Drop Dead Gorgeous

Skull Creek #2

by Kimberly Raye

Dillon Cash used to be the biggest geek in Skull Creek, Texas?until a vampire encounter changed him into a lean, mean sex machine. Now every woman in town wants a piece of the hunky cowboy.

Meg Sweeney can't get over her old friend Dillon's transformation. Not only does she want him, but she's also dying to figure out how he did it. Because Meg is a former geek herself. If Dillon can suddenly morph into a stud, who's to say there isn't a sex kitten waiting to be unleashed inside her? She just needs a little instruction....

Dillon's never been able to refuse his best pal, Meg, anything...even sex lessons. Little does he guess that one life-changing night in her bed will leave him dying to live again...

Genres: Harlequin Blaze, Vampires, Romance, Paranormal Romance, Paranormal, Harlequin, Contemporary Romance

224 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 25, 2008

About the author

I've always been an incurable romantic. While I enjoy reading all types of fiction, my favorites, the books that touch my soul, are romance novels. From sexy to thrilling, sweet to humorous, I like them all. But what I really love is writing romance--the hotter the better!

I started my first novel back in high school and have been writing ever since. To date, I've published over thirty novels, one of them a prestigious RITA Award nominee, Romance Writers of America's highest award of excellence. I have also been nominated by Romantic Times magazine for several Reviewer's Choice awards, as well as a career achievement award.

I've written for several different publishers, including Harlequin Books, Leisure Books, Berkley/Jove, St. Martin's Press and Warner Books. Born and bred in the Lone Start State, I still live deep in the heart with my real-life hero, Curt, and our young children.

Like any over-worked, under-appreciated wife and mother, I have very little free time. But when I find a few precious moments, I LOVE to read. Some of my favorite authors include Janet Evanovich, Vicki Lewis Thompson, Charlaine Harris (see my Favorite Reads page for more) and the exceptionally talented Nina Bangs. Give me a bag of Sugar Babies, a Toby Keith or Kevin Fowler CD (I love Texas music), and a great book, and I'm in heaven!

Reviews

[Buggy · Rating 3 out of 5]

“It was the best sex she'd had in months. The only sex. Which wouldn't be such a bad thing except that the elusive O came courtesy of a red vibrator called the Big Tamale rather than some hot, buff cowboy with a slow hand and an intoxicating smile.”

So with an opening paragraph like this you know you’re in for a fun ride and for the most part DROP DEAD GORGEOUS doesn’t disappoint. This is book 2 from Kimberly Raye’s sexy and hilarious Love At First Bite trilogy. Set in Skull Creek Texas these quickie romances follow the small town antics and love connections of some rather eccentric but completely likable women as they get their groove on and find true love with gorgeous Texan cowboys who also just happen to be Vampires.

Dillon Cash used to be the biggest geek in Skull Creek until he inadvertently got between two warring vampires, losing his human life in the process. Now he’s back and better than ever, in fact except for whole burning to a crisp in the sun thingy and a small aversion to garlic, his new life rocks. This former nerdy computer tech’s been transformed into a hunka, hunka burning vampire love and every woman in town wants a piece of him.

Meg Sweeny or “Manhandler Meg” as she’s been known since high school, can’t believe the changes in her old friend Dillon. Now not only does she want his body but she wants his secret as well. You see Meg is a closeted geek and if Dillon can suddenly morph into a stud then theres a chance that with a little of his instruction she can become the much desired sex kitten she’s always wanted to be too.

All Dillon wants to do is erase his geeky reputation and blaze a trail as the towns studliest guy, possibly even emerging #1 on the coveted "Randiest Rooster" list. But theres something about his old pal Meg he can’t refuse, she see’s past his new muscles and heartthrob status and damn if he hadn’t always thought she was irresistible anyways. Our couple engage in a cat and mouse game of who’s seducing who and of course lose their hearts in the process.

Although I didn’t enjoy this as much as Dead Sexy this was still a good read. My only real problem being that geek heroes just don’t do it for me and regardless of his hot vampire makeover I never felt much of anything for Dillon. Even the love scenes (which are plenty spicy) didn’t work for me. But that’s just me. However the truly great thing about this series (besides the fact that it’s frigging hilarious) is the awesome cast of unconventional townsfolk and the crazy adventures they manage to get themselves into. Raye has written this in such an endearing, fun way that I find myself wanting to move to Skull Creek just so that I can spend Friday nights at Joe Bob’s Bar and Grill and buy my groceries at the local Piggly Wiggly. Not to mention the fact that I might bag myself a cowboy Vamp and make it onto the Gazette’s hot chicks list. Cheers

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dillon Cash, the biggest geek in Skull Creek, Texas, morphs into a super stud muffin overnight. His best friend, Meg Sweeney, also a former geek, wants to know the secret behind the sexy cowboy's transformation. Dillon agrees to give Meg "lessons" while trying not to reveal to her the vampire encounter that ultimately changed him into the most sought after bachelor in town.

Dillon Cash, along with his friends, Garrett and Jake, could send just about any woman into ovary overload. OH MY! I even enjoyed Meg's character and the humor that was written into this short novel. (Keep your eyes open for a scene with Meg's "Big Tamale" that has three buttons - vibrate, swivel and aye carumba!)

I picked up a copy of DROP DEAD GORGEOUS after reading Julie's great review of it last week. I'm a sucker for the whole best-friends-turned-lovers theme, although I have to admit I was a little leery because this book is a paranormal romance. (Have I mentioned yet that this was the very first paranormal that I have actually finished?)

Can't wait until Garrett's story is released. I highly recommend this one if you want a short and sexy read.

[Brigid · Rating 4 out of 5]

When you think of a trashy romance book, this is exactly what comes to mind. The cumulative amount of time I had to stop reading because I was laughing so hard probably tacked on an extra hour to my reading time. It's Chuck Tingle without the intentionality behind the humor, it was just that ridiculous and thoroughly entertaining with plot points such as:

● Vampires in Texas wear cowboy hats to "blend in"
● The gatherings of the "vamp buddies" where they read through updates on their blog site: "MeetVamps.com"
● The love interest's elderly parents trying to capture their son with a tree snare because he hasn't been in touch
● The fact that these vampires don't only feed on blood, but they feed on blood AND sex

I could go on but honestly, just read it and find out for yourself.

This was a wild ride from start to finish. Everyone should read this book, then reach out and talk to me about it because I am genuinely obsessed with the absurdity and campy-ness of it all.

[Julie (jjmachshev) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this light-hearted, yet still hot read by Kimberly Raye. Once tomboy Meg has had it with her Man-Handler Meg reputation. She wants to be feminine, hot, and sexy! And by gosh, she's already read everything, copy and on-line, she can get her hands on but unfortunately, nobody in town can forget the tomboy. WHOA! What's up with her geek buddy Dillon? They've always been the odd ones out, but all of a sudden he's quite the hottie with a different woman every night. No fair! She'll just have to ensure he's willing to share his secret with her.

Dillon knows there's no big secret, he's a vampire now and no woman can resist the allure...except Meg? Hey, what's up with that? And why is that bugging him so much?

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the funniest books I've read. I'm not entirely sure that was intentional, but the idea of vampires blending in by wearing cowboy hats had me reeling for the majority of the book.

There were times that certain things in the book didn't seem to match the tone of the rest of it. Dillon and the other vampires are hunting for the Ancient One, who is basically the granddaddy vampire, and killing him would give Dillon, Jake and Garrett back their humanity. Which is kind of a cool concept, and clashed immensely with the bi-annual publication of the Texas small town's top ten hottest men and women, called the Randiest Roosters (men) and Hot Chicks (women).

The romance is pretty good, but some of the internal dialogue feels somewhat repetitive at times. They focus a lot on how Dillon is no longer a geek, and is now a sexy vampire, which I think was made clear in the beginning of the book and didn't need revisiting constantly. But it added to how camp this book was. Additionally, Meg, who is determined to not take charge in the bedroom anymore, keeps on repeating that to herself whenever she sees Dillon, which gets annoying. But ultimately, doesn't detract from some fairly hot scenes, if you can get passed the ridiculousness of it all.

Four stars because I enjoyed it and it was short, and I was laughing nearly the entire time I read it.

[Alexis-Morgan Roark · Rating 2 out of 5]

What made this book two stars for me was some glaringly obvious oversights and silliness...at least to me. Case in point, Dillon's parents. OK; so, your son has been missing for two months and the best you can do is camp out at his house and jump any shadow passing by? Then they just go away? Also, his BF sees him but makes not effort to tell his obviously worried parents that he's okay? She doesn't call him on that-beyond the one mention?

Maybe I missed something.

The part where the parents mistakenly "jump" Meg could have been funny, should have been funny, but it just didn't do it for me. I really wanted to like this book. I am a vampire junkie, but this book just wasn't as good as the others I've read in the series.

[Martel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book surpassed the first one : it was better on all accounts. The h/H, their relationship, the plot and the humor. Nice light read. If you like erotica fun paranormal romances with a few hot sex scenes and lots of sexual tension, nerdy heroes, strange family relationships, long time friends turning lovers, and a plethora of secondary characters, this one could be for you.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

Actual Rating: 2.5

These two… Le sigh… what am I gonna do with these two?!? For the first part of the book, they drove me nuts with their shallow aspirations of getting on the skull creek top 10 list of eligible bachelorettes for her and beating Bobby’s one night stand record for him. Once they got together, they literally keep getting in their own way and ignoring their feelings for each other because they thought the former was what they really wanted. After she found out he was a vampire, the book started getting better but that was like the last fourth of the book. Lots of wtf moments but still funny and swoony

Tarot Readathon Prompt: The Devil (MC is their own worst enemy or deals with betrayal)

[Rach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well I wanted something a little different and I got it!

Drop Dead Gorgeous by Kimberley Raye is a fun, super-sensual (aka sexy af) and thrilling friends-to-lovers tale.

With a geek-cum-vamp hero and a tomboy-cum-wannabe-beauty 👸 heroine, a close-knit community and vampire hunting fiends, this romance delivers on so many levels. It also has one of the best opening pages I’ve had the pleasure of reading.

Bloody brilliant writing and I recommend it to all my romance loving friends who fancy a whole lot of open door sizzle and something just a little different to the norm.

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm fairly embarrassed to admit that I read this, but it came through the sort room for the library book sale and I picked it up because the premise of cowboy vampires sounded too hokey to resist. The writing was surprisingly solid, but the emphasis on sex was a bit much and the characterization was lacking. It was better than I expected from a romance serial, though.

[Heids Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an awesome take on one of my favorite types of romances, where they grow up together and are shy about confessing their feelings for each other, and Dillion definitely is the perfect male specimen who doesn't love a geek

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Slow

Slow read that felt all over the place at times. Badly needed editing but the story just didn’t flow for me.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

HBZ #390 = 2.5 stars

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 This is a great vampire category romance series. Great characters and storylines. The writing is good and the sex scenes are quite spicy.

[Malinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3-3.5 stars

This was an enjoyable story. I liked Meg and Dillon and their story was good. This was the first story I've read by this author and it was enjoyable enough that I might try more of her work in the future.

Meg is the owner of a clothing bouquet in the small town of Skull Creek. Meg lost her mother at a very young age and was raised by her father, who was the coach at the local high school. She grew up a tomboy and was better at sports than most. Her father died when she was still a teen and it affected her deeply, causing her to completely change herself and become more ladylike. Unfortunately, she was never able to shed her tomboy reputation and has a hard time finding dates.

Dillon is a vampire that used to be a computer geek. He grew up with very protective parents and felt smothered his whole life. He opened a computer shop in his home town but had problems getting any women to take him seriously. Dillon got turned into a vampire to save his life when he was critically injured while helping someone. With his new vampirism, Dillon found that women threw themselves at him and he decided to take advantage.

Dillon and Meg were best friends as children and in their teens, they found solace in each other and their shared exclusion from the dating scene in their town. Dillon was seen as too much of a geek for girls to like him and Meg was seen as a tomboy and all the guys thought of her as one-of-the-guys and not as an attractive female. They actually tried experimenting with some kissing between them but neither was very good and they ended it in disappointment, deciding just to be friends from then on. Dillon and Meg stayed friends and still saw each other regularly until a couple months before the start of the book (which was around the time that Dillon got changed into a vampire).

Meg is trying desperately to change her image in Skull Creek and get named in the semiannual list of the sexiest women in town. She recently heard rumors that Dillon had been seen dating some of the most eligible women in town and she can't figure out how he was able to change his reputation. Meg hasn't seen Dillon in a couple months and really wants to find him so she can see how he accomplished his transformation. When she does find Dillon, they make a deal where Dillon helps her be more sexy and she helps him with some fashion advice. Dillon has always had a bit of a thing for Meg and with his change, he feels the confidence to go after Meg. Meg is reluctant, not willing to admit any feelings for Dillon because she's sure she'd lose him in the end. Regardless of her fears and other issues, Dillon and Meg do work through things and end the story starting towards a HEA together.

This was an enjoyable story. I liked Meg and Dillon...neither character really grabbed me but they were likable enough. Overall, the story was good...I may go back to try book #1 at some point. :)

* note - I listened to the audio version of this book and the narrator did a pretty good job.

[Terri Pray · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is for the audio book as sold by Audible.

Drop Dead Gorgeous is the second in the series of vampire romances set in Skull Creek Texas.

Until recently Dillon Cash was the biggest geek in town, the one person you went to if you had computer issues, and the last person anyone would expect to attract women. But everything changed the day Garret bit him, and Jake saved his life by turning him. He woke with a body that can't be ignored and the vampire charisma that seals the deal. So, armed with his new powers he sets out to beat the city record for the number of women he can seduce and bed - after all he lives on a mix of blood and sexual energy so there's truly nothing wrong with what he's doing.

That is until his best friend, Meg Sweeny finally tracks him down to find out why he's been dodging not just her attempts to contact him, but his parents. When she sees how he's changed (not knowing that it's because he's a vampire) she all but begs him to teach her how to be that sexy. She's desperate to shake off the image of the tom boy she's had since high school and if her best friend can transform than so can she.

The attraction between the two has always been there, they were simply unable to grasp it and push past their own problems. Especially Meg who carries with her a fear of losing the ones she loves ever since her father passed away. So, all she wants is that magical something that will get her on the top sexy women list in town.

As for Dillon, he's terrified that when he finds the ancient who turned Garret, and that vampire is killed (returning all those he turned and then the ones they also turned, back to human) that he will become his old geeky self again and lose Meg.

The dance between the two main characters is interesting as they both use their concerns/fears as walls to keep anyone from becoming too close, and I love the setting - though if many more vampires turn up in Skull Creek, they're going to find themselves hard pressed to find someone to feed off!

The only downside to this book was the narrator. Although she could put some animation into the dialogue, anything else came across almost in a monotone. She really didn't suit this type of novel at all.

[TINNGG · Rating 3 out of 5]

When last we saw Dillon, the town geek had just gotten himself turned into a vampire by virtue of getting in the middle of something he shouldn't. Now, the new and improved Dillon, deep down, is convinced he's still a geek. Well, maybe. More importantly, he's a real zero. See, he's determined to prove his manliness by out-boinking the last town lothario. So far, he's only a single individual female short of the record of 300 women. Only, the previous guy took a lifetime; he's taken 2 months. He breaks the record - with the boinking of the h. Yeah; man-ho = zero.

It gets worse. The h is his best friend. The h has been celibate for some time because it bothered her that her only 3 encounters, she was the aggressor. The "H" can read her. The "H" is aware of that. The "H" essentially teases her until she jumps him, thus essentially playing upon her issues. The "H" bolts from her bed before the mattress has stopped shaking. The "H" wonders why she goes out with someone else the next night.

*I* wonder why she didn't trash his reputation in revenge. I would have. He would have overheard with his super vampire hearing, women gossiping that they'd heard he had the Clap.

And he wondered why she was reluctant to admit she loved him. Asshat.

[Adriana Fogaça · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amor À Primeira Mordida 2/3
Encanto Eterno
Kimberly Raye
H. Fuego 17
2008


Não sei, mas pra mim ficou faltando alguma coisa, talvez porque não tenha lido o primeiro livro da série. Ou porque o meu tipo de vampiro não tenha problemas com a luz do dia.

Tudo bem! Nem tudo é como a gente deseja, mas vamos lá.

A estória é muito interessante, a mocinha insiste quer ser desejada e o mocinho vai ajudá-la, pois é seu melhor amigo, e sente um tesão por ela... até ai tudo bem... tem umas aulinhas... tudo ótimo... e fica nisso. Com toda aquela energia sexual no ar, e não há uma cena de sexo pra valer. De duas uma, a autora quer nos frustrar ou ouve um corte.

Como não li o primeiro livro da série, penso que houve um corte.

Mas, para não dizer que foi totalmente frustrante, há uma garrafa de vinho pra soltar a imaginação. Nem tudo foi perdido.

[Kath · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually don't go for the Harlequin Blaze books and swore off them, but found this as a bargain audio book. I was surprised to find that this is actually a vampire story, which I do like paranormal romances. This was okay, but found the two main characters a bit flawed and a little plastic. More so, the female lead. She's too worried about her image, making the most eligible list in town etc.

Story head my interest and was okay, but wouldn't recommend it.

[Netanella · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is every geeky person's revenge of the nerds fantasy, where an infusion of vampiric blood turns the local computer geek into Super Cowboy Vampire Stud Muffin. Reminds me of those one page ads in the old comic books about the nerd who gets sand kicked in his face on the beach, get the Charles Atlas system, works out til he looks like Arnold on steroids, and comes back to win the girl!

This book was a lot of fun, and I would definitely recommend it.

[Ren Puspita · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this before GR era, so I rated this just by what I feel after I finish read. This is a quick read and the story is pretty simple. Also the book should have categorized into Nocturne imprint back then in 2010, but got included into Blaze imprint. Maybe because the story is scorching hot? Nah, I don't remember that much

[Elle · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I got this in audio book and have been listening to it as I did 'other stuff' that can't be done with a book in your face (like cleaning).

I quite liked Dillon and Meg's relationship and their insecurities. Dill's a bit of a man whore but that is sort of grazed over.

It was a cute story if a little 'verbose'. Yes, I found myself fastforwarding.

[S. Rutherford · Rating 5 out of 5]

mmm... sex-energized vampires. yum

This book was good... short though but that's to be expected. Drop Dead Gorgeous is the second of her little series. You had better enjoy the country lifestyle, though.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cheezy but fun

[Sophia Musgrave · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want a sexy read this one is it! OK story line, but a rather trashy novel

[Melissa Mercado · Rating 5 out of 5]

these books are very erotic!!!

[bookwyrmemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good book; kept my attention throughout the whole thing.

[celticminx (aka: kristi or "k") · Rating 4 out of 5]

2nd book in Love at First Bite bundle

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like all of the Skull Creek books, I enjoyed this one.

[Andrea]

Enjoyable and quick read.