ARC REVIEW: Melting Point (Hot in Chicago #1.5) by Kate Meader

Title: Melting Point
Series: Hot in Chicago #1.5
Author: Kate Meader
Publisher: Pocket Star
Published: August 31st 2015
Format: ARC | Pages: 131
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance, M/M
Source: Publisher
★★★★★ (5/5) Stars!!!!

Kate Meader | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Things are heating up at Engine Co. 6 in this original e-novella from Kate Meader’s sizzling Hot in Chicago series! Super hot playboy firefighter Gage Simpson has one particular man on his mind: Brady Smith, a recalcitrant, moody chef who makes Gage melt from the inside out. Features a sexy sneak preview of Playing with Fire!

Firefighter Gage Simpson has it all: the job of his dreams, the family of his heart, and no shortage of hot guys lining up to share his bed. “Fun and easy” is his motto—and it’s kept him sunny through a painful upbringing and steered him away from trouble. But when trouble comes knocking in the form of a sexy, scarred, tattooed chef with a harrowing past and zero communication skills, Gage can’t help but be drawn to the flame.

Brady Smith isn’t fun. And easy isn’t in his vocabulary. When cocky Gage swaggers into his restaurant kitchen, the former Marine-turned-five-star-chef is blindsided by the firefighter’s beauty. Then confused that this golden guy with the sparkling blue eyes and the body of a god might be interested in him. As desire flares and temperatures rise, Gage and Brady will have to figure out if the heat between them is just a temporary flash—or the beginning of something real.

I received a copy of this book, from the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. In no way did this sway either my review or my rating!

All I can think of right now is thank goodness for all the people, like myself, who saw enough in Gage and Brady for there to be a demand of them having their own novella. Not to take anything away from Kinsey and Luke, who were pretty freaking hot and wonderful themselves, but the bits and pieces on the side throughout book one, Flirting with Fire, that were happening between Gage and Brady really stole the spotlight for me. I was turning the pages faster to get to more of their story at times more so than the couple the book was about. Needless to say my copy of Melting Point has been sitting on my desk quite literally taunting me for weeks now until I was finally able to read it and there are no words for how worth the wait this book was.

Like everyone else who meets him, I was fascinated and enamored of Gage Simpson since his first appearance in Rekindle the Flame, a prequel type of novella. You can't help but love this guy. He's cocky in the most adorable way, perpetual grin and one of the most playful and flirtatious guys you'll ever meet. And he's an equal opportunity flirt at that. Male or female he'll turn on the charm and have you melting at his feet. I desperately needed him to have his own book! It was nice, if not bittersweet to see this other side of Gage. The one that's not always happy-go-lucky. The one who lets a bit of the pain from his past break past his otherwise unflappable exterior. As if it were possible to love this guy even more.

Brady was a mystery I was desperate to crack. Delicious muscles and tattoos with zero communication skills, scars inside and out and an aversion to human contact. This quiet and broody chef had me completely fascinated with the need to know his story. I loved watching Gage slowly, and I do mean slowly, break down his defenses and seeing the Brady that he probably was before he joined the marines. One who wasn't afraid to smile or laugh or let someone touch them. I loved everything about his character.

It's funny, when I mentioned to Kate Meader that I was going to be starting Melting Point in a few days the last thing she said to me about it was "Also hottest sex scenes I've ever written. Just sayin'"  Now that I've finished the book, I'm going to have to heartily agree! Hot. Scorching. Cold shower inducing scenes. The chemistry that Gage and Brady have is mind blowing. I mean it was evident in the teasers of will they/won't they that were in book one but holy hotness Batman! These two guys finally coming together, no pun intended...kinda, was worth every bit of dancing around their feelings, well more so Brady around his, that lead up to this point.

I could probably sit here for hours and gush about this book and these two characters that I'm deeply in love with but I'll stop here. I'm such a big fan of Kate Meader's writing and the characters she creates. If you've never read anything by her before all I can say is what are you waiting for? I can't wait for the next book in the series to come out next month, Playing with Fire. I love this wonderful dynamic between this group of firefighting foster siblings and I need more! The end of September can't get here soon enough!

Huge, huge thanks goes to Pocket Star (Simon & Schuster) for the opportunity to read and review this book!!

ARC REVIEW: Consumed by You (Fighting Fire #3) by Lauren Blakely

Title: Consumed by You
Series: Fighting Fire #3
Author: Lauren Blakely
Publisher: Entangled Brazen
Published: August 11th 2015
Format: eARC | Pages: 201
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Erotica, Romance
Source: Publisher
★★★ (3/5) Stars!

Lauren Blakely | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

A sexy category romance from Entangled's Brazen imprint... 

She's playing with fire...

Dog trainer Cara Bailey wants to find "the one," but fantasizing about her sexy-as-hell client, firefighter Travis Jansen, is getting in the way. Her only option? Get the confirmed bachelor out of her system-in every position possible-so she can settle down with Mr. Right. Starting right now.

Travis doesn't do relationships, so no matter how badly he wants the pretty little brunette, he keeps his distance. Until Cara goes and changes the game. She'll fulfill all of his fantasies if he agrees to walk away when it's over. But when the wildfire between them blazes out of control, it will consume everything-and everyone-in its path...

I received a copy of this book, from the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. In no way did this sway either my review or my rating!

When presented with the opportunity to read and review Lauren Blakely's latest installment of her sexy firefighter series, Fighting Fire, I believe my exact words were "...you had me at firefighter..." What can I say. A girl wants what she wants, and this girl wanted some sexy fireman action. And that's exactly what I got in Travis.

You dangle a second chance romance in front of me and I am going to grab for it every single time. With Travis and Cara, I love how we have this sweet and steamy history between the two of them that goes all the way back to when they were teenagers. There was never anything negative that pulled them apart. Whenever they're near each other they are drawn to one another like magnets but when life sends them in separate directions they would just drift apart still with fond feelings. It brought a different kind of sweetness to they're relationship. There was no fighting off past mistakes it was just hot and heavy whenever the other was near.

While, for the most part, I liked Cara's character...she was also that type of female that drives me completely crazy. The kind that see signs that aren't there, the kind who, for example, would hear a guy say something to them like "oh wow your haircut looks great" and their brain filters it into something more like "let's buy a house and fill it with babies!" Every soft caress or sweet word from Travis she would turn into a sign that he wanted what she did, that he was ready. All I could think was oh honey you are setting yourself up for some major heartbreak. 

I think if I were going to take issue with anything in this book though it would be the fact that I could probably count on half of a hand the number of times that Cara and Travis were together in a scene that did not lead to groping and touching and making out or some form of sexual situation. I know what you're probably thinking "Sheri, what were you expecting when you picked up an Entangled Brazen?" Okay I realize that smarty pants but I guess I just wanted a tiny bit more of the other stuff. Maybe more problems between the two of them or some of their funny cute stuff that involved the clothes staying on.

Don't get me wrong I had a lot of fun reading Consumed by You and I will definitely be going back and reading the first two books in this series. When the antics of Travis and Cara didn't have me in full on swoon mode they had me laughing and grinning, as did their furry, four-legged companions. Absolutely worth the read.

Thanks to Entangled Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this book!

REVIEW: Flirting With Fire (Hot in Chicago #1) by Kate Meader

Title: Flirting With Fire
Series: Hot in Chicago #1
Author: Kate Meader
Publisher: Pocket Books
Published: March 24th 2015
Format: Paperback | Pages: 376
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Source: Publisher
★★★★★ (5/5) Stars!!!

Kate Meader | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

The first installment in Hot in Chicago, a brand-new, sizzling series from Kate Meader that follows a group of firefighting foster siblings and their blazing hot love interests!

Savvy PR guru Kinsey Taylor has always defined herself by her career, not her gender. That is, until she moved from San Francisco to Chicago to be with her fiancé who thought she wasn't taking her “job” of supporting him in his high-powered career seriously enough—and promptly dumped her for a more supportive and “feminine” nurse. Now, as the new assistant press secretary to Chicago’s dynamic mayor, she’s determined to keep her eye on the prize: no time to feel inferior because she’s a strong, kick-ass woman, and certainly no time for men.

But that all changes when she meets Luke Almeida, a firefighter as searingly sexy as he is quick-tempered. He’s also the second oldest of the Firefightin’ Dempseys, a family of foster siblings who have committed their lives to the service—if Luke’s antics don’t get him fired first. When Luke goes one step too far and gets into a bar brawl with the Chicago Police Department, Kinsey marches into Luke’s firehouse and lays down the law on orders from the mayor. But at Engine Co. 6, Luke Almeida is the law. And he’s not about to let Kinsey make the rules.

I received a copy of this book, from the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. In no way did this sway either my review or my rating!

Heartwarming. Sexy. Fun. Heartbreaking. Hilarious. Just a few of the adjectives I would use to describe this book. You first meet the family that this series is about briefly in Baby, It's Cold Outside. And while I never did fully connect with either Beck or Darcy, that the novella follows, I did however connect with the rest of Beck's foster family and knew that I desperately wanted to read this series when it finally came out. So when someone from Pocket Books got in touch with me and said to send them my address if I was interested in a copy, you can bet your sweet booty I was right on top of that one! I couldn't get enough of this book. I tried to do the right thing and go to bed at a decent hour, well as decent as midnight is anyway, after I started Flirting With Fire but my brain would not shut off or let these characters go. I ended up pulling an all nighter and finishing in one sitting. It was totally worth being a little bit groggy today. So worth it.

"None of us needed it signed and sealed. Sean is my father. Mary is my mother."

The best thing that surprised me with this book is that it was in three POVs. Now don't freak out! No that doesn't mean there was a love triangle, because there so was not. But what you have instead is the added bonus of another family member's storyline, briefly, running alongside this one. But I'll come back to him later. It's so easy to fall in love with this family of foster siblings in the Hot in Chicago series. They have this incredible family dynamic and absolute love and devotion for one another. And each one of them is such an interesting and complex character with a touching and heartbreaking story and I can't wait until I've read each and every one of their stories. Sean and Mary Dempsey, who have passed on prior to the events of this series along with one of the other foster siblings Logan, seem like they were incredible people taking in these 6 troubled kids and creating this amazing family legacy that only keeps getting stronger.

"You should have seen him, Alex," Gage said. "It was all zingers and eye fucking and enough heat to set off the smoke alarms. Our Luke's ready to get his wang back in the game. So proud."

The main focus of this book is on Kinsey and Luke. Oh sweet baby Jesus, Kinsey and Luke! I love reading relationships that start out where there's either some kind of rivalry or situation to have the couple the book focuses on at opposing sides of a situation. There's something incredibly sexy about the heat that builds up between two people as they fight not only each other but the growing attraction and desires they start to feel for one another. Kate Meader does not disappoint one bit in this area. Because the sexual tension that builds up between these two can only be described as scorching. Both of their last relationships ended very, very badly and have left both of these two just a wee bit untrusting when it comes to relationships. But you just know, without a doubt, that these two compliment each other so well and are absolutely perfect for each other.

Sometimes his head was more demon than human, and heaven help whoever got in his way.

Luke is full of confidence and a bit of cockiness and like all the rest of his family he's had a rough upbringing so he's got quite a bit of anger and darkness buried inside of him. He's also so many other things though. He's loyal and protective, a family man, passionate and very alpha male but with sweet and sensitive streaks blended in. He's the guy that everybody depends on. Yet he still has flaws like the tendency to punch first and ask questions later. Regardless of all of that most importantly he's like the glue that holds everyone together, he's the one who doesn't rest until he knows everyone in his family is okay and safe. He's pretty freaking great.

She was a fool―and she had no one but herself to blame.

Kinsey was just freaking adorable. She's a strong and confident woman in a very male dominated world. Even growing up with a marine father and three older brothers. It's made her very competitive and ambitious. She likes to win and be in control.The only time she wasn't all of these things and was even the slightest bit unsure of herself was when it came to men and relationships. Her ex-fiancé really did a number on her confidence there. But she was such a fun character. Even meeting her family was great and even though it was brief moments I absolutely loved them, especially her dad. She has this very unique and awesome family dynamic of her own.

And then there was the gorgeous streak of heat behind the bar in the form of Gage.

So back to that bonus storyline. The other POV in this book is the younger of the foster brothers, Gage. You know how there's that saying about men that how the good ones are always either taken or gay? Yeah, leave it to me to be totally freaking in love with the gay brother. But I adore, no adore isn't even a good enough word for how I feel about Gage. He's the life of the party and always so full of energy and life and funny as all hell. His story isn't complete with the end of this one, at least I hope it isn't because there wasn't a lot of closure, so I'm hoping it continues on in both their sister Alex and the oldest of the clan Wyatt's stories. I love how he's this self admitted ho and yet the one guy who turns his life upside down, Brady, is still very mysterious at this point and so full of issues that it pretty much breaks my heart when he's around. I didn't know whose story I wanted more of as I was reading, Luke and Kinsey or Gage and Brady. They both had my heart and mind completely wrapped up in them.

"And there's no one left behind, just us looking out for each other."

It's probably pretty obvious at this point and doesn't need to be said, but I'm gonna say it anyway...I freaking loved this book. It was all the right amounts of everything. It was touching and heartwarming, a little bit sad and heartbreaking at times, and full of passion and heat. The characters are what puts this book above the rest, they have depth and really pull you in to their stories and lives and make you crave to know everything that makes them tick. I cannot wait until Alex's story comes out next. This book lays the groundwork for her and her guy and I am so excited! Can it be September already? Sigh...

Thank you so much Pocket Books for the opportunity to read and review this book!!