Tag: Contemporary Romance (Page 55 of 90)

REVIEW + GIVEAWAY – Irresistibly Yours (Oxford #1) by Lauren Layne

October 8, 2015 / Jen / 2 Comments

I’m so excited to be a part of the blog tour for Exclusively Yours! Check out my 4.5 Star review and enter a giveaway for a fun bundle of Ebooks from Loveswept! Enjoy!

REVIEW + GIVEAWAY – Irresistibly Yours (Oxford #1) by Lauren Layne

Irresistibly Yours (Oxford #1)
by Lauren Layne
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
Meet the men of Oxford magazine! In the first captivating spin-off of Lauren Layne’s Sex, Love & Stiletto series, a not-so-friendly battle of the sexes turns into a scorching office romance.

Hotshot sports editor Cole Sharpe has been freelancing for Oxford for years, so when he hears about a staff position opening up, he figures he’s got the inside track. Then his boss drops a bombshell: Cole has competition. Female competition, in the form of a fresh-faced tomboy who can hang with the dudes—and write circles around them, too. Cole usually likes his women flirty and curvy, but he takes a special interest in his skinny, sassy rival, if only to keep an eye on her. And soon, he can’t take his eyes off her.

Penelope Pope knows all too well that she comes off as just one of the guys. Since she’s learned that wanting more usually leads to disappointment, Penelope’s resigned to sitting on the sidelines when it comes to love. So why does Cole make her want to get back in the game? The man is as arrogant as he is handsome. He probably sees her as nothing more than a barrier to his dream job. But when an unexpected kiss turns into a night of irresistible passion, Penelope has to figure out whether they’re just fooling around—or starting something real.

Review:

Sexy banter, laugh out loud moments, true friendships, and characters that I adored filled the pages of Irresistibly Yours. Truth be told, I was beyond ecstatic to hear that Cole was getting his own book. But I never would have guessed his future entailed having to fight for his place at Oxford, a national men’s magazine where he freelanced as a sports writer. Nor that he would be up against a tomboy who easily hung with the guys. But what started out as Cole and a tomboy vying for the same job, turned into a story that pulled at my heartstrings. Self worth and a looming responsibility became key ingredients to the feelings that were invoked in me. But as with all of Lauren Layne’s books, I can also always count on the scenes where I can’t stop smiling or laughing, making Irresistibly Yours a fun book to devour!

In case you don’t know who Cole is, let me kindly introduce you to a man who will make you want to curl up with this book while sighing out loud. Cole is a columnist who appeared in the Sex, Love and Stiletto series. He was always memorable whether he was siding with the woman, almost kissing Grace at the baseball game, or joking around with his friends, Jake, Cassidy and Lincoln. He came across as genuine, funny and charming, but that was just the surface. Because Cole was also this thoughtful, sexy, caring man whose good guy status was the real deal. In the beginning, he helped Penelope out when others wouldn’t have. She is vying for the job he wants, so technically he should walk away and let her fail. But Cole being Cole stepped up and took care of Penelope, putting his desires behind hers. And this is just the beginning of the sigh worthy moments that you can expect from Cole throughout the story.

Penelope is a tomboy who is fully immersed in the sports world. She loves watching and writing about sports, but after a glitch in her personal life in Chicago, she is desperate for a new start. And that new start entails moving to a new state and finding a new job which puts her directly in Cole’s path. While I struggled in the beginning connecting to Penelope, I am happy to say that she was smart, easy-going, cheerful and confident in her work. But in regards to her body and sexual experience, she lacked so much self-confidence. She never saw herself worthy of being moved out of the friend zone. We all have those areas of our lives where we will second guess or say something negative about ourselves, but Penelope took it a step further. She would put herself down in front of others and it was torture to me. It hurt that she could be so harsh and mean to herself. I just wanted to shake her and show her how amazing she was. But thankfully Cole was there to step in and do what I desperately wanted to.

The friendship that Cole and Penelope developed over time was not only realistic but oh so sweet. They bonded over their love of sports and found a true friend within each other. But lines can’t always stay black and white, especially when you have a sexy Cole around you making the sexual tension unavoidable. So stuff is bound to happen! And in the midst of them trying to figure out what they truly wanted from the other, so many of the characters that we love from the Sex,Love and Stiletto series stepped in to help! And while I was so excited to see Julie, Emma, Grace and Riley, the friend that shined brightly to me was Lincoln. Or maybe that’s because he constantly charmed me? Well, whatever the reason was, the friendship between Lincoln and Cole was beyond epic and had me laughing hysterically. I now can’t wait for Lincoln’s book down the road! So I can’t wait for you to read this book, or any of Lauren Layne’s other stories if you haven’t read them yet. Enjoy!

*ARC kindly provided by Random House Publishing via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

BUY NOW

Amazon | B & N | iTunes | Kobo

Reading Order & Links: Amazon (click on covers) & iBooks (click on titles) *Each book can be read as a standalone, but best enjoyed in order.*
Irresistibly Yours #1 Reviews: Jen Chelsea	I Wish You Were Mine #2 Reviews: Jen	Someone Like You #3 Reviews: Jen Chelsea
I Knew You Were Trouble #4 Reviews: Jen	I Think I Love You #5 Reviews: Jen

Don’t miss out on the Sex, Love & Stiletto Series where the “Oxford” guys first appeared!

Reading Order & Links: Amazon (click on covers), iBooks (click on titles) *Each book can be read as a standalone, but best enjoyed in order.*
After the Kiss Reviews: Jen Chelsea	Love the One You're With Reviews: Jen Chelsea	Just One Night Reviews: Jen Chelsea
The Trouble with Love Reviews: Jen Chelsea

About Lauren Layne:

Lauren Layne is a USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance. Prior to becoming an author, Lauren worked in e-commerce and web-marketing. In 2011, she and her husband moved from Seattle to New York City, where Lauren decided to pursue a full-time writing career. It took six months to get her first book deal (despite ardent assurances to her husband that it would only take three). Since then, Lauren’s gone on to publish ten books, including the bestselling Stiletto series, with several more on the way in 2015. Lauren currently lives in Chicago with her husband and spoiled Pomeranian. When not writing, you’ll find her at happy hour, running at a doggedly slow pace, or trying to straighten her naturally curly hair.
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

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BOOK REVIEW – The Carnelian Legacy (Carnelian #1) by Cheryl Koevoet

October 8, 2015 / Jen / 2 Comments

The Carnelian Legacy (Carnelian #1)
by Cheryl Koevoet
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:

Marisa MacCallum always believed that the man of her dreams was out there somewhere. The problem is—he’s in another dimension.

After the death of her father, eighteen-year-old Marisa's life is on the verge of imploding. She seeks comfort on her daily ride through the woods of Gold Hill, but when a mysterious lightning storm strikes, she is hurled into the ancient, alternate dimension of Carnelia where she is discovered by the arrogant but attractive nobleman, Ambassador Darian Fiore.

Stranded in a world teeming with monsters, maniacs and medieval knights, Marisa is forced to join Darian on a dangerous mission to negotiate peace with his cousin and archenemy, Savino da Rocha. Along the way, she starts to see Darian's softer side and finds herself falling in love. But once she learns that he is locked into an arranged marriage, her heart shatters.

When Savino falls for her charms and demands her hand in exchange for peace, Marisa is faced with an impossible choice: marry the enemy of the man she loves or betray them both and become the catalyst for a bloody war.

Review:

I desperately wanted this book to hook me, but I kept facing too many issues that prevented me from enjoying The Carnelian Legacy. Which is regrettable because it was such an interesting take on living in a world with multiple dimensions. I enjoyed the description of the world that Marisa MacCallum found herself in, and I truly adored Darian and Arrie who she first met upon arriving in Carnelian. But I started to struggle when little mistakes in the story appeared. While that’s something I can forgive and move on from, the heroine then became someone who I struggled liking. Throw in the fact that a strong Christian theme became prevalent, which was not stated in the synopsis on Amazon or Goodreads, and I started to realize that this book wasn’t for me. At all.

Marisa is someone who I did enjoy in the beginning of the book. She has just lost her father, and while needing some breathing space from her uncle and brother she takes her horse for a ride and ends up in another dimension. Upon her arrival in a modern yet medieval dimension, she meets the friendly Arrie and the brooding, sexy Darian. They sweep her under their wings and take her on a journey across their land. The description of the places they visited and the perilous situations they found themselves in had me quickly flying through the pages.

But as the story progressed, Marisa became someone I struggled tolerating. We were told that in the past she was a leader, but I never once saw a glimpse of that version of her. Instead she became whiny, needy and was hot and cold more times than I could count. And while I tried my hardest to be forgiving since she did just lose her father, is in another dimension and is scared, she did something that I loathe. She became fickle and toyed with others feelings, and I can’t be ok with that. Skip this next part if you don’t want to be spoiled – View Spoiler » What? No, no, no. Oh, plus she refers to herself, while playing the part of a mute, as a dumb mute. Just because a mute can’t speak, doesn’t mean that they are dumb. Sigh, that irked me too.

So from those parts on, clearly I wasn’t the biggest fan of Marisa. But then the religious tone became more prevalent as the story progressed, and that is not my cup of tea. I was shocked because not only did I NOT see the Christian aspect mentioned within the synopsis on Goodreads or Amazon, but I also read the first two chapters on Amazon to make sure that this book and I would mesh. And we did mesh in those first two chapters! But then talk of God, or Garon as they referred to him in Carnelian, praying, and even a Shepard showing up made me question what was I reading? I am not one to pickup Christian books, and I definitely would have avoided this tale if I would have known what was inside.

So this book and I did not get along for various reasons. While I was initially drawn into the story, I found myself struggling to finish The Carnelian Legacy. While the traveling and friendships were fun, I couldn’t find it in myself to like Marisa again. Top that off with a religious theme and little mistakes here and there, such as a conversation being written to convey one thing but upon going back it clearly doesn’t make sense now that I understand the correct context, and this book and I were not destined to be.

*ARC kindly provided by Abbott Press via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

BOOK REVIEW: The Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler

October 7, 2015 / Chelsea / 1 Comment

The Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
The youngest of six talented sisters, Elyse d’Abreau was destined for stardom—until a boating accident took everything from her. Now, the most beautiful singer in Tobago can’t sing. She can’t even speak.

Seeking quiet solitude, Elyse accepts a friend’s invitation to Atargatis Cove. Named for the mythical first mermaid, the Oregon seaside town is everything Elyse’s home in the Caribbean isn’t: An ocean too cold for swimming, parties too tame for singing, and people too polite to pry—except for one.

Christian Kane is a notorious playboy—insolent, arrogant, and completely charming. He’s also the only person in Atargatis Cove who doesn’t treat Elyse like a glass statue. He challenges her to express herself, and he admires the way she treats his younger brother Sebastian, who believes Elyse is the legendary mermaid come to life.

When Christian needs a first mate for the Cove’s high-stakes Pirate Regatta, Elyse reluctantly stows her fear of the sea and climbs aboard. The ocean isn’t the only thing making waves, though—swept up in Christian’s seductive tide and entranced by the Cove’s charms, Elyse begins to wonder if a life of solitude isn’t what she needs. But changing course again means facing her past. It means finding her inner voice. And scariest of all, it means opening her heart to a boy who’s best known for breaking them . . .

When one dream burns to ash, you don’t crumble beneath it. You get on your hands and knees, and you sift through those ashes until you find the very last ember, the very last spark.
Then you breathe.
You breathe.
You fucking breathe.
And you make a new fire.

Oh dear sweet baby Jesus…this was just too good. You know when you start a book and you think, aw shit, this is so weird. Well…if ever a book started out oddly and made me emulate Anna’s french frown, this one was it. I don’t know about you guys, but I don’t know a whole lot about boat lingo and the sea and, well, you get the picture. But somewhere along the line *cough* CHRISTIAN *cough* I found it in myself just not to care.

I am a mermaid, goddess of the sea.

Midnight is upon me.
Her lover is near.
Death, come take me home.

And ya know…I even ended up loving reading about their journey of fixing up the boat. Sure, I didn’t know what they were talking about, but this was just such a small part of the book it didn’t hinder my experience. And, even more than that, it only added to the beautiful prose in which this was written. Now, I’m not going to lie, it won’t be for everyone. I love my books-everyone knows it-so I often read what I know I’ll love. But here’s the thing-My tastes change frequently and I never know what kind of weird books I’m going to pick up and love. Case in point-Yeah, this book had a hot male lead and two tortured main characters, but if you had handed me a story about boats and sailing centered in a town where mermaid folklore is part of everyday life a year ago, I’d have inwardly snarled but smiled oh-so-serenely and said, ‘thanks but no thanks.’
As ever, the ocean laughed behind me. My first great love. My endless torment. How could something I knew so well, something that had been such a part of me, betray me like that? How could such golden, shimmering things so quickly turn black?

What a short sighted fool I was. Because, let me tell you all something-this contemporary, despite it’s odd title and even odder plot (well, I guess it’s not that odd-maybe I’m the odd duck?), had some grit to it. Yeah, yeah, it’s about a tortured boy who’s father doesn’t accept he and his brother as they are-we’ve seen this before, right? I don’t care. Each story has it’s own taste, it’s own flavor, it’s own zest, and I felt, from page one (despite my raised eyebrows and french frown) that this one was different, it’s own special little island of misplaced plot.

Hush, hush, little one, she warned.
Everything you wish for
I will take.
Everything you’ve ever dared to love
is already mine.

I loved how there were little references to ‘The Little Mermaid’. The seashell necklace that Sebastian, Christian’s little brother and an adorable adventurer searching for the existence of real mermaids, claimed held Elyse’s voice, subtle little hints here and there of certain names I won’t mention, and even just the idea that something existed in the sea so far beyond our imagination and comprehension-How can you totally discount that?
“Don’t tell my old man,” Noah said. “I’ll have to deny it, say I’m interrogating her.”
“You won’t get anything out of her,” Christian said, nodding in my direction. “My girl here’s a vault.”
“Your girl?” Noah raised his eyebrows. “When did that-”
“She’s a girl.” Christian swigged his beer, sighed. “She’s my first mate. Simple.”
“But you said-”
“Stow it, Katz.”

Anyway, maybe it’s just me, but this story felt so much deeper than the blurb boasts. The poetic writing, the vivid explanations, the awesome setting, and an unlikely love that made my heart stop beating at some point (I might have flat-lined, who the hell knows, it was too damn hot) and my stomach erupt into thousands of butterflies. And, what’s so funny, it came out of nowhere. One minute, I’m in love with the book, naturally, and the next I’m in love with the damn thing. Like, I’d let it sleep next to me in bed I loved it so much. Perhaps I’m too easy, perhaps I look to love things from the very beginning, perhaps I just am a lover of love…but whatever the case, I’d like to think that each and every story earns a place in my little heart, and this one took residence deep in my soul.

With Christian, whenever we were together, whether it was working on the boat, breaking for lunch, inside Lemon’s store, or anywhere else our paths crossed, he looked at me. He focused on my lips as I tried to form words, he repeated them to ensure he’d understood. He read the words I’d written for him in my notebook, on his hands, on mine. He noticed me.
He saw me.

Elyse is, essentially, Ariel. She loses her voice to the sea, and even though it never really says, you can surmise as to what happened. She leaves her home country to stay in this little town, to escape the reality that her dreams are forever crushed and she’ll never sing-let alone speak-again. She stows away on a random boat she assumes is abandoned (she stays at a friend of the family’s home-or is it a distant cousin?? Sorry, that was at the beginning when I wasn’t sure wtf I was reading) and writes out all her thoughts, musings, poetic ramblings and short-comings onto the inside cabin of the boat. And then one night the owner of the boat catches her in there….and it’s no other than my boy, Christian Kane.
“Lucky day, Stowaway. I’m about to bust your fish-‘n’-chips virginity.” And there it was, the smile that I’d come to know so well. Not the real one, not the rare one. But the version that broke through the clouds whenever they threatened to get too thick, too heavy.
Whenever he didn’t want anyone to know he’d been hurt.

Christian!!! Gahd, if you can’t tell, I’m obsessed with him-and his little brother, for that matter!! Christian is, shockingly, tortured. Shhh. I know. It’s awesome, right?? lol And I’m so predictable, fangirling as per usual. Whatever….listen to his story before you judge (Anna, I’m side-eyeing your french frowning ass). So Christian’s dad…he squelches dreams. He pushes what he wants. No matter how much Christian wanted love as a child, he never received it, until finally he just didn’t care anymore…except that he does. And it hurts him that he and Sebastian are looked at so negatively. He loves Sebastian with all his heart, so he tries to encourage his dreams whereas his own were crushed. He races every year with his friend, Noah, in sailing. But this year, times are rough in their town and the mayor has proposed selling all the properties and adding condos to bring in revenue. This, naturally, crushes the town, but there’s a bet at stake (and without Christian or Noah’s consent). Christian’s father and the mayor have wagered that, if Christian wins, the town doesn’t sell and he gets Noah’s pride and joy-the boat. But if Noah wins, things go according to plan, crushing the town. So, once partners, they are now forced to race against one another for totally different things…and Christian’s father thinks he has no chance. Enter Elyse.

This is where fixing up the boat comes in. He and Elyse decide to rebuild the boat together even though she hasn’t been in the sea since her accident. She wants to help the town and the handsome, mysterious, heart-crushing, tattooed Stanford boy who will never be good enough for his father. She wants to win. She wants to prove everyone wrong who says a girl can’t sail during the race, and, after time, she suddenly realizes…she wants Christian.

Sometimes love was a tonic. Sometimes it was a weapon. And so often it was nearly impossible to tell the difference.

The romance was slow burn, only the best kind. But their relationship is deep, so much more than that. They are friends. They find solace and peace in one another. They speak (or write, in Elyse’s case) about things they can’t with anyone else. And, more than that, they end up finding themselves when they least expect it.
Just looking at him, a careful observer could see that he was there but not there, his thoughts in many places at once. Adrift, as I noticed earlier. But when he was with you, he was with you. In a shared moment, for however long it lasted-an instant, a minute, ten-he was the kind of guy who offered his undivided focus, no matter how many other girls might be in the room, no matter who he planned on taking home that night.
Clever? Yes. Cocky? Sure. But dismissive? Not part of his repertoire.

I don’t know if my ramblings helped, hindered, or completely changed your mind. Frankly? I don’t care. I never have time for long reviews anymore, so this fangirl review was for me. I loved this book so deeply with all my heart, and I hope that, in some way, I’ve convinced even one person to give it a try. But if not? At least I can find strength in the fact that I got to write a fun, happy review, and not some meh or whatever one. I love loving books, and I only hope my winning streak continues. I think many will find lots to love about this one, but it just needs to be given a chance. ♥

BOOK REVIEW: Dairy Queen (Dairy Queen #1) by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

October 1, 2015 / Chelsea / 0 Comments

Dairy Queen (Dairy Queen #1)
by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
When you don’t talk, there’s a lot of stuff that ends up not getting said.
Harsh words indeed, from Brian Nelson of all people. But, D. J. can’t help admitting, maybe he’s right.

When you don’t talk, there’s a lot of stuff that ends up not getting said.
Stuff like why her best friend, Amber, isn’t so friendly anymore. Or why her little brother, Curtis, never opens his mouth. Why her mom has two jobs and a big secret. Why her college-football-star brothers won’t even call home. Why her dad would go ballistic if she tried out for the high school football team herself. And why Brian is so, so out of her league.

When you don’t talk, there’s a lot of stuff that ends up not getting said.
Welcome to the summer that fifteen-year-old D. J. Schwenk of Red Bend, Wisconsin, learns to talk, and ends up having an awful lot of stuff to say.

That’s one advantage to not talking. After a while people stop talking back.

I swear, I swear to you….I am not a snob. Really!! Swear!! But come on…look at this cover. It’s a cow. In a tiara. With a blue sky in the background and named after a restaurant I love. What’s a girl to think when she sees this? Oh well, guess it’s a moot point…

Because this book was fabulous. (okay, I was guna use that GIF anyway because duh, friends, but it just worked out so well 😉 )
Basically what it came down to was that my life sucked. It sucked even more than it had before Brian showed up, because now I knew it.

This book, while funny and outwardly mocking in and of itself, was also surprisingly deep, full of values that aren’t always put first in a teenager’s life. D.J.’s voice is one that, while a little different at first, is one that I think many young girls could relate to. Hell, I could relate to it.

Think about it-No, I’m not a farmer, and no, I wasn’t totally socially awkward ever, but I had trouble finding my voice. And not everyone runs into this problem, I know that. But, hey, I grew up in the country, and I went to a school where driving your tractor there wouldn’t raise eyebrows. It was Hick City people. The kids were very kind, very well brought up for a public school, so it should come as no shock to you that when my parents ripped me out of that happy (and horrible academically wise) school away from all my friends just as I was getting my braces and figuring out who I was (thanks mom and dad, really), I had trouble finding my place at the elite schools in town. I bet you’re asking why they pulled me out. I’ll tell you why in a few words: Soccer program (as in, ours was nonexistent and I was REALLY GOOD) and academics. I couldn’t go into high school without a better level of academics and not knowing the in town program and it’s people and coaches. ANYWAY.
I hate it when people make fun of me and it turns out they’re right.

So, when I started in town at a tiny private school with a totally different grading scale and girls that were far more advanced than I in 7th grade, I found that I was standing on the outside of the circle with very little to say besides a literal smile and nod of the head for everything they deemed important. Ah, youth. I want to incinerate some of those moments. But that’s my whole point-I knew what I wanted to say, and I rarely agreed with what they were going on and on about. I had my own opinions, but I was both too shy and too backwards (at the time) to express them…so I just looked wild-eyed at them and nodded my head so as to fit in. Yeah. That worked out great. But, again, the point-I am just like D.J. in this instance…and I think many young girls are, as well.
How could a guy who was such a jerk, how could he act so nice?

And that’s why I loved this cute little story so much. Yeah, the writing was great and the boy was great (Brian!!!!) and it was so so funny…but I fell for D.J.. She’s this girl who thinks so little of herself, yet she’s so very strong and smart and determined. She has trouble expressing herself, even though she has so much to say. And I loved that. I loved her voice and her thoughtful sentences and the way she spoke to you as if you were a friend. It was a journey of discovering herself and finding out that not everybody is what you’d imagine them to be. And…most importantly, this chick tries out for football. And then she falls for the rival team’s quarterback. Be still my star-crossed heart.
I couldn’t help wondering if maybe it had something to do with me, like our water fight and all. But then I realized that I was totally stupid and there’s no way it could ever be about me, not in a million years, not if I was the only girl on the entire planet.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: What a weird concept. I know, I thought so too. But when she decides to try out for football, it actually became my favorite part…because, you know, she has to play that rival football team MUAHA! lol. I’m weird today. Anyway! She decides to train Brian all summer after some prompting from a family friend because she trained with her brothers who are now big names in college football. What starts out as reluctant training and working together on the farm becomes a highlight of each of their weeks, and something so much more.

The whole book D.J. is trying to prove her worth to herself, that she’s not just some cow that does what everybody says, and when she finally finds a purpose, playing football for her school’s team, it helps her to feel vindicated and strong and worthy of people’s admiration. I think that’s where my admiration came in for her…what a brave (and hilarious) thing to do.

I saw something I wanted to do and I decided to do it. The feeling of freedom this gave me-I can’t even describe it. It was my decision. I chose it. I am not a cow.

So, you know, despite my earlier trepidation of how this story would be, I got just as many feels from this as any other book: Angst, fear, butterflies, sadness, giddiness, family issues, this book had it all. Near the end my stomach was in such a big bundle of nerves I almost couldn’t sleep. And I guess that’s my other life lesson…you can’t judge a book by it’s cover. Sometimes you find the best stories with the worst covers…it just happens. But I’m sure I’ll continue to make that mistake…but I’ll do my best to shake the habit.

************************

Surprisingly deep with wonderful values…I can’t wait to read more of this series.

And, you know…

Just sayin’

RTC

BOOK REVIEW: Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway

September 30, 2015 / Chelsea / 1 Comment

Emmy & Oliver by Robin Benway
Purchase on: Amazon
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
Emmy’s best friend, Oliver, reappears after being kidnapped by his father ten years ago. Emmy hopes to pick up their relationship right where it left off. Are they destined to be together? Or has fate irreparably driven them apart?

Emmy just wants to be in charge of her own life.

She wants to stay out late, surf her favorite beach—go anywhere without her parents’ relentless worrying. But Emmy’s parents can’t seem to let her grow up—not since the day Oliver disappeared.

Oliver needs a moment to figure out his heart.

He’d thought, all these years, that his dad was the good guy. He never knew that it was his father who kidnapped him and kept him on the run. Discovering it, and finding himself returned to his old hometown, all at once, has his heart racing and his thoughts swirling.

Emmy and Oliver were going to be best friends forever, or maybe even more, before their futures were ripped apart. In Emmy’s soul, despite the space and time between them, their connection has never been severed. But is their story still written in the stars? Or are their hearts like the pieces of two different puzzles—impossible to fit together?

Readers who love Sarah Dessen will tear through these pages with hearts in throats as Emmy and Oliver struggle to face the messy, confusing consequences of Oliver’s father’s crime. Full of romance, coming-of-age emotion, and heartache, these two equally compelling characters create an unforgettable story.

I guess the more you start to love someone, the more you ache when they’re gone, and maybe it’s that middle ground that hurts the most, when you can see them and still not feel like you’re near enough. So close and yet so far.

Absolutely too cute for words. Deep, heartfelt, unforgettable.

Sometimes I could slap myself for being so shortsighted. And, just to warn you, I’ll probably even say that on tomorrow’s review….I just have this mental block that prevents me from taking a risk, taking chances that might help me find some of the best stories ever-and this is one I almost missed out on.

It’s pretty clear I poach all my ideas off Anna (well, 90% of them) and generally come out on top. I can tout and say it’s because I’m picky…well, hey, I really am…but a lot of my choices wouldn’t even exist without Anna saying, hey, check this one out. So, you know, this is my way of saying that, while I say I’m creative…I’m really not. And this book?? It was absolute perfection.
Sometimes there just aren’t enough words to fill the crack in your heart.

When I read the blurb for this, ~~I passed it up multiple times~~ I guess I didn’t realize just how…difficult??…a story like this could be. It seemed simple enough-Boy gets taken by his father. Mother is devastated. Emmy and her friends are scarred for life, always waiting for him to return. Boy returns when he’s 17. Emmy and Oliver fall in love. Simple…right? Wrong.
Oliver looked up at me, his face solemn and pained, and I realized with a terrible rush we weren’t playing anymore. “Colleen,” he said, “coming home feels like being kidnapped all over again.”

If you were a kid and everything you knew was flipped around, your world titled on its axis, how would you react? Well, we don’t technically know. He was gone, stolen away from all those he cherished and loved. One can assume that he was confused and missed his mother and friends, only to eventually fall into a rhythm with his dad and delve into to his new life. So…I guess this leaves you wondering-If you were stripped of your life, everything you knew-not just once, but twice-how would you fare?

And then Oliver blinked again and it was like a shutter went off in his own eyes so I could see the picture of the anger, the hurt, the embarrassment. It was a private viewing just for me, gone a second later when he blinked once more and his face smoothed back into its normal, passive shape.

And I think that’s the largest issue in this book-Finding your place, struggling to wrap your head around new people, leaving all you know behind..it’s actually so sad when you think about it. And I think that’s why I was so shocked-and yes, I was very shocked by the depth of this book. Even from page one, which hooked me instantly by the way, it seemed light and funny and sweet. And, even with the darkness that creeped into the story sometimes, there was no lack of heartfelt moments and hilarious banter. And hey! There was some cheese, I’ll admit it. Wonderful, yummy, happy velveeta cheese-But only the best kind of cheese.
“Those look painful,” Oliver commented, trying to avoid Caro digging her heel into his shoulder. “Why does everything you do look like it hurts?”
“Because!” Caro huffed with a final shove. “You guys want us to look natural and there’s nothing natural about looking natural.”
I could see the confusion cross Oliver’s face and stifled my own smile.
“Those shoes don’t look natural,” Oliver pointed out.
“Yes, but they’re three-inch heels, which make me look like I’m an average height of five five. See?” She explained. “Natural.”

Okay!! My favorite part-The relationship. Emmy was devastated by the disappearance of Oliver. She might have even taken it harder than most even realized. They were partners in crime, best friends…in like with one another. You know how kids are 😛 . So when he comes back with more height, a different head of hair, a new look to him, and a dark cloud hanging over his head…she realizes he’s not the little boy that left all those years ago.

“Oh, riiiiight,” I said, knocking myself in the head and grinning like an idiot. “I’m sorry, I totally forgot.”
“That’s okay,” he replied. “Just adds to my rebel image. New guy in school, mysterious past, being held back a grade.” He smiled at me. “Girls like it.”
“Really?”
“Oh yeah.” He smiled wider. “That’s why I’m eating lunch with all these people.”
I laughed despite myself and then he laughed, too, a familiar sound that I hadn’t heard in years. His laugh was deeper now, but still Oliver’s, as unique as a double helix. Or a fingerprint.

Emmy starts to reach out to him, this kid who made national news and is now a social outcast because of it. Alone more often than not, he’s feeling angry, dejected, depressed that he is being thrown back into a life everyone remembers but him-all his old friends, the inside jokes, the memories they shared. But as Emmy begins to integrate him into her life, and her two best friends’ lives (they used to be a foursome), he starts to smile, laugh, joke, live…and he’s beginning to ache for the ten years they all lost.
“Quick question,” Oliver said as he scanned the horizon. “What is the shark population like around here?”
I blinked at him. “Are you being serious right now?”
“I don’t know.” He laughed nervously. “No. Yes. Maybe? Sharks?”
I sighed. “There are no sharks here.”
“Do you mean ‘here’ as in the ‘Pacific Ocean’ or…?”

I loved this cast of characters. They were so funny and realistic and you never felt like the conversations were fake or forced for the sake of being ‘hip’. This author made an authentic story with real conversations and real situations. I never once rolled my eyes or thought it was trying too hard. The friendships, the drama, the fights…they were so palpable I wanted to reach out and swirl my hand in their tangible depths. And, even more than that, I wanted to hug my poor little Oliver, who always felt lost and alone.
Tortured, lost, devastated, Oliver has never felt more alone. As he and Emmy become closer, we begin to see his playful side, his happy side-but he never quite knows what to do. His mom searched for him for years, and now she has him…in her new life. He doesn’t know where he fits and feels like he’s disrupting her-and everyone else’s-life. We see the emotional turmoil he goes through trying to find his place…and trying to sort through his lingering emotions of missing his dad, even when he knows he did something horribly wrong.
That’s when I first learned about true frustration, that wrenching ache when the thing that matters most to you barely makes a ripple in other people’s lives.

This story is one that took me completely by surprise. It’s not because I didn’t think it would be good-from page one you could tell it would be fabulous-but I didn’t realize just how many emotions I-or they-would feel. I started this book during a terrible week. And even at the worst of times, I’d pick this up and would immediately get butterflies, smile like a loon, and start laughing in the quiet of night-disturbing hubbs repeatedly. This book is wonderful, one to truly cherish and never forget. WHEN I get the hardback, I’m going to hug it close…and be all creepy and snuggle with it. Whoops. I only hope that others will give this fantastic book a chance. I swear it will make you feel as light as air.

*Note: I have to say something I missed on the review: Oliver was always supportive for Emmy…no matter what. And he never got mad at her. He was so adorable and supportive. Anyway. Forgot that. Whoops again.