New Covers and a small update

Here are a few pretty covers from this week. . . I have quite a few more from the October books from Avon but since none of the authors have shared any of them yet, I'm going to wait another week or so to share them :)
Also, if my posts seem a little on the slower side it is because my work got slammed with work so I have been working at least 10 extra hours a week lately and that cuts into my reading and blogging time.  Sigh...it's more money (yay!) but tiring :)  Hopefully this will be cleared up within the next two weeks though!!  At least I hope so...I have to many books to read and my boys will be home from school so they need attention too...I guess, lol.

I really like this cover.  It is nice and simple and perfect for the holidays. Twas the Night after Christmas is a hardcover release that will be out October 30th and is listed on goodreads as book six in the Hellions of Halstead Hall but since I have not read the last two yet (and I thought the series was over), I'm not sure how this one factors in.  Anyways, I will be picking it up either way :)

Oh, sigh.  What a pretty cover!  You wouldn't think red hair and a magenta dress would work together but I guess they do :)  This will be an ebook available July 3rd and will introduce the new heroines in the continuation of the Drakes Rakes saga.

This is one awesome, sexy cover!  I love the red!  Ripe for Seduction will be out January 2013.  I still need to read the previous book (Ripe for Scandal), but I did enjoy the first novel in The League of Second Sons (Ripe for Pleasure) so I will get caught up before January!

Elise Rome shared the updated cover for The Sinning Hour!  This was previously going to be a novella but turned into a full length, yay :)  I love the gold!  That seems to be a hot color for covers lately.  Look for this one at the end of June (self publishing).

And finally is When the Duke Found Love.  This will be book three in Isabella Bradford's new series, Wylder Sisters and I love that the cover fits right in with the previous two.  The blue/yellow combo makes it pop a bit and I love the inclusion of the purple fan :)  Look for this one November 27th.

So, that is it for now!  Hopefully I can share the other goodies I have on tap as well soon :)  I really like all these covers--how about you?  Any of them catch your eye?

Ripe for Pleasure by Isobel Carr

Viola Whedon, former courtesan, is woken out of sleep one night to hear intruders in her home. She hears the men whispering that whatever they were looking for had to be there and as Viola was finishing writing up her second memoir of her past protectors, she assumes they are looking for it so it can not be published. She know she has hidden it well she flees from her room only to be saved from the villains by Leonidas Vaughn. Little does she know that Leo is somewhat involved in the burglary, through his cousin. Leo had came across some letters leaving him to believe that there was some hidden treasure stashed in her home and he shared this news with his cousin, who took it upon himself to proceed with his plan of finding the treasure no matter what the cost. Leo, on the other hand, has his own plan. He plans to seduce the lovely Mrs Whedon and secretly search him home. He does not count on his own feelings that start the moment he meets the slightly terrified eyes of Viola.

Viola also does not count on her own growing attraction to Leo. She shares her bed with him, without the formality of a contract, because as a younger son, he could not afford her anyways. But there is a much deeper reason she agrees to be in his bed and she refuses to believe it, just shoves it away. She has already been hurt in the past, becoming a penniless widow at seventeen and shunned from her family, she has a hard time accepting that Leo loves and accepts her as does his family. They have many hurdles to overcome though until they can reach their happily ever after. First, Leo is hiding the true reason she keeps getting attacked. Viola continues to believe it is about her manuscript and it takes Leo quite awhile to finally tell her the truth. Then Viola is abducted by Leos mother, but that, thankfully, was a pleasant altercation. One of the bright spots of this book was Lady Beau, Leos sister. She is headstrong and impulsive and always near a scandal. I am so happy to see that she is the heroine in the next book, Ripe for Scandal!

Overall, this was my first read from Isobel Carr, who has also written as Kalen Hughes. I enjoyed her writing and thought her characters were smart, funny and sexy. There is lots of drama fueled by the jealously of Leos cousin, passion, heartache and happiness. Even the inclusion of wigs and hoops and such for the time period of 1783, which I personally don't really enjoy, was done in a way that it did not hinder the story. I would have liked to have seen more of Violas back story though. We didn't really get a full sense of it until the end and I think it might have helped me understand her a bit more in the beginning had it all been spelled out earlier. There were a few loose threads that were left open also I thought but still, this was an enjoyable, steamy (always an added bonus when the lady is a courtesan) read and I will definitely be reading more from this author! 4 stars

I received this ebook via netgalley.com