E.T. Malinowski

The feud, if you can call it that, between Seelie and Unseelie elves is legendary. In this story two of them meet, one wounded and close to death, and suddenly both of them are trying to deal with what they think they know about the other versus what they can see and feel. The sparks are sure to fly!

Marin is the one who stumbles into Tarel's forest, chased by goblins and heavily wounded. when he wakes up and find out his savior is an Unseelie, he freaks out. But then he starts to realize that he would have died without Tarel's help, and besides, the guy is really attractive, so where does that leave him?

Tarel has no idea why he feels so drawn to Marin. He simply had to help, and now that the stranger is better, Tarel begins to see not all may be as it seems. His curse is why he withdrew from life, but it doesn't seem to stop Marin - could his supposed arch-enemy be the solution to his problem?

If you like enemies-to-lovers stories, if you enjoy reading about men who have to confront their prejudices if they want to survive, and if you're looking for a read full of magic and heat, then you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspiner Press for the purpose of a review.
… (mehr)

This is a story about forbidden love and the consequences when one of the lovers takes matters into his own hands. Over 1000 years ago there weren’t many choices, and the setup, with Bran fleeing from his pursuers, pulled me right into the story. A spell is what I suspected brings these lovers together – but that’s only part of it. This situation isn’t as straightforward as it looks at first glance and offers a nice variation on the time travel theme.

Bran from the past has a lot to deal with when he finds himself over 1000 years in his future and in our time. I loved his reactions to all that is new to him, from clothing, to traveling in cars, to alarm clocks and phones. Emotionally he fits right in, and finds himself attracted to Mikhail. The nagging feeling about his lover from before doesn’t let him go, and that situation needs resolution before he can move on.

Mikhail is lonely, open to the magical, and not too surprised when he finds out that Bran has travelled forward in time. He is a little shocked at how quickly he falls for the big Irishman, but they are so good together that there really is no reason to hold back. Being around Bran is clearly good for him, and the support Bran gives helps Mikhail through some very tough times.

A few twists and deep feelings make this story very special. The idea behind it touched me deeply, and Bran and Mikhail were great together. If you like stories about forbidden love, if you enjoy following a few temporal twists and turns, and if you don’t mind exactly what shape the happy ending takes, you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.… (mehr)

As a collection of stories, I think the 2015 Advent Calendar was one of the best of its kind. I have been following these since 2009, but the number of stories I totally adored has never been this high. And even though I had my ten favorites (see individual titles for my reviews and ratings), I really liked the vast majority of the remainder as well. Each story had something to contribute, and that included (as it does every year) stories of winter traditions other than Christian. I had a ball reading these and already look forward to the 2016 collection.


NOTE: The stories in this collection were provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of reviews on Rainbow Book Reviews.… (mehr)

Anyone who has ever had a mishap or has been the slightest bit clumsy will understand how awful it can be to want to help only to be stopped by some sort of accident or obstacle or interruption. Thistle, an elf trying to help everyone else in the run-up to Christmas is as accident-prone as is possible. But it is worse for him because he has a big heart and means well. And yet, Fate seems to intervene at every turn only to thwart Thistle’s attempts to reduce other elves’ stress.

Thistle desperately wants to find an elf to make a home with, and his secret talent of baking amazing cookies would serve him well. Except for the fact that whoever might be interested in him would have to “survive” all his disasters as well. Thistle’s talent with hearth magic is a well-kept secret and Thistle uses it to make up for his clumsiness by delivering baskets full of still-warm cookies to all the other elves. He never has a single accident doing it, and nobody ever notices him – until Bayberry figures it out.

Bayberry is, in many ways, the exact opposite of Thistle. He is in charge or production, in control, and keeps his distance. He is just as lonely as Thistle, and he doesn’t even mind his clumsiness, but he believes Thistle already has a partner. It takes a bit of prodding from “Ol’ Saint Nick” to make Bayberry consider asking Thistle for help with something very specific. The result is an entirely unexpected cooperation and a sweet romance that neither of the two elves would have dreamed up.

If you like stories about elves at the North Pole and their worries, if you want to find out how an adorable klutz finds his happy end, and if you’re looking for a read that is funny, entertaining and very sweet, then you will probably like this novella.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.… (mehr)