Tag Archives: erotica

Book Review of Fated Dates and Mating Addiction, by Abraham Steele

I downloaded Fated Dates and Mating Addiction  (by Abraham Steele) from Amazon when they were free. They are the first and the fifth book in the Fated Date Agency series. I’m not sure why I only had one and five, but I did.

Fated DatesDescription from Goodreads:
Bryant had always known that Cade was straight. After years of crushing on his best friend, the bookish young omega was ready to move on. Cade would never be interested in him like that. It was time to move on – time for Bryant to get matched by the Fated Date Agency.

The agency’s response only showed Bryant how cruel fate could be. His sexy jock friend wasn’t just a crush – he was the only one for him. But Cade was still straight. Bryant couldn’t let him know that they were fated mates.

And yet… he couldn’t let him go.

Review:
WTH? This plot had more holes that a mesh screen! Seriously, I spent the whole book being confused about how it was still holding together at all. It was also repetitive, self absorbed, and the writing had a painfully naive quality to it. I didn’t like either of the characters. Being on the receiving end of anal sex was explicitly equated to being a woman. The happy ending was forced and unbelievable. The characters blithely broke the one rule of being a shift the reader was told about (more than once) and it was originally published in three parts, which makes no conceivable sense at all. Thank goodness I had a compilation.

Mating AddictionDescription from Goodreads:
Disowned by his family, cut off from his pack, Raymond Fusco lives for the next conquest. And he’s definitely making one tonight. There’s no way he’s going to close off the weekend without pumping his cum into a hot, willing asshole. Any of the anonymous guys messaging him will do. The young alpha’s standards aren’t exactly high – there’s no point when he’s only going to see them once. The new guy who just emailed him stands out, though. Not only does Diago have a gorgeous face and cock, his way with words is also intriguing. Why would he refer to Grindr as an “agency”?

A week after breaking up with his first and only boyfriend, Diago Ayling has finally heard back from the Fated Date Agency. The lovelorn omega just got his heart stomped on, and now he’s ready to find the real thing: his fated mate. Even though Raymond told him to come straight to his place, Diago is picturing flowers and candlelight for their first date.

Diago is about to get a whole lot more than he bargained for. Then again – so is Raymond… 

Review:
What the hell did I just read? MPreg, shifter romance, sure I’m familiar with the trope—fated mates, knotting, male pregnancy. I knew what I was in for in that respect. But this book was just…well, it’s just a big fat nope for me. The dual first person narratives were painful and the writing style is one I don’t enjoy.

Raymond and his sex addition (more like sex frenzy) was a jerk until the magic peen cured him. Or that’s not quite right, he didn’t get the magic penis because he’d the alpha they don’t get dick. They give the dicking, cause they’re The Man. So, I guess he got the magic ass. Either way he was magically cured of his sex addiction by having sex with Diago. I bet all sex addicts wish they’d known all they needed to beat that demon is the right sex and lots of it. This book is predominantly sex, but really rushed frantic sex that wasn’t in the least satisfying.

I somehow only had book one and five in this series this one is better than the first and both stood alone just fine. Though I don’t understand the breaking into three parts. I think they may have been initially published as serials. If I’d read these as serials instead of a compilation I’d have been furious. Also this (and the first one for that matter) is listed at 200+ pages in length. I have a hard time thinking it’s really that long.

Bloodlines

Book Review of Bloodlines (KinKaid Wolf Pack #1), by Jessica Lee

BloodlinesI picked up a copy of Bloodlines, by Jessica Lee, when it was free on Amazon. It was still free at the time of posting.

Description from Goodreads:
Evin KinKaid, the only son of the KinKaid pack’s alpha, has a secret. One that will tear his family apart. In one year, Evin is to succeed his father as alpha leader and continue the dominant bloodline of his family. There’s only one problem: Evin is gay. When Evin is pushed into the bed of his intended female mate, he’s forced to reveal the truth. And for an alpha male wolf shifter promised to a female whose goal is to one day be queen, coming out has never been more explosive.

To Mason Thorne II, heir to Thorne Global Inc., life is a lie. To sustain his father’s love, Mason has agreed to stay in the family business and to one day assume his place as CEO. Instead of reaching for his heart’s desire, he’s settled for a life he never wanted. But an unexpected auto accident will send Evin and Mason into each other’s arms and down a path toward a destiny neither man can escape: an eternity sealed in blood.

Review:
This was ok, not great, deep or important in any way, but also not all bad. It was basically 75% sex though. Which was a shame because that left far too little room for the plot, which was weak to say the least. I rather thought it just a pretty skin laid over the sex to tie it all together. Meh.

The main characters, while likable, were shallow and poorly developed. Everyone else were just caricatures, blown up and over exaggerated villains or angels. Mostly including cheesy dialogue to match their role. Meh.

The writing, when not dripping cheese, was fine. But the editing was a mess. Meh.

No Boundaries

Book Review of No Boundaries (Phoenix, Inc. #1), by S. E. Jakes

No BoundariesI purchased a copy of S. E. JakesNo Boundaries.

Description from Goodreads:
When your past closes in, running isn’t always an option.

The jobs Marcus Lowry works for at Phoenix, Inc. Investigations are quick and easy, and they don’t give him the nightmares his days as a CIA operative did. That is, until he gets involved in a case that grabs him by the throat and won’t let go.

Cole Jacobs left behind his old life on the streets to make a name for himself rebuilding high-end and vintage cars and bikes. But when a stalker threatens to kill him—and to hurt anyone who stands in his way—his past closes in on him, and he’s not sure where to turn.

The last thing Marcus wants to do is take on a charity case, and to say that he and Cole don’t see eye to eye at first is putting things mildly. But when the first attempt on Cole’s life nearly kills them both, Marcus realizes that Cole is in real danger, and Cole is forced to reveal everything. Almost everything. Because Cole’s deepest secrets could destroy them both. 

Review:
I have read several other books by S. E. Jakes and enjoyed them. In fact, I’ve given every other book by them a 4 or 5 star rating. So, I know they can pace a book, develop a character, write clear, concise scenes and believable romance between rough men. And it’s a really good thing I’ve read these other books, because if I had to judge Jakes on this book I wouldn’t believe it.

This book is rushed, clumsy, inconsistent, poorly edited, under-developed and just a bad example of writing, from an author I know is capable of more. Here is an example: In the final climatic scene the villain is killed (I don’t think that’s a spoiler, the villain always dies in this sort of book) and I couldn’t even tell who killed them! POVs are all over the place, even though there are sometimes (but not always) headers inferring whose POV the section is supposed to be from. Characters were named that weren’t in the book, so I didn’t know who they were. I often couldn’t’ tell who was doing what or in what position someone was in during sex scenes. Names were swapped. It was just a bloody mess!

Part of this may come down to the fact that, as another reviewer pointed out (and that’s the only indication I’ve seen) that this is a spin-off from another series. But this is no excuse and I take issue with this on multiple fronts. One, if you’re calling it a new series, spin-off or not, I should be able to pick it up and read it without reading the previous series; otherwise it’s part of the first series. It should be self-contained enough to allow this. Two: especially if nothing warns the reader that it is a spin-off! And as far as I can tell, nothing does. I feel lied to, as a reader, on this front. Tricked into picking something up that I was never going to be able to engage in without being forewarned.

This was a total fail, made even worse because I expected so much more.