Dark Horizon is a short vignette set in the Carhart world (#0.25) and tells a story of Gareth Carhart’s trip to Brazil and the dangers involved. This is a nice add on to the series but doesn’t substitute for any of the books. I appreciate the additional content but it is for fans of the series rather than a new reader.
Rock Hard (Rock Kiss, #2) by Nalini Singh 
“Trust me, Ms. Baird?”
“Not when you smile like that.”
THE STORY: Charlotte Baird has hidden herself in ill fitting clothes and a mousey personality. After a horrible incident in her past, Charlotte set about protecting herself in as many ways as possible. Her steady date for the past year is more interested in talking about his hobbies than getting physical with Charlotte and that is the way she likes it. When the failing company she works for hires a new CEO to turn around the company, Charlotte is intimidated by the large athletic strong man. She nicknames him T-Rex as he chews up the upper ranks of the company.
Gabriel Bishop is an ex-professional rugby player who has made a name for himself as a turnaround artist for failing companies. Gabriel is protective of the mouse he sees in Charlotte but it intrigued at the glimpses of the strong woman that he sometimes sees.
OPINION: I loved this book because of the strong, complex characters of Charlotte and Gabriel. Their relationship is incredibly beautiful and I really like that their relationship takes time to develop. I appreciated that the book allows the characters to acknowledge the dangers of office romances and especially boss/employee relationships. While those issues are quickly dismissed, the characters at least do acknowledge those issues.
Charlotte’s story is incredibly sad and yet she has survived and managed to create a decent life for herself. I don’t want to give away the exact nature of her past as information is disclosed to readers in the same way that Gabriel learns the truth. The scenes are powerful and heart wrenching.
Gabriel is my favorite part of this book. He is an alpha hero and yet is incredibly thoughtful, caring and protective. He is patient with Charlotte and places her peace of mind above his own desires. For sexy good guy heroes, he is one of the best.
Strong characters and relationships are a hallmark of Singh’s books. Her characters, including those here, are complex multifaceted people. The relationship between these two people is adult and mature. Charlotte and Gabriel talk through their issues and relationship. They are also sexy and sensual. This book is about Charlotte embracing her own sexuality.
For fans of the Thea and David sexy and funny email exchanges from ROCK COURTSHIP (the series novella) will be pleased that there are similar exchanges of written correspondence in this book. While not as extensive or clever as in ROCK COURTSHIP, there are some sweet and funny moments between Charlotte and Gabriel that made me smile.
WORTH MENTIONING: The events of ROCK HARD take place at the same time as those in the first book in the series ROCK ADDICTION.
FINAL DECISION: I loved this book because of Charlotte and Gabriel. Their story made me smile and cry. They are fully realized complex characters. Gabriel especially is a wonderful alpha good guy hero who is sexy and patient and caring.
CONNECTED BOOKS: ROCK HARD is the second novel in the Rock Kiss series. It can be read as a standalone.
STAR RATING: I give ROCK HARD 4.5 stars.
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in order to provide an honest review of the book. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.
Tall, Dark and Wicked (Wicked Trilogy, #2) by Madeline Hunter Loved This Intricate Historical Story of a Lawyer and the Daughter of a Defendant
“This lawyer was not merely handsome, but handsome in a way that made fools of women when they saw him.”
FINAL DECISION: I loved the story of Ives and Padua. There is a twisty mystery along with an intense romance between Ives and Padua. I love the romances where everything seems hopeless but then things work out in the end.
THE STORY: Lord Ywain “Ives” Hemingford is the younger brother of a duke and is a barrister who often works as a prosecutor for the English Crown. Padua Belvoir comes to Ives to ask him to represent her father who has been arrested and thrown in Newgate. Ives must say no because he has been engaged as the prosecutor against her father. Although Ives knows that he cannot risk having anything to do with a defendant’s daughter, he cannot resist the prickly and intelligent teacher Padua.
OPINION: I loved this story. Ives is a man who engages his romantic liasons logically and with much planning. Padua blows apart his ordered life and makes him take risks that he never would have expected himself to take. Her influence on his life is demonstrated by his brothers’ surprise at his actions. Padua is a woman who doesn’t fit into the social constraints of the day. She is a radical in her own small way and refuses to be shoved into a category or to be protected. She insists on making her own way even when it gets her into trouble. But she owns her mistakes and does not blame others. She challenges Ives but she also fits right into his desire for justice and doing right. Their romance is hot and also seems doomed even as Ives begins to realize that he wants more for Padua than he has ever wanted from a woman before.
WORTH MENTIONING: As with the first book in the series, I especially liked the relationship between the three brothers which is funny and caring and feels like a brotherly relationship with all the squabbling and affection one might expect.
CONNECTED BOOKS: TALL, DARK, AND WICKED is the second book in the Wicked Trilogy. It can be read as a standalone.
STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.
His Wicked Reputation (Wicked Trilogy, #1) by Madeline Hunter Intriguing Mystery with a Sensual Romance
“His air and manner, the very way he sat on that horse, announced he would be nothing but trouble for a woman.”
FINAL DECISION: I absolutely loved this book. The relationship feels natural and well written. The mystery was intriguing and integral to the story without overwhelming the romance. The characters are fun and survivors and very wicked.
THE STORY: Gareth Fitzallen is the bastard son of a duke. He has a good relationship with two of his half brothers and upon the death of the heir, the remaining brothers are allowed to resume their relationship and draw closer to one another. Gareth’s lawyer brother Ives asks for his assistance in uncovering some missing artwork. Traveling to the house that he inherited, Gareth encounters a local spinster, Eva Russell, who intrigues him. As Gareth is drawn deeper into a relationship with Eva, what he doesn’t know is that she may hold the clue to uncovering the missing artwork.
OPINION: I loved the humor and sexiness of this book. Often books with wicked in the title fail to live up to that designation. Gareth is shown from the beginning to have wicked tendencies (along with his brothers) and thus the name is well placed. He is also a very good man. His relationship with Eva always comes from a position of equality. The two become involved with one another, but they are adults about their relationship. I loved how Gareth is confused by his reaction to Eva as he is unable to place her into a neat category in his life. There is great sensuality and humor in this book even as the mystery works its way out. This book is incredibly well paced and the pages turn effortlessly. I look forward to reading about the other brothers because they are intriguing characters themselves.
WORTH MENTIONING: I absolutely loved the relationship between the three brothers who are the heroes in the three books in this trilogy. Funny and loving and very masculine, these brothers have a special relationship with one another that was enjoyable to read.
CONNECTED BOOKS: HIS WICKED REPUTATION is the first book in the Wicked Trilogy.
STAR RATING: I give this book 4.5 stars.
Rock Courtship (Rock Kiss, #1.5) by Nalini Singh The Gentleman of Rock Is a Hero To Cheer For
ROCK COURTSHIP continues the intense, adult relationships that Singh started in the first book in the Rock Kiss series. This novella is less intense than the first book, but her strong characters make this a page turner as the two create a relationship that can withstand the intense and difficult rock music life.
THE STORY: David Rivera is known as the “Gentleman of Rock”. He is the drummer of the Schoolboy Choir but prefers a quieter life than his band mates. David has wanted Thea Arsana since he met her. The only problem is that Thea is the band’s publicist and Thea has a rule never to get involved with clients. David is devastated when Thea rejects his overtures. Four months later, Thea’s half sister (the heroine from ROCK ADDICTION) tells David that he should write Thea a memo about the reasons Thea should give David a chance. Thea can’t help but respond, and thus the relationship between the two begins.
OPINION: I loved this story. David is an unusual hero. He is shorter than Thea and he is more subdued, cerebral and quiet than one might expect of a rock star. That being said he and Thea are really hot together and I loved how David is completely accepting of Thea. It is Thea who has the trust issues in this relationship courtesy of an ex-fiancé who cheated on her and demeaned her as a woman. David accepts Thea’s soft side but also loves her aggressive hard-assed side. From the beginning, he is so dedicated to her that a reader can’t help but root for him to overcome all of Thea’s fears and insecurities.
I loved seeing the guys from the band again and I look forward to reading more about them in future books. This novella wasn’t as compelling as the longer ROCK ADDICTION, but I loved David and Thea and thought their story was sweet and sexy.
WORTH MENTIONING: I absolutely loved the literary device of having David and Thea communicate via memos emailed back and forth. It was incredibly sweet and sexy.
FINAL DECISION: Rock Courtship is a great addition to Singh’s Rock Kiss series. The story is more conventional than the first book, but the romance is incredibly sweet. For me, the highlight was David as a hero. He is not a beta hero but a girl has got to like a man who can blush.
CONNECTED BOOKS: This is the second in the Rock Kiss series. Rock Addiction, the first novel, was the story of Molly and Fox and takes place concurrently with the events in Rock Courtship. It can be read independent of the first book, but ROCK ADDICTION is so incredible, a reader should start there.
STAR RATING: I give this one a 4.5 stars.
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in order to provide an honest review of the book. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.
Rock Addiction (Rock Kiss, #1) by Nalini Singh 
Determined to Dislike It But Won Me Over Completely
I never would have chosen to read ROCK ADDICTION if I hadn’t gotten a free review copy. Each of us have books that we choose to read because we know and trust the author or the blurb on the back appeals to our archetypes or themes or situations we prefer. The rake/wallflower romance, the angst filled storylines, the friends to lovers trope. Then there are those archetypes or themes that we prefer to avoid. This book would not have appealed to me. Hard rocker, heavily tattooed guys are not my thing and nothing else suggested that this would be a keeper for me. Lately, however, I have been trying to expand my reading horizons and when I saw that Nalini Singh, who I have seen mentioned as an author to read, had a new book that could be read as a standalone and when I could get a preview copy for free, I decided to give it a try.
THE STORY: Molly Webster is a librarian and fulfills all of the stereotypes of the profession. She lives a blameless and boring life. As a teenager, her family was shattered by her father’s publicized affair with an underage girl and as a result, Molly is determined to live her life out of the limelight of the press. But then she goes to a party her sister is hosting and sees him…
Zachary Fox is everything that Molly is determined to stay away from. He is a bad boy rocker with a sexy reputation and a tattooed body. He lives in the light of the press. Fox and Molly have one of those lust at first sight moments and Molly decides to agree to a one-night stand before settling down finally into her quiet life. Fox has other ideas. He is determined not to let Molly go.
OPINION: I absolutely loved this book. The story is all about how Molly and Fox learn to live together and trust one another even as they love. It is a personal book delving deep into the give and take of their relationship. Fox falls for Molly quickly and it is he who is determined to not let Molly go. I loved how mature their relationship is. As obstacle after obstacle is tossed in their path, the two talk to one another, admit their fears and faults and build a strong trust between them. There are no magic solutions. The two struggle with their pasts and fears, but are determined that their relationship is more important than anything.
This book is super sexy. Hot, hot, hot! Scorching in fact, but there is such a wonderful balance between the sex and the emotional relationship that the sex does not feel gratuitous – even as it is quite plentiful!
WORTH MENTIONING: The secondary characters are clearly set up for books of their own. Molly’s half sister and her best friend have romances that are concurrent to this one and I expect will be the subject of the other books in the series.
FINAL DECISION: I recommend this book. It was not at all what I expected. The book was complex and the characters were mature and I loved that the book dealt with the working out of their relationship. I will definitely be reading the subsequent books in this series and now I am definitely going to check out Nalini Singh’s other series for which she is well-known.
CONNECTED BOOKS: This book is the first book in the Rock Kiss series.
STAR RATING: I give this book a 5 star rating which means that it is a definite re-read for me.
NOTE: I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in order to provide an honest review of the book. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.