ARC Review: Fall ~ Karina Bliss

Fall
Karina Bliss
Contemporary Romance
Rock Solid Series/Book 2
Karina Bliss/November 15, 2016

Keep Rage together at all costs...

Powerhouse PA Dimity Graham is off her game. Her career is everything to her and she never lets anything personal mess that up. So how can she explain getting busy between the sheets with Rage's nice-guy drummer Seth Curran? She's supposed to be keeping this band out of trouble, not getting into it.

But before she can put everything back where it belongs, Seth needs her help.Faking a relationship seemed like a good idea that night, right before they fell into bed together. But standing on New Zealand soil, facing the people he disappointed to pursue his dream, Seth doubts he and Dimity will convince anyone they're hot and crazy for each other. To his surprise, Dimity is working her magic on everyone and they're all convinced this is the real deal. The problem is, he's almost convinced, too.

After reading and loving RISE, the first book in the series, I was thrilled to get my hands on FALL, Seth and Dimity book. Seth and Dimity at first glance may come across and fire and water but there is so much more to them as we find out.

Dimity Graham is a whirlwind who can kick ass without breaking a sweat. She may come across as aloof and all business, but in her heart, she is all about taking care of the people she loves. Those people are the family she has found in the band members of Rage. The ability to bring this rock band back to life and achieve world wide popularity is not just due to the band members but to Dimity's ability to manage all aspects of their lives as rock gods.

I loved how we see Dimity as the intelligent, tough business woman and then see how she does so much for the band not only because she wants them, and her, to be successful but because she truly cares about them. It's not a persona most of the people she interacts with ever get to see. Only a select few, and even then she would most likely deny it. She's a strong, gutsy heroine who works as a perfect match for Seth.

Seth Curran is the easy going drummer of Rage. Drummer's keep the beat and Seth is, in a way, the heart beat of the band. While the other members tend to act more erratic, more like rock stars, Seth is down to earth and makes himself easily approachable to his fans. He doesn't go for the diva attitude but when he does take a hard stand on something, you know it's important to him. I liked him a lot and thought his easy going personality is just what Dimity needed in her life.

The other members of the band are present and it was interesting to see not only how they all interact but how they support each other and have formed not only a band but a family in the short time they have been together. We get more insight to what makes both Dimity and Seth reach for their goals and we see it's not all about the fame and fortune. Their families, as many families do, had a great impact on them. I also enjoyed seeing a little more other the other band members, Jared and Moss. Jared's story is in the anthology You Had Me at Christmas (loved it!) and Moss' story I hope is next. I'm extremely curious to find out more about him and his backstory.  And I can't forget catching up with Zander Freedman. We get to see how he and Elizabeth are doing. Loved seeing them again!

Ms. Bliss keeps the plot moving along at a good pace. The romance between Dimity and Seth has that friends to lovers quality I love! It was obvious from the beginning that they cared for each other and the writing made it easy to believe that friendship could and did lead to a more intimate relationship. If you love rock and roll, romance and great friendships, you'll love this series.

Rating: A

Rock Solid Series ~

Rise
Play (novella in You Had Me at Christmas)
Fall

This Week's New Releases

There are plenty of wonderful releases to look forward to this week. Here are the ones on my list. What's on your list?

First up is the second full length novel in Karina Bliss' Rock Solid series. I fell hard for arrogant rockstar Zander Freedman, hero in the first novel, Rise. This time we get to find out if good guy Seth Curran is too good to be true. And fiesty, kickass Dimity Graham is not a typical heroine. I just finished this one - highly recommend!

Fall
Karina Bliss
Rock Solid Series
Book 2

Keep Rage together at all costs...

Powerhouse PA Dimity Graham is off her game. Her career is everything to her and she never lets anything personal mess that up. So how can she explain getting busy between the sheets with Rage's nice-guy drummer Seth Curran? She's supposed to be keeping this band out of trouble, not getting into it.
But before she can put everything back where it belongs, Seth needs her help.

Faking a relationship seemed like a good idea that night, right before they fell into bed together. But standing on New Zealand soil, facing the people he disappointed to pursue his dream, Seth doubts he and Dimity will convince anyone they're hot and crazy for each other. To his surprise, Dimity is working her magic on everyone and they're all convinced this is the real deal. The problem is, he's almost convinced, too.

Next is another second in the series. This time it's J. M. Stewart's Nic. This is the story of the brother of Luc, hero of the first book in the series. I read and enjoyed Luc's story. Luc is a single father and falls for a woman ten years older than him. If you like that set-up, definitely give it a try. I liked what I saw of Nic in the first book and can't wait to see how he finds his HEA.

Nic
J. M. Stewart
Rossi Brothers Series

Single father Nic Rossi’s only desire is to raise his little girl with the same love and security his grandparents gave him and his siblings. That is, until Anna Thompson and her frightened daughter walk into his family restaurant, looking for employment, and turn his carefully ordered world upside down.

On the run from her abusive ex, Anna wants one thing: a quiet place like Angel Bay to raise her daughter. But she needs a job to pay for that dream, even if her new boss is a man whose sheer size makes her tremble. Yet Nic’s capacity for kindness leaves her feeling safe for the first time in years, and the gentle giant slowly awakens her long-dormant passion.

Then her ex-husband turns up like a bad penny, threatening not only Anna’s safe haven but Nic’s daughter in the bargain, forcing them to choose between love and family.

I was first introduced to Sawyer Bennett through her Cold Fury Hockey series. Sexy, athletic heroes and equally incredible heroines. Her newest release is a stand alone contemporary novel about a rock star and a lawyer. Should prove to be a combustible combination.

Sexy Lies and Rock & Roll
Sawyer Bennett

When you're a rock god, fame and fortune are your two best friends, but they can be fickle bed mates. It seems everyone wants a piece of me. I'm being sued, pressured to sign contracts, and fending off rabid women who want to steal my virtue. Just kidding on that one. We all know I don't have much virtue left.

That's why I need Emma Peterson. The sharp-as-a-tack and sexy-as-sin lawyer saved my ass before and I know she can do it again. The only problem is that sweet, prim and totally straight-laced Emma doesn't want anything to do with me. Not professionally, and certainly not personally.

But c'mon. Everyone wants me, and even though it would take a crow bar of epic proportions to get her to spread those sexy legs for me, all I want is her mind. I swear. Her beautiful, brilliant mind to make sense of my crazy world. Good thing I have something up my sleeve to get her to say “yes”. Some might call it blackmail. I call it SOMETHING ELSE.

Looks like Emma Peterson just became my biggest defender. If only I can resist wanting to screw my attorney six ways to Sunday.

If you think I've been reading a lot of contemporary romances, you'd be right! It seems like I'm either into contemporary romances or historical romances. I do hope to get back to fantasy but for now, I bring you another contemporary romance.

Karina Halle
Heat Wave

They say when life closes one door, another one opens.
This door happens to lead to paradise.
And a man I can never, ever have.

Still grieving the loss of her sister who died two years ago, the last thing Veronica "Ronnie" Locke needed was to lose her job at one of Chicago’s finest restaurants and have to move back in with her parents. So when a window of opportunity opens for her – running a kitchen at a small Hawaiian hotel – she’d be crazy not to take it.

The only problem is, the man running the hotel drives her crazy: Logan Shephard. It doesn’t matter that he’s got dark brown eyes, a tall, muscular build that’s sculpted from daily surfing sessions, and a deep Australian accent that makes your toes curl.Kind of an asshole, too.And gets under Ronnie’s skin like no one else.

But the more time Ronnie spends on the island of Kauai, falling in love with the lush land and its carefree lifestyle, the closer she gets to Logan. And the closer she gets to Logan, the more she realizes she may have pegged him all wrong. Maybe it’s the hot, steamy jungles or the invigorating ocean air, but soon their relationship becomes utterly intoxicating.

There’s just one major catch.

The two of them together would incite a scandal neither Ronnie, nor her family, would ever recover from.

Forbidden, Illicit, off-limits – sometimes the heat is worth surrendering to, even if you get burned.

Note: this is a standalone novel, unrelated to any previous books. It does NOT contain cheating of any kind.

Hey, look! It's a new release that is not a contemporary romance! I love the premise. It sounds cool and funny and creepy and certainly different.

Extreme Makeover
Dan Wells

The satirical new suspense about a health and beauty company that accidentally develops a hand lotion that can overwrite your DNA.

Lyle Fontanelle is the chief scientist for NewYew, a health and beauty company experimenting with a new, anti-aging hand lotion. As more and more anomalies crop up in testing, Lyle realizes that the lotion's formula has somehow gone horribly wrong. It is actively overwriting the DNA of anyone who uses it, turning them into physical clones of someone else. Lyle wants to destroy the formula, but NewYew thinks it might be the greatest beauty product ever designed--and the world's governments think it's the greatest weapon.

New York Times bestselling author Dan Wells brings us a gripping corporate satire about a health and beauty company that could destroy the world.