Sparks fly when a society belle and a biker with a troubled past get down and dirty in the Big Easy. Maisey Yates turns up the heat in the sizzling finale of a series co-written with Megan Crane, Rachael Johns, and Jackie Ashenden. Micah Carpenter hates New Orleans. Hell, after ten years he no longer has much affection for the Deacons of Bourbon Street motorcycle club, either. But when the … either. But when the brotherhood calls, Micah answers. Joining the hunt for their mentor’s killer, he crosses paths with a Southern belle who exudes class—and sex appeal. Micah knows better than to mess with ice princesses: No matter how hot things get, they never melt. And yet he can’t stop himself from offering her a taste of the wrong side of the tracks.
Sarah Delacroix understands that reputation is everything. The daughter of a prominent family rocked by scandal, she’s desperate to restore their good name. Micah’s exactly the kind of man she should be avoiding. Behind his sleek and sophisticated exterior beats the heart of a predator—and she knows it. But, like the tattoos beneath his tailored suit, his rough edges are irresistible. And all too soon Sarah finds him getting under her skin . . . and living out every one of her hottest fantasies.
Praise for the Deacons of Bourbon Street series
“Launching a biker-themed contemporary series, [Megan] Crane piles on the passion and danger. . . . This tough and dirty world is fascinating and satisfying in its own way.”—Publishers Weekly, on Make You Burn
“As far as biker series goes, this one has certainly been a heck of a lot of fun! Sexy, smooth and sweet, Rachael Johns’s installment of the Deacons of Bourbon Street is not to be missed.”—A Tasty Read, on Fire Me Up
“[Jackie] Ashenden’s contribution to the Deacons of Bourbon Street series is full of all the elements that make her books so irresistibly compelling: characters with dark, complicated histories; high stakes and higher tension; and an emotional, gripping plot that isn’t afraid to test both protagonists’ hearts and mettle.”—RT Book Reviews
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I received an ARC of this book from Random House-Loveswept/NetGally for an honest review.
Four authors, four stories, four men cast adrift from all they loved, four strong women, a mystery to be solved; all delivered in the Deacons of Bourbon Street series. I have read all of the books in this series and believe they can be read as stand alones but would highly recommend reading the entire series to avoid losing any of the richness involved in all of these intertwined stories.
Strip You Bare brings the highly suspenseful mystery of who killed Priest, the former president of the disbanded Deacons of Bourbon Street motorcycle club, to a conclusion. It also delivers Micah’s, aka Prince, journey to find true love and his discovery of the true man beneath the exterior façade he has hid behind for years. Abandoned and abused by his parents, he finds his way to the Deacons where brotherhood is a given. Banished from New Orleans ten years ago by his former mentor and the only man he has ever respected. However, Prince always held himself aloof and focused on gaining all the glitter and pleasures that materialistic things could give him. Upon banishment he moves on to another life of high class people, suits and ties where people are just shells of their real self. Sadly he finds that all the glitter and gold isn’t what he needs or really wants. Only true love and acceptance of the man beneath the skin will do that.
Upon his return he fights against his other three brothers and makes it plain he just wants to return to his money and glittery life in San Francisco. In their group effort to find Priest’s killer, Prince is assigned to monitor Sarah Delacroix, the true epitome of a steel magnolia. Sarah is also hiding behind the southern aristocrat façade that has been drilled into her for her whole life.
“He could sense the hurt running through the note of steel in her voice. But she wouldn’t break, not in front of him. Not this iron southern belle, who was stronger than most of the badass outlaws he’d met over the years. “
Micha/Prince brings her true “biker bitch” out and makes her realize that not only has Micah been hiding from the real world, she has also. Sarah digs deep and shows Micha that he’s a good man and worthy of love.
“You wanted me before I figured out who I was. Before I could accept who I was. “
In this final book of the series, the author deftly shows that greed, violence and base desires are not relegated to the dark, seedy side of New Orleans. It also exists in the upper class society and that in the end we are all related in blood somewhere down the line.
I am sad to see this series end. I would love to see more stories about the Deacons and more stories that include the rich descriptions of a town that drags you into it like the fog that rolls over the town on a dark night when the dragons are hiding in alleys. I feel blessed to have read four great love stories, a thoroughly addicting who-dun-it, and great writing by four gifted authors.