"Firestorm," by Radclyffe (A First Responder Novel)

Firestorm by Radclyffe

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


"Firestorm" is the second book in Radclyffe's First Responder series. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it!

Mallory "Ice" James is a firefighter paramedic working for the U.S. Forest Service. She commands a team of twenty men & women smokejumpers & trains all the new rookies that come through. Ice runs a tight crew & maintains tight control on everything in her life. Her goal is to keep her team safe. However, something she has no control over is a last minute applicant, rookie Jac "Hotshot" Russo.

Jac has the skills to get & do the job on her own merits, but her Senator father pulls some strings to get her accepted before the others before her. This starts her off on the wrong foot with Mallory, so she feels she has to prove herself to the captain. Jac has spent her life hiding from the politics of her father. She’s learned to guard herself closely & not let anyone into her life.

Neither Mallory nor Jac were ready for what happened next.

Radclyffe does an awesome job of bringing these two women to life. The emotions are high & the love scenes are hot, & the book was too short! There were parts in this book where I would have loved for the author to carry on further. There is so much more that screamed to come out in this story. I would have loved to learn more of Jac's mother, who seemed shoved into this political life just as everyone else. With this political family, it seemed Jac's father pushed the political agenda more so than her mother did.

I'd love to imagine the outcome of Hooker when that day arrives, where Jac or Mallory, or both, let him feel their fury!

Although I would have loved this story to have been longer & beefed up a little more, it was still very balanced with storyline & all the extra characters with the personal relationship between Mallory & Jac. The emotions, the passion, & the sexual tension were intense! I loved it!

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"The Lone Hunt" by L.L Raand

Last weekend I received a copy of “The Lone Hunt,” written by L.L. Raand, to read before it’s release. I am honored to have this opportunity. I have enjoyed reading every book in the Midnight Hunters series and am very excited to read the fourth installment, “The Lone Hunt”. It took me less than a weekend to read through this new book! I couldn’t put it down! Now, with that said, let me share some of what I experienced whilst reading this book.

I love Raand’s wolf Weres and their world. I don’t quite understand the anatomy of the Weres but I’ve marked it up as a part of the fantasy/fiction in the story. It doesn’t have to be completely understood, just believable. In this series, for the most part, the characters are lesbian but still procreate. This boggles my mind, but aside from that, I thoroughly enjoy getting into the story of the Adirondack Timberlake Pack wolf Weres.

In this book, “The Lone Hunt,” we get to see more of our favorite Weres, vampires, humans, and other praeterns, and the world they live in. We see more of the conspiracy that looms over Alpha Sylvan Mir and her pack. In this book, we see alpha become overly protective of her pregnant mate, Drake. And we’ll watch as loyalties and alliances form between the pack and other praetern clans.

 ----- W A R N I N G! -----

If you have NOT read this story yet, then please read no further because I don’t want to give anything away! Now, if you choose to continue, just understand that this MAY give things away.

In this book, along with the ever growing conspiracy that threatens Alpha Sylvan Mir and her pregnant mate Drake, we start to see wolf were turned vampire, Lara find her place within the pack and with the vampires. As Lara tries to find herself and where she belongs, she confronts an alpha cat were and her cubs that is trespassing on Adirondack Timberlake Pack land. As the pack’s centuri, she wastes no time taking down the cat were. However, something happens to Lara and she chooses not to kill this alpha cat. Instead, she takes her as prisoner but protects her closely. The wolf Weres and cat Weres are bitter enemies, which makes it difficult for Lara to protect her cat Were prisoner. As the story progresses, we see Lara falling in love with Raina, alpha to the cat Weres.

As with her other three books in this series, this is a beautiful love story with its continuing plot of conspiracies that we’ve become caught up in throughout the series. Although I enjoyed the story, I found myself wanting more. There were parts in this story that felt as if there should be more to build upon, more detail. I would have loved to have had some areas of the story filled out a little more. For instance, we read a little about cat weres in the last book, “Night Hunt” and then a bit more here in this book, but I still feel like I don’t know much about them.

Even though I did feel the book was short, possibly even rushed, I loved it and would recommend you read the whole series. I look forward to reading more paranormal by L.L. Raand! I can see so much more developing… I want to see where Ms. Raand takes us in this Praeternatural series.

You can get your copy from these online stores. Amazon,  Barnes & Noble, or Bold Strokes Books.

"Trauma Alert" by Radclyffe

Trauma Alert by Radclyffe

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I love the way Radclyffe writes her stories. She is excellent at building her worlds and her characters. Her stories are easy to believe and easy to picture it happening in real life. "Trauma Alert" is no exception! I could not put this book down!

"Trauma Alert" is the first book in Radclyffe’s First Responders series. In this story, we follow the lives of Dr. Ali Torveau, a trauma doctor and Beau Cross, a first responder firefighter. When these two first meet, you can sense the attraction spark between them. However, Ali sees Beau as a danger and concedes to stay away from this firefighter. Beau, on the other hand, is cocky and accepts a bet to pursue the doctor for a date. As they get to know each other, the both begin to realize that they are falling in love with each other. It takes a hostage situation to bring Ali to her senses about Beau. She finds she can’t deny her love for the first responder.

I really enjoyed the whole story. It sucked me right in and I didn’t want to stop reading until I knew how it would end.

I would definitely recommend this book for any who enjoy a good romance story that feels real, not contrived.

You can get your copy of Trauma Alert from Amazon.com.


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"Crossroads," By Radclyffe

I recently finished reading the book, “Crossroads,” written by Radclyffe. It was one of those page-turners where you just couldn’t put the book down. I first read one of Radclyffe’s paranormal books, which she pens under the name L.L. Raand. I loved the way she wrote and how she really spent time developing her characters. My thinking was that writing a paranormal book was a little different than writing something that is more real-life. Since I really enjoyed her paranormal series (and can’t wait for the next in that series to be released), I figured I’d try reading something that, although fiction, was more real-life drama and romance.


To start off, I’ll write what you’ll see on just about every website that sells this book, because I think it best describes the book.
The book description from Amazon.com reads,

“Dr. Hollis Monroe specializes in short-terms relationships, typically eight months or less. As an obstetrician dealing with high-risk pregnancies, she spends all her time and energy in caring for women at a nice, comfortable professional distance until she delivers their babies and can walk away. They're happy, she's satisfied, and no one gets hurt. The perfect relationship.
Pregnant mother-to-be Annie Colfax is alone and barely making ends meet—she didn't plan on starting a family by herself, but she's determined to succeed. All she had to do is survive.
Neither woman wants a relationship, but fate brings them together at a crossroads that will change their lives forever.”

The book starts with Dr. Monroe performing a cesarean section on a young mother who, although she’s bleeding out and very likely to lose her baby and her own life, pleads to this emergency doctor to not take her baby. The baby was still too immature to be born. The mother was more concerned for the maturity of her baby then her own life. However, Dr. Monroe is not used to losing any patient. This mother and her baby were not going to be the first. As with all deliveries, Dr. Monroe saves both mother and child, but the outcome of the delivery builds a deep seeded hatred within the mother.

As the story continues, Dr. Monroe is faced with the task of pulling together a committee of both obstetricians who deal with high-risk pregnancies and midwifes who deliver babies at home. She must build camaraderie between the two groups when both groups are on either end of the spectrum, fighting for their own cause. In walks Annie Colfax, midwife, tasked with the same goal to bring both professions together to work together. Before Annie and Hollis can work at getting their “sides” together in this professional camaraderie, they must first figure out how to work out their personal differences between the two of them.

As they begin to build their relationship, and each try to understand the other, they begin to see that they can’t stand being apart.

Radclyffe builds so much emotion in this story that you find yourself crying, laughing, and swooning for what might develop. I truly enjoyed and recommend this book, "Crossroads." You won't be disappointed.

I hope to get the chance to delve into more of her books. I know for certain I’ll be reading the next in her Midnight Hunters series, “The Lone Hunt,” under her pen name, L. L. Raand. It releases March 19, 2013. I’ve also heard excellent reviews of Radclyffe’s First Responders series and Honor series of which I hope to read someday soon. No matter which pen she uses, Radclyffe has a writing style I like.

You can purchase this book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Bold Strokes Books.