Publisher: Carina Press
Publish Date: Out Now
How we got this book: NetGalley
On leave for Thanksgiving, the last thing marine lieutenant Talia Barnett expects to find is Liam Brodie waiting for her at the airport. He’s had a starring role in her fantasies for the past two years, and although she’d love to make them a reality, she has a dark secret that prevents her from taking things further.
A former marine, Liam’s specialty is planning tactical operations, and that’s just what he plans to do to win Talia. The woman has kept him at arm’s length for too long, and this time he’s finally going to claim her—body and heart.
What begins as comfort quickly turns hot. When Liam shows Talia a hint of the dominant nature inside him, the submissive part of her flares to life. Though she desires him, she’s going back on deployment and doesn’t want to dump all her drama on him. Will he find a way to break through the protective walls around her heart and convince her they have a future that goes far beyond the bedroom?
*Blurb from Goodreads*
MinnChica: I will literally ready ANYTHING that Callie Croix/Kaylea Cross writes. I think she is absolutely awesome. When I first discovered her erotic romance novels I fell in love with her alpha heroes and strong heroines who like to give up a little of that control in the bedroom. Let Me In was not only a great light BDSM book, but it was also a friends to lovers story, my favorite kind!
E: I am relatively new to the Callie Croix/Kaylea Cross books, I think I have read one other that MinnChica pushed on me but when I saw this blurb on Netgalley I just had to request it. It hit the perfect spots, friends to lovers, family issues, light BDSM, he had a plan, she had to decide to take a chance and it was all tied together nicely. I fell in love with Liam from the beginning. I am really glad I decided to request it.
MinnChica: I loved a lot about this story. Like E said, Liam was the kind of hero who just pulled me in as a reader and had me cheering for him right away. I wanted him to woo Talia, I wanted him to win her heart, and I loved his methods of getting her to trust him and fall for him. Their sexy times were totally smoking hot. My only slight problem with the book was Talia and her inability to open up and trust. Her constant resistance to Liam and even her best friend had me wishing I could shake her into realizing just how much she was closed off from the people she supposedly loved most.
E: Liam was just wonderful. I was in awe of his patience and determination because Talia kept pushing him away. I did wonder how she ever met and became best friends with Liam’s sister given how much of her life she kept completely separate. As I saw some of what she kept hidden I could understand why she didn’t want anyone to know. As a result I think Liam’s family was extremely open and generous towards Talia. Before I started reading I had a few doubts that I could believe in their romance taking place over such a short period of time but I think the way Ms Croix handled their time physically together as well as their physical separation brought it all home.
MinnChica: Liam definitely made the story wonderful for me, that’s for sure. While I understood why Talia would want to keep her mother’s illness to herself, I also thought that once she let Liam in, she still worked too hard at pushing him away every chance she got. When she finally went to apologize and ask for him, I had a little bit of a hard time believing that she was magically cured of her inability to let people in and let them get close to her. That being said, I would love to see something else featuring these two in the future, just to see if they really make it. 🙂
E: Like MinnChica said I think Liam is still going to have to continue pushing Talia so she doesn’t revert back to old habits. I would enjoy seeing a cameo of them in a later book too so I can keep my warm and fuzzy. As I was writing this I also wondered how Liam’s sister took the news about what Talia had been hiding and if she felt any resentment that her brother found out first. Liam was really the star of this story I think. He was willing to risk his heart for a chance on a future with someone who was certainly keeping secrets beyond the usual “I don’t know you well enough yet.” While Talia did have to change the most in some ways I think her character was more two-dimensional.
MinnChica: And did we mention that their sexy times were SUPER hot? That is one of the things that Croix does exceptionally well. She writes not only super sexy, but also emotionally fulfilling sexy times. All in all while I had some big issues with Talia’s character, Liam was well worth picking up this novella. He was a dedicated and loving hero, the kind that makes me weak in the knees.
I give Let Me In a C+
E: How could I forget their sexy times. *fans self* Just remembering them, whew! They were certainly emotionally satisfying along with believable. Talia wasn’t my favorite but Liam, well lets just say that he certainly kept me reading. Something about a determined man with a plan who pays close attention to his partner that gets me every time.
I give Let Me In a B-
I didn’t get a bdsm vibe from this book at all. Besides Liam thinking to himself he likes blindfolds and bindings, otherwise, it didn’t feel bdsm.
And I didn’t like this heroine. Yet I do like this author’s voice…will have to try another one under this name.
@Mandi: This one wasn’t as obvious as some of her’s, but it seems as if Croix likes to explore dominance in all it’s forms. Try her cowboy books. *drool*
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