Judi Fennell’s MAGIC GONE WILD Review & Giveaway!

My guest today is author Judi Fennell, and I’ll be reviewing her newest release, MAGIC GONE WILD, but first, I want to let you all know, that Judi is also a phenomenal formatter!  As in ebook formatting. Judi worked on my first self published novel, INTIMATE ENEMIES, and she was absolutely fabulous! So if you or an author you know needs formatting work for their self-publishing or ebook work, send them to Judi’s site: Formatting4U. I highly recommend her! 

MAGIC GONE WILD, Book 3 in Judi Fennell’s Bottled by Magic Series

Every Time She Uses Magic Something Goes Terribly Wrong…

Vana wishes she hadn’t dropped out of genie training. Now she’s determined to get a grip on both her genie magic and her life. But the harder she tries to fix things for her intriguing new master, the more she drives him crazy…

Except There’s Nothing Ever Wrong About Him…

Pro–football player Zane Harrison finally has control of the family estate and is determined to put to rest his grandfather’s eccentric reputation. Until he discovers that behind all the rumors is a real, live genie who stirs feelings in him he’s never known before. The more Zane tries to help Vana harness her powers, the more her madcap magic entangles his heart…

My Review Style: I’m not a reviewer who cares to rehash a plot. The blurb tells you pretty much what happens in the book. What I want to tell you is how well it’s done and what the book, the story and the author has to offer you as a reader.

Overall take: MAGIC GONE WILD is a laugh-out-loud, occasionally downright freaking hilarious read. With likeable characters striving for goals that not only mean something to them but that tangle with their very identity, every step they make affects their internal battles. As I turned pages, I rooted for Vana and Zane to overcome their obstacles to become the best version of themselves by breaking through the restrictions of preconceived ideas. I cheered for them to find strength in the other and use that to better themselves. Judi gives the reader these feel-good opportunities throughout the book, creating a sense of excitement and hope.

I found Judi’s twists on the whole genie storyline creative and fresh and so incredibly fun. I adored her secondary characters in the form of magical creatures like a talking bird, shivering dishes, a magic carpet and more, delightfully entertaining. They added depth and richness to the plot and I found them fascinating, hilarious and heartwarming.

Of course, what is romance without great love scenes? You won’t have to wonder in this book. The sex between Judi and Zane is luscious and sizzling. Judi writes these scenes with a truly magic touch – no pun intended. In fact, the entire book is packed with sexual tension.

Judi has a real winner here, and while MAGIC GONE WILD is the first Judi Fennell book I’ve read, it will definitely not be the last. Pick up this book for a perfect end-of-the-summer read.

Pick up MAGIC GONE WILD HERE: Amazon | B & N | BAM | Indie Bound

Judi is giving away an ELECTRONIC copy of her Once-upon-A-Time Romance, BEAUTY AND THE BEST and Sourcebooks has generously donated two giveaway copies of MAGIC GONE WILD.

Thanks for having me – and for mentioning www.formatting4U.com. I’m have a great time helping other authors bring their books to their readers in this great new world of indie-publishing. And I loved Intimate Enemies – kept me up way past my bedtime to finish it!

Hi everyone,

As Joan mentioned, I’m giving away a copy of my first indie-published book, BEAUTY AND THE BEST. This book has been in several online contest similar to American Idol for writers, the first being the aptly-named American Title. Then it was in the Gather.com/Simon & Schuster First Chapters Contest where it was the only Romance to finish in the Top 20.

So why did I indie publish it? Well, it’s a bit of a story. NY publishing likes tried-and-true. Things they know they can sell. When something’s a little out of the box, they tend to hem and haw. You’ve seen the success of Fifty Shades of Grey – you can bet that those folks in NY who passed on it are kicking themselves.

Does this mean I have something against traditional publishing? Absolutely not. Witness the book Joan read, MAGIC GONE WILD. It’s my sixth book with my publisher and I’m hoping to do more of them. But the indie pubbing world has opened up a whole new market for authors who have the “books of their heart” that NY just doesn’t want to take a chance on.

BEAUTY AND THE BEST is definitely the book of my heart. It’s about Jolie Gardener, a personal chef by day and an aspiring romance writer by night who has found her inspiration in Todd Best, a reclusive widowed artist who hasn’t painted since the death of his wife. His love story is sigh-worthy and Jolie does a lot of sighing.

She also does a lot of wishing. See, Todd is just plain yummy in the looks department and a sweet man who only wants to be loved. Who doesn’t? Jolie most certainly does as she’s gone through the foster care system and come out on the other side determined not to repeat her mother’s mistakes.

Todd is no mistake.

With the help of a guardian angel who turns himself into a cat, Jolie and Todd get to find their happily ever after, but oh what a ride it is getting there.

Starting off with the fact that he’s naked in the kitchen.

Did that grab your attention? I thought it might. The opening line of this book is:

There’s a naked man in my kitchen.

And I’ve gotten a lot of mileage from it.

Here’s that scene – just a hint. You can see the rest on the sample/look inside feature on the online retailers. The book is available now at: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | AllRomance eBooks | Kobo

I’m off to the Authors After Dark conference in New Orleans today, and will be on a plane for most of the day, but I’ll check in when I can.

Thanks for reading, thanks for stopping by, and thanks for checking out my stories.

May all your wishes come true!

~Judi

Excerpt:

There’s a naked man in my kitchen.

The thought registered just as the terse, “Who the hell are you?” had Jolie Gardener spinning around faster than a figure skater on speed.

He had the nerve to ask this? He of the broad shoulders, six-pack abs, and other, nice, um, parts…

Really. A naked man. In her kitchen.

Well, technically, she was in a naked man’s kitchen. Even more technically, she was in a naked Todd Best’s kitchen—and there wasn’t one hint of self-consciousness or embarrassment on his part.

Of course with that body, there shouldn’t be. The guy should flaunt his nudity for the world to see. Which, at present, consisted of one single, solitary person: Jolie Gardener, aspiring writer and personal chef extraordinaire.

“Well?” His hands slammed to his hips.

“You’re naked,” she squeaked, which, really, was the only way to state that kind of obvious.

“I’m what?” Mr. Six-Pack Abs glanced down.

Jolie tried not to—so unsuccessfully it was pitiful.

“Shit,” he muttered. “I am. I, uh, fell asleep last night…”

As butter sizzled in the new super-slick omelet pan on the top-of-the-line range, Jolie’s gaze alternated between some rock-hard abs and a scruffy eight a.m. shadow while her fingers danced along the speckled granite countertop in search of a napkin, placemat, oven mitt… something.

Mercifully, they scooped up a thick dishtowel that, in her world, would constitute a very plush, very luxurious hand towel from The Ritz or The Four Seasons, but which, here, apparently, was used to soak up water from designer flatware. She dangled it in the direction of Mr. Au Naturel. “Here.”

He placed an empty bottle of Jim Beam on the island countertop with a clink, then took the towel with a grunt. “So, who are you, what are you doing in my kitchen, and would you mind turning around?”

She turned. “I’m the new girl the agency sent over.”

“Hell. There better be some aspirin left,” he muttered beside her, his bare (of course) feet making no sound on the limestone floor.

She peeked over at him.

His eyebrow soared skyward.

Right.

She turned back to the sizzling butter. Which had started to burn. Sigh.

He rummaged around in one of the drawers as she carried the pan to the sink. Trying to impress the new boss on her first day with his favorite omelet ranchero and she burned the butter. Not good, but then, it wasn’t exactly her fault because nowhere in those papers she’d signed with her employment agency, Domestic Gods & Goddesses, was mention made of an optional dress code. And she didn’t care how much they were paying her, nudity did tend to throw one off. As for the alcohol-before-breakfast debacle, she wasn’t even going to address that. His rudeness said it all.

And here, she’d been worried about making a good impression on him.

A click of plastic bottle cap followed by a shake of the bottle, the fridge opening, a gulp, then Naked Guy sighing punctuated the silence before she turned on the faucet. She cleaned out the pan, all the while the Naughty Girl side of her brain screaming, “Turn around!” with the other, Jolie side, going, “You want to keep this job?”

Self-preservation being the backbone of her existence since being dumped into the foster care system, she decided to listen to the Jolie side—no matter how much groaning Naughty Girl did.

Naughty Girl, however, couldn’t resist a peek, and was rewarded with a swish of his longish golden hair, a flex of his well-defined arm, and an accompanying sizzle to her own nerve endings.

So not good. Jolie had known he was a hunk before she accepted this position. Had had quite the crush on him, too. How could she not? The guy had been plastered all over every magazine in the country for years, most especially here in his hometown.

Todd Best. The Best, as the media had dubbed him. And rightfully so. The man’s landscape paintings were hanging in every high-end hotel, public library, and courtroom in the country. Even the White House, for Pete’s sake. Not that she had an eye for art, but when a painting looked like the scene down the road and made her think she was standing there, feeling the leaves rustling by, smelling the fresh cut grass, hearing the birds singing in the trees and the ducks quacking on the pond, the whole set-up, that, to her, was talent.

And, of course, there’d been his fairytale marriage. But then, sadly, his wife had died suddenly and he’d moved out of their home, turned the reins of his company over to his brother, and put down his paint brushes.

Yes, Jolie had known exactly who she’d be working for. That’d been half the incentive.