Bought: Last Chance Series by A.L. Long

The last memory that Alannah ‘Lanie’ Jackson has of her father is the day he went away. Hidden away in an attic from the rest of the world, the only thing that Alannah ‘Lanie’ Jackson can hold on to is the memory of her father and the hope that one day he will come for her. Every day that passes, the memory of her childhood disappears and she learns that her only purpose now is to please. Trained to act a certain way, the day comes when she can finally be free. She only hopes that the man who purchases her will be kinder than her current master. 

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Alannah 'Lanie' Jackson is a meek but lovely woman, who only knows how to serve men. She was taken at the age of 5 years old and sold to a man for the next 15 years, no one knows what happened to her in the big mansion. Now roll on nearly 15 years later (she's now nearly 20 years old) and she is sold once again to someone else. BUT can this new master be any different to what her old master was or is she carrying on with a life as a down-trodden submissive? 

This is not for the faint-hearted. You will read about certain BDSM things but with a story behind the whole BDSM facade is a brilliant mind of the author who draws you in bit by bit and makes you LOVE Alannah 'Lanie' and root for her to a happy ending. This book unfortunately will make you want more as there is a book 2 of the series and OH BOY do I want to know what happens next.

Heart in the Right Place by Lisa Hill

Lottie Hardwicke is Yorkshire’s answer to Kirstie Allsopp, but ten years spent raising her three children with husband, Drew, has relegated her to Saturday Girl status at the family estate agents. This is Lottie’s year; she’s turning over a new leaf and is going to make her time in property less of a borderline obsession and more of an actual career. Only, she hasn’t bet on her interfering in-laws returning to scupper her plans or her teenage crush, celebrity Tom Thorpe, arriving in the village and offering her the opportunity of a lifetime, which could compromise everything… 

Can Lottie have it all? Can she be a hands-on mum and get her career back, without wrecking her marriage in the process? 

I've never read anything by Lisa Hill before, so would like to thank Lisa Hill for writing an amazing novel to start this series off.

Lottie Harwicke is a mum of 3 kids and a wife of 1 husband who can never say no to his parents. So when Lottie finds out Drew's parents are moving back to the village of Clunderton, she wants to know why he kept it from her. BUT when her teen idol Tom Thorpe wants to buy Clunderton Hall, her father in law Edward Hardwicke wants all the power to himself (money grabbing so & so) and there is the part where in the paper Lottie & Tom was seen (supposedly canoodling lol) and to make Drew think that Lottie is having an affair with Tom Thorpe. But Lottie has other ideas and her infatuation with Tom Thorpe isn't what people think. Lottie wants to run her own estate agents and Tom suggests she helps his friends find a home within Leeds. Lottie thinks she's found a place, but there are complications. What is Pamela hiding and why did she come back to Clunderton? What is so special about Oak Acorn Farm? Is Lottie Hardwicke the next Kirstie Allsopp? What the heck is Edward Hardwicke up to in York?

I've loved reading this book in the series as it was nice to get a fictional character to do what Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer do in real life. Can't wait to read book 2 of this series.

11 Missed Calls by Elisabeth Carpenter

Here are two things I know about my mother:

1. She had dark hair, like mine. 

2. She wasn’t very happy at the end.


Anna has always believed that her mother, Debbie, died 30 years ago on the night she disappeared.


But when her father gets a strange note, she realises that she’s never been told the full story of what happened that night on the cliff.


Confused and upset, Anna turns to her husband Jack – but when she finds a love letter from another woman in his wallet, she realises there’s no-one left to help her, least of all her family.


And then a body is found…

I've never read a Elisabeth Carpenter book before, so the storyline grabbed me from the beginning. I kept stopping and starting the book as life often gets in the way, but over the past couple of days I've really got engrossed in the story and needed to find out what happened.

What happened at the cliff edge? Who was there? Who died? Where is Debbie? All these questions being asked in the story.

Annie (Anna is what she likes to be called) and her mum Debbie recount their lives 30 years ago (going back and forth in chapters of their life and what really happened on that cliff top). Who really died on that cliff top? What are other people hiding. All will be revealed when you read the heart stopping 11 Missed Calls.

Domino Effect (The Domino Trilogy #1) by Jill Elaine Hughes

Start of Domino series 


Peter Rostovich is an enigmatic international artist with ties to the Russian mafia. He manipulates everyone he comes in contract with and nobody can figure him out—not even himself. More than that, he has a taste for bondage, which he infuses into his art.
Virginal Nancy Delaney is an aspiring reporter who tries to crack Peter’s shell. His work is like nothing she’s ever seen—complete with a live sculpture that gets the exhibit shut down by the police.

Peter hates reporters, but Nancy captivates him to the point where he makes her part of his exhibit within seconds of meeting her. He introduces her to the world of BDSM, but his involvement in the criminal underworld puts Nancy in the sights of his fiercest enemy.


Inside Scoop: This is the first part of a trilogy that blends sex, bondage and international thrills into one exciting read, but watch out for the cliffhanger ending. You’ll be hanging on the edge, waiting for book two.

I've had this book for a few years and would like to thank Netgalley and Jill Elaine Hughes for their patience in waiting for this review.

Well, where do I start??? Well Peter Rostovich isn't a man I thought he was going to be. Strange and mysterious comes to mind as well as naughty thoughts (his words not mine). Nancy Delaney is a classy woman, who is also a virgin but who has fantasies that you would never of thought of from a straight A student, but she's also a journalist. When her best friend asks her to go in her place at an Art exhibition, she sees and finds more than she bargained for. Peter takes her on a journey into the unknown through sex and he's trying to shield her away from what and who he really is. BUT as any journalist knows, when someone says NO, you go hunting for answers. What she finds is a whole lot of problems. Can Peter find her in time and explain things or is this the end of road for Nancy Delaney?

Now I need to grab book 2 to find out the next part of this exciting and erotic trilogy.

Italian Billionaire's Determined Lover (The Romano Brothers #3) by Leslie North

Leonardo Romano has made an independent fortune as a boutique hotel magnate. He has the golden touch when it comes to creating luxurious accommodations, but the one thing Leonardo has avoided is following in his Grandfather’s footsteps. Running the family’s original hotel, the Romano Resort, on the island of Sicily, is a job he’s never felt fated to revive. However, now that his brothers have done their parts in securing and remodeling the hotel, it’s up to Leonardo to do what he does best: entice visitors to revel in the lap of luxury. 

Stella Brown is on her last strike. As a historical preservationist she’s just committed the mortal sin of losing a historical property to modern renovations, therefore losing a piece of history. Forever. Now Stella is tasked with proving she can still do her job by halting the Romano Resort’s extravagant renovations and getting them to conform to international preservation laws. Stella isn’t a pushy person, but she’s ready to go to war to save this little piece of Sicily. 

But Stella finds it’s not just the island that’s stunning: the man who owns the resort is gorgeous too. Beautiful and bold, Leonardo is no stranger to bending laws and women to his will, but in Stella he’ll find a sunny beauty with a spine of steel -- one that’s ready to shut down the hotel rather than see its historical significance erased in swaths of cashmere and gold plated toilets. As the two connect over their desire to see the Hotel Romano refinished properly, they’ll find their views of each other building to passionate proportions. As time runs out and luxury continues to battle with laws, they’ll have to decide if compromise is possible or if everything will turn to dust.

I would like to thank Netgalley for letting me review this book and Leslie North for writing a superb and sexy series.

Leonardo Romano is the eldest of the Romano brothers and also the most stubbornist one out of them. He's a high flying entrepreneur who has loads of hotels under the Romano Hotel business. He's been called back to do what he does best with their family resort The Romano del Mare, but one person is in his way and that's Stella Brown. A woman who wrote a cease and desist BEFORE she saw the building. She's on a mission that will either make or break her job. But when she meets the hunky and gorgeous Leonardo Romano, she can't resist dragging him to her way of thinking. Has Leonardo met his match in Stella Brown or has Stella gone a step too far with what her job title is all about?

All will be revealed in the final part of The Romano Brothers.

Avenging Christa: A Billionaire Romance (Irresistibly Mine #2) by Tracie Delaney & M. A. Comley

Christa

I thought justice would save me—I was wrong.

Sutton Atwood, the man who almost killed me, is back. This time, his weapon of choice is the very legal system that was supposed to protect me and mine.

He wants my son—not because he loves him, but because he hates me.

I can’t let him win. I won’t let him win. If compromise is my only option I’ll take it, even if it kills me.

Sorry Dayton, I love you, but my son must come first.

Dayton

How can I protect the woman I love if I’m part of the threat?

By any and every means possible, that’s how—except Christa’s not making my fight easy. Why would she when I still have everything to prove and she has everything to lose?

Sure, I can compromise—maybe—but fair warning, retreat is definitely not in my nature.

I’m in a league of my own, a winner, a fighter, and I absolutely will not quit until my enemies are eliminated.

Read the finale in the scintillating Irresistibly Mine series now.

I would like to thank Tracie Delaney & M A Comley for writing a compelling finale to a terrific series.

This is another PAGE TURNING & UNPUTDOWNABLE book. Christa is dating Dayton Somers, her son Max loves him and she loves him too. BUT there is a man who is out to crush Christa and his name is Sutton Attwood. He's Max's biological dad. He's out to ruin Christa and take away Max, but Dayton & Christa will do ANYTHING to keep him away. Unfortunately, the courts have said Sutton can see his son and has visitiation rights. What happens next will either make or break Christa & Dayton's relationship. How far is Sutton prepared to go? What will it take to get Sutton out of Christa & Max's lives?

All will be revealed when you read the 2nd and final installment of An Irresistibly Mine series.

Italian Billionaire's Stubborn Lover (The Romano Brothers #1) by Leslie North

Luxury real estate agent Adeline Peluso came to Italy in search of adventure. Inheriting an apartment with a view of the coast in Sicily sounded like something out of a movie, but after two years watching a resort she’d always loved fall to pieces she’s ready to throw in the proverbial towel...that is until one of the owners finally walked into her office. Tall, dark, and devastatingly handsome, the man would drive her crazy with his arguments if he didn’t set her aflame with his kisses.

Billionaire Nicolo Romano is a global citizen. He’s the kind of guy who skis in the Alps, snorkels in the caribbean, and enjoys the lights of the Vegas strip on a whim. He has no desire to be tied down anytime soon. So when he and his brothers inherit the family resort, Nicolo has one goal: Sell it and sell it fast. But coming back to the place he loved as a child to find a woman who feels just as passionately about the crumbling hotel throws him. Instead of using his business savvy to sell fast, Nicolo is wooing this woman with his island, slowly falling back in love with the place himself. 

When whip smart arguments turn into stolen kisses and stolen kisses turn into steamy nights, Adeline and Nicolo will realize that they’re fighting for more than the fate of a historic hotel. They’re fighting for the chance of life’s greatest adventure: True Love.

I would like to thank Leslie North for a superb start to The Romano Brothers series.

Nicolo Romano is the youngest brother and he just wants to sell the family resort as it's crumbling down around them, but a certain Estate Agent has other ideas. Walk in estate agent Adeline Peluso and is Nicolo in for a ride. She's determined to see the Romano del Mare come back to life, but Nicolo has other ideas as it's crumbling and he wants to get to the next project that is in INDIA. Adeline is headstrong and determined to make Nicolo see her way in restoring and renovating the Romano del Mare back to it's former glory. Is there a love connection between them or is it Adeline's imagination? Who will win this war and what will happen to them if they fall in love?

You have to read this book as it's amazing and unputdownable. It brings Leonardo (the eldest brother) into the story a bit. Adeline is brilliant and fiery as well and Nicolo is drop dead gorgeous.

Italian Billionaire's Unexpected Lover (The Romano Brothers #2) by Leslie North

Gianpierre Romano is being dragged back to Italy by the one thing he can’t escape: family. The Romano fortune and name has followed him wherever he goes—but that only made the headstrong Italian more determined to strike out on his own. Now, he’s on the cusp of achieving international fame for an architectural project in the middle east when he’s roped into reconstructing the foundation of his family’s resort. It’s a project that Gianpierre has the passion for, but not the time—not if he wants to make it to Dubai for the start date of his dream project. That is until he’s paired with a pretty project manager who makes him want to get passionate about more than just medieval foundations.

Luciana Vivaldi rushed to Italy to care for her niece after the death of her sister, and then fell in love with the culture and people. Beautiful and whip smart, she’s been recruited to keep the Romano Resort’s hunky structural engineer focused and to take him to task if he doesn’t follow his own directives. She’s got a passion for organizing and no time for romance—that is until a kiss following a falling foundation has her doing the one thing she can’t afford: falling for her boss.

Gianpierre and Luciana don’t have time for distractions, but when a twist of fate—and a brisk housing market—leave them living together, their excuses for staying apart fall as fast as the foundation. The spark they have is more blinding than a Sicilian sunset, but when emotions run deep and careers are on the line will playing house be the foundation for a lifelong love? Or will it all fall like a house of cards? 

I would like to thank Netgalley and Leslie North for allowing me to read and review book 2 of The Romano Brothers series.

Gianpierre Romano is the 2nd oldest brother and he's the architect in the family. He has ambitions to be on the cover of a prestigious magazine. He's off to Dubai and to be on the front cover of the magazine. Only 1 thing is standing in his way Luciana Vivaldi. The vivacious Luciana is his project manager who is bringing up her niece as her own daughter (due to her sister's passing). With having no where to go, she's about to invade Gianpierre's life and turn it upside down. Will he ever get his dream of being on the cover of the Architecture magazine or will he throw it all away for Luciana? Will Luciana be able to get Gianpierre out of her mind or will they play happy families?

You have to read this book as it's amazing and unputdownable. It brings Nicolo and Adeline into the story a bit. Luciana is brilliant and fiery as well.