#BookReview: Faking It by Leah Marie Brown
Reviewer: Terry I received a review copy Summary: Haven’t you ever told a little lie in the name of love? Vivia Grant couldn’t be…
CLP Blog Tours Book Review: Photo Play by Pam McKenna
Pam McKenna is on tour now with CLP Blog Tours and Photo Play Summary: An erotic romance novella! Shy Darla Carmody decides to jump-start her…
On Tour: Photo Play by Pam McKenna
Pam McKenna will be on tour August 11-18 with her novella Photo Play Shy Darla Carmody decides to jump-start her flaccid love life by presenting her…
Giveaway: Gift Card to Eden Fantasys from Erotic Romance Author …
Erotic Romance author Pam McKenna is hosting a giveaway now through July 25 for a $25 Eden Fantastys gift card! Celebrate the re-release of three…
Faking It by Elisa Lorella
Taking lessons from a male escort might not be normal for a thirty-something, serious, straight laced writing professor, but that is just what Andi Cutrone signs herself up for after meeting Devin, a true male escort that has worked with many of Andi’s colleagues. Andi offers Devin a proposition: he teaches her how to be a better lover, she teaches him how to be a better writer. Through their lessons together, Andi and Devin become closer, learn about themselves and each other, and dive into deeper emotional levels that will surprise them both.
I received Faking It by Elisa Lorello from a friend, and wasn’t quite sure what to expect from it. The synopsis really drew me in though––a professor, usually so professorial and in control taking lessons from a male escort? Spicy! Of course, I expected to map out how it would go––lessons would be taught, sexual tension would occur, and Andi and Devin would fall madly in love. I won’t give away any spoilers, but I will say that it was not all cut and dry like I expected it, which made me happy and on my toes while reading. Through the lessons that Andi goes through, I felt that I learned a lot from Devin the instructor as well, and think female readers will be able to connect on some level with what Andi is going through. Devin’s character came off the pages as a hot, sexy piece of man meat, but who is also troubled underneath it all and works through his own set of problems after working with Andi. Overall, I thought this book was deeper than the typical chick-lit read, and filled with well-written characters, a juicy plot, and great writing. I would recommend!
[Rating: 4]
In My Mailbox: Week of June 19
In My Mailbox: Week of June 19, 2011
Title: The Dumpster
Author: Becky Due
Received: From Becky Due
Synopsis: Nicole, a cute, chubby, twenty-something woman, is looking for love in all the wrong places. Who would have guessed that a dumpster in the back alley below her bedroom window would hold the key to finding love?
Title: Hotel No Tell
Author: Daphne Uviller
Received: From Crystal @ Book Sparks PR
Synopsis: Now working as a junior detective with the New York City Special Investigations Commission, Zephyr’s gone incognito as a concierge to find out who laundered a hundred grand off the hotel books—and why. But the discovery of a prone, flush-faced guest gasping for air in room 502 only hints at the sinister goings-on inside this funky establishment. While the rapid response of the fire department leads to a sweaty date with a smooth-talking, rock-climbing rescue worker, Zephyr finds herself even more hot and bothered by an attempted murder on her watch. Could the smart-mouthed Japanese yenta across the hall know more than she’s telling? How are cryptic phone calls from a mysterious corporation linked to the victim in 502?
Under pressure and overwhelmed, Zephyr soon finds that a concierge cover is no protection in a place where crime, like the city itself, never sleeps.
Title: Stay
Author: Allie Larkin
Received: From Crystal @ Book Sparks PR
Synopsis: Savannah “Van” Leone has loved Peter since the day they met. The problem is, Peter has loved Van’s best friend, Janie, since the moment they met. And now they’re walking down the aisle, with Van standing nearby in a Halloween orange bridesmaid dress, her smile as hollow as a jack-o-lantern. After the wedding, Van drowns her sorrows in Kool Aid-vodka cocktails and reruns of Rin-Tin-Tin, and does what any woman in her situation would do: She buys a German Shepherd over the internet.
The pocket-sized puppy Van is expecting turns out to be a clumsy, hundred-pound beast that only responds to Slovakian. Van is at the end of her rope—until she realizes that this quirky giant may be the only living being who will always be loyal to her, no matter what. And thus begins a friendship that will alter Van’s life in ways she never imagined.
Joe leads Van to Dr. Alex Brandt, a rugged vet with floppy blond hair and winning smile. But just as things are starting to heat up, the newlyweds return from their honeymoon, forcing Van to decide just how much she’s willing to sacrifice in order to have everything she ever wanted. Warm and witty, poignant and funny, Stay marks the arrival of an irresistible new voice.
Title: Faking It
Author: Elisa Lorello
Received: From a friend
Synopsis: Thirty-four-year old professor Andi Cutrone has broken up with her fiancé in Massachusetts , moved back to her native New York, and wants to be a better lover. So after meeting Devin, a handsome, charming escort, she proposes an unusual arrangement: lessons about writing in exchange for lessons about sex. When Devin accepts Andi’s proposal, he draws up a contract in which the two are forbidden to see each other socially. There’s just one problem: Andi also wants Devin.
Halfway into their arrangement, Devin and Andi break the rules of their contract and begin spending time together outside their weekly tutorials of drafting essays and dancing while stripped down. As they grow closer, Andi struggles to hide her feelings from Devin and accept herself as just another client while Devin attempts to maintain a “business as usual” attitude. Enter Sam, a New England professor with whom Andi begins a long distance relationship.
As their protective layers peel away, Andi and Devin discover each other ‘faking it’ and hiding their true selves from the world. However, once fully uncovered, both must decide how (and with whom) they will honor these truths. Will she give up her New York life for Sam? Will she hold out for Devin? Is it even possible to be in love with two men?
Faking It is a witty, sometimes hilarious, sometimes heart-wrenching story about relationships, writing, and getting real.
Debut Authors & Novels- February/March 2011
Debut Authors & Novels February/March 2011
Title: Faking It
Author: Lotte Daley
Available: February 17th
Synopsis: It’s not you, it’s me. That’s the cowardly text message that Katie receives from Jack, her actor boyfriend of three years, when he dumps her. And things go from bad to worse when photos of Jack canoodling with a famous size-zero actress are splashed across every gossip magazine and tabloid soon after. Just how much humiliation can a girl take? With the paparazzi camped out on her doorstep, Katie decides to preserve what’s left of her dignity. So she agrees to become her PR colleagues’ next project. They will make her over (hair, teeth, clothes, Botox, boobs – the works) and turn her into an instant celebrity in order to win back her ex and show the world that an ordinary girl can rival a beautiful bimbo. But will a new life in the limelight be everything Katie dreamt of? Can she make it in the cut-throat world of the beautiful, rich and famous? Is Jack worth all the hassle or is there someone else out there who might love Katie just the way she is?
Title: What You Don’t Know
Author: Lizzie Enfield
Available: February 2011
Synopsis: You’ve been together for fifteen years. You’ve got two gorgeous kids and a great career. All the boxes are ticked. You wouldn’t be tempted by a plain, slightly balding man called Graham…Would you? When Graham Parks walks into Helen Collins’ life, the last thing she expects is to fall for him. He’s nothing like her handsome, successful husband, Alex. But fifteen years is a long time and Helen can’t help wondering what it would be like to sleep with someone else. Has Alex secretly been thinking the same thing? As harmless flirtation develops into something far more complicated, Helen’s perfect world begins to look shaky. It’s exciting, alluring, all-consuming. But is it worth the risk?
Title: Born Under A Lucky Moon
Author: Dana Precious
Available: February 8th
Synopsis: Born Under a Lucky Moon is the tale of two very important (but distant) years in the lives of Jeannie Thompson and her (embarrassing, crazy) colorful family members to whom “things” just seem to happen. From the Great Lakes of Michigan to Los Angeles and back again, it is a story of surprise marriages, a renegade granny, a sprinkler system cursed by the gods, and myriad other factors Jeannie blames for her full-tilt, out-of-control existence. But it’s also about good surprises—like an unexpected proposal that might just open Jeannie’s eyes to her real place among the people she loves most in the world . . . the same ones she ran far away from to begin with.
Title: Save As Draft
Author: Cavanaugh Lee
Available: February 1st
Synopsis: Sent: Monday, February 14, 2011
From: Izabell
To: Reader
Subject: Save as Draft
Are we Facebook friends yet? I’m the wactress (waitress/actress) turned lawyer who lives her life online. (Don’t we all these days?)
Anyway, I’ve got this problem. . . . There’s this guy. His name’s Peter. He’s my best friend and co-worker, and we just started dating, which is potentially a huge mistake. But, that’s not all. There’s this other guy, Marty. I met him on eHarm, and he ran with the bulls in Spain. I can’t get him off my mind. What a mess. I’d love your advice if you can take a second out of your crazy, high-tech life. Shoot me an e-mail. Or text me. Or BB messenger me.
And friend me if you haven’t already! You can find me on Facebook under Save as Draft.
Izabell
Title: Cougars
Author: Claire Irvin
Available: March 2011
Synopsis: Caroline Walker has it all. At 42, her immaculate looks and toned body are of a woman half her age. She’s a successful entrepreneur, and juggles her career with domestic bliss: wife of City trading sensation Les Walker, and mother to their teenage daughter Rachel. But when Caroline learns that Les has been having an affair, her perfect world falls apart. Caroline is suddenly single – something she hasn’t been in a very long time. With the help of Maryanne, her outgoing and ex-Hollywood starlet friend, Caroline’s life is transformed into a glamorous social whirl as she discovers her missing 20s. And the young men she should have been dating then, too … But is Caroline ready to put the past behind her? And can true love really strike twice.
Title: The Hating Game
Author: Talli Roland
Available: March 2011
Synopsis: When man-eater Mattie Johns agrees to star on a dating game show to save her ailing recruitment business, she’s confident she’ll sail through to the end without letting down the perma-guard she’s perfected from years of her love ’em and leave ’em dating strategy.
After all, what can go wrong with dating a few losers and hanging out long enough to pick up a juicy £200,000 prize? Plenty, Mattie discovers, when it’s revealed that the contestants are four of her very unhappy exes.
Can Mattie confront her past to get the prize money she so desperately needs, or will her exes finally wreak their long-awaited revenge? And what about the ambitious TV producer whose career depends on stopping her from making it to the end.
