This week at Smexy…

A- review – The Unexpected Duchess by Valerie Bowman (historical)
B+ review – Cross & Crown by Abigail Roux (m/m)
B+ review – Push by Claire Wallis (NA)
B+ review – Hunt the Darkness by Alexandra Ivy (paranormal)
B review – Burned by Sarah Morgan (contemporary)
B review – The Frozen Star by Jessie Lane (YA)
B review – Nothing but Smoke by Daisy Harris (m/m)
B- review – Baiting the Maid of Honor by Tessa Bailey (erotic)
C+ review – Stormy Persuasion by Johanna Lindsey (historical)
C- review – Take My Breath Away by Christie Ridgway (contemporary)

Let’s Revisit: In for a Penny by Rose Lerner
Ten Reasons to Read: Keep Me Closer by Rhyannon Byrd
Smexy’s Top Ten

News from Mandi:  Sharp Love by Ava March didn’t quite do it for me this time. I had a hard time feeling connected to the characters and finding a reason to root for them. Which is odd because I usually love her books and  find them very emotional. Review coming soon.

Crossing the Line by Megan Hart is a novella length read about a boss who becomes a submissive to his female employee. I actually read two dominant heroine books this week. In this one, it worked okay for me but I needed it to be longer to really get into these two characters. I wanted more depth. The other dominant heroine book I read was Billionaire Submissive by Joely Sue Burkhart. This one has a really strong beginning – as the hero is desperate for a strong dominant and finally finds the heroine, who takes him on as a client. But the second half didn’t hold up. I didn’t find a payoff for all that great, strong tension to start the story. Review to come.

I also had a few DNFs this week – Catch Me by Katherine Grant and First to Burn by Anna Richland – I’m going to do a DNF round-up post early next week.

Up next for me is Melting Into You by Tracey Alvarez (I enjoyed her first book) and Marie Claremont’s novella, Lady Wild.

News From Tori: Pretty uneventful week. Been doing some painting and general house beautification. I was also totally c*ckblocked by the DMV yesterday. Apparently you now need to prove to FL that who you are from birth to the day you renew your license. It’s cray cray. This weekend we are celebrating Father’s Day and my birthday so I expect shenanigans abound.

Reading this week was on the low side. Nothing really held my interest.

Emilie Richards’ No River Too Wide is the third installment in her Goddesses Anonymous series.  Light on the romance but heavy on the intricacies of family and forgiveness. I enjoyed though I did feel that the book rambled and lost focus at times and the characters didn’t blend as well as I had hoped. I enjoyed the domestic violence storyline and the obvious care Richards’ took in her research. Review to come.

Edge Of Chaos by Brynn O’Connor I DNF’d in the first 10% when the heroine defended an ex abusive boyfriend who had just slapped her hard enough to put her to the ground and the hero stood by and watched as his ex Ranger buddy was tortured and killed for a mission the hero dragged him into. Maybe it got better but that made me not want to find out.

Ridge Creek by C.L. Green A strange book. It started out strong but the romance came about too fast for the conflict and the heroine was weird in her constant thoughts of how hot her “boyfriend’s” friends were. The hero was uber alpha and some storylines seemed to go nowhere. It ends on a cliffhanger so they may pan out in book two.

Inked by Jenika Snow Short sexy romance between a MC president’s daughter and a tattoo shop owner.

Climbing Out (Hawk’s Motorcycle Club, #2) by Lila Rose Book 2 brings us D’s (Hell Mouth) and Griz’s (Grady) journey to romance. Lots of explicit sex, decent enough storyline and subplots though the heroine’s actions were rather far-fetched. Her foster brother killed his parents and want the moneys the foster parents left to D. He’s getting ready to be released from prison so D has determined if she spends it all, he will go away. *blink*  It’s all very drama llama.

Mandi told me to read Keep Me Closer by Rhyannon Byrd ‘cause it was really, really, really dirty…and she was right. *grins* A romantic erotic thriller that brings the thrills, chills, and steam factor to the table. It did take me a while to warm up to the hero, Alex, but the heroine, Brit, was fantastic. And the sex…woooo weeeeee. The book was worth reading just for those scenes.

I’m currently reading Jamie McGuire’s Beautiful Oblivion and seriously enjoying it. The protags are hilarious and the drama llama factor isn’t dancing on the outer bounds of reality. I also have More Than Music by Elizabeth Briggs up i