Wicked Pleasure (Bound Hearts)

------SPOILER ALERT------
If you are familiar with Shayla Black's erotic novel Decadent, then you will see a lot of similarities. There is no permanent ménage love relationship, just sharing, so Chase becomes a third wheel.

I was expecting something along the lines of LL's Forbidden Pleasure, but it never said that on the back cover, so the joke's on me.

Cam and Chase are brooding, hunky twins, and a night of passion has Jaci balking at her feelings, and Cam pushes her away. This seems to be a pattern in LL's books in the prologues, and it's becoming very annoying.


I love LL's heroines, for being intelligent and confident enough to know what they want, but someone who worries what others will think because she doesn't have a vanilla sex life is rather ridiculous.

As for all of those rumors because of the social network they were privy to, it seemed ludicrous that grownups would place so much faith on busybodies, and past histories that were none of their business. It happens in real life every day, but it doesn't mean it should happen. These were all grownups, and all the gossiping was worse than a group of giggling teenage girls at lunch.

The sex is hot as always, but if anyone is looking for a HEA, yes, it's there, but after what happens at the climax of the plot, and Cam being apalled Jaci learns about his past, the ending left a bitter taste in my mouth.

Jaci got her man, but it didn't leave me wanting more.

Seven years ago, Jaci ran from the two men who meant more to her than anything, unsure whether she could handle their extreme sexual predilections. She knew she wanted Cam - she always had - but Cam and his twin brother Chase together? Ménage? No, she'd certainly never expected that.

Jaci travels to Virginia to do a decorating job for her best friend, Courtney Sinclair, and swiftly finds herself chin deep in the secretive group that the Sinclairs and the Falladay twins are an integral part of. Cam and Chase make it clear from the start that they have every intention of seducing Jaci into their bed and their lives, and this time, Jaci finds it impossible to resist the sexy brothers.

But both Cam and Jaci have secrets that threaten to tear their precarious relationship apart. They must learn to open up to each other if their newfound relationship is to survive.

When I first discovered Lora Leigh's work almost two years ago, the BOUND HEARTS series was one of the first I read - no, make that devoured - by this author. Infused with wicked sensuality and raw emotions, this series gained its following because it is about more than sheer sexual titillation. Underneath it all, each story is about the unselfish love the men of `The Club' have for the women in their lives.

Each of the stories in this series is chock full of the steamiest ménage love scenes you will find in a romance novel. Ms. Leigh's newest release for the BOUND HEARTS saga, WICKED PLEASURE, only kicks that steam up a few more degrees! I guarantee you that sexy twins Cam and Chase Falladay will make your temperature rise in the very best of ways... *grin* Their relationship with Jaci dates back to their childhood friendship, which serves well to increase the trust Jaci has for the two men who are intent on pleasuring her simultaneously. And really, that's the core of the Bound Hearts books - trust. Without trust, neither Jaci nor the other heroines in these books could indulge in the sexual games their men immerse them in.

Jaci is the kind of heroine you want to stand up and cheer for. While she has endured both pain and social destruction at the hands of her enemies, she has weathered it all with considerable decorum and diplomacy. Of course, that doesn't mean she simply lets them walk all over her. Oh no, Jaci has a plan to strip her foes of any power they have over her or her life and show the dastardly duo to the world as the deviants they truly are. The trick is to accomplish her mission before Cam takes matters into his own hands. This strong, independent woman is determined to handle things on her own. With a heart of gold apparent even in her early childhood and a spine of steel, it is no stretch to imagine just why Cam loves Jaci so much.

As for Cam and Chase, I daresay they could seduce even the most staid woman with barely a crook of their finger. Together, the sexuality the twins exude melts the ink right off the pages, but even on his own, Cam easily ensnares the heart and stirs the desire of both Jaci and the reader.

Despite the trauma he suffered when he was younger, Cam wants to give the woman he loves every part of himself, no matter how long it takes him to get there. If it were any woman other than Jaci, who was the child that gave him what he needed most at his lowest point before becoming the woman who gives him unconditional love and trust, I don't believe he could have opened up as he did and let go the pain of his past. The history Jaci and Cam share together make it possible to believe it as his emotional scars heal in her tender arms.

WICKED PLEASURE is a whirlwind of sensual delight and deep emotion. Readers will be swept off their feet by the same hunger and passion Lora Leigh's characters experience as they find themselves unable to put this potent story down until they reach the very last page!

**Courtesy of Wild on Books**

Series Order:
Ties That Bind (Bound Hearts, Book 1)
Bound Hearts: Submission & Seduction (Books 2 and 3)
Wicked Sacrifice (Books 4 and 5)
Bound Hearts: Shameless Embraces (Books 6 and 7)
Forbidden Pleasure (Bound Hearts, Book 8)
Wicked Pleasure (Bound Hearts), Book 9

Jaci Wright grew up in the same Oklahoma town as the Falladay twins, Chase and Cameron. The men were a few years older than Jaci but that didn't stop her from yearning for Cameron Falladay with all the innocence of a girl's first crush. As she grew older, the yearning turned to love and while she thought she was old enough and ready to accept what Cameron wanted from her, she balked and ran. Seven years later, Jaci is finished running. Her career has brought her back into contact with these handsome and wicked twins and Jaci knows exactly what she is getting into this time.

Cameron Falladay had no choice but to grow up quickly. Holding himself responsible for keeping Chase out of harm's way, Cameron doesn't allow anyone into his heart. Once long ago, a tiny auburn haired waif promised she would wait for him forever. Cameron decides with one look at the grown up and mature Jaci that she is his for the taking. And takes her he does. With his brother by his side, Cam shows Jaci every wicked and sexually enticing thing she missed by running seven years ago.

Cameron and Jaci begin their forbidden affair with their eyes open - and Chase waiting in the wings. While the society in which they move usually turns a blind eye, there are some who don't. Tales are told, gossip is whispered, and while Jaci strives to not let vicious rumors and innuendos bother her, she can't help but hear what others are saying. Loving Cameron as much as she does, Jaci doesn't want to give up what they have together. Will Cameron be able to give her what she needs? And what she needs is his heart and his love - forever.

Every time I pick up a Lora Leigh book, I admittedly have high expectations that I won't be able to put it down. WICKED PLEASURE delivered such an experience. The next seven hours of my life were spent completely engrossed in this tale. From reading Ms. Leigh's early Bound Hearts novels released through Ellora's Cave, I knew to expect a marvelously written storyline with dynamically portrayed characters.

Cameron Falladay is one of the most complex male characters I have ever experienced. The victim of a horrible, mind numbing past, he spends the consecutive years after reaching adulthood striving to get over and away from anything that reminded him of his youth. The only bright point in his life? His memories of Jaci Wright. She alone made him feel whole, and once he realizes this he stops running. Jaci Wright is beautifully written as well. Shy, hesitant, but completely in love with Cameron, she is willing to accept what parts of himself he is able to give. Is she submissive? Not in the least. Jaci is smart and knows that deep down inside Cam loves her. She just had to find the way to make him realize his feelings. Her fortitude and unconditional love is what amazed me the most.

As the ninth installment to Lora Leigh's Bound Hearts series, WICKED PLEASURE lives up to its title. Wicked, intense, suspenseful - this book has it all and more! From beginning to end I was carried away and exposed to emotions that I can't even describe. Just know that Cameron and Jaci's story is one that shouldn't be missed. Even if no other installments have been read, WICKED PLEASURE is a standalone and can be read out of order. Readers won't want to miss a word of this tempting and provocative novel.

WICKED PLEASURE will release from St. Martin's on May 13, 2008. My copy is already pre-ordered and paid for! ***Natasha Smith for Romance Junkies***