Tuesday, August 29, 2017

REVIEW/RELEASE BLITZ: After Our Kiss by Nora Flite

SBPRBanner-AOK-RB.jpg

Genre: Contemporary Romance Erotic Thriller

~Synopsis~


I was thirteen when I was kidnapped.
Fourteen when he helped me escape.
Twenty-three before I ever saw him again.
His face is all over the news: he's a wanted man, now. Maybe my memory played tricks on me… but he looks so different. The boy who saved me years ago had a shy smile and dark, soulful eyes full of secrets.
This man has a hard jaw and a harder mouth. Lips that could never whisper sweet promises.
I knew him as a hero—my savior. I refuse to believe he could become a villain.
Not him.
Then he abducts me, proving me wrong.
He tells me he's going to take me apart and put me back together again. Make me what he needs me to be: a plaything for a monster.
It's the fate I escaped when I was fourteen. And that's when I finally understand.
He was never my hero.
He's the man who's going to break me. 

afterourkiss print cover1

~Book Review~

2 Stars

Georgia Mary King is abducted at the age of thirteen for several months. Her captor, Facile Adam’s, son Conway, in a surreal nature of compassion “befriends” her in captivity, protects her, and ultimately helps her escape. While Georgia spends years wondering what became of him, nine years later she finds out when he takes her captive again.

The blurb, highly intriguing, does contain an author’s note at the end acknowledging that this is dark romance. Well, it’s dark. The romance part—not so much. Be careful not to confuse torment and abuse with romance, or love with psychological damage. I also had issues with a now revised part of the original disclaimer: “I fully believe you're strong enough to experience it without any hand-holding.” This kind of reader goading that’s popping up in the romance world disguised as content warnings is not cool. It’s offensive to readers who have valid triggers, and it pits readers against each other. There’s enough division and polarizing in the real world; a genre devoted to love doesn’t need it. A little social consciousness can go a long way.

So to give my fellow readers a more helpful content warning, here goes. While the story skirts a fine line of perverse, it thankfully never crosses into outright rape. But there are multiple incidents where the heroine is threatened with rape and faces would-be rapists. There are scenes that are not consentual which I would describe as sexual abuse and/or torture. Absolutely reader discretion is advised, and this book will not be for everyone. That doesn’t make the readers who abstain weak or the readers who endure it strong. It makes one human. And I’m not even going to spoiler tag the above sentences because no one should belittle a serious issue by viewing it as a riveting plot twist like ‘will she or won’t she get raped.’

There are other real reveals in the story as it has a suspense angle. I’ll admit, some were decent while others felt underwhelming. A lot of that might fall on the lack of character development in places and required suspension of disbelief.

The opening scenes with teenage Georgia and Conway held a lot of potential for a compelling dark romance. At that point and even the initial re- abduction, the tale kept me engaged. But then some of the scenes (like the one in chapter 11) that detail her abuse took the story in a different direction. The attraction between them diminished for me, and their interactions became a turn-off. It moved the story from dark romance and into erotic thriller.

Conway had immense potential in the beginning to become a sympathetic lost dark hero, but that was chipped away at by certain scenes and his intended goal. Perhaps more chapters from his point of view and earlier on would have made the ending attempt at redemption not appear so rushed.

Georgia’s fast decent into Stockholm Syndrome was bothersome. I wasn’t sure if statements like “the hot steam made the room damn near romantic” when referring to Conway allowing her a bath after her own stench bothered her, was written as bad humor, a measure of her decent into loss with reality, or a disgusting and misguided attempt at suggesting a moving moment. This is also a woman who suffers serious self-worth and body image issues. The multiple incidents where she sees her own inner and exterior beauty through the sexual abuse that’s imposed on her was disturbing and did more to convince me how badly therapy and lack of justice had failed her rather than to root for her to have an HEA with this man. Make no mistake; she is an epitome of women presented as victims, no matter how much the characters eventually try to assert that she’s strong. When a woman feels more concern for her captor rather than her own well being, that’s not love or romance, that’s the result of emotional abuse and prolonged torment.

All in all, while the potential was there from the initial concept, the execution failed to deliver characters worth rooting for, other than rooting for them to get some serious therapy and attempt to heal themselves first and rebuild their lives. (What they suggest they are ready for after only a month is immature and irresponsible.) More development and less porn dialogue could have brought this story up another star level.


AOK-AN

 
15288719_626448247537694_1533231768482959405_oUSA Today bestselling author, Nora Flite lives in SoCal where the weather is warm and she doesn't have to shovel snow--something she never grew to love in her tiny home-state of Rhode Island. All of her romances involve passionate, filthy, and slightly obsessive heroes--because those are clearly the best kind! She's always been a writer, and you'll probably have to pry her keyboard/pen/magical future writing device out of her cold, dead fingers before she'll stop.
She loves when people say hello! If you see her in the wild, walk up and start chatting. 


Monday, August 28, 2017

BLOG TOUR: Oh Henry by Mimi Jean Pamfiloff


Series: Ohellno Series
Publication Date: August 25, 2017
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romantic Comedy

~Synopsis~
SHE'S GOT ME BY THE FOOTBALLS...
My name is Henry Walton, and though I've been called many things throughout my life--tree trunk, moose, walrus--I am now six foot five, solid muscle, and the hottest defensive end in the NFL college draft. This is the moment I've been waiting for: fame, women, and glory.

Just one problem: I'm suddenly in a bad slump. And it started the moment I got dumped by Elle, the nerdy goddess with thick glasses, a smokin' hot body, and a genius IQ.

So what gives? We only dated for a few weeks, and it's not like I've missed her. (Much.) Regardless, all the facts point to one conclusion. Elle is my lucky nerd-charm.

Call me superstitious, but I have to get her back before I lose everything. Even if she's the last girl I should want and she now hates my guts.

~Book Review~
2.5 Stars

Henry Walton, 22, is a college senior with dreams of the NFL. But his skills on the field have suffered since his fling with freshman nerd girl, Elle, fell apart. Henry and Elle, 19, were introduced in the first book, Smart Tass which dealt with Henry’s friend, Hunter, and Elle’s roommate, Tassie. It’s probably best to have read that book as this one both overlaps and jumps around in time.

Let me just say that all 2.5 stars (and then some) go to Henry. Though initially cocky and full of himself, his narration kept him cute rather than obnoxious. He had this humorous way of telling his side of the tale that made the story part romcom.

“‘I think my nuts are more like unripe kiwis. Firm, fuzzy, and not for eating. Licking is okay, though.’”

The ways Henry attempted to win Elle back were adorable if not outright swoonworthy at times. It was clear that he was a good guy at heart and one to root for.

Unfortunately, after a certain point, I was no longer rooting for him to be with Elle. Aside from her over-the-top nerdy characterization, she was a conceited, self-involved, selfish, immature brat. I lost count of all the times I felt bad for Henry. In certain places she was just outright mean to him. And while I felt sorry for her in regards to her family situation, it still did not excuse her behavior.

Then the story started to give me whiplash with all of the couple’s back and forth and Elle’s complete 180. Meanwhile, I lost more and more respect for Elle and liked her less and less with each passing page. Add in an immature misunderstanding and drama and the romantic comedy gave way to new adult angst.

Told via their dual first person POV, I’ll admit I did not see the big twist coming, nor did I foresee the cliffhanger. Yep, the story ends at 88% with a freaking cliffhanger! (That makes the statement "Stand Alone Story w/ Teaser for Next Book" in the book blurb incredibly misleading.)

It’s bad enough that Hunter and Tass’s ending in book one was abrupt, but Tass seems to spend all her time in this book coddling Elle’s pathetic ass. At this point, it's pretty clear that this series suffers from incomplete endings, the author either unable or unwilling to write a proper closure. I won’t be reading book 3 to get part two of Henry and Elle’s drama (as in Oh Hell No), but I’m still rooting for Hunter and Tassie to get the HEA novella they deserve.


~Also in the Series~



Mimi Jean Pamfiloff is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author of Paranormal and Contemporary Romance. Both traditionally and independently published, Mimi has sold over 800,000 books since publishing her 1st title in 2012, and she plans to spontaneously combust once she hits the one-million mark. Although she obtained her international MBA and worked for over 15 years in the corporate world, she believes that it’s never too late to come out of the romance-closet and follow your dreams.

When not screaming at her works in progress, Mimi spends time with her two pirates in training, her loco-for-the-chili-pepper hubby, and rat terriers, Mini & DJ Princess Snowflake, in Arizona.

She continues to hope that her books will inspire a leather pants comeback (for men) and that she might make you laugh when you need it most.

Thursday, August 24, 2017

COVER REVEAL: Rock Me by Rebecca Brooke

Series: Jaded Ivory #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: September 21, 2017

~Blurb~
I am not a victim.

At least that’s what I wanted to believe. What I wanted the world to see. Five years of trying to find the girl I hid from the world.

I wouldn’t let the bullies win. I couldn’t.

What was I supposed to do when he walked into the building? He’d made my high school years a living hell.

But, he doesn’t recognize me.

How do I prove he didn’t break me? Simple, take him home for a one-night stand.

At least it sounded like a good idea at the time.

Cover Design: Cover Me Darling
~Pre-order Links~
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

Rebecca Brooke grew up in the shore towns of South Jersey. She loves to hit the beach, but always with her Kindle on hand. She is married to the most wonderful man who puts up with all her craziness. Together they have two beautiful children who keep her on her toes. When she isn’t writing or reading (which is very rarely) she loves to bake and binge watch Netflix.

Wednesday, August 23, 2017

COVER REVEAL: I Want by Ella Fox

Series: Enamorado #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: September 8, 2017

~Blurb~

Billionaire businessman Alejandro Cruz detests the dating process and is perfectly content to stay single. But that all changes the moment the quirky house sitter from next door falls into his arms, and his immediate instinct is to hold on tight and never let go. California girl Kaya Porter has a "just say no" approach to dating. No matter how sexy and irresistible Alejandro is, she vows not to fall for him. Alejandro has other plans. This sexy Spaniard knows what he wants, and there's nothing he won't do to make Kaya realize that they belong together. Will Alejandro get the girl or will he be left wanting more than Kaya is willing to give?

I Want is book two of the Enamorado (In Love) series. Each book will feature one of the Cruz brothers and can be read as a standalone.
Cover Design: Sommer Stein, Perfect Pear Creative
Cover Photo: Wander Aguiar

~Also Available~
AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU
B&N / iBOOKS


Ella Fox is the USA Today Bestselling Author of The Hart Family Series, Consequences of Deception, The Catch Series and The Renegade Series. When she’s not writing, Ella indulges the gypsy in her blood and travels the country. Ella loves reading, movies, music, buying make-up, reading Tmz, Twitter and pedicures… not necessarily in that order. She has a wild sense of humor and loves to laugh. Her favorite thing in the world is hanging out with her family and watching comedy movies.

Monday, August 21, 2017

RELEASE BLITZ: Strike by Cora Brent

Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

~Synopsis~

A summer job.
That’s all it was supposed to be.
It never crossed my mind that I was about to collide with a man who would obliterate every plan I ever made.
My mother has always warned me that love is like a lightning bolt and it strikes without warning. But I had no intention of getting struck by either lightning or love anytime soon. I’d be too busy finishing my journalism degree and landing a job in a city far more sophisticated than Phoenix.
There was certainly nothing in the cards about getting involved with an ex-ballplayer turned nightclub boss.
He was too old for me, too complicated, too distracting.
On the surface we had almost nothing in common except the draw of an overpowering physical connection.
The seasonal job at a local resort was going to be temporary.
He was going to be temporary.
But insufferably sexy, arrogant Dalton Tremaine has other ideas.
And the harder I fall for him the more I can’t find a good reason to resist giving him everything he wants…

*STRIKE is the first book in a brand new sexy spinoff series from NYT and USA Today Bestselling Author Cora Brent. No cliffhanger! May be read as a stand alone.



Cora Brent was born in a cold climate and escaped as soon as it was legally possible. Now, she lives in the desert with her husband, two kids and a prickly pear cactus she has affectionately named ‘Spot’. Cora’s closet is filled with boxes of unfinished stories that date back her 1980’s childhood and all her life she has dreamed of being an author. Amazingly, she is now a New York Times and USA Today bestselling writer of contemporary romance and begs not to be awakened from this dream.

Tuesday, August 15, 2017

COVER REVEAL: Doggy Style by Alana Albertson

Publication Date: October 3, 2017
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Erotic, Romance

~Synopsis~

When it comes to doggy style, he’s behind you 100%.

Preston Evans is a legend in and out of the bedroom. He’s six foot two, gorgeous, and famous because his celebrity ex snapchatted his huge package. I hate him. I hate his stupid puppy store, Doggy Style. I hate the way he looks at me like I’m a piece of meat. I don’t care that his abs are chiseled, his arms are tattooed, and his face belongs on the cover of a magazine. Every dog bred means a shelter dog dead!

I chain myself to his store in protest, but instead of calling the cops, he throws me a bone.

If I spend one week with him in Hawaii pretending to be his fiancée to snag an investor, he will transform his store into a shelter dog adoption center, saving thousands of dogs’ lives.

One week and I never have to see this sexy, dirty-talking jerk again. How hard can he, uh I mean it, be?

Sex is off the table. So why do I want him to bend me over it?

Preorder

Alana Albertson is an award winning Latina author, the former President of Romance Writers of America’s Contemporary Romance, Chick Lit, and Young Adult chapters. She holds a Masters of Education from Harvard and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Stanford. A recovering professional ballroom dancer, Alana currently writes new adult romantic suspense, young adult, and contemporary romance. She lives in San Diego, California, with her husband, two sons, and five dogs. When she’s not spending her time needlepointing, dancing, or saving dogs from high kill shelters through her rescue Pugs N Roses, she can be found watching episodes of House Hunters, Homeland, or Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team.

Sunday, August 13, 2017

BOOK REVIEW: Make Me Crazy by Adele Hart

3 Stars

Paige Stanwood, 24, is desperate for a plane ride to her sister’s island wedding after being delayed by her demanding real estate assistant job in Manhattan. Helicopter pilot Mac Gamble 38, isn’t planning on making another run today but tears on a pretty face eventually change his mind. 

A brewing storm forces an emergency landing miles away from their intended destination. Stranded, the pair finds food, shelter, a new look on life, and a whole lot of sex.
“‘I don’t know if I ever want to get rescued…Because back in the real world, there are no orgasms like that.’”
Told via Paige and Mac’s alternating first person point of view, this novella is loaded with insta-love and insta-lust. I rolled my eyes quite a few times. I also groaned in frustration over Paige’s lack of experience at the age of twenty-four as well as over their ridiculous notions of how getting pregnant was suddenly going to make them a perfect, inseparable couple. I get that this is fantasy smut, but those types of messages are immature, unrealistic, and misogynist as well as a cheap cop-out from writing a little more relationship development. Basically, you’ll also need some suspension of disbelief regarding both their relationship and their situation.

In the end though, I was rooting for them. The story is low-angst, light-hearted, and the rescue was funny.  There are plenty of dirty scenes even if their sexual dialogue was a bit trite at times. 
GOOGLE PLAY      KOBO     AMAZON

Thursday, August 10, 2017

BOOK REVIEW: Kai by Michelle Abbott

~Blurb~

My name is Kai Okamoto. I deal drugs. Trade escapism for cold, hard cash.
Born to a British Mother and a Japanese father, I grew up poor, hungry, and alone.  Hiding from the monsters at our door. The debt collectors.

I’ve worked hard to escape my past. I’m not that frightened little boy anymore. I’m wealthy, secure, and sure of myself. At least I was, until I met Lily.

Lily is a good girl. The kind of girl I should stay away from. I should, but I can’t.

I hate lying to her, but if she finds out who I am, what I do, I won’t see her for dust.

A standalone, bad boy romance, set in England.
~Review~
4 Stars

Kai Okamoto, 21, happens to be at the right place, at the right time when it comes to meeting Lily Hawkins, 20. Too bad he’s in the wrong profession. Lily doesn’t think much of guys who deal drugs, but then she’s unaware that she’s falling for one.
“I see hunger and desire in this eyes, and for the first time I feel beautiful and powerful.”
Kai and Lily make a cute couple.  It was refreshing to read about two available people who find each other and get to know each other without any OW/OM drama. I appreciated that Lily had a healthy sense of skepticism and some street smarts when it came to being a single girl living alone in the beginning. It’s always nice to see a heroine exhibit qualities that are useful in the real world. While Kai lying to her and misleading her about what he did to make money was wrong, he was a sympathetic character who was a good guy at heart, just a little lost and actually quite vulnerable. I adored how well he treated Lily; he was definitely someone to root for.
“He grits his jaw as his thrusts quicken. His eyes close. Mine stay open. I want to see him. He’s beautiful.”
Told via Kai and Lily’s alternating first person point of view, this is a shorter read so there were some places I craved more and few items in the resolution I would have liked to see expanded on. But all in all, it’s a sweet, engaging, standalone story of two single young people who are finding their way in life.


Michelle Abbott lives in the UK and hates describing herself in 3rd person.
She's a self-published author who loves to write new adult romance about heroes who begin as the underdog and are protective of their girl.
She's an avid reader of romance, is addicted to coffee and loves wine and chocolate, so yeah, not the most healthy eating and drinking habits :-) She spends way too much time online when she should be writing. She collects teddy bears and occasionally knits a couple of rows on a sweater she started years ago, which she may eventually finish in time to wear for her funeral :-)


EDITORIAL: Put Down the Book; Pick up the Peace Protest Sign

Two Different Worlds

I haven't spent much time in the book world the last two days, and when I say "book world" I mean everything from reading to following book news. Unfortunately, the real world sucked me in, and what I became engrossed in was current world news. Finally last night I checked back in to find the book world a buzz and a blast over a new release. Wow, I missed a lot, I shook my head and chuckled.

Then I thought about it some more, like I generally do about most things I read. So I read a few more viewpoints, and finally decided this post was worth making. Consider it food for thought or a way to put things in perspective.

#1 When a book is marketed in the romance genre it's going to come with certain expectations. Romance is a fairly clear cut genre as far a genres go. There's a whole lot of leeway when you label something simply General Fiction or Fiction-Drama. But Romance and even Dark Romance has its boundaries. If the story goes too far out of the box, well it's simply not romance anymore. I should add to that that there are some themes and content that straight out aren't romantic. If a plot incorporates those real life issues that have extensive consequences, legal ramifications, and far reaching effects, then narrowing down the appropriate audience becomes even more important. There are some things not to be taken lightly in any kind of fiction. Social consciousness is important. An author can write anything they desire for themselves, but once that work, even of fiction, becomes a published piece, it's open to analysis, critique, and discussion by the general public. And romance readers are probably going to be particularly sensitive to certain content because most of us read to escape.

[Fun Fact: Is it a coincidence that National Book Lovers Day coincides with the anniversary of the Mason murders and the Nagasaki bombing? Probably, but it sure doesn't hurt to have an uplifting book to escape from reminders of those horrors of history.]

#2 Amazon deciding to no longer offer a title for sale is not book banning. Amazon is a retailer, not a government organization or some kind of bureaucratic affiliate tying to dictate to the public what one can and can't read. Censureship does happen. In fact, I see it from time to time in the book world in all kinds of subtle ways, often in regards to suppressing lower star reviews. But Amazon or any retailer "passing" on a title or deeming that it doesn't meet their publishing guidelines, mission statement, or product line is not true censorship.

To be clear, I'm not an Amazon fan girl. I have my own complaints about the company, largely in regards to their inconsistent and misleading policies regarding their gift cards. (A totally different issue, by the way.) Are they also inconsistent though on other things like what passes their review? I don't doubt.  But the overall issue at hand here, their ability to sell and not sell certain titles, is nothing new in the book industry. Indie authors may have become accustomed to having their titles available on all of the major online platforms, but as I imagine some authors who've published professionally or someone who's worked in the publishing profession as I have can tell you, retailers "pass" all the time on what they stock, especially when it comes to brick and mortar stores where space is limited. Publishers make sales presentations to the buyers in specific categories and what those buyers order can be affected by various factors from sales projections to content. As I once explained many a time to published authors when I worked for a traditional publisher, the publisher or sales rep could not control what a specific distributor, store, or venue stocked. They could only make the sales pitch and provide the buyer with the required information to make their purchasing decisions. And it's much the same way for indie authors selling today. Ultimately, the decision is the retailer's. But that's not stopping the book from being sold other places or directly by the author. It just means that labeling the title in the most fitting genre, targeting the correct market, and being a little creative (but never deceptive) with marketing is a bigger deal than ever.

Now I'm going back to worrying about the bigger problems in the world as two egomaniac man-children hold their fingers over the nuke buttons. In the end, I'm far more concerned that that drama resolves itself peacefully.

RELEASE BLITZ:I DO(n't) by Leddy Harper

~Blurb~


I fell in love with Holden York when I was six years old. Most of my youth came with spiral notebooks filled with doodles, wedding plans, and “Janelle York” looped in bubbly handwriting.

However, one night in Vegas changed everything. I woke up to more than just a fantasy of my brother’s best friend.  Five years later, I'm standing on his doorstep confronting him about the secret he kept from me. If you think this is the story of how we rode off into the sunset together…

You’re so wrong.

But if you think this is the story of how Holden blackmailed me into living with him...

You couldn't be more right.

Leddy Harper had to use her imagination often as a child. She grew up the only girl in a house full of boys. At the age of fourteen, she decided to use that imagination and wrote her first book, and never stopped. 

She often calls writing her therapy, using it as a way to deal with issues through the eyes of her characters.

She is now a mother of three girls, leaving her husband as the only man in a house full of females. 

The decision to publish her first book was made as a way of showing her children to go after whatever it is they want to. Love what you do and do it well. Most importantly Leddy wanted to teach them what it means to overcome their fears.

RELEASE BLITZ: Food Fight by T. Torrid & Heather Ohhh

Series: Strip Mall Duology #1
Genre: Eroticomedy (Erotica/Romantic Comedy)

~Blurb~

FOOD FIGHT is the first book in a new eroticomedy duology.
Each book in the Strip Mall series contains two separate stories from the same universe. No cliffhangers... just a lot of laughs and some really hot sex!

BANANAS AND DONUTS: It's a food fight of epic proportions when this not-so-sweet baker gets her hands on a gorgeous grocer's goods.

BAGELS AND BRATS: A buff butcher bites off more than he can chew when he "meats" the vegan vixen next door.

*Intended for immature audiences 18+


~Book Review~

Double DNF

“Bananas and Donuts”
The hero (Jesse) is a manwhore who had sex with the heroine’s (Stef) employee, in her own bakery and presumably in front of her! Nope, sorry…this story had potential until that little disgusting nugget of backstory was dispensed. There’s just no way to get that visual out of my head and be able to connect with the H & h as an item now. This is supposed to be a romcom, and that is neither funny nor romantic. Nor is it funny that the hero calls the heroines names like 'queefmonster' and 'Keefecake.'

I bailed at chapter three as the heroine was actually contemplating sleeping with the guy, which I'm sure she eventually does. “Maybe if I hadn’t kept my hoo-hoo under lock and key for so damn long, I would have found it easier to resist him.” For real??? I have no respect for a heroine (especially one who uses words like ‘hoo-hoo’ to describe her vagina) who evidently has no respect for herself if she can overlook a manwhore who’s had sex in her own freaking place of business while it was open and whose bodily fluids she had to clean up to avoid a health dept. shut-down, simply because she’s in a dry spell. No woman should be that hard up for sex. These kinds of presentations of women in fiction, romance fiction at that, should not be happening in 2017. What these heroines need is therapy, not sex. 

So I moved on to give the second story a try…

“Bagels & Brats”
This story features a hero (Peter) who opens the story contemplating a move because he seems to expect the reader to pity him for cheating on his girlfriend and his life turning crappy. He tries to excuse it by claiming he was intimated to stay in the relationship even though they were only teens. I suppose if you can buy a flimsy excuse like that you can also accept the cornball names of this pair—Peter Johnson and Valerie Cooter. Come on? There’s comedy and then there’s 12 year old boy humor. Pretty sure this falls into the later.

I bailed before chapter three on this one after the hero’s friend rolls off with lines like “I’ve done cycled through all the pussy in these parts.”  And when Valerie doesn’t jump at the chance to sleep with Peter, he surmised she must be a lesbian because why else would she not be into his awesomeness?  What an arrogant jerk!

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU


T. Torrid is a pop-culture junkie, a movie aficionado, and a lover of all things 80s. A lifelong Jersey girl, she currently lives there with her husband and two sons. She also writes romance under the name T. Torrest!

Heather Ohhh is a Cajun girl with a big heart and a passion for romance. Residing with her husband and five sons, she is quite fluent in sarcasm. One spoiled little princess finishes off this brood adding a little drama and sparkle to the mix. Life is chaotic, but she wouldn't have it any other way. She also writes romance under the name Heather M. Orgeron.

Monday, August 7, 2017

BLOG TOUR: Twisted Twosome by Meghan Quinn

SBPRBanner-Quinn-TT-BT.jpg
Publication Date: August 3, 2017
Genre: Contemporary Romance

~Synopsis~
Racer McKay is a broody bastard. 

From the moment I met him, he’s been rude, irritable, and unbearable. 

A contractor working to remodel my parents pool house for extra cash, he stomps around in those clunky construction boots with his tool belt wrapped around his narrow waist, and a chip on his shoulder. 

Racer McKay is also infuriatingly . . . sexy as hell. I want to take that pencil tucked behind his ear, and draw lazy lines slowly up and down his body all the while wanting to strangle him at the same time. 

We try to stay out of each other’s way . . . that is until I have no other option but to ask for his help. 

But what I don’t realize is he needs me just as much as I need him. I have money he’s desperate for, and he holds the key to making my dreams come true. 

Our pranks turn from sarcastic banter, to sexual tension and lust-filled glances. Bickering matches quickly morph into slow burn moments. We’re hot, we’re cold. We push and pull. I need him, I don’t want him. We’re on the verge of combusting with an agreement dangling dangerously between us. Neither one of us can afford to lose one another and yet, we’re finding it quite hard to decipher the line that rests between love and hate.

~Book Review~


3.25 Stars

Georgiana Westbrook, 26, is a trust fund baby, but she can’t access the money for another two years. She wants to open a bridal shop, but when her father uses his influence to ensure that no construction company in the area will renovate her desired location, she’s forced to turn to Racer McKay, 26, to get the job done.

Racer is swimming in debt and Georgiana’s job might just be enough to keep him afloat. But the two have a combative relationship from the start and working side by side can only make it worse…or will it make it better?

Told via Georgie and Racer’s alternating first person POV, this is a love-hate, opposites attract slow burn romance. There are some funny scenes…

“Cock to the face.
Cock to the leg.
Cock against the arm.
Fucking cock everywhere.”

And for the most part it’s lighthearted and upbeat with the angst relatively low.

However, I waived a good bit on the characters. On the plus side, Racer was hard working, and his devotion to his father’s memory was commendable. But I don’t think that entitled him to be the jerk that he acted like at times. I was also turned off by his over sharing of details when it came to Georgie and his friends. It seemed tacky and immature, rather than humorous, and started making Racer’s character over the top.

Georgie felt a bit flat at times. I felt bad for the way her father treated her, but otherwise had difficulty connecting with her. I would have liked to see her be more resourceful, perhaps. It seemed like she always needed someone to come to her rescue, figuratively speaking.

I suspect that some of the side characters have appeared in other books, or are going to appear in them, but it otherwise operated as a standalone. I didn’t have any problem following the story, but I did struggle with it holding my interest.


~Excerpt~

Why is it so goddamn drafty in here? I grip my hammer in my hand, my tool belt riding low on my hips, and my stereotypical construction hat rests on my head as I finish up the project I was hired to do.

Taking a quick look around, I search the bedroom looking for an open window or AC vent that’s blowing a cold breeze right against my dick and sac, making it almost impossible to look semi-decent in this scrap of fabric.

“Mmm, I think you forgot a nail on the ground over there,” says the throaty, smoke-filled voice of Mrs. Sage, who is lying across her chase lounge wearing a silky pink robe that is barely tied around her waist. She makes it her mission to show me as much skin as possible, and as we’re talking about skin showing . . .

I bend down to pick up the nail she’s pointing at as the thin strip of man thong material rides higher up my ass crack than I care to admit.

Let’s pause for a second.

Are you wondering to yourself, is Racer really wearing a man-thong as he finishes building a solid oak shelf?

The answer is yes. Yes, I am.

I’m Racer McKay and I wear man thongs for older, rich women while I work on simple projects around their houses. Excuse me, I mean mansions.

Don’t worry. Yes, I’m also very much ashamed to admit the level I’ve stooped to in order to make some cash. I have my pride, but right now, when I’m offered three hundred dollars more to build a shelf in a man thong, I’m choosing to seize the opportunity.

Self-respect was thrown out the window two years ago when a pile of bills and responsibilities were thrust in my direction without any preparation or warning. Making money is as vital as breathing to me, so I will take it any way I can get it.

Cue the man thong.

“Oh, you’re right. Here it is,” I say, holding up the nail. “Thanks for the help, Mrs. Sage. I would hate to see you hurt yourself from my lack of attention to detail.”

She waves me off and puffs her chest toward me, her robe slipping farther apart, showing the cleavage of a very saggy pair of breasts. I’ve seen my fair share of boobs and even though I don’t mingle sex with work, I can’t help but want Mrs. Sage to remove the robe just so I can see what she has hidden under the silky fabric.

How saggy are we talking here?

I’m interested for exploratory reasons, for knowledge of every kind of breast out there. Because right now, Mrs. Sage looks like she’s rocking a pair of pancakes that have been flattened by a steamroller.

“You would just have to nurse me back to health if that happened.” Her finger trails up her varicose vein-covered leg to her geriatric hip. I hold back the shiver that wants to spin up my spine.

All I can say is . . . can’t unsee that.

I nervously laugh and tuck my hammer into its holster. “Not much of a nurse, Mrs. Sage. I might hurt you even more.”

“I don’t mind getting hurt.” She starts to spread her legs and that’s when I call it a day.

I turn around quickly, snag my jeans and slip them up and over my legs, struggling with my tool belt getting in the way. Once things are in place, I remove my hat, put on my shirt, and then cover my hair with a backwards baseball cap. The peep show is over.

Once dressed, I gather my tools, tuck my construction hat under my arm, and turn to Mrs. Sage. This is my least favorite part, getting the old bird to pay up.

“Leaving already?” She pouts, lipstick on her teeth.

“Unfortunately, I have another engagement I’m running late for.” A lie, but it’s the only way I know to get out of here.

“That’s a shame. I really should book you for a whole day. That way you can’t skirt out of here earlier than I’m ready for.”

She walks out of the den and into the entryway where she opens her purse and pulls out a wad of one-hundred-dollar bills. My brain explodes from the amount of cash in her purse, as if it’s chump change she’s ready to throw around at a parade dedicated to her and her riches.

“What do I owe you? Six hundred?”

Fuck, it’s five hundred and if I wasn’t a nice guy, I wouldn’t correct her, but I believe in good karma. Especially considering where my bad luck has gotten me—trying to climb my way out of a large debt. I try to put as many good vibes out in the world as possible.

“We actually agreed upon five hundred, Mrs. Sage.”

“Such a bargain.” She flips through her cash, pulls out five bills—damn—and hands them over to me. “Shall I call for my next project?”

I pocket the cash. “Email is best, Mrs. Sage. I always feel awkward taking phone calls at work.”

“Such a hard worker.” She pats my face and leans forward, lips puckered, but I step to the side avoiding an attack from her old-lady lips.

As I depart, I wave my hand in the air and say, “Thanks, Mrs. Sage. I look forward to your next email.”

Out of her reach, I toss my tools in the back of my truck, enter the cab, and place my hands on the steering wheel as I exhale a long pent-up breath.

Tingle

Born in New York and raised in Southern California, Meghan Quinn has grown into a sassy, peanut butter eating, blonde haired swearing, animal hoarding lady. She is known to bust out and dance if “It’s Raining Men” starts beating through the air and heaven forbid you get a margarita in her, protect your legs because they may be humped.

Once she started commuting for an hour and twenty minutes every day to work for three years, she began to have conversations play in her head, real life, deep male voices and dainty lady coos kind of conversations. Perturbed and confused, she decided to either see a therapist about the hot and steamy voices running through her head or start writing them down. She decided to go with the cheaper option and started writing… enter her first novel, Caught Looking.

​Now you can find the spicy, most definitely on the border of lunacy, kind of crazy lady residing in Colorado with the love of her life and her five, furry four legged children, hiking a trail or hiding behind shelves at grocery stores, wondering what kind of lube the nervous stranger will bring home to his wife. Oh and she loves a good boob squeeze!