I might still carry my V-card, but I know exactly what I want in a man. Smart, charming and oh-so-skilled. Too bad I haven’t found him yet.But maybe he’s found me.Because when my charming, laid-back, next-door neighbor discovers a secret list I keep, he volunteers to work through every single item on it.Including the last one — at the end, we walk away and stay friends.I say yes to his offer, … friends.
I say yes to his offer, and that’s when I discover another side to him.
A side I adore. A side I crave. He’s commanding, intense, and everything I’ve ever wanted.
But as we check things off one by one, I find myself breaking the most important rule of all. And I have no idea what it will do to my heart.
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The Virgin Gift by Lauren Blakely is The Gift, book #2 and a scintillatingly hot romance. Nina and Adam have known each other for a while and they are neighbors to boot. They are also friends and allies and have a deep friendship. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t secrets between them. First among them, Nina’s virgin status. That might be because while Nina knows what she wants, she hasn’t found the guy to provide it yet. When Adam says he will help her explore her fantasies it seems like the best option. Best friends. Lots of comparability. No long term relationships strings. Classic friends with benefits. But wow, things are way more than they expected.
Yes this is a friends to lovers story. But Ms. Blakely does and amazing job crafting her characters. They connect on every level. We are given them as friends but when they take it to that next level things really ignite. This book was fun. It was flirty. And it brought a huge amount of heat, passion and two characters who make you want to devour every page of this story faster than the next. Overall Lauren Blakely has hit it out of the park yet again with The Virgin Gift and I very much recommend.
(I voluntarily reviewed an advance review copy of this book I received for free in exchange for my open and honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.)
A sensually steamy, and seductively sweet journey to do on with Nina and Adam. They are perfect for one another. I absolutely loved this book. Lauren Blakely never fails to amaze me.
This one is After Dark book 2 The Gift, and Lauren’s words will light your body on fire! 5 hot stars for this one!
Meet Nina, tired of carrying around the V card, she know what she wants and how she wants it, now to just find the guy to do the honors.
Adam is staying with Nina while his place gets a coat of paint. When he stumbles across her list of things she wants, he instantly wants to be the one to do it. He can keep it all platonic, keep his heart out of it.
When these two come together, to knock the stuff of her list, it’s both hot and yet sweet at the same time! Lauren nailed the heat ratio between these two! Make sure you grab your copy when it releases! I’m loving this After Dark series by her!
5 stars
I purchased a copy of the steamy and errotic novel The Virgin Gift by Lauren Blakely and this review was given freely.
Set in Las Vegas, this is the tale of sensual boudoir photographer and virgin Nina’s fantasy wishlist and her best friend and next door neighbor, production company owner, Adam who fulfils it.
This story contains a diverse array of characters and multiple romances. 18+ recommended.
Lauren Blakely writes great stuff and “The Virgin Gift” is no exception.
The Virgin Gift is the second book in this After Dark world but can be read as a stand alone. Each book features different couples who are friends in this interconnected stories.
“What on earth was I looking at? Was this what I thought it was? This fantastic, delicious, filthy list. In sweet, clever, brainy Nina’s handwriting. My friend. My neighbor.”
Again, Ms. Blakely gave us another sexy, red-hot story that’s bound to leave readers swoon, fall in love while feeling hot and bothered.
I’m telling you, this book incinerated my e-reader and undies, LOL!
“I’d thought I was the teacher, showing her how to have all her filthy fantasies. Turned out, she’d been teaching me all along. How to trust again. How to fall again. How to open my heart to the woman who was meant to be mine.”
This book is a book about self discovery, embracing your femininity, owning every bit of those wicked desires, and most especially, learning to trust and love again. Loved it and highly recommend it! Can’t wait to read more from this world!
I love Lauren Blakely’s Rom-Coms, but her After Dark books are killing it! I am so in love with this steamy story! Adam and Nina’s story has all the heart you expect, but with the added benefit of all the dirty talk you can stand! This book was amazing!! LOVED!!!
I could not put this book down. I love Lauren’s books, but this one grabbed me the minute I started to read it. Nina is an erotic photographer, clean pictures only, that has many fantasies about how that could be her having her dreams. She makes out a naughty top 10 list of all her fantasies. Since she is a 24 year old virgin, she has experienced nothing being so focused on her career. Adam, her good friend and neighbor happens to accidentally find her list. And oh does he want to give her everything on that list and more. Great friends to lovers story with lots of laughs. And OMG the connection is off the charts! Great Read!!!!
I love a woman that knows what she wants!
Nina and Adam are best friends. They talk, they share meals. She is a photographer and she takes “love” pictures of couples. Problem is Nina is a virgin and as she takes these shots, she likes to wonder what the couple will do after they leave. She gets advise to listen to a podcast and it’ll help her figure out what she wants. She needs to ditch the V card.
Adam finds this list that Nina has been making from her podcast. Being the gentleman that he is, he decides he’s just the man to help her check off that list of her wants/needs.
I love this book so much! Adam and Nina went from friends to lovers in 0.3 seconds once they got started!!
Nina is successful, independent, and specializes in capturing intimate moments, despite having never experienced anything herself.
Adam is her neighbor crashing at Nina’s while his place is painted.
They are friends. And Adam’s discovery of her ‘list’, her special to-do list inspired by a new podcast a client told her about, leads to him volunteering to be her partner in working through that list. And becoming so much more than merely friends.
Entertaining, witty, tender, full of heat. Cameos from other characters in the Blakelyverse. Plus a little subplot with Adam’s friend, Brandon.
Love the embracing of female sexuality and sensuality!
I listened to this deliciousness today. I enjoyed the performances by Elena, Teddy, Joe, and Maxine immensely. Made the time fly by.
I received a review copy. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
The Virgin Gift is a decadent delight! Once again proving my point that Lauren Blakely writes sex with heart like no other. I was a giddy fool as I devoured this friends to lovers story which is as heartwarming as it is delicious. With Adam and Nina, we get two best buds who can discuss any subject with lighthearted banter and yet both are wildly smart and revel in each other’s curiosity. And when a list becomes almost a challenge of sorts, with Adam giving his ‘all’ as Nina’s dirty tutor, nothing is held back as these two find their own kind of rhythm that is off the charts hot.
I’m truly loving these rules of engagement books with this one my new favorite. There is a tender kind of trust between Adam and Nina and their new-found passion is a true thing of beauty. The sort of unexpected love that is all kinds of swoony.
The naughty is wonderfully juxtaposed with the touching as these two couldn’t help but fall madly for the other. With the heat comes the heart and The Virgin Gift is the perfect little story to keep you warm on a cold winter’s night.
5 stars!
The Virgin Gift is the second book in Lauren Blakely’s After Dark Romance (Gift Series) and it was so much more than I had hoped it would be. I loved everything about the book (strong characters, great plot, and lots of sexy times).
Nina is a true definition of a woman who empowers other women. Behind the lens of her camera, she helps other women live out their fantasies and embrace their sexuality. Working in such an intimate environment, has led Nina to imagine many fantasies. The thing is, Nina is still a virgin, but she isn’t your stereotypical shy virgin. She knows her body and she knows exactly what she wants and needs so she creates list of her deepest sexual fantasies; a list that was meant for her eyes only, but accidentally lands in the hands of her friend Adam.
I loved Nina and Adam’s friendship; their mutual respect and care for one another was genuine and this was so important for moving forward in their relationship/friendship. I loved that they were both so straight forward about what they craved and needed not only for themselves but for each other. This is a story of communication, desires, and trust.
Side Note: Lauren was able to give us so much through a short story. We got to know the characters and see their relationship develop, but we also got to see side characters also developing. It is truly amazing how we are all connected somehow and sometimes we are exactly where we are supposed to be.
**An ARC of The Virgin Gift was provided in exchange for an honest review.**
No one does friends to lovers better! Don’t miss the Virgin gift!
This is a stand alone book in a series and this is a hot book. Best friends become lovers when Adam finds a sex checklist his virgin neighbor and best friend has written and offers to be the one to help her conquer the list.
Adam and Nina’s friendship is really cute. I appreciated that even as he volunteers to help her he tries to keep some separation from the sexual side of their relationship and their friendship by the voice he uses and the pet names he calls her. I really loved how Nina takes control of her physical pleasure and asks for what she wants and Adam is willing to deliver. Not every couple could do what they do in the final chapters of this book. I really was not sure where the story was headed but I really appreciated how it was handled and that there was no cheating involved.
I am going back to read book one of this series next.
Holy crap did Nina and Adam set the pages on fire! I love that Nina asks for what she wants and isn’t ashamed about any of it and just her overall confidence. Adam is literally the guy next door, but man does that change in the bedroom. They have fantastic chemistry in and out of the bedroom. I love the building of their friendship into something more. They were cute and dirty all at the same time!
This gift is fantastic! 5 stars
I was immediately pulled into this friends to lovers story, and I immediately liked Nina. I liked her because she knew what she wanted but didn’t know how to get it, and she was smart, inquisitive and caring. In comes her friend and next door neighbor Adam, and I liked him immediately too. He was confident, charming and smart, but he read something of hers he shouldn’t have. Oh, but it is so good he did! From then on we get hot and wondrous encounters between them all the while maintaining their friendship. But what happens when they catch feelings? What happens is a quick and fantastic gift of falling in love with your best friend that I highly recommend!
I received a copy of this ebook from Candi Kane PR for my honest review.
Adam and Nina are amazing together! That man needs to pay those painters double for taking so long on his condo. I love how they respond to each other, their bodies and their minds just become one. I absolutely loved this book! I hope theres a story or novella for Brandon! He was an amazing addition to the story and his thoughts on the pictures really helped you imagine what the camera saw.
**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title in exchange for an honest review**
Holy hotness! This book was steamy, sensual and downright hot! Lauren Blakely not only gave us some serious heat, but she also gave us great characters who had a deep connection and a story that keeps the reader engaged.
Adam and Nina are both neighbors and best friends. While Adam’s apartment is being painted, he is crashing in Nina’s guest room. They are the epitome of best friends who are there for one another regardless the situation, they support one another and are very comfortable around one another.
While Nina might be a successful boudoir photographer, she is, as the title would suggest, still a virgin. She has a list of fantasies that she would like nothing more than to act out, but she hasn’t found the right person to fulfill them with her. When she puts pen to paper to make a list of her fantasies, little did she know that Adam was going to stumble across them and then want to be the one to fulfill each and every one.
This is a fantastic friends-to-lovers romance and while it does boast a lot of sexy times, it’s about so much more than that. It’s about trust, friendship and being vulnerable. Kudos to Lauren Blakely for treating us to this awesome story.
The Virgin Gift is one of those books that sucks you in from the very first page! I loved this spicy story!
Nina is a photographer specializing in boudoir photo shoots. Just one time she would like to feel the passion her photo subjects convey while shooting the scene. On a tip from a client, she starts listening to podcasts from a self-help guru, on how to ask for what you want. The first step is to make a list of all your fantasies in detail and be very specific. Nina makes her list knowing she will probably add more to it later.
Adam is Nina’s neighbor and is bunking with her for a couple of days while his condo is being painted. While on a phone call, he needs to make a note. Finding one of Nina’s many notebooks lying around, goes to grab a piece of paper from it, when he sees her list. He is floored! His sweet Nina has some pretty racy fantasies! He quickly starts formulating a plan to help Nina make every single one of them a reality. Now he just has to convince her of it!
This was a fun book to read! You can always count on Lauren to give us incredible characters, believable plot lines, and just the right amount of sweet ans spicy! I loved how these two were with each other! They showed how much their friendship was a comfortable one and that trust was already earned. How could you NOT root for them! I was ready for them to take the leap of faith as they really deserved each other! The Virgin Gift was a thoroughly enjoyable read!
I was gifted a copy of this book by the author. The rating and review are my opinion.
This story is HOT HOT HOT!!
I’m not sure who I liked more in this book, Nina or Adam. Nina is such a strong, loving and funny woman, while Adam it turns out is a hot alpha dom whole likes to talk dirty. And boy do these two know how to talk dirty to each other. I love the way that Lauren writes how these two come together after finding the List. These two have such great chemistry not only in the bedroom but also as friends and neighbors. I was curious what was going to be her number 11, and it was perfect! This is one story you do not want to miss.