by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Guardian For Hire by Christine Bell

Format: E-bookguardianforhire
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Series: For Hire, #2
Publisher: Entangled: Indulgence
Hero: Gavin McClintock
Heroine: Sarabeth Lucking
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: January 13, 2014
Started On: January 14, 2014
Finished On: January 14, 2014

Guardian for Hire by Christine Bell is book 2 in the For Hire series, which I assure you can be read as a standalone. I myself never read book 1, i.e. Wife for Hire, and though the back story that makes up Guardian for Hire is more or less tied to events that take place in book 1, the story turned out to be easy one to follow.

Dr. Sarabeth Lucking (Sara) finds her well ordered life upended in more ways than one with her former colleagues being killed off one by one for no apparent reason other than the scandal that had rocked her former place of employment which had been shut down after the demise of her notorious employer. A psychologist with her practice in tatters, Sara comes from privileged upbringing though she has not much to show in terms of familial affection.

Gavin McClintock is the owner of the security consultant firm McClintock and Saunders and former military. Gavin takes on protection of Sara as a favor to his friend and gets more than he bargains for in the process. The tightly laced up Sara whom he would have had no problems keeping at arms length turns out to be just once facet to her character that she is forced to put up with to live up to the image that is expected of her. But under the most trying circumstances of her life, the layers of perfected pretense that Sara has lived with all her life comes tumbling down and Gavin can’t help but be enchanted by the woman that is beneath all that polished exterior.

Sara blames her burgeoning feelings for Gavin on the situation that she has been thrust into, having to rely on Gavin for her protection and wellbeing. Always having done the proper thing all throughout her life, Sara is ill equipped to handle a man like Gavin, much less her fantasies of the carnal nature when it comes to what exactly she would like him to do to her.

Guardian for Hire is highly readable, the thread of humor intrinsically woven into the storyline a facet to the story that made it an enjoyable 200+ pages. The first couple of pages where Sara is featured gives a totally different picture of who she actually is throughout the rest of the book, the second version of her which I loved overly much. The situation at the diner had me going off into peals of laughter and while at times I felt bad for Sara because of her naivete where certain things were concerned, it nevertheless made for great reading.

Gavin is the type of ex-military hero that all romance readers love to read about. With a tough exterior built around the fact that he had practically survived a hellish childhood not to mention his military background, Gavin too is taken aback by the strong feelings that are protective and carnal in nature when it comes to Sara. And as the noose of danger tightens around Sara, threatening her life, Gavin is forced to face the fact that when it comes to the millionaire heiress, Gavin’s heart is a foregone conclusion.

Though I loved the idea of Gavin as a hero, I had a bit of a hard time accepting the way that it had always been Sara that had taken the steps forward in their “relationship”. Although the epilogue did appease me somewhat, I still felt that Gavin too could have at least met Sara halfway when it had come to professing what had been in each others hearts by the time their time together had come to a forced conclusion.

Recommended for those who love ex-military heroes pitted against intelligent and brain smart heroines.

Final Verdict: Christine Bell weaves a highly readable story of suspense, heat and humor!

Favorite Quotes

“You feel so good,” she murmured, clawing at his back to keep herself aloft. Her fingernails dug into his skin, and she could already spy angry red marks along his shoulder blades. It only seemed to excite him more, though, and what little restraint he had left disappeared. He slammed her body against the wall, nearly knocking the wind out of her. His love was greedy, rough, and gripping, and nothing had ever felt so good.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: His Convict Wife by Lena Dowling

Format: E-bookhisconvictwife
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Escape Publishing
Hero: Samuel Biggs
Heroine: Colleen Mary Malone
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: December 1, 2013
Started On: January 13, 2014
Finished On: January 13, 2014

His Convict Wife by Lena Dowling is loosely tied to The Convict’s Bounty Bride published in March of 2013. His Convict Wife tells the story of quite the unusual couple, a recently widowed Samuel Biggs who makes his way to Australia to make a new life for himself and a convict bride.

It is during a moment of desperation that Colleen makes an attempt to impress upon Samuel to take her away from the hell she has to live in, not because she is looking out for herself but rather for the baby that she carries in her womb, whom she would not be able to keep if she were to live out the rest of her sentence in prison.

Samuel wants to stay true to the memory of his beloved wife but Colleen proves to be someone who is much more than the person she seems to be, something that makes it tough for Samuel to ignore her and designate her to the safe role of the companion that he wants her to be. Colleen sets out with one goal in her mind when she starts to seduce her husband with every trick she had learnt at the whore house, that is to secure a father’s love for her child. But what Colleen in the end gets is more than what she bargains for as feelings she had never encountered before makes themselves known, something that becomes harder to ignore as the days pass on.

Although I believe that the premise of the story and the characters were quite adequate for the story, I just felt that there were loose ends that needed to be tied up to make the story more wholesome than it ended up being. I liked Colleen’s character, her gumption and her attitude even under the most trying of circumstances. The life that she had been subjected to would have made a bitter woman out of someone with lesser character and I would say the woman she turned out to be earned her my admiration in spades.

Samuel was a bit tough for me to fall for. I felt that he was a bit too rigid at times, too judgmental of everyone and everything. The conflict that pushes Samuel and Colleen apart was one that was understandable at first but I felt that everyone involved didn’t truly get the closure they deserved. Perhaps it was the author’s way of keeping the story realistic because it is seldom in life that anyone gets the proper sense of closure from events that take place. However, I believe that perhaps an epilogue or a chapter that shows the couple somewhere down the line in the future would have appeased readers like myself, knowing that all that the couple had gone through had not been in vain.

One thing that I did like was the subtle heat that existed between Samuel and Colleen. The aspect of Colleen being way more experienced in carnal pleasures was a bit of a novelty when most novels that we come across tends to tell stories where the hero is the one who has a mountain of experience when it comes to women.

Though The Convict Wife could’ve been much better, I still managed to enjoy what the story had to offer. Recommended for those who love romance novels in an Australian setting.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Never Trust a Pirate by Anne Stuart

Format: E-booknevertrustapirate
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Hero: Thomas Morgan (Luca)
Heroine: Madeleine Rose Russell
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: December 3, 2013
Started On: January 12, 2014
Finished On: January 12, 2014

Never Trust a Pirate by Anne Stuart is her second book in the Scandal at the House of Russell series. Scandal at the House of Russell is a series that centers around the three Russell sisters left destitute in the wake of the scandalous demise and death of their father, who the three daughters believe was framed and murdered. Having been thrust into a life of hardship with their riches stripped away, the series tells the story of each sister as they embark to find the truth, and finding love with the most unusual of men in the most unusual of circumstances. And Never Trust a Pirate tells the story of the middle of sister Madeleine Rose Russell aka Maddy.

Maddy finds herself taking up the task of seeking the truth behind their father’s demise by following a cryptic clue in a hastily scribbled note left by their father. The phrase “never trust a pirate” finds her seeking the position of a maid at Captain Thomas Morgan’s residence, willing to spy on the man Maddy believes to have played a hand in her father’s death. But things however go far from according to plan as Maddy makes up close and personal acquaintance with the man in question hours before she finds out that the seemingly old captain that she’d been thinking he would be turns out to be a man who fascinates her on levels beyond her understanding.

Thomas Morgan (Luca) is a man who belongs in the ocean, sailing the ships that he is supremely famous for commandeering and of course an immensely wealthy man who is rumored to have been a pirate once. Though restlessness hits him every now and then, Luca is determined to go down the road of domesticity, and is engaged to be married, when the most insufferable woman he had ever crossed paths with and he hasn’t been able to put out of his mind ever since he claimed those scorching kisses from her turns out to be the new maid at his residence.

Luca knows just like he knows that he isn’t who he claims to be that Maddy is not whom she is impersonating herself to be. And when he realizes who she exactly is, it doesn’t douse the fire that burns and rages inside of him to possess the woman who haunts his every waking thought from that first kiss onwards, rather it burns stronger than ever until Luca is driven to the point of madness. While Maddy tries to outwit Luca in a game that he is far more good at, an outside force that truly does not want the Russell sisters from ever finding out the truth sets out to silence their quest for the truth forever.

Never Trust a Pirate proved to be a fascinating tale in every single aspect. Luca or rather Luca is the type of hero that is unforgettable, long after you turn the very last page. Dangerous, wily and charming with a rough past, Luca is your proverbial bad boy hero come to life, the badness tampered down a bit to suite societal needs. But one look at his gorgeous frame you know that no other hero would ever claim the place he would forever hold in your heart. And best of all, Luca fits the type of hero that Anne Stuart is famous for; ruthless and dangerous, even when it comes to the heroine herself. Don’t get me wrong, what makes men like Luca so alluring is the fact that there are those seemingly small deviations from their behavioral norm that lets the reader witness just how affected he is by the heroine and Luca was definitely no exception to the rule.

Maddy proved to be someone equally interesting. Having never let herself grieve for all she had lost, Maddy holds all that anger and grief deep inside of her, ready to change everything, if nothing else by her sheer force of will and determination. And that is exactly how she embarks on her quest to uncover the truth til she sets her eyes on Luca and her world as she knows it comes tumbling down right in front of her. Inquisitive by nature, Maddy has a hard time playing the meek role required of a maid. And even knowing that Luca might be responsible or even partly so in terms of what had happened to her father, Maddy finds that the way she is drawn towards Luca doesn’t seem to abate, if anything it seems to grow in strength by the day.

The sexual tension was top notch and oh dear god what followed was more so, the dialog between Luca and Maddy witty and the other secondary characters in the story well developed to give a well rounded story that I finished within just one day, a rare occurrence for me of late when novels hardly seem to hold my fascination for that long. But like almost every single Anne Stuart I have read to date, the story seemed to call out to me until I had finished the very last chapter, and that too with an altogether too huge a smile on my face. I can’t wait to read the third book in this series that will hopefully conclude and give answers to the mystery surrounding the demise and death of their father.

Final Verdict: Carries all the trademarks of a classic Anne Stuart. Definitely recommended!

Favorite Quotes

He kissed her again, hard at first, as if imprinting his claim on her, and then more slowly, brushing his mouth against hers, softly, back and forth, and she knew her lips were trembling beneath his. Her words were her best weapon, but they were locked in her throat as she felt his tongue, his outrageous, shocking tongue intrude into her mouth and the sensations moved through her body like fire.

He pushed her fully back against the wall, both hands on her breasts now, and there was only a thin bit of cloth between them, a thin bit of cloth he pulled down, so that she felt the rough texture of his calloused hands on her sensitized skin and she let out a helpless moan of pleasure against his mouth. His knee was between her legs, and somehow she’d ended up straddling it, so that it was pushing up against that damp, most sensitive part of her, and she wanted… she wanted…

His voice was no more than a low, carnal whisper. “I could show you so much more. All you have to do is tell me your name.”
She wanted to. She wanted to do everything he asked of her, and more, just for the sweet, drugging pleasure. She opened her mouth to betray all her secrets, only to gasp in shock as he bent down and put his mouth on one hardened nipple. He made a soft growl as his mouth tugged at her, but it was nothing compared to the heat that flashed through her, and her fingers dug into his shoulders, savoring the exquisite sensation. More, she thought. Please, I need more.

“Speaking of which, what put her out. Dorrit use chloroform? That’s not his lay.”
“I hit her.”
Billy looked at him in astonishment. “Jayzus,” he said with a whistle. “You really must love her.”
Luca stalked away.

He pushed all the way in, and a spasm of pure delight tightened her body around him, and he seemed to swell inside her. “Hurry,” she whispered in clawing desperation, fighting for release.
“No. I want to savor this.” His answering thrusts, slow and steady, made her want to scream in frustration. But he couldn’t control her body, any more than she could, and he’d only thrust a half-dozen times before she climaxed, her body clenching down on his, her skin prickling in an endless contraction that left her breathless and panting.

When she fell back again, panting, he kissed her breathless mouth. “I can keep this up for hours.”
“Why?” she gasped.
His laugh touched strange places inside her. “Because there’s no where else I’d rather be. I want to stay inside you forever, I want to make you come so hard you can’t even think, I want to forget where I end and you begin. I want everything from you, Maddy Rose. Everything.”

Fuck. Such a dirty, nasty, erotic little word. That was what he was doing to her. And she wanted more.
His hands on her breasts set off another paroxysm of pleasure, and this time when he moved again he was faster, his breathing a little more shallow. And then, to her shock and despair, he pulled out of her completely.
She cried out, reaching for him, but he simply turned her onto her knees, pushing her hands down on the mattress, her face into the pillow, as he pushed inside her from behind.

Purchase Links: Amazon | iTunes

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard by Vanessa Kelly

Format: E-booksecretsforseducingaroyalbodyguard
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: The Renegade Royals, #1
Publisher: Zebra Books
Hero: Aden St. George
Heroine: Lady Vivien Shaw
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: January 7, 2014
Started On: January 5, 2014
Finished On: January 12, 2014

Secrets of Seducing a Royal Bodyguard by Vanessa Kelly is her first book in The Renegade Royals series. Having never read a Vanessa Kelly prior to this, I had not idea what to expect when I delved into the 400+ pages of this story. What initially drew me to check this book out of course was the cover. Who can resist a cover such as this one with a hero who looks good enough to eat? And then the synopsis turned out to be one that intrigued me enough to give this a go.

Vanessa Kelly has the sort of writing that definitely makes a story easy to read. Though the first 1/3rd of the book could have picked up in pace a bit, the latter part of the story turned out to be fun and delicious with the ongoing thread of mystery and danger interwoven together.

Aden St. George works for the Secret Service and his newest assignment takes him to the delectable Lady Vivien Shaw, who has a somewhat murky reputation amongst the ton. Having grown up with a father who had resented his very presence in the household, Aden had been a child who had learnt early on in life to hold his emotions in and to never make himself vulnerable. When he finds his heart and emotions being invaded bit by bit by Vivien, Aden tries his darnedest to repair the armors around his heart and soul but to no avail.

Lady Vivien is a woman who stands at the brink of disaster. One wrong move could destroy everyone that she holds dear to her heart not to mention the added danger of being abducted and held against her will until her knight in shining armor had rescued her and made her feel like she had found a safe haven inside the circle of his arms. Once Vivien realizes that the danger to her life is one that wouldn’t cease until Aden and his colleagues can uncover who it is that wants to harm her, Vivien realizes that her work is going to be cut out for her in her determination to do what she must to save her family.

Vivien has had her fair share of suitors, amorous in their intentions and otherwise, but nothing prepares her for the sheer impact of Aden’s continued presence in her life. Each heat laden gaze and touch sends her senses spinning and the stolen kisses that comes later on makes Vivien yearn to be taken by Aden in every single way a man can take and possess a woman. Combine Vivien’s innocence together with that of Aden’s expertise and Vivien’s determined nature to make Aden see the light, well fireworks fly in every direction, not to mention the fact that it makes for some very hilarity ridden scenes too!

I loved Aden as a hero. His tall, dark and silent manner at times made him intriguing and of course the kindness that is deep inside of him which shines through with his thoughts that are in continuous turmoil and his actions made me fall for him that much deeper. I loved Vivien too. The way she seemed to find herself in the most hilarious circumstances made her an enjoyable heroine and the fact that she wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she wants and believes in and fights till there’s nothing left to fight with earned her my wholehearted admiration. All in all, I would say, a fairly enjoyable debut novel that certainly hints at more to come. Recommended!

Final Verdict: Mirth, sizzle & mystery makes for an unbeatable combo in this delicious debut to series!

Favorite Quotes

“Wha . . . what are you doing?” she stammered.
“I’m answering your question,” he murmured, the dark rumble making her shiver.
Then he moved, tilting her back over his arm as he swooped in to kiss her. His mouth fastened over hers. Not gently, either. He plundered her lips, demanding entrance with a masculine arrogance that swept past her resistance in one skipped heartbeat.

As if she were in a trance, her hand drifted up to touch her lips. They felt hot and swollen. His pupils seemed to dilate, flaring as he tracked her movement. Vivien let her hand drop to his chest, sliding her fingers past the lapels of his coat to clutch the fine linen of his cravat. Beneath her fingertips, his heart thrummed in a rapid, steady beat, his life and heat flowing into her hand.

And then he touched her, right there, right on the tight little bundle of flesh that ached with need. He slicked his fingers and rubbed her until she began to tremble in his arms. Contractions rippled from her womb, finally coalescing in luxurious spasms that pulled from her mouth a startled cry. When she arched back, letting the waves wash over her, Aden pressed a hot kiss to her breastbone, right above her heart.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Emerald Rain by Maggie Osborne

Format: Paperbackemeraldrain
Read with: NA
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Standalone
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Hero: March Addison
Heroine: Eulalie Pritchard
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: June 5, 1991
Started On: December 30, 2013
Finished On: January 5, 2014

Emerald Rain by Maggie Osborne is one of those romances that reaffirms my belief in the reason why romance would always be my preferred genre to read. I had almost but not quite, forgotten just how good a Maggie Osborne romance could be and why I had actually spent a small fortune in acquiring these out of print titles of hers for my collection. Even those novels that can be considered lackluster when it comes to Maggie Osborne are titles that still gives you a read to remember. This being otherwise I would say made a wonderful start to my reading for the year 2014!

24 year old Eulalie Pritchard (Lalie) makes her way to Brazil to follow her fiance’ to Hiberalta, a journey that would take her through the perilous Amazon jungle and the river that runs through it. Lalie lives by the strict rules of English society, her prim and properness a facet to her character that irritates March Addison from the first moment he lays eyes on her. The son of Earl of Addison, March has carved a name for himself in the Amazon as a renowned businessman in the booming rubber industry in Brazil and Lalie believes that nothing of the gentleman she had encountered 10 years back lives inside of him now.

Lalie expects the rough around the edges March to ferry her up to Hiberalta as quickly as possible and March in return expects fluff of her kind to depart from the country within a week. Both Lalie and March have surprises in store for the other as a trip that takes 3-5 months to complete bares everyone aboard down to their very basics. Living primitively does the one thing that wouldn’t be obvious while living in polite society, and that is to bring to light all the characteristics, good and the bad that drives a person. And that is exactly what happens when March takes Lalie on board despite all the misgivings he has when it comes to the most infuriating, beautiful and enticing woman he has ever come across all his life.

Lalie is determined if nothing else to live, to never be labeled as the woman who never lived a full life. Her infatuation with her fiance is seemingly what drives Lalie to seek the trip on her own but as the days fade into weeks, just like the rules of propriety that Lalie was determined to stick to at the beginning of the trip are stripped away one by one, feelings of the most wanton and unexpected variety seems to fill her heart, body and soul where March is concerned.

As swift as the currents in the Amazon that propels their vessel forward, so does the desire that explodes to surface where March and Lalie are concerned, a desire that is as primitive as the Indians that live amidst the jungle that surrounds the waters. Maggie Osborne always does a remarkable job in creating her heroes and March Addison is another exemplary specimen. One can almost imagine the sinewiness to his musculature, his sensual lips and the totally alpha male vibe that just seems to cling to him. His strength of character is one of the many things that made him an appealing hero and his honor one that made me fall irrevocably in love with him.

Lalie’s character makes me remember a friend of mine whose sheer determination carries her through a lot of hurdles in her life. Lalie who has had a privileged upbringing, is in short, a dreamer. Having seen her fiance through the eyes of infatuation, Lalie had missed out on the crucial aspects of his character to which she is brutally made aware of as the time of reckoning draws closer. While her heart, mind, body and soul yearns for the touch of the man who should be all sorts of wrong for her, Lalie is determined that she keep her word where her fiance is concerned. There were many a times that I literally burst out in laughter due to Lalie’s sometimes innocent and yet honest to God nature that she tries to hide behind all the rules of propriety. Lalie has the sort of hidden sensuality that would drive any red blooded man insane with wanting and that is the kind of wanting that leaves March reeling from the sheer force of it all.

The sexual tension wrought in the novel is top notch, one that made me sigh, squirm and want to prolong the read as much as possible. And one reason I love Osborne novels so much is that she is not afraid to deliver on the said tension when the time comes. And believe me, all that sexual tension Osborne puts the reader through was worth every nail biting moment of it and I was sighing all throughout every beautiful second of it.

Highly recommended!

Final Verdict: Sensuous and a whole lot of adventurous; Maggie Osborne delivers a tale as steamy as the Amazon itself. Not to be missed!

Favorite Quotes

A moaning sound came from her parted lips. Her breasts were thrust against his chest as her head fell backward and her eyes closed. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and her legs wrapped around his, pulling him more tightly against her until his erection throbbed between them, a rigid strength pressing against her soft, yielding body.

“Lalie,” he whispered. He slid one hand to the small of her back and held her pressed against him, his other hand moved slowly to cup her breast, teasing the hard nipple. Her breath was as rapid and choked as his when she met his eyes with a look filled with helpless urgency.

With tormenting slowness, exercising a patience and tenderness he had not known he possessed, he moved his month and tongue over her throat, teasing upward toward the swollen promise of her lips. His hand slid up her back go cup her small head.
“Oh my god March… March..”
Her words emerged part sob, part plea, and her body tightened around his.

Then she raised her face to his clenched jaw, his hard mouth, and finally defenseless, she surrendered to the dark eyes burning down into hers. Their stared locked and held. Her breast rose and trembled on a dry, scorching breath. A yearning sound almost like a sob caught in her throat.
And she wanted.

Her body moved against his; her hands rose and she buried her fingers in his thick hair as her mouth opened beneath his to receive his plundering tongue. Gasping, almost sobbing with the bliss and relief of finally knowing his kiss, Lalie clung to him, pulled him closer, closer, as if she could absorb him, as if by holding him tightly she could make this feverish moment last forever.

“On those nights when sleep won’t come, I’ll lie in my bed and remember the softness of your breast, the sweet curve of your waist. I’ll remember the lagoon, the sunshine on your eyelids. I’ll remember the taste of your skin and the scent of your hair… and I’ll wonder.”

“I’ll make love to other women, Lalie, but they won’t be you. I’ll feel that loss and wonder. All my life I will remember you and regret that I didn’t have you. All my life I will wonder at the feel and touch and scent of you. I will wonder if you would have cried my name. I will wonder if I would have given you pleasure. I will wonder and mourn my loss.”

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | AbeBooks

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: Law Man by Kristen Ashley

Format: E-booklawman
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Dream Man, #3
Publisher: Forever
Hero: Mitchell James Lawson
Heroine: Mara Hanover
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: December 11, 2012
Started On: December 26, 2013
Finished On: December 30, 2013

Law Man by Kristen Ashley tells the story of Mara Hanover who has had an impressive crush on her very hot police detective neighbor for the past 4 years. Mara suffers from a lot of self esteem issues owing to the way she’d grown up and of course her scumbag of an ex-boyfriend. Mara thinks herself to be below par in looks and believes that she has nothing of interest to offer for a man like a Detective Mitch Lawson who practically makes her knees shake every time he smiles at her.

It is when Mara’s past comes calling that she starts to realize that Mitch and his  interest in her wouldn’t fade away just like that and most surprisingly he just might be staying around with her and helping her take care of her problems in a way that she’s never ever been looked after before. Mitch definitely has his work cut for him when he has to convince Mara to give them a chance, and to slay the dark demons of Mara’s past from which she seems unable to let go of. Told mostly from Mara’s point of view in first person, Law Man has the one thing going on for it that is trademark Kristen Ashley, and that is Mitch.

There were so many moments that Mitch made me sigh out involuntarily because he has that quality about him that just makes you want to sit and stare into open space and dream of a happily ever after. That is most definitely because Mitch is the man who makes Mara stand up and take notice, and he most definitely is the man whose stubbornness outsmarts that of Mara’s which was crucial in making her see that with Mitch there definitely existed more than just a possibility of something more.

Mara, I had a hard time warming up to. I found the constant retreating game that she played throughout up til more than halfway into the story tiresome after a while. But there were issues she had to deal with in order to become whole, and I guess one cannot blame her for believing in something that had been drummed into her since childhood. I also wouldn’t have minded the story being cut short by 1/4th or so of its content since it seemed to drag on way too much in certain places.

I wanted more moments of Mitch and Mara together, to be a part of the magical connection that seems to exist between them. In the end I definitely skipped pages towards the latter half of the book to reach the ending. The epilogue meanwhile was just wonderful and that certainly made up for a lot of things that didn’t work for me. Recommended for fans of slow moving romances and fans of the series and the author.

Final verdict: Mitch Lawson will definitely have you humming, in more ways than one!

Favorite Quotes

“His eyes got dark. I liked the way they got dark and liked it so much I lost focus. And since I was paying attention to his eyes getting dark, I missed his lips getting closer. At the last minute I pulled back, my head hit the door and his lips brushed mine.
He didn’t move his mouth when he murmured, “’Night, Mara.”
“Goodnight, Mitch,” I murmured back, my breath starting to come hard and my heart beating harder.
He smiled against my lips.
Then he let me go.

“If I’m your Mitch, you’re my Mara,” he whispered against my skin, his words making me shiver again because I liked that idea, a whole lot. Then I felt his tongue glide along my throat as his hand glided back up my side, and I shivered yet again. He moved slightly away and held my eyes as his hands went to my wrists at his chest. He moved them around him and down, not releasing them, but still managing to pull his shirt out of his jeans and shove my hands up under so they encountered the hot, sleek skin and hard muscle of his back. He felt so unbelievably good I involuntarily made a noise in the back of my throat. His thumb swept over my nipple, and I liked that a whole lot more, so my back arched hard, and a long, deep moan glided up my throat and into his mouth. That was when leisurely and gentle got lost. As my moan slid into his mouth, Mitch slanted his head and deepened the kiss. It was harder, demanding and, God, so, so good.

Purchase Links: Amazon | B&N | iTunes

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Ruthless by Anne Stuart

Format: E-bookruthless
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: The House of Rohan, #1
Publisher: Mira
Hero: Francis Alistair St. Claire Dominic Charles Edward Rohan
Heroine: Elinor Harriman
Sensuality: 3
Date of Publication: August 1, 2010
Started On: December 24, 2013
Finished On: December 26, 2013

I stayed up till the wee hours of last night to finish the 1st book in The House of Rohan series by Anne Stuart. Stuart is famous for her ruthless brand of heroes that no author ever dares to write and Ruthless too features one of those delectable heroes, but I would say comparably toned down from the caliber of the heroes gracing her ICE series which is an absolute favorite of mine.

The House of Rohan is based in Paris in the 1700’s where Edward Rohan more famously known as “The King of Hell” for the sort of depravity that he thrives on meets the destitute Elinor Harriman who comes to his lair looking for her mother. Rohan is a man who conducts orgies of all kinds at his residence, the thrills which he used to get from holding such lascivious affairs at his residences now bordering on almost nothingness. When Elinor arrives, she makes Rohan sit up and take notice, and for the first time in a long while Rohan feels as if life runs through his veins rather than the dissatisfaction which had almost been on its way to taking up permanent residency in his life.

Elinor though has lived through a lot of hard times in her life is not prepared for the effect of Rohan on herself. Elinor who thinks herself above feeling anything remotely sexual finds herself oddly mesmerized even though she tries to strive for repulsed when it comes to Rohan. Rohan has no qualms about making a niche for himself in Elinor’s life whether she wants him to or not. And because Elinor would do anything to protect those she considers as hers, even if it means getting mixed up with the devil himself, she has no choice but to “agree” to the terms and conditions that are set by Rohan in his attempts to maintain the euphoria that he feels because she is in his life.

The House of Rohan is a series that has continually come up in my quest for more books to read by Anne Stuart. And it was only quite recently that I took the plunge and read one of her historical romances which convinced me to give these a go as well. From the skim reading that I did on a couple of reviews on this series, everyone seems to talk about just how depraved a man Rohan is. But I found him to be nothing extraordinary in that sense, perhaps because I was expecting a lot more than what was actually in the book where he is featured. I found myself enchanted by the man Rohan is, a complex man if ever there was one. Exiled from his own country and going through life from one pleasure gathering to another, Rohan might appear frivolous when he is exactly the opposite.

The endearing bit about his character is the other side of him that he keeps hidden from the rest of the world, the side of his he takes comfort from when things get to be too much for him to take. Rohan convinces himself that he feels nothing but a passing interest for the woman Elinor is and that the novelty would pass over soon enough. But each encounter between them pulls Rohan deeper into a web of wanting that he hasn’t felt for anyone ever, but Rohan is intent on experiencing the thrill of the chase as much as he can drag it on.

Elinor on the other hand, I had a problem with. Somehow, I just didn’t feel that she cared overly much about Rohan. She just never seemed to see through mostly the elaborate show that Rohan puts up, even when he behaves in a manner that is the complete antithesis of his character. Somehow I think Elinor was too caught up in aspects of her own life to really take notice of Rohan or perhaps it was her defense mechanism against a man whose enigmatic way with her makes her forget that when it comes to engaging in carnal pleasures, she is to remain cold and aloof.

As which is common occurrence when it comes to Anne Stuart, there wasn’t an epilogue tucked into the story but I managed to find the epilogue up on Anne’s website which more than made up for the lack of one in the story. I ended up reading the epilogue more than once with this silly grin on my face which is the end result of having read a book that made you lose sleep over it.

Recommended for fans of Anne Stuart and fans of historical romances.

Final Verdict: When it comes to ruthless heroes and complex plots, Stuart is the master of the game.

Favorite Quotes

“Your hands,” he said, startling her. “You’re quite ridiculously easy to read. You were wondering what I was going to go on about next. I’m quite fascinated by your hands.”
She immediately tucked her hands into her shawl, but he wasn’t deterred. “They don’t look particularly soft. Not the plump, white, useless hands most women have. You have long, beautiful fingers, narrow palms, and yet there’s strength in those hands. I rather think I want to feel them on my body.”

“Don’t…stop…” he groaned.
“I want you inside me,” she whispered. “I want you to finish in my body.”
His groan was powerful, and his need was great. Without another word he rolled over on top of her, shoving her shift up to her waist and pulling her legs apart, and she was just about to brace herself for the pain when he pushed inside her, hard, sliding deep into her with a smoothness that left her breathless, hungry.

He lifted his head, and then blew softly on her wet nipple. “I want to put my mouth everywhere on your body, poppet. I want to taste you all over. And then I want my cock to follow. I want to do things to you no one has ever dreamed of doing. I want to have you so completely that no one else has ever existed, only you and me.”

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

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by mvbookreviewer

ARC Review: The Countess Conspiracy by Courtney Milan

Format: E-bookthecountessconspiracy
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Brothers Sinister, #3
Publisher: Self-Published
Hero: Sebastian Malheur
Heroine: Violet Marie Waterfield
Sensuality: 2.9
Date of Publication: December 16, 2013
Started On: December 22, 2013
Finished On: December 24, 2013

Why do books that you have been anticipating for so much so that you stalk the author’s website on regular basis just to find out whether the release date of the book you are coveting for has drawn any nearer always tends to disappoint you the most? The Countess Conspiracy has been THE book that I have been waiting for ever since I read and fell in love with The Duchess War, the first book in the Brothers Sinister series. Each book had drawn out my fascination with Sebastian, the rake with the scandalous scientific theories that had society in titters. And then there was Violet, the countess of Cambury who seemed to be the object of Sebastian’s affection, and oh how I used to rub my hands in glee waiting for the day that Sebastian would fall flat on his face with want, desire and need for Violet.

Instead of the storyline that I had been rooting for, Courtney veered the story in a direction totally unexpected; even that I could have worked with if not for the fact that both Sebastian and Violet’s characters did a complete about turn that had me dumbfounded to say the least. The Countess Conspiracy is based on the fact that Violet had been living a lie for the past couple of years, making use of Sebastian to hide who she really is, until Sebastian puts his foot down and tells Violet in no uncertain terms that continuing as they had been would be an impossibility for him.

Violet though feels that keen sense of loss from losing her closest friend, the only person in the world who sees her for who she is and understands her, doesn’t know what to do in the face of all that emotion. If not for Sebastian who kept on doggedly coming after her, steady in his determination to win over the affections of the woman he has loved more than half of his life, I bet Violet would just have continued on as she is, thinking, that just like everyone else, Sebastian too had had his fill of her.

As one reviewer on Goodreads pointed out, as a pioneer of science, Violet totally earns 5 stars and beyond. As a romance hero, she somehow fell flat and didn’t stir much of an interest in me. In all the other books in which I encountered Violet’s character, never did I come to see her as someone who is prickly, indifferent and cold. But that is exactly what Violet thinks herself to be and the image that she tries to live up to, always expecting that when it comes to her, no one would truly understand or love her the way she is. There is a psychological factor to it all of course, behind how Violet actually turns out to be the way she is.

Sebastian turned out to be the biggest surprise in one aspect because he used to be the character that completely stirred things up, always said the very thing that would rouse wicked thoughts and brought every scene he stepped into life. But his character is not what it was portrayed to be then, perhaps that was what Courtney was going for when she made him into the patient man who would wait by Violet’s side, even if it takes forever for her to look up and notice him, really notice him for all that he is.

The note tucked at the end of the story was a moving one, one of the main reasons that I believe Courtney wrote this story as it is. She wanted to give a voice to all those women who had been shunned by society for being more intelligent than men, she wanted to give women silenced eons ago who had to hide behind men who took credit for their work a voice because simply put it just wasn’t acceptable for a woman to think and come up with complex theories that could change the world. And in that regard, Courtney did a stupendous job at the cost of the romantic elements in the story which left me totally unmoved which turned out to be the most heartbreaking aspect of it all.

But perhaps, fans of romances featuring tender, patient heroes would fall in love with Sebastian and Violet’s love story. Though The Countess Conspiracy did not work for me, I still look forward to the next book and hopefully it will fulfill me and my thirst for a good romance along with a great storyline altogether in one. Recommended for fans of the series!

Favorite Quotes

“Sebastian,” she whispered.
“At your service.”
She kissed him. She’d kissed him once before in fury and anguish. But this was different. This was a kiss that came from every ventricle of her heart, every last valve. All four chambers of her heart pumped for him. And it was a damned good thing he didn’t know what she was thinking, or he’d realize that she had gone mad.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Tangle Of Need by Nalini Singh

Format: E-bookTangleOfNeed
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Psy-Changeling, #11
Publisher: Berkley
Hero: Riaz Delgado
Heroine: Adria Morgan
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: May 29, 2012
Started On: December 16, 2013
Finished On: December 22, 2013

Tangle of Need by Nalini Singh is the 11th book in the Psy-Changeling series, the book that follows the story of the much awaited coming together of Hawke and Sienna. By the 10th book in the series which happens to be Hawke and Sienna’s story, a lot has happened and the stories move towards the ultimate demise of the Silence that the Psy species had assumed a long time back rendering them emotionless, cold and calculative. A movement known as Pure Psy seems to have stemmed from within the Psy race, hellbent on achieving state of ultimate and pure silence that would “protect” them from all sorts of emotions that according to them happens to be the demise of their race. And all the while, the politics that governs the Psy race seems to be splintering into fragments, lending the series the edge it deserves.

Tangle of Need is the story of Riaz Delgado, a lieutenant of the SnowDancer wolf pack and Adria Morgan, one of the senior soldiers of the pack. Riaz is a lone wolf, who has come back home to lick his wounds and bask in the love and togetherness of the pack to piece together the jagged pieces of his broken heart and soul. Adria herself is broken from a relationship that had practically splintered pieces of her heart, soul and self esteem, something she battles with continuously ever since having walked out from a life that had stopped working for her a long time ago.

The passion that ignites between Riaz and Adria is smoldering hot, one filled with resentment and anger on Riaz’s part and apprehension on Adria’s end. The fact that Adria proved to be strong enough to walk away from Riaz knowing she deserved better made me respect her a helluva lot, not that I didn’t understand where Riaz was coming from. The visceral hurt that seemed to be eating Riaz alive made me want to reach out to him and pet him until the pain his wolf was suffering was laid to rest, and I fell in love with Adria for being woman enough to accept and love Riaz as he is.

My contention with the story stems from the fact that I believe juggling so many aspects of the story made it lose focus on the main protagonists of the novel. There was Riaz and Adria and then there was Hawke and Sienna. Hawke and Sienna get as much time in the story as Riaz and Adria, probably to make up for the lack in their own story. I had a huge problem with how Hawke and Sienna’s story panned out, my main problem again being the fact that Hawke and Sienna as a couple didn’t get much time in the story due to everything else that was taking place. Don’t get me wrong, these books are quite entertaining and I still wouldn’t pass reading them up for anything, but I think when the focus is lost from the main couple in the story, therein lies a problem.

The way things ended with Adria and Riaz made me wonder for a second or two on whether Adria had been shortchanged by the man she adores and loves with her heart, body and soul. And though I felt that Riaz does return her love and does a good job of convincing her of just that, I still felt a teensy bit disappointed by how things ended for them. But deep in my heart I know and believe that their love is one that will survive because they are both equally strong and determined people who would fight to death for each other.

Tangle of Need ends on a sort of a cliff hanger ending in the sense that it leaves one practically on tenterhooks wanting to know how the next chapter would pan out. As one of the reviewers on Goodreads pointed out, the background storyline was focused on preparing the reader for the next book, Heart of Obsidian which I hear is filled with explosive and ground shaking moments. Can’t wait to begin reading!

Recommended for fans of the series. Read the series in order. Otherwise you’ll miss out on the great stuff that binds the stories together.

Favorite Quotes

Growling deep in his chest, he pulled her head back to take her mouth again. He wasn’t the least bit gentle, but she didn’t want gentle, her claws digging into his shoulders as her body moved with raw impatience against him. Taking his hand off her breast, he tore the button off her jeans, tugged down the zipper.

“Why are you doing this?” she whispered, her voice stripped bare.
Riaz’s answer sounded torn out of him. “I can’t stop myself.” He shifted her closer, the move so unexpected, she didn’t resist—and found herself plastered to the hard strength of him. His arousal pushed into her abdomen, the hot male scent of him seeping into her veins until she could taste the dark forests and biting citrus of him against her tongue.

“Oh God!” Arching into the firm, confident touch, she tore at his T-shirt until it was in pieces around them, his big, muscled body rising over her own, his mouth busy on her lips, her jaw, her neck.
His skin was a shade of burnished brown, warm and beautiful, her pleasure at touching him—at last—almost painful.

A single hard thrust and he was seated deep inside her, the thickness of him a pulsing brand.
She froze for a minute, her body stunned at the almost violent possession. Long unused muscles ached, but below all that was need. Such naked, raw need.

Even as she came with a scream, he pounded into her with such wild fury, the feel of him reverberated through her very bones. A brutal word in a masculine voice so harsh, it was almost unrecognizable. Her internal muscles spasming in erotic response. His hand clenching on her breast. The primal heat of him spilling into her.

He broke the kiss, gasped in a jagged breath. Two long, hard thrusts and he felt his spine lock. Gritting his teeth, he tilted her so that his pubic bone would press against her clitoris, and then he thrust again.
Tiny muscles spasming anew around his cock, a molten fist.
His mind went black.

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

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by mvbookreviewer

Review: Asking for Trouble by Tessa Bailey

Format: E-bookaskingfortrouble
Read with: iBooks for iPad
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Line of Duty, #4
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
Hero: Brent Mason
Heroine: Hayden Winstead
Sensuality: 4
Date of Publication: November 25, 2013
Started On: December 11, 2013
Finished On: December 13, 2013

“Take it off, Hayden, or I rip it off.”

Asking for Trouble by Tessa Bailey is book 4 in the Line of Duty series. Having read only book 3, Officer Off-Limits prior to this, that one read alone served to be guarantee enough that when Tessa Bailey puts pen to paper, she delivers scorching delight to the senses that is unbeatable.

Hayden Winstead and Brent Mason have always rubbed each other the wrong way. Hayden comes from a rich family, the kind of rich that is brought down from generations. Brent comes from a blue collar family and he works hard as an explosives expert in the NYPD Emergency Services Unit and leads a pretty much well rounded life apart from the fierce lust and feelings of the antagonistic variety that courses through  him whenever he is around Hayden.

Hayden faces enough condescension from people because she comes from a privileged background. But Hayden would give anything not to feel so helpless and out of control about her own life when it comes to her mother who sniffs disdainfully pretty much about everyone and everything that she thinks is beneath their family. One more person ribbing about her rich background shouldn’t be a cause of contention for her except for the fact that time and yet again they are forced into each others company that makes it pretty much hard to ignore the fact Brent gets under her skin in ways she doesn’t want to admit.

A daring remark here and there leads up to one of the most explosive sexual encounters of Hayden’s life, Brent being man enough to give her everything that she desires. Though Hayden might want nothing better than to think of Brent as only the stud that would fulfill all her deepest and darkest longings under the veil of the night, the bits and pieces of Brent’s character that slowly comes to light as they spend time together minus the cloud of judgement that colors all the time they spend together, Hayden comes to realize that her heart just might be on the line where Brent is concerned.

Just like the previous book, Asking for Trouble is also filled with sexual encounters of the mouthwatering variety which is hot enough and just dirty enough to get the blood pumping. Both Brent and Hayden are likable characters whose connection is one that is visible to the reader right from the very beginning. Just about 170+ pages of scorching goodness, Asking for Trouble is recommended to those who love erotic contemporary romances that delivers.

Final Verdict: Explosive enough to singe, Tessa Bailey’s stories aren’t meant to be missed out on!

Favorite Quotes

He claimed her mouth once again on a growl. A single forearm curled under bottom and lifted with so little effort, her thoughts went fuzzy, blurring her indignation into nothingness. His mouth moved, rough and demanding over hers, forcing her lips wide to receive rhythmic thrusts from his tongue. Hayden could only twine her arms around his neck and hold on as white-hot need poured through her in waves.

He brushed her hair aside with one hand and scraped his teeth down the side of her neck. “You made this fucking sound Hayden. The first time you spread your legs to take my cock. I hear it everywhere I go. This goddamn… moan? Sob? I don’t know. All I know is if I don’t fuck that sound of you again soon, I’m going to completely lose my mind.”

She grabbed a fistful of his hair and pulled his head away from her breasts. His eyes were feverish, glazed with need. It nearly sent her spiraling into release, but she held it back.
“Please,” he whispered roughly. “Please.”She spoke through panting breaths. “Tell me what you’re going to do to me first.”
Brent buried his face against her neck and moaned. She reveled in the desperate sound. Between her thighs, his body shook like it might implode at any moment. Raw power. Leashed. By her.

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

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