ARC : Controlled Burn (Kilgore Fire #4) by Lani Lynn Vale

Title: Controlled Burn

Series: Kilgore Fire #4

Author: Lani Lynn Vale

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: October 5, 2016 Cover Model: Shane Williams Photographer: Furious Fotog 

July Dupree and Dean ‘PD’ Hargrove fell head over heels in love. When PD comes home to tell July the good news about joining the SWAT team as a tactical medic, everything changes.

July can’t fathom why PD would want to be a cop in this day and age. Wasn’t it enough that he already had a dangerous job with the fire department? Now he has to add another, even more dangerous, job to the equation? With so many cruel people in the world who make a sport out of hurting cops just because of the badge they wear, she has to make him understand. But when he refuses to listen to her reasoning, she feels she has no other choice but to issue an ultimatum: her or the SWAT team.

Dean doesn’t like ultimatums. He’s furious with July for putting him in the awful position of having to choose between a dream and her.

July never believes for a second that he’d choose the SWAT team over her, but she is wrong.

A year later, they’re both still in love with each other, but neither one is willing to budge regardless of their feelings.

July’s feelings for Dean haven’t changed, in fact her love for him has only grown. But seeing him living his life seemingly unaffected by the loss of what they had breaks her heart over and over each time she sees him.

Dean has a good poker face, though. He’s just going through the motions of his life until finally, the smoldering embers of his feelings erupt into a full-on blaze of emotion, burning through everything but his love for July. When the smoke clears, Dean wants to know if they can reignite the fire of their love or is he destined to live his life in a constant state of controlled burn?

The relationship between July and Dean (PD) is not clean cut - like/love/lust. There is plenty of that, but what makes their story so different than any other I have read is that both are working to ruin the relationship. July has deep seeded abandonment issues from her youth and mix in a close call of her brother's death and you'll have a woman that holds on too tight. I won't absolve PD of any guilt because he was bordering on P.O.S status. Neither of them were completely honest with each other. They were too busy playing house, but I didn't get the sense that they were ever friends. They shared things with each other, but there weren't any soul-bearing confessions. As a result, their initial relationship failed. 

It was sad to see July go thru such heartache. I personally didn't know who I wanted to apologize and start the initial mend of their relationship. And that is what I did enjoy. They were both wrong. It wasn't a man being a man; though, Dean was clueless about Alexa. And it wasn't a woman overreacting to every bump in the road. There were some serious issues that needed to be worked out. Issues that didn't have anything to do with the real meat of the story.

There is a sex trafficking ring (mainly full of pregnant women) that is being investigated. To go into greater detail would actually ruin the story, but let me tell you things go to Hell in a hand basket when July finds herself in their crosshairs. 

Honestly, I can't tell you if I enjoyed this book or not. Let me be more specific - I enjoyed this book because I didn't like it. There were some events in this book that completely blew me away. They were uncharacteristically Lani Lynn Vale. I could see how that could be a good thing or a bad thing.   

 

 

I’m a married mother of three. My kids are all under 5, so I can assure you that they are a handful. I’ve been with my paramedic husband now for ten years, and we’ve produced three offspring that are nothing like us. I live in the greatest state in the world, Texas.  

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Oxygen Deprived (Kilgore Fire series) by Lani Lynn Vale

Title: Oxygen Deprived

Series: Kilgore Fire Series

Author: Lani Lynn Vale 

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: August 6, 2016

Cover Model: Gary Taylor

Photographer: Furious Fotog

No take-backs.

That was the motto that Drew lived by in all things, including his love life.

He’s a player, pure and simple.

He’s learned the hard way that women aren’t all hearts and flowers. Sometimes their sexy bodies and beautiful faces are just a pretty shield to hide the crazy, and he’s so freakin’ over crazy.

Been there, done that. He has the divorce papers to prove it.

Karma hits like a bitch.

Aspen needs a break. A long one that doesn’t include anything with a Y chromosome. Not even one as tempting as her new neighbor who just moved in across the street. Men are trouble with a capital freakin’ T, and she has the ankle monitor to prove it.

The last man she gave her heart to was a police officer. A man whose life was dedicated to protection, and he was supposed to protect her heart—not break it.

She decides right then and there that she’s done with being the better person.

Everything happens for a reason.

A rash decision—undoubtedly regrettable, undeniably unforgettable. In the heat of the moment, Aspen’s actions with a tire iron and her ex-boyfriend’s brand new SUV land him in the ER getting stitches and have her seeing the inside of a jail cell for the first time.

It’s just her luck that the whole town is there to witness the result of her poor decision, including her police officer brother and the neighbor that already made it more than clear she was more trouble than she was worth.

House arrest never looked so good. 

Hide your crazy.

Drew enjoyed the show, though. For the first time in a year, he’s thinking about his life, and how it would be a lot more enjoyable with a woman like Aspen at his side.

Maybe crazy isn’t so bad after all.

First off, I want to thank the author for allowing me the opportunity to be able to read her newest book prior to its release.

I love how the book opens. Aspen is 10 years old and I already know that she is going to be my most favorite heroine of Lani Lynn Vale to date. I always feel connected and able to myself as friends with her heroines, but Aspen - she is bae. She is the other side to my coin. She already knows whom she is going to marry and calls him on his crap even though they are virtual strangers. And as an adult Aspen is even more hilarious.

What I felt was most important in this book was family. The relationship, or lack thereof, between Aspen and Downy was key from the start. I knew something was kind of weird when she mentioned he didn't believe her over the breakup between her and her boyfriend. There had to be a reason why and I knew by the end of the book I would get to the bottom of it.

Aspen and Drew. Their initial run ins are only overshadowed by the fact that Aspen is on house arrest. [I love it] This plot device itself is so fresh and completely different than what she has written in the past. [I know Nico's sister sorta stole a car, but this is completely different] As the book progresses, Downy get's further and further on my sh*t list while Drew and Aspen build this awesome friendship. Drew isn't 100% sunshine and daisies. He's dealing with a bothersome ex-wife and a bratty teenage daughter. And can we also mention that Aspen's ex-boyfriend is the reason she is on house arrest. Yeah...there's a story there and it involves a tire iron and his new truck. :)

I don't think it absolutely necessary that you are familiar with the previous books of Lani Lynn Vale's, but you'll definitely be more invested if you have. The characters, especially Sam, Luke, and even Downy, will make more sense and strike a stronger chord if you have read their stories.    

We have quite a bit going on in this book and that is GREAT.

*weird neighbor who we know is up to something

*problematic a-hole of an ex boyfriend

*working as a blogger while on house arrest

*budding relationship with the fireman that lives across the street

*absentee brother 

and so on....    

This book is definitely worth reading and re-reading. It also has shot up to one of my favorite Lani Lynn Vale books.

I slammed my fingers down on the keyboard, insanely annoyed that I now had to tell how fun the product was, despite the fact that the person I’d had the fun with was a douche bag.

A knock sounded at my door and I turned to glare at it.

“Who is it?” I yelled.

“You know damn well who it is. It’s the same person that’s been knocking at your door for the last twelve hours,” Drew growled.

I shrugged.  

“Go away,” I ordered him.

I could hear him sigh through the door.

“In my eyes, the marriage Constance and I had was over,” he started.

I picked up the nearest thing to me, which happened to be a half finished water bottle, and then launched it at the door.

“Go away!”

He left, but not without one last parting comment.

“I still have a few things left in that box that I want to try on you. When you’re ready, let me know.”

I glared at the box he’d just spoken about, and went back to my review.

If you’re looking for a fun, awesome thing to do with your significant other, this is the thing for you. It offers many benefits; but most importantly, it gives you time with your significant other. And, might I add, it’s totally fucking worth it. I’ve used it three times in the last two days. It’s like he’s here.

On a side note, the vibrator is not very proficient. It offers about two hours of battery life before they need replaced.

Not that I used it for two hours or anything.

Oh, who am I kidding?

I would’ve used it longer if I hadn’t run out of batteries.

I’m a married mother of three. My kids are all under 5, so I can assure you that they are a handful. I’ve been with my paramedic husband now for ten years, and we’ve produced three offspring that are nothing like us. I live in the greatest state in the world, Texas.

 

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