Category / Brooding Hero

by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Loving You Is Easy by Wendy S. Marcus

Format: E-booklovingyouiseasy
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Loveswept
Hero: Shane Alexander Develen
Heroine: Brooke Ellstein
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: December 9, 2014
Started On: December 4, 2014
Finished On: December 5, 2014

Loving You is Easy is a book that starts off in an intriguing manner. November 2011, Brooke Ellstein, a 7th and 8th grade Math teacher who also happens to be the daughter of a prominent politician in New York starts corresponding with Sergeant Shane Develeen in the manner of pen pals. Fast forward to July of next year and these two meet for the first time, Brooke having fallen for Shane even with his warning that he is not looking for a girlfriend to mess with his head.

Devastation hits Brooke when a photograph in which she posed for Shane finds its way to the Internet. Feeling betrayed at the knowledge that Shane had been home for more than 2 months and never contacted her, Brooke feels like her entire life is falling apart until Shane walks up to her door, a man scarred from the war, with a gigantic chip on his shoulder that won’t quit. Shane’s only reason for showing up is to put things to right or so he tells himself.

From the start, Shane had believed that a classy woman like Brooke would have no place in her life for a man like him. After nearly losing his life on the job and with the scars to prove it, Shane is adamant and steadfast in his belief and need to keep Brooke at arms length and that she doesn’t expect something more to happen between them than just friendship. But then life and love has a way of breaking even the toughest of them and the more Shane learns about the woman that Brooke hides behind the facade of rigid control and discipline that has been her life, the more little shards of doubt begins to penetrate into Shane’s firmly held conviction that they aren’t meant to be.

Loving You is Easy is a book that is easy to read given that Wendy is an author who writes well and portrays a lot of emotions in her stories. Brooke’s past when revealed turned out to be a heartbreaking one, making one question exactly just how much families and their children suffer when either of the parents chooses to pursue a political career. Brooke’s emotional strength was an admirable trait, her closest friends the ones keeping her sane.

Shane is a bit of a grouch and a tad hard to like but given the circumstances he finds himself in, I guess a little bit of anger at the fates was called for. My disappointment with Shane stemmed from his lack of belief in Brooke, who gives him no reason to doubt her. If it had been just one instance, I could have brushed it off and thanked the stars for the angst that the misunderstanding had brought to the story. But more than once and especially under a situation where Brooke had needed his support, I just felt a bit letdown from all that. The saving grace was the fact that he seemed to pick up the pieces and get Brooke back. I would also have loved to see Shane’s issues related to his injuries and the resultant PTSD looked at with just a tad more detail. Judging from how the story had proceeded, I’d like to bet that Brooke’s best friend Neve is going to get her own story pretty soon!

Recommended for fans of Wendy and fans of war torn heroes.

Final Verdict: With a bit of grouch and a whole lot of classy, Wendy’s newest release gives a good read!

Favorite Quotes

“This guy bothering you?” he asked, not at all interested in getting to know the snake trying to slither into Brooke’s life.
“No,” she said, breathing heavily, her cheeks pink, her expression filled with innocence. She had no idea how sexy she looked in her outfit, or how that loser kept dropping back to ogle her butt. “He asked me—”
Shane cupped the back of her head, leaned forward, and silenced her with a kiss. He hadn’t planned it. In fact, the urge struck him completely by surprise. He chose not to fight it, because in that moment he could think of no words to adequately express the fierceness of his feelings. Possessive, protective, and pissed as shit she’d been enjoying time spent with some stranger rather than with him.

“All right. I get it.” Her running mate’s words broke his trance. “Let her breathe.”
Shane let her go, cursing himself for losing control, for being so rough. Without his support she swayed. He caught her. She appeared dazed, her pupils dilated. “Why’d you do that?” she whispered.
“He was bothering me.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | eBookMall | iTunes

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: The Right Man by Anne Stuart

Format: E-booktherightman
Read with: Kindle/iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Gowns of White, #3
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Jake Wyczynski
Heroine: Susan Abbott
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: February 1, 1999
Started On: November 23, 2014
Finished On: November 24, 2014

My craving for an Anne Stuart found me with The Right Man, a novel penned by Ms. Stuart for the 50th anniversary of Harlequin. Told in three parts, The Right Man has a time travel factor to it and tells the story of Susan Abott who begins to question her impending marriage to her fiance Edward with the arrival of Jake Wyczynski, who comes bearing gifts from her godmother.

Susan has always been a dutiful daughter, one who hadn’t cared much for the passions that seems to rule people. But with the arrival of Jake on her doorstep, Susan starts experiencing twinges of doubts where her decision to marry Edward is concerned and for the very first time finds herself captivated by heady desire for a man that slowly begins to overrule her senses. However, Susan believes herself to be made of sterner stuff, that is until she finds herself occupying the role of her deceased aunt Tallulah, who had died 50 years back on her wedding day.

50 years in the past, Susan meets Jack McGowan, the man who makes her heart pound with desire, the man for whom she would give up everything, if only he were able to love her back. Tallulah’s life is a nightmare, with her father and stepmother “forcing” her to marry a man of immense wealth just so they can continue to live within the means they think should be their due. With the clock ticking, Susan has to find a way to give Tallulah a happy ending and at the same time find a way to return back to her life, something she seemingly wants less and less as the time spent with Jack makes her yearn to stay back.

The Right Man is a story that had a trifle bit of an oddity to it in the time travel factor, and yet told beautifully. Juggling three individual stories that I yearned to read as standalone novels, Anne Stuart managed to pull it off in the manner that only an author of her caliber can. I had a hard time separating Jack and Jake in my mind and I’m just going to say that I loved them both equally and fell for both of them hard and fast. They were both exactly when Tallulah and Susan had needed. And I couldn’t have loved them any more even if I tried. 

Susan & Tallulah are easy enough to separate in my mind. Though there’s a fifty year time span between the two, their situations had been eerily similar in a manner that lent the story an ethereal feel to it. Though I didn’t care much for the time travel aspect of the story and firmly believe that the story would’ve worked wonderfully well even without that and that Susan would have eventually seen the error of her decision to marry a man so unsuitable for her, Anne Stuart still managed to blow my mind with the ending she gave to the story. I could have sighed for an eternity over the beautiful ending and it still wouldn’t have been enough.

Recommended!

Final Verdict: Magical!

Favorite Quotes

He pulled her closer against him, so that her body was plastered up against his nearly nude one, so that she could feel how hard he was, how much he wanted her. She tasted of fresh strawberries and coffee, and he wanted more, he wanted to taste every part of her, he wanted to strip off her clothes and drag her over to that narrow, sagging bed.

She stopped thinking. She slid her arms around his waist, plastering her body against his, and she made a soft, moaning sound of surrender in the back of her throat. She’d been so cold, and now she was blazing hot, her body on fire, tasting his tongue in her mouth, feeling the strength of his hard body against hers, his hand closing over her breast, his leg nudging between her thighs.

“You want to hit me again?” he taunted.
“Yes!” She moved toward him, like a fool, not realizing his intention. He caught her upraised hand and pulled her into his arms, her body slamming up against his. This time when he kissed her she kissed him back, surrendering with a quiet moan of longing and despair.

Her instincts had been right— Jack McGowan sat sprawled on the sofa, sound asleep. With a towheaded baby nestled comfortably against his shoulder.
He was snoring softly, which didn’t seem to disturb the sleeping baby one bit. He’d loosened his tie, his hair was ruffled and he was in need of a shave. He was the best thing she’d ever seen in her life.

He slid his fingers through her short- cropped hair, tilting her face up to his. And then he kissed her, taking his time— a slow, languorous touch of mouth against mouth, tongue against tongue, building in increments of heat and desire until he found she was trembling and he was, too.
He didn’t ask. He simply pulled her up tight against his body and took her to the bed. And she let him.

He didn’t remember how he managed to strip his pants off, but he did so in record time. He was blind with need, wild with it, wild with wanting her, and the calm, sane part of him had vanished into some dark, dangerous place, where all that mattered was Susan, reaching for him, opening for him, taking him deep inside her as she wrapped her body around his and held him tight.

It was dark and gloriously sinful and utterly right, and she moved in the darkness, the breeze cooling her fevered skin as she slid over his body and took him deep within her, rocking and surging until she shattered around him, helpless in her powerful response, and he turned her beneath him and finished it. She hid her face against his chest, licking his skin, whispering dark and wicked secrets, and he kissed her eyelids and her throat, kissed the small of her back and behind her knees, and nothing mattered but that the night would never end.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | HQ | eBookMall | iTunes

amazingread

by mvbookreviewer

Review: Burn For Me by Shiloh Walker

Format: E-bookburnforme_2
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novella
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Secrets & Shadows, #0.5
Publisher: St. Martin’s Paperbacks
Hero: Tate Bell
Heroine: Ali Holmes
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: April 1, 2014
Started On: November 20, 2014
Finished On: November 21, 2014

If you’ve read my review of Break for Me, you’d already know that I bought the rest of the novellas in the Secrets & Shadows series, because I was that much intrigued to read the stories of all the Bell children. Burn for Me is the story of the eldest, Tate Bell, the only boy from the three kids.

The three novellas focus on the main story of their mother’s unsolved case of disappearance and the affect that it had had on all their lives. Tate is haunted by the vivid memories of the night in question and the anger that is deep inside of him is one that is eating away at his soul. It tampers with life in ways that he would rather not acknowledge. It definitely has a dampening effect on his sort of love life with Ali Holmes, the only person with whom he had felt whole with throughout the years.

Ali knows that there is no future to be had with a man like Tate. Three years of a friends-with-benefits relationship finally takes its toll and it is when Ali decides to take the plunge and cut off ties with Tate that sets the ball rolling towards Tate facing his demons and realizing the impact his version of the truth had had on him and his family.

I was pretty excited to read Burn for Me. The scorching hot start definitely was a plus point, but I found that excitement sizzling down till the latter part of the book where the emotional punch of the storyline pretty much kicked me in the gut. I didn’t find myself enamored with the love affair between Tate and Ali. Perhaps because theirs was an affair that had started prior to the story that has the reader missing out on the fun and excitement that goes along with relationships at their beginning. Or because I just found myself at odds with the way Tate calls Ali “Ali-girl”.

What pulled me in towards the end of the story was not the romance between Tate and Ali, but rather the emotional intensity of what takes place between Tate and his father. I was almost moved to tears by the emotions the last couple of pages brought to life. The pain and suffering of not knowing for fifteen odd years has left its mark on each member of the Bell family. And Tate having carried around the sort of anger that can totally annihilate a person and still finding the strength to move past that was one that was moving in itself. For me, Tate’s father made the story. His love for his son is one that touched my heart in all the ways that matter.

Recommended for fans of Shiloh Walker and those who like short stories that don’t leave you hanging.

Final Verdict: Walker delivers the story of a father’s enduring love that knows no bounds.

Favorite Quotes

Tangling her hands in his hair, she arched and whimpered as he shifted his angle, moving so that the head of his cock stroked the bundled bed of nerves buried deep inside her and that small adjustment had her panting. Heat blistered her and pleasure consumed her.
“Tate!”
He surged against her, harder. Faster.
She climaxed around him, muffling her sob against his shoulder.
His mouth covered hers, swallowing down that ragged, breathless sound.
Then he stiffened, coming inside her.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | eBookMall | ARe | iTunes

favorableread

by mvbookreviewer

Requested ARC Review: Cold Light of Day by Toni Anderson

Format: E-bookcoldlightofday
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Cold Justice, #3
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Matthias Lazlo
Heroine: Scarlett Wilson Stone
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: November 16, 2014
Started On: November 11, 2014
Finished On: November 18, 2014

Toni Anderson is an author you should be reading if you are a fan of well plotted suspense. Toni is an author whose self-published books in the genre has provided me with some of the best reads in suspense that I have read lately and Cold Light of Day is a book that testifies to all that I have just stated above.

Scarlett Wilson Stone joins her best friend Angelina LeMay to attend the annual Christmas party that is hosted by the Russian Ambassador to the United States for one reason alone. She wants the chance to do something to clear her father of the charges of treason for which he has been spending the past 14 years of his life in prison. Scarlett & her mother are the only ones who had believed in her father’s innocence. When Scarlett’s little mission goes horribly wrong, the reaction is swift with life threatening consequences that Scarlett never foresaw.

Former SEAL and FBI Special Agent Matthias Lazlo cannot believe that he had been tricked by a pair of brown eyes that he had felt had seen right through to his soul. A moment that had lasted long enough to make him think of thoughts better left unsaid, Matt is relentless in his attempt to hunt down Scarlett and bring her in, more in a need to protect her than anything else.

Though Matt doesn’t believe Scarlett’s proclamation of her father’s innocence, as the attacks on their lives begin to mount, Matt has to believe in the possibility that someone wants the truth to be buried six feet under, never to surface ever again. What doesn’t help matters is his fierce attraction to Scarlett whose intelligence, devotion and vulnerability strikes him in his very heart making him susceptible to a whole lot more than just being taken down by the enemy.

Toni Anderson explores a mean plot in Cold Light of Day. It kept me on tenterhooks that had the nail biting edge to it with the stakes rising as the story progressed. Toni writes suspense of the variety that makes the heart pound. Add to it the espionage factor explored in this novel and you’ve got yourself the likes of books from authors like Robert Ludlum. The plus point for voracious romance readers like myself is that Toni writes as good a romance as the suspense plot in her novels.

Matt is a hero readers would absolutely adore. I could have sat with the book in my hands and read about just him alone and it would most probably have been enough. He is downright sexy, effortlessly so and there is nothing more deadly on the female senses than that if you ask me. Scarlett proved to be a great heroine. Toni creates heroines who are intelligent and capable, yet with enough sense in them to know when to advance and when to retreat. That in my opinion is an essential factor to writing heroines that grabs the heart.

Final Verdict: Cold Light of Day reads like a puzzle you’d never figure out. Recommended!

Favorite Quotes

Scarlett Stone…
“Why do I recognize that name?” asked Matt.
Alex Parker appeared in the doorway. “Because she’s the daughter of Richard Stone.”
“Richard Stone the spy?” Frazer ground out.
Holy motherfucker. That was the sound of shit hitting the fan.

We might only have one night…we might only have an hour.
The thought made him push a little bit deeper, a little bit harder. She tilted her pelvis and wrapped her legs around his hips and, dear God, he couldn’t go easy, and he couldn’t go gentle. He thrust into her, only grateful she seemed to be enjoying his lack of technique and finesse.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo

greatread

by mvbookreviewer

Review: My Fair Concubine by Jeannie Lin

Format: E-bookmyfairconcubine
Read with: Kindle & iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Tang Dynasty, #3
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Chang Fei Long
Heroine: Yan Ling
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: May 22, 2012
Started On: November 7, 2014
Finished On: November 11, 2014

Jeannie Lin is one of those authors that writes romances that speaks to your heart. Her writing is flawlessly beautiful and China as the setting provides for that exoticism that is unbeatable. My Fair Concubine is the third book in the Tang Dynasty series and explores the story of Chang Fei Long, a nobleman and Yan Ling, a baby abandoned at a tea house where she had grown up, knowing no life except one of servitude.

Fei Long wants to save his family’s honor and is at a loss as to how to go about it when the idea strikes to make use of Yan Ling to do so. Fei Long has just three months to turn Yan Ling into princess material, to teach her the etiquettes and way of life that would be required from her when she is given to the people of Khitan as princess bride to forge political ties with China through an arranged marriage. What Fei Long doesn’t expect is for him to want to break every single rule he has set for their brief partnership and claim Yan Ling for himself. But as life would have it, many a hurdle needs to be crossed before that particular dream would be realized.

I have no idea why I skipped on reading My Fair Concubine and jumped straight to The Sword Dancer, the 4th book in the series. Either way, My Fair Concubine turned out to be a beautifully spun story with enough angst, finely wrought sexual tension and the intricacies of Chinese politics and life in the Tang Dynasty that I just adored.

I loved both Fei Long and Yan Ling. Fei Long is man who practically has honor stamped right into his DNA. Yan Ling is the woman who grew up as a servant, whose inner fire, courage, wit and wisdom makes her the right fit for a man like Fei Long. The control that Fei Long exerts on his self and emotions was such a turn on if you ask me. I love a hero who is reserved. There is such a wealth of passion hidden inside characters of that sort and I just loved what Jeannie had to offer with Fei Long. When it comes to Fei Long and Yan Ling, there’s so much to be said for the near miss caresses, the fervent longing in each glance and this intricate dance was done superbly well which reached its ultimate climax the moment during which all that control shattered under the strength of Fei Long’s hidden passion for the woman he loves. And oh my stars; what a magnificent moment that was!

I adored the colorful secondary characters like Dao and Li Bae Shen that gave this story the wholesome edge to it that it deserved. The historical tidbits and the exotic feel to the entire setting itself was one I continued to lap up like someone who was starved for just that. If history were ever to be written with such flare, I don’t think I’d ever have a problem with buying a ton of books on the subject and holing myself up somewhere for days.

This review wouldn’t do justice to the story without mentioning the scenes of passion towards the end of the story; oh boy! I was feeling quite peeved about all the heightened sexual tension in the novel with no way of breaking the promises that held Fei Long and Yan Ling from acting on their desire for one another. And when Jeannie Lin delivered on all that, sigh, I swear I just near about swooned and rightfully so if you ask me. All those hours of calligraphy lessons? Totally worth it. And that alone is reason enough to buy a copy and indulge in my opinion. Well done Ms. Lin, well done.

Final Verdict: The prose, the angst and the delivery alone attests to Lin’s mastery. Recommended!

Favorite Quotes

He placed the brush back into her hand. She knew she was gripping it too hard again as she dipped it into the ink stone, but it was the only way to keep her hand from shaking. Before she could place the tip to the paper, Fei Long moved behind her. She closed her eyes as his hand rested against her shoulder to straighten her back. His other arm circled temporarily around her to position the brush and she flooded with fever. Her toes curled with the ache of it when he moved away.

She stood in a panic, keeping herself turned.
‘I have to go.’
‘Yan Ling.’
His voice was louder this time. Closer.
She tried to slip past. Wouldn’t look even when his hands closed around her shoulders.
In the next moment, she caught a glimpse of Fei Long’s face, of his dark and tortured eyes. A muscle tensed along his jaw before he lowered his head.
Her breath rushed from her at the first touch of his mouth. His hand lifted to slide over the back of her neck while his kiss soothed over lips still sensitive from the rough scouring she’d given them. Yan Ling trembled, confused. A lost sound escaped from her.

Suddenly, his hands tightened over her hips. He held her so fiercely it was nearly painful. She could feel the heat of his skin and the taut coil of muscle and sinew through his robe. A shudder ran through him.
He pulled away roughly then, holding her at arm’s length when he couldn’t get enough of her only moments earlier. His chest heaved as he stared at her as if he didn’t know what had just happened. But she knew, in every part of her, to the very tips of her fingers and toes.
‘Forgive me,’ he breathed.
It was the first time he’d apologised since she’d met him. For the one thing she’d wanted more than anything else for him to do.

‘I would give it all up,’ he rasped.
She must have heard wrong. Her throat closed so tight she had to fight for the next breath.
‘I would give it all up for you,’ Fei Long said again, stronger this time. She staggered back a step as he came forwards. ‘Yan Ling.’
He closed the distance between them. His hands came around her waist and his eyes darkened with an unfettered hunger she had never seen. Their bodies brushed as he pulled her close.

It wasn’t long before he was backing her deeper into the cover of the trees. Not long before his hands secured themselves against the small of her back and she was being guided down. Soon she was lying with her shoulders flush against the cool grass. The coarse blades tickled against the back of her neck and she could see fragments of blue sky between the branches above.
Fei Long leaned over her. His face, so familiar now, filled her vision. Masculine and beautiful in its harshness. He captured her mouth again, one hand cradled at the back of her neck to lift her to him. His other hand was braced against the ground beside her shoulder, securing her beneath the weight and pressure of his body. As if she’d ever want to escape.

She exhaled in a small gasp, her back arching willingly. Her hips lifted until they brushed against his. In response, he pressed his full weight upon her. She could feel him. All of him.
His mouth sought her throat where he tasted her first with his tongue, then the sharp edge of his teeth. She shuddered as he devoured her. There was nothing reserved about Fei Long out here. He’d left his careful detachment in the confines of the study. This passion was for her, and her alone.

Her head fell back in surrender, but Fei Long was there to catch her. His other arm circled her now with his hand splayed against her back to keep her upright. She closed her eyes, shaking her head in denial, because the sheer torture of this was senseless. He commanded her with nothing but this single, unending caress and it became everything. Cruelly, inexplicably, everything.
She cried out as her body tightened. Fei Long crushed his mouth to her and she sobbed against his lips. Her inner muscles clenched and unclenched as she shook inside and out.

Then he pulled away and her hand slipped free. There was no trace of tenderness in him as he stood. His expression was heated steel as he removed his trousers. He untied his hair as well and for a moment stood naked over her.
She took him in, all of him. Her mouth was painfully dry and even swallowing didn’t banish the knot in her throat. This was what she had wanted to know— the sight of Fei Long when there were no more boundaries between them. She took the vision deep into herself. It would always be there, no matter what the morning brought.

She pressed her lips against his throat and tasted the salt of his skin. The thrust of his body took on an exhilarating urgency, a riotous intensity that she could feel through the height and breadth of her body. There was no time to think. Only feel.
He was taking everything, just as he promised. Just as she wanted.
She wrapped her legs around his hips and held on.

“Do you know how many times I agonised over this part of your neck or this one ear?’ His mouth brushed over her neck before he took her earlobe between his lips, sucking gently. A shiver ran down her spine, making her breath catch and her toes curl restlessly. ‘You would gather your hair with your hands and sweep it over your shoulder to keep it out of the way before you’d begin to write. And I’d watch you, barely able to breathe.”

“Yes,’ he shuddered as he beseeched her. There were no words for what he wanted, but she wanted it too. ‘Yan,’ he pleaded.
Yan Ling pushed back against him as hard as she could as every muscle within her tightened. His muscled body formed a brace for her in her passion. She cried out, the sound strained within her throat. A vindicating and final rush of pleasure arched through her. An exquisite pain beyond thought.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | HQ | ARe | eBookMall

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Without Words by Ellen O’Connell

Format: E-bookwithoutwords
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Breton J. Sterling
Heroine: Hassie Ahearne Petty
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: September 30, 2014
Started On: November 6, 2014
Finished On: November 7, 2014

The very first note that I made as soon as I started reading Without Words by Ellen O’Connell was, “Reading an Ellen O’Connell after so long. I’m so excited.” That excitement pretty much started as soon as I stumbled upon Ellen’s newest release and held all throughout, since then up till I turned the very last page. Ellen O’Connell is a master unto herself. A force to be reckoned with when it comes to self-published and otherwise authors out there. Her writing style rivals that of one my favorite authors of Western themed romances, i.e. Maggie Osborne. Her heroes never fall short of making you fall head over heels in love with them and her heroines are just the same. And Without Words is definitely not an exception to the said rule.

Breton J. Sterling (Bret) is a bounty hunter, who after confronting his latest convict finds himself saddled with Hassie Ahearne Petty; it was either take her or leave her to fend off for herself which would have ultimately meant that she would starve to death or worse. Hassie has no choice but to do as the icy-eyed bounty hunter orders her to. A childhood accident had rendered Hassie without the ability to speak loudly and coherently enough for people to understand. That had pretty much defined Hassie’s life since then and she had been resigned to living the life that had been hers until Bret storms into her life and her heart, making her a changed woman forever.

Without Words is not just a story. It is a journey of two people who at first seems to have nothing in common, a man and a woman joined together by circumstances. Bret is man who is paying his self imposed dues to his family, and Hassie has no family to speak of. While Bret has no need for a woman, he can’t help but be protective of Hassie, a woman who defies every single hardship that had befallen her and still manages to see the beauty the world has to offer. And before long, Bret finds himself yearning for more of his violet-eyed Hassie, something he had never thought would happen in his lifetime.

Hassie’s awakening towards Bret as a man is one that progresses slowly. She has no experience to put her trust in when it comes to anything good happening between a woman and a man, but Bret makes her want to trust and put her belief in the honor that is practically stamped all over the man himself. The trust that unfurls in Hassie towards Bret grows in leaps and bounds until of course Bret becomes the only man she has ever loved, even though his past warns her of the consequences that this love would wreak on her heart.

Without Words is a story in which practically everything worked and meshed well together to give the sort of read that is so hard to come by in the modern world of romance today. There is a reason why I still yearn for the “classics” that started me on my journey of reading romances. And Without Words brought that back with an effortless ease that made me want to cry because there aren’t enough authors who write today like Ellen O’Connell does.

Like I mentioned earlier in my review, Ellen creates some of very the best heroes and heroines I’ve encountered in romance novels. There’s a voice to Ellen’s work that speaks to you on a level beyond just words strung together that give meaning. These words, they speak to your soul. It invokes emotions in you that you don’t think possible and yet if you are a romance reader like myself, yearn for with every fiber for your being. I cried during moments of sweet angst and smiled so much at times that my face hurt. There’s nothing more beautiful to a reader than a well spun story that they can lose themselves in and Ellen has provided just that with every full length novel that she has published to date.

Bret; I swear I just trembled from want, every single time that icy control of his that shattered under the strength of his passions, be it anger against the wrongs in this world or his desire for the woman who consumes him. Bret is a hero who is uber masculine, one who is unabashedly manly and yet has a core of strength and honor in him that makes a woman fall like a ton of bricks. And fall hard, I did. There is no other way to say this; Bret, you own my heart.

With Hassie, Ellen has once again created her trademark variety of heroine. The fact that Hassie can’t speak was a novelty in itself, her outlook towards life, that sheer joy deep inside of her that reaches out from the pages and practically engulfs you in its hold is a powerful one. Without Words is an apt title for a book that speaks to the reader on so many levels and that too with a heroine who is unable to use her voice to communicate. I loved Hassie for everything she stood for. Her love for Bret hadn’t happened overnight, neither had she thrown herself at him just because she was dependent on her. Their love had been a slow and a fiery one, one that consumes you and leaves you with that wholesome glow of having been loved and loved well.

Ellen explores with her stories the hardship that life was during those times. The imminent threat of starvation, the price women had to pay to make a livelihood for themselves and the harsh reality of women without a man by their side, the rough and at times unforgiving land that could make or break a person; all that is vividly brought to life in every single novel that I have read from her. I’m so glad that I happened across the release of this one and Ellen, you’ve made my whole month by this beautiful story, which if you are a lover of romance novels definitely ought not miss!

The problem with finding a book that moves you enough to render you unable to do anything afterwards is the fact that you never want the story to end, you want the pages to go on, the magic to continue, the feelings that courses through you to never cease. And once you turn that last page, you feel like mourning, you feel like no other book would ever have that impact on you ever again and mostly it turns out to be true, because it is so rare these days to find new books that has everything going for them. So I treasure this diamond in the rough that shines vividly through and hope that someday soon I find yet again the magic that I discovered while reading Without Words, that undeniable magic that makes being a romance reader worthwhile.

Final Verdict: Without Words is a beautifully crafted masterpiece that touched every single piece of my soul. Definitely recommended!

Favorite Quotes

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ve done this too often to count, and I’ll be back before you know it, but you need to be ready to move out fast then.”
Her hand rested on his cheek, fingers soft by his temple, palm warm even through the growth of several days’ beard. Her body pressed close. She hugged him and was gone.
The cool wind blew in vain as he rode toward the town. The memory of her touch warmed him every step of the way.

She anticipated the kiss, expected hard pressure on her mouth and an invading tongue. Instead his lips brushed hers as lightly as butterfly wings before settling more firmly. Her arms tightened. So did his.
Her body molded to his, chest to chest, belly to belly. Her quickened breath matched the rhythm of his. His mouth caressed hers, played against hers. His teeth tugged gently on her bottom lip, and she opened for him, not invaded at all but joined. His tongue teased until she tried to imitate. From the sound he made deep in his throat, she succeeded.

The mattress moved under his weight. His lips feathered across hers. Her breath caught. A small moan escaped, and she tried to stifle it.
“Don’t,” he whispered against her lips, “Don’t keep anything inside. If you feel like talking that Greek at me, do it.”
She laughed, felt him inhale her laughter.
“You have the most beautiful laugh. It runs up and down my spine, shivers over my skin, and makes me want to grab hold of you like a mad man. You have no idea….” His mouth closed over hers again, his tongue tracing her upper lip, lower, along the seam.

The fever rose again, and soft sounds of desire escaped with each breath. She pulled at his shoulders again to bring him over her, and this time he gave what she wanted, settled between her thighs, slid into her hot, wet core, stretching her past what she had known. Her muscles spasmed, and he groaned.
She did it again, deliberately this time.
“Hassie.” Her plain name sounded like it belonged to someone else, someone beautiful and desirable and loved.

His heat enveloped her or maybe only merged with hers until the room lost its chill. Sweat prickled along her spine, and the tiny knot of reservation inside her dissolved in the flood of pleasure. She moaned softly, her teeth in her lower lip. Mine, she thought. Her hands fisted in his hair. Mine.

“Is that how you think of it?” she signed.
“I was being poetic, but yes, it got harder every year. I’m glad to be done with it. My only regret is I’ll never again see the look of wonder on your face when you see something like the Missouri River for the first time.”
“There will be other things to wonder at.”
“Without mountains and rivers what will there be?”
She fought the temptation to tell him of the greatest thing they would wonder over.
“There will be Christmas trees.”

Purchase Links: Amazon

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Shattered Witness by Anna DeStefano

Format: E-bookshatteredwitness
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Hero: Cole Marinos
Heroine: Shaw Cassidy
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: November 11, 2014
Started On: November 5, 2014
Finished On: November 6, 2014

Previously published under the name of Her Forgotten Betrayal, Shattered Witness by Anna DeStefano is a standalone romantic suspense of the contemporary genre. Shaw Cassidy, CEO of Cassidy Global Research wakes up at the hospital, suffering from amnesia after a terrible assault on her at her office premises. Three weeks later, Shaw finds herself living atop High Lake Mountain, trying to summon her elusive memories through rest and recuperation.

FBI Special Agent Cole Marinos insinuates himself into the investigation surrounding Shaw Cassidy for one reason. Shaw had been the only woman he had ever loved, her betrayal being the reason that had sent him away from her life 15 years back. While the whole investigation centers around the fact that the agency thinks Shaw has been selling groundbreaking research to enemies of the US like Iran, Cole believes in Shaw’s innocence. With her memory in tatters and the whole investigation riding on the return of her memory, Cole finds himself going above and beyond the call of his duty when he finds himself protecting Shaw once again, a role he swore to himself that he would never again partake in.

From the moment the presence of Cole penetrates through the fog of sheer terror that surrounds Shaw, her trust in him is an inexplicable one. Her need to move close to him one that embarrasses her on so many levels, making her think that the lonely existence that she had lived up till then had made her that desperate for affection. However, when her memories start rolling back in, Shaw realizes that there is more to Cole than meets the eye, their shared past one which makes her realize just how much Cole had sacrificed for her years back. Racing against a ticking clock and a villain who knows far too well what Cole and Shaw are up to, Cole finds himself taking the risk of losing the woman he loves more than his own life all over again by trying to clear up Shaw’s name and getting to the bottom of who it is that is toying with the both of them.

Shattered Witness is a well written novel. Anne DeStefano has a writing style that draws you in. The one thing that really stood out for me was the villain in the story. Surprising? I know. Though the villain is pretty easy to figure out for the reader, the villain would have won if not for Cole’s intervention. The plan all along had been to discredit and let Shaw take the fall or perhaps even send her to the loony bin. With years of meticulous planning, it would have been achieved had not Cole come riding to Shaw’s rescue. I like a good villain in a suspense novel and I got that in Shattered Witness.

Though Shaw and Cole are well created characters, I found myself on the side of feeling an intense dislike for Shaw. Though it did mellow a bit towards the very end of the story, I found Shaw to be a bit too self-involved perhaps? I could relate to her not being able to be there for Cole the one time he had needed her, which had been the reason why he had walked away all those years back. But from the moment Cole enters her life once again, and though he lies to her about him being an agent of the government which is something he had to do given her fragile frame of mind, Cole is nothing but sensitive to her wants and need for protection. His actions spoke louder than words. But the minute Shaw found out, the only thing she could find to do was lay the blame of them not working out this time around because of Cole and his deception. Ah!

Cole is one of those sexy and protective heroes that ladies will definitely love. However, I wanted him to man up a bit and make Shaw see the error of her thinking. One minute she is scared out of her mind, the next minute she’s the one that initiates the physical intimacy between them and towards the third act, she is throwing all the blame his way. In my opinion, from the very beginning Cole had loved Shaw more than the other way around. Or perhaps it is the protective streak in Cole that is a mile wide that goes to work the minute he sees the woman he loves in danger. Either way, I thought Cole to be a bit of a pushover; sorry to say that, which is why the impact of his character wasn’t as powerful on my emotions as I wanted it to be.

Even with the elements of the story that didn’t quite work out for me, I managed to enjoy the what Shattered Witness has to offer. Judging from the reviews that this story has received up till now, I think I am in the minority of those who feel this way about both Cole and Shaw. Recommended for fans of romantic suspense novels featuring protective heroes. Cole is definitely someone you’d want by your side when there is a mean villain out to get the best of you and you have absolutely no idea as to why.

Final Verdict: A villain that brings the story to life; there’s always a first time for everything.

Favorite Quotes

Breaking her vow not to scare Cole away by doing what she’d longed to since first setting eyes on him, she kissed him. Those inviting lips, chiseled cheekbones, and the lids of his bad-boy eyes. She tasted him . . . and . . . she remembered.
It burst to life within her—a savory mixture of needing and wanting and having. It wasn’t a beginning, the molten desire that consumed her. It held the full-on rage of completion. It was a craving for something she’d denied herself for too long, something that could own her forever in ways that would refuse to let her go.

She brushed his lips with hers. His breath rushed in. Her fingers dug into his biceps, determined to keep him with her if he decided to move away. His body tensed beneath her touch. His mouth inched away, and she prepared to beg. But then his lips crashed back to hers, this man who’d become a bridge between her dreams and her reality. And she was lost, swept along by the need pouring into her from his kiss.

Purchase Links: Amazon

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Chemistry With Calvin by Katie Allen

Format: E-bookchemistrywithcalvin
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Human Design, #3
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave Publishing
Hero: Calvin Scott
Heroine: Lauren Mayes
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: October 8, 2014
Started On: November 5, 2014
Finished On: November 5, 2014

Katie Allen is an author that I discovered a little bit earlier on to when I started my review blog. Katie is a superb writer of erotic romances. One of these days I just might give her books like Breaking the Silence another go and do a review. That was actually my very first book by Katie which I loved to pieces. Of late however, Katie has been focusing more on writing erotica of the m-m variety which I am not a fan of. Chemistry with Calvin that came out recently seemed a good place to once again revisit a favorite author of mine and that’s how I ended up reading this in one sitting.

Chemistry with Calvin is the third book in the Human Design series, the first book of which is Experimenting with Ed which still sits neatly in my TBR shelf in my iBooks. That being said, Chemistry with Calvin can be perfectly read as a standalone since I wasn’t any worse off having started with book #3 in the series.

Calvin Scott works as the mailman at the firm where Lauren Mayes works. Calvin being a man who keeps to himself with a huge beard covering most of his face and a don’t-come-near-me vibe that keeps most people away, Lauren cannot explain why she has such a fascination for the man. There is just something about Calvin that makes Lauren seek him out, something about him that calls to her inner woman that has a hard time keeping herself down.

When danger comes calling and Lauren rapidly falls into the mess, Calvin is left with no choice but to take Lauren with him to a safe place. With government agents who would stop at nothing chasing them across the country, Lauren finds out that with Calvin she has found just a tad bit more than she bargained for.

The attraction between Lauren and Calvin is one that sizzles right off the charts. Calvin is one who cannot remember a past that goes beyond his capture by the government agency that had experimented on him. And Calvin would do practically anything to not fall into their clutches once again. Though Calvin finds Lauren to be an utter distraction, he can’t help but be drawn towards the woman who cannot stop talking, who gets under his skin in more ways than one and brings out an animalistic side of him that Lauren definitely knows how to provoke.

The dialogs between Calvin and Lauren were at times laughter inducing. Calvin and his reluctance to get involved doesn’t prevent him from getting busy with Lauren in many other ways. And I totally found Calvin’s bossy kisses a huge turn on.

Recommended for fans of the series. Though in my opinion this is not the best of Katie Allen, it still has certain elements to it that testifies to the great writer she is.

Final Verdict: Chemical explosions of the scorching variety guaranteed!

Favorite Quotes

Air left her lungs in a rush as she clung to his shoulders, digging her short nails into his skin. It had to hurt but it only seemed to incite him further. He raised and lowered her, bringing them together with quick, almost violent thrusts. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move, couldn’t do anything except hang on and enjoy the ride. The rougher he fucked her, the more she enjoyed it, which would probably bother her if she weren’t flying toward an orgasm that promised to be more mind-blowing than any she’d ever had before.

“Babies, needles, psycho scientists!” Her hands flew in frantic circles. “We got the jumbo-sized box—how could we forget to use a condom?”
“Shit.” Cal sat up next to her. “You were touching me.”
She bounced out of bed and felt the evidence of their condom-less deed trickle down her thigh. “So it was my fault.”
“Fuck no.” He paused. “But your hands were touching me. Everywhere.”
“And you grabbed me and just popped it in, all bare and naked and possibly baby-making.” She started pacing.
“Fine. It was my fault.” He tracked her with narrow, hungry eyes. “It was my fault I fucked you bare. My fault you felt so incredible, so hot and wet and tight around my cock, I had to come in you. My fault I wanted to mark you, make you smell like me, make you mine.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | ARe | EC | eBookMall

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Cover Your Eyes by Mary Burton

Format: E-bookcoveryoureyes
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Zebra Books
Hero: Deke Morgan
Heroine: Rachel Wainwright
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: November 4, 2014
Started On: October 30, 2014
Finished On: October 30, 2014

It has been a while since I held a book in my hands that I didn’t want to put down, even to eat. It has been quite sometime since a book hasn’t forced me to keep turning the pages because the review was due and I was falling behind, again! Mary Burton’s Cover Your Eyes is my first book by hers and most definitely, it is not going to be my last. She had me hooked right from the prologue and what followed after up till the very end did not let me down.

Detective Deke Morgan is called to the scene a brutal murder in the middle of the night. Nothing extraordinary there except for the fact that Deke realizes that they have a crazy on their hands if the sheer viciousness of the kill is anything to judge the murder by. Rachel Wainwright is ready to stir the hornet’s nest that is the infamous Annie Rivers Dawson’s murder. In the name of Justice for Jeb Jones, Rachel is determined to leave no stone unturned in her quest to free the man accused and convicted of a heinous murder that had rocked the city 30 years back.

Deke is not amused by Rachel’s attempts to open a case that had been sitting tidily gathering dust for more than 3 decades. The fact that it had been Deke’s father who had worked the case makes it doubly harder for Deke to believe that anything amiss might have taken place when Jeb was convicted. However, Deke is not a man to turn his back on the tough situations. And the fact that the string of new murders that have rocked the city of late bears a resemblance to the murder of Annie haunts him enough to give the old case a more than cursory look to keep Rachel off his back.

Both Rachel and Deke aren’t the soft malleable types. Rachel is driven by the fact that she was unable to save her own brother and justice and truth had really not prevailed at all as she had hoped and prayed for back then. Deke has never known a life that didn’t involve crimes of the worst kind humanity has to offer. Working undercover for over a decade had left its mark on Deke as well. Two failed marriages attests to the fact that he is better off on his own and Rachel definitely is not the type of woman for him though Deke can’t deny the flare of interest and attraction that the challenge that is Rachel presents.

Piece after piece of the puzzle points towards the night Annie was bludgeoned to death and it is not long before Deke and Rachel reluctantly teams up to find who is behind the frenzied killing spree that seems to be hitting closer to home than both Deke and Rachel would like. In the midst of it all, the attraction that had been sizzling right from the onset breaks surface and there is no going back for either Deke or Rachel in the way they make each other feel.

Like I said at the start of my review, Cover Your Eyes is one of those novels that is hard to put down. From the minute I started reading, one thought kept crossing my mind; Mary Burton definitely knows how to spin a good yarn. Vibrant characters that leaps off the pages, suspense that kept turning the pages and subtle hints of a romance between the two leads gave a story that was worth losing myself into. If there is one thing that I can say about this book; you definitely would not be bored.

I loved both Deke and Rachel. They both invoked emotions of the good kind in me without much of an effort. I understood Rachel and the need that drove her to seek justice for those society would rather label as scum and move on. I admired her for the zeal that she shows and yet there is a vulnerable core to her that makes her the irresistible character that she is. Deke, sigh, now Deke was a hero who got to me. There are no vivid descriptions of him as to why readers should adore him because he is just that heroic or handsome, but there is an intensity and drive to him that perfectly syncs with Rachel. And man oh man, the minute Rachel undressed him and found all those tattoos, I swear that a part of me just swooned then and there.

If there is anything I would like to change in the story, it would be to increase the romance aspect just a bit. Even then, how the romance bit as it is covered in the story seemed to suite two people like Deke and Rachel who don’t require the overly done confessions of love that would bridge their emotional connection. Somehow, the wizard that Mary Burton is, she managed to give a satisfying story on all counts. I am definitely digging into her backlist to see whether there are any more books I might like. If you ask me, there are too few authors who do the romantic suspense genre justice and I believe I have found one in Mary Burton. Recommended.

Final Verdict: Mary Burton spins one hell of a story. Unputdownable!

Favorite Quotes

The look in Deke’s eyes told Rachel she’d effectively jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.
He released the door handle and cupped her face in his hands. Slowly, he smoothed his thumb over her jawline. The touch sent a shock through her body.
He leaned forward and kissed her on the lips.

He cupped calloused hands on her hips. “You’ve got me all figured out.”
“Doesn’t take a rocket scientist. Two divorces under your belt are warning enough.” She moved against him, smiling as he hardened. “But I don’t want forever. I want now.”
His hands trailed up her arms to her shoulders. He pulled her toward him and kissed her hard on the mouth. He hadn’t disagreed with words but his kiss had a possessive edge that said otherwise.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | eBookMall | iTunes

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Mine to Have by Cynthia Eden

Format: E-bookminetohave
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Mine, #5
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Saxon Black
Heroine: Elizabeth Ward
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: September 15, 2014
Started On: October 27, 2014
Finished On: October 28, 2014

The fifth book in the Mine series by Cynthia Eden tells the story of one uber sexy Saxon Black and the altogether too beautiful Elizabeth Ward. Saxon is an undercover FBI agent who is doing his last stint in the business. And that is what gets Saxon balls deep involved with Elizabeth, a woman who at first wants nothing to do with him.

Elizabeth does not know the reason for which she is abducted and held at gunpoint which she knows would soon be followed by her imminent death at the hands of her abductors. And the rough and altogether too dangerous for her peace of mind looking man who crashes into the room as her savior is not someone Elizabeth is willing to trust; until Saxon is the only thing that is standing between her and the bullets flying her way.

With the FBI infiltrated, Saxon and his boss Victor doesn’t know whom to trust, except for the fact that the only other person they can rely on is each other. An easy, by the book case turns into a nightmare of epic proportions with Elizabeth and Saxon having to run for their lives and Victor trying to make sense of the pieces of the puzzle left behind.

Saxon’s attraction to Elizabeth is an immediate one, one that he doesn’t realize could have fatal consequences for his heart as he soon finds out that Elizabeth would not be the only one left with the memories of a night embedded in her heart and soul. Elizabeth is determined that when Saxon leaves her after the whole nightmarish deal is over, he too would always carry her memory in his heart and no woman would ever measure up to her. And as they always say, the best laid plans have a way of laughing right back at you.

The Mine series exploded into the world of romantic suspense with a bang. I say a bang because the first two books in the series had pretty much everything going for it. Strong sexual chemistry and scorching sex scenes, intense action and suspense together with a strong believable emotional connection between the hero and heroine and I was in book heaven. Sad thing is, every book that has been released afterwards has paled in comparison for me.

Mine to Have definitely did have its moments. There is no author like Cynthia Eden who can turn up the heat from 0 to 100 in just a second and leave you practically spellbound in the aftermath. I guess what I had a problem with was the failure to connect with Elizabeth and Saxon on an emotional level. Saxon and Elizabeth’s pasts are glossed over; there was really no time to figure out who they were, where they were coming from and what made them tick, except for the fact that they couldn’t keep their hands off of each other.

The suspense factor was a bit better than the last novel, Mine to Crave. Cynthia managed to throw in a few curveballs and surprises along the way and I would have to say that definitely did make up for the bits and pieces that didn’t completely live up to my expectations. That being said, I am still interested in reading which looks to be Victor’s story up next.

Recommended for fans of the Mine series.

Final Verdict: Enjoy the wild scorching ride that is Saxon and Elizabeth!

Favorite Quotes

“I’m going to be rough,” Saxon warned her. Because he’d used the last of his control.
Her eyes were on him. Wide. She licked her lips. “I can be rough, too.”
His control shattered. In the next instant, he was on her. One more second, and he was in her. He drove as deep as he could go, shoving his dick into her tight sex and it was—
Too good.

He withdrew, plunged deep, and she opened her mouth to scream because the release was that violent.
“Bite me,” he ordered her. “Now.”
And instead of screaming, she found her cry muffled against his shoulder.
Then she felt him coming inside of her. Hot jets that told her—
“Saxon?” Her head lifted.
His eyes were a burning darkness. So complete and total. “Mine,” he whispered.
He kissed her once more.

He stopped when he was right in front of her. His hand lifted and brushed back the locks of her hair that had slipped over her cheek, then his fingers slid under that soft curtain of her mane as he tilted her head back. “I need a taste…”
Not of wine. Of her.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo

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