Review: Games of the Heart by Kristen Ashley

Games of the Heart

by Kristen Ashley

(The 'Burg # 4)

Oh my goodness! This is now my favourite book in the series, I loved absolutly everything about it. In fact I am too excited to right a proper review with full sentences so instead here's a list of three main three things I loved about Games of the Heart:

Marvelous Mike: I wasn't sure what to expect from Mike, he is such a nice guy in all the other books, I was half expecting him to be a little boring. Bah! What a fool I was! He was all good boy on the surface, but his alpha male was fully unleased in the bedroom where he was demanding and dirty. He reminded me a little of Hank Nightingale from the Rock Chick series actually, another one of my favourite KA heroes.

Delightful Dusty: Loved her! She was a little different from a usual KA heroine in that she seemed to have more confidence and she was the one to make the first move on Mike. But she was also sweet and funny and protective of those she loves so despite her stealing my man Mike, I couldn't help but like her.

The Cute & Adorable Teen Tale: Fin and Rees, what a couple, I loved their romance so much that it almost eclipsed the main couple, Mike and Dusty. I loved how she described Clarisse (although whenever I heard her name in my head I was thinking Silence of the Lambs!) that uncertainty about herself and her talents reminded me so much teenagerdom when you are so full of hormones you don't know what the hell is going on. And Fin, wow, I don't think I have ever met a 17 year old like him, it feels wrong but I was a little in love with him myself.

I have loved this series so far and I can't wait for the next book to come out, once again Kristen Ashley has penned a winner. 

Purchase Links: Amazon

Review: Golden Trail by Kristen Ashley

3.5 Feathers

Golden Trail

(The 'Burg #3)

by Kristen Ashley

Raquel "Rocky" Merrick walked away from Tanner Layne without ever giving an explanation, but 18 years later, Layne has an ex wife and two boys, but he still can't get Rocky out of his head. Especially when she starts planning something crazy and dangerous, somthing that weeks earlier got him shot 3 times. Determined to stop her doing something risky he comes up with a plan that will not only help him catch the bad guy, but also get him close to Rocky again.

This has got to be the only book of Kristen Ashley's I have read where it is entirely from the guy's POV. For me, this was a double edged sword, I liked seeing things from the guys perspective for once, and I got to know Layne a lot better then I would normally know the hero of the story, but although I liked Rocky, I never felt a big connection with her like I did Vi and Feb in the previous books. We definitely needed a big scoop of Rocky in this book.

What was great about this book though was, seeing Layne's realtionship grow not only with Rocky, but with Jasper and Tripp as well, Layne's teenage sons. They were such a great family unit and damn do they grow teenage boys like that in America? I don't remember any guys as hot and as sweet as Jas and Tripp in my school! I loved that we got a little romance going on with Jasper and Keira, Vi's daughter from At Peace, I love a secondary romance, even if it was only a small one.

This book also had a lot more action and suspense stuff in it. I think this is a by product of it being entirely from Layne's POV. We got to see all he was doing to bring down the bad guys, when normally if it was from Rocky's POV that wouldn't happen as we all know that KA's uber manly alpha males do their best to keep their women out of the action, and Layne was no different.

Golden Trail wasn't my favourite in the series, but it was still a fantastic read and I enjoyed every word.

 

Purchase Link: Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Review: At Peace by Kristen Ashley

At Peace

by Kristen Ashley

(The 'Burg # 2)

I have heard so much about Joe Callahan from my fellow Kristen Ashley Addicts but I had NO IDEA he was in this book, so it was an extremely pleasent surprise when I read his name. He seems to be one of the biggest arse hole heroes that KA has written, but also her best loved as well...I was intrigued.

Violey Winters and her teenage daughters Kate and Keira have recently moved to the 'Burg to get away from Chicago, the place where her cop husband was murdered by a mob boss who has an obsession with Vi. Next door lives Joe Callahan, he lives a solitary life and after what happened to him 17 years ago he is happy to carry on that way. But Vi and her girls shake his world up and start getting under his skin, but he doesn't want to have to rescue another woman like he fruitlessly tried to before, but when Vi's stalker starts sending gifts he knows he needs to protect her.

I think I got mental whiplash from this book, Joe and Vi went back forth so many times and then Joe's fairly abrupt about-face has left my brain dizzy. Dizzy in a good way though, I am so in love with Joe Callahan. I admit he was a complete dick head at the beginning of the book and I was torn between screaming at Vi to tell him to go suck a duck and for her to grab him, handcuff him to her bed so she could do dirty delicious things to him, in the end option number two won out. Plus, with that head spinning about-face he turned really freaking sweet and proved it wasn't just the shagging on the car bonnet that made me love him.

Vi is also a great heroine and I liked what KA did with her, normally when a h/H has had a previous spouse they are complete dickheads/bitches, but in this Vi loved her dead husband deeply and always will, he is the father of her children and she adored him. But that didn't stop her loving Joe as well.

As with the previous book For You, the suspense part of this book wasn't that tense, it focused mainly on the relationships between Joe and Violet and you never really doubted the outcome, this book would have been just as good without the crazy stalker.

A great book, one of my favourites for this year, Joe and Vi's chemistry was off the charts hot, the bits with Vi's girls were sweet and I wish it could have gone on longer! 

Purchase Links: Amazon

Review: For You by Kristen Ashley

 

For You

(The 'Burg #1)

by Kristen Ashley

Why didn't I read this book sooner! Well, I think it was the cover, for some reason it freaks me out...I think it is because when I see the flower I think it is a spoon, and then I think eye gauging...then I feel a bit nauseous: it's pretty much all downhil from there. BUT learn from my mistake, don't avoid it! I promise there is no eye gauging AT ALL in this book! Instead we have a hatchet wielding mad man...

February Owens and Alexander Colton were meant to be together. They were highschool sweethearts and everyone agreed they were going to get married, have babies and live happily ever after. Except they didn't. Now 20 years later Feb is back in town after 15 years of having left her small home town and Colt behind. But there is a mad man out there obsessed with February, and he keeps murdering people, and it looks like Colt might be on his list.

I love Kristen Ashley books, not just for her fabulaous romances, hot alpha men and plucky women, they are also fantastic value for money! This book was long, and I felt like I really got into the characters lifes. Not just Feb and Colt's but the whole towns, it was great and I was very sad to turn the last page, luckily I have some more to go in this series. Although the length of the story did mean although this was romance suspense, there was a lot more romance then suspense, I wasn't particularly tense about the killer popping up, but been as I am all about the romance, to me it wasn't a downside.

 A great start to the series and I have already downloaded (and started reading) the next book! if you are Kristen Ashley fan, you have to read it, if you aren't then don't be put off the cover and read it, you are in for a sweet treat.

 

 

Purchase Link: Amazon