Published By: Kristen Ashley
Released : Available Now
Details: Paperback from library, 484 Pages
RATING: 5 BRING ON THE TUNES STARS!
Blurb: Goodreads
Stella’s the lead singer and lead guitarist of The Blue Moon Gypsies and Stella used to be Mace’s girl. Mace broke up with her, though, and the loss of him rocked her world. But Stella gets a call, late at night (again) from one of the members of her crazy band. She has to go play clean up (again) and runs into Mace and a shed load of police, and ends up getting shot.
Mace finds he doesn’t like it much that his ex-girlfriend got shot right in front of him but it’s worse. A very bad man has thrown down the gauntlet and all the Rock Chicks are in the firing line. Stella doesn’t want Mace to be the one to keep her alive, but she has no choice. Mainly because Mace isn’t giving her one.
BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:
Behold another Rock Chick book under my belt. This series is such a gluttonous delight for me.
I just soak up the shenanigans and the sexy lads.
Oh... the sexy lads.
*sigh*
Stella Michelle Gunn is the lead singer of the Blue Moon Gypsies and she’s got her hands full with her band members, Pong, Leo, Buzz, Hugo and Floyd. Well, Floyd is the one she has no problems with. The band members shenanigans always interrupted her personal down time.
They rocked! Pardon the pun.
Stella has gotten herself noticed by resident villain, slippery as a snake, Sid. Sid is causing all sorts of danger and mayhem in this installment. He wants to exact some pain on those the Nightingale boys love.
“You want in here?” he murmured, his eyes intense, so intense I felt my gut clench with fear. This was a fear I didn’t understand. It wasn’t even logical, but it scared me all the same. It was the same fear as yesterday morning, huge and uncontrollable.
“No,” I lied. Except for the ability to play my music, being in his heart was the only thing I’d ever wanted in my whole effing life.
He shook his head. “Until that answer changes, babe, you get what I’m willin’ to give you. My protection, my attention and my cock.”
I gasped at his frankness and my body went solid with fury.
“Unbelievable,” I hissed.
“When the time comes where you give me somethin’ without me havin’ to pull it out of you, where you give me a piece of you without me havin’ to take it, then I’ll give you a piece of me.”
Stella is still his and in true Nightingale Boys aka Hot Bunch fashion, bets are always floating about.
Shirleen totally made me crack up in this installment, she is hilarious.
Shirleen put a hand to her chest and reared back. “Oh, is that it? Well excuse me! You poor child!” Then she made a snorting sound. “Shee-it, any one of those boys wanted to push me around, I’d say bring it on. Hell, I’d pay for one of ‘em to move into my house. They don’t even have to do me. Just walk around so I can watch. Maybe in a towel.”
Jules looked at me and rolled her eyes.
“You don’t understand,” Roxie put in.
“Nope. That’s right, girl, Shirleen does not understand. So what trauma are we up against now?” Shirleen’s eyes moved to me. “You havin’ too many orgasms or what?”
Amen Shirleen. Amen sister!
What I really loved about this installment was the musical aspect.
Just to have a guy come up onstage and kiss you who is one of the Hot Bunch...well, WOW! But to have it done after you sang a song to him. Double WOW! Well, Stella was trying to send a message through said song.
The music all the way through this book was well thought out. Now I admit I love me some Billy Joel, I’m of that vintage and I have my albums lovingly in storage, but dayum I had not heard of, 'And So It Goes'.
That brings a tear to the eye that song.
The sub characters all bring their own little something to this series. Smithie pops up a couple times and he is growing on me.
“Crazy white bitches, the lot of you. ‘ Cept you.” He nodded at Shirleen. “You’re a crazy black bitch. Fuck,” Smithie finished.
“Smithie, sweetie –“ LaTeesha said softly.
“It’s covered, Smithie,” Shirleen put in.
“Yeah, it’ll be covered,” Smithie snapped at Shirleen. “You’re movin’ your ass in with me tonight and you’re bringin’ the boys. LaTeesha, that okay with you?”
“Just fine. I’ll make chicken and dumplin’s,” LaTeesha replied on a wide grin at Roam and Sniff.
“Can we have pizza?” Sniff asked.
Shirleen cuffed him gently up the side of his head. “What’s the matter with you, boy? You heard the woman. LaTeesha’s makin’ chicken and dumplin’s. You’re eatin’ chicken and dumplin’s.”
“I like chicken and dumplin’s,” Roam put in.
We get a little Luke fix along the way.
“I’m not wearing any underwear,” I lied.
“I’ll close my eyes,” Mace lied back.
“I won’t,” Luke put in.
Bahahahaaa.
Luke was floating between the doors, not wearing a windbreaker, but being generally badass, thus not inviting killer intentions.
I got to say, this was the best use of the conjunctive verb, thus , that I have seen.
Some of the songs performed in Rock Chick Reckoning.
I can’t take it back.
I LOOKED.
Now I’m a little confuzzed as to why there was an Epilogue at the end of this book being # 6 when I still have several books to read.
GAHHH!
There are spoilers in it.
Maybe Ms KA wasn’t gonna be going on with the series at the end of #6 so she did an Epilogue?
But, Rock Chicks indeed went on.
So save yourselves and if you haven’t read Rock Chick Reckoning yet, be strong and don’t read that Epilogue.
In the words of Tex, ‘Jesus Jones’.
Take a bow Ms Kristen Ashley for this very 3D read for me, anyway. It brought back a lot of music and I spent ages reconnecting with these songs.
I was arm chairing these gigs, but you wrote the scenes so well, I was there in spirit.
She is a true Rock Chick in the name. I really liked reading her, she's a cool chick. We read so many books about guys in a band, it was refreshing to have Stella to read about. I particularly loved her onstage performances.
They rocked! Pardon the pun.
Stella has gotten herself noticed by resident villain, slippery as a snake, Sid. Sid is causing all sorts of danger and mayhem in this installment. He wants to exact some pain on those the Nightingale boys love.
Shiz starts going down...to the Castle, Lee announces. Is that what it's called?? Anyhoo, Daisy and Marcus's pad.
Enter Kai ‘Mace’ Mason. Mace has his own deep heartache to carry around with him. He's carrying around a lot of guilt. I could say so much more about Mace, he is such a gorgeous character, but you must read about him.
Enter Kai ‘Mace’ Mason. Mace has his own deep heartache to carry around with him. He's carrying around a lot of guilt. I could say so much more about Mace, he is such a gorgeous character, but you must read about him.
Mace and Stella have a past. He left her after they had dated for five months, but he had never really left her.
Stella just hadn't got the memo.
Things are a little touchy, a little complicated between Stella and Mace.
Things are a little touchy, a little complicated between Stella and Mace.
“You want in here?” he murmured, his eyes intense, so intense I felt my gut clench with fear. This was a fear I didn’t understand. It wasn’t even logical, but it scared me all the same. It was the same fear as yesterday morning, huge and uncontrollable.
“No,” I lied. Except for the ability to play my music, being in his heart was the only thing I’d ever wanted in my whole effing life.
He shook his head. “Until that answer changes, babe, you get what I’m willin’ to give you. My protection, my attention and my cock.”
I gasped at his frankness and my body went solid with fury.
“Unbelievable,” I hissed.
“When the time comes where you give me somethin’ without me havin’ to pull it out of you, where you give me a piece of you without me havin’ to take it, then I’ll give you a piece of me.”
Stella is still his and in true Nightingale Boys aka Hot Bunch fashion, bets are always floating about.
Shirleen totally made me crack up in this installment, she is hilarious.
Shirleen put a hand to her chest and reared back. “Oh, is that it? Well excuse me! You poor child!” Then she made a snorting sound. “Shee-it, any one of those boys wanted to push me around, I’d say bring it on. Hell, I’d pay for one of ‘em to move into my house. They don’t even have to do me. Just walk around so I can watch. Maybe in a towel.”
Jules looked at me and rolled her eyes.
“You don’t understand,” Roxie put in.
“Nope. That’s right, girl, Shirleen does not understand. So what trauma are we up against now?” Shirleen’s eyes moved to me. “You havin’ too many orgasms or what?”
Amen Shirleen. Amen sister!
What I really loved about this installment was the musical aspect.
Now we know in any Rock Chick book the guy is gonna get the girl, that’s a no brainer. What’s also a no brainer is the Rock Chicks will inevitably get themselves involved and somebody will get shot at, or beat up or kidnapped.
That shit is inevitable. Just ask Tex or Duke. Speaking of Tex.
“Don’t call me motherfucker,” Tod threw down.
“Motherfucker,” Uncle Tex boomed.
“Oh lordy,” Daisy muttered.
“Tex, stop saying ‘fuck’ so loud!”
“Fuck!” Tex shouted back. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!”
Heheheee.
But, this time round we got the musical experience and as Kristen Ashley tells you in the front of the book under Author Notes, ya need to listen to the music when reading the scene because it enhances said scene.
When you actually have a rock chick in all her glory as a character, you gotta bring the tunes to the experience of reading.
This is a scene that I simply had to quote. I listened to the song while reading it the second time round and dayum, ya gotta read it this way. I really felt it.
Pong’s sticks clicked on the drums, Leo started the first chords, and I knew without looking that Buzz had clued in. He couldn’t help but clue in. We all knew what those clicks and strums meant.
“This one’s for Linnie,” I told the crowd.
Everyone screamed. The wave of sound hit the band, firing us up all the more even though most people probably had no idea who Linnie was. They didn’t care. Any song that was for someone was going to be something. And this song, a song we rarely ever played, they knew would rock the whole fucking house.
I glanced at Buzz and found his face was pale, but his eyes were on me and they were shining. I looked away, knowing if I kept looking at him I’d lose it, just as Hugo’s deep voice started smoothly delivering the lyrics.
And the lyrics were to ZZ Top’s killer, kickass “La Grange.”
Hugo sang.
A few more strums, a few more clicks.
I felt it in my belly, like I always felt it in my belly just like I knew Linnie always felt it in her belly.
Wait for it... my brain breathed in anticipation.
Pong’s drums went wild and Leo’s soft guitar went solid. The crowd surged in and my stomach plunged.
This is what it’s all about. This is what Linnie lived for, my brain told me what I already knew, because I understood Linnie. I lived for it, too.
Hugo’s velvet voice slid back in, “Have mercy...” then he smoothed through the “haw haws” and delivered the lyrics.
When it was time, Pong rounded out the beat and I went front stage and started to blow the lid off.
“Have mercy,” Hugo finished.
And then you have the scene that rocked Mace.
That was when I sang to Mace.
Yes, again.
And I felt it as the crowd pulled in their breath.
And then, through giving it to Mace, I gave them Pearl Jam’s epically beautiful ballad, “Black”.
After I finished the lyrics, I held out the “be” and shouted my “yeah” just as Mace came unstuck from my spell and started to push through the crowd, making his way toward the stage.
The band played behind me with a power and certainty that made it sound as if we’d played the song millions of times rather than just this once. The chords I played sounded angry, as if sliced from my guitar. Floyd’s fingers were pounding out the notes on the piano, notes to a song I didn’t even know he knew.
The crowd was still silent, stunned, watching, enthralled.
I let the final words to the song rush out of me, hoarse and filled with scratching despair, just like it rushed out of Eddie Vedder on Pearl Jam’s world rocking, genre-defining album “Ten”.
As I sang, Mace was nearly at the stage when I closed my eyes to shut him out as if closing my eyes could shut him out of my life forever.
Still playing, my head dropped and I rested my forehead on the mic, the vision of Mace, eyes never leaving me, pushing through the crowd toward me, burned on the backs of my eyelids.
I played lead, Floyd’s piano thundering around me, matching the same notes that came from my guitar. The band began singing their “da-do-do-do, do-do-do’s” and before my fingers could strum the angry riff and I could shout my anguish like Vedder, I was pulled roughly from the mic.
My eyes came open and I stared, frozen to the spot in disbelief.
Mace was there, onstage, right in front of me, right in front of five hundred people.
I stayed frozen as his hand wrapped around the neck of my guitar. He yanked it over my head and then jerked me forward so that my body slammed against his.
His free arm sliced at a slant around my back, crushing me to him. His head came down, his mouth finding mine, and he kissed me, right there. Right onstage. Right in front of five hundred people. Open-mouthed, hard, wet and full of everything.
His body bent forward, pushing mine back so I was arched over his arm, my torso and hips pressed deep into him.
He kissed me and kept kissing me as the band played around us, pushing the song longer, longer...
That shit is inevitable. Just ask Tex or Duke. Speaking of Tex.
“Don’t call me motherfucker,” Tod threw down.
“Motherfucker,” Uncle Tex boomed.
“Oh lordy,” Daisy muttered.
“Tex, stop saying ‘fuck’ so loud!”
“Fuck!” Tex shouted back. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!”
Heheheee.
But, this time round we got the musical experience and as Kristen Ashley tells you in the front of the book under Author Notes, ya need to listen to the music when reading the scene because it enhances said scene.
When you actually have a rock chick in all her glory as a character, you gotta bring the tunes to the experience of reading.
This is a scene that I simply had to quote. I listened to the song while reading it the second time round and dayum, ya gotta read it this way. I really felt it.
Pong’s sticks clicked on the drums, Leo started the first chords, and I knew without looking that Buzz had clued in. He couldn’t help but clue in. We all knew what those clicks and strums meant.
“This one’s for Linnie,” I told the crowd.
Everyone screamed. The wave of sound hit the band, firing us up all the more even though most people probably had no idea who Linnie was. They didn’t care. Any song that was for someone was going to be something. And this song, a song we rarely ever played, they knew would rock the whole fucking house.
I glanced at Buzz and found his face was pale, but his eyes were on me and they were shining. I looked away, knowing if I kept looking at him I’d lose it, just as Hugo’s deep voice started smoothly delivering the lyrics.
And the lyrics were to ZZ Top’s killer, kickass “La Grange.”
Hugo sang.
A few more strums, a few more clicks.
I felt it in my belly, like I always felt it in my belly just like I knew Linnie always felt it in her belly.
Wait for it... my brain breathed in anticipation.
Pong’s drums went wild and Leo’s soft guitar went solid. The crowd surged in and my stomach plunged.
This is what it’s all about. This is what Linnie lived for, my brain told me what I already knew, because I understood Linnie. I lived for it, too.
Hugo’s velvet voice slid back in, “Have mercy...” then he smoothed through the “haw haws” and delivered the lyrics.
When it was time, Pong rounded out the beat and I went front stage and started to blow the lid off.
“Have mercy,” Hugo finished.
And then you have the scene that rocked Mace.
That was when I sang to Mace.
Yes, again.
And I felt it as the crowd pulled in their breath.
And then, through giving it to Mace, I gave them Pearl Jam’s epically beautiful ballad, “Black”.
After I finished the lyrics, I held out the “be” and shouted my “yeah” just as Mace came unstuck from my spell and started to push through the crowd, making his way toward the stage.
The band played behind me with a power and certainty that made it sound as if we’d played the song millions of times rather than just this once. The chords I played sounded angry, as if sliced from my guitar. Floyd’s fingers were pounding out the notes on the piano, notes to a song I didn’t even know he knew.
The crowd was still silent, stunned, watching, enthralled.
I let the final words to the song rush out of me, hoarse and filled with scratching despair, just like it rushed out of Eddie Vedder on Pearl Jam’s world rocking, genre-defining album “Ten”.
As I sang, Mace was nearly at the stage when I closed my eyes to shut him out as if closing my eyes could shut him out of my life forever.
Still playing, my head dropped and I rested my forehead on the mic, the vision of Mace, eyes never leaving me, pushing through the crowd toward me, burned on the backs of my eyelids.
I played lead, Floyd’s piano thundering around me, matching the same notes that came from my guitar. The band began singing their “da-do-do-do, do-do-do’s” and before my fingers could strum the angry riff and I could shout my anguish like Vedder, I was pulled roughly from the mic.
My eyes came open and I stared, frozen to the spot in disbelief.
Mace was there, onstage, right in front of me, right in front of five hundred people.
I stayed frozen as his hand wrapped around the neck of my guitar. He yanked it over my head and then jerked me forward so that my body slammed against his.
His free arm sliced at a slant around my back, crushing me to him. His head came down, his mouth finding mine, and he kissed me, right there. Right onstage. Right in front of five hundred people. Open-mouthed, hard, wet and full of everything.
His body bent forward, pushing mine back so I was arched over his arm, my torso and hips pressed deep into him.
He kissed me and kept kissing me as the band played around us, pushing the song longer, longer...
Just to have a guy come up onstage and kiss you who is one of the Hot Bunch...well, WOW! But to have it done after you sang a song to him. Double WOW! Well, Stella was trying to send a message through said song.
The music all the way through this book was well thought out. Now I admit I love me some Billy Joel, I’m of that vintage and I have my albums lovingly in storage, but dayum I had not heard of, 'And So It Goes'.
That brings a tear to the eye that song.
See!!!!
“Crazy white bitches, the lot of you. ‘ Cept you.” He nodded at Shirleen. “You’re a crazy black bitch. Fuck,” Smithie finished.
“Smithie, sweetie –“ LaTeesha said softly.
“It’s covered, Smithie,” Shirleen put in.
“Yeah, it’ll be covered,” Smithie snapped at Shirleen. “You’re movin’ your ass in with me tonight and you’re bringin’ the boys. LaTeesha, that okay with you?”
“Just fine. I’ll make chicken and dumplin’s,” LaTeesha replied on a wide grin at Roam and Sniff.
“Can we have pizza?” Sniff asked.
Shirleen cuffed him gently up the side of his head. “What’s the matter with you, boy? You heard the woman. LaTeesha’s makin’ chicken and dumplin’s. You’re eatin’ chicken and dumplin’s.”
“I like chicken and dumplin’s,” Roam put in.
We get a little Luke fix along the way.
“I’m not wearing any underwear,” I lied.
“I’ll close my eyes,” Mace lied back.
“I won’t,” Luke put in.
Bahahahaaa.
Luke was floating between the doors, not wearing a windbreaker, but being generally badass, thus not inviting killer intentions.
I got to say, this was the best use of the conjunctive verb, thus , that I have seen.
Some of the songs performed in Rock Chick Reckoning.
I could of been mistaken for actually being part of the Blue Moon Gypsies audience at their gigs. From the songs played, they would have rocked the house.
No wonder the Hot Bunch were on duty...and the fact there was a real danger looming.
I could so see Duke working the front of the crowd. The house would have been pumping.
And then you throw in some Pat Benetar. ROCK ON!!! I so could see Stella rocking the stage with the band.
This is why you gotta listen to the songs when the Gypsies are playing a gig. I was there with the Rock Chicks rockin'.
I think this is the one Rock Chick book I really could see on the big screen as it came with that musical side which Kristen used very well. I could even see this whole series as a TV show. An hour a week of these lads would be a pretty good night in front of the box.
Now I gotta mention the Epilogue.
DON’T READ IT!!
LORDY MY EYES!
DON’T READ IT!!
LORDY MY EYES!
I can’t take it back.
I LOOKED.
Now I’m a little confuzzed as to why there was an Epilogue at the end of this book being # 6 when I still have several books to read.
GAHHH!
There are spoilers in it.
Maybe Ms KA wasn’t gonna be going on with the series at the end of #6 so she did an Epilogue?
But, Rock Chicks indeed went on.
So save yourselves and if you haven’t read Rock Chick Reckoning yet, be strong and don’t read that Epilogue.
In the words of Tex, ‘Jesus Jones’.
Take a bow Ms Kristen Ashley for this very 3D read for me, anyway. It brought back a lot of music and I spent ages reconnecting with these songs.
I was arm chairing these gigs, but you wrote the scenes so well, I was there in spirit.
Michelle
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