Holiday Review...Second Chances by Lauren Dane

For Christmas this year, and to help keep me holly jolly, I picked up a few Happy Holiday offerings for the Kindle. (Still have to name it...I mean, who doesn't name their toys?) And, to keep with the theme, the Favorite Things (I had a music box that played the song when I was younger, and there was something that always felt like Christmas to me. *shrugs*)

Second Chances came my way by the means of Lauren Dane herself (I find it fitting that I won the ARC in a twitter contest since I discovered her through the twitverse. *G*)

From Amazon.com :

Ten years ago, Rori Simon left town shy, unattractive and with zero self-esteem. Now, she's back, older, stronger, and finally loving herself - and it shows. Hot men are soon knocking at her door, including Jude Callahan, the bad boy who starred in her teenage daydreams...and her adult fantasies.

Jude can't believe the sexy, confident woman in front of him is actually Rori! She's gotten under his skin like no other woman has...and she brings out secret desires he can't resist. He wants to dominate Rori with every fiber of his being. Wants to own her and pleasure her. To cherish her as he makes her his.

Rori discovers she likes being controlled. She also knows Jude is not a one-woman man. Everything changes when she meets Zach Helm. Edgy, sensual Zach knows just what she needs, and before long, she's in love. Jude watches them together and wonders if he's lost his chance forever...

Second Chances, previously released in 2005, first came to my attention when I found Believe, a Holiday novella that takes place after the events in Second Chances...but, more of that in just a little bit...

Admittedly, there is something about this author that I just can't seem to get enough of, so I was very excited to get my...ugh, eyes? on this one, especially after getting to know the characters in the holiday novella. And of course, I expected all the hot steaminess mixed in with the heart and soul that permeates previous works I've devoured.

Here's the difference...even though Rori left an ugly duckling, she hasn't quite turned fully into a swan. She's confident and brushed off the uncomfortable fog that hung around her (mostly in the form of her over bearing and somewhat condescending mother) that plagued her as a teenager. Traveled and more experienced, Rori is most definitely a changed woamn. But, we get to take the final part of the journey with her. And what a journey...Jude, the lady's man, yet entirely the sexy object of her teenage dreams, becomes a reality. She decides to play his game against him and turn the tables. Too bad her heart won't get with the program. Or, for that matter, his. Jude doesn't know what he's got until he's too stupid to let it be gone (and, the commitment idea scared him right down to his sexy in command lil toes). Enter Zach...thanks to Jude, Rori knows what she likes, and Zach takes this to an entirely new level for her and she falls head over heels. (Zach is one of my all time faves!) Like any good friend, I wanted to smack Jude upside the head a few times for his, well, stereotypical commitment phobe don't know what you've got til someone else is tying her up-ness. (And, the smoldering is so hot I'm surprised you don't see smoke coming from the screen just thinking about it!) Zach is almost too good to be true for Rori, and the way they challenge one another is fun loving and sexy. Until things go not so happily ever after. Few books make me cry... is one of them. No spoilers here, but woah...and wow

Still want your Happily Ever After? Check out Believe...and my next review...

Holiday Giveaway #1

Happy Holidays! With all the craziness and zany times that the season brings, I have been a busy little bee. (My kitchen is designed, the cabinets are in...and a wall is gone. WHO DOES THIS DURING THE HOLIDAYS? Yep, that would be me.) To help spread the love and the the spirit of giving...it's contest time. I know, it has been a loooooong time. And so, here is the first of just a few surprises to help make the season even more, um, sparkly.

So, on the blog, there are two reviews posted here and here. In my review of Lauren Dane's To Do List, how may variations of the word Holiday are there? And, because I know you looked, what colors are the stripe of the candy cane on my scrumptious review of Sweet Enchantment by Anya Bast?

To enter, simply post your answer below with your email...two entries if you follow.

So, what will you win?



Contest ends December 20th...Happy entering!

Holiday Review...To Do List by Lauren Dane

Hmm...combine one of my favorite authors with the magic of the holiday season? What could be better? Because, for some odd quirk of the universe, this year, I've decided to take the holiday cheer train by the horns and actually enjoy every single insanely crazy moment of the season. Even if it means the possibility of adding more insanity *G.

Holiday hotness abounds in Lauren Dane's holiday offering, To Do List. Imagine the life you think you've always wanted. The perfect job with the corner office with the firm, the big city condo with a view to die for, all the shoes you could ever want. Then, the reality of it all sets in. The family who brought you up lovingly is part of a distant memory, no doubt due to the numerous little special moments you've missed because your holed up in your office with filing after filing. Those fab shoes? In boxes. Waiting for you to actually have enough time to slip them on. The cell phone that never seems to leave your ear...or fingertips. What you need is a good old fashioned family Christmas...with all the trimmings. Including mistletoe...

When Belle Taylor goes home for the holidays, the first bit of Christmas spirit that greets her is the incredibly sexy frame of Rafe Bettencourt...right smack dab under a sprig of strategically placed mistletoe. And, really, who wants to fore go that holiday tradition? After a kiss that knocks her off her feet (whew!), Belle begins to realize there is more than just a yuletide rest awaiting her at home. But, can she look at her carefully planned out list and read between the lines?

One of my favorite things about this time of year is the sense of family...and, knowing that sometimes, family isn't just who you are born with, but those special people who you actually choose to invade your crazy life. As with every other work by Lauren Dane, To Do List combines the family closeness we all crave and the sexy hotness that makes the holidays (and everyday life) that much more festive. Rafe has the edge of a sexy cowboy (well, its a dairy farm, but I like the farm boy side!), yet he has the sense to know what he wants and to go after it. My only regret is the length of the novella, but, as with all good things, a visit back with old friends in a future story gives us a glimpse into the HEA (or, as I like to call it, the everyday effort filled side of reality). He's sexy, lets Belle be who she actually is (even if she doesn't realize what she wants for herself.). Which, along being, well, Rafe, makes things that much better.
On a side note, if I could carry mistletoe in the hope of finding the hotness that seems to make the holidays merrier...hmmm...
(P.S...there may be a good reason to refer back this review for presents...just sayin!)

Holiday Preview...Er, Previews

Holidays are here, and what better way to take your mini vacation and dive into your favorite or newly discovered author's holly jolly-ness? (And the crazy malls...baking cookies...putting up the tree...wrapping...sigh)

After you're done fanning yourself (Candy Cane, anyone?)...wha? Oh, sorry. Just the teeniest bit distracted here. Usually I stray from anthologies or novellas because I am just so darn greedy and need more. Yes, I may be high maintenance in my choices but I have found a way around my loophole. Series by two of my favorite authors in lil novellas!

Check off your paranormal romance wish list with Sweet Enchantment (from the above Hot for the Holidays Anthology) by Anya Bast. Seelie court member Bella is desperate to save the mage Ronan, who spurned and stepped all over her heart years before. Defying her Queen, who has decreed his life forfeit for assisting the Phaendir in stealing an artifact, Bella decides to make any sacrifice, no matter the consequences, to save the mage in spite of his ill treatment of her heart and the anguish he has caused her. But can she do so and save her heart once again from Ronan? In this first in the Dark Magic Series, set before the first full length novel Wicked Enchantment (LOVE LOVE LOVE) we get the back story not only of Bella and Ronan but a glimpse into the world of Piefferburg, during the magical season of Yuletide.

For the contemporary lover, ahem, in you...To Do List by Lauren Dane (Thanks to my Twitter pimps for shoving her into my life. Forever grateful!).

From Amazon.com:

He wasn't a part of her balance sheet. But one night in his bed could tip the scales. Since she could pick up a pencil, Belle Taylor has used lists and charts to map out her life. When she achieves a goal she marks it off her to do list. Simple. But now, just steps away from her corner-office, name-on-the-letterhead goal, she realizes that the life that she thought she wanted may come at too high a price. Exhausted, she retreats home for Christmas vacation to rethink her life, complete with all-new lists. What she hadn't expected is Rafe Bettencourt, her brother's best friend, the man who she thought only saw her as a pesky younger sister. But when he kisses her under the mistletoe, Belle finds herself with a whole new set of goals to balance with what she thought she always wanted.

Rafe knows Belle is trying to figure out what to do with her life. He also know he's done loving her from afar, and he's not beneath making it as hard as possible for her to choose to return to San Francisco.

Because Rafe can make to-do lists too--and his plan is to seduce Belle back home where she belongs. At his side. And in his bed.

Warning, this title contains the following: Smokin hot monkey love and naughty wish fulfillment, a few words you wouldn't say in your grandma's presence.

See you soon, lovies...Happy Holidays!

New Review....Inside Out by Lauren Dane

From Amazon.com:

In the wake of an attack that left her nearly dead, Ella Tipton has spent each day putting her life back together. She doesn't have any room for romance, but that doesn't mean she has to stop admiring the scenery.
Sexy security professional Andrew Copeland is no stranger to women, but he know Ella is something different. Determined to get her to let him in, Andy does the one thing he can think of to get close: he offers her hands-on training in self-defense-and before long, all that skin on skin contact have them both turning inside out.


There is just something about the characters in Lauren Dane's sexy tattoo covered series...its at times unexplainable, at other times the heart wrenching sweet hot sexiness just oozes. (Or, my case, an occasional squee that elicits an odd look from either someone seated near to me or the puppy.) And the best part isn't the gorgeous covers, or the mind blowing hotness (remember the oozes?)...its the way Lauren Dane presents unconventional situations (that, lets face it, exist in real life. After all, we don't live in an HEA bubble all the time.) and makes them seem, well, right.

I loved Ella. Her strength, her humor, even her misplaced guilt over what had happened to her in the past. And, her daydream that opened things up definitely made her even more...who hasn't had a in the moment fantasy about the hottie across from them? The little things, like remembering that Cope likes cinnamon, make her character multi-dimensional and not just the somewhat geeky victim who longs for the hot hunky womanizer. And let us not forget her bff's the extremely pregnant and glowing Erin and the bride-to-be gorgeous Elise...these woman have conversations that any close nit group of girlfriends would have. Not pulling any punches, gently shoving their friend towards something she is so obviously blind to, and diggin for the nitty gritty details. And what details they were (fans self!)...

And, Cope...the hot security professional who definitely likes the ladies. Things aren't always what they seem, now are they? The outside version of yourself isn't always the person you really are. When everyone has only seen that version they tend to treat you differently. To finally be able to let someone really in, and allow them to see all the layers you keep from the world (even your "family", who only see you as the womanizing type with no real outside interests) takes an enormous leap of faith. Because, once you do that, they can hurt you in ways that no one else can. Andrew (aka Andy/Cope) takes that chance with Ella, despite his issues. Who knew all the delicious details of his life? No one...and whats hotter than a man who reads poetry...in Spanish? (Sorry, had to wipe drool off keyboard.)

Since this is the third book, the relationship has already had a bit of establishment (i.e. the first meeting, first time noticing one another...yadda yadda) which I really enjoyed because it allowed us to see the ups and downs that are at the beginning stages of any relationship. Because not everyone has that, okay, we love each other and everything is just perfect life. It takes work, because we always tend to take out our fears and frustrations on the ones we love. And of course, we get to see all of our friends from the other two books....Erin, Todd, and Ben have their own issues to deal with (oh, Ben, I love ya) and of course, the wedding plans are in full swing for Elise and Brody. Even Raven and Adrian make an appearance or two.

What this all boils down to, and my absolute favorite aspect, is how they form an unconventional yet beautiful family with each other. It may not be the one they were born with, but it's the one that they live, love and laugh with every day. Which is what really matters.

Preview....Inside Out by Lauren Dane

Imagine my unfettered gleeful squealing when, on a whim (and because I needed a little something to make Monday, well, less Monday in its stature) I took my lovely lil phone all tidied up with an offer ready to be used...and saw this...

From Amazon.com:

In the wake of an attack that left her nearly dead, Ella Tipton has spent each day putting her life back together. She doesn't have any room for romance, but that doesn't mean she has to stop admiring the scenery.

Sexy security professional Andrew Copeland is no stranger to women, but he knows Ella is something different. Determined to get her to let him in, Andy does the one thing he can think of to get close: he offers her hands-on training in self-defense-and before long, all that skin on skin contact have them both turning inside out.

(Please excuse any drool or odd squealing noises that may accompany this or future review post. Sometimes, I can't help myself!)

Book Review...Coming Undone

From Amazon.com:

A new novel of "toe-curling" erotic romance from the national bestselling author of Laid Bare.

After his parents' death, Brody gave up a promising career to care for his family. Now, with his siblings grown, Brody owns his own business, and for the first time in years he's alone. Elise has come to Seattle with her daughter to find peace. After years as a world-famous ballerina-and trapped in a marriage gone bad-she's looking for neither love nor attention. But she finds both in the handsome, honest man who befriends her with no strings attached. Brody and Elise discover in each other the wild, physical passion they need. But it'll take a shadow from Elise's past to make them look beyond what they need-to what they truly desire.

The second book in this series (and I hope not the last), Coming Undone makes me love Lauren Dane's writing abilities even more than I already do after reading Laid Bare.

Normally I review more paranormal and urban fantasy/romance. Coming Undone is definitely not even close to being either one of those. In fact, if I hadn't read the first book in the series, I'm not entirely sure I would have picked this one up on its own (even if I think the cover is drool worthy). The different elements (um, please don't hate me) that I like in my mini vacations (insert book title) normally don't include too much everyday family and...kids. Because I loves me some hotness and not sure if certain themes fit. But, Lauren Dane makes it not only work, but these things become such an integral part of the story that you couldn't pull any part out or it would feel like something is missing. Like its heart and soul.

Brody is Erin's sexy tattoo artist brother, over protective and incredibly loyal. Did I mention sexy? Ugh...gah (wipes drool). With tattoos...and piercings...gulp. The perfect image of the dark brooding bad boy.

Elise is a former prima ballerina who moves to town to start over with her lil munchkin (hey, my mom used to call me that) and start her own dance school. Start over her life for the both of them. Without any attachments of the romantic kind. Including the sexy bad boy across the street...She's one of my favorite characters, not only for her ability to accept people as they are, but to stand up for not only herself, but those she loves. You go, girl!

Brody? All his life, he's sacrificed for the ones he loves, watching their dreams while allowing his own to take a different path. When they need him, he's always their, the big brother and father figure. The best tattooist not only in the area, but good enough so people come for his incredible inkings specifically, Brody owns his shop, has a rockstar for a brother, and a zany sometime rockstar/cafe owner for a sister whom he loves deeply. Always the rock of his family, our Brody. He's not into entanglements of the serious kind. Even with the stunningly beautiful ballerina who moved in and stirs him like no one before. Even if your protective overbearing ways are meant well...

Which always means things are going to heat up. Be careful what you throw out to the universe, because it gives right back. And in all the right ways (who doesn't adore a bad boy!).

What starts out as a no strings attached (and incredibly hot) arrangement soon evolves into something that both Elise and Brody are unable to openly define. Especially when they factor in their prospective pasts (read: baggage). Its easy to fall into one another (as well as other...places) but its how we handle the baggage that gets thrown at us that makes us be in love, to know that what we feel is real. And there is plenty of it here, on both sides.

Who doesn't like to catch up with old friends Erin, Todd, and Ben? This trio, while not conventional, makes their life work. It shows. The acceptance and love that surround every member of this entire extended family is one that I truly hope exists somewhere in the real world. A beautiful thing, opening your eyes as well as your mind.

Family is a strong theme in both books, and she manages to make it extremely sexy (Brody is def the alpha male) while Elise and her daughter show a side to him we only get glimpses of in Laid Bare. It works on so many different levels, from the actual family aspect to the HAWTNESS that ensues.

So with great pleasure (and a little sad that I've finished both books) I recommend...but, warning not for the faint of heart...with a little rock and roll.

(P.S. You may also want a little ink or piercing after reading. I did! *wink*)

You can pruchase Coming Undone from Amazon here...

Or check Lauren Dane's website!