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Love in Xxchange #8
In My Arms Tonight
Book eight in the Love in Xxchange Series James Stratton s moral cost him everything and he never thought he d recover until one very stubborn, loving man showed James he deserved to be loved. James Stratton was proof there was such a thing as a lawyer with morals and he paid a very high price for them. A successful plan to stop a sadistic murderer ended up costing James everything. After being kidnapped and assaulted, he was held in a facility where he was kept medicated, ostensibly for his own good. In reality, his parents had had him kidnapped again for his own safety, they d claim, once he d been freed. Glenn Shearing, former FBI agent and deeply closeted, fell for James before he ever met him. All it d taken was reading the file on the extraordinary man, and Glenn knew he d found someone worth stepping out of the closet for. He risked everything to free James, and didn t consider it much of a loss when he left his job and headed for Texas. James needs all the help he can get after what he s been through, and Glenn wants to be there for him. James isn t ready for any kind of intimacy, not after being hurt physically and emotionally. But will he push Glenn away one time too many? Or will he let Glenn s love help him heal?"
190 pages, ebook
First published April 23, 2012
6 people are currently reading
136 people want to read
About the author
Bailey Bradford
182 books552 followersA few things about me...
I am a married mom of four who spends most of the day writing, either on stories or at the blog. I love to write as much as I love to read. I am generally quiet and laid back, choosing to let things slide off me rather than stick and irritate me.
And it's really hard trying to think of descriptives for myself, so I'll just let y'all e-mail me or comment at the blog if there's something specific you'd like to know, and spare you from reading a boring bio:D
I am a married mom of four who spends most of the day writing, either on stories or at the blog. I love to write as much as I love to read. I am generally quiet and laid back, choosing to let things slide off me rather than stick and irritate me.
And it's really hard trying to think of descriptives for myself, so I'll just let y'all e-mail me or comment at the blog if there's something specific you'd like to know, and spare you from reading a boring bio:D
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
December 24, 2022
When I began reading 'In My Arms Tonight', the eighth book in the 'Love in Xxchange' series, I knew it would be bittersweet. The previous few books had all been leading up to James and Glenn's story, and, essentially, this is the final story in the series. There is one more, but the author uses it to introduce the characters who go on to create a new series, so this eighth installment is pretty much the end of the line for the characters I've grown to love. However, I was looking forward to the author's telling of James and Glenn's story because I was confident it would be a doozy.
Oh James. Gone from being a real estate lawyer in Montana, to helping get his boss's son arrested for sexual crimes, to being kidnapped and tortured, being rescued by the FBI, only to have his parents kidnap him again and keep him drugged to the gills in a facility for his own protection. Luckily for James, his best friend, Chase, and an FBI agent, Glenn, aren't willing to leave him to suffer. But, he's had a really bad year, and that's putting it mildly. Now James is in Texas staying with Chase and Xavier, but mentally, he's on the edge. Nightmares, night sweats, panic attacks, etc., all the goodies that come along with deep psychological and physical trauma. Of course, denying dealing with any of it and just trying to push the memories away isn't helping.
Glenn risked his twenty year career with the FBI to get James out of the "care center" his family had placed him in. Ever since he saw his file and researched the man, Glenn can't keep James out of his head. He retired, making sure they didn't screw him over his retirement, and headed to Texas. As a deeply closeted man, with no experience regarding other men, these feelings are really confusing Glenn, but he knows that this might be his only chance at happiness, and he's not going to waste his time. Glenn also knows that there's going to be a lot for James to deal with and having seen his share of trauma throughout his career, he can only hope to help. Luckily for Glenn he knows an excellent psychiatrist whom he pays, unbeknownst to James, to fly down and begin therapy.
One of my favorite characters in this series, Josh, gets started immediately with introducing Glenn to Chance and Rory, Max and Bo, Les and Adam, and his own partner, Nick, inviting him out to the ranch for a barbecue. Even better, Les gets him a job on the local police force, not that Glenn needs the money, but now he's staying for more than just James. Which is good since Glenn is convinced that James hates him and wants nothing to do with him. When James is forced to confront the feelings that Glenn invokes, well, let's just say there was hope for these two after all.
Oh, how I adored this book. I loved that James got his happy ever after and I cried with him as he suffered. Glenn was a big, lovable bear with the biggest heart I've ever seen ensconced inside a gooey center. These two were incredible together and I was thrilled to read their story. Thank you, Bailey!
NOTE: This book was provided by Total-E-Bound for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Oh James. Gone from being a real estate lawyer in Montana, to helping get his boss's son arrested for sexual crimes, to being kidnapped and tortured, being rescued by the FBI, only to have his parents kidnap him again and keep him drugged to the gills in a facility for his own protection. Luckily for James, his best friend, Chase, and an FBI agent, Glenn, aren't willing to leave him to suffer. But, he's had a really bad year, and that's putting it mildly. Now James is in Texas staying with Chase and Xavier, but mentally, he's on the edge. Nightmares, night sweats, panic attacks, etc., all the goodies that come along with deep psychological and physical trauma. Of course, denying dealing with any of it and just trying to push the memories away isn't helping.
Glenn risked his twenty year career with the FBI to get James out of the "care center" his family had placed him in. Ever since he saw his file and researched the man, Glenn can't keep James out of his head. He retired, making sure they didn't screw him over his retirement, and headed to Texas. As a deeply closeted man, with no experience regarding other men, these feelings are really confusing Glenn, but he knows that this might be his only chance at happiness, and he's not going to waste his time. Glenn also knows that there's going to be a lot for James to deal with and having seen his share of trauma throughout his career, he can only hope to help. Luckily for Glenn he knows an excellent psychiatrist whom he pays, unbeknownst to James, to fly down and begin therapy.
One of my favorite characters in this series, Josh, gets started immediately with introducing Glenn to Chance and Rory, Max and Bo, Les and Adam, and his own partner, Nick, inviting him out to the ranch for a barbecue. Even better, Les gets him a job on the local police force, not that Glenn needs the money, but now he's staying for more than just James. Which is good since Glenn is convinced that James hates him and wants nothing to do with him. When James is forced to confront the feelings that Glenn invokes, well, let's just say there was hope for these two after all.
Oh, how I adored this book. I loved that James got his happy ever after and I cried with him as he suffered. Glenn was a big, lovable bear with the biggest heart I've ever seen ensconced inside a gooey center. These two were incredible together and I was thrilled to read their story. Thank you, Bailey!
NOTE: This book was provided by Total-E-Bound for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
November 27, 2014
2014 Re-read:
I am somewhat less satisfied with this one. I think it would help to read it as a complete fairy tale, because even given insta-love of the extreme type, this one is pushing it by making Glenn fall in love before he even meets the other guy and James returning those feelings at pretty much the second time they meet without James being drugged out of his mind. And I might add that they spent that little private time fucking, not talking or anything.
Still, the romance is cute enough if you can accept the impossibility of it and treat it as magical. However, other things bothered me.
Things started out raw compared to the previous books in the series, with what James was going through to the point where he did not even seem to see Glenn as a person, among other things. And that would have been fine, because it made for an interesting story.
But then we suddenly get that out-of-nowhere sex scene between Chase and Xavier, and I was far from thrilled. Seems to me it's been put in there simply to tide readers over until the main couple can finally get it on.
As fond as I am of Xavier and Chase, that kind of thing irritates me and leaves me cold otherwise. It disrupts the actual story for pointless padding. My mind started drifting when I tried to read it, so I ended up skimming a little.
I'm sad that authors appear to consider it necessary to intersperse their romances with a regular percentage of sex. Doesn't do a thing when it is not actually relevant. (Actually it gets tedious as well later on when there’s just sex instead of other interaction, mostly.)
One other thing that sort of annoys me with this author is that she can't seem to remember some of her descriptions. This mostly pertains to nipples, of all things. First a guy's nipples are pink, then they are brown. Or in this book, they are first large and brown, then small and coral. I don't know if I am not supposed to remember these things, but the author kind of makes a point of mentioning these details rather pointedly.
And I have to vent further about the grammatical issues. It’s not as bad as it could be and heaven knows I regularly read books written in a significantly worse style (I enjoy this one; it flows nicely, even if some of the sentence structures are repetitive), but I am not sure anyone proofread this. Not just the fact that some verb tenses go awry (repeatedly “went” instead of “gone”, as well as the very odd “span” instead of “spun”), but bits of sentences that were clearly meant to be cut, since they’re followed by a correction. These things I can all take in stride (and I have; none of this is new) – it simply becomes irritating with increased exposure.
On the other hand the fact that I nag about this possibly suggests that not too much else is bothering me, so yay! Well, and maybe my mental scarring from some of the other series I read is starting to wear off slightly. But that sounds overly harsh. Either way, I am fairly happy. And this was not a book I hated in any way. It simply could have been more, I think.
Of course, the next and last in the series (and new to me) is going to be a triad. I’m already worrying that the sex will overpower the romance. ^^ But we’ll see!
2012 Review:
Hm. It had a good start for a while there. But then the protagonists drew things out and drifted apart and that annoyed me. And it all seemed to be about sex. Finally they managed to actually “meet”, which of course erupted into actual sex.
And I really have to say this: I wish the author wouldn’t use the same kind of sex for all of her couples. The same triggers and hot spots and preferences. It’s kinda tedious, really. They all have the exact same kinks.
Another thing that I can’t ignore any longer is a peculiar grammatical error this author keeps making. It’s been there through several books now with various different verbs, but it basically conforms to, “He had went.” Yep. She can’t build a proper past perfect. It’s as though she has no grasp of the third form of any given verb at all. Huh. Luckily this is a minor thing since with regular verbs it doesn’t make a difference. Just weird, is all. And maybe it’s the editor’s fault. Who knows?
I am sadly glad to be done with this for now. It’s just… These books were all the same and that disappointed me. Also their actual plot was thin and love was pretty much immediate and all-encompassing. In the end, it was padded up with super-long sex scenes full of screaming and wailing and apparently intense feelings, but, as I said, it gets old if it’s the same between each of the couples. Not just about the kinks, but the entire feel of those scenes.
It did not help that the insta-love made me doubt what the author was trying to tell me, anyway. I am supposed to believe that these people are so madly in love and, yeah, I believe that they believe it and they certainly seem cozy enough when they’re together in the end, but it did not really compute as it happened.
Oh well. I am sad, because I have several more books by the author across various series, waiting to be read, and I know I really liked several of hers previously. Maybe it’s just a phase, or even just affecting this series. Maybe she just got mired in her theme for this one and can’t find a way out of the loop.
That said, I already don’t much like the protagonists set up for what might be the next book in this series. It’ll be interesting enough to see whether my opinion will change with their viewpoint, as it does often enough. :3 Good thing that’s not something I have to tackle right this moment, though.
I need a break.
I am somewhat less satisfied with this one. I think it would help to read it as a complete fairy tale, because even given insta-love of the extreme type, this one is pushing it by making Glenn fall in love before he even meets the other guy and James returning those feelings at pretty much the second time they meet without James being drugged out of his mind. And I might add that they spent that little private time fucking, not talking or anything.
Still, the romance is cute enough if you can accept the impossibility of it and treat it as magical. However, other things bothered me.
Things started out raw compared to the previous books in the series, with what James was going through to the point where he did not even seem to see Glenn as a person, among other things. And that would have been fine, because it made for an interesting story.
But then we suddenly get that out-of-nowhere sex scene between Chase and Xavier, and I was far from thrilled. Seems to me it's been put in there simply to tide readers over until the main couple can finally get it on.
As fond as I am of Xavier and Chase, that kind of thing irritates me and leaves me cold otherwise. It disrupts the actual story for pointless padding. My mind started drifting when I tried to read it, so I ended up skimming a little.
I'm sad that authors appear to consider it necessary to intersperse their romances with a regular percentage of sex. Doesn't do a thing when it is not actually relevant. (Actually it gets tedious as well later on when there’s just sex instead of other interaction, mostly.)
One other thing that sort of annoys me with this author is that she can't seem to remember some of her descriptions. This mostly pertains to nipples, of all things. First a guy's nipples are pink, then they are brown. Or in this book, they are first large and brown, then small and coral. I don't know if I am not supposed to remember these things, but the author kind of makes a point of mentioning these details rather pointedly.
And I have to vent further about the grammatical issues. It’s not as bad as it could be and heaven knows I regularly read books written in a significantly worse style (I enjoy this one; it flows nicely, even if some of the sentence structures are repetitive), but I am not sure anyone proofread this. Not just the fact that some verb tenses go awry (repeatedly “went” instead of “gone”, as well as the very odd “span” instead of “spun”), but bits of sentences that were clearly meant to be cut, since they’re followed by a correction. These things I can all take in stride (and I have; none of this is new) – it simply becomes irritating with increased exposure.
On the other hand the fact that I nag about this possibly suggests that not too much else is bothering me, so yay! Well, and maybe my mental scarring from some of the other series I read is starting to wear off slightly. But that sounds overly harsh. Either way, I am fairly happy. And this was not a book I hated in any way. It simply could have been more, I think.
Of course, the next and last in the series (and new to me) is going to be a triad. I’m already worrying that the sex will overpower the romance. ^^ But we’ll see!
2012 Review:
Hm. It had a good start for a while there. But then the protagonists drew things out and drifted apart and that annoyed me. And it all seemed to be about sex. Finally they managed to actually “meet”, which of course erupted into actual sex.
And I really have to say this: I wish the author wouldn’t use the same kind of sex for all of her couples. The same triggers and hot spots and preferences. It’s kinda tedious, really. They all have the exact same kinks.
Another thing that I can’t ignore any longer is a peculiar grammatical error this author keeps making. It’s been there through several books now with various different verbs, but it basically conforms to, “He had went.” Yep. She can’t build a proper past perfect. It’s as though she has no grasp of the third form of any given verb at all. Huh. Luckily this is a minor thing since with regular verbs it doesn’t make a difference. Just weird, is all. And maybe it’s the editor’s fault. Who knows?
I am sadly glad to be done with this for now. It’s just… These books were all the same and that disappointed me. Also their actual plot was thin and love was pretty much immediate and all-encompassing. In the end, it was padded up with super-long sex scenes full of screaming and wailing and apparently intense feelings, but, as I said, it gets old if it’s the same between each of the couples. Not just about the kinks, but the entire feel of those scenes.
It did not help that the insta-love made me doubt what the author was trying to tell me, anyway. I am supposed to believe that these people are so madly in love and, yeah, I believe that they believe it and they certainly seem cozy enough when they’re together in the end, but it did not really compute as it happened.
Oh well. I am sad, because I have several more books by the author across various series, waiting to be read, and I know I really liked several of hers previously. Maybe it’s just a phase, or even just affecting this series. Maybe she just got mired in her theme for this one and can’t find a way out of the loop.
That said, I already don’t much like the protagonists set up for what might be the next book in this series. It’ll be interesting enough to see whether my opinion will change with their viewpoint, as it does often enough. :3 Good thing that’s not something I have to tackle right this moment, though.
I need a break.
April 30, 2012
I'm a total sucker for stories about wounded men who find their way to healing and recover, and the friends and lovers who support him. I was desperately waiting for James' story FOREVER, and was going to be really annoyed if it was done poorly, but Bailey Bradford did a fantastic job. I enjoyed and appreciated how there wasn't an "instant better" solution, but that James' recovery was gradual, well explored, and under his own control (not a magic wand waved over him).
February 7, 2020
I think this would have worked better if I'd read the previous books in this series. Once I got into the story and got an idea of what came before I enjoyed it but I would have really liked to have read James & Glenn's history. I think I would have had a better connection to them had I read the previous books. They fit, which was easy to see, but that heart stopping connection I look for never materialized.
TAGS
-- can be a stand-alone but I would recommend it -- first time -- age difference -- messed up family -- past abuse -- hurt/comfort -- very sweet moments
TAGS
-- can be a stand-alone but I would recommend it -- first time -- age difference -- messed up family -- past abuse -- hurt/comfort -- very sweet moments
May 17, 2012
4 Hearts
First published at MM Good Book Reviews
http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.co...
Because of what James started with the Rollins, many people paid the price. James being one of the worst effected and it didn’t end with his rescue, because then his parents got involved. And if not for the dedication of his best friend, Chase, and with a determined FBI agent to lend a hand, then he would still be in hell. Glenn is a FBI agent who worked the Rollins case. He rescued James from his kidnappers and then again from the ‘facility’ James parents had placed him in. Glenn sees something in James that he wants to get to know, so follows him to the town. But, can these two men be together after everything they have seen and been through?
Bailey Bradford has finally given us the story of James, who we have wondered about for many a book. Now it’s his time to shine along with Glenn’s, but they have problems to work through. James has had traumatic experiences and although we don’t get the in’s and out’s we do know that it was horrific for him. It’s left him with panic attacks and a skewered vision of himself and feeling like he is less than a man, especially in the eyes of Glenn, who saw James when he was at his most vulnerable. Glenn doesn’t think that James is weak. He actually believes that James is a strong survivor, but, he knows he has to take his time with James. But, the longer James seems to push him away, the more he starts to lose hope.
I loved this book for its seriousness of James problems. Nothing was swept under the carpet. He didn’t instantly make a startling recovery and it was a long progress that took into consideration everything he had suffered. Although there is an attraction between James and Glenn, their relationship doesn’t get off the ground until nearly halfway through the book and that was due to what James had suffered and also because of Glenn’s doubts that James would want an older man like him. So it’s a rocky start for them both, as fears and doubts get in the way, and they also have the added outside pressure for someone lurking around town and then James parents turning up.
So, in this book we have wounded souls, hopeful suitors, interfering parents, guilt, hope, spying PI’s, hot sex, the beginning of healing and a happy ending, but that isn’t just all it has. there’s understanding and helpful friends, everyone pulling together to protect a man who lost everything and fought with everything he had to do the right thing and a man who risked everything on the off-chance that the man he fell for, would want him back… this is a must read book.
First published at MM Good Book Reviews
http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.co...
Because of what James started with the Rollins, many people paid the price. James being one of the worst effected and it didn’t end with his rescue, because then his parents got involved. And if not for the dedication of his best friend, Chase, and with a determined FBI agent to lend a hand, then he would still be in hell. Glenn is a FBI agent who worked the Rollins case. He rescued James from his kidnappers and then again from the ‘facility’ James parents had placed him in. Glenn sees something in James that he wants to get to know, so follows him to the town. But, can these two men be together after everything they have seen and been through?
Bailey Bradford has finally given us the story of James, who we have wondered about for many a book. Now it’s his time to shine along with Glenn’s, but they have problems to work through. James has had traumatic experiences and although we don’t get the in’s and out’s we do know that it was horrific for him. It’s left him with panic attacks and a skewered vision of himself and feeling like he is less than a man, especially in the eyes of Glenn, who saw James when he was at his most vulnerable. Glenn doesn’t think that James is weak. He actually believes that James is a strong survivor, but, he knows he has to take his time with James. But, the longer James seems to push him away, the more he starts to lose hope.
I loved this book for its seriousness of James problems. Nothing was swept under the carpet. He didn’t instantly make a startling recovery and it was a long progress that took into consideration everything he had suffered. Although there is an attraction between James and Glenn, their relationship doesn’t get off the ground until nearly halfway through the book and that was due to what James had suffered and also because of Glenn’s doubts that James would want an older man like him. So it’s a rocky start for them both, as fears and doubts get in the way, and they also have the added outside pressure for someone lurking around town and then James parents turning up.
So, in this book we have wounded souls, hopeful suitors, interfering parents, guilt, hope, spying PI’s, hot sex, the beginning of healing and a happy ending, but that isn’t just all it has. there’s understanding and helpful friends, everyone pulling together to protect a man who lost everything and fought with everything he had to do the right thing and a man who risked everything on the off-chance that the man he fell for, would want him back… this is a must read book.
April 19, 2016
So nice to finally have closure for James's story, while there were no graphic details as to what happened to him, I'm good with that. My imagination was easily able to fill in the blanks whether I wanted it to or not. I only hope for James's sake that his parents can get their act together, he so deserves better and then there's Glenn...what can I say Glenn is awesome, he gets it. He knows what it means to love someone, really, really love them. To put their needs ahead of your own, to believe in them with an unshakeable faith. What can I say Glenn you rock and I'm so happy you and James worked things out...over and over and over, lol! Yeah there was lots of hot steamy sex ;)
July 10, 2012
So glad to read James' and Glenn's story. It was great to see a natural growth between the two MC's relationship. I was routing for the two of them....wanting to see them both happy after so much pain...and Bradford delivered.
Really well written. Love the series. Never disappoints.
Really well written. Love the series. Never disappoints.
March 10, 2014
Just didn't feel this one like the others in the series. Yes,I wanted to know more about Glenn and James, and how James recovered from the kidnapping, but this installment just felt like an obligatory story to the series.
October 28, 2012
Sweet comfort read. Likeable characters,some heat, + interaction with a protective Chase & Xav. Low on the angst scale, despite the horrible things that happened to James earlier in the series.
October 23, 2014
2,5 stars
January 20, 2013
3.75 stars
July 25, 2013
1.5
See review by Phaney
See review by Phaney
July 24, 2015
3.25 stars
October 24, 2012
I loved it!!! I loved how James came over his fears and went after what he wanted!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews