All posts by Kristi M

#Review You and I (Second Chances Book 2) Isobelle Cate

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synopsis

Serenity wanted to escape her past. Matt needed to finish his mission. Danger insisted on keeping them together.
Everyone deserves a second chance, right?
Wrong.
Serenity Beresford was as mean as they came. A bitch, a whore, a druggie, and any other word that could describe a good for nothing person. She was also a victim. Because of the hurt she caused so many and the sympathy she acquired from so few, she spiralled into believing that she was only good at hurting people, only good for being used and thrown away like a rag doll, only good enough to be a pawn in sick men’s games. When she decides that this vicious cycle of her life needs to stop, the repercussions of escaping hounds her everywhere she goes. Until the evil that snared her in the beginning is destroyed, she has no hope of being free.
Matt Reed is a womanizer, a man who doesn’t believe there’s a woman who can tame his heart. An undercover agent for the DEA, he returns to Windswept ahead of a drug exchange. This will be his last mission before he hands in his badge and works for his family’s conglomerate, but his plan slowly unravels at the hands of another guest in Windswept, the woman with russet colored hair and eyes that seem to peer into his very soul to see the ugliness inside.
Serenity has learned not to fall or trust any man, yet she can’t stop the attraction she feels for Matt. When the evil stalking Serenity follows her to Windswept, she has no choice but to trust him to keep her safe. It will take all of Matt’s cunning to bust the drug ring wide open and protect Serenity in the process, the woman he can’t let go.  The woman who made him believe in second chances.

kristis review

Received a copy for a honest review

Serenity Beresford, aka Cilla Williams, is someone who really deserves a second chance. Saving her ex’s son from her drug dealer and giving the authorities the means to put him away was her start, changing countries and her looks puts her on a even stronger path.
Matt Reed is undercover, but has done a lot in his past that he’s trying to make right.
These two come together at a very inopportune time, but love doesn’t always come at the best time.
I really feel for Serenity in this book, she is so sure that no one is going to love her after they find out what kind of person that she was and so she tries so hard to stay away from anyone who makes her feel anything. The pain she feels is so real that you can’t help but feel it too.
Matt is knocked off his guard the first time he see Serenity, since a woman is not want he’s looking for but he can’t get her out of his and his focus is not what it should me.
When Serenity’s past and the undercover op that Matt is on come together, it makes for a scary situation!!
These two are each other’s Second Chance and it’s beautiful to see, and it makes it even more so when you know who Serenity was and who she is now.
I excited to see who is next to get their second chance!!

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about the author

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Isobelle Cate is a woman who wears different masks. Mother-writer, wife-professional, scholar-novelist. Currently living in Manchester, she has been drawn to the little known, the secret stories, about the people and the nations: the English, the Irish, the Scots, the Welsh, and those who are now part of these nations whatever their origins. Her vision and passion are fuelled by her interest and background in history and paradoxically, shaped by growing up in a clan steeped in lore, loyalty, and legend.

Isobelle is intrigued by forces that simmer beneath the surface of these cultures, the hidden passions, unsaid desires, and yearnings unfulfilled.

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#Review #Contemporary Be Mine (Second Chances Book 1) by Isobelle Cate

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synopsis

Gracie Sinclair just wants life to return to normal.

Now a widow and picking up the pieces after the death of her husband, she delves into her work, seeking a new normal, until she bumps into a handsome stranger who derails her orderly life, completely.

Luke can’t wait for the week to be over. Having built an engineering company into a multi-million pound enterprise in record time, he feels…empty. Nothing satisfies him anymore, not even having weekenders in his bed. But when he bumps into a woman—literally—on his way out of a bar, realizing she is his last meeting before he goes on holiday, his plan of staying away from relationships takes a nose dive. He wants Gracie Sinclair.

Gracie learned a long time ago how insincere love can be, so when Luke decides to become part of her life, she tosses up every obstacle to dissuade him until he breaks down her walls and makes her realize that her life can only be complete with Luke by her side.

However, something sinister from Luke’s past threatens the happiness they have struggled to find. If he concedes, he will become criminally liable and lose everything.

If he refuses, he loses Gracie’s heart…

kristis review

Received a copy for a honest review
Gracie is a widow who had a douche bag for a husband and Luke is a man whore, but that changes for him when they literally run smack into each other and he can’t stop thinking about her, though he doesn’t know her name or anything and even though she has built a walls around her after her shit marriage, they start to shake after their run in.
It’s amazing how fast attraction is for some people!!
The second time they meet, he knows there’s something different about her and it makes him want her more even when she tells him no and that she’s married. For all of his man whoring ways he’s honorable and backs off at that point, still he can’t stop thinking about her and he no longer backs off when he finds out she is no longer married. No matter how much she pushes him away, he just keeps pushing back until she lets him in and they find love within each other.
I love how strong he is for her when his past comes back to haunt them and when he thinks she is going to end them because of it, his plan is to let her have space but he’s not going to give up on them, thankfully it doesn’t come to that though because she knows he was being hurt too.
This story, like the series implies, is all about second chances. Gracie is given a second chance at love and Luke by loving Gracie is given a second chance at having a family.
Yes, like I said attraction is fast for some people, all it takes is a split second meeting to know you have found your someone and for Luke and Gracie that first crash into each other was all they needed to find the someone who would break down walls and make them want to change for the better.

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about the author

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Isobelle Cate is a woman who wears different masks. Mother-writer, wife-professional, scholar-novelist. Currently living in Manchester, she has been drawn to the little known, the secret stories, about the people and the nations: the English, the Irish, the Scots, the Welsh, and those who are now part of these nations whatever their origins. Her vision and passion are fuelled by her interest and background in history and paradoxically, shaped by growing up in a clan steeped in lore, loyalty, and legend.

Isobelle is intrigued by forces that simmer beneath the surface of these cultures, the hidden passions, unsaid desires, and yearnings unfulfilled.

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#Review #Military Irresistible Seal Box Set by Amanda Heartly

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synopsis

Smokin’ Hot Military Romance!
Get the Complete Series of Irresistible SEAL in this Exclusive Box Set!
After an unhappy childhood, Luke Carter joined the US Navy and has dedicated the last twelve years of his life to the SEALs. But the relentless overseas tours have taken their toll on his mind and body and now he dreams of what life might be like outside the military. Love, romance, his own space—maybe even a family he can call his own.

Juliet Morgan works in the fast-paced world of finance. Beautiful, headstrong and smart, she chooses her career over love and puts all of her energy into her new job—a job she was ‘persuaded’ to take far away from her beloved Manhattan by her rich, overbearing father. She’s not looking for romance, but feels lonely and lost in her new environment so she turns to online retail therapy to lift her spirits and accidentally stumbles across a dating site where she’s awestruck by Luke Carter.

The sparks flicker to a roaring flame with each sizzling message between them—then the battlefield nearly claims Luke’s life and he’s rushed home to the States. Although he’s only an hour away from Juliet, in his mind everything’s changed and his pride gets in the way of the love, passion, and happiness they both so desperately crave.

Can Juliet break down the walls of this irresistible SEAL, or are they both destined to a life of loneliness?

kristis review

Received a copy for a honest review

This box set has all three books of the series so you don’t miss one bit.
Juliet is a woman who has been up rooted from a life she loves in Manhattan, by her father, to a life she hates in L.A. She has decided to prove to her father that he hasn’t totally screwed up her life by learning to love her new city and job.
Luke is a Navy Seal deployed overseas, who has signed up for a military dating website to try and find himself some back home, whether it be a Ms. Right or a Ms. Right Now. Juliet finds the dating site purely by accident but signs up anyways, and when she finds Luke’s profile she’s drawn to him.
First off let me say HELLO HUNKY SAILOR!!! Juliet and Luke really start getting to know each other and to like what they learn.
I love how when Luke comes home hurt she goes to him, no they’ve never actually met until then but they’ve gotten to know each other so well she can’t help but go to him.
Heartly writes about how a wounded solider feels and what they go through mentally so very well, you can’t help but be there and feel it too.
Juliet and Luke go through and over come a lot to make it, but make it they do.
The only thing I do wish is that Heartly showed Juliet’s father just how great her life became, but since they didn’t get along I understand the reason behind him not being in the book other then the first introduction of him.

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Amanda Heartley is a writer, born and raised in Oklahoma and subsequently transplanted into the hustle and bustle of Southern California. She’s a country girl at heart with an insatiable weakness for sexy men and feisty women. Her first publications were made available in July 2013.

In her spare time, she plays Mom, Chef, Ninja, Taxi, and Nurse while she hangs out with her four wonderful children and 2 loveable mutts.

You can probably find Amanda drinking a green smoothie, relaxing in her back yard, writing another steamy book on her iPad.

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#Cover Reveal and Pre-Order The Vrai Domicile (The Domicile Series) By Courtney Ruggles

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synopsis

 Q437B was ready to die for the Second Revolution. Then she entered the Muertre…
Q and B expected death when the Elders ordered their execution. What they discover instead changes everything they thought they knew about their world. Saved by the mercy of the Elders, they awaken in the Vrai Domicile, a mysterious place hidden below the Sixth Domicile housing hundreds of former rebels.
Except these rebels have been brainwashed, conditioned to be blind followers.
Q quickly learns of the Elders’ new plan for her – she is to become their warrior, to reunite the Vrai and Sixth Domiciles with purity, love, and unwavering faith. But to Q, she’ll be undoing everything she and the rebels fought for.
Now Q and B must fight to survive once more, forced to forge new alliances with strangers who promise nothing is as it seems. But surviving comes with a choice – follow the Elders and quash the Revolution, or defy them and free the people, putting B’s and Grandmother’s lives at risk.
In a place where the fire of rebellion is extinguished at every turn, can Q continue to be the spark that fuels the Revolution?
Book 2 in The Sixth Domicile Series by Courtney Ruggles, a 5 star Readers Favorite!

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about the author

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Courtney’s love for writing dates back to short stories on a word processor (What?? Word processor with floppy disks?). Oh yes, she literally had a card filing case full of floppy disks. Now she continues her writing (she upgraded to a laptop) while living in Southern Ohio with her husband and son.

Although Courtney has always lived in Ohio, sometimes closer to the Ohio River and sometimes further away, she dreams of the mountain ranges out west and the sandy Florida beaches. She married the man of her dreams and had a beautiful blond haired blue eyed boy. Before she sought publication for her first book The Sixth Domicile: Book One of the Domicile Series, Courtney worked as a social worker in a mental health agency where she counseled and provided therapy. After she left full time work, she taught social sciences at a local university and began a photography business. The “extra” time gave her the ability to focus on writing again.

Courtney’s background in social work fuels the grit in her stories. When Courtney isn’t writing her next book, you can find her doing homework (drag) and sipping flavored coffee, reading young adult and new adult books (because social work text books are only so interesting), or daydreaming about all the future beach houses she intends to buy.

#Cover Reveal!! Love Restored (A Gallagher Brothers Novel) by Carrie Ann Ryan

The first book in a Montgomery Ink spin-off series, LOVE RESTORED by Carrie Ann Ryan, was announced on USA Today HEA yesterday, and we’re so thrilled to bring you a first look at LOVE RESTORED today!

 

Love RestoredAbout LOVE RESTORED

In the first of a Montgomery Ink spin-off series from NYT Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan, a broken man uncovers the truth of what it means to take a second chance with the most unexpected woman…

Graham Gallagher has seen it all. And when tragedy struck, lost it all. He’s been the backbone of his brothers, the one they all rely on in their lives and business. And when it comes to falling in love and creating a life, he knows what it’s like to have it all and watch it crumble. He’s done with looking for another person to warm his bed, but apparently he didn’t learn his lesson because the new piercer at Montgomery Ink tempts him like no other.

Blake Brennen may have been born a trust fund baby, but she’s created a whole new life for herself in the world of ink, piercings, and freedom. Only the ties she’d thought she’d cut long ago aren’t as severed as she’d believed. When she finds Graham constantly in her path, she knows from first glance that he’s the wrong kind of guy for her. Except that Blake excels at making the wrong choice and Graham might be the ultimate temptation for the bad girl she’d thought long buried.

Add it to your Goodreads list here!

LOVE RESTORED releases September 13th – preorder now!

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Get a sneak peek at LOVE RESTORED:

Graham Gallagher had never craved a cigarette as much as he did just then. It didn’t matter that he’d quit smoking over fifteen years ago cold turkey and hadn’t picked one up since then. He just wanted a damn smoke.

Scratch that.

He wanted a fucking cigarette, a beer, and a willing woman underneath him as he fucked her until they were both spent.

And not necessarily in that order.

Not that he’d get any of that any time soon. Between this new job, the old one they hadn’t fully completed yet, and the rest of the crap in his life, he wasn’t sure he’d even have time for a beer.

And considering it had been a long six months since he’d had a woman under him, he was pretty sure he wouldn’t be getting laid any time soon. Him and his right hand had a perfectly nice relationship for now and when he got downright dangerous, he got to know his left.

Jesus, he needed coffee or something at this point if he was thinking about how his left hand would be something different in his life.

He ran a hand through his dark hair and grimaced as he caught some tangles as he pulled it out of the rubber band. He wasn’t sure he’d brushed it that morning, instead just throwing it up in a tie at the back of his head as soon as he’d gotten out of the shower. At least he’d showered, he thought. Considering he’d slept for shit the night before, a shower after sweat-slick dreams had been the only recourse. He quickly ran his hand through it a few more times, getting out most of the rat’s nest and pulled it back up before the owner of their new project showed up and called him a heathen.

Graham sighed, sliding his hand over his beard to straighten it out. Since it had grown past his chin and almost touched his chest if he lowered his head just right, he already looked the part of a heathen to some. Add in the ink covering his body and the piercings only those in his bed could see, he didn’t fit the ideal image of a business man that someone of this caliber would want to work with.

And that was just find with him.

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About Carrie Ann Ryan

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan never thought she’d be a writer. Not really. No, she loved math and science and even went on to graduate school in chemistry. Yes, she read as a kid and devoured teen fiction and Harry Potter, but it wasn’t until someone handed her a romance book in her late teens that she realized that there was something out there just for her. When another author suggested she use the voices in her head for good and not evil, The Redwood Pack and all her other stories were born.

Carrie Ann is a bestselling author of over twenty novels and novellas and has so much more on her mind (and on her spreadsheets *grins*) that she isn’t planning on giving up her dream anytime soon.

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#REVIEW Ink Enduring (Montgomery Ink 5) by Carrie Ann Ryan #MONTGOMERYINK

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synopsis

The Montgomery Ink series continues with a forbidden love between three friends and a past that they can’t escape.

Jake Gallagher knew from the moment he saw Maya that she was the one for him—it had the same breath-taking intensity as when he’d first set eyes on Border. Only life never turns out the way one plans, and now he’s falling for someone else…or at least he thinks he is.

Maya Montgomery never should have looked past the friendship she already had. Now that she has, she can’t stop thinking about Jake and what he means to her. When a mysterious stranger from Jake’s past shows up at their door, she’s forced to admit that if she doesn’t take the risk of a lifetime, she’ll regret it for the rest of her days.

Border Gentry walked away without a second glance once because of what could happen if he let go, but now he’s back and ready to see what he’s missed. He’s been on the road a long time and has seen things no man should ever see, yet once he rediscovers the broody Jake and meets the inked and fierce Maya, they’re like a balm to his soul and he realizes what path his future should take.

It will take more than sizzling chemistry and a heat that never dies for the three of them to overcome their pasts. And when someone from the outside wants to stand in their way, it’s not only their hearts on the line…but also their lives.

kristis review

Received a copy of this book for my honest review

I have been waiting for Maya’s book forever it seems and I know I say this with every Montgomery Ink book, but I can’t help it they are that good!!!
I have loved Maya’s character since she was first introduced, take charge women who does what she loves and doesn’t take crap from anyone, what’s not to love. However I’ve also been waiting for this strong woman to show her vulnerable side and I’ve finally got it. Seeing her unsure and angsty is great, it shows that this superwoman is human too.
With Maya we’ve also seen her Best Friend Jake around. Hot, artistic, inked and bearded. Hmmm, soooo yummy!! He’s been by Maya’s side through thick and thin. The adopted Gallagher in the Montgomery family.
Now we are introduced to Border. Holy heck Border!! Big, protective, Border. He left town when he and Jake were young, even though they loved each other, because he thought he was protecting him. Now he’s back for Jake and he wants to know all about Maya!!
I feel so bad for Jake’s girl friend Holly, she was introduced in the last book, because she realizes that though she wants to love Jake they don’t belong together because Jake loves Maya and even though she hasn’t said or even shown it she loves him too. Holly needs a Montgomery or a Gallagher of her own!! Hint, hint!!
I love when Ryan writes about a triad, she does it so beautifully. You can really see the three separate couples becoming one. Jake and Maya, Jake and Border, and finally Border and Maya. They all have to find their way around the new dynamic of what each of their relationships are and also become one. They do it so well, not by hot heavy bedroom action, hello that helps, but by taking it day by day.
Jake realizing he’s not the brother looking in from the outside with his family is great and HELLO Gallagher Brothers, I can not wait to read more of each of you!!
Maya and Jake finally getting together after all these years makes all their friends say “About time!” Border coming in doesn’t take anything away from Maya and Jake story, it’s like he’s is what was missing; to quote Maya “He completes us”.
End in the the triad learns that for a future together they have to do more communicating and that is what any relationship needs to be able to go the distance.
I know I said it at beginning of this review but I’m going to say it again, I can not wait for Alex’s book!!
Oh, and more of those yummy Gallagher brothers!!!

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about the author

Carrie Ann Ryan

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan never thought she’d be a writer. Not really. No, she loved math and science and even went on to graduate school in chemistry. Yes, she read as a kid and devoured teen fiction and Harry Potter, but it wasn’t until someone handed her a romance book in her late teens that she realized that there was something out there just for her. When another author suggested she use the voices in her head for good and not evil, The Redwood Pack and all her other stories were born.

Carrie Ann is a bestselling author of over twenty novels and novellas and has so much more on her mind (and on her spreadsheets *grins*) that she isn’t planning on giving up her dream anytime soon

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The Sixth Domicile (The Domicile Series) by Courtney Ruggles

synopsis

In a future ravaged by greed and war, The Domicile has emerged. A new civilization governed by clandestine Elders where citizens are united by white masks and uniform identities. To remove one’s mask, to go outside the Domicile, to show defiance, means being sent to the Meurtre, a horrifying death sentence.

Q437B doesn’t follow the rules. She craves sunlight, dares to love her childhood friend B116A, and – the most forbidden of all – has seen the true face of her beloved beneath the mask.

But when Q becomes an Adulte, The Domicile threatens to take away everything that makes her happy. She is forced to marry an abusive soldier who demands she conform. Whispers spread about the unconventional lessons she teaches her new students. And when Q openly disobeys the Elders, the people become restless, questioning the truth of the world in the wake of such defiance.      

Rumblings of discontent stir as others begin to follow the path toward their freedom. The Revolution has begun, and Q is the spark that ignited the flames.

kristis review

Received a copy for a honest review

A post apocalyptic world, we all have our own ideas on it. Whether it be zombies over running the earth or some other group that holds the power each is its own unique take, as is the case with this series. There are ten Domiciles where people live now that the Earth is a dried and barren wasteland, at least that’s what the Elders want the people to think. The people that live in the Domicile have no names, just a id number. No skin is to be shown, including of the face so elaborate mask are worn. Everyone wears the same clothing, black tops and bottoms and gloves. The Elders decide everything for everyone, what they will be or their “life path” as it is called as well as who will marry who. Q437B and B116A ,or “Q” and “B” as they call each other, have been friends since they were children. A friendship that was not stopped but frowned upon since they were to be married to others when they grew. B knows the truth of the world outside the Domicile, that it isn’t a dry and barren place but a lovely lush place, and shares this truth with Q by taking her outside the Domicile when his job as a Maitre of the Keys takes him out. Both Q and B fall in love with each other and doesn’t want to marry the partner that the Elders have picked for them but the know it’s certain death to go as gains them so they go through with the Ripening Ceremony. Q is not only unhappy with who she is mated to but learns that they have been put together so that he can make her conform to the Elders rules, as they have been watching her and B for a long time. What happens next is something that the Elders did not expect though, her husband abuses her openly trying to get her to obey and she still remains true to herself and seeing this gets others to want to be more like her, question the why of it all. I think that this is what happens after a while to a group that has absolute power, someone comes along and questions WHY. Q, being raised by her grandmother who was born before the time of the Domiciles and having lived through revolution, knows more about the before times than what is taught by the Elders and its this information as well as knowing what the Earth looks like outside that makes her question so much. It is the love that Q and B have for each other that sparks a change, it is also that spark that makes the Elders want her dead. I liken this story to V for Vendetta, the Divergent series, or even the Hunger Games series, someone strong standing up for what THEY believe and causing the world around them to question everything that they know. Having never read anything by a this author before I don’t really know her writing style, but I do know this. Any book that sucks you in, makes you feel, and makes you think is a good book. I can’t wait to see what happens to Q and B and to know if things are the same or different in the other Domiciles.

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about-the-author

Courtney’s love for writing started pretty much when she learned to read, which her mother would tell you was a feat in itself back when she was in the first grade. Once she aced those flashcards with vocabulary words, Courtney’s writing took off. And her love with it. In school, she was always writing short stories on a word processor (What?? Word processor with floppy disks?). Oh yes, she literally had a card filing case full of floppy disks.
Now getting her Doctorate in social work, she’s used this education to help her writing some of the gritty issues entwined in her stories. When Courtney isn’t writing her next book while drinking coffee, you can find her doing homework (drag) with chocolate chip flavored coffee, reading series of books (because school books are only so interesting) while drinking pumpkin flavored coffee, playing with her little boy, or daydreaming of future beach houses while drinking some other scrumptious flavor of coffee.

 

House of Payne: Steele (House of Payne Book 5) by Stacy Gail

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synopsis

TRIGGER WARNING: This book deals with the sensitive subjects of surviving rape, trauma suffered during combat, child abuse, and possible sterility. If you have issues with these elements, this book might not be for you.

Raped. Tortured. Beaten. Essie Santiago’s life fell apart when she was sixteen, and it’s taken eight years to put it back together. There are some pieces that can never be mended; it would take a miracle for her to get pregnant, and physical closeness is something that makes her shudder. Only her love of creating beauty in the form of fashion gets her through the worst of the darkness.

When a mortar attack destroyed half his face and all of his life as he knew it, something vital died inside of former Marine, Ezekiel Steele. For years he’s felt nothing… until he sees Essie trying her best to be invisible. But the feisty spark inside the lovely fashion designer is too bright to be concealed, and like a moth to a flame, he’s helpless to resist her.

Chicago’s premiere tattoo studio, House Of Payne, is taking the world of fashion by storm, holding a contest to find the best designer the city has to offer. Competition is fierce, but all Essie can concentrate on are Steele’s dirty-talking lessons in sex. But when the student surpasses the master when it comes to love, Steele’s inner demons get the better of him. If he can’t face them down, he’ll lose Essie forever.

123,000 words

***This standalone, mildly erotic contemporary romance contains a dirty-talking Alpha with a penchant for having sex in public places. No cheating, no love triangles and no cliffhangers. Fairy tale HEA guaranteed. Due to adult language and sexual content, this book is not intended for people under the age of 18***

kristis review

Received a copy for a honest review

Ok so for 4 books we have gotten hot, tattooed, alpha men and women from the House of Payne. Now we have head of the House’s security non-tattooed alpha Ezekiel Steele in the mix along with Essie Santiago, fashion designer and Twist’s little sister.
We found out  in book 3 why Essie left Chicago as a damaged teen, but now she’s back in town to win the honor of being House of Payne’s exclusive fashion designer. Being that it’s Payne we know she’s gonna have to jump through some hoops to get there.
I think it’s great that straight out of the gate Steele, as he likes to be called, knows how to deal with Essie. When she finds out that the contestants have to go through deep background checks for the contest she wants out, she doesn’t want anyone else to know she has been through some serious shit that almost killed her.
By pushing her into a corner, so to speak, he gives her a reason to stay because she is a fighter!!
These two characters are made in fire from the experiences they’ve lived. Him a ex solider, not only scarred on the outside from the wounds of battle, but scarred on the inside from the wounds that his childhood and his ex wife left on him. Her scarred both on the outside and the inside from a monster that decided to take her childhood from her.
Watching these two together is great! Steele does a awesome job of making Essie feel safe, yet letting her come into her own.
Steele realizing that his perfect ex wife wasn’t worth the pedestal that he put her on and that he hurt the one person that he promised not too broke my heart.
Essie and Steele fit together so well that when they figure it out its beautiful.
Reading about the fashion show is super cool! I love seeing how Essie gets her inspirational from the different tattoo artist! Enter Mad Max!! Helloooooooooooo hot stuff!! Accent and tats he needs a book like, STAT!!!
Not only did Gail give us our original House favs and introduce us to a new hot tattoo god, but she also gave us some seriously mental competition for Essie in the Fashion Designer contest!
Dizzy Izz and Oliver are pissy, uppity, and just plain no completion when it comes down to it, but like a good villain makes for good tv they also make for good reading too!
I love just how well Gail’s characters fit in the story, whether they’re a main character or a side one.
I LOVE this series and can’t wait for more!!

Excerpt

       “You sure you don’t need… uh, this?”

A low, sexy laugh escaped him as he brought his hand back to the juncture of her thighs. “This? You mean my cock?”

It was amazing, how she could still blush. “Mm-hm.”

“Say it.” When she didn’t immediately respond, the slow encroachment of his hand stilled. “Essie, I want you to feel free to say anything when you’re with me. Any thought. Any word. Nothing’s forbidden between us. You can say it.”

“Okay.” She huffed out an irritated breath and tried not to imagine what her mother would think of her for having such a dirty mouth. “Your, um… your c-cock.”

His hand instantly slid into her cleft, homed in like a champ on her clit and gave it one hard circle. She gasped, her head flinging back, but just as suddenly as he started, he stilled again.

“You stumbled a bit on that, sweetness. Say it again. It sounds so pretty, coming from your sweet lips.”

“Your cock.” It was quiet, hushed, but she managed to say it this time without stuttering. She was immediately rewarded with a few more spectacular swirls of his finger, but just as she was dissolving into a pool of pleasure, he stopped again.

“Say it again.”

Goddamn it. “Your cock.”

“Louder.”

“Your cock, your cock, your huge, fucking cock.”

She thanked heaven and whatever deity that might be involved in dirty talk when his fingers began to move, but they worked her so slowly she couldn’t stand it.

“Do you like my huge, fucking cock, Essie?”

“Yeah. Oh, yeah.”

“How much do you like my huge, fucking cock?”

Feverishly she pumped her hips, trying to get him going, and her hands loosened the front of his jeans despite his claim that it wasn’t necessary. “I love your huge, fucking cock.”

“What do you love about my huge, fucking cock?”

“At the moment, I love that it can’t talk.” – (322 words)

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about the author

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Author Bio: A competitive figure skater from the age of eight, Stacy Gail began writing stories in between events to pass the time. By the age of fourteen, she told her parents she was either going to be a figure skating coach who was also a published romance writer, or a romance writer who was also a skating pro. Now with a day job of playing on the ice with her students, and writing everything from steampunk to cyberpunk, contemporary to paranormal at night, both dreams have come true.

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Holding Fast (A Love and Order Novel) by Jeanine Binder

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synopsis

Been there, done that – there wasn’t much that Eli Walker hadn’t experienced as a cop. Even working in one of the better precincts in New York City didn’t help dispel the depravity he saw on a daily basis. It was all part and parcel of his mantra of living life in the now, not worrying about the future.
And especially with women. No strings, no attachments, and he made that perfectly clear before he ever bedded them. Relationships were not on his agenda – not now, not anytime in the near future. Women flocked to him and he could take his pick; himself exiting the encounter with what he’d wanted and leaving them aching for more, left dreaming of his curly locks and bronze body.
A chance encounter pulling a mugger off of a woman changed his whole world. She was blonde and beautiful – Eli didn’t care about any of the interracial politics that would surround any serious relationship. He just knew he had to have Ainsley, like an alcoholic needs his next drink. This was all new territory for Eli and could he stay to the path, all the way to its end? Or would she be like all the others in his life .

kristis review

I received a copy of this book for a honest review

This is A Love and Order Novel and can be read as a standalone. I have not read any of the others in this series and I wasn’t lost when it read this one.
Eli Walker is a detective for NYPD when he is called to Annalise Bernett’s family shop for a robbery and assault.
From what I can gather Eli isn’t a man whore he just isn’t looking for a relationship and isn’t one to turn down want is offered. No one woman has really snagged his attention, until Annalise who is the total opposite of the women he has been with.
Annalise isn’t looking for a relationship either having gotten out of a abusive one two years ago, but she can’t stop thinking about the handsome Detective Walker.
Since Eli can’t stop thinking about her either he just sucks it up and asks her out.
These two fit together so well, he is the exact opposite of her ex and makes her feel safe, even if he is bossy, and she is the exact opposite in that she’s not aggressive and she makes him feel level headed and calm.
Even though they fit together they have things going against them, they are a mixed race couple and even though it’s 2016 there are still people out there that give them crap about it and Annalise’s ex is stalking her.
I enjoying getting to see Eli in is element as a police officer with the cases that he works and seeing Annalise in her element as a writer when we see her having to dealing with traveling for book signings.
The fear that Annalise feels when her ex has her and the pain that she and Eli feel in the hospital is so real it brought tears to my eyes!!
I will say it again, these two belong together!! He is her savior and she is the calm in his storm.

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Jeanine Binder grew up in a small town in California on the outskirts of Palm Springs, where the Hollywood celebrities liked to vacation. After thirty years, she packed up, moved to Arkansas where she still lives today. Her hobbies include her writing, reading good books, and seeing exotic places (loves to go on cruises).

Writing has always been a passion and hoping the next twenty years will bring many enjoyable books for others to read.

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#WOTR #Review Soul Journey (Soul Series Book 1) by Miranda Shanklin

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soul journey

synopsis

It has been many lifetimes since the cycle began.

The cycle that still haunts Annisa Lawson.

A spell cast in desperation to help, which only caused heartache.

Now, Annisa has found her way out of the varying repeats of her past; only to bring more danger to herself, and those around her. Now she must learn to survive with the help of her friends: Chase, Penelope, and Landon have all gone through each life cycle with Annisa. Sometimes helping, sometimes hindering. Now that Annisa has broken the cycle of their collective punishment, she finds that she needs her friends more than ever to keep their enemies, known, and unknown, at bay. As the group of friends learn of their souls’ journeys through their many life cycles, they must also learn to control the magick they have discovered within themselves and each other, in order to defeat the most feared assassin in their world.

kristis review

Received this book for a honest review

So, Annisa is your average small town high schooler; captain of the cheerleaders, boyfriend is the hunky captain of the football team. Nothing is going to change the fact that they’ve been best friends since they were kids and boyfriend and girlfriend for years, they love each other.
Nothing until the new kids move in next door.
Chase and his little sister Penelope know no one in town and Annisa goes over to introduce herself and invite them to a end of the summer party to get to know the other kids.
Right away there is something that draws her to Chase and she feels as if she has known Penelope forever.
Her boyfriend, Landon, starts acting very possessive when Chase is around and she calls him on it. Torn she has to choose between her best friend and this crazy pull she feels around Chase, her heart and soul tell her to pick Chase.
Omg, who knew the crap was gonna hit the fan when she makes her choice!!
Witches are real, she and her family are witches. Also, Chase, Penelope, Landon, and they’re families are as well!! Witches powers are from the soul thus when they die they do not go to heaven or hell, but rather a special place just for them until their souls are reincarnated in new bodies.
There’s a good reason she had to choose and a good reason why these four witches are drawn to each other.
The four of them aren’t just ordinary witches they are the most powerful of all and the witch council is trying to kill them!!
I really enjoyed the new take on witches!! Everyone has their own take on them and this is a good one.
Reading about the group made me feel like a teenager again, I wish I had those powers to use when someone was after my man. Lol!!
I’ve told my teenage daughter about the book, I’ve yet to let her read it though due to the fact o don’t wanna give up my Kindle!!
Honestly, I really enjoyed it and the feeling of being young again that Shanklin’s writing brought.
Buy your copy now to find out the reason the council wants them dead and why Annisa had to choose, I don’t wanna give everything away!!
Can’t wait to read book 2!

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Miranda Shanklin resides in Central Illinois with her husband and their two children. When she is not working at her day job as a paralegal, running her children to practices or supporting them at events she is writing. She has been an avid reader most of her life and has always dreamed of writing her own books someday. Now that her children are reaching their teenage years she is finding the time to sit down and chase her dream.

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