Mega Cool Review for UYL — 5 Stars!

So, I am bursting to give you this news! I just stumbled across this awesome five star review for Upon Your Love, a historical romance/family saga novel and book three of the Heiresses in Love Series.

This is what the reviewer said on Amazon:

“I always thought historical romances were boring, but I was wrong!!!, June 13, 2017

By

Amazon Customer

This review is from: Upon Your Love (Heiresses In Love Book 3) (Kindle Edition)

The first thing I noticed was the length of the book which might startle a modern-day reader, but this one’s totally worth it. A solid storyline that flows from one page to the next. I think the length of this book is a plus point because it allows you to really, really get to know the characters. So don’t let the number of pages scare you. Most romance novels don’t give you deep insight into the characters. They are all about formulaic plots and stereotypical heroes and heroines. But in this book, the characters felt deeper than a typical romance. It was almost as if the author spent a lot of time building the characters in her head, and as the story proceeded, the characters kept growing.

Although it’s a historical romance, it doesn’t feel dated or stylistic in any way because of the way the author has captured the essence of human nature and relationships. The characters are likable which is no ordinary feat because I find it very difficult to like female protagonists.

Two-thumbs up.”

Wow! Thanks for your kind comments!

Readers, don’t forget to check out the whole Victorian maritime romance series as well! 😉

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Double Reviews for THE MISSING PIECE!

As most of you know, I released this new adult romance short story in February. It originally appeared in the Valentine’s anthology, Cupid’s Arrow, for Solstice Publishing, but the publisher decided to release it on its own as well. Here are two great recent reviews:

Kiss of Love, June 4, 2017

By

Linda Diane Wattley

Verified Purchase(What’s this?)

This review is from: The Missing Piece (Kindle Edition)

“By the time I reached the last page, l was encouraged. I am still smiling. I really enjoyed this story. For sure we need to be reminded, love is a many splendid thing. Excellent writing style for readers seeking a heartwarming experience. Great job!”

 

 The Missing Piece by Marie Lavender #mf #review @marielavender1

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“The Missing Piece is a uniquely done love story where unexpected things happen to a college aged girl. She wakes up on the front lawn of a fraternity not knowing what happened the night before. A boy from the party offers to help her piece together what happened and they end up bonding and sharing a kiss. She begins to feel things she never felt before, until the boy she spent the forgotten night with shows up at her door. Just when you think you know what is going to happen, the author takes a sharp turn and offers up suspense and intrigue. This sweet story is well written and a definitely attention grabber! While I wasn’t immediately wowed by the subject of the story (college kids partying too hard and blacking out), I couldn’t put this book down! Luckily it’s not long and I absorbed it in one night.I highly recommend this book to anyone!”

Woo hoo! Thank you, Linda and Kim, for your kind commentary! ♥

Five Amazing Stars for UYL!

Thanks, David, for your awesome commentary about Upon Your Love, book three of the Heiresses in Love Series!

By David Burnett on May 17, 2017

Format: Kindle Edition

Marie Lavender’s books revolve around strong female characters who find themselves struggling to attain their goals in spite of opposition from the social conventions of their times and the attempts of men to control their lives. Upon Your Love is no exception. Set in the nineteenth century, it is the story of Adrienne Hill, the daughter of a sea captain, who lives on a plantation near New Orleans.

Adrienne is no “shy flower.” She fences and she rides. She travels about the plantation without a chaperone or a guardian, protected by weapons hidden on her person. She goes to sea with her father, and at times, wished she were a sailor.

The book traces the rocky development of her love for Christian, a strong man with a “bad boy” reputation who is attracted to the independent, strong-willed Adrienne.

If you enjoy historical romances with strong characters, plot twists, danger, and love, you will like this book.

Purchase Links:

Amazon Universal link:  https://bookgoodies.com/a/B06XBPVS7D

myBook.to/UYL

Publisher:  http://solsticepublishing.com/upon-your-love/

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/upon-your-love-marie-lavender/1125931721

Books-A-Million:  http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Upon-Your-Love/Marie-Lavender/9781625265401?id=6842447479054

CreateSpace link:  https://www.createspace.com/6969887

Trailer:

Readers, don’t miss the whole trilogy!

4 Stars for THE MISSING PIECE!

I just learned about this review yesterday. Thank you, Sandra, for your kind words regarding this new adult romance story! 🙂

 

Review: THE MISSING PIECE by Marie Lavender

Alyssa is a reserved college student, an English lit major that preferred the company of a paperback more than anything else. “She wasn’t prepared to venture into the dating scene like everyone else on campus. Of course, ‘dating’ was actually a pretty loose term these days. She preferred her own company to that of the male persuasion. They all seemed to be caught up in the weekend scene and were so full of themselves that it was probably better if she avoided them altogether.”

One morning, she wakes up on the lawn in front of an unknown fraternity house with a raging hangover and absolutely no recollection of the night before. It’s at this point that she learns that, under the influence of too much alcohol, she actually went upstairs with a guy she didn’t know. Oh, no! You don’t suppose that they…that she…? With rampant thoughts of pregnancy and STD’s, Aly becomes paranoid and seeks to find answers to what happened that night. Did she go all the way with some guy named Brendan? Fortunately, the guy’s roommate, Justin, was willing to help her out.

The “missing piece” is finding the truth for young Aly, and the reader becomes interested to find out, too, especially when Aly is such a sweet girl that you can’t bear for anything bad to happen to her. You feel for her as she goes through the stages of confusion and panic over the possible what-ifs of that night. I liked that Justin was there for her, making Aly realize that her crisis may have revealed a very small and very cute diamond in the rough.

Short and compelling, this story is a quick, satisfying read.

Purchase Links:

Amazon Universal:  http://myBook.to/MissingPiece

Print anthology:  https://www.createspace.com/6933779

 

Double Reviews for New Adult Romance!

Great news! Two new reviews popped up this week for my new adult romance story, The Missing Piece. Yay! 🙂

-from Amy Shannon’s Bookshelf Reviews’ blog

 

 

 

Likeable story

It’s a sweet novella about Alyssa, who with the help of Justin, tried to figure out what happened the night before.

The story was well written, and probably would have been better as a novel, than a novella, but the plot and details that are needed to make a great novella is here. It takes a lot of talent to write a thorough novella, and Lavender definitely has that writing talent. The story was sweet, and likable, and engaged the reader on the journey that Alyssa was forced to take.

-from Feathered Quill Book Reviews

Can one mistake cause someone to find love and change their entire life? Author Marie Lavender writes about that possibility in her new romance The Missing Piece.

The Missing Piece is a short story about good-girl Alyssa Masters. One morning Alyssa wakes up on her college fraternity’s lawn with a massive headache and a spotty memory, and instantly panics. Parties aren’t her scene, she’s a recluse and doesn’t drink. She’s a good student and doesn’t do anything that involves too much risk, until last night, apparently.

As Alyssa struggles to take in her surroundings and figure out what day it is, a young man named Justin helps her to put some of the pieces together. She finds that she did, in fact, attend the frat party and clearly drank, but much of what happened afterward is still a mystery. All she knows is what Justin has told her – that she had spent time with a fraternity member named Brendan and eventually followed him upstairs after doing some jello shots. In an instant frenzy, she thinks of the worst possible outcomes, only to be assured by Justin that Brendan is a good guy. He vows to help her figure out the pieces of her missing memory, but they could very well find that they were each other’s missing piece all along.

The Missing Piece was a quick and fun read, and I enjoyed meeting Alyssa and the other characters. Given the constraints of the short story format – this is a 30-page story – it’s difficult for the author to “flesh out” the characters and really develop them. I would have loved to see the characters be more deeply developed, and I would have loved to be more involved in this story. I really did want to keep reading more, as the style of writing was easy to follow and intriguing. I am hoping for a sequel to this short story, as I would like to know how the romance between characters develops and if Alyssa comes to change her good-girl ways or finds someone who will accept her for everything she is and always was.

Quill says: The Missing Piece is a mysterious and romantic read that readers will find themselves wanting more of and definitely looking for other stories by this author.

Thank you, Amy and Diana, for your kind words! 😀

A Short But Sweet 5 Stars!

Awesome news! I just stumbled across a great review for one of my books on Amazon. On March 20th, Azia had some wonderful things to say about short contemporary romance, Second Chance Heart:

“A great short Romance story. I really enjoyed reading this one. Looking forward to reading many more by this author! :)”

Wow! Thanks, Azia! Hope to hear from you again! ♥♥♥

Readers, here are some teasers from SCH to give you a peek…

Purchase Links:

Amazon Universal link: http://bookgoodies.com/a/B01593TDO6

myBook.to/SecondChanceHeart

myBook.to/SCH

Smashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/576453

Barnes & Noble:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/second-chance-heart-marie-lavender/1122651302

Kobo:  https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/second-chance-heart

And here is the trailer…

I hope you all get a chance to check out this book! Get it a great sale price of 99 cents! 😉

Thank you again, Azia, for your kind words! 🙂

Great 4 Star Review for SCH!

Second Chance Heart by Marie Lavender #mf #romance #review @marielavender1

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After a wild storm forces her to take shelter in a small town inn, Dana Nelson thinks that all she has to worry about is a brief stay before she heads back to the city. She gets far more than she bargained for…

The last thing she expects is to run into an old flame, and even worse, the man who broke her heart twelve years ago. She’s sure that the only thing remaining between them is a strong attraction for another.

She can’t be more wrong…

The more time she spends with Vince Reynolds, the more she begins to believe she can trust him again. But, can she put her faith in the one man who captivates her, body and soul, or are some wounds too deep to heal?

 

A sweet short story about love, betrayal, and facing the past with an open heart and mind. But, for such a short story, it packs a huge punch. Dana and Vince used to be a couple until he ripped her heart out. They come face to face years later and he feels terrible for hurting her so badly. Dana feels a whole host of emotions when she sees her ex, not knowing if she can move on and forgive him for his betrayal.

The author did a great job of creating characters who not only feel intensely, but whole heartedly in so little words. It was sad, romantic, heart-breaking, and endearing all at the same time. Definitely worth the little time it takes to read!

 

Kindle | Nook

New contract!

Wow!  Solstice just offered me a contract for my paranormal romance manuscript, SECOND NATURE!  Yes!  I am so excited!

Just to give you some background, here is the initial blurb for Second Nature:

She never expected it…

Desiree Edwards has a problem. She’s been attacked, kidnapped and forced to get along with a vampire of all things. It’s something right out of the story books she reads, or her worst nightmare. But, sometimes he’s not the monster he appears to be. He seems so humanlike that she can’t help it when her emotions betray her, when her body betrays her. To make matters worse, she finds out more about herself than she ever wanted to know.

She was unlike any other…

Alec has a problem. The animal in him wants Desiree. But, so does the man. The more he learns about her, the harder it is to deny what he wants. But, he’s a freak, and she’s just a human. The two species don’t mix that way. Then an old enemy surfaces and Alec is forced to make a choice. His life or hers.

Can Alec’s soul be saved by this unique human? Or will it be far too late?

For teasers, please visit these links on the blog here and here.    🙂