After a tragic incident in Afghanistan leaves Master Sergeant Nathan Ryker the only man standing in his tight-knit team, he spirals into an alcohol-and-sex induced escape. A call from his lifelong buddy pulls Ryker from the shadows with a request for help with his stunt company’s latest blockbuster. If Ryker can survive the next three weeks of leave and get back to his remaining men, he might just be all right. But a sexy woman who can take his mind off his trauma is too hard to resist, and when he hooks up with Renegades’ sultry, snarky office manager, his sanity takes a backseat to his first glimpse of a future he isn’t sure he deserves.

Still reeling from a bitter romantic betrayal, Rachel Hart wants nothing more than an uncomplicated hookup. So when the mysterious Nathan seduces her with a little dirty talk and one delicious kiss, Rachel drowns all her good sense in a Mandarin and soda and gives herself over to a night of sexual bliss. But her memories tarnish in the morning light when Rachel discovers his real identity and his link to Renegades. Her job and her friends are the only thing holding her life together, and she won’t be ruined by one sultry night with this damaged and dangerously sexy man.

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5 Best in the Series Stars

Ricochet was a negative theme in his life, one that caused way too much collateral damage…

I have been hooked with this series ever since I first read and absolutely loved Reckless. Now while the second book wasn’t quite as good due to a heroine that I wanted to punch in the throat more often than not, this book managed to completely blow it out of the water for me. I loved every page. It was sexy, it was emotional, it was beautiful, it was perfect.

Rachel Hart is used to seeing incredibly sexy men on a daily basis and not batting an eye lash. Being the assistant to the Renegades team is no small feat. She loved her job and she’s not looking to compromise that for any man. Actually, scratch that, she doesn’t want to get involved with any man period. One heartbreaking betrayal is enough to put her off of relationships for a long while. But a girl still has needs right?

Master Sergeant Nathan Ryker is a broken man. After a tragic incident on tour in Afghanistan leaves the sexy Ranger with living nightmares that haunt his every waking minute he attempts to drown them out the only way he knows how…alcohol and women. He’s not meant for relationships, but he can definitely offer one sultry night. When his long time friend and Renegade, Troy, asks for his explosions knowledge assistant on set of a major movie stunt, he grudgingly agrees and then he meets the woman that just may offer him the distraction he needs while he’s on leave for 3 weeks.

When she’s sent to pick up “Ryker” from the airport but after a few drinks at the bar she meets the mysterious and sexy “Nathan” instead, Rachel doesn’t give it a second thought. Too bad reality comes crashing down on her the very next day when she realizes the two men are one in the same, and her no mixing business with pleasure rule is suddenly blown to smithereens. Good thing Ryker is quite capable of handling the Ricochet. (ha! See what I did there?)

I don’t want complicated. I don’t want forever. I just want simple. No strings.

Oh I get you, Rachel, really, I do. Luckily Ryker is very much up (ahem) for the task, right?

I’m offering you exactly what you want. No-strings, no-shame, no-limits, no-complications, wicked-good sex. Complete with a agreed-upon end date, a vow of secrecy, and an eight-thousand-mile anti-stalking guarantee when it’s over.”

And when you put it like that, Ryker, I’m not sure about Rachel but

Rachel is no fool to pass up such a tempting offer. And tempting it is. How good is he, Rachel?

Jesus, that man really fucks. He’s focused, absorbed, almost…”
“Obsessed?” Rubi supplied in the same hushed tone.
“Totally. It’s enthralling. All encompassing. Like nothing else exists.” She sighed, letting the delicious memory wash through her. “Un-fucking-forgettable.”

Right then.

And Ryker, was it good for you?

Well of course you did. Rachel may be a nice and proper girl at work, but between the sheets she really lets loose. Not that I blame her. You are all kinds of delicious.

While the story definitely had it’s share of steam…and LAWD was it steamy, it was Nathan’s struggle with PTSD that truly captured my heart. I’m not even going to lie, there’s some parts that managed to bring a tear or two even to my cold and black little heart. Skye Jordan did an incredible job with painting a picture of a realistic and heartbreaking struggle of a man fighting some dark demons and his road to get better.

Rachel was possibly my favorite heroine in the series. She was the perfect match to Ryker. Once she got past her own struggles, she really came into her own.

I may not know what you’ve been through. I may not ever be able to understand the depth or extremity of the suffering you’ve seen or done, but I can see an open wound…

While I would have loved an epilogue, I don’t think I can come up with one complaint for this book and can’t wait for more from this author. I love that each book also gives us another peak into the loves of the previous couples, and it was great catching up with all of them here. Now I’ll just be sitting here and slowly dying in my wait for Troy’s book. It can’t get here soon enough 

☆ARC courtesy of author in exchange for an honest review and a whole lot of squeeing…true story☆

Ex-Army Ranger, Brand Killien, has always been good.

A good friend, a good soldier, a good everything. .

The problem is, good hasn’t gotten him anything but a crushed heart.

So after licking his wounds, he decides to move on. And moving on doesn’t include being good anymore.

Bad sounds so much better.

Jaded and detached, Brand is determined to never open himself up to anyone again. It’s not worth the pain. Instead, he becomes closed, hardened, aloof.

But then he’s called back home for a family emergency… a family that he is estranged from. A family that he put out of his mind a long time ago for very good reasons…reasons that involve secrets and pain. Reasons he tried hard to forget.

But home is where the heart is, and it just might be where Brand finds his again.

Why? Because home is where Nora Greene is. A fiery, red-headed spitfire, Nora is a thing from his past. A beautiful, feisty thing. When Brand left, she was away at boarding school.

But she’s back now.

And she wants Brand, scars and all.

5 BRANDed Stars

Being brave doesn’t mean not being afraid, Nora. It means being afraid and doing it anyway.”

If there’s one thing I know when I read a Courtney Cole book it’s that the woman is going to take all my emotions and feels and fuck with them like the sadist that she sure has to be. I’ve been a fan of this series since the very first book, and each one has managed to burrow inside me and stay. While I can’t say I loved the last book, Before We Fall, this one managed to blow me away. Emotional, captivating, steamy and unputdownable, Until We Fly is going to put you on an emotional roller coaster filled with twists and turns, but you’re going to love the ride.

What I love about Courtney’s books, are her characters. Those beautifully broken characters that never fail to tug at every single one of my heartstrings. And Brand? Well Brand I have been dying to get my hands on since first meeting him in If You Leave. He’s so different from most heroes you’d find in books these days. Yes he’s a sexy as hell, tatted up Army Ranger. So what sets him aside? He’s a nice guy. This is not a womanizing asshole. Nope. But he’s broken in his own way. Demons from his past continue to haunt his present, and Brand just learns to deal with it.

I knew that the woman that will finally steal Brand’s heart will have to be special. After putting it all out there and being there for everyone (Jacey in particular), Brand deserves a woman that would pursue him. And that’s definitely what he got with Nora.

Nora has practically been in love with Brand since she was a teenager. But then he left the small town they both grew up in and hadn’t returned since. Now he’s back to settle his father’s estate after his passing, and presents the perfect opening for Nora to make her move. When Brand gets injured rescuing her from the site of an accident, she has her perfect opportunity.

Nora seemingly has it all. Being the daughter of one of the most influential and richest families in town, a Stanford law graduate and on her way to work in her father’s company, her life is set. Only problem? It’s not what she wants. What she wants if even for a little bit, is Brand. Pure, wholesome, clean, hero Brand.

Nora is not shy about pursuing him, and she really doesn’t pull her punches when it comes to her seduction. Stuck in a cottage together with Nora taking care of him, Brand can only resist her for so long.

Nora hides her own demons. Demons that continue to haunt even her waking minutes. Demons that no amount of scrubbing and cleaning will ever cleanse from her soul. Demons that only quiet in the presence of Brand.

But I’m desperate, just for a few weeks, to see if I can lose myself in Brand. To see if his goodness can eclipse that part of me that is so irrevocably damaged, just for a little while.

Can’t say I blame her, Brand really was absolute perfection

What first started out as a strings-free summer fling, soon begins to turn into something much more for both Brand and Nora. But beyond the love story and the steamy sex scenes was an incredible story about 2 very broken characters and their journey to healing themselves.

This book, for me anyway, was probably one of the most emotional. It was filled with twists that I never saw coming and a story that kept me glued to my Kindle until the very last page. And that last chapter? Well you definitely know you’ve read a 5 star book when the last chapter manages to make you tear up like a baby. I almost didn’t want it to end. I could probably ramble on and on, but why read my review when you can experience it for yourself?

If you haven’t yet read this series, it is a must read. While you could read this as a standalone, I’d recommend starting with at least If You Leave so you can really get a better grasp of Brand’s character. But Courtney certainly gives you enough background that you wouldn’t be lost starting with this book. Definitely a huge rec from me.

**ARC courtesy of author in exchange for an honest review**

And don’t miss the other Beautifully Broken, now available:

IF YOU STAY

IF YOU LEAVE

BEFORE WE FALL

Praise for the Beautifully Broken Series:

“I loved If You Stay. Like, really really loved it. The kind of love that kept me reading until 2:40 am and left me crying, smiling, devastated, and elated. The best kind of book love.” – Andrea, The Bookish Babe

“Beautiful, raw, gritty, emotional and breath-taking are just a few of the words I can find to describe this book…reading this book was one of the best experiences I have had.” –Amanda, Globug and Hootie Need a Book

“In If You Leave, we continue the wild ride Courtney Cole started us on in If You Stay. This raw story of heartbreak and hope solidifies Cole’s standing as a rising star in hot contemporary romance.” — New York Times Bestselling author of Down to You, M. Leighton

“Another raw, gritty masterpiece with a sexy-as-hell Army Ranger to swoon over.” — K.A. Tucker, author of Ten Tiny Breaths

Courtney Cole is a novelist who would eat mythology for breakfast if she could. She has a degree in Business, but has since discovered that corporate America is not nearly as fun to live in as fictional worlds. She loves chocolate and roller coasters and hates waiting and rude people.

Courtney lives in quiet suburbia, close to Lake Michigan, with her real-life Prince Charming, her ornery kids (there is a small chance that they get their orneriness from their mother) and a small domestic zoo.

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Purple-haired, sharp-tongued Reese MacKay knows all about making the wrong choice; she’s made plenty of them in her twenty-odd-years. So when her impulsive, short-lived marriage ends in heartbreak, she decides it’s time for a change. She moves to Miami with the intention of hitting reset on her irresponsible life, and she does quite well…aside from an epically humiliating one-night stand in Cancun with a hot blond bouncer named Ben. Thank God she can get on a plane and leave that mistake behind her.

Football scholarship and frat parties with hot chicks? Part of charmer Ben Morris’s plan. Blown knee that kills any hope of a professional football career? So not part of the plan. Luckily Ben has brains to go with his knockout looks and magnetism. After three long years of balancing law school with his job as a bouncer at Penny’s Palace, he’s ready to lead a more mature life—until his first day of work, when he finds himself in the office of that crazy, hot chick he met in Cancun. The one he hasn’t stopped thinking about.

If Ben truly were a smart guy, he’d stay clear of Reese. She’s the boss’s stepdaughter and it’s been made very clear that office romances are grounds for dismissal. Plus, rumor has it she’s trouble. The only problem is, he likes trouble, especially when it’s so good-looking…

5 Perfect Stars

Word to the wise: if you have to fight over a guy, he’s not worth it. Go for the one who’s waiting for you.”

This was. Hands down. Most definitely. My favorite book in the series. I can’t say I ever gave Ben much thought after the 1st book…or even when I was reading the first book. But now? Move over Trent and Kacey, because Ben and Reese completely stole my heart with this book.

Want me to tell you 5 reasons I loved it? That wasn’t really a question, since I’m going to anyway 🙂

1. Reese
Reese was snarky, sarcastic, smart mouthed and quick witted. Did I mention that she also drive a Harley? This girl was seriously made of pure awesome…too bad her douchebag of an ex husband broke her heart by cheating on her and asking for a divorce. So what’s a girl to do? Get disgustingly drunk in Cancun and exorcise the fuck out of her ex by fucking someone else. Enter, stage right, Ben Morris

I love the angry ones. Of course anyone who knows me would argue that I love any and all women, and I can’t exactly disagree. But I love the angry ones the most. They’re a challenge to be conquered, the reason for their fury usually fitting neatly into three buckets: insecure, scorned, hormonal.
And this purple-haired chick gazing up at me with fire in her caramel eyes?
I’m betting on bucket number two.

Oh Ben, how right you are. Reese also has a verra big side of crazy. This is a not a girl you want to scorn or fuck with.

2. The Banter!
Oh my god, the banter! It was seriously awesome. Any time these two would talk, it was comedy genius. I think I had a goofy smile on my face the entire time I was reading.

And what is it exactly about me that you don’t like?
The womanizing mama’s-boy football-player part who spreads charm on like peanut butter and has a different girl in his hotel room every night this week.
Not every night

Well at least you’re honest about it, Ben

But given enough alcohol and Reese decides to get her exorcism with Ben…too bad it turns into the one night stand from hell. Luckily she never has to seem him again. Right? Imagine Reese’s surprise when it looks like that Ben is her new coworker since he waas just hired as an associate lawyer at her step-father’s law firm where she works.

Which brings me to my next point

3. The banter
Yes, I know I already had it listed. But it deserves more than one mention because it was just THAT good.

They make extra-strong margaritas at Amigos, down the street. Just like you like them. I’ll bring a change of clothes, for after, of course.”
“Get out.”
“We could take a nice long crawl down the boardwalk, and then-“
“Fuck. Right. Off.”

Do you see what I mean? I was highlighting practically every barb and insult that they traded.

4. Ben
Swoon. Ben was just total perfection. Yes, he was a manwhore. But he was also sweet, hilarious, honest, make-no-qualms-about-who-he-is fantastic. He also wanted Reese. Bad. But just for sex, of course. He can’t compromise his career by dating his boss’s daughter PARTICULARLY when there’s a specific no dating rule in place. Reese really doesn’t make it easy for him, but he’s determined

If I laugh, she’ll hate my guts. I need her to not hate my guts. Ideally, I need to find a way to make her love my guts. I get the impression she doesn’t even like most people, so this may be a challenge.

And you are certainly correct in that, Ben. This is a girl that “accidentally” stumbled on her ex husband and his new wife going at it at a paintball game and proceeded to shoot the living hell out of both of them with paintballs. Naked ass and all.

Duly noted.

Now back to Ben. If you’re looking for a hero that’s cocky, but in an endearingly funny way? You will LOVE Ben as much as I did.

Have you always loved yourself this much?”
“I had an awkward year in ‘ninety-nine, but I got over it quick.”

And Reese was no exception. Ben managed to worm himself in to her black little heart and chip away at her defenses and walls little by little.

5. The banter
I’m telling you people, it was just that awesome that it needs to have 3 mentions on my list.

She’s my date.”
“Date? I guess you don’t know Ben very well yet.”
“He lied and used medicinal narcotics to bribe me into coming here, so I think I have him pretty well pegged.”

So there you have it. 5 Ways I absolutely fell for this book. I laughed, I swooned, I laughed some more. I absolutely loved it.

If you’re a fan of NA romance, this is a book that’s not to be missed. Seriously. You’ll see exactly why I loved it as much as I did when you read it. It’s bittersweet to now say goodbye to this series, but what a perfect book and couple to end it with.

***ARC courtesy of publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review***

In Robin York’s provocative new novel, two young ex-lovers find themselves together again in the shadow of tragedy—and an intense, undeniable attraction.

Caroline still dreams about West. His warm skin, his taut muscles, his hand sliding down her stomach. Then she wakes up and she’s back to reality: West is gone. And before he left, he broke her heart.

Then, out of the blue, West calls in crisis. A tragedy has hit his family—a family that’s already a fractured mess. Caroline knows what she has to do. Without discussion, without stopping to think, she’s on a plane, flying to his side to support him in any way he needs.

They’re together again, but things are totally different. West looks edgy, angry at the world. Caroline doesn’t fit in. She should be back in Iowa, finalizing her civil suit against the ex-boyfriend who posted their explicit pictures on a revenge porn website. But here she is. Deeply into West, wrapped up in him, in love with him. Still.

They fought the odds once. Losing each other was hard. But finding their way back to each other couldn’t be harder.

Amazon / Barnes and Noble / iBooks

5 Deeper and Harder Stars

You have to let yourself want what you want as hard as you can, as deep as that goes, even if it scares the fuck out of you.

Wow. Just wow. As much as I loved Deeper, Harder managed to absolutely blow me away. It shattered my heart into a million pieces, and then slowly mended it back together, piece by piece, managing to bring a captivating and emotional story a full circle. Robin York’s writing is both poignant and uplifting, and she has easily moved to the very top of my favorite NA authors. I do not recommend reading this book without having read Deeper first, it will simply not be the same. So let’s move on to the review, shall we?

It’s been some time since where Deeper ended, and although it’s not made clear what happened, it’s obvious that Caroline and West are not together anymore. Their relationship is stunted at best, tumultuous at worst.

Before we crashed and burned, though, I liked the person I was with West. He made me vulnerable, but he helped me be stronger, too.

In Deeper we saw West take a broken Caroline, and help put her together. He was her rock, her shoulder, her everything. But when Caroline put herself back together she was stronger, and this book paints that picture perfectly.

I cannot tell you how refreshing it is to read about a heroine in a NA novel that is as emotionally strong as Caro was. Because that’s precisely what she was. This was not a girl that flew off at the rails, she knew what she wanted and she fought for it…even if she may never win.

Yes there’s an event that happens here that had me screaming and raging in anger and devastation. But as I read more, I understood why it happened and the choices that were took place. I may not have liked it, but it fit the story. It fit THEIR story.

Caro’s reaction to this was something that really made me think. She did not react in a typical way that you would expect. She showed an immense amount of emotional maturity and intelligence, which was truthfully a first for me. I think I loved her character all the more for it. It was obvious that she knew West suspected a certain reaction from her, but she knew why he did what he did, and she knew what he needed.

I could tell you how much I’m hurting, or I could get out of the car, slam the door, hitchhike to the airport because fuck you, fuck you, West, how could you do this to me? How?

What I can’t do is pretend I don’t know what you did,” I say. “Or pretend I don’t still care about you.

If in the first book West was Caro’s rock, then in this one it came a full circle. The depth of Caroline’s love for West was evident in every word and action.

As for West? My beautifully broken, hurting, fucked up West. As much as I wanted to hate him for what he did, I just couldn’t. My heart hurt for him. The more I read, the more it hurt.

He was so lost in the first half of this book. His heartbreak is palpable. What he does to push Caro away is terrible, don’t get me wrong. But you can tell he felt he had no choice. And while he succeeds in one thing, he fails in another, because Caroline refuses to give up on him. Caro was the strong one here, she needed to be, to help West find his way out of the dark

She knows who she is deep inside herself. I can break her heart, but I can’t break her pride. I can’t break her. She’s never going to let that happen.

I want her

All the time, like a virus, a disease I caught, except the other way around- like a a cure I caught a year ago, and it’s inside me, winding through my veins, pumping through my heart.

His hope and hopelessness is swallowing him whole. He wants, but he doesn’t think he can have it. He doesn’t deserve it. But it doesn’t stop his yearning.

Spark. Spark. Flame.

The whole time, I was trying to convince myself that the flame didn’t look like hope, didn’t feel like it, but I’ve never been any good at that kind of deception.
That spark in the dark, that wavering flicker- Caroline. Hope.
For me, they were always the same thing.

The first half of the book was an emotional roller coaster. The feels, the pain, the heartbreak, it was devastating. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and the second half was the light.

What I truly loved about the book was that Robin York didn’t throw in any more additional drama in the end. There was no unnecessary angst, the angst that was there was intricately important to the plot, not excessive. She manages to take the story a full circle while painting a love story that’s emotional and touching.

If you loved Deeper, you will love Harder. There are events here that may take you out of your comfort zone and make you question what you feel. It will capture you and draw you in. It will break your heart and then put it back together. I’m in love with Robin’s wring, story telling, and her words. I really hope she continues this series with another couple…like perhaps Bridget and Krishna? (Hint, hint. Nudge nudge) LOL!

Highly recommended read. If you want a NA romance that’s unlike any you’ve read before, this is a must read.

**ARC courtesy of publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**