Shelly Laurent escapes her life as a high-class escort, but against her better judgment she takes the scared young Ella with her. Framed for murder by her pimp and his dirty cops in retaliation, Shelly turns to the one man who could be her salvation: Detective Luke Cameron. She doesn’t know if she can trust him or if he’s just a mirage, but it's time for her to take a stand. Just one shot, make it count, she’ll fight Ella’s demons—and face her own.
Shelly throws light on the shadows of Chicago’s underworld, challenging everything she knew and the man she’s come to love. Together, a prostitute and a cop fight for truth stronger than secrets, hope deeper than deception, and a bond more enduring than betrayal.
Review:
As I said
in my review of Giving It Up, the first book in Amber Lin’s amazing Lost Girls
series… darker reads are a little harder for me to review and aren’t really
something I read a whole lot of… but there is something about Ambers writing
style and ability to capture my attention that pretty much leaves me breathless
and hanging on to the edge of my seat during the entire book! Selling Out was absolutely NO different… and in
some ways it was even better, because it was even a tad darker than Giving It
Up because of Shelly’s profession and because of the battle she was fighting.
Shelly is
an absolutely amazing character! I
adored her in Giving It Up and I ended up more than falling in love with this
raw, emotionally challenged, compassionate, and beautifully edgy
character. Amber paints this
exceptionally realistic vision of Shelly to the point that you can’t help but
feel for her and pray that she can escape this dangerous life and go on to live
a happy life with the one man that she desperately needs and wants but doesn’t
think she deserves.
For a good
portion I was a little conflicted with my feelings for Luke… One minute I loved
him and couldn’t wait for him to “make it real” and the next I wanted to smack
him because it almost seemed as though Shelly was nothing more than a pawn to
him. But then he would prove that she
meant something to him and I would fall for him all over again. Not to mention the chemistry between these
two… Holy Hotness!!!
This raw
and emotionally edgy story is a perfect addition to Amber’s Lost Girls Series
and I’m extremely anxious to see what and who she will come up with next!
Author Bio:Amber Lin writes erotic romance with damaged souls and deep emotion.Her debut novel Giving It Up (Loose Id, 9781611188431) received The Romance Review’s Top Pick, Night Owl Top Pick, and 5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies. RT Book Reviews gave it 4.5 stars, calling it “truly extraordinary.” The sequel is slated for release in early 2013. Her small town romance will be published by Carina Press in Fall 2013. She is represented by Jewelann Cone of the Cascade Literary Agency.Amber married her high school sweetheart, birthed a kid who’s smarter than she is, and spends her nights writing down her dirty thoughts. In other words, life is good.
Book Trailer:
Excerpt:
“Shh,” I murmured, stroking his back.
“Shelly, goddammit.”
But his protests fell away as I pressed
my breasts to his arm and my tongue to his ear. His harsh inhalation sounded
broken, shattered, or maybe that was me.
I tasted salt and man, earth and
spring. Slow licks alongside his lobe and upward, more suggestive than
sensation, but for a man like this, anticipation would be everything. Or so I
had imagined, all the times I had dreamed of it.
A small sound escaped him, somewhere
between a grunt and groan. I took it as encouragement and smoothed my hands
along the hard planes of his shoulders, his chest. Not anywhere near the bulge
in his jeans, because this wasn’t about pleasure—it was about wanting.
Anything to get closer, I let my knees
slide apart around his side, the faint heat of his body a shock to my core. His
hands clenched and opened on his knees, and again, the muscles rippled beneath
his darkly tanned skin. Was he restraining himself from touching me or pushing
me off?
“Baby, no,” he groaned, letting his
head fall back onto my shoulder.
No, I would never deserve to have him
as more than a sex partner. And he had never fucked me, though I knew he wanted
to. Every time he saw me, his eyes would darken and my stomach would bottom
out, but we’d never touch. But maybe for one brief inconvenient moment, while
the door was open and the young woman beyond it needed help, we could pretend.
Maybe it could be enough.
I shut my eyes tightly and pressed a kiss to his temple. Pretend, just pretend. I would give him the sex he had craved, and in return, he’d give me memories. It would be a payment, just the same.
I shut my eyes tightly and pressed a kiss to his temple. Pretend, just pretend. I would give him the sex he had craved, and in return, he’d give me memories. It would be a payment, just the same.
“You want this,” I whispered.
He shuddered in my arms; it was like
hugging a wild animal, one who could just as easily maul me as cuddle.
“Can I touch you?” he whispered.
“Please.”
It unraveled me, that plea. As if he
understood that a little bit of my soul slipped away every time someone touched
me. As if he would cherish the part I gave him.
I scrambled away from him as if burned,
breathing hard. No.
No one understood, which was exactly
the way I liked it. I ran a shaking hand over my face to smooth away the panic.
Sure, he knew the score better than
most people. He had worked the beat as a patrol cop and then as a detective.
Life as a high-priced escort wasn’t glamorous; it was sweat and blood sprinkled
with glitter. But he didn’t know the full extent, and I prayed he never would.
Henri didn’t sell bodies; he gutted them.
I panted against the headboard, unable
to walk away but unwilling to beg. Luke remained carved in stone where I’d left
him sitting on the edge of the bed. The air pulsed with doubt and longing—with
sex.
“I want it to be real between us.” He
spoke low and hoarse.
A quiet sound escaped me. Every caress,
every pinch. Every slur ever spoken. “It’s always real. That’s the problem,
Luke. It’s always too damn real.”
He hung his head, and I thought for a
moment I heard him say I know, but the moment slipped away, the sweet intimacy
sailed away like clouds on the horizon—never really mine.
Giveaway:
Amber is giving away a $75
gift card to Amazon, B&N, or All Romance.
Enter the Rafflecopter below!
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Happy Reading!
It's interesting to see different reviewers' reactions to Shelly and Luke...it's a good sign that they'll be very complex and realistic!
ReplyDeletevitajex(at)aol(dot)com
I can't wait to read this book; as I am working to catch up with the tour; so sorry I am late to the party; I am getting more anxious to get to the book!
ReplyDeleteI am following you everywhere, and the blog also; I shared on the links that I could.
Thank you for the contest!
Have a great day!
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