The Secret of Ella & Micha (Secret #1) by Jessica Sorensen

Ella and Micha have been best friends since they were kids. But one tragic night shatters their friendship and their lives forever.

Ella used to be a rule-breaker with fiery attitude who wore her heart on her sleeve. But she left everything behind when she went to college and transformed into someone that follows the rules, keeps everything together, and hides all her problems. But now it's summer break and she has nowhere else to go but home. 

Ella fears everything she worked so hard to bury might resurface, especially with Micha living right next door. If Micha tries to tempt the old her back, she knows that it will be hard to resist.

Micha is sexy, smart, confident, and can get under Ella’s skin like no one else can. He knows everything about her, including her darkest secrets. And he’s determined to bring his best friend, and the girl he loves back, no matter what it takes. 

(New Adult Contemporary)
*Mature Content** Recommended for ages 17+ due to sexual situations and language

4.5 Stars

Micha pulls back and smoothes my wet hair out of my eyes. “Don’t you ever do that to me again. I can’t do this without you.” 

**Sigh** I should’ve read this sooner. This book has been on my Kindle since October; when I first noticed this book. I loved the cover and loved the blurb and immediately bought it, but didn’t pick it up until now. What a mistake that was. I loved everything about this story. It was emotional and you couldn’t help but root for the H/h. The story had so much more than your typical YA. I could not put it down. If it wasn’t for work, I would’ve read it in one setting. 

“So then you understand why I ran away. If I don’t change, then I’ll turn out like her – I’ll turn out just like my mother.” 

Ella is damaged. She was once a carefree spirit and didn’t take any crap from anyone. Ever since she found her mother after she committed suicide, she was never the same. Not even her long time best friend, Micha, could help her. That night at the bridge, everything came crashing down on her. She’s afraid of turning out like her mother. Coping with her loss isn’t easy. She feels responsible for it. To top it all off, Micha is acting weird. She feels a shift in their friendship. Is he developing other feelings for her? It just becomes too much. So what does she do? She runs away. She disappears for eight months, leaving behind her old identity and also leaving behind Micha.

I use to come and go as I please with whoever I wanted, but once things started to change with our friendship, it became clear the void I was trying to fill was in her. ~ Micha 

For Micha, no girl has ever compared to Ella. They’ve been best friends and neighbors for a long time. Until one day he almost lost her. That was the day that he knew he couldn’t live without her; the day he wanted more from their friendship. Then she disappears. For the past eight months, Micha has been searching for Ella. One day, she reappears. But the girl that comes back isn’t his Ella. She’s become the total opposite of his best friend. In place of his tough-girl, passion filled, gothic clothed BFF, stands a preppy, straight-laced, play-by-the-rules kind of girl. However, he sees beneath the exterior and will do whatever it takes to bring back the girl he loves. 

My legs tense and Micha leans back. “Stay here, baby,” he whispers, like he can read my thoughts. “Trust me, okay? Don’t run.”

He waits for me to nod and then crashes his lips into mine, keeping his hands under my skirt. I arch my body into him, pressing my chest against his, and my nipples tingle. His tongue sensually plays with mine, tracing every spot on my mouth and my lips. My body starts to fill with a secret longing. 

My, my, my. Yes. The story had lots of emotion and lots of chemistry. Like I said, it’s not your typical YA. Both Ella and Micha had to overcome a lot of serious issues to be together. They know each other like no one does and no one ever will. They need each other too much; they are meant to be. I absolutely LOVED this story and I cannot wait for book two, which is due out anytime now. As an added bonus, the author is also writing a book three that deals with Lila and Ethan, Ella & Micha’s best friends. I’m definitely looking forward to these books. Highly recommend for those looking for a mature YA story. 

Wallbanger by Alice Clayton

Caroline Reynolds has a fantastic new apartment in San Francisco, a KitchenAid mixer, and no O (and we’re not talking Oprah here, folks). She has a flourishing design career, an office overlooking the bay, a killer zucchini bread recipe, and no O. She has Clive (the best cat ever), great friends, a great rack, and no O.

Adding insult to O-less, since her move, she has an oversexed neighbor with the loudest late-night wallbanging she’s ever heard. Each moan, spank, and–was that a meow?–punctuates the fact that not only is she losing sleep, she still has, yep, you guessed it, no O.

Enter Simon Parker. (No, really, Simon, please enter.) When the wallbanging threatens to literally bounce her out of bed, Caroline, clad in sexual frustration and a pink baby-doll nightie, confronts her heard-but-never-seen neighbor. Their late-night hallway encounter has, well, mixed results. Ahem. With walls this thin, the tension’s gonna be thick…

In her third novel, Alice Clayton returns to dish her trademark mix of silly and steamy. Banter, barbs, and strutting pussycats, plus the sexiest apple pie ever made, are dunked in a hot tub and set against the gorgeous San Francisco skyline in this hot and hilarious tale of exasperation at first sight.

Four Stars

Tis a sad, sad day when a girl doesn’t even know her own orgasm. 

Oh Alice, how I’ve missed your humor. I was so freaking excited to get this book as an ARC. Alice is one of those can’t miss authors and to have an opportunity to read this ahead of time…**happy dance**

This book started off in classic Alice style with lots and lots of humor. The sexual innuendoes and smart ass whit was back in full force. Even after the first chapter, she had me smirking and giggling like a school girl. I knew I was in for quite a ride and she did not disappoint me. 

Bad, rapid-fire sex and an ill-timed one-night stand had robbed me of my orgasm. She’d been on vacation for six month now. Six long months. 

Poor, poor, Caroline. Can you just imagine? SIX MONTHS! And to top it all off, she has a very noisy neighbor. She just moved into a new apartment in San Francisco and her very first night in that apartment, she was greeted with ”oh, Gods” and “Mmmm…Yeah, baby. Right there. Just like that…Don’t stop, don’t stop!”which was preceded in some serious spanking and wallbanging that resulted in painting to drop on her head. Oi vey! This was just the beginning too. In addition to “Spanx”, her nickname to one of three of her neighbor’s harem of woman, she also gets to listen to “Purina’s” purring and “Giggler’s” giggling. I love these nicknames, by the way... LMAO! So who is her mysterious neighbor?

“Why are you such a manwhoring asshole?” I asked, my face inches from his.

“Why are you such a cockblocking priss?” he asked, and when I opened my mouth to tell him exactly what I thought, the fucker kissed me.

Kissed me. 

Meet Simon Parker, a.k.a. Wallbanger. This is Caroline’s very sexy and very sexually charged neighbor. He’s quite a looker and charmer. No wonder he has a harem of women. Simon and relationships are hard for a photographer like him. He travels a lot and knows the emotional toll it can take on a potential girlfriend. So why bother, right? So Simon is all about having his fill with willing and knowing women when he’s home from an assignment. Hence his “harem,” though he really hates that term. When they first met, it didn’t really count since Caroline chickened out. So it wasn’t until the second time when they were forced to really acknowledge each other. Sparks flew and the tension between the two was palpable. 

Wallbanger v.s. Pink Nightie Girl

They form a truce of sorts, which leads them to become very good friends. The more they hang out, the more they seem to want more. Both have their reasons to keep things on a friendship level, but eventually they do form a relationship. Will Simon finally help Caroline bring back her O? God, let’s hope so for both her and our sakes. 

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the H/h, their quirky friends and I just adored Clive, Caroline’s personality filled cat. You can definitely call Clive, the story’s main comic relief. Loved the humor and loved the chemistry. However, the one thing that really prevented me from giving it more stars is the huge amount of sexual frustration I felt. If I had balls, I would’ve been in blue ball hell. LOL. I was getting way too antsy; waiting for Simon to give Caroline her long lost O. Just when you think it might happen, you feel your heart racing and you’re almost there. Just a little more and oh, my God this could be it…then…nothing.Yea. Blue balls. I can laugh about it now, but man it sucked. LOL. Anyway, you just can’t go wrong with reading this. Alice Clayton’s humor and witty writing is always welcome in my book. Love this author and I will continue to support her work. I can’t wait to see what she has next.

The Edge of Never (Edge of Never #1) by J.A. Redmerski

Twenty-year-old Camryn Bennett had always been one to think out-of-the-box, who knew she wanted something more in life than following the same repetitive patterns and growing old with the same repetitive life story. And she thought that her life was going in the right direction until everything fell apart.

Determined not to dwell on the negative and push forward, Camryn is set to move in with her best friend and plans to start a new job. But after an unexpected night at the hottest club in downtown North Carolina, she makes the ultimate decision to leave the only life she’s ever known, far behind.

With a purse, a cell phone and a small bag with a few necessities, Camryn, with absolutely no direction or purpose boards a Greyhound bus alone and sets out to find herself. What she finds is a guy named Andrew Parrish, someone not so very different from her and who harbors his own dark secrets. But Camryn swore never to let down her walls again. And she vowed never to fall in love.

But with Andrew, Camryn finds herself doing a lot of things she never thought she’d do. He shows her what it’s really like to live out-of-the-box and to give in to her deepest, darkest desires. On their sporadic road-trip he becomes the center of her exciting and daring new life, pulling love and lust and emotion out of her in ways she never imagined possible. But will Andrew’s dark secret push them inseparably together, or tear them completely apart?

Five Emotional Stars

“You dwell on the past, you can’t move forward. Spend too much time planning for the future and you just push yourself backwards, or you stay stagnant in the same place all your life.” His eyes lock on mine. “Live in the moment…” 

**Wipes tears** It’s 8:00am on my day off and I’m compelled to write this now before I break down. I couldn’t fall back asleep so I decided to finish this. Yea, it was a mistake to read the last 20% this early in the morning. I was sobbing like an idiot; hyperventilating in bed while my poor hubs is trying to sleep. Nope. I had to get up; had to get my ass up and write this review now. 

Oh, my God. I don’t even know where to begin when trying to describe how much I loved this story. Definitely one of the best reads of the year. There were so many things about it that spoke directly to me, especially in the beginning. After about the fifty percent mark, the story did a complete one eighty and the tone was different. Weird thing was that it wasn’t a turn for the worse. As the story progressed, it became more of a dream and my heart was aching. I found myself sighing more, smiling more and I became entranced. I’m babbling like a moron and I apologize, but I just don’t know how to accurately review this to give it the justice it strongly deserves. 

That itch in my brain compelled me to get up. And so I did. It told me to put on my shoes, pack a small bag with a few necessities and grab my purse. And so I did.

There was no logic or any sense of purpose except that I knew I had to do something other than what I was doing, or I might not make it through this. 

Just re-reading that above line does things to me. God! There were so many times, past and present, where I can completely relate to that. The itch just to get up and go anywhere is so enticing. No plans, no direction…just go. This is exactly what Camryn does. She has a slight case of OCD, her current job is mundane and she just fought with her long time best friend. Something had to change: The suffocation became unbearable. So she decides to hop on the bus and just go…somewhere,anywhere, but here. This is where she meets Andrew Parrish.

The heart, although reckless and suicidal and a masochist all on its own always gets its way. 

Andrew. Seriously. Just…SIGH!. I’ve found another favorite book boyfriend. When I first met him, my initial thoughts of him were: Charming, devilishly handsome and a bit quirky. Okay, maybe “quirky” isn’t really the right word, but there’s just something about him that gives him, I don’t know, a little umph. Does that make any sense? No? Drat. Anyway, that was my initial assessment. After riding on the bus with him a little more, we get to find out that he’s also protective and very Alpha. He’s smitten with Camryn and wants to crack her. He knows she’s hiding something and wants to know what. He shouldn’t care, really. He has his own big bad demons to deal with. He’s on his way to his father’s deathbed. He’s holding back so many emotions and not just about his father. He has a secret of his own. 

He doesn’t want to care about Camryn, but finds himself drawn to her. They have a commonality. Camryn is on the same end doesn’t understand her connection with Andrew. It’s scaring her, she doesn’t do attachments, not since Ian’s death. But these two cannot deny the inevitable. They were meant to be, plain and simple. Finally when these two finally realize what they have, the whole book just takes on another explosive level….like eye popping, jaw dropping…HOLY SHIT! he just did not say that!

“If you were to let me fuck you, you would have to let me own you.” 

-----

“SAY IT! Son-of-a-bitch,” he says, exasperated, “just say it!”

“I want you to own me!” 

FUCK. ME. Ummm…yea. I have no words. Just take my word for it when I say this is when things get…err…more interesting. 

Seriously, just read this. This is another fine example of why I love to read. It’s a way to escape the monotony of reality. I was on that bus with Andrew. I felt everything Camryn did. I was on cloud nine by the time they made their beautiful plans towards the end of the book, but just as quickly, the cloud burst and I was left numb. I so did not see that coming at all! Just be ready for some amazing emotional twists. LOVED IT!

Bittersweet Seraphim (Seraphim #2) by Debra Anastasia

Suffering is worst when you’re doing it alone. But Emma’s taking Hell like an angel—even though her languishing began with having her seraph wings torn from her back. Now her worst enemy lords his body and his evil desires over her while she tries desperately to remember the words to her favorite prayer.

As Devil, Jack used to have Hell and its women humming like well-oiled machines. Too bad he’s nowhere near the place now. Stuck on Earth as a human, he must work with a ragtag team of exiled minions and half-breeds to save the angel who’s become all that matters.

Rescuing a seraph is the plan, but breaking into Hell means letting evil things out. Once they collide, minions and angels converge in the battle of the ages: good versus evil. But which side is which? Will Jack destroy the world as he fights to save Emma, his true and timeless love, from a damnation he designed?

An action-packed sequel to Crushed Seraphim, this tale reveals—time and again—what happens when the heart’s deepest desires break free. With a story both sizzling and sensual, emotional and enigmatic, Debra Anastasia invites readers to join a battle with nothing less than love on the line.

 Five Stars

Since reading Crushed Seraphim, I've been waiting and waiting for its sequel to find out what happened to Seraph Emma, Satan Jack, and half-breed Jason. Hardcore fans like me were left with a huge cliffhanger! From the creative mind of Debra Anastasia comes Bittersweet Seraphim, a satisfying, worthy sequel that not only ties up loose ends, but is also action-packed, highly emotional, and offers more of that special brand of humor we all loved in the first one.

If you're along for the ride the second time around, you're probably itching for more Satan Jack. Don't be alarmed when he doesn't appear in the story right away. Believe me, there is plenty of Jack and his wicked-sexy mind later on! What is in the beginning is the story of Nero and Jenny. At first I didn't know what to make of them, but as I read along, I grew to care so much for them. It turns out their story becomes integral to the plot.

Bittersweet Seraphim has a lot going on with various story lines swirling about. Jason, Dean, and Seriana, the half-breed siblings from the first book, all have major roles as Jack attempts to rescue Emma, who is stuck in Hell with her archenemy. There are challenges made that turn into fist-pumping brawls as a new ruler of Hell emerges. For Jason fans, you'll be drawn into how his HEA comes about. Jack is as brooding and swoon-worthy as ever, smart-aleck remarks and all. Its already been established in the last book why Jack and Emma belong together. Bittersweet Seraphim is all about these two fighting to be together against all odds in whatever plane of existence.

In my opinion, Ms. Anastasia did a superb job in giving her fans a sequel that is filled with more incredible and funny situations, fascinating sequences, and timeless romance that knows no bounds. For me, this is one of those stories that I fall more in love with the more I think about it long after I'm done reading it. Definitely worthy of 5 stars!

Reading Order:

Crushed Seraphim

Bittersweet Seraphim

The Prince (Original Sinners #3) by Tiffany Reisz

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer...preferably in bed. That's always been Kingsley Edge's strategy with his associate, the notorious New York dominatrix Nora Sutherlin. But with Nora away in Kentucky, now it's Kingsley's chance to take her place at the feet of the only man he's ever wanted -- Søren, Nora's on-again, off-again lover -- until a new threat from an old enemy forces him to confront his past.

Wes Railey is still the object of Nora's tamest yet most maddening fantasies, and the one man she can't forget. He's young. He's wonderful. He's also thoroughbred royalty and she's in "his" world now. But Nora is no simpering Southern belle, and her dream of fitting into Wesley's world is perpetually at odds with her dear Søren's relentlessly seductive pull.

Two worlds of wealth and passion call to her and whichever one Nora chooses, it will be the hardest decision she will ever have to make... unless someone makes it for her....

Fuck it. No amount of stars can truly describe how brilliant this story is. 

…I firmly resolve, with the help of Your Grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin ~ Act of Contrition

Holy shit. Holy shit, HOLY FUCKING SHIT! This was brilliant. I’m in utter awe. No amount of words and no amount of stars can describe how much I love this book/series. With each book, Mistress Tiffany keeps getting better and better. I really don’t know how she does it. To me, nothing in the story was pretty or simple, but she manages to completely ensnare me with her words. With her words, the characters she created become real and raw. You start to connect with them. You feel their pain, both physical and emotional. You feel their longing and yearning. She just knows how to paint a beautifully raw story and you can’t help but be immersed in this world. I didn’t ever want this to end. 

“When Jesus tells us to love God with our heart, soul and mind, He is telling us that they are three and one, just as the Godhead.” ~ Stearns 

The Prince is intense, no doubt. The characters I thought I knew, I didn’t know at all. This book told the three different stories: Søren/Kingsley (Past & Present) and Wesley/Nora (Present). Each story has their own feeling and vibe; their own story to tell. However, the deeper you get into the book as a whole, you start to see patterns emerge and each story starts to collide into each other to create this masterpiece. 

NORTH

The crown his parents had placed on his head, even naming him Kingsley, although a less French name had never existed…he’d take off that crown and lay it at Søren‘s feet. And the prince would become a servant and the king a commoner all night long. 

Mercy. Merci. Where do I begin to express my feelings towards Søren and Kingsley? I’ve always been hesitant in giving my heart to Søren, but after getting to know him more through the eyes of Kingsley, I can honestly say that I love him. Søren and Kingsley’s relationship, especially as teenagers, shattered me. Their relationship was intense. It was raw, painful, but full of love; it was utterly beautiful to behold. Fuck. My love for Søren and Kingsley cannot be described. They exposed so many things and reading about their struggles and their coming together was so intense. I had to occasionally put the book down because it was overwhelming and I felt it all over my body. My heart was exposed and both men marched right in. Søren and Kingsley…fuck. I love them.

SOUTH

“It’s always a good day when the Prince of Kentucky and the Queen of the Underground come calling.” 

**SIGH** My Wesley ♥♥♥♥. I love him. Can you tell? After the ending of The Angel, I couldn’t wait to dive into this. I was on pins and needles reading their story. They have been apart for fifteen long months. How will their relationship change? Will it flourish or is my Wesley headed for another heartbreak?

Wow. What I wouldn’t give to have been Nora in this story. To have Wesley in my arms, worshiping me…**sigh**…Oh Wesley, you certainly have haunted my dreams. Oh. My. God. The intimate scenes he shared with Nora just popped in my head. Fuck me. He has certainly grown into quite a man. **SIGH** I just fucking love him to pieces. When he hurts, I hurt. There were times where I couldn’t understand Nora and just wanted to flog her. Not that she didn’t outright adore him, but I know how he feels about her and I just wanted…I don’t know, a little more. Then again, I’m highly emotional when it comes to my Wesley. It’s my problem, I know. He has the power to make or break me. I beg you, please take care of him in the next book. He deserves to be happy. 

To Mistress Tiffany: Thank you so much for writing and creating this brilliant series. This series has become one of my all-time favorites. God has blessed you with such talent and I’m so thankful you use it to create this world. This world you masterfully created is so beautiful and so sensual. I love it. Nothing has compared to it. All these characters are embedded in my heart and soul. I will be anxiously waiting for the release of The Mistress & The Priest. 

Many thanks to Harlequin and NetGalley for providing this ARC.