Tuesday 26 September 2017

Review ~ Hollywood Dirt the Movie by Passionflix based on the novel by Alessandra Torre


Movie Description:

Cole Masten. Abandoned by his superstar wife, Hollywood’s Perfect Husband is now Hollywood’s Sexiest Bachelor: partying hard and screwing even harder. Summer Jenkins. That’s me, a small town girl stuck in Quincy, Georgia. I cook some mean chicken and dumplins, can bluff a grown man out of his savings in poker, and was voted Most Friendly my senior year. We were from different worlds. Our lives shouldn’t have collided. But then Cole Masten read a book about my small town. And six months later, his jet landed on our dusty airstrip, and he brought Hollywood with him. From the start, I knew he was trouble. For our town. And for me. Sometimes, opposites just aren’t meant to attract.

Link to Passionflix:


Buy the Book:


Our Review:

Reviewed by Donna ~ 4.5 stars


In 2015, I read 371 books and at the top of that enormous pile was Hollywood Dirt, my favourite read of the year. You can read my review here: http://www.theromancecover.com/2015/09/release-day-blitz-excerpt-review.html From the first to last page this book captivated me and I took these two characters into my heart and soul, so you can imagine my excitement when I found out it was being made into a movie (cue fangirling).

I will admit, being in the UK and not yet getting the full benefit of Passionflix, and the fact that I was reticent to watch because of just how much I loved this book, I didn’t sign up when this venture was first launched. However, the curiosity was just TOO MUCH and when Alessandra Torre announced the film was live I found myself signing up and watching immediately…two hours later, I had a smile from ear to ear and was frantically telling everyone to watch it.

I must start by saying that Emma Rigby was the star of this film. I had no idea at first that she was British and even though I am not American, I have a few “Southern” friends and I felt that she nailed the accent. Even though she looked familiar it still didn’t dawn on me that this was an actress I had seen on a UK soap called Hollyoaks, I just thought that maybe I had seen her on the cheesy Hallmark films that I also watch when I’m in bed. Emma Rigby brought Summer to life with fire, sass and perfection. Summer was one of the few heroines that I have loved with a passion and Emma Rigby nailed her personality, her quirks, her wit, her passions and her insecurities.

Johann Urb was not who I had personally pictured playing Cole Masten, however, once again he brought to life this character who had burrowed himself deep into my heart. I think that due to time constraints the film never really projected just how hard this man falls when he loves. He loves hard and with everything he has and this side of his character I felt wasn’t portrayed as well as the book. However, what was captured perfectly was this quote from my review of the book… “Take Hollywood out of the heart throb and you get a gorgeous man on the inside and out. Cole Masten will have you eating out his hands in no time.”

The chemistry between the on-screen characters was perfection, their interactions were believable, tugged at every heart string and will have every viewer championing them along. The sex scenes were extremely hot, tasteful and conveyed with gusto just how hot and passionate these two were within a mile radius of each other. That push and pull, that love/hate all came to life and I adored every scene that these two shot together.

I felt that the scene setting was perfect and small- town Quincy came to life before my eyes along with the small-minded inhabitants. With very few side characters this film needed those one liners that perfectly captured what small town living was all about and how politics and social standings are the be all and the end all.

I adored the casting for Brad de Luca but will be honest and say that the casting for Ben was extremely off. The friendship between Summer and Ben was what initially drove the book and I felt that their dynamic on screen was not a true reflection, it felt forced and not as organic as the original characters.

Yes, as with any movie adaptation there is artistic licence and certain scenes that I loved never made the big screen. I understood, time constraints and everything, yet despite them missing I felt that the whole dynamic, flow and feel of the book was perfectly captured. Cocky, yes, our chicken played a huge part in the original book and this was trimmed down in the film. I know a cockerel is no Oscar winner in the making but I wish he had a little more time on the big screen.

Overall, this is one of my favourite book to screen adaptations. Given that this wasn’t a Hollywood blockbuster with a huge budget I felt that Passionflix did amazingly well and stayed true to the original. While it wasn’t perfect, I have already watched it twice and it made me re-read the book. This will be one of my feel-good films and one I will be watching again and again.

Monday 25 September 2017

Release Day Blitz & Giveaway ~ Still by Kennedy Ryan

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"Still is a masterpiece of love, lust and human feeling. Poetic and sexy beyond compare, Still will have you turning everything you know upside down and laughing, crying and panting through Grip and Bristol's journey. Five 'bruising' stars!" 

-- Sierra Simone, USA Today Bestselling author

STILL, the sexy, emotional final installment of the GRIP series, is LIVE!

Enter the $50 Gift Card Release Giveaway!


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Book Description:

I'll be there.

Through thick and thin.

Ride or die.

You can count on me.

The promises people make. The vows we take. 

Assumptions of the heart.

Emotion tells us how we feel, but life...life has a way of plunging us in boiling water, burning away our illusions, testing our faith, trying our convictions. 

Love floating is a butterfly, but love tested is an anchor.

For Grip and Bristol,

Love started at the top of the world

On a Ferris wheel under the stars

But when that love is tested, will they fly or fall?

Buy Links:

Read STILL Today!
Special Release Sale: $2.99
(Free in Kindle Unlimited)


Add to GoodReads: http://bit.ly/2vBiUWN

Start the Series FREE Today!

FLOW, the FREE prequel, MUST BE READ before GRIP!

Amazon UK ➜ http://amzn.to/2lfPMKy
Amazon US➜ http://amzn.to/2lLMuCd
WATTPAD ➜ http://w.tt/2kUo8Yk

Read GRIP Today for only 99¢!
(Free in Kindle Unlimited)

Amazon UK ➜ http://amzn.to/2mw6jvB
Amazon US ➜ http://amzn.to/2lqOz49
Amazon CA ➜ http://amzn.to/2vADPJn
Amazon AU ➜ http://amzn.to/2gsH3Em
Audio Book ➜ http://amzn.to/2ulomLM

Add to GoodReads ➜ http://bit.ly/2k1T1rL

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Join the GRIP Discussion Group:
(Not until you’re done!)


Join the STILL Recovery Room:
(Not until you’re done!)

Order Signed GRIP Series Paperbacks:

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About Kennedy: 


Kennedy Ryan is a Southern girl gone Southern California. A Top 100 Amazon Bestseller, Kennedy writes romance about remarkable women who find a way to thrive even in tough times, the love they find, and the men who cherish them. She is a wife to her lifetime lover and mother to an extraordinary son. She has always leveraged her journalism background to write for charity and non-profit organizations, but enjoys writing to raise Autism awareness most. A contributor for Modern Mom Magazine, Kennedy’s writings have appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul, USA Today and many others. The founder and executive director of a foundation serving Georgia families living with Autism, Kennedy has appeared on Headline News, Montel Williams, NPR and other outlets as a voice for families living with autism.

Connect with Kennedy:


Blog Tour, Review & Excerpt ~ Exes with Benefits by Nicole Williams



Exes with Benefits by Nicole Williams is LIVE!!!



Book Description: 

***He wants a second chance. I want a divorce. To get what I want, I’ll have to give him what he does.***

From New York Times & USA Today bestselling author, Nicole Williams:

The only benefit I want from my ex is a divorce. 

We got married for all the wrong reasons. The one thing we got right was our separation. I should have known better than to think I could bet on forever with a guy like Canaan Ford. Everything about him screamed impermanent, from his wild eyes to his restless soul. 

When I left him and the small town I’d spent my whole life in, I swore I’d never go back. Never only turned out to be five years. Canaan claims he’s changed, but he hasn’t—same knowing smile, same rough demeanor, same body crafted from sin and sinew. And yet, something is different. He thinks this is his chance for redemption. My disagreement comes in the form of divorce papers dropped in his lap. He refuses to sign them. Unless . . .

He wants a month to prove himself to me—that’s his offer. One month to make me fall in love with him again and if I don’t, he’ll sign the papers. As much as I want to say no, I agree. I can suffer my ex for a short amount of time if that’s what it takes to be free of him once and for all. I fell for him once; I won’t make that same mistake twice. 

He says we’re not over. I say we were over before we got started. Only one of us can be right, and I can’t let it be him.

Buy Links:





Our Review:

Reviewed by Donna ~ 4.5 stars
***ARC received for an honest review***


“My husband forfeited his rights years ago…He’s here to reclaim them.”


Nicole Williams never fails to deliver and Exes with Benefits more than delivered. This is one emotional second chance romance, where leopards really can change their spots given the right motivation. Nicole Williams always delivers a well-executed plot, fantastic dialogue and character connection and heart-felt emotion and for me it is these aspects that made this book. Words that pack an emotional punch, delivering all the feels and emotions you would come to expect with characters that you cannot help but fall in love with. I adored everything about this book.


“You think a little garlic’s going to scare me away? I’m not a vampire, sugar.”
“Are you sure? Because you really have a knack for sucking the life out of people.”


Childhood sweethearts, inseparable and married young, people never gave them a chance and it seemed they were right. Life didn’t make their choices easy and gave them a tough ride, one handled it better than the other. Their relationship was heated and tumultuous, but one thing that held them together was love, until one-day love just wasn’t enough.


“Crazy, isn’t it?
“What?”
“How the hardest lessons we have to learn are the ones that wind up costing us the most?”


Maggie and Canaan had that connection that we all want and we all aspire to, soul mates, so deeply in love nothing else mattered. The world didn’t exist when they were together, but it was what happened when they were apart that affected them the most. We all handle life’s obstacles differently, all manner of emotions manifest themselves differently and what we do to overcome them varies from person to person. Some only make a tenuous situation worse, until the final straw breaks the camel’s back. One leaves vowing never to return.

Five years later and fate brings the other back to the town they once lived, the other stayed in the vague hope that the other would return. Old feelings return, but the old scars still remain. Can the past be forgotten or is there really too much water under the bridge?


“I don’ think I’ll survive you”
“I know I can’t survive without you.”


The growth in these characters was fantastic, time is a great healer and both really grew up in each other’s absence, one in particular made a complete one-eighty and it was much needed. Hitting rock bottom is often the catalyst and rock bottom was necessary to make this person see the error of their ways and what they needed to do to make them the person they truly wanted to be.


“Because you can’t write a great love story without a tragedy to overcome. Because that’s when love’s proved. Not when life’s easy, but when it’s so damn hard you can barely breathe.”


This was a story of second chances, of love, of amazing chemistry, that soul deep connection where you really don’t stand a chance, unless you are together. Combined with the heart-felt words of Nicole Williams while interspersed with some great humour and great secondary characters there was nothing to not like about this book. Tough love is a hard lesson to learn but one that made these two all the better and stronger for it. I am sure that these characters will steal your heart like they stole mine. Fantastic book.


Excerpt:

“One month. That’s nothing in the scope of a person’s life.” He slid a bit closer.
“One month is everything when it comes to opening myself back up to you.”
He didn’t argue that. He let silence speak for him instead.
“What exactly are you expecting during this one month?” I might have winced when I heard myself say those words.
He rubbed his mouth, trying to hide whatever was trying to form. “For you to give me another chance. For you to be my wife.”
The term made me nauseated. “Your wife? As in your indentured servant? No way.”
It was a smile he was trying to hide. Not very successfully. It made me thankful I’d slipped into these old boots so I could give him a solid kick in the ass if necessary.
“Like be willing to spend time with me. That’s it. That’s all,” he added when he correctly interpreted the question in my eyes. The question.
“What will we be doing during that time we’re spending together?” I pulled at the chest of my dress when I noticed the way his gaze had lingered there a moment too long.
His shoulder rose. “Got any ideas?” There was an unmistakable glint in his eyes.
“No,” I answered instantly.
“You used to have plenty of ideas for filling the time.” He took a swig of his Coke.
“And then I learned how to use my brain.”
He studied my fake smile, almost like he was contemplating what it would feel like against his mouth. “Dinners. Dates. Simple stuff like that.”
I held my best poker face, considering his offer. I didn’t want to stay married to him. If one more month was what it took to be free of Canaan Ford, I could suck it up. I’d already made it five years. “No expectations of anything of a physical nature?”
“If I remember right”—his eyes narrowed as he rubbed the back of his head—“it was generally you who instigated all of that back then.”
I shoved his chest. Bad idea. Solid. Firm. Home.
My jaw ground as I worked to erase that word from my conscious where he was concerned. “And you were just the perfect gentleman.”
Canaan snatched my hand before I could pull it away. Holding onto it, he dragged me closer. Not so close that our bodies touched, but close enough the separation was painful.
“Exactly,” he said in that low voice of his. The one he’d whispered my name in so many times as he moved inside me. “A gentleman gives his woman exactly what she needs. As many times as she need it. Just doing my part.”
“How noble.”
“That’s right. So if you want to make any changes to this one month agreement, consider me your humble servant.” When his hand dropped to my waist, his touch hesitant at the same time it was insistent, I didn’t flinch out of instinct the way I should have.
Instead, I had to remind myself to pull away from him; to flinch at his touch. “I have a boyfriend, Canaan.” Even to my ears, it sounded like a weak protest.
His hand didn’t fall away when I stepped back. “You’re a married woman, Maggie.”
“My husband forfeited his rights years ago.” My eyes found his, expecting them to shoot away once mine made contact.
They didn’t. His gold eyes held to mine. “He’s here to reclaim them.”



About the Author:

Nicole Williams is the New York Times and USATODAY bestselling author of contemporary and young adult romance, including the Crash and Lost & Found series. Her books have been published by HarperTeen and Simon & Schuster in both domestic and foreign markets, while she continues to self-publish additional titles. She is working on a new YA series with Crown Books (a division of Random House) as well. She loves romance, from the sweet to the steamy, and writes stories about characters in search of their happily even after. She grew up surrounded by books and plans on writing until the day she dies, even if it’s just for her own personal enjoyment. She still buys paperbacks because she’s all nostalgic like that, but her kindle never goes neglected for too long. When not writing, she spends her time with her husband and daughter, and whatever time’s left over she’s forced to fit too many hobbies into too little time. 

Nicole is represented by Jane Dystel, of Dystel and Goderich Literary Agency. 

Release Day Blitz, Review & Giveaway ~ Girl Crush by Stephie Walls


Cover Design: Wicked by Design
Release Date: September 21, 2017

Book Description:

I was done.Done with men. Women say it all the time; they get fed up, throw their hands in the air, and vow a life of celibacy—until the next chiseled chest comes into view and then they’re foaming at the mouth and wiping the drool from their chins. But this was different, I really meant it. I’d been manhandled by the last pig that would ever bring his sausage near me. After one of the nastiest divorces in history, followed by some of the crudest and raunchiest dates, I’d decided to bat for the other team. …At least I tried. But creating the next Brat Pack hadn’t been on the agenda. Neither had Collier West. And I wasn’t prepared for finding true love at the end of my gal-pal tryst.

Goodreads



Buy Links:


Our Review:

Reviewed by Donna ~ 4 stars
***ARC received for an honest review***


“I just need you to show me the ropes. Give me some dating pointers. The how-to guide to wooing the hoo hoo.”


Friends to lovers is one of my favourite tropes and Stephie Walls delivers a romantic comedy that totally embraces this trope. Silly gutter humour had me laughing out loud with some rather ill-timed snorts and tears of laughter as Stephie Walls regales us with the hilarious shenanigans of Giselle trying to find love.

This was a really quick read for me, full of fun and plenty of laughs, the perfect pick me up or palate cleanser after some heavy reads. Girl Crush is a totally different side to Stephie Walls and even being forty the childish humour certainly embraced my own as full belly laughs became the norm as were the weird glances from the people surrounding me. Giselle is certainly a character and after a nasty divorce and a slew of appalling dates she finally decides that she is giving up the ghost with men and is going to bat for the other team.


“…you don’t just decide to eat pussy, Giselle.”
“I’m assuming it’s like beer…an acquired taste.”


Collier was the brother of one of Giselle’s female dates and these two become fast friends. Even though Giselle has sworn off men she cannot help the attraction she has towards Collier and it seems that the attraction is more than reciprocated, even though Collier is firmly aware that she is a lesbian.

The friendship between Collier and Giselle was stunning, as two people, who are bitter to the world of dating become firm friends and confidantes. Collier tries to keep his emotions in check but he soon finds himself caring and worrying about the car crash that is Giselle.


“…because you don’t realize you’re gay, Gizzy. You like dick. Lots of it. What you don’t like are the assholes attached to the pole. But you very much like penis.”


Low on angst, huge on feels and laughs, Stephie Walls delivers the perfect rom-com where the ingredients were extremely well balanced. Yes, the humour is a little juvenile, but hell, I haven’t laughed this hard in a long time. I had a stitch, I had tears of laughter, I was snorting, I couldn’t help it and at the end of the day that was the objective of this book and Stephie Walls nailed it.


“I can’t deal anymore. I’ll learn to love snatch. Plus, there’s always strap-ons.”

 

Giveaway:

Signed Paperback of Girl Crush & $25 Amazon Gift Card
 

About the Author:

Stephie Walls is a literary whore - she loves words in all forms and will read anything put in front of her. She has an affinity for British Literature and Romance novels and an overall love of writing. She currently has nine novels out, four short stories, and has collaborated in several anthologies/collections with other authors; all provocatively written to elicit your imagination and spice up your world. 

Connect with Stephie

Newsletter Sign Up: http://bit.ly/2rwxvkc
Facebook Author Page: http://bit.ly/2sysMyC
Facebook Reader Group: http://bit.ly/2sF1DJI
Goodreads Author Page: http://bit.ly/2sgQ7C1
Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/2rBGmfq
BookBub Author Page: http://bit.ly/2xrnqnN

Blog Tour, Review & Excerpt ~ King of Code by CD Reiss

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King of Code, an all-new intriguing and sexy standalone from CD Reiss is available NOW!

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King of Code by CD Reiss 
Publication Date: September 18th, 2017 
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Book Description:

From New York Times Bestselling author, CD Reiss, comes a sexy tale of secrets, intrigue, betrayal, and a love worth crossing a continent for.

Taylor Harden is a man on the edge.

The edge of fame. The edge of untold wealth.

The edge of utter humiliation.

He built an unhackable system, and in front of everyone, it’s hacked. 

His reputation goes from king to goat in a split second. Boom. Like that.

Some dude in Barrington, USA (AKA Nowhere) has locked down Taylor’s code, and if he doesn’t get it back, he’s going to be wearing a monkey suit for the rest of his life.

Except, this guy? This hacker from Nowhere? He’s not a guy. 

Harper Watson’s all woman. And she has a plan for Taylor, his code, and his body.

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Buy Links:

Add to GoodReads: https://goo.gl/68zRuf

Our Review:

Reviewed by Donna ~ 3 stars
***ARC received for an honest review***


“I wanted to hire her, fuck her, kill her, and decode her.”


To say I was eagerly anticipating this one would be a huge understatement. I love reading about cybercrime, I love watching programmes about it, I am fascinated by it and while what I probably know about it is the tip of the iceberg, I am constantly hungry for more. So, when one of my favourite authors writes a book about it, you can be sure I’m going to read it and devour it.


“God didn’t make me sleep with you…Even though I see him when I do.”


As with any CD Reiss, the writing was flawless. I adore the way this author constructs her sentences, her paragraphs and her chapters, hell her books are always a work of art. The amount of research, time and effort that went into this book must have been a huge undertaking and I appreciated every single cyber morsel that I devoured.

Taylor is a computer genius who has spent years developing the un-hackable code. His baby would make him billions as conglomerates, governments etc grapple to get their hands on it. So confident is he in his ability he opens his programme to the press on launch day and is mortified when it seems the un-hackable has indeed been hacked. Taylor’s programme is being held to ransom and as he finds himself in a small town, quick on the heels of the hacker, it seems he has more than underestimated his nemesis.

Harper is one of a kind with a heart the size of Texas and is one of the most compassionate and selfless people I have read about in a long time. Harper’s heart belongs to the little town where she lives where life is a struggle because of the economy or lack of it. Harper’s reasoning behind this hack is to help her town, not herself. This is the platform she needs to tell the world.


“Harper Barrington, you are working with so much bad data…Sorting it out is going to take me a lifetime of loving you.”


The suspense element was fantastic, the cyber speak was engrossing but for me though, I felt that the pacing was off, what was a book I should have devoured, in places became a struggle to read, it just didn’t hold my interest and I found myself putting it down when normally it would have had to have been prised out of my hands. I would have liked more connection to Taylor and Harper, I just didn’t feel them as a couple in my bones and normally with CD Reiss you cannot help but feel everything. I still liked it, I just didn’t love this one, which hurts.


“I’m not your boyfriend. I’m half of your binary pairing.”
“You’re the one to my zero?”
“I’m your mate. A boyfriend can be stolen. A mate can’t.”


Excerpt: 

“About time!” the older lady shouted.
“Is Harper back?” I asked, handing the bags to the blushing redhead.
As if summoned, Harper came through the swinging door, keeping it open so everyone could get past. She looked at me through the screen.
“You coming in?” she asked.
“We need to talk.”
“Did the decryption key work?”
The door slapped closed behind her as she came out, and we were alone. The way the setting sun hit her cheeks made her glow, and the strands of gold hair at the edges looked translucent. She belonged on a postcard.
I kept forgetting she was holding me hostage. I kept forgetting I needed to think strategically. I had more at stake with this girl than I’d ever had with another.
“Did you doubt it would work?”
“Not really. I’m just making conversation.”
“What are the thorns about?” I pointed at the thorn bed that had eaten my phone and went down the stairs to the yard.
She came after me. “Don’t you have these where you’re from?” She snapped a dry twig off the end.
“Roses? Yes. Impenetrable, groomed thorn bushes in our yards? No.”
“It’s not normal to give the gardeners in town something to do?” We walked around the perimeter.
“You are not normal.”
“It still blooms in spring. It’s really nice. You should see it.”
We were at the back end of the yard, where the very top of the factory’s roof cut the horizon.
I took her hand, pulling her to a stop. “Harper.”
“Taylor?” Her hair flew in her mouth when she turned, and she drew her finger across her cheek to get it out.
What was I supposed to tell her again? That I knew we’d interviewed her. That I didn’t give her the job despite her having a leg up on everyone else we saw.
But was I contrite? Accusatory? Was I just going to relay information? What did I want out of her after I told her I knew?
“Thank you for helping today,” she said. “If you’d asked me when we met, ‘Would Taylor Harden help clean the factory?’ I would have said, ‘No, not for any reason.’ But there you were. Pushing a broom. Scooping up shit. Not being an asshole.”
“My watch was at stake.”
“Yeah. Whatever. You can say what you want to keep your reputation as a shithead intact.”
“I have a reputation as a shithead?”
“You know you do.”
I did know it, and I reveled in it.
She faced me and put her other hand out. I took it, holding both hands between us. I couldn’t help it.
“Well, you guys are such a bunch of sad sacks I had to help. And let me tell you, every guy in Barrington has a little asshole in him. Trust me. I’ve played pool with them.”
“I want to say…” She stopped herself as if she really didn’t want to say. “Let’s get together tonight and get you another decryption code. But… saying this is stupid.” She bit her lip.
“Say it anyway.”
“The sooner you get four codes, the sooner you leave.”
I looked at our hands so I wouldn’t have to look at her.
“I’m not sure if I want that,” she said.


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About the Author: 


CD Reiss is a New York Times bestseller. She still has to chop wood and carry water, which was buried in the fine print. Her lawyer is working it out with God but in the meantime, if you call and she doesn't pick up she's at the well hauling buckets. Born in New York City, she moved to Hollywood, California to get her master's degree in screenwriting from USC. In case you want to know, that went nowhere but it did give her a big enough ego to write novels. She's frequently referred to as the Shakespeare of Smut which is flattering but hasn't ever gotten her out of chopping that cord of wood. If you meet her in person, you should call her Christine. 

Connect with CD Reiss:

Website: www.cdreiss.com 

Release Day Blitz & Review ~ Drawn to Him Collection

DRAWNTOHIM_BANNER

Drawn to Him Collection is LIVE! ONLY 99c!

Drawn to Him Ebook Cover

Book Description:

There are some men who make you helpless. You know the kind. They steal the breath from your lungs and make your heart beat a little faster with a single look. You can’t stop staring, but the moment they pin those gorgeous eyes on you, you’re done for. The kind that’s too hard to resist. This is a collection of men just like that. Handsome, confident and all for you. DRAWN TO HIM is a collection of eight exclusive never-before-seen novellas you can't resist, complete with HEAs. They have all the book feels and angst you've been wanting.

Sexy girls in erotic lingerie. Underwear collection in black and white.

Buy Links:


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The following never before seen romances were written exclusively for this collection:

Infatuation by Willow Winters
It's easy to blame it on fate, isn't it?

The Billionaire's Beginning by M. Never
A seductive, modern day Romeo and Juliet tale.

Dr. Dreamy by L.J. Shen
This hot pediatrician will make you want to have his babies.

Malfeasance by K Webster
Judge Rowe never had a problem with morality...until her.

Fifth Avenue Blues by Jade West
Dreams do come true, and sometimes they are very dirty.

Datenight by Isabella Starling
She doesn't want a dinner and a movie. He'll give her exactly what she needs.

Bad Cop by A. Zavarelli

He'll lock you up and throw away the key.

One Night by K.L. Kreig
Sex, carnal and unadulterated. It was just one night...yet it was so much more.

Review:

One Night by KL Kreig reviewed by Donna ~ 4 stars
***ARC received for an honest review***


“He made me feel both cherished and used. He made me feel strong and weak. He made me feel alive. He made me feel, period. I haven’t felt for months.”


I love these short reads, they are the perfect in between meals errr books snack and can often fill a well-timed hole. Sometimes though, when you start one of these you can’t help but want more, and that was how I felt with this one. I wanted a novel, I didn’t want to leave these two behind.

What should have been One Night left more than lasting memories. Saine Campbell wanted to forget her past and that One Night she thought would be the catalyst, but it became the burning ember of the man she could not forget. Bennett too was in a bad place and that One Night, brought brief respite. When he woke up and the woman that had rocked his world had disappeared, he never forgot, he looked…and then years later he found.

Perfectly paced, low on the angst, high on the feels this novella has something for everyone and will definitely leave you wanting more. KL Kreig’s way with words always brings me to my knees and although this was short it certainly packed its punch. As I said above, I just wanted more.


Release Day Blitz ~ Wicked Dirty (Stark World #2) by J Kenner

   

Wicked Dirty by J Kenner is LIVE!!!


Book Description:

Sometimes bad isn’t good enough…

On the outside, Lyle Tarpin is a clean-cut Hollywood actor whose star is on the rise. Inside, he’s battling his own demons, shunning relationships and finding solace in the arms of a string of anonymous women paid very well for their discretion.

But when he’s photographed in a compromising position by an over-eager reporter, the only way to save his career is to say that the woman he was with is his fiancĂ©e. And now Lyle has to play a very public game with the only woman who’s ever managed to get under his skin.

Struggling waitress Sugar Laine agrees to spend one night with Lyle—but only because she’s desperate to save her family home. She never expects that a night of passion will turn into a pretend engagement … or that the heat between them will blossom into love.

But sometimes love has a price.

And now the only question is—can Lyle and Sugar afford to pay it?


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Excerpt:

My blood pounds through my body, my heart beating so hard that I can feel the pressure not only against my ribs, but against the wall behind me. My lips are parted, my breath coming in shaky gasps.

He’s only inches away, so close I could reach out and touch that famous, gorgeous face. His eyes, as deep and blue as the summer sky, roam over me. He eases closer, moving slowly, his face reflecting a hunger that sends shivers through me.

Once again, my mind conjures the image of a hungry wolf. Only now I’m thinking that maybe getting eaten wouldn’t be so bad after all.

Besides, I’m here. Might as well enjoy it.

Then, of course, I remember exactly what it is.

Oh, God.

His fingertip brushes my forehead, and I almost jump out of my skin. I meet his eyes, see something that looks like irritation, and want to kick myself. I need to focus, dammit. 

“You were somewhere else.” He speaks flatly, as if he’s working to keep all emotion out. 

I shake my head, conjuring a lie. “I’m right here.” And then, because I’ve seen movies with call girls, I put my hand flat on his chest, trying to seem seductive. He’s wearing a gray T-shirt, and I can feel his heart beating beneath the planes of his muscled chest. 

I read somewhere that he was getting in shape to play a superhero in an upcoming movie. And kudos to whoever’s orchestrating that transformation, because this guy is rock solid. 

He’s still looking at me, and I fist my hand in the material of his shirt, needing an anchor against the storm of emotion I see playing out on his face. Desire. Hunger. Longing. Regret. 

And pain. I see so much damn pain that I have to fight the urge to cup my palm against his cheek and tell him that whatever it is, it’s going to be okay.

Instead, I simply whisper, “Lyle?”

I’m not sure if it was the wrong thing or the right thing to say, but I know that it was unexpected. And before I can apologize or cover or say anything else at all, he is on me. One hand at my throat, the other hard on my breast. I’m pinned against the wall, helpless, as he claims my mouth again. Wildly. Brutally. 

I try to think what I’m supposed to do—try to respond. But I’m trapped. I’m not Sugar. I’m not Laine. I’m not anyone. This isn’t about sex. It’s about pain and need and that storm of horrors I saw on his face. I might as well not even be here. And as his hand squeezes tight on my breast—as his mouth clashes so hard against mine that he draws blood—my only thought is that I shouldn’t have come at all. That this was stupid. Foolish. And that this night is going to leave me scarred. 

I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to be what he wants. A warm body. An anonymous female.

But I can’t do it. I can’t do it at all.

All I can be is me. A woman desperate enough to have sex for money. A girl trying anything and everything to save her house. To protect her family’s memory. 

I can be that girl.

But I can’t be nothing. I can’t be no one. 

And as his hand tightens in my hair—as he kisses me violently—as his body presses hard against mine and I feel the steel of his erection—I know that I’ve made a terrible, horrible, awful mistake.

Stop!
    
       

About the Author:

Julie - J Kenner Author Photo
J.Kenner (aka Julie Kenner) is the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, Wall Street Journal and #1 International bestselling author of over seventy novels, novellas and short stories in a variety of genres.

Though known primarily for her award-winning and international bestselling erotic romances (including the Stark and Most Wanted series) that have reached as high as #2 on the New York Times bestseller list, JK has been writing full time for over a decade in a variety of genres including paranormal and contemporary romance, “chicklit” suspense, urban fantasy, and paranormal mommy lit.

JK has been praised by Publishers Weekly as an author with a “flair for dialogue and eccentric characterizations” and by RT Bookclub for having “cornered the market on sinfully attractive, dominant antiheroes and the women who swoon for them.” A five time finalist for Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA award, JK took home the first RITA trophy awarded in the category of erotic romance in 2014 for her novel, Claim Me (book 2 of her Stark Trilogy). Her Demon Hunting Soccer Mom series (as Julie Kenner) is currently in development with AwesomenessTV/Awestruck.

Her books have sold over three million copies and are published in over twenty languages.

In her previous career as an attorney, JK worked as a clerk on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and practiced primarily civil, entertainment and First Amendment litigation in Los Angeles and Irvine, California, as well as in Austin, Texas. She currently lives in Central Texas, with her husband, two daughters, and two rather spastic cats.