Offsides by Juliana Stone

Offside (The Barker Triplets, #1)
Grade-C
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-None
Series-The Barker Triplets #1
Reviewed by Kay

Billie-Jo Barker was a pro hockey player in Europe who has come home after a career ending injury. She lives with her sister Bobbi-Jo, who’s rude and hateful. Also with her father suffering from dementia and her grandfather who has his hands full dealing with all of them. She joins the town hockey league as their first female player. Most of the men in the league and the town are opposed except for the man who broke her heart years ago.

Logan Forest is a mechanic of some sorts in his home town. He is shocked to see Billie-Jo at home. He has always known of her but not really paid much attention to her because he only saw her sister, Betty-Jo. He thinks it will be great to watch Billie-Jo play hockey because of her talent. Not to mention his attraction to her.

  • These two characters are really into each other in a big way. Billie-Jo has loved Logan forever and has a secret to go along with that. Logan has these crazy feelings for Billie-Jo that leave him at a little loss for words. There was some conflict in this novel but not what I would call high level. I enjoyed it and may continue on with the series. 

Exotica by Eden Bradley


Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-None
Genre-Contemporary
Reviewed by Kay

Seven Days of Kama Sutra

Lilli DeForrest’s former marriage was a disaster and she is still trying to heal from that. She was given a week pass at her friend, Caroline’s resort called Exotica. Exotica has themed fantasy rooms, something for everyone. Lilli is a nervous wreck and very apprehensive due to self image issues caused by the ex-husband. When she arrives Caroline tries to soothe her nerves with a tour. After that, she goes to her room and meets Rajan, her lover for the week. Rajan is a companion saving up money to open his own luxury spa. When he and Lilli meet there are instant sparks and they fast become lovers. But there are real issues here that they will have to face in the end if they decide to stay together.

I enjoyed this first story in this novel. It was very sweet, tender, raw and sexy. Boy, was it sexy! great chemistry and smoking hot love scenes. The story was well written and flowed nicely.

Caroline Winter is the manager for Exotica. She helps fulfill other people’s fantasies but not her own.
She was hurt in the past and hasn’t let her self sexually relax in a long time. After a talk with her friend, Lilli she decides to do just that with the help of a newly hired employee. Kian, no last name, is the newest hire of Exotica and he has a secret. I won’t tell you the secret but it’s a big one. He agrees to Caroline’s proposition and their fling starts.

I liked this story also but I liked the first one better. I had issue with Kian’s not being honest with Caroline when he knew she had trust issues. Trust and fidelity are tied for the most important things in a relationship in my opinion, so with the abuse of her trust I couldn’t totally warm to his character. Otherwise, this is a good book with blistering love scenes. I’m glad I got the chance to read it.

Billion Dollar Cowboy by Carolyn Brown

Billion Dollar Cowboy
Grade: B
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink

Genre: Contemporary,  Cowboy
Series: Cowboys & Brides #1
Reviewed by Kate


When Colton, a lottery winning ranch owner, is drugged by a gold digger, the family decides somehing must be done. Laura is working at the ranch as an office assistant to pay off a loan she took out to cover her sister’s gambling debts. She and Colton reluctantly agree to pretend to be in a serious relationship to keep the gold diggers at bay. But when pretends start to feel real, both Colton and Laura have to search inside themselves to see if it could really be love.

I enjoy a rich hero. I really enjoy a hot cowboy hero. Combined together, you can’t go wrong. Add the sad story of his childhood and Colton becomes a sigh-worthy hero. Laura is one of those rare poor girls who doesn’t care a stitch for money. Strong and self-assured, she provides a nice contrast to Colton.

The only thing that pulled me out of the story was the scene when Laura helps Colton deliver a calf. (Despite his wealth Colton is a very hands on ranch owner). In my prior life as a farmer’s wife, I have helped in more calf deliveries than I care to remember. Unfortunately, my personal experience only served to point out the inaccuracies in the scene. However, I would guess that the scene would not affect most readers the same way.

I look forward to more hot cowboys and more strong heroines in the rest of the series (and hopefully no more calf deliveries.)