Ensnaring the ultimate bad boy has its risks…and its rewards.

It’s not easy being Hades. Constantly guarding his world against other meddling and ambitious deities is stressful work. So when a naked goddess falls directly into his lap, along with the news that he has to shelter her for the indefinite future, he is less than thrilled. Particularly since he can’t help but lust after the beautiful female.

The Underworld isn’t the first place Persephone would pick for a vacation—who in their right mind would choose a dark palace over sunshine and flowers? Yet from Hades’s first touch, the dark, sexy ruler fascinates her and has her thinking a fling might be just the thing to while away her confinement.

But trust each other? Not a chance. Until the day comes that Persephone must leave…and they realize that trusting each other is the only way they’ll ever meet again.

Warning: Contains an arrogant god, a stubborn goddess, horny deity nookie and enough supernatural friction to set the Underworld on fire.

Title: HOT AS HADES
Author: Alisha Rai
Series: standalone (for now)
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Year of release: 2011, October 11
Format: eBook
Source: Received an e-ARC from author for review

First line:
Hades, also known as the extremely badass Lord of the Underworld, was accustomed to souls dropping into his kingdom.

Memorable Scenes:
- Persephone's talk with Cerberus (the tawny and middle heads) > I laughed out loud
- Persephone’s return after her time back on Earth > moving and hot!

Persephone is the Goddess of vegetation. She has little to no control over her powers and is sent to the Underworld through a scheming deity. She’s spunky, defiant and tenacious. Though she knows Hades is sexually attracted to her but not happy with her presence, she gets in his face all the time. I liked that about her.

Hades is the ruler of the Underworld. He’s ornery, sarcastic, gruff and contrary. In any other hero these traits would be annoying as hell (he he he) but Hades pulls them off because you just know that deep down he has a heart and cares. He’s also talented in the dirty talk so he was a hero who fits my favorite list perfectly.

I loved Persephone's feistiness and Hades’ dry sarcasm. The sex scenes were not only explicit and scorching but also well balanced with the romance and plot. The romance was build up more gradually than the sexual attraction but I liked this build-up a lot.

An honorable mention has to go to Cerberus, Hades’ companion hellhound and then especially Bob…I seriously still crack up when I think of the dialogues with Bob. He stole the show and I hope that if Alisha Rai writes more in this world and we catch another glimpse of Hades and Persephone, Cerberus will make another appearance too. If I had a favorites list for secondary characters he would definitely be on it.

As always I love Alisha Rai’s fluent and fast-paced writing as the humorous undertone is invariably incorporated in it. Though my preference goes out to her contemporary work I also enjoyed this second paranormal romance of hers I’ve read. It's short and sweet and I loved how she interpreted the myth of Hades and Persephone. She took some creative liberty and I really liked how she adapted the myth!

HOT AS HADES is everything the title promises: a quick and hot read that is a must-read for readers who love the mythology and romance combination.

Favorite Quotes:
Her little stubborn chin lifted in an annoyingly regal manner, as if she was the one in the throne and not naked and subdued in his arms. “Release me, or suffer.”
“Suffer what?”
“Suffer…my wrath.”
“Aren’t you cute.”

Pretty and stupid, she tsked. They always went hand in hand, it seemed. Though Hades didn’t seem quite as idiotic as Narcissus. That moron regularly had to be rescued from lakes when he tried to make out with his own reflection.

He was going to die of blue balls before Zeus got this female out of here. He should have materialized some nuns’ habits for her.

“You talk to my lady in that tone again, I’ll rip into your cloud and shove your lightning bolt up your ass. Do you understand?”
Persephone bit her lip to keep from laughing, particularly when Zeus cleared his throat and muttered a very indistinct, “Fine.”

They’re craving something sweet. She likes it spicy.

Devi Malik knows how to heat things up. She does it every night as head chef in her family’s Indian restaurant. Her love life, though, is stuck in the subzero freezer. Now, with a chance to fulfill a secret fantasy with her long-time crush and his brother, it’s time to put her desire on the front two burners.

For Marcus Callahan, a love-’em-and-leave-’em attitude isn’t only a necessary evil of their kink. It’s a protective device. Lately, though, his brother Jace has been making noises about craving something more.

Jace’s dissatisfaction with their lifestyle grows with every glimpse of sweet little Devi. Yet Marcus is too haunted by the pain of their shared past to give love a chance.

Despite their reputation for vanishing with the dawn, they discover one night with Devi isn’t nearly enough. And Devi finds herself falling in love with two very different men.

It’ll take more than explosive sex to light up the shadows surrounding the Callahan brothers’ secrets. But Devi’s never been afraid of the dark…

Warning: This title contains two sizzling men for the price of one, ménage a trois, oral sex, anal sex, fun toys, great food, and creative uses for syrup and dressing rooms.

Title: GLUTTON FOR PLEASURE
Author: Alisha Rai
Series: Pleasure series, book 1
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Erotic Romance
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Year of release: 2009, March 17
Format: eBook
Source: Bought via Samhain eBookstore

First line:
Thick, firm and curved just right, the shiny red skin stretched taut over hot seed and juice.

Memorable Scenes:
- The scene in Jace's car > *fans self*
- The scene in Devi's foyer > I need another fan, or ice water...
- The dressing room scene > OMG! When that sales clerk interrupted...
- The deliveries from Devi for Jace and Marcus > I was waiting for the emotional punch and this definitely counted as that!



QuickScore-Verdict:
A ménage, with twin brothers, one a gruff alpha caveman the other a more easy-going charmer ...I was sold from the moment I started reading. And with every page I was drawn in more and cursing myself for not reading this lovely story sooner. With every turn of the page ( = click on the next page button on the e-reader) I was treated to unexpected twists in the story and there would be little revelations about the characters. The ménage part of the romance was excellently done! It was believable and scorching at the same time.

Jace made me swoon. Marcus made me weak in the knees. Devi made me yell: "You go, girl!" With GLUTTON FOR PLEASURE Alisha Rai has definitely secured her position on my fave authors-list.

Favorite Quotes:
Though orders off menu always created a hassle for her, she couldn’t blame her sister. If it had been her, she probably would have offered to feed him whatever he wanted by hand. Naked. Or by any other body part he preferred. Naked.

He loved her voice, low and a little bit throaty. It didn’t match her wholesome image. He imagined her, sweet and innocent in a tiny white negligee and, please God, lace stockings, talking dirty in his ear with that sexy voice.

“I like your hair down.” Marcus withdrew one hand to twine a ringlet around his finger. He stretched the curl down until it straightened, and then let go. He used the hand on her hip to draw her closer, before tracing her upper lip with his forefinger. “But you should be careful with that lipstick, sweetheart. Naked, your lips are gorgeous, but when you paint them that color, you’re just inviting a man to think all sorts of nasty things.”

“Maybe I don’t care what you want.”
“In bed, you obey me, Devi.”
She snorted. “Like hell. I agreed to have a little fun. I didn’t sign on for some crazy submissive role.”

The emotion within him was so unknown he took a moment to examine it. Was he jealous of Jace? No. Had it been any other man, yes, but never his brother. He needed the connection their ménages gave him. Sometimes he felt so cold inside, he wanted to crack into a million little pieces. The sex grounded him, reminded him he wasn’t alone. Through Jace, he could experience a tiny piece of what normal people felt and did.

(Devi & Marcus) “I could say the same for you. Why don’t you mosey on over here?”
He crossed his arms over his impressive chest. “I asked first.”
She snorted and mirrored his action. “You didn’t ask. You made a statement.”
“Babe, that’s how I ask.”
“Weird, babe. I ask with a raised intonation and a question mark at the end of the sentence. You should try it sometime.”

She was greedy. She wanted to climb all over them, lay them on a table and then gorge herself on them, and even then she knew she would never be full.

I

Think a vampire-hunting bloodhound is dangerous? Try threatening his woman.

Wilder Harding is a bloodhound, created by the Guild to hunt down and kill vampires on America’s frontier. His enhanced abilities come with a high price: on the full moon, he becomes capable of savagery beyond telling, while the new moon brings a sexual hunger that borders on madness.

Rescuing a weapons inventor from undead kidnappers is just another assignment, though one with an added complication—keeping his hands off the man’s pretty young apprentice, who insists on tagging along.

At odds with polite society, Satira’s only constant has been the aging weapons inventor who treats her like a daughter. She isn’t going to trust Wilder with Nathaniel’s life, not when the Guild might decide the old man isn’t worth saving. Besides, if there’s one thing she’s learned, it’s that brains are more important than brawn.

As the search stretches far longer than Wilder planned, he finds himself fighting against time. If Satira is still at his side when the new moon comes, nothing will stop him from claiming her. Worse, she seems all too willing. If their passion unlocks the beast inside, no one will be safe. Not even the man they’re fighting to save.

Warning: This book contains a crude, gun-slinging, vampire-hunting hero who howls at the full moon and a smart, stubborn heroine who invents mad-scientist weapons. Also included: wild frontier adventures, brothels, danger, betrayal and a good dose of wicked loving in an alternate Wild West.

Title: WILDER’S MATE
Author: Moira Rogers
Series: Bloodhounds, book 1
Genre: I'm not even going to try :)
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Year of release: 2011, March 8
Format: eBook
Source: received a copy for review from the author

First line:
Satira would have been on a horse and halfway into the sunset by now if the lift from the laboratory hadn’t broken.

Memorable Scenes:
- Wilder's grand entrance scene > way to make a first impression and meet, I might even say exceed, the expectations...
- Wilder and Satira's first love scene > wow...Scorching hot!


Nathaniel, Satira’s mentor and the man who raised her, is missing and vampires are trying to get their hands on a new weapons technology he's invented. Satira teams up with Wilder, a bloodhound with no filter and a dirty mouth and mind to find Nathaniel before the vampires execute their evil plans.

I have to be honest and say that when I read the blurb and an excerpt for WILDER'S MATE I didn't get the urge to stalk Moira Rogers for a review copy of it because I've learned that steampunk-ish books are more miss than hit with me, even from favorite authors whose voices I love. So I just went "nah, let's skip this one and wait patiently for the next Southern Arcana book.

Then a certain author came over for a visit and of course we started talking books and this one came up and she highly recommended it to me. I think she saw my lingering reluctance because then she brought out the big guns and mentioned Wilder being a dirty (talking) hero who doesn't have a filter at all...
People who know me will have probably guessed that after this I harassed her into getting Moira Rogers to send me a review copy of this book and the rest is history.
Why did you have to go and do that Alisha Rai? Why? You’ve seen my bookcases…don’t I have enough to read already? Huh, huh?

It's hard for me to describe why I love Moira Rogers' writing. It's probably the co-writing thing and I must say WILDER'S MATE is the funniest and hottest Moira Rogers book I've read to-date and now I’m craving more.

From the start the characters cracked me up with their dry wit and the banter between them. But it wasn't just the humor. The world building and plot was done very subtly and in a way that enticed you to want to know more. I even liked the steampunk-ish elements but that's probably because they weren't overtly present and were just supporting the PNR vibe the book had.

Next to Satira and Wilder there was a supporting cast that was at least as intriguing and impressive as the primary characters. Ophelia, Archer and Hunter come to mind. At first I didn't get Archer's motivation for his actions and couldn't decide if he was one of the good or bad guys...in the end I've decided to place him with the good guys, but still have my doubts about him.
I also loved Hunter and hope he’ll get his own book in the future as he was an even more intriguing character to me than Archer was. (Reviewer’s note from Pearl: I found out after writing this review that the next book in this series is Hunter’s…YAY!)

A few chapters in I was starting to get curious about the Guild and the Bloodhounds... Back-story, why, how etc. and I hoped there would be more explanations about them. There were but some things stayed unclear to me and I loved the romance, plot and action/fight scenes more than the steampunk-ish elements. The things that remained unclear, I’m sure they’ll be explained more in the upcoming books in the series and I was happy the authors took this route as I wasn’t bombarded with the world building and/or info dumps.

Whether you like paranormal romance, steampunk romance, futuristic, historical or western-ish romance, you’ll like WILDER’S MATE. If you like all of the above AND a dirty talking alpha hero who has no filter whatsoever, you’ll love WILDER’S MATE. I’m happy Alisha Rai talked me into trying this book because I have discovered another series by Moira Rogers that I’ll want to read as soon as the books are available.

Favorite Quotes:
“If you brought me with you intending to have a warm body during the new moon, I’m not unwilling.”
Wilder’s jaw clenched. She didn’t think much of him, if she thought he’d plan to take that sort of liberty without asking. “Takes a damn sight more than ‘not unwilling’ to heat my blood, girl.” He grinned because he knew it would fluster her. “I like my women enthusiastic.”
Color rose in her cheeks, but her eyes glinted with stubborn challenge. “It’s a wonder you find any, unless you take care not to speak to them first.”

She was feverish. Wild. Pleasure twisted inside her, dug into her and tossed her about until she found herself clutching at the iron headboard so she wouldn’t fly away.

He put his tongue on her first, licking the delicate ridge of her collarbone. Tasting her skin. She didn’t fight her shiver or her quiet moan. Let him have no doubts about her willingness or the way her body sang when he touched her.

It was his voice that did it, the low endearment, hoarse and hungry. He wanted her— needed her—and the empty, lonely place inside her vanished. Tension snapped, and every muscle in her body tensed at the same time before pure, clean relief flooded her, riding a wave of tempestuous pleasure.

The higher the stakes, the hotter the game.

Ana Hudson enjoys her picture-perfect marriage to the love of her life. Everything is pleasant, easy—and satisfying. Then an anonymous e-mail arrives filled with lurid pictures of Taylor’s youthful exploits, leaving her wondering if she really knows him at all. More importantly…does she know herself?

Driven to uncover the truth and push the limits of their sexual boundaries, she convinces Taylor to arrange a weekend getaway to a friend’s luxury cottage in the mountains. It’s the perfect place to get her husband to spill his secrets—and show him there’s a wealth of kinky fantasies hiding inside his good girl.

Taylor’s spent years suppressing his animalistic side, hiding the not-completely-human DNA that once drove him wild. Except now his once quiet, reserved Ana has launched a campaign to destroy every inch of his hard-won control.

With the snowy wilderness containing his darkest memories surrounding them, and his old pack-mate dropping in to give them a few pointers, the sexual battle of wills gets fierce.


Warning: Contains a brooding, dirty-minded, not-quite-human hero, a sweet not-quite-good-girl heroine, a howling-hawt car ride up a mountain, a chase through the snow followed by an erotic adventure with sports equipment, oral sex, anal sex, and a M/F/M ménage scene that will leave you panting.

Title: NEVER HAVE I EVER
Author: Alisha Rai
Series: Reynolds Pack, book 1
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Erotic Romance
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Year of release: 2010, December 14
Format: eBook
Source: Received e-ARC from author for review

First line:
Wine was safe, the perfect complement for any dinner.

Memorable Scenes:
- drive to and arrival at the cottage > who'd have thought that of Ana...
- Ana and Taylor watching p0rn > never knew watching p0rn could be described so scorchingly hot


NEVER HAVE I EVER starts with preparations for a getaway to the Adirondacks for the Hudsons. Ana has received an anonymous email about her husband...Which prompts her into showing him her inner bad girl. Taylor has been suppressing his true nature as a shifter due to things that happened in his past and plays with fire when he takes Ana back to a part of his turbulent past. Slowly his sexual dominance returns to the surface and Ana turns out to be more accepting of it than he thought.

Ana is a shy, cautious and organized worrywart. I liked Ana but I'm not sure I would’ve tackled “her problem” the way she did. Taylor, Ana’s husband, at first sight is calm, quiet and gruff but that exterior hides an intense, commanding man underneath who can be sweet and funny as well.

I really liked that NEVER HAVE I EVER tells the story of an already married couple. I always like when I don't have to suspend disbelief to enjoy hot and heavy sexy times, which I normally do when new couples go at just a few pages into the story. The sex scenes in this one are very hot. Both Taylor and Ana know how to crank up the heat level in those scenes. I’d never read a scene in a romance novel this elaborated about a couple watching p0rn before and Alisha Rai definitely wins points there for originality and hotness.

With every page I read it got steamier and more interesting. And speaking of interesting, keep an eye out for Eli, Taylor’s best friend and pack-mate, when you read this book. He definitely made it to my “anticipating this character’s book”-list. I hope to see more of the pack and its members in possible future books. And definitely would like to see Eli's story and find out who's going to be at the receiving end of his alpha hotness and bring him the HEA he's yearning for.

NEVER HAVE I EVER is a very nice and steamy novella that brushed a few subjects like D/s and bondage in a light way. The werewolf stuff was a nice backdrop, but no more than that, as for me the paranormal element was not the strongpoint in this story. It was the emotional impact and sizzling chemistry between the characters that made it a memorable read for me.

Favorite Quotes:
She bit her lip, wishing she could just turn off the part of her that worried and fretted and thought everything through three thousand times before settling on something. Vowing to change was easy; altering a lifetime’s habit was harder. (This quote was like seeing into my own soul...this is so me!)

He drifted closer and reached down to unwork the knot she’d made of the apron ties. They were stubborn.
Cloth bands, securing Ana’s slender wrists to his metal bedframe…
He yelped. Flat-out yelped, like a fucking nancy boy, and dropped his hands. Blinking, he looked up to meet her puzzled gaze.

She actually had to check herself from sighing in feminine appreciation when he walked over to her. When they’d first met, Ana had immediately known that Eli probably never lacked for female company. Forget the fact that he was rich and gorgeous. His walk alone, all loose limbed and easy and confident, was a screaming aphrodisiac to single women everywhere. Hell, not just the single women. She might be madly in love with Taylor, but she could spot a prime male specimen when he sauntered up to her.

“See. We can have it all,” she said, breathless, when they parted. The wild beast and the civilized man; the dark hunger and the tender romance.

Look, but don’t touch…

Leyla Karimi can’t keep her eyes off the hunky guy living in the house behind her. How could any woman resist ogling Dr. Mason Barrett, especially when he makes it so easy by parading around in his skin and skivvies?

If it was only their age difference, she would have made a move a long time ago. Except Mason is more than a neighbor. He’s her baby brother’s oldest friend. It’s not like they can have a casual fling and walk away in the morning.

Mason’s been doing a little lusting—okay a lot—for quite some time. When he catches Leyla peeking, it’s a sure sign she could finally be ready to heat up his nights with loving. One taste of her lips, though, and he doesn’t want a “little” of anything. He wants it all.

Unwilling to jeopardize a lifetime of friendship for a one-night stand, Leyla is reluctant to throw caution to the wind. When he’s kissing her senseless, though, it’s hard to remember all the reasons why she should hold back…

Warning: Contains a hot hero who doesn’t mind baring it all in the name of love, a heroine who doesn’t settle for less, a sweet romance, steamy sex in a car and more good lovin’ in bed.

Leyla Karimi is the manager of a lingerie store. She’s witty, straightforward and has a warm, caring personality. Though true to her beliefs and morals, when at ease she owns her sexuality in a confident way.

Mason Barrett is a resident at the hospital. He’s easygoing, and though he is a laid-back kind of guy, sexually he pulls off just the right amount of dominance and confidence to make him utterly drool-worthy.

Both Leyla and Mason are passionate and have a great sense of humor. They are characters that won my heart from the moment they stepped on the pages and they’re a perfect match for each other. I was very glad that Alisha Rai didn’t allow the characters to linger in the best-friend's-sister, brother's-best-friend, we-can't-do-this phase and they went for it. Also loved how she worked out the angry brother angle. I definitely can't wait to read how Sasha is going to be brought to his knees by love.

There were very few secondary characters. The only one that stuck with me was Sasha, who is Leyla’s baby brother and Mason’s best friend (and the hero of book 2: VEILED SEDUCTION). Frankly, I did not miss any secondary characters, as VEILED DESIRE was clearly a story where the stage was reserved for Leyla and Mason and the development of their romantic relationship.

Alisha Rai’s writing style is easy and fluent. Her love scenes are explicit yet not crude and all through the story a humorous tone can be detected, which I loved. This first taste of her writing definitely left me wanting more and I was happy I had VEILED SEDUCTION waiting to be read immediately after I finished this one.

VEILED DESIRE is one scorching hot little novella! In a mere 79 pages Alisha Rai pens down a surprisingly well rounded story with characters that were fleshed out perfectly. It was both sizzling hot and wonderfully sweet. There are no real conflicts other than maybe the initial hesitance in Leyla to start something with Mason because she is a few years older than he is (just 4 years) and he’s her brothers best friend. There are no plots, just a lovely story of two people falling in love and lust and making it work for all parties involved.

Quote:
Mentally, Leyla snorted. If she was finding him cooking breakfast erotic, she really hoped she didn't have to watch him do laundry or something. She might pass out.

8.5 out of 10

Even the best-laid seductions can go awry.

Beneath Dr. Maira Khan’s reserved exterior, her heart beats triple-time for only one man: Sasha Karimi. For two years she’s waited patiently for the handsome police lieutenant to wake up and see her as more than a buddy. When he’s injured in the line of duty, though, she realizes time is too precious to waste. Ditching her scrubs—and her shyness—she cooks up her very first seduction.

Sasha’s had a hell of a week. Thanks to the national media, amorous women are pouring out of the woodwork, all wanting a piece of America’s newest “hero”. The biggest disappointment? Maira seems to have contracted the same case of mass hysteria. Betrayed, he pushes her away—but not before he samples a taste of her luscious mouth and body.

It works. Maira retreats, mortified and ashamed. And Sasha realizes he’s just driven away the perfect woman. Now all he needs is a foolproof plan to win her back, starting with a proper courtship—and restraining his lust. Except once Maira glimpses the man behind the uniform, she sets out to show him that pure need has its own ideas about what’s proper…

Warning: Contains a brilliant heroine who knows how to take matters into her own hands, a sexy hero who knows how to win his woman, an awesome full-body massage, a tender romance and sizzling bedroom (and kitchen) shenanigans.

Maira Kahn has loved Sasha Karimi for 2 years but doesn't admit to it until he's seriously injured in a shootout on the job and lands in her ER. When she finally decides to act on her feelings for him, he thinks she's just out to seduce the newly crowned hero, like all of the other women who've come knocking on his door with indecent proposals, and decides to cut all contact with her. But Sasha can't forget her and soon starts to wonder if sending her on her merry way was the smart thing to do.

Maira is an emergency department physician at the same hospital where Mason (hero book 1: VEILED DESIRE) works. She’s cool, calm and intelligent with an incredibly witty sense of humor. She’s also sweet, a bit reserved, almost shy, and very pragmatic.

Sasha is the brother of Leyla (heroine, book 1) and he’s a police officer. Next to being a good guy who is loyal and caring, he’s also dedicated, fun loving and stubborn to the point of hard-headedness. I had a taste of his temper in VEILED DESIRE and was immediately curious to see what kind of woman was going to handle and tame the fiery Sasha. Sasha is a hard nut to crack with his stubbornness and trying to do the thinking for Maira. After Maira sets him straight however, he turns into this adorable romantic man with a sexual confidence that melted the pages!

In VEILED SEDUCTION there were a few more secondary characters than in VEILED DESIRE. I loved the look into Leyla and Mason’s life. Since the end of their book they have married and have an eighteen-month-old daughter Ash (Sasha). It was fun seeing them back and I loved the role they had in Sasha's story. The hotness of this book just went up another notch with an unexpected bonus Leyla and Mason scene!

Two other characters that caught my attention were Maira’s mom, a little pushy whirlwind of a woman who couldn’t be fooled, and Sasha’s colleague, Keiran Harrison. I was ecstatic to learn that the next book in this series will be centered around him as even the small glimpse of him in this one definitely sparked my interest.

I loved this second book in the Veiled series! Alisha Rai writes vivid, likeable characters and her knack for hot sexy time scenes is uncanny! VEILED SEDUCTION is another great friends-to-lovers story and an amazing novella with characters that are perfectly developed. It’s character-driven and emotional and the talented Alisha Rai is one of those rare authors who can write novellas that make me forget they are short. At the end of both these novellas I was thoroughly pleased and satisfied with the stories and their closures while most of the time when I read novellas I am left wanting. Kudos to Ms. Rai for that!

Quote:
She twisted the faucet off and turned around. And promptly swallowed her tongue. Sasha needed to give a warning and pass out oxygen masks before he went around taking his shirt off.

She moved to get up and pull the covers back, but was stopped by the low growl of Sasha's voice. My, but that sound did funny things to her stomach. "Don't bother. The only thing covering you is going to be me"

8.3 out of 10