REVIEW: Naked (The Blackstone Affair #1)

Naked (The Blackstone Affair #1), by Raine Miller
Published August 25. 2012
Publisher:  Raine Miller Romance
Format: e-galley, provided by NetGalley
Genre:  adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating:  3 STARS

(From Goodreads) Brynne Bennett is living the good life. An American art student at the University of London and part-time photographic model, she’s putting her life back on track with school and lots of hard work. When ultra successful London businessman, Ethan Blackstone, buys her nude portrait, he isn’t taking ‘no’ for an answer. He wants Brynne in his bed and makes plans to keep her there no matter what. His dominant nature captivates and ensnares despite the demons she carries inside her. But there are secrets in this relationship. Huge ones. Can Ethan free Brynne from the past that has marked her? Will Brynne let him or will the specters tormenting her resurface to destroy them both…

I have a problem, or rather, problems. Their names are Christian Grey. And Gideon Cross. They are my markers for all other hot rich billionaires who seduce quiet, innocent girls and fall in love with them. They have set the bar high. And I'm having a hard time finding their match. 

Domineering Ethan Blackstone has set his sights on Brynne Bennett after buying a photograph of her. Although she tries to deny him, she soon finds out that denying Ethan Blackstone anything is futile. There is obviously something in Brynne's past, though, that she is running from. And, Ethan finds himself just wanted to help her and love her. 

My main issue with Naked is that Ethan rolled over way too easily. One of the reasons why I love Christian and Gideon so much is that they never make it easy for their women. They are men of habit and don't apologize for it. They certainly don't change easily either. Love doesn't come easily - their women have to earn their love, and the payoffs are incredible. It's unusual to see insta-love in an adult contemporary/erotica book, but believe it or not, it's here. 

And, I'm not talking about the instant attraction that always happens in these books - that kind of instant lust is to be expected. And, that's present here too. Ethan sees Brynne's picture and is instantly attracted to her. Then he sees her in person, and it seals the deal for him. I do like that part. 

But, honestly, after that, it's like Ethan's hot, domineering side disappears and all he does the rest of the book is fawn over Brynne. Some parts of that are sweet, but sometimes I just want to ask him where he put his man card. I think that Brynne took it, because there comes a time when she seems to have more power in their relationship than he does. 

There are some women out there that will love that. I'm not one of them. I like my alpha males. My control freaks. My type-A personalities. I think that's what Ethan is supposed to be. But, he's not quite there. He does have some pretty words, though. 

“I want to be with you so badly right now. i want to take you home with me, and put you in my bed and have hours and hours with your body wrapped up in mine and to do with as I wish. I want to have you in the morning so when we wake up I can make you come, saying my name...I want to watch some crap TV show and have you fall asleep against me on the couch so I can watch you and hear you breathing.”

There is one similarity between Christian Grey, Gideon Cross and Ethan Blackstone - their women all leave them because they are idiots and go temporarily insane. Naked ends on a crazy cliffhanger reminiscent of Fifty Shades of Grey and This Man. Brilliant. Because now I can't wait to see what happens next. 

RELEASE DAY NOVELLA REVIEW: Keeping Her (Losing It #1.5)

I'm so excited to help the amazing Cora Carmack announce the release of her Losing It novella, KEEPING HER (Losing It #1.5), featuring my favorite college professor, Garrick Taylor. I may be a little biased, since I was an enthusiastic member of the Team Garrick Street Team during the NA Crush Tourney last month, but I've never seen so much awesomeness packed into so few pages. Read on for my full review and an INCREDIBLE giveaway! This release day launch was organized by Inkslinger PR.

Keeping Her (Losing It #1.5), by Cora Carmack
Published August 13, 2013
Publisher:  William-Morrow
Format: e-galley, provided by Edelweiss
Genre:  new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating:  5 STARS

(From Goodreads) Garrick Taylor and Bliss Edwards managed to find their happily-ever-after despite a rather . . . ahem . . . complicated start. By comparison, meeting the parents should be an absolute breeze, right?

But from the moment the pair lands in London, new snags just keep cropping up: a disapproving mother-in-law-to-be, more than one (mostly) minor mishap, and the realization that perhaps they aren't quite as ready for their future as they thought.

As it turns out, the only thing harder than finding love is keeping it.

I didn't think it was possible for me to love Garrick Taylor any more than I did at the end of Losing It. I was wrong. 

Keeping Her is told in both Bliss's and Garrick's POVs. Getting inside Garrick's head was the absolute best part of this novella. The worst part - it was way too short. But, if I'm going to be honest with myself, a full length book from both Garrick's and Bliss's POV wouldn't be long enough. I just love getting inside that beautiful man's head. 

In Keeping Her, Bliss and Garrick journey to England so she can meet his family before they get married. Bliss is a mess - she's terrified of Garrick's mother. She's heard that she's a difficult woman, and Bliss wants to make a good impression. Meanwhile, Garrick is equally as terrified. Not of his mother and whether she'll approve or not - that doesn't matter to him. He's worried that Bliss will turn tail and run if she thinks she's not worthy of him. 

Hearing Garrick's thoughts as he worries about Bliss and her reactions to his less-than-loving family was so endearing and sweet. He loves this woman so much that he's willing to give them all up - give up everything - for her. 

I loved meeting Garrick's mates in Keeping Her. His relationship with them is so unlike any relationship he had with anyone in Losing It. He's kinda goofy and jokey with them - not all buttoned up and Mr. I-Need-To-Do-The-Right-Thing. They all four stop in a bar after Bliss and Garrick arrive in England and proceed to get wasted, and it's hysterical! It's a completely different side of Garrick, and I loved that. 

Although Bliss is still her insecure self, she's come a long way. She finds it within herself to stand up to Garrick's mom. And later when a difficult situation presents itself, she doesn't completely internalize it like most typical NA female characters do. She has her private freak out moment, then does the mature and rational thing and talks to Garrick. I know! Communication! In a new adult book! It's practically unheard of. 

After all this, I'm hoping against all hope that we get to see Bliss's and Garrick's wedding in Finding It (Losing It #3), due out in October. I want to see these two find their final HEA. They deserve it. 

About the Author

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.

Cora Carmack is planning to donate 20% of all her royalties from this book to the charity Planting Peace for the life of the book. You can find out more about Planting Peace here:  http://www.plantingpeace.org/. Planting Peace is a progressive nonprofit organization founded for the purpose of spreading peace in a hurting world. Although the organization operates on a global level, they emphasize the power of one; the ability that each person possesses to make a difference in the world.

Learn more about Cora Carmack here --> Website * Facebook * Twitter

Giveaway

Fill out the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win one of two crazy awesome prizes! There will be two winners. One will win a set of signed copies of LOSING IT and FAKING IT and the other will win their name as a character in an upcoming novella by Cora Carmack scheduled to release in early 2014! This is an International giveaway! 

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This is one meme I can get on board with - I LOVE lists! I'll show you mine if you show me yours!

This week's topic is our top ten picks in "X" setting. My choice of setting - COLLEGE. Heaven knows, with all the new adult books I read, this was a good choice for me. You might be interested to note, however, that not all of my ten books are new adult, however.

Top Ten Books Set In College

1. Losing It, by Cora Carmack
 Bliss meets Garrick in one of her college classes. Oh yeah - he's her teacher. *snicker*

2. Beautiful Disaster/Walking Disaster, by Jamie McGuire

Abby and Travis. Travis and Abby. No matter which version you read, the epic love discovered on a college campus between a lover and a fighter is the same. Awesome.

3. Point of Retreat, by Colleen Hoover

Although the initial meeting of Will and Lake was in high school, in the follow up book, both of them are in college. Taking classes, being parents, keeping house and trying to figure out how to love each other the way they deserve is nothing short of challenging.

4. One Tiny Lie, by K. A. Tucker

Livie is a freshman in college and now has a chance to really let loose. Except, she doesn't know how. Luckily, she meets Ashton, and he teaches her that until then she hadn't really been living.

5. Wait For You, by J. Lynn

Avery and Cam first meet in class, then find out they're neighbors in the same off-campus apartment building. Although Avery keeps Cam at arms' length for awhile, when they finally get together, that's when things get REALLY interesting.

6. Halfway To The Grave, by Jeaniene Frost

Cat Crawfield is leading a double life. College student by day, vampire hunter by night. Unfortunately, Cat's machinations at being a good little college student soon fall by the wayside after she meets the vampire who finally makes an honest woman out of her.

7. Easy, by Tammara Webber

When Lucas saves Jacqueline from an attack at a college party, she not only discovers her knight in shining armor for the moment, but someone she can count on for the rest of her life.

8. A Discovery of Witches, by Deborah Harkness

Reluctant witch Diana calls forth a crazy powerful book in a library at Oxford, and along with it tons of other supernatural beings. Including Matthew, a sexy-as-hell vampire who finds Diana more intriguing than the book.

9. Fifty Shades of Grey, by E. L. James

Ana meets Christian when she interviews him for her college newspaper. Later, he gives the address at her graduation. Thus begins a wild - and I do mean WILD - ride and the love of a lifetime.

10. Some Girls Bite, by Chloe Neill

Okay - I realize I'm stretching here a bit. Some Girls Bite doesn't really have much to do with college. But, Carolyn Metit's life ends and then begins again on a college campus when she is walking home from class that she was attending as a graduate literature student. In that instant, she ceases being Carolyn, graduate student and becomes Merit, vampire novitiate and Sentinel of Cadogan House.