Review: More Than Memories by N.E. Henderson

February 21, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

MORE THAN MEMORIES
Series: More Than #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: N.E. Henderson
Release Date: July 27, 2017

 

A heartbreaking second chance contemporary romance that’ll leave you reeling with emotion overload.

Memories are never forgotten.

Or so it’s said, but she did.

She forgot herself, me—us.

She forgot everything.

One day I woke up and there was only pain.

This pain so fierce that I can’t overcome it alone.

My heart was ripped out of my chest.

I’m surviving, but barely.

Not even the physical outlet I seek, to purge the torment of remembering the one I can’t let go, helps anymore.

In all of his agony, what if the worst of his pain has yet to be expelled? A secret that could have changed everything . . . had he known.

AMAZON

She was mine longer than she’s ever known. She was mine from the start. I’ve just never told her that until a few minutes ago.

Truth be told, this book has been on my radar for a while. It first caught my attention with the beautiful cover, and then it completely hooked me with the blurb. I’m a sucker for an angsty read, and More Than Memories certainly delivered on that end.

There’s nothing I love better than a good amnesia plot, and as far as memory loss stories go, this one packed a heck of a punch. Ten years ago, Shane lost the love of his life in the most tragic of ways. They may have been total opposites, but they’ve always shared one heart. One night rips everything apart, and Shane hasn’t been the same since.

Ten years have passed, and Whitney re-enters his life in the most unexpected of ways. She looks like the love of his life, she talks like her, but she has none of her memories. She doesn’t remember him and she doesn’t remember their friends. She’s married. Has a family. She’s a stranger. But the invisible pull that’s always existed between them is still there.

I was instantly hooked on their story and fully invested from the prologue alone. This was a powerful and highly emotional second chance romance.

He’s mine. He has always been mine. And he will always be mine.

Unfortunately, minor issues throughout the story began to wane my enjoyment. While I’m not usually a stickler for grammar, I have to admit that the highly noticeable ones in this book were distracting enough to take me out of the story at times. An extra comma where there shouldn’t be, misspelled words and the like weren’t glaring, but their were noticeable. It wasn’t many, but it was enough to be distracting to the flow of the story. This was more of a minor inconvenience than anything else, however. What ultimately lowered my rating was something that I may be at fault for myself. Since I dove right into More Than Memories without having read More Than Lies first, I struggled on wrapping my mind around most of the secondary characters. While this focuses on a completely different couple than book one, there are clearly a lot of interconnections, the major one being the group of friends. It felt almost overwhelming at times getting all of their backstories as quickly as we did, and I’d forget who was who and how they tied into things. There’s a lot of backstory here, and even though the author does explain it, for a reader just being introduced to this world, it felt confusing. Perhaps if there were just one or two, but there were quite a few, and it took me almost the entire book to really understand the full dynamics of it.

The romance was a slow burn, and deliciously angsty. I really loved Shane and Whitney together. They were memorable and highly developed characters with plenty of layers. Admittedly, while I love angst, there were some twists that were thrown in that felt a little OTT on the drama department and read almost like a soap. Don’t get me wrong, I typically gobble that shit up with a spoon and beg for more. But with the way things unravel at the end, it just felt like a bit much. A little less drama and a little more angst and emotion would have sufficed for me. But obviously you can’t please every reader.

Did I enjoy More Than Memories? Abso-freaking-lutely. It may not have been a perfect read, but it was still perfectly entertaining. I’m definitely a fan of this author and will happily read her books in the future. If you’re looking for a unique and memorable second chance romance with plenty of feels and angst, this will do the trick nicely.

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: , ,

Review: Wish You Were Mine by Tara Sivec

February 19, 2018 by · Leave a Comment


WISH YOU WERE MINE
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Tara Sivec
Release Date:  November 14, 2017

Five years. I would’ve stayed away longer if I hadn’t received the letter. Not a day has gone by that I haven’t thought about her, haven’t missed her smile, haven’t wished that things were different.

The last time I saw my two best friends, I vowed to not stand in the way of their happiness, even if that meant I couldn’t be a part of their lives.

Cameron James and her emerald-green eyes were too much of a temptation and I couldn’t stay and watch them together.

Cameron deserved better than me.

She deserved him.

But now that I am back, things are different. I’m not going to stand by and watch the woman I’ve always loved slip away again. I’m done living my life with regrets and I’m ready to tell her the truth. And I’ll do whatever it takes to show her that I always wished she was mine.

AMAZON

I hate that I’ve missed Everett so much, that a part of me wants to forgive him for everything. I hate that seeing him again gave me butterflies and made me remember all of the feelings I used to have for him. I hate that he’ll never understand how much his disappearance from my life broke my heart, because I can never tell him. I can never tell him that he always had my heart, and he took it with him when he left, because it will just make me look like a fool. A fool who waited around for years, hoping her best friend would someday fall in love with her.

After absolutely LOVING The Story of Us, I was thrilled that I’d be getting more of that world with this book. Cameron James is the daughter of Shelby and Eli, and I was beyond excited when I realized this. I’m a huge fan of Tara’s emotional second chance romances, and Wish You Were Mine certainly packed a good angsty punch.

Everett and Cameron grew up as best friends, and unbeknownst to each other, in love. But then life happened, teenage insecurities and family dynamics came into play and they drifted. Now Everett is back in the small town he grew up in, reeling from the death of his best friend and the letter he left him after his death, determined to finally make things right.

This was a slow paced, character driven story that was told in present and flash backs. And while I wanted to love both of these characters, I struggled. I simply couldn’t connect to them or their plight. I couldn’t even put my finger on what or why, but I couldn’t help feeling like something was just…missing for me. Because of that, I struggled to stay connected to the story. Everett and Cameron have a slow paved road to their HEA and I found myself getting easily distracted and disengaged from the story.

The writing was wonderful, the set up was there. I think this was just a case of me and not the book. I adore Tara Sivec and can’t wait for more of these stories from her, but sadly this one just didn’t blow me away like her others.

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: , ,

Review: Over Us, Over You by Whitney G.

February 17, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

OVER US, OVER YOU
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Whitney G
Release Date: December 7, 2017

From New York Times bestselling author Whitney G. comes a falling for my older brother’s best friend romance.

Subject: Delete this message after you read it…

Dear Hayley,

I’m assuming you’re still hungover, so I’ll make this brief.

Last night, you slipped under my sheets (without my permission), and we almost had sex. I got the hell out of the bed once I realized it was you, and I took you home.

That’s the story.

The end.

Period.

Just in case you’ve forgotten, you’re my best friend’s little sister. We will never be anything more. (We can’t be anything more.) Our previous friendship is still unresolved–or “over” in your terms, so I’d prefer if we worked on becoming ‘just friends’ again since you’re in town.

Nonetheless, I’m not a man who leaves questions unanswered–even the drunken ones, so to properly close our inappropriate conversation:

1) Yes, I liked the way your lips felt against mine when you were on top of me.
2) Yes, I do “prefer” rough sex, but I’m pretty sure I wasn’t rough with you.
3) No, I had no idea you were still a virgin…

This message never happened,
Corey

AMAZON


Meh. Just meh.

I’ll keep this short and sweet. I adore Whitney’s writing. I haven’t read a book of hers I haven’t thoroughly enjoyed…until this one.

The concept was phenomenal. The set up, delicious. The execution, completely lacking. The characters fell flat and came off as two dimensional. There was nothing endearing about either one of them. The plot felt rushed and unfinished. The flashbacks from present to past felt disjointed.

But ultimately, the nail in the coffin for me was Hayley. I. Hated. Her. HATED. She came across as vapid, immature and ungrateful. Here’s a grown woman that has absolutely no issues taking money from her rich and successful older brother and lying to him for years about what she’s doing with it. When her dream business (set up with her brother’s funds) fails epically, she calls him for help. And on a side note, who in their right mind sets up a boutique coffee shop in Seattle, for sanity’s sake?! Sorry, back to the story. So here she comes crawling back to her brother for help, he gives her a job (that she doesn’t deserve) at his company that he built on his own. And what does she do? Not take it seriously, take unlimited days off, show up late, AND CONTINUE TO LIE TO HIM through all of it about being involved with his best friend.


And with the way everything resolved, she never redeemed herself in my eyes. I absolutely despised her.

Add in the rest of the missing pieces and this story was doomed for me from the start. Unfortunately it just didn’t work for me. I will still blindly read any other books this author releases in the future. This is absolutely a one-off, and all my favorites have had one with me. You simply can’t love them all but I look forward to what this author has in store next.

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: ,

Review: The Pretender by HelenKay Dimon

February 15, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

THE PRETENDER
Series: Games People Play #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: HelenKay Dimon
Release Date: December 26, 2017

“Sexy, emotional, funny . . . Dimon gives it all to her readers.” —New York Times Bestselling Author Jill Shalvis

They say it takes a thief to catch a thief, and Harrison Tate is proof. Once a professional burglar, he now makes a lawful living tracking down stolen art. No one needs to know about his secret sideline, “liberating” artifacts acquired through underhanded methods. At least until one of those jobs sees him walking in on a murder.

Gabrielle Wright has long been estranged from her wealthy family, but she didn’t kill her sister. Trouble is, the only person who can prove it is the sexy, elusive criminal who shouldn’t have been at the island estate on that terrible night. She’s not expecting honor among thieves—or for their mutual attraction to spark into an intense inferno of desire.

Under the guise of evaluating her family’s art, Harris comes back to the estate hoping to clear Gabby’s name. But returning to the scene of the crime has never been riskier, with their hearts and lives on the line.

AMAZON

He had changed everything.

HelenKay Dimon was one of the very first contemporary romance authors I read back in the day, right after Lori Foster and Jill Shalvis. But it’s been a hot minute since I’ve read one of her books and I couldn’t even tell you why. The synopsis for The Pretender caught my eye right away, and felt like just the right book to dive back into my love affair with this author.

While I haven’t read the first two books in this series, I had no trouble jumping into the third. I felt there was a lot of history with the characters that I missed out on, but everything I needed to know for this story was carefully laid out and explained.

If you like your romance with a dash of mystery and suspense, The Pretender will surely do the trick. As a matter of fact, it’s the one thing that kept me reading. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel a connection the main characters or their romance. It felt rushed and sudden, like it came out of nowhere. Though Harrison actually knows the heroine from a job went wrong over a year ago, they had no other connection. When he comes back to the island to help clear her name of a murder he has proof she didn’t commit, the sparks fly. Where I struggled is believing those sparks. Yes, they had chemistry, but it was just too sudden considering everything else going on.

There’s quite a bit of intrigue and red herrings thrown into the mix to truly throw the reader for a loop and it certainly did the job for me. The identity of the bad guy kept me guessing right until the very end. When I thought I knew who it was there was a heck of a plot twist thrown in that certainly livened things up a bit from what seemed to be a predictable end.

Even though the romance left something to be desired for me, I enjoyed the mystery and suspense quite a bit. It was definitely enough to hook me to want to read the rest of the series.

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: ,

Blog Tour Review & Excerpt: About that Kiss by Jill Shalvis

February 12, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

ABOUT THAT KISS
Series: Heartbreaker Bay #5
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Jill Shalvis
Release Date:  January 23rd 2018

When love drives you crazy . . .

When sexy Joe Malone never calls after their explosive kiss, Kylie shoves him out of her mind. Until she needs a favor, and it’s a doozy. Something precious to her has been stolen and there’s only one person with unique finder-and-fixer skills that can help—Joe. It means swallowing her pride and somehow trying to avoid the temptation to throttle him—or seduce him.

the best thing to do . . .

No, Joe didn’t call after the kiss. He’s the fun time guy, not the forever guy. And Kylie, after all she’s been through, deserves a good man who will stay. But everything about Kylie makes it damned hard to focus, and though his brain knows what he has to do, his heart isn’t getting the memo.

… is enjoy the ride.

As Kylie and Joe go on the scavenger hunt of their lives, they discover surprising things about each other. Now, the best way for them to get over “that kiss” might just be to replace it with a hundred more.

AMAZON | B&N | iBOOKS

Joe studied her. “I asked you once before, but now I’m going to ask you again. Is there something going

on between you two?”

She tossed up her hands. “Why do you both keep asking me that about each other?”

His eyes narrowed. “I thought nothing was going on.”

“And before today, I could’ve passed a lie detector test on that,” she said.

“What happened today?”

She paused. Not because she had anything to be ashamed of, but because she wasn’t quite sure what had happened.

“Kylie.”

She sighed. “It’s nothing.”

“Try again,” Joe said and gave her the very male universal go on gesture.

She rolled her eyes. “Fine. He . . . finally made a move on me.”

Joe didn’t budge. Not a blink, not a muscle twitch, nothing, but she could’ve popped corn off the electric tension coming off him.

“Describe ‘made a move,’ ” he finally said.

She crossed her arms. “And again, how is this relevant to my case?”

He just gave her that careful stare again and she thought wow, those eyes of his should be registered as a lethal weapon, because she found herself opening her mouth and spilling her guts. “He kissed me.”

“He kissed you.”

“Yeah,” she said. “Do you know that you often repeat what I say?”

“What kind of a kiss?” he asked.

She was momentarily bewildered. “I don’t know. It was a kiss. A normal kiss. A nice kiss.” She cocked her head at him. “How many kinds of kisses are there?”

He just looked at her for a long moment before coming toward her. He backed her to the wall and pressed his big hands on either side of her head.

“There are many kinds of kisses,” he said.

Her breath had backed up in her throat, where her heart had lodged, pounding wildly. “S-s-such as?”

“Such as this one.” And then he leaned in and covered her mouth with his.

At the touch of Joe’s mouth, Kylie’s brain stopped being capable of rational thought. His tongue gave a knee-weakening stroke against hers and she let out a shockingly needy moan as she clutched at him, fisting her hands in the material of his shirt at his chest. Only when he’d thoroughly plundered and pillaged and left her boneless did he lift his head and look into her eyes.

“Wow,” she whispered, fully aware she was still holding on to him like he was a lifeline, but the bones in her legs had liquefied. “I mean . . .” She shook her head. “Wow.”

He nodded. “Yeah. So to be clear, that wasn’t ‘a normal kiss’ or even ‘a nice kiss.’ It was a ‘wow’ kiss. Any questions?”

“Just one,” she said softly. “Can I have another?”

Joe didn’t have to be asked twice. His mouth immediately descended again, his fingers sliding into her hair to change the angle of the kiss to suit him. It was a controlled, alpha thing to do, but she had only one thought—nothing about the usually carefully, purposely leashed Joe was in control at the moment.

And she liked it.

She had no idea how long they went at it because she was in absolute heaven. Who knew that the man could use his preferred silent mode to communicate in a way that she finally approved of?

Only when she was completely breathless and about to strip him down to his birthday suit did she manage to pull back.

“Any more questions?” he asked, also a little bit breathless, which was more than slightly gratifying. Dumbly, she shook her head. His eyes softened and he gently he stroked his thumb over her bottom lip. “And FYI? Gib’s an idiot.”

LANA’S REVIEW

And you kissed me that last time!”
“You were going on about a kiss being nice. But there was nothing nice about that kiss you planted on me in the alley. It was raw and sexy and dirty in the best possible way. You needed to be reminded of that.”
She covered her face. “Oh my God.”
“God had nothing to do with it,” he said smugly.


About That Kiss was everything I had hoped it would be; perfectly swoony with a side of suspense! Jill Shalvis never disappoints. I absolutely adored Joe and Kylie’s story.

Kylie is perfectly quirky and endearing, but a bit of a hermit when it comes to men. An unexpected kiss with the sexy womanizer Joe is not something she’ll soon forget, but she’s trying her hardest. Even though Joe isn’t about to make it easy on her. When a beloved belonging given to her by her late grandfather goes missing, she doesn’t know who else to turn to but Joe. Thus begins a bit of a scavenger hunt with a mystery that’s full of laughs, swoon, and enough chemistry to light up the entire city block.

I’m trying to decide what I want to do with you.”
“What are the options?” he asked.
“Kill you or kiss you.”

I simply loved the two of them together. They were such a fun dynamic of opposites attract. Joe is broody, secretive, and hasn’t given the same woman more than a passing thought before. That is, until Kylie. He has plenty on his plate with demons from the past and a layer of guilt that plagues his present, a father with severe PTSD, and a job that puts him in constant danger. Putting his heart on the line is not something he can do. But he can’t seem to resist the quirky Kylie.

Kylie was so much fun. Between her spine of steel, her disguises on their stakeouts, and her valiant efforts to ignore the chemistry between her and Joe, I couldn’t get enough of her.

The romance is a sizzling slow burn with plenty of laughs thrown in. With a cast of colorful and memorable secondary characters, About That Kiss was a book that put a smile on my face from page one and kept it there until the end. Jill Shalvis is the queen of light hearted romance, and this book was no exception.

GERI’S REVIEW

There are many kinds of kisses,” he said.

Her breath had backed up in her throat, where her heart had lodged, pounding wildly. “S-s-such as?”

“Such as this one.” And then he leaned in and covered her mouth with his.

Image result for hot kiss gif

About that Kiss is another delightful addition to Ms. Shalvis’ Heartbreaker Bay series.

I’ve been looking forward to Joe’s story ever since I found out that Jill is gonna give Archer’s security men stories of their own. And she did not disappoint.

Security expert Joe Malone and woodworker extraordinaire Kylie Masters shared a hot kiss one night, and it suddenly changed everything.

Joe is fine being a bachlor. He doesn’t lack companionship and besides, the extra time he has is better spent taking care of his father and keeping his sister safe. But the moment the kiss with Kylie happened, he couldn’t get her out of his mind.

For Kylie, Joe is way outside her league. And besides, he’s not her type at all. So what if she can’t stop thinking about him or can’t stop fantasizing about kissing him again? She has better things to do with her time, right?

But when Kylie’s precious wooden penguin (the last tangible connection she has from her grandfather), they suddenly find themselves spending time together, hunting for the missing item.

The chemistry between Joe and Kylie is the first thing that really stood to me in this book. It made the book highly addicting and readable.

Both Joe and Kylie have their issues that they both are trying to deal with which makes them all the more interesting characters to me. I’ve always adored Shalvis’ heroines. They’re complex characters and they don’t always do or say the right thing, which I personally loved.

She was an irresistible dichotomy of sweet charm and heart-stopping sexy, and she threw him off guard with every look, be it a smile or a glare. In fact, he kinda liked when she gave him dirty looks, which meant he was seriously losing his shit. And he never lost his shit.”

Then there’s Joe. Ever since he was introduced a couple of books back, Joe has always stood out to me especially with how he is around his sister Molly and the rest of the team. I had high expectations and Jill Shalvis did not disappoint. She gave us a hero that we can swoon over with Joe.

There’s a bit of whodunnit element in this book, which add an interesting layer to it on top of the love story. I enjoyed it. Don’t expect something heavy like a la Nora Roberts or Sandra Brown. This is after all a contemporary romance but it has enough to keep you guessing until the end.

The Heartbreaker Bay series continues to delight in so many ways. I know I say this with every Jill Shalvis book but I CANNOT WAIT for the next book in this series! And Molly and Lucas had sa few “moments” in this book which made me even more for their book, which is UP NEXT!

New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis lives in a small town in the Sierras with her family and far too many assorted quirky characters. Any resemblance to the quirky characters in her books is, um, mostly coincidental.

Look for Jill’s latest, LOST AND FOUND SISTERS on shelves and e-readers now, and get all her bestselling, award-winning books wherever romances are sold.

Visit Jill’s website for a complete book list and daily blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures.

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Website

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Blog Tours, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: , ,

Review: Moonlight Sins by Jennifer L. Armentrout

February 11, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

MOONLIGHT SINS
Series: de Vincent Series #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Release Date: January 30, 2018

New York Times bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout delivers the unforgettable story of a woman whose new life has just begun—but may end in murder…

Julia Hughes has always played it safe until she learned a very painful lesson. Now Julia’s starting over with a job in the Louisiana bayou—and a scorching encounter with a stranger, only to discover he’s Lucian de Vincent… her new employer. The de Vincent brothers share a massive fortune and a dark reputation. Julia cares for their troubled sister, but a menacing presence in the mansion—and the ever-present temptation of Lucian—prove dangerously distracting.

Lucian’s grandmother claimed de Vincent men fall in love once—and hard. Apparently, it’s Lucian’s turn. Julia’s compassionate care of his twin makes Lucian want to lay himself bare. But some secrets are better for Julia not to know.

The recent “suicide” of Lucian’s father is the latest in a string of deaths on the estate. Someone is eliminating the de Vincents. And the best way to get to Lucian may be through Julia…

AMAZON

when the de Vincent men fell in love, they did so fast and hard, without reason or hesitation.

I struggled with my rating for this book. A LOT. On the one hand, the characters were multi-layered and intriguing.

I was immediately sucked into the mysterious world of the de Vincents. These brothers are a captivating mix of cold, ruthless, and totally magnetic. With each piece of information the author feeds the reader, you grow more and more intrigued by their world and the demons that they clearly hide in their dark closet of secrets.

This is screwed up,” she said. “You’re screwed up.”
“I’m not just screwed up, Ms. Hughes. I’m as broken as they come, but I don’t need to be fixed. I don’t want to be fixed.” He caged her in. “I like all my fucked-up shards and pieces. They make me who I am. They make me real. The question is, can you handle real?”

Lucian de Vincent is the playboy. He goes through women like he goes through expensive liquor. He doesn’t do repeats and he doesn’t do feelings. But that suddenly changes when he lays on the beautiful nurse his brother hired to take care of their sister. Their connection is instantaneous, though they do their best to deny it.

At first I wasn’t sure about Julia. She gives off a very innocent, slightly naive vibe. But I’m happy to report that she was neither. She hasn’t lived the life that Lucian has, but she’s also no wallflower. This is a woman that’s not afraid to stand up for herself and turn down Lucian’s blatant advances over and over, until the heat between them proves to be her undoing.

Sadly, this is also where the story began to lose me. While I love a slow burn, I found the pacing of the story to be entirely too slow. By 20% my interest began to wane, and by 40% I was almost completely disengaged. The only thing that kept me pushing through to the end was my curiosity about the mysterious happenings and suspense around the de Vincent family. I needed to know how it all turned out. It took a great deal of effort to push through. I read the book over the span of almost 2 weeks because I kept finding excuses to put it down to read something else. I found myself skimming some parts and bored with others. And while the ending was definitely a twist, it wasn’t completely surprising either. I can’t say it felt anticlimactic, but I suppose that I just wanted something a little bit…more.

There was plenty to like about this story, which is why I had such a tough time rating it. But ultimately, the pacing was too slow for me and I was just too bored with parts of the book to rate it anything higher. I’m certainly hooked on the de Vincent brothers and will eagerly read the enact books in the series. Unfortunately this one just didn’t blow me away.

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: ,

New Release, Review & Giveaway: Follow Me Back by A.L. Jackson

February 5, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

FOLLOW ME BACK
Series: Fight For Me #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: A.L. Jackson
Release Date: February 5, 2018

My loves – I am so beyond thrilled to finally get to share Kale and Hope’s story with you in FOLLOW ME BACK! Writing this book was a labor of love, and after everything, I think it might be my favorite book I’ve ever written. It’s super sexy and swoony, sad and sweet, and just filled my heart up so full there is no chance I will ever forget the way these characters made me feel. I hope you fall in love with them the same way I did! 
Enjoy!
xoxo – Amy 

The next seductive, unforgettable stand-alone romance in the FIGHT FOR ME series from NYT & USA Today Bestselling Author A.L. Jackson . . .
Kale Bryant. Arrogant. Gorgeous. Commanding.
This ER doctor is married to his job. His only vice is one-night stands and short-lived flings. He learned a long time ago loving someone isn’t worth the risk.
Harley Hope Masterson. Beautiful. Brave. Sweet.
The owner of a small coffee shop knows what it’s like to struggle. Embroiled in a bitter divorce, she’s threatened with losing everything.
When Kale accepts a new position down the street from Hope’s shop, he begins to question every wall he’s built around his heart.
He wants her in a way he hasn’t wanted anyone.
One touch is fire.
One kiss, and he’s spinning out of control.
But taking her won’t come without consequences.
Hope is in for the fight of her life. One neither of them saw coming.
Now Kale must decide if loving her is worth risking it all.
She will fight with everything she has.
But sometimes even hope needs a hero . . .

My heart has always been hung on hope.

My feels. Oh my poor feels. This book tugged at absolutely every single heartstring I had. I sobbed my way through almost half of it. Follow Me Back was a beautifully written, gripping and highly emotional romance that was full of swoons and impossible to put down.

He looked like discord.
Chaos with an easy, arrogant smile.
A perfect, controlled disorder.

I was instantly hooked on all of these characters the second we were introduced to them in Show Me the Way. But I’m ashamed to admit that Kale wasn’t at the top of my list. He struck me as a character that wouldn’t hold my attention and I’m happily eating my words right now. Because this man? He didn’t just have a presence. He had a PRESENCE. With a past that haunts him daily and prevents him from truly opening his heart, Kale never saw it coming. But when he first lays his eyes on the beautiful redhead in a bar, it’s like he’s struck by lightning. The connection between them is immediate, even though Hope makes him work for it.

The girl was calm and a raging fire.
Peace and a hurricane.
Modest and demure with a straight shot of vixen.

Hope has secrets of her own. She’s a woman with too much to lose, and she doesn’t need more than five seconds in Kale’s presence to know that he threatens everything; her sanity but most especially her heart.

Hope simply made this book for me. As much as I loved Kale, he had moments toward the end of the book that had me wanting to shake him. Granted I understood the reasoning behind his fear, but I wanted to slap him nonetheless. But Hope? This woman was incredible. The fight in her. Her heart. her devotion to the single most important thing in her life. All of it just made me feel for her and connect with her on such a level that I felt like her pain was my own.

This author has such a beautiful, fluid writing style that’s almost lyrical. It just served to intensify every emotion that these characters were feeling. I couldn’t get enough of it.

The romance was incredible. It was so swoony that it made my heart ache. It was a slow burn with plenty of emotion and just a touch of angst. I absolutely loved it.

He fucked me exactly like I knew he would when I’d seen him that first time in the bar.
Arrogantly.
Confidently.
Relentlessly.

If you’re looking for a beautifully written romance with plenty of feeling and an incredible story that’s sure to touch your heart and stay with you for a long while, you can’t go wrong with this book. If possible, I’m even more excited for Ollie’s book. I’m so hooked on this amazing series!

A.L. Jackson is the New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance. She writes emotional, sexy, heart-filled stories about boys who usually like to be a little bit bad.

Her bestselling series include THE REGRET SERIES, CLOSER TO YOU, and BLEEDING STARS novels. Watch for A.L. Jackson’s upcoming novel, FOLLOW ME BACK, the second stand-alone novel in her brand-new FIGHT FOR ME SERIES.

If she’s not writing, you can find her hanging out by the pool with her family, sipping cocktails with her friends, or of course with her nose buried in a book.

Be sure not to miss new releases and sales from A.L. Jackson – Sign up to receive her newsletter http://smarturl.it/NewsFromALJackson or text “aljackson” to 33222 to receive short but sweet updates on all the important news.

Newsletter | Facebook | Reader Group | Amazon | Bookbub 
Twitter: @aljacksonauthor
Instagram: @aljacksonauthor
Snapchat: @aljacksonauthor
Kindle Fire HD 8 + Show Me the Way & Hunt Me Down Signed Copies + $25 Amazon GC 
Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, Giveaways · Tagged With: ,

Geri’s Review: The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory

January 31, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

THE WEDDING DATE
Genre: Contemporary
Author: Jasmine Guillory
Release Date: January 30, 2018

A groomsman and his last-minute guest are about to discover if a fake date can go the distance in a fun and flirty debut novel.

Agreeing to go to a wedding with a guy she gets stuck with in an elevator is something Alexa Monroe wouldn’t normally do. But there’s something about Drew Nichols that’s too hard to resist.

On the eve of his ex’s wedding festivities, Drew is minus a plus one. Until a power outage strands him with the perfect candidate for a fake girlfriend…

After Alexa and Drew have more fun than they ever thought possible, Drew has to fly back to Los Angeles and his job as a pediatric surgeon, and Alexa heads home to Berkeley, where she’s the mayor’s chief of staff. Too bad they can’t stop thinking about the other…

They’re just two high-powered professionals on a collision course toward the long distance dating disaster of the century–or closing the gap between what they think they need and what they truly want…

AMAZON | B&N | KOBO

Alexa Monroe found herself trapped at a hotel elevator with a handsome, charming Drew Nichols. The incident led to a wedding date, a pretend relationship which quickly escalated into something more.

Image result for so cute gif

The Wedding Date charmed me from beginning to end. The best part about this book was easily the heroine! She’s gorgeous and competent as hell but also strong and vulnerable. Alexa Monroe was everything I love in my romance book heroines.

Another element I enjoyed about this book was the development of Alexa and Drew’s relationship. What started out as a disaster (getting stuck at an elevator) became so much more. That’s not to say there wasn’t some awkwardness between them at first because here was and it was charming and cute because you recognize it as part in real life. Loved their chemistry together.

I also loved the fact that both characters are competent at their jobs. Drew is a doctor and Alexa is a mayoral chief of staff. Their careers are part of who they are and I enjoyed reading those parts in the book.

Conflict wise, I thought that it was very well done. Drew and Alexa not only came from different backgrounds, but they also lived in two different cities which was a challenge to say the least. I normally do not like long distance relationships in my romance, but I liked how it was dealt with in this book. Drew and Alexa were very aware of its pitfalls and of course, its rewards. I thought their actions were very real, and it showed the characters’ flaws and redeeming qualities.

The Wedding Date met all my expectations, which I am so grateful for. It’s sweet, charming, lighthearted romance at its best. If you enjoy fake-dating-relationship stories, I highly recommend this book! This is only Miss Guillory’s first book and judging by how much I enjoyed it, I’m looking forward to more books from her in the future.

Image result for thumbs up gif

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, By Star Rating, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: , , ,

New Release & Review: Combust by K. Bromberg

January 29, 2018 by ·

COMBUST
Series: Everyday Heroes #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: K. Bromberg
Release Date: January 29, 2018

From New York Times Bestselling author, K. Bromberg, comes the second standalone book in the Everyday Heroes series. Just how hot will firefighter Grady Malone turn up the heat?

Songwriter Dylan McCoy has been burned.

By her boyfriend she found in her bed . . . with someone else.

By the contract she signed that obligates her to work with him until the songs for his new album are complete.

By her agent when she asked Dylan to keep their breakup on the down-low.

When she finds herself in Sunnyville, she refuses to let her new roommate burn her too. Still . . . a rebound has never looked so good.

That’s her first thought when she sees firefighter Grady Malone.
Sexy. Charismatic. Unapologetic. He’s a man who carries his own scars—the ones on his back, the survivor’s guilt on his soul, and the fear in his heart.

When an unexpected visitor puts their roommate status to the test, will their undeniable attraction burn out, or will they both take a chance and play with fire?

AMAZON | iBOOKS | B&N | KOBO

 

Preoccupied with a text on my phone from my agent, I walk into the kitchen and suck in a breath when I come face to back with Grady. He’s standing with his hand on the refrigerator door, head leaned inside, and his back fully exposed to me. It’s broad and strong and scarred immeasurably.

I stare.

I can’t help it. The marks are a dizzying array of dark and light and ridged and smooth. And they’re undeniably burns. Goosebumps chase over my skin as I imagine the pain he must have endured when he got those. I think of his habit of wearing unbuttoned shirts but never going shirtless and the hint of scars just visible above his collar that I never could have imagined led to this roadmap to hell on his back.

A part of me instinctively wants to reach out to touch them, bring some kind of comfort. It sounds ridiculous, even to me, but that doesn’t abate the urge.

“Not pretty, huh? Get a good look while you can.” His voice is gruff as his spine stiffens and body stills, emotion woven through the words.

“Thank God not all of you is pretty. I was beginning to feel majorly insecure having to live with perfection like you,” I say off the cuff, trying to make this situation less awkward. My attempt to settle the sudden tension sparking in the air around us.

“Perfection?” he asks as he turns to face me with a smile that masks the emotion swirling in his eyes.

“Yeah. You have scars. I have mermaid thighs.”

“Mermaid thighs?” He laughs. “What in the world are you talking about?”

“Thighs that touch from the top all the way to my knees.” I shrug as if it doesn’t bug me, as if I’m not highlighting one of the insults Tara threw at me. It’s a whole lot easier to make fun of myself so long as it puts him at ease.

“Do you ever give yourself a break?”

“Do you?” I ask the question, sparking a silent battle of wills as we stare at each other and wonder what to say next about the other’s insecurities. Coming up empty, I shift gears. “I think there is some type of rule about how many abs are fair for a guy to have when the rest of us are just struggling to find one of them.”

His smile rings more genuine as he steps toward me, and I step back, my hips leaning against the counter now.

“Is that so?” His voice lowers as his eyes flick to my lips and then back up. “I’m sure you have some under your shirt there.”

Why does the simple action make it seem so hard to swallow?

He takes another step.

“What are you building outside?”

“A playroom.”

A nervous chuckle falls from my lips as I think of all of the versions of playrooms I’ve read about in my romance books. My cheeks stain red as I imagine Grady with a flogger in one hand standing beside a St. Andrew’s Cross.

“A playroom?”

“Yeah.” He takes a step closer so we’re breathing the same air, his voice husky enough to cause every part of my body to grow alert. “A playroom. You know . . . a pool table. Foosball. A real man cave.”

I exhale a shaky sigh, suddenly more than aware that he’s so close, shirtless, sweaty, and smelling like sun and soap mixed together. But it’s his eyes that make my thoughts falter. There’s an intensity to them I don’t expect from the perpetually cheerful Grady Malone.

“Ah, that kind of playroom . . .” But my words trail off as he steps even closer and braces his hands on the counter on either side of me. I can hear his intake of breath. The music floating in from outside. The pound of my pulse in my ears.

“Hey, Dyl?”

“Yes?” Our eyes hold, my lips fall lax.

“I need you to open up.”

“What?” I question as his hand brushes against my hip and his fingers pull on the drawer handle I’m standing in front of.

“I need the bottle opener. You’re standing in front of the drawer it’s in.” His lips spread into a full-fledged grin as I scramble away from the counter and, of course, run smack dab into the hardness, all six foot plus of him.

And then I rebound off him again in a flustered state that has him laughing and me stuttering. “Sorry. I wasn’t—I didn’t . . .” His arms hold on to my biceps to steady me, which prompts me to look up and meet his eyes.

“We need to stop meeting like this,” he murmurs, the heat of his breath hitting my lips.

“We do.” Brilliant, Dylan. Freaking brilliant response. “I’ve gotta . . . I’ve gotta get back to . . . to writing.”

There’s definitely something beneath the sexiness of Grady Malone. Question is, do I want to get invested enough to find out what?

Oh my word! I’m actually at a loss for them right now. And my ovaries? Those are too busy swooning over everything that is Grady Malone. I thought I loved this series after reading Cuffed, but as much as I enjoyed that story, it pales in comparison to the swoons and feels of this one. And the heat? So hot that only a firefighter can put out those flames. Too bad he’s the one causing them. YOWZA!

Every touch is a splash of gasoline on a smolder. Every kiss is the match being lit. Every groan a lick of flame searing both my skin and my soul.

Finding your boyfriend in bed with another woman is the last thing that Dylan needed in her life. But being held to her contract to finish their album together is the ultimate nail in the coffin of her sanity. She needs to get away and recharge, and her brother finds her the perfect retreat. With the sexy firefighter, Grady Malone. He’s her brother’s friend, an incorrigible flirt, sexy as sin, but also hiding demons that plague him nightly.

Stop staring at me like I’m going to fucking break. I’ve already broken, Dylan.

God but I loved Grady. I loved him so hard. This perfectly imperfect, endearingly broken man tugged at every heart string I had. The more you find out about the demons that haunt him, the more your heart bleeds for him. Watching his defenses crumble for the beautiful Dylan was all that much more satisfying because of it. He’s protective and sweet. He tries so hard to keep things light and easy and in the friend zone, but the chemistry between them is too hot to deny.

He takes without asking. He claims and seduces and demands without a single word. But the one thing that is constant is his anger. And just when I think I’m drowning in the swell of emotion his kiss evokes, he ends it abruptly. He shoves away from me as if he’s been burned.

Dylan’s insecurities were something that plague every woman at one time or another. I really connected with her on that level. Watching her gain her confidence back on her own and with Grady was incredibly satisfying. Watching her unwittingly fall for the broken man was EVERYTHING. I absolutely adored the two of them together.

K. Bromberg really knows how to write a romance that bring that feels, and she spares none with Combust. It was brimming with emotion and overflowing with heat. It was deliciously entertaining and totally addicting. I love these Malone men and cannot wait for more!

New York Times Bestselling author K. Bromberg writes contemporary novels that contain a mixture of sweet, emotional, a whole lot of sexy, and a little bit of real. She likes to write strong heroines, and damaged heroes who we love to hate and hate to love.

A mom of three, she plots her novels in between school runs and soccer practices, more often than not with her laptop in tow.

Since publishing her first book in 2013, Kristy has sold over one million copies of her books across sixteen different countries and has landed on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestsellers lists over twenty-five times. Her Driven trilogy (Driven, Fueled, and Crashed) is currently being adapted for film by Passionflix with the first movie slated to release in the summer of 2018.

She is currently working on her Everyday Heroes trilogy. This series consists of three complete standalone novels—Cuffed, Combust, and Cockpit (late spring 2018)—and is about three brothers who are emergency responders, the jobs that call to them, and the women who challenge them.

She loves to hear from her readers so make sure you check her out on social media or sign up for her newsletter to stay up to date on all her latest releases and sales: http://bit.ly/254MWtI

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon Author | Driven Group

 

· Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance · Tagged With: , ,

#DGRFave & Review: Indecent Exposure by @mstessabailey

January 28, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

INDECENT EXPOSURE
Series: The Academy #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Tessa Bailey
Release Date: January 30, 2017

Is there a problem, Officer?

Jack Garrett isn’t a police officer yet, but there’s already an emergency. His new firearms instructor—the one who just dropped every jaw in the academy gym—is the same sexy Irish stranger Jack locked lips with last night. The Olympic gold medalist and expert markswoman is now officially off-limits, but Jack’s never cared much for rules . . .

Katie McCoy’s been cooped up in a shooting range for too long. A wild love affair is just what she needs to let loose, though she never imagined it would be with her smokin’ hot trainee. She cannot get involved with Jack—but a quick fling? Perfect. Falling hard for a charismatic recruit with an equal amount of sex appeal and secrets? Bloody stupid.

Jack’s charmed the pants off plenty of women (literally), yet few have ever looked beyond his perfect surface. Until Katie. He’ll do anything to keep her in his life . . . except tell her about his past. But a tiny lie of omission never hurt anyone, right?

AMAZON | iBOOKS

Jack Garrett. Superhero. Protecting New York City’s women from two-pump chumps one night at a time.

Love, love, LOVED this!!! I thought I was head over heels for this series after the first book, but that doesn’t even compare to the warm and fuzzies that I have after finishing this one. Full of quirky humor, incredibly endearing characters, an addicting story line and a sizzling romance, Indecent Exposure was one unputdownable read. I simply adored it and I simply adored Jack.

If you know me or follow my reviews, you know that those irreverent playboy heroes are my catnip. I can’t get enough of them. I love watching them fall hard and unexpectedly. I love their cockiness and dirty talking ways in the bedroom. And Jack Garrett was all of those things.

Damn right. When women see me coming, their hormones whisper my name. I’m a demon in the sack. And most important, I treat girls with respect. Why shouldn’t they want to go home with me at the end of the night?

Most definitely. But he was also so, SO much more! There’s a lot more to the man than first meets the eye; a depth that’s heartbreaking when you get to the core of it. The mindless drinking, the bed hopping, the never take anything serious attitude is an illusion for a man hiding some incredibly painful demons. But a beautiful redhead is determined to make him see his worth, and Jack is completely lost to her innocent charm

Tell me I can call this mine.
Tell me when we’re in this room tomorrow and everyone wants what I got, I’ll know this tight spot is for me. Only for me to treat so fucking good. Katie, tell me.”


Katie wasn’t the typical firecracker, sassy heroine that I love. There was something so endearing about her quiet and unassuming strength, though. I loved the way she fought for Jack even when he had given up on himself and made him see that he wanted more. I loved the way that Jack was drawn to her like a magnet and couldn’t stay away no matter how hard he tried. And man oh man did I love the dirty talk!

Feel this?” He slides his inches out of me and punches back in with a growl. “It’s yours for as long as you want it. You’ve got it locked down. The only reason I’ll take it out is to piss a circle around you.”

To say that I loved this book would be a sever understatement. I devoured it. I couldn’t get enough of the quirky humor and incendiary romance. That’s not to mention all the peaks into my favorite grumpy sergeant and the sassy recruit that never fails to put him in his place. GAWD but I can’t wait for their book.

Indecent Exposure kept a smile on my face from beginning to finish. Well, at least when it wasn’t making me squirm uncomfortably in my chair (because holy sizzle, batman!) It was swoony, sexy, and quirky humor. I loved it beyond reason!

Leave a Comment · Filed Under: All Reviews, Contemporary Romance, DGR Favorites · Tagged With: , ,
Copyright © 2015 · Dirty Girl Romance

%d bloggers like this: