Review: Cherished by Maya Banks and Lauren Dane

Title: Cherished
Authors: Maya Banks and Lauren Dane
Published: August 7, 2012
Pages: 360
Genre: Contemporary BDSM Duology
Source: Publisher (Berkley)
Rating: B
Reviewed by: Marq

summary from Goodreads

Exiled by Maya Banks
Enticed to the island paradise where an enigmatic prince is living in exile, beautiful, virginal Talia is introduced to a world of forbidden pleasure where the prince's every whim is fulfilled and her fantasies are rendered in exquisite detail. But when the prince is summoned back to fulfill his duty to his struggling country, reality is thrust upon Talia all too soon. She returns home, heartbroken, convinced she was a passing fancy for an idle ruler and his most trusted men. Until the day they arrive on her doorstep, determined to have her back where she belongs.


Sway by Lauren Dane. Book 1 of the Delicious series
Taken from Ms Dane's website - SWAY will be in the CHERISHED Duology with me and Maya Banks – both our books will have a contemporary BDSM theme. It’s also the start to my DELICIOUS series, the spin off from The Brown Siblings books.

Levi Warner is an established, older man—wealthy, powerful, and above all, respectable. Then Levi meets Daisy, an uninhibited 24-year-old dance instructor and artist, not exactly the kind of woman Levi is accustomed to. But the young, free spirit, brings out something in him he only experienced in fantasies. When their scorching affair turns into something unexpectedly deeper, Levi finds himself torn between preserving his reputation, and exploring a wilder and much more satisfying kind of life.

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Marq's thoughts:
Exiled by Maya Banks- I didn't realize that Exiled was a m/m/m/f story until a few pages in. I've read a previous m/m/m/f story by Ms. Banks and it was not my cup of tea. I wished there was a hint in the plot summary that Exiled was this type of story. A virgin sent to an island to service a prince and his two confidantes is not sexy. After 20 pages, I was cringing and the sex hadn't even started. Unfortunately, I had to DNF this book.
Rating: DNF

Sway by Lauren Dane - I really liked Sway. Normally I don't like stories where there's a huge age difference between the hero and heroine but the age gap didn't bother me and it really worked. Really liked Daisy. She's a woman who is comfortable in her own skin and knows what she wants. She had more faith in their relationship than Levi which I thought was a nice change - that the guy was the unsure one in the relationship. Levi was sexy and I loved that there was more to him than the stuffy lawyer. The BDSM aspect of their relationship felt natural, organic. Definitely not forced. The only thing that bothered me was Levi's constant focus on the age difference. It started wearing thin. I loved revisiting the characters from Never Enough and look forward to reading this new series.  Can't wait to read the next book!
Rating: B