Tag Archives: Xtina Reviews

SAVOR ME SLOWLY by Gena Showalter – a Review

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SAVOR ME SLOWLY by Gena Showalter

Gena Showalter’s Alien Huntress series has surprised me and I mean that in a very good way. I will be honest and say that of all the book genres, Sci-fi books like space books or futuristic books are deemed to be my least favorite. I think the ideas and some storylines always come out corny and frivolous. Gena Showalter is able to use the concept of aliens and romance together and somehow make it work. I take my hat off for her in that regard. The series is listed under paranormal romance but it felt a little Sci-Fi-ish to me. For those who enjoy forensics and Men in Black, this series is worth reading.

The main couple of Savor Me Slowly is Jaxon Tremain who is an Alien Investigation and Removal agent and Mishka Le’Ace who is half human and half robot who is an undercover operative. The couple meets when Mishka under an executioner alias as ‘Marie’ rescues Jaxon from further torture from a group of aliens who abducted Jaxon. From here it is instant attraction between the two.

Ever since Awaken Me Darkly where Jaxon is introduced, I knew there was an intriguing enigma of a man hidden beneath of the scars and polite exterior of the man. When it comes to his career, Jaxon is a master interrogator who knows how to get answers by any means necessary along with being able to keep his mouth shut no matter what happens to him. The condition in which he is in during his torture is enough to say that the man is courageous, loyal and tough that he can endure. Such lovely traits to a man with honor. Jaxon is a well-mannered man, calm, proper, indifferent and a man with a clean mouth that doesn’t cuss. But underneath it all there is another side to Jaxon. A man who lets his emotions free, cusses and gets sarcastic when crossed, and just moodier…(in a good way moody). He has a hidden alpha-male in him that makes for savage and raw love scenes but he is also tender, slow and considerate in the bedroom as well. This combination is extremely erotic in a hypnotic and captivating way. You can’t help but just be totally entranced.

Mishka Le’Ace is a strong heroine and has likeable traits. What I like the most about Mishka was that she was the perfect balance of bad-ass tough girl and girly-girl. She wasn’t a prissy, whiney and mouthy girl that I find annoying in some girls in other books. What I can say is Mishka reminds me of Destiny from Christine Feehan’s Dark Destiny. She is a warrior of woman, selfless and protective of her man, beautiful, seductive and courageous. Mishka being half-robot is controlled by a sadistic prick of a “handler” where he hands her all these missions she is to complete. If she fails to complete the mission or argues that she doesn’t want to do the mission, her handler has the power to punish her in means of physically hurting her and putting her through heinous training. So many times in her life, she is often forced to kill people she doesn’t want to kill or sleep with men she needs answers from. Half the time, I felt sorry for Mishka but despite it all I like that she wasn’t a bitter and mean woman. Being starved of warmth, love and family in her life, Mishka deep down is a regular woman who desires a normal life. In a nutshell, Mishka is a fighter and lover.

I really enjoyed the love scenes because for starters I felt like the scenes are creative. Jaxon and Mishka do make love or grope each other in a variety of places like in a dark alley, the car and other bedrooms. I also like the variety. Some scenes are hot and savage while some are soft core and romantic. In all the scenes in which Jaxon and Mishka make love, there is so much depth of love and emotions.

Seriously what is not to love about this book? There is a nice touch of Sci-fi being used in a tasteful fashion, action whether you get a girl fist fight or an all-out alien/human brawl, suspense of how the enemy alien are plotting, breath-taking love scenes and awesome characters. While I enjoyed the first 2 books greatly; I already made up my mind that book 3 Savor me Slowly is a huge huge fave!

Reviewed by Xtina R.

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ONLY PLEASURE by Lora Leigh-a review

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ONLY PLEASURE by Lora Leigh – a review

Only Pleasure by Lora Leigh review

Lora Leigh’s Bound Hearts series is a delectable read of contemporary romance with a nice touch of erotica to it. Of all the books in the series, my undisputed favorite is Only Pleasure which is the tenth book in the series.

Only Pleasure is about Chase Falladay and Kia Rutherford. Chase Fallady is one of the personal investigators of “The Club.” The Club is a place where men pretty much share the same lifestyle of sharing their women in ménages along with some sexual extremes. Kia Rutherford is the daughter of a prestigious business firm owner and ex-wife of Drew Stanton who was also part of the club. The thing is, even though Kia was married to Drew Stanton, Kia and Chase had always had their eye on one another even before Kia married Drew.

The story starts out with Chase having to visit Kia over an incident where Kia had almost gotten raped by Drew, if it hadn’t been for Drew’s chosen third who saved Kia from that scary fate. After the incident, Kia had confided in a “friend” about the incident and the club in which that “friend” proceeded to spread rumors that threaten the secrecy of the club. Chase promises Kia a generous divorce settlement and protection from her ex-husband who backhanded her because of her intention not to take him back in exchange for her to deny the rumors or any stories that pertains to the club.

Fast forward two years later and Kia is alone and closed-off from everyone for the past two years since the incident. While hiding out in a bar after an obligatory party, Kia runs into Chase and his friend Khalid el Hamid-Mustafa. They then invite her to have a drink with them. Well that turns into a passionate ménage in the back of Khalid’s hummer limo. Both Kia and Chase agree that the experience is only for the pleasure. Little do they know that it escalates to something much bigger than just the sensual gratification. At first Chase, Khalid and Kia participate in ménages. It was only for the pleasure right? But for Chase it was a way to avoid that kind of intimacy that comes with making love with just two people; his way to fight his ever growing feelings for Kia. But in the end of all the fun and games, Kia is still going to sleep all by herself in her loneliness. My most favorite scene in the book is when Chase does finally make love to Kia long without a third, on the hood of his car with the snow falling all around them. The scene was just so intimate that even though it was just for the pleasure you feel and see the height of emotion running through both of them. Of all the love scenes, I felt like this particular scene took my breath away.

Unfortunately even after a particularly steamy scene, Chase is still leaving Kia alone in her loneliness yet again. After an assault on Kia that left her injured with a concussion that Chase finally realizes how much he really loves and her and does whatever he can to make it up to her. He cares for her injuries and watches over her while she sleeps. And when she starts to feel better; he makes love to her, cleans her up afterwards, and even proceeds to hold her through the night the way he should have been doing for her in the beginning. When Chase does all this for Kia my respect for Chase really grows. The thing is this we are all human and we do mistakes that hurt one another whether we meant to do it or not. Sometimes we have a tendency to make these mistakes a lot on the person we love and cherish. But thing is for the person to own up and do whatever it takes to show that they have changed, to show they care, to do what it is necessary to make it better shows someone of worth to me. Not only does Chase own up and takes of care Kia but Chase is so sincere to Kia that it makes you want to tear up at his tenderness and his emotion towards her. Even though Kia is at the point of being wary of getting close to Chase again, Chase still continues to show Kia that he is it in for the long run and that he wasn’t going anywhere. And when the threats on Kia’s life doesn’t stop, Chase is there the whole step of the way to protect her.

One of my favorite scenes is when after Kia gets rescued from Harold Brockheim who assaulted and tried to kill Kia. While she was in the hospital was Chase’s first time he ever told Kia that he loves her. Also the wives of the club members visit her and leave her flowers. For a woman who was alone for the past two years, it looks like she had friends all along. It really touched my heart when Chase promised himself that Kia would never be alone again. It just makes you so teary when real friendship can be hard to find. Even though Kia had trusted the wrong friend, there is a group of kind hearted women trying to reach out to her that she doesn’t need to be alone no more. Another one is right before Chase and Kia get into a particular heavy love making scene, Kia says this is Chase. “It is, Chase? Isn’t that what love truly is? Being free even as you’re being held? Knowing you can reach for the stars, and someone’s there to share it with you? Or to give you a boost if you need it? Someone to laugh with, love with, cry and argue with? Someone you know will be there when you’re moody, when you’re dark, or when you just need a hug. Isn’t that love?” I love Kia’s honest definition of what love is to her and the thing is I most truly do agree with her.

There is just so much to like from the book. What I appreciated the most was how realistic that story was in the sense of the that society can be cruel, that people have their hang ups in their relationships and also how a person’s past can affect their future relationships. Lora Leigh shows her talent that she utilizes such strong depths of emotion but also include some rather “heavy” love scenes. While some may complain that some of Lora Leigh’s books are a little on the crude side, I believe Lora Leigh has the right touch to do it tastefully. This is my first Lora Leigh series and I absolutely do not regret it.

Reviewed by Xtina

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Dangerous Tides

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DANGEROUS TIDES by Christine Feehan – Reviewed by Xtina R.

 

Dangerous Tides by Christine Feehan is a satisfying read and one I would recommend others to read. This book is about Libby Drake, the fourth born/middle child of the seven Drake Sisters, gifted with the ability to heal and the renowned biochemist/adrenaline junkie Tyson Derrick.
The story begins with Drew Madison, who is a terminally ill leukemia patient who attempts suicide by jumping off the cliff. He does not die but is gravely injured and needs to be rescued. Tyson and the team of firefighters have to rescue Drew Madison with the helicopter and Tyson is the one who has to go down the rope to rescue him. Something goes wrong in the middle of the rescue and the rope breaks leaving Tyson to fall and in critical and near death condition. Libby finished up a shift in the hospital and is on her way, leaving for the day. While she hears of Drew Madison, she also hears about Tyson’s fall. Libby feels extremely compelled to heal Tyson at the cost to herself and her sisters.
From here the story goes into full swing. Libby is sick and disoriented from healing Tyson while her sisters try to help her find her way out of the hospital. Irene, Drew’s mother, assaults Libby with her purse because she is blaming Libby and her sisters for what happened to Drew while Elle rushes in, and wreaks havoc on Irene for assaulting Libby.
I thought this scene was super cool because it give you a glimpse of how powerful and frightening are Elle’s powers , as the seventh daughter who carries the legacy to bring in the next generation. This scene was also special to me because it shows me how much the Drake sisters really have each other’s back; that they were trying to help Libby; along with Elle standing up for Libby when Libby wasn’t in the position to do so. As much as all of the sisters are close and love each other, it is easy to see that Libby and Elle are quite close. You also catch a glimpse at how close they are in Oceans of Fire, when Libby tries to heal both Abby and Aleksandr. I like Libby and Elle’s relationship because quite frankly, it resembles, me and my sister’s relationship back in the day.
In the first 3 books, the men are not psychically gifted, but are quick to believe the magi the Drake sisters can wield. Tyson is another story, where he actually thinks the Drake sisters are con artists. One of my favorite scenes occurs when Libby and her sisters are using their magic in front of him in their house. Af first, Tyson tries to find out how some of the things are done, but then LIbby gets angry and tries to show Tyson that she can really heal. After a funny scuffle with Tyson and Libby, Tyson finally believes her and realizes that she was healing him as he was recovering from his injuries. Also, while Damon, Matt and Aleksandr have an easy time being accepted in the Drake family, Sarah is a little slow to warm up to Tyson.
Aside from my favorite passages of the book, there are the love scenes. I kind of felt like the love scenes were a little on the ‘soft core’ side, but I still enjoy the scenes nonetheless. The first love scene takes places in the house Tyson bought Libby which is described as gorgeous. A mansion that is all glass with a beautiful garden, I mean I can imagine the house to be breath taking. Tyson, who is socially awkward sure can have his thoughtful sides. Because Tyson is a scientist and can get caught up in his research, he has a tendency to stand Libby up. Despite Tyson’s shortcomings, he knows how to make Libby feel beautiful, sexy and cherished. Libby looks at herself like a ‘plain Jane’, next to her sisters. I have a feeling, that how Libby feels, can be related to some to be different from your group friends or to feel like a ‘plain Jane’ in a group of beautiful friends.
Tyson and Libby made such a lovely match. They both have a love for science and they just remind me of the cute, geeky couple. It is also a nice compliment that Libby is a doctor and Tyson is a biochemist for pharmaceuticals. Libby is a compassionate and selfless woman but has a shortcoming for being unable to say no, while Tyson is very intelligent and extremely loyal, but is socially awkward. Tyson is able to say no for Libby when she can’t, while Libby is compassionate and understanding of his awkward nature even when his cousin loses patience with Tyson.
This is still my undisputed favorite Drake sister book, because I see myself in Libby so much. I love that this story brings on many relatable feelings out of the readers, in the way that a ‘plain Jane’, quiet and maybe the insecure girl can find and love and feel desired. Also, that even people who feel like a misfit like Tyson can also find love and that such people can find their match. The book contained suspense that keeps the reader on their toes but cutting love scenes that take your breath away.

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