Saving Ben

by Tiffany Winters

He lives in the limelight, her life depends on staying out of it…

On the run from a dangerous stalker and plagued by a traumatic past, coffee-shop manager Maggie Nelson avoids relationships at all costs. When a homeless man steps in to help her at work, she feels safe for the first time in years. There’s only one problem; Maggie can’t stop thinking about him and it scares her more than anything ever has. Everything she believed about love is about to be turned upside down.

Rock star Ben Fisher committed the ultimate sin, a secret that haunts him to this day. He disguises himself in the city of Portland, Oregon, determined to beat down his demons and get his life back on track. Becoming infatuated with the quirky loner behind the counter at his favorite coffee shop wasn’t part of the plan. When a creepy customer leaves her visibly shaken, he can’t restrain his protective instincts. Maggie might be the one in danger, but ultimately it’s Ben who needs saving.

495 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 28, 2016

About the author

Tiffany lives in a suburb of her beloved Portland, Oregon, where she is a school counselor by day and a dreamer of steamy stories by night. When she’s not writing, she can be found singing with her crew at Voicebox Karaoke, reading more romances (for purely professional reasons, not because she’s, like, addicted or anything), chasing after her daughter or cleaning up cat barf and then researching why—for the love of God— cats barf so often.

Tiffany is a member of Romance Writers of America, Passionate Ink and her local Rose City Romance Writers.

Reviews

[♡ Jeri's Book Attic ♡ Jeri the Romance Bibiliophile ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Using one of the rare moments of non scheduled reading time – I was browsing through the offers of a well known online bookseller. I came across a book cover that had me pause – actually because of something I usually dislike – I remembered that I had previously seen that cover picture used on another book and I tried to remember where (readers of my Blog/Facebook pages know that I have a “thing” for re-occurring covers) … While wondering where I had seen that picture I started to read the Blurb and thought that it sounded like a really interesting book.

So I directly went to Goodreads to check on the author only to find out there was NO reference to the author or book. With one eye on my full blog reading schedule and one eye on that book I was thinking “taking a chance and buy or not”.

Then I remembered there is nothing better than the feeling of discovering a debut author before others have and so I took the chance and got myself a copy of that book. And I am honestly really happy I did.

Lets get right to the point …

YES there are a few holes in the plot where I would have expected things to be different – but the total of the story made up for them and I am inclined to forget about them. Call it my debut bonus.

And YES I did think at times that there was an unbalance between the actual plot and the hot sex scenes. (Which really is probably only an issue for me because I like an equally balanced story while others will probably love this book only for the hot interactions between the leading characters alone)

AND another YES I know what I am talking about I read enough books on matters of intense sexual encounters with all of the subgenres that come with it. (Hey I am a blogger after all and review all the time)

I liked the depth of insight that Ben had on his life – I feel the author gave it a lot of thought. And while Maggie felt a little strange to me in the first chapters she grew on me later, together with all the other characters, that were created with so much care that it is not hard to imagine the stories behind them.

I think the readers will like how the characters interact and I believe it is easy to see a shape of stories for the future books in this series. The last pages of this book already give you a hint on this subject – which I will be sure to follow. (But I have to admit that my focus will probably on another member that I will have to meet in one of those books later – but I guess everybody will have his favorites)

Believe me when I say this book will cover all bases … the developing relationship between Maggie and Ben is scorching hot. All of their encounters are written so well that certain well known books (that have lately been turned into movies) will look like very pale shades of grey (pun intended) in comparison and Tiffany Winters did not even need any toys or kinky stuff to do that.

But the author also did not neglect the background story that keeps it all glued together. And yeah … I figured some things out already before they were resolved - I only could not place them in the right perspective because of deliberately missing information’s. I did not like one development in the last pages when it came to Maggie’s Stalker but I think the author will need that tiny piece for her next book.

This book can be read as a standalone because the series will feature another character in its next book, but I am pretty sure we will see Ben and Maggie again.

Which brings me to one of the plot holes I talked about that I would like to address. The people around Ben were kind of absent in moments when I would have expected them to be present and I hope that this changes in the next books because this is also part of the balance in the story I was talking about (I am keeping this spoiler free but will answer any PM concerning this)

In total this was a great read … and I admit that I am giving a Bonus star for the fact that this is a debut novel. So it is a four star read with a one star bonus for the Debut.

[Catherine Bibby (Rochelle's Reviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

To me there is nothing better than embarking on another fictional journey with a debut author or a “new to me” author and experience new characters and their earth shattering heat and get swept away into their imaginary world. There are no expectations just giddy excitement knowing that once the book is opened you will never be the same again, whether it is the most fantastic read or just mediocre. Tiffany exceeded all my expectations with Ben and Maggie in every way. The story was full of emotion and depth and the desire between them was palpable and was a “fourth of July” scorcher. Tiffany takes us to a quaint coffee shop in Portland Oregon to watch the sparks fly and love explode and change their world.

Ben Fisher is rock star hiding out under a scruffy beard and doing his best to avoid papparazzi and his past. That is until he runs into the most beautiful barista and knows that he must stay away from her or confront his demons. Ben seduced me with his mystery, gorgeous body, and his “melt your panties” bedroom talk and sexy moves. I wanted to crawl inside his mind and learn more about this tormented, delicious hero such as what created his self loathing and feel every strangled moan and uttered word of desire between him and Maggie.

Maggie Nelson also has her running shoes on in an attempt to stay away from an evil from her childhood. She spends her days working at a coffee shop and her evenings feeling a little empty. That is until a bearded hottie keeps venturing into her work and she finds her thoughts constantly straying to him. There is something about this enigmatic man that keeps her wanting to get closer and discover the man beneath the disheveled facade. Maggie shows such strength and has a mysterious and heartbreaking past of her own that draws a reader in until you can't help but bond with this heroine that not only takes life in stride and isn't afraid to put take a leap of faith and put her heart on the line.

Tiffany Winters delivers a story that will grip your heart, fire up your libido, and leave you pining for more. I highly recommend Saving Ben for a read that will is sure to have you craving a dark and mysterious rock star with a rockin' body and filthy words. Tiffany impressed and charmed me with her writing of complex and riveting characters and their dark and twisted past. I look forward to reading many more of her books and hopefully experience more of Maggie's roommate and Ben's band mates along with another round of steam and heart wrenching emotion.

[Dani · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're looking for hot drama, look no further. Beautifully written prose that captures you from the very beginning. I could not put it down!

[JD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Story by a Great Writer

Truth be told, this is not exactly my genre. However I was encouraged to at least try it, to get an idea of how a great writer can work in any genre.
Well Tiffany Winters is a great writer. And Saving Ben is a great story. I'm not sure what I expected (trashy?) from a book categorized as an adult romance novel, but I was very surprised by interesting characters, unexpected twists and turns, and it all being skillfully delivered. (Admittedly I had a certain prejudice toward previous ebook authors after having wasted money on poorly edited and overly contrived stories. Ms Winter's clearly does not belong in that category.)
Would I recommend it Saving Ben? Absolutely, especially if you've avoided adult romance novels previously!!!

[Anathea Krrill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the story of the emotionally tortured rock star Ben and the abused artist Maggie, who has been hiding from past evil for all of her adult life. I like the fact that it is Maggie who has problems with commitment. The heat level: between the MCs is Hot. As. Hell! The chemistry is great. I love both characters. They are tortured by their past and self-doubts. They are strong, they are human, and most of all: they fight for their love. There are many twists and turns in this story. Many of them unexpected. A must read if you like a gritty love story with a hard-earned HEA.