Rush by Maya Banks

Rush (Breathless, #1)
Grade-C
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-High Kink
Series-Breathless #1
Reviewed by Kay

Gabe Hamilton is a very wealthy business man who even conducts his love life like a business. With signed contracts and everything. He has lusted after his best friend’s sister for a loooong time. She has always been forbidden fruit for a variety of different reasons, his best friend would kill him, she’s 14 years his junior and his preferences in the bedroom.

Mia Crestwell is not as innocent as Gabe thinks she is. She was raised by her brother after their parents’ deaths, so they have a very close relationship. She has wanted Gabe for as long as she can remember and she finally got her chance and ran with it.

Gabe asks Mia for a relationship that she has to sign a contract for. I understood why he thought that was necessary but ewww! How utterly unromantic. He may have fought his feelings for her but as the  reader, we can see he loves her. So to treat her the way he does in this book was ridiculous. I never warmed to him as the hero or them as a couple. She was a bit too timid for me and he was an ass. Totally without a chance for redemption for me. When he tries to let other men touch her…OMG!
Ass! I love Maya Banks books, all contemporaries and historicals. I liked parts of the book and will continue the series even though I have issues with this one.

The Men With the Golden Cuffs by Lexi Blake

The Men With The Golden Cuffs (Masters and Mercenaries, #2)
Grade: B
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: High Kink
Genre: Contemporary, Menage, BDSM

Series: Masters and Mercenaries #2
Reviewed by Kate

 
Serena writes erotic romances under a pen name.  When she starts receiving threatening messages, her editor hooks her up with a security firm.  Adam and Jake have been best friends since boot camp.  Being assigned to Serena’s case isn’t a hardship at all.  They’ve been looking for a submissive to share and Serena writes BDSM menage stories.  Maybe they can provide her with some hands-on experiences.

 
Some of the conflict in this story comes from the stalker, the rest comes from Serena, Jake, and Adam.  Each has been let down by love in the past and are scared to trust again.  I don’t know that I’ve ever run across a trio of more stubborn characters.  I felt the middle part lagged a bit because they were all refusing to talk to each other.  Despite that, I really enjoyed the book. 

With This Collar by Sierra Cartwright

With This Collar (Mastered, #1)
Grade: B+
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: High Kink
Genre: Contemporary, BDSM

Series: Mastered #1

Reviewed by Kate
174 pages

When Julia attends her friend Lana’s wedding at a private residence, she is shocked to discover that the vows are quickly followed by a collaring ceremony. Lana is not just becoming a wife, but her husband’s slave as well. Julia and Lana have been friends since their girl-power college days and Julia can’t believe Lana would willingly submit to a man.

As Julia’s about to protest, fellow wedding attendee Marcus, a Dom, stops her. They talk after the ceremony and Marcus challenges Julia to submit to him for the night. Julia accepts his challenge as a way to understand her friend a bit better, and because she just can’t say “no” to Marcus. But one night is all she wants, her last boyfriend was a domineering jerk and Julia’s determined to stick to the nice guys from now on. Marcus has been in a 24/7 master/slave relationship that was too draining for him. He’s not looking for anything more than one night either.

One night turns into an every weekend relationship. When Marcus pushes for more, Julia runs. But can any of the nice guys measure up after Marcus?

Marcus came across as a bit arrogant in the beginning. But I suppose every good Dom must be a little arrogant and confident. I appreciated that he was the one looking for a more permanent relationship.

Julia is very strong and independent. She struggles with combining her independence and her new found enjoyment of submission. Her responses to Marcus made me laugh throughout the book. She may be submissive, but never a doormat.

The only negative I had happened right away at the beginning. Lana invited Julia to her wedding and simply warned her that it would be “a bit untraditional.” It seemed far-fetched to invite your vanilla friend to a collaring ceremony without more of a heads-up. Anything to get a newbie to the dungeon, I guess. Makes me wonder though-what other ways have you seen authors use to get a newbie into a dungeon?