Series: MacLachlan Family & Friends #10
Published by Avon Books, HarperCollins on 2014-08-26
Genres: Erotic Romance, Historical Romance, Regency Romance, Victorian Romance
Format: eARC
Source: Edelweiss

Isabella Aldridge is in dire straights.  After being let go from her latest post, she is having problems landing a new one, owing to the fact that she is very pretty.  Her last interview did not go very well when she was propositioned by the Earl of Hepplewood to be his mistress instead of his governess.  Spitting mad, she refuses the offer, no matter that she still has two siblings to raise and to protect from her lecherous cousin.  Still desperate, she rethinks the mistress situation and asks help from her former employer, who was a courtesan, La Seductrice.  She makes inquiries and unknowingly pairs Isabelle with the Earl!  Without any other options, Isabelle agrees but then discovers the sexual depravity of the Earl.  When Isabelle responds to his sexual demands, a fine line between pleasure/pain ensues.  And when Isabelle’s family is threatened, Tony will do anything in his power to protect the woman he loves.

I really don’t know how to review this book.  To say this book is a shocker is an understatement!  I mean, I read erotic romance (in fact, I enjoy them!) but what shocked me is that I wasn’t expecting this book to be an erotic romance!  I honestly do not have problems with the unexpected BUT this book does veer from Ms. Carlyle’s usual historical romances.  To be honest, I had a hard time connecting with the hero and heroine at all.  I didn’t feel any emotion at all, other than the S&M aspect.  It wasn’t the sex scenes that did me in, I think it was the unexpected shock of reading this type of romance by Ms. Carlyle.

This book was an easy enough read for me, but I honestly had a hard time finishing it.  Fortunately, I did because it does get better, if you overlook the S&M, pseudo-masochist aspect of it.

The Earl’s Mistress feels like an erotic romance.  There is some graphic sex and S&M in the book.  Although there are scenes like this, it does not overpower the whole book.

Series: The Ivy Chronicles #3
Also in this series: Foreplay, Tease
Published by Avon Books, Harper Collins on 2014-11-18
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Young Adult
Format: eARC
Source: Edelweiss

Wild by Sophie Jordan is the third book in The Ivy Chronicles series. This is the first book in the series that I read and can be read as a stand-alone. Characters from the previous two books pop in and out all throughout the book but they do not add to any confusion if you haven’t read the other books.

I initially read this book because I was interested about the plot. Who doesn’t want to read about a good girl paired with a bad boy? I also do not read a lot of contemporary romance and surprisingly, I enjoyed this book! I love the balance between Georgia and Logan. Of course, the age difference between the two (Georgia is a few years older than Logan) adds a new angle to the good girl/bad boy trope. Despite Georgia being the older of the two, Logan seems to be more mature than she is. I love how Logan’s back story revealed the responsible man that he is and not the devil may care playboy that everyone believes him to be.

I was a little annoyed at Georgia, though. She wasn’t what I would call an awesome heroine. She was, as the blurb said: ‘Boring. Predictable. Tame.” Although I didn’t like her as much, I thought she was a good match for Logan and by the end of the book, she was able to stand up for herself.

Definitely a must read, Wild is a steamy NA romance perfect for reading before school starts!

eARC Provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review

Series: The Ivy Chronicles #1
Also in this series: Wild, Tease
Published by HarperCollins on 2013-11-05
Genres: Contemporary Romance, New Adult
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased

I was really surprised that I enjoyed Wild (Ivy Chronicles #3) by Sophie Jordan.  So much so that I read the whole series!  I really loved the story of the three best friends: Pepper, Emerson and Georgia!

Foreplay, focuses on Pepper’s love story to bar tender/owner Reece.  When shy Pepper finds out that the love of her life, her best friend’s brother breaks up with his serious girlfriend, she sees it as a sign!  She had been in love with Hunter since she was in high school and now want him all to himself.  But wait!  She has no experience in the flirting department.  Enter a hot bartender from Mulvaney’s rumored to be skilled and free of his uhmm favors.  When Pepper sees him in the bar, she is stunned and is attracted to the hottie bartender and immediately practices her wiles on him.  Incidentally, he is the hottie who helped her with her car when it stalled after her babysitting gig one night.

When Reece agrees to tutor Pepper with foreplay (and more), Pepper starts to fall but she still can’t let go of her love for Hunter, especially now that Hunter has started to notice her.

I love the sparks between Reece and Pepper.  Reece is the perfect badboy/goodboy/experienced older man (not so older though) for Pepper and naturally, they can’t keep their hands off of each other.  I also loved that despite having a bad boy image, Reece is responsible, which I really liked.

Foreplay was a quick and steamy read for me and I enjoyed it.  I was a little annoyed at Pepper a few times but she did redeem herself in the end (she saves a puppy from a fire and almost gets killed in the process).

Sophie Jordan has become a go to crossover author.  I love her historicals and now her new adult books!  I have also read her young adult Firelight series.

Series: The Ivy Chronicles #3
Also in this series: Wild, Foreplay
Published by HarperCollins on 2014-05-27
Genres: Contemporary Romance, New Adult
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased

Tease by Sophie Jordan is the second book in The Ivy Chronicles series (Foreplay #1, Wild #3) and is my favorite of the three.  The heroine in this book is Emerson, the tease/flirt/party girl who acts like she doesn’t have a care in the world.  However, she hides a deep dark secret that she has kept from her closest friends.

While at a biker bar, Emerson gets uber drunk and starts a brawl causing her so-called friends to abandon her.  She gets rescued by our hero, Shaw who also has a chip on his shoulder.  He is an ex-marine, come back from Afghanistan (or was it Iraq?) trying to forget about the cousin that died in the line of duty.

When our hero and heroine meet, Emerson gets labeled a cocktease and despite trying to suppress her attraction to Shaw, she cannot stay away.

This has become a favorite of all the three because I liked the darkness that Ms. Jordan added to the story.  The family issues that she added with blended families was done well although there were a few eyebrow-raising parts.

There are two things that I did not like about Tease, though.  First is Emerson.  Yes, she has scars but she was a little off putting at first.  A female “rake” that rubbed me the wrong way.  Second is the cover.  I did not like the cover AT ALL!  Not to mention that I already read a book with the SAME COVER a couple of years ago.  Yes, recycling covers is good but this one was not done right.

Tease is steamy, a little bit cheesy and a unique college romance that will keep you wanting more.