Review: Something Real by Lexi Ryan #RecklessandReal

Something Real (Reckless & Real #2)

    by Lexi Ryan

Publication Date: Mar. 3, 2015

Publisher: Ever After, LLC

Genre: Contemporary Romance

After everything blew up on Christmas, Liz walked away from me, and I let her. She said she needed space and a chance to pursue her dreams. But we both knew she was running from the mess she made. Now the political campaign she used as an excuse to leave is bringing us back together and I’m proving to her what she really needs—not just the hot nights, greedy hands, and undeniable physical chemistry. What she really needs is something real. What she really needs…is me.

   

REVIEW

The end of book one was a total shocker and I could not wait to see how Liz and Sam would pick up the pieces after everything that went down. I was really hoping that Sam would hear Liz out and see things from her side, but he was so completely devastated that he couldn't see past his anger and pain, and in a way I could understand that. I also knew that because they loved each other so much, this was just another hurdle for them to get over. It was a huge one, a million miles high, but I had hope they'd find their way back to each other.

But, of course, Ryan would never allow her characters to have it easy and she certainly put them through hell. With one bomb after another, leaving a trail of destruction that saw so many lies and secrets added to the already twisted web that was their love life. I was just really glad that Sam and Liz were able to be honest with each other. If there was one thing they learned from the first book, that was it. For a while, Sam thought keeping secrets was the best way to go but when Liz pieced everything together, his relief was almost tangible. They knew it wouldn't be an easy ride and that living a lie would have its fair share of ups and downs, but at least they could do it together...for a while anyway. Liz put Sam in a tight spot with her ultimatum, but it also proved how strong his love was for her.

This book was as unpredictable as the first, with another shocking revelation that gave me whiplash. I will admit that once the truth behind the video was revealed I was on the alert because something didn't feel right, and I had an inkling that perhaps there were more players in this game of deceit, but I never expected half of what was finally unraveled in the latter part fo this story. Another great read from Lexi Ryan!

 Other books in this series!!

**Author’s Note: This is the prequel to the full-length romance novel SOMETHING RECKLESS, available now!**

“You need a good guy. A long-term guy. One who does dates and romance and emotional strings…I’m just an asshole who wants to tie you up, make you come, and walk away.”

Samuel Bradshaw is a man with a reputation—the kind of reputation that should have me running the other way. Instead, it has me searching for the shortest distance to his bed. I won’t be the starry-eyed girl who thinks she can change a man like Sam, and despite what he thinks, forever is not what I need. I need the things he makes me feel, the way he turns me on, and the promise of pleasure in his eyes. I need SOMETHING WILD.

Currently FREE on Amazon

He talks dirty to me, but I don’t know his name.

He wants to tie me up, but I don’t know his face.

He turns me on, but I couldn’t point him out in a crowd.

I’ve fallen for an anonymous stranger, and now the anonymity ends. I want more than typed secrets and texted promises. I want something reckless. Heat. Passion. The thrill of being entirely possessed.

Because I suspect this anonymous stranger isn’t a stranger at all.

*****

Lizzy Thompson met riverrat69 online through a service promising to deliver meaningful relationships by forbidding its users to share names or photos until they’ve reached a certain benchmark. She was looking for love. He was researching an investment. They hit it off. Talked and flirted, hid behind screen names and cartoon avatars.

Now they’re breaking the rules and meeting in person. But Liz is prepared. She’s picked up hints and followed clues. She’s nearly convinced she’s discovered the identity of her dirty-talking online friend.

She wonders if her ex-lover Sam Bradshaw knows her identity too.
When she rolls the dice on one reckless night, her chance at something real could crumble.

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 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

New York Times and USA Today bestselling romance author Lexi Ryan’s novels have been described as intense, emotional, and wickedly sexy. A former college professor, she now writes full-time from her home in Indiana, where she lives with her husband, two children, and a neurotic dog. Find her on Facebook or Twitter to chat about books, TV, and her children’s latest antics.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Review + Excerpt: Something Reckless by Lexi Ryan

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author

Lexi Ryan

Adult Contemporary Romance

Release: December 22, 2014

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | iTunes

He talks dirty to me, but I don’t know his name.

He wants to tie me up, but I don’t know his face.

He turns me on, but I couldn’t point him out in a crowd.

I’ve fallen for an anonymous stranger, and tonight the anonymity ends. Tonight I want more than typed secrets and texted promises. I want something reckless. Heat. Passion. The thrill of being entirely possessed.

Because I suspect this anonymous stranger isn’t a stranger at all.

Lizzy Thompson met riverrat69 online through Something Real, a service promising to deliver meaningful relationships by forbidding its users to share names or photos until they’ve reached a certain benchmark. She was looking for love. He was researching an investment. They hit it off. Talked and flirted, hid behind screen names and cartoon avatars.

Now they’re breaking the rules and meeting in person. But Liz is prepared. She’s picked up hints and followed clues.

She’s ninety-percent convinced she’s discovered the identity of her dirty-talking online friend.

She wonders if her ex-lover Sam Bradshaw knows her identity too.

When she rolls the dice on one reckless night, her chance at something real could crumble.

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22434551-something-reckless

Excerpt from Something Reckless

“You look amazing in this dress. I’ve been pretending all night that there’s something I want to do more than get you out of it.”

“What would you do with me if you got so lucky?”

“I’d keep you up all night, for starters.” He slides a hand into my hair and traces the side of my neck with his thumb. His groan rumbles through me. “Tell me what you came here for.”

I thought that was pretty clear. “I’m wearing extremely slutty underwear. What do you think?”

His nostrils flare and his breathing goes thready. “I think I’m going to have to up my game, because now I want to see it.”

I have to bite back a smile. “Good,” I say. My heart thumps out a beat, probably Morse code for please and thank you.

“How slutty is this underwear of yours?”

I lick my lips. “Oh, it’s damn near whorish.”

“Let me see it, Liz.”

I lift my chin and prop my hands on my hips. “Seriously? That’s all the seduction I get? Let me see it?”

He steps closer until I have to crane my neck to look at him, and holy hell he smells good. “What game are we playing here, Rowdy?” he murmurs against my ear. “Is this the one where we pretend we don’t want each other and sleep alone . . .” His fingers skim down my shoulder and my eyes float closed. “Or is it the one where I make you come so hard you scream my name and tomorrow you act like you want nothing to do with me?”

“Are those my only choices?” I ask, but I keep my eyes closed, focusing on the feel of his rough fingers dancing across my skin. The truth is, I don’t want to play either game. I’m done playing games when it comes to Sam. I’m done pretending I don’t want him when I do, and I’m done pretending our annual one-night stand is enough for me.

“Tell me you aren’t going to run away in the morning. Promise me you won’t shut me out again.”

I don’t know what that means, and I’m too scared to analyze it. My eyes are still closed when he takes my chin in his fingers and tilts my face up to his, still closed when he brushes his lips over mine and when I open under him because I’m helpless to this man’s kiss.

“Promise me,” he repeats.

“I won’t run away.” Then I unzip my dress and let it fall to the floor in a puddle, and my boldness is rewarded. Sam’s lips part and his breath escapes him in a rush.

He steps back and takes me in. The bra is strapless, black lace demi-cups that lift my breasts until they threaten to spill out. The panties—what there is of them—are a thong in matching black lace. Their fine lace straps sit in a sharp V high on my hipbones.

A ringlet of hair escaped my up-do, and he takes it between his fingers and twirls it around. I deserve a medal for not melting right here at his feet.

He hooks his index finger under the black bow between my bra cups. “Did you wear this for me?” His voice is a husky whisper that I can’t deny.

“Yes.”

His fingers skim my belly, trace over my hip, following the lace of my thong behind me to where the straps meet at the small of my back. My breath catches as he takes the fabric path over the curve of my tailbone and down, his fingers bringing every nerve ending to life as they pass. Electric pleasure whips through me.

“Fourteen months since I’ve touched you,” he says. “Fourteen months since I’ve gotten to hear the way you breathe when you’re turned on, since I’ve gotten to listen to you scream as I make you come. Tell me you haven’t thought about it.”

“I’d be lying.”

“Don’t lie,” he says, eyes hot and intense. “Just tell me you want me.”

Copyright Lexi Ryan, 2014

REVIEW

Every time I pick up a Lexi Ryan book I know I'm in for a roller coaster ride of heartache. But like an addict, I crave her words, and am completely intoxicated by the plethora of emotions that sweep through me with each flip of the page.

I almost squealed when I realized that Lizzy finally got her own story. I have loved, and at times despised, her while reading other character's books, so when Ryan gave her the lead I was thrilled to get to know her even better. Something Wild (The free prequel novella) set up Sam and Liz's story so perfectly, and I was so excited to continue their journey to love. If this novella was anything to go by, it was going to be one HOTTT, sexy adventure with more than enough turmoil and anguish, but I fell in love with them both, and I wanted nothing more than to see them together.

This book gave me everything it promised and so much more. These two people, each a little broken with their fair share of skeletons in the closet, seemed the perfect fit, only they couldn't see it, or just refused to. To watch them get over each and every obstacle only solidified their place in my heart, and I was their cheerleader the entire way through.

But, aside from Sam and Liz's whirlwind love story, this book added the mystery of Riverrat69. Who was he? Was it Sam, as Liz only hoped and wished. I was on the edge of my seat the more involved Liz got and, the closer she got to meeting her online lover, the more intriguing this story became. When the final bomb landed, shrapnel lodged in my heart from the massive explosion, and I am still trying to recover from that particular attack. It was awe-inspiring and brilliant, and I NEED more. 

Adult Contemporary Romance

FREE introductory novella to the SOMETHING RECKLESS

Amazon | Amazon UK | iBooks | Kobo | Barnes and Noble | Google Play

  

“You need a good guy. A long-term guy. One who does dates and romance and emotional strings…I’m just an asshole who wants to tie you up, make you come, and walk away.”

Samuel Bradshaw is a man with a reputation—the kind of reputation that should have me running the other way. Instead, it has me searching for the shortest distance to his bed. I won’t be the starry-eyed girl who thinks she can change a man like Sam, and despite what he thinks, forever is not what I need. I need the things he makes me feel, the way he turns me on, and the promise of pleasure in his eyes. This promises to be SOMETHING WILD.

About the Author

New York Times and USA Today bestselling romance author Lexi Ryan’s novels have been described as intense, emotional, and wickedly sexy. A former college professor, she now writes full-time from her home in Indiana, where she lives with her husband, two children, and a neurotic dog. Find her on Facebook or Twitter to chat about books, TV, and her children’s latest antics.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

#FREEBIE ALERT!! Grab Lexi Ryan's Something Wild, the Introductory Novella to Something Reckless

Adult Contemporary Romance

FREE introductory novella to the upcoming release SOMETHING RECKLESS

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1vTQL5B

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1zArcaL

iBooks: http://bit.ly/1uqVyqM

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1Dgj7vT

BN: http://bit.ly/1x5v1Fv

Google Play: http://bit.ly/1yUullF

**Author’s Note: This is a free introduction to the full-length romance novel SOMETHING RECKLESS, coming December 22^nd!**

“You need a good guy. A long-term guy. One who does dates and romance and emotional strings…I’m just an asshole who wants to tie you up, make you come, and walk away.”

Samuel Bradshaw is a man with a reputation—the kind of reputation that should have me running the other way. Instead, it has me searching for the shortest distance to his bed. I won’t be the starry-eyed girl who thinks she can change a man like Sam, and despite what he thinks, forever is not what I need. I need the things he makes me feel, the way he turns me on, and the promise of pleasure in his eyes. This promises to be SOMETHING WILD.

Excerpt from SOMETHING WILD by Lexi Ryan

© 2014 by Lexi Ryan

Sneaking into this room seemed like a great idea when I was on the dance floor with him, his hard body pressed into mine, but alone in the quiet conference room, I’m pretty sure this could be the most reckless thing I’ve ever done.

What if someone catches us in here? Hell, what if he doesn’t come? What if he does? I’ve thrown myself at Sam before, and it didn’t end well. He has no idea how hard I took his rejection, or the decisions I made after I left his room that night.

I should leave. I should . . .

The door clicks and then Sam steps inside, his eyes raking over me.

“Hey,” I whisper. “You came.”

He closes the door behind himself, turns the lock, then stalks toward me.

Thank you! the girlie bits shout. Stupid brain upstairs was about to ruin everything!

“Are you sure you want to do this?” His voice is a low rumble that I swear I can feel right between my legs.

Hell yes, I want to do this.

But I also don’t. Because Sam’s no longer some unrequited crush. He’s a friend. And if this goes to hell, it’ll make my life exponentially more awkward.

“We need rules,” I say quickly.

He takes another step closer. And another. Until I’m looking at his chest, smelling his aftershave. He tilts my chin up with his index finger then traces my lips with his thumb. “Hold that thought?”

I nod, nearly breathless at nothing but the touch of his thumb skimming my lips.

“I need to do this first.” He cups my jaw in his big hand and brushes his lips over mine. My lips part in surprise at the gesture that’s almost . . . sweet. He deepens the kiss, slanting his mouth over mine and sliding his tongue inside.

He tastes like beer, and I want to get drunk on this kiss—to overindulge until I can’t see straight, to imbibe until sobriety is a distant memory.

This is how kisses should be. I love the way his hand slides into my hair as he samples my lips, love how his kiss manages to be simultaneously gentle and demanding. It’s the kind of kiss that makes your toes curl, the kind worth remembering in five years when you’re lonely and bored and wondering if kissing had ever been so sweet.

When he pulls back, his eyes are hooded, darker. Sexy as sin. “Now, what were you saying?”

I have no idea. “Ru . . . rules?” I manage.

“Ah, yes. Well, I’ve never done well with rules, but tell me yours and I’ll see what I can do.”

I take a breath and try to figure out a rule that isn’t just Kiss me like that every time, or Please don’t make me fall for you.

“You keep looking at me like that,” he warns, “and I’m going to kiss you again, and we may never get to discuss these rules of yours.”

Right. “We can’t tell anyone,” I say. Cally and my sisters will try to make more of this than the one-night stand I know it to be.

His expression shifts and becomes unreadable. “Okay. What else?”

“This doesn’t change anything between us. We’re friends.” Something in my chest objects to that rule. It feels like a betrayal. But I want to say it before he does. I have to.

“Sex changes everything, Liz. That’s half the fun.”

“It doesn’t have to. I want us to still be friends after tonight.”

“Oh, we can be friends.” His breath ruffles my hair as he skims his fingertips down my bare arms, sending delicious shivers through my body that land low in my belly and turn my insides to goo. “But it’ll be different.”

“How so?”

“We won’t be able to look at each other without remembering what it was like. And if I have my way—” He dips his head to my ear and tugs the lobe between his teeth. A shudder rocks through me. “—every time you look at me, your panties will go damp as you remember what I did to you.”

About the Author

New York Times and USA Today bestselling romance author Lexi Ryan’s novels have been described as intense, emotional, and wickedly sexy. A former college professor, she now writes full-time from her home in Indiana, where she lives with her husband, two children, and a neurotic dog. Find her on Facebook or Twitter to chat about books, TV, and her children’s latest antics.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

A Perfect Dilemma Blog Tour: Review: A Perfect Secret Series by Zoe Dawson

A Perfect Secret Series, #3

New Adult Contemporary Romance and Mystery

Released September 2014

Amazon | Barnes and Noble | iTunes

The one secret she can't stand to keep is the one she can't afford to tell.

The perfect little rich girl, River Pearl Sutton has always done what her family expected of her. She’d become the perfect little beauty queen, the perfect child model and now her global success locks her into a life she never really chose.

Coming home for the summer to prepare for the Founder’s Day Festival, a celebration of her lauded ancestor, she is tasked by her father to write a speech to be delivered at the end of the party.

Returning to Hope Parish brings her back into close proximity with sweet-talking, skirt-chasing Braxton Outlaw, the boy who always seemed immune to her charms in high school. But now he looks at her with those challenging blue eyes, both intimidating and seductive at the same time. Using research of her family lineage and his as way to get close to this bad boy, they fall into a hot, torrid affair.

She stumbles across a terrible secret that could bring to ruin not only her reputation, but the reputation and standing of her family. But when her infatuation with Brax grows into something that she can’t live without, she must decide what to do. Keep the secret and lose Brax or destroy her family and lose them. 

It’s an awful, heartrending perfect dilemma.

 

 REVIEW

 

After having read the entire A Perfect Secret Series in one fell swoop, I have to say that I have come to love this trio of Hellraisers and their beautiful women. Booker, Boone and Braxton each have a place in my heart, and for different reasons, but I will admit that Brax is probably my favorite Outlaw, so I was extremely excited that he got his own story and with River Pearl no less.

 

As with the rest of the books in this series, this one was filled with heartache, turmoil and plenty of sexual chemistry and passion. But, even with the serious undertones of this story, where the Outlaw brothers went, there were sure to be shenanigans. I don't think I'll ever look at a french fry the same way again. LOL.

 

River Pearl hasn't been one of my favorite characters, but once I got to really know her I think she is just hands down awesome. Not at all the spoilt little rich girl with her nose in the air that I had taken her for. Yes, she did expect a certain level of class but deep down she was just a simple girl wanting to be treated like anyone else. I hated that her life had basically been laid out for her and that she hadn't had much say in which path to choose, so her blossoming relationship with Brax was the perfect thing to shake things up.

 

With it, though, came a past of hurt and despair and I was thankful that, once and for all, the truth was revealed and maybe, just maybe, the Outlaws would be welcomed into a community they were so actively involved in. With plenty of skeletons jumping out of the closet, this was a fantastic read that kept me enthralled the entire way through. From the fiery passion that ignited whenever Brax and River were together, to the mystery about Duel Outlaws involvement in a crime that would span decades, I loved every second of this story. 

 

 

 

OTHER BOOKS IN THE

A PERFECT SECRET SERIES

 

 

 

A Perfect Secret, Book #1

I know what you did last summer.

Aubree Walker, the perfect girl most likely to succeed, is sure there’s only one person who knows what she did.

Booker Outlaw, one of the three Outlaw brothers—all identical, all gorgeous, all from the wrong side of the tracks, and all pure bad boys. He was always the unpredictable one, the one who would be brash enough to make it big self-publishing horror novels on the internet. He promised never to tell, but everyone knows you can never trust an Outlaw.

Then a year later, in the middle of the night, she receives a phone call at Tulane. Her aunt, who took her in after her mother’s death, is in a coma under suspicious circumstances. Now she has to face that one person who knows all about what she did that summer—sexy Booker.

Returning to Hope Parish to be with her aunt, stirs up all those ugly memories. When Aubree starts getting threats, she can’t help but wonder if what she did last summer was tied to her aunt’s “accident.” Afraid, she turns to the only person who knows the truth and Booker doesn’t hesitate to offer his broad shoulder for her to lean on. But Booker has a secret of his own that could crush their fledgling relationship.

As the hot, sultry summer days move on, she finds that even a perfectly smart girl can lose her heart to a perfectly bad boy. What is she going to do when someone starts asking questions Aubree doesn’t want to answer? She’s knee deep into a terribly dangerous, wholly life changing, who-can-she-really-depend-on perfect mess.

 

REVIEW

A story filled with tragedy, secrets, lies and passion, Dawson certainly knows how to draw her reader in and to keep them captive throughout.

I really loved getting to know Aubree, Booker and his brothers, and I was thoroughly intrigued by the mystery of what had gone down between Aubree and Booker. Aside from the sexual tension and unmistakable chemistry between these two amazing characters, there was definitely something darker that lurked below the surface and Dawson gave just enough to keep me wanting more. With little hints as to what happened, I was able to form my own ideas, but was quite surprised when everything was finally revealed.

This was a great suspenseful read with a ton of emotion and angst. The characters will capture your heart and drag you into a world of love, pain and hope. I was thrilled to get to read this book and cannot wait for more.

 

 

 

 

A Perfect Secret, Book #2

How can they have a future when their past is based on a lie?

The perfect preacher’s daughter, Verity Fairchild, has something that only she and God know about and she wants to keep it that way. Her mistake was easy to keep secret when she was out of town, but now that she’s come back to Hope Parish for the summer, she comes face-to-face with the guy responsible for it all. Boone Outlaw nearly ruined everything for her and despite the fact that he’s now working at her father’s church, she’s determined to stay as far away from him as possible.

Boone Outlaw doesn’t understand Verity’s anger towards him. He barely knows her. In high school she was Holy Mary Verity and she was off limits – except in his dreams where Verity seems way too real. Most of the time he was wasted in high school, not the type of boy Verity would ever look at twice, but he can’t shake the feeling that something might have happened between them. He’s going to break his own rules to get the answers he needs straight from Verity.

What will Verity do when she finds something in Boone that she never knew existed and her perfect mistake is the only thing that could stand between them and their happiness? Will she sacrifice Boone to keep her secret?

REVIEW

 
OMG! I love Boone, in fact I love all the Outlaw siblings, and I was so excited to read Boone's story. It was obvious from the first book that something must have happened for Verity to be so angry with him and I was intrigued to find out what. And, boy, was I surprised when the real secrets of this story unraveled. I had kinda guessed about the whole graduation party situation, but everything that transpired after was a total shocker.

It seems like Hope Parish is filled with a bunch of nutcases who are just waiting to cause chaos, and it was no different in this book. I was on the edge of my seat with excitement and fear but I'm glad things didn't end in tragedy.

Secrets and lies abound in this fantastic sequel to A Perfect Mess. Another rollercoaster ride of emotional ups and downs with plenty of passion. I don't care what the rest of Hope Parish says, I am hooked on the Outlaws and cannot wait for more.

 
 

About the Author

Zoe Dawson is the alter ego of Karen Anders, award winning, multi-published author. Her writing journey started with poetry and branched out into fiction. With a couple of college English courses under her belt, she penned a historical, then moved onto contemporary romance fiction. Today, she is happy producing romantic suspense, romantic mystery, urban fantasy and paranormal novels. The words feed her soul and the happily ever afters feed her heart.

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