The Reluctant Duchess by Sharon Cullen

NetGalley is generally my go-to place for new contemporary romances, so my interest was definitely piqued when this historical popped up on the Loveswept publisher’s page. I’m one of those people who can’t resist a pretty cover, so I requested it and dove right in.

I received a free ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

One-Sentence Synopsis
A young woman seeks out her murdered cousin’s former fiance when she starts receiving letters alluding to her cousin’s death and threatening her as well. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.

The Good Stuff
The mystery and romance in this book are so well blended that it made for a well-paced, smooth read with a lot of emotion. The Duke of Rossmoyne (or Ross, as he’s called by most people), has never forgiven himself for not preventing his fiance’s death, so when Sara shows up to show him the threatening letters, he’s reluctant to get involved, not because he doesn’t want to solve the mystery of her murder, but because he knows he can’t let Sara get hurt as well.

The two tentatively start a friendship and realize they are completely comfortable in each other’s presence. This is especially important for Sara, who has social anxiety and hates going into public. For that reason, she’s long since decided she’s not going to marry, and since she believes it improper to believe anything could come from a relationship with Ross, since he was engaged to her cousin, she sees nothing wrong with visiting him late at night.

That social anxiety angle was awesome, and Sara’s emotions regarding having to be in large crowds of people hit home. She was relatable, and therefore, likable. I’m fan of heroines who are flawed with something some readers can empathize with.

The Romance Factor
The way that the characters overcame their issues and figured out that they loved each other had some conflict, which made it that much sweeter. Ross and Sara were slow and sensual with each other, and it gave the story that overall feeling of foreplay. 4/5.

The Steam Factor
Speaking of foreplay, this book had a lot of it. In fact, there was a lot of kissing until there was any lovemaking, and then the lovemaking didn’t even involve intercourse, yet was still highly titillating. I enjoyed the step back this book took with regards to sex, and that Ross refused to bed Sara as long as they weren’t married. Though of course, that didn’t stop him from getting to third base. 4/5

Final Thoughts
I’m not sure why I was surprised to have liked this book as much as I did, but I’m happy I requested it. It’s a slow romance that isn’t overshadowed by the suspense of the mystery. I enjoyed the characters and would definitely read more books by this author.

Book Review: One Night With A Billionaire by Jessica Clare

I knew it was only a matter of time before I finished this series, and I feel a little sad about it. I mean, yeah, I’m going to read them again, especially 2, 4, and 6 in the series, but I really love this world and really don’t want the author to stop writing for it.

One-Sentence Synopsis
A make-up artist spends a fantastic night with a billionaire but can’t take it further because the singer she’s touring with has called dibs. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.

The Good Stuff
Kylie is a great character. She’s a big girl, and I love that no one skirts around this. Cade never tries to tell her she’s not fat to make her feel better. Instead, he’s genuinely attracted to her and loves her for who she is. Though she has personal issues with her weight, it never becomes overpowering to her character or takes away from the story itself. Like most of these books, this one was body positive and sex positive.

Things That Made Me Go Hmmm
Daphne is back. She was heavily featured back in The Wrong Billionaire’s Bed and was pretty horrible up until she made a promise to her sister to get clean. As you can imagine, she broke that promise and is a hot mess in this one. She’s also a heinous person working for a record label that’s just as heinous.

I spent the entire book hating her, but then my emotions got toyed with, and once again, she turned out to be okay. I know the other books made me emotional at points, but I think this one was by far pushed most of my buttons.

The Romance Factor
Kylie’s lack of confidence was endearing and added to the conflict when she didn’t think she could compete with Daphne. Cade’s determination to keep Kylie was so alpha, but so sweet. Heck yeah I wanted these two to get together. 5/5

The Steam Factor
You know those scenes that are pretty much standard in a porn film? Not only does Clare go there, but she writes those same scenes as hot and romantic. 5/5

Final Thoughts
This is my 3rd favorite in the series, I loved every minute of it. I’m so sad to be done with this series, but at least I now own them all and get to read them again.

 

Book Review: One Touch More by Mandy Baxter

Because I’ve done a fairly good job of scheduling ahead, it hasn’t been noticeable, but I haven’t written a blog post for about 2 weeks. There was a road trip, a visit from my mom, and some other things that kept me off the computer. However, with Nanowrimo getting ready to happen and my lack of self control when it comes to requesting books on NetGalley, I not only need to get some more posts up, but I also need to start reading more books. November’s theme? Book time management.

I received an ARC of this novel from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

One Sentence Synopis
An undercover marshal trying to find a big name drug lord becomes involved with local drug dealers and the hotel assistant manager who helps them to keep her brother out of prison. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.

The Good Stuff
Talk about a strong start. I was pulled in right away with this one, intrigued by Tabitha’s situation and excited for the interaction between her and Damien. Though I don’t read a lot of romantic suspense, I do like danger in a novel once in awhile, and this one brought it. I was on the edge of my seat through most of this book, especially towards the end when things got crazy.

Things That Made Me Go Hmmm
I didn’t get a clear picture of Tabitha until the end, and I’m not sure if that was due to lack of description or if I just had an image from the start that didn’t match up with the one later in the boom that described her as edgy.

I never agree with heroine’s who are attacked, but then don’t want their attacker to get hurt. Maybe I’m just a horrible person, but if I were on the verge of getting raped and someone saved me and started punching my attacker, the only reason I’d stop that would be to make sure I got a few kicks in.

The Romance Factor
Though not insta-love, Damien and Tabitha’s relationship seemed to move fast. Yet somehow, the author was able to add enough emotion for it to seem realistic. 4/5

The Steam Factor
The sexy times were not as frequent as I thought they’d be, but they were intense when they did happen. 4/5

Final Thoughts
The intensity kept up through the whole book and ended up being a very entertaining read. There were some gritty themes, but the romance still held its own.

Say Yes to the Marquess by Tessa Dare

This is the second book in the Castles Ever After series, which started with Romance the Duke. I enjoyed the first one, but this one blew it out of the water. Just to be on the safe side, I want to give a trigger warning. There are topics of disordered eating and weight loss pressure. Though I thought this was handled well in the context of the story, it might possibly be a trigger for anyone dealing with related issues.

One-Sentence Synopsis
A man who has turned his back on society to be a fighter has to convince his brother’s fiance to stay engaged so that he can continue fighting while his brother takes over lordly duties. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.

The Good Stuff
Clio is awesome as a lady who has decided she wants her independence after the man she agreed to marry has left her alone for 8 years. Now that she’s inherited a castle, she has the means to do so…as long as her fiance’s brother will sign the papers needed to make it so. I loved her determination and the fact that she never once thought she needed to be married to be successful. Oh, and she wants to run a brewery! How awesome is that?

There were some great scenes with her and Rafe, including a wedding cake food fight that cracked me up. I liked the playfulness of Clio’s character against the hard ass nature of Rafe’s.

I loved Clio’s younger sister, and I thought that her having Aspberger’s (not named in the book, but described as such) added an interesting element to story. There was definitely a theme of self acceptance and loving people for who they are, and this tied into a strong message of body positivity.

The Romance Factor
I had all the feels for Rafe, who knew he couldn’t take his brother’s fiance. It was like a story of impossible love, even though I knew it would end well for the couple. Still…feels. 5/5

The Steam Factor
There is a scene where Rafe barely touches Clio, knowing he can’t, and instead stands close to her and tells her all the things he fantasizes about doing with her. For a scene that had no actual sex, it was very erotic and very sensual. The other steamy scenes were just as good, but that scene alone boosts this factor to a 6/5.

Final Thoughts
The 3rd one in this series just came out, and I’m 4th on the waiting list at the library. I can’t wait to read it. If the rest of the books are as good as this one, it might be another series I try to collect.

Notorious Pleasures by Elizabeth Hoyt

I realized recently that I’m reading faster than I can kick my reviews out, but I’m thinking that things might slow down with fall getting ready to happen. And let me tell you, I’m super excited about fall. Pumpkin spice, cooler weather, and a holiday season that I’m actually looking forward to this year (which doesn’t happen every year because I’m moody).

One-Sentence Synopsis
A well raised lady tries to fight her attraction to her fiance’s brother, a known scoundrel. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.

The Good Stuff
Hero was committed to being the well bred lady she was raised to be, which made her unladylike descent into lust that much better. It’s a little painful to watch her inner conflict, but it feels genuine.

I like the references to future books and I liked seeing Phoebe as a younger woman, though seeing the progression of her sight loss was a little sad. There were also cameos of the Ghost of St. Giles, who becomes a pretty big part of several future books.

Things That Made Me Go Hmmm
I wasn’t sure if I could get onboard with this duo after their first meeting involved Hero catching Griffin mounting up on another woman. Not my favorite meet-cute ever, but it worked out okay.

I really do not like Hero’s brother Maximus. I didn’t like him in Phoebe’s story either, which makes me kind of apathetic about reading the book where he’s the hero. Nothing about him says hero to me. He’s definitely more of a douche.

The Romance Factor
The historical version of the reformed bad boy and the good girl may be even better than the contemporary version of the trope. So much angst! 4/5

The Steam Factor
The steamy scenes were enhanced by the possibility they were going to get found out. I thought it might be difficult to read about a woman having an affair when she was engaged to be married, but since it was arranged and her fiance was awful, it worked for the story. 5/5

Final Thoughts
Besides not knowing how Maximus and Charming Mickey are going to make likeable heroes, I’m totally invested in the Maiden Lane world. In fact, I had to stop myself from grabbing the rest of the series at the library, partially because I have a huge reading list right now and partially because I don’t want to be that jerk who keeps others from enjoying the series.

After the Kiss by Lauren Layne

When I started my love affair with Lauren Layne’s books, I had the chance to read the last two in her Stiletto series thanks to NetGalley. I liked them so much, I went back and bought the whole series, but then got sidetracked and left them on my digital shelf. I finally decided to read the first one, which kicks off this contemporary series that I imagine has a Sex and the City vibe (though I can’t say for sure, as I never watched Sex and the City).

One-Sentence Synopsis
A columnist is given an assignment that leads her to pick a guy and reluctantly take their relationship to the “next level,” not knowing that the guy she’s picked is betting that she can be his quick fling. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.

The Good Stuff
Glamorous characters, such as the stars of this book, take me a little while to warm up to.. But once I get my reading groove, I have a ton of fun in this world. Julie is a commitment phobe who is completely fine with dating a guy but stopping before anything gets serious. Mitch tends to get too serious, so when a co-worker bets him he can’t just hit it and quit it, he’s determined to prove himself.

There was a lot of shades of How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, but that’s what made it so fun. Julie and Mitch are good together, establishing early that neither is what the other expected and falling into an ease that they don’t normally experience with other people.

I especially like that Julie willingly embraces her own private nightmare, the boring at-home movie night, when it comes to Mitch. Though it seems like such a silly thing to fear, it’s all part of Julie not wanting to fall into that boring couple relationship that she’s watched her friend fall into.

The Romance Factor
There is some delicious angst here, and the point of view change is always so good in a Layne novel because the hero has just as many emotions as the heroine, and the reader gets to experience them all. So many feels! 4/5

The Steam Factor
Julie and Mitch definitely have some sexy times, and while they’re not written in extreme detail, they’re fast and steamy and left me a bit warmish. 4/5

Final Thoughts
This series is fun, and I intend on not only reading the other one I haven’t yet read, but doing a re-read of the other two as well.

Brown-Eyed Girl by Lisa Kleypas

Even though Lisa Kleypas is a big name in romance, this is the first book of hers I’ve read. It was a NetGalley pick because even though I have a whole list of other books to read and finish, I can’t keep myself from requesting new stuff.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

One-Sentence Synopsis
A career focused wedding planner thinks a one-night stand with a wealthy man is all she wants, but he doesn’t make it easy for her to walk away. For a full synopsis, see this book’s Goodreads page.

The Good Stuff
After reading this, I realized I hadn’t read very many male-in-pursuit romances. They’re fun! It’s kind of cute watching a smitten male go after a woman who’s determined to ignore his charms. The beginning seemed a little slow, but once it picked up, it was a cute read, made only better by the fact that I pictured Joe Travis as Joe Manganiello.

One of my favorite parts of the book was the side story. I love those extra love stories between 2 minor characters in the book, and in this one, the author gets major props for developing a sweet, “aww” inducing side romance even through the eyes of a first person narrator (Avery, the heroine).

The Romance Factor
The chemistry between the main characters is believable, and I liked the smitten male who has to work to earn the woman’s heart. Male in pursuit? Yes, please! 3/5

The Steam Factor
There’s some good foreplay and a few sex scenes, and while none of them are super detailed or dirty, you definitely know what’s going on. Minor, but effective steam. 3/5.

Final Thoughts
This is the 4th book in the Travises series, but it can be read as a standalone. You meet other characters but there’s not so much backstory that you feel like your missing something. Other than a few minor annoyances with the heroine, I really enjoyed this and will probably go read the rest of the series.

Goodreads Review: Laid Out by Sidney Halston

My last review coincided with me getting ready to attend a spring outdoors camping weekend, and this one is being written as I sit at home recovering from said weekend. While it was quite a bit of fun, there were also some challenges that I need to work through before I do this again. However, I did learn the joys of archery, and hopefully by the time this publishes, that will be a thing I’m doing. Speaking of sporty type things, I’ve found a new love for sports related romances. This one includes MMA fighting, though mostly in passing. I liked this book…high angsty love drama for the win! The book is scheduled to release on August 18th. 

Laid Out by Sidney Halston

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Cain and Violet were best friends growing up. As adults, they’re still friends, but things have changed. Cain, who has always been in love with Violet, can’t bring himself to pursue a relationship with her because of his guilt regarding their other childhood friend and Violet’s fiance, who died in the service. Violet can’t bring herself to date due to a lack of confidence brought about by a strict and critical father. When Cain decides to help her become more confident, he promises he can do it without ruining their friendship.

I wasn’t entirely sure I was going to like this book, especially because there are parts of each character that are really not likeable. However, it turned out to be enjoyable and a good standalone story (even though its part of a series).

The plot used a few different tropes, including military man, girl with confidence issues, and friends to lovers, but whereas in a lot of stories the tropes are fairly straightforward, these ones had layers, so the plot felt intricate and fleshed out. There was conflict coming from several directions, so the resolution didn’t feel easy and the angst level, especially for Cain, was really high.

There was one plot point I would have liked to see developed further, and that was Cain’s MMA fighting. It was mostly talked about it narrative. There were a few fight scenes when Cain was fighting for scary Russians, but those felt like teasers. Also, movies and books have taught me that you generally don’t start doing stuff for the Russian mob and then just stop whenever you want. Maybe they weren’t really the mob, and maybe that’s reality and Hollywood biffed it again, but it felt like the story started down one path and then detoured without looking back.

Cain and Violet are interesting characters who I sort of liked but who also irked me. Violet had body confidence issues and was slightly obsessed with thinking she was fat (she was a curvy character). There was a lot of negative self talk, even though she was contradictory and often said that she really liked and accepted who she was when clearly she didn’t.

Cain is actually a major jerk through most of the book. His mood changes frequently and he goes from being sweet and affectionate with Violet to ignoring her completely. I felt that she took a lot of emotional abuse from him and kept coming back for more. As the reader, I likes that the author switched points of view, because knowing Cain’s thought processes actually helped in dealing with this character. Also, he decides that after Violet can get naked in front of him without feeling embarrassed, she’s obviously ready to date. This drove me nuts because yeah, I get he was trying to teach her self confidence, but dude…just because she can get naked in front of one guy doesn’t mean she’s ready to take it full monty everywhere she goes.

I think what made me enjoy this book overall was that it was so much romantic angst (unrequited love was another trope), and though I’m not always a fan, I really liked it as part of this story. The Romance Factor is a strong 5/5 for that reason and because for all his flaws, I could buy how much Cain adored Violet. The Sex Factor also gets a 5/5 because the sexy times were intense and sweet and were paced well so that they didn’t take up half the story but made an impact when the did come into play.

The book was technically well written, though this arc had several minor errors in wording and grammar, including a random switch from 3rd to 1st person POV. I’m assuming those will get ironed out before publishing. Overall, this was a pleasant surprise and was hard to put down, especially at the end. I’d definitely read more from this author and might look into some other MMA novels as well.

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Goodreads Review: Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne

As I write this, I’m getting ready to pack for another Becoming an Outdoors Woman weekend, this one for the spring, but I wish I could say I was excited. I’ve taken several steps back in my health journey, and am currently back at walking with pain. However, by the time this actually publishes, I’m hoping to be back in shape and walking all over the place (having survived BOW, of course). As for this book review, I think we all know how I feel about getting a Lauren Layne ARC. It’s like Christmas, but I get it a few times a year or whenever she releases a book and NetGalley loves me enough to approve me for it, as they did with this one. This book is set to release in August, and if you like friends to lovers stories, this one is one of the best I’ve read. 

Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Parker knows that men and women can just be friends. Best friends, in fact. She knows this, because she and Ben have been best friends for 6 years and have never had the urge to sleep with each other, even as roommates. So when her boyfriend dumps her, Parker comes to conclusion that she just wants casual sex. Then she comes to the conclusion that since she needs to have a connection with someone first, casual sex with her best friend is just the thing the doctor ordered. Because they’ve been friends so long, it’s not going to get weird, right?

Friends-to-lovers is one of those tropes that I find fun and realistic (to a degree), and I love the way Lauren Layne made this trope work. It’s a familiar story, but the way it plays out is fun and kind of like crack…I had a hard time putting this book down. I seriously wanted to skip a gaming session to read this book. I didn’t, but I did manage to stay up and finish this book in a few hours, so win for me!

The plot moves along at a good pace and builds well to the angst of the 2 characters. Their friendship is solid, and I liked the foundation of a good, comfortable relationship. What makes the story better is that it doesn’t start with unrequited love. One is not consciously in love with the other, and though I don’t mind that trope either, I really liked that we got to watch both persons’ feelings develop alongside each other.

Parker and Ben are adorable as besties. I loved how comfortable they were with each other and like all of Layne’s dialogue, theirs is easy and familiar. It’s like reading a book about people I know. Their chemistry comes across to the reader early, but it’s great when characters are blind, even more so when other characters pick up on it.

There were also some really interesting side characters, such as Ben’s friend Joe and Parker’s co-worker Eryn, who’s kind of a bitch at first but ends up having layers. I also loved Parker’s family (her mom is kind of a riot).

The Romance Factor for this book gets the coveted 5/5 because it gave me all the feels. The romance is sweet, and yet Ben and Parker have to get through some rough stuff to get to their happy ending. As for the Sex Factor, I think I’ve been ruined by other books that are super steamy, so this one seemed a little bit tame. But, it’s still getting a 4/5 because even though they’re not detailed, the sexy times are pretty hot…and super sweet.

I think the only thing that pulled me out of the book at times was that since I’m used to hearing Parker as a man’s name, there were times I forgot who’s POV I was reading from. I’ve never had that problem in any of the books before, and I love the switching of POVs by chapter, so it was just a matter of me backing up and re-reading from the right person’s view to get what was going on, and I honestly cant’ blame the author for that. It was all me.

This book comes out later this year and I’d already pre-ordered before I received the ARC. This is one I’m going to read again. Romance fans who like the friends-to-lovers trope should enjoy this.

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Goodreads Review: Make You Burn by Megan Crane

Over Memorial Day weekend, I finished 3 books and this was one of them. Since this was my first motorcycle club read, I pictured all of the Sons of Anarchy characters in the story. While this book was harsh, it wasn’t in the same realm of SoA at all, but it was definitely a little more than I usually enjoy. Just a warning: the hero, in my opinion, doesn’t treat the heroine very well. In fact, he very much treats her like a piece of property, and while I get that that’s part of the culture, it’s not something that sits with me as romantic. Having said that, I know other readers who would find this to be their catnip. 

Make You Burn by Megan Crane

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Ajax returns to the home of his motorcycle club, the Deacons of Bourbon Street, after the president of the club and his father figure, Priest, dies in a motorcycle accident. What he finds his Priest’s daughter, grown up and running her dad’s bar. Sophie is torn between loving and hating the motorcycle club life, but she misses her father and struggles with both her loss and her feelings towards Ajax, who she also has mixed feelings for: a long held attraction to him and anger at him for leaving ten years prior, even though her father was the one who sent him and three others away.

This book is the first in a set of four (different authors), and I have to guess that this one was intended to offer back story and set up for an overarching mystery. After hearing a lot about motorcycle club novels and thinking I’d really enjoy them, I’m a little torn on how to feel about this one. The writing is good, but I wasn’t expecting the level of grittiness and the hard edge of the hero. You’d think after watching Sons of Anarchy, I’d know what to expect, but I never thought of SoA as a romance, and I think I might like my romances a little softer.

Sophie was great as the heroine who was both strong and vulnerable and dealing with all of her feelings surrounding her father’s death. I did feel she was a little quick to jump into bed with Ajax, but she also had some history with him, and I guess if you take her independence into account, she can sleep with who she wants, when she wants. What made the book hard to read for me was Ajax. While I think he was probably true to character, I just couldn’t get into the ultra-alpha male thing he had going on. He wasn’t just rough around the edges, he was like a sheet of sandpaper. Though Sophie stood her ground, male characters who dominate with harsh words and berating and “putting a woman in her place” dialogue just don’t do it for me.

Though I suppose there is a hard won romance between the 2 characters, I just wasn’t feeling it, so for me, the Romance Factor is only a 2/5, and that’s because towards the end I finally got some of the emotion and felt like Ajax might actually love Sophie instead of viewing her as property. The Sex Factor, on the other hand, is a solid 5/5. Readers who like it steamy shouldn’t be disappointed. There are many sexy times in this book, made only steamier by the fact that they’re sometimes in public places.

I know there’s a niche for MC romances, and as an objective reviewer, I think this was a good book. However, for my own tastes, I either wasn’t in the mood to read something so gritty or I’m just not geared for this type of romance. I’d be open to trying a few more, probably even in this series because I’d like to see how things pan out, but I’m not sure if this will every be a go-to genre for me.

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