Taking Control

Taking Control
By Jen Frederick

SUMMARY:

In their secret world, unspoken wishes for pleasure come true…and the allure of glamour and passion can easily disguise a deadly secret.

After a tumultuous riches-to-rags childhood, Ian Kerr decided to spend his life focused on making money—and it’s paid off. Then he meets sassy, smart-mouthed bike messenger Victoria “Tiny” Corielli, and he wants nothing more than to introduce her to his world of elite luxury…and enticing desire. But a businessman as ruthless as Ian always has enemies lurking in the shadows—the kind of enemies who violently claimed his parents and are willing to use Victoria as a pawn in their deadly game.

Plucked from her lowly walk-up apartment and financial struggles into a glittering world of wealth and privilege, Victoria is almost overwhelmed…and almost delirious with insatiable desire for Ian. Then sensuality turns to serious peril as Ian’s rivals—and the people Victoria thought she could trust—close in, putting her in jeopardy. Torn between the temptation of carnal passion and the terror of unfathomable danger, she discovers that the dark side of suddenly having it all is knowing you could lose everything.

Revised edition: This edition of Taking Control includes editorial revisions.

REVIEW:

Recieved a copy from NetGalley for an honest review

They say a sequel is ever as good as the original, but this is not the case.  Now I did like Tiny's POV in the first book her snarky humor knew no bounds, but Ian's had benefits too.  Again Ian and Tiny's interactions are beyond hot and shower inducing.  The bind of friendship is strong and shows how noble Ian really is.  Ian's love for Tiny know no boundaries and is so admiring that I had to fall in love with him.  Some may call it possessive or obsessive, but no he just has pure love for his Bunny and it shows in everything he does.  I am glad Ian gets his revenge without dis honoring himself or others!  The spin on the plot at the end was somewhat surprising, but I did ponder it at one time.  Great story!  Loved it!  It would be great if she writes another with Kaga and Sabrina!

Losing Control

Losing Control
By Jen Frederick

SUMMARY:

Welcome to a world few people know. A world where the hottest bedroom desires become a reality and where good girls like Victoria “Tiny” Corielli shed their sweetness for carnal, bad-girl pleasures.

Victoria nurses her mother through cancer treatments and works long hours as a New York City bike courier to pay for the roof over their heads. When a suspiciously high-paying delivery job thrusts her into the arms of impossibly attractive businessman Ian Kerr, Victoria is sorely tempted to enjoy his attentions and his chiseled body, if only to forget her responsibilities for a while…no matter the cost.

Kerr seems to have it all: money, power, and charisma to spare. What he doesn’t have: revenge on an old nemesis, but he intends to get it. Kerr is prepared to cast innocent Victoria as the lure in his vengeful plot. Yet the more they explore midtown Manhattan—and each other—the more she means to Ian. Will it be too late for him to stop the dangerous plan he’s already put into motion?

Revised edition: This edition of Losing Control includes editorial revisions.

REVIEW:

Received a copy from NetGalley for an honest review

What a fantastic book!  I was hooked from the minute I opened it up.  Tiny and Ian are memorizing.  They are so real with their feelings and actions.  They leap off the pages. This is no fairytale romance this real and complicated.  The rich guy is a fairytale part, but he is complex and had been dealt a poor hand when younger.  I like Ian because he is a self made man.  Tiny is amazing and a wonderful daughter.  She truly touched my heart with the love and loyalty to her mother.  I really connected with Tiny because she wasn't perfect; not the Barbie heroine that is slim and beautiful with it all together.  She is real and has true real life issues.  I cried like a baby during part of the story.  The interaction between Tiny and Ian was undeniably hot and sexy.  I cannot wait to read the next story.

His Captive Mortal

His Captive Mortal
By Renee Rose

SUMMARY:
When a young special education teacher unwittingly attracts the attention of a strange man on her late night walk home, she winds up with a supernatural guest she can’t evict. For some reason, Charlie, the dominant immortal believes she is of fairy descent and has magical powers. He demands her complete submission and cooperation, refusing to free her until she promises to help him. 

Charlie sees the power in Sasha and believes she has the ability to undo the curse placed on him by a jealous lover one hundred years before. He also loves toying with the feisty mortal, doling out humiliating punishments while arousing a lust in her that leaves them both hungry for satisfaction. 

His habit of emotional detachment crumbles as he falls for Sasha, yet when he discovers she carries a secret that relates to his past, the betrayal nearly destroys him. He must decide whether he can ever trust a woman, or give into instinct and walk away from what might be his only chance at love and redemption. 

**This book was previously released as Loose Morals by Darling Adams. It has been edited for re-release** 

Publishers Note: This book contains elements of BDSM including spanking, bondage and erotic sex scenes.

REVIEW:

Revived a copy from NetGalley for an honest review

Ok I picked this because I work with special needs kids and wanted to see how the main character would be portrayed. I love vampires and I can get down with some D/s stuff. I thought this would be the perfect read; well I was sadly mistaken. I could not finish the book. I was turned off from the beginning when Charlie keeps spanking Sasha. Ok I am up for sensual spanking and some punishment, but this just seems like he was abusing her. I know he wanted her help, but there was so many other ways of asking. He just ramroded her and she just caved. I wish writers would write a submissive woman with some backbone and not a piece of carpet to wipe your feet on. I couldn't get past this and could not get into the story, total bust. 

Beautiful Star of Bethlehem

Review copy provided via NetGallery in exchange for an honest review

Summary:  Beautiful Star of Bethlehem

Meet Arlene Santana, a vibrant wife and young grandmother whose life suddenly takes a confusing and often laughable turn into a new reality framed by a severe brain injury. As one holiday after another speeds by, Arlene takes comfort in the amusing old people who surround her in the rehabilitation center and one special friend who relates well to Arlene. But when will her husband, whose love is more real to her than anything, come to visit her?

Review:

This has to be the best novella I’ve ever read. Your heart goes out to Arlene as she deals with this new world she lives in, which is new every day.  She has moments where she seems to be all there, but then it flashes away and you realize just how tough brain injuries are on the whole family.  There moments that have you laughing, there are moments where the tears run down your face. This novella leaves you feeling warm inside at the love her family shows and to the length they go through to see that she is happy.

The development of the story line as well as the characters is complex. The  editor did an awesome job as I found now grammatical or punctuation errors, which just adds more appeal to the story.  

Conclusion:

Would I Recommend this novella to other?  YES

Will I read other stories written by this Author?  YES

This book is a Novella, which feels complete, yet does leave you wanting more, but any good story we don’t want it to end.  I will be buying my own copy so I can read this again and again.

Mate With Me

Mate With Me
By BJ Wane

Summary:
Another sizzling erotic tale of female surrender from author BJ Wane – this time with a vampire twist!
Damien LaRue has spent the better part of two hundred years trying to atone for an act he’d been driven to commit shortly after master vampiress, Isabelle Sartre ended his life in 1815. Because he can never forgive himself, he plans to ‘meet the dawn’ soon, never intending to claim his mate. However, he hadn’t counted on Abrielle Chirac’s tenacity and her utter faith in him. When a strange mark suddenly appears on her breast, Abby discovers that she is destined to become her guardian’s mate. She’s determined to use her body to break through Damien’s wall of resistance. She wants the man as much as her body craves the vampire! Unfortunately, Damien’s will is stronger than her attempts at seduction, and it isn’t until she’s attacked by rogues and Damien brings her to his home for protection that she gets the chance to finally become his in every way.
Damien isn’t the only one to have a run-in with vampire rogues. Jacob Carter has spent decades longing to find his mate, but when he finally does, it’s to rescue her from one of his own. Grace Larsen is shocked to discover an immediate sexual response to the vampire who comes to her rescue. But ignoring her body’s desires, she refuses to believe that Jacob is any different than the vampire who tormented her. However, when Jacob is critically wounded from a rogue attack, Grace is left with two choices—watch the man she has grown to care for die, or use her body, the one thing she’s withheld from him, to save him.
In time, Damien, Jacob and their fellow vampires discover that their nemesis, Isabelle, is behind the rogue attacks. But before they have any hope of permanently ending Isabelle’s existence, they must resolve the issues that keep them from completing their mating bonds.
This sexy tale of love and surrender includes spanking, exhibitionism, oral and anal, ménage.

REVIEW:
Cold shower needed!

Review copy provided via Reading Alley in exchange for an honest review.

If you like lots and lots of hot sex, this is the book for you! WOW! The author has something for everyone: m/f, m/f/m, vouyerism, anal, and anytime any place! I needed a cold shower when I finished. The vampire plot was interesting, but the end seemed off some how. I don't want to give away the end. There was no real explanation for what happened and why. That was the only draw back! HOT STEAMY!! If that is your thing READ this story!!

Vandal (Ashes & Embers, #2)
By Carian Cole

SUMMARY:
She takes my breath away; she is so beautifully damaged.  
Yes I had broken her, ravished her life, destroyed her happiness. I brought her to ultimate despair. I was responsible for all the pain and suffering that now brought her to her knees in front of me. 

Broken. 
Hopeless. 
Reckless in her agony. 

She is a mirror of my own tortured soul.

But what I took away I can give back.
In ways she cannot even begin to imagine.
 
She is everything right in all my wrongs.

She loves me. She needs me.

She has no idea I’m the one who wrecked her life.

REVIEW:

I loved and hated this book. I couldn't put it down but it was like a train wreck that you can't look away from. I was ok with it's D/s stuff and came to terms with almost all of the drama except the ending. I was great with it until the last chapter. I couldn't believe what she admitted at the end and it kinda tarnished the journey for me. It just rubbed me the wrong way. It is one hell of a ride. A good read.

Branded Irish

Branded Irish
By Sara Brookes

SUMMARY:
She’s a genius with biotechnology. He’s a sadist in tailored suits. Their business arrangement is about to get personal…in more ways than one.

For workaholic Arden, the vacation to a tropical paradise was supposed to be relaxing. But when a past lover unexpectedly crosses her path, every desire she has been smothering roars to life. When Garvey offers her a lucrative business proposition handling technology that will revolutionize the industry—and change the world—like a moth driven to flame, she can’t resist.

One year as president of Riding Irish, and Garvey is struggling to balance the burdens of the motorcycle club, his personal life, and his security firm. Weighed down with responsibilities he is convinced he can’t manage, he is near the breaking point. But Arden’s reappearance is a perfect distraction. And his second chance with the only woman he ever loved.

When Garvey teaches Arden to turn the pain he gives her into the pleasure she craves, dark desires are awakened. Limits are tested. And the line between play and love starts to blur. Just as they discover how far they’re willing to go, a heart-breaking deception is revealed that threatens to extinguish their rekindled passion.

Warning: Take a sadist with a talent for edge play, add in a masochist who craves his masterful touch, mix in a belt, some ropes, and a set of special knives and this is one second chance love story that will have you aching to get marked. 

REVIEW:

Good but not my thing.

Review copy provided via Reading Alley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great story and I enjoyed it, but I made an error when I decided to read this story. I love kink and the author does a great job writing. I'm unfortunately didn't read the fine print where is said he was a sadist and her a masochist. I have difficulty with those concepts. I just can't go there. If you like it this is the book for you. The story around all of the kink is good and I like that part and some of the scenes; others I had to skip. I would read the next book

Get Off Easy

Get Off Easy
By Sara Brookes

SUMMARY:
Grae is ready take her membership at Noble House to the next level. In her sights are two premier Doms who sparked her hunger during a forbidden night long, long ago. Surrounded by the club’s legendary theme rooms, her body awakens to urges she has kept locked away. As the trio explore their kinkiest fantasies, Grae realizes she’ll have to confess her darkest cravings.

Saint and Boyce have been partners for thirteen years, both at the club and in life. They know exactly what Grae desires. But they also know she needs to be open and honest. Until she finds the courage to trust them unconditionally, the powerful Doms can only seduce and tease her in every imaginable way. The men know that even though the triad’s chemistry is explosive, in power exchanges—and love—no one gets off easy.

Warning: One very confused submissive is convinced she shouldn't wedge herself between two gorgeous and irresistible alpha men who are into role play, geek kink and switching it up. So she'll just have sex with them...or play voyeur. 

REVIEW:
Hot and sexy

Review copy provided via Reading Alley in exchange for an honest review.

Great sexy story. The threesome was very hot and complicated in some ways. The kink made it all the more hotter. Every character had their issues to deal with and overcome. The only part that I did not like was the communication between all of them. With a D/s relationship I thought their had to be open communication, the three seemed to lack this at times and resulted to playing "mind games" instead. I felt the three needed more communication the men seemed to have it but they didn't make her until the end. I know she had issues with that but they skirted the issue at times. The kink was hot and there was something for everyone: m/m, m/f, m/m/f, voyeurism, spanking, sex machines, bondage, and love. Enjoy! 

Heaven Bound

Heaven Bound
By Saralyn Hoyt

SUMMARY:
Recent widower, Jackson Bradley, is still deeply grieving many months after the tragic death of his wife, Clara. He’s traveling home to England to bury her in the family mausoleum and deal with the shambles of his own family’s estate following his father’s recent untimely and highly-suspicious death. He’s vowed to guard his heart from loving another woman, because he can’t face the pain of loss again.

Adeline James is a reformer and suffragette and self-admittedly spoiled by her rich father whose wealth competes with the Astor’s and Vanderbilt’s. Clara was Addie’s best friend, and Addie dreamed of a marriage filled with love, like her friend’s. But at her father’s insistence, she is on her way to be paraded before the penniless Lords in London to select the sort of husband that her dead mother always wanted for her.

Even though Jack and Addie have been friends for many years, Jack’s guilt at his unwanted attraction to Addie makes him push her away and once in England they part on bad terms. But their dearly departed loved ones are in contact with the medium and famous London Spiritualist, Madame Lou, who are all determined to bring these two time-crossed lovers together.

REVIEW:
I received a copy from NetGalley for an honest review.

I really rank this story at a 31/2. It was a wonderful sweet romance story, but very predictable. The characters were well developed and you could feel their turmoil very easily. The spiritual element was the unique part of the story. The writing style was good and the story flowed with excellent pace. It was an entertaining read, I just was able to predict what was going to happen so it just seemed anticlimactic. I didn't rush to finish. I already knew what was going to happen. 

Dragon's Melody

Dragon's Melody
By Ophelia Bell


SUMMARY:
All or nothing.
It was supposed to be a simple job transfer interview, but it was far from simple. After the most mind-blowing ‘interview’ of Melody’s life, she signs a contract with a gorgeous man named Skye, who she believes is much more than he seems. The trouble is, Skye's assistant Garen is every bit as enticing as his boss. Garen is just as inhumanly gorgeous and just as hungry for what Melody has to offer.

But the entire endeavor goes south when she finds herself falling for both elusive men and their otherworldly charms. Melody never considered the possibility of love. She rejected romance for most of her life, because love was her enemy. Love left her mother wanting and left Melody nothing but loneliness for two decades.

The realization that she has to choose between them sends her running scared. She refuses to choose, but the only other option is to refuse and risk even worse heartbreak. Will she follow her heart or lose it all?

Garen and Skye follow, too consumed by love to do anything but compromise for Melody's sake. In the arms of them both, she makes her choice—the choice Fate intended all along.

REVIEW:
Received a copy from NetGalley for a honest review.

Ok if you want sex and very little storyline this book is for you. There is LOTS of sex in every shape and form: m/m, f/m, m/f/m, oral, anal, and voyeurism. Many, many pages of it. In the first two parts it felt to me that the dragons just used woman. Hey I can't have her I will trade out to you kinda thing. Heck Skye used everyone even his friend. I almost couldn't go on with the book. The premiss that she would sign a contract for sex and get paid for it being warmed up by one guy and screwed by another; just reeks of a high paid whore to be used at a whim. They state they need her essence to survive, but it felt like she was only a means to the end. This concept just repulsed me and I actually wanted to smack Melody. I think women should get all the good sex they want, that is not why I didn't like her. Skye was very unlikable, but I like Garen. Parts one and two were difficult to finish. The third part was the best out of the three. The story started to redeem itself some, but I still could not get on board with it. 

Duty, Honor, Love

Duty, Honor, Love
By Angela S. Stone

SUMMARY:

Cameron Olsen believes in three things: the duty to his badge, the honor of being a police officer, and the love he has for his partner.

As a member of Toronto’s elite Special Investigations Unit, he has the privilege of working with Jaden Black, a powerful but naive telepath. As they hunt down a child rapist and killer, the case takes an unexpected turn, Cameron questions his badge, his profession, and who exactly his partner is, and what she’s been hiding from him

REVIEW:

Not what I thought

Review copy provided via Reading Alley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was alright. It had plot twist and the telepath stuff was interesting. It just seemed like something was missing, like a story before this one. I couldn't get into the characters much because it felt like I didn't know them and many times it felt like they didn't know each other. I wanted more background on everyone and the main hero was very much lacking in depth because you really couldn't get into him because you had nothing vested in him. A story about how they met or how he got into being a detective would have helped so the reader could see his motivations behind his actions. The crime part was dark and sometimes hard to read.  

There was more m/m action then anything else, it did include the rest mentioned but the main focus was m/m. That was fine but the author started the story about a f/m relationship and then it switched to a m/m then we hit into a ménage that just didn't seem to work. in a ménage they all should have attraction to one another and shared love that was not expressed here and the woman seems to just be a side bar. I was disappointed.

How to Train Your Knight

How to Train Your Knight
By Stella Marie Alden

SUMMARY:

Year of our Lord, 1276.

In the hours just before dawn, blasphemous curses echo throughout the stone manor. A knife clatters to the floor and a feisty young widow is bound, blindfolded, and led to the marriage alter. The king couldn’t possibly have sanctioned this farce of a marriage, could he? After all, she alone transformed a few mud huts and starving serfs into a flourishing town, never once hesitating to pay generous taxes to his royal kingdom. Abandon her beloved people to be ruled by her new husband, an ignorant Templar knight? Never! the Lady Ann vows.

A murderous witch for a wife? The Beast of Thornhill finds himself in the middle of either a cruel jest or an evil conspiracy. After returning from the Holy wars, he accepts bestowment of a small parcel of land in return for saving King Edward’s life. But the reward comes with a warning regarding the estate’s mistress. Despite his insatiable attraction to the black-haired beauty, he allows her time to warm to him while observing her strange, forward-thinking ways. But when all is on the line, will he stand by her through the inquisition or will they both hang for her secrets? 

REVIEW:
One of the romance stories I have read in a long time!

Received a copy from reading alley for an honest review.

This was a wonderful story!  I could not put it down till it was completed!  The characters were marvelous and their chemistry was strong and had you wanting them together on every page.  It had great historical references and there was also a great deal of hotness!  The plot was interesting and never dragged.  It was interesting to see both the hero and the heroine grow in both character and love.  This book had it all!  I can't say enough good about it!  I want to read more from this author!

The 12 Brides of Christmas

Review copy provided via NetGallery in exchange for an honest review

Summery: The 12 Brides of Christmas

Each story is set in a different place and time, which is all indicated at the beginning of the story. Each story is faith based.  Some Stories start with a bible versus and a few even have a recipe at the end of the story. Each story is heart felt.

Review:

Since this book is made up of 12 different novellas, it makes the review processes a little different. Each novella could have been published separately, but the publishing house choice to put them all in one book, which was very smart in my minds eye.  You feel warm and cozy inside as you read these twelve novellas based in the heart of winter. Each story is complete, which many people who write novellas seem to leave you feeling as the story isn’t complete. Each story is well edited, as well as the characters well developed.

Summary:

Would I recommend this book to others?  Yes

Would I read more stories written by these authors? Yes and have I recognized two of the authors as people I’ve read stories by in the past couple of years and I look forward to reading more for each of them.