Saturday, June 16, 2012

Review for Dead or Alive by L.J. Garland


Rhykar Evierse has been on the Most Wanted list for years. His attempts to expose the evil deeds of Vast Innovations’ founder, Mertan Graiton, has landed him on the wrong end of the law—and on the wrong end of a sexy bounty hunter’s pistol. Now, Rhykar’s wanted for a murder he didn’t commit. Desperate to clear his name, he contacts the one woman who can save him. He hopes she’ll give him one night to prove himself.

When Selea Val’keer receives Rhykar’s call for help, anger and lust rip through her. How can she be attracted to a criminal? Unable to resist, she accepts his invitation to meet through Madame Evangeline’s 1Night Stand service. But what will she do when she sees him again—kiss him or shoot him?

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Sci-fi stories are amongst my favorite themes and with Dead or Alive LJ Garland has created a fast-paced story with likable characters whose connection is intense and sexy which leads to one heckuva fun ride which has only just begun.  From the very start the connection between Rhykar and Selea has been established and feels believable in its sexual tension.  There's a constant back and forth between them to be in control that's both playful and sexy.  Selea's a strong and capable woman who's not afraid to be in a male-dominated field.  Rhykar is smart, sexy, and charming in his bad boy persona, but believes in Selea's abilities and doesn't stand in her way.  Their interactions are fun to watch and keep the story moving at a pleasantly entertaining pace that has the story ending before you know it.

The villains in this story are a bit stereotypical, but are still quite nasty in their actions.  Their nefarious plans are intriguing and far sweeping and were just beginning to be touched upon in this story.  Once expanded upon, any future stories set in this world could have a very epic and satisfying feel and I again hope the author will be continuing this story in the future.

Between its entertaining storyline, fast-paced action, likable primary characters, and some steamy sexual interludes, I found myself completely immersed in this story from page one.  LJ Garland does a lot in this short story format to give this a big story feel and with the entertaining rollercoaster ride I experienced through her words, I definitely look forward to any future works.

My rating for this is a B+

*I received this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

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