The Wedding Dare Series .5 to 4 from Entangled Brazen -a review

Entangled Brazen’s WEDDING DARE series is the culmination of five authors and five storylines that overlap and run concurrently with one another. Each story involves the building of a relationship, a broken heart and the love affair of a happily ever after. No one ever said the road to happiness was easy, but one couple will bring together eight people and by week’s end, each will have found the one person that will hold their heart and call to their soul.

At the end of each instalment, the author will offer up an epilogue-a quick look into the future from four months to one year. The reader will get a glimpse at what is in store for each of our couples and BEST MAN WITH BENEFITS will bring all five couples back together for another celebration-of a different kind.

Each of the storylines is a blend of romance and erotic sex; there is the allure of the first kiss, the butterflies in the stomach and the anticipation of waking up in the arms of someone new. The Wedding Dare series focuses on ten people whose lives will collide at the wedding of their best friends-eight people who are looking for the someone special to share the rest of their lives-and one couple who are about to walk down the aisle and say their ‘I do’s’.

Click HERE for our review of DARE TO RESIST by Laura Kaye-the book that started it all.

Let’s begin and forgive me but it is a long post !!

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FALLING FOR THE GROOMSMAN
(Wedding Dare #1)
by Jen McLaughlin (aka Diane Alberts)

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 9, 2014

She’s the one that got away. He’s the one she can’t forget.

Photojournalist Christine Forsythe is ready to tackle her naughty little to-do list, and who better to tap for the job than a hot groomsman? But when she crashes into her best friend’s older brother, Christine realizes her list needs updating. And fast. Tyler Dresco took her virginity during the best night of her life, then bolted. Now that they’re trapped together at a destination wedding, she’s going to get her revenge.

Tyler has never forgiven himself for how completely he lost control all those years ago. Being in Christine’s arms had felt right…until he realized what he’d taken from her in the hallway of a cheap motel. And oh, how she’s making him pay for it now. The insatiable heat between them has only grown stronger, but every time things heat up, Christine walks away.

With every encounter, things go a little bit further until Christine’s caught in her own trap of seduction. And before their time’s up, Tyler’s not the only one wanting more…

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REVIEW: FALLING FOR THE GROOMSMAN is the second instalment in Entangled Brazen’s contemporary, erotic romance Wedding Dare series. There are a total of five storylines including Laura Kaye’s introductory novella Dare to Resist that sets up the wedding where 4 bridesmaids dare one another to find lust –or love- at the wedding between their friends. Each consecutive instalment will be written by a different author but all five storylines will be centered around Kady Dresco and Colton Brooks’s wedding. This is photojournalist Christine Forsythe and the bride’s brother Dr. Tyler Dresco’s story.

The premise is a second chance at love storyline. Christine lost her virginity to her best friend’s brothers eight years earlier and has never forgotten the abject humiliation when he walked away without a second glance. Now that they have reconnected at the wedding, Christine hopes for revenge and sets into motion a plan to humiliate Tyler they way he had done to her. But her plans go all to h*ll when she realizes that what she feels for Tyler isn’t hatred but love.

The reader is pulled into a storyline where emotions and anxiety run deep and strong. Christine’s need for revenge drives a good portion of the storyline but when she realizes that she has gone too far, Tyler is the one to walk away –again-but this time it may be for good.

We are introduced to the players in the Wedding Dare series-the friends and family of the bride and groom. Each one will have a story to tell and FALLING FOR THE GROOMSMAN is the starting point for each couple although this particular storyline will fast forward several months for Tyler and Christine.

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BAITING THE MAID OF HONOR
(Wedding Dare #2)
by Tessa Bailey

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About the book: Release Date June 9, 2014

He’ll own her from the very first touch.

Julie Piper and Reed Lawson have nothing in common. She’s a people-pleasing sorority girl hiding behind her perfect mask. He’s a take-no-prisoners SWAT commander who isolates himself from the world. But when they’re forced together at their friends’ posh destination wedding, one thing is clear—Reed wants Julie more than he wants his next breath. Which is why he’s not about to stand by when she’s dared to seduce another man.

Julie wants neat, tidy sex, so she could get back to what she does best—making everybody else happy. She never expected to slip into a dark bedroom and have her mind blown by rough, demanding hands, and a sinfully filthy mouth—neither of which belong to the best man. One night should have been all Reed needed to get the blond temptress out of his system, but when one taste is nowhere near enough, he’ll be forced confront the effects of his hellish past. One that may push Julie away forever…just when he realizes he can’t live without her

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REVIEW: BAITING THE MAID OF HONOR is the third instalment in Entangled Brazen’s contemporary, erotic romance Wedding Dare series. This is Julie Piper (current wedding planner) and SWAT commander Reed Lawson’s storyline. Julie is Kady’s Maid of Honor and Reed is one of Colton’s best friends. BAITING THE MAID OF HONOR (as with all four of the Wedding Dare storylines) will run parallel to one another and cross over at different times.

The focus of this particular instalment finds Julie Piper as the manic wedding planner for her best friend’s nuptials. From a destination wedding to a week spent in Colorado so the wedding party will get to know one another, Julie has every detail planned down to the last moment-from a scavenger hunt to ballroom dancing lessons and more. What she didn’t plan was falling for the rough, tough and demanding Reed Lawson.

Julie comes from a well to do family who expect nothing less than perfection from their only surviving daughter, and Reed comes from a background rife with abuse, neglect and addiction. These two opposites attract when Reed can’t resist the challenge that is Julie Piper. When Julie sets her sights on Logan-the pretty boy best man, Reed waits knowing that Julie will be his-at the end of the night.

Tessa Bailey pulls the reader into another emotional storyline where our couple will get their happily ever after but not before words are exchanged and the past is revealed. Reed isn’t a man who does hearts and flowers, in fact, he is a man who keeps to himself but when he tells Julie what he thinks about the direction of her life, Julie believes that Reed has it all wrong. Anxiety and trepidation follow our couple wherever they go.

The eclectic mix of secondary characters includes the members of the wedding party and we will see each get his and her happily ever after. The world building continues on the road to Kady and Colton’s wedding celebration but we do not get the privilege of attending the wedding vows. Reed and Julie’s storyline will fast forward four months after the wedding, where we will get a glimpse at what is in store for their future.

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SEDUCING THE BRIDESMAID
(Wedding Dare #3)
by Katee Robert

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 9, 2014

She has a plan. He’s about to change it.

Regan Wakefield is a headhunter in both name and personality: driven, motivated, and unafraid to pursue what—and who—she wants. Naturally, she’s thrilled when her friend’s wedding offers her an opportunity to score Logan McCade, the practically perfect best man. Unfortunately, groomsman Brock McNeil keeps getting in her way, riling her up in the most delicious of ways. But Brock’s smooth southern charm isn’t part of the plan…so how exactly did they end up having searing-hot sex?

Regan may pretend the erotic electricity sparking between them is merely a distraction, but Brock knows better. She refuses to see beyond the devil-may-care façade he presents to the world, while he sees straight through hers. Changing her mind—and getting under her skin—is a challenge he can’t resist. And when he wins, Brock will do whatever it takes to convince Regan that the best man for her is him.

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REVIEW: SEDUCING THE BRIDEMAID is the fourth instalment in Entangled Brazen’s contemporary, erotic romance Wedding Dare series. This is headhunter Regan Wakefield and groomsman Brock McNeil’s story. Regan has her eyes set on best man Logan McCade-the personification of success; a man who owns his own sporting good company but a man who has eyes for someone else. SEDUCING THE BRIDESMAID, as with all four of the Wedding Dare storylines, will run parallel to one another and cross over at different times.

The focus of this particular instalment finds Regan eyeing the prize-best man Logan McCade. As with all of the novellas, our bridal party has their week outlined with a scavenger hunt, ballroom dancing and getting to know one another. As Regan puts a plan into motion to seduce the best man she will come face to face with Brock McNeil-a man she has judged not worthy of her time or talent. She believes he is a southern redneck, born into money, with no aspirations of success. To scratch the proverbial sex itch, she agrees to Brock’s offer of a one-time fling only to find that neither one can get the other out of their minds. As Brock continues to pursue Regan, Regan pushes away at every opportunity –still hoping to catch Logan McCade before the end of the week.

Regan is a difficult character to like. She is judgmental, ascerbic, condescending, mouthy and an all around b*tch-there is no other word to describe the woman to whom Brock has lost his heart. Brock continues to pursue Regan at every opportunity only to be rebuffed and belittled with each attempt. No man on the planet would take the emotional and verbal abuse but this is, after all, a fictional storyline where each couple will get their happily ever after but one that set my teeth on edge with Regan’s attitude and clearly inflated ego. When Regan uncovers the truth about Brock’s life and his past, she is quick with an apology but perhaps it is too little, too late. Brock has discovered her plan to seduce Logan and will walk away for the final time.

The secondary characters include all of the bridal party and we will get a glimpse as each couple begins to fall in love with one another. SEDUCING THE BRIDESMAID gives the reader a glimpse into the wedding ceremony and fast forwards the storyline approximately four months in Regan and Brock’s epilogue.

Katee Robert writes with passion and emotion. Her heroes are alpha yet vulnerable to the pain of rejection and heartbreak. It is her heroine in this particular storyline that was not worthy of redemption (in my opinion). Sometimes people are not capable of change but in this romantic storyline, our heroine knew she had made a huge mistake and groveling should have been only the beginning.

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BEST MAN WITH BENEFITS
(Wedding Dare 4)
by Samanthe Beck

Order Links: Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk/ Barnes and Noble / KOBO /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 9, 2014

How far can one favor go…

Logan McCade arrives at his best friend’s wedding overworked and in desperate need of a vacation, only to discover his best man duties have been…expanded. He must coax Colton’s sister out of her shell, or risk her hiding in her room all week. Logan figures he can handle one introverted bridesmaid, but he’s not expecting how much he enjoys “handling” Sophie…or how much she enjoys being handled.

Socializing has never been web designer Sophie Brooks’s strong suit, but she’s determined to shed her wallflower image and embrace the “New Sophie”—a feat made easier with the supremely sexy Logan McCade tempting her to explore all her forbidden fantasies. If she’s not careful, she just might fall for the best man.

Sophie’s sweet, sexy, and delectably awkward demeanor brings much-needed calm to Logan’s hectic life. With the nuptials only days away, Logan is forced to face the possibility that his favor to a friend might have become something else entirely…and that he’s not willing to let Sophie go. Ever.

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REVIEW: BEST MAN WITH BENEFITS is the fifth and final instalment in Entangled Brazen’s contemporary, erotic romance Wedding Dare series and runs parallel to the previous three Wedding Dare novels. This is web designer and Colton’s little sister Sophie Brooks and sporting goods entrepreneur and best man Logan McCade’s storyline.

Colton has asked his best man Logan McCade to make sure his little sister has a good time. Colton knows that without a little push, Sophie would rather hide away in her room until the wedding ceremony. To Logan’s surprise, Sophie is no longer the shy and awkward teenager he to whom he was introduced years before but a beautiful, petite, voluptuous woman whose self esteem has been shattered by the taunts of her past. Logan is instantly attracted to Sophie but knows she is off limits. What ensues is a relationship built on needs and wants, and Logan wants Sophie for his very own.

Samanthe Beck is in the fortunate position to wrap up the Wedding Dare series. As with each previous instalments Logan and Sophie will find their happily ever after but not before mistaken beliefs and the bridesmaids dare goes a little too far. The reader is pulled into an emotional storyline where the pain of growing up the ugly duckling is a vivid reminder every time one looks into the mirror. And it will take the love and determination of a man with the looks of a model to show Sophie she is more beautiful than she could have ever imagined.

Copies supplied by the publisher

Reviews by Sandy