Blurb Tour Spotlight: KISS OF TEMPTATION, a Deadly Angels novel by Sandra Hill

Welcome to the first day, and my stop, on the Tasty Blurb Tour spotlighting KISS OF TEMPTATION by Sandra Hill - book three in the Deadly Angels series. If you've been paying attention, you know I have already read and reviewed book one - KISS OF PRIDE - and book two - KISS OF SURRENDER. I was very excited when Avon Romance offered up a chance to read an eARC of KISS OF TEMPTATION by Sandra Hill, releasing March 26th.
Be sure to check out the other blogs on the tour - some will be giving away copies of this delightful paranormal. Click HERE.

***eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest and unscripted review

Blurb for KISS OF TEMPTATION:

Is it lust?

Ivak Sigurdsson is dead . . . well, sort of. Guilty of the sin of lust, he's been given an unusual penance: spend eternity as a Viking vampire angel, or vangel, fighting Lucipires, Satan's vampire demons on earth. Now sequestered in Angola Prison as a "spiritual advisor," Ivak is finding all these centuries of celibacy depressing, to say the least. But then, along comes southern belle Gabrielle Sonnier. Is she a reward for his good deeds, or a temptation sent to rattle his lustsome brain?

Or is it love?
Gabrielle, a lawyer, begs Ivak to help get her brother out of prison. Aided by the Cajun LeDeux family and their chief looney bird, Tante Lulu, Ivak reluctantly agrees. And while he alternately tries to seduce and save Gabrielle before the Lucipires run rampant, they both begin to wonder if it's really only lust, or something more.

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Ivak Sigurdsson, one of seven Viking brothers who have lived over a thousand years as penance for each having been guilty of one of the Seven Deadly Sins, has been sentenced to work at Angola Prison in Louisiana as a vicar - not the best situation for a Viking vangel - vampire angel who is guilty of the sin of Lust. Thinking his life has been made simple by St. Michael the Archangel. Ivak has been sent to a place to protect the innocent and ward off Lucipires (demon vampires) where he would hardly be tempted to have lustful thoughts, but Ivak's life suddenly becomes very complicated when Gabrielle Sonnier appears on visitation day to see her brother.

Gabrielle is working hard to free her brother from an unjust sentence. It isn't that Leroy is innocent, not at all. He did commit the crime for which he was originally incarcerated, but he did not commit the crime for which his sentence has been extended. Gabrielle believes him and so does Ivak. Ivak knows he must help Leroy and in turn protect Gabrielle. Leroy has already been targeted once by a Lucie but Ivak manages to save him. Now it doesn't take a genius to realize that Gabrielle would make a great target to use against both, Leroy and Ivak. Ivak's problem is that Gabrielle is not one to take orders and he's not about to allow her out of his sight, which means that inevitably, he's thrown together with her a lot and so a lot of lustful thoughts - and dreams - run through his, and her mind.

Excerpt from KISS OF TEMPTATION:

That night he swived the Irish maid, and she was sweet, especially after having been bathed. It was not an entirely satisfying tup, though. The girl was too willing. He kept seeing her husband’s face as he was dragged away. No doubt Ivak’s distaste would fade eventually, but tonight he had no patience for it, especially as she begged him to be permitted to stay. Instead, he sent her away after just one bout of bedsport, wanting no more of her for now.

He drank way too much mead then, which only increased his foul mood. That was the only excuse he could find for his seeing Asta slinking along one of the hallways and motioning him with a forefinger to come to her bedchamber. Another round-heeled woman with the morals of a feral cat. He knew for a fact that Serk was serving guard duty all night.

Mayhap he should tup Serk’s wife and then explain to him in the nicest possible way on the morrow what a poor choice he had made in picking this particular maid for his mate. He would be doing his friend a favor, he rationalized with alehead madness.

Asta was riding him like a bloody stallion a short time later, and while his cock was interested, he found himself oddly regretting his impulsive invitation. Bored, he glanced toward the door that was opening, and there stood Serk, staring at them with horror. This was not the way he’d wanted his friend to discover his wife’s lack of faithfulness.

“Ivak? My friend?” Serk choked out.

“I can explain. It’s not what you think.” Well, it was, but there was a reason for his madness. Wasn’t there?

At the stricken expression on Serk’s face, Ivak shoved Asta off him, ignoring her squeal of ill-humor, and jumped off the bed. By the time he was dressed, his good friend was gone. And Asta was more concerned about having her bedplay interrupted than the fact that her husband had witnessed her adultery. To Ivak’s amazement, she actually thought they would resume the swiving.

Ivak searched for more than an hour, to no avail. It was already well after midnight and most folks, except for his housecarls, were abed. His apology and explanation to Serk would have to wait until morning. Without a doubt, Serk would forgive him, once he understood that Asta was just a woman, and a faithless one at that. Oh, Ivak did not doubt that Serk would be angry, and Ivak might even allow him a punch or two, but eventually their friendship would be intact.

Still, he could not sleep with all that had happened, and he decided to walk out to the stables to check on a prize mare that should foal any day now. What Ivak found, though, was so shocking he could scarce breathe. In fact, he fell to his knees and moaned. “Oh, nay! Please, gods, let it not be so!”

Hanging from one of the rafters was Serk.

His friend had hung himself.

What have I done? What have I done? She was not worth it, my friend. Truly, she was not. Oh, what have I done?

Ivak lowered the body to the floor and did not need to put a fingertip to Serk’s neck to know that he had already passed to Valhalla. With tears burning his eyes, he stood, about to call for the stablemaster in an adjoining shed when he heard a noise behind him. Turning, he saw the young Irish blacksmith, husband of the red-haired maid he’d bedded, running toward him with a raised pitchfork. Vadim and his crew were supposed to depart at first light. The man must have escaped his restraints.

Before Ivak had a chance to raise an alarm or fight for himself, the man pierced his chest with the long tines of the pitchfork. Unfortunately, he used the special implement with metal tines that Ivak had purchased this past summer on a whim in the open markets of Miklegaard, also known as Byzantium. Why had he not been satisfied with the usual wooden pitchforks for his fine stable? So forceful had the man’s surge toward him been that he pinned Ivak into the wall.

“You devil!” the man yelled, tears streaming down his face. “You bloody damn devil! May you rot in hell!” 

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Author Bio:

Sandra Hill is a graduate of Penn State and worked for more than 10 years as a features writer and education editor for publications in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Writing about serious issues taught her the merits of seeking the lighter side of even the darkest stories. She is the wife of a stockbroker and the mother of four sons.

If you'd like to learn more about Sandra Hill and her books, please visit her website, Avon Romance, and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

My Thoughts: 
KISS OF TEMPTATION by Sandra Hill surprised me. Having enjoyed both of the previous books, I expected to like this one right off the bat. Well, it took me a while to cotton up to Ivak, as we say in the South, because, at first he came off as a real wolf, a horn dog, and cad! Yes, his sin is Lust but really now, he came onto Gabrielle like a sleazy chain-wearing swinger in a disco club and I didn't like him at all. Then he calmed down and started realizing that his attraction to Gabrielle might be something more than lust, and he changed. He changed for the better, and I fell in love.

Sandra Hill treats us to a cast of characters in KISS OF TEMPTATION that will hold you captivated throughout once you meet Tante Lulu LeDeux, Charmaine LeDeux Lanier, and Tee-John LeDeux. Crazy Cajuns if ever there were some. Their antics, their humor, and their love for Gabrielle, Ivak, and Leroy make this a wonderful love story that goes far beyond the incredibly sexy dreams that are shared by Gabrielle and Ivak. A wonderful switch from the near-sex that usually happens with vangels. Wild sex dreams that allow our couple to experience each other without breaking any real rules. I think Mike is getting soft towards his VIKs, although even he's rather shocked by what occurs at the end. Not saying a word, you'll have to read this one to find out.

I highly recommend KISS OF TEMPTATION, a Deadly Angels novel by Sandra Hill if you've read the first two or not - it's a wonderful stand alone, so you can easily start here but I do recommend the series as a whole. If you love Cajun crazy antics, action - great battle against the evil Dominique and her Lucies - romance, and sexy dream sequences that will have you reaching for sweet tea to quench the fires, then you want to read this Deadly Angel novel.

Happy Reading Everyone!

KISS OF TEMPTATION, a Deadly Angels novel by Sandra Hill, Avon Romance, release date - March 26, 2013 in print and ebook formats.