Early Review: Into My Arms by Lia Riley

Into My Arms by Lia Riley

Into My Arms by Lia Riley
Series: Off the Map #3.2 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: September 8th 2015
Links: Ebook • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

“You’re here because I want to touch you.”

Beth Jacobs spends her days slogging away in a corporate “fish bowl,” as the hard-working assistant for one of North America’s youngest dot-com billionaires. Aleksander “Z” Zavtra is the definition of dark and dangerous with a sexy Eastern European snarl. He’s also ruthless. Curt. Exacting. An infuriating man she loves to hate. While Beth hardly sees him, it’s as if he’s always watching her . . .

Z doesn’t do romance. But he never expected to be captivated by a whip-smart, fiery assistant who just so happens to share an uncanny resemblance to the beautiful face that haunts his dreams. He craves Beth. He wants to stroke her skin, to feel her heat beneath him. And what Z wants, he gets. And for one weekend, the lines between employer and employee are blurred as Z and Beth give themselves completely to the dark pleasures they’ve both been dreaming about.

I LOVE office romances, so that’s why I was really looking forward to reading Into My Arms even though I haven’t had the chance to read the Off the Map series. Thankfully, this story can be read as a standalone. While I liked this novella, it just wasn’t fleshed out enough for me – I didn’t have enough time to become fully invested in Beth and Z’s story.

Beth is up to her eyeballs in debt thanks to her parents, and so she can’t quite leave her tiresome job as the assistant for slave driver Aleksander “Z” Zavtra, billionaire and CEO of Zavtra Tech. She’s never even met her boss, as he only communicates with her through email and phone, so it’s a huge surprise when Z invites her to his home one evening.

Z has always been intrigued by Beth since the second he saw her. He comes off as a cold and unfeeling man, but deep down, he has scars that prevent him from reaching out to Beth – until now. Now, he opens up his home and his secrets to her, hoping that she won’t turn away from him once she knows the darkness he carries inside him.

“You kiss me with your eyes every time you look at me.”

Z and Beth’s novella was… okay. I liked reading it, but it could’ve been better. I never got the chance to connect with either characters, and there was a lot of info dumping with Z and Beth’s backstories. What I really enjoyed was the hot chemistry between them, and the deep bond they form during that one weekend at Z’s home.

“Who knows when our chapters will end? None of us know how long our stories will last. All we can do is make sure the pages are filled with life.”
“And you think we can write a happy ending?”
“I don’t know, but I’d rather try than not.”

I’m sure if you’re a fan of the Off the Map series, you’ll want to read Z and Beth’s novella, but reading as someone new to the series and with no previous knowledge of who Z and Beth are, Into My Arms wasn’t quite what I’d hoped it would be. There wasn’t really any forbidden-ness or excitement in this novella that I expect there to be in an office romance. Still, the characters were intriguing enough to keep me reading. I highly enjoyed the writing, so I’m definitely open to reading Lia Riley’s other books.

3 hearts
lacey

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


Reading Order: Off the Map series

Upside Down by Lia Riley Side Swiped by Lia Riley
Inside Out by Lia Riley Carry Me Home by Lia Riley Into My Arms by Lia Riley

#1 ~ Upside Down: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sideswiped: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Inside Out: EbookPaperback • AudibleGoodreads
#3.1 ~ Carry Me Home: Ebook • Goodreads
#3.2 ~ Into My Arms: Ebook • Goodreads (Sept. 8, 2015)


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ARC Review: The Moment of Letting Go by J.A. Redmerski

The Moment of Letting Go by J.A. Redmerski

The Moment of Letting Go by J.A. Redmerski
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: August 11th 2015
Links: EbookPaperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

You can follow the rules or you can follow your heart…

THE MOMENT OF LETTING GO

Sienna Murphy never does anything without a plan. And so far her plans have been working. Right after college, she got a prestigious job and gained the stability she’d always craved–until work takes her to the sun-drenched shores of Oahu and places her in the path of sexy surfer Luke Everett. For the first time, she lets her heart take control. Drawn to his carefree charm, she makes a spontaneous and very un-Sienna-like decision to drop everything and stay in Hawaii for two more weeks.

Luke lives fast and wild. When he meets Sienna, he’s convinced that some no-strings-attached fun is just what she needs. As their nights quickly turn from playful to passionate, Luke can’t deny the deep connection he feels. But there’s a reason Luke doesn’t do long-term. He can’t promise Sienna forever, when the enormity of his past has shown him just how fragile the future can be.

I really liked The Moment of Letting Go – I may not have loved it like I wanted to, but it’s still a sweet, meaningful book that I enjoyed. In this book, J.A. Redmerski writes a heartwarming tale about taking chances, facing your fears, and letting go.

“We’re all stronger than our weaknesses,” he says. “Sometimes we just need someone else to help us find that strength.”

Sienna Murphy lives life by the paycheck. She grew up poor, so she chose a job where she wouldn’t have to worry about money ever again. She’s well-off as a wedding planner, but lately it seems like work has become her life. Her latest assignment takes her to the gorgeous beaches of Oahu, Hawaii, where she hopes she’ll have downtime to relax and expand her photography skills. Sadly, the wedding doesn’t go off as planned and Sienna once again gets swept up in work. It isn’t until she meets Luke Everett, a cute local surfing instructor, that she begins to question what she really wants out of life.

…my life has, for the most part, stayed on one straight course, never risking unfamiliar roads, rarely contemplating change–but Luke makes me feel like I can, that it’s somehow safe to take a chance on something unknown. It’s frightening, yes, but it’s also exciting, and that’s just not something I think I can ignore.

Luke challenges Sienna to take more risks and to discover her true passion in life. Sienna is deathly afraid of heights, but with Luke’s help, she learns to step out of her comfort zone and face her fears. Luke himself is a daredevil and hiding some secrets of his own, so these two characters couldn’t be more different. But Luke and Sienna form a connection from the very moment they meet. There’s attraction, yes, but there’s so much more to their relationship that I really appreciated reading about. The Moment of Letting Go is not just a story of girl meets boy in Hawaii – it’s the kind of story that takes you on a discovery of self, passion, and life.

“Most people never let their feet leave the ground,” he goes on. ”Whether they’re afraid of heights, or afraid of hospitals, or they stay in the same place all their life because they’re afraid of change–so many people go through life on the ground and die without ever knowing that they can fly.”

I really enjoyed experiencing Sienna and Luke’s story – I loved being swept away by the gorgeous Hawaii setting and I adored how Luke took Sienna on an adventure, pushing her just enough to truly experience life. I didn’t really connect with their characters, but I appreciated their story nonetheless. I did get a little annoyed at the secrets Luke keeps from Sienna – we know what those secrets are, since the book is told in dual POV, but for the majority of the book, Luke keeps a huge secret from Sienna that I really didn’t understand why he hadn’t revealed sooner.

Still, The Moment of Letting Go is quite honestly a feel-good read. I enjoyed it for the most part, though it didn’t wring any intense emotions out of me. It was missing that spark for me that would normally make me love a book, but it’s not bad. I think fans of J.A. Redmerski would definitely enjoy this newest standalone of hers.

3.5 hearts
lacey

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


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Blog Tour + Early Review & Giveaway: Frisk Me by Lauren Layne

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Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Frisk Me by Lauren Layne!

Frisk Me by Lauren Layne

Frisk Me by Lauren Layne
Series: New York’s Finest #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: July 28th 2015
Publisher: Forever
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After a photograph of Luc Moretti saving a tourist hits social media, he instantly becomes New York’s most famous and beloved cop. When a major network decides to run a special on the “American Hero,” Luc’s boss gives him no choice but to cooperate in the name of good exposure for the department. Luc doesn’t mind the celebrity status-what he does mind is the gorgeous brunette journalist who’s been assigned to follow his every move. Especially since she also happens to be the same knockout that rejected him rather publicly the week before.

Ava Sims is a woman who gets what she wants. And what she wants is to be CBC’s lead anchor-but to get there, she’ll need to nail the fluff piece on the playboy cop. Luc Moretti is everything Ava knows to stay away from: a stubborn charmer with a hero-complex. But the more Ava gets to know Luc and his oddball family, the more she realizes that beneath the swagger and the blue uniform is a complex man who makes her heart beat too fast. Soon, Ava’s doing the unthinkable, and falling for the best of New York’s finest …

Buy Links:
Amazon • Barnes & Noble • iTunes • Kobo

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It’s been a while since I’ve read a good man-in-uniform book, but Frisk Me, starring officer Luc Moretti, was an absolute delight to read. I was a big fan of Lauren Layne’s when I read one of her Redemption books, but Frisk Me only solidified to me how great of an author she is. This was a great first book in a new series (about some sexy men-in-uniform!) that I’m already looking forward to reading more of.

Luc has become a famous hero when he’s recorded doing something he feels any other compassionate person would do. The video becomes viral, and Luc is thrust into celebrity very unwillingly. All he wants is the media attention to go away, but he’s instead forced to let a TV reporter follow him around and write up a story about his life.

He was all over the place with her. Amiable one minute, prissy the next.
Kissing her one day.
Yelling at her the next.
A match made in heaven, they were not.

Luc’s moody brooding about his newfound celebrity was just… adorable. He’s normally a fun, charming guy, but Ava Sims, the reporter, gets under his skin. He’s annoyed with her, no matter how gorgeous she looks or how hot the chemistry between them is. Ava also doesn’t want to follow around the cop who gave her a ticket three years ago, but this ‘hero story’ will be the launch of her career. I loved that Frisk Me was a bit of an enemies-to-lovers romance – the banter between Ava and Luc is hilarious and I could definitely feel the hot chemistry between them!

Slowly, Ava and Luc start to warm up to each other as they get to know one another. Frisk Me was a heartfelt book, and though it was slow in the beginning, I was soon rooting for Luc and Ava’s HEA. They just meshed so well together, and it was easy to see that they were perfect for each other.

“I’d give up being everybody else’s hero, if you’ll just let me be yours.”

I also have to mention that the Moretti family is absolutely hilarious! I was laughing out loud at so many ridiculous things that Luc’s family says. Luc’s grandmother, Nonna, is a hoot. She has no shame in what she does, wears, or says. I loved her! I was also SUPER intrigued by Luc’s two older brothers, who will also be getting their books. I have a feeling I’m going to enjoy Anthony and Vincent’s books even more than I did Luc’s.

Frisk Me was overall just a great read. There was just enough drama and intensity to balance out the lighter, fun moments to make this a well-rounded book. I had so much fun reading Frisk Me and cannot WAIT for the second book!

4 hearts
lacey

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

Reading Order: New York’s Finest series

Frisk Me by Lauren Layne Steal Me by Lauren Layne Cuff Me by Lauren Layne

#1 ~ Frisk Me: EbookPaperbackAudible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Steal Me: My Review • EbookPaperback • AudibleGoodreads
#3 ~ Cuff Me: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

about the author button

Lauren LayneLauren Layne is the USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance.

Prior to becoming an author, Lauren worked in e-commerce and web-marketing. In 2011, she and her husband moved from Seattle to New York City, where Lauren decided to pursue a full-time writing career. It took six months to get her first book deal (despite ardent assurances to her husband that it would only take three). Since then, Lauren’s gone on to publish ten books, including the bestselling Stiletto series, with several more on the way in 2015.

Lauren currently lives in Chicago with her husband and spoiled Pomeranian. When not writing, you’ll find her at happy hour, running at a doggedly slow pace, or trying to straighten her naturally curly hair.

Website • Facebook • Twitter • Goodreads

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$50.00 Amazon eGift Card
Signed Copies of FRISK ME, ONLY WITH YOU and MADE FOR YOU
(Print US/Ebook INTL)

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Early Review: Ruin & Rule by Pepper Winters

Ruin & Rule by Pepper Winters

Ruin & Rule by Pepper Winters
Series: Pure Corruption MC #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: July 7th 2015
Links: EbookPaperbackAudible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

“We met in a nightmare. The in-between world where time had no power over reason. We fell in love. We fell hard. But then we woke up. And it was over . . .”

RUIN & RULE

She is a woman divided. Her past, present, and future are as twisted as the lies she’s lived for the past eight years. Desperate to get the truth, she must turn to the one man who may also be her greatest enemy . . .

He is the president of Pure Corruption MC. A heartless biker and retribution-deliverer. He accepts no rules, obeys no one, and lives only to reap revenge on those who wronged him. And now he has stolen her, body and soul.

Can a woman plagued by mystery fall in love with the man who refuses to face the truth? And can a man drenched in darkness forgo his quest for vengeance-and finally find redemption?

He touched me like a man in love. He touched me like a man who knew me. Who adored me and wanted me for just as long as I’d wanted him.
It was a lie.

HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!!!!

This book was just – WOW! Stunning. Captivating. Dark and gritty. So epically written and handled. I loved it!

I’ve only read three other books by Pepper Winters – Tears of TessDestroyed, and Debt Inheritance – and while I liked them… they were nothing compared to Ruin & Rule. Ruin & Rule was truly an experience – it’s the type of book you get absorbed into and never lets you go. It’s so addicting and beautifully written – it’s definitely the best Pepper Winter book I’ve read so far.

The heroine wakes up with no knowledge of who she is – her memories are a complete blank slate. She doesn’t know her name or where she’s from and most importantly, why she wakes up bound and captive.

How could I deal with this new world if I didn’t know what skills I had to stay alive? How could I hope to defeat my enemy when my mind revolted and locked me out?
Who am I?
To have who I was deleted… It was unthinkable.

She finds herself held hostage by the Pure Corruption MC – by the MC president who she believes she knows from her past. Every look into Arthur Killian’s eyes is like coming home… except he looks at her with hate. My heart was aching for the heroine, for how desperate she was to find out who she was and who Kill was to her. She starts remembering snippets of memories, nothing concrete, but she knows Kill recognizes her. But unless she can prove it, she stuck as a hostage about to be sold.

Once upon a time, I’d loved him in a nightmare so much worse than this one. I’d grown wet for him in another reality, all while he worshipped me, adored me.
It wasn’t my fault I couldn’t separate fact from fiction, truth from fable.

This book took me on a roller coaster of emotions. I wanted so badly for the heroine to remember who she was – I wanted to know who she was – but nothing would force the memories back into her brain. And Kill – oh my god, Kill! I loved him. He’s powerful, dark, dangerous, and NOT a good man… but I was freaking addicted to his character. He’s a man who lives on vengeance and hate but is inexplicably drawn to the woman who reminds him of his lost love.

The undeniable chemistry between Kill and heroine took my breath away. Their connection is strong and raw and intense, and when they fall into bed with each other, it is scorching. It gets seriously HOT between them – the sex is off. the. charts! There’s an animal-like intensity between them that I freaking loved.

Ruin & Rule is not an easy read. There are so many layers to this book, so many questions and only a few of them are answered. Pepper Winters masterfully creates a plot that is as puzzling as it is intriguing. Her writing is so, SO good – almost poetic. I loved the writing, I was addicted to the story, and I was intrigued by the characters… this book is just a MUST READ! I couldn’t put it down for a second. And the ending! Ruin & Rule ends on a cliffhanger, and while I normally don’t like cliffhangers, this one didn’t bother me very much. I was expecting it, and it felt like the right place to end the first book while still leaving you wanting for the second. I highly recommend this book – it’s so worth the read, even if you don’t like cliffhangers!

4.5 hearts
lacey

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


Reading Order: Pure Corruption MC series

Ruin & Rule by Pepper Winters Sin & Suffer by Pepper Winters

#1 ~ Ruin & Rule: EbookPaperbackAudible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sin & Suffer: My Review • EbookPaperback • Audible • Goodreads


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ARC Review: Opening Up by Lauren Dane

Opening Up by Lauren Dane

Opening Up by Lauren Dane
Series: Ink and Chrome #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: June 16th 2015
Links: EbookPaperback • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lauren Dane delivers Book #1 in her Ink & Chrome erotic romance series.

The men of the Twisted Steel custom motorcycle shop are great with their hands… and they’re not afraid to get dirty.

PJ is exactly the kind of woman Twisted Steel owner Asa Barrons doesn’t need. The last thing he wants to do is mix business with pleasure, and PJ has some of the best custom detailing he’s ever seen. But the chemistry between them won’t be denied, and soon he’s introducing her to a whole new world in the bedroom, pushing her far beyond anything she’s ever experienced. PJ finds she can’t get enough, but how far is too far before he consumes her completely?

Opening Up is the first book in Lauren Dane’s new Ink and Chrome series. I had high expectations for this one, based on what I read from the blurb – and while it’s a fairly okay, good read, the writing and plot just weren’t exceptional enough to truly grasp or hold my attention. I was intrigued in the beginning, but when things felt flat, I got bored a lot. Still, for those who like erotic romances (and this one is HOT) with a gruff, domineering alpha-male, then you might like this more than I did.

This book was off to a promising start – Penelope Jean “PJ” Colman, daughter of the richest man in town, is a sexy, badass, confident woman who wants to be able to contribute more to her father’s company. She’s fantastic with cars, custom painting in particular, and she catches the eye of Twisted Steel co-owner Asa Barrons. Asa is alpha-male to the max – he takes no shit from anyone and exudes a sexuality that PJ can’t resist. But he happens to be thirty-seven to her twenty-five, which Asa feels is too young for him, despite the desire she sparks in him. Asa uses their age difference to keep her away, but his alpha-male tendencies are too strong when it comes to PJ and he claims her for his. The chemistry between Asa and PJ is seriously hot – I’ve heard Lauren Dane is an excellent erotic romance author, and I wasn’t disappointed with the chemistry in this book – and it gets even hotter when Asa’s kink comes into play.

PJ herself is dealing with issues with her family and company. The author does a great job of integrating the sexism and misogynistic attitudes PJ faces in the car industry, especially from her male relatives. PJ admirably fights for herself and her talent of custom painting to make a name for herself in the industry.

My main problem with this book is the writing. It was just too… flat. It was more a telling, not showing, and it got on my nerves the more I read. It’s not bad writing, but it’s not very good writing either. And it affected the way I perceived the novel, because for the life of me I just couldn’t connect with Asa or PJ, despite how much I admired them. I liked that PJ and Asa handled problems with maturity and communicated well with one another. Sadly, I felt like their story was just too tame, with not enough to wring emotions out of me.

That being said, it’s not a bad book. It’s more of an okay one. I really wanted to love it, but the writing was just not for me.

3 hearts
lacey


Reading Order: Ink and Chrome series

Opening Up by Lauren Dane Falling Under by Lauren Dane Coming Back by Lauren Dane

#1 ~ Opening Up: EbookPaperback • AudibleGoodreads
#2 ~ Falling Under: EbookPaperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Coming Back: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads (Dec. 8, 2015)


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