Ace of Hearts

3.75 stars--ACE OF HEARTS is the first instalment in Chantal Fernando’s contemporary, adult THE CURSED RAVENS MC erotic, romance series focusing on the men and women of The Cursed Ravens MC. This is twenty-eight year old MC treasurer Carson ‘Ace’ Kendrick, and twenty-one year old nursing student Erin Dawson’s story line. The Cursed Ravens MC is a spin off from the author’s Wind Dragon MC series and advances the new series arc several years. Told from first person point of view (Erin Dawson) ACE OF HEARTS follows Erin Dawson as she goes in search of her biological father. Always believing the man that raised her was her father, Erin Dawson soon discovers her original birth certificate naming someone else-Gage Liam Parker-the president of the Cursed Ravens MC. Determined to discover the truth, and meet the man who donated half of her DNA, Erin sets out to find the Cursed Ravens MC. Enter club treasurer Carson ‘Ace’ Kendrick, and the man with whom Erin will fall in love. What ensues is the ‘forbidden’ romance between Erin and Ace, and the potential fall-out as Erin is targeted by someone in the Cursed Ravens MC. ACE OF HEARTS introduces the players and characters within the Cursed Ravens MC. From the over protective father-figure and president Gage Parker, to the smooth croonings of Rogue, Erin’s new bestie Knuckles, Gage's girlfriend Veronica, and bartender Dreads. From the outset Erin is welcomed as one of their own but someone is obviously not happy as she is targeted not once, but twice in an attempt to end her life. Erin’s new college roommate is Clover Black-the daughter of Sin and Faye (Wind Dragons MC). Chantal Fernando pulls the reader into the world of the motorcycle club but most of the work and happenings of the MC takes place behind the scenes. The premise is flirty; the romance is provocative and passionate; the characters are colorful, charismatic and fun. ACE OF HEARTS is a bit of a vanilla story line as it pertains to the Cursed Ravens MC. I am hoping for a more ‘palpable and intense’ look at everything MC.

MC romances aren't something I read a lot of, but after reading the blurb for this one, I had to check it out. The father and daughter finding each other and building a relationship trope gets me every time, on a personal level. Take away the MC part and I could be Erin. With that in mind, I was impressed with the way that part of the story was handled. The relationship between Erin and her father wasn't perfect by any means, but the feelings that grew between them as they fumbled and made mistakes felt quite real. The MC side of the story is pretty mild in comparison to the few that I've read. We don't see the violence that is so common in the genre, and while business is mentioned, we don't get the details of that side of things. Granted, these guys are crude, alpha males, but we also see a great camaraderie between them as they joke and carry on with each other and with Erin. Of course, Erin has an immediate shared attraction with one of the club members, which is no-no for her father, but as this is essentially a romance, we know going in that nothing is going to keep this pair apart. Ace and Erin do have terrific chemistry and once they heat up, they're hot enough to peel the paint from the walls. In addition to the touching father/daughter relationship and a scorching hot romance, there's also a bit of suspense as those closest to Erin try to figure out who is trying to take her out of the picture, and we also get some wit and humor along the way. On the whole, Ace of Hearts is a solid start to the series and I look forward to whatever's next for this great group of characters.

A brand new series by the author of one of my favorite series, The Wind Dragons MC (the one that got me hooked on MC romance, to begin with!) I really didn't think it could get better, but I really loved this book! Ace and Erin were pretty awesome! Erin is a 21 year old girl, who just found out that the man she was brought up thinking was her dad, really isn't. She makes the decision to find her biological father, and introduce herself, since he was never told of her existence. On her arrival, she finds not only a dad who wants to be part of her life, but a whole new family. She also finds Ace, who she is immediately attracted to. Ace is a member of The Cursed Raven's MC, along with Erin's dad (who is the president). He's pretty typical of MC members, a tough, hard riding, free living man. He also has an immediate attraction to Erin, but as the president's daughter, she is forbidden to him. Even so, he sticks pretty close to her side from then on. This book was a fun read, full of laughs, but there were also some pretty serious moments too. There was plenty to keep me interested, and I never knew what was coming next. It was a great introduction to the Cursed Ravens MC, and I'm looking forward to whatever comes next!