Release Day Review: Searching for Beautiful by Jennifer Probst

Posted in 5 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Searching for Beautiful by Jennifer Probst
Series: Searching For #3 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: May 26th 2015
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher (Gallery Books) in exchange for an honest review

The highly anticipated third novel in the Searching For series from Jennifer Probst, “one of the most exciting breakout novelists” (USA Today), featuring a runaway bride and the man who wants to be more than just her best friend…

Genevieve MacKenzie has her life completely under control. About to wed the charming Chief doctor at the local hospital, she’s an up-and-coming surgeon with everything she could ever want. Until an escape through the church window on the day of her wedding sends her life into a tailspin…and flings her right into her best friend’s arms.

When Wolfe catches his best friend falling out a window on her wedding day, he doesn’t ask questions. He whisks her away, determined to watch over her and discover the truth behind her desperate escape. But when his feelings turn more than platonic, he realizes he may risk his most important relationship in order to protect his damaged heart, and the woman he loves.

Can Genevieve and Wolfe’s friendship turn into something deeper—or is it already too late for true love?

Oh, this book was something special. I adore this series, but this newest one, Searching for Beautiful, easily became my new favorite of the series. I’m a sucker for books with the friends-to-lovers trope and it had been a while since I read one that I wholeheartedly loved, but Searching for Beautiful was absolute perfection! I’m honestly surprised by how much I loved and adored this book. I went into this thinking I’d give this a solid four hearts like I did for the first two books, but the more I read, the more I grew to love Wolfe and Gen and their incredibly heartwarming romance. Searching for Beautiful surpassed my expectations and gave me something so much more, so much better than I ever expected. It’s a beautiful (hehe) friends-to-lovers romance and a touching story of two lost souls discovering the strength within themselves.

A shiver crept down her spine. She looked down at the flawless three-carat diamond ring that shimmered around her finger. A symbol of ownership. Once she committed herself, it would truly be forever. He’d never let her go.
Run.

Genevieve MacKenzie has the perfect life – or does she? She has a job she loves and a perfect man she’s about to marry… so why does she feel terrified on the day of her wedding? Trusting her gut instincts no to make the biggest mistake of her life, Gen escapes from her wedding day with the help of her best friend, Wolfe. Together, the sequester themselves in a cabin so that Gen can take a break and put back the broken pieces of her life. She slowly comes to terms with the fact that she was about to marry a man who was corroding her heart and soul, and she’s ever thankful that she had her best friend by her side to help her get through it.

Funny, from the moment they met, they’d been fated to be friends. Their heart-to-heart conversation set the stage for the future, with none of that crappy sexual tension or flirting. Just a good buddy of the opposite sex who meant the world to her. Kate was her best friend feminine equal, and Wolfe her male.

Wolfe and Gen have been best friends since they met when she was twenty (she’s twenty-six now) – they have such a heartwarming friendship that full of banter, love, and support. But recently, when David started demanding that Gen stop spending time with Wolfe, their friendship was put on hold for a little while. So when they’re at the cabin, Gen and Wolfe are reminded of how much they value and treasure their friendship. That is, until they kiss, and the sexual tension and chemistry skyrockets between them.

Something fierce and primal shook through her. Electricity pulsed between them, and suddenly Gen wanted his mouth over hers, all lips and tongue and teeth, until he possessed and claimed every part of her. She ached to open her thighs and take him deep. Dig her nails into his skin. Mark him. Surrender. Fuck. What was happening to her? Her heart hammered. “Wolfe.”

I’d been so, so looking forward to Gen and Wolfe’s story ever since reading Searching for Perfect because, hello, friends-to-lovers romance! And Jennifer Probst didn’t disappoint – I was able to feel the loving, tender friendship between Wolfe and Gen (they make me smile SO MUCH) as well as the growing romance (and HOT chemistry) between them. Gen was a great heroine with fantastic depth and surprising strength to her character. I loved and admired her, brokenness and all. And oh my word, Wolfe is one sexy, delicious man. Despite his scarred, painful past, he’s risen up to become a famous model and multi-millionaire. I seriously loved this man and his deep, fierce devotion to Gen. And did I mention how HOT Gen and Wolfe are together!? Seriously, you’ll need a fan for this book, because when Wolfe wants something (and he wants Gen BAD), he’ll get it with a single-minded determinedness.

“I dreamed of this for so damn long, but the reality of you is so much better.”

Searching for Beautiful was one of those books that slowly creep up on you until all of a sudden, you’re completely and wholeheartedly in love with it. It’s a gorgeously written, moving romance with incredible characters you grow to adore. And I have to give props to the author – some parts of this book brought tears to my eyes, which almost never happens because I rarely cry for books! Seriously – read. this. book! It’s beautiful, sexy, heart-wrenching – you don’t want to miss it! If you’re a fan of the series, you’re going to love Gen and Wolfe (like I did)!

Quotes are taken from the arc and are subject to change in the final version.

Reading Order: Searching For series

#1 ~ Searching for Someday: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Searching for Perfect: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2.5 ~ Searching for You: Ebook • Goodreads
#3 ~ Searching for Beautiful: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Searching for Always: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4.5 ~ Searching for Mine: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#4.6 ~ Searching for Disaster: Ebook • Goodreads (Oct. 10, 2016)

FOLLOW BOOKLOVERS FOR LIFE ON:
✦ FACEBOOK • TWITTER • GOODREADS • PINTEREST • BLOGLOVIN’ ✦

Subscribe to Blog via Email

23May2015

Review: Off Base by Tessa Bailey & Sophie Jordan

Posted in 4 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Off Base by Tessa Bailey & Sophie Jordan
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: May 22nd 2015
Links: Ebook • Goodreads

OFF BASE: Kenna and Beck
By Tessa Bailey

A welcome home he never expected…and will never forget…

When Kenna Sutton is tasked with driving home newly returned Beck “True Blue” Collier, she expects the strategic Army mastermind to be a pasty number cruncher. Never at a loss for words, Kenna is nonetheless rendered speechless by the gorgeous, inexperienced and tightly-wound Army major that lands in her passenger seat. Outraged by Beck’s lack of a welcome home after seven long years overseas, Kenna takes matters into her own hands, giving Beck something he’s only ever fantasized about in his bunk.

Beck has never shied away from a test of will and Kenna gives new meaning to the word challenge. One problem? Kenna’s father is the lieutenant general presenting Beck with the Silver Star and Beck is determined to treat Kenna with the respect she deserves, even if her eyes beg Beck to act out his most secret desires with her. Desires he’s always been told were the work of the devil. But how long can one lonely, starving man hope to resist the woman he craves?

OFF BASE: Huntley and Cullen
By Sophie Jordan

Being a good girl has its drawbacks…

Huntley Collier, an emergency room nurse and all-around do-gooder, is tired of living in the friend zone. Cullen Brooks was given the job of babysitting Huntley when her brother – his best friend – deployed. But their friendly coffeehouse hangouts and TV marathons leave her wanting more. When one crazy night leads to too many drinks and an explosion of long-denied lust, Huntley’s dreams become a reality. And reality is one hot, wild place she never wants to leave.

But only a good girl can bring down a bad boy…

Known as Sullen Cullen around Black Rock, Cullen Brooks doesn’t have many friends, but Huntley is one of them … and despite his decidedly unfriendly fantasies of the curvy blonde, she is far too sweet for his darker tastes. Keeping his hands off is easier said than done, however, when demure, little Huntley responds to his touch like the wildcat he never expected…and can’t stop pursuing, despite his better judgment. But when Cullen suddenly faces losing her, will this bad boy risk it all to keep his good girl?

I’ve been SO excited for this release ever since I heard about it!! I’m such a HUGE fan of Tessa Bailey’s and I’ll read anything and everything she writes, so of course I had to get my hands on this one! I’d never read a book by Sophie Jordan before, but I was looking forward to read her story in Off Base as well. This new collab release features two novellas from both authors about two hot, sexy military men and the awesome women they fall for and love. And what makes this even better is that a) Tessa Bailey writes about a virgin. hero. and b) Sophie Jordan writes about the older brother’s best friend trope (one of my favorites)!

So that whole virgin hero thing? I’m still fanning myself after reading Tessa’s novella hours ago. Hot damn, can this woman write a virgin hero! I need her to write more virgin heroes! ESPECIALLY ones like Beck, who says things like this…

“I already know you’re going to be the best of my life, Kenna. How do I make sure I’m the best of yours? Tell me.”

Arriving back six years after he was deployed, Major Beck Collier never expected to have a gorgeous woman as Kenna Sutton driving him home. And while Kenna was expecting to be driving some awkward, geeky nerd, she’s utterly shocked that Beck is a sexy, delicious hunk of a man. The two are incredibly attracted to each other from the start – I freaking loved the chemistry between Kenna and Beck! Tessa Bailey writes chemistry between her characters so well that it’s nearly palpable. Kenna learns that Beck is a virgin, one thing leads to another, and this virgin hero is utterly deflowered. And it. is. HOT!!!!! Seriously, get your fans ready, because Beck will knock your socks (and panties) off!

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you’d done this before. A lot.”
“Nah, darlin’. Just you.” He took the single key she offered, turning it in the lock. “You make everything I do feel right. That has nothing to do with experience.”

I adored Beck and Kenna’s story. Kenna was a little frustrating, as she’s very anti-relationship, but I loved the way Beck fought for her and for them. The two of them share a spark they’ve never felt with another, and it was so much fun reading about Beck making Kenna see that the two of them were meant to be together.

Sophie Jordan’s heroine is Huntley Collier, Beck’s little sister. Beck’s best friend Cullen has been looking out for her ever since Beck was deployed, but the time together in Black Rock has made them close friends. What they hide from each other is how desperately they want each other… but when they give in to desire one night, have they wrecked their friendship forever?

Cullen is not a relationship kind of guy, but Huntley is different. She’s one of his closest friends and he knows he doesn’t deserve her, but he can’t stop wanting or needing her. Cullen goes back and forth between taking Huntley and pushing her away, which may have annoyed me more if there wasn’t some hot, dirty sexytimes to make up for it. The older brother’s best friend/best friend’s younger sister is one of my favorite tropes, and Sophie Jordan did a great job in finding the right balance between angst and romance for Cullen and Huntley’s story.

“I love you. I always have. I just didn’t know. You’re in my blood, Huntley. If you go, I’m lost.”

Off Base is one sexy, dirty read that fans of military romances don’t want to miss! Be aware that both these are novellas and not full-length novels. Though I totally wouldn’t say no to more about these characters! I had such a fun (HOT) time reading Off Base. If you like your alpha heroes with a little side of dirty, this is for you!

FOLLOW BOOKLOVERS FOR LIFE ON:
✦ FACEBOOK • TWITTER • GOODREADS • PINTEREST • BLOGLOVIN’ ✦

Subscribe to Blog via Email

23May2015

Blog Tour + Early Review & Excerpt: Hades by Larissa Ione

Posted in 4 hearts, Blog Tours, Reviews by Lacey

Welcome to today’s stop on the Review & Excerpt Tour for Hades by Larissa Ione!

Hades by Larissa Ione
Series: Demonica #11.5 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: May 26th 2015

A fallen angel with a mean streak and a mohawk, Hades has spent thousands of years serving as Jailor of the Underworld. The souls he guards are as evil as they come, but few dare to cross him. All of that changes when a sexy fallen angel infiltrates his prison and unintentionally starts a riot. It’s easy enough to quell an uprising, but for the first time, Hades is torn between delivering justice — or bestowing mercy — on the beautiful female who could be his salvation…or his undoing.

Thanks to her unwitting participation in another angel’s plot to start Armageddon, Cataclysm was kicked out of Heaven and is now a fallen angel in service of Hades’s boss, Azagoth. All she wants is to redeem herself and get back where she belongs. But when she gets trapped in Hades’s prison domain with only the cocky but irresistible Hades to help her, Cat finds that where she belongs might be in the place she least expected…

Buy Links:
Amazon Ebook • Amazon Paperback • Amazon UK

The Demonica series is one of my top favorite PNR series ever! I know that every time I pick up a Larissa Ione book, I’m going to enjoy myself. And Hades absolutely didn’t let me down. I loved being back in the Demonica world, and I had so much fun reading the Jailor of the Underworld’s story. Infused with the perfect amount of humor, action, intensity, and sexiness, Hades is a must read for fans of Larissa Ione!

Cataclysm, a fallen angel booted out of Heaven, is working for Azagoth in the Underworld. She’s trying to get back into Heaven’s good graces, but in the meantime, she’s found a good place for herself in Azagoth’s realm. Cat also has a crush on a certain Jailor of the Underworld, He doesn’t seem to notice her, but when she accidentally starts a riot in his prison, she gets his attention – as well as the attention of some evil creatures. I adored Cat’s character. She’s so heartfelt and genuine, and her awkwardness and clumsiness made her that much more endearing. I thought that she was a perfect match to Hades.

I’d been curious about Hades ever since he first appeared in the series, so I was so happy to know that he would be getting his own story. I really liked Hades’s character – he’s such a flippant person, but he’s got a hidden depth to him that no one sees except Cat. He’s lived thousands of years in loneliness, but the moment he lays eyes on Cat, things start to change for him… excerpt Azagoth has forbidden him to have anything to do with her.

“I want you, Cat. I want you more than I’ve wanted anything since I fell.”

But some things are worth the Grim Reaper’s wrath, right? As Hades fights the rioters to gain back control over his domain, he can’t get Cat out of his mind. He tries to resist temptation (I loved seeing Cat try to seduce Hades), but he soon comes to realize that Cat is the best thing to ever happen to him. And holy wow, Hades and Cat together are HOT!

“I don’t know what I did to deserve you, but I hope you know that I’d do it all over again to be with you. Thousands of years of loneliness was worth every second you’ve been in my life.”

I wish there was a bit more romance – I’m such a sap for love, and Hades and Cat were so perfect together. I wish they had a longer book! Still, Hades was a highly entertaining read – once I picked it up I couldn’t put it down. It’s a short, sexy, sweet novel that paranormal fans and fans of the author shouldn’t miss!

Quotes are taken from the arc and are subject to change in the final version.

Now here’s an excerpt from Hades! ❤

“And what does good and evil feel like?” he rasped. “On your skin, I mean?”

“I’ll show you.” She moved toward him, every step popping out her hips and making her breasts bounce in a smooth, seductive rhythm. His mouth went dry again, but then it began to water as she reached out and placed her palm in the center of his chest.

Very slowly, she dragged her hand along the contours of his pecs, her touch so featherlike that he barely felt it, and yet, he was hyper-aware of every move her hand made, every centimeter of skin her palm passed over.

“Goodness and light,” she said softly, “is like bathing in Champagne. It’s tingly and effervescent. It wakes you up even as it relaxes you.”

“Like sex,” he murmured. “With someone you like.”

“With someone you like?” She blinked. “Why would you have sex with someone you didn’t like?”

A rumbling purr vibrated his chest. “Baby, it’s like fighting, but with orgasms.”

“And less blood, I suppose.”

“Not if you’re doing it right.” He waggled his brows, and she rolled her eyes. “So what does evil feel like to you? If good feels good, then does evil feel bad?”

“That’s the funny thing.” She inched closer, adding another palm to his chest, and he gripped the cup so hard he heard it crack. More. He needed more. And damn her for making him crave it when he’d been perfectly fine being alone for all these years. “It’s as seductive as good, but in a different way.” She shivered delicately. “It’s hot. If good is like bathing in Champagne, evil is like bathing in whiskey. There’s a burn, but it’s almost always a lovely burn.”

Yeah, he felt that lovely burn where she was touching him. As she talked, it spread across his chest and into his abdomen, then lower, to his pelvis and groin. Everything tightened and grew feverish with lust.

“Seems to me,” he said in a humiliatingly rough voice, “that bumping up against evil would be an incredible temptation for angels like you.”

“It is,” she purred. “Which is why we aren’t allowed to leave Heaven except under certain circumstances, and even then, we must have an escort. It’s one of the reasons I know I can’t ever enter Sheoul. To become a True Fallen would be to have my full powers of detection restored, and I’d be skewed toward evil. The few Seraphim who have become fallen angels are like drug addicts, seeking out the most evil beings they can find, to serve them, to just be near them.”

He wondered how having a Seraphim fallen angel as a warden in the Inner Sanctum would play out. Then Cat dragged her palms down his chest to his abs, and he forgot all about everything except what was happening right now, right here in his home.

Reading Order: Demonica series

#1 ~ Pleasure Unbound: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Desire Unchained: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Passioned Unleashed: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Ecstasy Unveiled: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#5 ~ Sin Undone: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#6 ~ Eternal Rider: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#7 ~ Immortal Rider: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#8 ~ Lethal Rider: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#9 ~ Rogue Rider: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#10 ~ Reaver: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#10.5 ~ Azagoth: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#11 ~ Revenant: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#11.5 ~ Hades: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

Larissa Ione is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. An Air Force veteran, she traded in a career as a meteorologist to pursue her passion of writing. She now spends her days in pajamas with her computer, strong coffee, and supernatural worlds. She believes in celebrating everything, and would never be caught without a bottle of Champagne chilling in the fridge…just in case. She currently lives in Wisconsin with her U.S. Coast Guard husband, her teenage son, a rescue cat named Vegas, and her very own hellhound, a King Shepherd named Hexe.

Website • Facebook • Twitter • Newsletter • Pinterest • Goodreads

Follow the Tour

May 22
BBF Book Boyfriends Forever-Excerpt
Books Can Take You There-Review & Excerpt
Collector of Book Boyfriends-Excerpt
Cosying Up With Books-Excerpt
Indy Book Fairy-Review & Excerpt
Read-Love-Blog-Excerpt
When Books Defy Gravity-Excerpt

May 23
BookHounds-Excerpt
BookLovers for Life-Review & Excerpt
Deluged With Books Café-Review & Excerpt
The Book Blog-Review & Excerpt

May 24
Books That Hook-Review & Excerpt
Cocktails and Books-Review & Excerpt
RhiReading-Excerpt
Undercover Book Reviews-Excerpt

May 25
Booky Ramblings of a Neurotic Mom-Review & Excerpt
Grownup Fangirl-Excerpt
Literary Misfit-Review & Excerpt
Love Affair with Fiction-Excerpt
New Syndrome Book-Excerpt
Rambling Reads-Review & Excerpt
TSK TSK What to Read-Review & Excerpt

May 26
A Fortress of Books-Review
CJ’s Book Corner-Excerpt
Diane’s Book Blog-Review & Excerpt
Home is Where the Wine Is-Review
Mama Reads Hazel Reads-Review & Excerpt
Reads All the Books-Review & Excerpt
Sultry, Steamy Reading-Review

May 27
Book Lovin Mamas-Review
Little Read Riding Hood-Review & Excerpt
Lostinthegreatperhaps-Review
The Reading Chameleon-Review & Excerpt

May 28
Between the Lines-Review
Kelsey’s Corner Time-Review & Excerpt
Nite Lite Book Reviews-Review & Excerpt
Reading in Pajamas-Excerpt
Revenge of the Feels-Review & Excerpt
Smut Book Junkie Reviews-Review & Excerpt

May 29
Girls With Books-Excerpt
Got Nikki?-Excerpt
Reading Between the Wines-Excerpt
Travels N Reads-Review & Excerpt
Us Girls & A Book-Review & Excerpt

May 30
Book Liaison-Review & Excerpt
Jax’s Book Magic-Excerpt
Kayla’s Place-Review & Excerpt
Red Moon-Excerpt
Roxy’s Reviews-Excerpt

May 31
Becky on Books-Review & Excerpt
Evermore Books-Review & Excerpt
I Heart YA Books-Excerpt
Vera is Reading-Excerpt

FOLLOW BOOKLOVERS FOR LIFE ON:
✦ FACEBOOK • TWITTER • GOODREADS • PINTEREST • BLOGLOVIN’ ✦

Subscribe to Blog via Email

19May2015

Release Day Review: Delicious Temptation by Sabrina Sol

Posted in 2 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Delicious Temptation by Sabrina Sol
Series: Delicious Desires #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: May 19th 2015
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Amara Maria Robles is a good girl. So good that she gave up her dreams of becoming a renowned pastry chef to help her parents with their struggling Mexican bakery. Yet her parents reject any changes she suggests, and refuse to sell her mouth-watering confections. Clearly being a good girl isn’t paying off. So when her brother’s sexy ex-best friend walks into the bakery, Amara’s tempted to be very bad indeed…

After a scandal twelve years ago, resident bad boy Eric Valencia has returned to make things right with his family and friends. One glance at Amara and her wicked curves, however, and Eric finds himself thinking about how she’d feel beneath him—something he promised Amara’s brother he would never think about, let alone do.

But this bad boy is in deep trouble…because Amara’s determined to have her cake, and Eric, too.

Delicious Temptation was a less-than-stellar read for me. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t very good either. I grew easily bored at times, and even got a little frustrated with the characters, but thankfully I never actually hated any of it. This book was just too predictable, although I did love the cupcakes/bakery aspect of the story. The heroine being a pastry chef brought a unique twist to the story, but the characters themselves were not as enjoyable for me.

Eric Valencia has come back to his home to fix the wrongs he made twelve years ago. A recovering alcoholic and former bad boy, Eric had great potential to be the kind of hero who overcomes his past and fights for his future. While I liked his character slightly more than the heroine’s, I still struggled to connect with his character. I normally love the older brother’s best friend trope (in this case, he’s the older brother’s ex-best friend) but I just didn’t get excited over Eric and Amara falling for each other.

Amara was a character who I honestly just didn’t like by the end of the novel. She’s a pastry chef who leaves her job to go back home to help out with her parents’ struggling bakery, and she has no backbone whatsoever. She does what she’s told to by her parents, and when she tries to state her opinion, she gets shot down and doesn’t stand up for herself. She’s a grown adult and yet she’s still allowing her parents to control her. Of course, she breaks out of that once she sees Eric again and they spend more time with each other. But by the time she finally does take a stand against her parents, I was already bored of her character.

The only redeeming things about this book were the writing and the actual bakery. I really enjoyed the writing, so it was disappointing that I had a hard time liking the characters. I was fascinated by all the Mexican baked goods Amara made, and I was impressed by how well the author described them.

If you’re a fan of the older brother’s best friend trope, you might have a better time with this book than I did. I’m definitely still open to reading other books from Sabrina Sol, since I like her writing, but I just struggled too much with the main characters.

Quotes are taken from the arc and are subject to change in the final version.

Reading Order: Delicious Desires series

#1 ~ Delicious Temptation: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Delicious Complication: Ebook • Goodreads (Sept. 28, 2016)

FOLLOW BOOKLOVERS FOR LIFE ON:
✦ FACEBOOK • TWITTER • GOODREADS • PINTEREST • BLOGLOVIN’ ✦

Subscribe to Blog via Email

7May2015

ARC Review: Two of Hearts by Christina Lee

Posted in 3 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Two of Hearts by Christina Lee
Series: Golden Arrow #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: May 5th 2015
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

A gripping standalone adult contemporary romance about finding yourself while taking a second chance at your first love…

Dakota Nakos was always the resilient, strong-willed achiever. But when her father dies and she’s entrusted with the family’s casino, she feels vulnerable, scared, and more than a little emotional — not exactly the best time to see an old lover she’s never really gotten over.

Dakota once meant the world to Shane Garrity. Then suddenly he left town to train as a U.S. Marshal, and their love for each other crashed into a memory. Now he’s come home for her father’s funeral, and one look at the girl he left behind stirs up both memories and regrets, and reignites a fire he feared he’d lost forever.

Dakota may be the same driven girl she always was, but she’s also changed in ways neither could have anticipated. She’s not just a young woman searching for own identity in the Native American community in which she was raised, but one questioning her new life outside her father’s shadow. Above all she wonders if Shane can push past her weakened defenses to rekindle what they once had, or whether the intense blaze between them will ultimately reduce her heart to ashes.

Two of Hearts is the first book I’ve read from Christina Lee. I’d really been looking forward to this one when I read the blurb since I LOVE second chance romances. I found Two of Hearts fairly enjoyable, but sadly, the romance and plot were a bit underwhelming. Still, I really liked the underlying sense of family and friendship tied with the Indian culture that’s portrayed heavily in this book.

Dakota and Shane were each other’s first loves, but when the time came for them to fight for their love, they instead let each other go. They reunite under unfortunate circumstances, at Dakota’s father’s funeral. Dakota and Shane have grown to their full potential in their separated years, but the chemistry between them hasn’t faded for a second. But while Dakota is hesitant to start something again with the boy who broke her heart, Shane recognizes that Dakota is the only girl meant for him and he fights for them and their relationship.

“Don’t you know how much I’ve thought of you over the years? Wondered how you were doing, if you were okay? Whether you still thought of me, too?”

I really would have liked the romance to take center stage, but the book focuses a lot on the casino that Dakota is running. Dakota and her family are being attacked for inheriting an Indian casino but not being fully Indian. There’s a suspenseful angle to this novel, with suspicious characters that Shane, as a U.S. Marshal, is investigating. I found the suspense a bit boring, so I couldn’t enjoy this book as much as I wanted to.

What I liked about Shane and Dakota was how when they separated, they were able to fully grow and follow their ambitions. They didn’t hold each other back, and once they became the people they wanted to be, they found each other again. Even though I didn’t connect with the main characters, I found their story to be sweet and sexy.

This was a good, but not great, read. I was bored during the middle of the book, at least until the suspense finally picked up. If you’re a fan of second chance romances, you should give this a try.

Quotes are taken from the arc and are subject to change in the final version.

Reading Order: Golden Arrow series

#1 ~ Two of Hearts: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Three Sacred Words: Ebook • Goodreads

FOLLOW BOOKLOVERS FOR LIFE ON:
✦ FACEBOOK • TWITTER • GOODREADS • PINTEREST • BLOGLOVIN’ ✦

	Unlocking the Magic… on Review: A Promise of Fire by A…
	Lucas Middleton on Blog Tour // Review + Excerpt:…
	Van on Blog Tour + Release Day Review…
	Amber Elise @ Du Liv… on Audiobook Review: The Stand-In…
	daisyknox on Release Day Review: Tryst Six…

Booklovers For Life

Falling in love with romance one page at a time

Tag Archives: adult