Wicked Ties by Shayla Black

She didn’t know what she wanted until he made her beg for it...

Morgan O’Malley has seen a lot of kinky things as the hostess of a cable sex talk show. But she’s never met a man like Jack Cole before. A self-proclaimed dominant, he’s as alpha as a male can get–and good for Morgan to have around when an obsessed stalker ratchets up his attempts to get to her.

Though Jack is a bodyguard, Morgan feels anything but safe in his presence. Because slowly and seductively, Jack is bringing her deepest fantasies to the surface. And when he bends her to his will, what’s more shocking than her surrender is how much she enjoys it–and starts to crave his masterful touch. A willing player in Jack’s games, Morgan knows that his motives aren’t pure, but she has no idea how personal they are…

*****

I haven't been posting reviews of truly erotic stories here, for reasons I won't go into, but I've decided to remedy that and what better way to start than with Jack **swoon** Cole's  story.

This story is not recommended for readers under 18.

Wicked Ties is the first book in the erotic Wicked Lovers series, and when I started this book I figured it would be just another sexy read by Shayla Black. WOW! Was I ever wrong! Not about the “sexy read” part, but about the “just another” part of the “sexy read” comment.

Jack Cole is a bodyguard, an alpha male and self proclaimed Dominant. He’s given the opportunity to appear on a cable sex talk show and discuss his sexual proclivities with Morgan O’Malley, the skeptical host of the show. She’s not buying into the whole Dom/sub thing, and Jack's hints that she might actually like it if she tried it. She expected to have to deal with an arrogant, bossy male at their first meeting at a trendy, outdoor cafe, but what she wasn’t expecting was to be shot at. Things quickly go from fun and games, to life or death, but lucky for her, Jack knows his stuff and gets her safely out of the crosshairs. So, this is where the story really takes off as Jack does whatever he has to, to both protect and seduce Morgan.

Having been instantly captivated by the story and finding Jack so incredibly attractive, I was surprised by my reaction to Morgan, who I think was just ok. I didn’t “connect” with her on any level, really and I often found her more than a tad annoying. However Jack…*sigh* … Jack was amazing. I can’t even put my finger on what it was about him that was so compelling, so demanding, so… perfect.

When reading an erotic book like this I don’t expect much in the way of storyline or character development but I have to say that Wicked Ties has it all. Fantastic story, amazing characters, incredible sexual tension… I couldn’t put it down and in fact, Wicked Ties turned out to be one of my favorite reads in a very long time and Jack Cole has a place of honor on my Top Heroes reading shelf.

Sexual Content: Yes. That is to say, this book contains just about everything except m/m. This story is not recommended for readers under 18.

Dancing on Coals by Ellen O'Connell

After escaping robbers intent on murder, Katherine Grant says, "I jumped from the frying pan into the fire. Before long I'll be dancing on the coals." The highwaymen were the frying pan; the handsome young Apache who saved her from them was the fire; and the coals? Gaetan.

Rage against the enemies of his people has consumed Gaetan from boyhood. The only use he ever found for any white was to test the sharpness of his knife. Forced by his brother to endure Katherine's company, Gaetan tries to deny what he sees—the white woman has a man's temper and a lion's courage. She has an Apache heart.

In spite of hate, distrust and fear, surviving in the rugged country of southern Arizona and northern Mexico forges a strange bond between Katherine and Gaetan. When the bond turns to love, can they admit it? Can they bear the consequences?

*****

Well, as usual, I’m late the game. So many of my friends have read this book and raved about it. They’ve nudged me, telling me it’s amazing and that I had to read it. Every so often I’d get a reminder that I had it sitting here, just waiting for me to pick it up… and still, I put it off. But, I finally did it and, as usual, my friends were right.

I’m just going to share a few thoughts with you, since there are already so many wonderful reviews on this book.

When I read a book I want the time I spend to be worthwhile, so I’m always looking for stories that make me forget that I’m just reading a book. I love it when I’m swept away to another time and place, living a life very different from my own, a life I’d never otherwise get to experience. That’s what Dancing on Coals was like for me.

For the few days I spent reading this story, I’d close my eyes and try to imagine what it was like to be a lone woman in an unfamiliar land, finding myself living with a people whose traditions and ways of life were completely foreign to me. What it was like to have the wind whipping through my hair while on horseback, riding faster and faster, as if my very life depended on it, because it did. Seeing the ocean for the very first time. Falling in love with someone I had every reason to hate, and being thankful for all the horrible things that happened to me because without them, I would never have met him.

This is a tale that is, at the same time, both ugly and beautiful. It took me places I’ve never been, made me feel things I’ve never felt. And most importantly, it's a beautiful love story, and I can’t ask for more than that.

Ice Blue by Anne Stuart

 Museum curator Summer Hawthorne considered the exquisite ice-blue ceramic bowl given to her by her beloved Japanese nanny a treasure of sentimental value--until somebody tried to kill her for it. The priceless relic is about to ignite a global power struggle that must be stopped at all costs.

It's a desperate situation, and international operative Takashi O'Brien has received his directive: everybody is expendable. "Everybody." Especially the woman who is getting dangerously under his skin as the lethal game crosses the Pacific to the remote and beautiful mountains of Japan, where the truth can be as seductive as it is deadly....

*****

Ice Blue is the third book in Anne Stuart’s popular Ice series, and another exciting, sexy story. This time we're taken on wild ride as The Committee seeks to thwart a crazy villain’s attempt to “cleanse the world” with fire.

Well, I gotta tell you, there’s something wildly addictive about these books – in a twisted kind of way. The villains are always very ambitious in their evil plans for world domination, or as is the case in Ice Blue, True Ascension. In a note from the author, Ms. Stuart gives us a little background to this story:

The True Realization Fellowship and its leader, the Shirosama, is very loosely inspired by the Aum Shinrikyo cult in Japan and their charismatic leader, Shoko Asahara. Most people remember the sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subways twelve years ago, when terrorist attacks were less common, and there's something about cults, Jonestown and the like, that are macabre and fascinating. Believe it or not, the real characters were just as badly behaved as my fictional ones—sometimes more so. I simply used Aum as a jumping-off point to create my own delusional madman.

And what a madman he is! Knowing there are really people out there who believe they are "chosen" to cleanse the world added an element of evil to the story that was chilling.

I still can’t believe that I fall so in love with these “heroes” who are willing to do whatever they have to do to complete their mission, and I do mean “whatever” they have to do. This includes sacrificing the heroine to the bad guys, or as the case may be, in order to make sure the bad guys can’t get their hands on her, killing her himself! Luckily, Fate always steps in just in the nick of time and creates a diversion that allows the hero to put off the inevitable… until the inevitable is no longer, and he realizes that he’s screwed. Because that’s what falling in love is. Screwed.

Okay, so I’m speaking in generalizations here, this is true, but so far every hero in this series is amazing and I love them for the same reasons I hate them. They’re sexy and they know it. They’re smart and they know it. They’re without heart and conscience and they know it… and they use all of these things to their advantage. So do you see why I have the Love/Hate relationship with these men that I do?

Thankfully the heroines are not TSTL (Too Stupid To Live) though from time to time they do walk the edge. They’re strong, independent, compassionate, wise and insightful. And they have to be all of these things to bring their men out of the dark world they exist in, and into the light. But don’t worry, these gamma males never lose their edge, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

I absolutely adore Takashi and Summer. They’re a perfect match in every way, even more than I could have imagined. Apart they are amazing, but their strengths and their weaknesses complement one another and together they make a perfect, complete whole.

I'm so looking forward to reading more of this series!

Ice Storm by Anne Stuart

 Behind her mask is a deadly secret.

The powerful head of the covert mercenary organization The Committee, Isobel Lambert is a sleek, sophisticated professional who comes into contact with some of the most dangerous people in the world. But beneath Isobel's cool exterior a ghost exists, haunting her with memories of another life?a life that ended long ago.

But Isobel's past and present are about to collide when Serafin, mercenary, assassin and the most dangerous man in the world, makes a deal with The Committee. Seventeen years ago Isobel shot him and left him for dead. Now it looks as if he's tracked her down for revenge. But Isobel knows all too well that looks can be deceiving - and that's what she's counting on to keep her cover in this international masquerade of murder.

*****

 
If you’ve been following my reviews of Anne Stuart’s Ice series, you know I’ve been saying basically the same thing throughout. Well, fasten your seat belts and get ready for more ranting and raving.

This is the fourth installment of the series, and it's awesome. Fast paced, edgy, intriguing, sexy... it's a great romantic suspense novel.

Killian, AKA Serafin - he’s a user, a player, an asshat and a cold blooded killer. He does whatever he has to do to get the job done, including killing women and ‘children’ if necessary. And he makes no apologies, whatsoever. He’s all of these things as well as heartless and without conscious, and he’s also amazing!

Yep, I can hear you now… “Blithely,” you’re saying, “what the hell is wrong with you? Have you completely lost it?” And my answer is yes. Yes, I have. Just trust me on this, because I have lost my heart to the men of this series, time and time again. I’d read one book and think it can’t get any better than this, until I read the next and I fall even harder for that hero. Bastien, Peter, Taka… I adore them all, but no one holds a candle to Killian.

And Madame Lambert… Isobel. What a fantastic heroine! I went into this book totally skeptical about being able to care for her. She’s cold. Frigid. Unfeeling. Uncaring. Just get in, get out, get the job done, take no prisoners. But in this story, it all comes together making her a heroine I can cheer for. A true force to be reckoned with. She's the perfect woman for an imperfect man and together they are phenomenal.

I can say, without a doubt, that Ice Storm is my favorite of the series so far, but Reno’s story is next and ho-ly hell, It’s going to be something else. I just know it!

Sex and the Single Fireman by Jennifer Bernard

The toughest captain on the East Coast, single father Rick Roman has come thousands of miles to San Gabriel to put an end to the "Bachelor Firemen" media hype. But when a stunning woman he nearly hooked up with in Reno turns out to be a firefighter from his new station, Roman realizes it's going to be tough keeping the tabloids at bay.

But there's even more Sabina isn't telling him. Before dedicating her life to battling blazes, Sabina led a very different life, one that made her famous. The last thing she wants is to have her secret exposed. The papers, bloggers, and TV gossips will have a field day with that—especially when they sense the obvious sexual heat between Sabina and Chief Roman, who's torn between firing her...and falling in love with her!

*****

Jennifer Bernard knows how to deliver sexy, romantic, emotional stories, and Sex and the Single Fireman, the third installment of the Bachelor Firemen of San Gabriel series is all that and more!

One of the things I most love about this author is how well she tells a story. They’re easy to read, yet compelling, and pull you in right from the start. Her characters are people we come to care about because even though they’re totally amazing, they’re also human. They're the kinds of people you live next door to, and they’re like the odd cousin that everyone wonders about. They’re the people you meet in the grocery story and the friends you wish you had… they’re people who draw you in and make you love them, every single time.

Sabina Jones is the “Bachelor” fireman in this book, and Chief Rick Roman is a man who’s trying to build a life for he and his son after losing his wife in the 9/11 attacks. That right there got my attention because we’ve all heard the tales of the real men and women who gave their all that day, and stories like this – stories of the ones left behind – never cease to touch me deeply. Whether it’s only mentioned briefly or the center of the story; whether it happened yesterday or eleven and a half years ago, it gets to me. Every single time.

Watching Sabina and Roman’s relationship grow from lust to love was heartwarming – and burn up the pages sexy. Start to finish, through the good and the bad, I couldn’t get enough of them and that thirteen year old Roman-in-training, Luke.

My thanks to Avon Books for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

Cold As Ice by Anne Stuart

The job was supposed to be dead easy--hand-deliver some legal papers to billionaire philanthropist Harry Van Dorn's extravagant yacht, get his signature and be done. But Manhattan lawyer Genevieve Spenser soon realizes she's in the wrong place at the wrong time, and that the publicly benevolent playboy has a sick, vicious side. As he tries to make her his plaything for the evening, eager to use and abuse her until he discards her with the rest of his victims, Genevieve must keep her wits if she intends to survive the night. But there's someone else on the ship who knows the true depths of Van Dorn's evil.

Peter Jensen is far more than the unassuming personal assistant he pretends to be--he's a secret operative who will stop at nothing to ensure Harry's deadly Rule of Seven terror campaign dies with him. But Genevieve's presence has thrown a wrench into his plans, and now he must decide whether to risk his mission to keep her alive, or allow her to become collateral damage....

*******

Cold As Ice is the second book in Anne Stuart's Ice series, and once again she gives us a hero who's arrogant, annoying, an ass without conscience or heart, too sexy to resist and, in a word, perfect! It's a fast paced story, one that, from the first page to the last, I couldn't put down.

I have to say, I'm a huge fan of hot, alpha males, but I wasn't sure I could get on-board with these hot gamma males, the kind that let nothing stop them from accomplishing their goal, even if it means offering up the heroine as a sacrifice to do so. But whatever it is about Anne Stuart's stories, I love these guys even as I'm hating them. I want them to die, even as I'm afraid they will. My emotions are always in a state of chaos while reading these books because the very things I do want to happen, I also don't want to see happen. See? Chaos!

I won't recap the book blurb, but I will say it's an exciting story. And pretty damned funny, too. There were times I was fanning myself, times I wanted to cry, but there were also times I was laughing and that humor caught me off guard, popping up when I was least expecting it. It helped lighten the mood of the story at times when it was needed, making the villain look like a fool and I loved that!

We met Peter Jensen in Black Ice and though we didn't see much of him, what little we were given had me wanting to get his story. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait long. As I said, he's arrogant. He's an ass. He's heartless, ruthless and annoying as all get out - and I adore him!

Genevieve Spenser is equally annoying in a mouthy sort of way, but if you were stuck with Peter for any length of time, you'd get mouthy, too! She's strong, independent, and a totally awesome woman!

So yeah, another terrific installment to the Ice series, and I am soooooo glad I decided to take these books from the shelf, dust 'em off and dig in!

4.5/5 stars because as with the first book, the ending is a bit abrupt.

Black Ice by Anne Stuart

Living paycheck to paycheck in Paris, American book translator Chloe Underwood would give anything for some excitement and passion--even a little danger. So when she's offered a lucrative weekend gig translating at a business conference in a remote chateau, she jumps at the chance to shake things up.

Then by chance Chloe discovers her employers are anything but the entrepreneurs they appear, and suddenly she knows far too much. Her clients are illegal arms dealers, and one of them is ordered to kill her. But instead, Bastien Toussaint drags Chloe away, and the next thing she knows she's on the run with the most terrifying and seductive man she's ever met. What were his motives--and would she live long enough to find out?

*********

Black Ice is the first book in Anne Stuart's Ice series, and one edgy, fast paced, sexy story.
 
My first thoughts on this are, and I'm being honest, I'm not sure I've ever so thoroughly disliked a hero that I am so thoroughly in love with! Nor have I ever before thought to kill the hero and put the bad guy out of his misery, but I did a few times while reading this story! Bastien is an ass! I mean... SUCH an ass. But, Heaven help me, I love him! Chloe is a great heroine - strong, intelligent, passionate, full of life - a perfect match for Bastien's dark, bleak, nature. Without even trying, she shows him what his life is missing, and thankfully he sees it, grabs hold, and doesn't let go. Well... after he'd walked away from her a few times... then he doesn't let go.

This is actually my first Anne Stuart read, but it will most definitely not be my last. The story is very engaging. Arms dealers, terrorists, murderers, clandestine organizations, lots of blood and torture and... yeah, very engaging. I seriously couldn't stop reading once I started.

Another shout out to all my friends who've been badgering encouraging me to read this book for years. Yes, years. Someday I'll learn...

4.5/5 stars because the ending was a little abrupt.