Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic

Three Alisha Rai Mini-Reviews

I was browsing through Netgalley looking for something that would catch my eye. And I stumbled across this cover :

Yeah.. pretty great cover. But it had a couple of things that made me sit up, A woman of color on the cover........ you have no idea how rare that is, for a WOC to be a main character. ESPECIALLY on mainstream erotica (or any genre really) book covers. Two guys, TOTALLY my guilty pleasure to read.. if I felt any actual guilt over it. 

I read Glutton For Pleasure fast! It was short and sweet. I'll be honest, it didn't really.. get to me. But, there was just SOMETHING about the author's writing that made me want to read something else by her. Maybe it was the INSANELY hot, knicker melting, off-the-charts sex. Maybe it was the fact that I didn't want to give up on an author writing diverse men and women and changing up the erotica game a little. But something made me head to my Kindle and one click buy A Gentleman In The Street and Serving Pleasure. And after reading those, Falling For Him,Waiting For Her,and Play With Me. And now I'm waiting until I can afford to buy the rest! 

These books are worth it!

Click through to see what I thought!

Glutton For Pleasure 

Glutton For Pleasure seemed like exactly what I was looking for when I ventured into Netgalley.  It's a short and sweet story with the erotica factor turned way up. I'll admit, it would have been WAY better for me had they not been brothers. Siblings in polyamorous relationships and threesomes just doesn't make any sort of sense to me, and is definitely not something I know most people with siblings fantasize about. I mean, your sibling touches someone and you just never want to go there. But I digress. This was so insanely hot I couldn't not finish it. Plus, it kinda made sense with their pasts.

Devi is an exceptional cook at her family's Indian restaurant. She's the youngest of three sisters, mild, sweet, shy compared to her older sisters. Jace is an insanely attractive lawyer who is a regular customer and has had an eye on the lovely cook for more than just her pakoras if you know what I mean. *wink wink nudge nudge* Enter Marcus, Jace's rough around the edges, but also crazy hot, twin brother and this became pretty interesting. And did I mention insanely hot? Because you WILL need to cool down after this, or warm up with someone else. 

Barb loved how Alisha Rai spun the traditional twins fantasy on it's head for us. And it's not the only thing Alisha Rai has been great with. There was something about how Devi and her family were portrayed that made me want to pick up more books by the author. Maybe it was the way the women were written like regular human beings and not caricatures, what writers think women of color should be like, but I found it refreshing.

This Wench rates it :
 

A Gentleman In The Street

I actually read this right after Glutton For Pleasure, and this is when I fell in love with Alisha Rai. There is pretty much nothing about this book I had a problem with. And as everyone knows, that is RARE for me. ESPECIALLY in romance and erotica. 

The weeks prior to reading this, I had been incessantly bitching about the "playboy millionaire/billionaire" trope in a lot of the genre. And how mind numbingly boring it has become. Barb and Ange were totally with me on this. And we had a few discussions about basically just avoiding ANY book that had a playboy billionaire as the romantic lead. 

Honestly, the cover had me believing that the guy in this was going to be a useless millionaire who had somehow amassed millions without learning manners and that you can't be a complete asshat to everyone around you just because you're rich and good-looking. Imagine my absolute surprise, and pleasure, at meeting Akira.

Akira is the best.

Super successful, super outgoing, entirely awesome, kick-ass Akira. With the sex appeal, the vibrant personality, the confidence, the wonderful sexuality,  just.. everything. Akira is who I want to be. SHE was the sexy rich one. The one with the crazy lifestyle, the hookups and orgies, the "damage", and I loved it all. She wasn't a useless billionaire like the men in romances and erotica, who seem to just sit around all day barking orders in a phone and being unpleasant and broody. She DID stuff. She was nice to people. She had an excellent work ethic. She was unapologetic about her wants and needs and lifestyle. Wonderfully so. 

And Jacob, how can you NOT love Jacob? He was the lovable and serious family man and writer who raised his siblings and was responsible to a fault. One of my favorite parts is when Akira points out how Jacob's female characters kinda suck! And he takes it well! Sigh. But the scruffy, and very sexy, man had a side of him that pretty much made my knees weak. It was amazing reading Akira introduce Jacob to her life, and Jacob embracing it without any judgement whatsoever. In fact, he blossomed.

"I know you're dirty. I want you in the shower so I can make you filthy."

It was ALL sexy. (As is Sendhil Ramamurthy)

God, I could honestly go on about how much I loved everything about this book. But all I'll say is. You HAVE to read it. It's a wonderful romance about great, layered characters you can't help but root for, and an erotica that will knock your socks off. 

This Wench Rates it :

Serving Pleasure 

Serving Pleasure was my favorite Alisha Rai book. And arguably one of my all time favorite erotica stories ever. I absolutely ADORE Rana. So much. There is so much about her that reminded me of me, my own sister, and close friends. I want to be besties with Rana. I want to tell her she's perfect. And labels from people who came from much smaller worlds than the one we live in now don't apply to someone as vibrant and as alive as she is. To tell her shame is the only shade I don't like on her. 

Rana is Devi's (from Glutton For Pleasure) oldest sister. She is strong, confident, sexual, beautiful, but thanks to her mom and her constant judgement has been rethinking her life. It was SUCH an accurate portrayal of being a woman from a desi family. No matter where your parents moved to, we're a region full of Mrs. Bennets. And they mean well, but my God. It can drive a girl insane. (To be fair, not all our mothers are equally obsessed with getting their daughters married, but it does go a bit nuts once you hit 30.)

Rana has been trying celibacy, and searching for Mr. Right. And the naughtiest thing she's done in a year is spy on her too-hot-for-words neighbor. Who happens to be a gorgeous artist who basically had me drooling from his first scene. (Also.. that scar on his lip... DAYAAMN... never knew a scar could be so useful.)

Micah was... a dream. A sexy, filthy, romantic, knicker-melting, swoon-worthy dream. He has a clearly troubled past. But Micah and Rana are drawn together like magnets. And neither does much to resist it once it starts. But they're both clear on one thing, it can never be anything more than just sex. Dynamite, explosive, mind altering, bone melting sex. But that's all. 

You guys, the sex. I mean. Jesus. Rana and Micah deserve medals for how good they are at it. But more than that, they are just such great characters. Micah's PTSD after the things that happened in his past are dealt with really well, and realistically. And Rana's personal journey in this book was heart-wrenching. And witnessing their relationship develop to something more was amazing. Rana who realized her value, and refused to settle for less than what she deserved. And Micah realizing demons from his past shouldn't dictate his future. It was beautiful.

One of my absolute favorite scenes was when Leena and Devi come check on Rana, and they have a much needed sisterly love session. It warmed my heart and made me smile. Nothing beats having amazing siblings. And a sister's love and friendship is something irreplaceable. 

"And if Mama and the rest of the world turn their backs on us tomorrow..."

"We deal with it." Rana brushed her lips against the top of Leena's head. "It is what it is. And we... deal. Together."

I NEED Leena's book next! 

This Wench rates it :

Saucy readers, you have to read these books. You will not regret it. Diverse characters that are REAL, amazing character arcs, wonderful relationship dynamics and development, and not a trope in sight. In fact, this wonderful author has managed to turn tired cliches 180 degrees into something I could really dig! She was a revelation to me. We WILL be doing a Fangirl Friday post on Alisha Rai because she's basically one of the coolest authors ever. We love her books, and her Twitter feed is one of my favorites. And if I don't stop now I'm going to keep going on about how amazing she is. It was hard enough not gushing about the books!