Monday, May 12, 2014

Blog Tour, Review and Giveaway for Within Temptation by Tanya Holmes



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 Within Temptation (Sons of Temptation #1)
Author: Tanya Holmes
Release Date: May 12, 2014

Category: Romantic Mystery/Romantic Suspense. This is not erotica or romantica. This is a romance centered around a murder mystery.
Heat Factor: 3 out of 5 -- The sexual tension is high, and the burn is slow. Sex is character-driven, rather than plot-driven.
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Love, betrayal and murder in a small town….
Twelve years after her mother's murder, Shannon Bradford fears she may have helped convict an innocent man. Even worse, her prominent family may have had something to do with it. Desperate for answers, she seeks help from the one person least likely to give it. Her best friend and childhood crush, Trace Dawson. The man she sent to prison.

Serving hard time for murder has left Trace angry and bitter. As far as he's concerned, digging into the past won't replace the years he's lost or erase the hell he's lived. Now that he's free, Shannon Bradford tops his list of bad memories. But he never counted on falling in love.

Set in a sleepy little town during the dead of winter, this award-winning romance novel is a tale of one woman's quest for truth and a man's struggle to forgive.





REVIEW -mature content reader discretion is advised.
4 STARS out of 5
Genre: Romantic Suspense/Mystery

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‘Geographically speaking, I was free, but I still thought like a con. Still felt like a caged animal. Something told me that to survive this place, I’d have to define stuff in terms of Gainstown. Nothing made sense outside of it.’

‘I’m the butcher boy of Temptation’
Trace just finished doing a 12 year bid in prison when he spots the one responsible for keeping him behind bars. Shannon Bradford. And ironically he ends up coming to her rescue on the day of his release.

Oh how fate likes to bring up unfinished business.

Murderer:
The small town has a long memory and Trace being back in town does not please the people. Shannon found Trace that fateful day over her own mother’s dead body murder weapon and all. Problem is things are a bit hazy for Shannon about that day her memory seems to not missing pieces of what happened. A discovery leads her to confront Trace. In her heart she knows he did not kill her mother but she can’t shake the images. He was there that day over her dead bloody body.
But, if not him then who killed her?

Trace and Shannon have a history, with a 4 year age difference Shannon was in love with him as a teen but in teen years a 4 year gap can make a BIG difference. Therefore their relationship remained in the friendship zone.

 Oh how fate likes to show us what we need.

Temptation:
Ever since his first day back in town, ever since he and Shannon came within close proximity to one another it’s been there…this slow burn and yearning for one another. They both feel it whether they like it or not.

Oh how fate likes to tempt us.

“Here’s the thing, I see you sometimes and it’s –it’s like my brain objects, but my bodyhas other ideas. Try as I might, I can’t stay away. And you…” He paused to half smile. “Can’t seem to stay away from me either.”   -Trace

A reluctant Trace eventually caves and decides to help Shannon put together the missing pieces. Only learning the what and who behind his imprisonment leads them down a path to crazy town; where everyone is a suspect.


In the midst of all this Trace and Shannon find it hard to keep their hands off one another. Fiancée be damned. Oh, did I not mention her engagement? Hmm, must of slipped my mind *shrugs* Tanya Holmes manages to lightly sprinkle in some VERY SEXY times between these two in a way that does not over take the story. Trace is harboring a lot of anger and bitterness inside. Never the less while has he tried to keep his feelings toward Shannon in the non romantic atmosphere the smog of lust takes him on a ride. One she will never forget if you know what I mean *wink,wink*

‘I knew his scent, his touch. How it felt to have his mouth close around me. And he knew what I tasted like, knew me in ways no man ever had.’
  -Shannon

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My Thoughts
This was a pleasant surprise, it’s not often a book meets your expectations however Within Temptation by Tanya Holmes did just that! A perfect mix of Romance-suspense-and mystery there never a dull moment in Temptation. Her characters are beautifully layered as she reveals their hidden truths in soft tender moments and some in highly charged emotional moments.

What I found interesting was that Holmes did not allow Trace to be a tortured male..Bitter, yes. Angry, yes. But not a tortured soul, although he could have been once you hear his story and some of the things he goes through after his release. The whole situation with his parents and his brother that alone is enough to leave one a tortured but not Trace. Those things hurt him yet they did not define him or leave him broken to the point of no return. And the best part was he did not run from his feelings for Shannon once he recognized them for what they were.

One thing is for sure you will fall in love with Trace I have no doubt in my mind about that.

Fave Scene hands down was the dance scene. HOLY HOTNESS can I get a Trace of my own?!?

My Rating and Why
Within Temptation gets 4 STARS for having a great plot, smoking hot characters and for being well written. Just when I thought it was going one way it took a sharp turn and took another. Good job at keeping me on my toes Holmes!

My Ratings
Characters- Sexy, Sexy and Innocent (Pun intended)
Writing Style- Purposeful, favorable my preferred cup of tea
Plot/Storyline- Man is released from prison only to be confronted about his past and questioned about his role on the day of the murder he was convicted of. Did he really do it?
Steam Factor- High/Steamy on a scale of 1-10 I say 7
Entertainment Level- From Lo-Med-Hi I say High this book kept me guessing
Overall- I LOVED IT!
My Recommendation:   READ IT!

Now go forth and read. Then come tell us about it!




No more than two minutes could have passed, two of the most terrifying minutes I’d ever had. The left side of my face was numb with cold. My lips and hands ached too. I couldn’t seem to make anything move.

The details came in pieces. How I’d almost been run over. How a stranger shoved me to safety just before a Jeep playing target practice could send me flying.

Then as if someone had flipped a switch, sensory explosions filled the void. Horns blared. Somebody screamed. A baby was crying. And the wind howled while sounds burst forth in a crush of voices.

“I swear the brakes locked!” a teenage boy yelled. “She ain’t dead, is she? Oh, jeez. Daddy’s gonna kill me!”

“Don’t just stand there. Call 911!” a girl shrieked.

A cell phone chimed and someone started pressing numbers.

Next, an old man with a rough-and-ready voice said, “Pushed her out the way just in time. Another second and—”

“Is she dead or not?” the teenager demanded again.

While this was going on, I sat up, taking my time to ensure I was in one piece. Except for a sore hip, a bump on the head, and a scraped knee, I was fine. A woman standing nearby helped me, and as I got to my feet, realization dawned.

Trace Dawson had tried to save me.

I fought to see past the crowd into the parking lot, spotting him instantly. He’d just struggled to his feet and was staring right at me, his chin dripping blood. The people scurrying about and the cars streaming through the slush faded. Nothing but the two of us existed.

Memories flooded my mind, of the quiet riot he was, of the secret crush I’d had on him, and the extraordinary friendship we’d shared so many years ago. As fast as those images came, others replaced them.

I was thrust back to the crime scene, back to Mother’s corpse and the shirtless eighteen-year-old roaring obscenities while Sheriff Gray and a deputy dragged him away in handcuffs.

Trace Dawson the man glared at me now, and his eyes were hard and accusing, eyes brimming with fire and ice. A chill wind rumbled past him, but he stood as still as a statue. Only his eyes moved while he looked me up and down with agonizing thoroughness. The rage. The pain. It was all there.

Trace?” I whispered.

In chilling silence, he walked away without so much as a glance over his shoulder.


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 Tanya Holmes is a former Romance Writers of America Golden Heart finalist, a recipient of the Maggie Award, the MICA Award, as well as Overall Winner of the Sandy Haddad Award and a two-time finalist and one-time winner of The Emily (Best of the Best). She's happily married with children and loves reading, writing and a good cup of coffee---but not necessarily in that order. Her debut novel, Within Temptation is due out on May 12, 2014.






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