Release Blitz/Reviews/Giveaway: Talon: Carian Cole

by - Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Talon (Ashes & Embers #4)
Carian Cole
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Expected November 24, 21015

DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL PARTNER: 

Caring. Hard-working. A devoted family man, loves kids.
Clean cut, funny, smart, quiet, but a good communicator.
~ Asia Jenson

DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL PARTNER: 

Independent. Tall, blonde, sexy. Outgoing. Intelligent,
neat. Unslutty. Confident. Loves to travel. Committed.
~ Talon Valentine

A SOCIAL EXPERIMENT. 
 
The concept was scary but exciting...

Marry a total stranger.

Live together for six months.

Journal everything. (Feelings. Fights. All of it.)

After six months, we each get $50K in trade for our journals, whether we stay married or not. But the goal is to commit to the experience and see if the relationship experts could put together the perfect matches.

I have never been lucky in love. This was my chance to find my soulmate.

I couldn’t wait to meet the man the experts felt was perfect for me.

My hopes were immediately dashed when I saw him at the altar.

Shit. I married my worst nightmare.

Right?!
At first she doesn't even know I'm there, and I have the pleasure of seeing her lying back, her eyes closed, one leg bent up and peeking out from the bubbles. And damn those fucking bubbles, they're covering everything else.
The universe is doing everything it can to prevent me from seeing my wife naked. I would laugh at that fact if it didn't bug me so damn much. I'm pretty sure karma is slapping me in the face for insulting her so many times, and karma is a bitch who has no fucks to give about my blue balls.
Her eyes suddenly snap open and she jumps when she sees me, water splashing around her.
"Tally, you scared the shit out of me. Why are you creeping around?" She crosses her arms over her chest and a few bubbles float up in the air. I love that my childhood nickname just slipped out of her mouth without her even realizing it. It sounded so intimate on her lips that I want to hear her say it again and again.
"I wasn't creeping; I just walked in. Should I wear a bell around my neck like the Princess?" I lean against the doorframe and gaze at her in the candlelight, her skin dewy from the moist heat, and I can't understand why she doesn't want me in that tub with her.
"What are you doing in here?"
I cross the room and kneel down next to the tub, taking in the way her eyes shift to my naked chest.
"I wanted to see your bath bomb in action." My eyes travel languidly down the length of her in the tub and catch glimpses of pink water under the bubbles.
"This one is actually a bubble bomb. See the bubbles?" She lifts her hand and blows the bubbles up over my head.
I grab her hand and bring it to my lips. "I see that. Pink water, too. Very pretty." I close my eyes as I kiss her hand, tasting the sweet water on her. "What flavor are you tonight? It's yummy."
She swallows and I can feel her hand trembling ever so slightly in mine. "It's cotton candy."
I nod my approval. "I like it. A lot."
She shifts in the water, lowering the leg that was up and raising the other, giving me a quick glimpse of her thigh as she does so.
"Do you think about me when you're in here?" I ask her, releasing her hand so I can dip my fingers into the warm water.
"I think about you all the time."
My heart does a funny lurch I'm pretty sure it ain't never done before. "Well, that's just about the best thing I've ever heard."
I let my hand slide farther into the water until it's gliding over her outer thigh under the bubbles. "The water feels slippery," I comment. "So does your skin."
"It's from the oils."
Stretching my other arm out along the edge of the tub, I lean toward her face. "I like how it feels. I should be in there with you, all slippery and wet."
"You're too big," she murmurs, locking her eyes on to mine.
Laughing, I kiss her vanilla flavored lips. "I'm gonna ignore that big comment, baby."
She smiles against my mouth. "You're so bad."
"I know… So, I'm going to have to do this the hard way, then. Since I can't get in there." I slide my hand farther down her leg, over her knee to her calf, squeezing gently.
"Do what?"
"Give you your first orgasm."
A small gasp of surprise comes out of her, and a seductive little grin graces her lips. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I've had orgasms before."
"Not from me." I rub my nose along hers, feeling her breath against my face. "And that's gonna change right now, Mrs. Valentine."
I cup the back of her head with one hand and press my mouth to hers, licking her lips while slowly dragging my other hand up the inside of her leg beneath the water to finally brush my fingers gently across her lower lips. I silently curse the water for not letting me feel her wetness.
Her mouth opens to mine and I delve my tongue inside, tasting the heat of her breath and catching the sweet moan she lets out when I push my finger into her warmth. Her thighs part and her hand comes up out of the water to caress my cheek as I let my hand own her, my thumb rubbing her pulsing clit while I slip my fingers in and out of her. My cock throbs like mad in my shorts, begging to get into her. Holy fuck, is she tight. Three years of no sex is very, very good.
Her thighs squeeze my hand and she grasps the side of my neck, her breath panting against my mouth, and I know she's there already. I really want to drag this out, tease her and make her crazy, but that seems cruel right now when she's writhing her hot little core all over my hand and devouring my lips. I like little horny Asia. A lot.
I want to pull her out of the tub and take her right here on the floor and put an end to this madness, but I'm hell-bent on sticking to my promise to her, even if my dick hates me.
Her walls clench and drench around my swirling fingers up inside her, while the rest of her body arches up, pressing against me, her muscles tightening and quivering. I kiss her softly as she recovers from the first of many sexual escapades I have planned for her now that the doors have been opened, so to speak.
"Who's my girl?" I whisper against her ear, moving my hand up to caress her stomach.
"Me," she answers breathlessly
"That's right."
My girl. The last thing I thought I would ever want, and now, all I could ever want.

A social experiment: Be matched up with a perfect mate, stay married for six months and then decide to stay together or part ways. And yes there is a monetary prize. What could go wrong?

Their requests and reality don't exactly match up. Asia dreamed of a sweet, stable, clean cut potential family man. Talon hoped for a tall, knockout blonde who wanted him not his fame or reputation. What they got was the total opposite. They are very different in appearance, views on sex, and lifestyles.

There are some initial skirmishes, fight or flight responses, and hurt feelings. But they both agreed to this crazy experiment for a reason. To have a chance they will need to have faith, open their eyes, and trust. It was fun to listen to their banter and see their slow burn of chemistry build.  This story was a good representation of the power of inner beauty and how sometimes what you want is not always what you really need. 

I loved Talon. He often spoke before thinking or was unfiltered, could be sarcastic or even rude at times, and he surely made some mistakes. But underneath he was also vulnerable, sweet, protective, and craved love. He had everything he ever dreamed of but no one to really share it with. His commitment to the idea was so heartfelt.  I found him to be adorable, yet hot. 

And Asia was cute, poor, sensitive, insecure, but was also not a doormat and had a big heart. She lived a pretty solitary existence and her life has been so different from his. This was like a Cinderella experience for her but it came with more challenges and fears.

This takes two people, throws them together, but we see them appreciate, laugh, grown and love. But they also have many ups and downs.  She has serious abandonment issues and insecurities, He has has own issues and problems. Just when they think they are moving forward, they are tested in various ways. Some times small tests and some that are life changing. Their communication is not exactly open and healthy and they have a tendency to be reactive and further complicate things. I liked that it was not insta-love and they had to work for it and traverse serious challenges.

It was at times light-hearted, funny, and sexy, and also emotional, heartbreaking, and downright frustrating. The second half was angstier and more turbulent. I really felt for the characters even when I wanted to smack them. I liked that there were some surprises and it was not totally predictable. I really felt for both Talon and Asia and thought they made a good match. But they were in a crazy situation of doing everything backwards.

I enjoyed the dual points of view and it was critical for understanding due to their communication issues. The whole background of the social experiment was interesting. I liked spending more time with Storm, Evie, Vandal, Lukas, and Rayne. I wanted to throttle brother Mikah and friend Finn. There are definitely some more stories brewing with the side characters.

I enjoyed this installment of this series and feel like each book so far has had a unique vibe and feel. This story was an unconventional idea, had well developed characters, plot twists, and challenges. It was funny, emotional, sexy, sweet, angsty, and frustrating, but worth the ride. I am looking forward to more books in this series.

ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review. 

Marrying a stranger as a social experiment sounds like an exciting adventure, until reality hits and the man at the end of the altar is the exact opposite of everything Asia was looking for a man. And worse? She is not what he was looking for either.

Neither Asia nor Talon are successful at relationship. Asia has abandonment and attachment hangups, no one sticks with her. Talon can’t shake his reputation and stardom to know if a woman really wants him for him or for what he can do in the sack.

Marrying a stranger sounds like the perfect solution for both of these characters. But living as husband and wife for six months sounds easy enough, until it becomes their reality.

From the initial meeting, the wedding night, and attempts at joining their lives together, these two had a crash course in relationships and intimacy. From the beginning there were misunderstandings, hurt feelings, and thoughtless comments. But what’s to be expected when one finds oneself married to everything they are trying to avoid?

I loved Asia’s desire to maintain her independence, in spite of finding herself married to a rock star. She was hesitant to jump into his world, but slowly started making small influences on his look and his habits. They may have been polar opposites in life experiences, but they had some surprising commonalities when they chipped beyond the surface.

The Valentine family as a whole is so supportive of each other, and Talon is one of the few single brothers left, so there are plenty of people around to offer advice and help. I love this family. Between his mom’s influence on the study, and everyone’s interest in settling the single brothers down, the support and love are evident. There are more stories simmering behind the scenes that are asking for their own books to share. 

This was a great, well paced story with plenty of drama, angst, and learning. Talon was equal parts light, easy read and emotional roller coaster. Normally I like the conflict to come from outside the relationship, but with the premise as it is, the internal conflict throughout this book is perfect for the couple. There is so much they each have to figure out about themselves, about supporting a spouse, about communicating wants and needs.

ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Storm
AMAZON US / UK


Vandal
AMAZON US / UK


Lukas
AMAZON US / UK

Upcoming



Loving Storm
(Ashes & Embers #1.5)
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I have a passion for the bad boys, those covered in tattoos, sexy smirks, ripped jeans, fast cars, motorcycles and of course, the sweet girls that try to tame them and win their hearts. My debut series, Ashes & Embers, follows the lives of rock band members as they find, and sometimes lose, the loves of their lives.

Born and raised a Jersey girl, I now reside in beautiful New Hampshire with my husband and our multitude of furry pets and spend most of my time writing, reading, and vacuuming.
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