Arrow’s Hell / Dragon’s Lair by Chantal Fernando-reviews

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ARROW’S HELL
(Wind Dragons MC #2)
by Chantal Fernando
Release Date: June 16, 2015
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic,romance, motorcycle club

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / The Book Depository

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 16, 2015

Being the younger sister of a Wind Dragons MC member isn’t as great as you’d think it would be.

I can’t escape the details of my brother’s exploits.

No one tells me anything.

Men who know who I am tend to stay away from me.

And worst of all:

The members of the MC are off-limits.

When Arrow catches my eye, I make it my mission to make him happy again.

When I fall head over heels in love with him, I just hope he will be there to catch me.

And that my brother doesn’t kill him.

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REVIEW: ARROW’S HELL is the second installment in Chantal Fernando’s adult, contemporary Wind Dragons erotic, romance MC series focusing on the men and women of Wind Dragons motorcycle club. This is Arrow and Anna’s storyline. ARROW’S HELL can be read as a stand alone although I would suggest reading the series in order for backstory and cohesion. Many of the events in Arrow’s Hell began in book one Dragon’s Lair.

Told from first person point of view (Anna) ARROW’S HELL fast forwards the series five years focusing on the continuing war between the Wind Dragon’s and the Wild Men MC, the building relationship between Arrow and Anna, and Arrow’s spiral into the abyss of guilt and grief. Anna is MC member Rake’s little sister, and she has returned to town to complete her PhD in zoology but Rake is all about protecting his sister, and to do so, she is ordered to move into the Wind Dragon’s Club house. Not one to be pushed around, Anna questions everything that happens including the sorrow and sadness emanating from another club member Arrow. It is Arrow’s history with the Club, and the murder of someone close, that finds our hero burying himself in alcohol and $ex.

The relationship between Arrow and Anna is one of immediate attraction but Rake has issued a hands-off order to the Wind Dragons members as it pertains to his sister Anna. Anna, never one to follow orders, pursues Arrow with the intent of relationship but Arrow isn’t one to settle down with one woman-and in this Arrow’s need to lash out finds Anna at odds about her attraction to Arrow. The $ex scenes are erotic, intimate and seductive but Arrow’s guilt over the death of a friend compounds the growing animosity between Anna and him. Arrow’s growing reputation as a man-whore finds Anna on the outside looking at Arrow destroy her heart.

The world building continues to focus on the MC wars; the camaraderie between family and friends; club brothers; and the women who come in and out of their lives. As with most MC series there is plenty of $ex, alcohol, violence and threats against everyone they love but for Anna and Arrow the threat comes from violence of the past when, five years earlier, Arrow killed the president of the rival MC in retaliation for the death of the woman he loved, and Anne will become the target of the rival MC. As per my review of Dragon’s Lair, the violence and sexual content is not as graphic as some series but there is no denying that the MC lifestyle is dark and dangerous.

Most of the previous storyline characters play secondary and supporting roles including Wind Dragon president Dex and his old lady Faye. With the advance of the series five years, we get a look at the relationship between Faye and Dex’s daughter Clover with the big, brawny and scary men of the MC. Tracker continues to push the boundaries of his friendship both with Anna and Faye, as he continues his sexual escapades with Allie, but there is something growing between Tracker and Anna’s BFF Lana.

ARROW’S HELL is a fast paced, entertaining and intoxicating storyline with some fun and humor to offset the intensity of guilt and grief. The romance is aggressive and heartbreaking (I may have shed a tear or two); the characters animated, colorful and intriguing; the premise not without some cringe-worthy moments. The double standard between alpha bikers, and the Club women and whores seems to be a growing divide although Anna and Faye are smart, strong and independent women-you can’t get around the relationships between bikers and Club whores: it is what it is –a fact of life in the world of the MC.

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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DRAGON’S LAIR
(Wind Dragons MC #1)
by Chantal Fernando
Release Date: May 19, 2014
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic, romance, motorcycle club

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / The Book Depository

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 19, 2014

When I found my boyfriend cheating on me, I did something stupid.

Or should I say, someone?

Because of that mistake, I’m now stuck in a world I don’t belong in.

I’m a law student. They’re criminals. He’s the vice president of a motorcycle club. I’m a good girl with a strict upbringing. He’s my ex-boyfriend’s brother.

And I’m screwed.

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REVIEW: DRAGON’S LAIR is the first installment in Chantal Fernando’s adult, contemporary Wind Dragons MC erotic, romance series focusing on the Wind Dragons motorcycle club. This is Wind Dragons’s vice president Dex ‘Sin’ Black, and law student Faye’s storyline-a friends to lovers romance.

Told from first person point of view (Faye) DRAGON’S LAIR follows the rebuilding of a friendship and relationship between Faye and Dex. Growing up neighbors Faye had always had a crush on Dex Black but Dex disappeared from Faye’s life years earlier, and in the ensuing time Faye found herself in a relationship with Dex’s brother Eric. Walking in on Eric having $ex with her friend, Faye steps out of her comfort zone and heads to places unknown where she will reconnected with Dex Black –the vice president of the Wind Dragons MC- and the man she has been in love with since an early age. Weeks later Faye’s life will come crashing down, and she finds herself on the run, homeless, and considering a future unlike anything she could have imagined.

Faye is a strong ,sassy and feisty female lead who isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Along with her bravado there is also plenty of humor and one liners as she learns to navigate the MC lifestyle, and the men and women she confronts every day. Faye tends to get herself in trouble with her quick responses and even quicker wit-there is very little filter to Faye’s thoughts and speech.

Dex Black aka ‘Sin’ is the vice president of the Wind Dragons MC and has never forgotten about the little girl who lived next door. Only five years her senior, Dex has always been protective of Faye, and now that she was in his life for the long haul, Dex isn’t willing to risk her life or their future but there is a war on the horizon, with a rival club, and Faye will do anything to protect those she loves.

The relationship between Faye and Dex is a friends to lovers romance but Dex’s lifestyle is that of tough biker, in a tougher situation where nothing is off limits including $ex, alcohol and guns but Faye’s presence puts a halt to many of the nightly pastimes; and Dex isn’t willing to sacrifice his life with Faye for the temptations of his younger self. The $ex scenes are erotic and provocative.

The world building takes the reader into the underbelly of the motorcycle club including rival gangs, open $ex, unruly parties, threats to one’s safety, and the likelihood of an attack against family and friends. But unlike some MC series, Wind Dragons is not as graphically violent with sadistic acts or unnecessary, over the top gratuitous $ex. The dark, intense and dangerous aspect is watered down-the gritty and harsh reality is present, but not the ‘in your face’ ugliness of some series. Even Dex’s secrets are easily overcome without little to no anxiety or angst.

DRAGON’S LAIR has a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including a number of Wind Dragons members and the women who make themselves at home-some will not make it past the first installment when war is declared while others plays a significant role throughout the story.

DRAGON’S LAIR is a fun read despite the MC lifestyle and some of the storyline premise. There are moments of heartbreak and betrayal; humor and fun; expectations and future hopes. Dragon’s Lair is my first Chantal Fernando read, and I am looking forward to many more

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley.

Reviewed by Sandy