Megan Hart (1) (1974–)

Paige has a new divorce and a new job. Misdirected notes start showing up in her apartment mailbox, and she reads them before passing them on to the right mailbox. The notes contain commands, some sexual and some not. Paige follows the commands even though they aren't meant for her and through doing so discovers things about herself. Meanwhile, she has a difficult boss she begins to understand, a handsome neighbor she may be falling for, and an ex-husband who seems to want back into her show more life.

Meh. This fairly compelling premise fails to deliver because the story focuses in all the wrong places. The boss thread belonged in a different story (and probably a different kind of story) altogether--it always felt like it was taking me away from the real story and also never got the attention it needed to develop fully. Giving a romantic heroine two love interests (here, the neighbor and the ex) is always tricky because it risks readers liking the "wrong" one more than the one she ends up with (and you have to divide character development time between the two, thus potentially giving the development of one too little attention). In Switch, I absolutely was routing for the guy Paige doesn't end up with (and I felt really, really bad for him when she, realizing he is a sub to whom all those notes were addressed, "takes over" as his mistress without telling him (never mind how), and then, when she decides to get back with the ex, just drops him BY LETTER when he is expecting to meet his mistress in person for the first time. Consent issues aside--not that they can really be aside-- WT-everloving-F? Seriously?) Furthermore, I never warmed to Paige. In pretty much any other genre, this would not be a problem as long as she was interesting and did interesting things, but in a romance novel, it kind of takes the fun out of the whole thing. Flern. show less

With a unique but compelling storyline, complex and somewhat broken characters and dark, violent sexual encounters, Megan Hart's latest release, Hold Me Close is a gritty and sometimes, heartbreaking, erotic romance.

Effie Linton and Heath Shaw have a long, complicated history together with a tragic past that both binds them together and pushes them apart. They were kidnapped as teenagers and held together in captivity by a sociopath who physically abused Heath and put both of them through show more physical and mental torture for three long years. During this time, they turned to each other for comfort and close to twenty years later, they are still drawn to one another. Heath would like to make their relationship permanent, but Effie longs for a vanilla relationship with someone who is not tied to her past. However, is it possible for Effie to walk away from the one man who not only truly understands her but also shares her darker desires?

On the surface, Effie appears to have moved past the trauma from the kidnapping. She has a thriving career as an artist and she is a good mother to her pre-teen daughter, Polly. But the inspiration from her art comes directly from her past and she cannot make a clean break from Heath no matter how hard she tries. She is closed off from everyone except Polly and she still maintains an unhealthy relationship from someone in her past. Effie makes a real effort to forge a safer relationship with a man she meets through an on line dating service, but she is unable to fully commit to an exclusive relationship.

Heath remains on the periphery for much of the novel, but he is an incredibly likable and sympathetic character. He truly loves Effie and he remains loyal and steadfast to be both her and Polly. Despite an initial downward spiral after they were rescued from their kidnapper, Heath's life is finally on track and currently, he is in a much healthier place than Effie. He truly believes they belong together and for a while, he allows Effie to return to him whenever she needs the sexual satisfaction he can provide. However, once he realizes she is serious about finding someone else to settle down with, Heath refuses to allow her to continue pulling him back into her life.

Effie's journey through the darkness of her past takes time but is very much worth the wait. It is incredibly frustrating watching her refuse to recognize what she shares with Heath is real and not quite as dysfunctional as she believes. The constant push/pull between them is exasperating but there is no denying the emotional connection they share. Their sexual scenes are darkly sensual and laced with violence but Effie and Heath crave the kink that they experience together. The anticipation of what direction the story is going to go and which man Effie will ultimately choose makes it virtually impossible to put down this captivating novel.

A fascinating story about overcoming a traumatic and life alternating event, Hold Me Close is another well-written and riveting erotic romance by Megan Hart. Some of the flashbacks to what Effie and Heath endured during their kidnapping are difficult to read but overall, this portion of the storyline is not overly explicit. This backstory paints a vivid portrait of how these events shaped both Effie and Heath, and, ultimately, their extremely complicated relationship.

Tremendous character growth along with a surprisingly uplifting conclusion make Hold Me Close a thought-provoking and enjoyable read. show less

While Elise's sexuality in VANILLA is femdom, this story is about a woman's life and how she fits her sexuality into it. Elise is a single woman who co-owns a company where her partner wants to play more than work. She is involved in a sexual relationship with a man whose significance is that he is only a sexual partner. She is the mediator and voice of reason between her mother and sister and her sister-in-law. War is breaking out within the family over her nephew's Bar Mitzvah. Her twin show more brother has opted out of the war. Elise is the only one who seems to care about her nephew and his needs and wants.

I liked Elise. She is independent. She was broken in the past and she is wary of romantic and emotional involvement. She must deal with the put downs of her mother on choices she has made. When she learns the truths of the past she has to decide if she wants verification and validation of those truths or if she will let it go.

When the opportunity for romance occurs she wants him but will he accept her as she is including her sexuality. Niall, her brother's co-worker, believes in the stereotype of female Dommes. Elise has to determine whether she can teach him the truth of her choices or let him walk away. The uncertainty on both their parts is painful but necessary to build trust between them if their relationship is to succeed.

VANILLA is more than a story of sex. It is a woman's story of learning to let go of the past, live in the present with the choices she has made and not allow others to shame her for those choices, and building for a future with pride, dignity, and love. Elise does that show less

This is the very first book I read by Megan Hart. It's been a one way love train ever since. I adore almost everything she writes. Anyway, I didn't feel this book was about sex or either of the main men in the story but about Paige. This book is how she learns herself and finally gets comfy in her own skin. I love that. There are of course a couple hot men along the way.

The plot is solid and I love the character quirks that makes Paige seem real. I loved this book and have re-read it a few show more times. show less