{Review} The Theory of Attraction by Delphine Dryden

The Theory of Attraction by Delphine Dryden

Ebook - 136 pages

Published July 2012 by Carina Press

Camilla can set her watch by her hunky rocket-scientist neighbor who jogs past her window each day. She relishes each glimpse of his shirtless abs, and is dying to see more. But it's hard to connect with a man who doesn't seem to know she exists...

Ivan feels at home in the lab, not in social situations. When he finally approaches his attractive neighbor, it's not for a date--he wants tutoring in how to behave at an important fundraiser. Ivan doesn't expect the chemistry between them to be quite so explosive, and is surprised when Cami actually accepts his proposal to embark on a series of "lessons."

Cami soon discovers Ivan's schedule isn't the only thing he likes to be strict about--he needs to be charge in the bedroom as well. She's shocked at how much she comes to enjoy her submissive side, but wonders if a real relationship is in the equation...

It's been awhile since I properly blogged.  I know.  I'm a bit of a flake.  I know that, too.  You wouldn't be the first to say it, and I'll bet you my last few fingers of whiskey that you won't be the last.  So let's just move on from how I tend to vanish for long periods of time (FYI, I do this in real life too, so don't take it personally) and segue right into this hot little ditty of a book, shall we?

I'm not ashamed to admit that I love a good romance.  And having grown up on the scandalous Harlequin's of the 80's (which are MUCH smuttier than most stuff now, by the by), I love me a good "smut book", as my Ma calls them.  

Hearing my Ma use the word Smut disturbs me more than what's written inside said books.

Anyway.  Sex and romance, me likey. 

When The Theory of Attraction by Delphine Dryden popped across my reader, I almost rolled my eyes.  Having just finished a horrible "erotic" trilogy I won't mention by name that I hated (Here's a hint - I nicknamed it Fifty Shades of Snoozefests), I was dubious.  The onslaught of erotica/BDSM/sexsexsex books to hit the mainstream market since said Snoozefest had left me overwhelmed with average writing and boring characters.

Not this book. 

I fell in literal love with Ivan's geeky awkwardness.  I adored Cami's average girl vibe.  I found their interactions believable.  This author wrote about sex and BDSM in a way most (especially one) haven't recently - intelligently.  

At 136 pages, this was a quick, hot read, and it hit all the right spots.  Twice.

“In the National Geographic movie of my twisted mind, the lion had just leaped on the gazelle, pinned it to the ground and mounted it from behind. Apparently, the devouring could wait. I should point out that these little flights of fancy on my part often involved extremely improbable animal pairings. I blamed cartoons.” 

-Cami

Review - Baby, Drive South by Stephanie Bond

Baby, Drive South
By Stephanie Bond
329 Pages

While in my local small-town pharmacy and waiting somewhat impatiently in a line with the sloooooooowest cashier on earth, I picked Baby, Drive South by Stephanie Bond up, glanced at the hottie on the cover, skimmed the back (hot men and a small town, I’m in!  Literally.  Wait, where’s the hot men in my small town?) and tossed it into my basket just in time for it to be my turn at the cash.  It was also just in time for the cashier to go on her “break”, but that’s probably not this point of this particular rant.

Here’s the thing about this book - I knew it was going to be fluffier than what I usually like.  Three brothers, who happen to be super hot ex-military men, are re-building their hometown after it was completely ravaged (and not in the good way) by a tornado.  Making good headway with their crew of a hundred or so male workers, they realize they’re lacking something - women.  They post an ad in a Northern town, and of course, the women come down in droves.  One brother is faced with the task of making the heart broken and “not so pretty” doctor stay, and well, we can see where that’s going, right?

The transparent story isn’t my issue with this book.  The issues I had with this book were small ones, but there were a lot of them, and it added up quickly.  There wasn;t much depth to the story - again, somewhat expected (of cooooooourse all the women in the caravan were good looking!), but the formalness to the conversations was hard to take.  So not only did I not really find any emotional attachment to the characters, I also found them unbelievable (even for such an already un-believable plot). 

The three main men in this story are hotties.  I get it.  Except every time the main male character of the story, Porter, is mentioned, so are his bulging biceps.  Or rippled abs.  Or broad shoulders.  Or cleft chin.  Every. Single. Time.  I get it, he’s hot - please stop hitting me over the head with it.  The same goes for the main female character, Nikki, the less-pretty doctor.  I know most women compare themselves to other women, but this was a bit extreme.  Not only did she think lowly of herself physically, but every time the men mentioned her, they always had to mention or think about how un-knockoutish she was.  Really?  We’re left to believe that a lot of Nikki’s low self-esteem comes from being dumped by a jackass for a stripper, but HELLO?  I may know a thing or two about that (although I don’t think any of my Ex-Husband’s girlfriends are strippers, one of them very well could be).  You definitely wonder what you did wrong, could have done better, what you lack, etc etc etc .. but after a certain point, you also realize some men?  Are just jackasses that want strippers with big boobs. 

Huh.  Where was I going with this?

Oh, right.  Personally, I like my female characters written with a bit more strength to them, or at least a bit more ... something.  Common sense?  A hundred pages in, and still no other “smart” women had been part of the caravan.  Just the Doc, and although she was smart, she wasn’t pretty.  You see where I’m having issues, don’t you?

The sex scene was decent, although I tried not to think about the logistics of it too much.  But again, it felt like it was written hurridly ... he didn’t come quickly, but it sure ddin’t take long to read.   I felt a little disappointed, like that time with ... well, nevermind.

I do like Stephanie Bond as a writer, and I’ll probably end up reading the next two books in this Southern Roads trilogy (Baby, Come Home & Baby, Don’t Go, respectively) because the plot line had just enough to make me want to know what happens with a few characters.  I just hope we see a bit more depth as we go on - otherwise, this light and fluffy read may float right out of the Whiskey Haze known as my memory.

What's Next? Baby, Drive South by Stephanie Bond

Baby, Drive South by Stephanie Bond

It's weird what divorce does to you, isn't it?  It runs you to the ground, exhausts you, tramples over any self-confidence, ruins any fun, and makes you a crying, sobbing, drunken mess for months.

Well, if you're me, anyway.  I don't know what it does to anyone else.  

To combat the insane rage and constant self-examination of what's become of my "life", I like to read really flimsy, really fluffy Chick Lit.  As soon as I saw the premise for this little paperback by Stephanie Bond, I knew it would be a good fit:

The hardheaded Armstrong brothers are determined to rebuild their tornado-ravaged hometown in the Georgia mountains. They've got the means, they've got the manpower…what they need are women! So they place an ad in a northern newspaper and wait for the ladies to answer their call….

Porter, the youngest Armstrong, is all for importing women. Still, he's so blown away by the sheer numbers, he falls off the water tower. Luckily there's a doctor among the newcomers—sweet and sexy Dr. Nikki Salinger.

And Porter has every intention of checking out her bedside manner….

There's a fine line between fluffy, mindless entertainment and completely re-dunk-u-lous-ness.  

Does this book cross that line?  I'll let you know in a few days!