What do you think?
Rate this book
Forbidden Men #7
The Girl's Got Secrets
Here’s the same old “girl posing as a boy” story but with a rock-n-roll twist.
Remy Curran dreams of one day being in a band, except the group she wants to join refuses to hire a girl drummer. So, she auditions as a guy...and makes the cut.
Becoming “Sticks,” a member of Non-Castrato, isn’t quite what she dreamed it would be, though. She spends most of her time keeping up the subterfuge and learning how to walk, talk, act, and drink like a man.
But what’s even harder to deal with is acting oblivious when the band’s heartthrob lead singer, Asher Hart, treats her like one of the guys and not a woman. She never imagined he’d be so much more than a pretty face with a nice voice. But he’s better than perfect. He’s perfect for her.
When love and lies combine, Remy must keep up the act or lose everything. But who knew lying to reach one dream could prevent you from attaining an even bigger dream?
Remy Curran dreams of one day being in a band, except the group she wants to join refuses to hire a girl drummer. So, she auditions as a guy...and makes the cut.
Becoming “Sticks,” a member of Non-Castrato, isn’t quite what she dreamed it would be, though. She spends most of her time keeping up the subterfuge and learning how to walk, talk, act, and drink like a man.
But what’s even harder to deal with is acting oblivious when the band’s heartthrob lead singer, Asher Hart, treats her like one of the guys and not a woman. She never imagined he’d be so much more than a pretty face with a nice voice. But he’s better than perfect. He’s perfect for her.
When love and lies combine, Remy must keep up the act or lose everything. But who knew lying to reach one dream could prevent you from attaining an even bigger dream?
ebook
First published November 28, 2015
90 people are currently reading
3385 people want to read
About the author
Linda Kage
51 books5,523 followersLinda writes romance fiction from YA to adult, contemporary to fantasy.
Published since 2010, she first went through a 2-year writing correspondence class in children’s literature from The Institute of Children’s Literature, then graduated with a Bachelor's in Arts-English with an emphasis in creative fiction writing from Pittsburg State University.
She currently lives with her husband, two daughters, a cat named Holly, and nine cuckoo clocks in southeast Kansas.
She started out reading with the Baby-Sitters Club, then moved to Sandra Brown, Linda Howard, Julie Garwood, and LaVyrle Spencer in high school. Now, she's all over the place with her romance reading tastes.
A few of her favorite things have been:
Stranger Things, Supernatural, Cheers, Teen Wolf, Umbrella Academy, Outlander, Yellowstone, Grey's Anatomy, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Shawshank Redemption, Dirty Dancing, Harry Potter, Tangled, A Walk to Remember, Dr. Pepper, Roast Beef with mashed potatoes and onion rings, the poem "Equipment" by Edgar A. Guest, and To Kill a Mockingbird.
Published since 2010, she first went through a 2-year writing correspondence class in children’s literature from The Institute of Children’s Literature, then graduated with a Bachelor's in Arts-English with an emphasis in creative fiction writing from Pittsburg State University.
She currently lives with her husband, two daughters, a cat named Holly, and nine cuckoo clocks in southeast Kansas.
She started out reading with the Baby-Sitters Club, then moved to Sandra Brown, Linda Howard, Julie Garwood, and LaVyrle Spencer in high school. Now, she's all over the place with her romance reading tastes.
A few of her favorite things have been:
Stranger Things, Supernatural, Cheers, Teen Wolf, Umbrella Academy, Outlander, Yellowstone, Grey's Anatomy, Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, Shawshank Redemption, Dirty Dancing, Harry Potter, Tangled, A Walk to Remember, Dr. Pepper, Roast Beef with mashed potatoes and onion rings, the poem "Equipment" by Edgar A. Guest, and To Kill a Mockingbird.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 517 reviews
November 30, 2015
4 stars!
Asher Hart. I’ve been waiting for your book for the longest time (it feels like, anyway) and it’s finally here! YAY! I am a huge fan of Linda Kage’s Forbidden Men series. Each one of these books and heroes has something special about it/them that draws me in. Though they have mostly the same ‘formula’ there is something different about them all. All the men, all their stories are unique in some way.
Remy Curran has only wanted one thing for as long as she can remember. A chance to play with a band, a good band, as a drummer. She is an amazing musician, she just wants a chance. When she auditions for one of her favorite bands, Non-Castrato, she is sorely disappointed. Because they don’t even let her audition. Just because she’s a girl. Remy decides to have her friend make her over, dress up as a man, and auditions anyway. She blows them away and gets in the band. Awesome, right? Well, maybe it would be- if she didn’t start falling hard for the lead singer, Asher.
The chemistry Remy and Asher has is incredible. I know it sounds crazy, but some of my favorite parts where when Remy was her male persona ‘Sticks’. I loved the friendship she and Asher developed. Their banter was great, and she really got to know him on a deeper level as a friend this way.
If you’ve read the previous books, you know that Asher is hung up on his Incubus girl. Asher may be a lead singer of a band and good looking, but he’s not the player you would expect him to be. He wants something significant, something that means something like his friends have with their women. I loved that about him.
There was a lot I loved about this book- one of my favorite things, the plethora of scenes with my boy, PICK in them! I was so excited to see him in so much of the story. His relationship with Asher was perfect. I’m not gonna lie, when I saw the length of this book I was a little nervous. It’s much longer than her others, but it doesn’t feel long. In fact, it read very fast. So don’t let the length deter you from reading. This is a fantastic addition to the Forbidden Men series! And now, after reading this, I’m dying for Brandt’s story! I just know it will be epic!
Asher Hart. I’ve been waiting for your book for the longest time (it feels like, anyway) and it’s finally here! YAY! I am a huge fan of Linda Kage’s Forbidden Men series. Each one of these books and heroes has something special about it/them that draws me in. Though they have mostly the same ‘formula’ there is something different about them all. All the men, all their stories are unique in some way.
Remy Curran has only wanted one thing for as long as she can remember. A chance to play with a band, a good band, as a drummer. She is an amazing musician, she just wants a chance. When she auditions for one of her favorite bands, Non-Castrato, she is sorely disappointed. Because they don’t even let her audition. Just because she’s a girl. Remy decides to have her friend make her over, dress up as a man, and auditions anyway. She blows them away and gets in the band. Awesome, right? Well, maybe it would be- if she didn’t start falling hard for the lead singer, Asher.
Putting on a little disguise to get my dream to come true should never have had the power to hurt anyone else. But I had a sinking feeling it just might upset the one person in this entire situation whom I didn’t want to hurt.
The chemistry Remy and Asher has is incredible. I know it sounds crazy, but some of my favorite parts where when Remy was her male persona ‘Sticks’. I loved the friendship she and Asher developed. Their banter was great, and she really got to know him on a deeper level as a friend this way.
If you’ve read the previous books, you know that Asher is hung up on his Incubus girl. Asher may be a lead singer of a band and good looking, but he’s not the player you would expect him to be. He wants something significant, something that means something like his friends have with their women. I loved that about him.
Her eyes were like brown pools of temptation and I was a drowning man. I tried to resist, I even pressed my forehead to hers, but I already knew it was too late. This woman owned me.
There was a lot I loved about this book- one of my favorite things, the plethora of scenes with my boy, PICK in them! I was so excited to see him in so much of the story. His relationship with Asher was perfect. I’m not gonna lie, when I saw the length of this book I was a little nervous. It’s much longer than her others, but it doesn’t feel long. In fact, it read very fast. So don’t let the length deter you from reading. This is a fantastic addition to the Forbidden Men series! And now, after reading this, I’m dying for Brandt’s story! I just know it will be epic!
December 6, 2015
*****4.5 STARS*****
{ARC Generously Provided by Author in Exchange for an Honest Review}
My body surged with awareness, skin prickling with a knowledge that the person touching me and pressing against me was the one person who was supposed to.
This is book seven in the Forbidden Men series and actually can be read as a stand-alone. Having only read book one, Price Of A Kiss, I was able to follow the story just fine even though there were several secondary characters whom I haven't met before. What I can say is that after reading this book I am SERIOUSLY going to find the time to read this entire series!! I definitely need to get to Pick's story because he kind of stole my heart along with Asher.
Remy Curran is a young woman with serious musical talents. She can sing, write music, and play several instruments. She has a shot at becoming the new drummer for one of her favorite local bands, Non-Castrato. They recently lost their drummer and are holding open auditions. But when she goes to try out for the band, she is quickly shot down simply for being a woman. She is so enraged that with the help of her bestie, who is a makeup artist, she goes back the next day in disguise as a dude. This reminded me of a couple of movies I've seen in the past and I was excited to dive right into the story.
Of course, she ends up impressing the crap out of the band and becomes their new drummer. Her plan was to reveal her identity as soon as she won the spot as drummer but when the exciting news is dropped about an upcoming gig, she decides to go along with her charade for a while longer.
Remy had one problem she didn't count on, that she'd end up falling in love with the lead singer, Asher Hart. She had a crush on him before she joined the band, but after she got to know him, Remy was falling in love with the person he was on the inside. They become fast friends and early on Remy is labeled as gay because she's caught ogling Asher on many occasions. Asher doesn't have any homophobic tendencies and actually enjoys the friendship he has formed with Remy.
Asher hasn't had a lot of meaningful relationships in his life and his childhood was truly horrific. His mother was an abusive addict who never let him forget that she wished he was dead and his father was just as horrible and is in jail for murder. But lately Asher has been feeling lonely and is craving the love of one special woman. He's surrounded by all of his friends who have amazing relationships and he can't help but want what they have. He doesn't think he is capable or worthy enough to have true love or a family that cares for him, even though his half brother, Pick, tries so hard to bond with him. I found some of their moments to be really heart warming and I honestly fell in love with Pick.
As time keeps going by, Remy is having an inner struggle with herself. She knows that she is falling in love with Asher and that once he finds out the truth, she very well may lose him forever. He's opened up to her about so many things that he has never told anyone before. She has also learned that he had seen her months ago, performing karaoke in the bar he works at, and that he actually become infatuated with the beautiful girl in a tight Incubus t-shirt.
Even though some aspects of the story were over the top and hard to believe, I really did love this one. I was able to suspend disbelief and really just fell in love. I struggled a bit in the beginning as I thought it started off a little slow but once I got into it, it was seriously hard to put down. I was really debating on whether to fore-go sleep last night because I just couldn't wait to see how it all turned out for Remy and Asher!
I honestly loved this and do highly recommend it! I will definitely be making some time to read all the books that I have missed out on in this series.
{ARC Generously Provided by Author in Exchange for an Honest Review}
My body surged with awareness, skin prickling with a knowledge that the person touching me and pressing against me was the one person who was supposed to.
This is book seven in the Forbidden Men series and actually can be read as a stand-alone. Having only read book one, Price Of A Kiss, I was able to follow the story just fine even though there were several secondary characters whom I haven't met before. What I can say is that after reading this book I am SERIOUSLY going to find the time to read this entire series!! I definitely need to get to Pick's story because he kind of stole my heart along with Asher.
Remy Curran is a young woman with serious musical talents. She can sing, write music, and play several instruments. She has a shot at becoming the new drummer for one of her favorite local bands, Non-Castrato. They recently lost their drummer and are holding open auditions. But when she goes to try out for the band, she is quickly shot down simply for being a woman. She is so enraged that with the help of her bestie, who is a makeup artist, she goes back the next day in disguise as a dude. This reminded me of a couple of movies I've seen in the past and I was excited to dive right into the story.
Of course, she ends up impressing the crap out of the band and becomes their new drummer. Her plan was to reveal her identity as soon as she won the spot as drummer but when the exciting news is dropped about an upcoming gig, she decides to go along with her charade for a while longer.
Remy had one problem she didn't count on, that she'd end up falling in love with the lead singer, Asher Hart. She had a crush on him before she joined the band, but after she got to know him, Remy was falling in love with the person he was on the inside. They become fast friends and early on Remy is labeled as gay because she's caught ogling Asher on many occasions. Asher doesn't have any homophobic tendencies and actually enjoys the friendship he has formed with Remy.
Asher hasn't had a lot of meaningful relationships in his life and his childhood was truly horrific. His mother was an abusive addict who never let him forget that she wished he was dead and his father was just as horrible and is in jail for murder. But lately Asher has been feeling lonely and is craving the love of one special woman. He's surrounded by all of his friends who have amazing relationships and he can't help but want what they have. He doesn't think he is capable or worthy enough to have true love or a family that cares for him, even though his half brother, Pick, tries so hard to bond with him. I found some of their moments to be really heart warming and I honestly fell in love with Pick.
As time keeps going by, Remy is having an inner struggle with herself. She knows that she is falling in love with Asher and that once he finds out the truth, she very well may lose him forever. He's opened up to her about so many things that he has never told anyone before. She has also learned that he had seen her months ago, performing karaoke in the bar he works at, and that he actually become infatuated with the beautiful girl in a tight Incubus t-shirt.
Even though some aspects of the story were over the top and hard to believe, I really did love this one. I was able to suspend disbelief and really just fell in love. I struggled a bit in the beginning as I thought it started off a little slow but once I got into it, it was seriously hard to put down. I was really debating on whether to fore-go sleep last night because I just couldn't wait to see how it all turned out for Remy and Asher!
I honestly loved this and do highly recommend it! I will definitely be making some time to read all the books that I have missed out on in this series.
March 16, 2017
4 Dude looks like a Lady Stars
The Girl's Got Secrets, the 4th book in the Forbidden Men Series was a very cute and funny book. I laughed so much while reading this. I had lots of She the Man and Mrs Doubtfire flashbacks while reading this book. Both Remy and Asher were very likable and they made a cute couple. The only problem I had with this book was I felt Remy was a dude for too long. She was playing Sticks for almost the whole book and that left little time for any strong romance. Even though it was lighter on the romance side due to the fact the hero thought the heroine was a dude for almost the whole thing they still had a strong connection through the friendship they started. I loved every moment with Pick he was just great in this book. I also really love how each book has past couples in them so I don't have to miss them. Overall a cute read.
The Girl's Got Secrets, the 4th book in the Forbidden Men Series was a very cute and funny book. I laughed so much while reading this. I had lots of She the Man and Mrs Doubtfire flashbacks while reading this book. Both Remy and Asher were very likable and they made a cute couple. The only problem I had with this book was I felt Remy was a dude for too long. She was playing Sticks for almost the whole book and that left little time for any strong romance. Even though it was lighter on the romance side due to the fact the hero thought the heroine was a dude for almost the whole thing they still had a strong connection through the friendship they started. I loved every moment with Pick he was just great in this book. I also really love how each book has past couples in them so I don't have to miss them. Overall a cute read.
November 23, 2015
4 ”Te amo” STARS
I’m a huge Linda Kage fan and was crazy excited to get to Forbidden’s very own rock star’s story. This story is definitely enjoyable even if it’s not the most original story line of a heroine pretending to be a guy. Asher and Remy’s tale includes all the former characters as they find their way along a very tricky road.
”Whenever I look into your eyes, I feel like there could be more, so much more. Like there could be everything.”
Remy wants a shot as the new drummer for the band, Non-Castrato. She is crushed that the band won’t even let her try out because she is a girl. Her roommate, Jodi helps her transform into a male named “Sticks” and quickly secures the open drummer spot and develops a pure friendship with the lead singer Asher Hart.
I loved Asher, he is so used to being alone that it made me embrace his friendship with Remy and his infatuation for the girl he heard sing karaoke so long ago. I think I would have liked Asher to question his sexuality when it came to Sticks or at least been a kiss between the two. (Is that so wrong of me?) Still, Remy plays the non-English speaking Mexican vixen and the gay drummer roles very well. Well that is until, her cover is blown…
”It was just my luck that the biggest liar on the planet would end up being all three ladies I’d been daydreaming and fantasizing about lately. Fucking perfect.”
The story has the added drama of Asher’s father’s prison release (some aspects weren’t very believable). Remy’s mask and Asher knowing it’s a mask but never questioning what is underneath was a bit odd as well. Poor Asher struggles with the lies and reality that his friend and his dream girl are one in the same.
”I freaking fell in love with him. I man, I honest to God love everything about Asher Hart. He’s the best man, best lover, best friend I ever had.”
Overall, this installment of the series is on the long side but has a very likable hero and heroine. It can indeed be read as a standalone if you’re so inclined.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review*
I’m a huge Linda Kage fan and was crazy excited to get to Forbidden’s very own rock star’s story. This story is definitely enjoyable even if it’s not the most original story line of a heroine pretending to be a guy. Asher and Remy’s tale includes all the former characters as they find their way along a very tricky road.
”Whenever I look into your eyes, I feel like there could be more, so much more. Like there could be everything.”
Remy wants a shot as the new drummer for the band, Non-Castrato. She is crushed that the band won’t even let her try out because she is a girl. Her roommate, Jodi helps her transform into a male named “Sticks” and quickly secures the open drummer spot and develops a pure friendship with the lead singer Asher Hart.
I loved Asher, he is so used to being alone that it made me embrace his friendship with Remy and his infatuation for the girl he heard sing karaoke so long ago. I think I would have liked Asher to question his sexuality when it came to Sticks or at least been a kiss between the two. (Is that so wrong of me?) Still, Remy plays the non-English speaking Mexican vixen and the gay drummer roles very well. Well that is until, her cover is blown…
”It was just my luck that the biggest liar on the planet would end up being all three ladies I’d been daydreaming and fantasizing about lately. Fucking perfect.”
The story has the added drama of Asher’s father’s prison release (some aspects weren’t very believable). Remy’s mask and Asher knowing it’s a mask but never questioning what is underneath was a bit odd as well. Poor Asher struggles with the lies and reality that his friend and his dream girl are one in the same.
”I freaking fell in love with him. I man, I honest to God love everything about Asher Hart. He’s the best man, best lover, best friend I ever had.”
Overall, this installment of the series is on the long side but has a very likable hero and heroine. It can indeed be read as a standalone if you’re so inclined.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review*
November 23, 2015
In book 7 of the Forbidden Men series we get Asher's story. The lead singer has been a bit of a mystery, always sticking to the sidelines, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Like the previous books in the series, The Girl's Got Secrets has humor, friendship, steam and some drama.
Who knew lying to reach one dream could prevent you from attaining an even bigger dream.
Non-Castrato is looking for a new drummer, and all Remy wants is a chance to audition. Unfortunately for her, the band refuses, they don't want a girl in the band. Defeated and pissed, a scheme is set in motion. With the help of her roommate, Jodi, Remy gets suited up, as a man - and Sticks is born. What could possibly go wrong when Remy auditions as Sticks? They ask her to join the band.
How many fake cocks did one pretend dude need?
It's a dream come true, but staying in character isn't always easy for Remy, a growing friendship, and romantic feelings for Asher only makes things worse. She has a few close calls, and Elisa the sexy, Latina who doesn't speak English comes into play. With lies stacking up, Remy is terrified of coming clean. When her cover is blown, will Asher forgive her?
Poor Asher doesn't know what to think. Is it possible for him to look past her deceptions and forgive Remy? I enjoyed Asher and Remy together, and their interactions with the other characters of the series, especially Pike and Ten. I did have a few issues, the drama with Asher's father was a bit much, and unneeded IMO. Also, I didn't like Asher learning about the mask, and not asking any questions. Seriously, if someone told me they were wearing a latex mask, I would ask questions.
*ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review*
December 5, 2015
Asher Hart didn't need some fancy seduction to draw a woman in. He just had to be himself for me to want him. Bad.
I've been waiting for the lead singer of Non-Castrato to get his book since he first made an appearance in Be My Hero. My intrigue with him has only grown with each following book in the series. Asher may be the lead singer of a popular band and has females throwing themselves at him, but you could always see him yearning for something more...a deeper connection. This is not a typical indiscriminate manwhore that you'd find in most other New Adult books. Asher Hart was refreshingly different and I absolutely loved him for it.
This Girl's Got Secrets focuses on a trope that's just not done enough and happens to be one of my all time favorites. Just One of The Guys and She's The Man were two of my favorite movies growing up. Did I just age myself? And if you haven't seen those movies, I don't even know who you are right now. But I digress. The trope is simple enough; girl wants in on an activity where only men are allowed. Girl dresses up as boy to prove a point but ends up falling for one of the men she's deceiving. Sound delicious? That's because it is.
Now fair warning, because at over 450 pages, this book is long. And I mean it's looooong. But at the same time, I never once felt like I was reading something that was filler or unnecessarily stretched out. I did feel like my ovaries may explode if these two didn't do it finally at some point, but that's a different matter entirely.
All Remy Curran has ever wanted was to be a drummer in a band. When she hears that one of her all time bands, Non-Castrato, has an opening for a drummer, she knows that she's just as good as in. She's a kickass drummer after all. Too bad that it's no girls allowed, and they don't so much as let her addition. So what's a girl to do? Why have your friend dress you up as a boy, so you can go an audition and show they what's what!
But things rarely go as planned, and while the plan was to rip her mask off as soon as she rocked her addition, she ends up with a chance of a lifetime that she just can't pass up. But when she begins falling for the lead singer, things get a whole lot more complicated...
Asher still remembers the woman that sang karaoke and stole his breath all those months ago and then disappeared, but he's long since lost hope of ever finding her. He's desperate for something meaningful like his half brother and his friends. He doesn't want another band groupie that only wants him for what he is and not who he is. He's also terrified of losing his little family of friends once they really get to know all his secrets. But somehow, he has no problem spilling his deepest secrets to the new drummer. There's just something about him that bonds them almost instantly. He doesn't care that Remy is gay or that he may have feelings for him. But Remy is hiding even bigger secrets that may ultimately cause everything to come crashing down.
I absolutely loved Asher. He was such breath of fresh air from the stereotypical manwhores I've read lately. The way he yearns for a real relationship and isn't about one-night stands. He's incredibly sweet but there's an added edge to him from everything that he's been through with his past and his father.
Even though the progression of the story flowed incredibly well and felt natural, I did find it too be a little too lengthy. Especially with such a large chunk of the book being the deception, it just dragged a little too long for me. I'm a little conflicted with my feelings on that simply because while I felt it was too long, it didn't feel stretched out either. Maybe that's just my book ADD kicking in? I'm not quite sure.
I really liked Remy as well. Her internal struggle of falling for Asher and trying to stay away from him as her "girl" part was difficult. You could tell that she wanted to come clean but was so afraid of losing him after she began to fall for him. And let's be honest, how do you not fall for Asher?
This woman owned me.
Precisely.
Pick and Ten are still my top two forbidden men, but Asher Hart is now up there with them. While this wasn't my favorite in the series, it was still a fantastic addition and I enjoyed it thoroughly. There was only one thing that left me scratching my head at the end there....
ARC received in exchange for an honest review
Find me on:
December 22, 2015
***5 "TE AMO" stars for Asher and... Remy/Elisa/Sticks(?)***
By now, all of my friends they know my obsession with Forbidden series. Right, guys???
And Asher's story wasn't an exception...
I have to admit that i was a little bit afraid about this book and that happened because Knox's story was a little bit depressing and i was missing the rest of the guys!!!
But i was wrong!!!
Aser's book was a kick a$$ book!!! I had so much fun...
I finally took some answers for Asher and in compination with Sticks, i had such a pleasant time...
This story was lovely. It was light and funny...
Yep, it had its sentimental moments too, but in the most part of the book i was giggle like crazy girl!!!
And it had so many scenes with the rest of the forbidden men and their ladies!!!
Especially Ten and Pick were there all the time... And Ten, for once again, was hilarious!!!
Well, Remy Curran was a drummer and when she found out that there was an audition for the drummer place in Non Castrato, she wants to take that spot so badly.
But when she is appearing in front of the band and they rejected her without even listen at her playing only because she was a woman and that fact is making her angry.
So, Remy and her friend Jodi, who is studying special effects, transformed her from a beautiful woman to a handsome man.
Her plan for this disguise was to go to this audition, the Non Castrato to let her play and when she will prove that she was the best that they have ever heard, to put out her mask and reveal her real self...
But the things didn't go according the plan.
Non castrato loved her performance and add her immediately to their band and they told her that in two days they were about to play live into Forbidden club, so she couldn't throw away the opportunity to performance live for first time in her life.
So, Sticks was born...
"A smile spread across my face, relief ballooning inside me until I was ingesting my excitement with each breath.
Even if I ended up totally bombing this audition, I was here, right now, living my dream. I was jamming with Non-Castrato. For a minute, I forgot what jerks they were and that I was supposed to hate them.
It was euphoria."
Asher Hart's life changed the last year. His band started to be known, he worked on "Forbidden" club and he made some wonderfull friends.
The only thing that is missing from his life is a girl by his side as all the rest of his friends are having.
But the only girl that made his heart beating fast, is nowhere to be found, so his Incubus shirt girl will be remain only in his fantasies...
Asher is loving to express his feelings through writing songs and the song for this girl brought him only problems, but another one song about his mother brought him a brother.
But he is so scared to connect with him, because he is afraid of losing all that he had gain in the last year.
The appearance of Sticks in his life made him realize that he was so alone.
Sticks became his best friend in such a short time...
"“You saved my ass just now. Thank you, man. You’re a true friend.”
Except I didn’t feel like a friend at all. My deception pierced me to the depths of my soul and I felt like the biggest fraud ever."
So, Sticks and Asher came really close.
Asher opened up to him like he never did to anyone before and Remy realized how wrong she were.
Because the previous guy that she was dating was also a lead singer in a band and he was the stereotype musician, so she assumed that Asher would be the same.
But no, Asher was nothing like that!
He was sweet, funny, caring... He was emotional and he wasn't sleeping around...
And even though that his past was hard, he became such a wonderfull man.
He had more depth than she thought and that made her like him every day more and more.
"Had I mentioned how much I loved his laugh? But I loved even more how I seemed to always be able to make him laugh. He liked me, not just as some pretty girl he’d seen in a shower or someone singing on stage. He liked me, the person."
And every day that Remy was passing pretending to be Sticks, it was even more difficult to reveal her real self, whom as she found out was the same person as the Incubus girl... Asher's dreamgirl!!!
And the things got more complicated when Asher run in her real self and he couldn't stay away from her.
So what will happen when the truth about Remy will be revealed???
Will Asher be able to forgive her or everything will end between them???
Well, i liked Remy very much and i liked her both as a man and as a woman.
She was funny and smart and she had a beautiful soul.
But she caught herself into a web of lies that she wasn't know how to reveal the truth and the things got really ugly!!!
Imagine that all the time i was murmuring by myself... "What a mess!!! What a fuckin' mess!!!"
And it wasn't that she had only two identities, as we realized there were 4 different version of hers... So, what a mess!!!
In another occassion, this charade would be disturbing for me, but i have to admit that i enjoyed all Remy's version.
But i didn't like that she was holding the truth for so long...
And she didn't like it either, but she was afraid that she will hurt Asher and she didn't want that to happen.
So she kept up this charade...
"Damn it. How the hell had I gotten myself into this predicament? Putting on a little disguise to get my dream to come true should never have had the power to hurt anyone else. But I had a sinking feeling it just might upset the one person in this entire situation whom I didn’t want to hurt."
As for Asher??? What can i say about him??? He was such a sweetheart!!!
I liked him before, but i liked him even more in this book.
He was a fighter and my heart was aching about his past.
But even though that he had a shitty life, he never lost his smile and his easygoing ways.
The connection with Pick was terrifying him because he didn't want to lose him.
He had never witnessed how was to be loved and love scared the hell out of him.
And he really didn't know why with Sticks was so easy to speak and to reveal everything that he was holding deep inside his heart.
And that's why i ache for him and for the time that the truth would be revealed...
"Could I forgive her?
Could I go back to being just her friend as I’d been with Sticks?
Could I be her lover again? My body stirred at that idea, but I quickly pushed those thoughts aside, because I wasn’t sure of my answers. The biggest conundrum was...
Could I live without her?"
I liked to say for once again, that i loved all the guys and I'm so happy that i saw them again.
I like the fact that in every story we are receiving some conclusions of the previous stories...
I liked how perspective Ten was and sorry man that you took another one punch, but you deserved it!!!
I like Pick always. He is so kind and caring and i like how she stood by Asher. They deserve to have each other in their lives.
I liked also that we took some glimpses about Brandt and Sarah. I'm waiting like crazy their story for a long time...
And i adored Jodi. She was such a crazy bitch. She was like Ten in woman's form... Bahahaha
And i loved fiercely Mozart!!! He was such a cutie!!!
Well, this series is a risk that you should take...
Every story was well written and it has the right amount of joy and sadness.
All the characters are amazing and they are managing to crawl under your skin...
Linda Kage knows how to write great stories and this series are one of my favorites!!!
***ARC kindly provided via NetGalley for the exchange of an honest review***
By now, all of my friends they know my obsession with Forbidden series. Right, guys???
And Asher's story wasn't an exception...
I have to admit that i was a little bit afraid about this book and that happened because Knox's story was a little bit depressing and i was missing the rest of the guys!!!
But i was wrong!!!
Aser's book was a kick a$$ book!!! I had so much fun...
I finally took some answers for Asher and in compination with Sticks, i had such a pleasant time...
This story was lovely. It was light and funny...
Yep, it had its sentimental moments too, but in the most part of the book i was giggle like crazy girl!!!
And it had so many scenes with the rest of the forbidden men and their ladies!!!
Especially Ten and Pick were there all the time... And Ten, for once again, was hilarious!!!
Well, Remy Curran was a drummer and when she found out that there was an audition for the drummer place in Non Castrato, she wants to take that spot so badly.
But when she is appearing in front of the band and they rejected her without even listen at her playing only because she was a woman and that fact is making her angry.
So, Remy and her friend Jodi, who is studying special effects, transformed her from a beautiful woman to a handsome man.
Her plan for this disguise was to go to this audition, the Non Castrato to let her play and when she will prove that she was the best that they have ever heard, to put out her mask and reveal her real self...
But the things didn't go according the plan.
Non castrato loved her performance and add her immediately to their band and they told her that in two days they were about to play live into Forbidden club, so she couldn't throw away the opportunity to performance live for first time in her life.
So, Sticks was born...
"A smile spread across my face, relief ballooning inside me until I was ingesting my excitement with each breath.
Even if I ended up totally bombing this audition, I was here, right now, living my dream. I was jamming with Non-Castrato. For a minute, I forgot what jerks they were and that I was supposed to hate them.
It was euphoria."
Asher Hart's life changed the last year. His band started to be known, he worked on "Forbidden" club and he made some wonderfull friends.
The only thing that is missing from his life is a girl by his side as all the rest of his friends are having.
But the only girl that made his heart beating fast, is nowhere to be found, so his Incubus shirt girl will be remain only in his fantasies...
Asher is loving to express his feelings through writing songs and the song for this girl brought him only problems, but another one song about his mother brought him a brother.
But he is so scared to connect with him, because he is afraid of losing all that he had gain in the last year.
The appearance of Sticks in his life made him realize that he was so alone.
Sticks became his best friend in such a short time...
"“You saved my ass just now. Thank you, man. You’re a true friend.”
Except I didn’t feel like a friend at all. My deception pierced me to the depths of my soul and I felt like the biggest fraud ever."
So, Sticks and Asher came really close.
Asher opened up to him like he never did to anyone before and Remy realized how wrong she were.
Because the previous guy that she was dating was also a lead singer in a band and he was the stereotype musician, so she assumed that Asher would be the same.
But no, Asher was nothing like that!
He was sweet, funny, caring... He was emotional and he wasn't sleeping around...
And even though that his past was hard, he became such a wonderfull man.
He had more depth than she thought and that made her like him every day more and more.
"Had I mentioned how much I loved his laugh? But I loved even more how I seemed to always be able to make him laugh. He liked me, not just as some pretty girl he’d seen in a shower or someone singing on stage. He liked me, the person."
And every day that Remy was passing pretending to be Sticks, it was even more difficult to reveal her real self, whom as she found out was the same person as the Incubus girl... Asher's dreamgirl!!!
And the things got more complicated when Asher run in her real self and he couldn't stay away from her.
So what will happen when the truth about Remy will be revealed???
Will Asher be able to forgive her or everything will end between them???
Well, i liked Remy very much and i liked her both as a man and as a woman.
She was funny and smart and she had a beautiful soul.
But she caught herself into a web of lies that she wasn't know how to reveal the truth and the things got really ugly!!!
Imagine that all the time i was murmuring by myself... "What a mess!!! What a fuckin' mess!!!"
And it wasn't that she had only two identities, as we realized there were 4 different version of hers... So, what a mess!!!
In another occassion, this charade would be disturbing for me, but i have to admit that i enjoyed all Remy's version.
But i didn't like that she was holding the truth for so long...
And she didn't like it either, but she was afraid that she will hurt Asher and she didn't want that to happen.
So she kept up this charade...
"Damn it. How the hell had I gotten myself into this predicament? Putting on a little disguise to get my dream to come true should never have had the power to hurt anyone else. But I had a sinking feeling it just might upset the one person in this entire situation whom I didn’t want to hurt."
As for Asher??? What can i say about him??? He was such a sweetheart!!!
I liked him before, but i liked him even more in this book.
He was a fighter and my heart was aching about his past.
But even though that he had a shitty life, he never lost his smile and his easygoing ways.
The connection with Pick was terrifying him because he didn't want to lose him.
He had never witnessed how was to be loved and love scared the hell out of him.
And he really didn't know why with Sticks was so easy to speak and to reveal everything that he was holding deep inside his heart.
And that's why i ache for him and for the time that the truth would be revealed...
"Could I forgive her?
Could I go back to being just her friend as I’d been with Sticks?
Could I be her lover again? My body stirred at that idea, but I quickly pushed those thoughts aside, because I wasn’t sure of my answers. The biggest conundrum was...
Could I live without her?"
I liked to say for once again, that i loved all the guys and I'm so happy that i saw them again.
I like the fact that in every story we are receiving some conclusions of the previous stories...
I liked how perspective Ten was and sorry man that you took another one punch, but you deserved it!!!
I like Pick always. He is so kind and caring and i like how she stood by Asher. They deserve to have each other in their lives.
I liked also that we took some glimpses about Brandt and Sarah. I'm waiting like crazy their story for a long time...
And i adored Jodi. She was such a crazy bitch. She was like Ten in woman's form... Bahahaha
And i loved fiercely Mozart!!! He was such a cutie!!!
Well, this series is a risk that you should take...
Every story was well written and it has the right amount of joy and sadness.
All the characters are amazing and they are managing to crawl under your skin...
Linda Kage knows how to write great stories and this series are one of my favorites!!!
***ARC kindly provided via NetGalley for the exchange of an honest review***
November 26, 2015
4 Te Amo STARS
This is Asher's story. One of the many sexy men of the Forbidden night club. He's the lead singer in a band and a guy with a complicated and sad past. He first meets Remy Curran, an awesome drummer looking for a band and also a smart, sassy lady, at Karaoke night at the Forbidden night club. He's sees her on stage and feels this instant connection although he knows nothing about her.
Remy and Asher meet again when she auditions for the drummer in his all male band, Non-Castrato. Asher doesn't recognize because she's wearing a wig and later when Remy's turned down because she has a vagina, Remy decides to try out as a male. So she gets her best friend who is a pro at special effects to disguise her as a guy. And of course, gets the gig!
I know, some may be rolling their eyes and finding this hard to believe. It is funny and it does make sense when you read it. And while I did have to suspend some reality, this was an entertaining and sweet read.
Remy and Asher become friends before lovers and while there are laughs, suspense and angst, it all perfectly balances out with the sweet love and sexy times!
"Whenever I look into your eyes, I feel like there could be more, so much more. Like there could be everything."
"If you love someone enough, you find you can forgive them for just about anything, because living without them is more miserable than any grudge you could hold."
I've not read this entire series. In fact, I first read Ms. Kage with her sixth book in this series and had to read more. While this is #7, it can be read as a stand alone but I dare you to read this and not want to know more about all the other Forbidden Men!
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.**
For more reviews and blog posts.
This is Asher's story. One of the many sexy men of the Forbidden night club. He's the lead singer in a band and a guy with a complicated and sad past. He first meets Remy Curran, an awesome drummer looking for a band and also a smart, sassy lady, at Karaoke night at the Forbidden night club. He's sees her on stage and feels this instant connection although he knows nothing about her.
Remy and Asher meet again when she auditions for the drummer in his all male band, Non-Castrato. Asher doesn't recognize because she's wearing a wig and later when Remy's turned down because she has a vagina, Remy decides to try out as a male. So she gets her best friend who is a pro at special effects to disguise her as a guy. And of course, gets the gig!
I know, some may be rolling their eyes and finding this hard to believe. It is funny and it does make sense when you read it. And while I did have to suspend some reality, this was an entertaining and sweet read.
Remy and Asher become friends before lovers and while there are laughs, suspense and angst, it all perfectly balances out with the sweet love and sexy times!
"Whenever I look into your eyes, I feel like there could be more, so much more. Like there could be everything."
"If you love someone enough, you find you can forgive them for just about anything, because living without them is more miserable than any grudge you could hold."
I've not read this entire series. In fact, I first read Ms. Kage with her sixth book in this series and had to read more. While this is #7, it can be read as a stand alone but I dare you to read this and not want to know more about all the other Forbidden Men!
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.**
For more reviews and blog posts.
wrote-it
November 3, 2015
FOR REVIEWERS & BLOGGERS:
1 - Blog Tour (ARCs will be available) Co-releasing with SILENT SCARS by ADA FROST (yay) Through Tasty Book Tours. Tour will run two weeks from November 30th to December 11th:
Sign Up Link - http://www.tastybooktours.com/2015/10...
2 - Release Day Blitz (ARCs will be available here too): Blitz will be November 28th through SBB Promotions. **No Sign up available at time of this post but here is the link to their page**
SBB Promotions Link - https://www.facebook.com/SBBPROMOTIONS/
3 - NetGalley (ARCs will be available November 26th through December 26th)
FAQs:
--When does The Girl’s Got Secrets release?
November 28th, 2015 through Amazon Kindle, Amazon paperback, B&N Nook, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, Overdrive, Scribd, and a few other smaller places.
--Whose POV will it be told from?
1st Person Dual POV. Asher's (the hero) and Remy's (the heroine)
--Who is Asher in the Forbidden Men series?
Singer/guitar player in the band Non-Castrato. He joined the Forbidden bartenders roster in the epilogue of book 3, Be My Hero, and has been present in all the stories since then. We learn more about his background in book 6, Worth It (and yes! the cliffhanger question in the epilogue of Worth It gets answered in this story!!).
--Who is Remy?
Remy had a small cameo role in book 5, A Perfect Ten, when Asher saw her sing karaoke on stage, but he never learned her name. Only that mischievous Ten did.
--The blurb says she's going to dress up as a guy. Will she be in "dude" mode through most of the book?
For a good portion of the book, yes.
--So...then, it's going to take a while until the sex comes along?
Yeah, it'll be about 70% into the story. But I've been told that first smexy scene a hot one, so hopefully it'll be worth the wait!
--Are there any bad guys?
Yep, there will be a few unfavorable characters you might love to hate!
--The heroine is going to pretend to be a guy? Really? Just how realistic is this story?
Not very!! There will be lots of truth-stretching and coincidences. This one is designed to be more of a fun, very fictitious read.
--Does Ten get a black eye in this book?
Of course!
--Any love triangles/cheating/cliffhangers/sleeping-around-of-the-main-characters-before-they-hook-up/time-hopping-back-and-forth?
Nope, nope, nope, nope, and...nope. (Yeesh, now it sounds boring!!)
--Will there be scenes with the rest of the Forbidden Men crew?
Yes, everyone will at least be present at one point or another. All the Forbidden Men guys (past and future) have at least a few speaking roles, though not all the past heroines get dialogue.
Can it be read as a standalone?
You know, I forgot to find a beta reader who hadn’t read any other book in the series, so I’m not certain. But I wrote it on the hopes it could be read by itself, though it’ll definitely make more sense if you read the series in order.
And....if you have any more curiosities, you'll just have to wait and see, sorry, cause that’s all I’m spilling for now!
Okay, fine. I’ll sneak in one little excerpt:
**This is where our dear heroine, Remy, is dressing up to look like a man so she can audition for the new drummer's position in Asher's band : warning--it's a bit cruder than what I typically post online, so beware! But It was just so fun, I couldn't resist!**
"...You look just perfect. I would so throw you down on your bed and ride you right now if I didn’t know you were really a girl in there. Hell, I’m tempted to, anyway.”
I rolled my eyes but chased it with a smile. “Thanks. I think.”
“Now practice your man walk,” she demanded, waving out her hand.
I faltered. “My what?”
She sighed. “You’re not going to pass for a dude if you stroll in there with your hidden girl hips swaying and flattened tits pooched out on display.”
My mouth fell open. “Excuse me. I do NOT walk like that.”
She snorted. “Oh...own it, puta. You’re a hot piece of ass, you can’t help the girly swagger.”
“But I don’t—”
“Hunch your shoulders over a little more, concentrate on keeping your hips in line, and try to jut your cock forward when you strut.”
“Do...what?”
“That’s how hot guys walk, like they’re leading with their junk.”
I could only shake my head. I had honestly never seen a guy walk as if he were trying to poke his pecker out ahead of him. “Where do you come up with this shit?”
“Just do it, puta.”
I sighed but used her suggestions, trying to overdramatize the cock-and-go strut, as I was thusly dubbing it.
“What do you think?” I asked.
She purred out a promiscuous growl and clawed the air in my direction. “How do you say ‘I want to sit on your face’ in Spanish?”
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 25, 2016
Have you ever read something and after finishing the book felt soooo confusing that you couldn't put 2 and 2 together? Well, I'm talking about me regarding this book.
I am a huge fan of the Forbidden Men Series and I'm always happy to see that Linda Kage manages to share with us diversity in her creations. The characters do not have a pattern, the story are so different and each with its own elements, making the couples unique and a pleasure to read about.
Asher and Remy were no exception and after reading the blurb I was super excited to see the outcome of this complicated and funny story.
Everything started when Remy, a talented girl, wanted to audition for Asher's band Non-Castrato. They were lacking a drummer and were in desperate need for one in order to continue with their concerts at the Forbidden Club. Her passion for music started as young, and now she was more than ready to face the band members and blow them away with her talent. Except that she didn't get in because she was a woman. Really upset about it, she felt that things were not faire, because talent doesn't know gender. She could handle the pressure of being part of a male band and she will prove it.
With the help of her roommate, a wax male mask, male outfits and a husky voice, she became Sticks and auditioned again. And guess what?? She got in!!! Her original plan was to expose herself after getting in and shove it in their faces what a pathetic and misogynist band they are. But plans can change when feelings and taste for success are involved. So, Remy will have to keep on pretending to Asher to be a guy for just a little while.. just a little. Yeah right...You will have to discover just for how long and how their relationship will be affected by Remy's lies.
I liked Asher a lot, I've discovered bits and pieces of him in the previous books, but his story really deserved a book. He had a tormented childhood, with a mom that didn't love him and an abusive father. Music was his only safe haven and he learnt everything by himself. The band is his greatest achievement and wanted to make it work so bad. Having such a rough childhood, love was not in the picture for him, until one karaoke night, he discovered a girl in a Incubus T-shirt that managed to enchant him immediately. He didn't speak to her, but considered enough only seeing her to realise she was the one. When she disappear from the club, he searched for her for weeks in vain.. But please read the book to discover the connection between Remy and the mysterious Incubus T-shirt girl. He became friends with his new drummer immediately, not knowing he is in fact a woman. He could open up about certain things to him and didn't have a clue way.. He will soon learn that the heart has a way or recognising things that the eyes have not.
Remy had her heart broken once and was not interested in finding love again. She was focusing on her dream, being in Asher's band and managing to prove that talent has no gender. She did get in but as a different person. Knowing Asher was not part of her plans. Being a true friend to him was not either, but with Sticks she made both of them possible and in the meantime she fell in love with him. The situation in which she was caught in was very complicated and sometimes I didn't understand why did she didn't come clean with all of this sooner. A lie went to another lie and eventually a whole crazy scenario was built in which I was kind of trapped. It is obvious that in the process, hearts will be shattered and you have to see for yourself if Remy and Asher will be together in the end.
As I said, the story was sweet and funny, but at a certain point it caught me in a daze. All of Remy's lies were one on top of another and I couldn't understand a thing. She was really confusing me and I didn't understood 100% why she couldn't tell the truth to begin with. I know that she loved him and was afraid of his reaction, but putting that he had some trust issues of his own, her lies only made the situation worst.
Their relationship was kind of complicated and didn't respect a certain pattern because it didn't start as we know it should have, male Vs female. No, Remy fell in love with Asher and befriended him a Sticks, only to physically know him as Remy the girl. I know, it is very complicated but I enjoyed it because it was original. I've never read a book like this before and my praises to Linda for thinking of this story for Asher.
I also enjoyed seeing the gang together again, I really missed them with all of their ups and downs. And I also loved the Latin influences that Remy had. "Te Amo" had a very funny meaning most of the book, but it will be used properly when the time comes.
To conclude, a solid 4 stars for this book and congrats for this series which never gets old or boring. Moving on to Brandt story because I have a feeling I will love it.
For more reviews please check https://readwithloveblog.wordpress.com
I am a huge fan of the Forbidden Men Series and I'm always happy to see that Linda Kage manages to share with us diversity in her creations. The characters do not have a pattern, the story are so different and each with its own elements, making the couples unique and a pleasure to read about.
Asher and Remy were no exception and after reading the blurb I was super excited to see the outcome of this complicated and funny story.
Everything started when Remy, a talented girl, wanted to audition for Asher's band Non-Castrato. They were lacking a drummer and were in desperate need for one in order to continue with their concerts at the Forbidden Club. Her passion for music started as young, and now she was more than ready to face the band members and blow them away with her talent. Except that she didn't get in because she was a woman. Really upset about it, she felt that things were not faire, because talent doesn't know gender. She could handle the pressure of being part of a male band and she will prove it.
With the help of her roommate, a wax male mask, male outfits and a husky voice, she became Sticks and auditioned again. And guess what?? She got in!!! Her original plan was to expose herself after getting in and shove it in their faces what a pathetic and misogynist band they are. But plans can change when feelings and taste for success are involved. So, Remy will have to keep on pretending to Asher to be a guy for just a little while.. just a little. Yeah right...You will have to discover just for how long and how their relationship will be affected by Remy's lies.
I liked Asher a lot, I've discovered bits and pieces of him in the previous books, but his story really deserved a book. He had a tormented childhood, with a mom that didn't love him and an abusive father. Music was his only safe haven and he learnt everything by himself. The band is his greatest achievement and wanted to make it work so bad. Having such a rough childhood, love was not in the picture for him, until one karaoke night, he discovered a girl in a Incubus T-shirt that managed to enchant him immediately. He didn't speak to her, but considered enough only seeing her to realise she was the one. When she disappear from the club, he searched for her for weeks in vain.. But please read the book to discover the connection between Remy and the mysterious Incubus T-shirt girl. He became friends with his new drummer immediately, not knowing he is in fact a woman. He could open up about certain things to him and didn't have a clue way.. He will soon learn that the heart has a way or recognising things that the eyes have not.
Remy had her heart broken once and was not interested in finding love again. She was focusing on her dream, being in Asher's band and managing to prove that talent has no gender. She did get in but as a different person. Knowing Asher was not part of her plans. Being a true friend to him was not either, but with Sticks she made both of them possible and in the meantime she fell in love with him. The situation in which she was caught in was very complicated and sometimes I didn't understand why did she didn't come clean with all of this sooner. A lie went to another lie and eventually a whole crazy scenario was built in which I was kind of trapped. It is obvious that in the process, hearts will be shattered and you have to see for yourself if Remy and Asher will be together in the end.
As I said, the story was sweet and funny, but at a certain point it caught me in a daze. All of Remy's lies were one on top of another and I couldn't understand a thing. She was really confusing me and I didn't understood 100% why she couldn't tell the truth to begin with. I know that she loved him and was afraid of his reaction, but putting that he had some trust issues of his own, her lies only made the situation worst.
Their relationship was kind of complicated and didn't respect a certain pattern because it didn't start as we know it should have, male Vs female. No, Remy fell in love with Asher and befriended him a Sticks, only to physically know him as Remy the girl. I know, it is very complicated but I enjoyed it because it was original. I've never read a book like this before and my praises to Linda for thinking of this story for Asher.
I also enjoyed seeing the gang together again, I really missed them with all of their ups and downs. And I also loved the Latin influences that Remy had. "Te Amo" had a very funny meaning most of the book, but it will be used properly when the time comes.
To conclude, a solid 4 stars for this book and congrats for this series which never gets old or boring. Moving on to Brandt story because I have a feeling I will love it.
For more reviews please check https://readwithloveblog.wordpress.com
November 28, 2015
★★★ 3 Stars ★★★
Now LIVE!
Amazon US | Amazon UK
Every time Linda Kage releases another book in this series, I get a huge smile on my face because I feel like I have lived in these characters lives for so long now, and I love each new character as much as the last.
This is Asher Hart's story and it's been a long time coming. Asher is the lead singer of band Non Castrato, who play at their regular Friday night spot at Forbidden nightclub. He also works as a bartender there and if you are familiar with this series you will know that he loves to banter with the other guys about their women, and although he is known to enjoy his own woman every now and again, he is looking for the special someone that he can connect with on a deeper level.
Remy Curran is a drummer and loves everything about the band, from the beautiful lyrics and rocking music, to the sexy lead singer who is not only good to look at but incredibly intelligent and witty.
When she is turned down by arrogant band member Galloway, at an audition to become Non Castrato's new drummer because she is a woman, she plans revenge by dressing up as guy and auditioning again the next day as her new alter ego, Sticks.
Her plan to reveal herself is quite quickly scuppered when she realises how much she loves being up on that stage, and the lies escalate from there, with Remy and Asher becoming BFF's and Remy feeling guilty that she is falling for him.
I have to admit, this was not my favourite of the series, and I think the reason is because for most of the book Remy and Asher were guy friends, and the connection that I was yearning for was not reaching me through the pages. During Remy's point of view, we felt her all of her emotions and yearning for Asher, but because Asher thought Sticks was a gay male, we never felt any chemistry from his perspective because as far as he was concerned he was just a great friend.
Thankfully, we did have some scenes between Asher and the 'real' Remy, aka gorgeous latina Elisa, unbeknownst to him. She was his dream woman from the karaoke in the previous book, and when he finally found her after months of searching, he was going to try and make sure he didn't lose her again. The only problem, she is 'Sticks' cousin.
As always, it was great to catch up on the rest of the gang, especially Pick who is such an awesome guy, I am so glad that he was there for Asher when he was struggling with his past.
Overall, it was a great addition to the series, but lacking in the usual Linda Kage magic for me.
Told in dual POV, this is the sixth book in the Forbidden Men series, but can be read as a standalone.
ARC gratefully received from the author in exchange for an honest review
Now LIVE!
Amazon US | Amazon UK
Every time Linda Kage releases another book in this series, I get a huge smile on my face because I feel like I have lived in these characters lives for so long now, and I love each new character as much as the last.
This is Asher Hart's story and it's been a long time coming. Asher is the lead singer of band Non Castrato, who play at their regular Friday night spot at Forbidden nightclub. He also works as a bartender there and if you are familiar with this series you will know that he loves to banter with the other guys about their women, and although he is known to enjoy his own woman every now and again, he is looking for the special someone that he can connect with on a deeper level.
Remy Curran is a drummer and loves everything about the band, from the beautiful lyrics and rocking music, to the sexy lead singer who is not only good to look at but incredibly intelligent and witty.
When she is turned down by arrogant band member Galloway, at an audition to become Non Castrato's new drummer because she is a woman, she plans revenge by dressing up as guy and auditioning again the next day as her new alter ego, Sticks.
Her plan to reveal herself is quite quickly scuppered when she realises how much she loves being up on that stage, and the lies escalate from there, with Remy and Asher becoming BFF's and Remy feeling guilty that she is falling for him.
I have to admit, this was not my favourite of the series, and I think the reason is because for most of the book Remy and Asher were guy friends, and the connection that I was yearning for was not reaching me through the pages. During Remy's point of view, we felt her all of her emotions and yearning for Asher, but because Asher thought Sticks was a gay male, we never felt any chemistry from his perspective because as far as he was concerned he was just a great friend.
Thankfully, we did have some scenes between Asher and the 'real' Remy, aka gorgeous latina Elisa, unbeknownst to him. She was his dream woman from the karaoke in the previous book, and when he finally found her after months of searching, he was going to try and make sure he didn't lose her again. The only problem, she is 'Sticks' cousin.
"It had nothing to do with looks, though she was gorgeous.
This was more like a feeling. A warmth.
Like right there, watching her sing, was where I belonged in the universe.
Like I'd just found my place. Everything fit."
As always, it was great to catch up on the rest of the gang, especially Pick who is such an awesome guy, I am so glad that he was there for Asher when he was struggling with his past.
Overall, it was a great addition to the series, but lacking in the usual Linda Kage magic for me.
Told in dual POV, this is the sixth book in the Forbidden Men series, but can be read as a standalone.
ARC gratefully received from the author in exchange for an honest review
December 11, 2015
~ 5 "Te amo" star ~
I'm definitely there at the moment. The Girl's Got Secrets was a delicious read. It was a damn long book, probably the longest book I've EVER read and I enjoyed EVERY minute of it!
The promise of the blurb was enthralling and I didn't miss one drop of this lovely tale. I hope you won't either.
If you've read the Forbidden series, you already know Asher but not the real him. You know he's an handsome guy, funny and a tease when it comes to his friend, Ten. You also know he's a damn good singer.
I've started the Forbidden series with the first book about Mason but then I got lost in the way and read Ten's book ( A Perfect Ten) just a few months ago. All books are stand-alone but they all form one big family and it's always good to catch up if you have time ;)
I don't know how she does it, especially after 7 books but Linda Kage succeed to bring us very different couple along the way. My fav' is still Ten because seriously you can beat a perfect guy like him? Still Asher will have a special place. He's the guy, you can NOT fell for.
This story is less traditional than others because of the circumstance of how Remy and Asher meet.
Remy is well aware what she is doing even if at first she was never suppose to got that far. Her dream was to be a part of a band, the Non-Castrato no less and because they won't give her a chance as a chick, she has to find a way for them to listen. Being a part of the group is like life achievement for Remy. She never succeeds at school, she didn't get the perfect family, she just wants to play be part of a band playing drums.
She would never imagine to bond so quickly with the tempting Asher.
People who have read Ten's book will certainly remember Remy but if you haven't, let the guy explain it himself, he certainly does it better than me
“You’re Incubus shirt girl.”
“No, I...wait, what?” “Who’s Incubus shirt girl?”
“You know The chick Asher wrote that song about, the one who came here and sang karaoke in the Incubus shirt and totally rocked his world.”
Asher has always felt lonely. His mother died when he was young, not that she ever told him she loved him, the opposite actually and his father never was in the picture. Being a drug dealer and killing Asher's mom drove him right away in prison.
Things might have change a little recently. He discovered by chance that Pick (Be My Hero) was his half brother but it's still hard for him to fit in a perfect family portrait.
As the story progress, you have more details on Asher's feelings. You see him struggle with the fact he never really had friends. It's certainly for this reason he gets one so well with Remy/Sticks.
They both love music, they are both invest in the group. They love writing songs, they have the same sense of humor, they simply click... too bad Remy doesn't find a way to tell the truth.
"Putting on a little disguise to get my dream to come true should never have had the power to hurt anyone else. But I had a sinking feeling it just might upset the one person in this entire situation whom I didn’t want to hurt."
The story goes on and the lie snowball into a bigger lie.
It was really consuming, trust me you won't can't to put the book down. At some point I felt a little sorry for Remy because she wanted to come clean but circumstances were never in her favor. I would have expected to be annoyed with her but it was never the case.
Linda Kage relates her story in a way where all details are important. You know, as readers, we sometimes complain that the relation evolves too quickly and we don't see enough how the MC fall in love. With Girl's got secrets, you won't feel that way.
You live with Asher, you discover what he thinks, you are in deep with Remy's lies and you witness how these two become inseparable.
Linda Kage's books seem to be longer with each publication. That might be explained by the fact you always get to see previous couples and I love that part. We get the news from others and we have a small glimpse for what's to come
“Hey, are you the one dating Felicity?”
Knox paused and cocked him a curious glance.
“Yeah. Why?”
“You ask her to marry you yet?”
No.”
“Well... She’s kind of the woman of my dreams, so.... If she’s not married by the time I’m sixteen, I’m making her mine. Just thought I’d warn you, you know, man to man.”
Isn't he cute already?
But he will have to way because Brandt is first.
If you never gave this series a try, reconsider immediately and start all over with Mason. Join the family because all Forbidden Men are tight and form a beautiful group of friends ♥
Extra quote:
“Whenever I look into your eyes, I feel like there could be more, so much more. Like there could be everything.”
~ARC provided by Tasty Book Tours in exchange for an honest review ~
I'm definitely there at the moment. The Girl's Got Secrets was a delicious read. It was a damn long book, probably the longest book I've EVER read and I enjoyed EVERY minute of it!
The promise of the blurb was enthralling and I didn't miss one drop of this lovely tale. I hope you won't either.
If you've read the Forbidden series, you already know Asher but not the real him. You know he's an handsome guy, funny and a tease when it comes to his friend, Ten. You also know he's a damn good singer.
I've started the Forbidden series with the first book about Mason but then I got lost in the way and read Ten's book ( A Perfect Ten) just a few months ago. All books are stand-alone but they all form one big family and it's always good to catch up if you have time ;)
I don't know how she does it, especially after 7 books but Linda Kage succeed to bring us very different couple along the way. My fav' is still Ten because seriously you can beat a perfect guy like him? Still Asher will have a special place. He's the guy, you can NOT fell for.
This story is less traditional than others because of the circumstance of how Remy and Asher meet.
Remy is well aware what she is doing even if at first she was never suppose to got that far. Her dream was to be a part of a band, the Non-Castrato no less and because they won't give her a chance as a chick, she has to find a way for them to listen. Being a part of the group is like life achievement for Remy. She never succeeds at school, she didn't get the perfect family, she just wants to play be part of a band playing drums.
She would never imagine to bond so quickly with the tempting Asher.
People who have read Ten's book will certainly remember Remy but if you haven't, let the guy explain it himself, he certainly does it better than me
“You’re Incubus shirt girl.”
“No, I...wait, what?” “Who’s Incubus shirt girl?”
“You know The chick Asher wrote that song about, the one who came here and sang karaoke in the Incubus shirt and totally rocked his world.”
Asher has always felt lonely. His mother died when he was young, not that she ever told him she loved him, the opposite actually and his father never was in the picture. Being a drug dealer and killing Asher's mom drove him right away in prison.
Things might have change a little recently. He discovered by chance that Pick (Be My Hero) was his half brother but it's still hard for him to fit in a perfect family portrait.
As the story progress, you have more details on Asher's feelings. You see him struggle with the fact he never really had friends. It's certainly for this reason he gets one so well with Remy/Sticks.
They both love music, they are both invest in the group. They love writing songs, they have the same sense of humor, they simply click... too bad Remy doesn't find a way to tell the truth.
"Putting on a little disguise to get my dream to come true should never have had the power to hurt anyone else. But I had a sinking feeling it just might upset the one person in this entire situation whom I didn’t want to hurt."
The story goes on and the lie snowball into a bigger lie.
It was really consuming, trust me you won't can't to put the book down. At some point I felt a little sorry for Remy because she wanted to come clean but circumstances were never in her favor. I would have expected to be annoyed with her but it was never the case.
Linda Kage relates her story in a way where all details are important. You know, as readers, we sometimes complain that the relation evolves too quickly and we don't see enough how the MC fall in love. With Girl's got secrets, you won't feel that way.
You live with Asher, you discover what he thinks, you are in deep with Remy's lies and you witness how these two become inseparable.
Linda Kage's books seem to be longer with each publication. That might be explained by the fact you always get to see previous couples and I love that part. We get the news from others and we have a small glimpse for what's to come
“Hey, are you the one dating Felicity?”
Knox paused and cocked him a curious glance.
“Yeah. Why?”
“You ask her to marry you yet?”
No.”
“Well... She’s kind of the woman of my dreams, so.... If she’s not married by the time I’m sixteen, I’m making her mine. Just thought I’d warn you, you know, man to man.”
Isn't he cute already?
But he will have to way because Brandt is first.
If you never gave this series a try, reconsider immediately and start all over with Mason. Join the family because all Forbidden Men are tight and form a beautiful group of friends ♥
Extra quote:
“Whenever I look into your eyes, I feel like there could be more, so much more. Like there could be everything.”
~ARC provided by Tasty Book Tours in exchange for an honest review ~
September 24, 2019
OMG REMY, JUST TELL HIM YOU'RE A GIRL ALREADY!!!
August 16, 2016
God, was I excited to read Asher’s story, book 7 in the Forbidden Men series ! And it didn’t disappoint ! This was yet again such delight to read, like all the other Forbidden Men books ! ^^
So we have Remy, aka Sticks, whose dream is to be a drummer in a band, but not any band, she wants to be part of Non-Castrato which happens to be Asher’s band. But unfortunately, they don’t want a girl, so she decides to go incognito and disguise herself as a gay dude and to her surprise, they totally buy it and accept her as their new drummer.
I absolutely loved Remy ! She was sweet, smart, funny, sassy, a bit geeky and a freaking badass drummer who always speaks her mind without caring and likes to speak Spanish words due to her Latino origins. I liked how natural she was with Asher, even if it’s only as a guy, she would praise him and tell him how much she admires him, something that he’s always been craving to hear from someone who cared about him. Remy was so much fun but fierce, once she knew what she wanted, she wouldn’t hesitate and would go after it with all she’s got. She was refreshing and such a delight to read about.
“Gracias. Me and my two boys will see you then.”
After I told him okay, all the while wondering who his two boys were, Sticks spit back another message to me.
“And by two boys, I meant my drumsticks, not the pair in my pants.”
Before I could even think up a response to that, he messaged me again.
“Not that the other two won’t be there too, of course. But technically, you won’t be seeing THOSE boys, so yeah… I’m only talking about the drumsticks.”
As for our dear awaited Asher…
I loved him, though to be honest maybe not as much as I loved Remy, which is quite rare for me to actually like the girl a tiny bit better than the guy.
Asher is the lead singer and also guitarist of his band Non-Castrato. He is the only one in the gang who hasn’t yet found his other half and he just can't help but be envious of what his friends and co-workers at the Forbidden Nightclub have with their girlfriends and wives. Because, more than anything, Asher is simply and absolutely lonely. He feels like he doesn’t really belong anywhere. He doesn’t have anyone to share things with, to be with, someone to love fiercely and someone who could love him in return for who he truly is behind Asher Hart, hot lead singer of a rock band. But despite all that, Asher still has his friends at Forbidden and I love how carefree, light, sexy and funny he is with them, especially how he likes to tease Ten constantly to my delight ^^. But behind that, he’s also sweet, caring, he’s passionate about his songs and band, and on contrary to what he might look like, he’s actually not really into one-night stands and is quite shy with the attention women give him. He doesn’t want a girl for one night, no, he wants a girl he can have a relationship with, a girl to keep.
“I love that smile,” I admitted. “I want to steal it all for myself so you’ll never be able to smile at anyone else the way you’re smiling at me right now.”
“Lie here, just like that while I feast on you.”
The relationship between Remy and Asher was amazing, they had this real and deep connection, trust slowly building between them to the point where they can each share things from their past, things they feel insecure about. They get to know each other, slowly discovering that they have a lot in common, that they like the same stuff.
However, I thought that the masquerade, about Asher not knowing Remy is actually a girl, dragged a bit at some point and lasted way too long in my opinion, and that in the end, we didn’t get much of Asher and Remy really interacting and being together as guy and girl (Asher knowing that Remy is a girl) which was disappointing since it felt like their love story and feelings only really started after 70% into the book (at least on Asher’s side) and it left me unsatisfied and frustrated because you feel like their love story is, during most of the book, only one sided. I wish Remy would have revealed that she was a girl much sooner and that we had gotten more of a relationship development between Asher and Remy-girl, especially because once Remy’s identity was revealed, I couldn’t feel the connection and bond they had developed while being guy buddies any longer. I thought that from the moment all the lies are revealed, their relationship was different and didn’t feel the same as before. Also, I thought things at the end were a bit rushed and left me wanting for more. Either Remy’s identity should have been revealed sooner or the story should have been longer. There was just something missing here, their relationship didn’t bring as many emotions and feelings, butterflies and sparks as the other books in the series did. Maybe it’s also because the plot in itself felt a bit like a cliché rom-com plot, which I didn’t mind that much because Linda Kage turned it into something really entertaining, but the other background plot regarding Asher’s past felt a bit botched and unnecessary as well, especially with this rushed outcome.
And also, I missed the gang in this book. We didn’t get to see much of the Forbidden men in this one which was sad because I missed my favourite guys so much ! :(
But overall, I still enjoyed this one so very much, but I’ll be honest, it might be one of my least favourite books in the series. Oh, and Oren, my love, you’ve still got the first place in my heart ! Love ya ! <3
So we have Remy, aka Sticks, whose dream is to be a drummer in a band, but not any band, she wants to be part of Non-Castrato which happens to be Asher’s band. But unfortunately, they don’t want a girl, so she decides to go incognito and disguise herself as a gay dude and to her surprise, they totally buy it and accept her as their new drummer.
I absolutely loved Remy ! She was sweet, smart, funny, sassy, a bit geeky and a freaking badass drummer who always speaks her mind without caring and likes to speak Spanish words due to her Latino origins. I liked how natural she was with Asher, even if it’s only as a guy, she would praise him and tell him how much she admires him, something that he’s always been craving to hear from someone who cared about him. Remy was so much fun but fierce, once she knew what she wanted, she wouldn’t hesitate and would go after it with all she’s got. She was refreshing and such a delight to read about.
“Gracias. Me and my two boys will see you then.”
After I told him okay, all the while wondering who his two boys were, Sticks spit back another message to me.
“And by two boys, I meant my drumsticks, not the pair in my pants.”
Before I could even think up a response to that, he messaged me again.
“Not that the other two won’t be there too, of course. But technically, you won’t be seeing THOSE boys, so yeah… I’m only talking about the drumsticks.”
As for our dear awaited Asher…
I loved him, though to be honest maybe not as much as I loved Remy, which is quite rare for me to actually like the girl a tiny bit better than the guy.
Asher is the lead singer and also guitarist of his band Non-Castrato. He is the only one in the gang who hasn’t yet found his other half and he just can't help but be envious of what his friends and co-workers at the Forbidden Nightclub have with their girlfriends and wives. Because, more than anything, Asher is simply and absolutely lonely. He feels like he doesn’t really belong anywhere. He doesn’t have anyone to share things with, to be with, someone to love fiercely and someone who could love him in return for who he truly is behind Asher Hart, hot lead singer of a rock band. But despite all that, Asher still has his friends at Forbidden and I love how carefree, light, sexy and funny he is with them, especially how he likes to tease Ten constantly to my delight ^^. But behind that, he’s also sweet, caring, he’s passionate about his songs and band, and on contrary to what he might look like, he’s actually not really into one-night stands and is quite shy with the attention women give him. He doesn’t want a girl for one night, no, he wants a girl he can have a relationship with, a girl to keep.
“I love that smile,” I admitted. “I want to steal it all for myself so you’ll never be able to smile at anyone else the way you’re smiling at me right now.”
“Lie here, just like that while I feast on you.”
The relationship between Remy and Asher was amazing, they had this real and deep connection, trust slowly building between them to the point where they can each share things from their past, things they feel insecure about. They get to know each other, slowly discovering that they have a lot in common, that they like the same stuff.
However, I thought that the masquerade, about Asher not knowing Remy is actually a girl, dragged a bit at some point and lasted way too long in my opinion, and that in the end, we didn’t get much of Asher and Remy really interacting and being together as guy and girl (Asher knowing that Remy is a girl) which was disappointing since it felt like their love story and feelings only really started after 70% into the book (at least on Asher’s side) and it left me unsatisfied and frustrated because you feel like their love story is, during most of the book, only one sided. I wish Remy would have revealed that she was a girl much sooner and that we had gotten more of a relationship development between Asher and Remy-girl, especially because once Remy’s identity was revealed, I couldn’t feel the connection and bond they had developed while being guy buddies any longer. I thought that from the moment all the lies are revealed, their relationship was different and didn’t feel the same as before. Also, I thought things at the end were a bit rushed and left me wanting for more. Either Remy’s identity should have been revealed sooner or the story should have been longer. There was just something missing here, their relationship didn’t bring as many emotions and feelings, butterflies and sparks as the other books in the series did. Maybe it’s also because the plot in itself felt a bit like a cliché rom-com plot, which I didn’t mind that much because Linda Kage turned it into something really entertaining, but the other background plot regarding Asher’s past felt a bit botched and unnecessary as well, especially with this rushed outcome.
And also, I missed the gang in this book. We didn’t get to see much of the Forbidden men in this one which was sad because I missed my favourite guys so much ! :(
But overall, I still enjoyed this one so very much, but I’ll be honest, it might be one of my least favourite books in the series. Oh, and Oren, my love, you’ve still got the first place in my heart ! Love ya ! <3
December 1, 2015
Asher Hart and the band are looking for a new drummer after the huge incident with Knox’s brother. They are holding auditions when a girl, Remy, shows up to audition. One of Asher’s bandmates is a complete tool and immediately turns her down before she even plays, just because she is a female. Remy decides the best way to get back at them is prove they made a mistake in not letting her audition. With the help her friend Remy is transformed into a Sticks a male. The next day Sticks nails his audition and is offered the position.
Sticks and Asher form a bond and become great friends. Remy learns so many things about Asher while acting as Sticks, and the more she learns the harder she falls. I absolutely loved this plot twist. I just enjoyed seeing Asher and Remy build a friendship first. I also loved how Asher confided in Remy about his mystery girl, her.
I was on the edge of my seat just waiting on Remy to get caught and kind of hoping she would. I wanted Asher to learn the truth and see things unfold from there. I love how Linda incorporated Asher meeting Remy the girl and becoming friends with Sticks. It was unique and despite the story being long it just worked and they read super fast.
As I said I loved this twist on forbidden love, I just wish there had been more time with them together. Remy and Asher were the perfect pair and just learning little things throughout the story I knew they would be perfect once they finally learned the truth. After finishing I was just wishing for more time of them actually knowing each other as Remy and Asher, not Sticks or Elisa.
I am a huge fan of this series and have fallen so in love with these characters. I have been dying to know Asher’s story and read about his forbidden romance. I wasn’t sure the direction Linda would take, but I have to say I loved the plot! I loved seeing Pick and Asher get to know each other and build a bond. I loved seeing the other guys and camaraderie between them. This is one of those series I never want to see end. The books are fun, sweet, sexy and always forbidden.
“If you love someone enough, you find you can forgive them for just about anything, because living without them is more miserable than any grudge you could hold.”
ARC kindly provided in exchange for an honest review.
December 8, 2015
**4.5 STARS**
I absolutely adore this series! Linda Kage has sucked me in over and over again with her emotion-filled love stories, and her swoon-worthy leading men and their lovely lady halves. I swear they’re all oh so hot, sweet and thoughtful!
This woman has written some of my all-time favorite book couples, and she’s done a great job with Asher and Remy.
The Girl’s Got Secrets is the 7th installment in the Forbidden Men series. It’s a girl-posing-as-a-boy story.
I know, intriguing right?
Remy Curran wants to be the drummer in Non-Castrato, which is Asher Hart's band. However, they don't want a girl. So she decided to disguise herself as a guy to get into the band and she did. Things snowballed from there.
She just wanted a chance to showcase her musical talent. It's her passion, her dream. She never imagine that she would quickly grew to care for Asher.
Oh and Remy is Asher's Incubus girl. For those who have read A Perfect Ten , we all know that Asher was utterly captivated by this girl who sang karaoke in a Incubus shirt but he never saw her again. So he doesn't know he is basically with the girl of his dream and though Remy is beginning to like him, she couldn't reveal her true identity...
Now, can i just say how much I love Asher Hart? Seriously, he is such a lovable man. He is sexy, sweet, caring and a really nice guy! And he writes songs for the girl she likes, respects woman, has a pet squirrel (how fucking cute is that) and a lead singer to a rock band! Who could resist him? No one that's who.
As the story progress, we get to really know Asher's thought and feelings. He had a rough childhood that made him feel so lonely for a long time. So, when Remy aka Sticks bonded with him and they discovered they have a lot in common, he grew to really considered him as his best friends. Now that makes it more difficult for Remy to tell the truth. Every time she wants to come clean, something would happen to make her keep up the act just a little bit longer until the lies keeps piling up.
I was expecting to feel annoyed by her deceptions at some point but it didn't happen. Instead, I felt sorry for her because I know she cares for him and doesn't want to lie to him anymore but the time or situation were never in her favor. In fact, I really liked her character. She's strong, funny and thoughtful.
Remy and Asher's friendship really developed well. They just clicked. And their sexual chemistry wasn't bad too. Nope, not at all. They're perfect together.
I know this book is a bit long. There were dragging moments but the plot was entertaining, the love and friendship felt authentic and the main and side characters were all wonderful and engaging! I said it so many times but I don't care I will say it again, I LOVE THE FORBIDDEN GANG!! I cherish everytime the couples from the previous books shows up! It's such a treat to see them all! I just can't get enough of them, I can't get enough of this series! I am addicted!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forbidden Men Series
Book 1: Price of Kiss
Book 2: To Profession, With Love
Book 3: Be My Hero
Book 4: With Every Heartbeat
Book 5: A Perfect Ten
Book 6: Worth It
Book 7: The Girl's Got Secrets
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For more reviews, book news and updates:
✦ callowaybooks
✦ Twitter
I absolutely adore this series! Linda Kage has sucked me in over and over again with her emotion-filled love stories, and her swoon-worthy leading men and their lovely lady halves. I swear they’re all oh so hot, sweet and thoughtful!
This woman has written some of my all-time favorite book couples, and she’s done a great job with Asher and Remy.
The Girl’s Got Secrets is the 7th installment in the Forbidden Men series. It’s a girl-posing-as-a-boy story.
I know, intriguing right?
Remy Curran wants to be the drummer in Non-Castrato, which is Asher Hart's band. However, they don't want a girl. So she decided to disguise herself as a guy to get into the band and she did. Things snowballed from there.
She just wanted a chance to showcase her musical talent. It's her passion, her dream. She never imagine that she would quickly grew to care for Asher.
Oh and Remy is Asher's Incubus girl. For those who have read A Perfect Ten , we all know that Asher was utterly captivated by this girl who sang karaoke in a Incubus shirt but he never saw her again. So he doesn't know he is basically with the girl of his dream and though Remy is beginning to like him, she couldn't reveal her true identity...
Now, can i just say how much I love Asher Hart? Seriously, he is such a lovable man. He is sexy, sweet, caring and a really nice guy! And he writes songs for the girl she likes, respects woman, has a pet squirrel (how fucking cute is that) and a lead singer to a rock band! Who could resist him? No one that's who.
As the story progress, we get to really know Asher's thought and feelings. He had a rough childhood that made him feel so lonely for a long time. So, when Remy aka Sticks bonded with him and they discovered they have a lot in common, he grew to really considered him as his best friends. Now that makes it more difficult for Remy to tell the truth. Every time she wants to come clean, something would happen to make her keep up the act just a little bit longer until the lies keeps piling up.
"Putting on a little disguise to get my dream to come true should never have had the power to hurt anyone else. But I had a sinking feeling it just might upset the one person in this entire situation whom I didn’t want to hurt."
I was expecting to feel annoyed by her deceptions at some point but it didn't happen. Instead, I felt sorry for her because I know she cares for him and doesn't want to lie to him anymore but the time or situation were never in her favor. In fact, I really liked her character. She's strong, funny and thoughtful.
Remy and Asher's friendship really developed well. They just clicked. And their sexual chemistry wasn't bad too. Nope, not at all. They're perfect together.
I know this book is a bit long. There were dragging moments but the plot was entertaining, the love and friendship felt authentic and the main and side characters were all wonderful and engaging! I said it so many times but I don't care I will say it again, I LOVE THE FORBIDDEN GANG!! I cherish everytime the couples from the previous books shows up! It's such a treat to see them all! I just can't get enough of them, I can't get enough of this series! I am addicted!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Forbidden Men Series
Book 1: Price of Kiss
Book 2: To Profession, With Love
Book 3: Be My Hero
Book 4: With Every Heartbeat
Book 5: A Perfect Ten
Book 6: Worth It
Book 7: The Girl's Got Secrets
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For more reviews, book news and updates:
✦ callowaybooks
June 29, 2016
**3.25 ‘Sticks’ stars**
This being my second book from Linda Kage, I’m still amazed by her writing and storytelling ability, Infact the story flowed so smoothly that I didn’t realise it was 450 pages long!! Book #7 in Forbidden Men series, The Girl’s Got Secret follows the story of Asher Hart, the only single guy among his group of friends. This can be read as standalone.
Asher Hart is the leader singer in his band Non Castrato which plays in The Forbidden bar every Friday where he bartends for rest of the week. With good looks and great voice, it isn’t hard for him to find any girl to spend his nights with but with all his friends settling down he craves for a companionship rather than an awkward one-night stand. During one of the karaoke nights he will be mesmerised with a girl in an Incubus shirt, ironically, the only girl who had his attention is not single. He never tries to find her or learn her name and she doesn’t seem to leave his thoughts ever.
Remy Curran, a passionate drummer whose is now lonely and feels worthless after she brokes up with her ex-fiancé, she still holds on to her dream of being in a band, and she ceases the opportunity when she heard that Non Castrato were looking for a new drummer. But she was rejected even before she played, just because they didn’t want a girl in their band. Devastated by their rejection she decides to audition posing as a guy, with a lot of help from her friend/room-mate Jodi she transforms completely into a guy, going by the name ‘Sticks’. This time she nails the audition and gets a most deserving spot on their band. Seeing as her dream coming true she continues to pose as a guy but now being near the hot lead singer, developing a strong friendship with him is making her feel guilty more than ever.
Things I liked: The development of the characters was done fantastically, the friendship growing between Asher and Sticks felt real and effortless, I was always looking forward for their time together. Also, the emotions these characters projected, be it their need to love and be loved were heart-warming.
Things I didn’t like: I get the reason for lying and keeping up the act but I can’t stand any relationship growing on the foundation of lies. When Remy decides to become sticks, to show those boys that talent has no boundary, I was like “you show them girl”. To some point it was funny and entertaining to see the extent she goes to appear as guy and actually change her personality around them. But the non-stop lies which kept on going was just frustrating. And by the time truth was unfolded the story reached a point where it felt like a mess.
So it’s safe to say though I didn’t like certain parts I enjoyed the overall story, the writing was no doubt appealing so were the MC’s. If you are in mood for something light and entertaining with pleasant showcase of friendship and romance where music is soul of the story, then this book is for you.
*ARC generously provided by the author, for an honest review.*
December 10, 2015
ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review
Secrets!!!!! The Girl's Got Secrets .. and what a secret it is!!! In this seventh installment of The Forbidden Men Series, Ms. Kage has written one sweet, fun, and fresh story of a girl posing as a boy with a rock-n-roll twist. If you have been following the Forbidden Series, then you would understand my excitement for Asher Hart's story and let me just say Ms. Kage had me smitten with the lead singer of Non-Castrato.
Ever since Be My Hero, I couldn't wait for Asher Hart's story and his Incubus shirt girl. And in The Girl's Got Secrets, Asher may have found his Incubus shirt girl and not realize it just yet. When Remy Curran wanted to try out to be the new drummer of Non-Castrato, she was crushed and disappointed that they didn't even let her try out just because she was a girl. So with the help of her roommate, Jodi, she decided the joke was on them when she asked Jodi to help transform her to be a boy. With a little, Mrs. Doubtfire transformation, Remy became "Sticks." And when Sticks went to audition for the drummer spot, "he" blew them away with "his" talent. What started off as a way for Remy to rip off her mask off and show them that a girl can play drums ended up her continuing on with the lie of her true identity. As Sticks became the new member of the group, Remy tries hard to keep up with the facade but it proves to be a lot more difficult when she finds herself falling for Asher Hart. As Sticks gets close to Asher, feelings begins to emerge and what happens when she discovers that Asher has been longing for the Incubus shirt girl which happens to be her. How will Asher react when he discovers the truth? Can he forgive Remy/Sticks for months of lying?
The Girl's Got Secret was a fun, fresh, and sweet read. While this book was on the very long side, I never felt the book dragged on since Ms. Kage was still able to keep the story exciting and engaging. I loved the friendship that Asher and Sticks had and it may have been my favorite thing in the book. As a big Pick fan, I was so excited and happy to see snippets of him incorporated into the story line. I love how everything unfolded but my only concern in the book was a certain scene that involved Asher's father in the end. But other than that, I still enjoyed this book. Thank you Ms. Kage for another great addition to this series.
Review can also be found on Four Chicks Flipping Pages: http://fourchicksflippingpages.weebly...Linda Kage
Secrets!!!!! The Girl's Got Secrets .. and what a secret it is!!! In this seventh installment of The Forbidden Men Series, Ms. Kage has written one sweet, fun, and fresh story of a girl posing as a boy with a rock-n-roll twist. If you have been following the Forbidden Series, then you would understand my excitement for Asher Hart's story and let me just say Ms. Kage had me smitten with the lead singer of Non-Castrato.
Ever since Be My Hero, I couldn't wait for Asher Hart's story and his Incubus shirt girl. And in The Girl's Got Secrets, Asher may have found his Incubus shirt girl and not realize it just yet. When Remy Curran wanted to try out to be the new drummer of Non-Castrato, she was crushed and disappointed that they didn't even let her try out just because she was a girl. So with the help of her roommate, Jodi, she decided the joke was on them when she asked Jodi to help transform her to be a boy. With a little, Mrs. Doubtfire transformation, Remy became "Sticks." And when Sticks went to audition for the drummer spot, "he" blew them away with "his" talent. What started off as a way for Remy to rip off her mask off and show them that a girl can play drums ended up her continuing on with the lie of her true identity. As Sticks became the new member of the group, Remy tries hard to keep up with the facade but it proves to be a lot more difficult when she finds herself falling for Asher Hart. As Sticks gets close to Asher, feelings begins to emerge and what happens when she discovers that Asher has been longing for the Incubus shirt girl which happens to be her. How will Asher react when he discovers the truth? Can he forgive Remy/Sticks for months of lying?
The Girl's Got Secret was a fun, fresh, and sweet read. While this book was on the very long side, I never felt the book dragged on since Ms. Kage was still able to keep the story exciting and engaging. I loved the friendship that Asher and Sticks had and it may have been my favorite thing in the book. As a big Pick fan, I was so excited and happy to see snippets of him incorporated into the story line. I love how everything unfolded but my only concern in the book was a certain scene that involved Asher's father in the end. But other than that, I still enjoyed this book. Thank you Ms. Kage for another great addition to this series.
Review can also be found on Four Chicks Flipping Pages: http://fourchicksflippingpages.weebly...Linda Kage
November 30, 2015
I didn't expect to like any book in this series as much as I liked Ten's story, but I absolutely loved Asher's story. Equally as much as I loved Ten's, maybe a bit more? Although I hate to admit it because Ten is just so freaking awesome, every time he showed up in this story I had to laugh. Oh well.
I liked how, though Asher was a lead singer of the band, the author didn't make him a man whore (I'm so over them) and his longing for something more than a one night stand was way more attractive than any man whore ways. Asher was very lovable because he was so sweet and sexy. Plus, he and Sticks together were hilarious.
And then there is Remy, I was prepared to hate her because she was lying to Asher, but I actually fall in love with her too. She was so funny as Sticks and as Remy herself and it was really easy to see how one lie turned into more lies. She was awesome!
Loved how Asher's and Pick's relationships developed and Pick is such a fantastic guy. Always there for everybody and always saying the right thing. Ahh in Jodi's words - can I just have 5 of them?
I think I have mentioned this in every review I have written for these series, but I really enjoy their forbidden gang and their close friendships, which feel a lot like one big family. Ahhh, I don't think I will ever get tired of reading about the forbidden man who works at the Forbidden ♥
Is this the last book in the series? I hope not :(
I liked how, though Asher was a lead singer of the band, the author didn't make him a man whore (I'm so over them) and his longing for something more than a one night stand was way more attractive than any man whore ways. Asher was very lovable because he was so sweet and sexy. Plus, he and Sticks together were hilarious.
And then there is Remy, I was prepared to hate her because she was lying to Asher, but I actually fall in love with her too. She was so funny as Sticks and as Remy herself and it was really easy to see how one lie turned into more lies. She was awesome!
Loved how Asher's and Pick's relationships developed and Pick is such a fantastic guy. Always there for everybody and always saying the right thing. Ahh in Jodi's words - can I just have 5 of them?
I think I have mentioned this in every review I have written for these series, but I really enjoy their forbidden gang and their close friendships, which feel a lot like one big family. Ahhh, I don't think I will ever get tired of reading about the forbidden man who works at the Forbidden ♥
Is this the last book in the series? I hope not :(
January 21, 2016
Am I seeing things right ? I missed a Forbidden Men release ? What's wrong with me these days ?
October 7, 2016
“If you love someone enough, you find you can forgive them for just about anything, because living without them is more miserable than any grudge you could hold.”
This is the 7th book in the series and it is about one of my favorite characters: Asher Hart, the lead singer of the rock band in Forbidden: The Non-Castrato...
I normally find “girl in disguise posing as a guy” stories neither convincing nor appealing, but that was Asher’s story so I had to read it :)
If you love Asher, go read it, it is still good... Out of 4,5, it gets 5 stars from me...
First of all, it was more convincing than I initially thought because of the professional mask and everything, so it was successfully planned by the writer, I can say.
My disappointment was something else, though. In the first half of the book, we cannot read any romance because our heroine Remy is in disguise as a gay guy. So, she is bonding with our hero Asher as a friend. The second half of the book is better, it has more action going on. It is sweeter and hotter.
Remy’s initial reason to pose as a guy was that the members of the Non-Castrato rock band didn’t even listen to her play the drums in the audition because they didn’t want a female member in the band. Knowing she was an awesome drummer, she wanted to teach them a lesson at first but when she was instantly accepted by them when in disguise, she couldn’t take off the mask and make fun of them. She wanted to be on stage with them for a while and later, she enjoyed playing with them more than she imagined and day by day, she fell harder for the lead singer of the band, Asher Hart. Thus, with each day, her lies snowballed and she feared more and more to confess them.
The book is majorly about this dilemma of hers:
“Oh how shall I say I have lied all this time? Oh, he will hate me...”
So, at some point, I was yelling at her, “Come on, you have so many opportunities, tell him already. If he discovers himself, it will be worse!”
Did she listen to my advice? Of course no, she had to wait until it was too late to confess.
Asher, on the other hand, my poor boy, got smitten with Remy on many different occasions. That part of the story was cute :)
First, she was the “Incubus shirt girl” who sang on the Karaoke night. Asher even wrote a song for her but he couldn’t make a move at that time because she had another boyfriend.
The second occasion was when Remy came for the audition wearing a Tina Turner wig. He couldn’t recognize her but he again felt a strong attraction for this “punk rocker chick”.
The third occasion was when Remy was caught by him in the shower, having taken off the mask and the fourth time was while she was singing in her uncle’s restaurant and in both cases, Remy poses as a Spanish girl who cannot speak English. She already has Latin looks. So there is a third character now, Elisa. It is in fact Remy’s middle name. He was again smitten by her even though he couldn’t communicate with her in English.
We, as readers, know it but he is unaware that Elisa is also “The Incubus shirt girl”, “The punk rocker chick who came to the audition” and “The gay drummer, Sticks, in the band”. She is all of them. He instantly feels attracted to her strongly in every outfit or in every character. Even he becomes best friends with the gay drummer as they have the same taste in music, they can write songs together and they laugh at the same jokes. Asher & Remy are perfect as friends, co-workers and later as lovers. Their chemistry is off the charts and their love scenes were very hot, very well-written...
I like it when pets are involved in romances like that and here, Mozart, the squirrel was a cute contribution to the novel.
The book is told by dual point of view, both Remy’s and Asher’s. Remy is sweet and hilarious so her chapters are full of fun moments:
"It didn’t seem fair that a guy should have such gorgeous eyes to go with such a gorgeous face and gorgeous lean body. But hell, put him on a stamp, and I’d write a letter to everyone I knew just for the chance to lick him.
Did they even make lickable stamps anymore? They totally should. Asher Hart lickable stamps!
In the book, (which is 422 pages), there were scenes about Pick & Asher bonding as brothers as well scenes in which the mother of one character died. Also, Asher’s father caused some stupid drama etc. and the book was too long because of that; hence, a bit dragging.
But the scenes in which Ten and Caroline (my favorite couple in the series) made appearance made my day, because you know, they are the dearest to my heart...
When someone paused next to me and slugged me companionably on the back, I glanced over, shocked to find Ten staring at Remy too. He heaved in a great sigh. “Yeah, I’d probably cave and forgive that too,” he said…
Well, in the end, we of course have a happy ending and the book was worth reading but let me advise you to get your laptop ready while reading this book because you will need it. I had to Google translate all the Spanish sentences she said to him or otherwise, I would have had no clue about what she was saying.
e.g. “En serio lo siento tanto”
“Tengo que hacer esto”
“No puedo esperar… Más... Más.”
“Te amo más de lo que nunca he amado a otro.”
And there are many songs they sing to each other and I didn’t know the lyrics of any of those songs so again I needed my laptop to find the lyrics of these songs so that I could understand what they were saying to each other. If you don’t know the lyrics, you will be missing a lot, believe me! So this book requires some research while reading, bear it in mind!
This is the 7th book in the series and it is about one of my favorite characters: Asher Hart, the lead singer of the rock band in Forbidden: The Non-Castrato...
I normally find “girl in disguise posing as a guy” stories neither convincing nor appealing, but that was Asher’s story so I had to read it :)
If you love Asher, go read it, it is still good... Out of 4,5, it gets 5 stars from me...
First of all, it was more convincing than I initially thought because of the professional mask and everything, so it was successfully planned by the writer, I can say.
My disappointment was something else, though. In the first half of the book, we cannot read any romance because our heroine Remy is in disguise as a gay guy. So, she is bonding with our hero Asher as a friend. The second half of the book is better, it has more action going on. It is sweeter and hotter.
Remy’s initial reason to pose as a guy was that the members of the Non-Castrato rock band didn’t even listen to her play the drums in the audition because they didn’t want a female member in the band. Knowing she was an awesome drummer, she wanted to teach them a lesson at first but when she was instantly accepted by them when in disguise, she couldn’t take off the mask and make fun of them. She wanted to be on stage with them for a while and later, she enjoyed playing with them more than she imagined and day by day, she fell harder for the lead singer of the band, Asher Hart. Thus, with each day, her lies snowballed and she feared more and more to confess them.
The book is majorly about this dilemma of hers:
“Oh how shall I say I have lied all this time? Oh, he will hate me...”
So, at some point, I was yelling at her, “Come on, you have so many opportunities, tell him already. If he discovers himself, it will be worse!”
Did she listen to my advice? Of course no, she had to wait until it was too late to confess.
Asher, on the other hand, my poor boy, got smitten with Remy on many different occasions. That part of the story was cute :)
First, she was the “Incubus shirt girl” who sang on the Karaoke night. Asher even wrote a song for her but he couldn’t make a move at that time because she had another boyfriend.
The second occasion was when Remy came for the audition wearing a Tina Turner wig. He couldn’t recognize her but he again felt a strong attraction for this “punk rocker chick”.
The third occasion was when Remy was caught by him in the shower, having taken off the mask and the fourth time was while she was singing in her uncle’s restaurant and in both cases, Remy poses as a Spanish girl who cannot speak English. She already has Latin looks. So there is a third character now, Elisa. It is in fact Remy’s middle name. He was again smitten by her even though he couldn’t communicate with her in English.
We, as readers, know it but he is unaware that Elisa is also “The Incubus shirt girl”, “The punk rocker chick who came to the audition” and “The gay drummer, Sticks, in the band”. She is all of them. He instantly feels attracted to her strongly in every outfit or in every character. Even he becomes best friends with the gay drummer as they have the same taste in music, they can write songs together and they laugh at the same jokes. Asher & Remy are perfect as friends, co-workers and later as lovers. Their chemistry is off the charts and their love scenes were very hot, very well-written...
I like it when pets are involved in romances like that and here, Mozart, the squirrel was a cute contribution to the novel.
The book is told by dual point of view, both Remy’s and Asher’s. Remy is sweet and hilarious so her chapters are full of fun moments:
"It didn’t seem fair that a guy should have such gorgeous eyes to go with such a gorgeous face and gorgeous lean body. But hell, put him on a stamp, and I’d write a letter to everyone I knew just for the chance to lick him.
Did they even make lickable stamps anymore? They totally should. Asher Hart lickable stamps!
In the book, (which is 422 pages), there were scenes about Pick & Asher bonding as brothers as well scenes in which the mother of one character died. Also, Asher’s father caused some stupid drama etc. and the book was too long because of that; hence, a bit dragging.
But the scenes in which Ten and Caroline (my favorite couple in the series) made appearance made my day, because you know, they are the dearest to my heart...
When someone paused next to me and slugged me companionably on the back, I glanced over, shocked to find Ten staring at Remy too. He heaved in a great sigh. “Yeah, I’d probably cave and forgive that too,” he said…
Well, in the end, we of course have a happy ending and the book was worth reading but let me advise you to get your laptop ready while reading this book because you will need it. I had to Google translate all the Spanish sentences she said to him or otherwise, I would have had no clue about what she was saying.
e.g. “En serio lo siento tanto”
“Tengo que hacer esto”
“No puedo esperar… Más... Más.”
“Te amo más de lo que nunca he amado a otro.”
And there are many songs they sing to each other and I didn’t know the lyrics of any of those songs so again I needed my laptop to find the lyrics of these songs so that I could understand what they were saying to each other. If you don’t know the lyrics, you will be missing a lot, believe me! So this book requires some research while reading, bear it in mind!
December 11, 2024
Reread 11/12/24
Still enjoyed it but it was so dumb of Asher to not see his dad was behind all the stuff that was going on 🙄
Spoilers ahead,3.5* not quite 4 but 🤷
Remy Curran has decided to pursue her dreams of being a drummer, after her ex cheated on her and stole her song lyrics she's determined to get a position in the band non-castrato his competition. At the interview she's humiliated when the band members don't even let her audition because she's a girl. She comes up with a plan to disguise herself as a male knock their socks off with her talent and then reveal her true identity....only things don't go according to plan
Asher is the lead singer/songwriter for his band as well as a bartender at Forbidden. He's had an eventual few months as he now realises Pick is his brother and the girl he's been trying to find after seeing her sing at Karaoke night seems to be lost to him. With his new bandmate "Sticks" however things are looking up, Sticks quickly becomes him closest friend and the band begins to get gigs outside of the Forbidden night club. With his murdering father now on the loose, memories of t his mother's hate for him and her murder and his attraction to what seems to be two different women he's struggling with his usual easy going demeanor...when secrets are revealed Asher's dream girl may be closer than he thought
**********
I enjoyed this one though I did think the deception went on a bit too long. Friends to lovers is tough for me because most times one of the friends ends up hooking up with others while the other friend knows. In this case Asher attempts to hookup but thankfully things didn't work out. I couldn't blame him though because he really believed Sticks was a male and his mystery girl couldn't be found
With likeable mcs, page time with my boy Pick and updates on the other members of the Forbidden clan this one worked well enough for me
H wasn't a manwhore he actually was hoping for his "one" but he did have hookups on occasion
h had boyfriends and her last was a cheater
No cheating
Almost hookups with OW that didn't really go anywhere
Still enjoyed it but it was so dumb of Asher to not see his dad was behind all the stuff that was going on 🙄
Spoilers ahead,3.5* not quite 4 but 🤷
Remy Curran has decided to pursue her dreams of being a drummer, after her ex cheated on her and stole her song lyrics she's determined to get a position in the band non-castrato his competition. At the interview she's humiliated when the band members don't even let her audition because she's a girl. She comes up with a plan to disguise herself as a male knock their socks off with her talent and then reveal her true identity....only things don't go according to plan
Asher is the lead singer/songwriter for his band as well as a bartender at Forbidden. He's had an eventual few months as he now realises Pick is his brother and the girl he's been trying to find after seeing her sing at Karaoke night seems to be lost to him. With his new bandmate "Sticks" however things are looking up, Sticks quickly becomes him closest friend and the band begins to get gigs outside of the Forbidden night club. With his murdering father now on the loose, memories of t his mother's hate for him and her murder and his attraction to what seems to be two different women he's struggling with his usual easy going demeanor...when secrets are revealed Asher's dream girl may be closer than he thought
**********
I enjoyed this one though I did think the deception went on a bit too long. Friends to lovers is tough for me because most times one of the friends ends up hooking up with others while the other friend knows. In this case Asher attempts to hookup but thankfully things didn't work out. I couldn't blame him though because he really believed Sticks was a male and his mystery girl couldn't be found
With likeable mcs, page time with my boy Pick and updates on the other members of the Forbidden clan this one worked well enough for me
H wasn't a manwhore he actually was hoping for his "one" but he did have hookups on occasion
h had boyfriends and her last was a cheater
No cheating
Almost hookups with OW that didn't really go anywhere
Want to read
August 13, 2016Woohoo :) I got my ARC!!I love this series so much!!
ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
November 28, 2015
I am a huge Linda Kage fan and usually all her books are a 4.5/5 star read for me. Unfortunately this one didn't quite hit the mark for me and I'm sad to say it's only a 3 star rating for me.
The gist of the plot is that the heroine Remy auditions for Asher Harts band and gets not only turned away but also absolutely humiliated solely because she is a girl and the band don't want a chick drummer. Remy decides to dress up as a man and audition again as a big two fingers up to the band. However, she nails the audition and is too elated to come clean so here starts her double life.
Yeah I thought it was pretty unrealistic that a girl could shove on a mask, wear some boy clothes and no one would question it but hey it's fiction so I totally rolled with it. The problem I had with the book is that the romance element was severely lacking!! It was entirely platonic and one sided because Asher is straight and just sees Remy as his gay friend. The romance happened way too late in the story to keep me interested.
I also felt like we didn't really get a chance to know Remy, the girl, all that well. We only got to see her fake male persona for the majority of the book! And since the romance factor didn't take place until well into the second half I felt like Asher didn't get a chance to really showcase his swoonworthyness!!!
However, it was amazing to catch up with the whole crew and that made up for the rest of the book.
Arc provided by SBB Promotions in exchange for an honest review.
The gist of the plot is that the heroine Remy auditions for Asher Harts band and gets not only turned away but also absolutely humiliated solely because she is a girl and the band don't want a chick drummer. Remy decides to dress up as a man and audition again as a big two fingers up to the band. However, she nails the audition and is too elated to come clean so here starts her double life.
Yeah I thought it was pretty unrealistic that a girl could shove on a mask, wear some boy clothes and no one would question it but hey it's fiction so I totally rolled with it. The problem I had with the book is that the romance element was severely lacking!! It was entirely platonic and one sided because Asher is straight and just sees Remy as his gay friend. The romance happened way too late in the story to keep me interested.
I also felt like we didn't really get a chance to know Remy, the girl, all that well. We only got to see her fake male persona for the majority of the book! And since the romance factor didn't take place until well into the second half I felt like Asher didn't get a chance to really showcase his swoonworthyness!!!
However, it was amazing to catch up with the whole crew and that made up for the rest of the book.
Arc provided by SBB Promotions in exchange for an honest review.
July 27, 2017
3.5 Stars
Overall Opinion: This was good, but sadly I'd say it was my least favorite of the series. I did have some major laugh out loud moments where my husband was looking at me funny. I really loved Asher, and I just wanted Remy to come clean because I dreaded how he would feel and react to her deception. I get why she didn't though, because thing after thing came up and made it hard for her to do it without messing things up more. He was just so sweet and lonely that it broke my heart when he talked about his past -- I just wanted to give him a hug!
Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is Remy and Asher's story. Remy always wanted to be in a band playing the drums, and Asher's band is one she really wants in with. But when she goes to audition in her best punk chick gear, she is turned away instantly for being a girl. Her and her best friend decide that she should go in disguise as a boy (her friend is going to school for special effects), and earn her spot in the band only to shock them by taking off the mask and revealing her true identity. Only it isn't that easy. She makes the band, but then gets swooped up in the idea of actually living her dream as a drummer in this band. One thing after another prevent her from revealing her identity. I won't say anymore but that there was some really funny moments, some sad moments, some hot moments, and some sweet moments...and the couple get their HEA ending.
POV: This alternated between Remy and Asher POV.
Overall Pace of Story: Good. I didn't feel the need to skim and it flowed well. I would've liked a little more time with them as a couple at the end.
Instalove: Yes and no. In one of the past stories (I believe Ten's) Asher saw Remy sing a song on karaoke night and deemed her his soul mate. When they reunite he doesn't realize it's her (for obvious reasons), but deep down there is a strong and instant connection.
H rating: 5 stars. Asher. I loved him. He didn't want to use his rock star status and be a manho, and he yearned for a HEA with his soulmate. He made best friends with a gay guy without batting an eyelash (which I love because not every hetero man could do this).
h rating: 3 stars. Remy. I liked her, but of course I wanted her to come clean earlier.
Sadness level: Low/moderate. I did shed a few tears, but it didn't turn into an ugly cry.
Heat level: Moderate. There is some good tension and then some good chemistry between them.
Descriptive sex: Yes.
Safe sex: Yes. Condoms used.
OW/OM drama: No (only thing is that the h says some rude things to her ex when they run into him (when she is in disguise), but it wasn't really that big of a thing).
Sex scene with OW or OM:No
Cheating:
Possible Triggers:
Closure: This had good closure with a jump ahead epilogue and a HEA ending.
How I got it: It was part of my scribed subscription.
Safety: Safe
Overall Opinion: This was good, but sadly I'd say it was my least favorite of the series. I did have some major laugh out loud moments where my husband was looking at me funny. I really loved Asher, and I just wanted Remy to come clean because I dreaded how he would feel and react to her deception. I get why she didn't though, because thing after thing came up and made it hard for her to do it without messing things up more. He was just so sweet and lonely that it broke my heart when he talked about his past -- I just wanted to give him a hug!
Brief Summary of the Storyline: This is Remy and Asher's story. Remy always wanted to be in a band playing the drums, and Asher's band is one she really wants in with. But when she goes to audition in her best punk chick gear, she is turned away instantly for being a girl. Her and her best friend decide that she should go in disguise as a boy (her friend is going to school for special effects), and earn her spot in the band only to shock them by taking off the mask and revealing her true identity. Only it isn't that easy. She makes the band, but then gets swooped up in the idea of actually living her dream as a drummer in this band. One thing after another prevent her from revealing her identity. I won't say anymore but that there was some really funny moments, some sad moments, some hot moments, and some sweet moments...and the couple get their HEA ending.
POV: This alternated between Remy and Asher POV.
Overall Pace of Story: Good. I didn't feel the need to skim and it flowed well. I would've liked a little more time with them as a couple at the end.
Instalove: Yes and no. In one of the past stories (I believe Ten's) Asher saw Remy sing a song on karaoke night and deemed her his soul mate. When they reunite he doesn't realize it's her (for obvious reasons), but deep down there is a strong and instant connection.
H rating: 5 stars. Asher. I loved him. He didn't want to use his rock star status and be a manho, and he yearned for a HEA with his soulmate. He made best friends with a gay guy without batting an eyelash (which I love because not every hetero man could do this).
h rating: 3 stars. Remy. I liked her, but of course I wanted her to come clean earlier.
Sadness level: Low/moderate. I did shed a few tears, but it didn't turn into an ugly cry.
Heat level: Moderate. There is some good tension and then some good chemistry between them.
Descriptive sex: Yes.
Safe sex: Yes. Condoms used.
OW/OM drama: No (only thing is that the h says some rude things to her ex when they run into him (when she is in disguise), but it wasn't really that big of a thing).
Sex scene with OW or OM:No
Cheating:
Possible Triggers:
Closure: This had good closure with a jump ahead epilogue and a HEA ending.
How I got it: It was part of my scribed subscription.
Safety: Safe
November 13, 2019
3 ⭐⭐⭐
The Girls Got Secret
Asher & Remy
With the concept of the book and how the h was portrayed, the story seemed promising. The first half of the book really hooked me in and I love seeing Asher's relationship with Pick. However due to the slow pacing of the story and how Asher found out about the truth, truly disappointed me. It was like a deja vu on how Felicity found out about what happened with Knox (Worth It). Another thing I didn't like was the whole plot with Asher's dad.
There are a lot of things in the story that bugged me as some are unrealistic. Still all in all I enjoyed the story. The Forbidden Men series is addictive. 👍🏻
The Girls Got Secret
Asher & Remy
With the concept of the book and how the h was portrayed, the story seemed promising. The first half of the book really hooked me in and I love seeing Asher's relationship with Pick. However due to the slow pacing of the story and how Asher found out about the truth, truly disappointed me. It was like a deja vu on how Felicity found out about what happened with Knox (Worth It). Another thing I didn't like was the whole plot with Asher's dad.
There are a lot of things in the story that bugged me as some are unrealistic. Still all in all I enjoyed the story. The Forbidden Men series is addictive. 👍🏻
August 26, 2020
Even though She is the man is one of my most favorite movies of all time, when it comes to books I am not a fan of Girl posing as a guy. The only reason I read this book because I read the previous books and the series is actually very good.
This book wasn't bad rather a solid read. However, I have to admit it was too draggy. There isn't any romance in the first 50% of the book because the female protagonist presented herself as a gay guy. The protagonists bonded, the next 50% was good. The revelation happen very suddenly which is good because it's unexpected but after that, it just didn't hold the expectation. The whole thing happened very late in the book that it wrapped up pretty quickly.
January 24, 2018
D E C E M B E R 1 6T H , 2 0 1 5
Okay, vale, leí el libro hace mucho tiempo por el ARC pero ahora recién publicaré que me pareció.
Hasta el momento todavía no he podido ser capaz de elegir a mi bartender favorito, de verdad, no sé por dónde empezar a elegir. Me encantan todos, cada uno tiene un lugarcito en mi corazón.
Esta historia en particular me hizo enamorarme (más) de Asher, quien habíamos conocido en el libro de Pick, Be My Hero. De modo que cada vez íbamos viendo los aspectos de Asher conforme pasaba cada libro y ya llegó un momento que NECESITÁBAMOS el libro de Asher, y pues aquí está.
Y déjenme decirles que ES TAN INCREIBLEMENTE BUENO.
De verdad que el libro superó todas mis expectativas con respecto a la historia y las personalidades de los protagonistas.
Asher es más de lo que imaginaba. Remy probablemente es una de mis favoritas. Me encantó su historia de amor. Además, no sé, me emociona cuando en un libro hablan en español o hay algún latino.
La verdad no sé qué más decir, si la palabra "perfección" ya describe todo el libro.
¡Y ahora no puedo dejar de pensar en la historia de Brandt y Sarah!
Linda lo hizo otra vez
N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 5
We have a release date!
Oh, my God, I can't wait 26 days. I can't wait to read Asher's story!
I mean, I'm freaking excited whenever I see some teasers.
Or these excerpts!
I think Remy will be awesome! lol
I.
II.
In this scene, Remy is incognito as a guy, and she's really getting to know Asher for the first time
Seriously, I feel like I'm already in love with Asher!
Okay, vale, leí el libro hace mucho tiempo por el ARC pero ahora recién publicaré que me pareció.
Hasta el momento todavía no he podido ser capaz de elegir a mi bartender favorito, de verdad, no sé por dónde empezar a elegir. Me encantan todos, cada uno tiene un lugarcito en mi corazón.
Esta historia en particular me hizo enamorarme (más) de Asher, quien habíamos conocido en el libro de Pick, Be My Hero. De modo que cada vez íbamos viendo los aspectos de Asher conforme pasaba cada libro y ya llegó un momento que NECESITÁBAMOS el libro de Asher, y pues aquí está.
Y déjenme decirles que ES TAN INCREIBLEMENTE BUENO.
De verdad que el libro superó todas mis expectativas con respecto a la historia y las personalidades de los protagonistas.
Asher es más de lo que imaginaba. Remy probablemente es una de mis favoritas. Me encantó su historia de amor. Además, no sé, me emociona cuando en un libro hablan en español o hay algún latino.
La verdad no sé qué más decir, si la palabra "perfección" ya describe todo el libro.
¡Y ahora no puedo dejar de pensar en la historia de Brandt y Sarah!
Linda lo hizo otra vez
N O V E M B E R , 2 0 1 5
We have a release date!
Oh, my God, I can't wait 26 days. I can't wait to read Asher's story!
I mean, I'm freaking excited whenever I see some teasers.
Or these excerpts!
I think Remy will be awesome! lol
I.
"...You look just perfect. I would so throw you down on your bed and ride you right now if I didn't know you were really a girl in there. Hell, I’m tempted to, anyway.”
I rolled my eyes but chased it with a smile. “Thanks. I think.”
“Now practice your man walk,” she demanded, waving out her hand.
I faltered. “My what?”
She sighed. “You’re not going to pass for a dude if you stroll in there with your hidden girl hips swaying and flattened tits pooched out on display.”
My mouth fell open. “Excuse me. I do NOT walk like that.”
She snorted. “Oh...own it, puta. You’re a hot piece of ass, you can’t help the girly swagger.”
“But I don’t—”
“Hunch your shoulder over a little more, concentrate on keeping your hips in line, and try to jut your cock forward when you strut.”
“Do...what?”
“That’s how hot guys walk, like they’re leading with their junk.”
I could only shake my head. I had honestly never seen a guy walk as if he were trying to poke his pecker out ahead of him. “Where do you come up with this shit?”
“Just do it, puta.”
I sighed but used her suggestions, trying to overdramatize the cock-and-go strut, as I was thusly dubbing it.
“What do you think?” I asked.
She purred out a promiscuous growl and clawed the air in my direction. “How do you say ‘I want to sit on your face’ in Spanish?”
II.
“Hey! You two.” Noel pointed at the two women and waved them off. “This is a VIP area. You need to move along.”
The women huffed out their displeasure but Noel narrowed his eyes, and they finally slunk away. As soon as he was relieved of the girl’s grasp, Asher spun on his stool so that he was no longer sitting sideways to face me but now had his legs tucked securely under the counter space...so no more women could climb into his lap.
“Thanks, man,” he told Noel.
“Aww...anything for our delicate little cupcake.” Noel went to pinch his cheeks, but Asher slapped his hand away and called him a dirty name.
As Noel moved off, laughing, a blushing Asher slanted a glance my way. “Sorry about that. They can get really...forward.”
Again, he surprised me. Fisher would've already been all over those two girls—a very sad fact I hadn't learned until after I was engaged to the douchebag. Yeah, it’d been kind of downer to hear he’d slept with pretty much a new girl every time he’d gone out into public without me.
I took a small sip of my beer as I studied Asher’s face, watching him glance over his shoulder at the ladies Noel had shooed away. His expression confused me. I saw the flicker of interest; he definitely didn't mind what he saw. But there was also a wariness, that didn't mesh with his initial attraction to them.
“And...you don’t like forward?” I couldn't help but ask.
He zipped his gaze to me, his green eyes filled with surprise. Then he shrugged. “I don’t know. I just...” He shifted his shoulders again. “I guess I just like to be the one pursuing, you know.” With one last glance at the women he’d rebuffed, he added, “And I haven’t had the chance to do that in a while.”
“I can imagine.” I’d definitely experienced the same draw to him every other female tonight had. He was probably constantly chased by a horny mob.
Shifting closer, he lowered his voice and admitted, “It’s embarrassing as fuck. They all crowd around me like I’m something...I don’t know, amazing, and they don’t know jack shit about me. I’m just a regular guy, and I can’t help but think...they’d only be disappointed if they really got to know me.”
Oh, I begged to differ on that point. So far, he was turning out to be incredibly interesting...and growing more interesting by the moment.
Seriously, I feel like I'm already in love with Asher!
March 7, 2016
I've absolutely loved this series, plain and simple, LOVED it!!!!!
If you haven't read Asher & Remy's story, read it!! It's a great addition to the Forbidden men. I've been consumed with this series for 2 weeks now. What the heck am I going to do now ;)
If you haven't read Asher & Remy's story, read it!! It's a great addition to the Forbidden men. I've been consumed with this series for 2 weeks now. What the heck am I going to do now ;)
December 27, 2015
3.5 "I don't know enough Spanish, but still a very good read" stars.
This is the 7th installment in the Forbidden Men series and focuses on a female drummer, Remy, who disguises herself as a gay male in order to play in the very hip, all-male, rock band Non-Castrato, only to find herself falling for it's delectable lead singer Asher.
I loved this idea. I was so excited about this little gender-mix up twist because it sounded like so much fun! And while Linda Kage delivers all the romance, drama and steamy delights I've come to expect from this fabulous series, I felt like a golden opportunity for some great hijinks and reluctant chemistry was totally missed.
The idea of having a heroine posing as a guy was FANTASTIC! And apparently, VERY RARE in contemporary romance because I couldn't find any other titles with a similar theme (although there are plenty enough in the historical romance genre!). I would have loved to have our heroine hilariously struggle through/explore some male-only scenarios, and bond with all the band members in her own way. She was supposed to be THAT awesome.
However, other than one or two conversations about liking pussy, or the discovery that not every guy uses hair conditioner, there was very little in the way of exploring "how the other half lives". So much lost potential!!!
The tale is told from two points of view, and from what I could tell, Asher just viewed the male Remy as a good pal. I didn't feel any "pull" on his part at all. So the majority of the book was focused on developing their platonic friendship. And while Remy was attracted to Asher from the beginning, he only saw her as a mate, so there was no romantic chemistry or tension at all.
Fans of the series will be delighted by the appearance of past characters, including Pick, Ten and Caroline...and even get to read their way through a wedding. Most Kage fans will also enjoy the focus on family and the strength of sibling love, not to mention the thrills and drama of intertwined plot lines.
Things I Liked:
1. The premise.
2. Pick
3. The gel-styling hair scene.
4. The squirrel.
Things I Didn't Like:
1. Lack of humour and witty dialogue.
2. The use of Spanish that you were just expected to understand. (Note to readers: there is a glossary at the very end. That might have helped had I known it was there. But I didn't. So my frustration grew).
3. Remy's roommate. I wasn't sure...was I MEANT to hate her? Was I meant to cheer her on as a sexual predator? Was she meant to be quirky, or slutty, or just messed up? Or did all her friends just think her behaviour was normal?
4. The whole story about the prisoner's release was absolutely LUDICROUS!!!!! I mean there were things throughout the book that didn't add up (like Remy's peanut allergy being public knowledge or Asher ignoring the fact that his new best buddy could quite possibly be terrifyingly disfigured) but once I read about the release of prisoners due for parole... I just winced and groaned and just.... urgh!!
A good read but don't expect the funny to come and don't expect too much sexual tension. But if you're willing to overlook the unrealistic main characters and plot developments, and just indulge in the Forbidden world Linda Kage has created (and all the characters that come with it), then you'll love Remy and Asher's story.
This is the 7th installment in the Forbidden Men series and focuses on a female drummer, Remy, who disguises herself as a gay male in order to play in the very hip, all-male, rock band Non-Castrato, only to find herself falling for it's delectable lead singer Asher.
I loved this idea. I was so excited about this little gender-mix up twist because it sounded like so much fun! And while Linda Kage delivers all the romance, drama and steamy delights I've come to expect from this fabulous series, I felt like a golden opportunity for some great hijinks and reluctant chemistry was totally missed.
The idea of having a heroine posing as a guy was FANTASTIC! And apparently, VERY RARE in contemporary romance because I couldn't find any other titles with a similar theme (although there are plenty enough in the historical romance genre!). I would have loved to have our heroine hilariously struggle through/explore some male-only scenarios, and bond with all the band members in her own way. She was supposed to be THAT awesome.
However, other than one or two conversations about liking pussy, or the discovery that not every guy uses hair conditioner, there was very little in the way of exploring "how the other half lives". So much lost potential!!!
The tale is told from two points of view, and from what I could tell, Asher just viewed the male Remy as a good pal. I didn't feel any "pull" on his part at all. So the majority of the book was focused on developing their platonic friendship. And while Remy was attracted to Asher from the beginning, he only saw her as a mate, so there was no romantic chemistry or tension at all.
Fans of the series will be delighted by the appearance of past characters, including Pick, Ten and Caroline...and even get to read their way through a wedding. Most Kage fans will also enjoy the focus on family and the strength of sibling love, not to mention the thrills and drama of intertwined plot lines.
Things I Liked:
1. The premise.
2. Pick
3. The gel-styling hair scene.
4. The squirrel.
Things I Didn't Like:
1. Lack of humour and witty dialogue.
2. The use of Spanish that you were just expected to understand. (Note to readers: there is a glossary at the very end. That might have helped had I known it was there. But I didn't. So my frustration grew).
3. Remy's roommate. I wasn't sure...was I MEANT to hate her? Was I meant to cheer her on as a sexual predator? Was she meant to be quirky, or slutty, or just messed up? Or did all her friends just think her behaviour was normal?
4. The whole story about the prisoner's release was absolutely LUDICROUS!!!!! I mean there were things throughout the book that didn't add up (like Remy's peanut allergy being public knowledge or Asher ignoring the fact that his new best buddy could quite possibly be terrifyingly disfigured) but once I read about the release of prisoners due for parole... I just winced and groaned and just.... urgh!!
A good read but don't expect the funny to come and don't expect too much sexual tension. But if you're willing to overlook the unrealistic main characters and plot developments, and just indulge in the Forbidden world Linda Kage has created (and all the characters that come with it), then you'll love Remy and Asher's story.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 517 reviews