Return to You by Kate Perry

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Blaze/Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Laurel Heights #3
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kate
344 pages

It's been eleven years since Michael left town to pursue his dreams in Hollywood, leaving the love of his life, Olivia, behind. Now he's come back to film a movie and has to face Olivia again. Olivia's been nursing her broken heart for the eleven years Michael's been gone, but can she love someone who hurt her so badly before?

 

I have enjoyed each of the Laurel Heights books that I've read and this one is no exception. There is just so much inner turmoil and angst with Michael and Olivia. I just wanted to lock them in a room together until they got everything sorted out...oh wait, that happened (only it was a shed instead of a room) and they still managed to not get anything sorted out. Had this one been a little less angsty (I think that's a word), I would have enjoyed it more. I did find the secondary romance between Olivia's father and his assistant sweet and tender.

 

If you like low conflict romances along the lines of Jill Shalvis's Lucky Harbor series, this is a series I would highly recommend.

Officer Off Limits by Tessa Bailey

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Line of Duty #3
Genre-Romantic Suspense
Reviewed by Kay
250 pages

Story Brooks is a teacher in California. She's engaged to a doctor she doesn't really love. Said doctor breaks up with her and right after that she learns that her father has had a heart attack in New York. She goes there to see her dad and meets Daniel Chase. Daniel is a hostage negotiator like her father. Daniel and her father have a special relationship since her dad mentored Daniel. Jack (the dad) tells Daniel to stay away from Story because he's a man whore. He really really is. Daniel tries to honor Jack's order, for about five minutes.

I'll be honest, the last two books put together aren't as good as the first one. This book was okay but it didn't make me flush or blush. I love a dirty talking man and Daniel didn't talk dirty very much. There are a few things I've come to expect from Tessa Bailey and a filthy mouthed hero is one of them. Don't get me wrong, I will still read Tessa Bailey! I just wish the last two books were as good as the first.

Forbidden Obsessions by Jodie Griffin

 

 

 

Grade-B-

Hotness Level-Inferno   

Kink Level-Moderate Kink
Series-Bondage & Breakfast #4
Genre-BDSM
Reviewed by Kate

Gabe owns Bondage & Breakfast, a B&B that caters to those in the BDSM lifestyle. The B&B is temporarily closed while he finishes clean up and repair after a fire. But he does open the house to a friend of a friend. Olivia is a firefighter who is recovering from a spinal cord injury. She's looking for a place to regroup away from her family. The attraction between Gabe and Olivia is surprising since Olivia's never been involved in the lifestyle. But while Olivia is able to trust Gabe in this new relationship, Gabe struggles to trust that Olivia will not push herself beyond her own limitations.

This is the fourth book in the Bondage & Breakfast series, but the first book that I've read. I was able to easily follow the story without having read the first three. However, this book did make me want to go back and read the first books.

The relationship between Gabe and Olivia was constantly changing, and I loved the ebb and flow of it. It wasn't one of those books where the hero knows what he wants on page 3 and we wait for the heroine to adjust and change and become what he wants,or vice versa. Gabe and Olivia both changed a bit themselves in order to meet in the middle.

This was my first read by Jodie Griffin, but it will not be my last. I look forward to reading the first three books in this series and can't wait to see what she comes up with next. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a low conflict (no villains) milder (restraints, flogging, anal play) BDSM story.

Drawn Together by Lauren Dane

Grade: A
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Moderate Kink
Genre: Contemporary

Published: 10/1/13
Reviewed by Anne

304 pages

 

Raven is a tough tattoo artist who can be very hard to like.  She's got a prickly protective shell that not many bother to work through.  Jonah Warner is a single dad whose only child is growing up and has moved away from home.  He's ready to look for a relationship and Raven intrigues him, and their chemistry is off the charts.  

 

(Here's my favorite quote)

When he got this woman naked they were going to set shit on fire. (p. 28)

 

OK, disclaimer first, this series is a favorite of mine.  We're talking top 3, maybe my favorite of all time.  So, I certainly went in predisposed to enjoying this book, and it was no surprise to me that I loved it.  I'll try to explain why.

 

This is a low conflict book.  There's not a lot holding Jonah and Raven apart.  Not much they have to overcome, except Raven's internal issues.  This is my favorite kind of book.  I love the slow but sure journey as they move from instant lust to falling in love.  They talk with each other - so there's no conflict created by their lack of communication.  It's wonderful to watch them grow closer and closer.

 

This is a well written book.  It's clever and funny in parts.  Hot in parts.  It made my heart ache in parts.  It took me away from everything and made me not what to go back!  

 

This is an extremely hot book.  I think Lauren Dane writes scorching sex scenes, and this book is a great example.  I also really enjoyed that Jonah and Raven came together in a Dom/sub relationship that didn't require a kinky club or anything over the top.  From the moment they started moving in a sexual direction, you could see that Raven liked to be subservient to him.  This is a stark contrast to how she is with everyone else in her life.  Jonah is not an experienced Dom, but he's learning what he likes, and Raven trips all his triggers in a very good way.  I think it was different than other things I've read because it didn't come off like they were playing a scene, more like they were letting their true personalities show, and this was how they clicked together.

 

I would have liked to see them talk through some of their Dom/sub behavior a bit more.  It's hard for me to buy that they slipped into these rolls so effortlessly.  I certainly think there should be some  amount of discussion before trying a new toy.  That it worked for them so effortlessly and that they never had a problem stepping over each other's boundaries... that was a bit unrealistic for me.

 

There are some family issues in the book that I don't want to give detail on, as I believe they would be spoilers, but I really liked the way they were handled.  Families are messy and not perfect.  You don't always get a neat and tidy ending.  That's done well in this book.

 

This book is 6th in the series.  It would probably stand alone, but I think you'd get more out of it by reading the series in order.  Raven has been in every book so far, and she was often in the roll of villain.  Her character is well established and it's consistent throughout the series, including this book.  I love that Dane can take the feisty/prickly/bitchiness normally reserved for secondary characters and KEEP it even when the Raven moves to being the main character.

 

I highly recommend this book.  It's a Best of 2013 read for me!

Do you have an all time favorite series?  Or are you like me with one or two favorites in each genre?

Cowboy Seeks Bride by Carolyn Brown

Grade-B-
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Spikes & Spurs #7
Genre-Contemporary
384 pages
Reviewed by Kate

Haley McKay (whose professional name is HB McKay) thinks her dad is playing a practical joke on her when he sends her to meet Dewar O'Donnell and his buddies at the start of a cattle drive. She's supposed to ride with the cowboys on the month-long round up as research for a reality show the family tv company is considering, but Haley is sure that when she gets there it will all be a joke.

Dewar is expecting HB McKay to be a middle-aged business man, not the feisty red-head that shows up. He's been actively looking for a wife, but knows there's no way Haley's busy life as a career woman would mix with his life on the ranch. But despite the logic, the sparks between Haley and Dewar fly.

Carolyn Brown is one of my favorite authors of the modern cowboy, In Cowboy Seeks Bride she delivers a solid, low conflict romance. Haley's city-girl ways clash with Dewar's country life, but the attraction is instant. I enjoyed watching Dewar and Haley sneaking around and hiding their relationship from the other cowboys on the drive. The ending seemed a bit too easy, a little too perfect, but still believable. I can forgive the ending since I enjoyed the book as much as I did.

Are you a fan of the modern-day cowboy romance? If so, who are some of your favorite authors?

One Perfect Night by Bella Andre

Grade-C
Hotness Level-Ember
Kink Level-No Kink
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay

Love at first sight. That is what this novella is all about. Noah and Colbie have a chance meeting at a ski resort. Noah rescues her from a fall and teaches her how to snow ski better. Then Colbie, who has had her heart broken before, gets frightened over what she's feeling toward a man she's just met. She ends up running away from him. Both characters hire a private detective to find the other when they get back to the city. Oddly, enough they hired the same one, who is a family friend.

This was just okay for me. I mean the premise is one I'm a sucker for. Love at first sight. I liked the characters but never felt the connection between the two. And the love scenes were almost off page and I hate that. I normally like Bella Andre a lot but this one again, was just okay.

Covet Thy Neighbor by L.A. Witt

Grade: B
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary, m/m
Series: Tucker Springs #4

Reviewed by Anne

175 pages

 

Seth is a tattoo artist who lives above his business.  He's delighted to learn that his new neighbor is extremely good looking, gay, and open to a little flirtation and more.  He's distressed to learn that Darren is a Christian pastor.  Seth was terribly hurt by his devout Christian family when he came out to them.  He just can't get by the fact that Darren is a pastor.  However, they keep running into each other and the attraction just isn't dying down. Even worse, they find they have more and more in common.

This is the fourth entry in the Tucker Springs series.  This one is written by L.A. Witt and was my first L.A. Witt book.  It stands alone well, as all the books do.  In fact, I've read these books entirely out of order, starting with book 3 (Dirty Laundry), then reading book 2 (Second Hand), and now book 4.  Yes, I intend to go back to book 1 (Where Nerves End), which is another L.A. Witt book. 

 

The Tucker Springs books have been just magical for me.  This one especially intrigued me, because I wondered how the issue of Christianity and a pastor having sex outside of marriage would be handled.  I thought it was handled well.   I liked the contrasting experiences they had in coming out to their families.  The growth Seth had to make was painful for him.  Darren was almost too patient.  But it all worked for me, and I was disappointed to see it end.  All of the issues weren't totally dealt with, but I felt really confident that they would work through anything they came up against.

 

This was another low conflict romance - a favorite of mine.  I'd compare this series to Lauren Dane's Brown Siblings series.  Very hot and the conflict in the book is internal to the relationship.  I recommend it!

So, how about you?  Have you read this book?  Can you recommend another book that handled Christianity well without being preachy?