Blurb
A weekend of summer fun leads to a passionate escape in the sun.
When Tamarie Morgan goes to PeakFest with her friends, her primary concern is avoiding her friend Veca’s creepy boyfriend, Sy, who drunkenly assaulted her two months previously and has refused to leave her alone ever since. However, when Tamarie is checking out the stalls and connects with Kaleb McAdams, the drummer for headline act Puppetmaster, a heated encounter backstage leads to Kaleb inviting her to ditch the festival with him. Kaleb wants her to be his plus-one at lead singer Cassian’s wedding—and when Veca and Sy break up the following day and start packing to leave, Tamarie and her friend Dannika decide to take Kaleb up on his offer.
Tamarie is initially impressed by the glitz and glamour of being a rockstar girlfriend, even for a short period of time, but is abruptly brought back down to earth when the press get a compromising photograph of her and her reputation is called into question. She soon realises that for her Kaleb is more than a brief fling, but when the other band members’ plus-ones tell her being a rockstar girlfriend has an expiry date, Tamarie finds herself wondering if they’re right. Will Kaleb still want her after the wedding is over, and can she deal with all that being a rockstar girlfriend involves?
Excerpt
“Have you told him his disguise isn’t as good as he thinks it is?”
Matt chuckled. “It’s keeping most of the fans at bay, so it’ll do for now. We’re going back in a bit anyway. We only popped out to soak up some sun.”
A glint lit up in Dannika’s eyes.
“Think you could get us backstage?”
Matt looked unfazed.
“Normally I couldn’t, since we’re not in charge of the security here, but on this occasion I can. My brother is one of the security guards for PeakFest.”
Kaleb appeared next to him, obviously having overheard this.
“I leave you alone for two minutes and you’re bringing girls backstage? Whatever will I do with you, Matt?”
“Like you’ve ever complained about having girls brought backstage.” Matt’s eyes were fixed on Dannika, but he spared Tamarie an appraising look. “So why not?”
“Having girls brought backstage.” Tamarie had a pretty good idea what that meant. She knew Puppetmaster’s lead singer was getting married, but the other band members were single, so they probably took any chance they could to get fans into bed—or over the table, or wherever was convenient.
But she had never been backstage before, and Kaleb was hot. Plus the alternative was going back to the others without Dannika to act as a barrier between her and the creep.
“Sure. Let’s go.”
She felt Kaleb’s hand on the small of her back as she followed Matt, and a tingle ran down her spine at the touch.
What the hell.
Review by Lisabet Sarai
Friends, lovers and stalkers...
Tamarie Morgan has been on edge ever since the night when her friend Veca’s boyfriend Sy took advantage of her drunkenness to pressure her into sex. She’s afraid that Veca will find out; in fact Sy keeps threatening to reveal the details of the incident in order to get Tamarie back into bed. Even worse, she worries that she won’t be able to fend him off indefinitely. Intellectually she knows she was not at fault, that in fact she was the victim of abuse, but Sy has succeeded in arousing her doubt and her guilt, calling her a slut and claiming that she’d been enthusiastic about the encounter.
Hence Tamarie is understandably nervous about attending the outdoor PeakFest rock and roll festival with a group of friends that includes Veca and Sy. She realizes things could get very messy.
Then celebrity drummer Kaleb McAdams, roaming the festival grounds in disguise, notices Sy’s advances and comes to Tamarie’s rescue. Before long, he’s escorting her backstage, where she discovers that the attraction she feels for the quiet, intense musician is mutual. The next thing she knows, she’s in a private plane on her way to Mallorca as Kaleb’s date for his band mate’s wedding.
Soak Up the Sun is wish-fulfillment for any woman who’s ever had a fan girl crush on a rock star. Tanith Davenport does a good job, too, in making the fan-to-lover plot believable. Her descriptions of the backstage conversations and partying as well as the luxurious environs in Palma felt real to me, though I have no personal experience with either.
Kaleb is a genuinely nice guy, not the stereotyped rock god full of his own importance. He’s a breath of fresh air compared to Sy, a man who respects his woman and understands the meaning of consent.
“Don’t worry.” Kaleb’s voice was low, rough, sending a tingle along Tamarie’s spine. “Nothing’s going to happen here that you don’t want.”
Of course, quite a lot does happen in this luscious erotic romance, in which a one-week party turns into a stable relationship – just as every fan girl has dreamed.
I enjoyed Soak Up the Sun for its clean writing, vivid descriptions and appealing characters. It’s quite short, though, less than 100 pages in PDF, so not much happens. In particular, I thought the conflicts driving the tale were a bit weak. Everything seems to happen too easily for Tamarie, including the resolution of her career problems. Once she and Kaleb connect, it’s clear they’re going to be a long-term item. His concerns about his band mate leaving the group and her problems with paparazzi did not have enough weight to engender any kind of suspense.
If you’re looking for a quick, light read with a heavy dose of wish-fulfillment, you’ll like Soak Up the Sun. Just don’t expect anything more significant that an easy HEA.
About the Author
Tanith Davenport began writing erotica at the age of 27 by way of the Romantic Novelists' Association New Writers' Scheme. Her debut novel "The Hand He Dealt" was released by Totally Bound in June 2011 and was shortlisted for the Joan Hessayon Award for 2012.
Tanith has had short stories published by Totally Bound, Naughty Nights Press and House of Erotica. She loves to travel and dreams of one day taking a driving tour of the United States, preferably in a classic 1950s pink Cadillac Eldorado.
Tanith's idea of heaven is an Indian head massage with a Mojito at her side.
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Totally Bound: https://www.totallybound.com/book/soak-up-the-sun
Tanith Davenport will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.
7 comments:
Thanks for having me on here - I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you for hosting and reviewing SOAK UP THE SUN today.
Welcome to Beyond Romance, Tanith! It's great to host a fellow Totally Bound author.
Thank you, Lisabet, I'm happy to be here! Totally Bound did such a great job with this one.
Sounds like a good book.
Thank you - I loved writing it.
Thank you - these characters were great to work with.
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