Happy Release Day Gina L Maxwell

Amazon  ~  B&N

Published:  March 31, 2013 by Brazen an Entangled Publishing Imprint

Series Rating:  N/A - 3rd and 4th books are not out yet 

Book Rating:  5 out of 5 stars but it's more like 10 

Genre:  Contemporary Romance

How is the Sex?  

Hot, Steamy, Sensual, Dominant yet Tender

How are the Story Lines? 

Gina L Maxwell makes you see, smell, 

feel and hear everything as if you are inside the book 

Would you read it again? 

Most definitely YES

ebook and paperback are both required 

Book Blurb:

          He has seven days.....and seven rules to break.

District Attorney Vanessa McGregor firmly believes that structure and order are the stuff that dreams are made of. Happiness can be planned - and it starts with seven rules she's laid out for her future. But as she's organizing her best friend's wedding in Hawaii, all of Vanessa's best-laid plans are about to meet their match in a wickedly hot MMA fighter...Jackson "Jax" Maris is focused on surfing, training and fighting. That is, until he opens up his big mouth, and finds himself having to pretend he's engaged to his little sister's best friend, Vanessa. When they're force to share a romantic bungalow, however, their little charade suddenly takes a turn for the seriously sexy. And while Jax is definitely not part of Vanessa's long-term plan, he has seven days - and seven naughty nights - to turn her seven-rule plan upside down.

Review:

Jackson "Jax" Maris.  Yum.  Dark and Delicious.  

He's introduced to us in Seducing Cinderella as the protective older brother of Lucie Miller.  From the moment I heard that phone call between brother and sister, I wanted to know more about Jax. 

When we meet Jax and Vanessa, they don't get off to the greatest start.  As a matter of fact, they seem to be complete opposites.  But the spark is there from that first moment.  And boy does it fuel a fire.  I looked up the definition of spark.   Here's what I found:  

spark

Noun

1. A small fiery particle thrown off from a fire, alight in ashes, or produced by striking together two hard surfaces such as stone or metal.
2. A lively young fellow.

Verb

1. Engage in courtship.
2. Emit sparks of fire or electricity.

The spark - it started a fire.   

A fire of passion.  

A fire of desire.  

A fire of lust.  

Truth be told a full blown blaze.  And I felt the heat.  Phew... is it hot in here right now?  Thinking back to all of the love scenes.  WOW!  I truly felt like I was right there in every scene.  Lurking.  Watching.  Wanting.  Waiting.  Feeling - oh how I felt this book.    

I laughed with Vanessa at moments of humor and I cried with her too when there were moments of sadness.  Vanessa is just as amazing as Jax.  She holds her own.  She's strong, beautiful and independent but you can totally get that she does want someone to take care of her and treat her as she deserves to be treated.  Special.   And yeesh does Jackson treat her just as she deserves.  

This book delivers everything I want in a great read.  There's funny banter, rough and tumble angst, a little bit of MMA action, some great spots all over the island and love scenes that knocked my socks off and then put them back on just to have them knocked off again.  

Jackson "Jax" Maris has indeed stepped up to being my #1 book boyfriend.  I'm confident he will top your list as well.  

Happy Release Day Gina! 

I love your writing, please don't EVER stop.  

If you'd like to connect with Gina L Maxwell, follow her on Facebook, twitter and her website 

Follow Enchanting Ella on Twitter and like her Facebook Page.  

Still curious?  Read her bio.

Enchanted Ella: Got Character?

"Character is key in any book as much as it is in life" 

~ Enchanting Ella

  

When I pick up a book, character development is so important to me that if it’s slow in the beginning of the book I lose interest - fast.  Does this ring true for you?  I have however, found myself changing my opinion as a storyline changes and the character develops.
 
As in our regular lives, we all relate to someone for some reason.  When the book has a great storyline or character development it makes the reading experience that much more realistic.  

Take Seducing Cinderella by Gina L. Maxwell for instance.  When Reid is first introduced to us, we all more than likely think he is going to be the tough, macho and obnoxiously over confident jerk who would play around with Lucie’s heart.  The author of this book has great character development (thanks Gina!) and he becomes something totally different than what we originally thought despite his damage.  If you haven’t read this book – you should what the heck are you waiting for? 

Great books are great for many reasons.  What is it that makes a good character for me?  I need the character to show believability.  Regardless of the fact that I read fiction, I still somehow want to believe that it’s possible this character truly exists.  Many books captured my attention despite the fact that the main character was such a jerk and acted, in my opinion, inappropriately.  In my real life, I wouldn’t have given certain characters the time of day much less any respect.  However, because the author did such an outstanding job in the character development, I was able to see past all the flaws and see the real person within the character.  In spite of their dark and damaged egos, I could still forgive them their indiscretions simply because the author made me understand why they were damaged.  This development somehow made it okay.  That fact right there is the skill of a great writer.

Who's your favorite author or character in a book? 

Follow Enchanting Ella on Twitter and like her Facebook Page.  

Still curious?  Read her bio.

Best Blog Post Ever

In one week Ravishing Romances went from completely on time to totally behind.  Some serious stuff happened and family takes priority.  (Me and my immediates are all great and in good health.)  

To keep the blog active, let's pretend this is the best blog post ever and give stuff away!

Ravishing Romances has featured contemporary romances lately - continuing the trend: comment below (leave your email so I can contact you), follow my blog (links to your left) and enter to win:

Amber Lin's Giving It Up

(If you win this, you can email your receipt to Amber and receive free Giving It Up shower soap.  Rawr.)

Gina L. Maxwell's Seducing Cinderella

Jessica Scott's Because of You

-OR-

Marquita Valentine's Twice Tempted

There will be three winners, each winning one novel a piece.  eBooks will be sent via Amazon.

Contest ends Monday, August 13.

What's Taking so Long?

I have approximately 16 novels on my To-Be-Reviewed list.  I could technically post a review every other day and knock them out quickly.  But I won't.

Authors put their blood, sweat and tears into their novels and I refuse to give them anything less in return.

I don't skim. I don't speed read. I don't rush through a point just to throw up a post and move on.  

Writing a review is a very involved process.  Most books are given to me by the author and my reviews are discussed with them prior to any posting.  If I dislike their novel they usually wish to know why and we discuss it in great detail.  Before I criticize a section I double-check my facts.  If I find typos, I'm usually typing a 30 minute email showing them where the typos are.

To upload a post takes even more time.  The review is filled with links to their social media sites, book selling sites and previous interviews.  

It is a great compliment to receive any book for review and it will be treated as such.

If I have to review these novels 6 months after their published date - I'll do it if that's what is required to get the review right.  Ideal? No.  But I will not disrespect these talented people with giving them half of my attention or efforts.  

I recently received this Facebook post from an author, "This is a TERRIFIC review.  Wow.  Nailed it.  Thank you."

Time it took me to write his review?  3-4 hours (not including reading).

Time it took him to write his novel?  Probably months.

It's the least I can do.

Comment and Follow to win everyone!