A Wild Night's Bride by Victoria Vane

A WILD NIGHT'S BRIDE BY VICTORIA VANE

Word Count: 33,529

Heat Level: Smoky

Genre: Erotic Historical Romance

Publisher: Breathless Press

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With the devil in charge, there will surely be hell to pay...

What happens when a struggling actress and a grieving widower come together in a night of unbridled debauchery orchestrated by a bored and machinating rake?

She's a lonely lady down on her luck.

Phoebe Scott, alias Kitty Willis, is a struggling Covent Garden actress with a bruised heart and a closely guarded secret.

He's steadfast and eminently respectable.

Sir Edward Chambers, Ned to his intimates, is guilt-ridden over his beloved wife's death and has avowed to live out a rustic and mundane life...of celibacy.

With the devil in charge, there will surely be hell to pay.

Devil-in-disguise Viscount Ludovic DeVere is determined to return his best friend, Ned, to the land of the living. His meddling machinations result in a night of mind-blowing passion after which "Dull Dog Ned" awakes to find himself in the King of England's bed!

A Wild Night's Bride, a sexy, rollicking Georgian romp!

***

This story starts off with a bang, as the hero and heroine wake up in the king's bed. It certainly piqued my interest! How on earth did they end up there? Why does he not recognize her? What is going on?

I love a good historical and the details in this story are spot on. The author weaves in real historical figures with effortless ease and her descriptions of the time period draw the reader in. Phoebe is a strong heroine who is not afraid to go after what she needs, in this case a protector, when the theater she works at shuts. I liked Phoebe immediately. She struggles with the need to be practical and her own moral convictions. Even though the idea is distasteful to her, she needs to survive, so she makes the most of the situation she finds herself in.

It throws her in the path of the notorious DeVere, and his friend Ned. Ned is a widower, in town to arrange the coming out of his daughter, and he isn't best pleased to be dragged along to a bawdy house. When he encounters Phoebe their mutual attraction is instant, but Ned is sworn to celibacy, following the death of his wife.

DeVere does his best to throw Ned and Phoebe together and when DeVere is challenged to a wager, to 'rut in the king's bed' he accepts.

I shan't tell you what happens next, so as not to spoil the story, but it was both funny and heart wrenching and hot! I wasn't sure what to make of Ned to start with, but as the story unfolds I warmed to him, and once he made up his mind to pursue Phoebe, well, does he make up his mind.

*grins*

All in all this was very enjoyable read and the ending has me all sorts of intrigued!

A-

The Ghost of Vampire Present by Seleste deLaney

THE GHOST OF VAMPIRE PRESENT BY SELESTE DELANEY

Word Count: 15,000

Heat Level: Smoky

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Publisher: Decadent

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Jocelyn has finally found her knight in shining armor in Chad, and ghosts are the last thing on her mind. Even when one shows up in her bedroom on Christmas Eve, Jocelyn's a bit more concerned about the other guests on the agenda. She'd prefer to never see another vampire, and the ghost tells her to expect not one, but three.

When the one from her past shows up even though he's supposed to be dead, she decides she's dreaming and suffers through the night. By the time dawn breaks, she's not so sure anymore.

But if it's not a dream that means her nightmare is far from over.

***

This is the sequel to 'Of Course I try' and shows Jocelyn happily settled with Chad, who readers will have met briefly in 'Of Course I Try'. I was really looking forward to reading this, and I did enjoy it, but not as much as I thought I would. 

Let me explain why. I still love Ms. deLaney's descriptive writing style, the sex scenes are hot and beautifully written and there are some brilliant action scenes in this story, but I found it confusing. 

I know it is supposed to be confusing because you see the story through Jocelyn's eyes, and with everything that happens to her in one night, no wonder the poor girl is confused, but to me the author didn't give a satisfactory ending. I literally went "What? That's it?" out loud at the end and actually felt cheated at the open ending. Of course it made me wonder what really happened. Did she dream the night or did the events really take place? Is Chad really Mr Nice Guy or are there far more sinister things at play here? No doubt this was the author's intention, but for me personally, it took some of the joy out of the story. 

I believe a longer story is due to be released soon, and I shall look out for it. I would certainly be interested in seeing how it all works out for Jocelyn and Chad, and I liked Jocelyn's no nonsense friend too. 

A solid B from me. It would have been higher with a more satisfactory ending. Of course this may not bother other readers.

B

Of Course I Try by Seleste deLaney

OF COURSE I TRY BY SELESTE DELANEY

Word Count: 5,000

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Heat Level: Smoky

Publisher: Decadent Publishing

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Love is a wonderful thing. Unless you don't get a choice in the matters of your own heart.

Jocelyn has loved Max since the day she met him. Even when he scares her enough to leave, she can't resist going back. No matter how many times she tries to break free from him, she ends up in his arms and bed again. Not this time. Jocelyn needs to be free and Max isn't going to stop her from walking away - no matter how hard he tries.

***

This is a very short read and the first time I have read this author. Well, it won't be the last! Despite not being a huge fan of first person point of view stories, this drew me in from the first page. Ms. DeLaney has a beautifully descriptive writing style that draws the reader in and will not let you go. I really felt Jocelyn's confusion and her struggle to free herself of Max's drugging influence. Max was all that is yummy in a hero, and I did wonder why Jocelyn felt the need to leave, but it all becomes clear. I gasped at the end and was thoroughly disappointed when it was finished.

If I have one complaint, it's that it simply wasn't long enough!

A solid A from me :-)

A