Category / Favorable Read

Rating of 3.5 Stars

by mvbookreviewer

Review: Rugged by Tatiana March

Format: E-bookRugged
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Resplendence Publishing
Hero: Jedediah Ferguson
Heroine: Rachel James
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: February 8, 2012
Started On: December 2, 2013
Finished On: December 2, 2013

Every once in a while, I take a stroll through Tatiana’s website to find out what sort of books she has published till then. I do that because Tatiana is an author who has got so much potential, the very first book that I tried out from her, Home for the Soldier being one of those books that has been stuck on my mind ever since I read it a while back.

Rugged by Tatiana March is a short novel, one that is easily readable in one setting. 28 year old Rachel James makes her way to the remote mountains to escape a problem that crops up in her work life. And there she encounters the reclusive Jedediah Ferguson with whom a wild and forbidding attraction flares to life from the very start.

Jed doesn’t need city women strolling through his land, trying to make a fool of him. He would rather be left alone on his land, living the life he has chosen to lead all by himself. But Rachel coming to his life changes his priorities, makes him want to come out of the shell that has been protecting him for so long and makes him want to take a chance even though he knows that he would be devastated if and when Rachel leaves him behind to go back to the life that she knows.

One of the aspects of the story that will have most readers surprised is the fact that Jed is a virgin hero whose reclusive nature because of certain bitter life experiences rendered him unable to reach out to anyone of the opposite sex and forge a relationship of any kind. But Rachel changes all that with every single facet of her character that she reveals to him which appeals to Jed as much as her body does. While some readers might be turned off by the fact that Jed doesn’t have a ton of experience in seduction, I found him to be endearing and it totally suited his character in the end. And don’t be fooled into thinking that just because he is a virgin hero he wouldn’t know much, in fact in my opinion he did just fine exploring what works for both of them which is in the end what matters.

There were elements to the story that could have been done better that could have given the story a more well rounded edge to it. Like other reviewers had pointed out, certain aspects to the story seemed a bit unrealistic and Jed seemed to go a bit over the top to accommodate everything that Rachel might want in order to be a part of her life but in the end I guess it did work out for both of them.

All in all not a bad way to pass around 1.5 hours. Jed is a sexy hero, reticent in nature that makes one want to dig a bit deeper.

Final Verdict: If you like taciturn heroes, Jed just might turn out to be your cuppa tea!

Favorite Quotes

With a groan of impatience, Jed shifted into position and entered her in one long, smooth thrust.
He froze.
The sensation was glorious, a hot, wet embrace that throbbed around his shaft, gripping him tight, pulsing with life. A cry burst from his throat, almost like an ancient symbol of a conquering warrior.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N

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by mvbookreviewer

Requested Review: Waiting for Jo by S.R. Bradshaw

Format: E-bookwaitingforjoe
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: The Josephine O’Shea Trilogy, #1
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: William Bennett
Heroine: Josephine O’Shea
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: September 28, 2013
Started On: October 23, 2013
Finished On: October 23, 2013

Josephine O’Shea (Jo) is smart and beautiful who seemingly has everything going for her. Apart from her crappy boss at work and the snazzy boyfriend James that had broken up with her a couple of months back and of course the stalker who wouldn’t quit, Jo seems to lead a charmed life. But as we all know, appearances can certainly be deceiving.

When Jo is summoned by her ex-boyfriend for drinks, this being the ex that she still has feelings for, it would have been a crime to go and see him without a few expectations of her own. But they are pretty much nipped in the bud when all that James offers her is a position at his law firm together with a couple of mixed signals that leaves her more confused than ever. It also marks the beginning of her relationship with William (Will) who makes for an interesting addition to the story that certainly stirs things up in more ways than one.

Waiting for Jo is written in the first person and told entirely from Jo’s point of view. Jo is a confused character at best, someone who faces the dilemma of choosing between two guys, one the ex who doesn’t seemingly really care what happens to her, and Will the one who goes out of his way to care for her wellbeing from the very beginning of their acquaintance even before their relationship turns into something more.

Mostly while reading romances, I have almost always felt like hitting the hero on the head a time or two to make him see the error of his ways and show him what is right in front of him. And of late I think I have come across many heroines of that variety too and Jo seems to fit the bill quite well. I felt like waving a red flag in front of her and showing her just how wrong she was in dillydallying between James and Will without really trying to stick it out with the guy who in actuality really cared about her. There are elements that would be considered as cheating in this story, so readers who find that to be a factor needs to take that into consideration before reading this one.

The stalker when revealed managed to surprise me and turned out to be someone that I dismissed initially as the person who could have been putting in all that effort to scare Jo out of her wits and submit her to the stalker’s every whim. Goes to show that when it comes to people you can never truly know what they are capable of.

I don’t know what Ms. Bradshaw has in store for Jo and Will as she tossed in a quite cool epilogue to finish off book 1 of this trilogy and it seemed like Will and Jo were truly on their way for the long haul. We shall see when book 2 comes out.

Final Verdict: Book one of the Josephine O’Shea trilogy delivers suspense and drama with a tinge of heat!

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | Smashwords

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Driving Her Wild by Meg Maguire

Format: E-bookdrivingherwild
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Wilinski’s, #3
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Patrick Doherty
Heroine: Steph Healy
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: October 22, 2013
Started On: October 21, 2013
Finished On: October 22, 2013

She punched the button for the lobby.
And when the door slid open again, there he was.
The exactly wrong sort of man, with that smile that made her feel so damn right.

Meg Maguire is an author who writes the not so your usual variety of romances for tropes that you might have read a time or two. In Driving Her Wild, retired cage fighter Steph Haley makes her way to the Wilinski’s Fight Academy, taking those first steps towards a future that she has already mapped out for herself. It certainly doesn’t include the blue-eyed Patrick Doherty kissing her senseless and making mincemeat out of her well laid plans towards a financially secure future with a sophisticated man who would make her feel like a lady rather than just a casual tumble between the sheets to scratch an itch.

Patrick is good with his hands when it comes to carpentry but not so much when it comes to doing electrical jobs which is what he does to keep his head above water in these economically uncertain times. And when Patrick comes across the sexy Steph with that glint in her eyes from all the bodily harm that comes her way due to Patrick’s clumsiness whenever she’s around, Patrick knows that he has found that essential ingredient that has been missing from his life for over more than a year.

Steph is driven and knows what she wants and denies to herself her need for Patrick’s overly capable hands roaming all over her body, inciting pleasure of the likes she’s never had, all  because she believes in her head that Patrick doesn’t fit the mould that she has clearly made out for what her perfect partner would be like when she nails him. But every man she comes across in her perfectly well ordered dating life doesn’t come close to giving her the zing and the connection that springs forth between the two of them. And without Steph somehow being aware of it, Patrick worms his way into her heart and shows her that sometimes what seems like the the worst fit for you just might end up being the one.

To be honest, I actually didn’t know what to make of Steph’s character. Yes, she is strong, physically and emotionally and knows what she wants. Patrick on the other hand seemed mellow when compared to Steph and perhaps that’s what makes them tick together. However, Patrick has no qualms about being a bit bossy as required in the bedroom which is what Steph seemed to want out of that aspect of their relationship.

Patrick might be what you call a beta hero in the sense he doesn’t go macho all over the place, but rather it is his sweetness and open honesty that wins him the bonus points, not to mention his good looks that earns him a second glance from women. Patrick is open about his feelings as they come, there is not even an ounce of pretense and the fact that he doesn’t resort to the games that people play when they do not know how to navigate the treacherous waters of what we call the beginnings of a relationship. But what Patrick wants, he too goes after, perhaps not with as much tenacity as Steph does, but nevertheless as effective or more so when it comes to winning the affections of the woman who makes him feel alive after so very long.

Steph’s misgivings about Patrick and the lack of security that their joint lives would have stems from her childhood, but somehow there seemed to be another factor which involved a cousin who made her feel insecure throughout her adolescence years. Though that in essence provided the pivotal turn in the relationship between Patrick and Stephy, somehow I failed to see how that contributed to making the story any richer or how it made the developing feelings between the two any more real than it was prior to that. Not a bad read but certain bits and pieces in the story just didn’t work for me while the rest worked very well.

Recommended for fans of Meg Maguire and fans of the series.

Final Verdict: With a bite of sexy, Meg Maguire delivers a beta hero that you’d adore!

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

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review & Giveaway: Sweetly Bad by Anya Breton

Format: E-booksweetlybad
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Paranormal Romance
Series: Haizea Brood, #2
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Hero: Drew Haizea
Heroine: Erica Pearce
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: September 4, 2013
Started On: October 7, 2013
Finished On: October 10, 2013

Sweetly Bad by Anya Breton is book in one of the new lines of books being published by Ellora’s Cave under the title of Curve Appeal. This series is focused on plus-sized heroines who in my opinion sometimes makes for very interesting heroines who actually feel real in their struggles to stay in shape and go through the daily grind that we women actually go through in our attempts to whip our bodies into tiptop shape by doing as little as possible about it.

Book 2 in the Haizea Brood series, this can be read as standalone, I myself never having read book 1 in the series. Sweetly Bad features the bad boy hero Drew Haizea who has always had the world laid out at his feet, everyone always at the ready to do his bidding because no one ever says no to the powerful Haizea family. It is only when his mother casts him out of the family and places a target on his back to teach him a lesson that Drew finds himself on the other side of things, having to face the reality of the life that he has led up till now.

Erica Pearce is a mechanic, struggling to make ends meet and trying to prevent her ex-boyfriend from bulldozing his way into making her give up the garage she inherited from her father. When Drew with his picture perfect good looks and a mile wide list of women to call upon ends up being at her mercy and though Drew ends up being a bit of an ass, Erica finds that her soft heart is vulnerable to the situation Drew finds himself in.

When his rogue status starts bringing in hunters willing to take him down, Drew finds that his one and only ally turns out to be Erica, who turns out to be far more appealing than he would have originally thought her to be. And as both Erica and Drew try to prevent their asses from getting under the line of fire, the lust and the romance that blooms to life between them continues to grow showing Drew just how wrong he had been in his original assumption about Erica and the type of women that he should want to share his life with.

Have you ever read an erotic romance featuring a hero that doesn’t kiss like a demigod, is not a stud in bed and has an average sized cock? Well if you haven’t, look no further because ladies, Drew Haizea is about to knock your socks off with all of that and more. While his good looks and fit and toned body under the killer suites and that long list of women on his contact list might paint a picture otherwise, when Erica gets to Drew, all she finds behind the appealing package is a man who has been misled the whole of his life because of the family to which he belongs to.

When Drew realizes that Erica is in fact serious about certain elements about his lovemaking techniques, Drew is in for the toughest challenge of his life when he has to use whatever tactical advantage he has left to satisfy the woman who comes to mean a lot more to him than he would have given her credit for her in such a short period of time. And for the first time in his life Drew begins to realize that when you truly do love someone, nothing is as important as ensuring the happiness of the person you love.

Though the story had its moments, I would say that it could have been better. I might have been thrown off balance by certain attributes regarding the hero which I certainly never have encountered in a romance, much less an erotic romance novel. But I kept my doubts in check and went ahead with the story because there was a certain element to Drew that tugged at my heartstrings because of the assailable position he found himself in. Add to the fact that when push came to shove Drew realized that Erica had no one to look out for her and that even though she might not put in a hell of a lot of trust in him, Drew does live up to the challenge which does give the story a good feel to it towards the end.

There were moments of humor which I thought the author would expand on which would have turned this read into a hell of an entertaining read in my opinion. And a hero who wasn’t clumsy in bed would have certainly done wonders for the story as well. But, regardless of all that, I would still consider this as an entertaining read if you are willing to indulge in a story that ought to give you a couple of laughs if nothing else out of it.

Final Verdict: One of the most unconventional erotic romances I’ve read to-date.

Favorite Quotes

His mouth descended on hers before she could evade. It wasn’t soft, gentle or even teasing like she’d taught him. It was brutal and demanding, a kiss to rob her of everything but the blood pounding through her veins. Smooth lips worked over hers even as he thrust his tongue into her mouth, devouring her as though he were starved. It was a passionate kiss, nothing like the boyish slobber he’d first given her.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | EC

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Giveaway

Ellora’s Cave is giving away an e-copy of Sweetly Bad to one lucky commenter on the post. Just tell us who your favorite plus-sized heroine is and you get a chance to win.

And in the meantime, do not forget to give a valid e-mail address so that we would be able to contact you if you are the winner. And if you don’t mind, please help spread the word too! After all, sharing is caring. :)

Giveaway opens: October 15, 2013; 00:00 hours MVT

Giveaway ends: October 16, 2014; 00:00 hours MVT

MVT timezone: GMT +5

by mvbookreviewer

Review: Shadow Woman by Linda Howard

Format: E-bookshadowwoman
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Hero: Xavier
Heroine: Lizette Henry
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: January 1, 2013
Started On: January 9, 2013
Finished On: January 15, 2013

I crave for a fix of Linda Howard like an addict craves for a fix of the drug that gives him a high. Dramatic? Yes. But its nothing but the truth. When I discovered books by Linda Howard, quite by chance I must say, I raced through them like a serial killer would race through a field of potential victims. Again, dramatic a description? But again, that is nothing but the truth. Linda Howard is an author I have an utmost admiration for, because she has written so many outstanding books and the recent decline in the popularity of her newer books has just made me sad enough to weep. What keeps the tears at bay is there is always the possibility of re-reading her entire collection when the mood hits, just so I can get my fix of Linda Howard once in a while, an author who has written romance as it should be, too many a time to count.

I decided to give Shadow Woman, Linda Howard’s latest novel a go because the reviews coming in had not been as bad as it had been for her previous two books which I skipped reading altogether. Yes, call me a coward, but I’d rather remember Linda Howard in all her glory than diminish what her stories have meant to me all through the years by reading books that would shed her talent in an unfavorable light. Nevertheless I did read Shadow Woman and I’d have to admit that disappointment did flow through me as the book made a steady decline in rating as I progressed into the story.

The premise of Shadow Woman is an exciting one. Lizette Henry wakes up one morning and discovers that the face in the mirror that is staring back at her is not hers. And the warning bells start ringing, throwing Lizzy into murky waters where she doesn’t know whether she can trust anyone to keep her safe from them whoever they may be. Unknown to Lizzy, or perhaps I should say unknown to Lizzy until that point in time, she has been under constant surveillance, a subject of massive interest to some very powerful people who hold the cards on whether she should continue to live or be terminated because the wealth of information if she were to remember could bring everything tumbling down.

As Lizzy awakens from the deep “slumber” she has been in for the past 3 years, remnants of her past come calling, in the form of flashbacks of memories and thought processes and behavior she’d never have thought herself to be capable of. And in her dreams comes a man she calls as X, the man who makes her hunger for what his touch does to her, for what they together create in those beautifully vivid dreams of the erotic variety.

When all hell breaks loose, it is Xavier who rides to Lizzy’s rescue, the man who has haunted her dreams since her memories started coming back, their past something shrouded in a mystery until Lizzy finds herself confronting that very past that makes her a loose end that needs to be dealt with.

Shadow Woman is a novel that has so much potential to it. What made it all the more heart wrenching to read was the fact that there were echoes of the old Linda Howard in bits and pieces of the story, mostly in the delicious dreams that Lizzy sees of herself and X, entwined in a lover’s embrace that could be called nothing but sensual and off the charts hot. In Xavier I found that Linda’s ability to create mouthwatering heroes that makes my heart beat faster still exists and yes, Xavier is a hero that was delicious in a lot of ways.

What did not work for me in Shadow Woman was the fact that the actual story got bogged down in too much descriptive detail that detracted from the pace and the suspense factor in the novel. I skipped large chunks of the story towards the latter part of the book, just because I wanted to find out the big secret and wanted to know how Xavier and Lizzy fair in the long run.

With enough bits and pieces of the old Linda Howard to entice, Shadow Woman turned out to be a favorable read for me which could have turned out to be an all out fantastic one if not for the details that kept getting in the way.

Recommended for die-hard fans of the author like myself. 

Favorite Quotes

Then she straightened, tossing her hair back, and turned to the mirror – and stared into the face of a stranger.

For a moment they just lay there on the big bed, chest to chest, legs intertwined, hearts pounding. They were eye to eye, and for a moment Lizette felt her breath catch. Good God, he was beautiful! Not pretty, there was nothing pretty about him, but seen with her heart he was … beautiful.

His touch firm, he dragged his fingertips through her cleft, found the soft, damp opening between her legs, and bit her in the curve between her neck and shoulder as at the same time he slid two big fingers deep into her. The heel of his rough palm pressed down hard on her clitoris, sending little lightning shocks all through her.
Her body bucked and shimmied under the triple onslaught. A breathless little cry slipped from her lips and she turned her face against the pillow, fighting to contain the sensation, and the sounds she was making.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Against the Wind by Anne Stuart

Format: E-bookagainsthewind
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Candlelight Ecstasy Supreme
Publisher: Dell Publishing Company
Hero: John Thomas Murphy
Heroine: Maddy Lambert
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: December 28, 1985
Started On: December 24, 2011
Finished On: December 25, 2011

So, I seem to be making my way slowly through the back-list of books published by the one and only Anne Stuart. The one thing that you can always count on with Anne Stuart; she delivers a story that will keep you engrossed, even if it is a book you want to throw against the wall towards the end.

30 year old Maddy Lambert makes her way to the war-torn country of San Pablo to meet her father who had upped and left one day with his idealistic view of the world when Maddy had been just 17 years old. Maddy had been heartbroken and devastated to say the least to lose the one person who had been distant but the only parent who had let her be unlike her mother who had seen each and every thing about Maddy as a way to pick on her. Needless to say, the 17 year old Maddy had been shy and an introvert who finds in the war-hardened soldier turned CIA official John Thomas Murphy a soul that reaches out to her and soothes her woes away. But John too turns his back on her and leaves with her father and Maddy believes herself to be well and cured of her infatuation for a man whose one haunting kiss that had practically reeked of his hunger for her still haunts her.

Maddy arrives after a bone jarring journey only to find that no one believes that she is the daughter of Samuel Eddison Lambert, not even John himself who has turned into a much more dangerous and wilder version of the man she remembers. And Maddy finds that she is as susceptible as ever when it comes to John, even when he does his best to keep her at arm’s length, and even John himself cannot deny the connection that he feels with Maddy, the woman who has been haunting his dreams for the past 14 years.

Amidst half truths, trickery and a whole lot of manipulation that Anne Stuart is so very good at delivering, Maddy and John stumble from one emotionally and sexually charged scene to the next, while at all times danger is just one step away lurking behind the shadows, something that continues to drive them apart until towards the very end of the book.

For the first time ever, I have to say I am disappointed in a book that Anne Stuart has written. I liked the heroine Maddy and her courage when it comes to facing each and everyone who has hurt her and failed her in so many ways. Her vindictive mother whom I would have loved to slap a few times and her father who feels nothing for his only daughter and intends to make use of her to drive across his point even from beyond the grave, and John who in my opinion fails her in the most heartbreaking way.

John might be the least “gamma” hero that I have encountered from all the Anne Stuart books I have read so far. His emotions regarding Maddy comes across a bit more clearly throughout the story, but he is every bit as ruthless when it comes to making use of Maddy even though he keeps her out of harms way and would rather die than have something happen to her. But time and yet again, John puts everything else above Maddy’s happiness, continues to keep leaving her to face his demons and fight the wars that has nothing to do with him but he feels responsible for, and yet expects Maddy to trust him and the way he feels about her.

I wanted Maddy to wake up, grow a backbone and leave John to his life, a life that he makes room for Maddy only when he is good and ready. I am all for ruthlessness, manipulations and even behavior that some readers might not be willing to forgive. But I need to know that when it comes to that vital point of no return, the hero would always choose the heroine no matter what. Sadly, I didn’t feel that with this book.

Recommended for hardcore fans of Anne Stuart like myself who wants to devour her books and cannot get enough of them, no matter how many books by hers you read.

Favorite Quotes

He couldn’t have known. The moonlight wasn’t enough to illuminate the room, and the tears that spilled silently down her cheeks didn’t touch him. But suddenly the kiss softened, the hands gentled on her, the lips coaxed and teased and healed. And without any more thought she was kissing him back, reaching for him with her mouth while her hands were held back, seeking him out with her tongue, calling him to her in the only way she could.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Abe Books

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by mvbookreviewer

Score Sheet Review: Perfectly Satisfied by Tori Scott

Format: E-bookperfectlysatisfied
Read with: IBOOKS for IPAD
Length: Novella
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Satisfaction, Book 2
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Sam Hyatt
Heroine: Regina Baker
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: October 31, 2011
Started On: November 9, 2011
Finished On: November 10, 2011

CATEGORY SCORE GRADE
The hero 80 A
The heroine 80 A
Story line 70 B
Emotional Intensity 50 C
Story’s ability to suck me in 60 B
Heat & Sensuality in the story 60 B
Conflicts within the story 60 B
Writing Style 65 B
Quotable Factor 50 C
The ending 60 B
Overall Grade 63.5 B

Report Score Summary

Even when I read Satisfaction Guaranteed, the first book in the Satisfaction series by Tori Scott, it was Regina Baker and Sam Hyatt’s characters that sucked me right in and held my attention, more so than he actual hero and heroine in the story. So I was very much eager to get my hands on their story when it released at the end of last month, and though I liked the overall story, I wasn’t perfectly satisfied with how the story turned out.

I wanted just a little bit more time with Reggie and Sam who were as likable as I remembered them to be. Sam and Reggie are the type of characters who deserve a full length novel to be based on them and maybe that’s one reason why I felt a bit cheated out of this short novella that features them. They have both got so much history together, having become friends since the 3rd grade and Reggie being in love with Sam ever since. It would have been so much fun to see them being put through situations to test their attraction and longing towards each other, more so on Sam’s part since he is the one who continues to be in denial throughout their friendship. 

I just felt that towards the end, Sam just “fell” in love a little bit too suddenly for my tastes and though Tori was fabulous in delivering a good little story perfect as an escape read I just wanted more for my favorite characters from the series which in the end lowered my overall rating for the story.

Recommended for fans of Tori Scott and fans of the Satisfaction Guaranteed who like myself have been on tenterhooks for Reggie and Sam’s story.

Favorite Quotes

She came up for air, ready to apologize, when strong arms lifted her from the water and firm lips captured hers. She knew, even without looking, that it was Sam. And she put everything she had into the kiss. If she only had one shot, she’d make it her best.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Smashwords

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Rendezvous with Revenge by Miranda Lee

Format: E-bookrendezvouswithrevenge
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Harlequin Presents, #1967
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Ethan Grant
Heroine: Abigail Rose-Maree Richmond
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: July 15, 2011
Started On: September 24, 2011
Finished On: September 24, 2011

After I read my last Miranda Lee, I found myself in a tizzy to find out more books by the author that might deliver the sort of stories that I fondly seem to recall having read from her even now. So, as usual, I found myself trolling Amazon to find what the all-knower-of-books had to recommend from Miranda Lee and found myself intrigued enough to buy myself a copy Rendezvous with Revenge. 

An orthopaedic surgeon in his thirties, Dr. Ethan Grant is a man cynical and weary of women who presume to show only one side of their nature, hiding their true form until it is too late to turn away from the inevitable disaster that follows; even when Ethan takes care to make things as casual in his relationships as possible. Dedicated to his profession above everything else, Ethan is the uber controlled type of hero that just makes the reader want to ruffle his feathers a bit, just to see what makes him tick!

25 year old Abigail Rose-Maree Richmond (Abby) has a sour viewpoint of anything to do with romance, love and happily ever after after her first and ex-boyfriend left her in a lurch that she would never ever forget. Determined to make it by herself, Abby juggles two jobs one of which is acting as Ethan’s secretary on each Friday of the week.

Six months on since she started working for the eye-catching Dr. Ethan Grant, Abby finds herrself between a rock and a hard place when Ethan issues her with an offer she knows she should say no to, but her heart and other baser emotions wants to say “Oh, hell yes!” to. When circumstances out of here control finds Abby saying yes to attending the medical conference acting as Ethan’s current beau, Abby finds herself wanting to throw caution to the wind and take a flying leap into Ethan’s arms to experience the fire that smolders in Ethan’s otherwise shuttered expression.

When Abby clues in on the real reason behind Ethan’s facade of taking her along as his girlfriend, Abby becomes more determined than ever to do everything in her power to eliminate each and every single memory that Ethan has of his ex-fiance, even if it means breaking her heart in the process.

While the first half of the book worked for me brilliantly, it was the second half of the book that I had a huge problem with. I was left bewildered with the abrupt change in the tone set for the second half of the book, the first half of which was spent with Ethan barely hinting at being attracted towards Abby. But lo and behold, without any hint whatsoever, Ethan turned into this cloying and sweet man that just made my head spin around, and not in a good way.

One aspect of this book that I loved; Miranda always knows how to deliver on the raw passion and desire that she generates between her heroes and heroines. And with Ethan and Abby she managed to do just that without being overly explicit which just made my senses hum.

I didn’t overly much like the ending. Though I was happy with the fact that both Ethan and Abby conversed like rational adults and told each other the stuff that was hanging between them that could have really caused serious conflicts between them, I couldn’t totally accept Ethan’s change of heart for what it was to be. All the proclamations of love towards the end just felt false to me. If the ending had been different, as in the tone of the novel had not changed so abruptly halfway through the book, this could have ended up being a great read. 

Though not what I expected, I would still classify Rendezvous with Revenge as a good read, a choice for a light read in between those heavy reads that requires all your brain cells to be on red alert.

Momentous Scenes: The moment Abby makes Ethan lose his legendary control during their first blazing sexual encounter. Shivers of the good kind hummed right through me!

Favorite Quotes

Her actions were instinctive—her hands reaching up to run feverishly over his stiffly held shoulders, then up his corded neck towards his suddenly taut face muscles. His mouth gasped open when she began to trace his lips boldly with her fingers. She didn’t hesitate, daringly inserting them into his mouth, sliding them back and forth along his wet tongue in an echo of what his body was doing inside hers.
‘Ethan,’ she moaned in her mad passion for him. ‘Oh, Ethan…’
He froze for a second, then shuddered violently, a raw, animal sound punched from his lungs.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Kobo 

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Adam’s Fall by Sandra Brown

Format: E-bookadamsfall
Read with: Amazon Kindle
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Mason Sisters, Book 2
Publisher: Bantam
Hero: Adam Cavanaugh
Heroine: Lilah Mason
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: May 1, 1988
Started On: March 22, 2011
Finished On: March 22, 2011

I can’t make up my mind as to whether I have read Adam’s Fall prior to this or not. The story that unfolded reminded me of the novel Come Lie With Me by Linda Howard that stems from a similar theme.

Adam’s Fall is book 2 in the Mason sisters series, the first book being Fanta C. Adam’s Fall begins with the news that uber rich hotel entrepreneur Adam Cavanaugh was involved in a mountain climbing accident in Northern Italy, killing two of his companions in the process leaving him with severe spinal injury that has rendered him paralyzed from the waist down.

Lilah Mason is the volatile younger sister of  dainty and feminine Elizabeth Mason now married to Thad Randolph who gets their happily ever after in book 1 of the series. Lilah though she resembles her sister in looks is bold and audacious where Elizabeth is not and Lilah has always gone out of her way to be as different from Elizabeth as she can be. A physiotherapist who is really good at what she does, Lilah is approached by Elizabeth and Thad both beseeching her to take over Adam’s therapy sessions which at first Lilah flat-out refuses. Sparks had flown between the two whenever they had met in the past making Lilah believe that the intense dislike that she feels for Adam and what he stands for is mutually shared between the two of them.

Though reluctant, Lilah finally succumbs to her pregnant sister’s pleadings and takes on the demanding task of making Adam want to walk again. A daunting prospect at best, Lilah is met with exactly what she bargained for when she took the job with a hostile, depressed and sullen Adam who doesn’t believe that he would ever be wholesome again.

It is Lilah’s demanding nature and slap or two on the face that wakes up Adam and makes him motivated enough to want to change his life around for the better. Amidst the constant squabbling and friendly flirting that takes place between Adam and Lilah as the weeks go by, the physical attraction that has always smoldered between them burns out of control giving Lilah her very first taste of being  totally possessed by a man whose entirety is focused on giving and receiving pleasure. But before anything can come out of it, Lilah flees, knowing that her heart would just about shatter to a million pieces if she were to stand around to watch Adam walk away from her once he has no use of her.

Though I did enjoy reading this short contemporary romance by Ms. Brown, this doesn’t get shelved into my favorites shelf because for some reason or the other I kept expecting more out of Adam and Lilah’s relationship. I wanted a bit more passion of the explosive kind to simmer between them for a while longer before it reached its ultimate conclusion.

Recommended for fans of earlier novels by Sandra Brown/Erin St. Claire.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Hidden Away by Maya Banks

Format: E-bookhiddenaway
Read with: Amazon Kindle
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: A KGI Novel, Book 3
Publisher: Berkeley
Hero: Garrett Kelly
Heroine: Sarah Daniels
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: March 1, 2011
Started On: March 1, 2011
Finished On: March 2, 2011

It feels like it has been forever since I picked up my first KGI novel, The Darkest Hour which shot Maya Banks right into the top of my favorite romantic suspense authors list. The second novel that came out entitled No Place to Run was equally intense as it was emotional and since then I have been on tenterhooks waiting for the release day of Hidden Away which features the story of the broody and hot as sin Garrett Kelly.

My fascination for anything to do with Garrett started with the 1st book itself where he and his brother Ethan’s wife Rachel share a very close bond with each other. Though Garrett tends to growl and snarl at the rest of them coming off as the grouchiest and most anti-social brother in the family, it is the complete transformation that he undergoes whenever Rachel is around and needing him that made his character such an intriguing one. And Sam’s story just made Garrett seem more appealing because Garrett at first dislikes Sophie so much but nevertheless ends up taking a bullet for the woman his brother loves.

Garrett is the second eldest of the 5 Kelly brothers though his worrisome nature and overprotective tendencies makes him seem older than the rest of the brothers. Garrett too had served as his country as a soldier until six years back a mission which he led his group on had gone horribly wrong killing two of his team mates requiring his brothers to pick up the pieces. What Garrett would like more than anything else is to take his own sweet revenge on the man who double-crossed his team on that fateful mission, the chance to do so which comes unexpectedly through their CIA contact requiring Garrett to fly all the way to the small island of Isle de Bijoux where his mission awaits him.

Sarah Daniels is a woman who is on the run to protect the only man who has ever given a damn about her and tried to serve as her protector and savior in the only way he had deemed as fit. A year back, Sarah’s life had taken a horrible turn which had rendered her helpless and fearful of every man she encounters afterwards and it is with this fear still lurking in the depths of her soul that she runs to seek refuge in the serenity of the white sandy beaches and the deep blue sea that surrounds Isle de Bijoux.

When Garrett gets up close and personal with his mission, it takes only a couple of seconds for him to realize that there is so much more than that meets the eye where Sarah is concerned. The helpless fear that he sees in Sarah’s eyes makes Garrett’s blood boil and invokes the urge to do harm to whoever had inflicted such wounds on Sarah. Whilst the growing feelings of possessiveness and protectiveness about Sarah befuddle him, that doesn’t stop Garrett from doing what he does best; engulf the woman he loves in his protective warmth which is just damn near enough to make any woman sigh and flutter over the whole thing.

With unknown enemies on Sarah’s trail, Garrett’s job is a double hard one and it certainly doesn’t make things easier for him when he has to lie to the one woman who he wants unwavering trust and faith from. Once again, the whole of Kelly family makes an appearance together with the other team members who make this series so very appealing. Though the incidents of the heart thumping variety did not happen as much as it did in the 2nd book, Hidden Away too serves up on all the aspects which makes the book 3 of the KGI series a decent addition to an already 5-star rated series.

Couple of things I loved that I want to mention in my review. First of all, yes you ladies guessed it right, who wouldn’t love that drool-inducing cover featuring the hot as sin Garrett Kelly? I love the covers of each and every KGI novel that has come out and this one’s no exception to that rule.

Revisiting the characters from the Kelly bunch as well the rest of the characters that makes this series a kick-ass one is always a plus point in my opinion. It is heartwarming to see Ethan and Rachel making their way and their marriage growing stronger day by day whilst Sophie and Sam have a cute new addition to their family making things just perfect for this story. And let me not forget Rusty who I think is going to end up being my favorite character, if Maya Banks ever gets round to telling her story.

And needless to say, I loved both Sarah and Garrett and found Sarah’s courage and loyalty humbling which earned her my admiration in spades. Though the author does not go into details of her gruesome encounter, the fear and total humiliation that she must have gone through is  totally understood which made my heart just bleed for her.

But with all those things that I did love, I did find myself a bit disappointed with how Garrett’s character turned out in the end. I was expecting a bit more brooding and tortured hotness from him which ALWAYS has me predictably swooning into a puddle right next to my Kindle. And based on how Garrett is perceived by the rest of his family, I wanted some of that to come out in his own book which failed to appear and instead his soft and overprotective side which I love nevertheless took the center stage. Though for someone else that might not be a peeve, I found myself feeling just a teeny weeny bit letdown because of that.

All in all, an enjoyable addition to the KGI series, and I can’t wait to find out who gets their story told next from the delectable group of characters that Maya has created in this wonderful series. If you haven’t already read the KGI series, do start from book 1 because you need to experience the Kelly bunch right from the very beginning to fully appreciate each and every character as they unfold and grow with every story.

Reviewer’s note: After pondering much about the story and why this just didn’t come down as a highly satisfying read for me, I have brought down its rating from 4 to 3.5 stars because Garrett and Sarah just didn’t get enough time of their own in the story to make this one a magical reading experience. There were times I wished that the book would pick up pace because that’s what I have been accustomed to throughout the series. And Garrett’s character ended up being the total opposite of what he started out being from the start of the series which has made me re-think and then re-rate the book.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | BooksOnBoard

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