ARC REVIEW: Ruin & Rule by Pepper Winters

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Author's:

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Genre: Erotic MC Romance

Expected publication date: July 7th 2015

Book summary:

"She is a woman divided. Her past, present, and future are as twisted as the lies she's lived for the past eight years. Desperate to get the truth, she must turn to the one man who may also be her greatest enemy . . .

He is the president of Pure Corruption MC. A heartless biker and retribution-deliverer. He accepts no rules, obeys no one, and lives only to reap revenge on those who wronged him. And now he has stolen her, body and soul.

Can a woman plagued by mystery fall in love with the man who refuses to face the truth? And can a man drenched in darkness forgo his quest for vengeance-and finally find redemption?"

MY RATING: 2.5/3 stars

Possible spoilers!

    SHORT?  I gave it a chance. Kept an open mind. It had potential, but in the end, it still disappointed me. Will I read sequel? Probably, because I want to find out what will happen next.

      First of all, I have to warn you that I have complicated relationship with Pepper Winters novels. There is something about her stories that get my attention, and I cannot resist to the temptation to read them. Not to mention all those pretty covers - Ruin & Rule might have the prettiest so far. My issues start somewhere around third chapter when I get annoyed by characters or story arc or writing. Ruin & Rule lasted longer than that. 

      What I liked? Until the chapter fifteen I truly believed that I would love it. Such an intriguing start! Reader finds out things gradually along with main female character, so there are no clear answers. You are confused, trying to figure out who is who, to make difference between enemies and those who could help out. Along with the MC you are figuring out rules of this crazy new world. And then there is Arthur "Kill" Killian. The president of Pure Corruption MC. Anti-hero. (With kick-ass tattoo! That's something I'd like very much to see!). Even writing was captivating. Yes, it gets melodramatic sometimes, but that first half of the story was so good.

      When did things start to go downhill? At chapter fifteen. The loooongest chapter. Where nothing actually happened. And everything was dragged. And all problems are solved with sex. Hot sex. Until they start to talk.

      What I didn't like?

• Flashbacks. I was seriously disturbed with those because how overly sexual and mature characters are considering that they are just kids (she is barely fourteen - but there are parts where she's eight). 
• Memory loss. Great idea, but at times felt a bit forced. 
• Convenient "situations".  Some things got resolved too easily, just when needed. Like she remembering bits about her past. Very specific bits, all of a sudden. 
• Biker gang. What biker gang? Unlike any other book of the genre, do not expect "club business" storyline. There isn't much, everything is about our main female character and Kill. Even when there is mention of what they do, it's just superficial. That is why I had a feeling like the world-building was lacking, there's no actual background story to the described events, and answers we do get in the end, aren't shown, but told. Just dropped in one chapter told from Kill's POV. After the lot of  I-can't-tell-yous. Which brings us to the next thing that bothered me.
• Melodramatic dragging of the story. It was fun to be in the dark at the beginning, but when you read for the hundredth time: "I will tell you everything, but not now. You have to trust me." and then they have sex, or read about her temper tantrums, you just get bored and start skimming. Second half seriously tested my patience. 
• Kill in the second half of the book. From the badass he became pussy-whipped idiot. Over the night. Just no. 

       Who will like Ruin & Rule? Most definitely everyone who liked Pepper Winters previous novels, especially Monsters in the Dark trilogy. Fans of dark, erotic stories.


Happy reading,

*Copy of the book provided by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

REVIEW: Fuel the Fire (Calloway Sisters #3) by Krista & Becca Ritchie

Buy links:

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Authors' links:

Facebook / Twitter / Website

Genre:

New Adult / Contemporary / Romance 

*BOOK SUMMARY*

Protect your family. At all costs.

It’d take the impossible to hurt Connor Cobalt, even for a moment.

Protect your family. At all costs. 

At twenty-six, his narcissistic tendencies have made room for the people he loves.

Protect your family. At all costs.

And he loves Rose. But when his love is threatened, when his greatest dreams with her are compromised — what is the cost then? 

Protect your family. At all costs.

Love will guide his choices. 

For the first time in his life. 

**AUTHORS' NOTE** 

It's possible to only read the Calloway Sisters spin-off series without reading the Addicted series, but you MUST read Hothouse Flower (Calloway Sisters #2) before reading Fuel the Fire (Calloway Sisters #3). 

It's highly recommended to read the books in the recommended reading order, which is in tangent with the Addicted series. If you choose not to read Addicted After All before Fuel the Fire, there will be a time jump.

Fuel the Fire picks up in the Addicted Timeline where Addicted After All ended. FTF will not retell past events from Addicted After All in Rose & Connor's POV. All new material. 

Add on Goodreads

MY RATING:

*MY REVIEW*

“I need you to keep looking at me like you’re going to burn a hole through my heart, and I need you to tell me that you love the real me. Every day, I need you, Rose.”

Warning: Fangirling ahead! 

Ah, these books! ♥ These books, people, have restored my faith in New Adult genre! 

“We never touched, but I made love to your mind.”

Let me tell you something. Upon starting FTF, I had enormous expectations, which was natural considering that Addicted series is my favorite NA series and Coballoway is my favorite couple. Rose is one my favorite female characters in general and Connor is my dream man. Taking all of that into consideration, this book did not fail to deliver. At all. 

Once again, Krista & Becca Ritchie have amazed me with their talent and I stand by my previous statement – fan for life! 

She fuels the fire in my soul, the embers slowly dying, and she tries feverishly to awaken me. I open my mouth to say the truth—what happened…the words stick to the back of my throat. I place my hands on hers, the ones clutching my shirt, as though she’s seconds from throttling me to her plane of existence—where the world is painted vibrantly in sadness, in rage and despair. I’m the one who lives in muted tones of impassivity and emptiness, needing other people to color my landscape for me.

Now, as for the plot – have no fear, no spoilers. I don’t want to reveal anything, but if you’ve read an Addicted novel before, you can expect a lot of funny bantering, sexy times, emotional moments, and plenty more. And if you haven’t, well what are you waiting for?

People can change. People can grow. People can realize that the idea of something is more frightening than the reality.

Both Connor and Rose’s characters are given more depth. I feel like only when we’re reading from their POVs, we really get to know them, I can say that now we completely understand them. In Kiss the Sky we saw them falling in love, but now we see their love grow even stronger. They are the perfect match and most definitely among my favorite literary couples of all time (right along with Catherine and Heathcliff from WH, and Tatiana and Alexander from TBH). 

He has shaped my life, shaped me, so entirely, and I think about him in every action, in every extraordinary or commonplace thought. I wonder what he would do or what he would say. I’m independent, self-sufficient, and singular—I’m all of those things while carrying and feeling and living out love.

Rose is the kind of female character I love to read about – unapologetic, confident, loyal, strong, inspiring. She’s not ashamed of her choices, never afraid to speak her mind; and a woman both intelligent and beautiful. Embodiment of a feminist! And Connor.. uh, no words. *dreamy eyes* He’s my ultimate book boyfriend. You need to meet him and you’ll love him. 

Moreover, I’m also glad that some old loose ends were tied (old enemies defeated), and other characters are developed more as well. Just because this book is written from Coballoway POV, it doesn’t mean that there is no Raisy or LiLo. 

Furthermore, in Addicted After All, my favorite side character was Ryke; but this time it’s Daisy. My heart beat really fast on three occasions, and two of those revolved around Daisy. The Calloway sisters at the lake-house scene was heartbreaking, more so because someone very close to me experienced the same thing as Daisy did and I’m eagerly waiting for the final book! 

Addicted series for me represents everything New Adult as a genre should be, but sadly is often not. First of all, there is no unnecessary drama, couples are not broken up without apparent reason, there’s no cheating, etc. Great majority of romance novels end once the couple gets together, however, with these books we observe 6 people growing together, individually and as couples, we see them developing, facing challenges and winning despite the odds. That is what makes them so realistic to me. 

Furthermore, family bonds and friendships are another aspect that makes these books stand out. This time, my favorite combo was Rose, Connor and Ryke. Connor and Ryke’s friendship is the ‘newest’ and I loved seeing it get to the new level; there’s respect and new understanding between them. Hopefully, in LWD we’ll get more moments involving “older kids club.” *grin* 

Therefore, Fuel the Fire was indeed one incredibly written book, it gave us everything we love about Connor and Rose and more. There are some very important issues being raised, regarding public image, labeling, sexuality. I really didn’t want to discuss anything particular in regards to plot in my review; I went into it completely blind and was pleasantly surprised along the way. 

In conclusion, at the end of my review, I just want to say: thank you Krista & Becca, not only for giving us wonderful stories and characters, but for influencing us, through them. I myself feel very inspired by e.g. Rose, and certain Coballoway moments from this book I will always hold dear to me. Fuel the Fire is indeed my new favorite from the series and there is nothing better than when a book fulfills your expectations! 

Connor has always had these deep blue, austere eyes that flit between serenity and hard-pressed truths. It’s as though he contains the world’s knowledge and history, the dark ages and the light ones. Behind his own entitlement lies all of these grim and wonderful facts about millenniums of people: the first voyagers, the first philosophers, the very first scientists. When I look into his eyes now, the millenniums shrink to a pool of two. Two people. Just us. The facts are swept with truths, and history is right now. 

xoxo,

Beatrix

REVIEW: The King (The Original Sinners: White Years, #2) by Tiffany Reisz

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Genre:

Dark Erotica/ CR

Synopsis On Goodreads:

Cunning. Sex. Pure nerve. Only this unholy threesome can raise him to his rightful place as a ruler of Manhattan's kink kingdom.

Bouncing from bed to bed on the Upper East Side, Kingsley Edge is brilliant, beautiful and utterly debauched. No carnal act or chemical compound can relieve his self-destructive heartache—only Søren, the one person he loves without limit or regret. A man he can never have, but in whose hands Kingsley is reborn to attain even greater heights of sin.

Kingsley's plan to open the ultimate BDSM club—a dungeon playground for New York's A-list—becomes his obsession. His expertise in domination can't subdue the one man who wants to stop him. The enigmatic Reverend Fuller won't rest until King's dream is destroyed, and so the battle lines are set; it's one man's sacred mission against another's…

RATING:

*** REVIEW ***

"Once there was a king without a kingdom."

This book is about my favorite Frenchman and the king of the underground kink kingdom- Kingsley Edge and therefore it had the potential to dethrone my favorite book of this series - The Prince (OS, #3), but it didn't. Don't get me wrong- I liked it a lot if not even loved it, but there were still some things that kept me from rating it 5 stars. Let's start with the things that make this series one of the best dark erotica books out there for me:

~ Dark, edgy, bitter sweet and way too hot story delivered by beautiful, captivating writing. Tiffany Reisz remains one of the best authors I read lately.

~ The most charming and hottest king/ prince/ switch, you name it, of the OS series. This book has only confirmed yet again why he is my favorite character. This is the story about him building his kingdom- the 8th Circle and the people who helped him in the process. It was Kingsley at his worse- meaning Kingsley at his best. ;)

“I’m French,” Kingsley said. “I’m asking about your religion.” “That is my religion.”

~ The story of King and his sadist Priest. These two had me hot and bothered with their "so close no matter how far" relationship ever since I read The Prince. It's funny, because as you already know I don't even like Søren, but somehow when he's with Kingsley I might say that I even...not like him, but found him bearable. I lived, cherished and breathed for every moment between these two while reading and those are my favorite moments of the book.

~ Smoking hot Rolls Royce sex scene featuring...guess who? *_* No, my lips are sealed- read the book and find out. All I'm going to say is- thank you, Mistress Reisz from the bottom of my dirty mind.

The reasons why The Prince is still my No. 1 Original Sinners book:

~ "The polyamory" is still something I find hard accepting and that will probably never change. I find this series despite that addicting, but I don't see myself reading more books with this type of relationship in the future, but who knows, you know what they say- never say never.

~ I wanted hoped this installment will be focused more on Kingsley's & Søren's relationship just like in The Prince, even though my friends who read this book said that it's not and sadly they were right.

~ I also hoped thought that this is going to be mainly mm book, but it wasn't. I guess I forgot the fact that Kingsley is bisexual, but either way I found his mm relationships more interesting than his f/m relationships.

~ There were some parts I felt the story was dragging and some moments I could have easily gone without.

All in all, this was another very good installment in the OS series and I'm sure that the fans, especially the Kingsley harem will be more than pleased.

"Vive le roi."

xoxo,

Purple

The Saint (The Original Sinners: White Years, #1) by Tiffany Reisz

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Genre:

Dark Erotica/ Contemporary Romance

Synopsis On Goodreads:

In the beginning, there was him. 

Gutsy, green-eyed Eleanor never met a rule she didn't want to break. She's sick of her mother's zealotry and the confines of Catholic school, and declares she'll never go to church again. But her first glimpse of beautiful, magnetic Father Søren Stearns and his lust-worthy Italian motorcycle is an epiphany. Suddenly, daily Mass seems like a reward, and her punishment is the ache she feels when they're apart. He is intelligent and insightful and he seems to know her intimately at her very core. Eleanor is consumed—and even she knows that can't be right. 

But when one desperate mistake nearly costs Eleanor everything, it is Søren who steps in to save her. She vows to repay him with complete obedience…and a whole world opens before her as he reveals to her his deepest secrets. 

Danger can be managed—pain, welcomed. Everything is about to begin.

RATING:

*** REVIEW ***

"It's all one story, the three of us."
"Will it hurt to talk about it?"
"Yes," she said. "But a little pain never stopped me before."

This book has been laying on my shelf for months now, but I kept avoiding it despite this series being one of my favorite ones. The main reasons for that are my disappointment with the  development of the plot in the previous book and above all the fact that this installment is about Nora's & Soren's past and them two are currently my least favorite characters. 

It's not that I don't like them, it's just that I'm ready for the story to move on from the "ode and glory" of Soren & Nora on someone else, like f.e. my ultimate favorite character Kingsley. And there we have the reason why I stopped avoiding this book- Kingsley's book The King is next and I missed my Frenchman so much, so I decided that it's high time to suck it up and read the book to finally be able to read The King. And then of course the one thing happened which almost always happens when I'm being certain I'm gonna dislike some book even before reading it- I actually ended up liking it a lot, what only confirms the fact how amazing this author truly is.

"Welcome to polyamory." Kingsley sat his drink down.

"Polyamory?"

"Poly means multi. Amory means love. It's common in our world, having more than one lover. I don't mean lover in the sexual sense alone. I mean loving two people."

"Sounds like nightmare."

"Wasn't it Oscar Wilde who said there were two great tragedies in life- getting what you want and not getting what you want? Polyamory is the tragedy of getting everything you want all at the same time."

I'm really glad now that I've read this book, because after finishing it a lot of things became clearer. Things like character's personality and plot development I had difficulties processing before. I think that if this had been the first book in the series instead of The Siren I would have understood those things a lot easier, but that was probably the author's plan- to mess with our heads and make us question everything. What I'm finally aware of now is that to love this series you have to be okay with the term from the quote above- polyamory.

Why? It's because that's the lifestyle of the main characters of the story and if you have problems with it, then it's better not to read this series at all. If I had known that before I would have probably never read this series, because despite my weakness for dark, thought-provoking and bittersweet reads, deep down I'm still a romantic and my idea of love is completely different than "polyamory" and while it does make for an intriguing, even fascinating story, the fact that these characters have multiple partners and call it love, is still strange/uncomfortable to me and it'll probably always be.

I was okay with it in the beginning, mainly because I thought that they'll eventually settle for someone in the end, but considering the direction the plot is going, it seems that the number is only increasing. That's why I surprisingly enjoyed more the plot focused on the past events than the present. I know that many of you who know me also wonder if in that case this book finally managed to change my opinion about our sadist priest Soren (for those who don't know- I'm not his biggest fan from book 1)? - Well, kind of. I'm still not his biggest fan and I don't think that will ever change, but I definitely understand him more now. And yes, I still think he & Kingsley are meant for each other.

So the story's only flaw for me was the development of the plot in the present. I liked the younger version of Nora more and I wasn't fascinated with the addition of the new character- Nico, despite him being the son of you know whom. He seemed quite monotonous in comparison to the rest of them. I was frankly a bit bored when reading their present with exception of that one scene including a stick, lol. The writing was flawless like always. It was Tiffany's sadist pen at her best, but as far as the story is concerned- I liked it a lot, but I didn't love it. That's why 4 dark, poignant and way too hot stars. Kingsley, here I come!

xoxo,

Purple

ARC Review: Cartel by Lili St. Germain

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Author's:

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Expected publication date: January 27th 2015

Book summary:

"How much is a life worth?

I grew up in Colombia, the daughter of a wealthy drug lord. I lived a life of extravagance, until one day a drug run went horribly wrong and everything came crashing down around us.

I was given away. A payment for a debt. The Gypsy Brothers Motorcycle Club became my new owners, and I did everything I could to survive.

But falling in love with the man who owned me wasn't part of the plan..."

 5-zero-spoilers-stars 

     One of the biggest 2014 surprises was Gypsy Brothers series by Lili St. Germain. My co-blogger at Way Too Hot Books, Purple, told me from the start that I would love it. I knew that she was probably right, but I still left those books for later. I am glad that I did, because I'd go crazy waiting for the sequels. (Seven Sons is free on Amazon, so you can always download it and see for yourself if we are obsessed with this twisted story for a good reason.)

      Before Juliette Portland, there was Dornan Ross. Cartel is the first book in the trilogy that follows the events prior to everything that happened in Gypsy Brothers. You don't have to read Julette's story first, you can start with Cartel. Good news is that all three books will be published in 2015 - the second book, Kingpin, should be released on June 1st, and the third book, Empire, on October 1st.  

     There are no good guys here. One of the most appealing traits of Lili St. Germain writing, at least for me, is how realistic everything feels. When the focus of the story is on extremely violent world of drug and weapons trade and human trafficking, you can never talk about people who are innocent or without a fault. Yes, there are victims, but those involved into machinery behind every crime that is committed, are not victims. They made a choice, it doesn't matter for what reason, but they are involved, willingly. But than again there's that saying about "sins of our fathers"... Maybe deep down you long for a different life, but it's hard to escape the only world you have ever known. Cartel is dark and brutal story about people who are facing all of those things. Even the most innocent person involved, has the darkness inside her mind and heart.  

      No one can save you. You have to take care of yourself, however you can. Morals of the story. No sugar-coated fantasy about prince on the white horse. No higher power that will save you because you pray every day. Just simple, cold truth. If you have any wish to survive, even for just a little bit longer, you have to became the wolf. You have to be ready to do things you loath, you need to adapt, you need to forget your inhibitions and become a power player. You have to manipulate and lie and cheat. And be aware - all the time - that maybe even that won't be enough and learn to live with it.  

      Very dark read. Cartel is a kind of book you should read without knowing anything about it before, just pick up the book and go into the story blind. But one thing that I have to warn you about is that Cartel, and the rest of the books written by brilliant Lili Saint Germain, are dealing with a lot of dark and twisted aspects of our world. There is no fluffy romance and redemption. No one is innocent. If you can deal with that, you don't want to miss reading these amazing books.

xoxo,

*Copy of the book provided by author in exchange for an honest review.*

ARC REVIEW: Rough Justice by Sarah Castille

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Author's:

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Genre:

Contemporary MC Romance

Expected publication date: February 3rd, 2015

Book summary:

"From bestselling author Sarah Castille comes a scorching new series featuring red-hot, hard-riding bikers and the women who can’t help but love them…

IT TAKES A GOOD, STRONG WOMAN

Raised in a motorcycle gang, tough, beautiful Arianne Hunter has always dreamed of a normal life. But no sooner does she escape her father’s domineering grasp than she wakes up to find herself in a rival gang’s clubhouse—at the mercy of the dangerously sexy Jagger Knight.

TO TAME A MAN WHO’S HELL ON WHEELS.

The alpha leader of the notorious Sinner’s Tribe, Jagger Knight is all muscle, all biker, and all man. But somewhere inside this hard tattooed outlaw, Arianne senses a kindred spirit—and she can’t ignore their tempestuous attraction. Can she beat him at his own game in a revved-up blaze of glory? Or will their passion spark a war that’s the end of the road for them both?"

MY RATING: 3.5 STARS

Rough Justice is the first book in Sarah Castille new series, Sinner's Tribe Motorcycle Club, and I believe that fans of tamer fictional versions of this violent subculture would enjoy reading it.  

      What can you expect? Instant love, bad boys with strong sense of what is right and what is wrong, a lot of steamy scenes, usual rivalry between clubs and few hours in the company of fictional men who are, as someone put it cleverly, "God's apology for men in real life". Unlike many other novels in this genre, Rough Justice is still more similar to "regular" romances with edgier twist, despite occasional scenes of violence. Sinner's Tribe is on kindergarten level compared to Sons of Anarchy or Hell's Horseman. This can be either a good or a bad thing, depending of what you like when it comes to this type of the stories.

     Fairy tale about big, bad bikers. This would be the easiest way to describe new book by Sarah Castille. We are constantly reminded that they are "dominant club", that they are criminals and bad men, ex-military or something like that, but mostly it's just a talk. Personally, I couldn't get them seriously because I had a feeling that they were a kids playing bad buys with plastic guns. Or is it that I just have certain expectations based on books written by Lili St. Germain and Madeline Sheehan?  

      But the romance was really sweet. And hot. Two people that should be enemies falling in love? Strong female character that holds her own? Man who is willing to risk everything because of woman he cares about? If your answer is yes to everything above, you should definitely read Rough Justice because it has it all. One thing that I have to admit is that Sarah Castille can write a panties-melting steamy scenes. Oh, boy... Prepare yourself.  

      Final judgement? Great start to the new series that will appeal even to the readers who are not such a big fans of the usual MC romance novels.

 xoxo,

*ARC provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Just a Bit Twisted (Straight Guys, #1) by Alessandra Hazard

Buy The Book:

AMAZON  

Author's Page:

Goodreads / Blog

Genre:

MM Contemporary Romance

Summary On Goodreads:

Professor Derek Rutledge is hated and feared by all of his students. Strict, reserved and ruthless, he doesn't tolerate mistakes and has little patience for his students.

Shawn Wyatt is a twenty-year-old struggling to provide for his younger sisters after the death of their parents. On the verge of losing his scholarship, Shawn becomes desperate enough to go to Professor Rutledge.

Everyone says Rutledge doesn't have a heart. Everyone says he's a ruthless bastard. Shawn finds out that everyone is right.

He strikes a deal with Rutledge, but unexpectedly, the deal turns into something so much more.

Something all-consuming and addictive.

Something neither of them wants.

RATING:

***REVIEW***

"I've heard an interesting rumor about Rutledge. "

"What rumor?"

Christian glanced around, as though to make sure no one could hear them, before leaning in and murmuring into Shawn's ear, "Tucker say that Professor Rutledge has a weakness for pretty boys."

I know that many readers have a fetish for teacher-student romances *subtly pointing at my friends Glass & Beatrix* :P, but since I'm a teacher I must admit this type of pairing never held much appeal to me. I read a couple of books with similar theme, but I never considered myself as one of the fans of this particular subject, but damn, the 1st book in Alessandra Hazard's series could definitely make me one of those.  

I loved both of the MCs, especially the cute, witty and selfless Shawn and his two adorable younger sisters. His parents died in a car accident and since he has no closer relatives the responsibility for his siblings falls on him. With the debts his parents left him, university obligations, scholarship at stake, two small girls and other life necessities that task soon becomes a true burden, but he'll do anything to keep his sister happy and by his side, even if it means to strike a humiliating deal with one of his professors. His sacrifice, devotion and love for his sisters was really heartwarming and admirable and above all I liked how he didn't let Rutledge intimidate him and always gave him a piece of his mind unlike other people who "run for their life".

And then we have the strict, mysterious and closed-off Derek Rutledge or better known as the "Professor Asshole." Professor Rutledge is (in)famous on the university for his strictness and at times cruel, straightforward and merciless behavior. None of the students like him. He is rather one of those boogeyman professors whom everyone fears. Therefore he will be one of those guys you'll love to hate at the beginning of the story, but have in mind that first impressions can be misleading. My feelings for this guy were changing through the story between wanting to kick his ass and jump his bones, preferably both at the same time, but after we start getting glimpses of the man behind the cold-hearted mask the later one prevailed.

"We aren't having sex," Shawn said.

"Of course we aren't," Rutledge agreed. He was naked, too.

Shawn's gaze skimmed over his broad shoulders, densely muscled chest, and taut stomach, before lingering on his hard red cock. He felt his mouth water.

"No, seriously," Shawn tried again but bit his lip when Rutledge wrapped a hand around his erection. God. "We aren't having sex."

The story was a fast-paced, bitter-sweet and steamy (read: dirty) read. It is a combination of GFY/ hate-to-love mm romance and you all are probably already familiar with my weakness for this type of stories. The chemistry between these two was explosive and resulted in a couple of scorching hot sex scenes, but there's also depth to it. Everything started as a deal, but the more the MCs get to know each other, the more feelings get involved. The book's only flaw for me is its shortness. It left me wanting for more. I liked it so much that I grabbed the next book in the series right after I finished it. It is supposed to be a m-f-m romance with Shawn's best friend Christian in the main role- be still my dirty mind. 

All in all, recommended to every mm romance fan with teacher-student fetish who like their stories a little bit on the dirty side!;)

"I'm no good at comforting people," Rutledge said irritably.
Shawn turned to him and forced a small smile out: "It's okay. I'm surprised you haven't kicked me out yet."
Rutledge's lips thinned. He had a very sour expression on his face. 
"Come here." Shawn had never moved so fast in his life.

xoxo

(Watch Me) Break You (Run This Town, #1) by Avril Ashton

Buy The Book:

AMAZON / BOOK DEPOSITORY / ALL ROMANCE

Author's Page:

Goodreads / Blog / Twitter

Genre:

MM Romance/ Bdsm

Summary on Goodreads:

Here comes trouble…

Men. Women. Drugs. Dima Zhirkov’s favorite things. Add in the element of danger and he should be right as rain. But not today. It’s not working, hasn’t for a long time. He’s grasping at the flimsiest of straws to prove he’s indeed strong enough to run his streets. Until he sets eyes on him. In the midst of a room full of strangers, Dima is drawn to a man as cold and dangerous as he’s beautiful. Captivated, Dima embarks on a ruthless campaign to get his new toy into bed.

Here comes the danger…

Xavier “X” Storm is content to pull the strings while someone else handles the day to day dealings of his gang, The Rude Boys. He’s after what Dima holds closest—the Coney Island streets. He contracts out the job of killing the Russian, except Dima isn’t that easy to kill. When he suddenly shows up in X’s path, tempting him to indulge in the dirtiest play, he finds Dima isn’t all that easy to shake, either. His cocky attitude and rough submission tempts X to go where he’d vowed to never return, and they plunge head first into an affair fueled by possessive obsession.

Run for cover

Sex and pain Dima can handle, and X delivers the most depraved kind. Their connection is explosive, their games addictive, but Dima can end it whenever he wishes. He doesn’t see that X is breaking him down, giving Dima everything he wants and even more than he ever thought to need. By the time he realizes who X is and what he wants, Dima is raw and bullet riddled. It’s run or fight. And Dima doesn’t back down. Neither does X.

Warning: Includes strong BDSM elements.

RATING:

***REVIEW***

"Watch me," his toy whispered. Sadistic. Eyes so black Dima didn't see the whites. He looped the rope around Dima's neck. Tightened it. "Let's play then, Rush." He pulled the rope. "And watch me." Dima did.
"Watch me break you."

Being sick during Christmas holidays sucked, especially with all that delicious food around me (even though my thighs are thankful- traitors!), but at least I had my books to comfort me and since I was "a little" moody, my book choice was also from the darker side. Yup, definitely not the most appropriate book to read during holidays and I totally blame my weakened state of my mind by lack of sugar or Christmas food in general :P. Yeah, right.

“Blood and violence gets me hard,” Dima murmured with a smile.”

3 dark, raw, suspenseful, emotional, kinky stars!

A year ago this book would have probably never found itself in my hands and the biggest reason for that is the fact that the MCs have a Dom/sub relationship and practice heavy BDSM (whipping, flogging, breath play, gun play etc.), but I became more open-minded after reading some awesome books with similar elements, books like: Rough Canvas (Nature of Desire, #6) by Joey W. Hill, Dark Soul Series by Aleksandr Voinov etc.

Nowadays, the most important thing for me when it comes to this type of relationship is that the romance is slow-building, that the relationship is based on deep connection and not just sex and that the MCs are equals in their relationship or to be more exact- I don't like it when the guy who is Dom in the bedroom is also Dom out of it and the other way around, because I prefer both of my main characters to have strong personality and not just go with the flow.

That's why I liked Dima's & Xavier's relationship in general. Both of them were strong, straight to the point characters who weren't defined by their roles in the bedroom. The chemistry between was scorching hot from the moment they set their eyes on each other and I liked their intensity even though some of the HBDSM stuff they "practiced" made me cringe.

~ This is definitely a book for you if you are:

- fans of D/s interracial romance with elements of heavy BDSM

- fans of enemies-to-lovers stories

- fans of shady MCs involved in street gangs

- fans of dark, raw and raunchy reads

- fans of dark romance and lots of dirty talking
- fans of mm crime/mystery reads

~ It would have been a 5 stars read for me if :

- the romance had been more slow-building

- there had been less push & pull (melo)drama

- there had been less possessive "caveman" behavior

- there hadn't been some cheesy content 
- the writing had been a bit more polished 

All in all, aside some minor issues I liked it enough and I will definitely be reading the next one- (Watch Me) Body You (Run This Town, #2) which features the secondary characters Israel & Reggie as MCs. It's supposed to be bffs-to-lovers/GFY romances, one of my biggest guilty pleasures when it comes to the mm genre. The resistance is futile!

“He’d fallen in love with Quinn slowly, quietly. With Dima, it was like a baseball bat upside the head, these feelings. They completely swamped him, made him want different things, made him want to be different.” 

xoxo

Deceptive Innocence (Pure Sin, #1) by Kyra Davis

Buy The Book:

AMAZON / BARNES & NOBLE / BAM! / ZOLABOOKS

Author's Page:

Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest / Goodreads

Genre:

Contemporary Romance / Suspense

Summary on Goodreads:

Kyra Davis, the New York Times bestselling author of Just One Night, returns with book one in the thrillingly erotic Pure Sin series featuring a beautiful young woman out for revenge—until she falls in love with the one man whose secrets are as dangerous as her own.

Ever since Bell’s mother died while serving time for a murder she didn’t commit, Bell’s been focused on one thing: revenge. She knows her mother was set up by Jonathon Gable, the head of both the powerful Gable family and an international banking corporation. Now she’s determined to take him down—from the inside.

Bell needs access to the Gable home and offices, so she poses as a bartender to seduce her way into the bed—and life—of Jonathon’s rebellious youngest son, Lander. He’s not a typical Gable, spending more time in the dive bars of Harlem than the posh cocktail lounges of the Upper East Side. He has an attraction to danger, a vulnerability Bell isn’t shy about exploiting. It should be easy to uncover the secrets she needs to destroy his family and clear her mother’s name.

But it turns out Lander is much more complicated than she ever imagined. He’s enticing, intelligent, mysterious—plus their sexual chemistry is off the charts. Even though Bell knows he’s the enemy, she can’t help but be moved, both physically and emotionally, by the man she swore was just a target. When he finds out the truth she’s sure both their hearts and her plan will be crushed...until she begins to realize that Lander might be hiding his own secrets, darker than she ever imagined.

NOTE: This book includes Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 which are no longer sold separately.

RATING:

***REVIEW***

Without revenge and vengeance- without war- what's left of me?

Are you a fan of the TV show Revenge? Do you enjoy reading books with similar themes? Then, come and meet Deceptive Innocence (Pure Sin, #1) by Kyra Davis.

Dark, gripping, suspenseful & emotional mindfuck.

There are 4 leading players in this mindfuck:

~ Bellona Dantes a.k.a Bell is the main character of this series and the story is told from her pov. She and her single mother led a peaceful, normal life until one horrible event that took place when she was only 12 years old. That incident turned her life upside down and had a major impact on the person she became today- strong, intelligent, calculated and merciless for everyone who ruined the life of the innocent child she once was.

I really liked Bell as a MC. Some issues aside, she was the type of the character I prefer reading about. She is far from perfect, but I was touched by her story and cheering for her to make them pay from the page 1 and I think that every reader will.

~ Lander Gable is Bell's love interest and also the person who may or may not had his fingers in the incident that ruined her life. The readers will be in the dark through most of the story about Lander's potential guilt. What hides behind his poker face? Is he a trustworthy person? What are his true feelings for Bell? I'm still undecided about him. The chemistry between them was off the charts and resulted in some pretty steamy scenes.

“My beautiful warrior.” He gently lifts my chin. “You’re mesmerizing.”

“Yeah? Well. you’re going to have to come out of your trance,” I uncurl the belt, swing it over the wide part of his back, use it to pull him to me. “I want you now.”

~ Travis Gable is Lander's step-brother and in his case the readers won't have problem with figuring his character out. Manipulative, cruel, aggressive, ruthless. A true psychopath. 

~ Micah is a mob boss and Bell's frenemy- it remains to be seen.  Just like Travis, this guy scared the crap out of me. With Travis at least you know what to expect, but this guy is totally another story. Is he there to protect Bell or is he another person to add on her black list? We'll just have to wait and see.

Everything starts out as a game of revenge, but can you truly win without any loss in a game whose rules are based on secrets, lies and deceit? When the poker faces start falling down who'll be the last one standing?

~ Negative:

• I would have preferred if the romance was more slow-building or to be more exact- I felt that Bell fell too quickly for Lander even if she tried so hard not to and therefore made excuses for him even when she didn't know him that well or long enough.
• A few details of the plot reminded me on the TV show. I don't know if that's coincidence or not or if the author was inspired by that show. It didn't spoiled the story for me, but I hope she'll develop the story in her own, unique way.

Throughout the story my rating was changing between 3.5 and 4 stars, but the awesome ending  decided it on 4 stars. All in all, this was a promising beginning to the new book series. I have huge hope for book 2!

Recommended to the fans of suspenseful mindfucks with a kickass heroine and fans of the TV show Revenge.

Being with him like this shouldn't feel this powerful. I've forgotten who I am. Maybe that was inevitable. But I shouldn't forget who he is.

xoxo