Saturday, November 30, 2024

Book Blitz with Excerpt + Teasers + Giveaway: Forever We Fall by Meg Everly @XpressoTours

Forever We Fall by Meg Everly
Series: Pieces of Us #2
Publication date: November 26th, 2024

Synopsis:
A love worth dying for.

Hotaru Kido

Leaving Japan was bad. Leaving shitty London is worse. Why? My destination. Willoughby Ridge Boarding School.

It smells as old as it is. No one can find the place on a map. And it's boys only. Did you hear that last bit? No. Fucking. Girls.

Even the teachers. Male. The only pair of tits for kilometers belong to the headmaster's hot little secretary. That's why I got myself in trouble and am sitting in the office when he walks in.

This guy is new. He's gaunt and terrified of the big man behind him. No one seems to notice the wince when he sits or the way he catalogs the guy's every move. I do.

If I'd stayed in class that day, my life would have been a billion times easier. If given the chance, would I have chosen to keep it simple or put myself between him and his tormentor?

Arlo Judge

When your parents and brother die in a freak accident, you certainly think that's the worst that could happen. It's not. I've seen the depth of hell. Felt the burn. Lived the agony.

When I'm deposited in the middle of nowhere boarding school, I'm relieved for the first time in a long time. Only my suitemate sees too much. He gives me hope when I know there is none.

In him, I find comfort and friendship that can't last. My tormentor won't allow it.

With his care and kindness, I see a way out. I have to finish my journey through hell to get there. I don't know what will be left of me, of us, when I get to the other side.



Available at:


Excerpt
The moans and keens start as they always do. As it always does, my cock goes hot and hard, tenting my sweats.

"Asshole," I grumble and shove from my desk. My gaze narrows on the air vent that feeds heat to my room... and Hota's. The portal to a different world. A world I don't understand. It leaks all manner of perversion into my room at least twice a day.

I hurry to the sleek clock radio I bought last week on our floor's weekend trip into town and turn it on. The volume is low. Too low. Grunts and gasps still find my ears. I crank the volume higher than I ever have.

The obscure radio station I found yesterday pumps the hardest, most insane lyrics and riffs into my room and my soul.

As it overruns the other noises, my disgust and intrigue wane. My hard-on doesn't. It will.

If I ignore it.

The essay is due Friday. I don't need to finish it tonight, but I will. After that, I have three more to do for my customers. Drug dealing probably pays well on the streets, but in a school full of privileged rich kids, turning out mint assignments pays better. I have more money than I've ever had to my name. It's empowering, even if it's a drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of things.

It's mine, and he can't take it away from me. It's mine, and I can do what I want with it.

Sure as hell didn't want to waste it on a clock radio, but my productivity and sanity were starting to deteriorate. I've found more solace in that little radio than I ever expected.

Three paragraphs into my paper and I know it's already paid for itself. I adjust my still swollen cock and scribble away.

A knock reverberates in my room.

My head jerks up, and my heartbeat echoes in my ears, drowning out the music. The wide peel of my eyes goes to the door.

Who the hell could it be?

I'm not answering it.

I make exchanges in the library. In the back of the stacks. It's discreet.

The knock comes again. This time louder and more vehement. My hands shake, and I squeeze them into fists.

"Open up." Hotaru's voice filters in from the bathroom door.

It's the first time he's ever knocked or even spoken to me since the day I arrived. I'm dumbfounded and staring at the door when it swings open. He steps into my room with his midnight hair slicked back from a shower.

He's sporting black sweats, the outline of a cock the size of a porn star's, and a scowl.

I jump to my feet and put the pathetic wooden chair between us. This room is the size of my closet back home. With him inside, it's smaller. Claustrophobic even. My chest goes tight.

His gaze rakes over me, then jumps to my clock radio. "Turn that shit down."

My spine stiffens. I flex my jaw but say nothing. Instead, I let my body language do the talking. It's been pretty damn effective at this school. With that and a small notepad, I can communicate as much as I want to. Which isn't much.

"I'm trying to concentrate," he snarls. His teeth are so straight and white. And his lips... Nope, not going there.

I smirk and my gaze drops to his crotch. My eyes roll and I meet his dark eyes once more.

His gaze hits my crotch with what feels like an invisible punch. My nuts suck up into my throat. 

I forgot about my stupid situation.

"Looks like I'm not the only one trying to concentrate." His lips purse.

"Fuck you," I hiss.

"Hey, it's only natural." He shrugs muscular shoulders. The striations under his skin ripple and bunch.





MEG EVERLY  writes stories with sentiment, smut, and love with no bounds.










Review: Obsession by Harleigh Beck

Obsession by Harleigh Beck
Publication date: March 24th, 2024
Pages: 444
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Synopsis:
Savannah
Imagine my surprise when the chance to interview the country's most notorious man on death row lands on my table. His final confession. It's too good of an opportunity to turn down.
Robbie Hammond is old enough to be my father, a man condemned for the murder of at least fourteen women. He is dangerous, deadly. Intense in ways I can't explain. Yet, despite the red flags, his magnetism draws me to him. I'm powerless to fight it.

Robbie
Not everything is as it appears. The moment Savannah set foot in here, she shivered like a leaf in the wind, barely able to hold eye contact without a blush creeping up her neck.
I can't take my eyes off her. It's no mistake she's here, watching me from across the table.
There's a reason I only agreed to talk to Savannah Campbell before they put me down--why it has to be her.
Beneath the quivering smile hides a darkness I recognize.
A darkness that sparks my interest.
But the question is: how deep does it run?

Author's note: Obsession is a very dark thriller romance. It contains graphic sexual scenes and graphic violence that may be disturbing to some readers.


Available at:



Review:
Savannah thought she was getting her big break as a reporter by going to visit the most notorious serial killer on death row. What was the worst that could happen? Everything changed the minute the man sat down across from her and speared her with his keen blue eyes that she could seem to pull herself out of the depths of. As his story unraveled for her she started to realize that their traumatic lives seemed to match more keenly than she was comfortable with but she couldn't stop the desire from rising every time she went to visit him. Before she knew it she was pandering favors with the guards just to have an ounce of alone time with the dangerous man. He was slotted for death, she wouldn't have the opportunity for long. But when those favors land her in hot water, her killer crush decides to exact revenge in her name by escaping prison and going on a spree as her champion protector. Will Savannah escape the deadly killer man with the troubled past and the vengeful spirit or will she fall just like the other fourteen women who tried to reach him before her? And when there is a new killer who seems equally as obsessed with Savannah will she stand a chance in hell of surviving?

This was a pretty dark book for me. It wasn't something that turned my stomach or really made me even grimace but it was pretty dark. But even within the dark and depraved subject matter you couldn't help but feel sorry for the main characters. They had it very rough. Savannah was systematically abused by her father and even passed around to his friends to do their worst too. And Robbie was verbally and physically abused before his mother then started sexually abusing him. They were both so wounded and went two different ways with it. Robbie projected his pain onto others and hurt them just like he had been hurt while Savannah internalized it. She buried it so that if she didn't think about it, it was like it didn't exist. But pain recognizes pain so when the two were faced with each other it was hard for either of them to resist the darkness lurking within their hearts and minds.

I liked the growth that Savannah and Robbie both experienced. Savannah grew a backbone and Robbie softened. We were able to see how the two characters actually were underneath the masks they created for themselves. The entire book was a study in nature versus nurture. If either of them had come from a loving home would they still be as broken as they were? This was something that I loved watching explored by the author throughout the story.

While I did enjoy the book it was very predictable. There were no instances where I gasped in shock at  revelation within the story. There was one that I had suspected but when it was revealed I wasn't shocked by it. The book was twisted and incest was incredibly heavy. I am not sure if that was a choice made by the other because she was aiming for something revolting enough to make readers grimace or if it was simply an attempt to make the character's backgrounds as bleeding heart painful as possible to make the readers feel bad for them when they did terrible things. I would say this book was middle of the road for me. It was not something I would reach for again when hankering for a reread, but it wasn't one I would chuck across the room in disgust either. Entertaining read, interesting characters, and a solid plot but needed a little more intrigue.



Friday, November 29, 2024

Book Blitz with Excerpt + Giveaway: How Well Do You Know Your Husband? by M.Q. Webb @marswebb1 @XpressoTours

How Well Do You Know Your Husband? by M.Q. Webb
Publication date: November 15th, 2024

Synopsis:
Aria's seemingly perfect life begins to unravel when she suspects her husband, Ethan, is having an affair.

As she navigates her feelings of betrayal, Aria starts to notice someone is following her. When her best friend Isla is murdered in a dark bar bathroom, Aria is left grappling with the chilling possibility that Isla's death was meant for her.

Amidst the police investigation, rising paranoia, and Ethan's increasingly suspicious behavior, Aria is forced to question everyone around her, including herself.

In this gripping psychological thriller, the lines between trust and deceit blur, leaving you wondering: how well do we really know the people closest to you?


Available at:

Excerpt
I've been watching her for three weeks now. She hasn't noticed, perpetually focused on herself, lost in her thoughts. Not for the first time, I struggle to understand what he loves about her. I suppose it could be the obvious things. Anyone can see she's beautiful, but so are a million other women in New York City. She's caring, but everyone cares about something. What makes her so special?

Her gray knit dress moves with her as she walks, accentuating the way her slim waist curves into round hips. He wasn't supposed to fall for her, but I think he has. She was supposed to be temporary, a fleeting chapter in his life, but she has become a permanent fixture.

I watch her as she lines up at a street vendor and orders a pretzel, refusing the change offered by the mustached man who delivers the freshly baked knot with a smile that reaches his eyes. She doesn't appreciate the life she has been given. She spends his money as if it's hers to waste, buying new things for their home. Treating herself to expensive clothing.

People who do bad things shouldn't get away with it. There are meant to be repercussions. I'm not superstitious enough to expect justice, but she did what she did, and now there should be consequences. Order maintained. Rules followed.

Tonight may be the night I end her life, like she ended mine.

I slip a hand into my pocket and feel the smooth metal, imagining what it would be like to sink it into her side. I would leave her there for everyone to see who she really is instead of the perfect avatar of a loving wife she's created. She's hiding her true self now, but all she needs is a nudge for her real nature to surface. He won't love her once he sees that.

The smell of unemptied trash in the alleyway fills my nostrils, growing more pungent, but I press on. I curl my fingers around the knife and increase my pace to catch up. She's fast, but I'm taller, lengthening my strides so I don't lose her.

I'm close now. Much closer, and I risk being noticed. I promised myself that if that happens, my choice will be made, and I will kill her.


M. Q. WEBB writes psychological thrillers and suspense novels, including the Oscar de la Nuit series. Her books have hit the Amazon best seller chart in the US. She studied psychology and business.

How Well Do You Know Your Husband is a stand alone psychological thriller, and her third release.






Book Blitz with Excerpt + Teasers + Giveaway: Love At Last Series by A.S. Kelly @askelly_writes @XpressoTours

Last Call by A.S. Kelly
Series: Love At Last #1
Publication date: June 7th, 2019

Synopsis:
Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Niall Kerry. I'm almost forty years old, and I'm drowning in something that begins with 'S'--it doesn't quite seem appropriate to write it down here.
After a lifetime out on a sports field, living as a champion--as someone who never had to ask for anything--I've suddenly found myself starting from scratch. I'm living in the middle of nowhere with my parents, I'm jobless, and I have a teenage daughter who hates me. Oh, and I have to try and regain the trust of everyone I know.
It's not easy to convince people that, deep down, you're not so bad; that you're no longer the troublesome kid they once knew.
It's not easy to work my way into the heart of my favorite headmistress, Jordan. It's especially difficult when she wants nothing to do with me.
But you know what? I'm not the kind of guy who just sits back and accepts defeat, or who stops at the small print at the bottom of the page. I'm someone who plays right until the final whistle.
And when her heart is on the line, I'm ready to make my strict, sexy headmistress an offer she can't refuse.


About Last Night by A.S. Kelly
Series: Love At Last #2
Publication date: October 20th, 2020

Synopsis:
Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Tyler Hayes, and I'm a fireman.
Sorry to already disappoint you, but I'm not the person you think I am.
My charming uniform and seductive smile have caused nothing but trouble, and my not-so-honorable reputation, which I used to be so proud of, has kept me away from the one person I wanted to spend the rest of my life baking cookies for; my sweet, beautiful, slightly crazy Miss White.
I guess now I need to tell the whole story.
At forty years old, following years of self-sabotage, I've suddenly found myself admitting that I know absolutely nothing.
Maybe my friend Niall was right when he told me to accept the process and just grow up.
And now it's too late; I'll never be able to keep her close to me.
All that's left to do is watch helplessly--but deservedly--as my world comes tumbling down around me.


One Last Kiss by A.S. Kelly
Series: Love At Last #3
Publication date: August 20th, 2021

Synopsis:
Rian

Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Rian Kerry, and I'm in huge trouble.
This is how it happened: I had a crush. You know those teenage crushes, which I'm sure you've all experienced, too. It was that kind of crush that makes your knees tremble, that makes you blush violently and stammer when you're with that person. One of those crushes that you assume you'll just grow out of, the way the seasons change.
The problem is that my crush didn't go anywhere. Actually, it only got worse, transforming into something absurd and unbearable, which no one could seem to understand.
Especially not him.
Because he's off-limits. He's barricaded himself within his walls, from a sense of fear and guilt. He's locked up his heart forever, and seems to have no intention of letting anyone in ever again.
My friends, Jordan, Anya, and Holly, say that he just needs a little push. They say that he needs to learn to believe again.
But I don't think he'll ever be ready, because he simply doesn't want to be.
He doesn't want to believe.
Not in something like us.

Parker

Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Parker Hayes, and I'm an idiot.
Yep, you heard me right. I'm a real idiot. And, I swear, that's putting it lightly.
But I'm a lot of other things, too. I'm a fireman, and a single father to two cheeky, hyperactive six-year-old twins. I'm a brother to Tyler, another fireman--and another idiot--who always seems to stick his nose into my business. I'm a kind-of friend to Niall, yet another idiot with nothing to do but barge into my life, uninvited.
Let's get back to the point, here: the reason I'm an idiot.
Well, it's pretty simple. I've lost my mind. Literally. It happened again. I fell for it. With my head, with my body, and with the heart I am sure I'd never be able to piece back together after another inevitable disaster.
The problem is that she's not like the others.
She bakes cakes with my daughters, laughs with them, and shows them her magic bag. They're crazy about her.
And so am I.
And now she knows it, and I know it, and everyone around us knows it. But I can't take the step. I can't let everything go to start over.
I can't live through this again--because this time, I won't be left standing.
Not if she's the one to break my heart.


The Last One by A.S. Kelly
Series: Love At Last #4
Publication date: July 25th, 2022

Synopsis:
Anya

Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Anya O'Donnell, and I'd like to declare myself guilty beyond all reasonable doubt.
Guilty of what, you ask?
Well, for starters, I'm guilty of lying to everyone for years; of pretending when I should have been showing them all who I really was, what I really wanted. I'm guilty of pushing away the only person who wanted to stay, convinced that, one day, he'd have left, anyway.
I told him we were a mistake.
I told him I was better off without him.
I told him that I didn't love him.
And now I miss him. I miss his cups of tea and his stupid cheese crackers. I miss his clothes, strewn about the house. I miss the way he would watch me sleep. I miss his arms, holding me tightly each night, making me feel at home. But now we're both alone. And I'm scared.
I'm scared that he believed everything I told him; that he has no intention of coming back.

Owen

Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Owen McKenna, and I'm furious.
Why, you ask?
Well, because I decided to follow my heart and not my head. Because I didn't listen to my friends or to their far-fetched theories. Because I left anyway--even when everyone was telling me to stay.
And now she doesn't want me back. But I want her, desperately.
She's the woman I've been waiting for. She's incredibly sexy, and can make you laugh, even when you least want to. She's never let anyone in, apart from me; and when she crumbles into my arms, it makes me feel like the only guy in the world.
But I ruined everything.
I let the L-word slip, and she panicked.
She told me things she didn't even think--I know that. I know her.
I know that she's scared, that she doesn't want to take this risk. But I do. I'm ready.
I'm her exception.
I just need to make her see that, too.


Made to Last by A.S. Kelly
Series: Love At Last #5
Publication date: December 4th, 2024

Synopsis:
Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Tommy O'Doherty, and I'm madly in love.
Too blunt, you say? Seriously, why lie?
Everyone seems to know about it already. The gossip about my major crush on my best friend's neighbor has spread like wildfire.
And I have to admit, I didn't do anything to stop it.
Not everyone is as good at pretending to be a playboy--even if the most they can handle is a PlayStation--like my weird colleagues and messy friends. Not everyone can keep it together when they meet the sweetest, most sensitive, and most wonderful creature on Earth.
Too bad she doesn't see herself that way. Too bad she doesn't believe my words, my kisses, my caresses, or my romantic gestures. Too bad she's not ready to believe that what we have is real and that I'm not just her backup boyfriend, but the man who truly wants to be with her.
Even though I keep telling her that we are made to last, I'm starting to think she will never believe me unless I am willing to show her in a dramatic and obviously questionable way that I'm serious and that there is no better man for her than me.



Available at:

Excerpt from Last Call
"Please, Jordan. Tell me there won't be any more contracts to sign."

I slowly open my eyes and turn my head a little.

"As long as you tell me there'll be no need for them."

"Do you really need me to say it?"

"I just want you to be honest."

"About what?"

I gather my courage. "About us."

His eyes widen, his hands moving onto my hips.

"Skylar is in the other room," I remind him. "She might see us."

"You're lucky she's here," he teases, "or no one could save you from me."

"I'm not scared of you."

He grins smugly. "I like that you're not scared of me. And I like that you used that word."

"What word?"

"Us."

"It's actually more accurate to call it a personal pronoun."

"Don't make me close that mouth for you."

My body shivers at the thought of his mouth on mine.

"Even though something tells me you'd like it."

I part my lips instinctively, as he gazes at my mouth.

"I know you'd like it, Headmistress."

"Oh, shut up," I manage, miraculously.

"Or what?" he teases, pressing his chest against mine. "Will you put me in detention?"





A.S. KELLY writes Rom-Com, Romantic Fiction and Family Saga.
Avid reader, hopeless romantic, lover of yoga, knitting and home baking.
She was born in Italy but lives in Ireland with her husband, two children and a cat named Oscar.