[Archive] LITERAL ADDICTION's Review of A Million Dirty Secrets

C. L. Parker is a romance author who writes stories that sizzle. She’s a small-town girl with big-city dreams and enough tenacity to see them come to fruition. Having been the outgoing sort for all her life—which translates to “she just wouldn’t shut the hell up”—it’s no wonder Parker eventually turned to writing as a way to let her voice, and those of the people living inside her head, be heard. She loves hard, laughs until it hurts, and lives like there’s no tomorrow. In her world, everything truly does happen for a reason.

You can keep up with C.L online at her Website, on Facebook, on Twitter, and on GoodReads.

A Million Dirty Secrets
Book #1 of the MILLION DOLLAR DUET

   by C.L Parker

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Synopsis:  

Delaine Talbot has a secret. When a matter of life and death threatens to tear apart her family, Delaine makes the ultimate sacrifice. She auctions herself off at Chicago’s most exclusive erotic club. Now she belongs to Noah Crawford, a wealthy mogul who introduces her to a seductive feast of the senses, awakening desires she only dreamed about.
Noah doesn’t know why Delaine sold her body for a cool two mil. But it’s the perfect business arrangement. The inexperienced beauty will learn to satisfy his every sensual need, yet never touch his heart. Almost immediately their relationship generates heat—in more ways than one. When they fight, they take no prisoners. When they love, they show no mercy. When they’re together, they never want to leave each other’s arms. But soon, their intense, physical bond will take an unexpected turn—evolving into something neither has bargained for: the promise of a lasting love.

Our Review, by LITERAL ADDICTION's Pack Alpha - Michelle L. Olson:
*eARC received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Since the blurb markets the book for fans of Fifty Shades of Gray and Bared to You, I feel like I need to start my review with a confession... I absolutely hated Fifty Shades, and I didn't finish Bared to You because I just couldn't get into it. Being a fan of horror, urban fantasy, paranormal romance, paranormal erotica, & some romantic suspense, I simply figured that straight erotic romance just wasn't my thing. With that all said, I'm not sure how useful my input will be, but I'll tell you what I thought and let you go from there...

Some of you may know from reading other reviews and things that this started out several years ago as Twilight FanFic. What I want to say first off is to forget that you ever heard that. This is simply a steamy erotic romance that happens to be on the same highway as Fifty Shades and the others who have followed in its wake, but it's its own beautiful creature and should be viewed and judged as such.

The concept is a familiar one - twenty-something virgin hooks up with hot billionaire business tycoon for hot sex. What it has in addition, however, is a moving baseline story for our heroine which makes her decision to enter into the contract entirely selfless and heartfelt, and a catalyst for our hero that makes you want nothing more than for him to find his zen and mend is previously shattered heart. What really set the book apart were the characters and their growth, both individually and toward one another - Noah starts out as a class A Alpha-hole (albeit a super sexy one), and independent, determined Lanie goes a little bit crazy mid book, but despite it all, their chemistry is page melting, and their dialogue is laugh-out-loud funny at times.

Having read & loved C.L's Paranormal series (THE SUPERNOVA SAGA), hosted her several times on the website, and talked with her for years online, I know her personality, and it shines through like a beacon in this book - in the best of ways! Her wit, snark, and absolute abandonment, compiled with her evident lust for life (and lust in general. Hee hee) make for some fabulous reading material, and a lightness in a book that could easily get much too heavy with the amount of sex and drama. And the nicknames... Yeah, gotta love it! :) Life's too short to be so damn serious, right!?

Now here's where I'm not much help... The eroticism was smokin' and there was PLENTY of it, but because I don't read these kind of books regularly, I'm not sure if it was enough, just right, or over the top. I felt it fit (from what I know of what fans of the genre generally look for) and even though I personally skimmed some parts (yeah, I get a little shy...), it was wicked sexy and fun at the same time.

This is book #1 of a Duet, so it does end on a pretty big cliff hanger, but the next book will be out before we know it. :)

In short, would I recommend A Million Dirty Secrets to erotic romance lovers who started out as fans of Fifty Shades, Bared to You, Wallbanger, etc? Absolutely!

A Million Dirty Secrets