Review: Hard and Fast

Title: Hard and Fast

Author: Erin McCarthy

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Series: Fast Track/Book 2

Published: May 2009

ARC Review

From the author's website ~

An experiment in romance…

New to Charlotte, stock car racing country, graduate student Imogen Wilson meets Ty McCordle, a driver who inexplicably has her pulse racing. After an encounter at the track with a woman whose main goal in life is to marry a driver, Imogen realizes she’s hit on the perfect thesis for her Sociology degree. If she follows The Rules on how to get a man, can she steer her way to into the hearts of the drivers and establish their dating—and mating—patterns?

That’s testing the limits of passion.

Although sexy and reckless Ty is the ideal test subject, she knows she can’t pursue him for the sake of science. Yet he’s the one who’s chasing after her, and Imogen realizes that she actually wants to be caught. A southern gentleman like Ty won’t fail to disappoint, will satisfy all her curiosity—and make all the risks worthwhile…

This is the second book in the Fast Track series and while I didn't like it quite as much as the first, Flat-Out Sexy, (read my review here) it was still an enjoyable read. I found the hero, Ty, very likable and a well developed character. Imogen...hmmm. She wasn't quite as likable for me. While I didn't necessarily dislike her she has a tendency to talk a lot! Have you ever met someone or known someone who had this need to say whatever it is they're thinking? She's kind of like that. She has a very inquisitive nature and has an overwhelming need to ask questions and comment about what is going on around her, including sex. Which is fine up to a point. The point being where she needed to just be quiet and enjoy being with Ty.

Ty and Imogen: aka The Odd Couple

Two pieces of a puzzle that didn't seem to fit together - at first. On the surface, they had the mutual physical attraction going on but that was about it. Imogen is all into knowledge from books and asking questions while Ty tends to get his knowledge from experience. Imogen even thought of herself as "an observer instead of a participant". Ty, on the other hand, learned how to drive by getting behind the wheel and just doing it. You could say Ty epitomizes the NIKE slogan.

Ty and Imogen actually met briefly in the first book of the series, Flat-Out Sexy. Ty is a race car driver and good friends with Elec Monroe. Imogen is a grad student who is a friend and colleague of Tamara Briggs. So when Hard and Fast starts, a relationship of sorts has already begun between these two. Imogen believes that her reason for being around Ty is purely research for her thesis. Ty is more than willing to introduce Imogen to the racing world. He's very attracted to her and wants to spend time with her any way he can. He is able to not only show her how the world of professional racing works but he also exposes her to new experiences. Camping, for one. This may not seem like a big deal but it really helped Imogen break out of her shell, so to speak, and become more involved rather than sitting on the sidelines, taking notes.

The Sex Scenes...

Ty, Ty, Ty. Ladies he is the "go to" man. I don't think I've ever read a book where the man enjoyed performing oral sex as often or as much as Ty did. It was like Imogen had a homing device down there and Ty was being pulled in by an invisible tractor beam. My, my but that man certainly enjoyed feasting on Imogen. Ty was a very sensual, inventive lover and Imogen was willing to try almost anything.

There were a couple of odd moments after and during the sex scenes. The first was after Ty and Imogene had sex and they then cuddled up together on the bed and went to sleep. No mention was made of Ty going in the bathroom and disposing of the condom. Then they wake up the next morning and end up the 69 position. This is after some kissing and fondling. No mention of a trip to bathroom for either of them to freshen up. Now I'm not saying readers want a ton of details regarding what characters do in the bathroom but a brief mention would be appreciated. Maybe something along the lines of how his breath is "minty fresh". The lack of a clean up was upper most in my mind when Ty and Imogen were doing the reciprocal feasting. Since this is an ARC, it's possible there will be some mention of a bathroom detour in the final edition. I should say that this is just a hang up of mine so it's quite possible it won't bother other readers.

The evolving relationship of Ty and Imogen was a pleasure to experience. The way their differences complimented each other and also helped them to experience aspects of life they had been missing. By the end of the book it make absolute sense for these two to be together since they were far more compatible then they first seemed.

Suzanne and Ryder were once again a wonderful secondary couple that I hope will get their own book. They were also in Flat-Out Sexy. Ryder is a driver and Suzanne his ex-wife whom he still has a relationship with, albeit an odd relationship. Even though they are divorced I still think of them as a couple who's story hasn't been told yet. The scenes with Suzanne are hilarious and poor Ryder is just as confused as ever. They definitely need their own book. Tamara and Elec also make appearances and the reader gets to see how their lives have progressed after the HEA in Flat-Out Sexy.

While I enjoyed Hard and Fast I didn't enjoy it quite as much as the first book, Flat-Out Sexy. I simply felt more of a connection with Tamara and Elec than I did with Ty and Imogen. So, there you have it. Still a fun, sexy read that was satisfying for this reader. I will be keeping an eye out for the next book in the series (hope it's Suzanne & Ryder's). Information on Ms. McCarthy's books can be found on her website. And her covers are delicious!

Rating: B+

Review: Flat-Out Sexy

Title: Flat-Out Sexy
Author: Erin McCarthy
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Fast Track/Book 1

Published: November 2008

Contemporary Romance Challenge

The life as the wife of a race car driver is exciting, terrifying and lonely. Tamara Briggs has experienced all of these emotions. She also experienced a devastating loss when her husband, race car driver Pete Briggs, was killed in a crash two years ago. Since then she has kept busy being both mother and father to her two children. Her job as a professor at a local university also requires much of her time. When she tries to venture back into the dating world her first try is an absolute fail. Then on the heels of that failure comes the man of her dreams, the newest rookie driver. If only Tamara hadn't sworn off relationships with drivers.

I'd heard a lot of talk about this book and the hotness of it. The talk was dead on and the hotness went from simmer, steam, slow burn to all out 5 alarm fire. This was a funny, sexy, emotional read that I really enjoyed. I've never been interested in any type of race car driving so it was intriguing to read about the lifestyle and how it affects not only the drivers but their families. I'm not sure how much research Ms. McCarthy did on the racing world but I do feel like I have a better understanding of what all the excitement is for the world of racing.

The heroine in Flat-Out Sexy is a widowed mom of two in her early thirties. One thing a really liked about Tamara is that she acted her age. She had her teaching career and kids to take care of and those were her priorities. McCarthy did a good job working the kids into the story without having them being annoying or simply window decorations. Tamara was fortunate that she had a close relationship with her in-laws even after her husband's death. They helped her with her kids so she was able to have a separate social life. She still felt some guilt about leaving her kids with the in-laws and didn't take advantage of them which was another positive aspect of her character. Tamara did have a few hang ups. The first about the age difference between her and rookie driver Elec. He was 25, almost 26, and she was 32. I personally don't see a problem and neither did Elec but Tamara did. I think the age issue was at least partially an excuse she used to not get close with Elec and develop any kind of deep relationship with him. Her other hang up was her body and that she didn't think it measured up to the bodies of younger women, women that hung out at the track and would love to date Elec. Were her hang ups about her body genuine? To her they were and that's what counts. Elec saw Tamara's body in a different light, not focusing on what Tamara perceived as flaws but on the whys of them. He set out to show her that he loved how she looked and she didn't need to feel insecure with him.

Smart, sexy, good looking and funny describe Elec Monroe. He comes from a racing family, it's in his blood. So when he meets Tamara at a racing function he knows of her but had only met her once before, back when he was a teenager and she was a newly married woman. I think that's what stuck in Tamara's head when she realized she had met him before. It was up to Elec to help Tamara realize that he wasn't that goofy teen but a grown man. Elec's an interesting character, he has all this prestige of not only coming from a racing dynasty but he's a young, hot race car driver with women dying to meet him and hook up with him. He's not by any means innocent and has had his share of women but he doesn't connect with any of them until Tamara. He wants to get to know her and spend time with her, not just in bed but out. Talking and hanging out with her and her kids. She, unfortunately doesn't want anything more from him than a one night stand. Life's ironic like that. Good thing for Tamara is that Elec is stubborn and continues to woo her and show her that he is more than just a gorgeous young stud. He was also adorable during his inner dialogues when trying to decide what his next move would be with Tamara. The poor man had a habit of over-thinking. Very funny.

The relationship and it's development between Elec and Tamara came across as very genuine. They certainly had their problems. First is the simple logistics of getting together without anyone else knowing. Elec's racing schedule kept him on the road for most of the week and Tamara was determined that they not be seen in public. Then Tamara began to realize that she was falling for Elec which scared the crap out of her. She was understandably terrified of getting involved with another driver. There were also some family issue that had to be addressed and overcome. I really liked how McCarthy handled the problems, there were obstacles that I could see real people in the same situation having to deal with. There wasn't this feeling of "we're having amazingly great sex so everything else will work out". The problems were still there to be worked out after the having of the amazing sex. And those scenes were smoking!

The other thing about this book that I totally and completely enjoyed was the humor. It was, at times, truly laugh out loud funny. The dialogue between not only Elec and his buddies but Tamara and her BFF Suzanne cracked me up. On page two Suzanne makes a comment about a "metrosexual man" and "waxed balls" and I couldn't help but wonder if this was setting the tone for the rest of the book and was that necessarily a bad thing? Then I got to thinking about waxing and how it seems like the firmer the area being waxed the easier the waxing and how... well, how many men would really do that? The book was not only funny but got me thinking about some really odd things.

I mentioned Suzanne, Tamara's BFF. Suzanne is also the ex-wife of one of the drivers, Ryder who is friends with Elec. The race world is a close knit family, where everyone knows everyone. Suzanne and Ryder still have some heat between them and I do hope they get their own book.

Overall a very enjoyable and entertaining read. Definitely recommend it. The next book in the series is Hard and Fast and features racer car driver Ty McCordle and Imogen Wilson who is a graduate student and teaching assistant of Tamara's. Ty and Imogen meet briefly in Flat-Out Sexy and there is definitely a spark between the two. Ms. McCarthy has a fun website with details on all her books. Be sure to use the Mix It Up!! feature when checking out her site.

Rating: A-