Review: Before I Ever Met You by Karina Halle

April 28, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

BEFORE I EVER MET YOU
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Karina Halle
Release Date: April 25, 2017

I first met William McAlister when I was just a teenager.

He was handsome, had a beautiful wife and was on the verge of success, having just joined my father as his business partner. Mr. McAlister was full of smooth charm, but back then he was barely a blip on my radar. Just a family friend.

Fast forward ten years: I’m 25 years old and a single mom trying to make things right for her seven-year old son. I’ve made some mistakes, grappled with my demons and now I’m back in the city of Vancouver, getting a second chance at a better life.

I’ve started by working for my father’s production company as an executive assistant. My first day on the job and I already know I could have a promising career there.
That is until I see Will McAlister for the first time in a decade.

Now recently divorced and as sophisticated as always, Will has gone from being my father’s friend and business partner to something so much more.

We’re both older, for one thing, and he just oozes this worldly confidence and stark sexuality. Combined with his tall, muscular build and sharp suits, strong jaw and bedroom eyes, Will has turned into one hell of a distraction. A distraction I’m having a hard time staying away from, considering his office is right across from my desk and I work with him in such close proximity.

But it’s just a harmless crush, right?

It’s just an innocent fantasy of screwing him on his desk, right?

It can’t ever be more because he’s my father’s best friend, business partner, and my boss.

Right?

Wrong.

 

AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS

When I think about Karina Halle, I immediately think delectable anti-heroes, edgy heroines, and her stories are usually dark and twisty with a lot of angst. I never would have used sweet and adorable to describe her stories until now.

Before I Ever Met You is a different Karina Halle altogether and I am glad I got to read it this early because I really, really enjoyed it. Take my opinion with a grain of salt because I haven’t read all her her books but as someone who’s enjoyed her horror-paranormal series and her other edgier titles, Before I Met You was a breath of fresh air. Don’t get me wrong, it is still quintessentially KH but different.

Life is short. And when you find what makes your heart beat, your soul sing, then you have to hang on to it.”

Jackie is a familiar KH-type heroine: troubled, rebellious teenager who made a terrible decision and is now paying for it. Because of those mistakes, her relationship with her parents suffered and now, she’s back in their home, begging for a job and another chance to make a better life for her and her 7-year old son. Despite the guilt and the shame she’s feeling, Jackie remains resilient and it’s one of the things that made me relate with her character. Her decisions and actions made sense throughout the book.

The Mr. McAlister I remember from when I was a teenager was tall, dark and handsome, now he’s all those things magnified. Age has made him one hell of a sexy beast.”

But as much as I liked Jackie, the one character who stole my heart is Will McAllister. Will is her father’s friend and business partner, and 16 years older than Jackie. Will is also seeking a second chance in a town he left for who he thought was the love of his life. He’s back in Vancouver after the humiliating end of his marriage. Like Jackie, love is not his priority at all.

But the moment Jackie and Will meet, sparks started flying. And despite their best effort to stay away, their coming together was inevitable.

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Yes, it’s “forbidden” romance in a sense that there is that 16-year age gap and he’s her boss. But it’s also more than that or should I say, it’s never really about that. I feel like Jackie and Will’s journey as characters go beyond the May-December office romance affair cliche thing. Jackie’s got a lot of emotional baggage she had to deal with and Will was the catalyst that brought those issues to the forefront.

There was nothing sordid about their coming together even though they did keep things under wraps from other people especially her parents. It never felt like the story was about just that, and I really appreciated that Karina Halle took time to develop Jackie’s character. She made me understand and sympathetic to her plight, which is very important to me.

How is that life can be so crazy,so chaotic,so scary.
And yet one kiss from you and all that goes away.”

Will’s character is the same. From the get go, he’s characterized as a mature, caring, and sweet man who is willing to risk everything for Jackie and his boy. I smiled and swooned along with Jackie and I’m pretty sure I was doing the heart-eyes emoji thing every time he does something sweet for Jackie and Ty.

Then there’s the grand gesture.

Anyone who knows me well enough would attest that it doesn’t matter if I got annoyed with the characters or that the book was really slow in the beginning as long as I get my big-ass, grand gesture at the end. And this book’s grand gesture had me like…

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And then there’s that epilogue….

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OMG, I can’t. I was bursting with happiness. All that gooey HEA goodness was just too cute for words.

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Karina Halle is a former travel writer and music journalist and The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author of Where Sea Meets Sky, Racing the Sun, The Pact, Love, in English, The Artists Trilogy, Dirty Angels and over 20 other wild and romantic reads. She lives on an island off the coast of British Columbia with her husband and her rescue pup, where she drinks a lot of wine, hikes a lot of trails and devours a lot of books.

Halle is represented by the Waxman Leavell Agency and is both self-published and published by Atria Books/Simon & Schuster and Hachette in North America and in the UK.

Hit her up on Instagram at @authorHalle, on Twitter at @MetalBlonde and on Facebook. You can also visit www.authorkarinahalle.com and sign up for the newsletter for news, excerpts, previews, private book signing sales and more.

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Review: Arranged by Lexi Blake

April 26, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

ARRANGED
Series: Masters & Mercenaries #13.5
Genre: BDSM Romance
Author: Lexi Blake
Release Date: April 25, 2017

Kash Kamdar is the king of a peaceful but powerful island nation. As Loa Mali’s sovereign, he is always in control, the final authority. Until his mother uses an ancient law to force her son into marriage. His prospective queen is a buttoned-up intellectual, nothing like Kash’s usual party girl. Still, from the moment of their forced engagement, he can’t stop thinking about her.

Dayita Samar comes from one of Loa Mali’s most respected families. The Cambridge-educated scientist has dedicated her life to her country’s future. But under her staid and calm exterior, Day hides a few sexy secrets of her own. She is willing to marry her king, but also agrees that they can circumvent the law. Just because they’re married doesn’t mean they have to change their lives. It certainly doesn’t mean they have to fall in love.

After one wild weekend in Dallas, Kash discovers his bride-to-be is more than she seems. Engulfed in a changing world, Kash finds exciting new possibilities for himself. Could Day help him find respite from the crushing responsibility he’s carried all his life? This fairy tale could have a happy ending, if only they can escape Kash’s past…

AMAZON

 

His queen. The last fifteen years of his life had been about the world revolving around him, being the ultimate authority figure. But here and now, he realized she could be his sun.”

Ever since Kash was first loosely introduced back in Love and Let Die, I’ve been curious. He never had a solid presence in the M&M series, but when I saw that he’ll be getting his own book, I was intrigued. The playboy king in an arranged marriage? Sign me up for that!

I’m the first in a hundred years to be arranged by someone else. I suppose my mother thinks I’m incapable of selecting a proper bride.”

I couldn’t wait to see the woman that will bring this womanizer to his knees, and boy did she!

Day and Kash were once friends that could have been something much more, but life had other plans for them. They’re two very different people but life has brought them back together in much more interesting circumstance because Day is the woman Kash’s mother picked to be his bride and future queen of Loa Mali. While Day has dedicated her life’s work to serving the people of Loa Mali, she’s also as far from the traditional bride as a woman can get and not just because she refuses to sit back and be the little woman. She’s a woman with a core of strength and she’s not afraid to say what she wants or even demand it.

I cannot be that queen from long ago who allowed herself to be kidnapped and taken away. The choice will be mine. The choice to be queen. The choice to have you. I will make these choices not because I’m about to be royal, but because I am a woman and that is what I do. I will not play that game with you, love. I won’t give over and then protest that I had the choice taken from me. I will choose and accept the consequences. I wanted to show them who they are getting as their queen, not some gentle flower who will stand by her man and wave, but a woman who will fight for them as I fight for myself. As I would fight for you.”

I have to say, part of the reason I enjoyed this book so much was Day. I loved the way she put Kash in his place and I also loved the way she was his strength and support system. Kush hides a lot of depth behind his easy smile and playboy ways, and also a secret that’s so deep even he’s afraid to admit it to himself.

This book was very different from any of the others in the series or anything I’ve read from Lexi to date but it was also a refreshing change of pace. While this particular set up is not my usual go to, I certainly enjoyed it. Day and Kash were great together, even though Kash’s insecurities and the way he took them out on Day at times made me want to either throttle or kick him in the nether regions.

While this is #13.5 in the series, you can easily enjoy this as a standalone. However, you’ll appreciate all the cameos a lot more if you read the series in order.

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DGR Fave Review: Walk Of Shame by @_LaurenLayne

April 20, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

WALK OF SHAME
Series: Love Unexpectedly #4
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Author: Lauren Layne
Release Date: April 18, 2017

Sparks fly between a misunderstood New York socialite and a cynical divorce lawyer in this lively standalone rom-com from the USA Today bestselling author of Blurred Lines and Love Story.

Pampered heiress Georgianna Watkins has a party-girl image to maintain, but all the shopping and clubbing is starting to feel a little bit hollow—and a whole lot lonely. Though Georgie would never admit it, the highlights of her week are the mornings when she comes home at the same time as her uptight, workaholic neighbor is leaving to hit the gym and put in a long day at the office. Teasing him is the most fun Georgie’s had in years—and the fuel for all her naughtiest daydreams.

Celebrity divorce attorney Andrew Mulroney doesn’t have much time for women, especially spoiled tabloid princesses who spend more time on Page Six than at an actual job. Although Georgie’s drop-dead gorgeous, she’s also everything Andrew resents: the type of girl who inherited her penthouse instead of earning it. But after Andrew caps one of their predawn sparring sessions with a surprise kiss—a kiss that’s caught on camera—all of Manhattan is gossiping about whether they’re a real couple. And nobody’s more surprised than Andrew to find that the answer just might be yes.

AMAZON | iBOOKS

Despite the high temps of that swampy July morning, the encounter had been the start of an epic cold war. Me, the socialite in apartment 86A against the uptight esquire in apartment 79B. I’m not entirely sure I’m winning the war, but I’ll never tell him…

Where has this book been all my life?!! Where?!! I don’t have the words to describe all the love I had for this story! It was addictingly delicious and wickedly funny! Walk Of Shame is a book that will leave you with a full heart and a goofy smile on your face. It will make you swoon and make you laugh. It’s a book that you’d be incapable of reading without smiling the entire time. It was, in a word, PERFECTION.

I’m a sucker for a good enemies to lovers and this was utterly delicious! Witty banter, snarky sarcasm, ah-mazing characters, and enough chemistry to zap your finger with electricity each time you turn the page. So. Dang. Good.

I don’t like games, Georgiana.”
“Which is why you need to play them, Andy.”
He blinks. “It’s Andrew.”
“Hmm. How about Drew?”
“No.” The word is a growl. “Georgiana.”
“Yes, Andy?”
He exhales. “I’m going to kill you.”
I can’t help the laugh. “See, I don’t think so.”
“Don’t you?”
“Nope,” I say, sucking sugar off my thumb. “You don’t send flowers to someone you’re going to kill.”

Georgie is no stereotypical socialite. This is a heroine that’s absolutely impossible not to love. She’s warm-hearted, genuine, witty and sweet. There’s no catty friendships and silly drama with her. Can I just say what a breath of fresh air that was for me? Because GAH! I loved that! Being the daughter to two moguls leaves her wanting for nothing, but she’s not spoiled in the very least. She truly cares about people and I adored the easy friendships that she developed and drew people to her with her presence. Even the doormen to her building weren’t immune to her easy charm. The one person that was, however, was the stuffy divorce attorney that seems to go out of his way to either ignore or insult her.

What exactly did you do for exercise, Georgiana?” he says, giving me a skeptical look. “Twirl your hair?”
“If I do it vigorously, it counts as cardio.”

Andrew Mulroney, boy genius, now successful and most sought after divorce attorney is the definition of routine. Up at 5 am, exchange snarky sarcastic barbs with Georgie, work, sleep, repeat. He was so adorably awkward that you can’t help but like him. He’s not your stereotypical playboy hero. Yes, he’s successful now, but he’s not the life of the party. He’s been on the fast track to success since high school, and he’s not about to let a party girl distract him…even if the party girl is a lot more than first meets the eye.

I loved the banter between these two and the slow burn of sexual tension. Between every barb and insult these two exchanged, there’s a crackle of attraction and I absolutely loved the pacing of their relationship developing. It goes from frenemies to a reluctant friendship to so much more.

The man whose head moves insistently between my legs is nothing like the buttoned-up lawyer who has spent the past few months ignoring me. This man is raw and primal, his touch sure and possessive, as though every part of me is his and he’s always known it. 

I adored every single page of this book. Every. Single. Page. The friendships between Georgie and her girlfriends, the witty banter between her and Andrew, the slow burn, the crackle of attraction, EVERYTHING. Everything just flowed effortlessly to make for one unputdownable read that left me with a goofy grin from beginning to finish. I can say with utmost certainty that this may have been my favorite book by this author to date. If you’re looking for a witty rom com with a dash of enemies to lovers, you seriously can’t go wrong with this book!

He palms my ass before his fingers explore, tracing the upper elastic of my underwear. “Georgiana. Are you wearing impractical undergarments?”
“Yes. One might even call them . . . ridiculous.”
He pulls back, eyes gleaming. “I’ll be the judge of that.”

READ THE SERIES IN ORDER

BLURRED LINES | GOOD GIRL | LOVE STORY | WALK OF SHAME

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#DGRFave Review: The Hot Shot by Kristen Callihan

April 19, 2017 by ·

THE HOT SHOT
Series: Game On #4
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Sports
Author: Kristen Callihan
Release Date: April 18, 2017

First we were friends. Then we were roommates. Now I want more…
What can I say about Chess Copper? The woman is capable of bringing me to my knees. I know this about five minutes after getting naked for her.
No one is more surprised than me. The prickly photographer my team hired to shoot our annual charity calendar isn’t my usual type. She’s defense to my offense, a challenge at every turn. But when I’m with her, all the regrets and darkness goes away. She makes life fun.

I want to know Chess, be close to her. Which is a bad idea.

Chess is looking for a relationship. I’ve never given a woman more than one night. But when fate leaves Chess without a home, I step up and offer her mine. We’re roommates now. Friends without benefits. But it’s getting harder to keep our hands off each other. And the longer we live together the more I realize she’s becoming my everything.

Trick is… Now that I’ve made her believe I’m a bad bet, how do I convince her to give this player a true shot at forever?

AMAZON | iBOOKS

So were going to…What? Be friends.”
He looks almost boyish then. “Yeah. We are.” His eyes spark. “Fair warning. I’ll still be picturing you naked half of the time. So get used to a bit of leering.”
I snort. “You just had to go and ruin the moment, didn’t you?”
“Probably should get used to that too.”

GAH. All of the stars! ALL OF THEM!

Do you know why I love that one quote up there? Because it’s the perfect summary of this book. It’s this incredibly endearing combination of humor, emotion, and passion. I seriously couldn’t get enough of it! Opposites attract in this sweet and sexy sports romance and I was absolute putty reading it. A happy pile of swooning goo. Can goo swoon? Hmm…no matter. What’s important is how much I seriously loved this book!

From bickering, to unlikely friendship, to roommates, to lovers, Chess and Finn stole my heart…and I never want it back

Like an inevitable collision with a charging linebacker, I suspect Ms. Chess Copper is going to take me down and make me feel it. Bitch of it is, I’m not sure if I hate the idea or kind of like it.

The last place Finn wants to be is in front of the camera. When the photographer hired by their team to shoot their annual calendar doesn’t automatically swoon at his feet like so many other women, he’s intrigued. She’s so far from his usual type, but there’s something about her sharp wit and sarcasm leaves him hooked.

Chess has just about given up on relationships, and the last person she would ever date is the playboy quarterback with the easy smile and a horde of women in his past. But then when she sees the depth hidden beneath his easy smiles, she’s intrigued, and what soon begins is the unlikeliest of friendships even when both of them yearn for something much more.

I want her with a ferocity that aches low in my gut, and I find myself reaching for her without thought, only to restrain myself at the last second. Because she is not mine.

I loved reading their budding relationship develop. There’s so much more than first meets the eye with Finn and watching his layers reveal themselves was utterly delicious. He’s so much more than Chess expected and watching that slowly crumble her walls left me a grinning fool. I adored their easy camaraderie. They were so different and yet so perfect together. I loved the slow burn; until the sexual tension was sprung so tight, I thought I might explode if they didn’t finally didn’t give in to the pull between them.

Finn was the perfect easy-going humor to off-set Chess’s prickly sarcasm. I simply couldn’t get enough of these two together. I loved their friendship but I definitely loved watching it develop into something more.

Finn, what am I going to do with you?” His smile is an easy glide, but his eyes hold mine a beat too long. “Keep me. I’m pretty sure I’m good for no one else.”

And then there was that epilogue. GOD. That epilogue deserves 5 stars for it alone.

Book four in what’s become one of my favorite sports romance series delivered on the promise with one swoony, funny, and sweet read. I adored every single page of it. If you’re a fan of this series, this book is an absolute myst read. I’m already in need of my next fix, I just don’t know who I want more, North or Jake.

THE SERIES

THE HOOK UP | THE FRIEND ZONE | THE GAME PLAN | THE HOT SHOT

· Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, Sports · Tagged With: , , ,

Review & Excerpt: The Thing About Love by @juljames

April 18, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

THE THING ABOUT LOVE
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Julie James
Release Date: April 18, 2017

Two undercover FBI agents can hide who they are from everyone but each other in the latest novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Suddenly One Summer.

FBI agents Jessica Harlow and John Shepherd have a past. The former lawyer and cocky Army ranger clashed during their training at Quantico, gladly going their separate ways after graduating from the Academy. Six years later, the last thing either of them expects is to run into each other again–assigned to work as partners in a high-profile undercover sting.

For both of them, being paired with a former rival couldn’t come at a worse time. Recently divorced from a Hollywood producer and looking for a fresh start, Jessica is eager to prove herself at her new field office. And John is just one case away from his dream assignment to the FBI’s elite Hostage Rescue Team. In order to nail a corrupt Florida politician, they’ll have to find a way to work as a team–a task that becomes even trickier when they’re forced to hole up at a romantic, beachfront resort as part of the investigation. Suddenly, the heat behind their nonstop sparring threatens to make the job a whole lot more complicated. . .

AMAZON | iBOOKS

Steeling himself, John turned around and smiled as Jessica approached. “Yes, Agent Harlow. How can I be of service?”In response to his dry tone, she threw him a glare so cold it could’ve frozen all nine circles of Dante’s Hell. Fittingly, just nine of the many places he would rather be than stuck working with her on this investigation.

“Look, I’m not thrilled about this, either.” Keeping her voice low, she came to a stop next to him at the elevator bank. “I thought you were supposed to be on the Hostage Rescue Team already.”

“And I thought you were supposed to be in L.A.”

There was a quick flash in her eyes before she shrugged off his question. “Change of plans.”

The elevator arrived at their floor, and they both stepped inside. She hit the button for the seventh floor, where the public corruption squad was located. Standing on the opposite side, he pressed the button for floor five.

They faced off as the doors shut. She folded her arms across her chest and studied him with those crystalline blue eyes that could so cleverly mask her emotions.

As he knew well.

“We’re going to have to figure this out,” she said. “We’re supposed to be business partners in this.”

Thank you, yes, being a professional, he was aware of that. He took a step closer. “It’s called “undercover” work, Harlow. If I can pretend to be a gun-buying, murder-for-hire thug, I think I can handle playing some rich investor-type who wants to skirt a few measly zoning laws.” Even a rich investor-type who was apparently masochistic enough to get in bed with the likes of her.

Professionally-speaking.

“Measly zoning laws?” she repeated.

Ooh, now he’d gone and pissed her off. How nice it was, really, that they could pick up like this, right where they’d left off.

She drew in closer, tilting her head back to meet his gaze. He was over a foot taller than her, although he noticed that she was heightening a bit with those expensive-looking three-inch heels she wore.

“Our target in this investigation is the mayor of the thirteenth largest city in the United States. That’s a pretty big deal in my book.” She gestured to his facial scruff and hair. “And while I appreciate that this . . . Sons of Anarchy motif you’ve got going might ingratiate yourself with the gun-buying, murder-for-hire, organized-crime thugs of the world, that’s not quite going to fly with this sting operation.”

“’Thirteenth largest city in the United States?’” he scoffed. “Just how many hours did you spend reviewing the case files last night?”

She smiled sweetly as the elevator arrived at her floor. “Enough to get the jump on you.”

Then the doors sprang open, and she gave him a friendly wave, once again stepping into the role of Ms. Congeniality. “So glad we got to catch up like this, Agent Shepherd. We’ll talk again soon.”

He watched her stride confidently down the hallway as the elevator doors closed between them.

Enough to get the jump on you.

Not for long, sweetheart.

Time for him to get cracking on that case file.

Nearly fifteen thousand special agents in the FBI, spread throughout the United States in fifty-six field offices, and she had to show up in Chicago for what was quite possibly his last undercover assignment. As his new partner.


God but I love this author. She writes stories that are funny, swoony, full of witty banter and humor, and they just keeps getting better and better! First of all, if you haven’t read anything by her yet, you need to rectify it immediately by reading her FBI/US Attorney series. One, because it’s AMAZING. And two, because you’ll definitely appreciate a few of the cameos in this book. But let’s get back to the matter at hand; all of the awesome that was this book.

So let’s see? We already know that enemies to lovers is my catnip, and no one seems to write it better than Julie James.

In response to his dry tone, she threw him a glare so cold it could’ve frozen all nine circles of Dante’s Hell. Fittingly, just nine of the many places he would rather be than stuck working with her on this investigation.


What makes it good is not just the humor interlaced flawlessly throughout the story, but the wit and sarcasm. Her characters are perfectly balanced and equals of each other. I love how James has a knack for writing incredibly endearing and strong female leads. They’re just the right amount of witty sarcasm and strength and Jessica Harlow was no exception. After her dedication to her job cost her her marriage, she’s looking to dive in further into her work and forget men. She doesn’t need them. She certainly doesn’t need an incredibly cocky, smart mouthed, Thor lookalike that made her months at Quantico training a living hell. Too bad it appears that he’s her new partner for an undercover sting and she’s stuck with him. He may know how to start a fire with two sticks and the ass end of a lightning bug, but he’s a royal pain in her butt and she won’t let him forget it. Digs and sarcasm galore, you guys!

John Shepher is on the track to make the FBI’s elite Hostage Rescue Team. He has one final assignment before he finds out, and it may be the longest assignment of his life because his new partner is as equally infuriating as she is sexy. The sparks flew between them when they first met but a simply misunderstanding of intentions turned them into rivals. Now they’re older, at a different point in their lives, but the spark hasn’t diminished even a little.

Feeling her body tremble, he leaned down and reached between her legs, the words pouring out of him in a low, possessive growl. “I love when you’re on the edge like this. You’re so goddamn sweet. So mine.”

The chemistry between theses two was through the roof hot. What I especially loved was how balanced to each other they both were. John didn’t come charging in and unermine Jessica’s ability as an agent. She was fully capable and he knew it. They were perfect equals and that’s so rare to find in today’s romance.

As per usual James fashion there was plenty of sexual tension and humor to keep you glued to the pages. The Thing About Love was a laugh out loud, swoon till you melt, keep you turning the pages well into the night sort of read. I adored it. I simply adored it. I will never get enough of this author and I can’t recommend her enough if you love smart contemporary romance with swoony heroes and capable, strong heroines. It was perfection!

Okay,” he repeated. She knew that look. “You’re going to kiss me, aren’t you?” He pretended to consider this. “Well, with all the emotions flying around, it just feels … expected.”

MEET JULIE JAMES

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Geri’s Review: All You Need by Lorelei James

April 18, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

ALL YOU NEED
Series:  Need You #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Lorelei James
Release Date: April 4th 2017

A hockey romance burns up the ice in the third sexy Need You novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the Mastered Series and the Blacktop Cowboys® Series.


PR agent Annika Lund can spin any disaster into a win. But revamping the reputation of a notorious Swedish hockey player will take every trick in her arsenal, especially when his agent insists that convincing everyone he’s no longer a playboy is top priority. And that it requires a sham relationship—with Annika playing the part of loving girlfriend.

On fire in the rink and in the bedroom, Axl Hammerquist couldn’t care less about being anyone’s golden boy. So when his agent forces him to play nice with a new publicist, he takes satisfaction in being as much of a pain as possible.

But the more time he spends getting to know Annika, the more Axl starts to think that being Mr. Nice Guy might be worth it if it gets him the girl…

AMAZON | iBOOKS

I have a confession to make. When I started this book, I was sure I wasn’t going to like it.

One, the heroine, I felt, has no personality whatsoever. She’s too perfect for my taste. She has no flaws. She’s basically a walking, talking cliche: tall, gorgeous, rich, blonde heiress who has everything. I have nothing against blonde heiresses for heroines but Annika Lund just left me cold.

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Two, the book started off slow. Not only that it reads like any other sports romances out there. It’s not bad but the story didn’t stood out either.

Three, the hero was just okay. Again, he’s your typical NA-ish hockey romance hero. I didn’t find anything exciting about him even though I liked him better than the heroine.

Then 53% happened, and the story, the character just took off for me. The jokes that felt off at the beginning started to hit me and I found myself genuinely laughing at the banter between Annika and Axl.

“I’m happy I’m not Santa—the poor guy only comes once a year. And he limits himself to just good girls.”

Also, there’s this chemistry thing. It finally worked. I started rooting for these two characters to figure their shit out and have their HEA.

And oh, did I mention that the secondary characters, specifically Annika’s mom, Selka, was hilariously entertaining and entertaining? No? Well, they are. Selka especially. And the whole Lund clan had their own brand of crazy that I found entertaining. Same goes for Axl’s teammates and neighbors.

Then there’s that “big gesture” scene near the end that had me swooning. I admit, it might have been a bit cheesy but IT WORKED!! Big time. It just did.

So yeah. I ended up really enjoying this book. I’m glad I stuck with it otherwise I would have missed this gem:

“What’s a douchecanoe?”
“Worse than an asshat, but not as bad as a twatwaffle.”

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READ THE SERIES IN ORDER

WHAT YOU NEED | JUST WHAT I NEEDED | ALL YOU NEED

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Release Blitz, Review, & Author Q&A: The Player by @ KBrombergDriven

April 17, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

THE PLAYER
Series: The Player #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: K.Bromberg
Release Date: April 17, 2017

Baseball has never been sexier in an all-new novel by New York Times Bestselling Author, K. Bromberg.

Easton Wylder is baseball royalty. The game is his life. His passion. His everything.

So, when an injury threatens to end Easton’s season early, the team calls in renowned physical therapist, Doc Dalton, to oversee his recovery. Except it’s not Doc who greets Easton for his first session, but rather, his daughter, Scout. She may be feisty, athletic, defiant, and gorgeous, but Easton is left questioning whether she has what it takes to help him.

Scout Dalton’s out to prove a female can handle the pressure of running the physical therapy regimen of an MLB club. And that proof comes in the form of getting phenom Easton Wylder back on the field. But getting him healthy means being hands-on.

And with a man as irresistible as Easton, being hands-on can only lead to one thing, trouble. Because the more she touches him, the more she wants him, and she can’t want him. Not when it’s her job to maintain the club’s best interest, in regards to whether he’s ready to play.

But when sparks fly and fine lines are crossed, can they withstand the heat, or is one of them bound to get burned?

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AUTHOR Q & A

DGR: Who’d be your dream cast for Scout and Easton?

KB:You know, I don’t really muses when I write. Most of the time the character is in my head and I see him there. I rarely see an actor or an athlete in this case and think “That’s Easton!”

DGR: What was your favorite scene to write in The Player?

KB: There were so many… I’d have to say the second interaction between Scout and Easton… she lays down the law and he just watches her with a smirk and some serious admiration. And sexual attraction of course.
DGR: What was the hardest scene to write in The Player?
KB:The ending. You want it to be perfect. 
(The problem with my fav scene… is the excerpt has to be super long to make it make any sense… my apologies!)

I’m putting myself out on a limb for a woman who wants to run, when for the life of me, I’ve never been one to stay. But I’m not going anywhere.

K. Bromberg can do no wrong. With each book she writes, her masterful writing gets better and better. I have yet to meet a hero of hers that didn’t melt both my heart and my ovaries, and Easton Wylder is certainly no exception. The man is baseball royalty, sexy as sin, and currently out of the sport that he loves due to an injury.

He’s hard lines and tanned skin. He’s confidence with a half-cocked grin, and he’s desire restrained with the tense set of his shoulders.

Scout Dalton is the woman hired to be his physical therapist, and sparks fly between them right away. Expecting to see his old PT, Doc, Easton has a hard time believing the delicate beauty is who she claims to be. But Scout is also no delicate wallflower and puts him right in his place and straight on his back…for the therapy, of course. What were you all thinking? *evil grin*

Scout is a woman with secrets. She’s fully accepted that nothing good stays in her life and won’t allow herself to put her heart out there, not even for the sexy baseball god that’s determined to prove to her that he’s different. Can I just say how refreshingly nice it was to have a famous hero that wasn’t a playboy? This is a man that knew what he wanted and wasn’t afraid to go after it.

It’s going to be a bitch, isn’t it? To have to stretch me. Body to body. To have your hands on me. To have to watch me get hot and sweaty. To hear me groan when I lift weights and not remember that’s the same sound I made when I came. To rub me out—nice and slow. To be around me so much you’re sick of me, all the while denying there’s something here worth figuring out.”

I loved their mix of easy camaraderie, sexual tension, and banter. They practically crackled through the pages with their chemistry. I love a good slow burn and boy does K. Bromberg bring it with this couple. It was delicious.

We crash together in a torrent of lust and lips and tongues, where wants now become needs. Where greed becomes the game, and satisfying it becomes a by-all-means-necessary type of strategy. Where bodies mesh and meet and tease and pleasure.


Scout was stubborn and proud, almost to a fault. She’s determined to keep her secrets and her heart to herself. Her focus should be Easton’s rehab because it could mean a contract for the entire club, but her focus deviates more and more with each brick that he demolishes on the wall that she’s so carefully built around herself through the years.

This being book one of a duet you obviously get left wanting at the end, but you won’t find this girl complaining. It was perfectly paced and you get just the right amount of story to hook you and leave you salivating for the conclusion. But don’t go getting any ideas now, because Easton is ALL mine.


I want more. I’m going to take more. Right here. Right now. On this rural country road with fireflies outside the window and the scent of her everywhere.


New York Times Bestselling author K. Bromberg writes contemporary novels that contain a mixture of sweet, emotional, a whole lot of sexy, and a little bit of real. She likes to write strong heroines, and damaged heroes who we love to hate and hate to love.

A mom of three, she plots her novels in between school runs and soccer practices, more often than not with her laptop in tow.

Since publishing her first book in 2013, K. has sold over one million copies of her books and has landed on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists over twenty-five times.

In April, she’ll release The Player, the first in a two-book sports romance series (The Catch, book 2, will be released late June), with many more already outlined and ready to be written.

She loves to hear from her readers so make sure you check her out on social media or sign up for her newsletter to stay up to date on all her latest releases and sales: http://bit.ly/254MWtI

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Release Week Blitz, Author Q&A, Review & Giveaway: Beautiful Liar by @ZCoxBooks @ForeverRomance

April 14, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

BEAUTIFUL LIAR
Series: Dark Desires, #1
Author: Zara Cox
On Sale: April 11, 2017
Publisher: Forever
Trade Paperback: $14.99 USD
eBook: $4.99 USD

**NOW AVAILABLE IN TRADE PAPERBACK**

People call me many things: CEO, billionaire, bastard. Q.

I love women. I love sex. I love money. I love hot, wild nights with no promise of a future, because a future is one thing I don’t have. I’m twenty-eight years old. I won’t live to see thirty, and I don’t care. Or I didn’t, until her.

Nobody plans for a life like this. Some of us just end up here.

They call me Lucky, though luck has never been on my side. Before I met Q, my life was a big, twisted mess. Never enough money, never anyone to trust. No way out. With Q, the shame and fear disappear. Instead I feel pure pleasure, and that’s something I’ve never had before. But if what I’ve just learned is true, we’d better enjoy every second together while we can…before our time runs out.

BEAUTIFUL LIAR was previously published as Porn Star

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“So it’s true? It’s not a con? This job really pays a million dollars? For…sex?” she rasps.“You think I’d admit it if it was a con? What did the ad say?”

Her delicate jaw flexes for a second.

“One million uninhibited reasons to take a leap.

One million chances to earn a keep

One million to give in to the carnal

Are you brave enough to surrender,

For a payday to remember?”

It speaks even more to her desperate state of mind that she remembers the ad verbatim.

I remain silent and wait for her to speak.

“So…assuming it’s not a con, how will this work, then?”

“If you pass the next few tests, and I decide you’re a good fit, you get the gig. You’ll receive one hundred thousand dollars with each performance.”

“So…ten performances…over how long a period?”

“Depending on how many takes are needed, anywhere between three weeks and a month. But I should warn you, it’s hard work, Lucky. If you think you’re just going to lie back and recite the Star Spangled Banner in your head, think again.”

Her fingers drum on the table, the first sign of nerves she’s exhibited. “I…I won’t be doing anything…skanky, will I?”

“Define skanky.”

“This is going to be straight up sex. No other…bodily stuff? Because that would a firm no for me.”

My mouth attempts another twitch. “No water works, waste matter or bestiality will be involved in the performances.”

Her fingers stop drumming. “Okay.” She waits a beat, stares straight into the camera. “So when will I know?”

I hear the barely disguised urgency and I rub my finger over my lip again. “Soon. I’ll be in touch within the week.” I’m not sure exactly why I want to toy with her. But I sense that having her on edge would add another layer of excitement I badly need.

When she opens her mouth, I interrupt. “Goodbye, Lucky.”

A passing thought about the origin of her name is crushed into oblivion. I press the remote to summon the bodyguard to escort her out, and I leave the room.

In my study a few minutes later, I bring up the screen on my desk and activate the encrypted service I need. I open the application and within minutes, the members of my exclusive gentlemen’s club are logging in.

My email is short and succinct.

The next Q Production is scheduled for release on 20 May 2015.

Limited to ten members.

Bidding starts in fifteen minutes.

I start the countdown and rise to pour myself a neat bourbon. I swallow the first mouthful with two prescribed tablets, which are meant to keep me from going over the edge, apparently, and stroll to the floor to ceiling window. I look down at Midtown’s bumper-to-bumper traffic. This mid-level penthouse is one of many I own in this building and around New York City.

Technically, I don’t live here. I only use it when volatile pressures demand that I put some distance between the Upper West Side family mansion and myself. I would never stray far for long. For one thing, I’ve accepted that my family would never leave me alone.

I know what I know. So they’ve made it their business to keep me on a short leash. But with over three hundred properties in my personal portfolio, and a few thousand more under the family firm’s control, there are many places to disappear to when the demons howl.

Today, the Midtown penthouse is my temporary haven.

I turn when the timer beeps a one-minute warning.

I return to my desk and adjust the voice distorter. When the clock reaches zero, I click the mouse. “Gentlemen, start your bids.”

My words barely trail off before the first five bids appear on the screen. Sixty seconds later, the total bid is at a quarter of a million dollars. I steeple my fingers and wish I were more excited. The money means nothing. It never has. It’s the end game that excites me.

My mind drifts back to Lucky. I turn the gem of her elusiveness this way and that and admit to myself she has potential.

I want to take a scalpel to all her secrets, bleed them and soil my hands with the viscera. I also want to fuck her until her body gives out. Right in this moment, I’m not sure what I want more.

So I concentrate on the numbers racing higher on the screen.

Half a million. One million. One point five.

My phone beeps twice. I pick it up and read the two appointment reminders on the screen.

7pm – Dr. Nathanson. My shrink.

9pm – Dinner with Maxwell.

I re-confirm the first and delete the second.

Cancelling dinner with Maxwell will bring a world of irritation to my doorstep. No one cancels dinner with Maxwell Blackwood. For a start he’s one of the most powerful men in the country.

He’s also my father.

Yeah, my name is Quinn Blackwood, heir to the Blackwood Estate, only child of Maxwell Blackwood and Adele Blackwood (deceased). My family owns a staggering amount of property across the eastern seaboard of the United States and a few in the west. According to the bean counters, I’m personally worth twenty-six billion dollars.

But tangling with my father in hell is what I live for. Have done since I was fifteen. So I ignore his summons and watch the stragglers fall away until I’m left with the top ten bidders. The bids wind down, and within the space of half an hour, I’m just under two million dollars richer.

I spot the familiar name of the top bidder and I sneer. Taking his money on top of everything else is darkly satisfying.

Once bidding ends, I close down the application and call up another list. Dozens of charity websites showing pictures of starving children flood my screen. Within minutes, fifty charities are the grateful recipients of two million dollars.

I may be Quinn Blackwood, occasional user of prescribed meds to keep the demons in check, who moonlights as Q, porn star to an exclusive few who pay millions for my work.

And I may be an unhinged asshole with serious daddy issues.

But no one said I wasn’t a giver.

AUTHOR Q & A

DGR: What was your favorite scene in Beautiful Liar?

ZC: It’s almost impossible to choose a favorite scene but one of my favorites has to be the first time Quinn & Elly meet “in real life”. He doesn’t look at or acknowledge her as she serves him his lunch, but she’s completely electrified by him. When he gets up to leave he sees this woman that he’s only seen through his camera lens and he’s in turn captivated, but only for a second because he can’t reveal who he is. Portraying their emotions during that scene was fantastic to write.

DGR: What was the most difficult scene to write in Beautiful Liar?

ZC: Hmm, maybe this should come with a spoiler alert, but it’s the heartbreaking moment when Quinn watches his mother take her own life. That was heartbreaking to write because he lost the only person who loved him, until Lucky came along.

The hate, the vengeance and sex are instruments that oil my existence and keep my compass true.

HOLY. SHIT.

I did NOT see this book coming. I’m so happy it got a title and cover change because the old one didn’t do it justice AT ALL. I’m serious. If you think this is yet another run of the mill smut filled romance read, think again. The writing. The story. It was hauntingly captivating. I’m absolutely blown away and got myself a new author to stalk.

I may be Quinn Blackwood, occasional user of prescribed meds to keep the demons in check, who moonlights as Q, porn star to an exclusive few who pay millions for my work. And I may be an unhinged asshole with serious daddy issues. But no one said I wasn’t a giver.

Q is a man of wealth and power. He’s a man skirting the fine edge of revenge and depravity and he makes no excuses or apologies. Every single move is calculated to achieve his end goal. His revenge. To right a wrong of years past, to punish those responsible, even if he doesn’t survive to bask in the glory of the fallout. It’s not time to make his most calculated move yet. Everything he’s been doing has been leading up to this…his grand plan. And the key to it is a woman with haunted eyes and a closet full of skeletons who may be hiding more baggage then even him. Lucky.

I want to take a scalpel to all her secrets, bleed them and soil my hands with the viscera. I also want to fuck her until her body gives out. Right in this moment, I’m not sure what I want more.

The writing in this story is absolute perfection. It’s haunting and lyrical. The characters are so well developed, they practically have an energy that you can feel through the pages. The sheer power of Q’s presence is enough to captivate even the most cynical reader.

Quinn Blackwood’s eyes are soulless pools. Staring into them is like staring into a bottomless abyss in the middle of a post-apocalyptic nightmare.

Every word has a purpose. Every description leading to a new revelation. It was dark and hypnotic. Erotic and captivating. I was glued to every single page, practically salivating for more.

While Q was an erotic enigma full of sex appeal and secrets, Lucky was an interesting blend of cracked glass about to shatter but with a hidden steel reinforcement. This is a woman that survived her own hell and will do anything to escape it…even sell her body and her dignity for a million dollars.

We’re caught in a cycle of wrath and cruelty and sex. He’s unleashed his darkness, and I’m the sex-hypnotized recipient of all of it. Even after he roars his climax, he keeps going, keeps flaying me.

A voice cleverly disguised by state of the art technology and a face hidden behind a steel mask is all she sees of Q. The rest is a veil of blindfolds, mind games, and sex so mind-blowing that she struggles to hold on to the fact that none of it is real…and it doesn’t take long for the lines to begin to blur… for both of them.

God, I want to fuck you till you break. I may not be the right person to put you back together, but I want to do it anyway.”

This story is so much more than a romance. It’s a story of survival and revenge. It’s a sizzling romance wrapped around a captivating mystery. It’s a splash of dark and suspense. And while the book is long, the pacing was perfect.

If you’re looking for a new author to check out and a read that’s totally different from the norm, this is the one book I can’t recommend enough. Zara Cox now has a forever fan in this girl. I will gleefully pick up anything this woman writes. No questions asked. She’s a talent that I wish I discovered sooner and am kicking myself for not reading this book when it first hit my radar. But better late then never, if you ask me.

Maybe my cracks aren’t so bad. Maybe the chasm isn’t as deep as I thought. Maybe she’ll take the leap with me. Maybe with her, I’ll survive the fall. Maybe she’ll even save me. Maybe. Maybe. Maybe…it’s too late.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to immediately dive into book 2!

THE DARK DESIRES SERIES

BEAUTIFUL LIAR, #1
BLACK SHEEP, #2
WICKED S.O.B, #2.5 (August 8, 2017)
ARROGANT BASTARD, #3 (September 12, 2017)

Zara Cox has been writing for almost twenty-five years but it wasn’t until nine years ago that she decided to share her love of writing sexy, gritty stories with anyone outside her close family (the over 18s anyway!).

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Review Blitz: Twist by Kylie Scott

April 14, 2017 by · Leave a Comment

TWIST
Series: Dive Bar, #2
Author: Kylie Scott
On Sale: April 11, 2017
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin

 

From New York Times bestselling author Kylie Scott comes the second sizzling stand-alone novel in the Dive Bar series!

When his younger brother loses interest in online dating, hot bearded bartender Joe Collins only intends to log into his account and shut it down.

Until he reads about her.

Alex Parks is funny, fascinating, and pretty much everything he’s been looking for in a woman—except that she lives across the country.

Soon they’re emailing up a storm and telling each other their deepest, darkest secrets…except the one that really matters.

When Alex pays Joe a surprise visit, however, they both discover that when it comes to love, it’s always better with a twist.

 

 

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“Worst internet friend ever…”

When Joe Collins answered an email from a certain woman named Alex Parks using his brother’s dating profile, he never thought anything would come of it. And yet many months later, they’re still communicating and unbeknownst to him, she’s coming to Idaho to meet him in person. There’s one huge problem though. Alex thought she was talking to Eric, Joe’s brother who owned the profile. So imagine her surprise when she goes to Dive Bar and sees the guy she’s been pouring her heart out to, only to find out he doesn’t know her.

“Because the same as any man, women were entitled to a fuss-free sex life should they so choose. And it didn’t make us sluts, or whores, or any of the other nasty, misogynistic, double-standard bullshit that got thrown a woman’s way when she didn’t fit with the traditional ideals of who and what a female should be.”

There’s something about Kylie Scott’s heroines that really appeal to me, and Alex is no exception. She’s beautiful, funny, exasperating but also totally real and adorable. Her character just comes to life in these pages and I just enjoyed reading her thoughts no matter how crazy and sometimes exasperating it is.

But there’s more to like about Twist aside from Alex. I mean, hello? Joe Collins is H-O-T and good with his hands. Despite the initial douchecanoe move of letting Alex go on believing he’s someone else and totally flaking out on meeting her many times, he got his act together rather quickly.

“Because the same as any man, women were entitled to a fuss-free sex life should they so choose. And it didn’t make us sluts, or whores, or any of the other nasty, misogynistic, double-standard bullshit that got thrown a woman’s way when she didn’t fit with the traditional ideals of who and what a female should be.”

Despite Joe’s obvious enthusiasm for Alex’s company, their road to HEA hit some major bumps along the way. And I just loved it. I loved the drama, the unpredictability. I didn’t even mind it too much when these characters just became oblivious to logic because their feelings were involved. And there were a lot of FEELINGS…from Joe’s guilt to Alex’s jealousy to mine. Yes, mine. I wanted to step into the book and hit them both upside in the head. I felt like doing that sometimes. But ugh, I love their characters that it felt natural for me to root for them even though they annoyed me at one point because it was all worth it in the end.

My only teeny-tiny complaint is that Joe should have made the big gesture near the end!!! Although I understood where he’s coming from but still…

Anyway, that’s just a very minor blip to an another enjoyable read. I’m looking forward to more Dive Bar shenanigans in the future especially with Eric. Also, can we have a Pat and Nell novella? I really want to know more about them. We only get to see their story through other characters’ eyes. I want them to tell it themselves.

“No more hiding or denying, sticking to the sidelines of life. It was my time to step forward and be brave. When it came to Joe Collins, I was more than ready to say yes.”

Kylie is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. She was voted Australian Romance Writer of the year, 2013 & 2014, by the Australian Romance Writer’s Association and her books have been translated into eleven different languages. She is a long time fan of romance, rock music, and B-grade horror films. Based in Queensland, Australia with her two children and husband, she reads, writes and never dithers around on the internet. You can learn more about Kylie from http://www.kylie-scott.com/

 

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Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway: Hot For The Fireman by @Gina_L_Maxwell

April 11, 2017 by · 1 Comment

HOT FOR THE FIREMAN
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Boston Heat #1
Author: Gina L. Maxwell
Release Date: March 27, 2017

Ex-Army Ranger Erik Grady lives for the job. So when his chief at the Boston Fire Department offers him two choices—mandated therapy for supposed PTSD or a permanent desk job at the station, he reluctantly agrees to see a shrink. Only this doctor is unlike anything he expected. Female and curved in all the right places? Check. Hotter than a four-alarm fire? Check. The kind of woman that can heat his blood in and out of bed? Check, check. And oh, yeah, he just happens to have first hand experience…

Of all the men to walk into psychologist Olivia Jones’ office, why did it have to be him? Her one-night stand isn’t playing by the rules of just. One. Night. She’s had her heart broken in the past, and no way is she going there again. And now he’s blackmailing her into three dates? Well, if that’s what it takes to make him see a different therapist, fine. She can handle it. So what if the chemistry between them is combustible? She’s a professional, damn it. She’ll date Mr. I’m Too Sexy For My Bunker Pants. But it won’t end in the fun he expects.

It’s time to see how much heat this fireman can take…

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Leaning a shoulder against the doorway, thumbs hooked in his front pockets and one ankle crossed over the other, Olivia’s worst nightmare and favorite fantasy leveled her with his penetrating stare and wicked grin. “What’s up, Doc?”

I feel like this book needs to come with a warning label. It’s a damn fire hazard is what it is…to your ovaries. Luckily Lieutenant Erik Grady comes equipped with a big fire hose to take care of any…um…sudden combustions. *waggles brows*

But seriously, though. Hot dang! Looks like I got myself a brand new series to stalk from one of my favorite authors, and it has sexy as sin firefighters with Boston accents. Excited is an understatement here! But let’s talk about the book, shall we?

She might as well hand over her body on a silver platter. What was wrong with her? It was like the man shorted out the power to her control center every time he got near. He was like the fricking Vagina Whisperer.

Erik Grady’s wounds from his ex-army ranger days aren’t just surface deep. When his severe PTSD begins to give him panic attacks on his job as a firefighter, he reluctantly agrees to see therapist. If only for the purpose of checking off the box and getting back to work with men he considers his brothers. What he doesn’t expect is the woman sitting behind the desk to be the one that he shared one incredibly hot night with and who left his bed before morning with no note or a way to reach her.

His eyes spoke a truth. That he could have her anytime and anyplace he wanted, that the freedom he’d afforded her thus far was a kindness he didn’t have to give. Because with nothing more than a look—this look—and a gruff command, Olivia would happily give herself over to him.

Olivia isn’t a stranger to heartbreak. Finally ready to get herself out into the dating scene after two years, she’s almost given up hope with her dates from hell. She never expected a stranger to stir her blood hotter than she’s felt in years, but it can’t be more than a night…until the stranger turns out in her office as her brand new PTSD patient.

Erik isn’t about to let the sexy doctor out of his sight again, and he’s not above playing dirty to get her to agree. A bet gets him three dates, but those dates soon turn into something much deeper for them both.

Trust me.”
Her brows drew together. “With?”
His gaze lowered to her succulent mouth, a hundred images of what he could do it flashing through his mind. “Your pleasure,” he said gruffly. “I’m going to set your body on fire with sex so carnal and electric it makes you feel alive. I’ll use my mouth, my hands, and my cock to fuck your tight little body just as my words will fuck your mind.”

Even though these two hopped into bed together less than 15% into the book, the sexual tension between them never diminished. I typically like my books with a good sexual sizzle and burn, and I was surprised on how much of it was delivered here. I adored Erik and Olivia together. Erik went after her with single minded intent and I loved watching him break down all her walls. I also loved the way that Olivia was there for him and helped him with the demons of his past. Erik’s PTSD was no laughing matter, and it wasn’t brushed under the rug. You really get to see him struggle and deal with it. I seriously adored Olivia’s silent strength in helping him though it.

And while I loved Erik and Olivia, there was one other couple that totally stole the show for me at a point and holy crap but I need their story. That set up? Beyond delicious. I loved the secondary characters introduced in the form of Erik’s firefighter buddies and can’t wait for their stories either.

As for this one? It was one sizzling and entertaining read, full of humor and steam that I enjoyed from beginning to finish!

You’d better hold on, gorgeous. This is going to be a bumpy fucking ride.”


Gina L. Maxwell is a full-time writer, wife, and mother living in the upper Midwest, despite her scathing hatred of snow and cold weather. An avid romance novel addict, she began writing as an alternate way of enjoying the romance stories she loves to read. Her debut novel, Seducing Cinderella, hit both the USA Today and New York Times bestseller lists in less than four weeks, and she’s been living her newfound dream ever since.

When she’s not reading or writing steamy romance novels, she spends her time losing at Scrabble (and every other game) to her high school sweetheart, doing her best to hang out with their teenagers before they fly the coop, and dreaming about her move to sunny Florida once they do.

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