Day: October 30, 2010

Guest Review: Stud by Brigit Zahara

Posted October 30, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 0 Comments

Tracy’s review of Stud by Brigit Zahara

When it comes to sex, street hooker Sasha is a guy to die for. His blow jobs are things of legend, his thing is guaranteed to make you blow. Everybody wants him. But few can afford him.

So when mysterious, magnetic and immortal Kyan offers 5K for one night, Sasha ditches semi-regular and, as it turns out, very jealous, Tanner for a night he’ll never forget.

In more ways than one.

FYI – This review contains spoilers.

Sasha is a high-priced hooker that is worth every penny. When a gorgeous, compelling man offers him $5,000 for one night he’s more than happy to oblige. But one of his semi-regulars, a married magazine mogul, is more than a little ticked that Sasha has chosen Kyan over him.

Sasha and Kyan head off to Kyan’s penthouse for a night of hot, steamy sex. Though Sasha had some misgivings about Kyan at first he soon falls into the wonderful experience of non-stop erections.

When Sasha wakes up the next evening he really wants to stay with Kyan but is again uneasy about why he feels so attracted and pulled to the beautiful man. What exactly does Kyan have that Sasha wants so badly?

This was an interesting novella that brought a hooker and what seemed like a gorgeous but “normal” businessman together. Only there’s more to Kyan than just good looks – he’s a vampire who’s chosen Sasha as his one and only; the one person that he wants to turn and subsequently spend the rest of his life with. I gotta say that the vampire aspect of this book took me a bit by surprise. Yes, the blurb says immortal but for some reason I wasn’t thinking vampire – my bad. That being said it kind of worked for me.

Sasha seems to be getting a bit tired of the hooker life but doesn’t quite know what else to do with himself. Kyan is obviously looking for that one man to make him happy for the rest of his long life. The thing I think I liked about the book was that it didn’t go straight to the “I love you’s”. It ended more on a HFN note but you knew that the two men would be together forever.

The only part that I didn’t like was the jealous john. He was a bit of a knife-wielding psycho and what he did to Sasha made me cringe with distaste. Not something I want to read about on a regular basis! lol

In the end it wasn’t too much of an in depth story but the great sex and gorgeous men more than made up for it.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

This book is available from Extasy Books. You can buy it here in e-format.

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place.

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Guest Lightning Review: Magician’s Chains by Michelle Polaris

Posted October 30, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 0 Comments

Genres: Paranormal Romance


Kris‘ review of Magician’s Chains by Michelle Polaris

Jesse and Savin shared one strange, hot kiss and an even stranger mystical connection over a decade ago. Now reunited at a BDSM-flavored erotic magic show in Las Vegas, Jesse finds Savin performing as the Dominant magician. He’s one sexy, powerful package, and Jesse fights the call to expose himself to Savin, giving up body, soul and heart. But dark fae nightmares prophesy a more dangerous magic than stage tricks at work as their lives collide.

Jesse has given up on his dreams after a personal tragedy. Savin’s only dream is to be human, although he is not. Drawn to one another, the men enter into a weekend Master/slave contract. In Savin’s chains, Jesse submits, letting loose destructive passion and grief. Both resist the craving to make their bond permanent, sure that if they do they place one another in jeopardy. If they cannot accept the magic they create together and their joined destinies, the survival of two worlds will be at stake.

The story starts with Jesse and his girlfriend at a magic show in Las Vegas. She has dragged him there trying to get him to open up and he happy again. They have been together for three years but in the two years since his parents died he has been remote and easy to anger. The show starts and he hears a voice that he has not heard in over ten years. This brings back memories that he has pushed aside for a long time. Jesse and his girlfriend have a fight and break up. Savin gets Jesse to promise him the weekend to sort out what is between them once and for all.

Jesse has a lot of issues to work through that stems from his parents accident ten years ago. Before that he was a free spirit who loved to travel. After the accident he was managing his father’s store and taking care of his two now invalid parents. Savin is a fae that was sent here to try to find a cure for a dying Faerie. He thinks that he can find it in the D/s scene. The others that have come with him find in it torture, but Savin refuses to go that route. But the others are getting restless and want to go home with or without the cure.

This story was very interesting. It was a M/M BDSM paranormal story. I liked that the author explained the BDSM terms that she used in the story and did not assume that the reader know what they meant. I enjoy reading D/s stories with bondage and toys and such but she had toys that I had not heard of so that was cool. So the author goes beyond just binders, blindfolds and paddles to more hardcore toys.

The worldbuilding was interesting. I liked the link that the author made for Faerie and Earth. The Fae were intriguing in their brutal tendencies with their long lives and hard to kill bodies they are bloody with each other and Savin wants to escape that. Cool story.

I give this a 4 out of 5.

This book is available from Ellora’s Cave. You can buy it here in e-format.

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Guest Review: The Lady’s Not A Vamp by Tessie Bradford

Posted October 30, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 3 Comments

Genres: Paranormal Romance
Judith‘s review of The Lady’s Not A Vamp by Tessie Bradford.

Sandy’s perception of reality is taking one serious ass kicking. Two stunningly handsome vampires come to her side, boldly announcing she is their blood mate and sending her soaring on waves of orgasmic delight with everey touch. It’s a lot for a gal to process in two days.

Tony and Rick weren’t looking for a third, but when the spunky, courageous, sexy human woman needs blood, their bodies and souls instantly recognize Sandy as their perfect match. Now they just need to convince her to embrace all they have to offer.

Cassandra Morley had moved to Deckton, Michigan–in the beautiful and remote Upper Peninsula–and had been living there for about a month. She was a divorcee, a refugee from a very unhappy marriage to a man who had abused her with his infidelity and dismantled her confidence in her femininity. She was financially set and hoped to make a new life for herself in a new setting. However, when she first met Rick, in the parking lot of the local supermarket, she felt like she had been assaulted by an 18-wheeler. She couldn’t seem to get over the night out on the town she had three days earlier with some of her new acquaintances. Rick recognized right away that she was suffering from having too much blood drawn from her and suspected a rogue vampire. He was right, and he set about righting the situation by allowing her to drink from his wrist.

While Rick explained her situation and the remedy he had provided, his partner/lover Tony had sauntered into her living room. She thought they were both certifiable until Rafael, the rogue vampire who had unknowingly attacked her while they were dancing, entered her kitchen, attacked her once again, and was dispatched from the earthly plain by Tony before he could do any harm to Sandy. It was then that she realized what they were and that this was no crazy dream. What was even more astounding was her response to them both–her ex had convinced her that she was a sexual anomaly, unable to satisfy any man. That didn’t appear to be what was happening between her and these two hunks. Thanks to them she rediscovered that with the right person(s) she was doing just fine.

This is a very cute and sometimes funny short story from Ellora’s Cave that is just long enough to be a nice read and short enough to be a bit of a “coffee break” kind of experience in a busy life. Rick and Tony were sort of vampire-police, keeping the human population safe from rogues like Rafael. They were in love and were very funny guys. They had been mates for several hundred years. Now this satirical and in-you-face gal comes into their lives and the action as well as the dialogue is popping. Ms Bradford has taken a rather common plot and given it verve and peppered it with humor. These two “saviors” step in and save Sandy’s life. In return she gives them a mate that is fun and whose presence makes their lives even more fulfilling. It’s just a very enjoyable love story.

If you like the menage scene and the paranormal then you will enjoy this little literary tidbit. All the characters are interesting and it certainly kept my attention from start to finish. Maybe someday Ms Bradford can build a more substantial novella on these characters. I can’t think of a more fun way to spend an afternoon. I give this “Quickie” a rating of 3.75 out of 5.

This book is available from Ellora’s Cave. You can buy it here in e-format.

You can read more from Judith at Dr. J’s Book Place.

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Saturday Song – Halloween

Posted October 30, 2010 by Tracy in Reviews | 3 Comments

There are a few songs I love to hear around Halloween – besides all of the creaks and groans CD that we have – that’s a great one to play when the kids are trick or treating, the kids get all creeped out. lol  I know, I’m so mean.

Anyway, the first song, I Put a Spell on You, is from the movie Hocus Pocus with Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy.  This movie is a Halloween favorite and I like this version much better than the original. 🙂

Then there’s This Is Halloween from The Nightmare Before Christmas – great song.

And of course Halloween wouldn’t be complete in our house without listening to The Monster Mash by Boris Pickett by at least once.

Happy Halloween (a day early)

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Guest Review: Sehra’s Honor by Kama Spice

Posted October 30, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 0 Comments

Judith‘s review of Sehra’s Honor by Kama Spice.

Rawa is an Independent. A cat shifter who left his pride as soon as he could, shortly after his sexual Awakening. He had looked forward to the day when he could excape his father’s abuse and travel the pridelands–making his own way and carving his own destiny. But in leaving behind his pride of origin, he also left behind Sehra, the only female who made his blood rage furiously.

Now Sehra’s father has promised her to a future Leader King in the Eastern Territories. For years after her Awakening, Sehra longed to feel the heat of Rawa’s skin against hers. But having given up on his return, she has agreed to the match and a date has been set.

Although Rawa has tried to forget Sehra, the thought that he might lose her forever is unbearable and he begins a race against the clock. Rawa must stop this ceremony and claim Sehra, once and for all.

Feline shapeshifters, the lush terain of the pridelands, love given and love abandoned–it is all here in this novella about a young Independent who needed to be free of an alcoholic and abusive father, but who had to also leave behind the woman who held his heart. Rawa’s absence for seven years has just about killed any hope in Sehra’s heart that he would ever return, and because she no longer lived in anticipation of that return, has agreed with her greedy and ambitious father’s plan to mate her to the heir-apparent of another pride in a distant territory. That is, until the summer solstice festival, when the almost forgotten scent of her heart’s desire once again wafted past her body. Rawa–he was here–and he had returned for her. Even after their heated reunion and after Sehra imparted the news that she was being mated to another, Rawa believed that the ancient law of mating would prevail. He couldn’t have been more wrong. Sehra’s father was not to be thwarted in this, and under duress and with her mother’s compliance, Sehra was bound and taken to her waiting mate in a distant land.

These felines live in a society that is ordered by their lineage–designated by color in accordance with the edit of “the Ancients” who have granted both psychic and physical gifts and abilities for the preservation of the species. Rawa is a Copper, deemed a less important lineage because his gifts were connected to the physical. Sehra was an Onyx, deemed much more lofty because she could communicate with “the Ancients” and be a conduit of their wisdom to the community. Sehra’s father was mating her to an Emerald in the attempt to increase his family’s social status.

This is a rather complicated story and contains lots of surprises. It even involves a pride known as “the Violets” made up of women only, females who mate temporarily for the purpose of procreating, who retain the girls and send the males out as independents when they are old enough to sustain themselves. They are women who have become strong and who do not wish to be dominated or controlled by men. They are “there” for Sehra when she needs them and she even forms a very close bond with one of them. But only because she believes Rawa is dead.

There is a very dark side to this story as well. Family love is sacrificed to greed and ambition. The good of the pride is put in jeopardy by one man’s drive for power and position. But in the midst of all this there are wonderful discoveries–loyalties and abilities that were previously unperceived. There is always something terribly satisfying when two people who want and need to be together are united in their struggle for their long-term relationship. So it is in this novel. Kama Spice has done a very decent job of putting this story together. Sehra is a very strong woman, one who has come to be comfortable in her own persona, who has learned that life doesn’t always give us everything we want, who was willing to move forward with her life when she believed Rawa was forever gone. Yet she was willing also to fight her family and whomever else she needed to in order to win her love when she realized he had come for her.

Rawa was strong, too. He had survived the prejudice of his pride, the physical and emotional abuse of his father, and the terrors and trials of being an Independent. He had never really given up his dream to be with Sehra. Now he is willing to use all he knows, all he has gained, all his strengths to win his love and to fight for their right to be together. You just have to like a guy like this. Both these characters display a powerful tensile strength, a formidable determination to wrest the best that life could offer. It may be fiction, but it is the kind of lesson all people need to learn. No matter the odds, giving up hope just isn’t an option.

So I think there is lots to enjoy here. It is a powerful love story; it is a creative look into a shapeshifter lifestyle and society; it is a novel that will satisfy both the paranormal and romance appetites.

I give this story a rating of 4 out of 5.

You can read more from Judith at Dr. J’s Book Place

 

This book is available from Ellora’s Cave. You can buy it here in e-format.

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