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REVIEW + EXCERPT – THE DEEP END by KRISTEN ASHLEY

February 27, 2017

THE DEEP END - header banner

 

 

✮✮✮A delicious world of erotica, BDSM with alpha-subs and their Dommes, and a gripping love story…Welcome to The Bee’s Honey! The first book in New York Times bestselling author Kristen Ashley’s Honey Series, THE DEEP END is a seductive and rich love story. Order your copy today! ✮✮✮

 

Fall into THE DEEP END and order your copy today!

THE-DEEP-END-cover

About THE DEEP END (Erotic Romance Releasing March 7, 2017):

Enter a decadent sensual world where gorgeous alpha males are committed to fulfilling a woman’s every desire…

Olivier isn’t sure what he’s gotten himself into when he joins the Honey Club, only that a dark part of him hungers for the lifestyle offered by this exclusive club. Here, no boundary will be left untested…and one’s deepest fantasies will become an exquisite reality.

When Amélie invites Olivier to surrender, she gives the alpha submissive what he craves. Soon they both find themselves falling harder than they ever anticipated—but as their connection deepens, the truth about Olivier’s past could destroy everything…

Gripping and seductive, The Deep End is the first book in a sensational new series from bestselling author Kristen Ashley.

Amazon | Kindle | Barnes & Noble | iBooks

GooglePlay | Kobo | IndieBound | BAM

 

 

MY REVIEW:

Well, well! The writing in ‘The Deep End’ is VERY different from other Kristen Ashley books but not to fear, the author turns the heat WAY up in this book. I’ll be honest, I had to think about this story for a while after I finished reading it.

I loved the plot of this book. The heroine Amelia is a Domme and is very accepting of herself and her needs. She was unapologetic about her lifestyle and for that, I applaud the author. In many other ways, she was just a normal human being with a desire to build a relationship with someone outside the BDSM scene and club life.

Amelia is a member of the ultra-exclusive club The Bee’s Honey. They have a very rigorous screening process and she knows the men she will meet will have to pass certain requirements before they can walk in the door. She has never quite met the “perfect” sub but once she sets her sights on Olivier, all bets are off. He’s her dream man, an Alpha sub who can meet her every need. He is everything I love about a KA hero: strong, confident, loving and caring. I had a bit of difficulty with their dynamic because he didn’t seem like he was really a true submissive but their relationship worked. Olivier and Amelie didn’t have a “typical” D/s relationship (if there even is such a thing) but they both seemed perfect for each other.

I am a diehard Kristen Ashley fan so I will read anything this woman writes. I LOVED the erotic aspects of this story and the BDSM scenes did not offend me at all. I think that KA writes some very explicit sex scenes but ‘The Deep End’ is VERY explicit!! If you are a fan of this author’s books, then definitely give this one a try. It is different and intriguing and has some very unique characters. Just be prepared to be surprised. Enjoy!!

(ARC provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.)

 

 

EXCERPT:

“Here you go, Leigh.”

Mirabelle was extending her phone, which was good and bad.

Good because Amélie had not managed to unobtrusively deep breathe, her shallow breaths making her feel light-headed, and she needed something else to focus on.
Bad because what she was focusing on would be the profile of that beast.

She took Mirabelle’s phone and turned it her way.

O.H.
 Security: Kitten
 Hobbies: Everything
 Limitations: Nothing
 Notes: None

Translated, that meant:

INITIALS OR OTHER IDENTIFIER
 Safe word: Kitten
 Inclinations: Into anything
 Boundaries, Rules, Unacceptable Play: None

Even with those few words, it was a surprising profile. Experienced subs, the only ones allowed on the floor, knew their boundaries and most had them. In this club, the vast majority were extreme, such as branding, marking, scarring, strangling, sensory deprivation, and so on.

But they had them.

She hadn’t seen a profile that open in a long time.

And the safe word “kitten” showed the beast had a sense of humor. He had the look that just uttering that cute word, which would bring images of the adorable creatures, would make him violently ill.

“Go hit that, tigress,” Mirabelle urged, and Amélie lookedto her.

Before she could say a word, Mirabelle continued.

“Get in there. Three times here, he’ll have heard of you. He’ll be holding out in hopes you’ll be extending the invitation to initiating him to our playrooms. I know it.” She leaned across the table. “Rock his world, lovely.”

She studied her friend, the open excitement, the budding love she was experiencing with her submissive, that time when life takes on clarity so pure and extraordinary, you want everyone to experience it with you.

She turned her head to the beast.

Years of experience only marred twice by two toys she’d had who held great promise, but who eventually fell short of the real thing, taught her that tonight, she would definitely enjoy herself.

But he might be champagne. He might be bourbon. He might, surprisingly, be cognac or port.

The bottom line was that she had to keep expectations low so she wouldn’t be devastated when he didn’t turn out to be top-shelf whisky.

THE DEEP END - Tour teaser 1
 

 

 

Kristen Ashley’s THE DEEP END – Review & Excerpt Tour Schedule:

February 27th

All Romance Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Crystals Book World – Excerpt

Foxy Blogs – Excerpt

Garden of REden – Review

Stacey is Sassy – Review

Steamy Reads – Review

February 28th

Books,Dreams,Life – Excerpt

Marieke’s Books – Review & Excerpt

Read more sleep less – Review

Scandalicious Book Reviews – Review

She Reads New Adult Book Blog – Review

The Book Bellas – Review & Excerpt

March 1st

After Dark Book Lovers – Review & Excerpt

Booklovers For Life – Review

FMR Book Grind – Review

Jax’s Book Magic – Excerpt

Reads All the Books – Review & Excerpt

Three Girls and a Book Obsession – Review & Excerpt

March 2nd

Agents of Romance – Review & Excerpt

Under the Covers – Review & Excerpt

Book Bitches Blog – Excerpt

Oh My Growing TBR – Review & Excerpt

Reading Keeps Me Sane – Review & Excerpt

The Review Loft – Review & Excerpt

March 3rd

Random Book Muses – Review

MEReadALOT – Review & Excerpt

Mommys naughty playground – Review

Stephanie’s Book Reports – Review & Excerpt

Vilma’s book blog – Review & Excerpt

March 4th

a crazy vermonters book reviews – Review

Book Babes Unite – Review

Love Between the Sheets – Review & Excerpt

Vagabonda Reads – Review

March 5th

All About Romance – Review

Mustreadbooksordie – Review & Excerpt

Angie and Jessica’s Dreamy Reads – Review & Excerpt

PBC – Excerpt

March 6th

About That Story – Review

Krista’s Dust Jacket – Review & Excerpt

KT Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Night Owl Reader – Review & Excerpt

Read-Love-Blog – Review

StuckInBooks – Review & Excerpt

March 7th

Shh Moms Reading – Review

Words We Love By/LucyLiciousReads – Review & Excerpt

Books to Breathe – Review & Excerpt

For The Love of Fictional Worlds – Review & Excerpt

Joyfully Reviewed – Review & Excerpt

Nose Stuck in a Book – Review & Excerpt

March 8th

Shameless Book Club – Review & Excerpt

A Fortress of Books – Excerpt

BJ’s Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Jen’s Reading Obsession – Excerpt

Lit Slave – Review & Excerpt

Straight Shootin’ Book Reviews – Excerpt

March 9th

Behind Closed Doors Book Review – Review

Dirty Girl Romance – Review

Friends Till The End Book Blog – Excerpt

iScream Books – Review & Excerpt

Red Cheeks Reads – Review

Smut Book Junkie Reviews – Review & Excerpt

March 10th

Bookcrack – Review & Excerpt

Two Girls with Books – Excerpt

E-Romance News – Excerpt

Four Chicks Flipping Pages – Review

Lit. 4 Ladies – Review & Excerpt

Natalie TheBiblioholi – Review & Excerpt

Once Upon A Page – Review & Excerpt

True Story Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

March 11th

Aurora B’s Book Blog – Excerpt

Blushing babes are up all night – Review & Excerpt

Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents – Review & Excerpt

Reading Between the Wines Book Club – Excerpt

March 12th

Collector of book boyfriends – Review

Feeding My Addiction Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

I’m A Sweet And Sassy Book Whore – Review & Excerpt

Stormy Nights Reviewing &Bloggin’ – Excerpt

March 13th

Black heart reviews – Review

Nice Ladies, Naughty Books – Excerpt

Once Upon a Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Pretty Little Book Reviews – Review

Queenzany – Review & Excerpt

Sizzling Pages Romance Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Talk Books to Me – Review

March 14th

Abibliophobia Anonymous Book Reviews – Excerpt

Alpha Book Club – Review

G & T’s Indie Café – Excerpt

Once Upon An Alpha – Review & Excerpt

No BS Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

The Book Whisperer – Review & Excerpt

The Escapist Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

 

 

THE DEEP END - Tour teaser 2

 

 

 

Kristin Ashley - headshotAbout Kristen Ashley:

Kristen Ashley was born in Gary, Indiana, USA and nearly killed her mother and herself making it into the world, seeing as she had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck (already attempting to accessorise and she hadn’t taken her first breath!). Her mother said they took Kristen away, put her Mom back in her room, her mother looked out the window, and Gary was on fire (Dr. King had been assassinated four days before). Kristen’s Mom remembered thinking it was the end of the world. Quite the dramatic beginning.

Nothing’s changed.

Kristen grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana and has lived in Denver, Colorado and the West Country of England. Thus, she’s blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her family was (is) loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write. They all lived together on a very small farm in a small farm town in the heartland. She grew up with Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Whitesnake (and the wardrobes that matched).

Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music, clothes and love was a good way to grow up.

And as she keeps growing, it keeps getting better.

 

WEBSITE * FACEBOOK * TWITTER * NEWSLETTER * GOODREADS * PINTEREST * INSTAGRAM

 

 

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Categories : 4 Stars, BDSM, Contemporary, Erotic, Reviews, Romance Tagged : Excerpt, Kristen Ashley, The Deep End

Review & Excerpt: ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING by KRISTEN ASHLEY

January 12, 2017

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From New York Times Bestselling author Kristen Ashley, comes ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING, the long awaited story of Daisy and Marcus, brought to you by 1,001 Dark Nights! Be sure you grab your copy today!

 

 

Baseball on the Infield Chalk Line with the Base in the distance

 

 

MY REVIEW:

“I know precisely the kind of woman you are, Daisy. And if you don’t understand it, then it’ll be up to me to show it to you.”

YASS!! If you need a Kristen Ashley fix, do NOT miss Marcus and Daisy’s novella!! Pure goodness and beauty.

If you’re a fan of the Rock Chick series (and let’s face it, who isn’t??), Daisy has been a constant. Such a character! But without a doubt a sweetheart. Her story has been a long time coming and it hit all the hight notes. Only Kristen Ashley can make a novella feel as satisfying as a full-length novel. Marcus and Daisy are pure KA gold. All of the wonderful writing, emotion, plot and LOVE that you expect from Kristen Ashley are here. And kudos to the author for tackling a very sensitive subject and handling it perfectly. If you need a hit of Kristen Ashley, ‘Rock Chick Reawakening’ is your answer. It’s everything you expect from the Queen of Alphas and much more.

EXCERPT:

“Who’s that tall, dark drink of handsome water?” I asked Ashlynn, my eyes on the tall man with broad shoulders and fabulous suit who was sauntering out of the club in the manner of a man who owned it.

In the manner of a man who owned anything he wanted.

“Don’t go there,” Ashlynn answered.

I looked to Ashlynn.

“What, sugar?”

She shook her head. “He’s hot. Knew a girl who’s had him and I’ll repeat, he’s hot. Took her out four times. All to fancy restaurants where she had to buy fancy dresses and shoes. And he gave it to her good at the end of the night, and I mean real good, the way she described it. He also, like, opened the car door for her and everything.”

Opened the car door for her.

And everything.

Oh my.

“Ended it with her giving her a gold bracelet,” Ashlynn carried on, recapturing my attention. “Pure class.” Her look got intense as she stared into my eyes. “And he’s trouble.”

I glanced to the door that he’d obviously gone through because he’d disappeared, then back to Ashlynn.

“Trouble?”

Ashlynn didn’t answer that question.

She just shook her head again and declared, “He wouldn’t date a stripper anyway. Like I said. He’s class.”

I felt my mouth get tight.

Kristen Ashley’s ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING – Review & Excerpt Tour Schedule:

January 4th

All Romance Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Books Need TLC – Review

Garden of Reden – Review

Lit. 4 Ladies – Review & Excerpt

Straight Shootin’ Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

The Book Maven – Review

Three Girls and a Book Obsession – Review & Excerpt

January 5th

Books to Breathe – Review & Excerpt

KT Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Literary Misfit – Review & Excerpt

Once Upon a Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Pretty Little Book Reviews – Review

Scandalicious Book Reviews – Review

Words We Love By – Review & Excerpt

January 6th

Books,Dreams,Life – Excerpt

Shameless Book Club – Review & Excerpt

Smut Book Junkie Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Once Upon a Page – Review & Excerpt

Read-Love-Blog – Excerpt

Stacey is Sassy – Review

The Cantu Sisters Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

January 7th

Brittany’s Book Blog – Excerpt

Random Book Muses – Review

Read more sleep less – Review

Reviews by Tammy and Kim – Review & Excerpt

Shayna Renee’s Spicy Reads – Review & Excerpt

Sizzling Pages Romance Reviews – Review & Excerpt

January 8th

Confessions of 2 Book Lovers – Review & Excerpt

Crazy Chaotic Book Babes – Review

Dog-Eared Daydreams – Review

Night Owl Reader – Review & Excerpt

Reading Between the Wines Book Club – Excerpt

January 9th

Aurora B’s Book Blog – Review

Vagabonda Reads – Review & Excerpt

Always YA at Heart – Review & Excerpt

Oh My Growing TBR – Review & Excerpt

Red Cheeks Reads – Review

Romanticamente Fantasy Sito – Excerpt

January 10th

Desert Divas Book Addiction – Review & Excerpt

BFD Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Lit Slave – Review & Excerpt

MrsLeif’s Two Fangs About It – Review

Under The Covers Book Lovers – Review & Excerpt

Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

January 11th

Blushing Babes Are Up All Night Book Blog – Review

Bookalicious Babes Blog – Review & Excerpt

Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents – Review & Excerpt

Knotty Girl Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Talk Books to Me – Review & Excerpt

Love Between the sheets – Review & Excerpt

January 12th

Feeding My Addiction Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

I’m A Sweet And Sassy Book Whore – Review & Excerpt

Nicely Phrased – Review & Excerpt

Viviana, Enchantress of Books – Review & Excerpt

What Is That Book About – Excerpt

Nerdy Dirty & Flirty – Review & Excerpt

January 13th

Angie and Jessica’s Dreamy Reads – Review & Excerpt

Dirty Girl Romance – Review

Fictional Rendezvous Book Blog – Excerpt

Nose Stuck in a Book – Review & Excerpt

The Book Bellas – Review & Excerpt

The Silver Dagger Scriptorium – Excerpt

 

 

rock-chick-reawakening-tour-teaser-2

 

 

 

Direct Link: https://video214.com/play/WNx2mKBbgjZWmY0hWUnX0g/s/dark

 

 

A Message from Kristen:

Dear Reader,

I’m beside myself with glee that this prequel to my Rock Chick series has been unleashed! There was some time when I never thought I’d write it. When I couldn’t be in that terrible place with Daisy. But I’m oh-so glad that she called to me, demanding her story be told so she could give it to me and now I can give it to you! I loved every moment spent with Daisy and Marcus. And I hope you do too!

~Kristen Ashley

 

 

rock-chick-reawakening-cover

About ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING:

From New York Times bestselling author, Kristen Ashley, comes the long-awaited story of Daisy and Marcus, Rock Chick Reawakening. A prequel to Kristen’s Rock Chick series, Rock Chick Reawakening shares the tale of the devastating event that nearly broke Daisy, an event that set Marcus Sloan—one of Denver’s most respected businessmen and one of the Denver underground’s most feared crime bosses—into finally making his move to win the heart of the woman who stole his.

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA | Amazon AU

 

Download the Free Kindle App

 

 

rock-chick-reawakening-available-now

 

 

Praise for Kristen Ashley and ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING:

 

“OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!! I FREAKING LOVED IT!!!!!!!! LOVE LOVE LOVED IT!!! This was pure Old School Vintage KA GOLD!!!”

~Aestas Book Blog

 

“This novella is like the key to all the locked doors in this series.”

~Angie’s Dreamy Reads

 

“We inhaled Marcus and Daisy’s story, how could we not. It was everything to us and we cannot thank Kristen Ashley enough for writing it, in her much loved unique manner. The queen of epilogues struck once more and we smiled through copious tears of happiness, our hearts feeling full and complete. Whilst sad that it’s over we just can’t feel anything but happiness and love right now. It was Aces! Rock on…and be prepared to be swept of off your feet.”

~Totally Booked Blog

 

“[Kristen] Ashley captivates.”

~Publisher’s Weekly

 

“There is something about them [Ashley’s books] that I find crackalicious.”

~DearAuthor.com,Kati Brown

 

“I felt all of the rushes, the adrenaline surges, the anger spikes… my heart pumping in fury. My eyes tearing up when my heart (I mean… her heart) would break.”

~Maryse’s Book Blog

 

 

kristen-ashley-headshotAbout Kristen Ashley:

Kristen Ashley was born in Gary, Indiana, USA and nearly killed her mother and herself making it into the world, seeing as she had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck (already attempting to accessorize and she hadn’t taken her first breath!). Her mother said they took Kristen away, put her Mom back in her room, her mother looked out the window, and Gary was on fire (Dr. King had been assassinated four days before). Kristen’s Mom remembered thinking it was the end of the world. Quite the dramatic beginning.

Nothing’s changed.

Kristen grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana and has lived in Denver, Colorado and the West Country of England. Thus, she’s blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her family was (is) loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write. They all lived together on a very small farm in a small farm town in the heartland. She grew up with Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Whitesnake (and the wardrobes that matched).

Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music, clothes and love was a good way to grow up.

And as she keeps growing, it keeps getting better.

 

WEBSITE * FACEBOOK * TWITTER * NEWSLETTER * GOODREADS * PINTEREST * INSTAGRAM

 

 

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Categories : 4 Stars, Alpha male, Alpha- hero, Contemporary Romance, Reviews Tagged : Excerpt, Kristen Ashley, Rock Chick Reawakening

REVIEW + EXCERPT & GIVEAWAY: MIDNIGHT SOUL (FANTASYLAND #5) by KRISTEN ASHLEY

August 14, 2016

Midnight Soul - Tour banner

 

 

MIDNIGHT SOUL is coming! Being released on August 15th, this amazing fantasy takes place in our world and a parallel universe where fantasies are true…but perhaps not all you would expect. MIDNIGHT SOUL is the highly anticipated finale to Kristen Ashley’s bestselling Fantasyland Series. Be sure you check out all of the stops on the tour and order the final novel in this amazing series today!

 

 

 

Midnight Soul - Tour teaser 1

 

Kristen Ashley’s MIDNIGHT SOUL Review & Excerpt Tour

August 10

Dirty Girl Romance – Review
Vilma’s Book Blog – Review & Excerpt
Once Upon a Page – Review & Excerpt
Garden of REden – Review
Booklover4Life – Excerpt

August 11

After Dark Book Lovers – Review & Excerpt
Agents of Romance – Excerpt
Books&Junk – Review
Swept Away By Romance – Review & Excerpt
She Reads New Adult – Excerpt
Readers Retreats – Excerpt

August 12

Book Reader Chronicles – Review & Excerpt
Crazii Bitches Book Blog – Review & Excerpt
StuckInBooks – Review
Read more sleep less – Review
Under the Covers – Review & Excerpt

August 13

Nose Stuck in a Book – Review & Excerpt
Meli’s Book Blog – Excerpt
The review loft – Review & Excerpt
Renee Entress’s Blog – Excerpt
Red Cheeks Reads – Review
Total Book Geek – Excerpt

August 14

The Book Bellas – Review
Gi’s Spot Reviews – Excerpt
The Heathers Blog – Excerpt
Angie and Jessica’s Dreamy Reads – Review & Excerpt
Book Lovers Hangout – Excerpt

August 15

BLACK HEART REVIEWS – Review & Excerpt
Smut Book Junkie Reviews – Review
Bambi Unbridled – Review & Excerpt
My Book Muse – Review
A Fortress of Books – Excerpt
Books to Breathe – Review & Excerpt

August 16

Evermore Books – Excerpt
KT Book Reviews – Review
Nicely Phrased – Review
Scandalicious Book Reviews – Review
Ramblings of a Bookworm – Excerpt

August 17

Lit. 4 Ladies – Review & Excerpt
Read-Love-Blog – Excerpt
Shameless Book Club – Review & Excerpt
The Fairest of All Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt
Lucylicious Reads – Excerpt
Night Wolf Book Blog – Excerpt

August 18

Captain Reads A Lot – Excerpt
Confessions of 2 Book Lovers – Review & Excerpt
Sizzling Pages Romance Reviews – Review & Excerpt
Rachel Reads Ravenously – Review & Excerpt
Four Chicks Flipping Pages – Excerpt

August 19

No BS Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt
Wicked Reads – Review & Excerpt
Random Book Muses – Review & Excerpt
Southern Vixens Book Obsessions – Excerpt
The Silver Dagger Scriptorium – Excerpt

August 20

Bookaholic Confessions – Review & Excerpt
Feeding My Addiction Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt
Paranormal Book Boyfriends – Excerpt
Three Girls and a Book Obsession – Review

 

Midnight Soul - cover

MIDNIGHT SOUL Synopsis:

Against his will, Noctorno Hawthorne, an undercover vice cop, finds himself embroiled in magic, mayhem and parallel universes. Too late, he meets an amazing woman only to find she’s destined for his identical twin in another world.

And things aren’t going real great there.

Noc is recruited to help save that world.

What he doesn’t know is his destined love resides there.

Franka Drakkar wears a mask. A mask she never takes off to protect herself in a world of malice, intrigue and danger.

When Franka meets Noc and he discovers her secrets, convinced she carries a midnight soul, having shielded herself from forming bonds with anyone, she struggles with accepting his tenderness and care.

When Noc meets Franka, over wine and whiskey, her mask slips and Noc knows it’s her—only her—and he has to find a way to get her to come home with him.

And then make her want to stay.

 

Order MIDNIGHT SOUL here!

Amazon * Barnes and Noble * GooglePlay * iBooks* Kobo

Add it to your Goodreads Now!

 

MY REVIEW:

4 Fantastical Stars!!

“What makes a hero is the one that’s left standing when the others are dead. Or the one that gave his life so the others could live. That’s a fuckin’ hero.”

Midnight Soul is the conclusion of the Fantasyland series with Noctorno (Noc) Hawthorne and Franka Drakkar, who was pure evil in the previous books in this series. But in trademark Kristen Ashley style, Franka’s true side is shown and all of her secrets are revealed. She has endured terrible abuse for years to protect her brother and his family which she has hidden from everyone around her,

Not and Franka begin a very slow-burn romance that begins at first as a friendship and partnership. Kristen Ashley expertly weaves fantasy, paranormal and reality with touches of comedy and as always, a beautiful and enduring romance. The scenes of Franka and others from her world being introduced to the modern world are funny and thought-provoking and always entertaining.

Noc sees the real Franka and his love transforms her. I always tell friends who don’t usually read fantasy that Kristen Ashley’s books are magical and engrossing and Midnight Soul is no exception. The journey that Franka takes is filled with forgiveness and redemption and yes, a swoony Alpha who will stop at nothing to protect Franka and her loved ones.

Midnight Soul is an imaginative and sexy conclusion to the Fantasyland series. It is filled with unforgettable characters and as always, a magnificent Epilogue!

“You don’t have a midnight soul, Frannie. Your soul is so bright, I look too close, I’d be blinded.”

(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)

 

EXCERPT:

~Franka~
That day had been one I wished to quickly forget.
Indeed, the months since those witches took my Antoine had been time I wished I had the power to erase from my memory.
I had power.
I did not have that kind of power.
These thoughts on my mind, I moved down the hallway of the Winter Palace, seeking my room where I planned to pull the cord, ring a servant and request several bottles of Fleuridian wine.
Wine might not make me forget, but I’d found of late that it served well to dull the pain.
I turned the corner, my eyes to my slippers, but my senses made me lift my gaze to the passageway.
At what I saw, I halted and grew still, then slowly and quietly retraced my steps and ducked behind the corner, peering back around.
Oh my.
The Prince Noctorno of the other world was in the doorway to a bedchamber.
Although, he was not actually a prince. Not in this universe. Apparently they had very few princes in that other world. A world that existed on a parallel plane where all beings had twins to my own world.
This I thought was rather mad (everything about it, obviously), but with few princes, that meant there were few kings, so who ruled?
He reported that he was instead a member of the city guard, an occupation he referred to as being “a cop.” A rather surprising statement considering all that was him.
He was no member of a guard.
He was a prince.
And he called himself Noc, for some unknown reason, as Noctorno was a fine name, a strong name, a regal name (this last was true as his counterpart in this world was a prince).
And right now he had has back to me.
He was wearing a pair of trousers the like that couldn’t be found in my world. They were made of a rough, sturdy, faded-blue material. He also had a shirt that was not the fashion in this world. It was attractive and made of an equally attractive plaid. And it was a shirt that fit his broad shoulders magnificently.
His thick, black hair was untidy (this also attractive).
And I could see his light-blue eyes but only in my imagination as he had his back to me.
They were not eyes you were likely to forget. With his dark hair and skin browned in the sun, those eyes were deliciously striking.
There was a day, though now that day seemed lifetimes ago, when a sight such as Noctorno Hawthorne of another world (or indeed this one) would have caused me to have a much different reaction, not only to him, but to my plans for the imminent future.
That was before Antoine.
That was before I met the man who introduced me to, well…me.

Midnight Soul - Tour teaser 2

And Don’t Miss the First Books in the Fantasyland Series!

WILDEST DREAMS

THE GOLDEN DYNASTY

FANTASTICAL

BROKEN DOVE

 

 

 

Kristin Ashley - headshotAbout Kristen Ashley:

Kristen Ashley was born in Gary, Indiana, USA and nearly killed her mother and herself making it into the world, seeing as she had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck (already attempting to accessorise and she hadn’t taken her first breath!). Her mother said they took Kristen away, put her Mom back in her room, her mother looked out the window, and Gary was on fire (Dr. King had been assassinated four days before). Kristen’s Mom remembered thinking it was the end of the world. Quite the dramatic beginning.

Nothing’s changed.

Kristen grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana and has lived in Denver, Colorado and the West Country of England. Thus, she’s blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her family was (is) loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write. They all lived together on a very small farm in a small farm town in the heartland. She grew up with Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Whitesnake (and the wardrobes that matched).

Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music, clothes and love was a good way to grow up.

And as she keeps growing, it keeps getting better.

 

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Categories : 4 Stars, Blog Tour, Fantasy, Giveaway, Paranormal, Reviews, Romance Tagged : Excerpt, Fantasyland, Kristen Ashley, Midnight Soul

Review + Excerpt & Giveaway: BOUNTY (COLORADO MOUNTAIN SERIES #7) by KRISTEN ASHLEY

April 7, 2016

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1 KA Bounty cover

Bounty (Colorado Mountain #7)

Justice Lonesome has enjoyed a life of bounty.

Even so, she’s inherited the curse of the Lonesome. A poet’s soul. Which means she’s still searching for something. Searching for peace. Searching for the less…that’s more.

And when the foundation of her life is pulled out from under her, grieving, she goes to the mountains to find her oasis. She hits Carnal, Colorado and decides to stay.

Deke Hightower lost everything at the age of two. He lost it again at fifteen. His life has not been about bounty. It’s been about learning to live with less, because there’s no way to get more.

Deke’s also watched all his friends go down to the women who gave them what they needed. He wants that for himself. But he knows that search isn’t going to be easy because he’s a rider. His home is the road. That’s the only place he can breathe. And the woman who takes her place at his side has to do it sitting on the back of his bike.

When Deke meets Justice, he knows she’s not that woman. She’s cute. She’s sweet. And she’s into him, but she’s got it all and Deke knows he won’t fit into that. So he holds her at arm’s length. Establishes boundaries. And Justice will take it because she wants Deke any way he’ll let her have him.

But when Justice finds herself a pawn in a dangerous game, Deke makes a decision.

When he does, he has no idea he’s just opened himself up to bounty.

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How I love Carnal!!

Just when I thought another Kristen Ashley hero could not break my heart any more than her earlier heroes, along comes Deke Hightower. A loner, almost a recluse, a man of very few words (the original strong, silent type!), Deke has had a hard, tough life, never putting down roots anywhere and never, ever opening his heart to a woman. He is a simple man, a lover of his bike and the open road, which he makes VERY clear to everyone he meets. Deke and Justice have a history together (he just doesn’t remember it!!) but when they meet again years later, they have a verrrry slow build-up, and the slow burn worked perfectly for these two. There are lots of misunderstandings, lots of miscommunications, but when these two get together….OMG!!!! Expect the usual HAWTNESS and over-the-top Alpha-male sexiness that is pure Kristen Ashley.

One of the things I absolutely adored about this book was Deke. He is no kid (and neither is Justice), and Kristen Ashley describes him as all man and then some.

“…All of it covering exceptional pecs and the most amazing stomach I’d ever seen.
Not abs.
A manly stomach.
I had to admit, I was over the cut leanness that was all the rage. In the beginning, it was hot. But now it seemed daunting, men being so developed they didn’t have an inch of extra flesh on them, not like they were human beings but like they were diagrams of a body’s muscularity.
Not Deke.”

*FAINTS* And Justice, I loved her! She is a gifted musician, with a renowned family but with lots and lots of heartache to go along with that. But this is Carnal and she is trying to hide out and get some peace. She hires Deke to renovate her new house and I think that Kristen Ashley must have a second secret career as a contractor. At first I thought there was too much detail about the house renovations but then I fell in love with the wonderful detail. Deke works with his hands, he takes pride in his work and the contrast between his blue-collar background and Justice’s upbringing is both perfect and poignant at the same time. She has plenty of craziness to deal with, which Deke doesn’t get at first. He really closes off his heart and Justice at first hides the fact that she remembers him from years before. He is almost sullen, but all of it comes from a place of heartbreak.

“My life, babe,” he shook his head, “until I was about twenty, it was not good.” “Okay,” I prompted carefully, not liking that. “And because a’ that, I got a way I gotta be and that’s a way that’s not gonna change.”

All Justice wants is love and acceptance and some peace in her life. I loved that she was always herself around Deke, and eventually he warmed up to her cheerfulness, honesty and just plain goodness. It is difficult for a man like Deke to be with a brilliant and successful woman like Justice. But Deke, being Deke, accepts this in his own way.

He squatted and reached into the bag.
“Open a beer for me, yeah?”
“I live to serve.”
Deke wanted to test that but do it when they were both naked.
Fuck him.
Total dumbfuck.

I must mention that FANTASTIC cast of secondary characters here. Each and every one felt fully developed and essential to the story. In my opinion, Kristen Ashley can pretty much write about anything and I will devour it. But when she writes about two people who have already lived a full life, who have their own demons and pasts, and who know what they want, well, to me that’s a winner. Welcome back to Carnal, folks, it is a beautiful place. Enjoy the bounty.

“I was living it and all I had to do was take care of it, nurture it, make it stronger.
Then it always would be mine.
Everything I’d ever wanted.
My place in this universe.
And it felt amazing.”

(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)

EXCERPT:

“Jus.”
Deke’s voice carved into the perverse, bitter sick my brother and his mother stirred up in me and I lifted my gaze, twisted my neck and looked to his face.
He was not close.
But he was concerned.
And that concern undid me.
I turned fully to him, dropped my head and fell forward.
He was not near and then he was, right there for me to collide with as everything pressed into me. So much, I couldn’t hold it back, and the tears came.
He wrapped his arms around me as he stepped farther into me so he could hold me close.
That was when I started sobbing. My body shaking with it, automatically burrowing into his heat, his solidity, his bulk, all Deke.
His arms tightened.
“I miss him,” I whispered into Deke’s chest through a hitch.
The words with that hitch barely sounded before I felt Deke’s hand glide up my spine and tangle in my hair.
“Get it out, Jussy,” he murmured, his words stirring the strands at the top of my head so I knew he was bent to me.
Deke.
Fuck me, Deke.
“My brother’s a p-p-piece of shit,” I pushed out through the tears.
Deke’s arm around me got tighter and the tips of fingers started stroking the side of my ribs.
Even this did not make me feel better. In fact this—all that was Deke enveloping all that was me—made it better at the same time so much worse.
“He’s contesting the…the will,” I shared.
Deke said nothing.
I kept crying.
It came to me slowly that I was pressed hard to him and had my hands clenched into his tee at the back. I felt the damp material against my cheek and knew how many tears had leaked and that Deke took them from me.
I also knew he was being cool, a nice guy, because that was who he was.
But I couldn’t let this go on.
So I pulled my shit together, unclenched my hands and smoothed the shirt before I dropped them to his waist and tipped my head back.
“Sorry.”
Lamentably, he took my cue and let me go.
Incredibly, he didn’t do this completely.
He put his hands on either side of my neck and bent close so his face was a couple of inches from mine.
“Think, from what you’ve told me, you get that times get bad. Hope, Jussy, you also get that those times pass. Whatever’s happening, this will pass.”
Jussy.
Shit.
I nodded because that was all I could do.
“Sorry, I…well, your shirt’s all wet,” I said, taking one hand from him to wipe my face.
“It’ll dry.”
I nodded again.
His fingers curled around my neck gave me a gentle squeeze.
“You good?”
I was not.
I gave him another nod anyway.
His eyes moved over my face and I knew he knew that nod was an inaudible lie but he didn’t call me on it.
He just said quietly, “Good,” gave me another squeeze and dropped his left hand.
But with his right, he lifted it up and I held my breath because I thought he was going to touch my face, dry a tear, something.
Instead, he raised it to the top of my head and tousled my hair before he gave me another close look, turned and walked away.
Shit, Deke comforted me then tousled my hair like I was his little sister.
Shit.
I didn’t like that.
But it was kind and it was sweet and it came from Deke.
So as was becoming my lot, I’d take it.

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Categories : 5 Stars, Alpha male, Alpha- hero, Blog Tour, Contemporary, Giveaway, Reviews, Romance Tagged : Bounty, Colorado Mountain Series, Excerpt, Kristen Ashley

SEBRING (THE UNFINISHED HEROES SERIES BOOK 5) by KRISTEN ASHLEY

January 9, 2016

Today is our stop on Kristen Ashley’s SEBRING Blog Tour! Enjoy a HOT excerpt and make sure to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway!

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Nick Sebring has issues. Born feeling like an outsider in his own family, growing up under the shadow of a brother who could do anything, Nick isn’t that great of a guy. But when this culminates with Nick lashing out to hurt his brother through the woman he loves, Nick turns inward and makes some decisions about the man he intends to be.

And as he does this, he falls in love and truly learns the man that he’s grown to be.

When his love is murdered right before Nick’s eyes, Nick knows he has to avenge her. He knows how he’s going to avenge her. And he has no qualms using Olivia Shade to exact that vengeance.

Olivia Shade has grown up on the outside of her family too. Her problem is that they don’t want her outside. They want her all the way in, right under their thumbs. She pays the price for seeking escape and learns her lesson—she’ll never see a dawn where she wakes up free.

Then she meets Nick Sebring, and even as she fights it, the hope that died years ago starts to blossom. She can find love. She can have a man of her own. She can be happy. She can be free.

Olivia hopes while Nick schemes.

However, as Nick peels back the layers of all that is Olivia Shade, he finds something surprising. He understands its fragility. He falls in love with its beauty. He seeks to protect it.

But he forgets to protect his Livvie from one thing: Nick Sebring.

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My Review:

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My first thoughts upon completing this book, “MY HEART. I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS SERIES IS OVER!! Another perfect heart-stopping story from Kristen Ashley.”

This series holds a very special place in my heart because KNIGHT was my very first Kristen Ashley book ever. I didn’t quite fully understand the warning that came along with that book, because to me, KNIGHT was absolute perfection. After I then read almost every single book Ms. Ashley wrote, I realized that the Unfinished Heroes Series was a bit different from her other, mostly-nice, all swoony Alpha heroes. And I adore every single one of her “unfinished” heroes.

SEBRING was like unwrapping a special gift. Olivia was a complex heroine, damaged and scarred both indies and out, having grown up into a crime family. She trusts no one, and for good reason. Her own family is treacherous, immoral and very dangerous. But yet she cannot escape the life that has been mapped out for her. She is an obedient daughter, following the rules until the night she meets Nick Sebring. Olivia is closed off to the world and has given up all hopes for a normal life.

“I’d learned that I didn’t allow myself to show emotion.
Ever”

I was always fascinated by Nick since he first appeared in KNIGHT. He has a fascinating back story here, investigating Olivia’s family and targeting her in an effort to infiltrate the Shade family to take down her father. Nick’s first love was caught up in their violent world and became victim of the Shade family’s notorious brand of violence.

SEBRING is not a pretty, hearts and flowers, sweet love story. Its is gritty, raw, violent, yet amongst all of that, Kristen Ashley’s trademark goodness and beauty and love shines through. Nick Sebring himself does not think he can be redeemed but something about Olivia sings to him. They make the perfect couple, really. They both love a certain brand of kink and tom me, are PERFECTLY matched.

There is plenty of heartbreak in this book. Olivia carries around secrets in her heart that would absolutely break another person. So it makes her coming together with Nick Sebring even more bittersweet and gorgeous. And Nick…well, I fell in love with him. Yes, the very same Nick Sebring from KNIGHT who caused so much trouble! SEBRING is everything I love about a Kristen Ashley book: family, incredibly hot sex scenes, fast-paced action, forgiveness and yes, love. I can’t recommend this book highly enough. Happy reading!

Favorite quote:

“I’m not bawling.”
“You were close.”
“You were being sweet.”
“Like I said, get used to that.”
“Then you were an ass.”
“You should probably get used to that too.”

(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)

 

Excerpt:

In the hotel room, Nick heard the knock at the door.

He moved to it, looked out the peephole and felt the corners of his mouth hitch up when he saw her.

Fuck, those big green eyes, perfectly arched dark brows, the olive tint to her skin, the expert way she shaded under her cheekbones…

She was a coldhearted criminal but she was one that was very easy to look at.

And even easier to fuck.

He opened the door.

He was going to say something but he didn’t get the chance when her hand darted out and she caught him under his jaw, using it to push him in and around until his back hit wall.

She stared up at him, her hand wrapped around his jaw, her expression holding an emptiness that was so extreme it was almost like a void he could fall into and get lost forever.

He heard the door swish closed and latch.

Then she was up on her toes, her head moving toward his, those green eyes dropping to his mouth.

She didn’t get her lips to his before his tongue was out, as was hers, both of them colliding and tangling before her mouth slammed to his just as her body pushed in, pressing hard, forcing him tighter to the wall.

He shoved out. Gripping her wrist at his jaw, he yanked it down, twisting and slamming her against the wall, slanting his head to deepen an already deep kiss.

Their tongues again clashing before he actually took her mouth.

But he took her mouth.

And like she’d done to his, he consumed it.

His fingers still around her wrist, he yanked it around his back, using his body to shove her tight to the wall, pressing his hardening cock against her stomach.

She arched, and moving quickly, whipped him around so his back was to the wall and she took over the kiss. Tearing her wrist from his hold, she curled her fingers around his throat just as she cupped his hardening crotch with her other hand.

Fucking hell, this woman was hot.

But he was done playing.

And he was done kissing.

Her mouth, that was.

He pushed her away. She struggled to regain control.

She lost this struggle when he caught her hand and dragged her down the short hall into the room.

She lost her footing when he gave her hand a strong tug and she fell into him with a soft gasp.

He let her hand go, caught her hips and threw her four feet onto the bed.

That got him another soft gasp which took his cock from hardening to rock-solid and throbbing.

He bent over her, holding her now intense green gaze, spanning her hips with his hands. Shoving backwards, he found the hook of her skirt, released it and pulled down the zipper.

He moved his fingers to curl them into the sides of her skirt’s waistband. With a vicious tug that took her hips and panties with it, he yanked off the skirt.
Chest to the bed, eyes to her cunt, the black curls neatly groomed with a precision that meant her wax technician was a master with possible OCD issues, they were also glistening with wet.

Having the tussle at the door, seeing the utter perfection of her pussy, smelling her, watching her legs part in invitation, her knees shifting up, Nick couldn’t have gone gentle if he’d wanted to.

Luckily he didn’t want to.

He bent his neck and devoured her.

Fuck, she tasted just as perfect as she looked.

As he fed, he felt her excitement ramp. Tasted it. Ate it. Gave her more. Consumed the result. Drove her to the edge.

And when he had her there, he stopped and moved over her.

Not surprisingly, she used both the pump she already had planted into the bed and the calf she had wrapped around him to flip him and then she was straddling him, pushing up, her hands already to his fly.

Normally, he would not allow this.

Her face flushed with need, her manner urgent, even desperate, all that surged through his blood, his gut, straight to his cock.

So he allowed this.

She tugged his pants down, grabbed his dick, guided it to her and took him home.

At the beauty of her sheathing him, he gritted his teeth against the urge to let go and release way too fucking early. Bucking his hips, he watched how much she liked taking him, her head thrown back, her shining, straight mass of silken black hair swaying.

Then she dropped forward into a hand in the bed by his side, locked eyes with him and rode him violently as he watched until she gave it to herself and she kept doing it until she forced it from him.

Fucking spectacular.

He came down buried inside her, his eyes opening to see her still resting in her hand in the bed, her body moving gently with her still-labored-but-evening breathing, her dark hair framing her oval face, her straight bangs brushing her lashes, her green eyes locked to his trying to brand him, make him hers.

No way in fuck that was happening.

But he’d take more of this.

A lot more.

That said, the woman was going to learn how to give up control.

Not surprisingly, without a word, she swung off his cock, moving immediately toward the side of the mattress.

Nick focused on pulling up his trousers, doing the fly and angling off the bed. By the time he was up and had turned his attention back to her, she was on her feet, facing him, arms twisted behind her to do up the skirt she’d put on.

He held her gaze.

“We got all night, Olivia,” he informed her.

Not even a hint of a response to him calling her the name she hadn’t given him.

Then again, he knew she knew him; she’d make it her business.

She also knew he’d do the same with her, even before he sat next to her the night before.

Her expression might not have changed but his words spurred her to action, this being walking his way.

She stopped. Her eyes still on his, she lifted a hand and touched his chest lightly with just the pad of her middle finger.

It lasted half a second.

Then she dropped her hand, turned and walked away.

He heard the door close behind her and he couldn’t stop his smile.

Fuck yes, a seriously cool customer.

And the hottest fuck he’d had in his life.

About Kristen Ashley:
6864936

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 better.

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Categories : 5 Stars, Alpha male, Alpha- hero, Contemporary, Erotic, Giveaway, Reviews, Romance Tagged : Excerpt, Kristen Ashley, Sebring, Unfinished Hero

WALK THROUGH FIRE (CHAOS #4) by KRISTEN ASHLEY

October 30, 2015

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The flame never dies . . .

Millie Cross knows what it’s like to burn for someone. She was young and wild and he was fierce and even wilder-a Chaos biker who made her heart pound. They fell in love at first sight and life was good, until she learned she couldn’t be the woman he needed and made it so he had no choice but to walk away. Twenty years later, Millie’s chance run-in with her old flame sparks a desire she just can’t ignore. And this time, she won’t let him ride off . . .

Bad boy Logan “High” Judd has seen his share of troubles with the law. Yet it was a beautiful woman who broke him. After ending a loveless marriage, High is shocked when his true love walks back into his life. Millie is still gorgeous, but she’s just a ghost of her former self. High’s intrigued at the change, but her betrayal cut him deep-and he doesn’t want to get burned again. As High sinks into meting out vengeance for Millie’s betrayal, he’ll break all over again when he realizes just how Millie walked through fire for her man . . .

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REVIEW:

WOW!! Kristen Ashley does it again with Logan and Millie’s story. Just when I think I can’t love this author any more, she takes my breath away with yet another absolutely magnificent book. DO NOT MISS THIS ONE!!

I am a HUGE fan of second-chance romance and Walk Through Fire might be one of my all-time favorites in this genre. Everything I love about Ms. Ashley’s writing is here: an older couple, a smart but damaged woman, an Alpha male and lots and lots of ridiculously hot sex. I could go on and on about the gorgeous moments in this book but really, you should just read it and experience the emotions for yourself. I got the same feelings in this book as I did in Soaring, and while it takes a lot for me to cry while reading a book, I cried plenty while reading Millie and Logan’s story.

You learn right off the bat that Logan was Millie’s first true love and that things ended suddenly between them years earlier. Jump forward and Millie runs into Logan and just the sound of his voice stuns her and she feels compelled to explain to him what happened decades before. He has been married and had children but Millie has spent the years alone, although successful in her business and very close to her own family. Logan, who hasn’t seemed to have gotten over Millie walking away from him, is still bitter and is very, very cruel to Millie when she tries to explain her behavior to him:

“I’m done not because I’m done but because there’s nothing left of me to burn. You have it all! You’ve always had it all! I gave up everything so you could have it all! Please! God! Leave me to my nothing!”

I don’t want to spoil the story but you will probably guess Millie’s reasons for suddenly breaking up with Logan pretty early on in the story. As bitter as Logan is towards Millie, you know that eventually these two will have their HEA but their path there is both beautiful and very bittersweet at the same time.

There is a mature aspect to this story which drew me in from the first page. These aren’t kids or twenty-somethings, these characters are all adults, with their own kids, careers, families, and relationships to deal with. i absolutely loved how Logan’s ex-wife was portrayed in this book and how Millie interacted with her. Oh, and did I mention the sex in this book is completely hot?? Because of course, you know that it is!! I don’t often re-read books but I have already re-read parts of Walk Through Fire while I wait (not so) patiently for the next book from Ms. Ashley.

(ARC provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.)

EXCERPT:

I beeped the locks and had a hand to the handle when I heard, “Lookin’ for me?”

When that deep, coarse voice came at me through the dark, my body became paralyzed, my eyes glued to my hand on the handle.

Then it kept coming at me.

“Bitch, followed you the last forty-​five minutes. Reb got in touch. Told me you hit Scruff’s.” On the next, the voice was nearer. “You’re lookin’ for me. So tell me what the fuck you want so you can quit lookin’ and I can quit lookin’ at you.”

Slowly, I turned, my head going back automatically because I felt him close and I knew what close to Logan meant.

I was five-seven.

He was six-​one.

He towered over me, or at least that’s what it always felt like because he wasn’t only tall, he was also a big guy with a big presence.

And right then, it felt like that, especially since his big presence was an angry one.

His face was in shadows, I could barely see it.

But I could feel him.

And I could smell him.

God, I could smell him.

He didn’t wear cologne or aftershave. His scent was all his. And I remembered lying in our bed holding his pillow to me, my face shoved into the sheets, taking him in after I’d made him walk away.

His scent hadn’t changed. Not even a nuance.

Smelling it without warning felt like walking unsuspecting into the street and having a truck slam into you. And that feeling was so strong it was a wonder my body didn’t go careening through the trucks and bikes, slamming into them, shattering every bone.

He moved forward so he was in my space, the smell strengthened and my body tightened to guard against it.

“Woman, after all this time, whatever shit you gotta hand me, fuckin’ do it,” he ordered irately. “You got two seconds to spit it the fuck out. You don’t, you won’t get another chance, and you know I’ll make it that way. So this is your only shot. Take it or get in your fuckin’ car and get your ass outta my world.”

I stared into the shadows of his face, wishing with everything that I could see it.

Apparently, I did this for two seconds because Logan bit out, “Right. See nothin’s changed. Weak. Now get your ass . . .” he dipped his face to mine, “gone.”

And when he did, I got up on my toes and kissed him.

It was totally crazy.

But I also totally couldn’t help it.

He smelled so fucking good.

And he was Logan.

Close. Right there. His face in mine.

He jerked away, muttering a disgusted, “What the fuck?”

But the words or their tone didn’t penetrate.

I smelled him and I’d had a taste.

I was gone.

I lifted both hands to either side of his head, yanked him down to me, and went back in, going for it, giving it my all. Even when his fingers clenched painfully into my hips pushing them back to set me away, I held on tighter and shoved my tongue between his lips.

It touched his, just that, just a touch, and then I cried out into his mouth when I found my back slammed into my SUV.

But it wasn’t his way to get me to let him go.

No.

His head slanted and he forced my tongue out of his mouth when his invaded mine.

And that was when I was gone.

I was already gone but right then there was nothing to me.

Nothing at all.

Except my hands on Logan’s head, his body pressing mine into my car, his smell all around us, his tongue plundering my mouth, all this exploding fire everywhere.

He drove a hand into my hair, twisting it, the pain bristling over my scalp and I cried out into his mouth again even as I arched deeper, pressed closer, willing, like it had always been, to give it all because he was Logan, he got it all.

But also because I knew I’d get it back a hundredfold.

He swayed us forward so his other arm could lock across my back and he kept at my mouth as I rolled way up on my toes, pushing deep, wrapping my arms around his neck, consumed by the kiss and not giving that first fuck.

I was ready to ride it out.

No, I needed to ride it out.

No matter where it went.

He broke away and that was when my hand went into his hair, fisting tight in protest.

“That what you want?” he growled, his voice lower, the abrasion physical, and I shivered with delight.

I wasn’t entirely certain of the question but I answered a breathy, “Yes.”

“That’s what you want,” he repeated, a statement this time, seeking confirmation.

“Yes, Logan.”

He let me go but took my hand, his skin rough against my fingers. The feel of it back after all these years washed through me and I fancied I remembered every time, in quick succession, from the first night we met to the night before I broke it off when he’d taken my hand and guided me somewhere.

Lost in it like I’d always been lost in it, I followed blindly.

Attached to Logan, I’d go anywhere.

Even if we were walking through fire.

About Kristen Ashley:
6864936

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 better.

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Twitter
Facebook
Goodreads

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Categories : 5 Stars, Alpha male, Blog Tour, Contemporary Romance, Giveaway, MC Romance Tagged : Chaos, Excerpt, Kristen Ashley, Walk Through Fire

Blog Tour: HOLD ON (THE ‘BURG SERIES) by KRISTEN ASHLEY

September 5, 2015

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Since she was young, Cher Rivers knew she was not the kind of girl who got what she wanted. A girl who could hope. A girl who could dream. She knew a happily ever after just wasn’t in the cards for her.

In love for years with the last bastion of the ‘burg’s eligible bachelors, Garrett Merrick, Cher worked hard at making him laugh. Being one of the guys. Having him in her life the only way she could. All this knowing he was in love with another woman.

The Merrick Family is known for loving deep. So when Cecelia Merrick was murdered, it marked the Merricks in a way none of them recovered. Both Cecelia’s children found love. Both turned their backs on it. But Garrett “Merry” Merrick knew in his soul the woman he divorced years ago was the one for him.

Until the night when Cher took Garrett’s back and things changed. The Merrick family loves deep. They also protect fiercely. And with his eyes finally open, Garrett sees the woman who truly is for him and he goes after her.

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How do you describe the feeling that you get when you read a Kristen Ashley book? It is very hard to describe the emotions in simple words. Gut-wrenching? Heart-pounding? All of those happen to me and when a book is the end of a beloved series, well, let’s just say that I was a sobbing mess while reading this Epilogue.

I binge read The ‘Burg Series several years ago while on a long vacation that involved a lot of driving. Needless to say, I volunteered to sit in the back seat while on most of this vacation so I could read this fantastic series! As with all of her books, each of Ms. Ashley’s series are slightly different; in the ‘Burg, the characters are all a little older, a lot jaded, fiercely protective, and above all, unforgettable.

HOLD ON is a spectacular end to the series. Cher appeared earlier in the series, a hard-luck woman who struggles to keep her head above water and lives paycheck-to-paycheck to support herself and her beloved son. She never, ever believes that love will happen for her, and never, ever believes that she will find happiness with a man who will love and cherish her and her son. Cher broke my heart over and over, and I cried many times throughout this book at her sadness and despair.

“But he’d never give me what I wanted.

I forgot.

I forgot that I wasn’t the kind of girl who got what she wanted.

Not once.

Not in my whole f*g life.

Yeah, I’d forgotten that.”

Cher has a major case of unrequited love for Garrett (Merry), who in turn cannot forget the ex-wife who broke his heart. Sounds like a real downer of a book, right? But no! HOLD ON is a tale of mended hearts, beautiful possibilities and bright futures that everyone dreams about in their heart of hearts. There is no one who can infuse a story with magnificence and hope like Ms. Ashley. And HOLD ON is the perfect story of love and redemption, of fighting for what you want, and for holding on when you know you have goodness within your grasp.

The ending of this book very much reminded me of the series finale of one of my favorite TV shows, Six Feet Under. Kristen Ashley is the Queen of epilogues and I will never, ever forget this one. I am so sad to say goodbye to the families of the ‘Burg but I know that Ms. Ashley has even more goodness in store for her readers. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.

(ARC provided by the author in return for an honest review.)

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Through this, my leg hit an end table and I adjusted. We cleared the couch, I shifted again too soon, both my calves hit the coffee table, and my ass went down on it.
I looked up. Cell flat to the table, I braced my hands to push up, but Merry was there, chin in his throat, eyes on me, and when he spoke again, his mind was clearly on my location.
“Tried to get your mouth on me more than once when we tore at each other up last Friday, but I was in the mood to use mine. Lookin’ forward to learnin’ what you can do with yours, but like I said, baby, right now, don’t got the time.”
My only response that he couldn’t twist was to glare at him, which was what I did.
“But got time before I go for a kiss,” Merry informed me.
“Only kiss I’ll give you is tellin’ you to kiss off,” I informed him.
“Who knew warm brown eyes like the ones you got could spark that kind of fire,” he muttered as if he wasn’t even talking to me.
“Step back,” I demanded.
“No,” he denied.
I continued to glare up at him, then I realized I was not the kind of woman who sat on her ass, glaring up at a man towering over her and pinning her in. So I stood, which put me smack in Merry’s space, my breasts brushing against his abs and up his chest on my way.
They kept brushing when he didn’t move back, but I didn’t attempt escape, even to get away from the shafts of electricity this all caused at my nipples, shafts that headed south.
I glared at him from closer.
He stared into my eyes, his gaze moving down to my mouth then back up as one side of his lips curved.
He was getting off on this.
I didn’t get that and I didn’t want to get that.
I wanted this done.
“In the mood to play, Officer?” I whispered.
“Told you, sweetheart, don’t got the time.”
I shook my head but held his gaze. “Not what I mean. Single mom, all alone. Switch out her storms. Offer info to help her out of a jam. Been a while since I was in the know about these things, so tell me, what’s the price for all that? You mentioned a blowjob. You got stamina, but I got talent. Balance that out, I’m thinkin’ it’ll take more than the usual ten, fifteen minutes. We’ll give it twenty. So I can manage my time, is there more?”
I wasn’t even done talking before I learned his eyes could spark fire too.
I also learned he was in the mood to play, that being, playing me at my own game.
And doing it better.
He dipped his face close, his voice low. “Storms get me the blowjob, brown eyes. I get the intel you need, that buys me sinkin’ deep in wet pussy.”
I felt my nipples get harder at the same time something else happened to me that, if he was of a mind to take his payoff right then, he’d get what he wanted.
I hid this reaction and asked, “You want this all in one go, or you wanna spread payback out for a while?”
“Keep plenty of time open, Cher. I intend to earn a fuckuva lot more and draw it out collecting.”
I nodded, still keeping a lock on his eyes. “I get it. Girl like me, only payback expected for me to be able to give.”
That didn’t get me fire.
That got me ice.
“I hear you talk down about yourself one more time, Cher, shit will get extreme.”
That made me ice over.
“Do not hand me that crap, Merry. You come into my home and got no problem talkin’ about wet pussy right to my face tells me the woman you know me to be.”
He dipped his face even closer, to the point it felt like if I blinked, my lashes would sweep his in a butterfly kiss.
“Do not hand me your shit, Cher,” he growled. “That hang-up is yours, not mine. And how I know that is I made you come just finger fuckin’ you and talkin’ dirty in your ear, and it was the talk and not what my fingers were doin’ that took you there. I like that, a woman who can let go and let me give her that without gettin’ uptight and closin’ down on me. You liked it too, a fuckuva lot more than me. So don’t stand there handin’ me your shit when I know you’re wet for me now and I haven’t fuckin’ touched you.”
I refused to reply to that because he was right and I had no intention of confirming that information.
But it was then he hit me with a verbal blow, the intensity of which, not in my whole shitty-ass life I’d ever received.
“Christ, if I didn’t know you were worth it, I’d walk out the door and this would be done—all we got, over.”
I could stand.
I could stare.
But I couldn’t breathe.
Merry could.
He could also speak.
“Hope like fuck no one takes off with those storms while I’m gone. You think they will, move ’em into garage and leave the key under the mat. I’m switchin’ ’em out, Cher. I come back tonight and they’re done, I’ll find you, and I won’t be collectin’. I’ll be dishin’ it out, but you won’t get it until you beg for it and do that shit for a really long time.”
His words were lost on me.
I continued to stand.
I continued to stare.
But my lungs had started burning.
If I didn’t know you were worth it…
“When’s Ethan’s next sleepover?” Merry bit out.
“Friday,” I whispered. “But his friend’s comin’ here.”
“Fuck,” Merry clipped. “Find a time, babe. You don’t, payback’ll stack up and I’ll have to take personal days and hole up in a hotel with you for a week. And there’s not a doubt that stick-up-her-ass church lady your ex tied his shit to won’t appreciate you bein’ gone from your kid for a weeklong fuckathon.”
That was kind of funny as well as hot.
I still said nothing.
Merry fell silent and stared at me.
Then he dealt the second biggest verbal blow I’d ever received in my life.
“Christ, you’re pretty, even standin’ there plotting my murder.”
After that, he lifted a hand, grabbed me gentle but firm at my neck, yanked me up so my mouth hit his hard but brief, then he let me go.
“Later, babe,” he said, strolling to my door. He stopped in it, turned to me, and bid his farewell by saying, “You touch those storms only to put them in the garage.”
He closed the door on that.
I stood where he left me.
If I didn’t know you were worth it…
What was I worth?
What was I worth to Merry? [Read more…]

Categories : 5 Stars, Blog Tour, Contemporary Romance Tagged : Excerpt, Hold On, Kristen Ashley, The 'Burg Series

Blog Tour, Excerpt and Giveaway: RIDE STEADY (CHAOS #3) by KRISTEN ASHLEY

June 30, 2015

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Synopsis:

RIDE STEADY by Kristen Ashley (June 30, 2015; Forever Mass Market; Chaos #3)

The ride of her life . . .
Once upon a time, Carissa Teodoro believed in happy endings. Money, marriage, motherhood: everything came easy—until she woke up to the ugly truth about her Prince Charming. Now a struggling, single mom and stranded by a flat tire, Carissa’s pondering her mistakes when a vaguely familiar knight rides to her rescue on a ton of horsepower.

Climb on and hold tight . . .
In high school, Carson Steele was a bad boy loner who put Carissa on a pedestal where she stayed far beyond his reach. Today, he’s the hard-bodied biker known only as Joker, and from the way Carissa’s acting, it’s clear she’s falling fast. While catching her is irresistible, knowing what to do with her is a different story. A good girl like Carissa is the least likely fit with the Chaos Motorcycle Club. Too bad holding back is so damned hard. Now, as Joker’s secrets are revealed and an outside threat endangers the club, Joker must decide whether to ride steady with Carissa—or ride away forever . . .

 

Review:

PURE PERFECTION!!

I could read only Kristen Ashley books and be very happy. RIDE STEADY is another slam-dunk winner from the Queen of Alphas, with a story that ripped my heart out and characters that I won’t soon forget. Joker might be one Ms. Ashley’s most unforgettable Alphas ever, a man who rose from a painful and loveless childhood to become a patched-in Brother of the Chaos MC. Chaos became his family, and the MC recognized the fire burning in Joker that would serve the club well.

“He was at the shop window, empty pockets, face pressed to the glass, starin’ at what he wanted but couldn’t have. I’ll wager, to survive, he’s banked that fire. We gotta help him direct it and make sure if it flares bright, it doesn’t burn him out.”

Carissa Teodoro’s life becomes entwined with Joker’s, as the two former high school classmates meet again years later. Let me just say that this book is so incredibly gripping and heartbreaking and sexy, that I am tempted to re-read it to experience these feelings all over again! She was once the golden girl who had it all, and he was the boy from the wrong side of the tracks. Their story spans years and that is what I love about Ms. Ashley’s writing: there is no Insta-love here, instead, our hero and heroine have a shared history that adds a depth and richness to this book.

“Yeah, Carrie,” he answered. “It’s you. It’s always been you. It’ll always be you. Fuckin’ always.”

Joker is a sexy, bad-ass Alpha biker that has zero interest in relationships, or in real friendships for that matter, since he has a hard time opening up to anyone about his feelings or his past. That is what makes his relationship with Carrie so poignant: this is a man who is so closed off and afraid of emotional bonds that he has been alone (and lonely) most of his life.

Carrie draws his out just by being herself. She is going through a messy and painful divorce, has a baby, is struggling to make ends meet and has a ton of emotional baggage. She is not perfect but she is open to love and gives her heart unconditionally to Joker.

“Rule,” he stated instantaneously.
His strange word made me blink at the lockers. “Sorry?”
“Rule. You can’t be like that on the phone. You can only be like that when I can kiss you.”
I lifted a hand and pressed it to the cold steel of my locker, leaning into it because my knees suddenly wouldn’t support me.
“You hear me?” he asked. “Yes, Joker.”

OH. EM. GEE!! *SWOON* I can’t say enough about Ride Steady. Plus some of my favorite bad-ass Alphas from Ms. Ashley’s other books make appearances here! Dead. There is also a sneak peek at the next Chaos book at the end of Ride Steady and it sounds amazing. Joker and Carissa’s story is beautiful, thrilling and passionate. Ride Steady is a must-read!

Favorite quotes:

“Butterfly, you’re cute all the time, cuter some times more than others, and it’s fucked up because right now you’re bein’ a pain in the ass and this is one of those times that you’re cuter. But you gotta get this so you can get over it. My old man doesn’t exist for me. I left him and that life behind, and I don’t want it back in any way it can come back.”

“We are who cares about us.”

(ARC provided by the publisher in return for an honest review.)

 

Excerpt:

“Yo!” I heard Snapper call and I looked to him to see he was looking beyond me. I turned around and saw Tabby was heading toward me and Snapper. “I’m takin’ Carissa out on my bike. You wanna look after her purse or put it in Shy’s room or somethin’?”
At his request, Tabby’s gaze immediately cut to the pool tables. When she took them in, for some reason, her face got hard before she softened it and looked back toward us.
“Not a problem,” she said, stopping at us. “Go. Ride.”
“Never been on a bike,” I told her and her face split in a big smile.
“Then go. Ride.” She leaned in to me. “Beware, wind in your hair, moon on your skin, you’ll fall in love.”
I wasn’t sure that was a good thing. I’d fallen in love with something I couldn’t have, and if I fell in love with the wind in my hair and the moon on my skin, without someone to give that to me, I couldn’t have that either.
But to heck with it.
Maybe this would be the only bike ride I’d I’d have in my life.
And maybe the kiss Joker gave me was the only fabulous kiss I’d ever get.
And maybe my dream of having a family or the other dream of getting behind the steel guarding Joker’s eyes was lost to me.
But I was still breathing.
So I’d take what I could get.
Tabby put her hand on my purse, which was lying on the bar. “Got this. Have fun.”
“Thanks,” I whispered.
She winked at me.
I looked to Snapper. “Let’s go.”
“Meet you at the end of the bar, babe.”
“Right!” I chirped, jumped off my stool, threw Tabby a smile, nabbed my jacket that I was sitting on and bounced to the end of the bar.
When I got there, Snapper had pulled on his leather jacket. He grabbed my hand and guided me out the door and to his bike. Then he got on his bike before instructing me on how to do the same.
The bike roared, he backed out on an angle, and we glided over the tarmac of Ride.
He pulled out onto Broadway and I got it.
The wind in my hair.
The moon on my skin.
The leather of his jacket in my nostrils.
The solidness of him under my hands at his waist.
We got close to the onramp of I‑25 and he shouted, “Hold on!”
“Sorry?” I shouted back.
“Hold on!” he yelled, taking one hand off the grip and using it to pull my hand from his waist and around to his stomach.
He put his hand back on the grip and we turned up the ramp, going faster, faster, faster, the wind whipping my hair and biting into my skin. I curved my other arm around him, put my chin to his shoulder, drew in air and leather, and I got it.
Instantly.
That it being why this was the life for a biker.
No encumbrances. You wanted to smoke pot, you smoked it. You wanted to wear a tube top, you wore it. You wanted to drink shots, you drank them. You wanted to make out hot and heavy on a couch in a room filled with people, you did it.
You wanted to live, you lived.
You wanted to be free, you got on your bike and rode in the moonlight.
You did not drink martinis you didn’t like. You did not take a job your mother‑in‑law thought you should have. You did not take guff from your ex, not ever.
You did what you wanted.
You were free.
In all that was happening to me, all that I was feeling, all the disappointment of that night and the bizarre devastation I felt that the first time this happened, me on the back of a bike, I would have preferred it be with Joker . . . right then, for that moment, I let it all go.
I let it go, held on to Snapper and I let myself feel it.
Feel something rare and beautiful and overwhelming.
Feel something I knew for certain I hadn’t felt in my whole life.
Free.

 

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About Kristen Ashley:

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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 better.

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Categories : 5 Stars, Alpha male, Alpha- hero, Biker, Blog Tour, Contemporary Romance, Giveaway, Release Blitz, Reviews Tagged : Excerpt, Kristen Ashley, Ride Steady

SOARING (MAGDALENE #2) by KRISTEN ASHLEY: Review, Excerpt & Giveaway

March 19, 2015

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Synopsis:

American heiress Amelia Hathaway needs to start anew.

Her husband cheated on her, and when everything she wanted in life slipped through her fingers, she fell apart. When she did, she took another heart wrenching hit as she lost the respect of her children.

When her ex took her family from California to live in the small town of Magdalene in Maine, Amelia decided it was time to sort herself out. In order to do that and win her children back, she moves to Cliff Blue, an architectural masterpiece on the rocky coast of Magdalene.

Her boxes aren’t even unpacked when she meets Mickey Donovan, a man who lives across the street, a man so beautiful Amelia takes one look at Mickey and knows she wants everything from him.

The problem is, she finds out swiftly that he’s friendly, he’s kind, but he doesn’t want everything back.

Amelia struggles to right past wrongs in her life at the same time find out who she wants to be. She also struggles with her attraction to the handsome firefighter who lives across the street.

But Amelia will face a surprise when her friendly neighbor becomes not-so-friendly. As Amelia and Mickey go head to head, Amelia must focus on winning back the hearts of her children.

She soon discovers she also must focus on winning the heart of a handsome firefighter who understands down to his soul the beautiful heiress who lives across the street is used to a life he cannot provide.

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Our Review:

We loved Mickey and Amelia’s story! Soaring is classic Kristen Ashley, filled with love, family, a helluva sexy Alpha hero and lots more love. What is different about Soaring is that Amelia is far from perfect. She is a seriously flawed heroine who has made some very bad choices in her life. Those actions have had serious consequences including the loss of the custody of her children. But she is bound and determined to change her life, get her kids back and maybe, just maybe, fall in love again.

Ms. Ashley fills Amelia’s house with good friends and lots of family. Fences are mended and hearts are repaired along the way. But it is not an easy path, as Amelia has alienated most of her family and must hide her shattered heart in order to put things right again. We absolutely loved how the author really nailed what it’s like to live with teenagers, and loved the scenes with Amelia’s kids and Mickey’s kids as well.

Mickey has also had a rough past and resists falling for his gorgeous neighbor. He is a good man and might be one of our favorite KA heroes ever. Strong, sexy, low-key….yes, please!! And he accepts Amelia for who she is and doesn’t judge her based on her past behavior.

“The mistakes we make in life don’t define us, Amy. The way we handle ’em after makin’ ’em do.”

This is an EPIC love story. We “soared” right along with Amelia and Mickey. We also loved how Amelia finally, for the first time in her life, stands on her own two feet and stands up to her awful, low-life ex-husband Conrad. And she does so without harming her children along the way.
We love a strong heroine and Amelia turns out to be just that. Smart, beautiful and loving, it was a pleasure reading about a heroine who was over 40 and had LIVED a life. Soaring is a gritty, sexy, beautiful story. Don’t miss this one!!

“Life isn’t always beauty,” he returned. “Most of the time it’s shit. But you keep fightin’ to turn it around, that says it all about you. And you’re fightin’. As a fighter too, I fuckin’ love that in you.”

Excerpt

“Hello, Boston Stone,” I greeted because I had no idea what else to say.
“You are?” he asked as I put the bags to the ground and touched the button on the trunk that would open it keyless.
As it glided open, I opened my mouth, doing it uncertain if I’d share my name or continue to try to brush him off, but I didn’t have the chance to decide.
I heard the word, “Babe,” growled from behind me.
I turned and saw Mickey stalking our way.
Not sauntering.
Not simply walking.
Stalking.
And he didn’t look happy.
“Mickey,” I called tentatively as a greeting, uncertain at his demeanor.
I hadn’t seen him since he hadn’t seen me (I hoped) at the movies.
He was in his firefighter-not-fighting-a-fire uniform of blue khakis and tee. His eyes were moving up and down my body. He still was unbelievably beautiful (that uniform…seriously).
He didn’t greet me back.
When he stopped, his gaze cut to Boston Stone and it went flinty.
“You need somethin’?” he asked incomprehensibly inhospitably.
“I was just helping this lovely lady with her groceries,” Stone responded.
“I got it,” Mickey stated flatly and then he got it. As in, he carefully pulled me back, grabbed the bags I was perfectly capable of picking up myself and placed them in my trunk.
He then went for the bag Stone was carrying, caught hold, but Stone didn’t let go.
“I can put it in the trunk myself, Donovan,” Stone clipped.
So they knew each other.
“As I said, I got it, Stone,” Mickey clipped back.
Yes, they knew each other.
The handles flattened as they both kept hold and pulled.
“Please!” I exclaimed. “We already had a wine incident. The sidewalk of Magdalene has been anointed with one red, let’s not anoint Cross Street with four.”
Mickey instantly let go and stepped back, running into me but he didn’t apologize or move away.
He stayed close, the back of his left side touching the front of my right.
It was at that point I noticed Mickey gave off a lot of heat.
Stone put the bag in my trunk, shut it and turned slowly to Mickey and me.
But he had eyes on Mickey.
“Are you two seeing each other?”
“That’s your business how?” Mickey asked as reply.
“It’s my business because, if you’re not, I’d like to request you leave so I can ask her to dinner,” Stone returned.
My head jerked as my body locked in shock.
“That’s not gonna happen,” Mickey growled.
My body stayed locked in shock but that didn’t mean my eyes didn’t fly to Mickey’s stony-faced profile in more shock.
“So you are seeing each other,” Stone remarked.
“Again, not your business,” Mickey bit out.
Stone’s expression turned shrewd. “And that’s something that would lead me to believe that the beautiful woman standing behind you is free to go to dinner with me.”
“You forget English?” Mickey asked. “I already answered that too.”
I butted in, “I think I can speak for myself, Mickey.”
He moved nothing but his head (though his torso shifted an inch) so he could look down at me.
His eyes were communicating again.
This time they were communicating the fact that he really didn’t like Boston Stone.
Considering what I knew of Mickey, this would be something that, along with my own natural aversion to Mr. Stone, would have made me decline the man’s invitation.
Unfortunately, Mickey added words to his look so this didn’t happen.
“You’re not goin’ out with this guy.”
Was he being serious?
He couldn’t tell me what to do. He wasn’t my father, my brother or my lover.
Heck, he barely knew me!
All he knew about me was that he didn’t want me. I was his…“attractive” neighbor who he now did not even walk over to beg recipes from (okay, so Aisling didn’t know of any other recipes I had, but whatever).
He didn’t even return my email!
And he was off with beautiful, statuesque redheads, smiling at them, taking them to movies.
He couldn’t tell me who I could and could not see.
“I’m not?” I snapped.
“No,” he turned fully to me, an ominous fully. “You are not,” he enunciated each word clearly.
“Sorry?” I asked sarcastically. “When did you become my big brother?”
He was still enunciating clearly, and dangerously, when he stated, “I absolutely am not your big brother.”
“No, you’re not,” I retorted, tossing my hair, which I hoped was shining in the sun. And with my hair toss, I further hoped my fabulous highlights caught the rays and gleamed. “You’re my neighbor. And if I want to go out with someone, you can’t say boo to the contrary.”
“This guy is an asshole,” he bit off, jerking his thumb at Boston Stone.
I felt my eyes get big and I got up on my toes, leaning into him, hissing, “That’s insufferably rude, Mickey Donovan.”
“It isn’t rude if it’s the truth.”
“You may think so but you don’t say it in front of the man in question.”
“You do if he’s as big of an asshole as this asshole is,” Mickey shot back.
My eyes got wider and I leaned closer. “Stop being nasty!” I demanded.
“You been in town, what?” he asked then answered with another question he didn’t expect a reply to. “A coupla months? I lived here my whole life and trust me, I’m savin’ you from a load of misery, this guy gets interested in you,” he returned.
I rocked down to my stilettos. “I am a big girl, Mickey. All grown up and everything. I do think I can make such decisions for myself.”
“You do, and they’re not what I’m tellin’ you to do, you’d be wrong.”
I glared at him.
Then I pushed right past him, hand lifted and got in the space of Boston Stone.
“Boston,” I said as he took my hand, grinning arrogantly and more than a little obnoxiously at me. “A belated nice to meet you. I’m Amelia Hathaway.”
His hand tightened in mine as he murmured, “Amelia.”
I pulled my hand from his, asking, “Do you know Cliff Blue?”
“Of course,” he replied, inclining his head in a pompous way that actually was kind of creepy.
“I live there,” I announced, doing another hair toss and powering beyond the creepy. “And I have plans this evening but I’m free tomorrow. Are you?”
“I wasn’t,” he replied. “But I’ll be making a phone call and I will be.”
“Excellent,” I decreed. “Seven?” I went on to ask.
“I’d be delighted,” he said softly, his eyes dancing with humor and I could see that too was relatively malicious.
I didn’t care.
I’d go out with him once, just to stick it to Mickey.
Then I’d be done with Boston Stone.
And anyway, I had about seven new outfits that would be perfect for a date and I knew this even though I hadn’t been on a date in two decades.
“I’ll see you then,” I said.
“You will, Amelia.” He dipped his chin to me. “Looking forward to it.”
“And me,” I replied.
He gave me another arrogant grin then transferred it to Mickey.
“Donovan,” he murmured.
Mickey didn’t reply.
Stone looked back to me. “Until tomorrow, Amelia.”
“Yes, Boston. And please, feel free to call me Amy.”
Mickey grunted.
Boston smiled before he turned and sauntered away.
I whirled on Mickey and tipped my head to the side. “See? All grown up and able to make decisions for myself.”
“What I see is a pattern here,” he retorted unpleasantly.
“Oh?” I asked with mock interest. “Do tell.”
Then Mickey told.
“First time I laid eyes on you, your ex was up in your face, cursing at you, threatening you, shouting right at you and acting like a total fucking dick. It’s obvious he’s rich and up his own ass and didn’t give a shit you were alone, and because of that, you probably felt unsafe. It was just as obvious you were lettin’ him use you as his punching bag. Even if no woman deserves the way he was speakin’ to you, he just kept right on punching. Now, you know that guy you just made a date with is a total asshole and you made that date anyway. So that’s your pattern. You open yourself up for assholes to shit all over you. And if that’s the way you like it, baby, then no way in fuck I’m gonna get in there to show you there’s another way.”
Before I could retort, he turned on his boot and prowled away.

About Kristen Ashley:

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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 better.

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Categories : 5 Stars, Alpha male, Alpha- hero, Blog Tour, Contemporary Romance, Giveaway Tagged : Excerpt, Kristen Ashley, Soaring

♥ VALENTINE’S DAY GIVEAWAY ♥

February 10, 2015

So, Valentine’s Day is coming up soon…and it’s a perfect time for a giveaway of some of our favorite books!! Whether you love a tough biker, a sexy professor, a brilliant but tortured writer or an irresistible race car driver, we’ve got a book for you. Open internationally. Good luck!!

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Categories : Contemporary Erotic Romance, Contemporary Romance, Giveaway Tagged : Chelle Bliss, E.M. Abel, Giveaway, J.B. Salsbury, Jamie McGuire, K. Bromberg, Kristen Ashley, Lex Martin, M. Pierce, R.K. Lilley, Raine Miller, Sylvain Reynard, Tessa Bailey, Tia Louise

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