Turn It Up by Inez Kelley - A Review(-ish)

I'm always drawn to the best friends to lovers trope because that's what Scott & I did. In Turn It Up, Inez Kelley gives us a compelling, deeply sympathetic hero and a heroine I had a much harder time warming up to, but an overall sweet love story.

Bastian Talbot is in a quandary. In the last year or so, his feelings for his best friend, Charlie Pierce have evolved from friendship to serious lusty love. The fact that Charlie and Bastien do a radio talk show about sex only seems to exacerbate the situation. They have serious chemistry on air and off, and their on air flirting can be pretty hot and heavy. Bastian wants to confess his feelings for Charlie, but he's afraid of her reaction. She's a bit of a flibberty-jibbet and she absolutely doesn't do commitment. Bastien wants more than sex from Charlie, he wants forever.

Charlie is aghast when Bastian confesses his feelings for her. I mean, sure, she's had a fantasy or two about Bastian, but she would never, EVER risk their friendship by taking it to the next level. When Bastian tells her he doesn't just love her, but he wants to marry her, she's infuriated and terrified. She doesn't want to lose him, but she knows that this confession changes everything for them. She just wants him to sleep with her, so they can get it out of their system and then move on. Sure, she knows it will change things, but since she doesn't do commitment, she figures, at least they'll have acted on it, and then they can try to figure out how their friendship will go from there. Of course, Bastian has a different idea. He will not agree to have sex with Charlie until she agrees to marry him. This sets up a back and forth of  unconsummated sexual encounters and emotional one-ups-manship.

Overall, this is an entertaining book. Ms. Kelley is a very witty writer and her humor and dialogue are engaging and funny to read. What I had a harder time with was Charlie. I got that she wasn't ready to take her friendship with Bastian to the next level. But I never understood nor related to her thinking behind, "We'll just fuck and move on." Why would she think that that idea would work? I never understood why she acted the way she did, which lead to a ton of frustration for me, and *of course* made me immediately think she was unworthy of Bastian, who worked really hard at wooing her, and really wanted a life with her. The book has a really interesting dynamic between Bastian and his brother Caz, who is a recovering addict. Their relationship shed a lot of light on Bastian's character and made him all the more compelling to me. It was Charlie that I couldn't relate to, and Charlie is why I'm giving this book a lower grade.

Inez Kelley is one of my favorite contemporary erotic authors, so I wish this one worked better for me. I've read mostly very positive reviews of this book, so I'd imagine it will work for most readers.While Turn It Up is an entertaining book that I think many readers will enjoy, full of laughter and sexual tension, it's unlikeable heroine may turn some readers off, as it did me.

Final grade: C+

Moving Out!

It's finally here!

After 14 years of living in DC, I'm moving to Richmond this Thursday. It seems Scott & I have been talking about and planning for this move for so long, it's almost surreal that it's here.

Either way, Katidom will be dark at least until next Monday as I finalize the details of packing, and we move house on Thursday. I hope you guys have a fantastic week, and Happy Reading!

Play-by-Play Series Winner!

The winner of both Play-by-Play books is:

Stacie

Congratulations, Stacie! I hope you enjoy them.

Thanks to everyone who visited Katidom! I hope you'll keep stopping by!

Provoke Me by Cari Quinn - A Review(-ish)

Kelly Crossman has had a thing for her boss for more than three years. She manifests that attraction by arguing with him. Alot. Spencer Galvin is a brilliant merchandiser and boss, the fact that he has a terrific ass is a nice side benefit. Unbeknownst to Kelly, Spencer's attraction to her is very mutual. But due to a checkered past getting involved with a married woman he worked with, Spencer is bound and determined to avoid getting involved with Kelly, no matter how hot he finds her.

All of that changes when he catches Kelly at Kink, the sex club that he frequents. Unfortunately, before anything can really heat up, he and Kelly have to flee as the police have raided the club, which is not exactly on the up and up. While in the car, Kelly makes a wholly unexpected move on him, and he reacts like a bolt of lightening. Their chemistry is incendiary and if he was attracted before, he's pretty much blinded by lust now. Soon Kelly and Spencer are having extremely hot sex. But Spencer has no intention of getting closer. despite being really impressed by Kelly's intelligence and unbelievably challenged and attracted by her "gamesmanship". The two of them spend a lot of time dancing around their feelings and being all, "this is just sex." But Spencer knows that Kelly is getting more serious and he hasn't told her about his promotion, which will take him to a different state.

I have mixed feeling about this book. I really enjoyed the couple's chemistry, and the sex scenes are hot, inventive and work really well. But honestly, I was a bit befuddled about why Kelly was so attracted to Spencer. I felt that he often was a butthead to her, being dismissive of her feelings and generally ugly to her. I just didn't fully understand why she couldn't let him go. Particularly when he makes it very clear to her that their relationship isn't exclusive (he comes to her smelling of another woman -- unlike any other woman on the planet, this makes her hot and she engages in a sex act with him). While Spencer's issues are explained, I didn't understand why Kelly made so many allowances for his behavior, particularly when he refused to explain them to her. All of that being said, I think that this author has a really terrific voice and her writing style shows a confidence and ease with her craft. This makes me think that I will try another Cari Quinn book. My problems with this one had more to do with a hero who didn't work for me, than anything to do with the author's writing style.

Final grade: C+


An ARC of this book was generously provided by Ms. Quinn. Thank you!

Changing the Game by Jaci Burton - A Review(-ish)

When I read The Perfect Play by Jaci Burton, I was intrigued by a secondary character named, Elizabeth Darnell. Liz is a sports agent, and due to some very underhanded and destructive behavior, she comes very, very close to breaking up Mick and Tara, the lead couple in The Perfect Play. When Mick  finds out, he fires Liz (rightly so). Liz also handles Mick's younger brother, Gavin Riley, who is a professional baseball player. Liz has been avoiding Gavin since Mick fired her, because she's quite sure that Gavin will follow suit.

At first, Gavin is amused that Liz has been avoiding him. Gavin's family has always been quite close with Liz, who is basically an orphan and celebrates most holidays with the Riley's. But now he's had enough. It's time for Liz to face him and for them to get a few things straight. For her part, Liz has always had a thing for Gavin. She's loved him from afar for a long time, and has compensated for those feelings by constantly thrusting women at him. She's dreading the time when they finally speak face-to-face. She knows he's going to fire her which will break her heart (and hit her financially). So she's completely taken aback when Gavin invites her to his house and one thing leads to another. Next thing she knows, she and Gavin are having the hottest, most passionate night of sex she's ever experienced. As Liz tries to regroup, Gavin is amused that she continues to insist first that it was a one time thing, then that it's a just sex thing. But the more time he spends with Liz, the more challenged he is by her. She's a working woman, not someone who stays home and keeps the home fires burning. She doesn't pine for him (outwardly), she doesn't work her schedule around his, and she definitely doesn't act head over heels for him. But Gavin continues to push Liz to stay with him, realizing that things are better for him when she's around. He's playing good ball, he's happy and fulfilled. But Liz is concerned about her heart, and she's not letting Gavin get any closer.

Gavin's family is happy about his relationship. Well, all except Mick, who is furious that his brother is involved with the woman who nearly broke he and Tara up. He's overtly rude and antagonistic to Liz. And Liz is willing to take it. She's apologized time and again to Mick, to Tara, to Nathan, Tara's son, to Mick's family. All have accepted her apologies, but Mick. And she's unwilling to be a divisive force in the brother's relationship. But as a family tragedy unfolds, Liz want to be with Gavin to support him, and Mick is having none of it. Will Gavin listen to his brother and break things off with Liz? Or will he follow his heart?

This is another really entertaining book by Jaci Burton. I adore books about professional athletes and this book is truly a fun read. Jaci excels at writing "man-speak" and I love the camaraderie that is felt between Gavin and his fellow players and between the Riley family. I also truly enjoyed reading Liz's redemption. When I began the book I intensely disliked this woman, and was really interested to see how her inner monologue would inform her character. It made her far more sympathetic than I expected. But I also liked that Liz wasn't neutered. She's still tough, driven, can be a full-on bitch when necessary and is not afraid to stand up for herself. My only niggle with the book was that I wasn't really clear about Gavin's motivation for getting involved with Liz. Perhaps it was just about the sex, but I wish that Jaci had explored that aspect of his thinking a bit more. His attraction to her was clear enough, but I wish I'd understood more why he decided to change their completely business relationship to a more personal one.

Changing the Game has laugh out loud moments, tender moments, and is filled with very hot sex. It's a fantastically fun beach read, and one I can wholeheartedly recommend.

Final grade: B+

An ARC of this book was provided by the publisher. Thank you!

THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED - THANKS FOR PLAYING!

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Leave a comment and be entered to win both The Perfect Play and Changing the Game. 

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Storm's Heart Winner!

Randomizer tells me the winner is commenter #17:

Renee!

Please contact me at marykate317 (at) verizon dot net with your mailing address and I'll send you out your copy.

Thanks, everyone for playing!