Hot and Haunted (Anthology) by Saranna DeWylde, Lauren Hawkeye, Megan Hart

• Title: Hot and Haunted
• Classification: Adult Fiction
• Genre: Erotica
• File Size: 388 KB
• Print Length: 100 pages
• Publisher: Avon Red (October 23, 2012)
• Sold by: HarperCollins Publishers
• ASIN: B008XO8T8A

Notes: Books published under the Avon Red name are erotic. I keep forgetting Avon has erotic reads and, therefore, accidentally downloaded this when they set me a bunch of eArcs they wanted me to read. So instead of rating these based on my like of the romance these will all be rated on the story portion themselves. I'll also include things I think some may have an objection to.

Nothing Else Matters by Megan Hart

A few weeks ago the world as we knew it changed..
'First came the storm, then the flowers that spread the seeds of infection. People turned violent just before the seeds, which had taken root inside them exploded out of their faces infecting others even as it killed the hosts, then somehow brought them back from the dead.' Resurrected is the name that was given to these 'reborn' individuals and while they were alive, human was not a term one would use for them.

Lira and a handful of other individuals who managed to find refuge in a local synagogue are attempting to stay alive. Lira has been subjected to the spores from the deadly flowers time and time again and has  proven she has some inborn immunity to whatever the deadly spores do. She has been tasked with the mission of providing for herself and the others in the shelter by venturing out and scavenging whatever she can from what is left in the city of Pittsburgh, the city they all resided in when disaster hit. When Lira encounters someone new while out scavenging, he warns her the army is coming with the intent of wiping out everything in its path whether it's dead or alive, infected or not. Lira and her fellow survivors will have to risk all to get out in time. The question posed by those in the shelter is, "You believe him?"

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I truly enjoyed this one. The plants reminded me a little of a plant in an episode of The Adventures of Sarah Jane (a Doctor Who spin-off) entitled 'The Gift' which also had spore plants which infected people, but differently. So when I read this one I already had a preconceived picture of what happened in my head. What makes this story more appealing is that the spores don't make people sick, they turn them into zombie like creatures and who doesn't love a good zombie tale? lol

Overall, I gave this one 4 out of 5 roses. This one is full of action, questions and, well, 'loving', if you know what I mean. This is after all an erotic read. One thing some readers may be turned off by is that the Lira is in a relationship, although not fully committed, when she has an encounter of an intimate variety with another man. Sounds like this one will make for an excellent series although I could find no evidence to suggests Ms. Hart plans to expand on this story.

Pick Me Up by Lauren Hawkeye 

A lone woman walks a deserted rural road. It's raining and a car swerves to avoid her ending up in the ditch. The woman recently had a fight with her cheating fiance who then proceeded to abandon her on the side of the road. Determined to prove she's not cold or frigid she sets about seducing the man whose car she now sits in while they wait for Triple A. There's a reason they say never get in a stranger's car or pick up a stranger on the side of the road....
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This one is so hard for me to rate because it's mostly about the sex, but the twist was quite something and I felt made the story perfect for this time of the year. For me it was the spookiest of the bunch. I'm going to give it a 2 1/2 out of 5 roses. If I liked erotica it would have been rated higher.

Little Red's Big Bad by Saranna DeWylde

"He's dead, just like you will be, Little Red. The Wolf wants you to find him."

'Hannible, Misssouri, was famous for three things: Mark Twain, the brand-new, state-of-the-art, supermax penitentiary, and serial killer Dean Harvey Webster.' When the latter ends up escaping, they call in U.S. Marshal Miranda Garrick to head the investigation and the hunt him down. Dean apparently predicted Miranda would be the one they'd send to come after him and he wants her to find him. Teamed with special Agent Aden Brewster of the FBI, who Miranda finds herself unreasonably attracted to, will she be able to get her man or will the hunter become the hunted?
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This is one was my favorite of the anthology. There are a couple of twists at the end that I loved  and an encounter with a phone that had me recollecting the dryer scene with Monica on the TV show Friends that had me giggling. Overall, I gave it a 4 1/2 out of 5 roses.

My overall rating for the anthology is 4 out of 5 roses. A perfect book for the Halloween season. If you don't like erotic reads then this isn't a book for you, however, if you do, then I would recommend this one to you. It is definitely worth the 99 cents for the eBook.