romance

Review: Deacon by Kristen Ashley

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01 a0 How does Kristen Ashley manage to write about the most sexy men on the planet?? They may not be perfect men, but they are perfect to the women that claim them. And Deacon is most definitely that man. He hasn’t made the best choices in his life, but when he meets Cassie, he realizes that he can’t keep doing what he’s doing if he wants a girl like her.

SYNOPSIS
Deacon has an ugly history, a history that broke him, leaving him a ghost of a man. Out of necessity, he left the normal world to descend into the criminal world and found he fit. So he stayed. Cold as ice and living off the grid, Deacon has no intention to connect, not with anyone.

Then he returns to some remote cabins in the Colorado Mountains and finds they have new owners. One of them is Cassidy Swallow, a young woman willing to work hard to live her quiet dream in a house by a river surrounded by aspen and pine.

Suddenly, Deacon finds he’s at war. Cassidy’s pull for him to connect is strong. He fights it, but he loses, always coming back for more. But when he does, he gives her nothing.

From the first time she sees him, Cassidy knows Deacon is dead inside. She knows he’s the kind of man who could destroy a woman. But one night when Deacon’s control slips, Cassidy takes a chance.

He might break her. He also might be her dream come true.

Cassie knows he’s dangerous. She knows she should stay away. But there’s this pull that can’t be explained, and all it takes is one little slip and she’ll be lost in him forever.

I loved Deacon’s mysterious side. He kept coming back year after year. He barely ever spoke to her, but that didn’t change the fact that they were drawn to each other.

This book was so hot. I mean, whoa. I was rereading and taking notes. Their connection was off the charts. One minute they were sweet, and the next there was no stopping them. The was Deacon spoke to Cassie was so sweet and saucy, I was swooning.

Another 5 star K.A. book. In all reality, you can’t go wrong with a K.A. book. She write about real women and real situations. No cookie cutter books. Perfection.

~Melpomene

Buy Deacon (The Unfinished Heroes Series Book 4)

Review: Fury by Fisher Amelie

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01 a1 WOW!!! I am speechless and crying. This book….How does Fisher do this to me in every book she writes?! This book will make you feel. This book will change your life. This book will bring to light, that the world has some very bad and scary parts to it. And the further you get sucked in, the more fury will take hold and pull you in deeper.

SYNOPSIS
Revenge is an euphoric thing. Trust me on this. Nothing compares to the release you get when you ruin someone’s life. When they’ve stolen important things. Things that didn’t belong to them. Things I revel in making them pay for.

What? Have I offended you? I’m not here to appeal to your delicate senses. I have no intention of placating your wishes or living within your personal belief system nor do I care if you hate me. And you will hate me. Because I’m a brutal, savage, cold-blooded murderer and I’m here for my revenge.

I’m Ethan Moonsong…And this is the story about how I went from the world’s most sacrificing man to the most feared and why I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

Ethan is angry. After all we went through for his ex girlfriend. He wanted to be forever with her, but she changed and now he can’t stand these feelings anymore. Until one day, he stumbles upon and old friend from high school, and his life slowly turns around.

She made me forget my night. Just like that. Finley was the calm after the storm.

Finley doesn’t realize that she may just save Ethan from making a decision that would change his life. And in doing so, Ethan turns around and chances her life.

Their story is very sad, but it’s also very beautiful. It brings to light a very sad and scary part of this world, that many turn a blind eye to. I was moved to tears many times. My heart was breaking. I was a wreck.

If you can find your way to push anger out of your heart, you can find a way to be happy. But no one said it would be easy.

~Melpomene

Buy FURY: The Seven Deadly Series Standalone #3 during release week, for only $1.99!!

While Fury can be read as a standalone, I highly recommend reading the first two books in the Seven Deadly Series.
VAIN: Series Standalone 1
GREED: Series Standalone 2

Review: All Played Out by Cora Carmack

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01all In science, every action might have an equal and opposite reaction, but not in life. Life is unbalanced. Life is complicated.

This series keeps getting better and better. The football aspect is even starting to grow on me. These books have just the right amount of emotion and heart. Nothing too sappy, but the perfect amount of realness. And Mateo’s story is just that. It made me want to crawl in and join that group of friends.

SYNOPSIS
First person in her family to go to college? CHECK.
Straight A’s? CHECK.
On track to graduate early? CHECK.
Social life? …..yeah, about that….

With just a few weeks until she graduates, Antonella DeLuca’s beginning to worry that maybe she hasn’t had the full college experience. (Okay… Scratch that. She knows she hasn’t had the full college experience).

So Nell does what a smart, dedicated girl like herself does best. She makes a “to do” list of normal college activities.

Item #1? Hook up with a jock.

Rusk University wide receiver Mateo Torres practically wrote the playbook for normal college living. When he’s not on the field, he excels at partying, girls, and more partying. As long as he keeps things light and easy, it’s impossible to get hurt… again. But something about the quiet, shy, sexy-as-hell Nell gets under his skin, and when he learns about her list, he makes it his mission to help her complete it.

Torres is the definition of confident (And sexy. And wild), and he opens up a side of Nell that she’s never known. But as they begin to check off each crazy, exciting, normal item, Nell finds that her frivolous list leads to something more serious than she bargained for. And while Torres is used to taking risks on the field, he has to decide if he’s willing to take the chance when it’s more than just a game.

Together they will have to decide if what they have is just part of the experiment or a chance at something real.

I totally connected with this story, since I was a very sheltered and school driven myself. I never really experienced the “usual college activities.” So I enjoyed Nell’s list making and the checking off of the items. I wish I did that, when I was younger. Work is important, yes, but if that’s all you have, you’re going to live a half life. So, I was glad to see Nell attempt to take control and change it for the better.

Mateo was the best kind of guy. No, scratch that. He was the best kind of guy, for Nell. His joking and flirting, around his friends, hid his true feelings. But Nell saw right through those and was able to help him move past them. He was the comic relief that was needed. Everyone group of friends need a Mateo.

I also enjoyed their smoking chemistry. To have that kind of instant attraction, is the best, when it is well written and not over the top insta-lust. And that is exactly what this was. The perfect balance.

Somewhere between my chest and my stomach there’s a knot that twists every time I see her. And I’m starting to enjoy it, the strange pleasure pain of wanting her.

I enjoyed seeing the other characters, and how they’re slowly dropping in the coupledom. We also see a glimpse of what’s to come in the next book. I’ve been waiting for that one. I’m very excited.

~Melpomene

Buy All Played Out: A Rusk University Novel

Review: Sweet, by Tammara Webber

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01 sweet “Once upon a time, an undeserving boy pulled a little half-drowned, wannabe mermaid out of the ocean. He laid her on the sand, thinking his heart would break if she didn’t wake up. The moment she opened her big dark eyes and looked up at him, his heart wasn’t his anymore…”

SYNOPSIS
He’s the love of her life, but he doesn’t know it.
She’s his one moment of sacrifice in a lifetime of survival.

He was damaged and wild, but resilient.
She’s always been obedient. Now she’s restless.

Home for the summer between college and med school, Pearl Torres Frank knows two things: Boyce Wynn is the embodiment of everything she should run from, and everything she wants to run to. Rebellious and loud. Unconcerned with society’s opinion of him. Passionate. Strong. Dangerous.

And one more trait he hides from everyone but her:
Sweet.

Boyce and Pearl met when she was 5 and him 7. From that moment on, Boyce was her protector, even if she never knew it.

I’m so glad Boyce got his own book. I loved his character in Breakable. He seemed like this rough and tough kid, but deep down, he had more hurt and hardness than you’d even expect. But you could tell, with his subtle interactions with Pearl, in Breakable, that there was more to their relationship than they were telling.

“I was a man who loved this girl from the moment she’d come back to life and saw no one but me.”

I loved the back and forth POVs and all the background history we got, of these two. We see them meet. We see them subtly flirt and then we see then reconnect and give in to feelings that were dormant for so long.

For most of my life, Boyce Wynn’s smile had been three things to me: safety, warmth, and home, even as that same smile made my heart throb with longing for some shadowed unreachable thing.

My favorite part of this story was Boyce’s POV. His feelings and emotions were so real. My heart was breaking for the boy who just wanted to be loved, and never found it until his one act of greatness brings him face to face with his savior.

“I’ll love you straight on through eternity.”

~Melpomene

Buy Sweet (Contours of the Heart Book 3)

Review: Broken Juliet by Leisa Rayven

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01 bro What an emotional and heart mending conclusion. I loved loved loved Bad Romeo. I was rooting for Cassie and Ethan the entire time. But with so much hurt in the past, can they move one and find forgiveness and move on to the future?

SYNOPSIS
How do you fix a love that’s been broken beyond repair?

For years, Cassie Taylor tried to forget about Ethan Holt. He was the one great love of her life, and when he failed to return her love, a part of her died forever. Or so she thought. Now she and Ethan are sharing a Broadway stage, and he’s determined to win her back. Claiming to be a changed man, he’s finally able to say all the things she needed to hear years ago, but can she believe him? What makes this time different from all his other broken promises?

Ethan knows he can’t change their tumultuous past, but if he’s going to have any chance of being with the woman he loves, he’ll need to convince Cassie that her future belongs with him.

In Bad Romeo, we were totally focused on Ethan and why he was so scared to love and be loved, by Cassie. In Broken Juliet, the focus is on Cassie. Ethan has destroyed her. She is beyond broken. But Ethan has come back and is determined to fix them. He has never stopped loving her. But sometimes love may not be enough.

This is very different from the first book. In Bad Romeo, you were laughing quite often. It was a fun story, with the hurt just under the surface. In Juliet, the hurt was overflowing and there was barely any laughter. My heart was in knots. This was more difficult to get through, but very rewarding at the end.

I also enjoyed the back and forth timelines. You get a glimpse into the workings of their demise. Frankly, it was hard to read. You wanted to reach in and smack Ethan, and them hug him. His abandonment issues were leaking all over and drowning Cassie with him. After three years, she has a lot of hurt that she needs to work through before she’ll even attempt to move on with him. But she’s willing to try, for him.

“You want to hold on to something?” he says. “Hold on to me.”

The chemistry, in this story, was off the charts. The tension was thick. The emotions were all over the place. You wanted them to find their peace, but yet, you did enjoy the suffering and the journey it took them to get to that final place.

~Melpomene

Buy Broken Juliet (Bad Romeo)

Check out my Bad Romeo review HERE
Buy Bad Romeo

Review: Asa by Jay Crownover

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01 asaPerfect ending to a perfect series. Marked men, inside and out, but they found women who loved them and their marks. Each of them got their happily ever afters, and this book was no exception.

SYNOPSIS
Starting over in Denver with a whole new circle of friends and family, Asa Cross struggles with being the man he knows everyone wants him to be and the man he knows he really is. A leopard doesn’t it change its spots and Asa has always been a predator. He doesn’t want to hurt those who love and rely on him, especially one luscious arresting cop who suddenly seems to be interested in him for far more than his penchant for breaking the law. But letting go of old habits is hard, and it’s easy to hit bottom when it’s the place you know best.

Royal Hastings is quickly learning what the bottom looks like after a tragic situation at work threatens not only her career but her partner’s life. As a woman who has only ever had a few real friends she’s trying to muddle through her confusion and devastation all alone. Except she can’t stop thinking about the sexy southern bartender she locked up. Crushing on Asa is the last thing she needs but his allure is too strong to resist. His long criminal record can only hurt her already shaky career and chasing after a guy who has no respect for the law or himself can only end in heartbreak.

A longtime criminal and a cop together just seems so wrong . . . but for Asa and Royal, being wrong together is the only right choice to make.

Asa was most definitely not the good guy. He was trouble when we first met him, but I knew he was destined to find that perfect girl to keep him out of trouble, as long as that was what he wanted. This sweet talking southern charmer could get any women he wanted, and in this case, the woman he wanted he shouldn’t.

The most ironic part of Asa’s story is that he fell for a cop. Royal didn’t look like your typical cop, but she was the unlucky one to arrest him a few books ago and they’ve been dancing around each other ever since. I find it so funny that he was drawn to her. Night and day. Dark and light. Good and bad. But they say opposites attract, and in this case, they were right.

“I don’t know why you’re here, but I feel like I need to thank any God that might exist that you are.”

While it’s bittersweet saying goodbye to such fabulous characters, I know we’ll catch a glimpse of them every now and then.

~Melpomene

Buy Asa: A Marked Men Novel

Review: Bad Romeo by Leisa Rayven

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01 badEver read a book that’s seems more real than real life? Well, this is that book. Everything flowed perfectly. There was enough banter, but not over the top annoying. There was enough romance, but not not to where I wanted to skim over “yet another sex scene.” There was the perfect amount of sexual tension to curl my toes and keep me on the edge of my seat.

SYNOPSIS
When Cassie Taylor met Ethan Holt at acting school, sparks flew. She was the good girl actress. He was the bad boy about campus. But one fated casting choice for Romeo and Juliet changed it all. Like the characters they were playing, Cassie and Ethan’s romance seemed destined. Until he broke her heart and betrayed her trust. Now the A-list heartthrob is back in her life and turning her world around. One touch at a time.

Cast as romantic leads once again, they’re forced to confront raw memories of the heartbreaking lows and pulse-pounding highs of their secret college affair. But they’ll also discover that people who rub each other the wrong way often make the best sparks.

The chemistry between Cassie and Ethan was thick. They fought, and loved, fiercely. My heart broke for the hurt they both endured, but I know things will work themselves out. These two people, while they’re far from perfect, are perfect for each other.

I laughed so much in this book. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the comedy worked. I know actors tend to be over the top and sometimes annoying, but Cassie and Ethan never seemed like that. This was real. This is exactly how I would talk to my friends.

Now I’m waiting at the edge of my seat for the next book. Can they move on from the past hurts? Can they have a happily ever after? I really hope so.

~Melpomene

Buy Bad Romeo

Review: Master of Freedom by Cherise Sinclair

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01 master I am fascinated with BDSM and all things Cherise. She has a way of writing BDSM books that feel real. It’s almost as if I’m in the room watching and feeling everything they are. I know this is a novella, but it totally didn’t fell like one! This felt like a full length novel, with all the emotions and excitement.

SYNOPSIS
Detective Atticus Ware gave up his beloved Idaho to start again in the mountains of California, close to his imprisoned brother. He has a rewarding job and friends, but the experienced Dominant wants more than the Do-Me submissives who flock around him. He needs a woman who will give her heart as well as her body.

Virginia, “Gin,” is damn good at her challenging career as a prison psychologist. However, one problem inmate is mired in misery and unable to overcome his guilt at causing a friend’s death.
To clear her mind, she joins a friend’s kinky backpacking excursion, planning to hide in her tent during the evening BDSM pursuits. But Atticus lures her into the activities. She’s read about BDSM, but submission under the hands of a powerful Dom is beyond anything she’d imagined. She doesn’t trust men, doesn’t want a relationship, and yet…wants more from him.

Finally, Atticus has found the woman he wants in his life. In his bed. In his cuffs. But she’s not only his brother’s therapist, but also works in a prison. How can he tolerate his woman walking into danger every single blasted day?

Gin knows she has no future with Atticus Ware, but still, hope is rising in her heart.

I loved these two together!! They were made for each other. They balanced each other and helped each other with their pasts. Their chemistry was off the charts HOT!! Even the plain ol’ kissing was hot. Actually, with Atticus, there is no plain ol’ kissing. But as they grow closer, parts of their pasts creep up and threaten to break these two apart.

“Virginia, I’ll always come after you. I keep what’s mine.”

~Melpomene

Buy Master of Freedom: A Mountain Masters Novella (Mountain Masters & Dark Haven Book 5)

Review: Hold Me by Susan Mallery

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Talk about character development! You’ve got Kipling Gilmore as a secondary character in previous Fool’s Gold books, and though he was always okay, I never felt the need to know him better. In Hold Me, Mallery highlights Kipling’s intuitiveness, protectiveness and good will toward his community. 

Destiny Mills’ character drives forward the plot as she changes from living a superficial life with defensive walls up, to a woman who embraces and rejoices in the challenges and blessings that befall her. Destiny gets in touch with her inner musician, and subsequently thrives. 🙂

I loved Destiny’s relationship with her sister and the other women of Fool’s Gold. But I also had a lot of fun reading the male bonding scenes. Mallery put an authentic voice to husbands and brothers who want to appear macho while staying out of the proverbial doghouse. 

Well done, as always, and I can’t wait for the next book. 

-calliope

Buy HOLD ME

Review: Silver Bastard by Joanna Wylde

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01silver I was super excited to get my little hands on this new MC series!! I love her Reapers series, so I knew I’d love these as well. They’re gritty and raw with plenty of danger. But they’re also about family and support. MCs are some of the most protective people around. You mess with one, you mess with all of them.

SYNOPSIS
Fourteen months. For fourteen months, Puck Redhouse sat in a cell and kept his mouth shut, protecting the Silver Bastards MC from their enemies. Then he was free and it was time for his reward–full membership in the club, along with a party to celebrate. That’s when he saw Becca Jones for the first time and set everything in motion. Before the night ended he’d violated his parole and stolen her away from everything she knew.

Five years. It was five years ago that Puck destroyed Becca and saved her all in one night. She’s been terrified of him ever since, but she’s even more terrified of the monsters he still protects her from… But Becca refuses to let fear control her. She’s living her life and moving forward, until she gets a phone call from the past she can’t ignore. She has to go back, and there’s only one man she can trust to go with her–the ex-con biker who rescued her once before.

Puck will help her again, but this time it’ll be on his terms. No more lies, no more tears, and no more holding back what he really wants…

I’m not gonna lie, the beginning of the story was hard to read. Cringe worthy. But I knew there was a reason for it.

Becca hasn’t had the easiest life. In fact, her early to middle childhood was downright horrifying and disturbing. I was angry to read about what she has gone through. But she is a strong woman who has gone to great lengths to move forward. She has a good support system and is happy.

Puck made a horrible mistake five years ago, but he is determined to protect Becca, even if she doesn’t know, to make up for it. No matter what he does or where he goes, she’s always on his mind. He basically wants her but will wait until she’s ready.

Becca has always been weary of Puck, but in the back of her mind she feels something more for him. That scares her most of all. Deep down she wants to believe he won’t hurt her, but all she’s grown up with is pain and terror. It’s going to take lots of determination and patience to get close to her. But I think Puck can step up to the plate.

EXCERPT
Ignoring him, I settled back on my stool and surveyed the room. We sat in Becca’s section, and what I saw wasn’t making me happy. I knew she was a good waitress, but she’d just started here and it showed. Not only had she fucked up several orders, she didn’t quite seem to get the rhythm of the bar. That wasn’t my problem, though.

My problem was that despite these fuckups, nobody seemed to mind. I had a nasty suspicion this was due to her perky tits, friendly smile, and tight little ass that seriously just needed a bite taken right out of it.

She really, really needed to get a new job—every man in the place wanted her. Including me. Especially me. I hated them. All of them. I shifted uncomfortably, because just like every time I shared a room with her, my pants had gotten tight.

Torture. Becca was just so fucking fine on every level, and not just her looks.

There was something about the way she carried herself . . . I couldn’t put my finger on it. Like she was dancing through life to some song nobody else could hear. Never met another woman like her—she wasn’t just sexy, she was a survivor and I admired that.

She’d grown up so much since the first time I’d met her. Bigger boobs, a nice fullness to her ass that was nowhere close to fat but would be perfect to hold tight while I fucked her. Her lips had plumped, too, and over the years she’d gained a sparkle in her eyes that turned her from pretty to 100 percent spectacular.

Not to mention how she’d tasted.

Nearly blew in my pants when I’d taken that mouth. Just the memory got me hard. Make that harder. Fucking basket case.

When I’d pulled up to find her sitting outside with Collins, a thousand murder scenarios ran through my mind. And yeah, I know I covered that already, but if anything ever deserved empha- sis, this was it. Collins needed to die. I didn’t care how nice he was. After that I’d throw Becca on the back of my bike and make a run for the hills . . .

Okay, so there were a few problems with the plan, the top one being she hated me. Or she should—I’d certainly given her cause. Boonie nudged me.

“Did I mention you’re pathetic? You want her, take her. Other- wise let it go because you’re an embarrassment to all men in general and to the Silver Bastards in particular.”

I’m glad to have both points of views.I like hearing what’s going on in both of their heads. But I really enjoyed the romantic side of Puck. However romantic isn’t quite the right word. Possessive is more like it.

“They say love at first sight is bullshit, and they’re probably right. But whatever I felt for you that first night? It turned into something real. I’m never letting you go.”

And after reading that epilogue, I’m feeling a bit anxious to read the next book. I wonder what kinds of trouble this will bring…

BE SURE TO ENTER FOR A SIGNED COPY OF SILVER BASTARD HERE!!

~Melpomene

Buy Silver Bastard (Silver Valley Book 1)