Blog Tour: AWAKEN by Nina Lane

Title: Awaken (Spiral of Bliss #3)  
Author: Nina Lane  
Genre: Contemporary Romance 18+  
Publication Date: January 7, 2014  
Cover Design: Victoria Colotta of VMC Art & Design

Event Organized By: Literati Author Services, Inc.

Synopsis

“I love that you love me, professor.” “I love loving you, beauty.” Since their intense, passionate beginning, Professor Dean West and his wife Olivia have fought dark secrets and betrayal in order to save their marriage. Now reeling in the aftermath of a personal tragedy, Liv and Dean are driven further apart by a vindictive threat to Dean’s career. Struggling to stand on her own for the first time in years, Liv is determined to defend her husband and prove herself. Then an unexpected letter dredges up old insecurities and endangers Liv’s newfound independence. As Dean fights for his professional life, he is forced to confront his worst fear when he discovers that he can’t protect his beloved wife from her own painful past.

My Review:
  The highly anticipated conclusion of the Spiral of Bliss series doesn’t disappoint! You will find everything you wanted and more in this beautiful conclusion. The story was left in quite a bittersweet situation at the end of the second book, Allure. So we were really left wondering how Liv and Dean’s problems would resolve. Like the other books in the series, the story wrings you out until the characters can take no more, but the characters rise to the occasion and find their way.

This is a good, strong finish to this series. One that ties up all the loose ends. Loose ends that you may have not known were even present, but when made apparent, were true and needed addressing. Dean is still learning to hang back and trust Liv to be the strong person that she wants to, and can be. However, the lack of control that Dean has over his problems at work, and his inability to solve Liv’s issues, are frustrating to him. This is Dean’s cross to bear in this book.

This story had plenty of drama with Dean’s problem with the university and Liv’s loose ends with her past. More of Liv’s past comes into focus through flashbacks, so that is really fun to continue to learn about this character and what shapes her, still into the 3rd book. Some characters from her past resurface and really are the body of this story. However frustrating the drama that the characters bring, it lends a necessary element to story. The villains in this book bring the conflict, but have a vulnerable side that I could sympathize with. I began to understand the flawed and hurt people that they were. I felt bad for them at times, even though they were wrecking havoc on Liv and Dean’s world.

There are several things about the plot that I’d love to elaborate on, but I feel as if that would spoil the story a little. I’ll let you experience it yourself, but I will just say, LIV’S PAST!  I have to say, it wasn’t where I envisioned the story going. To me, this was really Liv’s book. It continues to deal with her struggles to be who she wants to be as a woman, and finally putting her past behind her, where it can not have power over her. Poor Liv. Some of her stories are pretty heartbreaking. This book sneaks up into a really uncomfortable zone before it successfully jumps safely to a happy place. So it has angst. Check that box with a big, huge check mark!

The writing is consistent with the prior books, so if you’ve loved them, then expect that love to continue through this book also. The symbolism, metaphor, and references to the Wizard of Oz and Through the Looking Glass continue in this book also, and are fun to see interwoven in the story. You will definitely want to read this book to see if Dean and Liv get their HEA and what it would possibly look like. They are an intense and quirky couple that are unique and stand out among book couples. Saying goodbye to these characters is tough. You will find their ending beautiful, magical, and touching. Bring the tissues!

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About the Author

USA Today bestselling author Nina Lane writes hot, sexy romances and spicy erotica. Originally from California, she loves traveling and thinks St. Petersburg, Russia is a city everyone should visit at least once. Nina also spent many years in graduate school studying art history and library sciences. Although she would go back for another degree if she could because she's that much of a bookworm, she now lives the happy life of a full-time writer. Nina's novel The Erotic Dark hit #1 on Amazon's Erotica Bestseller list, and Allure is a USA Today Bestseller.

Connect with the Nina: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Pinterest

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COVER REVEAL: AWAKEN by Nina Lane

 Title: Awaken (Spiral of Bliss #3)
Author: Nina Lane
Genre: Contemporary Romance 18+
Publication Date: January 7, 2014
Cover Design: Victoria Colotta of VMC Art & Design
 
Synopsis

“I love that you love me, professor.”
“I love loving you, beauty.”

Since their intense, passionate beginning, Professor Dean West and his wife Olivia have fought dark secrets and betrayal in order to save their marriage. Now reeling in the aftermath of a personal tragedy, Liv and Dean are driven further apart by a vindictive threat to Dean’s career.
Struggling to stand on her own for the first time in years, Liv is determined to defend her husband and prove herself. Then an unexpected letter dredges up old insecurities and endangers Liv’s newfound independence. As Dean fights for his professional life, he is forced to confront his worst fear when he discovers that he can’t protect his beloved wife from her own painful past.

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Follow the Awaken book tour from January 7 to January 17

About the Author

USA Today bestselling author Nina Lane writes hot, sexy romances and spicy erotica. Originally from California, she loves traveling and thinks St. Petersburg, Russia is a city everyone should visit at least once. Nina also spent many years in graduate school studying art history and library sciences.

Although she would go back for another degree if she could because she's that much of a bookworm, she now lives the happy life of a full-time writer. Nina's novel The Erotic Dark hit #1 on Amazon's Erotica Bestseller list.

Connect with the Author: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Pinterest

Blog Tour, Giveaway, and Review: Gabriel's Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

Gabriel’s Redemption takes us to the conclusion of Gabriel’s Inferno. Julianne is still working on her PhD, she’s been asked to present at a conference and all is going well. Gabriel is teaching at a nearby university and they are in love.

But everything is threatened by their pasts. People in Julianne and Gabriel’s past is causing problems. Gabriel’s past is threatening them. It could all come crumbling down.

While I still love Julianne and Gabriel, I really wanted to hit Gabriel. He continues to keep things from Julianne even though it hurts her. He knows it does. He says he doesn't want to hurt her, yet he insists on keeping things from her.

Julianne is too good to be true. She is sweet, forgiving, and full of hope. At times I thought she was too forgiving. However, understanding that she is Beatrice to Gabriel’s Dante means she has to be forgiving. She is grace.

I enjoyed this story a lot more than the second one. While it was still full of literary references, it wasn’t as full of them. I didn’t find myself looking things up this time around. I did enjoy the parallels drawn between Gabriel and Julianne and Dante and Beatrice. It added an extra layer throughout the trilogy.

We finally find out more about Gabriel and his past. He discovers things that both hurt him and help him. But even those things that hurt him, help him heal.

We get conclusions to everything that has happened in the past stories. We find out what happened to everyone. Even those that would harm Gabriel and Julianne. It was all tied up in a neat little bow.

Now, as in real life, things don’t always happen the way we want them to happen. Surprises come along, unexpected events that can bring joy or sorrow. And just like in real life, how we look at those unexpected events can help us or hinder us.

I really enjoyed this trilogy. I’m so happy I got to find out what happened to everyone. And most importantly of all, through Julianne’s grace, Gabriel finds his redemption.

Gabriel’s Rapture picks up right where Gabriel’s Inferno leaves off. Gabriel and Julia are in Italy. They spend a wonderful vacation there and return home with the hopes to continue their relationship. Only, nothing goes as planned.

I love this story. It’s romantic, loving, sexy and full of angst. Both Gabriel and Julia have pasts that harm them. Pasts that keep them from having a completely open, honest and healthy relationship. It’s only through breaking up that they learn how to be heal and have healthy relationships.

Julia is a contradiction. She’s naïve, sweet, forgiving. Yet, at the same time, she’s uncompromising and demanding.

Gabriel is old-fashioned, romantic and sexy as hell. He’s also difficult, over-bearing, and hedonistic.

They are both wonderful contradictions. They are realistic in their contradictions.

I reveled in the bloom of their relationship, I cried at their breakup, I railed at Gabriel and Julia for their stubbornness. I went through it all with them. But most satisfying of all, was seeing them begin to make peace with their past, for that is the only way to build a future.

Just like the first book, this one if filled with literary references. Many of them are explained in the story through dialogue and exposition, but some are not. I’m very familiar with the references in the story, but if you are not, it can keep you from getting the full enjoyment of the story. You will still enjoy it, but maybe not as much.

About Sylvain Reynard

I'm interested in the way literature can help us explore aspects of the human condition - particularly suffering, sex, love, faith, and redemption. My favourite stories are those in which a character takes a journey, either a physical journey to a new and exciting place, or a personal journey in which he or she learns something about himself/herself.

I'm also interested in how aesthetic elements such as art, architecture, and music can be used to tell a story or to illuminate the traits of a particular character. In my writing, I combine all of these elements with the themes of redemption, forgiveness, and the transformative power of goodness.

I try to use my platform as an author to raise awareness about the following charities: Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation, WorldVision, Alex's Lemonade Stand, and Covenant House. For more information, see my Twitter account.

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Blog Tour & Giveaway: Arouse by Nina Lane

"One day I'm going to touch you in a thousand different ways and show you how to touch me," he said.

And he did.

Struggling with a tormented past, undergraduate Olivia Winter once led a practical but isolated life. Then she met Professor Dean West, a brilliant scholar of medieval history who melted Liv's inhibitions and taught her the meaning of both love and erotic pleasure. But after three years of a blissful, lusty marriage, Liv and Dean now face a crisis that threatens everything they believe about each other...and sex might not be enough to save them. 

Wow! Excellent writing. Intelligent, hot, alpha male. Relatable main character. Superb supporting characters.

High expectations can destroy a book for me.

I AM SO HAPPY THAT I WASN'T LET DOWN!!!

This one came highly recommended from readers whose opinion I trust. I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book. My fellow book girls were right-on. This one got under my skin. I was rooting for this couple and I couldn't bear to see their relationship fail. The writing is flawless. Nina Lane knows how to create characters whose actions and feelings make a lasting connection with the reader because they are so authentic.                                                                         Dean

Dean West is the equally gorgeous and intelligent husband of the main character, Olivia. Dean is brilliant in his field of study and respected. He is enamored with younger wife, and deeply protective of her. Dean tries to give her a stable environment that was lacking in her childhood.                                  
                                                               Olivia

Olivia had a troubled past with her delinquent mother and absentee father. Her way to survive was to isolate herself from people who could hurt her. Dean has been her safe haven and her stability, like no one else has ever been. Coupled with her intense physical attraction to Dean, they have a strong connection. However, Olivia is struggling with a stalling career. She has moved with her husband so many times, so that he could further his career, that the instability of it all has wrecked hers. Now that her and her husband are putting down roots, Olivia is trying to find her own identity.

They have a strong emotional and physical connection, but insecurity and secrets are eating away at what was once perfect. Can they survive? Can they find their way through the obstacles that block them from happiness. The story starts at an interesting point, that is rarely seen in the romance genre. The book begins with the couple being married for three years, together for five. Usually this is the end result or where the couple is moving toward in a story. Flash backs are inserted throughout the story in relevant areas. They show the reader when and how Olivia and Dean met, and how the relationship developed and progressed. Usually these flashbacks are placed after a conflict or when the characters are doubting their relationship. These flashbacks just strengthened for me, as a reader, how much this couple belongs together and really share something special.

First, I must say that if the "married couple" part doesn't sound like your thing, I have to convince you otherwise. If you can relate to a long term relationship that also happens to have intense sexual attraction, you will fall hard for this book. Even though the subject matter can sometimes be heartbreaking, the romance and little inserts of humor balance this read so well. Don't just take my word for it, this book has received high ratings across the board. It really is that good.

There was a significant portion of the book that I only saw Olivia's POV, so I was really angry and confused by her husband's actions. Then, when I was at my breaking point with Dean, the author turns a chapter over to Dean's POV. It was brilliant and so completely needed. I got it then. I could understand both sides and how they both were feeling. I wanted to make them sit down and purge all the thoughts they had been holding back. Olivia and Dean are one of my favorite book couples, and I was really rooting for them.

The supporting characters all leave their mark on the story. Kelsey is the tough as nails best friend of the couple. She takes no crap from anyone, and definitely is not pulling any punches. She is the perfect friend for this couple, who can't seem to get the words out. I could totally relate to Kelsey. Allie, the super quirky bookstore owner, provides the comic relief that balances out the intensity of this book. She also complements Olivia's personality. They grew up very differently, yet are both finding their way professionally. Tyler, the adorable chef and culinary teacher, sees what Olivia is missing. He works hard to change it, by boosting her self worth. Tyler is a real catalyst character.


This was the first book that I read of Nina Lane's, and it definitely won't be my last. This book was FIVE STARS for me, and I can't wait to read more about these characters in the sequel. There are just enough open ends without it being a cliffhanger. This couple still has things to work through. I can't wait to see how they are able to work things out, while also learning more about their past. The sequel, Allure, is set for May 2013 release. I, along with a fast growing group of fans, will be awaiting anxiously.

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Bio:
Nina Lane is a multi-published author of elegant, romantic and often raunchy erotica. Her recent release AROUSE is the first book in the Spiral of Bliss series, and her novel THE EROTIC DARK is a #1 Amazon erotica bestseller.

Nina used to write novels under the name Natasha Rostova and has published stories in anthologies such as “Best Women’s Erotica” and “Erotic Travel Tales.” Her work has been translated into both German and Japanese. In addition to writing, she's an avid reader who loves popcorn and has recently joined a workout boot-camp that is kicking her rear end.

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