Playing Easy to Get

B.A.D. Agency #1.5

by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Jaid Black, Kresley Cole

New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon and rising stars Jaid Black and Kresley Cole unlock the pleasures and perils of embracing the boldest and most powerful of lovers -- 100% alpha males -- in three sensually erotic tales. Discover the physical rapture of his muscular arms.... Become a prisoner of passion, swept away by an encounter with his primal side.... And get lost in the all-consuming thrill of white-hot pursuit by a relentless stranger who may be your most dangerous foe, the best lover you've ever had -- or both. Let your fantasies run wild with these unforgettable novellas where bigger is most definitely better -- and playing easy-to-get is the only way to go!

"Turn Up The Heat" / Sherrilyn Kenyon
The story of an average woman who wins the vacation of a lifetime - a trip to Sex Camp. But what Allison George gets is a race for her life with an ex-Mafia who is now being sought by his previous employer. Vince Cappelleti knew the island was a risky proposition, but he'd run out of options. Now the only thing he wants in his sights is Allison, but in order to have a future with her, he must first deal with his past.

"Hunter's Oath" / Jaid Black
What was supposed to be a simple taxi ride to Fairbanks, Alaska for Sofia Rowley ends up becoming a terrifying fight for her freedom. Sold by the cab driver to a mysterious man who imprisons her in a lost Viking world, Sofia is forced to stand all but naked on a bride auction block, her fate now in the hands of the highest bidder.

"The Warlord Wants Forever" / Kresley Cole
Nikolai Wroth, a ruthless vampire general, will stop at nothing to find his Bride, the one woman who can “blood” him, making his heart beat and filling him with strength. Coldly interested only in the power his mate will bring, he can hardly believe when Myst the Coveted, his army’s new immortal captive, awakens him body -- and soul. Famed throughout the world as the most beautiful Valkyrie, Myst has devoted her life to protecting a magical jewel and to fighting the vampires.

Genres: Paranormal Romance, Romance, Paranormal, Anthologies, Vampires, Erotica, Fantasy

352 pages, Paperback

First published February 7, 2006

About the author

Official Author site
Official Nevermore site
Official Deadman's Cross site
Official Chronicles of Nick site
Official Silent Swans site
Official Hunter Legends site
Official Witch of Endor site
Official Lords of Avalon site
Official Facebook site

New York Times and international bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon is a regular at the #1 spot. With legions of fans known as Paladins (thousands of whom proudly sport tattoos from her series and who travel from all over the world to attend her appearances), her books are always snatched up as soon as they appear on store shelves. Since 2004, she had placed more than 80 novels on the New York Times list in all formats including manga and graphic novels. Her current series are: Dark-Hunters, Chronicles of Nick and The League, and her books are available in over 100 countries where eager fans impatiently wait for the next release. Her Chronicles of Nick and Dark-Hunter series are soon to be major motion pictures while Dark-Hunter is also being developed as a television series. Join her and her Paladins online at MySherrilyn.com and www.facebook.com/mysherrilyn

Fan Run International Sites:

Argentinian FB Page 

Fans de Sherrilyn Kenyon en Columbia 

Fans de Sherrilyn Kenyon en Chile 

Filipino Fans on FB 

France/French 

Italy/Italian 

Portugal 

Soy Fans de Sherrilyn Kenyon 

Dark-Hunter Spain 

Spanish

Reviews

[Maya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is only for The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole. I thought I'd enjoy the other two stories but with my limited book time, I really want to read books that suck me into them withing the first ten or so pages.

I trully enjoyed this story. There was so much action and I adored Nikolai for his patience and his love for his bride. Now, as far as the bride goes, she was really crazy. There were moments in her POV where I thought that she's literally crazy, since the decisions and choices she made made no sense to me at all. Hence the crazy bride... If you're looking for a lot of heartfelt moments then this is not the book for you. But if you're looking for a fun action packed time with lots crazy lovers scenes, then this is a must read. And if you've read some of the Immortals after dark books, then you'll enjoy and understand the plot and setting even more. All I can say, Kresley did a good job with this one.

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book excels because of The Warlord Wants Forever, the first Immortals After Dark story by Kresley Cole. I actually read this one second because I read A Hunger Like No Other first. I remember reading A Hunger and being like, "Who are Myst and Nikolai?" When I realized that there was a prequel short story, I was on the hunt to get it. Finally I found it at a Half Price Books in San Antonio. I bought it and read it when I was in Denver for training. I actually read it about 2 and 1/2 times. I love this story so much. It's short but it's very hot and sweet. So well written, with characters that jump off the page at you. I thought I loved Lachlain, until I met Nikolai. The man is so delicious to me, and like Myst, I can't resist his scars and his warrior essence. It has a captive theme, so that might not work for some. As the saying goes, I would not kick Nikolai out of bed for eating crackers. Yet honestly, Nikolai is not a gentle lover, but Myst doesn't exactly play fair either. In the IAD universe vampires are unable to have sex until they meet their Bride who 'bloods' them. And then, watch out. Well, Myst is Nikolai's bride, despite the fact that as a valkyrie she hates vampires and kills their kind. She actually exploits the fact that she can 'blood' vampires and has killed them by almost seducing them. Well she feels an attraction to Nikolai despite her hatred of vamps. When she 'bloods' him, she leaves him hanging, in desperate need that only she can assuage for five years. Talk about frustration. This story has excellent chemistry, and the skill of Cole's writing shines in this short story. She is so good at combining humor, action, and writing characters that burn for each other.

Although I do love Sherrilyn Kenyon, I have not been enthralled by her BAD stories. They are just too ordinary for me. I really like what she does with paranormal in contemporaries, and I miss it when it's not there.

The Jaid Black story was pretty unique with the modern vikings who steal women to take underground. This is one is also a captive/kidnapped story with a bit of forced seduction if that is not a person's cup of tea. It was good, and I enjoyed it. However, I would say read this collection for the Kresley Cole story!

[Alp · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are 3 short stories in this book.

1. Turn Up The Heat by Sherrilyn Kenyon : 5 Stars

Loved it! I loved this kick-ass heroine! I just wish it were a bit longer than it is.


2. Hunter's Oath by Jaid Black : 3 Stars

Well, this was a little weird story. But somehow the hero managed to grow on me! He's a romantic guy and a devoted husband...Man of my dreams! There always be a place in my heart for you, my hunky Viking!


3. The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole : 3 Stars

Please check out my review here : https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Optimist ♰King's Wench♰ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only read the Kresley Cole story.

Baby said so I did.

I'm giving it 3 Stars. Great world building and I like Cole's writing style but it didn't dazzle me.

Evidently, the lure of the IAD are the immortal dudes. I do like a big un and Wroth is big... everywhere.

I'm not mad about this, but otherwise he was kind of white bread.

I was thoroughly enjoying Myst initially especially when she blooded him then left him hanging. Literally.

FOR 5 YEARS!!!!!

"I need to fuck you so bad I'm sick with it.

I bet he is. Poor guy.

*tries to hide grin*
/fails

But then she kinda fizzled when she got a taste of Wroth's monster D. I mean, I get it, but... it lost its luster a little.

However, I did enjoy it enough to continue on with the series.

So, Baby, chip chop! The Siren is calling your name.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

My ratings for the three separate stories are:
☆☆☆ for Turn Up the Heat by Sherrilyn Kenyon
☆☆☆☆ for Hunter's Oath by Jaid Black
☆☆☆☆☆ for The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole

I bought this book specifically for the Cole story, as it is technically #1 in the series and I've already read #2 & 3 - and god it was good! Very hot and steamy, and very well written, it's obvious she wrote it at the same time as book #2 because at the end there they overlap.

Hunter's Oath was really good too, and sweet. I really liked Joren - he was such a perfect balance of strong and powerful masculinity and gentle tender caring lover. Not as easy to pull off as you'd think.

Kenyon's story was the weakest. It started off well but quickly turned into a gun fight - literally. The characterisation was good but it was very short and simple. Not a bad thing, because I was so keen to just skip ahead to get to Cole's story.

The first story is the shortest, the last one the longest. The first story is the weakest, the last the strongest. And if you're not eager to read more of the Immortals After Dark series after reading The Warlord Wants Forever, I'd be very surprised.

[Edit: my cute little stars won't show up unless you're on a Mac, sorry! but you get the idea...]

[Quinn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I imagine that most readers, like me, pick up Playing Easy to Get for the purpose of reading The Warlord Wants Forever - the first story in Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark series.

Well, do yourself a favour, and skip straight to that story, because the first two in this anthology, Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Turn up the Heat and Jaid Black’s Hunter’s Oath, probably aren’t worth your time – at least that was the case for me.


Turn up the Heat - Sherrilyn Kenyon
1.5 stars

Thankfully, I’ve read Sherrilyn Kenyon writing as Kinley MacGregor, so I know she can write stories that I enjoy. But I’ve got to say, this one would not inspire me to pick up any more of Sherrilyn Kenyon’s books. I understand the limitations and challenges of telling a satisfying short story, but I have seen it done soooo much better than this.

The writing itself was OK to a point, and I actually kind of liked the premise – a Hideaway Heroine Sweepstakes where you win the chance to become the heroine of your favourite romance novel. Cheesy, yes, but it had potential. Unfortunately, the execution bypassed mere cheesiness and headed straight to utter ridiculousness.

The heroine covered the stereotypes at both ends of the spectrum, starting off as a meek plain Jane, then out of nowhere, morphing into a kick-ass Lara Croft type. And the romance (and I use that term loosely), which also came completely out of nowhere, was completely unbelievable and unsatisfying. This one left me thinking WTF? Enough said.


Hunter’s Oath - Jaid Black
2 stars

This was my second book by Jaid Black, and I must give credit where credit is due – she has a fascinating imagination.

I believe this one is part of her Vikings Underground series, in which clans of Vikings live underground (natch) due to some crazy prophecy, and obtain (read: abduct) their wives from the surface before auctioning them off, naked, to the highest bidder.

Because the kidnapped heroine was not likely to be in the mood after such a traumatic experience, she was unknowingly given erotisk, otherwise known as Spanish Fly (an aphrodisiac), so that the author had an explanation and opportunity to include some hot and plentiful sex scenes.

Again, although the premise won’t be to everyone’s taste, the writing itself was OK. But then, with no warning whatsoever, the story just stopped, and an epilogue was provided with a HEA that came out of nowhere. Again, limitations in length should not be an excuse to stop writing and fast-forward unexpectedly to the end. This one also left me thinking WTF?


The Warlord Wants Forever - Kresley Cole
3.5 – 4 stars

My reason for getting this book was to start the much lauded Immortals After Dark series, with this novella being the first installment. Thankfully, it was longer than the two preceding stories in this anthology, and it showed.

We start with an explanation of the origin of the Valkyrie, one of the many paranormal beings in Cole’s world, which also includes vampires and ghouls. It was an interesting take on the paranormal, with different vampire lore than I have read before. Valkyries are also a first for me, and they made for quite entertaining, if at times conflicting, reading.

The Warlord Wants Forever is quite an interesting, almost brave start to a series, in that Nikolai Wroth, the hero, (a Forebearer, or turned vampire), and Myst, the heroine, (a valkyrie), were not initially particularly likeable characters, who both behaved quite abominably at times.

Myst, in particular, I found difficult to like until we learned more about her. To be fair to Myst, it seems that most, if not all Valkyries in Cole’s world have the potential to be irritating, but Myst in particular ran very hot and cold. That said, she was a fairly well-developed character given the length of the story.

I didn’t quite get the sense of knowing enough about Wroth, because he was so fixated on Myst (for reasons which are very well explained), and this was essentially the driving force behind his almost every action in the story. I must say, though, Wroth and Myst had some very hot scenes together in this enemies to lovers story.

I’ll definitely be continuing with the series. I think Cole has created an interesting world, and I’m looking forward to seeing what she will do with a full-length novel.

[Debra Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 Stars

The three stories were okay.
I had already read the 3rd story by Kresley Cole a while back and I liked it best.
All three stories could have been better, but each had their own special flavors for the reader to enjoy.

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't normally read short stories as I normally feel there isn't enough pages to get into but I did this one

[Hal Evergreen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this mainly for "The Warlord Wants Forever." I just finished A Hunger Like No Other, and I decided I wanted to know more about what Myst and Nikolai Wroth were up to while Emmaline and Lachlain were having their adventures. I decided that I might as well read the other stories too, while I had the anthology. That turned out to be a mistake.

Note that I gave the whole anthology a 3-star rating because I just didn't know how else to compromise between my very disparate ratings of the three stories it contained.

Turn Up The Heat
Sherrilyn Kenyon
2 stars

This is a bewildering story about a woman who wins a vacation to an island where a group of hunky actors are waiting to help her act out the plot of her favorite romance novel. One of these hunky actors just so happens to be an ex-Mafia hit-man who is on the run from his former boss. The owner of the resort sent the ex-mafia hit-man to hide out on the island, apparently unconcerned that this could bring the wrath of the mafia down on the island at about the same time an unsuspecting female tourist is enjoying her dream vacation there.

Oh, and there's a government agency training ground on the island, too, because I'm sure the government makes a regular practice of building top secret training facilities right next to fantasy resorts. Needless to say, everyone ends up at the training ground, helping themselves to the supply of weaponry on hand so they can enjoy a big shoot-out.

This story is completely ridiculous. I would have given it 1 star if it hadn't redeemed itself by making me chuckle a few times. If Kenyon had purposely written "Turn Up The Heat" to be a roaring farce, it could have been fun. Unfortunately, it's just too absurd to be taken seriously.

Hunter's Oath
Jaid Black
1 star

Note: this review contains a few spoilers.

This story really made me uncomfortable. It's more erotica than romance, and the premise is both bizarre and disturbing. The heroine is kidnapped and dragged off to a secret world underground that is inhabited by - I kid you not - Vikings. There she is stripped naked and sold to the highest bidder at a bride auction.

What bothers me most is how quickly the heroine is willing to relinquish her freedom, her career, and her dignity. After the briefest of internal struggles, she just gives in to the idea of being little better than a possession to a Neanderthal who has clearly never heard of women's rights. A few months later, she's pregnant, she's blissfully happily with her mast… um, husband, and has forgotten why she would ever want to go back to her old life. You know, that place where she had a successful career? Decent clothing? Voting rights? Sunlight? Yeah, I can see why none of that would appeal anymore, now that she has a big, strong man to make all her decisions for her.

This story might be some reader's idea of wish-fulfillment, but frankly, it scared the hell out of me. And I don't think I'll be reading anything else by Jaid Black in the future.

The Warlord Wants Forever
Kresley Cole
4 stars

I read the stories in this anthology in order. As a result, I was feeling a little shell-shocked by the time I made it to "The Warlord Wants Forever. " Fortunately, Kresley Cole made the whole experience worthwhile. I love her paranormal world, and I relished getting to know a bit more about the Valkyrie in this story than I did from A Hunger Like No Other. This story fills in a few small gaps from A Hunger, which I appreciated. It is also just a really hot, fun story in its own right.

Some reviewers have complained that Myst goes from being powerful, take-no-prisoners Valkyrie to submissive pet over the course of this story, but I didn't see it that way at all. Myst's vulnerabilities are present even in the beginning of the story, and her happily-ever-after with Wroth doesn't diminish her strengths at the end. I thought she was an excellent heroine, and remarkably complex, given the space limitations of the novella length. Wroth gets some good character development too over the course of the story. I really liked them both, and found myself wishing Cole had written a full-length novel about them.

I love Kresley Cole's characters and writing style. I am really looking forward to the rest of the Immortals After Dark series.

[Mahlet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I based my rating on The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole (5 stars) and Hunter’s Oath by Jaid Black (3 stars). I skipped Sherrilyn Kenyon’s story, Turn Up The Heat, based on friends’ comments here.

The Warlord Wants Forever is a short story that introduces readers to the immensely popular Immortals After Dark Series. If you actually started out the series with book one, “A Hunger Like No Other”, then you’ve already met the h/h of this story: valkyrie Myst the Coveted, and turned vampire and general of the Forbearers army, Nikolai Wroth. In A Hunger Like No Other, Myst and Wroth are already a couple, so like me, you may have considered skipping this anthology because you know how their story ends and Myst and Wroth just trace in and out of a few scenes in book one, but don’t make a huge impression – well DON’T! Don’t skip their story! Although The Warlord Wants Forever is considered a short story, it’s a nice meaty 150 pages, and makes up nearly half of this “anthology”. In true Kresley Cole form, the story and bond between the h/h was extremely sexy, passionate, and palpable. In the beginning, they hurt and/or planned to hurt each other, although their attraction to one another was making matters difficult. Great tension here! And when Wroth finds Myst after five years of sexual torture (which was inflicted by her), his pain and wanting come across so real…..Add to that a moving ending and a HEA. The Warlord Wants Forever is the best story in this book; I pretty much re-read it just as soon as I was finished. I was really that good and worth the cost of this entire anthology.

I also enjoyed Hunter’s Oath. It was a little short, but since that meant more room for Wroth & Myst, I was happy! The beginning of Hunter’s Oath took a little adjusting as they kept referring to women as “wenches.” Once I got over that, it was smooth sailing and a wonderful, sweet story. Somehow, the author took the scenario of a young lonely woman being snatched by a “bride-hunter”, taken to a secret underground Viking world, then placed onto an auctioning block and sold into marriage to a sexy nobleman…..and yet the heroine and the reader will still fall hard for this Viking hero ;)

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yee-ha! Off on another series adventure. I only read Kresley Coles' "The warlord wants forever" cos I wanted to start her series. Loved it. Took me a little time to get into the 'other world' as I am not used to reading fantastical fiction. But once in I was hooked. Can't wait to get to the official first in the series "A hunger like no other."

I thought the romance between Nikolae and Myst was yummy. Just the right mix of friction and romance. The sex was hot (about my limit - but oh so good). I usually don't like reading short stories or anthologies cos they leave me wanting as far as plot and character development go, but that is just not the case in this book. It was great. The writing flowed well which meant that I didn't have to skip back and forward to figure out what was what (often the case lately with this new genre for me).

Highly recommended and I am so please I read this first so I have a 'base' for the series.

[Emily May · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plot: 3 star
Characters: 4 stars
Writing: 3 stars
Sexiness: 4 stars


Overall: 3.5 stars

[Irene Kiew · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this book because I recently read book #1 of Immortals After Dark by Kresley Cole ("A Hunger Like No Other") and I discovered that this book has the prequel to the series. Since I know that IAD is a PNR series, I expected all the stories in this collection to be paranormal, more so because I know Sherrilyn Kenyon is known for another famous PNR series, the Dark-Hunters. But! Kenyon's story wasn't paranormal!

It was contemporary -- but what is worse is, it was campy and silly and utterly lacking in romance. Kenyon's Dark-Hunters books have been in my TBR for awhile, but with this sample of her writing, I am contemplating whether to give all of the books away. I frequently rely on novellas in anthologies like this to give me an idea of the author's writing style and to get a feel of how they write dialogue and develop their plot & characters. That's how I discovered Larissa Ione and Lora Leigh. I was extremely disappointed with this lacklustre showing from Kenyon.

The story by Jaid Black was paranormal and slightly better... but just slightly. This tale of a woman snatched off the street to be auctioned in a secret world of Vikings held so much promise. But there's little connection between the two main characters except sex (she gets dosed with an aphrodisiac and is in a sexual frenzy for DAYS, which he of course is very happy to assist with). They never talk about anything important. He cherishes her because apparently Viking men are all predisposed to love the woman they buy as a wife. Uh-huh, you read that right. She decides to stay because he treats her so well and she has no family left in her world. Pffffft. Romance? What romance?

Then we come to Kresley Cole's story, which was the one I really wanted to read. Omg NON-CONSENT #@$*&! I didn't like what the two main characters did to each other. She leaves him to suffer for five years, so when he finds her again, he is determined to make her suffer, too. And then he discovers a way to magically control her actions. I HATED him for that. Granted, he has reasons but still--! That is not the kind of man I'd call a hero! And the first time they are intimate he takes her in anger, HURTING her and ... this is so not okay. She was not ready for him. Sure, Cole tries to make it okay by saying that Myst is such a warrior that she would never respect a man who could not best her, and that she *wanted* him to prove his dominance and defeat her. So apparently, to her it's practically necessary that the man be able to take what he wants even though she might not want to give it to him. But it still left a bad taste in my mouth. And he is so freaking insecure for a badass warrior. He doesn't share his thoughts with her. He assumes the worst about her and judges her. He is such a HORRIBLE hero. It made me sad 😢

[Misspharaoh · Rating 4 out of 5]

เล่มนี้ประกอบด้วยสามเรื่อง จากผู้เขียนสามคน

เนื่องจากตามชุด Immortal after dark ได้มาเกือบ 10 เรื่องแล้ว เลยย้อนกลับมาอ่านเล่ม 1 ซึ่งเหมือนเป็นเรื่องสั้น แต่สนุก แซ่บ ซึ้ง พอควรเลยค่ะ

ซึ่งเรื่องที่เราเลือกอ่านคือ The warlord wants forever by Kresley Cole เป็นเรื่องของแวมไพร์หนุ่ม นิโคไล รอธ กับวัลคีรีสาว มิตส์ ซึ่งความจริงแล้วเผ่าพันธุ์ทั้งสองเป็นศัตรูกัน (ความจริงวัลคีรีจ้องจะฆ่าแวมไพร์ฝ่ายเดียวมากกว่า) แต่มิตส์กลับทำให้นิโคไลมีเลือดเนื้อขึ้นมา เนื่องจากหล่อนถูกกำหนดให้มาเป็นเจ้าสาวของเขานั่นเอง

แรกๆจะลำไยนางเอกหน่อย เล่นตัวอยู่ได้นะยะหล่อน สงสารพระเอก นิโคไลก็เฝ้าแต่ตามหาเจ้าสาวของเขา ทนทุกข์ทรมานมาตั้ง 5 ปี พอเจอก็ตกลงจะทดลองอยู่กัน 2 อาทิตย์ แต่เข้าใจผิดกันไปอีกทั้งที่รักกันแล้ว สุดท้ายจนใกล้จบเห็นความรัก เสียสละชีวิตที่พระเอกมอบให้ เราซึ้งน้ำตาคลอเลย 😭 โถพ่อแวมไพร์

อยากจิบอกสำหรับสายหื่น ชุดนี้คือแซ่บมว้ากกกก 🌶 ตั้งแต่อ่านนิยาย paranormal romance แปลมานี่ เราว่าชุดนี้คือแซ่บสุดแล้ว สายนี้พึงใจได้เลย ☺️☺️ การันตี หุหุ

สำหรับเรื่องนี้ให้ 4/5 ละกัน ขอหักลำไยนางเอกหน่อยๆ กับความสั้นไปของเรื่อง

ออเรื่องนี้เหมือนนางเอกเป็นอมตะปะ นางอายุ2000กว่าปี แต่พระเอกแค่300เอง แต่นางหยุดโตอยู่ที่25 ส่วนพระเอก35 เอ๊ะ ยังไง555

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three authors each with a spicy story to tell. I enjoyed all three. They were very creative. If you like these then you will love their novels.

[Eastofoz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthology is terrible except for the Kresley Cole story that is actually a story and not just a mishmash of lame story-telling and poor borderline erotica pulled together at the last minute. Cole's story, that starts the IAD, is the only thing holding a 3 star review. The story itself is worth a 3.5-4 stars the others are worth a 2.

Jaid Black's "Hunter's Oath" starts out alright but it quickly turns into a syrupy sweet rushed blob of goo and suddenly you have this non-sensical HEA. The sex is there for the sake of having some sex even if it is part of the so-called story line. The hero has the hots for a terrified woman being sold naked at a marriage auction block like a slave. She's oiled and shaved everywhere --this is what I mean by bad erotica. I think it was intended as erotica but for me anyway, it was a far cry from it because of the abject fear that the poor heroine was experiencing. Pretty creepy if he's all hot and bothered over that. It also gets preechy about religion at one point--right out of left field that one! The author felt the need to moralize I guess which stuck out like a sore thumb. It's poorly written and just silly. The HEA is 100% gag worthy.

Sherrilyn Kenyon's "Turn up the Heat" starts out well too but quickly spirals into just plain stupidity. It's like a bad episode from the Sopranos at one point. The whole mafia thing is so stereotypical that it's not funny. She tried way too hard and it just didn't work. Her heroine, this plain Jane little mouse of a woman suddenly morphs into a Lara Croft sex kitten knowing the ins and outs of how to use a .22 and a glock--all because she was raised on a farm in the American mid-west--it doesn't get any more unbelievable than that. Everybody is calling everybody "baby" and loving each other after 20 minutes of being together. This is some very bad stuff.

Kresely's Cole's "The Warlord Wants Forever" is a real story that the author put some effort into writing. Good thing I started with that one and not the other two otherwise it'd have quickly been tossed into the DNF pile. It goes a bit fast but it is a short story so it can be overlooked. The full length books in the series are better. She does a great job building up tension and she tells a plausible story. Too bad you can't just buy this story and spend less money than on the $14 anthology of garbage.

[Mojca · Rating 2 out of 5]

I expected a little more from this anthology since the blurbs promised a bang that the stories just didn't deliver.
Sherrilyn Kenyon's contribution was typical SK. A goody-two-shoes heroine with no life whatsoever that needs just the right guy to unleash the temptress that's lurking just beneath her holier-than-thou facade. A tall, dark, and dangerous hero with a shady past and a murderous "family" bossman on his tight ass, that just happens to have a penchant for the Dairy Maid thing the heroine has going on.
The premise was promising, but the acting-out-a-book scenario and the slowness of the pace ruined it for me. Luckily Joe Public, BAD leader, made a small appearance in the end, bringing a much needed ray of sunshine in this rather boring story.

I'm growing rather tired of Jaid Black's Viking stories. There's nothing interesting about a bunch of Vikings buried underground because of a crazy prophecy. They might appear interesting for a while, though the softness-of-heart could be toned down a bit - getting old and boring, but whenever I start enjoying the story, bam, there goes the mention of them living underground because of a crazy prophecy, and my interest withers and dies a slow and agonizing death.
This one was no exception...And it was too short to even make it believable (despite the living underground because of a crazy prophecy).

I'm not sure about Kresley Cole's novella. One moment I liked it, than something the hero or heroine (or both) did got me disliking it with a passion. I just couldn't relate to neither of them, not fully. They were quite perfect fiction characters, both with major flaws, both with huge chips on their shoulders, so reading about them and their journey should've been quite a ride, yet I just couldn't go past the fact she was a psychotic nutcase and him a jealousy-prone, possessive jerk. But that's just me.
The sneak peek for Ms. Cole's next novel, the first full installment in the Immortals After Dark series was quite promising, so I'm truly hoping for the best.

[Ladiibbug · Rating 4 out of 5]

Romance Anthol.

"Turn Up The Heat" (non-PNR) - Sherrilyn Kenyon

One more fun, exciting adventure featuring the men & women of B.A.D. (Bureau of American Defense (think off-the-books CIA-like).

I LOVE her BAD series - many are stories in anthol's. - and wish she'd write another full-length BAD book.

"Hunter's Oath" (PNR) - Jaid Black

Cool, I stumbled over a 2nd JB anthol. story featuring the hidden underground world of the Vikings! Must check out this author.

"The Warlord Wants Forever" (PNR) - Kresley Cole

First time I've read this very popular author. This story was good, I wasn't crazy about the Valkyrie sisters thing, but the romance was GREAT!

An excerpt for "A Hunger Like No Other", #1 Immortals After Dark knocked my socks off!!!! OMG, I went running to her site and have a copy coming from Books Free! Yowsa!

[Samantha Mullins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since this was an anthology I can't really review one book entirely. But What I do remember from reading all of them, is that they all hooked me into each of these series and though I haven't started Vikings Underground yet, the story captivated me, it was an intriguing new style of a story, With Time Travel, Dominant men, strong women, and in the end love and compassion. B.A.D. I love Sherrilyn Kenyon before I ever read this book so I knew I would probably like it and though it's not really in the norm of what I read I enjoyed and have since read another book in this series and enjoyed it and it will be reviewed on another page. Warlord wants forever had me so captivated that I instantly when out and bought "A Hunger like no other" and today I'm pretty far into the series.

[Fangirl Musings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, so technically I've not 'actually' finished reading this book - I just read the first story, Turn Up The Heat by Sherrilyn Kenyon.

Which was AWESOME!

I adored the story, and just plain loved the chemistry between Vince and Allison! The conclusion of the story was so heartfelt, beautiful, and euphoric that I fell in love with this short story! I felt the characters to be very real and believable, and the plot was just plain fun!

[Laura]

I swear I've read this, and I can't find anything to show for it! How frustrating!
I even remember the Jaid Black story. This is why I write reviews, it's so I can remember later on what I liked/disliked about a story, and I'm so mad at myself I didn't write one for this.

argh!

FWIW, I loved The Warlord Wants Forever, and didn't care for the other 2 stories.

[Shawna · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars – Romantic Suspense/Paranormal Romance/Erotica Anthology

[Exina]

I've read only The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole from this anthology, so no rating here.
My review here.

[S. Rutherford · Rating 5 out of 5]

-- The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole --
-- Completed 12/13/2013 --
Before I begin, if you're looking for the cover shown on Kresley Cole's website (you know, the one with the grayed out hunk and the shiny green title?), know that if you're getting this story in paperback, it WON'T have that cover. It took me a lot of researching to discover that A Warlord Wants Forever is a novella, NOT a full blown novel. So unless you have an E-Reader and you're getting the electronic version of this story, the cover will not look the same.

That aside...

The reason I got this whole book in the first place was to read this story. I wasn't disappointed.

Although the other stories before it were "meh", with lengths that--combined--took up half the book, The Warlord Wants Forever was about the other half of the entire thing. I purchased this book namely so I can read the pilot for the entire series. Even though they say A Hunger Like No Other is book 1, technically they are wrong.

Like all of Kresley's other stories (well, the few that I've read thus far) this one was written just shortly before the declared "book 1" was taking place. Anyone who's read her Immortals After Dark series knows that each book pretty much leads into the next, though generally the next book has already begun halfway through the one you're currently on. That's how this story is; by the end of the novella, A Hunger Like No Other is already halfway complete. I guess when Kresley put this story out, again as the pilot, she gave the reader a hint as to what the follow-up will be about but not through a cliffhanger. I've noticed a trend: Kresley Cole does not write cliffhanger endings to lead into another story; she writes little hints into each one. It's a much better way of planting the seed of interest into the reader's head to get them to read the next one in the series, because if the reader is satisfied with the story already, they may NOT want to care about the cliffhanger regarding completely new people. They read a book for the hero/heroine; why should they care about the next book's hero/heroine? Kresly doesn't write like that, and I applaud her genius.

Like all of Kresley Cole's books, the sex in this story was amazing. She doesn't just write minimal detailed scenes, which actually is better for the reader's mind as it leaves room for the reader's imagination--which in turn gets the reader involved and aroused. She doesn't just write cut and dry comments for it either (namely, skipping over the actual events to just say "by next morning...", and making the reader take a moment to imagine a night of hot, passionate love). The way Kresley writes her sex is through her words. Sometimes she relies on dialogue, and sometimes she relies on her nondescript action scenes. She knows the right time to insert which plan of attack she'd use, and she doesn't bog the reader down with extra endless wording. There are no flowery descriptions, but at the same time, no dry statements. She talks dirty, but not trashy. She gets your mind flowing, making your imagination fill in the blanks.

She knows how to write.

And like all reviews I state, the writing style itself is pretty powerful. I didn't find any typos that jarred me, be it words or spelling, and the way she wrote everything out paints a very clear picture--but not OVER paints it. Not a lot of writers have achieved this goal, in my opinion. Some writers put too much description, while some lack a few much needed additions. Kresley, to me, is up there right next to Karen Marie Moning. I know that by reading her stories, it doesn't just entice me to pick up my laptop and continue writing, but it helps recharge my writing capability. Writers know the phrase: read to write, write to read. It goes hand-in-hand with "read something similar to what you're writing".

Again, this novella was the pilot to her Immortals After Dark series, so it's not *required* that you ought to read it first, but I'd definitely recommend it. It fills in the blanks to a few things mentioned in future stories that Kresley either forgot to explain, or felt she didn't need to. After all, a loyal fan should have read ALL of her books, or at least all of the particular series, if they want to be considered a true fan.

In the end, this story alone is the reason I give this entire book 5 Stars.


-- Hunter's Oath by Jaid Black --
-- Completed 12/12/2013 --
Okay, so I was definitely NOT expecting this. If yours looking for a hot read, I certainly recommend this one. Now I haven't gotten to Kresley Cole and I know she promises hot reading, but this story threw me in for a surprise.

Technically, the date is 12/12/2013, but I'd prefer to think of it as midnight on 12/11/2013 because I started to read this before bed, planned on picking it back up to finish tomorrow, and got drawn in.

When I was talking about not getting drawn in for the first story, I definitely got drawn into this one within the first chapter's first POV. Not only has Jaid Black written in a manner that's so easy to read, but she's not afraid to use words that shows real LIFE. They are the dirty, street words "good" people believe they are too classy to say. And not only is the writing so realistic, the tidbits of reference to sexual comments are amazing--not too detailed, which leaves LOTS of room for your imagination to pick up.

And boy, does it pick up! And when you get to a real juicy scene, because of how realistic and easy Jaid wrote this, it makes the reader's libido awaken.

I think I saw a typo of some sort, or maybe my mind was focusing on something else at that time and I really didn't, but either way, this was an excellent story. I've never heard of Jaid Black before, but I'm hoping that if I were to go pick up her other books, her hot writing style would carry over.

In a nutshell, the suspense of being kidnapped in the beginning drew me in; then came the arousal of the dirty words, actions, and suggestive thoughts.

Yeah, it's true, some people would point out that it's unrealistic because she doesn't even try to escape to return to her career, her own clothes, or her very own freedom, and state that she doesn't try to return to the world of equality where women have rights, and instead chooses to stay in this alpha-male dominate world.

Something to keep in mind people: not everyone is as stupid as you. Some people know that when you're warned about the security of the place and just how strong that security is, that NO ONE has ever managed to escape in hundreds of years--thousands even--you tend to think the warnings are scaring you, but you also consider that they are being honest. Which is exactly what the heroine does.

Now you also have to keep in mind that she KNOW she has no family back in her world. She KNOWS her job isn't her career anymore because of how boring it is. She planned to change the job, just as she planned to find herself a guy. And women's rights? What fucked up world are YOU living in? Only in America are women really treated like equals. In other countries, women might have equal rights, but they don't try and rise up above the men. They know their place in this world, and have accepted it. It's only in America do you have the truly dumb females who think their independence is more important than tradition and genealogy survival. It's the man who runs the economy of the nation; women were the ones to run the domestic side.

Now biased opinions aside, this one's a definite read. Chose your OWN opinion on what you want to take away from this story, and don't let these other reviews/critics sway you at all. Not everyone believes that a woman should wield ultimate power over her man.

-- Turn up the Heat by Sherrilyn Kenyon --
-- Completed 12/11/2013 --
I've never read a Sherrilyn Kenyon book before (at least, not that I can recall), and I wasn't sure what I was getting into. I know she's been around for a while, and I know she's somewhat popular, but I never attempted her stories. Usually, I steer clear of popular things because what's popular is usually bad or horrible (which is badder than bad, and not in a good way). Heck, Twilight is proof enough of that.

Now the story wasn't what I was expecting. I didn't read the back for good reasons; the story wasn't long enough, so I wanted to see if it would draw me in without having to rely on a back cover blurb. In fact, I only purchased this book because it's Kresley's Cole's first Immortals After Dark book for her series, and I wanted to read them all in order.

As I said, the story wasn't what I was expecting. Perhaps it's because I'm in the middle of writing a vampire romance that I was expecting it to be a vampire story. But it's not, and that's fine. It was good on its own without the paranormal encounters.

Though in saying that, I will say that it didn't draw me in. The writing was easy to follow, and rather fun to read. I didn't find any typos, and there wasn't too much detail, or too little. It just didn't draw me in. It was well scripted and painted the picture, but it didn't get my libido running on high octane. It felt just like a fluff story. There was good tension, but it didn't make my blood burn in my veins. It didn't make me wish I were the heroine getting the hero's hot body wrapping around mine.

But it's still a good read. Keep in mind that it's a short novella, so background stories are clipped and straight to what you NEED to know. It would have been nice to know a little more, but for the sake of wordcount, I'm not holding it above Sherrilyn's head.

[Jane Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

First two stories great, the third ok.

5 stars for HUNTER’S OATH by Jaid Black.

STORY BRIEF:
Sophia attended her brother’s funeral in Alaska. She takes a taxi to the airport, but the driver locks her inside and instead drives her to a cabin in a remote area of Alaska. Two tall, weird mountain men pay money to the taxi driver and take Sophia to an underground society of Viking people. There is a shortage of women, so they kidnap women from above and sell them on the auction block to be wives to the Viking men below. A kindly old woman feeds and tends to Sophia. Just before Sophia is to be auctioned off, the woman gives her a drink and tells Sophia it will calm her nerves. Sylvia doesn’t know she was just given an aphrodisiac.

Johen is one of the Vikings. He wasn’t planning to buy a bride, but when he sees Sophia he is in love at first sight. He can’t bear the thought of any other man having her, so he bids the highest and buys her. On the way to his dwelling, Sophia is in great pain due to the aphrodisiac. The moment they arrive she jumps onto his bed to take care of her need. Johen had planned to wait before having sex with his bride. But when he realizes she’s under the influence of the aphrodisiac he gives a silent prayer of thanks. He asks her if she wants his help. She wails “yes, please.” He helps her by having sex with her.

REVIEWER’S OPINION:
This is a short story. It’s fun. It makes me smile. I like it because it is different and because the author is a good story teller. I’m drawn to the characters right away. I feel their feelings. There is more story than sex. The sex scenes are good. I like the way the Viking men are so devoted to their wives’ happiness. They are patient and kind. They are taught that their brides are the center of all life and meaning for them. Another captured woman Amani tells Sophia about her own capture. Years ago Amani had been full of rage and anger and attempted escape at every chance. But then she changed due to love. Sophia says “I’m happy that you fell in love with your husband, but” “Yes I did” Amani interrupted. “But it was not my love for Eemil that I spoke of. It was Eemil’s love for me that I found impossible to keep waging war against.”

I was chuckling at the language several times. It’s campy in a pleasing way. Examples of some of the phrases are: “Once a wench was captured, she could never return to the Outside; ‘twould be foolhardy and mayhap cause the collapse of their civilization.” “I will speak with the king on the morrow… You have my vow.” “I will not breach you… I just want to touch you.” “Welcome to our dwelling.”

UNDERGROUND VIKING SERIES:
Each one can be read as a stand-alone.
3 stars. Besieged (in the anthology The Hunted)
5 stars. Hunter's Oath (in the anthology Playing Easy To Get)
5 stars. Hunter's Right (in the anthology Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down)
4 stars. Deep, Dark & Dangerous

DATA:
Story length: 76 pages. Swearing language: strong. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 4. Total number of sex scene pages: 4. Setting: current day rural Alaska. Copyright: 2006. Genre: fantasy romance.

OTHER BOOKS:
For a list of my reviews of other Jaid Black books, see my 5 star review of One Dark Night.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...


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5 stars for TURN UP THE HEAT by Sherrilyn Kenyon.

STORY BRIEF:
Vince used to work for Gino (the Mafia). Vince wants out so Gino has thugs trying to kill him. Z and Vince were childhood friends. Z is now wealthy. Z offers to send Vince to one of Z’s private islands to hide. That particular island is a fantasy getaway for romance novel sweepstake winners. The island has actors and buildings to recreate scenes from novels.

Allison works in a big box store in a small Georgia town. Her friend signs her up for the sweepstakes and she wins. Allison is flown to the island and is dressed like the heroine in a book. Several good looking male actors are there plus Vince. Allison sees Vince as a dark, dangerous, predator that she can’t resist. The actors seem like boy scouts next to Vince.

REVIEWER’S OPINION:
This was a really good short story. It’s definitely for romantic suspense lovers. The setting may be a little unbelievable, but the story is fun and different. The reason I gave it 5 stars was because things happened that I wasn’t expecting and that surprised me. It’s rare for books to do that. I won’t say more because I want to leave surprises for others to enjoy. I will say there is no stupidity, and the sex scenes are hot. This is a reread for me. I read it in 2007 and again in 2011.

DATA:
Story length: 91 pages. Swearing language: moderate. Sexual language: moderate. Number of sex scenes: 3. Total number of sex scene pages: 9. Setting: current day New York City, Madison, Georgia, and a private island. Copyright: 2006. Genre: romantic suspense.

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3 stars for THE WARLORD WANTS FOREVER by Kresley Cole.

It was ok, not great. Nikolai Wroth is warrior vampire. Myst the Coveted is Valkyrie. She bloods vampires and then kills them. She has admired Wroth from his human days. For some reason, she bloods him (gives him a drop of her blood during a kiss), but does not kill him. The blooding leaves him aroused and unable to achieve release until he can find her, which is five years later.

Data:
Story length: 153 pages. Sexual language: strong/erotic. Copyright: 2006. Genre: paranormal romance.

This is Book 1 of a series. It was worth reading only because I loved Book 2, which is a separate book called "A Hunger Like No Other."

[Natalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Raunchy .... I love it. Lol.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Playing Easy To Get is an erotic romance anthology that I wanted to read for the story by Kresley Cole which is part of her Immortals After Dark series. I've heard a lot of good things about Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series for so was also looking forward to trying her B.A.D series. I've not read anything by Jaid Black before either so this was a good way to try a couple of new to me authors. Overall I'd say this book is worth reading for the stories by Kresley Cole and Sherrilyn Kenyon but I wasn't that keen on Jaid Black story. I'd recommend this if you're a fan of any of the authors included in the anthology or if you'd like to try out any of these series or authors. I'm giving this 4 stars based on the Cole & Kenyon stories.

Turn Up the Heat - Sherrilyn Kenyon 4/5 Stars
This is the first story I've read in Sherrilyn Kenyon's BAD series and I thought it was an enjoyable story. When Vince and Allison meet the attraction is instant and things build very quickly between them but you have to expect that in a romance novella when there isn't much time to build a relationship slowly. I liked both of the main characters and thought they complimented each other well. I will definitely be checking out more books in this series as I'm very curious to find out more about the Bureau of American Defense and the men and women who work for them.

Hunter's Oath - Jaid Black 2/5 Stars
This was my least favorite story in the anthology - I just didn't like the way the heroine Sofia is kidnapped and then sold as a Bride in a a secret underground Viking world she was taken to. The "Brides" are basically given no choice in the matter and might as well be being sold into slavery. Force fed an aphrodisiac before the auction she has no choice but to consumate her new marriage unless she wants to be in unbearable pain. I found the whole thing completely unbelievable and it just wasn't my kind of story. I don't think I'll be reading any more of this series.

The Warlord Wants Forever - Kresley Cole 4/5 Stars
This story was the main reason I wanted to read the anthology as I've already read the next 3 books in the Immortals After Dark series and it was my favorite story in the book. I have to confess that I wasn't that keen on Myst at the start of the story but she did grow on me as I got to know her better and I really liked Wroth from the beginning. This is a great introduction to the series if you haven't started reading it yet and it's a series I would definitely recommend to paranormal romance fans.

[♥Tricia♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is for just the section: Immortals After Dark, #0.5 by Kresley cole.

I had heard alot about this series, but the book cover kept turning me off for some reason lol.

When I started reading it, it was a little slow.. and I wondered how the relationship was going to work out as there was alot of ill feelings and confusion about who she was on his part.

Reading on it was actually a really good story with alot of tension between the two for various reasons. I had never read anything by this author before so I wasn't sure if this was one of those HEA at every book or more UF so that worked in my favor as I actually thought for a second in part of the book that this might not end happily. Which I don't mind sometimes in series as long as the story is good.

I liked the uniqueness of the blooding in the vampire race in her story. It's not often you find a new twist to the myth and it was pleasantly easy to accept within the story.

I was intrigued by the Valkyrie's and their background and am hoping to read more about them in the next books. Though I haven't researched them so I can just hope she doesn't end their story with this book as they were a joy to read about.

I enjoyed the dream scenes where Wroth learns about his Bride. I love how you are taking things, as the reader, out of context as he was when reading his dreams.. and then finding out he was mistaken and just how much compassion she actually has for the people she cares about.
This is what made the race interesting to me, as she is supposedly the nice one of the bunch.

You don't learn too much of Wroth's background, which I was a bit disappointed with, I would love to learn more about his brother and this Ivo character. Again I am hoping to read more about them all in the following books.

Overall the story was great and the characters were lovable.. and I really loved the *love/hate* thing going on with the two.

I only gave this book 4 stars because I wanted more information and backgrounds of the other characters but was left lacking. Of course I guess that's to be expected since her story had to be short enough to be shared in the book with two other authors.

[Terra · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far this Anthology is quite sexy.

Sherrilyn Kenyon's "Turn Up The Heat" is every woman's fantasy. Unlike most of Sherrilyn Kenyon's other novels, this story is about a young woman from a poor background working at walmart. Allison is not your everyday type of girl that she thinks she is. Meeting an old friend brings her an opportunity of a lifetime with the encouragement to go for it. Little does Allison know what is about to take place. Sherrilyn Kenyon brings to life the raw male masterpieces, tropical paradise and enough action to make even the sainted of us envy. The author has really Turned Up The Heat in this novella.

Jaid Black's "Hunter's Oath" is a nice concept of the Viking race. The idea of bride hunters was a little barbaric but actually fits with the overall theme here. Jaid Black has brought us a slice of heaven with this novella. Kidnapped, held captive, sold like the common slave to these Barbarians is enough to make the strongest of women weep. Sofia brings us a character going through the turmoil of everyday life and thrown into situtation that no one would ever consider happening. Drugged to the point of extreme discomfort, Sofia's Barbarian turns out to be a angel in disquise. The amount of changing emotions in this story keeps the reader from putting the book down. It's a story that must be read from beginning to end without interuption.

Kresley Cole's "The Warlord Wants Forever" took me by surprise compared to the other novella's in this book. Two immortal races, immortal enemies are caught in a web of fate that baffles all involved. The main characters are strong, erotic, spiteful and demanding. The sexual attraction is raw while the actual acts are pure carnel hunger. I must say that the story line didn't really make itself visable until two thirds through the novella. Once the actual plot was discovered it was quite enjoyable and explained the beginning of the story.

Overall the book was quite enjoyable but like most anthologies, you read, weep, laugh, drool and then go onto the next.

[♥ Sam ♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

How am I meant to rate a book that has three stories in it that I would all rate differently.
I purchased this book solely for the Kresey Kole Novel "the warlord wants forever" but decided it was worth reading the other two stories included.

The first story in the book was just plain ridiculous and unfortunately very far fetched. I understand that in a short story the plot has to move fast but honestly this was just stupid. This lady lands on a 'fantasy' island then within a couple of hours has bonked this complete stranger and feels completely at ease when he tells her she has to run away with him or get killed. Then ultimately falls in love and 'happily ever after'. Unfortunately this has turned me off a potential Author that I was looking into reading.

The second story really wasn't much better, so much so that I honestly cant remember the name of the story or the author. But it was about Vikings that lived in the underworld that came to the surface to kidnaped women and take them to the underworld to be auctioned off as brides.

First problem with this story was the whole viking thing. I love paranormal and fantasy but viking was pushing even my limits. They auction off women like slaves or 'wenches' and just think that the women must adjust. NOT COOL.

But finally the third novel was the Kresly Kole novel and thankfully I did like it. I was a little unsure to begin with because after such rave reviews I was expecting something a little different. It was unnerving how really she didn't want to be with him and he technically kept her captive so she could fall in love with him. I did wish that the novel had been longer because like the first two story it ended quickly with the typical happily ever after. I liked how he was scared and unlike most vampire books he couldn't get his groove on AT ALL until he found his true love, his bride.

Looking forward to the next in the Kresley Kole series.

So overall I give the book a three out of five.