Aspiring psychologist Amanda Rykowsky's schedule is certifiable. Between study, bartending, and an internship with a sex therapist whose techniques would make a Playboy bunny blush, there's zero time for romance. Still, Amanda is flattered to receive an anonymous Valentine…until the messages take a sinister turn.Stockbroker William Sloan swears he's not the one sending Amanda cards, but he suspects the culprit's intentions are more dubious than sharing a box of Godiva. Something about gorgeous, determined Amanda brings out the usually reserved William's inner he-man, and he insists on acting as a decoy boyfriend.With a fake relationship masking some very real lust, it's only a matter of time before William and Amanda give in to the sweetest of temptation­s. And once he's dealt with her secret stalker, William's next mission is to strike Amanda with Cupid's arrow….From Publishers WeeklyWhat do you get when you throw together a sexually repressed college student, a narcissistic sex therapist, a handsome stockbroker and a bevy of sex-crazed therapy patients? Answer: This absurd romantic comedy, which substitutes puerile sex puns for emotional heft. Thompson stretches her "nerd" premise thin, forcing the label on stockbroker William Sloan simply because he wears a winter hat with earflaps. However, William's nerd status doesn't keep him from being pursued by therapist Gloria, who besieges him with double entendres ("I'm glad to have a young and virile man handling my... assets"), glow-in-the-dark condoms and a flash of her breasts. Meanwhile, the object of William's affection, Gloria's studious intern, Amanda, refuses to work him into her busy schedule and accuses him of sending her crude, anonymous Valentines. Thompson throws in a hokey plot involving the true Valentine sender and his plan to kidnap Amanda, but this merely serves as a flimsy tool to push William and Amanda together. All in all, Thompson's newest romance (following Nerds Like It Hot) possesses as much substance as cotton candy with less satisfaction. (Jan.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistAmanda Rykowsky, psychology student, bartender, and intern to a sex therapist, meets nerdy stockbroker William Sloan when the bag of sex toys she has picked up for the therapist breaks and scatters embarrassing items all over the stairs. With no time for dating, Amanda has sworn off relationships. When she starts receiving progressively more alarming valentines from an unknown admirer, Will worries that a dangerous stalker is the culprit. He offers to pretend to be Amanda's boyfriend, but they can't keep their hands off each other and experience blazing sex. Delightfully busybody neighbors and kinky patients with hilarious peccadilloes add to the entertainment. The seventh entry in Thompson's best-selling Nerds series may be the best one yet, with endearingly quirky characters, hot sex, and a suspenseful plot. Diana Tixier HeraldCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

New York Times Bestselling Author Vicki Lewis Thompson presents a sweet, sexy novel about saddling up, getting lucky, and finding love.... Sorority sisters Melanie, Astrid, and Valerie have been inseparable since college. Even years after graduating, they still get together to debate their favorite topic: Who is the perfect man? While growing up on a ranch, Melanie always assumed that she'd marry a cowboy—until a Parisian adventure introduces her to a dashing Texas billionaire and makes her doubt what she really wants.... Astrid's parents expect her to settle down with someone rich, but when she can't keep her hands off a hardworking and handsome rancher, her world turns upside down.... After a terrifying accident, Valerie doesn't expect ever to risk love again—until she meets the one man no woman can resist: a billionaire cowboy.... As the three argue over what makes a man a great catch—a pocketful of...

It’s Katie Peterson’s job to be a mouthy DJ, but being mouthy just got personal. Jess Harkins has started construction on a sixty-story office tower next to Katie’s quaint local radio station. She’d hate his building anyway – who needs another high-rise? But Katie especially dislikes having her view blocked by the guy who turned down the chance to be her ‘first’. So it’s time for a little payback….only Jess is ready for action.

Blame it on the Stetson... Brant Ellison's easy-going nature makes him one of the most sought-after horse trainers in Wyoming. His powerful muscles don’t hurt, either. Nothing makes Brant happier than training a new colt at his foster home, Thunder Mountain Ranch—except maybe the colt's sexy new owner, if she wasn't all work and no play. Aria Danes hopes that once trained, the colt will help her injured brother. But Brant is proving to be a distraction from her responsibilities—she has a wicked urge to strip him from his hat to his boots. Ride 'em, cowboy. Aria and Brant can't get enough of each other. Their craving is insatiable, even if they have nothing in common. Even if some cowboys can never be tied down...

The gun-shy cowboy... A cowboy's scars can last a lifetime. Ty Slater's cheerfulness is a carefully constructed armor. After losing his parents in a tragic accident, he was fostered at Thunder Mountain Ranch. Although he's learned how to survive, he hides a broken heart. He knows love leads to loss, so he's vowed never to fall in love... Unfortunately, Ty's attraction to Whitney Yates is nothing short of a maelstrom, a desire that threatens his resolve. When she's stranded at Thunder Mountain for Christmas, Ty realizes he'd better find Whitney's flaw, and fast—because his lust is too damn close to love. This red-hot cowboy is ready to bolt...unless Whitney shows him that some rides are definitely worth the risk.

Inheriting a fortune means less to Ally Jarrett than fulfilling her real dream: to take off for the wilds of Alaska and photograph animals. Unfortunately she's also inherited her grandmother's personal assistant-an over-protective nerd who couldn't survive a snowball fight.As a PI and bodyguard, Mitchell Caruthers is the perfect man to protect his late employer's granddaughter. However, keeping his geek-masquerade-and the secret behind his real mission-isn't easy when the freeze between Ally and Mitchell begins to melt.Yet all's not well in this sub-zero paradise. Ally's bad seed uncle is staking a claim on the family inheritance with a dangerous masquerade of his own. With Ally's life in danger, it's time for her right-hand nerd to expose the real man undercover, and prove himself to the vulnerable body he's been hired to guard...From Publishers WeeklyThe last person Ally Jarrett wants to see on her first day of her new life in Porcupine, Alaska, is her recently deceased grandmother's nerdy personal assistant, Mitchell J. Carruthers. As the new heiress to the enormous Jarrett fortune, Ally isn't about to let any meddling geek stop her from realizing her dream of becoming a wildlife photographer. What she doesn't realize is that Mitchell's dorky orange pompom hat conceals his true identity as a bodyguard and PI. Hired by Ally's grandmother to protect Ally from her evil uncle Kurt, who's after her inheritance, Mitchell never thought his work would take him from warm Bel Air to freezing Porcupine, or that he would find himself falling for his charge. Mitchell worries that his average background makes him a poor match for Ally, but once she uncovers Mitch's true identity, he doesn't stand a chance. The town of Porcupine, whose citizens use sex to compensate for dark winter nights, proves a sizzling and silly setting for Ally and Mitchell's budding romance, as well as for the over-the-top antics of villainous Uncle Kurt and his highly sexed dominatrix girlfriend. Though at times far-fetched, the third romance in Thompson's Nerd series (after The Nerd Who Loved Me) is a delightfully cozy read for a cold winter night. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From BooklistAlly Jarrett has been a good girl all her life, mostly to keep from worrying her grandmother. But now her grandmother's dead, and Ally has inherited a fortune, so she travels to Porcupine, Alaska, to try her hand at wildlife photography. Ally doesn't know that her grandmother's personal assistant, and executor of the estate, Mitchell Carruthers, former PI, is supposed to be her bodyguard. To keep his mission secret, Mitch has donned the geekiest of nerd clothes. But Ally soon sees through his facade and insists that she doesn't need his help. But her sleazy uncle is after Ally's fortune, and he'll stop at nothing to get it. In the third book in Thompson's hysterically funny series, following Nerd in Shining Armor (2003) and The Nerd Who Loved Me [BKL Ag 04], a riotous cast of colorful characters--including Ally's oversexed landlady, who specializes in roadkill casseroles; her uncle's dominatrix girlfriend; and the world's worst sculptor--fill the pages with hilarious situations, and hot, creative sex. Shelley MosleyCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Win it all, or lose it all... Giselle Landry is in Las Vegas to haul her wayward brother back home. But casino owner Luke Dalton is also looking for her brother, who has run off with his little sister. The two should join forces, but Luke is unaware that Giselle's brother is also fleeing his duties as the future alpha of the Landry werewolf pack—which includes his Were bride. The Landrys don't believe in Weres mating with humans, and Giselle is no exception. Though Luke is wealthy, gorgeous, and protective, Giselle can't let herself get close to him, even to solve their shared dilemma. But the tension wears away her resistance, and after a wild night with Luke, she is shocked to find she's fallen for him. But Luke still doesn't know Giselle's true identity. And once their siblings are found, Giselle must return to San Francisco. Can they overcome the odds—or will what happened in Vegas stay in Vegas?

A Christmas kiss from a cowboy... Ben Radcliffe reckons it'll be a cold day in hell before he considers a serious relationship or family of his own--with good reason. When he delivers a "secret" present to the Last Chance Ranch, however, Ben catches a glimpse of what family could be. And suddenly this lone cowboy finds himself under the mistletoe...planting one heck of a kiss on a stunning woman! Genealogist and academic Molly Gallagher is all about family. And even if Ben's secrets make him as skittish as a wild mustang, there's nothing Molly loves more than an enigma. Especially a ridiculously sexy one! But the magic of Christmas--and the Last Chance Ranch--might not be enough to wrangle a cowboy who can't trust himself...

A cruise on the Titanic, anyone?A holiday on a houseboat. To Andi, it sounded like the perfect way to spend some time with her pregnant little sister Nicole, before the big day. She hadn't counted on getting stuck on the Moby Dick of houseboats without a pilot. But when she found herself marooned with gorgeous but incredibly stuffy Chance Jefferson, her hormones went into overdrive.Every man for himselfAfter a near case of shipwreck and an emergency class in Childbirth 101, Chance knew he was in over his head. It wouldn't have been so bad if he'd been able to keep his hands off his irritating but oh, so sexy shipmate. After all, he knew he'd eventually find a way off the houseboat from hell. But if he fell for Andi, would he sink or swim?