ARC Review: The Care and Feeding of an Alpha Male by Jessica Clare

The Care and Feeding of an Alpha Male

by Jessica Clare

(Bluebonnet # 2)

Jessica Clare had out done herself with this second installment of the Bluebonnet Series. It had exceeded all my expectations and I can say that it is even better than the first. I cannot tell you how much I loved this book.

Because I loved this book, I feel like I will ramble on with my review so I wanted to keep it to the minimum and answer the questions I usually ask my friends about a book, here goes.

Tell me about the plot:

Well, this installment is about Beth Ann and Colt. Colt Waggoner ex-marine until he was injured, now co-owner of the Survival School with Dane(Hero from The Girl's Guide to Man Hunting). And Beth Ann is a born socialite, recently broken up with her high school sweetheart and attempting to stand on her two feet for the first time. These two were stuck in the local forest due to weather conditions. They spent time together and well, a relationship started from there. During their love escapades, they got to know each other and the book explored more of both their backgrounds. Let me tell you, finding out more about Colt was a drool educing adventure.

Was it hot?

Scorching hot!!! They started out with an extremely hot-bothering sexual tension and when they got together it was a full on explosion of mind-boggling banging, I mean love making. Plus any hero that would pick Batman over Superman for the reason that Batman is a millionaire who can get more “p*ssy” just tells you how hot he can be. NOTE: Watch for Chapter 5 and 10.

Was the Hero an Alpha?

This question goes hand in hand with the first. Yes. Colt is an amazing ALPHA male. And when I say alpha, I mean that in a psychological, physical and in his sexual appetite. Arrrg, I am dying to mention a certain scene that had me squirming as I read it. But I will definitely ruin the moment if I say it. However, I will tell you that in this scene, Colt shows how possessive he can be. Did I mention Colt is super thick and tatted?

Was the Heroine a dits?

Not in the least. Beth Ann came from a wealthy family; she is pretty, smart and courageous to start a new life of her own. Her downfall was her ex-fiancée who controlled her every move. Because of his mistreatment, she decided to end it and finally stand on her own. She never played the pity-card, in fact, she hated it when people treated her as if she is helpless.

Was it romantic?

Absolutely! The whole world seemed to be against their union including their friends who seem to think what they have is nothing but a fling. But love conquers all. Though their trials was hard, they stuck with each other. It was incredible to read about their love story.

Was it funny?

Yes. It was. The banter between the friends was hilarious and I found myself LOL several times. The main characters, Beth Ann and Colt are comical in their comments as well as the side characters.

Secondary Stories:

I love the recap of Dane and. We get a good amount of them in this book as well as Brenna and Grant, which I think, will be the next H/h of the next book. I can see the big set up for them and I can predict that it will be just as hot as this one.

Do I recommend it?

Plain and simple…. I absofuckinlutely recommend it.

*ARC provided by publisher 

Purchase Links: Amazon

Review: The Billionaire of Bluebonnet by Jessica Clare

4.5 Feathers

The Billionaire of Bluebonnet

by Jessica Clare

(Bluebonnet # 1.5)

Jessica Clare managed to capture my heart with this very short story. This book has the same flavor as The Girls Guide to (Man) Hunting but squeezed in a little package of a novella.

Travis Jesson is successful and a very rich businessman who had to come back home to the small town of Bluebonnet to take care of his inheritance.  What he didn’t know was that his grandmother left him more than he expected.  One smart grandmother, as she knows exactly what he needed.

Risa Moore worked as a live-in assistant to Travis’ grandmother until she passed away. Now, she has to move out and find another job.  But before she moves on, she has to make sure Gregory is well cared for and what she gets in return is truly priceless.

Travis and Risa come together after losing someone they both love.   Though there was a bit of “pretty woman-ish” element to this story, their coming together by consoling each other definitely felt realistic to me.  I love both H/h and their pet Gregory who had quite a personality.  This small town love story is sweet, heartfelt and is sure to sweep you off your feet.

I highly recommend this novella as well as the full length books: A Girls Guide to Man Hunting (Bluebonnet #1) & the upcoming book The Care and Feeding of an Alpha Male (Bluebonnet #2). 

Purchase Links: Amazon

Author Override: Jessica Clare

Author Override is the place where authors take the reins and take you on a journey into their world. Some may allow you into their private writing dens. Others may take you along with them on research trips or interviews. Whatever the case may be, sit back, relax and enjoy the ride because here you’ll get an in-depth look into an author’s musings.

We've had the pleasure of hosting this wonderful and talented author at UTC before but she seems to be suffering from multiple personalities lately... Now we introduce her to you as...

Jessica Clare

Another Genre, Another Pen Name...

For a few years now, I've been writing as Jill Myles (and lately as Jessica Sims). All of my stories are a little quirky, a little funny, a little steamy, and, well, they're paranormals. Pretty much everything that I've done up until now has been of the paranormal persuasion. I was a big fantasy reader when I was a teenager, and when paranormal hit it big, I saw the opportunity to meld the two genres I love the most - fantasy and romance. I've been asked several times why I decided to make the move to contemporary romance. Not just regular contemporary romance, either. Erotic contemporary romance! It's a big leap for someone that's normally only allowed about three sex scenes a book, max!

The idea first came about when a friend dared me to write a contemporary because she liked my voice. No vampires, no shifters, no time travel. Just regular people and regular problems. I am not exactly one to turn down a dare (cough) and I am always looking for ways to stretch my writing muscles. Challenge? Accepted! I envisioned a small town librarian who was in a fuss because her sexy hockey-player ex boyfriend had returned to town. Fun, right?

My terrific Berkley editor, Cindy Hwang, offered on my contemporary proposal...with a catch. She wanted me to write it as an erotic romance. When I first heard this, I wasn't sure what to do. The first thing I thought was that I couldn't write an erotic contemporary romance. Those books were so incredibly steamy that I wasn't sure that I'd be able to deliver. What if I sent in something that wasn't steamy enough? Would the lynch mobs come after me with pitchforks, demanding more sex between the hero and heroine? As a reader, would I be satisfied with the level of steam i had planned for the book?

But there was that challenge thing again. I told Cindy what heat level I thought I could do, and compared my 'level' to another author. She was happy with that, and then off we went! Now I had to finish my librarian book and turn it into an EROTIC contemporary romance. This meant scrapping the plot I had, reworking the original proposal, and starting fresh. But it was a challenge, and I was looking forward to it. I'm a firm believer that variety keeps the brain firing on all cylinders, so I thought it'd be fun.

Like any good nerd, I bought up a copy of every comparable Berkley Heat author. I had read them in the past, of course, but now it was time to STUDY them and learn from them. I picked apart each book. I counted sex scenes. I counted the length and intensity of the scenes. I actually made an excel spreadsheet cataloging how many pages of sex were in each book and how hot they were on a scale to get a better idea of what comparable readers would be looking for. (I told you that was nerdy!)

And then it was time to plot. And I realized...this was going to be fun.

Miranda and Dane's story turned out way hotter than I'd originally anticipated. At first, I'd been worried that I wasn't going to make the story sexy enough, but once I'd given myself 'permission' to throw away the boundaries, I HAD SO MUCH FUN YOU GUYS. It was crazy fun writing such a sexy story. The next one? Even hotter and sexier and even more fun. I also just signed for two more books, so the fun's going to keep rolling! It was a really great experience, and I'm so proud of how steamy and fun the book is. I hope you guys enjoy it too!

Once, Miranda felt a little exposed…

Miranda Hill can’t believe her eyes—her cocky ex-boyfriend, pro-hockey player Dane Croft, is back in Bluebonnet, Texas, after all these years. He ditched her – and their little town – just as some rather shocking photos showed up on the internet for the whole town to see. Miranda wasn't so lucky. Stuck in Bluebonnet and left to fend for herself, she’s never really shaken the scandal — or his betrayal. After nine long years, he's back, and she has the chance to turn the tables on Dane…

It’s time she got even.

Former NHL hotshot playboy Dane Croft has returned home to open a survival training school on an old ranch, and reinvent himself. When his former high school girlfriend enrolls in his school, he has no idea that Miranda's plan is to get him in a compromising position—not the one he’s imagining, anyway. But soon Miranda realizes that to carry out her deviously sexy revenge, she'll have to get up close and personal with Dane all over again. Being a good girl got her nowhere for nine years, and now it's time to be a little naughty. But falling in love with the man that broke her heart was never part of the plan…

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Ms. Clare is giving away The Girl's Guide to (Man) Hutning!!  

1 signed copy for US/Canada and 1 ebook for everywhere else.

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ARC Review: The Girl's Guide to (Man) Hunting by Jessica Clare

 4.5 Feathers
The Girl's Guide to (Man) Hunting

by Jessica Clare

(Bluebonnet # 1)

This first installment of the Bluebonnet series has kicked off with a sweet, romantic and hot start. If you like small town settings with characters that are easy to fall in love with, this is the book for you.

Miranda Hill is Bluebonnet’s Librarian with her nickname “Boobs of Bluebonnet”. She was given this name in high school as half-naked pictures of her had surfaced on the internet for the whole town to see. As small towns go and cyber bullying, it had affected her adult life as well. Always looked at and laughed at, her life was ruined. Nine years later, she will get the opportunity for payback. But what I always say, payback is a bitch but plotting a revenge can only bite you right back in the ass.

Pro-hockey player Dane Croft has gone back to town after a big blow out in the NHL. Rumors of his playboy moments had gone bad and left him to start a new business in his old town. Dane opened up a school to survive in the wild with his best friends. Because of his recent past, Dane is determine to prove himself worthy of a good partner. But will he survive and stay professional if his long lost love is one of his clients?

I love a story where no matter the situation; the H/h just cannot deny their feelings or cannot keep their hands off each other, this book is just that. And the story of high school attraction/love existing nine years later is totally romantic. The writing flowed and the plot kept me interested the whole time, not to mention the super steamy sex scenes in the forest. The ending had a twist that made me tear up and left me feeling happy. Jessica Clare will be an automatic follow for me without a doubt and I highly recommend this read. 

*ARC provided by publisher