Something about you drives me crazy - #Shifters #PNR #MFRWBookHooks

Welcome to this week’s MFRW Book Hooks blog hop. Today I have another exclusive excerpt from my paranormal erotic romance Fangs, Fur and the Single Girl. (It has a lot of “good parts”...!)

Enjoy!

Blurb

A tragically attractive vampire, a hunky wolf-man and a skeptical but susceptible career gal. What could possibly go wrong?

The city is full of fanatics who believe vampires are real. Bianca knows that’s a fantasy. Then a blond, blue-eyed blood drinker walks into her office and turns her universe upside down. Trying to escape from the vampire’s seductive influence, she collides with a wolf shifter whose mere presence inspires irresistible lust. How can Bianca resolve her feelings for her two mutually hostile lovers?

The Hook (PG)

Before she’d even opened her eyes, she recognized him by his scent, feral and intoxicating. Defying the excruciating ache at the back of her head, her pulse quickened and her pussy clenched. She was hardly surprised to find herself lying on the narrow bed at the back of Zack Kane’s shop. The owner perched on a chair beside her, his rugged face drawn into a worried scowl, which persisted even after he noticed she’d awakened.

“How do you feel?” he asked. “Dizzy? Is your vision blurry? Any nausea?”

Bianca explored the lump at the back of her head with cautious fingers. It was tender, but not bleeding, as far as she could tell. “Feels like a gang of trolls is hammering inside my skull,” she replied. “But I can see all right, and my stomach is fine. Meanwhile,” she continued. “I’m wondering just what I’m doing here.”

Zack shifted in his chair and focused his attention on his big hands. “I—um—happened to be on 12^th. Saw you lying unconscious at the foot of some stairs, so I brought you back to my store.”

“Again? Quite a coincidence, don’t you think? Maybe you’re my guardian angel.” She winced at the sarcasm she heard in her voice. She should be grateful for his help. But she knew he was lying.

Ignoring the throbbing pain, she levered herself into a half-sit.

“You’ve been stalking me, haven’t you? Following me around?”

“I thought someone might hurt you.” He spoke so softly she could barely make out the words. “That guy in your office. He’s dangerous.”

Exactly what Jim had said about Kane.

“It wasn’t he who attacked me.” She sat up straighter, willing him to meet her gaze. “Did you see who did?”

“No, I didn’t. Didn’t see anything. Just you, lying there, motionless, injured…”

Finally he raised his eyes to hers. The anguish she saw there burned away her annoyance. All she felt was sympathy—and renewed desire.

“Don’t worry. Please. I can take care of myself.” She clasped his hand in her smaller one, giving it what she hoped was a comforting squeeze. His skin was hot and dry, as though he had a fever. Her pussy spasmed. She wanted that heat, inside her.

“You don’t understand. There are people—forces—powers… Those guys have no souls. They’ll do anything.”

“So you did see them! Who were they? Tell me, Zack.”

He shook his head. She searched his face, staring into those melted chocolate eyes, seeking the truth. There was something so familiar about the lively darkness she saw there...

“Oh my God! It was you! The dog—the wolf—whatever!”

New York wasn’t normally subject to earthquakes, but Bianca could have sworn the world lurched underneath her. Given her business, she’d already been primed to accept the reality of vampires when Jim had demonstrated his powers. But werewolves? Could it really be true that beings who were half-human and half-beast walked the streets of Manhattan?

And if so, what other supernatural creatures might she encounter?

Zack watched her, an expression of acute misery on his bearded face.

“You saved me,” she murmured.

She’d never seen a grown man look so ashamed. “And nearly killed you, in the process. I couldn’t help it. I try to control myself, but sometimes…” His voice trailed off. He swallowed, then tried again. “It’s very risky for me to change in public, but sometimes, if the feelings are strong enough, I can’t help myself. When I saw them assault you, instinct took over.”

“Thank you, Zack.” She swung both legs over the edge of the bed, so she could take both his hands. “But why me?”

“I don’t know.” He shook his shaggy head. “Normally, I keep to myself. Just me and my dogs. I play it safe. From the first moment I met you, though, all I wanted was to shift and to mount you.”

Mount her! Oh God!

“Something about you—the way your hair falls around your face—the way you smell, or something, drives me crazy.”

He reached for her. She was halfway into his arms before he’d completed the movement. His lips sealed to hers. Burning with thirst, she drank him in.

Buy Links

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/1508-fangs-fur-and-the-single-girl/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CXF755SM

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CXF755SM

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1540924

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fangs-fur-and-the-single-girl-lisabet-sarai/1145179250?ean=2940167695276

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/fangs-fur-and-the-single-girl

Apple Books – https://books.apple.com/us/book/x/id6480071026

Add on Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/210320373-fangs-fur-and-the-single-girl

Add on Bookbub - https://www.bookbub.com/books/fangs-fur-and-the-single-girl-by-lisabet-sarai

Be sure to visit the other authors participating in today's Book Hooks!

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Review Tuesday: The Lady in the Lake by Raymond Chandler - #Mystery #Classic #ReviewTuesday

The Lady in the Lake by Raymond Chandler

Penguin Books, 2005

Detective Philip Marlowe occupies a permanent place in American cultural mythology. Created by Raymond Chandler eighty-five years ago, Marlowe has become the archetype for the hard-boiled private investigator so popular in crime fiction. Down-to-earth, world-weary and cynical, he is a dispassionate and disillusioned loner who untangles the schemes and scams of people driven by greed, lust, anger and other truly deadly sins. His enduring influence was highlighted just last month, when I hosted January Bain’s City of Lies, a mystery that starts each chapter with a Philip Marlowe quote.

https://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com/2024/04/channeling-raymond-chandler-crime.html

Of course I’m familiar with Marlowe, not just through the countless imitations but from Humphrey Bogart’s classic portrayal of the timeless PI. For some reason, though, it took me more than seventy years to actually read one of the Chandler mysteries that feature him. I’ve finally remedied that omission. The Lady in the Lake is the fourth of the six Marlowe novels. It is dark, compelling, convoluted and immensely satisfying.

Though mysteries are not my favorite genre, I loved everything about this book. Chandler’s characters are quirky, colorful, often sleazy or depraved, but never boring. Even the bit parts shine. Marlowe plays the role of anti-hero with a deadpan attitude that hides a surprisingly strong moral center. The masterfully orchestrated plot, which involves multiple murders as well as blackmail, adultery and drug abuse, twists and turns but ultimately resolves itself without straining the reader’s credulity. (In contrast, I read an Agatha Christie mystery a week after completing this novel, and found the ending implausible and contrived.)

On top of all this, Chandler writes concise but astonishingly evocative prose. He has a talent for zeroing in on one or two critical details that somehow manage to define an entire scene. He’s also a master of dialogue that propels the story forward while elucidating character. If you pick out one or two sentences, the text seems simple and unadorned, but the overall effect sets up echoes and images in your mind.

I turned the Chrysler into the narrow road and crawled carefully around huge bare granite rocks and past a little waterfall and through a maze of black oak-trees and ironwood and manzanita and silence. A blue-jay squawked on a branch and a squirrel scolded at me and beat one paw angrily on the pine cone it was holding. A scarlet-topped woodpecker stopped probing in the bark long enough to look at me with one beady eye and then dodge behind the tree trunk to look at me with the other one.

This edition includes a fine introduction by mystery author Jonathan Kellerman. He praises Chandler’s Marlowe books for their “hypnotic sense of place”. I agree with this assessment. The Lady in the Lake also captures a particular, difficult time for the American psyche, as the country gets drawn into the horrors of World War II.

I am impressed that a novel so anchored in the past could still pack a literary punch. Although this was my first Philip Marlowe mystery, I suspect it will not be my last. Too bad there are only six of them. But that may be sufficient. Certainly it was enough to spawn a legend.

Sizzling Sunday: An insatiable slut – #MILF #SizzlingSunday #AmWriting

 

Happy Sunday! It has been a while since I’ve done a Sizzling Sunday post.

I’m back working on a sequel to my 2020 erotic romp The Slut Strikes Back. So I thought I’d reintroduce you to my horny protagonist Lauren.

Blurb

Anyone is fair game

“Find someone else to satisfy your needs.”

When her husband complains about her constant sexual demands, MILF Lauren Gordon is shocked and hurt – and determined to act on his instructions.

Lauren has never strayed outside the bounds of her marriage, but now that she has permission, she unleashes her voracious libido on her gorgeous girlfriend next door, the UPS delivery man, and anyone else who strikes her fancy.

Her husband called her a slut in order to shame her. Lauren wears the title with pride. When he comes home to find her gang banging her son’s buddies from the college wrestling team, he realizes he’s made a huge mistake. He wants his slutty wife back. But once you’ve freed the genie, you can’t put it back in the bottle.

If you love wild adventures of wanton women, you'll love The Slut Strikes Back.

Excerpt

In the elevator, James slipped his arm around her waist while Phillip fondled her bum, but the presence of other guests prevented any further intimacies. Once the door of their room closed, however, their inhibitions vanished.

James dragged her into a rough embrace and claimed her mouth. She opened to him, savoring the heat of his body and the flavor of single malt on his tongue. Phillip circled behind her to hold her by the hips and nuzzle at the nape of her neck. He pressed his lean form against her lush body, sliding his rigid cock back and forth in the fabric-lined crevice between her butt cheeks. Meanwhile his friend ground his equally delightful hardness against her pubis.

Lauren’s arousal climbed, instant by instant. “God, how I want you!” she breathed. “Both of you!”

Phillip reached down to grab the hem of her dress, then drew the garment up over her head. James took possession her bared breasts, cradling them in his big hands. “Magnificent!” he exclaimed, then leaned in to capture one tender, aching nipple with his mouth. A line of fire raced from the nub to her pulsing clit. While he sucked on one nipple, he pinched the other, pulling Lauren taut between pleasure and pain. Just when she thought she couldn’t bear any more, he’d switch.

Meanwhile, Phillip sank to the floor behind her and dragged her drenched thong down to her ankles. Her oceany scent filled the room. Urging her thighs apart, he began to lick her pussy. The angle made it difficult for him to reach her clit, but he compensated by devoting his oral attentions to her rear hole. His tongue circled and probed the tight whorl of muscle, triggering a delicious mélange of sensation. The heat and wetness built. Answering moisture seeped from her cunt. He lapped it up, stroking his way between her folds, then returned to her anus.

Still nursing her tits, James reached between her legs to diddle her clit. With James stimulating her from the front and Phillip from the rear, she was already close to climax. She could let go, allow them to take her over the edge. What she really wanted, though, was to come with their cocks inside her.

“Wait!” she gasped, twisting away from them. She palmed the substantial bulk in James’ groin, then turned to squeeze Phillip’s equally impressive erection. “You two are wearing far too many clothes.” Backing away, she perched on the edge of the bed, her legs spread wide to expose her glistening slit. She ran a finger between her engorged pussy lips, gathering her juices, then held out the dripping digit for them to see. “This is for you,” she told them. “I want you naked. Now.”

 

Buy Links

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/8791-the-slut-strikes-back-milf-erotica/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08CFRJSTM

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08CFRJSTM

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1031285

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-slut-strikes-back-lisabet-sarai/1137303515

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-slut-strikes-back-milf-erotica

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54428619-the-slut-strikes-back

Audio Book – https://www.amazon.com/Audible-The-Slut-Strikes-Back/dp/B09S1DDRQ9

Writing Sex Scenes - #DarkRomance #Obsession #Passion @Apky11162

 

By A P von K’Ory (Guest Blogger)

Sex is genre-specific. We all know that. I confess I love writing my sex scenes a lot. For the simple reason that I write them primarily for me. Perhaps that’s why I keep them few and far between but long and intense. My true fantasies, what I want and already know, what I was reluctant about but blew my world when I tried it, and even what I tried and was disappointed with. I dip into every libidinous well of my womanhood. When I get to my sex scenes I become my heroine and it’s all about that woman in me. Of course she’s never one static recycled woman with every sex scene – who is?

But yes, skill to create an immersive and emotional sex scene is a must for me. I’ve read sex scenes that I skipped over with a muttered For heaven’s sake, rolling my eyes. It doesn’t mean the scenes were not up to it – it means they weren’t my “up to it”. Quite frankly, I’m not even sure there’s a right and wrong way to do this.

But in general there is a way to write some dead good sex scenes.

Asking some questions helps.

Is the scene even necessary at that point in time?

In romance novels, sex scenes are the eggs you need to make your omelette. In speculative fiction or mystery, it may not be mandatory.

Sex may sell in Hollywood, but the written word is more nuanced than film. It’s a mistake to think you need sex scenes in your novel just to snatch your reader's attention. Other means – pacing, characterization and plotting – achieve your goal much more effectively IMHO. So let them do the heavy lifting. Never add gratuitous sex – it might skew the plot, interrupt the pacing or even cheapen the story, destroying your characterization or making the reader feel insulted.

Focus on your characters and determine whether they’d actually want sex at that point in their story. We writers are so attuned to our characters that when we force them into round holes when they want squares, we sense it. The natural flow jerks and judders, fluidity and harmony disappear. It feels like forcing a child who hates it to eat broccoli. Tune in here to your writer dual role of voyeur and recorder. Give your characters the freedom to make their own choices.

And ask yourself whether the sex scene moves the story forward. Sometimes, implied sex is more impactful than a sex scene. The same goes for detailed descriptions.

Sex scenes can and do get raw. Those limbs, the sounds, sweat, lengths and girths and tightness, wetness, the river stone nipples and sensitive nubs. If these make you cringe, scrap them until your modesty mode can cope.

Here’s where I separate my thoughts from who my reader will be. Here’s where I become me and write the scene for me. Here’s where as a writer you write down what your characters are doing. The clearer it is to you, the clearer it will be to your reader.

You have to be absolutely convinced this sex scene is integral to your story’s plot. If your characters tell you they’re ready for this, give it to them sans your sense of embarrassment to weaken the story. Go for it. This is your moment for show, don’t tell.

Never is that advice more important than with a sex scene. Show that bead of sweat running down a temple or dripping from the tip of a nose. Say how that hiss of pleasure displays gritted teeth or sprays particles of spittle in the air. Is that a low moan or a strangled scream? Positions adjusted? Eyes darkened? Movements slow or fast? Kisses gentle or hungry? You get it.

Above all else, don’t lose the pacing. Depending on how you do it, an entire chapter of sex might lose momentum or get irritating. But well-paced, two chapters will leave the reader still panting for more. The audience also makes a difference. YA (ages 12-18) and NA (ages 18-30+) have their individual preferences. Know when to apply restraint. My barometer is always my characters – I live them and they live me. If I force them anywhere, they rebel; if they manipulate me where I don’t see them, I rebel.

Good thing I’m the dictator!

A word about third person POV in sex scenes: don’t hop around. Get into one characters head and let it all occur through their POV. The other person will be represented by the POV’s reactions, both verbal and physical. Sticking to one POV helps focus the reader. Don’t give them a peep show because that eradicates the intimacy.

Tension reigns whether it’s a thriller, horror, fantasy or sci-fi. It also reigns in the sex scenes. What’s at stake before, during and after? What will be the consequences if it’s a one-night stand? Broken hearts and relationships? Age gap? Illicit liaisons? Even with married couples, create a conflict during sex. Use the sex scene for character development. Don’t end a chapter with sex and start the next as if the sex didn’t happen. Something has to come out of the characters having had sex, even if it’s in a brothel.

Fall asleep together wrapped in love? Wake up together in disgust? Wake up with one already gone? Messages left? Effect of the message on the recipient?

Sex must change your characters or it serves no purpose in the story.

Lastly, in real life, there might be a necessary break to go check on the crying baby, answer that insistently ringing phone, shout at the neighbor pounding on the front door for an emergency, or – horror of horrors – the sex partner skips off mid-matters to empty that awful bladder.

Not in a story. Verboten. Nada. Nyet.

Unless it contributes something significant to the story, e.g. a rom-com.

And when you finally have the scene done, let it brew for a day or so, then read it again. No changes? Great! You must have had fun writing the scene.

With Untameable Revenge by A.P. von K‘ory

Book 4 in the Untameable Series

Blurb

Adrian
Still in her twenties, Leontine is Wall Street's dreaded Gorgeous Ice Block, and richer than Midas.
I’d fended women off me with bazookas when I was done but they weren’t.
Until Leo. But I still tried to avoid her like arsenic.
I warned myself to remain professional in our business dealings.
Yet double quick, I knew professional with Leo is a myth.
It was always her from day zero…
Then the Phantom dares abduct and touch her.
Abduct and touch what I’d claimed as mine.
The waters of the Pacific Ocean where his yacht is moored? Not again.
This time, it’s the fire. Not even his DNA will survive.

Leo

He enters my mind first, then my body.
From out of the blue, he becomes my only weakness on the planet.
Although I’d sworn off men forever. But Adrian isn't a man, he’s an evil god.
I know I shouldn't crave him so desperately, feel so exposed without him. But I do.
I know he can destroy me as easily as he can destroy my arch-enemy.
Yet he's the only air I want to breathe if it poisons me.
Adrian is the god of consummate sins and painful indulgences.
But the sins are heavenly, the indulgences glorious.
How do I fight this dark god whose darkness eclipses mine?

NOTE: This book contains violence, adult content, and language that could be triggering. You've been warned.

Buy Links

US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQMTQ151

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CQMTQ151

CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CQMTQ151

DE: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0CQMTQ151

JP: https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0CQMTQ151

AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0CQMTQ151

About the Author

A P von K’Ory writes romance, psychological thrillers, and nonfiction. She loves diversity – it’s in her aristocratic DNA. She has won more than half a dozen prizes and awards from four continents. Her family stretches from the Nilotes of the Eastern African Nile Delta to Germany, France, and the Walloons (Belgium). She lectures Economics and Sociology in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. Being migratory –  and weather willing –  she lives in Germany, France, Cyprus, and Greece. 

Connect with A P von K'Ory

A P VON K'ORY can be reached under the links below.

Visit her Website: http://apvonkory.com

Signup for her Newsletter: https://apvonkory.com/contact

Instagram über mich & meine Bücher & Macken:

https://www.instagram.com/apvonkory

Would you like to join hands and receive ARCs of my next books? Then please join the „Discerning Readers“ here:

https://www.facebook.com/AkinyiReadersReviews/

The latest interviews and news about Shana und Roman on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Goshanaliterotic

It would be lovely if you could visit and like my author page and read more bites about Shana and Roman as well as Leo and Adrian, the Coming Soon(s), Cover Reveals and even about what I had for breakfast, the dinner I burnt to cinders the night before or the perfect cake I baked for Sunday family coffee Here’s my Author page link:

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorAPVonKOry

Follow me on Twitter under: @Apky11162 https://twitter.com/Apky11162

English Book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkGuFzsRgsM

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7063572.A_P_Von_K_Ory

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/a-p-von-k-ory

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/APvonK'Ory

Google Play: https://play.google.com/books/publish/u/0/a/14014035798980597784#list

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Autorenecke (German): https://www.autorenecke-gelsenkirchen.de/autorenecke/a-p-von-k-ory 

Even though she knew he was a scoundrel... #NewRelease #Yorkshire #MFRWHooks

Welcome to this week’s MFRW Book Hooks blog hop. Today I’m celebrating another new release, a short contemporary erotic romance with a bit of light bondage entitled Getaway Girl. This is one of the first romance stories I wrote. Now it has been sliced, diced and given a new lease on life.

Check it out! All the buy links can be found at https://www.lisabetsarai.com/getawaygirlbook.html

Blurb

Be careful what you wish for

All Peg wants is a break, a bit of adventure, a relief from her mundane existence in the bucolic but boring Yorkshire hamlet of Kirkby Malzeard. When dashing, sophisticated journalist Lionel Hayes saunters into the pub where she's tending bar, Peg suspects that he was just the sort of man to fulfill her fantasies of escape.

The seductive Lionel, however, is not what he seems. Before she knows it, Peg is a hostage, roped and gagged, speeding away from the scene of a daring crime. Lionel is armed and dangerous, but somehow Peg still wants him – regardless of the consequences.

The Hook

“Freeze! Don’t make a move, chickie, or that pretty face of yours will be splattered all over the mirror.”

“What?… Who?”

The guy pointing the gun at her was a complete stranger. He had greasy blond hair and a pointy face that reminded Peg of the rats she sometimes saw in the dustbin behind the pub. He dropped his heavy-looking duffel onto the floor, kicked the door shut, and aimed the revolver with both hands.

“Shut up. Back up to the bar. Slowly. Put your hands on your head.”

Peg couldn’t move, couldn’t think.

“Now! Before I get annoyed. I just shot that idiot guard, don’t think I won’t shoot you, too.”

Guard? Did he mean Rodney? Oh, God!

The door opened once more. Peg was about to yell for help, but the scream died in her throat. Into the pub, lugging an identical bag and breathing heavily, walked Lionel.

“Hey, Jack. There’s no need to talk so roughly to the lady. I’m sure that Margaret will help us. Won’t you, darling?”

Everything became crystal clear. “I—you—you bloody liar! You crook!”

“Now, Peg, be reasonable. I thought that you liked me.”

“You slimy toad, you took advantage…”

“Stow it,” Jack snarled. Lionel smiled, half apologetic, half mocking. Then he turned, put out the ‘Closed’ sign, and locked the door.

Peg’s phone lay on the bar, just two feet from where she stood. She lunged for the device, but Lionel was quicker. Snatching it up, he slipped it into his jacket pocket.

“Come on, Peg. You’re smarter than that. Smart enough to know that you’ll be better off if you cooperate.”

“Cooperate how?”

Jack scowled. “We need a place to hide out. Somewhere quiet and out of the way, where the cops won’t think to look.” He strode over and pressed the gun barrel to Peg’s temple. “You got any ideas?”

Peg gave Lionel a desperate look. He shrugged. “It will go easier for you if you help us. We need to go to ground, fast.”

“I can’t think with that thing pointed at my head. Tell him to put it away.”

Lionel nodded at Jack, who lowered the gun but still kept it trained on her. She racked her brain, trying to come up with a plan, some way she could escape and raise the alarm. Lionel watched her, a half-smile playing on his sumptuous lips. Damn, even though she knew he was a scoundrel, he still attracted her. He reminded her, just a bit, of Gary, the wicked, red-headed teenager from the States that she’d fallen for, ages ago, at her grandmother’s place…

That was it! Gran’s little house would seem like the perfect place for them to hide. Meanwhile, she’d have the advantage of being on familiar territory.

“There’s a cottage, northwest of here, where we used to go on holiday. It belonged to my grandmother. No one’s lived there for several years now. The country’s very wild, and it’s the only house for several miles around.”

“Sounds perfect.” Lionel was trying to reassure her. “How far is it?”

“I’m not sure. Less than two hours, certainly. You take the A65 from Skipton, then get onto the M6, but not for long. Most of the trip is on back roads, which is why— ”

“You’ll show us,” interrupted Jack. “Bert, find some rope or something. She looks like a strong girl. We don’t want no problems with her.”

Bert?

Lionel disappeared into the back of the pub. Peg could hear him rummaging around in the storeroom. Before long he was back, holding up the ball of twine they used to secure cardboard for recycling, and a pair of scissors. “This should be acceptable. And there’s a back door and a path that leads right to the field where we parked. No one will see us leave.”

Jack grunted his approval. “You tie her. Gag her, too. I’ll cover you.”

Lionel motioned Peg to one of the benches. “Sit down, and put your ankles together.” Peg obeyed, moving as slowly as she could. She figured that every minute she could delay them increased the chances of rescue. The counterfeit journalist knelt in front of her and began to wind the twine around her ankles. Once again she could smell that cologne of his, the breath of fir trees on some distant mountain. Her nipples tightened. Her contempt for him did not seem to affect her physical responses.

He hardly touched her, but every time he did, she shivered, whether from fear or desire she truly couldn’t tell. He felt it, though, and looked up, searching her face. She looked away, pointedly focusing on the revolver aimed at her heart.

 

Be sure to visit the other authors participating in today’s Book Hooks!

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Review Tuesday: Ice Queen by Joey W. Hill -- #ReviewTuesday #BDSM #EroticRomance

Ice Queen by Joey W. Hill

Story Witch Press, 2015

During the two-plus decades that I’ve been writing BDSM erotica and erotic romance, I’ve had a number of readers recommend the work of Joey W. Hill. She’s hugely popular in the BDSM romance genre, and I knew I should at least sample her books to understand why. When I noticed that Ice Queen was available for free, I grabbed a copy.

It took me a while to get through this novel. I’d read for a while, then lose patience. However, I think I now “get” the reasons for her fame.

1. She does a wonderful job capturing the emotional and sensual nuances of dominance and submission, pulling the reader into the mind and body of her characters. D/s is subtle and complex. Ms. Hill does not oversimplify but shows us all variations, changing moment by moment like the light on a partially cloudy day: fear, hunger, anger, comfort, peace.

2. She fulfills readers’ expectations by incorporating every cliché and stereotype in the genre.

The first reason filled me with delight. The second made me want to throw my e-reader across the room.

Anyone who follows my blog will know how highly I value originality. I knew how Ice Queen would end after reading the first two pages. I literally groaned out loud (earning strange looks from the other people on the subway). Tyler Winterman, the Dom hero, is the perfect Alpha, right down to his phenomenal wealth and his history as a CIA agent. Marguerite Perruquet is the consummate Mistress, exquisitely beautiful, tragically wounded, and of course inescapably susceptible to Tyler. You knew she was going to submit to him despite her resistance, that they’d fall in love, that nothing would stand in the way of their passion. Now, all romance tends to be predictable, but this book had absolutely zero suspense.

Another serious problem, for me, was the constant head-hopping. Overall, Ms. Hill writes really well. As noted above, her prose beautifully evokes both sensation and emotion. Given this skill, I can’t really understand why she seems incapable of sticking in the perspective of one character for more than a page. It’s incredibly disruptive and confusing to be identifying with one character, then suddenly, without warning, to be yanked into the head of another.

I will say that this book includes one the most intense, edgy and arousing femdom scenes I’ve ever read. I have to believe that Ms. Hill has some personal experience with D/s given the insights in that interaction, and I applaud her courage in including such extreme (but realistic) material.

When she focused on Tyler and Marguerite, though, I mostly lost interest. Yes, Tyler’s gradual seduction of the mistress is beautifully described. However, it was such a foregone conclusion that I just didn’t care.

It may seem presumptuous of me to be panning a book that’s rated #138 in Amazon’s list of BDSM erotica. As I say, I can understand why she has such a dedicated following. I don’t think I am going to be among them.

In defense of insta-love – #Menage #Spanking #Ghosts @piamanning3

By Pia Manning (Guest Blogger)

It’s true, love at first sight, or insta-love, is a real thing. Not everyone is cautious when it comes to following their hearts. Some of us just know when we’ve found the love of our lives and are willing to take that leap of faith into a lifetime commitment. Elizabeth Faulkner (Finding Home), Sherry Evans (Coming Home), Piper Thomas (Advantage: Home Team), and Emily Slater (Hometown Spirits), would all agree with me.

Here’s my story:

I met the love of my life one miserably, bone-chilling, wet day in late November many years ago. Drops of icy rain rolled down my nose and soaked my hat and coat. I clutched a nylon backpack to my chest with fingers so cold I couldn’t feel them. There I was half jogging to my apartment in a futile effort to escape the sleet when a car pulled up beside me. The driver rolled down his window and asked if I wanted a ride home.

Oh, I knew who he was. My white knight lived in the apartment below mine but the previous year he had been the resident assistant on the dorm floor with the worst reputation on campus. But I still had six blocks to go, the sleet poured down, and beggars can’t be choosers.

His car started life as a red VW Beetle but had faded to a weird shade of pink and rust-orange. The front fenders were wired to the chassis. Despite this, I got in. And noticed that I could see the road through the floor. But the roof didn’t leak, and that beat my nonexistent car.

Outside our building, we sat and waited for the icy rain to end. We talked. About everything. Sometimes big topics and big feelings; other times about small silly things. The sleet finally ended, the dark tattered clouds fled, and yet we still sat there, talking.

The next evening, he knocked on the floor (his ceiling) and asked if I wanted to help him finish a pizza. Bribing me with food was a dirty trick. It worked.

To make a short story shorter, we were married that next January. Number of weeks in our courtship from start to finish: Five. We’ve been together forever. I truly hope we have forever again. 

By the way, to celebrate love in general and my new release in particular, I am giving away a free copy of the the latest Caveman Creek romance to one person who leaves me a comment. Don't be shy! Have you experienced love at first sight? Or do you think it's a myth?  

Hometown Spirits Blurb

Nurse Practitioner Emily Slater wants a home of her own in a welcoming community. She fell in love with Pinecone Creek and hopes to connect with the people she serves and give back to her town. Emily needs the kind of relationships that last a lifetime.

Brothers Mike and Paul Lambert have always called Pinecone Creek home. They need a woman to share their lives and their bed. One look at Emily sends their hopes soaring, and they spin dreams of having a family and children. Their protective instincts roar to the surface whenever they’re close to her. Even though they’ve been disappointed before, they’re willing to risk their hearts again.

But Emily hasn’t finished unpacking and her ‘to-do’ list is a mile long. The men are panty-dampening hunks, and they make her feel safe, but she isn’t ready to commit to the brothers quite yet. And that cabin she just bought? Someone or something doesn’t want Emily there.

Buy Link: https://www.bookstrand.com/book/hometown-spirits-mfm

Excerpt

“That’s Letty Nelsen’s old place. No one’s lived there in a while. Not since—” Mike’s gaze traveled downward.

“Letty got murdered,” Angie finished. “People say strange things happen out there at night. Lights, sounds of a woman crying and moaning…” She shivered.

“The realtor told me a lady died there, but he didn’t say anything about a murder. I’m not sure if I believe in ghosts or hauntings, but that is awful. I planned on stopping out there tonight to unload tools, take measurements, and try to get an idea of how much DIY is in my future.” And how much it’ll cost, Emily thought. “But I haven’t been back in weeks. Can you give me directions? It’s no fun wandering around in the dark.”

“Tell you what. Why don’t you follow me?” Mike offered.

“Oh, thanks, but I don’t want to put you out. If you don’t mind just directing me…” Emily honestly didn’t want to impose on Mike, but going off with a strange man to an isolated cabin in the woods wasn’t a smart thing to do—no matter how nice he seemed or how fast a woman might drown in his soulful brown eyes or notice the muscles straining against the Henley underneath his flannel shirt or…

“No trouble. It’s on my way home,” Mike coaxed.

“You’ll be safe with Mike. Besides, I know you’re leaving with him, so he’d be in for a big hurt if you disappeared!” Angie declared while she cleared their plates.

“Thanks, Angie.” Mike rolled his eyes and shook his head.

“My pleasure, Mike,” Angie answered over her shoulder before she disappeared into the kitchen.

“With a reference like that, how can I say no?” Emily laughed and laid some bills on the counter. “If you’re sure it won’t take you out of your way, I’d appreciate the help.”

About the Author

Pia Manning is the erotic romance author behind the Caveman Creek series. She is married to a wonderful man. Rides herd on four cats (not easy to do) and canine Noodles the Schnoodle (schnauzer/poodle cross), raises monarchs, and plays Clash of Clans. Not a morning person.

Find me at:

Website: https://www.piamanning.com

Siren Bookstrand page: https://www.bookstrand.com/pia-manning

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=pia+manning&crid=1CTBHDIYQC8VR&sprefix=pia+manning%2Caps%2C484&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_1_11

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/northofhwy8

Apple Books: https://www.apple.co/4aOraBY

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/caveman%20creek

Twitter: https://twitter.com/piamanning3

Email: pia.manning at yahoo dot com

All Author: https://allauthor.com/book/87193/hometown-spirits/