Tag Archives: Book in Series

Review: The Sinners Club by Kate Pearce

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The Sinners Club (The Sinners Club, #1)The Sinners Club by Kate Pearce

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for an honest review at Romancing Rakes for the Love of Romance.

I have a great fondness for Kate Pearce’s House of Pleasure series, since they were some of the earliest and best books I read back when I was first exploring the erotic romance genre. So when I saw she had a new series with a first book starring Jack Lennox from Simply Scandalous, I knew I had to read it as soon as possible. And if this first book is any indication, the Sinners Club books are going to be just as good.

After a troubled life where he never had any true home to call his own, Jack Lennox has come into a surprising inheritance from his no-good father, complete with royal title and stately manor. But before Jack can legally claim his place as the new Earl of Storr, he needs to find out what’s been going on at Pinchbeck Hall since the last holder of that title was laid to rest. Wary of what might await there, Jack decides to masquerade as his own personal secretary, wagering that such a man would have a better chance of being accepted by those who might not be as welcoming to the new lord of the manor. What Jack discovers is even more than what he’d bargained for, in the form of a supposed brother and sister, the latter of whom claims to be the pregnant widow of the previous earl.

Jack finds himself drawn to both Simon and Mary Picoult despite his better judgment and their genuine threat to his birthright. What follows in The Sinners Club is an passionate story of desperate lives and no-win scenarios, ultimately leading to a series of choices that could result in Jack either gaining his first chance at a real home and settled life, or losing it all for the love of a woman who has already sacrificed more than anyone ever should.

Everything that made Kate Pearce’s House of Pleasure books such an enjoyable read for me is here in The Sinners Club: a carefully plotted story with bold and memorable characters who aren’t afraid to take charge of their own destinies, especially with regard to their wide-ranging sexual proclivities. Jack may be the next Earl of Storr but he’s got more in common with Simon and Mary than the members of his own extended family, and his growing relationship with the alleged siblings is what drives the plot for the majority of the book. As their personal histories of these three characters unfold, we see how a need for security can drive someone to do just about anything to keep it, even if it means denying true love in the process. That shared need is what makes the romance between Jack and Mary so special, as they both face the decision to give up their own security to help each other as the one person whose well-being was worth any price. The Sinners Club is an outstanding start to Kate Pearce’s new series of the same name and I look forward to reading each and every book to follow.

Favorite Quote:
He’d never felt so secure and yet so vulnerable before in his life. What if she didn’t like him after all? After tangling with the Lennox family once, didn’t she deserve better? But then how was he supposed to live without her?

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Review: In Love Again by Megan Mulry

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In Love Again (Unruly Royals, #3)In Love Again by Megan Mulry

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A copy of this book was provided by the author for an honest review at Romancing Rakes for the Love of Romance.

Lady Claire Heyworth is starting her life over after twenty years of loveless marriage to a man her family considered more worthy of her than the one she thought she loved. Now the faithless husband has gone missing after making off with the bulk of her inheritance and Claire has to learn to exist as something other than a privileged, albeit unhappy, Marchioness. With the support of her brothers and their wives, she moves to New York and lands a job that immediately throws her into the path of Benjamin Hayek, the man she’d reluctantly left behind so many years ago.

Ben never forgot that magical summer when he’d loved a quiet English lass who had up and left him without so much as a goodbye. When Claire unexpectedly appears on his doorstep, Ben’s immediate reaction is to scowl, growl, and slam the door in her face. But the attraction from so long ago is still there between them. Now that they’re both older and wiser, Ben and Claire must decide if they want to take up where they left off, or walk away and leave the past alone.

I hadn’t read the previous books in Megan Mulry’s Unruly Royals series (although I own them both – blame my giant To Be Read list!) but I had no problem reading In Love Again as a stand-alone. It was a joy to see Claire emerge from the persona forced on her by her mother and society, and become a fully actualized adult who made her own decisions. Ben is just the sort of fellow that Claire has always needed in her life – one who loves unconditionally and supports her completely without undermining her fragile and recently hard-won self-esteem. I was especially gratified that with so many opportunities along the way, there was never a Big Misunderstanding between the hero and heroine other than the original one which had parted them twenty years before.

In Love Again also features a delightful cast of characters from both families, and shows how the wrongs done to Claire by her detestable husband are righted in a somewhat implausible but easy to forgive series of events. It’s a lovely romance between a hero and heroine who have paid their dues, learned from their mistakes and earned their happiness together. (Now I need to go back and read the other two books in the series!)

Favorite Quote:
His kiss made her feel…everything. She felt the cold air against her cheeks, the hot press of his lips against hers, the tender, inquisitive touch of his fingers as they found their way beneath her blouse and trailed across her belly just above the waist of her jeans. Claire felt an electric snap, like a transformer blowing.

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Review: Before Jamaica Lane by Samantha Young

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Before Jamaica Lane (On Dublin Street, #3)Before Jamaica Lane by Samantha Young

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for an honest review at Night Owl Reviews

Review Excerpt:

Samantha Young is an expert at showing how both the hero and heroine cope with feelings they’ve managed to suppress before being confronted by the one person who can get past the emotional walls they’ve built. The situations are never forced and the reactions ring true. Her heroines have true agency in their actions and her heroes never cross the line between intense alpha and scary stalker. Even when the heroes screw up (and boy, does Nate screw up big in this story), they always return with the most wonderful groveling that neither the heroines nor I could possibly resist. Before Jamaica Lane is another enjoyable addition to the On Dublin Street series and I’m looking forward to reading about whatever couple she has plans for in the next story.

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Review: Last Hit by Jessica Clare and Jen Frederick

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Title: Last Hit
Author: Jessica Clare and Jen Frederick
Series: Hitman #1
Genre: contemporary erotic romantic suspense
Publisher: self-published
Format: ebook
Release Date: 12/1/2013

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for an honest review.

Publisher Summary:

Nikolai:

I have been a contract killer since I was a boy. For years I savored the fear caused by my name, the trembling at the sight of my tattoos. The stars on my knees, the marks on my fingers, the dagger in my neck, all bespoke of danger. If you saw my eyes, it was the last vision you’d have. I have ever been the hunter, never the prey. With her, I am the mark and I am ready to lie down and let her capture me. Opening my small scarred heart to her brings out my enemies. I will carry out one last hit, but if they hurt her, I will bring the world down around their ears.

Daisy:

I’ve been sheltered from the outside world all my life. Homeschooled and farm-raised, I’m so naive that my best friend calls me Pollyanna. I like to believe the best in people. Nikolai is part of this new life, and he’s terrifying to me. Not because his eyes are cold or my friend warns me away from him, but because he’s the only man that has ever seen the real me beneath the awkwardness. With him, my heart is at risk..and also, my life.

Mini Excerpt:

I watch her through my bathroom window. I’ve placed one of my four rented chairs in here for that express purpose. I tell myself it is not creepy, as the American girls would say, because I watch everyone. But really I watch only her.

I cannot see everything. I’ve never seen her nude. I’ve never seen inside her shower. Smartly there is no window there. But I can see her bedroom and her living room and beyond that, with my scope, her kitchen. I know her schedule. When she gets up in the morning, when she returns to her apartment. If she were a mark, I could’ve killed her a dozen times over by now and been in the wind.

She throws her bag onto her bed and then lies down next to it. It takes many muscles to smile, more to frown but only a few to pull the trigger. I peer down the scope and place my crosshairs over her forehead. Puff, dead.

My Review:

Last Hit is an unlikely love story between a young couple who should never have seen each other, never have met, never have fallen in love. He was an assassin for the Ukrainian mob. She is just learning how dangerous the real world can be after having been kept away from it for most of her life. Together their love heals what’s damaged in each other and makes them stronger as a couple than they ever could have been apart.

Daisy had been kept a prisoner by her father ever since her mother was murdered by a juvenile delinquent who’d been set free after only 2 years in jail. After over a decade of being kept from living a real life, Daisy has finally saved up enough cash to leave her father’s prison behind and go out into the real world that she only knows from library books. But her sheltered childhood has left her vulnerable to those who would damage and defile her. It’s only when Nikolai spots her that her life will be changed yet again, both for better and worse.

Nikolai’s childhood was as different from Daisy’s as could ever be possible. She never left the house; he never had a home. Her father sheltered her to the point of real abuse; his only family was the mob organization who took him and molded him into a ruthless killer. When Nikolai sees Daisy through a window in the building where he is stalking his next target, he knows she is too good for him, but that he must have her anyway. When it comes to real romance, Nikolai is just as innocent as Daisy, and their courting is both awkward and sweet. But he is sure that she could never accept the real Nikolai if she ever found out just what he really did for a living.

When Nikolai’s past runs into Daisy’s future, there are real consequences, affecting not just them but also innocent bystanders. Still, Nikolai and Daisy both know that all they really have is each other, and even with brief moments of doubt, it’s truly their love that gets them (and us) through all that follows. There are extreme moments of violence and that might make this book not the best choice for everyone. But the romance between this hero and heroine was so fascinating and irresistible that I couldn’t stop reading Last Hit until I knew that their happy ending was guaranteed. I can’t wait to read the next Hitman book Jessica Clare and Jen Frederick have planned for us next year. If it’s half as good as Last Hit, it will be worth the wait. 4.5 stars

Release Week Blog Tour: Last Hit by Jessica Clare and Jen Frederick

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last hit cover

Nikolai:

I have been a contract killer since I was a boy. For years I savored the fear caused by my name, the trembling at the sight of my tattoos. The stars on my knees, the marks on my fingers, the dagger in my neck, all bespoke of danger. If you saw my eyes, it was the last vision you’d have. I have ever been the hunter, never the prey. With her, I am the mark and I am ready to lie down and let her capture me. Opening my small scarred heart to her brings out my enemies. I will carry out one last hit, but if they hurt her, I will bring the world down around their ears.

Daisy:

I’ve been sheltered from the outside world all my life. Homeschooled and farm-raised, I’m so naive that my best friend calls me Pollyanna. I like to believe the best in people. Nikolai is part of this new life, and he’s terrifying to me. Not because his eyes are cold or my friend warns me away from him, but because he’s the only man that has ever seen the real me beneath the awkwardness. With him, my heart is at risk..and also, my life.

Mini Excerpt:

I watch her through my bathroom window. I’ve placed one of my four rented chairs in here for that express purpose. I tell myself it is not creepy, as the American girls would say, because I watch everyone. But really I watch only her.

I cannot see everything. I’ve never seen her nude. I’ve never seen inside her shower. Smartly there is no window there. But I can see her bedroom and her living room and beyond that, with my scope, her kitchen. I know her schedule. When she gets up in the morning, when she returns to her apartment. If she were a mark, I could’ve killed her a dozen times over by now and been in the wind.

She throws her bag onto her bed and then lies down next to it. It takes many muscles to smile, more to frown but only a few to pull the trigger. I peer down the scope and place my crosshairs over her forehead. Puff, dead.

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TEASER ONE

NIKOLAI
I feel restless and think perhaps I should review the information I have compiled for the mark or perhaps look at the routing pattern left by the caller from Neuchâtel. I do neither because as I begin to draw back from the scope her motions arrest me. Her small hand with the pink tipped nails are moving over her belly. One finger traces the tiny lace adorning the top band of her panties. My breath is suspended. Time is suspended.

I have never seen this before. She has never touched herself. Never brought a man home with her. I’d have shot him, maybe. No, I would’ve caused some disturbance. Something. I thought her maybe an innocent and fantasized about awakening her. But now her small fingers are delving beneath the cotton. I can see the bumps of her knuckles as the press against the pale pink fabric. She is moving her fingers in circles.

I imagine my own fingers, much larger, darker and more rough, pressing down upon hers. My fingers flex involuntarily at the thought of her pussy beneath my touch. I’d stroke her lightly and in circles as that is what she appears to like. I’d move my fingers lower, beyond her clit to her hot cunt. It would be wet, dripping wet. My fingers would be soaked and I would pause so that I could lick her sweet honey off each digit.

My cock is so hard I fear that it will break against the denim of my jeans. I draw a hand over my chest and pinch my own nipple hard imagining it is her tiny white teeth tugging on it. I’ve broken out in a light sweat.

Her legs tense and her hand motions become more frantic. I can see her chest rise and fall rapidly and her whole body is strained but when her release comes it is truncated. The look on her face is of frustration rather than satisfaction. She wets her plump lips and closes her eyes. She begins again but again she is unfulfilled.

My emotions war against each other. Unhappiness that she cannot find her own fulfillment but fierce possessiveness arising out of an idea I’ve tried to suppress. In my mind, only I can bring her to orgasm and release. I can teach her to touch herself in a way that will be pleasurable and satisfying.

I would not start with her pussy. No, the skin is the largest sex organ. I would stroke my hands over every inch, starting from her forehead. My lips and fingers would smooth away any furrows. My hands would encircle her neck and sweep down over her shoulders to her fine wrists.

I’d rub my body over hers so that she smelled of me. When she walked on campus, other men would stay away recognizing she was marked as my own. Belonging to Nikolai. Maybe I would tattoo it around her neck like a collar.

TEASER TWO

Swinging my scope over to room 524, I flip on my night vision goggles. I can only see the outline of her body. It is leaving the apartment and she appears to have a basket with her. I track her down to the basement laundry. When I first walked the building, I noted the basement laundry facility. It was dank and musty with only a few lights and disgusting floor.

524 should not have to clean her clothes down there. Someone should clean her clothes for her but I knew she could not afford that. Her refrigerator held few items and when she did eat, which seemed far too rare for my own peace of mind, she ate noodles and other cheap food stuffs. Her roommate did not make any more money either. The two of them were poor and so obviously prey it is a miracle that they’ve survived on their own to make it to adulthood. The one male in their lives is worthless.

I watch again as her outlined form leans over the washing machine. She places her clothes inside and then leaves. She returns to her apartment and returns to her bedroom. It is too dark for me to tell what she is doing in there. Is she touching herself again? Is she bringing herself off? I think she may be reading a book. I watch her and the time that passes is meaningless. Nothing is more interesting to me that watching her, even if it is just the outline of her form. I should be doing so many other things. Researching my potential mark in Seattle. Determining my next step with Mr. Brown. Instead I am mesmerized by her.

Chapter One posted at Natasha is a Book Junkie and can be found HERE
Chapter Two posted at Angie’s Dreamy Reads and can be found HERE
Chapter Three posted at The Rock Stars of Romance and can be found HERE
Chapter Four posted at The Rock Stars of Romance and can be found HERE

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

jen frederick bio
Jen Frederick lives with her husband, child, and one rambunctious dog. She’s been reading stories all her life but never imagined writing one of her own. Jen loves to hear from readers so drop her a line at jensfrederick@gmail.com.
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jessica clare bio
Author Jessica Clare
This is a pen name for Jill Myles.
Jill Myles has been an incurable romantic since childhood. She reads all the ‘naughty parts’ of books first, looks for a dirty joke in just about everything, and thinks to this day that the Little House on the Prairie books should have been steamier.

After devouring hundreds of paperback romances, mythology books, and archaeological tomes, she decided to write a few books of her own – stories with a wild adventure, sharp banter, and lots of super-sexy situations. She prefers her heroes alpha and half-dressed, her heroines witty, and she loves nothing more than watching them overcome adversity to fall into bed together.

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The Care and Feeding of the Alpha Male
The Girl’s Guide to Manhunting
The Expert’s Guide to Driving a Man Wild
Signed set of Woodlands books with dog tag set.
Signed copy of last Hit.

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Review: Gabriel’s Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

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Title: Gabriel’s Redemption
Author: Sylvain Reynard
Series: Gabriel’s Inferno #3
Genre: contemporary erotic romance
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Format: ebook/print/audio
Release Date: 12/3/2013

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for an honest review.

Publisher Summary:

Professor Gabriel Emerson has left his position at the University of Toronto to embark on a new life with his beloved Julianne. Together, he’s confident that they can face any challenge. And he’s eager to become a father.

But Julianne’s graduate program threatens Gabriel’s plans, as the pressures of being a student become all consuming. When she is given the honor of presenting an academic lecture at Oxford, Gabriel is forced to confront her about the subject of her presentation – research that conflicts with his own. And in Oxford, several individuals from their past appear, including an old nemesis intent on humiliating Julia and exposing one of Gabriel’s darkest secrets.

In an effort to confront his remaining demons, Gabriel begins a quest to discover more about his biological parents, beginning a chain of events that has startling repercussions for himself, Julianne, and his hope of having a family.

My Review:

This review contains spoilers for Gabriel’s Inferno and Gabriel’s Rapture, the first two books in the trilogy. You could try to read Gabriel’s Redemption as a stand-alone, but I wouldn’t recommend it.

When we last saw Julia and Gabriel, they had just reconciled and married after a tumultuous time during which they were forcibly separated after the scandal of their illicit relationship had nearly cost both of them their academic careers. Now safely wed, they are working on how to navigate a marriage between one imperious Dante specialist used to having his own way and one equally stubborn Dante specialist-in-training who loves her man but wants to make her own way in the field they both share. Julia has a very important lecture to present at Oxford and it’s that lecture which sparks their final journey through their not-so-distant past, with nearly every friend and foe reappearing for one last hurrah.

Sylvain Reynard has stated publicly that a third book in the Gabriel’s Inferno series was never planned, and that Gabriel’s Redemption is the direct result of the fans requesting it. I’m always wary of books that are produced as a love letter to the fans, as the need to please can either result in something that’s just a repeat of the previous book(s) or worse, a plot that abandons everything readers had loved before and ruins their memories forever.

I am so very relieved and pleased to report that Gabriel’s Redemption is neither a boring rehash, nor is it a betrayal of the series. For a huge fan like me, reading this book was like coming back to a place that you have always loved but haven’t visited in quite some time. There was drama (the good kind that doesn’t make you want to throw the book against the wall) and humor (the Professor is finally able to laugh at just how much of an ass he can be) and suspense (whatever happened to all the incriminating photos of Julia with the Senator’s son?). The enemies who had previously threatened Julia and Gabriel’s happiness all got to come back for one more shot, while the dear friends and family who had aided our lovers in their triumph over evil returned to help once again. All the loose ends from the past were addressed and resolved, and by the end of the book, I knew that our Dante and his Beatrice were finally going to live Happily Ever After – no epilogue required. Gabriel’s Redemption is the best gift to those who love Julia and her Professor and it made me love the whole series even more. 4.5 stars

Review: Some Like It Sinful by Robbie Terman

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Title: Some Like It Sinful
Author: Robbie Terman
Series: A Perfect Recipe #2
Genre: contemporary adult romance
Publisher: Entangled Edge
Format: ebook
Release Date: 11/25/2013

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for an honest review.

Publisher Summary:

Their attraction is sinfully delicious…

A struggling business and one act of vandalism may have brought them together, but bakery owner Chloe Nelson and professional hockey player Griffin Lange get along like chocolate and pickles. Chloe needs the famous (and famously unattached) Griffin to attract people to her pastries, and Griffin needs the curvaceous and fiery Chloe to keep him out of trouble. A fake relationship to keep the media interested seems like the perfect plan.

But when temptation throws them into bed together, a new plan arises. Why not make the fake real? Griffin’s winning every home game, and Chloe’s business has never been better. Both know it’s only physical—and only temporary. But can they drop their defenses for love, even if it means getting a little bit sinful?

My Review:

Some Like It Sinful is the second book in Robbie Terman’s new series about Chicago chefs, but as a new reader, I had no problem with it as a stand-alone. It tells the story of how a pastry chef struggling to start her own business unexpectedly acquires a famous fake boyfriend when the local hockey star agrees to work at her bakery after a failed prank at the team owner’s charity auction.

Chloe Nelson bakes the best desserts in Chicago. If only she had the customers to show for it. It’s bad enough that a behemoth bakery chain is about to open a new location right across the street from her little shop. But when her sister, the assistant District Attorney, shows up one morning with a resentful hockey player in tow, Chloe isn’t sure if having this man as her new unpaid assistant is a good idea.

Griffin Lange has been a hockey star for so long that he doesn’t know how to do much else. He sure as hell doesn’t know how to behave in public, or he wouldn’t have tried to drive that model Porsche in the middle of a crowded arena event. The Brawlers don’t need this kind of publicity, so when the DA’s office offers him a private deal for community service instead of jail time, he takes it, thinking it’ll be easy and safe. Being around Chloe every day is neither easy nor safe for Griffin’s disposition, no matter how much she might rev his engine in other ways. He called her his girlfriend so the other players wouldn’t know he’d made a deal to stay out of jail. What neither he nor Chloe could predict was how the whole city would respond to this pretend relationship, or how it would change the future of not only his team and her business, but their chance at happiness together.

The best part of Some Like It Sinful was the romance between Chloe and Griffin, and how they learned to grow past their own preconceptions about love and commitment to find what they were looking for in each other. Griffin’s relationship with his grandma was just the right amount of touching and sweet, and Chloe’s banter with her close friends gave me extra perspective on why she was pushing Griffin away even as she knew he could be the one guy who could make her truly happy. I also enjoyed the subplot about how someone was trying to sabotage Chloe’s bakery after the business started picking up, and it was great to see that play out alongside the ongoing romance between Chloe and Griffin.

What kept the book from being a more satisfying read for me was the series of increasingly implausible events that were used to move the story forward. The way Griffin came to work at Chloe’s bakery was more than a little suspect, although when that unorthodox arrangement returned to make trouble for everyone, I ended up tolerating its existence a bit more than I had at the start. But the way Griffin’s team reacted to the news of his (fake) girlfriend seemed more than a bit over the top for me, and then later when Griffin’s position with the team was significantly altered, I was fairly certain that this was not something normal hockey teams would do. By the time the Brawlers’ season was over and Griffin and Chloe found their happy ending together, I could only laugh and say “Well of course, he did!”

Some Like It Sinful is a nice easy read without too much angst or heart-rending drama. Although I was new to the series, it was fairly obvious to me who the stars had been for the previous book, and who was being set up for future books to come. Robbie Terman has a way with light-hearted romance that makes Some Like It Sinful a fun way to spend a few happy hours. 3 stars

Review: Don’t Let Go by Skye Warren

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Don't Let Go (Dark Erotica, #4)Don’t Let Go by Skye Warren

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher for an honest review at Seductive Musings.

There are many writers who specialize in the darkest of erotic novels, both with and without romantic elements, but there are very few who are truly talented in this often misunderstood subgenre. One of those writers is Skye Warren, who has displayed her incredible talent again in what I believe is her best book yet – Never Let Go. This is the fourth entry in her Dark Erotica series, but a reader new to her work should have no problem reading it as a stand-alone. It features a couple who not only appear to be mismatched from the start, but who ultimately put a whole new spin on the terms “hero” and “heroine” that would normally be used to describe them here.

Samantha Holmes never had a real childhood, thanks to her father. He tortured and killed other children for years, but left her alive long enough to be the one who turned him in. No human could emerge from such an experience without some sort of serious emotional damage, yet Samantha is determined not to let anyone suspect that she is anything but normal. As a rookie agent for the FBI, her goal is to put the bad guys in jail, but as a woman, most of what she gets to do involves more mundane tasks, like filing and fetching coffee. So when she is abruptly assigned to one of the Bureau’s most high-profile cases, partnering with a legendary senior agent, she doesn’t let herself question too closely why she, of all people, would be chosen.

On the surface, Ian Hennessy seems to be exactly as he appears, namely the no-nonsense agent who always gets the bad guy and will stop at nothing to get Carlos Laguardia, even if it means dumping his new lady partner before she even has a chance to contribute. Samantha is drawn to him sexually in spite of herself, knowing that although the attraction is mutual, the outcome can’t be anything but bad. Who in their right mind would want a monster like her…unless that person was one, too?

Anyone who was following me on Twitter when I was reading Don’t Let Go got to see my instant reaction in a series of tweets where I expressed just how much I enjoyed it:

When a review book unexpectedly rewards you with writing so
perfectly nuanced and understated that it makes you want to
weep with joy. #win

It’s so damn good, this book.

I now have a book hangover THIS BIG and it’s all @skye_warren ‘s fault.
Wow. #win

I still can’t wrap my head around how much this book got to me. Although I am a long-time fan of truly deeply dark erotica, I normally shy away from books that reference extreme violence, especially against women or children. I’m also nearly burned out on romances where the heroine has been broken/damaged/whatever and can only be “saved” by a hero who is often also broken/damaged/whatever by similar circumstances. But Don’t Let Go morphs both of those tropes into something unique and fascinating, both as a character study and as a genuine romance between a man and a woman who ultimately agree that they are perfectly matched for one another…and all that that implies. To tell you any more would be to ruin all its secrets. But in a year when I’ve been fortunate enough to have read so many 5 star books, you should know that Don’t Let Go has immediately vaulted to the top of my list for 2013, and it will be a difficult task to dislodge it from that spot.

Ratings:

Overall: 5
Sensuality level: 4.5 (multiple scenes of violent dubious consent, bondage, flogging and use of sex toys; threats of rape and sexual violence; discussion of child sex abuse and murder)

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Review: Ripe for Seduction by Isobel Carr

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Ripe for Seduction (The League of Second Sons, #3)Ripe for Seduction by Isobel Carr

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for an honest review at Romancing Rakes for the Love of Romance.

Rating:
~4 hearts: I loved it!

Review:

Isobel Carr’s Ripe for Seduction is the third book in her League of Second Sons series, but it was easy to read as a stand-alone. It’s a light-hearted story of how a pretend engagement built on less than honorable intentions somehow manages to bloom into a real love between a notorious rake and a ruined woman of the ton.

While out carousing one night with his fellow secret society members, Roland Devere has too much to drink and agrees to yet another ill-chosen bet. He wakes the next morning to discover he has wagered a pound that he will be the first to bed a well-known lady who has returned to London months after the death of her bigamist husband. What he doesn’t count on is the lady having a secret plan of her own to thwart similar untoward propositions from anyone else during the upcoming season.

Lady Olivia Carlow didn’t know her late husband was already married when they had wed, but now that he’s dead, she’s the only one left to suffer the blame from London society. When Devere’s insulting proposition arrives via a drunkenly scrawled note sent to her father’s house, she seizes her advantage and blackmails Devere into agreeing to a false engagement. With Devere by her side as her purported fiance, Olivia intends to keep all the other less than honorable suitors from forcing their attentions and spreading lies about her even if she should turn them aside. Then when the season is over, she can break with him publicly and retire permanently to the family’s country estate at Holinshed. But as she and Devere spend more time in each other’s company, what started as pretend becomes the real thing, and the consequences of their actions have long-reaching implications for more than just themselves.

The fake marriage trope is one of my favorites and it’s used beautifully here in Ripe For Seduction. Olivia is in London under duress, preferring to stay forever buried in the country instead of in town fending off the disgusting private propositions from the men and frosty public snubs from the women. Roland would never have been so incredibly rude to her when sober, but he’s clearly not unhappy at the fate she’s forced on him in return for keeping his drunken overtures a secret. Their growing attraction was fun to watch, as was the concurrent secondary plot of how Olivia’s not-so-old widowed father became attached to Devere’s somewhat older widowed sister. There were a few villains here and there, and another side plot related to the activity of the Second Sons folding neatly into the inevitable Big Misunderstanding between Roland and Olivia near the end of the story. I found the relative lack of angst and drama to be quite refreshing, preferring the extensive details of how Olivia and her father both found happiness with the unlikeliest of partners. And after the Big Misunderstanding is cleared up and true love wins out for all, the epilogue provided the perfect ending to a lovely read.

I thoroughly enjoyed Ripe for Seduction and I’m looking forward to reading the other books in the League of Second Sons series.

Favorite Quote:

“Livy” — he cupped her face and lowered his head until he was staring directly into her eyes — “let me make myself perfectly clear. I love you. There’s no other reason I’d propose in earnest. Not to get you in my bed, not to enrich myself with your dowry, not to pave the way for my sister and your father. And if you don’t believe me, I’ll just have to work at it until you do.”

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Review: The Gate by K.T. Grant

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The Gate (Dark Path Series #1)The Gate by K.T. Grant

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A copy of this book was provided by the author for an honest review.

K.T. Grant is a new author to me, although I’m familiar with her alter ego @KatieBabs on Twitter and have shared conversations with her before about other people’s books and book blogging in general. When I found out she had written her own BDSM Billionaire erotic romance, I had to read it for myself to see how she would handle this still popular but increasingly overdone trope. I’m happy to say that The Gate is one of the better examples of the genre and although it also has the prerequisite cliffhanger, it’s one that worked well within the context of the story.

Erika Walsh is the classic sheltered woman who has spent her whole life in the shadow of her outgoing magnate father, preferring to stay at home instead of chancing a panic attack in public. She has a modest career of her own, writing successful children’s novels, and is seemingly content with her quiet single life. The one wish she allows herself is that someday she might be swept off her feet by Christopher Milton, the man who will one day take over her father’s publishing house. He’s never really said he’s interested in her, but they did share a few passionate kisses in private once and Erika hopes that perhaps one day he’ll make the next move.

M.L. Crawford is a media magnate in his own right, and a direct competitor of Erika’s father. If the stories Christopher tells are to be believed, Crawford is looking to steal Walsh Publications away, and is a man who cannot be trusted. But the sins of M.L Crawford aren’t of any interest to Erika, as she’s never met the man in person. That’s because much like Erika herself, Crawford prefers to stay in the shadows, allowing others to be the public face of his company.

It was only under duress that Erika agreed to attend the public gala where her father was being presented with a major award, and when he insists on bringing her up on stage with him, she’s sure she’ll have one of her panic attacks. What she doesn’t know is that the darkly handsome man at the bar who spotted her on that stage will change her life the moment she lets him pay for her drink. His name is Max.

The best thing about The Gate for me was the relationship between Max and Erika, which is as it should be with a romance novel. Max needed her sweetness and sheltered innocence just as much as Erika needed his confidence and determination. Together they helped each other grow in the direction that had been lacking in each of their lives apart. It wasn’t just Max rescuing Erika from a half-lived life and the potential of a terrible marriage with Christopher, who was far from the white knight Erika had imagined. Erika rescued Max from an equally half-lived existence, one where he never permitted himself to experience true love after the tragic loss of so many other people he’d loved and cared for. By the time The Gate ends, they are both better people and better for each other, but they aren’t quite where they need to be – hence the “To Be Continued” ending.

There was a secondary plot in The Gate involving Max’s close friend Catherine that often threatened to take center stage away from Max and Erika, and kept me from loving the book more than I did. Catherine’s past is thoroughly entwined with Max’s in a way that can’t be explained without spoiling the story, and I understand why she needed to be a part of his story. Yet I couldn’t help thinking that the way her Master (a man we never actually saw) was portrayed made him sound like an abusive stalker, and I kept wondering why she didn’t just cut ties with him once and for all. I hope that Catherine is able to find the answer to her ongoing dilemma in the next book, but that the focus will remain on Erika and Max, which is where it should be.

The Gate is a great read with a hero and heroine worth caring about, and an ongoing story that I want to stay with through the final book. It’s refreshing to see that K.T. Grant has indeed taken the BDSM Billionaire erotic romance trope and made it her own. The next book in the Dark Path series is one I can’t wait to read.

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