ARC review: Maverick by Anna Cruise

MaverickMaverick by Anna Cruise
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The ocean was an extension of myself, the only place where I could find solace and peace. And even though I’d lost my best friend to it, I couldn’t let it go, couldn’t turn my back to it. I couldn’t exist without it.

There was something in his voice, in his eyes, something that hinted there really was more to him than the public persona I’d read about. He was damaged.

If I’m being honest here, what initially drew me in to read this was the hot cover. What? Like you’ve never done that! Please!

I was so happy to find that this book was filled with more depth than I had when I was choosing it. 🙂

Kellan Handler is a professional surfer. It is all he’s ever dreamed of doing, and the ocean is the only thing that is able to give him peace.

He hits the water hard, and parties even harder. His reputation and good looks never leave him without a female body in his bed. But he’s not interested in anything more than a casual hook up. So he goes through women like he goes through waves; he find one, takes it on, and then moves on to the next one.

But beneath the shallow exterior, still waters run deep. He is still dealing with the pain of losing his best friend in a tragic accident; his hidden grief causing him to walk a fine life that can ultimately cost him everything.

When tour officials essentially tell him that he either clean up his image or be suspended from the tour, Kellen reluctantly agrees to work with the PR rep assigned to him, Gina Bellori.

Gina is dealing with demons of her own. But unlike Kellan, hers are buried even deeper, and she refuse to let them break the surface.

When Kellen and Gina begin to work together on righting his image, things began to blur. The damaged guy is forcing Gina to fight even harder to keep her demons hidden. All of a sudden her past begins to collide with her present, with Kellen right in the center of everything and her feelings are becoming more difficult to control.

Kellen begins to find that for the first time in his life, he wants something more from a woman other than a few moments spent between the sheets.

She knew everything about me and pretty much the only thing I knew about her was her name. And that she was starting to get under my skin. In more ways than one.

Can the two damaged souls heal each other? Or will the secrets that they keep ultimately cost them everything?

I really enjoyed this one, and read it pretty much in one sitting. I really loved Kellan, but had a few issues with Gina and her behavior. While Kellan’s past and secrets come to the surface fairly early in the book, Gina’s tragic past takes a little longer to learn about.

These two characters were both damaged in their own right. I really liked that there was no case of insta-love, or even insta-lust. There was definitely a connection between the two of them, but it grew over time.

So why only 4 stars? I felt that the character POV’s didn’t have a clear transition. It caused me to get slightly confused, since I didn’t know when they switched, and didn’t know who’s POV I was reading right away.

The book had a very realistic HEA, and I was glad that the author went the route that she did with the ending. I felt it was very fitting to the story and the characters.

ARC courtesy of publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Purchase Maverick by Anna Cruise

View all my reviews

Rock Chick Revolution by Kristen Ashley

Rock Chick Revolution (Rock Chick, #8)Rock Chick Revolution by Kristen Ashley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 Rock Chick Stars












“You’ve got your way, the way you are and the way you are with the ones you care about. And that tells me, a man gets in there, you give that to him, the children you give him, that man will be all kinds of lucky. And I’ve decided we’re gonna see if that man is me.”

Well, Ava & Luke and Sadie & Hector still hold first place for my favorite Rock Chick couple, but I have to admit that Ally and Ren definitely came in at a very close second.

I can’t say that this was my favorite book in the series, but I will tell you that it was a fantastic conclusion to the series.

So what was my favorite part of Rock Chick Revolution, you ask? I have a one word answer for that: REN.

The man made my happy place tingle the entire book. He was equal parts bad-ass alpha and sweet, without being obnoxiously overbearing or possessive. Now if I’m being honest here, the urge to lick a fictional character is really nothing new for me. (What? That’s perfectly normal, OK!) Ren took it to a whole different level for me, and I found myself developing a very close and personal relationship with my Kindle while reading.


(What? That’s perfectly normal, too! God! Stop judging me!)
But I digress.

My biggest issue with some of the Rock Chick heroines were their constant and consistent TSTL tendencies. So I am very happy to report that Ally didn’t irritate me at all in this book. She was incredibly endearing. I loved how tough and tenacious she was, yet still had that emotional and soft-hearted center beneath the tough-girl shell.


I was a Rock Chick. I had a lot of friends. I had a lot of good times. The concept of “anything goes” was pretty literal for me. I didn’t have issues speaking my mind. And I didn’t have issues creating a drama if the situation deserved it. I also didn’t give a shit if someonedisagreed with the situation deserving it.
I was… me.
I wasn’t girlie.
I wasn’t romantic.
I didn’t have fantasies (except those that came while wielding a vibrator). Let’s just say the knight in shining armor concept did nothing for me.

Well Ally, a knight in shining armor may not do anything for you, but a hot-headed Italian sure did.

The first 20% of the book we get flashbacks to the relationship (or lack thereof) between Ren and Ally for the past year. Ally fell for Ren pretty quick, but had her hopes of a future with him shattered when Ren unknowingly did something that wounded her deeply. Unable to deny the chemistry between them, Ally insists that they stay on a casual hook-up basis. Which, c’mon Ally, we’re talking about Ren here? Just casual hookups? Like friends with benefits? Really?

Of course Ren is having none-of that, and he definitely doesn’t hold back his thoughts about the matter.

You invited me in, Ally.”
Around the time you came when my mouth was between your legs on my stairs. Then again when you came when my cock was driving into you in my bed. Then again when you wrapped your mouth around my cock, also in my bed. And a-fuckin’-gain when you found it while riding my cock, also in my bed. And last, when you wrapped your sweet, hot, naked body around me and passed out in my bed.”

Ally is not exactly thrilled with Ren. She’s had enough testosterone alpha-speak from her brothers and The Hot Bunch.

Okay, I’d had a variety of Rock Chick chinwags where the girls let it all hang out about their guys and how they communicated in Asshole, but I’d never experienced it personally. And Ren had just demonstrated he was fluent in Asshole. It must be said, I didn’t like it much.

Well Ally, you might not like it, but it certainly made my happy place tingle. So you’ll be getting no complaints from this girl.

Ren was just delicious, and when it came to getting his way with Ally…well let’s just say he had a FANTASTIC way of going about it.

Don’t get me wrong, while Ren was a hot-headed, dirty-talkin, panty-melting hot; he also had an incredible sweet side to him. I loved the way he fought for Ally and to prove that they should be more than just casual. Nothing better than a man that can admit when he’s caught.

You gave me a run for my money, and once I stopped finding it a pain in my ass and started enjoying it, I did nothing but. I enjoyed every fuckin’ second, Ally. And every fuckin’ second I’ve never doubted how I was feeling. And just to be clear, how I was feeling, every day through this game we’ve been playing, was that I was falling deeper in love with you.”

There’s a whole lot of action, and we get to check back with all the Rock Chicks and Hot Bunch. I can’t say that I was so enthralled with this book that I couldn’t put it down. It did take me much longer to finish than my usual reading speed, and I did find myself skimming through certain chapters. But I still really enjoyed it.

P.S.
The best part about KA books, are her epilogues, and this one definitely didn’t disappoint.

P.P.S
Dear Ren,

So that’d be all the ramblings from me for now.
And I thank you!

View all my reviews

Release Me (The Stark Trilogy #1) by J. Kenner

Release Me (Stark Trilogy, #1)Release Me by J. Kenner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Damien Stark is just one of those dark, quiet types. He’s like an iceberg, Texas. The deep parts are well hidden and what you do see is hard and a little bit cold.”

Well what can I tell you about my thoughts on this book…

seems to be an adequate description.

I didn’t love it. I didn’t hate it. To be honest, I’m having a hard time remembering anything about it and I just finished reading it.

I never really connected with the story, or the characters. I suppose you can say it was a case of ‘been there, read that’.

There was Nikki:

Nikki is a former Texas beauty queen, currently working for a company that is looking for Damien Stark’s investment. Thankfully she wasn’t an excessively naive virgin, but she still gave me an eye roll or 12 through the book.

Then there’s Nikki’s mother:

I think that about covers that…

And then we have Damien Stark
  
I have to admit that Damien peaked my interest. The few crumbs that we were given about his past is the only thing that intrigue me enough to continue with this series.

As for my thoughts?

Nikki and Damien’s penchant for referring to one another as Mr.Stark and Ms.Fairchild

The story?

That was about it. There were bits and pieces here and there that didn’t have to do with how much Damien wanted Nikki, or how hot Nikki was for Damien, but they kind of got lost in the process for me.

Damien’s “kinkiness”?
I ask you, why is it that whenever a few spankings, control, and light bondage is involved, all of a sudden the hero is kinky? Maybe I’ve been desensitized to this sort of thing by reading the Lexi Blakes, Cherise Sinclairs, and Shayla Blacks? I don’t know

I mean Damien was very hot, and I did enjoy his character a lot. So he likes to be called Sir during sex. OK. But I wouldn’t really go so far as to call him a Dom. At least not to me. Guess I’ll have to see what happens in the next two books.

The Sex
MEH. This happens very rarely to me, but I found myself skipping through not only a lot of the book, but the sex scenes as well. I know! Shocking right? This is me we’re talking about here! I love me my smutty smut. And here I find myself thinking

Now before you start grabbing your pitchforks and torches, I’ll say that it was not due to lack of hotness. The steam was definitely there. It’s just that I never really connected to this book, so I had a hard time being interested in the sexy part of it either.

Truthfully, I was neither here nor there while reading it. I have no opinion on it one way or another. I can’t say it was bad, but then I can’t say it was great either.

My brain while reading Release Me?

There was a very interesting set up for the next book, and I’m curious to see how it plays out. I’ll reserve my judgement of this series until I read book 2 and 3. So fingers crossed.

So that will be all for this girl’s ramblings here. I’m off to read Claim Me.

And I thank you!

View all my reviews

Stripped by Jasinda Wilder

StrippedStripped by Jasinda Wilder
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



I want him to own me. I want him to do whatever he wants. I want to give in to my own shaking need and trembling desire. I want him to show me what I’ve never known.

So…uh…yea…Dawson was Delicious. As for the rest of the book? *long suffering sighs*
Let me just take you on my emotional journey through the tear-fest (not mine) that was this book.

First 17%:
Grey’s tear count=

My thoughts about the heroine so far?

Excessively sheltered, super naive, and constantly crying heroines? Yeaaaa….not my cuppa
But it’s a buddy read, so I trudge on

25% in
Grey’s tear count=

My thoughts about the heroine:

The girl cries on a strong gust of wind. I mean for the love of jebus, just get your shit together. Yes things suck, bla bla fucking bla. Oh life is so tough for you, boo fucking hoo! Just enough with the damn crying. SERIOUSLY!

29% in
We FINALLY meet Dawson

Sweet mother of God but the man is delicious. Like really delicious. I have something to look forward to now. I still want to sorta kinda maybe strangle Grey. But Dawson is making it more worth my while to keep going.

47% in
Grey’s tear count=
My thoughts toward Grey: Well slightly homicidal, if I’m being perfectly honest here. Between her constant and never ending crying, and running away, and woe-is-me thinking, I do have some fantasies of chocking her. What? Too much?

But Dawson, oh you delicious piece of hunky man meat. You make me keep on reading.


Pause for sporadic thought here

And what about his movies? They have sex in them. Meaning he has sex, with actresses, on screen for millions of people to see. And yet he’d come home to me and I’d kiss him and touch him and have to know that another woman just did all that, even if it was for a movie and not real emotion? Even without emotion, it would be real kisses real sex.

Seriously Grey? Fucking REALLY?!! You do realize he’s a famous Hollywood actor and not a porn star, right? I’m pretty sure the sex is simulated. It’s not SEX sex. It’s sex
I know you’re naive, but fuckin’ A woman!

Right then….sporadic thought over, moving on

74% in
Dawson

I’m pretty sure I just fell in love with you! Wait let me check *looks down* YUP! Definitely love! *runs to change underwear*

77% in
Grey’s tear count=

My thoughts: Why?! Why?!!! Why would you do this now?!!!!

My Final Thoughts

Grey’s tear count by the end of this book=

Dawson and every time he made an appearance:

Grey:

Ultimately I’ll say this

If you cannot stand whiny, naive, and overly sensitive heroines…not sure if you’ll enjoy this book. Grey drove me out of my ever loving mind. Dawson was the only saving grace for me in this book. The writing was great, and if only the heroine was just a little more tolerable for me, it would have made it a 5 star read for me.

I wished we got a little more for Grey and her relationship with her father. I felt it went from one extreme to another, with no explanation as to how it got to that. I really would have liked to see them deal with their issues more.

Dawson was 5 stars of delicious, Grey was 2 stars of I wish she would just shut up. So I’ll average it to a 3.

That is all for my thoughts. I’m off to read me a smutty book to take my mind off of Grey and her never ending tears. I thank you.

View all my reviews

If You Leave (Beautifully Broken #2) by Courtney Cole

If You Leave (Beautifully Broken, #2)If You Leave by Courtney Cole
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 (I wish I could give it more) Beautifully Broken Stars


I knew going in that I can’t ever be with anyone. That I’m not whole. That I’m not normal. That I’m a monster. That I’m the bad thing.



She wants me. And I want her. Fucking her would be like harnessing a raging summer storm.

This book book gutted me, it broke my heart into a million different pieces, and then it put it back together piece by shattered piece.

The book starts off with a bang, as I’ve come to associate to books written by Courtney Cole. It grabs you with the first few lines, and doesn’t let you up until the very last page.

Gabriel is an Army Ranger, who is still dealing with the demons that haunt his nightmares since his last tour in Afganistan. Try as he does, as hard as he runs, he knows that he can’t outrun them. The bad thing has finally caught him, and he know’s there’s no escape.

Madison is dealing with demons of her own, though hers come from a different type of memory.

An accidental meeting behind a club in Chicago brings these two damaged souls together. What was supposed to be a few moments spent naked and sweaty between the sheets, get interrupted by a freak accident that bring Gabriel’s secret demons, that he’s been struggling to keep hidden, roaring to the surface.

Madison knows a fucked up person when she sees one. So as gorgeous as the dark haired stranger was, she leaves him with no expectations for their paths to ever cross again. Of course nothing is quite so simple, and she finds herself coming face to face with the beautiful and broken soldier once again.

Fighting issues of her own, the last thing that Maddy needs is to take on the issues of Gabe. But she has a hard time fighting the immediate and overwhelming attraction that burns between them.

I couldn’t get enough of both of these characters. Maddy is broken in her own way. And she hides her damaged heart behind a veil of a cold bitch. But Gabe is determined to win the game of cat and mouse between them, and to chip away at the cold exterior to the woman that she hides underneath.

Let me tell you, when these two finally get together…

IT.WAS.DAMN.HOT.

Madison begins to see beyond the shadows of pain, to the true damaged warrior underneath. But while Gabe helps her heal the wounds of her past, he maintains a strong hold on his own hidden demons. But little by little, Maddy begins to get bits and pieces of what broke such a strong man.

While she knows that she can’t force him to deal with his past, she knows that she wants to be by his side when he finally does.

Gabe, oh my poor damaged, completely fucked up Gabe. My heart absolutely broke for him. When each new detail of that dark came to light, I found myself crying like a baby. I just wanted to hug him. I wanted to fix him.

Courtney Cole did not shy away from any gritty, dark, and utterly devastating detail. It was gutting to read it, yet I couldn’t put the book down.

She took an incredibly dark and painful subject matter, and she painted an incredibly beautiful story. I loved that she spared no detail, and gave focus to Gabe actually DEALING with his PTSD. It was not glossed over, it didn’t fade to black. She took the reader on that journey along with Gabe, and Kudos to you Miss Cole for doing that.

While characters from the first book make an appearance in this book, (Maddy is Mila’s sister from If You Stay) it could easily be read as a standalone. The details from the past book are explained away, so you wouldn’t miss much. Though it IS a series, so I’d recommend starting from book one.

This book was utterly captivating, dark, gritty, devastating, heart breaking, and I LOVED EVERY SINGLE PAGE OF IT!

There is a sneak peak into book three, and the hero sounds like the ULTIMATELY broken and damaged asshole

Though I don’t know how I feel about Jacey being the heroine. I couldn’t stand her in this book. She was immature and just drove me nuts. Unless she overgoes a complete personality change, I can’t see myself changing my opinion of her. But I guess I’ll just have to wait and find out.

If you read and loved the first book, you will love this one even more.
If you were like me and the first book didn’t quite work for you, this one will completely blow the first one out of the water. I can’t recommend it enough. I still can’t stop thinking about it.

Seriously, Courtney Cole, bravo!

View all my reviews

ARC Review: Getting Rowdy (Love Undercover #3) by Lori Foster

Getting Rowdy (Love Undercover, #3)Getting Rowdy by Lori Foster
My rating: 4 of 5 stars


She was like a drug, the very best kind. She’d turned him world upside down, but for the first time in forever, things were starting to feel righ.

She couldn’t play with him without getting burned. She couldn’t indulge with him without risking a broken heart.

I’ve been anticipating Rowdy and Avery’s story since first meeting them in Worth The Riske. Nothing better than a womanizing bad boy…well maybe if you added a motorcycle and some tattoos to the mix. But I can deal with 2 out of 4 🙂

Rowdy Yates is man that is constantly battling the demons from his past. His childhood was a nightmare, and his priority has always been to take care of his sister. He is not above lying, stealing, or breaking the law to get what he wants, and it’s certainly landed him in plenty of hot water in the past. The only thing that takes his mind off his troubled thoughts are women. He doesn’t really have a type, but all they are are nameless faces in a never ending list. But ever since he met Avery, something about him just calls to him.

He’d fucked his way through a miserable upbringing, using sex to counter the ravages of poverty and abuse. He used it still to rid his mind of plaguing memories. But now, with Avery, the need that consumed him had nothing to do with any of that- and everything to do with her.

Avery is attracted to Rowdy, who in their right mind wouldn’t be. The man is pure sex on a stick. But she knows better than to give into his shameless flirting. She has no interest in being another notch on his bedpost, no matter how tempting he may be.

Being sexy as sin, charismatic, and a shameless flirt never leaves Rowdy without a willing woman. But no matter which woman is currently warming his bed, it’s Avery’s face that seems to come to mind each time.

This was probably my favorite book in the series. I loved that Avery, while having a few hangups, was still a very endearing heroine. She wasn’t unwittingly getting herself in dangerous situations and knew to ask for help when she needed it. She wasn’t excessively naive and virginal. She knew what she wanted, but she also had the backbone to go after it.

Rowdy, my darling manwhore Rowdy. I have to admit, when Avery walked in on a certain “situation” in the beginning of the book, I wanted to throttle him. But the more I learned about his past, the more I fell in love with him. He was just so imperfectly lovable.

I liked that Avery saw him for the man that he was, and accepted all of him, faults and all.

I also liked that she didn’t run from her feelings for him.

The story itself was fairly interesting as well. Thankfully, in the 3rd installment of the Love Undercover series, we finally take a step away from the Human Trafficking plot line. The mystery of the who’s after Avery only heightened the interest. I was fairly sure I had things figured out from the beginning on who the bad guy is, and the ending completely flabbergasted me.

Lori Foster didn’t disappoint with the steam in this one. There was enough sexual tension to drive me crazy for the first half, and when Rowdy and Avery finally got together…

I can’t say that I LOVED this book, but it was still an enjoyable read. There were hints to who the next book will be, and I’m pretty sure I will be skipping it. While Dash is all kinds of sexy, I just can’t get myself to like Lieutenant Peterson. I’m not big on ball-busting, super prim and proper heroines. But who knows, maybe I’ll cave in and read it.

The ending…well…it was a bit on the cheesy end, but the rest of the book more or less made up for that.[Having Avery and Rowdy just survive a crazed lunatic with a gun, it was highly unrealistic for Rowdy to chose exactly THAT moment after to propose. I mean, c’mon! (hide spoiler)]

On a different note, I am absolutely DYING to get a book for Cannon. He was one of my favorite parts of this book. Please please please give us a book for him. Did I happen to mention that he’s a fighter? I would squeal like a teenage girl spotting Justin Bieber if Lori Foster gives us another series like her SBC Fighters with Cannon. Seriously, I’m not even embarrassed to admit that.

Getting Rowdy, while being part of a series, can be easily read as a stand alone.

3.75 stars

**ARC courtesy of publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

View all my reviews

Vampire Mine by Aline Hunter

Vampire Mine (Alpha and Omega, #3)Vampire Mine by Aline Hunter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m going to keep this short and sweet for this one.

Trey:

You my delicious, dirty-talking vampire, were everything I had hoped you would be and so much more! Seriously, I want your

*************************

Sadie:

Nothing is better than a kick-ass heroine, and Sadie was definitely that. I loved how tough she was, yet still had that hidden vulnerability when it came to Trey.

************************

Trey and Sadie together:


“I want to be inside you so bad, baby. I want to feel that hot, wet pussy of yours all around me.”
“A dirty talker, are you?”
“For the most part, but I can be romantic when the mood calls for it.” “I’m not in the mood for romantic. Are you?”
“Hell no.” He went at her clothing, tearing the shirt from her back.
“I want to fuck you so hard you won’t be able to walk straight. I’m going to make sure you’re so sore you won’t be able to stop thinking about me and what I’ve done to you.”

********************

Leigh:

You have a sweet, sexy as sin mate that wants to take care of you, and all you can do is whine the entire book about the life that you had before you were turned?

Pretty sure I’ll be skipping right over her book when she gets one. Whatever her story is…

I loved Nathan, but Leigh drove me nuts, and she was only a secondary character. Not sure I can tolerate a whole book with her whiny ass. Unless she undergoes a complete personality change, doubt I’d be reading that book.

*****************

Kinsley:

I cannot freaking wait for his book! The set up sounds absolutely delicious.

*****************

Aldon:

That epilogue threw me for a loop. I don’t even know how I feel about that. I do know that I’m very excited for his book, because there’s one thing that I like more than a dirty talker, a baddie that’s also a dirty talker *swoon*

Overall, I enjoyed it, though it won’t be my favorite in the series. I’ve been anticipating this book since Omega Mine. Maybe it was partly setting my hopes too high. Maybe it was that it was overrun by too many other POV’s and that took away from Trey and Sadie. I just wanted…more from this one.

4 Dirty-Talkin’ Stars

View all my reviews

ARC review: Seduce (Beautiful Rose #0.5) by Missy Johnson

Seduce (Beautiful Rose, #0.5)Seduce by Missy Johnson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 Erotic and Heartbreaking Stars

Jack Flacon is a rich, sexy, womanizing, heartless asshole…or so it would seem.

He is who he is, and he doesn’t feel like he needs to apologize for it.


The thing is, I’m happy being me and I sure as fuck won’t change for anyone. I don’t need fixing because I’m not broken. I simply work hard and play harder.

His form of play comes with a good glass of scotch, and spending each night with a different woman. After all, variety is the spice of love, and why should he settle down?


Love fucks you up, which is why I didn’t do relationships. Relationships lead to love and being in love opens you up to the possibility of being hurt. Love rips your chest open and puts your heart out there to be broken.

Jack may be an asshole of the first order, and treats his cat with more respect than he does women, but that certainly doesn’t hurt his game. Because when it comes down to it, Jack seemingly has it all.
Looks…

Money, charm, oh….and a magic penis.


Without trying to sound cocky, it wasn’t unusual for women to orgasm three or four times when with me. Maybe I had the perfect shaped dick. Or maybe I just knew what to do with it.

He is seemingly happy with his life. Until he meets her…and then everything changes.

This was not a case of insta-love. But there was insta-love. When Jack first sees a beautiful green-eyed brunette, he can’t get her out of his head. Something about her just calls to him and draws him in like no other woman ever has.

What starts out as one night of passion

Begins to turn into something so much more.

All of a sudden the beautiful brunette is more than a nameless face, she’s Belle, and she’s unlike any other woman Jack has been with.


It was like she saw right through the fifteen years’ worth of barriers I’d built up around myself to the real me. The one I never showed anyone.

In the midst of secrets that could tear them apart, and the passion that burns between them, their bond grows from lust into something so much more.

Jack begins to understand what love can really do to you. But he is terrified that the man that he has become will never be enough for Belle and he will eventually break her heart.

The steam in this book…I thought my kindle would catch on fire. There were parts that made me pant, parts that made me laugh, and parts that made me want an ice cold shower. And then…then there was that ending!

THAT FUCKING ENDING! It caught me by complete and utter surprise.

I’m pretty sure I bawled my eyes out for the entire last 20%.

Seduce is the prequel for Beautiful Rose. It is the story of love lost and learning to move on. It was erotic, it was intense, and it was HEART BREAKING.

I need…MUST HAVE the next book like YESTERDAY!

Missy Johnson, woman, you owe me here! (well not really, but you know what I mean). But seriously, after you made me cry like a maniac, I think we need to come to an arrangement with the next book here. It’s only fair! I might go a little batshit here waiting until September. GAH!!!

ARC courtesy of author in exchange for an honest review

View all my reviews

Unteachable- Leah Raeder

UnteachableUnteachable by Leah RaederMy rating: 5 of 5 stars5 Absolutely Beautiful Forbidden Stars



“I don’t know what I’m doing with you.”
“That’s okay, just don’t stop.”



Have you ever began reading a book, and just a few sentences in you knew…you just knew that this was going to be unlike anything you have ever read before? Unteachable was that book for me. I was sucked in from just the few first words, and it didn’t let me up until the very last page.

To say that Leah Raedar has a gift for words and story telling would be a gross understatement. The writing was one of the best parts of this book. Leah weaves words together so seamlessly and effortlessly that the words blur into images in your mind. The entire book unfolds before you like a movie, and IT.WAS.INCREDIBLE!

Maise O’Malley is not your typical happy-go-lucky, soon to be high school senior. She’s an old soul, in the body of an 18 year old girl. She’s broken, but she knows it. She hasn’t exactly had it easy in life, and her family or lack thereof is anything to brag about. She has a void that she fills with meaningless sex with faceless, older men. And it makes her feel…something…if only for those few too-short minutes.

Thanks, Dad, for leaving a huge void in my life that Freud says has to be filled with dick.

But then one late summer night spent at a local carnival Maise met the one man that will change everything. Evan Wilke.

A steamy encounter in his car later, Maise knows that Evan is not going to be just another faceless memory.

The funny thing was that his kiss had felt like fucking me, and his fucking me felt like being kissed, everywhere, every bit of my body unbearably warm and buzzing.

Unable to face the feelings that Evan and their night together brought out in her, Maise does the only things she can. She runs.
What neither of them know, is that their world is about to collide in a way that both of them least expect.

When Maise walks into class on her first day of her senior year, the man she knew as Evan on that summer night, is now Mr. Wilke, her teacher.

What began as an innocent encounter between two people finding a connection, turns into a forbidden affair.

“I can’t hold on to you. You’re like that shooting star. Just a trail of fire in my hands.”

Evan clearly cares for Maise. He isn’t your typical NA asshole hero. But while he’s sweet and caring, he is still clearly hiding some dark secrets from his own past.

“Now I know,” he said, touching me again, “why I was drawn to you. We have the same darkness inside.”“Our fucked-up parents?”“Our lost childhood.”

Even though the odds are stacked against them, and they’re risking everything if they get caught, the connection between Evan and Maise is intense. Their relationship soon stops being only a physical connection, as Evan slowly begins to chip away at the defenses around Maise’s heart.

The chemistry between them was absolutely scorching, and the steaminess in this book was off the charts for a NA novel.

“Who am I to you?” I asked, my voice hoarse. “Maise or your student?”“Both,” he whispered.I felt chills.“Then fuck me Mr. Wilke.”

“I want to fuck you in this classroom,” I said.
He exhaled slowly through his teeth.
“On this desk,” I said. “While you’re wearing your shirt and tie, and I’m wearing nothing but socks.”
He kissed me to make me stop talking.

Their journey together is not an easy one. They face not only the demons from their own pasts, but the obstacles stacked against them; the risk of being found out.

Beautifully written, Unteachable takes you on a roller coaster of emotions.

I cannot recommend this book enough. Even if you don’t typically read the New Adult genre, this is a must read. It is not the typically angsty plot with an asshole broken hero, and a naive and virginal heroine.

Purchase Unteachable on Amazon

View all my reviews

ARC Review: Midnight Lies (Wildfire #2) by Ella Grace

Midnight Lies (Wildefire, #2)Midnight Lies by Ella Grace
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



“Do you want me to say that staying away from you more than a minute is painful for me? That the thought of not having you in my life tears at my soul? That just seeing your face creates a peace inside me I’ve never felt before? That having you in my arms is like coming home?”

If you’re looking for a romantic suspense that is filled with action, mystery, steam, and will keep you on the very edge of your seat until the very last page…well, you NEED to read this series.

I really liked, but didn’t LOVE the first book in this series, this book took me by complete and total surprise. While the series is based on triplet sisters, and each book has a different hero and heroine, it is not meant to be a standalone. A lot of nuances and backstory were heavily covered in the first book, and many things would be missed by skipping it.

Midnight Lies picks up somewhere right around where Midnight Secrets left off. Samantha Wilde, the popular, flirty sister and former homecoming queen took everyone by surprise when she became a homicide detective. While she is still haunted by her parents’ murder suicide, it helps drive her need for justice.

When she meets and begins dating sexy emergency physician, Quinn Braddock, Samantha can’t help but fall head over heals. Quinn, coming out of a terrible marriage, is not looking for anything permanent. After all, he tried it once, and it didn’t work. While they may not share a detailed history or feelings with each other, the passion between them burns hot and heavy.

When Quinn becomes a suspect in his ex-wife’s brutal murder, it shakes Samantha’s foundation to the core. Her history isn’t exactly the best indicator of good judgement and she can’t help but harbor doubts of his innocence. Though it doesn’t take her long to rectify her mistake. Unfortunately, for Quinn, feeling betrayed by Sam’s initial doubts it’s too late, and he breaks up with her in a way that leaves Sam brokenhearted. Leaving behind her life and job in Atlanta, Sam moves back to Midnight to begin an investigating business with her 2 sisters.

Five months later, Quinn realizes his mistake and that he wants Sam back. Following her to Midnight seems like the first logical step he’s made in a while. He knows it will be a long road back inside Sam’s heart, but he’s a man determined.

This book was a page turner until the very end. While I found the first book to be a little drawn-out and slow to start, this one more than made up for it.

It was also incredibly steamy. Sam and Quinn burned up the pages together.

Midnight Lies was quick paced and action packed. All of the characters were back from the first book and it was great to get another peek at Zach and Savannah. Even though the mystery of the killer wasn’t quite as shocking as it was in the first book, the twist at the end took me by complete surprise.

The set up for the third sister, Sabrina, sounds like it will be the best book of the 3. And I’m still hoping that we’ll get a book for Logan and Brody.

ARC courtesy of publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

View all my reviews

Midnight Lies expected publishing date is September 24.

ARC courtesy of publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Copyright © 2015 · Dirty Girl Romance

%d bloggers like this: