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Seduction #1

Hypnotic Seduction

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Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart® finalist

A red-hot ugly-duckling love story

She has a problem relaxing with men

Frumpy wallflower Hannah Oliver is nearly thirty and has a serious self-image problem. Growing up in her centerfold mother's shadow and being raised by her pious grandparents has
left her so self-conscious about her matronly, D-cup figure she gets tongue-tied around good-looking guys. So when Hannah discovers her fiancé/employer boinking her roommate, she's not only devastated--she's unemployed.

He's got a problem fending off women

Pharmaceutical CEO Jordan Calder has a huge image problem too--his professional image. Most guys would kill to be publicly proclaimed a world-class lover, but other men don't share his dark, shameful past. The only thing women have ever wanted Jordan for is what he can give them in and out of bed. So when his grandfather drags dowdy Hannah into his office as an executive assistant candidate, Jordan hires the mousey woman on the spot.

Could hypnosis be a solution?

After miraculously landing her plum new position, sexually frustrated Hannah resorts to hypnosis to boost her self-confidence with men, hoping to attract another mate. Unfortunately, a post-hypnotic suggestion compels her to kiss her sexy playboy boss, who she then stupidly falls for in and out of bed. Despair induces her to use similar hypnotic principles on him--in the form of subliminal messages--to convince the man she loves that he wants a happy ever-after with her. But as everyone knows, desperate measures usually spell disaster.

250 pages, Paperback

First published May 10, 2012

782 people are currently reading
1313 people want to read

About the author

L.L. Kellogg

4 books15 followers

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5 stars
569 (30%)
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675 (35%)
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490 (25%)
2 stars
110 (5%)
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44 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 176 reviews
Profile Image for Lori.
1,400 reviews70 followers
November 7, 2013
4+ stars
"Curiosity killed the cat." "Satisfaction also brought Fluffy back."
I LOVE THIS BOOK!

Don't be fooled by the cover or the title... yes, there's some hot sex in this book, but it's NOT a throwaway contemp-erotica. It's a thoughtful, fun, funny, smart, sexy trip into one woman's determination to accept herself, her desires, and her curvy body.
You know what they say about guys. Life is all about ass for them. If they're not trying to get a piece, they're acting like one.
Yeah - that kind of smart, sexy, and funny.

Hannah's mom is Cotton Candy Oliver, known for previously appearing in skin magazines for her willingness to bare all (died her pubic hair cotton candy pink, thus the nickname), lingerie/swimsuit model, product spokesperson, and B-movie bit part actress. Because her mom had her at age 15, Hannah was raised by her grandparents, who are basically against all that her mom, Candy, is for and does. So Hannah was raised to cover up her body. To not act or say or do anything that could be considered "slutty" or off-color.

Consequently, Hannah dresses like she's middle-aged, covering up her luscious, curvacious body. She doesn't wear makeup. She wears her hair up in a strict bun. She bakes to-die-for cookies. Hannah saved herself for The One, her fiancee, but he turned out to be sharing himself with others, including her roommate. Even so, her sex life was nothing to speak of. Hannah's experience was very limited, to say the least; not only was her fiancee not sexually adventurous (he doesn't like going "downtown"), he didn't even realize he'd never given her an "O" before. Wow.

So Hannah decides to do something different with her life. Since her fiancee was her boss, Hannah quits and searches for another job at Calder Pharmaceutical. They have an opening for an Executive Assistant to the CEO, Jordan Calder. But the HR guy takes one look at Hannah and practically throws her grannie-looking self out, despite her glowing resume. Steaming mad, Hannah sits on a bench outside the Calder building and starts up a conversation with an older gentleman already on the bench. She tells him her woes and shows him her resume. Turns out that Edward isn't just a nice old guy, he's Edward Calder of Calder Pharmaceuticals, and Jordan Calder is his grandson.

Jordan isn't put out by having an Exec Asst that looks like a middle-aged woman. Hannah is very efficient, polite, and bakes the best cookies. She has the right balance of compassion, caring, and competence. And Jordan never has to worry about coming into his office and finding Hannah lying naked on his desk, trying to seduce him. Yep, Jordan's got quite a reputation for dating around; one of his dates spilled the beans on Jordan's well-endowed self and sexual prowess after quite a few drinks at the company Christmas party. Since then, Jordan's been fending and fighting them off. His last Exec Asst, Renee, did try seducing him by being naked on his desk, then had the nerve to file a sexual harassment suit against Jordan and the company after he rejected her advances. The Board isn't ready to appoint Jordan chairman, in his grandfather's place, because of his "behavior". So Jordan could care less that Hannah's basically non-sexual. It means his job is safe and his chances at the chairmanship are that much better. Besides, his grandpa Edward seems to have a "thing" for her and her for him.

But when Hannah meets Callie Harper, Jordan's friend Bryce's Exec Asst (Bryce is a VP at Calder), she learns the whole sordid tale. AND Hannah's honesty with Callie as their friendship develops leads Hannah to Callie's sister, Diana. Diana has a masters in clinical psychology, is a certified hypnotherapist, and is writing a self-help book for women on how to empower themselves. Through her sessions with Diana, Hannah comes to realize that she's put her life and her sexuality on the back burner.

Soon, Hannah is sporting a whole new attitude... and then gradually, a whole new wardrobe. Suddenly, Jordan can't say that he only likes Hannah for her baking or her efficiency... he's falling for her mind, her personality, and... her newly discovered curvacious body.

Suddenly, we realize that Jordan's got his own sexual hang-ups to overcome. And both Jordan and Hannah have to find a solution to their explosive sexual chemistry.
============
I loved the characters, the situations, and the way they worked through everything. I loved seeing the new Hannah, and realizing that Jordan needed his own makeover. I loved Hannah's solution to introduce Jordan to hypnosis... shhhh! I loved watching the two of them do their mating dance, trying to avoid the inevitable. I loved watching Hannah accept herself and her body - finding that makeover of hair, makeup, body, and clothes that worked for her. I loved watching the guys fall all over themselves for Hannah, and watching Jordan make an ass of himself in his jealousy.

Fun, smart, and sexy... what more could you want? GREAT BOOK! Best 99-cents I ever spent!
Profile Image for Saeed Mohamadi.
40 reviews43 followers
July 10, 2015
My real rating 0.0000001 star.
Tne book was a soft erotica with a cliche plot for this kind of books.
I didn't go through more that 30 percent, maybe it's not fair for me to rate it this bad, but I won't force myself to suffer.
1 review
December 29, 2012
I read this book because it was free on amazon. Haha! But it's definitely a worthy read!

What I love most about it:

- The catchy word definitions and sentence usage at the start of each chapter.
- The metamorphosis of Hannah - from a shy girl with emotional baggage and psychological issues to a lady with sass, one not to mess with.
- The pairing of Hannah to Jordan who also has his own trust issues.

The book isn't just about love. It tackles more on how to love yourself in order for others to love you. I'm a firm believer of positivism, looking at the bright side and staying positive especially about yourself. How you see yourself is how you want others to see you. And this book is just an affirmation of that. Truly a great read! I've learned a lot and I'm sure to read this again. :)
Profile Image for Debra Johnson.
11k reviews179 followers
July 7, 2025
Finished Reading October 13, 2015

Hypnotic Seduction by L.L. Kellogg
Genres: Adult, Humor/Comedy, Romance
3.75 Stars

L.L. Kellogg's books always make me smile & sometimes flat out laugh hysterically! This one was funny and mostly made me smile.
The characters are interesting and well rounded. Although there were a couple of small editing problems they didn't interfere with the easy flow of the story.
I loved the sassy Hannah. She was determined to get her dreams and went for it full steam ahead. Full of fun, laughter, love & hot sexy romance.

📝🎵Purchased from Amazon June 22, 2015
Profile Image for Monica Beevers.
41 reviews12 followers
July 24, 2017
I love a good romance story that brings a person out of their comfort zone and moves them to becoming more self assured.
The writing in great, the characters are so real, the story is everything you want it to be!
All around a great read!
Profile Image for Cristina Kiefer.
387 reviews
Read
April 4, 2017
ugh...my embarrassing guilty pleasure...romance novels...it is what it is.
Profile Image for Shantal  (VERIFED BOOK LOVER).
752 reviews37 followers
June 24, 2013
I looved this boook , it had the favorite mix of everything i love in a contemporary romance. It was love-able , plain hilarious, the characters were just awesome . I did not get frustrated or annoyed with the direction of the story line , i understood all their choices and i rooted for them in every situation .

I loved the heroine , she was spunky and gave has good as she got. Her moments were the best and i loved how she explored her sexuality. This book explores the theme of sexuality and how exactly a well endowed women is open to so much criticism and also how society view thin women with a less voluptuous body in a better light. Every women should be comfortable in their skin regardless of the fact they have big boobs ,or thick hips.

I loved the transformation the characters and i loved the direction this story took .This is my first book by the author and i will continue to look out for books from her . She has made her way into my favorites shelves :)

this review can also be seen on my blog http://simpleiresitablelydivine.blogs...
52 reviews
June 7, 2012
This book was fun to read, but not really what I expected. At some points I felt the interaction between the two main characters was unrealistic. And some of the storyline that involved conflict with other characters (not related to the romance/relationship) was a little difficult to follow and confusing. I think the subplots could have been developed a little better without distracting from the main storyline.

What I did love about the book is Hannah Oliver's personality and character. Not only is she funny, but you have no choice but to admire her. It's refreshing to read a book with a character with insecurities, yet always walks on the sunny side of the street!
Profile Image for Christy.
1 review5 followers
July 15, 2012
Cute, light summer read. I got it for free on amazon for kindle. Great way to meet new authors and fall into a new story.
Profile Image for Lorraine Joubert.
28 reviews
November 2, 2018
Erotica - not to share with your mom, or teen.

The story has some potential, and maybe some editing could have improved it. It has a huge feel-good factor and I did enjoy reading it. It is tiring, however, to continuously have to stop questioning how logical/realistic some scenes were. The girl is in therapy for her shyness, but then she does it in public?! Shy people don't have sex in offices, they make sure they are private... The whole 50 shades thing of the man getting turned on by the woman chewing her lower lips - well if it was that easy, women would not have lower lips left to chew! In the end, there is also a huge jump where a manager, who hated her jumped ship and came to work for her?! I am also not convinced we are talking about love here. I agree the two main characters should enter an exclusive long-term sexual relationship, but I am not sure that they love each other and should marry - I mean really! I am also not sure what purpose all the sex scenes serve in the unfolding of the story. Some of the scenes are clearly written to make up the word-count or to serve themselves. The story has some gaps, so I think the word-count could have been reached by filling the gaps in the story.

That said, it was an enjoyable read and I giggled a couple of times.
Profile Image for Birgit.
1,331 reviews17 followers
January 12, 2018
Wallflower Hannah has a serious self-confidence problem. When she starts working for CEO Jordan (himself a sort of sex symbol), she decides to work on her self image, and tries hypnosis. Hannah's metamorphosis, however, seems to annoy Jordan, who has commitment issues, very much....
Brilliant plot, quirky and sympathetic characters, who also were sort of realistic most of the time, and a great narration style make this a very very enjoyable read. There is just the right mix of humour and drama.
Although I personally think that story might have gained by being streamlined a bit (the constant to-ing and fro-ing between Hannah and Jordan got a little bit repetitive after a while), the story was never boring, and was difficult to put aside. To see how Hannah changes from a clumsy wallflower to a self-confident person is pure entertainment; the relationship between her and Jordan is a bit hard to believe sometimes, but that does not spoil the rest of the story.
Definitely a recommendation from me, and yes, I'd like to read more in this series.
Profile Image for Maggie'may Reinders.
192 reviews
November 19, 2018
Frustrating

The concept of this book was interesting enough for me to start reading it however the actual book was lacking profoundly.
The main characters were unrealistic and shallow. Everyone sounded more like high school age rather than adults. Surprisingly the only character I found to be “real” was Kevin . He cheated on her admitted his failures and accepted his mistakes and the outcome.
This book while very cheesy and unrealistic was still “readable “ till about 70% when Jordan started talking about his ex. This is when I rolled my eyes I had had enough and started skim reading.
252 reviews
Read
February 1, 2020
Enthralling story. Delightful read.

The characters were well written and the story overall was well told. The emotional connection between Jordan and Hannah was wonderful and it was great that it began even before she began to change herself. He appreciated her before she began to change. LL Kellogg wrote of how they to became aware of how their pasts contributed to their insecurities and how they could heal to live life fully. I especially enjoyed the letter Jordan dictated for Hannah to type as it was a plus to the story.
Profile Image for Debbie.
151 reviews1 follower
July 15, 2018
Hypnotic Seduction

This book was so funny it had me laughing out loud so hard people would turn and look, the story of Hannah finding herself, approving of herself and loving herself with something a lot of people go through. Jordan was such a beautiful billionaire that she knew he was Off-limits, the struggle the teasing the anxiety the coming together and loving each other and working through both of their inhibitions made it a great read
1,343 reviews4 followers
January 18, 2019
His grandfather hired an assistant for him, she's a bit of a frump, but she knows her stuff.

He's a CEO with the Board on his tail for his supposed womanizing ways, but it's his fear of commitment is keeping him rotating thru girlfriends and assistants. It doesn't help that his hiring officer is only sending him women with looks as their main talent. Then his retired grandfather steps in.
Profile Image for Katie O'Sullivan.
Author 35 books167 followers
March 10, 2017
Okay, I know this was a Golden Heart finalist. (Actually, I didn't know that until I just grabbed that info to put together this review. I would never have guessed.) I do understand that Ms. Kellogg is a very successful romance author. And she even has a blurb from the Queen of Romance, Bella Andre. And yes, I read the whole book.

But let me just say, this is one hot mess of a story.

The characters were inconsistent in their actions and the moving forward/pulling back started to make me feel like a yo-yo being yanked around. I think the characters were a little too old to be acting so irresponsibly, but they needed to be that old in order to have the business experience and positions they held. The dialogue was inconsistent as well, jumping from normal to overly familiar to what I think the author meant as teasing or sassy but sometimes came off as pretty rude.

Hannah's character is sweet throughout, but the idea of going from embarrassed by her own sexuality to naked on the hood of a car so quickly is a stretch. I also felt like her backstory was a little over the top as to her inability to climax. Jordan's character was most inconsistent, with too many complicating factors in his backstory, and far too many inconsistencies in his present behaviors. And if he told himself how much he didn't deserve Hannah one more time I felt like I would rip my ereader apart.

I liked the general storyline and plot, but the execution was sloppy and repetitive, with some of the scenes feeling drawn out for the sake of adding to the ultimate word count. I really wanted to like this story more, but the description "hot mess" kept circling my brain regarding more than one scene. As an author who struggles with some of the same issues, I totally commiserate, but this felt more like a first draft than a finished work from a bestselling author, which left me wondering how it has so many good reviews.
Profile Image for Sam.
461 reviews15 followers
August 2, 2017
If this was a movie, it would be a rom-com with lots of sex. I loved that you got to see how both sides were feeling. The word definition at the beginning of each chapter was a little foreshadowing done in a fun way. I very rarely give a romance a 5 star rating but this one came close. Fun, enjoyable, quick read.
Profile Image for Linda Arbuckle-Ross.
56 reviews
September 22, 2018
Sweet, sexy and captivating!

You'll fall in love with Hannah.... there's probably a little Hannah in all of us girls! Then throw in Hannah's mother 🍭 Candy, former playboy centerfold in the mix! Add to that ... Jordan Calder CEO and his lovable grandfather, Edward! Sweet, sexy and captivating story!
1,059 reviews10 followers
October 30, 2018
Hilariously funny with a witty premise, this book kept me entertained from the beginning to the end. I loved Hannah's ugly duckling to beautiful swan transformation, and watching Jordan's confusion in his own reaction to her as she blossoms is hilarious. Kept me giggling and outright laughing out loud.
Profile Image for Elizabeth.
141 reviews2 followers
November 12, 2018
This was a fun freebie that I enjoyed reading from an author I never read before. I don't typically read books with boss relationships because it's a cliche that too many women fall for disastrously. I think the author does a nice job addressing that cliche and giving it a humorous twist in this romance. Loved the secondary characters and would love to read more about them.
10 reviews2 followers
August 30, 2019
Hypnotic Indeed!

I was immediately under the spell of a great romantic plot, full of ups and downs, office infighting, wonderful characters with liberal doses of sassiness and sarcasm, and finally, steamy, glass-fogging sex! This is a great book, and I'm adding two more by L. Kellogg to my reading list.
Profile Image for Alison.
7 reviews15 followers
December 1, 2022
Loved the character growth of Hannah. From shy introvert afraid to accept her gorgeous body to sassy stronge woman embracing herself in every aspect. Being able to see the people around her with grownup eyes and building truthful stronge relationships is inspiring. Looking forward to the rest of Laurie's adventures.
Profile Image for Stace.
839 reviews
November 3, 2018
My first read by L.L. Kellogg... I enjoyed this well written story and characters. I found it to be a refreshingly light and witty romance. I liked the realised phycology, but not the ugly duckling description. Look forward to to reading more from this author.
1,347 reviews5 followers
November 5, 2018
5+ Star's

Wow, I was so caught up in the story that I could simply not stop reading until the very end. This book is funny, steamy and romantic, with strong characters both male and female.
Profile Image for Anne Blyth.
1,976 reviews1 follower
November 10, 2018
My first book by this author but it won’t be my last, I thoroughly enjoyed it! I loved the feisty heroine and the hero but loved his Grandfather and also the surprise happy ending. Well worth a read.
112 reviews
November 11, 2018
L.L. Kellogg is a new author for me, but I really enjoy this read. It was a quick moving story and the twists kept you wanting to know more. I always enjoy good banter; this book definitely had Sass. I would like to see what else L.L. Kellogg has out there.
Profile Image for shadiedaze.
359 reviews1 follower
November 22, 2018
Good story

Although I enjoyed the first half of this novel, I thought it went too long. I believe this could have been a shorter story and achieved the same effect. The banter between the two main characters became stale after a point. I found myself skipping pages.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 176 reviews

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