Rylan Barlow takes a regular cigg break under his favorite tree in a church parking lot. A runaway bride falls out of the tree and into his arms. Thence, begins hell.
A book cover artist, who stinks of linseed oil and paint thinner, is unexpectantly thown together with an exotic pole dancer who has a fetish for organic foods.She's a runaway bride who begs him to hide her out. He relunctantly agrees and really regrets his decision. She falls for him and, besides herself, uses every aphrodisiac to break his will. All the while, he's suffering through a separation and forced to dodge the girl's mobster, porn king groom whom she left at the altar. Mayhem insues and the chase is on.
Excerpt
Ryan brought his eyes around to the church between the trees. The parking lot was filled with expensive late-model cars and SUVs. There was no service on Saturday. But there was definitely an activity going on.
Something hit his shoulder. Dust specks fell in front of his eyes. Now there was a tap on his head. A piece of bark hit the grass. He looked up expecting to see a squirrel, but then furrowed his brows and stepped backward.
A female crouched on a thick branch ten feet up from the ground. She was wearing a fluffy bridal dress. A long bridal train was tied in a knot around her neck. Her face looked elfish, framed by short, black, pixie-cut hair that sported purple ribbons.
Ryan flicked his cigarette away. “What in the fuc…damnation are you doing up there?”
“You’ve got to help me,” the bride said, nearly losing her balance, and sending down a shower of bark bits and wood dust.
“Climb down out of there. Are you trying to kill yourself?” He looked around, expecting to see someone catching him talking to a bride in a tree.
“I can’t get down,” she said, “It’s too hard with all this on. Help me.”
“How’d you get up there?”
“I climbed—shimmied.”
“Then climb-shimmy back down.” He couldn’t believe he was having this conversation. He wondered if he was the target of some hidden camera.
“Do you have car?” she asked as she looked through the tree limbs.
“Yeah, what about it?”
“Okay, good. You’ve got to get me off the property.”
The bride turned, dropped her train, and hugged the trunk. She bowed her legs; her heels pressed into the bark. She began a slow duck walk down.
Ryan had the good grace to avert his eyes—his vision offered a straight shot up her wedding dress. He glanced up, giving in to the curious spectacle. Of all things, she wore a racy purple thong.
Professional Reviews
It's a hit
I really enjoyed this romp! And romp is what it is ‘cause the two MCs, Candace and Ryan, are like acid and alkaline. One is an exotic dancer and the other reigns as a book cover artist. He takes her into his house to shelter her from some unknown threat. He only knows she’s just split from the altar, leaving her groom standing there. In a lifestyle environment, they’re so far removed from each other, they might has well been from different countries and languages. Candace uses some heavy-duty trickery to get his attention, since she takes to him rather early on. He’s not stupid; he’s just reserved and hesitant. After all, he’s temporarily separated from his wife and he expects reconciliation soon. But where’s he gonna find a girl who sings Beautiful Dreamer to him in the dead of night during his worst nightmares? She’s not just a “stripper”, there is something deeper and more soulful about her.
Once the conflict is in full bloom, the plot moves ahead at freight train speed, with dangers, toils and snares from every angle. The betrayed groom is a mobster and will do everything at his disposal to find his lost woman. She has something on him that will take him out of action and send him straight to the state penitentiary.
The characters here are well-drawn and diverse enough for the reader to know them by dialogue alone, which is a feat in itself. I found myself rooting for Candace and Ryan right after the beginning scuffle. They had so much to offer each other—I was on the ege of my seat.
Sorry, no spoilers. This writing style is heaped in irony and laughs, with a great command of English. I’ve read similar books by Joseph Wambaugh, the L.A. cop turned writer. There’s a ton of humor mixed with a deadly plot that makes this a thrill ride, but you can catch your breath easily enough, and get back to speed again. I thoroughly recommend this book to adult readers. It’s got some flaming hot love scenes that are totally realistic and innovative. Not for young eyes.
Candice Sabella literally "fell" in love with Ryan Barlow!!! Having learned a deep, dark secret about her employer, Antonio Madera, she is forced via blackmail into an unwanted marriage due to the fact that a wife cannot be forced to testify against her husband. On her wedding day, she send her bride's maids out of the room so she can make her escape. Still dressed in her wedding gown, she crawls out the window and runs! Knowing Antonio will search for her, she climbs a tree to wait until the church crowd leaves to complete her escape.
Ryan Barlow stops by one of his favorite spots to set under his favorite tree to have a smoke. He is relaxing by the tree, smoking his cigarette, when suddenly he discovers a run-away bride in the tree. She drops into his arms and convinces him to take her to his home, helping her to escape Antonio temporarily.
This sets the stage for a very fun and easy read. 'Blackmailed Bride' is a romantic love story filled with crime, drama, jealousy and humor. A very enjoyable book, however, I had mixed feelings about the Christian backdrop of the story vs the very explicit sex scenes. That confused me a bit, but I still recommend the book. It is a well-written story with a lot of twists. Again, it's a fun, easy read. This is my first book by Chris H. Stevenson and I look forward to reading additional works...
Sylvia Masters, a hot fifty-two year old widow and CEO of her husbands company is challenged by her own instincts, family and friends when the Lieutenant investigating the murder of her ex-fiancee ask her to dinner. After a tumultuous beginning, the
Jodi and Nick’s chance for romance was never realized while they were in high school. Now, five years later, they meet again. Will a class reunion be their first—and last—chance at love?
Reunion of Souls is a sweet, contemporary romance abo
