ARC Review: Reflected in You by Sylvia Day

Reflected in You

by Sylvia Day

(Crossfire # 2)

Sylvia Day has done it again.  She can seriously write a sensual and sexy story.  She can also write with a lot of emotion and show us a damaged side to her characters that you can easily connect with.

REFLECTED IN YOU picks up pretty much where BARED TO YOU left off.  Gideon and Eva are dating and have been going at it like monkeys, staying mostly at his place after the mess with Cary.

This is a difficult review to write because there were many things that I liked about the book and some that I wish I would've liked better. 

Gideon is hot and dominant and sexy as all hell.  This book will make you fall in love with him all over again, in spite the fact that sometimes I felt like clubbing him over the head.  He's comfortable in a suit and boardroom as well as jeans and t-shirt at a concert.  He's willing to fight for the woman he loves and to keep her by his side.  Although, I have to say that if it had been me throughout the book that he would talk to like he did...I might be in jail for assault charges.  But once things are revealed at the end, all was forgiven.

How Eva stood up for him.  My heart broke completely for Gideon when he finally opened up to Eva about his past.  And I just loved that she went on that little rampage and put everyone in their place who had ever messed with Gideon's life.

The sex.  Yes, I said it.  The sex.  Because wow, just O.O WOW! LOL  At the concert, in the bathroom, in the limo.  Gideon is a God and he knows what he's doing.  I'm so jealous of Eva.

Eva grew a pair of balls towards the end of the book, which I thought was fantastic and made me jump up and down because I was totally on her side and rooting for that to happen.  I had been complaining throughout the book that I wanted her to take more charge and see some growth, and I finally did get that.

The storyline in this book was excellent.  There were enough normal conflicts between Eva and Gideon while also having a small mystery element  after Cary gets attacked.  I actually didn't expect that to go down like that.

I feel that a measure of healing started happening in this book for both.  And although it seems sometimes things have to get worst before they get better, I can't wait to see where Ms. Day will take us in the last installment of this trilogy.  Anxiously awaiting.

Favorite Quotes:

"I found myself pinned to the hallway wall by six feet, two inches or hard, hot male."

"It was a look that screamed SEX. Hard, deep, endless, mind-blowing sex."

"You're the greatest risk I've ever taken." He pressed his lips gently to mine. "And the greatest reward."

"Gimme that coffee. I want to be caffeinated when I kick your ass."

"You know...I love you madly."

 "People get over love. They can live without it, they can move on. Love can be lost and found again. But that won't happen for me. I won't survive you, Eva."
 

*ARC provided by Netgalley

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Review: Misled by Sylvia Day

Misled

by Sylvia Day

(Carnal Thirst # 1)

Well, it is not often that I say this but there is such a thing as too much sex in a book.  I usually enjoy Ms. Day's writing and the stories she comes up with, but in this mix of paranormal and sci-fi I have to say I think the actual storyline fell a bit short.

There is a story, it's not all sex 24/7, don't want to give you that impression.  Sable is a bounty hunter and Derek is some sort of special agent.  Sable is trying to bring in some big guys and Derek, who is "on leave" from work is being most helpful.  Of course the only reason Derek is hanging around is because he's been lusting after Sable for over two years and has decided to finally make her his.

But nothing is as it seems.  There's more to Sable and even to Derek than meets the eye, they are not just bounty hunter and special agent.  That was my favorite twist of the story.

They are, however, both vamps.  And being in close proximity and working together they both have needs to fulfill.  Blood and sex.  From the beginning, their relationship means more to both of them than just sex but Sable is fighting it every step of the way.

But again, like I said, I would've given this a higher rating had it been a bit less sexual.  I think when she's trying to fix her ship would probably not have been the most appropriate time for Derek to think "damn I have to have her right now".  Everything should have their place and time and reason. *shrugs*  But this may be just me.

For a short story it did manage to cover a lot of ground as far as what was going on.  There's the bad guys Sable is chasing down, Sable is being chased down by someone who wants her dead probably, there's a traitor in the agencies ranks, and then there's also the issue of Sable's maker wanting her to come back to him and playing at being his mate.

All in all it was entertaining and since I already got the next one I will be reading it soon. 

Purchase Links: Amazon

ARC Review: Seven Years to Sin by Sylvia Day

 

 

Seven Years to Sin

by Sylvia Day

Seven years ago, Lady Jessica Sheffield witnessed a scandalous act on her wedding day that engraved itself in her mind, never to be forgotten. Years later, she meets Alistair Claufield again and those memories boil to the surface, heating her from the inside out.

Now a widow, Jessica tries to deal with her grief by busying herself with other duties. She boards a ship to the West Indies and this is where Alistair makes his move.

The first and major thing I must point out about this book is that it is far more erotic than other historical romances. Day takes seduction to a whole new level. Added to that is the fact that both hero and heroine have their own issues to overcome. This adds another layer to the characters and the story.

However, I will say that while I enjoyed this story, it didn’t always resonate with me. Yes, I felt bad for the things that some of the characters endure, especially Jessica’s sister, Hester, but I also felt like something was missing from this book but I am unable to really pinpoint it exactly.

Nevertheless, if you’re a fan of her Crossfire series, then you may want to check this book out. Alistair loosely resembles Gideon, but I think the similarities mostly lie in the fact that both characters have personal problems that they need to overcome.

*ARC provided by NetGalley

 

 Purchase Links: Amazon

Interview and Giveaway with Sylvia Day!

What a month July has been for UTC and for this talented author.  Some of you might've just started hearing her name with the success of BARED TO YOU, but she's been around for quite some time and with much success!  Today, she's taking time from her busy schedule after coming back from Comic Con to answer some of our nosy questions.

Hi Sylvia, welcome back to UTC and thanks for participating in our Burning Up July event!

Thank you for inviting me! I'm thrilled to be here.

I think this has been a great year for releases from you, lets start with BARED TO YOU.  This was rumored to have been loosely based on your historical SEVEN YEARS TO SIN.  How did the Crossfire series come to be? 

Seven Years to Sin follows a couple with abusive pasts. In Seven, the characters' histories brought them together, but I wondered later what it would be like to explore a relationship in which the characters' pasts pushed them apart instead. What if the defining trauma of your life impeded your ability to connect with the person you love? Can two abuse survivors have a functional and healthy romantic relationship? That's the core question of the Crossfire series. I'm under contract for historicals, paranormals, and futuristics, which left me with contemporary as the setting. I transplanted Alistair and Jessica from Seven to modern-day New York City and began writing, and from that genesis, Gideon and Eva came to be (which is why the two couples look alike and have similar backgrounds).

It can be a good and bad thing when books are compared to others.  With this book coming out after the Fifty Shades trilogy had such massive success, there's been a lot of comparison between BARED TO YOU and FIFTY.  How do you feel about this?

On one hand, the comparison gives readers a point of reference. On the other, the books are very different. Plus, one is a completed series while the other is just one book, which is rather like comparing a one-hour TV episode to an entire season's worth of episodes. But the majority of readers enjoy both series for their own merits and go on to find even more stories to love, and that's wonderful for everyone.

Gideon Cross is such an interesting hero. We're dying to know more about him! Why do you think Gideon is so well-received by readers?

I'd like to think it's because he's willing to work hard for Eva. He's flying blind, but he won't give up.

The second book in the Crossfire series was initially titled DEEPER IN YOU. But now, it's been changed to REFLECTED IN YOU. What was the reasoning behind the decision and which one of the titles did you prefer?

Some of the merchants felt the title was too provocative and they hesitated to put the book out for their customers. Because we want all of the Crossfire books to be available in as many venues as possible, it was necessary to change the title. I think the first title more closely fit the storyline, but the second does as well.

Can you tell us a bit about what is going to happen in REFLECTED IN YOU?

In Reflected in You, we see Gideon and Eva struggling to mesh who they are as individuals with their joint identity as a couple. Trying to blend "his" life with "her" life into "our" life brings all sorts of new problems. Eva is close to her family; Gideon is estranged from his. Eva is a social creature whose network of friends expands as she settles into New York; Gideon is fiercely private and contained. As much as they have in common, they have a lot of differences, too, and they continue to trigger each other's defense mechanisms in unexpected-and sometimes painful-ways.

You recently released A HUNGER SO WILD congrats!  This is the second book in the Renegade Angels series.  Do you have a favorite scene or thing about this book?

Thank you! I'm very happy to be able to share Elijah's story with everyone--I love him madly. Favorite scene: when Elijah hunts Vashti down in his lupine form. Favorite thing: that Vashti takes tremendous risks for Elijah.

The Renegade Angels series is meant to be a trilogy. Have you considered continuing?

I'm trying not to think like that. I have three other unfinished speculative fiction series (Dream Guardians, Marked, and Sapphire's World). I want to wrap something up!

You also had another great release just a few days back, the HOT IN HANDCUFFS anthology, with Shayla Black and Shiloh Walker.  Your story ON FIRE was actually my favorite in that book!  This is part of the Shadow Stalkers mini-series.  Can you tell our readers a bit about this story and what this series is about?

I'm so thrilled you enjoyed "On Fire"! Thank you. The anthology is a fun treat for me, because Shayla and Shiloh are both dear friends of mine. 

Darcy Michaels is a fire inspector who calls in the U.S. Marshals Service to help investigate a series of arsons in her town. When Jared Cameron arrives, the attraction between them is as hot as the blazes.

The Shadow Stalkers miniseries is a series of contemporary novellas following a group of special operations Deputy U.S. Marshals.

If you could spend a day with one of your fictional men, who would you choose, why and what would you want to do?

It's impossible for me to pick just one. I can honestly say that I'd love to hang out with any of my heroes. It'd be fun to watch them play beach volleyball together...

We are asking authors participating in the event to share a favorite drink recipe with readers. Do you have one you'd like to share? 

Grey Goose and Cranberry. Simple and delicious.

EXCERPT

Deputy U.S. Marshal Jared Cameron waited until the Lion’s Bay sheriff sucked in a deep breath mid-rant, then he glanced at his partner.

“This winner is all yours,” he drawled, turning on his heel and leaving Deputy Trish Morales to it. She’d been assigned to him for just that reason: she had the patience of a saint and he had no patience at all. Especially not for defensive, posturing small-town authorities who whipped their dicks out and started marking their territories the moment he rolled into town. “I’m not done. Where the fuck is he going?” Sheriff Miller snapped, followed by a far more modulated reply from Trish.

Idiot. Nothing trumped the U.S. Marshals Service’s silver star.

Jared closed the sheriff’s glass inset door behind him just to shut out the man’s voice. Pushing the irritation from his thoughts, he started through the bull pen toward the exit when an unexpected and unwanted complication walked into the station. He took scant note of her initially, but something drew his attention back.

Grudgingly he slowed, then came to a stop. Whoever she was, she was a bombshell. Not in the physical sense. In that regard, she was of average height, slim, and moderately proportioned. Her face was free of cosmetics and her brown hair was pulled back in a casual ponytail. If he’d been looking at a photo of her, he wouldn’t have looked twice. But in the flesh, watching her move was what snared him.

She was hot monkey sex in a brown paper wrapper.

The secret of her was revealed in the sensual fluidity of her body and her heavy-lidded, bottle green eyes. The primitive male in him recognized the attraction instantly, completely disregarding his brain, which didn’t have time for this sort of distraction. Unfortunately for him, the blue uniform slacks and embroidered white button-up shirt she wore told Jared he had no chance of avoiding her unless he wanted to switch with Trish and take point with Miller instead. He was stuck with deciding which part of his anatomy was going to be the least controllable: his fists or his dick.

Maybe he’d be lucky and she would be happily married with kids, therefore not the least bit interested in getting sweaty and dirty with him.

She was lost in conversation with the female deputy manning the counter when he approached. The glance she shot him was cursory, just as his had first been with her. Then it snagged. Her focus zeroed in, sliding over his body from the top of his head down to his scuffed work boots and back up again. When her gaze collided with his, she sucked in a breath and licked her lower lip.

Fuck. He was screwed. His brain was screaming at him to turn his ass around and take his chances with the sheriff instead. Assaulting the local authorities for getting on his last nerve would garner him less trouble than playing with the sizzling awareness arcing between him and the sexpot fire inspector.

“Here he is,” the deputy said unnecessarily, pointing at him. Jared thrust out his hand and introduced himself. The moment his palm touched the bombshell’s, his blood rushed south and gave him a semi. He looked at her left hand almost desperately, cursing the lack of a wedding ring. A simple gold band would’ve killed his interest right then and there.

“Darcy Michaels,” she replied, in a voice pitched high enough to be this close to girlish. “I’m a fire inspector with the Lion’s Bay fire department.”

The pretty blond deputy at the counter smiled at him with the same invitation she’d given him when he first walked in. “Darcy’s the one who asked me to put out the information about the arsonist.”

The blonde was the type of woman he preferred to fuck—attractive enough to stir the most superficial interest and easy enough to want nothing more than a good time. Darcy Michaels was rousing something far deeper, igniting a hunger that was full-bodied and complex. The kind that overrode a man’s better sense.

Giving himself a mental kick in the ass, Jared caught the inspector’s elbow and steered her toward the exit. “Let’s go, Inspector.”

They’d barely stepped outside when she said, “You got here quick.”

He considered her voice. It was a cross between Marilyn Monroe and Jennifer Tilly. If anyone had asked him that morning what he thought of girly voiced women, he’d have said they annoyed the shit out of him. It was just his damn luck that Darcy Michaels was the exception. Every time she opened her mouth, his mind went straight into the gutter.

Harder, Jared. Deeper…

Christ. His teeth grit.


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ARC Review: A Hunger So Wild by Sylvia Day

A Hunger So Wild

by Sylvia Day

(Renegade Angels # 2)

Elijah Reynolds is one sexy as hell lycan (wish I could take him home).  After the lycans rebeled and left Adrian, Elijah fell into the Alpha role.  He's the strongest and a natural leader.  And that is what Syre wants him on his side.  So he sends Vashti, his second in command, to form an alliance with the lycan rebel alpha.

Vashti's mate had been killed by a lycan and Elijah was set up to take that fall and be blamed.  Then Vashti killed Elijah's brother.  But since A TOUCH OF CRIMSON Elijah has wanted Vashti even though he shouldn't have.  They are all wrong for each other but their attraction is more powerful than any of these things.

Vashti (LOOOOOOVE HER!) is a very strong female to an even stronger male.  She hasn't been with anyone since her mate but even then no one has made her feel and want like Elijah.  They hunger for each other in the most primal way.  It's hot and I didn't want it to end!!!

And this book is not just an amazing couple, the story actually progressed a lot in this book.  I was surprised by some developments and I really can't wait to see what the last installment in this trilogy has in store.  We even had some Adrian and Lindsay in this story.

This has been an amazing year for Sylvia Day books for me and this one was no exception.  Action packed, story driven, sensual and raw.  An un-put-downable story!

*ARC provided by publisher

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Review: Dark Kiss of Rapture by Sylvia Day

Dark Kiss of Rapture

by Sylvia Day

(Renegade Angels # 0.5)

I had gotten this as a Kindle freebie a long time ago.  Of course I didn't know that this was the prequel of the Renegade Angels  series.  I read an ARC of book one last year and I when I started reading my ARC of book two I realized that this was the prequel and had been sitting on my Kindle app patiently waiting to be read.

So I started it almost at the same time as I started reading A HUNGER SO WILD, and I have to say that I enjoyed it immensely because the characters in this short story are also part of that book.  I'm not sure if I would've cared as much for them without the background knowledge.

Having said that, this was a great little story.  Raze is one of the Fallen but he didn't fall for his love of a woman.  He just enjoys sex...with anything female.  But a dead body at his doorstep puts a bad ending to a night of enjoyment for him and brings him to investigate in Chicago.

Chicago where he meets Kim and she is everything he thought he would never want.  But he can't stay with her when there's so much danger around him.  Theirs is not a HEA but a To Be Continued.  I can't wait!

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ARC Review: Hot in Handcuffs by Shayla Black, Sylvia Day and Shiloh Walker

Hot in Handcuffs

by Shayla Black, Sylvia Day and Shiloh Walker

(Sexy Capers # 3, Shadow Stalkers # 4, The FBI Psychics # 3)

Reason # 546 why you should buy this book: LOOK AT THAT COVER!!!  I guarantee it will look really nice sitting on your nightstand or bookshelf.  But seriously, this book is a MUST-BUY if you like your erotic romance scorching hot with a good dose of suspense.  You can't go wrong when you put three incredibly talented authors together and let them run wild.  And run wild they did!

Arresting Desire by Shayla Black

4 Feathers

I'm coming late to the Sexy Capers party.  This is a series by Shayla Black that I have NOT read.  Yes, I know, shocker!  And believe me, this is something I will have to remedy shortly.  But even, without having read the previous two books I had no problem getting into this story.  Jon Bocelli has apparently been working undercover in a mob operation until they were able to crack the case, but the mob boss died in the process and now Jon's brother is in jail for that murder.  Jon has to go back now to find some proof that his brother is innocent.  And this will put him face to face with Lucia DiStefano, that mob boss's youngest daughter and the object of his lust during his whole undercover work.  Not only will he have to ask for her help to save his brother, but he will have to deal with his feelings for her once and for all.  And they are hot and dirty!  Sexy cop + virgin mob princess = explosive heat!

On Fire by Sylvia Day

5 Feathers

I don't even know where to begin with this story.  The title says it all.  End of review.  I've only read one other Shadow Stalker novella and it was verrrra hot as well but this one had smoke coming out of ears and sweat forming it was so hot.  A series of fires in local business are all hitting home for fire inspector Darcy Michaels.  When the crimes are too much for the small town cops to handle it, she calls in the cavalry and Deputy Marshal Jared Cameron and his partner are sent in to investigate.  And from page one when Jared met Darcy it was straight to the point "I want you, I'm going to have you".  I love strong female heroines and that's Darcy to a tee, but she has such a damaged past that it has made it easy for the wrong people to get close to her.  Jared is of course the alpha male that everyone dreams of having, in and out of the bedroom.  And even though I thought he would be overprotective and too macho to let her do her job and take care of her issues, he was perfect and gave her the space she needed and the opportunity to show that she can handle her own.  Only bad part is that I had the killer pegged from the beginning, but the rest of this story was so good that didn't even take a star away!  On Fire had me burning up!

The Unwilling by Shiloh Walker

4 Feathers

Mica Greer is trying to catch a serial killer.  Her only hope right one is a retired FBI agent with a special psychic gift who just happened to be her partner and lover 15 years ago.  Colby rejects his gift for all the heartache it has brought him and how difficult it has made his life.  But when Mica shows back up in his life asking for help with catching this killer, he has to help her.  Whether its because its the right thing to do or because he never got over her and will do anything to be close to her again.  If there is one thing that Ms. Walker can do like very few people can is to write a villain that might just give me nightmares.  And oh the shudders I felt while being in the mind of this killer.  I have new and disturbing images to associate to an otherwise fun song in my head now.  Although this story has less heat than the rest, its still an amazing and suspenseful story that will have you glued to every word.  As it happens every time I read a book by Ms. Walker, once you start you are sucked in until you finish!  And along the way you will go on an emotional roller coaster along with the characters.  So great!

*ARC provided by publisher

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