The Golden Spoon by Jessa Maxwell

400 Pages

Publisher: Penguin

Release date: September 14, 2023

Netgalley

 

Blurb

 

Six contestants. The nation's favourite baking show. And a prize worth killing for...

For six amateur bakers, competing in Bake Week is a dream come true.

But for the show's famous host, Betsy Martin, it's more than a competition. It's her legacy. As she welcomes contestants to her ancestral home, Grafton Manor, she's excited to discover who will have what it takes win the ultimate prize: The Golden Spoon.

Quickly, though, things start to go wrong.

The contestants are jittery - they've heard strange noises in the manor at night.
Betsy is irate - a new co-host has arrived, and he's out for her spotlight. Then, the sabotage begins. At first, it's small. Sugar switched for salt. A hob turned too high.
But when a body is discovered, everyone is a suspect.

Because someone at Bake Week wants to settle old scores...

 

Review

 

I love it when a book surprises me, and boy, did The Golden Spoon do just that. Because, while this book certainly falls under the ‘mystery’ heading, it’s anything but a stereotypical whodunnit. In fact, for the longest time it isn’t entirely clear what has been done, or to whom. All the prologue tells us is that Betsy makes a horrific discovery while there is a storm raging around her estate, where she hosts the Golden Spoon baking competition. The story then returns to a few days earlier. The six contestants in the baking competition are introduced as they arrive at the impressive location, and we subsequently follow them and their host Betsy Martin through the first few days of the competition.

Not all is well. Betsy finds herself having to work with a co-host she detests, while the competitors find themselves competing not only against each other but also against somebody unknown who appears determined to sabotage them and the competition. Add to all this mayhem that most if not all of the contestants may have ulterior motives for taking part in the competition…

You catch my drift. Much is happening between the covers of this book and quite a lot of it doesn’t become clear until very late into the story. And that could have been an issue. After all, I tend to read mysteries because I want to try and figure out whodunnit before the story reveals all. That becomes a lot harder if it is unclear who the victim is and what exactly has been done to them.

I’m very happy to report, that the set-up of this story, despite being untraditional, worked perfectly well for me. All the characters in this story are fascinating and watching their back-stories and motivations unfold kept me captivated. In fact, there were times when I all but forgot that the mystery in this story still remained a mystery itself.

While I can’t say anything specific about it, I would like to add that the resolution to this tale is somewhat untraditional as well. I’m sure there will be those who’ll end up frowning about the ending of this story but for me, it made perfect sense in the context.

To summarize: The Golden Spoon was a fascinating, well-written, and easy-to-read mystery featuring fascinating characters, an original set-up, and a captivating storyline. Colour me impressed.

 

 

The Couple at the Table by Sophie Hannah

 

358 pages

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

#11 Culver Valley Crime

Library

 

Blurb

You're on your honeymoon at an exclusive couples-only resort.

You receive a note, warning you to 'Beware of the couple at the table nearest to yours'. At dinner that night, five other couples are sitting close by, but none of their tables is any nearer or further away than any of the others. It's almost as if someone has set the scene in order to make the warning note meaningless. Why would anyone do that?

You have no idea.

You also don't know that you're about to be murdered, or that once you're dead, all the evidence will suggest that no one there that night could possibly have committed the crime.

So who might be trying to warn you? And who might be about to kill you, and seems certain to get away with it?

Review

 

Six couples.

One honeymoon resort.

An impossible murder.

Trust me to start reading a series of mysteries with title #11. I usually go out of my way to avoid starting anywhere other than at the start, but in this case, it didn’t even occur to me to check before bringing the book home and diving into it. After reading and loving Sophie Hannah’s Hercule Poirot novels, I just didn’t think twice when I saw her name on the cover of this fascinating-sounding book.

Is there such a thing as a slow-burn mystery? Slow-burn is a huge trope in romance, but is the term used for the mystery genre too? Because if it is, I think it applies to this book. Although the murder has happened six months previously, I didn’t get any sense of an (ongoing) investigation until about halfway through the book.

The story in this book alternates between July 2019 and January 2020. In July Jane Brinkwood was murdered in an exclusive resort in what appears to be an impossible murder. Six months later, Lucy, one of the other guests at the resort and the ex-wife of Jane’s new husband, contacts the investigating police officer, Simon Waterhouse in the hope of breathing new life into the case, which appears to have stalled.

Simon Waterhouse, much to the disgust of his superior, hasn’t given up on the case at all, mainly because he and his wife and colleague Charlie, were also guests at the resort at the time. However, Lucy’s action sets in motion a chain of events that will, eventually lead to the solution.

The first part of the book centres mostly on Lucy and Simon and it isn’t until later that we get introduced to the other guests at the resort. In fact, for the first part of the story, it isn’t clear that most of those guests had reasons to at least dislike Jane. For me, the story didn’t really start to flow until all those other voices came into play too. But as soon as it started flowing, the story washed over me like a tsunami; I was hooked and had to finish the book in one long sitting.

And I liked the ending. The solution to the seemingly impossible crime was plausible. Not only that, but it was also somewhat obvious now that it had been explained to me. And yes, I did want to kick myself for missing one or two clues that were hiding in plain sight. Having said that, while the how and the why were very much a mystery (pun intended) until the very end, I figured out the culprit early on. Discovering I had been right was hugely satisfying.

Overall verdict: A very well-plotted mystery featuring fascinating characters, and a wonderful read. I will be diving into more, none Hercule Poirot, books by Sophie Hannah in the not-too-distant future.

 

 

Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent

 

364 pages

Publisher: Sandycove

Publishing Date:

Library

 

Blurb

Sally Diamond cannot understand why what she did was so strange. She was only doing what her father told her to do, to put him out with the rubbish when he died.

Now Sally is the centre of attention, not only from the hungry media and police detectives, but also a sinister voice from a past she cannot remember. As she begins to discover the horrors of her childhood, Sally steps into the world for the first time, making new friends and big decisions, and learning that people don't always mean what they say.

But who is the man observing Sally from the other side of the world? And why does her neighbour seem to be obsessed with her? Sally's trust issues are about to be severely challenged.

 

Review

This book comes with so many endorsements it’s almost scary. It’s obviously seen as a work of genius by a long list of authors, many of whom I love reading. Which means that if I don’t like this story there must be something wrong with me, right?

Well, on the upside, I didn’t dislike Strange Sally Diamond. It is an exquisitely written, fascinating, and compelling story. I’m in awe Liz Nugent’s mastery with words when it comes to portraying Sally and the other major players in this story. And I still haven’t figured out why this was such a smooth read when the subject matter is so very bleak and heartbreaking.

Because that’s the other side of the equation. No matter how much this story captivated me and how brilliantly Liz Nugent drew me into this story, there’s no getting away from the fact that it’s a bleak tale. What is more, there doesn’t appear to be anything resembling resolution, or justice. Even the tiny glimmer of hope provided when the book ends filled me with a renewed sense of horror.

I’m filled with admiration when it comes to characterisation. Sally and Paul are in many ways very similar but at the same time, they are almost exact opposites in every way imaginable. Where Sally takes everything at face value and doesn’t make or accept excuses, Paul manages to find an excuse for everything he does and everything that has happened to him. They each tell their part of the story. Both voices are compelling, and it is almost scary how easy it was to drift along on their words while they described horrific events and circumstances. I distinctly remember having the same reaction after I finished Unravelling Oliver.

To say I’m conflicted about this book doesn’t begin to cover it. As I said, it’s brilliant; faultlessly plotted, gorgeously written, and totally engrossing. I have no doubt I will be thinking about this story and the characters in it for quite some time. It’s just that, no matter how dark a story may be, I don’t like it when the ending of a book leaves me feeling down and hopeless. Because, while a lot happens in this book, I think it’s fair to say that none of the characters in it find resolution.

 

 

Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang

 

323 pages

Publisher: The Borough Press

Owned / Trade Paperback

 

Blurb

 THIS IS ONE HELL OF A STORY

IT’S JUST NOT HERS TO TELL

Athena Liu is a literary darling and June Hayward is literally nobody.

WHITE LIES

When Athena dies in a freak accident, June steels her unpublished manuscript and publishes it as her own under the ambiguous name Juniper Song.

DARK HUMOUR

But as evidence threatens June’s stolen success, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves.

DEADLY CONSEQUENCES

What happens next is entirely everyone else’s fault.

 

Review

I’m not sure how I feel about this book. I do know that this is one occasion when I’m rounding my 3.5-star rating down rather than up.

June Hayward and Athena Liu met in college and shared a dream – to write a critically acclaimed bestseller and make it in the literary world. While June’s debut novel didn’t stand out in any way, Athena’s first book shot her straight to the dizzying highs the two young women had been dreaming about. June blames the ‘failure’ of her book on the fact that she’s not interesting enough as a white woman writing a white woman’s story.

When Athena dies in front of her, June gets over the shock quick enough to steal Athena’s just-finished draft. And with that act, and the way she makes up excuses for what she knows is bad behaviour, we know everything we need to know about June’s character – we’re dealing with a selfish opportunist.

From there on, June rewrites Athena’s story and manages to get a publishing contract. She happily agrees to publish her new story under the name Juniper Song and doesn’t object to a somewhat ambiguous author picture either. The book is a huge success, just what June/Juniper has always dreamed about, but it isn’t long before the online reading community starts asking questions. While June/Juniper and her publishing team manage to quell the storm, this is only the start and from that moment forward it is a downhill journey for our thieving author.

There is no doubt that this book is of its time given that it deals with plagiarism, cultural appropriation, and Twitter shitstorms. And all of it is shared with us by an unreliable narrator who lies to us, to the other characters she interacts with, and to herself.

Because the book is told from June/Juniper’s perspective, it is unclear whether the people around her, especially her publishing team, believe what she tells them or simply prefer not to search for the truth. In fact, I’m not sure how aware June herself is of the lies she shares or if she’s buying into the excuses she comes up with. We never really get an explanation as to why June/Juniper pulls the same stunt a second time, given how close she came to losing it all with the first book. We’re also not given a resolution to what’s been happening in the story. When the book ends, all appears to be lost except that June/Juniper turns her downfall into a new opportunity for redemption and future success, be it only in her mind. Or is it?

I guess we’ll never know.

And I guess that’s my main issue with the book. While June/Juniper’s perspective was fascinating in a car crash sort of way, there’s nothing in this story to balance it with. Because we know nothing about those who call her out and attack her on social media, we have no idea about their motivation (beyond outrage over plagiarism). Athena’s mother’s reasons for not wanting to be involved with her daughter’s writing are never explored or explained either. In fact, very little is explored in this book except for June/Juniper’s obsession with making it in the literary world.

Having said all of that, I was impressed with the way Kuang managed to have June/Juniper’s excuses and reasonings almost make sense. The online attacks against June/Juniper felt so familiar that they made me as uncomfortable while reading as they do when I witness them on Twitter in real life. The story clearly indicates how isolating the life of an author can be, and how easy it is for a person to lose perspective when they have nobody around to interact with. And the book definitely provides food for thought about who should write what and why not.

The blurb I found on Goodreads (the version I used above came from the back of my trade paperback) ends with the following paragraph:

What's the harm in a pseudonym? New York Times bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she is, she didn't write the book she claims she wrote, and she is most certainly not Asian American--in this chilling and hilariously cutting novel from R. F. Kuang.

While it summarizes the book perfectly, I fear I must have missed something because I didn’t find anything about this story hilarious. But that may be a ‘just me’ situation.

To narrow my thoughts down to one paragraph… Yellowface is a well-written and mostly captivating story. I’m just not sure how much I liked it. Between the unreliable and selfish main character, a serious lack of (sympathetic) secondary characters, and an ending that wasn’t really a resolution, I’m struggling to remember that there were large sections of this book I not only liked but admired.

  

 

The Counting Series by Kelly Jensen

Counting Fence Posts (Counting #1)

Pages: 61

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Buy links: Dreamspinner | Amazon US | Amazon UK

Blurb

There are over two hundred thousand fence posts between Syracuse and Boston. Henry Auttenberg likes numbers—it’s his job—but he isn’t going to count them all, even if the view outside the rental car is less confounding than the driver, his attractive but oh so obnoxious colleague, Marcus Winnamore. It’s Christmas Eve, and Henry would much rather be home with his family. When the blizzard that grounded their flight forces them off the road, however, he’s stuck with Marc until the storm passes—or a plow digs them out.

As the temperature outside plummets, the atmosphere inside the car slowly heats up. Henry learns the true reason for Marc’s chilly distance—he’s not exactly straight… maybe… and he’s been fantasizing about Henry’s mouth, among other things. Confession laid out, Marc is all for sharing body heat… and more. Henry isn’t interested in being an experiment, but as the night and cold deepen, he could be convinced to balance certain risk against uncertain reward.

Review

Counting Fence Posts is such a wonderful feel-good story. I basically read it with a smile on my face from start to finish.

The story is told from Henry’s point of view and boy does he go through a range of emotions, not to mention a shock or two. Henry has admired Marc ever since he started working for the company where Marc has a two year head start on him. He is in awe of Marc’s professionalism and the path his career so far has followed. But, more than that, he’s been attracted to Marc for almost as long. But with Marc being straight, Henry has made a point of keeping his attraction secret…or so he thinks.

Driving back together after a business meeting is a fraught affair long before the find themselves caught up in a blizzard and stranded at the side of a secondary road. Initially their conversation is a combination of stilted and almost adversarial. It’s only once they realise that they’re stranded and may be for some time that the atmosphere between them warms as the world both outside and inside the car gets ever colder.

When it turns out Marc might not be as straight as Henry (and even Marc) assumed, things heat up, be it initially against Henry’s better judgment. What follows are scenes which veer from sweet to hot and intense and back to adorable again. Kelly Jensen writes kissing scenes like few other authors I know. Phew, those men may have been cold, I was certainly heating up.

This is not a long story and takes place over two days, so don’t expect a happy ever after by the end of this novella. But, don’t despair, there’s more to come and I have utter faith that these two men will find their way to happiness. They’re too good together not to.

Counting Stars (Counting 1.5)

Free read on Kelly Jensen’s website to be found here

6k words

Blurb

At the end of my holiday novella, Counting Fence Posts, Henry invites Marc back to his parents’ place for Christmas. Actually, it’s less invitation, more assumption, but Marc doesn’t object. After two days of haunting the lobby of a crowded hotel outside Albany, they’re finally on their way back to Boston.

Review

When this story starts, Marc has a hard time explaining to himself why he agreed to spend Christmas with Henry and his family. Second thoughts and uncertainty are creeping in, except that he knows very well and his reason can be described in one word, or rather one name: Henry.

Henry has equal difficulty believing that he’s invited Marc to his parent’s house and that the man is actually there. Henry is a champion second guesser

We learn more about Marc in this story, not so much from what he says or does but rather from his reactions to seeing Henry’s family, celebrating Christmas with them. Self sufficient, ambitious and powerful Marcus, as Henry realises when they part at the end of the evening, is not so very different from him after all. He yearns for security, family, and somebody by his side, just as Henry does.

I swear, these two men are the best kissers ever. I could read about their mouths pressed together forever and not get bored. In fact, I could happily read more about Henry and Marc; they are a delight to read about. I love how we get to know them better little by little, just as they are discovering more about each other — slowly. And I thoroughly enjoy Kelly Jensen’s storytelling voice. This story and Counting Fence Posts are both flawlessly written and smoothly told. The balance between introspection, dialogue, funny and more serious was just about perfect.

I’m thoroughly enjoying these stories and I’m so very happy there’s more to come. Trust me, if you’re looking for stories that are going to leave you happy and with a smile on your face, reach for the Counting stories.

Counting Down (Counting #2) by Kelly Jensen

Pages 63

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Buy links: Dreamspinner | Amazon US | Amazon UK

Blurb

It’s been a week since a Christmas Eve blizzard changed the course of Marcus Winnamore’s life. Plan A is now Plan B, and the first item on his new agenda is taking Henry Auttenberg on a date. They’ve been invited to a New Year’s Eve party, and Marc is counting down the hours until midnight… until he can kiss Henry in front of his colleagues and friends. 

Things don’t quite work out to plan. Finding the elevator out of service, Marc and Henry check the stairs, only to choose the wrong door and become locked in the basement. Close quarters once again make for close conversation, and as they explore every avenue of escape, they also explore the deepening attraction between them. For Marc, this isn’t an experiment. Will he still feel that way when he has to admit to someone other than Henry that he’s gay?

Review

Oh my, these two men make me smile. They sure have a special talent for ending up in impossible situations. In Counting Fence Post they managed to get stuck in a car during a blizzard and in this book they find themselves locked into a basement while they should be at a party, several floors higher, awaiting the New Year.

Of course they’re predicament leads to quite a few laugh-out-loud moments, but these stories are a lot more than a comedy of errors. In between funny escape attempts and mostly friendly banter these moments of ‘captivity’ also provide Marc and Henry with the opportunity to get to know each other better and discover what each of them wants. Because, while the circumstances of their times together it may make it feel as if they have been together for quite some time, only about a week has passed since the blizzard episode. Marc is still trying to figure out what it means to be gay and how to deal with that fact in the world at large, while Henry can’t quite shake the feeling that he may be ‘just’ an experiment for Marc. Both of them need reassuring and supporting and the wonderful thing about these stories is that both Marc and Henry are able and eager to provide that for the other, no matter how deep their own concerns.

I love how the author managed to tackle these issues without ever giving the stories a heavy or angsty feel. Of course, the kissing and sexy times (not to mention getting caught in an act) do a lot to ensure that the story doesn’t get lost in too much soul searching. 

Reading these three stories has been an absolute delight and I’m so very happy I won’t have to wait much longer before I get to spend time with Marc and Henry again. I have it on good authority that there’s another short story as well as another novella to come in the not too distant future and I can’t wait to get my hands on those. Marc and Henry have captured my imagination and to say I’m now well and truly invested in their journey and relationship would be a gross understatement.

Always Another Side by Annabelle Jacobs - Excerpt, Review & Giveaway

                                                

                                        Author: Annabelle Jacobs

                                        Release Date: June 3 2016

                                        Length: 60,000 words

                                        Buy Link: myBook.to/Always_Another_Side

                                        Price: 3.99

Blurb:

Starting over at forty is hard work for landscape architect Jack Bowman. His long-term partner hurt him badly. With his self-esteem dented by the break up, trusting a new lover is going to take time.

Tyler Freeman is equally unlucky when it comes to love. Now that he’s over thirty-five, he’s tired of getting played. All he wants is someone special. How hard can it be to meet a man who’s honest, with no hidden surprises?

Being set up on a blind date might be a classic cliché, but it’s a stroke of good luck for Jack and Tyler. They have a lot in common, including previous relationships steeped in deceit, but it’s worth navigating their trust issues if it means laying those ghosts to rest.

Making it work finally seems possible—until an accidental discovery threatens their newfound happiness.

Excerpt

Everyone said their goodbyes, and Jack tried not to notice the blatant, knowing looks being passed around. He had no doubt he’d be getting some nosy texts later. On the plus side, at least he wouldn’t be the only one.

Now it was only the two of them, they wandered into the bar area and snagged a small table by the fireplace. It wasn’t lit—the late-April weather had been far too mild to warrant an open fire. The Saturday-night crowd from earlier had clearly moved on to somewhere else, and the room had quietened considerably.

“Thanks for offering me a lift.” Tyler smiled and took a sip of his drink. “I wasn’t ready to leave yet.”

“Me neither.” Jack had bought another Coke, and he ran his finger down through the condensation on the outside of the glass. “I have to admit I was a bit—a lot sceptical about whether or not this was a good idea.”

Tyler glanced up and met his gaze. “Meeting me?”

Jack’s smile was wry. “I was talking about the whole blind date thing, but yeah… I guess it was meeting you in general.” He cringed as he said it, perhaps not the best thing to say to someone whom you were hoping to go out with again. And despite Jack’s misgivings and preconceptions, he liked Tyler.

Tyler cocked his head to one side and frowned, as though he wasn’t sure how to feel about that. Jack had probably offended him, because no one liked to hear that sort of thing. But then, he’d offered to drive Tyler home so they could spend more time together—alone—so Tyler must realise Jack wanted to get to know him better. Or maybe not. If Jack had learned one thing from his breakup with Simon, it was that communication was key. Never assume someone knew what you meant or what you were thinking.

“I know that sounds bad, and it’s nothing personal. Christ, I’m pulling out all the clichés tonight, but it really was a case of it being me and not you.” Jack laughed and scrubbed a hand over his face. “Shit. Just when it was going so well. I’ve managed to fuck it up, haven’t I?”

My Review

I’ve been trying to come up with a good word to describe this book and the term I keep on coming back to is: refreshing.

It was refreshing to read a book in which two grown up men mostly behave like grown up men. It was equally refreshing to read a book in which conflict doesn’t automatically mean drama and shouting matches followed by one or the other storming off. Mostly it was refreshing to read a book in which the characters for once did what I’m always willing characters in other books to do: talk to each other.

Now, before you think everything I said in the previous paragraph means ‘Always Another Side’ is a boring book, allow me to reassure you. This book was touching, the story gripping and both Jack and Tyler charmed their way into my reader’s heart. I loved their no-nonsense approach towards each other.

“I don’t have time or energy to pretend to be something I’m not for the sake of a quick shag. This is me, warts and all.” – Jack

Although their first meeting is a reluctantly agreed to blind date for both of them, it is instantly clear they click on several levels. Because they’re both dealing with unresolved hurts and issues they decide to take their time getting to know each other, but mutual attraction speeds to process up.

Of course there were bumps in the road for these two, but none of them lead to drawn out or massive fights. The biggest hurdle between them didn’t come as a huge shock to me (in fact, I would have been shocked if it hadn’t been the case) but then again, I don’t think it was supposed to surprise me.

I can’t tell you how rewarding it was for me to read about characters dealing with issues in a way I (would like to think I) would deal with them. Well written, smooth to read, wonderfully British, and with two realistic and interesting main characters, ‘Always Another Side’ comes very close to being an ultimate comfort read for me. J

Author Bio

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They're usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Author Links

Twitter                             Website                            Facebook

Email – ajacobsfiction@gmail.com

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The Dark Side (re-released), by Ashe Barker

The Dark Side (re-released), by Ashe Barker

• Totally Bound, 2016
• Contemporary erotic romance
• BDSM
• Three books, average 66,000 words each
• Cliffhangers, but eventual HEA ending

Introduction

Hi, and thank you for inviting me over today to chat about the re-release of The Dark Side.  This series was my first attempt to write anything more steamy than a birthday card and I was delighted with it. I’ll always be proud of how well the books did and the fabulous reviews they received. I am eternally grateful to Totally Bound for accepting them and for taking a chance on the unpublished rookie I was back then.

So, if it ain’t broke, why mend it?

As I wrote The Dark Side I had no idea if anyone but me would ever read the books. I knew next to nothing about the world of publishing or professional writing, so although my editor did a fabulous job of making the books fit to be seen among decent folk (or should that be indecent folk?) there were always aspects of the story I felt could be improved. There were scenes I thought about writing but left out, and ways in which I believed the connection between Nathan and Eva could be deepened. The re-release was a rare opportunity to have my time again and complete the job.

There’s new content in each of the three books, but I won’t spoil it by saying exactly what. Suffice it to say we see yet another quirk in Eva’s already complex nature, and aspects of Nathan which I hope will endear him to readers even more. He’s a hard Dom, stern, demanding and insanely sexy. We lose none of that, but the additional content helps to bring out his caring nature a little more.

There’s also a whole new epilogue to conclude the story. This picks up a loose end which always bothered me so I feel the series is better rounded now.

Enter my Rafflecopter for a chance to win ALL THREE BOOKs in the series. The competition ends on 1 May.

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Series Blurb

The Dark Side trilogy charts the sensual journey of academic musician Eva Byrne as she struggles to overcome painful shyness, sexual inhibition and personal tragedy. Lonely, unsophisticated, desperately seeking love and approval, Eva is easy prey for sensual and experienced Nathan Darke.

He wants her submission, and he knows how to go about getting it. Eva is quickly caught up by the whirlwind of his effortless seduction, though she has her own reasons for agreeing to join him in his world of pain and pleasure, on the dark side.

Inexplicably fascinated and at the same time totally frustrated by his new submissive, Nathan is increasingly drawn to her as she opens up in his hands and he realises there is much, much more to his latest playmate than he ever could have imagined.

The Dark Side charts the turbulent relationship between Eva and Nathan as their mutual fascination builds. They both discover what surrender truly means as together they explore the fragile bonds of desire, trust, risk and reward, and the destructive power of betrayal.

Darkening, Book 1 in The Dark Side Serial

Who knows where pain ends and pleasure begins?

The chance of a new life out in the wilds of the Yorkshire moors sounds too good to be true to shy musician Eva Byrne. Stifled and smothered within the cocoon of her brilliant academic career, Eva yearns for something different. Something real and exciting. Something she can feel.

Excitement. Passion. Pleasure. She finds that sexy, enigmatic Nathan Darke can provide all these and more when she moves into his home as violin tutor to his young daughter. But Eva’s sensual encounters with her demanding, domineering new employer quickly evoke her deepest fears, as he introduces her to the trauma of submission and marks her with his particularly dark brand of love.

But will Eva’s natural curiosity and thirst for new experiences be enough to withstand the sting of Nathan Darke’s exquisite touch? Will simple surrender be enough as he challenges her every inhibition, taking her on an erotic journey of self-discovery and liberation?

Darker, Book 2 in The Dark Side Serial

Can Eva outrun the secrets of her past, or is surrender her only choice?

Eva Byrne’s first encounter with the darker side of Nathan Darke’s sensuality ends in disaster. Frightened, hurt, betrayed, she struggles to regather her shattered confidence—in him, and in herself.

Desperate to continue her journey of exploration and self-discovery, Eva has to convince a skeptical Nathan that she’s worth the trouble. And that she can learn to submit to him. When she is forced to reveal elements of her past she has preferred to keep hidden, both her brilliance and her vulnerability are laid bare. Will Nathan accept Eva as she is, and help her to become the woman she longs to be, or will she face yet another rejection?

Terrified and intrigued in equal measure, Nathan has no idea how to deal with the exquisitely enigmatic Eva Byrne. Should he cut his losses and run, or allow their relationship to continue, and watch as Eva’s delicate beauty unfurls in his hands?

Fascinated and ensnared by Nathan, Eva longs to taste what he offers and her erotic journey continues. But how much will she have to surrender to him in order to liberate her own desires?

Darkest, Book 3 in The Dark Side serial

When his past destroys Eva’s trust in her Master, can he win her back?

As their turbulent, complex relationship deepens, Nathan Darke is increasingly aware that Eva Byrne has become much more to him than his submissive. She’s in his home, in his family. And in his heart.

Eva hasn’t found it easy to trust, to believe in herself and in a relationship that might last. But happiness, once so elusive, is within her grasp. Nathan is her Master, her lover and her soulmate.

However, no sooner do they manage to find a fragile balance between them—a way of entwining both their worlds—and start to build a future than their past comes crashing back to destroy their emerging love. Jealousy and hate brutally shatter Eva’s and Nathan’s delicate trust in each other, and their life together crumbles.

Can they overcome the crushing pain of betrayal and deceit to regain some sort of future together, or are some wounds just too deep to heal? Are some risks too great? Some rewards just not enough? 

Excerpt from Darkening (Book 1)

He breaks the kiss to start nibbling his way down my neck. As if not finding the angle to his liking, he suddenly, effortlessly lifts me from the chair, turns and lays me down with my bare back flat on the table top. He holds both of my wrists in one hand, pinning them to the table above my head and, standing between my legs, leans over to look down at me, stroking his other hand the length of my body from neck to waist.

“Beautiful… Holy fuck, so lovely,” he murmurs before he leans down to take my right nipple between his lips.

I squeal, the shock jolting through me even though I had sensed what he was about to do. His body weight and his hand around my wrists hold me in place as he continues his work. The sensation is everywhere, starting at my nipple, which is now painfully engorged. The tingling pulses radiate out through my whole body, connecting as if by some sort of internal electric current to that spot between my legs, which is now drenched. It feels exquisite, acute, intense, forbidden and overwhelming. I arch my back, pushing my breasts toward his mouth, his tongue, his teeth, this source of ecstatic pleasure.

One or two ill-fated fumblings from other students when I was a teenager at university did nothing to prepare me for this. I have never, ever felt anything remotely like this before. I might have read about it, known the theoretical possibility was out there, somewhere. Happening to other women—women who were attractive and had lush, sexy bodies and soft, wavy hair. But this is here, now, happening to me. 

I feel the hard table beneath my shoulder blades as I writhe under his skilled lips, his expert tongue and teeth, desperate for more. And he knows what he is about—he knows what I need and he has more for me. Opening his mouth wider, he takes more of my breast in and sucks hard, first one side then the other. He slides his free hand, palm up, between my shoulders and the table to raise me up, giving him easier access with his mouth, his tongue, his teeth. Gently grazing my now helplessly sensitized nipples with his teeth, he suckles me relentlessly, nipping slightly harder, just enough to hurt, maybe—I’m not sure where pain ends and pleasure begins now. What does it matter, anyway? He can do whatever he wants to me as long as he doesn’t stop.

He is no longer holding my wrists—he has no need to because I’m lying boneless under him, spread across his kitchen table, pleading wordlessly for…for what? More? Less? The ecstatic pleasure tinged with a hint of pain is so intense now that I can only moan, ride the waves of sensation pulsing from my breasts out through my fingers and toes, each wave bigger, heavier, more compelling than the one before until I am writhing with need.

“I can’t. Please, it’s too much…” Is that me? Or someone else whimpering nearby?

“Yes, you can, you are. Don’t fight it, sweetheart, come for me. Now. Come now.” His words—insistent, soft and low, seductive—are breathed into my ear before he returns to my breasts, nibbling and sucking mercilessly, building the tension, increasing the sensations coursing through every part of me, winding me tighter and tighter until I burst, screaming out loud as fireworks explode in my head, my groin, everywhere as the earth shifts beneath me. My inner core clenches violently, the wetness surely flooding across the table. I feel I am falling, floating as the tension is released and I hear myself moan in delighted satisfaction, drifting back down toward reality.

Me, the girl who can’t bear to be touched. Somehow—God only knows how it happened—I have just spent the last ten minutes spread out half naked on Nathan Darke’s kitchen table, his hands and mouth all over me until I totally lost control, and he watched me thrashing about in the throes of my very first orgasm, right in front of him. Christ! How wonderful, how intimate. How unlike me. And he’s achieved all this without so much as a button of his coming undone.

About Ashe Barker

I’ve been an avid reader of fiction for many years, erotic and other genres. I still love reading, the hotter the better. But now I have a good excuse for my guilty pleasure – research.

I tend to draw on my own experience to lend colour, detail and realism to my plots and characters. An incident here, a chance remark there, a bizarre event or quirky character, any of these can spark a story idea.

I live in the North of England, on the edge of the Brontë moors. When not writing – which is not very often these days - my time is divided between my role as resident taxi driver for my teenage daughter, and caring for a menagerie of dogs, tortoises.  And a very grumpy cockatiel. 

I have over thirty titles on general release with publishers on both sides of the Atlantic, and I have several more in the pipeline. I write M/f, M/M, and occasionally ring the changes with a little M/M/f. All my books feature BDSM. I write explicit stories, always hot, but they offer far more than just sizzling sex. I like to read about complex characters, and compelling plots, so that’s what I write too.

I have a pile of story ideas still to work through, and keep thinking of new ones at the most unlikely moments, so you can expect to see a lot more from me.

Review Quotes

·         Holy crow! I knew Eva was intelligent but WHOA! (OK no spoiler reveals).

·         The sex … is bow-chica-wow-wow hot! Note to Eva - if you get tired I'll tag in for you! Yes this is an erotic story but there is so much more than just sex. The soul baring and secret revealings have me alternating between laughing, gasping and tears.

·         Author Ashe Barker has definitely mastered the art of cliffhangers because just when I think her books are going to end on a high note, BAM! there it is. I know I will just be crushed to see this story end … an absolute must read and I do highly recommend reading the Dark Side Trilogy.

·         What a fantastic third book. The ending was everything you could hope for. Ms Barker knows what it takes to satisfy her readers, and she doesn't disappoint. My only complaint is that there are no more books to read in this trilogy.

·         Wow, I have enjoyed these three books so much that I would like his version of this love story, please it would be nice.

Buy Links

Darkening: Amazon US Amazon UK Barnes and Noble All Romance Totally Bound

NB. Darkening is FREE at Totally Bound and All Romance until 30 April 2016

Darker: Amazon USAmazon UK All Romance Totally Bound

Darkest: Amazon US  Amazon UK  All Romance Totally Bound

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