Overall I liked Stroke of Luck, and have enjoyed several of Opal Carew's books in the past. There were some things that just didn't click for me, and as a result I most likely won't have it on my re-read list.

April is in Vegas to get married to her manipulative cheater of a fiancé. When she confronts him not only does he call the wedding off but he cruelly has her thrown out of their room and insists that the hotel employees confiscate her clothes, down to the underwear, since he bought them and he still has the receipts. Enter Quinn, the man she dated just before her fiancé in college. Quinn wasn't the tycoon that he is now, and was shattered when April left him, assuming it was because of his money when she started dating her fiancé. Now he is in a position to help her out of this embarrassing situation when he offers to have her stay with him and his business partner, Austin. From there the sparks fly with both of these hot hunks.

What propels this story is the chemistry between April and Quinn and April and Austin. Quinn's feelings are complex because he has unresolved issues of hurt with April but he is still wildly attracted to her and can't stand to see her mistreated. Austin is just a walking smoke show, and sex appeal oozes out of him, but he is also very caring and sensual. The sex scenes are raunchy and fun, with tender moments throughout.

I wanted to like this more than I did, but the fiancé's shenanigans took me right out of it. Without spoiling the end I will say that I am glad April finally found herself, but the way things went down was just a bit odd. If you are looking for a hot Vegas romp, this is definitely that! You won't be disappointed in the action, and you will keep turning the pages.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is a really hot read – be warned! It starts out rather hard and I was ready to give Quinn a bit of a slap, even if he was coming to April’s rescue. He may have known her long ago and feel that she left him for another guy with more money, but he is still pretty unkind. Luckily, as the story progresses, his feelings are at least explained, and as his agreement with her plays out, the tables are somewhat turned and this second chance may just be everything he ever wanted.

April is a curious character, as she is seemingly under the thumb of her fiancé, yet she gives it all up due to having a backbone and morals. That he would then dump everything onto her and behave so despicably undoubtedly shows she made the right decision, but not an easy one. So we find her downtrodden, yet she shows great fire when faced with Quinn and Austin. It is an engaging mix, and can possibly be explained by her difficult childhood, and need for security. As the men understand this better, they finally deal with it better too.

Sexy, fun, and the damsel in distress definitely gets her knights in shining armour coming to provide her with security and love twice over – lucky April!


Mary – ☆☆☆☆
April is in Vegas to get married but she catches her fiancé cheating. Now the wedding is off, and she is stuck with a huge hotel bill. While the hotel staff is searching for things her fiancé bought at the hotel gift shop, a man happens to walk into the room. Turns out the man is her old college boyfriend. Can this day get any worse for April?

Quinn hadn't seen April since college and thought he never would see her again, not since she left him for another man. One who had more money, at least that is what he thought. After Quinn hears about April's troubles, he makes her an offer and it is one she cannot refuse because she has nowhere else to go.

Spending the month with Quinn and Austin might be fun but not falling in love with them will be hard. She tells Austin about her troubles with her ex-fiancé, what all he took from her. Why she can go home, and he feels that they can work something out.

This story was good and has the potential to be better, it seemed to be wishy-washy at times. I liked the idea of April with Quinn and Austin and the way they were with her. The threesome was great together. Although Quinn had to learn the real reason why she ditched him in college and that helped him towards her, but he seemed to want to be hateful almost. Anyway, I liked it and will be looking for the next story from this author.


Avid Reader – ☆☆☆
M/F/M Romance
Triggers: Cheating

April is left with a huge hotel bill by Maurice when she catches him cheating. She is also further humiliated by him when she happens to run in to her ex-love, Quinn, and he agrees to help her. April doesn't like to feel that she is taking handouts. But when Maurice takes it a step further and demands, literally, the clothes off her back, Quinn has had enough.

Quinn doesn't really know what happened all those years ago. He thought he was over it. Turns out, he was just burying the pain. Seeing April again, he can't help but feel like the lost guy he was when she first left.

Austin is attracted to her in a way he didn't know he was capable of. He sees that Quinn is struggling with his own attraction, along with the desire to make April feel as much pain as he did. Austin knows that he wants April forever, but can he convince Quinn of that fact too?

The chemistry between these three is off the charts. My main issues with the story are Quinn taking things too far with April. He wants so badly to punish her and in the beginning I very much felt that he used her and abused her, and he was not my favorite character. He knew her feelings and simply disregarded them and I didn't like that at all. It took a while for me to forgive him. Also, Maurice's role, despite not being a big one, was disruptive and the resolution with him was less than satisfying. I had to go back and find what it was. Overall, it was entertaining though.

Really 2 1/2 stars. I know that Ms.Carew writes erotica, and I believe I have read some of her books before several years ago, but either I am not into this kind of erotica anymore or really never was, because I had a very hard time enjoying this book. Most of this book was just MMF sex, and in great detail. The plot was very thin, and in fact, I had no respect for the female character in this story. She was such a mouse, did not stand up for herself, and I realize the author kept reminding us of her growing up circumstances, but even those descriptions didn’t justify her actions to me. I’m sorry, but this book just really wasn’t my cup of tea.

I honestly don't know what to say here. I think perhaps my expectations set me up for disappointment. I was expecting some steamy threesome stuff, when what I got for 96% of the book was plain ole missionary. There was so much territory left unexplored here. I also found the two men virtually indistinguishable, other than Austin was sweet, and Quinn had more of a caveman mentality. Maybe I could have gotten past most of this, but the language, the euphemisms.....ugh. Please never let me hear petals, bud, canal, or tunnel to describe female anatomy again. This book needs a lot of editing too, so you can figure out which character you're reading about at any given time. This one just wasn't for me.
2 stars

I received a review copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley.

DNF-
This book is tagged as erotica which is definitely appropriate!
I knew what I was in for when I started reading and instantly realized that the main character is in bed with two men.
It didn't keep my interest long after that though as the POV kept switching, making it hard to figure out who was narrating.
I also didn't like how the heroine decides to work off her "debt" to the two men via sexual favors. That seemed like a dubious consent situation and made me stop reading it.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review. I usually have much better luck with books from SMP.

Stroke of Luck by Opal Carew was a steamy 5 star read.

April is in Las Vegas for her wedding but when she finds her fiance with someone else it all shatters around her. Because of who his family is he has turned everything around on her and has left her holding the hotel bill for a luxurious hotel suite. While being evicted she comes face-to-face with the man in the other suite. Someone she hasn’t seen in years, Quinn.

Quinn was shocked to see April in the hotel and quickly came to her rescue. She was the woman he thought he was going to spend his life with until she left. Not wanting to be in Quinn’s debt April makes him an offer that is too hard to turn down. He includes his partner and best friend Austin as well. Can they keep their feelings out of it?

Overall I really enjoyed this book. The connection between all three of them was great. All of the secondary characters added a great element to the story. The ex really was a jerk and I couldn’t believe the crap he pulled on her. I had some LOL moments and we get some really steamy moments as well. The author did a great job with her writing and pulls you right in.

Hot! Sometimes hot comes with a lack of attention to detail, but not in Opal Carews books. This is a second chance story, with an added twist.

Quinn and Austin are best friends and business partners. They are in Vegas celebrating, they have reached a point where they can relax and enjoy themselves.

Quinn finds April, the girl he loved in college, who broke his heart, in the hallway outside the suite next to theirs, being harassed by the hotel staff. He steps in and helps her... he remembers how she walked away from her back when he loved her. But does he know everything, or even remember it correctly?

What transpires makes for some steamy reading!

Wowza! This book was HOT. This is the first story I have read by this author but it will not be the last. O.M.G. It starts off with a bang when April wakes up with a wedding band on her finger and 2 men who are not her fiance. That ex-fiance of hers, what a douche! Anyway, the chemistry between Quinn, April and Austin was off the charts. This book had an interesting storyline and have I mentioned it was hot? Stroke of Luck was an enjoyable story and I look forward to checking out this author's backlist.

I picked this book up because it sounded like it could be some pretty fun wish fulfillment and I’m a sucker for second-chance romances. Unfortunately, it really didn’t work for me. To explain why, this post will contain spoilers for the book.

After April discovers her fiancé cheating on her during their rehearsal dinner in Las Vegas, he sticks her with the hotel bill and jets. Luckily she runs into Quinn, her college boyfriend, and his business partner, Austin. Though Quinn still has feelings for April, he’s convinced she dumped him for a rich guy because she’s a gold digger. He pays off her bill and offers her a place to stay, but refuses to allow April to pay him back – with money at least. April offers to have a relationship with him for the month he’s in Vegas, and he agrees, with one change – the relationship will be with him and Austin.

My first issue was the inexplicable constant POV changes. On one page, for instance, it switches three times: one POV as they are walking up to a table, then the heroine’s POV as she sits in a chair (why???), and then back to the original POV, then finally to the other man’s POV. It was jarring and confusing, especially when some of the POV sections were only a few sentences long and didn’t seem to add anything to the story. The second chance element was also a bit confusing. Apparently April dumped Quinn because he had the tendency to get really involved in his work, and, as someone who was abandoned as a baby and grew up in the foster care system, she needed more attention but didn’t want to be a distraction to him. So, she dumped him and then ended up almost immediately with a rich guy who lavished her with things and attention – all the security she craved (girl, no, what you actually need is a crapton of therapy). When this “reasoning” comes out, it’s portrayed solely as a mark against Quinn, which made me wonder how April would deal with the same issue after they left Las Vegas and went back to their real lives.

With multiple millionaires (who, by the way, are apparently capable of taking four weeks of vacation where they never have to worry about work) and a glitzy Las Vegas setting, I was expecting lots of luxury. But that’s not what we get. Sure, they’re staying at a penthouse suite with a pool, but it’s never really described. We’re told they go on a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon and see several hilarious shows, that April goes shopping at the hotel for luxurious clothes, but besides one dress that’s minimally described and some lingerie, that’s it. Even the men themselves aren’t described that much, though we get lots about April’s blonde hair and so, so much about her boobs.

What really made me uncomfortable, though, was the consent issues. The idea of April “working off” her debt through a sexual relationship is an iffy prospect, but I’ve seen similar situations handled well before. This was not one of those cases. April is constantly being pushed into doing things that she’s not comfortable with, sometimes with a lot of alcohol involved. I mean, for goodness’ sake, they get drunk and then get married – drunk enough that April doesn’t remember it the next day. There’s also a sort of dom/sub relationship between Quinn and April, but there was never sort of any safety discussion. Even worse, once Quinn and April admit their feelings for each other, that aspect of their relationship disappears because now they’re going to “make love like a real husband and wife”. The reason why Quinn and Austin want to share April isn’t really covered, other than that they both care for her – they’re not interested in each other sexually. All in all, there’s no real chemistry between the characters and the sex scenes felt, well, rote.

Overall, this book missed the mark for me.

I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I hate to give a negative review and I liked the premise of the book, but found the execution to be lacking. It would benefit from some serious editing, in my opinion. Some of the characters actions I just couldn’t buy into. The sex scenes were incredibly hot, but I felt the word building and character development needed more work, perhaps the style just didn’t suit me. I received this book from Netgalley and so plodded on, but if I had bought it I don’t think I would have finished it.

I received an ARC of this book to read through NetGalley. All opinions are my own. Stroke of Luck is the newest romantic erotica novel by Opal Carew. I’ve read and enjoyed novels in this genre by this author in the past, but this one didn’t do it for me. I don’t think the author ever let us know who the characters were. I finished the book with no clear understanding of why I should care about them. The heroine April Smith who comes across as the energizer bunny version of a sex doll, breaks up with her fiancé on the eve of their Vegas wedding when she catches him having sex with another woman during the rehearsal dinner… then in a plot point that made no sense to me she’s left holding the bag for the hotel room and all the wedding expenses, he’s cancelled her credit card, asked the hotel to take away all of her clothing, and sold her home out from under her in the space of a few hours. She’s rescued by her now wealthy college boyfriend Quinn Taylor and his business partner Austin Wright. To pay them back for paying the hotel bill, she agrees to spend a month with them and have sex on demand with both men. To me, a menage means that the three participants are doing things together, but this is more of an M/F with the other M watching and then tagging in while the first M watches. I’d also like to say LUBE … DP without lube is not a good thing. Steam Level: High but more mechanical than erotic or romantic. Publishing Date: December 1, 2020
#StrokeOfLuck #OpalCarew #StMartinsPress #StMartinsGriffin #EroticRomance #Bookstagram #Bookstagrammer

I really liked the premise of this story. Fiancé cheats, leaves her with all the bills, college boyfriend saves the day and he brings along a friend. The rest of the story is getting April to believe that Quinn and Austin really want to make this a permanent relationship.

Holy sexy throuple, Batman! This book is Rebekah Weatherspoon levels of sexy. I love that it is a second-chance romance with a twist. I really liked the three main characters, and enjoyed reading from all of their POVs. The plot was a perfect bit of escapism and indulgence. And there was so much hot, steamy sex. So much. In the best way. I'm definitely going to need to read more by this author.

I loved this story from beginning to end!! It was so well written and the characters story was so well developed that I felt like I connected to the story right away. The chemistry between the two characters was off the charts and made the story that much more entertaining!! A must read!

This is only my second book by Opal Carew, and I certainly enjoyed it more than the first, even though it does feature an MFM storyline, which is something I don't tend to read a lot off unless it's by an author I'm really familiar with.T

However, I was genuinely intrigued by the idea of a second chance romance in a ménage situation, and it was very engaging, and hot. With plenty of sex scenes packed in, but there was also enough other stuff going on to really pull me in and keep me reading, and I honestly liked the characters, although I would've liked to have throat punched Quinn at times, particularly in the beginning, but he definitely warmed up as the story progressed. And it was certainly a fast-paced story. But there were parts I found a little unbelievable and I do wish it had ended with more of a bang, and that Maurice had gotten his comeuppance.

Yet saying that it was a satisfying, and extremely steamy read, and I would gladly recommend it to others.

Scorching hot romance!

April Smith doesn’t know what she is going to do when she caught her now ex-fiancé with someone else and he left her the bill for their now canceled Las Vegas wedding and the hotel wants their money. April is bailed out by her college boyfriend Quinn Taylor who is in town with his business partner Austin Wright. She wants to pay Quinn back, but he suggests spending a month with him and Austin. Could that lead to something more?

Opal Carew is known for writing hot and sexy romances but this time she has raised to bar to scorching!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The premises for this book were enticing but unfortunately I lost interest very quickly. Things happened way to fast between the 3 leads to be believable. The chemistry seems forced to lead to the sex scenes. I did get lost on who point of view I was reading. The 3 point of views were just too interlinked. Many times I had to go back a bit to check which ones I was reading now. Not a winner for me.
I voluntarily reviewed this ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley and all the opinions expressed here are all mine.

April Smith is supposed to be having a fabulous day, it's her wedding day after all. Only her fiance is a cheating schemer who deserves to be tortured for his treatment of someone he supposedly loves. Even though she's in desperate circumstances she's saved by not one knight in shining armor, but two. Quinn can't walk away when he sees April in need of rescuing and when she forces him to accept repayment a deal of sorts is stuck. Now they have thirty days and the chance to explore what was lost, plus a bonus of Quinn's best friend Austin. What could possibly go wrong? We are in Vegas after all.

So this book is super steamy, I mean can you really have that much sex? I hope the final release version has some major edits done to formatting as it was difficult to follow at times as the location would completely change without any indicators. We'd also switch between whose POV we were experiencing, which usually has a chapter change with the character name listed. Overall, there were some definite unanswered questions and honestly hard to truly get behind the fast change from deserted bride to threesome in less than 24 hours. But this is why it's fiction.

Stroke of Luck is my first Opal Carew book. I am not familiar with the authors writing style. It almost worked for me, because hello, the steamy scenes were through the roof! But I almost felt like I was all over the place from the beginning to 3/4 of the story. I couldn’t connect with the characters. The multiple POVs were okay, but I am use to it being per chapter. Again, this is my first time reading this author so I tried to adapt to the writing style.

The characters were in their bubble. In that bubble it made sense, but when they were in real world situations, it was a little overwhelming.

I still read each page. I would of liked to have a little more background open the ex fiancé and the past that was meant to go one direction but went another. I think this story will be for a lot readers, and I did honesty enjoyed this story.

I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads, so here is my review.
Riana is in Vegas to get married but she catches her fiance cheating. Now the wedding is off and she is stuck with a huge hotel bill. While the hotel staff is searching for things her fiance bought at the hotel gift shop, a man happens to walk into the room. Turns out the man is her old college boyfriend. Can this day get any worse for Riana?
Quinn hadn't seen Riana since college and thought he never would see her again, not since she left him for another man. One who had more money, at least that is what he thought. After Quinn hears about Riana's troubles, he makes her an offer and it is one she can not refuse because she has nowhere else to go.
Spending the month with Quinn and Austin might be fun but not falling in love with them will be hard. She tells Austin about her troubles with her ex-fiance, what all he took from her. Why she can go home and he feels that they can work something out.
This story was good and has the potential to be better, it seemed to be wishy-washy at times. I liked the idea of Riana with Quinn and Austin and the way they were with her. The threesome was great together. Although Quinn had to learn the real reason why she ditched him in college and that helped him towards her but he seemed to want to be hateful almost. Anyway, I liked it and will be looking for the next story from this author.