Mini Reviews: Give It All & Quarterback Draw

GIVE IT ALL
Desert Dogs #2
Cara McKenna
Romantic Suspense
352 pages
Signet
Available Now
Source: Finished copy from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Keep your friends close—and your enemies closer....

Bar owner Raina Harper can’t say for sure what Duncan Welch is to her. With her small Nevada town under siege by a ruthless casino development and still reeling from a spate of murders, she knows that trusting the public face of the corporate invaders is risky to say the least. Though, damn, it’s one fine-looking face.…

Duncan may be a mercenary when it comes to getting the job done, but he’s no villain. In fact, the calculating fixer soon finds himself in the bad guys’ crosshairs, framed and facing professional ruin. To clear his name, he’ll need help from Raina and her roughneck motorcycle club, the Desert Dogs. Gaining their trust won’t be easy, and the molten sexual tension between Raina and Duncan only makes things more complicated—especially since Miah Church, Raina’s friend and ex-lover, would sooner strangle Duncan than shake his hand.

One thing’s certain, though: If they don’t deal with their incendiary attraction soon, the whole damn town might go up in flames.…

MY THOUGHTS
Give It All is a grittier installment than its predecessor in terms of the romance, Raina and Duncan's edges significantly more jagged than that of Kim and Vince's, thus making their journey to happiness a sometimes painful but ultimately beautiful one. Many times with romances featuring damaged characters we spend a lot of time learning exactly what caused all the injuries we can't see, but with both Duncan and Raina very little time is spent dwelling on the past and we're simply allowed to live with them in the present, watching as they learn the nuances of the person each is now. It's not a story of the two of them figuring out how to mend one another through sex, love and everything in between, rather it's one of acceptance, each wishing to let themselves be seen with the type of honesty few others have been gifted.

Duncan is arguably the one whose past has manifested itself in his present in a more life-altering way, his various compulsions dictating his day to day schedule to such a degree that he suffers full-on panic attacks should he not be able to complete certain tasks. What's so striking about his relationship with Raina though is that she never tries to avoid triggering his compulsions or change his life so that she can better address his needs, instead she simply accepts everything about him (and mocks his extreme Britishness at times, much to our delight) and simply stands by his side, there for him should he need her. Duncan is much the same way with Raina, pushing her to let him see all her dark corners, but respecting the woman she is and giving her the space and independence she fiercely craves at the same time. The two of them together are gorgeously messy, and their romance is one destined to be read over and over again.

Rating: 4/5

Find Cara:

Website • Twitter • Goodreads • Amazon

QUARTERBACK DRAW

Play By Play #9

Jaci Burton

Contemporary Romance

336 pages

Berkley Trade

Available Now

Source: Finished copy from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)

Grant Cassidy knows how to be a football star—flash that dazzling smile, throw the winning pass, get the girl. But while the hot quarterback loves the game and the lifestyle, no woman has come close to catching his heart. Then he matches wits with a smart, gorgeous model, and Grant finds himself wanting more than a fling.

Supermodel Katrina Koslova might live in a world of glitz and camera flashes, but she works hard to provide for the family that relies on her. She doesn’t have time for fun—much less a boyfriend—but Grant seems determined to be the exception to Katrina’s rule.

Their explosive chemistry is undeniable, but Katrina’s afraid to let go and rely on anyone but herself. Grant intends to ease her fears and prove he’s a man of style and substance.

MY THOUGHTS
Quarterback Draw, the latest installment of Ms. Burton’s oh-so sexy Play-by-Play series, gives us a very familiar (but still smoldering) hero in football star Grant Cassidy, but she changes things up a bit with heroine Katrina. Ms. Burton’s heroines are always strong, feisty and independent, but with Katrina we have, on paper, our least relatable heroine yet given her profession as a supermodel. While we might not be able to fully relate to being an image consultant, event planner, bar owner or any number of other careers the women in this series have, there’s something about the career of a supermodel that seems so much further outside the realm of our reality.

That being said though, Katrina is as easy to settle in with as the women who came before her, more than able to hold her own against the big personality that is Grant Cassidy as well as the teenage antics of her younger brother and sister. Family plays an enormous role in this story, Grant and Katrina's respective siblings ensuring they both, despite their high profile careers, feel as real and genuine as they come. The chemistry between them is nothing less than we’ve come to expect from this series, and we’re treated to the slow deepening of feelings with very little angst or unnecessary drama. Overall, Quarterback Draw is a fantastic addition to the Play-by-Play series, and I can’t wait to see what Grant’s brother Tucker has in store for us next.

Rating: 4/5
 

Find Jaci:

Website • Twitter • Goodreads • Amazon 
 

These books were sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review. 

I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.