Hot and healthy romances

It’s been a busy week promoting the cover reveal of my debut erotic fiction novel Lessons on Seduction, published by Black Velvet Seductions. My debut erotic romance novel is available for pre-order on Amazon at a discount price and will be out on July 30.

I know I should be writing a chapter for my next project (a short romance with a hot and sexy Aussie cowboy), but after talking to a few wonderful readers and writers, I have to get this off my chest:

How about a hot, healthy, sensational, and sexy romance this summer?

Are you up for that?

I hope that most of you will be nodding in eager anticipation. Well, there’s no waiting line because here’s a few good romance stories where the heat between the protagonist and the love interest is flammable—which could be a little dangerous in the summer heat! 😉

Here are summer reads I recommend from books I’ve read/am reading from BVS authors:

• Patrick by Callie Carmen – a contemporary romance with super-steamy scenes. It’s the first in the Risking Love series.
• Mystic Desire – a supernatural anthology, which is great if you like supernatural romances, which includes a great vampire love story and a story about dreams that got me thinking of love and romance.
• Her Lover’s Face by Patricia Elliott – I’m about halfway through and I love the intrigue and mystery in a romance.
• Edgeplay and Hard Limits by Anabel Allan – hot and hunky men, BDSM, a thrilling plot, and a woman who stands her ground. I love this!
• Perilous Love by Jan Selbourne – if you’re into historical romances with emotional tugs of the heart, this one is for you.

There’s more, and I’m getting through them – including Paging Dr. Turov by Gibby Campbell and A Thread of Sand by Alan Souter.

What I love most about these books is while they’re ultra-hot and steamy, they also have heroines with strong voices. The women in these books won’t tolerate any kind of demeaning behavior from their partners. They are neither passive nor aggressive: they are assertive women.

Their love interests are men of diverse backgrounds who have a few things in common: empathy, love, and respect for their partner’s boundaries.

On Wattpad, I have my reading lists. From there, here are a some hot romance stories I recommend:

• Heart to Hart by @Loiseaublanc – a sweet new adult romance that will make your heart flutter.
• Ruby Red by @dlcroisette – one sassy lady and one hot hunk with a great plot makes a fantastic book.
• Arizona Thunderstorm by @DariaLamtsova – the perfect short romance read for summer.
• The Mechanic by @Imperfetto_Tesoro – a short romance story and this guy may seem tough on the outside, but he sure knows how to respect women (people for that matter!).
• For the Love of History and Cupid’s Queue by @KimberlyTanithMarie – I can’t decide which of the two books I like most because they’re different but oh, so good! The first is a sweet romance and the second is an erotic romance.
• Princess by @LillyMHenderson – a hot hunk who’s sensitive to his woman’s needs.
• The Thirty Days Sex Challenge by @beautifulandmystery – I love the healthy attitude to sex and relationships in this book.
• What She Left Behind by @neurotick – a strong protagonist who searches for truth and justice.
• One Friday Evening by @maramartha – a great female character with sass and she’s not going to let anyone rain on her parade.
• The Cherry Secrets by @GayatriRamchandran – a YA/NA story – a young woman who stands her ground and won’t accept second best, and a seemingly bad boy with a heart of gold.
• The Fall Apart by @laurenwolf12 – an honest voice, no fluff, and no sugarcoating. It’s the best kind of voice, 100% relatable.

There you have it. Hot romances don’t need to tease readers with blurred lines, underage sex with vast age differences (eg. a fifteen-year-old who romps around with her 38-year-old teacher), or love that emerges from forced submission or kidnapping.

The red flag comes up when I see these lines at the start of a book:

“You will be mine…”

“By the time I’m done with you…”

“You will do as I tell you…”

“Other women would kill to be in your shoes…”

What the heck?

I have to share a personal anecdote. When I was an undergrad student years ago, there was one fellow, let’s call him Casanova, who used one of those lines on me in a confrontational manner in a public place. Oh, he was charming and handsome, but my self-respect was more important than submitting to an unhealthy proposal.

What happened next was something I’ll never forget. My male friends stood with me. They didn’t say much, but their unified stance in silence was enough to send the poor guy running like the clappers. 😉

I realized then that there was no room in my life for unhealthy relationships. That included my taste in books and movies.

Enjoy the heat this summer!

If you haven’t pre-ordered Lessons on Seduction, you can do that now for only 99 cents (pre-order sale price).

>> Pre-order Lessons on Seduction