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Friday Finds & Reader Recommendations – 08-07-2020

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LATE NIGHT FRIDAY BREAKING NEWS UPDATE!!! DEBRA ANASTASIA’S LATEST (DROWNING IN STARS) IS LIVE!!! AND IT SOUNDS DEEEEEP!!! FRIENDS SINCE CHILDHOOD…

“…When I was afraid of the dark, he would shine a light in my window. We shared our popsicles and I taught him how to get a good swing on the playground. I never imagined I’d have to decide who got to live and who didn’t. I chose him –and he could never know…”

HAPPY FRIDAY!!! As always, we have awesome new releases, recent releases (with feedback!!) and reader recommendations, including one from a reader question from 2018 that just got solved AND that gave me a blurb jolt!! YAY US!!! 😀

And guess what else? We just started this “favorites list” and is already loaded in awesomeness (and I will be adding more!!) ➔ Reader Recommendations – Our favorite books where the hero says something mean about the heroine and she overhears him…

AND GUESS WHAT ELSE?? MIDNIGHT SUN IS #1 ON ALL OF AMAZON RIGHT NOW!!  ➔➔➔➔➔➔➔➔  

Jacqueline: I’m on page 104. Can’t put it down and I’m already dreading the end. I want… no… need more!!! Stephanie should do all the books from Edward’s perspective.

Kristen: yesssssss. Because with Edward’s ability it’s like getting a book from EVERY character’s perspective. Now we know what everyone is thinking. I love it! I keep thinking of my favorite scenes I’d like every thought for: like when Bella meets Renesmee the first time. Or all of New Moon basically. 😍😍😍

Carrie: i was kinda hoping she write New Moon from Jacob’s perspective. That would be interesting!

Jacqueline: exactly! New moon could actually be a stand-alone what with Edward not being present at all. Would love to know what he did while away 🤔

TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT WE FOUND FOR THE WEEKEND :D !!

And…

Jessica: Passionflix is a new place I have found, it has our beautiful books come to life. Tusca Musk director and cofounder of this amazing website and it currently has Gabriel’s Inferno part I and II on it….it’s my new favorite spot second to your website for my favorites 😉

Maryse: I’m right there with you, Jessica!!! I lost my mind when I finally logged on via my Smart TV (my Firestick), and saw so many of my favorite books (and some I’ve got on my TBR list… up there in movies!!) I even wrote this post dedicated to it: Reader Question – What do you know about Passionflix? P.S. I am LOVING it!

Debra: Marauder by Bella Di Corte is out today! An amazing mafia romance that’s already in the top 500 on Amazon! <3

  • Beyond The Sea by K. Andrews <— M/M ROMANCE SUPER-BARGAIN ALERT & SO MUCH LOVE FOR IT HERE!!

MichelleS: …my recommendation for you sometime during this blazing hot season by the pool is…. “Beyond The Sea” by K. Andrews. It’s got the “lost at sea” thing going on, but with two GUYS and IT WORKS. It soooooo works. …I loved it. The cover is so cheesy. Just totally ignore that cover. 4.9 stars for me (I can’t remember their names, but I remember everything else!).

  • The Trouble With Quarterbacks by R.S. Grey <— LIVE!! R.S. GREY ALERT!!! THE SCHOOL TEACHER & THE FOOTBALL STAR PICKING UP HIS NEPHEW… “...I thought I’d blacked out for a moment when I first saw him. He was a proper hunk with glorious brown hair, quite tall, and he had these arms. Are muscly arms supposed to turn me on? I’m panting just thinking about them. Anyway, he told me he’s a professional foosball player. At least, I think that’s what he said. The tots can get quite loud near pick-up time…”
  • Six (The Heirs Series Book 8) by D. Camille <— LIVE!!
  • The End: A Reverse Harem Bully Romance (Raven River Academy Book 3) by Ruby Vincent <— LIVE!!
  • Vital Sign by J.L. Mac <— THE ANGSTY-SOUNDING ANSWER to a reader question that was just solved!! And Rae agrees!

Rae: Gosh yes I read this do long ago. It ripped my heart out.

Laura: …it is a story that has the true ugly version of grief. She lost her husband and she has to go meet three people who received his organs. It’s a beautiful/ugly story about grief, moving on, and love.

  • Awakened by Him (Zinklaus Trilogy Book 1) by Eyta Jade
  • That Swoony Feeling (Getting Lucky Book 4) by Meghan Quinn <— LIVE!! MEGHAN QUINN ALERT!! HE’S PART OF A PENPAL PROGRAM & LOVING IT UNTIL… “…until I started hanging out with Ruth Barber. Starting a new business right next to my shop, I found myself gravitating toward her. Her smile, her humor . . . her tea sandwiches. My attraction for Ruth came in full force, leaving me dazed, confused, and *ahem* excited. As new feelings for two women come to a screeching halt, I have to figure out who to choose. But when I discover my pen pal is Ruth, it might be too late...”
  • Marauder (Gangsters of New York Book 2) by Bella Di Corte <— LIVE!!
  • A Secret Surrender (The Untouchables: The Pretenders Book 1) by Darcy Burke <— LIVE!!
  • The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones <— ZOMBIE YA HORROR ALERT!! TASHA J ENJOYED THIS ONE! “…Since the death of their parents, Ryn and her siblings have been scraping together a meager existence as gravediggers in the remote village of Colbren, which sits at the foot of a harsh and deadly mountain range that was once home to the fae. The problem with being a gravedigger in Colbren, though, is that the dead don’t always stay dead…”

Tasha J: I read The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones over the last few days. It felt good to start and finish a book in less than a week! I was invested in the story, but it wasn’t as scary or creepy as I’d hoped, likely bc it was YA. Now, I dk what I’m in the mood for and here I am back at square 1.

Ela: HELLO EVERYONE! I highly recommend The Night Swim…really good.

Fiona: Just to let you know I have read two MC books that are just out recently; they are on kindle unlimited; great reads, gritty and raw especially the Inked in Lies by Giana Darling; must admit I shed a few tears, in this the Fallen MC Book 5.

Fiona: The second MC book is Jordan Marie; its called Keeping Her, from the Savage Brothers Second Generation Book 2 and there was a lot of drama and angst in this too.

AUDIOBOOK L:DVERS!

  • ➔➔ Not a member of Audible yet? Get a free 30 day audible trial (which includes 1 free audiobook + 2 audible originals)
  • ➔➔ AND! Audiobook Matchmaker!! <— Find out which of YOUR Kindle books are available as audiobooks at a BARGAIN-PRICE! This is how it works. Click on that link & Amazon will show you all of your Kindle books that are also available as an audiobook at a seriously discounted price. This way, you can switch back and forth, seamlessly between your ebooks and your audiobooks. VERY COOL!
  • ➔➔ Audible now has an “Escape” package membership (30 day free trial) – used to be called the “Romance” package <— this one is SO cool, and worth it (unlimited listening for all of the audiobooks in the program, and there are tons – kind of like Kindle Unlimited)!!
  • ➔➔ And… if you’re not an audible member yet, you can get the first 4 months for 46% off this summer!!!

and…

  • The Escape Room by Megan Goldin <— OUR FELLOW READERS ARE LOVING THIS AUTHOR THIS WEEK! Shirley & Michele G both!!

Shirley: I am currently listening to The Escape Room. It is Very Good!! Highly recommend and the narration (male and female) is great!!

SO good!! I have never heard of this Author before. This lady can write! Highly recommend! *And highly recommend on Audible!

Michele G: Yes! I enjoyed The Escape Room too!

Shirley: Looking forward to listening to The Night Swim.

Michele G: Shirley, the audio for The Night Swim is very good. I liked that it is built around a podcast…I always find those lend themselves well to audio for obvious reasons.

Shirley: So excited to start The Night Swim.

  • R. RENEE LOVED THESE:

R. Renee: I recently finished Boyfriend Material and I’ll Give You the Sun on audio and they were both incredible.

PREORDERS (going live soon!!! 😀 )

➔➔➔  Get Maryse’s Book Blog updates delivered by email (you’ll get one daily email that will have each post from that day consolidated on it).

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Ana

Under Locke by Mariana Zapata is also very similar to sweet dreams and belong to that category too I think

Reply
Maryse

Thank you Ana!! I added it. 🙂

Reply
D.G.

Good morning my lovelies!!! Just wanted to drop in and say”hello”! This past week my interest was peeked by two of the books on Maryse’s list. AND I was soooo glad!

1. Peripheral by Leslie Fear ….This Book was no where near what I thought it would be. The blurb mentions she is a FREAK because she sees dead people. This is what caught my attention…I was thinking it might be similar to Where One Goes and What Lies Between by BN Toler. BUT it was totally different…just imagine a cross between Ghostbusters and Percy Jackson. OK…maybe not Ghostbusters but you know what I mean the whole seeing dead people thing. Not sure if this is a true standalone …maybe we get more…I surely hope so!

2. Wild Distortion by Tina Saxon…Maryse that last line of the Blurb!!!! I was ALL in! And I LOVED the ride with this one! I thought I knew how it where it was going like 3 or 4 times but nope I had no clue it was working out as it did. Sooo LOVED this one! I will definitely be checking out her other books.

Enough from me…what great books would you recommend?

Reply
mony

Hey D.G., Thanks for the 2 recommendations…love that one of them has some sorta Ghostbuster feel…hmm, intriguing… 🙂
Just wondering what kind of book recommendations you’re looking these days…

Reply
D.G.

Hey. Mony! Really looking for books that are HEA, and not the standard storylines. You can only read so many boy meets girl, fall in love and maybe struggle a hot minute and then live happily ever after. I am not adverse to paranormal (obviously) and contemporary…

Reply
Maryse

YAY DG!!!!!! I will include your recommendations in the next round. I’m so thrilled!!!!

Reply
D.G.

Same! Nothing better than finding two books that keep you hooked! And also Wild Distortion is not a paranormal…for anyone that was wondering.

Reply
Maryse

P.S. There’s one coming up from Debra Anastasia on Sunday that sounds INCREDIBLE and poignant. And I love the cover. No preorder yet, but I’ll stalk it and post it when it goes live. I really want to read that.

I love her!

Reply
D.G.

I will definitely be on the lookout for it!

Reply
Maryse

IT’S LIVEEEE EARLY!! I just added it to the very top of this post. 🙂

Reply
D.G.

Alright…..I’m drinking the koolaid! Just one-clicked it. Read the blurb and kinda worried MY heart might get BROKEN!

Reply
mony

Hey Maryse,
Debra Anastasia has so many books…I don’t know where to start. Could you recommend a couple to get started? Thanks!

Reply
mony

Oh and the book cover for Fire in the Hole is…hmmm…wicked funny! 😲

Reply
Maryse

I fell in love with her very first… https://www.maryse.net/books/miscellaneous/book-review-poughkeepsie-by-debra-anastasia.html

Not sure how it would read now (because this was back in my very early indie days but I loved it)… she befriends a homeless guy.

Reply
mony

thanks Maryse!

Reply
Nancy Parken

INKED IN LIES is a forbidden, age-gap, friends to lovers book. It needs to be added to your list of age-gap like the other stories in that series. There is a 12 year age gap.

Reply
Lisa M

Love this whole series!!!! Inked in Lies was sooooo good!!! 🔥🔥🔥

Reply
Nancy Parken

Sure was!!

Reply
mony

Hi D.G. – Books that are HEA, and not the standard storylines, you say? These may be a match…

– The Simple Wild by K.A. Tucker – quirky slow romance based in Alaska village
– Wilder (The Wild Ones) by C.M. Owens – quirky mountain romance
– Lothaire by Kresley Cole (paranormal)
– The Bad Guy by Celia Aaron – bad guy has Asperger’s…some angst, suspense & dry humour

(Storm and Silence #1) by Robert Thier (6-book series 4.52 avg rating…witty & crisp writing, doesn’t really read like HR)
Freedom is a rare commodity in 19th-century London, where girls are expected to spend their lives sitting at home… Lilly is at her wits’ end—until a chance encounter with a dark, dangerous and powerful stranger changes her life forever. Enter the world of Mr Rikkard Ambrose, where the only rule is: Knowledge is power is time is money!

Two of my best finds in 2020
A Bad Day for Sunshine by Darynda Jones
Fabulous book – Sharp, tightly written & rich story with amazing main and secondary characters with some magic realism (can read as stand alone)
Sunshine Vicram returns to Del Sol, New Mexico with her teen daughter Aurora. As the new sheriff, she is faced with innumerable situations & crimes – some crazy funny and others possibly deadly. Enter sexy almost-old-flame Levi Ravinder and a hunky US Marshall, both elevens on a scale of one to blazing inferno, and the normally savvy sheriff is quickly in over her head.

Spotless (#1) by Camilla Monk (5-book Series received a 4.49 GR rating!)
A gentleman professional killer with a bad case of OCD and zero tolerance for unsorted laundry, March November isn’t there to kill her… yet. He wants the diamond her late mother stole for a sinister criminal organization. Island agrees to help him find it, racing from Paris to Tokyo and facing the kind of adversaries who dismember first and ask questions later.

Reply
D.G.

Mony, I am defined checking these out! Thanks for the recommendations!

Reply
mony

Good luck and happy reading D.G.!

Reply
Emma

I need help finding a book!!! It is driving me crazy. It’s part of a mc series. The first book is about the son about to take over the club. The series continues and one of the stories is about the sister. She falls for a non-mc guy who used to be a nerd but becomes and underground fighter. I will be forever grateful to anyone who can solve this for me 🙂

Reply
Maryse

Hi Emma!!!

I posted your reader question here:

https://www.maryse.net/reader-questions/reader-question-the-book-about-the-mc-princess-that-falls-for-an-ex-nerd-turned-underground-fighter.html

Keep an eye on it and let us know if you see the right guess. 🙂

*hug*

Reply
Jeannie S.

Hi Mony, I just finished the Spotless series as well and I loved it! I definitely recommend this one as well. The H is a professional killer with a few OCD issues and the h is a nerdy IT engineer. It was a fun read that was very unpredictable as well.

Reply
mony

Jeannie, glad you enjoyed too!
I love finding gems like this one!
I haven’t read the last book because I’m having “separation anxiety”…I don’t want the story to be over. 😉

Reply
R. Renee

Tasha! And Maryse and anyone else this might interest. We’ve talked before about over-cooking meats and a friend of mine turned me on to this chicken breast method. I followed it to a T and it was (is, I’m still eating) perfection. I know all of these rules, but I tend to ignore them. I won’t again. I’ve never had boneless chicken breast this good, and it’s only salt and pepper! Maryse, the breast that come in the Butcher Box are amazing like this! I only tried the skillet because it seems pointless to do in the oven, but he has options for both. https://youtu.be/DYdOPjjBvm0

Reply
Tasha J

Hey, thanks! I’m saving this video. I’m not getting a probe, lol, but the rest seems simple enough!

Reply
R. Renee

You don’t need one if you pan fry! Just follow all the other “rules.”

Reply
mony

Saved to my recipes! thanks!

Reply
Maryse

Thank you R!!!!!

I just did a marathon cooking session this morning so I have some meals for the next few days. I did pan-fried pork chops -seared in butter, and I think they are a moist and yummy success!!

Basically I just went to my mom’s old “pork chop” method. Salt, pepper, butter, sear the outside, and lower the temp and cook just a bit more. I even left mine “possibly” pink in the middle when I took them off so they would just continue cooking lightly off the heat, so they wouldn’t dry out from overcooking. Which is so easy to do with pork chops and then it’s ROAR.

LOL! 😂

Oh and also I cooked roasted veggies (broccoli, and then carrots), and I made my favorite tomato/cucumber/lemon/olive oil/feta salad.

Reply
Maryse

Oh and then… I deglazed my pork chop pan, and fried my shiritake noodles in that deglazing… so now they’re salty and brown and kind of have an asian flavor to ’em ’cause I added a touch of soy sauce.

Reply
R. Renee

I struggle with getting pork chops just right. I want to eat them when they’re a little pink in the middle. I’ve completely given up on the thin ones but the thick are so easy to overcook for me. I just ordered the thermometer the youtube chef suggests in the chicken video and I’m going to try that next time. It never occurred to me that using a crappy thermometer to check temp (and then pulling it out) would let the juices escape. Duh!

I also just watched youtube chef’s video on brussels sprouts and I’m very excited about pan frying them in ghee!

Reply
Maryse

I’ve never used ghee!!! I’m so curious…

Reply
Harper

Hey, guys! I’m moving on from paranormal to reverse harem (one book led to another that led to another that had reverse harem and I liked it). I really enjoyed Groupie by C. M. Stunich. Do you know any book that is similar? I mean: not high school or academy, not bully or paramormal. Just a very steamy reverse harem with well developed plot and maybe some mm action?

Reply
Jan

Morgan Hawke’s sci-fi books might fit the bill e.g. Victorious Star. Very saucy, but it does have an actual storyline.

Reply
Harper

Thanks, Jan!!!

Reply
mony

Hmm Harper…that sure eliminates most of those I’ve read. I’ve had my eye on this one but haven’t read it. “Altered by Fire” (Undercover Sinners #1) by Kate Morgan, C.M. Stunich ) & Tate James
Book #3 has not been released. ???

Reply
Maryse

Hi Harper!

I started a list specifically for what you’re looking for AND I found a few more lists on here that might have a mix, but likely will include exactly what you want:

Today’s reader recommendations list that I just started:

https://www.maryse.net/books/book-recommendations/reader-recommendations-our-favorite-reverse-harem-books-that-are-not-paranormal-nor-do-they-have-academy-or-bully-tropes.html

and then these:

https://www.maryse.net/books/book-recommendations/reader-recommendations-our-favorite-reverse-harem-books.html

https://www.maryse.net/books/book-recommendations/reader-question-looking-for-a-specific-kind-of-reverse-harem-book-recommendations.html

Reply
Debra Anastasia

Thank you love!

Reply