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Kyle has an unwelcome crush on his nemesis Brent. Brent has a welcome crush on his friend Kyle. As it turns out, the line between a friend and an enemy doesn’t have to be a line at all.
Born on the wrong side of the tracks to the wrong family, Kyle Potter. When he gets the perfect job at the perfect firm in perfect Los Angeles, Kyle is sure there are only blue skies ahead. Born with a silver spoon to a well-established family, Brent has never been interested in leveraging his connections. Friends, success, and dates come easily to Brent and rejection isn’t something he has to deal with in life. And then he meets perfect Kyle Potter. |
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Title: Falling for Trouble Author: Jenika Snow Genre: Romance Page Count: 87 TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 5 Stars - A Must Read Heat: 3 - Blush Worthy Falling for Trouble is an amazing story of best friends falling for each other. Sophia has been on her own since she was taken away from her drug addicted mother as a child. Abe has also been alone ever since a tragic car accident took the lives of his parents when he was just a child. Having no one but each other, Abe and Sophia have been best friends ever since. Now 22, Sophia can't deny how drastically her feelings have changed toward Abe. Abe, finding it too hard to deal with the lifelong pain of losing his parents, uses alcohol and women to cope. Rather than admit her true feelings, Sophia remains the ever loyal best friend and watches from the side lines as Abe goes from woman to woman in a drunken spiral. That is until one night when Abe and Sophia end up spending the night together. The only problem... Abe is too drunk to remember any thing that happened in the morning! This is my absolute favorite kind of story. I love the angst and drama that a best friends turned lovers story line offers up. And there is no shortage of angst and drama in this book. The build keeps building and just when you think you've reached the climax of the story, there's more curve balls ahead. I adored the characters in this story. Sophia is instantly likeable as the devoted friend. The author does such a superb job of taking you through Sophia's heartbreaking journey of unrequited love. Abe is just as likeable. Of course I wanted to shake him over and over for his reckless behavior and how utterly oblivious he is to the feelings of his best friend. You can't help but fall for these characters, the beautiful dynamic between them. The dialogue between them is sweet and funny and so perfect for lifelong best friends. I adored every bit of it. My typical gauge for how much I love a story is how many times I can feel my heart tug painfully while I'm reading. This entire book is one perfect chest squeeze and I'm so addicted to that lovely pain. I adored this story, I adored the characters. I can't wait to read more from Jenika Snow! Purchase HereGoody Two Shoes Author: Keiko Alvarez Genre: Erotica Page Count: 98 TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 3 Stars - A Good Read. Heat: 5 - Orgasmic. Goody Two Shoes is an erotic story about a pair of co-workers who are the least likely people to cheat on their spouses. But a business weekend away has one thing leading to another and both Laura and Dan realize the other is not at all as they seem. Laura, a straight laced, uptight woman is married to Bobby, a large, tattooed mechanic who appears to be the controlling party in the marriage. Dan is married to Connie, the beautiful mother of their two children, but since having kids has stopped giving Dan any attention in the bedroom. I'm not completely sure how I feel about this book. If you're looking for a book with a compelling story line and well developed characters, this isn't really for you. While there's a lot to learn about all of the characters in the books, no one is really who they seem to be, and you're left with more questions than answers. However, If you're looking for a sexual ride, well then look no further. This book is page upon page of sexual escapades between spouses and lovers. And when they aren't actually doing the deed, they are plotting when the next fling will happen and who else they can invite along. While there's not much plot going on in this book, I still couldn't stop reading it because I was genuinely interested in where it was going. Who was going to end up with who? What was going to happen next? By the end you realize that this book was written for the sake of pushing sexual boundaries and exploring sexual fantasies, not to really engage the reader in a compelling plot. However, that works too when that's exactly what the reader wants. I was a tad confused about the ending...it's either a cliffhanger alluding to a sequel to this story... or its just an ending to this story and you're just left guessing. Either way, it's an entertaining, highly graphic and steamy book. Purchase HereEvery Second Counts Author: Arya Grey Genre: Romance Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 4 Stars - Recommended Read. Heat: 3 - Blush Worthy. Every Second Counts is the very short story of Faye, the proud owner of tattoo parlor, Vintage Ink. Faye keeps to herself, her only real friends are also her employees at her shop. That all changes when Brody, a new client of Vintage Ink tattoo artist Jackson, comes in for some intriguing new ink. There's no denying the sparks that fly between inked up Faye and rock band lead singer, Brody. This was a really well written, quick little romance full of drama and humor, sweet romance and sexy steam. The characters are all likeable right out of the gate. You literally want to hang out at Vintage Ink and get to know Faye and her crew. Brody is instantly intriguing, a sexy quiet rocker who has some pretty intense emotional baggage he's carrying around. I thought the relationship went from sexy flirtation to epic declarations of love rather quickly...maybe too quickly to be realistic... but that's exactly what you'd expect from an on-the-go romantic read. Arya Grey creates an awesome world filled with interesting characters, and sweet romance. This book is perfect for when you're feeling the need for a quick romantic fix but don't have the time to curl up with a lengthy novel. It has everything you're craving in a speedy novella. Purchase HereLove at High Tide Author: Christi Barth Genre: Romance Page Count: 178 TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 4 Stars - Recommended Read. Heat:2 - Flirty. Love at High Tide is a light hearted fun story that makes for a perfect summer poolside read. Darcy is a cultural anthropologist fresh out of grad school but on the fence about what career path she's ready to take next. Trying to get away from it all and looking to relax and figure out her next move, Darcy decides to spend a few days at the beach with her best friend Trina. During an almost drowning, Darcy finds herself rescued by super hot cop, Cooper. Cooper is also on a break from his career in law enforcement, still recuperating from an injury he received in the line of duty, the same incident that claimed his partner. Sparks fly, but with their futures uncertain, the fate of their relationship is up in the air. This was a very light read, full of quirky humor and some steamy romance. The romance aspect of the story was slightly overshadowed by the mystery of the plot. Rather than sit on the beach everyday, as the best friends had intended, Darcy's eccentric friend, Trina, drags her along as she tries her hand at private investigation, where she insists on spying on another beach goer, convinced he's a criminal. This story line allows for some seriously funny dialogue, clever banter between characters and some added mystery and action. The writing in this book is clever and smart. While the book is relatively PG, light on the steam and heat, it's heavy on the humor, fun and is definitely one sexy beach read. Purchase HereGiveaway: Ms. Barth is generously giving away an Ecopy of Love at High Tide. The TBR Pile is giving away a book from our prize list. To ENTER: Comment below on why you want to read Love at High Tide!
Chance Author: Ella Grey Genre: Erotica TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 4 Stars - Recommended Read. Heat: 3 - Blush Worthy. Chance is a short steamy story about setting aside inhibitions and taking a chance. Shy, demure librarian, Jessica Tennyson is all about routine. She sticks to her G rated, boring routine every single day but one. On the 26th of each month she meets her best friend Christina at their favorite restaurant where they eat, drink and then go dancing. It's Jessica's one night of fun each month before it's back to business as usual the next day. Sexy waiter Ben Worthington has caught on to Jessica's mundane schedule so he knows exactly when to expect her. One night when Christina fails to meet Jessica for dinner, Ben is determined to reap the benefits of Jessica's solo night out and show Jessica how to live a little. For such a fast story, Chance is a definite page turner. Both Jessica and Ben are immediately likeable and the alternating points of view give you insight into their mutual attraction... an attraction that's obviously been growing for quite some time unbeknownst to the other. The authors writing is pitch perfect, incredibly well developed, well paced and descriptive. The banter between characters is witty and sexy. For a twenty page book, honestly I can hardly believe it myself, this was a really fun read. Perfect when you need a fast, romantic, steamy fix! Purchase HereExposed To You Author: Andra Lake Genre: Romance, Erotica Page Count: 360 TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 4 Stars - Recommended Read. Heat: 4 - An Erotic Ride. Exposed To You is an erotic romance about recent college graduate, Amy Claire. Unemployed and struggling to make ends meet, Amy reluctantly responds to a personal ad for a modeling job for which she meets the physical requirements. What she doesn't realize is that this is no ordinary job. Dallon King, wealthy CEO and entrepreneur, has a secret hobby of photographing the woman he engages in kinky sex acts in. Deciding after one trial session that this is not her style, Amy declines the job offer and vows never to think of Dallon again. Dallon refuses to let Amy go, and becomes determined to convince her to let him be more than just her photographer. My feelings on this story are very mixed. My initial feeling was that this was an incredibly well written captivating story. I found the characters to be extremely well developed. I found Amy to be well thought out and I liked her immediately. Dallon is much more secretive and while there's a lot we don't know about him yet, he's still an intriguing character, for sure. My criticism of the book is that it's incredibly Fifty Shades-esqe. To be clear, I love that sort of dominant/submissive story line. But in a day where so many books are being produced with that same plot line, the author really has to offer up something that sets their book apart from the rest. Sure this story has originality to it. But is it enough? Sexy, dominant millionaire meets poor, sweet, docile younger woman. He longs to control her in the bedroom, but can't quite keep that alpha persona from trampling over every other aspect of her life. Heard it all before? I do think it's worth the read. If you haven't read many Dom/Sub romances or you have, but love them so much you don't mind more of the same, then this is your book. Personally, I was hoping for that extra something that set this book apart from the others. However, it's a cliffhanger. A good one at that. So maybe that extra something I long for is still coming. Some of the sex scenes pushed my comfort level to it's maximum... ok, I thought one scene in particular went too far. I might be more vanilla then most and that shouldn't scare you off. Exposed to You is exactly what you'd expect it to be and that's both good and bad. Had this been my very first book of this genre, I'd consider it a fantastic five star read. Since I've traveled down this road before, I wasn't as blown away as I could have been. Does that mean you won't be? Certainly not. It's a great story line by an incredibly talented author. Purchase HereThe Winning Season Author: Alison Packard Genre: Romance Page Count: 369 TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 4 Stars - Recommended Read. Heat: 3 - Blush Worthy. The Winning Season is an angst-filled romance of love and baseball. Matt Scanlon is a professional baseball player who has just been traded to the San Francisco Blaze after a tumultuous year of making headlines with his unexplained erratic behavior. Still bitter about being traded by his beloved Dodgers, Matt also find himself stuck with a reputation of being a loose cannon who parties too much, drinks too much and sleeps with strippers and porn stars. Kelly Maxwell is the head of media relations for the San Francisco Blaze who's job it is to handle publicity for the team, arrange interviews and handle the fallout if and when the players make the news for all the wrong reasons. Kelly and Matt have a history. While brief, they met one night at dinner with mutual friends, and rather than sending sparks flying, these two went head to head flinging nasty insults at each other. Now, almost a year later, Matt has been traded and the two are forced to work side by side while Matt tries to redeem himself and his reputation. Both fighting demons from their pasts, and carrying personal secrets, an unexpected attraction blooms. This book really surprised me. I was pulled into the story from the very first page and could not put it down. The story is jam packed with angst and drama and sexual tension, all must-haves in my opinion. I am so impressed with the author's writing and creativity. The characters are so well developed, each with diverse personalities and histories. I loved the dynamics between Matt and his teammates, both the good and the bad provided such an interesting edge to the story line. Kelly's relationship with her family, her friends, co-workers and her roommate all added so much depth to this story. The icing on this very delicious layered cake was, of course, is the intensity between Kelly and Matt. This story doesn't begin like most other drama filled romance... there's no love loss between these two. The story begins with a genuine dislike and zero attraction between these two. What ends in sexual tension certainly did not begin that way. The story that takes root and grows from that mutual disdain really sets this story apart from others like it. This book has it all... heartbreak, humor, loss, joy, love and hope. It's such an original story. Without having read anything else by this author, I assumed it would be like all the other sports-themed romances I've already read. However, it really broke away from the expected and continually threw curve balls my way. This author knocked it out of the park with this book! Purchase HereGiveaway: The author is giving away an Ecopy of The Winning Season to one lucky winner! The TBR Pile is giving away a Ebook from our prize list to one lucky winner! To ENTER: Comment below on why you want to read The Winning Season.
Beneath the Surface Author: M.A. Stacie Genre: Romance, Erotica Length: Novel TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 3 Stars - A Good Read. Heat:4 - An Erotic Ride. Beneath the Surface is the story of Dale Porter. Dale had just been hired as assistant to co-CEO, Taylor Reese. But on her first day at work she catches the eye of Taylor's more responsible brother and co-CEO, Kyran Reese. The sexual tension soars as both parties are reluctant to succumb to their attraction. Kyran is initially rude to Dale and uses his secret side hobby, fighting for sport, as his means to combating his growing attraction to Dale. If I'm being honest, this book was slow moving for much of it. There were a handful of times during the first half of the story that I contemplated not finishing. I enjoyed the premise of the story, there was just so much going on, I wasn't sure if it all really fit. Yes, we're told that Kyran is the CEO of the family company, left cleaning up messes behind his brother, Taylor, as Taylor's irresponsibility at work begins to spiral into something much more serious. We know he is a fighter and he's covered in tattoos, and we know he has no interest in anything other than a sexual relationship with Dale, and every other woman he's ever been with. But knowing that, I still felt like I never really got to know who Kyran was. The banter between the characters, while entertaining, was usually about nothing but sexual innuendo, so I found it difficult to fully embrace their growing attraction toward one another. From page one, we know the chemistry is flying, but I never really grasped what exactly drew them to each other. I also found some of the dialogue unnecessary. I thought much of it didn't really add much to the story in the initial first part of the book. It was redundant at times and it took away from the flow of the book and just bored me. But this story is a lot like the little engine that could. If you hold out, you'll find that things do pick up around 70% in. The turn in the plot that took place late in this story is what really made me glad I held on for the ride. It's at this point when the angst and drama pick up, the sexual banter becomes less prominent in the story and the shift in the story occurs and it heads in a more serious direction. That's when it really pulled me in. This book has a lot of common themes with other popular romance books that are all too common nowadays... rich CEO meets awkward assistant and romance ensues; tough as nails fighter meets serious young woman and romance ensues; both characters are troubled from their past relationships and difficult family lives but together romance ensues, etc. This books pulls all those themes together and I think that's why it lost me for the first half or so. With so much going on, too much complexity is forced on the characters, and the characters get lost. But when the author gave up on maintaining those popular themes from all the other stories out there, and just told her own story, things flowed much more naturally. I wish the entire story flowed as seamlessly, but in the end you're left satisfied. Purchase HereTitle: Bad Boy Blake Author: Lorraine Nelson Genre: Romance Page Count: 150 TBR Reviewer: Jessica Rating: 3 Stars - A Good read. Heat: 3 - Blush Worthy. Bad Boy Blake is an action packed romance about Gina West (aka Virginia Weston) an exotic dance instructor who comes back to her home town to unearth old family secrets and clear her grandfather's good name. Blake Bennett is the sheriff in town who's own family has some secrets of their own, that also has age old ties with the Weston's. Crimes ensue and as Blake tries to protect Gina from the townspeople who want skeletons to remain where they lay, sparks fly between them. This was a well-written story, packed full of action and mystery. Tons of curveballs are thrown into the mix, and you never really know "whodunit" until the story completely unfolds. There is definitely no shortage of steamy action between Gina and Blake either. There's just as much action between the sheets as there is on the streets of this small town. This story had a really great balance of romance mixed with a strong plot, well developed characters, angst and drama. Admittedly, the dialogue between Blake and Gina could get somewhat cheesy at times, not always the most natural and fluid narrative between them. But if you can overlook that, you're definitely in for a good entertaining read. My only other criticism would be the vague underlying plot turn that reveals that Blake and Gina have a mutual familial tie. Without disclosing too much of the story, it becomes clear early on who Gina's long lost father is. With this information comes Blake's admittance that he, too, is related to Gina's father... though with this revelation, they never once contemplate that this makes the two of them related as well. In fact, they carry on a sexual affair throughout the story, never once addressing their possible familial relatedness. It's only at the end, through Blake's proposal, that Gina declines his request citing that they are, in fact, first cousins. While there's more to the story, it was enough to make me say "Huh?" a few times! But you decide...If you read the entire book without caring that these two people might potentially be related, then I believe you'll find it to be a really great, well thought out love story. But if you're like me, and that idea and niggling curiosity hangs out in the back of your mind the entire time, it might be slightly more difficult for you to fully embrace these characters as two people that can really go the distance with their love story. All in all, it's definitely a read I'd thoroughly recommend. Purchase Here |
Spencer realizes that if he wants to build a life with Emilio, he'll need to be strong enough to slay his personal demons and learn to trust again.
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