Category / Endearing Hero

by mvbookreviewer

Score Sheet Review: Savage Courtship by Susan Napier

Format: E-booksavagecourtship.jpeg
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Benedict Savage
Heroine: Vanessa Flynn
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: May 1, 1995
Started On: April 5, 2014
Finished On: April 6, 2014

CATEGORY SCORE GRADE
The hero 80 A
The heroine 80 A
Story line 60 B
Emotional Intensity 75 B
Suck me in Factor 70 B
Heat & Sensuality 70 B
Conflicts 65 B
Writing Style 80 A
Quotable Factor 50 C
Ending 70 B
Overall Grade 70 B

Score Sheet Summary

Benedict Savage is a successful architect, going on 34 when that vague sense of dissatisfaction that has been plaguing him for quite sometime makes him seek refuge in Whitefield House, a property that he had inherited from an uncle who had left it to him, a property that had come along with his deceased uncle’s female butler Vanessa Flynn.

Finding a mystery woman in Benedict’s bed is what kick-starts the story, a woman who disappears by the next morning leaving Benedict flummoxed by the whole thing until he discovers who it is that had been gracing his bed that night. Thus follows a series of twists and turns, a lot of advancing on Benedict’s part and retreating on Vanessa’s part which culminates of course in a happily ever after.

Susan Napier has some very good Harlequin romances out there, in fact she is one of those Harlequin authors who is on my auto-buy list. The aspects that worked for me includes the hero; his intensity is hard not to take notice of. Then there is the novelty of a heroine who is taller than the hero in the story; as most romance readers know, that is something that rarely happens in a romance.

The sexual tension though was a vital presence in the story, I got a bit tired of the continuous back and forth drama that was happening and in the end skim read through chunks of the story later on. Recommended for die-hard fans of Harlequin romances.

Favorite Quotes

“Say it.’ He took off his glasses and threw them away in a gesture of reckless intent that made her heart pound.
‘All right, damn it—Ben!’ she retorted wildly. ‘There, I’ve said it. Ben, Ben, Ben—’
Her provocative chant was suddenly smothered. There was no tentativeness, none of the explorative gentleness that had characterized his last kiss. This time he was all aggressive, dominating male. The kiss was hot and hard, swallowing her anger and feeding it back to her piece by defiant piece.

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

favorableread

by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Her Kind of Trouble by Sarah Mayberry

Format: E-bookherkindoftrouble.png
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Seth Anderson
Heroine: Vivian Walker
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: April 1, 2014
Started On: March 28, 2014
Finished On: April 5, 2014

Vivian Walker and Seth Anderson sets their eyes on each other the night of the rehearsal dinner of the wedding that had tied the knot between Vivian’s sister and Seth’s brother. Their attraction towards each other had been instantaneous, both understanding the other quite perfectly to come to the arrangement that their one single sexual encounter that night would remain just that – a one night stand that they would both enjoy and walk away from.

10 years down the road, Vivian is back home in Australia and runs into Seth, who has a baby on the way and doesn’t seem to be able to catch a break where life was concerned. Though Vivian knows that a relationship between her and Seth would be the last thing that can happen under the circumstances, neither of them can help when the force of the blazing hot attraction that had swept them away all those years back seems to be stronger than ever, the strength of which takes their breath away.

There is a striking balance between the heartbreaking variety of tragedy and the lighthearted factor in the story that worked really well for me. Seth has his work cut out for him when he has to face the sheer daunting prospect of parenthood all alone. The fact that his beautiful daughter would never know her fun loving and vivacious mother is a pain that chokes him with its intensity all throughout. And then there is that one spot of brightness through all that darkness, the unwavering strength and support from Vivian who steps up in a way that leaves Seth reeling with the sheer beauty of Vivian in the depths of her soul.

It is a catastrophic event that pushes Vivian and Seth together long enough for them to learn more about the other, which cements the connection that had been forged between them ten years back into something harder and tougher to brush aside. Every moment Vivian and Seth spend together sheds light on just how well they fit with each other, the understanding and respect that they have for the other. I loved how Seth and Vivian went out of their way to be there for each other when the going got tough, how they took care of one another and lent that crucial support during those tough moments that made their relationship essentially that much more beautiful. And one of the most impressing aspects to the story was the role reversal of the hero being the one saddled with single parenthood, trying to make things work and the heroine stepping in to save the day!

I’d definitely say that Sarah Mayberry has come back with a bang with Her Kind of Trouble, bringing along a massive dose of her variety of angst; and my goodness there is plenty of that to go around, and love and sensual connection of the kind that only she can bring into stories. For that reason alone and the fact that I loved the story from Seth and Vivian to everything in between is why I would recommend this to everyone who loves a good contemporary romance with good emotional depth to them.

Final Verdict: Should come with the warning “Tissues are required!”. A definite not to be missed by Sarah Mayberry!

Favorite Quotes

“These have to go,” he said, and she heard a rip as he tore her panties off.
A part of her wanted to laugh at how mad and desperate it all was—the cramped quarters, him tearing her clothes off, their harsh breathing. But then he found her with his thumb at the exact moment that he bit her nipple and she was too busy coming, her head dropping forward as she clutched at his shoulders, needing an anchor to keep her earthbound.

He moved over her, not saying a word, holding her gaze as he gripped himself and found her entrance. She lifted her hips to take him, and he slid in.
Yes.
He remembered this. How good she felt. How right. How on earth had he survived ten years without doing this again?

She tantalized them both with the potential, then plunged down onto him, biting her lip to stop herself from crying out.
It felt so good. So full. So hard and slick and right.
Seth arched off the bed, pulling a nipple into his mouth, the suction of his mouth so fierce, so forceful, it almost hurt.
Almost.

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

amazingread

by mvbookreviewer

Requested ARC Review: A Cold Dark Place by Toni Anderson

Format: E-bookacolddarkplace
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Cold Justice, #1
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Alex Parker
Heroine: Mallory Rooney
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: April 1, 2014
Started On: March 30, 2014
Finished On: April 2, 2014

A Cold Dark Place is the debut book in the Cold Justice series by the uber talented author of romantic suspense Toni Anderson. Few authors out there manage to keep my interest when it comes to romantic suspense and Toni Anderson is one of those authors who always manages to hit the vital spots by keeping the romance and suspense factor balanced, which is the secret to writing highly readable romantic suspense novels.

A Cold Dark Place is quite the fitting title to this novel. Alex Parker is a man who prefers the darkness to do what he is entrusted to do. Employed by an organization known as “The Gateway Project” that is so deeply hidden in the layered complexities of the US government, Alex is an assassin who enacts justice by killing the worst sort of scum. Counting down the days until he would be free of his promise that binds him to his employers, his job becomes doubly dangerous when he realizes that someone on the inside is out to make him and that someone is the deliciously enticing FBI Special Agent Mallory Rooney to whom his instant attraction makes her a more than dangerous “adversary”.

Mallory’s life mission for the past eighteen years has been to become smart enough and tough enough to find her twin sister’s abductor and bring him to justice. The pain that she lives through every single day, blaming herself for not being there for the one and only person with whom she had shared an inexplicable connection with is what drives her, even when she meets the same dead end, time and yet again. Though her experience in hunting killers and analyzing their behavior is limited, her sharp intelligence and observation skills ends her up in the BAU and in the direct sight of the man who would do everything in his power to claim her as a replacement for his lost love.

Alex doesn’t want the complication that starting anything up with Mallory would bring his way, but he is as helpless as she in the face of the strong web of desire that binds them together, that finds them entwined in the most delicious of embraces time and yet again. And when Alex finds out that the killer they are all hunting, whose violence had all of a sudden started to escalate, has his sights set on Mallory, there is no stopping him from vowing to protect her at all and any cost, even if it means continuing with the pretense and charade that would continue to keep Mallory in the dark when it comes to who he truly is.

Toni Anderson does a splendid job in telling this story; it is dark, creepy and keeps you guessing and questioning your emotions when it comes to everything that takes place in the span of this novel. Alex Parker himself is reason enough to fall in love with the story, his tortured soul was one that touched me on a deep level. Betrayal on a level that most people would never be strong enough to live with makes Alex the man he is, and though each kill chips away at his already battered soul, the honorable man that Alex is refuses to back down from paying the debt he owes to his employers.

It is the pain, drive and determination that keeps Mallory doggedly working to unearth what had happened to her sister that made me respect and love her character as much as I did Alex’s. The guilt that threatens to consume her would not have been easy to deal with. Alex in her life means Mallory learns to live a little, and stop feeling the survivor’s guilt and in return she reaches out to the scarred bits and pieces of Alex’s heart and soul and puts it back together, piece by piece, without even realizing the fact that they are both headed towards a love strong enough to consume them both.

It was the killer that kept me fascinated and riveted to the edge of my seat and I think that is exactly what Toni was aiming for when she created him. I sometimes wonder at the cruelty in this world that breeds killers of the likes found in this book, the inhumanity they suffer as children and the loss of their innocence at the hands of those that should protect them from the rest of the world. It is hard not to feel sad thinking about the person he could have been otherwise, but in equal doses I found myself horrified by the extent of his depravity and violent nature together with his uncanny ability to have kept fooling people for so long. Toni also makes the reader question whether the laws and agencies that be are really enough to ensure that justice is done. Perhaps vigilantism does serve its purpose with the swiftness of with which it brings the victims the closure they seek. A book that always makes you question what you know to be right and wrong and casts you into that place shadowed by the shades of grey is in my opinion a book well done.

Though the lack of an epilogue was felt, knowing that there would be another book in the series on the way definitely helps. Recommended for fans of Toni Anderson and fans of dark romantic suspense. You’d definitely love this one!

Final Verdict: Ties you up in knots; A Cold Dark Place makes for a riveting read!

Favorite Quotes

His lips were surprisingly soft, his mouth tasting of whiskey and beer and really hot man. Suddenly he took control of the kiss, diving deeper, tongue tangling with hers with a possession that made her insides turn molten. She found herself pressed up against the glass facade of the building, Alex’s one hand still buried deep in her pocket, the other cupping the back of her head.

“Too much?” His voice sounded nothing like him. He’d heard this version before, in that prison in Morocco. His inner animal tearing loose, but this time it was from pleasure not pain.
She shook her head and her nails dug into his shoulders. “More,” she demanded. Then she kissed his neck, bit down hard enough to make him laugh.
She could put her mark on him anytime.

She shook her head, squirming to get closer. “More,” she demanded and nibbled his jaw. Her nails scratched his back, digging into his skin with the sort of pain that aroused him more than he’d ever imagined possible. He wrapped his hand around her other leg and locked them both around his waist. And then every pulsing inch of him was embedded inside her, blasted by the velvet clench of wet heat.
“Okay?” he asked. Okay didn’t even begin to describe what he was feeling. He was pretty sure the word for it hadn’t been invented yet.
“Oh, yes.”

“Condom,” he said between gritted teeth.
Crap.
She jerked open the bedside drawer, relieved to find a box. Alex scrambled out of his jeans, covered and buried himself deep. She locked her legs around his hips and then there were no thoughts, just sensation and pleasure and slick bodies, striving to get as close as possible, striving for that place where nothing else mattered.”

Sated and satisfied, she began to drift off to sleep. “You’re a good man, Alex Parker.”
He kissed the top of her head. “No. But you make me feel like I could be.”

“I still miss her.” Her voice cracked.
He put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed. He could relate. He still missed his mother and his grandfather and his friends. But he knew they were dead and never coming back. You had to move on. “We’re supposed to miss them. That’’s their gift.”
Huge amber eyes met his. “Pain is a gift?”
He nodded. “It proves they meant something to us. That even years after losing them we still feel them. Here.”

With one hard thrust he was buried deep in her heat.
She wrapped her legs around his waist, nails bit into his flesh. “Harder.”
He drove into her, again and again, nothing but an animal who needed to satisfy a primal urge.

He took the condom from her fingers and covered himself. Eased her slowly over him and shifted her panties aside. He was big, aroused. She sank down just a little bit and he gritted his teeth. She looked down, the vision of him inside her, of the lace against pale skin, was such a turn on she came with a surprised shudder.

“We’re not dating, remember.” He thrust inside her and she sucked in a moan. “You didn’t go and do anything foolish like fall for me, did you, Mallory?” he asked.
Emotion welled up inside her. She shook her head and wrapped her legs around his hips. Watched his pupils dilate. “No, sir.”
“Good.” He swallowed. “Me either.”
But as she looked into his eyes she knew they were both lying and it felt dark and dangerous and wonderful.

Purchase Links: Amazon

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Waiting On You by Kristan Higgins

Format: E-bookwaitingonyou
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Blue Heron, #3
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Lucas Damien Campbell
Heroine: Colleen Margaret Mary O’Rourke
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: March 25, 2014
Started On: March 24, 2014
Finished On: March 28, 2014

Waiting on You by Kristan Higgins is the 3rd book in her Blue Heron series. All stories are based in the small town of Manningsport, New York and are fabulously good, at least starting from the 2nd book which is where I got my introduction into this series. Each of these stories can be read as a standalone, but then why give up on reading equally good and heartwarming tales of love that can leave you with a tingle or two in the right places and a smile deep in your heart, rather than wasting time on so many lackluster reads out there?

Waiting on You tells the story of 31 year old Colleen who has lived in Manningsport practically her whole life. Co-owner of the best and only bar in town with her twin Connor, Colleen is happy and well adjusted into her crazy life in which she finds the time to play matchmaker and considers half of the happily married younger couples in town to be her success stories. Though her own life could use a dose of all consuming love and lust, Colleen hardly lets it bother her until Lucas Damien Campbell strolls back into town bringing the memories of an entwined past that leaves her with little choice but to convince herself that she is so over Lucas.

Life and circumstances had kept Lucas away and he would be leaving once again when he finishes taking care of what summoned him back in the first place. Though seeing Colleen brings back all the yearning and memories back with a force that rocks and shakes his very world, this time around Lucas is prepared for the effect Colleen has always had on him ever since the very first time their eyes had met across the breadth of a classroom. There is desire and then there is the wanting of the heart which had never stopped clamoring for the one single time love and passion had consumed Lucas in his lifetime.

Colleen would like nothing better than to think of herself immune to all that Lucas is has been and will always be on her senses and her heart. But it is inevitable that with nothing holding both of them back that they would gravitate towards each other sooner or later, and oh but what a delicious way to surrender when it is with the man to whom no one else would ever compare with. But Colleen does put up a good fight, trying to save herself from a heartbreak that she knows is yet again as destined to happen as the two of them getting back together.

When you open a Kristan Higgins, it is not just a story of boy meets girl and they fall in love and lived happily ever after that you get. There is so much more to each of her stories, the heartwarming small town life that she practically brings to life in every single one of her stories part of the charm to a Kristan Higgins. And of course there is her characterization; each and every single one of the characters that appears in her stories has something to contribute towards making a well rounded story; some come with an edge to them while the rest fill in those roles that makes a story wholesome for the lack of a better word. And in Waiting on You, readers get to sample the full scale of just how beautiful a tale that Kristan can weave when she puts pen to paper and starts creating her stories.

One must not forget the fun factor in Kristan’s books and Waiting on You definitely had its fair share of laugh out loud moments. Trust me when I say this, I was laughing so hard during certain scenes in the story that I was starting to question my own sanity a time or two. There are very few authors who can do funny like Kristan does and that is always one reason that I would keep going back for her stories.

For those who steer clear of Kristan’s books because she almost always writes her stories in the first person, here is the chance to sample her stories as the Blue Heron books are all written in third person with both the hero and heroine’s viewpoints included. I would say Kristan has come a long way in terms of how she tells her stories. The level of involvement between her heroes and heroines that definitely takes up a larger chunk than they did in prior books. And then there is the sizzle factor in her books that used to be left mostly up to the imagination and creativity of the reader’s mind. Though even now there aren’t detailed scenes of lovemaking included in Kristan’s books, I’d say her novels of late are more well rounded even in that aspect.

I loved Lucas, no two ways about it. There is no way on this Earth that a straight woman would NOT be moved by the man that Lucas is, his intense gaze alone enough to render a woman into a puddle of goo. Yep, Kristan has created him that well. Trust me on that.

And then there is Colleen. At first, I thought that I wouldn’t end up liking her as much as I loved Lucas, but turns out she proved me wrong and I was in love with her and rooting for her as much as I was for Lucas. There is so much emotion interwoven into the story that I had this huge lump the size of a football field lodged into my throat. Yes, it was that angst ridden at times and that emotional too. I wept for the boy that was Lucas and the man who had to turn his back on the yearnings of his heart because that’s the sort of person he is. A man with a beautiful and loyal soul that refuses to back down, a man who owns up to his responsibilities. Add to that his gorgeous looks, oh well, Lucas practically speaks for his character himself.

Recommended to every single one of you who loves contemporary romances. There is humor, there is love and then there is the sort of emotional sucker punch that you would not be forgetting anytime soon! A good story is one that makes you smile, laugh and cry and then makes you smile from ear to ear through your tears. And that is the reason why Kristan Higgins remains a force to be reckoned with in the genre!

Final Verdict: Laugh inducing goodness & emotional wallop that only Kristan Higgins can deliver!

Favorite Quotes

He threw up his hands. “I don’t know whether to strangle you or kiss you.”
“Don’t you dare kiss me.”
He kissed her.
God.
God. It was a prayer, as in God help me, because Colleen’s whole body lit up with flares of light and heat and tiny pinpricks of shock. Lucas was hot and hard and strong, and she wrapped her arms around him and held him just as hard, her mouth opening under his, and yes, yes, this was what they were meant to do, this elemental, hard, thought-stealing kiss.

He was locked in from the second he kissed her, something he’d been thinking about doing from the moment he first saw her, something he’d vowed not to do because it was certain that even one kiss would bind him to her.
He was right. The second his lips touched hers, a word came into his head, a word from long ago when his mother was still alive, when Spanish was still spoken at home.
Mía. Mine.
Colleen was his.

Then he stood up, slid his hand around her neck and pulled her in for a kiss.
She didn’t see that coming.
Didn’t pull away, either.
It was a hard, authoritative kiss that seared through her. Good God, the Spaniard could kiss. His five- o’clock shadow scraped her just the right amount, and his mouth, oh, yes, that mouth of his, that fallen-angel mouth…and then it was over, and he stood in front of her, dark and sure and steady when she was lucky to be standing, her legs suddenly warm and wonderfully weak, her special places bursting into song.

He wrapped her in his arms and hugged her against him, tucking her face against his beautiful, smooth warm neck. “Thank you,” he whispered, and her en- tire side electrified.
“Oh, you know,” she said, her voice wobbling. She tried to pull back, but he just held her tighter.
“Have dinner with me tomorrow,” he murmured, his lips so close to her ear. “I promise not to break your heart.”

He sat on her bed and looked at her, his Spanish eyes black and unfathomable in the dim light of the fading day. Turned her hand over and kissed the soft side of her wrist, and looked at her again, his thumb sliding over the spot he’d just kissed, and suddenly, Colleen realized her eyes were full of tears.
“I missed you,” she whispered, and he stood again and kissed her softly, softly, then wiped her tears away and kissed her again.
“Oh, mía,” he whispered. “I missed you, too.”

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

outstandingread

by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Bite Me by Shelly Laurenston

Format: E-bookbiteme
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Pride, #9
Publisher: Kensington Publishing
Hero: Vic Barinov
Heroine: Olivia Kowalski
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: March 25, 2014
Started On: March 23, 2014
Finished On: March 24, 2014

Book 9 in the Pride series, Bite Me is my very first foray into this series. Having read just one book by Shelly Laurenston prior to this, I knew what to expect from her novels in the sense that I knew that if nothing else, the story would keep me entertained all throughout. Though Bite Me can definitely be read as a standalone, I think that the wholesome experience of all the characters that appear in this book can only be had if you read the series in order.

Half-Asian, half-Polish and a honey badger shifter, Livy Kowalski and her family of honey badgers are considered the most devious of shifters. The fact that Livy stands apart from the rest of her brood and doesn’t believe in the way of life of honey badgers had always been an issue of contention when it had come to her parents and extended family. A photographer by profession whose creative juice seems to have dried up, Livy finds it hard to confide in even the people closest to her the fear that churns in her gut every time she thinks of the loss of her zeal for the one thing that helps ground her. And when Livy finds the truth behind her father’s death, it sets off a chain of events which propels her into the life and arms of Vic Barinov, teaching her a thing or two about herself and her passion for the beautiful shifter who gets her juices flowing in more ways than one.

Vic is a crossbreed,  part grizzly bear and Siberian tiger which makes him unique. Vic doesn’t know why he lets Livy burrow all the way into his home and finish off his precious honey whenever she feels like she needs a place to crash, but Vic would rather not admit that he has a soft spot for Livy, the one person who doesn’t even try to invoke that sort of emotion in anyone. That doesn’t stop Vic from trying to cheer Livy up and in the end finds himself embroiled in a passion as deep as complex as the woman Livy is. And in between, there is of course her crazy family to contend with and the chase to bring the man responsible for Livy’s father’s death to justice.

Though I really enjoyed what Bite Me had to offer, there were times that I felt that story dragged a bit here and there. But what made it all worth it was the witty and sarcastic banter that fills the pages, making it impossible to skip even a single page of the unfolding story. I loved both Vic and Livy to pieces, Vic was a mix of alpha and sweetness with a bit of grumpy hotness on the side. Livy was a heroine of the reticent type, whose very thought processes alone made me burst out into laughter.

Recommended for fans of Shelly, fans of paranormal romances with lots of humor and fans of the Pride series!

Final verdict: One word; entertaining!

Favorite Quotes 

“Livy?”
“Yeah?”
Vic leaned his head back, his chin still resting on her chest. “Some days . . .”
“Yeah?”
“Some days you make me want to drive a railroad spike through my head.”
Then he was gripping Livy’s legs again and yanking her lower half up, his cock pressing against her. He paused. Just long enough to make sure he had Livy’s attention. Then he pulled Livy closer and thrust hard. So hard, so mercilessly, that Livy started coming again. And at this rate, Livy wasn’t sure she’d ever stop.

Holding her tight, Vic turned them so that Livy was underneath him. He braced his arms on either side of her, his big, long body looming over her. “Bring your legs up,” he ordered. “High on my waist.”
When she did, he growled and powered into her, his cock buried deep inside her pussy. Livy’s back arched. Nothing she could remember had ever felt this good.

“You make me want to burrow,” Livy told him, her arms moving down to his waist as she snuggled into his chest. “Usually I want to burrow away from people,” she murmured. “You’re the first I’ve ever burrowed toward.”

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

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Mine to Hold Cynthia Eden

Format: E-bookminetohold
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Mine, #3
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Noah Robert York
Heroine: Claire Cassandra Kramer
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: October 21, 2013
Started On: October 20, 2013
Finished On: March 9, 2014

Ever since Cynthia Eden started publishing her Mine series, I have been enjoying the ultra sexy and uber possessive tales of love, lust, passion and suspense that keeps me turning the pages in a way that only few authors such as Cynthia can make me. Mine to Hold is the 3rd book in the series. I wouldn’t recommend reading this as a standalone because I think you would miss out on a huge chunk of the makeup of the characters involved if you do!

Claire Cassandra Kramer is barely sixteen years old when falling in love with the wrong kind takes away practically everything and everyone she holds near and dear. Moving past the tragedy hadn’t been an easy road to travel on, nor had it been without its fair share of setbacks. Not when she had managed to make an enemy out of one of the most powerful men in the country. When the last surviving member in her family is brutally murdered in a wake of violence that leaves Claire reeling to find an anchor to balance her, Noah Robert York is the man who steps up to take the place.

Noah doesn’t even begin to understand what it is about Claire that makes him act like a caveman, but she tends to bring out feelings inside of him that is alien to a man who changes women as often as he changes his shirts. Not one to dwell on the emotions much, Noah decides to take each day as it comes and protect Claire from anyone who dares to even think about hurting her. Though handling people with kids gloves on is not exactly Noah’s territory, he would die trying to be just that for Claire until Claire stands up to him and lets him know that she can more than handle all the man that he is and then some.

Though not as good as the first two books (perhaps I am biased because there is little a man can do to live up to Trace Weston) whose love for his wife Skye is the reason for this series to come into being, I found to myself that once I let go of my expectations about what the story should be, I managed to enjoy what Claire and Noah’s story had to offer. Like almost all Cynthia Eden romances, Mine to Hold also features an uber creepy killer with stalker tendencies that at times makes Noah doubt whether Claire could actually be seeing who she claims to be seeing everywhere she turns. Turns out yes, there is obsession and then there is obsession of the kind that can get you killed and that is exactly the fate Claire would have suffered if not for the fact that Claire is stronger than everyone gives her credit for.

Recommended for those who love Cynthia Eden’s romantic suspense novels and those who have enjoyed what the Mine series have had to offer till now and have been waiting for the rest of the books just like myself!

Final Verdict: Noah and Claire share a love that absolutely consumes!

Favorite Quotes

She met him, thrust for thrust. The rhythm became wild, so hard. He was in her so deep.
No pain.
Only more pleasure.
So much pleasure that the whole world seemed to explode. She wasn’t sure if she screamed or not. She only knew that after years of being cold, it felt as if she were in an inferno.
One that swept her up, hollowed her out, and left her aching for more…more pleasure.

She liked the way he tasted. Liked the way he hardened impossibly more beneath her mouth and she—
Claire was on her back in the bed.
Noah was over her. He had her wrists pinned to the bed. Damn but that man had moved fast.
He stared at her, locked his gaze with her—and took her. He filled her, every inch, and she gasped as the pleasure surged through her.
Her legs curled around his. She arched up against him.
He plunged. Fast. Hard. Deep.

His mouth pulled from hers.  He stared into her eyes. “I want to fuck you.”
“Th-they’re waiting…”
“Let them wait.”  He jerked on the panties, hard, and they tore.  He needed her. There. Right there.
No foreplay. No sensual build-up to release.
He had to take her.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | BookDepo | Kobo | iTunes | Smashwords | ARe

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: A SEAL’s Kiss by Tawny Weber

Format: E-bookasealskiss
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Uniformly Hot, #4
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Aiden Masters
Heroine: Sage Taylor
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: March 18, 2014
Started On: March 18, 2014
Finished On: March 18, 2014

A SEAL’s Kiss by Tawny Weber is one of the best Harlequin romances that I have read in a long while. And I believe this to be my very first Tawny Weber as well. I found myself impressed with the way Tawny drew me into the story right from the very beginning, entertaining me with a wit that I found irresistible, a hero that I could have drooled over forever and a heroine that spoke to me at every single level.

Sage Taylor is a free spirit if ever there was one. A single child, Sage has always been confident of her wanderings that it would someday lead her to the contentment and bliss that she has been seeking for her whole life. One by one her friends get hitched and Sage who shivers at the mere thought of tying herself down to one man much less settling down somewhere, finds herself at odds with her matchmaking friend when her friend’s determination to find Sage someone makes her blurt out that she is already engaged, and to none other than her lifelong friend, Chief Petty Officer Aiden Masters.

Aiden is a Navy SEAL to his very core, discipline stamped on every noble piece of his soul. Highly intelligent, Aiden had been Sage’s college professor father’s protege until Aiden’s career choice had meant that he lived long periods of time away from home. A man who seldom finds any logic to emotion, Aiden finds himself continually surprised by just how much Sage has always disturbed him on a level that he would rather not acknowledge. And suddenly with a fake engagement to the woman he has always held at an arm’s length starting to feel more and more real by the minute, Aiden knows that his control being shattered is a foregone conclusion with the fire burning hotter and brighter between him and Sage than he has ever felt it with anyone else.

Two equal opposites finding out that there had always existed between them a fire of the sort that can never ever completely burn out, finds more than they bargained for in a fake engagement that brings forth emotions and feelings all too real that they both cannot just brush aside. Each with their own versions of cold feet and hangups to deal with, Aiden and Sage provides two very well rounded characters that made the story that much more appealing.

I so so loved Aiden. He is broody, a little bit grumpy and a helluva lot sexy that I didn’t know whether to sigh or just start whimpering in agony over the fact that he would never materialize from the book itself and just sweep me off of my feet. Yes, Tawny did a splendid job out of breathing him into life, a character that practically leaped out of the pages and straight into my heart and certain other unmentionable zones of the body too! As you can guess, I just flat-out adored him to pieces.

Sage too turned out to be the exact version of heroines that I tend to love. Giving, courageous and sassy which is a combination that I find hard to resist, Sage was exactly what Aiden needed to snap out of that rigid control of his and take a breather every now and then. Sage might be the one that comes off as flaky with no direction in life, but her courage is an unwavering factor to her character that allows her to take chances that could bring even someone like the big and tough Aiden to his very knees. Without each other, Aiden and Sage makes for two halves that are enticing in their own right, put together they are combustible in every single way that makes them hard to resist.

I loved the sensuality interwoven into the story, not too much but just the right amount, that sizzling sexual vibe between Aiden and Sage kept alive throughout. Though the lack of an epilogue was sorely felt, especially when I loved both Aiden and Sage so much, A SEAL’s Kiss nevertheless turned out to be a beautiful read that put a huge smile on my face. Recommended!

Final Verdict: A little bit of grumpy, a whole lot of hot with just the dash of sweet; Aiden is one sexy SEAL to fall in love with!

Favorite Quotes

Then, before he could push her away or even demand an explanation for the crazy public behavior, she planted that full, usually babbling mouth on his.
And Aiden forgot everything.
His demand for information.
His reasonable argument.
Her tongue slid, hot and tempting, over the seam of his lips.
And he straight-up forgot his own name.

Always willing to give her body what it wanted, she curled her fingers tighter around the back of Aiden’s neck. She slid her tongue along the crease of his lips, tasting.
Testing.
He tasted damned good.
For a second, she thought he was going to just stand there. Stoic and sweet, simply tolerating the move but not rejecting her so as not to hurt her feelings.
Then he gave a low growl.
The sound sent those tingles into high gear. Sage’s heart sped up. His mouth opened over hers.
Hot and swift, his tongue swept in. Took over.

His hand shifted. It only needed to move an inch, and he had her breast beneath his fingers.
God, she felt good.
Full, soft, her nipple beaded and hardened against his palm.
Their kiss exploded.
Hot, wild, it went over the edge, taking Aiden with it.

Still holding her, he carefully, as if she were precious treasure, laid her on the edge of the bed.
His eyes met hers.
She was so damned beautiful.
He slid into her wet heat, her body gripping him so tight he almost cried with the intensity of the pleasure.
This, he realized as he plunged, was home.He’d finally come home.

Aiden exploded.
His body. His mind.
His heart.
Every piece of him blew to bits as he lost himself in her body. He lost track of time. Black edged his vision but he never lost sight of her face. Of those eyes.
He loved her. Dammit.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Requested Review: Satisfaction by Sarah Mayberry

Format: E-booksatisfaction
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Small Cow Productions
Hero: Rafel Oliveir
Heroine: Maggie Hendricks
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: February 28, 2014
Started On: March 2, 2014
Finished On: March 4, 2014

Looking at the gorgeous cover, what do you see? I see a guy hot enough to lose a few nights of sleep over and then some. There is  no true lover of romance who isn’t appreciative of a cover like this gracing the book that you are reading, sometimes just to turn over and gaze at the wonderfulness of it all and get back to reading. And yep, you guessed it right. That is exactly what I ended up doing, getting distracted by the thoughts of this uber gorgeous cover from my reading, but oh what a wonderful way to be distracted.

Satisfaction by Sarah Mayberry turned out to be a surprise read for me. I say surprise because I didn’t know this was coming out and Sarah Mayberry gave me quite the wonderful of surprises when she mentioned this one was on the way.

Satisfaction tells the story of Rafel Oliveir and Maggie Hendricks who meet under the most unlikely of circumstances at best. Rafel is the joint owner of the tattoo parlor, Brothers Ink from which Maggie’s friend gets just more than a tattoo, which propels Maggie to seek out the amazing God in bed who could perhaps finally be able to give her what she has been missing out on all her life.

Maggie faces the problem of never being able to climax, and when I say never, I mean yes, never! Desperate times calling for desperate measures is what finds Maggie pursuing a man who doesn’t even know she exists, someone who might never even turn her on for that matter. But apart from turning herself into the hands of a group of medical professionals for pricking and prodding, Maggie’s only hope lies in the man who is going to give her her very first orgasm, or at least that happens to be the plan until a couple of laugh inducing moments turns the meeting into the sort of disaster that Maggie had never foresaw.

Rafel’s intrigue in Maggie multiplies by tenfold when he learns of Maggie’s unique “condition”, and what at first turns out to be a quest to give unparalleled pleasure to Maggie turns into much more as both of them start to spend time together and begin to learn of whats underneath the surface of each others characters. While each encounter between these two brings them closer together, it is Rafel’s past that might actually stand in the way of their future together, unless Maggie is willing to believe in and fight for the man who has invaded her heart and soul.

Sarah Mayberry is an author who always tends to explore uncharted waters in the world of romance. The concept that she explores in Satisfaction is also one that I have never come across before. I most probably would never have known that there is a condition called anorgasmia that prevents a person from achieving orgasms. And that alone made this book unique in its own right. I felt so much for Maggie, her struggles seeming almost palpable, her frustrations with being unable to just let go and let her body take over was something that made me at times want to cry for her.

I would say I loved Maggie for a lot of reasons. She is the type of heroine readers fall instantly in love with. Her struggles, fears, dreams and hopes are real, so real that you can practically feel all those emotions she is going through. And through all that, her love and need for the man who turns her life around shines through, the angst of the probability of having Rafel snatched away from her after having found in him someone whom she could see herself sharing a life with, that was in essence what made the story work for me.

Rafel’s mission to give Maggie the best sex of her life doesn’t come without a few knots to untangle along the way. Rafel is sexy personified, I don’t think Maggie could have had a man whose more sexier than sin than Rafel even if she tried. Rafel’s beauty as a character doesn’t come from just his good looks alone. It stems from the man he is, his gentleness, the way he cares about Maggie and shows it to her every step of the way and cossets her in a way she has never been cosseted ever. I always say this time and yet again, Sarah creates some of the best modern alpha heroes out there and I have loved practically all of them.

Though there came about a brief lull in the story towards its middle, all the other aspects worked quite well to give a well rounded story that was sexy & filled with emotion which turned out to be beautiful. I wouldn’t mind reading the story of Rafel’s brother. Sounds like he would definitely deliver a juicy tale hot enough to scorch.

Recommended.

Final Verdict: Sweet, sensuous & heartwarming; Rafel & Maggie will definitely end up in your heart.

Favorite Quotes

His thigh was against hers, her left breast pressed to his chest. His hand remained on her back, and she could feel the imprint of every finger through the fabric of her dress.
“Yes.”
He leaned closer, his breath a warm rush past her ear. “Have you missed me, Maggie?”
Her heart slammed hard against her rib cage. Turning her head, she closed her eyes and inhaled the scent of his warm, smooth skin.
Oh, she remembered this. How good it was. How he made her feel.

“Do you know what I’m going to do to you, Maggie?”
She blinked slowly, shockingly aware of how exposed she was and how much it excited her. “Yes.”
“Tell me.”
“You’re going to lick me.”
“I’m going to fuck you with my mouth.”

He was so desperate to be inside her again his hands were shaking as he took a few seconds to roll on a condom. She arched her hips toward him, and he found her entrance, so slick and ready for him.
Then he was inside her, and she was moaning with pleasure, and he was moving, pumping into her, awash with sensation.
The softness of her breasts.
The wet heat of her around his cock.
The small sound she made when he scooped a hand under her ass and encouraged her to angle her hips so he could penetrate more deeply.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Smashwords

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Breathless by Anne Stuart

Format: E-bookBreathless
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: The House of Rohan, #3
Publisher: Mira
Hero: Lucien de Malheur
Heroine: Miranda Rohan
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: January 1, 2010
Started On: March 1, 2014
Finished On: March 2, 2014

Reading an Anne Stuart is like infusing an addictive drug into your system; one novel is never enough to satisfy your hunger for all those spots that Anne Stuart seems to hit with every single one of her books. After finishing Reckless, I found myself driven by the need to pick up the third book Breathless, the book which apparently sports the most villainous of hero in the House or Rohan series. 

Breathless is the story of Lady Miranda Rohan, daughter of Adrian and Charlotte from Reckless. Miranda is 21 and contemplating on resigning herself to the sort of life that is expected of a lady from society, but she is determined to have at least one night of fun and flirtation where no one would know any better. But what was supposed to be a night of harmless fun, the memories of which she would treasure for the rest of her life, turns out to be the stuff nightmares are made of as Miranda is ruined thoroughly and completely. Becoming an outcast of society gives Miranda the freedom to live a life of her choosing and even though being rebuffed in polite society day in and day out gets tiresome, Miranda is nothing else if not determined not to let that get her spirits down.

Lucien de Malheur, Earl of Rochdal, more famously knows as The Scorpion is a man whose need and hunger for revenge on the Rohan family knows no limits. With Miranda as the pawn of his revenge, Lucien is determined that he would enact the justice deserved, even if it means Lucien himself would have to carry out the deed. Patient planning for a period of two years brings him in touch with the lady in question and even then Lucien cannot help the flare of attraction and want that burgeons to life inside of him from the very first encounter.

But Lucien is not a man to forget the path he has set on, even if it means destroying the one thing in his life that brings lightness into his otherwise dark and tortured soul. Miranda knows better than to fight a losing game. However, that doesn’t mean that she would make the course of revenge any easier for Lucien to enact. Miranda is determined to make the best of whatever situation it is that Lucien throws her way, except when it comes to the dark, alluring and forbidden hunger that rages to life inside of her whenever Lucien puts his hands on her. The things he makes her want and feel should be outlawed and leaves Miranda reeling from the impact of it all, and little does she know that even The Scorpion himself is not immune to the blazing passion that rules their bodies whenever they touch each other with carnal intent.

While everyone made Lucien out to be the irredeemable villainous hero of the likes Anne Stuart hasn’t written before, I found him to be dark and a bit more ruthless and tortured than the ilk of heroes encountered in this series thus far. I believe the ICE series features heroes more ruthless than Lucien, but that doesn’t mean reading Lucien’s story is a walk in the park by any means. I stayed up till the wee hours of the night to get to the ending because Lucien’s notoriety demanded nothing less, the ice encasing his heart and soul not seeming to thaw even by the last couple of chapters of the book.

While Lucien doesn’t bare himself and his soul even towards the end, his intense possessiveness when it comes to Miranda is evident if you look at the subtle clues he leaves behind with every encounter that takes place between them. I guess my dissatisfaction arose from the fact that the cause for revenge seemed a baseless one at most, one that seemed to rule Lucien’s nonexistent emotions, something I somehow failed to understand given his character. Nevertheless, his back story and every little tidbit to do with him was riveting in a way that only Anne Stuart can make it so.

While I am still undecided about Lucien though of course I’m veering towards loving him wholeheartedly, I flat out adored Miranda. I think the story worked given the dark nature of the hero only because Miranda turned out to be someone whose nature didnt’t allow her to go into a pissing contest with the hero to see who could outwit whom. Rather, Miranda in her own way does try and outsmart Lucien but there never was the feeling of animosity on her part while she went about doing what she did, which practically made the story for me!

And like every book in the House of Rohan series, Breathless too came with a secondary romance in its midst, one that was charming in its own sense. Though I would have loved to see where their romance would lead them, I guess I would have to satisfy myself with letting my own imagination carry me away, which is mostly what happens with the lack of epilogues that is a characteristic common to most Anne Stuart novels.

If you don’t like dark heroes, you might not find Lucien worthy of love and redemption. But if you love your bad boys really bad, look no further. Recommended for fans of Anne Stuart.

Final Verdict: Lucien is every tortured and ruthless hero breathed to life!

Favorite Quotes

She froze, not certain what she should do. This was ridiculous, it was bizarre, it was shocking. She couldn’t scream, and she didn’t want to fight. He slowly seduced her with his tongue, sliding it against hers with a steady, sinuous rhythm that she felt in her breasts, the pit of her stomach, between her legs. It was a kiss that caught her soul, wrapped it up and stole it away from her, and when he finally lifted his head she was breathless. And so was he.

“Please,” she gasped out, and she heard his damnable chuckle. But then it didn’t matter, for his mouth latched onto her other breast, and her back arched as he drew her into his mouth, his tongue dancing across the pebbled nub, as he sucked at her, hard. His fingers slid lower, and she felt a tiny explosion rocket through her, making her jerk against his restraining hand.

He hoisted her higher, using both arms to support her under her thighs, bracing her against the wood paneling behind her bare back, and he began to move.
She let out a strangled cry, dropping her face onto his shoulder, letting her hands slide down his heavily scarred back, clinging tightly. He no longer seemed to mind, he was too intent on the sinuous movement of his hips, thrusting in, withdrawing as her body clung to him, then moving in deeper still, and each time she cried out, in blind, helpless pleasure.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Requested ARC Review: Catch ‘n’ Kiss by Rhian Cahill

Format: E-bookcatchnkiss
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Are You Game, #2
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Hero: Daniel O’Conner
Heroine: Jody Walsh
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: March 4, 2014
Started On: March 2, 2014
Finished On: March 2, 2014

Book 2 in the Are You Game series by Rhian Cahill which is to be hit the e-book stands the 4th of this month, is a scorcher together with enough emotional tidbits in the mix to make for a great read. Though it is a part of a series, Catch ‘n’ Kiss can totally be read as a standalone without feeling like you’ve missed out on a huge chunk of the developing story.

Daniel O’ Conner and Jody Walsh are colleagues, colleagues who had gotten off on a wrong start when Dan had jumped to all the wrong conclusions about Jody when they had first made acquaintance. But nothing Dan had done since then had appealed to Jody enough for her to stop being snappy with him, something that continues to puzzle him until the kiss that he lays on Jody brings to light the singeing hot attraction that has been between them right from the start.

Jody doesn’t want anything to do with Dan except for the fact that all her wayward emotions wants to jump him the minute he enters a room. And it certainly doesn’t help matters when Dan appeals to Jody on so many levels, proving time and yet again that he is in it for more than just sex. But Jody has a lot on her plate, juggling two daughters and an ex-husband who decides to go off on a bender proving to her all over again the need to stay off of relationships even if it might be the loneliest road to travel on.

Catch ‘n’ Kiss is a highly readable romance with likable characters and of course not to mention the scorching hot scenes of passion that ups the stakes for this one. I loved Dan for his relentless pursuit of Jody, in trying to make her see that she was it for him, no questions asked. Dan knows a good thing when it comes his way and Jody and her girls are the one thing for which he is willing to fight till the very end. Even with Jody giving an inch and pulling back three, Dan sticks to his plan of wooing and seducing her into his life, even if it means fighting with the fear that holds Jody back from trusting him with her heart and emotions.

While I understood where Jody was coming from, I couldn’t understand sometimes where her need to be so hard on Dan comes from, especially when Dan proves time and yet again just how much he is willing to give and keep on giving when it comes to her. The latter part of the story however, did go a long way in making me feel better about Jody and her feelings when it comes to Dan and the epilogue definitely made me smile, which I think sealed the deal with me on this one. I’ve missed reading Rhian Cahill’s hotter than sin heroes who can literally render the reader into a puddle of goo, and while Catch ‘n’ Kiss might not have had that many full fledged love scenes to it, Dan certainly can kiss his way to any woman’s heart. Recommended!

Final Verdict: A Rhian Cahill that delivers heat, scorching passion & undying love!

Favorite Quotes

“Hey.” As he’d hoped, she spun around, putting her back to her car, and he moved right in.
“Wha—”
Dan lowered his head and slanted his mouth across hers.
Her lips parted as she sucked in a breath—his breath—and he took the opportunity to slide his tongue inside her mouth. The moan that issued from her throat had his blood racing and his balls tightening. Minty fresh, her taste exploded—saturated his mouth with memory and need. He’d wanted this for weeks. Days. Hours.
Forever.

Something snapped. In him—in her—he didn’t know, but all of a sudden they were moving together in a frenzy of need that left Jody panting in his mouth and Dan clenching every muscle in an effort to hold off the orgasm burning in his balls. She arched, her muscles stretched tight, and her breath stalled. Then it happened. She shattered.

He gripped her hips and urged her up. “I want to be inside you again.”
Her eyelids fluttered, her searing blue gaze meeting his. She didn’t speak. She didn’t have to when she sat up, rose to her knees and reached between them to grab his cock and hold it still while she lined up their bodies and slowly sank back down. The moan that left her lips matched the one caught in his throat. Heat surrounded him, engulfed him as Jody took him all the way to the root in one long slide of carnal delight.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Samhain | Kobo

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