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Monday, September 30, 2013

VBT: SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW: BLOOD MATE BY MINA CARTER

SPOTLIGHT & REVIEW
BLOOD MATE
BY
MINA CARTER


Blurb:

The only thing they have in common? Really…sharp…teeth.

Major Antonia Fielding has one goal: to escape the clutches of the Project. With the blood-virus infecting her system, though, a body bag is likely her only way out. Until her boss lets slip that he may just have a cure for her—if she brings in an escaped Lycan.

Can she trust him? Now there’s the million-dollar question. Then again, can she afford to take that chance?
Darce Foster was a Special Forces soldier, until the Project got hold of him. Now he’s a Lycan, a lab-created werewolf, this close to escaping his creators—until another of the projects experiments stops him in his tracks. Not because she has the power to hold him, but because he instantly recognizes the impossible. The vampiress is his mate.

Allowing her to bring him in is his only choice—and possibly the last mistake of his life.
Enemies or lovers, it doesn’t matter. When they discover that the Project is hiding yet more secrets, they must work together to bring it down...or die in the attempt.
 

REVIEW:
Blood Mate
Project Rebellion Book 2
By Mina Carter

Blood Mate is the second book in Mina Carter's Project Rebellion Series.

I was totally excited when I was offered this book for review. I hadn't even realized it was out yet. I'm a fan of Mina Carter books, and Perfect Mate is one of my favorites. I absorbed that book. That being said, I had high expectations with this sequel, and Mina didn't let me down.

Blood Mate was action packed, and filled with mystery, and suspense. It kept me on the edge of my seat while I was reading it, and didn't let me go until I finished. The world that Mina has created for this series is amazing, and she share knows how to spin a story.

I liked Antonia and Darce. They show the true meaning of how opposites attract, or in this case enemies attract. They took me through a range of emotions when they were together. I would have liked a few more romantic scenes between the two of them. Other then that, this was a well written, fun, and exciting book to read.

4.5 STARS / 5


Excerpt:

Copyright © 2013 Mina Carter
All rights reserved — a Samhain Publishing, Ltd. publication
He held the smile. For once, he and the animal were in perfect accord. She’d locked him down with silver, but it didn’t mean he was going to stay that way. Not with the moon still in the sky and his mate within reach. While they’d talked, he’d worked the silver from his system. The metal beneath him was wet with tainted sweat. A little puddle under his ass like he’d pissed the stuff. Opening the connection to his wolf piece by piece, he let the creature free, using the strength and rage to galvanize his human frame.
“What do you mean, ‘that’s simple’?”
He finished the grin. The movement bared his teeth, revealing the lengthened canines behind his human lips. “Easy. I’m not locked down.”
His words fell into stunned silence. Her eyes widened, her slight intake of breath a soft rasp in the air. Their gazes locked and tension spiraled as each waited for the other to move.
He saw it the moment she made her decision. A red sheen tainted the darkness of her eyes, flowing over the surface like oil over water. Man, that was some freaky crap.
A bellow escaped his lips. He yanked on the cuffs. The silver-laced steel bit deep, slicing through his skin like an acid-dipped razor but he ignored the pain. Couldn’t afford to let it slow him down.
Using momentum to snap the chain, he threw himself across the space between them and reached for her. His arms opened wide to wrap her up in a solid tackle but, like him, she was already moving. With a grunt of surprise and anger, she twisted to the side, then rebounded off the metal interior to come right at him.
They met in the middle in a clash of bodies and tumbled, rolling across the truck-bed in a tangle of limbs. She fought like a wildcat. His vision filled with flying strands of dark hair and the flash of her teeth as she snarled. He winced, blocking like a demon while heavy blows rained down on his head and shoulders. Pain flared all over his body but he ignored it and fought through. Forced to protect his sides, his abdomen and his face, he ducked and turned, weaving before he went on the offensive, trying to trap her arms and pin her down.
The fight was close and fast as hell. Despite her aggression and the sheer power behind her blows, he was tougher and bigger. A long, painful minute later he had her stretched out under him with her hands above her head. Still she fought, snapping at his face and neck with fangs that didn’t look nearly so cute when they were threatening to take chunks out of him.
“Shhh…calm down.”
He held on for grim death, throwing a heavy thigh over both of hers when she contorted and tried to knee him in the balls. Sometimes being the opposite sex in a down and dirty fight had its disadvantages, especially when you were the gender with the dangly bits. He was lucky she didn’t have those sharp little fangs anywhere near his crotch. That was one blow-job he could well do without.
“Screw you.”
She struggled against his hold again. She didn’t…couldn’t break free, not with the firm grip he had on her, but each heave she gave pressed them closer together. The truck aided him, rattling over potholes and jerking them about until she was jammed in the right angle between the floor and the wall. Every inch of her slender but curvy frame pressed tight against him.
“Believe me, doll. I’d love you to.”
She froze again, her eyes widening as her struggles rubbed their lower bodies together and she clocked the erection hard against her stomach. His gaze caught hers, heat flowing between them. She dragged a shaky breath in over parted lips. His attention riveted on the pink temptation scant inches from him and he lowered his head, watching her every step of the way. Waiting for her to turn into a spitting cat again.
She didn’t.
Instead, she watched him as if transfixed, her taut body strangely pliant under his, the soft curves and hollows fitting naturally against the hard musculature of his larger frame. A perfect fit. Like she’d been made to be held in his arms. A sense of familiarity, of coming home, assaulted him and he knew he’d give up everything for a few moments in her embrace.
Her pink tongue darted out, wet her lips in unconscious invitation. He groaned. There was only so much temptation a man could take. He’d wanted to be soft, gentle…prove to her he wasn’t an animal, but need rode him hard. Like a devil on his back, it scoured all softness from him until only lust was left. The driving need to taste her, devour her, consumed him and he swooped down, claiming her lips in a hard kiss almost bruising in its intensity.
Unlike earlier, he didn’t—couldn’t—wait for her to soften.
Instead, he demanded and took, parting her lips with a hard sweep to sample the treasures within. Her taste exploded on his tongue, a heavenly combination of tart and sweet, fascinating his senses and totally indescribable. She tasted sublime. Ambrosia. If he died right now, he’d go having tasted a little piece of heaven itself.
The truck rattled again, rolling him so he completed the movement. Pulling  her into his side, he held both her wrists with one hand and used the other to sweep down the length of her body. She started, a jump of surprise when he cupped her ass and palmed the luscious curve before pulling her leg up over his thigh. He settled against her. His hips cradled in hers, he moved in to deepen the kiss.
She didn’t fight him, just held her body still under his as he stroked his tongue along hers. Enticing her. Teasing her. She moaned, the sexy little sound lost under his lips. He ravaged her mouth, taking and demanding, then giving back in equal measure when she responded. Slowly at first, just the tentative sweep of her tongue, her body rigid as though she fought temptation…then the dam broke. She whimpered against his lips, the sound of her surrender sweet music to his ears, and kissed him back.
Triumph roared through him. All the while his mind screamed at him about operational awareness. That now he had her subdued, he should be doing something about escaping. Wrap the chains around her wrists and imprison her against the cold, hard steel of the truck-side instead. Not kiss her like his life depended on it. Certainly not groan as her tongue slid against his, and roll so she rested on his chest.
Her hands drove into his hair, tugging and pulling at the long locks as she plastered herself over him. Her breasts mashed against him, the soft mounds delicious pressure against the hard muscles of his broad chest. Her nipples were hard bullets under the damp fabric of her T-shirt and his groan joined hers as she rubbed herself, cat-like, over his chest.
Heat arched, little lightning strikes every time her skin slid over his, a storm playing out over and between them. A storm of passion he wanted to wallow in, dancing and screwing in the rain to make the woman under him his at last.
Knees on either side of his hips, she ground down, rocking against him and nipping his lower lip. Arousal shot through him at the pleasure-pain, washing over his scalp in a thousand tiny pinpricks before rolling through his body.
“Tease.”
He broke from the kiss to accuse, then dragged his lips along the sensitive curve of her neck, pausing halfway to breathe in her scent. Arms wrapped around her slender waist, he closed his eyes and held her to him.
Perfection. Utter perfection.
“I’m the tease?” She challenged, hands in his hair to drag his head back so she could look in his eyes. The red in hers was gone, replaced by a new darkness that set his blood and body aflame. He surged into movement, sitting up with her in his lap and reached for her lips again. She was his. He had to have her—
The truck braked and turned, the mechanical sounds of a gate and conversation reaching them. Darce stiffened, fingers biting into her hips but once again she was too quick for him. The needle pierced his shoulder before he could push her away. Silver flooded his veins, the fresh hit stealing his ability to move. With a grunt he slid back, his eyes still on her.
“I’m sorry. I have to take you in.”


 ABOUT THE AUTHOR


Mina was born and raised in the East Farthing of Middle Earth (otherwise known as the Midlands, England) and spend her childhood learning all the sorts of things generally required of a professional adventurer. Able to ride, box, shoot, make and read maps, make chainmail and use a broadsword (with varying degrees of efficiency) she was disgusted to find that adventuring is not considered a suitable occupation these days.
So, instead of slaying dragons and hunting vampires and the like, Mina spends her days writing about hot shifters, government conspiracies and vampire lords with more than their fair share of RAWR. Turns out wanna-be adventurers have quite the turn of imagination after all...

(But she keeps that sword sharp, just in case the writing career is just a dream and she really *is* an adventurer.)

The boring part: A full time author and cover artist, Mina can usually be found hunched over a keyboard or graphics tablet, frantically trying to get the images and words in her head out and onto the screen before they drive her mad. She's addicted to coffee and would like to be addicted to chocolate, but unfortunately chocolate dislikes her.

Stalking links:
Email: mina@mina-carter.com
twitter:
@minacarter
Facebook:
Profile | Page


Buy Links:
eBook Available to pre-order from Samhain Publishing | Amazon | Amazon.co.uk | Kobo | B&N

Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
Pub Date: 9/17/2013
Series: The Project Rebellion, #2
Format Available: ePub, Mobi, HTML, Adobe Acrobat, Rocketbook
ISBN: 9781619216556
 

VBT: SPOTLIGHT/ REVIEW & GIVEAWAY- IMMORTAL SEDUCTION (GODS OF LOVE 4) BY JENNIFER LYNNE


IMMORTAL SEDUCTION
GODS OF LOVE BOOK 4
BY
JENNIFER LYNNE


BLURB:

Some seek love, some seek power. For Aphrodite, the two are permanently intertwined. And when the goddess of desire yearns for love, who among mortals could possibly resist her power?
                             
Firefighters Ashur, Kieran and Hugh are damaged men. A tragedy that took the life of their colleague has left them scarred, both physically and emotionally. Love and power are nothing to them but empty words.

Hoping to reignite their mother’s passion for life and love, the erotes bring these mortal men to Aphrodite’s attention.

But with the blackness inside Ash, Kier and Hugh becoming ever deeper, will it take more than the power of a goddess to save them? And if she loses that battle, how will she rediscover the path to healing for her own emotionally damaged heart?

Warning: this erotic romance novella contains ménage (MFM and MFMM) sexual scenes between the goddess of desire and three hot fire fighters. It is suitable for Adult readers only.


AVAILABLE AT:

Amazon (Kindle)
All Romance eBooks (EPUB, PDF & Kindle)
Smashwords (EPUB & PDF)
 



REVIEW:

Immortal Seduction
Gods of Love Book 4
By. Jennifer Lynne

Jennifer Lynne's Gods of Love series, is one of my favorite series out right now. The emotions, and feelings that come from her characters always feel real. She's very good at blending sensuality, emotions, and interesting characters. Immortal Seduction had that and more.

In this installment of Gods of Love the focus is on Aphrodite. Her sons having found real love, and happiness in the mortal world, want the same for their mother. They want her to rediscover what it's like to love, and have her own happiness. The sons have a plan, and they execute it.

They set their mother up with three men that they hand picked themselves. These men, are suffering from the same if not more pain then Aphrodite is. She will have to do everything she can to heal these men, and in turn heal herself.

I really enjoyed Aphrodite's story. I could feel her pain, and was really looking forward to seeing her find happiness. The story was sexy, emotional, and passionate. Jennifer Lynne always does an excellent job of conveying all her characters emotions, and she didn't let me down in this story.

Asher, Hugh, and Kieren were interesting, but damaged characters. Their pain, however was very real, and it was like I was feeling it for myself. They definitely needed Aphrodite as much, if not more then she needed them.

My favorite part of this book is the relationship between Aphrodite, and her sons. How wonderful is it to have sons that love, and care enough about you, to want you to have what they've found.

My only complaint is the the ending. It felt it was a tad bit rushed, and I wanted to see more of their happiness, not just the glimpse of it.

4.5 STARS/ 5




EXCERPT:

Rated Adults-only, 18+

Retreat. She must retreat before it consumed her, this darkness. She had enough darkness of her own to contend with. Reluctant tears pooled beneath her closed eyelids and her throat tightened, hurting her. The poor dear man.
Stupid, stubborn, and with a soul-deep suffering that would take more than a flash of her power to heal. Her safest option was to leave here now and seek out someone else who would benefit from her endless experience. Someone who would welcome her assistance. Someone who would be unable to resist her potent brand of desire. Someone who would ease this incessant physical ache in her womb as it squeezed tight, reminding her of its hunger.
There were…she concentrated. Yes. Several candidates within a mile of here who would welcome her with open arms. Several hundred, if she expanded her search. A billion lonely souls, calling out for her guidance and her love, if she wanted to abandon this moment and this man.
But did she? How could she leave him like this? So hurt, so…enraged. How could she justify walking away from that level of pain? Walking away would give truth to the nagging anxiety that her heart really had disappeared down a deep dark hole.
Perhaps I really have forgotten how to love. Heartless, or helpful? It is up to me to make that decision. I can choose, right now. One path. Or the other.
The night breeze crept across her skin like a sign from some of the gods, and in that moment she knew that Hephaestus was not laughing. Neither was Ares. The deformed god of blacksmiths and volcanoes, her one-time husband Heph who had been treated horribly at her hands, and her powerful lover Ares, god of war himself, both had hearts bigger than that of the goddess of love. She could feel their well-wishes in this quest to rediscover her essence.
Laughter began to bubble even as tears dribbled down her cheeks. When she flicked out her tongue to the side and caught one of them, the taste of the sea filled her mouth. Salt. A symbol of truth in some religions on this earth. There was no choice really, in the end. Immortality was a bitch if you had to live too long with self-loathing.

(copyright Jennifer Lynne 2013)


Before Immortal Seduction there was Gods of Love (Books 1-3), available either as individual eBooks or in a cost-saving series bundle (print or eBook)
  











PLATINUM PASSION (Gods of Love 1)
BEST BOOK OF 2011 Nominee in GLBT FANTASY ROMANCE at The Romance Reviews.

Platinum Passion is a 17,000 word erotic romance novella including menage a trois (MMF & MFM).

Three people. One erotic fantasy. And a twentieth wedding anniversary like no other.

Jeannie yearns for the return of passion in her marriage. Jake craves new excitement in the form of another man in a way that will not upset the balance of his marriage nor his undying love for his wife. Pothos, the god of sexual yearning, is one of the erotes and an aspect of Eros, the Olympian god of desire.

On the last night of winter this couple's distinctive yearning has called to Pothos, and by the power of the erotes, he intends to rekindle the flame of Jake and Jeannie's passion in a night of desire that will be the ultimate platinum anniversary gift.

And when the gods of love decide your marriage needs a boost, they never do it by halves.

Platinum Passion is the first in the Gods of Love series of stand-alone novellas that have the erotes as a common theme.



AVAILABLE AT:
Amazon (Kindle)
All Romance ebooks (Kindle, EPUB or PDF)
Apple iTunes (for iPad, iPhone, iPod)
and Diesel | Kobo |Sony
 

 










 
APHRODITE CALLING (Gods of Love 2)


A woman with a secret past



Thirty-two year old Gina is forced to confront her fears when she attends a high school reunion. Born into a male body, she spent her childhood and teen years living as a boy, and she has only now returned in an effort to put the past behind her so she can begin to live life without the continuing fear of loneliness and rejection.

A god of sexual desire on the edge of burnout

Himeros is one of the erotes, an aspect of Eros, and as such it is his duty to answer the call of sexual desire whenever a human needs him. But he has been living among humans too long and his energy has waned. When he decides to accept one last call he finds a woman who is unique. A woman who answers his own call and offers everything he desires. A woman who understands the whole human experience, from every perspective. Has he finally found the one with whom even a god of desire could find fulfilment? Forever, after all, is a long time to be alone.

AVAILABLE AT:
Amazon (Kindle)
All Romance ebooks (Kindle, EPUB or PDF)
Apple itunes (for iPad, iPhone, iPod)
 













SEX CLUB SECRETS (Gods of Love 3) 

Sometimes love can flourish in the most unexpected places…

Ella is in love with her best friend Kade. But her love has not been returned, and when bisexual Kade shows no signs of becoming romantic towards her, she decides to call a halt on her unrequited love and accept an invitation to a celebrated sex club.

Kade is distressed when the woman he is beginning to see as more than a friend decides to visit Secrets before he can tell her how he feels. He follows her into the club and witnesses her at play with the enigmatic Anteros, a sexy god-like man who seems to know exactly how to satisfy her innermost cravings. But Anteros also feeds the hidden desires within Kade. How can he admit his feelings for Ella when he’s not sure he can commit with his whole heart?

Anteros is one of the erotes, an aspect of Eros and the ancient Greek god of requited and unrequited love. He has heard the call of these would-be lovers and intends to show them that friendship can sometimes be the best place to kick start a lasting romantic relationship.
But love cannot flourish unless it is returned, and how will he convince Kade – a man who occasionally enjoys other men – that he can be true to the woman he loves? What will happen to this couple when the night ends and they return to the real world outside the door of Secrets?

Has one of the gods of love finally taken on a challenge he cannot fulfil?

AVAILABLE AT:
Amazon (Kindle)
All Romance ebooks (Kindle, EPUB or PDF)
Apple iTunes store (for iPad, iPhone, iPod)



 








Gods of Love (1-3) Series Bundle


Together for the first time in one collection, the first three novellas in the GODS OF LOVE series:



PLATINUM PASSION
APHRODITE CALLING
SEX CLUB SECRETS

The Greek gods of desire are skilled at satisfying the erotic needs of mortals who cross their path. But where do the gorgeous erotes turn for sexual healing when loneliness strikes at each eternal yet world-weary heart? Even the gods themselves are not immune from the influence of love.

Platinum Passion
A night of ménage a trois passion will change three lives forever. Jeannie and Jake's platinum anniversary becomes an unforgettable experience when Pothos, god of sexual yearning, steps in to save their twenty-year marriage.

Aphrodite Calling
A god of sexual desire on the edge of burnout meets a woman with a unique and secret past…In the arms of transsexual woman Gina, has Himeros finally discovered the one with whom even a god of love could find fulfillment?

Sex Club Secrets
Sometimes love can flourish in the most unexpected places. Ella and her bisexual friend Kade meet the erotic god Anteros in a celebrated sex club—but the challenges facing these potential friends-to-lovers could prove too much for the god of requited and unrequited love.

Buy the bundle in digital format

Buy the bundle in PRINT




ABOUT THE AUTHOR




Jennifer Lynne lives in Melbourne, Australia, and writes short contemporary erotic romance, mostly with paranormal/fantasy elements.

When she’s not writing what her family and friends call “porn for chicks” and what she prefers to call “super-hot romance for intelligent readers”, she is working in the admin day job, running around after two teenage daughters and trying to find time for her lovely new husband of one year.

Jennifer is published with Red Sage and Breathless Press. Over the past 18 months she has also embarked on an indie journey with the publication of her GODS OF LOVE romance series featuring erotic Greek gods and modern-day mortals in need of sexual healing.

Find Jennifer on the web at:



TOUR GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

Jennifer is giving away a $15 Amazon GC and a swag pack including bookmark, Gods of Love cover flats, pen and a cute koala bear crystal charm for mobile phone to ONE lucky winner at the end of her tour:

Open Internationally