Category / Endearing Hero

by mvbookreviewer

Requested Review: Uncross Your Heart by Taryn Elliott

Format: E-bookuncrossyourheart
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Plus-Novel
Genre: Erotic Contemporary Romance
Series: Untitled Series, Book 1
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Hero: Nathan Patrick Cross
Heroine: Miranda Jayne Lyons
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: March 23, 2012
Started On: March 24, 2012
Finished On: March 25, 2012

Yep. That’s right people. If you haven’t already heard, I have officially updated my version of the English dictionary to equate the meaning of the word “Temptation” to “Nathan Cross”. And I tell you, I am not kidding! 

Nathan Patrick Cross is a tinkerer whose one invention keeps him afloat enough to pursue his day job as a FedEx delivery guy while he tries to come up with a new innovative gadget whose design keeps eluding his best attempts. The one woman he meets along his delivery route, who manages to get under his collar and leaves him all hot and bothered doesn’t even realize he exists. Every single day that had taken him her way on delivery routes leaves him wanting her to look at him and see HIM just once and Nathan is about  to become cross-eyed with wanting and frustration on how to go about winning himself the woman he desires.

Miranda Jayne Lyons is a woman on a mission. She wants to bury her past deeper than anyone can dig it up and throw it in her face and she does it with a ruthless efficiency that leaves her little time to mingle with other people, to socialize and put her face out there. Through the not so gentle nudging of her co-worker and friend Max, Miranda decides to step into a club even if its the last place she wants to involuntarily go to. 

The man that catches Miranda’s eye turns out to be none other than Nathan and Miranda is more than surprised and a bit appalled to say the least when the man whose touch she craves just after one indecent dance turns out to be her FedEx delivery guy. There is no stopping Nathan from the path he weaves towards Miranda and for Miranda, Nathan poses the biggest risk on her heart and emotions as he slowly wields that magic of his around her and brings those walls of steel around her heart tumbling down until she is left reeling from it all.

But the secrets that Miranda hides are far too many, and her hesitancy in sharing them with the man who quickly turns out to mean everything to her breaks the fragile connection and the burgeoning feelings between them until this time it is Miranda who must face her fears and pursue Nathan to show him that with him she becomes the Miranda that she wants to be and loves.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that Taryn Elliot won’t woo you with Uncross Your Heart just because it is her debut novel. Far from that. I was pulled into the story from page one, heck, lets just say from the minute I met Taryn and learned that she is the critic partner of many other great authors out there, I knew instinctively that she would be someone to keep an eye out on. And I was proved right when Uncross Your Heart turned out to be a novel that delivered on every aspect of what I look for when I read a contemporary romance.

Nathan Cross. I can’t even say his name without going into an endless sighing session. He is the best thing about this story and believe me, there were so many good things about this whole novel. The way Taryn brought him to life, adding those little nuances to his character, his charming and easy-going manner, that bottomless gray eyes of his that I won’t mind staring into for a couple of centuries or so – needless to say Nathan charmed my socks off right from the very minute he entered into the story. His utter focus when it comes to Miranda and above all his patience – someone out there should give out Nobel Prizes for patience and I am sure he would come out a winner and with flying colors too! There is not a single thing I would change about the man, maybe except wish for him to turn up as my birthday present tonight at 00:00 hours sharp? Sigh! Well, a girl can always hope.

There were so many fascinating characters that brings life to the story as it unfolds. Miranda’s colleagues and Nathan’s whole family and believe me, if you read Uncross Your Heart, you would want to read all their stories. I am especially keeping my eye on Noah and his broody character – he seems like a guy who would give this old heart of mine a jolt or two if he ever were to get his own story. And yes, I am looking right at you Taryn. You can’t leave a gal hanging after creating so much havoc with my emotions and all.

Miranda is one complex character and she is the driving force behind the story, the secrets that she keeps close to her heart the cause of the rift between herself and the man who as she puts it is her worst nightmare and fondest wish all wrapped up in one. From the minute she is forced to open her eyes and look, and I mean really look at Nathan, she is a goner. And for someone like Miranda whose past makes her susceptible to all sorts of wild behavior, or so she thinks, needless to say Miranda would rather bury her head in the sand and forget that Nathan Cross exists.

But her desire for a man who kisses her senseless, a man who holds himself back because he wants just more than mindless fucking from a woman with whom he would like to base his future on is a temptation that is too hard for even Miranda to resist. The passion that burns between them is of the scorching variety and my God, can Taryn turn on the heat? I couldn’t get enough of the many a variety of scenes, all with that emotional pull that just makes you go all gooey on the insides and warm in places that one would rather not mention. And I loved it all!

What drew me in the most and held my attention was how real both Nathan and Miranda were as they tried to forge a path together towards their ultimate happily ever after. There is no easy road for someone like Miranda to take when she tries to flee from her past, to forget that she ever was that person she is so ashamed of rather than accepting that her past would always be a part of herself and the person she has shaped up to be. Through a lot of soul searching and a painful period of separation from Nathan she does eventually get there and I believe that Nathan and Miranda’s love for each other to be that much stronger because of the fact.

A FANTASTIC debut novel from an author who shows remarkable talent – I simply could not get enough!

Give Uncross Your Heart a shot if you love emotionally gripping and sensual contemporary romances. This is a book that definitely caters to every whim and then some. And if you are like me, you would not be disappointed!

Favorite Quotes

He stilled at her laughter. It was rich and sexy, dark and playful. Something he’d never heard out of her mouth. His vision blurred for a second when she dragged his shirt up enough for their skin to touch. Then she gave up on getting the shirt off and latched on to his mouth again. He groaned as the heat of her skin blazed against his.

A long, low moan reverberated through her chest and into him. He sucked harder, flicking his tongue around the tiny pink tip. She was in the shadows cast by the late-day sun, leaving him little choice but to learn her by touch. He found the water-soft curve of her breast, running his tongue along the heaviest part of her until she filled his mouth. “More,” he murmured, shifting her higher until his teeth scraped along her ribs.

She shut her eyes, digging her fingers into his shoulders as she slid herself down his length. He couldn’t quite stop the quick shout of pleasure as her knees clamped his hips, crowding around him with her warmth. He wanted to hold her there, to drown in her, but she was already moving. She lifted herself higher and he took the clue and sucked her elegant neck, drawing in her scent as she took him inside her again.

She twisted her hips in time to his rhythm, riding his hand. He couldn’t stop himself from dipping inside her heat, groaning when she coated his fingers, his palm—just, God, he wanted all that around him again.

He cupped her cheek, the muscles of his forearm burning with the slow thrusts inside her. “You’re beautiful.” Unable to have even a few inches between them, he caught her mouth, swallowing her moans. Cheek to cheek, he dragged in her scent. Murmuring her name, he held her as she broke. 

She turned into his mouth again and her taste bloomed on his tongue. His stroking gentled until he pulled his hand free, cradling her close. No ghosts, no false starts, just them.

He was her worst nightmare and fondest wish all wrapped up in a damn Boy Scout.

His hair was especially mussed. So much so that her fingertips tingled with the need to grab and plunder the curls and let her mouth work the wicked quirk of his lips that verged on a smile. But it was his eyes that hit her the hardest. A settled gray that would forever be stamped Happy Place in her mind.

 Instead of relying on technique she looked for cues that were individual to the man—her man—the quickening of his breath, a sighing moan and the grip of his fingertips on her hip. Her body listened to his and learned what was right instead of what her experience said should work. And in its place they became a dreamy roll of fluid exploration.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Ellora’s Cave

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Just One of the Guys by Kristan Higgins

Format: E-bookjustoneoftheguys
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Chic-lit
Series: Standalone
Publisher: HQN Books
Hero: Trevor James Meade
Heroine: Chastity Virginia O’Neill
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: August 1, 2008
Started On: March 22, 2012
Finished On: March 24, 2012

Just One of the Guys by Kristan Higgins is a book that always ends up in one recommendation list or the other. And the hero Trevor James Meade seems to be a real hit amongst the ladies so much so that I decided to give this book a try because when it comes to Kristan Higgins you are always in for a laugh-fest no matter what.

Chastity Virginia O’Neill is the youngest child and the only daughter in the O’Neill family. She is a plus-sized heroine if there ever was one and a jock to boot, a mark left over as a result of growing up and competing with 4 brothers in the household. After moving back to her hometown of Eaton Falls, Chastity is determined that she would find someone to fall in love with, someone to settle down with and have 2.5 kids with, even if the man who holds the key to her heart remains completely oblivious the ferocity of her feelings towards him.

Trevor James Meade can almost pass off as Chastity’s fifth brother because Trevor is almost like a son to her parents, biology be damned. Chastity falls in love with Trevor during the darkest period of Trevor’s life and she holds her feelings towards Trevor close to her heart, the one time that she and Trevor slept together a memory that she treasures and remembers all too often for her peace of mind.

However Trevor acts as if the thought of her settling down with someone else means nothing to him and goes as far as to encourage her to date and find someone who would provide her with everything her heart desires. And when the sexy new doctor in town notices Chastity and they both start dating, Chastity couldn’t be happier, or so she tells herself until everything starts falling apart around her, forcing Chastity to face the reality of her feelings and move on.

I had a hard time classifying Just One of the Guys as a romance. Chastity and Trevor spends the majority of the book apart from each other even though they live in the same town and run into each other almost every day. There were no romantic interactions between the two except for one very invigorating “nipple” scene that brought to light Trevor’s obvious attraction towards Chastity. I was disappointed because for the whole duration of the novel, Chastity and Trevor both date other people, sleep with other people and Chastity gets ready to even say her I-do’s before she comes to her senses and stops herself from settling for the second best. 

Trevor was delicious, as delicious as everyone raves him to be. And I loved him. I truly did. Kristan managed to do a mighty fine job of bringing him to life through Chastity’s eyes, and I loved how his character turned out to be. But I did want to slap him a time or two because he seemed to stubbornly hold on to his belief that if he and Chastity were ever to get together, he might lose her and that is one moment in time that he doesn’t ever want to face.

The reason why I hesitate to read books written in first person is the fact that the reader misses out a lot on the point of view of the other characters involved in the story. I especially missed having Trevor’s take on things, his feelings or non-feelings towards Chastity and what makes him so hesitant to stake his claim on a woman he seems to look out for in all the little ways that matter.

As always, Kristan gives the reader a healthy amount of laughter, the antics that Chastity gets involved in being moments that still bring a smile to my face. Just One of the Guys is the story of how Chastity as a character grows and becomes more, how she learns to face the truth in the light of the day, regardless of whether she might or might not like what she sees. And I loved the story of how Chastity’s mother moves on, against all odds and against all the stonewalling she receives from both her ex-husband and her children for whom their mother moving on is something of an alien concept.

There were so many emotional moments in the story, some of them rendering me to tears and other times I seriously had a lump the size of an island in my throat. Those were the moments that defined the story for me and I had a hell of an enjoyable time reading Just One of the Guys.

Just One of the Guys is a book that can make you laugh, bawl your eyes out and smile through your tears because Kristan is an author who demands no less, and if you are a fan, I cannot recommend it to you highly enough!

Favorite Quotes

Then before he could break the moment, before he could turn away, I kissed him, and he didn’t stop me. Instead, he pushed my hair out of my face, and he kissed me back, gently, sweetly, his hand slipping behind my head, his lips moving just right against mine, smooth and warm. I gripped his shirt and sighed against his mouth, and knew that as long as I lived, this would be the one perfect kiss that I’d remember forever.

“So you can’t marry Harry, Mom! Not if you still love Daddy!” I sound like a ten-year-old, but I can’t help it. Buttercup comes over to me and puts her head on my lap.
“Love gets used up, Chastity,” Mom says gently, reaching up to smooth my hair. “If it’s not returned, it gets used up.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | BoB | Book Depository

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Deadly Is the Kiss by Rhyannon Byrd

Format: E-bookdeadlyisthekiss
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Spin-off from The Primal Instinct Series
Publisher: HQN Books
Hero: Ashe Granger
Heroine: Juliana Sabin
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: March 20, 2012
Started On: March 19, 2012
Finished On: March 22, 2012

First of all, if you have never read The Primal Instinct Series by Rhyannon Byrd, you might not like Deadly is the Kiss. I say this because the hero and heroine in this novel are characters that you come across and become intrigued with as you read the aforementioned series. Ashe Granger, the vampire hero in this novel has always intrigued me and I have always wanted to know what makes him tick. When Rhyannon announced that Rush of Pleasure would be the last in the series, I wanted to cry out because Rhyannon is an author who brings scorching heat to her books with a shitload of emotion that I just love to indulge myself in. And so you can imagine my reaction when I learnt that not only Rhyannon was sort of continuing in a different line of the series and it was going to be the much awaited book of Ashe Granger!

Ashe Granger is a 2 century old Deschanel vampire and a member of the Förmyndares, an elite, highly skilled group of soldiers whose job was the protection of the Deschanel vampires. Ashe might have made it his life mission to screw through any woman that takes his fancy but ever since he meets the prickly 27 year old Juliana Sabin, Ashe has a feeling that his days of carousing and sleeping through a long line of women were about to be over.

Juliana is still paying for the fatal mistake she made in her youth; falling in love with the wrong kind of vampire. The guilt that plagues her for subjecting her whole family to live in the desolate compound of Wasteland is one that haunts her continuously. And when she receives the news that she and her family are once again in danger, this time the kind that would wipe them from the face of the Earth, she takes the lifeline that is thrown her way and embarks on a journey to seek out the one vampire whom she can’t forget, the one vampire whom she knows would help her out if she manages to convince him of her plight. 

The last vampire that Ashe expects to run into is the one vampire whom he would like nothing better than to get horizontal with and never get up. And through that haze of lust and resentment that Ashe feels, he manages to identify that although Juliana might not be telling him the whole version of her side of things, she is really in danger and Ashe knows that as long as he lives, he would protect HIS woman with every breathe he takes.

Thus begins the game of hide and seek where Juliana and Ashe barely manage to get rid of one group of assassins to run into another, all tasked with the mission of taking Juliana with them. Their grudge is not with Ashe and when he stands in their way to the ultimate prize, all bets are off and Rhyannon gives readers enough fist fights, blood and gore to keep the action alive throughout. With his senses heightened by the danger that surrounds them both, Ashe finds that it is an impossibility for him to keep his hands off of Juliana and he embarks on a mission to quench his thirst for his little convict, all the while thinking that he would be able to walk away, when all is said and done.

I don’t understand the reason why so many readers have taken a dislike towards Ashe’s character. For me, he was real, he was exactly how I envisioned him to be. Ashe is a vampire who has been cheated on by the one woman he trusted and as they say, once bitten twice shy. And for someone like Ashe who works tirelessly in enforcing the law amongst vampires, falling for someone who is nothing more than a convict in his eyes sends him into a whirlpool of conflicting emotions. Ashe fights it all, and oh does he fight, but the fiercest battle of all is one which he wages with himself, torn between the Burning he feels for Juliana and his need to walk away with his emotions intact.

I loved Ashe from his delicious and mouthwatering physical form to what he was deep inside. He might not like the deck of cards fate has dealt him with but above everything else he is a man who believes in justice and fairness and that is how he finds himself agreeing to help Juliana even when he knows that Juliana doesn’t trust him enough to divulge the entire truth. His desire and need for Juliana is a wondrous thing, it is an all encompassing one that refuses to back down, especially with Juliana within arms reach. Ashe’s insecurities are there for all to see, his fear of being cuckolded that plays into his possessive instincts bringing out the jealousy that gives him the extra edge which I just loved. I don’t know about anyone else, but I just flat-out loved Ashe and everything he stood for.

Juliana Sabin is a heroine who I fell in love with right from the very start. She doesn’t want Ashe knowing the truth of how her family’s banishment came about and her reasons are many. And in her own way, Juliana does what she does with the noble intention of protecting the man who means far too much to her than anyone else has in her life. Juliana knows that by giving up her body to a man who plays her like a master would be akin to disaster when she has to walk away from him when the danger is finally no more. Though the thought of leaving Ashe leaves her reeling, I loved Juliana because she takes her chance to indulge with Ashe wholeheartedly and gives herself up to him with everything she has to give.

The one thing you can always count on in novels by Rhyannon is that thread of scorching sensuality and heat that is abundantly woven throughout the story. There were times when my e-reader practically singed my fingertips for the amount of heat that Ashe and Juliana generates, their desire for one another the stuff that happily ever afters are made of.

Loved the sappy ending, giving that much needed happily ever after to two people who most definitely deserve it and I can’t wait to find out whose story Rhyannon comes up with next. Kudos to another book that kept me entertained, made me hum in all the right places and gave me a reason to smile when all was said and done! And as a reader, there is nothing more you can ask for!

Favorite Quotes

With a hoarse curse on his lips, Ashe shuddered against her. The night felt warmer, the air heavier…richer, as it pressed in on them. Lust spilled through his veins in a thick, decadent slide, more potent than any narcotic as it poured through his system. His tongue flicked against the velvety softness of her lower lip, coaxing her to accept him…to kiss him back. She shivered, blinking, then relented, her lips parting with a sigh…inviting him in, and he couldn’t resist, sliding his tongue against hers in an explicit kiss that was wet and deep and hungry.

She cried out as he quickly shoved a hand into the front of her panties, the sharp sound becoming a breathless moan when he cupped her warm sex in his palm and gave a predatory growl. Her delicate hands were on the sides of his neck, clutching him to her, her tongue sliding against his in a way that made his blood boil. Heat poured off him in blistering, sweltering waves as he shoved two thick fingers inside the slick, narrow opening of her body, stretching tender tissues, surprised by how perfect and small she felt. By how tightly she gripped him.
“I knew,” he groaned, nipping her mouth with his teeth as he pushed his fingers deeper into that hot, melting honey. “I fucking knew you were going to feel like this.”

Keeping his fingers locked around her arms, he stared her right in the eye, his chest rising and falling from the jagged force of his breaths. “I want you in a bed, Juliana. I want hours on top of you, under you, beside you. Hell, I want it all. And I want to be able to drift off, knowing that I can roll back over at any time and sink right back into you.” His voice dropped even lower. “So stop arguing and get back on the damn bed.”

The next thing Juliana knew, he had her braced against the back wall of the shower, one hand under her bottom, the other tangled in the back of her wet hair, holding her in place as he took her mouth with what seemed to be an urgent, desperate craving, and claimed her body in the same way. His c#ck found her soft notch, his first thick thrust so hard and deep it shoved the air up out of her lungs, her thoughts fracturing beneath the violent surge of sensation.

He rubbed his thumb over the smoothness of her cheek, thinking she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever known. “You don’t think you’re worth killing for?”
Her laugh was brittle. “Hardly.”
For a moment, there was only the sound of their breathing and the wind gusting through the trees. And then he said, “I disagree.”
She stared up at him, trembling, her eyes filled with the questions she couldn’t put into words.
“I mean it,” he rasped. “I would kill for you. Easily. Without remorse. Again and again.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Harlequin | Book Depository

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Her Perfect Getaway by Emma Jay

Format: E-bookherperfectgetaway
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novella
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Series: Bridesmaids in Paradise, #1
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Max Sullivan
Heroine: Elizabeth Black
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: March 19, 2012
Started On: March 21, 2012
Finished On: March 21, 2012

Elizabeth Black, along with her girl friends make their way to Hawaii for a week of relaxing and fun before Elizabeth’s friend Haven (from Two-Step Temptation) is to say her I-do’s in about 5 weeks time. Elizabeth is high-strung, a workaholic with a constant need to please her father and someone who hasn’t had a vacation in 3 long years.

Max Sullivan (Sully) the sexy and sinfully mouthwatering specimen of the male form turns out to be their guide for the duration of the trip. With an easy going laid-back  nature and a charm that puts everyone at ease right from the start, combined with his potent good looks, Elizabeth finds herself totally turned on by the different facets of his character that comes to light by the minute. Elizabeth thinks that her unruly attraction towards their guide would cause all sorts of problems but these worries fly out the window when she learns that Max too feels the same tidal wave of desire towards her.

A week is all they have got in a land that could be called Paradise on Earth and both Max and Elizabeth certainly make the best use of their time, the sex between them turning hotter and more irresistible with each passing encounter. Elizabeth might want to tell herself that her feelings aren’t involved at all, but as she gets to know the complex man beneath all that charm and good looks, Elizabeth starts to fall for Max bit by bit until there is no turning back.

Oh, how I loved this little story that just sucked me right in and got me feeling all blue to see it end. I wanted to continue reading about two people who completely made me fall in love with them and I wanted all good things to happen to both of them. Max, Oh.MY.GOD. Max, (takes a deep breathe), he just took my breathe away. From the minute he walked into the picture in flip flops and that beautiful mouth of his curved in a welcoming smile, everything female in me clamored to be his. Yes, I tell you, I was a goner from that moment on. I just knew then and there that Max with his beautiful hibiscus tattoo and his tendency to drive a motorbike (GOD YES), lets just say I may as well have took my heart out and wrapped it up in a neat bow and handed it over to him.

Max was such a swell character not because of his sheer good looks alone. It is his different facets that demands nothing less that makes him so irresistible. And that sexy Australian drawl of his whispering words in Japanese? Oh man, even though I know next to nothing in Japanese, I just know that Max would make it worth my while. And you’ve gotta love a man who can make you laugh and turn you on all at the same time and Max did just that to me, (darn it), I mean Elizabeth. 

So before I turn this review into a total drool fest about Max, I should mention how much I loved the way Emma brought to life the beautiful Hawaii. I wanted to hop on a plane then and there and zoom my way across to Paradise on Earth, to experience the heady culture and to mingle with the beautiful people and to just let all my worries melt away. Hopefully someday, even if it is just to experience the magic that Emma creates so beautifully in the story I will one day visit Hawaii, and of course I wouldn’t say no to a guide or two like Max to keep me company and surf through uncharted waters and gaze off into the sunset. *sigh*

Elizabeth is a bit of a tough cookie in the story. She suffers from ill placed guilt issues when it comes to her father, someone who makes sure he exploits those feelings that burgeon to life inside of her whenever he is around. The turning point for Elizabeth’s character comes during Max’s visit to Texas and Elizabeth stands up to her father and lets her feelings be clearly known. I loved that she was the one to take the plunge, to finally express her need to see whether their relationship could mean something much more than either of them bargained for and for that reason alone I loved her wholeheartedly, maybe just a tad less than I do for Max.

Though I would have loved a sappy ending with a lot of mushy expression of feelings tossed into the mix, somehow, the ending in the story seemed to fit these two people and seemed a realistic end to their story. The one thing you won’t tire of are the scenes of passion of the explosive and at the same time tender variety that just goes straight to your blood and pumps it up and makes you sigh all over at the same time. It was those moments of desperation that seems to hit both Max and Elizabeth, their need for each other something that neither can deny that I reveled in, during those moments that I practically drooled and salivated over my e-reader.

As a reader, I couldn’t have asked for more except wish that Max and Elizabeth’s story could have continued on for a long, long while.

Highly recommended for fans of erotica featuring sinfully sexy heroes who makes you hum on on the insides just by sheer instinct alone. And for 0.99 $, this is more than worth a story to indulge in, if only to see Hawaii through the eyes of the author. And of course Max. How could I ever forget him. *sigh*

Favorite Quotes

Vaguely she was aware of her moans floating across the backyard as her entire body tightened around him, then released, sending bits of her consciousness flying in all directions like the stars in the sky above. Her nails dug into his shoulder through his shirt as she anchored herself to him, as the orgasm pulsed through her. She felt the ripples of his own climax inside her, and then he collapsed over her, bringing both legs into the hammock and pulling her against his side.
“Perfect,” he murmured, and in a few minutes, his breathing evened out.

The gentleness of his mouth on hers surprised her, the slow caress of his lips and tongue not unlike the waves below them. She curved her hand around the back of his neck and let herself float on the rhythm, let her fears drift and her body take over. 

He entered her with a practiced thrust, his mouth finding hers, filling her with her taste and arousal so strong. She curled her fingers over his muscular ass and spread her legs wider, searching for the rhythm to match his. God, so perfect, the angle, the tempo. He looked down at her as she found it, as she met him stroke for stroke, so good, so hot, so deep.

She’d practically ripped his clothes off before they got into her apartment, had him inside her before the sound of the door closing had stopped vibrating through the apartment. He’d pressed her to the door and pounded into her until he couldn’t stand up. He’d carried her to the bedroom, where she took over, riding him until he curled his body up to embrace her, so that his breath was on her lips when they reached their climax together.

The next thing she knew, his cock nudged at her entrance. 
“Condom,” she managed.
“Taken care of.” He guided her hand to the base of his shaft so she could feel the sheath. “Ride me, Elizabeth.”
With a shift of her hips, she brought him into her, igniting desire she thought spent as he stretched her, stroked her inner walls.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Smashwords

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by mvbookreviewer

Score Sheet Review: Challenging Carter by Kate Davies

Format: E-bookchallengingcarter.jpg
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novella
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Samhain Publishing Ltd
Hero: Carter Matthews
Heroine: Dani Williams
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: February 13, 2007
Started On: March 19, 2012
Finished On: March 19, 2012

CATEGORY SCORE GRADE
The hero 90 A
The heroine 90 A
Story line 80 A
Emotional Intensity 80 A
Suck me in Factor 80 A
Heat & Sensuality  90 A
Conflicts 85 A
Writing Style 85 A
Quotable Factor 60 B
Ending 85 A
Overall Grade 82.5  A

Score Sheet Summary

It was my hankering to read a friends-to-lovers romance that led me to purchasing and reading Challenging Carter by Kate Davies. Carter Matthews and Dani Williams are best friends and have been together in business for the past 8 years. While Carter heads Outdoor Sports Equipment, Dani is the Financial Analyst of the company who constantly tries to get Carter to stick to the estimated budget for expenses.

Dani has always been in love with Carter and he has no clue. Dani is an introvert, who feels more comfortable working than socializing. It is Carter’s pestering about a Fitness Challenge that has Dani taking up strip aerobics that gives her that extra edge which starts driving Carter out of his ever loving mind.

The scenes of passion were of the steamy hot variety. The thing I loved most about this novella was the friendship between Carter and Dani and Carter’s ability to goof around and get Dani to lighten up. This was evident even in the most sensually charged scenes of the story and that is one reason why I loved Dani and Carter’s story.

The one thing that I did miss however was the lack of background story which I know is not possible most of the time when it comes to a novella. But a friends to lovers romance becomes that much more real if their past comes up and delivers those tidbits that makes the characters more appealing and give that extra bite of sexual tension that drives the reader to the very edge. 

If you are looking for a short story to stick in between lengthier reads and if you love the friends to lovers trope, give Challenging Carter a go.

Favorite Quotes

Then he strode across the room and kissed her.
It was a crazy, impulsive act, but the minute his lips touched hers he knew it was the right thing to do.
She tasted like sex and sin and forbidden fruit, and he couldn’t get enough.

It should have been awkward. They’d taken their relationship from casual to over-the-top intimate in six-point-two seconds, without all the typical steps in between.
But all Dani could think, wrapped in Carter’s arms, was that finally she was right where she was supposed to be.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: The Best Man by Maggie Osborne

Format: Hardcoverthebestman
Read with: Hardcover
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Hero: Dal Frisco
Heroine: Fredrick Roark
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: January 1, 1998
Started On: March 17, 2012
Finished On: March 18, 2012

The Best Man is a novel that is going to be hard to review, not because it wasn’t a splendid read in all the ways that counts. It is going to be difficult to put into words just how much the story affected me, how the characters that were brought to life in front of my eyes continued to worm their way into my heart and later on etched themselves onto my very soul to stay there for the time to come. As I have said before and I will continue to say this, Maggie Osborne is an author who is one of a kind. She delivers romances that takes you to place you rarely get to go and she gives you a story that you can sink your teeth into and cannot let go!

Joe Roark, owner of the King’s Walk Ranch dies leaving behind 3 daughters and his fourth wife a widow. Each of them grapples with the astounding will that Joe leaves which dictates that his daughters prove their mettle before they are to receive their due inheritance. If that fails to be the case, all the sweat and hard work that Joe had put into building his ranch would be in vain and would be handed over to a wife that he detested more than he did  his daughters.

A man who only wanted sons and got saddled with daughters, Joe refused to let his daughters forget their place in the world. Alexander Roark Mills (Alex), Fredrick Roark (Freddy) and Lester Roark (Les); the 3 daughters whom he had pampered in his way and each of whom had disappointed him in one way or the other suddenly finds themselves tasked with driving a herd of longhorns to the market in Abilene, Kansas. 

Dal Frisco is a man who is looking for a second chance, a chance to turn his life around and achieve his dream of owning his own spread in Montana. To do that, he needs cold hard cash and the news of the infamous will Joe left to his daughters pave the way for him to do exactly just that. What he doesn’t bargain for is to find daughters who look like the high strung type who carry smelling salts in their fringed wrist purses who look and behave as if they have never engaged in an honest day of work in their whole lives. But even then, Freddy with her dark hair and green eyes catch him unawares with the bolt of desire that strikes him upon the very first time their eyes meet.

For Dal, the success of the mission ahead hinges on his ability to prepare the 3 women to face and cope with the challenges of being on the road, to actively take part in delivering the herd in the exact number their father has stipulated in the will. But the number of foes who want nothing more than to see them fail work from within to bring chaos and mayhem to their venture. And through it all, the 3 sisters continue to discover the hard truths about themselves, become better women and go on to form a bond with each other that would remain unshaken till death does them apart.

Labeling The Best Man as the story in which Freddy and Dal discover each other and fall in love would not do justice to a story that is so very much more. The Best Man brings to life the characters of 3 sisters who had grown up trying to compete and outdo each other during their childhood, each resenting the other for one thing or the other. And later when adolescence had hit, the 3 of them had found themselves going their separate ways, never forging a connection befitting that of sisters. Alex elopes while Freddy sets off to embrace her dream of performing in a theater which drives a further wedge between the sisters. Les, the youngest is the one who stays behind, who feels betrayed when her father brings home a wife that disrespects everything they stand for.

For 3 people who have never tried working as a team or have never worked hard a day in their life, the training and the pace that Dal sets serves to be sheer torture. But Dal is the man who forces them to force out their inner strength, to straighten that backbone of steel that each sister has in spades, to embrace the true hidden characteristics within each of them that makes them such appealing characters. Each of them has their own fair share of faults, fears and dreams. And learning about each of them was a journey in itself and I loved every minute of it.

The men who enter into their lives are nor less appealing. Dal plays the most prominent role and he is the stuff that pure alpha men are made out of. He is strong, stubborn, has that inner qualities that makes him a good leader. But he is not without his fair share of faults either. A recovering alcoholic, Dal battles his inner demons day in and day out and the focus shifts from his desire for the drink to his need for a woman that sets his senses afire by merely just existing. Freddy drives him crazy in more ways than one and though Dal might try to tell himself otherwise, Freddy invades his heart and his soul before he is even aware of it happening.

Alex was one of the most complex characters in the story. With a past that portrays her as the most tortured soul in the story, Alex is a character that rouses equal amounts of sympathy and admiration in the reader. At first she comes across as a snob who later transforms into a woman who is able and willing to do whatever it takes to ensure that she and her sisters get what is entitled to them. How Alex discovers love, forgiveness and the courage to move on in one of the most unlikely heroes to crop up put a huge lump in my throat and made me ache in ways I cannot explain. If it is only to discover Alex and the magical transformation she undergoes in this story, it is worth getting yourself a copy of The Best Man.

Les is the sister who has problems with asserting herself. The one who enters into a relationship with an abusive fiance and believes it to be her due. The sister who has the hardest time in putting one foot in front of the other and taking the next step. The one who continually faces the dilemma of doing the right thing and choosing the easy way out. And hers was a story that I read all the while wanting to infuse her with the strength to move on, to be able to stand up and give as good as she gets. And she does get there eventually, surprising herself more than anyone else by just how far she has come by the time the story ends.

Freddy is the dreamer, the one who envisions life as a stage set for acting and she plays the lead role. One hard bump after the other and the tough lessons day in and day out teaches her to face reality, forces her to come crashing down into the world of living rather than continue to walk the Earth with her head up in the clouds. Her desire for Dal is one that catches her by surprise, her innocence the factor that lures her towards a man who shakes her up and tosses her into a maelstrom of desire that she cant shake lose from. 

With Maggie Osborne, you never get a simple straightforward story. She takes you on a journey filled with twists and turns, ups and downs, traversing through roads that brings joy as much as peril comes seeking you out and later on at the end you emerge victorious from all the hard labor you have toiled in, which in the end transforms your reading experience into something wondrous that you won’t forget anytime soon.

Recommended for fans of Maggie Osborne. If you have never read a Maggie Osborne, you are definitely missing out!

Favorite Quotes

His mouth came down on hers hard and hot and deliberate. His kiss was so unexpected that Freddy went limp in his arms with shock. She didn’t fight or protest, couldn’t move or breathe. No one had ever kissed her like this, selfishly, unemotionally, taking with no thought of giving. This kiss was hungry, domineering, something that seared and scorched physically and left her mind reeling.

He kissed her then, not gently, not tenderly. He didn’t kiss her to comfort her. He took her mouth hungrily, almost savagely, wanting to punish her for having a body that tormented him, for telling him that his last kiss had meant nothing, needed to punish her for letting scum like Jack Caldwell call her honey, and for ever thinking about a man who wasn’t him.

He found her breasts with his hands and dropped his lips to her arching throat, tasting dust and woman sweat and a trace of something that reminded him of apples. She tore his shirt at the throat, ripping it downward, and slipped her hands inside, her fingers like brands of fire across his skin. One minute she was straddling him, the next minute he’d fallen on top of her. It was like a dam had burst within them both, releasing a flood tide of desire and urgency. And God help him, he would have taken her right there on the ground with a stampede winding down a hundred yards behind him.

For a long moment they gazed at each other, and Freddy felt her mouth go dry and her heartbeat accelerate. If the evening ended right now, she would still remember this moment for all her days. The music, the perfume of the flower baskets, and the hard look of desire in Dal’s eyes.

“Dal … Dal …” Mindlessly, she whispered his name as his kisses deepened and became possessive and deliberate. But slow. Exploring. Teasing. Never quite enough. Kisses that drank desire from her mouth and left her frantic with wanting, wanting, wanting.

Winding her arms close around his neck, she closed her eyes. To be embraced, safe in a man’s arms when she had never expected it to happen again, this would be enough.
Time sheltered their embrace, enfolding them within a summer scented capsule that felt endless and theirs alone. The fragrance of grass and sunlight and nearby water sweetened each breath. Theirs was the music of birds ans the lazy buzz of insects and the beating of two hearts. Yes, she thought, she didn’t need more. This would be enough.

This time his kiss was full and provocative, summoning sensations she had believed, had hop, were submerged too deeply to be awakened. But his fingers on her face, his mouth, his lips, stirred slumbering emotions and coaxed them to life. His hands moved to cup her head, to spread across her spine, and he crushed her against him as their kisses deepened.

He molded her body to his and another gasp tore at her throat. She had never expected to be held in a man’s arms again. Hadn’t dared to hope that she would ever stand chest to chest, hip to hip with a man who desired her. She had truly believed lovemaking was a pleasure she would never again experience in her lifetime. That was her choice and destiny.
His hands moved from her waist to her face, and he kissed the tears shining on her cheeks and eyelids. “I love you,” he whispered. “I have loved you from the moment I saw you.”

“You are so beautiful,” he breathed. Standing over her, rampant in the moonlight, he gazed down at her body. “You are as lovely and as perfect as I imagined you would be.”
Afraid to believe, afraid to trust, she dared a look at him and felt her heart wrench when she read his expression and understood that she truly was whole and beautiful in his eyes. She was a magnificent to him as he was to her.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Abe Books

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Shotgun Wedding by Maggie Osborne

Format: Paperbackshotgunwedding
Read with: Paperback
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Hero: Jesse John Harden
Heroine: Anne Margaret Malloy
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: November 4, 2003
Started On: March 16, 2012
Finished On: March 17, 2012

The saddest feeling in the world as a reader is to know that an author whose voice beats any other writes no more. Every time I read a book by Maggie Osborne, this is a loss that I feel profoundly to my very soul. Lately I have been very discontent with the books lining my e-book shelves, something that happens to me every now and then. Finally, I decided to dust off my paperback edition of Shotgun Wedding which I bought from Abe Books a couple of months back, and let Maggie Osborne charm her way into my heart and soul and she did exactly just that with a story that kept me turning the pages even into wee hours of the morning.

Jesse John Harden works as the Sheriff of the small town of Marshall in Kansas. A man who prefers to keep to himself, Jesse might show a laid-back front to people but he is a man who gets the job done earning him more than the gratitude of the people of his now hometown.

25 year old Anne Margaret Malloy (Annie) finds herself in a bit of a fix when she discovers that she is pregnant and that she can’t continue to avoid the fact any longer. Annie is someone who has sworn off marriage a long time back, the independence that her parents give her one that she had taken for granted and landed her in the shitload of trouble she finds herself in. Annie likes to think of herself as a New Modern Woman like those who aren’t afraid to move ahead in a man’s world and show the world their worth. But the unexpected pregnancy brings all her dreams crashing down and forces her to face the consequences of the road that she had taken when she had met the father of her child.

Even though Annie’s beau agrees to marry her and do the right thing, she cannot accept the concept of living with a man who robs banks and trains for a living. The mere thought of feeding herself and her children from the profit reaped off by robbing other people of their hard earned wealth leaves a hollow feeling deep inside of her and that is how Annie finds herself the outcast of the town, living with her parents who refuse to let her take the coward’s way out and stay at home wallowing in self-pity.

Through a chain of events, the townsfolk arrive at the conclusion that Jesse is the father of Annie’s unborn child as Annie continues to hide the identity of the man who had fathered her child. Jesse had always had a soft spot for Annie, her unruly red curls a constant source that fires his libido unlike any other. But his plans of gentle days of courting Annie into his world fly out of the window when he reels with the news of Annie’s pregnancy, until he comes up with a plan that would effectively tie Annie’s life to his, all the while convinced that with time he would make Annie fall in love with him.

Shotgun Wedding was a story that was delivered in the classic wit and style that only Maggie Osborne can pull off. She is an author who can continue to juggle a hundred characters in her stories and never make you feel as if you are floundering around trying to pin down who is who. In Shotgun Wedding, Ms. Osborne manages to bring the whole town to life, exploring those little nuances that makes you feel as if you are part of the story that unfolds rather than a guest passing through.

I loved Jesse and clamored for him with everything female inside of me. He is the least “tortured” hero that I have come across by the author and there was a definite charm about his character because of that. But don’t fool yourself into thinking that Jesse won’t make your heart go aflutter because he definitely does that and more. He has that inner strength and formidability etched onto his character that would make your heart beat a tad faster when he enters into the picture. And he is the type of man you can count on to keep the nightmares at bay, to make you feel loved and cherished in those little ways that counts. I loved how Jesse begins to court his pregnant wife and that slow simmering seduction that he begins that just made me hum deep inside and curl my toes in anticipation.

I had a bit of a problem with Annie like most readers. Annie is not without her faults but I expected her to grow out of them and show me the backbone that would make her a worthy partner for Jesse till death does them apart. At first her selfishness in not thinking about the parents who had done nothing but love her and give her everything she had wanted grated on me. But later on, she did learn her lesson and accepted her faults and showed that she was made of better stuff. The one thing that continued to irk me was how Annie tried to shield the activities of the actual father of her child from her husband, putting Jesse inevitably in danger which is only then Annie realizes the blunder she has made. But I guess once again she does learn from her mistake but I found it a bit hard to forgive her and move on like Jesse did.

The one other problem I had with the story was how Jesse didn’t feature in the story as prominently as I wanted. The story was mostly dominated by Annie and the father of her child and though the anger that he harbors towards Jesse for snatching away something that he considers as rightfully his drives the story, I wanted the burgeoning relationship between Jesse and Annie to come into the spotlight and give me a couple of chapters to sigh over long after I was done.

It is the sheer feeling of magic that surrounds me when I start a Maggie Osborne that would always leave me coming back for more. Recommended for fans of Maggie Osborne and fans of marriage of convenience themed romances.

Favorite Quotes

If only. The saddest two words in any language.

Golden shadows shimmered and the musky scent of the candles dizzied every breath. They were on the bed now, an enormous bed with sheets of glowing satin. Clasped in an embrace they rolled together, drinking deep kisses from gasping mouths, hands stroking, teasing, chasing, bodies pressing against each other as if seeking to melt and become one with the other.

He bent his head, bringing his lips near her ear. “Talk of the future confuses you, I know. But I think about it all the time.
His hands moved slowly down her bare arms. “When the time is right, when it’s our time, I want to undress you – slowly – in front of the fire. Slowly, one item at a time. I want to roll down your stockings and unlace your corset. I want to slowly take the pins out of your hair and catch the weight of it in my hands. Then I want to learn the feel of every inch of you.”

[Annie] “I just wondered … is slowly a good thing?”
“Is slowly …” His fingers relaxed and she felt rather than saw his smile. He brushed his fingertips across her lips, then sank back to his pillow. “Oh yes, Annie love. Slowly is a very good thing.”
“Oh, my.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Abe Books

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by mvbookreviewer

Requested ARC Review: Tactical Deception by J.L. Saint + Giveaway!

Format: E-booktacticaldeception
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Silent Warrior #2
Publisher: Samhain Publishing Ltd.
Hero: Lt. Col. Roger Weston
Heroine: Maryam Dalton
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: March 13, 2012
Started On: March 12, 2012
Finished On: March 13, 2012

It feels like I have spent ages pining for the release of this much awaited second book in the Silent Warrior series by J.L. Saint. Book 1 in the series Collateral Damage was an eye opening novel filled with drool inducing yummy military heroes and depicts the constant battle that they and the world at large fight in combating terrorism and its ill effects on the whole world. J.L. Saint is one of those authors who gets the details right, someone who doesn’t ‘judge’ in the way she presents a story that is bound to be gone over with a fine-tooth comb by those that would have a hard time believing that any author would be able to paint ‘terrorists’ in a way that doesn’t offend someone who is a Muslim. Having read book 1 in the series, I trusted J.L. Saint to handle the story of Lt. Col. Roger Weston and the beautiful Maryam Dalton (Mari) with the same grace and poise as she did for Collateral Damage and she did just that, leaving me wanting more of the same as I read through the last pages.

39 year old Roger Weston is still paying the price for the hit his team had taken in Lebanon, the guilt of what had gone down and rendered 24 year old Maryam Dalton (Mari) a pregnant widower something that Roger can’t shake himself loose from. Making the situation doubly dangerous is the fact that he desires Mari above and beyond any reason, something that he berates himself for over and over again knowing deep in his heart that if Mari were ever to find the truth behind her husband’s death, she would never look at him in the same way again.

Mari might be pregnant and devout in her faith that had been her way of life even long after she had escaped the land where she had grown up in driven to escape the injustice of being blamed for something she had no power over, but the fact that she desires a man she has no right over is one that continues to taunt her. Mari would like nothing better than to bury her head in the sand and forget that Roger Weston exists, but it seems easier said than done as Roger and his piercing blue eyes continue to haunt her in dreams of the vivid and erotic variety, and it doesn’t make things any easier when Roger sticks by her side to protect her from an enemy who is relentless in his need to see Mari take her last breathe in this world.

When shit hits the fan in more ways than one, Roger and his team are scrambling left and right trying to make sense of a series of sniper attacks which occur simultaneously at different locations in the US, leaving an abject terror gnawing deep inside of everyone. Amidst all the attacks and confusion, Mari’s estranged family makes an appearance, throwing both Roger and Mari into a situation that is fraught with danger from all sides, and it is through sheer luck, God’s will and a whole lot of prowess on Roger’s side that these two find themselves free from their captives, ready to surrender to the desire that is always such a visceral part of their relationship.

Tactical Deception is a complex novel comprised of multiple layers and characters that lend a richness to the story that just begs you to keep on reading. There are few authors in my eyes who can juggle so many characters effectively without the book sounding like a narrative of each and every single attribute of the multi-faceted characters that are introduced and play a vital role in the story. And I believe J.L. Saint to be one who is able to deliver on all accounts and I couldn’t get enough of each and every character that I came across and learned to love as I was pulled deeper into a story that was filled with action, angst and red hot loving till the very last page.

Tactical Deception is not just the story of how Roger and Mari, two very different people in their upbringing as well as their beliefs and culture find that special someone in each other to spend the rest of their lives with. It is a story that shows the true meaning of the word “terrorism”, the terror that one can instill in your heart if you plan that carefully, if you let hate encroach and encompass the whole of your heart until it is just sheer madness that controls all your actions and emotions. It is a realistic portrait of the condition that J.L. Saint creates so vividly that I always found myself holding my breathe in, unable to believe what was happening, but at the same time knowing deep inside of me that this could indeed turn out to be the reality of tomorrow.

I would say this now and I would say this tomorrow, but I do appreciate how well J.L. Saint paints the picture of a devout Muslim who is torn between her beliefs towards Allah and her desires for a man that goes completely against the teachings of a religion that preaches modesty of the self above everything else. But reality in life is that even the most devout when tempted beyond anything they have ever faced before succumbs, and there was a beauty in the way that Mari gives herself over to Roger, a man who above everything else respects the woman he would lay down his very life for.

Roger is a hero that would be hard NOT to fall in love with. He is a warrior with a deep sense of always doing the right thing ingrained in him that it is with a heavy heart that he faces his unrelenting desire for the very last woman he should be lusting after. Even when Mari and the way she covers her beauty from him drives him crazy, I fell irrevocably in love with him the moment Roger showed just how much he respected the woman he loves above anything else in this world. Roger recognizes the woman who hides herself in the shrouds of her abaya, her wants, needs and the desire that burns deep inside of her to embrace freedom, to give her unborn babies all that she had been deprived of when she had been growing up.

Woven into the story of such complex emotions is plenty of action to pump up one’s adrenaline levels and J.L. Saint pulls no punches in delivering scenes that practically explode all over the page, that drives you to the edge of your seat time and yet again and I loved and reveled in every single minute of the experience.

As much as I loved Roger and Mari’s story, I absolutely adored the secondary romance that took place between Angie and Rico that burned up a few pixels on my iPad and a few of my brain cells while they were at it. Their explosive chemistry, the way Rico could not think straight whenever Angie was around, and the bittersweet ending that Angie and Rico faced at the end of this novel just made me want to cry and howl at the injustice of it all. I don’t think I can adequately put into words just how much I want their story next, and yes this goes out as a plea to you Ms. Saint to hurry along and give readers their story before we all get into a tizzy from all the anticipation and waiting around.

As I said earlier, so many fascinating characters that I have a feeling would make for unbelievable stories of their own and I can’t wait to see the journey that Ms. Saint would take us on in a series which I hope and pray would continue to have a lot more books than just these two. With non-stop action, red hot scorching passion that revs up your engines unlike anything else, there is nothing more you can ask from a novel such as this one.

Tactical Deception is a story that goes straight to your blood. Its chills, curdles, pumps and revs it up in equal doses and you just wont get enough!

Favorite Quotes

… war fucks everybody without discretion …

She [Angie] looked at the plate he’d set down. “You’re not hungry?”
“I’m starving. Hungrier than I’ve ever been in my entire life.” He’d waited for weeks for the right time and even though it was the worst timing possible, he couldn’t wait a second more.
Her jaw dropped as he took her plate from her wobbly grip.
“I, uh, am in desperate need of a shower.”
“Me too,” he whispered, then leaned in and pressed his mouth to her lush lips. She opened immediately for him, inviting his tongue and more as she sighed and sank closer against him. He thrust deep into her mouth, tasting the spicy sauce, tasting her, and plundered for more as pleasure washed over him like a benediction from heaven.

Looking down she arched her back, giving him more. His tanned complexion against her milky, slightly freckled skin was visually stark and sexually exciting. She watched as his mouth claimed her other nipple, stroking it with his tongue, and her vision blurred as he rhythmically rocked his erection against her sex.
Hot, damp, desperate, she braced herself with her hands on his knees behind her and met him thrust for thrust, pushing hard. Breathing as heavy as he was, she trembled with the flash fire of passion overtaking them both.

The waistbands of her jeans and panties only made it to her knees before Rico spread open her sex and planted a tongue lashing right on the swollen nub of her core. Wave after wave of fiery pleasure burned through her in an explosive rush to an orgasm that rocked her world because it was so good, but it wasn’t enough. She didn’t have Rico inside her. She didn’t have his arms around her. She couldn’t look into the drowning depths of his eyes. She pulled on his good arm, feeling his body trembling with his desire. “I need you now. More than ever before I need you inside me now. Please.”

Her sheath clamped his erection like a burning fist as her body demanded he follow her over the edge. Physically that was already happening. Big time. He was buried all the way in with his balls kissing her sweet ass as the biggest orgasm of his life blew his mind. He literally saw stars. But it didn’t end there. Emotionally and spiritually she was sucking him into her and he was driving harder and harder to get there himself as his gaze locked with hers. She grabbed his heavy necklace and pulled his mouth to hers, demanding and claiming, giving no quarter. They rode out the pleasure, wave after wave, milking every drop of it together with moans, touches, tiny thrusts, and sealing it all with an endless kiss that left him breathless—soulless—everything-less. She stole it all.

[Roger] “Do you know how amazingly beautiful you are to me?”
“As beautiful as you are to me.” She slid her gaze down then back up with one of those secret smiles that played havoc with a man’s mind.
He shook his head. “Nah, I couldn’t be, because you’d be insane with your need to just watch me. You’d ache every moment to just touch me. Your nights would be consumed with dreams of me and you’d live every moment just to love me.”

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

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GIVEAWAY!! GIVEAWAY!!

Author J.L. Saint is giving away an e-copy of Tactical Deception to one lucky commenter on this post. All you have to do to enter is to tell us who your most favorite fictional military hero is. So easy right?

Please state a valid e-mail address as a way to contact you if you are the winner. And remember, this is open INTERNATIONALLY, so don’t be shy ;-)

If you can help spread the word, you do earn extra points. Tweet about it and earn 5 extra entries, recommend this review and giveaway on Facebook and earn another 5 extra entries. And if you do either, don’t forget to leave the link of your tweet or recommendation on Facebook for me to verify.

Giveaway will open at 00:00 hours on March 14, 2012 Maldivian time and ends at 00:00 hours on March 16, 2012 Maldivian time. Maldivian timezone is GMT+5!

If you love action packed romantic suspense with larger than life military heroes, I dare you to enter. This is one book that won’t disappoint.

by mvbookreviewer

Review: If You See Her by Shiloh Walker

Format: E-bookifyouseeher
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: The Ash Trilogy #2
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Hero: Remington Jennings
Heroine: Hope Carson
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: January 31, 2012
Started On: March 9, 2012
Finished On: March 10, 2012

If You See Her by Shiloh Walker is book 2 in her Ash Trilogy, book 1 of which entitled If You Hear Her crept the bejesus out of me and introduced a whole lot of characters that certainly piqued my interest on more levels than one. 

The small town of Ash, Kentucky with a population of 8,312 is rocked by the series of vicious murders happening in their own backyard. The whole town is shocked to say the least and the last round of violence in which Hope Carson is suspected to have beaten up her best friend Law Reilly and then nearly gone on to kill herself which shocks the District Attorney Remington Jennings  (Remy) more than he lets on.

From the moment Remy had laid eyes on Hope and her beautiful eyes filled with a fear and pain that pains him and makes every protective instinct within him want to embrace her and keep her safe, Remy knows that he wouldn’t have an easy time out of prosecuting the one woman who rouses the very primal instincts deep inside of him.

Hope is a woman who has been on the run for the past 2 years from her ex-husband. Scared and jittery as she might be, the one thing Hope vows is to never return to her ex-husband because living in the darkness that had been their marriage with no way out of it is not an experience that Hope wants to repeat. Hope doesn’t want or need a man in her life, and the merest thought of even getting close to someone of the opposite sex leaves her with a bad taste in her mouth. But Remy, the man who nearly arrests her for a crime she is innocent of is the one man to whom she has a difficulty showing her indifferent side to.

If You See Her is an installment in the series that contains very little of the elements of suspense that made book 1 such a hit towards the end. I missed the presence of the creepy killer and craved to know more about him because Shiloh has certainly done a swell job of creating his character, leaving the readers practically tied up in knots trying to guess as to who the killer could be. So needless to say, when the killer didn’t make much of an appearance in the story I felt cheated out just a bit.

Rather than focusing on the suspense element, the novel delves deeper into the growing relationship between Hope and Remy and continues to reveal the different facets of the multitude of characters that bring this trilogy to life. There are family problems, there are problems between friends, and then there is the budding romance between Remy and Hope where Remy forces himself to tread very carefully in order to win a woman who has seen more than her fair share of violence and depravity.

The moment I fell in love with Remy was a bizarre one. It was the moment that Remy let Hope take the lead role in emerging as an independent woman, a person who is more than capable of starting out on her own even if fear continues to walk right along with her on her quest to assert herself. It was how Remy went against his instincts and let Hope do her thing, let her be herself and let her come out of the shell she had hidden herself in to emerge as a woman who is breathtaking as she revels in the freedom that being with Remy brings her that I knew Remy was definitely the man for Hope.

It is always a must to appreciate how Shiloh brings the passion between her characters to life, and I reveled in every minute of how Remy and Hope finds that special someone in each other and forges that deep connection with each other that made me just a teeny bit envious even as I rejoiced in their love.

If the suspense element had been more, if the pace of the story had been just a tad faster, I would have definitely enjoyed this a lot lot more. But having said that, If You See Her is still a decent addition to a trilogy of which the last book I have already started on in my quest to get acquainted with the killer and finally find out who Shiloh has so masterfully created and hidden in plain sight so very well.

Recommended for fans of the series and fans of Shiloh Walker.

Favorite Quotes

This was the absolute last woman on earth he should want—she was trouble, in so many ways. She was troubled, and that was just one of the reasons he didn’t need this.
This was the absolute last woman on earth he wanted to want—she just plain and simple was trouble—he could feel that in his bones.
And yet, as he stared into those big, green eyes, he did want.
Hell, did he want.

One kiss, he told himself.
Just one easy, quick kiss.
He had plenty of control.
He could control his temper, his hunger, his …
Her mouth opened under his and she met his kiss with shy, sweet hesitation.
Remy felt like the very ground had crumbled under his feet.
Oh, hell.

He pushed up onto his heels and then pulled her up against him, one hand cradling the nape of her neck, the other splayed wide over her back. His mouth came down on hers and right before he kissed her, he muttered, “Fuck, you’re going to drive me insane, I know it.”
Then his mouth crushed down onto hers. His taste was different—darker.
Her, she realized. He tasted of her.

Man, she loved the way Remy smelled. Male … warm. Expensive. Idly, she noticed the same scent was on her, now. It was the soap he used. She’d discovered that in the shower when she lathered up with it. The smell was borderline intoxicating on him, not so much on her. Absently, she stroked her hands up and down his sides.
“Hope, you’re making it very hard for me to have a conversation here.”
“Hmmm?” Tipping her head back, she glanced at him through her lashes, saw that he had a look on his face that was rapidly growing familiar.
That lovely blue was heated, his lashes low over his eyes. And she found herself wanting to push up on her toes and tug his head down close enough to kiss him.

Then he kissed her again. When he licked her through the silk, she moaned. Catching the fabric, he tugged it aside and licked her again. “Hot … fuck, yeah, you’re hot.”
Hope shuddered and fisted her hands in his hair again. But this time, she tugged him closer, gasping out his name.
He smiled against her and then proceeded to do to her what she’d been doing to him from the first time he’d laid eyes on her—driving him out of his fucking mind.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | BoB | Book Depository

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves

Format: E-bookontheisland
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Thomas James Callahan (T.J.)
Heroine: Anna Lynn Emerson
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: September 4, 2011
Started On: March 6, 2012
Finished On: March 9, 2012

Never have I been so grateful for a recommendation received from the romance discussion forum on Amazon as I was when I finished On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves. By reading the book, you won’t feel that it is a debut novel, such is Tracey’s prowess and mastery with the words that you just want to go on reading, without taking any breaks in between if you can help it.

Thomas James Callahan (T.J.) is sixteen years old and three months into remission from Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He is on his way to the Maldives with his 30 year old tutor Anna Lynn Emerson who is to help him catch up on the months of missed school while T.J. had been undergoing treatment.

Tragedy strikes when the sea plane that is supposed to take them to the island which is their final destination crash lands, leaving Anna badly hurt and T.J. with the task of getting them safely to shore. Saying that it is a tough time that Anna and T.J. both undergo, especially during the first couple of days would be an understatement. Being from the Maldives myself, I understand how primitive conditions would be in an uninhabited island, how totally alone you can feel with nothing but the blue skies and the endless seas surrounding you. With no source of fresh water on the island, Anna and T.J.’s main problem lies in the depleting amount of fluids from their bodies. But somehow, part  through luck and partly through trial and error, T.J. and Anna make a life for themselves on the island when being rescued seems like an option that is no longer available for them.

From June 2001 till December 2004 when the devastating tsunami that wrought havoc from Indonesia to Africa serves to be the reason why they get rescued, Anna and T.J. depend and rely on each other and a relationship forms between the two, not surprising given the fact that T.J. had crushed on Anna even from the very start. Anna is the one who remains at first oblivious, for many a reason, one being the fact that she is 13 years older than T.J. For Anna, the protective instinct she has when it comes to T.J. surprises her but she doesn’t make much of it until after T.J. turns 18 and she too starts feeling the stirrings of desire when it comes to T.J. 

The way Anna and T.J.’s relationship progresses is a natural one. No lightning bolt moments in their relationship but rather it is one that is built on mutual affection, trust and a whole lot more than just a simple case of lusting for each other because it is the convenient choice. Both T.J. and Anna are characters who feel real, ones that you can relate to, ones that tug at your heartstrings as you read along. You can’t help but be invested in the outcome of their relationship, their time on the island that subjects them to the harsh reality of life and survival when there remains nothing but each other to look out for.

Being rescued brings along with it its own fair share of doubts and insecurities though both Anna and T.J. know that for them there would always be no love like the one that they have found with each other. The period of separation that they both go through was a much needed one to make their love that much more meaningful and profound and I was deeply moved through everything T.J. and Anna go through, both together and individually as well.

I loved T.J.. No surprises there. He is the kind of hero that you fall in love with immediately because there are no pretenses when it comes to him. He is the what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of guy and the way he grows into manhood, takes on responsibilities that would otherwise have been foreign if not for the circumstances just made him that much more appealing. He has a protective instinct that naturally comes into play with Anna, a woman he admires and crushes on from afar for far too long. When T.J. realizes the course of change Anna’s feelings towards him has taken, T.J. grabs the opportunity like everything else he does, with a zeal and zest for life that is so charming that you just fall in love with Anna right along with him.

Anna was such a lovely character as well. She is the type of heroine who doesn’t fuss around trying to become someone she isn’t. She is comfortable with who she is. Her regrets in life are ones that had driven her to take the job of tutoring T.J. in the first place. She doesn’t talk down to T.J. just because he is much younger than herself but rather treats him as an equal from the very start. Their coping mechanism for what they both go through are different, but in it lies that desolateness that is a result of the hope that diminishes as the months and years pass on by.

If I am ever to crash on an uninhabited island, I want a T.J. by my side, a man who knows what he wants and isn’t afraid to lay his emotions on the line to get what he wants. When the epilogue and the beautiful fitting ending for these two lovely people came about, I was more than ready to embrace it, reveling in the blessings that life had bestowed upon two people who would remain with me forever. 

I have to warn readers like myself who are squeamish with books written in first person that this is indeed written in first person. But Tracey makes it worth your while by giving both characters equal amounts of attention to show you both their viewpoints. A nice touch I must say and I loved T.J.’s take on things. With characters I loved wholeheartedly, this gushy review is a testament to just how much I loved the story. And the story taking place in Maldives? The icing on the cake. 

Beautiful, poignant and real, On the Island is a novel not to be missed! I smiled, I laughed, I cried and I sighed with everything that is in me. There is nothing more you can ask from a book. Grab yourself a copy and indulge – I dare you!

Favorite Quotes

[T.J.] If she had gotten sick, the only thing I could have done was watch her suffer. Bury her next to Mick when she died. I didn’t know if I could make it without her. The sound of her voice, her smile, her– those were the things that made living on the island bearable. I held her a little tighter and thought if she woke up I might tell her that. She didn’t though. She sighed in her sleep, and eventually I drifted off.

[Anna] In February, I woke up from a nap. A bouquet of flowers gathered from the various bushes and shrubs scattered around the island lay on the blanket beside me, a small length of rope wound around their stems.
I found T.J. down at the shore. “Someone’s been checking the calendar.”
He grinned. “I didn’t want to miss Valentine’s Day.”
I kissed him. “You’re sweet to me.”
Pulling me closer, he said, “It’s not hard, Anna.”
I stared into T.J.’s eyes, and he started to sway. My arms went around his neck and we danced, moving in a circle, the sand soft and warm under our feet.
“You don’t need music, do you?”
“No,” T.J. said. “But I do need you.”

[T.J.] I pulled my arms out from underneath her body and tucked her hair behind her ears. “I love you, Anna.”
The surprised look on her face told me she hadn’t seen that coming.
“You weren’t supposed to fall in love,” she whispered.
“Well, I did,” I said, looking into her eyes. “I’ve been in love with you for months. I’m telling you now because I think you love me too, Anna. You just don’t think you’re supposed to. You’ll tell me when you’re ready. I can wait.” I pulled her mouth down to mine and kissed her and when it ended, I smiled and said, “Happy birthday.”

[T.J.] I kissed her as soon as we were inside her apartment, and I wasn’t gentle about it, holding her face firmly in my hands and pressing my lips hard against hers. She wasn’t anyone’s to own – I knew that – but right then she was mine.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Smashwords

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