Monday, December 11, 2017

Book Review: Denying Ecstasy by Setta Jay

Author: Setta Jay
Series: Guardians Of The Realms #3
Audience: +18
Genre: Erotic Romance, Paranormal Romance,
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: June 28th 2014
My Rating: 5 Cups
Source: My copy
Blurb (from Goodreads):
A headstrong sassy mortal, Rain is a Mageia living in Tetartos, the Realm of beasts and Immortals. Her nights have been restless, filled with sensual dreams of a big blonde Guardian whose glares indicate he wants nothing to do with her. She is determined to shake off the odd feelings until she finds out her dream lover is responsible for her rescue from a demented Demi-God. In doing so, his touch ignites something rare and coveted. Something that she’s never anticipated… Something he should have told her about. Rain is set on making him explain and then feel the full force of her ire.

After a devastating betrayal resulting in the loss of a close friend a century ago, Dorian refuses to trust or engage with Immortals other than his Guardian family. His years of brutal fighting in the underground Immortal rings are over. He patrols the Realms and slakes his lust with the humans on Earth. Existing, but not living as he used to. He knows the moment he scents Rain that he has found his mate and after touching her he plans to avoid her as long as he can... Until he learns she is in danger. Raging, his beast demands that he go to her, but taking her from their enemy has repercussions he fully plans to escape at all costs.

For Dorian, finding a way out of mating Rain means he could succumb to madness and harm those that mean so much to him… but giving in to his burning urge for her means losing control in a heated mating frenzy sure to ignite them both and link them forever.
The story of the Guardians of the four realms of the Earth continues in Denying Ecstasy and let me tell you, it was fantastic.

Dorian is a male that's been betrayed in the past, a betrayal that resulted in the death of a really close friend. That betrayal makes him reject the fact that he might have a mate, no matter how badly resisting the frenzy hurts him or Rain. He is a very proud male that doesn't trust easily, and for that reason he tries really hard to resist being with Rain. At the same time, though, he can't help but be drawn to her. He's a very strong, very powerful, very loyal male, and because of his status as one of the twelve Guardians he can't get over the fact that his behavior, his lust, resulted in his best friend dying. He's being really hard on himself, and while his refusal to accept that he's found his mate might seem a bit exaggerated, it kinda makes sense. I saw his refusal as a form of self punishment more than him not trusting Rain, since his best friend will never get the chance to find his fated mate. Sure, there's some mistrust there on his part, since he was betrayed by a female he knew, but I still think it was more him punishing himself than anything else. I really felt sorry for Dorian, because I could tell how truly sorry he was, how much he regretted the past.

At the same time we have Rain, who is the perfect female for Dorian in my opinion. She is Alyssa's best friend, and while Rain is not necessarily jealous of her childhood friend, she's definitely feeling her mortality a little bit. I loved the fact that that she didn't let Dorian walk all over her and that she called him out a few times when she had the chance. At the same time, I also felt sorry for her, because the actions of one hateful woman had so much power over Dorian, and by extent, over Rain herself.

While the focus of the story is mostly on Dorian and Rain, we do get some Brianne and Vane scenes that I love. I kept wishing for them to be mates, because they truly love each other. So I'm really curious to see what will happen with these two.

As already used to from the first two books of the series, this book was HOT. And I do mean steamy, guys! The immortals in this book are sexual creatures and the mortals that are mated to them are just as affected by the mating frenzy as the immortals themselves. So do keep that in mind.

There were a few things going on in this book that made me very, very curious to find out what's next for the Guardians and the world in general. I like the way this story is going and I cannot wait for more.



Sunday, December 10, 2017

Book Review: Love And Let Die by Lexi Blake

 Love And Let Die by Lexi Blake
Author: Lexi Blake
Series: Masters and Mercenaries #5
Audience: +18
Genre: Erotic Romance, Contemporary Romance, BDSM
Publisher: DLZ Entertainment LLC
Release Date: October 1st 2013
My Rating: 5 Cups
Source: Author
Blurb (from Goodreads):
Ian Taggart and the whole McKay-Taggart Security team return in Love and Let Die.

A Tragic Love Story

Charlotte Dennis’s mission was clear: distract and misdirect CIA operative Ian Taggart by any means necessary. If she failed, she would never see her sister again. With her training, it should have been simple, but after one night in Ian’s arms, she knew that saving her sister would mean losing the man of her dreams. Ian was tracking a terrorist when he met the beautiful American daughter of a Russian mobster. His instincts told him Charlotte was trouble, but his body craved her like a drug and his heart would not be denied. She took his ring and his collar. For once he was truly happy. But as he closed in on his target, her betrayal cost him his mission while her sacrifice saved his life. As she died in his arms, Ian vowed he would never love again.

A Dangerous Reunion

For six years, Charlotte has thought of nothing but returning to her husband, her Master. Working in the shadows, she has devoted herself to earning a chance to reclaim her place in Ian’s life. But forgiveness isn’t a part of Ian’s vocabulary. Nothing is more important to Ian Taggart than his new mission. But the information he needs is firmly in the hands of the woman who betrayed him. To catch his most dangerous prey, Ian will have to let Charlotte back into his life. As the hunt takes them to some of the world’s most exotic locations, the danger grows and their passion reignites.

Will Ian forgive his wayward submissive…or lose her again?
*Disclaimer: I received an e-copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of my review in any way.

The big guy of this series is finally getting his story told and let me tell you, I'm a really happy reader.

You already know about my love of Ian and Charlotte Taggart, so it's no surprise that I love their book as much as I do. I may or may not have read this book multiple times too, because that's just what I do with stories I love as much as this one, I obsess over them.

I finally understood why Ian was as dark as he was in the beginning of this series. And as reckless as he was. It all makes sense. I also kinda understood why he did what he did in the first book of the series, Sean's book, when he made a decision that put his relationship with his brother at risk. But I get it. Everything made sense when I read this book. The fact that Ian survived the emotional pain of losing his wife shows just how strong he is. And I say survived, but definitely not recovered from it, because we know he never truly did recover from it. Charlie was the one for him. And I completely understood the way he treated her in the beginning of this book. He basically got his heart broken twice by the same woman, so him being a bit angry, hurtful and mean makes a lot of sense.

At the same time I couldn't help but love Charlie. She had to overcome a lot of tough shit from her past, and while she had to do some really bad stuff along the way, she didn't lose her humanity or her soul in the process. I loved how throughout the book she and her sister Chelsea are shown to be complete opposites. Chelsea, her younger sister, is darker, more lost due to the horrors of her childhood, while Charlie still has some pureness in her.

I really liked how the issue of commitment in a BDSM relationship was approached in this story. Here we have a guy whose wife died and tried everything in his power to survive that pain and did everything he possibly could to cope and to live in the fantasy of being with her one last time, while at the same time we have a woman who knows her husband is alive and well, and she did everything her Dom told her to do, even after she left him. I liked that aspect, as well as Charlotte's reasoning behind doing some of the things she did to honor her contract with Ian.

There were some funny moments too. As already used to from future books when these two appear, I already knew Ian and Charlie are a really funny couple, so I was very glad to see that this was also present in their book.

The plot was really interesting and it shows how cunning the villain was, and how dehumanizing ultimate power can be for some people. It also kind of explains the first arc of this series really well and it shows that sometimes there's a fine line between good and evil. We also understand what ties together certain events and certain characters, because this book adds a piece to the puzzle that shows exactly those details. The ending was really fitting and I liked how in the end Ian chose Charlie above everything else, even when everything seemed to be pointing towards her not being a trustworthy person. So I liked that he took a chance with her. As always, we get a glimpse in the future of the series and Damon is next. I am very excited to see what his story will bring.


Monday, December 4, 2017

2018 Beat The Backlist Sign-up Post



Well hello my dear bookworms! The reading challenges for 2018 are starting to appear and I'm trying to decide which one to sign up to. One of the challenges I just know I'll sign up to is Novel Knight's Beat The Backlist challenge.

I previously signed up for the 2017 edition of this challenge, however life happened and I wasn't able to even hit the half mark on my initial goal. Which makes me sad, but that's another story. Anyway.

Because I want to read those books I signed up with last year, I'll keep the list the same, taking out those books I've already finished (the amazing, unbelievably huge number of 2, if you want to know), and adding a few more books that I probably won't get to finish before the year is over. So, without further ado, here's my list for Beat The Backlist:

  1. The Pelican Brief - John Grisham
  2. The Firm - John Grisham
  3. The Gathering - Kelley Armstrong
  4. Roverandom - J.R.R. Tolkien
  5. The Children of Hurin - J.R.R. Tolkien
  6. Outlander - Dianna Gabaldon
  7. The Book Thief - Markus Zusak
  8. Wedding Night - Sophie Kinsella
  9. Unrivaled - Alyson Noel
  10. Evening Class - Maeve Binchy
  11. Dangerous Creatures - Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl
  12. Dangerous Deception - Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl
  13. The Taxidermist's Daughter - Kate Mosse
  14. The Square Root Of Summer - Harriet Reuter Hapgood 
  15. Girls In The Moon - Janet McNally
  16. City of Weird: 30 Otherworldly Portland Tales - Gigi Little
  17. The Palace - Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
  18. Started For Ten - David Nicholls
  19. Legacy - Hannah Fielding
  20. The Chic Boutique On Baker Street - Rachel Dove
  21. The Children Of Freedom - Marc Levy
  22. Matilda - Roald Dahl
  23. Charlie And The Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
  24. Ariel - Donna McDonnald
  25. The Soul Summoner - Elicia Hyder
  26. The Treemakers - Christina L. Rozelle
  27. The Last Priestess - Elizabeth Baxter
  28. More Than Exes - Elizabeth Briggs
  29. Nefertiti's Heart - A.W. Exley
  30. Netherworld - K.N. Lee
  31. Novelista Girl - Meredith Schorr
  32. Puck Buddies - Tara Brown
  33. Finding Home - Lauren K. McKellar 
  34. Unseen - Stephanie Erickson
  35. The Color Of Water In July - Nora Carroll
  36. Aurora Sky - Nikki Jefford
  37. Dirty Little Secrets - Liliana Hart
  38. Embers - Karen Ann Hopkins
  39. The Faerie Guardian - Rachel Morgan
  40. The Language of Souls - Lena Goldfinch
  41. The Language of Sparrows - Rachel Phifer
  42. Shimura Trouble - Sujata Massey
  43. Graveyard Shift - Angela Roquet
  44. Suspended - Sarah Noffke
  45. Atlantis Riptide - Allie Burton
  46. Marked - Elisabeth Naughton
  47. The Dark Of Twilight - Kate Danley
  48. The Illusionist's Apprentice - Kristy Cambron
  49. A Kiss of Venom - Hailey Edwards
  50. Frostbitten - Kelley Armstrong
  51. Waking The Witch - Kelley Armstrong
  52. Spell Bound - Kelley Armstrong
  53. Thirteen - Kelley Armstrong
You can also check out my progress on my Goodreads shelf dedicated to this challenge, that I'll update with books as I read them/as I decide to read more backlist titles. Right now, there are 53 planned books for this challenge for me to read. 

Are you signing up for this challenge? What's your goal?

Edited to add: I'm on the Book Bards team


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