The Pleasures of Summer by Evie Hunter

Title: The Pleasures of Summer
Author: Evie Hunter
Info: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Release Date: May 30th, 2013
Publisher: Penguin Ireland
Pages: 448
Format: Electronic
Acquired: From Publisher
Interest: Series
Others in the Series: The Pleasures of Winter
Age Group: Adult

The Pleasures of Summer is a steamy erotic story of romantic obsession and explosive sexual chemistry for fans of Fifty Shades of Grey, The Pleasures of Winter and Sylvia Day's stories.

Summer O'Sullivan is rich, beautiful and in mortal danger. Her father has made powerful enemies who are targeting his precious daughter. Until the threat passes, Summer needs a bodyguard - someone to protect her and, she expects, to treat her with the reverence she's used to.

Into Summer's gilded cage comes former ranger, Flynn Grant. As far as Flynn is concerned, this is the assignment from hell, minding the spoilt daughter of a multi-millionaire. Summer and Flynn are poised to hate each other on sight. Even his devastating looks do not make up for how Flynn's rules cramp Summer's style. Unsurprisingly, the sparks fly between them. But when Summer breaks the rules one time too often, Flynn teaches her a lesson that leaves them shattered - and bound together in a way that astonishes them both.

In their remote hideout, the two start a battle over who is the tamer, and who is the tamed. It's a duel that stretches their minds and bodies beyond every limit. And in time their hearts begin to surrender too.

But when the dark forces that have been stalking Summer finally track them down, the battle is no longer a game, but a matter of life and death ...

Evie Hunter does it again! The companion to the first steamy novel in this wonderful series, the authors continue the tale with Summer and Flynn.

Summer is a spoiled socialite, who loves parties and having a good time. But Summer's in danger, because somebody is after her. After an accident, Summer's father decides to give her a body guard. She does her best to run off as many of them as possible, until Flynn comes along. And he's not so easy to scare away.

Flynn may just have met his match in Summer. She's sexy and tempting, a forbidden fruit that he has to taste. But she's a job, and he should never get involved with someone in the job.

Now isolated, the two of them are confronted with temptation at every turn. Flynn to keep his hands from her, and Summer doing her best to seduce him in order to get her way. With emotions running high on both ends it'll be a test of wills to see who bends first.

Honestly, this book was just as good as the first one. Summer proved to be an incredibly headache and Flynn to be a man not to mess with. Whatever was going on between the two, I don't even know what to call it, was there from the moment they met and Hunter never let it go!

This novel had me and wouldn't let me go. I never had a reason to stop reading this book, and I'm so glad that I did get the chance to read it. As erotic literature goes, I'd say this novel would be in the top ten of amazing books to read in the genre.

And there's going to be a third book! You all don't even know how excited I am right now! I can't wait to see what comes next, because there is no stopping the awesome team work of Evie Hunter!

Broken Harbour by Tana French

Title: Broken Harbour
Author: Tana French
Info: Website |  Facebook
Release Date: July 24th, 2012
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Pages: 533
Format: Electronic Copy
Acquired: ARC; Netgalley
Interest: Series
Others in the Series: In The Woods, The Likeness, & Faithful Place
Age Group: Adult

In BROKEN HARBOUR, a ghost estate outside Dublin - half-built, half-inhabited, half-abandoned - two children and their father are dead. The mother is on her way to intensive care. Scorcher Kennedy is given the case because he is the Murder squad’s star detective. At first he and his rookie partner, Richie, think this is a simple one: Pat Spain was a casualty of the recession, so he killed his children, tried to kill his wife Jenny, and finished off with himself. But there are too many inexplicable details and the evidence is pointing in two directions at once.

Scorcher’s personal life is tugging for his attention. Seeing the case on the news has sent his sister Dina off the rails again, and she’s resurrecting something that Scorcher thought he had tightly under control: what happened to their family, one summer at Broken Harbour, back when they were children. The neat compartments of his life are breaking down, and the sudden tangle of work and family is putting both at risk  

Tana French! I was sucked into her world when I first read In The Woods, and while I may have had to jump two books in order to review this one (since I don't pay too much attention apparently) I'm glad to say that I wasn't too confused!

Welcome to Dublin, where crime is all around. Once again, French proves her talent as being one of the best authors around. She has a writing style that is both unique and gripping and takes the reader into a world that one never wants to leave.

The world came to life in my hands, and the words just danced right off the page and into my imagination.

Honestly, French brings realistic characters into the world with a plot that takes the readers on a roller coaster ride.

Scorcher was a character I wanted to pity but at the same time I was frustrated with him. There was just a lot of conflicting emotions between both the case and the personal lives.

If one wants a mystery that takes people away, this is the book to read.

The Pleasures of Winter by Evie Hunter

Title: The Pleasures of Winter
Author: Evie Hunter
Info: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Release Date: November 1st, 2012
Publisher: Penguin 
Pages: 400
Format: Electronic Copy
Acquired: ARC; Netgalley
Age Group: Very Adult

When reporter Abbie Marshall needs to escape Honduras, a private jet carrying a Hollywood A-lister is her only way out. She has a ride home with Irish actor Jack Winter - notorious womanizer and all round bad boy. Abbie is shaken to the core by Winter's blazing beauty and provocative mind.

After the plane's nose-dive into the remote rainforest forces them to fight for survival, Abbie catches tantalizing glimpses of the complicated man behind the image. And the more she sees of him, the more he touches some primal part of her that she is determined to suppress. But after a devastating encounter with Winter's shadow side, Abbie's detachment is shattered.

On returning to normal life, Abbie cannot forget what happened, nor ignore the shocking rumours about the star's private life. Her struggle to make sense of her torment leads straight back to Winter, who is just as obsessed by her. But if they are to have a relationship, Abbie knows she must embrace his hidden desires ... and accept her own.

No longer caring about anything but their intoxicating love affair, Abbie is drawn deeper into the dark heart of Winter - and the secret that threatens to destroy everything ... 

I was a little surprised at just how much I loved this book. I don't know why I was surprised, I just was. I guess I was expecting something a little worse than what actually appeared, so that's where the surprise came from.

This book, overall, wasn't that bad. I loved Abbie's independent streak, and the way Jack respected that. There was never a moment that I felt like she was losing herself in him, unlike most erotic literature out there. She was very strong within herself and also really good at her job.

The way the story progressed felt natural and I really liked the way things went. I was surprised by the end, because I wasn't expecting the way that Abbie just seemed to...grow, if that makes any sense.

And the steamy sex scenes were pretty damn hot. I liked the way that Hunter wrote them. They can burn up a room, that's for sure.

If you have yet to try erotic literature, I would suggests starting with this book. While it is not tame by any means it is a good view, especially on the submissive side, on what these erotic novels look like and how they highlight the BDSM world.

I would reread this book again. It was funny, it was sexy, it was steamy, and all around fun to read.

Falling Under by Gwen Hayes

Title: Falling Under
Author: Gwen Hayes
Info: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Release Date: March 1st, 2011
Publisher: Penguin Group
Pages: 336
Format: Paperback
Acquired: Bought
Interest: Series
Age Group: Young Adult
Challenge: 2011 Debut Author

Theia Alderson has always led a sheltered life in the small California town of Serendipity Falls. But when a devastatingly handsome boy appears in the halls of her school, Theia knows she's seen Haden before- not around town, but in her dreams.

As the Haden of both the night and the day beckons her closer one moment and pushes her away the next, the only thing Theia knows for sure is that the incredible pull she feels towards him is stronger than her fear.

And when she discovers what Haden truly is, Theia's not sure if she wants to resist him, even if the cost is her soul. 

Overall, I LOVED this book!

At first, I was afraid that this would be another Twilight-type novel, where the human girl falls in love with the supernatural being and all of a sudden her life just revolves around him and nothing else matters. That type of story. And for a while it seemed that way too, especially with the way Haden was acting, which is too Edward-like.

But, quickly into the novel you realize, this is nothing like Twilight. It's better, because Theia is a strong female and she does have her own mind. And since the beginning Theia has had to battle her own personal demons, but I didn't like how she was so down on herself. Yet, the reader can understand why she feels so low about herself considering everything that happened that led to her birth.

And I really wish there was more moments with her father, but I did like their one on one moment, but you get frustrated because here are two people who are suffering and instead of reaching out to each other they just push away, or at least that's what Theia's father does, and you're never sure if you should feel bad for this man because he's lost something important, or grab him by the shoulder and tell him, "Look, you lost one person, don't let the other go!"

Haden, for a moment I was afraid I would not like him. He seemed so smug and really pulls off the new-hot-guy-in-town persona, and what I really like what Gwen did was that she made him real! You see Haden and the Hell he lives in - literally. Well into the novel Gwen takes it a whole step further with Haden. And besides being real, he's hot, he's sexy, he's delicious, he really has a demon fighting inside of him that just won't let him go, and while his problem is paranormal you can almost connect to him. For those who did read it, I think it's safe to say we appreciate our mom's a heck of a lot more compared to Haden's.

The best part? I had fun reading this. I mentioned the Twilight reference I know this novel is going to suffer, well apparently Gwen knew the same thing too because there were moments where I had to stop reading I was laughing so hard to the little jabs she takes at the book. 

And Gwen herself, she had this way of bring the characters to life. Theia's two best friends are such opposite of each other and of her, and they all just fit together nicely. We all have those friend's that are afraid to do something risky, or those friends who likes to give the guy that likes her a real difficult time or those that are sheltered in life. There was something about these three girl's that fit nicely and they can play off each other well.

Some downsides? Like I said before, I wished that Theia was just a little tougher, but she was forgiven later on. Besides that, I felt like she could have added just a little more. I can't say too much, but there is a part which I hope will be addressed in book 2.

Haunting, sexy, funny, enjoyable, unexpected, twisted, and adventures are just a few words I can use to describe this novel and I cannot wait for book two to come out. This book was not at all what I expected!

For those who read it and didn't know there was a number two coming out it's Dreaming Awake and to be released January 3rd, 2012.

Again, great book.