Bitten by Romance

What a fun read. I loved it all. This is a novella about two BBF’s over 40 who are in need of some excitement in their life. They go to a Cougar Night Club and find just that. I’m not one for reading F/F and you won’t find anything like that in this story. This is like the M/F/M where the males do not interact, so therefore, the females here do not interact. This is my first F/M/F read and I loved it. I had no idea this category was out there, now I need to find more. LOL.

This is a novella so I don’t want to spoil things by telling you about the story. I will just say I loved the characters and found this a hot read. I recommend this to anyone who likes a quick hot read and to those who like reading Cougar women.

Black Hart is the third installment of the Blackthorne Clan. The author delivers an emotional ride with this story. Deegan has been friends with Raylene's father for centuries now. When Raylene was a child she called Deegan uncle so needless to say he has some issues to get passed so he can really see Raylene as his mate. I really liked both Raylene and Deegan, but at the start of the book I wasn’t too fond of the chemistry between them so it took me a while to warm up to them and really notice the sparks. I believe it’s because both have been though a lot. I loved reading about Raylene's parents and her brother. The M/M part is between Raylene's brother Julian and Marcus, the author doesn’t go into much detail with the sex.

I recommend this to anyone who loves emotional and hot novellas. I also only recommend this book and series to more what I like to call hard core paranormal readers. These vampires don’t sparkle they do kill, so be warned.

Surrounded by Death is the Prequel to Woods Family Series, I would not recommend anyone just jumping into reading this unless they read book one. Eric is already dead when the series stated out and the readers of the series wanted to read his story, so the author did just that, wrote a short story about Eric and his mate’s death. I know some will like this and some won’t but everyone has to remember it’s hard to go back a write a story about an already dead character. I think Mandy did a wonderful job in delivering to us Eric side.

Order of books in this series:
Surrounded by Death (Prequel to Woods Family Series, a short story)
Surrounded by Woods (Book 1)
Surrounded by Pleasure (Book 2)
Surrounded by Temptation (Book 3)
Surrounded by Secrets (Book 4)

First let me apology for the long review, as most of you know I try not to write reviews this long, but I really need to explain why I felt the way I did about this book. You also might find a few light spoilers while I am explaining things,but I’m going to try not to spoil anything major.

You know I really hate it when I read a book and end up at the end with conflicting feelings as to why I liked or disliked the book. I know, I know, I’m not making since, huh? LOL. Well, there are a lot of elements in this story I really enjoyed, but there were a lot of things I just didn’t care for. So when you come across something like this, you find yourself conflicted as to which weighs more: the liked or disliked. Then comes the concerns about not wanting to trash a book because you know others might like reading it.

So, let me just list the things I liked and disliked and maybe then I will find out which outweighs the other.

I loved the Native American/Egyptian myth mixed with one of the Immortals mating with a Selkie. I did enjoy reading about all the characters. I feel the author describes each in such detail you really get a good feel for their personalities. The scenes are well written, and you get a great sense of the direction in regards to the plot line of the story. I think the author did a good job in explaining the immortals' background and how they live their lives as vampires. I felt the sex in the story was great. There’s not a whole lot of it, but what’s there is really hot and it works well with the story and characters. I also really liked the idea of Jennifer's grandmother giving her a wolf to help with her loneliness. I felt right away this was no ordinary wolf and that she would end up with something special. I can’t wait to read her story!

I really didn’t care for the love triangle and how it seemed like most of the Immortals were hot to trot after Jennifer. The heroine in the story is already married, she’s just not satisfied with the marriage because of reasons I can’t spoil. She visits her long life friend and finds her friend has a wonderful life with a bunch of hot immortals men, *snickers* well she only mated with one of the Immortals, his name is Mick, but they all live in a huge compound together when they are not on the road with their music.

Now here is where my conflict comes from. I didn’t feel any spark between Gabriel and Jennifer. Why? Because they really never talked that much or had time to get to know each other until after 70 percent of the book. Heck, she was with Raphael just about the whole time, and she even tells him her secret, not Gabriel. When Jennifer first meets Raphael she lets him know she is married, but still he really wants to be with her, so this is the set up for a love triangle. I don’t know if the author really meant for it to read like this, but this is the only way I could see it. After Jennifer finds out her husband has been cheating on her she even tries to hook up with him, but then it takes her father to direct her to Gabriel as her mate. I have never read a romance story where the hero and/or heroine are so apart; in most romance stories they know right away they are meant to be together, they just want to fight that connection. I myself always like for the hero and heroine to be able to communicate with each other throughout the book, not waiting until the last few chapters when they really start to connect. The two do talk, but I just found that she was with Raphael way too much and shared too much of her life with him instead of seeing growth between the hero and heroine. I also felt like I didn’t get to know Gabriel like I wanted. I got to really know Raphael in this book, and I am truly looking forward to reading his book.
I also felt the author retold things too much at times. For example, when Jennifer is in a comatose state the author repeats just about word for word about her secret between a couple of parties. I felt some of that could have been written differently. I also felt like there was just way too much going on at times. You’re getting pulled in a lot of directions between the heroine's life, the immortals' lives, heck, even the butler has a POV. You also have a kidnapping of one of the other mates’ wives, and then you have the conflict between the immortals and their villains. On top of all of this, remember Jennifer is still married so you have to find out what happens there. Oh yeah, there are also all the abilities Jennifer has and the missing father. Oh, I almost forgot, the author does add a few chapters of the immortals' mortal mates’ POVs, so you get to know them better. So be prepared for several POVs.

I just wished the author would have left Bill (Jennifer’s husband) out and wrote the story with more focus on Gabriel and Jennifer and their romance built along with the other Immortals.

So, as you can see my dislikes outweigh my likes, but I felt the story is unusual, and I really connected with all the characters. I believe the next book in the series will be totally different. Sometimes the first book will carry way to much information, and the author will tone it down as they continue with the series, so I don’t want to discourage anyone from really giving this series a try. Just be ready for a complex read.

Hungry Moon-Quicksilver is a priceless gem among the paranormal romance genre. I simply loved every minute of reading this book. Claudy Conn did an outstanding job creating the world and characters. I loved how everything was explained in detail and I felt like I was right there in the middle of everything.

You find everything from, wizards, druids, demons, shape-shifters and so much more in the story. This story has action, mystery, magic and a passionate romance.

What I liked best was Quinn. Not only is he a wizard he is also a werewolf and not the type we normally read, you know just a regular wolf shifter. Nope not Quinn, he is not the really cute and cuddly dog type we read about all the time. However, with his Scottish accent and really hot looks when the full moon is not out he can really draw a lady LOL. Unfortunately Quinn ends up cursed and waits an eternity before one woman can save him.

I want to address this sex. There is not much sexual action in this story. You get a few good lengthy sex scenes but mostly you get some hot sexual tension. I really thought what was presented fit the story and characters well.

I loved the HEA ending and hope to read the next book soon.
If you’re tired of the same old paranormal romance stories please give this one a try as soon as you can because I highly recommend this one.

Magical Kiss is a very quick hot story. For such a short story I believe Virginia added the right amount of story and passion between the characters. I just wished there would have been more to the story because you don’t find many witches and warlock romance stories out there anymore.
This story is categorized under erotica, but I would categorize it as erotic romance because you do get a small story spite it being only 29 pages and there is no taboo sex going on. This story is from a first POV, in this case Breeze's. I don’t want to spoil anything, all I can say if you like magic and a hot quickie, then you need to give this story a try.

Surrounded by Secrets is the last book in the Woods family. I simply loved this book, I feel it’s the best in the series. I have never read a novella quite like this one. It almost felt as if I were reading a novel. The author added so much detail when she wrote this story. She tied up the mystery as to how the shifter family came about and she also threw in lots of humor, action, emotions and romance. There were moments where I found myself laughing and crying at the same time.

Jackson is the last of the Woods family to get mated. If you have been following this series you know these shifters cannot be around any unmated or unmarried woman because their need to mate is so great it will overtake them and in turn it won’t end well if the other mate is not willing. I wasn’t in a hurry to get to Jackson story because at times I liked him and there were times I really disliked him during the series. He is everything from pigheaded to borderline arrogant at times; more or less he is a dominating man. Believe me I was totally shocked when his story ended up being my favorite, but how could it not be with Jackson meeting his match with Lillian. Oh yeah, it was worth seeing him all tied up in knots when he would do something wrong or when he didn’t know what to do next.

Lillian is tired of the men she has been with, she wants a man to dominate her in the bed and she has her eyes on Jackson. The thing is will she want him afterward? Needless to say things are not always as they seem. I instantly took to Lillian as she is strong-willed and just wants to be loved by the right man.

Few light spoilers below.

I was totally surprised by the direction the author took with Jackson and Lillian's romance because these mates will kill each other, if one or the other is not willing. Once the mating deed is done Lillian finds herself mated to a cat shifter and has no clue what’s going to happen next. Once she finds out what really happened these two go at it like nothing I have ever read before and I don’t mean monkey sex LOL. Lillian found out real quick that being with a dominate man wasn’t all what she thought it would be. I have never in my life read so many cat names and cat catch phrases in my life, but Lillian would spout them out to Jackson like mad. Then again I sure couldn’t blame her especially after Jackson drugged her and threatened to drug her each time she got her panties in a wad. You might think this would be ridiculous to read, but it was so funny at times and at times it was really emotional. Believe me Jackson needed to make sure both of them stayed safe no matter what the cost. Let me just say it was nothing like I have ever read before and I enjoyed every minute with them battling it out with each other. I felt like Jackson finally got his karma thrown back to him and I even think he said that at one point.

At times I really felt sorry for Lillian because she felt the pull of the matting bond, but yet she just couldn’t quite find herself belonging to Jackson like her mind and body was craving, so she had a huge struggle to workout.

I also want to add I was truly surprised at who the villain turned out to be, I never once saw it coming.

I’m really sad to see the end of this series. As I read this book I could see so many different directions this author can still take with this story and I hope that maybe she will do just that one day.

I recommend this novella to those who likes a hot shifter romance. I would also recommend that you read this series in order.

Review
Eve delivers another action pack hot read that will leave you wanting more. I myself loved the story and characters. If you read Jungle Freakn’ Bride, then you have to go on and read Human and Freakn’ too because this story takes you deeper into the story of the Moon Ghost tribe. I really enjoyed it and hope Eve will take us back to the Jungle one day.

Ruth is a plus size botanist. She has had some issues in the past with her size and men, so she has a hard time thinking that these men would want to keep her. I can see this becoming annoying to some, but for me it just made the character more real. Size isn't the only thing that bothers Ruth, it’s the fact they are wolf shifters so it takes her a bit of time to warm up to everything. Kendrick is a bit of a pain, but he is very loving when he isn't showing his tough side. Joel has a good reason not wanting his mate to be human, so when he learns Ruth is their mate it takes him a bit to warm up to the idea. Once these two decide Ruth is theirs, they will stop at nothing to win her even if they have to pawn themselves off as the Moon Ghost’s to win her.

As always Eve delivers a hot M/F/M ménage with anal sex. I always look forward to her sexy ménage stories because not only are they hot, Eve also adds just the right amount of sex without going over or under board with it.
I recommend this to anyone who loves erotic paranormal romance.

This is a fun, sexy story. The author adds humor, action and some smoking, hot sex. I loved the plot and the characters, but wanted more passion between the character and I wish the author would have gotten deeper into the story. All in all this was a good read and I would still recommend it because you don’t find many pirate paranormal romances. I do have to warn those who are not into the anal sex; this one has anal play and sex.

LMBO…. Leave it to Eve, to throw a woman in the middle of the jungle, have two men that don’t speak English kidnap her, then get her all sexually frustrated and do nothing. This story was just too funny! I haven’t laughed so hard in a long time and believe me I needed it.

The characters are really well suited for each other. I really loved the bartering between Acat and Charlie, it made the story feel so real. Plus it goes to show you, don’t expect an America woman to just roll over and submit to the jungle ways. With Acat the dominate and Chaob the beta, they both work their magic in keeping their wild American woman all to themselves. You get m/f/m sex, with anal, so beware for a smoking hot time.

Eve has gone full blown novel nowadays, so you really get to go deeper into the story and characters. I personally love it as she doesn’t know how long I have been waiting for her to really expand her stories. I recommend this to anyone who loves a sexy, downright funny romance.

This is one of the best vampire series romances out there today. Gates of Rapture didn’t disappoint me one bit, as a matter of fact, I enjoyed it more than any other. I loved the connection between the characters and I loved how the whole world was explained. This is a fast pace, fantasy romance, that will leave you thinking that this story has a neat,tied up ending, but don’t let things fool you.

I feel like a lot of people have this series confused with angels, but these are truly vampires, they just live in different dimensional worlds and have different ways of mating. Oh, and how I love the way these vampires mate… (Dragging mind out of gutter LOL). Anyhow, this story has a lot of action that will leave you on the edge of your seat. I loved how everything went down with Graves and the death vampires and how just about every character was a part of the whole scheme of things.

Leto and Grace are perfect together. To those that have read book 5, we were left with Grace leaving with Caimir, but we all knew she belonged with Leto. When Leto turns into the beast he keeps calling for her, and what do you think happens when she finally answers his call? Well you have to read the book to find out. All I can say is I wish I had a Leto too. Grace’s role in the story is wonderful. Once she finds out what she can do she will stop at nothing to do her best.

Casimir, has an awesome strong role in this story and I loved the direction the author took with him and his powers. I hope to read more about him and Patience one day.

I have to give Caris Ronae huge credit here. The publisher pulled the plug on this series way before it was intended. I felt Caris did an OUTSTANDING job delivering what looks like the closing of the series. I know it must have been hard for her to go back and rewrite everything and close it out, so huge KUDOS for a fantastic job Caris!! I also have to state here, if you think this is the end, well you better think again. There are more paths in the publishing world now then there used to be.

Alpine Wood’s Shifters, is one of my favorite series out there. I have read many of her books and have enjoyed them all, but Covert Desires is by far my favorite. I know when I have found a good book when I can feel the connection between the characters right off the bat and Covert Desires is one of those books. I loved reading their story and how the characters were able to cope with each obstacle that was thrown at them.
This story brings in more of the family than the other books in this series. I really liked the tension between the heroine (Amber) and the hero’s (Danny’s) sister Laurie, because it made the story feel even more real.

I love this whole series and I will truly miss reading it when the characters are all mated. This series can be read as standalones, but with all the different characters that are brought back in each book, it's best to read from the beginning.

This is one hot BDSM novella. It includes five hot co-workers and woman suspended on a boardroom table, which conveniently adjust to the piston that fits their needs. I don’t consider this a hard-core BDSM, but it can get every tense at some points. I did like the chemistry between Matt and Savannah, I felt like they really had the sparks that said they were meant to be together. I just wished Matt could have pursued her alone instead of the others being involved. Then there is the fact that Savanna is 35 and still a virgin, * scratching head* I just can’t picture this in my head, but I guess some can. All in all this is a good hot read and a good start to the series.

I found this novella as a freebie on amazon. It sounded different and hot so I decided to jumped right in and read it. Low and behold I found it different alright. I'm not one that likes reading about cheaters and this one starts off with one spouse doing just that, but low and behold as you read on you’ll find things are not as they seem. I myself really enjoyed reading Trisha story because as a mister’s wife I know how neglect feels. I think we all go through the feeling of neglect now days, life is just too busy and we all sometime forget that we each have needs. I just wished the author would have told the husbands side in the story, I really felt like it would have brought the story into a deeper level.

Before the end you’ll find a huge twist to the story. I really liked it even if it was kind of over the top and maybe, some might even find the twist hard to believe. I know this is fiction and I have to say as for me I that’s how I would have wanted it to end.

Trasha is a loving mother to 8 kids. She finds out her preacher husband is cheating her. She finds refuge online chatting with her girlfriends and a hunk named Morgan. One day Morgan types the two forbidden words “Meet Me.” Will Trasha do it and if she does what will happen to her life as she knows it?

Mina Khan, is known for great romance stories, but Dead: A Ghost Story is totally not a romance story. This is a short ghost story about an immigrant woman and her dead beat husband that was unfaithful and abused her. I really felt for Nasreen, so bad that I wanted to find the guy and beat him to a pulp LOL. I was surprised at for the detail and how easy it was to read. I really enjoyed this short story.

This is a great series and I have enjoyed reading each book. This series should be read in order because as you read each book you find out more about how and why this family came into existence, it’s like unwrapping a surprise in each time. I love how each brother is different with their own unique personality, and sometimes they do clash with one another, so it really makes the story feel more realistic.

This series focuses on one family that cannot go out into the world because if they find their mate and they are unwilling to be with them, then they are driven to killing their prospective mate. So, they end up living a very lonely existence as they are each in need to being mated. Each heroine that comes to the house has to be married or well, you can get the picture of what happens if they are not mated it can get ugly.
This story focuses on one brother in particular, Rob. Rob is very strong and willing to do anything when it comes to getting a mate. Krista is in need of some true love because her husband left her, but she isn’t just quite ready yet to being with another man so Rob has to fight to win her over.

Mandy keeps things fast paced and hot with a great storyline, as she does with the rest of her books in this series. She is also able to convey lots of emotions and questions in the story that leaves your mind wondering what’s happening to the father and what’s he really not telling everyone. I think it all turned out great in the end. I would recommend series to anyone who likes their shifters'.