Review: Knockout by J.C. Valentine

February 20, 2017

Knockout by JC Valentine
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Wayward Fighters #1
Release - April 6, 2014
Genre - MMA Fighter Romance
Trope - second chance
Dual POV - 3rd person
Heat - 3 out of 5
Length - 420 pages

From the wrong side of the tracks...

Alyson Blake had learned early on that the only one she could depend on was herself. The only light in her life was a boy whom everyone agreed was destined for prison; but with his first kiss, he had set her soul on fire. Since the day the police dragged him away in handcuffs, she had managed to lead a quiet life, but when she attends an event fraught with mayhem, trouble resurfaces.

The one person she can’t forget...

Jamison Weston is the kind of guy dads load their shotguns for; endowed with a hot temper and a rap sheet as long as both tattooed arms. Known as “The Judge,” Jami’s hot temper, lethal fists, and cocky attitude have earned him respect and admiration both in and out of the ring. But just when he thinks he’s pummeled his past to death, Alyson Blake reenters his life.

Two paths collide…

After years of separation, Alyson is eager to reexplore the man who’s never left her thoughts, but for Jamison, she’s both the distraction he wants, but doesn’t need. As the two embark on a relationship that neither of them expected or bargained for, an outside threat closes in. When Alyson crosses the line of professionalism and takes her work home with her, her life is put in danger, leaving Jamison with no choice but to once again step in and become her protector.

WARNING **Book One in a two part story.** This book contains a mild cliffhanger ending that will be resolved in book two.

Review: Just GONE by Renata W. Müller

February 19, 2017

Just Gone by Renata W Muller
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
7 Years Later Series #1
Release - November 16, 2016
Genre - Second Chance Romance
Dual POV - 3rd person
Heat - 1 out of 5
Length - 448 pages

It was without doubt that Lana Bell was the cleverest, sexiest, most inspiring and seductive girl Hayden Ravensdale had ever met. The attractive law student had burst into his life, blown his mind and changed everything. He was head over heels in love with her. He could not have foreseen the disaster awaiting him just around the corner. So when all of a sudden Lana disappears without a trace, Hayden’s whole world crumbles to pieces.
Had it all been a lie? Had she only been using the young and wealthy heir to a well-known international publishing firm?
When after 7 years of despair, pain, anger, hatred, and finally, emptiness, the disillusioned businessman unexpectedly comes face to face with the love of his youth, only to see his strictly organized life turn upside down again. Their chance encounter finds them both cast into a whirlwind of attraction, uncertainty, and doubt. Can he ever trust her again? Can he once more put his broken heart into the hands of this woman without the risk of ruining himself completely? Dare he even resist?
Can either of them possibly deny the physical attraction they feel towards each other?

Review: #1 Crush by T. Gephart

#1 Crush by T Gephart
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Standalone - #1 Series #1
Release - February 20, 2017
Genre - RomCom
Heroine POV - 1st person
Heat - 4 out of 5
Length - 316 pages

Tia Monroe was smart, sassy and successful. Sure, she could get a little crazy at times—life around Tia was never boring—but that was part of her appeal. And while she didn’t see herself as ‘classically beautiful’, she had no shortage of options in the boyfriend department. She just hadn’t found one who held her interest.

Until she laid eyes on Eric Larsson, and then it was lust at first sight.

He packed the perfect mix of smoldering sexy and unapologetic cool into his blond-haired, blue-eyed, ridiculously hot six-foot-four frame. One smile from him was enough to twist her insides, making her girlie bits tingle in the most delicious way. But it wasn’t just his looks, he was smart and funny—charming in the most a-dork-able way.

The only problem was . . . Tia had never actually met him.

Eric Larsson was one of Hollywood’s hottest movie stars, rising to the top of his game and leaving a trail of disintegrated panties in his wake. Tia’s were no exception—but she wasn’t delusional. Love, marriage and happily-ever-after were not part of her fantasy; she just wanted to meet him. Just one time. One time. Confident that just seeing him in the flesh would get him out of her system.

So, with her resolve steeled, Tia set off on a quest to make it happen while avoiding her mug shot being splayed across the five o’clock news.

The journey no doubt will make for one hell of a story.

Review: Lost in Between by K.L. Kreig

February 18, 2017

Lost in Between by KL Kreig
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Finding Me #1
Release - February 20, 2017
Genre - Contemporary Romance
Dual POV - 1st person
Heat - 4.5 out of 5
Length - 344 pages

We all have one.
A price.
That magic number that will get us to agree to do anything, be anything.
Don’t sit on your gold-plated high horse and say you don’t because you do. Everyone does. Each of us has something we covet enough that we’d sell ourselves to have it.
What’s my tipping point, you ask? Apparently a cool quarter mil will do the trick.
What does one do for 250 large, you wonder? Anything the infamous, gorgeous playboy of Seattle wants. For the next four months I’ll be Shaw Mercer’s arm candy, his beck and call girl, his faux girlfriend. I’ll be his to command, mold, push and pull in any direction he sees fit.
I’ll fight falling into bed with him. I’ll fight falling in love with him even harder. I’ll fail at both. And when my past and present collide in the most unexpected of ways, I’ll learn that while one man’s love for me has never died, the only man’s love I really want will never be mine.

*If dirty-talking, dominant alphas are not your thing, move along. Mature, 18+ only. Book 1 in a 2-part duet.

Find it here:
Goodreads | Amazon

Read it for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Review: Stryder by Maggie Ryan & Alta Hensley

February 16, 2017

Stryder by Alta Hensley & Maggie Ryan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Standalone - The Black Stallion Trilogy #2
Release - February 17, 2017
Genre - Contemporary Romance with D/s & suspense elements
Dual POV - 3rd person
Heat - 3.5 out of 5
Length - 289 pages
Review of book 1, Maddox

Dark… seductive… promise

Stryder Steele, along with his two brothers and father, lives by one code: Help all in need. Even if it means saving those who walk among the most sinister criminals in the world. Known as The Black Stallions, their mission is simple – provide rescue and safety to the innocents drawn into the evil depths of the underground.

Zoya Morozova has been kidnapped and ready to be sold at an underground human auction in Moscow. Being sold to the highest bidder, she has no idea her life is about to change when her new Master is the dark and mysterious… Stryder Steele.

Bad boy Stryder remembers the pain of being unable to save another but he’ll put his life on the line to save this beautiful Russian farm girl. When he buys Zoya with the purpose of rescuing her, he has no idea that she may have the power to rescue him as well.

Review: Wicked Charming by Nazarea Andrews

Wicked Charming by Nazarea Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Standalone - Wicked Ever After #1
Release - February 13, 2017
Genre - Erotic Cinderella Retelling
Hero POV - 1st person
Heat - 3.5 out of 5
Length - 156 pages

He’s at the top of the world.
He’s rich, sought after, and in control.
And he’s bored.
A string of one-night stands have left Samul Charming increasingly dissatisfied. When his mother pushes him to settle down, his best friends come up with a brilliant plan:
Audition the submissives at The Kingdom.
The problem is, Charm knows who he wants: the only girl to challenge him, while submitting as naturally as breathing.
But he can’t have her.
With the entire club watching and his parents expecting him to settle down, Charm decides to settle.
But love in the Kingdom is never simple and it is never painless.
And Charm is about to be reminded of that.

Review: Red by S.M. West

Red by SM West
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Standalone - Love in Color #1
Release - February 6, 2017
Genre - Romantic Suspense
Dual POV - 1st person
Heat - 3.5 out of 5
Length - 304 pages

Red. The color of extremes.

Tate Conrad’s existence is annihilated. Destroyed by two men: one, her hero and the other, her worst nightmare. She has nothing to lose.

Determined to survive, vengeance feeds her. There are no limits, no boundaries, not even death, in seeking liberation.

*******

Rylan Wolfe is driven.

A stellar FBI agent close to breaking the case of a lifetime. It’s more than career-making, it’s personal. Tate’s the linchpin to it all.

They need each other to succeed.

For Tate, is he her salvation or ruin?

Warning: This book contains graphic language, explicit sexual scenes and violence.
Recommended for readers 18+

Review: Possession by A.M. Johnson

Possession by AM Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Standalone - Avenues Ink #1
Release - February 16, 2017
Genre - Second Chance Contemporary Romance
Dual POV - 1st person
Heat - 3 out of 5
Length - 308 pages

Paige Simon was the only girl Declan ever loved. The only one capable of silencing his voices, the only person to ever have faith in who he was, until the day her faith turned to doubt and destroyed everything they’d made together.

Declan O ’Connell was the only person Paige could be herself with. The only one she could rely on, until the day she was forced to make a choice that would condemn them both.

They’ve had years apart, and second chances don’t belong to the damned. But when you come face to face with your savior, it’s almost impossible to walk away. In order to move beyond the sins of their past, and forever silence the demons in his head, they’ll have to risk it all.

But with love, there are real reasons to be afraid and, sometimes… your salvation is your damnation.

Review: Tempt Me by J. Kenner

February 14, 2017

Tempt Me by J Kenner
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Standalone - A Stark International Novella
Release - February 14, 2017
Genre Contemporary Romance
Heroine POV - 1st person
Heat - 4 out of 5
Length - 110 pages

Sometimes passion has a price …

When sexy Stark Security Chief Ryan Hunter whisks his girlfriend Jamie Archer away for a passionate, romance-filled weekend so he can finally pop the question, he’s certain that the answer will be an enthusiastic yes. So when Jamie tries to avoid the conversation, hiding her fears of commitment and change under a blanket of wild sensuality and decadent playtime in bed, Ryan is more determined than ever to convince Jamie that they belong together.

Knowing there’s no halfway with this woman, Ryan gives her an ultimatum – marry him or walk away. Now Jamie is forced to face her deepest insecurities or risk destroying the best thing in her life. And it will take all of her strength, and all of Ryan’s love, to keep her right where she belongs…

Find it here:
Goodreads | Amazon

Review: Rise by Dylan Allen

Rise by Dylan Allen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Standalone - Symbols of Love #1
Release - February 15, 2017
Genre - Contemporary Romance
Dual POV - 1st person
Heat - 3.5 out of 5
Length - 262 pages

As a little girl, I saw my father destroy the family he claimed to love. I watched my mother waste her life dreaming of a man who left her without a second glance.

As a woman, I don’t dream, I work. I don’t fall in love, I focus. I would never let anything as frivolous as love distract me.

Until I meet Simon. A gorgeous, brilliant young architect with dark eyes, a sweet smile, and a dirty, dirty mouth. He sets me on fire, and suddenly all I can do is dream…of his hands, his lips, his body. Of a heart good enough and a love strong enough to make me believe in happily ever after.

But Simon has secrets that are even deeper than mine. Will our pasts destroy everything we’ve worked for? Or will we find the courage to rise to the challenge and fight for the love we share?

Find it here:
Goodreads | Amazon

Read it for FREE with Kindle Unlimited