Summer Solstice by Kate Hofman

Title: Summer Solstice
Author: Kate Hofman
Publisher: Dark Castle Lords
Publication Date: May 2009
ISBN: 978-1-921347-98-6
Genre: Contemporary
Length: 42 pages
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Author Email: katehofman@rogers.com
Rating: 4 Diamonds
Heat Level: erotic
Other: Oral play
Reviewer: Valerie Mann
Date: 03/13/2010

Lady Margaret, daughter of the late Earl Bronley, is working at an art gallery in Ocean Breeze, Florida, when her employer asks her to do him a favour and go over to his friend, Prince Alessandro of Sant' Angelo. He needs someone to do some work. When she arrives, she realizes that the work he wants her to do is accompanying him to a formal dinner. She agrees, only to find that the Prince expects her to take part in a 'quickie' so they can both be relaxed during the probably endless dinner. Later, they will enjoy more leisurely pleasures. Incensed, Margaret wants to refuse, but the Prince succeeds in seducing her. A month later, he arrives at the gallery, to ask Margaret whether she is pregnant--the condom broke. She says, Yes, she is, but she will manage very well on her own. Horrified, the Prince explains that she is carrying the heir to his throne, and they will have to get married. Margaret refuses angrily. Will the Prince succeed in convincing Margaret to marry him so that his child will be born the legitimate heir to the throne? And even if he succeeds, what kind of marriage will they have, with her refusing his every olive branch?

Summer Solstice reminds me of the Harlequin romances I used to read as a teenager - powerful royal hero and outwardly timid heroine with a spine of steel. I enjoyed the tenderness the Prince Alessandro shows his pregnant princess and while attraction had never been an issue between them, the growing love they feel for each other is obvious. My only complaint? I wanted this read to be longer because I love a good love story!

Iron Man by KyAnn Waters

Title: Iron Man

Author: KyAnn Waters

Publisher: Elloras Cave

Publication Date: December 2009

ISBN: 9781419924507

Genre: Erotic Paranormal

Length: 96 pages

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Author Email: Spicy.writer@yahoo.com

Rating: 4.5 Diamonds

Heat Level: Erotic

Other: anal/oral play, sex games and toys, BDSM, ménage, GLBT

Reviewer: Jillian Carroll

Date: 03/13/2010

Rafe is a vampire and Adam is his human blood slave. But Rafe wants more—a blood bond. Adam, not willing to join the vampire world, leaves it all behind and heads for DC and a new life.

Back in town for the holidays, Adam and Rafe rekindle their romance and head to the local fetish club, The Catacombs, where Adam is known as Iron Man because of his hardware—a steel cock plug and chain harness. They spend the week having wild, aggressive, kinky-as-hell sex. Anything goes. When it’s time to return to the real world, Adam is torn. Rafe is more than a vampire, more than his lover. He’s his partner. Adam isn’t sure he can give up his humanity, even for the man he loves. He has to decide—a vampire blood bond or his lonely human life in DC?

One of the things I like most about KyAnn Water's stories are the bond she creates with her characters. Love, lust, romance...all incredibly intense in depth...and Iron Man doesn't disappoint. Rafe is strong and fearless - except when it comes to his feelings for Adam. Adam is strong and loyal, to both family, job and Rafe. Moving to DC doesn't dim that loyalty, it just becomes misplaced, only to rise to the forefront again when Rafe suffers a loss and needs the comfort only Adam can give. Watching the two men find each other again, renew their bond for each other while dealing with uncertainty of the future made this a fun, exciting read. I'm definitely looking forward to the next installment in the Blood Slaves series!

Betrothed to the Enemy by H.C. Brown

Title: Betrothed to the Enemy

Author: H.C. Brown

Publisher: Noble Romance

Publication Date: 2009

ISBN: 978-1-60592-039-9

Genre: Historical

Length: 66 pages

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Author Email: heather.brown_15@rocketmail.com

Rating: 4 Diamonds

Heat Level: Erotic

Other: anal play, spanking

Reviewer: Jillian Carroll

Date: 03/12/2010

After her father’s death at the Battle of Hastings, Lady Angela of Parr is defenseless. Dragged from her estate and taken to London, she finds herself at the mercy of a ruthless Norman king. William, the new king of England, plans to repay his loyal knights by offering them marriage to the landed Saxon ladies. Angela has no love for the Normans, but when she meets Sir Damien de Anesi she is instantly smitten and puts her reputation in jeopardy by secretly meeting with the handsome young Norman knight. Their love blossoms until King William betroths Angela to a depraved old man and Sir Damien is forced to choose between his loyalty to his liege and his love for Lady Angela.

I love historical romance and Betrothed to the Enemy did not disappoint. H.C. Brown did a wonderful job with description and I got a clear visual of the time period which is so important to me. Lady Angela was a great heroine, feisty when necessary and her knight, Sir Damien, can shine his armor around me anytime! The sex between them was hot although she was a bit more adventurous her very first time or two between the sheets than I thought believable, especially for a sheltered Lady of that era. However, the overall story held my attention and made me cheer for their union and I’ll definitely read more by author H.C. Brown.

Velvet Submission by Violet Summers

Title: Velvet Submission

Author: Violet Summers

Publisher: Liquid Silver Books

Publication Date: 2010

ISBN: 978-1-59578-661-6

Genre: BDSM Romantica

Length: 72 pages

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Author Email: VioletSummers@yahoo.com

Rating: 5 Diamonds

Heat Level: Erotic

Other: anal/oral play, sex games, and BDSM

Reviewer: Dana Dean

Date: March 2010

Megan Jamison plays the sweet southern belle to perfection. She also lives the life of a Domme within the safe walls of the bondage club, Velvet Ice. She never mixes sex with domination. Sex is about trust and letting go. Domination is purely that, an opportunity to find peace through control.

Gregori watches Megan Dom other men who don't deserve her. He knows what she needs, what they both need, but how does a muscle-bound, Russian, pain slut convince a golden goddess to trust him enough to allow his total submission for her pleasure?

Bondage is not usually my favorite genre, but let me say Ms. Summers made a convert out of me with Velvet Submission. The sex leaps off the pages in blazing Technicolor. More than that though is the story itself. Megan and Gregori spar in a delightful mix of give and take. Gregori may be a believable and delicious submissive, but he remains a sexy and powerful male and a perfect foil for Megan’s own strengths and weaknesses. In a word, Velvet Submission is scrumptious. I can’t wait to read other work by this talented writer.

Guardian Cowboy by Crystal-Rain Love

Title: Guardian Cowboy
Author: Crystal-Rain Love
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Publication Date: January 2010
Genre: Contemporary Western Romance
Length: 116 pages
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Rating: 4 diamonds
Heat Level: sensual
Reviewer: Dana Dean
Date: March 2010

Presley West walked away from the bodyguard business to return to his roots as a cowboy. He does not want to go back to his other life. Too bad fate has other ideas. When he rescues a woman stranded on the interstate, his protective instincts roar back to life.

Amber Barlow doesn’t need or want a man to tell her what to do. She’s had enough of that from her abusive ex. But violence and degradation lurk behind her, and whether the man hunting her finds her or not, the past could destroy her future and the sweet guardian cowboy she longs to share it with.

Guardian Cowboy offers exactly what readers of this genre look for – a handsome, tough cowboy with a tender heart and a feisty woman to make him face his soft side. Amber’s fluctuating self-image and Presley’s need to save the world complement one another nicely. Although a bit cliché in places, overall Ms. Love’s story is a sweet, gentle and well-written love story that will tug at your heart strings.

My Love Eternal by Liz Strange

Title: My Love Eternal

Author: Liz Strange

Publisher: Lyrical Press, Incorporated

Publication Date: 2009, electronic publication March 2010

ISBN: 978-1-61650-132-7 digital

Genre: Paranormal Romance/Vampire

Length: 166 pages

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Author Email: lstrange@cogeco.ca

Rating: 4.5 Diamonds

Heat Level: Sensual

Reviewer: Starla Kaye

Date: 3-6-10

Rachel works nights in a hospital, preferring the nights to days. One night she meets a man who haunts her dreams, just as she haunts his. She longs for him and yet can’t understand the strength of her feelings. Giovanni needs her, stunned by how she can see his thoughts and feel his emotions. He needs her, wants her and she wants him, too. But the life he leads and can offer her will change her forever.

One of the emotional lines that captured my attention was “I touched a blood-tinged tear as it slipped down his face.” From that moment on I was drawn into their story of a complicated love. This is book one of a trilogy that I look forward to reading.

Cover of Darkness by Kaylea Cross

Title: Cover of Darkness
Author: Kaylea Cross
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Publication Date: 2010
ISBN: 1-60154-603-3
Genre: Sensual
Length: 348 pages
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Rating: 5 Diamonds
Heat Level: spicy
Reviewer: Dana Dean
Date: March 2010

Though born and raised in the United States, half Lebanese and half American, Bryn McAllister understands the diplomatic world her lives in. Or so she thinks until that world explodes around her and launches her into danger unlike anything she has ever experienced before. On the other hand Navy SEAL Lieutenant Declan McCabe realizes just how deadly the war torn Middle East can be. He’s lived, fought, and watched fellow soldiers die there, but he’s never experienced anything or known anyone he could not distance himself from until Bryn. Can he keep her alive long enough to get her out of the country and into his arms?

Wonderful. In Cover of Darkness Ms. Cross did exactly what a writer should do. Almost from the first page I wanted to be the heroine even when danger and chaos lurked around every corner. I admired Bryn’s dedication to a father she rarely saw, her strength and determination to do whatever it took to survive, and her compassion. Mostly, I envied her opportunity to be rescued by several hunky men. Although Dec is obviously and spectacularly the hero in this story, the other men who circle Bryn like satellites should not be disregarded. In fact, I suspect they won’t be. Cover of Darkness tells Bryn and Dec’s story, but it also drops tantalizing hints about the lives of several others and left me wanting more. I enjoyed this novel and can’t wait to see whose story is next. Well done, Ms. Cross.