Review: Archer by Debra Kayn

Title: Archer (A Hard Body Novel)
Series: Hard Body, #1
Author: Debra Kayn
Published: July 1, 2013
Pages: 240
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Forever Yours
Rating: D-
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
She's on the run . . .

Jane Beaumont currently has in her possession: a cat, a hundred grand in cash, and a pistol. She's on her way home to Bay City, Oregon-and away from the nightmare of her violent ex-boyfriend. She'll lay low at Beaumont Body Shop, a car detailer that runs a private investigation agency in the back. The only wrench in her plan is Kage Archer: sexy, strong, and intent on protecting Jane at all costs. She's wanted Kage forever, but putting him in harm's way is not a risk she's willing to take.

He's not going anywhere

Kage is no stranger to the dark side of life, but he's always walked on the right side of the law. Yet when Jane expressed her interest in him years ago, he pushed her away for her own good. Now, after learning of all she's endured, Kage can't leave her side-or hide his need for her. When a frightening situation turns dire, can Kage convince Jane that the safest place to be is in his arms?

DNF: Beautiful Bitch by Christina Lauren

Title: Beautiful Bitch
Series: Beautiful Bastard, #1.5
Author: Christina Lauren
Published: July 9, 2013
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased
Publisher: Gallery Books
Rating: DNF
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
Picking up where Beautiful Bastard left off, Chloe Mills and Bennett Ryan continue their steamy, combative relationship.

Just when Chloe’s career starts to take off, Bennett wishes it would all slow down long enough to spend a wild night alone with his girlfriend. But after he refuses to take no for an answer, Chloe and Bennett find themselves with two plane tickets, one French Villa, and a surprising conversation that, predictably, leaves them wrestling under the covers.

Review: The Winning Season by Alison Packard

Title: The Winning Season
Author: Alison Packard
Published: July 15, 2013
Pages: 241
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Carina Press
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
Kelly Maxwell has finally landed her dream job as publicist for the San Francisco Blaze. But the team's newest member, handsome bad boy catcher Matt Scanlon, is refusing every interview. She's got to get him to open up before the season ends, or she may not be back next year. And after everything she overcame to achieve her dream, Kelly's not about to let that happen.

Matt Scanlon just wants to be left alone to rebuild his life and his career. After a year of masking the pain of a recent loss with hard partying and fast women, he finally hit rock bottom and was traded to a team he's loathed his entire life—a team with little to no chance at the post-season.

Butting heads is getting Kelly and Matt nowhere but annoyed, and with the team's schedule on the road, they can't avoid close quarters—or their surprising attraction to one another. As the season winds down, Matt finds his growing feelings for Kelly have brought his numbed emotions back to life. But when betrayal shatters their fragile trust, winning it all seems more impossible than ever.

Review: Not Until You Surrender by Roni Loren

Title: Not Until You Part VI: Not Until You Surrender
Series: Loving on the Edge, #3.56
Author: Roni Loren
Published: July 16, 2013
Pages: 57
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Source: Publisher (Penguin Intermix)
Rating: C
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
Cela willingly accepts Foster’s difficult penalty for what she’s done and finds herself more vulnerable and more attracted to him than ever. Unfortunately, she’s also more confused. She’s drawn to Foster’s dark desires but scared by the intensity of her surrender and her growing need for him. So as outside pressures mount, how is she supposed to make the hardest decision of her life?

Foster is falling further and further for Cela, but right as he’s tempted to tell her how he feels, she approaches him with a heartbreaking proposition. There isn’t much Foster wouldn’t sacrifice for Cela’s happiness, but this time that may mean watching the girl he could truly love walk away...

Review: Making It Last by Ruthie Knox

Title: Making It Last - A Novella (Camelot Series)
Series: Camelot, #4
Author: Ruthie Knox
Published: July 15, 2013
Pages: 136
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Loveswept
Rating: B+
Reviewed by: Marq

Favorite quote: "You're the reason for everything. Everything I do."

summary from Goodreads
A hotel bar. A sexy stranger. A night of passion. There’s a part of Amber Mazzara that wants those things, wants to have a moment — just one — where life isn’t a complicated tangle of house and husband and kids and careers. Then, after a long, exhausting “vacation” with her family, her husband surprises her with a gift: a few days on the beach . . . alone.

Only she won’t be alone long, because a handsome man just bought her a drink. He’s cool, he’s confident, and he wants to take Amber to bed and keep her there for days. Lucky for them both, he’s her husband. He’s only got a few days in Jamaica to make her wildest desires come true, but if he can pull it off, there’s reason to believe that this fantasy can last a lifetime.

Early Review: Beauty and the Billionaire by Jessica Clare

Title: Beauty and the Billionaire (BILLIONAIRE BOYS CLUB NOVEL)
Series: Billionaire Boys Club, #2
Author: Jessica Clare
Release Date: July 16, 2013
Pages: 261
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Intermix
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Marq

Favorite quote: "You bring me back to life."

summary from Goodreads
Real-estate tycoon Hunter Buchanan has a dark past that’s left him scarred and living as a recluse on his family’s palatial estate. Hunter is ready to give up on love—until he spots an enigmatic red-haired beauty and comes up with an elaborate scheme to meet her.

Gretchen Petty is in need of a paycheck—and a change. So when a job opportunity in an upstate New York mansion pops up she accepts. And while she can overlook the oddities of her new job, she can’t ignore her new boss’s delectable body—or his barely leashed temper.

Hunter’s afraid his plan might be unraveling before it’s truly begun, but Gretchen is about to show him that life can be full of surprises…

Review: The Story Guy by Mary Ann Rivers

Title: The Story Guy (Novella)
Author: Mary Ann Rivers
Published: July 8, 2013
Pages: 120
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Loveswept
Rating: A
Reviewed by: Marq

Favorite quote: "You were the first thing I asked for, just for me, in a long, long time."

summary from Goodreads


I will meet you on Wednesdays at noon in Celebration Park. Kissing only.

Carrie West is happy with her life . . . isn’t she? But when she sees this provocative online ad, the thirtysomething librarian can’t help but be tempted. After all, the photo of the anonymous poster is far too attractive to ignore. And when Wednesday finally arrives, it brings a first kiss that’s hotter than any she’s ever imagined. Brian Newburgh is an attorney, but there’s more to his life . . . that he won't share with Carrie. Determined to have more than just Wednesdays, Carrie embarks on a quest to learn Brian’s story, certain that he will be worth the cost. But is she ready to gamble her heart on a man who just might be The One . . . even though she has no idea how their love story will end?

Review: Not Until You Trust by Roni Loren

Title: Not Until You Part IV: Not Until You Trust
Series: Loving on the Edge, #3.54
Author: Roni Loren
Published: July 2, 2013
Pages: 66
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Penguin Intermix
Rating: B-
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
Despite desperately wanting to satisfy her curiosity, Foster is not about to introduce Cela to his true dominant side. For one thing, she’s far too innocent to participate in that kind of lifestyle; for another, he doesn’t want to get attached when she’ll be leaving town so soon. But when he comes home after a frustrating day and finds Cela hanging out with Pike, all of Foster’s possessive urges rise to the surface.

Cela is left breathless and shaken after getting a glimpse of Foster’s dominance unleashed. Maybe he was right, and she isn’t ready for something so intense. But when she can’t get her mind off their nights together, she comes up with a daring plan to see just how much they’re both willing to risk…

Review: Wilde Nights in Paradise by Tonya Burrows

Title: Wilde Nights in Paradise
Series: Wilde Security, #1
Author: Tonya Burrows
Published: June 10, 2013
Pages: 250
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Entangled (Brazen)
Rating: C
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
He’ll guard her body all night long.

Former Marine Jude Wilde’s motto has always been “burn bridges and never look back,” so nobody is more surprised when Wilde Security is hired to protect assistant district attorney Libby Pruitt, the woman he loved and left. Although she makes it clear she wants nothing to do with Jude, they’re forced to fake a relationship for her safety. He can’t ignore the heat still simmering between them, and when her stalker’s threats escalate to attempted murder, he’s left with no choice but to whisk her away to a friend’s safe house in Key West, FL.

Cooped up in paradise together, Jude begins to chip away at Libby’s resolve to hate him. But even as she gives in to his proximity and her body’s demands for his, she refuses to fall for his charms again. Maybe a torrid affair in the sun is exactly what she needs to get him out of her system. But when her stalker tracks them down, can they escape the steamy Key West night without anyone getting hurt?

Review: Playing the Part by Robin Covington

Title: Playing the Part (Entangled Brazen)
Author: Robin Covington
Published: June 10, 2013
Pages: 250
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Entangled (Brazen)
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
After publicly self-destructing over a heartbreak a year ago, bestselling romance writer Piper James is now making nice with her publisher by agreeing to teach Hollywood's favorite action star how to act like he's in love. Only playboy Mick Blackwell has no clue what love looks like. When a seductive heat ignites between Piper and Mick, she jumps at the chance for a bit of fun between the sheets, but with two stipulations: she's kept out of the public eye and things end when she returns to New York. Only Mick keeps changing the rules on her. Tempted by America's favorite bad boy, Piper is wondering how far she's willing to bend...

Review: Dirty Distractions by Cari Quinn

Title: Dirty Distractions
Series: Afternoon Delight, #1
Author: Cari Quinn
Published: June 18, 2013
Pages: 166
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Source: Purchased
Publisher: Samhain
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
She wants a fling, and he wants forever…

Zoologist Sara Carmichael’s active social life is the envy of all her friends, but she has a secret. She’s bored senseless. If she has to go to one more bird sanctuary fundraiser with some guy who thinks his little sports car makes him “hip,” she'll scream.

Enter Brad O’Halloran, her best friend Kim’s much younger brother. A guy who’s picking up the pieces after a quickie marriage and even quicker divorce. A guy so hot he makes her body scream with frustration.

Until Sara’s apartment is renovated, they’re all living at Kim’s place. Despite her determination to not to salivate at glimpses of Brad’s finer-than-fine body in nothing but a low-slung towel, flirtation escalates to the brink of something more.

Now one of them has to back down…or ante up for some good, dirty fun with the unspoken understanding that when the time comes, they’ll make a clean break. Neither anticipated they’d make the most complicated connection of all—love.

Review: One Sweet Ride by Jaci Burton

Title: One Sweet Ride
Series: Play by Play, #6
Author: Jaci Burton
Published: June 4, 2013
Pages: 336
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Source: Publisher (Penguin Group)
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Ellie

Favorite quote: “Can you die from a really great orgasm?”

summary from Goodreads
Gray Preston was born into money, but he’s built his racing empire on hard work and muscle. And now that Gray has millions of fans, his senator father sends one of his aides, Evelyn Hill, to elicit Gray’s help in garnering votes for the upcoming national election. Gray wants nothing to do with his estranged father’s campaign, but Evelyn can be pretty persuasive. She’s willing to learn about racing, and maybe even get a little dirty.

Evelyn’s number-one goal is politics, which makes working with Gray difficult, because his only passion is fast cars. As she and Gray spend time together, he teaches her about the sport he loves, and she learns a lot about the man behind the wheel. The more she learns, the more she wants him. But any desire that threatens to derail the carefully laid plans for her future is a dangerous one.

With the passion Gray and Evelyn share running hotter than either imagined, one of them is going to have to compromise, or else run the risk of losing more than their hearts.

Review: Flirting with Disaster by Ruthie Knox

Title: Flirting with Disaster
Series: Camelot, #3
Author: Ruthie Knox
Published: June 10, 2013
Pages: 448
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Loveswept Romance
Rating: C+
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
Fresh out of a fiasco of a marriage, Katie Clark has retreated to her hometown to start over. The new Katie is sophisticated, cavalier, and hell-bent on kicking butt at her job in her brother’s security firm. But on her first assignment—digging up the truth about the stalker threatening a world-famous singer-songwriter—Katie must endure the silent treatment from a stern but sexy partner who doesn’t want her help . . . or her company.

Sean Owens knows that if he opens his mouth around Katie, she’ll instantly remember him as the geeky kid who sat behind her in high school. Silence is golden, but he can’t keep quiet forever, not with Katie stampeding through their investigation. It’s time for Sean to step up and take control of the case, and his decade-old crush. If he can break through Katie’s newfound independence, they just might find they make a perfect team—on the road, on the job, and in bed.

Review: Officer Off Limits by Tessa Bailey

Title: Officer Off Limits
Series: Line of Duty, #3
Author: Tessa Bailey
Published: June 10, 2013
Pages: 250
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher (Entangled Brazen)
Rating: C-
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
His need to possess her is non-negotiable.

Story Brooks’ fiancé just called off their wedding two weeks before the happy day. As if that isn't bad enough, her semi-estranged father, an infamous NYPD hostage negotiator, has suffered a heart attack. Not wanting to examine her lack of emotion over the broken engagement, she hops on a plane to reconnect with her father before it’s too late.

Playboy hostage negotiator Daniel Chase has never, not once, been refused by a woman, so when a debate over hospital snack foods with a delectable kindergarten teacher ends in flat-out rejection, he makes it his mission to seduce her. His only obstacle? She’s the daughter of his mentor who implicitly forbade Daniel from pursuing her.

Despite her father’s warnings and Daniel’s troubled past, Daniel and Story can’t resist their intense attraction to one another. But when the reason for her fiancé’s abrupt wedding cancellation comes to light, can Story and Daniel's already forbidden relationship survive?

Review: You're the One by Robin Kaye

Title: You're the One
Series: Bad Boys of Red Hook, #2
Author: Robin Kaye
Published: June 4, 2013
Pages: 384
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher (Signet)
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Ellie

Favorite quote: “Nice? Fine? Sugar, them’s fightin’ words. You don’t tell a man who licked chocolate frosting and whipped cream off your hot little body that it was fine and nice.”

summary from Goodreads
Logan Blaise expected to be taking a quick break from his successful vineyard in Napa to visit his hometown of Brooklyn. But what he finds is a complete mess: His father is sicker than he'd imagined, and Logan is responsible for keeping the family restaurant running smoothly. When the chef quits, he's forced to hire the first person who applies for the job Skye Maxwell, a beautiful enigma with great skills and gaps in her résumé.

Skye is determined to make it on her own, without trading on her famous family name. Working in the community of Red Hook offers the perfect opportunity to stay out of the limelight while pursuing her dreams. At first glance, charismatic Logan seems exactly like all the shallow men she knew back home. But as she notices his small-town roots and strong family ties, the Brooklyn bad boy and his restaurant start to feel exactly like where she really belongs...

Review: Avoiding Mr. Right by C.J. Ellisson

Title: Avoiding Mr. Right
Series: Wild Side, #2
Author: C.J. Ellisson
Published: June 3, 2013
Pages: 160
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher (Red Hot Publishing)
Rating: C
Reviewed by: Marq

Favorite quote: "You don't know what you like. You fumble with the wrong men and think commanding them will get you what you need."

summary from Goodreads
Carla Johnson thinks issuing orders to a lover will keep her heart safe and leave her in charge of her own destiny. Afraid for Carla’s future, her best friend Heather implores her to change her self-centered ways, handing her a list of love life mistakes to steer clear of:

1. Casual Sex
2. Friends with Benefits
3. Avoidance of Intimacy

Carla ignores the list—unwilling to face she might have a commitment problem. Until she invites a co-worker to her place one night. She instantly regrets the hum-drum sexual encounter and discourages the accountant from pursuing her.

Andy Shea refuses to become another lover the feisty blonde dumps. It'll take a patient man with a strong hand to unlock Carla's sexual awareness and win her heart. He’s up for the challenge to convince her he’s the one—and eager to prove this number cruncher won’t make a boring bedmate.

Review: No Strings Attached by Nicolette Day

Title: No Strings Attached
Author: Nicolette Day
Published: June 10, 2013
Pages: 65
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Entangled Brazen
Rating: C+
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads
She wants one night. He wants her forever.

Hayden Summers just landed the job of a lifetime taking pictures for Time magazine, but she’s determined to leave with no regrets. The first thing on her list? Erase the memory of her cheating ex with a wild night of anonymous sex. The second? Figure out why her best friend, sexy bar owner Jace Jennings, stopped speaking to her the night she told him about the job.

Jace has a problem. Hayden isn’t just leaving the country, she’s risking her life—just when he’s realized he’s in love with her. When fate traps them in the storage room of his bar together, barely contained desire simmers to surface. In one last attempt to keep her, Jace offers Hayden the one thing she wants: a night of hot sex, no strings attached. But when the night is over, will Jace be able to let her go? And will Hayden leave with her heart intact?

Review: Billion Dollar Cowboy by Carolyn Brown

Title: Billion Dollar Cowboy (Cowboys and Brides)
Series: Cowboys and Brides, #1
Author: Carolyn Brown
Published: June 4, 2013
Pages: 352
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher (Sourcebooks Casablanca)
Rating: C+
Reviewed by: Ellie

Favorite quote: “Remember, this is supposed to be make-believe.”

summary from Goodreads
A Billionaire Can Buy Anything...

Colton Nelson was twenty-eight years old when he won the Texas Lottery and went from ranch hand to ranch owner overnight. Now he's desperate to keep the gold diggers away. It shouldn't be too hard to find a pretty girl and hire her to pretend to be his one-and-only.

Or Can He?

Laura Baker's got mixed feelings about this--she's on the ranch to work, not to be arm candy. On the other hand, being stuck for a while in the boondocks with a gorgeous cowboy isn't half-bad.

What neither Colton nor Laura expects are the intensely hard lessons they have to learn about the real cost of love...

Review: Barefoot in the Sun by Roxanne St. Claire

Title: Barefoot in the Sun (Barefoot Bay)
Series: Barefoot Bay, #3
Author: Roxanne St. Claire
Published: April 30, 2013
Pages: 432
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher (Forever)
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Ellie

Favorite quote: “I’m nervous because it’s you. And you matter.”

summary from Goodreads
When running is all you've ever known . . .

Caught between fight and flight, Zoe Tamarin has always picked flight. Since she was rescued from a nightmare childhood by her great-aunt Pasha, they've been on the move, never staying in one place long enough to risk exposing their precarious past. But now that they've reached the sun-baked shores of Barefoot Bay, Zoe may have to stay and fight--for her aunt's life . . . and for a love she ran from years before.

Sometimes the bravest act of all is to stand still.

Oliver Bradbury came to Florida to start over, as both a doctor and a father to his eight-year-old son. He never expected life to hand him a second chance with the woman he lost years ago--but one look at Zoe Tamarin and he knows he'll do whatever it takes to prove that this time, he can be the man she needs. But when demands of family and friendship threaten to shatter their rekindled passion, Oliver must heal Zoe's lifelong wounds with more than hot kisses . . . but will that be enough to keep her from flying off with his heart?

Review: Unforgiven by Anne Calhoun

Title: Unforgiven
Author: Anne Calhoun
Published: June 4, 2013
Pages: 304
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: Publisher (Berkley)
Rating: B+
Reviewed by: Ellie

Favorite quote: “That’s why he looks at you like you’re the one who got away.”
“Sleeping with a woman only makes her more complex, not less”

summary from Goodreads
For as long as he could remember, he wanted her…

Raised by a single mother, Adam Collins resolved to take no chances with a girl’s future—or his own. That’s why, as hard as it was, he resisted everything he felt for Marissa Brooks. Then one night a reckless challenge left a fellow student dead and changed both their lives forever. As penance, Adam took the boy’s place in the Marines, where he could disappear into discipline and duty, and left Marissa behind to struggle with her dreams.

Twelve years later, Adam is back in Walkers Ford to serve as the best man in his friend’s wedding. The years haven’t diminished the electric connection he has with Marissa. But Adam’s mistake continues to haunt him, and Marissa is stumbling under the weight of her family’s legacy. Together they wrestle with demons and dreams, but if there’s any hope for a future together Adam has to not only find a way to forgive himself, but also ask others for forgiveness—especially from the woman whose heart he broke.