I mean terrible. 

Besides the the hero forgiving the heroine immediately it turned into a schmaltzy love must conquer hate! mess. It drove me nuts. And of course it was all coming from the asshole heroine. OMG, let him go, for us, our love must overcome his hate, nevermind he'll keep coming after us OOPS he kidnapped me again! Argh!

Then, of course, a ton of time was spent with the hero and heroine together being all lovey-dovey like I give a good god damn. The man list eight years of his daughter's life I WANT TO SEE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FATHER AND DAUGHTER!!!!! Instead she was barely in the rest of the book.

*SEETHES*

Seriously, it is the worst trope out there. The only thing I can think of that is worse is the falling-in-love-with-her-rapist trope. I would like to take all the secret baby books, put them in a pile, and make a huge bonfire.

The heroines in these stories are flaming trash piles, with few exceptions. Terrible human beings, and yet I'm supposed to believe in an HEA let alone root for one?

The heroine in this book is no different. Terrible excuses for not telling the hero when she could. And had the nerve to sleep with him before being forced to come clean! Coupled with the heap of other lies she was keeping. I know I'm supposed to be horrified that the villain knocked her the fuck out. But seriously I was just glad someone did what I had been aching to reach through my speakers and do. Because that'll be the only comeuppance she gets. 

Of course, much like all the other heroes in these stories he comes up reasons to forgive her. He understands her lame-ass reasons, and even takes blame upon himself. Gaaaaahhhh! *rips out hair* All so they can end up together when they shouldn't. I always wish the heroine would die or just fuck off in some way that the hero can claim his child and they can live happily ever after.

I hate this trope so much. HATE. The story for me becomes all about what the hero has missed in his child's life. He never gets any justice for that. It's never an HEA for me.

New rule: I flounce the hell out of secret baby books instead of trying to power through. The rage isn't worth it. I may stick around long enough to ascertain what the heroine did to try and find/notify the hero. But if it's not enough, or later she doesn't tell him when she has the opportunity I'm out.

To add insult to injury in this book the sex was so graphic. I liked this series because they were decent romantic suspense, light on sex and not graphic. Actual romance sex scenes. Then somewhere between the second and third book "cock" became Naughton's favorite word —judging by how much she uses it in her PNR series — and so now it is said constantly in this book. It's obnoxious as fuck. Romance doesn't need such graphic euphmisims. 

How sexy he finds her.

What he wants to do to her.

How long he's wanted to do it.

His feeling on all the parts of her body.

What her breasts look like.

What her nipples look like.

What they taste like.

What her vagina looks like.

What her vagina feels like.

What her vagina tastes like.

Everything he wants to do with her vagina.

What he does to her vagina.

How wet her vagina is.

How sexy she finds him.

What she wants to do with him.

How long she has wanted to do it.

Her feeling on all the parts of his body.

What his body looks like.

What his penis looks like.

How erect his penis is.

How big and erect his penis is.

What color his penis is when it is super erect.

What his penis looks like as it is erect.

What the veins of his penis look like as he is getting erect.

What his penis feels like in her hands.

What his penis tastes like.*

What his penis feels like in side her.

What both their genitalia looks like as he moves in and out of her.

What both their genitalia looks like when he pulls out of her.

What the build up to orgasm feels like.

What the orgasm feel like and do to them.

How much they want to do all the sex again.

What I don't know . . .

Why in the hell these two think they're in love with each other.

Yeah, graphic (though not as graphic as the actual book) but I think represents my problem here well. This book was all show when it came to sex but nothing but tell when it came to them being in "love". They knew each other nearly two years ago in Syria is as much as we're given. In this book they're either talking about the mission or sex. There was one little spate of getting to know each other's backgrounds. "He loved her and now he wanted to know everything about her." Sigh. Okay.

Oddly, there was a secondary couple that met during the book and THEY had real conversation and I can see what they have in common and would like about each other outside of sexual attraction. Why couldn't we get any of that for the primary couple? I might listen to the next book if the library gets it if it is this secondary couple hoping that we'll get even more of a foundation since there is at least already one in place for that story.

The other major problem with future books in this series, aside from knowing there'll be an overabundance of graphic sex supplanting story and unnecessary POV jumping is this strange thing of Walker describing the women as so diminutive they look like children. Thankfully the heroine of this book was adult sized. But the hero of the secondary couple initially thought the heroine was a little boy. Then called her a sexy cherub. Uh, ew. At the end of the book the historian they hired showed up and it's clear she's going to be the heroine of a future book and she's described as looking like a little girl at first. What is that? That's so creepy. Especially when they're going to be paired with these massive former Navy SEALS. It kind of reminded me of seeing Hayden Panettiere and her husband at first. See? But worse because it's going to be so graphically described.

Meh. We'll see. If the library gets any more of this series in and whether or not I run out of other things to listen to I might listen to the next book.

You write such interesting characters. And they have such great banter. In the second book of this series especially. Say Yes to the Marquess was so well balanced and there was so much talking and interaction between the hero and heroine that wasn't sexual. It was great!

In this book I loved our heroine Maddie and her quirks and ambitions. I loved how she handled Logan and the asinine situation in which she found herself. I loved she went out and got what she wanted in life. Logan I liked overall, but there was definitely that rocky start with him. Even if he was doing everything for the love of his men.

Unfortunately, in this book sex seemed to take over again like the first book of the series. Even though they didn't go full intercourse until very late in the book (thank god, otherwise it would have felt more than a little rapey) there were still a lot of interludes with touching, fingering, and oral. And I couldn't help but think if at least half of those were cut out and instead Logan and Maddie had more interaction outside of butting heads and basic get-to-know-you, it would have been a much stronger story like the second book.

Nor, of course, do I need the sex to be so graphic that I'm wondering if I'm listening to a romance or an erotica. There's a difference, dammit! I especially need authors to settle down with all the cock. Cock, cock, cock, cock, cock, I GET IT HE AS A COCK, GOD DAMN. Does it really need to be said twenty times in this scene? Or referred to constantly? I know, I know I'm a broken record on this subject and I probably will continue to be. What makes it entirely worse is when you have great books that are brought down by this element.  Authors and bloggers can take to twitter and whatever to mock me and others as much as they want to (and they do). I do not think I'm wrong that romance should be romance and it doesn't need nor gains anything from an over abundance of graphic sex.

Unless, of course, we're talking about lobsters. Then it's just necessary. 'She's drawn a lobster pillowbook . . .' Oh, my God, it kills me!!

Tessa Dare does really strong and interesting secondary characters and this book was no different. I don't want books for the secondaries in this book like I do for Phoebe and Bruiser from Say Yes, but I still liked them all a lot nonetheless!

I really liked this. Much better than the first. Another romance where a great relationship was established before sex (well, before full on sex). I couldn't get enough of Rafe and Cleo. Their conversations and, joking, and overall silliness with each other. There were quite a few times this book had me laughing out loud. My biggest complaints were that when the sex did come it was overly long and exceedingly explicit. Of course, that things with Rafe's brother weren't squared away before they started. And that (the sister) Phoebe's upset was never fully explored as it should have been. I loved her though. I wish she'd get her own book. Though clearly she is on the Spectrum and I don't know enough to know whether that could work or not (she doesn't like touching, so. . .). She and Bruiser were such great side characters, and part of what made the book so entertaining. I'd really like for Bruiser to have his own book, too.

Historical romance is killing it for me lately!