This week at Smexy….

B+ review – Temptress by Lola Dodge (paranormal romance)
B+ review – Chasing Magic by Stacia Kane (urban fantasy)
B review – Rescue Me by Rachel Gibson (contemporary romance)
B review – Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost (paranormal)
C+ review – Running Wild by Joely Skye (m/m paranormal)
C review – Invitation to Scandal by Bronwen Evans (historical romance)
C review – Spellcrossed by Barbara Ashford (paranormal romance)
C review – Soul Bound by Anne Hope (paranormal romance)
C review – My Fair Concubine by Jeannie Lin (historical romance)
C- review – Accidentally Dead, Again by Dakota Cassidy (paranormal)
D review – Legally Yours by Manda Collins (erotic contemporary)

Helyce’s Summer Recs
Smexy’s Top Ten

News From Mandi: I ended up DNF’ing Scandal Wears Satin by Loretta Chase. It has a cute start, but by the 60% mark I was just done with them chasing after this girl who ran away. I didn’t find a spark between the hero and heroine. She kept saying the hero was dense and thickheaded, but he never came across that way. Just didn’t hold my attention. The historical I did love this week was Ravishing the Heiress by Sherry Thomas. SO ANGSTY. I died a little on the inside. Incredible emotions are shown. The hero is truly in love with someone else but must put her aside to marry someone with money. I think the ending is rushed, but otherwise a fab read. I read the BSDM ‘nerdmance’ Theory of Attraction by Delphine Dryden. I couldn’t resist that description. This one is sexy, but the nerd comes off more arrogant than shy. I kinda like the shy ones better. But I’m glad I read it. Review to come soon. I DNF’d the first book in Pamela Clare’s I-Team series, but I have books two and three waiting for me. I’ve heard very good things about a certain hero named Marcus…so I can’t wait to dive into his book. I read the erotic menage BDSM, Melt into You by Roni Loren and I liked it. Very well done sex scenes and a pretty believable menage. This is the first I’ve read of her and I like her voice. Review to come soon. Finally, I read Stranger by Megan Hart. Damn I love her books. Jack stole my heart in this one. Loved him. The actual hero Joe isn’t a favorite of mine, but I still think she has an incredible voice. I’m going to read Tempted by her next.

Tori’s News: I’ll be honest, there hasn’t been much going on here this week reading wise. June is a hectic month for my family with birthdays, father’s day, anniversaries, and various relatives coming to visit. I have been doing some reading from my TBR shelf. Nalini Singh’s Psy/Changeling sucked me in again. So freaking good. *happy sigh* Also re ead a few of JR Ward’s BDB books. I revisited with Caesar and Dan in LB Gregg’s Albright and Romano series with Trust Me If You Dare. Those boys crack me up. And the smexytimes? ZOMG!!

J.C. Daniel’s (aka Shiloh Walker) Sexy Little Surprises was a sexy little novella. Review to come. Kristin Callahan’s Moonglow is an exciting and delightful PNR that is as good as or possibly rivals Firelight. Daisy and Ian are fab together. Review to come.

This week I will be reading some erotics I recently received and finishing up on Kelly Gay’s newest Charlie Madigan book.

News From May: Well this wasn’t a good week for books. First, I finished Demon Blood by Meljean Brook, and I was sorely disappointed that I never felt we really got inside the characters, and I never connected to them or even liked them the smallest bit. The plot was good, but the main characters I wanted to just go away and whine about their sorry selves elsewhere. This said, I am anxious to start the next book, and counting down the weeks/months until Michael’s book.

I just completed the upcoming “Loving Lady Marcia” by Kieran Kramer (her new House of Brady series), and I am so very disappointed! It started strong, right off the bat Marsha ruins herself! I loved that! But then it utterly fell apart and never came back together for me. The hero I describe as skeevy and perving on Marsha in my notes. I will tell you it is very much “The characters of Brady bunch re-made in ye olde England” – right down to Alice and Tiger. More to come in a full review here at Smexy.

My disappointments aside, next up I have Carrie Lofty’s Starlight (review to come VERY soon), and I hope she can pull me out of this slump. The novella she recently released I highly recommend for a smexy good time – and I’m excited to see where she takes us next.

News from Helyce:  Not much to report here this week.  I decided to give up on Messenger’s Angel by Heather Killough-Walden. The story was good and really had potential, but the constant back and forth between character groups at really bad times left me frustrated, so sadly, it’s a DNF for me. I finished Willow Springs by Toni Blake. This was my first read by author Toni Blake and though it started out a little rough for me, I’m glad I stuck with it through the end.  I enjoyed the friends to lovers theme, but some of the issues the H/H go through in the story were overused themes in my opinion. In the end, though, I liked the happy ending and was happy with the heroine’s character growth.  Review to come next week. I’m about half way through Hawaiian Gothic by Heidi Belleau and Violetta Vane.  This m/m romance has a bit of the paranormal in it in the form of a ghost. It’s a bit slow going for me, but I’m intrigued enough to see it through. I’ve started Shadow Rising by Kendra Leigh Castle and I am loving it so far.  Only 45 pages in and I am hooked!  Can’t wait to see what kind of trouble Damien manages to get into! If I’m able to finish these, I hope to read College Boys by Daisy Harris for fun before focusing on more review books! Have a great weekend all!