Wednesday, March 11, 2015

[Double Review]: "Rock Hard"

Rock Hard by Nalini Singh
Publisher: TKA Distribution (March 10, 2015)
Series: Rock Kiss, 2
Genre: Contemporary Romance

In New York Times Bestselling author Nalini Singh’s newest contemporary romance, passion ignites between a gorgeous, sinfully sexy man who built himself up from nothing and a shy woman who has a terrible secret in her past… 

Wealthy businessman Gabriel Bishop rules the boardroom with the same determination and ruthlessness that made him a rock star on the rugby field. He knows what he wants, and he’ll go after it no-holds-barred.

And what he wants is Charlotte Baird.

Charlotte knows she’s a mouse. Emotionally scarred and painfully shy, she just wants to do her job and remain as invisible as possible. But the new CEO—a brilliant, broad-shouldered T-Rex of a man who growls and storms through the office, leaving carnage in his wake—clearly has other plans. Plans that may be equal parts business and bedroom.

If Charlotte intends to survive this battle of wits and hearts, the mouse will have to learn to wrangle the T-Rex. Game on.



Where to Buy*:
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Kame's Review:

Charlotte suffered the unthinkable years ago which has left her with panic attacks and a huge case of shyness. Her life consists of her job at Saxon & Archer Corp., her best friend and cooking. She can not handle a change. Change is what comes into her life when a new CEO comes to Saxon & Archer Corp. determined to turn the company around. Gabriel Bishop attacks failing companies similar to how he approached the pitch when he was a professional rugby player.  His first order of business is to weed out, and promote the employees with promise. Charlotte has more than just promise, she has caught his attention.




“I’m not very good at sex.”

Gabriel put down his wineglass and then he smiled that slow, sinful smile that made her nipples go tight and her body grown even more silkily damp – if he’d demanded her panties as he’d threatened, she’d have failed the test. Miserably.

“Ms. Baird, no one is good or bad at sex by themselves,” he drawled. “It’s a team effort, and you know I’m a team player.”



How I loved Charlotte from the first chapter. She could have just curled up and refused to try to move forward after what she suffered, but she is determined to feel safe. She is very smart, I love it when characters are smart. The character of the CEO coming in to turn around a company is not unfamiliar, however Gabriel is written with a tender side many would not consider a former professional rugby player to have. He had rough edges too, and most of the time he used it to pull Charlotte out of her head.



"Charlotte," he said, "if you ever want to make up with me, just get naked." A glint in his eye.

"If you feel like doing some sucking too, I won't say no. Otherwise, be yourself."



Gabriel is incredibly observant. He was the one to realize Charlotte's hidden talents, and exactly what she exceled at for the company. He was also the one to push her out of her shell allowing her to slowly blossom. Gabriel's attention and love gave her confidence and security. Enough that she did not allow him to push her, and enough so that she insisted he allow her to push herself.




"Dickweasel?"

"It seemed appropriate."

Chuckling, Gabriel went and got the food he’d left on the hallway table. “Come on, let’s reheat this and eat and you can tell me what some of those words mean. I grew up on a rugby field, but Jesus, baby, I have no idea where you learned all that.”

“You should read more”



This book just flowed for me, and when it ended I could have sat there reading about Charlotte and Gabriel for hours more. There were points I laughed, and a few I could have cried. Charlotte and Gabriel have a connection, a deep connection, one I felt on every page. I was impressed with Gabriel’s observations and tenderness. The way he treated Charlotte and was patient with her ranks him in my elite favorite heroes of all time.


Rock Hard is the third installment in a series, second full length book, but I did not feel lost at any time. Charlotte’s best friend Molly is the heroine of book 1 in the series; which is now on my TBR pile. I have noticed many singing the praises of Nalini Singh, but it was the stunning cover that first caught my attention, followed by the blurb that made me want to read the book. I was not disappointed, this book is incredible – I sort of have a book hangover. Nalini Singh is now permanently on my list of authors to watch out for!


5 STARS! 



Pat's Review:


Friends have told me how much they love Ms. Singh's books. When the opportunity came my way to read and review this ARC, I grabbed it. My friends were absolutely right.


Charlotte (Charlie) Baird is a woman trying to find strength and independence and attempting to put a life threatening experience behind her. She lives in her own apartment and enjoys her work as a file clerk at Saxon & Archer home office, but stays very much in the background. The business has been slowly failing and they have hired a man known for his ability to turn companies around. Ruthlessly.  Her first meeting with Gabriel Bishop is an unfortunate one. She is alone in the office on a Saturday, hears noises and flings a heavy duty stapler at who she thinks might be an intruder. Charlie is mortified when she sees the infamous Gabriel Bishop, his only reaction after catching the stapler is to let her know she should have thrown something heavier!


Gabriel, former star rugby player until an injury sidelines him, finds taking over failing companies fascinating. He is also fascinated by Charlotte Baird, the sweet, quiet, terrified woman who seems to know all the in's and out's of the company, but shakes like a leaf in his presence. After firing several people who weren't contributing anything to the company, he calls her to his office and she expects she is the next to go. Gabriel totally surprises her by asking her to be his Personal Assistant. He proves to her he is fair, honest and a workaholic, expecting for her to be one as well.  Her heart feels safe and working with him is enjoyable if not exhausting.  Not to mention the sparks that fly when their together.


This story was funny, sexy and very romantic. Plus a little suspenseful when fears from her past become real again. The chapter headings by Ms. Singh are so much fun. Gabriel is T-Rex, and Charlie is Charlie-mouse.  Their relationship grows, I loved their banter and Gabriel's amazing ability to sense Charlotte's fears and hold back.


This is the second book in a series, but is easily read as a stand alone. I'm going back and reading the first, just for the pure enjoyment!


5 STARS!


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Kame and Pat both received an e-ARC of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for their honest opinions.

*Note: The quotes used belong to Nalini Singh;TBQ's Book Palace do not claim them.

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Thanks for the reviews, ladies! :) A DOUBLE Royal Pick nomination -- Wow, yep, definitely going on my list! I so love Singh's paranormal romances, so I'm looking forward to reading this series.

Have you read Nalini Singh? Do you have a favorite book of hers?

Remember, since this is a Royal Pick, come back on Mar 26th for a chance to WIN an ecopy of your own!



Enjoy!


Until Next Time,


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  *TBQ's Book Palace is a member of both the Amazon and Barnes and Nobles affiliates program. By using the links provided to buy products from either website, I receive a very small percentage of the order. To read my full disclosure on the matter, please see this post!

4 comments :

The_Book_Queen said...

Sorry, since I had to fix the previous post to make the link work, it deleted this comment from Red Iza:

"Oh, I do love Nalini Singh's books and will happily read this one, I've caught such interesting glimpses of Charlotte and her T-rex in book #1 ! Great reviews, ladies :)"

Sophia Rose said...

Wow, guys! I've read her PNR, but it appears that I really need to get on the stick with this series too. Nice reviews, Kame and Pat!

Lover Of Romance said...

Loved both of the reviews!!! This is such a fantastic book...I just couldn't get enough of these two.

Colleen Isolde said...

I absolutely LOVED this book. This was the first book by Nalini Singh that I have read and it was fantastic. Thank you Kame and Pat for influencing my decision to purchase and read this one!