Review: Making It Last

Reviewed by Carrie
 

I’m a big fan of Ruthie Knox’s Camelot series. This novella takes us back to the very first couple, Tony and Amber, from How to Misbehave. Fast forward 14 years and 3 kids later, Amber is struggling. She has lost herself in her duties to her husband and children and is running on empty. While on holiday to Jamaica for her brother’s wedding, Amber’s mother sees that all is not right with her daughter and encourages Tony to extend her vacation so she can catch a break from familial duties. Tony has been working himself to the bone trying to support his family during rough financial times, so this is the first time he’s really looked at his wife to see that something was amiss.

Those of us who are married with children will find this story eminently relatable. It gets into the nitty gritty of the very hard job of raising children while keeping a marriage going. Tony and Amber take on the traditional gender roles and come off a bit stereotypical. Amber is silent in her suffering and doesn’t communicate that she feels her family has sucked her dry. Tony is oblivious to his wife’s pain because he is all focused on working to give her everything she wants. Some late night confessions to each other probably would have gone a long way in avoiding the place where the couple sits at the beginning of the book.

I empathized with both of them. Amber feels this responsibility of having to do everything and bear the burden with pride - that’s the message society has taught us as mothers. Tony is very much a man’s man. He wants to give Amber things, like the house he built, to show her he loves her. He wants to fix what’s broken in her. Both of them acknowledge that it would be easy to just walk away, but also realize how much they couldn’t continue without the other. The couple’s journey back to each other is in fits and starts and I appreciated the authenticity.

The other message that the author relates are the choices that we make on a consistent basis when we are with a partner. When you feel that disconnect, how do you get back there? Anyone in a long time relationship can attest that hearts and flowers only last a short time. It’s the getting back and remembering those times and evolving in love with the person you chose, and continue to choose, that makes it all worthwhile.

This book can be read as a stand-alone, but I highly recommend all of the books in this series. Ruthie Knox writes funny, smart, real contemporary romance.

Grade: B+

*ARC provided by Loveswept via NetGalley 

Click to purchase: Amazon

Making It Last

by Ruthie Knox

Original Release Date: July 15, 2013

Publisher: Loveswept

Review: Big Girl Panties

Reviewed by Carrie
 

Holly Brennan is a grieving widow who has used food to cope with the untimely death of her husband. Trudging back from Toronto, she is seated next to Logan Montgomery, a hot shot personal trainer to pro athletes. As a karmic payment for judging a book by its cover, Logan offers to train Holly to help her “get her life back on track,” not even knowing why or how she got herself into her current state. Holly decides three years of mourning and junk food is enough and grasps at the opportunity to try to move past her depression and grief. As the sessions progress, they become friends. As Holly’s new form begins to emerge, Logan starts to notice more than her snarky retorts. Meanwhile, Holly nurses her crush on Logan, but he still can’t get over his image issues.

Much of the book is centered around weight issues, both from Logan and Holly’s point of view. I totally sympathized with Holly. She has never been the thin girl. She had crappy parents. She was a loner until in college, a man paid attention to her and she married him. He was her way out of a sad life. So as she watched him, and her life, slowly destroyed by cancer, she turned to the one thing in her life that she could count on – food.

On the other hand, there is Logan, who believes that everyone can achieve anything they want if they just put their mind to it. Logan reminded me of a guy I knew in high school that everyone liked. He was gorgeous, popular and nice to everyone, but lacked any real kind of depth or emotion. I felt taken back to that time when Holly secretly crushes on Logan as he makes it plain that he couldn’t even fathom having someone looking like her on his arm. In short, Logan is an ass. By the time he pulls his head out, I’m not sure that many readers will say he is redeemed.

The book is well written and the words flow well except the author tried to cram in a novella’s worth about Logan’s friends Chase and Amanda. that was completely unnecessary. I found myself skipping over their scenes as they had nothing to do with Logan or Holly.

Honestly, I’m not quite sure how I feel about this book. Anyone who has ever struggled with their weight will immediately identify with Holly and her pain. On the other hand, Logan’s behavior really cut me to the quick and I’m not sure if I really forgave him. Readers will feel strongly about this book one way or another.

Rating: C+

*ARC Provided by William Morrow

Click to purchase: Amazon

Big Girl Panties

by Stephanie Evanovich

Original Release Date: July 9, 2013

Publisher: William Morrow

Review: White Trash Beautiful

Reviewed by Janell
 

This is a poor-girl-meets-rock-star story, but it didn’t entirely work for me. Cass lives in a trailer park with her mother and her boyfriend who are both drug addicts. Cass works as a waitress at the diner across the street. She makes just enough money to buy beer and tuna fish, and anything extra she hides so that one day she can move out. Her boyfriend, Jax, used to be protective and nice before the drugs changed him and he started beating her up. Her mother used to call her a princess but now she’s passed out all day.

One night, Tucker White waltzes into the diner and calls Cass sweetheart. She’s not into random guys flirting with her, but Tucker comes back again and says nice things to her, making her believe he’s actually a good guy. Tucker is the lead singer in a band that’s on tour and about to hit the big time, but Cass doesn’t know that at first.

Tucker’s motivations weren’t clear to me. I get that he flirts with a pretty waitress, and I get that he sees her bruises and her crappy boyfriend and wants to protect her, but I had a hard time finding any feelings beyond that, beyond his wanting to be the knight on a white horse. He tells Cass a few stories about his childhood so that she’ll relate to him, but then I was confused about whether he wanted to settle down with a woman or be a rock star, because he didn’t seem to say much about his band.

Cass sneaks away from her trailer a few times to see Tucker in concert, and one night he takes her to his hotel and they have unprotected sex. Yeah, both of them were so caught up in the romance that neither one considered protection. They didn’t even say, “oops,” afterwards, it just wasn’t ever mentioned. That bugged me.

I was also bothered by the choices Cass made. The story is told from her first-person point of view, and she goes back and forth between “I deserve this horrible life and I shouldn’t let Tucker get involved with me,” or “I need to escape this horrible life and I deserve the fantasy with Tucker.” She made a few too many stupid, “he’s better off without me” decisions.

The drama at the end was over-the-top, but I could have enjoyed it if it came with more character interaction and relationship building. Instead it almost rushed past, and then they were back together and Cass’s reservations were suddenly gone.

Overall this was too up-and-down for me. I like the concept, and there were some good moments, but Cass’s martyrdom got annoying and Tucker’s loyalty and love seemed to be based on nothing more than Cass’s sad eyes and bruises.

Rating: B-

Click to purchase: Amazon

White Trash Beautiful

by Teresa Mummert

Original Release Date: September 19, 2012

Re-Release Date: July 9, 2013

Publisher: Gallery Books

Review & Giveaway: Undone

Reviewed by Janell
 

This is such a love story, and I mean that in a straightforward way: girl mets boy, they flirt, date, fall in love, and eventually live happily ever after. They aren’t thwarted by dark pasts, silly misunderstandings, or villainous exes. They simply learn to fit into each others’ lives and commit to each other. It’s very sweet. Maybe a little slow in parts, maybe a little long, but overall an enjoyable journey.

Paige is a Philadelphia girl who likes loud clothes, tall shoes, and speaking her mind. Her life is pretty good, she thinks, until her best friend/roommate moves out of state. Then Paige loses her job. She moves in with her boyfriend, who quickly tells her that she’s not worth the effort of a relationship. Homeless and jobless, Paige moves in with her parents.

The problem is, her parents have retired to Mirabelle, a small town on the Florida panhandle. Paige hits Mirabelle like a mini-hurricane, causing the old biddies and gossips to turn against her and prevent her from finding a job. Her new life sucks just about as much as her old life. And then her car breaks down.

Brendan, the hot mechanic, tows her car, and that’s pretty much the last bad day Paige ever has. You know what’s cool about Brendan? He’s not an aggressive silent type who thinks he’s not good enough for her. No, Brendan tells her plainly, “And Paige, it’s just a matter of time.” I’d be lying if I said that didn’t give me the shivers.

They circle around each other for about a week, then they kiss, and that’s when I noticed how much this book differed from most books I read. Paige and Brendan date for over three months without having sex. I know! His narration doesn’t constantly point out how uncomfortable his pants are, he doesn’t narrate explicit fantasies, he just takes cold showers and waits because Paige wants to take things slow. When they do get down to business, the scenes are hot enough but not scorching.

Paige’s parents are just about the most normal, supportive parents you can get in a book. Brendan’s grandparents, sister, and friends are also normal and supportive. By the time I met the full cast of characters and saw how nice everyone was, I began to wonder if this book would have any conflict at all.

Paige’s snippy coworkers and nosy neighbor contribute to the town gossip who writes an actual gossip blog, with fake names and innuendos and everything. I know small town novels always have gossips, but I was surprised that old ladies were high-tech enough to write blogs that people read. The rumors cause some drama but not enough to shake up the romance. Ba

sically this is a happy, feel-good love story with fun partners who support each other and talk to each other. This is the first in a series, and I am definitely interested in the next book. Undone is not very suspenseful, which made it seem more like real life. Sometimes in life you just date, hang out with your friends, and eat dinner with your parents. And that’s pretty cool.

Rating: B+

*ARC Provided by Forever

Click to purchase: Amazon

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Review: The Wedding Gamble

Reviewed by Janell
 

Here’s another “Got wasted in Vegas and ended up married” story, and it was great fun, proving that predictable works if it’s written well. Laura is in Las Vegas for her younger sister’s bachelorette party. It’s also Laura’s birthday, not that anyone remembers. She’s having a miserable time until one of the bridesmaids gives her some “generic aspirin,” and then Laura is wandering the Strip in a loopy haze. She meets David outside of a wedding chapel, and he asks her to do him a favor. Laura always tries to help others, so she agrees. She thinks it’s a dream when they get married, but the next morning she realizes that it wasn’t.

David is working undercover for the FBI, tracking down a witness. When the wrong people see him in Vegas, he tells them that he’s there to get married. Enter Laura. David wants her to forget about him and go back to safety, but Laura can’t stop trying to help him, protect him, look out for him.

Laura is a preschool teacher, a size 12, used to sacrificing herself for her sister, used to being the unattractive, boring afterthought in her family. But when she sees bad guys threaten her new husband, she busts out her inner actress and distracts them. It’s fun to watch her discover her inner bravery and hidden talents.

David’s life has centered around bringing down one particular mob boss. He hasn’t had room in his life for relationships. Capering with Laura makes him wish for something he didn’t know he wanted, and it also uncovers a pretty sexy protective side.

As the bad guys circle, Laura and David grow closer. He even buys her a birthday cake, which would melt my heart in an instant. Danger intensifies their relationship, and pretty soon — after a few interruptions — they are exploring the benefits of their marriage. The author does a great job of describing Las Vegas. From the canals of Venice to Circus Circus, from Fremont Street to the Bellagio Fountains, from the sounds of Treasure Island cannons to the crowded sidewalks, I felt like I was there.

When they’ve done their job, David sends Laura back home to safety, with the expectation that she’ll get an annulment. The final HEA happened quickly, both from a book-timeline standpoint and from a writing standpoint. I could have been held in suspense a little longer, but I’m not complaining.

Overall this was fun, amusingly suspenseful, and sweet.

Rating: B +

*ARC Provided by Entangled

Click to purchase: Amazon

The Wedding Gamble

by Cindi Myers

Release Date: July 8, 2013

Publisher: Entangled

Review: The Things I Do For You

Reviewed by Shelly

When I started reading this I was having trouble with the characters because I felt like I should already know who they were – I didn’t see a warning that this story would be more enjoyable after reading the first two books (0.5 and 1) in the series. Suffice it to say, I didn’t read those two.

25 year-old model Raina Winters wants a baby and she wants one right now, as she’s already been advised by her doctor that she’s running out of time. (This seems to be related to an earlier diagnosis of endometriosis.) Nicholas Alexander is Raina’s soon to be brother-in-law who’s been in love with Raina since first sight. Raina wants a baby, Nicholas wants Raina so he’ll give her a baby in exchange for what he wants – Raina. And if marriage is what it takes, then that’s what’s going to have to happen. It’s a familiar premise that I thought was handled well.

I got the feeling that these two had a tumultuous relationship in the prior stories (I’m not sure of that) but in this story there’s more angst and stubbornness than anything else. Nicholas is a wonderful guy. Yes, he’s known as a playboy, but he’s not interested in chasing skirts unless it’s Raina’s, of course, especially after getting his palate wet after their one night stand. His love and respect for his family was one of my favorite things about him. It’s hard to not like people who love and appreciate those around them. There’s a very touching moment when he’s visiting his parents’ home and he realizes that they’re not going to be around forever – the way he handled that was very sweet.

I’m not sure of Raina’s history and her obstinate disbelief in love. It actually took away from her character for me because there has to be a time in your life where you choose – either let others control your decisions or move past that and start living a life worth living. I thought Raina was stuck on the first. There’s a sub-story with her father that, if explored, could have done wonders for not just the story, but could have made me like Raina more than I did. Outside of Nicholas and Raina’s bedroom high jinx, there was a nice blend of them growing as a couple and (when Raina wasn’t stuck on stupid) the dialogue was well done.

Nicholas’s other brothers were well presented - Trent and Jackson have already been featured in their stories. Overall the story was a fun, short read.

Happy reading folks!

Rating: B-

*ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley

Click to purchase: Amazon

The Things I Do For You

by M. Malone

Release Date: March 12, 2013

Publisher: Crushstar Romance

Review: Unbuttoned

Reviewed by Carrie

Carly Denton likes her life on the straight and narrow. After growing up in the family most whispered about in their small town, she managed to go to college and become the youngest elected councilwoman. She wants to be the opposite of her parents – controlled, predictable and drama free. This is why she has avoided her brother’s best friend, Lucas, all these years. The object of her childhood crush serves these days as the biggest thorn in her side. Lucas loves to push Carly’s buttons simply to watch her squirm. When forced to work together on a charity project, Carly’s tight strings start to unravel around Lucas and Lucas begins to realize how much he likes Carly squirming.

This is a new to me author. I ended up with this novella after a giveaway on Twitter and didn’t know anything more about it than it was contemporary romance. I began reading and was immediately sucked in. Carly is so neurotic that it’s palpable and you really do feel for her. Carly’s childhood was marred by parents who cared more about publicly airing out their laundry than taking care of her and her brother, Mac. Lucas had a similar miserable childhood growing up with an absentee mother and alcoholic father and the three often took comfort with each other sharing dinner together.

Where Lucas grew up and learned to shuck off the past, Carly is frozen by it. She is consumed by worries about others' opinions of her to an almost debilitating effect. She managed to strictly control any outspoken feelings or passions for so long, that when she is forced to interact with Lucas she realizes that she either has to take the bull by the horns or spiral out of control. When she buckles under and kisses Lucas, her world shifts. Objects under pressure tend to explode when released and all the tension builds up to some fabulous releases.

I really enjoyed this book and am somewhat miffed that it was only a novella. A longer length book would have provided a little more depth that would’ve really amped up the story. I will definitely be reading the next in the series and happy to have a new author to follow.

Grade: B

Click to purchase: Amazon

Unbuttoned

by Maisey Yates

Release Date: June 18, 2013

Publisher: Berkley

Review: Lick

Reviewed by Janell
 

Holy cow, you guys. This book. This is the book. Grade: A

Oh, you want more? Fine. Evelyn spends her 21st birthday in Las Vegas, planning to get drunk and have sex. Instead, she gets very, very drunk and marries a rock star. She wakes up in her hotel bathroom with a giant diamond ring on her finger and a hot shirtless guy watching her. With no memories of the night before, she freaks out, vomits, and makes her new husband angry enough that he storms out, planning to annul the marriage.

This story works because of the characters. It’s narrated by Evelyn, and she is not stupid. She knows that getting married at 21 is a bad idea and would interfere with her career plans. She’s also observant, self-aware, brave, and self-deprecating (“If I were him, I’d divorce me and never look back.” “Marriage sucked and husbands were the worst.” “How horrible, being forced to live in the lap of luxury with my wonderful husband. Poor me. I needed a good slap.”).

David, the wonderful husband in question, is not the typical tortured, angsty, alpha male. He has issues, but no big tragedy that he wallows in. He’s not overbearing and controlling. He will punch a guy who touches his woman, but he’ll also listen to his woman explain the touching without going all rage Neanderthal on her. He has a temper, but he also likes to cuddle. He is awesome.

I was so pleasantly surprised by all of the conversations Evelyn and David had. They honestly wanted to figure out a way to make their crazy relationship work. There were no big secrets or silly misunderstandings. Evelyn even knows that withholding information is lying, and that, “if [she] had to demand his faith and affection, it didn’t mean a damn thing.” She’s so opposite of the too-stupid-to-live heroine that it makes me giddy.

Of course they have hot sex all over the place. It takes a little while to happen but then makes up for the delay. Of course they run into some bumps and break up. The fallout is realistic, the make-up is fantasy. I know, the whole plot is fantasy, but the way it’s written made it seem so believable.

I could go on and on, but I don’t want to ruin the experience for you. Just go. Read it. Go on now.

Rating: A

*ARC Provided by Momentum

Click to purchase: Amazon

Lick

by Kylie Scott

Release Date: July 1, 2013

Publisher: Momentum

Review: Love at First Date

Reviewed by Janell
 

This is a cute fairy tale disguised as a contemporary novella. Ellen, recently turned 30, is ready to marry and have two children. Her mother, now on her third marriage, has drilled into Ellen the mantra that compatibility is the key to a successful relationship. To that end, Ellen has joined an online dating service to screen out anyone who might prefer paragliding over walks on the beach, and to include only honest, successful men ready for marriage.

As the story opens, Ellen has narrowed her choices down to two matches. She is prepared to meet them face to face and begin her lifetime of shared goals and political views. But wait! First she has to dog-sit for her best friend, which leads to an evening at the vet, which leads to dog-training school and Henry. Henry is an unscreened, unknown, dog-rescuing, gray-eyed hottie in sweatpants. What should Ellen do?

Ellen forces herself to meet the two appropriate men, all the while daydreaming about Henry. Because he has nice eyes and a nice dog. What’s not to love? Over three nights of dog training she dreams, she doubts, she focuses, she despairs. In the end, everything works out, yay!

This is a short romance, I read it in about an hour. It introduces other characters who have their own full-length novels in the series. Based upon the writing style, the other books should be light, breezy, and fun. This story was pretty much building up to a kiss at the finale, so the heat factor was almost zero. I wonder how steamy the other books are? I probably won’t read them because I felt this story was too fluffy, too “waiting for Prince Charming”. But I bet my fourteen-year-old self would have fallen for it completely.

Rating: B

Click to purchase: Amazon

Love at First Date

by Susan Hatler

Release Date: October 31, 2012

Publisher: Hatco

Review: Hope Breaks

Reviewed by Shelly

This is the first in a series about Hope Jones. Hope’s job as a photographer doing romance novel covers could be construed as the lush life, but Hope will beg to differ because she can’t seem to produce a cover that the publisher’s star author seems to like. She’ll be lucky if she can keep her job. I wasn’t expecting such a banger (no pun intended) of an introduction. I thought Bello would ease us into Hope and her life, but no, she brings it straight to the heart of the matter. I gotta say that I like it, I like it a lot.

Hope is what I like to call a hot mess. She’s not really sure what she’s doing and the inner monologue makes her that much more likable – she’s witty and sarcastic. Waking up one day to the trial of finding a male model so she can take some scintillating pictures, Hope goes to the local Wal-Mart looking for painkillers to fend off that headache she’s working on. While she’s isle hopping, she meets Drew. Bingo! Perfect Wal-Mart experience: you walk in for one thing and walk out with something a little extra. Now all Hope has to do is make sure that Drew shows up for the photo shoot.

In the parking lot her trusty steed, okay it’s really a Ford Taurus, has decided that Hope needs to find another way home. Once she gets her car over to the Tire and Lube Express area, she meets hunkalicious #2, Jake Troy. Turns out that Jake remembers Hope from high school and from what happens later, that’s not a bad thing. The chemistry between these two was really good. Jake is a flirt and he knows it, but I’m not convinced (yet) that he’s a player, just a guy who knows what he wants. There’s a vibe that there are things that Jake is not giving away this early in the game and I can’t wait to find out what they are in the next story.

I had couple of time related issues – I’m not sure of Hope’s age, it’s either 37 or 26. I’m hoping it’s 26 because that would make sense and but some of the (Def Leppard/Van Halen) concerts mentioned wouldn’t. Maybe it’s the version I received?

Suffice it to say, that didn’t take away from the story enough that I didn’t enjoy it because I did and will be reading the others in the series. Be warned, this does not have an HEA or HFN.

Happy reading folks!

Rating: B-

*ARC Provided by author for review

Click to purchase: Amazon

Hope Breaks

by Alice Belo

Release Date: June 14, 2013

Review: A Brother's Honor

Reviewed by Shelly

My favorite Brenda Jackson story is Delaney’s Desert Sheikh from The Westmoreland Series. Yes, I’m dating myself, but I remember reading that story and thought the story line was great and fresh and I fell a lot in-like with the author’s writing. Over the last five – seven years, I’ve noticed that the majority of the stories that I’ve read from her have the same theme – the hero (usually a millionaire or billionaire) comes from a privileged background and the heroine is involved in the family’s business and some other predictable things that if you’ve read her you’ll know what I’m talking about here – and unfortunately this story is no different. I can’t tell you the predictable things because I will not do a spoiler. Anywho, after a lengthy absence, the Granger brothers have returned to Virginia at the request of their dying grandfather. Coming home means they’ll have a lot on their hands - a failing family business and their imprisoned father.

The first in the series is Jace Granger’s story. Jace works as an attorney for his local California government with a scheming and devious ex-wife to boot. She provides her own entertainment but that wasn’t too surprising. You know what would have pleasantly surprised me – if she was nice. Moving on, even though he’s the oldest of the brothers, Jace seems to take a very laid back approach as the head of the family, considering their father is in jail for killing his wife (their mother) and their grandfather is dead. After taking over the family business, Jace decides to hire Shana’s consulting firm to help his brothers and him find out why the business is failing.

A majority of this story is about Jace and his family; the heroine Shana doesn’t even get an introduction until about twenty percent in, which for me is too long. Shana is a nice enough character, not too soft and not too rough, but I can’t say that I rooted for her because I just couldn’t click with her --or Jace for that matter. I don’t know what was missing, but I didn’t feel the chemistry between these two – just a convenience of storyline. I was hoping for something more once the plot picked up and things started happening, but then the predictable stuff started coming at me left and right.

To a certain degree, the multiple storylines in the story for me was distracting, mainly because I wanted to know about Jace and Shana, not everyone else. There’s a subplot with Dalton the youngest and playboy extraordinaire of the brothers. After Dalton was denied his trust fund at 25 like his brothers, he decided to spite everyone and through a series of calculated investments became a self-made billionaire. Seems to me, he wouldn’t have worked (if investments are considered work) at all if his money was handed to him. But aside from that, Dalton is a complete brat whose ‘my daddy didn’t love me' complex has driven every decision and choice he’s made, including the type of women he associates himself with. I really didn’t like him at all. Maybe I’ll come around when his story is told more. Caden, the middle brother is a musician and came off more of a jerk than anything else to me. His past relationship with his ex-best friend who happens to be a girl seems to be his motivation.

Of the Grangers, Sheppard, the father of these three, has the more interesting story. He’s in prison for murdering his wife and there’s a whole back story there that’s full of secrets and intrigue. I think that’s going to be a good one once it’s panned out. Shana’s father, a retired cop, had his own story line. His new love interest sounds like she’s not going to fall easily and it sounds like the way he’s going to have to woo her might make an interesting read. It would be nice to read a romance where the hero doesn’t have six-pack abs.

Overall, this is a good story. If you like Jackson’s previous work I’m sure you’ll like this one also.

Happy reading folks!

Rating: C-

*ARC Provided by Harlequin MIRA

Click to purchase: Amazon

A Brother's Honor

by Brenda Jackson

Release Date: May 28, 2013

Publisher: MIRA

Review: Gaming for Keeps

Reviewed by Janell
 

This book made me so jealous, you guys. I wish I was more of a geek girl, that I knew my way around online multiplayer games, that I could wear costumes and go to conventions. Alas, I don’t have the time or mental energy for most of it. I just consume the mainstream movies and tv shows and wish I had more street cred. Penelope — Pen — is the heroine in this story, and she plays the games, she walks the walk, talks the talk. I wish I was her. Her dog’s name is Worf, she references Supernatural and makes t-shirts printed in binary code. I caught all the references she made, but I couldn’t confidently make all the references myself, and that makes me sad about my life. But this is a book review, not an analysis of my lack of awesome, so I’ll move on.

Pen plays an online game called Heroes of Fallen Gods, and she’s in a guild with her ex-boyfriend. She has a flirtationship with a player in another guild, who invites her to a convention and suggests they meet up in real life. Pen, having been burned by meeting someone offline before, says she’ll be there but doesn’t set a specific meeting time. Once there, a douche trolling for girls pretends to be her gamer friend, so she hangs out with him, but he’s lame and she has to knee him in the crotch. No one is as cool in reality as they are online, am I right?

Meanwhile, Pen’s online buddy Cal is a hot stud / secret agent who just wants to paint himself indigo and wander around as a Dark Elf without being bothered by work. Unfortunately, a Bad Guy is planning Bad Things at the convention, so Cal has to take phone calls and plan things and stress.

Pen and Cal meet in an elevator, but they don’t know that they already know each other! I know, right?! The heat pooling, the sparks flying, the feeling like they’ve known each other a long time, it all happens. Fast. Did I mention this is a short book? On the plus side, Pen and Cal spend a lot of time bantering and kissing before he has to save the world and rescue the girl. On the minus side, I wouldn’t mind if they’d spent even more time together, delving into more obscure sci fi and then rolling around naked.

There’s a clumsy shower scene acknowledging that shower sex is trickier than the books make it out to be. There’s body paint. Fake sword fighting. A discourse on how a person’s knowledge of Firefly tells you everything you need to know to judge their character. Sigh. I’d better stop before I get the sads again. To sum up: fun, cute, hot, awesome. I just wish it had more, went deeper, lasted longer (…that’s what she said).

Rating: A-

*ARC Provided by Entangled

Click to purchase: Amazon

Gaming for Keeps

by Seleste deLaney

Release Date: June 10, 2013

Publisher: Entangled

Review: Out of Control

Reviewed by Jaimie
 

I’m always on the lookout for books by authors that I haven’t read previously, because I like a wide variety of books and every author has a unique style of writing which I enjoy. It can be hit or miss when you approach a “new to you” author but in this case I definitely found one that I will continue to read. Stephanie Feagan writes romantic suspense and historical books and she also writes young adult books under the name Trinity Feagan.

Blair Drake is an oil rig blowout specialist who comes from a wealthy family that has disowned her. After a series of deliberate oil rig explosions, Blair teams up with Nick Robichaud, an oil well fire expert, to stop a plot to cripple the world’s oil supply. Blair and Nick have red hot chemistry, but Blair has been burned in the past by her ex-husband so she has trouble trusting people, especially men. In order to survive they must learn to trust each other, but with Nick clearly hiding something and time running out, Blair is forced to take a leap of faith.

The action in this book starts pretty much right away and it doesn’t let up. While inspecting an oil rig, Blair sees a suspicious looking man who appears to be watching her. She ignores the bad feeling she has and completes her inspection but a few seconds after her helicopter takes off, the rig explodes killing everyone on board. Shortly after the helicopter pilot is murdered and Blair finds out that there have been a number of explosions at various rigs. Blair is sent to put out one of the fires along with Nick, who she is very attracted to, but thinks he’s a chauvinist. From there they discover a plot to drive up oil prices by destroying key oil rigs, and their quest to stop it takes them to Saudi Arabia.

Right off the bat I loved Blair. She is a strong female heroine and she holds her own in a field dominated by men. In a lot of stories, the heroine starts off strong but later turns into a vulnerable, let the man take the lead kind of girl, but Stephanie writes her as a kickass woman throughout. Don’t get me wrong, she has moments where she’s feeling vulnerable and she does have a softer side, but it doesn’t come at the expense of her overall character. I particularly enjoyed the parts when Nick and Blair were in Saudi Arabia and hearing her inner dialogue over the way women are treated and viewed there. I also really liked the interaction between Blair and Conaway, a female reporter in training. The two bantered back and forth in a way that you can picture your friends and you talking. I really hope this is going to be a series and that we get a book for Conaway.

The entire book is narrated from Blair’s point of view. I would have enjoyed having it from both Blair and Nick’s points of view just to switch it up a little bit, but it certainly didn’t ruin the story for me. It is very obvious Feagan did her research about the oil industry which is great, but at times it almost felt like there was too much description of the various parts of the machinery, etc. This happens early on in the story and again it is not something that would have ruined the book for me.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book and I can’t wait to check out more books from Stephanie Feagan. I’m keeping my fingers crossed this turns into a series.

Rating: B+

*ARC Provided by Entangled

Click to purchase: Amazon

Out of Control

by Stephanie Feagan

Release Date: June 24, 2013

Publisher: Entangled

Review: Officer Off Limits

Reviewed by Carrie

Tessa Bailey is becoming an auto-buy author for me. She writes such deliciously dirty talking alpha heroes that just make me sigh. This is the third book in the Line of Duty series and though loosely connected, each can be read as a stand alone.

Hot on the heels of a broken engagement, kindergarten teacher Story Brooks dashes across the country to be at the bedside of her estranged father, a New York cop. In the hospital she runs into her father’s protégé, Daniel Chase, and sparks fly. The only hitch in the plan is that dear old Dad forbids Daniel from hooking up with his daughter. This lasts all of a hot second and by the time Daniel takes Story home, he has her pinned up against a wall. She decides to use him for fun while she’s in town and as a way to get back on her feet after a long disappointing relationship, but both of them get much more than they bargained for.

Story is a cheeky girl who appears self-confident despite lingering insecurities from her ex and abandonment issues with her father. She is in a bit of an emotional block while coming to terms with the fact that she basically wasted the last 2 years on a guy that she really didn’t connect with and feeling like a failure. I liked that she stood up for herself and didn’t wallow.

Daniel was the one who threw me for a loop. I had expected a straight up cop hero but got a heart aching tortured hero - my favorite! Daniel grew up shuffling between foster homes, drifting without someone to give a crap about him until he joined the police force and was taken under the wing of Jack Brooks, Story’s father. Daniel matures in police work, but sticks to his womanizing ways because he doesn’t know how to care; he wasn’t ever taught. When Story tells Daniel she loves him and he says that’s the first time anyone had ever told him that, I wanted to rip my heart out and serve it on a platter to him. He just slowly unravels as this sensitive man underneath who survived a horrible childhood and ultimately just wants to belong to someone.

The sex between these two is insanely hot and all the dirty talk had me fanning myself. Besides the sex and romance, I loved all the banter in this book – Story and Daniel, Daniel and his boys, Story and her friend, Hayden. It really kicks up the fun and gives the main characters more depth. There is a slight twist to the story at about the 80% mark that was unexpected and felt a little unnecessary but that was really the only blemish on the book.

I really recommend this book for an unexpectedly sweet and sexy story! I can’t wait for the next one!

Rating: A-

*ARC Provided by Entangled

Click to purchase: Amazon

Officer Off Limits

by Tessa Bailey

Release Date: June 10, 2013 

Publisher: Entangled

Review: This Man

Reviewed by Carrie

Ava O’Shea is a young successful interior designer who is sent to consult on a job in the country at an exclusive place called The Manor where she meets the enigmatic owner, Jesse Ward. From the first moment, of course, there is a connection. While Ava tries to keep her poise and professionalism, Jesse obsessively pursues her until she gives in.

I picked up this book because I actually received an ARC of the second book, Beneath This Man, and I have a thing about reading series in order whenever possible. After reading the blurb and knowing full well what kind of book I was getting into, I forged ahead.

Jesse is a controlling, possessive, borderline stalker. I can excuse these behaviors in a book provided that they come with proper character motivations or explanations. I love reading a good alpha, but this is not him. Jesse behaves like a petulant child when Ava ignores him. This is a man supposedly in his mid-thirties who hits redial non-stop because Ava won’t answer his call when she is at work. He basically stalks her wherever she goes and claims it’s for “her protection”. Again, this can be done so the reader can make peace with an unsettling action, but there is no basis or explanation for his reasoning other than he’s afraid she’ll get hurt in the big bad world. Finally, I found it vaguely insulting that Jesse’s age at 35 was considered “old”.

I found Ava even more frustrating because she would, at times, have a spine, ignore his calls and refuse to bend to his will and then throw that all out of the window basically because he was hot. Now, I agree that a pretty face can excuse some sins, but not when a man is dictating your every move and then throws a toddler-like tantrum. The author was trying to paint Jesse as a Dominant but there is nothing kinky about the sex. He’s just simply controlling and it has nothing to do with sex.

Overall, the scenes and descriptions were extremely repetitive and the smexy scenes were uninspiring (if I had to read one more time about lace underwear, I swear...). This book could’ve easily been reduced to a novella, which might have improved the overall enjoyment. Despite all the disappointments, I do admit there was a spark to the book and I am hoping the next book will be more fleshed out with better writing. This book is for the super fans only.

Rating: C-/D+

Click to purchase: Amazon

This Man

by Jodi Ellen Malphas

Original Release Date: October 20, 2012 

ReRelease Date: June 18, 2013 

Publisher: Forever 

Review: Falling for the Lawyer

Reviewed by Shelly

Working as an assistant Personal Assistant in a big law firm, Alex Farrer is sure that she’ll be out of a job as soon as the new boss shows up. Little does she know that the nice stranger who helped her that rainy morning is her new boss. JP McKenzie is the new partner at Alex’s law firm, he’s also Alex’s boss and after meeting the mud-drenched Alex, JP’s first day on the job grows into something that’s a little bit different than he’s used to.

This was a pleasant, quick, fun, and angst filled story - just like I like ‘em. Even though this is a ‘clean’ romance, no sex – zero zip nada – I couldn’t stop turning the pages. Clifton had me on the edge about what Alex would do about her staid, predictable and unhappy life. Would she fall back on what’s comfortable or make the change for something different? Suffice it to say, if I could life a (drama free) angst filled life I would, but since I can’t, I live that vicariously through these kinds of characters.

Alex’s character went through her share of change and growth. From an insecure and malleable character, Alex’s metamorphosis into a woman of strength and substance was a welcome transformation. That she was able to stand up to those around her, including JP, was handled really well without any melodrama and tantrums. Instead I saw Alex grow some and manned up to get down to the business of living the one life she’s got.

I must admit that I didn’t like JP at first.  Actually about the first half of the story I though he was a jerk because he came across as brash and loud and wouldn’t stop yelling at Alex. I thought he was just going to bully this girl and she would take it – oh nay nay! I warmed up to him eventually though and I could see that he cared about Alex as a person and didn’t want to see her wasting her potential because of fear. It’s always nice to have someone believe in you, even when you don’t believe in yourself.

There were some secondary characters that helped to move the story along and were quite enjoyable to read about. If you’d like a clean, good story about a discovering yourself and finding happiness, then I would definitely suggest that you give this one a go.

Happy reading folks!

Rating: B

*Book provided by Harlequin Enterprises Australia via NetGalley

Click to purchase: Amazon  

Falling for the Lawyer

by Anna Clifton

Release Date: March 1, 2013

Publisher: Harlequin Australia

Review: First Position

Reviewed by Janell
 

First Position is a reunited lovers story starring Emory, an almost-professional ballerina, and Mason, an NFL quarterback. They met in college and dated until shortly before graduation, when their career paths led them in different directions and Mason dumped Emory for not abandoning her ballet career to follow him. The story picks up six years later as Emory is breaking up with her fiancé and Mason is divorcing his trophy wife and recovering from a shoulder injury.

It’s a good premise and a good beginning. Emory and Mason’s road to reconciliation is emotionally quick, yet physically slow. They’re each keeping secrets from the other because they don’t want to ruin their fragile new beginning. When Emory discovers Mason’s secrets, she yells at him for not telling her. “Because, Mason, that’s what people in relationships do. They share things with each other.”

Emory is a a strong, reasonable character. She’s also got a perfect ballerina body, perfect coloring that rarely requires makeup, long blonde hair, and she loves to eat. Her only perceived imperfection is her small chest, but the big-breasted women in the story are characterized as sluts and whores, so her small breasts are an implied positive character attribute.

Mason is amusing at times, thoughtful and emotional at other times, but always an alpha male with temper issues. When he thinks Emory has been touched by another man, he throws food and flips coffee tables. He buys her a nice dress but then doesn’t want anyone else to see her wearing it. He also, still, doesn’t respect Emory’s love of ballet. He takes her to a ballet performance, thinking that it’s ridiculous, but he harnesses his contempt and congratulates himself for spending two hours of torture to make Emory happy. For me, his thoughts and behavior were boorish enough that I couldn't fall in love with him.

The supporting cast of characters is colorfully depicted, from Mason’s brother and mother to Emory’s gay roommate and his boyfriend. Mason, by the way, is okay with a gay man hugging Emory. He’s not okay with calling a baby boy beautiful, though, the baby must be handsome, so Mason still has some evolving to do.

My biggest problem with this book is a technical one: too much narrative head hopping. When characters are having a telephone conversation, I don’t need to see what each person is doing on their end of the line. I would also prefer one definite narrator per scene, because it wasn’t always clear who was having what thoughts. It weighted the narration down with unnecessary information.

Overall, this is a sweet story. It’s a long journey with a series of small happenings that paint a big picture, rather than a roller coaster of events and emotions. The ending, when Emory finally reveals her secret, has heavy emotions that play realistically and I felt that the characters had finally reached a new level of emotional intimacy. It made me wish that large chunks of the mid-section had been replaced with more conflict and introspection to depict even more character growth.

Grade: B-

Click to purchase: Amazon

First Position

by Prescott Lane

Release Date: April 14, 2013

Review: On Every Street

Reviewed by Jaimie
 

Ellie Watt grew up in a family of con artists and a bad decision by her parents results in a notorious drug dealer dumping battery acid on her leg, permanently scarring her. Now 20 years old, revenge haunts Ellie’s every thought so she gets help from a friend of her parents to transform herself into the ultimate con artist – Eden White is born. Eden’s goal is to seduce someone in drug lord Travis’ organization and get close enough to him to throw battery acid in his face. She sets her sights on Javier Bernal, a smooth talking, dangerous man and she winds up falling in love with the man she is supposed to betray.

This book was a very strange experience for me. Karina Halle was a new to me author and the blurb for the book sounded like one I would really enjoy. In the first couple of chapters I liked Ellie/Eden and she was presented as a strong woman who wanted payback for what had happened to her. I’m not even sure at what point it went downhill, but it happened very fast and it never got better for me. One of the first things that rubbed me the wrong way was the fact that Eden was going to seduce a high-up member of a drug organization – and yet she was a virgin. Given that I knew from the blurb she would fall in love with Javier I really figured the loss of her virginity would wind up actually working within the plot but it just didn’t happen that way.

The scene where she actually has sex for the first time bothered me and it really takes a lot to bother me in a book. I didn’t expect hearts and flowers but the entire scene was way over the top and to me it played out more along the lines of a rape scene. First Javier ties Eden up and blind folds her while she’s on her stomach. Okay it is not the first time I’ve seen that in a virginity scene but it usually involves some tenderness and caring. However Javier then has very rough sex with her and she is crying and telling him to stop because it hurts. He tells her that her pain is beautiful and then puts his hand around her throat and she struggles to breathe. At some point she begins to enjoy the sex but I still couldn’t quite get past my initial dislike of that scene.

Even though Javier is a member of this drug organization, I kept waiting for the “other” story - like that he was really on his own revenge quest or something even moderately redeemable about him but that never came. He really is the ultimate douchebag and you don’t usually see those guys as the love interest in the story. Their relationship moves at a very fast pace and it isn’t long before Eden throws her battery acid into the sea and abandons her plans for revenge. Javier becomes obsessed with Eden almost immediately and he tells her that if she ever leaves him he will hunt for her on every street – hence the name of the book. Eden finds this sweet and takes it as a sign of his love for her. I find it creepy and disturbing.

My biggest problem with the story was Eden. I’ve fallen in love with plenty of vulnerable, not as strong female lead characters but Eden was just pathetic. There is nothing redeemable or likeable about her. She starts off as a kick ass woman who has a goal and she winds up a simpering cliché. At one point Javier tries to break up with her saying she deserves better and she begs him not to – even though she knows the truth about who he really is. She witnesses him murder someone he considered a friend – in their dining room – and she decides enough is enough and she runs away. He finds her because he had placed a tracking device in her car (stalker much?) and she is relieved that he has kicked the door in and found her and they have sex before heading home. Their “love” story continues for a while until she comes home and finds him having sex with someone else in their bed. She takes this harder than the fact that she saw him murder someone and she finally decides to leave for good.

This book is the prologue for a trilogy and I honestly cannot imagine sitting through another story about Eden/Ellie. A tortured, vulnerable, abused heroine I can get behind, but there is not one likeable thing about either of the main characters in this story.

Rating: D-

*ARC Provided by Forever

Click to purchase: Amazon 

On Every Street

by Karina Halle

Release Date: March 9, 2013

Publisher: Metal Blonde Books

Review: Fire Inside

Reviewed by Carrie
 

FULL DISCLOSURE: I am a Kristen Ashley fan girl. So even though her writing might not be technically sound, her characters are so compulsively readable that I excuse any other shortcomings.

While this book can be read as a stand-alone, reading Motorcycle Man will give the proper backstory to not only this book, but the whole series. Fire Inside is the 2nd book in Ashley’s Chaos series about a biker motorcycle club (MC) where the men are all leather-clad alphas who pursue their women with a single minded determination. We first met Lanie Heron back in Motorcycle Man when her fiancé, Elliot, foolishly got involved with the Russian Mob. Elliot’s misdeeds catch up with them which resulted in Lanie and her best friend Tyra suffering grave injuries, while Elliot paid the ultimate price.

Eight years later, Lanie shuffles through her days still mired in guilt and loneliness. After watching Hopper (Hop) Kincaid strut around the Chaos compound for years, Lanie decides to jump start her stalled out life with a one night stand with the sexy biker. One night turns into many more as Lanie and Hop find that they can’t give up the explosive sex.

“Lady, we’re not sleeping, we’re resting then we’re fucking some more. Last time I’ll say it. Not done with you, got things I want to do to you and I’m doin’ them.”

Lanie is not only dealing with survivor’s guilt but also dealing with a dysfunctional family consisting of a philandering father, an alcoholic mother and a sister has divorced herself from the family drama.

I must say that Lanie is not one of my favorite of Ashley’s characters. In Motorcycle Man, she comes off as brash and judgmental and these behaviors persist in this book with Hop. Because of this, it hampered the desire to sympathize with her plight. Lanie’s broken family provides the framework for her behavioral motivations which does facilitate some understanding. In the end, I did come around to her.

Hop is the one who really makes the book for me. Even though he can be commanding, he is never high handed. He consistently gives Lanie support and backs up his words with actions. He’s not perfect, but willing to apologize when he is in the wrong. AND…not only is he a sweet smoking hot biker, he plays guitar and dedicates a song to Lanie! SWOON!!

There is more interaction with outside people than in the previous Chaos book although it is still limited. I was hoping for a girl’s night! What is really out of place is the Benito storyline. So far, all that is known after 2 books is that he’s a drug dealer encroaching on Chaos territory and there might be a war. Is this a plot device to show how rough and tumble Chaos bikers are or will there be actual suspense to follow? I hope we can see more Hot Bunch/Chaos interaction!!

Fire Inside is yet another fun ride by Kristen Ashley and I can’t wait to be on the back of the bike again soon!

Grade: B

Click to purchase: Amazon

Fire Inside

by Kristen Ashley

Release Date: June 4, 2013

Publisher: Forever

Review: Playing the Part

Reviewed by Carrie
 

Hollywood player Mick Blackwell, known mostly for his action movies, wants to break in to more serious dramatic roles. He pursues and lands the leading man part in a film adaptation of a romantic book by Piper James, but he is having trouble connecting with the character because he himself has never been in a real relationship.

After a recent messy public breakup which not only got her splashed all over the tabloids but also caused her to miss a deadline, Piper James is forced to come out of semi-seclusion by her publisher to help Mick tap into his inner love god.

From the moment they meet on the set, sparks fly between Mick and Piper. Mick immediately decides he wants her and makes it known, and Piper decides to use Mick to exorcise the insecurities left from her previous failed relationship. They quickly agree to a quiet affair while they are working together on the film with the understanding that romantic feelings don’t enter into the equation.

I really enjoyed the chemistry Piper and Mick had on the page. Piper was teasing and playful with a cocky stud like Mick. I particularly appreciated that Piper was able to own her own sexuality and be forward in their relationship. There was no beating around the bush in this book. Each person stated what they wanted and then did what was mutually agreeable – how authentic!

Of course, as the affair progresses, Piper and Mick find that they enjoy each other out of bed as well as in, and a friendship develops. Mick convinces Piper that they should extend their affair after filming is over and against her better judgment, she agrees. They get embroiled in a tabloid scandal that throws a wrench into their relationship just as Mick discovers he might care more than he thinks.

While the interactions between Mick and Piper were entertaining, the scenes with others seemed repetitive. When not with Mick, Piper is a broken record rehashing her former failed relationship. Her conversations with her agent/best friend, Chris, aren’t much better. It was a shame because it made the character really one-dimensional when, in other parts, such as when she talked about her books; Piper really came off the pages for me. The passage where Mick realizes he might have feelings was a little like a light bulb going off over a picture of a Neanderthal. There was no smooth transition – just one minute it’s all sex and the next, “Hey! I must be in love!” I think the book’s length short changed the character development that was needed to push it up to the next level.

All in all, if you are looking for a quick sexy read for the beach or just a book that you can enjoy and not have think too much about, this might just fit the bill.

Grade: C

*ARC Provided by Entangled

Click to purchase: Amazon

Playing the Part

by Robin Covington

Release Date: June 10, 2013

Publisher: Entangled