Review: Bayou Heat - Talon/Xavier

Bayou Heat #5 & 6 - Talon/Xavier

Author: Alexandra Ivy and Laura Wright

Synopsis

TALON

After the tragic death of his parents when Talon was young, he’s dedicated his life to protecting the Pantera. To the strikingly gorgeous man, loyalty and honor mean everything. So it’s no surprise that he’s determined to treat Isi Rousseau as the enemy. If the elders believe she is a danger then he will do whatever necessary to prevent her from destroying his beloved Wildlands. But discovering the delicate beauty sleeping in his bed, Talon discovers his noble intentions wavering. The female, with short, jet black hair streaked with blue, and a pair of dark eyes, might act tough, but it’s obvious to him that she’s as desperate as he is for a place to call home. More importantly, her presence is helping keep Ashe and her baby alive.

Suddenly things are not quite as black and white as Talon assumed, and he must decide if his loyalty to his people is worth losing his true mate.

XAVIER

He shouldn’t want his best friend’s little sister…

The drop-dead gorgeous leader of the Geeks, Xavier has one goal: find the human male his enemies seek. Devoted to his work, and to the Pantera, there is nothing that can distract him from accomplishing his goal. Until he spots his best friend’s little sister alone and partying it up with a bunch of human males at the local bar. Consumed with possessiveness, Xavier takes her home and refuses to leave her side until her brother returns. He tries to convince himself he’s just looking out for her, but the longer he’s around Amalie, the harder it is to deny the molten attraction that burns between them.

She has three days to change his mind…

Beautiful and strong-willed Hunter, Amalie is free. No brother to tell her what to do, and no Pantera watching over her because she happens to be the last Pantera born. But before she can truly enjoy herself, her brother’s best friend tries to put her on lockdown. Xavier has been the star in all of Mal’s fantasies, and there’s no one she’d rather give her virginity to. But the sexy male refuses to open his eyes and see what’s right in front of him. Mal knows she has three days to change his mind. Three days to make him see her as grown, and the one female he can’t resist.

Review

Let me start off with a "Wow!"

I've been a fan of Alexandra Ivy since I picked up her first Guardians of Eternity book. I didn't read anything of Laura Wright's until the first Bayou Heat book (#1 & 2, Raphael/Parish), and that is when I fell in love with the series. A wonderful, mystical race of puma shifters that live in a magically protected bayou. Every man in this land seems to be dripping with sex appeal and handsome to boot. It makes for wonderful male leads.

They did not disappoint in this installment. Talon, a wonderfully protective Hunter who lost his parents tragically, and Isi, a tattoo artist who specializes in tattooing shifters, are forced together when she finds out that the only place she doesn't get sick in the Wildlands is in his house and when he's near. They can't get away from each other. And if he does live her alone, she would be in danger. Both are too head-strong to see the budding interest - so they fight it until they can't anymore. When they do get together, it's hot and steamy and passionate. Alexandra Ivy blew me away again.

Laura Wright has finally made Geeks drop dead sexy with the dark-skinned, drop dead gorgeous Xavier. He is a tech genius in charge of finding out where a particular human-male was. When his best friend, Aristide, gets stuck at work, Xavier puts himself in charge of protecting Aristide's sister, Amalie (Mal). Mal has been in love with Xavier from day one, but she's tired of waiting on him. She wants him to take action, so she can't help teasing him. And Xavier can't help responding to her. She's gorgeous, fun, and completely off limits. He fights himself over and over to keep from taking her and keeping her to himself every time she flaunts around him. Their hot, steamy, crazy relationship blossoms in this novella.

It's another great installment. I would recommend it to anyone who likes romance, paranormal romance, or take charge males who are drop dead sexy

Rating

Book Blitz and Giveaway: Rook by Stella MacDonald

Rook 
By: Stella MacDonald

Synopsis: 

 Could you be the monster to save who you love? Two women, separated by generations, must leave what they know to start a new life. Seventeen-year-old Kate's senior year is ruined when she's moved from the only home she's ever known. After an isolating month alone in her apartment, school starts, but neither her classmates nor her teacher are who they seem. Kali, a single mother living in the nineteenth century wilds of Montana, is stalked by a malicious past. She fights to keep her daughter safe while her freedom is threatened by her less than benevolent benefactor. Both find love, and with it hope, but that is quickly ripped away as one woman must learn the lessons of the other -- before it's too late to save either.

  Praise for Rook:

•  "This book also drew me in. I couldn't let go of what was happening and when life intervened and forced me to close my computer I kept looking for a few moments to sit down and read some more.” Brookeworm, a Blog 4 Stars

• "Rook had me hooked from the first page. It all started so mysteriously that I just had to know what it was all about. “ Jannat Bhat, Obsessive Compulsive Reader 4 Stars “Rook is an amazing story that had me at the edge of my seat.” Tee Loves Kyle Jacobson Blog, 5 Stars    

 Excerpt

 Is that him? Is he back? My legs jerked, kicking and twitching me around to face the sound. I managed to roll slightly, knocking against a soft, solid object at my feet. It grunted weakly, and immediately I recoiled as though I had been bitten. Squinting, I stared, willing my eyes to find light in the dark, but there was nothing. The sound of the runner drew closer, as if they would trample me any moment. A dim, swaying light appeared through the trees, burning away the inky edges of the deep shadows. When light and sound were almost upon me, branches above me snapped, spraying me in a shower of dried pine needles and snow.

  

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  Author Stella MacDonald Stella is a married graduate student with three boys. Utah is home right now, but the need to wander has extended beyond the fantasy world of writing and into real life. She's lived all around the US and even into the Middle East. The world is really a small place, only made bigger through imagination.  

  BookBlast $50 Giveaway 

$50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 12/30/13 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Book Blitz and Giveaway: Stir Me Up by Sabrina Elkins

Stir Me Up

by Sabrina Elkins

Release Date: 10/01/13

Harlequin Teen

Summary from Goodreads:

Cami Broussard has her future all figured out. She'll finish her senior year of high school, then go to work full-time as an apprentice chef in her father's French restaurant, alongside her boyfriend, Luke. But then twenty-year-old ex-Marine Julian Wyatt comes to live with Cami's family while recovering from serious injuries. And suddenly Cami finds herself questioning everything she thought she wanted.

Julian's all attitude, challenges and intense green-brown eyes. But beneath that abrasive exterior is a man who just might be as lost as Cami's starting to feel. And Cami can't stop thinking about him. Talking to him. Wanting to kiss him. He's got her seriously stirred up. Her senior year has just gotten a lot more complicated….

Available from:

  

Excerpt

Julian’s in cutoff sweats and no shirt and he’s trying to reach from the weight bench where he’s seated to the door handle of the small fridge, which is just a few inches too far away from him. From my hiding spot by the doorway, I can see his surprisingly V-shaped bare back, and the rise of muscle that runs from his shoulders to his neck, and the cut of his arms. I clear my throat and he turns.

Okay, there are guys who are utterly ripped, like bodybuilders. That’s not Julian. He’s not stacked like a bodybuilder. He’s just… buff, in this way, in this utterly sensual way. Like his pecs aren’t huge and bulging, they’re just pronounced enough. His chest, like his back, is broad and his body tapers in at the waist, leading to another hint of a V-shape pointing down from his hip bones, and above this the shadowy lines of a six-pack. He sees me. “Hello.”

My insides clench. Suddenly, I can’t look at him. “Can’t sleep?”

“No. I figured I might as well do something useful.”

“But now you’ll have to get your wheelchair all the way back up to the house.”

I glance at him and catch him studying me. “Yeah, I guess I will.”

Probably on account of his injuries, Julian is stretching out his left leg and leaning back on the bench instead of just bending the leg and sitting normally. This is what’s giving me such an amazing view. Of his sweatiness. The sweat has dampened his hair, it’s filming his skin. There are a handful of scars on his chest, and with his head back a little like it is, my eye can trace the line up those scars in a kind of zigzag pattern.

I gulp down some air and hope he can’t hear it. But he must, because that curve at the corner of his mouth deepens a little.

“Can you come here a minute?”

About the Author

Sabrina Elkins, author of Stir Me Up, has also worked as a journalist, movie copywriter and prep cook. She graduated from USC and currently lives with her husband and three children in the greater Los Angeles area.

Sabrina loves hearing from her readers, and encourages you to visit her at

www.sabrinaelkins.com, on Twitter @sabrina_elkins, Facebook at elkins.sabrina, and Goodreads.

***Author Links***

   

GIVEAWAY:

Win 1 of 3 stockings filled with holiday candy, chocolates, a hand-crafted Christmas charm bracelet and $10 Amazon gift card.  Open Internationally. Void where prohibited.

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