Quickie Out of Town Reviews

Sorry the blog has been slow the last few weeks, but I've been out of town.  This also means I haven't had much time to read, but I did manage to get in a few books.  They were all quick, fun reads so I thought I would just mention them and then it's back to regular posts.  I have some great guest posts coming up soon from some great authors and reviews on great fantasy and paranormal books that are coming out later this month and next month.



Seduction and Snacks is book #1 in the Chocolate Lovers series.

     Claire is a twenty-something, single mom that grudgingly helps her best friend sell sex toys while she attempts to make enough money to start her own business to give her foul-mouthed, but extremely lovable (when he's asleep) toddler a better life.  

     When Carter, the one-night-stand from her past that changed her life forever, shows up in her hometown bar without any recollection of her besides her unique chocolate scent, Claire will make it a point that he remembers her this time.  
With Carter's undisguised shock at suddenly finding out he has a four-year-old son and Claire's panic that her stretch marks and slim to none bedroom experience will send the man of her dreams heading for the hills, the pair will do whatever they can to get their happily ever after.
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This book completely hit the spot for what I was looking for.  It was a light and very funny read!  It touches on lots of everyday problems and funny things that happen while traversing a new relationship and raising a young child.  Most of the humor sounds like it was written by a frat boy however.  Lots of crude humor but still very entertaining.  Tara even managed to through in a little touching romance in the mix.  

Futures and Frosting is book #2 in the Chocolate Lovers series.

     Carter, Claire and Gavin have formed the perfect little family. Their friends are getting married and everyone is growing up, maturing and ready to face the future. Or are they? 

     From bachelorette party hell, porn addictions, dinner roll baseball and botched wedding proposals to finding out everyone's extended family is chock full of crazy, Carter and Claire begin to question the strength of the ties that bind them. Unfortunately, these ties have nothing to do with fuzzy handcuffs and everything to do with the mounting differences between them. 

     Will their friends make a mess of things with their inappropriate comments and need to know everything, or will they convince the couple that happily-ever-after sometimes really can start with beer pong?

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Pretty much the same as the first book.  There is more relationship building but a lot more on the other character's relationships too.  This one was a little slower for me than the first but still a fun read.  It, unfortunately, did not leave me wanting to rush off to read the third book however.  

Release Me is the first book in J. Kenner's new trilogy.

    
 He was the one man I couldn't avoid. And the one man I couldn't resist.

     Damien Stark could have his way with any woman. He was sexy, confident, and commanding: anything he wanted, he got. And what he wanted was me.
     Our attraction was unmistakable, almost beyond control, but as much as I ached to be his, I feared the pressures of his demands. Submitting to Damien meant I had to bare the darkest truth about my past - and risk breaking us apart.
     But Damien was haunted, too. And as our passion came to obsess us both, his secrets threatened to destroy him - and us - for ever.
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"Release Me" was a well written, sensual romance.  The characters start out similar to many other novels that have recently come out in this genre - flawed, tortured pasts and one very dominant protagonist.  As the story progresses however, we come to learn that  the heroine, Nikki, is just as flawed as Damien if not more.  For as tortured of a past as they have both had, however, they actually are  more stable than you might expect.  Well, Damien is anyway, Nikki a little less so.  They have a ton of chemistry and I just loved their story.  The wording in a couple intimate scenes did take away from the romance a little, but otherwise it was a great read.  I'm intrigued with the upcoming drama that seems to be brewing going into the next novel as well as, hopefully, watching their relationship grow.

As a huge fan of Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series, I was looking forward to reading the prequel series, Infernal Devices.  I only made it about a quarter of the way through this first book however and am having a very hard time getting into it.  It is very slow at this point!  I will be setting it aside for now and hopefully will revisit it again another time.