Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Naughty or Nice: The Naughty List









The people at St. Martin's Press came up with a Naughty or Nice list for your Holiday reading. Depending on what you prefer they compiled a list of both naughty and nice for your reading enjoyment. I have been reading Christmas Romance since October so I have thrown in one or two that I enjoyed reading. First up is the naughty list, this list ranges from a little naughty to really naughty.


On the Naughty List
An Anthology of holiday romance
Christmas Bonus by Lori Foster is a little naughty inner office romance. It is an enjoyable quick read that is just romance. Two people who have finally after years of soft stepping around each other finally give in to their desire. Loved it!

Naughty Under the Mistletoe by Carly Phillips where a case of mistaken identity is the best mistake that could happen to two lonely people. Very typical Carly Phillips a quick and cute, cute as in a steamy hot and dirty cute way. Also made me want to reach in and smack the main characters for jumping to conclusions.

Some Kind of Wonderful by Beth Ciotta. I'm new to this author and I loved this story. Two old friends drifted apart but a pen pal hook up with her best friend, messes everything up. A Cyrano De Bergerac type situation she finds out how much she loves the man she just set up with her best friend. But a blizzard and a Christmas Carol type dream just may change that all.

Have Yourself a Curvy Little Christmas by Sugar Jamison. If you have ever read the first book in the Perfect Fit series, Dangerous Curves Ahead and wondered what ever happen to Dina, Ellis' sister this is the book to read. Dina wound up pregnant and dumped, with her ten month old baby boy she finally admits she needs help and seeks out the baby's father. Only he is dead and his lonely and gorgeous brother is there to help.

This anthology was a great quick read with great Christmas Romance.







Hot Toy
By Jennifer Cruise 
This is a short and fun Christmas short story that at first starts off like Jingle all the Way, but quickly turns into something so much more. Trudy is trying to be the best aunt ever and make sure her nephew gets the toy he wants for Christmas. Only the action figure he wants is impossible to find, and the one she does find throws her into a big mess with spies and lies and gun fights. Now this is a fluff piece, but man do I love a good piece of fluff every now and then. It is more of a comedy with a budding romance then a Christmas Romance but I enjoyed it none the less. 



Christmas with the Billionaire Rancher                              
by Mandy Baxter
I am brand new to Mandy Baxter and A Billionaire's Club series, I was hoping it wasn't the same old cliched billionaire story. I was pleasantly surprised and happy that I was wrong. This was a cute romance, naughty, but it really tugged at my heart strings. Nate is a reluctant billionaire, and kind of insecure because of how his father treated him. Chloe is a strong woman but a bleeding heart. Chloe was just initially going to hit up Nate for a donation for her charity, but after one night with him she was in love and their was no way she was going to ask him for the money now. Nate hates gold diggers just as much as he hates his father's money, but time with Chloe has him rethinking everything. Nate's insecurities just might get in the way of his HEA with Chloe. 


   

The Duke and Miss Christmas
by Amelia Grey
I really liked this one. An Heir's Club of Scoundrels christmas novella is a naughty historical romance.  Crispin the Duke of Hurst has a reputation, one that he earned but regrets. On a crisp December morning Crispin's life changes for the better he gets hit on the head with a basket wielded by the beautiful young woman he dubs Miss Christmas. Gwen Prim knows that she should like a man with a reputation for stealing kisses from young ladies especially after her horrible experience at the end of her season, but what she knows about him differs greatly from what she has seen first hand. Crispin and Gwen quickly fall in love. But does Gwen get her hopes up too soon only to be broken hearted in the end?

I really liked this one it was so naughty and sweet at the same time, my only complaint is that it was so short. Crispin and Gwen deserved a full length story.



   My Holiday Pick

What Happens Under The Mistletoe
Historical Christmas Romance anthology.
I love these authors I have previously read all of them for the exception of Meredith Duran, but believe me I will read her now. I put this under the naughty list because the common theme with all these novellas, stealing kisses under the mistletoe.

The Heiress and the Hothead
by Sabrina Jeffries
The youngest brother of a marquess, Stephen Corry, has made a name for himself as a journalist is visiting friends for Christmas time, he promised to help a cousin avoid a certain gentleman but mistakenly kisses the wrong woman under the mistletoe. Miss Amanda Keane is an American heiress and mill owner visiting her brother and touring the mills in England. Stephen is taken with the beautiful American but when they find out who they are they try their hardest to hate each other. Amanda wanted to hate the man who was biased against mill owners and she is out prove he is wrong, and Stephen is out to prove they are not all like her. But one thing they do have in common is the kiss under the mistletoe sparked something in them both that they can not deny.

Twelve Kisses to Midnight
by Karen Hawkins
A Christmas novella for the Oxenburg Princes series, It centers around Prince Nikolai's righthand man, Marcus Sutherland The Duke of Rothesay and his former fiancee from years ago. Keena Stuart the recently widowed Lady Montrose. The engagement fell apart and she later married someone else and Marcus left to accept the post in the Oxenburg court. Now ten years later she is still as beautiful as ever and a stolen kiss under the mistletoe puts them both in a precarious position of a scandal which then leads them both trapped by a blizzard in a hidden lovers nest. It's the perfect time to reconcile or break it off more smoothly than they did before. I enjoyed this one I love Tata that meddling old biddie makes the story.

By Any Other Name
by Candace Camp
I love it when the heroine dresses up as a man. I have read a few of Candace Camp books and I enjoy them. Rylla dresses up as a man to visit the gaming hells to try and find her missing brother, her first night was unsuccessful and to top it all off she was robbed and stabbed. Gregory Rose was unexpectedly attracted to the young man across the table from him on his way out he witnesses the robbery and stabbing of the young man. He bring him home and soon discovers the young man is very much a beautiful young woman. A stolen kiss under the mistletoe and Gregory is lost, even with the fake name she gave him he was able to track her down and just to keep close to her he promises to help her find her missing brother. With every night and some more kisses shared Rylla and Gregory fall more in love. But will the mystery of Rylla's missing brother do more harm than good? This is probably the sweetest one out of this anthology but it had the right amount of humor, mystery and romance. Gregory is so smitten and devoted to Rylla it's hard not to fall in love with him. 

Sweetest Regret
by Meredith Duran. 
Second chances are one of my favorite subgenres. In this one Georgiana Trent the dutiful diplomat's daughter is charged with the task of hosting a Christmas house party for a bunch of foreigners her father invited when he had to suddenly leave, and find a sensitive letter that was stolen out of his office, he was also sending help in the form of Lucas Goodwin. Lucas once broke her heart years ago and one silly game of blind man's bluff and a kiss under the mistletoe and everything that was left behind three years ago comes back. Georgiana was in love with Lucas but abruptly left with no word or goodbye. Now Lucas is ordered by his boss and Georgiana's father to help her find the stolen letter. The more time they spend together the more they realize they never stopped loving each other. I enjoyed this one it was a really nice read with a wonderful and amusing story.        
 


I enjoy reading Holiday Romance and there are so many to pick from, I hope you can create a perfect list of your own.

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