Review and Giveaway: Linger

Linger (In Vino Veritas - Book 3) by Lauren Jameson

Publication Date: 09/02/2014
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Signet Eclipse
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Pages: 304
ISBN-10: 045147080X
ISBN-13: 978-0451470805

(Received for an honest review from Signet Eclipse)

Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book Depository, Indiebound

Lauren Jameson on the WEB: website, twitter, facebook, goodreads

Books in the series: 

In Vino Veritas

1. Blush
2. Breathe
3. Linger

Coverart: Click the Image for a larger, clearer view of the covers in this series.

Audio excerpt from, Linger, courtesy of the author's deejay husband!

WARNING: This book is inappropriate for readers under the age of 18. 

Synopsis:

From the author of Breathe and Blush comes a blisteringly hot new novel about baring it all.…

On her last night in Nevada before embarking on a yearlong veterinary internship, Scarlett Malone is celebrating—and looking for one night of incredible pleasure. But the man who draws her eye is not her usual type: He’s a cowboy whose alpha-male tendencies tempt her beyond belief. Scarlett can’t understand why she wants this man and no one else, but she’s determined to entice him to submit.…

Dr. Logan Brody lives an isolated life in rural Montana, running a ranch and suppressing his submissive tendencies. Only on his occasional trips does he give into his hidden urges. He can’t deny his scorching attraction to Scarlett or that she makes him want more, but he never lets anyone break him down fully. He’s hers for one night and one night only.

But when Scarlett shows up at Logan’s door as his intern for the year, he realizes that the walls around his heart are about to crumble—and that this sexy dominant woman has no intention of letting him keep control.…

Thoughts:

Lauren Jameson brings readers the third book in her In Vino Veritas series, focusing on the owners and friends of a BDSM club. Jameson takes readers on a journey into the world of BDSM and into the hearts of her characters. She is able to show the lifestyle in a way that clearly defines it's boundaries and it's pleasures. Readers looking for something different in the genre will love Jameson's originality and the role reversals she explores in this book. A great addition to the series.

What I liked:

Lauren Jameson has a way with words. She is very descriptive and I don't just mean about the bedroom scenes. She brings the setting, the interactions between her characters and every aspect of the story to life through her words. Prose is often overlooked when it comes to stories in this genre. BDSM novels often rely heavily on dialogue to build the tension and depth that is needed to drive the story. Lauren Jameson can and does write good dialogue, but her prose is exceptional. It makes the reader feel like they are really experiencing and seeing what is going on versus hearing about it. It becomes more individualistic instead of second hand accounting. Every book I have read by Jameson has exceeded my expectations partly because of this and Linger is no different.

This is not your typical BDSM novel. Though the characters, Scarlett and Logan meet in a BDSM club, that is not where the majority of the action takes place. I really enjoyed that aspect of the book. Once Jameson took away the unreality that happens in a club like this, the characters were still able to drive the story. They didn't need all the bells and whistles that a BDSM club has to make the story memorable or exciting, their relationship was enough and that was refreshing. I didn't want the same old setting with this one and Jameson delivered. I loved the Montana setting and the fact that both characters had a life outside the lifestyle, which is not often shown in books of this kind. 

The BDSM lifestyle certainly isn't for everyone. Some people even have issues reading about it. This isn't a book for the faint of heart. Jameson doesn't just stick to the tame and vanilla parts of the lifestyle. Readers are treated to a look at the lifestyle from a different angle. It makes the book more emotional, more original and more intense than many I have read. The main factor that makes this one different is the role reversal. Most BDSM books have an alpha male who is the dominant in the relationship and a submissive female. Not this time! Logan is the submissive even though in his normal life he is anything but. Scarlett is the domme and is she ever! I loved that Jameson switched it up a bit with this one. I wasn't sure I would like it that way, but when the reader starts to find out more about why, things are the way they are in this book... it all makes perfect sense.

What I didn't like:

I thought Scarlett got really close to going over the line a few times with Logan. I think Jameson was just trying make her appear truly dominant and assertive, but she straddled the line a little too closely for me a couple of times and I was glad when she let up. Not a deal breaker but a little disconcerting none the less.

Linger is available tomorrow from your favorite bookseller.

I'm giving this one 5 out of 5 apples from my book bag!

About the Author:

Lauren Hawkeye/ Lauren Jameson never imagined that she'd wind up telling stories for a living... though when she looks back, it's easy to see that she's the only one who is surprised. Always "the kid who read all the time", Lauren made up stories about her favorite characters once she'd finished a book... and once spent an entire year narrating her own life internally. No, really. But where she was just plain odd before publication, now she can at least claim to have an artistic temperament.

Lauren lives in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta, Canada with her husband, toddler, pit bull and idiot cat, though they do not live in an igloo, nor do they drive a dogsled. In her nonexistent spare time Lauren can be found knitting (her husband claims that her snobby yarn collection is exorbitant), reading anything she can get her hands on, or sweating her way through spin class. She loves to hear from her readers!

Giveaway Details:

The publisher is sponsoring a giveaway for one copy of Linger by Lauren Jameson.

~ You must be an email subscriber to participate.
~ US addresses only.
~ The deadline to enter this giveaway is Midnight EST, September 15th.

1. Please leave a comment about how you feel about the role reversal of the male being submissive and the female being dominant.

2. Please fill out the FORM.