"Darling, It's Time"

No words of wisdom here. No thoughts on philosophy of life or love. This one is just for the romance of it. Julia Roberts and Javier Bardem play two people who had their hearts crushed and are afraid to love again. For Liz Gilbert (Julia Roberts' character) it's been about a year. For Felipe (Javier Bardem's character) it has been ten years. They know they love each other but they have not yet made love.

 

Until Felipe puts Joao Gilberto's "'S Wonderful" in his stereo, walks to Liz, offers his hand and says "Darling, it's time".

 

 

*sigh*

 

I absolutely love it. "Wonderful, marvelous that you should care for me". Yeah, hopeless romantic, that's me.

Unbroken by Melody Grace - COVER REVEAL!

Expected publication: March 12th 2013

"Mom always told me there are two kinds of love in this world: the steady breeze, and the hurricane. Emerson Ray was my hurricane…"

Juliet McKenzie was an innocent eighteen-year old when she spent the summer in Cedar Cove—and fell head over heels in love with Emerson. Complicated, intense Emerson, the local bad boy. His blue eyes hid dark secrets, and just one touch could set Juliet ablaze. Their love was demanding and all-consuming, but when summer ended, tragedy tore them apart. Juliet swore she’d never go back, and she’s kept that promise… Until now.

Four years later, Juliet’s done her best to rebuild the wreckage of her shattered life. She’s got a great boyfriend, and a steady job planned after she graduates. Returning to Cedar Cove to pack up her family’s beach house to prepare it for sale, Juliet is determined that nothing will stand in the way of her future. But one look from Emerson, and all her old desire comes flooding back. He let her go once, but this time, he’s not giving up without a fight. And Emerson fights dirty.

A heartbreaking history. An unstoppable passion. Torn between her past and future, Juliet struggles to separate love from desire. But will they find a way to overcome their tragic secrets—together? And after so much damage has been done, can a love remain unbroken?

*This book contains adult situations and explicit content.*

Horror and Love Stories?

How is it that I enjoy:

"Shirtless and stretched over his guitar, Gavin scribbled some notes on a page lying on the coffee table before him. His tattoos cast a vague blue hue under the weak light penetrating the windows. The sexy as hell bed head got her heart chugging. To think she had a hand in taming that wild hair into something a tad softer. She beamed.

His tanned toes spread and dug into the carpet, gripping its short nap. With his navy cargo shorts bunched just above his knees, which were bent at a perfect right angle, he looked pensive. Vulnerable. Here was the Gavin Cassidy no one else knew. Not the rock star or Sentinel. Her Gavin.

He dropped the pencil on the table and snapped the guitar pick from his lips as the digits on his left hand found their places along the frets. Strumming with his right, he closed his eyes. His fingers worked their magic. His face remained placid through the poignant melody" 

as well as

"The man with black hair leaned down towards him again, holding the axe blade before him as if measuring the center of his breath. The moonlight played upon the blade of the axe, reflecting light up upon his grim countenance. Charlie saw the face of death and it was horrible to behold. His heart stopped in his dream, his eyes locked with his maker who was Caleb, who raised the axe high above his head in the cruel moonlight.

For an instant, time ceased its merciless infinite countdown, and then the blood came in torrents. A deluge and the dream drowned and everything became nothing, but slow dark peace, much like sleep".

"Just Breathe" by Kendall Grey

JUST BREATHE

By Kendall Grey

So . . . well . . . I'm not an official part of the "Just Breathe" blog tour today but I just have to share my review or I might bust!

There were parts of this book that I wasn't crazy about, things I could nitpick about. But I'm not going to do that because this book deserves better than that.   

First, the characters.  I will go on and on about Zoe and Gavin shortly but we cannot overlook Sinnder and Scarlet.    I talked about Scarlet in a previous review.  I loved her then and I love her in this book.  She is beautiful, oozes sexiness and is the embodiment of evil.  What's not to love? She's fun in her own devilish way.  Lust pours out of her.  She knows what she wants and heaven help the person who gets in her way!

And then there is Sinnder - sort of a male version of Scarlet but with some morals.  He fills women with desire and knows it.  He literally can get them in bed, give them the most amazing night of their life, and have them wondering how the heck they ended up with him the next morning. They don't care how though, they just want more. He has a conscience though and, unlike Scarlet, he knows when he should dial it back.  He also hates Scarlet.  We find out why at the end of "Just Breathe". 

Zoe and Gavin - {deep, audible sigh}.  What can I say?  They're beautiful - inside and out.  Meant to be together (literally - there's a charming story about this). They save each other from themselves.  They show each other real love.  They hurt each other.  They forgive.  They go on and love each other even more. And then there is the sex.  (Noticing a pattern here?) 

The sex between Zoe and Gavin is a whole different ball game than what we associate with Scarlet or Sinnder.  It is physically amazing but it's way beyond physical.  It's heart and soul and body and mind.  The sex is amazing because of all of the non-sexual parts of their relationship.  It's on a whole new level because their love for each other is on a whole new level.

I could go on about Zoe and Gavin but I'll shut up because I want to talk about the main message of "Just Breathe". There are many purely fantasy things about "Just Breathe" - battling elementals, talking whales, and the Dreaming to name a few.  But the lesson it illustrates is very real.

"Just Breathe" is about real love - between lover, friends or family - and love vs sex.  It's about the unselfish nature of real love.  Gavin is tempted by the undeniable sexual magnetism of Scarlet.  Even Zoe is tempted by the fire of Sinnder that fills her head with ecstasy-filled images. Neither of them even briefly considers that they love these people.  I won't say anything to spoil the plot but suffice it to say that they both know that their love for each other vastly surpasses any fleeting thoughts of sexual encounters with anyone else.

"Just Breathe" is also about the unselfish nature of real love.  Real love is not "what's in it for me". Real love is me wanting the best for the other person, whether I gain from it or not.  

I'll quit gushing now. I'm a big fan of Zoe and Gavin and the more I read the deeper I fell for them.  Get the book.  Read it.  Laugh, cry, roll your eyes, fight the internal battle between loving some of the things Scarlet says and does and hating her evilness. Bet you'll want some vanilla ice cream with hot fudge sauce when you're done. (Read the book, you'll understand. ;) )
 




  

"Hysteria" on Word Wednesday!

*Let me begin by saying there is a great deal of information below that is sexual in nature.  Some people may find it offensive.  It is not recommended for those under the age of 18 or those who are uncomfortable reading content of a sexual nature.*

Today we look at the word “hysteria”.  Yes, the history of the word “hysteria” is sexual in nature.  Who knew?  Not me! The word itself comes from the Greek cognate of uterus (hystera). 

Yes, he is doing what you think he is doing.

Plato compared a woman’s uterus to a creature that roams through a woman’s body “blocking passages, obstructing breathing, and causing disease” all the way back in the 4^th/5^th century B.C. In the 2^nd century, a physician wrote that the cause of hysteria was sexual deprivation in women with high libidos (most often virgins, nuns, widows, and sometimes married women). The cure? If you were married, the cure was intercourse.  If you were single, the cure was marriage or, if marriage was not an option then the last resort treatment was vaginal/pelvic massage.

There were some who thought the retention of female semen stored in the womb, which mixed with male semen during intercourse, was the cause of hysteria.  If the female semen was not released through regular climax or intercourse, physicians believed that it became poisonous.  Symptoms of the affliction included faintness, nervousness, insomnia, fluid retention, muscle spasms, shortness of breath and irritability.

I'm not making this stuff up - I swear!

In the 19^th century, a huge number of physical ailments were considered possible symptoms of this psychological disorder.  There was a variety of theories regarding the cause of the ailment, including the stresses of modern life.  Physicians did not like providing vaginal massage to treat the hysteria, as it was difficult to learn and sometimes required hours of treatment in order to reach the “hysterical paroxysm” (orgasm) required to cure the hysteria.  The chaise lounge and fainting couch become popular home furniture in order to make women more comfortable during treatment. “Massage devices” (the original vibrators) were created as a way that women could treat themselves more quickly and without the need to consult a physician or midwife. 

Now stop the immature laughing, wipe that goofy grin off your face and go about your day! Let's act like grownups people!

 

"Exhale" by Kendall Grey

EXHALE

by KENDALL GREY

COVER DESCRIPTION

The man of Zoe Morgan’s dreams isn’t only real, he’s interested. In her. But her boss wants her too, and is leveraging his unsolicited advances with the threat of blocking the huge promotion she's after. When he places a spy on her research team, the intense stranger discovers more than he should, and Zoe fears hiding a relationship with Gavin Cassidy from her boss is the least of her worries. The whale she must protect has been marked for death, and Zoe's old enemy Scarlet is eager to deliver the killing blow. To both of them.

Australia’s Sentinels must find and lock the door into the Dreaming before Fyre Elementals launch another attack on innocent dreamers. But corruption and distrust abound, and Gavin believes someone on the Sentinel council is in league with the Fyres. As he reluctantly embraces his new role as council leader, Gavin must not only keep Zoe safe from Scarlet's vengeful clutches, but organize a Sentinel defense strong enough to prevent a full-blown Elemental war—with a traitor fighting by his side.

*This book contains graphic language, sex, and violence. Not suitable for readers under the age of 18.

**The author will donate all profits from the sale of the JUST BREATHE trilogy to programs that educate people about whales and the challenges they face.

MY REVIEW 

"Exhale" continues the story begun in Kendall Grey's book "Inhale".  It is the second in a series of three and I enjoyed it more than I did "Inhale".  

by Chinese artist An He

I understood the Elements theme a bit better in this book, which made it easier to follow.  That part of the story hasn't hooked me so far though.  And, like in "Inhale", I wasn't crazy about some of the metaphors in this book. There are other pieces in this book that do have me completely pulled in and eager to read about in "Just Breathe", the last in the series.  In fact, as soon as I finished "Exhale" I downloaded "Just Breathe" to my Kindle and started reading right away.

Zoe and Gavin are so completely, passionately, truly in love.  I may have to have a word with Ms Grey if they don't end up together at the end of "Just Breathe"!  Their desire for each other, the sexual attraction, is smoking hot.  The descriptions of their sexual experiences on a physical, emotional, and mental level pull you in.  I found myself reading faster when things started to heat up and smiling or raising my eyebrows when one said something especially seductive to the other.  

Zoe and Gavin's love story is more than sexual attraction though - part of what makes it so appealing.  They each have obligations outside of their relationship that they have to fulfill.  The theme of the Elements in the story creates its own challenges for their relationship.  They know that although they want each other immensely, there are other considerations and they love each other enough to respect those other considerations.

There is one other character that I must mention - Scarlet.  God help me if I knew the woman it would take everything in me to not smack her upside the head!  She is sexy and gorgeous and conniving and evil to the core.  She has a ravenous appetite and doesn't care what she has to do to satisfy her appetite.  She has many agendas in the story and is one of those characters that you love to hate.

We learn more about both Gavin's and Zoe's families in this story and are introduced to a couple of new characters.  I literally gasped in one scene when there was a revelation about one of these new characters.  A revelation I didn't see coming at all.  

Ms Grey also gives us another very well done ending.  In fact, this one is way better than the one in "Inhale", and I liked the one in "Inhale" very much.  Get out the hanky people!  You're gonna need it!

I admit that I am hooked at this point.  I can't wait to find out what happens with Zoe and Gavin and I hope that Scarlet gets everything she deserves.  And, I can't forget to mention the beautiful story about the whales. It's sweet and touching and I hope they are treated with the grace and respect that such gorgeous creatures deserve as the series winds down.

If you read "Inhale" but haven't read "Exhale", do something about that.  Hold on to your heart.  Be prepared to smile and cry and find yourself giving advice to characters.  "Exhale" is a ride you don't want to miss.   

About the Author

Kendall Grey, word wrangler, whale warrior, wicked wench, and lover of tongue-tripping alliteration, was born without an off-switch between her brain and mouth. She's been called the "Flux Capacitor of Twitter" (@kendallgrey1) and "A little package of love all wrapped up in F-word paper," but she's really just a maniacal writer relaying eyewitness accounts of the rave inside her head. She writes urban fantasy with strong romantic elements and also dabbles in erotica and horror on occasion.

Kendall lives off a dirt road near Atlanta, Georgia, but don't hold that against her.

You can connect with her here:

justbreathenovels.com
kendallgrey.com

ONE BITE TO PASSION 

BY MARYLYNN BAST

Overall “One Bite to Passion” is average.  I pushed my rating from 2 out of 5 stars to 3 for two reasons: great sex scenes and two engaging characters. 

Many women, including me, can relate to Paige.  She has a few extra pounds, is average-looking, and middle-aged.   She is the central character in the story and has some powerful sexual experiences.  It’s refreshing to read about an average middle-aged woman having powerful sexual experiences in a time when most modern romances involve gorgeous, thin, young women.   Her partner is a gorgeous, young man named Casey who truly cares about her.  He doesn’t sleep with her out of pity.  He doesn’t sleep with her as part of some plan to use her to get something.  He sleeps with her because he loves her and he makes her feel beautiful because he genuinely sees her as beautiful.  Awesome. 

“One Bite to Passion” has a vampire element to it, but Paige’s growth is at the heart of the story.   Her self image is  damaged from a dead marriage to a man who no longer appreciates her.  She doesn’t feel attractive or worthy of attention from him or anyone else. Although she struggles with her affair, Paige justifies it as Casey shows her that she is beautiful and desirable. We sympathize with her adulterous relationship because we understand her belief that it is a healthy choice for her.

On the downside, the writing style itself was boring.   I wanted to know more about some specific experiences that Paige had with her husband.  A couple are provided in the book, but I wanted more.  I also wanted a clearer description of the various settings.  Give me a vivid image of what the buildings look like, what did they make her think of, did they remind of anything?  Give me some background on Casey.  That could be done without spoiling the resolution of Paige’s issues.  Has he been married?  What does he think and feel when he sees Paige? What was his first exposure to vampires?   Tell me more about Rosa. We know that she is Paige’s best friend and that she cheats on her husband on a regular basis, but I wanted more details of some experiences they had together over the years.  In general,  I wanted much more character development. 

The sex scenes were strong and compelling.  Descriptions of the physical, as well as the emotional and mental aspects, were vivid and engrossing.  We get inside Paige’s head and understand her conflicted feelings.  We are privy to her purely sexual thoughts as well as her feelings about herself, Casey and her marriage. 

Paige’s periodic attraction to other women should be either cut from the story or more fully developed as part of the message about Paige discovering herself sexually.  Part of that could be experimentation with other women.  If the writer chooses not to make that part of Paige’s journey, however, then there is no reason to mention it and it should be cut. 

I have one issue with the generally well-done pinnacle of the story.  A large amount of information is provided in a few pages, which is a variation from the pace and writing style of the remainder of the book.  I would like to see some balance from this perspective.  Give me more plot and character development throughout the story.  The story needs a steady supply of information,  not a light supply for the largest portion of the book and then large amounts of it at the end.  The pacing and the flow of the story changed dramatically.  This needs to be balanced.

This is a fun, easy read.  The sex scenes will pull the reader in, and there are some good themes.  Overall, however, it’s average, due to some structural and style issues with the writing itself.

Book Cover Description

On a business trip to Japan, Paige has just found happiness with Casey, an exciting, young man with a passionate interest in Paige. After a night of wild sex, feels like a new woman. Drawn to Casey, Paige can’t refuse him even though he says he wants to possess her and she learns he is a vampire. Then Paige's unfaithful husband, Dalton, shows up. He has supposedly broken off his affair, but Paige suspects he is still seeing his mistress. Soon, Paige begins to notice disturbing things happening around her and discovers she has become the center of a battle between covens who consider her The Chosen One. But when she faces the greatest peril of her life, and Casey shows up to help, Page realizes she is willing fight the covens side-by-side with him, if it means the chance of a future with this vampire she has come to love.

About the Author

MaryLynn Bast moved to Las Vegas in 2010 from Texas, where she grew up. She works as a consultant with a contractor for the US Military, traveling from base to base across the US and around the world. Whenever possible, MaryLynn enjoys spending time with her husband, children and friends. In her free time she writes paranormal romance, erotica, loves to read and travel.

For more information check out her blog at: http://heartofawolfseries.blogspot.com/