JUST WHAT I NEEDED
Series: Need You #2
Genre: New Adult Romance
Author: Lorelei James
Release Date: August 2, 2016
The second sexy novel in the Need You series, from the New York Times bestselling author of the Mastered Series and the Blacktop Cowboys® Series.
Trinity Carlson might be having the worst day ever. And that was before she started drinking in a dive bar, right across from her ex and his new girlfriend. So when she finally decides enough is enough, she grabs hold of a hot, blond stranger and gives him the kiss of his life.Walker Lund never expected that a chance at love would hit him right on the mouth. Since the moment his brother decided to settle down, Walker has been dodging his family’s hopes that he’ll do the same. He’s never been interested in following in anyone’s footsteps. But when he discovers his sexy assailant has given him a fake name and number he suddenly finds himself in the mood for a little hot pursuit…
5 Walker-Is-Mine Stars
I have a problem, and his name is Walker. It’s a problem because HE’S NOT IN MY PANTS RIGHT NOW! I’ve been indifferent of the long hair/man bun. I can usually take it or leave it, but in this case, I’ll take it!
My Walker:
More Walker…He’s just….UNF!:
I cannot get enough of Walker:
My Trinity:
Walker works in construction. Yeah, can he get any hotter or more perfect?! I think not. He is actually from a wealthy family, but he is the rugged man in his family and the glue that keeps everyone together. He is the good guy in the family. I usually lean more toward the bad boy/asshole characters, but I DARE YOU TO RESIST WALKER. It’s not possible.
I loved all of Walker’s brothers and sisters and cousins, constantly ragging on each other. They were so much fun. I love books with close-knit families. It just makes the book that much more cozy.
Trinity is adorable and spunky. She is an artist, but she isn’t up in the clouds. She knows who she is, and she knows what she wants. She is a little flighty but in a charming way. She tries to warn Walker that she is a lot of work, but he is the perfect man up for the challenge of all that is Trinity, and he takes pleasure in every single moment.
”I like that you’re warning me up front that you’re going to be a lot of work.”
“You are?”
“Yep. It’ll give me a chance to prove my awesome work ethic.”
I LOVED the meet-cute in this book. I don’t want to give it away, but I was sold on this book from the beginning and it kept my attention through the whole book. Some books start to drag for me around the 50-60% mark, but not this one. This is such a FEEL-GOOD book with all the smiles and giggles and swoons. There is not much drama, which I love.
”You have any idea how hard I’m digging on you right now?”
“Digging on me,” I repeated. “Is that a construction worker’s come-on?”
Walker, Trinity, and this whole book is endearing with the perfect slow burn. I love Lorelei’s writing style. It’s no-nonsense, straight to the heart of the story. Her dialogue makes me smile throughout the whole book. I have read a few of her cowboy series, and enjoyed the heat in her erotic books. I wouldn’t put this book in the erotic category, but it is just as hot!
Then I pursed my lips around the straw and sucked. “Want a taste?” His eyes went molten. He leaned in, resting his forearm on the brick wall above my head.
“No. I’m thinking I’ll get a little lust drunk just watching you.”
“Watching me what?”
“Lick. Suck. And swallow.”
THE NEED YOU SERIES
WHAT YOU NEED (book 1)
My instincts had screamed at me that she was trouble. My instincts were wrong. She wasn’t trouble. I was. Still Am.
Oh my god.
Psych!!! I’m just bluffin with my muffin. You’ll get no spoilers outta me, so don’t even try.[/su_spoiler]
Wow. Before I get to my review, let me say this. Don’t let my rating fool you. This book had me riveted to the story from beginning to finish. Aside from a few quibbles that I had, the story itself was beautiful. It drew me in from the very first chapter and kept me glued to the pages. The author clearly has an incredible talent and I strongly believe she has great things ahead of her. While this may not have been a full four star read for me, it was a damn solid 3 and I’ll get to my reasons why shortly.
Kelley Moore has grown up in a way that no boy should ever have to endure. From a volatile home life to numerous tragedies throughout his life, he’s never had it easy. He dreams of making it big in football and making it out on his own.
What starts as stolen encounters soon turns into something more only to shatter before their eyes and leave both of them grasping at the jagged pieces.
Chasing Butterflies is told in two parts: past (high school) and present (college). The first half is almost 60% of the story and so emotionally gripping I forgot at times that I’m reading about teenagers. I’m not typically a fan of YA but yet something about these characters simply stood out for me.
Let’s talk about things that trigger my one-clicker for a second here, shall we?
As for that ending? Well let’s just say I may or may not be rocking myself in a corner as we speak while I wait for July 25 to finally get here
You know when you read the first book in a series and you love it so much that you don’t think anything can top it, but then you read the second and you love it just as much? So then you know that the chances of that continue to hold for the 3rd book are slim, right? In my experience, it’s tough to keep that sort of momentum going…unless, of course, you’re Elle Kennedy. Because not only was The Score absolutely fantastic, but it turned out to be my favorite in the series. And considering how much I loved the previous two books, that’s saying something.
What I love about Elle’s writing, is the depth that she gives her characters. And Dean certainly was no exception. He may be the hard partying manwhore with a crass sense of humor, but beneath that perfect exterior there’s so much more to him and you really get to see it blossom here.
I’ve been waiting for the lead singer of Non-Castrato to get his book since he first made an appearance in 
But things rarely go as planned, and while the plan was to rip her mask off as soon as she rocked her addition, she ends up with a chance of a lifetime that she just can’t pass up. But when she begins falling for the lead singer, things get a whole lot more complicated…
Rebecca Yarros and her Flight & Glory series has been on my radar for a while. In my usual way of doing things backasswards, when I got the chance to read Beyond What Is Given, I jumped on it, even before I read the previous books. With that said, I never found myself lost and had no problems getting into the story. BUT, I do wish I read the previous two books simply because I completely adored those characters in this book and found myself curious about their story. So I plan on going back and reading the previous books immediately.
Grayson’s secret begins to come to light little by little, and you soon realized that the baggage that this man carries may be too much for even self-assured Sam. But you also can’t help but fall for him completely. The push and pull dynamic between them grabbed me from the beginning. Grayson clearly wants Sam, but he knows he can’t have her. His secret prevent him from giving himself fully even when Sam is quickly falling for him.
As much as I love angst in my books, and the angst here was thick. At the same time, I prefer the angst to come from the couple and not added from outside influences. What am I talking about? Grayson’s family. Sweet mother of all that’s holy but the last time I hated a hero’s sister this much I was reading an Abbi Glines book. I absolutely HATED Parker. And the further the book progressed, the more strongly I began to hate her. And that only got so much worse when the whole truth was revealed. In addition to her sticking her nose into Grayson’s business there was also his father. All of it combined with the already heavy subject of Grayson’s secret and Sam’s past and it was almost too much. Don’t get me wrong, the author did make it work, but for me it was just a little too much.
Now before you start reaching for rotten tomatoes and pitchforks, allow me to clarify my rating here. See, here’s the thing, I liked this book. It was wonderfully written and being my first book by this author I already know I’ll be reading all her others. I’m also completely hooked on this series and absolutely loved the set up as well as all the secondary characters. I also truly enjoyed both MCs here. At this point you’re probably sitting there and thinking, then why the hell are you marking this only 3.5 stars?
Well…bluntly put…it was just too sweet for my tastes. *ducks flying tomatoes*
Now I loved that this wasn’t a source of shame or secret for him. He owned it. It wasn’t a secret and he didn’t make it one, nor does he make it a given to spread it around campus either. The problem? I just don’t buy it. Ugh. I’m sorry! It’s that damn cynic in me, but a college junior, surrounded by football groupies, all his teammates are male sluts, but he’s a virgin because…reasons.
But this was also wonderfully…refreshing. This is my second time reading about a male virgin and I believe Jen Frederick pulled it off very well. Knox is just one of those characters that you can’t help but love. He goes after what he wants with a single-minded intent and feels no need for immature mind games that you’d find with most heroes in the NA genre.
What ultimately brought my rating down was 2 specific things.
In the book’s defense I am not, nor will I ever be a fan of insta-love, no matter how well it’s pulled off. And it IS pulled off wonderfully here. It’s just not my cuppa. I can’t help it. I gave it the old college try (pun intended) but could never really see past it. Perhaps because he was also a virgin on top of everything else? Whatever the case may be, I suppose I just wanted a little more interaction between them before this came into the mix. Like say, at least 12%?
I’m the girl who always stands in someone else’s shadow. The eternal third wheel. It takes two drinks to loosen my tongue, and no amount of alcohol can thaw me below the neck.
Truth be told, I’ve been waffling over my rating for this book for over a week now. While I enjoyed the concept of the book, the secondary characters and I’m certainly hooked on the series itself, I honestly can’t say that I loved this book. I was bored and found myself skimming the majority of the story.
Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t anything that grabbed me either…ever. It started out slow and for me the first half felt very dragging. I kept reading in hopes that it’ll pick up soon and perhaps the first 60% is just the build up, but that never happened. I find that NA usually has different types of angst, and being the angst whore that I am, I enjoy it each and every single time. However, as I’ve come to find here, there can also be a boring type of angst.
