The writing is horrible. I'm only staying to see if the sex scenes are hot.

*Book source ~ Gifted

Nora Sutherlin is a notorious writer of steamy erotica and she’s trying to get her newest book published with respectable publisher, Royal House Publishing. She wants their best editor, the young and handsome British fuddy duddy Zach Easton, to edit her book, but he wants nothing to do with the purveyor of smut. However, they strike a deal and if he likes her book by the time she’s rewritten it and he’s edited it then he’ll sign her contract. But there’s more going on in both their lives than just a book. Who will be the victor in this butting of heads?

This book had been on my TBR since 2012 and while I was intrigued enough to stick it on that shelf there was always something telling me I wouldn’t like it so I kept pushing it further down the list. At the urging of friends who loved it and a gifted copy I decided to give it a go.

It started off pretty good. I liked all the characters, the writing was great and there was some mystery and witty dialogue. And then Nora does some shit that I find reprehensible. On top of that, she can’t seem to have a normal conversation. Everything out of her mouth, and I mean everything, is some kind of sexual reference or innuendo and frankly it got so incredibly tedious I wanted to just slap some duct tape over her mouth for the rest of the book. Or maybe sew her lips shut since she loves pain so damn much.

I started out hating Søren and liking everyone else, but by the end of the book Søren was the only true-to-himself character and everyone else were just fucked up liars. I would never be friends with Søren, but at least he was honest. Oh, and don’t get me started on the “twist” to Nora’s story. Can I just say how moronic it was and leave it at that? I rolled my eyes so hard I thought they would fall out of my head, roll across the floor and the cats would bat them around for fun. I’m done. Do I need to say I will not be continuing with this series? I’m so disillusioned I’m not even sure I want to try anything else by this new-to-me author.

*Book source ~ Kindle Lending Library

Evan is late on the rent and his landlady is a dragon. Not literally, but she accepts no excuses for late rent. And when Evan tries to explain anyway, she gives him an alternate way to pay his dues. With his wife away will Evan agree to his domineering landlady’s proposal?

I love the concept of this story, but the execution needs work. It definitely needs more editing to fix some errors that shouldn’t have gotten through and the head jumping is the most serious offense here. Alternate POVs are something I love, but you cannot jump around in the middle of a paragraph. Wtf?

I want to state for the record that spit is not a lube and it most definitely shouldn’t be used for anal sex. Also, I hate spit. Gross. Vivian, the MILF Dominatrix landlady, is very unlikeable in my eyes and I would have handled Evan differently. Anyway, the writing needs work and the characters could use some depth. It’s a so-so story.

*Book source ~ A review copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

100% of the profits of this book will be donated to the UNHCR, the UN agency leading and coordinating international action to protect refugees.

This Christmas anthology has 11 tales of Christmas steaminess. 10 are contemporary and one is fantasy.

Mistletoe Masquerade by Matt Inay ~ Ooohhh, acrobats are very flexible. {4.5 bites}

The Snowman by Kenya Wright ~ A yummy different fantasy. {4 bites}

Maybe This Year by Wendy Qualls ~ M/m nomminess stems from a Gentlemen’s Club. {4 bites}

Middle of the Storm by Amelia Creed ~Stranded in a car in a snowstorm. Meh. {2 bites}

Present Under Her Tree by May B. Bridges ~ Boring D/s {2 bites}

Blame the Mistletoe by Angelique Reyes ~ A so-so friends to lovers tale. {3 bites}

Spending the Holidays with Randy Rob by Kelly Cain ~Online relationship goes live. {3.5 bites}

Do You Wanna Build a Snowman? by Bethany Hyde ~Bored now. {2 bites}

Oooh Holy Night by Laura Elizabeth ~ Confusing and the guy is an asshole. {1.5 bites}

Anything for a Drink by Catherine Silver ~ Hot, M/m action at the same party as the first story. {5 bites}

Hung by the Fire by Peggy Barnett ~ Ooooh, historical naughtiness! BDSM, ménage and m/m action. {5 resounding bites}

*Book source ~ NetGalley

Substitute teacher Cerise Norrell’s life would be perfect if she could just find the right sub to obey her very specific Domme demands. About ready to give up her search, she goes to a BDSM-type Speed Dating event and meets William Gentry. William is known in the community as Chilly Willy because his skin is always cool to the touch. She agrees to give him a chance and William is ecstatic. He believes he’s finally found the Domme he’s been searching for throughout his very long life, the one who will put an end to his loneliness and satisfy his every need. But he’s got a huge secret and his Mistress Cherry has a crap-load of baggage. Will they be able to work through their issues or are they doomed to be alone forever?

The description of this story is what hooked me. A Domme looking for a specific type of submissive and when she finds him it turns out he’s a vampire. Come on! That’s intriguing! I love Femdom especially when the sub is a big strong guy or in this case, supernaturally strong and one you would think would be the one in charge. I love the juxtaposition. If you’re expecting a lot of kinkiness then this really isn’t the BDSM book for you. However, if you like role play then this is it. Cerise’s fetish is role playing and she never likes to do the same scene twice. The variety is wonderful and the sex is pretty good. Not overly graphic, but more hot, steamy and even sweet. I wouldn’t call this erotica, per se, but it’s definitely paranormal romance with a lot of steam. And I mentioned sweet, right? Because it is. Cerise and William have issues that they need to work out and there were plenty of times I wanted to smack Cerise, but overall I enjoyed their story.