Sandra C. Lopez's Blog, page 296

Review: ESCORTED by Claire Kent

Lori is a 26-year old woman, who is tired of being a virgin. A successful romance author, the woman is a complete failure at anything involving romance. It was incredible how she could write hot sex scenes with never having experienced one herself. So, to get out of her dry spell, she hires an escort, a gigolo that outlines an agreement indicating additional fees for “oral on you, oral on me, and full intercourse.”


This was basically lessons in sex, which brings you back to school. It was daunting. I just wished they would’ve gotten to the good stuff already. Either put out or get out.


I thought the story had an interesting premise, but the whole thing just felt clunky, awkward, and boring. The whole “arrangement” was anything but sultry and it was treated as a business arrangement. 



My rating: 2 stars

Review: WORKING ON MY BROTHER’S BEST FRIEND by Sharon Cummin

Gabby just lost her twin brother, Gabe. Doug was Gabe’s best friend in the whole world. Story begins with Gabby and Doug grieving the loss and reminiscing. Gabby and Doug hate each other, and now they must comply with Gabe’s will and work/live together for the next 6 months.


This had such a slow build up and it only continued to lag further and further. It seems the author’s titles all sound the same and have similar story lines (ex: In love with my brother’s best friend, a crush on her best friend’s brother, falling for my best friend, etc.) And they all certainly follow the same he said/she said format.


Dough and Gabby totally purge their grief, regrets, and disdain in their diary. And I couldn’t really stand it. Plus, it was just too, too SLOW.


My rating: 2 stars

Review: EVERY LITTLE PIECE BY Kate Ashton

This is the story of Haley and Seth, a couple that’s dated since Middle School. Moments of their happiness has been documented on the “Great Wall of Haley.” Both want forever from the other, but neither is willing to admit it, their minds inflating with doubt and fear.
Grad night is supposed to be a night of unforgettable fun and lasting memories. Well, it’s definitely unforgettable alright. Tragedy strikes that night that will change their lives forever.
From then on, Haley and Seth drift apart, but their love for each other remains in their hearts.
A love story of 2nd chances. Will their love survive the pain and sadness of the past?
I thought the story was good and clean (no sex.) It’s definitely recommended for YA audiences, but there was too much emotion and sadness.

My rating: 3 stars

Review: THREE SIMPLE RULES by Nikki Sloane

Plain Evie was envious of her exotic friend, Payton, who makes money by having sex with men. But even with the work she’s in, Evie was a sexual prude (nun) compared to her friend.


A mistake at work that Evie aims to fix will cost her $9600. How will she make that much money? There was only one way…


It’s just sex, after all. All she needs is one client and that’s it.


Meanwhile, Evie’s in love with her college crush, who refuses to leave his girlfriend for Evie. They’re still friends though, but Evie can’t help the way she feels. After Blake declares his love for Evie, it would seem that her wish was finally coming true. But then she finds out that he still wasn’t going to leave his girlfriend though. That just prompts her to not only go through with this “escort” service, but it makes her check three more items on her contract.


Her first client ended up paying her more than she bargained for. He only had three simple rules:


1.       Don’t ask questions
2.       Be honest
3.       Her body belongs to him


Evie eagerly accepted, and he ended up giving her the most spectacular orgasm. After coming down from the high of ecstasy, she finds out that her client was actually her boss. Oh, geez…


The complications were simplified once the two agreed to continue their sexcapades in an office fling. It was pretty sexy and read was decent. A classic office romance.


My rating: 3 stars

Review: INSATIABLE by Cari Quinn

Rachel wants to go to NY to reconnect with an old flame; Shawn has been in love with Rachel since childhood but has always been stuck in the Friend Zone. Refusing to wait forever, he proves he’s more than a friend with some dirty dancing and a scorching kiss.


Shawn is the best—best friend and best boyfriend. What the heck is wrong with Rachel? Still Rachel can’t help but wonder what could have been with Ryan. Sure, he left her, even impregnated her (which Shawn took her to the hospital for btw.) What’s the harm in seeing Ryan again?


Done deal: Rachel goes to NY and Shawn follows her. This then leads to a first night of relentless passion between the two. Friends to Lovers?


This was a pretty nice romance. I’ve always thought that the best relationships are the ones that start off as friends. I loved how Shawn knew and loved everything about Rachel. Of course, the “loving” foreplay could get a little dull, but this was a good “friends to lovers” story.


My rating: 4 stars

Review: DEATH ON THE STRIP by J.S. Peck

“The idea of going back to reading tarot cards brought back many painful memories.” (LOC 49)


Rosalie never forgave herself for her fiancé’s death. She had seen the death card for him, but thought nothing of it at the time. At her latest client reading, the death card shows up for the former Las Vegas dancer. Later, her body was found on the road by the Vegas strip, and Rosalie decides to investigate. Using her intuition and psychic premonitions, she delves into the seedy underbelly of the streets. In the process, she teams up with a handsome cowboy reporter. Meanwhile, the death card kept falling into place. What did it all mean?


Story was crafty, well-written, and so mysterious. Rosalie researches the case very thoroughly, even though I thought most of what she was found was irrelevant, like Bush’s Scarlett Letter law and the history of the first striptease performer. What was the point of all this Google data? Did we really need a history lesson on strippers?


Overall, this was a pretty good mystery, except the clues did not lead to the outcome of the story. The conclusion had no ties whatsoever to the mystery. We basically got the answer to a totally different case. The original mystery still remained and we must continue the series to find the answer. Murders go unsolved.


My rating: 3 stars

Review: ZODIAC KILLERS Box Set by W.L. Knightly

There are 3 parts in this story. The first is called THE ZODIAC KILLER, which tells the story of Darek, a homicide detective with bad dreams and a frustrated wife.


A murder at Hotel Capricorn and a dreadful message sends the frail detective into a spiral.


The beginning of your end.


The case gets deeper with torture and secrets. Dark, grisly, and alluring.


You feel for Darke with his resentment toward his bitter wife and his attraction to his new FBI partner. In the past, Darek was part of the Zodiacs, but he can’t remember much except the girl dying in his arms. Will his past come back to haunt him? Will he be implicated in an old murder? Will these killings connect all of the Zodiacs?


This was definitely good reading, but it tends to repeat the same info over and over again. Also, each one ends in a “To Be Continued,” meaning you need the whole series to finish the story, which means you don’t get to find out who the killer is. Drag.


Unless you get the whole story, this is a good read; otherwise, what’s the point with this box set?


My rating: 3 stars

Review: MURDER AT COLD CREEK COLLEGE by Christa Nardi

A murder at small-town private college. But who was the victim? Prof. Sheridan of the psychology department was curious to know. She soon finds out that the victim was a lady’s man professor.


I thought this was kind of interesting. It was simple and slow. There were too many characters/suspects to keep track of. An okay read.


My rating: 3 stars

Review: DYING TO GET PUBLISHED by Judy Fitzwater

In the beginning, Jennifer was in jail, only toying with the idea of murder. But she was no murderer; she was a caterer and a mystery novelist. She has written 8 novels―all unpublished. For her, writing was just something she had to do.


"Death of an agent would certainly be symbolic for any struggling author." (LOC 91)


Her plan was simple: commit a murder to get published.


This story seemed interesting. I mean, I could relate to being a published author and wanting to get your stories out there. But does she really kill someone to do it? Seems a little drastic to me. Still, I wondered if Jennifer would actually go through with it. Too many characters made it hard to keep track of the story. The reading gets long-winded and scattered.


Overall, I guess this was okay, but it just wasn't exactly what I was expecting.


My rating: 3 stars

Review: LITERARY AGENT BEWARE by Johnny Ray

“Being a literary agent doesn’t make you God.” (8)


Amy is an aspiring writer struggling to find an agent, but coming up empty with all these rejection letters. Oh, how these letters hurt. She’s even gone so far as to send hate letters of her own. Of course, this is only when she gets into one of her mood swings as she suffers from bipolar disorder.


After sleeping with an agent she thought would help her, Amy was mad as hell and vowed vengeance against him.


I was initially drawn in right away from the relatability of pursuing a writing career and lust for revenge against the publishing tycoons. It started off good, but then it tapers down to a slow and lengthy monologue of sorts. OMG, it’s so freaking slow! It mostly goes on about Amy’s intent for revenge, her detailed plans, and how her mood swings shift from day to day. Isn’t somebody gonna get murdered soon?


I was surprised on how unfulfilling this was as well as the number of typos it had.


My rating: 2 stars