Review ~ Motorcycle Man ~ Kristen Ashley #ShelfLove

Motorcycle Man by Kristen Ashley
Dream Man #4
Release Date: December 11, 2012
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Nook
Rating: 5 Bookworms
Challenges: #COYER (summer), #ShelfLove, #TravelingtotheTerminus
Goodreads

Synopsis
Get ready to ride...

Tyra Masters has had enough drama to last a lifetime. Now, she's back on track and looking forward to her new, quiet life. Until she meets the man of her dreams. The tattooed, muscled biker plies her with tequila-and the best sex of her life. She knows it isn't the tequila and hot sex talking. He's the kind of man she's always wanted. Unfortunately, he's also her new boss...

Kane "Tack" Allen has a rule. He doesn't employ someone he's slept with. So when he learns he spent last night in bed with her new office manager, he quickly fires Tyra. Yet when Tyra stands up to him and fights for her job, Tack is intrigued. He tells her she can keep her job on one condition: no more sex. Ever. But as things heat up between them, Tack finds that he'll be the one breaking all the rules...

So y'all know I started reading KA slightly out of order...I read Chaos when I should have read Dream Man so I'd been dying for Tack and Tyra's story, not realizing it was there...I'd just missed it.And y'all, I knew their story was going to ROCK but it ROCKED harder than I could have imagined. I've determined after reading Motorcycle Man that I have two distinct types and they're polar opposites. I love a broody intellectual as well as a tattooed motorcycle man. LOL

Tack and Tyra meet at a BBQ at Chaos which Tyra was invited to being the new office manager for Ride - Chaos' custom car and bike business. Some talking and drinking with Tack ensues and those things lead to others... However, those other things don't lead to what Tyra envisioned and to be quite honest, the fact Tack ever got another shot was a miracle but I digress. Come Monday, Tyra has to start her new job with Tack as her boss and things DO NOT start off well. But Tyra has a stubborn streak, which I adore, and she's determined to stick it out while letting Tack know what she thinks of him. That stubborn streak and Tyra's mouth are things Tack finds fascinating so he does all he can to get back in there. 

All that combined with the mortification of meeting Tack's ex, meeting this kids who can be a handful, and Tyra's best friend, Lanie, getting into some trouble thanks to her fiance's dealings with the Russian mob - well, it all boiled down to the kind of KA read I adore and love. Oh, and we also got some time with the other Dream Man men and a few of the Hot Bunch, too. Awesome sauce, right?!?

Despite my initial reaction to Tack's behavior towards Tyra - okay, it took him a little bit to stop being an ass - Tack completely won me over. Which I knew he would since I already fell for him in the Chaos books but you'll love him too when he says things like:

And into the darkness, to this sleeping woman, he whispered, "You don't know this, baby, but some men have dream women too."

"I figured I'd find my way to beauty eventually. And I'd find absolution because I'd know, I earned the love of that woman, a woman who's got so much to her it'll take years to dig down and find the heart of her, that would be my reward."

See what I mean? Tyra didn't stand a chance but she did give as good as she got and that's something I adore in a heroine. So Motorcycle Man comes out on top as my favorite in the Dream Man series (sorry, Mitch) because I have two distinct types and Kane "Tack" Allen pushes all my buttons as the tattooed motorcycle man type. *wink*

Review ~ Law Man ~ Kristen Ashley #ShelfLove

Law Man by Kristen Ashley
Dream Man #3
Release Date: December 11, 2012
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Nook
Rating: 5 Bookworms
Challenges: #COYER (summer), #ShelfLove
Goodreads

Synopsis
Love is just around the corner...

Sweet, shy Mara Hanover is in love with her neighbor. For four years, she has secretly watched her dream man from afar. Handsome police detective Mitch Lawson is way out of her league. She's a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, and there's no way a guy like Mitch would want anything to do with her. But when Mara has a leaky faucet that she can't fix, it's Mitch who comes to her rescue.

Mitch has been eyeing his beautiful neighbor for a long time. He jumps at the chance to help her, and soon their formerly plantonic relationship gets very hot and heavy. But when Mara gets a disturbing phone call from her cousin's kids, she gets pulled back into the life she's tried so hard to leave behind. Can the hot law man convince Mara to let go of her past- and built a future with him?

I am officially in love with Mitch Lawson and since he has to have a leading lady other than me *wink* I couldn't ask for a better on e than Mara.

There really isn't anything that didn't work for me in this Dream Man installment but here are the main things that soooo did:

• Mara - I completely identified with and related to her. I understood her rating system (she considers herself a 2.5 to Mitch's 10.5) and where it came from. I understood why her self-esteem was essentially non-existent and why she lived her life the way she did. I also really loved watching her blossom, come into her own, and realize she actually was a 10.5!
• Mitch - God! Mitch. What's not to like about this man? I'd liken him to Hank (Rock Chick Redemption) on the alpha scale as well as being a family guy. And he said this one thing that I think is one of the greatest quotes about feelings when first laying eyes on a person... "I think I fell in love with the promise of you..."  *swoon*
• Billy and Billie - you'll have to read to understand and I dare you not to fall in love with these two kids. They are ADORABLE. And I like that KA can incorporate kids in a story where they have a crucial roles.
• The secondary cast - as always, a total draw! KA never underestimates or undervalues the importance of having good people around you...family and friends. Elvira is a character I can't get enough of and so I'm sad the Dream Man series is almost at its end.
• The suspense - what can I say? KA gives good suspense...right along with good alpha *wink*

Review ~ Wild Man ~ Kristen Ashley #COYER #ShelfLove

Wild Man by Kristen Ashley
Dream Man #2
Release Date: December 11, 2012
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Nook
Rating: 4.5 Bookworms
Challenges: #COYER, #ShelfLove
Goodreads

Synopsis
She's about to walk on the wild side...

While filling the display case in her bakery, the bell over the door sounds and Tessa O'Hara looks up to see the man of her dreams. Within thirty seconds he asks her out for a beer. But after four months of dating, she discovers he's an undercover DEA agent - and he's investigating her possible role in her ex-husband's drug business. For Tess, this means their relationship is over.

Brock disagrees. He's committed to his anti-drug mission, but he's fallen in love with the beautiful woman who's as sweet as her cupcakes - and he'll do anything to win her back. Standing between Tess and Brock are their own exes, one of them a drug lord who's determined to get what he wants. Now as danger threatens, can Brock break the rules he's lived by and let loose his wild side to protect the woman he loves?

Wild Man was an unusual KA read for me. She delivered on all I'm used to - a riveting story, great MCs and supporting cast, action, suspense, grit and emotion. But it was a heavy read for some reason. There's a difficult topic for starters. Brock, although I met him in Mystery Man, still took awhile to grow on me. And there was something about Tess...at the start of the story something happens and when Brock shows up, finally, to talk it out, Tess immediately forgives him and it's never brought up again. Now, this is completely in character for Tess. She's a what-you-see-is-what-you-get kinda girl. No drama. And maybe that was my issue, but I missed the playful and/or snarky banter. It was...well, she was just an unusual heroine for KA, in my opinion.

I did, however, love her anyway. And once I warmed up to Brock, I fell for him as well. Their romance is a challenge thanks to the ugliness of their pasts not to mention meddling exes. And Brock's ex is a piece of work...a nasty one!

KA included a couple of kiddos. Brock's boys not only added depth, they also added a lot of fun. I appreciated that being incorporated along with the already stellar secondary cast.

There was so much going on in Wild Man so there wasn't a dull moment. I think I finished it just a few days. I still loved it but there was just a little something missing that kept this from being the typical spectacular 5-Bookworm KA experience.

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.