In His Keeping (Slow Burn #2) by Maya Banks (@HarperCollins)

Abandoned as a baby to a young wealthy couple and raised in a world of privilege, Arial has no hint of her past or who she belonged to. Her only link lies in the one thing that sets her apart from everyone else—telekinetic powers. Protected by her adoptive parents and hidden from the public to keep her gift secret, Ari is raised in the lap of luxury, and isolation. That is, until someone begins threatening her life.

Beau Devereaux is no stranger to the strange. As the head of Deveraux Security, he’s more than familiar with the realities of physic powers. So when a family friend approaches him about protecting his daughter, he’s more than ready to jump on board. What Beau isn’t prepared for is the extent of his attraction to his beautiful and powerful client. What began as a simple assignment, just another job, quickly turns personal as Beau discovers he’ll do anything at all to protect Ari. Even if it costs him his life.

Type: Paranormal (psychics) Rom-Suspense
Heat: 3 out of 5 (very limited)
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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Sooo. In His Keeping. Romantic Suspense meets paranormal woo-woo. Yay! How fun is that?! I had a good time with In His Keeping as Ari's life is thrown into chaos after an attack exposes her psychic abilities and she's forced to turn to Beau and his security team for help in finding her parents who have been kidnapped and in keeping her alive and safe from those hunting her. It was exciting, entertaining and had me turning the pages pretty darn quickly. I was halfway through the book before I realized and had a double take over that. lol

Taking It All (Surrender Trilogy #3) by Maya Banks

Chessy and Tate have been married for several years. In the beginning, their relationship was everything she wanted. Passionate. All consuming. She offered her submission freely and Tate cherished her gift with a tenderness that made her feel safe. Content. Wanted. And loved beyond all measure. But as the years have gone by, Tate has become more immersed in making his business the success it has become, and Chessy has taken a back seat to his business obligations. Growing unhappier with the status of their once blissful marriage, Chessy knows that something has to give. Or they stand to lose it all

Tate loves his wife. Has always loved her. Providing for her has always been his number one priority. But lately she’s seemed unhappy, and he’s worried. Worried enough that he arranges for a night together that he hopes will reignite the fire that once burned like an inferno between them.

But a business call at the wrong time threatens everything. Chessy’s safety, his concentration, his wife’s faith in him as her husband, a man sworn to love and protect her above all else. Gutted with the realization that he’s going to lose her—has already lost her—he readies for the fight of his life. Whatever it takes, he’ll get her back. And prove to her that nothing is more important than her love. And that if she’ll allow him to prove himself one more time, he’ll take it all. Everything. But he’ll give far more back. Himself. His undying love.

Type: Erotic Romance
Heat: 3 out of 5
Rating: 4 out of 5

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Sometimes a book just hits you at the right time and it really speaks to you. That was Taking It All for me. When I read this one--yeah I'm way late posting my review I just couldn't finish it up at the time--life had been way beyond awful. It'd been hard and I'd been feeling kind of at my wits end. Heart sick and stretched thin. So when I picked this one up as a distraction I wasn't thinking it would hit me quite so strongly but it did because I really related to Chessy and her struggles. Our struggles were different ones but the way she was feeling for so much of the book I could relate to in an incredibly strong way. Loving something or someone but it just not working and not knowing what to do. So it wasn't an easy read but it was one I really felt for in the end.

Keep Me Safe (Slow Burn #1) by Maya Banks

When Caleb Devereaux's younger sister is kidnapped, this scion of a powerful and wealthy family turns to an unlikely source for help: a beautiful and sensitive woman with a gift for finding answers others cannot.

While Ramie can connect to victims and locate them by feeling their pain, her ability comes with a price. Every time she uses it, it costs her a piece of herself. Helping the infuriatingly attractive and impatient Caleb successfully find his sister nearly destroys her. Even though his sexual intensity draws her like a magnet, she needs to get as far away from him as she can.

Deeply remorseful for the pain he’s caused, Caleb is determined to make things right. But just when he thinks Ramie's vanished forever, she reappears. She’s in trouble and she needs his help. Now, Caleb will risk everything to protect her—including his heart. . . .

Type: Romantic Suspense-Paranormal-Psychics
Heat:3 out of 5
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

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Keep Me Safe. I liked it. I really did. It was an exciting psychic based romantic suspense that got my blood pumping as the hunted becomes the hunter and a killer is brought down by the woman he's determined to get into his clutches. Psychics in romance are always intriguing to me and seriously I was ALL over this one. A good psychic is being hunted by a crazed psychic that has been out to get her since she helped the police save one of his victims and that has formed a mental connection with her that lets him basically stalk her. Ack! Yes, I was totally in on that!

Interview w/ Maya Banks--there...might just be a Kelly brother *nods*

A sizzling story of a woman who risks her life and her heart to find a wealthy man’s missing sister—the first novel in a sexy new romantic suspense series from #1 New York Times bestselling author Maya Banks

When Caleb Devereaux's younger sister is kidnapped, this scion of a powerful and wealthy family turns to an unlikely source for help: a beautiful and sensitive woman with a gift for finding answers others cannot.

While Ramie can connect to victims and locate them by feeling their pain, her ability comes with a price. Every time she uses it, it costs her a piece of herself. Helping the infuriatingly attractive and impatient Caleb successfully find his sister nearly destroys her. Even though his sexual intensity draws her like a magnet, she needs to get as far away from him as she can.

Deeply remorseful for the pain he’s caused, Caleb is determined to make things right. But just when he thinks Ramie's vanished forever, she reappears. She’s in trouble and she needs his help. Now, Caleb will do risk everything to protect her—including his heart. . . .

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*little bloggery pep talk--do not go all fangirl squealy...do not go all fan girl squealy--oh damn! She's here! Eep!* Good morning Maya! Welcome to the blog! *rubs hands together* I cannot wait to hear about the new series! It's gotten a spot cooler here so thought we'd settle in with some blackberry sage tea while we dish some bookish gossip. Oh,there's Nutella hot chocolate too if that's you're thing--it's so so good!

You’re too funny! It’s ME who’s excited to be invited! And just for you, I dragged Garrett and Joe along. Garrett only agreed because it got him out of babysitting duty (the baby is currently teething) and well Joe is the only unmarried brother left, so he was unanimously voted on by the rest to be thrown under the bus and have to be dragged along with me. (he seriously just GROWLED at me!) He forgets that if he doesn’t behave I’ll completely embarrass him when I write his book!

Giving In (Surrender Trilogy #2) by Maya Banks

"Giving In totally made me ::shiver:: and in such a deliciously good way." ~herding cats & burning soup

Kylie sees the way Jensen looks at her. The dark promise in his eyes. That rough edge of dominance she knows he possesses. But dominance is the one thing that frightens her above all else. She and her brother barely survived a childhood steeped in violence and abuse. She could never give up total control and submit to a man. Especially a man like Jensen. Could she?

Jensen sees the shadows in Kylie’s eyes. Knows he has to tread very carefully or risk losing any chance he has with her. All he wants is the opportunity to show her that dominance doesn’t equal pain, bondage or discipline. That emotional surrender is the most powerful of all, and that to submit—fully to him—will fulfill the aching void in her heart in a way nothing else ever will.

Type: Erotic Romance
Heat: 3.5 out of 5
Rating: 4 out of 5

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While I wasn't wild about the cover of this one what was inside the pages of Giving In totally made me ::shiver:: and in such a deliciously good way.

The gist is that Jensen and Kylie work together. And they drive each other mad...in different ways. Jensen has been totally flummoxed and enthralled by the closed-off prickly Kylie and Kylie...well, Jensen just sets her on edge and pushes all her buttons. And not in a sexy fun way until a work dinner ends with a horrible flashback that sets the two on a heartbreaking, sweet and sexy new path as they deal with undeniable attraction, losses and all of the things from their pasts that have left them both so very damaged.

Letting Go (Surrender Trilogy #1) by Maya Banks

Josslyn found perfection once, and she knows she’ll never find it again. Now widowed, she seeks the one thing her beloved husband couldn’t give her. Dominance. Lonely and searching for an outlet for her grief and wanting only a brief taste of the perfection she once enjoyed, she seeks what she’s looking for at an exclusive club that caters to people indulging in their most hedonistic fantasies. She never imagined that what she’d find is the one man who’s long been a source of comfort—and secret longing. Her husband’s best friend.

Dash has lived in an untenable position for years. In love with his best friend’s wife and unwilling to act on that attraction. He’d never betray his best friend. And so he’s waited in the wings, offering Joss unconditional support and comfort as she works past her grief, hoping for the day when he can offer her more.

When he finds her in a club devoted to the darker edges of desire, he’s furious because he thinks she has no idea what she’s getting herself into. Until she explains in detail what it is she wants. What she needs. As realization sets in, he is gripped by fierce, unwavering determination. If she wants dominance, he is the only man who will introduce her to that world. He is the only man who will touch her, cherish her…love her. And the only man she’ll ever submit to.

Type: Erotic Romance
Heat: 4 out of 5
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Cover-- Flowers on acid. I could pass on this one.

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Oh . Yes. Dominant sexy men abound! Be still my heart. Letting Go was a fun, sexy and emotional start to the Surrender Trilogy. I loved the characters, the set up of finding love in an unexpected place, the little bits of humor and the delicious steam that heated up the pages as Joss and Dash figured out their new relationship and everything that came with it...

DNF--After The Storm (KGI #8) by Maya Banks

Over the years, Donovan Kelly has fought relentlessly for justice, women and children always holding a special place in his heart. Working side by side with his brothers, Donovan has witnessed firsthand the toll it’s taken—physically, mentally, and emotionally—on his loved ones, and the innocent lives caught in the crossfire. What he never expects is for his next mission to happen right on his home turf—or for it to take a very personal turn.

Picturesque Kentucky Lake is the perfect place for a soul in search of safe harbor. A beautiful stranger has arrived—desperate, breathless, and on the run from a dark past closing in on her and the younger siblings she has vowed to protect. Donovan must now draw on every resource at his disposal—if he wants to save a woman and the children who may prove to be his destiny.

Type: Romantic Suspense
Heat: N/A tension but nothing at point of DNF
Rating: DNF/1 star out of 5

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So. Yall know, I love me some Kelly brothers. Absolutely love them. These guys are pretty much everything I look for in a hero or fictional family. I'm always pretty damn excited when a new one hits the shelves. So it's pretty incredible for me to actually be typing this but After the Storm has joined the minuscule list of books I've DNF'd.

There were things I liked, of course. I mean, it's the Kelly family, hello! They're amazing! Sexy and alpha and all make-a-girl-swoon amazing. And there were some nice scenes at the beginning that really had my heart pounding. But it was the romance that had me calling this one quits by the 50% mark.