Today on Novels On The Run I have my stop on the Blog Tour for Manic by J.A. Huss. It is the second book in the Rook & Ronin series.
I LOVE THIS SERIES!!
It is New Adult Contemporary. What I love is it is different. J.A. uses gorgeous lads, body painting, erotic modelling... it's just a great series and I am so looking forward to Panic # 3. Just quietly I want a spinoff series for Spence, and Ford grew on me, he needs one too. He is an interesting character. I am very intrigued by the lad.
If you haven't read this series, I think book 2 is even better. I am a sucker for the Cherry Blossom scenes and Spence really has a book or three in him.
I have added a couple of videos I found that are worth watching, although Spence uses his Shrike Bikes in his Sturgis campaign, the body art I thought gave you an idea of what Spence gets up to with Rook's body. Even though I would love to see J.A. Huss's ideas that Spence came up with in images. They sounded totally off the charts. Such a cool idea to put into a book. And the chemistry...
BOOK 1
Tragic by J.A. Huss
Publication date: May 20th 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Synopsis:
Because life so far – just sucks. Some girls get parents. Rook got the foster care system. Some girls get Prince Charming. Rook got an abusive frog. Some girls get lucky…
Rook got a second chance.
And she took it. Because when fate throws you a bone – you grab it with both hands and run.
Antoine Chaput knows the minute he spies Rook in his photography studio that she’s got The Look. The dark and desperate look he must have to land the exclusive TRAGIC media contract.
Rook is paired up with top model, Ronin, and he’s everything her abusive ex-boyfriend wasn’t. Patient, gentle, happy, attentive, and sexy! He knows exactly what to do to make Rook blush for Antoine’s portfolio.
Rook’s luck changes in an instant and suddenly she’s the darling of the modeling world. It’s a dream job to go with a dream guy and all she has to do is look pretty and follow directions. But there’s always a price to pay – and Rook is about to get the bill.
TRAGIC is a new adult contemporary romance.
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17404203-tragic
BOOK 2
Manic by J.A. Huss
Series: Rook and Ronin #2
Publication date: August 1st 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary
Synopsis:
It’s three months of body art modeling! That means three months of Spencer Shrike’s paintbrush all over her body, three months in front of Antoine’s camera, and three months of twenty-four hour filming for Spencer’s Biker Channel reality show.
Wait a minute…what reality show? Maybe she should’ve read that STURGIS contract a little closer? ;)
Sure, Rook’s bank account is almost overflowing, but Ronin is angry, Clare is trying to escape rehab, Antoine is a worried mess, and Elise is just trying to hold everyone together. Her new family is about to fall apart before she even gets the chance to enjoy them.
Add in a mysterious man from her past, a road trip to the famous Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, and a final show in front of the entire world where all her good are on display, and you’ve Manic—a new adult contemporary romance that will definitely make your summer sizzle!
BOOK REVIEW by Michelle: 5 Ronin & Spencer Stars!
Wow!
Another awesome time had by myself in this installment. J.A. Huss brings some more lads to the party and ... whahhh!
Rook has signed her life away for 24/7 being followed around by a camera crew or camera's watching her while she fulfils her contract for the STURGIS campaign. Many lessons to be learnt in reading a contract properly before you sign it. Rook knows she was impulsive, Ronin knows she will be paying for her impulsiveness and Ford loves needling Rook and Ronin.
Rook has signed her life away for 24/7 being followed around by a camera crew or camera's watching her while she fulfils her contract for the STURGIS campaign. Many lessons to be learnt in reading a contract properly before you sign it. Rook knows she was impulsive, Ronin knows she will be paying for her impulsiveness and Ford loves needling Rook and Ronin.
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| Yes! That is a human motorbike. Not the case in the book. These are just the closest images I could find to a body art painted girl. |
Whahhhhh!!
I LOVED the scenes with Spencer and Rook. The body painting scenes and the photographing of Rook and her male model on a bike are amazingly smexi, but at the same time it shows us how naive Rook was for what she signed up for.
I love Ronin, but Spence has something special about him. He is one smexi lad who is an all round business man and ... damn it! I want a Spencer spinoff. That lad knows how to paint.
Rawrrrr!
Rawrrrr!
I just put some images here to give you an idea of what J.A. was writing about, but they don't come close to what she had Spence doing. Cyborg, Elvis, Rope/Cowgirl, Bikinis, Cat Woman...they all matched his Shrike Bike for the campaign. Simply magic!
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| Body Painting |
I bite my lip a little. They are paying me a butt-load of money, more than the Tragic contract was worth, so fuck it. If I’m gonna do this job, I might as well do it right. I lean in and kiss Spencer and Antoine’s camera clicks like crazy. Spencer rubs my back a little and then he wraps his hands around my neck and pulls until we bump foreheads, our lips very close but not touching. I look down at him and smile.
“Thank you,” he whispers.
“It’s my job, right?”
“Right.” He leans in and kisses me again. It feels ... weird to do this and not have it be cheating. Is it cheating?
Antoine starts shooting and Spencer’s one hand stays down, while the other one slides up, picks up my arm and drapes it over his shoulder, then cups my breast. “Kiss me again, Rook.”
I look at him, the shock plastered across my face. I’m sure. I swallow, not sure what to do with myself right now, either.
“Rook,” Spencer repeats, a little harsher now. “I want kissing, I want mad fucking passionate kissing. The kind of kissing I’ve seen in all those other photos of you, the kissing that is so filled with emotion and longing and lust, I’m instantly hard. Kiss me like that, Blackbird.”
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| http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2222350/Amazing-pictures-naked-models-covered-bodypaint-contorted-human-motorbikes.html |
I am not sure about Veronica, she seems a bit tragic in herself, the glimpse we get of her, but at the same time she seems ballsy. I think we shall be seeing more of her.
Ronin and Rook are on fire when they are together. I really love them as a couple. He is good for her. But even Ronin has secrets.
“You scare me, Rook.”
“Why,” I ask, puzzled.
“ Because your future is making itself right now, this very moment. And you have no idea it is happening. I want you so completely it hurts. But you and I are in two totally different places.”
“I want you next to me and when you’re not there I feel like a part of me is missing. I’m so in love with you, Rook. So fucking in love with you, it scares me.”
I love the war of words between all the guys. They have history. All will be revealed, but it keeps you guessing.
J.A. brings smexi in a different way. She uses a nineteen year old girl who is fragile , yet strong and has her surrounded by these three lads in this instalment who are all so different and intriguing. She uses these lads to bring out all these inner thoughts in Rook's head . She is new at this game and she is getting played, but she is working out how to stand up for herself and how to suck it up and do the job without as much attitude. She still has that raw personality of hers where she talks before she thinks, but she is learning that she has to tow the line. She signed on the dotted line, now she must do as she is told. No matter how uncomfortable it makes her.
My goodness , J.A. throws in some curve balls in this installment. I shall not spoil.
Ronin says it well.
Your first impression of Spencer should be dumb. There’s just no way around that, in high school he always looked the part of the big dumb jock. And now he’s all tatted up, he’s just switched over to being the big dumb biker.
Your first impression of Ford should be well-dressed asshole, but maybe a little on the weak side. Not buff like , Spence, but lean and fast. He plays that part well. Snooty, rich, privileged, soft hands, soft words, living off his name and his family’s wealth.
Your first impression of me should be, honest, trustworthy guy. Good-looking, charming, happy and eager to help and please. A rule follower who wants to forget where he came from.
Your first impressions would be dead-ass wrong in all three cases.
* raises one eyebrow *
We get to know what the Tragic campaign was all about? That was one thing I thought was missing from book # 1. All these images of Rook looking Tragic, but why, what was the contract she signed for? Well, you will find out in this book.
Spencer really is making Rook earn her mega dollars with his STURGIS campaign. There is nothing for Rook to do but go with it or be fined by Ford who is waiting around every corner to catch Rook out with her contract.
Ford, now this lad is the oldest , around 24- 25 yrs old and he is the producer of this whole campaign. He likes to play mind games and stuff around with you, but at the same time is he really? Lots of layers to this boy. He may also need a spinoff series for me to read, hehe J . He grew on me. One minute I thought he was an ass and the next he was giving little bits of himself away and appearing to want to connect with Rook. But what are his true motives?
Is he good guy or trouble maker or both?
I roll my eyes. “Just tell me. There’s no need for drama, Ford.”
“Fine.” He shrugs. “I want you to run with me in the morning because you’re too young to take this job and maybe I don’t know your whole story, but I’m perceptive enough to see that there’s something wrong with you. I’m not sure what it is, I don’t even want to know what it is, but this job will change your life.
“I won’t touch you, Rook, don’t worry,” he whispers. “I’m not a runner and I’m not a cheater, either. Life is long, you are young, and I’m very, very , patient.”
Ronin is caught up with Clare and J.A. Huss conveniently separates Ronin from Rook so she is left with these wolves of guys. They are protective of Rook but they also have their own motives while Ronin is away.
Ford starts on the mind mojo and Spence, well rawrrrrrrr! He has this thing where he shoots his finger at you.
I love it.
I loved the whole photography , body art, erotic campaign for Spencer's bike campaign. It is a whole pile of smexi. J.A. brings the smexi without any sex and that is what I loved. I could visually see the scenes with Rook and Spence so well and they were very colorfully written. I could have been sitting there on Team Rook with the camera crew. Although I did question that whole boys club thing going on. I mean not a girl in sight to scrub Rook down??? Really?? Rather convenient. HA!
These people get more and more confusing with every job. How am I supposed to process this? Spence gets to paint me up then wash me down. He gets to touch my ass and put his brush between my breasts. And Billy gets to manipulate my body into weird contortions so my nipples are standing at attention in every shot, even for the fucking fender - that was some feat, but that Billy is resourceful - and Antoine gets to take pictures of all this, while Ford and the crew stand around and record every facial expression on each of us as we do these things and try to remain professional.
I’m pretty sure my relationship with Ronin is over. Because no man, I don’t care what kind of Catholic saint he is, would ever put up with this arrangement.
But this is where J.A. throws those extra smexi scenes in without the sex.
Enter Ronin again and that Beast of a shower gets put to good use.
* growl *
When Ronin is back on set, so to speak, and he is in manager mode he makes sure things are running better for Rook. Ford and Spencer and the camera crew get a talking to.
Everything about this day is different. The mere presence of Ronin changes attitudes and actions.
Billy is another character that grew on me. He has been in the game a long time and he knows how to handle Rook. I think he is making a great friend.
"So you don't want to really jump my bones?"
"Well, fuck yeah I do, but you're seeing Ronin, right?" So you're off limits. I'm not an asshole, I'd never do that."
I've got nothing for that response. I'm not sure if it helps or makes things worse.
"Rook, when I'm working, you're just a naked body, OK? And I guarantee you, Spencer is the same way. He's got a naked girl in his lap and he would like to finish her off too, and get himself some too. That's just how it is. But when the shoot stops, you're Rook, again. And that's not the same thing as a naked body in our laps. It's work, Rook. Not love."
The villain of the story is still waiting his turn to make an appearance. I don't think I liked this part as much as the rest of the story. It seemed to be over and done with relatively quickly.
I am so looking forward to Panic # 3 in this series. I believe it is the last. So SPINOFFS!!! HINT...HINT!!! I don't think I have had enough of Spencer and possibly Ford. I say possibly Ford because he is an interesting character. You will have to read to understand what I mean.
But Spencer... * swoon * .
And just when you think there is already a nice lot of lads to read more about, J.A. she... well...there could be someone else, an old flame.
I must make sure I am on the Panic blog tour. I need to know what is going on!
There's no doubt about it. J.A. Huss is an author to watch out for. She brings a refreshing series to the New Adult Contemporary genre and she brings smexi in a different way.
Humma, humma!
Michelle
http://adrianlinks.com/sculptures-2/body-painted-humans-transformed-into-motorcycles/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17857998-manic
GIVEAWAY TIME
Grand Prize Giveaway
-Signed copy of book 1 & 2
-A custom necklace
-Open internationally
AUTHOR BIO
J. A. Huss likes to write new adult books that make you think and keep you guessing. Her favorite genre to read is space opera, but since practically no one reads those books, she writes new adult science fiction, paranormal romance, contemporary romance, urban fantasy, and books about Junco (who refuses to be saddled with a label).
She has an undergraduate degree in horses, (yes, really–Thank you, Colorado State University) and a master’s degree in forensic toxicology from the University of Florida. She used to have a job driving around Colorado doing pretty much nothing but shooting the breeze with farmers, but now she just writes, runs the New Adult Addiction and Clean Teen Reads Book Blogs, and runs an online science classroom for homeschoolers.
Author Links:
Ahhh... thank you so much for your review! I'm so glad you enjoyed the books! :)
ReplyDeleteNo worries :) I think I am rather addicted to your writing.
DeleteMich
Can`t wait to read this book! :)
ReplyDeleteAnd biker is my favorite book boyfriend type :P
These lads are all great :D
DeleteMich
How about a combo of all three :)
ReplyDeleteAnything is possible :D
DeleteMIch