Review: His Undoing by Aria Grace

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His Undoing
Author: Aria Grace
Genre: M/M Romance Short Story

SUMMARY
(From Goodreads)

When Mike found out he would be sharing a dorm with a former football star, he was terrified. He’d been bullied by jocks all his life for being scrawny and weak and didn’t have high expectations of how it would go. To his surprise, Brett was a great guy that was easy to get along with and seemed to enjoy his company. When Mike learned that Brett was gay, it was a shock but it also explained the threatening letters that Mike had been receiving. Was Mike really at risk because of a jealous ex? Was there even anything to be jealous of? 

MY THOUGHTS

His Undoing by Aria Grace is a short story in the M/M Romance genre.  It is told from Mike’s point of view.

Like other reviewers of this story,  I feel that only having the one point of view is what made this story not as great as it could have been.  I enjoyed reading from Mike’s POV but I this story would have made better sense and would have been better at the execution if we could have peeked into what Brett was feeling as well.

Mike is a guy who has always had a hard time talking to girls.  He is still a virgin, scrawny and tall, and not very muscular.  He is starting college and is dreading wondering who his roommate will be.  When he enters his new room, he meets Brett who happens to be a muscular jock.  He thinks he is going to be picked on by Brett and his friends, but they both become good friends.  Brett even introduces him to his game buddies, the cheerleaders and eventually fills Mike in that he is gay.

While Mike is trying to figure out who he really is — gay or straight like he has always though he was — he is attacked in the dorm.  This is the part that would have made having Brett’s point of view to give us a little more.  When it is revealed who the attacker was, it is a character pulled into the story from no where.  This is someone who is not mentioned throughout the story and we never even get a glimpse at this person. It made the suspense and buildup of the “who-done-it” quite a let down.

While the tender and sexy moments were written pretty well, this story really need to have Brett’s story told as well.

MY RATING

If the library doesn’t have it, don’t worry about reading it!

Review: Body Heat by Susan Fox

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Body Heat
Author: Susan Fox

SUMMARY
(From Goodreads)

On the cusp of her thirtieth birthday, Maura Mahoney has yet to date a man who really excites her. Her quiet routine as a director at the retirement community Cherry Lane is disrupted by the arrival of Jesse Blue, a bad boy on a motorcycle who roars into her life. Jesse has agreed to avoid jail time by serving community service at Cherry Lane. Instantly attracted but wary of Jesse’s chickened past and youth, Maura puts him to work in the garden. Despite the growing sexual tension between them, there are many things keeping Maura and Jesse apart, chiefly their own assumptions about one another. But appearances can be deceiving and Maura and Jesse must overcome the expectations of those around them to find their happy ending…

MY THOUGHTS

Body Heat by Susan Fox was thisclose to being a Did Not Finish for me.  From chapter one, I couldn’t stand Maura.  She was stuck-up and had a holier-than-thou attitude. Every person she met, she formed an opinion of before even speaking to them.  Jesse was a little more tolerable, but I didn’t think there was much spark between the two characters.  Yes, there were sexy times, but the real connection between the two never clicked in my mind.

I also didn’t like how the author constantly had describe each person in so much detail that it was taken to the point of Maura comparing everyone to a celebrity name.  First there was the secretary who could be a Lucille Ball clone.  Then there was the lawyer who was a Richie Cunningham look-alike.  Then Jesse is described as a mix of Marlon Brando, James Dean and Russell Crowe. It got to the point where I would skim the descriptions and just find the celebrity name just to get to the next paragraph.

With too much dialogue, not much spark, and characters that graded on my nerves, I finally made it to the last page.  While I am not going to write this author completely off my list for future reads,  I can say that this one won’t be one I would read again.

MY RATING

       
I did not like this book at all!

Review: Illicit by Opal Carew

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Illicit
Author: Opal Carew
Genre: Romance / Erotica / (M/M/M/F)

SUMMARY
(From Goodreads)

What began as a steamy weekend fling is about to change their lives forever.

When Lindsay receives a mysterious invitation to live out her most illicit fantasies, she thinks it’s her best friend playing a joke.  Little does she know, the invitation is from someone else.  Someone who knows her deepest desires…and intends to fulfill them.

Erik is a man of many secrets, and he intends to keep it that way.  When he invites Lindsay to his mansion, he thinks it’s just for a steamy weekend fling.  But from their first night together, there’s an inexplicably deep connection that shakes him to his core.  And with Lindsay in his arms, he feels both thrilled and unnerved.  As Lindsay brings his fantasies to life, he’s unwilling to let her go. But can he tell her how he knows her deepest desires, and will she stay with him if she learns the truth?

MY THOUGHTS

Usually author Opal Carew is a must read for me.  I love her writing and the fantasy worlds she can create within the covers of a book (and between the sheets for her characters).  With Illicit though, I was less than pleased with the story unfortunately.

The summary of this book sounded really good.  I was excited to start another book by this author and dying to see what she would bring for Lindsay and Erik.  The first few pages I was interested.  The few pages after that were okay. Then it went downhill and I just couldn’t finish it.  So needless to say, this review is a DNF but I will explain why I couldn’t read the rest.

Lindsay literally falls into Erik when entering the elevator.  She notices right off the bat how sexy Erik and his two friends are.  She has an entire fantasy about all three of them on this short elevator ride.  Okay, I will go with that. Who doesn’t have little fantasies in their heads when they are attracted to someone? They don’t interact and she quickly exits the elevator when she arrives to her floor.  She catches up with her friend Jill and she tells her all about the three sexy men she met in the elevator.  Jill states that she know who Conner and Travis are, but she doesn’t know who Erik is based on the descriptions Lindsay gives her. Jill tells Lindsay how she would love to set her up with them and she could have a quickie with them and fulfill a sexual fantasy.  Fine, I can handle this situation of girl gossip and bonding.

This is where the book started going downhill for me.  Days later, Lindsay receives an anonymous letter in the mail with just her name written on it.  It is an invitation for her to meet at a certain place so she can live out her sexual fantasies.  She assumes it is a joke from Jill wanting a girls night out and decides to go to this place without even asking if it came from her.  That right there didn’t make sense to me. We later find out that Erik is the one who sent her the invitation.  Moving on though.

Remember that they didn’t have much interaction in the elevator, but I also want to point out that Erik is already assuming things about Lindsay.  This is what Erik thinks just as Lindsay stepped out of the elevator:

“Damn, she was sexy as hell,” Conner said.
“True that, ” said Travis.
Erik nodded absently.  She was also sweet and a little shy.  Had low self-esteem.  And had a burning inferno of passion hidden deep inside.  And he would love to be the one to let it loose.  Along with Conner and Travis. –Erik, page 5

When she arrives at the hotel — and so do Conner and Travis shortly after — instead of hightailing it out of there when two strangers she doesn’t remember arrive, she decides to watch the two men go at it on the patio near the pool area.  If I had two strangers come into the suite, I would have hid until the coast was clear and ran like hell right away. When she does come to her senses, she runs out of the room straight to the elevator.  When the elevator doors open, she runs right into Erik — again!  Oh and he is still in his work uniform for work as a police officer.  This is where Erik really gave me the impression of being stuck up and “cocky”. (no pun intended)

Why would she come all the way here, then leave?
Then again, women weren’t always rational.  He’d learned that the hard way.  In the half dozen or so serious relationships he’d had, they’d all ended with the woman walking out.  Why? Because he knew them too well.  He satisfied them too well. –Erik, page 21

This is where I stopped and decided I wasn’t going to be able to finish the story.  I just wasn’t feeling the characters and any chemistry.  Granted, this was only 25 pages in, but by this time I already know if I am going to be able to get into a book and the characters.

MY RATING
DNF

Review: Painted Faces by L. H. Cosway

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Painted Faces
Author: L.H. Cosway

SUMMARY
(From Goodreads)

Come forth with an open mind, for an unconventional tale of love.. 

Dublin native Freda Wilson considers herself to be an acquired taste. She has a habit of making offensive jokes and speaking her mind too often. She doesn’t have the best track record with first impressions, which is why she gets a surprise when her new neighbour Nicholas takes a shine to her.

Nicholas is darkly handsome, funny and magnetic, and Freda feels like her black and white existence is plunged into a rainbow of colour when she’s around him. When he walks into a room he lights it up, with his quick wit and charisma. He is a travelling cabaret performer, but Freda doesn’t know exactly what that entails until the curtains pull back on his opening night. 

She is gob-smacked and entirely intrigued to see him take to the stage in drag. Later on, Nicholas asks her if she would like to become his show assistant. Excited by the idea, she jumps at the chance. Soon she finds herself immersed in a world of wigs, make-up and high heels, surrounded by pretty men and the temptation of falling for her incredibly beautiful employer.

In this story of passion and sexual discovery, Nicholas and Freda will contend with jealousy, emotional highs and lows, and the kind of love that only comes around once in a lifetime. 

MY THOUGHTS

Why did I wait on reading this amazing story?!  I will admit that if other reviewers had not given this book such high recommendations,  I would probably have completely passed this read over.  After everyone pushing it though, I caved and I can happily say that this book was SO GOOD!

Painted Faces is a love story, but it is so much more than that.  Plus, it isn’t your usual type of love story either.  Nicholas is a straight man that enjoys dressing up as a woman and performing as a drag queen. I wondered how in the heck I was going to get a “sexy and male feeling” for a man who dresses in drag, but the author certainly convinced me with the this book.  Then the author took it a step further and made the heroine Freda average weight!  YES, she actually had meat on her bones and wasn’t a size two!  Finally an author who writes a real sized woman.

Throughout the prologue — which is the readers first hint — and the rest of the story, we get to read bits and pieces on the question of why Nicholas dresses and performs in drag.  While the prologue actually gives you a pretty good clue, I think the author revealing everything in the spot she chose was perfect timing.  We got to see how Nicholas was shaped into the man that he is today.

Freda was hilarious.  I loved her quick wit and humor.  I laughed out loud so many times reading this book that I received may strange looks from my family.  The author has a unique writing style that brought the story to life in my mind.  Her attention to descriptions and details gave the imagery needed to form a colorful and unique piece of art in my head of what Nicholas would look like on stage.  I applaud the author for this amazing talent.

Overall, this has to be one of my favorite books I have discovered this year.  While I was sad to read the last page — realizing the story was ending — it was also an ending that was fitting.  A satisfying read that makes you want to read it again as soon as the last word is read.

MY FAVORITE QUOTE

“We all paint on a face to show the world,” Nicholas replies philosophically. “For some of us, that’s quite literal.” He takes a brief pause, “When you’re passionate about something, you don’t mind suffering a little discomfort.”
I give him a wry glance. “Have you had to suffer for your passion?”
He nods gently, his eyes roving over the crowds as they push by us. “More than you would think.”

MY RATING

Outstanding book that will stay on my bookshelf for rereading!

Review: How To Misbehave by Ruthie Knox

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How To Misbehave
Series: Camelot #1
Author: Ruthie Knox

SUMMARY
(From Goodreads)

What woman can resist a hot man in a hard hat? Beloved author Ruthie Knox kicks off her new Camelot series with this deliciously sexy original novella, in which a good girl learns how to misbehave . . . with all her heart.

As program director for the Camelot Community Center, Amber Clark knows how to keep her cool. That is, until a sudden tornado warning forces her to take shelter in a darkened basement with a hunk of man whose sex appeal green lights her every fantasy. With a voice that would melt chocolate, he asks her if she is okay. Now she’s hot all over and wondering: How does a girl make a move?

Building contractor Tony Mazzara was just looking to escape nature’s fury. Instead, he finds himself all tangled up with lovely Amber. Sweet and sexy, she’s ready to unleash her wild side. Their mutual desire reaches a fever pitch and creates a storm of its own—unexpected, powerful, and unforgettable. But is it bigger than Tony can handle? Can he let go of painful memories and let the force of this remarkable woman show him a future he never dreamed existed?

MY THOUGHTS

How To Misbehave by Ruthie Knox is the first book in the Camelot Series.

Amber Clark has been the good girl through life.  She helped take care of her siblings, went to church, and even had good grades.  She was never any trouble for her parents growing up.  She works at a community center and has had her eye on the contractor working on a wing there.  She thinks his name is Patrick, but it ends up being Tony — Patrick’s brother — that she is really interested in.  When a tornado warning is sound, the two find themselves together in the dark when the power goes out in the basement.  This is where the two finally start to talk and Amber talks about not wanting to be a good girl anymore.  She wants to misbehave and do things that aren’t expected of her.  Tony is willing to help her out, but warns Amber that he will end up walking away because he is the bad boy in the book.  Tony ends up falling for her though after one night of sexy time and they both need to find common ground to see if they can make a relationship out of it.

I loved this story by author Ruthie Knox.  Ms. Knox writes wonderful stories and can bring the characters to life with a flow of writing that is great.  I really liked Tony and the way that the author kept him a little bad even after he is trying to right his life after a major incident.  Amber was great as a heroine as well in the fact that she was like a butterfly coming out of her cocoon after laying dormant for so long.  I am glad to hear that there are going to be more books in this series so we can read more about Camelot and the residents of this town!

MY RATING

Outstanding book that will stay on my bookshelf for rereading!