August 20, 2014

REVIEW: Night After Night (Seductive Nights #1)

Night After Night (Seductive Nights #1), by Lauren Blakely
Published April 16, 2014
Publisher: Blakely Books
Format: e-ARC, obtained from NetGalley
Genre: adult erotic romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble
 

Rating: 4 STARS

(From Goodreads) Their world was sex, love, and lies.
 

He intoxicated her. Commanded. Consumed.
 

With a dirty mind and a mouth to match, Clay Nichols is everything Julia never knew she wanted and exactly what she cannot have. He walked into her life one night and unlocked pleasure in her that she never knew was possible. Possessing her body, captivating her every thought. Which makes him way too dangerous for Julia to risk her heart, given that she has a price tag on her head. She ran after one mind-blowing week with him, but now he's back, and determined to make her his own.
 

No matter the cost.
 

She was a sexy drug to him. Fiery, unforgettable, and never enough, Julia is an enigma, and Clay isn't willing to let her go without a fight. But she's got dark secrets of her own that threaten to destroy any chance of happiness. She's a wanted woman - the stakes are high, her every move is watched, and yet the lure between them can't be denied. Can two people burned by love trust again when desire and passion are met by danger at every turn?

Night After Night was one of the cases of me picking up a book soley based on its cover. I mean - look at it. Helloooo eight-pack. I saw it on NetGalley, and had remembered hearing about it. It was one of those impulse requests. You know what I mean. We've all done those. 

So, in Night After Night, a hot guy (Clay) walks into a bar. One owned and bar tended by a hot girl (Julia). They share one incredible night together, with no intentions for anything other than those 12 hours. But, those 12 hours stretch into 24. Then, into a weekend together. And before either of them knows it, there's emotions and feelings involved. But, Julia's hiding a big secret from Clay, and he's made it clear that he doesn't tolerate lies of any kind. So, the question is, does Julia have it in her to shut things down with him?

I've gotta be honest with you. For half the book, I struggled. I was having a hard time connecting to Clay and Julia. Julia was kind of a tough-as-nails sort of girl. Not warm. All about sex, but not really into meaningful conversations. That's not really my favorite sort of female MC. And, then there was Clay. I couldn't decide if he was one of your atypical bad boys or a sweet empathetic type. He seemed to flip flop back and forth between the two ends of the spectrum. While some might think that makes her a very lucky girl, for me, it was just a little confusing. 

The cool thing is, though, that at some point in the book, I became engaged. Like, REALLY engaged. I couldn't put it down! All of a sudden, I had to find out what happened to these two and whether they would end up together. I can't even really pinpoint the exact spot or event that shifted my thinking. But, all of a sudden, Julia's troubles and Clay's fascination with her was all I cared to think about. 

Julia's troubles were pretty hard core, too. Her douchey ex left her with a dangerous situation that she was being forced to clean up. I can't blame her for her lack of warmth and connection. She had gotten burned once. Fool me once, and all that. Clay was wonderfully persistent though. The first time we see him, he's the bad boy version of himself. He's confident and beautiful and domineering. But, as he learns more about Julia, he softens. 
  
I mean that in the figurative sense. Because Clay and Julia have a lot of sex. A LOT. If you enjoy the super steamy stuff, then you should like this book. It's really well done too - super hot and emotionally satisfying too. They both are quite the dirty talkers. It's good stuff. 

Despite the rocky start, when I reached the end of Night After Night, I immediately bought book #2, After This Night. I HAD to find out what happened next. Because, even though Night After Night didn't end on a cliffhanger, it also didn't exactly end in a HEA. When it's all said and done, I really did enjoy this book.  

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