Guild Boss

June 1, 2021

In Balogh's latest Westcott Regency, irascible Justin Wiley, Earl of Brandon, has the decency to take responsibility for half-sister Maria when her mother dies, inviting her friend Lady Estelle Lamarr to accompany Maria to Everleigh Park, where family secrets crack open and the earl finds himself attracted to Someone Perfect: Lady Estelle. In Guild Boss, New York Times best-selling author Castle again escorts us to the earth colony Harmony for another futuristic paranormal romance fling. In Cousens's Just Haven't Met You Yet, Laura picks up the wrong suitcase at the Channel Islands airport while on a business trip, then hunts for the owner with romantic notions--the suitcase included piano music, her favorite book, and a cool fisherman's sweater--with the help of a cranky cabbie who has charms of his own. Evans returns with another Christmas Promise, featuring a love and faith thought lost restored by the true spirit of Christmas (200,000-copy first printing). In the New York Times best-selling Graves's Heard It in a Love Song, newly divorced music teacher Layla recalls her golden days as lead singer of a bar band and falls into happy conversations with the newly separated dad of one of her students, though both are wary of new love (75,000-copy first printing). Next in Ward's "Prison Camp" series, a Black Dagger Brotherhood spin-off set in an underground prison housing murderers and thieves, The Wolf opens with second-in-command Rio saved from death by a lupine creature with golden eyes (150,000-copy first printing). In canine celebrator Wilson A Dog's Chance, Madison helps both her troubled 14-year-old daughter, Abbie, and 75-year-old Arthur by having Abbie help train Arthur's energetic new golden retriever puppy (35,000-copy first printing).

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 6, 2021
Castle returns to the intricately built, unique world of her Harmony series, a former Earth colony long cut off from the home world, in the hot, delightful standalone 14th installment (after Illusion Town). Lucy Bell, a professional weather channeler, meets her very own brooding prince charming in Gabriel Jones, a member of the peacekeeping Ghost Hunter Guild who comes to her rescue after a botched kidnapping attempt lands her in the alien Underworld beneath Illusion Town, Harmony’s version of Las Vegas. With no witnesses and no suspects, no one believes Lucy’s story, instead assuming she’s too embarrassed to admit she’d simply gotten lost. Her professional reputation takes a nosedive—until Gabriel crashes back into her life two months later as the new Guild Boss of Illusion Town with a job offer for Lucy in hand. Together, they explore the alien technologies and dangerous crevices of the Underworld and find themselves drawn into a conspiracy generations in the making. Tinged with just a kiss of romantic suspense, the novel’s seamless blend of past, present, and future sensibilities and familiar yet otherworldly backdrop are more than enough to tantalize. Add in frequent humor, and one incorrigible dust bunny with a penchant for pizza, and readers will fall in love. Agent: Steve Axelrod, the Axelrod Agency

October 15, 2021
A blacklisted weather reader on the colony world of Harmony reluctantly partners with the notorious Ghost Hunter who saved her from the Underworld once upon a time. Lucy Bell doesn't remember how she woke up in the strange alien underground beneath Illusion Town after leaving a friend's wedding, but she's wholeheartedly convinced there was foul play at work. Of course, as soon as handsome Ghost Hunter Guild boss Gabriel Jones shows up with a box of pizza in hand, she lets him in long enough to allow him to help her escape the daunting magical maze. As far as the rest of Harmony is concerned, Lucy's got no one to blame for her misfortune but herself, and all her attempts to convince friends, family, and doctors that she must have been kidnapped fall on deaf ears. Her professional reputation as a weather reader crumbles, and her one reliable witness--Gabriel--instantly disappears. When the Ghost Hunter strolls back into her life, later on, Lucy is understandably less than thrilled to see him again, but he's returned seeking her help this time around. He's got a job that requires a woman of her unique abilities, and maybe, deep down, he's trying to reconnect with her, too--because he's been thinking about her ever since he left all those months ago. Castle returns to her Harmony series for an engaging adventure in which a love story and a whodunit go hand in hand, as Gabriel and Lucy have to team up not only to uncover the truth behind her abduction, but to learn the identity of the person--or persons--responsible for trying to take down Illusion Town's primary energy source. The mystery often proves more absorbing than the romance, but all of the ingredients in this newest installment, as well as its resolution, are sure to satisfy longtime fans of the series. Romance, mystery, and dust bunnies abound in this solid addition to a long-running series.

COPYRIGHT(2021) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from September 15, 2021
Lucy Bell knows she owes Gabriel Jones a debt of gratitude for rescuing her from the tunnels beneath Illusion Town, but it is difficult to be completely grateful, since he also inadvertently helped destroy her professional reputation. However, when Gabriel, now the new guild boss, approaches Lucy two months later with a job offer, it doesn't take Lucy long to ditch her current job as a tour guide in favor of working as Gabriel's new weather channeler, her true calling. Taking this job is the first step for Lucy in restoring her status as a reputable practitioner, but it turns out that the adversary who left her down in the tunnels is just waiting to finish the job. After five years, best-selling Krentz takes on her Castle pseudonym for another splendidly entertaining futuristic romance set in the spellbinding world of Harmony. Castle expertly finesses the quicksilver pacing and danger-infused plot while displaying her mastery of dryly humorous dialogue and simmering sexual chemistry. A pizza-eating dust bunny and clever nods to her previous books add another layer of fun to the story, and a tantalizing twist at the end hints at reading pleasures yet to come.

COPYRIGHT(2021) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

August 13, 2021

A 14th installment (after Illusion Town) in Castle's "Ghost Hunters" series, who premise is that humans became stranded on the alien planet Harmony centuries ago and have since developed psychic powers to varying degrees and forms. Lucy Bell can create and control storms, while Gabriel Jones is a newly appointed guild boss with a talent for finding people. When Lucy finds herself at the center of a conspiracy, Gabriel is one of the few who believe her. As part of a long-running series--and further, one that occasionally references the historical and contemporary romances the author writes under her real name, Jayne Ann Krentz--there are many potential pitfalls. This novel navigates them mostly with success and delivers necessary exposition without slowing down the plot. Multiple plot threads get tied off a few too many times in the end, with one advancing an overarching thread. VERDICT Romance fans already familiar with the "Ghost Hunters" series will enjoy returning to the rich world and recognizable devices, such as powerful characters (both literal and metaphorical), an intriguing mystery, witty dialogue, and of course, an adorable "dust bunny" pet with a distinct personality. Fans of romantic suspense with a side of paranormal will devour this.--Mary Frances Cely, Richland Lib., SC

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.