Thank you to Jane Harvey-Berrick for writing an incredible story that had me enthralled from beginning to end! At Your Beck & Call is a weighty, sexy, beautifully written story with incredibly captivating characters that really could have been two or maybe even three books. This is an adult story that broke my heart several times over but ultimately left me uplifted and satisfied.
For the most part, At Your Beck & Call is told from Hallen’s POV as he describes his journey from a young college graduate through adulthood as he works as a male escort in L.A. The book spans several years, is incredibly rich and filled with memorable characters. But at its center is a love story which is absolutely fantastic! Yes, there is a much older woman involved but I absolutely loved the imaginative plot and all of the challenges and obstacles that Hallen faces as he fights to find (and hold) true love.
If you are looking for a deeply felt, gorgeous love story, then I highly recommend At Your Beck & Call. This is the first book I have read by Jane Harvey-Berrick and now I must read her other books! I fell in love with Hallen and I think you will, too.
(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)
Review: Bang (Black Lotus Series #1) by E.K. Blair
They say when you take revenge against another you lose a part of your innocence.
But I’m not innocent.
I haven’t been for a very long time.
My innocence was stolen from me. Taken was the life I was supposed to have. The soul I was born with. The ruby heart embedded in a life full of hopes and dreams.
Gone.
Vanished.
I never even had a choice.
I mourn that life. Mourn the what-ifs.
Until now.
I’m ready to take back what was always meant to be mine.
But every plan has a fatal flaw. Sometimes it’s the heart.
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21459365-bang?ac=1
Ellen’s Review:
(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review)
Bang is the kind of book that will make you say “WOW” when you finish. This review will be very vague on details because Bang absolutely must be read without any spoilers – this story will simply take you on a wild roller coaster ride from start to finish.
All of these author’s books are beautifully written but in my opinion, Bang is the best book she has written so far. I don’t know where she dreamed up this storyline from, but it is gripping, erotic, gut-wrenching, suspenseful and incredibly creative all at once. I fell in love with all of the characters, and was blown away by the fantastic story.
Bang is an absolute must-read! It is highly erotic and very, very dark. And yes, the ending will totally leave you guessing as to what happens next. I miss these characters and can’t wait for the next book in this series!
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BLOG TOUR, REVIEW and GIVEAWAY: PICTURE PERFECT (LIMELIGHT) by ELISABETH GRACE
Synopsis
*****THIS BOOK CAN BE READ AS A STANDALONE*****
Being the daughter of a big-city mayor, twenty-one year old Skye Summers has giant shoes to fill in her first real job out of college. With the public spotlight on her family, and her dad’s expectations running high, she jumps at the chance to work side-by-side on an important project with her sexy new boss.
Playboy entrepreneur Landon Steele has built a successful entertainment PR firm and broken more than a few hearts along the way. He’s counting on his enthusiastic new assistant to help him expand his business into LA… until he discovers she’s a pampered rich girl who’s in the public spotlight as much as his famous clients. Still, he agrees to give her a chance, and soon the two are heating up the bedroom as well as the boardroom.
But when Skye’s ex-boyfriend threatens to reveal a dangerous secret from her past, her job, relationship with Landon, and her father’s career are suddenly all on the line. Will she be forced to leave Landon? Or will she pursue her heart, regardless of the cost?
Ellen’s Review:
Picture Perfect is, well, a perfect contemporary romance that had me hooked from the very first page! Every once in a while, I come across a book that gives me memorable characters (Hello, Landon!), fantastic, steamy sex scenes, and a storyline that I actually care about. Skye is a smart, hardworking girl who comes from a privileged background but has a very strong work ethic and does not trade in on her family’s name. Enter Landon, her driven, very sexy and gorgeous boss, who is actually a nice guy, and realizes that an office romance might it be such a great idea.
Elisabeth Grace is an author to watch. She made me really care about Skye and Landon and their chemistry was HOT but their relationship and emotional connection was beautifully developed and explosive. And I absolutely loved how neither of the characters were really a stereotype, they each made mistakes, had insecurities and seemed very real. And Landon, OMG, did I mention he is my new Book Boyfriend!?
“Every day I got a better idea of what a treasure the woman sitting across from me was. I just had to figure out what I was going to do about it. What kind of idiot discovered hidden treasure and then threw it back into the sea?”
This is a sexy, engaging, perfectly written contemporary romance, and I can’t wait to read more books by Elisabeth Grace!!
(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)
EXCERPT – Skye’s POV
We had to work late to finish the final prep for our trip to L.A., and because there had been a problem with the heat in the office all day, it was completely sweltering.
“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather do this at your place or mine? It’s so hot in here,” I said when I entered his office.
“Here is fine. We’ll manage.” He’d taken his suit jacket off, removed his tie, rolled his shirt sleeves up and undone several buttons, revealing a small portion of his muscled chest.
I’d taken off the opaque tights I’d worn under my dress earlier that morning, as well as the tailored jacket I wore over my mod-style tank dress. I was still overheated so I’d tossed my hair up into a messy bun on top of my head. If anyone came into the office, we certainly didn’t look like a professional pair.
“Where do you want to start?” I asked. I put a mock copy of the handouts I’d put together for his speech in front of him on his desk.
He picked one up and looked it over. “These are good. Have them sent over to the printers and shipped to the hotel in L.A. so they arrive before the conference.”
“Will do.”
“What else do we need to go over?” he asked.
I came around to stand beside his desk and placed some notes in front of him that I’d put together for our meeting with Calder Fox. “I thought you could look these over and see if there are any other points you think are worth mentioning. I talked to some of the Account Reps and listed some examples of the crisis management work our office has done in the past.”
Calder was a child star turned up-and-coming movie star who’d recently fallen from grace. Everyone was slating him as the next Tom Cruise, but his reputation had taken a nosedive with the recent revelations of how he was spending his free time. A recent rehab stint hadn’t helped.
Landon looked over the papers and seemed happy with what he saw. I loved seeing him like this…professional businessman, in control, and completely focused on what he was doing. The cologne he wore slowly permeated my senses the longer I stood beside him. I loved that smell. It was so sexy and so…Landon.
He picked up a pen off his desk and went to mark up my notes. He began writing but the pen had run out of ink. He swirled it around in a circle on the page as if some ink would magically appear. “Damn. This one’s out. Can you pass me that one?” he asked distractedly, pointing to the other side of the desk.
I reached over to grab the pen. As I was about to hand it to him, it slipped from my fingers and fell to the floor. I started to bend over to get it when Landon said, “I’ll grab it.”
I went back to looking at the notes on the desk, trying to figure out what he thought needed correcting when I felt his hand’s feather light touch against my ankle. I stilled immediately. It must have been a mistake. He had to have accidentally brushed against me when he was reaching for the pen.
What happened next was no accident.He ran his hand from the inside of my calf up to my knee and back down again. I sent up a small ‘thank you’ prayer that I had decided to shave that morning.
I glanced down to my side. He was looking up at me with half-drawn lids. I didn’t say a word and couldn’t move as he continued his slow assault on my senses.
My breath quickened and my dress suddenly felt altogether too restrictive. This time when he brought his hand back up my leg, he passed over my knee until his hand was up under my skirt, mid-thigh.
“Your skin is so smooth. It’s like silk or cashmere or something. I’ve never felt anything like it.”
My pussy throbbed in anticipation, wanting him to touch me there. How could it not? His large hands climbed a little higher but still weren’t touching me where I needed him to most. I swear, if he didn’t do something to ease the ache soon, I was going to go bat-shit crazy.I let out a rough exhale of air and leaned forward, placing my hands on the desk in front of me so that I was slightly bent over. That must have been all the invitation he needed. When his hand finally crept back up my leg, he brought it all the way up to the juncture of my thighs.
I glanced back at him again. He was seated in his chair, still with one hand all the way up under my skirt. His large erection was pushing against the seam of his pants. It was such a turn-on to think that I did that to him—that I put him in that state.
His fingers made contact with the silk of my thong and rubbed lightly from front to back. The slight friction gave me little satisfaction. It was all I could do not to grab his hand myself and push him roughly against me.
Without warning, he removed his hand and stood up. “Don’t move,” he said with an authoritative tone. He adjusted himself before he began to walk toward the door. God, watching him touch himself, even just that little bit, was so freaking hot. He closed the office door, flipped the privacy switch for the glass, locked the door, and turned back to look at me.
I hadn’t given a second thought to the fact that his office door was open. It was late and everyone had gone home, but who knew whether security or the cleaning staff were around? I was normally a girl who examined every angle and every possible outcome before I did anything. I just completely lost my head around this guy.
Landon said nothing as he made his way back over to me, but the look on his face was one of possession. He wasn’t asking for permission for what he was about to do. He was taking what he wanted.
About. Fucking. Time.
Author Bio:
I have a soft spot for romance novels with happily ever afters and a HOT spot for alpha males! I currently live outside Toronto, Canada with my hubby, two small children and cat spawned by the devil. Life is busy, but never to busy for a good story and to share my love of reading and writing with others. Things I can tell you that sum me up…I’m a sugar and carb addict, self-professed Gandy Girl, a disaster in the kitchen, a LOVER of all music, I enjoy reality TV and I’m an early riser! When I have a moment to breath you can usually find me typing furiously on the keyboard to get my next story on paper, or curled up reading about someone else’s HEA.
Social Media Links:
http://Elisabeth-Grace.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Elisabeth-Grace-Author/637982532897100?fref=ts
https://twitter.com/1ElisabethGrace
http://www.pinterest.com/authoregrace
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Purchase Links
Giveaway
BLOG TOUR, REVIEW and GIVEAWAY: DELIVER by PAM GODWIN
MY REVIEW
5+++ stars!!!
I cannot get enough of Pam Godwin’s books. Deliver is another deliciously dark and sexy book, which will sicken, stun, surprise and arouse you.
I could not put this book down. Forget what you think will happen in this book, because the author will totally surprise you with the characters and the plot. No one is all bad, and no one is all good. Yes, I even felt a little sympathy for Van, in all his f****d-up glory. Deliver is a perfectly written, dark thriller, with everything I love in a book: emotionally-connected characters, an incredibly twisted storyline, and scorching hot sex scenes.
Deliver is a must-read for fans of dark romance. I did not want this book to end, and I can’t wait to read more from Ms. Godwin!!
(Copy provided by the author in return for an honest review.)
On his back, muscles bared, bound, and stretched the full length of the box, he was an erotic picture. She was a criminal, and as ashamed as she was by that, the disgusting, fucked-up part of her anticipated spending the next ten weeks touching every inch of this man.
She dragged her gaze from his body to his face, and guilt slammed into her.
He stared up at her with so much pain in his eyes. “Don’t hurt my parents.”
Her gut twisted. She knew that pain, lived it every day. She leaned in, lips hovering a breath away, and repeated what Mr. E had said to her. “That’s up to you.”
Resolve hardened his face. She knew that emotion, too. Her time in the box was permanently carved in memory, which had made Van’s threats of returning her there an effective form of control in her training.
Tendrils of resentment coiled around her throat. To dwell on her or the boy’s predicament would only bring irresponsible hesitation. So she did what she always did to distract her thoughts.
She reached into the cold place inside her, searching for something yearning she could sing with dispassion. The beginning verses of “What It Is” by Kodaline fell past her lips and shivered through the room. She sang with an icy pitch as she removed a blindfold from the trunk by the box and tied it over his wide, glaring eyes.
To deprive smell, a swimmer’s nose plug went on next. He could breathe through his mouth, and the cracks in the box allowed airflow, but it wouldn’t feel that way to him once she shut the lid.
The skin on his face was hot and damp, the muscles beneath jerking against her fingers. She continued to sing as she cuffed headphones over his ears, plugged them into the tablet outside of the box, and activated the timer. Twenty minutes of heart-hammering silence.
The music in her voice strangled, stopped. Twenty minutes alone with his thoughts. Then the misery would begin.
“It’s just the way it is,” she murmured with an ache in her throat.
His body was motionless, but she didn’t miss the goosebumps creeping across his skin or the slight tremor in his cheeks. The sudden desire to comfort him drew her closer, bending her at the waist, until her mouth brushed his, softly, unjustly. His lips pulled away in a quiver that she felt throughout her body.
She straightened and rubbed her breastbone, unable to soothe the ache beneath it. “I’m so sorry.” A whisper, too low to pass through the earphones.
Then she closed the lid.
Release Blitz, Excerpt and Giveaway: Fire Inside by Kristen Ashley
Title: Fire Inside by Kristen Ashley
Publication Date: (March 25, 2014; Forever Mass Market; $8.00)
The Bellas are thrilled be part of the paperback release blitz for ‘Fire Inside’ by one of our FAVORITE authors, Kristen Ashley. We also have a print giveaway for Fire Inside, in addition to the tour-wide giveaway! Scroll down to enter.
About the Book:
Lanie Heron isn’t looking for love-no surprise, considering her last serious relationship nearly got her killed. So when Lanie propositions Hop Kincaid, all she wants is one wild night with the hot-as-hell biker who patrols with the Chaos Motorcycle Club . . .
For Hop, Lanie has always been untouchable. She’s too polished and too classy for his taste. But when she gives Hop the once-over with her bedroom eyes and offers him a night in paradise, he can’t say no. And he doesn’t regret it when he finds that Lanie is the best thing that’s ever happened to him-in or out of bed. Now the trick will be to convince her of that.
My Review:
“Wanna f****?”
And with that, we’re off on another glorious, heart-pounding, wild ride with the Chaos MC, courtesy of the freaking brilliant writing of Kristen Ashley. Fire Inside is the story of Hopper “Hop” Kincaid, a
member of the Chaos Motorcycle Club, and Elaine “Lanie” Heron who is the best friend of Tyra, the Club President’s wife.
The gorgeous and loyal-to-a-fault Lanie was almost killed protecting her boyfriend Eliot from the Russian mob. She was left with deep emotional wounds from those horrible events, so she is only looking for a little no-strings-attached fun when she propositions Hop one night:
“No expectations. Just us. One night. Tomorrow, it will be like it’s
always been. Like it didn’t even happen. I promise.” – Lanie
Except that this is a Kristen Ashley novel, Hop is a sexy Alpha-to-end-all -Alphas and Lanie is gorgeous, classy and smart. And the best thing that ever happened to Hop:
“Please be real.”His hand in my hair stilled, curled around my head
and Hop whispered back, “Lady, I’m as real as it gets.”
– Lanie and Hop
Hop and Lanie both start off swearing that there will be no deep emotional attachments. Hop gradually discovers what he really wants. Lanie has a seriously dysfunctional family which has messed up her
head. But Hop is going to fight for them no matter what.
“…It’s a clean, pure beauty the like I’ve never had, I’m gonna respect
it like I feel like I gotta and you’re gonna let me.” – Hop
I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this book. In fact it might be one of my favorite KA books ever. The super-steamy sex scenes, raw emotions and the honesty just really got to me. I also love that as with most of KA’s female characters, Lanie was a working professional whose job was major part of the storyline. And, most importantly, as with all of KA’s books, Hop and Lanie shared a deep emotional connection. I did not want this book to end. A must-read!
(ARC received via NetGalley)
– Ellen
Excerpt:
Hop came out of the bathroom to see Lanie on her feet on the other side of the bed, panties on, hands twisted behind her back putting her bra on. Again.
He didn’t say a word. He prowled to her, reached out an arm the second he was close, yanked her to him and fell to his back in the bed, taking her down with him.
“Hop—” she started, pushing her weight against his arms, but he slid her off him then wasted no time rolling over her and pinning her to his bed.
“Sleep,” he ordered when he caught her eyes in the weak dawn. “After rest, I’ll get coffee, we’ll juice up, then round four.”
She blinked and breathed, “Four?”
“Got lots more I want to do to you,” he informed her and watched her eyes go soft, sexier, then her teeth came out to graze her lush lower lip, also fucking sexy, and her arms slid around him.
But she asked, “What about Tack and Ty-Ty?”“I’ll make sure the coast is clear,” he told her.
“But they’ll see my car,” she told him.
“I’ll move it,” he offered.
Her hand slid up his back, around his shoulder, and then to his neck where her thumb moved to stroke him.
Her touch was light but, fuck, it felt good. He’d never had a woman touch him in an unconscious way like that, just a touch, a stroke, giving something that meant nothing at the same time doing it without thinking about it meant everything.
Shit.
Complicated.
“This is just supposed to be one night,” she reminded him quietly, but he saw it in her eyes. She didn’t even try to hide it. She’d bitten off more than she could chew.
He had too and he was nowhere near done eating.
She was cute. She was sweet. She was hot. She was better than he expected and he’d expected her to be pretty fucking good. All that wrapped in a package that gorgeous?
Yeah.
He was nowhere near done eating.
“Change of plans. A night and a morning and, maybe, an afternoon and, possibly, another night,” he amended, and her eyes got softer as her hand slid up to cup his jaw.
“I have to work,” she told him.
“Call off,” he told her.
“I can’t. I own the joint.” She explained something he knew, that she ran her own advertising agency. “And things are a bit crazy.”
Things were always crazy for Lanie. The woman lived crazy. She thrived on it. If there wasn’t crazy, she stirred it up because she couldn’t breathe without it.
“Babe,” he pressed his body into hers, “told you, got more I want to do to you.”
About the author:
Kristen Ashley grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana, and has lived in Denver, Colorado, and the West Country of England. Thus she has been blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her posse is loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write.
Kristen was raised in a house with a large and multigenerational family. They lived on a very small farm in a small town in the heartland, and Kristen grew up listening to the strains of Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon, and Whitesnake. Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music and love was a good way to grow up. And as she keeps growing up, it keeps getting b0etter.
Social Media Links:
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REVIEW and AUTHOR INTERVIEW: MAYBE SOMEDAY by COLLEEN HOOVER
We are beyond thrilled to welcome Colleen Hoover today with a review of Maybe Someday and an interview with the author! Enjoy!
Synopsis:
At twenty-two years old, aspiring musician Sydney Blake has a great life: She’s in college, working a steady job, in love with her wonderful boyfriend, Hunter, and rooming with her good friend, Tori. But everything changes when she discovers Hunter cheating on her with Tori—and she is left trying to decide what to do next.
Sydney becomes captivated by her mysterious neighbor, Ridge Lawson. She can’t take her eyes off him or stop listening to the daily guitar playing he does out on his balcony. She can feel the harmony and vibrations in his music. And there’s something about Sydney that Ridge can’t ignore, either: He seems to have finally found his muse. When their inevitable encounter happens, they soon find themselves needing each other in more ways than one…
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover, a passionate tale of friendship, betrayal, and romance—and the enchanting music that inspires one young woman to put her life back together.
From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Slammed, Point of Retreat, Hopeless, This Girl, and Losing Hope, Maybe Someday is destined to become another bestseller and long-lasting fan favorite.
Includes a free original soundtrack by musician Griffin Peterson.
Pre-Order on Amazon:
My Review
5+++++ stars!!
Seriously, how can I even begin to discuss a book that has shot to the top of my list of favorite books ever? Colleen Hoover has written another magical, perfect story that will grab your heartstrings and will not let go until the very end. I have to make this review intentionally vague because there is a major plot twist in Maybe Someday that must be experienced first-hand and should not be known before you start reading this book.
“Sometimes in life, we need a few bad days in order to keep the good ones in perspective.”
Truer words were never spoken. Sydney and Ridge’s story was like nothing I have read before. And Maybe Someday is SO much more than just a book, there is a gorgeous soundtrack that accompanies the story and makes this an unforgettable reading and listening experience.
Ridge is hands-down my new favorite book boyfriend. Ms. Hoover has taken a familiar genre, and created an imaginative and unexpected story that surprised and thrilled me and left me with a serious book hangover after finishing. This book is perfection and it is an absolute must-read!!
(ARC obtained from NetGalley)
Lightning Round with Colleen Hoover!
Do you believe in fate?
Not to be a downer, but I really don’t. I’m honestly not a romantic at all. It’s weird that I write romance novels.
Your characters have stayed with me long after I finished your books. Do any of them stay with you after you finish their stories?
Yes! That’s why I end up writing sequels. It seems like I’m never quite finished with my characters after the first book.
Which character has been the most difficult to write and why?
I’d probably have to say Miles. He’s in Ugly Love, which releases August 5th.
Is Griffin as nice (and as cute) in person as he seems from his photos?
He’s seriously one of the nicest people I’ve ever met in my life. And he’s so humble! He’s really been a pleasure to work with.
What is in your purse right now?
I would tell you if I knew where it was.
Follow Colleen:
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Release Blitz, Review and Excerpt: Crashed (The Driven Trilogy #3) by K. Bromberg
Crashed (The Driven Trilogy Book Three) by K. Bromberg
Release Date: March 3, 2014
Synopsis:
When life crashes down around us, how hard are we willing to fight for the one thing we can’t live without, each other?
Life is full of moments.
Big moments.
Little moments.
And none of them are inconsequential.
Every single moment prepares you for that one instance that defines your life. You must overcome all your fears, confront the demons that chase you, and cleanse the poison that clings to your soul or you risk the chance of losing everything.
Mine started the minute Rylee fell out of that damn storage closet. She made me feel. Made me whole when all I thought I could ever be was incomplete. Became the lifeline I never knew I needed. Hell yes, she’s worth the fight…but how do you fight for someone you know you don’t deserve?
Love is full of ups and downs.
Heart stopping highs.
Soul shattering lows.
And none of them are insignificant.
Love is a racecourse of unexpected twists and turns that must be negotiated. You have to break down walls, learn to trust, and heal from your past in order to win. But sometimes it’s the expected that’s the hardest to hold on to.
Colton has healed and completed me, stolen my heart, and made me realize our love’s not predictable nor perfect—it’s bent. And bent’s okay. But when outside factors put our relationship to the test, what lengths will I have to go to prove to him that he’s worth the fight?
Whoever said love is patient and love is kind, never met the two of us. We know our love is worth it—have acknowledged that we were meant to be—but when our pasts crash into our future, will the repercussions make us stronger or break us apart?
Review:
“Bingo. Fuse lit.”
Crashed is an absolutely breathtaking and stunning conclusion to the Driven Trilogy! I don’t ever write long reviews but for some reason it has been very difficult for me to put into words the emotions that this book instilled in me. It has been a bag of mixed emotions saying goodbye to Colton and Rylee.
Spiderman. Batman. Superman. Ironman
I had a million theories about where this book would go after the absolutely heart-stopping ending of Fueled. It is a tribute to the author’s incredible talent that all of my theories were wrong, and Colton and Rylee’s story took me on an emotional journey that has stayed with me weeks after finishing this book. I felt every gut-wrenching scene, every emotional high and low and every triumph right down to my very soul.
There are some absolutely beautiful scenes in Crashed and there are some absolutely soul-punching, nail-biting ones, too. Each scene felt essential to the book, and I also loved how every character was fully explored in Crashed. I was on the edge of my seat throughout most of Crashed, but yet at the same time I didn’t want to say goodbye to Colton and Rylee. This is a substantial, juicy story that is meant to be savored and enjoyed. And the Epilogue! Kristy Bromberg has earned a place in my heart previously reserved only for Kristen Ashley and Jodi Ellen Malpas with the fantastic Epilogue in Crashed.
“Remember, hurting is feeling and feeling is living and isn’t it good to be alive?”
Colton’s painful past is fully explored in Crashed and many questions are answered. Rylee continues to be one of the strongest heroines around and had me cheering and weeping throughout many parts of the book. The plot is very inventive and there are several relationships that I hope the author will explore in the future. Do not miss Crashed. It is absolute perfection, “A to motherfucking Z”!!
(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)
Excerpt
And the only thing I can focus on—can grasp onto as my heart races and body shakes with anger—is that I need a pit stop. I need to find Colton. I need to touch him, to see him, to quiet the turmoil in my soul.
But I can’t.
He’s somewhere close, my rebellious rogue unable to let go of the damaged little boy within. The man who has just started healing is now broken, and it kills me that I won’t be able to fix him. That my murmured words of encouragement and patient nature won’t be able to repair the immobile and unresponsive body that was loaded onto that stretcher and rushed to somewhere within these walls—so close yet so very far away from me. That he has to rely on strangers to mend and heal him now. Strangers that have no idea of the invisible scar tissue that still lingers beneath the surface.
More hands reach out to touch and soothe me, Dorothea’s and Quinlan’s, but they’re not the ones I want. They’re not Colton’s.
And then a terrifying thought hits me. Every time Colton is near, I can feel that tingle—the buzz that tells me he’s just within reach—but I can’t feel anything. I know he’s physically close, but his spark is nonexistent.
The Driven Series
Driven
Fueled
Driven Synopsis
Rylee Thomas is used to being in control. But she’s about to meet the one man that just might make her enjoy losing it…
I am the exception to the rule.
In a world full of willing women, I’m a challenge to the roguish and achingly handsome Colton Donavan. A man used to getting exactly what he wants in all aspects of life. He’s the reckless bad boy constantly skating that razor thin edge toward out of control, on and off of the track.
Colton crashes into my life like a tornado: sapping my control, testing my vulnerabilities beyond their limits, and unintentionally penetrating the protective wall around my healing heart. Tearing apart the world I rebuilt so carefully with structure, predictability, and discipline.
I can’t give him what he wants and he can’t give me what I need. But after a glimpse beneath his refined exterior into the dark secrets of his damaged soul, can I bring myself to walk away?
Our sexual chemistry is undeniable. Our individual need for complete control is irrefutable. But when our worlds collide, is the chemistry enough to bring us together or will our untold secrets and battle of wills force us apart?
Fueled Synopsis
Book #2 of the Driven Trilogy
What happens when the one person you never expected suddenly happens to be the one you’ll fight the hardest to keep?
Colton stole my heart. He wasn’t supposed to, and I sure as hell didn’t want him to, but he crashed into my life, ignited feelings within me that I thought had died forever, and fueled a passion that I never knew could exist.
Rylee fell out of that damn storage closet and into my life. Now I don’t think I’ll ever be the same. She’s seen glimpses of the darkness within me, and yet she’s still here. Still fighting for me. She is without a doubt the saint, and I am most definitely the sinner.
How is it the one thing neither of us wanted—neither of us anticipated that fateful night—has us fighting so hard to keep?
He steals my breath, stops my heart, and brings me back to life again all in a split second of time. But how can I love a man who won’t let me in? Who continually pushes me away to prevent me from seeing the damaged secrets in his past? My heart has fallen, but patience and forgiveness can only go so far.
How can I desire a woman who unnerves me, defies me, and forces me to see that in the deep, black abyss of my soul there’s someone worthy of her love? A place and person I swore I’d never be again. Her selfless heart and sexy body deserve so much more than I’ll ever be capable of giving her. I know I can’t be what she needs, so why can’t I just let her go?
We are driven by need and fueled with desire, but is that enough for us to crash into love?
Author Bio:
K. Bromberg is that reserved woman sitting in the corner that has you all fooled about the wild child inside of her–the one she lets out every time her fingertips touch the computer keyboard. She’s a wife, mom, child rustler, toy pick-er-upper, chauffer, resident web-slinger, LaLaloopsy watching, American Girl doll dressing multi-tasker of all things domestic and otherwise. She likes her diet cokes with rum, her music loud, and her pantry stocked with a cache of chocolate.
K. lives in Southern California with her husband and three children. When she needs a break from the daily chaos of her life, you can most likely find her on the treadmill or with Kindle in hand, devouring the pages of a good, saucy book.
Fueled is K. Bromberg’s second published novel and is the highly anticipated second book of “The Driven Trilogy.” Driven was her well-received debut novel and Book #1 of the series.
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THE PLAN by QWEN SALSBURY – REVIEW and GIVEAWAY
THE PLAN
An Adult Contemporary Romance
By Qwen Salsbury
Published by Omnific Publishing
Released February 2014
Purchase Links
Synopsis:
Day of Employment: 359
11:05 a.m.
Location: Cubicles outside Canon’s office.
Co-workers: Betting on how long Canon’s new PA will last.
Me: No doubts. Ms. Gum-smacker won’t last the day. I need to place my bet.
Manolo Blahnik’s New Fall Shoes: Mine. As soon as Madeline hands over my winnings.
Emma Baker has never spoken a word to Alaric Canon, nor has he to her. But she’s studied him every day across the office tundra for almost a year. Canon is hard and fierce, terrifying and beautiful. He’s also the most stern, unforgiving person Emma has ever seen. Emma’s co-workers run a betting pool for Personal Assistant terminations. There’s a separate pot for the day one leaves without crying. Not likely…Canon made a former Navy SEAL cry.
He has high standards and low tolerance. Everyone knows it. Everyone stays away. Everyone who can, that is. Except Emma. She can’t look away. Alaric Canon is the single most attractive man she’s ever seen. Bar none.
Canon has never noticed her. Not once in almost a year. She’s not even a blip on his radar. But she will be. His radar will be blipless no more.
It is a goal. Emma has a plan.
Review
I read this funny, very sexy, smart and very unique book in one sitting. The writing style is very different and fresh, written mostly in the form of diary entries. Emma is a smart and ambitious corporate employee and becomes personal assistant to the imposing Alaric Canon, who has burned through so many PA’s that he is the subject of office betting pools. The jerk-y boss/subservient assistant has been done before, but never like this! Emma has a plan to get Alaric to notice her but he is perpetually challenging and sets standards that are basically impossible for his assistants to meet. Emma’s inner monologue is hilarious, as she deals with his demanding and dominating personality:
Life’s a bitch, and she has several sisters.
This girl has a plan to get Alaric to notice her, but her best-laid plans go wildly awry when the two take a tension-filled business trip and basically spend 24/7 together. Emma rises to Alaric’s challenges time after time, and I absolutely loved the slow build-up to their incredible sexy times together:
“Denim in long expanses. Barely contours to his thighs. Thighs I have leaned against but not touched. Bare feet.
Barefoot! Put some shoes on, already! How am I supposed to look unaffected and asexual
with all this unfair fuckery happening?”
Emma is completely self-deprecating and really holds no illusions about the possibilities of a relationship with Alaric. I mean, he is rarely seen with the same woman twice.
“God, I’m not in just in the neighborhood of pathetic, I’m circling the block.”
Alaric really grows and develops and begins to show a more human side and I loved that he was not just a one-dimensional character. My heart was literally in my throat by the end of the book. Qwen’s writing style is incredibly fresh and unique and is a most welcome addition to the contemporary erotic romance genre. I adored the conclusion and I am demanding more from this author!
(ARC provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.)
About the Author
Qwen Salsbury was born in Kansas and somehow keeps ending up back there. Raised on her grandparent’s five acre homestead within the city limits, her imagination was honed during long days of quiet play and spartan access to a TV signal. Now mother to handsome boys, she strives to ensure they appreciate potential adventures found within the pages of a book, an honest day’s work, and what ingenuity may yield from mundane objects like a string and a cup. The boys prefer a PS3.
After spending time in corporate America, she returned to school and received a BA in English, Creative Writing and Poetry from Pittsburg State University, the alma mater of Pulitzer Prize winning poet, James Tate. She worked on a Masters there until going on to receive a juris doctorate from Washburn School of Law.
A seven-time Sigma Tau Delta writing award winner, her fiction and poetry have appeared in literary magazines and have been selected by fiction communities as featured story of the month and year. Predominantly a writer of romance, her romantic fiction varies from contemporary to historical to fantasy, though often with a humorous slant and poetic undertones.
For reasons she can’t even articulate herself, she decided to start writing fiction again while solo parenting and attending law school (during Constitutional Law class, to be exact.).
Giveaway
RARE AND PRECIOUS THINGS (THE BLACKSTONE AFFAIR BOOK 4) by RAINE MILLER
REVIEW
5 glorious stars!!
Rare and Precious Things is a beautiful, lyrical book, taking the reader on a wonderful journey with two beloved characters, Ethan and Brynne, as they navigate the sometime-treacherous waters of newly-married couples. Raine Miller has written a fantastic, intriguing and SUPER hot conclusion to Ethan and Brynne’s story.
Could there be a hotter book husband than Ethan Blackstone? I really don’t think so!
“Ethan filled me up on a steady thrust, his hands at my hips for leverage. He made that breathy groan of pleasure that I loved to hear from him as he sank into me. “Feel that, my beauty. All of it—just for you.”
As a newlywed and expectant mother, Brynne still feels a little insecure even though Ethan is clearly devoted to her. She is a plain-spoken woman, and not yet totally comfortable in the rarefied atmosphere of Ethan Blackstone’s world.
“Good sex wasn’t love.
For me, honest devotion and loyalty was love.”
Ethan sees Brynne as his safe harbor, and his comfort from his inner turmoil and PTSD. The alternating POV’s work perfectly here and kept me turning the pages late into the night.
Raine Miller writes THE most amazing sex scenes, without being cliche or overdone. Of course her characters have a deep connection after all they have been through together, but it is still vital that I feel emotionally connected, too, and I absolutely felt connected to Ethan and Brynne. Ethan is still battling his inner demons, and Brynne must still contend with characters from her painful past. Nothing in the story is rushed, nothing is as expected, and all is brought to an incredibly satisfying conclusion in Rare and Precious Things. A must read!
“Every day since the first day, you have made my life worth living. You make me wake up every single day knowing that I am a blessed man.”
(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)
1. Now that you’re going to be a father, what do you feel will be your biggest challenge with fatherhood?
I am a worrier. I worry about Brynne. I will worry about my child. I want to keep everyone safe and happy, and yet I know that sometimes shit happens that is not nice, and people do get hurt, or sick, or tragedy strikes. In my line of work, I know this all too well, but I also know my family will always come first before anything else.
2. Whats the biggest thing Brynne has said or done to you that has made you love her even more, and what do you think Brynne would answer to the same question about you?
Brynne really was the first woman who cared about ME as a person. She was able to see the good in me, and brought me to a place where I wanted more out of life than just the shallowness I was living before her. She also loves me in spite of all my flaws. Brynne would probably say that I taught her how to learn to trust.
3. How do you see your life had you and Brynne never met?
A very empty, and lonely one.
4. How do you see yourself acting in the delivery room?
Like a fuckin’ idiot in a total panic. Thank Christ Brynne is so level-headed and calm.
5. Ethan, you and Brynne have so much chemistry together..we feel your love and connection together……did you recognize this from the moment you first saw a picture of her?
I just knew I had to meet her in person. But when she walked into the gallery, though—that was a defining moment for me. The way she looked at me from across the room was different and did something to me inside. I knew there was nothing that would stop me from meeting her. NOTHING.
6. Ethan, what is the most important life lesson you have learned from your father Jonathan that you want to pass down to your children?
My father taught me many things and is a man I respect more than any other, but mostly he taught us to own up to our choices, and to follow our hearts.
7. Ethan, do you wish you would have told Brynne that her father had hired you to watch over her a hell of a lot sooner?
All the time. I don’t know what I was doing in not telling her. I was a fuckin’ moron.
8. Ethan, how are you going to deal with staying away from Brynne during her postpartum recovery period?
*rolls eyes* (probably not very well)
RELEASE BLITZ and GIVEAWAY – DEATH OF A ROCK STAR (A BOY IN THE BAND NOVELLA) by NJ FROST
rock star Jamie Grimes was found dead at his London home earlier today.”
no surprise.
drugs and his love for her.
death,
fuelled for the most part by chocolate and coffee.
Lit NJ became a contemporary romance junkie and finally found her calling. A
twisted romantic at heart, she loves nothing more than losing herself in a good
book with lots of passion and angst. She’s always at the mercy of one book boyfriend
or another, so creating her own book boyfriends and torturing them has been a
wicked dream come true… but she may have lost her heart to her victims in the
process.
romance NJ loves a ‘Happy Ever After’ and is eagerly pursuing her own.
follow-up to DEATH OF A ROCK STAR is due for release Summer
has played a huge part in the inspiration for Death of a Rock Star & The
Boy in the Band – my playlist is endless, but here are a few highlights…
spite of the rain, there’s a crowd milling around outside Jamie’s house and a
pool of defiant candles casting their golden light into the dark. It looks like
someone has scattered stars on the pavement. This is what bereft fans do. In
the absence of their Gods, they erect shrines – on their bedroom walls, on a
dead man’s doorstep. Someone is playing his music. It rises into the night sky
like a mournful offering, an appeasement to the rock gods. Those gods are so
fucking brutal. It seems they always take the best of us far too soon.
I stand at the furthest edge of this strange spontaneous wake, watching,
wondering what the hell Jamie would make of all this, my gaze catches on a
girl. Her face is heart-stopping and looks about as haunted as I feel. She’s
gazing down at the candles, not really seeing them I suspect, or maybe
wondering like me, how the fuck they are staying alight in this slow painful
rain. She’s wearing striped pyjama bottoms tucked into huge combat boots that
aren’t even fastened and a black biker jacket with an image on the back that is
unmistakable. I’d know that jacket anywhere. It’s Jamie’s, which means – she’s her. She’s Jamie’s mystery girl.
heart is ricocheting around like crazy. With anger and I’m ashamed to admit,
with crazy lust. For a moment I regret that my cock decided to behave on the
way over here. I wish I’d fucked the nameless model senseless just like I
needed. Maybe I wouldn’t be aching now at the sight of my dead friend’s girl.
No, not his girl, his fucking downfall – I have to remember that. Seeing her
now though, for the first time, I understand. I thought Jamie was crazy for
letting a girl get to him like she did. Now I get it. She’s that kind of beautiful. The kind of
beautiful you’d die for.