*REVIEW* – Broken Limits (The Limit Book 3), by Marissa Farrar and S. R. Jones

#RomanticSuspense #ReverseHarem #WhyChoose #DarkRomance

Blurb

It’s all fun and games…until someone gets hurt.

It was meant to be a game. A way of surviving and gaining some money, but somewhere along the line emotions got involved, and I lost all perspective.

They did too. No matter what they might like to pretend, those four troubled men got as swept up in the dangerous allure as I did. They pushed me to my limits and beyond, but I pushed them, too.
One of them couldn’t take it though, and our pact fell apart.

I ran. I ran fast and far but instead of running to safety, I raced straight into the arms of danger.
Who will save me now?

Are they missing me? Do my broken, messed up men think about me as much as I think about them?
My new captor thinks he holds all the cards, but my time on the island has taught me how to play his depraved games, and I will fight with all I have.

My Review

Action packed and emotionally intense conclusion – 5 stars!

Following on from the absolute doozy of an ending in the previous book, I was itching to find out what was in store for Honor and her men. I was not disappointed – Broken Limits is an action-packed and emotionally intense read which kept me on the edge of my seat. To gain maximum enjoyment from the read however, I recommend reading the previous books first.

In this, the final instalment in the trilogy, Honor finds herself held captive. She hopes that her men will realise she is missing and that they are able to rescue her before her old nemesis manages to enact whatever nefarious plan he has in mind for her. Throughout the series I have enjoyed how Honor’s character has grown in strength and it is this strength that is put to the test during the shocking events that play out.

I have also enjoyed the emotional journeys Honor’s men, Asher, Brody, Wilder and Rafferty, have gone on as they come to realise just what Honor means to them. In this book I just loved how they step up to the challenge of her disappearance, whilst grappling with a gamut of emotions and soul searching, including guilt, fear, and anxiety.

The plot is suspenseful and fast-paced, with scenes of violence, non-consent and references to abuse and I was itching for a HEA. It also contains a number of twists, as Honor’s past and that of her men converge before it reaches its satisfying conclusion.

Highly recommended for fans of the genre.

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*RELEASE BLITZ* – THE PROPOSAL LAUGHBOX, BY JULIA KENT

OUT NOW—The Proposal Laughbox (Laughbox Boxed Sets, Book 2) by Julia Kent (@jkentauthor)

Release date: September 13, 2022

Genre: Romantic Comedy, Contemporary Romance

Cover Designer:  Angela Jenks

Retailer Description:

The Proposal Laughbox contains THREE full-length novels and TWO novellas – ONE ALL NEW! – from New York Times bestselling romantic comedy author Julia Kent’s series.

Who doesn’t love a funny, heartwarming proposal? Diamond engagement rings, flowers, candy, romantic dinners — it’s all in here in rom com style.

Julia Kent’s madcap style, that is.

Future brides swallow engagement rings, paparazzi crash tender moments when billionaires pop the question, mistaken identity causes mayhem, small-town lumberjacks ask their girfriends for their hands in marriage, and rock stars make grand gestures on New Year’s Eve.

Laugh, swoon, blush and let your imagination heat up as you read across varying series, different heat levels, but all connected by love.

This boxed set includes:

Shopping for a Billionaire’s Fiancee

Random Acts of New Year

Shopping for a CEO’s Fiancee (A USA Today bestseller)

Random Acts of Yes

and an ALL NEW novella, Love You Fiancee, featuring Kell and Rachel from Love You Right, as Kell pops the question during the I Will Always Love You festival in his hometown of “Love You,” Maine – where every day is Valentine’s Day.

Sink into five fun books that leave you with all the feels, loads of laughs, and strange looks from people around you as you read, giggle, and fall in love.

Note: each of these books can be read as a standalone, but they are part of larger series. All of my Laughbox boxed sets are designed to give readers a taste of my books, centered on a specific concept (in this case, proposals and engagements). Full disclosure for readers.

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Author Bio:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Julia Kent writes romantic comedy with an edge. Since 2013, she has sold more than 2 million books, with 4 New York Times bestsellers and more than 21 appearances on the USA Today bestseller list. Her books have been translated into French, German, and Italian, with more titles releasing in the future.

From billionaires to BBWs to new adult rock stars, Julia finds a sensual, goofy joy in every contemporary romance she writes. Unlike Shannon from Shopping for a Billionaire, she did not meet her husband after dropping her phone in a men’s room toilet (and he isn’t a billionaire she met in a romantic comedy).

She lives in New England with her husband and three children where she is the only person in the household with the gene required to change empty toilet paper rolls.

She loves to hear from her readers by email at julia@jkentauthor.com, on Twitter @jkentauthor, on Facebook at @jkentauthor, and on Instagram @jkentauthor. Visit her at http://jkentauthor.com

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Excerpt from Love You Fiancee

His lemur was limp.

And it was all his fault.

His and his alone.

That’s what Kell got for ordering a lemur costume online instead of finding a store and trying one on, or having one made to order. Two-day shipping was the biggest selling point, and though he’d bought the most expensive option, there hadn’t exactly been a plethora of choices.

Of all the bungles: He’d planned his marriage proposal down to the last detail, but forgot about the lemur costume until it was almost too late.

Leo the Limp Lemur would have to do.

Release blitz organized by Writer Marketing Services.

*BOOK BLITZ* – Blackmail by Amelia Wilde

#contemporaryromance #blackmail

Blurb

Bristol Anderson will do anything to protect her younger siblings. Even if it means embezzling from the company where she’s a temp. No one will find out. And the wealthy owner of the investment firm will never notice.

Except Will LeBlanc doesn’t miss a thing.

He could call the police, but he has more interesting plans for her. In the copy room. On the conference table. Under his desk.

The cold hearted venture capitalist will make her pay back every last cent.

Purchase Links

Amazon: https://amzn.to/36o8Wf1

Amazon INTL: https://bit.ly/3JH5XfY

Apple Books: https://apple.co/3JEEc7N

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3qwqix1

*REVIEW*- Blurred Limits, by Marissa Farrar and S R Jones

#reverseharem

Blurb

For them it’s all a game, but to me it’s survival.

When an opportunity to work at the exclusive island resort called The Limit comes up, I can’t say no. I’ll only be a maid, but at least it’ll get me off the streets and offer me somewhere to hide out from my stepfather.

But a case of mistaken identity changes everything.

The men who own this place—Brody, Wilder, Rafferty, and Asher—think I am someone else, and when an offer of winning a million dollars is put in front of me, how can I tell them the truth?

These men are all different, but they all have one thing in common, they’re all broken, and now they want to break me.

The game involves a hunt across the island. If I win, I get my heart’s desire. If they win, they get to do whatever they want to me.

But as the days pass, limits get blurred and boundaries are broken, and as my secrets bubble to the surface, the danger only increases.

What will happen when they discover my lie?

Goodreads

My Review

Dark, Twisted and Smoking Hot! 5 stars

Oh my heart! This is one smoking hot dark and twisted capture fantasy from start to finish. Once I bought into the premise of the book I was hooked – when Honor reports for duty for employment as a maid at an exclusive island resort she is mistaken for another. She decides to go along with the offer of allowing herself to be hunted by the four uber alpha owners, Brody, Wilder, Rafferty, and Asher. With one million dollars up for grabs it would be rude not to and Honor can use the money to ensure her future safety.

Honor’s backstory which prompts her to deceive the men added an interesting layer to the story and made me feel for her. I also loved that the men in question, all so very different, are bound together by their own dark experiences (not to mention their various depravities which come to light).

I enjoyed the various hunt scenes Honor is subjected to and how the tension, stakes and the level of kink ratchet ever higher. Honor learns just what a devious and deviant group of men she has become in involved with.

Can Honor survive each of the hunts without falling prey to their desires and leave the island richer or will she find herself captured and subject to their whims? What of her self-worth in engaging in such activity and can she keep her emotions distant from what she endures? Has she discovered a side of herself she did not know existed? Also, what if the men discover she is not who she pretends to be?

This is a compulsive read which I could not put it down – literally shooing my family away until I had finished it. I can’t wait for next instalment – without giving anything away the way the book ends is killing me – in a good way!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Reviewed by Tina Williams

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*NEW RELEASE* – Shopping for a Turkey (Shopping for a Billionaire Series Book 18) by Julia Kent (@jkentauthor

#romanticcomedy #romance #contemporary #contemporaryromance #holiday #holidayromance

Description:

I don’t understand Americans.

Or, as we say in Scotland, I dinna understand ye eedjits.

And I definitely dinna understand the crazy mother-in-law of my cousin Declan. Who in their right mind names a wee dog Chuffy?

I’m stuck in New York after ma agent makes a bloody mess of an otherwise good endorsement contract for a sports towel company, and this crazy American holiday–Thanksgiving–is in two days.

The invitation to spend it in Mendon, Massachusetts, with the Jacoby family is about as appealing as rotten haggis. As far as I can tell, Thanksgiving is about stuffing yerself silly, watching pathetic American “football,” while fighting with relatives ye only see once a year.

If I wanted that last one, I’d head back to Scotland, where we dinna need a holiday to be salty to each other.

Ma firm answer is nae.

Until I remember Amy is part of the family.

Suddenly, I’m available.

Eager, even. Perhaps she’ll pull ma wishbone. I hear that’s part of the Turkey Day festivities, aye?

What I canna admit, though, is how she pulls ma heartstrings, too.

Which shouldna feel better than the wishbone, but it does.

And here comes Amy’s mother with another holiday tradition, this one a bit early.

A sprig o’ mistletoe, dangling right above Amy’s bonnie head.

Shopping for a Turkey features Scottish football player Hamish McCormick and Amy Jacoby as they navigate unusual cultural norms, new traditions, and the undeniable attraction between these two characters, who have appeared as supporting players in Julia Kent’s New York Times-bestselling Shopping series.

It’s their turn to have their own all-new spinoff series. And to pull the wishbone. 😉

Excerpt: 

Amy

He’s been in his birthday suit on sports magazine covers. Done endorsements for regional breweries and energy bars. I know from Declan that he’s close to making it big.

He’s already big.

My eyes dart to his feet.

How big is he?

Heat fills me at the thought, a combination of self-loathing and desire. Which is nothing new for me when it comes to Hamish McCormick.

Why did he have to be here? Now? Of all times, when Mom has a broken leg, Declan’s brother Terry is filling in for her as yoga instructor, and we’re already in disarray? I’m finally finishing my MBA, working another co-op at a venture capital firm. My last one was disrupted by scandal after the high-profile associate gunning for partner turned out to be married to a massive conman. I think I might have gotten my new co-op just for my potential gossip supply.

But my life is smoothing out now. It took me eight years to earn my bachelor’s, but with Declan’s help, the MBA has been full time, which is so much easier. I’ve told him straight out I don’t want any favors, and I refuse to work for Grind It Fresh! Or Anterdec. No nepotism.

Though I’ll certainly network and accept help making connections.

I’m on the cusp of a new life, moving into adulthood at last. I finished a major project yesterday, excited for the Thanksgiving break. I was at the gym, fresh off submitting my group work to our professor, when Dad called about the –

Well. You know.

And now Mom and Dad broke her leg and half their bedroom, my sisters and I have to manage Thanksgiving dinner from scratch, and I can’t stop ogling Hamish’s backside.

That’s too much input.

“Let go of troubling thoughts,” Terry says in soothing, deep dulcet tones as we do triangle pose, our breathing syncing with slow movement. Hamish’s arms stretch out and down. He has muscles on top of muscles, with fine ginger hair all over his arms, darkening as it tapers to his wrists. When we all go into a partial squat, his hamstrings pop like cello strings under his skin, each tiny muscle and tendon in stark relief across a body I could watch forever.

Too bad he has the emotional maturity of a hedgehog.

And that might be giving him too much credit.

“Fine form,” Hamish whispers to Shannon, who blinks fast.

“Thanks. I’ve been doing yoga on my lunch breaks. Even fifteen minutes makes a difference.”

“Aye. People think it’s about doing long workouts but smaller amounts of time really do add up.”

Insane–they’re driving me insane. How can they just idly chat like that while every inch of my skin is on fire? Every breath turns into a proto-orgasm as I watch him stealthily.

Or maybe not stealthily enough. He turns around, catches me watching, and winks.

I hate this. I hate reacting to him like this. I hate that he knows he’s doing this to me, and he revels in it. I hate that he’s so smarmy and overconfident and…

Tantalizing.

I’m going to assume that when all the blood in my body rushes to the surface of my skin and between my legs, it means my IQ drops a bit; lack of oxygen to the brain is the only explanation I have for finding him so attractive. This is a purely physiological response, driven entirely by evolution.

This is not my fault.

He’s big and strong, and his physicality signals virility and protection. Biology is an amazing science, its processes optimized to drive us to reproduce.

My blushing, my throbbing, the zings running across my arms and legs–it’s just electrical impulses, a response shaped over hundreds of thousands of years to produce the right outcome: hot, sweaty, reproductive activity to repopulate the earth.

It’s really just that simple.

I don’t emotionally desire this guy. Not one little bit. My heart isn’t attracted to Hamish McCormick.

My eggs are.

Bad ova. Bad, bad ova.

Buy links:

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Author Bio:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Julia Kent writes romantic comedy with an edge. Since 2013, she has sold more than 1.5 million books, with 4 New York Times bestsellers and more than 16 appearances on the USA Today bestseller list. Her books have been translated into French and German, with more titles releasing soon. From billionaires to BBWs to new adult rock stars, Julia finds a sensual, goofy joy in every contemporary romance she writes. Unlike Shannon from Shopping for a Billionaire, she did not meet her husband after dropping her phone in a men’s room toilet (and he isn’t a billionaire). She lives in New England with her husband and three children in a household where the toilet seat is never, ever, down.

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Release blitz organized by Writer Marketing Services

*REVIEW* – The Isle of Sin and Shadows – by Keri Lake

#Gothic #Romance #SouthernGothic #Mystery #Suspense

Blurb

This island alone boasts more ghost stories than all of Louisiana combined.
And I’m one of them.

In the Louisiana swamplands, ghost stories are as much a part of childhood as chasing fireflies and crawfishing. They never much scared me, though, nor the possibility of evil out to do me harm. Until the night I watched shadows come to life and butcher everything I loved.

With a stranger’s help, I managed to escape to an isolated place miles north, and, in time, became my own ghost story. A cautionary tale for the locals.

Nearly a decade passed, before I returned to my birthplace, in hopes of unearthing long-awaited answers. Instead, I found something I wasn’t looking for. Someone. A remedy for my loneliness.

Or so I thought.

Turns out, Thierry Bergeron is no elixir. He’s a deadly poison, cursed by the demons of his past, and feared by those who call him the elusive Rougarou of the bayou. A devious rogue, whose seductive whispers and rough hands haunt my dreams. The big bad wolf that defiles me without apology, or remorse.

I should resist him, but I can’t.

And when the shadows return to stake their claim on me, his darkness is the only safe place to hide.

The Isle of Sin & Shadows is a southern gothic mystery & romance standalone

My Review

Southern Gothic par excellence – 5 dark and sexy stars!

If you fancy a walk on the dark side, The Isle of Sin and Shadows by Keri Lake, a standalone Southern Gothic Romance fits the bill perfectly. This suspenseful and atmospheric read features ghostly goings on, voodoo, crime lords and a slow burn/tension filled romance which set alight my Kindle when the couple finally get it together. I loved it!

The read is a haunting one, being set in and around the Louisiana swamps with its close-knit community and its many secrets and local legends. The stakes are high when Céleste returns to her childhood home in an attempt to face the demons of her past and find out answers, so far denied. She soon finds her path crossing with the notorious Thierry, the owner of a strip club, who is a powerful force in the local community and feared by many. I enjoyed how Thierry is intrigued from the off by Celeste, a young woman who refuses to fear and respect him, and wants to know her secrets. I just loved the battle of words and deeds between them and their relationship is passionate and intense, each scene that takes place between them just crackles with sexual tension.

Both central characters are flawed and we learn about their respective backstories as the plot develops. Thierry is the type of dark anti-hero I adore and on the face of it he is just so wrong for Celeste, on so many levels. He is not looking for any type of relationship other than a quick hook-up. Céleste herself is traumatised by her past and sometimes she is confused by her reality. She is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery of her past and I admired her inner strength which tempers her vulnerability. She hides her pain under a tough exterior but has a heart of gold.

Somehow the couple are just perfect together, their relationship developing over the course of the book as they find their paths becoming ever more entwinned. There is such a lot going on in this read as the past and present collide, and I admired how the author pulled it all together whilst creating a powerful romance amidst the hauntingly beautiful and dangerous atmosphere of the swamps. I was gripped from the first page to the very last.

Perfect for fans of Gothic romances.

Reviewed by Tina Williams

Goodreads

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