Guest Post from Bella Andre Author of the Sullivan Family Series

Please enjoy this guest post by Bella Andre, New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of the contemporary romance series, The Sullivans. Then read on to learn how you can win huge prizes as part of this blog tour, including special romantic swag baskets for each book, an iPad Mini, Kindle Fire, Nook Color, and Kobo eReader, and Amazon and iTunes gift cards!  

Why I Love Family-Based Romance Series

A guest post by Bella Andre

  I love reading romance (I read one book a day when I can!), and one of my favorite tropes is the family-based series. I absolutely love Julia Quinn's historical romance Bridgerton series and have loved taking that idea of the big family into present day with my Sullivan contemporary romance series. What I love when I read - and what I want my readers to get from The Sullivans - is to feel like they're a part of the family, and to know each of the characters so well that they can begin to know anticipate what the will start saying and doing at family gatherings. I love it when I'm reading a big family scene and I know, "Oh, this character is going to react like this" or "This character will hate this!" I love it even more when the characters surprise me and I learn new things about them. One of the advantages of writing a series about a large family is that even as the hero and heroine are having conflict with each other, we can see them being loving towards their families, so we know the depth of love they're capable of. There are plenty of big family scenes in my Sullivan books for you to get to know each character, what they're like, and how they feel one another. Just like a real family, every Sullivan has a special relationship with each of the others. Smith and Sophie are extra close, as are Marcus and Lori. Ryan and Zach are so close in age that they spent a lot of time together as kids and have a special bond as adults.

The Sullivans are on tour with Novel Publicity. Follow along for your chance to win amazing prizes. We've got special romantic swag baskets for each book, an iPad Mini, Kindle Fire, Nook Color, and Kobo eReader, and Amazon and iTunes gift cards. WOW! You'll also get introduced to this amazing contemporary romance series via excerpts as well as interviews with and guest posts from New York Times and USA Today best-selling author, Bella Andre. You'll definitely want to learn more about the family that has captured the world's heart. All the info you need to join the fun and enter to win amazing prizes is RIGHT HERE. Remember, winning is as easy as clicking a button or leaving a blog comment--easy to enter; easy to win! To Win the Prizes:

1. Purchase any of the Sullivan ebooks by Bella Andre for just $4.99 (optional)
2. Enter the Rafflecopter contest on Novel Publicity (go here)
3. Visit today’s featured social media event (that's where the HUGE prizes are)

About The Sullivans: In this sexy, emotional and funny contemporary romance series, each member of the Sullivan family will eventually find true love...usually where he or she least expects it. Get the eBooks via Amazon US, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, the iBookStore, or the Kobo Store. Audiobooks are also available for the first five in the series (with more coming soon). Plus, keep an eye out for paperback editions coming from Harlequin Romance starting Summer 2013.

About the Author: New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Bella Andre has always been a writer. Songs came first, and then non-fiction books, but as soon as she started writing her first romance novel, she knew she'd found her perfect career. Known for "sensual, empowered stories enveloped in heady romance" (Publishers Weekly) about sizzling alpha heroes and the strong women they'll love forever, nearly all of her novels have appeared on Top 10 lists at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple and Kobo. Her books have been Cosmopolitan Magazine "Red Hot Reads" twice and have been translated into nine languages. Winner of the Award of Excellence, The Washington Post has called her "One of the top digital writers in America" and she has been featured by NPR, USA Today, Forbes, and The Wall Street Journal. She has given the keynote speech at Book Expo America on her self-publishing success and has sold more than one million books. If not behind her computer, you can find her reading her favorite authors, hiking, swimming or laughing. Married with two children, Bella splits her time between the Northern California wine country and a 100 year old log cabin in the Adirondacks.

• Sign up for Bella's newsletter at www.eepurl.com/eXj22
• Visit Bella's website at www.BellaAndre.com
• Follow Bella on twitter at www.twitter.com/bellaandre
• Join Bella on Faceboook at www.facebook.com/bellaandrefans

Moving on up...

Well, we're packing up and moving on to bigger and better things, for future reviews, and to read any already published reviews please visit As Seen Through My Specs 2: Electric Boogaloo

There are some new features and a flashy, sexy new interface, come, visit, stay a while, comment, enter contests, tell your friends.  It'll be 18 kinds of awesome*.

*level of awesomeness may vary by personal preference

The Magick of Christmas by Susan Mac Nicol

I had the pleasure of reading another of the sweet short stories from Buroughs over my winter break, this one by new author Sue Mac Nicol.

Though not my usual genre, vampires are about as far as I go into supernatural, and even then it's only 3 authors or so I read, I found this short story about a witch in London to be a pleasant read.

Stacey goes for her morning coffee every day and lately Mr. Hunky has been showing up in line and all the ladies are drooling over his fine, fine self.  Sure, she could say hello, but she's self conscious about a limp she has and well, just walking up to a stranger is always awkward and weird, fear of rejection always looms large (at least that's what I recall from my singleton days).

After one morning of intense staring and fantasizing Stacey heads to her office, coffee in hand, only to have Mr. Hunky, whose name is actually Nicholas show up at her desk to pick up a file, turns out he's a client for the lawyer she works for, I love how the Universe works.

When handing him the file Stacey also passes through an attraction spell.  Nicholas asks her out and they have a wonderful time, with all kinds of twists and surprises.  Too much more would give it all away.

It was a fun read, and it takes place in London, a place with which I am obsessed and hope to visit one day soon.  If supernatural is your thing and you're as interested in London as I am be sure to pick this one up.

I'm looking forward to reading her other short story and maybe I'll even expand my horizons into some other supernatural books.  If you've got a good suggestion please leave it in the comments below.

The Opportunist by Tarryn Fisher

If I've said it once... well ok, on the blog I've only said it once, but I'm sure when all is said and done I'll have said it a million times...

DON'T STICK YOUR DICK IN CRAZY (The credit for that phrase goes to B&S)

This is a story that's been in the TBR for a little while, I got added to a Facebook discussion group on this one, still not sure how that happened, but it's a book some people are very passionate about, and after reading it I can see why.

It's the story of Caleb, Olivia, Leah with a splash of Jessica thrown in.  The book jumps around from the present to the past so make sure you pay attention and keep up.  It's like the most amazing episode of General Hospital ever, there's cheating, lying, duplicity, amnesia, pregnancy, stalking... it's 18 kinds off awesome.  Caleb the main character seems to have a penchant for sticking his dick in the craziest of the crazy.  I'm pretty sure that Leah would fall under the clinical diagnosis of sociopath... just saying...

I loved this book, it sucks you in from the get go and holds you by the nuts until the very end where you're still going... "ummm, ok, what now Tarryn, WHAT NOW?"

There isn't much more I can say in a review that doesn't give the plot and twists away.  The writing was very well done, well edited (not something I see much of these days) and really gripping.  I can see why the readers to TO and the sequel Dirty Red are so passionate and have such crazy discussions about this book.

I'll be reading the sequel shortly, but reading this story was such an emotional mind fuck that I needed to read something lighter and look at pictures of puppies and kittens to get myself back on even keel.

Grab a bottle of wine, fasten your seat-belt, buy it, read it, love it.

As a give-away for this review I'll be giving a copy of the sequel Dirty Red to who ever has the most creative comment regarding what they've done to get, or keep a partner.  Nothing illegal please gentle readers.

Comments accepted through Friday January 4, a winner announced on Saturday, Jan 5.

Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker

Everyone once in a while a book comes along and knocks you on your ass, and changes your world view.  The last book that had that effect on me was The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger.  A book, now nearly 10 years old which defined where I was in my life in that place and time, waiting, always waiting.

Very seldom do I read something these days that shakes me to my core.  This book has been getting a ton of hype, and a nice woman in my book group loaned it to me.  I've had to put it down a couple of times because of how it was hitting me.  I have a close family member who suffers from PTSD and alcohol has shaped my formative years in ways no person should have to deal with.

Describing this book is challenging, but I'll give it a stab, Kasey, and her sister Livie start a new life in Miami leaving behind a lecherous abusive uncle and a blind to reality fundamentalist Christian aunt who became their guardians after their parents died in a drunk driving accident.  The uncle has squandered away their insurance and having had enough Kasey packs up Livie and runs.

They settle in a run down apartment complex in Miami and set up as close to a normal life ass possible, with some interesting neighbors.  Storm/Nora is a bartender who gets Kasey a job tending bar in the gentleman's club where she works.  Storm is a single mom of a beautiful little girl who has a troubled past of her own.

Kasey plays the typical avoidance scenario, pain is hard, and it sucks, and PTSD sucks, and she copes in ways that are less than healthy, drinking, sex, violence, she runs the gamut of little girl lost ways to act out.

She meets and falls in love/lust with Trent, the quiet, secretive neighbor.

She doesn't open up, she doesn't talk about her past, she locks it all inside, often with some really dangerous consequences.

This isn't a neatly tied with a bow story about love, sex, or life.  It's raw and visceral and it slaps you in the face every now and again.

It is a story that's worth every second of time you take to read it, and re-read it to gain insight into the nuances you missed the first time around.  I try and read TTTW once a year, I'm positive this book is about to go into regular rotation for me.  And from me that is THE highest compliment I can give a book and an author.  I've read well over 450 books in the last two years.  The fact that of all those this is one I will pick up over and over to read is a big deal.

So, let's start of our re-vamped blog, now with an enhanced experience with a give-away.  In the comments section tell me about a book that has changed your life or you feel defines you as a person.  Comments will be accepted through January 2, 2013.  In the end I'll pick a random poster to receive a copy of this book through the book-seller of your choice.

I look forward to hearing your responses.

And if you don't win, you should pick up this story anyhow, it isn't a pricey ready and would be worth it at ten times the price.

http://www.amazon.com/Ten-Tiny-Breaths-ebook/dp/B00ALQC858/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1356553125&sr=1-1&keywords=ten+tiny+breaths

Re-Re-vamp coming soon-ish, or soon adjacent as the case may be...

Starting in late January we'll have some more interactive stuff for readers here at As Seen Through My Specs, we'll be doing some give-aways and I'll be working to reach out to try and get some guest posters and hopefully even some intervies.

More info will follow, so for you regular readers keep your eyes here, and for your irregular readers, try some prune juice and then come back and keep your eyes on the site for more news.

Tomorrow a review... honest... unless the Mayans got the date wrong and the world does end, or I get too wrapped up in cleaning my bedroom before Christmas company comes.  My closet looks like it should be under a haz-mat tent and I have 6 baskets of clean laundry to put away.

I've read a ton of stuff lately, having a hard time deciding what to review.

Also, how is it that my mother in law had no idea I'd written a book and was writing another?  Even my own mom knows and I hardly tell her anything... or at least she doesn't generally remember what I tell her... it's a 50/50 thing.

While you wait for a new review visit Pinterest, which I did last night and fell in love with about 100 different bookcases, my office/library will not have room for that many so I need to whittle that down.  You could also go look up Alex Minsky https://www.facebook.com/AlexMinskyFanPage?fref=ts, wounded warrior, funny guy and all around hottie, and ladies, he's single.  Found him through the Kally Masters Rescue Me group.  Seriously, someone needs to get him on Ellen, or the cover of Men's Fitness, or something, he's a great example of courage and pushing through to the other side and life after service, although as a Marine he'll always be a Marine and never a former Marine.  I don't know, it's their thing... you never retire, Semper Fi.

It's Christmas this week (we just finished Hanukkah, and then there was also Diwali this month), what will you be buying with your Amazon/B&N/Kobo gift cards?  Not that I need any more books, because the TBR list is long already but I'm always interested in what's out there.  Plus if *I* get a gift card I might need advice on what to buy.

Leave a comment with what you're reading or REALLY want to read and who knows, maybe this will be the time I start with the give-aways.  That will require organizing myself, but since this week and a half off from work is all about writing, blogging, reading and setting up my author stuff you never know.

OK, stream of consciousness over, Mela signing off and getting back to actual writing, or reading, or eating that piece of chocolate mousse cake from Gregg's in the fridge, seriously, it's a thing of beauty.

The Boat Builder's Bed by Kris Pearson

While on our conf-cation to San Diego my husband and I ate in a Kiwi bar in La Jolla.  In honor of that decent meal and the hubs' lamb burger I picked up this gem to read and review next.  (It takes place in New Zealand.)

This is the love story of Sophie and Rafe.

Rafe, recently divorced millionaire superyacht builder with a huge chip on his shoulder from his upbringing and his bitch of an ex-wife stumbles across Sophie's new design business.  She seems quite familiar to him, and that's because she used to worked for the aforementioned bitch ex-wife.

 As luck would have it he has a house which needs interior design, and he's attracted to our pretty little heroine, even though she fights it at every turn.  She isn't interested in his money, or his social standing, she just wants the financial security and positive buzz decorating his house could bring her.

Regardless he pursues her relentlessly, and eventually she gives in, I mean c'mon, he's a hottie, and he showers her with gifts and affection and seduction.

He's got secrets (and don't forget there's that jealous, bitchy social grubbing money hungry ex-wife), but so does she, her's is a whole lot bigger than his, and as is always the case, the longer you keep secrets the more they fester, and sometimes it comes to a point where there is no way to tell the secret yourself, it always happens that it comes out when you least expect it and usually is spouted out as an act of vitriol by your enemy.

Can they work past what she's hiding, can he forgive her lie?

Pick it up, read it and find out definitely worth your time!  Also, it's a standalone, so there's no angst wait for the next book in the series.

Besides an enjoyable read, I also learned some interesting things about New Zealand culture, there is whangai, the informal inter-family adoption culture among the Maori, and the social and emotional stigma it can bring.  I also learned it takes two years to finalize a divorce, that's one hell of a long time to be tied to somebody when you decide that your marriage is over.

Where I Need to Be by Kimberly Knight

I picked this one up as a group read with one of my FB book groups.  It was released today and is a first book written by one of the members in the group.  It got bumped up ahead of the now... 228 (had to check the Kindle) books waiting to be read.

This is a well told romance between Spencer and Brandon.

As we meet Spencer she is drowning her sorrows in ice cream and watching The Voice (probably for the same reason I watch the Voice*).  Her roommate Ryan gives her the talking to that only a best friend can, kicks her in the ass and shoves her back in to life.

Spencer re-enters the world by joining a gym her job has asked her to write an article about.  The first night there on the treadmill she meets her very own "Gideon Cross"; I loved the meta-ness of this, a book inside a book, like Inception... but I digress, after some smiling and flirting neither does anything about it.

As fate would have it they both end up in an airport on the same flight to Vegas, then the same club where they do some serious dirty dancing, the kind even Patrick Swayze probably couldn't handle, and then end up at the same poker table in Vegas, Fate is a crafty bitch.  

They return home to San Francisco and run in to each other again at the gym and their relationship blossoms.  Turns out he's the gyms owner.

There's a crazy ex-girlfriend with some serious drama, and the two main characters just coming of long term-ish relationships trying to figure out where they belong, and if that place is with each other....

Things don't tie up neatly, it's book one of a series, and you know me, I'm a series whore.  I'll be eagerly awaiting the next release.

Kudos Kimberly, I only hope when my first book gets published it's as good as yours and people enjoy it even half as much, because so far all the buzz I've read and heard is positive and well deserved.

* Namaste to you too Adam...

Writing and traveling

So this week I'm at a conference for work on the west coast and I've also been hard at work on edits on my first book and writing my second book. It's been putting a cramp in my reading schedule, you know all the learning and touristing, and writing.

The good news is I have a title for my book, a cover art concept, I just need an artist, if you're out there and interested drop me a line, no nudity involved, just some photorealistic images.

I also have a pen name and will be setting up an authors page on Facebook soon. I'm looking forward to the holiday break at work, it will give me a chance to do some of the less glamorous stuff that comes along with writing.

I'll be back to reviews later this week, I need to be able to get in to a book, I've started and stopped a couple of different books and read a short story at my lunch break today because I couldn't get into anything that had more than 4 dots on the Kindle App, it just felt like too much of a time commitment to me.

After a dinner of In-N-Out Burger tonight, whose fries are not good cold, BTW, I'm going back to hopping between edits and writing, I'm clearly in ADD mode.

Recommend something that's gonna suck me in and knock my socks off gentle readers, because right now even the hype ain't doing it for this book worm.

Rock the Heart by Michelle A. Valentine

Because rocker is the new kinky rich dude, and I'm a highly suggestible person (thanks book group girls) I picked up this little gem to read.  Also didn't hurt that someone mentioned that Michelle based the main character on Adam Levine, not that he's dreamy or anything... but I digress...

This book follows Noel and Lane (Lanie) through the rekindling of their romance.  Once high school sweet hearts Lanie has gone off to work in marketing and Noel has made it big with his band Black Falcon.

Lane broke his heart and dumped him because she thought he was being immature in thinking music could be a viable career, instead of giving it all up, going to college and being a grown up.  So um, yeah, she's working as an intern barely scraping by and taking money from her mom and he's got money coming out of his ears and has made it big time.

Fate throws them together through  an opportunity at the marketing firm where Lanie is interning.  She gets thrown on tour with the band.  After a less than friendly reunion, Noel sees this as his second chance to get her back in to his bed and back in to life.

Noel has some serious stuff he's hiding, and his bandmates don't seem keen on keeping his secret.  Lanie's got her own baggage and an overwhelming need to prove herself in her career and keep her job whatever it takes.

Will they work it out?  It's definitely worth the ride to find out.

My only problem with this book, and as far as books go it's a big and small problem, when Lane and Noel finally get back in bed together Noel asks what Lane has been up to sexually, if she's on the pill, and wants to have sex with her without a condom, and she agrees.

Wow!  He's a fucking rock star who has likely had more pussy in the last two years than a year's subscription to Cat Fancy magazine, and he doesn't deny it or say he's been celibate she just takes him at his word he's clean and goes for it.... seriously??!?!?  It's a plot thing and a trust thing, and I suppose on some small level I get that.  However too many books I've read lately have downplayed the importance of safe sex (esp in this trope).  It isn't just about preventing pregnancy, it's about the prevention of the transmission of disease, and in a post 1980's world where HIV and other nasty shit exists if you aren't the only sexual partner someone has ever had you best be wrapping that bad boy up until everyone decides you're in a committed relationship and all appropriate testing has been administered.

OK, I'll get off my soap box now.

It really was a great book with a twist and ending I did NOT see coming, and usually I can see them from a mile away.  I'm looking forward to Rock the Bed, the story of Noel's bandmate Riff and Lane's friend Aubrey.  Yeah it's a series... stop judging me....

Click it, buy it and enjoy.

Rock Me by Cherrie Lynn

Candace Andrews, sweet girl, lives on her parents nickel as she goes to college, lives by their rules, lives a boring life.  Secretly she lusts after her cousins ex-boyfriend and really wants to walk on the wild side instead of always playing it safe.

Who better to help her break free of her goody-two shoes self than Brian Ross.  In an act off rebellion Candace shows up at Brian's tattoo parlor one night to get herself a little ink, and a little alone time with Brian.  A sweet heart, strategically placed.

They start spending time together, one things leads to another, they both discover that neither is really who everyone thinks they are, and that making snap judgement based on being "pampered" by your parents or being pierced and inked is probably not the best idea.

Dermamania, Brian's shop is a hangout for their crew of friends, and seems like a fun place to spend a Friday night, there is some drama between both families, some of it downright felonious and they need to decide whether they can work through all the crap and have a future, or take the easy path and just move on.

It's a great book, well written, well paced and plenty of steamy sex.  I also learned something new, I learned what an apadravya is, if you are squeamish, or a dude, or at work, you probably don't want to Google that, it's a male genital piercing even more hard core than a Prince Albert and I thought a PA was pretty hard core.  Although apparently it's a mutually enjoyable body modification.  I cannot imagine this is something I will experience in my lifetime and I am A-OK with that.

This is, wait, I know you're shocked, part of a series, only it's book two, which I read first, then I read book 1, Unleashed, which is a story about Brian's brother and then book 3 which is a story about Candace's friend Macy and Brian's friend and fellow ink-jockey Ghost (Seth).

Cherrie also has a couple of paranormal romances which I have yet to read, it's not a genre I tend to read a lot of, unless it's vampires.  She also just released an anthology with Olivia Cunning (Sole Regret/Sinners), Cari Quinn (Unveiled, Loved Required Hot Shots) and Stephanie Julian with a short story about Brian and Candace, so yay for a follow up of one of my favorite recent couples.

Buy one, buy 'em all, you're bound to enjoy.  Plus the inky pierced guys are about as much the rage as the super rich dude-virgin and menage relationships, so you'll be reading the same thing all us cool kids are reading.

This Man by Jody Ellen Malpas

So I'll blame my book group girls again for pushing another book up the TBR, it was getting hype, people said it was awesome.  I bought said hype... note to self, do not always buy the hype.

This book follows the currently super popular young girl - kinky slightly older man trope.  Seriously, where were these rich kinky older men looking for a young girl when I was 22... oh wait, I already had a kid and was in a relationship at that point... probably not what they'd be looking for anyhow, but I digress... Also my kid is 22 and if some creepy rich guy was hitting on her like this I'd lock her in her damn room... but I digress again...

Ava O'Shea is an interior designer who is invited to do some work at The House for Jesse Ward.  She's expecting a stuffy English country gentleman when she arrives at this "hotel" in the pastoral outskirts of London.  What she gets is a young-ish hottie who is instantly smitten with her.

We are sucked in to their very tumultuous relationship.

Jesse Ward makes Christian Grey look like a well adjusted, mentally stable, productive member of society, who was a boy scout and helps old ladies across the street.  Seriously the man raises sociopathic stalker boyfriend to a whole new level.  I just kept yelling in my head Run Ava, Run.

But Ava didn't listen to me, nope, and she just got deeper and deeper into it with Jesse. Seriously, how many times do those things have to go missing from your purse before you put 2 and 2 together and come up with something other than chair?   There's a saying, "Don't stick your dick in crazy"  the reverse is also true and Ava should have headed that warning.

I loved and hated this book, and there is a sequel coming (actually 2), which I will read because I'm a series whore, but I will do it begrudgingly.

It was an OK read, but there are better books in the trope and this one didn't live up to the hype.

You can walk slowly, to your bookseller of choice if you're interested in this one, or ask a friend to loan it to you as it's actually a loan-able book, at least through Amazon.

Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

My TBR "pile" is insane, like well over 200 insane, so how did a book that was released on Monday this week jump to the top?  Hype, plain and simple, between my Facebook book groups and other venues I heard nothing but how fucking amazing this book was and how it would shoot up the best seller list.

They weren't kidding, this book was hands down one of the funniest books I've read in ages, and it was also a romance, not your usual combination, at least not usually done well, in fact the only other author I've read do this well is RL Matthewson and the Neighbor From Hell Series (seriously, run don't walk to click and buy them all).

Caroline Reynolds is a young professional living in San Francisco, living with her KitchenAid mixer, her cat Clive and a great group of friends, only one problem in Caroline's life, she's lost her O, and we don't mean her subscription to Oprah's magazine, a bad experience with her most recent relationship, a person who was described as a machine-gun fucker has robbed her of it, since her encounter with him she has been O free, and not for lack of trying, fantasies of Jordan Catalano, post-Caesar haircut Clooney, nothing brings it back.

Unfortunately sexually frustrated Caroline has just moved into an apartment next to Simon Parker, the titular Wallbanger.  Her first night sleeping in her apartment after settling in to bed her wall starts to shake, an bang and then enough banging and shaking and a picture falls off the wall and on to her head.  Sure, one night might be ok, but it's night after night, and it appears it isn't just one lady it's 3 (consecutively not concurrently, he's good but not THAT good), affectionately nickname Spanx, Purina and Giggles, each for reasons which become obvious.

After several nights of this a pissed Caroline storms over and bangs on the door, in a pink nightie no less and gives Simon, who answers wearing a sheet, a hard-on and a smile, a piece of her mind.  I think we can all see where this is going.

After their hallway altercation they run into each other at a party, apparently they have mutual friends, they are both their with their two besties, who end up falling for each other pulling Wallbanger and Pink Nightie Girl along for the ride.

They decide to call a truce, and maybe even become friends, mayhem and hilarity ensue.

Will Caroline get her O back, will Simon be able to keep up with his harem, will Clive ever get his true love Purina to love him back?

Hop over to Amazon/B&N/KOBO, who ever your bookseller of choice is and buy it, because you need to know how it all turns out...

Honor Student/Honor thy Teacher by Teresa Mummert

A few months ago this book (books 1&2 in a series of 3) was getting lots of hype so I bought it and it's sat in my Kindle's TBR pile for ages.  I decided to start the series over the weekend to walk away from my edits before I made myself crazy.

Because this is the biggest Trope in the universe these days, young virginal girl, who is maybe a little troubled, gets mixed up with older (but not too much older) guy who is wealthy, dark and broody and is one kinky mother f***er.  I'm reviewing the books together because they tell the same story but one is from Emma's POV and other is from William's POV.

Emma is a sad, lonely college student living with her aunt in Florida.  Her parents are dead, and it seems like there is more to it, but we just don't know and even as the first two books close we never find out.  She's a little self destructive and just trying to make it through the day.

William, a sad, lonely divorced Dom (who is also wealthy) has taken a job teaching a class at a local college to cover for a professor who is out on medical leave.  He's been drifting from fling to fling, currently sleeping with a married secretary at the college.  But he wants more, and he's decided it's time to find himself an actual submissive.

In walks Emma, late to class, head down, all apologetic and innocent looking.  She's a student so William tries to put her out of his mind, but she seems so naturally submissive, and when their eyes meet they are like magnets drawn together.

Catching Emma, and some other students (who bail on her) smoking pot William decides her self destructive behavior needs to stop and that she needs some discipline.  So what would any good college professor who is also a Dom do?  Well bend her over his desk and spank her senseless of course.

I work at a college, I'm pretty sure that shit doesn't happen... let me take that back, I'm *reasonably* sure that shit doesn't happen...

Their relationship escalates to a sexual one where William takes Emma's virginity, and then feels pretty crappy about it.  He wants her, but knows he shouldn't, there are outside and opposing forces at work and plenty of mystery which starts to make more and more sense at the end of book two.  Both Emma and William seem to be on paths of self destruction, and when they are together it is almost as if they are in some kind of nuclear arms assured mutual destruction pact. 

Except for the bomb at the end of the book.  I am eagerly reading the third book in the story because I'm not sure how this can all play out.

Ms. Mummert did a great job of keeping me engaged and guessing and salivating for the next story, I was not distracted by anything shiny while reading these two books, and for me that's a big deal.

Pick them up, they're worth your time, I'm sorry I let them sit in my TBR for so long.

Backstage Pass: Sinners on Tour by Olivia Cunning

Been a few days since I've put together a review, although I've probably finished 4 or 5 (OK closer to 10) books.

I, gentle readers, decided to do NaNoWriMo this year and actually write a book of my own.  The book is complete and now I am in edits, getting ready to send to my beta readers and trying to figure out how the hell I find cover art and copyright the damn thing, but I digress.

So I recently joined another book group on Facebook (I think this now makes 3), and everyone was raving about this series of books, the "Sinners" books, it's a series, and you know me, I loves me a series, although I think what I said on FB was that I'm a series whore, but you know in that classy, I don't sleep around or get paid for it kinda way.  OK enough, now I will actually review the damn book, which was pretty good.

This is the first in a series of five books *squeeeee* about a rock band on tour and everyone's journey towards their own HEA. Book one is about Brian, the lead singer of Sinners.  He's losing his spark, his creative muse has left him, he's feeling down right shit.

One night as the fates would have it he's in a hotel bar and Myrna Evans, a professor of psychology and human sexuality, there for a conference happens upon the band in said bar and sits down for a chat.  She's a fan of the group, but is also interested in what makes them, and more importantly their groupies tick.

She and Brian hit it off right away, and sparks fly.  There is plenty of sex in this book, and it appears that while he's balls deep in Professor Evans his muse arrives and he can hear it clearly and write the music again, sometimes actually on Myrna, like on her skin on her while doing the deed.  I don't know about you, but this might kill the mood for me, also I'm kinda ticklish, so it probably would kill the mood for me.

She ends up spending time with the band following them around learning about the sub-culture that is a touring rock group.  Fear of losing her job as she's recently lost her federal funding gives her the bright idea to write a grant proposal to study groupies and their reasons behind their perceived and actual promiscuity when it comes to the rockers they lust after.

It's an erotic romance, there are twists and turns, angst and plenty of sexy time.  It was a good read.  My only problem is my day job is in research, and the whole time she's talking about her grant and interviewing her subjects I'm worried about whether or not she's obtained the appropriate approvals to do all of this, where is her IRB, does her grants and contracts office know that she's basically paying for a summer on a tour bus, is she getting informed consent from the participants before interviewing them, hell if they're half drunk or high can they even truly provide informed consent.

If I could have gotten out of my head and my work this would have been a great read, but that's my own baggage.  I think Brian and Myrna meshed well together, she was a calming influence when he was wild and adrift and he showed her letting her hair down is just as important as being responsible.

This was my first foray into the rosk-star sub-genre of romance/erotica/erotic-romance, and it likely won't be my last, because somewhere deep down all girls have at least a little thing for bad boy rockers who are all inky and sweaty and wild, right? or is that just me and the ladies in my book group?

Heart of a Soldier by Tamara Hoffa

Boroughs Publishing Group has come up with a new series of short story line called Lunchbox Romance, stories meant to be read and enjoyed while you're on break at work, or wherever the mood strikes you for a short but sweet love story.

This is the story of Charlie and Jamie. Charlie is a widow with a son who is eager to enlist in the army when he finishes high school  Times being what they are Charlie is obviously anxious about Evan, her only child going off to war.  Evan takes his mother with him to meet the recruiter.

Ah the recruiter, the quintessential soldier, tall, handsome, and brave.  Jamie is stateside working as a recruiter while a shoulder injury heals.

There is a spark right away between the soldier and the widow.  Jamie does his best to assuage Charlie's fears, and thinks maybe he could be more helpful in calming her by taking her out to dinner.  The first date is a disaster, but when things are meant to be love always finds a way.

This was a charming read and a strong first effort for Tamara.  I will also say I very much like the idea of short easy to consume love stories.  Don't get me wrong gentle readers, you know I loves me a series, but this was enjoyable, and I'd be interested in not only reading more from the series but also reading more from Tamara.

My thanks to Tamara and the Boroughs Group for providing me with a review copy of the story.  However, I would have gladly paid the $.99 to purchase the story, and considering how many books I purchase and how picky I am with my Kindle budget that's saying something.

The Look of Love, the Sullivans Book 1 by Bella Andre

It was a dark and stormy night... No really, it was, and Chloe Peterson was having THE worst night of her life, stranded on the side of the road in Napa during a storm while she's trying to run away and start a new life.  Chase Sullivan thinks he's heading for a nice night of no strings sex with one the staff from the Sullivan Winery.

Chase finds her on the side of the road and instead of dropping her off at a motel, preferably a cheap one, he instead takes her to the guest house on his brother Marcus' winery where he is set to begin a photo shoot, being the world class photographer he is.

Every protective instinct in him come alive and he wants to wrap her up and make whatever is giving her that sad look go far far away, she's got lots of baggage and lots of secret, including where that bruise on her cheek came from.  He's got his own baggage, the life of a handsome straight man surrounded by models getting laid all the time is wearing on him and he knows there's got to be something more to life than the glitz and glamour that is his life.

There is a zing between them from the get go, but Chloe is skittish and Chase ramps it up slow, well except for that first night, and the whirlpool tub and the faulty door lock.  Even though Chloe wants to leave Chase convinces her to stay and what blossoms is beautiful.

This is book 1 in what is set to be an 8 book series, 1-6 are out now and 7 is expected in December of this year.

It's a nice mix of the romantic and erotic, and with the introduction of the other siblings in this story you're left looking forward to everyone's story, because one by one you know all 8 Sullivan kids, 6 boys, 2 girls will fall, and fall hard.

Masked, Unmasked, Revealed by Lissa Matthews

So because I read the Lauren Dane book Laid Bare, which had a M/M(/F) relationship Amazon, pusher that it is recommended this series.  I had yet to read anything in the romance or erotica genre that was a relationship that was just between two men (or women) with no third in the mix. It was either free or very low priced so I decided to give it a go.

These three novellas are the story of Bobby and Thor, although we don't know it's Bobby yet, he's a masked man who watches Thor work over subs on the St. Andrews Cross with envy, wishing it were him (Oh did I also mention this was a very BDSM flavored book?).  Thor spends his free time flogging and whipping willing subs, women publicly, his partner on the platform takes care of the men, but for weeks now the masked man has been watching him clearly itching to say something, ask for something, but holding his voice for now.

Can't say I blame our masked man for lusting after Thor he's 6'+ of hulking long haired sex on a stick who rides a motorcycle and wears a freaking kilt.  Seriously, you'd have to be a solid ZERO on the Kinsey scale to not at least give him a second look.

After biding his time he asks for an encounter, in a private room at club Abyss.  While Thor hasn't been flying his rainbow flag it isn't a secret that he is attracted to both men and women, he just hasn't found the man he wants to make a permanent partner.  Bobby on the other hand has kept his desire for men a big secret, due to his upbringing, how he feels his family would react and their mutual social circle who see him as a big time womanizer.  This first encounter creates a paradigm shift for both men.

In the second volume, Unmasked, their second encounter happens on the floor of Abyss at Thor's station.  Thor hasn't tied a man to his cross and Bobby has a lot to lose being found out but wants to escalate their relationship.  Through the events of the evening identities are revealed and once the shock is settled Thor tells Bobby he needs to make a choice.

In Revealed, the final installment the begin together, and what that would look like out of the club with their real lives as a construction worker and a lawyer.  Thor gives him a list of tasks, things he needs to deal with and make right before they can embark on their own relationship.  Yes, there is the M/M element, and the D/s element, but in the end they are just two people looking for that person to be there at the end of the day who shares your life with you.

They are three bite sized stories that tie together to make an enjoyable journey through a point in time for Thor and Bobby, Lissa writes characters who could be your neighbor, or the guy in line behind you at the dry cleaner, who also happens to flog lucky little subs on the weekend.

It's clear to me that the M/M dynamic is different, as are the mechanics obviously, than your typical romance erotica pairing, but that doesn't distract from two people looking for love.  I'm not about to go rent gay porn on pay-per-view, but this likely won't be the last male-centric romance I read.

If you're open minded enough not to be off-put by it it's a truly enjoyable set of reads, and I'd suggest picking up some more from Lissa Matthews, as well as a couple of other authors who are out there doing it, and doing it well and not in that sleazy salacious way that makes even the kinkiest of us squidgy, while still keeping it hot and steamy.

p.s.  Lissa mentioned today we might get a new read of life with Bobby and Thor and where they are now... yes please... I will also say that Lissa is one of those new breed of author who uses social media to connect and interact with her readers and I for one love her for it.

Masters at Arms by Kallypso Masters

So, how does a good pusher get you hooked?  They give you the first hit for free, it's marketing genius really, and Kally Masters, one of my favorite pushers, I mean authors, these days got me hooked with the first book in her Rescue Me series, Masters at Arms, which is still free at Amazon.com (subsequent volumes have all been $3.99).

So what happens to a rag tag band of Marines who have served together in Iraq when they come home and try to put the pieces of their lives back together?  Well they move to Denver and open a kink club of course.

This book gives back-story on the three main Masters/Doms in the series, Adam, Marc and Damian (Damo).

Master Adam (Montague) the leader of this group, both on the battlefield and the home front has been involved in the lifestyle for many years, his late wife Joni was his submissive and one time sexually submissive slave.  Marc d'Alessio and Damian Orlando, two men who served under Adam while in Iraq come upon kink while on their last outing before deployment, Adam happens to see them at the club, although they don't notice him there.  Planting the seed for future endeavors.

The back-stories...

Adam, shortly after his wife's death and a killer bender is in a bus station before Thanksgiving and meets Karla, a scared pink haired 16 year old girl running away from home.  He helps her out of a dangerous situation and she brings him home to spend the holiday with her family, her brother is serving overseas and her family are more than happy to share their day with another soldier (although Master Adam would pink up my hide and remind me he's a Marine thank you very much).  Karla develops a school girl crush on Adam and begins a 9 year long correspondence, sending him letters, and peanut butter brownies, as well as MP3s of her singing while she develops her talent and grows into who she's going to become as a woman.

Damian's story takes us to the time before enlisting where he meets Savannah Gentry, he rescues her from a bad situation, an abusive situation her father and his lackey have put her in.  He whisks her away and they share a magical day and night together at the shore in a secluded cave, at the end of the day he brings her home, knowing a rich classy girl like her would never go for him.  He doesn't accept that and for days and days after shows up at her house in the hills at the gate until finally one of the staff threaten to have him arrested.  Down, and now out as he lost his job at the hotel Savannah's father owned and about to be evicted he enlists in the Marines.  He comes home a wounded warrior, who would, if left to his own devices, just curl up and die.  Adam comes to him in the hospital and takes him home to Denver, not allowing Damo to wallow in the self pity of it all.

Marc is the surviving son, a pressure that can be great when you are in the shadow of a mythic creature.  His family resent him for leaving the family resort business and not wanting to step in to his beloved brother's role.  He hides from his family the fact that he wants no part in becoming Gino, and Marc has a secret, he's been providing some other "services" to resort guests acting as a Dom and sexual partner to some of the female guests who are so inclined.  Gino's former fiance has a major jones for him and sticks to him like a sock on a towel fresh out of the dryer, and Marco wants no part of that either.  He decides the only way to get out the shadow of Gino, his mother's grief and Melissa the grieving fiance is to enlist and go fight a war of his own.  He becomes a corpsman working with Adam and Damo in Iraq, he's got a chip on his shoulder and a lot to prove after losing his brother Gino in the service, and through a twist of fate he's serving with his brother's Master Sergeant.

War makes men from boys and brothers from men and their service together in the hell of war tie these three, and others along the way together in an unbreakable bond.  Their rag tag family gives each of these men as much as they give to each other.  They all come together again in Denver and becomes a partner in the kink club they open called Masters at Arms.  Joining them over time will be other entwined in their past through service, family or the intercession of the Universe.

As this volume ends, Adam is pulled by the song of a siren... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwbtbfAnI80

It's a gripping story and an impressive first outing into erotic romance for Kallypso Masters.  She did her research both within the military and kink community, she is looking for a more real character and she delivers.  I know it's fiction, so how real can they be, but compared to other books I've read in the genre/trope this one sucked me in and had me clicking on "buy now" for the next two available stories in the series and then salivating while waiting for the fourth book, which was a much longer time in coming than originally anticipated (we'll get to that later).  It didn't pander to the billionaire/virgin theme so popular these days or have characters who are all model perfect and their biggest problem is a hang nail, or problems that don't happen to anyone in real life... ever.

Through the books and Facebook I've had a chance to interact personally with Kally and find her a wonderful, funny and very friendly woman.  She's an author who interacts with her readers and listens to our input.  Right now I think this will likely turn into an 8-9 book series and you know me, I love me a series, so I'm hoping she keeps on writing about our friends getting their kink on in the mile high city for YEARS to come.  I've been singing the praises of Kally and these books to anyone looking to read erotica/erotic romance/BDSM stories after finishing FSoG, and I'll keep preaching the good word until the last page of the last book is long past it's out of press date.

Laid Open by Lauren Dane

OK, one more LD book, the current volume in the Brown family series.  This tasty little novella was a nice peek into the life of Ben, Todd and Erin, who get a chance to get away from work, life and the kiddo for some time together for their relationship.

If I were a tattooed, polyamorus rock star turned coffe shop owner I'd want to be Erin Brown.  Her men are yummy, she has a wonderful family full of siblings, in-laws and friends surrounding her. She also has Alexander, her adorable little boy who speaks in exclamation points and he has his own names for folks as all toddlers do, he's also learned to use "Yo!" in just about every sentence thanks to his uncle Adrian.

The men decide to take Erin to Fiji, a place where they can get away from the pressures in life, the paparazzi and the madness that surrounds everyday life. With Erin's celebrity and their unique relationship they are often hounded by the press and have had some mud and even social services flung their way because of eir unique family situation.

Todd packs some new toys, Erin packs some bikinis and Ben just packs his awesome.

I enjoyed how this story while being about the triad, also focused on Ben and Todd's developing relationship. They started out in Laid Open as very tentative towards each other, Todd moreso than Ben who was already comfortable in his sexuality and had already had a relationship with a man and a woman, for Todd this was more of an adjustment, he and Ben had been friends since childhood, and Todd hadn't likely ever considered romantic love for a man let alone having hot sweaty man-lovin' on a regular basis.

They aren't gentle with each other the way they are with Erin and it's an interesting view into that side sof the triad dynamic.  They realize that their relationship which each other and working on that is just as important as their relationship with Erin as well as the triad as a whole.

Even in this delicious little tidbit from LD there is an interesting twist, something coming back to pull a dark cloud over the peace and quiet of Fiji.  But loving each other, supporting each other and giving each per room to deal and grow is the part of their relationship that makes it all work.

I hope LD keeps up with these little love letters to the fans after Erin's book ans the Delicious series are done, they aren't even gone yet and I'm missing them already.

OK, now I'll step away from the LD and move on... Really...