Counsellor by Celia Aaron

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages:209
Series: Acquisition #1
Rating:3 stars
Synopsis:

In the heart of Louisiana, the most powerful people in the South live behind elegant gates, mossy trees, and pleasant masks. Once every ten years, the pretense falls away and a tournament is held to determine who will rule them all. The Acquisition is a crucible for the Southern nobility, a love letter written to a time when barbarism was enshrined as law.

Now, Sinclair Vinemont is in the running to claim the prize. There is only one way to win, and he has the key to doing it- Stella Rousseau, his Acquisition. To save her father, Stella has agreed to become Sinclair’s slace for one year. Though she is at the mercy of the cold, treacherous Vinemont, Stella will not go willingly into darkness.

As Sinclair and Stella battle against each other and the clock, only one thing is certain: The Acquisition ends in blood.

Full disclosure: This book is a dark romance with elements of slavery, violence, BDSM, and super-hot sex. It is the first of a series and ends on a cliffhanger. If you’re good with these caveats, enjoy.

Review: This is my second book that I have read by this author. I liked it. Not as much as the first book but I still liked it. I thought it was okay.

Stella’s father is being sued by Sinclair Vinemont, the district attorney. To save her father from going to jail, Sinclair makes Stella an offer. She must sign a contract to give the next year of her life over to Sinclair to do as he pleases.

Sinclair wants her as his Acquisition. In the South there is a tradition to hold with the powerful and rich families south of the Mason-Dixon line. Every ten years there are three families chosen to bring an Acquisition. Only the firstborn are allowed to know what goes on. This time around Sinclair’s family was chosen and he must have an Acquisition. He picked Stella to be his. Through a year Sinclair must bring Stella to four different balls. The best Acquisition wins the spot for the family they belong to be Sovereign. Sinclair wants to win. Sovereign has control of everything.

While I haven’t read many dark books, this one didn’t feel dark. Well it did but it didn’t. It felt to me as this should be put in the future as a dystopia. I’m still very confused on why the Acquisition happens and why there are ruling families in the south. I am hoping in the next books it explains it a little better.

I really don’t like Lucius. I think it has more to do with the name than his mannerisms. Sinclair was alright. He’s no Garrett Blackwood. I am curious on what happens next for Stella and how the rest of her year will pan out after that ending.

P.S. Both her dad and Sinclair are assholes.

El Diablo by M. Robinson

My edition: Kindle
Pages:414
Series: Standalone
Rating: 2.5 STARS
Synopsis:

I was ruthless.
I was feared.
I had sacrificed. Myself. Her. Everything…

Living in a world where I was worth more dead than alive was a choice. I was a bad man, never claimed to be anything else. I’ve done things I’m not proud of. Seen things that can’t be unseen I’ve caused pain that I can’t undo.
It was all my choice.
Every decision.
Every order.
Right and wrong never mattered.
Until her.
She was under my protection, until she became my obsession.
But who was going to save her…

From. Me. The devil himself.

Fate brought us together. Destiny destroyed us.

Review: I really don’t know how I feel about this right now. I had so many motions going through my head that I really can’t process.

Where to start… I guess the beginning is always the best.

Just fair warning:

Prologue: I loved it. I really like Martinez character.

Part one: I was bored. I hated Sophia. I really didn’t want this book to be about  their lives. I would have DNF this if it was. Not lying. This whole part is told P.O.V. by Martinez. It starts when he is young but really picks up when he is fourteen and leaves the house one night. After he comes back he finds his sister and her best friend Sophia almost raped. He ends up killing for the first time and is then being trained to take over his father’s place as a crime boss. The first part doesn’t end until after Sophia leaves him. (Silently cheering) Then he kills his father.

Part Two: Enter Lexi. I knew exactly who her mother was even though it didn’t say her name, I knew it was her. I hated her even more. Lexi, I don’t know why, but I liked her already. So much better than Sophia. Even though I had some suspicions about who her father was I still liked her. Good thing I was wrong. (Learn that later) We go through the life of Lexi. Certain points that were important. Along side that Martinez finds out that his sister was in a horrible car accident and passed away leaving him to take care of his niece Daisy who changed her name to Briggs.

Part Three: Martinez saves Lexi for her sort of boyfriend. This part goes through life of Lexi having to live with Martinez till she is able to be safe again. Martinez is trying to keep her at arms length but that doesn’t work out so he treats her like shit and pushes her away. She then flies off to England where she was offered a position to dance. Martinez follows her but decides it’s better to leave her be.

Part four: Fast forward ten years and Lexi is still in England. She finally found a man who will take care of her. Then she is in a horrible accident which ends up taking his life. She wakes up in a hospital finding Martinez there like he use to be before. He tells her what happened. Unfortunately she doesn’t have anyone else now and has to go with Martinez so he can help her recover.

A lot of angsty stuff happens and then Lexi finds out all about Martinez. I won’t spoil the ending but it was good. I just wish I didn’t have to go through so much drama just to get to it. Even though this book is only 414 pages it felt longer. Really dragged out. I will read another book by this author. I’m hoping it isn’t like this one. I mean the dragged out story. I feel like I literally just went through a lifetime. I’m actually exhausted. I feel really extremely tired.

Now even though I liked Lexi and Martinez together better than him with Sophia, I still didn’t get all gushy with them. It seemed as if there was a connection between them but the connection was never really drawn out or felt. Or maybe after reading many slow build romances by Zapata I’m being picky. With the blurb saying he was ruthless I did expect him as the crime boss he was, but with Lexi he just seemed like a gigantic ass.

The reason why this gets such a low ratings is because it took me eight days to read this. Eight days. I just couldn’t get into the story. But I made a deadline to finish this book and I met that deadline. Thank goodness. Now if you excuse me I am off to read something cheerfully happy where I don’t know whether to gush or throw up.

 

 

Challenges This Year.

I plan on doing more challenges this year. I didn’t do any this month because I was a bit burned out. I signed up for them but I then quickly drew out. I am glad I did. I needed rest. December last year really wasn’t the best with my reading.

By the end I was extremely not in a reading mood. I’ve been in a reread mood but I finally got that taken care of thankfully. I am planning challenges for February right now. I will put on some challenges that I will be participating in on Goodreads.

Looking forward to this year. Making it the best one yet.

Lingus by Mariana Zapata

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages:498
Series: Stand alone
Rating:5 stars
Synopsis:

Most people would describe Katherine Berger as a responsible girl with a big heart, a loyal friend who takes care of those close to her, and the possessor of a wicked sense of humor. There was something about her that most people didn’t know. “My name is Kat Berger, and I love porn.”

When twenty-five-year-old Kat is dragged to a porn convention by her best friend, she’s both embarrassed and nervous. The last thing she ever expected was to meet someone who makes her laugh like no other. This is a story about acceptance and friendship, and a love born out of the most unexpected places.

Review: I don’t think I have ever smiled so much reading a book. This was super cute and funny. Plus I think this speaks out to many of us who have watched porn and feel very subconscious about it.

Kat goes to a porno convention with her best friend Nicole. Her other best friend Zoey will be there as well due to her being a porn star. While waiting on Nicole to get an autograph from her favorite “actor”, Kat is caught picking a wedgie by the most handsome man she sees, Tristan. While bumping into each other several times over the day Kat starts to like Tristan, until she finds out he is there because he is in the industry.

So many awkward and funny moments happen throughout this book. It is probably the second best novel of Zapata’s I have read. Well it’s tied with Kulti. I so love this author.

Kulti by Mariana Zapata

My edition: Kindle (Owned)
Pages: 570
Series: Standalone
Rating:4.5 stars
Synopsis:

“Trust me, I’ve wanted to punch you in the face a time or five.”

When the man you worshipped as a kid becomes your coach, it’s supposed to be the greatest thing in the world. Keywords: supposed to.

It didn’t take a week for twenty-seven-year-old Sal Casillas to wonder what she’d see in the international soccer icon-why she’d ever had his posters on her wall, or ever envisioned marrying him and having super-playing soccer babies.

Sal had long ago gotten over the worst non-break-up in the history of imaginary relationships with a man that hadn’t know she’d existed. So she isn’t prepared for this version of Reiner Kulti who shows up to her team’s season: a quiet, reclusive. shadow of the explosive, passionate man he’d once been.

Nothing could have prepeared her for the man she got to know.

Or the murderous urges he brought out in her.

“Sal, please don’t make me visit you in jail. Orange isn’t your color.”

This was going to be the longest season of her life.

Review: Okay I really, really love this one. Kulti is my second favorite from Zapata. I love how she builds up the romance.

Sal has had a crush on Kulti since she was seven and saw him play in his first Atlus Cup. She didn’t care that he was thirteen years older than her, she was going to marry him one day. It wasn’t until he got married and broke her brother’s leg, when Sal said adios to the crush she had. Now years later she finds out the man who made her want to be in soccer and worshipped when she was younger is going to be her coach.

Sal and Kulti’s relationship starts out rough. Then slowly they become friends. I love their friendship except for the times Kulti was being an ass. Sal’s nicknames for Kulti were hilarious. She called him German Chocolate Cake.

The ending was so worth the slow build. I did fangirl once when Kulti had to go to Austin to get his tattoo done at Pins and Needles. Getting that little update on Dex and Ris was amazing. I seriously like this author. I think I will get another book from her.

Under Locke by Mariana Zapata

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages:497
Series: Standalone
Rating:4.5 stars
Synopsis:

He was my boss, my brother’s friend, a Widower, and ex-felon, and a man I’d seen casually with a handful of women. But he was everything that gripped me, both the good and the bad. Worst case scenario if things turned awkward between us, I could go somewhere else. I’d gotten over epic heartbreak before, one more wouldn’t kill me.

After moving to Austin following six months of unemployment back home, Iris Taylor knows she should be glad to have landed a job so quickly… even if the business is owned by a member of the same motorcycle club her estranged father used to belong to. Except Dex Locke might just be the biggest jerk she’s ever met. He’s rude, impatient and doesn’t know how to tell time.

And the last thing they ever expected was each other.

But it was either the strip club or the tattoo shop.

…She should have chosen the strip club.

Review: This is my second book by Zapata that I have read and I loved it. Not as much as The Wall of Winnipeg and Me but I still loved it.

Iris lost her job due to cutbacks. Her only option was to move in with her older half brother, Sonny, who was in the Widowmaker M.C. He helped her land a job at a tattoo parlor who is run by Dex Locke. She is instantly in love with the way he looks, until he opens his mouth and she finds out he is a huge a-hole.

I like Iris. Some of the stuff she thinks or says is along the lines of what I do sometimes. She was very relatable to me.

It wasn’t going to be classy or snot-less, and I’d probably sound like a wheezing baboon.

I swear this is how I cry when it comes to books. I found myself laughing at Iris and the crazy things that went on in her head.

I should have been glad the cap had hidden his facial features at the bar, so I had time to take in the magnificence that was his tattooed upper body without the added distraction of a face that made my ovaries scream glory hallelujah… I was going to ask Santa for his good identical twin for Christmas.

Life was hard sometimes and there was no book or movie that could prepare you for how harsh it could be. Except maybe that zombie television show where everyone died. That was pretty accurate.

I found myself smiling like an idiot reading this.

Now Dex, I kind of wanted to punch him in his handsome face for more than half the book. Okay maybe like three quarters of the book, but I still kind of, sort of fell for him. (Okay I actually did, sheesh)

I love Zapata’s writing. I love the slow build of the relationships she writes about. More times than not I get bored with slow romances. Not with Zapata’s. It was the same as the Wall of Winnipeg and Me, so worth the wait. Granted I didn’t cry like I did with the last book. Still her writing entices me to keep reading. At work all I wanted was to go back to this book and finish it. When I got home, I finally finished it. It may have been around 11:30 by the time I finally one last chapter for the gazillionth time to find out that it was the epilogue.

I bought another one of her books, Kulti. I will be starting on that next. 

Blackwood by Celia Aaron

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 270
Series: Stand-alone
Rating: 4.5 stars
Synopsis:

I dig. It’s what I do. I’ll literally use a shovel to answer a question. Some answers, though, have been buried too deep for too long. But I’ll find those, too. And I know where to dig- the Blackwood Estate on the edge of the Mississippi Delta. Garrett Blackwood is the only thing standing between me and the truth. A broken man-one with desires that dance in the darkest part of my soul-he’s either my savior or my enemy. I’ll dig until I find all his secrets. Then I’ll run so he never finds mine. The only problem? He likes it when I run.

Author’s Note: This is a standalone mystery/suspense romance with violence and explicit/intense sex. If you need a trigger warning, then this isn’t the book for you.

Review: Wow. This was just mind blowing.

Elise Vane is an archaeology student working on her Ph.D. She is trying to get permission to survey the Mississippi Delta. She mainly has one property in mind. The Blackwood Estate. Though she is saying she is trying to find evidence of the Choctaw living in the woods, she really is trying to find her missing father. She knows he is dead but she wants to find out why.

Garrett used to be a teacher at a college till he did something very inappropriate and was let go. Now he holes up in the Blackwood Estate living a life alone. When Elise shows up on his doorstep he has no idea how much trouble she really is.

After Garrett turns her away Elise decides she was going to survey his land anyway. It’s big enough he will never know. But when she is then attacked by wild boars and is forced to have to rely on Garrett she starts finding out little secrets that will change her outlook about the man who is taking her under his wing.

I loved the writing. I was captivated from start to finish. I also like how Aaron focused on the mystery and didn’t give anything away. The romance wasn’t on the forefront and took over the plot.  The ending was amazing. I actually had no clue what the mystery turned out to be. It surprised the heck out of me. I think my mouth even dropped.

I won’t lie, I do love a man with a beard, but after hearing what kind of sex Garrett is into I quickly wiped him off my boyfriend list as fast I put him on it. I will be reading more from this author for sure.

Roommate by Jenika Snow

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Series: Real Man #5
Rating: 2 stars
Synopsis:

BRENDAN

I’ve done pretty damn well in hiding my feelings for her over the years, but having Meghan under the same roof as me, and only feet from my bed makes it hard to control myself.

The truth is when it comes to Meghan I don’t want to practice self-control. I love her.

MEGHAN

I’ve known him nearly my whole life. He’s cocky, gets under my skin, but is gorgeous and caring too. And as much as I want to say it doesn’t affect me, I’d be lying.
The truth is I love him, and I don’t know if that’ll end up destroying me.

BRENDAN

She needed a place to stay, and now she’s got a roommate… me. But I’m about to show her that I want more than a friendly arrangement. Too much time has passed, and I’m done waiting.
I’m read to step up and be a man.
I’ve never been good at sharing, and when it comes to her, she’s mine.

Review: Alright this would have been a cute story if the hero wasn’t a flipping creeper. He pretty much stalked the heroine and knew he could be considered as a creepy guy. He was just way to possessive in the creepiest way possible.

Plus I would have liked to have known what kind of problems that Meghan had that she had to move in with Brendan. It would have been nice to understand that more. Debating on if I should finish this series because I’m not all that impressed.

Experienced by Jenika Snow

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 96
Series: Real Man #4
Rating: 3 stars
Synopsis: 

He’ll show her how a real man treats a woman.

SABINE

I’ve never known how good it could feel to be taken care of a man who knew what he was doing.
Until I was with Hugo…

Hugo

I was older than her.
She was innocent, hadn’t experienced all that life had to offer her.
I could give her that experience.
Sabine consumed my thoughts, made me desire nothing else but her. No other woman compared to her, and because of that, I haven’t been with a woman for four years, which was also the last time I saw Sabine.
But I was done feeling guilty for what I desired. I wanted Sabine in my life, by my side, and I was about to make that a reality.
I didn’t know if she’d ever been treated the way a female should… but I was going to show her how a real man takes care of a woman.

Review: I noticed one thing I do not like about these books. It takes them forever to have sex. Just shut up.

This one wasn’t as bad as the last one thank goodness. Plus it may or may not have sort of helped to have a Russian silver fox as the hot alpha male. But still it took to long to get to the sex. I will finish this series because I am determined. Plus my yearly goal is to read 300 books and these novellas will start stacking up when I get to be really busy and use my spare time for full length novels.

On to the next one.

 

Baby Fever by Jenika Snow

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Series: Real Man #3
Rating: 1 star. DNF @59%
Synopsis:

He’s done being the bad boy… he’s ready to be a father.

DEX

I’m the bad boy; the one mothers warn their daughters about. But I’d never seen myself settling down, and at the time that had been fine with me. The life, reality, whatever you wanted to call it, bitch slapped me right across the face, and I knew what I wanted.

A baby.

At thirty-nine I was having a severe case of baby fever, and that meant convincing the one woman I’ve always wanted but knew was too good for me, to be mine and be the mother of my child.

EVA

I’ve always wanted Dex. It’s hard not to want a man like Dex. He’s all raw power and cut muscle. He’s the epitome of what a real man is, but he’s not a bastard about it.

But then he throws me a curve ball and says he wants me not only as his woman… but the mother of his child.

And I’ll be honest; it’s what I’ve a;was wanted.

DEX

The truth is Eva deserves better than me, but I’m too selfish and I want her too badly to back away.

Nothing will stop me from making her mine… and putting my baby inside her.

Review: To be truthfully honest this is the first time I have ever read or heard of a man getting baby fever. I’m not saying that it never happens just that this is the first time I read about it.

So I may have sad something a little too soon about this series. I have a few problems with this book.

Problem #1. I was extremely skived out. For those of you that don’t know what skived is, let me educate you. Skived is another way of saying creeped or your spidey sense are tingling in a not so great way.

Our hero Dex wants a baby. But he also wants Eva, his friend’s sister. The amount of breeding talk that goes through Dex’s mind in the first chapter alone skived me out. I wanted to run to the hills and hide away forever.

Problem #2. What exactly made Dex be a bad boy. Yeah maybe in his younger years but up till recently no. He really didn’t seem like a bad boy to me to begin with. His bad boy ways just seemed to be in his teens and early twenties.

Problem #3. I hated the repeat. This happened in the first book. The first part of the repeat is Dex saying he wants Eva like a fiend. The second part of the repeat is Eva being complete dumb kept asking what the hero wants and what is this that he speaks of. Hello he probably said it a thousand times.

Problem #4. Stop talking and just have sex already. I got bored on how much this dude talked about what he was going to do. I get it you want your cum in her but how about you shut up and just do it already.

It sucks to have my first DNF of the year but I couldn’t take anymore of this. It was so horrible. I will read the next book in the series but it that one turns out like this one or the first one I am out.