Passion & Venom by S. Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



I LOVE LOVE LOVE Dark romance (as you may know if you read my reviews and such) and I have to say, Passion & Venom was just a perfect example of this genre to me!


Make no mistake; This is a DARK READ! There is (view spoiler)[ rape (not by H), murder, graphic violence, and gore (hide spoiler)]. It is 100% a dark and gritty Mafia Romance and I loved it from start to finish!

This story is told from the heroine, Gianna Nicotera's, POV and each chapter records basically 1 day's events. I generally always prefer Dual POV to single POV. However, having only Gianna's perspective in this story really heightens the intrigue in our Hero, Draco.
PLOT:
Passion & Venom is a Mafia Romance set in Mexico (We think) and is centered around the kidnapping of Gianna Nicotera. She is the daughter of Leon Nicotera who was a feared and respected Italian Mobster. Her story begins with her wedding to a man named "Trigger Tony".. Shortly after her wedding, she is kidnapped with her husband is murdered right in front of her. She ends up in the hands of a group of brutal men working for a very Dangerous man known as, El Jefe or Draco Mollina.
From the moment we meet Draco we see that he is a brutal and controlling man. He is every bit the violent cartel leader he is made out to be; dolling out violent punishments when he sees fit, demanding respect from everyone around him. However, Draco is very much intrigued by his new captive and you can tell from the beginning that he treats her differently than he would any other in her place.
As Gianna longs to gain her freedom and Draco attempts to tame his new "guest", we find there are dangers beyond that of the tall, dark and deadly Mr. Mollina. And those dangers might just be closer than one would think...

IN REFLECTION
First of all - The characters -
Gianna has to be one of my favorite heroines that I have ever read. She is so strong, fearless, smart, tenacious, brave, and kind. She is just a super badass and I can not wait to read the rest of her through this trilogy.
El Jefe aka Draco Mollina was such a great dark romance anti-hero. There have been some reviews saying the found him to be too 'bad' or too dark even for a dark romance, but I totally disagree.
OBVIOUSLY, I DON'T CONDONE ANY OF THE BEHAVIOR IN THIS BOOK That being said...

Was he a controlling prick with a violent disposition and sociopathic tendencies? Yes.
Was he rude and cruel and hurtful? Yes.
However, even with all Draco does to our heroine, he never beats or hurts her in anger ((view spoiler)[aside from the spanking with the belt thing, but that's a grey area for me with this genre (hide spoiler)]), never allows his men to touch her (in fact he said:
"From this moment on, she will not be talked to and she will definitely not be touched. If I find out that any of you touched her in anyway, I will be sure to break your fucking hands off and stuff every single one of your grubby fingers down your fucking throats.” The men are dead silent as they stare at him. 'Is that fucking clear?")
He lets her have some freedom from the house, he gives her gifts, and shows her as much kindness as a man like him is capable of in the given situation.
I don't know. In my opinion, he just wasn't THAT dark to where I was turned off. I have read Heros who were much much worse than Draco and still loved them in the end.

ON TO BOOK 2!



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Loving Mr. Cane by Shanora Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



READING ORDER:
#1 - Wanting Mr. Cane
#2 - Breaking Mr. Cane
#3 - Loving Mr. Cane
#4 - Being Mrs. Cane (novella)

NOTE- If you have not read books 1 and 2

ALERT ALERT - SPOILERS AHEAD!! PLEASE DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED WORSE THAN A ROTTEN TOMATO!!

That series was one hell of a roller coaster!!

Before we get started I want to say - PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Say there will be a Frankie and Clay book?!?!? Step-Brother types are MY FAVORITE!!! And I Loved Frankie!!

We start off with Kandy in the hospital after Kelly the Psycho Bitch attached her in Cane's home. While she is still alive which is a relief we find out some really sad news. Meanwhile, Cane is in custody at the police station for questioning about the incident with Kandy and Kelly. They assume he had something to do with what happened. He is released because they have no evidence against him, but when he goes to see Kandy she tells him she doesn't want to see him anymore and she decides that she needs time away from Cane to try to see if their relationship is really worth all the trouble it has caused for her.
Needless to say, Cane is pretty much broken following this. Kandy is the love of his life and he knows he will never stop loving her. Kandy knows that she will never stop loving Cane, but can't decide if he is worth the danger and heartache that come with him.

In this book we get to meet El Jefe aka Draco Mollina (can't wait to start his book!!) and his 2 guards/associates and delve more into Cane then ever before. We find out all about his past and learn more about how he started his business.

I really loved this series with the exception of 1 thing really.
Kandy
She made me want to strangle her like half the time! Things I hated about her:
- She was SO WISHY WASHY and cowardly! She would go back and forth between 'I love him so much and can't live without him' to 'Well, he has so many flaws and he is not worth it' - If she loved him as much as she claims to then she would even ask herself if he was 'worth it'. She would KNOW IT! He had told her many times that he had done bad things in his past and she said she didn't care and love him anyway. Fast-foward to us finding out a tiny bit about his past and suddenly he is "not a good person" and I am too scared to love him... just ugh... hate it.

- She blamed him after Kelly hurt her!!! WTF Kandy!!!
"My parents were out there, willing to do literally anything for me, and I’d chosen Cane over them, not even realizing what all he was capable of or all he had in store."
I hated her at that point.

All in all though, I loved the series and will definitely be reading more from this Author!





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Breaking Mr. Cane by Shanora Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The second installment of the Mr. Cane Saga

5 Stars AGAIN!

"When you’re with someone you love, they are your escape from the madness of the real world. With you, I have broken many rules and many morals and many standards and sometimes that wears me down…but I’ll be damned if it stops me from having you.”

*ALERT* SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVE NOT READ BOOK 1 *ALERT*

#1 - Wanting Mr. Cane
#2 - Breaking Mr. Cane
#3 - Loving Mr. Cane
#4 - Being Mrs. Cane (Novella)

We start Breaking Mr. Cane where we left off with a miserable Cane in the hospital because Derick attacked after finding out about their elicit affair. Kelly the Psycho Bitch now is glued to Cane's side using his past as a way to keep him from basically erasing her off the face of the planet. Kandy is devastated, but accepted that her and Cane's affair was never going to be a long lived relationship due to a multitude of reasons. Seeing as she was leaving across the country for college in just a few short days anyway, she has decided to basically let her parent's assume her and Cane made a mistake by getting together and try to move on in college. Cane doesn't want to hold Kandy back from her college experience and although it kills him he basically leaves her alone to experience college life.
Kandy makes some friends and even meets a guy, (view spoiler)[Does not date him or have sex with him (hide spoiler)] but she can't seem to move past the tall, dark, tattooed man who holds her heart.
We learn a lot more about Cane and his family in this book and we also learn Much more about Kelly (not that I care about her because I just want her to die. Not sure I have ever wanted a character killed off more than this bitch.)

IN REFLECTION:
This was a really great continuation of the Cane and Kandy adventure. Much more drama happening for both characters even outside of their relationship to each other. Introduction of some new secondary characters and villains. More hotness between our MC's.
I have to say, I understand why Derick was so pissed with his friend for his relationship with his daughter. Any dad would freak the fuck out. I just don't understand why Kandy didn't try to defend her relationship with Cane more to her parents. She supposedly loves this guy more than anything and yet she pretty much just lets her parents assume it was a fling that she consented to and even initiated. Why would you want your parents to think that you basically destroyed your dad's closest friendship just so you could get some D... of course they are pissed.

ALSO, Is it normal for a school to punish a student for having a relationship with a person who is older than college age??!! I mean WTF?? I totally did not understand that part. I could understand if he was married or a teacher or something, but a college student being in a relationship with an single, older man is so bad that your school reputation will suffer....




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Wanting Mr. Cane

Wanting Mr. Cane by Shanora Williams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

One of my favorite 'TABOO' Reads yet!

5 Forbidden Stars!!



“Doesn’t matter what kind of shit we go through, you’ll always be mine, Kandy. Doesn’t matter how fucked up the situation is, or how wrong it fucking feels…you are mine.” I let my lips touch the shell of her ear. “Don’t you ever forget that, you understand?”

“If you really want me,” he continued, “kneel for me. Right now.”

“You’ll do anything for me, won’t you?” “Yes,” I vowed. “Good, because you’ll be doing a lot more for me tonight, little one.”





Quinton Cane is a 35 year old CEO, bazillionaire who owns a Wine and Chocolates company called Tempt. Kandy is a 18 year old fresh out of high school softball star with beauty and a 1 year ride to Notre Dame. These two know each other because Kandy's dad, Derick the police man, is best friends with Cane. Kandy has had a crush on Cane ever since she first laid eyes on him at 9 years old even though she didn't know it was a crush at the time.
Cane has never looked at Kandy in anyway other than his best friends daughter. Until one night when Kandy decides to force him to change his perspective. Cane basically feels that he owes everything to Derrick and he really is his best and only real friend, so to say that his feelings for Kandy is a complication is an glaring understatement.
And if the whole - forbidden relationship, could loose my BFF forever - thing isn't enough drama for you? Enter Kelly! Cane's - not really girlfriend but more like fuck buddy - You will have to read to find out about her, she's fun. Wow!

IN REFLECTION:
First of all, I have to start off with just a little thing that I disliked and that was.... Kandy??? Really???... I mean, I may be the lone survivor over here on lonely island with this opinion, but Kandy is a stripper name. I get the story of the nurse, why they chose it and all that jazz, but I just... ugh.. that name...

ANYWAY!! Beyond that (and obviously, I LOVED the story regardless because I 5 Stared it!) This was seriously one of my ABSOLUTE FAV TABOO Reads! It is hard for some authors to get to a story behind the actual Taboo plot line and take it in a more complex direction. Most of the time, the major point of the story is the forbidden nature of the relationship and the other aspects get thrown in the background until they need a problem to present itself to create some drama at 80%.

I really enjoyed how this Shanora weaves the story so that you are extremely intrigued with not only the main relationship between Kandy and Cane but also Canes relationship with Kelly, his past, and the secondary characters.
Before I started this I was thinking, "How on earth is this author going to give me a 'Dad's Best Friend' story that will hold my interest and not fizzle out in the span of 4 BOOKS!"
SHE TOTALLY DID IT!! I was obsessed!

LOTS of angst in this one, so prepare yourself!! So Good though!!

Things you might want to know, BUT DON'T DO IT if you're not interested in spoilers!! - (view spoiler)[ - There is NO underage sex in this and the H NEVER lusted after the h until AFTER she turns 18 (not until she came onto him actually)
- There IS OW drama, via Kelly, but there are no OW detailed scenes nor any mention of Cane and Kelly having sex in during the span of the book.
- Cliffhanger into next book
- Also, I FREAKING KNEW IT! The second I read that Frankie's "brother" was only related basically by adoption when she was like 6 AND that he was hot, I said "I sense a step-sibling TABOO relationship on the horizon!" I CAN'T WAIT TO READ IT!!






(hide spoiler)]

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Review: Falling for the Babysitter

Falling for the Babysitter by Penny Wylder
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



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Review: An Innocent Obsession

An Innocent Obsession by Jessa Kane
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

4 super smutastic stars!

If you are in the market of an OTT .... well EVERYTHING, spectacularly smutty, 1 hour read then this is your book!

I actually did like this book and appreciated it for what it was. You can't compare these types of books to any thought provoking works of literature or mystery thriller full of plot twists and intrigue... it's complete and total smut. So enjoy it for what it is!
Lets be honest... The blurb tells you about a young girl who has been fantasizing/obsessing about an older man since she was a young girl, then gets to finally meet him when explosive chemistry occurs AND it's only 48 pages....
You ain't fooling nobody...

But I like my Smut just as much as the next girl, so count me on board!

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Review: Drink Me Up

Drink Me Up by Penny Wylder
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I always like Penny Wilder for a cute, short, light on the angst quickie.

Dring Me Up definitely hits those marks spot on. I liked this book for the light read that it is meant to be. I need a couple shorties to keep up with my 2019 goal! Which I am very disappointingly behind on right now!!
Damn house remodel is really sucking up all my free reading time!

I blame HGTV for making me think I have the ability, time, and energy to be Joanna Gains...

Spoiler alert....

I'm totally not

BUT I Digress...
Cute book with cute characters and a sweet Hero. I thought for being in the Enemies to Lovers category, the MC's got the lovers part a bit too fast. I enjoy the push and pull and tension of the enemies part a lot and feel like the longer the bickering and opposition goes on the more explosive and engaging it is for the reader when they finally come together... no pun intended...



OK TIMBERLAKE SORRY! Bad joke!

All in all, Good book to pass the time with until your ready for your next mind-melter :)

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Medicine Man by Saffron A. Kent
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

6 AMAZING, EMOTIONAL, HEART RENDING STARS

It isn’t his fault that I’m slowly going insane and it has nothing to do with my illness, and everything to do with him, the man who’s supposed to fix me. My medicine man.

Wow... This is one of the first times I don't really have words to describe how much I loved a book...

"Medicine is in his blood. Like illness is in mine. My blood is tainted with poison and his is laced with the antidote.

Medicine Man was such an emotion, angst filled, beautiful journey of self discovery and the most deliciously forbidden kind of unending love.

I absolutely LOVE Saffron A. Kent! She wrote one of my favorite books A War Like Ours and this is another of hers going on that list!
One of the reasons I love her is her ability to create a story that is so unique and so freaking engaging you can not put it down. I was up reading till 3 AM because I just had to get to the end!
All of her characters are SO WELL DEVELOPED and they just engrave themselves in your heart. I always know when I have read a great book if I continue to remember the characters long after I have read the story and Saffron has such a talent for writing characters like that.
OK, so now that I am done with my author Fan girl-ing, Lets get on with the plot!

Medicine Man Starts out with 18 year old Willow Taylor on the "Inside" at Heartstone Mental Illness Treatment Facility after a reported suicide attempt. She maintains that it is a mistake and she doesn't belong there and doesn't need treatment. During her treatment, a new Psychiatrist is hired to take over care of the patients, Dr. Simon Blackwood, whose father was actually the founder of the hospital.
From the first time they set eyes on each other they both feel an unusual connection. Willow has never trusted doctors/psychiatrists, ever, but she finds herself opening up to Simon about her secrets and demons. Simon finds that he has a certain fixation on his new silver haired patient that he can't control.

"Isn’t that the most miraculous thing in the world? It’s more miraculous than magic. Who needs magic if you have that? Him. Wanting me like I want him."

During her 6 week stay, we watch as Willow makes great lifelong friendships that help to push her toward recovery as well make great strides towards self discovery and acceptance (Simon being one of the biggest influences in the book on Willow). It's beautiful to see how she is working towards not Repairing/"fixing" her illness and mind, but to learn to accept it as a part of her and deal with the challenges it presents in her life. Learning that there is noting "wrong" with you for having struggles, that it doesn't make you weak but strong, was one of the best parts of this story. This is all of course happening at the same time as the love story of Willow and Simon unfolds.

This was just an amazing read. I loved the forbidden aspect of it because, quite honestly, that is why I picked it up (and it was by Saffron Kent) But there is so much in this story to love beyond the TABOO nature. I CAN"T WAIT FOR RENN AND TRISTAN!!

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Review: Anything You Can Do

Anything You Can Do by R.S. Grey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have to say, Anything You Can Do is my favorite R.S. Grey book I have read so far! And that is really saying something because I have rated them all a 5. I absolutely adore this author, can't get enough of her writing. She is so freaking funny, I crack up so hard at all of her books. (See past reviews)
I think I am stating the obvious right now when I state
THIS NEEDS TO BE MADE INTO A ROM-COM MOVIE STAT! ...Maybe I will add a little suggested casting list and hope some director out there will be like, "Well, this chick really knows what she talkin' about! We gotta get filming!"

"I've loved you since I knew what love meant."

Daisy Bell and Lucas Thatcher were born a whole 58 minutes apart and from that day forward began a rivalry to rival any siblings in the area would be proud of. Everything was a competition, no matter what it was. Who talked first, who walked first, who could run the fastest, who could get the better grades. and on and on. They both ended up going to Medical school and coming home 11 years later only to find that they have both been chosen to take over their retiring Dr. McCormick's family practice. Now they must work together to fulfill their lifelong dream of running a hometown practice.

The way that the author is able to write about their relationship through daisy and make the audience see that she is completely in love with Lucas but still show that she has absolutely no idea this is the case, is just great! The bickering, back and forth, Daisy's inner monologue was so funny and the perfect example of why I love this author so much (Take a look at the passages I highlighted for and idea of why I die laughing when I read R.S. Grey!). An their chemistry was burning up the pages! This story was written mostly in Daisy's POV with a sprinkling of Lucas through email excerpts.
The only 2 things I would change:
- MORE LUCAS POV!!!
- And I would have loved to have had flashbacks of their childhood together. I think that would have made the story even better. I found myself craving to see some of their interactions through their first 18 years.




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The Allure of Dean Harper by R.S. Grey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 Make You Crazy Stars!!

If you are ever looking for a book/Author to read just to have a good time... R.S. Grey is your girl! She has such a fun and hilarious writing style that will always make you smile. It's the perfect amount of comedy, love, lust, and super cuteness without making you choke on cheese.

The Allure of Dean Harper follows Lily Black, best friend to Josephine from The Allure of Julian Lefrey (please READ THAT because it is also hilarious!) as she has just moved from her home town in Texas to live with said best friend in New York City. She went to culinary school and has aspirations of being a prominent food blogger. She gets a job bartending in Provissions, one of Dean Harper's restaurants and does very well her first night, but then promptly pisses off Dean when he sits down and she thinks he is just a rude customer. And so begins the love/hate relationship of Dean and Lily.

Their relationship throughout this book was the best! So funny, the banter between the two and lily's antics had me cracking up. Both characters were so great. Lily was hilarious and so strong and confident, I wished I could be more like her! Lol! Dean seemed to be a lot more of a hard ass in this book, but perhaps that has to do with Lily being introduced in this book. She seems to bring it out in him.



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The Allure of Julian Lefray by R.S. Grey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

5 So-Cute-so-Hilarious Stars!!

Perfection! So cute and laugh out loud hilarious! Exactly what I expect out of a R.S. Grey read and I was not disappointed :)

Julian....

PUT YOUR DIMPLES AWAY SIR!! US WOMEN NEED TO KEEP SOME OF OUR PANTIES FROM DISINTEGRATING!!


"He didn’t even know the effect those dimples had on my girly parts. One word: Ijustgotpregnant. Yeah, that’s one word."

Josephine is a young fashion blogger who moves from small town Texas to New York City with big dreams and a teeny-tiny wallet. She has been in the Big Apple for about 2 weeks and is hard up for a job so she won't be kicked out of her billion dollar POS apartment. The story opens with her attending a fashion Gala where all the major players in the industry will be rubbing elbows. She wants get in on the rubbing. At this Gala she is fortunate enough to run into Julian Lefray,the money bags behind his sister's fashion Co. Lorena Lefray Designs. Julian is busy revamping his sisters company while she is undergoing rehab. He has completely cleaned house and he needs an assistant and fast! He hires Josephine on and they turn out to be a fantastic team. They knew right away they had chemistry, but will this chemistry ruin their working relationship and new found friendship? Is Josephine willing to take a chance on her new boss with so much to lose if things don't go as planned?
You will have to read to find out!!

~ This book will make you smile and laugh out loud because that is just the way of R.S. Grey's writing. I always look like a crazy person when I read her books in public. But I can't Help it!!

Some of my favorite lines:
"Runner’ is a strong word. On occasion, I’ve been known to move slightly faster than a walking pace, but it’s not very often.”

"Half a dozen naked, old people. So very naked, and so very, very old."
'Josephine,' Holly called from across the room. 'Come on in, we don’t bite!' Of course you don’t bite, most of you don’t even have teeth."

“You don’t mind if I take the middle armrest, right? My elbow is arthritic.” Great. I’ll just wedge myself against the glass and pray for death."

"Did I, however, look like I was about to go yachting with New York City’s upper elite? No. I probably would have fit in better at the Jersey Shore between Snooki and JWoww."

So much quotable gold in this book... LOVED IT. If you know what is good for you, you will read it too :)


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Review: Submitting to the Billionaire

Submitting to the Billionaire by Georgia Le Carre
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Loved it! It was Filthy and delicious and lovely!


Another by Georgia Le Carre that makes me glad I have recently discovered her!

Again, a very unique and engaging story that kept me coming back for more. Couldn't put the book down if I wanted to. And at one point it was 4 am and I was like

"Ahhh... I have work tomorrow...I really have to sleep... Maybe just like one more chapter.... "

Nikolai - 37 year old Billionaire with a shady way of making those billions, a dark past, devastatingly good looks and domineering sexual appetites. Takes one look at Star and knows without a doubt that she is what he wants. However, Unfortunately for him, she is already taken.

Star Minton is a beautiful 23 year old would be college student if it weren't for her POS husband, Nigel, who is 25 years her senior who chased her down at the age of 16 at his niece/her friends birthday party. Star is fully convinced of the love she has for her husband and thinks that no one else could make her happier. Is she truly married to her one true love or will she find out it was all a sham?

I think I may have liked Rosa better than star in this book! Star drove me crazy with her loyalty to Nigel, who was proven time and again to be a total dirt bag. But, I guess we can all be totally blind to the flaws of those we love, so in that way she was a very truthful and believable character. Even if I wanted to slap her stupid a lot of the time!

I loved Nikolai being the Alpha billionaire male that he was. He had all my favorite book boyfriend ingredients... Super hot, shady damaged past, domineering sexual appetites, muscles, muscles and more muscles...
Did I mention muscles??
Yum.



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Cold Cole Heart by K. Webster
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

6 TOTALLY FUCKED UP STARS!!

Damn... I FREAKING LOVED LOVED LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!!



It was emotional, depths of the bottom of the ocean dark, graphic, even cringe-y some of the time, but it was also beautiful, and triumphant, and just freaking perfect!

~ Thus just reestablishing the unhealthy lady love I have for the lovely and talented Mrs. Webster ~

This story was super unique and captures your attention from page one and keeps it till the final scene. It has fantastic twists and turns and for those fans of Dark Romance this is SUCH A GREAT READ!!

Cole Heart Was such a fantastic character! You found yourself rooting for him and caring about him even when he talked about doing the most horrible things and even DID some terrible things to the h.

"She blinks at me and then bites on her bottom lip. I want it between my teeth. I want to bite her and make her bleed. But not to destroy her like the rest. I want to break her so I can stitch her together again. Over and over again until I’ve woven in so much of me, we’re practically one."

Natalie was an amazing heroine. She was so strong and feisty and given her past and situation in this story it took a really tough person to overcome her struggles and keep going day to day. I loved her.

"When we’re together like this, I almost feel as if I am not dying on the inside. That my life hasn’t been a freak show for years. I feel normal and wanted. Cared for even."

Both of these characters were just so damaged and had so many demons. They each went through their own actual hell to be where they start off in this book and you can just feel all the emotions bleeding through the pages.

"She blinks at me and then bites on her bottom lip. I want it between my teeth. I want to bite her and make her bleed. But not to destroy her like the rest. I want to break her so I can stitch her together again. Over and over again until I’ve woven in so much of me, we’re practically one."

If you are a lover of K. Webster, Dark Romance, twisted love stories, and damaged characters you better Read this immediately!!
WARNINGS
This is NOT a light story! If you are sensitive to any of the following, I might reconsider if this book is for you: triggers (view spoiler)[kidnapping, scenes or rape (not between H and h), Flashbacks of torture, mental illness, and cutting.
(hide spoiler)]

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The Man In The Mirror by Georgia Le Carre
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

~ 5 Feels Filled Stars!! ~

Wow! I have to say, every single thing I complained about not getting in the last Georgia Le Carre book I read (see recent posts) - I got in this book ... in SPADES!

This book made me become to real fan of Georgia Le Carre!

~ This was a quick read, but it was just packed full of emotion and just a great unique and original take on the classic Father falls for the Nanny trope. ~

"“You were made for me,” he swore. “No one else. You’re mine, Charlotte Conrad. I swear it you’re mine. And one day you’ll carry my name too.”

God! The things I felt for Brett... He was one of my favorite Heros. He was so damaged and haunted by his past and even current circumstances, but just such a beautiful person. You can feel every single one of his emotions in this book. I was just in love with how much love and adoration he had for his little boy Zachary.
His witch of a wife made me want to throw up and scratch her eyes out through the pages of this book. I despised her and the things she would say to Brett... What a selfish, nasty... person...(rhymes with hunt, starts with a C)
~ Charlotte on the other hand was amazing. The second she stepped into that house and took one look at Zachary she knew she had to help him. I loved her devotion to him even through everything with the Bitch of the house. Her and Brett's chemistry was so palpable, you could feel it burning until the very end. They didn't even have any sexual contact until like 60% or something and it just made it even better!
Definitely, one of my favorite books this year and I KNOW we are only 10 days in, but I am sure it will live up there for a while :)

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Review: Nanny and the Beast

Nanny and the Beast by Georgia Le Carre
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the first book I have read by Georgia and I found that I did like the story enough to finish it in a timely manner. However, I have to say I didn't really feel the emotional connection between any of the characters. The main characters felt like all they were held together with was lust and sex. You really don't have any feel for any deeper emotion shared between the two.
I couldn't connect emotionally to Yuri's relationship with his niece Yulia either. She was silent for most of the book due to circumstances you will read about if you dig into this one, so it makes sense that the understanding of their relationship might suffer due to that. However, There was a large portion of the book spoken from Yuri POV and there could have been sprinklings through out his inner dialogue that showed his emotional attachment and love for the girl. Instead, I feel like we got ... ' Oh hey, This is my niece for you to take care of.. I love her because she is my niece.. we used to be cool, but now she doesn't talk to me... it's whatever though..'

~Beyond that, This was smut, smut, smut, and a little more smut thrown in for flavor!~
Don't get me wrong... it was SUPER hot... set your panties on fire hotness warning in this book, BUT I thought the relationships within the story actually suffered by having so much page space being taken up by hot and sweaty writhing instead of showing us WHY the characters wanted to writhe together, ya get me? (Also, it seemed like Yulia really took a back seat with both MC's, which is odd because April was hired as a NANNY not a personal HOOKER for Yuri....)

~ BUT WAIT! I am not saying I did not like the book. I did enjoy the story and I felt like it had a lot of potential. It just felt rushed and I think that there could have been a lot more development of the characters and it would have improved the story by at least a star and a half!

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Untouchable by Sam Mariano
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So, I was very dubious when I came into this book. I found it when going through friends recent updates and being that it is normally one of my absolute favorite Tropes, I was naturally very drawn to it, but I saw some less than stellar reviews by some of my fellow good reads friends.

Here's me: Read synopsis... "Yes! I LOVE this type of story!! CAN'T WAIT!!!"
See friend's 1 star reveiw....



I am not one to let bed reviews dissuade my interest in reading a book (unless there is major Cheating between the MC's or lots of descriptive OW scenes, those are pretty Hard Pass for me).

I am SO GLAD I read this one!

SOME SPOILERS AHEAD!!

"I love being the place he puts his darkness. I love being the keeper of the secret of who Carter really is. I love him, dammit. I didn’t entirely mean it when the words slipped out that night in a post-orgasmic bliss bubble, but God help me, I do. I love Carter Mahoney, and that means I am well and truly fucked."

If you read any reviews at all you will know that this is a dark and gritty read with a H that is pretty morally fucked up. Some people had a big problem with his character's actions in the beginning of the book. (view spoiler)[ the basically Rape-y scene. Forced BJ by hero with his friends in the room. (hide spoiler)]

~ Personally, I thought this scene was completely unnecessary. He could still be the anti-hero the story needed without going as far a he did in that scene. It was almost strange because in most parts of the book between their banter back and forth and his easy going charm, he almost felt like totally different character. Almost a totally different book from the beginning. He wasn't nearly as awful throughout the book as the first scene would have led you to believe.

~ I REALLY wish we had some Carter POV chapters. I really feel like it would have helped the readers who hated him connect to him a little more. It would have help us to accept his behavior a bit within the context of the story.

I WANT TO CLARIFY, I AM IN NO WAY CONDONING THIS TYPE OF BEHAVIOR IN THE REAL WORLD. I THINK SEXUAL ASSAULT IN ANY FORM IS COMPLETELY DEPLORABLE AND UNACCEPTABLE AND SHOULD BE APPROPRIATELY PUNISHED.
HOWEVER, this is a work of fiction and a work of fiction in the Dark Romance genre. The point of a fictional novel or story is to create circumstances and plots that would not be plausible/acceptable in the real world. Dark Romance is full of anti-heros and characters who do awful things and are awful people but somehow we end up rooting for their success.
Carter was a bad kid who had a severely skewed moral compass, but he did grow as a character within the story. He learned to care for someone other than himself and Chloe, and he did allow Zoey to influence him in positive ways. He went through some tough stuff in his childhood that really messed with him mentally and helped to create the monster we see here.
Zoeywas as unbelievably strong and caring as she was self admittedly deeply flawed. Any sane girl would have run far away from this guy ASAP after the things he had put her through, but Zoey has this curiosity about him. Even more than curiosity, I think she had a yearning to help him even from the beginning. She could see that he was closed off and isolated even though he is the "golden boy" with a million friends and more wealth than he knew what to do with. Even though she knew it was cracked of her to be intrigued by him, she couldn't stop it.

"You keep trying to sell yourself on this narrative that I’m not serious about you, Zoey, but it’s wrong. I am serious about you, more serious than I’ve ever been about anything else in my life.”





As messed up of a couple as they are their chemistry was OVARY EXPLODING ... Those neck kisses tho.... Jeysus!


I liked how the book also didn't follow the average plot line of - ' MC's Meet - fall in love - H changes bad ways - argument and break up - happy ending make up '. It was filled with emotional ups and downs and kept you craving the next thing, flipping pages like a maniac!

I really like this book and in all honesty I will probably read again in the future. It reminded me a lot of Fear Me by B.B. Reid and I freaking LOVE that book.
Stats - (view spoiler)[ HEA , Ne real cheating , no OW action , There is a separation but no intimacy with others during that time. (hide spoiler)]

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Review: JOCK

JOCK by Jacob Chance
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So I have discovered that I really love this author!

I dove into this series really mostly because I was drooling over the cover and figured whats inside can't be that bad if the outside is THAT TEMPTING! I am happy to say I was very happily proven right


~ Owen was one of my favorite Heros in this series. From the other books I expected him to be the same playboy jock we are used to reading about, with a little black book that has more pages than the bible, and a smug attitude. He pleasantly surprised me though, he was sweet and kind and accepting. Just the perfect book boyfriend for those of us with a little sweet tooth and are in need of a slight cavity ;)

Eliza was a very interesting character. I really liked her strength as a person. She never really let her circumstances stop her from achieving her goals (view spoiler)[ and trying to complete college and be a single parent is so hard, even when you have help. It is emotionally taxing as a parent to have to be away from your child so often (hide spoiler)]. She was sweet and caring toward Owen and seemed to be so understanding of the whole pesky situation that started off their relationship.

I really liked this book for what it was and I love how Jacob can introduce twists that still surprise me in a genre that seems to usually follow the same generic plot lines.
Looking forward to the next in the series with Nolan and again...
PLEASE JACOB!!! TELL ME YOU ARE WRITING A HOCKEY SPIN OFF WITH CLANCY!! I NEED IT IN MY LIFE!!!

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