Bad Business by Nicole Edwards

This player’s got a lot to learn if he wants to score... with the boss’s daughter.

Stone:
Football is more than a game to me. It’s my calling. Becoming the Dallas Wranglers’ starting quarterback before I retire is a dream come true, but with a few wins under my belt, suddenly everyone wants a piece of me. And even though being in the spotlight has its perks—beautiful women, star treatment, more beautiful women—what really gets me sweating is the watchful gaze of my sexy-as-hell PR coach, Savannah Andrews. The catch? Her father is kind of my boss...

Savannah:
In my family, football is big business. When your dad owns an NFL franchise, you learn a thing or two about schmoozing, and from what I can tell, it’s not a skill in Jason Stone’s playbook. Sure, the veteran quarterback is literally larger than life. With broad shoulders, muscles on muscles, and a mouth made for kissing, he may be one of the hottest men in the league—and I should know. I’ve turned down enough players to start my own all-star team. But those guys just wanted to get close to my father. Meanwhile, Stone is getting temptingly close... to me.

The Bad Boys of Sports come to life in these sexy standalone novels by New York Times bestselling author Nicole Edwards.

Book 2
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Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
This is a fun, simple sports romance and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The storyline will be familiar to sports romance fans – star player falls for team owner’s daughter – but the quality of Nicole Edwards’ writing makes this one special.

This is definitely romance and not erotica – and it is quite a departure from some of the author’s kinkier stories. This is a more vanilla read. It’s a playful, sweet, and easy story with characters I quickly fell in love with.

I read it on a hot beach and it makes for a perfect holiday read. This isn’t a complicated or angsty book and there isn’t much that’s especially original about it – but I loved the banter between Stone and Savannah and I loved the way they fit together pretty perfectly.


Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆
3.5 stars
M/F Sports romance

This is a typical sports romance story. Stone is a high-profile quarterback who is helping to bring a lower team up to the Super Bowl again. He is cocky and a smart player. He lives for the game. But when Savannah catches his eye, he'll do what he can to make sure that he is what she needs.

Savannah is living in the shadow of her father. Despite her intelligence, her dad sometimes uses her for her looks rather than her degree. When she lets her hair down for a night, it seems that the connection that was made won't let go.

Savannah and Stone have to navigate a working relationship and a private relationship. It is a sweet story that follows their choices and how they navigate. For people who have read Edwards' books before, this is definitely not erotica but more of a true romance. Stone and Savannah's chemistry is still hot, but they have a more organic relationship.

Overall, this is a quick read that is not angsty or full of turmoil.


Mary Jo – ☆☆☆☆
Savannah doesn't mind working for the family business, her father owns the Dallas Wranglers football team. She's just glad that she's able to be do her job mostly behind the scenes, leaving the public faces of the team to her father and brothers.

Stone has only signed a one-year contract but with the Wranglers on a winning streak and the odds of making the playoffs getting better after every win, her father wants to know what it will take to get him to sign a contract extension. The problem is, Stone isn't sure if he wants to continue to play the game. He's had a great career and the Super Bowl rings to prove it. He wouldn't mind one more to add to his collection, but he's not sure if he's willing to put his body through another few years of torture for a chance to win a couple more rings.

The more Savannah learns about Stone, the more she likes the man off the gridiron. He's smart, funny, and seems to really like her. Not just because she's the boss's daughter but maybe in spite of it.

I enjoyed reading about Stone and Savannah and the way their romance played out over the course of the book. The book took a familiar storyline (sports romance) and made it new again.

Also Available in the Bad Boys of Sports Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Bad Reputation post.

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Nicole Edwards lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, their three kids, and four rambunctious dogs. When she’s not writing about sexy alpha males, Nicole can often be found with a book in hand or making an attempt to keep the dogs happy. You can find her hanging out on Facebook and interacting with her readers—even when she’s supposed to be writing.

Connect with Nicole

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Google+  ~  Instagram
The Nicole & Colt Edwards Facebook Group

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Bad Business (Bad Boys of Sports #2) by Nicole Edwards to read and review.

Bad Reputation by Nicole Edwards

Meet the most wanted players in sports... one ridiculously hot alpha male at a time.

Chase:
With a nickname like “Sin,” it’s no wonder they call me the bad boy of hockey. Opponents curse me. Fans scream my name—in the arena and in other, much more private places. Penalties or not, I’m not afraid to dish out a little pain. But pleasure? That’s my weakness. And no one knows it better than my best friend, Cassie Desrosiers. I’d have to be blind not to notice her rocking body and teasing grin. So when she invites me along on a trip to Vegas, my curiosity isn’t the only thing that’s aroused.

Cassie:
Chase Barrett is a world-class A-hole. As his best friend, I’m allowed to call him on his BS. Who else is going to do it? Certainly not the puck bunnies swooning at every flex of his biceps. Everyone knows that Chase is the love-’em-and-leave-’em type. There’s no such thing as commitment for the king of casual hookups. So why should I care? Maybe because all work and no play makes me a sexually frustrated girl. It’s time to put the hockey stud at my beck and call to good use... but after a week in Vegas with Chase, I might never want to go back to the real world.

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆
3.5 stars
M/F Sports Romance

This is a push-pull story between two friends. They are playful and love each other as friends first.

Chase is a cocky hockey player who is loving his single life. He has a great family and set of friends, but he really wants to have Cassie love him.

Cassie is a strong woman and knows that she wants to have a great life. What her life doesn't include is love.

These two dance around each other and then when things finally go to the next level, their communication sucks.

This had a ton of potential for me, but the back and forth was just a little too much. Overall, it was a sweet story – there was just a little too much young adult drama.


Angie – ☆☆☆☆
Chase and Cassie have been best friends for several years. Everyone calls Chase "Sin" and he has a reputation for being a bad boy... but really he isn't. Chase has had a crush on his BFF forever! Cassie calls Chase out all the time for all his crap, has never thought of him in a sexual way even though he is hot AF. When Cassie has to go to Vegas for work, she invites Chase. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas... yeah, right. There were a few things that happened in the book that were so predictable it kind of ruined the storyline for me. It was still a good book, but I expected and wanted more, not something so predictable. There are a few other players on the hockey team that I would love to read their stories though, hopefully without being able to guess the end of the book before I am half way through it.


Mary Jo – ☆☆☆☆
What I really loved about this book was the fact that it takes two people with a solid friendship and shows the progression from friends to lovers in a well told out romance. It takes been there, told that story to new heights and it’s a story that’s told very, very well.

Chase and Cassie are the best of friends and have been since college. Chase plays professional hockey and when Cassie has the opportunity to accept a promotion in the same city he’s in, she jumps on it.

Being close friends, they give each other grief about everything, from potential hook-ups to what each other wears, to how hard/much the other works. Chase likes to have fun and does his best to get Cassie to let loose a little. Yes, Cassie is driven and knows that Chase is just as driven in his hockey career, only with the different professions it shows itself in different ways.

Life goes from being pretty good, to being out of control when a night out in Vegas tanks Cassie’s career. Through it all, Chase is Cassie’s rock and she doesn’t understand why.

It takes a tough nut to crack her shell and have her admit that the reason that she and Chase have been such good friends all these is years is because they fell in love as kids and grew into that love as adults.


Ruthie – ☆☆☆
3.5 stars of friends-to-lovers romance

This is a sweet, fun sports romance, heralding a new series from Ms. Edwards. It is definitely lighter than many of her books which I have read.

Told from both Chase and Cassie's viewpoint, we soon realise that they really are a team, who just haven't succumbed to the desire... yet! At times I found their voices to be younger than the careers that they had, but the informality wasn't entirely annoying. Thanks to the set up, it wasn't difficult to predict what was going to happen, but it was fun watching it roll out.

There were definite hints as to other characters who could have their stories told in future instalments and I await them with interest.


Shannan – ☆☆☆
Bad Reputation is a friends-to-lovers sports romance. Two best friends who have feelings for each other but don't want to ruin what they have.

Cassie and Chase met in college. They become as close as two friends can. Feelings have developed but neither wants to cross that line. Cassie doesn't think someone like Chase would be interested in her and Chase knows Cassie isn't into him like that.

Chase is the bad boy of hockey. He's fierce on the ice and a player off the ice. He's known to be a hard hitting player. All the girls fall for Chase, but he's not interested in more.

Cassie's mother ruined her view of love. She's moved from husband to husband, choosing to marry for money. Having that as a role model has deterred Cassie from wanting love.

You know where the story is headed pretty early on. I have to say I did skim some because at some point the internal dialogue seemed almost childish. The banter between the two was entertaining. I enjoyed Chase's character more than Cassie's.

Ms. Edwards has definitely left the door open for more from the secondary characters. Bad Reputation is an easy, quick read.

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Nicole Edwards lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, their three kids, and four rambunctious dogs. When she’s not writing about sexy alpha males, Nicole can often be found with a book in hand or making an attempt to keep the dogs happy. You can find her hanging out on Facebook and interacting with her readers—even when she’s supposed to be writing.

Connect with Nicole

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
The Nicole & Colt Edwards Facebook Group

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Bad Reputation (Bad Boys of Sports #1) by Nicole Edwards to read and review.

Harmless by Nicole Edwards Blog Tour

He's got a secret...

Roan Gregory, one of the four owners of Pier 70 Marina, has managed to paint himself as a loner in recent months. There’s a reason for that. And he’s got every intention of keeping that reason a secret. That is, until he no longer has the option.

He's got a secret, too...

Colton Seguine, defenseman for the Austin Arrows, has gotten good at keeping the world from finding out that he’s gay. He knows exactly what he can and cannot do. And with whom. That is, until he sees Roan for the first time and all bets are off.

Some secrets are too big to keep

Temperatures soar when this brooding bad boy gets his first taste of this smoking hot hockey player.

Can Roan and Seg push past each other’s defenses? Or, thanks to the way the cards have been dealt, will the time they spent together prove to be just a harmless one night stand?

Book 4
Buy Links

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Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Angela – ☆☆☆☆☆
I LOVED HARMLESS!!! The Pier 70 series is one of the few that I pulled rank on to review for our blog. I usually let one of the other ladies on our team claim the review spot when we’re only allowed one, but Nicole Edwards is an exception. One I’m glad I made because I have enjoyed each and every installment in this series, but Harmless might possibly be my favorite of them all. It could be because it’s a bittersweet end to such an enjoyable series, but it’s more likely that it was a heart wrenching story with a fantastic crossover with Edwards’ Austin Arrows series – which, yes, you guessed it, I also pulled rank on to review.

Even though I’ve read the previous books in the series, I was as floored as Cam was when Roan’s secret was revealed. And the way that it occurred, especially after the night Roan had already had, it’s a wonder the man didn’t crack under the pressure of it all. But the secret (and yes, I’m trying very hard not to reveal it because although it’s not really a spoiler, potential readers deserve to experience the same shock) was one that didn’t give Roan time to wallow in grief over his sister’s death. Especially once Seg enters (or re-enters) the picture, with his sights set on making Roan his… assuming he can figure out how to do that without sinking his hockey career. The chemistry between Roan and Seg is hot enough to melt the ice that Seg spends his days on, but it may not be enough, not with all the obstacles that seem to be keeping them apart, especially the wall that Roan has built to keep his heart safe from being hurt again. Fortunately for all involved, Seg didn’t become a professional hockey player because it was easy, he knows how to work hard for what he wants and what he wants is to build a family with Roan.

One of the things that I appreciated about Harmless is that once he dealt with his knee-jerk reaction and refusal to be Seg’s dirty little secret, Roan was able to look at their situation from Seg’s point of view and appreciate Seg’s need to be discreet about his sexuality so as not to ruin his career. It was a level of maturity that’s often missing in sports romances when the athlete is closeted. Roan’s initial emotional response was realistic, especially considering his past, but after he stepped back and reexamined the situation from Seg’s perspective, he understood better and was willing to do what needed to be done. Of course, when Seg mucked that up, Roan’s response afterwards was spot-on and my heart broke for both men. I loved catching up with the couples from the previous installments and how they came together to support Roan in his time of need. I think that my favorite scene was when Seg stood up to Roan’s stepmother, calling her out on her homophobia. The man was absolutely magnificent in how he “forced” her to reveal her prejudices and in his defense of Roan, all without losing his temper. I was cheering him on the whole time and could not wait for the two men to get home so that Roan could reward him properly. While I’m sad to see the end of the Pier 70 series, I’m hopeful that the Harmless crossover with the Austin Arrows series means that we’ll get to see the guys every once and a while. Until then, I’ll have to settle for spending a weekend reading all four books back-to-back to get my fix… such a hardship.

Also Available in the Pier 70 Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our stop on the Reckless Blog Tour.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our stop on the Fearless Blog Tour.

Book 3
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our stop on the Speechless Blog Tour.

Connect with Nicole

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
The Nicole & Colt Edwards Facebook Group

Hosted by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Harmless (Pier 70 #4) by Nicole Edwards to read and review for this tour.

Distraction by Nicole Edwards Blog Tour

Time doesn’t always heal a broken heart. Sometimes the only thing it does is fill the darkness with more shadows, more pain.

Dylan Thomas has spent the past decade living in the shadows, mourning the loss of his wife, his best friend, his very reason for breathing. He long ago accepted that he would never feel again, that he was damned to a world without light, without hope. That was the day the bottle won, and he gave himself over to the darkness.

Until the one night that rocked his brittle, crumbling world on its axis. She told him what they shared was simply a distraction, a way to forget for a little while. It would’ve been, except the tiny glimpse of how it feels to live again, to feel again, gives him the strength he needs to pull himself up by his boot straps. But sobriety comes one day at a time, and three years later may be three years too late.

Book 8
Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Angie – ☆☆☆☆
I love this series, you don’t need to read others in the series to read this one, but you do miss some back story if you don’t. This book deals with depression, which the author herself has. I will say at times I found myself skimming the book, it was too wordy at times; I know why it was too wordy, but it was just too much for my liking. I like more dialogue in my books. I don’t like all the banter inside someone’s head, especially when it is the same thing over and over again. Again, I know this is part of the story and the disease being discussed, just not my thing. Once Dylan and Sarah got their lives back on track and started to live, the book was very good. There wasn’t much once you got past all the depression, just a lot of sex. I love sex and the sex scenes were awesome, that was actually the only time I felt the characters connect, other than that, I didn’t feel a connection between them. The scene with Chris and Tristian was HOT. This is the last Club Destiny book. I am sad to see the series end, but I am looking forward to the spin-off series with Trent.

Characters: Well written
Sex: Yes, there is a M/F/M/M scene
Religious: No
Would I recommend to others: Yes
More than one book in the series: Yes
Genre: Romance
Would I read more by this author: Yes

Connect with Nicole

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
The Nicole & Colt Edwards Facebook Group

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Distraction (Club Destiny #8) by Nicole Edwards to read and review for this tour.

Without Restraint by Nicole Edwards

Micah Fontenot can’t seem to find what he’s looking for. Not everything anyway. He’s living the dream, working alongside his twin brother, managing Devil’s Playground, one of the hottest clubs in all of Las Vegas. He’s even got a full-time lover in his bed, yet still, something is missing.

Hayden Wellington wants the best of both worlds. He understands Micah on levels even Micah doesn’t. Now that he has half of what he needs, Hayden’s just biding his time until everything falls into place.

Lindy Weatherford refuses to be the hum-drum friend who doesn’t have a story to tell. Unfortunately, that’s what she’s become. When her friends stand her up at Devil’s Playground, Lindy finds herself smack in the middle of a story she’s not sure she can explain.

What happens when passions collide? Will one night be enough? Or will the three of them give in… without restraint?

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆☆
I always enjoy reading Ms. Edwards' books – and having just read Without Regret, this was a perfect follow on. They were both perfect indulgences in hot, naughty, and super sexy stories. I have not read the connected books in the Southern Boy Mafia series, but it didn't matter as there was no Mafia element to this story.

Micah (twin to Isaiah, who features in Without Regret) has an exclusive relationship with Hayden, but knows that he has a fantasy of them both having a woman with them too. Hayden feeds this fantasy in one of the hottest scenes you could want, and accepts that he too would like them to be completed by a woman - but they have never found anyone that they have even been interested in enough.

Lindy, a quiet accountant, is meant to be meeting her friends at the Devil's Playground, in the private club section – but when she arrives, they are not there. Determined to not slink off home, she attracts Micah's attention... and the rest is just too hot to risk writing about on the page! This may be short, but oh, it is super hot.

Ms. Edwards is supremely good at writing about three people entering a relationship together, both mentally and physically. Absolutely delicious – in fact, I have added it to my reread list of guaranteed super hot reads!

Also Available in the Devil's Playground Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca

For reviews & more info, check out our Without Regret post.

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Nicole Edwards lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, their three kids, and four rambunctious dogs. When she’s not writing about sexy alpha males, Nicole can often be found with her Kindle in hand or making an attempt to keep the dogs happy. You can find her hanging out on Facebook and interacting with her readers – even when she’s supposed to be writing.

Nicole also writes contemporary/new adult romance as Timberlyn Scott.

Connect with Nicole

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
The Nicole & Colt Edwards Facebook Group


Brought to you by

Ruthie reviewed her personal copy of Without Restraint (Devil's Playground #2) by Nicole Edwards for this post.

Without Regret by Nicole Edwards

The first book in the HOT new Devil's Playground series!

Isaiah Fontenot had never played the role of white knight. At least not until his boss, Maximillian Adorite, gave him the order to. That was when he found himself coming face to face with the stunning Cassidy Owens, the woman in need of saving.

Cassidy only thought she was hiding from the men who were looking for her brother. Not knowing where to go, Cassidy opted to hide in plain sight, taking up temporary residence in a Vegas hotel near her condo. Turned out, she wasn’t as good at hiding as she had planned.

When Isaiah finds Cassidy, it doesn’t take long for passion to ignite. But at the end of the day, when the threat to Cassidy has been neutralized, will the two of them be able to walk away? Without regret?

Devil's Playground is a spin-off series from Southern Boy Mafia. Each novella is complete and does not contain a cliffhanger.

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
I always enjoy reading Ms. Edwards' books – and have had this one and the next one in the series sitting on my Kindle waiting for a quiet moment. They were a perfect indulgence in hot, naughty, and super sexy stories. I have not read the connected books in the Southern Boy Mafia series, but it didn't matter, I enjoyed the Mafia elements anyway.

As long as you can go with the instant connection, which does makes sense given the situation, then this is a totally engrossing read. I liked the underlying plot, although it took very much a second string to the boiling heat between Isaiah and Cassidy. I was convinced there was more to the Devil's Playground Club, but there was plenty of action in Isaiah's penthouse, so I did not feel any disappointment. There is a touch of domination, but really this is just super hot.

If you have a shortish window of time, but want a sexy read, then this will deliver. If you have time to read Without Restraint too, then you will be very satisfied!

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Nicole Edwards lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, their three kids, and four rambunctious dogs. When she’s not writing about sexy alpha males, Nicole can often be found with her Kindle in hand or making an attempt to keep the dogs happy. You can find her hanging out on Facebook and interacting with her readers – even when she’s supposed to be writing.

Nicole also writes contemporary/new adult romance as Timberlyn Scott.

Connect with Nicole

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
The Nicole & Colt Edwards Facebook Group


Brought to you by

Ruthie reviewed her personal copy of Without Regret (Devil's Playground #1) by Nicole Edwards for this post.