BRAVE ENOUGH
Series: Tall, Dark, & Dangerous #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: M. Leighton
Release Date: April 5, 2016
From the author of the New York Times bestselling Bad Boys novels comes another dark, sexy story…
Is she brave enough to give her heart to a man she only thought she knew?He was the most charismatic man I’d ever met. Strong, tough, brave. Bold as hell. Something told me Tag Barton could have anything—anyone—he wanted…and he wanted me. It didn’t matter that he was wrong for me in practically every way possible. It didn’t matter that my father would hate it.
I couldn’t resist him. Even if I’d known who he really was and what he was really capable of.
When he suggested we pretend to be engaged, I thought he was the answer to all my problems. He wasn’t. And, in his wake, he left nothing but scorched earth and me, just another casualty of my father’s war.
Can I believe him now when he tells me he loves me? Or is he nothing more than a beautiful, breathtaking lie?
The light rain bathes my face, the sweet scent of grapes scent the air and the heat of Tag surrounds me. I’m invaded by this moment, by this man. Invaded, body and soul.
Truth be told, I struggled with my rating for this book for days now. I’ve been marinating and marinating over what to rate it. Do I rate it as a part of the Tall, Dark, and Dangerous series which it didn’t seem to fit at all? Or do I rate it as a standalone I felt it should have been? After much deliberation, I’ve decided to go with something in the middle of the two. Because here’s the thing, while I did truly enjoy Brave Enough, I didn’t find it fit the series. Aside from Tag being a hero that was first introduced early in the series, there is really no other connection. The story felt different, the romance felt different, and the entire feel of it was just different.
Strong Enough was a heart pounding and intense read. Tough Enough was a lot more tame, but it did follow on the heels of a story arc that was first introduced in Strong Enough. Brave Enough was something else entirely. Those that have read the series will see what I mean, and those that haven’t, good news! You can easily read this as a standalone and miss nothing.
Weatherly O’Neil is seeking to escape her life for a bit and her father’s dictation of her life. Growing up in wealth and privilege, Weatherly never quite felt like she fit in that social circle. But now that her father is insisting that she marry someone for wealth and business reasons, she needs out; out from the pressures of her parents and her life. She finds that out in her beloved escape; her parent’s vineyard. There she comes face to face with the most charming, enigmatic and gorgeous man she’s ever met. His eyes promise the most delicious kind of sin, and his lips promise that she’ll enjoy the seduction.
Previous Special Forces and part of Delta Five team along with Jasper and Kiefer, Tag lives a different life now taking care of his ailing mother who works and lives on the vineyard as well as tending to the vineyard itself. Tag has never been the type to hurt for female attention but when he first lays eyes on
Weatherly he knows it’s a game changer. He’s determined to break down all her walls and ask her to be brave enough to take a chance on him. But Tag also has a secret, one that no one knows about and could cost him everything.
If you’re looking for a pure contemporary read with plenty of steam, this book will definitely hit the spot. It’s sexy and swoony and packed with plenty of feels. It’s also quite a bit slow paced and has the insta-lust/love thing going for it.
While I loved Weatherly and Tag’s connection, it was just too quick for my liking. There wasn’t enough relationship development for me to truly connect. Things get hot and heavy with these two pretty much straight off the bat, and doesn’t let up. At times I felt their physical connection was overshadowing their emotional one.
The book is also pretty slow paced, but on the flip side, I was never once bored while reading it. I was glued to the pages from start to finish and enjoyed myself the entire time.
I was really let down with the super rushed ending in book 2 of a particular story arc that began with book 2. A part of me had hoped that perhaps this would be fixed or further fleshed out with book 3, but alas there was zero mention of it here. It was like the first two books didn’t happen. Aside from cameos from Kiefer and mention of Jasper, that was all we got.
Ultimately it was the insta thing that brought down my rating. Their quick fall just didn’t feel believable to me. I found Weatherly overly naive and trusting and that was a source of frustration for a large chunk of the book for me. Tag was fantastic; a perfect balance of dirty talker and sweet, so that was certainly great to read. The ending was a bit heavy on the cheese and the entire relationship moved too quick for my tastes, but at the same time it fit this couple.
If you’re looking for a sweet romance with a swoony hero and plenty of steam, this will definitely hit the spot. My quibbles aside, I did still enjoy this book quite a bit and would recommend it to any fan of this author. One thing is for sure; M. Leighton can WRITE, and she most definitely gives good alpha.
READ THE SERIES IN ORDER
I’m going to be real for a hot second here; the last few releases in this series left me underwhelmed. So much, in fact, that I was about to give up on it entirely. There’s been a plethora of secondary characters introduced since 
The Beast doesn’t mess with a happy couple’s HEA; it expands on their emotional journey. It’s an emotionally gripping, lovely, and at times sweet and at times sexy continuation to a beloved couple.
But while I loved the set up, I had a hard time believing that Josh spent 5 years being celibate because he was “married”. Considering their arrangement, I just couldn’t wrap my mind around that. I connected to Alexia and her reasons, but Josh’s seemed a bit extreme.
If there’s one thing that Pam Godwin knows, it’s how to write one seriously intense alpha. The mere name alone, Emeric Marceaux, is enough to get my motor revving. This man will give you shivers and you’ll actually feel his intensity crackling through the pages. It’s utterly delicious. He’s a dose of dangerous, with a splash of depraved, and all of it is tied around a sexual magnetism that’s so captivating, your fingers will tingle turning the pages.
Dark Notes is a standalone dark romance with a deliciously kinky element of the forbidden teacher/student. Add in the fact that Ivory is only 17 years old, and you got yourself one crazy ride of a book. But that description doesn’t even begin to do this book justice.
Things begin to simmer between the two of them at first sight, and the author does an incredible job in making the sexual tension practically palpable enough to taste. Emeric is one of the most captivating characters I’ve read in a long while. He oozes sexuality and yet there’s this edge to him that adds an element of fear that just works so well.
While the sexual tension between Ivory and Emeric is instantaneous, that is the only instant thing in this book. The rest is the most delicious sort of slow burn. It’s almost like watching the most sexual game of cat and mouse unfold, and even though you know what the end result will ultimately be, you still can’t stop reading.
If there’s one thing that Lauren Layne knows how to do, it’s to write a swoony, feel-good, and super sexy contemporary romance. Cuff Me just may be my favorite in the series and of course the grumpy Vince is definitely my favorite Moretti brother…so far anyway.
It was a nice change of pace from the typical broody and tortured hero that you normally find in romance these days. After two books of wondering what made Vin tick and made him the man that he is today, I can certainly say I was not left disappointed with the way the author handled it.
Having never read a Melody Grace book before, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this. All I knew is after reading that blurb and seeing that cover, I couldn’t not read it. Also, have you ever known me to turn down a chance to read a second chance romance? I think not. That’s a damn sin is what it is, because let’s be honest, I do love me some second chance romance. All that angst, it just speaks to me. Heartbreaker was actually quite low on the angst, but it did pack a punch to the feels. It was a wonderful, sweet and sexy story of two characters I fell in love with right away. The pace was steady, the writing was great, the characters endearing, and the romance super steamy. It may have been almost too sweet for my particular tastes, but it just worked for me here. It fit these two characters perfectly. There wasn’t a need for any crazy drama or angst. It worked the way it was and I appreciated it for that.
Eva spiraled after Finn left and spiraled into rock bottom that she’s determined never to repeat. She lost herself along the way, but now she wants to find that girl again. Finn wants a second chance, but can Eva give him her heart again when he shattered it so completely those years ago?
Told in alternating POVs, this was a light yet steamy escape. I loved Finn and Eva together, and I loved that there was no flashbacks necessary to make the reader truly connect with their romance, even the one from their past. The author did a wonderful job explaining where they came from and leading them into the now. There’s no crazy drama, no crazy conflict that takes place, or silly miscommunications. Just two people, healing the wounds of their past, together.
Have you ever read a book that’s supposed to be highly emotional and touching, yet you felt…nothing? Like you knew what you were supposed to feel but it was more mechanically going through the steps of those feelings more so than actually feeling them? No? Well that basically sums up how I felt about this book.
Let’s talk about things that trigger my one-clicker for a second here, shall we?
As for that ending? Well let’s just say I may or may not be rocking myself in a corner as we speak while I wait for July 25 to finally get here
And if there’s one thing that I’ve come to love from her it’s her incredibly sexy MM that she somehow manages to pack full of so much feeling, it practically jumps off the pages at you. And this book? This fantastically written, utterly unputdownable book may be my favorite book by her yet. I never thought I’d say this, but Finley and Brantley took my number one spot from Tate and Logan, and let me just tell you that I LOVED Tate and Logan.
The chemistry between Daniel and Brantley was palpable, as was their emotional connection. I absolutely loved the way that Ella Frank managed to flawlessly weave very well times flashbacks to work with the story. I’m a picky reader when it comes to flashbacks and I can easily say the way they were written here was my absolute favorite. They were well paced and perfectly timed to work with the story and drive the plot.
