Leanne Crabtree's Blog, page 24

I’ve decided…

…to only review the books that I’ve received as ARC’s or gifted through the Goodread’s group – New Adult Book Club’s – Read it Review it program. This is just because I have over 700 books to read, most on my kindle and a handful of paperbacks and it would completely take over my blog.

So far I’ve received/been gifted the following titles, which all fall under the New Adult genre of books:

So far I’ve read and reviewed two books, Soul Stripper and No Flowers Required, neither of which were New Adult. One was a paranormal/mystery/romance and the other was a contemporary romance erotica.

I’ll be reviewing the books mentioned above as soon as I read them and hopefully in the future I’ll receive more great books

Book Review – Soul Stripper

Name: Soul Stripper

Author: Katana Collins

Genre: Paranormal Romance, Erotica, Mystery

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ll start by saying I love the name and cover of this book. They are so fitting of the story.

Then: Wow. I have literally just finished reading this and I’m impressed.

In a way it reminded me of Richelle Mead’s “Georgina Kincaid” series with the succubus and not wanting to sleep with the good guy but in other ways it didn’t.

It tells the story of Monica, a succubus–barista by day, stripper by night–who used to be an angel but fell when she was seduced by a vampire. She is a very likable succubus and there are a lot of people who care about her and try to help protect her from someone who has been murdering other succubi in Sin City/Las Vegas.

The storyline was both interesting and fun and I found myself needing to keep reading so I could find out who was killing the other succubi and I have to admit I wasn’t disappointed–though I did guess half right.

I enjoyed it enough to keep reading the series and will look forward to the next book when it is released later in the year.

Next review(s): Blood Moon and Crescent Moon

Chapter 12 – *Shifter Romance*

Kaitlin awoke early the next morning and slid out of bed, trying not to wake Rhys who was spooned around her. She slipped out of his arms and heard him mutter in his sleep as he reached out to pull her back against him but she quickly rolled from the bed to her feet and paused, watching him. He shifted restlessly for a second before stilling, soft snores leaving him.

She smiled and snatched up the clothes she’d arrived in yesterday realising she hadn’t grabbed anything else before they’d left her parents’ house.

She’d have to shop. She couldn’t wear the same things all the time. Kaitlin grimaced at the thought as she pulled the t-shirt over her head before tugging the jeans on too.

Creeping on silent feet across the room she let herself out into the hallway and headed to the far door. Listening at the door, she didn’t hear anything and crept inside, her bladder ready to burst as she hurried to the toilet.

Flushing the toilet she washed her hands and then headed back out to the corridor, stopping halfway through the door when she saw Brent heading her way.

A slightly silly grin curved his lips as he gave her a respectful nod, “Morning.”

“Morning,” she replied.

“I heard you had a good time last night,” he teased, his grin turning into a full-fledged smile. Kaitlin’s cheeks flamed and she pressed one warm cheek to the cool wood of the door. “Both of you actually, judging from the noises I heard.” She groaned audibly and dropped her head forward, then heard his light chuckle as he grew closer. “Don’t be embarrassed, Kaitlin. It’s great to see him happy again; you’re obviously good for him.”

The bedroom door opened and Rhys stepped out in nothing but some hastily pulled on jeans that were almost indecently low on his hips. He relaxed when he saw her, “Breakfast?”

She nodded and followed after him down the corridor to the kitchen while Brent slipped into the bathroom.

Her gaze swept from side to side as she tried to take in everything at once in the ultra-modern, state of the art kitchen. It was huge with a black marble countertop running in a U shape with a large island in the middle where there was a six ring stove.

Rhys opened cupboards pulling out two skillets which he placed on the counter top. Then he bent and pulled open another door and grabbed a carton of eggs and several packets of bacon and sausages.

Ten minutes later, the three of them were sat at the breakfast bar, talking as they ate.

“So what’s our next move going to be?” Brent asked as he forked up a whole sausage and brought it to his mouth.

Kaitlin smiled despite herself as she glanced at the food piled on their plates. The guys each had eight sausages, twelve rashers of bacon and five fried eggs. She hadn’t wanted so much food and had the remaining four sausages, six rashers of bacon and two eggs with a good squirt of brown sauce.

“We should talk to the council members. See what they all think of their esteemed leader. If they seem derogatory we ask for their help if not we leave them alone. All we really need is a majority vote.”

“My father likely has something on each of them,” she cautioned, cutting her bacon in half. Kaitlin felt both of their gazes on her and glanced up. “What?”

“You have a point,” Rhys said.

She rolled her eyes. Of course she did.

“So what do we do instead?” Brent asked.

Tilting her head, she thought about it. “I imagine my father has pissed off a lot of people over the years. Why don’t we find them; band together?”

The two men shared a look and then Brent nodded slightly. Then he turned back to her. They must have been having a silent conversation; something unique to the wolf shifters. “It’s not a bad plan. Can you think of anyone in particular?”

Several names ran through her mind and she dismissed most of them but one in particular stood out.

Malachi.

He was a cat shifter, a jaguar like her father. They’d been close when she was younger; one of the few boys not scared of her father. It had been him who had taken her virginity at the age of seventeen and for that he’d been made an outcast of the clan at the hands of her dad. It had basically happened overnight and no-one really understood why but they’d never questioned the ruling. That had been over six years ago and he’d never caused any trouble since then; or before he’d been exiled if she remembered correctly.

“Malachi Dawson. My father exiled him from the clan several years ago.”

“On what grounds?”

Blood rushed to her cheeks and she dropped her gaze to her plate as she answered to avoid Rhys’ probing gaze. “Deflowering his daughter.”

A tense silence fell at the table and she chanced a glance up to see Rhys’ jaw was clenched tight and his hands were fisted around the knife and fork he was holding, the metal beginning to bend in his grip. His eyes were glowing fierce amber and she could have sworn he was growling low in his throat.

Brent was watching him carefully. “Mentioning your ex’s might not be such a good idea after last night, Kaitlin.”

She nodded, her gaze intent on Rhys’ face. It must have been the marking that was bringing out the baser instinct in him.

Almost without thought she reached up to the bite mark just visible at the neckline of her t-shirt. Rhys’ gaze shot to her fingers and the mark he’d left there this morning, almost like he’d felt the touch of her fingers. His eyes flared hot, reminding her that she belonged to him now and she nodded in agreement.

It took a few minutes before his fingers began to uncurl from the metal cutlery and then the rest of him followed, deflating like a balloon. He let out a shuddering breath, “I agree.”

“Do you know where to find M—him?” He asked, avoiding mentioning Malachi’s name.

Kaitlin nudged the food around on her plate with her knife, “The last I heard he was hanging out at The Iron Pit a lot but I’ve never seen him there.”

“The shifter bar?”

She nodded and chanced another glance up.

Rhys had calmed down considerably and had resumed eating his breakfast, though it seemed difficult with his bent cutlery.

“We’ll head out later and see if we can find him,” Rhys said calmly.

Brent glanced across at him, “Just us three or should I call in some of the pack?”

“The fewer the better, I think.”

After that they finished their meal in silence. Brent got up and left the room for some task, while Kaitlin picked up the plates and put them in the sink to wash. For some reason, she needed to be doing something, anything. Turning on the tap she filled the sink with hot water.

Warm breath tickled her neck as Rhys sighed. “I know I messed up earlier, Cat. And I’m sorry. But like Brent said, it probably wasn’t the best time to mention ex-lovers when we marked each other last night.” His fingers lightly grazed the mark at the base of her neck and she shivered.

“I’m sorry, too,” she whispered.

He sighed and she felt the press of his lips to her shoulder. “So, what shall we do this morning?”

Reaching out she turned off the tap and then spun to wrap her arms around his neck. “I could actually do with some clothes, since I ran away without any.”

Rhys smiled at her indulgently. “You can have whatever you want. Where would you like to go?”

Kaitlin thought for a few seconds and then shrugged. “Wherever’s closest. Clothes are clothes after all.”

A puff of air left him as he laughed. “You really are one of a kind, aren’t you?”

“I’d like to think so,” she teased.

Shaking his head, he led her from the room. “Brent? We’re heading out to shop. Alone!” And with that, he slammed out of the suite and hurried her to the lift.

**********************************************************************

Kaitlin giggled as Rhys attempted to shove her jeans down her thighs in the small confines of the changing room cubicle. His fingers slid off the denim as he tugged and his elbow hit the cubicle wall with a bang. He swore heatedly under his breath and she giggled even louder.

“Rhys, this is impossible,” she whispered through her laughter.

“No it isn’t. We are having sex in here,” he vowed.

This was only the third shop she’d entered and he’d been asking her to model the clothes for him since the first. She had done, giving it her all, and it had turned him on, big time. Kaitlin hadn’t even picked up anything to try on in this shop before he’d dragged her into the changing rooms and started undressing her.

Grabbing her waist, he spun her around until her back was to him and then roughly shoved the jeans down to her knees. He moved in behind her and ran his hands up and down her sides lightly. Her breath hitched and she reached out to steady herself against the mirror. From her position she could see the way his eyes smouldered as he took in her body. His index finger ran down her spine and her skin erupted in goose bumps.

“You are so beautiful,” he whispered.

His hands left her and she glanced over her shoulder to see him undoing the buttons on his jeans. Greedily she watched as he freed his erection from the denim. Rhys foot nudged her legs wider and she readily spread them.

Then she felt his fingers run up the inside of her thighs and her legs trembled, going weak. When they reached the apex of her thighs he let out an appreciative noise to find her wet and didn’t wait any time, thrusting into her. A gasp left her lips and she braced her hands better against the mirror as he began to move inside her.

It was impossible to smother her moans of pleasure and Rhys didn’t even try as he picked up the pace.

Minutes later they came and Kaitlin covered her mouth to try and smother her scream while Rhys growled into her throat.

Someone knocked on the door, “Hello? There best only be one person in there!” The matronly voice sounded scandalized and Kaitlin bit her lip to stop her laughter.

Rhys tucked himself back in his trousers and then gently tugged her jeans back up her thighs. Spinning her to face him, he lightly brushed her hair into place and then unlocked the door.

The shop assistant’s mouth dropped open when she saw them leave the room and then opened and closed like a fish out of water as Rhys led them past her and out to the main shop.

Surely they weren’t the first couple to get amorous in the changing rooms? Or maybe just the first she’d caught?

Kaitlin laughed as she linked her fingers with Rhys’.

Book Review – No Flowers Required

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

I received this from the author is exchange for an honest review.

The cover and back description drew my attention straight away so when I was gifted this book I started it almost straight away.

It tells the story of Alexa, who has recently become the owner of Divine–a flower shop–after it was left to her in the will of the previous owner, and Dillon, the youngest son of Value Hardware’s owners–the shop Alexa sees as her worst enemy.

During the first chapter we meet the two main characters and see their almost instant attraction to each other which results in a steamy encounter. Pheww… It sets the pace for the rest of the story and we see that whenever they’re around each other sparks fly.

I liked the style of writing and it flowed well throughout and I found it entertaining.

Book Reviews

So I’ve decided to start reviewing the books I read, which is quite a lot I must admit. I’m going to start with this one:

This is my current read–I received it in exchange for an honest review–but I only started it yesterday so will leave the review when I’ve finished it.

Book Review – No Flowers Required

So I’ve decided to start reviewing the books I read, which is quite a lot I must admit. I’m going to start with this one:

This is my current read–I received it in exchange for an honest review–but I only started it yesterday so will leave the review when I’ve finished it.

Chapter 16 finished…

…leaving one more to go! Yay, me! It may be taking me a while to get this finished but I want to do it justice.

Anyway, I’m struggling for a book name. Any ideas, those who’ve been reading from the start? My author friend Natalie Herzer http://n-herzer.blogspot.com/ suggested Cat’s Wolf. Like it? I do but I’d love to hear some more suggestions…

Thanks

Word Count as of now (14.25)

Right, well, I thought I’d include an updated word count to prove I am still working on it but only in tiny increments (if that’s the right word). Chapter 16 is now on it’s third page–woohoo!–and is fitting in nicely, if it did start off a bit slow :/

Anyway, The page count has jumped up a little because I’ve formatted the document a little.

The end chapter may need to be split in two because I’ve been going over it in my head and I missed a lot of things out. I know where I’d split it too. Then I could do an epilogue to make it up to 20 chapters total; I don’t know why but I like an even number of chapters in my stories. Strange, I know, but that’s me

Chapter 11 – *Shifter Romance*

“Are you trying to scare her off?” She accused Brent.

His lips curled a little, “No, but I’m running out of patience.”

Kaitlin cocked her hip and glared at him. “Leave her alone until she’s gotten more used to the idea.”

“If you think that’ll work, that’s what I’ll do.”

“I do.”

He held up his hands, palms out, “Okay. I’ll give her a few weeks to get used to it.” And with that, he headed over to the bar and poured himself a fair measure of some dark liquor and downed it in one before pouring some more and walking out of sight.

“Huh,” she muttered.

Hands landed on her waist lightly and she jumped at the sudden touch. Looking over her shoulder she saw Rhys looking at the spot his second had just disappeared. “Everything okay?”

Kaitlin nodded absently, “Yeah. He just needs to realise Misha isn’t like me. At all.”

He chuckled and nuzzled her neck, “I think he’s starting to realise that. But if I remember correctly, you put up a pretty good fight before giving in.”

“Hey,” she slapped one of the hands at her waist and narrowed her eyes at him.

Rhys laughed again and pressed a soft kiss to her jaw.

“Seriously though, she isn’t. She didn’t have a domineering father breathing down her neck wanting her to be the best she could; pushing her to learn everything he thought she should know.” She sighed softly, “She wasn’t taught to fight, to defend herself. Her family really are old school and didn’t want their daughter to be anything but a pretty face. They think men should do the fighting and the women should stay home and keep house. It’s archaic, especially for a shifter!” She cried angrily.

He turned her in his arms and cupped her face with his palms. “Calm down, we’ll figure something out. But it will have to wait until we sort this business with your father.”

Kaitlin nodded understandingly.

Paul Mahone was going to cause hell for Rhys pack because of her decision to leave with him. He’d already set a bounty on Rhys head and God knows who else. Anyone could turn into a possible murderer.

“Who’s going to come after you?”

Rhys’ eyes glowed amber for a second as he stared over her shoulder at an unknown and invisible enemy. “Anyone and everyone.”

Oh, God! “What are we going to do?” She asked, her voice wavering the tiniest bit.

His gaze met hers quickly, his face softening. “Don’t worry about that, Cat. I can take care of myself.”

She had no doubt of that. “But this is my fault.”

Rhys’ hands moved to her nape and pulled her closer until their noses touched. “Stop thinking that. This is no-one’s fault, okay? Not yours; not mine. No-one’s! Right?”

Kaitlin nodded numbly.

His grip loosened and he let out a weary sigh as he straightened. “I’m sorry, Cat. I just don’t want to lose you.”

Sighing, she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Long fingers threaded through the strands of her blonde hair and she sighed at the gentle tug of her scalp with each pull. Kaitlin loved having her hair played with. Her eyes closed in bliss and a sound that was half sigh, half purr left her. Kaitlin let herself get lost in the pleasure of his fingers in her hair, massaging her scalp.

“We have the suite to ourselves, Cat,” he said huskily.

Her eyelids flickered open and she moved back so she could see his face. “Is that all you think about?” She teased.

“Whenever I’m around you, it is.” His eyes were glowing and heavy lidded.

Her breath caught but then she remembered the bounty.

“What about security? You gave them all the night off.”

He smiled and ran the back of his fingers down her bare arm causing her skin to erupt in goose bumps. “Brent is here. He’ll sense any trouble headed our way. And I can take care of myself, Cat, as can you and Brent.”

Kaitlin relaxed into his arms with a small sigh. He was right. She liked how he believed in her abilities. It was refreshing.

Twining their fingers together he led her down the hall to a room she hadn’t been in before: the master bedroom.

It was sumptuously decorated with mushroom coloured walls and chocolate brown accessories. Her eyes were quickly drawn to the huge four poster bed that took up a lot of the room. The bed posts were carved with an intricate vine pattern that wound around each and along the bed base. It was amazing.

“It’s quite something, isn’t it?”

She nodded dumbly.

Rhys stepped up behind her and she turned her head slightly. His breath warmed her skin as he ran his nose down her throat, scenting her skin. Kaitlin shivered in awareness. Large palms gently landed on her waist, “Shall we try it out?”

Nodding, she twined their fingers together and led him to the bed, where she promptly pushed him onto his back on the mattress and straddled him.

His eyes glowed amber as he stared up at her, his eyes running from the tip of her hair to the thighs straddling him.

Raising her hands to grab the hem of her top she pulled it up and over her head and dropped it to the floor. Then she ran her hands from her throat down her chest to the top of her jeans. Rhys’ breath caught as his eyes followed the journey of her palms.

His hands settled on her thighs as she leant forward and ran her hands down his sculpted chest. A low growl vibrated in his chest on contact and she smiled slyly. Bending forward some more she pressed her lips to his jaw and ran her tongue along its length, his stubble scratching her tender skin and leaving a fiery brand behind.

Rhys’ hands moved up her waist, stopping just below the curve of her breasts. His thumb lightly brushed the underside swell before moving higher to her nipples which were hard and pebbled with desire. Kaitlin moaned softly as she arched her back, pressing her breasts into better contact with his palms. His hands massaged the twin globes and a purr left her lips.

Almost involuntarily her hips began to rock against his and before she knew it, Rhys had rolled them on the bed and she found herself beneath him, her hands pinned to the bed above her head with one of his. His eyes were almost glowing in intensity as he stared down at her.

It awakened something inside her and after that it became a sensual battle for dominance and submission as they tested each other’s boundaries and responses.

**********************************************************************

Kaitlin flopped backwards on the bed, her body aching nicely from Rhys’ ministrations. They’d spent the better part of the past four hours having sex and she’d learnt some things about herself she’d not know. Like the fact she liked being tied up.

Rhys collapsed beside her on his front.

Her eyes were caught by the deep red welts on his body where she’d dug her finger nails into his back, along with every other inch of available skin, and bit her lip. She’d never been so animalistic in bed before. Not during their previous couplings and not with Tito, either. She’d bit and scratched Rhys at every opportunity and his body showed every single wound.

It unnerved her.

He turned his head a fraction until he was looking at her and gave her a sexy smile, his amber eyes smiling tenderly.

Glancing away from him, she looked across the room to the lights of the city spread out before them through the floor to ceiling windows.

His hand covered hers, lightly stroking the skin on the back of her hand. “What’s up, Kaitlin?”

With a soft exhalation, she gestured to the marks on his body, “I can’t believe I did that to you.”

Rhys’ body shook as he chuckled. “Cat,” he said softly. “This is the work of a mate. It seems your puma is finally coming around to the idea of us together.” He grinned devilishly, “Did it never occur to you that that was what all that rolling around and my domination of you was about? The puma wanted me to prove that I was worthy. If you’d have won, well…you’d have been free to walk away; an Alpha female.”

Strangely, it made perfect sense. There was one thing that surprised her though; the fact that the puma had channelled through her instead of taking over did. Did it mean that now she was out from under the control of her father that she and the puma would sync properly?

“So, it’s perfectly normal?”

He nodded his head against the pillow, a smile playing about his lips. Rhys’ gaze dropped to her throat, his eyes heating, “It’s perfectly normal to want to place your mark on something you consider yours.”

Kaitlin’s pulse raced as she recognised the look. Tilting her head towards him, she bared her throat and turned her shoulder away, offering him her neck to mark.

Eyes growing heavy lidded, he pushed up and turned to face her. His hands brushed her hair out of the way and his index finger traced the column of her throat feather-light. “This will hurt; are you sure?”

Locking her gaze with his she nodded.

Rhys pulled her closer and lowered his lips to her throat. His tongue lightly traced her skin and then she felt the press of lengthened incisors. A sharp cry left her when they punctured her skin and she gasped for breath as they sunk deep into her flesh. They were quickly removed and she felt the gentle press of lips against the wound.

Damn, that hurt but it was worth it for everyone to know she belonged to Rhys.

Ending done…now for the rest

So I’ve just finished writing the ending–it’s a few lines short of four A4 pages–and I’m fairly pleased with it. Now I just have to make Chapter 16 meet up with it somehow, though I do believe there will be at least another chapter in between the two. So that will be 18 chapters in total–a whopping (for me) 67 A4 pages in total. Over 30,000 words. I think that will make this story a novella, but I might be wrong, since it will be my first.