Review Tour & Giveaway - The Odor of Violet by Ju Ephraime

Welcome to my stop on Ju Ephraime's Review Tour for The Odor of Violet.  Please leave a comment or question for Ju below to let her know you stopped by.  Ju will be awarding a $50.00 Gift Certificate, winner's choice,to Amazon, Kobo, B&N, or ENVISION to one randomly chosen commenter during her tour. You can follow her tour stops here, the more often you comment, the better your odds of winning.

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The Odor of Violet 

by Ju Ephraime

Publisher: ENVISION Business & Computer School Publishing 

Release Date: December 8, 2012

Genre: Contemporary Romance

ISBN: 978-0-983602-97-2

ASIN: B00ALCKUCU

Buy Links:  

 Amazon Print    Amazon Kindle     B&N Print    Nook 

Book Description:


STEP INTO THE SIGHTLESS WORLD OF DAMIEN FALCONER, AS HE STRUGGLES TO COME TO GRIPS WITH THE BLISTERING ATTRACTION HE FEELS FOR HIS NEW PERSONAL ASSISTANT, LISA ANDREWS.

Full of self-doubt as he struggled to regain his independence, the last thing Damien was looking for when he hired his new assistant, was to fall in love. So, he fought it for as long as he could, until the feelings he had for Lisa kept chipping away at him. Exposing a heart he had thought encased in stone, never to love again.

Lisa, a gentle, caring individual, a professional nurse, and inexperienced in matters of the heart, was ill-equipped to deal with the emotional and physical attraction she felt for her boss, Damien Falconer. Fully cognizant of the pitfalls that exist in such a relationship, Lisa fought equally hard to resist the powerful lure of Damien.

The blistering attraction between Damien and Lisa was searing in its intensity. Both were trying desperately to do the right thing, but the fates had other plans for them. Can two hearts that were broken be made whole again?…..


Excerpt:




Ms. Andrews walked into the room, and Damien felt the air leave his lungs. He could not see her, but he felt Jake’s reaction also. He was not certain if he was mirroring Jake’s reaction to the candidate or his own overactive imagination. Whatever the reason, he had a physical reaction to whomever it was that walked into his library. She was polite and calm, and he sensed she had a smile on her face because Jake had an answering smile in his voice when he greeted her. Poor Damien, he couldn’t see a thing, but boy, was he aware of her. He could smell the fragrance she was wearing, and it was doing strange things to his body.

There was a hint of jasmine, mixed with a bit of musk, but the overwhelming scent was of violet. He recognized the scent because of the perfusion of violet plants that grew in the garden surrounding his house.  It was his favorite flower. He was never tired of sitting on the porch just inhaling its heady fragrance.

On Ms. Andrews, the fragrance was positively intoxicating. The mixture of violet with her unique scent was overpowering. Damien was almost in pain from the strength of his physical reaction to her. He was uncomfortable in his seat and kept fidgeting and moving to get a more comfortable position. He did not want either Jake or the young woman to notice his discomfort. He desperately wanted to see the woman who was in his library, but he had to be content with just listening to her responses to Jake’s questions.

She sounded a bit flustered because she would begin each response with a slight nervous laugh, and Jake would respond in kind. This exchange between the two infuriated Damien, who wanted to participate in the conversation. He interrupted one of Jake’s questions to her with one of his own.

“Tell me, Ms. Andrews, how long have you been out of school?”

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My Review

Usually when people say that love is blind they mean that when you're in love you are blind to your lover's flaws, in the case of Ju Ephraime's The Odor of Violets, the authors characters have to not only deal with each other's faults but the actual physical blindness.  Likable characters, undeniable passion and good verbal chemistry drew me into a romance where both the heart and the physical senses become engaged.  Lush descriptions of what the characters feel kept me glued to the pages.

Vintner Damien Falconer was in control of his life and his work until a freak accident takes his sight.  While his eyesight loss is supposed to be a temporary situation, Damien's life is overturned and living becomes a challenge.  Creating a life of solitude with assistance when it comes to running his business is Damien's only choice.  Only now he's lonely, dependent on others for his care and unsure of what his future holds.  When he needs additional help, Damien is reluctant to let anyone else into his home and is positive he doesn't want a female nurse.  At least that's what he says at first.

Needing a new job, private nurse Lisa Andrews applies to work for Damien Falconer.  She's got plenty of private experience and it seems like the perfect job.  That is until she meets Damien Falconer, a man she realizes is still young and very attractive.  Determined to let nothing stand in the way of her career plans, Lisa is unprepared for what she suddenly feels.

While neither Damien or Lisa is looking for a relationship; they are perfectly suited for each other and what they each need.  Damien is physically attracted to Lisa, something he hasn't experienced since he went blind, and suddenly realizes that physical desire is still a part of his life.  Lisa too feels attracted to Damien, something she hasn't had a chance to experience in the last couple of years.  

Ms. Ephraime did an excellent job developing the romance between Damien and Lisa, they both need companionship, love and understanding and it's only with each other that they feel the freedom to be who they really are.  While the physical comes easily, it's the emotional that takes time - something both characters have plenty of.  The author also did a good job of engaging my emotions by letting me get to know the characters via flashback as the story and romance develop.  n.

Will Damien and Lisa give into more than their physical attraction and discover real love?  You'll have to read The Odor of Violet to find out.  I really enjoyed how this romance developed and look forward to reading more of Ms. Ephriaime's work.

My Rating:  4.5 out of 5 Crowns

FTC Disclosure:  I received a complimentary copy of this book as a part of a book tour in exchange for a fair and honest review.

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AUTHOR INFORMATION:

I can’t recall a time in my life when I wasn’t writing. I know I started a long, long, time ago. I began writing short stories for the local radio station in my home town, which were read on the air at story time. After I had my children, I went back to school to further my education. I have since earned several degrees, including two Masters and a Doctorate in Higher Education Administration from Northeastern University in Boston. During the course of my schooling, I wrote and published a working curriculum for a career school, as well as, other literary works. A couple years ago, I revisited my first love, writing for fun and enjoyment.

I live in a small town in Connecticut, where the closest thing to a mall is a shopping strip, so nothing exciting happens there. I’m a mother of three and a grandmother of five. My dog Bondine is my favorite companion when I take up pen and paper to write.

Many of my stories are set in the places I've visited. The children I encounter during my travels determine the theme of the book. I love to write stories about talented, inquisitive, and curious children who are thirsty for knowledge.

When I’m not writing my children books, I write romance novels under a pen name. Oftentimes, I take the time to visit the places in which my stories are set, which is the icing on the cake. My second love is traveling, and those times when I can combine writing with traveling, I’m usually in writers' heaven because I’m doing my two most favorite things...


LINKS:

http://www.juliaeantoine.com/default.html

http://www.facebook.com/juephraimeauthor?ref=hl

https://twitter.com/EditorJulia

http://juephraime.blogspot.com/

http://shop.envisionschoolpublishing.com/

Don't forget to leave a comment or question for Ju below to let her know you stopped by.  Ju will be awarding a $50.00 Gift Certificate, winner's choice,to Amazon, Kobo, B&N, or ENVISION to one randomly chosen commenter during her tour. You can follow her tour stops here, the more often you comment, the better your odds of winning.