Category / Charming Hero

by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Whose Bed Is It Anyway? by Natalie Anderson

Format: E-bookwhosebadisitanyway
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: The Men of Manhattan, #1
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: James Wolfe
Heroine: Caitlin Moore
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: October 1, 2013
Started On: September 16, 2013
Finished On: September 26, 2013

Whose Bed Is It Anyway? by Natalie Anderson tells the story of medic and rescue man James Wolfe who comes from a rich family, who works in disaster-ravaged countries, a man paying his penance for his past. The demons that haunt him are many and James refuses to stand still or rather stay in one place for far too long unless of course he is working. Work is his salvation, the only time when he feels at ease with himself. Considered a hero by many, James nevertheless shies away from the limelight, the hero status something he feels he is unworthy of.

Caitlin Moore is running from the present; the spectacle that her life had become in the past couple of weeks. When a friend offers her a place to crash, Caitlin doesn’t hesitate to take him up on his offer to seek refuge in the welcoming blanket of anonymity she’d find out of her home country. What Caitlin doesn’t bargain on is ending up sharing a room and a bed with the most devastatingly sexy man to ever stride into her life.

With an attraction that won’t quit, and with James confined to his home for the duration upon which his supervisor forces him to take a couple of days off, both James and Caitlin decide to do the sensible thing and indulge in a little holiday fling that would give them both a whole lot of fun with no expectations on either side. But the kind of searing hot attraction that James and Caitlin shares does come with a price; the price of emotional entanglements that neither factors into the equation of their holiday affair.

I loved Whose Bed Is It Anyway? from its pretty cover to the couple in the story and the very tantalizing and toe-curling variety of scorching passion in this story. Most of all I loved the hero James, his grumpy and albeit sexy as sin persona which made me salivate a bit and then some over him. His utter focus and intensity is off the charts and adds that extra layer to his character which made James a hero to covet. I loved the fact that though his only aim was to have a holiday affair, the way he is taken unawares with just how much Caitlin comes to mean to him sends him on a tailspin which served to be one of the best bits about the story. And the passion, oh dear lord the passion between Caitlin and James was so well done that I couldn’t have asked for more!

Caitlin turned out to be a beautiful character, on the inside as well as the out. With an inner core of vulnerability from growing up with a family that had been too engrossed in performing their different roles in pursuit of an acting career, Caitlin has lived a life not of the kind that she wants for herself, but one that had been required of her from her father. Scars of the emotional variety lingers in Caitlin’s heart, her wounds never having completely healed over needing an outlet due to the latest fiasco in her life. In James’s arms Caitlin finds that she is safe, treasured and wanted all at the same time, a heady combination for a woman who has never been wanted for herself in her entire life.

I loved the ending of this story which brought a smile to my face and delight to my heart. There is a playfulness to the story, the witty banter and the smouldering passion between James and Caitlin just topnotch and the right amount in my opinion.

Recommended for fans of Harlequin romances and fans of Natalie Anderson. I am definitely going to be sampling more of Natalie’s work in the time to come. And the good news? There are two more books lined up in this series if I am not mistaken. Hoping for just as delicious stories for the other two brothers as this one!

Final Verdict: Snazzy fun, heat, laughter and love. You gotta love the smouldering goodness to this story!

Favorite Quotes

Given her gasp, her mouth was already parted. So was his. Hot, hungry, he lashed out with his tongue, claiming her with no hesitation.

It was all kiss. And not gentle. Not tender. Just raw, rampant hunger.

His fingers began to trail back up her leg, this time sliding under the tee. As he encountered the bare skin of her buttocks he groaned, his body flexing in automatic response—a powerful, passionate thrust that made her gasp even as he plundered her mouth with his tongue. For a long moment they lay locked—straining together, his tongue thrust deep, his blind cock seeking to drive deeper still, while she bore down on him, open and wet and willing.

She fell back on the bed. He fell with her, his lips connecting with hers. She closed her eyes as she sa- voured the glorious weight of him. His tongue stroked deeper this time, seeking knowledge. She let him find it—opening up to let him explore completely. She lifted her hands, exploring the breadth of his back, feeling the strength of his lean muscles. Oh, yeah, the guy was fit. Taut. Hot.

Slowly she looked from his face, to his shoulders and then down to where muscles tapered to slim hips and the trousers slung low. The front of his combats was taut. His hands went to his waistband, undoing the button with a teasingly slow hand. Caitlin tensed. He was getting to the good bit. He unfastened the next button, then rolled down the waistband—ex- posing skin.
Oh my.
Caitlin was entranced.

‘Show me how much,’ she asked. ‘Show me.’
This time he didn’t stop. This time his breathing roughened along with his movements. This time he swore pithy and crude as he told her again how good she felt. How he couldn’t stop. How he wanted more. And he took more. Pushed for her absolute acceptance of him. Driving into her over and over and over.

‘I want you,’ she said.
James swore, grabbing her wrist and striding out of the elevator the second the doors slid open. He un- locked the condo as quickly as he could, pulling her inside and slamming the door. He hauled her close and kissed her like the sex-starved animal he was. Furious satisfaction roared through him as she slid her arms around him and clung, opening instantly for him.

Purchase Links: Amazon | BookDepo | B&N | Harlequin | Kobo

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Bonds of Justice by Nalini Singh

Format: E-bookbondsofjustice
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Psy-Changeling, #8
Publisher: Berkley
Hero: Max Shannon
Heroine: Sophia Russo
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: July 6, 2010
Started On: September 10, 2013
Finished On: September 13, 2013

Bonds of Justice by Nalini Singh is the 8th book in the Psy-Changeling series. This series has come a long way and Nalini Singh has certainly managed to keep up the momentum and the pace of each of the stories in the series which is one reason why the entire set is so coveted by its legions of fans.

Bonds of Justice is the story of J Psy Sophia Russo, who at the tender age of 8 hadn’t been given much of a choice; to either become a J Psy or die. J Psy’s tend to have the shortest lifespan in comparison to either types of Psy in the fact that they have one of the most demanding sort of jobs on their minds and shields that is an essential makeup of Psy. J Psys are brought into retrieve memories of the most vicious criminals who need to remain behind bars for the rest of their life for the safety of the rest of the society. Sophia has always known that the time would come when one day she would have to give in to the fractured state of her shields which would mean her death, to be forgotten along with all the others just like herself.

Detective Max Shannon is one of the best detectives in New York Enforcement, a position that makes one of the most formidable Councilors of Psy, Nikita Duncan request for his services along with that of Sophia for a case of apparent suicides that has struck those closest to her. Already working on retrieving the memories of a psychopathic killer, a case on which Max is the lead the detective, Sophia knows that the fascination that she has harbored for Max just might be her undoing and bring death the inevitable death she is ready to face much closer than before.

Sophia is a scarred heroine if ever there was one. The horrors of her childhood, along with her abandonment issues together with that destructive career she leads makes her a disaster waiting to happen. The fact that the most innocent of touches may render her insane is a fact that hinders the burgeoning feelings that grow between Max and Sophia much more rapidly than either of them envisions. But Max is not a man to give up and neither is Sophia ready to do so on her cop, the only person who for the first time in her life is there for her, no questions asked.

Max is not a man who has led a charmed existence either. Having never known love from the woman who had given him life, Max carries a scar that has never properly healed in his heart ever since he was a child. Sophia and Max are two broken halves that make up a pretty darned fantastic whole and that is one aspect of the story that worked very well for me.

It is the makeup of the Psy along with the politics that governs their world that makes these stories so fascinating to sink oneself into. The NetMind itself is almost palpable in its reality, the treachery that is always a part of the powerful group of Councilors that oversees the affairs of the entire Psy a captivating aspect of every single one of these novels. Nikita is one of the most formidable Councilors, whose daughter Sascha becomes one of the first to defect from the PsyNet which causes the ripple effect that began the the sequence of events that seems to be the undoing of  the world of Psy. Bonds of Justice gives the readers insight into the worlds inhabited by Nikita and the rest of the Councilors, for all intents and purpose who have nothing but attaining power on their minds.

I found myself entirely way too fascinated with Kaleb’s character and Nikita’s too, a side of her that was revealed in this story that I would never have thought possible for a woman like her. While Max and Sophia juggle two cases that demands equal attention and focus from them, neither of them can ignore the heat, the oh so much heat that exists between them. It is almost as if the heat between them might result in them going up in a cloud of smoke; yes it was really that hot.

The villains provided the extra chills that managed to keep me hooked onto the suspense aspect of the story together with the romance and the politics that as always provided an unbeatable combination.

Recommended for fans of urban-fantasy/paranormal romances & fans of Nalini Singh.

Final Verdict: The intriguing insight into the Psy politics alone is reason enough to buy this! Recommended.

Favorite Quotes

Max felt Sophia’s hand tighten on his, wanted only to bend his head even farther and put his mouth on the unsteady beat of her pulse, suck hard. The possessive urge, the violent need to claim her to the core was a gnawing ache in his gut. He wanted the world to know she was his—make certain no one would dare lay a finger on her.

Shivering from the sensation, from the near-painful pleasure of the contact, she stood on tiptoe, trying to get closer. A raw male chuckle.
And then Max kissed her.
This was no brush, no teasing taste. He took her mouth with the contained intensity she could feel thrumming beneath her fingers, his muscles taut, his entire body held barely in check. And she realized he was savagely angry, a tiger no longer on the leash.

He felt it the instant she reacted, modified his stroke to what brought her the most pleasure, lifting himself off her enough that he could stroke downward to rub at the sensitive entrance to her body as well.
She was wet, slick. He couldn’t resist the temptation to dip his finger within. That was all it took.
A choked scream. Her body arching bowstring tight.

He could almost feel the vibrating tension in her, every tendon held taut. “I know who you are,” he said, holding her gaze. “I’m not going to be scared away because of your ‘imperfections.’ ”
A sheen of wet in her eyes, turning the midnight iridescent.
“We fit, you and I,” he whispered looking into that haunting gaze. “Two broken pieces making a whole.” It wasn’t the most romantic of statements, but it was torn from his soul. “I am not losing you.”

That slow, slumberous heat flamed, burned, but she took a step forward, lowered the zipper and then—taking a deep breath—pushed down both the jeans and her panties. Leaning forward to pull them off her feet, she could barely hear anything through the thunder of her heartbeat. Max didn’t say a word until she straightened back to her full height. But then he spoke . . . and she melted.

She swallowed as his fingers went to his jeans, as he undid the snaps and peeled the denim down his legs, along with his briefs. Her eyes were riveted to the thick length of his erection . . . to the hand he clasped around it. He stroked once, and her body arched. She couldn’t explain it, didn’t understand it, but the sight of him stroking his own flesh was the most erotic thing she’d ever seen. “Max.” A shuddering plea.

Shaking, she wrapped her other leg around him. The sudden act opened her up, made him slide inside faster than before.
They both cried out, and Max froze above her. “Sophie?”
She ran her teeth up the line of his throat. “Yes.” Always, yes for this man.

Her panties were torn off her, his fingers urgent as he tested her slickness. Lifting a leg, she wrapped it around his hip. He swore, lowered the zipper on his pants, and then the hot, hard heat of him was thrusting into her, pinning her against the wall. She cried out, holding on, holding him tight.

Purchase Links: Amazon | BookDepo | B&N | iTunes

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: To Love a Dark Lord by Anne Stuart

Format: E-booktoloveadarklord
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Avon Books
Hero: James Michael Patrick
Heroine: Emma Mary Catherine Langolet
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: December 28, 1994
Started On: September 9, 2013
Finished On: September 10, 2013

So what happens when I finish an Anne Stuart novel and wonder what to read next? Like a junkie with an addict, I WANT the next fix from Anne Stuart which plagues me until I give in. I must be thankful for the fact that there are so many books by her that I have still yet to read. Though I have mostly focused on her contemporary romances to-date, that changed with Never Kiss A Rake that was published this year, that I reviewed previously. Since To Love A Dark Lord is a romance that is loved by many, I thought I would get my next dose of Anne Stuart by plunging into the first ever romance that Anne Stuart attempted to write featuring a dark hero.

James Michael Patrick, the Earl of Killoran is a man who is haunted by too many nightmares, that he has retreated into his own shell, a man who many thinks is beyond redemption or saving. James himself knows that he is as such and he does what he does for reasons that he alone understands. Though lately life has become one bore fest after another and little has provided amusement for him except for hiding his pain behind consumption of spirits, when James stumbles onto Emma who accidentally stabs her lustful uncle to death, life as James knows it changes. Taking the blame for her uncle’s death is something James does on a whim, for the mere amusement the deed brings him.

When Emma is rescued by the sinfully handsome man who doesn’t spare her a backward glance before striding out of her life just like he swooped in to save her from her imminent death, Emma doesn’t know what to do with all the freedom that beckons her after a life spent in enforced solitude from which it had felt that there would be no escape from. Coming to the understanding that her savior wants her to forget him gives her the blow necessary to take her fate into her own hands, which inevitably brings her into the hands of none other than James himself, this time rescuing her to his own intents and purpose to serve as the pawn that would draw out his long time enemy, to enact the revenge that he has been waiting for a long time.

Emma though an inexperienced virginal heroine makes for a swell character. Her gutsy determination in the face of everything that is totally alien to her is to be admired. The fact that Emma understands the pain that is buried deep inside of James was the one factor that had me falling head over heels in love with her. Emma, though she doesn’t know her place in James’s heart or life, nevertheless does everything she possibly can to be there for him, without asking for anything back from him in return.

James of course, turned out to be the type of hero that I absolutely love to read about. There is a certain elegance to the heroes that Anne Stuart creates, even with that coldness that resides inside of them, that aloofness that drives readers crazy to find that one redeemable aspect about him that serves to be the pivotal aspect of the story. And with James, her very first hero with dark elements certainly did not disappoint.

As many reviewers have already pointed out, there is such a wealth of pain inside of James that it is hard not to want to reach out to him and wrap him in your embrace so that you might absorb some of that pain into your own self. James might never wish to think of himself as the knight without all that shining armor who strides to Emma’s rescue time and yet again. But something about Emma calls to him on a baser level, something he fights with every fiber in his being to prevent himself from succumbing to the lure that she presents. If not for the fact that Emma understands all this and more when it comes to James, and is just as helplessly drawn to him as he is to her, James would not have managed to find the sort of love he finally does in Emma’s embrace.

When you read an Anne Stuart, you always tend to have this emotional whirlpool viciously rolling around inside of you. And that tends to expand with the kind of angst that only a dark hero can deliver and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect read that balanced out the darkness, the angst and later on a love that held me enthralled and going back to read the epilogue tucked in at the end time and yet again. I don’t remember how many times I read the epilogue which was short, yet brought to light the life of James and Emma 9 years down the line. If the story hadn’t already been embedded deep into my heart, the epilogue certainly would have sealed the deal for me.

I would be remiss in my review if I were not to mention the secondary romance that takes place in To Love a Dark Lord. The romance that buds to life between the 23 year old Nathaniel Hepburn, a distant cousin of sorts of James whom he takes under his wings in order to teach him a thing or two about depravity, who ends up falling in love with the very unusual and extremely beautiful Lady Barbara Fitzhugh. Theirs was a romance that moved me to tears, Barbara’s story one that I wished I had gotten to read in a full length novel just dedicated to her and Nathan.

Recommended for those who love their heroes dark and a bit twisted. And definitely for fans of Anne Stuart.

Final Verdict: If you are fan of Anne Stuart, this is an absolute must-not-miss!

Favorite Quotes

The house was still and quiet. And somewhere, faintly overhead, he heard the sound of music. Emma was playing again, something soft and lilting and unexpectedly sad. A moment passed before he recognized it. It was an old Irish lullaby, one he’d heard from his nurse thirty years ago.
And James Michael Patrick, the fourth Earl of Killoran, the man without weakness, honor, or decency, closed his eyes in quiet desperation.

It wasn’t one kiss, it wasn’t twenty, it was a long series of unending kisses, leading one into another, so that she barely had time to begin to regain her sanity when he stripped it away once more. He kissed her eyelids, the side of her mouth, the beating pulse at the base of her neck. He kissed her nose and her chin, he bit her earlobe, and then he covered her mouth once more, kissing her with a devastating thoroughness that had her damp and trembling in his arms.

He kissed her temple, her cheekbone, her angular nose. And then in the shadowy night his mouth sought hers.
It was light and darkness, sin and forgiveness, hell and redemption. She put her arms around his waist, pulling him closer, closer still. She could feel the warmth of his strong back through the fine linen shirt; she could taste brandy on his mouth. His hand was between them, against her breast, and she hated the layers of cloth that separated them.

She started past him, and he kept his focus inward, thinking of nothing at all. He would have made it if her chemise hadn’t brushed against his hand. If she hadn’t paused one dangerous second too long.
He caught her, no longer caring what he was doing. She cupped his face, reaching up to kiss his mouth, and it was the last straw. He ripped at her clothes, ripped at his, a maddened beast, shoving her down on the hardwood floor, covering her with his strong body.

He reached down and caught her thighs, lifting them up around him. It was too late now. He’d fought it, and her, and now he was the one who had lost. He’d given in to a need so powerful it overwhelmed all others, and all he could do was revel in the feel of her hot, tight body around his, the furious pounding of her heart against his bare chest, her fingers digging into his back, scratching at him, tearing at him, as he thrust into her again and again, searching for a part of him he’d lost long, long ago.

He understood her choked, breathy little cry, so different from the studied sounds she usually made. He knew her restlessness, her heat, and her need. He knew how to love her. And when the first explosion hit her, it was so powerful, so unexpected, that she screamed, clutching at him, and his formidable control vanished, and he pushed deep, holding her, filling her, giving to her instead of taking.

He thought he could prolong it, but he was helpless against the tide of need that swept over him. He needed her, needed to take her in this bed, this house, this land. He needed to thrust deep and fill her with his seed. He needed to claim her, and claim his heritage. He’d fought it for too long.
He lifted himself above her, staring down at her as the bed rocked beneath his powerful, rhythmic thrusts. Her eyes were open as well, looking up at him, and then her eyes fluttered closed as her body convulsed around him, and he came as well, rigid in her arms, no longer fighting it, and her, and his own lonely heart.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Smashwords

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Never Kiss a Rake by Anne Stuart

Format: E-bookNeverKissARake
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Scandal at the House of Russell, #1
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Hero: Adrian Bruton, Earl of Kilmartyn
Heroine: Bryony Arielle Josephine Russell
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: August 20, 2013
Started On: September 5, 2013
Finished On: September 9, 2013

Anne Stuart is on the list of my utmost favorite authors though I discovered her books a bit late in my reading life. The one reason I love her books is how unabashedly honest she is with her characters and she brings to the romance genre the darkest heroes that you would encounter that makes them that much harder to forget and move on from after you are done reading a tale from her.

Never Kiss a Rake is her latest release and my very first historical romance from her. Book 1 in the Scandal at the House of Russell series, this series is focused on the 3 sisters of the Russell household who suddenly find themselves destitute with nowhere to turn to when their father is killed. Bryony the eldest of the three is determined that she would get to the bottom of everything and erase the black name from her family name that would provide the opportunity for her sisters to marry and lead respectable lives.

To embark on the journey which would bring her to the truth, Bryony takes the position of housekeeping at the home of Adrian Bruton, the Earl of Kilmartyn. While secrets shroud him and the life he shares with his wife, Bryony is definitely not prepared for the way she yearns for the beautiful man that Adrian is. Bryony is shocked to say the least with the wanton desire that takes a hold of her and refuses to let go, until she succumbs with her heart, body and soul to the man who holds all her senses enthralled.

Adrian is a man who is bound by circumstance to the life he leads. While he doesn’t trust Bryony to be who she says she is, Adrian cannot help himself with the way he yearns for her and wants her to succumb to the desire that is a visceral part of the fragile relationship that forges between them. With a killer who lurks freely amidst them, counting the days until he can complete the path of revenge he has chosen which gives this romance the edge that it requires, Never Kiss a Rake though it doesn’t offer the usual darkness and depravity that is part of Anne Stuart novels, nevertheless proved to be an entertaining read that kept me up late into the night.

I loved Adrian. What’s not to love about an Irish hero whose good looks alone is enough to make a woman swoon from his utter beauty alone? And then there is the way he gets under Bryony’s skin, the way he slowly seduces her into giving into the explosive passion that bursts into life between them from day one. Adrian is not the dark type of hero that Anne Stuart usually creates, but he is the perfect fit for someone matter of fact and practical like Bryony who needs more than her fair share of beauty and love in her life. And that in my opinion is what makes this book a winner.

Recommended for fans of Anne Stuart and historical romances with a bit of suspense in the mix.

Final Verdict: Anne Stuart is a master in storytelling, whichever genre she chooses to write.

Favorite Quotes

Her breasts were hot, there was a tight feeling in her belly, and she wanted… she wanted… she couldn’t name what she wanted. She could only feel it.
And he was feeling it too, she knew it. That look was holding him captive as well, unable to move, staring down at her with fathomless emotion, need and doubt and surprise.

He moved closer, blotting out the fitful light, and she thought, now I am going to be kissed, really kissed, and she closed her eyes, preparing herself.
Instead, his mouth moved to her ear, and his teeth bit down on her earlobe. Instead of pain, warmth flooded her body, and her eyes flew open again. “Just so you know there are other, surprising places that can be almost as much fun as lips,” he whispered, before his mouth closed over hers.

Before she could say anything he kissed her again, no teasing this time, just a hungry demand, and she felt her body tremble with longing that she didn’t understand, could only feel. She wanted this man. She wanted to stay here, lie beneath him, have him push between her legs and take her as a man took a woman. It was wrong, it was selfish, and it didn’t matter.

Bryony tasted of cognac and salt tears and sweet, untutored lust. She tasted of the redemption he could never have, the fiery hell he was heading for.

She sucked in her breath. She could feel him everywhere, he possessed her, owned her, and she wanted to weep with the beauty of it. Because as she was his, he was hers, shaking in her arms, thrusting, a deliberate pace that began to grow faster.

He cursed, a low, guttural sex word, and twisted his hips against her, and the darkness hit, turning everything into a cataclysmic explosion that rocked every inch of her. She was barely aware that he’d pulled out of her, that warm wetness spread over her belly, and she would have cried out, but her voice was strangled in her throat, and then he covered her mouth with his, swallowing the last of her protest, the last of her passion, and she wanted him back inside her.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Cake by Lauren Dane

Format: E-bookcake
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novella
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Gregori Ivanov
Heroine: Wren Davis
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: September 15, 2013
Started On: September 5, 2013
Finished On: September 5, 2013

Gregori Ivanov is an artist whose bad boy image keeps at bay and hides his true nature from the clamoring fans who always seems to want one thing or the other from him. His marriage and the divorce that had followed suite, together with the destructive relationship he tends to have with his ex-wife seems to have driven up the walls that protect his heart and emotions with iron bars.

Wren Davis is an art student, working as a part-time messenger to pay the bills which brings her to the home of the ultra gorgeous Gregori who makes her want and crave for him in a way she has never craved anyone ever before. The friendship and the flirty relationship that has been going on between Gregori and Wren for the past year or so reaches its breaking point and tumbles over when Gregori is driven to take a bite of the woman who has been driving him slowly crazy for the past couple of months. Wren is determined that she would make Gregori give in to the heat and obvious connection that is way more than just physical between them. And Gregori finds out the hard and delicious way that he is indeed no match for a determined Wren from getting all that she wants.

Cake though a short read proved to be an explosively good one. There is of course the hero Gregori who made me practically salivate with that bad boy charm of his and that predatory soul that comes to life within him when Wren is in the picture. Gregori might want to resist Wren with everything that he is for all the wrong reasons and that is exactly what gives this story the edge it required.

Wren was a lovely heroine. I loved her for her independence and her resilience when it came Gregori which made her put her foot down and work for the man she had fallen for. While the sex was of the scorching hot and panty melting variety, it is the connection between them outside of the bedroom that made my heart melt and made me root for them big time!

With just the right amount of body tingling variety of scorching hot sex and a hero who slips to  muttering in Russian in the throes of passion, I couldn’t have found a better way to spend the one hour it took to devour this scorching goodie! Highly recommended!

Final Verdict: Sizzling chemistry and a Russian hero = Win!

Favorite Quotes

He tasted like…well like everything she’d imagined he’d taste like. The spice of the Turkish tobacco in the French cigarettes he smoked. A little bit of vodka. Some cinnamon, probably from the gum he’d been chewing. And something else she couldn’t define but was all his anyway.
Heat raced through her veins. She nipped his bottom lip and he groaned again. She laved the sting with her tongue and tasted the kiss, the need between them and it was her turn to groan.

She climbed into his lap and he drew a shaky breath.
“I felt just how much you wanted me then.” She rolled her hips, grinding herself against his cock. “I feel it now. Question is, Gregori, do you enjoy me as much as you enjoy cake? And how can you know unless you take a taste?”
She brushed her lips over his mouth and his eyes snapped open. “Indeed.”
His muscles, which had been tense, loosened and then he pounced. He wrapped his arms around her, hauled her closer and kissed her.

She grabbed his waist, working his pants open. He swore when she took him in her hand, fisting, sliding up and a down a few times.
He muttered in Russian, drawing aside the straps from her camisole and bra, kissing the bare skin he left behind.
More muttering in Russian. Hearing it made her so hot.
“What? What are you saying? You’re giving me a complex.”
He snorted, tipping his head to look into her face. “I can’t get at all of you adequately here.”

“He’d better not fuck and dash.” Zoe sniffed as she cracked her beer open.
“He’s not what he tries to portray to the outside world. He’s a nice guy. Yes, he’s bossy and imperious and totally spoiled. But there’s more to Gregori than what you see at first glance.”
“Speaking of that. So… equipment wise you’d say? Standard? Deluxe? Premium?”
“Presidential suite.”

He drove her up fast. Relentless and when she came it was hard, rushing up from her toes to the top of her head as she clamped down around him. She heard the growl, a snarl of a sound as he followed, the hand at her hip tightening just shy of pain.

He watched the ghost of their reflection in the window, the way her lip caught between her teeth. Wanton. Even as he had her, he wanted more. He knew even as he came that he’d want her again within minutes.
She tightened herself around him and he growled. “Don’t think I didn’t miss this.” “You’d better have.”
She pushed back hard and fast, tightening up again and it was too much, he tumbled down, coming, his head back on a snarl of her name.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N 

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by mvbookreviewer

Requested ARC Review: Darke London by Coleen Kwan

Format: E-bookdarkelondon
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Steampunk Romance
Series: Uncanny Chronicles, #1
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Hero: Nellie Barchester
Heroine: Julian Darke
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: September 10, 2013
Started On: September 2, 2013
Finished On: September 5, 2013

When Coleen Kwan approached me with a request to review her newest release Darke London, I was a bit apprehensive to say the least because Steampunk is not my favorite brand of romance and I usually tend to shy away from romances of that sub genre. But from page one of Darke London, I was pleasantly surprised with just how much I enjoyed and came to love the romance that unfurled between the protagonists.

24 year old Julian Darke is tormented by the need to seek out the truth about his mother and why he was left on the doorstep of the man who brought him up. Though Julian has never wanted for anything while growing up, he cannot help but yearn with everything inside of him to seek out the truth, even when it brings danger into his life of the variety that just might mean he end up losing everything that he holds dear to him.

When Julian comes to the rescue of Nellie Barchester at the hands of a mad man hellbent on murdering her, he has no inkling of just how much he would come to crave the woman whose mystery and allure only increases with the scars left behind from the injuries subjected to her body. Nellie wakes up from one nightmare to fall into another; to find out that she would always shock people with her appearance. Her need to keep her past and what she aims to do when she gets better a secret is purely a survival instinct, something that doesn’t help matters when her body and heart starts yearning for that of her rescuer who seems to become as much smitten with her as she is with him.

Add in a villain who would practically stop at nothing to have his way and the mystery behind the “murder” of Nellie, Darke London served to be a delectable read. Julian proved to a refreshingly delicious and appealing hero of the variety that had me sighing over his character every now and then. Nellie was just as an appealing heroine, someone who isn’t afraid to go after what she wants and never afraid to fight for the man she wants. That in my opinion is what a heroine should be and Nellie proved herself a worthy one in every aspect. I’d love to know whether Julian’s closest friend Gareth Derringer who looks like he would have a very interesting tale to tell.

Recommended to fans of historical romantic suspense with a dash of steampunk in it.

Final Verdict: Excellent appetite wetter for the rest of the books to follow in the Uncanny Chronicles series.

Favorite Quotes

The sight of Julian’s naked sweaty chest incited a hornets’ nest of illicit desire in her. Heat flared low and heavy in her abdomen. Dampness sprang out on the back of her neck, between her breasts, and even—heaven help her—beneath her drawers. As Julian wrestled with his friend, his trousers stretched tight around his thighs, drawing her attention to his flagrantly virile thews. Nellie swallowed hard as erotic sensations surged over her, followed quickly by hot, hedonistic and deeply disturbing imaginings of Julian gloriously naked and rampant, bending over an equally naked and impassioned woman— herself.

She made a tiny gasp, and he feared she would pull away, but then her lips softened and yielded against his, and it felt as though the blazing summer sun had burst through. The honey of her kiss poured out like hot lava through him, surging to every region. It was as if he’d been frozen for eons, and now the heat of her mouth was flooding his body, dissolving all the ice.

“I am a shameless wanton,” she whispered back. As her hands moved feverishly over his chest, her spurs unsheathed and caught in the soft fabric of his shirt, tearing a rent at his collar. She sucked in a breath, then bent her head and licked at the patch of bare skin exposed.
Julian inhaled as the warm moist tip of her tongue swirled over his skin. “Sweet Jesus, don’t stop.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Samhain

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Her Favorite Rival by Sarah Mayberry

Format: E-bookherfavoriterival
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Mathews Sisters
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Zachary Black
Heroine: Audrey Mathews
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: September 3, 2013
Started On: August 31, 2013
Finished On: August 31, 2013

Her Favorite Rival by Sarah Mayberry, though not up to par with the most recent releases from her still managed to be a romance that captivated me from start to finish. Some books require an effort to trudge through them, page after page, because its just difficult to give up when you have invested so much of your time in reading that book. But Mayberry’s books stand apart from this crowd as her books always manages to provide all those elements that makes a romance work on so many levels.

Her Favorite Rival is the story of work rivals Audrey Mathews and Zachary (Zach) Black. Audrey is the one who has made her way through the different levels through sheer grit and determination with a whole lot of experience at her back to support her. But Zach who joined just six months back seems to have what she doesn’t; the weight of college earned degrees that speaks volumes. Audrey knows that Zach is the only contender that she should be worried about regarding the upcoming promotion and she is ready to pull all stops into impressing the new management when an assignment pushes both Audrey and Zach together which forms the basis of their relationship.

Mayberry does quite an impressive job of bringing to the readers the pressures of trying to perform in an organization which really drives a hard bargain with its employees. Audrey and Zach are both ambitious and career-driven people, both for different reasons, but similar in the aspect that it is the demons of the past that drives them and has scarred them on levels that they are not even prepared to acknowledge when the relationship between them fosters into being.

Audrey makes the huge mistake of judging Zach based on his good looks and the charm he exudes, but she couldn’t have been more wrong even if she had tried. Mayberry brings to the table the “other side” of what its like to grow up with a drug addict as a parent, the pain of seeing the one person you love continue to go back and feed an addiction that never seems to cease. The shame that clings onto a person for not being able to stop loving that person no matter how destructive a force the person’s continued addiction becomes. Not an easy subject, but I think Mayberry did a splendid job in that aspect of the story.

Her Favorite Rival seemed to begin with a bang and waned a little towards the middle and then picked up again towards the latter part of the book. Even then, a Mayberry book is always worth the investment in time and money and if you love contemporary romances with deeper and in depth stories, this one’s definitely recommended!

Final Verdict: Mayberry delivers a great romance amidst the grit and realities that is life.

Favorite Quotes

“I tell you who won’t be going, though—Zach. Fifty bucks he gets a promotion out of all of this.”
Audrey reached for the fries. “He’s not that good.”
“Sorry, sweetie, but he is. He’s smart, he’s good at what he does and he could charm a snake out of its skin.”
Audrey rolled her eyes. “You’re only saying that because you have a soft spot for him.”
“Yeah, it’s called a vagina.”

He was already hard, his arousal a hot pressure against her belly. The ache between her thighs demanded that she rub against him, that she slide a hand around his waist and grip his backside and haul him closer still.
He muttered something urgent against her mouth, then his hands were on her breasts, cupping and squeezing them through the thin cotton of her shirt. She gave a small, inar- ticulate moan when his thumb grazed her nipple, and when he caught it between thumb and forefinger and squeezed she almost dissolved on the spot.

He was reaching for her before she could process his words. One second she stood on the doorstep of his house, the next she was inside, her back against the wall, his mouth and body against hers. He tasted of heat, his tongue stroking hers with demanding greed, his body large and powerful as it pressed into hers. Her hands found his bare shoulders, closing over warm, hard muscle, even as his thigh slid between hers, forcing the heart of her into intimate contact with his leg.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Harlequin | iBooks

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins

Format: E-bookthenextbestthing
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Ethan Mirabelli
Heroine: Lucy Lang
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: August 27, 2013
Started On: August 26, 2013
Finished On: August 28, 2013

The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins, though I got it off of Netgalley as an ARC is not an altogether a new publication. This book was first published in 2010 and has been on my to-be-read pile for quite sometime now. And though I didn’t figure this fact out until I was about to begin reading this, it just made me wonder a little why Harlequin hadn’t listed this as a republication.

The Next Best Thing is a book that bears all the hallmarks of Kristan Higgins. There is humor of course, weird and laugh out loud variety of family antics to go around, a hero and heroine who for all intents and purpose spend most of the book apart and yet find their happily ever after towards the end and a dog or a cat to complement the picture. However, there is a slight difference when it comes to The Next Best Thing because the protagonists, i.e. Ethan and Lucy have been sleeping with each other even before the story begins.

The synopsis that goes with the story is a bit misleading to say the least, perhaps not to give the story away? Lucy is a widow, and  going on 5 plus years in her current status quo. The thought of moving on and finding someone else to share her life with stresses her to the point that the panic attacks that she has held at bay for sometime comes calling again, but the children that she wants to fill her life with urges her to seek a husband who would be an emotional risk-free investment on her part.

Having brought to an end her mostly weekend trysts with Ethan that has been going on for two years, Lucy tries to find that someone who meets all her criterion, all of them falling short of the mark for one reason or the other. Lucy doesn’t want the complication of even thinking of Ethan as a viable choice to share the rest of her life with, but time and yet again, it is Ethan that she misses like a proverbial ache in her heart, his companionship that she seeks when she has something worthy of sharing, and the combustive chemistry that they had shared that makes her want to rip her clothes off and get down and dirty with him every time she sees him.

Underneath the veneer of laugh-out-loud humor, The Next Best Thing is a story that waged an emotional warfare inside of me. I hated Lucy for what she continuously put Ethan through, all the while wondering how she could have been so clueless. But I guess given the circumstances and the pedestal upon which she had placed her dead husband, it was hard to see past that and see Ethan, the man who had always stood with her and beside her, unwavering in his support for her, no matter what. There was  this part of me that absolutely sympathized and empathized with what Lucy goes through. I have survived tragedy of the panic-inducing variety and I know what its like to battle with it every single day afterwards. And change, is definitely a trigger and that is exactly what Lucy is subjected to when she sets out to get out of the “rut” into which her life had fallen into after the death of her husband.

Ethan is a character to absolutely die for. Ethan and his emotions never making it to the forefront is one of the reasons why I tend to steer clear of books told in first person from just one character’s point of view. I would have dearly loved to see things from Ethan’s point of view, the heartache and desolateness that is part of him that was evident to see even when his point of view wasn’t part of the story. Simply put, I loved Ethan and everything to do with him, his unwavering courage in standing by and letting the woman he has loved ever since he set eyes on her find her way on her own terms telling in itself. A lesser man would have walked away to restore the pieces of his heart but Ethan sees it all through even if it must have broken him from inside out. The fact that he has always been considered “the next best thing”, even by his parents was heartbreaking to see. And Lucy not seeing it for so long just made my hands clench and unclench every single time such an incidence came up in the story.

Perhaps, I might not put Lucy into the category of heroines that I hated by the end of the story, but she certainly is someone who was difficult to fall in love with because of her blind devotion to the memory of a man who was less than perfect but made otherwise by those who had adored him to the point that the rest had just paled in comparison and faded into the background. I had a pebble the size of Mount Everest in my throat by the time I finished reading this in the wee hours of the morning. But every emotion wrangling bit towards the end was so worth it! So very worth it. And the epilogue tucked in at the end certainly went a long long way into soothing my ruffled feathers where Ethan is concerned.

Recommended for fans of Kristan Higgins, those who love romances with a large dose of humor and books that invoke a shitload of emotion from you!

Final Verdict: Worth every bit of emotion it wrenches out of you! Ethan is a must have on your bookshelf.

Favorite Quotes

His arms tighten around me, and the hangers rattle again as we knock against them, and now his lips are on my neck, the gentle scrape of his beard contrasting with the warm silkiness of his mouth. My knees soften in an almost painful rush. Then his mouth finds mine again, and the kiss is not so gentle this time…desperate, hungry, hot and forbidden and utterly welcome.

My hands move to his chest, and his skin is hot, practi- cally burning me through the cotton, and I can feel the hard thudding of his heart. Without thinking, I tug his shirt and slip my hands underneath.
“Lucy,” he mutters against my mouth. “Honey, wait.” But I just kiss him again and slide my hands against the smooth skin of his back, his ribs, and pull him closer, wanting him against me. He shifts so we’re closer, his mouth hot and hard. Waiting is forgotten.

Then he leans in closer so that our foreheads touch. “You sure, honey?” he asks
“Yes,” I whisper, and his mouth is on mine. His hand slides under my T-shirt and cups my breast, and my breath catches. He tastes so good, feels like heaven and I can’t believe I’ve waited so long for this. His mouth moves to my neck, a hot jolt shudders through me, and I sink into the bed, the sun hot on my skin, and give my- self away.
And I realize that despite my intentions, I’ve fallen in love after all.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Harlequin | Kobo | Diesel

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Personal Assets by Kelsey Browning

Format: E-bookpersonalassets
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Texas Nights, #1
Publisher: Carina Press
Hero: Cameron Kyle Wright
Heroine: Alice Ann Shelby
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: August 26, 2013
Started On: August 20, 2013
Finished On: August 26, 2013

Turned out being bad with Allie was so damned good.

Cameron Kyle Wright returns to his hometown of Shelbyville in Texas with a sense of homecoming, to start his own business, make a name for himself and perhaps find a woman to settle down with and start a family. But he is barely home before he runs into the all too delectable Alice Ann Shelby, the cossetted daughter of the most prestigious family in town.

Allie knows trouble of the good kind when she sees it. And the six foot of grumpy ruggedness that Cameron presents calls out to all her girly bits to stand up and take notice and perhaps have a go at him while they are at it. With a PHD in hand, Allie is the owner of a body image and sexuality counseling service in town aka a sex therapist, a business that is frowned upon by her father who had never in reality approved of anything she has done with her life.

When Allie proposes to Cameron a deal that includes all inclusive hot and mind-blowing sex whose by-product would be intense orgasms that would leave both of them begging for more, Cameron is hesitant to get down and dirty with a woman like Allie. For someone who wants and craves respect from his townsfolk, Cameron finds out that getting his dose of mind obliterating sex with Allie just might be worth all the hassle that she brings to the other aspects of his life as well.

With humor that begs one to laugh out loud; and I guarantee you that you wouldn’t be able to hold your laughter in even if you tried, Personal Assets by Kelsey Browning is a contemporary romance for those who love humor interlaced with every aspect of their romances. There’s plenty of heat to go around, with a cast of characters that holds their own and are appealing protagonists for the books that are certainly to follow in the Texas Nights series.

Cameron’s character is not one easily discernible when you first start out with the story. His character is revealed bit by bit and mostly towards the end of the story. Cameron is a giver at any cost, which is evident both in his actions in and out of bed. The way he totally and utterly focuses on pleasuring Allie is something to be savored, the way he wants to protects her even out of a misguided sense of responsibility one that is endearing and exasperating at the same time.

Allie has her work cut out for her when at first Cameron tries and resists her advances to take things slow. However, Allie on a mission is hell on wheels for any heterosexual male’s libido and that is how she wins him over together with other aspects of her character that comes out when she is with Cameron. The one thing she doesn’t factor into their supposedly meaningless trysts is the fact that her heart might become involved, that Cameron might be the one to get past the barriers and finally lay siege on her heart.

Recommended for those who love romances from authors like Jill Shalvis and Kristan Higgins. With heat of the panty melting variety, Personal Assets makes for a scorchingly great debut of the Texas Nights series.

Final Verdict: Humor, heat and heart makes for an unbeatable read!

Favorite Quotes

As he rolled to his side to rest his shaking arms, Cameron tried to ignore the way his heart was also pulsing, but not just from physical effort.
She’d asked for sex, plain and simple.
Whether she knew it or not, they’d already blown right past simple.

She kissed the base of his throat, and his chest rumbled against her breasts. He two-stepped them right off the dance floor and into a dark hallway. He gripped her hips in rough hands and lifted her, her thin bodice rubbing his chest, aligning their lips. He backed her against the wall and, within a single heartbeat, the kiss became a symphony of tangled tongues and mingled breaths. His arms tightened around her so she could barely inhale. They’d said barely a word, but their bodies were in deep communication.

Suddenly, he gripped her hips tighter and thrust into a sitting position so his face was even with her breasts. She wrapped her legs around his hips, leveraging him even deeper. He gave her a look that could’ve peeled the paint off one of his cars, burning and wild. Then his mouth was on her breast, surrounding, sucking, taking all of her inside his mouth.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Carina

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: First Temptation by Joan Swan

Format: E-bookfirsttemptation
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novella
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Covert Affairs, #1.5
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Taft Walker
Heroine: Zoe Brooks
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: August 19, 2013
Started On: August 16, 2013
Finished On: August 17, 2013

Supervisory Border Control Agent Zoe Brooks gets tangled up with Agent Taft Walker from the Counterterrorism unit of the Department of Homeland Security in a joint quest to bring down Mexican drug smugglers of the El Diablo cartel.

From the moment Taft and Zoe meet, sparks fly, regardless of the fact whether they both want it or not. Going undercover as the owners of a sex toy shop might be pushing Zoe’s comfort zone a bit more than she would like, and given the fact that her emotions are all over the place of recent, Zoe knows that she would have to up her game just that much more if she is going to prove her worth as a fresh undercover agent.

The lust that spirals forth, scorching and undeniable is one thing that both Taft and Zoe never factors into the equation in working together. Taft is sexy, confident and phobic of any sort of commitment beyond that of a night of pleasure but Zoe seems to push all his buttons in the right way that seems to make him panic and soothe him all at the same time.

While Zoe and Taft try to find their footing amidst the passion that refuses to be denied between them, the web of danger that surrounds them continues to thicken, with Zoe being the centerfold of all that danger. Though Taft would like nothing better than to protect her from harms way, how he reacts to the danger and the need to protect Zoe could mean the end of whatever it is that is between Zoe and himself before it is even given a chance to flourish.

This is my very first Joan Swan and I would have to say I liked her unabashed style of writing and the sex scenes that definitely stirred more than just Taft and Zoe. Taft and Zoe definitely cannot be blamed for having lackluster sex; they are practically all over each other and tends to find themselves in the most interesting spots to get it on!

Though everyone advices never to judge a book by its cover, I know most of us are guilty of just that and I requested for a galley of this because the cover hinted at the deliciousness that was bound to come. I am certainly glad that this novella gave me a bit of an insight into what Joan Swan can do and has definitely whetted my appetite enough to pick up more of her books to read.

Recommended for fans of romantic suspense with singeing passion that rocks you to your toes!

Final Verdict: Hot & wild; First Temptation certainly makes for a combustive prelude to the Covert Affairs series!

Favorite Quotes

She stretched, sliding her body along his slowly, feeling every swell and groove and plane before she pressed her lips to his. His mouth remained firm, chaste. His eyes remained open, but a clear new awareness burned hot.
She tugged on his neck, pulling their mouths flush, and licked his bottom lip. His hands fisted in the waistband of her slacks.
She gazed into those blazing golden eyes and pulled back just enough to whisper, “Are you on board, Walker, or not?”
He growled. Opened his mouth. Closed his eyes. And really kissed her.

Zoe used her arms to rock her body into his touch. “Taft…”
He bit her ear, then whispered, “I’m going to make you come, but we’re not done. Not even close. I’m only giving you relief. And prepping you for the next one. And the one after that. I’m going to keep going until you come so hard you scream.”
Zoe whimpered. She opened her eyes, unable to believe the sound had come from her own throat. Then Taft pressed two of those thick, practiced fingers inside her, and Zoe couldn’t focus on anything but the way he filled her.

Purchase Links: Amazon

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