HE’LL PLAY BY HER RULES UNTIL SHE FALLS FOR HIM…HOOK, LINE, AND SINKER.
When an anonymous letter stuns hipping magnate and confirmed bachelor Ben Sinclair with the news that he has a teenage son, he’s determined to make good on the past. But Emma Sands doesn’t trust him. The beautiful, fiery blonde has raised her nephew in the peaceful woods of Maine since he was five, and just because fifteen-year-old Michael is the spitting image of his tall, handsome father doesn’t give Ben the right to march in and change their lives forever. Or so she thinks, until his return mysteriously unearths a dangerous small-town secret. With Michael’s help, Ben will do whatever it takes to prove to fiercely independent Emma that he can be the fearless protector she never knew she wanted…and the passionate lover she always though she could resist.
This was only the second book I’ve read by the author, but it made me want to read the rest of the author’s backlist. Ben is the typical confirmed bachelor, but does what’s needed when he find out he had a son when he was a young man. I loved how even though he goes in seeking revenge that he can’t do hold onto it when faced with Michael and Emma. I would have felt very differently about the story if he had been able to treat either of them badly. Emma has raised Michael since he was five years ago, but knows that he needs more than she can give him. I loved how unselfish both Ben and Emma were in regards to Michael. It made them a perfect match.
This was a very fast, fun read. The mystery and the romance are perfectly balanced. I can’t wait to read more by this author.
Of all the hotel rooms rented by all the adulterous politicians in Chicago, female Assistant U.S. Attorney Cameron Lynde had to choose the one next to 1308, where some hot-and-heavy lovemaking ends with a death. And of all the FBI agents in Illinois, it had to be Special Agent Jack Pallas who gets assigned to his high-profile homicide. The same Jack Pallas who still blames Cameron for a botched crackdown three years ago - and for nearly ruining his career…
…INTO EACH OTHER’S ARMS
Work with Cameron Lynde? Are they kidding? Maybe, Jack thinks, this is some kind of welcome-back prank after his stint away from Chicago. But it’s no joke; the pair is going to have to put their rocky past behind them and focus on the case at hand. That is, if they can cut back on the razor-sharp jibes - and smother the flame of their sizzling-hot sexual tension…
This book is very hard to write a review for because I loved everything about it. There is comedy, romance, suspense, and emotion - everything I need in a contemporary romance! Cameron and Jack have the kind of chemistry that sizzles on the page. I loved the bantering and arguing between these two. It was obvious that these two were meant for each other.
the book girl gives SOMETHING ABOUT YOU a 5/5
to find the book (and everyone should buy a copy!):
He was a by-the-book cop who broke the rules in the bedroom…
Micah Hudson has painful secrets he’s run hard from. He has new friends, a new life, but he’s about to be confronted with the one person who reminds him of all he’s tried to forget—Angelina, the sister of his oldest friend David. She knows everything about his past, including how he and David fell in love with the same woman, and how they decided the best way to prevent her from tearing them apart was to share her between them. But then a terrible accident left Micah alone…
She was willing to do anything to make him see the woman she’d become…
Micah lost the two people who meant the most in the world to him. Angelina lost her only family. And she kept her deepest secret close to her heart. Her love for Micah. No longer willing to wait, she decides it’s time to go after him and bring him to his knees. She knows his secrets, his desires, his kinks and fetishes, and she’ll use whatever it takes to reel him in. Behind the easygoing, loves women exterior lies a man with dark needs and passions. She can give him what he wants. But will he decide she’s what he needs?
This is the fourth book in the Sweet series by Ms. Banks and my favorite (I think I say that every time, lol). I’ve been waiting not so patiently for Micah’s book since I first read Sweet Surrender. There is just something about this character that pulled at me and I couldn’t wait to find out what his story was. I wasn’t disappointed at all. Micah left behind his life in Miami when his wife and best friend were killed in a car accident - a fact he hasn’t shared with the people in his life now. So, when Angelina shows up no on understands what’s going on. The fact that he had compartmentalized that part of his life so much showed how upset he was by the past and that he was still running from it, but he couldn’t run with Angel right in front of him. Angel shows him how much she loves him by truly understanding what he needs - maybe even more than he does. I loved these two together. Ms. Banks writes in a way that makes me laugh and cry while writing love scenes that could make a girl blush! Now I need Collin’s book!
Raised as the youngest daughter of the Duke of Kendal, Elizabeth learns a devastating truth on his deathbed: he wasn’t her father at all. And because the Duke had no sons, his title and fortune must go to his only male heir: a distant cousin who left England for America long ago. Anticipating the man’s imminent occupation of her home, Elizabeth anxiously searches for her mother’s diary, and the secret of her paternity…
HER UNEXPECTED FUTURE…
Arriving in London with his seven siblings, William Atherton intends to sell everything and return as quickly as possible. But as Elizabeth shows William an England he never knew, and graciously introduces his siblings to London society, it becomes clear the two are meant for each other. Soon, Elizabeth finds herself determined to seduce the man who can save not only her family name but her heart…
This was the first book I read by this author, but the third book in a connected series. I really enjoyed this book. Elizabeth is a strong character. She is in an upsetting position of having to deal with the knowledge that her father wasn’t really her father and if the new duke would allow her to stay in her home. Will is interesting too. He doesn’t want to be the new Duke, but does want the money it gives him to take care of his many siblings. I loved the interactions between these two - there were definitely sparks. I also loved all of the secondary characters in the books. Especially, Will’s brothers and sisters. They lend a human touch to his character that I think was necessary. All in all a fantastic historical romance.
SHE’S GOT IT ALL…EXCEPT THE ONE THING SHE NEEDS MOST
Smart, successful businesswoman JJ Caruthers has a year to land a husband or lose the empire she’s worked so hard to build. With time running out, she figures a military husband will at least be gone enough to allow her the freedom to live her own life.
HE’S A WOUNDED HERO WITH AN AGENDA OF HIS OWN
Even with the scars of battle, Navy SEAL medic Davy Graziano is gorgeous enough to land any woman he wants, and he’s never wanted to be tied down. Now Davy has ulterior motives for accepting JJ’s outrageous proposal of marriage. But with time running out for Davy to heal and get back to active duty, he only has so long to figure out what JJ doesn’t want him to now.
What starts out as strictly business quickly heats up, and before long they have to admit they’ve gotten a lot more than they bargained for…
This is the third book in a series of connected books - although each can be read as a stand alone. This book started out slow for me. It took me awhile to like JJ - she came across unfeeling and uptight. But as I read the book I began to understand the character and what motivated her. Davy was almost instantly likable. He is a soldier who has sustained some major injuries and is recovering. His head injuries have led him to not remember things as quickly as he used to and some minor things he doesn’t remember at all. These two are sure from the beginning that they aren’t going to fall in love and I like when characters act this way. It makes it more fun to “watch” them fall. SEALED WITH A RING is a fun and heartwarming contemporary romance.
After a woman claims she’s pregnant with Wade O’Riley’s love child, Major League Baseball’s most celebrated catcher and ladies’ man is slapped on the wrist by management and ordered to improve his image. His enforcer is the team’s publicist, the tough and sexy Samantha McNead.
When Wade needs a date for a celebrity wedding, Sam steps up to the plate as his “girlfriend.” But given her secret crush on him and that one awkward night a year ago in a stalled elevator with too much Scotch, the whole thing is an exercise in sexual tension.
Wade is thrilled when the pretense turns into an unexpected night of hot passion. But the next day Sam is back to her cool self. As a catcher, Wade’s used to giving the signals, not struggling to read them. Now, to win the love of his “pretend” girlfriend, he needs a home run - even if it involves stealing a few bases…
This is a perfect contemporary romance. Wade and Sam were first introduced in DOUBLE PLAY, so I already knew that I was going to love this book. They were a fun sub-plot and I was excited to read their whole story. This book has lots of the trademark Shalvis wit. I love to read her books, because they make me laugh and feel. In addition to the romance this story contains family drama. Both characters have less than perfect fathers and that helps to shape how they interact and feel about each other. I loved this book and can’t wait to see what Ms. Shalvis does next!!
the book girl gives SLOW HEAT by Jill Shalvis a 5/5
Fleeing her latest love life disaster, big city journalist Libby Brown’s transition to rural living isn’t going exactly as planned. Her childhood dream has always been to own a farm - but without the constant help of her charming, sexy cowboy neighbor, she’d never make it through her first Wyoming season.
BUT HE COULD SURE KEEP YOU WARM AT NIGHT, TOO…
Handsome rancher Luke Rawlins is impressed by this sassy, independent city girl. But he yearns to do more than help Libby out with her ranch…he’s ready for love, and he wants to go the distance…
Then the two get embroiled in their tiny town’s one and only crime story, and Libby discovers that their sizzling hot attraction is going to complicate her life in every way possible…
This book is more of a romantic suspense than a straight romance. The crime story that Libby is trying to solve is just as important as the romance. Luke is a dream guy. He is kind to everyone in town and takes care of aging parents. Libby tries to resist him, but doesn’t do a very good job at all. There are some comedic moments along with the suspense. The book has a colorful cast of characters - like any small town. I really liked the romance that blossomed between Libby and Luke.
Here’s what I didn’t like about the book. The “mystery” is easily solvable. I could tell who the bad guy was almost from the beginning. A lot of what happened felt like it was just put in to keep the crime a part of the story, but didn’t do much to move the plot along. There are a lot of red herrings - to the point that I found a few absurd.
Sorry for no posts this week. I injured my shoulder last Friday and had to limit activity for the last week, so no computer time. Good news is I read a lot of books and have lots of reviews scheduled for next week:)