Arranged (Masters & Mercenaries)

by Lexi Blake

[Eve1972]

This is the standard 1001 Nights cover. I like it. Good representation of the hero/heroine. Good composition. Great use of graphics and typography.

So I pretty much went into this one expecting not to like it very much. If I had known before I requested the ARC that the heroine was going to be a Domme, I wouldn't have bothered with it. On top of that, I am not a big fan of an author taking an uber manwhore secondary character and trying to make him into a hero. And that is basically ALL Kash has been throughout the series. He is best known for being the "walking venereal disease" and not much else.

So you can imagine how delighted I am to say that I actually DID enjoy this one (for the most part). Oh, I STILL think Kash would have been best left as a side character, and there were WAY too many mentions of his manwhore past. Including an opening scene where he awakes in bed having spent the night with three women (gag). But Miz Blake sucked me into the story, and I found myself turning the pages and enjoying the journey these two were embarking on.



I enjoyed Day immensely. I found the type of Domme she was pleasing. She wasn't cold or harsh. I think that is why that aspect worked for me when in other books I find it a turnoff. She was also a strong and intelligent heroine. Although I did question why someone with her intelligence would EVER want to tie herself to a walking venereal disease...but whatevs.

As is the case with nearly every book Miz Blake writes I enjoyed seeing some of the other couples from the M&M universe. After so many books in this series, a lot of these characters feel like family. The mystery part was OK. I figured out who the baddie was from the minute the person was introduced, but that didn't take away from my enjoyment at all. There were also some parts that made me cry, and the sex scenes were hot. So, all in all, I went in not expecting much and came out pleasantly surprised. Two thumbs up from yours truly.