Lusting for Covers - Lauren Dane's Inside Out

Lusting for Covers is a weekly meme, held on Sunday, that allows bloggers to share their current cover obsession with fellow book lovers. This meme is hosted by TBQ.

Being the cover hussy that I am, this meme is just one for me!
The cover that caught my eye this week (when mentioned on Twitter) was the one from Lauren Dane's Inside Out.

Why this cover? It's one of a series of three books with all wonderful covers. In fact, most of Lauren Dane's books have the best covers out there. This one is especially hot because of the delicious tattood back side of the cover hunk. The pose the models are in is pure anticipation and I think the female is beautiful. Last but not least: I like the colorfulness of this cover very much!


Back Blurb:
WORTH THE WAIT

Ella Tipton is a survivor. In the wake of an attack that left her nearly dead, she’s spent each day putting her life back together. Once vibrant and outgoing, she’s needed to reclaim the best parts of who she was while retaining the hard won lessons. There hasn’t been room for any romantic entanglements, even if she were ready. Still, it didn’t mean she had to stop sneaking looks at Mister Tall, Dark and Tattooed himself.

Security professional Andrew Copeland isn’t quite sure when his jones for the lovely and decidedly skittish Ella developed. He’s known her for years, has watched her triumph over the pain she’d been dealt. Cope is no stranger to women, but he knows the nervous flush he gets every time he talks to her is different than any attraction he’s had in the past. Determined to get Ella to let him in, Andy does the one thing he can think of to get close: he offers her hands-on training in self-defense.

While Ella’s sure he’s just being nice, the prospect of being able to touch him and gain the tools to push away the last vestiges of her fear is more than she can resist. Soon enough, Cope shows Ella his feelings are far more than friendly and re-ignites something deep inside her. Before long desire and love turn them both inside out.

Lauren Dane's website >>>

Free M/M ebook alert: Dancing in the Dark by Jenna Byrnes

Just a quick post to let you know that over at All Romance you can download - this weekend only - the ebook Dancing in the Dark by Jenna Byrnes for free: look here>>
It is book one in the Streets of Fire series. The sale lasts through midnight Sunday, Jan. 31.



Detective Nick D'Amato has always been content with his lack-of-commitment love life. For a gay cop in the don't ask-don't tell N.Y.P.D., free and easy always seemed the least complicated route.

William, the new man in his life, has Nick rethinking his priorities. Will's perspective on life and love is different than anything Nick has ever encountered, making him that much more desirable.

The two men are compatible in every way except one, and it's a huge divider. Both are stubborn, neither willing to compromise, until a serial slasher enters their lives. A growing stack of dead bodies has the police running in circles, sending Nick and Will into a nightmare that could change their lives forever.

High Five, Low Five Review of Hard To Hold by Stephanie Tyler for the DIK Book Reading Challenge

Stephanie Tyler
Hard To Hold
Mass Market, November 2009

Genre & Keywords: Contemporary, Military Romance, SEALs, Suspense, Violence, Africa

Rating: êêê
Heat level: ¹¹

There are some books you really look forward to reading and then they just can’t live up to your own high expectations. There’s no one else to blame but yourself. Hard To Hold by Stephanie Tyler turned out to be such a book for me. Based on three Blaze novels about three SEAL friends by this author I really wanted to read her new contemporary military romance series about the brothers Jake, Nick and Chris, all Navy SEALs too. The first book about Jake was released on November 24, 2009 and the third one a few weeks ago. It took me a while to finish Hard To Hold because I struggled a little bit with the book.

I’ve read this book for the DIK Reading Challenge which made me finish it this month and also makes me write a review now, very shortly after reading the last page. I usually like to wait a little bit longer before putting my thoughts on paper because I like the little distance and objectivity the lapse of time provides, so I can look at a book without it still being under my skin. But I have to post my review in January for the Challenge, so here are my High 5, Low 5 concerning Hard To Hold. The High Five are five things that have impressed me or that I really enjoyed, and the Low Five are five things that had me shaking my head in a less admiring way.

First the Back Blurb:
Lieutenant Jake Hansen has survived some of the riskiest missions known to man. But now the wounded Navy SEAL faces his toughest job yet: smuggling Dr. Isabelle Markham out of Africa without triggering an international incident. Not easy to do when the gorgeous hostage happens to be a senator’s daughter—and about as easy to resist as an oasis in the desert.

If it weren’t for Jake, Isabelle would still be halfway across the world, where rebel forces left her for dead. The special ops warrior may have saved her life, but she doesn’t need him to protect her now. Tell that to the ruggedly handsome hunk in full battle fatigues who’s just been assigned as Isabelle’s personal bodyguard. Close quarters aside, Isabelle won’t let Jake anywhere near her heart—until danger throws them together again. And nothing in the jungles of wildest Africa could prepare them for a passion this wild. This crazy. This hot…

High 5

• The hero Jake
One of the highs of this novel for me was definitely Jake’s character. He’s adorable, attractive, wounded, caring and hot. His tormented soul and anger are very sexy and his consideration for Isabelle is really sweet. He’s struggling with his own feelings while protecting Isabelle’s. Maybe his life story was a bit extreme (he had a very abusive youth) and we are made to believe that he joined the navy at the age of 15 or 16 without anyone in the army noticing or doing something to prevent it. That’s quite unbelievable. His grander than grand issues with his past were probably necessary to make Isabelle realize she’s not the only one of them who is struggling with abuse and guilt. For me it would have been enough if Jake just helped her heal by being patient and kind like he was from the beginning without the addition of their shared problems as a remedy to make her whole and trusting again. But that has more to do with one of my lows I guess.
One of the sweetest Jake moments was the one where they have a love scene on the couch in which Jake cuffs his hands behind his back while Isabelle sits on his lap and he tells her that she is safe and can touch herself.

• Good secondary characters
I like a story in which the protags are surrounded by friends and family. Mainly Jake has great people in his life. I especially had a soft spot for Nick, Jake’s stepbrother. He’s easy going, tough and sexy with his habit to walk around the house without clothes.

• Great story building
Ms. Tyler tells a rounded story that is well build. All pieces of the puzzle fall into place in the end. It’s all very well plotted. Her story contains a lot of suspense as well, but to be honest it didn’t bring me once to the edge of my seat.

• Easy writing
Ms. Tyler’s writing style is pleasant. With seemingly little effort she can make a scene visible and tangible. Sometimes she tends to explain a bit too much for my taste and she becomes repetitive, while in other moments (towards the end) she skips a few things. But overall her writing has an easy vibe and doesn’t ask too much (or less) from her readers. For example I like the way she described Jake:
“Nothing about him was overtly pushy or blatant or cocky. He didn’t have to be. He moved with the quiet confidence other men envied, tried to emulate and failed. His commanding presence wasn’t something to be copied, it was something to be earned.”

• Interesting world
Ms. Tyler has the ability to evoke a whole world with her words, an interesting world that I wasn’t familiar with but that became vividly alive before my eyes. She provides us with a lot of information and details to reach that. The lives of SEALs, mercenaries and social/medical workers in Africa were all new to me.


Low 5

• The heroine Isabelle
As much as I liked Jake, I could not feel the same sympathy or tenderness for Isabelle. In fact, she pretty much annoyed me a great deal of the time. And I feel bad about that, given her abuse and ordeal during the kidnapping and all. She sure did deserve my sympathy, and she had it most of the time. But not so much when it comes to the way she treated Jake. Okay, she had trust issues, I got that and sure, she had a hard time giving up her control sexually, I got that too! But I didn’t get her selfishness and her being mean to him at one point. And after denying him his pleasure a few times while she had hers, she finally is ready for him – you know, all the way – after Jake has shown his anger and then she tells him:

“I want you,” she repeated in a husky voice against his ear. “Don’t deny me this.”

The nerve, to be so demanding!

• The very distracting multiple POV’s
From the beginning I was struggling with this book because of the often changing POV, not just between the hero and heroine but between many secondary characters as well. And not their POV on the H/h, nope they all had their own storyline and personal issues. I found these very distracting, since I hardly knew the H/h at that point. Gradually I got used to the multiple POV’s and in the end they were reduced to just a few besides that from the H/h (mainly Clutch and Sarah’s, which was an interesting couple btw).

• Many flashbacks in italic
I don’t really mind flashbacks in a story, they can add something essential, but in most cases it’s enough when the narrator just tells what happened. The showing with the help of flashbacks is not always necessary, especially not when the telling is already done. In Hard To Hold often both the telling and the showing takes place. That’s superfluous imo. Besides that, I don’t need the italics to know that I’m dealing with a flashback – the italics can be omitted!
The bad thing really was that a great part of these flashbacks were from the secondary characters! That was just too much for me, I couldn’t care less. Their POV’s and secondary storylines were enough distraction from Jake’s and Isabelle’s love story, their flashbacks were over the top for me…

• Incomprehensible love
Why Jake and Isabelle fell in love with each other? I have no idea, except that they experienced an intense ordeal together maybe. Perhaps I can see why Isabelle liked Jake in the end, because I myself fell in love with him a little bit, but I never felt her love! I needed more of her thoughts and perspective concerning her feelings for Jake, because now I didn’t believe it. And why Jake loved Isabelle is really beyond me! Not only because what I wrote about her (see my first low) but also because of the lack of an explanation of his feelings.

• Lack of love scenes
There weren’t many love scenes between Jake and Isabelle. And no, I’m not only talking about the hot kind (although I’m a big fan of those and to be honest the love scenes between Clutch and Sarah were a welcome addition). I’m also talking about tenderness and sweetness between the two. Of course, the physical part of their relationship was hindered by Isabelle’s abuse experience. But that part was stretched out way too long I think.

Those were my five highs and lows. Overall, Hard To Hold was an okay read for me. It didn’t meet my high expectations by far and I’m the only one to blame for that ;). My dislike of certain elements in this story is personal. I hope that the second book, Too Hot To Hold, about Jake’s brother Nick, will be more than an okay read for me, since I already purchased it. When my high expectations had something to do with my rather harsh judgment of Hard To Hold than maybe my very low expectations of Too Hot To Hold will make me like that one way better!

Happy Gay Friday, What I’m Reading & Dean Day

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It’s almost the end of a working day and the beginning of the weekend! Yay! So, it’s time for a M/M cookie.
I’ve been away for two days the past week for my work, which was tiring (sleeping in a hotel bed most of the times is) and I had no internet access and was too busy to blog, mail, twitter or do blogrounds. So, I’m double happy that it’s almost weekend!

I did get some reading done, because I had some travelling by train to do. After finally finishing Hard Too Hold by Stephanie Tyler Thursday I immediately started the second book in the series, Too Hot to Hold, because I already purchased it and I was afraid that If I didn’t start it right away I never would at all. I’ve made a start now so after that I could put it aside for a while and read some M/M smut I was craving for…(that’s how my mind works sometimes ;)) I picked The Broken H by J.L. Langley, which is about two cowboys, stepbrothers, who have the hots for each other. I’m really enjoying it so far!

This afternoon on Twitter me and a few girls were gushing over Supernatural’s Dean and decided to have a Dean Day on V-Day (it’s in writing now girls!) on which we bring a ‘Ten Things I Love About Dean’ tribute to the guy! If you wanna join, just let one of us know. Pixiedust from Pixie’s Ponderings is making Dean Buttons for this little blog tour. The Dean girls are:

Pixiedust: ponderingpixiedust.blogspot.com
Donna Grant: donnagrant.com
Belly: hangingwithbells.blogspot.com
Stacy: trelainastarblazer.blogspot.com
Leontine: leontine1976.blogspot.com

So, we have a Valentine’s date with Dean on Februari 14!

My other addictions

I haven't read much the past couple of days. I'm still reading Hard Too Hold by Stephanie Tyler (almost finished it) and about to start This Side of Heaven by Fallon Blake. I'm looking forward to that one, which was send to me by the author for a review.
And I'm definitely picking up another M/M book the coming weekend, it's been too long and I'm having symptoms of withdrawal ;)

Meanwhile inbetween my job, birthday visitors and other every day things I've been keeping myself busy with my other addictions: Supernatural's Dean and the gay soap couple Deniz & Roman (DeRo).

I think this video of Supernatural doesn't need any explanation, it just shows the excellence and wit of this TV show. And Dean *sigh*... he's not only hot but funny too!




And then DeRo! I've been watching their story at the YouTube channel of The Eskimo Kiss Project ever since author Kate Davies pimped them out to me ;), tweeting and emailing me, giving me all the inside info I needed to get sucked in! And when you watch this video, you'll probably understand why. It shows some beautiful make up sex in a locker room shower *sigh*



Tomorrow I will be without internet and Thursday most of the day too :(
So, I hope to be back Thursday night!

Mondays Hot Couple & Sexy, Smutty Scene

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This week’s sexy smutty scene is from a book I haven’t started reading yet but only because I enjoy the anticipation until I’ll finally pick it up. I won’t be able to postpone reading it much longer, the little tastes I already had are drawing me in more and more. An example is the next smuttalicious scene, it’s from Magnus by Jambrea Jo Jones, from page 53:

“

“You know what I want, Emily.”
“Joe.” She sighed.
He growled. He loved the sound of his name falling from her lips. He couldn’t wait to hear her scream it as she came. He continued toward her.
“I’m going to fuck you, Emily. It isn’t going to be gentle the first time. Maybe not even the second. I need to be so deep inside you I don’t know where I end and you begin.”
“God yes.” She moaned.
Her back hit the wall. She had nowhere to run, not that he would let her. Mag reached her and put his palms on the wall, ignoring the pain in his shoulder. He caged her in. He pressed his body to hers, loving the soft feel of her breasts against his chest. He wanted more, needed to taste her. She melted into him; he wrapped his arms around her so she didn’t fall.
Her lips looked ready for him to taste. Her tongue peeked out to wet her lips and he had to kiss her. He pressed his lips to hers and his tongue demanded entrance into the warm haven of her mouth. She let him in. He rewarded her with a gentle nip to her lip. He nibbled and sucked his way inside. She tasted so sweet. He couldn’t get enough.
He broke the kiss and trailed kisses down her jaw until he reached her neck. He needed another taste. He bit her then laved the sting with his tongue. When she didn’t protest, he nuzzled his face into her neck and inhaled. The light vanilla scent mixed with a smell that was all Emily went straight to his cock. He pulled her tighter against him and mumbled against her throat.
He heard her whispered, “What?”
He backed up so she could hear him, “Clothes off. I need to feel you. Take them off or I’ll tear them apart.”
They were both panting when he backed away to watch her strip. Emily ripped her clothes off, their need too great for either of them to take their time. There was no slow and soft with them, not this time. Mag groaned when Emily stood before him in her bra and panties.
“Fuck,” he breathed. “You’re so sexy.”
Then she did something that made Mag want to slow down and savor her. She smiled. Not a man-eater grin, but a shy smile.
“
Jambrea Jo Jones weblog


Backblurb:
Magnus is a marine Colonel and his job is his reason for being. Protecting the United States of America from all threats is his sole purpose in life. That life is turned upside down when a woman is assigned to his team of elite Marines and his attraction to her threatens his career.
NCIS Special Agent Emily Patterson’s orders: infiltrate Colonel Rivers’ team and find the culprits behind a slate of kidnappings connected to a sex slave ring. Her mission parameters didn’t include an attraction for Colonel Rivers but nothing in Emily’s career could have prepared her for Magnus. Her job becomes more difficult as she gets to know the man behind the uniform and Emily finds herself wanting to prove herself to him, potentially exposing her identity before she clears Mag.
Mag and Emily struggle against their growing feelings for one another, both knowing the consequences of giving in to lust. Mag is Emily’s team leader and fraternizing is against the rules. Emily is investigating Mag and his team; getting involved with him could ruin her investigation and her career.

High 5 Low 5 Review of Warriors Cross by Urban & Roux

Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux
Warrior’s Cross
Dreamspinner, August 2009

Genre & Keywords: Gay, M/M, Suspense, Violence
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Heat level: 1.5 out of 3 flames

I’ve read Warrior’s Cross the last week of 2009 and it was one of the best M/M romances I've read that year. And when you know my taste for smut the surprising thing was that there weren't a lot of sex scenes in this book. It was just plotted and written very well which made it really very hard to put it down! And I loved that!

Although it’s been over three weeks that I finished this book, I don’t mind at all to dive into it again to write this review. I like the little distance and objectivity the lapse of time provides, so I can look at Warrior’s Cross without the rushed and overwhelming feeling with which the book had a grip on me shortly after reading it. So here are my High 5, Low 5 concerning Warrior’s Cross. The High Five are five things that have impressed me or that I really enjoyed, and the Low Five are five things that had me shaking my head in a less admiring way.

First the Back Blurb:
Cameron Jacobs is an open book. He considers himself a common waiter with normal friends, boring hobbies, harmless dogs, and nothing even resembling a secret... except a crush on a tall, dark, devastatingly handsome man who dines alone at his restaurant on Tuesday nights. All it takes is one passionate night with Julian Cross to turn Cameron’s world on its head.
Julian's love and devotion are all Cameron could have hoped for and more. But when his ordinary life meets and clashes with Julian's extraordinary lifestyle, Cameron discovers that trust and fear can go hand in hand, and love is just a step away from danger.

High 5

• The fabulous anticipation
Definitely one of the highest high fives of this novel is the incredible almost heart stopping anticipation the authors have their readers submit to. The first third of the book the two heroes circle around each other like moths around a flame and things are very mysterious. I just wanted to keep reading because I had the feeling that any moment they could get together or something important could be revealed. Instead new circles were made and new mysteries were raised. Very compelling.

• Wonderful story building
When Julian and Cameron finally start working on their relationship and get to know each other, this is so realistically done. The story build is nice and the novel is long, but it’s perfectly so. The book could not have been one page shorter. The anticipation from the beginning turns into tension (also of the erotic sort but not only) and then evolves into suspense, while the writers lead me through all kinds of emotions, to finally, finally deliver the happy ending, but not before I was doubting a few times if there would be one at all.

• Beautiful language
There’re beautiful sentences in this book, not one word is unnecessary. This is one of those stories that ask for the reader’s full attention and dedication to the written words. I wanted to read this novel slowly and fast at the same time. Fast because I wanted to know where the story would take me and slowly because the writing forced me to, since it would have been a shame if I’d skipped some words, let alone sentences. (yes, I admit I do that sometimes with other books…)

• Strong characters
Cameron and Julian are opposite poles who can complement each other once they get passed their differences and insecurities. One is the good guy, the other the bad guy and not the kind that becomes suddenly pure of heart because he found love. The character development is very well done. The story is mainly told from Cameron’s point of view (except for one moment when we hear Julian’s friend Preston’s voice). Julian can be kept mysterious this way and little bits of information are released in a well dosed pace. Meanwhile Cameron’s feelings, thoughts and insecurities are out in the open pretty much from the beginning. We are a close witness to every change and every growth he goes through. This way the characters never become boring and nicely grow into three-dimensional persons.

• Heart aching sob moment
If you don’t care for romances that make you grab for a tissue Warrior’s Cross is not for you, because it had me sobbing. Granted, I’m a weak hearted squealer that cries way too easily at fictional sorrow, but only when it’s done well by the author. I’m not gonna spoil what scenes made me whimper but those who have read the book will know…


Low 5

• Loneliness and desolation
The lonely existence of Cameron depresses me a little bit. I always like the main characters to have one or more good friends or a nice family support system. But the protags of this book don’t seem to have family or friends to spend Christmas with, which is sad. But I must admit that it strengthens their storyline because the focus is solely on them.

• The ever annoying female friend
I haven’t read that many M/M romances yet (less than 50) but I haven’t seen many nice female characters in them so far. The women that are allowed to play a (minor) role at all are usually of the annoying kind. So is Miri, Cameron’s colleague and friend who means well but is also the irritating one that causes the stirring of a lot of doubts in Cameron’s head.

• Few tame sex scenes
As the smutty hussy that I am I would’ve been even happier if there were some more hot sex scenes between Cameron and Julian. Just a few times in the beginning of their relationship we are witness of the two men getting hot and bothered. Sadly these love scenes are also more lovely than scorching hot…

• Cameron’s quick capitulation
Near the end Cameron and Julian have a lot of issues still standing between them. It’s hard for Cameron to trust Julian again, but all it takes are a few words of Julian and they are as thick as thieves again. Hmmm, I wouldn’t have minded if that was drawn out a little bit more.

• Questions about Julian’s profession
The authors left me hanging with a few unclear things about Julian’s profession. Without wanting to spoil anything I just have to say that it’s not only not clear what he’s doing for a very long time into the book but I hardly find his role believable in the whole situation with Cameron’s boss. Let’s not say more…


Those were my five highs and lows. Overall, I loved Warrior’s Cross in case you hadn’t figured that out ;). The heroes were a joy to spend my time with. Their love, insecurities, attraction, grief, happiness, doubts, satisfaction, anger, distrust, joy and happily ever after were all told about in such a way that it brightened the hours I spent with them. I highly recommend this M/M romance, especially to those who have never burned their fingers on this genre, because it’s more of a love story than an erotic romance. The sex scenes are easy to absorb for those who are new to them having two guys in it instead of the traditional man and woman. By the way, Warrior’s Cross made it to my Best of 2009 list!

Happy Gay Friday & My Silent BD Party

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TGIF! Because I crave for some sweet gay kisses! *sigh* aren’t they beautiful?

And I missed reading, blogging and bloghopping the past couple of days - I’m glad I have time for all that again! Gosh, I had no idea how addicted I am to all of this and to ‘talking’ to all of you who have started to feel like friends!
You see, yesterday I had my RL friends dropping by at my house all day long because it was my birthday… yes…I’m sorry I didn’t celebrate it over here… I’ve seen a lot of you doing it with a giveaway or something else special, but I had a silent BD. At least here, not in my RL. My hubby always takes the day off at my BD (and I at his) and we've spend a part of it with just the two of us and the rest with the people coming over to our place. Which left me no time to blog or visit your blogs. I try to make it up to you today. How old I got, you ask? Let’s just say I’m still in my thirties ;)

Have a Happy Friday everyone!

Todays Man Candy & New Exciting Book Blogs

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I choose today’s hottie with the hero of Hard Too Hold by Stephanie Tyler in mind. I’m reading that novel about stubborn, sexy SEAL Jake right now. I must admit that I’m having a hard time with it. But I also gotta say that it’s maybe my own fault because my expectations were unrealistically high, after reading many positive and exultant reviews.

What I’m having troubles with is the shifting focus on almost all the secondary characters all the time, which includes their POV’s and their memories that result in rather annoying flashbacks printed in italic. This keeps me from really getting into Jake and Isabelle’s love story. I want to know more about thém, their thoughts, their feelings and I want to see more of the two of them together *sigh*

Am I asking to much? (for the record I’m at page 121 of 265).

And than there are a few new book blogs that I really like and have high expectations of (oh oh ;)) In case you haven't found them yet, check them out:

1.
The first is The Raving Readers blog, run by three friends since the end of December. They already had a great contest and guest appearance from author Susan Lyons. They have romance book reviews and column like topics as well.

2.
The second is Quick ‘n Dirty Romance Reviews, the new blog from fellow Dutch girl Pearl, who created this blog because she lacks the time to give all the books she reads a proper, full review. This mini-review blog is enjoying to read because of the nice format of Pearl’s reviews.

3.
And the third blog is one I found out about today and is having its grand opening tomorrow: it’s called Book Lovers Inc. Ten Book Lovers, all very recognizable, will review books from all sorts of genres, host giveaways and have guest authors.

Are there other new romance blogs I have missed?

Mondays Hot Couple & Sexy, Smutty Scene

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Last week I decided to add a sexy smutty scene from a book that I’m reading, just read or want to read soon to my weekly Monday’s Hot Couple post.

This week’s sexy smutty scene is from Blind Faith by Claire Thompson. It's a M/M story and the scene is from page 15:


“I bet other sensations are heightened too,” Zane said, his voice suddenly entering a lower register, seduction ripe in his tone. His fingers drew a line of fire down Aidan’s arm. He dropped his hand to Aidan’s thigh. A jolt of arousal shot through him as Zane’s lips met his. He gripped the counter to keep from losing his balance on the barstool.

Zane stood and gently pulled Aidan up. Wrapping his arms around him, he tugged him close. “I want you, Aidan.” He kissed him, their tongues entwining. Zane pulled away, and instinctively Aidan leaned forward, his lips still parted, his tongue seeking Zane’s. Instead he felt the nudge of Zane’s teeth, lightly biting his neck at the hot pulse of his jugular vein.

Aidan’s cock was rigid in his jeans, his heart slamming in his chest. His body ached for Zane’s, lust boiling his blood, melting his bones. Pushing Zane back, he reached for Zane’s shirt, felt the row of buttons and nimbly pulled them open, desperate for the feel of Zane’s smooth, hard chest. Zane stood quietly, only his thumping heart giving him away as Aidan leaned down, licking along the slightly salty flesh until he made contact with a nipple. As he lightly bit and licked the little nubbin, Zane moaned softly, his fingers weaving themselves into Aidan’s hair. Aidan sought out the second nipple.

“Jesus,” Zane whispered. “You’re driving me crazy.”


Clair Thompson’s website

Backblurb:
When Aidan finds himself permanently blinded by a nearly fatal car accident, he almost gives up hope. After months of painful physical therapy to heal his broken body, he retreats into a world of quiet determination, his sole focus regaining his independence. Forget about love—who would ever want him now?
Enter Zane Wilde, Aidan's on-again, off-again lover over the years.
With exquisite tenderness and love, Zane works to help Aidan understand he is still desirable, scars, imperfections and all.
The sexual attraction they've always felt for one another has never wavered, but there's a new overlay of intimacy brought about by Aidan's condition. This story explores how both men come to grips with the limitations and, surprisingly, the new avenues of freedom and understanding Aidan's handicap creates between them. Beneath it all, Zane's gypsy blood simmers, his wanderlust coming to the fore once again, forcing them both to make hard choices.

Quick Review of Sully's Heart by Adrianna Dane

Adrianna Dane
Sully’s Heart
Amber Quill Press, 2008

Genre & Keywords: Contemporary, Gay, M/M, Light BDSM, Cowboys

Rating: êêê½
Heat level: ¹¹½

The Back Blurb:
Sexy rock singer Luke Cantrell, has everything going for him. He parties hard and has no shortage of bed partners. Except he can’t have the one thing he truly wants...
The memory of his golden-haired boyhood friend haunts Luke’s dreams, and no matter how many men or women vie to be in his bed, only one man fuels his passion or can touch his heart. Luke couldn’t wait to get out of Dodge when he was eighteen, but Texas rancher, Sullivan “Sully” Vance, was Luke’s best friend all through school even though they came from different sides of the track and wanted different futures. Luke was always afraid he’d ruin his friendship if he told Sully how he truly felt.
Unable to bear the pain and ache of loneliness any longer, Luke returns to the one place in Texas where his best memories were rooted. Will Sully understand if Luke finally reveals the truth? Or will he lose his friendship forever? After all these years, it’s a gamble he finally has to take in an all-or-nothing game of love.

Another book I read last year and a really short review to catch up...

Sully’s Heart is not a bad read at all, although I thought the beginning was a bit weird and even farfetched. The focus is on Luke throughout the whole story. Living the life of a rock star and fucking with strangers he’s not very happy, being a closeted gay and longing for his old friend Sully. Via a detour, with a rather out of the blue BDSM session with another stranger, Luke comes to the conclusion that he needs to go back to his home town and confront his father with his sexual preference and maybe see Sully. From that point on, the story was a rather enjoyable read about two old friends getting reacquainted and finally confessing their love, than facing a future and the dilemma of how to make it work.
It became a sweet romance and I was treated at a few good love scenes with some light bondage involved. But the first part of the story makes that I can’t rate it with more than 3.5 stars. I liked it but not all of it…

Quick Review of The Perfect Gift by Ashley Ladd

Ashley Ladd
The Perfect Gift
Total E-Bound, 2007

Genre & Keywords: Contemporary, Ménage, M/M/F, Gay, M/M

Rating: êêêê
Heat level: ¹¹½

The Back Blurb:
Bianca's on the search to find the perfect gift for her boyfriend Ty this Christmas. But then she discovers a hidden stash of gay male porn under his side of the bed. Stunned, and scared, she needs to find out if Ty's more interested in men than in her.
She arranges an illicit night for Ty with her handsome gay co-worker Brendan.
To her astonishment and delight, the night turns into a ménage-à-trois, and all three lovers end up benefiting from this special gift.

I’ve read this book last year, so this is going to be a quick, little review of the book. I don’t want to let it be, because I enjoyed it too much for that…

I liked this story a lot, the characters were fun and very likable. The plot is well developed, fast paced and to the point. And the sex scenes were hot! The situation could’ve turned into an angst packed emotional roller coaster, but Ms. Ladd kept it light and enjoyable. The heroine is amazing and the girlfriend of every man's dreams. When she discovers her boyfriend’s gay fantasies she’s getting him a wonderful, unselfish gift. In return she gets a gift herself: a second hot man in her bedroom. I like it as well that the ending was kind of open where the third person in the threesome was concerned, but with a hint of a HEA for them all. And let’s talk about the smut a little bit more ;) The two guys really hit it off and were absolutely sexy together, which led to quite some orgasmic scenes.

So this was a sweet, sexy, tender and scorching hot romantic story that I can recommend when you like to read about ménages which include some guy on guy action!

Happy Gay Friday

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Just a quick cookie of a sweet gay couple before I run out of the door to have a drink with 5 of my friends (it's Friday night custom). When I'm back, I'll do the rest of my blog rounds!

I've finished Beth's Acceptance by Teal Ceagh and I'm really starting to like vampires and elves ;), but more about that later...

Contest Alert: Today and Tomorrow you can win Sex On the Beach by Susan Lyons

Today (Wednesday) the girls of The Raving Readers will feature a review of Sex Drive by Susan Lyons, book 1 of the Wild Ride to Love series. And the author has also graced them with an interview on January 14 (Thursday) and a never before seen excerpt!

They also have a giveaway!!! Courtesy of the author, Susan Lyons.

Giveaway: Autographed trade paperback copy of Sex On The Beach (released Jan 5, 2010)

How to Enter: You can do any of the following:

1. Comment on any of the posts on the Raving Readers blog on January 13 and 14.
2. Ask questions. Susan will be dropping by the blog from time to time and will answer any questions you might have.
3. Answer the question at the end of the posts.

Who Can Enter: Anybody on this planet.

Contest Deadline: 11:59pm EST on January 14, 2010

Winner Announcement: The name of the winner will be posted on the blog on January 15, 2010. Instructions will be given then on how to claim the prize.

So, go over there and show the girls some love while you make a chance to win an awesome book!

Mondays Hot Couple & Sexy, Smutty Scene

Today my hot couple is actually a ménage. Personally I think the third guy is a bit too much ;)

I’ve decided to liven up my Monday’s Hot Couple post every week with a sexy smutty scene from a book that I’m reading, just read or want to read soon. I hope you like it!
This week’s verrry sexy scene is from Beth’s Acceptance by Teal Ceagh that I’m reading right now and it’s from page 17. If you want to win this book, look at the end of this post. Enjoy the scene!

"So Beth gave in to an impulse she’d had since the moment she’d first met Zachariah. She ran her fingers through his thick hair and kissed him, thrusting her tongue far into his mouth.

He moaned helplessly, his arms locking around her in either shock or protest. But that frozen state lasted for less than a heartbeat. Then Zack was kissing her back and it was no chaste kiss goodbye. His tongue drove into her like a battering ram, promising wicked delights to come. His hand was on the back of her head, holding her steady as he plundered her mouth.

A shudder of primeval, greedy delight ran through her. She had the feeling she’d reaped a whirlwind and didn’t care.

When he released her lips, she gasped, afraid he might stop but his mouth merely slid down her throat, nipping and licking, then along her collarbone, making her shudder.

His hand roamed over her body, making her writhe, making her hot. He seemed to know every sensitive patch and point of her anatomy, even those she hadn’t been aware of but he never once touched her breasts or the usual erogenous points. She remained on her feet only because of his arm around her back. Until finally he slid his hand between her thighs and began to stroke once more the flesh above the lace of her stockings. His fingers moved higher, pushed aside the sodden lace barrier and as he stared into her eyes, he impaled her with his fingers.

She gave a shuddering, whimpering gasp that he smothered with another kiss."

More information:

Teal Ceagh’s website

You can win Beth’s Acceptance and the other two books in this trilogy – called Destiny’s Trinities by commenting on Teal’s post Does Reading Erotic Romance Improve Your Sex Life? Tell Me To Win. Isn’t that a fun contest?

Backblurb:

For weeks, the darkly sinful Zachariah, her favorite customer at McGinty’s, has been raising NYC student Beth Siegel’s pulse, driving her crazy with need.

Neither can she keep the tall, blue-eyed mysterious Luke, who haunts the library stacks at her day job, out of her mind or her sweaty, desperate fantasies.

Fate hands Beth a startling destiny, a chance to bond with both of them—a bond formed via sex. Sex with either one of them would have been fabulous. Together? Irresistible.

Reader Advisory: This book contains hot, sexy scenes of M/M interaction.

I’m ashamed for my book greediness

There’s no denying it any longer, I’m painfully addicted to not just reading smutty stories but to book shopping as well!! How did I come to this realization? It started with Leontine’s post about her December book binge and her asking me to list my shopping list so she could take a peek at it.

And it’s hard to admit, but I bought nearly seventy books last month... O_o… In my defense, December was a month with many, many great discounts (especially at Fictionwise) and this month always brings me in a shopping mood with all the holiday gifts to buy...


First of all I got over 20 ebooks and 20 dead tree books for free in December. I won quite some contests, there were a few free downloads form All Romance Ebooks and I received more than a handful of gifts from authors (like Mia Watts, Bronwyn Green and Jambrea Jo Jones – I blogged about them). A few others I haven’t mentioned before are the gifts from Kris Norris (who sent me her story Centrefold) and Molly Daniels aka Kenzie Michaels (who also gave me her story All She Ever Wanted as a pressie). It was wonderful to receive so much book love!


My December gifts:

And like I said, my poor credit card had to take several blows during my visits to ebook stores as Fictionwise, BooksonBoard, Dreamspinner Press and Noble Romance Publishing. And I didn’t even go to Ellora’s Cave, Loose Id, BookStrand, Total E-Bound or My Book Store and More – a few of my other favorite booksellers. I ended up buying 69 ebooks.


My December purchases:

So, now you know… I can’t restrain myself… but let’s keep it a secret, okay?

Letter to A Character: Skylar from Tied Up, Tied Down by Lorelei James

Erotic Horizon is hosting the Erotica Romance Reading Challenge this year and she built a beautiful blog devoted to it. One of the features of the blog is 'Letters to A Character' and she asked me for a contribution. I didn’t have to think long about which character I wanted to write to: it had to be Skylar from Tied Up, Tied Down by Lorelei James, because this was the first erotic romance I ever read (that was not a Harlequin’s Blaze). I picked it up at a Barnes & Noble in New York on 5th Avenue, where I was in June last year. It was the beginning of my discovery of this genre I had no idea existed. So Skylar and her adorable Kade McKay rocked my world! (It’s still rocking) I’ve read quite a few erotic romances since Tied Up, Tied Down, but it’s still one of my favorites. And Kade is my all time favorite book boy friend. So go on, read my letter to learn why *sigh*

If you want to join the Erotica Romance Reading Challenge just click the challenge button in my sidebar.

To: Skylar Ellison McKay
(From Tied Up, Tied Down by Lorelei James)


Hi sweetie,

How are you and how are Kade and the kids? Just wanted to tell you that I miss you and I hope to see you at the next McKay family meeting very soon.

I’ve always wanted to ask you something about you and Kade hooking up.
When I look at you two becoming this close over the years I can’t help wondering why it took you so long in those early days to accept Kade’s love for you. Couldn’t you tell with one look at him that he was the one? Because I could! I knew from the first moments you two met that he was a keeper!

I know you had your insecurities and that they were valid, Ms James did a very good job explaining them when she told me your story.
But, girl, everyone could see that your sexy-as-sin-cowboy with his deliciously blue eyes and dark hair was head over heels in love with you. I mean, the way he bonded so quickly with your little daughter and made an effort to help you around the house, told me he was very serious about you. And the scorching passion between you two, wowzah! What were you thinking when you decided to keep him at distance? Good thing for you that he had no doubts whatsoever because maybe then you would’ve missed out on the best and hottest man there is, out there.
I was so thrilled that he finally took control in the bedroom (and trailer, bathroom, front garden etc.) and that you let him! Luckily, you knew a good idea when you heard one! I was aware that he was an alpha kind of guy but when he showed you his kinky side as well, I was completely swooning over him. You certainly are a lucky girl to have all the best features a man can have, combined in one hot guy that only has eyes for you, Sky!
I was so happy when in the end you had the guts to swallow your own pride and go after him to show him your love. And in that moment when he had his own surprising little proof of his love for you, he had me in tears, girl!
I tell you, he is the sweetest, most honest, protecting and caring man I’ve ever met. And let’s not forget he’s the sexiest, hottest cowboy a woman can ever lay her eyes on. If you hadn’t snatched him away already, I would’ve wanted to marry him myself! I mean, he’s definitely good husband material.

So, I’m glad everything worked out fine and you and Kade got your Happily Ever After, because you have to agree with me that your husband certainly deserved it. And so did you!
I hope your love will last forever and that you may live a long and happy life together, sweetie.


Big hugs,

Janna

Lorelei James' website

About the book:

TIED UP, TIED DOWN (Book 4 of the Rough Riders series)
...The strongest bonds are the ones unseen.

Businesswoman Skylar Ellison is firmly in control of her life. So getting tangled up with a sexy Wyoming cowboy—and conceiving a baby in the parking lot of a honky-tonk—wasn’t in her plan. Since it appears the daddy has taken off for greener pastures, the only thing to do is pull up her bootstraps and carry on alone.

Cattle rancher Kade McKay returns home after a year on the range, and is knocked for a loop when he learns he’s the father of a three-month-old baby girl. When Skylar refuses to marry him, Kade grits his teeth, moves in and plays house by her rules to prove he’s a man in for the long haul.

Despite Skylar’s insistence they are to remain strictly parenting partners, their old passions flare hot as a brush fire, spurring Kade to demand absolute sexual surrender from the headstrong woman. Skylar willingly submits her body to the hot-blooded cowboy but she’s leery of handing Kade the reins to her heart.

Can Kade convince Skylar the wicked sex games aren’t a temporary distraction? Or will he have to bust out the ropes to show her he wants to be tied to her…forever?

Warning: this book contains: no holes barred kinky sex scenes, wicked rope play, blunt language, and yowza! lots of hot cowboy nekkidness.

Contest Winner & Short Review of Cuffed and Dangerous by Bronwyn Green

Hi everybody, like I promised I’m about to announce the winner of the pdf copy of Bronwyn Green’s Cuffed and Dangerous! Before I do so I gotta say that I think the winner is one lucky girl, just like I was when Bronwyn sent me her book as a present. I thought I’d take a sneak peek at it before drawing and announcing today’s winner… so I at least had a faint idea about what I was giving away… and I just couldn’t put it down after that!! The first pages pulled me in right away and before I knew it I’d finished the story. I’ve read it in one breath! Luckily it was only about 50 pages long… otherwise I would have been dehydrated or worse ;)… although I wouldn’t have minded reading a little bit longer about Bronwyn’s threesome.
And the funny thing is, it was about shapeshifters! As some of you know I’m postponing reading the paranormal genre for a while now, because I had these doubts if it would be my cup of tea. I courageously bought a few paranormal books and won some others but kept pushing them to the bottom of my TBR tower. The back blurb of Cuffed and Dangerous didn’t say anything about the heroes being werecats, so I was tricked and I didn’t mind at all! I’m just saying so the winner knows what she gets!
If you want to know a wee bit more about my honest thoughts on this book, you can find them at the end of this post.

But let’s not let you wait any longer - the winner of Cuffed and Dangerous is:

Beth

Congratulations Beth! Please email me at eroticromance[at]live[dot]nl so I can send you the ebook, because I don’t have your address.

I want to thank Bronwyn again for making this giveaway possible! Thank you so much! And all of you who played and became followers of my blog, thank you too!

BTW I choose the winner with the help of Random.org.

There were 20 items in your list. Here they are in random order:


1. Beth
2. Marissa
3. Booklover1335
4. elaing8
5. joder
6. Patti
7. Tricia
8. Leontine
9. Cathy M
10. Sweet Vernal Zephyr
11. CynCyn
12. Molly Daniels
13. Minx
14. Cecile
15. Mandi
16. Marquetta
17. adrienne
18. UniquelyMoi
19. Tracy Tabor
20. Andrea

Timestamp: 2010-01-08 12:15:54 UTC

Bronwyn Green
Cuffed and Dangerous
Resplendence Publishing, November 2009

Genre & Keywords: Paranormal, Shapeshifters: Feline, Ménage, M/F/M, Bountyhunting, light bondage play

Rating: êêêê
Heat level: ¹¹¹

The Back Blurb:
When a bounty claim becomes a fight of five against one, Jude Caulfield and Gideon Wells step in to help hunter, Wrenn Saunders, before she’s mortally injured. Wrenn soon learns that three is a good number whether in a fight or in the bedroom. Especially in the bedroom—and that’s just where Jude and Gideon want to keep her.

I’ve said it before, I like a book that opens in mid action and Cuffed and Dangerous did just that and the first pages pulled me straight into the story. I intended to only take a little peek but ended up reading it in one haul. It’s a short story (about 50 pages) and when the space is that limited lust and love are always fighting for attention and the heat is mostly the winner. The same goes for Cuffed and Dangerous. Although there’s a happy ending and a glimpse of love, the romance in this story is not overly developed. The heat on the other hand… o lala… that’s very well done!
The sex scenes were really scorching hot and frequent! From the first to the last love scene the two heroes know how to seduce their girl into some sweet and tender but hot and ultimately satisfying lovin’! And although the three protags didn’t know each other before the encounter in the bar where Jude and Gideon helped Wrenn settle the fight against five werelions there’s an instant attraction and a genuine affection from the beginning between them.

There, the word werelions fell! Yeah, that’s right, I’ve finally read a book about werecats! It was my first, I was kind of a paranormal virgin and… the werecats didn’t freak me out! At first there was only one short shifting involved when they had to fight the lions, but the description of that wasn’t extensive so I could get to know the heroes first as men, and that was good. They were described as good looking hotties with the protecting quality alphas tend to have. Wrenn clearly fell for the men and certainly not for the cats. In fact she hates the fact that they are shapeshifters, since she had a traumatic experience with the sort. Wrenn makes a great heroine, she’s feisty, independent and tough – all qualities I like in my heroines. Ms. Green gave her a plausible background and more depth than Jude and Gideon. Except for their appearances the guys were pretty much interchangeable. I can’t remember which one of them was the cougar and which one the panther. They are rather flat characters and it was easier to identify with Wrenn than with one of them. But then again they played the parts they were meant to play perfectly.

So overall my first experience with the paranormal genre wasn’t bad at all. In fact, it was freakin’ awesome and I’m ready for more! I think, but I can’t really be a good judge of that, that the paranormal aspect was on the light side in Cuffed and Dangerous, since the hot lovin’ was so prominent and the shapeshifting was just a given without elaborate explanations or rules or anything. Most of all I think that Ms. Green’s easy writing and way of making a story flow, helped me a lot with my paranormal deflowering, ‘cause if it wasn’t for that I would have never been sucked into the story like I was now. She really knows how to grab your attention and hold it throughout the story!
I already purchased another one of her stories: Handcuffs and Lies. And of course I couldn’t help myself and take a sneak peek again. And this story also begins in mid action and pulled me in immediately. But I managed to put it down to write this post ;) I’m not sure if there’re shapeshifters involved as well, since the back blurb doesn’t tell… But with or without them, the blurb sounds promising anyway!

Happy Gay Friday

Here's a hot couple to keep you entertained while I finish up two other posts for today. First I will announce the winner of my giveaway of Bronwyn Green's Cuffed and Dangerous in a short while. And later today I will post my contribution to the Erotica Reading Challenge site, which is a letter to one of Lorelei James' characters. So stay tuned ;)

And about Happy Gay Friday: I skipped it a few times because of all the holidays, but from now on I intend to post one of my cookies every Friday again and give you a short update of my M/M week.
The past week was all about Tere Michaels for me. I've read her book Faith & Fidelity and I loved it! I didn't read much else, but that had to do with the EDJ (evil day job) starting again after a week's vacation. It gave me enough time to enjoy Faith & Fidelity though! It had me glued to the pages and sobbing with the characters and grunting with displeasure when I reached the last page... But the good news is, I also have her book Love & Loyalty on my ereader AND Tere Michaels announced today that there's a sequel to Matt and Evan's story on it's way - called Duty & Devotion - which is tentatively scheduled to come out via Loose-Id in March!I have Chris to thank for the heads up on this news, she sent me the link to Tere Michaels' site!

Happy Friday everyone!

My last one: The DIK Book Reading Challenge 2010

Okay, this is my last one, really! But the DIK Book Reading Challenge 2010 just looked too good, I couldn't resist it! The DIK reading list is divers and I'm reading a few paranormal books, since I've really wanted to try this genre for a while now... but it seems I can't get myself to reading it without the added pressure...
There are a lot of other books on this list I like and are on my ereader already!

So, the rules of this challenge are:

1. Pick one book from the DIK book list to read and review.
2. Book reviews can be posted any day during the last week of each month.
3. Link back to the blog when you do a DIK Book Reading Challenge (we'll do a sticky post). If you don’t link to us we won’t know that you’ve posted a review! :)
4. Please clearly state in the title of your post that the review you are posting is for the DIK Book Reading Challenge.

At the end of the year the participants that have posted reviews for all 12 months will be put in one big pot and we will draw a name to win a $50 gift certificate from Amazon/Borders/Barnes and Noble/Books A Million (really it's your choice which place you want the certificate from as long as we can purchase it from our computer!)

If you'd like to join please leave a comment with your name and a link to your blog here>>>

My list:

JANUARY
1. Hard Too Hold by Stephanie Tyler, 3 stars
FEBRUARY
2. Tigers and Devils by Sean Kennedy, 5 stars
MARCH
3. The Darkest Night (Lords of the Underworld, #1) by Gena Showalter, 4 stars
APRIL
4. Happy Ending (Men of Smithfield, #2) by L.B. Gregg, 3.5 stars
MAY
5. Heaven (Heaven Sent, #1) by Jet Mykles, 4 stars
JUNE
6. Caught Running by Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux, 4.75 stars
JULY
7. -
AUGUST
8. -
SEPTEMBER
9. -
OCTOBER
10. -
NOVEMBER
11. -
DECEMBER
12. -

6 / 12 books. 50% done!

FAILED!!

You can also check my list on my DIK Book Reading Challenge shelf in my GoodReads library.

Todays Man Candy & Reminder of My Giveaway of Cuffed and Dangerous

It's been a long day with lots of boring office stuff so I'm just doing a quickie with this hottie ;)

And I wanted to remind you of my Giveaway of Bronwyn Green's Cuffed and Dangerous. Tomorrow is the last day to make a chance of winning this novel by leaving a comment here >>>

Good Night!!

Still catching up on some (short) reviews: Knight or Daye by Jude Mason

Jude Mason
Knight or Daye
Total E-Bound Publishing, 2009

Genre & Keywords: Gay, M/M/M, Menage, Bdsm

Rating: êêê
Heat level: ¹¹

The Back Blurb:
A love lost, then found. Can Knight rescue his love or will Daye prevail?
Jeremy Knight lives with, and is in love with, Sam, a man who hides his submissive nature until, one fine evening, he asks Jeremy to dominate him. Jeremy is shocked, but does go along with his lover's request. It goes well - perhaps too well - overwhelming Jeremy. He leaves, gets wildly drunk and decides he can't abide the behaviour. Returning home, he tells Sam, who pushes his sub side down, for a while. He finally can't take it and leaves.
Devastated, Jeremy does some soul searching and discovers that perhaps Sam's desires weren't all that horrible. His own dominant side shows itself and he does as much research as he can to find himself.
Then he must find Sam. A cop friend of Jeremy's sees Sam in the company of 'someone of interest' to the police - Nathanial Daye, a very wealthy man who owns and sells people. The only trouble is they've never been able to prove it. When Jeremy decides to get into the picture, he winds up as the newest 'boy' in Nathanial's house. He finds Sam, who has fallen for another slave named Peter.
Can Jeremy rekindle the love Sam had for him? How will Peter fit into the picture? Can Jeremy find a way to rescue them all? Or will Daye win?

I like a book that opens in mid action and Knight or Daye has a strong opening that sucked me right into the story:

Jeremy Knight stood outside of his lover’s door, his hands clenched at his sides, thinking about knocking, but not quite sure he was ready. […]
He looked back at the door. “Could use some TLC,” he mumbled and shifted from one foot to the other. The thong pulled tight up the crack of his ass. He squirmed, trying to readjust the strap without actually using his hands. It didn’t work. He knew it wouldn’t.
He looked at the door again and took a deep breath. It was now or never. Standing there any longer wasn’t going to help his indecisiveness. He raised his hand and knocked. Stepping back, he waited and his heart raced. He crossed his hands in front of himself, gripping one wrist. Head lowered, he eased his feet apart, shoulder width.
His decision was making itself known.
Jeremy watched the rise and fall of his chest, and worked on his patience. His hands grew slippery with sweat. His jeans felt too tight, his tank even tighter. The boots weighed a ton when he moved his feet. He clenched his fist then straightened his fingers, stretching them, trying to distract himself. Jumbled thoughts and desires plagued him. His c**k pulsed, and he wanted to sooth the dull ache he’d been trying to ignore for the last hour.
Footsteps approached from inside.
Should he bolt, flee for his freedom?

The back blurb is pretty misleading though. We actually step into the story where the blurb ends. Everything that’s written in the blurb, except for the last few sentences, has occurred already and is not part of the story, it’s only mentioned shortly. By the time I figured this out I was already pulled into a lot of action, involving a mean Dom and slave trader (Nathaniel), Jeremy’s lost and submissive ex boyfriend (Sam) and Sam’s newfound friend and fellow submissive (Peter), who were all thrown into the mix with Jeremy to have a hot bondage sex scene at Nathaniel’s house. Jeremy went there as the new boy toy of Master Nathaniel to find and win back Sam. Well, he finds him very quickly and things are forgiven and solved between them even faster.

Then the suspense is increased with a notch or two by introducing the mean side of Nathaniel, who keeps the men in captivity and intends to sell Peter as a slave. I don’t want to give the whole plot away but let me say that there’s a lot going on in this short story (of ca. 40 pages). And not everything was as easy to believe as I wanted to. To be honest, the characters appeared to be not much more than chess-pieces on a board in a play of fast chess, only there for the sake of action. Granted, the play was hot and sexy! It’s just that I didn’t feel the love or the romance or the affection, only the attraction.

If you pick up this story as a quick hot read than you won’t be disappointed and it will be worth 3 or 3.5 stars, if you want a heart wrenching romance than you won’t be satisfied and probably won’t rate it with more than 2.5 stars.

Mondays Hot Couple & Catching up on some (short) reviews

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Here's today's Hot Couple! I've read a few more books than I've reviewed lately, so I'm trying to catch up by doing a few quickies on a couple of those books, to start with the anthology When Good Things Happen To Bad Boys. Other short stories and novella's will be up next...

Lori Foster, Erin McCarthy, HelenKay Dimon
When Good Things Happen to Bad Boys
Kensington Publishing Corp, 2006

Genre & Keywords: Contemporary, Anthology
Rating: êêê
Heat level: ¹¹


This is a bundle with three stories (about 100 pages each) and I’ll just give you my quick thoughts on each story. The anthology as a whole was okay, enjoyable at times. I like reading them every now and then because they give me a quick sample of some new to me authors.

The Back Blurb:
"Playing Doctor" by Lori Foster:
Attitude makes a huge difference in bed. It could be Axel Dean's motto. The sexy physician likes his women with sensual moxie, and Libby Preston definitely seems to fit that bill. There's that naughty grin. That hot bod. Her eager kisses and cheeky insults. Her...admitted virginity. Whoa. Okay, cue cold shower. Axel may not be an honorable man, but he has his limits. Except Libby won't take no for an answer. She's determined to have someone show her what she's been missing, and suddenly, Axel can't bear to think of Libby playing doctor with anyone else...

My Thoughts:
This was a fun read! From the beginning Axel and Libby hit it off. Their attraction was tangible and sizzled from the pages. When Libby admitted to be a virgin Axel backed out of their sexy encounter. They meet again under hilarious circumstances which were a wee bit too coincidental imo. Then their relationship evolves into a sweet and tender one and that part was very well written. I made it the best story of this bundle for me.

The Back Blurb:
"Lady Of The Lake" by Erin McCarthy:
Pro baseball player Dylan Diaz is pretty sure he's going to hell. When you rescue a drowning woman from a lake your first thought should be, "Are you okay?" not, "Can I make mad, passionate love to you?" But the minute sputtering kindergarten teacher Violet Caruthers is on Dylan's boat, that's all he can think about. Maybe it's the potent combo of a nun's personality inside a stripper's body. Maybe it's the way she drives him crazy with desire and laughter. Or maybe, Dylan's finally found what's been missing in his life, and he's not about to let go...

My Thoughts:
In the first story we had a virgin and in this second one a woman who desperately wants to get pregnant. Both not my favorite type of heroines. Especially Violet is on top of that not easy to like. She’s insecure about her appearance while she apparently has a stripper’s body! I got annoyed by the amount of times her big breast were described or mentioned. I don’t want to know! I want to know all about the hero’s gorgeous bod, yes, but not too much about the heroine’s! I’m I asking too much? Anyway, the story was build around a few too many unbelievable coincidences but it was a quick and sexy read which gave me a few enjoyable but not very memorable hours.



The Back Blurb:
"Hardhats And Silk Stockings" by HelenKay Dimon:
Hannah Bridges is the most infuriating woman architect Whit Thomas has ever met - and the sexiest. If he could just get the tough contractor to stop proving herself at every turn, they might have time to discuss more important things, like his hands on her...blue prints. What Hannah needs is a night of pure bliss that's all about her: no regrets, no control, no limits. Now, in a private room where pleasure is the only goal, Hannah is about to receive a delicious education in total ecstasy...
My Thoughts:
This story had me laughing a few times. Some scenes are really embarrassing for the hero and it makes him loveable. The plot is wafer-thin but it has a really nice setting for some hot scenes. There’s an old house and a private room with sex toys and the h/h are assigned to renovate the house when one night they get locked in the private room. You can imagine what that means for their love-hate feelings for each other. Of course, everything ends well but not before they have to overcome some obstacles. Enjoyable read for the time being as well!