laurie eller

i know there are a lot of "bad" reviews for this book and everyone's entitled to their own opinion, but honestly? i think they're being harsh. tina reber doesn't claim to be a first-class writer and neither did E.L. James from fifty shades. they were just writing a story that they wanted to tell and i for one loved both stories. maybe that makes me a silly heart, but who cares. sometimes escaping the world around us is the best story of all.

there's sweet romance in this book and it's easy to listen to. the narrator did a great job of pulling me in, since i had already "read" these books before they ever came out on audio (but i'm glad they did!).

if you liked the old movie, Knotting Hill, with julia roberts and hugh grant, you'll love this book. it reminded me a lot of that but had more back story. two thumbs up.

Wow. I can't begin to tell you what a surprise Carrie's Story was for me. I've been pretty much "vanilla" my entire life and then like all the other women out there, Fifty Shades comes along and bam! I realize there's more to sex than just, well... vanilla. So begins my ride down the Erotica trail and what a great ride it's been. But, even Fifty is TAME in comparison to Carrie....however, I was totally pulled in from the first line and listened to this book in one day.

Carrie is unbelievably intelligent, having just finished graduate school and preparing to begin her masters program. She's a dedicated, hard-working, loyal woman with a solid head on her shoulders and doesn't take crap from anyone, yet she's warm. I liked her right from the start.

Johnathan is rich (aren't they all?), gorgeous (again? hello?) but a difference from Christian is that Johnathan is roughly fifteen years older than Carrie, almost a father-figure in a way I thought. He meets her at a party and almost immediately asks her to be "his slave" and we automatically think Carrie will say NO, but shockingly, she doesn't. She meets him at his home and the whole thing "begins" -- I was trying so hard to keep up with all that was going on visually and yet I still had to go back and rewind because I didn't want to miss a thing. It. Was. That. Good.

SPOILERS BELOW



Their relationship is completely and utterly SBDM, but we get these glimpses of loving acts between them when Johnathan allows Carrie to "be herself" but it is RARE. It's tough too, made me sad, and I wanted so much more for them, these two, in their way, controlling characters. I wanted the HEA but it wasn't to be found here. The story moves along with Carrie making a poor decision and Johnathan ends up selling her on the auction block -- but there's so much that happens in this seemingly short, six-hour book to put it in one review. It just wasn't what I was expecting and I loved every minute of it.

This was my first "real" BDSM book and well, I have to say, it won't be my last.

if you haven't tried the Marriage series, give it a whirl. you might just enjoy them as much as i have, and i'm always so excited for the next one to come out. the narration is terrific, the characters are endearing and fun, but the best part is how mamma gets involved in every story. gotta love her. the love scenes are wonderful. jennifer does a superb job. definitely worth a credit.

sure. it was a good book. i can't deny it. kept my interest and i found myself wanting to wash dishes or work in my office so i could finish it, but really? it was very similar to thoughtless, book one. and that? bothers me. i wanted something new, but again, there's just more of the same. can she trust him? can he trust her? and having Denny in this book bothered me a great deal. i loved Denny, and while i knew Kiera was meant for Kellan, i still loved Denny and wanted him to be happy.... and every time he cropped up in the second book it brought feelings back to the first book and how Kiera really did him wrong. sigh.

then i hear there's to be a third book? really? what could we possibly have in book three that book one or two didn't already cover? ugh. i'm stressed just thinking about it because i know that i'll buy it---you can't NOT finish the series, right?

all in all, it was a good book, and if you love a longer story then you'll enjoy this, but if you don't like silly romances, then skip it and try On Dublin Street. you'll be glad you did. trust me.

it was okay. i think the story was fine, but it was the narrator that did it for me. her voice is too old for this character and i kept feeling grossed out during sex scenes with this deep, but far-from-sultry voice describing everything. it was killing me. ::sigh:: maybe they'll get smart and switch for the next book because i doubt i'd consider listening to it if they choose the same gal. sorry. i'd rather read it.

a friend told me to read Wicked Ties, the first book in the series and i am so glad they did as i have enjoyed these books so much. it's amazing how much housework i can get done with this playing in my ears. i simply loved it. the story of Kata was wonderful and i really wanted this one to be a little longer, but shayla knows best and gives us what we need. :)
excellent book. can't wait for the next one.

it's the truth. you can't help but fall deeply in love with these characters with their broken hearts and souls, trying desperately to be mended with sex to fill their empty holes. shayla black has such a way with words and this series is beautifully written. i usually want to listen to them two or three times before "letting them go" back into the void of my listening library, it's that good. they have me captured from beginning to end. the stories are never terribly long yet shayla manages to get so much into the story.

book three is just as charming as book one, and i loved the story between Luc and Alyssa. i couldn't get enough.

While my favorite type of book (right now) is Erotica Romance, this book was recommended to me many times and thought I would take a chance. I'm a fan of long books (ie: Gabaldon, Follett) but really, this book could have been one download shorter. I see the relevance of it, to let us really know these characters but a shorter book would have been okay with me.

There were times I found myself wanting to slap Kiera so hard, talk about making wrong choices---OVER and OVER and OVER. It was truly painful and by the end of the book I was just wishing they'd Romeo and Juliet the thing and kill each other off in a love suicide. ugh! That's the reason for my four stars rather than a good solid five.

Too much UP and DOWN. To the bitter end you were left wondering if they could really stick it out, and I guess we'll see in Effortless, which I will also listen.

This book was thoroughly enjoyed and despite its length, I finished it in two days.

i listened to this book several times and i couldn't get enough. if you loved the first one in the series (Bared to You), then this won't disappoint. Gideon's story takes shape in this book and the ending about sent me over the edge, making me so excited for the third book. i loved this! couldn't get enough!

i read this book the old fashioned way before it ever had a life in audio, and it was a great read! i thoroughly enjoyed the audio version more and the narration is terrific! it's a wonderful wrap-up to the first book. it feels complete, all major loose ends tied nicely.

some of the other reviews are unfavorable and i just wanted to say that this book is sweet and lovely. a chick flick if you will.

if you saw the movie knotting hill with julia roberts you'll enjoy this book even more.