(Review) Candlelight Christmas ★★★★☆

Author: Susan Wiggs
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley- Harlequin
336 pages

A single father who yearns to be a family man, Logan O'Donnell is determined to create the perfect Christmas for his son, Charlie. The entire O'Donnell clan arrives to spend the holidays in Avalon, a postcard-pretty town on the shores of Willow Lake, a place for the family to reconnect and rediscover the special gifts of the season.

One of the guests is a newcomer to Willow Lake— Darcy Fitzgerald. Sharp-witted, independent and intent on guarding her heart, she's the last person Logan can see himself falling for. And Darcy is convinced that a relationship is the last thing she needs this Christmas.

Yet between the snowy silence of the winter woods, and toasty moments by a crackling fire, their two lonely hearts collide. The magic of the season brings them each a gift neither ever expected—a love to last a lifetime.

The Sheriff Catches a Bride ★★☆☆☆

Author: Cora Seton
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley- One Acre Press

When county sheriff Cab Johnson gets a hunch, he’s learned to trust it, and his hunch tells him Rose Bellingham is in a peck of trouble. Bad enough he’s in love with her, bad enough she’s already engaged to Jason Thayer. He’s got to figure out what she’s hiding before he loses her for good.

Rose can’t stand one more person meddling in her business, even if that person is a handsome, eligible sheriff. She’s been controlled for far too long. But since her fiancé’s father is both her boss and landlord, she can’t dump Jason until she’s got somewhere to run. She’s found the perfect place: a patch of forest outside town. But with Cab watching her every move, she’s hard pressed to finish her hideaway so she can make her escape. Meanwhile, she’s not the only one with problems. Can she find a way to help her friends, too?

Just when Cab solves one mystery, more pop up. Where does Rose keep disappearing to? What’s wrong with Mia Start? Why is Hannah Chatham lying to her fiancé? At least he’s let Rose know he’s interested. And if he’s not mistaken, she’s interested, too.

Rose’s hideaway is perfect, until her friends invade it to escape their own troubles. Can she trust them to keep its whereabouts a secret? Does she want to hide from Cab anymore? Now that Jason’s out of the picture, is it safe to follow her heart?

When two unexpected visitors arrive with secrets of their own, Chance Creek must brace for its deadliest night ever. Can Cab figure out the connections between all the mysteries fast enough?

Or will Rose and her friends pay the ultimate price?

How to Run with a Naked Werewolf ★★★★☆

Author: Molly Harper
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Source: NetGalley- Pocket Books
352 pages

Down, Boy
Anna Moder has just witnessed a shooting, seen her car pulverized, and rescued a wounded stranger only to discover he's really a werewolf. And by her recent standards, things are actually looking up. Lycanthropes don't faze Anna. Doctoring a wolf pack outside Grundy, Alaska, is the closest thing to home life she's known in years. But hitching a ride to Anchorage with long-absent pack member Caleb Graham that&'s a risk. Part of her itches to whack his nose with a newspaper. The rest is trying unsuccessfully to keep her own paws off every delicious inch of him.
The problem is, Caleb employs his lupine tracking abilities as a notquite- legal bounty hunter, and Anna is suspicious of both him and his profession. On the run from her past, with old problems closing in, she'd like to stay far, far away from anybody with connections to the law. Caleb, however, seems determined to keep her close. Are his intentions noble, or is he working a more predatory angle?
Anna's been dreaming of returning to a semi-normal life, but now she's experiencing a strange new urge . . . to join Caleb in running with the wolves.

Happy New Year Baby Fortune ★★★☆☆

Author: Leanne Banks
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley- Harlequin
224 pages

Lullabies and cowboys? USA TODAY bestselling author Leanne Banks kicks off the new Fortunes of Texas continuity with a story of a single mom and the sexy rancher who sweeps her off her feet!

As she rings in the new year in Horseback Hollow, Texas, single mom Stacey Fortune Jones tries to count her blessings. She has an adorable baby girl, Piper; supportive parents; good friends. Best of them all is Colton Foster, her longtime neighbor from the ranch next door. He always seems to be around when she needs him. Trouble is, she may be starting to need him a bit too much.

She's off-limits, Colton keeps telling himself. The tall, muscular rancher turns to mush every time he sees Stacey. But falling for his little sister's best friend seems wrong on so many levels. She's on the rebound. She's got a baby. She's...complicated. What's a big-hearted cowboy to do?

2014 Reading Challenges

2014 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

I'm planning to read 50+ books for this challenge in 2014

1-10 - A Firm Handshake

11-20 - A Friendly Hug

21-30 - First Kiss

31-40 - Sweet Summer Fling

41-50 - Could this be love?

50+ - Married With Children

At first I was going to go with a smaller goal and work my way up but I figure I read over 200 books in 2013 I'm sure that I can manage to make it past that in 2014 and most will be older... 

According to my Goodreads "My Books" page I have 352 books in my to-read category.  Now, that may not sound like a lot to some of you but what you have to understand is when there is a series I only put the next book in the series in my to-read list.  Because, what if I hated book 4 and decided not to read book 5-8 of a series?  So keep that in mind while I do this challenge.  

There were several new books published in 2013 that I have not read yet.  I've become leary of reading a book I'm really looking forward to right away because I tend to set myself up for disappointment.  For example Allegiant.  If I had only waited and read reviews I could have saved myself that pain.  So, in addition to weedling down my ever growing to-be-read pile I would also like to read some of those 2013 new releases that I put off.

In addition to new releases I discovered many new authors this year that I'm dying to read.  Some of them I may not have added the books to my Goodreads to-read list yet.  But they are in my to-read list in my head!  During my experiment with reading Christmas books for 2 weeks this year I discovered some excellent new authors in the contemporary romance genre which I haven't read much of and am looking forward to exploring. 

2014 NetGalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge

I'm planning to read 25 books for this challenge in 2014

Aluminum – 5 books

Bronze – 10 books

Silver – 25 books

Gold – 50 books

Platinum – 75 books

Diamond– 100 books

Last I checked my NetGalley percentage was exactly 80%.  That was before a bunch of books that I had requested months ago got approved.  Now I have all this catching up to do!  The other day I was bored and requested a bunch more books so if I get approved for those I'm in big trouble.  The idea of posting which books that I read each month sounds great.    As far as Edelweiss goes I have been planning to sign up but have been to busy to do so.  I spent like an hour reading about how to sign up and request books but that's as far as I've gotten.  So my Edelweiss part of the 2014 goal is to sign up and request a few books.  I'll get back to ya on the rest. 

I signed up for both the vampire and shifter challenges on:

Both challenges are to read 10+ books... vampires and shifters.  Which are my favorite types of books so I will have no problem hitting that goal at all.

Here are the Categories 

Classics are the new black – read a classic novel
It’s a serial thing – you’ve read the first in a series (or even three of them), it’s time to read another!
Lost in translation – time to read a book that was first written in another language and then translated.
It’s about time! – read a book that has been sitting on your shelf for at least two years! (and haven’t read it yet!)
By the numbers – read a book with a Number in the title
Weird Science! – read a book that features some form of science – and maybe discover an untapped passion.
I just love a good Duet – a book written by more than one author.
New Guy in Town – read a Debut book written by a new author.
Almost Human – read a book from the perspective of an animal – or an alien – or a robot! (at least feature an ‘almost human’)
Chunkster-time! – read a book that is longer 500 pages. (Time to dust off War and Peace)
Random Rescue – go to a used book store and RANDOMLY pick a book! (could even be from a grab-bag)
Under-Aged Writer – read a book by an author who is not yet 21. Here's a little help.
Time for exercise – read a book that is set in or around a sport or exercise activity (like yoga or baseball). This can be fiction or nonfiction!
Make-Believe - This category is just for YOU! (and anyone who wants to try it!) Here is your chance to let others know what would get you outside of your Comfort Zone!

Here are the levels

I plan to read 8-10 books for this challenge.

I’m a little Scared: 3-4 categories
It’s not so bad out here!: 5-7 categories
Look at me, outside my comfort zone!: 8-10 categories
Outside In!: 11-13 categories
No Box can Contain Me!: I did ALL 14!



I thought about posting lists of books that I will read for the challenges but I have decided to wait on that. I may add to this post with more details but I'm afraid I'll end up changing my mind as I always seem to do every time that I pick certain books to read within a time-line. So, that's it for now! I'll be tagging all of my TBR Pile Reading Challenge books so everyone can keep up with my progress. Have a great new year ya'll!