Category / Endearing Heroine

by mvbookreviewer

Review: Now You See Him… by Anne Stuart

Format: E-booknowyouseehim
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Silhouette Intimate Moments, #429
Publisher: Silhouette
Hero: James Mackintosh Bond
Heroine: Frances Neeley
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: April 1, 1992
Started On: June 29, 2011
Finished On: June 29, 2011

Its being quite some time since I immersed myself in the magic that Anne Stuart alone can create with her ruthlessly determined and controlled heroes. Now You See Him is one of her much earlier books and a Harlequin romance at that but nevertheless still managed to pack a wealth of emotion into the 200+ pages of the story.

Now You See Him kicks off in quite an unusual way with the heroine Frances Neeley waiting for her to-be lover Patrick Dugan to come home after attending some demonstration in his cause for freedom for Ireland. However, the night does not end amidst a bed of roses but rather in a severe bloodbath as Patrick turns out to be a murderer, a liar and a terrorist for whom Francey had just been a means to an end.

Francey retires to the tiny island of St. Anne’s in the Carribbean to lick her wounds in private and to let the sun, sea and the beach work its magic on her raw, open wounds. When her cousin Daniel Traverse who owns the villa Belle Reste in which Francey is recuperating sends along seemingly harmless Michael Dowde recovering from a near fatal auto accident, Francey almost lets her guard down in thinking that no harm would come to her from Michael even when her instincts scream at her otherwise.

Michael’s mission while he gets back his strength is a simple one. Find out whether Francey is as innocent as she claims to be or eliminate her if else. But what he doesn’t count on is for someone as unremarkable as Francey with her brown hair, brown eyes and heart shaped face to get under his skin right from the initial onset.

When danger comes calling from the terrorist cell which Michael has been trying to hunt down for so long, he does the only thing that the 37 years of his life of living on the edge has taught him; protect Francey with everything he is even though he knows that the threat on his heart from the woman he is on the run with is a very likely possibility. For the first time in his life, Michael who weaves a web of deceit so great to protect Francey and his cover finds himself itching to possess the purity that is Francey, make her his and starts thinking foolish thoughts of a shared future which he has no right thinking.

Francey doesn’t fare any better when she is drawn towards the enigmatic Michael with his erotic looking hands, who fires up her desires unlike anything she has ever experienced. Though her heart warns her to stay away from a man whom she knows is not telling her the truth, Francey knows she would lay down her very life for this man with the many facets, who turns up at the most unexpected moments and who haunts her every waking thought and dreams when he is not around.

Now You See Him though a short novel doesn’t pull any punches nor takes any short cut in the adventure or the romance aspect of the story. Michael who goes by so many names is a man with a dangerous past, who knows that Francey would be far better off without him in the picture. However, he is as much a slave to the desire that unfolds between these two polar opposites, the strength of the growing feelings pulling them together regardless of danger or the consequences.

Michael is a hero who made my heart go aflutter, who made my senses go alive and who made me yearn and crave for his happily ever after. And I loved Francey because she identified with the real man behind all the facades to find Michael a man worthy of her trust and affections. Though many a reader may not like Michael as a hero and the story that unfolded, for me, Now You See Him is just the perfect sort of read to indulge and immerse myself in to escape reality.

Recommended for fans of Anne Stuart’s ICE series and for those who like their heroes a bit ruthless with an edge.

Purchase Links: Amazon

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Chasin’ Eight by Lorelei James

Format: E-bookchasineight
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Rough Riders, Book 11
Publisher: Samhain Publishing Ltd.
Hero: Chase McKay
Heroine: Ava Cooper
Sensuality: 4.5
Date of Publication: June 28, 2011
Started On: June 28, 2011
Finished On: June 28, 2011

Chasin’ Eight by Lorelei James is the 11th book in her Rough Riders series. The Rough Riders series is one of my favorite western romances not only because sensual material is plentiful in the stories but because Ms. James creates characters whom with their faults and all you still manage to fall in love with at the end of the day.

Chasin’ Eight tells the story of the wild bull ridin’ Chase McKay. Like every single McKay that we have come across in the series, Chase too walks on the wild side too many a time until it all comes back to bite him where it hurts. Suddenly Chase finds himself on indefinite leave from the Professional Bull Rider’s World until he manages to get his act together. With a plan on how to get his life back, Chase heads home to Sundance, Wyoming where he comes face to face with Ava Cooper.

Heiress to the Cooper fortune, Ava is a Hollywood star who experiences the vicious side of the paparazzi when the man she has been going out with for the past couple of months professes to be gay on a public press conference. Humiliated that she hadn’t seen the signs sooner, Ava decides to take a break from Hollywood stardom and go lick her wounds in private where no one will recognize her. That leads her to Wyoming to crash in her friend Ginger’s husband Kane McKay’s trailer out in the middle of nowhere only to be roused from sleep by the most alluring specimen of man flesh she has ever seen.

Too bad that Chase has made a vow to stay off women for a month, otherwise he would have had the beautiful Ava beneath him before he drew his next breathe. But with sex out of the equation, Ava and Chase both strike a deal to try out being friends and keeping each other company in the journey Chase makes across the country to sharpen his riding skills. For the first time, Chase finds himself charmed by the company of a fully clothed woman though thoughts of getting down and dirty are never far from his or Ava’s minds.

For two people who come from totally different backgrounds and lead so different lives, Ava and Chase finds in each other a kindred soul who understands the other and between them an explosive passion that wouldn’t be bound by restrictions any longer. With red-hot passion comes strolling in feelings of the mushier kind, love that could last a lifetime if both Ava and Chase are willing to give it a shot.

Though Chasin’ Eight did not make my favorites list, nevertheless it was a great read which I enjoyed immensely. What I loved most about Chase’s story was how he slowly turned into someone better, climbing up from the rock bottom which he hits at the start of the story. The road trips that Ava and Chase makes across the country served to be where we get to learn more about both Ava and Chase, each of them growing up a little as the miles pass. Undeniably true to trademark Lorelei James style, scenes of passion are smokin’ hot and I loved each and every one of them.

Though this one doesn’t incorporate much of the rest of the McKay brood, this one certainly made me sit up and notice Ben, Chase’s brother who has certainly been hiding some of his very interesting qualities which hopefully will be brought to light in the next installment of the series. Raunchy hot lovin’ with emotional wrangling goodness is what you will find here and this one would definitely make a great summer read!

Recommended for fans of the Rough Rider series. And the good news for those who are new to the series, this one can be read as a standalone!

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | BooksOnBoard | Kobo | Samhain

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by mvbookreviewer

Requested Review: Provoke Me by Cari Quinn

Format: E-bookprovokeme
Read with: Kindle for I-Pad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Unveiled, Book 2
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Hero: Spencer Galvin
Heroine: Kelly Crossman
Sensuality: 4.5
Date of Publication: June 22, 2011
Started On: June 24, 2011
Finished On: June 24, 2011

Provoke Me is a title that lives up to its name. It draws the reader in, refuses to let go and provokes all sorts of emotions from the reader and I absolutely loved it. Cari Quinn can certainly do no wrong with her sensational novels, and yes I say sensational because she pens a novel that is nothing less than perfection and Provoke Me is no exception to this rule.

The second book in the series Unveiled, Provoke Me tells the story of how the utterly controlled and focused Spencer Galvin finds in Kelly Crossman a reason worth letting go of his hard earned control in more ways than one. 35 year old Spencer has already learnt the bitter lesson of mixing business with pleasure and he is determined that he would stay true to his vow no matter how much Kelly tempts him to do otherwise.

A decade younger than Spencer, Kelly is caught between a rock and a hard place when even after 3 years of working for Spencer hasn’t dimmed her desire for him even one teensy bit. If anything, she yearns for him more than ever, and if not for the fact that she loves her job at The Book Nook, she would have given in and jumped his bones a long time back.

When Kelly encounters her hands-off boss at Kink the sex club, all bets are off as Kelly finally manages to get under Spencer’s skin to make him let go even for the few minutes during which he gives her the best orgasm of her life up against the club’s wall before all the shields are back again in full force.

Thinking that a few encounters with the whiskey-eyed Kelly with her killer legs would cure him of his fascination for her was Spencer’s first mistake. All his attempts to push her away with the moments in between that show glimpses into a core of sensitivity that few get to see, Kelly knows that for her its Spencer and him alone until Spencer does the one thing that is guaranteed to drive away the best thing that has ever happened to him in his life.

Filled to the brim with erotic sensual material that just about emptied out my salivary glands, one would think that Provoke Me is all about good sex with nothing much else going for it. But that’s where you are wrong as Provoke Me tells the story of two very real individuals who find themselves in the grip of red-hot passion that undermines everything else, giving them both a reason to hide from what it is that they really feel for the other.

Provoke Me definitely tested my boundaries as an erotic romance reader and though I wouldn’t say that I am a convert into the overly erotic material, Cari’s style in introducing me to the world of kinkier behaviour certainly sat well with me.

The one thing that I loved most about Provoke Me is Spencer whose hard and driven nature along with his superb control and focus made him a total hottie and earns him a very well earned notch in my favorite alpha male list. And I loved Kelly because her quirky, strong and yet vulnerable nature was what Spencer needed though he takes a long time to reach that conclusion himself.

Recommended for fans of Cari Quinn and for those who love emotion and depth in their erotica. The fact that I read this in one sitting whilst sick and in need of much required rest should tell its own story.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Kobo | Ellora’s Cave

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh

Format: E-bookslavetosensation_2
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Psy-Changeling, Book 1
Publisher: Berkley Sensation
Hero: Lucas Hunter
Heroine: Sascha Duncan
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: September 5, 2006
Started On: June 20, 2011
Finished On: June 21, 2011

Wow!! That is all I am capable of saying at the moment with the remnants of Nalini Singh’s Slave to Sensation still coursing through me. If not for Dina’s review of Kiss of Snow on Goodreads that picks up bits and pieces of Hawke from each and every story till the 10th book in the Psy-Changeling series that delivers Hawke’s story, I would not have been tempted to pick up and read the first book in the series which has left me with a sort of breathless anticipation to continue reading.

Slave to Sensation introduces us to the world of Psy and the Changelings whose worlds cannot be more different even if they tried. Psy’s are well known for their icy control, inhuman practicality and their inability to resort to any sort of violence – or so they say. Changelings on the other hand are races that allow their animal sides to rule them and thrive on all sorts of emotional bonds and attachments that they form within their packs.

Our heroine Sascha Duncan has lived her whole life as a Psy knowing deep inside that she is unlike the rest of her race. Where icy control should be what runs through her veins, Sascha is a Psy that feels, a trait that would get her terminated if the Psy Cardinals were ever to find it out. Thinking that she is going crazy and that life as she knows it would come to an abrupt end if she ever were to show her vulnerability to her own race, Sascha is a woman torn apart on the inside, crying out for something which she doesn’t even fully comprehend.

When things on the business front brings her in contact with the sexy Lucas Hunter, alpha of the DarkRiver pack, she is at a loss as to how to handle the full frontal attack of sensations that bombard her right from the very first meeting. Lucas is a Hunter on a mission, who has vowed that he would do everything in his power to crumble the lines of defences around the Psy to find out who it is that are preying on females of their kind. What he doesn’t expect is to feel a compulsive need to touch and be touched by the woman of mass contradictions with whom he is to spend considerable time with for the next couple of months.

Scared out of her wits that Lucas and the way he constantly touches her is accelerating her deterioration process, Sascha tries her damnedest to erect walls of control around her heart and emotions which proves to be no match for the lethal touches and kisses that invoke a blaze of hunger across all her senses that refuse to be denied any longer.

When the news about a killer amongst her race comes to light, Sascha knows that finding him and bringing him to justice is the one thing she would do for the Changelings whose way of life makes her crave to embrace life with Lucas by her side which she knows is an impossibility. However, Lucas who has finally found his mate refuses to be denied as Sascha undertakes a mission that could very well mean her death and the end of a love that grows and fosters no matter how much Sascha may try to shield Lucas from eternal pain and loss that is sure to follow.

Slave to Sensation is a masterpiece that has everything going for it starting from its very appropriate title, the story underneath which has the power to invoke powerful emotions in the reader. The fascinating world which Ms. Singh creates is an unbeatable one where you can’t help but be in awe at the powers of her imagination in coming up with a world that feels as if its unfolding right in front of you.

All the characters whether it be Sascha and Luke, or the delicious Hawke from the SnowDancers pack to the ruthless and emotionless Psy are well rounded lending the story an extra richness that only in-depth character development can give a story.

Lucas (sigh) has wanting me to braid my non-existent long hair  just so that I can feel even a minute figment of what Sascha feels throughout the story when Lucas focuses his lethal brand of charm and seduction on her. Loved the purring and the rumbling that went on and especially the way Lucas protects, cossets and cherishes Sascha. Fantastic right from the very start, this is a series that fans of paranormal/urban-fantasy romances should not miss!

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | BooksOnBoard | Kobo

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Grace Under Pressure by Melissa Schroeder

Format: E-bookgraceunderpressure
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Hero: Renaldo Morello
Heroine: Grace Beatrice Michael
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: February 1, 2007
Started On: June 19, 2011
Finished On: June 19, 2011

I am someone who always loves a good romance between a warm, sexy and accident prone heroine with a bit of an aloof and controlled hero who finds his hard earned control shattered all around him. As I read Grace Under Pressure, I couldn’t help but think to myself that I have read this earlier in my pre-review phase. Even if that were the case, I am really glad that I picked this up and enjoyed it, a story that left me wanting more of all the characters that cropped up as it unfolded.

33 year old Grace Michaels lives in the small town of Cannon, Texas and is a history professor at the local college. Accident-prone by nature, her first encounter with the town’s new and sexy as hell Chief of Police Ren Morello happens with her ass up in the air stirring up Ren’s amusement and his libido as well in the process.

Ren is a man who has closed and bolted the door on any sort of relationship with the opposite sex that requires his commitment ever since his divorce from the wife from hell. When Grace comes into the picture, even though his over-active libido begs him to bury himself deep within her, his emotions that are a bit more in control than his libido warn him to run the other way and never look back.

When Grace’s home is ransacked and it is clear that her life is in danger, all protective instincts that Ren harbors deep inside comes out demanding that he keep Grace safe at any cost. Being at such close proximity to a woman whose mere existence befuddles his thinking cells plays havoc with the rigid control that Ren exerts on his baser emotions until it all explodes in his face in the most sinfuly delicious ways possible.

Neatly tying in with the main story is the story of Julia, Grace’s best friend and that of her brother Gabriel that served as an equally interesting romantic interlude in this wickedly good romantic suspense of the erotic variety. Though the scenes of passion are erotic in nature, there is none of the overly kinky stuff taking place in the story. Grace Under Pressure is a hot little addition for your TBR pile if you love a steamy romantic suspense in a small town setting with all the antics that go along with small town life. Loved every single minute of this delectable story and I am definitely going to wade through Ms. Schroeder’s back list and see what I can come up with to keep me entertained in the future.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Samhain

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by mvbookreviewer

I-Review: Iron Seduction by J.K. Coi

Format: E-bookironseduction.JPG
Read with: Kindle for I-Pad
Length: Novella
Genre: Chinese Steampunk
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Hero: Jian Denzen
Heroine: Lady Jane
Sensuality: 4
Published On: June 3rd, 2011
Started On: 18th June 2011
Finished On: 18th June 2011

Visitor: What made you pick up Iron Seduction?

MBR: Ever since I read Morning After and flat-out loved the short & hot story, J. K. Coi has been an author of interest to me. But somehow this one slipped through the cracks until I found this on a list of recommendations on a blog post of author Maya Banks which had me running on an immediate shopping spree to acquire my first romance of the steampunk category.

Visitor: Tell us a little bit about the hero Jian Denzen.

MBR: *Huge sigh* Jian Denzen, otherwise known as Dance is the strong, silent and uber-sexy type of hero that just takes your breath away. Well-versed in the art of Lin Kuei, China’s more circumspect version of Japanese ninja, Jian is a hero I can sit and read about all day long because he is so very well worth it.

Visitor: Now tell us a little bit about the heroine Lady Jane.

MBR: Lady Jane is  a heroine who belongs in the kick-ass-heroine category. She commands a contingent of British soldiers who stay in China and is someone who guards her heart fiercely fearing that she might be betrayed yet again.

Visitor: How does Jian and Lady Jane meet for the first time?

MBR: Lady Jane and Jian’s paths cross during the battle for freedom waged against Empress Cixi. Lady Jane saves Jian’s life for which she earns Jian’s undying loyalty and exasperation as well.

Visitor: What was it that drew you into the story with Iron Seduction?

MBR: I delved into Iron Seduction expecting Ms. Coi’s way with the words to reel me in and it did just that. For a Quickie, Iron Seduction has got everything going for it, a well balanced story line, a hotter than sin hero and explosive scenes of passion that just took my breath away. And I loved every single delicious minute of it.

Visitor: What was it that you liked about Iron Seduction?

MBR: I loved everything about Iron Seduction from its sleek man-titty cover to the red-hot attraction between Lady Jane and Jian. For me, Jian and his unwavering loyalty and strength made this novella, and the way he thoroughly commands Lady Jane’s senses (which she tries utmost to keep sensible and do the “right” thing) made this an awesome read for me.

Visitor: What if anything would you want to change in Iron Seduction?

MBR: As a Quickie, the story is well done and delivers on all counts. But for someone who always loves longer stories, I would love to see what Ms. Coi can do with a full length novel. With Iron Seduction, I would have loved to learn more about both Lady Jane and Jian and their interactions together which happens prior to the start of this novella.

Visitor: Any memorable scenes/quotes from Iron Seduction that you would like to share?

MBR: I loved the scenes where Jian’s intensity comes into play.

Visitor: Who would you recommend Iron Seduction to?

MBR: Those who love stories by J. K. Coi. And for those who love their erotica with something a little bit different.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Kobo | Ellora’s Cave

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase

Format: E-booklordofscoundrels
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Scoundrels, Book 3
Publisher: Avon
Hero: Sebastian Leslie Guy De Ath Ballister
Heroine: Jessica Trent
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: March 30, 1995
Started On: June 15, 2011
Finished On: June 16, 2011

Lord of Scoundrels is a historical romance that has earned its fair share of awards in the world of romance. Being at the very top of the AAR list of 100 romances is no small feat and I went in with high expectations when I started out with this book. True to the awards the book has received, I was totally enchanted and captivated with the story that unfolded and hopelessly and madly in love with both Sebastian and Jessica before halfway through, and enjoyed the third book in the Scoundrels series as much as I imagined I would.

Lord of Scoundrels tells the tale of Sebastian Leslie Guy De Ath Ballister, the son of the Earl of Blackmoor and his second wife. A man who is more besotted with his property than anything else, the Earl holds little regard for his young wife and even less so towards the ugly son that she bears him.

From a young age, Sebastian is a bewildered child because he doesn’t have the remotest clue as to why his father goes out of his way to avoid him. And the only source of warmth and compassion in his life leaves him at the tender age of 8 when his mother runs away with her lover, leaving a scared little boy with a resentful father. Its not long before Sebastian is sent away to boarding school where he learns to toughen up and where he learns to give back as good as he gets and earns the respect of his notorious peers. Needless to say between the merciless teasing and fights with fellow students and the continuous flogging sessions received at school, Sebastian has any figment of love, tenderness or hope beaten out of him long before he turns into an adult.

Twenty five years later, Sebastian is filthy rich and a man powerful in his own right who is still feared by the members of the respectable society towards which Sebastian feels nothing more than contempt. But when beautiful and feisty Jessica Trent invades his life and starts creeping under his skin, Sebastian tries the only trick he is left with; drive her away by being his most notorious self whilst inside his heart and very soul cries out for Jessica in a way he had long since forgotten.

Jessica is no wimpy female who finds her own fascination with Sebastian troublesome to say the least. Animal attraction she can supposedly handle, but marriage and the prospect of falling in love with the most hard headed male she has come across wasnt exactly what Jessica was looking for.

In Jessica Sebastian finds that for the first time in his life that he needs someone else to complete him and knows that if she ever were to leave him he would just wither and die away. You would think that once the man realizes that he would make things easier for his newly wedded wife. But pride and his vow never to let anyone close enough to hurt him has Sebastian trying to drive away Jessica albeit unsuccessfuly and the antics that follow make for quite an engrossing tale.

You can’t read Lord of Scoundrels without falling in love with both Sebastian and Jessica as they together make an explosive combination that just keeps you turning the pages, wishing that the story would just go on and on. I seriously loved the spunky and fiesty Jessica because she was insightful enough to know Sebastian inside out and strong enough to fight him fair snd square where their love is concerned. I especially loved the witty bantering between Sebastian and Jessica whose way with the words cannot help but invoke huge-ass grins all over. And Jessica’s attempts at seducing her husband and the resultant effect on her overly self-controlled husband is definitely one of the highlights in a story that definitely deserves and has more than earned its fair share of millions of fans all over the world.

Highly recommended for fans of romances.

Favorite Quotes

The trouble was Jessica could not feel at all sensible. A magnetic current was racing along her nerve endings. It slithered and swirled through her system, to make an odd, tingling heat in the pit of her belly, and it melted her brain to soup.
She wanted to kick off her shoes and trail her stockinged toes up and down the black, costly boot. She wanted to slide her fingers under his starched shirt cuff and trace the veins and muscles of his wrist and feel his pulse beating under her thumb. Most of all, she wanted to press her lips to his hard, dissolute mouth and kiss him senseless.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | BooksOnBoard | Kobo

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Best Man to Wed? by Penny Jordan

Format: E-bookbestmantowed
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: The Bride’s Bouquet, Book 2
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: James Carlton
Heroine: Poppy Carlton
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: May 1, 1997
Started On: June 13, 2011
Finished On: June 13, 2011

I can almost always count on a good old Harlequin novel to take me on an emotional roller coaster ride from which I wouldn’t want to get off. Penny Jordan is a favorite Harlequin author of mine and I am sure many fans of the Harlequin line are bound to feel the same. Though I have done most of my Harlequin crazed phase of reading prior to the start of my review site, this is one novel by Penny Jordan that I seemed to have missed, a fact I am glad that I have rectified when I started on this one on a whim today.

22 year old Poppy Carlton has had her dreams crushed when her cousin Chris Carlton who has been the man of her dreams since she had turned 12 years of age marries another. Forced to grow up and get her head out of the clouds, Poppy is horrified when her virginal body responds in an appalling manner to James Carlton’s caresses. James is her beloved Chris’s elder brother, the forbidding and formidable version to the sunny and easy going nature of Chris who occupies her thoughts night and day – or so Poppy tries telling herself.

8 years older than Poppy, James is a man who keeps his emotions close to himself apart from tearing into Poppy’s infatuation when it comes to his younger brother. When consequences of their nights of passion together forces Poppy to acknowledge her feelings towards the brother who is a match for her in every way, Poppy fears that she might be just a little bit too late in accepting that James is the one and only for her.

I love stories where the hero has always being in love with the heroine but somehow was overshadowed by the heroine’s infatuation with another man presumably a relative of the hero’s. James is a mouthwateringly alluring hero and Poppy though at first grated on my nerves with her self pitying nature made up for it beautifully when she freely expresses her need for James bringing the poor guy to his knees.

And this one certainly managed to be an emotion wrenching read and I loved the effect the story had on my emotions as I read along. Though this might not be a feminist’s idea of how a romance should be, this is romance in its most old-fashioned form, the reason why I fell in love with the world of romance in the first place. Recommended for fans of the Harlequin genre and fans of Penny Jordan.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | BooksOnBoard | Harlequin

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Midnight Man by Lisa Marie Rice

Format: E-bookmidnightman
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Midnight, Book 1
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Hero: John Hunnington
Heroine: Suzanne Barron
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: November 12, 2004
Started On: June 11, 2011
Finished On: June 12, 2011

Midnight Man by Lisa Marie Rice is book one in her Midnight series. I have previously read and loved the third and final book in the series entitled Midnight Angel. This is my third attempt at reading Midnight Man, my previous two attempts halted somewhere in the midst of the first chapter due to one reason or the other.

Midnight Man tells the story of John Hunnington who is forced into early retirement from his career as a tough Navy SEAL. Known as the Midnight Man to his fellow comrades, John is a man well versed in the art of killing and now owns his own top notch security company known as Alpha Security International. It is his expanding business that makes him seek out Suzanne Baronn who is leasing out part of her building as office space, perfect for what he wants and in the process finds himself blindsided with the need to possess the classy and elegant beauty who stands in front of him.

Suzanne with her interior decorating business is the exact opposite of John. And the way John commands all of her senses right from the very first meet itself has Suzanne ready to flee from the intensity of her response to a man that she barely knows from Adam. However, from the moment John possesses her up against the wall during their very first date means that there is no turning back for Suzanne who has envisioned a very different process by which she would fall in love with the man she would share the rest of her life with. And when danger of the life threatening variety comes calling out of nowhere, it is to John that Suzanne turns towards who pulls no punches in ensuring that the woman who rocks his world in more ways than one would remain safe as long as he is capable of breathing.

The Midnight series tells stories of uber alpha males and the dainty yet strong heroines who are actually damsels in distress the said alphas race to rescue. With mind numbing passion of the explosive variety which is very well done, Midnight Man delivers on all counts and I loved reading every little bit of how two very different people find their soul mates in each other in the most unusual of circumstances.

I fell in love with John when I read the following part of the book where his burgoening feelings towards Suzanne is vocalized for the very first time in the story.

And I definitely loved the ending of the story though there was no epilogue in this one which somehow doesn’t end up feeling lacking.

Recommended for fans of Lisa Marie Rice/Elizabeth Jennings.

Favorite Quotes

The tree was pretty, she thought with satisfaction. It reached almost to the ceiling and the branches, thick and glossy, contrasted cheerily with the ribbons and apples and strands of fluffy white popcorn. The tree glowed with color. There were no store-bought ornaments on the tree, but that only made it charming, like something out of a Normal Rockwell painting.
“Pity we don’t have an angel,” she sighed. Her mother had a wonderful hand-made papier-mache white-and-gold angel picked up in Naples, which would have looked perfect on top of the tree.
John squeezed her shoulders and kissed the top of her head. His deep voice was quiet as he said, “You wouldn’t fit on top.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | BooksOnBoard | Kobo | Ellora’s Cave

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Woman on the Run by Lisa Marie Rice

Format: E-bookwomanontherun
Read with: Kindle for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Hero: Sam Cooper
Heroine: Julia Devaux
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: October 1, 2005
Started On: June 10, 2011
Finished On: June 11, 2011

Julia Devaux finds herself in the mother of all fixes when she witnesses a mob hit and becomes a valuable witness who could put away the dangerous Joey Capruzzo behind bars for a good long time. However that also means that one seriously rich and pissed off Capruzo is after her pretty little head served on a platter which would mean another failed attempt by the US government  to indict him.

A book worm and film buff at the core, though Julia has lived a life of moving from one place to the other with her parents always on the move, she is not at all prepared to change into a Sally Anderson, a second grade school teacher in the middle of nowhere in Simpson, Idaho. With her life turned completely upside down, Julia is one step away from just simply sitting down and wailing at the winds when things take an interesting turn and she starts having an unholy fascination for anything to do with the tall, strong and silent Sam Cooper who turns up on her doorstep most unexpectedly.

Ex-Navy SEAL, Sam is a man who finds himself in serious trouble when the delectable new teacher in Idaho leaves him with a raging hard-on for the first time in almost two years. Sam’s past and the famous Cooper curse makes him a wary man on all counts. On top of all that, Sam is not a man who has much inclination to talk which has him sweating buckets when it comes to wooing and seducing the one woman whom he wants more than his next breath.

With a whopping figure of two million on her head, Julia is far from safe even in a no name town such as Simpson when it brings out a killer most cunning who will do anything to find out and kill Julia, all for the luxury the money for the kill would bring.

Whe Sam finds out that Julia, the woman who has turned his life and that of his town around is a woman on the run, there is no stopping him from pulling out all the stops in protecting the one woman who means the world to him. Towards the end, the cunning killer almost wins in putting Julia six feet under until Sam arrives to the rescue with just seconds to spare.

I loved Woman on the Run by Lisa Marie Rice as this turned out to be refreshingly different from the rest of her novels I have read to date. I say different because of the take on humor this story has which had me laughing out loud in several places when Julia’s quirky sense of self-depreciating humor along with the small town life comes into play.

From the aspect of the hero and the trademark LMR sensuality, this book is another winner with Sam being the uber-alpha and the protective kind whose want and need for Julia goes beyond anything describable. Julia is an endearing heroine whom I loved from the start of the novel though she sounds a bit confused of what she wants and needs at the beginning of the story. The villain when brought to light turned out to be the biggest shocker rendering this as one of the most enjoyable romantic suspense by the author. For me the best part of the epilogue of the story which takes place 4 years later turned out to be how different a man Sam is towards the end. And I would love to point it out that the overly descriptive narrations that annoyed me in Hotter than Wildfire which I reviewed earlier were non-existent in this one, making it earn a whopping 5 stars from the sunny side of life!

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outstandingread