Author: Dirty Girl Anne

The Party by Katie Ashley

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

The Party (The Proposition, #0.5)
Grade-A
Hotness Level-None
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-The Proposition # 0.5
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
44 pages

This is a prequel or prologue to The Proposition. It tells the story of how they met at a party and the loss that Emma has suffered. Emma, the strong business woman, meets Aiden Fitzgerald, the resident man-whore. He tries to pick her up and she turns him down.

Emma wants a baby in the worst way. She lost the man she loved and feels he was her shot at forever. She lost but she still wants to be a mother and talks her gay best friend into donating his swimmers for the cause.

I loved this novella and immediately put everything on hold and bought the first two books. I suggest this novella for anyone. I even love the cover! It doesn’t really match the description in the story but it makes me giggle.

Menage Monday – Ours To Love by Shayla Black

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Ours To Love (Wicked Lovers, #7)
Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-High Kink
Series-Wicked Lovers #7
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay
391 pages

Xander Santiago is the ultimate playboy, always looking for his next conquest, and always finding it.
He’s good looking, rich and great in bed, what more could a girl want?

Javier Santiago is a successful business man with an alcohol problem and a guilt trip. He’s also good looking, rich and in need of an intervention.

London McLane is an innocent twenty-five year old woman who is trying to finally start living her life. She’s pretty, full-figured and physically scarred from an accident ten years ago.

These three people come together and its hot like fire. Shayla Black does hot so very well. My problem was I never connected to the characters. I have always liked this series from Jack to Logan. I liked Xander in the last book but I never loved him.  When someone’s number is around five thousand? EWWWW! Javier was ridiculous about his late wife and him wanting Xander to have dominated her. London was the only saving grace. Her outlook on life just for the pleasure of being able to live was touching. I totally bought the story of her being a virgin. That worked well for me.

I think my biggest problem is the BDSM stuff. It’s not my favorite theme in romance at all. Not to mention the market is currently flooded with it. It’s exhausting. Truly. If you read this series, you’re gonna want to read this one too. It wasn’t bad I just never wanted to invest in the male characters. This book will not change my opinion of Shayla Black’s writing and I’m still a HUGE fan of hers.

The Taming of Ryder Cavanaugh by Stephanie Laurens

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

The Taming of Ryder Cavanaugh (The Cynster Sisters Duo #2)
Grade-B
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-No Kink
Series-Cynster Sisters Duo #2/Cynster #20
Genre-Historical
Reviewed by Kate
448 pages

Mary Cynster is the youngest in her generation. The last chance for other families to join their names with the Cynster name (which holds much clout). However, Mary is known to be a take-charge, bossy kind of gal. In fact, she has most of the eligible men of the ton rather intimidated. Ryder Cavanaugh is not intimidated though. He’s intrigued. He likes the challenge that Mary presents for him but most of all he likes that sense of family that she has, a sense that he didn’t have growing up. Things can’t be that easy, of course. Mary has set her sights on someone else (Ryder’s half-brother) and is resolutely ignoring the stirrings she feels for Ryder. Ryder knows Mary would be able to walk all over his half-brother. She needs someone more her equal, someone like him. Challenge accepted.

My first thought when I picked this book up was “Holy Crap! The family tree in the beginning is making my eyes cross.” Then I realized that I had managed to pick up the 20th book in this series. And finally I realized that somehow in my 6+ years of reading romance, I had managed to NOT stumble across one of the other 19 books. Amazing. And then I started reading.

Mary and Ryder’s relationship made me smile from the first page. Mary’s continued denial of her feelings for Ryder made the first part of the story drag a bit, but once she finally admitted her feelings to herself (about a 1/4 of the way in), the story takes off and never slows down. The relationship between Mary and Ryder was humorous, even if not out right laugh causing. There was such a sense of fate surrounding the two that you just couldn’t help but root for them. And for all you suspense fans, there’s a bit of that here too. If I had one complaint, it would be the epilogue. It seemed to be more of an epilogue for the series, and since I haven’t read the earlier books, it was a bit confusing trying to keep everyone straight. I’m sure readers of the earlier books would appreciate it though.

Reminding me of Julia Quinn, Stephanie Laurens has made a new fan. I will not hesitate to turn to her for my next historical romance fix. And although the thought of reading the prior 19 books is a bit daunting, it’s a task I will be undertaking.

Because once I start a series, I can’t stop, I’m not a huge fan of super-large series. I prefer a trilogy of books. How about you? What’s the perfect number of books for a series to contain?