Right off we meet Drew.  He swears he has the flu because that is the only logical explanation for why he hasn’t left his apartment for a week, why there is garbage piled up everywhere,  and why he won’t answer his phone or door.  But it doesn’t take too long before Drew tells us the real reason for his malaise.  He has fallen in love, something completely unheard of from a confirmed bachelor like he is.  And the woman of his dreams is marrying another man.

Once we learn Drew’s real problem, he starts to tell us his story.  Tangled is told from Drew’s point of view and starts a month before where we open with Drew having the “flu”.  Drew is a bit of a dog but he likes being a dog and does not hide what he is.

“Jesus, baby, I’m gonna come.”

Let’s freeze frame here for a second.

For those ladies out there who are listening, let me give you some free advice: If a guy who you just met at a club calls you baby, sweetheart, angel or any other generic endearment?  Don’t make the mistake of thinking he’s so into you, he’s already thinking up pet names.

It’s because he can’t or doesn’t care to remember your actual name.

And no girl wants to be called by the wrong name when she’s on her knees giving you head in the men’s room.  So, just to be safe, I went with baby.

Her real name?  Does it matter?

He first sees Kate in a bar and is entranced.  Having just left the bathroom stall and a quicky blow job, he is feeling pretty relaxed and happy.  He introduces himself to Kate and the reader sees a little communication going on that Drew misses.

Let me stop and explain here.  Tangled is from Drew’s pov so while we don’t hear Kate’s thoughts, Drew will stop the reader and point them out.  It was not uncommon for him to make the reader note something that he missed but will be pertinent for later.  Like when they first meet, he points out Kate’s reaction to his name.  He tells the reader to keep it in their mind because it will be important for later.  The way he switches back and forth from telling his story to talking to reader is priceless.  The changes to do not take you out of the story but they allow you to see things from Kate’s pov even though you never hear it.

Back to the story.  Kate tells Drew she is engaged and leaves him standing at the bar.  Brokenhearted, Drew goes home with twin redheads.  For real.  Next day Drew attends a work meeting where he finds out that Kate is a new employee at his firm, family business started by his father, and is a rising star.  This causes much stress for Drew because he does not sleep with people he works with.  It ends up not being a problem because Kate and Drew are pitted against each other on an account and they become enemies instead of lovers.

The rest of the story really must be left up to the reader.  Things happen, situations change and roles reverse.  How is that for purposefully vague?    Tangled is the debut novel for Ms Chase and loved it.  It will easily go on my top books for 2013.  Her voice is fresh and funny, the male pov is different and unique and the flow of the story is done perfectly.  I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a laugh combined with a wonderful romance.  Final grade- A

Favorite Quote:

Every healthy man in the world wakes up with a stiffy.  A fatty.  Morning wood.  I’m sure there’s some medical explanation for the phenomenon, but I just like to think of it as a little present from God.  A chance to begin the day with your best dick forward.

And

Which reminds me- Martha Stewart?  She’s my new idol.  Seriously.  I used to think her whole deal was a joke.  Who becomes a billionaire by showing people how to fold goddamn dinner napkins correctly?  But that was before.  Before I actually tried to use my own oven or set a table.  Now Martha’s a fucking god.  Like Buddha.  And if her recipe helps me pulls this off?  I’ll worship at her pudgy sandaled feet every day for the rest of my life.

Rating: A
Tangled by Emma Chase
May 21st 2013 by Omnific Publishing
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Review: Tangled by Emma Chase was first published on Fiction Vixen Book Reviews

New romance and urban fantasy releases!! What will you buy today? There are always so many releases each week, we’re bound to miss some, especially those indie releases. Tell us what we missed.

**May 20**

AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Love Letters Volume 2: Duty To Please by Anthology
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Anthology by Dee J. Adams
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Portrait of a Crossroads by Kelly Rand
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Just One Night, Part 3: Binding Agreement by Kyra Davis
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Leslie C. Ferdinand by Picture Perfect
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Journey Of Dominion by Shawna Thomas
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Tangled by Emma Chase
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Beneath the Beauty by Skye Warren

**May 21**

AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Hell’s End by Ally Blue
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Sarah Morgan by An Invitation to Sin
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Dark Flight by Cassi Carver
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** How To Pursue A Princess by Karen Hawkins
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Then, Again by Karen Stivali
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** One True Love by Lori Wilde
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Ashes Of The Day by P.G. Forte
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** A Certain Summer by Patricia Beard
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** An Invitation to Sin by Sarah Morgan
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Rocky Mountain Rebel by Vivian Arend

**May 25**

AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** Anything But Sweet by Candis Terry
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** All Out Of Love : A Cupid, Texas Novel by Lori Wilde
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** An English Bride In Scotland by Lynsay Sands
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** A Kiss Of Blood by Pamela Palmer
AMZ * BN * Kobo * Sony * ARe ** The Taming Of Ryder Cavanaugh by Stephanie Laurens

New Romance and Urban Fantasy Releases: Week Of May 20th was first published on Fiction Vixen Book Reviews

Erin is a college student earning money working as a maid during her last semester of college. She cleans house for Blake Morris who is a former soldier who was wounded and disfigured during the war. Blake is a recluse due to his shame of his disfigurement but enjoys having Erin come to clean his home. Erin enjoys the visits as well since she has a very serious crush on Blake. When she makes an unexpected visit, she inadvertently walks in on him masturbating. Embarrassed she begins to back out of the room until she hears him moan her name. Things get awkward, then hot, then from there a they begin an intense sexual relationship that is bound to develop into more.

This was a very sexy read, but way too short. I was a little intrigued when I realized the author was continuing Blake and Erin’s story in serial format. Intrigued because I like the author’s voice and I look forward to reading a contemporary erotic tale that was not as dark as her other works I’ve read. But I’m a little hesitant because I’m not overly fond of the serial format.

Beneath the Beauty picks up soon after Beauty Touched the Beast left off. Erin and Blake are continuing their affair and growing closer emotionally as Blake works through his issues about being disfigured. When he is offered a position at the university Erin attends, she encourages him to take it. This is a great opportunity for him to begin rejoining society again and could be a major step in his recovery. But it could be dangerous for their relationship.  A professor dating a student is against the rules and neither is willing to give up on their relationship. With Erin’s encouragement, Blake accepts the position and together they take the good (sneaky office sex) and the bad (jealous past lover) day by day.

In Beneath the Beauty we get to know a little about about Erin and her past. She comes from a humble background, is in college on a partial scholarship and loans and is working to earn money for the rest. She’s one semester away from finishing but I suspect there will be trouble ahead for her before all is said and done. Blake’s former lover has reemerged and seems set on rekindling their affair even though she’s the one that ended it after Blake was wounded.

What’s an erotic story without the sexy times right? Skye Warren delivers a some very sensual, sexy scenes. One to get the story going, one to make sure taking that professor the job was well worth it *wink, wink* and another so that we have something to cling to until the next installment. Professor Blake might have lost a little confidence in life but he’s still a stud in the bedroom.

Well, what can I say? I’m still not fond of the serial format. I ended this book not feeling completely satisfied because I felt just when things got rolling, it was over and now I have to wait. Impatience is me. That said, I’m really looking forward to knowing what’s ahead for Blake and Erin and so I will be picking up the next installment.

Broken Beauty will be out in June and you can still get the first (short story) installment – Beauty Touched The Beast – for free.

Favorite Quote:

She had one more stop to make before she left campus.

Professor Morris. The name made her flush with sexual heat. Probably because she’d called him that when he went down on her last night.

Rating: B-
Beneath the Beauty by Skye Warren
May 20th 2013 – Self Published
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Review: Beneath the Beauty by Skye Warren was first published on Fiction Vixen Book Reviews

Hi, everyone! I’m so glad to be visiting Fiction Vixen today! As I prepare for the release of Dark Flight, the third novel in my spicy urban fantasy series, I’ve been thinking a lot about readers—not only because I have some awesome, supportive readers out there, but because I myself am a pretty devoted fan of some of my favorite authors.

So how can you tell if you’re a run-of-the-mill reader or if you take your favorite books a little more seriously? After scratching my head at some of my own neurotic reader tendencies, I decided it might be helpful to give you a checklist of…

The top ten signs that you may be HARDCORE READER:

1 You can’t remember your extended family’s birthdays, but you can remember what the hero of your favorite book bought the heroine for her birthday, where they were, and what she was wearing at the time.

2. You not only named your child after a favorite character, most of your pets’ full names start with Lord and Lady.

3. After a book ends, you go to bed thinking about the hero’s and heroine’s lives and wondering if they’re going to be okay. If there were a number for them in the book, you’d call it just to be sure.

4. Your version of Doomsday prepping is ensuring you have a five-year emergency power supply for your e-reader.

5. You aren’t a 100% sure that vampires and werewolves aren’t real. When you bite your inner lip while eating breakfast, you wonder if your fangs might finally be growing in.

6. You have a tattoo somewhere on your body that only another fan or someone from a fictional world would “get.”

7. You’ve shouted at too-stupid-to-live characters so many times that family members no longer run into the room to see who’s getting beat. When they see that look in your eye and a book in your hand, they steer clear.

8. You practice your signature with your first name and your favorite hero’s last name. You like it so much, you start writing fan fiction so you can kill off the heroine.

9. When your husband asks you if the baby is his, you have to stop and think for a moment. You’re relieved when you realize you weren’t actually in the room with the hero and heroine of that last erotica novel.

10. When you have a really bad day, you pull out your favorite book—one you’ve already read a dozen times with deeply dog-eared pages. Because when times are tough, there’s no one else you would rather hang out with.

Giveaway

Do any of those sound familiar? If so, you are truly a Hardcore Reader! As a thank you for stopping by today, I’d like to give away 3 digital copies of my new release Dark Flight to three people who comment. Just saying “hi” is good enough, but you will score bonus points in my heart if you finish this sentence in the comments below:  You know you’re a HARDCORE READER when…

Well, that’s it for now. Happy reading, my friends!!

Hugs, Cassi

Book Description:

In a world of shadows, a pure heart can be the most dangerous weapon of all.

Kara has been training for months to help take down Brakken—the merciless black-wing who is making life hell for the Demiáre. But when Julian discovers a scout has been tracking Kara, he wants her out of the fight—even if it means breaking her heart in the process.

Gavin isn’t much better. He’s already lost so much to Brakken and has no intention of allowing the woman he loves to be the next sacrifice. He and Julian have their hands full trying to fight Brakken’s army and keep Kara safe, especially after her recent visit to the mythical white-wings. Since her return, she’s been acting decidedly…strange.

With a terrible battle looming, Kara doesn’t have time to think about her conflicted feelings for Gavin and Julian—or the fact that she’s developed an unnatural taste for Gavin’s blood. But if she thought it was complicated evading mysterious scouts and fending off vicious black-wings, she’s learning that’s nothing compared to loving two strong-willed men.

Amazon   BN   Samhain

Cassi Carver:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CassiCarver

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CassiCarverAuthor

Website: http://cassicarver.com/

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5307736.Cassi_Carver

No purchase necessary to win. You must be 18 or over to enter, void where prohibited. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. FVBR is not being compensated for this giveaway. If the winner declines to accept or fails to claim their prize within 72 hours of the announcement, they forfeit their prize(s). Prize distribution is the sole responsibility of the giveaway sponsor. Fiction Vixen Book Reviews will not be held responsible for lost or misdirected prizes or for circumstances beyond our control. More information here.

Guest Author: Cassi Carver – The top ten signs that you may be HARDCORE READER + Giveaway was first published on Fiction Vixen Book Reviews

The Last Gladiatrix by Eva Scott

Captured and enslaved by a Roman legion, Xanthe never expects to end up training for the Coliseum floor, but every night after the day’s march, she is put through her paces by a Roman solider who challenges her, tests her, and excites her.

Titus is drawn to Xanthe, her fire and her spirit, so he breaks one of his rules and brings notice on himself, offering to train her as a gladiatrix to spare her a courtesan’s role. But training her, working with her, soon becomes too much. Titus knows the penalty for taking property that does not belong to him, but how long can he resist?

Exclusive Excerpt

The flash of her green eyes in the candlelight reminded Titus of the verdant wild forests of Northern Italy, which they had recently left. He rubbed a smear of dirt from her cheek with his thumb, and then taking her hand, he raised Xanthe up to stand. With deliberate, slow movements he unfastened her tunic, letting it fall from her shoulders to pool on the ground at her feet.
Xanthe made no move to stop him, their eyes locked, her fear and trust clear to see. He slid his fingers beneath the waist of her leggings and tugged them down over her hips, leaving her naked, standing there before him.

Titus took a sponge and dipped it into a bowl of warm water, letting it soak before applying it to Xanthe’s flesh. He washed her with firm yet gentle strokes, and as the water ran over her skin it dripped deliciously from her breasts. The centurion bent his head and licked at a droplet, pleased to feel her shudder in response. Her nipple hardened, inviting him to explore further. He needed no invitation. Xanthe had to summon all her self-discipline to stand still while Titus explored the curves of her body. His touch turned her core to molten fire; she could barely contain her need.

Let’s Talk

Q: Tell our readers why you think they’ll enjoy The Last Gladiatrix

A: If you are looking for a historical heroine who’s not busy languishing in front of a mirror or worried about what the ton think then Xanthe is your gal! Feisty and strong, she takes on Ancient Rome and a sexy Centurion to boot.

Q: You may have noticed we like to include our favorite quote in our reviews of the books we read. What is your favorite quote from The Last Gladiatrix?

A: My favorite quote from The Last Gladiatrix is:

Xanthe shrugged. ‘A Sarmatian woman cannot marry until she has been blooded. It’s the cooking part I struggle with. I don’t see why I should fight side-by-side with a man all day, then go back to camp and cook for him as well.’

Book Info

The Last Gladiatrix by Eva Scott
Historical Romance
04/01/2013 – Escape (Harlequin)
Goodreads
Amazon || Barnes & Noble || Kobo || ARe || Sony
Eva Scott’s website

Giveaway

Eva Scott would like to give away a copy of The Last Gladiatrix. (ebook) To enter, just answer her question:

If you were in Xanthe’s predicament what role would you prefer – gladiatrix or courtesan? Why?

Giveaway is open to all (where allowed). You have until end of day May 24 to enter, winner will be announced soon after.

Giveaway sponsored by: Eva Scott. No purchase necessary to win. You must be 18 or over to enter, void where prohibited. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. FVBR is not being compensated for this giveaway. If the winner declines to accept or fails to claim their prize within 72 hours of the announcement they forfeit their prize. Prize distribution is the sole responsibility of the giveaway sponsor. Fiction Vixen Book Reviews will not be held responsible for lost or misdirected prizes or for circumstances beyond our control. More information here.

Weekend Feature: The Last Gladiatrix by Eva Scott + Giveaway was first published on Fiction Vixen Book Reviews