Wednesday, May 31, 2017

BOOK REVIEW: The Two-Night One-Night Wedding by Ryan Ringbloom

4.25 Stars

This is the HEA sequel to The Two-Night One-Night Stand.  It’s probably best to have read that one first to get the background, although I suppose this could stand on its own too.

Holly Martin Matthew Daniels are getting married. 💒 But it’s a bumpy road down the aisle as circumstances don’t seem to work out in their favor. As if planning a wedding isn’t stressful enough, these two are overloaded with bad luck from living arrangements to family and more. But this isn’t an angsty tale.
“‘Why do you two seem to have so many incidents? Do you know how to have sex correctly?’”
While you can’t help but feel bad for Matt and Holly, you also can’t help but laugh at it all either. It’s filled with funny situations and circumstances—Holly’s mother and Michael, and OMG the bathroom mirror. 

But Matt and Holly really are such troopers and take it in stride as best they can. They are a good example of remembering that a marriage is more than a wedding and that keeping each other as the top priority is important.  That being said, I think most people who have gotten married will be able to relate from one angle or another. Don’t be that best friend, don’t be that mother, and especially don’t be that sister-in-law.

Will the pair finally get to squeak one out in silence? Will Peen stay silent? And will penises be the theme of the bachelorette party?
“‘…you act like your mother-in-law never saw a fucking cock before. Newsflash, she has a husband and three sons, that’s four right there.’”
Told via Holly and Matthew’s alternating first person POV, this is a light-hearted romcom. If you are looking for a fun and easy beach read this summer, it’s definitely one to check out. I especially liked how the epilogues featured an update on all the characters. 

Amazon US  AU  UK

~Find Out How It All Started~

RELEASE BLITZ: Finding Eli & Unraveling Eli by Jake Irons

Genre: Erotic Romance 18+

~Blurb~

When you have a thrice-a-day Starbucks addiction, a love affair with Louboutins, and an apartment in one of the most expensive cities in the world, the last thing you need is to lose your job. But that’s what happened to me—or what will, unless I can pull off the impossible: find Eli Murphy.

Eli, notorious playboy and New York City high roller, is the founder of the newzine where I work. He's been MIA for three years. But I think I can find him. If I do, and I get his story, I can keep my job.

What could go wrong?
Ask me when I’m tangled in my lies—and his bed sheets.
Ask me when we’re running for our lives.

~Book Review~
4 Stars

Tara Daniels is a reporter about to be laid off. Her final assignment, and last hope for continued employment, is locating Eli Murphy, former editor and co-founder of the publication she works for and a successful author. Eli’s “disappeared” and become a recluse, but no one knows why.

I’m sort of a sucker for the premise where two people are stranded together, probably because it tends to leave little room for OW/OM drama, which this installment thankfully has none of, so I enjoyed the set up here.  

Told via Tara and Eli’s dual first person POV, Eli’s chapters sport a little extra authenticity….edge…freshness that perhaps comes from a male author’s writing perspective writing a man. Eli describes things in a decidedly male way and he, at times, responds minimally but with just enough to come across cool and mysteriously guarded.

Of course, both Eli and Tara are keeping secrets from each other. Eli for very valid reasons; Tara, well it’s clear from the start she’s digging herself into a hole with lots of complications.  I’m not sure at times that she’s not a bit naïve and headstrong or at the very least she has really lousy instincts for a reporter.

The suspense angle is developed well though; I’m definitely looking forward to more details on how Eli ended up in his situation. The romance veers more on the instalust side. While the two do get to know each other, their interest in each other is primarily sex (well aside from Tara’s assignment). A lot of this perhaps stems from both characters admittance that they haven’t had sex in a while.  I’m hoping to see the forming of some stronger attachments in the next installment to seal the deal on the romance aspect.

Not to be dismissed though, their sexual encounters are HOT!
“In and out…deep in, and shallow out. She whines when I urge her fingers fully out, lifting her hand so I can taste her.”
*fans self* Now I also must admit I was slightly distracted by two things.

One, the duo doesn’t use condoms when they are together, and they’ve only just met hours before! I did appreciate the disclosure that Tara is the only girl to grace his hideout sheets, and while guessing by the math, Eli’s been celibate almost two years, he used to indulge in a lot of one night stands. Specifically it was the “for the whole first year I lived here, I went looking for sex every few nights, and it was never hard to find,” comment that was hard to brush aside.  TMI Eli

Two, how the hell did the food not burn?! For real, I kept expecting the smoke alarm to go off somewhere between an in or out thrust.  This was suspense that I doubt was intended. These two can seriously pack a lot of masturbation, oral sex, and intercourse into one half hour because that’s all the longer it is till dinner is ready when they pass the time with a variety of steamy indulgences. Call me floored when she raved about the meal because I expected that deer meat to be as crispy as the bacon it was wrapped in.

Anyways, this is an engaging tale that kept me interested from start to finish. It moves at a steady pace and is a promising start both for this series and for a debut author.  This part does end on a cliffhanger though so I look forward to part two. (Oh and hopefully an appearance by Herman.)
*Free for a limited time*
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

~Part 2~
~Book Review~
2 Stars

Aside from a few hiccups, I enjoyed Finding Eli, which needs to be read first, and had high hopes for this one. But the problems start right out of the gate. Instead of picking up where the cliffhanger left off, this installment opens with a prologue set 3 years prior.  But the delay isn’t the real problem. Eli spends half of this prologue monologuing about the girl he’s been set up with for the evening, specifically that he’s going to sex her up latter and then the sex, unprotected sex I might add, is shown...
“I pull out and come on Daisy’s ass as she lets out a final moan…”  –Eli
He goes on about other unsavory sexual details, but the important element here is that THIS IS NOT THE HEROINE from the previous installment; this is another woman from three years ago! So why are we even hearing about this??? Not only am I utterly skeeved out about Eli poor safe sex practices, distracted as I now contemplate the most likely venereal disease that Eli has contracted, and reminded of his manwhore attitude, but those few lines totally diminished, if not obliterated, his previous encounters with Tara who is really the last person he’s been with, but is not the person most fresh in the reader’s mind.
“I am so mother fucking fucking stupid. Why? Just so I could get my dick wet!? Fuck! Fuck me, and fuck my stupid fucking dick.” –Eli
Well I couldn’t agree more, Eli! Too bad that proclamation is in the PRESENT in regards to sleeping with Tara, the heroine, and not Daisy!

Including OW sex scenes (especially detailed ones) in a romantic suspense like this is like prattling on about your last hook-up while on a date with someone else. It’s unnecessary and unappealing. It doesn’t make the hero look like a stud; it makes him look like a walking STD. And it’s utterly counterproductive to the connection he’s supposed to be establishing with the heroine to the reader. I swear, many pages later and I was still trying to bleach my brain of Daisy!

But let’s get back to the other reasons why Eli is stupid, as he admits and other people tell him. He’s supposed to be an award winning writer, except the moron is sufficiently illiterate when it comes to the whole ‘Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental’ and the limitations of that disclaimer. And that was a big disappointment too because the first installment sets up an intriguing premise with Eli in a bit of a Salmon Rushdie predicament. Unfortunately though, every time the story drifted to the past to explain Eli’s big story, Eli just came off looking dumber and less sympathetic.

This installment is also heavy on the action-adventure and violence and lacking on really any romance between Tara and Eli. It was also very hard to tell if Tara means anything to Eli as the narrative makes it clear that Eli largely thinks with his dick.

Told via Eli and Tara’s alternating first person POV, this concludes the two part tale. The series started out with a good deal of promise, but ultimately the lack of character growth and especially Eli’s characterization— that of a dense, self-involved grown man still lamenting the loss of his king bee status and manwhore days— was a big letdown. 

*99c for a limited time + Free in Kindle Unlimited*
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU


Jake Irons is the pseudonym of a male author living in Portland. He writes erotica at his desk at a stuffy corporate law office.

Friday, May 26, 2017

BOOK REVIEW: Personal Delivery by Ainsley Booth

~Synopsis~

She’s got a crush on the delivery guy. He’s got a billion-dollar secret. 

I recognize the sound of his truck turning off in front of my building. 
Not only do I recognize it, but my pulse picks up and I get all hot and bothered. Then I hear the low growl cutting out, followed by the clank of metal as he pulls up the back door to grab my package…. 
Grab my package? 
That sounds so dirty. 
Which is probably appropriate given some of the fantasies I’ve had about him. 
My obsession with the new, mysterious delivery driver is crazy. Intense. Distracting. 
The last thing I need is to be crushing on a six-foot-something distraction with a dirty grin. 
But my friends have other plans. 

First in a sexy new rom com standalone series! 


 ~Book Review~
4.25 Stars

Jana Pritchard is a greeting card illustrator working from home and the highlight of her day starts to become the arrival of the hot delivery guy.

His nametag might read Dane but he’s really Jake Aston, now CEO of the recently acquired SwiftEx delivery corporation, and he’s gone undercover to gain insight into the mechanics of his new company.

Right off the bat, I gotta admit I was jealous of Jana. I mean half the time I can’t even get my delivery guys to ring the damn doorbell so I know I have a package before they take off yet alone wait for me to answer the door and then make pleasant conversation. But Jake is as smitten with Jana as she is with him.

Points on this one for an original premise. It’s getting harder these days to find romantic set ups I’ve not read many times before so this was a cute new angle for two people to meet. It’s not new to the porn industry I’m sure so points again for taking a porn trope and turning it into a sweet and sexy story.

There’s no shortage of either sweetness or sex in this tale. Jake is an all round great guy. He’s been a workaholic so he’s thankfully not a manwhore. He’s devoted to making his companies better, and then he’s devoted to making Jana…well pleasured.
“‘I got my fingers wet, Jana. And it was the best thing I ever felt. My tongue is fucking jealous.’”
Told via Jana and Jake's alternating first person POV, there are plenty of steamy encounters here. And if you are looking for a smooth story of how two people get together and make it work then this is a no drama/no angst read to pick up. I can’t begin to tell you how refreshing it was that there were no scheming, trouble-making exes or contrived conflict, nor is either character broken or troubled.  It’s just two available singles who find a connection and go with the flow, making their love story feel down-to-earth even though it’s also a Cinderella tale.




RELEASE BLITZ: Trust Me Forever by Josie Bordeaux

Genre: Romantic Suspense

~Synopsis~

Would you risk it all for your one true love? 


Alex. 
The one boy who'd broken my heart. 
He promised he'd come for me…
But he never did.

Faced with a choice, I succumbed to a life I never wanted. Now I’m on the run. The goal: buy a fake passport and get out of the country. 

Then I ran into him. 

The skinny, shy boy was all grown up. Sexy, confident, and promising me everything I'd always dreamt of having with him. 

Could I trust him with the truth? With my heart? Again?


~Excerpt~
Listening to Alex say that he had always thought of me tugged at my heart. Could that really be true? Alex. If it hadn’t been for seeing both Jay and then Granny, I might not have believed it. Granny was unmistakable. There was no way I’d ever forget her. Time might have aged her appearances, but to me she’d held onto her timeless beauty as the grandmotherly figure I’d loved so much. Then there was Alex. I had stared at him and thought of the possibilities of him being my Alex. Really my first real love. My best friend from way back when. 
More than anything, I wanted to open the door. However, doing that would open the wounds that now were faded scars. I had waited for him after we moved. He had promised he’d come for me.

Josie Bordeaux spends her days writing romance novels that revolve around friendships, sizzling attraction, and steamy sex scenes. Josie’s addiction to iced coffee and strawberry Twizzlers keep the stories flowing and gives her the energy she needs to run her kids to all their after-school activities and burn the occasional dinner she attempts to cook. She enjoys spending time down at the beach with her family. You can connect with Josie on Facebook or on Instagram. Sign up for her newsletter on her website and enter her monthly newsletter drawing for a gift card. You can also find her at the following:

HOSTED BY:

Monday, May 22, 2017

SALE: Fall With Me by Jayne Frost

Series: Sixth Street Bands #2
Genre: New Adult
Release Date: December 15, 2016

~Blurb~

As the bassist for the band Caged, the last three years have been one, long non-stop party. Sure, I’ve had some regrets. Everyone does. But getting trapped in a relationship isn’t one of them. I know good and well what happens when the attraction fades. I’ve seen it first hand. Love is a zero sum game, so why play? As long as I'm upfront about my feelings, no one gets hurt. Besides, I'm never in one place long enough to worry about tomorrow.

That is, until the band decided to take an extended hiatus in our hometown. That’s when I met Melody Sullivan. She’s the full-package. Whip smart and beautiful, with enough determination to take on anything life has in store. And the best part? Melody shares my philosophy on the fleeting nature of attraction. She doesn’t buy into the whole “happily ever after” crap anymore than I do. We’re perfect for each other. For now. And now is all I want.

With the expectations off the table, I can let my guard down and enjoy her company until the spark dies. And we both know it will. In a week, or a month. But until then, we’ll just keep having fun. The good kind, with lots of sex and no strings attached. And when it’s time to move on, we will. No drawn out goodbyes and no remorse. 

That’s the plan, at least.

Note: Though part of the Sixth Street Bands Series, it can be enjoyed as a standalone. Recommended for 18+ for adult content and language.

99c for a limited time
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU
B&N / KOBO / iBOOKS

~Also Available~
BOOK REVIEW
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

~Coming Soon~
#3 Missing From Me
#4 Lost for You

So…Who is Jayne?

As a writer you would think that would be a simple question…but it’s not. I spend so much time living in my characters heads, listening to their voices, that sometimes I forget about my own.

I guess I should start with the basics: the backstory. I was born and raised in California. At this point, I’m usually asked what it was like to grow up near the beach, but sadly, I don’t know. I grew up in the “other” part of California. Perfect for an aspiring writer, if you ask me. You learn a lot about keeping yourself busy when the nearest house is a mile away…and it belongs to your grandparents.

I spent all my time with my nose in a book, living vicariously through the characters, until I wrote a book of my own. I was ten at the time. It was a scintillating piece that cast the family pet as the protagonist.

By the time I went to high school, I moved on to romance. Why? Because I met my very own prince charming. I wrote love poems in my journal about the green-eyed boy who stole my heart. He promised, the way all storybook heroes do, to sweep me away and take me on a grand adventure. And he did.

We picked up and moved to the Lone Star State and began the story of us. The best stories begin without a road map or a compass. Veering off course makes the journey so much more interesting. 

True to form, just when I thought my life was set, we started the next adventure. I traded in my cowboy boots and followed my green-eyed boy to Las Vegas. My home will always be in Texas, but my heart is anywhere that he is. Our beautiful daughter made the journey with us. Our son stayed in Texas, to write his own story.

Somehow, in the midst of the chaos that is our life, I find time to write. Writing is what I love. I might stray from romance every now and then if that is what moves me…but I always come back. Some of the stories don’t seem romantic at all. They are gritty stories about flawed characters that find each other and hold on tight. Those are the stories that speak to me. Because that’s life. I believe that every story should have a happy ending—even the difficult ones.

Thursday, May 11, 2017

RELEASE BLITZ: Make Me Crazy by Adele Hart


Genre: Steamy Romance

~Synopsis~

Sexy pilot. Uptight, overworked city girl. Stranded on a deserted island together. Oh, there’s going to be some serious hanky and a whole lot of panky…

Twenty-four-year-old junior magazine editor, Paige Stanwood, is screwed. She has exactly five hours to get to her sister’s wedding on a private Caribbean island, but she’s missed the last ferry. So, she does what any good maid of honor would do—she charters a float plane to get her there. Little does she know that the world’s sexiest (and most obnoxious) pilot will be taking her. And I mean taking her...

Thirty-seven-year-old pilot, Mac Gamble, avoids drama at all costs, so he almost says no when a crazy, young woman in a ridiculous peach ball gown begs him to fly her to her sister’s wedding. He has no idea he’s about to spend a week stranded with her on a deserted island, and that by the end of it, he’s never going to want to let her go.

Caution: Adele Hart specializes in quickies with a heart-on. All insta-love, all HEA’s, all the time. The dirtier, the better. Think of this as your afternoon delight… your guilty pleasure… bonbons for your brain. You get the idea. Now if you’re in the mood for something to tickle your lady bits, click here.


Adele Hart is a stay-at-home mom who secretly writes sexy stories whenever she gets a chance. After reading hundreds of romances, she decided to skip all the angst and ugliness, and just get to the good stuff. You know, the part that makes you say, 'Oh my!' 

So if you're like Adele, and you want to indulge your guilty pleasures with naughty but nice, fast and fun stories about super hot, practically perfect men and the sweet women who love them, then you've come to the right place. 

ADELE'S GUARANTEE TO YOU:
You'll have that loving feeling from start to happy finish. Nothing ugly, no BDSM, no cheating bastards, just fun, flirty, dirty goodness. 


HOSTED BY:

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

EDITORIAL: Mythbusting the Book Review System


This segment in the Book Reviews Matter series focuses on keeping the industry honest and fair.  There seems to be some confusion, or more specially misunderstanding, in the romance book community when it comes to review copies.  So this post is aimed at clearing things up. 


Myth #1
  “If I can’t rate a title 3 stars or higher, I must withhold or delay my review. Everyone knows how that works with ARCs.”
Reality: It is unethical for an author or a tour company to distribute review copies under the condition that it must meet a specific star rating.  Reviewers are meant to be independent, unbiased critics. Do not feel pressured to comply with any review conditions that would compromise that position. For full transparency, you should detail any review stipulations in the disclaimer for your review.  FTC guidelines seem pretty clear that the burden is not on the consumers, or the general readers in this case, to be knowledgeable of industry practices. It is, in fact, the reviewer who must be transparent about any affiliations with the author or promoter and conditions placed on the product (in this case the advanced copy) they received.  

Furthermore, the other issue or myth here is one this community must get past—the idea that “good” reviews are only 4 and 5 stars and anything less is “bad.”  The star rating does not tell the whole story. A truly good or helpful review will explain the reason for the rating and allow the readers of the review to make their own decision. For more on this topic, see the post Make Your Words Count.

Myth #2
“I received an ARC for a tour or release blitz and didn’t care for it; therefore, I should wait to post my review.”
Reality:  Withholding reviews only negates the honesty of the review system.  Note the word “Advanced” in ARC, meaning that edition was distributed prior to publication so the review could be posted before or in time for the release. 

If you’re still not convinced that it’s in the community’s best interest to not delay, then consider it from the average reader’s shoes. Imagine you are a reader perusing reviews of a brand new title to decide if that book is right for you.  All the reviews are positive, glowing reports, and you purchase the book feeling confident it’s a winner based on the high ratings it’s sporting. Then after reading it, your excitement and warm fuzzy feelings over the title (and those reviews) have vanished. We must not have read the same book, you begin to wonder. So you go back and look at the reviews again. Now there are several low reviews posted— ARCs that were previously held back. And low and behold, the less than stellar reviews point to the same issues you had. Don’t you feel duped? You should because under this scenario the review system didn't give you an ample sampling of varied opinions.

Myth #3 
“Before posting a low star review I should contact the author prior to posting or in lieu of posting my review at all.”
Reality:   A reviewer is under no obligation to contact the author or the promotional company prior to posting their review, no matter the star rating.  And some authors may not want to be contacted in that situation. Either way, once ARCs are distributed it is out of the author's or tour company's hands what kind of response the book receives. That is how the review systems works in order to keep things honest. It’s the same thing for filmmakers who premier a new movie. They can only invite the critics to the showing. They cannot tell them what to write.  

Myth #4
“If an author paid for a promotional tour, it should only highlight positive reviews.”
Reality:   The realities of #1-3 all apply here. But this bears repeating because the thinking behind this particular myth can potentially cross a legal line. When an author purchases a tour package from a promoter they are not purchasing positive reviews. That would essentially be like paying for 4 and 5 stars.  They are, in fact, paying for the services of the PR companies to promote their title(s) which may provide reviewers with ARCs and other promotional materials; however, their payment to the promotional company should not guarantee the reception of the book.  This is where promoters must be clear of the message they are relaying to their reviewers as they [the PR firm] are also, if not more so, potentially liable under FTC regulations.

Myth #5
“I’m a huge fan of an author so if I come across negative reviews I should tell the reviewers how great the book really is.”
Reality:  It’s one thing to have different opinions; it’s another to harass or bully another reviewer.  Comments such as, “I really liked this book, but sorry it didn’t work out for you” are usually fine, probably more appropriate if this is someone who you generally discuss books with rather than an absolute stranger.

On some rare occasions there may be some gray areas if a reviewer completely misconstrued or misrepresented an aspect of the story. But be very careful if you decide to step up to the plate and address the error. In fact, make sure it really is an error, not simply a difference of tastes and opinions. If there's truly an issue with a review (as in it goes against the site's policy) let the administrators review it and make a decision. 

What’s not okay is telling the reviewer that they are ruining the author’s life with a bad review or espousing any of the above myths about book reviews.  Unfortunately, I’ve seen this happen. Don’t be that fan girl. In fact, it’s more likely to have a negative effect on the author than it is a positive one if you sound like you are speaking on his/her behalf.


Sadly there are some not so pretty things in an industry devoted to love. You might call this post the dark side or the underbelly of the romance industry. It doesn’t have to stay this way though.  Follow the FTC guidelines, use good judgment, and keep things honest. Believe it or not, indulging in these myths does have wide ranging consequences. Failure to comply with FTC regulations may result in formal notice to correct your errors and/or led to fines. I am not in any way affiliated with them so see their website for official policies whenever in doubt.  In the meantime, Amazon has already started cracking down on reviews they feel are compromising.  They’ve updated their guidelines; they’ve deleted some reviews; and they’ve more prominently featured verified purchases.  

But all the formal sanctions aside for a moment, as a reviewer don’t you want other readers to feel they can trust your reviews and opinions, whether they agree with them or not? And same goes for the authors whose books you are reviewing. If that author is a serious writer, he/she is more interested in receiving valuable feedback rather than an ego inflate over the praise and number of stars.  

Not sure what to include when composing a romance review? 
Then check out the first in this blog post series, Book Reviews 101.  There you’ll find literary topics to address and tips on writing a thorough review.


Scared off of writing reviews and only want to leave a star rating?  
Make sure to read MakeYour Words Count before you go that route because what you have to say does matter.