REVIEW: Surreal (The Divine Trilogy #3) by R.E. Hargrave

 

 

 

 Synopsis

 ***Contains explicit sexual content (including multiple partners and gender pairings) and mature situations which could be trigger-inducing for some readers.***

Catherine O'Chancey is a young submissive who has found her happily ever after with a man far better than she’d ever dreamed.

Or has she? When does life ever work out so conveniently?

Jayden Masterson first opened his playroom to Catherine, a provocative Irish beauty with a penchant for pain. Then he opened his heart to her everyday persona, Erin. For him, life has never been more perfect, or more confusing, since he's comfortable as a Dominant but still finding his way as a lover and equal partner. Jayden is also learning that he can't protect his jewel from everything—nor should he. Some battles she must fight on her own.

Erin's past still haunts her, and as the couple move forward in their merging relationship, they must cope with the physical damage left behind by her abuser.

Catherine and her Master still have a lot to learn about each other, and about themselves. If Jayden and his jewel can overcome the challenges they face on the next chapter of their journey, their ending just might be . . . Surreal.

 

 

In this exciting conclusion to RE Hargrave's To Serve is Divine trilogy, she doesn't disappoint. Jayden and Catherine have had their ups and downs just like any other couple, but throw in the BDSM part of their relationship and you get a very interesting twist on what is to come for them. Catherine is the only one to come along and tame Jayden, but the question will be, can Jayden let her own him heart, body, and soul? In Surreal, we see some of the past characters and some new ones make appearances. They only add to the wonderful story of Jayden and Catherine's future. 

This book, is just as well put together and thought out as the other two in the trilogy. I have to say this was the first series of the BDSM genre that I read and could tell that the author done their homework on not only setting the scene, but using certain phrases and such in the proper context. I easily give this book five stars. Mrs. Hargrave has given us a love story like none other, and I only wish this trilogy wasn't coming to an end.

 

 

~Buy Links~

Amazon

Amazon UK 

Other Books In The Series

 

Book 1 

Amazon

 

Amazon UK 

 

 

Book 2

Amazon

Amazon UK

Dawn's Review

In this exciting conclusion to RE Hargrave's To Serve is Divine trilogy, she doesn't disappoint. Jayden and Catherine have had their ups and downs just like any other couple, but throw in the BDSM part of their relationship and you get a very interesting twist on what is to come for them. Catherine is the only one to come along and tame Jayden, but the question will be, can Jayden let her own him heart, body, and soul? In Surreal, we see some of the past characters and some new ones make appearances. They only add to the wonderful story of Jayden and Catherine's future. 

This book, is just as well put together and thought out as the other two in the trilogy. I have to say this was the first series of the BDSM genre that I read and could tell that the author done their homework on not only setting the scene, but using certain phrases and such in the proper context. I easily give this book five stars. Mrs. Hargrave has given us a love story like none other, and I only wish this trilogy wasn't coming to an end.

REVIEW: The Food Critic by: R.E. Hargrave

Title: The Food Critic 

By: R.E. Hargrave 

  Released On: October 10, 2014

  
Amazon: http://amzn.com/B00OEB1O9M

Blurb:

Serena Peters has made her place in life writing an exclusive column for a popular foodie magazine. She has fame and fortune, what she doesn't have is companionship or love. Chef Stuart Wellings comes from an embittered past and has had to fight for the simple way he lives. When Serena shows up to interview him and his small town diner, will an appreciation for food be the only thing they have in common, or will there be more?

Dani's Review:

*****5 Critic Stars*****

*I received this ARC for an honest review*

I started this book earlier tonight and finished in just under 3 hours.Granted I am a fast reader but while reading this book I couldn't just put it down. RE gave me a run for my money with all of the food talk. I found myself writing down names of foods so I can research them and possibly cook them here at home.

Serena a top notch food critic who has never revealed her identity. She stays to herself and is tired of the random every now and then guy.

Stuart, the chef, the man who came from nothing and fought his way to the top. He grew up in an abusive home and had enough. After venturing off on his own he finally found his way in life by becoming a chef.

The Food Critic captivated my attention the minute I picked it up. Lonely girl living in this thing we call the world, found her way in life by being a food critic. While being a food critic who is incognito in my eyes is one of the best jobs you could ever have. You can never have a home life because you are always on the go. Flying to California to go to this must have restaurant that her sister recommended I never expected her to find everything she wanted in the blink of her eyes. Stuart this gorgeous man, captivated her attention by just the sound of his voice.. Where were men like this when I was looking? I kid, I kid. Stuart and Serena... HOT HOT HOT. :) This is hands down one of my favorite stories I have read in quite some time in the romance genre. My hat is off to RE for her creativity with these characters and the story behind them.

PROMO: A Divine Life by R.E. Hargrave

A Divine Life Press Kit

Author Bio:

R.E. Hargrave lives on the outskirts of Dallas, TX where she prides herself on being a domestic engineer. Married to her high school sweetheart, together they are raising three children from elementary age to college age. She is an avid reader, a sometimes quilter and now, a writer for Renaissance Romance Publishing.

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ADL Summary:

Over the past year of being Jayden Masterson’s collared submissive, Catherine O’Chancey has worked through the mental terrors left behind by her old Dom — she thinks. To celebrate their collar-ing anniversary, Jayden organizes a special day, during which her final limits and fantasies will be realized. Will it prove to be more than she can handle? Can she endure the erotic onslaught her mind and body will experience and survive unscathed?

While Catherine faces dark shadows and pleasurable highs, Jayden finds his own inner strength being tested. He has come to realize that, somewhere along the way, Catherine has taken possession of his heart, mind, and body. Now he faces his biggest challenge ever; he must let go of all his submissives but one: his jewel, Catherine. Can he leave his philandering ways behind? Has he made the ultimate mistake by putting his jewel into the hands of others?

Excerpt:

“So, how does that work? I mean, how does one draw the line between Master and husband?” Was such a complicated relationship possible? Could Jayden see her that way? Just thinking his name caused a funny feeling in Catherine’s chest. Her thoughts continued, now on overdrive . . .

No. Master didn’t do personal relationships. He’d said as much when they’d first signed their con-tract together. They’d both agreed to the understanding that this was nothing more than a sexual relationship. Hell, he was fucking two other people besides her that she knew of. If there were a chance that he wanted something more with her, he wouldn’t have handed her over to complete strangers today. Would he? Oh, God. Sir Jonathan’s offer to take Catherine on repeated itself in her memory, along with the knowledge that she had more sessions today with an unknown number of Doms. Was that what today was? Had the ‘inspection’ Sir Jonathan performed not been part of the scene? Was Sir Jonathan looking her over as a potential acquisition? What about Miss K offering to take her on back in February? Catherine’s stomach soured again.

“No. No, please, no. I — I can’t,” Catherine mumbled and began to shake.

“Erin?”

Her world began crumbling around her, and panic took root. Catherine gasped for air, wrapping her arms around her mid-section.

“Erin! What’s wrong?”

Paige’s shriek snapped Catherine to attention, and she raised her watery eyes to meet her new friend’s.

“Paige,” Catherine started to cry. “He figured it out. I tried to be so good, so careful. He knows, and he’s going to get rid of me!” She thought she’d done so well at hiding her secret over the months, protecting her heart.

Paige had wrapped her arm around Catherine and was rubbing slow circles on her back. With a wince, Catherine became quite aware of every lash mark from Sir Jonathan’s whip. They now burned to her core when Paige’s soft hands brushed over them. Catherine flinched away from her.

“Shh, Erin,” she said in a calming voice. “Who knows what, sweetie? What are you talking about?”

Turning wide eyes on her, Catherine choked out, “Jay . . . Master. He knows I’ve fallen in — in love with him. I wasn’t supposed to. He found out, and now he’s interviewing me with strange Doms to get rid of me. I broke the rules and he —” she swallowed a sob, “he doesn’t want me anymore!”

COVER REVEAL: A Divine Life by R.E. Hargrave (GIVEAWAY)

A Divine Life Cover Info

Summary—

 Over the past year of being Jayden Masterson’s collared submissive, Catherine O’Chancey has worked through the mental terrors left behind by her old Dom — or at least she thinks she has. To celebrate their collaring anniversary, Jayden organizes a special day, during which her final fantasies will be realized and her limits tested. Will it prove to be more than she can handle? Can she endure the erotic onslaught her mind and body will experience and survive unscathed?

While Catherine faces these dark shadows and pleasurable highs, Jayden will find his own inner strength being tested, too. He has come to realize that, somewhere along the way, Catherine has taken possession of his heart, mind, and body. Now, he faces his biggest challenge ever; he must let go of all his submissives but one: his jewel, Catherine. Can he leave his philandering ways behind? Has he made the ultimate mistake by putting his jewel into the hands of others? Will his gift to Catherine wind up costing him the one thing that has ever meant something real to him?

Jayden has helped Catherine heal from past wrongs and chase away the nightmares. In return, Catherine has shown him what it means to care for someone beyond mere sexual gratification. Their strengthening bond as Master and submissive has paved the way for deeper emotions — if they can find the courage to open up to each other.

Join Catherine and Jayden for an emotion packed weekend that could forever change the future of their relationship. This could be their best chance at love, but first both Dom and sub must gain control over the one thing they can’t put in a collar: their deepest doubts and fears. For this kind of healing, the necessary treatment must be mutually given. Is it too late to erase some old scars?

Author Bio--

R.E. Hargrave is a fledgling author who has always been a lover of books and now looks forward to the chance to give something back to the literary community. She lives on the outskirts of Dallas, TX with her husband and three children.

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 Divine Trilogy GIVEAWAY

RELEASE DAY PROMO & REVIEW: Haunted Raine by R.E. Hargrave

Haunted Raine 

R. E. Hargrave

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Author Bio:

R.E. Hargrave lives on the outskirts of Dallas, TX where she prides herself on being a domestic engineer. Married to her high school sweetheart, together they are raising three children from elementary age to college age. She is an avid reader, a sometimes quilter and now, a writer for Renaissance Romance Publishing.

Summary:

Distracted by the everyday routine of raising children, being a wife, and keeping a home, Lorraine Morrissey let life pass her by. Her wakeup call comes when she realizes that with their children gone, her husband Richard is rarely home, and she’s filling her solitary days with trivial tasks. A crazy idea to save her marriage leads to a summer beach vacation unlike any she’s ever taken; one that involves unknowingly buying a haunted house.

Excerpt:

The fast approaching ground disappeared, replaced by an old, worn, wooden floor. I shook my head to try and clear it of the cobweb fuzziness I felt. Raising my hands in front of me, I didn’t recognize them. They were dark brown, dry, and the skin was cracked in places. They didn’t feel connected to my body either. My words got stuck in my throat when I tried to ask what was going on. Swallowing to clear the blockage, I surveyed the room. Before me burned a dwindling fire inside an old-fashioned stone hearth, and to my right, old shuttered windows were thrown open, letting the cooling night air in.

“Girl!”

The hoarse male voice startled me. I spun around, becoming aware of heavy skirts tangling in my legs.

“Yes, sir.” The voice, thick with a low country accent, wasn’t mine either, but the sound had passed through my lips. What the . . .

“How many sacks of cotton did you pick today?”

A tremor settled into my arms as panic tightened my chest. Tall and wide, the white man advanced on me. I skittered back toward the hearth at the look of hatred on his face.

“None, sir. I’s sorry, but my momma –”

“There are no excuses, Jesse. Rain or shine, y’alls task is at least two sacks a day while the cotton’s a blooming.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did your momma get her two sacks picked?”

Beyond my control, my head shook side to side, and I curled in on myself more while taking another subtle step back. Warning sirens were going off, but it was obvious, I had no say over my faculties, nor did I have any idea what was going on. “She’s got the sick, sir.”

In slow motion, his hand rose, and I took in every detail: thinning, greasy brown hair slicked back from a shiny forehead, a narrow beak of a nose stretched down the length of his long face to a thin pair of pale pursed lips. His green eyes were bloodshot with the drink that wafted from his mouth. The yellowing linen shirt he wore was opened down to his mid-chest, exposing pale, untoned flesh. Proof that he relied on others to get the work done.

“‘She’s got the sick, sir,’” he sing-songed, mocking me. “Not my problem, girl. What is my problem is that you owe me four sacks’ worth of cotton, and have nothing to pay with.”

At his words, an uneasy feeling settled in my stomach. I didn’t like where this was going and took another step back, bringing me a little closer to the fire and the iron tools I could see in my peripheral vision.

“But I can think of another way that you can start paying up.”

When he came at me, I spun to grab the poker. Before I could reach the tool, arms enveloped me from behind, yanking me back until I collided with a hard chest.

Sarah's Review:

Thanks to Ren Rom Publishing for the ARC copy of the anthology.  It is an honor to have read it before it releases!!  Thanks to R.E. Hargrave for the book information that is part of this blog post.  
 
What a great story!  Although this is a short story, this story packs a punch!  I am scared to write this review because I may give away something.   I am going to try my best not to give anything away, so this will be a short review.  (Sorry!)  There were a couple parts that were difficult to read but despite the difficult topics that were involved, it was an important part of the story. 

I love that the couple of this story found a way to reconnect.  I love that the couple was an older couple and not the typical 20 or 30 something couple that I am used to reading.  I love that this story had a great level of suspense, but not drawn out.

When I was 7 pages away from finishing, I had a theory and no one that had read the story was around.  I wanted to express my theory before I finished so that I could legitimately say I was right!  As it turns out, I was right!

Great ending to a great anthology.