Friday 31 August 2012

Follow Up & Follow Friday (8)



Welcome back to another fun week of Follow Friday. It's a chance to share about the things I love and think you should take a quick look into. Now several of you are here because your book junkies like me, other of you signed up for the blog about my life and got suckered into an increase in book reviews. Yeah sorry about that i will balance it all back out I swear. Anyhoo, that's not what this is about, I'm going to share with you some of the links on how I get books for free to indulge the need to read and get lost in new worlds, as promised here are some more great links to freebies and good book choices.

Now if you don't mind shifting through the religion books to find the good nuggets, a good way to get books is through Booksneeze (doesn't really require a blog, just that you review the book on THEIR website as well as goodreads, or amazon or B&N) or Blogging for Books, now these are generally for people with blogs, but if you review on goodreads as well they may take you (no guarantees, just sharing what i do know).

For the pagan readers, seeking fiction and Non-fiction the really great page located on Facebook called the Pagan ebookshelf. They generally share for the UK as well.  Kris from confessions of a pagan soccer mom, did a wonderful job locating and highlights all the really good places to get FREE and LEGAL pagan books, right here in one of her articles.  Almost all the books are from the Elders in pagan culture and include books of an academic nature as well. Make sure to check them out!!

Have a great way for readers to get free books?? Please share in the comments, I'm sure we would love to all check it out. Now on with the show:

Another week has flown by and the month is almost over, Good Gawds where did the time go?!?!? How 
did you do on your challenge for the month?? I did pretty awesome, I read a pretty good month. Here's a run down of the last week of reading. * indicates an ARC (advanced readers copy of the book)

What I have Read So Far: 
Inspire me by Veronika Dearing 
Laid Bear by Eve Vaughn
Pretty Girls Don't Cry by Tony J Winn

Recent Reviews Posted: 
What I'm Currently Reading : Click Here to get links to all the books on this list. 
  • Rev It Up by Julie Ann Walker *
  • Charming Blue by Kristine Grayson *
  • Need by Sherri Hayes *
  • Buddhist Meditation and the Internet *
Will Be Reading Next: 
  • Backyard Projects for Urban Farmers *
  • Claiming of Sleeping Beauty *
Well there you have it folks. How have you done so far this week?? Share in the comments and I will swing by your blogs and see. Happy Blue Full Moon!!! & Happy Reading


Tuesday 28 August 2012

Book Review: Dark Possession

Book Title: Dark Possession
Author: Christine Feehan
Publisher: Berkeley Hardcover
Format: Hardcover
Cost: $24.95
Pages: 352
How I got it: Library 
My Rating:★★★★★
Erotica Rating: ★★★★
Synopsis:
Manolito De La Cruz knew he was dangerously close to turning into a vampire. The last thing he expected after being called back to his Carpathian homeland by Prince Mikhail was to catch the scent of his destined lifemate in MaryAnn Delaney. MaryAnn is human, but she knows all too well the aggressive instincts of Carpathian males. And they're not exactly the kind of men she'd prefer to be bound to for life.
A dedicated counselor for battered women, MaryAnn has a fulfilling life with no room for someone like Manolito, born and bred in the Carpathian mountains, a law unto himself. But when MaryAnn agrees to go to South America to offer guidance to a brutalized young woman, she has no idea a trap awaits her in the sweltering thick of the jungle. She has been drawn there by Manolito himself, who has seductive plans for the unaware, irresistibly human female..
My Review:
Manuel/Monlito is an awesome Carpathian, on who knows true honor and what it is to be a hero.warrior. we first meet him in Dark Celebration and this is where his true story begins, unlike ther est of the series is you missed this book first then you missed the real beginning of this story, so when you started Dark Possession you were already behind. I realy loved mauel because he constantly stood behind his word, he placed himself in danger constantly and in the reunion novel was the one to make the greatest sacrifice to protect Jacques and Shea's baby.
Meeting MaryAnn, whose grief let everyone she was Manuel's lifemate which of course made this story line interesting and unique compared to the others. Unlike the other women who have found themselves sucked into this new world Maryann knew about the Carpathian world, after all her best friend was married to Manuel's older brother; she is recruited to help the jaguar women who have been victimized and raped, and she also begins to help Solange, which leads to Solange being more open to meeting Dominic later. See this is how the books build on each other, because without Maryann I'm sure Dominic would have had to fight harder for his mate, but anyway this isn't their story this is MaryAnn's and Manuels, can i also say that I freaking love that their is a black character in this one, finally a female black lead, although MaryAnn at the beginning is a bit of a punk, but still it makes her unique and lovable.

MaryAnn herself isn't quite human and she sense this but is very afraid of what it means and what she is so she hides from it, she still doesn't quite believe in the Carpathian world even though she is apart of it, she figures it's a horrible nightmare or just a disease for them, Le Sigh MaryAnn Le Sigh. Because I had already read several of the other books out of sequence I already knew what MaryAnn was, but still how she finally figures it out was never discussed in the other books and this one scene was freaking AWESOME!! I loved that she was a girly girl and had her ways of building up her confidence,even when she knew she was in the wrong. *who really brings stilettos to the jungle??*
A few CONS of the story:

Despite strong evidence to the contrary MaryAnn insists on pretending she is human, she fights her nature and then asks stupid questions (esp on page 205). She kept doing this over and over again, after a while it just got repetitive.

The men's belief that they had the right to determine what happened to the women, and overruled the women on many an occasion. O_o

PROS:

Manolito was willing to do whatever to get MaryAnn to accept him, even if it meant going against his instincts and the teachings of his brother. An example of this was saving Luis.

This book also included some serious good fast paced action, that just drew you in and didn't let go.Le Sigh, clearly by not reading the books in order I'm learning stuff which build on each other as the books went along. This book picked up from Dark Demon and Dark Celebration and laid the ground work for Dark Slayer and of course Dark Peril. Now I seriously would love to know what happens to Luis, this is one of the first characters of his kind, and I need to know. In dark peril, Solange's story we see the blending of species due to royal bloodlines, does the mean MaryAnn is a royal too?? I need to hurry up and read the others that I have skipped.

Definite get out and read it. Five stars for story and Four stars of steamy romance.This one is way better than predator, considering Manuel was raised by his brother. O_o


Book Review: Sharing Hailey


Book Title: Sharing Hailey (purchase)
Author: Samantha Ann King
Publisher: Carina Press
Format: ebook
Cost: $5.39 (from the publisher)
Pages: 240
How I got it: NetGalley
My Rating:★★★☆☆
Erotica Rating: ★★★★☆
Synopsis:
Hailey Anderson's deep, dark secret? She's been madly in lust with her overprotective brother's two best friends for years. Gorgeous woodworking artist Mark Allen and sexy doctor Tony Adamo have no idea they star in her fantasies every night.
After a nasty breakup with her abusive boyfriend, Hailey's looking for a little distance. Headed for a two-week Hawaiian vacation with her brother and his hot friends, Hailey can't wait to feast her eyes on Mark's and Tony's rock-hard, ocean-slick bodies. Even if she can't touch.
But instead of treating her like their little sister, Mark and Tony have a surprising proposition: a monogamous ménage à trois. The three of them—and no one else. Both men want Hailey and have agreed to share her. The red-hot reality is even better than the forbidden fantasy. Until Hailey's ex threatens their newfound happiness…
My Review:

With a premise like that how could I resist reading, hot men, Hawaii, a menage and lots and lots of fun to be had. I dove right in. I give this book about three stars; it was okay, nothing earth shatteringly new.  The concepts were great and the potential for an awesome story was there, yet the characters weren't as fleshed out as they could have been.

Now for the good stuff, when Hailey was with Mark and Tony it was good, I mean really good. They(the men) clearly have worked out before propositioning her what they wanted from the relationship, although that first bedroom scene clearly freaked the men out. LOL. I did get some serious chuckles out of that scene.   The story had to move faster than they clearly were prepared for due to Hailey's past coming home to roost but the overall emotions between the three was great to read, especially when they went dancing at the little club.   Now that dance was sensual.

Even saying all of that I found that the men were kind of forgettable, we really didn't get as much info about them as we could have, yes one worked with his hands and had a great home, but why was he like that?? It would have been nice to hear from the guys a little too. I did find that the most memorable characters are Hailey and the douche-bag ex, and her sister in law.  If your writing an erotica then make it an erotica, don't bog it down with real world issues; I get that she was trying to show how abused women don't really think of themselves that way, but it could have been written a little better.  It's still an okay read. 

As I was reading I took these notes, and just want to share them as the review because it think it explains better how i felt about the book.
1) Hailey is clearly an abused woman and is still covering for him. I get that she wants to move on with her life but has she never seen a Lifetime movie?? How did she not see the signs?? Why is she still protecting him?? I would have told my big brother and my new partners all about it so there would have been no surprises when his crazy butt showed up uninvited.  Why put yourself in danger by getting out of the car, I would have seen him, & I would have kept driving. Hailey does some seriously questionable stuff because she's a people pleaser. Also she's a bit of a prude, they say it to her in the book and it's made clear throughout the book, especially after she calls herself a slut several times because she was lusting after two men.  Which then call into question the relationship, and what exactly she wants from it and for herself. Her concepts of what domestic violence is and her reality is a very off. She still trying to protect both him and herself from the truth. I wonder if she realized she was so easy to manipulate was because she refused to seek help even though she needed it??
2) Why does she care what her brother thinks of her sex life, Your clearly passed the age of consent, yes it might be a little awkward at first, but ummm.... not sure why your hiding it.

At this point I kind of started to dislike Hailey & here is why: This is my beef, I loved Hailey until the author compared her to Jennifer Aniston. I dislike, no loathe, maybe it would be better to say I can't stand the actress, nope let's go with the undiluted truth I hate Jennifer Aniston, yep harsh truth but my truth none the less (no I'm not judging her as a person I hardly know her, but as an actress?? If I pay money then you are fair game for me to judge you). To me she is just meh..and UGh.. she can't act, she always looks like she's about to cry and I just can't understand why the tabloids love her so much!! Her one accomplishment in life is that she was the first Mrs. Brad Pitt, to that I say so??? She still can't act her way out of a paper-bag.  When a character that I liked was compared to her?? Instant dislike. Anyone else, just about anyone else would have been better. And that dear authors is the danger in putting a famous person in your book for comparison, the readers preconceived notions and feelings about the famous person can and will change their reading experience.  

I do like that the author made an attempt to tackle such a tough subject, but the issues Hailey has goes deeper than this book explored. Not to mention she took no time to heal and work through what made her so vulnerable to being abused before jumping into a new relationship. I get that these men have been there for years, and have been men she has wanted but never acted on because she couldn't choose, a little time to heal would have still been nice.  Mark and Tony clearly loved her as more than a friend for years, and yet neither said anything, I loved that they valued their friendship more than the off chance that it wouldn't work. 

I wanted to love it, but instead I walked away liking it, I was happy for Hailey in the end, but man she clearly needed to see a Lifetime movie. 
Happy reading..
Enjoy.


Monday 27 August 2012

Missing Community....

I'm a solitary, I love being on my own, to me I'm pretty awesome company. I don't fear being alone; I don't mind the company of my thoughts. I don't have to be plugged in or distracted, I simply lay down on the couch or in bed and let my mind wander; no music just the silence and my own thoughts, sometimes I think great thoughts and come to epiphanies; sometimes I remember incidents that make me cringe and I wonder what could have been done differently, sometimes I simply remember the great moments of the week.  I'm a homebody, a wise old soul in a young woman's body and for me being still and solitary with myself is far more important than being among the crowd.  I enjoy this time, because after the solitary silence I have to hang out with family, friends, coworkers and there are very few moments to think when with them. Yet even I with my happy little corner, need community, a place where i fit, where my feelings are validated, my thoughts and opinions shared, where there are those with common beliefs, ideals and standards.

About a year ago, (I'm sure your remember) the fiasco with Kris from Confessions of a Pagan Soccer Mom running on the Circle of Moms interfaith blog contest; several women got up in arms when they realized a pagan and witch were in the competition and even went so far as to personally attack several of the women involved.  In the end, Kris won because the pagan mommy community got behind her, several other pagan moms made the top ten,and I discovered several really great blogs. I confess I'm not a mother, but the community that is found there was amazing. especially the christian ones who stood up for the other faith mothers. One of the women who acted with grace was Courtney from WomenLivingwell.org. I loved Julie's post, check out the amazing discussion and dialogue that was opened up by her post and her call and comparison of the Christian women and their reaction compared to the pagan blog and their rallying around Kris.

Now personally I'm not Christian and not considering going back, but I must say that the community I have witnessed on these blogs have made me jealous.  Perhaps, it has to do with their unified beliefs and one cannon that they have a commonality that allows them to work well together.  I don't  know, but I love watching their monthly events like their book clubs and bible studies.  All of this is to say I have found this lacking within the pagan community, or maybe it's because I haven't ventured out into that aspect of our community. I have googled and haven't found the kind of link up events where they share on a common theme, the only thing I have seen is the Pagan blog Prompts, which is a really great idea especially when you have nothing to write about.  But I want that, the kind of community I have witnessed, the community that my mother has at her home church where when one of the women was ill they all took turns in the bible study group in making a meal and bringing it over.  
I want that, I want us as a  community to be able to share our common themes and beliefs, yes we don't have a common cannon that we can turn to and say "here is what the Goddess says about sex, love, marriage, finances, raising our kids"; hell we can't even get people to agree on what Doreen really said/meant in the chant.  For me not having that as a guide can sometimes feel lonely, feeling as if I have to sit and figure out what the Goddess intends for this aspect of my life is very daunting. Subsequent generations won't have that because they will have out book of shadows to learn from, but who are we learning from now??So many of the teachers are contested and vilified by so many others, and lets be real some of the books being published shouldn't even be doing so.  
Yes, I work with the Goddess and pray with her, but sometimes I would love to go seek and find comforting words that say" hey this is what she said before and it's what she means for this situation'.  I'm not a mom so many of the pagan mom blogs don't pertain to me, I'm not married so many of the other blogs that focus on women and marriage don't pertain to me. Yes I read tons of book blogs, and crafting blogs, and blogs about lupus, I even read blogs by African American women who are doing success in their own lives, but what about the young black women who are all of these but aren't moms?? Or heck women period who aren't moms or married who aren't looking for either at the moment where do we go?? What aspect do we fit in?? Where's the advice for us??  I'm not a maiden anymore, I'm not a mother and I'm certainly no where near Cronehood *although I am looking forward to these years* I still have many more years in me where is the community for me??

I have seen several blogs in the christian community geared towards women like me who are seeking this kind of community and I can't help but wonder how come there isn't one for the pagan community.   I love reading many of the pagan blogs that I am subscribed to; but sometimes they deal with issues I have no understanding of, I'm not a mom, or grandmom, I don't have a lifelong partner that i have been with for over ten years liek some fo you (can I tell you how jealous I am of that?? Or how I'm storing up your lessons for when I am in that situation!!) and although I can empathize as a woman,& as a witch, that can only go so far, so again I ask where are the women like me??

My friend Vikki has attempted to fill that void on YT, by creating a collaboration channel called The Divine Sisterhood, 
which will discuss all kinds of things pertaining to women. Health, relationships, spirituality (although there are a ton of vlogs and channels addressing that aspect already). I think this is a wonderful opportunity, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

I still do have to wonder though, why aren't their any books being written, or articles addressing this. Te pagan community has grown by leaps and bounds, the free spirited feminist drive that originally started many of the traditions or simply popularized them have mellowed as their (some not all) leaders have matured, their are now more people within the community who are from several walks of life, men, women, trans=gendered, straight, gay, married, hand fastened, poly and all kinds of different flavors; yet no one has written anything for this. 

There is a whole community that is being ignored, a whole community of men and women who are being left out in the cold, because we don't fit the stereotypes or archetypes that have been created. many of these archetypes exclude the newer generation, how do we revolutionize this and still keep what is necessary??

 How can we build a community when we don't all think, feel or believe the same thing?? How do we create a safe place for women who aren't maidens and aren't mothers to go to, and feel as if they aren't alone. Have you found any of these within your own community?? How about books, blogs, vlogs, youtube channels, magazines, anything addressing the needs of the growing pagan young adults?? Please share in the comments sections, as I will love to share that with others as well.

Love & Light always

Friday 24 August 2012

Follow Up and Follow Friday (7)

Welcome back to another fun week of Follow Friday. It's a chance to share about the things I love and think you should take a quick look into. Now several of you are here because your book junkies like me, other of you signed up for the blog about my life and got suckered into an increase in book reviews. Yeah sorry about that i will balance it all back out I swear.  Anyhoo, that's not what this is about, I'm going to share with you some of the links on how I get books for free to indulge the need to read and get lost in new worlds:

Have a kindle??? Well my loves sign up here to get emails daily or on your facebook timeline listing some really great and fun FREE, that's right I said Free reads. It's called Pixel of Ink and they are freaking awesome!!! They have three posts per day with links to amazon with tons of free books for your enjoyment. They even have YA section as well as inspirational books as well. The best part?? you don't even have to own a kindle to enjoy them simply sign up for the kindle app for your android phone or pc/mac/ipad and you can be rolling in the books too.  Sorry Nook readers, B&N doesn't seem to give as many books away for free as Kindle does. 

Of Course there is nothing like the free kindle list on Amazon itself. Click this link here to see the list and a preview of the books, One click and they can be yours for a grand total of Free.99, just make sure to check the price before you click!!!

Another way is Goodreads Shut up and Read Book Group, they have a Read & Reap program that links authors to readers/reviewers. As long as you can read the book within two weeks and sign up before the limited number is reachedm you can earn a book!!! 

Well those are some of the fun ways I get books, you can always also join in on the others that I will be listing again next week.  This is how I have cut my book budget down to almost zero I haven't had to purchase any books in months. Other than the library trip of course.  
Well it's another week and it's time to do the accounting.  This week I seemed to have slowed down on the reading I'm not sure why exactly. Maybe too many choices?? However I did manage to finish a few, I'm still working on the RCCleanup challenge, and I have gotten rid of a few reviews as well. I still have a bit left to go and a few more days to knock it out the ballpark. *crosses fingers**

What I have Read So Far:
Hostile Takeover by Joey W Hill
Scored by Lily Harlem *which was a freebie from the author on Goodreads.*
A Table for Three by Lainey Reese

Recent Reviews Posted:
Hostile Takeover by Joey Hill

What I'm Currently Reading :

  • Need by Sherri Hayes
  • Pretty Girls Don't Cry by Tony J. Winn
  • Rev It Up by Julie Ann Walker
  • Inspire Me by Veronica Darling

Will Be Reading Next:

  • Buddhism And Internet Meditation 
Welp this week wasn't as active as the week before. I will be doing some serious review cleaning up. How about y'all?? Share in the comments and I will come on over.
Happy Reading

Tuesday 21 August 2012

Book Review: South Hills Sidekicks: Uninvited

Book Title:  South Hills Sidekicks : Uninvited Book 1
Author: Leah Speigel
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services
Format: Ebook
Cost: $ On sale for 0.99, normally 7.99
Pages: 302
How I got it: Shut Up and Read, Read It and Reap Program On Goodreads.
My Rating:★★★★☆
Erotica Rating: 
Synopsis:
When Alley started her senior year at Upper East High in the South Hills area, it was supposed to be the usual drag of hanging out with people who spent more on one outfit than Alley did on her entire wardrobe. That was until Kirsten, a girl in their clique, suddenly goes missing and the only people who seem to care are her friends. All evidence leads to the new comer Shane, a cocky and self-pretentious person in Alley’s opinion, but the police seem uninterested so she and the rest of the girls start a little investigation of their own. But they are nowhere closer to finding Kirsten than when they started and now they had the police’s attention; just not in the way they expected. The girls have to start over and discover that maybe it wasn’t an outsider who took Kirsten, but someone within their own clique who has something to hide; a secret that just might have gotten Kirsten killed.
My Review:
Yes go ahead and give the cover a mean side-eye O_o. when I accepted the book the cover wasn't listed, so I didn't see it. The book premise sounded very much like a Nancy Drew meets Pretty Little Liars so I was all for it. 

When I first started reading the book, Alley actual grated on the nerves, her insistence that she wasn't a member of the group and that she was a hanger on kinda annoyed me. Then the book started moving along and you realized what Alley saw and what really took place were two different things, she very much is an integral part of the group, she's not just Val's friend, they actually know her name and they actually care about her as well. She just doesn't always see it.

Oh my Godh Val??!?!?!? I laughed so hard when she was in the scenes, she just was so funny without trying to be, she wanted so hard to help her friend which means her heart was in the right place but she just went about it wrong which meant there where so many funny incidents all because of Val. That scene where they followed him home, and Val was RIGHT behind him??!?!? I Laughed so hard, she was just too funny. 

Shane was the quintessential bad boy, from jump I tagged him as a love interest and little different from the group, but when the mystery started I didn't know what to do with the new info that was unraveling. Trust the girls to get into the mix of it and get it all wrong.

I haven't laughed this much in reading a book in a good way in a long time, mostly I'm laughing that author would think this is how someone would react but in this book it was at the antics of the girls, much like in a good comedy show i laughed right on cue. I had so much fun reading and will make space on my TBR pile near the top for the other books. Can't wait to read them. 

Erotica Book Review: Hostile Takeover


Book Title: Hostile Takeover
Author: Joey W Hill
Publisher: Ellorascave
Format: Ebook
Cost: $7.99
Pages: 408
How I got it: NetGalley 
My Rating:★★★★☆
Erotica Rating: ★★★★★
Synopsis:
Ben is the last unattached member of the five-man executive team of K&A Associates. The other four, all Masters, have found the submissive of their dreams. That’s fine. The sharp-edged lawyer knows he’s the most hardcore of all of them, with extreme tastes as a Master he satisfies physically through experienced club submissives. He doesn’t really need anything more than that.
Marcie has loved Ben since she was sixteen. He’s never behaved as anything more than a protective big brother, a family friend. But now she’s twenty three and starting her career as a corporate investigator. She may be a blood-and-bone deep submissive, but she won’t hesitate to use her aggressive talents to prove she’s meant to be his. With a Master as tough as Ben, she’ll have to take whatever measures are needed—even if her deepest desire isn’t a hostile takeover of his heart, but an unconditional surrender to it.
Reader Advisory: Marcie’s sexual journey contains a group scene of female/female sexual exploration. The Masters also share her in a brief group scene. Both these beautifully erotic moments are essential to deepening Marcie’s bond with Ben.
My Review:
Side eye from hell for that cover...now on to the review:
I enjoyed this book. It's been awhile since i have read such a hardcore full on BDSM book, and I'm glad I did. This is one of the better books out there. It's what thebookthatshallnotbenamed wished it could be but isn't. 

You see it had well developed characters both the main and secondary characters were more than just cardboard cut outs; they shared emotions and feelings and really came alive as I was reading. Now I LOVE LOVE LOVE the scenes between Ben and Marcie, Marcie is a ballsy submissive, going full head on for her man, she wanted and needed Ben's kind of Dominance and she wasn't settling. I loved that when faced with losing him she made the decision to move on to someone who was like him, even though he tried to pass her off to Doms who wouldn't have replaced him in her mind. 

Let's back up a bit, Marcie is the kind of sub some Doms fear, she's a full-on, no holes barred, 24/7 sub who wants nothing more than to belong to a Dom worthy of her & to her Ben is that Dom. Ben is a man who has survived a rough childhood, with the guidance of the men he met because of the man who caught him when he tried to pick his pocket. 

With the structure of BDSM, Ben has found a home a place where he can call the shots, and boy does he love to call the shots. He has a kink he thinks no sane woman would want except for the ones he pays at the clubs, so he holds himself aloof from the women in his life. He loves fierce and deeply but doesn't trust enough to love a woman of his own. He fights Marcie's plan to snare him, yet signs up to be her Mentor instead of her Master. When he realizes she was going to move on a find someone else whose claim would challenge him, he lost it. Which lead to one of the most intense scenes in the book, which was then followed by Ben being an idiot, and Marcie showing him that just because she's a sub doesn't mean she's a pushover. 

Can I just say how well written these characters were?? They just flowed so well when interacting with each other and even when we were seeing through their eyes. Marcie kinda reminded me of Maggie from the Secretary, how she fought to get her Dom to acknowledge the truth, but was willing to move on when he didn't. Ben took a little longer to get to the party, but when he did boy did he show up, he went all out with her in their first real scene and even though he stated he didn't do missionary or face to face, when he did it along with the aftercare which he normally left to someone else i just knew he was hers.

I had a few bones to pick with the book however, I didn't like how Ben reacted at first. I am glad that the other characters didn't let him off the hook easy; he had to work to regain their trust as well as his sub's trust. The CNC which he had at the very beginning was kind of scary to me, but clearly what they both needed. I personally couldn't have gotten down with my brother in law, it's just not within my scope of thing I can do, but i understand why the group mentality needed it; it just wasn't my cup of tea.  Also her fantasy??? Yeah no, just NOT happening, no way no how. I just can't. I get that Lucas isnt't a father figure for her, but that's just not how I role. Rolls way too close to a taboo for me.  I get that this is fantasy and women don't want to read about ordinary looking men with ordinary looking bodies, but must every guy have the perfect shape and be hung like a horse??? 

I did love the book, and was happy I read it, especially because I haven't had a good hardcore one in a while. It's a definite read if your into hardcore BDSM, anal, oral, orgie scenes and F/F interplay.

**FTC rules state I must make you aware that I received this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**


Book Review: Seven Years to Sin

Book Title: Seven Years to Sin
Author:  Sylvia Day
Publisher:  Kensington Brava
Format: Ebook, Paperback
Cost: $ 8.69 Kindle, 10.20 Paperback
Pages: 352
How I got it: NetGalley
My Rating:★★★★★
Erotica Rating: ★★★★★
Synopsis:

The longer the resistance.....
Seven years ago, on the eve of her wedding, proper Lady Jessica Sheffield witnessed a licentious scene no innocent young miss could imagine. Shocked, yet strangely titillated, she'd held her silence regarding scandalous Alistair Caulfield, and walked down the aisle as expected. But through years of serene, unremarkable marriage, Caulfield's image remained burned into her imagination, fueling very illicit dreams. . .
...the sweeter the reward
Alistair ran far from the temptation of the prim debutante with the fire of passion in her eyes—all the way to the West Indies. As a successful merchant, he has little in common with the rakehell youth she knew. But when newly widowed Jessica steps aboard his ship for a transatlantic passage, seven years' worth of denied pleasures are held in check by nothing more than a few layers of silk—and the certainty that surrender will consume them both. . .
My Review:
this book was AWESOME!!! I was engaged and in love with the characters from the very start. Ms Day writes such well written and deeply enriched characters. I loved Alistair, who on the surface seemed to be the scrapegrace everyone named him but who had such depth and hidden needs, the very first scene with him and Jessica was so arousing just amazing. I was happy that Jessica was able to find love in her first marriage as most of her peers did not have that and she clearly needed it after her personal home life.

Alister did so much to prove himself worthy of love from his family, and yet still shunned society's demand that he be what they desired him to be by becoming more than they had set aside for him. Ohh how i loved his sharing with Jessica his deepest secrets holding nothing back as a way to test her and also as a way for her to know the real him, not just the facade. As for Jessica she had learned the hard way that Society's rules weren't to be flouted and yet perhaps because of the circumstances she was more willing to throw caution to the wind in this pursuit. She was at first reluctant to let go of what was comfortable yet when given the freedom to do so, did it with a flourish. And oh what a flourish!!!

I laughed with these characters, cried for these characters, was seriously turned on by the love scenes so much so that i would put the book down and whatever the partner was doing jump him!!! He sends his regards to Ms Day as well because he loved the story too. 

The secondary story within this story is Hester and Michael, from their youths they were friends, and in love but Hester's head was turned by a more renowned peer and she married for love and as the saying goes married in haste, repent in leisure. Her story was the most heartbreaking as she had no recourse of way in which to better her situation. I felt for poor Michael who couldn't help the woman he loved as much as he wanted to because of society's views on marriage. 

I loved this story and Sylvia managed to convey so much within it's pages, the deep love and lust that can be found, how some loves can be sweet and simple instead of raging yet still be as satisfying for those within the union. She touched on the systems of slavery and it's effects as well as the perceived necessity fo the times, yet the changes that were taking place of using indentured servitude instead of slaves. She balanced the concept of ideals with reality and what needed to be done for women, I personally loved this story for it. Of course the fact that they were sailing for Jamaica didn't hurt,as I love my home country more than words can convey. 

Sylvia brought up salient points about women and their place in society, how abuse affects people even decades later, how women were treated. All of these deep concerns then and now, yet she made them noteworthy without making the story boring and downtrodden with her points. All of this wrapped in a deeply erotic tale of long held lust which bloomed into deep love. I have become a fan; it is my understanding that the book Bare to You is based on this book, and if it is, then boy oh boy it's going to be hot one. I'm making space on the TBR pile as we speak!!!

I hope you revel in this book as much as i did and enjoy it's deliciously sensual scenes. Burn Rubber to get it my loves it's an awesome book.
 Happy Reading.

Monday 20 August 2012

Fail of the Week:

Due to the increase in showing their a**es publicly I'm going to be doing an as needed feature when someone makes a complete and utter fail. Especially if they are in politics. I won't choose sides, even though I'm a 'bleeding heart liberal', I'm still more educated than these morons. Normally I try my best not to get political, or even discuss the depressing state of affairs as idiot after idiot take their issues out on the rest of the world, especially in the last two weeks, but this shyt right here?? I just want to slap his smug, asshole face. What kind of a f**ktard says bullshyt like this???

This weeks' featured moron?? This guy: Rep Tony Aiken a Republican *yeah no surprises there* from Missouri who on national television shared this gem with us
Not horrified enough?? Do you think maybe it's taken out of context?? Let's hear from Moron Todd himself:
Yes you read & heard that right. According to this uneducated no medical degree having asshole, women's bodies will protect them from getting pregnant after a " legitimate " rape. WAIT. WTF is "legitimate rape" is it being raped by a stranger, rape while your drugged, or is it your partner not stopping when you say no?? Does it only happen to good virgin girls?? Or are experienced women raped too?? WTF is it?? I didn't know we established degrees of rape and what makes it "real".  Is it real only when it happens in certain situations or is it only if the guy feels bad about it. Who makes the decision?? Cops, judges or the person that was RAPED. What about the young woman who was asleep on her boat and was raped?? Is that legitimate?? Does it only happen to young women?? Or are older women exempt. Please Mr, Aiken I need your vast experience and knowledge to explain to me what the f**k legitimate rape is. Excuse me will I throw things. These are the idiots making decisions on women's bodies and our rights???? This idiot who hasn't gotten past first grade understanding of human anatomy and biological science??? Really these are the people educated people are electing into office. You know what??? I'm tired of this idiocy America calls a government system, this two party foolishness that allows these uneducated idiots to decide one day they want to run for office and then stay in office forever. This is just complete and utter tomfoolery. People like this really can't exist, I refuse to believe that actual adults can believe this bullshyt, and have the nerve to share it with the rest of the world. Who told him that woman's bodies will protect them??? His priest?????  I need the names of those doctors he is talking about so I can check to make sure they actually attended medical school. I need their names Mr. Aiken, so we can ban them from going anywhere near women, or even attempting to actually practice medicine because clearly they bought their  license to practice. This is what happens when we allow complete and utter bullshyt called myths and legends to be taught as part of the school system. Creationism isn't science people it's your myths and your beliefs about how the world was created it doesn't f**king make it PROOF. I'm all for faith and having a system of beliefs that can't stand up to science, I'm a psychic; that can't be proven with scientific methods *not yet anyway*. but I would NEVER demand that my set of beliefs be taught in a schools SCIENCE lab, this is why. You teach these things and not the real hard proof of science; you deny children access to information about sex and their bodies and then show them this bullshyt; and then act surprised when idiots like this happen:
Bristol Palin, 'brilliant' progeny of Sarah Palin, Abstinence works ambassador 
I need for real people to vote this f**ktard out, he shouldn't be allowed to breathe and talk in public much less vote *why yes I see the irony as I type but it's true*  yet he is allowed to make rules and regulations pertaining to women's bodies. I need for American women to wake up and demand that the people making decisions that affect us have at least a medical background before they can talk about anything pertaining to our reproductive rights, because an asshole with convictions shouldn't be telling me I'm protected from an unwanted pregnancy biological and therefore won't need access to planned parenthood. Take a seat Mr. Aiken, this week you get the dummy of the Week award. Follow these directions, I'm sure it will feel like home:
What do you think of this man's ideas about women's bodies??? What the heck is legitimate rape?? Are there degrees I wasn't aware of?? Share your ideas and thoughts in the comments please.

Friday 17 August 2012

Follow Up & Follow Friday (6)


Well this week was chuck full of awesomeness for me anyway. I have been participating in the RCCleanup on Twitter. You can click here to find out more about it. The goal is to clean up your review copy piles and you reviews backlog. So far for the month I have knocked out twelve books, six of them actual review copies.  I have my list here. and each time I do something from it I go back and edit it in blue. I will do more Follow Up post for the RCCleanup, it runs for a few more weeks (the end of August) so I still have plenty of time to meet my book goal of the month of 30 books. Right at the moment I have 19 left to go. Isn't that awesome!!!  Since I haven't done a Follow Up for last week this one is going to be a bit bigger than normal since it will cover all the books read for the month so far.

Although it seems the more I clean up the review pile the more books I keep getting, I just can't stop clicking yes and accepting books to read and review. it's an addiction I tell you. "Hi, my name is Aisha and I'm addicted to books. "  Sidenote : those with an * next to them are review copies that I have read this month. Click on the name for a synopsis of the book. a few too many to place in one post,

What I have Read So Far:
Seven Years to Sin ~ Sylvia Day *
Consent to Love ~ Abby Wood *
Improper Relations ~ Juliana Ross *
Seven Day Loan ~ Tiffany Reisz *
South Hills Sidekicks: Uninvited ~ Leah Speigel * Part of the Shut and Read Group Program Read It and Reap. Which hooks authors up with reviewers.  



The Inconvenient Duchess ~ Christine Merrill Book one in the series, which laid the groundwork for An Unladylike Offer. 

An Unladylike Offer ~ Christine Merrill (Second book in the series, had to read b/c the first was so good.)
Marriage to Claim His Twins ~ Penny Jordan
When We Touch ~ Brenda Novak
Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble ~ H.P. Mallory

Recent Reviews Posted:
What I'm Currently Reading :
  • Hostile Takeover by Joey W Hill *
  • Fantasy in Death by JD Robb
Will Be Reading Next:
  • Buddhism And Internet Meditation *
  • Pretty Girls Don't Cry *
  • Inspire Me by Veronika Dearing * (an ace girlfriend who has published her book I'm so excited for her)
Well that's it for now, how are you tracking on your books?? How does your TBR Pile look?? Any big check offs?? Share in the comments and I will be sure to respond.

Love & Light Always