STRIPPED DOWN is a Blacktop Cowboys Series Novella brought to you by 1001 Dark Nights. 
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lorelei James, a new steamy story of the Blacktop Cowboys…
Never challenge a cowboy to a little naughty competition…
A flirty game of sexual truth or dare between best man, Wynton Grant, and maid of honor, Melissa Lockhart during their BFF’s wedding reception results in a steamy hookup.
But their plans for a one and done change when a family crisis leaves Wyn shorthanded at the Grant Ranch. Experienced horsewoman Mel volunteers to help out and gets way more than she bargained for living under the same roof as the sexy rancher. Playing house has never appealed to Wyn…until now.
But the feisty redhead is keeping secrets and Wyn’s not above stripping her bare—body and soul—to get to the bottom of it…
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Mel, you are in deep with this man and you’ve known him less than half a day.
She watched Wynton Grant amble off. And she couldn’t help but notice other women sizing up the rancher hottie too.
From the moment she’d set eyes on him she had that overwhelming punch of want—a feeling that happened to her so rarely lately. So seeing the identical look of lust sizzling in his eyes? The balls to the wall woman of action who’d been in hiding for the past six months had awakened with one thing on her mind.
Sex.
Lots of it.
Hot and dirty sex.
Fast sex.
Slow sex.
And it turned out the very sexy best man was more than happy to oblige.
This was turning out to be the best wedding ever.
The object of her lust stopped to speak to an older woman, giving Mel ample opportunity to study him. The man had it going on. His shoulders were so broad that he blocked the view of the woman entirely. Pity he hadn’t taken off his western cut suit coat so she could check out his ass; she’d bet his buns were grade A prime beef too. Not only did he have a big physical presence, he carried himself with confidence. He had an easy smile—which was a sexy-as-his wicked grin. From the back she noticed his dark hair brushed his collar and held more than a little curl. The groom and groomsmen had removed their cowboy hats as soon as the wedding pictures were done. As much as she appreciated a man in a hat, Wynton looked better without it.
Hands landed on the back of Mel’s chair and a soft rustle of fabric tickled her neck.
“Staring at him that intently won’t make his clothes disappear,” London murmured in her ear.
“That obvious?”
“Yes. But if it helps, my brother-in-law is staring back at you the same way.”
“Then maybe I’ll get lucky on your wedding night too, Mrs. Grant.”
…call me Mel.”
“Mel? Nope. Sorry. No can do.”
“Why not?”
“Mel is the name of a line cook. Saying, ‘Suck harder, Mel,’ or ‘Bend over, Mel,’ brings totally different images to my mind than I’m gonna fuck you through the wall, Melissa.”
Can you get a highly satisfying and enjoyable steamy romance in just a short 120 pages? In the case of this book; also-fucking-lutely. There’s a reason I’ve read practically every book in Lorelei’s backlist and this book is the perfect example why. It’s wonderfully smutty but with a great story and fantastic characters. I love this author’s dirty talking cowboys, and Wynton Grant was utter perfection.
If you haven’t read the rest of the Blacktop Cowboys series, I highly recommend you do simply because it’s fantastic. But if you’re thinking of starting with this one to get a taste for it, you can easily do that to since it does read well as a standalone. So what does this book have?
1. An awesome heroine that owns her sexuality and isn’t ashamed of her sexual history. This is a woman that enjoys sex for sex’s sake. How amazingly refreshing and rare to find in most romances these days. I loved Melissa. She’s certainly no blushing virgin, but she was never brash. She was such a fun heroine to read about.
2. A hot as sin cowboy. pervy swoon. Gawd but I loved him.
3. Super hot cowboy lovin’. No one writes the sexy times quite like Lorelei James and you’ll get no complaints from this pervert reader.
4. A great story. In just a few pages the author managed to pack in a great story. It wasn’t just sex and I loved all the secondary characters. Dare I hope that we’ll soon be getting a book for Sres and Mick? *waggles brows*
In short, I love it. If you’re a fan of this author, this is a no-brainer must read. And if you haven’t discovered her yet, this is the perfect book to start with. Short, sexy, and fun. What else can you possibly ask for?
Lorelei James is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of contemporary erotic western romances set in the modern day Wild West and also contemporary erotic romances.
Lorelei’s books have been nominated for and won the Romantic Times Reviewer’s choice Award, as well as the CAPA Award. Lorelei lives in western South Dakota with her family…and a whole closet full of cow girl boots.
Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads
Before I get to my review, let me get a few things out of the way with first.
The first half of the book is very much a slow burn, but it never drags. The angst and emotions truly have you riveted to the pages, it certainly did for me. My heart broke for Ransom and yet in the same breath I wanted to curse him to hell and back for his behavior. It was frustrating, it was maddening, it was disturbingly enrapturing.
I don’t want to give much away about the book because it’s just one of those things you need to experience for yourself. What I can say is I loved the route that Eden took with book and I was shocked as shit about it that I was. See, here’s the thing, I HATE a drawn out story that I think could have ended in one book. Cliffhangers drive me to drink and induce near homicidal thoughts when I finish reading it. Thick Love is part 1 of 2 books, and you know what? It’s best that way. This book was not about the epic love between Aly and Ransom. It was more about Ransom coming to terms with his guilt, healing his heart, and learning to move on. Both these characters have a lot of growing to do still and there’s no way this book would have been the same had it been all crammed into one book.
As much as the bumps on the road to Aly and Ransom’s relationship drove me out of my ever loving mind, it also made me feel. This entire book, everything about it will do one thing, guaranteed; evoke emotion. Whether that be rage, tears, it will make you feel.
I adore all things Lauren Layne, so it was an absolute no brainer decision when I saw she was coming out with a book for one of my favorite tropes; friends to lovers, to dive right in. Lauren is my go-to author whenever I need a light and easy read filled with swoony romance and endearing characters. Blurred Lines certainly fit that and then some. It was the perfect afternoon read. I simply adored Parker and Ben together. I always seem to have a weakness for the manwhores, and Ben definitely hit the spot for that. Their friendship had a solid foundation, which I really appreciated. I loved their banter the most
While the chemistry was definitely present between these two, they spent so much of the book denying and not seeing what was happening between them, that it became difficult even for me to see it. I struggled to see beyond their friendship to the romantic entanglements. Sure they burn up the sheets together, but I just didn’t get that butterflies in the stomach kind of connection. Usually in a friends-to-lovers book, I always sense the undercurrent of romance and sexual chemistry between the couple even when they don’t, but that wasn’t the case here. I can understand given the many years of solid friendship they had how they may fail to see it, but it just lasted too long for my tastes. Perhaps if both of them began to noticed it at least in the middle of the book than towards the end of it? For whatever reason, I just didn’t get that sense of crackling chemistry I usually get with a Lauren Layne novel.
What is it about an MM romance by Barbara Elsborg that just does it for me? Every. Single. Time. I’m pretty sure it’s the perfect combination of incredibly erotic sex scenes with a dry wit, snark, and humor along with some suspense that all adds up to be exactly what I need it to be. If you’ve read 
If you enjoy your MM with two very distinctly ALPHA males, this is not a book that you’ll want to miss. That was quite possibly one of my favorite parts about this. The fact that both the MCs are very much alpha and have a power struggle on who will bottom. Damn but it was delicious. But beyond that, Barbara Elsborg has once again managed to deliver and emotional and erotic story about two very broken people that find strength in each other and heal.
While recovering from an injury that almost paralyzed him and may not have been quite the accident that everyone else believed it to be. he’s sequesters himself to a house on the lake to go through the physical therapy he needs to finally gain his strength back. The last thing he expects to do is save a random drowning surfer.
Barbara Elsborg has become an auto-buy author for me and this book is a perfect example of why. I only hope that there may be more books in this series, but if I’m being honest, it doesn’t even matter because whatever this woman writes, I’ll read. Without a doubt.
No one, and I mean no one gives male POV quite like Emma Chase. The woman is the queen of male POVs and nothing beats her. While Drew from 
Don’t get me wrong, both Chelsea and Jake are far from perfect and I wanted to shake them for their stupidity more than a few times. But at the same time it just worked. I adored these two together. It wasn’t instant and I loved the burn of their sexual chemistry until they finally ignited together.
Wow. Suffice it to say that I’m drained. This book absolutely gutted me. It was devastating and beautiful all at once and I loved every painful second of it. Worth It is unlike any other book this author’s ever written. It has much darker undertones than the other books in this series, and it’s no light read. It’s gritty, it’s emotional, it’s devastating, made you ugly cry while hugging your kindle sort of read. It’s a beautifully unforgettable second chance romance about two people that didn’t belong, but yet belonged to each other that fate ripped apart in the cruelest of ways, only to bring them back together a little more broken to put their shattered pieces back together six years later. If you don’t recall these characters from previous books, that’s because they weren’t introduced there. Linda Kage managed to flawlessly interweave them, so if you’re wondering why they got a book before Asher, trust me when I tell you that you’ll understand once you read. Both of them have such a profound connection to a few of the previous characters that I never saw coming and definitely loved reading about. This also makes this book an easy standalone, so if you haven’t read the rest of the series, you’d still be able to enjoy this one fully.
There’s enough hints and bits and pieces given about what he’s been through to slowly let the reader connect the buttons, and my hear absolutely broke for Knox. His life was so tragic and when the whole truth of it gets revealed, I flat out sobbed. It was one thing trying to connect the pieces, but when you’re hit with the full picture of what he’d been through, it’s absolutely devastating.
This book was definitely a step away from the rest of the series, but it was amazing in it’s own right. It was emotional and completely unforgettable. It’s a story that will definitely be staying with me for a long long while. It’s just one of those books that truly touches you on a visceral level with the amount of emotions it brings out in you.
There’s also a hell of a teaser in the epilogue for Asher’s book that’s sure to whet your appetite if you’ve been waiting for it like I have. If you’re on the fence about reading this book, I can only tell you that you need to. It may not be a light read, but it’s so worth it. I love a good second chance romance, and this one was just so beautifully tragic and yet wonderful all at once. I simply can’t give you more than that because you need to experience it for yourself. But believe me when I tell you, that that’s what you need to do; experience it.
If I’m being perfectly honest, I was actually hesitant to read this. Last time I read a companion novel, the only thing it managed to do was make me hate the heroine with the fire of the worst kind of venereal disease. Not that I’d know what that felt like, but you catch my drift. What I mean to say, is more often then not you’re getting the same regurgitated novel you already read but in a different POV. Well this wasn’t that at all. Not even a little bit. Not even close. While this is essentially in Jared’s POV it’s a completely different book. So much so, that you can read it as a standalone, which I wouldn’t recommend since you need to see it from Tate’s POV first in 
I fell in love with Penelope Douglas’s storytelling in Bully, and the only thing this book managed to do was completely reaffirm that. Everything and I mean everything that I wanted more clarification and answers on in Bully was addressed here. While I adored that book, I found the reasons that Jared gave Tate for his behavior in it a little…weak. I felt like it had to be something more, something bigger for him to flip that switch and be the way he was with her. Until You delivered those answers in spades. Penelope truly allows the reader inside Jared’s head and you understand him and all his behavior so much more. Plus I loved getting more of him and Madoc and their banter together.
God. This book. I mean, THIS BOOK. Words fail me to describe just how much I loved this. I’ve had this in my kindle for what feels like ages since I got it as a freebie way back in 2013. I’ve seen it making the rounds on Goodreads and for some reason I still hadn’t read it. If I can kick my own ass for not reading this sooner, I would, because this book? This book reminded me about all the reasons why I fell in love with New Adult romance to begin with. And I’m not talking about the manufactured angst, stupid decisions, at at times gratuitous sex scenes. No. I’m talking that all-encompassing feeling, just the right amount of gut-wrenching angst, you hate but love the hero, and you want to high five the heroine kind of read. It was like it was custom written just for me.
I can’t remember the last time a book kept me up all night, completely incapable of setting it down for even a second because I needed to know what happened next. I was sucked in from just the first chapter and read this in one sitting. This is exactly the kind of angst that I’m starving for. Imperfectly perfect, rage inducing and yet flawless. That probably doesn’t even make sense, but if you’re an angst whore like me, you’ll know what I mean. My absolute favorite trope is the enemies-to-lovers, hate/lust thing and Bully delivers that in spades. While there were parts I wanted more from, I still can’t rate it down for that simply because this book absolutely enthralled me. So much so, that I couldn’t even bat an eyelash at any minor quibbles it may have had.
So Grace here is a bounty hunter but her boss won’t give her the big cases because she’s a woman and women are weak and blah blah blah
Finally her big break comes in the shape of big bad and uber sexy Raide, who she happened to have met the night before finding out he’s a fugitive and shared some snarky sexual banter with. Raide is wanted for aggravated assault and suspected murder. Grace needs to prove herself so while being on a team of bounty hunters, she’s going to go after him herself because…badass. But since Raide is all big and bad she can’t bring him in physically. So what’s a girl to do? Seduce him, of course. That’s a sure way to prove to your boss and team that you’re a woman to be reckoned with.
Anyway the rest of the book goes something along the lines of this…
I mean for fuck’s sake! Don’t even get me started on the fact that Raide’s endearment for her was “lady”. And all I can hear in my head as I was reading it was “hey laaaaddyyyy!”. Or the fact that after a month of knowing each other she tries to get him to give up his revenge 
Then there was an additional random POV toward the end and then everything was wrapped up in a pretty little bow to rival a disney fairytale. Suffice it to say this book did not work for me in any way. The characters were flat and I really didn’t feel there was much character or relationship development. It was all just meh.
A musical collaboration that wins a grammy serves for a night of celebration. The pull between Reckless Beat’s front man, Mason Lynch and Sidney Higgins has always been there. One night of celebration and alcohol leads to a sizzling threesome between Signey, Mason, and Mason’s best friend and Reckless Beat’s drummer, Sean Taiden. But then a video recorded on Mason’s phone meant to capture the moment to forever remember in private gets leaked, it ruins everything and completely shatters Sidney. She lost everything; her career, her self-worth, and the man she thought she trusted.
I’ve had this series on my radar for what feels like ages and the promise of some sweet delicious angst in this one finally sealed the deal for me to read it. Jumping into book three without reading the first two books, however, feels like I’ve done this series a disservice, and may explain my slight disconnect throughout the story. While I never felt confused or lost, it does feel like I missed out on the history behind the band. But this is a mistake I plan on rectifying immediately by going back and reading the rest of the series. Eden Summers is a new to me author but one that I know I’m not going to hesitate to read in the future. I highly enjoyed her writing style and Undersired Lust was a perfect blend of steamy romance with a dash of angst.
