This week at Smexy…

A review – The Undead Pool by Kim Harrison (urban fantasy)
B+ review – The Chance by Robyn Carr (contemporary)
B+ review  – Tucker by Juliana Stone (contemporary)
B review – Four Years Later by Monica Murphy (new adult)
B-/C+ joint review – Killer Frost by Jennifer Estep (paranormal)
C+ review – Better Than Chance by Lane Hayes (m/m contemporary)
C+ review – Do or Die by Suzanne Brockmann (romantic suspense)
C review – A Better Man by Jaime Reese (m/m contemporary)
D review – Love Game by Elise Sax (contemporary)
D review – Vampire Most Wanted by Lynsay Sands (paranormal)

When I Break by Kendall Ryan Excerpt
Giveaway Time from Loveswept and Bantam
Smexy’s Top Ten

News from Mandi: I think I’m making it out of my reading slump! I started off the week by DNFing Night Games by Lisa Perry at the 50% mark. The hero and heroine at this point had barely had any page time together. I wasn’t a fan of the author’s writing style either  – the dialogue didn’t seem to flow and…this book just wasn’t for me.

Then Tori recommended that I read Prince of Tricks by Jane Kindred. I’m going to blog about this book on Monday but I will say I had so much fun reading it. It’s a very erotic m/m demon story. Very different from what I normally read – with not only very sexy love scenes but a fun overall story too. I’ll talk more on Monday.

Secure Target by Rebecca Crowley disappointed me. I’ve enjoyed all of this author’s previous work but the suspense in this book failed. It didn’t make sense, the heroine annoyed me – I have a lot more to say. I’ll say it in the review this coming week.

Baby, It’s Cold Outside by HelenKay Dimon starts with a super hot sex scene against an office door. Whew. I liked this book but also banged my head against my desk a few times. Love both characters – love their passion and chemistry. But if they had just communicated a little…. Review coming.

Blaze of Secrets by Jessie Donovan is the first book in a new paranormal romance series. I liked the premise and the beginning – had some problems towards the second half. Review coming.

And finally I read Bitter Spirits by Jenn Bennett. Loved. Highly recommend. Very well written – great world building, great chemistry, super sexy..I could go on and on. If you need something to read this weekend, this is the book you should choose.

I’m currently reading Beyond Jealousy by Kit Rocha. I’m at 18%. I may have just died from sexual angst. *wink*

News from Tori: Not much going on at Casa Benson. The kid was sick for three days and I think I need to do laundry.  My allergies are terrible right now with the weather not sure what it’s want to do and I’m seriously pouting over the fact I can’t go to RT this year.

The Magpie Lord by E.J. Charles was a pleasant surprise. I expected to find a story that revolves around a M/M historical romance but instead found a strong paranormal mystery that kept me firmly engaged to the end. Delightful protags, a fast paced storyline that is both suspenseful and intriguing, and a strong attraction that promises more has me ready to for book two.

Angels In Leather by Bella Jewel. The first in Jewel’s new MC series-Rebels On Bikes. A dark romantic suspense that will offend some. The hero crosses serious lines in here but thankfully the author doesn’t even try to offer up excuses or romanticize his actions. The heroine is no Mary Sue. She’s smart and is more than capable of holding her own. It reads fast and violent with the majority of the story revolving around hero and heroine’s conflict. The MC itself gets little play time. All in all I liked though the ending was rushed and left me feeling unsatisfied with the results.

An Eye For An Eye: Zach & Katie’s Story by Lynda Chance. Ehhhh…this is one of those books where you dislike both protags, the storyline angers you, the hero’s actions creeps you out but you continue to read because in the back of your mind you think…it can’t get any worse, right? Wrong. The hero’s a douche, the heroine is a Mary Sue and the storyline made me want to stab someone. The only person I liked was the heroine’s cousin.

I read two books in Sam Crescent’s The Skulls MC series-Murphy and Nash. Oy vey. Sam Crescent does a good job of balancing the romances with the on going arc concerning the MC and their day of reckoning that’s coming. The romance in Murphy is a second chance love. Murphy and Tate (the MC president’s daughter) have loved each other for along time till Murphy has to go undercover with a rival gang to infiltrate them and ends up betraying Tate. She bids the club and Murphy adios and goes on her merry way. Enjoyable with just enough angst and conflict but I thought heroine’s  weak. She holds out against Murphy & the club until another member’s old lady tells her she’s being bitchy and suddenly all is forgiven. Hmmm. Nash’s story was interesting in that her heroine is blackmailed by Nash’s brother Lash ( I know…I know) into helping Nash detox. He got hooked on drugs and has one chance to come clean or the club will kick him out.  The romance is more prevalent and the structured then the conflict. Even by the end, I still wasn’t sure what was going on. Overall okay stories though if you aren’t comfortable with anal sex, you won’t like these.

I picked up Shay Savage’s Evan Arden Trilogy on a whim and I’m glad I did. Built around an ex POW turned mob hitman, Evan Arden is a bomb waiting to go off. Emotionally disconnected, it’s only when he meets and abandons a one night stand does his barricade begin to crumble and the ramifications are deadly. Dark, sexy, violent, and humorous, this fast paced read was a winner across the board.

I also read Shay Savage’s Transcendence which is a love story between a 21st century girl and a stone age caveman. The unique aspect of it the POV is completely from the caveman. It’s sweet, silly, and quite humorous though I’m not sure it was meant to be as funny as I found it. Think emo caveman and you got the gist of it.

Dreams Of Lilacs is Lynn Kurland’s latest historical romance from the de Piaget family. Sweet, romantic, and humorous, we follow Isabelle to France where she proceeds to lose her memory and winds up scrubbing floors for the beast of Monsaret. Of course, the beast in a knight in disguise and Isabelle is on a quest to save her family and find herself. Review to come.

King of Thieves by Jane Kindred is book two in her Demon of Elysium series and brings more sexy loving and fighting between Balphagor and his lover, Vasily. Review to appear in RT Magazine.

This weekend I’ll be reading Spirited by Mary Behre and Shaking The Sugar Tree by Nick Wilcus.