How to Fail at Flirting by Denise Williams Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
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Synopsis:
One daring to-do list and a crash course in flirtation turn a Type A overachiever’s world upside down.
When her flailing department lands on the university's chopping block, Professor Naya Turner’s friends convince her to shed her frumpy cardigan for an evening on the town. For one night her focus will stray from her demanding job and she’ll tackle a new kind of to-do list. When she meets a charming stranger in town on business, he presents the perfect opportunity to check off the items on her list. Let the guy buy her a drink. Check. Try something new. Check. A no-strings-attached hookup. Check…almost.
Jake makes her laugh and challenges Naya to rebuild her confidence, which was left toppled by her abusive ex-boyfriend. Soon she’s flirting with the chance at a more serious romantic relationship—except nothing can be that easy. The complicated strings around her dating Jake might destroy her career.
Naya has two options. She can protect her professional reputation and return to her old life or she can flirt with the unknown and stay with the person who makes her feel like she's finally living again.
Review:
With an adorable cute meet cute that ended in disaster, How to Fail at Flirting, snagged me from that first chapter. The characters stood out and were easy to root for. The angst and drama were wonderfully done. There were serious moments and an emotionally abusive relationship that was handled in a thoughtful way. And I loved Naya’s found family, her best friends were so supportive. With a fun and flirty vibe, along with some deeper moments, How to Fail at Flirting was a hit!
The Five Year Lie by Sarina Bowen Purchase on: Amazon
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Synopsis:
She thought it was love. Then he vanished.
On an ordinary Monday morning, Ariel Cafferty's phone buzzes with a disturbing text message. Something’s happened. I need to see you. Meet me under the candelabra tree ASAP. The words would be jarring from anyone, but the sender is the only man she ever loved. And it's been several years since she learned he died.
Seeing Drew’s name pop up is heart-stopping. Ariel’s gut says it can’t be real. But she goes to the tree anyway. She has to.
Nobody shows. But the text upends everything she thought she knew about the day he left her. The more questions she asks, the more sinister the answers get. Only two things are clear: everything she was told five years ago is wrong, and someone is still lying to her.
The truth has to be out there somewhere. To safeguard herself—and her son—she’ll have to find it before it finds her. And with it, the answer to what became of Drew.
For fans of Laura Dave and Julie Clark, but with a heart-stopping romance that only Sarina Bowen can execute, The Five Year Lie is a page-turning, spine-tingling thriller that will have you guessing until the very end.
Review:
The Five Year Lie was a mysterious thriller that gripped me from the first chapter. This story was an easy one to devour, especially since we got moments from the past too. It painted a bigger picture, and I loved watching Ariel and Drew fall for each other. Trying to put all of the pieces of the puzzle together had me turning those pages faster. And while I got a good portion of it right, I loved how intricate this story became! This one also hit emotionally hard, and I shed a few tears. If you’re a fan of thrillers that have romance laced throughout the story, definitely add this one to your tbr! I’m excited to see what Bowen writes next in this genre!
Three weeks ago, my biggest problem was which summer day camps Buzz might enjoy – would he prefer Mad Science? Or the one at the arts center?
Then a text message from a dead man blew our lives apart with the force of a grenade. Now I know what it means to be scared.
