This is the blog of Samie Sands, author of Lockdown. There will be many great books and projects reviewed here. For more, check out thelockdown.co.uk.

Monday 25 January 2016

Spider Game by Christine Feehan

In the new GhostWalker novel by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Viper Game, a trained killer meets his match in a woman whose very kiss can stop a heart.

The Cajun dive in the middle of the godforsaken swamps wasn’t exactly Trap Dawkins’ idea of fun. But the GhostWalker wasn’t there for a good time. He was looking for her. Cayenne. It’s where she found her victims. Poor suckers. Then again, who wouldn’t want to leave a place like this with a woman like her?

It’s not Cayenne’s fault. Locked up, experimented on and never knowing kindness, she was bred this way—with a heart of pure venom. Trap understands her. He survived his own dark past and he shares her desire for getting even. But now Trap’s greatest danger is Cayenne herself. Because what’s inside her is hard to control—especially when it’s aroused by a lover as reckless as Trap.
Review: I love the world Christine Feehan has created in the Ghosthunter novels - these books are paranormal romance at its best. Trap may be a little unlikable at times, but it's refreshing to see a character that isn't too perfect - he has flaws just like everyone else. Cayenne's story is much more fascinating - watching her unravel from her dark past, and start to embrace a future is great. She's lovable, and I wanted her to find happiness from the very start. 

My American Duchess by Eloisa James




The arrogant Duke of Trent intends to marry a well-bred Englishwoman. The last woman he would ever consider marrying is the adventuresome Merry Pelford— an American heiress who has infamously jilted two fiancés.

But after one provocative encounter with the captivating Merry, Trent desires her more than any woman he has ever met. He is determined to have her as his wife, no matter what it takes. And Trent is a man who always gets what he wants.

The problem is, Merry is already betrothed, and the former runaway bride has vowed to make it all the way to the altar. As honor clashes with irresistible passion, Trent realizes the stakes are higher than anyone could have imagined. In his battle to save Merry and win her heart, one thing becomes clear:

All is fair in love and war.


Review: I love historical romance, and this was an amazing one! The author has created a fast paced, exciting love story between two seemingly unsuitable characters with amazing chemistry. Merry is a brilliant character, who I warmed to right away, and I quickly became gripped as things began to progress and unravel with Trent. Highly recommended!

Friday 22 January 2016

Sins of Summer by Linda Heavner Gerald

The monster who robbed her of childhood in her fifteenth year was coming for her again. She sadly thought of all the years of mental torture she suffered because of him. This time he would demand the only thing left in her life which she loved.
Review: Wow, Linda Heavner Gerald is an incredible author and the way she writes is as gripping as it is exciting. I've enjoyed her previous books, but I have to say I think this one was my favourite. The two main female characters are at opposite ends of the scale, but also very similar too. As the plot escalates around them, it quickly got to the point where I just couldn't put it down. Highly recommended!

Thursday 14 January 2016

First Touch by Laurelin Paige

DESPERATE FOR THE TRUTH. OBSESSED BY DESIRE…
Emily Wayborn is finally her own woman.
After a string of shameful relationships and reckless partying with her best friend Amber, she’s now a successful voiceover actress, her wild past and everyone in it firmly behind her. Until she receives a cryptic voicemail from her former friend that sends her spiraling into the darkness she thought she had outrun. One thing is clear from the message, Amber is in trouble.
Determined to track down her friend, Emily follows a chain of clues that leads her to Reeve Sallis, a gorgeous and equally dangerous hotelier known for his power games and shady dealings. Now, in order to find Amber, Emily must return to her playgirl ways to uncover his secrets and track down her friend. But as she becomes more entangled with him, she finds she's drawn to Reeve and his depravity despite her growing conviction that he may be the one responsible for Amber’ s disappearance.
Review: Wow - this book is amazing! It's not your typical suspense/romance erotica plot, there's so much more to it than that. Emily and Amber have had a complex past, with tragic twists and turns, but even after they go their separate ways they are still there for each other when things go wrong. Amber goes missing, and there's one man who seems to know where she might be. However, things don't quite go to Emily's seduce-and-get-answers plan, and she finds herself deeper and deeper into this mystery. I was hooked until the epic ending, which left me desperate to read the second book.

Wednesday 13 January 2016

The Bourbon Kings by J.R. Ward

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Black Dagger Brotherhood delivers the first novel in an enthralling new series set amid the shifting dynamics of a Southern family defined by wealth and privilege—and compromised by secrets, deceit, and scandal.... 

For generations, the Bradford family has worn the mantle of kings of the bourbon capital of the world. Their sustained wealth has afforded them prestige and privilege—as well as a hard-won division of class on their sprawling estate, Easterly. Upstairs, a dynasty that by all appearances plays by the rules of good fortune and good taste. Downstairs, the staff who work tirelessly to maintain the impeccable Bradford facade. And never the twain shall meet.

For Lizzie King, Easterly’s head gardener, crossing that divide nearly ruined her life. Falling in love with Tulane, the prodigal son of the bourbon dynasty, was nothing that she intended or wanted—and their bitter breakup only served to prove her instincts were right. Now, after two years of staying away, Tulane is finally coming home again, and he is bringing the past with him. No one will be left unmarked: not Tulane’s beautiful and ruthless wife; not his older brother, whose bitterness and bad blood know no bounds; and especially not the ironfisted Bradford patriarch, a man with few morals, fewer scruples, and many, many terrible secrets.

As family tensions—professional and intimately private—ignite, Easterly and all its inhabitants are thrown into the grips of an irrevocable transformation, and only the cunning will survive.
Review: JR Ward does it again! She's created another paranormal romance masterpiece. Lizzie and Tulane are hot, sexy and filled with tension, driving this plot along it's twists and turns until the epic conclusion. I cannot wait for another from this series!

Thursday 7 January 2016

Sisters On Bread Street by Frances Brody

Leeds, 1914. Sisters Julia and Margaret Wood are struggling to rise above devastating poverty, while the threat of war looms large over their community. Angry feelings about foreigners have reached boiling point; their German-Jewish father's search for work proves hopeless, leaving entrepreneurial Julia to keep the family afloat by hawking homemade pies on the streets of Leeds.
Her beautiful elder sister Margaret, an apprentice milliner and new member of the suffragette set, seeks a faster way out of the daily grind, pinning her hopes on a rich suffragette's journalist son, Thomas.
But as the war rages on, it is left to Julia to discover the true meaning of courage and family, as she learns to look forward to the start of the new day - and the promise of a better life ahead.
Review: This book is a beautifully written historical romance - but I wouldn't have expected anything less from Frances Brody. I've enjoyed all of her books - and this was no exception. Margaret and Julia are imperfect, yet lovable characters who draw you into the plot right away. I'd recommend this to anyone who loves the romance genre - particularly if you enjoy some drama too, because there's plenty of that!

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