Title: Turn it Up
Author: Kim Karr
Series: Detroit Love #2
Release Date: May 16, 2016
My Rating: 5 Stars!
My Rating: 5 Stars!
Charlotte Lane was the tomboy who lived next door.
Eyes the color of the summer sky.
Mounds of curly blond hair.
A little bit of sassy and a whole lot of sweet.
She was my best friend. My confidant. My salvation.
But when circumstances tore us apart, it put more than just miles between us. I hated her. Blamed her for my worst nightmare. And I never wanted to see her again.
Then one wrong turn brought her back into my life and now she’s under my skin. In the midst of all the chaos surrounding us, she’s what’s changing me. Practically bringing me to my knees. Driving me to want to be a better man.
But nothing is ever easy.
And as our worlds begin to crumble…so do we.
Our bond withstood the test of time, but when the future brings the unexpected, it will either draw us closer or tear us apart.
Can we weather the storm?
© 2016 by Kim Karr
Jasper Storm
What kind of person willingly drives a thirty-six-foot racing machine at breakneck speed through ten-foot waves?
The kind that isn’t put off by the possibility of smashing his nose against the steering wheel if he has to come to an abrupt stop when racing around the track—that’s who.
Today though, Lake St. Clair tops out with uninhibiting two-foot waves at the most, and my speed is tempered by the amount of passengers on board.
Classic Beatles is playing from the speakers on deck. Drew is leaning back in the cushions of the wraparound benches behind me with a beer in his hand. Jake and Shannon are sitting up in the sun loungers on the bow, both also with brews in hand.
Sitting at the helm, Charlotte is standing next to me in a simple black bikini that shows so much skin it is driving me crazy, her mounds of blond curls blowing in the wind making my fingers itch to run through them, and her sunglasses preventing me from seeing her blue eyes. I wrap my arm around her and guide her to stand in front of me. “You take the wheel.”
“I haven’t driven a boat in years.”
Standing, I pull her even closer. My board shorts feeling tighter by the second. “It’s like riding a bike.”
Looking over her shoulder at me, she gives me a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’ll give it a try,” she says.
Just that slight touch of her lips ignites a fire that starts to flame through my veins. When she takes the wheel, my body is ablaze. Unable to keep my hands off her, I compromise my need to touch her by covering my hands over hers. The cast prohibiting me from making the full connection I’m craving. I hate that she still bears the mark of her attack. I shove that thought away.
It’s a beautiful day, sunny as fuck and not a cloud in sight. The wind has picked up a little the further out we go, and when the softness of her hair brushes against my neck, it sends a shiver racing down my spine.
Taking a seat in the captain’s chair, I pull her onto my lap. The slight curves of her body fit me perfectly. Unable to compromise any longer, discreetly, my hands roam her body. Sliding down her thighs, up her arms, tucking under the small fabric at her hips. I can’t help myself.
Ten minutes or so goes by as we pass over the water like it’s a sheet of glass. I kiss her—her neck, her throat, her jaw. Take a little nip at her shoulder and then soothe it with my tongue.
Concentrating on driving, I’m surprised when she unexpectedly tips her head back so we can kiss.
The instant douse of arousal I feel is unlike that from the small flirtatious moves I’ve been making. This is full-out sexuality. Our lips meet, softly, gingerly. She’s sitting on my thigh, and her ass is against my cock. She shifts a little and I groan softly against the wet slide of her tongue, and all the muscles in my body knot in sweet tension. The fire in my veins bursts into flames from the slight friction, and all I want is more. The pull and push of the connection we share seems to be growing stronger every time we’re together.
Unlatching her lips from mine, she turns back and focuses on the open water.
She feels it too.
The tightening in my cock, the rapid beat of my pulse, and the taste of her left on my tongue puts me into a state of overdrive. I hold onto her fingers, squeeze them, press my naked chest to her bare back, and try to temper my need for her.
Taking what I can, I then inhale a deep breath. Unable to calm the storm raging inside me, I know I have to take action. This isn’t a storm of conflict, this is one of pure male need. “You have to stand up,” I murmur into her ear.
Again, she tips her head back. “Why?”
“You know why.”
The little vixen shifts a little more and grinds a little harder against my cock.
“Behave,” I growl and quickly stand up, bringing her with me, and then I ease up on the throttle and put the cabin cruiser in neutral.
“What’s going on? Jake asks.
I switch the engine off. “Taking a quick dip,” I tell him as I narrow my eyes at Charlotte.
She shrugs all innocent like.
“Remind me to spank you later,” I whisper in her ear.
Surprisingly, I see a thrill in her eyes.
Waggling my brows at her, my little problem is only growing, so I quickly hop up to the side of the boat and dive into the lake. The water is fucking freezing out this far and just what I need. For now anyway.
Splash. Splash.
Nothing is as it seems and the past is never really in the past. The two main themes from this amazing conclusion to the Detroit Love Duet. We pick up right where we left off, Jasper is in major trouble, and Charlotte has just gone through her own horrifying ordeal and in a twist of maddening fate they can't be there for one another in their time of need. Though that's the poetic justice of this two-book series. In book one, it was about Jasper and Charlotte reconnecting and learning that they are two halves of two different wholes: friendship and romantic, steamy, earth-shattering love. But were they treating each other like crutches? I think they THOUGHT they were bringing each other down. But to muster through their own harrowing experiences on their own two feet and just needing to see each other at the end of the day lent to the epic love these two share. Yes, they are stronger together, but what they have learned through life and their friendship is that their connection makes them stronger when they can't be together as well.
What we get in Turn it Up is nothing short of a shocking and mind-twisting finale. There are so many zigs and zags that readers will be a little whiplashed but in a deliciously satisfying way. Jasper and Charlotte have yet to get to the bottom of who is once again turning their world upside down. There are suspicions and even confessions, but nothing sets quite right. And in the end the betrayal will be sharp and painful, yet you won't believe you didn't see it coming. In true Kim Karr fashion this book mixes a great deal of suspense and anticipation with epic moments of professed love and sinful moments of stolen passion.
Please be forewarned that book one does need to be read before book two, but every page is worth the the read. Jasper and Charlotte will have you rooting for them until the very end and the secondary characters will draw you into their stories that are begging to be told. I do hope we get to hear from Will, Jake, and Drew and how their stories turn out. These four men were brought together by their pasts and bonded into something stronger than blood, so I'm definitely staying tuned in hopes we get their stories as well. But for now we bid a wonderful, and bittersweet goodbye to two wonderful characters that will definitely be stuck in my head. Their story stands out among the crowds of romance novels and with the flair that is unique to only Ms. Karr this duet will blow readers away!
Happy Reading!
*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review*
SET THE PACE IS BOOK ONE IN THIS DUET and FREE on KINDLE UNLIMITED!
Author: Kim Karr
Series: Detroit Love #1
Release Date: February 20, 2016
Every city needs a hero, but Detroit’s white knight just might be a villain.
A rough childhood branded Jasper Storm trouble. A bad boy. Not worth a damn. His love of cars was the only thing that could battle his delinquency. With the need for speed in his blood, he overcame his wayward ways. Mostly. All grown up, the broken city of Detroit hails him their shining star. And the man behind a new cutting-edge automobile is ready to turn this bankrupt town around.
Everything he does in life is fast. He talks fast, f*cks fast, and drives fast. But when one reckless turn brings him face-to-face with the childhood he has tried very hard to forget, he finds himself on the edge of wondering if he shouldn’t slow down.
Charlotte Lane was the tomboy who lived next door. She was his best friend. He was her protector. Then tragedy struck and she disappeared, forever—or so he thought.
Jasper has many reasons to hate Charlotte and keep his distance, but she’s infiltrating his every thought and he can’t stay away. Back in town with an agenda of her own, she should push him aside. Make him turn around. Walk away herself. Yet she can't.
With the past lurking between them, they proceed with caution. That is until one sex-filled night leads to murder. When Detroit’s biggest ally suddenly becomes suspect number one, will Charlotte—the girl Jasper once kept safe—be the one to save him?
Kim is a daydreamer. So much so that if daydreaming could be a hobby it would be her favorite. It's how her stories are born and how they take root. An imagination that runs wild is something to be thankful for, and she is very thankful. :)
She grew up in New York and now lives in Florida with her husband and four kids. She's always had a love for reading books and writing. Being an English major in college, she wanted to teach at the college level but that was not to be. She went on to receive an MBA and became a project manager until quitting to raise her family. Kim currently works part-time with her husband and with the rest of her time embraces one of her biggest passions--writing.
Kim wears a lot of hats! Writer, book-lover, wife, soccer-mom, taxi driver, and the all around go-to person of her family. However, she always finds time to read.
She likes to believe in soul mates, kindred spirits, true friends, and Happily-Ever-Afters. She loves to drink champagne, listen to music, and hopes to always stay young at heart.
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