This week at Smexy…

B+ review – The Heiress Effect by Courtney Milan (historical)
B review – Provoked by Joanna Chambers (historical m/m)
B review – Never Deal with Dragons by Lorenda Christensen (pnr)
B review – Conceal by Juliana Stone
C+ review – Sweetened with a Kiss by Lexxi Callahan (contemporary)
C+ review – Indecent Proposition series by Stephanie Julian (erotic)
C review – Fleet Week by Melody Montclair (contemporary)
C- review – The Wicked by Thea Harrison (pnr)

Happy Birthday Brazen Books!
Guest Author Heather Hiestand
Smexy’s Top Ten

News from Mandi: Deal with a Demon by Celeste Easton didn’t meet my expectations. It features a human heroine who accidentally calls a demon to help her find her missing brother. While there were some hot scenes between them, I never felt true chemistry. The world was cool to start but I lost interest. Review coming.

I read Run to You by Charlotte Stein which is well done erotic. I adore her voice and this book has a very Stein feel to it. Awkward heroine with low self esteem meets a huge, hairy Hungarian hero. You think he will be the one to swoop in and give her confidence (which he does) but he has intimacy issues and she ends up helping him. And it’s dirty. Really enjoyed – will review this week.

Shooting Scars by Karina Halle is the sequel to Sins & Needles. It comes out in later August – if you have yet to read Sins & Needles, doooooooooo it. They have to be read in order (yes S&N ends in a cliffie, and yes Shooting Scars ends in a cliffie) It’s a cracky books – crazy things happen. Things I totally didn’t expect. Really fun series. I highly rec.

Tori’s News: I read some good, some bad, and some meh books these past two weeks. I’m not going to list them all because I’m lazy. Instead, I will list those that I genuinely enjoyed and this our readers may enjoy also.

Kate SeRine is a new author for me and her Transplanted Tales was a delight to find and read. A mixture of UF and PNR, SeRine brings fairytale, nursery rhymes, and certain literary characters to life when a ego manic fairy godmother rips them from Make Believe on a bet and transplants them into our world. Each book revolves around one hero and heroine but there is a running arc. A funny, dark, sexy series that left me ready for more. I will be reviewing the third book of the series, Along Came A Spider, her at Smexybooks.

I finally was able to read the first three books of Tessa Bailey’s Line Of Duty series and I see what all the fuss was about. Some seriously dominant alpha cops and the woman who come to mean the world to them. Funny and emotionally satisfying with some healthy angst, I enjoyed each couple’s journey from lust to love. A suspenseful subplot makes the stories even better. The third one of the series, Officer Off Limits, was my favorite as I felt that couple did the best at balancing the romance with their personalities.

Fans of Jennifer Estep’s Elemental series will love her novella, Kiss Of Venom. Told from Owen’s POV, we get an intimate look at his genuine regret towards the way he treated Gin and his friends. A great opening into her next installment, Heart Of Venom, which is FANTASTIC!! May will be reviewing.

Another fave series of mine from Jennifer Estep is her YA series, Mythos Academy. Her fifth book. Midnight Frost, picks up where Crimson Frost left off and takes us on another incredible journey, This installment isn’t as action packed as the last couple. I found Estep centers a majority of the book on the heroine, Gwen and addresses some open ended questions revolving around her life and past. Review to come. (Review will feature Spartan Frostalso.)

Courtney Milan’s The Heiress Effect is a delightful book that showcases the wonderful talent Milan has for characterization.. A historical romance that takes a look into expectations and not settling for anything less than what you want. The heroine Jane, is superb and I absolutely fell in love with her. The hero was hard to take at times and even in the end, I really didn’t feel he deserved her.

I picked up Never Deal With Dragon’s by Lorenda Christensen after my review partner, Mandi raved about it. A funny, cute, action packed UF that reminded me of a more serious GA Aiken. Fast pacing and a wonderful cast of characters made this a fun read though I wanted a bit more focus on the romance as the book makes it a solid part of the storyline.

Wicked Cravings by Suzanne Wright was a impulse read and so glad I did. Funny, sexy, raunchy PNR with a solid plot line that kept me laughing and thoroughly engaged till the end.

Christine Warren’s The Others series has always been hit and miss with me. Some of the stories I’ve enjoyed and others have left me wanting to kill either the hero, the heroine, or both. Hungry Like A Wolf was interesting. I enjoyed the story and the heroine was totally balls to the wall, but the hero left me wanting to choke the crap out of him on many different occasions. The main conflict is too easily resolved due to an outside influence. Really? That’s all it took? Hmmm.

Sierra Dean’s Pitch Perfect is a sweet funny sports romance perfect for a summer lazy day. Enjoyable characters, humorous dialogue, and a lovely romance all set within the sport of baseball. Review to come.

I did pick up a couple short kindle freebie reads that weren’t too bad but nothing to have you screaming your love from the rooftops. I call them feel good books. They are sweet somewhat sappy stories with little to no conflict and well known elements.

Fall Into My Heart by Rebecca Elise. NA Romance between a musician and his band’s publicist.

Hush by Carey Baldwin. Romance Suspense. Small town murder and a second chance at love. (This was free when I got it but it is now $.99)

This weekend I’m reading Just In Time by Addison Fox for review and a couple from my TBR. Hoping to get to Kresley Cole’s MacRieve but we shall see.