REVIEW: Her Only Desire by Delilah Devlin

In Her Only Desire (Sultry Summer Nights #1) by Delilah Devlin, Boone Benoit is back in Bayou Vert, Louisiana, for the first time in years since the local scandal that rocked his family. Now an ex-Navy SEAL and the CEO of a security company, Boone is intent on renovating Maison Plaisir to its former glory. Tilly Floret answers one of his ads for help and he is taken with her from their very first meeting. She has a submissive side that Boone is certain she is not aware of, but he hopes to remedy that quickly. Tilly proves to be full of fire and passion which only makes Boone want her more. As they begin a relationship based on trust, that bond is tested when his past comes crashing back and a web of local lies is uncovered.

“Are you angry because I’m manipulating you, or because you’re tempted? The truth, Tilly.”
“Am I tempted?” she asked, her voice husky. “Yes, but in the same way I couldn’t resist staring at a cobra.”
“So, I’m a snake.” His chest pinched. He snorted and looked away.

Cotille “Tilly” Floret should still be in Houston or a larger city, working in the hospitality field putting her degree to good use. Instead, she’s back in her hometown working in the local diner and worrying about taking care of her older brother Denny’s care. Tilly knows it will come back to haunt her, but she applies for a position at Maison Plaisir as the hospitality manager. Her need of money outweighs enduring the local gossip for turning to the infamous Boone Benoit for a job. Tilly becomes a personal assistant of sorts for him and soon realizes that he actually has his sights set on a much different relationship. When Boone draws her into his world of seduction and submission, Tilly sets aside her reluctance quickly. She just prays she won’t lose him once family secrets begin to come to light.

‘This wouldn’t be a romantic seduction. No sweet pauses to gauge whether he’d wooed her sufficiently to proceed. This was about raw need and desires about to be fulfilled.’

Her Only Desire is a red hot erotic romance that wow’d me, shocked me, and left me wanting more of Tilly, Boone, and his hunky ex-Navy SEAL friends.

“Will you allow me to show you that surrender can be subtle and beautiful? That the lifestyle isn’t really about sexual perversion at all?”

I was really quite impressed by Delilah Devlin’s writing style. Erotic/BDSM novels can be pretty intense, for obvious reasons, but she managed to inject both a sense of humor and a thread of mystery to this story. This made it a breeze to read and lent itself to some interesting dialogue. So much so that it was hard to choose just a couple of quotes to share with you! And I thought all of the characters could completely stand on their own, they were so well thought out. Boone’s military buddies were an intriguing bunch, all of whom I can see getting their own story later. Seeing how this is book one in the Sultry Summer Nights series, I’m seriously hoping that will be the case…

Boone and Tilly’s relationship was definitely one of Dominance and submission, even though Tilly had never been part of the lifestyle previously. To me, Boone’s method of introducing her to his world was both comical and sexy-as-hell. There were some very memorable scenes between them, my favorite being their dinner shared with his crew in the dining room. Holy. Hell. *fans face* Boone and Tilly had a very complicated history, both being from Bayou Vert and their families having known each other for so long. It was interesting to watch how they dealt with the issues from their past and what it did to the trust that had been building between them. I will say the whole mystery surrounding the death of Tilly’s cousin Celeste had me guessing until the very end which was great.

I think true fans of erotic & BDSM novels like Fifty Shades, The Crossfire Series, or even Maya Banks’ Breathless series, will thoroughly enjoy this one. Just have a fan and a cool drink ready. You’re gonna need it!

Book Info:

Published May 6th 2014 by Forever Yours

For fans of Sylvia Day and E. L. James, comes awarding-winning author Delilah Devilin’s first book in her sensual eroitic romance Sultry Summer Nights series.

The moment Tilly Floret sees the sleek Bentley driving down Main Street, she knows trouble has arrived in her sleepy little town. A mysterious job posting keeps appearing at the diner where she works, and she can’t resist applying. No matter that the entire town of Bayou Vert is whispering about the wealthy, powerful man behind it all and his scandalous return home. The moment his ice-blue eyes meet hers, he ignites an all-consuming desire she never imagined possible, one she can’t deny.

Ex-navy SEAL Boone Benoit never thought he’d set foot in Louisiana again. As soon as Tilly starts her new job in his pleasure club, he senses a kindred soul. One who has carefully guarded secrets of her own-and a simmering hunger for the taboo rites of mastery and submission. The only difference is she doesn’t yet know it. Now as Boone tutors Tilly in the tantalizing world of leather and lace, she will shed her every inhibition and surrender to him, body and soul.