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Shepard Montgomery loves the feel of a needle in his hands, the ink that he lays on another, and the thrill he gets when his art is finished, appreciated, and loved. At least that’s the way it used to be. Now he’s struggling to figure out why he’s a tattoo artist at all as he wades through the college frat boys and tourists who just want a thrill, not a permanent reminder of their trip. Once he sees the Ice Princess walk through Midnight Ink’s doors though, he knows he might just have found the inspiration he needs.

Shea Little has spent her life listening to her family’s desires. She went to the best schools, participated in the most proper of social events, and almost married the man her family wanted for her. When she ran from that and found a job she actually likes, she thought she’d rebelled enough. Now though, she wants one more thing—only Shepard stands in the way. She’ll not only have to let him learn more about her in order to get inked, but find out what it means to be truly free.

This is the prequel to the Montgomery Ink series. It is also found in the Midnight Ink - Boxed Set.

214 pages, Paperback

First published November 13, 2013

502 people are currently reading
3618 people want to read

About the author

Carrie Ann Ryan

252 books6,201 followers
Carrie Ann Ryan is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary, paranormal, and young adult romance. Her works include the Montgomery Ink, Talon Pack, Promise Me, and Elements of Five series, which have sold millions of books worldwide. She's the winner of a RT Book of the Year and a Prism Award in her genres. She started writing while in graduate school for her advanced degree in chemistry and hasn’t stopped since. Carrie Ann has written over seventy-five novels and novellas with more in the works. When she’s not losing herself in her emotional and action-packed worlds, she’s reading as much as she can while wrangling her clowder of cats who have more followers than she does.

The Montgomery Ink World contains the following series, though each series is a stand alone and can be read in any order. Feel free to hop around:

The Montgomery Ink Series
The Gallagher Brothers Series
The Montgomery Ink: Colorado Springs Series
The Whiskey and Lies Series
The Fractured Connections Series
The Montgomery Ink: Boulder Series
The Less Than Series
The Promise Me Series

Her Elements of Five Series is her Young Adult Romance series while her other series are all adult.

Her Talon Pack series is set in the same world as the Redwood Pack series, only 30 years later.

The Dante's Circle, Holiday, Montana, and Branded Packs series are all individual series as well.

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5 stars
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3 stars
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96 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 474 reviews
Profile Image for Candace.
1,179 reviews4,934 followers
February 17, 2017
At roughly 2 1/2 hours, this was an incredibly short audiobook. Not surprisingly, this audio novella failed to foster the type of deep connection with main characters that I crave. It was a quick, smutty listen with a lot of insta-love and a HEA. If you're in the mood for something that is sweet and cheesy, with a dirty-talking tattoo artist, this may be a good choice for you. Just don't expect any depth to this story. It just isn't that kind of story.

The heroine, Shea Little, wants to break out of her conservative, straight-laced mold. She has led a life of a debutante. Familial obligations had her going through the motions of her life, maintaining appearances. She's spent years trying to appease a frigid mother whose only interest in her revolves around strategically marrying her off in order to enhance their family's social standing.

Deciding to be spontaneous, Shea sets her mind on getting a tattoo. She's every bit as nervous as she is determined. It is the first time she's really rebelled in her life.

When Shepard Montgomery runs into the gorgeous Shea, he has no idea that she'll be in his shop moments later. Shaking like a leaf, she's obviously terrified of getting a tattoo. He's intrigued by this woman, who is so clearly out of her element standing in a tattoo shop.

Telling Shea that he needs to get to know her before tattooing her, Shepard uses the opportunity to date her while simultaneously stopping her from making a big mistake by getting a meaningless image permanently placed on her skin. In no time at all, the two are head over heels.

Overall, this was an "okay" audiobook. It was fast-paced and relatively entertaining. I can't say that I feel compelled to continue this series, but it was an alright way to pass a little time. I didn't expect too much, being that the entire story was about 2 1/2 hours long and I wasn't surprised. Maybe if I had already read other books in the series I would have gotten more out of this, but I haven't.

Check out more of my reviews at www.bookaddicthaven.com
Profile Image for SueBee★bring me an alpha!★.
2,417 reviews15.3k followers
Want to read
October 22, 2015
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FREE on Amazon US today (10/21/2015)

Stand-alone book 0.5.

BLURB:
Shepard Montgomery loves the feel of a needle in his hands, the ink that he lays on another, and the thrill he gets when his art is finished, appreciated, and loved. At least that’s the way it used to be. Now he’s struggling to figure out why he’s a tattoo artist at all as he wades through the college frat boys and tourists who just want a thrill, not a permanent reminder of their trip. Once he sees the Ice Princess walk through Midnight Ink’s doors though, he knows he might just have found the inspiration he needs.

Shea Little has spent her life listening to her family’s desires. She went to the best schools, participated in the most proper of social events, and almost married the man her family wanted for her. When she ran from that and found a job she actually likes, she thought she’d rebelled enough. Now though, she wants one more thing—only Shepard stands in the way. She’ll not only have to let him learn more about her in order to get inked, but find out what it means to be truly free.


http://www.amazon.com/Ink-Inspired-Mo...


FREEBIES are often good for MORE than one day, I have gathered all my FREEBIES on a special shelf: Kindle-freebies (currently over 490 books)
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Profile Image for Deborah.
3,778 reviews490 followers
October 20, 2015

Shep is thirty-eight years old and although tattooing is his life he's restless and he's not sure why until a little blonde with pale eyes bumps into him, there's just something about her.
Shea is trying really hard to break away from her family and be herself but the problem is after spending her entire life being controlled by her mother she's not really sure who she is and so she walks into Midnight Ink to do something different, something just for her.
This started well I was intrigued by Shep, Caliph and Sass, actually I was more than intrigued by Sass.
This looked to have everything covered, a six foot five hot tattooed and pierced bad boy and a beautiful good girl trying to find herself.
So why didn't I like this more?
I'm not a great fan of insta-love but I know sometimes it's necessary but I just didn't really buy into this, they have lots of sex though.
I had several issues but the overriding one was Shea's mother, I can't find the words to describe just how awful, OTT, ridiculous and totally unbelievable she was.
Why? I wondered at first if she was supposed to be funny.
Here's just a few examples:
"You’re nothing but an accountant who sleeps in like a whore.”
“It would have been a good morning if you’d been the daughter I wanted you to be. Not the daughter you are.”
"Don’t disappoint me by being yourself.”
"Plans? You?” Her mother laughed, and Shea winced. “Honey, you don’t need to lie to me. I know you have no plans. Who would want to be with you?"
See what I mean, she's like a cartoon baddie and totally ruined the book for me and I can't understand why she was written this way, she could have been bad but still been believable.
Profile Image for Marta Cox.
2,835 reviews212 followers
October 23, 2015
I freely admit that I first fell for this author's paranormal stories but her Montgomery Ink series is definitely catching my attention recently. If you adore hot tattooed alpha males capable of melting your heart then these stories are for you. Yes these guys might seem a bit dour even brooding at times but never doubt their ability to take on the world when it comes to their woman!
Although this is short and reads as a sort of precursor to the joy thats to come it nevertheless felt like a very entertaining read. Shep is almost stagnating as the story begins but a meeting with prim and proper Shea opens his eyes to a world of possibilities. It's a world he is only too happy to share with her but unfortunately Shea is far from ordinary and her family, sheesh do they take the biscuit!
A sweet and sexy romance. I didn't like the lead characters names because put them together and you get sheep! Once I got over that though I really wanted to know more. If direct and very dirty talk appeal to you then you will want Shep for yourself. Shea is stronger than she realizes which considering her background is amazing. The ending came a little too quickly but it was still a wonderful way to spend my afternoon
Profile Image for -C-.
373 reviews37 followers
April 5, 2015
All things were happend really quickly. I didn't get to enjoy the story or the characters. The writing style is good.
Profile Image for Mo_Better.
245 reviews7 followers
September 19, 2014
I'm not really sure where all the rave reviews for this book came from. The dialogue was ridiculous and frenetic. Especially, the non-stop string of trash that came out of her mother's mouth. Shae is an uptight pushover. Shep is pretty hot but his dialogue was almost laughable. The book was far too short to develop the characters or even their connection. They're introduced to each other, you blink, and they're in love. There's no real emotion. No real relationship, just a lot of sex, which wouldn't be so bad if the sex wasn't boring and lacking in any kind of emotional connection. The editing was for shit too. Don't know what book other people were reading but this sure does not live up to its stellar reviews. Passing on the rest of the series. So sick of reading crap. Book slump of epic proportions.
Profile Image for Kei .
829 reviews86 followers
March 23, 2015
Okay?

As short as novellas are it's hard to develop any character depth or even a story that won't feel rushed and too much. This felt way too short and way over the top. Uptight accountant meets older tattoo artist and BAM.

Shep (the tattoo guy) cares more than the average tattoo artist about a person getting inked so he refuses to ink Shea (the uptight) because he feels like she's not sure about it (spoiler alert, he's right!) so he starts seeing her to get to know her better aka lots of porn sex.

Shea is just ridiculous! A 1-minute phone conversation with her mother made I want to #:@#&/! I don't even know how many times her mom called her a whore that her only job was to lay back spread her legs and use her whorish boobs to get this rich guy to marry her. (She's rich too but you can never have too much I guess.)

Unfuckingbelievable!

I'm so done with all these evil characters it's not even funny, especially the evil mom/dad/ex/family member/friend.
Profile Image for Rachel-RN.
2,378 reviews29 followers
April 9, 2015
This was very enjoyable. Well paced novella. Good balance between character development and the sexy-times. I liked both Shep and Shea. I liked how supportive Shep was of Shea. Shea's mom: holy shit was she a vindictive bitch!
Profile Image for Cyndi Marie ☆★Audiobook Addict★☆.
1,621 reviews158 followers
July 19, 2019
🎧 Audio Review 🎧

I don't like insta-love books, This book was way to short for a "we met, fell in love & are living happily ever after" story line. I did like the writing and the sexy scenes were hot. The narrator was so flat, he has a great voice but needs to add a little life into his narration.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
2,511 reviews85 followers
April 24, 2015
Good start to a series. Can't wait to read about the rest of the Montgomery clan.
Profile Image for Kim BookJunkie ~ Editor & Proofreader.
2,109 reviews55 followers
June 24, 2020
**Review of the audiobook**

STORY: 2 Stars
PERFORMANCE: 4 Stars
OVERALL: 3 Stars

STORY
This book introduces us to the hot, pierced, tattoo artist, Shep, and his polar opposite, Shea, the conservatively dressed, quiet woman who decides to get a tattoo. Predictably, opposites attract, and this quickly turns into sex filled insta-love. All I read are erotica and romance, so I have no problem with sex scenes, but I prefer there to be more of a storyline than just sex. I’m thinking this might just be an introduction to the characters and we will hopefully get more of the story later in the series.

PERFORMANCE
I listened to the Audible audiobook narrated by Gregory Salinas. Although the performance would have been better if there was a female narrator reading for the female characters, Salinas does a pretty damn good job covering both!

Profile Image for Danielle  Gypsy Soul.
3,157 reviews80 followers
July 28, 2020
Shea's mother was so ridiculously evil it ruined the book for me. It was just completely unbelievable that someone would act/talk like that or that anyone would put up with it for years. I found myself rolling my eyes. On top of that this book was all instant love and the two characters were so dramatically different it was also unbelievable. I have no idea what Shep saw in Shea and the author never let me know. If this is what Montgomery Ink has in store for me I'll pass.
Profile Image for Melissa.
1,048 reviews33 followers
January 16, 2021
J’avais lu le premier tome de la série il y a quelques mois, consacré à Austin Montgomery, et j’avais beaucoup aimé ! J’ai donc poursuivi ma découverte de Montgomery Ink avec ce prologue qui est cette fois centré sur Shep Montgomery (le cousin d’Austin) et Shea Little.

Shep tient le salon de tatouage Midnight Ink à la Nouvelle-Orléans. Il tombe brutalement sur Shea qu’il va surnommer la Princesse de Glace. Elle va d’ailleurs venir au salon en espérant se faire tatouer, mais n’ayant pas de bonnes raisons, Shep va refuser.

Il va vouloir apprendre à la connaître et si au départ Shea était très réservée et distante, tout va très vite entre eux et elle va rapidement se rapprocher du tatoueur.

Un personnage de la nouvelle est vraiment détestable et l’auteure a bien réussi à nous montrer le caractère manipulateur de cette femme.

J’aurais bien aimé que les deux héros aient droit à un tome complet mais je suis sûre de les croiser à nouveau dans les prochains tomes de la série ! ♥

http://www.gamesofbooks.com/2021/01/1...
Profile Image for Jamie.
1,909 reviews83 followers
September 26, 2021
This was a good quick, easy read. I loved Shea and Shep together. Shep was just the person to help bring Shea out of her shell. They are from completely opposite sides but melded together perfectly.

The only issue I really had with this book was Shea's mom. She was so over the top that it made it unbelievable. And maybe that would've been different if we would've had a longer book so we could've gotten more into backgrounds, but her mom's character didn't work for me.

I really do hope that we get to see more of Shea and Shep throughout the series.
Profile Image for Lisa Aiello.
1,178 reviews29 followers
March 26, 2018
Not my cuppa - very formulaic. Bad boy tattoo artist, uptight woman, insta-love, evil mother who is just horribly mean and degrading and tears the woman down. Instant hot sex. I think I really liked Shep, but there just wasn't enough here to get or keep me invested.
Profile Image for Laura.
1,637 reviews14 followers
September 28, 2019
3 stars. Yes, it was intsa-love. Yes, it was predictable. Yes, was to short. BUT..... I really had a great time reading this entertaining story😊. I remember reading book 2 a while back but unfortunately I just couldn’t connect with the MCs. I’m glad I went back to series and started @ the beginning.
1,254 reviews1 follower
October 17, 2015
I liked this short in concept...but in practice it went wrong in a lot of ways for me. The heroine did this total 180 and it was just way too fast. She starts off total ice princess and I'm sorry but even if you want to change you don't remodel your entire personality in a span of two weeks. The hero was a nice enough guy but alot of his dialogue was just off. Tattoo artists don't say "tats," no one in the south says "hella," and the first sex scene...ick. You just don't tell someone you've just met how you wanna fuck their tits. I'm sure some women dig that but i'd bet the vast majority don't and i just couldn't fight the ugly faces i was making during the entire scene. The romance worked but it felt really rushed due to the length of the story. The sex scenes (other than the first one) were super hot and had a bit of kink (piercings in interesting places, lots of oral, and a bit of spanking). And can i just applaud this writer for actually using safe sex...actually you know what i'm gonna give her an extra star for that thats how happy it made me. I actually really liked the concept of the plot. You see a lot of the whole clashing worlds themes but this one added something i love-tattoos-into it. Even still though it had some issues. The villain of this piece was just over the top. Like she could've been just as emotionally abusive (and probably with more impact) without her weird obsession over whores. Like seriously who in the history of the world connected sleeping past SIX AM with being a prostitute? I just felt like it was too much...like she was comical rather than villainous. Other than what i've already mentioned the writing was solid. No errors and pretty well done.
Bottom line: liked the concept hated the end product. This really needed to be a full length book...it would've been a solid 4/4.5 book with the proper development i think. The rest was just..i felt like it needed more research
Profile Image for Kami Dodson-Perry.
720 reviews23 followers
June 12, 2015
Shep & Shea

Shea wants to break free of the ICE she has built around her, break free of the family that always puts her down, break free of the person she was molded into…… And find her real self.

Shep is an amazing tattoo artist. He works at Midnight Ink and loves his job. But Shep feels that lately something is missing from his life. He is getting older and feeling that there is more to life than work. He just needs to figure out what it is he is missing.

Shea is looking to get a tattoo to do something a bit crazy. She needs to rebel and do something unlike herself. Shea meets Shep to get the tattoo but before they can begin on that quest Shep needs to understand why Shea wants the tattoo. Once she explains a little bit about it Shep tells her he needs to get to know her a little better so he can figure out the right design for her. Shep wants to take Shea on some dates and Shea is ok with the idea although not sure what the outcome of any of this will be.

As Shea & Shep get to know each other a little better, things with Shea’s mom get even more out of hand. Shea is trying to stand up for herself and trying to take charge of her life. Shep is helping Shea find that inner warrior to fight back.

I liked this story for the reason of Shea’s mother. I have witnessed parents that speak to their children in such a horrible way and make their child feel like they are useless. The scene with Shea’s early Sunday morning phone call was just horrible and you could feel the shame, frustration, and emotions that Shea’s character was feeling.

The outcome of the story was good and I liked the fact that Shep’s character would not let Shea just lie to him and run from the problems at hand. I like Shep’s take charge attitude and I feel that the 2 characters fit well together.
Profile Image for EroticaAfterDark (Lilith).
2,780 reviews954 followers
Want to read
February 1, 2017
FREE
FREE: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA | Amazon AU

Shepard Montgomery loves the feel of a needle in his hands, the ink that he lays on another, and the thrill he gets when his art is finished, appreciated, and loved. At least that’s the way it used to be. Now he’s struggling to figure out why he’s a tattoo artist at all as he wades through the college frat boys and tourists who just want a thrill, not a permanent reminder of their trip. Once he sees the Ice Princess walk through Midnight Ink’s doors though, he knows he might just have found the inspiration he needs.
Shea Little has spent her life listening to her family’s desires. She went to the best schools, participated in the most proper of social events, and almost married the man her family wanted for her. When she ran from that and found a job she actually likes, she thought she’d rebelled enough. Now though, she wants one more thing—only Shepard stands in the way. She’ll not only have to let him learn more about her in order to get inked, but find out what it means to be truly free.

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Profile Image for April.
2,640 reviews175 followers
October 3, 2014
Oh yeah!!! Give me a big burly tattoo artist any day of the week!!! Yummy!!! Sigh! I am all about this smexy book!

Really quick read with a great couple. Shea is more reserved on the outside but ready to break free, she needs delicious bad boy Shep to help her out!! They have a great dynamic and is is a really fun read.

The time jumps are a bit abrupt, I know it was a novella gotta keep it short. Still I would have loved spending more time with them.

This book certainly delivers on the smexy!!! Oh Hells yeah!! For a short read it packs one heck of a steamy whallop!

I listened to the audiobook narrated by the always yummy Gregory Salinas. He has a smexy voice that infuses the hawt scenes with even more heat! Great tone and pace throughout the read. I was not sold on the mom's voice, kind of grating, but then so was she.

Give me more!!! This is such a hot series, I need to read the rest of teh box set to get the scoop!!
Profile Image for ✰♊ Angie ♊✰.
325 reviews153 followers
dnf
July 17, 2017
Nope. Just couldn't do it. DNF @ 65%.
Well, it appears to be a very immature author's writing style. Not impressed. She tries way to hard.
Over the top insta-love. Way over the top.
Plus, the mother?? Really?? I mean, really?
This chick is 32 and her mother is like the wicked witch tearing her down consistently. Grow a pair lady... you're 32. And the exaggerated things the mom says... well, another over the top situation.
And Shep & Shea. Yeah, maybe the two main characters shouldn't have names that are simply one letter apart. Read their names too fast and you could end up very confused.
Couldn't read it any longer. Sorry, not sorry.
Profile Image for Amanda Adams.
484 reviews64 followers
January 3, 2016
5 "Icy" Stars

I enjoyed this book. Meet Shep and Shea. They reminded me a lot of City and Suzy from Chelle Bliss' Men of Ink series! You've got the bad boy alpha male and the goodie goodie girl.
Profile Image for Alaïne.
813 reviews16 followers
January 18, 2021
Je remercie l’auteure pour l’envoi de ce Service Presse. Je chronique en lecture perso cette saga depuis le tome 1 et chaque tome me fait tomber sous le charme de la famille Montgomery.

Aujourd’hui, c’est un tome un peu différent des autres. Premièrement, c’est une nouvelle, donc un format court. Deuxièmement, nous retournons en arrière, puisque cela traite de la rencontre et le coup de foudre de Shea & Shep qu’on a déjà découvert dans le tome 1. C’est donc pour moi, un plaisir de les retrouver, d’apprendre à les connaître et surtout de revoir Austin, cela me donne envie de relire son tome.

Shep sent que cette année quelque chose lui manque. Il aime sa vie à la Nouvelle-Orléans, mais il étouffe. Ce sentiment l’oppresse jusqu’à ce qu’une fée des glaçes le percute. Shea ne veut plus que sa famille dirige sa vie, elle entre dans ce salon de tatouage pour faire quelque chose pour elle. Elle veut découvrir la vraie Shea. Une rencontre explosive, uu coup de foudre qui risque d’être menacé.

Oui, c’est rapide, mais n’est-ce pas le principe d’un coup de coeur? Carrie Ann arrive, ici, à nous transmettre les sentiments que partagent les héros et c’est sublime. J’ai beaucoup aimé Shea dans son caractère : à la fois douce et rebelle, je ne me rappelais pas ces traits de caractères. Sa famille est digne d’un horrible conte de fée. Comment une mère peut se comporter ainsi, cela me dépasse. Heureusement Shep est là pour se battre avec sa fée. Shep est vraiment touchant. Il ne dépasse pas Austin, mais on succombe totalement à son charme. C’est un homme fort et déterminé. Il sait ce qu’il veut dans la vie, et fera tout pour son nouvel amour.

Le milieu du tatouage est bien présent dans ce tome. C’est vraiment un point que j’aime énormément. C’est beau et la façon de découvrir les sensations semble si réelle. Un régal. L’érotisme est à son maximum alors préparez les glaçons. Cette famille concentre un nombre élévé de héros sexy, c’est dingue.

J’aime beaucoup l’ambiance de la Nouvelle-Orléans, même si elle est vraiment en fond. J’ai hâte de la retrouver dans le tome sur Sassy, un petit bout de famille que l’auteure va mieux nous présenter prochainement.

Alors, pour ne pas changer les bonnes habitudes, je vous recommande cette nouvelle, qui vous donne le sourire et qui vous plonge dans un univers que j’aime depuis un an !
Profile Image for Ptiteaurel.
3,705 reviews58 followers
January 17, 2021
Cette novella est un prequel à la saga Montgomery Ink puisqu'elle nous permet d'en apprendre plus sur Shep, le cousin d'Austin ( héros du 1er tome de la saga) . Nous ne sommes pas à Denver mais à la Nouvelle Orléans pour découvrir ce héros au grand coeur.

j'ai passé un moment sympathique de lecture même si le langage parfois cru dans les scènes intimes couper en quelque sorte l'action. Cette novella est une jolie entrée dans l'univers du tatouage et Carrie Ann Ryan nous offre une jolie parenthèse dans sa saga.

Chronique complète à lire sur : https://thelovelyteacheraddictions.bl...
Profile Image for Crystal P.
697 reviews8 followers
January 1, 2020
I appreciated Shep and Shay’s story. It was a bit too short, but having read other book’s in the series that involved them I was happy to see some of their story. I appreciated the growth of Shay and that, while he helped foster it, she was self-motivated in her pursuit of independence. Most of my issues with the book were probably due to the length and the narration - narration wasn’t bad, but it made the ‘Baby’ endearments seem even more bland and unoriginal to me.
Profile Image for Karen.
336 reviews1 follower
June 16, 2017
It's fantastic to come back to the beginning and see where it all began. Sexy alpha hero & sassy heroine. Great H/h interaction, lots of super hot sexy scenes, and a great introduction to a fantastic series.
Profile Image for Brenda Pearson.
Author 6 books17 followers
October 25, 2018
From the moment that Shep, crossed path with Shea, there was a connection, he didn't know it at first - but when Shea decided that she was strong enough to run her own life and not having her mother dictate what she should do or who she should marry.
Could two different world work, Shep the Tattoo Artist falls in love with Shea he didn't think that one woman would make him happy. But when Shea was giving ultimatum will she choose Shep, or would she chose her mothers request to save Shep.
Nice work Carrie I'm hooked to her series and Now I want a Tattoo.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 474 reviews

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