This one did not work for me at all, and I barely made it through the first chapter. I have to say that Sparrow Beckett is just not an author for me. I even stopped reading when I originally began, and I picked it up again this past week. Got no further the second time around. Don't care for the few characters I met, nor their conversations. So my apologies, no further reading or review will be done.

I can't even with the dirty, sexy, smutty hotness. Chemistry for days and days between the characters. Once again Beckett nails the balance between kink and genuine emotion. Not all authors can do it, but Beckett has found the sweet spot giving the reader all the delicious dirty along with all the heart and feels. A must read series for sure!

I found this story more of a love story then anything else but the give and take between Grant and Arabella made for a fun story. Arabella and Grant both play at a kink club and have been best friends for a long time, well after they spend one night night together Grant wants more. Arabella won’t trust a man to collar her again she lost the love of her life and her best friend thinking collaring meant something till it didn’t. When you read how Grant is trying to get his best friend to give in and how she is being a brat it’s really entertaining. The book doesn’t end in a cliff hanger but you really want more.

Here’s the situation, Grant Ellis co-owns an adult club called Catacombs, and works very hard to avoid his former best friend, Arabella Dexter. Dex is still left puzzled by the fact that one hot night changed everything, ended the friendship that she had once treasured so much with Grant. Yes, she refused to wear his collar but should that have changed their relationship and the man himself so much? Dex isn’t looking for a commitment. Grant has turned into a class-A jerk since she refused him. The worst part? He’s the only man she’s ever really craved on an all-encompassing level.

Dex is about to give up when he makes her an offer. He invites her to visit his new resort on remote Canadian island and Dex willingly agrees. Anything to try and salvage the friendship she misses. A week in the wilderness alone with Grant to explore all the boundaries of the relationship. Will the flames of lust consume them?

While I am a fan of all types of romance, including BDSM, this book wasn’t exactly what I expected. The sex you expect from this title is definitely there and it’s very well written. It’s not, however, the star of the book. The incredible exploration of these two characters, their fears, and feelings, were blending into a tale that was impossible to put down. Dex was a great character though I lost patience with her more than a couple of times and Grant? He was incredible. I’d love to see more heroes that well crafted. Both characters were so stubborn, there were a couple of times I had to wonder if it would all get resolved at all.

The story was was simple, the pacing was perfect, the characterization, dialogue — all of it — was on point. I finished the story after 4 AM one morning thoroughly pleased with the resolution — and emotionally exhausted. The authors outdid themselves here and I personally plant to go back and read the first four books in the Masters Unleashed series. I read this fifth entry in the series with no issues at all from not having read them. But I’m really looking forward to reading them now. And you should give them a try. You won’t be disappointed.

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Heidi

Grant Ellis had a crappy childhood where he always felt unwanted. His mother left his brother, Will, and him with their father, when she left. Will was their dad’s favorite and when their new step-mom didn’t want anything to do with Grant, his dad sent him to a boarding school where the teachers thought nothing was wrong with beating some manners into their charges. When Will was kicked out of the home, Grant left with him and they never looked back.

The brothers now own and run a sex club, Catacombs. However, Will has recently gotten married and is raising a toddler. Grant wants to make something of himself and he wants to own something that is completely his instead of just always tagging along with his brother. So, when he finds a private island in Canada for sale, he jumps at a chance to make it his! His plans are to make a kinky getaway for those people who don’t like having to act ‘normal’ on vacation. And, he decides to bring he and Will’s best friend, Arabella (aka Dex), with him to the property to check things out.

However, things haven’t been going very well between Grant and Dex ever since they hooked-up one night. It was supposed to be a one-time thing, but it left him wanting more. He wants her to wear his collar and for them to be completely committed to each other, but Dex refuses. Her ex hurt her pretty bad emotionally, and she never wants to leave herself vulnerable like that again. Grant and Dex want different things, which has led to them fighting. Can they put their differences aside long enough to check out Grant’s new investment? And, can they ever get their friendship back to what it once was?

This is the first book I’ve read from this series and this writing duo (Leia Shaw & Sorcha Black) in general. And, after reading the acknowledgments at the back of the book I see this novel is actually the conclusion of their collaboration project.

This book is for all of those with an open mind and a kinky heart … or is that an open heart and a kinky mind? Whichever 🙂 There are definitely some vivid scenes in this book and so it’s not for the light of heart, but the main focus is actually the storyline. I was actually surprised to see a BDSM book with an actual plot, if I’m being honest. This book delved into Grant’s past, which has left him feeling unwanted. He’s used to being used, which is why he was so adamant about getting a commitment out of Dex. It’s all or nothing with him. He also felt like a burden to his brother and wanted to find his own way. But this book is also about learning to trust someone else as that is something that both Grant and Arabella had to learn.

I actually enjoyed the banter between Dex and Grant and even found myself laughing at their antics at times. It gives you a glimpse of how things were before they brought sex into the equation.

“See? If you would have gotten a dog like I told you to, you’d be one of the cool kids around here.”

“And I told I work too much to have a dog. If you want a dog, you get a dog.”

“I did suggest that at one point, but you said no.”

“As I recall, your plan was to get a dog and keep it at my house. That would still be me getting a dog except in that scenario you would get to pick the dog. For some strange reason, that seems lose/lose to me.”

“Well, obviously I’d come over whenever it needed to go out.”

“How is that going to work? The club is almost an hour’s drive from my house even at the best of times.”

He sighed, leading the way into the great room. “You’d need to let me live in your pool house, of course.”

“I don’t have a pool house, or even a pool, dipshit.”

He followed her inside, enjoying this conversation far too much to leave now.

“Obviously, the first part of the plan would be for you to get a pool installed, and then build a pool house for me to live in.”

She frowned at him and punched him in the chest. “Your imaginary dog is already costing me an imaginary fortune.”

“The upside is that imaginary dogs aren’t big eaters. You’re already saving a fortune on dog food.”

There are a lot of unattached friends still in Grant and Dex’s circle of friends so I’m a bit surprised to see this is the last book in the series. Unless the two authors that make up Sparrow Beckett have plans to revive it later or do some individual writing within the series.

I felt this was a decent book, as decent as it can be for the subject matter anyway. It’s more of a smut/kinky kind of book though so it’s hard for me to rate any book of this nature too highly. However, it was better than I was expecting, so there is that. If the series were to continue I’d probably even continue it (shocker).

*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*

Grant and Arabella (Dex) were best friends until they had a hot one-night stand. Grant wants more but Arabella doesn’t want to wear his collar, (commitment in BDSM speak, like I’m an expert here, lol) but after being burned by a past love, she doesn’t want to put herself in such a vulnerable position again. She’s powerfully attracted to Grant and wants their sexcapades to continue, but Grant doesn’t just want a f*ck-buddy.

Grant’s fallen hard for Arabella, and fears what no-commitment sex would do to him if she decided to just move on. Grant doesn’t know this is the reason behind Arabella’s rejection, and so he takes it personal. Which is understandable. In fact, Grant has issues with thinking he’s unlovable, so this plays right into it.

I’m a sucker for best-friends-into-love romance, because it doesn’t take much to flip that switch when you have such a powerful bond. Grant and Arabella had some insecurities they both had to work through, but they never shut each other completely out even when they got miffed at each other.

I don’t read much erotica or BDSM, but when I do, I like some depth to the story, not just sex, sex, sex, and I thought All’s Fair in Love and Mastery struck a nice balance here. It was kinky fun, and super hot, light-your-panties-on-fire-hot in places, and part of what made that work was feeling the deep connection between Grant and Arabella. They had layers I enjoyed unraveling and seeing them battle their irresistible attraction was a pleasure!

THE DELIGHT
It's another book in a series I have adored since book one! With overly dominant men, women who give them a run for their money and ropes, and a collars only these people can clasp. Friends to lovers to enemies, we get to find out what these two were bickering about when they were best friends once upon a time.

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REVIEW
We met Dex and Grant in Master in Shining Armor, where Grant's brother Will found his submissive. Will and Grant have a pretty bad childhood that leads to them being estranged from their father, but close as brothers who started their own BDSM Club. Dex isn't part of their business, but is their best friend. She has a past that neither brother really knows what has happened, they just know she was hurt in some way that makes a permanent Dom not her thing. Grant for his part has never felt like he was lovable. We come into the story knowing they were once best friends, but not barely tolerating each other. We find out why.

We join Dex as she is gazing at Grant doing a scene with a submissive and lamenting the fact that they are no longer best friends after their night of passion, kink and mastery. In fact Grant mastered Dex's bratiness so well, she hasn't been able to sleep with another other dominant since. That doesn't mean she is going to let him collar her and there in lies all the problems. To Grant, this was just another example of how he is worthy of love. He offers her a collar she refuses and he won't accept less than her being his submissive in more than a hook up. Both are longing to recapture their friendship, but neither can agree on what they want in the bedroom.

While I have loved this series, this is the one book that I had a hard time enjoying. There is a lot of angry, hate sex and domination. It is never violent or un-consensual, just not healthy how each are hurt by what they want and can't have. Dex wants to be dominated, have sex and just not commit to anything more than being best friends. Grant wants more commitment, a collar, exclusiveness, and someone to call his own. He isn't giving in to a casual relationship and his puts a strain on them being friends let alone lovers. There is one scene I so wanted to shout a safe word as a reader that was a hard limit....no lube when it really is needed.

The two skate each other, but also hurt each other like they need to one up what the other has done. Grant tries to pull back and a platonic relationship that they are best friends while Dex tries to get what she wants even though she knows it isn't what Grant wants. In fact I got so irritated I had to put this book down and move onto another for a while.

To add to all of this, Grant feels like a fuck up. He doesn't feel like he has much that his own now that his brother has moved onto marriage with a kid. He knows he wants to branch out to something that is just his and he does do that, but it felt very irresponsible how he goes about it sight unseen. This is when they start to talk and find out what drives each other's actions and feelings. Even if I disagreed with the first part of the story, this is what I felt they needed the entire time.

My biggest regret from this story was not meeting them before their beginning. Not seeing how they came together from their friendship. We jump right into the middle of the conflict and it sent a sour note on how I looked at these people. Grant I respected a lot. Dex I wanted to smack the shit out of. Seriously, she treated him like trash in the beginning and what else was he to think he was?

So here is some noteworthy experiences...

The idea of a BDSM vacation resort was interesting, but felt underdeveloped.
End of a series and end of a writing team. Sparrow Beckett finished up their series and now planning to start writing separate books :(
Best friends to lovers....well this happens entirely before this story even begins and I felt left out on what happened.
Dex was a strong woman who dealt with a betrayal no one should have too. Unfortunately this translated into someone I had a hard time respecting as she drove Grant to do things he didn't want to. It was a gender reversal we wouldn't tolerate in men, I don't see why I should tolerate it in a woman.
While this was an end to a series, it was also an end to a writing team. Sparrow Beckett are going back to writing alone under their own names, Sorcha Black and Leia Shaw. It's a sad day as I loved this series and this writing team. I wish them both the best as they continue their writing series, but catch me later crying that I won't get any more of the stories I saw could be formed with the other characters we got hints about. I really wished I could send this series off with a big bang of a review, but unfortunately that just can't happen :(