Book Review: One Sexy Mistake (excerpt and giveaway below!)
One Sexy Mistake
Chase Brothers #5 (novella)
by Sarah Ballance
Olivia Patton's life just imploded. One night with sexy hacker Grady Donovan seems like the perfect, ego-soothing plan—until an epic snowstorm shuts down the city and thwarts her morning-after escape. Now the only walk-of-shame she'll be taking is right back to Grady's door.
Forced to actually talk, Grady and Olivia realize they can't stand each other. Forget another round in the bedroom—if it wasn't his apartment, she'd shove Grady outside to freeze. But with all the blistering sexual tension flying around, a second night with the hacker might be exactly what she needs...if they don't kill each other first.
Each book in the Chase Brothers series is a standalone, full-length story that can be enjoyed out of order.
Series Order:
Book #1 Five Things I Love About You
Book #2 For Seven Nights Only
Book #3 The Three Week Arrangement
Book #4 The 48 Hour Hook Up
Book #5 One Sexy Mistake
There is something so enticing about about reading a romance with two computer geek leads. I don't know what it is exactly: is it because they are on level ground? Because a female computer geek is portrayed as just a geek? Because there is some intelligence showing? I don't know. But I like it.
So, Olivia is looking for some sexy times since she hasn't had any prospects since her ex-boyfriend dumped her (horribly, I might add), and Grady is looking for a good time with a woman who doesn't want to stick around. Using a Tinder-ish type app, they decide to meet for a one night stand. What they weren't expecting was the winter storm that blows through, keeping them both stranded.
Olivia and Grady are both computer experts in their fields (let's call them what they are - they're hackers). Both are going into this situation looking for for something easy, and without attachments. But thanks to one of my favorite tropes/catnip, forced proximity, their situation gets a lot more complicated.
Truly enjoyed this novella. I wish there was more of it to read, honestly. It had both main character's points of view, forced proximity, and genuine feelings. It took me a few hours to read, and I really wish I could read more about Olivia and Grady.
Sarah and her husband of what he calls "many long, long years" live on the mid-Atlantic coast with their six young children, all of whom are perfectly adorable when they're asleep. She never dreamed of becoming an author, but as a homeschooling mom, she often jokes she writes fiction because if she wants anyone to listen to her, she has to make them up. As it turns out, her characters aren't much better than the kids, but nevertheless, you'll find her writing sexy contemporary romance for Entangled Publishing until they throw her out. To learn more, visit http://sarahballance.com.
Website: http://www.sarahballance.com/
Blog: http://sarahballance.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SarahBallance
Facebook: http://facebook.com/sarah.ballance.author.news
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4103362.Sarah_Ballance
Link to the Tour Schedule:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZSxEjy7QLqY1XK7OVSA_eSQNmzw_re6dv1XCi1qpdnM/edit?usp=sharing
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Read an excerpt!
Grady Donovan sucked at this hookup thing.
It was 11:00 p.m., he was bored and horny, and most of his previous...assignations with women—whether a friend with benefits or an actual attempt at a relationship—had ended in way too much drama for his taste. After years of careful analysis, he'd come to the conclusion that he wasn't built for relationships. But a one-nighter? That he could do. With bells on. If she was into that.
The trick was finding a woman who was on the same page emotionally. Tinder had a reputation as a "hookup app." So Tinder it was.
Tinder PC, because he was not having a one-night stand with someone without viewing a photo bigger than a postage stamp.
After hours of agonizing over how to best describe himself on his bio, adding and deleting gems like please leave before breakfast and conversation not included, he'd finally nailed it: Frighteningly intelligent single male. Computer geek. No interest in romance but great in the sack. No relationships, please.
Accurate? Definitely. Odds of snagging interest? Nil, in his experience. But, he figured, don't ask and ye shall not receive. Needless to say, he hadn't expected a response.
Especially not the one that came through ten minutes later, prompting the mother of all double takes. Olivia's profile picture was too good to be true.
So was the rest of her. Especially her bio. Hacker girl with a broken heart looking for a boy toy to make it all better. One night, no strings. I get to leave first. Two-minute wonders need not apply.
The irony was strong. As long as she followed through and actually left without asking for his hand in marriage, she was everything he could possibly want in a woman. Scratch that. She was all he could want from a night.
One night.
A beautiful woman who wanted to leave first.
He watched the screen, expecting her to disappear. He was no hardship to look at, but he'd said no romance or relationship, which left him floored that anyone would respond.
Let alone an anyone who was on the same, admittedly unconventional, page. Unless it was a trick.
Suspicion probably shouldn't have been his first reaction to seeing the incredibly sexy photo pop up on the screen, but with a prank-happy extended family like his—all courtesy of his four brothers-in-law—being trolled was a distinct possibility.
Even via a random hookup app.
A muscle in his jaw jumped, and he realized he was doing this wrong. People were supposed to be all over these connections. Swipe right, get laid, problem solved.
Still there? she typed. Because if that two-minute thing is a deal-breaker, I need to know. At which point I may mock you. Mercilessly.
Grady stared at the newly arrived message, thinking the threat of mockery was the best excuse he'd ever have to bail.
But this was also probably his best chance to score.
Looking at Olivia's picture, he really didn't want to give up on the chance. He couldn't believe his luck. Rich, wavy brown hair tumbled past her shoulders. Eyes sparkled in the same hue. She glowed.
She was definitely too good to be true.
I can guarantee at least three minutes, he wrote, then sat back. There was no good reason a woman like her would need an app, unless it was because she was tired of being hit on for being gorgeous.
Which, frankly, he'd believe.
For the first time in pretty much ever, he wished for more personal communication.
A new message popped up. So what do you have against relationships?
He hesitated over a response. I don't care for the drama, he typed. Or the rituals. Or the expectations.
Ah, she replied. A girl gets three minutes one night and wants four the next.
Something like that. Actually, it was a lot like that. At one time, he hadn't hated the idea of a relationship. In fact, all he'd ever wanted was for someone to accept him for who he was, which sounded like a schmaltzy spiel of bullshit, but it was true. He enjoyed going out every now and then, and he'd hold a woman's purse at the mall if he had to. But having to out-do every other couple on Facebook or Instagram or whatever social media platform was the rage at the moment burned him out.
Permanently.
If being in his own goddamned relationship meant he had to compete with everyone else's, then he'd be just fine alone.
Except for one teeny caveat.
What about you? he asked. Not buying that you can't get a date.
I don't want a date. I want sex.
Well, okay then. You could get that from anyone, he responded. Why me?
You're a mile away. It's snowing.
You keep impossible standards, he typed back.
And you're hot, and straightforward. And you did promise great sex.
Anyone can promise that, he noted.
Actually, she replied, I'm pretty sure no self-professed computer geek has ever promised great sex.
He rolled his eyes. And here I was thinking the self-professed hacker would appreciate my skills.
I plan to, she said. For the entire three minutes.
Well, hell. This was the part where he should promise her a few hours, but if she looked anything like her picture, he'd be better off promising her a few rounds. And he could only pray the first one lasted three minutes.
He pulled up her profile again, still suspicious. There wasn't much there, so the repeated glances were futile.
You don't seem worried about hooking up with someone you've never met, he typed. Are you crazy or just adventurous?
Her answer was immediate. Do you want to find out?
Did he? That was why he was online, though he certainly never expected he'd find anyone like her. She was too perfect—not just physically attractive but also in a field of work closely tied to his own, if there was any truth to the "hacker girl" statement in her bio. While he didn't need to have anything in common with Olivia, if they actually had a conversation—versus creepily not speaking at all—there was something to be said for shared interests.
He'd had plenty of dates with women who lectured him about how boring computers were, that he should get out and live a little. These were, of course, the same women who couldn't peel their eyes from their smartphones, but that point was seldom appreciated when he voiced it.
But it probably didn't matter. People didn't use hookup sites in search of sparkling conversation.
Especially not him. He caught himself looking over his shoulder, half-expecting to catch one of his brothers-in-law doubled over in laughter on the fire escape.
Instead, he got an eyeful of the neighbor's yellow-eyed, helter-skelter-faced, crooked-fanged mini-wildebeest the old woman called a cat. And yes, he jumped.
Then he swore.
That thing should be in a zoo. Or a freak show.
Behind the questionably feline façade, snow fell. Grady had no idea why that woman let the cat out in this kind of weather, but he wasn't inclined to let the thing freeze. Even if it was the ugliest, creepiest excuse for a cat he'd ever seen.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Harmon had a habit of smacking him with her purse when her precious Mortimer found his way into Grady's apartment, which made him wary of rescuing the cat, at least immediately.
He glanced back at his computer. The cursor blinked, and he realized there might very well be an actual woman on the other end, waiting.
If there was any chance she was legit, he was in.
Way in.
He typed his next message and hit send before he could second guess the insanity of meeting a stranger for sex. Your place or mine?
Review: The Seduction of Kinley Foster
The Seduction of Kinley Foster
A What Happens in Vegas Story
by Lisa Wells
She needs an erotic education. And he's just the one to teach her…
Librarian Kinley Foster wants to write erotic romance—the steamy, sexy, curl-your-toes kind of stuff. The problem? She desperately needs a little erotic inspiration. And at a romance convention in Vegas, she finds it…or rather him. The sizzlingly sexy guy who refused Kinley—and her virginity—when she was sixteen.
Now it's time for a little payback.
Literary agent Ian Thompson is a professional. Mentoring an aspiring author is one thing. Giving her a thorough and thoroughly satisfying sexy education is quite another. Especially when she's as stunning and deliciously curvaceous as Kinley. Yet Ian can't help himself when Kinley makes him a wager he can't resist. A wager that will tempt Ian to cross every professional—and every sensual—boundary in the book…
Hell yeah it is!
I'm totally confused and in love with this book. You know how I get with the books I really enjoy - spoilers...possibly.
I'm in love with it because it has all the tropes and catnip that I adore: kinda friends-enemies-to-lovers, possessive/jealous on both sides, both POVs, the story takes place at a romance book convention (meta!), sassy-geeky heroine, hot-sweet hero, misunderstandings galore, etc. This book was long, well-written, and it made have so many feels.
Thisis why I'm also confused by it. The story of Kinley and Ian brought about a sense of nostalgia for me which is the STRANGEST feeling I have EVER gotten from a romance read.
In Seduction, Ian is Kinley's big brother's best friend. Kinley has known Ian since she was a kid (he is 6 years older than her) and has harbored much love for him since then. However, due to some misunderstandings, Kinley has hated him since she was 16 and has tried (and failed) to forget about Ian.
I'm gonna tell you what happened because I need to process it. No worries, skip this part if you want to be surprised, I'll start a new paragraph to continue after this. So, apparently when Kinley was 16 years old, she arrived at Ian's place and promptly tripped into his arms, kissed him, and asked him to be her first. Ian, never forgetting their ages, and that she's his best friend's little sister, tells her "no." Kinley is understandably stung at the rejection, but to make matters worse, a naked girl comes out of Ian's bedroom. I won't tell you who the naked girl is - she's pretty important to the story.
So - why the nostalgia? Obviously, to me anyway, I did not do what Kinley did, BUT I do remember that age when it wasn't difficult to put yourself out there. Of wearing your feelings on your sleeve, and the decision of placing all your expectations, dreams, wishes, and love in this one person in the sheer hope that the person, who has your heart in their hand, will tell you that they love and want you too. It also brought about the crushing reality that is rejection - in the only way a 16 year old can really understand.
So this story really took my feelings for a whirl - it's the ultimate kinda-revenge fantasy where everything that wasn't or couldn't be said as teenagers/kids is fair game as adults. It's the ultimate, what if. It also did not hurt that I loved our heroine and hero. Kinley is the perfect amount of sass and romance geek. She is someone who takes her dreams seriously and looks to be better and better with each experience. Ian is sweet, hot, sometimes an arrogant jerk (but not really) who decided to forge his own career path than to fall into the family business. And he's good at it. Their banter is fun, and even their jabs at hurting the other with memories was interesting to read.
I loved this story about two people who are oblivious and afraid of their feelings. It's such a human thing to read about. This book kind of broke my rules for what I usually enjoy in romance reads (I don't want to tell you - just think really hard about the stuff that I usually hate in romance books...).
If you like stories like this, pick this book up. It has skyrocketed to my number one fave for romance reads. I looked into other Lisa Wells books, but did not really come up with any :( Let me know if you find one I missed!
Scorched Covers Revealed!
Only For A Night
Lick #1
by Naima Simone
Rion Ward fought hard to be free of the Irish mob life. Now, as the co-owner of Boston's hottest aphrodisiac club, he's traded crime for the ultimate sexual fantasy. But when the "good girl" from his past walks through Lick's doors, he discovers that his unconsummated hunger for her never abated.
Widowed for two years from a man who felt that anything besides the missionary position was dirty, Harper Shaw is ready to move on. The first step to feeling alive again is sex. Hot, dirty, black-out-from-orgasm sex. And who better to provide it than the brooding, sexy, tatted bad boy-turned-man she's known for years?
Rion, however, has one stipulation: He'll be hers only for one night. One night to explore her every fantasy. One night to push her limits. One night to introduce her to a passion that makes both doubt if it will be enough…
Find the book online:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30124920-only-for-a-night
Entangled Website: http://www.entangledpublishing.com/only-for-a-night/
I was born the daughter of a sharecropper…okay, maybe not. But, I am the daughter of a pastor from whom I inherited my love of romance. The man can preach a mean Song of Solomon! (There's that plug, Daddy! You can pay me later!)
Although my first book starred a cucumber named Fred, my first romance came several years later in the seventh grade when I wrote myself as a heroine opposite Ralph Tresvant from New Edition. Through the power of my pen and imagination, Ralph took one look across a crowded stadium, met my dark, mysterious gaze, fell passionately in love and serenaded me in front of millions of fans. Out of all the girls in the world, he chose me! And, of course we lived happily ever after—once we had the inevitable fight, aka black moment, and made up with a passionate declaration of love and fidelity. This same story reincarnated itself many times over the years: with Donnie Wahlberg from New Kids on the Block, Brad Pitt, Denzel Washington, and as recently as last night, Vin Diesel.
Though the characters have changed, my love of love has endured. Shaping the lives of the unique men and women who experience the first, hungry bites of lust, the dizzying heights of passion and the tender, healing heat of love— nothing compares to it. Except maybe discovering new material for love scenes with my husband, the head of Research & Development!
Find Naima online:
Website: http://www.naimasimone.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/naima.simone.3?fref=ts
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Naima_Simone
​When he wins a sexy bet, billionaire Linc Blair can't wait to get Lauren Neill naked. He's never gone for her type in the past, and he's pretty certain it has more to do with her buttoned-up hotness than the nagging sense that something is missing from his life. But when he gets a glimpse of the vulnerable woman beneath the conservative, yet oh-so-sexy clothes, it's a game changer.
Lauren can't believe she's spending a few days with one of sexiest, and most annoying men she's ever met. But she can't deny the chemistry between them, and for once in her life she's letting down her guard so she can explore a different side of herself. The side only Linc brings out in her.
Taking it slow, he unleashes her sexuality and it quickly occurs to him that what started out as a bet for him has become something more. With their weekend nearly over, and her ex showing interest in this new confident version of Lauren, Linc will have to risk it all if he wants to win the game of love.
Find it online:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30124915-learning-curves
Entangled Website: entangledpublishing.com/learning-curves/
New York Times and USA today Best selling author, Cathryn is a wife, mom, sister, daughter, and friend. She loves dogs, sunny weather, anything chocolate (she never says no to a brownie) pizza and red wine. She has two teenagers who keep her busy with their never ending activities, and a husband who is convinced he can turn her into a mixed martial arts fan. Cathryn can never find balance in her life, is always trying to find time to go to the gym, can never keep up with emails, Facebook or Twitter and tries to write page-turning books that her readers will love.
Find Cathryn online:
Website: http://www.cathrynfox.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Writercatfox
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCathrynFox?ref=hl
Desiring Red
a dark and dirty tale #1
by Kristin Miller
I'm indecisive when it comes to my shoes. Choosing a werewolf mate who'll be with me until I croak? Pardon me while I take some time to think on it. But a steamy encounter before the final ceremony changes everything.
Reaper, the Omega's eldest grandson, is fiercely loyal, scorching hot, and built for pleasure. He brings down my defenses, and before I know what's happening, I succumb to the heat in his touch and the skill of his mouth. I've only just met him, but I need him like no other.
As part of my pack duties, I must parade in front of the Alpha, who has first choice of the pre-shifters. Rumors of his dark desires run deep, and I've always been intrigued. But the forbidden passion blazing between Reaper and me is too primal to deny. By pack law, Reaper can't have me until the Alpha makes his choice…but Reaper's never been one to follow the rules.
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30124904-desiring-red
Entangled Website: entangledpublishing.com/desiring-red/
New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Kristin Miller writes sweet and sassy contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and paranormal romance of all varieties. Kristin has degrees in psychology, English, and education, and taught high school and middle school English before crossing over to a career in writing. She lives in Northern California with her alpha male husband and their two children. She loves chocolate way more than she should and the gym less. You can usually find her in the corner of a coffee shop, laptop in front of her and mocha in hand, using the guests around her as fuel for her next book.
Find Kristin online:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorKristinMiller
Twitter: www.twitter.com/kristinmiller02
Web: www.kristinmiller.net
Playboys in Love #1
by Gina L. Maxwell
People say I'm shameless. They're right.
I like my work dirty and my sex even dirtier. It takes a hell of a lot to tilt my moral compass, and dancing as a private stripper for horny suburbanites doesn't even register. Neither does hooking up with them afterward whenever the mood strikes—it's one of the bennies of the job—but it's always a one-and-done. I don't do repeat performances. Ever.
Until I meet the one girl in all of Chicago not interested in dry humping my junk. She's all I can think about, and that's a problem, because I made sure she wants nothing to do with me. But I've seen her deepest secrets, her darkest fantasies, and they match mine to a fucking T.
I want her. Bad.
Now I need to show her how good it can feel…to be shameless.
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30124886-shameless
Entangled Website: entangledpublishing.com/shameless/
Gina L. Maxwell is a romance author whose debut novel, Seducing Cinderella, hit the New York Times and USA Today bestselling lists in under a month and has since enjoyed continued success with her Fighting for Love series about sexy MMA fighters.
This year, she's excited about releasing her brand new series, Boston Heat, featuring ex-Army Rangers-turned-firefighters, as well as the scorching Playboys for Hire series with erotic novellas about part-time strippers who are full-time sexy.
When she's not reading or writing hot romance novels, she spends her time losing at Scrabble (and every other game) to her high school sweetheart and doing her best to hang out with their teenagers before they fly away.
Find Gina online:
Website: http://www.ginalmaxwell.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ginabisbeemaxwell
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Gina_L_Maxwell
Review: Playing Defense
Playing Defense
a Corrigan Falls novel
by Cate Cameron
Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains adult language, swoon-worthy kisses, and sexy hockey players. It may cause you to watch a hockey game...or ten.
Sixteen-year-old Claudia Waring has never kissed a boy. Never been popular. Never been to a hockey game. All that's about to change. Assigned to tutor Chris Winslow, a prank-loving, gorgeous hockey player, Claudia's perfectly planned life immediately veers off course. And she kind of likes it. But as fun as Chris is, she knows she'll never fit in his world.
After his latest prank lands him in hot water, Chris has to get serious about school or lose hockey. Not an easy thing for someone as carefree as the defenseman. The biggest problem, though, is how much he wants to help his cute, buttoned-up tutor loosen up a little. But while confidence has never been a problem for him, around Claudia, Chris is all nerves. Why would a girl as smart as her ever fall for a jock like him
There are gonna be spoilers all over this review. I'm sorry - but it's that good.
Playing Defense impressed me. I don't know if I can describe it any other way. On one side, it is a cute, popular guy-geeky girl romance. A little insta-lovey, but not really because Claudia and Chris both grow into their feelings. The attraction, however, insta-there. There is some talk about sex which is handled very well. Bravo.
But then there's the other stuff. And the other stuff is what really makes this young adult book so different than others. The other stuff is the part that every young adult book is essentially about, but this one is so wonderfully blatant about it. Claudia is terrified of growing up - and never realized it until she met Chris. Chris signifies what she's been missing since she's so focused on her academic life. Friends, attraction, dating, caring about someone - these are things that Claudia has yet to experience even though she's nearing the end of her high school career. Chris isn't totally unaffected either - Claudia makes him realize that there is more to him than someone who is good at hockey. He learns that it's worth trying even if you think you're going to fail because, as Claudia so perfectly puts it, "Failure is temporary."
Together, Chris and Claudia learn that growing up can mean a different things for different people, but it's worth changing and growing because, even though you get to experience horrible things (you'll understand when you read the book), you get to experience really wonderful ones too.
This book made me think about how I challenge myself - and how I keep myself dormant. It's something I'm going to keep thinking about, and I probably wouldn't have done so at this time, had it not been for this book. I am no longer a young adult - but that doesn't mean I've stopped growing. I recommend this book to people of all ages - it may have teenagers in love, but there are real lessons being taught that are well worth our time.
Plus it's funny lol