Tag: Mari Carr

#DFRAT Excerpt and Giveaway: Full Moon by Mari Carr

Posted July 23, 2013 by Tracy in Reviews | 4 Comments

Sometimes it’s not just the tide that rises…

Second Chances, Book 2In the two years since her divorce was finalized, Josie Jacobson’s life has become one long, boring routine. Work, home, repeat. She has her hands full as a single parent, and while she’s not looking for a serious relationship, she sure wouldn’t mind getting laid.

When her friend, Zoey, challenges her to make a New Year’s resolution for a second chance at happiness, Josie goes one better and creates the “Howl List”. Every full moon, she will indulge in a different sexual fantasy. Right at the top? Sex without strings. 

Fate leads her to the Blue Moon bar in January. After all, what better place to howl? And when she meets Jake Stewart, the sexy bartender, and engages in some red-hot sex with a stranger, her year seems to be off to a great start. 
At least, until Jake declares he wants all her full moons…

Warning: This is NOT the shifter story you are looking for. While the heroine howls during the full moon, she does it in naked, human-form only. Sorry—no wolves, but there is a really sexy bartender and lots of red-hot fantasies. 

Excerpt:

“Tonight’s full moon is sex in public.”

Jake choked on the drink and put the glass back down. “In public?”

She nodded.

“What the hell do you mean by full moon?”

Josie considered avoiding the question, but there was no harm in telling him the truth. She explained about her list and her desire to fulfill the fantasies.

“So what’s on the list? Besides the stranger danger and PDA ones.” Jake was exactly as she’d remembered him. Unflappable, fun, funny.

She shook her head. “I’m afraid the contents of the list are privileged information. If I told you, I’d have to fuck you.”

Jake grasped her shoulder, pulling her closer. “I’d have no problem with—”

“Jake?” A waitress stood by their table. She pointed to a couple of loud drunks by the door. “I think we might have trouble. You wanna take care of it?”

Jake sighed. “Yeah, sure. I’ll be right over.”

The waitress went back to work.

Jake leaned closer, whispering in her ear. “If you don’t have any luck with number two on the list within the next hour, come find me.”

Josie didn’t have a chance to respond before Jake rose and went to address the problem by the entrance. She took a sip of her drink, hoping it would calm her down. It was suddenly quite warm in the bar.

Josie watched Shelly and Lance dance, then gazed around the room. The place was crowded and there certainly wasn’t a shortage of men hanging around, either drinking alone or standing in large groups.

She spotted one large table across the room. It appeared the men were all out for a bachelor party. She found the groom-to-be instantly. The party must have been going for a while because the man had at least a dozen empty shot glasses in front of him. His friends were sending him out of bachelorhood in style. She slowly studied each of the men at the table, silently trying to decide which were married, which were mama’s boys, which were playboys.

Josie had never paid much attention to the opposite sex. Tony had been her first boyfriend. She’d fallen fast and hard for him toward the end of their junior year in high school and she’d convinced herself she was lucky. She’d honestly believed she’d found her soul mate at sixteen.

She closed her eyes wearily. The silly romantic girl she had been was long gone, leaving Josie struggling to figure out what her beliefs regarding love were now. Since the divorce, Josie had concentrated on setting up a new home for her and her son, working long hours to pay the bills, and avoiding the dating scene as much as possible because she refused to open up a revolving door of men in Tommy’s life.

She remembered too well how painful it was when her mother would bring home a new boyfriend, include him in every aspect of their lives, then yank him out again after the break-up.

Josie wouldn’t—couldn’t—do that to Tommy. The full-moon list had been created to protect him. And her.

So while she was tempted by Jake’s offer, she wasn’t sure she should accept it. She’d thought about the handsome bartender too many times the past few weeks. If she had sex with him again, wasn’t she sort of tempting fate and running the risk of developing feelings for him?

As tough as she tried to pretend she was, Josie knew when it came to matters of the heart, she was way too soft.

A man lingered at the edge of the dance floor by her table and gave her a friendly smile. It wouldn’t take much effort on her part to show interest, to invite him over.

Josie glanced over her shoulder and watched Jake deal with the two drunks by the door. Apparently a fight had been brewing between them, but somehow Jake had calmed the waters. They were laughing at something Jake had said. She smiled. Then she ignored the stranger and stood up, approaching Jake just as the two men shook his hand and said goodbye.

“Hey, gorgeous.” Jake glanced at his watch. “It’s only been fifteen minutes. Are you coming to give me the brush-off?”

She shook her head. “No. I don’t want to wait an hour.”

Jake’s eyes darkened with lust and her body responded instantly. “Come with me.”

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DFRAT: Book Giveaway – Misplaced Princess by Mari Carr & Lexxie Couper

Posted June 22, 2012 by Tracy in Reviews | 13 Comments

Giveaway: One lucky winner will win a digital copy of Misplaced Princess.  Leave a comment along with your email address no later than 7:00pm on  June 27th to enter to win.
Foreign Affairs, Book One
Annie Prince has impetuously flown halfway ’round the world to visit a sexy cowboy she met online—only to find herself stranded in Sydney. Seems she and Dylan crossed wires, and he’s on his way to New York. His twin, Hunter, saves the day and whisks her back to the family cattle station. Hunter’s as easy on the eyes as Dylan, and even easier to talk to. Annie might have flown to Oz to meet one brother, but soon sparks are flying with the other.
Hunter considered Dylan a dumb arse for jetting off to America for some stranger—until he met Annie. Turns out the New Yorker is a smart, funny, hard-working jillaroo…and hotter than the Aussie desert. Hunter’s not normally one to poach his brother’s women, but he can’t keep his hands, lips, tongue and other body parts off this sexy city girl.
When raging lust leads to emotional attachment, where does that leave Annie and Hunter when her vacation comes to an end—or when Dylan finds out?
By reading any further, you are stating that you are at least 18 years of age. If you are under the age of 18, it is necessary to exit this site.
An Excerpt From: MISPLACED PRINCESS
Copyright © MARI CARR & LEXXIE COUPER, 2012
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
Hunter ran his finger down the pretty blonde’s arm, enjoying the flirting and easy banter. He’d hit the bar after seeing his idiot brother off at his gate. They’d flown the station helicopter to Sydney, leaving so early this morning it had still been dark. Hunter had a couple of hours to kill while he waited for the flight mechanic to refuel the chopper and clear him for takeoff.
“So you live on a cattle station?” the blonde asked. He’d forgotten her name the second she’d said it. One of these days he was going to have to learn to pay attention to details like that.
“Yep. Farpoint Creek. My family’s owned it forever. Established it back in the 1800s.”
The woman feigned interest, but Hunter could see the disdain in her eyes. She was clearly a city girl and the idea of living out whoop whoop in the Outback was less than appealing to her. Lucky for both of them, he wasn’t considering taking this game of slap and tickle out of the airport.
She leaned closer, accidentally brushing the side of his arm with her breast. They’d started their flirting at different tables. Then he’d joined her. After a few minutes of sexual innuendoes, he’d given up his seat across the table and moved over to share her side of the booth.
“You know, I’m a member of the Qantas Club.”
“Is that right?” he asked.
“I was actually thinking of heading over there and freshening up before my flight. They have showers in the lounge.”
“Showers, eh? Bit bloody fancy.”
She dragged her hand along his leg, starting at his knee and working her way up. He liked a woman who knew what she wanted and wasn’t afraid to grab it. His dick twitched when her hand crept closer.
“Wish I had someone to wash my back,” she purred.
He started to offer his sudsy services, but something on the PA caught his attention. “What did she say?”
“What did who say?”
The PA announcement was repeated. Dylan Sullivan, please meet your party at the customer service desk located at terminal one.
What the hell? Dylan wasn’t here. At least, he bloody well shouldn’t be.
Hunter reluctantly pushed the woman away while silently cursing his brother. “Sorry, love, but I gotta go do something.” Dylan would pay dearly for costing him a shower with this beauty in the high flyer’s club. He retrieved his hat from the table and put it back on his head.
“You’re leaving?”
Hunter nodded regretfully. “Yeah. Afraid it can’t be helped.” He threw enough cash on the table to cover both of their drinks and a generous tip for the waitress. “Sorry.”
He walked toward terminal one, trying to figure out why Dylan wasn’t jetting away from Sydney, getting closer to making one of the dumbest mistakes of his life. He’d loaded his brother on a plane headed for New York over an hour ago.
Hunter had spent most of their morning trek to Sydney trying to convince Dylan that taking off halfway around the world to hook up with some broad he’d met on one of those stupid online dating services made him look pretty desperate.
He’d also pointed out that precious little could come of this trip, besides getting a piece of New York tail. Dylan lived and worked on Farpoint Creek cattle station. In Australia. Trying to hook up with some American chick wasn’t exactly practical.
Dylan, ever the romantic idiot, seemed to think Annie had the potential to be his soul mate. Jesus, his brother had actually used those words—soul mate—and was supposed to be headed to New York to prove that asinine fact.
Had Dylan missed his plane? Hunter couldn’t figure out how. They’d made it to the departure gate in plenty of time. And if so, why would he page himself rather than ask the customer service rep to page Hunter? Maybe Dylan had given his own name as well and the lady had fucked it up.
He glanced at the crowd standing around the service desk as he walked toward the terminal. He and Dylan weren’t lacking in the height department. If his dickhead brother was around, he sure as hell wasn’t standing up; he’d tower over these people. Add the fact he and Dylan hardly ever took off their bloody hats and Hunter should be able to spot him a mile away.
He started to get in line at the desk to ask who’d paged Dylan when a woman walked up to him.
“You’re here!” she said.
Hunter tried to place the woman’s face. She looked vaguely familiar. “I am?” His mother claimed he’d been cursed with a sarcastic streak as wide as Farpoint since the day he was born. While his mum found it annoying, Hunter had never found a good reason to curb that personality trait.
The pretty woman smiled. “I was starting to worry.”
Before he could tell her she had the wrong bloke and should go ahead and hang on to her anxiety, she took a step closer and threw her arms around him.
The hard-on Hunter had managed to batten down as he’d walked away from his potential shower partner reemerged when her firm breasts brushed against his chest. Bloody hell. Who knew the airport was such a great place to pick up women? He might have to fly to Sydney International more often.
Never one to pass up an opportunity, he accepted the embrace, loosely wrapping his arms around her back. The lovely lady was just the right height for him and had some sexy curves. He liked a woman with meat on her bones.
She pulled away slightly and he started to release her, but she kept her arms wrapped around him and upped the ante, kissing him.
It started as a sweet, friendly kiss, but Hunter wasn’t having any of that shit. She smelled and tasted too good. He grasped her soft face and held her close. He turned his head and deepened the kiss, pressing her lips open so he could get an even better taste. He was thrilled when her tongue met his halfway. Jesus. This chick could kiss.

Also…Mari and Lexxie are having a Scavenger Hunt to celebrate the release of Misplaced Princess and they’re giving away a Kindle!!  Click on the beautiful man picture for further details.

Click here to learn more about Mari and here to learn more about Lexxie.

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Guest Review: Eastern Ambitions by Mari Carr and Jayne Rylon

Posted December 17, 2011 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 0 Comments


Judith’s review of Eastern Ambitions by Mari Carr & Jayne Rylon (Compass Brothers, #3).

Sam Compton always yearned for more than a simple country life. More money, more nightlife and more excitement. As an independent Wall Street trader nicknamed “The Cowboy”, he amassed a small fortune flying by the seat of his pants, taking risks that rewarded him well, but he soon comes to realize his two older brothers have found something that makes them richer than Warren Buffet. A little jealous, and plenty guilty for leaving them to shoulder their family’s burdens, he returns to Compton Pass where he finds the woman keeping the books fires his imagination. Too bad she’s too prim and proper to consider the kind of sex that fires his blood. At least that’s what he thinks until he discovers her in the middle of a cowboy sandwich along with two of his boyhood friends.

This novel is third in a series of stories about four brothers, all of whom left their hometown and family ranch for various reasons. It was as if they couldn’t get out of there fast enough. All had life goals that couldn’t be realized at home, or in the case of the first brother, circumstances that made his remaining there untenable (Northern Exposure).

Sam is the Wall Street whiz kid, a man who has mapped out his life carefully and is following that plan to a T. What he hadn’t planned on was the betrayal of a woman who had her eye on his promotion and when the dust settled, Sam came home. Not only was his career seemingly in ruins, but there was the matter of his dying dad. The last person he expected to see was a woman with a whole truck load of issues but whose loyalty was strongly connected to his family. Her beauty and independence fascinates him, but the last thing Sam needs is another female problem. He is also fully aware that he has a dark side and has accepted that it will be an unusual woman who can accept those parts of him.

This third novel is quite different than the first two–the characters are really different, so their stories will have a different “flavor.” The first two brothers have a considerably different “take” on life, while Sam has developed into a man who keeps his life carefully in order, who keeps his goals will in mind, who is the kind of poker player who keeps his cards very close to his chest. While he has accepted a lot about himself, he isn’t foolish enough to believe that others can accept those things about him. So he just quietly keeps his own counsel. Thus this has a much more hidden quality to it and is not the “wild West” kind of story. For that reason some reviewers have had a bit of a negative response to the story. I am not one of them. I applaud writers who tell a character’s story however it develops and are willing to allow that story to just be what it is.

Ms Carr and Ms Rylon have lots of writing miles under their collective belts and both know how to allow their stories to be character driven. Thus this tale is very much lower key than the first two books but I think it packs the same kind of erotic and romantic punch. The heroine knows her own needs and while she may come across to some as a “loose woman,” she is a woman who knows herself well and is willing to seek satisfaction in a way that is safe and consensual. All her relationships are built on friendship and affection, and what Sam ultimately discovers about her is that she has a heart that is loyal, genuine, and as big as the state of Texas. Thus, this is a very hot book and is full of local color and the feel of a modern ranch operation.

This is one of those erotic romances that is fun to read and has some parts that will steam up the reader’s glasses. Yet it is, bottom line, about the inner journey for two people who need to find their other half, who don’t necessarily expect to find love, but who find out that there is more to loving and accepting one another than they first believed. I enjoyed the book–I love the work of both these writers–and I think it will be one that romance fans will find to be a really delightful read.

I give the book a rating of 4 out of 5

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

This book is available from Samhain Publishing. You can buy it here or here in e-format.

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Guest Review: Do Over by Mari Carr

Posted June 12, 2011 by Ames in Reviews | 8 Comments

Ames’ review of Do Over by Mari Carr.

Sometimes once is not enough…
After twenty-five years of marriage, Faith Wainwright wonders what she’ll do next. Her kids have moved out and sometimes she feels so distant from her husband, Troy.
Right before their anniversary, Troy gives Faith an unexpected gift: a journey through their hometown to reenact all their “firsts.” Their first date. Their first kiss. And especially the first time they made love—only better.
Each stop on their tour becomes an opportunity for Faith and Troy to rediscover how explosive their passion can be. Now Faith knows exactly what she’s going to do—Troy, over and over again…

Faith is suffering from empty nest syndrome. She’s just sent her youngest off to college and she’s feeling lost. Compound that with the fact that her husband has been super busy lately and she’s feeling lonely. But Faith’s husband sees more than she thinks he does and he sets up a great anniversary weekend that takes her totally by surprise, and makes her fall in love with him all over again.

Do Over was sweet. Don’t go thinking that Faith and Troy are old – they married and had children young so they’re in their early 40s. They’re comfortable with each other but revisiting all their firsts rekindles some of those early fires and these two are ready to burn the sheets. And they do. They also discover some new kinks they didn’t have before. And Faith realizes that she kind of lost track of Troy in her own loneliness.

I’ve never read Mari Carr before and I really enjoyed Do Over. I like her writing style and will definitely keep an eye out for her other books. 4 out of 5

This book is available from Carina Press. You can buy it here in e-format.

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Guest Review: Inflamed by Mari Carr

Posted May 7, 2011 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 1 Comment

Stuck in a rut in every way possible, Keri decides her first step in a bid for change is moving back to the Texas home she left years ago. The second step? Spicing up her sex life with the crazy-hot cowboys she left behind. Too responsible (and smart) to touch her way back when, Max and Shaw filled Keri’s hottest teen dreams. Now she’s older, wiser—and more than ready to make up for lost time.

Max and Shaw were always fond of Keri, but the stunning woman strutting back into their lives is a far cry from the serious, studious teen they remember. She wants to take a walk on the racy side—with both of them—and the cowboys are only too happy to oblige. As they suspected, the sex is explosive, though Max and Shaw aren’t sure Keri can really handle everything they have to give.

Nor do they know if she can handle the sexy secret they’ve yet to divulge.

From Ellora’s Cave comes another fine novella bearing the unmistakable stamp of Mari Carr’s writing expertise. Filled with erotic love and telling the story of three people who are looking for that elusive “something” to make their lives complete, Keri, Shaw & Max find themselves once again within hugging distance.

Mari Carr has written a number of novellas involving menage and this one has the added component of a m/m relationship between Max and Shaw. These two successful cowboys had become best friends when Shaw came to Max’s home as a foster child and had experienced the unconditional love of parents that wanted his happiness above all else. Max had always been the dominant personality–he needed to control his life, his environment, his future–and Shaw was happy to follow Max’s lead. Because of that, Shaw had graduated from high school with honors just like Max, and when Max went to work on the Mockingbird Ranch, it seemed like a good idea for to Shaw to follow him there, too. So it was that they had met the owner’s niece, Keri, a young pre-teen when they first knew her, who had been taken in by her Uncle Brody because he parents had, for all intent, abandoned her. They had watched her grow up and known she was very special, but when she went away to college and stayed away for 8 years, they thought she was well and truly out of their lives. Now she was back and their feelings for her were stronger than ever.

But these two strong and caring cowboys had a secret–one they were reluctant, or perhaps fearful of sharing with Keri, especially if their intentions for her played out as they hoped. Their attraction for one another had finally surfaced some years previously when the woman they had shared left and they remained locked in each other’s arms. It was a closely guarded secret but they suspected that Keri’s uncle knew about their relationship. That became evident when Uncle Brody insisted they be honest with Keri as they were preparing to spend their first night with her. But Max was too afraid of losing her before they had her, and Shaw agreed to wait. It was a mistake and one that almost cost them the best thing that had happend to them.

This novella is about finally finding the person that would complete them–not only for Shaw and Max, but would finally heal Keri’s heart and fill the holes that had been left by her parents’ abandonment and the heartbreak she had suffered by the break-up with her boyfriend of 4 years during her sojourn in New York. It was also about Max and Shaw who needed to recognize some home truths about their own relationship before they could appreciate and fully let Keri into their lives and their hearts. Was there really room for all three of them in this relationshi?.

Carr has a wonderful ability to flesh out characters even in a limited number of pages and while I have long wanted her to give us a full length novel, she has always written stories that open up her characters fully and allow the reader to understand what was going on with each of them. It is so in this novella. This is erotica, pure and simple. But it is about generosity and the willingness to give and receive love on many levels, accepting people as they are and celebrating them for who they are. In doing so, each character is allowed to grow beyond their own dreams and hopes–all of them become more open and generous then ever they thought possible.

This is a quick read but one that can be enjoyed when there isn’t time for a full-length novel. And this author has set a high standard for all who wish to write in the novella form.

I give this work 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 or here or here in e-format.

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