lynseyisreading's review
3.0
Midnight Liaisons
I've been on a total audiobook binge lately, and thankfully, this was another really good one. I really liked the narrator and, other than a couple of quibbles, I liked the story, too.
I'd had my eye on it for a while, ever since I'd seen a favourite author of mine, Ilona Andrews, give it a 5 star rating. Well, I didn't quite like it that much, but it was good.
Okay, here are the things I didn't like, just to get them out of the way: The supernatural dating service idea. It's just so cheesy. It didn't take up too much of the plot, to be fair, but the idea still struck me as a bit silly. Second thing: The high-handed way the hero "claimed" the heroine without discussion. Basically, Were-cougars (and all the other Were clans for that matter) can claim their mates by marking/biting their neck, which then all other Supes can see and know to stay away. This concept is nothing out of the ordinary for PNR books, so that wasn't the problem. The problem was how quickly he did it, and without asking. I suppose it helped to know it doesn't last forever in this world, just a few months, but still, to do it to someone who hasn't even said they agree to be your mate, is a big N-O spells no. And the final bugbear: The names of the H and h! Boregard and Bathsheba? Really?
So that's that. Now onto what I did like: The chemistry between the two love interests! It was off the charts and very engrossing. I also liked the sensuality of the love scenes; they found that perfect balance between being too tame and too explicit. The mystery plot and the BIG Bad; both were interesting and unusual. And other than what I've mentioned above, I did really like Bo and Bathsheba. They were both sweet and sincere. Bathsheba was a touch insecure, so it was great that Bo was sensitive to that, and although he was an Alpha with occasionally bossy tendencies, he was generally a sweetheart and I was definitely rooting for them as a couple. I also liked the world and all the different Were clans and other supernatural species which I'm sure we'll see more of in future books.
I have to tell you, in case my rating and review haven't quite convinced you to try this yet, that book two's hero was so much more up my street! I loved him as I love all strong, silent types. You meet him in this book first, so you can judge for yourself, but I hope you give him, and this book, a chance to win you over. It's definitely worth a try (especially the audio!).
3.5 Stars ★★★1/2
I've been on a total audiobook binge lately, and thankfully, this was another really good one. I really liked the narrator and, other than a couple of quibbles, I liked the story, too.
I'd had my eye on it for a while, ever since I'd seen a favourite author of mine, Ilona Andrews, give it a 5 star rating. Well, I didn't quite like it that much, but it was good.
Okay, here are the things I didn't like, just to get them out of the way: The supernatural dating service idea. It's just so cheesy. It didn't take up too much of the plot, to be fair, but the idea still struck me as a bit silly. Second thing: The high-handed way the hero "claimed" the heroine without discussion. Basically, Were-cougars (and all the other Were clans for that matter) can claim their mates by marking/biting their neck, which then all other Supes can see and know to stay away. This concept is nothing out of the ordinary for PNR books, so that wasn't the problem. The problem was how quickly he did it, and without asking. I suppose it helped to know it doesn't last forever in this world, just a few months, but still, to do it to someone who hasn't even said they agree to be your mate, is a big N-O spells no. And the final bugbear: The names of the H and h! Boregard and Bathsheba? Really?
So that's that. Now onto what I did like: The chemistry between the two love interests! It was off the charts and very engrossing. I also liked the sensuality of the love scenes; they found that perfect balance between being too tame and too explicit. The mystery plot and the BIG Bad; both were interesting and unusual. And other than what I've mentioned above, I did really like Bo and Bathsheba. They were both sweet and sincere. Bathsheba was a touch insecure, so it was great that Bo was sensitive to that, and although he was an Alpha with occasionally bossy tendencies, he was generally a sweetheart and I was definitely rooting for them as a couple. I also liked the world and all the different Were clans and other supernatural species which I'm sure we'll see more of in future books.
I have to tell you, in case my rating and review haven't quite convinced you to try this yet, that book two's hero was so much more up my street! I loved him as I love all strong, silent types. You meet him in this book first, so you can judge for yourself, but I hope you give him, and this book, a chance to win you over. It's definitely worth a try (especially the audio!).
3.5 Stars ★★★1/2
chelseavbc's review
3.0
This review was originally posted at Vampire Book Club.
Sometimes you just need something a little lighter, a bit sexy and really fun to perk up your week. Jessica Sims’ Beauty Dates the Beast did it for me.
Bathsheba works for a dating service for the paranormal elite. The patrons of Midnight Liasons not only are of the supernatural persuasion (shifters, vampires, harpies, fae, etc.), but they are wealthy enough to make some major demands. It appears there are more men than women in the supe community, and Liasons is happy to charge lots of money to make dates. Think Millionaire Matchmaker but many clients sprout fur.
Now, Bathsheba is human and forbidden — both by her boss and the rules of the Alliance (supernatural governance) — to date a supe. She’s just fine with that, too. She doesn’t have much time to date anyway, as she focuses on caring for her younger sister who shh! is a werewolf pretending to be human. But when a date cancels on Beau, he decides Bathsheba should take her place. With fear of losing her job if they anger one of the high-profile clients, she agrees to meet him once.
Turns out our boy is a were-cougar and the leader of the Alliance. Also: He’s gorgeous and they have oodles of chemistry. With danger nipping at both of them in the form of break-ins and missing pack members, Beau’s protective nature flourishes and, well, he does what’s necessary to keep Bathsheba and her sister safe.
It’s not a surprise that Beau would mark Bathsheba as his mate. It’s not a surprise that she will eventually cave to his teasing touches. He’s your stereotypical alpha shifter — animal magnetism, overbearing protective instincts and a drive for mark his mate. But, you know what, it’s ridiculously fun and I enjoyed watching as sparks flew between the two main characters.
This one doesn’t break the paranormal romance mold, but that’s a good thing. I powered through in a single sitting because I wanted to see Bathsheba and Beau get their happily ever after. And the fact that Jessica Sims also writes as Jill Myles, who I adore, is an added selling point here. The writing is cheeky, the romance toe-curling at times. In short, I’m calling Beauty Dates the Beast a win.
Sexual content: Graphic sex scenes
Sometimes you just need something a little lighter, a bit sexy and really fun to perk up your week. Jessica Sims’ Beauty Dates the Beast did it for me.
Bathsheba works for a dating service for the paranormal elite. The patrons of Midnight Liasons not only are of the supernatural persuasion (shifters, vampires, harpies, fae, etc.), but they are wealthy enough to make some major demands. It appears there are more men than women in the supe community, and Liasons is happy to charge lots of money to make dates. Think Millionaire Matchmaker but many clients sprout fur.
Now, Bathsheba is human and forbidden — both by her boss and the rules of the Alliance (supernatural governance) — to date a supe. She’s just fine with that, too. She doesn’t have much time to date anyway, as she focuses on caring for her younger sister who shh! is a werewolf pretending to be human. But when a date cancels on Beau, he decides Bathsheba should take her place. With fear of losing her job if they anger one of the high-profile clients, she agrees to meet him once.
Turns out our boy is a were-cougar and the leader of the Alliance. Also: He’s gorgeous and they have oodles of chemistry. With danger nipping at both of them in the form of break-ins and missing pack members, Beau’s protective nature flourishes and, well, he does what’s necessary to keep Bathsheba and her sister safe.
It’s not a surprise that Beau would mark Bathsheba as his mate. It’s not a surprise that she will eventually cave to his teasing touches. He’s your stereotypical alpha shifter — animal magnetism, overbearing protective instincts and a drive for mark his mate. But, you know what, it’s ridiculously fun and I enjoyed watching as sparks flew between the two main characters.
This one doesn’t break the paranormal romance mold, but that’s a good thing. I powered through in a single sitting because I wanted to see Bathsheba and Beau get their happily ever after. And the fact that Jessica Sims also writes as Jill Myles, who I adore, is an added selling point here. The writing is cheeky, the romance toe-curling at times. In short, I’m calling Beauty Dates the Beast a win.
Sexual content: Graphic sex scenes
larah2's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Physical abuse
thegeekyblogger's review
4.0
Listened/Read for Fun (Library/Physical Book)
Overall Rating: 4.00
Story Rating: 4.00
Character Rating: 4.00
Audio Rating: 3.50 (not part of the overall rating)
Read It Rate It Reviews: I have had Beauty Dates the Beast since 2013---I am sad it took me so long to read as it was delightfully funny! Fans of Molly Harper would enjoy this!!! I broke out laughing so many times during the story. Bathsheba (yes that is her name) was a great leading lady because I think most people could identify with her. She just wanted to keep her family safe, go to work, and survive a life she didn't plan. Her sister--OMG am I looking forward to her story--she wouldn't trade for the world even with all the trouble she brings. I just loved that about her. I also think by the end of the book that Beau had won me over. I swooned at their romance and teared up when they finally got it!
Audio Thoughts
Leah did an excellent job with the narration but I am extremely picky with my West Texas accent since I grew up there. It wasn't quite right though if you weren't from there, you would never know. So totally a regional thing. She had great pacing and delivery though. I would totally listen to her again.
Part of my Read It, Rate It, File It DONE! Reviews
Overall Rating: 4.00
Story Rating: 4.00
Character Rating: 4.00
Audio Rating: 3.50 (not part of the overall rating)
Read It Rate It Reviews: I have had Beauty Dates the Beast since 2013---I am sad it took me so long to read as it was delightfully funny! Fans of Molly Harper would enjoy this!!! I broke out laughing so many times during the story. Bathsheba (yes that is her name) was a great leading lady because I think most people could identify with her. She just wanted to keep her family safe, go to work, and survive a life she didn't plan. Her sister--OMG am I looking forward to her story--she wouldn't trade for the world even with all the trouble she brings. I just loved that about her. I also think by the end of the book that Beau had won me over. I swooned at their romance and teared up when they finally got it!
Audio Thoughts
Narrated By Leah Mallach/Length: 7 hrs and 55 mins
Leah did an excellent job with the narration but I am extremely picky with my West Texas accent since I grew up there. It wasn't quite right though if you weren't from there, you would never know. So totally a regional thing. She had great pacing and delivery though. I would totally listen to her again.
Part of my Read It, Rate It, File It DONE! Reviews
fictionalkate's review
1.0
I think most people have a few pet peeves when it comes to what they want to read. Those things that you prefer not to read because they annoy or frustrate you. This book seemed to have all of mine. I liked the idea of the book. Paranormal dating agency with humans finding themselves mixed up in were cougar drama. But I didn't like the characters. Bathsheba has beautiful hair, is a virgin sex goddess and is oddly protective of her sister. Beau is obsessively possessive and a bit of a social cripple. And they're both impulsively stupid.
I can see the appeal of this book. Plenty of sexy characters having sexy times and a great mix of secondary character I found more interesting than the leads.
But I just found it so silly and unrealistic. And whilst paranormal stories are always going to have a bit of the unbelievable about them I thought the plot was too simplistic.
Spoiler
I mean seriously, he has no idea how to be with a human and just hammers away as he's in heat and she still has thirteen orgasms the night she loses her virginity? That's one of the biggest paranormal occurrences in the book. And the ending? Someone calls her to say her sister is in danger so she goes to a murderer's house. Without weapons or backup. And without calling her sister or talking to her. Add to that these evil psychopaths all about to kill yet they let Bath have an unsupervised bathroom visit cause... why? It was just so dumb. Bathsheba is too stupid to live. And her beau Beau was just a super controlling alpha male who loves her hair. They seemed to be in love because...well I'm not sure why. They just were. I like people to have to earn their love stories. But I suppose these two deserved each other because no one else should have to be stuck with them.I can see the appeal of this book. Plenty of sexy characters having sexy times and a great mix of secondary character I found more interesting than the leads.
But I just found it so silly and unrealistic. And whilst paranormal stories are always going to have a bit of the unbelievable about them I thought the plot was too simplistic.
elliefufu's review
3.0
Cute book but that's about it. I like to read fluff books every once in awhile just to laugh and not think to hard. This book is great for that but I'm hoping the next book is better. I never got the main character or her relationship with Beau which didn't help.
jajorgen's review
3.0
This one had a lot of elements I'd normally be irritated by and yet it kind of caught me and was a quick, pretty fun read.
atlantiareads's review
5.0
My Review:
Midnight Liaisons is the paranormal dating company that the main character, Bathsheba works at. She deals with the weird customers and all of the problems that arise when a “Midnight Liaison” cancels a date. Bath and her sister Sara have been running their entire lives. They are running to keep a secret, one that could destroy both of their lives. Sara is a werewolf and she isn’t registered with the werewolf packs. Sara doesn’t want to belong to a pack, you see female werewolves are rare and used by all of the males in the pack. Why would you ever want to be a part of that life? Spending every day around paranormal creatures can cause problem for these sisters. They are always waiting for someone to say “SHE IS A WEREWOLF!” Now this is no way for them to live and Beau realizes this from the first time he sees them. When a horrible creature starts stalking Bath and Sara the only thing to do is separate the sisters and place them in secluded “safe houses”. Bath is with an unbearably hot Cougar shifter and Sara is with a bear shifter. What could go wrong?
Now the first thing that drew me to this book was the synopsis or description on the back of the book. The creative way that the book is described just drew my attention. Another reason I chose to read “Beauty Dates The Beast” by Jessica Sims is because of the cover and the fact that it is a paranormal that focused on something other than Vampires. I have been looking for something different and this book was definitely that. Bath and Beau start out on a date, which isn’t allowed. Midnight Liaison employees are not allowed to date any of the clientele. When Beau’s date cancels on him there is nothing for Bath to do, so she agrees to join him on his date. This is where you get to see the relationship start to blossom with these two characters. Bath and Beau have a relationship that any woman would ever want!
I absolutely loved how Ms. Sims creates a story that flowed with such ease. Throughout the book only a few days pass, I found myself reading this book in just a couple days! With such a fun read I have found myself excitedly awaiting her second book in the Midnight Liaisons series! This next book is all about Sara.
I never found myself getting bored or wondering when this book would be over, which is a surprising thing for me right now. If I can make it through a book without checking to see how many pages are left or thinking “oh gawd this is soooooo boring” I can tell that the author has great talent. I found a couple grammatical errors which is always annoying, but other than that I found this book to be a very fun and interesting read. I think that if you are looking for a new book that doesn’t follow the same story line as many other books then you should read Jessica Sims’ “Beauty Dates the beast”!
Midnight Liaisons is the paranormal dating company that the main character, Bathsheba works at. She deals with the weird customers and all of the problems that arise when a “Midnight Liaison” cancels a date. Bath and her sister Sara have been running their entire lives. They are running to keep a secret, one that could destroy both of their lives. Sara is a werewolf and she isn’t registered with the werewolf packs. Sara doesn’t want to belong to a pack, you see female werewolves are rare and used by all of the males in the pack. Why would you ever want to be a part of that life? Spending every day around paranormal creatures can cause problem for these sisters. They are always waiting for someone to say “SHE IS A WEREWOLF!” Now this is no way for them to live and Beau realizes this from the first time he sees them. When a horrible creature starts stalking Bath and Sara the only thing to do is separate the sisters and place them in secluded “safe houses”. Bath is with an unbearably hot Cougar shifter and Sara is with a bear shifter. What could go wrong?
Now the first thing that drew me to this book was the synopsis or description on the back of the book. The creative way that the book is described just drew my attention. Another reason I chose to read “Beauty Dates The Beast” by Jessica Sims is because of the cover and the fact that it is a paranormal that focused on something other than Vampires. I have been looking for something different and this book was definitely that. Bath and Beau start out on a date, which isn’t allowed. Midnight Liaison employees are not allowed to date any of the clientele. When Beau’s date cancels on him there is nothing for Bath to do, so she agrees to join him on his date. This is where you get to see the relationship start to blossom with these two characters. Bath and Beau have a relationship that any woman would ever want!
I absolutely loved how Ms. Sims creates a story that flowed with such ease. Throughout the book only a few days pass, I found myself reading this book in just a couple days! With such a fun read I have found myself excitedly awaiting her second book in the Midnight Liaisons series! This next book is all about Sara.
I never found myself getting bored or wondering when this book would be over, which is a surprising thing for me right now. If I can make it through a book without checking to see how many pages are left or thinking “oh gawd this is soooooo boring” I can tell that the author has great talent. I found a couple grammatical errors which is always annoying, but other than that I found this book to be a very fun and interesting read. I think that if you are looking for a new book that doesn’t follow the same story line as many other books then you should read Jessica Sims’ “Beauty Dates the beast”!
restyourbones's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
ria_mhrj's review
3.0
Extremely fluffy but entertaining nonetheless, I enjoyed Beauty Dates the Beast. Bathsheba has more than her fair share of too-stupid-to-live moments (especially in the finale, when all logic goes out the window) and there were some plot points that felt redundant in the grand scheme of things (the imposed dating duties for instance), but I had fun and my expectations were met. I also loved the tease for book 2, with an interesting turn of events that promises a very different couple at the heart of the story.