REVIEW: One Step Too Close: Coffin Nails MC Louisiana (Sex & Mayhem #6) by K.A. Merikan

Genre: MM Romance/ Contemporary / Crime
Buy The Book:  AMAZON
Connect With The Author:

Goodreads / Twitter / Website

Synopsis On GR:

--- One love. One motorcycle club. Two stepbrothers. ---

Ryder. Controlling. Ambitious. Protective.
Jed. Self-destructive. Trapped. Lonely.
Their love? Forbidden. Taboo. All-consuming.

For Jed, the Coffin Nails Motorcycle Club is family. With them, he learned how to think, what to enjoy, and how to fight, but there is one thing he knows his friends can’t find out about. They would never accept him as gay, and so his life is a constant struggle with desires that fill him with despair. Only there is a much darker secret lurking in Jed’s heart. His feelings for his stepbrother, Ryder, go far beyond brotherly. Trapped with a yearning that can never be fulfilled, Jed spirals out of control and unwillingly puts the love of his life in danger.

Ryder is climbing up the ranks. Recently promoted to sergeant-at-arms, he has it all: drive, respect, and the love of his biker family. When his stepbrother gets into trouble with the law, Ryder decides to take the blame and save him from a long sentence. Deep inside, he knows there is nothing he wouldn’t do for Jed, but through a desperate attempt to suppress his own hidden desires, he might irreversibly break the man he secretly loves.

But finding out what they feel for each other will test their loyalty to the Coffin Nails MC and change their lives forever.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
Themes: Outlaw motorcycle club, criminal activity, forbidden love, stepbrothers, blackmail, homophobia
Genre: M/M dark romance, suspense, drama
Length: 135,000 words STANDALONE novel
WARNING: Adult content that might be considered taboo. Explicit sexual content, strong language, violence. Reader discretion advised.

REVIEW

Ueber-hot bikers with bodies covered in muscles and tattoos and piercings on the most interesting (read: sexy) parts involved in the criminal and dark side of the gangsta world, in the middle of which is one turbulent, all-consuming and forbidden love- love between two stepbrothers.

Oh boy...I know that stepbrother-stepsister romances are currently one of the hit romances in the readers' world, but somehow they never appealed that much to me, but after reading One Step Too Close by K. A. Merikan I guess stepbrother-stepbrother romance most certainly does. Yup, I'm a perv that way and I have no shame. :P Btw. I don't get why people consider this type of romances taboo. It's not as if the persons involved are blood related. Okay, it does sounds creepy if they are raised together since they were babies which wasn't the case when it comes to this book, so while I run the other way from incestual romances, I had no problems with this one. In fact, I really , really liked it.

Action-packed, gripping, suspenseful, deeply emotional and smoking hot with a little dose of forbidden. The best part of this book for me was definitely the romance and the two bikers it revolved around- the strong, responsible and controlling Ryder and the fun, broken and self-destructive troublemaker Jed, while I wasn't that much interested in the occasional biker crime world drama. Probably, because I haven't read the previous books of the series yet, but I definitely plan to.

Therefore- 3.5 stars! I definitely need more stepbrother-stepbrother romances in my life, so feel free to recommend. Recommended to fans of dark romances!

 

RATING: 3.5 stars/5 stars 

xoxo,

Purple

REVIEW: The Paper Swan by Leylah Attar

Buy links:

Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Author links:

Website / Twitter

*BOOK SUMMARY*

They say it takes 21 days to form a habit.

They lie.

For 21 days she held on.

But on Day 22, she would have given anything for the sweet slumber of death.

Because on Day 22, she realizes that her only way out means certain death for one of the two men she loves.

A haunting tale of passion, loss, and redemption, The Paper Swan is a darkly intense yet heartwarming love story, textured with grit, intrigue, and suspense. Please note: This is NOT a love triangle.

A full-length, standalone novel, intended for mature audiences due to violence, sex and language. Subject matter may be disturbing for some readers.

Add on Goodreads

MY RATING:

***MY REVIEW***

And – here is my first 2016-favorite! 

Revenge. Mexican cartels. Action. Hot sex. Drama.

Basically, everything you may need. 

I have no idea why I choose to read this book. I guess I just wanted something light. And that’s when biggest surprises happen! I was so swept with the story, I couldn’t stop reading. I was reading the Paper Swan before my classes, while eating, during breaks, when I should’ve been studying, I couldn’t stop; I had to know what happens next, where the story would take me. 

If you close your eyes and think about someone you love, what comes back is not a precise list of hair color, eye color, or the things that go on their driver’s license. Rather, it’s the bits and pieces that seep through your consciousness, the things about them that you never realized were storing away.

I liked the writing, there were some really poetic passages. I also liked the characters, they felt real to me, and I loved their chemistry (Skye + Damian). Moreover, I liked the story, my favorite part is that it spans over the years, so we really get to know the characters.

I think this book would be perfect for a movie! There are some things towards the end that could’ve been avoided (drama drama), but all movies have those unexpected twists, so it was fine. For a book like this one, it was even suitable. 

Therefore, I must admit I rather enjoyed this! I recommend this to anyone who wants a fast, action-packed story, but also filled with emotions and hot, yet tender romance. The author managed to perfectly balance all the elements. I’ll definitely keep an eye out for Leylah Attar.

In the grand scheme of things, we do the best we can, all of us, and we make up our stories as we go along; we write them and direct them and project them into the world. And sometimes we get other people’s stories, and sometimes we don’t, but always there is a story behind a story behind a story, linked in a chain that we can only see a small part of, because it’s there when we’re born and it continues after we’re gone. And who can comprehend all of it in one lifetime?

xoxo,

Beatrix 

Cover Reveal: Dirty Promises by Karina Halle

Blood. Sex. Revenge.

Being king comes at a brutal price.

 

Drug lord Javier Bernal has sliced and diced his way to the top of the Mexican drug trade, presiding over the country's largest cartel. But his rise to power comes at a brutal price: the death of his sister, Alana. Devastated and wracked with guilt, he turns away from his new wife, Luisa, forcing their marriage into a steady decline. But it isn't until she's pushed into the waiting arms of Esteban Mendoza, his right-hand man, that Javier realizes everything he's lost.

And it isn't until he learns the truth about Alana, that he realizes everything there is to gain.

Blood will spill.

Cities will burn.

Heads will roll.

Because Javier will stop at nothing until he gets what he wants.

And what he wants is raw, ruthless revenge.

Dirty Promises is the third and final book in the Dirty Angels Trilogy. While the other two books - Dirty Angels and Dirty Deeds - can be read as standalones, it is recommended you read at least Dirty Angels before reading Dirty Promises.

ADD TO GOODREADS

PRE-ORDER NOW 

Barnes & Noble    iTunes    Kobo

EXCERPT

All my life, I thought I could operate under my own code of morals and ideals. It was no different than most, I supposed. The cop who has to shoot someone in self-defense. The soldiers that go to war and raid villages in the name of freedom. Everyone makes excuses for what they do, because they believe in it. Because they believe they are in the right.

I had always thought of myself as a somewhat civilized, almost classy, narco. I at least wanted to bring purpose and grace to what I did. I didn’t believe in killing mercilessly. I believed in mercy, in forgiveness, in giving people second chances. I believed in letting people go after I got what I wanted from them.

I believed that to snitch was an outrage, that even though we were dealing and fighting and killing to be in a billion dollar industry. I believed that religious celebrations were to be respected. I believed that family came first. I believed that women and children would not be harmed.

For a moment, I thought that perhaps I had lost my mind. Never mind the needless, senseless deaths that were already at my hands over the last few months. Never mind that I had broken promises to others, to myself. Dirty, filthy promises. It was then and only then that I knew I had lost who I was. That every moral fibre that I based myself on was threadbare and I was close, oh so close, to losing all sense of myself forever.

It scared me. I watched Luisa leave the room and though I was reeling from her own words, the callous ones that reached deep inside me and left a scar, I knew I might have damaged her beyond repair. I could heal myself in time, but could she? Would we?

I didn’t think so.

From the USA Today Bestselling author of Love, in English and The Artists Trilogy, comes a dark romance about a good girl and a very, very bad man. It’s a deliciously twisted take on forbidden love, set among the drug cartels of hot, steamy Mexico and is not for the faint of heart. It contains explicit sex, violence, abuse, drug use, bad language and sexy Mexicans. You have been warned…

For Luisa Chavez, a twenty-three year old former beauty queen, a better life has always been just out of her reach. Sure, she’s had men at her feet since she was a young teenager but she’s never had the one thing she’s craved – security. Having grown up in near poverty, her waitressing job in Cabo San Lucas can barely let her take care of herself, let alone her ailing parents. Every day is another unwanted advance, every day is a struggle to survive.

When Salvador Reyes, the depraved leader of a major Mexican cartel, takes an interest in her, Luisa is presented with an opportunity she can’t afford to pass up. She’ll become Salvador’s wife and exchange her freedom and body for a life of riches – riches she can bestow upon her deserving parents. But Luisa quickly finds out that even the finest wines and jewels can’t undo the ugliness in her marriage, nor the never-ending violence that threatens her every move.

Soon, Luisa is looking for an escape, a way out of the carefully controlled life she’s leading. She finally gets her wish in the worst way possible.

As it is, being the wife of Salvador makes her an ideal target for rival cartels and there’s one particular man who needs Luisa as part of his cartel’s expansion. One particular man whose quest for power has destroyed lives, slit throats and gotten him out of an American prison. One particular man who will stop at nothing until he gets what he wants.

That man is Javier Bernal. And he wants Luisa. He wants to take her, keep her, ruin her.

Unless she ruins him first.

Some men were born to create empires, some women were meant to be queen.

**Dirty Angels is the first standalone novel in the Dirty Angels Trilogy, in which all books feature or involve different characters. The character of Javier Bernal is from The Artists Trilogy, and while reading TAT is recommended if you want additional insight into this twisted character, it is not required.**

Amazon     Barnes & Noble    iBooks

Karina Halle is a former travel writer and music journalist and The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author of Where Sea Meets Sky, Racing the Sun, The Pact, Love, in English, The Artists Trilogy, Dirty Angels and over 20 other wild and romantic reads. She lives on an island off the coast of British Columbia with her husband and her rescue pup, where she drinks a lot of wine, hikes a lot of trails and devours a lot of books.

Halle is represented by the Waxman Leavell Agency and is both self-published and published by Atria Books/Simon & Schuster and Hachette in North America and in the UK.

Hit her up on Instagram at @authorHalle , on Twitter at @MetalBlonde and on Facebook. You can also visit www.authorkarinahalle.com  and sign up for the newsletter for news, excerpts, previews, private book signing sales and more.

LINKS: FACEBOOK TWITTER GOODREADS AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

Pre-Release ARC REVIEW: Beware of Me (Dark Obsession #4) by Cynthia Eden

Expected publication: July 28th 2015 by Hocus Pocus Publishing, Inc.

Genre:

Romantic Suspense

Buy The Book:

AMAZON / KOBO / 

Connect With The Author:

Goodreads / Website / Twitter / Facebook

Synopsis On Goodreads:

Walk on the wild side with New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Cynthia Eden's dark new romantic suspense, BEWARE OF ME.

Criminal. Killer. Monster. Ethan Barclay has been called many things in life, and he usually doesn't care what people say about him. He's tough, hard, and brutal when he needs to be. But even the most dangerous of men can have a weakness. Ethan's weakness has--and always will be--Carly Shay.

Their pasts are tied together--twisted and melded by blood and death. Walking away from Carly was the hardest thing that Ethan ever did, but it was also his one good deed. He knew Carly deserved far better than him, and he wanted her to have a perfect life, a life that didn't involve paying for Ethan's sins.

Only now the secrets from their past have been revealed, and Carly's life is on the line. Ethan's enemies, Carly's enemies--the predators are closing in on them. But Ethan isn't going to let Carly be threatened. He will move heaven and hell to protect her. He won't lose Carly, not again, and for those foolish enough to try and take her from him...they are about to see just how deadly Ethan truly can be.

Author's Note: BEWARE OF ME is a complete, stand-alone story. All of the books in the Dark Obsession series are stand-alone titles.

Dark Obsession Series:

WATCH ME, #1 / WANT ME, #2 / NEED ME, #3 / BEWARE OF ME , #4

RATING: 3/5 stars

*** REVIEW ***

No, I did not picked this book up only because of the cover guy, really, I didn't. (Yeah, right.) The last book that ended on my favorite shelf was a romantic suspense novel, so the genre and the synopsis sounded like something I might enjoy. And I did for the most part.

"You are so wrong for me," she said. And she was the only right thing in his world.

Carly Shay has been hiding from her past for the past few years and pretty successfully until her ex-lover Ethan Barclay, the infamous mob boss and a man who broke her heart, pays her a visit. Carly and Ethan have been through a lot. The time they spent together is at the same time one of her most cherished memories and worse nightmares which still prevent her from moving on and having a normal life. Ethan wants her back at his side and this time forever, but he's not the only one. There are also enemies from her past who want her dead, suspicious friends who want to help and FBI agent who is one step behind from solving her darkest secret. And the question is- whom to trust, the devil you know or the one you don't?

"When you get scared," his voice was gruff, "when you think the world is going to pieces around you, I'll be there. I can help you. I will help you.

The story was dark, action-packed, suspenseful, emotional and steamy. My favorite character was definitely the sexy, provocative, sensual and bad-ass Ethan. The scars on his face only added to his appeal. In comparison to him, I wasn't the biggest fan of Carly in the beginning of the story, because she seemed quite naive and impulsive in some situations, bringing herself in danger, but she did get better later on, especially in the second half of the book.

My rating would have probably been bigger if the suspense had been done a bit better. The twists were okay and they did have the element of surprise, but what can I say- I've read better. My favorite was the last one. I definitely didn't expect *that*, even though I had my suspicious about that person. All in all- it was an enjoyable, fast-paced read. It can be read as a standalone, but still, somehow I can't lose the impression that I would have liked it more if I had read the previous installments of the series. 

"I thought you'd lost your soul a long time ago."

He smiled at her. "I did. I gave it to a seventeen-year-old girl...a beautiful girl who was willing to do anything  in order to save my sorry ass."

xoxo,

Purple

Mini REVIEW: Bare-Knuckle Love (Rabid Mongrels MC, #1) by K.A. Merikan

Genre: 

MM Contemporary Romance/ Adult

Buy The Book: 

Free On MMRomanceGroup !!!

Connect With The Author:

Goodreads / Twitter / Website

Synopsis On Goodreads:

--- Fight to the death. Love to the bone. ---

Jason is back in his home town and trying to make money the only way he knows - in an illegal MMA fight. Bare knuckles. Hardly any rules. All he needs to do is... lose. 

The Rabid Mongrels Motorcycle Club bet against him, and they are set to make a killing, but when Jason spots his high school crush in the audience, he can’t bear to lose. All he wants is to have Hyde notice him. He gets more than he bargained for when Hyde turns out to be the president of the MC, now out for his blood. 

To survive, Jason will have to make a deal with the blond devil. No matter how manipulative and vicious Hyde can be, he is a dark wet dream come to life, and Jason can’t keep his hands to himself. Soon enough, the self-destructive lust he has for Hyde becomes a dangerous obsession that takes Jason to the most forgotten corners of his soul. 

POSSIBLE SPOILERS:

Themes: Outlaw motorcycle club, criminal activity, abuse, sexual orientation issues, second chances, enemies to lovers, first time, coming home, alternative family, blackmail

Genre: M/M dark erotic romance, suspense, drama

Length: ~34,000 words

WARNING: Adult content. Explicit gay sex, strong language, violence, mentions of past animal abuse, mentions of past child abuse. Reader discretion advised.

RATING: 3.75/ 5 stars

*** REVIEW ***

I rarely rate short novellas/stories more than 3 stars, because they always seem lacking in comparison to full length novels, but I was so tempted when it comes to Bare-Knuckle Love by K. A. Merikan. 

Dark, raw, thrilling, emotional & deliciously dirty.

Bare-Knuckle Love is not for those faint of heart, because despite the story's shortness (around 90 pages) it dealt with some heavy subjects, such as: cage fighting, other scenes of violence and a bit of humiliation kink, so if these things are out of your comfort zone I think that it's better for you to stay away from this freebie.

I didn't rate it with full 4 stars because:

~ it ended just when it became so good.

~ I wanted to see more of Hyde's emotional side and more emotional scenes between him and Jason.

You should definitely give it a try:

~ if you're a fan of dark & kinky mm romances

~ if you're a fan of biker ft. mm fighter romance

~ if you're a fan of enemies-to-lovers romances

My dirty mind says: Bring on the next one! ;)

xoxo,

Purple

(Watch Me) Body You (Run This Town, #2) by Avril Ashton

Genre:

MM Contemporary Romance/ Crime

Buy The Book:

AMAZON /  B & N / BOOK DEPOSITORY

Connect With The Author:

Goodreads / Blog / Twitter

Summary On Goodreads:

Denial only lasts so long…eventually the heart wins out.

What if loving him…

After recent events that had his life flashing before his eyes, Israel Storm is re-evaluating everything. His friends. His priorities. What’s not going to change is the deep connection he’s developed with Reggie Turner. They’re comfortable with each other, partners in crime with no qualms about sharing women. Whatever Is needs, Reggie is the one he calls. Their bond can survive anything. But maybe not the kiss Reggie plants on him out of nowhere.

…Means losing him?

Despite what Is thinks, that kiss came from somewhere. An un-named current has been flowing between them for months. Reggie doesn’t bat for his own team, but the more time he spends with Is, seeing past the rough façade of the man leading The Rude Boys, the more Reggie loses sight of labels and where he fits. All he knows is there’s something there, something Is will never acknowledge. One kiss leads to a punch that lands Reggie in the ER, and sends Is digging through his darkest memories in search of himself.

Friendship is all that’s left if they bury the truth. If they ignore the pull that makes it impossible to do anything other than fight each other. But denials can be exhausting and hiding isn’t working, not when everyone can clearly see your heart’s desire. An enemy is out to make an example of Is, and his weapon of choice will leave this Rude Boy bloodied…and bodied.

RATING:

*** REVIEW ***

I don't know if it's because of my weakness for friends-to-lovers/gay-for-you mm romances, but I enjoyed this 2nd installment in the Run This Town series by A. Ashton much more than the first one. The leading couple of this book are Israel Storm a.k.a Is, X' best friend and the leader of the gang called the Rude Boys, and Reggie Turner, Is' best friend and one of the gang members. The story continues right after the ending of the first one, with Reggie taking Israel into hiding to his old childhood cabin near the lake where the recent tension between them starts to escalate.

"Maybe he knew. Maybe Is knew. Reggie couldn't take the chance so he took what he was given like a good little soldier would,

he took the scraps of emotion he caught every once in a while in Is' eyes,

he took the fleeting touches that weren't quite fleeting and the promise of maybe, possibly, that came with each puff of breath Is expelled.

He took it all and tried to tell himself it would be enough."

Is and Reggie have only met recently, but they bonded right away. It was sort of a bromance at first sight and soon enough they became inseparable. Neither of them ever thought that their growing friendship could turn into something more. Right in the first book of the series - (Watch Me) Break You (RTT, #1) we witnessed the beginning of a change between two of them followed by palpable tension and Reggie admitting his feelings for Is to X. Both of them were straight their whole life and now they find themselves confused and terrified to lose one of the good, light things in their dark, criminal life- their friendship, especially when they end up stuck in Reggie's cabin with no place to run from their new-found feelings. Add to that growing family problems and possible gang war and you have a perfect recipe for disaster.

4 dark, action-packed, deeply emotional & way too hot stars.

The main focus of this installment is on the slow-building romance between Is and Reggie and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way, because they totally won me over right in the 1st book. You have two gangsters who have gone through heaven and hell and found each other on that path and unexpectedly fell in love for the first time in their life, but in the dark world of gangsters, where you have a constant target on your head and where homosexuality isn't exactly welcomed, the price for that love might be too high. Is and Reggie were just like X and Dima- strong, bad-ass characters, but there's also a softer, endearing side to them, visible only to their inner circle and that's one of the things I like the best about this series. It took time for them to finally let go of their fears and doubts and take that next step, but the waiting was so worth it. Two words: hotness overload!

"I want what people who feel like we feel,

who burn like we fucking burn, have. Because I burn, Is.

I want what we should have. Nothing less.

We've changed too much to ever go back."

Fans of X & Dima will also be pleased to hear that both of them make appearance in this installment too and guess what- they have some big news for you, but I'm saying nothing. Read the book and find out. I must admit that my feelings about this series were kind of conflicted after reading the first book, but now I'm totally hooked. Bring on the third one!

Highly recommended to every fan of dark contemporary/friends-to-lovers/gfy romances!

xoxo,

Purple

COVER REVEAL & GIVEAWAY: The Slayer (Untamed Hearts, #2) by Kele Moon

Title: The Slayer (Untamed Hearts, #2)

Author: Kele Moon

Genre: Erotic | Contemporary Romance

Release Date: March 31, 2015

Synopsis

To Chuito the apartment was a self-imposed prison for a lifetime of sins. To Alaine, the girl next door, it was salvation from her overbearing, religious father.

He was a devil. 

She was an angel.

Two people who should’ve never met, let alone become friends, but it’s not until they give into the dangerous passion that’s been simmering under the surface for five years that things go to hell. 

On the outside, Chuito ‘The Slayer’ Garcia is on top of the world. He’s successful. He’s wealthy. He's a champion MMA fighter surrounded by friends who support him, but they don’t know what he was before he came to Garnet.

A gangster. 

A thief. 

An addict. 

A murderer.

Now his past is churning up demons he can’t ignore. Chuito knows he needs to go back to Miami to end it, but there's something holding him back, a single temptation he can't resist before leaving.

Alaine. 

She’s the one drug he can’t give up…even if it destroys them both.

“To me you’re coke. Fine. Smooth. Perfectly white. Very bad for me, but so fucking sexy I don’t give a shit. It’s worth going down for.” – Chuito Garcia

A freckle faced, redhead born and raised in Hawaii, Kele Moon has always been a bit of a sore thumb and has come to enjoy the novelty of it. She thrives off pushing the envelope and finding ways to make the impossible work in her story telling. With a mad passion for romance, she adores the art of falling in love. The only rules she believes in is that, in love there are no rules and true love knows no bounds.

So obsessed is she with the beauty of romance and the novelty of creating it she’s lost in her own wonder world most of the time. Thankfully she married her own dark, handsome, brooding hero who had infinite patience for her airy ways and attempts to keep her grounded. When she leaves her keys in the refrigerator or her cell phone in the oven he’s usually there to save her from herself. The two of them now reside in Florida with their three beautiful children who make their lives both fun and challenging in equal parts–They wouldn’t have it any other way.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

a Rafflecopter giveaway

xoxo,

Purple