Review: Exquisite, Vivid & Daring
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 3, 2012
Author Katie Porter (writing duo Lorelie Brown & Carrie Lofty) reached out and grabbed my attention from the first page of the second book in their Vegas Top Guns Series. As noted in the synopsis Inside Bet is Captain Jon "Tin Tin" Carlisle's story. Carlisle is one of the hot shot F-16 pilots stationed at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas. This guy has a genius intellect, is über alpha, has a quick sarcastic wit, and he likes no-strings-attached kinky sex with a capital letter K. However when he zeros in on business woman Heather Morris at wine tasting event he has no idea how much kink he is letting himself in for with the seemingly reserved woman.Heather initially presents as sedate and cautious, as she puts it she likes her life orderly. Heather is career orientated and in line for a major promotion at an accounting firm that values propriety. Heather learned the hard way that letting her wild side out leads to nothing but but trouble and regret. However, Jon is given a glimpse of the penchant for wickedness she keeps deeply subdued and he scents her need to be naughty like a hungry predator. He charms Heather to let down her defenses and allow the genie out of the bottle, if only for the evening.Taking her hand once again, he traced the inside of her wrist. Her mouth made pretty protests, but her frantic pulse said otherwise. He drew his touch over the fleshy base of her thumb, down into the soft valley of her palm. If he'd known her even a little bit better, he would have used his nail to scrape a pale red line over her soft skin."Because you want to," he said quietly. "You've been good for a very long time, haven't you?"Inside Bet  Katie PorterThe erotism in this novel is exquisite, vivid and daring. What begins as a one night stand escalates into a series of adventurous encounters that include D/s play. These two challenge each other with dares and as the stakes and danger increase Jon and Heather push each other's sexual boundaries to the limit. What I loved was the power exchange, Jon is a Dom but Heather is strong and adventurous during their interludes, she also enjoys taking control and there is a scene where she is shown as a switch. Their affair is addictive, but there is a line drawn, there will be no strings, no commitment. Both Heather and Jon have significant relationship commitment issues and neither has any intention of giving their heart to the other. Famous last words.She chose her words carefully. "Whereas you believe your self-control is beyond reach."He chuckled. "You want me to lose control?""No," she whispered. "I want to make you lose it."Inside Bet  Katie PorterHeather and Jon's love story is emotional and complex and through stellar sensual prose and dialogue I was kept completely entranced. These people have painful secrets and vulnerabilities that are masked by well sculpted outer shells. The climax of their story tore at my heart strings. However, the novel's emotional intensity is well balanced with laugh out loud sarcasm between the protagonists and secondary characters who are all extremely well-drawn and I loved sin city as the setting.Inside Bet offers a fast-paced relationship driven story that isn't overburdened with aerial maneuvers or technical information regarding the nature of Jon's flying with the Aggressor Squadron. There is great camaraderie between Jon's teammates and two closest friends and the author(s) builds the background for book 3 of their Vegas Top Guns Series, Captain Leah "Princess" Girardi's story, Hold `Em, due out September 25th. And trust me Leah is a real weapon. lolWhen I was half way through Inside Bet I downloaded Book 1 of the series but didn't feel disadvantaged by not reading Double Down first, in fact I can't wait to read it. Inside Bet is a toe curling rush and if you like a hot erotic D/s themed read you may like to give it a try.