Lane Hart's Blog, page 9

I came across Jessica Clare's Game series when I found the first one, Wicked Games free at Freebooksy. After I read it, I was addicted and went on to buy all the other books in the Game series, before starting on the Billionaire Boys Club.

The Games series features great romances that unfold during reality shows. In the first book, Wicked Games, book reviewer Abby Lewis gets suckered into a Survivor type show called Endurance Island. The only survival training she has is reading a book, which means the great outdoors is more foe than friend to her. Enemies are quickly formed as the game gets underway, including her partner, Dean Woodall who is at the top of her shit list. Over time, things begin to shift from enemies to lovers between Abby and Dean. However, when Abby gets voted off the show, she begins to doubt Dean's authenticity, and thinks he may have been playing the game, and her, all along. 

After you read the first book, there are plenty more game books to get sucked into. Including:

Playing Games where the reality show is a race around the world.
Ice Games which is similar to Dancing with the Stars and celebrities learn ice skating routines. 
Bedroom Games has a show that throws random people together to live in a house without any contact with the outside world, much like Big Brother.
Body Games is a return to Endurance Island with new characters and exciting plots.

 


I've also read Stranded with a Billionaire and Beauty and the Billionaire by Jessica Claire. SWAB gets off to a slow start. I loved the concept, a poor but extremely intelligent waitress gets stranded in a hotel with the billionaire owner, who doesn't reveal to her his true identity. The characters, Bronte and Logan were great, and the reader is introduced to several other characters that will be staring in later Billionaire books. I give SWAB four stars.


 

I absolutely loved Beauty and the Billionaire, but who doesn't love the story of Beauty and the Beast? Hunter Buchanan is such a sweet beast, and you can't help but feel for him. Gretchen is just the kind of funny, witty woman Hunter needs to bring him out of his shell. As with every billionaire, Hunter finds it hard to believe someone as beautiful as Gretchen could fall for someone as ugly as him and not be after his money. This is a great book that I couldn't put down. I give it five stars, so pick up Wicked Games or SWAB and start in on these great series! 


   

Amazon.com Widgets

All In: Betting on a Full House will be released soon, and while I love Tyler and Jess's story, I'm also really excited for Book 3!

Meet Dylan and Jules, who have brief appearances in All In: Betting on a Full House before their own love story unfolds in All In: Calling His Bluff. Their cover is in the works and will hopefully be revealed next week!

  ©iStock.com/Lóránd Gelner

Get ready for Tyler and Jess's sizzling love story!
My first erotic contemporary romance, All In: Double or Nothing, is off to a great start after it's release just one month ago. I feel like it's even more popular than my paranormal romance series, as shown by the sales and the awesome reviews!

If you've read All In: Double or Nothing then you'll be familiar with the two main characters in the upcoming book, All In: Betting on a Full House. This is Tyler's story, and things quickly heat up with him and Jess, a stripper with a horribly dark past. Together the two will have to overcome several serious obstacles early on in their relationship in order to find their happy ending. These two are smoking hot together, and some of their sex scenes may melt your panties! Teaser: Tyler surprises Jess and indulges her in her fantasy from All In: Double or Nothing of being arrested, frisked and "taken downtown" by a naughty police officer.

Look for All In: Betting on a Full House soon, hopefully by the end of the year! 
I have several other stories in the works for the All In background characters.

Book Three - Tentatively titled All In: Calling His Bluff is about Dylan Daughtry and how he ends up making a deal to provide a sexual education to his best friend's little sister, college sophomore, Julie Reavis in exchange for her help "getting out of the closet." This book is in the final draft stages and will hopefully be released by Valentine's Day 2015. It is probably my favorite love story of everything I've written so far because the chemistry between Dylan and Jules is explosive!

Book Four - Tentatively titled All In: Playing for Keeps will be Will Reavis's story and a rough first draft is well on it's way but Will and his love interest Lacy are being somewhat difficult at the moment, so their story has briefly staled. 

Book Five - Tentatively titled All In: Playing to Win will star a high profile character from 
Will's book, NFL quarterback, Zack Bradford, and Natalie, an amazing woman from his past. The first draft is almost finished and it is a really sweet story.

Book Six - Once book four stops being so difficult, I hope to begin writing criminal defense attorney Joseph Montgomery's love story involving his nemesis.

So, as you can see, I've been really busy lately. The third book in the Bound by Blood series, Blood Loss is also in the works. As a person who typically likes to finish one project before starting another one, I've come to realize that writing just doesn't work that way for me. I get all these great ideas for one book and will spend weeks on nothing but it and when I eventually come to a dead end I put it aside and work on something else. I don't like to force the plots, but instead I want them to slowly reveal themselves. The endings are always where I seem to get stuck. Maybe it's because I'm sad to see things end after I become so attached to the characters, or maybe it's because I want the ending to be perfect for readers. Either way I need to find a way to wrap things up or I'm going to have a stack of manuscripts piling up with no endings in sight.

If you love reading romances, you've probably grown tired of the same old, boy meets girl scenarios. If so, here are two series that offer incredible stories that I bet you've never seen before!

Zombie Erotica
First up, Flesh by Kylie Scott. If you're a fan of The Walking Dead then this is a must read. If you're not a fan then it's still a must read.

Imagine if there was a zombie apocalypse today, and the consequences it would have on our civilization. Take away internet, electricity, food supplies and all our other modern conveniences and you get down to the bare bones of human nature.

Flesh tells the story of three individuals who have been surviving flesh eating zombies, but are growing desperate for so much more than just simply being alive.

Honestly, the sample of this book didn't really pull me in. It starts off in the middle of a sort of strange situation, and it takes some time for the reader to catch up. I bought the book anyway because I loved Kylie Scott's Stage Dive series. The pace in Flesh quickly picks up and then it was impossible to put it down.  


 
Skin is the book that follows Flesh, which is a completely different scenario in the same post-apocalyptic world and definitely worth picking up, although I didn't grow as attached to these characters as I did to Ali, Daniel and Finn in Flesh.
 
  

Kinky Bank Robbers
If erotic zombie romances are not your thing, then maybe you'd enjoy a good old Stockholm Syndrome erotic romance. Who wouldn't want to be taken by the kinky bank robber's in Annika Martin's series? There are three books in this series, with the first one, Taken Hostage by the Kinky Bank Robbers free until December 15, 2014. I read it for free and then had to buy the three box set since it was a few dollars cheaper than buying book 2 and book 3 separately.  
Small town, farm girl (and repressed adrenaline junky) Melinda Prescott is working as a teller for an asshole bank owner that has caused her and her family's farm unnecessary hardships over the years. So, when three masked men come in and start robbing the bank, Melinda helps them clean out the place. 
When she's unexpectedly taken as a hostage to help them escape, she learns there's a lot more than thievery to the three sexy men who rob banks. The guys offer her the excitement and adventure that she's been missing out on because of her responsibilities to her younger siblings after the deaths of her mother and father. A life of crime is a small price to pay for her to have three extremely diverse but equally hot men.


Buy them now at Amazon!

I've been so busy writing that I haven't even blogged about All In: Double or Nothing's release on November 16, 2014! I had great success with a two-day free promotional period which resulted in over 4,000 downloads, great sales afterwards and awesome five star reviews! It gives me a great feeling of accomplishment to hear readers say that they enjoy one of my books and award all five stars. Thank you all for your support and thank you to those of you who take the time to leave feedback. Even though it's tough, I still like to hear criticisms as well. When I know what fans don't particularly like about a story then I can use that information to make future books even better.  

I love my characters, and I almost feel like they're my children. In a way I guess they are. I create them, shape them and build an imaginary world around them. Sam from Blood Drive is still one of my favorites, but lately I've gotten really attached to Tyler from All In: Double or Nothing and his upcoming book All In: Betting on a Full House. I've also fallen hard for Dylan as I finish his book, All In: Calling His Bluff. These are my tough, sexy, romantic guys that I feel are most women's ideal, dirty talking men. I hope you fall in love with them as much as I have!

You can find the e-book version of All In: Double or Nothing at Amazon, with the paperback available within the next week. Check out a free sample, and I hope you enjoy!

 

 
This book was one of my guilty hot cover pleasure downloads. Who wouldn't want to open up a book with him on the front?
I've read the first three episodes, but couldn't bring myself to pay even $0.99 for the fourth. The first three were free, and while they were entertaining, they were extremely short. I understand the author's plan for episodes, but I think these could all easily be compiled into one book. I had the same complaint with my Wild Series, and have since combined them based on reader's suggestions. 
I'm not sure if each episode was more than a half hour, but each one was better than the last. Amy is the main character who is down on her luck. She finds out the salon she's been working for has closed without prior notice, and that her boyfriend is cyber cheating on her on the same shitty day. Amy heads to Fierce Salon, owned by former male model, Nate Edwards, to look for employment. I warmed up to Nate as the series went on, and would like to see him and Amy eventually end up together. Who knows how many more episodes that'll take to happen.  
The notation that this is for mature readers made me think there would be hot sex scenes. I was sadly disappointed that other than Amy catching her boyfriend having cyber sex in the first episode it was steam free. Episodes two and three didn't have much more heat, except for when Nate hooks up with a random girl in the back of a bar. 
So, save your money and hope to pick up these for free. Combining all three books I give it three stars for the series.  
 

I'm a huge Tessa Bailey fan, and I quickly read her new releases. Her latest book, Exposed by Fate, does not disappoint.

This is the second book in the Serve series, with Owned by Fate, the story of Caroline and Jonah being the first. I recommend reading the first book, even though it is not required.

In Exposed by Fate, Oliver Preston, Caroline's brother, is a rich playboy that loves to be bad. However, he's beginning to grow tired of all the one night stands, and may even feel ready for something more.

Eliza Ballas is Caroline's best friend since their freshman year of college. She's innocent in the bedroom with only two prior, basically terrible, sexual experiences under her belt. When she's tempted by a sexy British man to engage in a little BDSM action at Serve, Oliver puts a stop to it and warns her she's not ready. Since Eliza has always had a crush on her best friend's hot older brother, she urges him to show her the wild ways of being a submissive in the bedroom to prepare her for her Brit, Porter. After Oliver agrees, the two realize they've both bitten off more than they can chew.

The heat between the two characters is sizzling, just like in all of Tessa Bailey's stories. I read the entire book in a few hours because I couldn't put it down. There's also humor mixed into this read that adds even more fun to the romantic story unfolding.

My only complaint is that it sadly ends too soon, leaving me wanting more. I would have also liked to see a little more of Caroline, especially (SPOILER ALERT) her giving her stamp of approval at the end.

I give Exposed by Fate five stars.

How much longer until the next Tessa Bailey book comes out? January 27th? I hope time flies by.

 BUY IT NOW AT AMAZON!

Alex is the first book in a new series by Sawyer Bennett. What caught my eye in reading the snippet was the fact that Alex is a hockey player for an NHL team in my home state of North Carolina. 
The Carolina Cold Fury's management is tired of the shitty attitude of their star - Alex Crossman. Since he's their best player, they've let him get away with more than most players, but their patience is wearing thin. 
Alex hates the sport he excels at, but it's all he knows after his alcoholic abusive father pushed him during his entire childhood to be the best damn hockey player ever. Alex has a love/hate relationship with the team's fans. They love him because he's such a great asset to their beloved Fury, but they hate his attitude, and even crown him MVP for "Most Valuable Prick."  
In an attempt to revamp his image and make him more likable off the ice, the Cold Fury insists that if  Alex wants to keep earning a paycheck from them, he has to be the poster boy for their new anti-drug youth campaign. 
Sutton Price is a survivor of an abusive, drug addicted father, and she experienced a horrible childhood. Her unfortunate history is what led her to become a social worker that specializes in working with addicts, as well as their children, to keep them drug and alcohol free. She is excited about the opportunity to work on a new drug awareness campaign sponsored by a NFL hockey team, even though she doesn't know the first thing about the sport. After she meets Alex, she remains cool and calm after his attempt to be a pain in the ass. He can do whatever he wants as long as his notoriety backs her up in her goal of educating youth about the downfall of drugs.
The journey of Alex and Sutton is incredibly sweet, and you can't help but come to love them both. Alex teaches Sutton the sport of hockey and about the passion she's been missing in her life, while Sutton helps Alex begin to love his sport, and realize that even after his empty childhood, he is worthy of love and capable of loving her.  
You'll cheer them on as they navigate through their own personal demons, and when they finally give in to each other you'll melt from there fireworks!
I give Alex five stars and I can't wait to read the next book in this series about the playboy Garrett due out in 2015!   BUY IT NOW FROM AMAZON!

In Blood Ties, the second book in the Bound by Blood series, go back in time with Tom and Elizabeth before catching up with Sam and Kate from Blood Drive!
Tom Adams is surrounded by an evil force that's sucking the life out of him a little more each day - his conniving new wife Vanessa, and his uncaring, belittling mother. Stuck on a path he hates and never actually wanted, he jumps at the opportunity to leave Pennsylvania and embark on an investigation to look for supernatural beings in North Carolina.

Tom wanted to become a D.R.A. agent to hunt down and kill dangerous monsters, like murderous werewolves or molesting vampires. Instead, he's asked to find two young siblings, who are wanted by his agency solely for the fact that they're suspected to be a witch and warlock. Unable to condemn two innocent people to death, he's on a mission to find them before his supervising agent does, and tell them their lives are in danger.

Elizabeth Maddox is having a difficult time dealing with the loss of her mother. It doesn't help that her twin brother Jason is expressing his grief by experimenting with magic to channel his anger. Jason's unstable, and Elizabeth's worried he's going to hurt himself (or someone else) with the spells their mother always forbade them from using.

One morning a mysterious, familiar looking stranger wanders into Elizabeth's section at the restaurant where she waitresses. She forgets everything else and is instantly captivated by his sex appeal and charm. Tom makes her feel things she's never experienced before, and leaves her wanting more after their first mind-blowing kiss. However, Elizabeth has no idea that not only does Tom know exactly who she is, but what she is as well.

Tom never expected that the woman he was looking for would turn out to be the one he'll give up everything to have. He's ready to throw away his sham of a marriage, his career with a murderous agency, and anything else it takes to be with Elizabeth. The only problem, he doesn't know how she'll react when she finds out he's lied to her, and that he actually works for the agency that wants her and her brother dead.

On top of this obstacle with Elizabeth, Tom decides to keep his marriage a secret from her until he gets an annulment. He never expected his soon-to-be-ex-wife to come looking for him in North Carolina to set things straight, or that Vanessa would spill the truth to Elizabeth.

Tom refuses to give up on Elizabeth when she tells him she never wants to see him again. He begs her to forgive him for his betrayal, but she refuses to let him hurt her any more than he already has, even if it means keeping a life changing secret from him.

In a cruel twist of fate, Tom's left with heartbreak, guilt and anger at himself for creating the sins in his life that leave him carrying his own burdens alone. It may take time, nineteen years even, but eventually he'll realize and appreciate that fate has a way of ensuring everything turns out exactly as it's supposed to in the end. And for Tom, his love for Elizabeth was just the beginning.

BLOOD TIES IS FREE ON AMAZON 10/9-10/11! 
     



December 1994 Thomas AdamsPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania

I was reluctantly putting up Christmas decorations when I got the call that would forever change my life."Hello" I answered, as I reached and picked up the ringing phone. I watched Vanessa undo the string of lights I'd just spent forever hanging. Why do I even bother?   "Pack your bags Adams. Training's over - we're going on your first assignment," my boss, Senior Agent Winston barked out quickly, never one to waste time. "Yes, sir. When do we leave and where are we going?" I asked. Anxiety washed over me at the same time as Vanessa tossed her long blonde hair and gave me the evil eye. "Tomorrow morning. We've got a lead in North Carolina. Be ready at eight a.m." "Any idea on how long we'll be gone?" I inquired for her benefit, not mine. He could send me away for years and I'd be happy, as long as there was beer and football where I was going. "No way to know. Pack a big suit case. I'd say a few weeks minimum."  Maybe there is a God, I thought, then cringed. I dreaded having to listen to Vanessa bitch for the next several hours.    "Sure. I'll see you in the morning," I told him, wishing I could leave tonight. "So?" Vanessa asked. There was already a scowl on her perfect Miss Pennsylvania face, and her arms were crossed in annoyance over her chest before I even dropped the phone back into the cradle.   "I've got to leave tomorrow for North Carolina. Winston said we'd probably be there for a few weeks." "You better be back before Christmas," she huffed, turning her back to me as if that were the final word, and it was actually within my control. "I'll try, but if it goes over maybe I can drive back for a few days," I offered to appease her. Honestly I'd love an excuse to miss my mom's stuffy Christmas party, and I would kill to avoid visiting the hypocritical capital of the world - her church.     “This is our first Christmas together, and it’s more important than whatever filthy creature is in North Carolina. I can't possibly go to all the holiday parties alone,” she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder with a huff. “What will everyone think since we're newlyweds? And who knows, by next Christmas we might even be adding another stocking." Jesus Christ, I hoped not. Damn it, I was going to start sneaking an extra dose of birth control pills into the woman's food. It's not like I could sneak condoms past her, but by God this was my decision too. "Vanessa, we've talked about this, and you know how I feel about it. We've only been married two damned months." When she continued to ignore me I added, "And just so there are no more accidents like you forgetting your pills again, we're using condoms from now on." Her jaw dropped and she scoffed. "Don't worry. You won't be needing condoms anytime soon.""Yeah I know, I'll be gone for the next few weeks," I said, just to aggravate her even more.  "Oh, it'll be a heck of lot longer than that before I sleep with you again," she snapped, her perfect porcelain face turning bright red. I wouldn't be surprised if hellfire came blazing out of her nose, and I smiled when I pictured red horns sprouting out the top of her head. I still wasn't convinced they hadn't been previously removed with plastic surgery. "Good, then there won't be any accidents." I would not budge on this. I let the woman talk me into getting married. Hell, I even let her talk me into working for the D.R.A. But I'll be damned if I'm going to let her talk me into ruining some innocent child's life for her own selfish reasons. Just the thought of her yelling, bitching and belittling our child was more than I could take, making me snap at her before I could reel the words back in. “Besides, it's not like I can miss something I never have. If the thought of touching me was so revolting, then why the hell did you marry me?" “I’d be willing to … sleep with you if you’d give me what I want.” So she was holding out on me until I gave in and knocked her up. Never going to fucking happen. I shouldn’t have married her, and if I could go back in time two months, I’d hop in the DeLorean with Doc and yank myself out of that goddamn church. “You do know a man and woman can fuck without procreating right? Or did they leave that part out of bible study?” With that final shot, Vanessa stomped out of the room, then up the steps to our bedroom where I heard the door slam. Ah, peace. This wasn't right. I shouldn't want to piss my wife off just to get her to shut the fuck up and leave me alone. And I shouldn't have to worry about her trying to get pregnant behind my back. I knew something was up when she actually wanted to screw me several days in a row, which was a chore in and of itself. The woman was impossible to please in bed, just like she was everywhere else. Getting suspicious, I went looking for her pill container. Sure enough she'd missed almost a week’s worth of birth control. I'd held my breath until she had her period, and swore I'd never be stupid enough to let her pull that shit on me again. Everything about that woman was a trap, her appearance first and foremost. How someone could be so beautiful and so damn evil was beyond me. Her gorgeous face, long wavy blonde hair and hourglass figure made men fall all over themselves for her. Even I fell for it. She strung me along with one manipulation after another. I didn't find out until after we were married that underneath that flawless exterior was an arrogant, hateful, and downright spiteful bitch. Vanessa and her family thought they were Philly royalty, sort of like my own mother and sister. I couldn’t stand to go out into public with a single one of them. It always ended the same way - embarrassing me by bitching out an undeserving waitress or clerk for being incompetent. The bottom line was it was nothing more than a fucking power trip.Looking back, I'm pretty sure the only reason Vanessa married me was because she thought that, with my family's social status and genetics, I could give her the picture perfect WASP family. For whatever reason she wanted to have a bunch of spoiled blonde haired and blue eyed children to show off and brag about to her elitist bitch friends, while a nanny actually raised them. Which reminded me, I had another call to make. Before I turned up the football game I grabbed the phone to go ahead and get the next pain in the ass conversation out of the way. "Hell-ooo," answered the annoying singsong voice of my mother. "Hi, Mom." "Thomas. To what do I owe the pleasure? After all, it's not a holiday. Or is today one and I have simply forgotten in my old age?""Nope, not a holiday." But finding out I was getting away from these people for a few weeks was cause for some sort of celebration. God, I hated my life."Just calling to let you know I'm heading to North Carolina in the morning. I'll probably be gone a few weeks.""Poor Vanessa. What is she going to do with herself?" she asked, sounding utterly horrified. Yeah, poor Vanessa, being home alone with no job and only her social calendar to keep her busy. How will she survive? Not poor Tom, who's going on assignment and could get beat, shot or eaten. Who cares about that shit, or what I'd be doing, as long as it pays well. "This is why you need to hurry up and give her a baby," she added. Like I hadn't seen that one coming. "I'm sure you and everyone else at church will keep her calendar full while I'm gone." I hated all those judgmental bitches. They were the worst group of women I'd ever met. Church to them was a social event that had nothing at all to do with religion.   "I still don't know why you had to become an investigator when you could have had a nice desk job at the agency." Right. How dare I make any decisions in my own fucking life? "Okay Mom, I better get back to the Christmas decorations," I told her, ready to end the torture.I know the woman gave birth to me and somewhat raised me, but damn. What did I do before I was born to deserve a lifetime of her as my mother? I've never been good enough for her. Supposedly all parents love their children, but I was pretty sure she had never actually liked me. At least not that I remembered. "You do that. Lord knows Vanessa needs your help and has to nag and nag and nag to get you to do anything around the house." Maybe if the woman would try being nice instead of nagging I might help out more often. "Bye, Mom."  "Bye, Thomas."        I turned up the volume on the football game then pulled the handle on my brown leather recliner to raise my feet. I'd finish the Christmas decorations right around the time I knocked Vanessa up - when hell froze over.

 
Again I am guilty of purchasing a book for the cover, but can you really blame me? Luckily, Lillian Grant didn't disappoint in this hilarious, sizzling hot story. 
Sam and Meg are only friends and roommates at the beginning of this book. Sam wants to take things to the next level with Meg, however she overlooks his playful flirting, thinking he's just screwing around with her, when what he actually wants is to screw her. 
Meg has trouble understanding why a gorgeous man like Sam would want a woman like her, slightly overweight and out of shape. I loved that she wasn't a perfect, skinny woman, and instead she struggled with insecurities pretty much like every other woman. 
Things heat up between Sam and Meg, and even though their agreement was to be no strings attached fuck buddies, they have the potential for more if only Sam can convince Meg that she may not be perfect but she's the perfect woman for him. 
I would have given this book five stars, however, the ending goes off in a strange direction that took away from Sam and Meg's story. Overall, it's a great book that is worthy of being judged by its sexy cover.