Seven Sons by Lili St. Germaine

Grade-B
Hotness Level-Inferno?
Kink Level-Mild Kink
Series-Gypsy Brothers #1
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
100 pages

I'm shaking my head here. What a hot mess of horror! It's not a conventional love story. At all. It's a story of revenge and reckoning.

Juliette grew up in the MC world until the age of fifteen. Her life totally changed as did she. Her father is murdered, her mother is drug addict who didn't protect her at all. Her innocence is shattered in the most horrific of ways. A police officer smuggles her out of town where she starts her new life. She was reported dead so her rebirth as Samantha is now her life.

She takes several years to plan her revenge and she does down to the last detail. The men that changed her life will pay and pay with blood. It may destroy what's left of her soul and pave her way straight to Hell. You totally are her side even as you cry as she sells her soul to the devil almost literally. There's a lot of emotions in this short novella and you feel every last one of them. I think there will be a romance in the future in the story but not now. I will say that there's sex in this book but it's not hot because of the circumstances. It's a cliffhanger and now to my own horror, I have to see it through. I have to see if she makes Dornan and his seven sons pay.

Be Were by Eliza Gayle

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Southern Shifters #5
Genre-Paranormal
Reviewed by Kay
175 pages

What was supposed to be a one night stand so they wouldn't have to be alone on Christmas turned into a mating for life. Dean sees Niki in his bar and she's about to punch a human who is drunk and trying to hook up with her. Dean steps in and stops Niki from hurting the human and they go back to his place. They have a hot night and Dean senses she's his mate. During their interlude, he bites her. Afterward he calls her mate and she runs out.

Dean finds out that his mate was kidnapped and he goes to get her. Oh, and she's pregnant. And she's a rare hybrid. A white cougar. It's a miracle Niki got pregnant since they were supposed to be infertile. That's what Niki thought anyway. She was led to believe that by her captors in the laboratory she was raised in and experimented on in. The real focus of the story is who masterminded the kidnapping of Niki.

This was a decent read. It flowed easily along. I liked the characters and the premise well enough. The sex was fantastic. I wanted to like it more but wasn't terribly disappointed. I've read another book in the series and enjoyed it as well. Very good humor too.

Wild Hearts by Tina Wainscott

Grade-A
Hotness Level-None
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Justiss Alliance #0.5
Reviewed by Kay
72 pages

This is a prequel novella to spawn a series about five ex-Navy SEALs. After a mission that was a clusterfuck, these men were discharged but thankfully not court martialled. Even though they were not responsible for this screwed up mission, they were the ones that were blamed to appease the masses. To avoid jail time they had to sign contracts forbidding them to talk about what really happened on that ill fated mission.

As they are leaving the courthouse, a man approaches them with a job offer. He is the founder of the Justiss Alliance and they handle what sounds like protection and black ops work. He leaves his cards with each of the men and asks them to consider his offer.

At this point, you get a glimpse at each of the men in this SEAL group. Some of their home lives and if they will join the Justiss Alliance. These men are named: Risk, Rath, Saxby, Knox and Julian.

I can't wait to read this series. I have the first one loaded and ready on my Kindle. I hope they are as good as Maya Banks' KGI series or Cindy Gerard's Black Ops Inc. series. I love romantic suspense and I adore military romantic suspense. This prequel had no sex in it and I do hope the series does. If it doesn't, well that's just stupid.

Staking His Claim by Tessa Bailey

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-Mild Kink
Series-Line of Duty #5
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay

Matt Donovan is a sniper with the ESU (police department). He's a very solitary soul despite his friends constantly luring him to be more social. He keeps to himself because he feels if his friends find out what really goes on in his kind, they would think he's a freak. He gets roped into transporting his best friend, Brent's little sister and her friend to New York for a visit. He does it to be a nice guy beacuse Brent is busy with wedding plans.

Lily Mason is a little bit of a free spirit. Or atleast she used to be. She's a college graduate with several job offers. Job offers she plans to put to good use to help her brother out financially. Her best friend decides to spend the weekend with her boyfriend instead of accompanying Lucy to New York. When she sees Matt Donovan she's overwhelmed by him and extremely attracted. Matt has never seen a picture of her and she knows he would never make a play on his best friend's little sister, so she introduces herself by her friend's name.

Matt likes what he sees in Brent's sister's friend. A lot. She also sending the vibes he wants to explore with her. He's hesitant because of his darker needs (his thoughts not mine). They have a scorching hot few hours together on their way to New York. But lies always come to the surface and Lucy's blows up in her face. This leaves her wondering if they have a chance at being more than a fling.

To say I was disappointed to find out Matt had Dom tendencies would be an understatement. I've been waiting for his book. I didn't hate the book but I didn't love it. Let me say that it was easy to read which I have come to expect from Tessa Bailey. I'm not sorry I bought or read this book, it just wasn't my favorite being that any BDSM storyline leaves me a little bit skeeved out. Still good characters, great humor, tremendous foul mouthed dialogue and scorching sex scenes. I can't wait to see what she gives us next but please Tessa no more Dom related stuff.

Beck by Sloan Harper

Grade-B
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Corps, Inc. #3
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
326 pages

John "Beck" Beckett is another member of Corps, Inc.. He enjoys what he does and the friendships he has with his "brothers". Women love him and in the past he's enjoyed them right back. Then he helps his friend, Axel and he meets Dee. She's everything he's ever wanted but she doesn't want or expect anything more than just sex from him.

Denise "Dee" Roberts is always smiling and happy. She has a great job and would do anything for her two best friends, Greg and Izzy. When Izzy's relationship with her high school sweetheart re-ignites, Dee couldn't be happier for her. She meets Beck and they ignites some sparks of their own. She loves being with Beck but doesn't let him too close.

As Beck struggles to get closer to Dee, she has to face her own demons. She has to realize that she doesn't have to always have her happy mask on. Even with her horrific past she has to give love a chance. But to give love a chance is to face her demons head on and have the inner strength to do it.

I loved Beck but Dee drove me crazy, I understand her reservations concerning a relationship with Beck but seriously, I just couldn't totally buy into it. I still like her as a character but she was a little too much at times. I didn't enjoy this book as much as the previous two but it was still enjoyable and I'm all in on the series.

Tempting Trouble by Savannah Stuart

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
94 pages

This book had two short stories in it. The first one is the longer of the two.

First story: Tempting the Witness

Madison Dubois is a witness to an attempted murder and after going to the police, she goes to the house of her brother's best friend, Rafe Jackson. Rafe is a police officer and the object of her desires.

Finding madison hiding at his house is unnerving for him but he's really just grateful she's safe. He arranges for her to stay with him until the case was solved.

This was a cute and hot little story. It had all the elements: attraction, suspense, hot sex and love.


Second story: Better Late Than Never

Randall Phillips is an architect in his father's firm and he's been waiting anfd wanting for Lindsay Taylor. Lindsay is a secretary at the same firm. She was recently injured and finally back at work.

Whe she got hurt, he took her to the hospital and waited for someone to come for her. During that wait, they share a hot kiss, a kiss Randall can't forget. Neither can Lidsay but she knows it was a mistake because they work together. Randall gives her a ride home on her first day back because he wants more. More kisses surely but more everything also.

This story was super short but okay. The sex was hot but due to the story length it was hard to get invested in the characters. Overall, I enjoyed this book and I really liked the author's voice. I would definately read more by her. This book was classified as erotica but it was more erotic romance to me.

Cage by Harper Sloan

Grade-B
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Corps, Inc. #2
Genre-Contemporary/Romantic Suspense
Reviewed by Kay
282 pages

Harper Sloan is one of those authors that know how to write a foul mouthed hero. The men in this series so far do indeed have very filthy mouths. This makes me giggle and maybe twirl my hair just a bit.

Greg Cage started Corps, Inc., which is a security and protection company. He employed his Marine buddies after they all finished their tours of duty. He's a protector in every sense of the word. He has a very soft spot for women who have been in abusive relationships. His two best freinds, Dee and Izzy, he's very protective of. Izzy's past hits way too close to home for him. She had an abusive ex and so did Greg's sister. Greg lost his twin sister to her abusive husband. Her death has weighed on his soul for over a decade.

Melissa is a nurse of some kind, maybe a medical assistant. She is the sole support for her family. She and her mother help raise her nephew. Melissa lost her sister when her sister's husband had her killed. Since then, they have battled her sister's ex mother-in-law for custody of her nephew.

When these two first see each other sparks start flying. Greg is all in from the very beginning. When their pasts collide it's a scary moment. Will he lose Melissa because of keeping a secret he knew he should've told her about? Will his CRAZY ex ruin their relationship?

This is a really good series and I'm enjoying it. In close, I'll leave you with some dirty quotes from this story.

"Babe, I need to know what to call you when I slide my dick into your body."

"You can call me whatever you want as long as you're screaming it."

"The next time you call me Sir, it better be when you are begging for me to let you come."

Axel by Sloan Harper

Grade-B+
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Corps Security, #1
Genre-Contemporary, Romantic Suspense
Reviewed by Kay
328 pages

This book was sitting on my Kindle just waiting to be read. I kept looking at it, thinking it's next but I still had books I'd had for longer, so it kept getting kicked down the list. I had started another book and then thought...screw it, I'm reading Axel.

Axel is part of a security group of former Marines. He's extremely alpha, arrogant and loves his "brothers". When he assigned to protect his brother, Greg's best friend he comes face to face with his past. With the only girl he has ever loved. He's not only shocked to see Isabelle but also very angry since she left him with no way to contact after he got back from his Marine training.

Isabelle has loved one man in her whole life. They were high school sweethearts and promised they would be together forever. After Axel left for boot camp her life took a terrible twist. Her parents died in a car crash and she had to relocate to live with her grandparents. She wrote to Axel many times at the base where he was stationed but the letters came back stating he wasn't stationed there. She sent letters and the address of her grandparents' home to his foster parents' house so he could find her when he came back. She later found out from Axel's foster mother that he was dead. Weeks later, she found out she was pregnant and then miscarried the baby.

This story is filled with lies, misunderstandings, loss and forgiveness. Two people who were meant for each other finding their way home. It also has a great secondary cast of characters. I loved every single one of them. It shows us that not always having the facts can make us do things very much to our own detriment. But it also shows us that when things come full circle they are truly worth waiting for.

This was my first book by Sloan Harper and I've already downloaded the next two. This is one of my favorites of the year so far. It has everything you need, good story, good characters, a foul mouthed hero and hot sex.

I have a couple of my favorite lines from this book. I'll leave you with them.

When that day comes I hope Karma has some fun with that bitch, Fate.

After everything she has done, parading around with my vagina smiling at the world is a small price to pay.

Storm by Nina Levine

Grade D
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Storm MC, #1
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
166 Pages

Ok, I like biker books just as much as the next girl but seriously, this book was just boring. I had to force myself to read it. Ugh.

Jason is a biker and part of Storm MC. He had a thing with the President's daughter but ended because of some bad stuff going on after she was attacked. This broke her heart and started her down a very self destructive path of drinking. The club decided she needed to leave town for a while and she did. She made a new life for herself and cleaned up her act, somewhat. She was still kind of a slut but she did stop drinking.

Events from the past come up again and the MC said it was time for her to come home. I get why she did it but she seemed weak to me. I know love can make you all sorts of messed up inside but come on. I'd tell you her name but honestly, I can't remember it. That speaks volumes to me.

I don't know whether Madeline Sheehan ruined this book for because she's so wonderful or if it was really that boring.

Her Valentine Fantasy by Nancy Warren

Grade-C+

Hotness Level-Blaze

Kink Level-No Kink

Genre-Contemporary

Reviewed by Kay

91 pages

 

Jessica is on a first date at one of the city's ritziest restaraunts with a total douche, who leaves her holding the bill at the end. Flustered and shocked, she accidentally leaves her hotel room keycard in the bill folder instead of her credit card, and then leaves. Sam, the owner of the restaraunt, was filling in for a waiter that evening and had flirted a bit with Jessica. Now, don't go thinking that Sam is a jerk for flirting with her while she was on a date, because he didn't start flirting until after he noticed the nose-dive the date was taking, and even then, the douche had left the table. When he finds the keycard, he decides to take it back to her at the hotel (a convenient few blocks away). What else would a non-douche-y guy do?

I struggled a bit with the ending. The main conflict in the story came from the fact that both Sam and Jessica were hiding something. Sam was hiding the fact that he was the owner of the restaraunt, and not just a waiter. Jessica lied and told Sam that she was from out of town. When the ending came around, the lies hadn't been dealt with...at all. I would have liked to see the ending handled a bit differently, but that might have been expecting too much in such a short book.

All in all, this was a fun, flirty read. Just right for Valentine's Day. I would recommend it for anyone who has a soft spot for Valentine's Day or who likes their romances to be low-conflict. I'll definitely be looking into more books by Nancy Warren.

Each year I try to read at least one Christmas romance, but this is the first Valentine's romance I've read. Are you a fan of holiday romances? What recommendations do you have?

After The Storm by Maya Banks

Other editions

Enlar

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-KGI, #8
Genre-Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Reviewed by Kay
392 pages

Donovan Kelly is one of the Kelly's of KGI. He's the computer geek that looks like anything but a geek. He's as devilishly handsome as his other brothers. He can lead in the war room or in the field. Donovan sees his brothers one by one falling in love and having babies and knows he wants this too but hasn't found the right woman yet. He's on the look out for her but not devoting himself to the search, much to his mother's dismay.

Eve is in her mid twenties and in big trouble. She basically kidnapped her two younger half siblings from the father, her step-father. She knows he killed her mother and made advances on her. Because of her rebuffing him, he has had her declared unstable and alerted the law to her taking of the children. The three so them are on the run from him. They wind up in the Kelly's hometown and on their radar. When Eve realizes this, she knows they have to run because she can't afford to trust anyone.

I read a lot of reviews of this book and most of them very unfavorable. I thought the book was okay. It wasn't the best in the series but it wasn't the worst either. That honor still belongs to Nathan and Shay's book. My complaint was that his internal conversations were so damn repetitive that I thought I would scream. I've waited for Donovan's book for awhile, so it not being wonderful was a disappointment but not a total loss either. I'll still read this series because it's solid and I did get a catch up on all the other Kellys.

Love a Little Sideways by Shannon Stacey

Grade: B
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Series: Kowalski Family #7

Published: 11/26/13

Reviewed by Anne

195 pages

Liz, the youngest of the lodge-running Kowalskis is moving back home.  The only drawback to this situation is that she had a one night stand with Drew Miller, best friend to one of her brothers and chief of police.  That shouldn't be too awkward, right? All she has to do is avoid him.  Except that as soon as she gets into town, she spins off the road and it's Drew that comes to her rescue.  And he just keeps coming to her rescue.

This was a good story that I enjoyed, but it was always be "the one where they went camping again!" when I think of it.  Hilarious!  It was full of other enjoyable moments, too, though.  The pacing of Liz and Drew's relationship was actually pretty slow and enjoyable. 

The main sources of conflict in the book were 1.)keeping their relationship a secret from Liz's brothers and 2.) Liz not being sure what she wanted out of life and Drew knowing that he wants a wife and family.  The first one was resolved to my satisfaction.  The second one, after the leisurely pace of the rest of their relationship, felt a little rushed.

The Kowalski camping trip was great fun.  There were a LOT of secondary characters from other books that were getting jumbled in my head.  I finally decided I just didn't need to try to keep track of them, and things went more smoothly from there.  Don't get me wrong - I've read the other books and I like cameos from previous couples, but I think this book would stand alone just fine, since that's essentially what it did in my memory!

It was interesting and enjoyable to read a story where the man was the one who was anxious to settle down and start a family.  That was a very nice twist.  But it's really the relationships between Liz and Drew and their family and friends that make the book and keep me coming back to this series for more!

Unattainable by Madeline Sheehan

Grade-B
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Undeniable #3
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
306 pages

This time we get Cage and Tegen's story.

Cage is the heir to the MC throne for the Hell's Horsemen. He's so much like his dad it's not even funny. His drinking and whoring definitely rival his father's. He has always taken care of Tegen. He was her first true friend in the club. These two grew up together and Tegen fell in love with him at age eight and never fallen out of it. Cage is a hot guy, very very hot. Women love him and he takes full advantage of that they have to offer. Over and over again. He has issues with his father because of his childhood and they slowly fester.

Tegen being raised in the club was a horrible thing truly. Her mother was a club whore but only to one biker in particular. She watched her mother love someone who in my opinion never truly loved her. This has taken a toll on both mother and daughter. After high school, Tegen moves to San Francisco to start her career and get over Cage. His selfish and callous ways have hurt her far too much. She isn't happy, she merely exists.

When Tegen is sucked back into club life you really feel for her because you know what it will once again cost her. She may have changed her looks but she can't change who or what she is. Cage is there as usual but now he sees her in a different light. As a woman he wants. Can she handle it? This story was heartbreaking at times, just like the other stories in this wonderful series. You also get a story about Dirty and Ellie. Dirty is of course another biker within the club and Ellie is Danny's friend from high school. Dirty's story is horrific and their love story is a hot mess. But the way the author writes, just makes it precious. My big compliment on this book is that there is no cheating. Tegen is sleeping with a gut in the beginning but they weren't committed. So, yay for me.

I can't say enough about this series or it's characters or this author's writing. I'm all in and only hope I can stand it until the next book comes out!

10 Ways To Handle The Best Man by Heidi Rice

Grade-B-

Hotness Level-Blaze

Kink Level-Mild Kink

Genre-Contemporary

Reviewed by Kate

112 pages

 

Sabrina Millard has taken on the monumental task of organizing her best friend's wedding, including the groom's half-brother Connor McCoy. But can Connor and Sabrina control the sparks flying between them until after the wedding?

 

If you're looking for a low-conflict, fun and flirty read, this is the one. Right from the start, you get the tension that develops between Connor and Sabrina. With phrases such as "orgasma-geddon" that had me laughing out loud, this book kept me turning the pages until I reached the end.

 

My one complaint was with how fast the characters jumped into the BDSM aspects of their relationship. I prefer the hero and heroine to have some on-page discussion about what's going to happen BDSM-wise, but there seemed to be zero conversation between Connor and Sabrina. That's probably just a personal preference of mine and may not bother most readers. If you can get past that, you'll enjoy this one a lot.

Unbeautifully by Madeline Sheehan

It's taken me a few days to get my thoughts clear enough to write a review.

Other editions

Grade-B

Hotness Level-Inferno

Kink Level-No Kink

Series-Undeniable #2

Genre-Contemporary

Reviewed by Kay

374 pages

 

This story is about Ripper and Danny. Ripper is one of Danny's dad's bikers in his MC. Danny is a biker princess much like her stepmother, Eva. Her upbringing hasn't always been sunshine and roses though. Her parents' marriage was an elongated disaster and she and her brother just kind of floated through it. Living within club life was difficult but really all she knew. She loved Ripper for a long time and my god, the road was bumpy.

After Ripper's torture at the hands of a mad man, he was in a self destruct mode. He drank more and whored more than usual. One drunken night he and Danny went too far and everything was fubar from that point on. He never felt he was good enough for her and acted out. They kept their relationship secret much to the horror of Danny who wanted to shout it from the rooftops. I get why Ripper wanted to keep it a secret. Her dad would've killed him had he known. In an attempt to save her from his world, he takes off to parts unknown, leaving Danny to deal with the backlash of their relationship.

Very emotional situations take place in this book. I liked both characters but wanted to slap them both, as you often do in this series. But you just keep right on reading. It must be what crack is like because I just can't stop. Seriously, it's my latest obsession. I haven't been this excited or hooked on a series in a loooong time. I think about it constantly. It still tests my lines but I just can't quit.

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Throwback Thursday-Holiday In Death by J.D. Robb

Grade-A
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-In Death #7
Genre-Futuristic Romantic Suspense
Reviewed by Kay
308 pages

Eve Dallas' latest case involves dating services, ritualistic murders and Santa Claus. Yes, I said Santa Claus. The city's latest killer dresses as Santa to gain entrance to his victims' homes. When he gets into their homes, he rapes, sodomizes, murders, cleans, does their make-up and poses them. He also leaves a piece of jewelry in the "12 Days of Christmas theme with the victims.

Eve and her team, Roark, Feeney, Peabody and McNabb find out that all the victims used a dating servicce called Personally Yours. As they try to track down this killer, Eve has to deal with Christmas shopping, a horrible fight with not only Roark but also with Peabody. As the clock winds down, the intensity of the case takes a toll on Eve both mentally and physically.

This was my favorite of the series so far. I loved everything about it. The bantering and pulse pounding suspense were fantastic. This series still manages to not only hold my interest but keep me fully engaged. A lot of emotions took place in this book. Eve had to face a lot of things that she wasn't necessarily ready for. Now, me, I'm ready for the next book.

The Principle of Desire by Delphine Dryden

Grade: A-
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Moderate Kink
Genre: Contemporary, BDSM, Nerdmance
Series: The Science of Temptation #3

Published: 12/9/13

Reviewed by Anne

119 ebook pages

Beth was in a dead end relationship for years.  It was a relationship that included some BDSM, and she liked that, but her ex-boyfriend was an ass.  Now she's free of him and she's decided to keep the kink, but try out the side of her that would like to be the Dom instead of the sub role she was stuck in before. 

Ed's interested in Beth, and she sees that, but he's in the group she knows that's into her kind of kink.  In fact, she's pretty sure he's a very vanilla kind of guy, so she doesn't really give any encouragement to Ed.  She doesn't give him any encouragement until she finds him at her BDSM club on the same night her ex makes a reappearance.  Ed's a quick thinker and he sees the jam she's in, so he offers to pretend to be her sub.  And so it starts...

This is one of those reviews that's hard to write because I love Delphine Dryden so much!  I love her like I love Shelly Laurenston - NO ONE gets shifters like Laurenston, and no one writes geeks like Delphine Dryden!  I highlighted references to LARPing, a bag of holding, Pavlovian responses, Zoolander, and Star Trek - and those are only the ones I highlighted.  

Another real strength of this story is how imperfectly perfect Ed is!  There's this wonderful moment where he takes off his shirt in the BDSM Club, when he's agreed to be Beth's sub, and he looks around and realizes he has more body hair than anyone else in the whole place combined.  And Beth sees him as he is.  He's not a handsome hunk who has her swooning at first glance.  Instead we get to see how her attraction to Ed grows over time, and holy cow do I enjoy that!

There was a bit of a love triangle when Beth's ex makes a play for her.  That's pretty much my least favorite trope in romance reading, but the rest of the story was strong enough that I kept reading.  I also appreciated the fact that Beth's ex was a two dimensional character that had some good qualities.  He wasn't EVIL just because he was an ex-boyfriend.  

Overall, it was a great read I highly recommend, especially to romance readers who enjoy a little geek and some BDSM.

The Raider by Monica McCarty

The Devil's Enforcer and the English "Princess".

Grade-B

Hotness Level-Blaze

Kink Level-No Kink

Series-Highland Guard #8

Genre-Historical Scottish Romance

Reviewed by Kay

432 pages

Robbie Boyd is a member of Bruce's Phantoms, fighting for the Highland Guard. He's a lethal weapon whether he has a sword or just his bare hands. The bloody and on going fight with the English to control Scotland has hardened him. He fights for what's right and to avenge the death of his family at the hands of the English. He tries to kidnap his worst foe's heir and ends up with his sister also.

Rosalin is the sister of Boyd's greatest enemy. She's unspeakably beautiful and innocent. She shares a close bond with her brother. She knows about the war between England and Scotland. She's grown up hearing about the barbaric Scots. Robbie Boyd in particular. As a young girl, she freed Boyd and his friends after their capture because she sensed something in Robbie. And in that moment, she fell in love with him.

This novel is about two polar opposites, first love and the need for honor and revenge. Can the princess tame the Highlander? Can he see past his need for revenge? Does love conquer all?

Monica McCarty is back on top with this novel. Lately, she's been hit or miss with this series for me, but this book was....wow. Great characters, great story, smokin' hot sex and a happily ever after. Oh, and Highlanders, yum! I can't wait for the next book in the series.

Marked by Lauren Dane, Vivian Arend, and Kit Rocha

Marked - Kit Rocha book by 2/10/14 blog

Grade: A
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Moderate Kink
Published: 2/10/14

Reviewed by Anne

305 ebook pages

I'm going to break this down into the 3 stories and review them separately.  As a whole I give the anthology an A.  It's rare to have all the stories in a collection work for me like these did!  I highly recommend it, and the authors' note in my ARC says that the ebook will be on sale for $2.99 until the end of February, when the price will go up to $4.99.  This book is a steal at $2.99!   I came away with 2 new series I want to follow and a great installment to Beyond, which I already loved.

Beyond Temptation by Kit Rocha

Grade: B+

Genre: Dystopian
Series: Beyond 3.5

Note: I really think you need to read this series in order to get the most out of it.  If you haven't read it yet, go back to the start and read Beyond Shame - you won't regret it!

So, Noah is not from Sector Four, but he's doing some work that brings him under Dallas' radar and he's being brought into the gang.  He's also looking forward to and dreading seeing Emma, little sister to his best friend.  They haven't seen or talked to each other in years, and there's some history between them.  Emma always had a crush on him, and he had feelings for her, but he's got some secrets hidden that he doesn't want her to know about.  He's also having some issues seeing her as the strong and independent woman she is now, since his memories are full of her as a naive and innocent girl.

It's a short story, so the main source of conflict is Noah's big secret.  I don't enjoy secrets.  The best thing about this one was the way Emma handled it when she found out.  She's a strong woman and one who is offended at people trying to protect her by keeping secrets.  That was awesome!  Sector Four women in general are awesome, though!  

In other good news, Noah is a red head and likes dirty sex.  It turns out Emma does, too, and we get a lot of it.  This wasn't my favorite in the Beyond series, but it still rates a B+.  They are all just so good!

Rocky Ride by Vivan Arend

Grade: B+

Genre: Contemporary, small town
Series: Thompson & Sons #1

Anna is a straitlaced cop with a good reputation.  Mitch is a mechanic with a biker look to him.  They've been meeting on the down low for sex, but he wants to push her for an actual relationship.  Their small town has some small minds that see biker and think criminal.  Mitch has to convince Anna to give their relationship a chance.

This story starts out with one of the hottest opening scenes I've read in a long time.  It's a great start to a solid story.  Watching Anna relax and let her guard down made for a good read.  I got very frustrated at the choices Mitch was making toward the end of the story, but then Arend redeemed herself by having Anna really call Mitch out for his choices!  

The weak point in the story was the prejudice against bikers, or rough looking tattooed guys.  I haven't ever really considered that as a big deal - but maybe I just don't understand?  In any case, I just went with it and it worked.

The sex was hot, the heroine was independent and strong.  I loved it!

All That Remains by Lauren Dane

Grade: A

Genre: Dystopian, Triad*, futuristic
Series: Metamorphosis #1

Set in a post-plague future, which Dane describes on her website as not dystopian (and I agree) Summer meets a new man in her village, Charlie.  Summer isn't too surprised when Charlie mentions he has a partner (in the physical sense) but she's shocked when she meets him and it's Hatch, her first love.  Summer and Hatch may still have feelings for each other, but there's a lot of history between them and it's not all good.  The three of them have a lot to work through if they want to make a commitment to each other.

This story was all the best of the Lauren Dane Brown Siblings/Delicious books I love, set in an interesting future where women are only a small portion of the population and very valued.  Summer is another strong woman who is sure of herself and doesn't need a man (or men) to complete her.  She's not ashamed of her sexuality - that was refreshing to read!  

Really my only complaint about this story was the overuse of the phrase "raining honey" which pulled me out of the story every time it came up.  Other than that, everything worked for me and I can't wait to read more!

*Note - I used to mark any book with a 3 person (or more scene) as a "ménage" book.  I'm now using ménage for an uncommitted encounter(s) and triad for a story about the committed relationship between 3 people.

Married for Christmas by Noelle Adams

*Note: So, I have a thing for reading holiday themed stories.  The thing is, I generally lag behind by a month or so.  So, here I review a great story set at... Christmas.  Enjoy! ~Anne

Grade: A-
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary, Marriage of Convenience
Series: Willow Park #1

Published: 12/1/13

Reviewed by Anne

140 ebook pages

Jessica and her best friend Daniel agree to a friendly marriage.  Jessica has had a long time crush on Daniel (unbeknownst to him) and is pretty reserved socially and is despairing of finding someone to start a family with.  Daniel is a pastor who is being considered for the job to lead their small town church, but his unmarried state is a bit of a drawback for the church considering him.  Jessica talks Daniel into this marriage between friends.

So, I was really intrigued by a non-inspy book that featured people for whom religion was a large part of their life - a pastor!  I was lucky enough to get a copy from NetGalley and fired it up on my iPad one night at 11:30.  I was immediately hooked, and very emotionally involved in this book!  I was near tears - and HATE to cry while reading - but I loved it.  So I stayed up until 1:30am finishing the book, despite the fact that I'd be home alone with my four children the next day!  And I don't regret it!

The thing that had me near tears was watching Jessica truly love Daniel.  He loved her back, but it was more of a friendship love, and he seemed to be working hard to keep a boundary between them.  Then they'd have a moment where they truly seemed close, and he'd pull back and distance himself again.  Even though the story is told solely from Jessica's point of view, it seemed clear that he was developing feelings for her.  It wasn't too clear why he was sabotaging those feelings, though!  It was especially painful because his unintentional hurts seemed to pile right on top of some insecurities she was holding onto.

As a character, Daniel was very interesting.  Jessica was almost too perfect.  She was shy and not good at cooking, but, really, who cares?  She was emotionally perfect and a bit of a martyr.  It was believable to me because they were trying to apply logic to a very emotional situation, so I'll give her a pass on being an emotional Mary Sue.

There was a drawback to the single point of view of the book, and that was that some revelations about Daniel's character caught me off guard when I read them.  I really did feel like there was much alluding to them.

Despite these drawbacks, the story really worked for me.  And as the cherry on top of this emo romance, there was really well written explicit sex!  What?  Religious people who have on page sex?  I loved it!  I recommend this book and I'll be watching for more in this series!  (I'm rooting for a book about Daniel's brother, Micah!)

Broken Hart by Ella Fox

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-Mild Kink
Series-The Hart Family #1
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
209 pages

This book was very fun to read because the hero had a filthy mouth. I love a man with a filthy mouth.

Dante Hart is the oldest Hart sibling. He has a brother named Damien, twin sisters named Delilah and Dominique and his best friend, Spencer, who was basically raised with them. They are a very tight nit group. When Sabrina becomes his personal assisitant, the two become very good friends and start spending time with the rest of his family. Even Sabrina's sister, Brooke is included.

Sabrina has crushed on Dante for a long time but knew she wasn't his type, so she kept her feelings to herself. One night everything changes and they share a night of hot sex. Both are blown away by it. Sabrina knows to guard her heart because Dante is not a man to commit. They agree to have a sexual relationship only.

Feelings get too intense and Sabrina wants more. Dante says he can't give any more. She agrees to be a friend only then, all the while she knows she will have to quit her job because she can't watch him be with other people. We find out what happened in Dante's past to make him think he is uncapable of committment.

I don't know if I bought his reason but I was okay with it. This was a solid start to a series that I'll probably read more of. I liked all of the characters and am interested to read their stories. My only complaint was there were copious amounts of sex that kind of over shadowed the story. Oh, and butt plugs. Shudder. I'll leave you with some of my favorite lines from the book.

I'd never been with someone who talked or fucked like he did, and I didn't just like it, I loved it.

I fucking love everything you do to me Sabrina. Every. Goddamn. Thing.

The man could fuck, and I loved it.

Motorcycle Man by Kristen Ashley

Grade: A-
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary, MC
Series: Dream Man #4

Published: 5/22/12, republished 1/28/14

Reviewed by Anne

324 ebook pages

So I was at book club a couple weeks ago and a bunch of my friends were going on and on about Madeline Sheehan and what great motorcycle (MC) book crack she writes and how they love it so.  For the first time, I was feeling a little left out.  I thought I would not like an MC book.  I was hesitant to read one.  But I don't like feeling left out, and it was a reading goal of mine to try a Kristen Ashley book, AND I'd just gotten a NetGalley copy of Motorcycle Man, so I figured all signs were pointing toward it being time for me to put on my big girl pants and give this MC book thing a try.  

I started reading and was instantly pulled in.  Tyra is in bed after having sex with Tack, who she just met, and is seeing hearts and flowers and thinking that this man, finally, is her dream man.  And Tack?  

His hand left my skin to smack my ass lightly before he said, "Time to get to your own bed, darlin." (p. 17, ePub edition)

*snort*  Not exactly hero behavior!  But Tyra's got some backbone.  She feels like an idiot for mistaking fabulous sex for love, and for thinking Tack was her dream man, and because Tack is her new boss.  However, when Tack tries to fire Tyra, because he doesn't mix work and pleasure, she stands up for herself, and she keeps the job.

This book was so awesome.  Tack is an alphole, but a really sexy one.  And the thing is, over and over he proves that he cares about Tyra.   He gives her what she needs, and he apologizes when he makes mistakes.  Of course, he makes lots of mistakes, and one of them is being a sexist, macho, bossy pig of a man, but it's so easy to forgive him.  It's totally believable that Tyra would continue to fall for him.

The story line is good, believable, and very engrossing.  There's a certain amount of suspense and danger, but not enough to annoy me.  The writing style is almost a stream of consciousness, all from Tyra's point of view, but that worked very, very well.

My only problem with the book is the MC culture.  Women are second class citizens who have no say in the running of the club.  There are "old ladies" and club whores and they each have their place and accept one another.  And though the MC in this story is relatively clean, as far as drug running goes, it's acknowledged that drug running is a path that other clubs take.  I have so many issues with that lifestyle that I almost feel guilty reading the book.

Despite all that, and mostly because of the alpha hotness and dirty talking that is Tack, I loved this story.  I don't think MC romance will ever be a favorite of mine, in general, but this book is!  It's going on my favorites of 2014 list and I highly recommend it!