#ReadIndie Review: Smut by Karina Halle

Title: Smut
Author: Karina Halle
Publication: May 16th 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Rating: 4/5

What happens when the kink between the pages leads to heat between the sheets?

All Blake Crawford wants is to pass his creative writing course, get his university degree, and take over his dad’s ailing family business. What Amanda Newland wants is to graduate at the top of her class, as well as finally finish her novel and prove to her family that writing is a respectful career.

What Blake and Amanda don’t want is to be paired up with each other for their final project, but that’s exactly what they both get when they’re forced to collaborate on a writing piece. Since Amanda thinks Blake is a pushy asshole (with a panty-melting smirk and British accent) and Blake thinks Amanda has a stick up her ass (though it’s a brilliant ass), they fight tooth and nail until they discover they write well together. They also may find each other really attractive, but that’s neither here nor there.

When their writing project turns out to be a success, the two of them decide to start up a secret partnership using a pen name, infiltrating the self-publishing market in the lucrative genre of erotica. Naturally, with so much heat and passion between the pages, it’s not long before their dirty words become a dirty reality. Sure, they still fight a lot, but at least there’s make-up sex now.

But even as they start to fall hard for each other, will their burgeoning relationship survive if their scandalous secret is exposed? Or are happily-ever-afters just a work of fiction?

Smut ended up being even more awesome than I had expected it would be. I was literally laughing out loud on every page. The humor, the sex, and all the nerdy love made this book so good and just what I needed. 

Amanda Newland and Blake Crawford get paired up together, unwillingly, by their teacher on a writing project. They hate each other but it turns out they work and write well together. After the succes of that, Blake comes up with the idea to start writing smut together using a secret pen name. As their writing gets more intense and their attraction for each other can't get denied, their feelings for each other start growing also.

Amanda and Blake were on one hand very different but on the other very much the same. They really made a perfect pair together, though. I loved it once they got past their dislike for each other and started writing together. Especially when they got to writing the actual smut. They were hot hot hot together! 

I absolutely loved this book. As a blogger and reader it really spoke to me and I'm sure it will to a lot of other people too. There are some lines in this book that will make you laugh oh so much. Not to mention all the delicious nerdy puns. But let's just not mention Fluffy. Ever... 

Overall, Smut was the most perfect combination of hot romance and adorkableness. With pretty much every page making me laugh, this romantic comedy is a page-turner like only Karina Halle can write.

       About the Author:

       Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Instagram

Karina Halle is a former travel writer and music journalist and The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author of The Pact, Love, in English, The Artists Trilogy, Dirty Angels and over 20 other wild and romantic reads. She lives on an island off the coast of British Columbia with her husband and her rescue pup, where she drinks a lot of wine, hikes a lot of trails and devours a lot of books.

Halle is represented by the Waxman Leavell Agency and is both self-published and published by Simon & Schuster and Hachette in North America and in the UK.

Hit her up on Instagram at @authorHalle, on Twitter at @MetalBlonde and on Facebook. You can also sign up for the newsletter for news, excerpts, previews, private book signing sales and more.

Review: Dirty Angels by Karina Halle

Title: Dirty Angels
Author: Karina Halle
Series: Dirty Angels #1
Publication: June 15th 2014 by Metal Blonde Books
Genre: Adult ~ Dark Contemporary Romance 
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
Cover Rating: 4/5
Overall Rating: 4/5

From the USA Today Bestselling author of Love, in English and The Artists Trilogy, comes a dark romance about a good girl and a very, very bad man. It’s a deliciously twisted take on forbidden love, set among the drug cartels of hot, steamy Mexico and is not for the faint of heart. It contains explicit sex, violence, abuse, drug use, bad language and sexy Mexicans. You have been warned…

For Luisa Chavez, a twenty-three year old former beauty queen, a better life has always been just out of her reach. Sure, she’s had men at her feet since she was a young teenager but she’s never had the one thing she’s craved – security. Having grown up in near poverty, her waitressing job in Cabo San Lucas can barely let her take care of herself, let alone her ailing parents. Every day is another unwanted advance, every day is a struggle to survive.

When Salvador Reyes, the depraved leader of a major Mexican cartel, takes an interest in her, Luisa is presented with an opportunity she can’t afford to pass up. She’ll become Salvador’s wife and exchange her freedom and body for a life of riches – riches she can bestow upon her deserving parents. But Luisa quickly finds out that even the finest wines and jewels can’t undo the ugliness in her marriage, nor the never-ending violence that threatens her every move.

Soon, Luisa is looking for an escape, a way out of the carefully controlled life she’s leading. She finally gets her wish in the worst way possible.

As it is, being the wife of Salvador makes her an ideal target for rival cartels and there’s one particular man who needs Luisa as part of his cartel’s expansion. One particular man whose quest for power has destroyed lives, slit throats and gotten him out of an American prison. One particular man who will stop at nothing until he gets what he wants.

That man is Javier Bernal. And he wants Luisa. He wants to take her, keep her, ruin her.

Unless she ruins him first.

Some men were born to create empires, some women were meant to be queen.

**Dirty Angels is the first standalone novel in the Dirty Angels Trilogy, in which all books feature or involve different characters. The character of Javier Bernal is from The Artists Trilogy, and while reading TAT is recommended if you want additional insight into this twisted character, it is not required.**

I've been wanting to read a Karina Halle book for such a long time. Shame on me for not reading one sooner! But in my opinion, if I had to start somewhere, Dirty Angels was a great book to do it with. I already know I'll be reading more books by her in the future. 

Dirty Angels was a dark book. I consider myself being able to read books like this without being really surprised by it but at some scenes, like this one gory torture scene, even I flinched—which is great because not many books are able to do this to me. So I suggest people to really take the warning in the synopsis seriously. If you don't enjoy reading about heavy and dark topics like this book has, then it's not the right one for you. Be warned! But I gotta admit that I think, personally, some parts weren't dark enough. Maybe this makes me crazy but it's just the way I felt and that's why this book was close to perfection but not quite a full five star read. It was still a really awesome book, though!

I'm not familiar with Javier Bernal since this is a spin-off from The Artists Trilogy that I haven't read yet (but is high on my wishlist now). My first impression of him was: 'wow, he's ruthless.' But I liked him right away. Honestly, I think characters like him are way more interesting than any 'good' ones. He's a very complex man and I'm sure I have more to learn about him. I also didn't expect to like him as much as he did because he's the leader of a drug cartel. Most people would consider him a bad guy and in some ways he is. And yet... I couldn't help but rooting for him and Luisa.

Luisa was also very interesting to read about. I admire her very much for doing everything she can to look after her parents and making sure they have everything they need. Although, marrying Salvador Reyes was definitely not her best decision ever. But then again, it's not like she could say no to him. She was so strong and tough and never seemed to break even though she went through such hell, with getting raped and beaten everyday. She managed to hold on to a little piece of herself inside. I can only applaud the author for creating a strong character like that.

Javier and Luisa's relationship was... intriguing to say the least. It's definitely not your usual romance. No, it's so much more complex like that. Don't expect a lot of "I love you's", kind words and sweet love scenes. Instead of that you get carving in flesh, torture and rough sex. And damn it, if I didn't love every single part of it!

Dark with unexpected twists and captivating writing, Dirty Angels was great read that I couldn't help but be fascinated by. Karina Halle created interesting and complex characters and managed to really impress me with the level of suspense I was feeling while reading it. Four star worthy without a doubt!

Favorite Quotes:

"I want your name. I want it to say Javier. I will wear those scars proudly." And I will show the world that I survived it all, to the end.

"Don't become like Salvador, letting the people below you do your dirty work. Own up to the problems you created. Handle them yourself, like a man."

"You are my enigma," he said gruffly. "But I never leave anything unsolved."

About the Author:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads 

With her USA Today Bestselling The Artists Trilogy published by Grand Central Publishing, numerous foreign publication deals, and self-publishing success with her Experiment in Terror series, Vancouver-born Karina Halle is a true example of the term “Hybrid Author.” Though her books showcase her love of all things dark, sexy and edgy, she’s a closet romantic at heart and strives to give her characters a HEA…whenever possible.

Karina holds a screenwriting degree from Vancouver Film School and a Bachelor of Journalism from TRU. Her travel writing, music reviews/interviews and photography have appeared in publications such as Consequence of Sound, Mxdwn and GoNomad Travel Guides. She currently lives on an island on the coast of British Columbia where she’s preparing for the zombie apocalypse with her fiance and rescue pup.

Karina is represented by the Waxman Leavell Literary Agency.

Cover Reveal: Donners of the Dead by Karina Halle

Cover Reveal

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Hello everyone and welcome to my stop for the Donners of the Dead by Karina Halle cover reveal. Yay!

I'm very excited for this reveal as well for the book because I've always had a morbid fascination with the Donners party story. 

I can't wait to see what Karina Halle will make of it.

Donners of the Dead by Karina Halle 

Publication date: February 24th, 2014

Genres: Horror, Romance

Cover designed by Naj Qamber Designs

Synopsis:

***A Standalone Horror Romance coming February 2014***

Jake McGraw was unlike anyone I’d ever known. He was brash, rude, unapologetic and arrogant; chauvinistic, close-minded, and terribly stubborn. He was built like a tree, tall with a hard chest and wide shoulders and hands that looked like they could wrestle a bear. He was a cigar-chomping, scruffy-faced, beast of a man. I was pretty sure I hated him. And I know he hated me. But among the flesh-eating monsters in these snow-capped mountains, he was the only thing keeping me alive.

The year is 1851 and pioneers in search of California gold are still afraid to travel on the same route as the tragic Donner party did years before. When the last wagon train to go into the Sierra Nevada mountains fails to arrive at their destination, Eve Smith, an 18-year old half-native girl with immense tracking skills is brought along with the search party, headed by an enigmatic former Texas Ranger, Jake McGraw.

What they find deep in the dangerous snow-covered terrain is a terrifying consequence of cannibalism, giving new meaning to the term “monster.” While the search party is slowly picked off, one by one, Eve must learn to trust Jake, who harbors more than a few secrets of his own, in order to survive and prevent the monstrosities from reaching civilization.

***This is NOT New Adult***

AUTHOR BIO

The daughter of a Norwegian Viking and a Finnish Moomin, Karina Halle grew up in Vancouver, Canada with trolls and eternal darkness on the brain. This soon turned into a love of all things that go bump in the night and a rather sadistic appreciation for freaking people out. Like many of the flawed characters she writes, Karina never knew where to find herself and has dabbled in acting, make-up artistry, film production, screenwriting, photography, travel writing and music journalism. She eventually found herself in the pages of the very novels she wrote (if only she had looked there to begin with). 

Karina holds a screenwriting degree from Vancouver Film School and a Bachelor of Journalism from TRU. Her travel writing, music reviews/interviews and photography have appeared in publications such as Consequence of Sound, Mxdwn and GoNomad Travel Guides. She currently lives on an island on the coast of British Columbia where she's preparing for the zombie apocalypse with her fiance and rescue pup.

Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

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Cover reveal was organized by: