This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

First Impressions
B&E Ever After is the third installment in the Fairy Tale Quartet series by Linda Kage. I have really enjoyed the idea behind this series and what the author has delivered so far with this series. In this story we have a retelling that I have never seen from any other author, and I was more than pleased to be able to read this book and it definitely delivered. I had so much fun with this author’s unique twist on this retelling and how she fit in a romance into it. We get more depth delivered with this story that was reflected so well in the story and you see the aspects of this story that is so relevant to the “Hansel and Gretel” story and I loved these small connections that became so relevant to the story itself. There is also a sense of light humor that really balances out the story. We also get characters from previous books in the series, that make an entry into this story that offers a delightful twist.

Summary
The story sets off with our characters Hayden (Hansel) and Gabriella (Gretel), who meet in the most unexpected way. Gabriella is out looking for a way to provide for her brother and father. When her brother gets sick, she gets mistaken for a maid due to some racial actions. But Gabriella, is not new to this type of stereotyping. But she decides to take advantage of the situation, while she does clean a carpet stain, she also stumbles into a man she never expects, and his name is Hayden who happens to be the son of the owner of the apartment, but she learns that he has some plans for his mother in exposing her for the evil witch that she is and how many lives that she has ruined. Hayden and Gabriella work together to bring down the cruel witch Lana and find the evidence that exposes her for the criminal and murderer that she is, but along their journey with some skittles along the way, they realize a fierce love worth fighting for…

“…he doesn’t exactly hide his negative side.”
Brick snorted. “No. He’s too busy hiding his good one.”

What I Loved
This story was so captivating and I had such a fun time with this one here. I just couldn’t keep myself from truly embracing this story and if you are a fan of retellings then this is a story that you must read! I absolutely adore this author, she writes such wonderful books, and every time I pick her up, she just so easily captivates my attention and I become so involved in the story. I really was so curious to see how this one would play out. There are many elements to this one here that one can truly enjoy. I absolutely loved the methods in how this author portrayed this story. We start out by seeing the background to the two brothers that get abandoned by their mother and find their way back home with a trail of skittles. And then as adults, we see how Hayden wants to prove that his mother is evil after how neglectful of a mother she was and only consumed with her own wants above everything else. And then the scenes with the condo and being stuck together were so priceless. The way in which Hayden fights for Gabriella and what she deserves was so endearing and some fabulous stolen kisses really sparked so much fun chemistry. The humor that is implemented is superb in every way, and adds a lighter touch to a more serious toned story. There is also some diversity that was so fun to see as the heroine is Latino, and the author did the representation so well and handled the racism well and the incorrect way society stereotypes certain groups of people. The romance between Hayden and Gabriella was so endearing and just magical. I just wanted so much more time with these two and never wanted this story to end. We get some similar storylines with the other books, so I recommend reading this series in order so you can follow along with what is happening here. But such a brilliant romantic retelling of Hansel and Gretel.

When you have exhuasted all possibilities, remember this. You haven’t

What I Struggled With
Nothing much, I wasn’t fully into the story but that is definitely a “me” thing as I have been struggling with that of late.

Overall View
I found B&E Ever After to be a brilliant retelling that kept me focused, endeared me endlessly with laughs, and stunned my romantic heart with a tale of enduring love and passion!

I hate doing this, but I am going to have to DNF this one. This one was overly political and mentioning certain political figures, in a demeaning way. I don't care for pushing personal views of an author into a story. So was looking forward to this one, but will be setting this one aside. Maybe one day when this factor doesn't rub me the wrong way, I will be able to enjoy it more. I am sure if you are fans of Kennedy Ryan, then this one will work for you more than it did me! But love this author and will try her other books.

This was such a wonderful read here. Crazy Wicked Love is the third book in her current series "Dark Knights at Bayside" and it was beyond delicious. I always get a kick out of Melissa Foster, and in this novel she really delivered such a solid read. I admired the way in which Foster built up the friends to lovers romance here with a twist of unrequited love. I really adored how both characters are ex military and veterans and seemed perfect for the week of Veteran's Day. Which was NOT done on purpose haha it was a happy coincidence. There is something about unrequited love that just works for me. I do adore a pining heroine, and yeah I like it more than pining hero in many ways.

Crazy Wicked Love really delivered all the sexy badass vibes. I really loved how she just charmed my socks off here. I really adored seeing the heroine work her way into the hero's heart. There is such a strong friendship between them, but seeing the way that the heroine just was so hurt in trying to get something more between them was heartbreaking at times. You can just feel the emotion coming off of her in wanting to have the hero not just as a friend, but as a romantic partner. I loved the way in which she builds jealousy in the hero and makes him wake up to what is between them, the chemistry that has always been beneath the surface.

I have to admit that this book just worked out so well for me, and even though it wasn't a full five-star read (which I think is more on me, I have been struggling of late getting fully into books) but I was so swept away by the sexy emotion in this one. If you are a fan of Melissa Foster or just sexy contemporary romance, you definitely need to grab these up!

*May Contain Spoilers*

Wild Man is book two of the Dream Man series. Now Wild Man wasn’t necessarily a book I was looking forward to because the hero in Wild Man, we are introduced to in Book One and I just didn’t like what he was willing to do for his job especially with Gwen. And those you have read Mystery Man know what I am talking about so I knew that I wanted to read this series in order but wasn’t sure how I would feel about this book but I can tell you I loved it almost as much as Mystery Man, not quite as much but just a step below it.

In Wild Man, Tessa O’ Hara runs a bakery shop and then a sexy man comes into her shope and asks her out on a date with drinks and she ends up in his bed and life for four months. Even though he is sexy and hot and makes her toes curl, she doesn’t really know that much about him. She does care for him deeply though but one night, he leaves her bed and the next thing that she knows is a team of SWAT bursts into her home and takes her to the police station for questioning. She has no idea what is really going on only that it has something to do with her ex husband. Which is where we learn she had a miserable marriage where her ex beat her and raped her and she divorced him. But now she has moved on despite the fact that her ex keeps calling her wanting her back and she doesn’t want him, she knows that she deserves better than what he gave her.

Babe, you think I found the woman of my dreams at forty-five years old and I’m gonna let anything happen to her, think again. That’s a long fuckin’ time to wait for what you want. I waited. I found it. I’m pullin’ out all the stops to take care of it. I know you feel the same for me so I’m doin’ the same to keep me safe for you

But she learns that the man she has been with for over four months, betrayed her, where he wanted to get close to get information about her ex husband and three months have passed. And her dream man walks into her shop wanting her back and she has no idea how determined he is. Brock is dedicated to his job and he wants out of going undercover for the DEA, he knows if he doesn’t get out soon he is going to lose an important part of himself and he has two sons he adores that he wants in his life more actively and there is one woman who has made him want more in life….Tessa O’Hara. Tessa doesn’t know if she can trust Brock with her heart again, but she does know that he cares for her and despite what her girlfriends think she should do, she wants to give what they have a second chance. But there will be drama with his ex wife, and with her ex husband but both Brock and Tessa will discover what they have created with their family is worth the cost.

I turned my head so my lips were at his ear and no lies, no masks, no bullshit, no games, I kept whispering when I told him, “I love you, Brock.”

I have a fun FUN time with Wild Man and these two were so well written. I was so captivated by their story but also by Brock’s family and his boys and well his ex wife is a piece of work. She is really a horrible human being and love seeing her lose everything in this book. We also see Brock and Tessa face whatever comes at them as a team….they work together to have the strongest relationship so nothing can ruin what they have together. I loved seeing this partnership develop through the story, and seeing them overcome past hurts and betrayals and where healing and forgiveness are a focus point. It was quite refreshing to see a more mature couple that don’t play foolish games, that are confident in who they are and in the love they feel for each other and work at it continually.

“Babe, he took your power. Tonight, you took it back. And it…” his arm gave me a squeeze, “was,” his hand gave me a squeeze, “fuckin’,” his forehead dropped to rest on mine, ” beautiful.”

I closed my eyes and pulled in a deep breath.

Then I opened them and said, “You had my back.”

“I always have your back.”

Overall I found Wild Man to be a superb addition to the series that is powerfully provocative and emotionally driven and will curl you toes!!

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.



First Impressions
Mr. Perfect has been on my TBR wishlist for the longest time, probably a decade at this point haha I have been wanting to explore this author much more and after reading this one (not going to lie that I skipped on over to the library for some more books from her) but I really have been wanting to pick up some more romantic suspense (so if you have any recs let me know) but I actually adored this book so much. It really worked for me in so many ways. And while it wasn’t a perfect read for me, there were many aspects to this one that I wish more romantic suspense had in them. I have really learned to love this author’s writing style, it’s different from what you normally see today. It has that classic contemporary style that is so memorable. I knew it was romantic suspense but I really found it to be such a story that gave me a few surprises along the way and there were some twists and turns that just balanced out the romance in such a delightful way,

Summary
Mr. Perfect sets off with Jaine Bright who has just moved into a new house and is living the best of her life except for her growly next-door neighbor who makes noise all late hours of the night and yells at her for keeping the noise down during the day. Jaine and Sam are instantly at odds with each other, and they definitely have a hate/tolerate relationship with each other. But as they start to learn each other, and become more understanding of each of their different set of circumstances, they begin to open up to each other more and more. But when Janie and her three girlfriends one night come up with a list of attributes of “Mr. Perfect” and what would make the perfect mate, it somehow gets famous and put in the newspapers, everything turns terribly wrong when one of Janie’s friends is murdered and Sam is the one to stand by her side and look for the one responsible as he works in law enforcement. But they are being hunted by a psychotic killer….will Janie survive and find the culprit behind it all?

What I Loved
There was so much to love from Mr. Perfect and even though I had some issues with it (see category below) I had so much fun with this one here. It had so many fun delights to it. I really adored the chemistry that builds between Sam and Janie, they have such a fiery explosive relationship that actually fits their personalities so well. When you first meet them together in the beginning, you wonder how on earth they can work together, but it ends up working out so perfectly. I really enjoyed seeing the suspense plot that builds within the story. I especially loved the prologue which shows the background of our killer and to see the beginnings of this behavior and it does build up the tension within the story so well. I was intrigued in seeing who it really was that was behind on the murder. The friendship between the four women was just beautiful and seeing them connect just showed how dynamic their bond was to each other. They are all so different from each other, but I truly enjoyed seeing how their sisterly bond to each other was built within the story. Then we have the actual romance. It is closer to an instant love connect style of a story. I really didn’t mind this at all. I also loved how tight they were once they were fully together and no unnecessary drama.

What I Struggled With
There were a few things. I did feel like this couple got together way too quickly. I felt like it could have been built more slowly a bit even would have made a difference for me. And also I didn’t like the angst at the beginning, I just didn’t see the reason they were so hateful towards each other. They are both mature adults so it was confusing to me.

Overall View
Overall I found Mr. Perfect to be a delightful read that will sweep its reader of their feet in a way that will bring the thrills of an intense suspense while balancing with a romance that delivers in the tension and feels. You can’t go wrong with this classic.

Jules is a woman that has lost just about everyone she loves except her Uncle Nick. She is a social worker and helps out the kids that are homeless and living on the streets. Trying to do what she can to get them away from the drug dealers and get them to a foster family, an education and help them believe in themselves. But on the side of being a social worker, she wants to drive drug dealers off the streets and acts like a vigilante until Vance gets involved and he is sticking to her like glue which she isn't fond of even if he is gorgeous. But Vance knows how dangerous it is for Jules to be doing what she is doing. Antagonizing the drug lords in Denver is only going to get her killed, and won't help the kids she loves and is trying to protect.

I really did love seeing Vance and Jules together for the most part. I will admit though, that this is my least favorite of the rock chick books. I was really looking forward to LOTS of great laughs and even though there were some fun parts, nothing like what we see in the previous books so I was a bit disappointed by the lack of humor that I was expecting. And Jules is a alpha female for sure but she kinda drove me nuts at times. She was way too stubborn and prideful. But thankfully Vance ends up being perfect for her. He doesn't let her go too crazy but soon her life is in danger and ironically she has Marcus and Darius supporting her and seems to be trying to protect her from those that want her dead. She gets adopted into the Rock Chick club and I love these ladies in reaching out to Jules even when she doesn't want it. The romance between Vance and Jules was angsty but fun at times too. I did enjoy this book, just not as much as I was wanting. Hopefully the next book will be a good one for me!!

Overall I found Rock Chick Renegade to be a satisfying and thrilling romance that will rock your world in many respects!! A delight to read.

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

Rock Redemption is the third book in the Rock Chick Series. I have become addicted to these Rock Chicks, their friendship, their laughter and the men that fall in love with. Each story is a bit different and I found myself really enjoying how Rock Redemption plays out in the end. From what I have seen so far in these books, the heroes are full on alpha males. So if you love a well written alpha hero, than these books are for you for sure. I love the arrogance, the strength and how capable they are no matter the situation. The heroines end up being their perfect matches.

In Rock Redemption we have Hank and Roxie’s book. Now Hank is a character I have been watching since the first book and LOVE his character. He does work for the police force, but walks a thin line with his connection to his two best friends Lee and Darius. But Hank is proud of what he does and he knows that even those his superiors don’t approve of his friendships, they don’t put a stop to it either because he does good work. Roxie is a heroine that is on the run. Her ex boyfriend, Billy, is obsessive of her and refuses to let her go and is involved in some shady dealings as well. But she has one stop in her plan to stop Billy once and for all, to visit her Uncle Tex but then she finds herself matching up with Hank who sees only black and white and she is full of shades of grey. Her past isn’t clean even though it hasn’t been her fault except falling in love with the bad boy. But as Hank and Roxie begin to learn each other and explore this new relationship they are building, Roxie is hesitant because of her past and of the fact that Billy is hunting her and could harm those she loves including the man she has given her heart to….a man full of warmth and goodness.

I had a blast with Rock Redemption and I am really adoring the level of suspense that KA has displayed in these books. They can get a bit predictable at times but honestly those small moments of surprises you just never see coming EVER. I simply love the way that this book evolved. I love Hank, he is solid and a good man and he has to view things in black and white formats because of the fact that he is a police detective. But he walks a thin line which tests him at times especially when his friends are involved. But you see the way that he falls very fast for Roxie and won’t let her get away or let her fears come between them. He is a alpha but a unique sort. I loved the way he handles Roxie though. He is stubborn, tenacious and goes after her like a dog with a  bone. He never ever gives up on her even when she ends up being too stubborn. I loved Roxie though, she has her reasons in wanting to protect Hank (even if he doesn’t need protecting) I simply admired the way that their relationship grew in this book. It definitely is like a tug of war between them, and Hank eventually will have to trust that Roxie will choose the love they have each other over her fears.

What proves to be really fun is seeing the friendships between the men and the women in the Rock Chick Club. We get some hoots of fun with Daisy and the gals, some Tex lovin’, barrels of laughs that I have come to admire about these books and plenty of sexy times between Hank and Roxie. They definitely know how to steam up a story for sure. We also get some fun bouts of suspense and intrigue especially involving the villain “Billy” because he is like a cockroach in that he never gets fully captured and keeps coming back for Roxie. Hank and Roxie are definitely tested in this book, but it ends up being what their relationship really needs. You see how they quickly fall in love with each other, but fears and misunderstandings slow down the relationship and trust becomes key in the story. Seeing them learn the value of trust and honesty is what will prove them in the end.

I found this story to be just as superb as the previous books, packed with so much KA deliciousness that you won’t want to put this book down!!! A BLAST OF FUN AND SUSPENSE!!

Mystery Man is the first book in the Dream Man series and after getting my Chaos fix I decided that I need to pick up this series since its connected and yeah its REALLY fun and I have been addicted to this series. The audio especially is very well done, I really think that Kate Russell implents the voice of Kristen Ashley so well and her books that she narrates tend to just come alive for me. Now Mystery Man is a bit different than I was expecting in that there was a bit of a love triangle….kinda. I mean its obvious who the heroine ends up with in the end, but there are other conflict of interests and I wasn’t sure if it would work for me but it really does.

Gwendolyn Kidd has been in a sexual relationship with her “dream man” who comes to her at night and for over a year they have lots of bouts of hot sex and Gwen doesn’t seem to want to tell him no. Even though she wants more than just sex with a man she doesn’t even know his first name to, she also can’t deny the connection she feels to him, a connection she has never felt for anyone else. But things dramatically change between them when drama comes to her door and her life will be turned upside down. Her sister is a troublemaker and Gwen has always had to bail her out. But when she goes to the man she believes is her sister’s boyfriend, it turns out she has burned her bridge because she finds out that her sister owes the Chaos club a few million dollars and that just isn’t the type of money that she has.

“About five seconds after I left you today, things between you and
me, they changed,” he informed me in a quiet voice.
I felt my brows draw together as my mind processed the fact that
this was not good.
“Changed?” I asked. “How?”
“You got attitude, the kind I like. So I decided I’m gonna ride that
attitude wave of yours, see how things work out.

And this is where she meets Tack, the head of the Chaos club and a man she is attracted to and reaches out a hand to offer her help because he knows that she is an innocent bystander and Tack doesn’t go after innocents. But Gwen soon realizes that there is more than just the Chaos club to worry about because her sister has betrayed all groups of people and they will come after her and this is where her dream man comes into play. She doesn’t know exactly what he does, but she soon learns his name is Hawke and is a leader of a team and Hawke isn’t going to let her go and put herself in danger. But now Gwen has to face up to the fact that Hawke isn’t a man she can cross because he wants her in his life and will fight for her and the life they could have together…..

“You’re bossy, arrogant, intrusive, annoying… ”
His minor grin amplified.
See! Totally unrepentant…
“Do I have anything going for me?”
“… you can be sweet, you’re a cuddler, and you carried me out of a burning building…”
“I’m a cuddler?”
“You spoon.”
His brows went up. “That’s important enough to be on your list?”
“Uh… yeah.”
[He’s grinning] “Fuckin’ ridiculous what women think is important.

WHEW….THIS BOOK!!! Okay so I have read quite a few of Kristen Ashley books so far and have pretty much enjoyed most of what I have read so far but I want to mention this might be one of my favorites its up there with Own The Wind and Golden Dynasty and Knight and one of my favorite alpha males that this author has written. She writes them so well but what I love about Hawke is he isn’t your normal jerk hero. He can be a jerk no doubt about that, but it isn’t him being an ass or anything. He has so many great qualities to admire.

In Mystery Man we do have a plot of suspense and mystery and trying to find out why Gwen’s life is in danger and how to resolve her sisters problem. But we also have the focus of the romance between Hawke and Gwen. Now granted, these two have been in love for a while but Hawke is so SMART. He knows that Gwen is closed off from him and won’t pursue anything deeper than sex until she is ready to open herself up to him. Gwen doesn’t fully realize how she has put Hawke at arms length in order to protect herself. Both Gwen and Hawke have painful pasts, and Hawke has a past that is more painful than Gwen could ever imagine and if both Hawke and Gwen have to realize facing their past and relying on each other is what will aid in the healing but they have to want to overcome the painful memories and fight for what they have.

“Would have made a deal with the devil to…Don’t have that chance so nothin’ I can do about that. But I darkened your door and you lit up my life again so I’m not lettin’ that go.”

We are introduced to many characters that will be couples in future books which was really fun and I adore the supporting cast of characters and most especially Tack and Elvira!! I found Mystery Man to be a outstanding story that will delight you in every way you can imagine….unstoppable read that will capture hearts!!