REVIEW: Love Least Expected By, Various Authors

Nine stories. One happy ending.

Under the Mango Tree - Meredith Bond

Lakshmi is a good 18th century Indian girl who should not be avoiding her chores and enjoying a mango while hidden amongst the high branches of the mango tree in her mother’s garden. She truly should not be seen by a man who is not a member of her family—an Englishman, no less. And she absolutely should not even contemplate speaking with this man. But Lakshmi has never been one to follow the rules. This time, though, it could ruin—or make—the rest of her life.

Rolf’s Quest - Aubrey Wynne

Baron Rolf Arbrec, the royal wizard for King Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine, is burdened with a centuries–old quest to free his descendant, Merlin. To lift the enchantment, he must find true love without the use of magic or deceit, something that has eluded the male generations before him.
Finding genuine love is no easy task, even for a wizard, If he cannot break the spell and fails his quest, future generations will be deprived of their chance for happiness. When Melissa steps from his dreams and into his arms, he realizes his need for her love runs deep and she is more than just a way to free Merlin.

Lady Melissa Garrick travels to London to meet her betrothed. Along the way, she encounters a man who haunts her dreams and makes her reconsider her destiny. Torn between loyalty to her family and her intense attraction to Rolf, she struggles to remain an obedient daughter. Though she desires him, will she defy her family and turn her back on her betrothed? Or will time run out and Rolf be doomed to a life of discontent and bitterness like his ancestors before him?

Fall Into Darkness - Valerie Twombly

Eli lives by his own rules and bows to no one, even when summoned before the Tribunal Seven. They deem the hunter has lost his humanity and sentence the angel to earth with one mission: find some compassion or be condemned to hell.

Ashley considers herself a freak. With one glance into a person’s eyes, she foresees their death. When an attack brings a handsome stranger to her rescue, she can’t help but be drawn to his steel–blue gaze.
Fate will bring them together but desire could bond them for eternity.

Roses are Wrong, Violets Taboo - Kris Calvert

On the night before Valentine’s Day, floral and greenhouse owner, Alexander Chase Tabeau should be preparing for the biggest day of his family’s business. Instead he’s drowning his sorrows at the Voodoo bar after burying the only real parent he’s ever known—his grandfather, Pops. The rugged and handsome man promised Pops he would get his life together, leaving behind a string of undesirable women and focusing on what was most important—family.

Rose Westwood has always known what she wanted and planned her life down to the tiniest detail. She’s packed up her belongings and is ready to take a new and challenging position with her company as their first female vice president. Not wanting to be alone on her last night in Tampa, she stumbles into what she never planned on—the best night of her life.

With nothing to lose and everything to gain, Rose and Chase spend one night confessing their hopes for the future and their failures of the past. After opening their hearts to one another, the morning after sheds new light on their destiny. Can one night together change them both forever?

Alphabetical Disorder - Katie Stephens

Everyone in Mason’s Circus understands and respects the powers of the resident gypsies—the Romani tribe—and most steer clear of any involvement. But when Susie gets caught in a web of prophecy and magic that brings danger to the troupe, her non–Rom interpretation turns out to be flawed. She pushes aside the man of her dreams to date alphabetically, in the hopes of saving her circus family.

Sam has had his eye on Susie since she joined the company. He’s puzzled by her actions, but not blind to the way she responds to him. A patient man by nature, he battles his need to claim her immediately or allow her game to continue. When disaster strikes, they join forces with their Romani friends to stop the curse before it destroys the circus.

Love’s Not Viral - Nessie Strange

Twenty–four–year–old bartender Aster Sanderson’s life is turned upside down when drunken Hollywood actor Bradley Stone snaps a picture of her...and tweets to his 12.8 million followers that she’s his fiancee. As the internet blows up with the news and gossip flies out of control, she’s left feeling helpless. This has to be a misunderstanding, right? But when the actor in question shows up on her doorstep, it’s clear he’s unhinged and she soon becomes a prisoner in her own home (literally).

Her savior? Bradley’s handsome—and seemingly normal—older brother, James, who quickly stirs up feelings she never expected. Can they disarm the ticking time–bomb that Bradley Stone has become before any more damage is done? And is their mutual attraction the result of these unusual circumstances...or could it become something more?

Taking the Plunge - Kishan Paul

Since graduating high school, Eve Cambridge has dropped ten dress sizes, became an RN, and dumped her jerk of a boyfriend—all on her own. So when her high school crush shows up in her life, she does what any normal self–reliant woman would do—pepper spray him.

Since inheriting the family plumbing business, Pete Russo has tried to make the best of a career he never planned for. He’s made his share of mistakes, but he’s worked hard to learn from them. Now that he’s run into Eve, he’s not so sure he isn’t making another one. After all, she did almost blind him.

When logic and emotion don’t agree, which path should they follow?

The Trouble with Never - Isabella Harper

Summer McKenzie is starting fresh. With her soon to be ex–husband in another state, she’s ready to start over in her small Texas town. That is, until she runs into the one person that has never gone too far from her memories, or her heart.
Since graduating college, Caleb Davis has planted roots in the form of a thriving BBQ business. He’s got everything he’s ever wanted, except the one woman that he could never have. It’s clear she’s had a painful past, but he wants nothing more than to create a promising future.
Will she let love heal old ones, or will she let her fears push him away?

Keep Calm and Eat Chocolate - Michaela Miles

Eleanor Carrara is angry. At the world, at the people who had her committed to the institution, and at the people holding her captive in it. When the sexy, but calm and stoic Chris becomes a fellow resident of the facility, things begin to change. He taunts her, challenges her, and even makes her cry. But her anger dissolves as she realizes he’s the one person who may be able to break through the armor built around her heart.

Christopher Tailor feels nothing. Haunted by the memories of his awful past, he is institutionalized, and utterly alone in the world. Meeting Elle changes everything. She’s conceited, rude, and completely unaware that in some ways she’s just as broken as he is. But something about her gets under his skin. He takes a chance and shares his secret with her.

Falling in love was the last thing Chris and Elle expected. But for them to consider having a future together, they first have to let go of their past and trust the system imprisoning them both.

Review

For this blog tour I read Valerie Twombly’s Fall into Darkness. I was immediately hooked when I started this story. It ended much too quickly. It was definitely the beginning of this story. Eli is an Angel but he is also a rebel. He lives by his own rules and doesn’t care about the opinions of others. When he is sent to Earth to find his humanity Eli doesn’t know where to begin or what the Tribunal actually wants from him, and then he saves Ashley.

Ashley considers herself a freak. Whenever she looks into someone’s eye she immediately sees their death. When she has had enough she moves out to the middle of nowhere Alaska. One night while Ashley is out getting firewood she is attacked. When she wakes up she realizes that she has been saved by a stranger and she can’t see his death when she looks into his eyes.

This was a great beginning and that is all it was. The characters are just starting their journey. Both characters are just beginning their development and their love story. I thought these were filled with complete novellas but I was wrong. The story abruptly ended when it was getting to the action so I was a little disappointed. I will definitely be picking up the rest of Eli and Ashley’s story.

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