Book Review: Hot Holiday Nights by Jaci Burton

Hot Holiday Nights 
(Play-by-Play Series, #10.5)
by Jaci Burton

Blurb: 
Victoria Baldwin is a successful sports agent who always puts work first—unless she’s on vacation. Then it’s all about play. On holiday in Hawaii over Christmas, she meets Alex McConnell, a successful young surfer on the islands for a surfing competition. She couldn’t think of a better vacation fling. But when she meets Ben Reynolds, Alex’s manager, she realizes she wants both men. This could be her hottest holiday ever, and the vacation that changes her life.

Available for purchase at 

   

Viviana's Review: 

This was a good, interesting and quick read. A novella in the Play-by-Play Series, which I recently picked up in book #9 can be read as a standalone. 

Things that stand out with this series remain the same for this novella: great covers, steamy and hot scenes, heroines that are strong, know what they want and do not apologize for it and heroes that are alpha males but not complete asses and are not only hot but overall great guys! 

So at first I thought Victoria had to make a choice between Alex and Ben, but apparently, no… she doesn’t. While I wasn’t prepared for a ménage, it wasn’t a turn off or a negative. I enjoyed the story overall. All the characters are well written and as a reader, you’ll like each of them for different reason. However, due to the fact that this is a novella, things happen a bit too fast for me and I mean more the emotional attachments that are form that lead to pretty big decision making events in the end. It all worked out of course (this is a romance and thus a HEA is a must, right?) but the quick “I love you” with all three of them and how no one questioned the fact that all three were okay with way the relationship had develop…. Not one of them …. But other than that… lol… 

Again, if you’re in it for the quick read and good story, you’re going to enjoy this novella. Don’t over think it. Otherwise, you’re going to be like me and have that “hmm… seriously, not one of you is going to ask?” LOL. 

Rating: 3.5 Stars - I REALLY LIKED IT 

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from PENGUIN GROUP Berkley in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

Book Review: Last Hope by Jessica Clare and Jen Frederick

Last Hope
(Hitman Series, #4)
by Jessica Clare and Jen Frederick

Blurb:
Mendoza: I grew up in the slums and lost everything I loved to poverty, illness, and death. I had only one skill to leverage myself out of my circumstances—violence. Being hired out as a mercenary hitman brought me money and built an empire. But all that I've fought for is in jeopardy. My next job: Steal secret information that could bring down world governments. Find my target. Destroy it. But then, I meet her.

Ava: Karma hates me. When my best friend Rose is kidnapped, I have no choice but to take a job as a mule for a pair of criminals intent on selling top-secret information to the highest bidder. I should have known that bad luck tends to cling, because the plane I'm on goes down. That I survived a crash-landing was a miracle. And so was being rescued by Rafe Mendoza—hot, sexy, dangerous. The thing is, he wants the information that I need to free Rose. I can't let him have it, but I need his help. And I need to fight this crazy attraction for this mercenary with hungry eyes. Rose is depending on me, and I won't let her down, no matter how appealing Rafe is.

Available for purchase at 

           

 Paul's Review:

This last book in the Hitman series is quite an adventure.  Ava, the female protagonist, is forced to work for some very bad people who have kidnapped her best friend Rose.  These evil people are threatening to kill Rose if Ava does not follow their every command, and Ava will do anything it takes to save her friend’s life.

Ava’s every move is being watched by Rose’s kidnappers, but she is also being surveilled by mercenaries who are former U.S. Army soldiers.  Their leader Rafael “Rafe” Mendoza is instantly smitten by Ava.  Mendoza and his mercenaries are trying to get their hands on the same information that Ava is being forced to try to sell to the highest bidders all around the world.

Mendoza is a severely broken man being the product of the rape of his mother among other issues, and his troubles only multiply (in his eyes) when he has to achieve his goal of obtaining his information and keep safe the woman whose beauty and allure make thinking clearly impossible, much less achieving a very dangerous goal.  Mendoza, while quickly falling in love with Ava, struggles to keep her at arm’s length most of the book.  Rafe Mendoza feels his dark secret makes him unworthy of such a beautiful woman and a threat to her very life at the same time.

It is said that love conquers all things, and once Mendoza saves Ana she shows him just how true this statement is.  Ava helps Rafe fight and destroy his inner demons, and while they lived through some harrowing experiences they each lose their best friend in the process.

The action is awesome in this book; you can’t put it down.  The sex scenes are amazing and plentiful, and you are spared no detail.  Most of the characters are instantly liked - for me, all but Rose (Ava’s kidnapped best friend) as she is portrayed as naive to the point of “you’ve got to be kidding me, right?”

Speaking of characters, Mendoza is the not-so-proud owner of a twelve (yes, twelve) inch penis; he had a very bad experience trying to have sex with a girlfriend 35 years ago when she bled profusely and died two days later.  To make matters worse, the girl’s brothers told Rafe she died because he tried to have sex with her and they beat him within an inch of his life and mutilated his groin.  Add this to the fact that Rafe has been told by his mother since birth that he is evil and his huge penis is proof of it, and well…  Rafe truly believes he is cursed and kills anyone he loves.
Ava is so awed by the size of his penis that she calls it “Godzilla”.  Now, as a man reading this book I can’t help but think the odds of having a penis that big are very low, but it could happen.  Good for him I say.  Must be rough.  We regular, normal, mere mortals deal with slightly less.  And it’s funny, too - you would think he would be so happy to be so endowed, just as many think tall people (like me) must be so happy to be so tall.  Not the case.

I really enjoyed this book, and I hope there will be more to come.  I think it is so cool the way things ended up.

Rating: 4.5 Stars - I REALLY LOVED IT

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the PENGUIN GROUP Berkley, NAL via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

Book Review: Spice by Seressia Glass

Spice 
By Seressia Glass
Narrated by: Elizabeth Hart

Blurb:
Nadia Spiceland works in the business of temptation. The confections she crafts at the Sugar and Spice Bakery and Café lure in the locals. But one customer is interested in more than just her delectable sticky buns……

Kane Sullivan teaches human sexuality at the nearby college, where coeds are clamoring for seats in his lectures. Nadia is reluctant to his advances, yet she also has needs. Who better to fulfill them than the man who’s referred to as “Dr. Sex” by his female students?

Soon Kane creates a hunger in Nadia that nothing can satiate. It weakens her, and that’s something she cannot risk. Not again. But Kane’s masterful touch might just be powerful enough to melt her heart—and free her to trust again……

MATURE AUDIENCE

Available at 

      

Viviana's Review: 

Not sure why there is a 'warning' for Mature Audience. Maybe people thought this was a new adult at one time or another, but this obviously not a NA. I struggled with this book in the beginning and couldn't figure out if it was a "narrator" issue (how they chose to portray the characters or if it was the book itself.  Decided to continue listening and I was able to figure it out.