Beth Williamson (1) (1967–)

Recommended by Lady Rhyleigh for ARe Cafe.

Clio should have known not to fool with her father’s books, but the Muse of History living as a goddess on Mt. Olympus couldn’t help herself. Reading was her favorite pastime. Landing unceremoniously in a water trough in Peyote, Texas in 1875 was totally out of her realm and obviously not in her comfort zone. She was mortal now, her powers had been stripped and she has to figure out how to cope with her circumstances on her own until her father show more or sisters find her.

Ace Nevada, Sheriff of Peyote, didn’t know what to think of the chit in the wet purple thingy clinging to her very comely body. When she fell into the horse trough he knew he had never met her before and something told him she was not one of the girls from down the street. Taking her to Maybelle’s instead of the holding cell or to that other place; he soon finds it hard to stay away. She says she’s a Goddess, and Ace soon realizes she makes love like she’s one, but her missing memories still trouble him. When a few of the town’s more vocal residents take things into their own hands, he finds himself out of ways to help. When Clio is finally pushed too far, they find it isn’t nice to anger a Goddess.

Loved this novella and the smart and sassy heroine as she learns to deal with her fate and makes a home in the old west despite her lack of knowledge on how to do the most basic everyday chores. Ace is a very sexy and rugged lawman who knows both sides of the law, but has found a home and acceptance for the first time in his life there in Peyote. Their chemistry is instantaneous as they explore their connection but their witty banter and their fun interactions with the secondary characters made this story speed along, which left this reader hoping for a little bit more to Clio and Ace’s story. show less

The “devils” are a band of ex-confederate soldiers that are running from the persecution that follows being on the wrong side of the war. Made brothers by the sheer amount of death and destruction they have seen, and been part of, the Devils form a small company to make ends meet. DH Enterprises take on any task; everything is considered in the quest to stay alive and out of jail. On a trip into the town to get supplies, Nate meets Samuel O’Shea, a local landowner. He hires the devils show more to “remove” some squatters on land he owns. The squatters in question are Elisa Taggert and her family, and the land in question is her family home, bought after her mother’s suicide for a mere 20 dollars. Nate has never quite met anyone like Elisa. She dresses like a man, fights like a man and is as prickly as a cactus. On their very first meeting she calls him an “enemy” for working for O’Shea. She elicits feelings in him that he thought had been beaten away by the horrors of war. The devils need the money; it has been months since they had stability, and the threat of being arrested by the Yankees’ is constant. But try as he might, Nate can’t seem to treat her as simply an obstacle to be removed for a hell of a lot of money.

Elisa has never had the time to simply be a girl. She has been running the ranch, whilst taking care of her little brother, for as long as she can remember. She can’t afford to develop feelings for Nate; she has no time to be anything other than the protector of her ranch against a new threat. Unfortunately for Elisa, no matter how much she tries to blend in as “one of the boys”, the way she responds to Nate is distinctly feminine. The clever southern gent makes her remember that she has needs outside of food and water.

This book was an unexpected gem. The little town in the Wild West, made a perfect setting for a lovely little book. Grayson was a vividly written town with small town politics and western ways of settling differences. I enjoyed reading about all the characters, from the local bargirl to the shopkeeper; every character was a joy to read. All of the devils captured my imagination. We had Gideon, the unofficial leader of the bedraggled crew, who was sure and gentlemanly. Next we had Jake, the suave red-head, who could charm the paint off walls (I’m looking forward to his book next!). Then we had Zeke the quiet and brooding soldier, who doesn’t have a lot to say but what he does is always important. Last, but definitely not least, we have the physically damaged Lee, a man who is hurting so much on the inside he comes across as irritable and snarky. I have a feeling his will be the book to make me cry! All of these men have a camaraderie that is beautiful to read. It is clear that the only thing these men have is each other, that home to them is anywhere that they are all together. I love a good bromance and this one was definitely one!

Nate is the epitome of a perfect southern gentleman. Obviously educated, he has all the fancy words and manners to be the perfect spokesman for the Devils. On meeting Elisa, all those manners seem to go out of the window. The way he acts towards her isn’t trained or schooled. His actions towards her are almost desperate and I adored the way he couldn’t keep up his facade with her. His behaviour towards her is almost primal (there is a scene against a tree....it’s very good!). At one point someone points out to him that he acts towards her like she’s his mate and I have to say this is a good analogy. He is possessive, protective and completely without reason. When he wants turn on the charm he can, but the second he loses control that southern smoothie disappears and the man is replaced with heat and passion. I loved him, he acted towards her exactly the way that I expect a good alpha hero to behave. There is a scene where he bears his soul to protect her brother, exposing deep wounds that he had never shared to try to save her from having to bear the heartache of losing a brother. If I had any doubts towards him, they would have buggered off and left at that point. I adored him.

Elisa is a product of her upbringing. She is a mixture of what she wants to be and what she needs to be. She needs to be the protector of the household; her daddy fell apart after her mother’s suicide and now he is next to useless. She needs to be hard and tough so people don’t threaten the ranch. What she wants to be is a normal 19 year old girl, with that girl’s hopes, dream and problems. She reacts to Nate with such untapped passion and naivety that I found her incredibly sweet. She talked tough because she didn’t know another way of proving that she could handle everything on her plate, but the second she got within spitting distance of Nate, all the toughness disappeared to be replaced with lust and insecurity. The scenes where she is the aggressor in their relationship are quite comical, both in her techniques and Nate’s shocked reaction to them. I enjoyed her character and willed Nate to get her out of the horrible mess she was in and teach her how to just be herself. This isn’t what I would call an erotic romance, but what sex scenes there are hot and satisfying. The heat between them is real and undeniable, with the resulting moments being packed full of forbidden lust and unrealised feelings.

There were twists in this book that I didn’t see coming. It isn’t a simple loves story; there is real danger for Elisa and her family. The only questions is do Nate and the devils sort out the sticky mess she is in, or become part of her downfall? show less

Remy recently inherited her title as Captain of the Steel Coyote and is struggling to find a new job and make ends meet. Max is a confident pretty boy trying to score a pilot job on a cruise ship. When the two are unexpectedly hired for a high paying job, they have to decide if it's worth fighting for things to stay the same or if they will change themselves and their world.

This was an enjoyable sci-fi romance, which is a fun read if you're into space operas with a bit of action. It was a show more rather quick read, but I enjoyed how it was a sci-fi rather than a run of the mill contemporary romance.

There was the usual enemies to lovers trope, but I don't hate that. I did catch myself thinking several times that there was a lot of repetition in some aspects or scenes... we get it, Remy has nice assets. It also seems as though there may have been some influence from the Firefly TV series, but it was generic enough that I can't even say for sure whether that it was intentional or if I drew my own conclusions being a huge fan of the show.

There is profanity and a few detailed sex scenes, so this is not the book for you if you're looking for a clean romance. There are mentions of slavery and abuse, but it is not described in much detail, so I wouldn't say this is a darkly themed novel, but it's worth mentioning if you are especially sensitive to these topics.

Overall, I enjoyed this story and would recommend it to anyone looking for a fun space-themed action romance.

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. show less

By: Beth Williamson & Robin Danner
Published By: Liquid Silver Publishing
Age Recommended: Adult
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: 4
Book Blog For: GMTA
Review:

"Vixen Virgins" by Beth Williamson and Robin Danner come together and intertwined a two part story under this title. The first story is 'The Outlaw's Virgin by Beth Williamson

The first story deals with Lady Margaret Travers and her sister Millicent are on there way by train to their Aunt Gertrude. Why is Margaret running away? This is due to show more the fact she is running from an arranged marriage to some 'American Earl.' While heading to Corpus Christi, Texas they train is robbed and all of her money is now gone. What will she do? Well, this is the time that I say you must pick up this read to what will happen to her and her sister.

the second story: 'The Sheriff's Vixen' by Robin Danner

The second story is of the sister, Lady Millicent Travers who had been traveling with her sister Margaret but were robbed. We now find that Millicent has been left behind in Beaumont, Texas while Margaret is gone with her horse Wind Dancer to find the bandit that had robbed them. Millicent finds a job at a saloon serving drinks and that is where she will find trouble and it seems like Benjamin Spalding who the sheriff of Beaumont will be there 'to stop her in her tracks.' Now, this is where I will say you must continue reading "Vixen Virgins' to see how this will come out. It will be most interesting and down right funny.

I found all of the characters in both stories were well structured and completed each other. You will definitely love reading with the combination of the Regency women (Vixen Virgins) and the heat of these American Western men this will be a story you will not want to miss. Yes, I would recommend this good read. show less