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Saturday Series: Law Man (Dream Man #3) by Kristen Ashley


Love is just around the corner . . .

Sweet, shy Mara Hanover is in love with her neighbor. For four years, she has secretly watched her dream man from afar. Handsome police detective Mitch Lawson is way out of her league. She's a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, and there's no way a guy like Mitch would want anything to do with her. But when Mara has a leaky faucet that she can't fix, it's Mitch who comes to her rescue.

Mitch has been eyeing his beautiful neighbor for a long time. He jumps at the chance to help her, and soon their formerly platonic relationship gets very hot and heavy. But when Mara gets a disturbing phone call from her cousin's kids, she gets pulled back into the life she's tried so hard to leave behind. Can the hot law man convince Mara to let go of her past-and build a future with him?


Let's make it clear that for at least half of the story Mara is completely clueless, and while in the beginning it was endearing after a while it became tiresome. This is a classic case of a woman who has no clue how gorgeous she is, with a past that makes her believe she's not worth a whole lot, but still has tried her damndest to rise above it all. The one thing though she hasn't managed to convince herself of is that she is worthy of a good and handsome man.

Enter detective Mitch Lawson. Mara has been crushing on him from afar for years and now through circumstances she can not seem to get rid of him. Not that she really wants to, but she does not know how to handle his attention towards her. Mara believes he's way out of her league, but we all know she doesn't see the world quite right.

Things go completely crazy though when nephew and niece call her in distress. Their home situation is terrible and Mara can no longer condone them to stay there, so she takes them in. This does not go over too well with her cousin, when he gets put in jail. Though honestly it's his own fault, but he blames her and to be clear he doesn't give a damn about his children, but Mara does. She loves those kids like they were her own. Still taking them on full time is quite a change, but luckily the handsome detective is there to help her.

This is when the real battle begins actually. It definitely gave a new spin on the story, and it was nice to see Mara come out of her shell. While I liked that Mitch was all in and helping out, I didn't always like the way he handled things. He made a lot of decisions when it comes to the kids, without talking about with Mara first, which I found inappropriate. They are now her kids, and her responsibility, and it's awesome that Mitch is there for them, but completely taking over at times is too overboard for me.

With the kids now, things move forward pretty fast between Mitch and Mara. Certainly when her cousin is being annoying, and it seems he was involved in way more than Mara ever expected. When those people come after her and the kids, Mitch hackles rise and he's all over that. His protective instincts are off the charts, and he vows no harm will come to either Mara or the kids.

Besides him taking over so much, and Mara needing to gain some confidence, I really liked both characters. They are both normal people, that now got a bit shook up thanks to her family, but in the end that normal is all they want, no matter how they got there. Being it just the two of them or with kids who aren't biologically theirs but very much theirs. The love in this story is so very clear, it flows all around. With the kids playing such a central role, was quite different, certainly when that threat is so close, making it very exciting. Still when it comes to the inner circle, sweetness was the key word. Mitch is very patient when it comes to Mara, gives her time to settle, while still being close. Those epilogues though are the best, happily ever after looks so damn good.



Dream Man - Reading order and purchase links

      


The Author
Kristen Ashley was born in Gary, Indiana, USA. She nearly killed her mother and herself making it into the world, seeing as she had the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck (already attempting to accessorise and she hadn't taken her first breath!).

Kristen grew up in Brownsburg, Indiana but has lived in Denver, Colorado and the West Country of England. Thus she has been blessed to have friends and family around the globe. Her posse is loopy (to say the least) but loopy is good when you want to write.

Kristen was raised in a house with a large and multi-generational family. They lived on a very small farm in a small town in the heartland and existed amongst the strains of Glenn Miller, The Everly Brothers, REO Speedwagon and Whitesnake (and the wardrobes that matched).

Needless to say, growing up in a house full of music, clothes and love was a good way to grow up.

And as she keeps growing up, it keeps getting better.

Connect with Kristen Ashley:

Review: Crazy Good by Rachel Robinson


Before there were bikers, or fighters, or even good old-fashioned jerks, there were Navy SEALs. They put the bad in badass because, well…it’s their job.

Navy SEAL Maverick Hart has everything. Women want him. Grown men idolize him. Little boys want to grow up and be like him. The job, the glory—it’s all his. Not because it’s handed to him…because he works hard for it. The second his sights lock on something, he owns it—or destroys it. Unfortunately he does both at the same time.

Windsor Forbes only takes calculated risks in her profession and in her personal life. After being left at the altar by the only person she’s ever loved, the very last thing she’s looking for is a relationship—especially the insane brand an arrogant Navy SEAL is offering. Hesitant, yet trusting to a fault, she gives in.

She knew she shouldn’t take the chance, especially a second time, but love is irrational and their love is perfect, infallible. Or so she thought…

The downfall to having everything is you have that much more to lose. A man like Maverick can’t have it all without something slipping out of grasp.

Crazy people perish for love.

Good people live for it.

Love doesn’t die. No matter how many bullets you put in it.


I honestly don't remember when I bought this book, or if I got it from NetGalley or the author or something. Anyway it had been sitting on my device for a while now and last night I wanted to read a light and fun book before going to sleep. I saw this cover and thought it would fit those criteria, as I didn't remember the plot and I was too lazy too look it up. So I started it at 11:30 pm and finished it at around 3 am. Totally worth the lack of sleep by the way and I was completely wrong guessing the type of book this was based on the cover.

Crazy Good is no light and fluffy read, quite the opposite. Within pages I was hooked and stopping halfway through was not an option. I could not put this one down.

I'm having difficulty putting down in words how I feel about this story and these characters. It was exactly as the title says, crazy good. An intense ride on an emotional rollercoaster. There were moments I laughed out loud, there were tears, and everything inbetween.

Maverick and Windsor were real, and flawed characters. Yes, there is that attraction but it quickly becomes so much more. Something which neither were expecting or even wanted. It wasn't an easy start, and the journey along the way also wasn't easy. While it's mostly not outside forces working against them, at times they can be their own worst enemy.

I actually don't want to mention anything else on the plot, because it's so much more intense if you get to discover it yourself. This book is all about the feelings, and I'm having a serious hangover from this one. Crazy Good might have been my first book by Rachel Robinson, but it will definitely not be my last.

4.5





The Author
Rachel grew up in a small, quiet town full of loud talkers. Her words were always only loud on paper. She has been writing stories and creating characters for as long as she can remember. After living on the west coast for many years she recently moved to Virginia Beach, VA.

Connect with Rachel Robinson:

Cover Reveal: Nowhere But Here (Thunder Road #1) by Katie McGarry

West Side Story meets Sons of Anarchy?? Yes, please!

Katie McGarry's newest novel, NOWHERE BUT HERE, has a cover and we are thrilled to get to help reveal it to you today. The first novel in her upcoming The Thunder Road Series, NOWHERE BUT HERE is a young adult contemporary romance that will keep you turning the pages long into the night. We have no doubt that when you get done, you're going to wish you were on a motorcycle and had your own cut of leather across your back!

Follow along today as pieces of the cover are revealed, and then stop by the HarlequinTeen Page to see the full cover at 7pm EST! And that's not all, of course! We have a few Behind-The-Scenes pictures from the photoshoot itself for you to enjoy as well!

Check out the Behind-The-Scenes pictures and then scroll down for our puzzle piece!

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And here's the first piece to the cover for you!

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Don't miss all of the puzzle piece reveals throughout the day!
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SYNOPSIS

An unforgettable new series from acclaimed author Katie McGarry about taking risks, opening your heart and ending up in a place you never imagined possible.

Seventeen-year-old Emily likes her life the way it is: doting parents, good friends, good school in a safe neighborhood. Sure, she's curious about her biological father—the one who chose life in a motorcycle club, the Reign of Terror, over being a parent—but that doesn't mean she wants to be a part of his world. But when a reluctant visit turns to an extended summer vacation among relatives she never knew she had, one thing becomes clear: nothing is what it seems. Not the club, not her secret-keeping father and not Oz, a guy with suck-me-in blue eyes who can help her understand them both.

Oz wants one thing: to join the Reign of Terror. They're the good guys. They protect people. They're…family. And while Emily—the gorgeous and sheltered daughter of the club's most respected member—is in town, he's gonna prove it to her. So when her father asks him to keep her safe from a rival club with a score to settle, Oz knows it's his shot at his dream. What he doesn't count on is that Emily just might turn that dream upside down.

No one wants them to be together. But sometimes the right person is the one you least expect, and the road you fear the most is the one that leads you home.


Preorder NOWHERE BUT HERE


The Author
KATIE MCGARRY was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, and reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.

Connect with Katie McGarry:

Don't miss all of the puzzle piece reveals throughout the day!

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Review: Dare (Brothers of Ink and Steel #1) by Allie Juliette Mousseau


Josh North is UFC’s Light Heavyweight Champion—but he’s about to meet his match.

Sophie Garner is a single mom who’s been raising her daughter on her own, fighting for both of their lives ever since going into hiding to escape her abusive husband.

When Sophie gets offered the job of a lifetime as the exclusive massage therapist for Josh “The Jackhammer” North’s team, it’s difficult to say no to the outrageous salary—and the bet—that Josh proposes. But for Sophie it’s a risk that could cost a lot more than just her heart – if she’s found, it could cost her her life.

Should she dare?

Josh wants to break through Sophie’s fortified walls, but is unwilling to put the jackhammer to his own and reveal his secrets and the side of him few have ever known or seen. To do that, he’ll have to confront the darkness of his past.

Will he dare?


I finished reading this and I kept thinking that I read a similar story only a while ago, namely Fighting To Forget by J.B. Salsbury. Don't get me wrong, there are enough difference for these not to be the same stories and the characters are definitely different. Still, to me the overall plot line felt familiar.

The book starts of pretty dark, as we find out what is going on with Sophie and why she is now a single mom. Fast forward a couple of years towards her meeting with Josh, and his proposition. Things are looking a lot different, mostly better for Sophie. While they can not deny the attraction between them, Sophie is very clear that things would never work between them. Her first priority is her daughter, and somehow that doesn't include great sex with this smoking hot fighter.

The focus of the story is mostly on this connection between Josh and Sophie, how they try to fight it, might give in once in a while and convincing Sophie that he's in for the long haul. Honestly it's predictable and runs pretty smoothly until the very last two chapters, when things go dicey. There wasn't ever any real tension to me and while I admit that the writing on its own was good, the story just wasn't able to catch my full interest.

2.5




The Author
Allie Juliette Mousseau writes sexy, emotionally charged New Adult Romance.

She can always be found writing, playing in puddles with her children, hiking with her husband, or adventuring somewhere in the world. 

She lives in Montana with her loving husband, children, and 85 pound golden retriever, who likes to sleep on her feet while she writes.

With a free spirit, Allie loves to travel and has spent three years sparking her imagination while travelling the U.S. and Canada in an RV with her family.

Connect with Allie Juliette Mousseau:

Review: Three Brothers by Nicole Williams


I grew up with three brothers. They weren’t tied to me by blood, but our connection went beyond genetics or bearing the same last name. Our connection was forged the summer I turned thirteen, the summer my mom ended her life and left me in the custody of John Armstrong, a man I’d never met. Packing all I owned in a couple of boxes, I left the familiarity of the big city and headed west to Red Mountain Ranch, set in a lonely valley outside of Jackson Hole.

Nothing was as it seemed at Red Mountain—it didn’t take long for me to figure that out. John was kind to me but distant, as if he was afraid to let anyone get too close. His three teenage sons had their own devices for keeping love as far away as they could. The eldest distracted himself with cheap relationships that had a shelf-life of one night. The middle son threw himself into the rigor of running a ranch, and the third wielded cruelty and mind-games in his quest to keep people from getting close.

Time has gone by, and I’ve spent those years trying to forget the brother I’d fallen for—the biggest mistake of my life.

Finally, I’ve moved on. Finally, I’m back. But what I didn’t realize was that running away from the wrong brother meant I’d also run away from the right one. The one who’d been there for me all along, waiting in his brother’s shadow for the day I either would or could move on.

But a decade is a long time to wait. Has the brother I should have chosen all of those years ago moved on too? Am I about to discover that my biggest mistake wasn’t falling in love with the wrong brother, but failing to return the love of the right one sooner?

Does unrequited love have an expiration date?

I’m about to find out.


While the premise of this story seems very much about romance and love, to me that was only a small part of it. It's also about coming home, forgiveness, discovering secrets and saying goodbye. A lot of pretty heavy themes that will weigh on you, but done in a way that you'll gladly accept them. For me some parts reflected life perfectly. There are definitely the good moments, but it's not perfect at all.

Scout coming back after so many years is difficult for every man at Red Mountain. They all had a certain bond with her, and while they understood why she had to leave, it didn't make things easier for them. These boys are now men, and well a lot can happen in seven years. From the moment Scout enters the house, she realizes so much has changed and then some things not at all.

She has come back not for a happy reason, so while she tries to connect this family back together it just might be too late. So there is definitely that heaviness that hovers over everything that happens in this story, making it not a light read. Still you get swept up into their tales, and into their daily lives. While she can slowly pick things back up with John, Chase and Chance, it's different than it used to be.

It's interesting to see how they all deal with the changes and with Scout's return. She left one brother, but in return also turned her back to the rest of the family. Which to me was a bit difficult to understand. Somehow I got her need for a clean break from Conn, but it wasn't fair towards the others. Also as we never get into the reason of why Conn is so hateful towards the world, and what exactly happened between him and Scout, made him a difficult person to understand. The motivation for his behaviour was lost to me and left me disconnected from him.

As for the romance part of this book, that at times actually felt a bit bland. It's clear for me from the beginning how the other brother feels for her, and the way Scout feels for him. So that part was somewhat predictable. Though there were still plenty of other twists and turns that made this story so captivating. It's that struggle, the impending doom and all the high emotions, that made it so riveting.






The Author
I'm a wife, a mom, a writer. I started writing because I loved it and I'm still writing because I love it. I write young adult because I still believe in true love, kindred spirits, and happy endings. Here's to staying young at heart *raises champagne glass* . . . care to join me?

Connect with Nicole Williams:

Excerpt & Giveaway: Throb by Vi Keeland

Throb by Vi Keeland is LIVE!

Now is your chance to meet Cooper & Kate!



The rules:

No dating.
No sex outside of the game.
No disclosing the terms of the contract.

Rules were made to be broken, right?

Eight weeks ago I signed a contract. One that seemed like a good idea at the time. A handsome bachelor, luxury accommodations, and a chance to win a prize my family desperately needed. There were some rules though. Lots of them actually. Follow the script, no dating, sex, or disclosing the terms of the deal. After my self-imposed moratorium on men the last year, it wouldn’t be hard to live up to my end of the bargain…so I thought. Until I realized the deal I’d made was with the devil…and I was in love with his dirty-talking brother.

Available at: Amazon - iTunes
 - Kobo


2. A best friend to talk about him to.

Meet Sadie

“And?”

“And I kissed him when we were in his office.”

“How was his office?”

“Really? That’s what you want to know. Not how was the kiss or aren’t you in breach of your contract? How was his office?”

“You can tell a lot about a man by his office.”

I gulp another unladylike sip from my wine glass. “His office was beautiful. Sleek, overlooking the city. It oozed power.”

“Nice. Bet he fucks like he owns you.”

The thought of what he’s like in bed is enough to make me lose my train of thought. 

“Go on,” Sadie prods.

I don’t continue immediately. 

“You forgot what you were up to because you were thinking of him fucking you like he owns you, didn’t you?” My best friend smirks knowingly.

“Shut up.” I pause. “Anyway, I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“Well, him. Obviously.”

“I wish it were that easy.”



The Author
Vi Keeland is a native New Yorker with three children that occupy most of her free time, which she complains about often, but wouldn't change for the world. She is a bookworm and has been known to read her kindle at stop lights, while styling her hair, cleaning, walking, during sporting events, and frequently while pretending to work. She is a boring attorney by day, and an exciting smut author by night!

Stalk Her: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads




Review: Too Hot to Handle (The Boys of Summer #2) by Katie Rose


Katie Rose’s Boys of Summer series returns for a delicious double-header—with the story of total opposites who are drawn to each other like moths to a flame.

Nikki Case is no fan of baseball. Her ex gambled away a fortune on the sport, and now her PR firm has tasked her with cleaning up the league’s most notorious bad boys. The New Jersey Sonics are known for wild womanizing and booze-fueled brawls, so Nikki expects the worst. Her first stop in the battle to win hearts and minds is star hitter Jake Baldwin—a legendary ladies man so smokin’ he threatens to melt her tough-girl armor.

Although his teammates prank her without mercy, Jake admires the way Nikki gives as good as she gets. She may be the queen of frost, but there’s kindling beneath those sultry curves—and he’s just the man to ignite it. But when a PR nightmare lands the Sonics in headlines across the country, Nikki is ready to walk. Only then does Jake realize how important she is to the Sonics’ success—and that winning the love of a good woman is no game.

*I received a copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

The New Jersey Sonics are known to cause trouble on and off the field. They're a good team, but their reputation is horrible. Sick and tired of this, management has hired Nikki Case to turn these boys around. Like many people these baseball players don't like change, and will need a lot of convincing. Still slowly Nikki manages to crawl behind their defences and one by one they fall in line. Though it certainly has plenty of ups and downs.

The guy she thought who would cause her the most trouble, Jake, doesn't. He is totally on board with her game plan, though it might have something to do with the fact that he wants to charm her pants of. What started as a game for Jake through time turns into something so much more. His attraction for Nikki was obvious from the beginning, but while getting to know her better the man realizes she might be everything he wants, even though he wasn't looking for it.

Too Hot Too Handle's plot and characters might have been predictable, but therefor not less enjoyable. The team's transformation and antics were fun to read about. There is just the right amount of drama with the team and between Jake and Nikki. Some very sexy scenes, though not ones I haven't read before. A quick fun read for fans of sports romance novels.


The Boys Of Summer - Reading order and purchase links
*All books can be read as a standalone*

  


The Author
Award-winning historical author Katie Rose makes her contemporary debut with the Boys of Summer novels, Bring on the Heat and Too Hot to Handle, which combine Katie’s true loves: baseball and romance! When not watching baseball, Katie is at her lake house in New Jersey, hard at work on her next book.

Connect with Katie Rose:

Review: Third Date by Kylie Keene


At 23, Morgan is a little behind other women her age when it comes to dating and relationships. More specifically, she’s a virgin. Dating wasn’t a priority in high school and college, but now that Morgan has a job and her own apartment, she’s ready to jump back into the dating scene.

When Morgan’s friends at work inform her that most men expect sex on the third date, she panics. She’s convinced her lack of experience will be a total turn-off for guys and make for a really awkward third date. Her friends tell her to just do it with a random guy to get it over with, but Morgan isn’t sure that’s what she wants.

When she meets a guy she’s certain is her dream man, she’s ready to lose it on their third date. But doing so isn’t as easy as she thought. And then there’s the fact that she can’t get another guy out of her head.

Through a series of mishaps and misunderstandings, Morgan eventually finds herself at a place she wasn’t expecting, but the place she wanted to be all along.


Morgan has finally decided to start living a bit more adventurous, which just means going out more and try new things. It's been ten years since her mom died and Morgan closed herself off from the outside world. She's now 23 and never had really a boyfriend let alone some action between the sheets. It's not that she never wanted to, her mind just wasn't on it. That is all about to change though, until she finds out guys expect a certain something at the end of the third date. All this putting herself out there and start taking some risks, scare the bejeezus out of her.

Doing it with some stranger she doesn't know, is not what she wants, but she also doesn't want to make a very big deal about it. She just wants to find a decent guy, date him for a while and get it over with. The only problem seemed to be to find such a guy. Luckily she runs into Grant pretty quickly, he ticks off all of her boxes and things slowly progress between them.

Which is all good except for the fact that Morgan also ran into this other guy from high school. Nothing then ever happened between them, but it's kind of hard to deny the chemistry between them and Morgan has trouble keeping him out of her head. It takes a while to get to this point in the story, which for me could have come sooner, because I have the feeling it would've created more drama.

I was afraid Morgan would be this very naive virgin girl and I'm glad that wasn't the case. She knows things have changed since the 50's and that guys expect certain things. Morgan would also like those things, her fear is more of disappointing them because of her inexperience. I find that she has a very clear view on life, about what she wants to achieve without it being unattainable. She's very down to earth, has no huge complexes and believes that she worth of a great guy. These things might be obvious, but it's so refreshing to find a heroine like that.

Of course she makes some mistakes and bad decisions. It only shows that she is not perfect, but also gives her the ability to learn from that. Now she just had to figure it all out when it comes to the guys in her life.

Overall a very sweet romantic story. You can see that ending coming from miles away, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. The guys certainly each have their qualities, though I do have a favourite. Morgan was a very likeable character and I easily got swept in her hunt.

3.5