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Review: Lovely Trigger (Tristan & Danika #3) by R.K. Lilley

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Title: Lovely Trigger
Author:  R.K. Lilley
Publisher/Year:  R.K. Lilley  3/12/14
Length: 356 Pages
Series: Tristan & Danika Trilogy #3

Overview

THE IMPACT
Tristan hit rock bottom, and no one felt the impact harder than Danika. She was forced to see, in the most brutal of ways, that love does not conquer all. Bruised, bloody, and broken she had to walk away.
THE AFTERMATH
Picking up the pieces of your life after a tragedy is a daunting prospect, and that’s considering you still own all of the pieces. But what if you don’t? What if someone else owns those pieces, and those pieces are a part of your soul?
You dig deep and work with what you’ve got.
That’s what Danika told herself and believed, every single day, for years.
Tristan and Danika’s love had failed every test that life had thrown at them. She couldn’t forget that, not for one second. And if those tests had been overly harsh, well, she wasn’t one to wallow in self-pity. The failure was the thing she had to focus on. The failure was the lesson. She had no intention of working so hard to make it out of hell without learning that lesson well.
THE REUNION
Over six years after the night that changed everything, Danika finds herself forced to spend the weekend constantly in Tristan’s company, as they attend the wedding of two of their dearest friends. It’s been long enough that she feels they can be friendly again without it destroying her peace of mind, but just a small amount of time in his presence has her remembering something she had forced herself to forget: There’d been a reason she’d gone through hell with this man, for this man, some true good to precede the bad.
She shocks herself by quickly giving in to a hunger that she never imagined could still consume her.
Even the best intentioned denial has a breaking point.
THE HARSH REALITY
After everything that’s happened, the rise and the fall, the pain and the aftermath, can these two navigate the waters of acute regret, survive the trials of coming face to face with all that they have lost, and find the strength to try again?

My Thoughts

After being so invested in this couple’s roller coaster of a relationship, I was really happy to see where things could go with them.  You knew that it wasn’t going to be easy, and to be honest, I wasn’t sure how they were going to get closure, and if it was going to happen…and what that ending would look like.

From the teaser that we got from Lana’s story, we knew that being together at the wedding was going to stir things up again, and we knew that Tristan needed to make another attempt after getting out of rehab which is what he tries.

If you’ll remember from the 2nd installment in the series, we had just come off of Danika’s accident – at the hands of Dean, who had tried to rape her while driving her home, after Tristan was too high to have a conversation with Danika.  She had gone to his house to let him know that she was pregnant again in the hopes that they could reconcile, and things went drastically wrong.  Fast forward to where they are again in this third and final installment, when they are trying to put their lives back together, but being still broken and in pieces from the aftermath of their relationship.

The POV that this story took was a nice one.  We’re taken on a slower fast forward of sorts, when we get to see how their lives changed and went on over a period of 6 years until we’re finally placed in their present day.  Danika has tried to go about her life – repairing things, trying to be normal when her life is anything but.  James Cavendish (who we know from his own story) – the owner of the Cavendish Casino and empire has given her an opportunity to run his Gallery in Vegas, and then LA and then even across the world.  This is something that gives Danika purpose when she’s without it since she can no longer dance because of her knee.

This also puts her in indirect contact with Tristan once again as he now has his magic show in the casino in Vegas.  This is something that he’s revelling in given that he’s not in the same mindset as he was as a rocker – while he’s still with the band and they are recording an album, there’s no more touring as that’s too much of a trigger for his addictions.

So this story takes us on the journey of Tristan trying to get Danika back since she’s his everything (such a romantic notion) and Danika’s fear that there’s nothing left of her now, let along when things crash and burn again as she expects them too.  She’s tried to have relationships through the 6 years apart and even during the present, and Tristan some how comes between everyone.  Either subconsciously or even by warning some of the guys off.

The really nice thing about this story is that we get to pick back up on the romantic that Tristan is – we saw a bit of that in previous books – seeing that he tries to be the nice guy by cooking for Danika and always looking to do things for her that she loves.  She’s skeptical and fights it, but he’s persistent in a nice way.  We also get to see the intense heat and passion and chemistry between these 2, and i’m glad that it’s something that we don’t lose even though they are not together for this book.  Their dynamic is really amazing in the sense that they know that they have this attraction that can not compare to anything else, yet the way that the interact otherwise is great.  Their level of comfort with one another is really engaging to watch – the humor and fun that they have with each other really keeps you wanting to read more.

The question about where this story will go is one that’s expected, yet I’m always interested to see how R.K. Lilley will take us there.  You have hopes and expectations of how things will end, which i fully anticipated, but the journey wasn’t diluted at all even with this.

The epilogue was a nice approach as well – not just giving us a final chapter, but segmenting it so that you’re taken on yet another journey.  Honestly, i couldn’t have been more pleased with the way that this series played out and how the finale gave closure to some less than savory experiences.

I saw that there’s going to be a 4th installment in Bianca and James’ story when i finished this book, so that makes me even happier given that i love the dynamic of this group of friends, and i can’t wait to see what comes next.  I hope you guys enjoy this finale though to Tristan and Danika’s specific tale.

 

Review: Rock Bottom (Tristan & Danika #2) by R K Lilley

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Title:  Rock Bottom
Author: R K Lilley
Publisher/Year:  R K Lilley 11/12/12
Length:  292 pages
Series: Tristan & Danika #2

Overview

ROCK BOTTOM
BOOK TWO: TRISTAN & DANIKA

Their love had the power of a runaway freight train, and the potential to be just as destructive.
The tempestuous sequel to Bad Things picks up where the first book left off. Reeling from a profound loss, Tristan and Danika struggle to pick up the pieces and build a life together, but the hard habits of a lifetime are not so easy to escape.
Rock Bottom takes us on a dual point of view journey through addiction and desire, through love and agony, and answers the question we’ve been asking since these characters were introduced in Grounded: “What happened between Tristan and Danika?”

DANIKA
Even love couldn’t cushion a fall like ours. My love for Tristan was so big that I felt consumed by it, and even so, it was not enough to overpower our combined demons.
I struggled. I yelled and screamed. I scratched and kicked.
I fought like hell, but even the most determined fighters have to stop before they break.
No one could say I didn’t fight for him.
“I love you,” I spoke softly into his ear.
He gripped me harder. “I can’t ever lose you, Danika. I’m not sure I’d survive it.”
“You’ve got me. And I’m not going anywhere. Not ever.”
I meant the words when I said them, but life had other plans for us.
I’d have given my life for that fight. In fact, I very nearly did.

TRISTAN
She was the one.
If I’d ever had a doubt, I didn’t now. She was the one I’d be thinking about, longing for, until I took my last breath. If I lost her tomorrow, I’d pine for her like a lovesick fool.
This was the kind of love that only hit you once in your life.

My Thoughts

From what we know of the couple based on the In the Air series, you know that things can’t end well right?  Especially given how book 1 in the spin-off of Tristan and Danika ended.  we know that their relationship is volatile.  it’s passionate, explosive, and potentially detrimental to both since they are so dependent on one another.  We also see the foreshadowing of a downward spiral since things just didn’t go smoothly for the couple as Tristan’s brother died, and the jealousy and control that both seem to need and have.

We start this 2nd installment of their story in a happier place – it seems like the couple is trying to make things work, although it’s not easy.  The band that Tristan’s in has gotten a record deal, but this means that it’ll be a long distance relationship for the two for a bit since they are recording in LA and Danika has a life in Vegas.

What i liked about this though, is that we see the development of another couple and the friendship growth between Frankie and Danika.  You get to know a bit more about how their friendship really started and why it seemed to be so strong in the other series.  R. K Lilley does a great job of showing us how the Frankie Estella relationship began and started to take shape and it makes you have an entirely different opinion of things which is nice.

In this story too though, we see a lot of things unravel.  The trust between Danika and Tristan is tested over and over again.  There are forces much larger than themselves at play here.  Dean, Distance, Dahlia (Danika’s sister)….all things going against them.  But…it makes you wonder when the shoe’s going to drop and what the end result is.

What’s also really nice about this story is that you get a few unexpected twists throughout that weren’t even on my radar as things to ponder since we knew to expect an accident.  There are pregnancies, injuries, scheming, and lies….all the while though, we see that the duo has a bond that they aren’t willing to give up on.  that’s what heat and great chemistry will do for you.

Similar to what we’ve gotten in other stories by this author, there’s no shortage of steam and heat.  you know what you’re going to get and it won’t be boring or short lived at all.  you know that the passionate couple will be drawn to one another regardless of what is going on outside of them, and their emotions cannot be controlled.

I’m really looking forward to the 3rd and final installment in their story since i think that it’s going to take us deeper into their lives since it’s further in the future than we were even taken with the other series.  I hope that we see conflicts that aren’t necessarily predictable, and i think that  we won’t be let down given the journey that we’ve been on already..

Review: Bad Things (Tristan and Danika #1) by R. K. Lilley

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Title:  Bad Things
Author:  R. K. Lilley
Publisher/Year:  R. K. Lilley 6/10/13
Length:  366 Pages
Series: Tristan and Danika #1

Overview

Danika hasn’t had an easy life. Being insanely attracted to bad boys has never helped make it easier.
One look at Tristan, and every brain cell she possessed went up in smoke. This man was trouble with a capital T. It was a given.
She knew better. Bad boys were bad. Especially for her. Considering her history, it was crazy to think otherwise. So why did crazy have to feel so damn fine?
For as long as she could remember, Danika had been focused on the future with single-minded purpose. Tristan came along and taught her everything there was to know about letting go, and living in the present. She fell, hard, and deep. Of course, that only made her impact with the ground that much more devastating.

My Thoughts

What a nice spin-off series – i think that it’s great that we’re able to get a glimpse into the history and story of Tristan and Danika since we met them in ‘Up in the Air’ and really wanted to know what the back story is there.

What we get here is a really nice love story between these 2 and we get to see how there’s some great emotion to set it up.  This first installment into their tale starts off at the moment that they meet, when Danika is the nanny for a ‘power couple’ and Tristan is in a band that the husband (sorta) is trying to manage.  Because of some past nonsense, if the wife finds out that Tristan is in a band, all hell will break loose so Danika sets up the story that Tristan is her friend and things go much smoother from there.

We find out that these 2 have a lot in common based on their upbringing of not knowing their father which is nice and we see that they are both a bit cynical about love and relationships because they’ve been burned.  They try the ‘friends’ thing as much as they can since they don’t want to ruin what they have but we quickly see that they have such powerful chemistry that it can never be ‘just friends’.

Tristan shows Danika a side to sensuality and sex that she’s never experienced before and this in turn scares Tristan because he starts to feel emotions that he’s kept bottled up and hidden for so long.

The story takes us through that journey and you want to see where things end up.  What i really liked about this is that since we know where things ended up between these 2 from the other series, i spent most of this book trying to figure out when the ‘shoe would drop’ and find out when things would go wrong.  We got a bit of anxiety and pain and a story that i wasn’t expecting so that was a pleasant surprise.  We also get a nice lead into the next installment that’s still on it’s way for these 2 and i can’t wait to see where it takes us.

We get the same style of writing that we have in the other series with great heat and passion among our leads.  We get to see the dominant man who knows what he wants and how to bring his woman to extreme pleasure.  it’s hot and passionate and that’s become an expected for me with this author.

Review: Lana (Up in the Air #3.5) by R. K. Lilley

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Title:  Lana
Author:  R. K. Lilley
Publisher/Year:  R. K. Lilley 3/11/13
Length:  102 Pages
Series: Up In the Air #3.5 (a novella)

Overview

Lana can’t remember a time when she wasn’t hopelessly in love with Akira. Even knowing that he viewed her as a kid sister had never helped to dampen her feelings. One night together only made it worse. After seducing Akira, it became apparent that their love affair was hopelessly one-sided, and heartbroken, Lana fled her beloved island paradise.
Eight years later, Lana finally returns home, planning to stay briefly, and only for business, but her plans go quickly awry when she runs into the man she could never get over.

My Thoughts

What a nice addition to the series.  I love when we get novellas or side stories of characters that you want the best for and Lana is exactly that.  When we meet her in the series, we are instantly drawn to her not only because she’s one of James’ best friends, but because there’s an instant friendship with Bianca and there’s no jealousy there.

In the earlier installments, we learned that Lana is single partly because she’s a workaholic but mostly because she was in love with a man from her past (Akira) who didn’t seem to have the same feelings for her.  That’s always a bad path to go down, and you wish that it wasn’t the case with her.

Towards the end of Grounded, we see that James is going to take it upon himself to intervene and during a quick stop on their way to Japan, Bianca and James pay Akira a visit to find out what’s really going on in his head since what Lana thinks of his relationship situation isn’t quite the case.  they learn that he actually does share similar feelings as Lana and they do what they can to help orchestrate that reunion.

Where we start off in Lana’s story is upon her first trip back to Maui in 8 years (since she fled rejection from Akira) and she finally feels like she’s back home.  She meets up quickly with Akira’s sister and mother who are like her own family which of course makes things harder.  While she’s trying to make her way back to the resort that her family owns to do some work, she literally runs right into Akira.  This is where her plans all fall to the wayside and we see that she’s grown up quite a bit and tries to take things into her own hands.

it’s a nice transition in this story to see the woman take the lead, although knowing what we do of Akira, it’s not control that she’s going to have for a long time.  This story instead takes us on a bit of a ride with these 2 while they try to figure out what they have for each other and try to figure out how to deal with the outside factors that try to break them apart.

One thing that i noticed here is that we get a completely different side of steam and passion than what we saw in the rest of the Up in the Air series.  With James, it was all about power and that was where the sexual tension came from.  in this story, we get it from a much deeper and emotional direction where we really see that there’s a connection and want to sop up the real romance between these 2.

I think that we get exactly what we’re hoping for from an ‘in the moment’ type story without having to dive too deep in to the ‘what’s in the future for them bit’ .

Review: Grounded (Up in the Air #3) by R. K. Lilley

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Title:  Grounded
Author:  R. K. Lilley
Publisher/Year:  R. K. Lilley 2/11/13
Length:  380 Pages
Series: Up In the Air #3

Overview

James and Bianca’s story draws to a close in the explosive conclusion to the Up In The Air Trilogy.

After a short but earnest courtship, Bianca can no longer deny her feelings for James, and though she’s tried her hardest, she can’t help but see that he cares deeply for her, as well. In a completely uncharacteristic move, she has put aside her misgivings and agreed to live with the enigmatic billionaire. Is her leap of faith the beginning of something wonderful, or is it too much, too fast?

As James and Bianca feel a growing need for each other that neither can deny, circumstances beyond their control intervene, trying to tear them apart. Amidst the ever mounting threat of a monster who wants Bianca dead, and the constant pitfalls of an indiscreet past that James can’t seem to escape, can these two passionate lovers manage to find their happily ever after?

My Thoughts

where we left off from Mile High really set things up to be quite forboding.  I myself had a few thoughts that were going to change the pace of the story, and honestly i was pleased to see that they weren’t entirely correct.

We had discovered the identity of the 702 caller and that was a big surprise in itself. we then learned that what Bianca knew about her family wasn’t quite accurate as well and that make for some troubling thoughts.  :Pairing that with James who was still terrified for Bianca to even be a foot away from him or out of his sight – well you know that there’s bound to be quite a bit of make up sex, a lot of angry sex, and a trade off of power between the dom and sub.

This third installment and finale of the series really led us down an exiting path.  We get to see what the relationship between James and Bianca will turn into and then we see what that means for everyone else that we’ve come to know and love.  What i was concerned about was that there would be issue with Stephan, and that was solved for quite nicely.  We also finally meet some nicer folks that have been in James’ circle so that was reassuring.  We learn to love Frankie – the tattoo artist that marked James, and a LONG time friend.  (albeit after Bianca reigned in her jealousy).  We meet Lana who is a best friend right off the bat and we see that Bianca makes an effort with Jackie.

What i love though is that we see consistency with Jules and Jolene and know that their motives haven’t changed and most likely will not.

There was the tension of a drugged fanatical man during all this which of course was to be expected and actually added a little bit to the story, although i’m surprised that it was kind of dropped once the scene was over.  oh well – i don’t think that it matters much in the grand scheme of things.

Interestingly enough, the few folks that i was skeptical about didn’t affect the story in any way and that was kind of surprising.  I thought that there were 2 specifically that were going to do more harm to James and Bianca than good, but that never played out.  i’m not really upset about that at least.

So true to finale form in an erotica story, we get to see a LOT of passion that takes us global, and we definitely get steam and anxiety.  there’s such a chemistry and passion among these 2 and among their closest friends that you can only hope for a happy ending for everyone, and nicely enough i believe that i saw a tease for a novella about one of those such characters.

all in all, a nicely planned out ending.  lots of steam, heat and unease to last me a little while.

Review: Mile High (Up in the Air #2) by R. K. Lilley

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Title:  Mile High
Author:  R. K. Lilley
Publisher/Year:  R. K. Lilley 1/18/13
Length:  314 Pages
Series: Up In the Air #2

Overview

James and Bianca’s tumultuous story continues in the sequel to In Flight.
James has initiated Bianca into a dark and drugging world of passion and pain. He taught her about her own submissive, masochistic nature, and she fell swiftly and deeply in love with the undeniably charming and impossibly beautiful Mr. Cavendish, but a painful misunderstanding and the return of the brutally violent demons of her past have combined to overwhelm Bianca, and, confused and hurt, she pushes him away.

It’s been over a month since the shocking attack that hospitalized her, and since she told a distraught James that she needed space, but her feelings haven’t gone away. Even she knew that it was only a matter of time before he would cast his spell on her again…

My Thoughts

This second installment takes us to the point right after Bianca’s attack when nothing seems certain for her and James.  She’s trying to get her life back in place and she’s not quite sure if there’s a place for James and what he has to offer her since it’s so outside the realm of what’s her norm.  Stephan continues to be there to help to try to pick up the pieces and that’s not necessarily a good thing.

As this story continues on, Bianca tries to get back to work and life and Stephan has managed to get them assigned to a layover in Miami so they could take a little break.  Their favorite pilots Damian and Murphy are along as well and that does not bode well for Bianca especially as we know that James is quite jealous and won’t let her out of his sight (even if it’s through bodyguards watching her)  The last time that Bianca was with James, she fled his house and had her picture snapped by papps an found herself all over the tabloids.  they now hound her all the time and have decided that her friendships with all these men means that she’s even worse in the public’s eyes.

James of course won’t let up his pursuit of her since what he feels for her is nothing at all like he’s ever felt before.  Bianca is slowly coming to terms with how she feels as well yet she’s not quite ready to admit it to herself.

When James finally convinces Bianca to give him a chance, he comes on strong, both which is Dominant side as well as his needy emotional side.  Whats nice about this series though is that we see the man being quite insecure about things even when he has the world.  He’s never sure what Bianca feels for him and it leaves him very unbalanced and that means that he pours it on thick with her.

What he does manage is to get Bianca to be willing to be with him more and more, even to move in with him somewhat.  He redoes all of his home so that she’s comfortable there. he puts in studios everywhere, he buys her endless amounts of clothing and jewelry and basically establishes that she’s there and she’s his.

Throughout this story though we’re constantly reminded that his past isn’t quite in the past.  we keep meeting women that have been conquests of his, or past sex partners and that’s very unsettling for Bianca.  she’s very jealous and doesn’t trust anyone that she meets, even though she knows that he won’t lie to her.  this is what makes for quite a tense story, but it also makes for some steamy hot sex.  it’s a nice play off one another.

In this 2nd book we also get to see more of Stephan as a person that’s not just Bianca’s ‘brother’.  we see that he’s trying to find love himself and he’s tried with Melvin and Javier.  it’ll be nice to see what comes of this since we know that if Bianca does choose to be with James,then she’ll need to give up some of her reliance on Stephan and I know that for myself i hope that he lands on his feet.

What’s nice about the way that this story evolves as well is that we don’t get any resolution to Bianca’s father – in fact we learn quite a bit more that makes for a great finale that we’ll get in book 3.  We find out that he’s been missing for a few weeks, and it’s strange too since Bianca keeps getting strange hang up calls from a 702 number that she doesn’t know.  Wonder what that’s going to mean for her in book 3.

so all in all, we get a wildly passionate love story here between 2 folks that couldn’t be lesser matched, but are actually perfect for each other if they can allow it to happen.  we also get the typical suspense piece of murder and scandal and you really just want to hope for the best.  What’s also sprinkled in here is a bit of mystery where James is concerned since there has to be more that hunts him and that will come up to try to destroy their relationship, we just don’t know what it is yet.

i’ll have to keep reading on to figure it out and i hope that you guys do as well and give me your opinions.

Review: In Flight (Up in the Air #1) by R. K. Lilley

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Title:  In Flight
Author:  R. K. Lilley
Publisher/Year:  R. K. Lilley 1/18/13
Length:  308 Pages
Series: Up In the Air #1

Overview

When reserved flight attendant Bianca gets one look at billionaire hotel owner James Cavendish, she loses all of her hard-won composure. For a girl who can easily juggle a tray of champagne flutes at 35,000 feet in three inch heels, she finds herself shockingly weak-kneed from their first encounter. The normally unruffled Bianca can’t seem to look away from his electrifying turquoise gaze. They hold a challenge, and a promise, that she finds impossible to resist, and she is a girl who is used to saying no and meaning it.

Bianca is accustomed to dealing with supermodels and movie stars in her job as a first class flight attendant, but James Cavendish puts them all to shame in the looks department. If only it were just his looks that she found so irresistible about the intimidating man, Bianca could have ignored his attentions. But what tempts her like never before is the dominant pull he seems to have over her from the moment they meet, and the promise of pleasure, and pain, that she reads in his eyes.

My Thoughts

I was turned onto this story/series by a group that i belong to on WordPress and i have to say that i’m glad that i checked it out.  We were quickly taken into a world that’s typical of Erotica, where the leading male is quite powerful and impressive at such a young age, and the female lead is typically from the complete other end of the spectrum.

so here is where we meet Bianca who is a flight attendant based out of Las Vegas and she has the pleasure of working First Class.  Her past quickly comes up in this story as she we learn that she met her best friend and co-worked Stephan while they were both living on the streets and homeless.  We’re quickly told that her parents are both dead and that Stephan ran away from his mormon family because his preferences don’t jive with their beliefs.  all for the better for these 2 since they are quite a great pair/duo and consider the other to be family.

We then meet James Cavendish who is a billionaire hotel owner among other things and he’s found himself on a few of Bee’s flights.  Some by accident, some not so much.

On one of those flights, we see the chemistry start to fly between them, and it’s taken up a notch when James propositions her on a layover that they have in NYC….and when she doesn’t agree to the meeting, he finds a way to find her (through Stephan).  This makes us really want to like him because he’s making sure that her closet confidant is on his side, and that’s bodes well for him for about a week.

Throughout that week, we see that Bianca hands over her virginity to a sexy well practiced powerful man, and he introduces her to the BDSM lifestyle.  He tries to lavish her with gifts which she’s clearly not so comfortable accepting, but that’s to be expected as well.

What i really liked about this is that we know that James has his own haunted past and it takes us most of the story to get to the bottom of it, and it’s a nice relief which makes you want to adore him even more.  So just when things seem like they are right on track for these 2, Bee sees a woman who ‘convinces’ her that James isn’t quite honest and single, and then Bianca gets the scare of her life one night when she’s waiting for Stephan to come home.  It lands her in the hospital, and that’s where our story leaves off.

it’s also nice to see that the development of the relationship isn’t without a hitch.  that we get to see how Bianca worries about what this will mean to her in the future (post James) vs. some of the other stories that we get in this genre that don’t really think about those ramifications.  I kind of wish that we knew more about James and what he’s thinking but i’m sure that will come up in the next installments.

I’m happy that i have the next installment already on ebook so i can get right into it and see what happens.  Nothing will be easy for them, but i know that once they find their way back to each other, we’ll get some great scening, and it’ll be worthy of a few cold showers..