Thursday, November 6, 2014

Review and Giveaway: Breaking Out

Breaking Out (Surrender Trilogy - Book 2) by Lydia Michaels

Publication Date: 11/04/2014
Publisher: Penguin Group
Imprint: Berkley Books
Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance
Pages: 384
ISBN-10: 042527506X
ISBN-13: 978-0425275061

(Received for an honest review from Berkley Books)

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

Lydia Michaels on the WEB: website, twitter, facebook, goodreads

Books in the series

The Surrender Trilogy

1. Falling In
2. Breaking Out

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




Excerpt from, Breaking Out, courtesy of Amazon's Look Inside feature.

Synopsis:

Second in the darkly compelling, sexually-charged contemporary romance Surrender trilogy, in which two men vie for the mind, body, and heart of a woman who may never give in to their wishes—or her own… 

Evelyn “Scout” Keats has left behind her painful past of surviving on the streets, and is now living in the luxurious penthouse master suite of Hotel Patras with her lover, billionaire Lucian Patras. But what she doesn’t know is the price Lucien paid for her freedom.

To protect Scout’s life, Lucian cut a deal with a dangerous man from her past, Parker Hughes. He swore to stay away from her for thirty days, even though he knows Parker will be fighting to keep them apart for good and take Scout as his own.

Yet neither man realizes that Scout is not about to be used as a prize or a bargaining chip for any man’s power play—and she falls back on her hard-earned self-respect and courage to show both men that the only person she truly needs is herself.

But Lucian has other plans…


Thoughts:

Breaking Out is the second book in the Surrender Trilogy by Lydia Michaels. Make no mistake... this book is hot. It has all the steamy goodness that readers of erotic fiction are looking for and so much more. Readers who fell in love with Lucien and Evelyn in the first book, with both love and hate where they go from here. Michaels isn't afraid to keep the reader guessing and she goes the extra mile with this book. Heartbreak. Passion. Betrayal. It's all here and readers will not be able to put it down until they turn the final page. A very emotional and gut wrenching addition to the series.

What I liked:

In the first book in the series readers were introduced to Evelyn "Scout" Keats. This a heroine, like few others I have seen in this genre. She is a girl from the streets with a tragic childhood and a need to provide for herself. When she gets a job at one of Lucien Patros' hotels she has no idea that she would end up in love with the owner. Evelyn is finally getting a chance to see the other side. She goes from being homeless to living in the penthouse. Now that's a big change and readers will love the continuing growth of Evelyn in Breaking Out. She is still learning to navigate her new reality. She has some inner demons to deal with in this installment and readers will only fall more in love with her as she grows and comes to terms with her life now, as opposed to her past.

Lucien is back. He's just as brash and stoic as he was in the first novel. He is so used to getting his way and it is evident in everything he does. But underneath all that, readers see a need in this hero. He wants someone to complete him and Evelyn does that in every way. He teaches her everything from how to make love to how to play chess and his love for her is passionate and overwhelming. He does do something very stupid in this book, that will change his relationship with Evelyn forever. It's not that he doesn't think about what he's doing. He just thinks it will all work out, that no matter what he will still end up with the girl. Not exactly what Lydia Michaels had in mind!

The emotions that the reader will go through reading this book will range from love to hate, from anger to happiness. There is just so much angst and tension that it is hard not to have mixed feelings about how the book turns out. They'll love Lucien and Evelyn together, they'll hate what Parker is doing to their relationship. They will be angry at Lucien for making a bad decision and happy that Scout is coming into her own. It's a roller coaster for sure and the ending leaves you hanging. Eke gads! What will happen now? It's a gut twister for sure, but that's part of the beauty of it.

Parker makes a great villain here. But is he really a villain? He was Evelyn's best friend. He did look out for her and protect her when she was on the streets. I think it is a good hallmark of a great author to be able to make her readers genuinely dislike a character. There is going to be a lot of emotion expended in how readers come to terms with the deal Lucien makes with Parker and how they could both be so insensitive to her feelings. 

Bottom Line:

Want angst? Want sexual chemistry that is mind blowing? Want a unique heroine with an amazing story? This book has it and a lot more. A hero that is both rich, but needy. A villain that may or may not really be the bad guy here. Wow! So much going on in this installment of the series. The final book is gonna rock!

Breaking Out is available NOW from your favorite bookseller.

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




About the Author:


Lydia Michaels writes all forms of hot romance. She presses the bounds of love and surprises readers just when they assume they have her stories figured out. From Amish vampyres, to wild Irishmen, to broken heroes, and heroines no man can match, Lydia takes readers on an emotional journey of the heart, mind, and soul with every story she pens. Her books are intellectual, erotic, haunting, always centered on love. She is the author of the Surrender Trilogy, including Falling In and Coming Home.


Giveaway Details:

The publisher is sponsoring a giveaway for one copy of Breaking Out by Lydia Michaels.

~ You must be an email subscriber to participate.
~ US addresses only.
~ The deadline to enter this giveaway is Midnight EST, November 20th.

1. Please leave a comment. Do you prefer a series that focuses on one couple or a series that has a different couple in each book?

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8 comments:

traveler said...

A series that focuses on a different couple in each book. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

lag123 said...

I think that I prefer it to focus on different couples and their "story".

lag110 at mchsi dot com

Rachael Brown said...

I prefer a series that has a different couple in each book.

Unknown said...

if the storyline can be stretched along in multple books then okay, but i don't like a couple's story that drags on mainly because they don't communicate. that gets really frustrating to read about.

Chrisbails said...

I like both. I don't prefer one over the other. I love the series that if they do follow a different couples that they still talk about those couples and get to see how they are doing throughout the series.
christinebails at yahoo dot com

Texas Book Lover said...

I am fine with either. If the couple changes I like to see the first couple occasionally though.

Anita Yancey said...

I prefer a series thas has a different couple in each book. Thanks for having the giveaway.

ayancey1974(at)gmail(dot)com

bn100 said...

different couple every book