4 Smooches

Synopsis

Pippa Sanders’ life is filled with songs of leaving, longing and loneliness. Since the death of her husband, her children have been her world. She’ll do anything to protect them, including encasing her heart in ice until they’re college age. She’s made a practice of shying away from any relationship that could break her heart when it ends. And it’s worked so far. Clay Mathers has made a temporary move to Granite Pointe, Massachusetts to help with his mother’s Christmas tree farm while she recovers from a stroke. Although his long-range plans don’t include staying in the small town, a little female companionship during his short residency would be welcome. While on duty as sentry against protestors at a military funeral, he finds Pippa visiting her husband’s grave, and begins a campaign to make her into a friend–with benefits. What starts as a simple affair evolves to something more, something that changes the soundtracks of both their lives…the beating of two hearts in harmony. CONTENT WARNING: Contains strong language, hot sex and a spicy hero.

A Lyrical Press Contemporary Romance

Review

This story follows the lives and blossoming romance of the two main characters Pippa and Clay. They first meet each other at a military funeral when Clay rescues Pippa from the unwanted interest of a extremist protestor. From there on out the pair continue to bump into each other. And once Clay realises he wants the sweet but lonely (and still mourning over her husband) Pippa he starts turning up wherever Pippa is on purpose, determined to get on her good side and get to know her more intimately….
However lurking in hidden dark corners is someone who intends to do Pippa harm and get back at Clay at the same time.

This was a wonderful romantic suspense story that was filled with loveable characters and a captivating plot that held my attention till the very end.

“You want me, as much as I need you”

One of the main reasons I loved this story was because of the characters.
Pippa was a strong female lead. She was independent, brave, strong, determined and a wonderful mother. I admired her strength and the support she gave to others. And I loved her bravery when she was willing to get to know Clay more and when she acknowledged she needed to stop mourning her husband and live her life. She was such an easy character to like.

“This was what romance was all about”

And I adored Clay. Again he was determined and brave, he was cocky and crass but that added to his appeal for me. He was hard on the outside but soft on the inside and he was adorable with Pippa’s two little children. I also liked that he called Pippa ‘spitfire’- he was acknowledging she was a strong women and not someone he could walk over or play around with.

“Each moment I’ve spent in your company has been…Jesus it’s been like coming home”

The supporting characters were all great as well. Mia and Mason were so cute and cheeky. Clay’s mum was sweet and loving. And all of Pippa’s family were wonderful.

“I won’t break your heart spitfire, you can count on that”

The plot and writing were captivating and descriptive.  Within the first few pages I had already cried (military funerals always get the water works going for me). And from then on I laughed, cried again, smiled. I felt happy, sad, surprised and shocked. The writer’s use of descriptive words helped bring the story alive and made me feel the emotions the characters were feeling.

I loved the suspense aspect of the story. Dewey and The Battalion added real drama and suspense to a romance story and that it was kept me captivated. Those characters were genius in terms of how evil they were, and how you could feel there hate for Clay and Pippa. You just knew it was all going to explode at some point. It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through waiting for the explosion to happen and wondering how it was going to come about.

There were some moments (although these were few) where a page or two didn’t quite keep me interested and part of me wanted to skip forward a little but apart from that I really enjoyed this story with its loveable characters, descriptive writing and a plot with a good balance of romance and suspense.

Bethany

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5 Smooches

Synopsis

Rich, beautiful, and wild, Reagan McKinley has everything she needs…but nothing that she wants. That is, until she spends one hot night in the arms of sexy, unbridled Dare Wilde.

She’s a girl trapped in a rigid world she desperately wants to escape, and he’s an untamed artist with an attitude, hell-bent on freeing her—body, mind, and soul. But Reagan’s life is not her own, and Dare is not welcome in it. She can’t include him in her carefully-controlled, extremely public lifestyle…and yet she cannot give him up.

Will a shared passion for art—and, increasingly, each other—be enough to keep them together? Or will it be the thing that ultimately tears them apart?

Review

“Emptiness filled every part of my body and mind. But who fucking cared? I had other, less conventional means of fulfillment. Pop an upper. Shoot some tequila. Fuck a stranger. Bury shame. Get a 4.0 GPA. Play perfect daughter. Rinse and Repeat.”

I have to say I am a serial convert. I used to avoid these like the plague but lately I find myself devouring several a week. There is something about an ongoing story that you don’t have to wait a long time for that has me wanting more and more. Being a serial this wasn’t terribly long and I was easily able to read it in one sitting while the munchkins watched a few cartoons. Untamed is part one in a six part serial with each part revealing more and more of Raegan and Dare’s story!

“I’d surrendered all common sense and lost myself in him. Completely. Wholly. Desperately. I couldn’t get enough.”

Being that this story is short with lots packed in I don’t want to go too far into plot because I worry that saying more than the synopsis would be taking away from what you the reader should get to discover. So let’s go over the important aspects of this story. First, Raegan, I didn’t love her but that being said at this point in the story I am not sure I am supposed to. She is a bit rich and spoiled and thinks pills and alcohol is a good way to drown out the life she is supposed to live but desperately wants out of. Now Dare, LORDY LORDY LORDY, can I just say holy-smoke-I-need-a-cold-shower-HOTTNESS! Dare is everything I want my book boyfriend to be kind, caring, alpha, and hot as hell! He has his own drama but never lets HIS drama change how he feels about Raegan or get in the way of what he wants with her.  I am literally DYING for more of him.

“Two parts,” he said softly. “One Whole.” And my heart filled with Dare. Bubbled up and overflowed, spilled out of my body, saturating the entire apartment, the building, the city. Coloring my entire world.

To be perfectly honest when asked to review this story I had never heard of either author but the well written blurb and story idea grabbed me and I thought why not give it a shot, worse case scenario is that it’s short and won’t take long. Well lucky me cause it was fantastic. I can honestly tell you that Victoria and Jinsey’s work is great and I will anxiously waiting for more from them.

~miranda

Copy provided for an honest review.

4.5 Smooches

Synopsis

Miranda “Rand” Coleman has seen the way love can wreck a person and wants absolutely no part of it. When her granddaddy dies suddenly, he leaves a clause in his will that has her married in three months or she loses her inheritance. Unwilling to give up the Double C Ranch, she starts to set her eyes towards the eligible men in town, with little luck in finding a man she can stand for a minute let alone a year. Until she sets eyes on the new veterinarian and enlists the help of her womanizing best friend, Jake, to help.

Jake Hansen is a single guy who likes his women pretty and uncomplicated, with no plans to settle down anytime soon. When he decides to help Rand hook her man, he has no idea the effect watching Rand change would have on him. Especially when she starts letting her gorgeous brown hair down and showing off a body he didn’t even know she had. Before too long, Jake isn’t just lusting after his best friend, he’s feeling downright possessive. But when it comes down to the wire, will he get over his issues and step up to the alter…or lose the only woman he was ever meant to love?

Review

“You make me crazy,” she muttered as she obeyed. “Likewise,” he countered.

What a light and fun romance read with a southern twist. I am a big fan of Codi Gary because she always knows how to write a story that keeps me constantly entertained without wanting to pull my hair out from too much drama. I sat down to start this book thinking I would read a few chapters then get back to life, instead I found myself in the same chair a few hours later with a fully read book!

“In fact, I’ve been thinking; lips like that have got to be soft as a rose petal. You wouldn’t mind if I tested them out, would ya, sweetheart?”

So the one thing about this book is the main character shares a name with me, my name isn’t that common so it is always strange when I read it. That being said almost always a character with my name is not the heroine and is instead some kind of bitchy temptress. Not this time, Miranda or “Rand” is the sweetest girl and I loved her. A tomboy at heart the one thing Rand cares about is keeping the ranch her grandfather left her, the catch, she must get married like ASAP! With no prospects in sight Rand finds herself struggling. Enter longtime best friends Red and Jake. Not surprising that Rand has two men as best friends since she is such a tomboy. She is not willing to mess up her friendship with either man by causally marrying one just to help her save the ranch. But before long it would seem like playboy Jake and Rand actually have some crazy good chemistry and decide that a year of marriage while having a little fun isn’t a bad idea and they both agree that they will come out of this friends. But can they do fake-married-couple-with-benefits without developing real feelings or losing it all?

“Make Me Crazy. Make me nuts! I don’t care as long as you’re here. With me.”

Boy did I fall for Jake! Who wouldn’t he was possessive, sexy and alpha to a core! But as always a sexy man does not come without baggage and Jake has plenty of his own. I loved Rand and Jake to me they felt like real people and I wanted more and more of them. Watching them come to terms with their developing feeling while balancing that with the constant desire for each other made for a great and easy read. Make Me Crazy had just the right mix of fun, sex, and drama to keep me reading and ignoring the rest of my “real world” responsibilities!

~miranda

3.5 Smooches

Synopsis

Now eighteen, Audrey returns to her hometown for the first time after the accident – the car crash that took her dad and scarred her for life. She’s here to start again. Go to college and have fun. Make new friends. Get over the past.
But the past won’t let go. Asher is here – her first kiss, her first heartbreak. More handsome and distant than ever, he’s still the boy who used to be her best friend. That was before he changed into someone she hardly knows anymore – the boy who started getting into fights and gave her the cold shoulder for years.
Asher isn’t what she needs. In fact, she hates him and should try her best to keep away from him.
Yet her body doesn’t seem to care about how she feels, and maybe, just maybe this time her body got it right. Not that she has much of a choice. Asher draws her like a bright flame, and if she isn’t careful, she’ll burn.
And that may not be such a bad thing after all…

This is New Adult erotic romance, dual POV.
******Warning: this book contains graphic language, sex, and violence. Mature readers only. Not intended for young adult readers.***

Review

    This book connected me to the characters in an instant. I was drawn in and wanted to know how these 2 different people can have a crazy connection. Audrey moves back to a town that contains memories that haunt her and a boy that she can’t stop thinking about. Asher is known for his fists and temper. Expelled through high school for fighting, he was unable to complete his high school education. Audrey and Asher find themselves living day by day conquering one battle at a time.
Asher was the not-so-boy next door and a best friend to Audrey. The first turn of events in their friendship was that moment when you are sure if a kiss could really damage the friendship. And it did. Asher abandoned Audrey after that one fateful kiss. But that wasn’t all, one tragic event would drive the biggest wedge in their relationship. I felt for Audrey at that moment. But also found her feelings were dumped on Asher and were definitely unfair. Yet the character of Audrey was young and underdeveloped.
Now Asher Devlin is one of the five members of the Inked Brotherhood Series. Those that have been inked with a dragon are joined in this brotherhood where there is no abandonment. Not necessarily a band of misfits or lost souls but more of tortured identities. My heart ached for Asher, I couldn’t believe what he went through.  “With every stinging lash of his belt on my back, he told me I don’t deserve her, or anyone else for that matter.” Gosh that gripped me…and I know that is what made me Asher the character I felt more emotions over.
I would recommend this book for a reader into the fighting, young love, trouble adolescents genre. There were dark moments, such as the fighting scenes. They got a little much for me. I could just be a wimp, or very graphic when I visualize as I read. All in all, this was a good read. I look forward to hearing the stories on the other members of the Inked Brotherhood. I’m leaning more towards learning about Zane. 3.5 stars for Asher by Jo Raven.

Sarah

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Synopsis

When trust is challenged and desire takes control, is love enough to conquer fear?
When geeky book nerd Autumn Blakewood falls for the cocky, confident fighter Hunter Bane she knows she’s in for life. Their undeniable connection, fueled by the desire to protect, grows stronger every passing second. However, the need to feel cherished threatens her college graduation, family bonds, and future, tearing her apart, but she won’t give up on Hunter so easily …
After he was abandoned by his family, Hunter Bane struggles to cope with daily life. Having a learning disability turns every task into a challenge. With his brother now free, Hunter feels the pressure to succeed and take care of the people he loves, forcing him to choose between college and a job. Hunter’s devotion to Autumn keeps him on the right path. His infatuation with her turns lust into passion, drawing out his alpha tendencies. But with affection comes admission, putting a strain on their relationship as secrets are exposed and unforeseen circumstances spiral out of control.
Being complete opposites, their love is flaming hot, but it burns away all inhibitions, unveiling the fears that were locked deep inside. As past and present collide, difficult choices must be made. Can Autumn and Hunter’s love survive this ultimate test?

Review

What a fantastic next installment (I’m not sure if there is going to be more!) in the Fierce series by Clarissa Wild. This one is heavy on the character and relationship development between Autumn and Hunter. They are officially a couple; together; them against the world. They are both so young and struggling to find their place in the world. Struggling to do what they know is right, such as attending college and putting food on the table. They both have little to no parental support and your heart just bleeds for them. It’s odd to think back to a time in my life when I attended college, like a bagillion years ago, and reflect on the decisions made. There are so many similarities and it makes you wonder just how many people out there went through the same things. Fighting with your boyfriend/girlfriend over silly stuff. Being so dramatic you have a monumental outburst and leave, seething. It makes me chuckle, knowing that things happen, all the time, everywhere. That’s the beauty of this series. It is new adult/young adult. Kids in their late teens learning about life and struggling just to find their little bit of peace.

There are many twists and turns towards the end of this one that makes your heart smile and sigh, in relief and hope that Autumn and Hunter will be just fine.

5 SMOOCH-A-ROONIES

~Nicole

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