Tag: Lucani Lovers

Guest Review: Moonlight Menage by Stephanie Julian

Posted June 13, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 1 Comment

Tracy’s review of Moonlight Menage (Lucani Lovers #2) by Stephanie Julian

For eight years, Etruscan witch Tira Belludi has longed to give herself, body and soul, to the two shifter men who hold her heart. But visions of death and fears for her sanity have forced her to keep her distance.

Nic Rocca and Duke Ducati are brothers in everything but blood and partners who have each other’s backs. They share a home, a job and had planned to share their life with Tira between them…until the night she saw their future and built a fortress around her heart.

Now danger and death stalk Nic and Duke. And Tira must make a choice—grab love while she has the chance or watch Nic die from afar and lose Duke forever.

8 Years ago Tira kissed one of the men she knew was her mate and loved it. Only at the same time she saw his death. She refused, for several years, to even touch him as touch is how she gets her visions. The next time was the same and so Tira decided that not being with the men she loved was better than seeing one die over and over. In her frustration Tira decides to seek a god’s help and her seeing powers are removed for 24 hours.

Duke and Nic are ecstatic when Tira comes to them and they can be the threesome that they’ve envisioned for all these years. They’ve hated being away from her but understood that Tira couldn’t see Nic’s death time and time again. But after hours of making love their time together is interrupted. Tira’s father, who she’s never met, has shown up and wants to meet her.

After seeing her mother and father together and realizing that her mother can still have a wonderful life Tira makes a decision – accept her role as seeing in the Etruscan community – which means taking her mother’s seeing powers as well. When Tira does this she has a vision about the woman who has been kidnapping Etruscan’s and latent humans. Warriors are gathered and they go to search for the woman – but is this when Nic is supposed to be killed? And if not, will Tira ever get to be with her mates permanently.

Again, another great story from Stephanie Julian. This being a ménage story adds the depth of one more character into the relationship. I loved how Julian let us see into everyone’s heads. Since it was told in the 3rd person we got to see things from Tira’s pov, as well as Nic’s and Duke’s. I really loved the three of them together – in bed and out of it. lol Julian does write great sex scenes, I can’t deny it.

Besides the relationships – in both of the books in this series so far – there’s been an unknown villain. Why is she kidnapping these people and what does she hope to accomplish by doing it? The answers to those questions will keep me reading, that’s for sure.

Rating: 4 out of 5

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

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place

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Guest Review: Edge of Moonlight by Stephanie Julian

Posted June 12, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 2 Comments

Tracy’s review of Edge of Moonlight (Lucan Lovers #3) by Stephanie Julian

Etruscan wolf shifter Kaine Giliati has longed for John Simmons since he willingly agreed to wipe all memory of her from his mind. The pain in her heart is only magnified by terror—the inability to call her wolf appears to have deserted her, as well.

For months after he and his sister escaped a crazed kidnapper, John has been dreaming about a beautiful woman he’s never met but who seems so familiar. A woman he’s shocked to find in a dark bar one night. A woman who agrees to come back to his apartment for raw, passionate sex.

One erotic, stolen night reopens old wounds, uncovers buried memories and sets Kaine and John on a path filled with danger, magic and potential heartbreak.

In the previous book Kaine and John formed a sort of connection. But John and his sister decided that they would have their memories wiped and now Kaine is left with painful longing and yearning for John. Not only that but she discovers that she can’t shift into her wolf any longer.

After talking to an Etruscan friend about her shifting issues Kaine heads to a bar – that John is at. He approaches her with the feeling that they know each other (and he’s dreamed about her) and Kaine decides to go for the gusto. She agrees to go home with him for one night of passion and then she will give him up. They are so good together but she knows afterwards that she must leave. Only when she’s trying to leave the apartment John’s sister, Evie, walks in the door. In Evie’s fear magical things start happening – that aren’t supposed to happen because Evie supposedly has no magic. Kaine resigns herself to the fact that she’s not getting away from the issues, and John, quite as easily as she’d originally thought.

Kaine and John end up teaming together – after his memories are restored – to find the woman who had originally kidnapped Evie to find out why she’d done it and what spells she’d put on Evie. While together John realizes that Kaine is someone he never wants to forget again.

This was a great book. From the start of the book I was totally into Kaine and John’s relationship. My heart hurt for Kaine knowing that her mate was gone and that he wasn’t ever going to remember her. The torture! I completely didn’t blame Kaine for having her one night with John and only wanting them to get together. I thought they made a great pair and they played off of each other so well. The characters – main and secondary – in this book were all great and I loved the sense of camaraderie that the Etruscan community had.

I very much have enjoyed Julian’s Lucani series and hope to read more in the future – hopefully we’ll find out why this woman – the villain – is doing what she’s doing! If you like good shifter books then the Lucani series is not to be missed.

Rating: 4 out of 5

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

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place

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Guest Review: Kiss of Moonlight by Stephanie Julian

Posted May 15, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 1 Comment

Tracy’s review of Kiss of Moonlight (Lucani Lovers #1) by Stephanie Julian

Plagued by nightmares. Stalked by kidnappers. Tamra McMillan needs a safe haven. When tattooed bad-ass Kyle Rossini steps into her life, the last thing she expects to find is a sanctuary from her demons or steaming hot sex. In fact, everything about him screams danger. But appearances can be deceiving. The tender possessiveness of his touch, the hunger in his eyes, the scorching sensuality of his kiss—all of it sears him into her soul and brands her as his for life.

But otherworldly forces are afoot and death hovers…

Etruscan werewolf Kyle is a loner. The king’s assassin with a killer’s instincts. The last thing he needs is a mate who could be placed in danger because of him. Until he meets the one woman who needs him more than he needs his solitude. When Tamra, battered but not broken, stumbles into his world and tumbles into his bed, she captures his heart. And nothing—not kidnappers or visions of his possible death—will keep him from her.

Tamra McMillan has decided to rest, recover and hide in her great-grandfathers home. She’s running from her past that included an abduction, rape and abuse by an attacker. She is actually kind of happy when she finds a puppy on her lawn. She thinks she might be losing it but it’s so nice to be able to talk to someone – even if it is a dog. Then a larger version of the puppy shows up and she continues to bring herself some emotional relief by unloading even more information to the black dog.

The black dog isn’t a dog at all but Etruscan werewolf, Kyle Rossini. He is Tamra’s new neighbor and as much as he doesn’t want to get involved with Tamra and her life he can’t help but be drawn to her. When men show up at her home trying to kidnap her Kyle knows that Tamra will be staying with him while he and his Etruscan cohorts can figure out why Tamra, along with some other Etruscans, are being kidnapped. Especially since Tamra has no magic in her. What begins for Kyle as keeping Tam safe (at least that’s what he tells himself) turns into much, much more.

This was a great shifter story. I love shifter stories where the shifters actually, you know, shift. They did in this one and it was great. I also enjoyed the fact that the shifters had mates, as Tam ended up being for Kyle, but I didn’t get the impression that this was a fated thing. That the men and women had control over who their mate was and that was something that added to the story.

At first when I found out that Tamra had been raped and it only happened 6 months prior to meeting Kyle I wasn’t sure how this was gonna be pulled off. Let’s face it, rape is something that takes time to move on from. But I felt that Ms. Julian dealt with the issue in a way that made me believe that this was something that could happen. She was a strong heroine to Kyle’s strong hero personality and they fit together so well.

I look forward to reading Moonlight Menage which is book 2 in the Lucani Lovers series.

Rating: 4 out of 5

You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place

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

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