Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James

Excellent!

Fifty Shades Freed by E.L. James is another stunner of a novel and a great ending to her Fifty Shades Trilogy.  Even though Chrisitan and Ana are now married, the excitement and intensity between the couple has not diminished. In fact, I think it was stepped up a notch. To add some levity to the serious issues dealt with in the novel are Ana’s inner goddess and subconscious and the snarky e-mail diatribes between Christian and Ana.

As the happy couple are enjoying their phenomenal honeymoon abroad, they still have Christian’s mercurial emotional swings and possessiveness to deal with. That being said, it adds to the voracity of the on-going healing process that Christian must face in order to heal. It is Ana’s love, understanding, and many compromises that continue to help him dig out of his dark emotional hole. 

While trying to deal with his inner demons, Ana has some personal battles of her own to wage. Even though it is her deepest wish to set Christian free from his personal demons, she finds herself needing to exert her independence and fight for some autonomy so that she continues to be her own person, not his possession.Adding to the angsty issues in the relationship is the antagonistic plot of the who-done-it portion of the story that began in the previous books in this trilogy. Running these two distinct plots side by side makes reading this book doubly enjoyable.

E.L. James is a wonderful story teller. Her voice is smooth and keeps the story going like a well oiled machine. Once you start, it is hard to put Ms. James‘ book down.  She gives her stories eroticism, emotional poignancy, humor and peppers it all with suspense to keep her readers very entertained.

Fifty Shades Freed is the perfect finish to the trilogy. The ONLY complaint I have is that Ana and Christian’s story has come to a conclusion. I know I can revisit them when by re-reading this series; but, it is just not the same.  I lament the fact that their story has come to an end. I highly recommend this book to all romance readers; however, I really think you should read the first two books in the trilogy (Fifty Shades of Grey and Fifty Shades Darker) to get the full impact of this story. This novel will mean so much more to you as a reader when you become completely invested in these two characters. 

Happy Reading from Bona Fide Reflections!!

(ARC provided by TWCS for an honest review)

Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean

A must read!!

In Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake, Sarah MacLean has an uncanny way of making the reader believe that every woman - no matter their shape, size or convention- deserves to be an Empress. The delivery and story of this historical romance is uncanny and absolutely one of my 2011 favorite reads. Callie and Gabriel make an unlikely pair; but, it is because of the their vast differences that they are simply magic together. They make each other better people by making each of their hearts long for more than what their lives and stations have demanded of them. Bravo, Ms. MacLean!

Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James

Phenomenal Erotica Reading 

Fifty Shades of Grey, (Fifty Shades #1) by E. L. James is a fantastic debut contemporary erotica romance novel (with some BDSM elements) that I absolutely loved. The magnetism between Christian and Ana is nothing short of phenomenal. Ms. James has a way of engaging the reader and fully investing them in an unforgettable romance that is Mr. Grey & Ms. Steele. They are a perfect foil for each other.

Anastasia Steele must interview Christian Grey who is an entrepreneurial mogul for her school’s paper because her best-friend and roommate, Kate, is stricken with the flu. So, ensues the fateful meeting of Ms. Steele and Mr. Grey. Their attraction to each other is immediate. He is cool and all smooth masculine grace while she is a bit klutzy but proves herself to be smart and competent during their interview even though she does tend to let her inner dialogue filter through to some of the questions which she would like to completely forget once she leaves his office.

He follows up her fateful interview with him by stopping by her place of employment to see her and engage her in more conversational byplay. Their romance is not your plain vanilla variety once it gets started. His predilections in the bedroom go way beyond Ana’s innocence and non-existent sexual experience - to put it mildly. He wants her; but, there are some very interesting strings that will be attached to their relationship if she chooses to participate in an affair with the sexy, enigmatic Christian Grey.

As they get to know each other, there are some serious juxtapositions that occur on a personal level for both of them opens their eyes and their hearts to each other. He is controlling and all kinds of fifty shades of messed up; but, she recognizes the emotional turmoil in Christian and it calls to her on a level she never thought to experience. While, she has no frame of reference on which to guide herself through this tumultuous and challenging relationship, especially when he continues to hold himself at an emotional distance, she is captivated by him. The reader becomes enraptured as much as Ana in the mystery that surrounds Christian and only serves to cause the reader to fall hard for this charismatic, controlling, provocative man.

This story is full of personal growth, heartache, and a lot of capriciousness supplied by Mr. Grey that is constantly giving Ms. Steele emotional whiplash which lays down a gauntlet of emotional challenge. Ana's inner goddess and subconscious play a comedic role in helping her deal with her Fifty Shades of Grey. Her innocence, tenacity, and sense of self is the perfect antithesis to Mr. Grey's overwhelming personality.

Adding to the sweetness and hilarity of the story is the e-mail communication between the hero and heroine that also pulls you in to the enjoyment and magic of the story. Fifty Shades of Grey is the first book in a trilogy that starts an emotional journey and is a profoundly moving and dynamic story. The ending will leave you feeling understandably shocked, yet craving and coveting more of Ana Steele and Christian Grey. This is a prodigious debut novel that I highly recommend to all romance genre readers. The talent that is Ms. E.L. James is not to be missed.

Happy Reading from Bona Fide Reflections!!

AUTUMN HARVEST: FALL BETWEEN THE PAGES BLOG HOP TOUR (Sept 19-26)

Click picture for linky list of participating authors and blogs.

Bona Fide Reflections will be featuring the author E.L. James for the blog hop. Ms. James has written two emotionally poignant contemporary erotica novels. The first book in her trilogy is Fifty Shades of Grey and the second book is Fifty Shades Darker. Her third book will be published some time in 2012.  I will be giving away one copy of each book to one lucky winner. The winner will be announced September 27th. You must be 18 or over to win these books due to the sexually explicit love scenes contained in them.

I have posted reviews of both E.L. James' books below.  For the weekend, I will be posting an interview with Ms. E.L. James. The only thing you need to do to enter the giveaway is complete the  Rafflecopter (at the end of this long post) and leave a comment on this blog post with your name and e-mail so I can contact the lucky winner September 27, 2011. The other options are just that - optional. Thanks for stopping by.

Review of Fifty Shades of Grey:

Phenomenal  Erotica Reading

Fifty Shades of Grey, (Fifty Shades #1) by E. L. James is a fantastic debut contemporary erotica romance novel (with some BDSM elements) that I absolutely loved. The magnetism between Christian and Ana is nothing short of phenomenal. Ms. James has a way of engaging the reader and fully investing them in an unforgettable romance that is Mr. Grey & Ms. Steele. They are a perfect foil for each other.

Anastasia Steele must interview Christian Grey who is an entrepreneurial mogul for her school’s paper because her best-friend and roommate, Kate, is stricken with the flu. So, ensues the fateful meeting of Ms. Steele and Mr. Grey. Their attraction to each other is immediate. He is cool and all smooth masculine grace while she is a bit klutzy but proves herself to be smart and competent during their interview even though she does tend to let her inner dialogue filter through to some of the questions which she would like to completely forget once she leaves his office.

He follows up her fateful interview with him by stopping by her place of employment to see her and engage her in more conversational byplay. Their romance is not your plain vanilla variety once it gets started. His predilections in the bedroom go way beyond Ana’s innocence and non-existent sexual experience - to put it mildly. He wants her; but, there are some very interesting strings that will be attached to their relationship if she chooses to participate in an affair with the sexy, enigmatic Christian Grey.

As they get to know each other, there are some serious juxtapositions that occur on a personal level for both of them opens their eyes and their hearts to each other. He is controlling and all kinds of fifty shades of messed up; but, she recognizes the emotional turmoil in Christian and it calls to her on a level she never thought to experience. While, she has no frame of reference on which to guide herself through this tumultuous and challenging relationship, especially when he continues to hold himself at an emotional distance, she is captivated by him. The reader becomes enraptured as much as Ana in the mystery that surrounds Christian and only serves to cause the reader to fall hard for this charismatic, controlling, provocative man.

This story is full of personal growth, heartache, and a lot of capriciousness supplied by Mr. Grey that is constantly giving Ms. Steele emotional whiplash which lays down a gauntlet of emotional challenge. Ana's inner goddess and subconscious play a comedic role in helping her deal with her Fifty Shades of Grey. Her innocence, tenacity, and sense of self is the perfect antithesis to Mr. Grey's overwhelming personality.

Adding to the sweetness and hilarity of the story is the e-mail communication between the hero and heroine that also pulls you in to the enjoyment and magic of the story. Fifty Shades of Grey is the first book in a trilogy that starts an emotional journey and is a profoundly moving and dynamic story. The ending will leave you feeling understandably shocked, yet craving and coveting more of Ana Steele and Christian Grey. This is a prodigious debut novel that I highly recommend to all romance genre readers. The talent that is Ms. E.L. James is not to be missed.

Review of Fifty Shades Darker:

Amazing Romantica/Erotica Read

Fifty Shades Darker, Fifty Shades #2 by E.L. James is another stunner of an erotic romance book. It starts up where Fifty Shades of Grey ends. Anastasia Steele has broken up with Christian Grey because his demands were too overwhelming for her manage. Even though not much time has passed since their separation, they are both heart sick and make their way back to each other through Mr. Grey’s crafty machinations. Meanwhile, fresh out of college, Ana is trying to establish her career in the publishing industry.

The plot of this book takes Ms. Steele and, especially, Mr. Grey down a much more treacherous impassioned journey when it comes to opening up and laying bare a myriad of feelings compounding the confrontation of deep rooted emotional scars. As layers of Christian’s past are stripped away, Ana and Christian grow exponentially as a couple by learning to meet each others emotional needs, further entwining their already connected hearts.

Reinforcing the plot are two women from Christian’s past who push Ana’s hot buttons forcing the couple to confront the outcome of Christian’s past predilections. Concurrently, Ana is having to contend with issues at work involving her boss and his questionable intentions towards her. The much needed comic relief comes in the form of Ana’s inner goddess and her subconscious that help her through her emotional ups and downs. Adding to the reader’s spectrum of emotion are the emails between Mr. Grey and Ms. Steele that cast poignancy and some additional humor to the story line.

This novel also has Christian and Ana dealing with his past in a very “in -your- face” fashion that will have the reader cringing at moments from the emotional voracity, making the reader’s heart ache, and bring the reader to his/her knees. E.L. James’ ability to rent such feeling from the reader is extraordinary. Fifty Shades Darker is an all together different journey than it’s predecessor; however, it demands no less from the reader’s affections. If anything, it demands more. E.L. James offers readers a story that is unforgettable, stunning, passionate, sexy, needful, cathartic and glorious.


View all my reviews


Happy Reading from Bona Fide Relfections!!

To enter giveaway click here

Something About You by Julie James

 

Phenomenal Read

Something About You by Julie James was one of the most entertaining reads I have read in a long time. The story has a very humorous start where the heroine, Cameron Lynde, is in a hotel room where her sleep is rudely disturbed by a couple in the room next her having a vigorous lovemaking session. The cause for her sleep disturbance leads the story into a plot of intrigue where Cameron is reunited with FBI Agent Jack Pallas after three years where he fortuitously assigned as the agent in charge of the investigation Cameron unwittingly has found herself in the midst of.

When Jack left the Chicago area three years earlier, he and Cameron did not part on friendly terms, although they have a grudging respect for each other professionally. So, the start of their reunion has a strong cantankerous edge to it. Agent Wilkins who is Jack’s partner in the investigation adds some much needed comic relief to the strained situation. There were several laugh out loud moments in this book that were incited by Agent Wilkins. The other secondary characters in this story add a cohesive grounding in Cameron’s life and eventually, in Jack’s life.

The interest and heat that began when Cameron and Jack worked on their first case together starts to simmer again. The sexual tension that grows is thick as they feel more and more drawn to each other on a physical level. As the mystery of the plot thickens, the two learn to trust one another again despite the hurt they have caused each other in the past.

The author definitely knows how to capture her audience with mystery, suspense, sensuality, friendship, humor and love. Adding to those elements, Julie James voice is light and snarky at times. The delivery of Cameron and Jack’s story draws the reader in with her originality and sense of humor. In addition, her ability to create characters the reader will fall in love and connect with is outstanding. The romance reader would be remiss to pass up this story and this author. I highly recommend this book.

Some of my favorite quotes from Something About You are:

• The manager gestured to the door. “Would you mind if I escorted you back into your room, Ms. Lynde?” This was Polite-Peninsula-Hotel-speak for “You might as well get comfortable because your eavesdropping ass isn’t going anywhere.”

• “Glowering”—she liked that description. It was certainly more insightful than the generic “asshole” she’d been going with for the past three years.

• ...she realized then that her mind was already so far down in the gutter she’d need an extension ladder to get it out so she might as well just give in to the whole darn fantasy.

• (He looked) More like a chocolate molten lava cake. A dessert so sinful, so luscious, so filled with inner heat it made a girl want to lick each and every crumb right off the plate. That was Jack Pallas.

Happy Reading from Bona Fide Reflections!!