Pennies (Dollar #1) by Pepper Winters

Highly addictive, extremely dark, and shocking introduction to Pepper Winters' brand new Dollar series. 

Pepper Winters continues to amaze me with her imagination, talent, and writing ability. Compared to Tears of Tess, which features a somewhat similar scenario and heroine, I'd say Pennies was a lot darker and more horrifying to read because of what Tasmin went through. She suffered in the hands of her captor for nearly two years! I can honestly say that there are no "heroes" in this book. If anything, Elder Prest is an anti-hero. While he does end up saving Pim near the end, I worried for her future because he tells her that what he has in store for her... isn't pretty. It's very interesting and I can't wait to see how their relationship will develop in the next book. At the very least, he'll be a hell of a lot nicer than that psychotic bastard, Alrik.

“You’re worth pennies, but I’ll make you worth fucking millions. However, what I expect in return will be unpayable.”

Prior to starting this book, I was quite hesitant to read it because of how heavy and dark the material was. Slavery, rape, and human trafficking? Not something I'd want to read if I ever wanted to be happy. But I did, and even though I was horrified and shocked by the content, I really really liked this book. My heart broke for Pim and for the girl she once was. I felt like her mother had something to do with this? And even though Elder Prest wasn't exactly the best person to rely on, I'm just glad he was able to save Pim in time. The first time they met, sparks literally flew! I do have to say though, what I did find to be spectacularly romantic about this book was Elder and Pim's one kiss and moment together.

"Already, I felt the corruption inside me clawing for more. One taste, one touch, one kiss, one fuck. One was all I was permitted."

In the end, I thought this was a stunning first novel to the Dollar series and now I absolutely can't wait for the next book coming in September. I want to learn more about Elder's past and I really really hope Pim will finally talk to him! Call me crazy, but I actually found their relationship kind of sweet... especially in his attempts to make her talk despite her vow in not doing so. Anyway, I highly recommend Pennies to those who are looking for a suspenseful, addicting, and very dark series to read. Just one more month until Dollars will be released!

Rating: ★★★★★

Love Child by Kat Austen

A quick and super sexy read with plenty of steam and dirty talk.

When I first picked up this book, I honestly did not expect much. The synopsis sounded a bit cliché but I did find the premise of Love Child, a baby-making company, to be quite interesting. It actually makes sense! Maybe I'm just crazy. 

While reading Love Child, there were plenty of sexy moments and even heartbreaking ones between our hero and heroine, Abel and Adeline. Although I had wished it was a bit longer so that our main characters could be more fleshed out, it was still a very enjoyable read. I was actually quite curious about both of Abel and Adeline's upbringing and their family. The author did briefly mention Adeline's but I don't remember much information for Abel.

 As for the chemistry and romance between Abel and Adeline. Holy cow did these two have lots of it! You could feel the palpable engery/tension between these two from the very beginning! They were attracted to one another and while I'm not a huge fan of insta-love, I'll let this one go since it's a quickie. Let's just say that he really wanted to get into her pants and vice-versa, hehe. In any case, I really enjoyed the love scenes between these two and the dirty talk by Abel was definitely a bonus. I'll definitely be checking out more of Kat Austen's books from now on!

Rating: ★★★★☆

Dangerous Kisses (Guild of Hybrids, #1) by Alice Lake

Refreshing and hilarious new take on the roles of women in historical romances with strong female characters and a romance full of laughs, misunderstandings, and a little heartbreak.

**This book was provided by author in exchange for an honest review** 

It took me awhile to finish Dangerous Kisses but I finally did it! I thoroughly enjoyed my first novel by Alice Lake and am slightly intrigued by the next book since it will be about Larissa, Lavinia's trouble sister. I found the chemistry and romance between Lavinia Halls and Eric Yorke, Viscount Mathieson, to be the real star of the show even though I also found the Guild of Hybrids to be somewhat interesting as well. Heck, a society where women of means could use their talents in order to help other women from harm is pretty cool.

I wasn't exactly a fan of Lavinia's at first considering she literally set out to destroy an innocent man's reputation without confirming whether or not the information was true. Funny enough, her plan actually backfires because she's constantly dazed by Eric whenever he's around and acts like a complete idiot which of course, made me like her a little bit more. The same thing happens to Eric because every time Lavinia is around, he becomes completely enamored by her appearance, personality, and scheming ways. Let's just say these two made me laugh a lot because of their misunderstandings of one another and lack of trust. Thankfully however, the romance does develop and we get to see a more romantic side of their relationship besides their compatibleness in the bedroom. Although the heat factor wasn't very high, I was still shocked by the number of times Lavinia and Eric coupled! As for the evil woman who asked Lavinia to help with Eric's ruination in the first place, I'm still slightly bitter we never got to see her get the ending she deserves.

In the end, I wouldn't have known about this book without the author asking for my review so I would like to wholeheartedly thank Alice Lake for providing me with a copy. If you love historical romances, a feisty and stubborn heroine with a similar hero to boot, then this is your book! Their relationship was hilarious from the get-go and I just loved how Lavinia tried so hard to sabotage his reputation but it never seems to work out. I look forward to Larissa's story in the next book and who her male lead is!

Rating: ★★★★☆

Favorite Lisa Kleypas Books, Heroes, and Heroines

Lately, I've been taking a trip down memory lane by re-reading some of my favorite books by one of my all-time favorite authors, Lisa Kleypas. She was one of the first to introduce me to historical romance in 2010 and I would even go so far as to say that my love for British history and Victorian era stems from reading her books! From her strong and courageous heroines to her heartbreaking and passionate heroes, I've loved every single one of them. And so, I have decided to list some of my favorite books, heroes, and heroines from her in this blog post. Enjoy!

Evie Jenner and Sebastian St. Vincent

Sara Fielding and Derek Craven

Lillian Bowman and Marcus Marsden

Poppy Hathaway and Harry Rutledge

Lily Lawson and Alex Raiford

Livia Marsden and Gideon Shaw

Helen Ravenel and Rhys Winterborne

Holly Taylor and Zachary Bronson

Beatrix Hathaway and Christopher Phelan

Annabelle Peyton and Simon Hunt

Amelia Hathaway and Cam Rohan

Amanda Briars and Jack Delvin

Last Kiss by Laurelin Paige

Satisfying end to an intense, sexy, and thrilling story about two individuals who found love and each other in the most unexpected of places.

Hmm, where to start. I absolutely loved reading First Touch when it came out last year. The characters and story were both interesting and intriguing, the romance sexy and sometimes heartbreaking, and that cliffhanger ending? Just wow. It's been one wild ride and honestly, I felt like it would have made a lot more sense to read First Touch and Last Kiss back to back since the second book immediately takes place immediately after the the first one.

We're introduced to the shocking revelation of Amber and let's just say, I've had my own reservations about this girl from the get-go. From the moment Emily revealed her relationship and connections to Amber in First Touch to readers, I knew something was up. At times, I was personally confused about Emily's own feelings towards this woman. It was love, but at the same time, it was also hate and jealousy. Especially if we add Reeve Sallis into the mix! And oh boy, at times I became so frustrated with Emily's wishy-washy attitude and inability to relinquish Amber's control over her life and relationship with Reeve.

As for Reeve, I actually came to love him a lot in this book. He hasn't done a complete 180 change but he was a lot more... passionate and romantic to Emily this time around. Of course, Reeve still maintained his dark and dangerous persona, especially inside the bedroom with Emily, but he has become a lot more like-able in this book. I think my favorite part was around the 87% mark-- so definitely near the end, when he finally made his intentions clear to her.

In the end, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and its ending even though I would love an epilogue or a novella of some sort by Laurelin Paige (if she ever does decide to write one)! I did feel like the ending was sort of rushed and there were a lot of things that needed to be discussed, it was still satisfying to see Emily and Reeve finally realize what was truly best for one another.

Rating: ★★★★☆