Because Good Smut Should Be Shared...Book Recommendations

So I know I've been absent this week from the blog, which usually means someone should send out a search party because I'm such a blogging addict. But as I mentioned last Friday, I'm under the gun with a couple of deadlines and some of the balls have been dropped. However, I have been reading a little lately in between writing because...you know, a girl has to feed the muse, right? 

I'd hit a stretch where I was reading a lot of books that just didn't hold my interest, so that's why I haven't mentioned any lately. But over the last few weeks, I've finally hit a hot streak on picking some good ones. And when I find great stories, I can't help but want to share them.

So here are a few I've given two thumbs up...

The Theory of Attraction by Delphine Dryden

Blurb from Amazon: 

Camilla can set her watch by her hunky rocket-scientist neighbor who jogs past her window each day. She relishes each glimpse of his shirtless abs, and is dying to see more. But it's hard to connect with a man who doesn't seem to know she exists...

Ivan feels at home in the lab, not in social situations. When he finally approaches his attractive neighbor, it's not for a date—he wants tutoring in how to behave at an important fundraiser. Ivan doesn't expect the chemistry between them to be quite so explosive, and is surprised when Cami actually accepts his proposal to embark on a series of "lessons."

Cami soon discovers Ivan's schedule isn't the only thing he likes to be strict about—he needs to be charge in the bedroom as well. She's shocked at how much she comes to enjoy her submissive side, but wonders if a real relationship is in the equation...

My take: I love a geek hero (and am trying to write one as we speak) so I was looking forward to this one. Really, really sweet and sexy story. And funny. It almost had a YA vibe to it--maybe New Adult erotic? Lol. I feel like that's becoming a thing. Definitely enjoyed this one.

The next two are male/male stories (a favorite subgenre of mine)...

Collision Course by K.A. Mitchell

Blurb from Amazon: 

Paramedic Aaron Chase doesn’t have anything against love. It just comes with a lot of responsibility, like when he had to raise his sister and brothers after their drug-addicted mom took off for good. Now that the last one is off to college, Aaron’s anticipating enjoying life on his own terms. He certainly wasn’t expecting Joey Miller to accidentally drop into his life.

Joey’s sexy, funny and annoyingly optimistic, and his tendency to get into trouble keeps sending him Aaron’s way. Even the fact that Joey works for the hated social work system isn’t reason enough to keep him out of Aaron’s bed.

Joey knows all about love. He’s fallen in it ten times—he thinks. It’s not that he can’t tell the difference between sex and love. All that experience has to count for something, right? With Aaron it’s different. Maybe because there’s something to fight for.

This time Joey’s fallen for good. He’s not going to let number eleven get away.

My take: This one was a fun, sexy romp. There were some heavy backstories in there, but the tone of this one was light and even humorous at times. And the characters felt like real people, not superhuman perfect heroes, just two guys trying to figure things out.

And then there's this one. Lorelei James recommended it to me a few weeks ago, and when I saw it was two fireman, I mean, come on. Of course I had to buy it. 

Hot Head by Damon Suede

Blurb from Amazon:

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire...

Since 9/11, Brooklyn firefighter Griff Muir has wrestled with impossible feelings for his best friend and partner at Ladder 181, Dante Anastagio. Unfortunately, Dante is strictly a ladies’ man, and the FDNY isn’t exactly gay-friendly. For ten years, Griff has hidden his heart in a half-life of public heroics and private anguish.

Griff’s caution and Dante’s cockiness make them an unbeatable team. To protect his buddy, there’s nothing Griff wouldn’t do… until a nearly bankrupt Dante proposes the worst possible solution: HotHead.com, a gay porn website where uniformed hunks get down and dirty. And Dante wants them to appear there—together. Griff may have to guard his heart and live out his darkest fantasies on camera. Can he rescue the man he loves without wrecking their careers, their families, or their friendship?

My take: I don't give too many books a 5-star rating, but this is going to be one of them. Holy hell this book was good. I couldn't put the damn thing down. And yes, there was a little bit too much backstory upfront so it started off a little slow for me, but stick with it. I promise it's worth it. So, so fantastic. So much tension build up, so much angst. Oh, the angst. (I'm a total sucker for angsty heroes.) If you like m/m stories or were looking to try one out, go get this one. Go!

All right, that's all I've got for you today, back to the salt mines for me. ;)  So what fantastic books have you read lately? 

*And just a note since I've been getting a number of requests lately. I DO NOT accept books for review on this blog. This is not a review site. I only share what I happen to read on my own time and enjoy.

Want A Peek Inside The Ranch?

my own photo

This will be quick. I just wanted to let everyone know that I've added a page up top about The Ranch--the fantasy resort in my Loving on the Edge series. There are pictures, a quick note from Grant, and then at the bottom links to inspiration photos (aka mancandy) for all the heroes in the books.

Hope you enjoy!

And thanks to everyone who weighed in on the "should I change my website?" post on Tuesday. So far the opinions have been pretty evenly divided with a slight edge to keeping the current design. I might end up with some hybrid version. But regardless, I hope to be adding more interesting stuff to the website and this Ranch page is the start of it.

Let me know what you think! And if you are a reader of my books and have any ideas of what you'd like to see on my site, please leave a comment and let me know! : )

Thanks!

Special Guest & Contest: Author Tori St. Claire - Lie To Me

Today I have the lovely Tori St. Claire here to talk about her newest release Lie to Me . Tori writes super sexy romantic suspense and is going to share with us a little about her heroes.

Thanks, Roni, for letting me come over today!  And congrats on your release!

I almost never associate a real face with a character, particularly in plotting a book.  Sometimes someone will leap out at me after the book is complete but, gosh, I can’t think of anyone who’s been with me from the beginning of a novel… except Alexei in LIE TO ME, my July 3^rd Berkley Heat release.

From the moment his name leapt into my head, way back as a mention in STRIPPED, he was Theo Theodoridis.  Which, actually, takes things on a very strange twist.

 Click for photo of Theo

You see… Theo reminds me of Duell McCall in Desperado. I had the hugest crush on Alex McArthur in school – his name adorned every one of my folders, surrounded by hearts, flourishes, and squigglies.

And as this connection hit me during the writing, I went looking up my old crush Alex McArthur.  Lo and behold, not only is the man drop-dead gorgeous twenty years later, but holy cow, he embodies the spitting image of how I picture Kevin Clarke, the Black Opal Director.

Click for photo Alex

So dear, sweet, hot and steamy felon Theo gave me two bangs for one buck!  All the more reason to be infatuated with this man.

But above all… it’s the eyes in both men. God help me, I’ll swoon for heartbreaker eyes.  What about you all?  What’s your swoonworthy part?

LIE TO ME Blurb:

A man of action…

After helping to break up a Russian human trafficking ring as part of the CIA’s elite Black Opal team, Alexei Nikanova’s newest assignment is to rescue one of the stolen women and return her to her father. When he arrives in Dubai, he discovers his target is Sasha Zablosky—a woman he knows all too well, and who has haunted him ever since their unforgettable time together in Moscow, two and a half years earlier. But he finds Sasha reluctant to leave her sheikh, the only true friend she’s ever known. Only Alexei can’t give her a choice.  

A woman of deception…

With their yearning roused by intrigue, Alexei and Sasha can no longer resist temptation, and spend night after night in forbidden pleasure. Soon Alexei finds himself falling for her, even as he battles a shadowy menace to protect her. But Sasha is no innocent. She has a past darker than she could ever admit, one that Alexei could never forgive. And it is about to explode into her life once more. As the lies they tell themselves—and each other—pull them deeper into a perilous desire, what began as simple passion becomes a love certain to destroy them and end the lives of countless innocents.

Excerpt:

 

Sasha rolled over, propped her head up on one elbow. “Who do you work for, Alexei?”

That was certainly the last question he’d ever prepared for. Chancing a glance at her upturned face, he debated how to answer. She’d told him she worked for FSB; she undoubtedly knew he was an American agent—virtually all of Dubai knew. But tell her about the Opals? Let her in?

What the hell. They’d already named themselves in front of her. She knew their director’s name. He stared at the television as he answered, “A special division within the CIA known as the Black Opals. We’re the ones they send when it’s real dicey and they need to delete someone with the press of a button.”

“Delete?”

More quietly he added, “We don’t exist.”

He crossed opposite ankles and folded his hands behind his head, leaning back against the headboard. Waiting for her to make the association between his vague explanation and the truth of his work. When she did, shock would stop her questions.

Instead, Sasha’s palm fitted over his belly, gentle sweeping motions that rumpled the fabric of his shirt and offered more comfort than Alexei had known could exist. “Isn’t that . . . difficult?” she asked softly.

“Difficult? The missions are never ea—” 

“No. Not existing.” That delightful little palm slid higher, caressing the lower part of his chest. “I mean, don’t you ever crave life? The simple things like owning a house and paying someone to rake your leaves.” The heel of her palm worked into his tense muscles. “Like sleeping in on a Saturday and having breakfast in bed.”

More than she could understand. He tensed. She was getting too close, treading too far into murky waters he didn’t want to disturb.

Dropping to an almost inaudible whisper, her voice washed over his body. “Have you ever been in love, Alexei?”

Danger. Combustion imminent. Alexei covered the sudden trip of his heart with a harsh chuckle. “Love’s not an option in my line of work, princess.”

She was silent for a blissful moment, leaving him with the conclusion he’d scared her off. As luck would have things, however, when she did speak, she didn’t traipse around uncomfortable, she plunged in headfirst. “You only call me princess when I’ve hit a nerve. So tell me, Agent Nikanova, are you afraid of the fall, or afraid of the loss?”

About Tori:

National Bestselling author Tori St. Claire grew up writing. Hobby quickly turned into passion, and when she discovered the world of romance as a teen, poems and short stories gave way to full length novels with sexy heroes and heroines waiting to be swept off their feet. She wrote her first romance novel at seventeen.

While that manuscript gathered dust-bunnies beneath the bed, she went on to establish herself as a contemporary, historical, and paranormal author under the pen name, Claire Ashgrove. Her writing, however, skirted a fine line between hot and steamy, and motivated by authors she admired, she pushed her boundaries and made the leap into erotica, using the darker side of human nature and on-the-edge suspense to drive grittier, sexier, stories.

Her erotic romantic suspense novels are searingly sensual experiences that unite passion with true emotion, and the all-consuming tie that binds -- love.

CONTEST DETAILS:

Tori will be giving away a $25.00 Amazon Gift Card to one random commenter during the month of July.  Two additional commenters will receive a basket of swag.  Follow the tour – the more times you comment the better your chances of winning!  Complete tour dates can be found here.

Thanks to Tori for stopping by! If you'd like to enter the contest, answer Tori's question in the comments and provide your email address.

REMINDER: I'll be at RWA for the remainder of the week and won't be blogging.

Cover Reveal for FALL INTO YOU!!!

It's that time again. Cover reveal time!!! I've been dying to share this one and finally got the word that I could release it out into the world.

Releasing January 2013

Here it is, Grant's story...

Isn't it the smexiest thing ever? I love that it looks like it's in the setting sun--which fits since Grant's a cowboy and so much of the story takes place at The Ranch.

Also, I think the theme of my covers is creative hand placement. They all seem to have that. I bow down to the art department at Berkley Heat. They rock. And how about that tag line? It gives me the hot shivers. :)

And now do you want to know what this one is about? Here's the back cover blurb reveal as well:

He’ll do anything for you. But you’d better say please.

When tomboy sports reporter Charli Beaumonde loses a dream TV job because she’s not girly enough for primetime, she’s determined to land a big scoop and prove her boss made a mistake. But when she gets too close to a football scandal and finds her life threatened, Charli accepts an offer from family friend Grant Waters to hide out at his place—even if Grant predicts nothing but trouble from his buddy’s hard-headed, uncompromising, irrepressible, younger sister. There’s one more problem…

Grant’s “place” is The Ranch, a BDSM resort in Texas, and he’s used to being in charge —even if that means trying to keep Charli in line. But much to Grant’s surprise, she’s intrigued—even envious—of his trainees. They’re the epitome of what she’s never been: sexy, beguiling, and totally irresistible to a man. Still, Grant doesn’t believe for a minute that the sharp-tongued Charli has it in her to be anyone’s submissive. But Charli’s already on her knees vying for the chance to prove that even the Master can be wrong sometimes.

I can't wait for everyone to read this story! :) 

So what do you think?

Skeletons (and Mancandy) in the Attic

For the past week and a half, kidlet and I have been staying with my parents in New Orleans. I'm happy to be home and back to my routine (and hubs) today, but I did have a lot of fun hanging out back home. And one of the things I had the chance to do while I was there was dig through my parents' attic (I use the term "dig" loosely because its actually perfectly organized up there. My mom's organization skills are like a page out of Real Simple magazine.) And what I discovered was that a) My mom doesn't get rid of anything, b) I'm thankful for that, and c) you can tell a lot about a life going through a few childhood boxes.

So in case you didn't catch my live #tweetsFromTheAttic session on Twitter, I'll share some of what I found up there.

See, I've always been into mancandy. My mom has folders and folders filled with all the Big Bopper and Teen Beat pages I used to have on my wall.

Signs of my New Kids on the Block obsession. The bottom pic is trading cards. And no, I didn't really have backstage passes (above). I'm sure I ordered those from some magazine at some point.

The book that made me want to be a writer

Some of my favorite middle grade books

The first sex scene I ever read. It left quite an impression. I remember being shocked they could actually write that stuff in books. (I was 13.)

Where I first learned I loved a good horror story.

Yes, they made books. Of course I had them. (And can you believe in the first one, Baby was Francis Kellerman not Houseman. They actually set it up that her dad owned the resort. *shocked face* What were they thinking?)

Proof that vampires existed before Twilight ;)

Found a notebook where me and my stepsister filled out answers to questions. This is "What would you like to do for a living?" My answer is #1 - "writer/editor" and hers is "pharmasist". (She may have needed a bit of an editor there on spelling, but she was 10 so we'll give her a pass.) So at 14, I had a plan. I probably didn't realize it'd take another 18 years to reach that goal. :)  (And for those wondering, my stepsister is an accountant, not a pharmacist.)

And look, I told y'all I was really serious at 15 about querying that first novel (the New Kids fan fiction.) Luckily, I never got further than buying the 1995 Writer's Market book. :)

Look, my natural haircolor. Haven't seen that in a while...

Alright, so that's what I found in the attic. It's kind of scary how much you can distill about a person from a few boxes. But it's also kind of cool to see that my journey to becoming a writer started all the way back then. I was always preparing for this career, even when I didn't realize it.

So what would you find in your childhood boxes? What do you wish you would've kept? Would people be able to figure out who you are now based on what was in those old boxes?