4 Stars

 SYNOPSIS:

This Man (This Man #1)

Young interior designer Ava O’Shea has an appointment for a first consultation at The Manor with the owner, Mr Jesse Ward. She is expecting nothing more than an overweight, cravat wearing, well-to-do countryman, and on arrival, nothing would suggest otherwise. How wrong could she be? This Man is devastatingly handsome, charming and confident. He is also a conceited, hedonistic playboy, who knows no boundaries. Ava desperately does not want to be attracted to him, but she can’t control the overwhelming affect he has on her. Every instinct is telling her to run, so she does, but Jesse Ward is not so willing to let her go. He wants her and is determined to have her. She knows she is heading for heartbreak, but how can she run when he won’t let her?

MY REVIEW: 3….2….1….zero!!

So with all of the year-end polls I just had to figure out who Jesse Ward was. Not to mention one of my favorite authors said that she got her inspiration to write her book after reading this series. In an attempt to enlighten my curiosity, I just had to read this series, and can I say it did not disappoint.

Ava O’Shea goes on what she believes to be a first consultation with the owner of The Manor, and her initial instincts lead her to believe that said Jesse Ward was going to be anything but the man she found herself in the meeting. The sparks were flying all over the place so much to the point where one needs a restroom break just to attempt to gather themselves. (fanning myself) Poor Ava, she didn’t have a chance, but who would with a hottie like Mr. Ward. However, there is one problem, Ava is not looking for a new relationship, especially one with a client, she has just found her independence and working through her past. Jesse on the other hand has no intention on letting Ava get away that easy and the things he does will have you both angry as hell and perhaps a little moist (yup I said it lol). The chemistry is off the charts between the two, but as must as Ava wants to run away, she finds herself in some interesting situations with Mr. Ward. I can’t say that I’m not jealous.

Jesse had it all under control and he was quite accomplished, but what he didn’t know was that his meeting with Ava O’Shea was going to change so much, including the fact that he was now chasing a women, when the norm is that they threw themselves at him. The more Ava ran the more he wanted her, and his actions were at some point outrageous. There were times I was reading and was like WTF!!!!????? Did he really do that? Jesse always seemed to make the situation turn out in his favor, but what Dominant male doesn’t. Yes, I admit some of it is swoon worthy, even to the point where you are perhaps crossing your legs. :-) But there are points that make you want to cry and genuinely hurt for the characters.

The plot of the story draws you in and yes you will be hooked from the first page. The various degrees, and relationship stages will have you on this wild roller coaster that you won’t want to get off….or perhaps you will. I especially loved the innocence of Ava in this novel, though she knew so much, at some things she was very naive and that really helped to develop the novel.

This is definitely a must read. Add it to your TBR list if you haven’t already done so. It’s an intensive, possessive, steamy, addictive read.

 SYNOPSIS:

Beneath This Man (Book #2 of the erotic This Man trilogy)

Jesse Ward drowned her with his intensity and blindsided her with his passion, but he kept her away from his dark secrets and broken soul. Leaving him was the only way Ava O’Shea could survive. She should have known that Jesse Ward is impossible to escape–and now he’s back in her life, determined to remind her of the sensual pleasures they had shared. Ava is equally determined to get at the truth beneath this man’s steely exterior. That means letting herself get close to the Lord of the Manor once more. And it’s exactly where Jesse wants her–within touching distance…

 MY REVIEW: The Lord of the Manor is back, but so is his leading lady.  I was a little sad at the end of the first novel, but am very happy that Ava has begun to grab some courage and face some of their problems. Jesse has sent her through some challenging scenarios but here we also get to see a few vulnerabilities that peek out through his overbearing, controlling, sometime radical behavior. Ava as well have grown in this novel and is no longer as naive as she started out being. I was shocked at how the author revealed so many disturbing things from the past and how it was affecting their relationship. I could totally feel Ava’s emotions and actions and hell some of it I was all for, others had my jaw drop to the floor with a statement of “this chick has lost her marbles” (but hell if you went through a relationship with the Lord of the Manor you probably would too). Can you tell I was really into this story???

The sex of course is insanely hot. What’s fun about this book is that you see the immaturity of both Ava and Jesse and it’s really believable. There is one lady in this story that is a little sad, and I wanted to pull her hair and throw her down the stairs…….Sarah. Yes, she is one bitchy hell cat and will go to no lengths to deter the relationship between Jesse and Ava. Now this is where it got a little disturbing to for me. You will feel like you’ve been through a train wreck when you’re done reading but wait…..the story isn’t over. If you liked book 1, you will definitely like the second installment of the dysfunctional love story that is Ava and Jesse. I do recommend this to be added to your TBR list.

 SYNOPSIS:

This Man Confessed

THE STUNNING CONCLUSION TO THE THIS MAN TRILOGY!

The Manor, the very place where their passionate love affair began, fills with guests on what should be the happiest day of Ava and Jesse’s lives. She has accepted that she’ll never tame the fierceness in Jesse-and she doesn’t want to. Their love is profound, their connection powerful, but just when she thinks that she’s finally gotten beneath his guarded exterior, more questions arise, leading Ava to believe that Jesse Ward may not be the man she thinks he is. He knows too well how to take her to a place beyond ecstasy . . . but will he also drive her to the brink of despair? It’s time for this man to confess.

 MY REVIEW:

Just when I thought I had my head wrapped around the Lord of the Manor, damn did I get a wake up call. This is not your typical D/s relationship. These two characters can push each others buttons to the point of INSANITY!!!  Just like the first two books, this one also has a lot of sex, punishment fucks, fucking sense into her, and sleepy sex. I can’t seem to figure out if I love Jesse or hate him, I know there is a lot about him that disturbs me about him. Jesse has a lot of baggage and I had no idea how deep the rabbit hole went for him.

Though their relationship does take a natural progression, the relationship between Ava and Jesse is still really new as in they haven’t been together long, but with all they’ve been through you wouldn’t think so. Just when Ava thought she had finally broken the exterior of Jesse, he has more to expose. There are so many disturbing scenes in this book, at points it was hard to read, but I could not put this book down. If you want extreme drama, all you have to do is read this book. There are many WTF moments for both characters and even the sub characters. The author does eventually answer all of your questions in this book so you will not be left hanging. The book was the ultimate roller coaster ride of the series but you will be hooked. What I loved the most was the epilogue……it was the perfect ending with a look into their future, even though I want more. Perhaps I will be able to read more of Jesse and Ava if the author decides to give us a story on the other characters. A girl can hope,  can’t she?

I truly enjoyed this series. I started the first book and could not stop until the last page of the third book.