Category / Outstanding Read

Rating of 5 stars!

by mvbookreviewer

Review: Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

Format: E-bookattachments
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Dutton Adult
Hero: Lincoln
Heroine: Beth Fremont
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: April 9, 2011
Started On: December 10, 2011
Finished On: December 10, 2011

Even as I write my review for Attachments, I can’t stop sighing all over my laptop, remembering those moments that made this book such an easy one to read, one that I wouldn’t be forgetting anytime soon. I still remember reading Where Rainbows End by Cecelia Ahern and loving the book because it was different in the way it was presented and because packed into the book is a ton of emotion that just grabs you and holds onto you even long after you are done. And for me, Attachments by Rainbow Rowell turned out to be such a read, a fantastic one at that which I just loved to pieces.

If not for my friend Brie who tweeted about this book and its awesomeness, I would never even have known of its existence. And even though I grumbled a bit about the e-book being a bit too pricey, with such a high rating and recommendation from Brie I caved in and found myself reading, reading and reading some more until my iPad cried out from depleted battery levels. I couldn’t stop myself from reading, the characters and the way the story is presented working its charm and magic over me until I was holding my breathe waiting to see what would happen next.

28 year old Lincoln is an Internet Security Officer at The Courier. His job entails reading through employee e-mails, to find out whether they are using the Internet in the most productive manner. When Lincoln stumbles upon the e-mails exchanged between two friends and co-workers Jennifer Scribner-Snyder and Beth Fremont, Lincoln is drawn towards the warmth and the obvious camaraderie between them right from the start. Though Lincoln doesn’t like the fact that he acts as a spy over other workers and tells himself that he shouldn’t read their e-mail exchanges, he can’t help himself from developing a fascination for Beth even though he doesn’t know her from Eve.

Beth and Jennifer’s characters and their lives are portrayed through the e-mails exchanged between the two friends while Lincoln’s life is told as it happens with blasts from the past that serves to make him a character that is just that more endearing. Lincoln is a man who is trying to find where he fits. He is shy and an introvert, whose first and only girlfriend had dumped him 9 years ago. Though Lincoln knows he ought to do something to change his life, he continues to live with his mother, work at a job that he hates and stays on the sidelines afraid to let himself be known even when his feelings for Beth progresses from fascination to love. Lincoln’s character is just plain adorable, no two ways about it and he says the sweetest things, lines that just brought a huge smile to my face as I read along.

The friendship between Beth and Jennifer is such a heartwarming one. They support each other wholeheartedly, are there for one another when it counts and at times the e-mails between them are laugh-out-loud variety hilarious. I found myself bursting out into laughter several times, earning myself some weird looks and enquiries from my husband which I just shooed away because I was that engrossed in what was happening.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the novel was to see how Lincoln’s character “grew” throughout the story, taking those little steps that turns his life around. It is his innate kindness and the way he loves oh so wholeheartedly that just makes him one fantastic hero. And seeing how Jennifer, Beth and Lincoln’s characters all come together, the “cute guy” that Beth can’t help but talk about in her e-mails turning out to be none other than Lincoln that served as the icing on the cake. The ending when it came was a sweet one, one that I can’t help but sigh over even now.

Some might label this as chic-lit rather than romance, but this is romance genre at its best, heartwarming characters, compelling storytelling and a happily ever after that just felt so real and believable in so many ways. Recommended for everyone and anyone who loves romances; this one’s for you!

Favorite Quotes

(Sam) ‘Didn’t you ever wonder what it would be like to be with someone else?’ And you’ll say …Lincoln, what will you say?”
“I’ll say, ‘No.’”
“That’s not very romantic.”
“It’s none of their business.”
“Tell me, then,” she said, unbuckling her seat belt and putting her arm around his waist. “Tell me now, won’t you ever wonder what it would have been like to be with someone else?”
“First, buckle up,” he said. She did. “I won’t wonder that because I already know what it would be like to be with someone else.”
“How do you know?” she said.
“I just do.”
“Then, what would it be like?”
“It would be less,” he said.

“No,” he said. “No, I’ll never wonder what it would be like to have sex with someone else for the same reason I don’t want to kiss anyone else. You’re the only girl I’ve ever touched. And I feel like it was supposed to be that way. I touch you and my whole body …rings. Like a bell or something. And I could touch other girls, and maybe there would be something, you know, like maybe there would be noise. But not like with you. And what would happen if I kept touching and touching them, and then …and then, I tried to touch you again? I might not be able to hear us anymore. I might not ring true.”

“Why are they doing that?” his mother said, frowning at her grandsons. The boys were sorting the casserole into piles on their plates.
“Doing what?” Eve asked.
“Why aren’t they eating their food?”
“They don’t like it when things touch,” Eve said.
“What things?” his mother asked.
“Their food. They don’t like it when different foods touch or mix together.”
“How do you serve dinner, in ice cube trays?”

“I’d know you in the dark,” he said. “From a thousand miles away. There’s nothing you could become that I haven’t already fallen in love with.”

“Lincoln?” she (Beth) asked.
“Yes?”
“Do you believe in love at first sight?”
He made himself look at her face, at her wide-open eyes and earnest forehead. At her unbearably sweet mouth.
“I don’t know,” he said. “Do you believe in love before that?”
Her breath caught in her throat like a sore hiccup.
And then it was too much to keep trying not to kiss her.

“I pictured a girl who made every moment, everything she touched, and everyone around her feel lighter and sweeter.
“I pictured you,” he said. “I just didn’t know what you looked like.
“And then, when I did know what you looked like, you looked like the girl who was all those things. You looked like the girl I loved.”

by mvbookreviewer

Review: Dancing on Coals by Ellen O’Connell

Format: E-bookDacingoncoals
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Gaeten
Heroine: Katherine Grant
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: October 29, 2011
Started On: December 9, 2011
Finished On: December 10, 2011

You know those books that refuse to let its hold on you go even long after you are done? Yep, Dancing on Coals by Ellen O’Connell is one such novel that I lay thinking about long after I was done. The characters, the passion, the violence and the undying love between two people who are so obviously two halves of one just kept coursing through me, wishing that I could keep on reading their story forever.

The year is 1881 and Katherine Grant is on her way home to New York after travelling throughout the country. The only girl amongst 5 boys, Katherine had grown up running around with her brothers in different parts of the world ever since their mother had died when she was 6 years old. The only reason she had left home unknown to her family had been because they had not believed in her when she had needed it the most, and as Katherine figures, what her family doesn’t know cannot hurt them.

But when armed robbers attack their stagecoach and everyone else but Katherine is killed, her savior comes in the form of Nilchi, an Apache warrior whose lean good looks and fluency with English puts her at ease even with Nilchi’s older brother Gaeten glowering at her, hatred spitting from his eyes at every turn.

But not long after, Gaeten and Katherine are forced to team up, Gaeten’s promise to his younger brother on his deathbed the only reason that prevents Gaeten from testing the sharpness of his knife against the white woman’s throat. Gaeten’s hatred for the White runs and courses deep through his veins. The haze of rage that blinds him is a vicious one ever since his parents had been killed by white men when he had been just 9 years old. But through every harrowing escape that Katherine and Gaeten make together, he comes to realize that even if Katherine is a white woman, the courage of an Apache runs through her blood.

Ellen O’Connell writes romances that are a dying breed in present days. Her honest portrayal of life what it was like back then, the violence, bloodshed, thievery and murder that was part of the daily life comes across vividly and there isn’t one aspect of the novel that I would change. The setting, the characters and the way she brings forth the connection, the sizzling attraction and the oh so strong love between Gaeten and Katherine was just perfect.

Gaeten’s thoughts remain hidden until Chapter 9, the only way to garner his feelings being by how Katherine views his expressions and his behaviour when it comes to her. Even bound by his promise to his brother, Gaeten would like nothing more than to leave her behind, but unbeknown to him, the connection that is forged between them during their escape and trek through the wilderness binds him to her, even when Gaeten tries so hard to deny it. I was halfway in love with him even way before that, the minute he charged into the story on horseback, intent on killing the woman who would later turn his life around. And as the story progressed, I was mesmerized by Gaeten, the way he slowly transforms and leaves behind the black rage that surrounds him, the healing which comes from Katherine’s acceptance of him, just the way he is.

Katherine is the type of heroine that is trademark Ellen O’Connell. She creates them courageous with an inner beauty that makes it inevitable that the reader would fall for her as well. Katherine is a practical woman, who had turned away from her fiance back home when he had done something she would never abide by. Even when fear for her life at Gaeten’s hands makes her tremble, she doesn’t back down, making it that much harder for Gaeten to dismiss her as just another white woman. The way she accepts, loves and desires Gaeten just the way he is makes for one of the best aspects of the story, the way she “tames” her fierce husband reason enough to revel in this story.

Exceptionally crafted as is usual for Ellen’s novels, Dancing on Coals is a novel not to be missed for fans of the genre. To read the beautifully done afterword is enough reason to read this novel, the research that Ellen has done to write this story one that shines throughout and one that I applaud wholeheartedly.

Favorite Quotes

He entered her in a single hard thrust, opening her, stretching her and forcing a moan of surprise from her. She was ready, so ready, and yet totally unprepared. She’d been wrong. She was still virgin to this, to his strength and her need, to the pleasure and the pain and the sheer triumph of having him. He drove into her and she rose to him, clutched him tighter, harder. Her nails raked and dug into his back, her teeth into his neck.

“Your skin is white, but I think the white god made a mistake, or maybe he did it on purpose to play a joke. He gave you an Apache heart.”

She toyed with the top button of his shirt. “Do Apaches kiss?”
“The people believe the mouth is only for eating.”
“Oh.” She didn’t try to hide her disappointment.
He shifted her against him a little and cupped her breast with one hand, his thumb rubbing across the nipple. “They also believe a woman’s breast is only for nursing a child.”
Lowering his mouth over hers, he ran his tongue between her lips, exploring her tongue, making her shiver with a stroke along the roof of her mouth.
When he raised his head at last, she whispered, “I’m glad you’re an unbeliever.”

Facing him, she saw what she didn’t need to see to know. Even if most wives experienced being washed by a fully aroused, naked husband, they would never know this — a man no words had been invented to describe, beyond handsome, beyond beautiful. His skin glowed copper in the light from the fire, shadows emphasizing the curves of muscle and planes of bone. His erection was hers, for her.

If a man could taste wind and fire, they would taste like Katherine. When he stood in high places looking down on things made small by distance, he tried to feel what the eagle felt soaring free on the wind. He was an earthbound man. Only his spirit could ever soar, and only Katherine raised him so high.

He entered her slowly, determined to keep a tight hold on the lust pounding in his veins. She wrapped her legs higher, took him deeper and deeper. Her hands dug into the muscles of his rear, urging, telling him what she wanted and what he needed were the same. He obeyed and thrust harder, driving into her not with anger but with a desperate raw need. He felt her climax, her body arching, tightening and contracting around him as she cried out against his neck. He shuddered with the intensity of the explosion that wracked his body and spirit and wrung a deep cry from him.
“Katherine.” I was afraid. I missed you. I love you.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Smashwords

outstandingread

by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Head Over Heels by Jill Shalvis

Format: E-bookheadoverheels
Read with: iBooks for iPhone
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Lucky Harbor, Book 3
Publisher: Forever
Hero: Sawyer Thompson
Heroine: Chloe Traeger
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: November 22, 2011
Started On: November20, 2011
Finished On: November 22, 2011

Jill Shalvis has done it yet again. With a cast of heartwarming and sometimes quirky characters, she has done a splendid job in bringing to life the story of my two favorite protagonists from the Lucky Harbor series. Jax Cullen and his toolbelt (yep, still talking about that one every chance I get), just might have to move over and make room for the big, brawny and hotter-than-sin-in-uniform, bad-boy turned Sheriff of Lucky Harbor Sawyer Thompson.

If the reaction of fellow readers of the Lucky Harbor series is anything to go by, the story of Chloe Traeger aka the wild one and the youngest of the siblings and the stoic Sawyer is the one story that has been anticipated by fans ever since the publication of the first book in the series. There is nothing like the sparks that fly between two direct opposites, who somehow eventually find that amongst the differences lie similarities between them which bind them together, especially with the hotter than fire sexual tension that ALWAYS seems a constant whenever they are together.

Sawyer is a man with a tainted past; a fact for which he has been trying to atone for, for a long time. Curbing the wild side which had gotten him into more trouble than he would rather remember, it is no wonder that Chloe with her free spirited nature clash more than once, with enough sparks flying between the two of them to singe a passerby. Sawyer might not like to admit the fact that when it comes to Chloe, his legendary cool is a distant memory, and for Chloe whose gypsy-style upbringing makes it hard for her to curb the wild streak which forever seems to land her in trouble with the sexy Sheriff, saying no is not even an option.

With her sisters Tara and Maddie, for the very first time ever, Chloe feels the stirrings of belonging and makes her long for the stability that comes with being rooted to one place. But her wild adventures makes her have to work hard to turn the image around, to win the trust of her sisters and in the process falls hard and fast for Sawyer who just makes her panties melt with one well placed scorching glance.

I loved every single thing about the 3rd book in the Lucky Harbor series. It was so much fun to see how Tara and Maddie are faring, especially Maddie who always seems to be caught in one clandestine position or the other with her fiance Jax. The most heartwarming factor of these novels of course is the relationship that seems to develop and foster right in front of your eyes when it comes to the three sisters who would never have come together if it wasn’t for their mother’s will.

Next comes my absolute favorite part of the novel to talk about. And you get 3 lucky guesses, which I am betting with everything I have that it wouldn’t be hard for anyone to guess. The uber sexy Sawyer of course who just manages to melt me on the spot with his gruff and tough nature beneath which lies a heart of gold that just made me fall head over heels in love with him right from the very beginning. And Jill has certainly achieved her goal of giving Gena the big, tough and stoic hero whom she asked for; because I for one loved every big, tough and stoic inch of him to pieces. I am telling you, there were moments in the novel that I thought if Sawyer were to get any more sexier, spontaneous human combustion wouldn’t remain a myth much longer!

Chloe is not one to be missed out on either. She is the type of hero who would just melt your heart because she is this endearing mix of wildness together with a deep yearning in her heart to belong, to be needed and to feel. With Sawyer she finds that she feels much, much more than she has ever felt with anyone, that explosive orgasm in the shower one of the best parts of the novel. How Sawyer and Chloe take care of each other with those little things that mean so darn much; needless to say Jill completely won me over with their story.

Heartwarming, toe-curlingly sexy, endearing and a whole lot of fun in between, Head Over Heels is a must read for any fan of contemporary romances and of course for the fans of Lucky Harbor series.

Favorite Quotes

“If at first you don’t succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.”  – Chloe Traeger

He was in uniform, gun at his hip, expression dialed to Dirty Harry, and just looking at him had something pinging low in Chloe’s belly.

She didn’t understand it, but everything about him reminded her that she was a woman.

“If things don’t seem right, try going left.” – Chloe Traeger

“Why was man created before woman? Because you always need a rough draft before the final copy.” – Chloe Traeger

Heat skittered through her belly, then directly south. “Sawyer.”
In answer, he brought his head up and kissed her. Deep, hungry, tasting her in a purposely slow, thorough manner before pulling back to once again look into her eyes.
Oh, God. “Sawyer, what are we doing?” she whispered.
He shook his head. “No f#cking clue.”

She nodded, her gaze locked on his mouth. He could tell she wanted it on hers, and for once, they were perfectly in sync. Having no idea what he was doing, he kissed her again, another no-holds-barred, tongues tangling, rock-his-fucking-world kiss that left him staggered and her apparently unable to speak as they tore apart for air and waited for the world to right itself.
Didn’t happen.

“Just when you think you’ve hit rock bottom, someone’ll throw you a shovel.” – Chloe Traeger

“I’ve always wanted to be somebody. I should have been more specific.” – Chloe Traeger

“I don’t want to scare the guests with a big old guard dog,” Tara protested.
“Safety is far more important than worrying about what anyone else thinks,” Sawyer told her.
“You’re right, of course.” Tara looked at her sisters. “We’ll think about both an alarm and a dog.”
“We can borrow Izzy from Jax,” Maddie said.
“Sure,” Tara said. “And she can lick the next bad guy to death.”

Odd how one man could evoke so many emotions within her. Lust? Oh yeah, much of the time. The urge to smack him upside the back of his head? Yep, that was often there, too. Affection? She’d have said no. He didn’t need her affection, everyone admired and loved Sawyer, who was just about the most composed, self-assured, capable man she’d ever met.
But there was something suspiciously close to affection filling her now, which had her shaking her head at herself.

“The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the ability to reach it.” – Chloe Traeger

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble

outstandingread

by mvbookreviewer

Review: On Thin Ice by Anne Stuart

Format: E-bookonthinice
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Ice, Book 6
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Finn MacGowan
Heroine: Elizabeth Pennington
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: September 15, 2011
Started On: November18, 2011
Finished On: November 18, 2011

Anne Stuart announced about the release of the On Thin Ice, the 6th book in the ICE series when I had long given up hope that there would ever be another book in the 5-star series that I had enjoyed immensely from the minute I picked up Black Ice. For me, Anne Stuart is one of a kind; an author who manages to deliver heroes in a league of their own, passion that absolutely scorches through the pages and a love when it comes, binds the hero and heroine for all time to come. And On Thin Ice turned out to be exactly what I hoped and envisioned it to be as I finished this in almost one sitting, just taking breaks for those essential stuff in between.

36 year old Finn MacGowan is an agent of the infamous Committee, taken captive by the members of the Guiding Light that operates in Callivera, a small war-torn country in South America. Having been held captive for three long years, Finn is looking forward to the night he would make his third and final attempt at escape; the reason that he has been kept alive for as long as he has which still remains a mystery even to him.

31 year old Elizabeth Pennington, the sole heiress to the Pennington Pharmaceutical dynasty arrives in Callivera seven months back and works with the Catholic Charities of Callivera until one brutal day when everyone she holds dear is killed ruthlessly and Beth is taken captive. 

Beth’s savior comes in the form of the Irish man Finn who makes no secret of the fact that he would willingly leave her behind if it would mean an easier escape for him. But from the very first moment these two opposites are pitted together, Finn has a hard time acting the part of his usual cold and ruthless self around Beth who stirs his senses and literally sets him afire. Blaming his intense attraction towards the skittish and almost virginal Beth as an effect of his 3 year dry spell placates him somewhat but deep down inside, Finn knows that Beth is far more dangerous to his heart and mind than any other woman he has ever known.

A trek through the jungle, with the vicious members of the Guiding Light at their heels hell bent on vengeance and revenge, not to mention the nefarious plans of a member of the CIA tracking their progress all throughout in his own personal vendetta, the adventure aspect of the novel is as hair raising as they come and I fully enjoyed every nail biting minute of it.

The attraction between Finn and Beth is a strong and visceral one that just about took my breathe away with the sexual tension that fairly leaps out of evey single one of their encounters. Finn is the type of hero I love to allow into my dreams. Ruthless and dangerous enough to kill for those whom he loves, with an inner core of tenderness towards that one woman who rocks his world in all the ways, I would love myself a Finn any fine day! I think Finn might come a very close second in my favorite hero list from the ICE series and that is saying a lot when all of the heroes in the ICE series are unbeatable and one of a kind in their own unique way.

Beth is the type of heroine that Anne Stuart does so well. Though in her thirties and richer than the average woman could ever hope of being, Beth is calm and serenity itself and believes herself to be one of those women who would never enjoy the act of sexual relations and steers clear of anything and everything that might lead to it. Her awakening is a slow one, the senses that stir into life and makes her yearn for those things that she cannot for the life of her seem to be able to voice one of the most invigorating aspects of the novel. The way Finn seduces her, not with poetry and flowers but his brand of loving that is hard and branding in its own right just about melted me on the very spot!

I loved how characters from previous ICE books came together in this novel and learning tidbits of their lives at present just warmed me up from the inside. I especially loved the last chapter that serves as a sort of epilogue which I nearly jumped up and down after reading because lets face it, Anne Stuart is famous for leaving the reader begging for more with her books.

Everything about this novel spells perfection right from the very start though there were certain editing errors here and there which I didn’t mind overly much. The only drawback; there is a feeling of finalty with how the novel ended which I think signals the end of the ICE series. I am practically a pretzel at the moment from crossing all my limbs together in the hope that I be proven wrong in the near future.

Recommended for fans of the ICE series, fans of Anne Stuart and fans of ruthless and dangerous heroes that no other hero can ever hope to compete with!

Favorite Quotes

(Beth) “You can’t leave me behind!”
“I can and I will, if I have to break your neck to keep you from following me.”
“I’d like to see you try.”
“No, you wouldn’t.” His voice was flat, unemotional, but even in the darkness she could see the faint flicker in his eyes. She looked behind her, at the crumpled body of the pot smoking soldier, his head at an odd angle, his eyes open and staring.
“Oh, God,” she whispered, horrified. What had seemed a strange kind of nightmare was suddenly, terribly real. “Did you kill him?”
“No, the tooth fairy came along and took care of him.” 

(Finn) “You’re sure you’re not a sister?” he tossed back at her, his voice little more than a growl on the night air.
She was closer than he thought, making decent enough headway on the steep hill. “I’m an only child.”
Stupid, he thought. “I’m asking if you’re a holy nun.”
“I told you, I’m not a nun, holy or otherwise.”
Okay, she met the criteria for fuckable. 

He halted abruptly, and this time she did slam into him, but at least it was his back absorbing the blow of her soft body. He could pretend to ignore it. “What have you got on your feet?” he growled.
“Shoes.”
He looked down, his eyes accustomed to the inky black. Light-weight sneakers, already soaking wet from the damp undergrowth. “Christ, woman,” he muttered.
“I didn’t exactly get a chance to choose my wardrobe when they kidnapped me,” she said.
Damned if he didn’t like her. 

The vibration of laughter increased, and for some reason it did even more to warm her than the heat from his big, strong body. “You know, Sister Beth, you’re a dangerous woman.”
“You said that before, and I assume you’re being sarcastic.” She was too sleepy to come up with a real argument, too warm and safe for the first time in days to bestir herself. “I can’t imagine anyone more pathetically weak than I am. What could I possibly do to you?”
“Sweetheart, you could make me fall in love, and that’s fatal.”

He moved around the wide counter, silent as always. She was sitting on the floor, her arms wrapped around her knees, her fist in her mouth to try to quiet her sobs, and he realized he hadn’t actually seen her cry before. [..]
She must have felt his eyes on her, for she suddenly swallowed her sob on a choked gasp and looked up at him, her huge, sorrow-filled eyes a sharper pain than the knife slash.
He moved slow enough, so as not to spook her, to give her plenty of time to move, but she stayed where she was, her huge eyes looking into his, and she fucking broke his heart, if he still possessed such a useless organ. 

Without his shirt she could see just how bony he was, probably twenty or thirty pounds under his fighting weight from his years in captivity. He loomed over her, and she finally understood her ambivalence. He had protected her, killed for her, led her to safety. He was safety.
But he was also big and raw and so elementally male that it made her teeth sweat. She’d spent most of her life blissfully above the calls of the flesh and the dark, desperate couplings that subsumed others. She didn’t like sex, didn’t want sex. Body parts were simply that. She looked at MacGowan and thought about sex.

There were times when she was honestly afraid of him. He could kill, had killed for her on a number of occasions, seemingly without a moment’s hesitation or an ounce of regret. He was mercenary, brutal, charming, devious, and yes, any other woman would think he was sexy as hell. Not her.
Not her. Oh hell, yes, her. The way he moved, as if he understood his body better than any man had a right to and knew just how to use it for a woman’s maximum pleasure. The way his gray eyes slid over her, coolly caressing. It meant nothing, it was part of his stock in trade, and yet she felt it slide over her skin like a physical touch.

He caught up with her outside her doorway, when she almost gave up. He said nothing, simply pulled her into his arms, against his strong, hard body, and his hand slid beneath her hair, tilting her face up to his. “No more running away?” His voice was rough.
His eyes glittered down into hers, and if she wanted tenderness it wasn’t there. Simply a dark, naked heat sparking between them.
“No more running away,” she said.

He wanted her hands on him, he wanted her mouth on him, he wanted to take her from behind, leaning over the bunk, he wanted her to go down on him, he wanted everything he could possibly think of and more. He wanted it hard and nasty, gentle and sweet. But most of all he wanted it now.

She could feel the hot tears pouring down her face, and she pressed it against the stone. MacGowan, you stupid bastard, she thought. Why did you have to go and get yourself killed? I care about you.
Care about you. Stupid phrase. She knew the truth, and right then the least she could do for the man who’d died protecting her was to admit it. She was stupidly, idiotically in love with him. He didn’t deserve it, she was smart enough to know better, but all the rationalization in the world didn’t help. It simply was.

Purchase Links: Amazon

outstandingread

by mvbookreviewer

Requested Review: Hot Text by Cari Quinn

Format: E-bookhottext
Read with: iBooks for iPhone
Length: Novella
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Hero: Jeffrey Maddox
Heroine: Karyn Colette Allison
Sensuality: 4.5
Date of Publication: November 2, 2011
Started On: November17, 2011
Finished On: November 17, 2011

With Hot Text, Cari Quinn once again proves to me the reason why she is my go to author when it comes to quality erotica that delivers on all fronts. For some Hot Text might be “offensive” in the sense that sexual relations takes place between a married woman who is on the verge of divorce and the hero. But hey, lets face it; in real life things do not exactly go according to our well laid plans. If it did we would all be married to men who wouldn’t let us out of our bedrooms because they cannot get enough of giving us multiple orgasms. And yes, I digress but I just love the fact that Cari is bold enough and is daring enough to write about scenarios that might not be sometimes well received by 100% of the romance reading population but nevertheless for fans like us who want and crave something different, Cari ALWAYS hits the spot with plots of the said nature.

Jeffery Maddox is the two time divorced older brother of Daisy Maddox whose current beau is the married Lonny James who just rubs Jeff the wrong way. Wanting to do something about Lonny before he can break Daisy’s heart, Jeff takes an opportunity that presents itself and meets up with Lonny’s soon to be ex-wife with the intention of asking her to take Lonny back and work things out.

But from the moment Jeff and Karyn lay eyes on each other, the sparks that fly between them are evident. For Karyn who is a pre-school teacher who defines herself as an average person, who has had 10 years of marriage which had failed miserably when her husband had asked for a divorce is not prepared for her almost forgotten body parts to come alive at the sight of the very fine Jeff whose gruff nature just calls to something deep inside of her. 

A night of unforgettable and decadent sex follows, a night during which every misconception that Karyn has ever had regarding herself and her sexuality is put to bed by Jeff who focuses on her with an intensity that just drives her crazy with wanting. For Jeff, its not just a night of sex and he falls hard and fast only to face the harsh and brutal face of reality come morning when none other than Lonny strolls in.

In my opinion, Cari has done what very few authors manage to do in a novel of this length. She has taken two characters who have no inkling of the other’s existence until the night that changes their lives forever, showed sides of them that both endears and makes them unforgettable to the reader and together with that Cari has pitted them in a situation that you don’t find in the average romance novel. And that’s what made this book a winner for me and of course the out of this world scorching heat that Jeff and Karyn generates right from the very start is worthy of mentioning. 

I loved Jeff’s character right from the very minute he said “Not a screamer, huh? Gonna prove you wrong.” Now, who in the world can fault the man behind that logic is just beyond me. Jeff is someone who is wary of marriage and rightfully so when his previous two marriages hadn’t worked out very well. He is the gruff and taciturn type and not much of a people’s person, but yet in my eyes, Jeff communicates just damn fine when he wants to. I loved his intensity, the way he just takes hold of Karyn and plunges his way into a world of sensuality with her that leaves both of them hungering for more of where that came from. His take charge attitude, the way he solely focuses on giving Karyn a night she would not forget anytime soon and of course the way he can find humor in those little things just made him a favorite hero of mine.

Karyn doesn’t expect her world to turn upside down when she answers the text message she receives from her husband’s mobile phone. And when Jeff turns out to be the man who proves to her in just one night how wrong she has been in neglecting herself, her wants, needs and desires the past couple of years, Karyn knows its time to take charge of her life and let go of the past and fight for all those things that she has accepted as her due. Divorce is hard and messy on anybody and doubly so for Karyn when she cannot make up her mind, when she still cannot fully comprehend the fact that 10 years of her life had just meant nothing to the man she had shared it with when he had asked for a divorce. It is her encounter with Jeff that bursts through the bubble she has wrapped herself in and it is then Karyn realizes that has a lot of “growing up” to do before she can proceed with whatever it is between Jeff and herself.

I loved the concept, the hero and the heroine and of course the neat little epilogue that Cari tucked in at the end. If you like myself are a fan of tastefully done erotic romances that deliver on the not-your-average tropes and a hero to definitely drool over; Hot Text is the novella for you! For fans of Cari Quinn, this is another little goody which would have to tide us fans over until she can publish another decadently sinful novel for us to enjoy!

Favorite Quotes

He didn’t reply but by then she’d found something else to occupy her attention. His eyes.
Though she’d expected them to be as serviceable as the rest of him, they were a smoky blue-gray fringed in dark lashes. Pretty eyes. Even when he stared her down like a cop might a perp. And not just any perp. One who was heavily armed and an imminent flight risk.

She expected an easy kiss. Good, perhaps, but not intense. He seemed like a low-key, moderately passionate person. As she’d been, without the right stimulation.
Without this.
What she got was a glancing blow of lips that soon turned to a furious meshing of mouths and teeth. It wasn’t elegant. It was messy and rough and God help her, bordered on dirty.

Even when she’d fantasized, what she’d come up with hadn’t ever matched this reality. She’d never envisioned a sexy, borderline grouchy guy with a glint in his eye and an erection this tempting. 

He inched in, slid out. Pumped deeper, pulled away. Just as her frustration swelled to a fuckingly epic level, he hauled her hips up, dragging her higher before he sank all the way in, filling her so completely she gasped.
Her flesh stretched, unaccustomed to a man after so long. Each thrust stirred her unspeakably. More than just her p#ssy linked with him when he slid into her. A little part of her heart did as well. 

Karyn reached out to graze his jaw with her thumb, savoring the beginnings of stubble. She’d never seen her ex with stubble. Or with his mouth as deliciously soft and used as Jeff’s.
“How’d we end up here?” she asked softly, not expecting an answer.
“Luck,” he said, turning his head to kiss her palm. “Blind fucking luck.”

Soft strokes and tender words of praise might’ve made her suspicious but his rough manner helped her to trust him. What she saw was what she got with Jeff Maddox. And what she saw, she liked. A lot.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble | Jasmine Jade

outstandingread

 

Reviewer’s Note: I just had to mention this as part of this review. I was listening to Give Me Everything by Pitbull feat Nayer, Ne-Yo while reading this  and somehow, that song ended up being one that was perfectly in sync with the events that took place in the story.

I loved the following part of the lyrics:

Tonight I will love love you tonight
Give me everything tonight
For all we know we might not get tomorrow
Let’s do it tonight
I will love love you tonight
Give me everything tonight
For all we know we might not get tomorrow
Lets do it tonight
[…]
Grab somebody sexy tell ‘em hey
Give me everything tonight
Give me everything tonight
by mvbookreviewer

Requested ARC Review + Interview & Giveaway: Until There Was You by Kristan Higgins

Format: E-bookuntiltherewasyou
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Liam Declan Murphy
Heroine: Cordelia Wilhelmina Osterhagen
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: October 25, 2011
Started On: October 17, 2011
Finished On: October 19, 2011

Though I am no writer and don’t think I ever will rise up to that standard, I too have had my share of English assignments during which painstaking hour after the other, I have tried to give life to my words so that those who read it would feel the same set of emotions that I was going through as I was writing it. And with Kristan Higgins I think that’s exactly what she achieves with her novels, the laughter that comes with such ease as do the tears of the happy and sad variety together with those sheer moments of perfection that just makes her stories so entertaining.

Until There Was You is my second novel by Kristan Higgins and I am mighty happy that this was in fact not written in the first person. According to the author’s note, this is a first for the author because she has written the story from the male lead’s point of view as well, for the very first time in a novel of hers.

Liam Declan Murphy, the first man Cordelia Wilhelmina Osterhagen (Posey) had fallen in love with, the first man to ever break her heart is back in town, now a widower with his teenage daughter Nicole in tow. The significant role which Liam had unknowingly played in Posey’s life the night of her prom which had changed something deep inside of her, Posey never thought that her girl parts would sing & rejoice at the sight of the sexy as sin Liam who still manages to take her breathe away by just strolling into a room.

Circumstances find both Liam and Posey in each other’s company, more than once until the one sided awareness and attraction that Posey has had since forever for Liam suddenly ceases to be on her side alone. With kisses of the knee weakening variety, Liam and Posey find themselves in a friends with benefits sort of relationship that reaches its conclusion when Liam is forced to face the consequences of his relationship with a woman who really sees him for who he is, and makes him believe in his self worth for the very first time in his life.

Until There Was You is just more than a simple love story. Yes, there is a hero who can fulfill any woman’s fantasies and there is a heroine who just clutches at your heartstrings with the turn of the very first page. But, with a Kristan Higgins you don’t get the instant attraction turning into lust and love story. Rather you get to experience the journey that the hero and heroine embark upon in their joint quest towards a happily ever after, one that seems a very unlikely possibility when the story first kicks off.

As I have said earlier, Liam is the sort of man that we all base our naughtiest fantasies on. With the bad boy persona down to a fine art, looks good enough to have women practically hurling themselves at him and the way he can focus his smoky green eyes in that special way that makes a woman go weak at the knees, needless to say my hormornes were doing their happy dance throughout the story. But Liam is not just a pretty face, neither is he just the bad boy who fell in love with the kindest and most popular girl in high school. There is a depth to his character that bit by bit when revealed you can’t help but fall that much harder for him because his character demands nothing less.

The fears that Liam battles after the death of his wife, the way he is completely and utterly devoted towards ensuring that his daughter would never want for anything is one of the many reasons why I fell so hard for his character.

Posey, the adopted daughter of German parents is no traffic stopping beauty. But there is an inner beauty that shines through her right from the very start, the way she lusts after and loves Liam with everything she has got which turned out to be such a refreshing aspect to the story. The way Posey seems to understand Liam, see him for who he is and know his worth even when everyone else expected the worst from him was one of the reasons why Posey’s character endeared to me so much. The relationships that she has with her adopted parents, her gay brother and her brother in law together and that with her co-workers, all lend the story that extra fodder that made this novel an instant page-turner for me.

I swear that this is the very first time that I have practically questioned my sanity by laughing out so loud and laughing so hard at the way that Kristan seems to hit all the right spots with the humorous aspect of the story. I was thanking my lucky stars for the fact that I was alone when I was reading what follows the scene in the elevator because I’m afraid that otherwise someone might have reported me to the looney authorities.

There were moments in the story that were seriously deep, moments that I cried sad and joyous tears, moments that pretty much made it the 5-star read that this turned out to be. The moments towards the end of the novel, where Liam finally gets the courage to stand up for himself in front of his in-laws, the ‘speech’ that he gave at that moment practically had me bawling my eyes out.

Though I felt that Liam fell a bit short on the love-o-metre when compared to Posey, since I didn’t get the “to-hell-with-everything-else-I-love-this-woman-with-everything-I-am” vibe that I was expecting, I still managed to brush aside my misgivings because Liam does make up for most of it with the sweetest gestures ever!

A story that tickles your funny bones, tugs at your heartstrings and delivers one of the most wickedly sinful heroes ever, Until There Was You is a novel that comes highly recommended from the sunny side of life!

Favorite Quotes

The simmering lust, the raging interest exploded into love. Who wouldn’t fall in love with a man who took the time to feed a homeless kitty? She held that image against her heart like a secret jewel. Only she knew about it, she was sure. Those girls Liam might’ve slept with, girls who left their panties in his locker or wrote things about him on the bathroom walls…they didn’t know what Posey knew—
Liam Declan Murphy was not just the hottest thing ever to grace Bellsford High…he was a softy, too.

That moment when she’d crouched behind the tree…it did something to her, something that made her grow up and toughen up. But one question throbbed in her brain for a long, long time. Why? Why would Liam say something so hateful? How could he—who had tamed a stray and starving cat—be so cruel to a girl who had only ever wanted to be his friend?

“OH!” KATE GRUNTED as she sat down behind her desk.
“My side is killing me. I’m ovulating, I think. That sucker must be huge.”
“Must we discuss?” Jon asked.
“Man up, weenie boy,” Kate said.
“You man up, Venus Williams,” Jon replied. “I’m a gay home-ec teacher. I never have to man up. I never will man up. As God is my witness, I’ll never man up again.”

“You want to go to the movies tomorrow night?” he asked, and Posey was so shocked she actually choked.
“What?” she managed.
“The movies? Tomorrow?”
“Um…I, uh…um…what movie?”
He narrowed his eyes just a little, and Posey’s nether parts gave a long, happy squeeze. Get his clothes off, those parts advised. We’re lonely.

There was a little smile on his mouth—the mouth that had been kissing hers. Otherwise, he was incommunicado.
“Liam?” she said again, more loudly this time.
Nada. He was out cold. Down for the count.
She straightened abruptly. Face was burning, joints buzzing with adrenaline, chest filled with helium.
Liam Murphy had kissed her.
And he’d fallen asleep in the middle of it. She didn’t know whether to burst into song or kick something.

Then she smiled, just a flash, and something moved in Liam’s chest. Something warm, and something he hadn’t felt in a long time.

Kristan’s Interview on Until There Was You

So I managed to find just a bit more about this fabulous book from Kristan who was kind enough to answer a couple of questions about the characters and the writing process which makes this book such a perfect addition to your must-read pile.

MBR: Underneath all the humor and laugh out loud moments, you have created a story of healing, love and second chances. How did you come up with Until There Was You? Did the story end as you envisioned it at the beginning or did Liam and Posey stumble through their own paths towards happily ever after?

Kristan: Oh, thank you so much! I wanted to write what’s a classic theme in romance—the return of the bad boy. You’re right, the book is absolutely about second chances…for Liam, Posey and everyone else. I did have a plan for how the book would go, and generally, it did follow the path I’d envisioned, but you know how it is. The characters would occasionally veer off and do something I didn’t expect, and those are usually the best moments.

MBR: What would you say was the most difficult aspect of this story to write?

Kristan: You know, writing Posey was tricky. I am neither small nor skinny nor adopted, and it took me a while to get into her vibe. Once I did, I absolutely loved her.

MBR: There isn’t even one side character that I would do away with in the story. And though I am not one to enjoy gay romances I found myself totally charmed with Jon and Henry’s characters. How do you manage to so effortlessly weave all these characters and their traits together? As a writer do you find it challenging to juggle all the characters and their nuances together in a story?

Kristan: Thank you so much! Jon and Henry were among my faves, too, but there’s no effortlessly about it. I take a long hard look at all the secondary characters and make sure that in addition to providing color and richness, they actually serve a purpose in the story. I do find it a challenge, but it’s my favorite kind. I love writing secondary characters!

MBR: Would you ever consider writing a sequel to Until There Was You? Maybe a story featuring Kate, Posey’s best friend or maybe even Brianna and James?

Kristan: For now, no. I love where the story ended. Kate was so supremely happy with life, I don’t think she needs her own story. As for Brianna and James…I picture them happy already.

GIVEAWAY!! GIVEAWAY!!

There are two copies of Until There Was You up for grabs. A paperback copy open for US residents only & an e-copy open for everyone else!

All you have to do to enter is to leave a comment behind sharing with us your favorite Kristan Higgin’s romance. If you haven’t read any romances by her just share with us your favorite romance that made you laugh out loud and cry happy tears at the same time. Easy right?

And don’t forget to leave behind a valid e-mail address for a way to contact you.

The giveaway will end at 12:00 hours Maldivian time on the 27th of October 2011.

Winners will be randomly chosen and announced soon after.

Good luck & don’t forget to spread the good news either via Twitter or via Facebook by recommending this post.

by mvbookreviewer

Requested Review: Lauren’s Eyes by Norah Wilson

Format: E-booklaurenseyes
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Self Published
Hero: Callum Taggart
Heroine: Lauren Townsend
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: July 31, 2010
Started On: September 28, 2011
Finished On: October 1, 2011

When I first saw Lauren’s Eyes by Norah Wilson, the book failed to catch my eye. Maybe because the book cover that depicted a couple of horses didn’t stir my pick-this-book-up-immediately-radar. But once I read The Merzetti Effect and became drawn towards Norah’s style and the way she presents a story to the reader, I knew I needed to get my hands on every romance that she has published to-date.

The new glossy cover toting man-candy certainly whetted my appetite for more and Lauren’s Eyes made its way to my massive TBR, time and yet again to be bumped up because the story seemed to call something deep inside of me. And now, having read the book from start to finish and having loved every minute of the journey, I have just got to say, Kudos Norah, for a story that hits ALL the right spots head on!

Callum Taggart (Cal) is a rancher who has hit hard times and has resigned himself to taking in tourists to turn his business around. Cal is a man who has so much pain deep inside of him, which he hides from the rest of the world so effectively that even Cal himself doesn’t realize that he hurts for things that he cannot seem to voice. A childhood that had taught Cal the lesson never to depend on anyone else but himself and later on a marriage that had failed miserably has Cal shouldering each and every responsibility without flinching, never trusting anyone else and never really understanding his own worth until Lauren comes into his life and turns everything around.

Lauren Townsend is a 30 year old veterinarian, a gift that makes her susceptible towards the behavior and emotions of animals that makes her very good at what she does. Lauren’s psychic ability makes her sensitive to visions that shows her homicides that until now Lauren has been unable to stop. Her changeling nature has made her a bit of a loner, the past relationships in her life a testament to the fact.

It is Lauren’s psychic visions that brings her to the Foothills Guest Ranch where she meets Cal Taggart, whose silver gaze makes her think of the swirling depths of the Atlantic Ocean, and makes her want to lose every single inhibition she has and say yes to the fire that smolders in Cal’s eyes, promising her a world of pleasure that Lauren has not yet known.

What starts out merely as Lauren’s attempt to save a woman’s life turns into something much bigger and complex as her growing attraction towards Cal makes her want and yearn for much more than the straightforward sexual affair that Cal is ready to offer. For both Cal and Lauren, the desire that they feel for each other that burns hotter and more out of control with each and every encounter slowly chips away their resistance towards letting their hearts get involved.

As trouble continues to mount at the ranch and unexpected guests arrive, it is Lauren that proves at each and every turn that in her Cal has finally found someone he can completely rely on and place his trust in, because in her arms, Cal finally feels as if he has come home.

I started Lauren’s Eyes thinking that I would be getting an enjoyable romantic suspense with a heroine who has psychic abilities posing the usual conflicts that such characters bring to the stories. But, with Norah, I have come to realise that she always has a way of far exceeding my expectations. Reading Lauren’s Eyes was like unwrapping a gift with hidden compartments, each layer that unfolded making the story that much more irresistible.

Cal’s inner tortured nature makes him such a worthy hero to sigh over, his mere presence devastating to the senses. Cal is the type of hero that I can’t get enough of, the type of hero that I wish authors would write more of! Even now, a couple of hours after finishing the book, I find myself thinking of Cal at odd times, thinking of those heady moments he shares with Lauren filled with such raw desire and want that one can’t help but want more of the same. Norah certainly ups the heat in this novel and for those who love blistering heat and passion of the toe curling variety in their romantic suspense, I guarantee that Lauren’s Eyes provides that in spades!

I have identified with the fact that Norah has an innate ability to create heroines who don’t do much fluttering around, wringing their hands bemoaning the fates for putting them in the path of the hero. And true to Norah’s style, Lauren turned out to be such a fantastic heroine, someone that I loved right from the very beginning. Her need to comfort Cal right from the  very beginning made her land in my favorite heroines shelf for now & always!

The ending when it came, had me with tears in my eyes, something that yet again Norah seems to do to me so effortlessly to with her novels.

As I said before, there are so many elements to the story that makes the book what it is, that one needs to read this to uncover and appreciate it for. The characters, the setting and the romance all make for a fantastic read, one I cannot recommend highly enough and cannot applaud Norah enough!

Favorite Quotes

(Cal) “I was thinking, maybe you’d like a livelier mount, since you’re obviously a skilled rider.”
She glanced at him sharply. The fact that he’d paid her a compliment sank in her consternation at the thought of a more forceful mount under her. […]
“Thank you, no. I think I’ll stick with slow and steady.”
His hooded eyes suddenly took on a sleepy, sensual look. “That’s a sensible decision, ma’am. But if you should get a yen for fast and wild, just give me a shout.”

When his hard hand cupped her face, an involuntary shiver raced up her spine, but she made no objection Then his lips were on hers.
It wasn’t what she expected. Instead of hot demand, there was testing, tasting. He shaped her lips with his, tilting his head this way and that, as though searching for the best angle. Her heart pounding, she conceded they were all good. But she wanted more. Without thought, she opened her mouth against his.
She sensed him stiffen, but instead of deepening the kiss, he started to pull back. Abandoning any pretense that she didn’t want this, hadn’t thought about it since the first moment she’d laid eyes on him, she caught his head and really kissed him.

Anywhere, she thought. He could touch her anywhere with that talented mouth, those clever hands. She’d do anything as long as he didn’t stop. On a surge of raw lust, she caught his lower lip between her teeth and bit. His growl thrilled her, but then he flexed a powerful thumb against her throat.

He gathered her carefully into his arms, tucking her head into his shoulder and aligning her frozen limbs with his. She felt stiff enough to shatter, but bit by bit, her muscles began to relax until she lay pliant against him. Pliant and sleeping. It didn’t take very long. Maybe fifteen minutes.
Fifteen minutes for her to regain herself.
Fifteen minutes for him to lose himself.

Her bathrobe came off with one sweep, exposing her silky skin, fragrant from the bath. Perfect, he marveled, even as part of him wondered when his tastes had changed so radically. Small breasts, boyishly slender hips, long, long legs.
Mine! On that fierce thought, he proceeded to brand her with his mouth.

“We had fun, didn’t we?” she said, her eyes glinting. “Well, apart from the last bit.”
Fun? He remembered burying himself inside her and thinking he’d finally come home. He remembered pillowing his head on her breasts and coming apart in her arms. Fun?
She took a step closer, her body language shouting that she was going to lean over the bed rail and kiss him. A long, bittersweet goodbye kiss, no doubt. Jesus, he couldn’t bear it.

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

outstandingread

by mvbookreviewer

Review: Lethal by Sandra Brown

Format: E-booklethal
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Hero: Leo Coburn
Heroine: Honor Rosemary Gillette
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: September 20, 2011
Started On: September 23, 2011
Finished On: September 24, 2011

It feels like its being ages since I have been invested in a story, its characters and its final outcome as much as I did when reading Lethal by Sandra Brown. And it has been quite sometime since I picked up a Sandra Brown, who always manages to keep the reader glued to the pages, whether it be because of the strong elemental connection she manages to make with the reader or because of the suspense element in her later novels that always manages to entice the reader to put everything else on hold and indulge.

Lee Coburn is a federal agent deep undercover going on 13 months when all hell breaks loose and he is forced to flee for his life after being implicated in the mass murder of 7 men which had initiated a nationwide manhunt for him. His destination is one that will either help him make or break the case of a wide ring of smugglers who dabbles in transportation of young girls to drugs to weaponry.

When widow Honor Gillette’s 4 year old daughter Emily discovers the wounded man outside of their home, Honor has no inkling that her whole life is about turn upside down when the dangerous man with menace emanating from his very pores makes her regret the impulse to check on him. But what Lee brings home to light makes Honor question the circumstances surrounding the seemingly innocent death of her husband Eddie two years back and place her trust in Lee to keep Honor and her daughter safe when everything familiar seems so murky in comparison. 

Lee with his ingrained mistrust for everyone tries hard to not be disarmed by a pair of hazel-green eyes that entices and beckons at the same time. With everyone involved in the manhunt with unclear agendas of their own, Lee trudges his way through with the woman and her child in tow, knowing that anything else would mean a swift death for both of them which he just cannot fathom having on his conscience. And all the while, the awareness that singes through both Honor and Lee’s blood grows with every passing minute, practically making the very air between them electrifying.

Sandra Brown takes the reader on a harrowing journey told from multiple viewpoints, the story’s impact a much more profound one because of the fact. The villain when brought to light towards the end proved to be a shocker which is a testament to Ms. Brown’s ability to spin a well effectuated thriller.

Both Lee and Honor, who serve as the main protagonists are reason enough to bow down to Ms. Brown’s superior talent when it comes to delivering on heroes and heroines a reader can relate to and characters that you want to open up your heart to.

Lee is the version of a dying breed of heroes that few authors have the gumption to write in the present times. Lethal and dangerous, Lee is a former Marine who had a tough childhood, whose days in the military had honed his skills of killing to the extent that he practically feels nothing until Emily and Honor both pierce through the fog of nothingness that has surrounded him all his adult life. With a delicious barbed wire tattoo on his bicep and a straightforwardness to his manner that is both exhilarating and alluring at the same time, Lee is a hero who raced towards my shelf of favorite heroes before I had the time to blink!

Honor is a worthy heroine for a man like Lee. A second grade school teacher who is a total babe in the woods when it comes to the likes of Lee, Honor nevertheless has a backbone of steel that propels her to make the right decisions even when everything else tells her otherwise. Her attraction when it comes to Lee is a visceral one that has her falling hard and fast before she even has the time to gather her wits around her.

Emily was just plain adorable I say and I think my heart just practically turned over during the first couple of chapters which brought to light her cherubic character. I knew then and there that if nothing else could get through to a hero of Lee’s caliber, Emily could, with her innocent and trusting nature that could heal even the most wounded heart.

When it comes to the suspense aspect of the novel, it is how Ms. Brown manages to keep the reader on tenterhooks about her characters, wondering which one’s the ally and which one the foe that makes this one hard to put down. With the turn of one page, you think you have learnt a bit more about the characters that constantly keeps you on your toes. But then at the turn of the next page you realize that you might not know as much as you think you do, which makes this an instant page-turner!

My one teensy bit of disappointment stems from how the story ended, though there were elements that makes the reader draw the conclusion that there is a happily ever after in store for both Honor and Lee. But then again, I guess it was because of the ending that Lethal would remain in my heart for a long time, the riot of emotions that coursed through me at that very moment being one I wouldn’t be forgetting anytime soon.

Final Verdict: A game of cat and mouse timed to perfection & flawless in its execution, Lethal by Sandra Brown is another winner by master storyteller Sandra Brown.

Momentous Scenes:

  • The moment Emily places a kiss on Lee’s cheek. Had me going all Aww! because of how much it affected the stoic Lee Coburn.
  • The moments during which Lee holds Honor in his arms, just wanting the moment to linger on, a first for him. Such a sweet and throat tightening moment.

Favorite Quotes

His entire aspect was menacing, starting with his chilling eyes and the pronounced bone structure of his face. He was tall and lean, but the skin on his arms was stretched over muscles that looked as taut as whipcord. The backs of his hands were bumpy with strong veins. His clothes and hair had snagged natural debris—twigs, sprigs of moss, small leaves. He seemed indifferent to all that, just as he did to the mud caked on his boots and the legs of his jeans. He smelled of the swamp, of sweat, of danger.

Doral asked if Coburn’s neighbors had been interviewed.
“By me personally,” Fred replied. “Everybody in the apartment complex knew him by sight. Women thought he was attractive in that certain kind of way.”
“What certain kind of way?”
“Wished they could fuck him, but considered him bad news.”
“That’s a ‘way’?”
“Of course that’s a ‘way.’ ”

She shook her head slowly. “I don’t believe you. You can’t be a cop.”
“Not a cop.”
“Federal agent?”
“FBI.”
“Even more unlikely.”
“J. Edgar rolls over in his grave every day, but that’s the way it is.”

And then he pressed into her. First his thighs, then his middle, his chest, and finally his mouth. She made a whimpering sound, but its definition was unclear even to her, until she realized that her arms had gone around him instinctually, and that she was clutching his back, his shoulders, her hands restless and greedy for the feel of him.
He kissed her openmouthed, using his tongue, and when she kissed back, she felt the hum that vibrated deep inside his chest. It was the kind of hungry sound she hadn’t heard in a long time. Masculine and carnal, it thrilled and aroused her.

Moving between her thighs, he stretched out above her, then thrust into her. Once. Because, as he did everything, he acted without hesitation or apology to claim her entirely. Her eyes went wide and her breath caught. Holding her gaze, he pressed himself deeper, barely easing back before pressing deep again.

(Coburn)“Honor.”
Gasping, she lowered her arm from over her eyes and looked into his face.
“Put your hands on me. Pretend this means something.”
With a whimper, she wrapped her arms around him and clutched his back, then slid her hands down over his ass and drew him even deeper into her. He groaned, buried his face in the hollow of her neck, and rocked his body against hers. An orgasm burst through her at the same time he came.
She pretended nothing.

The intensity of his expression caused her to tentatively ask, “What?”
“I’ve never been a big fan of the missionary position.”
Not quite sure how to respond to that, she said simply, “Oh.”
“I preferred making it any other way.”
“Why?”
“Because it didn’t have anything to do with getting off.”
“What didn’t?”
“Looking into the woman’s face.” He murmured the statement as though puzzled by it.
Her throat grew tight. She reached up and stroked his cheek. “You wanted to look into mine?”

(Honor)“You had told me that if you didn’t return within a few minutes of ten o’clock, I was to drive away and get as far from Tambour as possible. So, for all you knew, that’s what I had done. After nearly dying in that explosion, with a burn on your shoulder, and your hair singed, you could have run in any given direction in order to get away, but you didn’t. When you found me on the railroad tracks, you were racing back to the garage. To me.”
He didn’t say anything, but his jaw tensed.
She smiled and moved closer to him, aligning her body along his. “You don’t have to give me flowers, Coburn. You don’t even have to hold me.” She laid her head on his chest just below his chin. Her hand curved around his neck. “Let me hold you.”

He had to admit: She’d got to him. This demure second-grade schoolteacher, who’d been faithful to her husband, but who had fucked him with the same fervor with which she’d fought him two days ago, had crawled under his mean ol’ hide.

If he turned his hand into her and began stroking her there, she would wake up smiling and drowsy and ready for him again.
They would kiss. Erotically. Her mouth would be so damn enticing, he’d dip into it again and again to gather the taste that was now familiar to him. He would touch his tongue to her nipples, and she’d rub her thumb around the tip of his cock and feel that he was about to burst, and then he’d be inside her, moving.
Or maybe not. Maybe he would do something he’d never done with a woman. Maybe he would just… be. […]
No, maybe this time, he would just savor being joined to another person as tightly as two people could be. He would savor being joined with Honor.

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

outstandingread

by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: The Dragon and the Pearl by Jeannie Lin

thedragonandthepearl

Format: E-book
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Harlequin Historical Publisher Series
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: Li Tao
Heroine: Ling Suin
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: September 21, 2011
Started On: September 20, 2011
Finished On: September 20, 2011

No true fan of romance can read Butterfly Swords by Jeannie Lin and escape without wanting to find out more about General Li Tao. And Jeannie Lin certainly doesn’t disappoint fans of her ultra unique historical romances set in the Tang Dynasty, China with this installment. Towards the end of my review for Butterfly Swords I mentioned my utter and at times reluctant fascination with Li Tao who served to be at first the villian and then somehow turned the tables around on me. Little did I know that Li Tao’s character was one that intrigued the author herself so much that she just had to write his story, a fact for which I am eternally grateful.

It is 759 AD and a period of political upheaval in China during which time the military governors known as the jiedushi, commanded their own regional forces independent of the Emperor’s army. It is during this period of turmoil that Lady Ling Suin, an accomplished courtesan who had been favored by the previous emperor finds herself being taken away from her home by none other than one of the most feared generals in China, General Li Tao.

Li Tao’s only intention at first is to remove her from harm’s way though he cannot deny the lure of her beauty anymore than he can deny the rising sun. Though every elegant move on Ling Suin’s part speaks of seduction and half truths that hides the real woman inside, Li Tao cannot help but be ensnared by the desire that races through him for a woman who could prove to be as lethal as that a sword plunged deep into his heart.

Both Li Tao and Ling Suin’s characters are shaped up by less than ideal childhoods, one having grown up on the streets fending for himself whilst the other had been bartered off for a pretty coin for the family’s next meal. Being the Emperor’s concubine for fifteen years meant that Ling Suin was resigned to a life of loneliness until death comes calling. But in Li Tao’s embrace, Ling Suin finds a man who would bend heaven and earth for the taste of a woman whose legend precedes her, the reality of it all when it comes to light manages to not only send Li Tao but the reader as well into a tailspin.

Once again, I am rendered speechless by Jeannie Lin’s ability to create such a riveting and poignant story, her ability to create strong and endearing characters that just demands nothing less but one’s total surrender as the reader. The way Jeannie spins her story weaving one word with another to create sheer magic that just pulls in the reader amazes me. And the tone she sets throughout is so in tune with the time period and the culture of a race shrouded in so much mystery that one cannot help but want to learn more.

Li Tao is a wonderful hero. The silent, tattooed, merciless assassin variety that I can sit around and dream about all day long. A man who thinks honor is no part of him when he wears it like his own skin, inseparable from the essence of who he is. His reluctant fascination with Ling Sui which penetrates through the emptiness that shrouds his heart is one of the most fascinating aspects of the story, his interactions with Ling Suin an intricately woven dance that serves many a time as the most sensual forms of foreplay on which Jeannie certainly delivers.

Ling Suin serves to be his exact opposite, and yet the similarities between them astounds as well as you read along. Having being forced to use her wits, her beauty and seductive viles for so long, Ling Suin at first knows not what to expect from a man who surrounds himself with men of the highest calibre, loyal to the bone and yet remains a lone wolf who doesn’t even realize the fact. Even though every survival instinct within her tells her to step away and leave Li Tao’s alluring form behind, she cannot help but yearn fiercely for the emotions that courses through her whenever Li Tao takes her in his arms. And it is not long before their arrangement brings forth emotions and feelings neither expects to feel for the other and it is a wonderful, wonderful way to pass the time by being a part of their journey towards happily ever after.

I loved how Li Tao and Ling Suin’s pasts are shared with the reader throughout, making both of them more appealing with each flashback. The sensuality and sexual tension between Li Tao and Ling Suin is off the charts hot, and underneath all that taut sensuality, Jeannie manages to tell a tale of political treachery and war not unlike what we see in the world today.

If you haven’t already read a Jeannie Lin book, you should definitely remedy the fact, especially if you are a fan of historical romances in exotic and unusual settings. This is as exotic and unusual as they come and one thing is for sure; none can fault Jeannie’s way with the words that captures you right from the very start. And I would recommend that if you are planning on reading The Dragon and the Pearl, better start off with The Butterfly Swords; just to embrace and enjoy the full impact of Li Tao’s character, which otherwise you might miss out on!

Truly remarkable and utterly fascinating, this one makes a beeline towards my favorites shelf for 2011.

Favorite Quotes

Li Tao had caught a single glimpse of her the first time he had been to the palace. The hunger that had gripped him had been immediate and all-consuming. He had been a young man then and had hungered for many things: acclaim, respect and power. The sight of her now, more than a decade later, stirred nothing but a faint echo of that forgotten desire.

She expected the descent of his mouth, but never would have anticipated the gentleness of the kiss. Her lips parted as his explored hers. His fingertips lifted to her cheek in an undemanding, but undeniably possessive caress. She nearly allowed her eyes to fall closed. She almost yielded against the heat and pressure and the slow stir of his mouth. Instead she dug her nails sharply into the flesh of her palms. She fastened her eyes on to his, permitting the kiss, but never surrendering.

She played with her eyes closed. He closed his own eyes, joining her in the darkness. She had said the song depicted a battle, but nothing of the sort came to mind, no lofty images of horses and banners waving or battalions clashing over hills. Only darkness and a pure sound that filled him, creeping into spaces he hadn’t known were empty.

by mvbookreviewer

Dear Author Review: Guilty Needs by Shiloh Walker

Format: E-bookGuilty Needs
Read with: IBOOKS for IPAD
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Series: Standalone
Sensuality: 4.5
Hero: Colby Hutchins
Heroine: Bridgette Lancaster (Bree)
Date of Publication: September 19, 2008
Started On: September 9, 2011
Finished On: September 9, 2011

Guilty Needs by Shiloh Walker is one of my all time favorite books since its release on September of 2008. I wanted to show my appreciation for a story that I love to bits and rather than just do a re-read review of it, I thought to myself I would start up a new type of review for those extra special books that I just love no matter how many times I end up re-reading them.

So ladies and gentlemen, I now present you with my very first “Dear Author” review which features a letter to Shiloh Walker written down in order to at least try and show my gratitude and appreciation towards this story that would continue to hold a very special place in my heart for now and always.

Dear Shiloh Walker,

As you can see, I am writing this letter/review to you because I just can’t help but fall a little bit more in love with your story Guilty Needs every single time I read it. I have now seriously lost count of the number of times I have picked this up from collection of Favorites books on my hard disk drive. If this were a paperback version I guess my copy would have become dog eared and worn out a long time back.

The thing that ALWAYS gets to me when it comes to Guilty Needs is the tons of emotion that practically seeps through every single word in the book, its hold on me a never ending one until I reach its very end. Even afterwards, I find myself unable to let go and spend a long time contemplating on what went on in a story that describes so well how guilt wars with desire when the widowed hero finds himself lusting after his dead wife’s best friend.

Alyssa Hutchins the wife who dies from cancer, who makes appearances into the story as a ghostly being that wants Colby to find love and be happy again, and that also with her best friend Bree who has always loved Colby from the sidelines, all 3 of the characters just makes this story come alive right from the very beginning that makes this book  that much easier to fall in love with over and over again.

The way you bring forth the friendship between Alyssa and Bree and made their bond an unbreakable one and yet managed to let the reader know of Bree’s feelings towards Alyssa’s husband and not sully the age old friendship between two friends continues to astound & amaze me.

One of the things that caught my attention when I first found your books from Amazon.com is the way you bring out the sexual tension between characters that just leaves a reader begging for more. And Guilty Needs is one of the best in delivering sexual tension of the sizzling variety that practically leaps out of the pages and grabs the reader right from the very start. The sensual scenes are so very well done that I could not help but reach out for my non-existent glass of cold water that I should remember the next time to keep by my side.

Sometimes, because you love a story so much, its hard to come up with the bits that stand out, but I still wanted to let you know that the moment that Alyssa asks from Bree the favor that she wants from her, it was a seriously throat-in-the-lump moment from the emotions overload. And the first kiss that Colby and Bree share – it is out of this world hot and the heat these two generate throughout the story can definitely light up my world for eons to come! And oh baby, the porch scene – if anyone has it on their mind to give me a present anytime soon, I’m just saying I wouldn’t mind a Colby or two as my pressies!

Guilty Needs will ALWAYS remain in a special corner of my heart and I believe I would never get tired of the story of how Bree finally gets the man she has loved for more than 15 years of her life, and of course Colby who just personifies sexy and takes it up to a whole new level!

Before I end this, I am just going to share some of those quotes from the story  that even later on would urge me to go seek out this little indulgence from my massive mountain of books.

Favorite Quotes

Patiently, Alyssa repeated the question she’d asked only seconds earlier. “Do you love Colby?”
Some trite lie formed on the tip of her tongue. Of course I love him—he’s your husband and that makes him almost a brother to me. But she couldn’t. It was just too wrong—lying to her dying friend, claiming to feel a fraternal emotion toward a man who inspired anything but fraternal thoughts. In the end, all she could do was just sit there and blink away tears.

Then she rose on her toes and kissed his cheek. If she breathed in the scent of his skin a little deeper than she should, it wasn’t intentional. If she shivered a little and wished she had the right to kiss him differently, it wasn’t because she could help it. She loved him—she always had.

They barely touched, his mouth on hers, his hands cupping her face while hers clutched at his wrists. But that contact was enough to shatter the foundation of her world.
He eased up, lifted his head just a little. An involuntary whimper escaped her and she swayed toward him. He growled low in his throat and reached for her, hauling her against him until they were plastered together.

 

Once again Ms. Walker, splendid is the name of the game when it comes to Guilty Needs & hats off for pulling this one off so brilliantly!

Sincerely Yours,
MBR

Purchase Links: Amazon | Jasmine Jade Enterprises

outstandingread