My Picks of the Week! (11th February 2014)

Hello, Muses!

I forgot to mention last week that February is Black History Month! So every Friday of this month I am going to try to post a spotlight on some of my favorite books, movies, or tv shows that features African American characters.

That being said, here are the new releases for the week. In adult books, Cold Iron by: D.L. McDermott sounds unique. In Young adult, the last book in the Arkadien series called Arcadia Falls by: Kai Meyer is finally here. If you are a fan of Robin Hood then you will fall in love with this retelling, Lady Thief by: A.C. Gaughen. But you have to read book 1 first.

In movies, you may want to check out one of Robert Redford's best performances in All Is Lost. If you are looking for a romantic comedy, Best Man Holiday might just do the trick. And if you are a fan of near future/apocalyptic tales, How I Live Now starring Saoirse Ronan is worth watching which is also based off of a book of the same name. In tv shows, if you like zombies but are looking for something different, check out the French tv series Les Revenants (The Returned).

Enjoy!

BOOKS (11th February 2014)

ADULT BOOKS

Bared (Club Sin, #2)
by: Stacey Kennedy

In a novel that’s perfect for fans of Fifty Shades of Grey, Stacey Kennedy returns to Club Sin with another wicked and wild tale of submission, seduction, and love.

At Las Vegas’s exclusive Club Sin, Aidan Knight is the Master, unleashing the erotic yearnings of his submissive lovers. But his dominant façade conceals a devastating loss—something he instantly recognizes in his personally trained submissive Cora Adams. Sworn to unearth her secrets, Aidan uses his seductive skills to ignite her wildest desires until Cora yields to the pleasure she can find only with him.

Cora came to the BDSM club to act out her sub-and-dom fantasies without ever revealing the heartbreak that haunts her. But Aidan’s masterful touch is bringing her closer to the edge . . . and deeper into a world of control and surrender. He refuses to allow her to submit to any other man—nor does she want to. It’s a dangerous game they’re playing. For as they give in to passion, they must lay bare their souls for a love that could heal—and free—them both.

Release Date: 10th February 2014

Website | E-book

Bear Naked (Halle Shifters, #3)

by: Dana Marie Bell

To win a frightened heart, you have to bare your own.

Any woman would be eager to be Ryan Williams’s mate. Any woman but Glory Walsh. The sexy bear shifter is beautiful, strong and persistent, she’ll give him that. But Glory’s past taught her one simple truth: people leave. She can’t get past the fact he left her once before. Okay, so he had a good reason, and he did come back. Try convincing her emotions.

When Glory finally agrees to a date, Ryan feels like shouting hallelujah. He only left his mate to hunt down the man who’d shot her, but convincing the stubborn woman she has a permanent place at his side is tougher than he thought.

Their date takes a turn for the bizarre when Glory thanks Ryan for the series of romantic gifts—gifts Ryan never sent. It seems her past is coming back to bite her, and before it has a chance to sink its teeth in and tear her out of his life, Ryan will have to bare it all, right down to his soul, to protect the woman he loves. Even from herself.

Warning: This title contains explicit sex, graphic language, a blue-haired heroine, and a hero who isn’t afraid to get all kinds of naked.

Release Date: 11th February 2014

Website | E-book

Cold Iron (Cold Iron, #1)
by: D.L. McDermott

For fans of Jeaniene Frost and Kresley Cole, this full-length novel is the first in D.L. McDermott’s fast-paced, sexy paranormal romance series—available exclusively in ebook!

The Fae, the Good Neighbors, the Fair Folk, the Aes Sídhe, creatures of preternatural beauty and seduction. Archaeologist Beth Carter doesn’t believe in them. She’s always credited her extraordinary ability to identify ancient Celtic sites to hard work and intuition—until she discovers a tomb filled with ancient treasure but missing a body. Her ex-husband, the scholar who stifled her career to advance his own, is unconcerned. Corpses don’t fetch much on the antiquities market. Gold does. Beth knows from past experience that if she isn’t vigilant, Frank will make off with the hoard.

So when a man—tall, broad shouldered, and impossibly handsome—turns up in her bedroom claiming to be the tomb’s inhabitant, one of mythic god-kings of old Ireland, Beth believes it is a ploy cooked up by her ex-husband to scare her away from the excavation.

But Conn is all too real. Ancient, alien, irresistible, the Fae are the stuff of dreams and nightmares, their attentions so addictive their abandoned human lovers wither and die. And this one has fixed his supernatural desire on Beth.

Release Date: 10th February 2014

Website | E-book

My Picks of the Week! (28th January 2014)

Hello, Muses!

If you are a regular and you think your eyes are playing tricks are you, they aren't! My goddess of a best friend helped me make a few much needed changes and updates. Hopefully this will make everything easier on the eye and easier to navigate. I'm still working on a few things, but overall, I absolutely love the change. It's amazing what a difference a few tweaks can make!

In any case, enjoy these new releases in books, movies, and tv shows!

Best Wishes,

 

BOOKS (28th January)

 

 

ADULT BOOKS

Beautiful Addictions
by: Season Vining

Josie Banks is a girl without a past.  After being found unconscious with no memory, she was shuffled in and out of foster homes where she suffered years of abuse. An experience that left her broken, damaged, and clinging to drugs and meaningless hook-ups to numb her pain.

When Josie disappeared years ago, she took a piece of Tristan with her.  She’s the girl he thought he lost forever—the one he’s never been able to forget.  Now a twist of fate has brought them back together, and he never wants to let her out of his inked arms again.  But Tristan is haunted by a dark past of his own.  On the run from ruthless criminals that shattered Josie’s world years ago, reentering her life puts them both in danger.

As Josie and Tristan’s lives become tangled once again, they find themselves unwilling and unable to escape the relentless pull that draws them together.  But will the past leave their love in ruins—or bind them together for a lifetime?

Release Date: 28th January 2014

Website | E-book

Burn for Me (Phoenix Fire, #1)

by: Cynthia Eden

Eve Bradley was undercover looking for a story, not a cause. But something about the man they called Subject Thirteen got her involved. The scientists said he was a devil, and they had a decent case: Terrifying power. A bad attitude. And looks that could lead anyone to sin. . .

Cain O'Connor knows the minute he catches her candy scent that Eve could drive him wild. But she's a threat--in a way no one has been for him in years. She's safer away from him, too. But with a powerful conspiracy determined to shut Eve up for good, there's no time to argue. All they can do is trust their instincts--and their hearts...

Release Date: 28th January 2014

Website | E-book | Paperback

Deeper (Caroline + West, #1)
by: Robin York

In this New Adult debut by Robin York, a college student is attacked online and must restore her name—and stay clear of a guy who’s wrong for her, but feels so right.
 
When Caroline Piasecki’s ex-boyfriend posts their sex pictures on the Internet, it destroys her reputation as a nice college girl. Suddenly her once-promising future doesn’t look so bright. Caroline tries to make the pictures disappear, hoping time will bury her shame. Then a guy she barely knows rises to her defense and punches her ex to the ground.

West Leavitt is the last person Caroline needs in her life. Everyone knows he’s shady. Still, Caroline is drawn to his confidence and swagger—even after promising her dad she’ll keep her distance. On late, sleepless nights, Caroline starts wandering into the bakery where West works.

They hang out, they talk, they listen. Though Caroline and West tell each other they’re “just friends,” their feelings intensify until it becomes impossible to pretend. The more complicated her relationship with West gets, the harder Caroline has to struggle to discover what she wants for herself—and the easier it becomes to find the courage she needs to fight back against the people who would judge her.

When all seems lost, sometimes the only place to go is deeper.

Release Date: 28th January 2014

Website | E-book | Paperback

Book Review: FOREPLAY by: Sophie Jordan

Title: Foreplay (Ivy Chronicles, #1)
Author: Sophie Jordan
ISBN: 0062279874
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: New Adult Romance
Length: 304 pgs
Binding: Paperback
Published: 5 November 2013
Buy: Amazon.com

Synopsis:

Before she goes after the life she’s always wanted, she’s about to find the one she needs. Pepper has been hopelessly in love with her best friend’s brother, Hunter, for like ever. He’s the key to everything she’s always craved: security, stability, family. But she needs Hunter to notice her as more than just a friend. Even though she’s kissed exactly one guy, she has just the plan to go from novice to rock star in the bedroom—take a few pointers from someone who knows what he’s doing.

Her college roommates have the perfect teacher in mind. But bartender Reece is nothing like the player Pepper expects. Yes, he’s beyond gorgeous, but he’s also dangerous, deep—with a troubled past. Soon what started as lessons in attraction are turning both their worlds around, and showing just what can happen when you go past foreplay and get to what’s real...

My Rating:

My Review: If you are one of my blog followers then I apologize for sounding like a broken record. Lately I've been coming across books that aren't so easy to rate. FOREPLAY by Sophie Jordan falls somewhere between a 3.5-4 star rating. On the one hand, it's a story we've heard over and over again in the ever popular NA genre: Inexperienced virgin (Pepper) wants a guy (Hunter) that she thinks is out of her league. Slutty/promiscuous friend (Emerson) convinces her to find someone that will help her gain the sexual experience she needs in order to win over the guy. Virgin doesn't count on falling for the "tutor" (Reece) that agrees to teach her foreplay. On the other hand, the author somehow uses the timeworn formula to create a story that in some aspect feels fresh and original.

My Picks of the Week! (21st January 2014)

Hello, Muses!

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day! Here are the new releases for this week. In books, I have my eyes set on Loving Cara by Kristen Proby, Untouched by Maisey Yates, and the YA novel The Scar Boys by Len Vlahos.

This is a big month for Indie films, so you may want to check out the comedy Instructions Not Included and Sunlight Jr. starring Naomi Watts, Matt Dillon, and Norman Reedus.

I should have another review posted on Wednesday.

Enjoy!

BOOKS (21st January)

ADULT BOOKS

A Little Too Hot (A Little Too Far, #3)
by: Lisa Desrochers

If you play with fire…

Tossed out of college and cut off by her parents, Samantha West is in pretty dire straits. So when her rocker best friend hooks her up with a job dancing at a gentlemen’s club, who is she to turn it down? Plus, there are rules to dancing at Benny’s: No touching, keep your clothes on at all times, and never get closer than three feet. Unfortunately for Sam, her first private client makes her want to break every single one of them.

Harrison Yates is scorching hot, but he’s got a past that involves being left at the altar not too long ago. Sam is determined to make him forget about his ex, but when she makes her move, it flings her life into a spiral of chaos she never saw coming.

Because Harrison Yates isn’t who he seems to be. And his secret will probably get her killed.

Release Date: 21st January 2014

Website | E-book

Believe (True Believers, #3)

by: Erin McCarty

Robin used to be a party girl… until she got black out drunk and woke up in bed with her best friend's boyfriend. Now she's faced with being THAT girl, and couldn't be more disgusted with herself. She can't even tell her friends the reason for her sudden sobriety and she avoids everyone until she meets Phoenix—quiet, tattooed, and different in every way that's good and oh, so bad…

Phoenix is two days out of jail when he meets Robin at his cousin's house, and he knows that he has no business talking to her, but he's drawn to her quiet demeanor, sweet smile, and artistic talent. She doesn't care that he's done time, or that he only has five bucks to his name, and she supports his goal to be a tattoo artist.

But Phoenix knows Robin has a secret, and that it's a naïve dream to believe that his record won't catch up with them at some point. Though neither is prepared for the explosive result when the past collides with the present…

Release Date: 21st January 2014

Website | E-book