Blog Tour: Meant For Me by L.P. Dover

 

Available Now!

 

4 Hot For Mason Stars

Synopsis

After a night of raw passion with the man Claire O’Briene had been secretly admiring for years, she thought their time together had come once and for all. Fate had finally brought them back to each other, but unfortunately nothing had changed. He was still the same man who ran away from relationships. Against his better judgment, Mason Bradley gave in to the temptation and allowed himself one night with the one woman he’d been too afraid to want … too afraid to need. 

Six months after leaving Claire and regretting every minute of it, Mason gets called in for an undercover mission that’s not only dangerous, but brings back a past he spent years trying to forget. A past of fighting … of getting in the ring and using his fists to get what he wanted: money, women, and drugs. Now there are fighters turning up dead, and it’s Mason’s job to find out the truth. 

Knowing he might not come out of the mission alive, Mason seeks out Claire to tell her how he truly feels, only to find another man competing for her love as well. Fighting is what he’s good at, and for once he will be fighting not only for justice … but for love.

I really liked Meant For Me by L.P. Dover!  It is a standalone but it is the third book in the Second Chances series.  I had not read the first two books in the series and the way the author wrote the book I never felt at a disadvantage by not knowing what had happened previously.  She did an amazing job with explaining previous situations and events so that the readers doesn't feel out of place or confused.

The relationship between Mason and Claire was great.  Because they had a past that included some negative history it made for a great storyline.  The banter between the two characters was playful and I really got sucked into their story and the love shared by them.

I did have a bit of a hard time getting into the very beginning of the book but it's definatly one that you want to read.  The storyline of being undercover really made for some heart pounding moments and even though I saw the plot twist coming I still wasn't ready for it and it made me nervous as I read the book.  I stayed up well past my bedtime just to see what was finally going to be the outcome because I knew there was no way I could sleep peacefully without finishing!

The Hero

Mason "The Eagle" Bradley

Holy WOW!  I loved Mason!  He's a strong willed alpha male with a history in MMA.....yum!  But at the same time he's so freaking sweet.  The story behind why he left his life as an MMA fighter was extremely touching and I loved that the author didn't turn him into a total sappy guy.  He showed his soft side but at no point did it feel forced upon him.

The Heroine

Claire O'Brien

 

I absolutely adored Claire!  I have a soft spot for heroines who are strong willed and willing to fight and that's what I loved about her.  No matter what was thrown at her she stayed the same.  She didn't waiver or put on a front.

 

Giveaway
 

a Rafflecopter giveaway  

 

Excerpt

 

The door to the arena room was open, and the moment we stepped in Claire gasped and I stared, wide-eyed at all the people. "Holy shit," I breathed in awe. "It's packed." 

Every single chair around the cage was occupied and there were people standing around everywhere. There were two guys already in the cage battling it out, except they looked to be part of the Lightweight division. When I fought several years ago, I was competing for the Heavyweight title. If they did fights in order of division then I would be going up there last."Hey, guys," Tyler exclaimed, carrying a beer in his hands. 
Disapprovingly, I glared at the beer and then back up to him. "You should know better than to get drunk before a fight. It makes you sloppy," I scolded him. 

I really didn't care either way what he did, but I knew better than to drink when I had to compete. Tyler chugged his beer and threw his cup in the trash a little too roughly. 

"I do know better than to drink when I have to fight, but unfortunately, I'm not fighting tonight," he announced. 

"Wait, what?" Claire cut in. "What do you mean you're not fighting? If you're not the one fighting Mason then who is?" 

Tyler glanced around the room with narrowed eyes until he found the person I was to fight and pointed to him. "That's the guy over there with the blue mohawk. I think you might know him. He said he owed you for something you did a long time ago. Care to explain," Tyler inquired curiously. 

Following the direction of Ty's pointed finger, I groaned when I saw the guy with the blue mohawk. Fuck, I knew who he was, or better yet, I knew his wife ... very well. 

"What is it Mason?" Claire asked worriedly. "Who is he?"

His name was Chase Benfield and I did the unthinkable by fucking his wife. Blowing out a frustrated breath, I lowered my head and began to explain, "Do you remember when I mentioned I had a dark past?"

"Yeah," she said, drawling out the word. "Let me guess, you fought him back in the day?"

I nodded. "Yes, but that wasn't just it." I didn't want to tell her what I did because I was ashamed of the way I acted and the way I did things. I was sure she would understand, hopefully, but I didn't want her thinking less of me.

Claire let go of my hand and crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "Dammit, just tell me already. You did this same shit to me when I was keeping something from you."

"Fine," I gave in, "but I need you to know it was a long time ago and it was before I even met you. I was stupid and did lots of stupid things that I shouldn't have."

She rolled her eyes. "Let me guess, you slept with his girlfriend," she guessed blandly.

Sighing, I regretfully nodded my head and waited for the angry words to come spewing out of her mouth. Instead, she said, "So, what's the big deal? You slept with her. That shit happens all the time. Why would he be angry about that still?"

"Well," I began, "it was actually his wife and I hooked up with her in my prepping room during his fight for a spot at the Heavyweight title. His trainer had come looking for her and found us. Needless to say, word got back to Chase awfully fast."

Claire groaned and hung her head. "Oh, hell, this isn't going to be good."

Chase finally spotted me from across the room and snarled his lip. No, I thought to myself, this definitely wasn't going to be good. 

 

About The Author

 

USA TODAY Bestselling author, L.P. Dover, is the author of the Forever Fae series, as well as the Second Chances standalone series, and her NA romantic suspense standalone called Love, Lies, and Deception. She lives in the beautiful state of North Carolina with her husband, her two wild girls, and her rambunctious kitten Katrina.

Before she began her career in the literary world, L.P. Dover spent her years going to college and then graduated to cleaning teeth, which she loved doing. At least until the characters in her head called her away. She has never been the same since.

 

 

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6526309.L_P_Dover

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lpdover

Website:  http://authorlpdoverbooks.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LPDover

Blog Tour: All The Pretty Poses by M. Leighton

 

Available January 24th, 2014

 

 

5 swooning for Reese stars!

 

He never wanted to be a hero…until she needed him to be.

 

Strength…

It took Kennedy Moore years to put her life back together after Reese Spencer shattered it.  But she did.  Now, years later, strong and independent, she is in pursuit of a single dream—to dance with the Altman American Dance Theater.  Unfortunately, Kennedy is learning that a girl from nowhere with no money and no contacts might never be able to reach her goal.  

 

That is, until Reese reappears, offering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that Kennedy just can’t refuse.  In exchange for working on his yacht for a few short weeks, he’ll get her an audition with the famous dance troupe.  All Kennedy has to do is keep her head down, work hard and resist Reese.  That sounds easy enough, right?

 

Weakness…

Reese doesn’t want to make it easy for Kennedy.  Seeing her again has started a fire in his blood—an unwelcome one.  It took him years to forget about her before, so this time he has a plan.  It’s simple:  Get Kennedy on his yacht, seduce her, get her out of his system, move on with his life.  That sounds easy enough, right? 

 

But the one thing Reese didn’t plan for was Kennedy herself—a girl so strong yet so broken, she makes him want to rescue her, to take care of her.  To save her.  Even if he has to save her from himself.

 

 

*ARC received in exchange for an honest review*

     Let met start by saying that I love M. Leighton and pretty much everything she writes automatically goes on my favorites list.  It's a combination of her writing style, her hotter than life BBF's and her amazing uplifiting attitude that makes her my go to Author for a great read! 

---- Enough with the fangirling!----

 

All The Pretty Poses is a very well written story with enough sexual tension and angst to keep me reading well past my bedtime!  I absolutely love angst in a story, for me, personally, it just makes me want to keep reading.  The back and forth, the will she or won't she, is like kryptonite for me.  And the steam, holy crap!  M. Leighton has outdone herself again with the steam factor in All The Pretty Poses.  If you though All The Pretty Lies was HOT then be ready to read this second in the series with the A/C on!  Oh and the twist in this book...WOW.  You know a twist is coming but I just couldn't figure out what it was going to be.  I had at least 4 different scenarios in my head by the time it came but was still surprised!

 

I was a fan of the first book in this series, All The Pretty Lies, and I really liked Hemi, but if I liked Hemi than I LOVED Reese!  He's arrogant, cocky, sexy, rich, alpha, dominant, and built like a house....oh and did I mention sexy?!?  He's been born into money and the older he gets the more of a cocky ass he becomes until Kennedy dances back into his life.  Then suddenly we get to see his asshole façade start to fade away, even if he continues to try and keep it covered.

 

Kennedy is a great heroine, while she is a bit frustrating at times (what heroine isn't!), she makes up for it with willpower.  Reese try's every trick in his book to seduce her but she just keeps dodging it.  As the book goes on you see how her life has affected her and why she is how she is, but I loved how strong of a character she is.

 

 Momma's Recommendation:

I highly recommend this book for all romance readers who like angst and steam!  While this is the second in the series it does follow separate characters. We do get a glimpse of characters from the first book so you most definitely want to read All The Pretty Lies first as it contains spoilers from the first.

Giveaway

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

The ALL THE PRETTY POSES Giveaway

 

What’s up for grabs? 

 

·         2- $250 Visa Gift Cards

 

How do I enter?

 

Via the Rafflecopter posted here and on each participating site, you may:

 

·         Like the M. Leighton, Author Facebook page (5 points, can only do once)

 

·         Follow @mleightonbooks on Twitter (5 points, can only do once)

 

·         Share the giveaway graphic on Twitter along with one reason that you’re excited to meet Reese (10 points, can do once per day)

 

·         Tag three different friends in the comments under the graphic on the M. Leighton Author Facebook page with one reason you’re excited to meet Reese (10 points, can do once per day)

 

Details!

The giveaway begins at 12:00 am EST on January 14, 2014 and ends at 12:00 am EST on February 3, 2014.  Winners will be randomly selected by 5:00 pm EST on February 5, 2014.  For a complete list of rules, please see the “Rules” section of the Rafflecopter.

About The Author

 

 

M. Leighton is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Wild Ones and The Bad Boys romance trilogies.  She is a native of Ohio, relocated to the warmer climates of the South, where she lets her mind wander to romantic settings with sexy Southern guys much like the one she married and the ones you'll find in her latest books.  When her thoughts aren't roaming in that direction, she'll be riding horses, swimming in ponds and experiencing life on a ranch, all without leaving the cozy comfort of her office.  

 

For more about M. Leighton, visit her website at www.MLeightonBooks.blogspot.com or follow her on Twitter@mleightonbooks.

Links:

Blog: http://mleightonbooks.blogspot.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mleightonbooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MLeightonAuthor

Author Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1152263.M_Leighton

ALL THE PRETTY POSES Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18801960-all-the-pretty-poses?ac=1

Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/M.-Leighton/e/B004LL0TAU/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Rotten by JL Brooks

Available Now!

Momma's Rating:

5 Amazing Stars!

 

Synopsis:

 

Growing up on the outskirts of Las Vegas as the daughter of notorious strip club owner, Stephen Knox, and a mother who abandoned her at birth, life was less than kind to a young Antoinette.

After a failed teenage suicide attempt, Toni hit the road in search of a life free of undeserved cruelty and any resemblance to her past.

Years later, Toni finds herself in a dead end marriage and makes a painful confession that sends her back to the one place she always wanted to escape. But can she really right the wrongs that haunt her? Toni soon finds that the only place where things stay the same is in your mind.

When her path crosses with David Stark, childhood playmate turned one night stand, she cannot deny the spike in temperature she feels every time he's near or the scorching dreams that flood her at night.

Digging through the years of heartache, Toni soon finds herself torn between the man she is committed to and the one who has always held her heart. As each layer unfolds before her, she discovers the root cause of her pain. Always believing the source was external, nothing could prepare her for the truth.

Momma's Review:

*I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

 

Talk about being blindsided by a book!  This is another book that I chose to read without reading the synopsis and holy shit was I knocked on my ass by this one!  The first chapter had me in tears and my head spinning.  I've been vocal in the past about experiences that I had with bullying while growing up and the way that Toni's story was written hit so close to home that it made me reach out and thank J.L. Brooks for writing it. 

 

Toni was such an amazingly complex character that I immediately fell in love with her.  She's strong, independent and a total spit fire, the problem is that she's been hiding her true self.  As you watch her rediscover herself you can't help but root for her the entire time.  And while there were a few times in the book I wanted to smack her with my kindle I still loved her! Then add in David Stark, a sweet, dark, playful, romantic, teasing, sexy beast!  The angst in this book was one of the parts that I liked the most.  No one jumped straight into bed and because of that you find yourself holding your breath for the next move.

 

The other thing was the fact that religion was used so freely in this book.  I'm Catholic, I've confessed this to you all before.  I've also been vocal about the fact that I HATE when authors use any form of religion in a book as a negative.  It totally turns me off.  And at the same time I hate when authors use it for no reason, like it's just another plot point.  But I was so extremely happy while reading this book.  While the religious beliefs of the main heroine are openly discussed in the book at no time does it feel like the main focal point, the way it's written makes it just so normal....like an everyday thing.  That my friends is hard to do!

 

Rotten by J. L. Brooks is so incredibly well written.  When I write a review I sit down and talk with myself about all the pros and cons, the characters, the plot points and the pace of the story.  I couldn't find a single flaw!  J.L. Brooks has easily jumped on my list of must read authors and I can't wait for her next project!

Momma's Recommendation:

Anyone that has seen my Facebook page in the last week can tell how in love I am with this book!  To say that I highly recommend this book is a complete understatement.  It's easily made my must read list of 2013 and maybe of all time!