Growing up in foster care, baseball player Cyrus Martinez hated everything about Christmas. More so this year when his dream team sends him back to the minor leagues, in a town no one has heard of.
Christmas Carol Kringle –yes, that is her name—runs a catering business and loves the holiday season. This unlikely couple meets when Cyrus’ car is blocked by Carol’s humongous dog aptly named Abominable, in the only city in America which celebrates the Christmas season all year round, Mistletoe, Montana.
Christmas Carol by Jordan Marie is your typical feel-good Christmas story. Add in a cameo from one of Marie’s most loved characters, the indomitably loony Ida Sue, you have yourself a good hour of wanting to strangle Cyrus for being dense enough to almost botch his chance with the lovely Carol, and at the same time wanting to hug him for his ‘faults’.
What surprised me was the fact that, knowing Jordan Marie and how this pandemic has, like all of us, affected her and her loved ones, she was still able to give us, her readers, a story we could enjoy amidst a holiday season still fraught with worry and anxiety.
That she was able to pull out something that made me smile, even as I am most definitely not feeling the Christmas vibe, is a testament to how she is as an author, and for that, I am very, very, thankful.
Overall, Christmas Carol* is a book I would recommend reading, preferably with a glass of wine, dim lights, a blanket, and a cozy fire blazing bright.
*Christmas Carol is part of a 17 book series centered around the town of Mistletoe, Montana.
Yup, Crusher is MINE. But, I am willing to share him, because, if you haven’t met any of the men of the Savage Brothers MC, Crusher might just turn you off other men (don’t tell their head alpha, Dragon, I said so)!
This story was hard for me from the start. I know Jordan Marie took a chance with Dani’s story, what with stories of abuse not generally accepted by a huge range of romance readers. Still, I took a chance, and, well, I can honestly say that Dani then, and up till now, has been my favorite Savage Brothers MC heroine, followed only by Carrie (Saving Dancer, Savage Brothers MC #2).
Why, you ask?
The abuse that Dani suffered is not something to balk at, or trifle with just to get people to buy a book, but… if no one raises an issue on abuse, who will? Especially in these times, we are in.
Readers, I hope and pray that you see Dani as I see her—brave, badass, someone we (yes, we, for I can say ME TOO) can strive to be.
“She’s just a character, a figment of the imagination.” THAT she is not! Look around, and see that Jordan Marie is right in shining a light on the stigma of abuse, which is happening, still. Do not turn your back on it. If you do, you are just as complicit as the abuser.
“It’s shameful.” What is shameful? To fight for survival—for yourself, for someone you know who was abused? Would the better option be to turn your back?
“I’m scared.”
“What will people think?”
“I can’t.”
All these questions will be useless if you, or someone you love, are dead because you let the abuser win.
“It’s not that easy.”
It is. Believe me, it is. I am proof of that.
“How?”
All you need to do is to reach out. Someone, somewhere, will always be there to listen and help you heal. Help you survive.
Jordan Marie mentioned the St. Alexander’s medallion. After reading Dani’s story, I got one. St. Alexander, to those of the Christian faith, is the patron of victims of betrayal and torture. He is a prime example of how we should stand fast in the face of ridicule and ostracism, of abuse.
Today when we are criticized by friends and society for the moral tenets of our faith, St. Alexander is a prime example of how we should stand fast in the face of ridicule and ostracism.
Whether you believe in him or not, have faith that there is someone out there, who is looking out for you, who will slay your fears for you.
Crusher’s real name is Zander, by the way. And yes, I believe that one day, I will meet him, MY Crusher, face to face.
Thank you, Jordan Marie, for giving us Dani and Crusher’s story!
Blurb
Crusher
The moment I saw her I knew I was in trouble. I just didn’t care. Once I knock down her walls and get a taste. I know she’s it. I’ll have her and no one will get in my way—-not even my club.
She’s trying to run. That won’t happen. I’ll use whatever I can just to keep her, even if it is my d**k. I’m an expert in making women give me what I want.
Dani just doesn’t realize who she’s dealing with yet. She will. I’ve claimed her… She’s mine.
Dani
I’m running. I have secrets that will kill me someday. I need to stay ahead of them.
I run straight into his arms. Zander’s trouble. I know, because he sets my body on fire. One taste of him and I keep going back, even when I shouldn’t.
All I need is his body, his touch, and his deliciously dirty mouth. He’s not mine to claim. One more taste and I’ll leave.
Before my past finds me…
If you or a loved one is in need of help, there are a lot of places and organisations willing to step in and extend a helping hand. Please, do not hesitate to reach out to them, because you, and those you know who are experiencing abuse, matter.
It was January 29, 2017. I was bored, having completed whatever deadlines I needed to do at the office. I was searching through Amazon for a product I needed then when I chanced upon this e-book with a one-word title, Shafted. It was by Jordan Marie.
Today, thanks to Jordan Marie and my insatiable need to read, I have (gasp!) 3,983 books downloaded. On my iPad. On my phone. Thank the Lord all these were e-books because I don’t think I would want to trip over the precious tomes if they were to be scattered all over my place.
I simply lack the space! So, here goes…
SHAFTED by Jordan Marie
Purchased January 29, 2017
He was a forty-year-old prospect newly recruited by the Devil’s Blaze Motorcycle Club. She was barely 18 and the granddaughter of the president of a rival MC. She is also just about to graduate from high school.
Jax fell for Bree when he saw her walk into the club during a party. He
did his best to fight his attraction to her, but Bree had different ideas and
soon they embarked on a forbidden romance.
While some readers might frown upon the idea of an older man having a relationship with a much younger woman, I found myself enjoying Jax and Bree’s story for what, in my opinion, the author wanted to say, which was that true love transcends time, age, status, and location.
I also loved the fact that Jordan Marie wrote fluidly. Her plot was on
point from start to finish, making the story easy to follow. Her editor also
did a great job, as I did not notice any errors. If there were errors, they
were probably so minor that it was easy to gloss over them.
Shafted by Jordan Marie was my first ever foray into the world of electronic books, which I happened to stumble upon in 2017. Today, 3,000+ e-books later*, I can honestly say that I blame Jordan Marie for getting me addicted–hook, line, and sinker–into a wonderful world inhabited by a new crop of writers, those who, for the love of books, writing, and imagination, share with us readers their art through self-publication and social media.
Unlike authors who belong to well-known publishing houses, indie authors (as they are called) have given hundreds, if not millions, of readers worldwide the chance to dive into a world where the only limit to one’s imagination is ourselves, as each one of us has our own reading preferences.
From children’s books to erotica, romance, thrillers, science fiction, there is an indie author ready and waiting for readers to discover his or her words. Paperback, audiobook, or an e-book, all we need to do is to keep our eyes (and ears) open to find and enjoy them, and, most importantly, share them with the world.
* Includes samples of e-books, ARCs, audiobooks, and books I have yet to read.
About Jordan Marie
She’s just a simple small town country girl haunted by alpha men who talk to her in her head 24 hours a day. What she doesn’t tell her readers is that her muses are all badass, and they are led by the baddest biker in all of Kentucky, Dragon.
Don’t tell Ida Sue (everyone’s favourite aunt) though, she just might run after you with her shotgun cocked and loaded!
Anywho… I met this wonderful author online through one of her books, Shafted, and my journey down the rabbit hole called the Indie Author community, and I have never been happier since then.
This blog, honestly, was borne out of my appreciation for these wonderful authors. And though I am a frustrated writer—I would love to try putting to words what my muses are shouting to be said—I hope, that by sharing their work, I am able to give back to them what they have given me, tenfold!
Bitch N Books 