ARC Review: Southern Nights and Secrets

I met Robin Covington at the RWA Conference last July. I'd previously read her books before and I really enjoyed them. So, when I saw that her new release was up on NetGalley, I immediately requested it. Check out my thoughts below!

Title: Southern Nights and Secrets
Series: The Boys Are Back In Town, #4
Author: Robin Covington
Publisher: Entangled: Indulgence
Release Date: September 19, 2016
Pages: 208
Buy Links: Amazon | BN | iBooks | Kobo | Amazon CA | Amazon UK

Blurb:

Being a doctor is everything to me, but I’m not going to let bureaucrats tell me how to practice medicine. It’s about saving lives no matter what, screw them and their paperwork.

When the one woman I could never forget, Ginger Crawford, shows up as my boss all bets are off. The heat between us is tough to ignore but I have to if I want a future at this hospital. It isn’t easy. Every time we argue, I want her even more.

But I’ve got secrets she can never know, and she’s always going to be way too good for me. So it’s best if she hates me…at least that’s what I keep telling myself.

I love, love, love this book! From the very beginning, it was action-packed, and frankly, that was how you properly start a story. Well done, Ms. Covington!

"These are people. Patients. Not outcomes."

Dr. Beckett Sutherland... Gee, where to start? Oh, let's start with the cover. One thing I noticed was the model's lips. How appropriate were those lips to represent Dr. Sutherland? So sexy. Anyway, Beck was a complicated character, but he had the biggest heart. It might not have been obvious, however, because he chose to hide his true self. He didn't think his actions were enough to atone for his mistakes when he hadn't a choice as a kid. 

"Dr. Sutherland. Didn't your mama ever tell you that you get more flies with honey than vinegar?"

"My mama didn't stick around long enough to teach me shit, and you know my tongue can be mighty sweet when I want it to be."

Virginia, aka Ginger, was a force to be reckoned with. Being the daughter of a NAVY Seal, she learned many skills including the ability to shut off her emotions most of the time. To be honest, I found that very admirable. Her character was fiery when she wasn't hiding behind a mask. She was a firecracker when Beck was able to push her boundaries. Their chemistry was explosive!

Ginger had always spent a ridiculous amount of money on underwear that barely covered the fun parts.

Who could resists Beck's charms? He had the ability to even charm some men, but I bet that had something to do with his pure heart rather than him actually trying. I'd say he was probably one of my favorite book boyfriends this year. 

The serpent in the Garden of Good and Evil had nothing on Beckett.

The cameos of the other boys from this series made me want to read the previous books. Where had I been living? A rock?! I totally missed out!

Want some more? Check out the sexy snippet below by clicking on the button... if you dare. 

He moved forward, his arms raised and his hands placed flat against the door.

"Gin, baby, let me in," he whispered against her ear, his warm breath brushing the tendrils of her hair against the skin of her neck. She arched her neck involuntarily, her silent plea answered by the fleeting brush of his lips against her lobe. She shivered, her keys almost slipping from her fingers.

Fuck, she wanted him. Beckett didn't have to wear her down like the waves crashing against the shore, his power was like the undertow, swirling around her, playfully enticing her farther out into the water. The harder she fought against the pull, the more seductive his movements became. Take this move--she should have expected him to show up at her door, but she didn't. It didn't fit in her ordered plan for her world, and the surprise delighted her inner romantic who refused to see that being swept off your feet usually led to a painful crash. She couldn't let him in no matter how much she wanted to.

Virginia braced her trembling hand and inserted the key into the lock, twisting until the tumbler gave way and she released the keys to grab the doorknob.

Beckett's hand closing over hers halted her movement and prevented her escape. Or was she planning to invite him in? She had no idea.

All she knew was that her blood was hot, her sex was wet, and her heart rattled against her chest like it was trying to escape.

"Let me in." His voice was deeper, rougher, and accompanied by a tender scrape of his teeth along her shoulder, lingering on the spot where it sloped upward into the exposed skin of her neck.

She let out a long, shuddering breath.

"If you let me in I will fuck you until you cannot move. I know how to make you feel good, and I promise you will feel the pleasure a week from now." He huffed out a breath caught between a laugh and a moan against her flesh. "You know I can fucking do it."

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Review: A Kindled Winter

Title: A Kindled Winter
Author: Rachel L. Demeter
Publisher: Black Lyon Publishing, LLC
Release Date: November 1, 2015
Pages: 73
Buy Link: Amazon | Amazon UK

I received an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Blurb:

"Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas." - Dale Evans

A week before Christmas, Jeseca Reed sets off for Blue River, Oregon - her childhood home and a vault of tender memories. However, fate takes an unexpected turn when she's left stranded in the mountains' vast, untamed wilderness. Desperate and alone, she seeks shelter at a cottage and finds herself in the arms of a mysterious stranger.

Dr. David Drake was once a renowned cardiovascular surgeon. But a devastating tragedy has left him scarred both inside and out, unable to use his hands to operate again. For the past five years, his Blue River cottage has been his sole escape - a safe haven where he can shut out the world, bury himself in his grief, and reunite with his son's memory.

Together they are summer and winter. Fire and ice. And yet a poignant connection forms between them. Jeseca thaws David's heart with the first embers of a romance hot enough to melt snow. But before David and Jeseca can fully embrace each other, they must wade through darkness and confront the ghosts of their pasts ...

You know when you receive something you didn't ask for, your first instinct is to say no. But then, you stop and consider it, and eventually you accept it. That was my experience with this book. If you regularly read this blog, you know I don't accept books for review, but there was something about this book that called to me. I mean, it's about Christmas. Who doesn't want to read about love and Christmas?!

Anyway, from the very beginning of this book, there was a weird sensation that I experienced. When Jeseca started looking around the room she woke up in and she felt chills, I felt the exact same chills. It was so weird! That's a good indication that the author did a great job with writing this book.

Also, I love that the author incorporated anxiety in the book, but didn't use the actual word when Dr. Drake had an anxiety attack. Kudos number two for the author.

To be honest, when I started reading this, I was thinking of another book I previously read with a similar premise. I thought, "oh, this is going to be just like that book." A couple chapters in and I was proven completely wrong. This book had depth and character despite the short length.

I read it way into the night and I kept reading when I woke up the next day instead of running some errands. That's how good the book was.

I really admired Jeseca's personality. Despite the tragedy she experienced, she was carefree and open. She melted Dr. Drake's defenses and made her way into his home (literally and figuratively).

Dr. Drake: "Nope. No way. No dancing. Not today. Not ever."

Jeseca: "Oh, come on! Why not? It'll be fun!"

Dr: Drake: "Because I'm absolutely terrible at it."

Jeseca: "Believe me. There's no way you're any worse than I am."

"Do ... do you like it?" she asked, gesturing toward the room.

Do I like it? he thought, bemused. The Christmas music wafted from the hallway and swelled the walls as he struggled to form the proper words. His emotions were in a violent tangle, and he found it impossible to speak. He glanced down and examined Jeseca's elegant writing---and then the words finally emerged.

"Its...perfect."

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was exactly how I felt about the book. Dr. Drake said it "perfectly." :)

Arianne

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