Book Reviews: 5 stars

DGR Favorite & Review: Punk 57 by @PenDouglas

October 23, 2016 by Lana · Leave a Comment

PUNK 57
Genre: New Adult Romance
Author: Penelope Douglas
Release Date: October 21, 2016

“We were perfect together. Until we met.”

Misha

I can’t help but smile at the words in her letter. She misses me.

In fifth grade, my teacher set us up with pen pals from a different school. Thinking I was a girl, with a name like Misha, the other teacher paired me up with her student, Ryen. My teacher, believing Ryen was a boy like me, agreed.

It didn’t take long for us to figure out the mistake. And in no time at all, we were arguing about everything. The best take-out pizza. Android vs. iPhone. Whether or not Eminem is the greatest rapper ever…

And that was the start. For the next seven years, it was us.

Her letters are always on black paper with silver writing. Sometimes there’s one a week or three in a day, but I need them. She’s the only one who keeps me on track, talks me down, and accepts everything I am.

We only had three rules. No social media, no phone numbers, no pictures. We had a good thing going. Why ruin it?

Until I run across a photo of a girl online. Name’s Ryen, loves Gallo’s pizza, and worships her iPhone. What are the chances?

F*ck it. I need to meet her.

I just don’t expect to hate what I find.

Ryen

He hasn’t written in three months. Something’s wrong. Did he die? Get arrested? Knowing Misha, neither would be a stretch.

Without him around, I’m going crazy. I need to know someone is listening. It’s my own fault. I should’ve gotten his number or picture or something.

He could be gone forever.

Or right under my nose, and I wouldn’t even know it.

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We were perfect together. Until we met.”

Ever since I read Bully, I became an instant Penelope Douglas fan. The woman speaks right to my inner angst junky. It certainly doesn’t hurt matters that she also manages to create the perfect alphahole heroes in every book I read by her. Having loved her Falling Away series and all the others as well, to say that this book is right up there with Bully for me is a lot. Because Bully continues to be one of my top favorites by her. But there was also an underlying message to this book that I loved. That in addition to the incredible writing, the fantastic characters, the delicious angst, and the oh so sexy romance combined to be one of my top reads for the year.

He’s a jerk whose only kick in life is to make mine miserable.

I think we all have a point in our life where we didn’t feel comfortable in our own skin; where being accepted even if it means suppressing your real self a little feels like the easiest thing to do. A time where your peer’s opinions of you feel like the most important thing and acceptance is everything. No one is born full comfortable with themselves and being able to do what’s right even if that means going against the grain, but the road to getting there is the most interesting one.

Ryen is not a heroine that you want to like. What I mean is, here’s someone that’s the exact opposite of your usual heroine. She’s popular, she’s quiet when the weak are being picked on, and she suppresses her real self for the warmth of acceptance that she gets from people that aren’t even truly her friends. But there’s also something about this character that clicks with you. You can’t help but connect with her and understand her on some level, because at one time or another we’ve all been in her shoes.

Ryen and Misha have been pen pals for years, and while they know each other’s deepest and darkest thoughts, they have no idea who the other really is or what they look like. That doesn’t stop them from developing an incredible connection through their letters…until Misha gets a real peak at who Ryen is and everything changes.

We’re all ugly, Ryen. The only difference is, some hide it and some wear it.”

Misha is a grade A asshole in the beginning and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t love every page of it. Douglas has this gift for writing some of the sexiest alphaholes I’ve ever read. Yes, they’re mean and you want to slap them at times, but you also understand what drives them to be that way and you can’t help but love them anyway.

I want everything about you, Ryen, and I know you want me.” Her body shakes a little, and I lean in, kissing her on the cheek. “But I love the way you lie.”

The angst is off the charts good. For those that are like myself and enjoy that burn of sexual tension with a bit of hate/lust, you will devour every page and beg for more. And the sexual chemistry?
This is so much more than a sexy NA romance, however. It’s a story of learning to love and accept yourself. A story of learning to stand up for what you believe is right even if no one stands up with you. It’s a story of friendship and love. It’s an emotional rollercoaster that you never want to get off of and a romance between two people that don’t make sense together on paper but couldn’t be more right for each other. It’s dark and light, it’s love and hate. It’s complete and utter perfection.

I miss you every day, I write. You’re my favorite place.

If you’re a fan of Penelope Douglas and you enjoyed her Fall Away series and you want another taste of her Devil’s Night world, this is an absolute must read. If you love angsty NA romances with a H/h that you will love to hate and just flat out love, this is an absolute must read. If you’re a fellow angst whore like me, then this is an absolute must read. Basically, what I’m trying to tell you here is READ THIS BOOK!! You won’t regret a second of it.

You’re not alone. It gets better. You are important, and you can’t be replaced. Hang on.

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, DGR Favorites, New Adult · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, Penelope Douglas

Excerpt & Review: Tonic by Staci Hart

October 17, 2016 by Lana · 1 Comment

TONIC
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Staci Hart
Release Date: October 13, 2016

Joel Anderson doesn’t take anything seriously.

Not his relationships, which have been few and far between since his brutal divorce. Not the drama of working in a tattoo parlor, which seems to be around every corner. When things get him down, he smiles and cracks a joke. But he’s not the kind of man you cross, or you’ll find yourself at the wrong end of his fists.

Annika Belousov takes everything seriously.

Like her job as a reality television producer, given that she typically has something to prove. Or her love life, which is defined by a series of requirements — affluent, ambitious, accomplished, to name a few. Definitely her family, who worked their whole lives to afford her every opportunity, a sacrifice she doesn’t take lightly. When she’s tapped to produce a reality show at Joel’s shop, she doesn’t think twice, just goes in for the kill, as if there were any other way.

The second Annika walks into Joel’s shop, he makes it his mission to crack her open, but she’s not having it. He’s all wrong — too crass, too hairy, too un-serious. But it doesn’t take her long to find out there’s more to him than smirks and tattoos. And what she finds could put her career and his heart on the line.

Not that Joel cares. Because for the first time in a long time, he’s found his tonic.

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FREE on Kindle Unlimited

“Let me see it.”

“What?” I blustered, caught off guard.

“Stand up and turn around. I want to see it.” I was too surprised and caught up in the moment to refuse, so I stood and turned, laying my palms on the armrests as I faced the back of the chair.

One hand rested on my hip.

My heart stopped as I wondered what the hell I’d gotten myself into.

I glanced over my shoulder, my gaze bouncing between his face —turned down too much to read —and his reflection in the speckled, antique mirror, which I couldn’t see much of either. His free hand moved to the waistband of my tailored pants, and his fingers hooked and tugged, pulling the band down low.

His thumb ran over where I knew the tattoo was, and I felt his breath. Every place where we connected spoke to me of ownership.

“You got this done here? In New York?” His voice was rough.

Mine wasn’t much better. “Yeah. In Brooklyn.”

“Let me cover it up for you. Give you something you’re proud of. Your skin …” He paused, and I wished I could see his face, read his mind. “This shouldn’t be here, not on you. Let me … I want to …” He had moved closer, his hand on my hip pulling me back into him slightly enough for me to not have noticed that the backs of my thighs were touching his, my back arched just enough, his breath hot.

And then, he disappeared. I stood, finding my hands were trembling, wondering where I was and how I’d gotten there. The shop was mostly empty —no one had seen, not that it would have looked like much from the outside. But from where I stood, I felt every single deliberate move like a telegraph, telling me exactly what he wanted to do without him having to finish the sentence.

His back was to me when I turned around, his face down —I couldn’t see it in the mirror over his cabinet of ink and needles as he dug around in the drawers, seemingly for nothing in particular.

“Let me know if you want me to draw something up.”

“Okay, I will.” I paused, not knowing what else to say, feeling like I should say something. But there was nothing that I could say. “Well, have a good night, Joel. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He nodded, glancing at me in the mirror. “See you, Annika.”

I tried not to bolt out of the shop, but once outside, I admit it —I took off. I hauled up the stairs and into the office to grab my bag, grateful that Laney was already gone, and I texted my driver, asking him to pick me up a few blocks away so I could walk, put some distance between me and Joel, get the energy out of my body, through my legs and feet, into the pavement.

My heart! Staci, what have you done with my heart?! And my cheeks…..I’m going to need my cheeks back because they have melted off my face with all of the smiling. I’m just a pile of goop.

…his dark skin against my white, the ink of him against the cream of me, the marked and the blank…

Staci….effing…..Hart. Where have you been all my life?! This is my first Staci Hart book, and I am never looking back. I will be purchasing this gorgeous paperback and keeping it on my bookshelf forever. This review might be a little random, but I just FEEL so GOOD after this book that I’m a little crazy right now. Staci’s words. All of Staci’s words. It’s not just the story or characters that I loved so much….it’s her words.

This book killed me….with BEAUTIFUL WORDS. I loved this so much, I literally grabbed a napkin while reading it and started writing down notes for my review.

Joel & Annika:

Joel (aka Hairy) is a tattoo artist….a hairy tattoo artist. He owns the tattoo shop, Tonic, which is getting its own reality tv show. He isn’t excited about it, but he realizes he would rather be the show on tv than the competition to get the show. When he first meets Annika…..FIRE! I LOVED the animosity between the two right away. Annika tries to give him the cold, but his fire is so hot that she cannot resist him. I’ll take a little bit of THIS and THAT.

”I’m not supposed to want you. You…you make me mad and you make me laugh and you make me crazy, and I’m not supposed to want you, but I do. What am I supposed to do? What do you want? You want me to throw away my career? How about you? Should I use you up and toss you out too? Or maybe you’ll do the same to me. I don’t know, because I don’t know you. But that hasn’t stopped me from wanting you, not since the first time I ever saw your stupid, hairy face. I hate you, and I want you, and I hate that I want you. But I do.”

Annika is the ice queen, known for her ability to scare men away with a glare, but Joel is resistant to her ice. Annika is a producer of the reality show, so she know it would not be a good idea for her to get involved with Joel. He is all hairy smirks and jokes. He knows right away that he wants Annika, wants to figure her out and break through that ice.

Her eyes finally snapped to mine, and I tried to melt her panties off with my mind.

I loved that there was low drama, despite the reality show setting. I loved loved loved all of the side characters. I cannot wait wait wait to read MORE OF STACI HART. Always more Staci Hart.
Staci has been a lot of things up to this point in her life — a graphic designer, an entrepreneur, a seamstress, a clothing and handbag designer, a waitress. Can’t forget that. She’s also been a mom, with three little girls who are sure to grow up to break a number of hearts. She’s been a wife, though she’s certainly not the cleanest, or the best cook. She’s also super, duper fun at a party, especially if she’s been drinking whiskey.

From roots in Houston to a seven year stint in Southern California, Staci and her family ended up settling somewhere in between and equally north, in Denver. They are new enough that snow is still magical. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, sleeping, gaming, or designing graphics.

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1 Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, Excerpts · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, Jennifer Reviews

DGR Fave & Review: Black Swan Affair by @klkreig

October 12, 2016 by Lana · 1 Comment

BLACK SWAN AFFAIR
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance
Author: KL Kreig
Release Date: October 17, 2016

I’ve loved him as long as I can remember.

The gangly boy with big brown eyes and unruly hair who grew up into an intoxicating man. He wears scruff like he invented it and ambles with a swagger that makes panties drop.

Killian Shepard.

Shep.

We grew up together. We played Ghost in the Graveyard. Had our own rock band. It didn’t matter that he was five years older than me. It didn’t matter that he looked at me as a kid sister even as I grew into a woman. It didn’t even matter when he left me behind to go to college and start his adult life.

He’d be back.

He was always meant to be mine.

He came back, all right. But instead of smelling of promises, he stunk of betrayal. And he destroyed me—us—the day he married my sister instead of me.

So I did the only thing a girl like me in my position could do.

I got my revenge.

I married his brother, Kael.

Now we’re one big happy fucking family.

AMAZON | iBOOKS

Pining after someone’s husband is one thing. Pining after someone’s husband when you’re now married- to his brother- is taking immorality to an entirely new level. But that’s me.”

It’s official. I’m ruined. Utterly and totally ruined by this incredible book, by these beautiful words, by the heart wrenching story, by the devastating angst…this…EVERYTHING.

How can I even begin to describe to you all what I read? Let me try…
Yep. That about sums it up.

Truth be told, I do NOT do love triangles. As a matter of fact I tend to avoid them like a case of the clap…by practicing love triangle abstinence. What? It’s totally a thing. But then my trusty book pimp Nashoda Rose told me this book had my name written all over it, and I was convinced (read= threatened bodily harm if I get a flashback to Thoughtless). But that’s neither here nor there. What IS here, is how much this book owned me, because GOOD GAWD did it!

When he walks past, he grabs my hand, telling me softly against my cheek, “He will never love you like I do.”

If you’re thinking this is a typical love triangle, you couldn’t be more wrong. That blurb doesn’t even begin to do this book justice. It’s so much more than a woman who can’t have the man she wants so she settles for his brother. This is not a black and white story. It’s settled very firmly in the gray.

The rope he has tethered to me is unraveling, thread after fraying thread. I hear them snapping, faster and faster now. Feel the stinging bite of each one against my tender flesh as they break apart.

Maverick is not a heroine you’d think you like, but with every page you grow to understand her more and more. The incredibly spellbinding writing will pull you into the story so well that it won’t be long before you’re just as conflicted about your feelings as she is.

Maverick is a woman that’s loved two men her entire life; one man with the love of passion and the second with the love of friendship. But then the man she always thought she’d end up with breaks her heart by marrying her sister. Try as she might, she can’t burn away her love for him, even if she is now married to his brother and her lifelong best friend, Kael.

I want to kiss these fucking lips, Maverick. And not a kiss of a boy who has been friends with a girl for almost thirty years. But as a lover. I want to bite and suck and own and devour. Whenever I want. However I want.”

Have you ever read a romance where you didn’t know which man to root for? Where your feelings were so up and down you felt like you were in a never ending spiral? Where you spend the entire time glued to the pages, utterly incapable of tearing yourself away for even a mere second? Because I just did.
Mesmerizing, maddening, heart rendering; this book owned me to the depths of my dark soul. I devoured every page, I screamed, I cried, I raged. I was enraptured.

That’s how much I love you. That’s how wound around the very fucking center of my soul you are. It’s the same place you’ll be until I close my eyes and take my last breath. You are rooted in here”- he pounds his chest- “in the bowels of me so far I will never be rid of you. No matter how much I’ve tried.”

If you don’t read love triangles; read this book.
If you want a book that will make you feel; read this book.
If you want a book that will make your heart bleed; read this book.
If you want a book that will have you thinking about it days after you’ve finished it; read this book.

1 Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, DGR Favorites, Erotic Rom · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, DGR Fave

Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway: Thief of Hearts by @LHCosway

October 11, 2016 by Lana · Leave a Comment

Thief of Hearts
Series: Hearts #5
Genre: Contemporary Romance/Romantic Suspense
Author: L.H. Cosway
Release Date: October 4, 2016

Seduce the teacher.
Meet the cousin.
Make a deal.
Steal the painting.

Andrea Anderson has no clue of the thoughts churning around in the dark and dangerous ex-con’s head as he enters her classroom. In fact, she’s momentarily lost for words. Not in her entire teaching career has she had a student who looked quite like Stu Cross.

A widow at just twenty-eight, love is something Andie hasn’t considered a part of her life for a very long time. However, when lingering touches turn to whispered words and hot, searching stares, she begins to wonder if maybe she should take a leap of faith.

But Stu is in her class for a reason, and it has nothing to do with love. He’s there to burrow his way into her life and repay a debt, otherwise his family will suffer. Andie is the first person to show him true kindness since he left prison, and though he doesn’t want to mislead her, he doesn’t have another choice.

Before long, Stu can’t tell whether or not he’s acting anymore, and his feelings for Andie could throw all of his carefully crafted plans into complete and utter disarray.

**Can be read as a stand alone.

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toh5

5 L-H-Cosway-I-LUV-YOU Stars!!!!!

à la Mode St. » fashion

People like you give people like me a soft place to fall. Otherwise we’d just be cold and hard.

à la Mode St. » fashion I haven’t read an L.H. Cosway book in waaaay too long. And I haven’t read all of her books. But I love every single one that I’ve read so far. What I love about L.H. Cosway is her ability to make me feel all the feels without telling me how to feel (Did you get that?). Her words and dialogue evoke such emotion and I get the feels from them. I usually don’t like student-teacher tropes but I went into this blind, and because I will read anything LH Cosway writes, I ended up loving it (duh!)! It’s not your typical student-teacher story.
à la Mode St. » fashion

I’d always been fascinated by stories like that, where words on a page could make you feel things as strongly as though the emotional trauma was happening in real life.

à la Mode St. » fashion Stu & Andrea:
Andrea teaches adult students. Stu recently got out of prison and is sentenced to attend the adult class. He is the typical bad boy, and I fell SO HARD for Stu. He’s got a dirty mouth. Cosway has a way with dirty words probably because she’s British and dirty words just sound so much more cool and natural in a British accent. Lol. Stu is tall, dark, wears sunglasses, and he smokes! Gah, I love a smoker! (only in books. Haha). Stu PURSUES Andrea…relentlessly, and I loved every second. And he can be sweet as pie! He’s pretty much my perfect man….
both physically and cerebrally.
à la Mode St. » fashion

”You’re just very, um, fit. I’m feeling a little self-conscious of all my jiggly bits.”

Stu grinned and reached for my hips. “I love all your jiggly bits.” Dipping his head down, he sucked one of my nipples into his mouth. “Especially these ones,” he continued, mouthing my breast.

à la Mode St. » fashion There is insta-attraction, and these two are so
sexy awkward.
Andrea immediately thinks Stu is the bees-knees. She’s the dorky teacher, and he’s the hot student, and there is nothing cliché about anything in this book. After learning that Stu has a way with numbers, she connects him with her father who is a math professor to get Stu some individual tutoring. Andrea is actually a widow (so sad!), so she has trouble letting go of this part of her life. I loved how she did and how Stu got her there! I can’t say too much about the plot because I don’t want to give away any spoilers, and there were a couple surprise twists in the story. Ugh, I wish I could tell you everything, so go read the book so my mouth doesn’t splurge out all the deets! Go!
à la Mode St. » fashion

”I’m sure my oversized grey slacks get you real hot and bothered, Stuart,” I deadpanned.

“I could take or leave the slacks,” he breathed, all gravelly. “But those lips and your big brown eyes, now those are what get me all jacked up.”

à la Mode St. » fashion Andrea’s all like…

And Stu’s all like…

And I’m all like…

I LOVED Andrea’s dedication to teaching and wanting to see her students succeed. It defined her character so well. Being a teacher myself, I definitely related to Andrea in that way. I loved that it was a continuing theme in the book…education. Even after Stu and Andrea started their thing, Andrea didn’t stop wanting Stu to continue his education. She has the ability to see students’ strengths even if they aren’t the typical types of intelligence. My nerdy teacher side was like “Yes!” through this whole theme in the book. I love that Cosway even HAS themes in her books. What romance author has themes these days?! LOL!

I love that this whole book is written in Andrea’s pov. So many books coming out are written in alternating pov’s, which I really like sometimes, but I LOVE Cosway’s writing style so much that she just doesn’t need to alternate. I loved the mystery of Stu. I love the thief heist of the story. It was just so much fun! This book is all kinds of hot and swoony and perfection, so yeah, go read it now!

l-h-cosway-author-pic L.H. Cosway lives in Dublin, Ireland. Her inspiration to write comes from music. Her favourite things in life include writing stories, vintage clothing, dark cabaret music, food, musical comedy, and of course, books. She thinks that imperfect people are the most interesting kind. They tell the best stories. L.H. is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.

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Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Blog Tours, Contemporary Romance, Giveaways · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, Jennifer Reviews

Jennifer’s Review: Caressed by Ice by Nalini Singh

October 9, 2016 by Lana ·

CARESSED BY ICE
Series: Psy-Changeling #3
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Author: Nalini Singh
Release Date: September 4, 2007

The author of Shards of Hope and Shield of Winter presents a Psy/Changeling novel in which two people who know evil intimately must unlock the good within their icy hearts…

As an Arrow, an elite soldier in the Psy Council ranks, Judd Lauren was forced to do terrible things in the name of his people. Now a defector, his dark abilities have made him the most deadly of assassins – cold, pitiless, unfeeling. Until he meets Brenna…

Brenna Shane Kincaid was an innocent before she was abducted – and had her mind violated – by a serial killer. Her sense of evil runs so deep, she fears she could become a killer herself. Then the first dead body is found, victim of a familiar madness. Judd is her only hope, yet her sensual changeling side rebels against the inhuman chill of his personality, even as desire explodes between them. Shocking and raw, their passion is a danger that threatens not only their hearts, but their very lives…

AMAZON | iBOOKS | B&N

This book is BEYOND. That’s it. Just beyond. It has to be one of my favorite paranormal books ever. Definitely my favorite in this series so far.

“His eyes fixed on hers, the gold flecks darkening to amber. “An assassin who looks after his own skin? That’s exactly what I am, Brenna. I would rather die than harm you, but anyone else? I could kill them without blinking. It’s what I was born to do.”

JUDD.
JUDD.
JUDD.

I am puddle on the floor because this man has melted all of my icicles. And I want to lick his giant icicle. Ok, I’m done.

My Judd:

My Brenna:

I LOVE assholes. And Judd was so cold to Brenna in the beginning that I ate him up. At the same time, he is unlike any hero I’ve ever read because he does not know or realize that he is being an ice man. As a Psy, he cannot FEEL anything. Not only is he a Psy, but he is an Arrow, which is the most lethal Psy assassin. They are so rare that they are the best kept secret among the Psy. He was trained to reject all pain and emotion, so his brain refuses to feel anything. I enjoyed the journey that Judd went through in order to let himself FEEL.

Brenna was kidnapped in the first book of this series. I was hoping that she was going to get her own book, and I am so happy that she did. Judd is her perfect other half. Because she was kidnapped and tortured by a Psy, she has lingering issues, and she feels a connection with Judd and only he can understand what she went through.

Brenna’s eyes widened. Raising a hand, she brushed his hair gently off his forehead.
“Why do I keep telling you things I swore I’d take to my grave?”

The contact shot electricity through his nerves. “Because you know I’ll always be your shield against the nightmares.”

Singh is the queen of sexual tension. In books by other authors, I’ll be rolling my eyes if the couple hasn’t had sexy by the 50% mark, but with Singh, I don’t even care. I feel the sexual tension so much in her books that I don’t even think about the sex, and I’m pleasantly surprised when they get finally get their groove on.

“Aren‘t you going to get up?”

He put a hand on the curve of her hip, a possessive gesture that had already become
familiar.

“No. Let‘s have more sex.”

With this book, Singh switched everything up. She threw a curve ball, and it worked so hard! In the first two books, the heroine was the Psy and the hero was the changeling, but this is the first book in the series where the hero was the Psy and the heroine was the changeling. I NEED more Psy men in my life because Judd was my type of man!

I’ve never read anything like this book. It is…..PHENOMENAL.

THE PSY/CHANGELING SERIES

: Slave to Sensation (Psy-Changelings, Book 1)

: Visions of Heat (Psy/Changeling Series Book 2)

: Caressed by Ice (Psy-Changelings, Book 3)

: Mine to Possess (Psy-Changelings, Book 4)

: Hostage to Pleasure (Psy-Changelings, Book 5)

: Branded by Fire (Psy/Changeling Series Book 6)

: Blaze of Memory (Psy-Changelings, Book 7)

: Bonds of Justice (Psy/Changeling Series Book 8)

: Play of Passion (Psy/Changeling Series Book 9)

: Kiss of Snow (Psy/Changeling Series Book 10)

: Tangle of Need: A Psy-Changeling Novel (Psy/Changeling Series Book 11)

: Heart of Obsidian: A Psy-Changeling Novel (Psy/Changeling Series Book 12)

: Shield of Winter (Psy/Changeling Series Book 13)

: Shards of Hope: A Psy-Changeling Novel (Psy/Changeling Series Book 14)

: Allegiance of Honor (Psy-Changeling Novel, Book 15)

· Filed Under: All Reviews, DGR Favorites, PNR · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, DGR Fave, Jennifer Reviews, Nalini Singh

Review: Down Shift by @KBrombergDriven

October 6, 2016 by Lana · Leave a Comment

DOWN SHIFT
Series: Driven #8
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: K. Bromberg
Release Date: October 4, 2016

The New York Times bestselling Driven series continues with a standalone story about finding love where you least expect it…

Behind the wheel, racing champion Zander Donavan is at the top of his game. But after too much excess in his personal life, he’s forced to step away. He needs to accomplish something all on his own—outside of his famous father’s shadow.

Getty Caster is running away from the abuse that clouds her past. She thinks she’s found the perfect escape—until she discovers a stranger in the beachside cottage she’d been promised. He’s undeniably sexy, but she’s there to heal. Alone.

Before long though, fighting with each other turns into fighting their attraction. And giving into desire sets off a chain reaction that has their pasts colliding. With an unexpected love on the line, can they overcome the fallout to build a future?

AMAZON | iBOOKS

“Even if you gave me a hundred reasons why we shouldn’t be together, Getty, I’d still look for the one reason to fight like hell for you. Remember that.”

See that pile of goo right there?
No! Not there! That’s the melted ice cream I used to eat my feelings. I’m talking about the other pile. Yes, yes, that one right there. That would be me. Melted into an gooey pile of swoon filled goo. All at the hands of a man with a moody disposition but a heart of gold named Zander and the incredible talent that is K. Bromberg. Goo I tells ya!

His love roared loader than my demons.

A recent revelation from his past has unraveled Zander Donovan’s world. He’s spinning out of control, angry and bitter, and lashing out at those that love him most. When he makes one stupid mistake too much, he’s forced to take a step back from the racing world and his family, finding peace in quiet seclusion.

Everyone’s churning ocean is fueled by a different type of storm.”
“What’s your storm?”
“My storm?” he chuckles, self-deprecation in his tone and a look in his eyes he doesn’t give me a chance to read. “I don’t think it’s ever really stopped churning, but there’s definitely been a few surprise white squalls thrown in.”

Getty is looking for a fresh start. Running from a past of her own, her scars are of the hidden variety. A woman broken doesn’t mean a woman that can’t heal, and she’s looking to heal the woman she wants to be. Having a sexy stranger crash her own quiet seclusion isn’t what she expects, nor the undeniable chemistry that brews between them from the very first sarcastic barb they exchange.

What starts as an unwilling cohabitation soon turns into friendship and begins to turn into something much deeper.

I know you’re stubborn as hell and gorgeous as fuck. And that your kiss tastes like an aged whiskey: something I want to sip slowly, feel on my lips, savor on my tongue, and take my time with before I get drunk on it.”

Getty is not the heroine I typically enjoy. She’s a lot damaged and a bit withdrawn, but she’s also endearingly sweet and caring in spite of her past. She’s not naive or a wallflower, but she’s not a warrior either. She’s someone that’s incredibly relatable. She’s a woman with a past and hidden hurts, but she doesn’t chose to dwell on that. She wants to heal, she wants to move on.

Zander is fighting a different demon from his past, but it’s no less darker than Getty’s. Together, they just…made sense. They were the perfect halves of a whole. K. Bromberg did an incredible job painting a story of two broken souls finding a healing touch in one another. They weren’t emotional crutches for the other. They were complete opposites, but together they just made sense. I adored these two. I loved their banter, I loved their push and pull, and I couldn’t get enough of their chemistry.

And their chemistry? Off the walls hot!

Time passes in pure sensations. The bite of his fingers into my thighs. The mist of sweat on my skin. The groan he emits as he slowly comes undone. The tingle of ecstasy throughout my body.

Goo I tells ya!

The author manages to bring everything in a full circle. The writing was spellbinding and beautiful, the story was emotional and gripping, and the romance was heart wrenchingly good. If you’re looking for a book that packs just as much feeling as it does steam, THIS is the book that needs to be on your list! It was pure perfection and I loved every page of it!

DRIVEN SERIES

: Driven (Driven, #1)

: Fueled (Driven, #2)

: Crashed (Driven, #3)

: Raced (Driven, #3.5)

: Aced (Driven, #4)

: Slow Burn (Driven, #5)

: Sweet Ache (Driven, #6)

: Hard Beat (Driven, #7)

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, DGR Favorites · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, DGR Fave, K Bromberg

Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway: Sparking The Fire by Kate Meader

October 3, 2016 by Lana · 1 Comment

SPARKING THE FIRE
Series: Hot in Chicago #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Kate Meader
Release Date: September 27, 2016

Heating up reading lists this Fall will be Kate Meader’s highly anticipated Sparking the Fire, the “sexy and sassy” (#1 New York Times bestselling author Jude Deveraux) steamy third novel in the Hot in Chicago series, where former lovers unexpectedly reunite for a sizzling affair that will have the director yelling, “Quiet on the set!”

Actor Molly Cade, America’s fallen sweetheart, finally has her shot at a Hollywood comeback with a dramatic new role as a tough-as-nails firefighter that promises to propel her back to the big time and restore her self-respect.

Wyatt Fox, resident daredevil at Engine Co. 6, needs a low-key job to keep him busy while he recovers from his latest rescue stunt. Consulting on a local movie shoot should add just enough spark to his day. Especially when in struts Molly Cade: the woman who worked his heart over good, and then left him in the Windy City dust.

Their story is straight out of a script: irrepressible, spunky heroine meets taciturn, smoldering hero. But these two refuse to be typecast, and when the embers of an old love are stoked, someone is bound to get burned…

AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS | S&S | BaM | GOOGLE PLAY

Kate Meader’s blazing Hot in Chicago firefighter series has “everything you want in a romance” (RT Book Reviews, Top Pick)! The flames of desire burn out of control in this sexy third novel when ex-lovers unexpectedly reunite for a sizzling affair that will have the director yelling, “Quiet on the set!”

Actor Molly Cade, America’s fallen sweetheart, finally has her shot at a Hollywood comeback with a dramatic new role as a tough-as-nails firefighter that promises to propel her back to the big time and restore her self-respect.

Wyatt Fox, resident daredevil at Engine Co. 6, needs a low-key job to keep him busy while he recovers from his latest rescue stunt. Consulting on a local movie shoot should add just enough spark to his day. Especially when in struts Molly Cade: the woman who worked his heart over good, and then left him in the Windy City dust.

Their story is straight out of a script: irrepressible, spunky heroine meets taciturn, smoldering hero. But these two refuse to be typecast, and when the embers of an old love are stoked, someone is bound to get burned…

AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS

He’d thought he could control himself around Molly, yet every second in her presence loosened the granite hold on his emotions one more slippery, dangerous inch.

That’s it! Stick a fork in me, I’m done! I am a pile of dead and melted goo, all at the hands of a broody, silent, former Marine turned firefighter. I would like my headstone to read that my ultimate demise came from the hottest BILF I’ve ever read, and I regret nothing. NOTHING.

What’s a BILF you ask?

She poked him in the chest. “Drunk, sober, any state, I would be doin’ you tonight, Mister. Lucky. That’s what you are. A total BILF.”
“BILF?”
“Beard I’d like to fuck.”

When I’m in a book funk, I know all I need is 5 minutes with a Kate Meader book and I’ll have an instant goofy grin on my face and the worst case of blue ovaries known to man kind. Why? Because the woman writes some of the best alpha heroes and I can’t get enough of it!

So what happens when a silent and socially awkward firefighter that likes to stay in the shadow of his infamous foster siblings meets a woman who’s in the very center of the spotlight? A. Whole. Lot. Of. Awesome.

Their lives did not mesh. She was Hollywood designer duds. He was Chicago Dumpster diving. And he wanted her more than his next breath. But since when in hell had he ever gotten anything he wanted?

Wyatt Fox is the quietest one of his siblings, the unassuming one, the one that sticks to himself. But for six nights years ago, he let his inhibitions fly with a woman that left him in the dust but he hasn’t stopped thinking about since.

Molly Cade is used to the media attention, but after an ugly divorce brought her on the wrong end of public scrutiny, she’s hoping the new movie she’s starring and producing will turn things around on her. Little does she expect that the new CFD consultant on the movie set is none other than the man that she never expected to see again. Suffice it to say that sparks fly and fires are set!
Sparking The Fire is written in Meader’s signature sassy style with plenty of sexy and a whole lot of banter which I’ve come to be addicted to.

She placed her palms on his shoulders. “You planning to glare me into orgasm, Marine?”
“I don’t glare. I smolder.”

I am head over ovaries in love with this series. I’d set my house on fire just to get my very own Wyatt Fox to come over and put out my fire…uhem.

The romance is full of sizzle and spark, and just enough sexual chemistry to set your kindle on fire. I loved the back and forth between Molly and Wyatt. The odds are stacked against them and they’re complete opposites, but yet they can’t stay away from each other.

Molly was absolute perfection. She’s sassy and funny and doesn’t let anything get her down. She has a backbone but still has this perfect amount of vulnerability to make her incredibly endearing. As for Wyatt? Wowza! I’m all about the BILF.

Nothing had ever felt this good. No one had ever felt this good. It had always been her.

If you haven’t read this series, you’re seriously missing out. If you haven’t read anything by this amazing author, you’re seriously missing out. And if you haven’t made plans to meet Wyatt Fox, then you’re SERIOUSLY missing out!

Kate Meader is going to spoil me with her awesomeness soon, but you won’t hear a peep of complaint out of this reader.

HOT IN CHICAGO SERIES

: Rekindle The Flame (Hot In Chicago, #0.5)

: Flirting with Fire (Hot in Chicago, #1)

: Melting Point (Hot in Chicago, #1.5)

: Playing with Fire (Hot in Chicago, #2)

: Sparking the Fire (Hot in Chicago, #3)

REKINDLE THE FLAME | FLIRTING WITH FIRE | MELTING POINT | PLAYING WITH FIRE | SPARKING THE FIRE

Kate Meader was raised on romance. An Irish girl, she started with Catherine Cookson and Jilly Cooper novels, and spiced it up with some Mills & Boon. Now based in Chicago, she writes romances of her own, where sexy contemporary alpha heroes and strong heroines match each other quip for quip. When not immersed in tales of brooding mill owners, oversexed equestrians, and men who can rock an apron or a fire hose, Kate lives on the web at katemeader.com.

HOT TIP: Kate is also offering a $25 Amazon gift card during the Sparking the Fire release tour. It will run Monday September 26 to Friday October 7. Enter here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

1 Comment · Filed Under: Blog Tours, Contemporary Romance, DGR Favorites, Giveaways · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, kate meader

DGR Favorite & Review: Sparking The Fire by @KittyMeader

September 27, 2016 by Lana · Leave a Comment

SPARKING THE FIRE
Series: Hot in Chicago #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Kate Meader
Release Date: September 27, 2016

Kate Meader’s blazing Hot in Chicago firefighter series has “everything you want in a romance” (RT Book Reviews, Top Pick)! The flames of desire burn out of control in this sexy third novel when ex-lovers unexpectedly reunite for a sizzling affair that will have the director yelling, “Quiet on the set!”

Actor Molly Cade, America’s fallen sweetheart, finally has her shot at a Hollywood comeback with a dramatic new role as a tough-as-nails firefighter that promises to propel her back to the big time and restore her self-respect.

Wyatt Fox, resident daredevil at Engine Co. 6, needs a low-key job to keep him busy while he recovers from his latest rescue stunt. Consulting on a local movie shoot should add just enough spark to his day. Especially when in struts Molly Cade: the woman who worked his heart over good, and then left him in the Windy City dust.

Their story is straight out of a script: irrepressible, spunky heroine meets taciturn, smoldering hero. But these two refuse to be typecast, and when the embers of an old love are stoked, someone is bound to get burned…

AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS

He’d thought he could control himself around Molly, yet every second in her presence loosened the granite hold on his emotions one more slippery, dangerous inch.

What’s a BILF you ask?

She poked him in the chest. “Drunk, sober, any state, I would be doin’ you tonight, Mister. Lucky. That’s what you are. A total BILF.”
“BILF?”
“Beard I’d like to fuck.”

So what happens when a silent and socially awkward firefighter that likes to stay in the shadow of his infamous foster siblings meets a woman that’s in the very center of the spotlight? A. Whole. Lot. Of. Awesome.

Their lives did not mesh. She was Hollywood designer duds. He was Chicago Dumpster diving. And he wanted her more than his next breath. But since when in hell had he ever gotten anything he wanted?

She placed her palms on his shoulders. “You planning to glare me into orgasm, Marine?”
“I don’t glare. I smolder.”

I am head over ovaries in love with this series. I’d set my house on fire just to get my very own Wyatt Fox to come over and put out my fire…uhem.

Nothing had ever felt this good. No one had ever felt this good. It had always been her.

Kate Meader is going to spoil me with her awesomeness soon, but you won’t hear a peep of complaint out of this reader.

HOT IN CHICAGO SERIES

: Rekindle The Flame (Hot In Chicago, #0.5)

: Flirting with Fire (Hot in Chicago, #1)

: Melting Point (Hot in Chicago, #1.5)

: Playing with Fire (Hot in Chicago, #2)

: Sparking the Fire (Hot in Chicago, #3)

REKINDLE THE FLAME | FLIRTING WITH FIRE | MELTING POINT | PLAYING WITH FIRE | SPARKING THE FIRE

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, DGR Favorites · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, DGR Fave, Firefighters, kate meader

Jennifer’s Review: Do You Want To Start a Scandal by @TessaDare

September 25, 2016 by Lana ·

DO YOU WANT TO START A SCANDAL
Series: Spindle Cove #5
Genre: Historical Romance
Author: Tessa Dare
Release Date: September 27, 2016

On the night of the Parkhurst ball, someone had a scandalous tryst in the library. Was it Lord Canby, with the maid, on the divan? Or Miss Fairchild, with a rake, against the wall? Perhaps the butler did it.

All Charlotte Highwood knows is this: it wasn’t her. But rumors to the contrary are buzzing. Unless she can discover the lovers’ true identity, she’ll be forced to marry Piers Brandon, Lord Granville—the coldest, most arrogantly handsome gentleman she’s ever had the misfortune to embrace. When it comes to emotion, the man hasn’t got a clue.

But as they set about finding the mystery lovers, Piers reveals a few secrets of his own. The oh-so-proper marquess can pick locks, land punches, tease with sly wit . . . and melt a woman’s knees with a single kiss. The only thing he guards more fiercely than Charlotte’s safety is the truth about his dark past.

Their passion is intense. The danger is real. Soon Charlotte’s feeling torn. Will she risk all to prove her innocence? Or surrender it to a man who’s sworn to never love?

AMAZON | iBOOKS | B&N

5 “Oliveview” Stars!!!!
This book is a combination of James Bond and the game of Clue, and I enjoyed every second of it. It’s witty. It’s sexy. It’s everything “Tessa Dare.” When I think of Tessa Dare, this is the perfect amount of all that she is, wrapped up in one book. Can you tell that I love her?

She unsettled him; he anchored her. Together, they could be more than they were apart.

This book is…..ONE…..GIANT……SWOON. And if you don’t like this book, then you can suck my aubergine (see below for definition of “aubergine” or you can just read this book!).

Ps. Just kidding. If you don’t like this book, that’s fine. Everyone can have their own opinion….please don’t hate me for saying suck my aubergine.

The Aubergine…aka Eggplant!!! Tessa, you put an eggplant in this book! Hilarious!!!!!!

Ok, let’s actually talk about the book.

Granville. Piers Granville…. is a spy for the Crown. He is on a mission as a guest of the house, but when Charlotte corners him to “save him” from herself, and they are caught in a misunderstood compromising situation, they have no other choice but to pursue marriage. Piers pursues Charlotte relentlessly, but I love that Charlotte doesn’t give in at first. She is determined to prove that they are too different, and she is also determined to keep her independence. I love that Charlotte knows exactly who she is and what she wants.

“Those walls, as you called them…They’re part of me now, and they are iron strong.” He lifted a hand to her face, skimming his thumb over her lower lip. “Even if I wished to, I wouldn’t know how to dismantle them.”

“I know,” she said quietly. “I know.” She wreathed her arms around his neck. “That’s why you need me. I’m going to burn them to the ground.”

My Piers:

”There is nothing untoward in Lord Granville’s mind. He has the most toward mind I’ve ever encountered.”

My Charlotte:

No matter how she tried, Charlotte Highwood was unable to be anyone other than herself.

Charlotte is…….absolutely hilarious. And so endearing. She is described as “innocent, not ignorant,” and that is perfect because she isn’t worldly like Piers, but she has a natural inclination of reading people and solving mysteries. She pursues this mystery and finds hints here and there throughout the book. I’m usually not a big fan of mystery novels, but there was less mystery and more romance, so it was perfect for me.

”If I let myself come anywhere near you” – he caught her wrists and lifted them, pinning her arms to the wall – “I’d have your skirts tossed up to your ears and my cock buried inside you before the rest of them looked up from their tea.”

Tessa Dare is easily in my top 5 favorite historical romance authors. Whenever I read Tessa Dare, I just know there will be swooning, and giggling and sexy times. She has the whole package when it comes to historical romance. Her books and stories are always so much fun! I have loved every Tessa Dare book that I have read so far (I’ve read 4 of her books). I got an ARC of this book…..but I’m going to be buying the paperback to have on my shelf FOREVER!!!

This is the 5th book in the series. It is a standalone, so you don’t have to read the first 4 to read this one. I only read one other book in this series before I read this one.

THE SPINDLE COVE SERIES

A NIGHT TO SURRENDER (bk 1)
ONCE UPON A WINTER’S DARE (bk 1.5)
A WEEK TO BE WICKED (bk 2) ~ Jennifer’s Review
A LADY BY MIDNIGHT (bk 3)
BEAUTY AND THE BLACKSMITH (bk 3.5)
ANY DUCHESS WILL DO (bk 4)
LORD DASHWOOD MISSED OUT (bk 4.5)
DO YOU WANT TO START A SCANDAL (bk 5)

· Filed Under: All Reviews, Historical Romance · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, Jennifer Reviews

Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway: Well Hung by Lauren Blakely

September 14, 2016 by Lana · Leave a Comment

WELL HUNG
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romantic Comedy
Author: Lauren Blakely
Release Date: September 10, 2016

From the NYT Bestselling author of MISTER O, comes a hot and hilarious new standalone…
Here’s what you need to know about me — I’m well-off, well-hung and quick with a joke. Women like a guy who makes them laugh—and I don’t mean at the size of his d*ck. No, they want their funny with a side of huge… not to mention loyal. I’ve got all that plus a big bank account, thanks to my booming construction business. Yup. I know how to use all my tools.

Enter Natalie. Hot, sexy, smart, and my new assistant. Which makes her totally off limits…   Hey, I’m a good guy. Really. I do my best to stay far away from the kind of temptation she brings to work.

Until one night in Vegas…   Yeah, you’ve heard this one before. Bad news on the business front, drowning our sorrows in a few too many Harvey Wallbangers, and then I’m banging her. In my hotel room. In her hotel room. Behind the Titanic slot machine at the Flamingo (don’t ask). And before I can make her say “Oh God right there YES!” one more time, we’re both saying yes—the big yes—at a roadside chapel in front of a guy in press-on sideburns and a shiny gold leisure suit.

But it turns out what happened in Vegas didn’t stay in Vegas. And now, my dick doesn’t stay in my pants when she’s around. I try to resist. Honest. But the more we try to keep our hands to ourselves, the more we end up naked again, and the more time I want to spend with her fully clothed, too.

The question now is…do I take this woman to be my ex-wife?

AMAZON | iBOOKS | B&N | KOBO | GOOGLE PLAY

She twirls the pen in her hand. “So who caused the contamination today? Was it Floyd or Kevin the oily electrician you tried to put a chokehold on?”“Oily Kevin needed the chokehold. Agree or disagree?”

She nods. “Completely agree. There’s so much agreement in me, I can’t imagine how much more I could possibly agree.”

“The chokehold was one hundred percent certifiably necessary,” I add, since Kevin had hit on her when he stopped by a few weeks ago. Here’s the thing—Natalie could dropkick him in the blink of an eye. She could slam him to the ground herself. But that shit he pulled with the leering and lewd comments does not fly with me. I would have done the same if a dude tried to get fresh with my little sister, Josie, at the bakery where she works. So I’d dropped a hand on Kevin’s shoulder, Vulcan style, and promptly escorted him the fuck out of my office. No one, and I mean no one, gets to put the moves on my employees.

“It was Floyd today,” I tell her, then give her the safe-for-work version of the story—the one about Floyd’s client conquests, not his comments about banging assistants. There’s no need to have that hanging out there in the air between us. Can’t plant that forbidden idea in her head.

That risky, dangerous, dirty, filthy, completely fucking alluring idea. My eyes roam the office briefly, and I catalogue all the places that are calling out to be christened. Her desk, her chair, the floor…

Just like that, my head is a wild rumpus of inappropriate ideas. Exactly what it shouldn’t be. It’s like horny aliens have invaded my mind.

But I’m not Floyd. I can do better, so I picture a vise, jam the images into it, and crush them out of my mind. The dirty images and the horny aliens, too.

“And then I escorted him out of Lila’s home and said see ya later,” I tell her, finishing the story, as I drag a hand through my dark brown hair. “Like, in another lifetime later.”

“Hmmm…” she says.

“Hmm, that’s great, or hmm, why did I give one of our suppliers the heave-ho?”

“Hmm, as in your story gives me a good idea. Something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”

“What’s that?”

Her eyes sparkle. Hers are a lighter shade than my dark blue. “Want me to find a new hinge supplier?”

The idea is beyond perfect. I smack my palm against the edge of her desk enthusiastically. “Yes. And for the record, you’re brilliant and beauty—“ I cut the last word off so it sounds like a low bass note. Note to self: Don’t call her beautiful when you’re berating other men for hitting on her at work.

She’s watching me, waiting for me to finish my sentence, and somehow I twist the words into a new compliment, as I say, “Brilliant, and…bountiful.”

Bountiful? Seriously? What the hell was that? Maybe she won’t notice.

No such luck.

“Bountiful?” she asks, skepticism thick in her tone. As it fucking should be. “I’m bountiful?”

I nod, going with it, owning it. “Your brain. It’s like a cornucopia of ideas. It’s a Thanksgiving bounty. It’s bountiful,” I say, because I’ve got to sell this cover-up.

She squares her shoulders. “If you say so, Hammer.” And this bountiful brain was two steps ahead today. I already found a new supplier. I called around, talked to some of our colleagues, and got some great recommendations. I already have a new hinge guy lined up.”

My smile spreads quickly. “Damn. You are three steps ahead of me.”

“A good assistant should be.”

5 Horny Aliens Stars!!!!!

(Don’t google “horny aliens.” Very bad idea. Just read this book instead.)

BAD, BAD, JENNIFER!!! I am putting myself in the corner because this is the first Lauren Blakely book I’ve ever read, and I am kicking myself for it!

Lauren Blakely deserves all of my happiness because that is exactly what I’m giving her right now.

Wyatt Hammer…..yep, that’s his name….owns a construction company. He has a fantastic assistant who helps him with scheduling, and is pretty much his dream woman, but because she works for him, he is trying to be the good guy and keep it professional. They get a contract in Vegas and fly out together to make it happen, and after it falls through, agree to have one night of Vegas together. You can see where this is going.

My Wyatt:

Natalie: Become ugly. Act like an asshole. Stop being so damn caring.

Wyatt: Likewise, could you start acting like a cold-hearted bitch who’ll stab me in the back? It’d make it so much easier to keep my hands off you.

Natalie: If you could get a reversal on your sense of humor so I wouldn’t laugh so much around you, that’d also help.

Wyatt: While you’re at it, please stop having so damn much in common with me.

My Natalie:

Natalie is just trying to do her job of being an organized assistant for Wyatt’s construction company, but his hot body keeps distracting her. She is a badass ninja but also a girly, flirty girl looking for her unicorn. We don’t hear much of Natalie’s pov, but I still had a clear picture of who she was and what she might be thinking. The texting between her and her friends and sister was definitely entertaining and a nice addition to the story.

The beginning of this book is everything. Even though Wyatt is trying to stay away, I love that he just went for what he wanted. I loved that Natalie was touchy and flirty without being inappropriate or annoying. I loved that the happiness of the beginning of this book lasted for almost half of the book. So many Vegas books start off with the dread of the morning after, but with this one, we get to live all of the wonderful goodness of the Vegas moments and I loved that.

She’s slipping through my fingers, this woman tangled up with me in the mess we made one crazy night. Now, I want all those entanglements. I crave them. Judging from this emptiness in my chest, I fucking need them, because this moment with her – her sweetness, her zaniness, her upside-down sense of humor that matches mine – is the only balm to that ache.

I LOVED that this whole book was in Wyatt’s point of view. Few authors can write a whole book from a guy’s pov, but this author CAN! And she did an awesome job of it. I literally laughed out loud, more than once. The cheesy jokes between these two….it just worked! This book felt like a combination of Tessa Bailey and Emma Chase and I ate up every word. The hotness level in this book just sends it over the edge of awesome.

Since self-publishing her debut romance novel CAUGHT UP IN US three years ago, Lauren Blakely has sold more than 1 million books. She is known for her sexy contemporary romance style that’s full of heat, heart and humor. A devout fan of cake and canines, Lauren has plotted entire novels while walking her four-legged friends. She lives in California with her family. With ten New York Times bestsellers, her titles have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller Lists more than fifty times. Her bestselling series include Sinful Nights, Seductive Nights, No Regrets, Caught Up in Love, and Fighting Fire as well as standalone romantic comedies like BIG ROCK and MISTER O, which were both instant New York Times Bestsellers. In the fall she’ll release WELL HUNG, another romantic comedy. To receive an email when Lauren releases a new book, sign up for her newsletter, laurenblakely.com/newsletter!

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Newsletter | Goodreads

✮✮✮ Enter to win three signed copies of WELL HUNG! ✮✮✮

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Blog Tours, Contemporary Romance, Excerpts, Giveaways · Tagged With: Book Reviews: 5 stars, Jennifer Reviews, romcom

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