Games of the Heart (The Burg #4) by Kristen Ashley

OMG. I abso-freakin-lutely LOVED Games of the Heart by Kristen Ashley!!!! LOVE-LOVE-LOVE!!!! So, I say this about almost every Kristen Ashley book (because I love them all) but this one, I think, may be my favorite. I loved Mike in At Peace, but I really loved him here. He is an amazing, protective dad, an honest cop, and a HOT, totally alpha guy. Dusty is my favorite heroine to date. She was so cool, I wish I could be as cool, or at least friends with her. She was creative, compassionate, loving & strong, and the two of them together were magic. Mike’s kids were great “No” (weird name that confused me a few times) is a talented musician who plays every instrument, and Clarisse (15) was wonderful. Dusty’s nephew, Fin, was a to-die-for alpha hero in training. Clarisse and Fin’s love was pure and strong and an absolutely wonderful story.

Though there was some suspense in the form of Dusty’s sister (Mike’s high school girlfriend), her partner in crime, Dusty’s stalker ex, Mike’s ex-wife and some really nasty high school bullies, this story had less suspense than most of her other books. It was more character and family driven. Though I cried a couple of times, I found myself with a huge smile on my face most of the 3 days it took me to read this nice, long, juicy book.

Dusty’s friends from Texas were awesome, and I hope we see them again soon. I loved how all the ‘Burg crew was brought back into this story and we got to see favorite characters from past books. The whole ‘Burg crew is awesome. I want to move there and hang with all of them!

How can you not love this?

“You’re right, I’m here to right wrongs and I’m gonna do it, Angel. You told me I’d had my last chance but I don’t accept that and I won’t. If you tell me now that my explanation is not enough and you want me gone, I’m not goin’. I’m not giving up. I got one part of my life’s dream still open to me, every sign she gives me is screaming that she’s standing in my arms right now and I’m not gonna be ninety years old, looking back on my life and regretting that I gave up that dream.”

Or this?

“And you’ll get used to bein’ my woman and I’ll explain what that means. I’ll take shit but my woman won’t,” he leaned in and finished, “EVER. Not people feedin’ it to her directly and not indirectly through me.”

Or when her ex won’t back down and calls while they are doing it?

“You got me and you gotta know you got me when I’m buried deep in Dusty, fuckin’ her hard, she’s facedown in bed, lovin’ every stroke and I know this because she’s purrin’ for me like a cat. And when I make her come, she’s gonna say MY name. So with that, you also gotta know you are done. If you don’t get this, Rivera’s out and it’ll be me who explains it to you in a way you’ll finally fuckin’ understand”.

Ummm, HOT. How can you not love Mike?

Fin, Dusty’s nephew, became man of the house at 17 when his dad died. Fin was a mini-me version of Mike, or any of the other awesome ‘Burg guys. Clarisse, Mike’s daughter, fell for him at 15. Who wouldn’t? He was awesome. I loved reading about their young romance. Mike’s ex was an absentee mom. Clarisse had no woman to talk about girl stuff to. Dusty did a beautiful job of stepping up and being a mom that both her nephews and Mike’s kids sorely needed. Kristen writes some awesome kids! I hope my boys turn out as well.

As always, Kristen gave us a great epilogue. But this was the best of all the books. In fact, I’m going to read the epilogue again as soon as I finish this. I highly recommend reading the whole series in order to really get the best experience with this. Check out the reading order with mini-reviews here.

Rating 5++++++ stars for story and 4 for heat. LOVED!!!!

Purchase Games of the Heart

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See the Burg Series Order with Links to my reviews

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• My Favorite Books of 2012
• The Burg Series
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• The Colorado Mountain Series
• The Dream Man Series