Review: The Striker - Book #1 Gods of the Game Series - Ana Huang - October 2024 I'll be honest with you Ana Huang and I have had quite the complicated relationship. Her books have been a bit of a mixed bag for me over the years, landing anywhere from absolute favourites to DNFs (did-not-finishes, for those not deep in the bookish rabbit hole). So when I packed my bags for our Readers Retreat in Taupō last week, I finally decided it was time to give The Striker a proper chance. It had been sitting on my shelf since release, quietly judging me every time I walked past. You know that feeling. We've all been there. And oh my goodness  how did it take me this long? I'm so glad I finally cracked the spine on this one, because The Striker completely won me over. At its heart, it's a football romance and when I say football, I do mean soccer, just so we're all on the same page! Our hero, Asher Donovan, is an absolute dreamboat of a soccer champion who has just switched ...

Review: I'll Always Be With You - Book #4 Lancaster Prep Series - Monica Murphy - May 2023 Being the King/Queen of Lancaster Prep is hard to do unless there are no Lancasters at the school, if you are a Lancaster then you automatically assume the role and rule the school. This year Weston Fontaine is excited as there are no Lancasters enrolled currently at Lancaster Prep which means he is now King of the school for his final year. During summer break, West and a few of his friends went off to Europe and Paris. It was in Paris, that West spotted a Lancaster - Carolina Lancaster. She is the Lancaster people forget about as she has dedicated her life to dancing and since she was 13 - she has lived abroad and studied Ballet at dance schools. It is in Paris that Carolina loses her V-card to Weston Fontaine. The pair have an amazing night and then go their separate ways. That is until Carolina's parents with having no children to boss around, decide to inconvenience her life and h...

Review: Missing Mom - Lynn Slaughter - January 2025 Noelle's life was on track, she had three loving parents - her dad, stepdad, and mum, she had her younger sister Whitney and her ballet. Everything was going well until one day, her mum didn't come home. Noelle knows something is off as her mum just wouldn't disappear on them, she also wasn't suicidal as the police believe she killed herself. With the help of her friend and ballet partner Ravi, Noelle goes on a journey to discover what happened to her mother. In doing so though Noelle will discover that her mum who never talked about her past, had a good reason not to as her mum's name isn't even her real name. What happened to her mother and why did her mum change her name? The book then jumps back to 20 years ago when we meet teenage Savannah. Savannah has gotten into a relationship with Mack. A relationship that will start to become an abusive one and it can only end two ways - either she can escape or in a ...

Step One Grier Cooper (Indigo Ballet Series) Publication date: November 15th 2024 Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult When Indigo lands a role in Ballet Russia’s touring production of The Nutcracker, it’s a dream come true…. Or is it? Her arch nemesis is also part of the production. So is dashing Russian viral video superstar Dimitri Volkov, who’s playing some kind of game she doesn’t quite understand. As Indigo dances alongside the rising stars of Ballet Russia she struggles to rise above constant criticism from Ballet Russia’s Director, Yuri Kanofsky. But first she’ll have to dig deep and silence the doubts running through her mind if she wants to rise to their level and drive her ballet career forward. When unexpected events turn Indigo’s world upside down overnight she’s forced to decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice to get there. And one innocent mistake just might cost her everything. Goodreads / Amazon — EXCERPT: “You.” The single word from Yuri yanks me o...

Review: Murder in Fourth Position - On Pointe Mystery Series #4 - Lori Robbins -October 2023 One of the topics I have enjoyed watching movies/TV and in real life as well as reading books is based around Ballet. If only I had been taught earlier on in life and a bit more graceful and coordinated, I think I would have loved to give ballet a go as I just love watching the dance and the fluidity of it. I had read previously one of the books in this series and so was excited to give this one a go. Leah is back and this time she is not only going undercover in a Broadway musical called Mad Music, but she is also dancing the lead and keeping an eye on one of the main dancers Amber. Someone has been sending threats to Amber and when Amber and another cast member turn up in hospital, it's time to up the ante as the actual police finally take notice. What will happen though when Leah finds herself a target of the same stalker? Who is threatened by her and Amber and doesn't want them in ...

Review: Match Pointe - Indigo Bloome - January 2015 As readers will be aware May was Clear Your Bookshelf Challenge month and so I set forth to make sure that I could get rid of some of the books on my bookshelf. This was a fun challenge as it made me explore and pick up books that had been forgotten about and discover some diamonds in the rough like Match Pointe by Indigo Bloome. Match Pointe was the result of what you would get if you mixed Ballet, Tennis and added a BDSM erotica feel to the novel. The book starts with us meeting two of the main characters Caesar and Eloise. Caesar is wealthy and has made his money by being the best and raising tennis stars and elite athletes and Eloise is a ballet dancer. What happens when these two lives collide is Eloise has lost everything she has ever known and Caesar is offering her an opportunity of a lifetime that will set her up for the rest of her life. She is to dance for the Number 1 tennis player as a form of motivation before their ga...