Mysterious and Captivating...the story of Jezebel Tate and James Blakely is on that will take your breath away at times. Jezebel is a romance writer with a stalker who is getting more brazen and James is looking to be her bodyguard hoping he will be able to keep her safe.
This book is enticing that it will be hard to put it down until the end.

Lies We Keep is book one in this series. This is a new author for me and I really enjoyed this story. Jezebel is an author who has a stalker and hires James to be her bodyguard. There are some really steamy scenes and look forward to book 2

This book was so well Written and so Addictive I read it in one sitting and Love Everything Minute of it .love the characters I’ll give it more than 5 stars ⭐️

Howdy, howdy!  It's the last Wednesday of April!  Can you believe it?  Time sure flies, I guess.  Anyway, it's time for another book review!  Actually, this month is a little different because I'm reviewing two books at once.  My friend, Danielle Rose, has a duet coming out on May 14th, so I decided to see if I could get some Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) of the books.  Thanks to NetGalley and Waterhouse Press, I did just that.  The duet is called Pieces of Me and it's comprised of Lies We Keep and Truth We Bear.  They are contemporary romances, so they're not my usual reads, but I knew that going in.  I thought you should know as well.  Anyway, as usual, I have to thank NetGalley and Waterhouse for allowing me access to the ARCs in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.  Let's get on with it!

The Pieces of Me duet is centered around famous author, Jezebel Tate, and her bodyguard, James Blakely, as their relationship blooms from "just sex" into full blown love.  Lies We Keep is told from Jezebel's perspective and follows her as she hires Blakely to protect her from her stalker.  Along the way, she has to confront her past and accept that she isn't to blame for her parents' deaths.  Truth We Bear is told in Blakely's perspective and follows him as he and his past chase each other into a head-on collision.  He has to learn the same lesson as Jezebel, but under completely different circumstances.

Let's talk plots.  The whole of the stories are vastly different, but both books are pretty similar if you boil them down to their bones.  Both Jezebel and Blakely have to deal with stalkers while they sort out issues revolving around the deaths of their folks.  Plus, they have to find time to cram in lots of steamy sex (a requirement of the romance genre, so don't pretend you didn't know it was coming).  Granted, Jezebel's journey to resolving her issues is more internal and psychological while Blakely actually gets to confront people from his past, but still similar.  I enjoyed the parallels.

The characters were interesting and mostly fleshed out.  Jezebel vacillates between a strong woman who knows what she wants and takes it and an insecure woman who feels that only a big strong man can save her.  It's annoying at times, but not out of the realm of believability.  Blakely is basically your average stoic dom on the outside with a bunch of weird insecurities inside (I say weird because I didn't understand why he was worried about her leaving him over what happened when he was a kid).  Tara, the literary agent, was a neat character that I felt could have been used more.  As far as the bad people go, I felt like Jezebel's stalker could have shown up earlier and played a bigger part.  He seemed a little like an afterthought.  I really liked Blakely's stalker, though.  Her development was quick, but nicely done.  And lastly, the pastor (Blakely's actual bad guy) was a bit flat.

The writing is crisp and flows well.  It makes for a quick read.  There are some gestures that became repetitive.  Distractingly so.  Lots of bit lips and bobbing Adam's apples and clenched jaws, especially in the first book.  But to be fair, this happens in every romance I read, so I guess it's a genre thing.  But what I really liked was that they're written to work as both a duet and standalone novels, so even if you only read one, you get the pleasure of a satisfying ending.

Ultimately, both books in the Pieces of Me duet were fun and I'm glad I read them.  It's good to get outside of my comfort zone once in a while.

Overall, I gave both books 4 out of 5 stars.   The issues I had with them are minor and seem fairly common in the genre.  If you like romance and lots of random sex, these are definitely worth a look.

Lies We Keep initially drew me in due to the extraordinarily beautiful cover, and unfortunately that was the most appealing part of this book. I personally found the Jezebel’s behaviour to be unorthodox and unprofessional, and wondered why she didn’t find another bodyguard and pursue a relationship separately with James. That said, I am interested to know where the story goes from here, and based on this being a duology, I will read book two simply for the outcome.

All that Jezebel Tate wants to do is write her novels. But her fameshines too bright and a fan’s admiration becomes obsession, she is forced into the shadows to find safety. James Blakely is running from his past. A broken man haunted by guilt-laden memories, James accepts a position as Miss Tate’s private security detail.

Jezebel decides that she wants James as more than just her bodyguard. They are both broken and running from their pasts. Can James protect Jez or will her sensual game of cat and mouse end in disaster?

I really enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading more about Jez and James. Danielle Rose has made a new fan!!

Lies We Keep is a first book by this author for me.
At the start I was attracted to the story by this beautiful cover and the beginning of the book was very promising but soon I stated to feel kind of off putting by heroine and her behavior. So heroine is a writer who has a stalker and it is in very serious situation with everything and the threats that said stalker sends her and in a need of a bodyguard. So at the beginning of the book we see her and her agent interviewing men for the position. So when hero comes for interview she is immediately attracted to him and wants him and she is determined to have him. I was supposed to get her behavior as alpha female but I got something very different.. I was left wondering why she didn't found another person to be her bodyguard and dated hero. She doesn't take her situation with danger and stalker seriously at all.. I guess I thought this was more of mystery suspense story but is mainly steamy erotica.

It is a first book in a series without cliffhanger with a HEA.


So maybe at the end I have to say this was not a read for me.

It is my first book by this author and I loved every second of it ❣
I love how the story begins 😍
From the first page you are immediately in the story and Jezebels world or better said her head (her very visual imagination 🤭).
This book describes the ugly side of the celebrity life.
It describes what being a famous writer means from the unpleasant side.
Jezebel Tate is a writer who loves to write and she has a gift, that makes writing very easy for her. She is famous for her sexy cowboy books and with her fame, she attracts people who confuse her with her book characters.
Jezebel has a crazy stalker, who writes letters that very figuratively express what he wants to do to her.
The only solution to stay alive and safe is to hire a bodyguard.
James Blakely is very attractive, former soldier and she likes what she sees at first sight. He is a hot distraction from her otherwise lonely and ridden by fears life, or is he more?
A very sexy, hot and exciting read with thriller effect and a lot of action (not only in bedroom😉).
This book was the blast and now I'm looking for second part of it 😁 You should do it too 🙆‍♀️ it was really a fast and exciting read with a HEA 😍

Lies We Keep is my first Danielle Rose novel. The cover was so intriguing that every-time I saw it I knew I wanted to read it. Jezebel Tate is an author who lives her live in the quiet and the shadows. When she finally decides it's time to hire a bodyguard, her life becomes somewhat of a romantic suspense novel. Super sexy bodyguard James Blakely has no idea what he's in for - and I love it.

This was the type of book that I had ideas about what I was expecting. I don't think that my ideas translated to what the author had in mind. I think that overall the book was good. The editing was good, the story was simple but interesting.

I'm reading book 2 because I'm interested in James' story and what happens next.

Wow! Wow! Wow!!
That about sums up my experience in reading my first book by this author. But by no means let me fool you ... it will not be the last I read either.
This book floored me.
Her characters ,especially Jezebel, is a superstar. She's bold, very forward , especially with James, very strong willed and no hold barred.
I love the chemistry and interactions between James and Jezebel. They were sone of my favorite scenes in the book .
Well done!

I'm all about sexy bodyguard books. "Lies We Keep" definitely delivers in the hot bodyguard department with James Blakely. Jezebel, a young author who is being stalked, agrees to hire a bodyguard. it is obvious that Blakely is carrying around some significant baggage but he won't discuss it. Blakely interviews with Jezebel and is the first one that she has felt comfortable with. Of course, it doesn't hurt that she is attracted to him as well.

There is an undeniable push and pull between the two of them. Blakely tries to maintain his professionalism while Jezebel is actively trying to undermine his noble intentions every step of the way. Eventually, their physical attraction wins out. This puts Blakely on the defensive because he feels he can't properly protect Jezebel if he is distracted by a personal relationship with her.

Can James and Jezebel find a way to make things work? Do they uncover the identity of the stalker? Does James share his secrets with Jezebel? There are so many questions to still be answered. Looks like you'd better read the book!

I enjoyed the book. I I felt like there were areas of the story that should have been more developed. However, it wasn't enough for me to warrant a lower star rating. I felt there were enough other positives to keep the review up at 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

ok, Damn ! What a start to the book ! I am already excited and grinning like a fool. I love Jezebel Tate's I-will-take-what-I-want attitude. And while we've read this trait in so many alpha males, it is refreshing to reading it from a woman's POV. And double damn if her mouth watering experience of setting her eyes on the drool worthy James Blakely, doesn't make my mouth water !! Right, so now I am all pumped up to see these two locking horns..

Coming back to the plot, not much of originality to it. Almost every celebrity falls for their body guards, because triple damn, who doesn't love some tall-dark-sexy mountain protecting you. The story started out well, we have a famous author, who has a stalker, as in a very serious-psycho stalker who writes her letters of the things he would do to her when he takes her. And somehow, this strong iron willed lady becomes a blubbering mess, So, she keeps switching between strong, bold, fuck-you sorta woman to hide-under-the-bed sorta woman. And there is of course the I-can't-keep-my-hands-off-you sort in between too. And I would've have enjoyed these changes, if the transition between them were smoother. Things started spiraling out of control pretty quick. Too much haste in the plot, too many feelings too soon.. And you could see the twist coming from a mile long.. So you are pretty much ready when it comes and it hardly has any effect. And while we do get some glimpses of James' past, there are many deliberately hidden secrets about him, which I guess will be answered in the next book. There is nothing dramatic at all in the stalker angle, more of cat and mouse game between Jezebel and James and that was a let down for me. So much potential..

An extra star for the start though !

Jezebel Tate’s writing career has brought her success that few experience, but when her fame shines too bright and a fan’s admiration becomes obsession, she is forced into the shadows to find safety.When I started reading I couldn't put it down.Danielle Rose is magnifysent and amazing writer.I cannot wait to read more of there books.Keep up the great work.You should definitely read this book.Can't wait for the next book.

Jezebel is a writer who has found herself having a stalker. It is decided that she needs to hire a body guard and the perfect person for this role is James Blakely. He is aware that he will need to be with Jezebel 24/7. That as it turns out is a hard thing to do as they both realize quickly that there is a strong attraction. James worries that he won't be able to protect Jezebel but she insists that he can protect her while being there for her in the bedroom.

Absolutely loved this book. I have never read anything by this author before. I loved everything about this book. I read it in a day. You should definitely read this if you haven’t

Well written, attention grabbing, page Turner. Just a few words to describe this story. I love Jezebel!