Review ~ Mystery Man ~ Kristen Ashley #BloggerShame, #ShelfLove

Mystery Man by Kristen Ashley
Dream Man #1
Release Date: July 11, 2011
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: I received a complimentary copy via Netgalley. This did not affect my rating and my review is voluntarily provided.
Rating: 5 Bookworms
Challenges: #BloggerShame, #ShelfLove
Goodreads

Synopsis
Night time is the right time...

Gwendolyn Kidd has met the man of her dreams. He's hot, he's sexy, and what started as a no-names-exchanged night of passion has blossomed into a year and a half-long pleasure fest. Sure, it's a little strange that he only appears in her bed at night, but Gwen is so sure he's the one, she just can't turn him away...

Hawk Delgado knows more about Gwen than she could ever imagine. She's gorgeous, headstrong, and skittish about relationships. But Hawk is facing his own demons, demons that keep him from connecting with anyone. Yet when Gwen is drawn into Denver's lethal underground scene, Hawk's protective nature comes out full force. The problem is, when Gwen gets a dose of Hawk's Alpha attitude in the daylight, she's not so sure he's the one anymore...

After a foray into something a little new from KA (review posting soon) it was nice to return to comfort food KA-style. Mystery Man is the first in the Dream Man series but it's set in the Rock Chick world (meaning Denver) and since I previously read a few of the Chaos books (out of order) I'd met a few of these characters. Getting to know their world though and more about them was a treat! Kinda like coffee (or wine) and chocolate...or chocolate chip cookie dough since that's more Gwen's style. ;) Here are a few of the reasons I enjoyed the indulgence:

• Gwen. She's a great gal! She's sassy, feisty, fun. She's loyal to her friends and family - still claiming her sister despite her sister being hell on wheels. She's smart and she's tough. But having been hurt in the past she - rightfully so - has some issues with commitment. Gwen's also funny and she lives in her head a lot which I could identify with.
• Hawk. Have I mentioned KA gives good Alpha? ;) Yeah. Hawk is mysterious, enigmatic, and too dang hot for his own good. He keeps women at arm's length - for good reason - but when Gwen gives him lip for the first time, it's all over for him. Yes, he's a bit domineering but he's... well, he's Hawk.
• A brilliant secondary cast. From Gwen's family and besties to Hawk's team of commandos and everyone in between, I delighted in meeting more people who I'll enjoy spending my time with. A few I'd met previously because of the reading out of order thing and getting to see Tack pre-Chaos series was awesome! I'm eager to spend more time in this world.
• A mysterious baddie and lots of suspense. KA typically weaves in a fair amount of suspense in her stories and Gwen and Hawk's story was all the more exciting because of it. It didn't hurt that a few of the Hot Bunch boys (Rock Chick) were needed and therefore made cameos. ;)
• Female solidarity. This is almost always a main theme in KA stories and it's one I relate to and one I appreciate.
• An HEA.

KA rocked it with Mystery Man and Wild Man (#2) is already in my queue.