Masquerade Book Tour - Guest Post by Gabrielle Bisset

I am so thrilled to be a stop on the "Masquerade" book tour!  Masquerade is a wonderful book by Gabrielle Bisset.  Before I go into my review, I would love for you to read Gabrielle's own words about her fabulous novel! 

Thank you, Karen, for having me here today at Release Notes for Masquerade’s blog tour.  When I began thinking about the last novella I wanted to write for the Victorian Erotic Romance Trilogy, I only knew two things: it would be set in Victorian England, and it would be an historical.  Its sisters in the trilogy, Vampire Dreams and Love’s Master, are also set in that era, but are quite different than Masquerade with one being a paranormal erotic romance and the other being an historical erotic romance with a BDSM theme.  However, for Masquerade, I wanted to stay with a straight historical. 

I’ve long found all things Russian appealing, so I quickly decided the hero of the story would be Russian.  Nikolai came to life easily. Tall, fair, and handsome, he’s confident without being brash. Unlike my other heroes, Nikolai isn’t as Alpha.  Don’t get me wrong.  He’s quite commanding and knows how to take care of business, but because he’s a diplomat, he’s more intelligent than he is Alpha.  So when it came time to give him a heroine, I needed to make sure I wrote a female who could challenge him.  That meant she had to be intelligent. 

Annelisa is nothing if not intelligent.  The problem she faces with Nikolai is that unlike most of the men she’s known in her lifetime, he can match wits with her and outfox her.  The result is that her efforts are quickly undone by him.  Time and again, plans that would have confused other, lesser men are little more than a mild distraction for Nikolai.

Masquerade is the lightest of the three novellas, and much of that feeling comes from the relationship between Nikolai and Annelisa.  At every turn, he is able to match her, which he enjoys and she finds utterly frustrating.  These two emotions create an interplay between the couple that is at times humorous in addition to being quite sexy.  The result is a story that is erotic while at the same time being light and charming. Conveniently enough, that’s exactly how I’d describe Nikolai, and Annelisa would agree.

Contact Links:Website - http://www.gabriellebisset.com/
Blog - http://gbisset.blogspot.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002481284652
Twitter - http://twitter.com/#!/gabriellebisset 

Buy Link: Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Masquerade-Victorian-Romance-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B005IZAV42/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1314279361&sr=1-4

Thanks again to Gabrielle for taking time out of her busy tour schedule to post here!  Now my review of Masquerade is below! 

Masquerade tells the story of Annelisa, a headstrong, intelligent woman, totally wrong for the time period she resides.  She has everything and has never wanted for nothing but her wealthy father wants her to have a title.  He arranges a marriage to a repulsive Lord who insists that Annelisa be a virgin on their wedding night or the deal is off.  Annelisa, determined to marry for love, comes up with her own scheme and seduces the handsome Count Nikolai Shetkolov into taking her virginity.

The story is quick paced and I enjoyed the chemistry between Annelisa and Nikolai.  He is intrigued by the intelligent woman and decides to beat her at her own game.  The sex is hot but not overdone, staying in line with the era.  It's obvious that the author researched the era well and gives the reader a true feel of the time period.  Annelisa's naivety is delightfully refreshing and it also shows that reading doesn't teach everything about sex! 

This is a wonderful read and totally unexpected from Gabrielle's usual offering.  There's not a hint of supernatural, paranormal or BDSM.  Instead, we have an excellent, sexy story with enjoyable characters and a glimpse into the social mores of times past.  You need to read this now!

The next stop on the tour is Romancing the Book at http://www.romancing-the-book.com/.  Make sure you stop by and show Romancing the Book and Gabrielle some love!

Karen @ Release Notes

Review: Dangerous Designs by Dale Mayer

 

Title: Dangerous Designs

Author: Dale Mayer

Format: E- Book

From beginning to end, Dale Mayer drags the reader on a journey that ends on a cliff!  From the beginning, the reader is immediately engaged in the life of Storey Dalton, a teen aged girl who finds herself boyfriend-less and back on the fringes of the social ladder after her boyfriend moves away.  Storey's passion is drawing and when she stumbles up a strange pencil in the woods, Storey's life is transformed as she comes to realize the pencil is not ordinary and is leading her to draw things she has never drawn or seen before.

Eric Jordan is sent from another dimension to retrieve the stylus (the pencil), left behind by a scientist.  After discovering Storey has the stylus and is quickly bonding with it, Eric has to figure out a way to retrieve the object with hurting her.  They soon find themselves in the middle of a dimensional war and a struggle to save both of their worlds.  

The novel is a reflection of our modern society and it's treatment of those who are different without being a moral brick to the head.  Storey's compassion and tenacity are wonderful to see and I loved the way she influenced others to open their eyes and see their world.  The cliffhanger the author placed at the end left me stunned!  My understanding is the next novel picks up where this one leaves off.  I'm ready to pick up the next one (Book 2) to see what happens next!

Review: Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

Title; Ruby Red
Author: Kerstin Gier
Format: Hardcover and EBook

Ruby Red, the first in a trilogy, is a fantastic introduction to the imagination of Kerstin Gier.  While this book is a YA offering, anyone who loves historical novels with some suspense and action thrown in would also love this book.  I can only hope the next two novels are as engaging!

Gwyneth is an ordinary 16 year old girl with an extraordinary family.  Her family has a gene that allows time travel.  Believing all her life that her cousin Charlotte is the "Chosen One", Gwen's life is focused on school, friends and all the other typical teenage things.  A shock comes when it is discovered because of a deception, Gwen is actually the time traveler.  She suddenly finds herself tossed into a world she has little knowledge of and discovers hidden secrets along the way.

Gwen is a great heroine for the story.  Her naivety and natural curiosity help her to embrace her family's gift and along with her best friend, Leslie, she works to uncover some of the untold details. The author did a great job in researching because the historical details are wonderful in this tale.  Gwen's travels back in time are historical accurate and the reader really notices the details of the times she visits. She also faces a chauvinistic secret society who help to monitor the time travelers and Gwen's modern feminist sensibilities are rankled as she begins to see how the men of the society regarded women.

The story was a delightful read.  I'm assuming because it's the first of a trilogy, the ending was rather open ended, setting the reader up for the next book.  I would highly recommend the series for the young reader and for even some older readers.  It's refreshing and I look forward to the others in the series.

Follow Friday

Q. Have you ever wanted a villain to win at the end of a story? If so, which one?


Not necessarily win but I wanted to see Snape in "Harry Potter" become a better person and in his own way, he did.  It would be wonderful to know his complete backstory.  I wonder what happened to him besides unrequited love to make him go over to the dark side and what happened to make him return.  JK hinted at some things but a nice little (or big) book on his life would be a great addition to the series.

Now for the Follow Fun!

RULES To join the fun and make new book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:


(Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Hosts {Parajunkee & Alison Can Read}

(Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - We Fancy Books & The Little Book Blog

Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing. You can also grab the code if you would like to insert it into your posts.

Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say "hi" in your comments and that they are now following you.

Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"

If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers

If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

Indie Book Blowout! Labor Day Weekend!

 

This Labor Day weekend is an ebook lover’s dream come true! Over 100 authors, over 130 titles, all priced to 99 cents as part of a Labor Day weekend sale to remember. It is the first annual Indie Book Blowout! 

We are talking award-winners! Best sellers! All genres! New releases! All priced down to 99 cents PLUS, if you sign up for the newsletter, you’ll be entered to win a brand new KINDLE and $100 in gift card giveaways.

Just head to http://IndieBookBlowout.com, shop, click, buy and enjoy! Happy weekend and happy reading!!

Follow Friday!

Today's Question:

Q. If you could change the ending of any book (or series), which book would you choose? And, why?

I can't think of any book I would change.  There have been some that I wish hadn't ended or maybe gave us a little more backstory of some of the characters but all in all, I enjoy what I've read and wouldn't do anything different to the endings.

RULES To join the fun and make new book blogger friends, just follow these simple rules:

1. (Required) Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Hosts {Parajunkee & Alison Can Read}
2. (Required) Follow our Featured Bloggers - We Fancy Books& The Little Book Blog
3. Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing. You can also grab the code if you would like to insert it into your posts.
4. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say "hi" in your comments and that they are now following you.
5. Follow Follow Follow as many as you can, as many as you want, or just follow a few. The whole point is to make new friends and find new blogs. Also, don't just follow, comment and say hi. Another blogger might not know you are a new follower if you don't say "HI"
6. If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
7. If you're new to the follow friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!

Indie Book Blowout - September 2-5

COMING – LABOR DAY WEEKEND, SEPTEMBER 2 - 5

This Labor Day, Sptember 2 – 5, for the very first time, the IBC will run an Indie Book Blow-out! We’ve designed a special site with sections for specific genres. All books will be on sale throughout the weekend for 99 cents!

Get Your Book The Exposure It Deserves!!!

We’re psyched to let you in on an exciting new promotional opportunity!

We anticipate THOUSANDS of readers participating in the Indie Book Blow-out!

Why? Because it’s a great deal for readers! They’ll find great books for only 99 cents, plus we’re giving away a brand new Kindle to readers along with $100 in Gift Cards!

And it’s a great deal for you! We plan to give the Blow-out MAJOR social media support - our Network reaches over 100,000 readers! AND we’ll have paid advertising on such reader-centric sites as GoodReads, Adwords. If enough authors join in, we’ll even advertise in KindleNation.

For the super low cost of $15.00 your book can be added to the event. Remember: the sooner you sign up, the more exposure your book will get!

Just $15.00 To Add Your Book! And It’s Super Easy To Join

Just fill out the form on our site (http://bit.ly/pZM94T) and add your book to the Indie Book Blow-Out. Once you’ve signed up, all you need to do is simply upload your high resolution cover art and send your $15.00 (per title) payment via PayPal to ibcprograms@gmail.com

Please be sure to note that your payment is for the Indie Book Blow-out. And let us know if your email address and PayPal address are different!

If you have any questions, we’re here to help! Just send us an email: indiebookblowout@gmail.com

Don’t forget, we are giving away a brand new Kindle to readers along with $100 in Gift Cards! That gives you plenty to talk about to your own social media network!

Hurry!

The sooner you register, send your $15 and download your artwork the more prominently your book will be placed and the more exposure your book will get!

Sign up today! Join the Indie Book Bonanza!!