing to offer but friendship. Marie’s been down this road before and knows how that ends. Yet, no matter how hard she works to keep from falling for Tyler, it seems she’s doomed to follow her own trail once again.

Thank you to Valentine PR for the eARC.

BEAUTIFUL STORY.

I could not put this down. I have a deep love for Tucker’s romances and this was another great one. I’m elated that we got to read Marie’s story at last!!

Marie and Tyler got off to a bumpy start (which is honestly kind of my favorite). I loved the slow nature of their connection as it built over months. Truly becoming friends first and then watching that love grow as they got to know each other on very deep levels. These are two heartbroken people just trying to find the next right step on their paths. I wanted a bit more of page time between them in the first half, but that 50% mark really set off a rollercoaster ride to the end. I was alllllll up in my feels wondering how it was going to end. Grateful for a short and sweet epilogue that gave some closure.

The Alaskan setting is always the best. I loved that this focused on the Iditarod race and all that that entails. It was SO COOL. I learned a lot from the book and looking up my own information. How can you not love a book that’s filled with ALL THE DOGS? Answer: you can’t.

I never felt overly negative towards Marie in TSW. Going in to Running Wild, I wasn’t sure what to expect from her character. But I ended up loving the whole process. Grappling with feelings for Jonah, moving on, dealing with family and what she hoped for herself and the dreams she wanted realized. Everything together made for a beautiful characterization and I adore Marie. I do. She gave it her all, and finally got her all.

And yes, you do get to see Jonah and Calla again!!

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: a little strong
Romance: two brief open door scenes
Trigger/Content Warnings: major theme of the book is about pregnancy/babies, brief mention of miscarriage (side character), abused animals, discussion of treatment for pets (euthanasia, amputation, etc.)

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Book Review

Book Review: Until it Fades by K.A. Tucker

July 15, 2020March 14, 2020 GoodeyReads

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Audience: Contemporary romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: K.A. Tucker
Publisher: Atria Books
Release Date: June 27th, 2017
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Twenty-four-year-old truck stop waitress and single mother Catherine Wright has simple goals: to give her five-year-old daughter a happy life and to never again be the talk of the town in Balsam, Pennsylvania: population two thousand outside of tourist season.

And then one foggy night, on a lonely road back from another failed attempt at a relationship, Catherine saves a man’s life. It isn’t until after the police have arrived that Catherine realizes exactly who it is she has saved: Brett Madden, hockey icon and media darling.

Catherine has already had her fifteen minutes of fame and the last thing she wants is to have her past dragged back into the spotlight, only this time on a national stage. So she hides her identity. It works.

For a time.

But when she finds the man she saved standing on her doorstep, desperate to thank her, all that changes. What begins as an immediate friendship quickly turns into something neither of them expected. Something that Catherine isn’t sure she can handle; something that Catherine is afraid to trust.

Because how long can an extraordinary man like Brett be interested in an ordinary woman like Catherine…before the spark fades?

SUCKER FOR TUCKER.

Okay, can this be my new tagline for K.A. Tucker books? It just came to me as I sat down to write this and I think it’s such an apt description for how I feel about her books. ‘Cause I love ’em.

This was a backlist title for me that I picked up (thank you library!) on a whim. I was feeling a contemporary romance, I got a contemporary romance. I liked how unique the overall setting and characters were to books I’ve read before. This one features a single mom and a hot hockey player. Yup, haven’t read that combination before. Looooooved it.

There’s a lot of heaviness that surrounds this book. Catherine knows she’s made mistakes and has held on to that guilt and fear for so long. Taking care of her daughter, Brenna, becomes the only focus. After saving Brett from a car wreck they’re thrown together as the news of just how famous he is comes to light.

Y’all. I adored Brett. SO STINKIN’ MUCH. He was charming, kind, and full of real, raw emotions as he had to cope with his injuries. Catherine is a brave, soft, and heartfelt mom. Add them together and the chemistry was flying. I thought they worked great together. And I love how accepting they were of each other. Even as Catherine’s past came out, Brett never wavered and left the past, in the past.

I love how there was a big focus on rekindling relationships too. Catherine slowly worked with her family to be connected again and started to realize how much they were truly there for her. A lot of redemption and grace was given from everyone throughout this book.

The touch of mystery that I didn’t even know was happening until it all came out was a good touch too. I just loved the entire flow of the plot. I would usually find quicker love stories harder to love. This worked on so many levels I could not be bothered to put this down. I ignored my other reads because I needed this happy ending. It was a blissfully beautiful book and I’m forever a Tucker fan.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary romance
Language: some strong
Romance: kisses; heated make-outs; a few detailed almost scenes, a full detailed scene
Violence: details of a car wreck (resulting in someone dying)
Trigger warnings: a teacher having an inappropriate relationship with a student (brought up and discussed throughout the book; detailed back story)

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Book Review

ARC Book Review & Blog Tour: Wild at Heart (Wild #2) by K.A. Tucker

February 19, 2020February 19, 2020 GoodeyReads

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 400 pages
Author: K.A. Tucker
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: February 18th, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From the internationally best-selling author of The Simple Wild comes the continuation of a woman’s journey to Alaska and a life she never imagined for herself.

Calla Fletcher returns to Toronto a different person, struggling to find direction and still very much in love with the rugged bush pilot she left behind. When Jonah arrives on her doorstep with a proposition she can’t dismiss, she takes the leap and rushes back to Alaska to begin their exciting future together.

But Calla soon learns that even the best intentions can lead to broken promises, and that compromise comes with a hefty price—a log cabin in interior rural Alaska that feels as isolating as the western tundra.

With Jonah gone more than he’s home, one neighbor who insists on transforming her into a true Alaskan, and another who seems more likely to shoot her than come to her aid, Calla grapples with forging her own path. In a world with roaming wildlife that has her constantly watching over her shoulder and harsh conditions that stretch far beyond the cold, dark, winter months, just stepping outside her front door can be daunting.

This is not the future Calla had in mind, leaving her to fear that perhaps she is doomed to follow in her mother’s fleeing footsteps after all.

Thank you to the author and Social Butterfly PR for an eARC. All opinions are my own!

MY HEART.

I stayed up way too late to finish this book because I was on cloud nine that I received an ARC for this book. One of my most highly anticipated books of 2020 and it did not disappoint.

I know some people won’t love this second book because it’s not the angst filled romance that The Simple Wild was. This is what made me love this book in its own way. Watching Calla and Jonah having to work together and actually get a chance to be a couple. I was waiting for this book to destroy me and I had my throat in my heart so many times as I read this.

Calla was still a great character. I loved her arc from book one and really loved this one too. She had a lot to go through moving to Alaska and being by herself (yes, Jonah is there, but it’s still far away from family/friends) for the first time. I really felt and understood her emotions. Jonah was still my favorite gruff bush pilot. Yet I got to see a whole new side of him. He was much more open and had more emotions on the surface that I was SO HERE FOR. I love both of them opening up about their struggles of figuring out life in the wilderness together.

There’s not the romance in this book that you’re expecting. Don’t worry. There’s plenty of steamy moments, but it’s one of a couple expressing love to each other and holding on to the connection they know they share. What I love about them though is that there was actual COMMUNICATION between them. They both would hold on to emotions and thoughts too long (as we all do), and after an outburst would actually have a constructive conversation about what was happening. I desperately was holding onto the fact that I knew there must be a happy ending by the last page. I wanted more Calla and Jonah throughout the book. The lack of Jonah at times made the conflict resolution that much more satisfying.

The Roy story line seemed a bit random at first to me. I didn’t know quite where it fit into everything else until close to the end as I got to know the entirety of the background behind him. I can’t help but love grumpy old men who are softened by something. Calla was that something. Her tenacity to just be there for him made their tentative friendship something strong.

I am obsessed with the writing about Alaska. To me, it really is a mythical place and somewhere I had never considered visiting. The description and love of their home that is depicted through all of the characters makes me want to visit someday (though I can’t say I would ever get into one of those tiny planes, NOPE). The flow of the story kept a steady pace. I liked that it would move through months at a faster pace yet the chapters never seemed rushed.

That ending was everything I didn’t think I needed. I love the sweet tenderness between Jonah and Calla. Love that Calla had really given Alaska a chance and were becoming a true part of the community. I felt wholly satisfied with the conclusion and am so thrilled we got this sequel.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary romance
Language: some strong throughout
Romance: everything from kisses to love scenes; scenes being fade to black to mildly explicit
Trigger warnings: plane crash, mentions of domestic abuse (a side character referring to their past)

Author Bio:

K.A. Tucker writes captivating stories with an edge.

She is the USA Today bestselling author of 17 books, including the Causal Enchantment, Ten Tiny Breaths and Burying Water series, He Will Be My Ruin, Until It Fades, Keep Her Safe, and The Simple Wild. Her books have been featured in national publications including USA Today, Globe & Mail, Suspense Magazine, First for Women, and Publisher’s Weekly. She has been nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance 2013 for TEN TINY BREATHS and Best Romance 2018 for THE SIMPLE WILD. Her novels have been translated into 16 languages.

K.A. Tucker currently resides in a quaint town outside of Toronto with her family.