Tag: Shannon McKenna

Sunday Spotlight: Heedless by Shannon McKenna

Posted January 3, 2021 by Casee in Features, Giveaways | 3 Comments

Sunday Spotlight is a feature we began in 2016. This year we’re spotlighting our favorite books, old and new. We’ll be raving about the books we love and being total fangirls. You’ve been warned. 🙂

Sunday Spotlight: Heedless by Shannon McKennaHeedless by Shannon McKenna
Series: The Hellbound Brotherhood #4
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: December 4, 2020
Point-of-View: Alternating Third
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Pages: 308
Add It: Goodreads
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Whatever it takes to protect her...Security expert Nate Murphy came to Shaw's Crossing to kick ass and help the Trask brothers fight off their enemies. He didn't expect to get knocked off his feet by the elusive, gorgeous Elisa, the mysterious woman who works in Demi's restaurant. Elisa's holding something back...something big. Nate's a Marine and ex-bouncer whose specialty is breaking heads...but the fear in Elisa's eyes makes him want to crush whoever put it there. If only she would tell him the truth...

Secrets and lies...

Elisa Rinaldi is on the run from a killer. She doesn't dare expose him because he's holding her little brother captive. Hiding in the mountain town of Shaw's Crossing had seemed like a good idea at the time, but getting attached to the people there was not...particularly the hard-eyed, hard-bodied Nate Murphy. Because her new friends have big troubles of their own, and their trouble makes a lot of noise. Things have gotten messy in this town, with cops and media coverage everywhere. If she shows up on TV or online, she's dead...and so is her beloved brother.

Elisa has to leave Shaw's Crossing-after a parting gift to herself. One unforgettable night with Nate, and she'll do the right thing...even if it breaks her. The passion between them leaves Nate gasping for breath. Then Elisa vanishes. Nate can't rest until he finds her. He means to solve her problem once and for all...by any means necessary.

Elisa will risk everything to protect the man she loves, but Nate just won't back down. Now danger is coming from all sides, while her mortal enemy is playing a game of cat and mouse...

And the stakes are both their lives...

Excerpt

Nate had to go back a few times, to check on the water and gauge the temperature. In between times, he slid right back into the warm bed and wound himself around Elisa’s slender, silken one. So lithe and strong. Those beautiful, plump, perfectly shaped tits. So perfect for his hands, his mouth.

His dick was in a perpetual state of frantic eagerness whenever she was in his line of vision. Or his thoughts, for that matter. And the touch of her skin made his heart thud and his whole body instantly overheat into a thrum of raw need.

Wait. He had to pace himself. This wasn’t about him. He had to make it perfect for her. It was the iron-clad rule. Forever and always.

When the tub was finally full, he turned to find her already in the bathroom door, winding that long, night-dark curly mass of her hair into a thick messy knot on top of her head, and securing it with the black elastic tie she’d used for her braid.

He was speechless, his entire brain busy processing the sensory input of her naked beauty. Her eyes fell to his erection, and she gave him a teasing smile, her eyebrows going up. “Oh! So it’s that kind of bath?”

“It’s just a bath,” he assured her. “Any kind of bath you like. I don’t want to overdo it.”

“Speak for yourself, buddy.” She stalked past him, stroking his chest and arm as she went by, and her slow, teasing touch buzzed against his nerves like electricity.

He followed, helpless and dazzled. She moved like a queen. Regal, lofty. He could stare at her elegant back forever. The little wispy dark curls at her nape.

Nate stepped in front of her and went in first, down the steps and to the bottom of the hip deep tub. He held out his hand. When she took it, the contact was a soul touch. A mark of divine favor, and she was a goddess with the power to bless and transform him. To change his fate forever.

He couldn’t even pretend not to look at her. From her bold eyes and face and her body’s stance, she silently commanded it.

He took the opportunity to memorize every tiny perfect detail. The curly wisps of dark hair clinging to her cheekbones, the secret, mysterious smile in her golden eyes, the flushed, sexy lips. So full. Their beautiful, sensual shape.

She already acted so differently with him, after only a few hours of being lovers. Since they met, he’d admired her beauty and wanted to know her secrets, but she’d kept him at arm’s length. She’d struck him as fragile, brittle. Hunted.

She didn’t seem that way anymore. She felt her power now. He saw it in her eyes, in the tilt in her chin, in the way she held her shoulders. She flaunted her body as she descended slowly into the water, and sank down onto the bench, the steaming water now up to her collarbone. “Thank you,” she said demurely.

He followed her lead, and sat down next to her. But the natural magnetism of their bodies just pulled him toward her until their thighs touched.

“Is the temperature OK?” he asked. “It’s not too hot?”

“It’s perfect,” she said. “It’s delicious. Just like this.”

They floated there for a while, and he reached over, sliding his finger into her hand. He felt almost, oh God forbid, shy. He fished awkwardly for something to say.

“So, Gina says there’s a strip mall about twenty miles down the highway,” he said. “There’s an electronics store with gaming stuff there. I checked, and the site says it opens at nine. Plus there are clothing stores, so we can outfit you.”

“Don’t worry about that,” she said. “I’ll get my stuff back from Demi’s apartment if I survive. A change of clothes is the least of my worries right now.”

“You shouldn’t have to wait,” he said stubbornly. “We’ll just grab a few things.”

“Very nice of you, but not necessary,” she told him. “Is this part of your seductive lover-boy routine? Buying me fripperies?”

“No, just a simple to-do list,” he admitted. “I’m not the crafty scheming type.”

She floated out into the middle of the tub and spun around to face him, smiling into his eyes. “You’re sweet, Nate,” she said. “Did you know that?”

“No,” he said, bemused. “Not particularly.”

She surged forward and cupped his face in her hands—and kissed him.

God. He was so primed, he could have come then and there. By a hair, he fought it down, breathing it down, fists clenched. Her lips were so soft and sweet. A tender, velvety hidden secret that only he was privileged to know. It humbled him.

Her hands splayed over his chest. So trusting. The points of her nipples touched his chest, ever so slightly. Tiny twin kisses, every point of contact a bright glow of hyper-awareness.

Kissing her made him want to be worthy of her. To be better than he was.

Then she was on his lap, straddling him. Knees perched on the bench, right over his stiff, aching cock. Her body undulating against him with a sigh, the water heaving and sloshing around her shoulders. Inviting him to take whatever he wanted.

What, was this some sort of test of his resolve? Damn. He made a low sound, a groan of frustration, and lifted her gently up, holding her suspended in the water.

“Take it easy,” he complained. “We shouldn’t do it again so soon. You should rest. Take it easy. You’re killing me.”

“Am I?” Her small, secret smile drove him nuts. “Talk about mixed messages.”

“Don’t tease me,” he pleaded. “It is really fucking hard to say no to you.”

“So don’t,” she said. “If it’s hard to say no, it should be easy to say yes.”

She reached down to caress his dick. That twist-squeeze-pull, from root to the head, made him shudder and gasp. “What a waste of a beautiful hard-on,” she said. “Say yes, Nate.”

The water sloshed heavily as she stood up. Pink from the heat. Gleaming.

She sank down facing him on the top step, which was barely covered in water, and fixed her big, dreamy eyes on him, red lips parted, eyelashes tangled with drops of water. Trailed her hand down slowly. Over her breast, over her belly, and then lower, to the whorl of dark silky hair on her mound.

Her legs opened. “I just feel so hot,” she whispered. “But poor me…it looks like I’ll have to take care of this all by my lonely self, right?”

“Holy fuck,” he groaned. “Really? You’re going to do this to me?”

“Well, technically speaking, it’s something that I’m doing to myself,” she mused. “What choice do I have, if I want this orgasm? And I do want it. I want it bad.”

He watched, hypnotized, at the stunning spectacle of her pale skin, her gleaming, luminous hot pink folds sensually caressed by her long, slender fingers. Parting herself, opening, showing him all of it. Her golden eyes were half-lidded, lost in a sensual dream. Completely unself-conscious. Owning him, taunting him, toying with herself. Watching him watch her, with that seductive smile.

He liked that energy. Playful, strong. Enjoying her pleasure. Egging him on. Fucking with his head, in the best possible way. It was agony, and he loved it.

“So strange,” she said, in a dreamy tone. “I don’t even know the person I am right now. You have the strangest effect on me. I go all naughty sexpot. I feel like some sort of celestial deity. Bow and tremble before my power, mortal.”

“I’ve always trembled before your power,” he said. “I felt it all along. You’ve just been a little distracted lately, so you haven’t felt it yourself.”

She laughed at that, but the it petered out, breathless, as she took her own sweet time. Eyes closed, head thrown back. Strands of her hair had tumbled loose, floating in the water, waving like seaweed. Lost in her pleasure. Unguarded.

She went rigid, and then he watched as pleasure rippled through her, shaking her like a storm wind. So fucking gorgeous.

And that was it. She’d won. Whatever might have remained of his self-control vanished. He didn’t even remember why he’d been trying to hold back.

Water sloshed over the edge of the tub as he reached for her.

The Hellbound Brotherhood


Giveaway Alert

We’re giving one lucky winner their choice of one of our Sunday Spotlight books. Use the widget below to enter for one of this month’s features.

Sunday Spotlight: January 2021

Are you as excited for this release as we are? Let us know how excited you are and what other books you’re looking forward to this year!

About Shannon McKenna

Shannon McKenna Author Photo

I started writing my first romance novel in secret. I was working a temp job in Manhattan at the time, supporting my music habit (details on that secret double life here) and even if there was nothing for me to do, I still had to look busy. But I hated wasting time, and I needed to round out my singing career. Most artists choose a practical Plan B to back up their improbable Plan A. Not me. "Long Shot" is my middle name.

So I set up a Document 2 with a fierce looking spreadsheet on it. If the boss du jour walked by, I switched screens. When the coast was clear, I went back to my story. One stern fact I learned from that experience is that you need more than just stolen crumbs of time and attention to make the magic happen. I also learned that every little crumb helps. Life is full of these little contradictions.

It wasn't until I moved to southern Italy (details of that long shot here) that I was really able throw my weight behind the writing. There I was, not a word of Italian, no job, no clue, just long, quiet days alone with nothing to do and no excuses. I finally slogged my way to the end of the short category romance that I’d been dinking around with for years. Kensington accepted it, bless them, and I had my start. I wrote four more category romances for that line before I got the chance for a place in an anthology of erotic novellas for the new Brava imprint. Then came my first single title novel, Behind Closed Doors—and my writing career took off.


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Review: Fade to Midnight by Shannon McKenna

Posted June 22, 2010 by Casee in Reviews | 5 Comments

Genres: Romantic Suspense

Fade To Midnight (Mccloud Brothers)Casee‘s review of Fade to Midnight (McCloud Brothers, Book 7) by Shannon McKenna.

Davy…Connor…Sean… Three brothers who have conquered their demons, but they’ve never forgotten their long lost brother, Kev, whom they believed to be dead. When the McCloud brothers discover Kev is alive, they won’t rest until they find him…


Beaten and tortured almost to death, Kev Larsen was found eighteen years earlier in a warehouse alley. He survived his brutal ordeal, but his memories before that night were completely erased. When he nearly dies from trying to save someone from drowning, the brain surgery he has to save his life triggers fragmented, terrifying memories. With only these memories and the name of his torturer to guide him, Kev is determined to unlock the secrets to his past.


Edie Parrish has always been good at not letting anyone get too close to her. If someone were to learn of her unusual gift, her life would be immediately jeopardized. But when Kev Larsen discovers who she really is, Edie has only one choice: to trust him. And soon, Edie can’t resist her consuming desire for him—even though she knows she’ll have to pay a price for it.


Now Kev and Edie must race against time and place their faith in each other to stop a deadly legacy…

Fade to Midnight is over the top, even for Shannon McKenna. That’s not to say that I didn’t like the book; I loved it. To a non-McKenna lover, it almost certainly wouldn’t be as well received. The whole situation is just so unlikely that it may be hard to suspend your disbelief long enough to keep reading.

Kevin McCloud has been dead since the first book in the McCloud series. That was never called into question until Edge of Midnight—Sean’s book. I’ve read different interviews where McKenna stated that she had no idea that Kev was alive until he jumped out and shouted at her. That is believable if not just because of the outrageousness of where Kev has been and what he was doing eighteen long years ago.

I’m going to go straight to what I didn’t like about this book. The Kev/Sean reunion. They are identical twins. They have one of those twin bonds even though neither recognized it; Kev b/c he had amnesia and Sean b/c he thought Kev was dead and he was just crazy. The absolute and total lack of an emotional reunion between the two of them really took away something that I was expecting. Which is just pretty damn sad from my perspective.

Edie Parrish has been drawing Kev for eighteen years. While she outwardly believes that he is nothing but a fictional creation, inside she knows that he’s much more than that. It’s her uncanny ability to draw the future that has made her family think she is bonkers. When she meets Kev, she thinks that she will finally be validated in the eyes of her father, having no idea of the events that have been set into motion.

The big bad that took Kev McCloud away from his family for almost twenty years is back in the form of a crazy little scientist named Ava. She is one crazy bitch, ya’ll. Sociopathic. Psychotic. Her elevator doesn’t even go up, it goes down. She wants Edie and she wants Kev, both for experiments. Ava wants to continue the work that her mentor, Dr. O (whom Sean McCloud killed), worked on for so many years. She believes that Kev and Edie are the key to that work.

I usually don’t really care whether or not there is an epilogue. I was somewhat disappointed that there wasn’t one in Fade to Midnight. After all the strife and angst that I, the reader, have gone through since this series came out I would have liked to see all the McCloud brothers united amid a non-gunfire/life threatening situation.

With all that, I still give this book:

4 out of 5.

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

The series:

Behind Closed Doors (The McCloud Brothers, Book 1)Standing in the ShadowsOut Of Control (The McCloud Brothers, Book 3)Edge Of MidnightExtreme DangerUltimate Weapon (The McCloud Brothers, Book 6)


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What I’ve Been Reading This Week

Posted August 31, 2009 by Tracy in Features | 14 Comments

She’s baaaaack! Yes, I’m back from my weekend in the mountains. It’s just so incredibly beautiful and peaceful up there. We had so much fun. I just love getting together with some of the women I know and having a weekend away. We laughed and drank wine and shopped (got some gorgeous Bass boots that were normally $109.00 for $49.00 and some Bass dress shoes that are stinking adorable for $43.00 marked down from $89.00…oh and got some stuff for hubby and kids too. lol) and read and played games. It was just relaxing and fun! I came back refreshed and feeling like I could conquer the world my office. lol

(Here’s a picture of the playful racoons that were on the deck of the house last night.)

And I did conquer the office! Well, at least part of it. The important book part. Here are before pictures of the shelves/messy office. Yes, the box and the bag on the floor have books in them, of course. (and I had the camera on the wrong setting which means the pictures were under-exposed and makes them look worse! lol)

And here’s the new bookcase. Technically it’s for cd/media storage but it was just so adorable and the perfect size for my office I just had to get it. I got to move my hubby’s cd’s (a friggin miracle) and then move some books around. I got an extra shelf out of it in the built-in bookcase and filled the new shelves with cd’s (he got 1 shelf) and my books. It’s beeeeeautiful! Here are photos of the finished product. Later I’ll be working on total office domination (which means that the trashy fish tank that is a total eyesore but my hubby refuses to move will be gone!) but for now I’m happy with the way it is. :0)

I even grouped the books that I’d already read by author. I know, don’t fall off your chairs, I was just on a roll. 🙂 And I have a big bag of books to take to the next So Cal Blogger Get-Together!

Reading: I really didn’t read that much this week but I got everything done that I needed to so that was good.
Book for The Book Binge read – check
Book for Tracy’s TBR Challenge Read read – check (well almost since it was a DNF)
Book for Nath’s Re-Read Challeng read – check
and a couple other stories in between.

So up first was Saving Midnight by Emma Holly. As I said in my last post, the review is up at The Book Binge if you’d like to read it.
Next up was my Tracy’s TBR Challenge Read for the week: All About Men by Shannon McKenna. Sorry to say this was a DNF for me. My thoughts are in my previous post here.
Next was Out of Her Dreams by Fran Lee. This is a story about a romance author who has dreamed about a man since she was 14. She has based a series of books on him and has used the likeness from her dream for the cover of the books. One day at a book signing a man shows up and he looks exactly like her dream man! It’s a cute story that has lots of sex and some sweet moments. 4 out of 5
Last were the books I read for my Re-Read Challenge. I re-read the novella Alpha and Omega and the book Cry Wolf both by Patricia Briggs. I’ll post my reviews on Tuesday.

And that’s it! Can you believe it? I know I was shocked too. lol Ah well, another day…another book! lol
Happy Reading!
(Sorry for the book covers going all wonky. I can’t seem to fix it. I think it might be time for a new blog template – this one’s driving me batty! lol)


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Review: Tasting Fear by Shannon McKenna

Posted August 26, 2009 by Casee in Reviews | 1 Comment

Genres: Romantic Suspense

Casee‘s review of Tasting Fear by Shannon McKenna.

Blood Will Tell

Nancy. . .Nell. . .Vivi. . . Three sisters who know there is no force on earth greater than love. . .unless it is the desire for vengeance. When their adored foster mother is murdered, the D’Onofrio women come together to hunt for her murderer—and track down a family legacy gone missing: rare, priceless art from the Renaissance, a treasure worth killing for. The law can only do so much and the three sisters are on their own—until three mysterious men get involved. . .

Startled to find a brawny stranger at her mother’s house, Nancy is even more surprised at the heat of passion that flares between them. Liam is intense and instantly protective. But is it wise to trust him with every secret? Her sister Nell has turned to Duncan, her new boss, for help. He’s an expert on the dark underworld of cyberspace, where other clues may lurk. And Duncan is so sexy it’s scary. All Nell has to do is say the hardest word of all: yes. But what about the youngest of the D’Onofrios, the wild and willful Vivi? She’s on the verge of falling in love with Jack, who’s all about fierce vigilance. . .

The sisters embrace the ultimate in passion as danger stalks them all. Unknown and unseen, the killer is very, very near . . .

This book is like Chains by Shiloh Walker. It’s broken down into three different stories, but the overall arc is the same. While I usually like Shannon McKenna, this format didn’t do it for me.

Nancy is all about work. Liam is all about home. They are polar opposites, but their attraction to each other is fierce. Liam is a natural caregiver while Nancy is used to taking care of herself. When the sisters realize that the person that murdered their mother is now after them, Liam wants to lock Nancy away until he’s found. That obviously doesn’t go over well with Nancy.

I think it was the length of Nancy and Liam’s story that hurt it. I am so used to McKenna’s characters going back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. They have something like 400 pages to get past their differences. It wasn’t like that here. It just felt too rushed.

The story of Nell and Duncan was definitely the best. Duncan is one of my favorite kind of heroes. The smart, silent type that is just naturally confused by women. He’s not malicious nor mean. He’s just Duncan. Nell has noticed Duncan since the day he started coming into the cafe she works at. He never notices her. When she replies to an employment ad, she’s shocked to find Duncan at the desk. Duncan is dismayed to see Nell as well. It was only that day that he finally noticed her (he doesn’t think “finally”) and decided that he was going to pursue her. This happened after they were first together. Probably my favorite part of the book.

“That was incredible,” he offered.

“Yes,” she agreed.

He was heartened. “I didn’t mean for things to happen so fast between us,” he said.

She stifled a soft, whispery giggle. “Me neither,” she murmured.

I looked like she wasn’t getting all emotional on him, thank God. Maybe she was a reasonable female. “Well, there’s no going back now.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Meaning?”

“Meaning, I think we’re on to something here. It’ll be complicated, but it’s worth it to me. Let’s go get some dinner and we can hammer out the details.”

“Details?” she repeated slowly.

“Yeah. Our mutually beneficial arrangement. It’ll need to be secret, for obvious reasons, but we can swing it. I’ll take you to my condo. We’ll order in. I’ll show you how beneficial it can be.”

What made it so funny is that he was completely serious. He wasn’t trying to hurt her. It was just great reading about him kind of bumbling around trying to figure out what the feelings were that Nell invoked in him.

The third and final sister: Vivi. At the request of Duncan, Vivi heads to Oregon where a former military buddy of his can watch over her until the mystery is unraveled. Jack and Vivi take an instant dislike to each other. Vivi is everything Jack has never wanted, yet he has never been so physically attracted to anyone. Vivi refuses to be someone she is not and is offended when Jack thinks he has her figured out so quick.

The suspense is obviously wrapped up by the end of the book. They whole mystery of why their mother was murdered wasn’t even that riveting. The villain, who seemed so villian-like at the beginning, really went downhill. Like into pathetic territory. I just found it laughable how a professional assassin would take a job so personal. It was just very non-McKenna like. Which is probably why I was so disappointed.

3 out of 5.

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


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Book Watch: Tasting Fear by Shannon McKenna

Posted June 19, 2009 by Casee in Promotions | 7 Comments

Book Cover

Nancy, Nell, Vivi…Three sisters who know there is no force on earth greater than love…unless it is the desire for vengeance. When their adored foster mother is murdered, the D’Onofrio women come together to hunt for her murderer – and track down a family legacy gone missing: rare, priceless art from the Renaissance, a treasure worth killing for. The law can only do so much and the three sisters are on their own – until three mysterious men get involved…Startled to find a brawny stranger at her mother’s house, Nancy is even more surprised at the heat of passion that flares between them. Liam is intense and instantly protective. But is it wise to trust him with every secret? Her sister Nell has turned to Duncan, her new boss, for help. He’s an expert on the dark underworld of cyberspace, where other clues may lurk. And Duncan is so sexy it’s scary. All Nell has to do is say the hardest word of all: yes. But what about the youngest of the D’Onofrios, the wild and willful Vivi? She’s on the verge of falling in love with Jack, who’s all about fierce vigilance…The sisters embrace the ultimate in passion as danger stalks them all. Unknown and unseen, the killer is very, very near…

I love Shannon McKenna’s books. There is something about them, a rawness perhaps, that just gets to me. Her heroes are alpha males that are fiercely protective of their women. The heroines are strong women that let the men think they are in control.

I don’t know which Shannon McKenna I would consider my favorite. They are all so good. I do know that if you’re looking for a good erotica author, you’ll find it in Shannon McKenna.

This book is available from Brava. You can pre-order it here.


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