Review: Not Safe for Work - Charlotte Stein

“Employees must maintain clear boundaries between personal and professional relationships and conduct themselves in a manner appropriate to the office…”

When Hartford brings in Abel Hernandez as the new CEO for his company Hartford Industries, he's prepared for Abel to shake things up…but not quite like this and certainly not with his personal assistant Amy, the one woman he's always wanted but never taken. He sees them breaking all of his precious rules, and he intends to reprimand them for it. The only problem is, it isn't anger he feels towards his two most trusted employees…it's possession. It's desire.

Originally published in the Filthy & Rich box set, get ready for some #NSFW action in Charlotte Stein's sizzling standalone novella featuring two billionaires and the woman caught between them. Not Safe for Work is your dirtiest boss-secretary fantasies come to life.

Visit Charlotte Stein's website for more information

Review:
Amy's boss Thomas Hartford is as uptight as they come, he's a stickler for rules and runs his company with an iron fist. When he brings in his best friend Abel as the new CEO Amy's shocked by how different the two men are, where Thomas is stuffy and abhors anything personal getting in the way of business Abel is down to earth, fun and makes his attraction for Amy very clear from the beginning. It's not long before Abel and Amy are a couple but what shocks Amy is that Thomas seems jealous of their relationship and when Abel starts putting ideas in her head about the three of them together she finds it impossible to resist acting out her wildest fantasies.

This is the first longer story I've read by Charlotte Stein and there's no denying she can write incredibly hot books, the chemistry between Abel and Amy was fantastic and the spark was there between them from the moment Abel walked into the office. I enjoyed their relationship and the fantasies they shared with each other but I have to admit I struggled a bit when Thomas joined in. I found him a really hard character to connect with because he came across as so cold and because this is a novella there didn't seem to be much of a build up to let me believe he was really attracted to either of them. With Abel and Amy you could feel the passion they felt for each other and for Thomas but with Thomas it was more like he was scratching a biological itch. That would have been fine if the story hadn't been trying to convince me that they were going to end up in a permanent three way relationship. It would have been easier to have accepted Abel and Amy as a couple who just liked to add an extra partner for the occasional bit of fun.

As far as short and spicy stories go I did enjoy this, the heat levels were certainly there, but I did end up more than a little disappointed with the romance side. I think if it had been just a few pages longer with a little more time spent getting to know Thomas it could have been so much better.

Source: Received from publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Way Down Deep - Charlotte Stein & Cara McKenna

An erotic romance…told entirely through text messages.

The words he typed were never meant to be read, yet they found their way to her. Two wounded strangers, prisoners of their own lives, brought together by a wayward text.

Without ever hearing each other’s voices, a friendship blooms between them. Without ever seeing each other’s faces, an attraction grows. Without ever touching, the two become lovers.

But when words suddenly aren’t enough, will this bond be able to tear down the walls that keep them apart…or was it only ever fantasy?

Visit Charlotte Stein's website or Cara McKenna's website for more information

Review:
As soon as I saw the first line of the blurb "an erotic romance . . . told entirely through text messages" I knew I had to read Way Down Deep. I'm already a fan of Cara McKenna's and I've seen just how well she writes romantic, but also sexy, letters in her book Hard Time so my expectations were high, especially since so many people have recommended Charlotte Stein to me too (and I'm definitely going to have to start investing in her backlist after reading this!).

The story starts when Malcom drunk texts someone from his past, someone he never expects to receive a response from. He couldn't be more shocked when he realises that the number has been reallocated and he gets a reply from a total stranger. What follows is an intense, highly emotional story as Malcom and Maya continue sending messages to each other and are both able to open up to someone they've never met much easier than they can with people they know in real life. Both characters have issues they are struggling with and we slowly get to learn about both of their lives through their continued messages. I will say it felt more like an email exchange than a text message conversation because their messages are long and detailed but the writing was beautiful and I totally fell in love with both of the characters.

It's not often that I rate an erotic romance 5 stars, especially a story that has only two characters and they never even have a single face to face conversation but I was so captivated by Way Down Deep that I can't give it anything less. Maya and Malcom's romance was in no way a traditional one but it was just so easy to root for them and I desperately wanted them to both find happiness. Oh and I just have to add that sexting has never been so hot! If there was one thing I was slightly disappointed with it was that the story is a little too open ended for my taste, I would have loved an epilogue set a few months or even years down the line but unfortunately that really wouldn't have worked with the story format and it probably would have ended up ruining things. This is a story about two messed up people finding solace in the strangest of places, it's an emotional journey that is both heart-wrenching and joyful and it left me with a huge smile on my face.

Source: Received from publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

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Review: Summer Rain - Anthology

What happens when love gets caught in the rain?

In this romance anthology, RITA-Award winning author Molly O’Keefe shows us the power of a city thunderstorm from the top of a skyscraper, while Amy Jo Cousins soaks us in a rain in Spain. New York Times bestselling author Ruthie Knox’s heroine is devastated by a winter storm, while a summer thunderstorm grants Alexandra Haughton’s hero and heroine a second chance at love. Rain sparks self-awareness in the robot in Charlotte Stein’s story and allows Mary Ann Rivers’s heroine to fall in love with her hero and her own art. Rain causes romance between the college students in Audra North’s and Shari Slade’s stories, while romance causes rain in Cecilia Tan’s myth-inspired tale of a sacrifice to a demi-god. Nine romance novelettes, edited by Sarah Frantz.

All proceeds from the volume will be donated to the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (www.rainn.org), the largest anti-sexual violence organization in the United States.

Visit the Summer Rain page on Goodreads for more information

Review:
Summer Rain is a romance anthology containing nine stories from authors who are all donating 100% of the proceeds to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN) which is the largest anti-sexual violence organisation in America. Personally I think it's worth buying the anthology for that fact alone and I can't applaud these authors enough for giving their time to such a worthy cause.

The anthology contains a wide selection of stories, most with a contemporary setting although there are a couple of sci-fi / fantasy stories too that were an unexpected but pleasant surprise. These stories look at all kinds of relationships - from friends with benefits, to a marriage on the rocks and even a virgin sacrifice. All of the characters have different fears, desires or needs but they are all looking for something that has been missing from their lives before. Not all of the stories contain a happily ever after but most of them at least end with a happy for now.

I wanted to read this anthology because I'm a huge fan of Ruthie Knox but I enjoyed getting the chance to try stories by Molly O'Keefe, Cecilia Tan, Charlotte Stein, Mary Ann Rivers, Amy Jo Cousins, Audra North, Shari Slade & Alexandra Haughton and have definitely discovered some new authors that I'm keen to read more from. I haven't reviewed each of the stories individually because I think one of the fun things about picking up this kind of anthology is letting it surprise you with the total variety of stories it contains. As with any anthology there were some stories that really stood out for me and a couple that I found harder to connect with but overall the quality was really high and the stories were all well written and edited.

This is the perfect kind of book to pick up when you're short on time and want to dive into a satisfying story that you can devour in one sitting. It's also a perfect way of trying some new authors and I'm pretty sure that, like me, you'll end up discovering a few new favourites. By the time you add in that in buying the book you are also donating to an incredibly worthy cause and there really is no excuse not to grab a copy now.

Source: Received from Ruthie Knox in exchange for an honest review.

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