Review: ★HOT ALPHAS (Anthology)★

Authors: Lora Leigh, Laurelin McGee, Shiloh Walker, Kate Douglas
Genre: Erotic Romance (anthology)
Release Date: May 19, 2015

In Erin’s Kiss by Lora Leigh, ex-Marine Turk has become Erin’s sworn protector. The consistent target of her CIA-operative brother’s deadly foes, Turk is the only port Erin has to cling to in a storm. He promised her brother long ago never to touch her—but how can he resist a woman who aches to be with him as much as he burns for her?

In misTaken by Laurelin McGee, Jaylene Kim is a strong independent woman whose feminist values run deep. Even though attractive men are her weakness the last thing she wants is one telling her what to do. Until she meets her mysterious new neighbor. He makes her realize that you can still be strong and relinquish control . . . in the bedroom. But as their passion consumes them both Jaylene isn’t so sure he is who he says he is.

In Burn for Me by Shiloh Walker, Tate longs to spend his nights with Ali, a woman he’s loved for years. But while Ali’s heart pines to be with Tate, her head has reservations. Ali knows that Tate has never forgiven his father for the fight he had with his mother right before she left the house—and was never heard from again. Tate’s unresolved anger is a force to be reckoned with . . . but the heat that blazes between them is undeniable. Now both Tate and Ali are left to wonder: Can love really conquer all?

In Tangled by Kate Douglas, Nate shows up to work at Tangled Vineyards ready to do all the things he loves best—work with his hands, grow the grapes, and craft award-winning, full-bodied wines. But when something better comes along in the form of Cassie, the winemaker and former owner of the vineyard, Nate becomes completely love-drunk. Getting involved with Tangled’s number-one mixologist is a bad way to start off a new job, but with Cassie as a constant temptation, Nate doesn’t stand a chance…

I only read 3 of the 4 novellas in this book. So those are the 3 that I will be rating.

Erin’s Kiss by Lora Leigh– 2 Stars

I used to be a huge fan of this author. She was the one that first introduced me to erotic romance with Wild Card. But it’s like she just stopped trying lately. The stories have become regurgitated drivel. They all sound the same. You’ve read one, you’ve read them all. Change the characters’ names, rinse, lather and repeat. Another undercover operative with commitment issues and a sassy heroine that wakes him up? Been there. Read that. The writing? Made me roll my eyes so many times I thought they’d permanently get stuck that way…

That pleasure was immediately followed by a pulse of arousal so sharp it clenched her womb. The sensitive flesh between her thighs grew more sensitive…

and not 2 lines after

Her breasts pressed into the heated width of his chest, her nipples hardening to immediate, painful sensitivity as her breasts began to ache for touch.

Honest to gawd, if I read that his quivering member quivered, I may have thrown my kindle across the room.

I felt like I was starting this book from the middle of the series. The author sort of just throws you into things without much of a backstory. It was almost like starting a series from book 3 if you know what I mean. Having read most of this author’s backlist, I’ve also noticed every single one of her characters lately sounds the same. That same “Damn you. Damn you, you witch” line makes an appearance in practically each book. At this point, I’m just over it.

misTaken by Laurelin McGee-1 star

Never has a book infuriated me as much as this one did. And I consider myself a fairly laid back person. I don’t take my fiction too seriously, because it’s just that…fiction. Let’s look past the writing style that didn’t work for me at all. Let’s also forget that the dialogue between the characters read like something out of a YA novel. Let’s also overlook the fact that the hero is supposed to be an alpha, and yet he actually stumbles over his thoughts as to whether or not to hug the heroine after walking her home when he first meets her. YES, you read that right. HUG.

But then the nail on the coffin was this…

…you won’t catch me dead with a romance novel.” She shivered again, but this time in mock-horror.

“What’s wrong with romance novels?” He looked genuinely puzzled.

What the hell? It wasn’t obvious?

“They’re completely ridiculous. Hot alpha male with a broken past and massive bank account is healed by the golden vagina of a naive girl he meets under completely contrived circumstances. No thank you. That’s just smutty fairy tale for the Basic Bitch. It’s demeaning, and unrealistic. Besides, the sex in those books is always weirdly dominant and controlling.

I only have 2 questions here

This is a conversation between the hero and heroine within a ROMANCE NOVEL

Now to be fair, I understand what the author was trying to do here. The hero, after all, is an erotic romance writer. Mwuhahahaha. Get it? How fitting that this feminist heroine would fall for him. Unfortunately though, even if it was clearly satyrical, it turned me off completely. I was already struggling with reading about a heroine with strongly feminist views (it’s just not my cuppa). Add in her severe dislike for a genre that this Basic Bitch happens to be reading, and yeah…nope. It just didn’t work for me.

This was my first Laurelin McGee book, so this faux pas aside, I’d give her another try with a different book. Unfortunately if I hate a heroine it will almost always ruin the book for me, and that’s exactly what happened here and this didn’t work for me at all.

Burn for Me by Shiloh Walker– 3 stars

This was the saving grace of the anthology for me. I love Shiloh Walker. This is a novella that has been previously published, Burn For Me and is the first in what was 3 prequel novellas. The story gives a HEA for the couple introduced, but the story ARC continues throughout the next 2 books.

I read Erin’s Kiss, then Burn for Me, and misTaken next. Sadly misTaken managed to totally kill the vibe of the book for me and I just couldn’t find it in me to read the next novella, Tangled by Kate Douglas. I may come back to it on a later date.

On a side note, I really loved the previous 2 anthologies in this series, so maybe that’s why I was as disappointed as I was with this one? Who knows. Try it yourself and see. I know I tend to be picky with my books, so it may very well be a case of it’s just me.

Review: ★Falling★ by @BarbaraElsborg

Genre: Erotic, Contemporary MM Romance
Release Date: March 24, 2015

Falling is easy. Landing without breaking your heart? Impossible.
Harper is no longer behind bars, but it doesn’t feel like it. Ten years serving time for a crime he didn’t commit have left him shut down, numb, and a frozen wreck over the simplest of choices.

He’s acutely aware of the dark-haired young man checking him out in the supermarket, but he’s too deep in panic mode to even meet the guy’s gaze. Afraid the slightest move will trigger a fall that will never stop.

Fresh off a long-term relationship with a controlling man, Malachi is stuck living with relatives who think he’s a waste of oxygen. The tall guy in the long, gray coat is the first bright spot he’s glimpsed in a long time…though the man’s unblinking stare at a bottle of shower gel is a touch alarming.

Hard experience tells both of them to turn away before lust turns to hopeless attraction, and inevitably to disaster. But once their sparks connect, the arc of electricity is too strong to deny. Even if the cost is too much to bear.

Warning: Contains an ex-con with disaster written all over him, a boy toy who’s trouble with a capital T, a damp old British house, compulsive meddling, and enough hot sex to cure the severe case of nervous babbling.

How many times can a heart break before there’s nothing left to mend.

Barbara Elsborg has this incredible ability to make me fall head over heels for absolutely every single character she writes. Whether they’re alphas, broody, broken, sweet, sheltered, jaded…it doesn’t matter. Her signature writing style of dry wit mixed in with heart breaking angst, panty melting eroticism, and an added element of suspense never disappoints me. If you’ve read any of her other books, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. And if you haven’t and that sounds like something you may enjoy, I cannot recommend a better author for you.

Twenty four year old Malachi is struggling to get by. After leaving a relationship with a man that controlled every aspect of his life, he longs to make it on his own. But life has different plans for him. Unable to get a job, unable to afford a place of his own, he’s barely making ends meet living with his sister and her homophobe asshole of a husband. When Malachai notices a beautiful man standing at a supermarket and looking as lost as he feels, he feels an instant connection…and a strong surge of lust. When his brother-in-law actually does him one act of kindness and helps him get a job with a contraction company, Malachi’s first day of work brings him face to face with the man who’s been a constant presence in his nightly fantasies.

Thirty four year old Harper has spent the last ten years of his life behind bars for a crime he didn’t commit. Shunned by everyone he once knew, they all turned away from him when he was sentenced, including his father. Harper felt the stare of the beautiful young man with the face of a fallen angel that day at the store, but he’s terrified that his past will continue to taint his future.

He closed his eyes. Please let me sleep. Please don’t let me dream. Please give me my life back.
No one was listening. No one ever had.
He was still falling.

Malachi was a character that you fall for right away. He has such a caring heart even after everything he’s been through. But he also has a dry wit and a sharp mind that makes him endearing even though he may not be the alpha male I’m used to reading about. The way that he soothes Harper and breaks down his walls bit by bit was equal parts emotional and beautiful to read.

I’m…”
“What?”
“Afraid of wanting this too much. Afraid of hurting you. Afraid of falling. Afraid of landing.

My heart absolutely broke for Harper and everything that he’s been through, especially when the details behind his arrest and sentencing begin to come to light. You’d have to be cold and dead not to feel for him.

The attraction between them is instant and solid. The chemistry is absolutely sizzling. I absolutely loved these two together.

Harper’s hips shifted faster as he plunged in and out, driving Malachi against the wall, fucking him at a crazy speed, thrusting into tight slick heat, compelled to fuck him until he fell, and the world ended.

Amidst the romance there’s also the suspense of the mystery behind exactly what happened with Harper and who may be responsible. Add it all together and this was an absolute page turner. Harper and Malachi together were absolute perfection. They healed each other’s broken pieces. It’s like they were two halves of a whole; they fit. It was sexy, sweet, emotional. I couldn’t get enough of them.

Of course it just wouldn’t be a Barbara Elfsborg book without all shit hitting the fan in the last 15%. I love that added bit of angst and suspense. Knowing that Malachi ex, Conrad’s, book is next, I also really liked getting that little peak inside his head. For a character that I wanted to hate for most of the book, I have to say he really made me question everything I thought about him at the end. I can’t wait to read his story.

If you’re looking for a sizzling hot and emotional MM romance, then this book is a no brainer pick. I loved it!

You are what’s important in my life. Freedom tastes like you. Without you, I’m nothing.

Review: ★Break for Me★ by Shiloh Walker

Author: Shiloh Walker
Genre: Erotic, Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 22, 2014

Jensen Bell had twelve happy years before her her mother disappeared and her whole world went to pieces. Since then, she’s become a cop—one who takes great pride in her work, and in helping keep others safe. The saving grace in her own life has been Dean West, the only man who can make her burn with desire and help her through her burdens. But when a shocking discovery turns her life upside-down, even being wrapped in Dean’s arms might not be enough to keep her out of harm’s way…

I have to say, for an 80 page novella, I was pleasantly surprised at the depth of it. After reading Burn For Me, I wasn’t exactly sold on the couple in that book but I was definitely hooked on the suspense arc of it. So of course I dove straight into Break For Me to see all the secrets unravel.

Twelve years ago the Bell siblings lost their mother and they have also spent twelve years wondering what happened to her. While the older brother, Tate, always blamed their father for her disappearance and withdrew into himself and his hatred until a woman opened his eyes, his sisters always knew otherwise. They knew that their father had nothing to do with it, but the mystery behind her disappearance ate away at them just the same. Each sister took their own focus and Jensen turned to law enforcement.

Now a take-no-prisoners (ha! see what I did there?) cop, the bane of her existence becomes the too sexy for his own good and cocky ADA, Dean West. Dean has always wanted Jensen, but her hands off attitude never gave him the invite he needed. But then one night that all changes and the passion between them finally ignites and burns.

This is a short, quick paced and very sexy novella that I finished in one sitting. To be honest, considering just how short it was I was surprised that I was able to connect to the couple as much as I did. I loved reading about the further unveiling of the missing mother, and boy does the set up for the next book look to be a juicy one.

Burn For Me, Break For Me and Long For Me are all part of the same story arc but introduces a different couple in each book. Next is Guy and Christina’s story, and I just know it’s going to be a good one. The set up sounds like one angsty and emotional read which is exactly right up my alley.

Though it wasn’t a story that completely blew me away, it was a very solid 3.5 star read that I’d recommend for anyone looking for a sexy and suspenseful story to spend an afternoon with.

READ THE SERIES IN ORDER

 

 

 

New Release & Review: ★Kane’s Hell★ by Elizabeth Finn

Kane’s Hell
Author: Elizabeth Finn
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance
Note: Trigger warning
Release Date: May 1, 2015

Kane and Helene were the best of friends until a nightmare devastated them… Hopes were destroyed, dreams shattered, a budding teenage love torn to pieces. Eleven years later their lives are nothing like they once were. Time has changed them … and not for the better.Helene is smart, driven, and accomplished—her education and achievements a smoke screen hiding the frigid and fragile child wounded long ago.Kane is equally obsessed with his coping mechanisms—fighting … drinking … screwing … compulsively destroying himself one vice at a time.When their paths collide again, their past becomes an obstacle no coping mechanism in the world can protect them from. But confronting the past so they can heal in the present is no easy task. Can Kane reach Helene and recapture what used to burn so warmly between them, or will his own self destructive demons pull her into his hell?

A woman determined to look forward. A man always looking back. A love desperate to be restored.

“You’re the brightest, warmest star in my universe. You’ll never be less than everything to me.”

WARNING: This book contains darker subject matter and violent content that may be difficult for some readers.

Buy Links
Review
4 stars

 

I need to be near you, and I DON’T know what that looks like. But I DO know I need it. Please give me another chance.

Fans of second chance romance prepare to get your hearts ripped out. I’m talking ‘reach through your throat, make you ugly cry in a corner and fuck you up’ kind of ripped out. It’s no secret that this author writes some ANGST, but nothing prepared me for this book. Let me start off with a disclaimer here; I don’t think this book is for everyone. There’s a particular scene in this book that’s a potential trigger and if you’re sensitive to that sort of thing, well, be advised. Being a huge fan of dark romance I’m fairly desensitized to most things, but this scene even made me cringe. It was very difficult to read even if it wasn’t overly descriptive. It broke my cold and black little heart dammit. I actually had to pause the book right after it just to get my shit together. Yeah. It was that effective.

Kane and Helene were best friends in high school and had a budding romance going which Kane was always hesitant to act on. But then one night and one event changed the course of their lives irrevocably. Prepare yourselves for one gut-wrenching read because this event? It was BAD. You don’t know what it is and it will be retold through present to past flashbacks in the first third of the story.

I needed you, and you left me. You left me in this place to deal with…everything on my own.

What happened made Helene a shell of the woman that she once was. It took her years to wade her way out of the pain and nightmares especially since Kane left right after it, but she did it through her focus on school. Now eleven years later, she’s teaching and working on her dissertation, using her education and her career to push back the devastating memories. The last person she expects to walk into her classroom is the only person that knows what happened those years ago and shared the nightmare with her.

Can’t we just forget about the monsters,” he whispered….
“All I want is to remember us.”

The last place Kane wants to be in is the one that reminds him of everything that he lost and the nightmares he barely keeps at bay. Where Helene uses her education and career to mask her pain, he uses self punishment in the form of fights, alcohol and sex. He craves the pain to punish himself. Back to care for his ailing father, he’s determined to finally get the only girl that’s ever had his heart.

I’m not good at much in this world. But I’m good at loving you.”

If you’ve come to love Elizabeth’s dirty talkers, Kane definitely delivers on that end. He also has that dash of asshole that you’ve come to expect from this author, though not overly so.

The story is told in 3 parts; the first third is told in alternating flashbacks of present to past, slowly retelling the nightmare that Hell and Kane shared together 11 years ago. The reader is given one small piece of the puzzle in each flashback until all the pieces begin to fit together into one devastating picture. The 2nd and 3rd part doesn’t have the flashbacks and is told all in the present and focuses on Hell and Kane attempting to put their broken pieces together again.

Everything about us is fragile- our relationship, the way we communicate, the way we fuck. I always feel like I’m two seconds away from letting you slip through my fingers. It’s all so very fucking fragile.

I did find the story dragging a little somewhere after the 40% mark and I found myself skimming through quite a few sex scenes. I can’t say that it read like a filler, not at all. But it was slower paced after the jaw dropping events of the first third.

I love you, Helene. I want you to know that. You’re the only person I have ever and will ever love in this lifetime. I’m so good at loving you. It’s the one thing I can safely say I will never falter at.

This was NOT a dark romance, but it certainly had much darker undertones than anything I had previously read by this author before. It had plenty of her trademark angst, dirty talk and hot as hell sex scenes. But beyond that it also had a beautifully painful second chance romance about two very broken people that slowly learn how to heal themselves and put back together their shattered pieces.

You are EVERYTHING to me,” I said emphatically.
“Sometimes nothing is enough- not even everything.”

It’s not an easy read for sure, but it’s certainly worth the pain for the beauty of their HEA at the end.

#NewRelease & Review: ★Tool★ by @SabrinaPaigeRom

Tool: A Stepbrother Romance (A Step Brother Romance #2)
Genre: Erotic Romance
Author: Sabrina Paige
Release Date: April 7, 2015
I call him “Tool” because he’s a dick.Gaige O’Neal is nicknamed “Tool” because of what he’s packing. Rumor is, he’s well equipped.I wouldn’t know. I’ve never had the pleasure.

He’s a cocky, entitled, insufferable a**hole who’s as reckless with women as he is with that stupid motorcycle he races.

He’s also my stepbrother. Lucky me.

It’s been four years since I’ve seen him. Four years since he’s made me so frustrated I could scream. Four years since he’s given me that look, the one that makes me instantly wet.

So it’s just f**ing fitting that the first time I see him in four years, he’s buried beneath three scantily clad blondes.

Now I’m stuck here under the same roof with him while he recovers from a racing injury. An injury that clearly hasn’t affected the use of his tool.

The problem is, as much as I despise him, I just can’t help myself. I want to find out what kind of tool he’s working with.

Buy Links
Review
4 stars

 

Motorcycle racer, womanizer, asshole extraordinaire. Four years ago, he was the bane of my existence. And my best friend, my confidant, my first love.
My stepbrother.

So here’s the deal, I’m not a fan of the stepbrother romance thing…at least I don’t go seeking it out. I like the taboo as much as the next pervert reader, but the stepbrother thing doesn’t really do it for me. That is, unless Sabrina Paige writes it. A few months ago I read Prick, my first book by her, and I was absolutely hooked. After finishing Tool, I can tell you that this is just one of those guilty pleasures authors for me. Her books are super smutty but with a great story too. Because let’s be honest, even us perverts romance connoisseurs want a story to go with our smut.

If you haven’t yet read Prick, I highly recommend you get right on that. Pun most definitely intended. But if you haven’t, no worries, because you can very easily read Tool as a standalone. Now onto the review…

Gaige O’Neal is nicknamed “Tool”. A very appropriate nickname too, considering what he’s packing if you catch my drift. And if you’re slow on the uptake, the man has a giant

OK? Great! moving on.

Delaney has spent four years away at college. Mainly she took the opportunity to run from her feelings for her exasperatingly sexy stepbrother. But now she’s back and looking to start working at her father’s company, which also lands her on babysitting ‘handling’ duty with her stepbrother, a professional motorcycle racer. She gets to travel with him to Japan to negotiate the company’s sponsorship deal. Too bad that all those feelings she ran from four years ago have not gone away in the least and Gaige is just as determined to get in her pants now as he was then.


I didn’t come back here to restart something with you, Gaige.”
“You and I are the fucking definition of unfinished.”

Now being a HUGE lover of the hate/lust thing, I gobbled this book right up. Delaney and Gaige are absolutely sizzling together. The snark, the banter, the sexual tension. Gaige is a cocky asshole and Delaney is a good girl with no small amount of sass. The sexual tension between them practically sizzles. I thought my ovaries would just about explode until they finally got together. It hurt, I tells ya. But in the most delicious of ways. Now a good 50% of this book is super hawt sex.

And you sure as hell won’t find me complaining. A lot of times I find that a lot of sex can dilute the story, but that wasn’t the case here. While it was super hot and smutty, I was always engaged in the story too.


Manwhore- check. Past history with him- check. Professional relationship- check. Stepbrother- double fucking check.

It was fantastically smutty!

If you’re looking for a super hot read and haven’t read anything by this author yet, I’m not sure what you’re waiting for. Trust me, your ovaries will thank me 😉

Don’t miss the first book in the series!

Review: ★His To Take★ by Shayla Black

His to Take (Wicked Lovers #9)

Author: Shayla Black
Genre: Erotic, Romantic Suspense, BDSM
Release Date: March 3, 2015
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HisToTakeCoverRacing against time, NSA Agent Joaquin Muñoz is searching for a little girl who vanished twenty years ago with a dangerous secret. Since Bailey Benson fits the profile, Joaquin abducts the beauty and whisks her to the safety of Club Dominion—before anyone can silence her for good.

At first, Bailey is terrified, but when her captor demands information about her past, she’s stunned. Are her horrific visions actually distant memories that imperil all she holds dear? Confined with Joaquin in a place that echoes with moans and breathes passion, he proves himself a fierce protector, as well as a sensual Master who’s slowly crawling deeper in her head…and heart. But giving in to him might be the most delicious danger of all.

Because Bailey soon learns that her past isn’t the only mystery. Joaquin has a secret of his own—a burning vengeance in his soul. The exposed truth leaves her vulnerable and wondering how much about the man she loves is a lie, how much more is at risk than her heart. And if she can trust him to protect her long enough to learn the truth.

Buy Links

Amazon / B&N / iBooks / Kobo 

Review
2 Stars

As much as I’ve been looking forward to this book, I barely made myself finish it. I think this may have been my least favorite book in the series. After DNFing the previous book in the series, I had really high hopes for this one, so maybe I just set them too high?

The setup is interesting; NSA Agent Joaquin Muñoz agent trying to save the long, lost daughter of a murdered Russian scientist that may just hold the secrets to the life altering genetic discovery he made right before his death. After a recent string of murders point toward the killers seeking her out as well as his best friend’s murder after investigating these deaths, Joaquin decides to basically stalk and then kidnap the woman he believes to be the one the killers are after. Just one problem, she doesn’t believe him about her past. She doesn’t have any memories, but she does have some vivid dreams of a girl that just may be her. So what’s a guy to do? Take her to the safest place he can imagine, Club Dominion of course.

Unfortunately, this is also exactly where the book began to take a downhill turn. For those that may not remember Joaquin, he’s Kata’s brother from Surrender to Me. After losing his father at a young age he’s never been the same. It’s caused him to completely detach himself from feeling anything, including his family. I have to say I found a hard time connecting to something this extreme. The man has basically avoided anything to do with his family for years, even though all of them make more than numerous attempts to reach out to him.

The chemistry between Joaquin and Bailey was lackluster at best. Bailey is not a submissive but has the makings of one, and Joaquin is not a trained Dom, but has the urges of one. Enter Club Dominion and some kinky fuckery and BAM there’s spankings and feelings are involved.

Their connection seemed to be the stuff of BDSM stockholm syndrome. I just couldn’t connect to it for the life of me. They go from strangers to screwing in just a matter of days. The entire book basically circles around the suspense plot, which while somewhat interesting, never really grabbed me either.

Will I read the next book in the series? Probably. Though I don’t think I’ll be rushing to read it as soon as it releases.

THE WICKED LOVERS SERIES

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Release Blitz & Review: ★Hell’s Kitchen★ by @_callie_hart & @LiliStGermain1

 
Hell’s Kitchen (Hell’s Kitchen #1)
Author: Hart Saint Germain
Release Date: March 3, 2015

*From International Bestselling authors Callie Hart and Lili St. Germain comes a tale of two families co-existing in a melting pot of violence, murder and drugs in the seedy underbelly of New York City*Hell’s Kitchen
Theo and Sal Barbieri are brothers, tasked by their Mafioso father Roberto with a very clear purpose: kidnap Kaitlin McLaughlin. The beautiful daughter of Roberto’s Irish enemy. It’s high time Kaitlin was punished for her father’s sins—not to mention, her own.

And Operation: Kidnap Kaitlin is a roaring success… until it isn’t. When Kaitlin escapes into the busy streets of New York City, it’s a race against the clock to find her before Sal and Theo become the hunted.

Zeth Mayfair has traded his life as a hitman for a quieter existence, but it isn’t long before the past catches up with him in the form of Roberto Barbieri. Will he succumb to the lure of power that Roberto is offering? Or will he retaliate by killing every last Barbieri in New York to get them off his back?

Jason Ross is running. Woken in the night by a tip that the Gypsy Brothers are coming for him, he packs a bag and gets his girlfriend the hell out of dodge. Arriving in New York City in the midst of a heatwave is one thing, but being tailed by an entire drug cartel is another.

Worlds collide in Hell’s Kitchen as secrets come to light and sins are punished. Because we might be different in the light of day, but in the darkness, we’re all connected somehow.

Hell’s Kitchen is a serial comprising three volumes: Hell’s Kitchen, Tribeca and Bleecker Street. Volume One releases on March 3rd with a limited-time sale price of 99 cents

Buy Links
Excerpt
 “When he lunges for me, I’m ready. I deflect the hand he was going to grab me with, slapping it downward, and then I grab onto his wrist, pulling him off balance. He seesaws forward but then rips his wrist out of my hand. I don’t expect him to turn his slight fumble to his own advantage, but he does. Dropping to the floor, he rolls and kicks out, landing a solid strike to my leg. I have less than a second to brace myself before I’m hitting the concrete.
Then he’s on top of me. “Oh, this is fun, sweetheart. But I don’t really have time to be playing games with you right now.”
He’s reaching for my arms, about to pin me to the ground, but I jab, landing a solid hit with my extended fingertips right in the base of his throat, in his windpipe. He chokes, his body falling sideways, and then I’m on top of him. Through watering eyes and a clearly sore throat, the guy grins up at me, shaking his head.
“Well, if you wanna fuck me, I guess I could make some time.” Thrusting upward, he tries to unseat me, but I know this is what’s coming and I’m ready again. I compensate, leaning forward, pressing my gun into the guy’s neck.
“Who are you?”
His body goes still, his hands lifting so they’re palm up in front of him. “You know who I am, sweetheart. I’m the enemy.”
“My boss has quite a few enemy camps. Which one do you belong to?”
“The biggest one,” the guy says, smiling. “The Italian one.”
“So you work for Barbieri?”

“I am a Barbieri.” Lightning fast, he snaps his hand out and clamps it around my throat. The move catches me off guard, has me panicking for the first time. My gun is gone, then, knocked to the ground, skittering away across the blacktop. The guy’s hand tightens around the column of my neck, threatening to squeeze even harder. “What’s wrong?” he asks. “Feeling a little lightheaded?”

Review
4.5 stars

We’re kidnapping a teenager. We should be wearing balaclavas and overalls, not fucking Armani suits.”

What happens when the genius minds of Lili Saint Germain and Callie Hart combine? This entertaining as fuck book. These ladies are on my auto buy list with their individual work, but as a team? They’re an absolute powerhouse. I have loved both Blood & Roses and the Gypsy Brothers series. But when these two worlds collide? It’s sure to be one epic fucking ride.

Before I get to my review, allow me to address a few key points if you’re planning on reading this book…
1. If you have not read the Gypsy Brothers series, this book does have several plot spoilers from it that may be lost on you.

2. If you have not read the Blood & Roses series, this book does have several plot spoilers that may also be lost on you.

3. If you haven’t read BOTH of those series, there are quite a few crossovers and plot intricacies that may also be lost on you.
Essentially, what I’m trying to tell you here is that you would enjoy this series a hell of a lot more if you read those 2 series first. While you wouldn’t necessarily be lost, you just wouldn’t have quite as much appreciation for the characters or their connecting stories if you haven’t read them yet.

Hell’s Kitchen has quite a few POVs packed into a little over 100 pages. Where usually I’d find that to be way too much and convoluted, the fact that the authors not only made it work here but it actually added to the story is certainly no small feat. EVERY single POV added something into the story and allowed to tie into the next one. It was so intricately woven together that I never once found myself confused or annoyed but simply enjoying the ride. So who are the key players in Hell’s Kitchen? Let’s do a roll call…

The Barbiery brothers The sons to the current Italian mafioso of New York, Roberto. Roberto is a cold hearted and ruthless kingpin that spares no one in his gain for power and vengeance, not even his sons. When his Irish enemy does him wrong, what best way to get revenge than to kidnap his daughter, Kaitlin, and to charge his two sons with it.

Kaitlin McLaughlin has a very short POV that gives the reader just enough insight into her vapidness and better understanding of her character. This is definitely no 17 year old girl you’ll find yourself sympathizing with. She’s one spoiled and vicious little bitch.

Gracie; Kaitlin’s bodyguard and all around bad bitch. Now you know I love me a snarky and kick-ass heroine, and Gracie was that and so much more. She was taken into the McLaughlin fold at an early age and feels a bond with Kaitlin’s father even though babysitting his spoiled little princess is not what she wants to be wasting her time on. The last thing she expects is to be caught in a chase with the sons of their Italian enemy.

Scarlett Winchester (Oh and I see what you did with her last name there, you clever girls. I love that!) Is a down on her luck actress that is currently attempting to put together the tatters of her previous life. Lost in a constant haze of drugs and alcohol if only to drown out the demons of the past and a mistake from 9 months ago that cost her everything.

In short, the woman is one hot mess. But while she may be broken, she still has a mouth on her and she can use snark as her weapon of choice, which definitely made for some awesome banter.

Zeth motherfucking Mayfair. Does the man even need an introduction. Zeth is trying to move on with his life together with Sloane. While he will never exactly live on the straight and narrow, he certainly has no desires to answer to anyone else now that he is no longer under the thumb of Charlie, his past ’employer’. Too bad that Roberto wants to take over Charlie’s old territory, and he’s very aware of Zeth’s reputation and has no issues trying to get him back into the fold…and when a proposition doesn’t do, a threat will suffice.

Jason Ross. Dealing with the fallout of what happened with his father and the MC, Jason and Juliette are on the run from the Columbian Cartel. Their current hiding place? Non other that New York. And you just KNOW that when all these worlds combine, it’s going to be one hell of a ride. There’s also the mention of Elliot, though he never has a POV here…at least not yet.

So there you have it, the seven key players of Hell’s Kitchen, though I would say that the Barbiery brothers, Scarlett and Gracie are the main focus. I absolutely loved how the authors managed to tie together all of these POVs into one intricately woven story. If you’re looking for the grit of GB, you won’t find that here, but it doesn’t really advertise to be that. What it is, is an entertaining, humorous, action-packed and thrilling ride that combines the worlds of B&R and GB along with some new players to give you another addicting series. I read this in one sitting, completely incapable of setting it down for even a second. I’m already practically salivating for the next installment and can’t wait to see what happens next with all these characters.

About the Author

Callie Hart

 Callie has experienced many changes throughout her life, and gone through many ups and downs that have all worked towards shaping and molding her into the person she is today: fun loving, active, social, and hard working. The only thing that has remained a constant throughout her life is writing. Creating characters who will tear your conscience in two is a favorite pastime of Callie’s. There are few real saints and sinners in her books; more often, the denizens of her stories are all very human. Broken, flawed, and always with the potential for redemption.

Despite the subject matter being markedly hot and heavy in comparison to the stories she wrote in elementary school, there will always be an element of fairytale to her work.

Lili Saint Germain

 Lili writes dark romance, suspense and paranormal stories. Her serial novel, Seven Sons, was released in early 2014, with the following books in the series to be released in quick succession. Lili quit corporate life to focus on writing and so far is loving every minute of it. Her other loves in life include her gorgeous husband and beautiful daughter, good coffee, Tarantino movies and spending hours on Pinterest.

She loves to read almost as much as she loves to write.

Blog Tour, Review & #Giveaway: ★A Desperate Man: Volume 2★ by @EllaFrank2012 & @BrookeBlaine1

A Desperate Man: Volume 2
Authors: Ella Frank & Brooke Blaine
Release Date: February 17, 2015

Illusions — we all create them.
For some it’s to project an impressive image to a prospective employer; for others it’s to attract the eye of another.
My illusion is a bit more…complicated.
Years in the making, my secret has the potential to bite me in the ass. And not in the way I typically enjoy. Sex.
As women, we’re judged for reveling in the same carnal pleasures that men do, but I’ve never been shy about my voracious appetite.
Now, I’m under no illusions that I’ll find love with any of my one night stands.
After all, I have one rule — no repeats — but it’s a rule that’s becoming harder to follow since Evan James came back into my life.
Did I say back into my life?

My name is Reagan Spencer, and you may think you know me, but…
How well do we really know anyone?

Excerpt

“Walk with me?” Evan asked.

She gave him a small smile and nodded. “Sure.”

Pushing off the rail, she fell in step with him as they walked along the river’s edge.

“I’d be scared of what you’d see if you looked at me through your lens,” he admitted.

“You shouldn’t.”

Evan scoffed and ran his fingers through his hair. “I can’t imagine there’s much good there…”

“You’d be surprised at what I see.”

That comment had him coming to a standstill. “Would I?”

“Yes.”

“Okay,” he said, and started walking again. “Tell me what you see.”

Reagan slid her thumbs down the straps of her camera and cocked her head, looking him over.

“I see a successful man. One who dresses well, even on a Saturday morning. So that would indicate to me that he takes pride in his appearance. Maybe cares about what others think also. The fact that you were leaving a therapist’s office makes me think you’re a man with some issues, but also a man who is willing to work through them. Again, that comes back to pride. You seem to be able to swallow yours when need be.”

Evan’s brow furrowed, but he said nothing as she continued.

“You also have a certain…air about you. It’s in the way you move. You’re confident, but at the same time, when you flash that smile, the arrogance disappears, and you look like the boy you used to be.”

The smile under discussion appeared, and Evan asked, “How do you know what kind of boy I used to be?”

“Hey? This is my story,” Reagan reminded him before he continued asking questions she wasn’t willing to answer.

“Oh, my apologies, I somehow thought it involved me.”

“It does, but you’re on the outside listening, so shh. You asked, remember?”

With a serious face, he nodded. “You would be right.”

“Okay. Now I lost my train of thought.”

Evan chuckled. “Well, it’s probably for the best that you didn’t mention any of my unappealing attributes.”

“Speaking of…” she said, and turned to walk backward, facing him. “How did the therapy session go today?”

“Really great. There was an orgy, a sampling of sex toys, and a dessert buffet afterward. Very satisfying.”

“Evan…”He blew out a breath and rubbed the back of his neck. “It was fine. It’s always fine. Today, Dr. Glover brought up behavior triggers, and it helped to figure out where this whole mess started.”Curious, she asked, “And where was that?”

“It wasn’t any one event. It was the high off the power I got from my job, it was being in an unhealthy relationship…my grandparents passing…the worry about following in my parents’ footsteps. The further things spiraled out of my control, the more I craved that control in other parts of my life. Well, a very specific part of my life.”

He glanced over at her before continuing. “Obviously that’s the condensed version, but…I think it helps. Knowing those things and hopefully being able to stop them in the future.”

“But the urge isn’t gone?”

The look in his eyes was haunted as he replied, “No. No, it isn’t gone.”

Review
4 stars

Within the stirrings of lust she felt every time even his name was mentioned, there was the twinge of something more…something dangerous, and the more she felt herself falling, the more she couldn’t stop herself.

A Desperate Man: Volume 1 introduced us to Evan James, a man deep in the throws of his addiction. A man that’s hit his rock bottom and is now trying to find his way out. Ella and Brooke spared no detail in their introduction of Evan and you certainly get a taste of the man that he is, the man that was, and the man that he desperately wants to find again. A man that has a one night stand with a mysterious gorgeous blonde that turns out to be more. A man that soon realizes that his addiction has now twisted into something else, something different, something more to do with her.

In this book, you get to get to know her, Reagan Spencer, a woman with plenty of her own secrets. Volume 2 is told exclusively in Reagan’s POV and many of the missing puzzle pieces that you may have had in Volume 1 will all begin to cleverly click together.

You do HAVE feelings, don’t you, Evan?
“I’m having a very strong feeling right now.”
“Well, you should make sure to tell that to the first young lady you sit down with.”
“If she’s a lady, I’m thinking she won’t appreciate that particular feeling.”
“The what does that make me?”
“That makes you fucking dangerous.”

What I really appreciated about this book was the additional depth it added to the story of Evan and Reagan. If you though that it was just a story of a man that has a sex addiction who meets a woman that tempts him to be something better, think again. It’s so much more than that. The authors certainly add a few twists your way that has the plot thickening that much more. I can definitely tell you I did not see any of it coming, but it makes me only that much more anxious for the final installment of this series.

Right then she knew that, regardless of what her mind had been telling her, she’d continue to push those warnings aside to indulge in Evan James- her own guilty pleasure.

Reagan was a true mystery in the previous book. You really don’t know much about her aside from the fact that her sexual appetite is almost as voracious as Evan’s. She’s no blushing ingenue and she owns her sexuality and makes no excuses about it. Here you’ll get to know the reasoning behind a lot of her actions and let me just tell you…you will not see any of it coming…or at least I didn’t.

While the first 30% of the book was a bit slower paced, when the secrets began to unravel and be revealed, I was thoroughly sucked in. The continuing sexual chemistry between her and Evan certainly didn’t hurt matters either.

I’m going to fuck you so hard, Ms. Spencer, that come Monday, you’ll have no problem remembering that I have it to you WITHOUT any expectation of receiving in return.

I really enjoyed the banter between them here, and the exchanges with the coffee cups was so fun to read too.

If you were unsure of how you felt about Evan in the previous book, I can assure you that you will absolutely fall for him here.

I really can’t wait to see where the final installment brings these two, especially with that ending.

About the Author

About Brooke

You could say Brooke Blaine was a book-a-holic from the time she knew how to read; she used to tell her mother that curling up with one at 4 a.m. before elementary school was her ‘quiet time.’ Not much has changed except for the espresso I.V. pump she now carries around and the size of her onesie pajamas. Her first solo novel, a romantic comedy, is due out in early 2015, but first, she thought she’d write a raunchy story with her best friend that would scar her conservative southern family for life. If you’d like to get in touch with her, she’s easy to find – just keep an ear out for the Rick Astley ringtone that’s dominated her cell phone for ten years.

Instagram: @brookeblaine1

About Ella

Ella Frank is a #1 Amazon Bestselling Author. She writes both contemporary and erotic fiction and is best known for her Exquisite Series, and Temptation Series. The minute she began her love affair with reading, she became and avid supporter of the romance genre and has never looked back. Ella is Australian born and bred but currently resides in Houston, Texas with her husband.

Instagram: @Ellafrank1

 


Don’t miss A Desperate Man: Volume 1, on sale for just $.99 for a LIMITED TIME ONLY!

Review: ★Prick★ by @SabrinaPaigeRom

Prick
Author: Sabrina Paige
Genre: Erotic, New Adult Romance
Release Date: February 10, 2015
Length: 233 pages
(Standalone novel)

I can’t stop thinking about that prick.Caulter Sterling is a prick.

A filthy-mouthed, womanizing, crude, spoiled, arrogant prick.

The tattooed, pierced, panty-melting-hot son of a celebrity.

I hate him.

He’s slept his way through practically every girl at Brighton Academy.

Except for me.

I’m the good girl. The responsible girl. The 4.0, class president, studied-so-much-she-never-lost-the-big-V girl.

And in celebration of graduation and adulthood, I just made the worst decision in the history of ever.

I lost my V-card to the devil himself.

It was just one night. So what if it was mind-blowing? Hit it and quit it.

Except I just found out that my father – the Senator, the Presidential hopeful – is marrying Caulter’s mother. Oh, and this summer? We’re hitting the campaign trail.

One big happy family.

I’m totally f**ked.

*This is a standalone novel with a HEA. Not part of a series.*

Buy Links

JUST $.99 NOW!
AMAZON

Review

4 stars


He’s a crude, caustic prick who can’t keep his dick in this his pants.
The problem is, I just can’t stop thinking about that prick.

Well spank my ass and color me surprised, I actually really liked this one! Now while I love dark, depraved and taboo usually, Stepbrother romances aren’t really my cuppa. But I have to say, the title of this book totally hooked me. Then I read that blurb…and saw the cover…and I. Was. Sold.

Let’s be honest here, the very second I even hear the word “asshole” in a book, my ovaries are all…

Add into that mix a super prissy heroine and a delicious hate-to-love trope? And now they’re practically screaming

OK, so let’s call a spade a spade here. I’m easy. So sue me. But when my friend Geri turned me onto this book, I knew I’d be all over it like a porn star on cock. True story.


She looks at me with contempt. She despises me. But when she kisses me…she kisses me like she hates me and wants me more than anything.

Let me adress a very critical point here, this is not a taboo romance. So if that’s a reason that you haven’t picked it up, you shouldn’t be concerned. The MCs are not related through any part of the book. Their parents are engaged, but that’s about the extent of it, so it never went to that taboo place that may make some uncomfortable. Me, on the other hand? It would have been right up my pervy little alley. But I figure I’d set some minds at ease 😉
Now as for the book; it was entertaining as hell. The MCs were as polar opposite as you can get. You have the bad boy, manwhoring, asshole son of a famous celebrity. Then in the other corner, you have a super prissy, goody goody, straight A student that will never disobey her politician daddy heroine.

When Katherine thinks that she’s about to go off to college, the last thing she wants to take with her as a memento is her virginity. And who better to punch that pesky V-card than the resident manwhore and king of one-night-stands, Caulter. One extremely hot night that she still can’t stop thinking about satisfied, she sneaks away like a thief in the night before Caulter wakes up…full expecting not to see him again. So color her surprised when said man all of a sudden turns out in her house and her father is introducing him as her future stepbrother because he’s engaged to Caulter’s mom. Do they know each other, he asks? Of course, they do, in the biblical sense no less. Can her father tell the truth behind her lie of just going to the same school as him?

I loved the banter between the two of them. Katherine is as uptight as they come and Caulter pretty much does and says everything that he knows is guaranteed to make the prissy little Princess snap.


I mean the coffee substitute.”
“Yeah, some herbal thing?” I ask.
He laughs. “It’ll make you shit something fierce. Don’t do it.” Then he looks up at me. “Of course, it might help with that stick up your ass.”

Of course there’s also the sizzling hot chemistry that flows between their every snarky insult and barb.


You want me, Katherine. You want me to plunge my cock into that sweet pussy of yours. I will, Princess. All you have to do is say it. Say you want me to leave you panting, the same way you did that night.”

Katherine was the type of heroine that would usually drive me nuts with her uptight good girl ways. But something about this book and her just worked for me. Maybe because she was the perfect extreme to offset Caulter’s asshole ways? For whatever reason, it just worked.


I hate you you.” She has the most faceable mouth I’ve ever seen.
“The feeling is completely mutual,” I say, before I bring my mouth down on hers, crushing her lips against mine.

This was my first book by this author and I was so pleasantly surprised that I can tell you it definitely won’t be my last. If you’re looking for a super sexy NA romance with lots of snark, hot sex, even hotter asshole hero, and the prissy princess that brings him to his knees, then you’ve definitely found your next book.

Blog Tour, Review & #Giveaway: ★Rebel★ by @_callie_hart

Now Available
About The Book

Rebel and Sophia’s story.The first of a three part series. This novel contains a small snippet which has already been released in the Owned: An Alpha Anthology, however it is followed by a full story installment.

Sophia

Sometimes, you don’t mean to become another person. Sometimes the choice is made for you, and pretending is the only thing that keeps you going. When Alexis Romera is taken and her kidnappers find her fake ID in her purse, she must become Sophia in order to keep her family safe. Revealing her real identity to the man she’s sold to would be easy enough, but can she trust him? Hell bent on revenging the murder of his uncle, Rebel doesn’t seem all that interested in playing things safe.

In fact, nothing about the secretive, dark and brooding MC president seems safe at all.

Rebel

What do you do when the man who raised you is murdered, and the only witness is kidnapped girl who’s being sold as a sex slave? You buy her, of course. As president to the most powerful motorcycle club in America, Rebel isn’t lacking in power. There are strings the man can pull, and entire criminal organisations and corporate businesses alike would fall to their knees. However, along with such power comes intense interest. The DEA have their eye fixed solely on the MC…and they’re just waiting for Rebel to trip up.

Getting Sophia to testify is the only way to bring the Los Oscuros cartel down. The beautiful, dark haired, dark eyed woman is belligerent and uncooperative and unlikely to bend to his will, but Rebel has a few tricks up his sleeve to make her compliant–he’ll charm her until she’s bending over backwards to please him.

Of course, falling for her might cause a few hiccups along the way…

Excerpt

“You gonna sit down or what?”I sit down. Arguing with him would be futile. We sit there, side by side, staring off down the arrow-straight road, and for a moment I don’t hate him. He pulls a cell phone out of his pocket and taps something into it, and then he turns to face me, frowning slightly.

“You believe in vengeance?”

“You mean like revenge?”

He shakes his head. “Revenge is a selfish act. Retaliation for something. Vengeance is a different thing altogether. It’s about obtaining justice, usually for someone who can’t claim it for themselves.”

This is an odd line of questioning but I decide I’ll bite. Maybe I wouldn’t if he were being a jerk like he was a couple of hours ago, but that’s not what’s happening. He’s pensive, the live wire that apparently runs through him dulled for the moment. “I don’t know,” I say. “Probably, in that case.”

“What if I simplified the question?

What if I say, do you believe in justice?

“Then, yes, I do believe.”

Review

4 stars 

You believe in vengeance?”
“You mean like revenge?”
He shakes his head. “Revenge is a selfish act. Retaliation for something. Vengeance is a different thing altogether. It’s about obtaining justice, usually for someone who can’t claim it for themselves.”

Ever since I finished Burn, I have been practically salivating to get my hands on Rebel and Sophia’s story. After the tiny peak that we get in the Blood & Roses series, you already knew that this was going to be something amazingly good. And if you haven’t yet read the Blood & Roses series, don’t worry, because you can easily start with this book first.

One night where she’s in the wrong place and an even worse time, Alexis Romera’s life as she knows it comes to a screeching stop. She witnesses something that she’s not supposed to see and becomes a liability to men that you don’t even want knowing you exist. Taken. Sold. She is no longer Alexis but Sophia. Fearful for her family’s lives she keeps her true identity a secret while she fights to escape the clutches of men that wouldn’t think twice before slitting her throat.

I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about Sophia after learning some of the things that I learned about her in the B&R series. But being inside her head definitely fixed that. Even though she’s young, this is one tough bitch. And luckily for me, her age never leads to any TSTL decisions which is so often the case. Callie Hart did a phenomenal job in giving the readers a heroine that while has her vulnerability and fear very much present, she still manages to maintain a backbone without being too obvious about it.

Now what can I tell you about Rebel? This was definitely a character that was not at all what I had expected him to be. He was more. So much more. This is no everyday anti-hero. While he is definitely still that, he also has so much depth to him.

I appreciated the fact that the author didn’t simply pain him in black and white. If ever there was a character that was very firmly in the gray area, Rebel is that. While he has his bad he also has a lot of hidden good which you get to see unravel piece by piece throughout the book.

I also appreciated the fact that there was no insta-lust to be found here. The relationship development between Sophia and Rebel is very realistic in the fact that it’s a slow build. I simply couldn’t imagine it any other way. While Sophia is certainly attracted to him right away, she’s also as equally untrusting of him. There was this delicious undercurrent of sexual tension throughout all their interactions that makes for some extremely interesting reading.

You think you use your brain when you’re having sex?”
“Oh, Sophia. I use my brain. Every time I sleep with a woman, I’m using my head to figure out what she likes. How she likes it. What I can do to have her screaming my name until her throat’s raw.”

I loved that the author didn’t throw these characters together right away. You truly get to experience Sophia’s struggle with her circumstances and her attraction to her unlikely “captor”.

…I get the feeling sex with Rebel really would be criminal.

This is a continuing story arc that will have 2 additional parts, so it does end on a cliffhanger. However as interesting as the cliffy was, it wasn’t that bad because it’s more of a plot cliffy than a relationship one. If you were a fan of the Blood and Roses series, then this book is a must read. And if you haven’t yet discovered this fantastic author, there’s no better book to start with than this one. I can’t wait to see where Sophia and Rebel’s story will lead to next. All I can say is that the set up sounds absolutely delicious.

I can’t look away, though. I could close my eyes, but there’s something in the way he’s staring at me, so intense and focused, as though I’m the only thing he sees or cares about in this moment. I already know, deep down in my bones, that being looked at like that by him will be an addiction I won’t be able to shake.

About the Author

Callie has experienced many changes throughout her life, and gone through many ups and downs that have all worked towards shaping and molding her into the person she is today: fun loving, active, social, and hard working. The only thing that has remained a constant throughout her life is writing. Creating characters who will tear your conscience in two is a favorite pastime of Callie’s. There are few real saints and sinners in her books; more often, the denizens of her stories are all very human. Broken, flawed, and always with the potential for redemption.

Despite the subject matter being markedly hot and heavy in comparison to the stories she wrote in elementary school, there will always be an element of fairytale to her work.

Giveaway
3 Rebel Super Swag packs
1 paperback of Rebel w/ signed bookplate
1 complete eCopy set of the Blood & Roses series
1 ARC of Callie Hart & Lili St. Germain’s upcoming collaboration, Hell’s Kitchen 
(to be ready by end of February)
1 MAC “Rebel” lipstick
Signed Gary Taylor Leather Jacket
$20 Amazon/iBooks Gift card
Kindle HD 6

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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