Showing posts with label #BEA16. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #BEA16. Show all posts

Friday, October 21, 2016

#OctobeRecFest Review ~ Hell or High Water ~ Julie Ann Walker


Hell or High Water (Deep Six, #1)Hell or High Water by Julie Ann Walker
Deep Six #1
Release Date: July 7, 2015
Genre: Adult, Romantic Suspense
Source: I received a complimentary copy from the publisher at BEA
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Challenges: #ShelfLove
Recommended byBraine @Talk Supe
Goodreads

Synopsis
In a world on the brink...

Six men. One sunken Spanish galleon. Millions in gold and silver coins lying on the ocean floor. And a past that refuses to let the guys of Deep Six Salvage forget the Navy SEAL motto: the only easy day was yesterday...

There's more than one kind of treasure...

The nation's security has always been CIA agent Oliva Mortier's top priority. But a mission-gone-wrong has begun to make her wonder if there's more to life than risking hers.

And more than one secret at the bottom of the sea...

Only two things could make Leo Anderson abandon his hunt for the legendary lost ship, La Santa Christina, and return to the world of weapons and warfare he swore to leave behind: a capsule of enriched uranium, lost on the ocean floor, and a plea for assistance from the one woman he can't seem to forget...




Hell or High Water was quite a ride! It's romantic suspense that focuses on the suspense. In fact, I think I've talked my Hubs into reading it. :) Thanks, Braine!

Highlights:

  • SEALs. I've always been fascinated with these highly skilled and trained warriors. It was interesting to learn a bit more about their training and abilities.
  • Sea salvage and history. I so enjoyed the historical element Walker added with the inclusion of scenes from the Spanish galleon's Captain - in 1624 - dealing with a ship full of precious cargo and a hurricane. It added an extra element to hook me. Add to that the SEALs starting a salvage business in order to search of any clues to the Spanish wreckage and I was in deep.
  • A kickass female spy! Olivia is a CIA agent and she's a heroine I admired. She knew how to shoot with both her mouth and her gun.
  • Relevance. One of the suspense elements was via an operation where our current world political arena is highlighted.
  • Humor and camaraderie. There was a lot of humor injected with Leo and Olivia throwing about witty and sexually charged banter. But the camaraderie between Leo and his team, the closeness between them as well as the barbs they threw and timely interruptions were a lot of fun and broke the tension. The internal dialog did get a little irksome by the end though.
  • Believable plot and romance.
Overall, I quite enjoyed this introduction to the Deep Six series and I'm eager to move onto the next one.




Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Books & Crafts #5 ~ #BookBlogger #CraftCircle



Welcome to Books & Crafts, a craft circle composed of book bloggers, a sporadic meme where we share our other creative pursuits aside from reading and blogging. Everyone is welcome to join, just add yout tag/label links below and you're good to go!


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I've been dying to share this craft with you but since it was a gift to someone who reads my blog regularly (my blogger wife), I had to wait until after I'd given it to her. As y'all may or may not know, I got to meet Lexxie @(un)Conventional Bookviews for the first time in real life last year at RT in Dallas. We had lots of pictures and since I scrapbook (along with my bookaholic friend, Denise) she and I decided we'd make Lexxie a scrapbook with the pictures we took there and also add in pages for her to use for our trip to BEA this year. Here are a few pictures at a 2-page spread we worked on, as we were working on it.








Here's a few pictures of the finished product:










Denise and I were really happy with how it turned out. And I *think* Lexxie loved it. :D




Do you craft too? Wanna get in on the fun? Just add your link below. And don't forget to check out the other hosts' crafts! :D
(I had problems with the linky - I've included it below. BUT if it doesn't appear correctly or doesn't work, head over to Talk Supe and link up there. Thanks!)


Saturday, May 28, 2016

Bought, Borrowed, & Bagged #88 ~ BEA Edition


Bought, Borrowed, & Bagged is a weekly meme, hosted by TalkSupe, where I share with you the books I have bought, borrowed, or bagged (gifted or won) plus a recap of the previous week's reviews, upcoming reviews, and any other bookishness I want to share. :)


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Okay, so here's a photo of all the books I brought home from BEA. 125 books and 3 ebooks/audiobooks. I've linked the photo to my BEA16 Shelf on Goodreads so you can check out all the goodies I procured. :D Also, I ended up with some duplicates (I actually found a signed copy of Forever With You on a trash can!) so guess what that means?! GIVEAWAYS! Keep an eye out for those over the summer. :)

I also one-clicked a few pretties because I just couldn't help myself!

Bought

Forever Hers (Spirits of Saoradh, #1)Dangerous Territory (Alpha Ops, #1)Eros Element (Aether Psychics #1)
I one-clicked Forever Her's after reading Lola's review (@Lola's Reviews) of book 2 - plus, she let me know it was *free*. Dangerous Territory was a one-click after reading Anna's review (@Herding Cats & Burning Soup) of book 6. I one-clicked Eros Element after reading Terri's review (@Second Run Reviews) of book 3. It was also only 99 cents.



Bagged

I'm happy to report that I've already done a 'shift' in my bookshelves and fit all my new to-be-reads on them. :D Man! That was a lot of work! 


The Wall of Winnipeg and MeMy Heart's in the HighlandsFirst Time: Ian's StoryPretty Much Screwed
I received The Wall of Winnipeg and MeMy Heart's in the Highlands, First Time, and Pretty Much Screwed for review. Thanks to Tantor Media!

DerisionDiscovering You (Whiskey Creek, #10)Awakened by a Demoness (Eternal Mates, #10)Awakened by the Wolf
I also received Derision, Discovering You, Awakened by a Demoness, and Awakened by the Wolf for review. Thanks Trisha Wolfe, Brenda Novak, Felicity Heaton, and Kristal Hollis!



Last Several Weeks' Reviews
Upcoming Reviews
Discovering You by Brenda Novak
Awakened by a Demoness by Felicity Heaton
Awakened by the Wolf by Kristal Hollis
Legal Ease by Lori Ryan
Never Love a Highlander by Maya Banks
Sweet Dreams by Kristen Ashley
Shatter by Erin McCarthy
Exquisite Trouble by Ann Mayburn
Always by Kindle Alexander
Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night by Kresley Cole