Must-read romances: 'Mayhem,' 'Riot,' 'Jag,' 'Rush'

I've been binge-reading rock-star romances lately and have a couple of series to recommend that may tickle your fancy.

Jag by Stevie J. Cole

Pandemic Sorrow is an internationally acclaimed hard-core rock band known for their ostentatious and dangerous behavior. Jag, Stone, Rush and Pax came from humble beginnings and, a few short years after signing with a major label, have attained success and fame far beyond their wildest dreams. Their bank accounts are overflowing and legions of women are falling at their feet, holding on to their ankles, and ripping off their clothes. Basically, the band epitomizes the "sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll" lifestyle.

Jag is the band's founder and lead singer and has just completed a drug-rehab program following an overdose. Unfortunately, Jag is dealing with significant personal and self-esteem issues, he doesn't accept that he has a drug problem, and it's not long before he's reaching for a bottle of bourbon and attempting to satisfy his appetite for cocaine. He meets Roxy at a PR autograph-signing event, and she stands apart from the other women because she wants nothing to do with him.

I folded my arms over the table and let a short laugh growl out of me. "Something as pretty as you shouldn't let anything ruin a good time with Jag Steele." If there was anything I knew how to do, it was talk panties off of women. I reached out to stroke my fingertip over her arm, and she jerked away.

Her arms tightened across her chest, and her foot tapped louder on the floor. "Ugh!" she groaned, which took me by complete surprise.

Roxy works as a bartender and, due to her tragic history, avoids close personal relationships. Addicts in particular are verboten. However, when Jag shows interest and the sexy rocker relentlessly pursues her, Roxy's walls begin to crumble. I really liked her. While vulnerable, she is smart and doesn't suffer fools gladly.

Stevie J. Cole writes in first person from her male protagonists' POV. In Jag, book one in the Pandemic Sorrow series, she gives a gut-wrenching and realistic portrayal of the ravages of cross addiction and its impact on loved ones. Cole's characters are multidimensional and real, encouraging a close reader connection. You can't help but sense Jag's hopelessness and feel helpless as he becomes more and more self-destructive.

Jag is extremely poignant and at times a difficult read, but the author tempers the angst with laugh-out-loud humor. There is a particularly funny scene involving Jag and a horse that had me hooting with laughter. Jag and Roxy's HEA is hard-earned and very welcome and brought a happy tear to my eye.

Stevie J. Cole includes a warning at the beginning of the synopsis of this book that readers might want to heed: "This is not your traditional pretty romance. It is a love story with addiction — until Jag meets the girl who can save him. It is raw. It is very realistic. It is the explicit story of an addict — a side of a disease that may be disturbing to some readers. This book contains explicit language, sexual situations, and scenes of drug use. This material is intended for a mature audience."

Rush by Stevie J. Cole

The second book in the Pandemic Sorrow series is the band's bass guitarist's story. Rush Wilder's addiction is women, and the endless supply of groupies and fans is enough to make him smack his lips with glee.

Jules is the band's manager's representative, and she travels with them, keeps the guys organized and on schedule and basically babysits the boys. She also witnesses the debauchery and drug use and deals with their crudity. The woman deserves a medal. Jules has long suppressed a strong attraction for Rush, But when her resolve weakens and they spend a night together, she is ashamed and vows never to let it happen again.

Most girls were all giddy that I had just plowed my way through them like a cornfield, but not this one. This reaction was new. I'd never had a girl act so repulsed that they had let me have my way with them, and I didn't like it. Especially not coming from her.

Rush's vulgarity and dissolute behavior toward women are tough to take (there were times when I wanted to smack him silly), but Stevie J. Cole reveals the decent human being beneath the dirty rocker attitude. Rush supports charities and visits kids in the hospital battling cancer, giving them hope and encouragement — and it's not PR, he genuinely cares. His altruism isn't lost on Jules, but it's not enough for her to overlook his past indiscretions.

The narrative timeline overlaps Jag, so we are given insight into the lead singer's illness and relationship with Roxy from another perspective. It's a tough road to redemption, and Rush's past comes back to haunt him, but he does mature and learns hard-won lessons. In the end, he does earn Jules' forgiveness … and mine.

There is significant indecency, explicit sexuality and denigration of women in this series, but if you like a hard-core rocker story with heart and a redemption theme, this series is worth a try.

Mayhem by Jamie Shaw

The Mayhem series stories are New Adult romances about the members of up-and-coming band The Last Ones to Know. College student Rowan meets charismatic lead singer Adam Everest when the band is playing a show at a popular club called Mayhem. That same night she discovers her boyfriend of three years is cheating on her, and when Adam finds a desolate Rowan outside the club crying, he consoles her.

"Anyway, your boyfriend is a dumbass," he says out of nowhere.

"How do you know?"

His gray-green eyes wash over me. "Look at you."

I blush like hell, but I know he's just trying to make me feel better. "You thought I was an idiot when you first saw me."

Adam chuckles and shakes his head. "I thought you were cute as a peach." His lips hold the cigarette in his mouth as he stands up, holding a hand down to me.

My heart stops; Adam Everest is offering me his hand. In faded denim jeans, all torn up at the knees, and a fit olive-green button-down rolled up to his elbows, he makes my heart race to a nonexistent finish line.

"Come on, Peach."

Adam is a bad boy who attracts women in droves and is an admitted player, and a girl turning him down is unheard of. So Adam doesn't forget Rowan when our bright, strong-minded heroine listens to her cautious inner voice, says no way and doesn't follow up on his invitation to get together after the show. Rowan doesn't expect to see Adam Everest again and is completely astounded when he walks into her college French class with groupies in tow. It's a tough course with a no-nonsense professor, so when Adam nearly gets kicked out for not completing the course requirements, Rowan steps forward and offers to help him. He doesn't recognize her sans glitzy club wear and assumes she is a nerdy student who wants what all the girls want from him, sex. Adam is flummoxed when Rowan insists that she just wants to be friends and will not be another notch on his bedpost.

The banter between these two and the other band members is hilarious as Rowan cracks the whip, determined to see Adam pass the French course. Rowan has an enticing innocence that is juxtaposed with Adam's alluring sexuality, which makes for great chemistry and sizzling sexual tension. When Adam learns that she is his Peach, he is pretty much a goner.

What I really liked about this NA, book one in the Mayhem series, is that the protagonists' relationship isn't mired in an overabundance of angst, and the hero and heroine aren't damaged or broken. The secondary characters are well formed, and you can't help but want to learn more about the other band members and Rowan's quirky party-girl best friend, Dee. Author Jamie Shaw delivers an enchanting debut novel with a sexy-bad-boy-rocker-falls-for-a-good-girl theme, and it's darn good fun.

Riot by Jamie Shaw

Joel, one of the talented guitarists in the band The Last Ones to Know, leads a kind of nomadic existence. He most often crashes on a friend's couch or spends the night with a random willing woman. Rowan's best friend, Dee, first caught Joel's eye at an impromptu get-together, and they have been spending many a night together since. Thing is, even though Dee isn't a relationship kind of girl, she really, really wants Joel, but he isn't exactly a one-woman kind of guy.

Leti laughs and massages my shoulders. "If you like him, just tell him."

Okay, number one, in what freaking universe do they think that would ever work? Joel is a serial player. He lures girls in with his bad-boy hair and his panty-dropping smile, and then he chews them up and spits them out. "Liking" him would be like "liking" ice cream. Sure, it's great when you're stuffing your face with it, but then it's gone and you're just left with this all-consuming emptiness. Yeah, you can go to the store and get more, but what if they don't have the flavor you want? What then?!

Dee is sexually aware, beautiful and accustomed to wooing guys by using her well-honed feminine wiles. Winning Joel presents a frustrating challenge, so she opens her bag of tricks and pulls out her tried-and-true win-the-guy games until one backfires badly, resulting in a near sexual assault. Joel rescues her in the nick of time, but it's a wake-up call and signals a change in their relationship.

Like Mayhem, Riot (book two in the series) delights with more fun, witty dialogue and banter, but Dee and Joel both have demons related to their upbringings. It's therefore fitting that this story has far more angst and emotional turmoil. As they get closer, Joel falls really hard, as does Dee, but her fear of commitment causes major heartache. I really loved Joel. He's an artistic free spirit with a tough-guy exterior, but he is vulnerable, and I cried when Dee hurts him. Never fear, though, the author brings our hero and heroine back together in fine fashion. ;)

The band lineup is also changing, and Jamie Shaw introduces an interesting new musician to the storyline who will be a primary character in book three, Shawn's story. And, of course, Leti, Rowan and Dee's awesome gay friend, is awarded a major role and continues to make us laugh. Riot is a sexy, pull-at-your-heartstrings read and is a fitting sequel to Mayhem. I'm looking forward to seeing where Jamie Shaw takes her gang next.

Lea Franczak cannot remember a time when she didn't have a book in her hand. She's read and enjoyed multiple genres but is especially partial to contemporary and erotic romance, dark gritty romantic suspense, paranormal romance and has recently become a New Adult junkie. Lea has been blogging and reviewing since 2008 and is also HEA's Tweeter Extraordinaire. Follow HEA on Twitter (@HEAusatoday).