Settling The Score by Dani Wade

 Daniel Korvello isn’t your average Joe with a case of unrequited lust. He’s a hard rock front man who wonders if his publicist will ever see him as anything other than a job. Then they team up to hunt down a threat to Daniel’s family...and he seizes the chance to show her he’s up for more than just a one night stand.

Becca Buchanan already lived through one rock-star scandal with her reputation barely intact. She’s determined never to put herself, or her family, through that again. Only she can’t deny the desire she feels for Daniel. When he exposes the molten heat beneath her Ice Maiden exterior, she may never be able to freeze him out again.

Then their amateur investigation takes a dangerous turn that threatens the lives of those they both love. Can their newfound trust extend past the bedroom? Can Daniel let go of his guilt enough to embrace a future with Becca?

Additional Information: This book is overflowing with sexual tension, hiding from paparazzi, and judicious use of a blindfold in the bedroom.

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, so I was really looking forward to reading this.  I was happy to find this book just as intriguing and engrossing as the first one.

In this installment, Daniel Korvello is the lead for the band Solar Uprising.  Becca Buchanan is his publicist, and the star in all of his fantasies.  He wants Becca, but she is resistant for not only getting involved with a rock star, but in being the center of attention as well.  Daniel is not easily put off though, and works hard to show Becca how much he cares and wants her.  When circumstances lead them to working together to take care of a threat, the chemistry between them is sizzling and is something even Becca’s icy exterior cannot deny. 

I think what I am finding I really like about this author is the realism of her female lead characters.  Becca is awesome.  She’s smart and successful, but when it comes to her personal life she deals with some serious self-esteem issues left over from a previous relationship.  It’s so human, and I found that I really connected with her and became invested in her story.  Daniel is also really sweet.  He manages to be domineering but gentle, and I think as a powerful male character he was written well.  Not to mention, the chemistry between the two of them really drives the story, and in a romance that is always an important factor for me.  I need to feel it, and to want the characters to have their happily ever after.  The author totally got me.

Overall, I thought this was a great book.  Interesting plot with a few nail biting scenes, great and hot sex scenes that managed to be incredibly hot without being too much and great characters.  This series is shaping up to be one of my favorites.  4.5 stars.

As much as I enjoyed Finding Her Rhythm, I enjoyed this book even more. Although we met Becca in the first book, her appearances were mainly limited to her role as the band’s PR person so she was largely an unknown factor. While as Michael’s brother, Daniel played a much larger part in that book and as such I was looking forward to his story because I was already invested in his character and hoped to see him find his happy ending. Fortunately, Ms. Wade’s storytelling was right on track with Settling the Score, making Daniel and Becca’s story a wonderfully engaging read for me.

Both the opening scene and the closing scene of this book are amazing. You get to see just how much Becca affects Daniel and that it doesn’t waver at all throughout the novel. I actually felt badly for Daniel as he reveals that he has had feelings for Becca ever since she started as the band’s PR rep five years ago but has never been able to get her to see the man behind his public persona. But don’t jump to conclusions and make Becca out to be the bad guy in this relationship. She’s dealing with personal baggage from a previous relationship that has left her filled with self-doubt and blind to Daniel’s attraction. As we learn in the opening scene, the chemistry between the two is so all consuming that the world fades away with just a kiss. But Becca’s self-consciousness means that Daniel has to be patient and he proves that when properly motivated, he can really take his time … in more ways than one. I just want to say that Daniel can blindfold me any day … WOW!

As with the first book in the series, there is a romantic suspense angle to the story; however, it is much more pervasive in Settling the Score and the title actually alludes to this once you get past the musical inference. Ms. Wade does an excellent job of balancing the relationship development between Daniel and Becca with the ever-increasing threat that is targeting Daniel. It’s not easy to get and maintain a proper balance between sweet and hot and sexy and danger (the bad kind), yet the author has done it and done it well. This was a great addition to the Backstage Pass series and I cannot wait until I have a chance to read all three books in order. I do so hope that Ms. Wade has plans for a fourth book in the series. 

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