Review: The Gift by Eva Cassel

My review of The Gift by Eva Cassel is up over at AAR. I was hesitant to try this one due to the cover blurb, but took a chance that ended up paying off. Click here to read my full review.

Disclosure: I purchased this book myself.

Review: Holiday Outing by Astrid Amara

My review of Astrid Amara's Hanukkah novella, Holiday Outing, is up today over at AAR. After reading Jessica's review over at Racy Romance Reviews, I decided to add this one to my holiday reading extravaganza. I found it funny and heartwarming, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Click here to read my full review. I also read this book as part of the 2009 Holiday Reading Challenge.

Disclosure: I purchased this book myself.

Review/Rant: Mirror, Mirror by Amanda McIntyre

Title: Mirror, Mirror
Author: Amanda McIntyre
Genre: Erotic Fiction
Length: Short Story
Published: September 2008
Sensuality: Burning
Setting: Urban/City
Disclosure: Purchased Myself

Unlike those that came before, lover number seventeen left Charlie aching for more, and for the first time, she regretted her and Paul’s arrangement. Theirs was a most unconventional marriage. Unable to enjoy sex firsthand, Charlie’s wealthy husband provided her with a stream of anonymous young, handsome lovers, while cameras hidden behind the mirrors enabled him to enjoy their lovemaking second hand. It was an arrangement that had sustained their marriage, but Charlie was beginning to resent her goldfish bowl lovelife. Then a chance encounter with number seventeen led to the forbidden--a hot session of soul searing sex in a clothing store dressing room, with no prying eyes intruding on her pleasure. Or so she thought. Then things began to turn really surreal, and Charlie discovered nothing was what it seemed.

REVIEW
For most of Mirror, Mirror, it was ... meh. I was interested enough to keep reading, but not terribly invested in the story. As the story wore on, however, I became increasingly curious about how the author was going to create that "satisfying" ending and resolve the conflict. Then the ending came and I wanted to throw the freaking book against the freaking wall. I didn't, but only because it's an e-book and I didn't want to break my Sony Reader. Suffice it to say: I was pissed.

You know those endings which at first surprise you, but then you think back over the story and realize little clues had been dropped along the way, and the ending is actually quite clever? This isn't one of those endings. Hell, this ending isn't even out in left field; it's beyond left field. The main character, Charlie, does something extremely TSTL, then on the next page all the conflict that has been building and building for the entire story is poof! gone. It was like Charlie'd had a total personality transplant and everything she'd been feeling for the last 45 pages was being remembered through glasses so deeply rose-colored as to be opaque.

In addition to it being beyond left field, the optimistic and so-called "satisfying" ending disgusted me on so many levels. But I can't explain that without giving away major spoilers, so if you want to know why you'll have to read the following Rant section.

Grade: F

RANT
This rant contains major spoilers, frequent swearing, and irrational anger. Read at your own risk. (Highlight text to read.)

Throughout Mirror, Mirror it becomes increasingly evident that Charlie is not only very unhappy with "whoring herself out" (her words, not mine) for her husband's pleasure -- he's the driving force behind her sleeping with all of these men -- she's also terrified of him. He's extremely controlling -- he literally watches every single move she makes through an elaborate video setup, she's not allowed to go anywhere alone or without permission, he chooses all of the men she has to have sex with -- and she has to constantly be on guard with her facial expressions, emotions, tone of voice, etc. She's terrified of what will happen to her and Lover #17 if Paul ever finds out that she's emotionally attached to this one, as Paul is very wealthy and powerful. It may not be a physically abusive relationship, but it is on every other level. Paul is, to put it mildly, an obsessive, dangerous, controlling stalker.

As the story wears on, and Charlie is feeling more and more desperate, I couldn't figure out how the author was going to realistically get her out of her predicament and have it all end well. What happens is that Lover #17 -- in a complete 180 of his character up to this point -- decides to kidnap Charlie, collect a large ransom, then murder her. He tells her as much when he shows up to kidnap her. And Charlie just goes right along with the plan. Seriously? He tells her he's going to murder her and she doesn't even attempt to save herself? She just follows him like a puppy dog out the door? What. The. Fuck.

But the real what-the-fuckery is when the reader is transported a month in the future to see how it all turned out. At first it seems like Lover #17's plan was to trick Paul by faking the kidnapping and murder, all so Charlie could escape her abusive husband. Uh, no. Turns out, Charlie is still with Paul and Lover #17 is in prison.

Wait, what? Charlie is still with Paul, you say?

Yep, and she's blissfully happy. No, Paul hasn't changed. He's still the obsessive, controlling, stalking emotional abuser who expects her to whore herself out to any man of his choosing. It's just that Charlie has come to realize that Paul's behavior is because he really, truly loves her. *sigh* He's just so wonderful. She's so thankful that he'd secretly implanted a chip in her cell phone, and tracked her down rescued her from the big, bad kidnapper. She's so thankful for his love that she's determined to do anything at all to please him, because pleasing him is the very least she can do after all he's given her. Oh! could her life just get any more perfect? *big sigh*

WHAT. THE. FUCK. No, really. WHAT. THE. FUCK.

Was I just transported to some alternate universe where emotional and psychological abuse is the ultimate expression of love? Did I not just spend 45 goddamn pages reading about the heroine's increasing emotional distress and fear? Did I not read about how much she hates living every second of every day under constant scrutiny? How she feels there's no one she can trust because they're all loyal to Paul? How she wants so badly to get away from him, but is too damn afraid of what he'll do? How she's tired of whoring herself out to please him?

I'm supposed to read all of that and then to be satisfied with how Charlie's been lobotomized seen the light and realized that Paul is an abusive psycho just really, really loves her with all of his twisted big heart? I'm supposed to be happy that she's so fucked in the head grateful to Paul for controlling loving her that she's willing to do anything to please him?

Are you fucking kidding me?! I'm supposed to buy that? And be happy about it? I'm about as happy about that ending as I would be if I stepped in a big pile of dog crap.

Merry fucking Christmas to me.


Okay, yeah, I'm still a little pissed. And not a little irrational. But I'm done now. I feel much better. I've mentally thrown the book at the wall at least half a dozen times, but it's not the same, you know? I just really needed to get all that off my chest. So, uh, thanks for putting up with me reading.

Review: Better Naughty Than Nice Anthology

Every year from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day it's my unofficial Anthology Season. I gorge myself on holiday stories -- Christmas, Hanukkah, whatever -- and most tend to come in anthology format. This year's Blaze Christmas anthology, Better Naughty Than Nice, by Vicki Lewis Thompson, Jill Shalvis, and Rhonda Nelson provided the most solid of the new anthologies I've read this year. None of the stories wowed me, but I found all three to be pretty enjoyable. Click here to read my full review at AAR. I also read this book as part of the 2009 Holiday Reading Challenge.

Disclosure: I purchased this book myself.

Review: Under the Covers Anthology

My review of the Under the Covers anthology by Crystal Jordan, Lorie O'Clare, and P.J. Mellor is up today over at AAR. I really enjoyed the Jordan and Mellor contributions -- Naughty or Nice and Escaping Christmas, respectively -- but O'Clare's Nativity Island didn't work for me at all. Despite one of the stories ranking pretty low, I'm happy to have discovered two new-to-me authors to read in the future. Click here to read my full review. I also read this book as part of the 2009 Holiday Reading Challenge.

Disclosure: I received this book free as an AAR reviewer.

Review: Eye of the Storm by Delilah Devlin

Title: Eye of the Storm
Author: Delilah Devlin
Genre: Erotic Fiction
Length: Short Story
Published: August 2009
Sensuality: Burning
Setting: Jamaica
Disclosure: Purchased Myself


One year ago, Marcus healed Janie's broken heart with his love. Now she has returned to Jamaica to see if their passion is as strong as before. Then Marcus's friend Cade shows up, too. Janie never really liked Cade, but when Marcus asks her to take them both to her bedroom, Janie soon learns that the two men know exactly what she needs....

Warning: This review contains spoilers.

The biggest issue I had with Eye of the Storm -- really, the only issue -- is that the heroine doesn't begin enjoying herself until the very end. The end, as in, after the sex is over. She really doesn't like Cade, and doesn't want to have sex with him, but she so desperately wants to please Marcus that she goes along with it.

During the entire sex scene -- which, given that this is an erotica short, is virtually the entire story -- Janie is visibly distressed and on the verge of tears. Marcus, who's supposed to love Janie, can tell she's distressed, but what does he do? He tells her to pretend it's him doing her and not Cade. Seriously? Maybe it's just me, but that doesn't seem like a great way to treat someone you're supposed to love.

After the sex -- which Janie physically enjoyed, but was emotionally distraught about the whole way through -- Janie breaks down in tears and admits to feeling used by the two men. I couldn't blame her; being used is exactly how it felt to me too. The two men then proceed to soothe her feelings and proclaim their love and commitment to her, but it was too little, too late for this reader. I just couldn't get the bad taste out of my mouth. What would have worked far better, in my opinion, is if this soothing had taken place before the sex. Because frankly, if the character herself isn't enjoying the sex, I'm sure as hell not enjoying it as the reader.

Eye of the Storm is solidly in D-territory for me, but I vacillated about exactly where in the D-range it falls -- mostly because, while I had problems with the plot and characters, I had no problem with the writing style. Ultimately I decided to just grade it down the middle.  

Grade: D

Review: Kissing Santa Claus Anthology

My review of the Kissing Santa Claus anthology by Donna Kauffman, Jill Shalvis, and HelenKay Dimon is up over at AAR. I had high hopes for this Christmas collection, but two of the stories turned out to be meh. I did, however, really like the Jill Shalvis entry, Bah Handsome!, so I'll keep the anthology just so I can re-read that one next year. Click here to read my full review.

Disclosure: I received this book free as an AAR reviewer.

Review: Tie Me Down by Tracy Wolff

My review of Tie Me Down by Tracy Wolff went up this weekend at AAR. Overall I thought this was a nice blend of erotica and romantic suspense, despite a couple of issues. Click here to read my full review. I'll definitely check out the author's next release, Tease Me, which is coming in April.

Disclosure: This was a free book I received as an AAR reviewer.

Review: Gobsmacked by L.B. Gregg

Title: Gobsmacked
Author: L.B. Gregg
Genre: M/M Erotic Romance
Length: 38,485 words (~109-153 min)
Published: 2009
Sensuality: Burning
Setting: Upstate New York
Series: Men of Smithfield #1
Disclosure: Purchased Myself

Mild mannered Mark Meehan’s good judgment flies out the window when he finds his lover banging another man. Things go from bad to worse as Mark’s crazy revenge scheme uncovers shocking secrets—sending him straight into the arms of hunky lawman and old friend, Tony Gervase, a man of limited patience and secrets of his own.

Gobsmacked is the first novella in L.B. Gregg's Men of Smithfield series, and the bottom line is that it was just plain fun to read. It's told in the first person narrative (past tense), which works very well due to Mark's dry, humorous POV. For the first part of the story I alternated between laughing out loud, and gasping "Oh no he didn't!" When the romantic and suspense elements of the plot come to the forefront, the tale, while still humorous, is less funny and a bit edgier. Mark must deal with the fallout of his actions and the mystery he's been thrown into, as well as his renewed feelings for Tony. The change in tone worked quite well as the plot moves from being a funny scorned-lover-revenge-scheme to something darker and heavier.

Gobsmacked is one of those stories that doesn't fit neatly under labels such as Erotica or Romantic Suspense. It's officially labeled Erotica, but it feels more like a gay man's version of Chick Lit -- Dude Lit? -- combined with light-hearted-edgy Romantic Suspsense, and a shot of Erotica mixed in with all of that. Like I said -- conventional genre labels don't fit.

Regardless of the label it's given, Gobsmacked is highly entertaining, and I'm very much looking forward to the next two installments in the series, Happy Ending and Cover Me.

Grade: B

Review: Make Her Pay by Roxanne St. Claire

My review of Make Her Pay by Roxanne St. Claire is up today over at AAR. Of the eight books in the Bullet Catchers series, this one is my favorite. I especially loved the hero and heroine, and I was all over the treasure hunting mystery plot. I know St. Claire is coming out with a new series from a different publisher next year, so it appears that the Bullet Catchers are on hiatus -- or might possibly be over. If it turns out that the series is over, I'll be sad, but at least the Bullet Catchers will have gone out with a good one. Click here to read my full review.

Disclosure: I purchased this book myself.

Review: Captain's Surrender by Alex Beecroft

My review of Captain's Surrender by Alex Beecroft went up yesterday over at AAR. I loved this book, and immediately had to buy Beecroft's False Colors after I finished this one.

Set in 1779, Josh and Peter are sailors in the British Navy, serving aboard a ship headed for Bermuda. In addition to the danger they face from the sadistic Captain Walker -- who suspects them of being homosexual, which is punishable by death -- they also face danger from pirates and possible mutiny aboard their ship. I was so utterly engrossed in this book from the first page that every time I had to set it down I couldn't wait to get back. Click here to read my full review.

Disclosure: I purchased this book myself.

Review: Breakfast in Bed by Robin Kaye

My review of the latest in Robin Kaye's Domestic Gods series is up over at AAR. Overall I had an enjoyable time with Breakfast in Bed -- despite a couple of issues -- and will check out the first two books in the series. I actually have Too Hot to Handle on my TBR shelf, I just haven't gotten around to it yet. Click here to read my full review.

Disclosure: This was a free ARC I received as an AAR reviewer.

Review: Desert Heat by J.A. Jance

Title: Desert Heat
Author: J.A. Jance
Genre: Mystery (Contemporary)
Published: 1993
Sensuality: Subtle
Setting: Arizona
Series: Joanna Brady #1
Disclosure: Borrowed from Library

I've never read a J.A. Jance novel before, but I've been seeing her books around more and more, so I decided to give her a try. A review of her website led me to Desert Heat, the first book in her Joanna Brady series. The back cover synopsis is of a widow investigating her husband's death, and risking life and limb to track down the killer. That's not really how the story goes down, but I was still kept fairly entertained.

Andy Brady is a Deputy Sheriff with the Cochise County Sheriff's Department in rural Brisbee, Arizona, and is running for sheriff's office. When he doesn't come home the night of their 10th anniversary, Joanna senses trouble and goes searching for him. She finds him on the side of the road, dying from a gunshot wound to the stomach. She gets help and Andy is airlifted to the hospital in Tucson.

After going through surgery, it looks like Andy may recover, but there's a possibility of paralysis. Joanna holds a vigil at the hospital, sitting with him for as long as the staff will allow. Unfortunately, the killer learns that Andy isn't dead, comes to the hospital to finish the job, and is successful in killing Andy.

Complicating matters is that the Sheriff's Department is investigating Andy's death as a suicide, and the DEA is claiming that he was involved in the illegal drug trade though Cochise County. Joanna is outraged by these claims, but is having trouble getting anyone to listen to her. She decides that she is going to prove that Andy was murdered and restore his good name.

Essentially this book was a setup for the rest of the series. Probably the first third of the novel involves discovering Andy's body and Joanna's vigil at the hospital. Next we move on to her planning his funeral, and the aftermath that she and their daughter have to deal with. It's not until the very end that the real action takes place.

The other problem I had was that Joanna doesn't ever do any investigating. She talks a lot about proving her husband was murdered, but doesn't actually do anything about it. Rather, the whole case is solved based on the actions of a secondary character, and Joanna is given all the credit in the end.

I really would have preferred this book to be more stand-alone than just the setup for the rest of the series. At the end of the book there are still unanswered questions surrounding Andy's death and his actions prior to his death. These issues should have been resolved for the reader, but the focus seemed to be on setting it up for Joanna to run for sheriff in the next book. This big push for her to run didn't make sense to me. She's only 28 years old, doesn't have any background in law enforcement or the military, and really the only thing she did to solve her husband's case was to insist he didn't commit suicide.

Despite my problems with the plot, the story moved along at a fairly decent clip, and I was never bored. While the identity of the killer is never in question--the reader knows from page one--there was a good amount of suspense involving the aforementioned secondary character. It was this secondary character's story that I found the most interesting, and it was probably the main reason I kept reading. Add in some interesting tidbits about the case that come to light throughout the story, and I was kept fairly entertained.

In the end though, I expect the protagonists of mystery series to, you know, actually solve the mystery instead of whining about it while others do it for them. I know, I'm strange that way. I especially can't buy into the questionable logic that's supposed to make Joanna a qualified candidate for sheriff, either. Which is disappointing because I was really looking forward to a good mystery series with a female sheriff protagonist. So, overall, while the book was fairly enjoyable, the issues I had prevent me from recommending it, and will likely prevent me from reading more of this series.

Grade: C+

Review: Power Play by Nancy Warren

My review of Power Play by Nancy Warren is up today over at AAR. I really enjoyed Warren's take on the Accidentally Double-Booked Hotel Room plot, and her hero Jonah is just yummy. In her last couple of Blazes, her heroes have been more on the beta side, and I'm really liking it. Jonah has this laid-back confidence about him that's so much more sexy, IMHO, than the domineering alphas the genre is overripe with. Click here to read my full review.

Disclosure: I purchased this book myself.