Connie Lafortune

A review of Under Cover by Jenna Gunn, a novella in the Not Over You anthology:

As bachelor number two strutted out on the stage, Rachel Lawson nearly forgot to breathe. She knew that man. The one who destroyed her all those years ago. Rachel couldn’t put all the blame on him as she had never told him her true feelings. But neither did he. Anger, fear, and lust filled her resolve. After what he did, she never wanted to see him again. So, Rachel did what any sane person would do. She ran the bid up to show him exactly how she felt.

Hunter Roman still thought about the one who got away. He knew he should have done things differently. Truth be told, he was younger then, self-absorbed, and terrified of his feelings. Even now, Hunter could remember the woman with clarity and knew he had been wrong. But he had more things to worry about than her.

Jenna Gunn writes with a passion blending her characters to provide the perfect romance. A novella in the Not Over You anthology, Hunter knows just the thing to calm the woman he desperately wants back in his life. Her anger seems permanent, but fate may have just played the final card.

I received Under Cover by Jenna Gunn as an advance review copy free. I own the anthology, Not Over You. I have read and reviewed this book voluntarily.
--Brenda, JustViews… (més)

‘Bound by Steel enveloped me in a world of intense, raw emotional need.’-
(Daccari Buchelli.)

Told in rare second person perspective, Bound by Steel tells the tale of Alpha-type secret military operative, Ryker Steel, and Lyra- a book-loving young woman whom Ryker saves when Lyra crashes her car near his top-secret cabin.

As I read past Ryker and Lyra’s initial encounter, I saw a natural chemistry start to develop between the pair. It was as though they already knew each-other and this feeling persisted, if not increased as time went on.

Abject loneliness sparks an intense connection between the pair, leaving them at the mercy of their own emotions. I found it easy to relate to Lyra’s character with her intense interest in books, and the arts in general. However, I found it hard to share in Ryker’s profound sense of pain, considering the tragic past he has lived through.

What I did find refreshing was Ryker’s growing emotional sensitivity throughout the novel. Whereas most Alpha-male characters seem like the rest, locking down any emotion and only lusting after women and power (makes for rather one-dimensional male characters in my opinion), Ryker Steel has a softer side, which he buries three years prior to the start of the story’s events.

This man has witnessed some truly tragic events.

This book was a refreshing change from the novels I usually find myself reading.
Not just another Alpha story, but a complex narrative that deals in themes of
love, loss, and personal sacrifice.

My rating? 5 Stars!
Recommended reading age: 16-18 and up.

Recommended for lovers of romance, action/thrillers, and light-erotica.

… (més)

Ryker, a man mourning the death of his wife, isolated from the dangers of the world, is suddenly confronted with a moral dilemma. For everyone’s safety, anyone entering his world is sentenced to life of isolation with no opportunity for freedom.

A lonely road deep in a New York mountain range is a bad place for Lyra to have an accident. December, with an impending snow storm, increases the danger ten-fold. She needs to get to Gage and her parents before they start worrying.

Hawk wants her eliminated. Dragon refuses. Lyra is confused by her own feelings.

We all know how small the world can feel. It’s even smaller when connections are discovered between strangers. The mystery weaving through the lives of Lyra and Ryker become a tangled mess. A pulled thread becomes knotted long before the unraveling begins.

The final reveal makes me wonder… Are the connections coincidence or masterly manipulated? I am left with one questions, however. What was the true purpose of the psychiatrist?… (més)