Tag: Contemporary Romance (Page 64 of 98)

BOOK REVIEW: Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

September 4, 2015 / Chelsea / 0 Comments

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I’m allergic to the world. I don’t leave my house, have not left my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla.

But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He’s tall, lean and wearing all black—black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly.

Maybe we can’t predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

In the beginning there was nothing. And then there was everything.

There are very few things in this world that I take for granted. I have always had a better-than-I-ever-could-have-imagined life, that has never been a secret, but I didn’t act….spoiled….I guess. I always knew that I had super cool parents and unheard of privileges-I loved it, and I never forgot that. But one thing that I absolutely, positively, definitely took for granted…was life. Breathing fresh air, walking outside, hearing birds chirp and trees rustle as the cool breeze brushed my skin in autumn…I won’t lie-Those things?? Those are the most beautiful things in the world-Fall especially, seeing as it’s my favorite season-and I took every crisp breath of fresh air for granted.

Life is a gift. Am I wasting mine?

Not many kids, teenagers, sometimes even adults, realize how amazing their lives-however significant or insignificant they think it is-are. We walk onto our front porch, stretch, sit in a rocking chair looking out into our yard, the woods, a field, whatever we may see, and sip our coffees (or in my case, a soda, preferably Coke or Mountain Dew) and wipe the sleep from our eyes without even thinking about how beautiful this recurring gift is. We hug our dogs, puppies, sons, daughters, families….and think it’s a certainty. It’s not. Each day is a gift, and we often forget to acknowledge it….But Madeline knows the cost of living-and her price is solitude. And oh, what she wouldn’t give to have what we have-even for just five minutes.
I keep thinking about the summer I turned eight. I spent so many days with my forehead pressed against my glass window, bruising myself with my futile wanting. At first I just wanted to look out the window. But then I wanted to go outside. And then I wanted to play with the neighborhood kids, to play with all the kids everywhere, to be normal for just an afternoon, a day, a lifetime.

I think my long introduction has a lot to do with me coming to terms with how amazing my life is-and can be. I complain a lot, you know? It might be human nature, it might just be me, I don’t know. But, every once in a while, I get these small bouts of gratitude where, just for a moment, just a brief, tiny moment, I thank God for everything I have and become mushy and nostalgic as I think about my family, my two little pups (added a new addition this weekend!), and my lovely-most-of-the-time husband. I even find myself quoting my favorite movie (not the book, don’t get it twisted): ‘It’s a beautiful life -insert husband name here or whomever you wish- Hazel Grace’…though, I find it comical to say Hazel Grace because…I’m weird and it annoys the hubbs. As a little girl, when people asked me what I wanted to do, I knew. I would say: I want to be married and have babies and be a stay at home mom who also works for her dad (however THAT was going to work out). I know…not too exciting, right? Well, it was to me.
For the first time in a long time, I want more than I have.

It was what I wanted…and things don’t always work out as we plan. Had it been my decision, I’d have married my high school sweetheart during college-or hey, right after-and we’d have a baby by now and a big, beautiful house. But these things take time, and life isn’t about planning everything out piece-by-piece. I got my Happily-Ever-After….My house, my puppies (still working on stubborn ass for part two), my job with my dad plus more, and, after 10 years of dating, my husband-Moves like a snail, that one. But it didn’t happen as I had planned or when I wanted it to-that’s life. Anyway, my point in all this is that Madeline didn’t get these moments, these rare opportunities. Life hands us a deck of cards, but we don’t totally get to decide how they are dealt and where they are distributed. Maddie didn’t get to see the world, she didn’t get to meet other kids growing up-She dreamed of a better life, of a larger world than outside her house…but that’s literally all it could be: A dream.

Madeline: I’m not a princess.
Madeline: And I don’t need rescuing.
Olly: that’s ok. i’m no prince
Madeline: You think I’m pretty?
Olly: for a fairytale ghost spy princess? definitely

I think this book hit me so hard because it was so unexpected. I requested it months and months ago on Netgalley, and I wanted it more than my next breath…but I didn’t get it-I even got denied twice. I mean…ouch. So I waited. And I waited. And I waited some more. And when this finally appeared on my IPad’s library…I stopped the series I was in the middle of and immediately began EE. Needless to say that, while it was cute and I found it very sweet, I wasn’t in love with it like I had thought I would be-Talk about your very soul aching. I had thought this was going to be the book-I was so disappointed.
Sometimes you do things for the right reasons and sometimes for the wrong ones and sometimes it’s impossible to tell the difference.

But then something happened-SOMETHING HUGE-not even in the story, really. All of a sudden I hit a part where, as my friend so astutely pointed out, I started to care not only about the two main characters individually, but as a couple. Olly and Maddie came to life for me-their reactions, their heartache, their struggle hurt me almost as much as it hurt them. It felt as if someone had taken a bag of feels-literally, a bag of GD feels-and socked me in the stomach with them at full force. I couldn’t breathe, I was tearing up (for real, this rarely happens), and I was so invested in them that I couldn’t bear for any more problems to arise, causing them irreparable sadness. I suddenly knew that everything I questioned, everything I wasn’t sure of…..I knew it was just the way it was meant to be and given a second chance to read this, I wouldn’t change a thing-Not one thing. It hit me out of nowhere and I was caught in their adorably tangled web of IM Messaging, window writing, sporadic meeting, and brief glimpses through two panes of glass-Only one house away but as vast as an ocean separating two continents.
He takes a deep breath. “In my head I know I’ve been in love before, but it doesn’t feel like it. Being in love with you is better than the first time. It feels like the first time and the last time and the only time all at once.”

Maddie, Madeline, or Mads, as Olly calls her, has a very rare disease where, well, I guess I’m kind of confused on, but the point is she can’t leave her house, have contact with anyone aside from her mother, caretaker, tutor, or anyone on the approved list-She especially can’t meet that boy next door…that beautiful, funny, tortured, and clever boy next door. But it’s not because of his lack of trying.

One thing I’m certain of: Wanting just leads to more wanting. There’s no end to desire.

Olly moves in next door near the beginning of the book. I can’t say much. All I can say is that his family has their own demons and Mads sees all….It doesn’t take long for the two to realize how much they crave the other’s thoughts and company…seeing as their bedroom windows (conveniently) face each other only three feet or so apart. I loved Olly…but I didn’t luuuuurrrvvvv Olly until a certain point. I’m not going to say more….I will only admonish that he is supportive, kind, sad, loyal, protective, and…hmm…curious. Despite the risks, despite the warnings, he is curious. Even when, in his heart, he knows he should stay away, he still can’t let their interactions go. He craves her laughter, her voice, her thoughts, even as everything can only end in heartbreak for both of them.
Madeline: Yes. I have a solution to our problem.
Olly: listening
Madeline: Let’s agree to just be friends, ok?
Olly: ok
Olly: but no more checking out my muscles
Madeline: Friends, Olly!
Olly: and my eyes
Madeline: No more talking about my freckles.
Madeline: And my hair.
Olly: and your lips
Madeline: And your dimple.
Olly: you like my dimple?
Madeline: Friends!
Olly: ok

Inevitably, the two fools fall in love. And naturally, being the fool that I am, I foolishly fell in love with the fact that they fell in love. And I can’t explain it for you guys, I really can’t, because this was a three until a certain important, pivotal, ground-breaking part….But at that point it all just clicked and the light bulb switched on and I became a hard core fangirl, hehe shocking, and it was all history from there. I was texting people frantically, I was freaking out over things I had read in reviews (sigh, don’t read reviews, people, bad advertising!!!!), and the knots in my stomach were growing larger and larger and the tears were coming more and more frequently….until eventually my heart was shred in two.
He pulls me into his arms and we’re wrapped around each other, his face buried in my hair and my face pressed into his chest, no daylight between our bodies.
“Don’t die,” he says.
“I won’t,” I say back.

I can’t say this book is perfect-far from it-but it was….it was perfect for me. I had wanted to read it for months. I was almost obsessed in my quest to get this novel in my hands…and then when I finally had it, I almost became disappointed. How can anything come of such cuteness? Well, I’ll tell ya-Young love is a powerful thing. It can move mountains, if only because teenagers are so stubborn, and it can make a desperate attempt at keeping someone alive a failed experiment in two seconds flat…if only because you are willing to risk it all for love.
He’s much too smart to fall for this, but he wants it to be true. He wants it to be true more than he wants the truth. The smile that breaks across his face is cautious, but so beautiful that I can’t look away. I would lie to him again for that smile.

That was a common theme in this book, and Madeline is faced with so many choices that can make or break her-literally. And once she met Olly, everything changed: Her world was blown to bits and flipped upside down. Life is about the choices we make, who we are and who we want to become. Life is precious. Life is short. We only have one life to live…But are you really living if you aren’t willing to ever take any risks? I guess Madeline found out what her life was worth….Have you?

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

It was Everything I didn’t expect,
It was Everything I asked for.
It was Everything that mattered,
It was Everything and so much more.

Guys, I didn’t expect to love this book once I started. I was so unsure….but then something happened…something that changed it all. And of all a sudden-BAM! The tears, the feels, the longing, the heartache…the
hope
.

Review to come.

BOOK REVIEW – Fall with Me (Wait for You #4) by J. Lynn, Jennifer L. Armentrout

September 1, 2015 / Jen / 0 Comments

Fall with Me (Wait for You #4)
by J. Lynn, Jennifer L. Armentrout
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
Eleven months ago, bartender and weird-shirt-wearing extraordinaire Roxy and Officer Reece Anders had a one night stand. Well, kind of. She’s been in love with him since she was fifteen, and he wishes that night they shared never happened. She’s sworn him off forever, but the past and future collide, forcing her to rely on the one man who broke her heart not once, but twice.

Her best friend since birth has been in a long-term care facility since he became a victim of a hate crime years ago, and the person who put him in there is out of prison and wanting to make amends with him and Roxy. She’s not sure she has room for forgiveness in her and when she begins to receive frightening messages and is on the receiving end of escalating violence, she thinks she knows who is to blame. The man who already destroyed one life already.

But Reece isn’t convinced. The threats are too personal, and even if Roxy doesn’t believe him, he’s not willing to let anyone hurt her. Including himself. He’s already messed up more than once when it comes to Roxy and he’s not going to let history repeat itself.

Review:

Fall With Me was fun, sexy and charming! I always enjoyed the scenes in the previous book with Roxy. She worked at the bar that is owned by Jax and was a true friend to Calla. She helped her out and always came across as funny and cute. But I noticed every time that Reece, who is a cop and friend of Jax, would enter the bar, Roxy would try her hardest to avoid him. I wanted to get to the bottom of what happened between the two of them. And my oh my, the details of their past was shocking, fun, and I was rooting for them the whole time!

I wasn’t going to think about any hard things, unless those hard things were a part of Reece’s anatomy.
I smacked a hand over my mouth, but a giggle escaped nonetheless.

Roxy and Reece are childhood friends who seemed to take it too far one night. Their past has haunted the both of them, but for entirely different reasons. But not everything can stay in the past forever. Especially when you have their chemistry! Their banter was scorching hot! Heck, even when they were in the same room together, it was beyond clear that they belonged together.

One never knew when their life was about to be irrevocably altered. There was no warning. If anything, it always came when everything was calm and good.

But while the story may sound light and happy, muahahaha, it is not! Fall With Me has a subtle creepiness to it that sneaks into the pages. It started to make me second guess the noises I was hearing and my surroundings. Of course I read this book at night, which was the wrong decision. That lingering creepy feeling had me walking around my dark house just so I could check my doors and windows to verify that yes everything was locked. Because I knew that paranoid feeling wouldn’t go away until I was certain that nothing could touch me. But after checking my house, that feeling didn’t go away. That’s because I kept thinking that this could happen to anyone. To you or me. And that was insanely unsettling.

“No. Seriously. That’s not a ‘nothing.’ I don’t ever want to hear my sister’s name and the word pole in the same sentence that involves dancing.” Cam glanced at Katie, wielding a slotted spatula, causing Jacob to sidestep a spittle of grease. “No offense.”
She shrugged a shoulder . “None taken. Only the few and the proud can handle it.”
I scrunched my nose. “Isn’t that the Marines’ motto?”
“Yes,” sighed Reece.

In the mix was also all of the characters that I have fallen in love with in the previous books. I loved watching them interact with Roxy and Reece! And while all of that was fun, one of my favorite things about this book was Reece. Reece was crazy sexy. He was demanding yet caring. He was protective yet understanding. He was one of those take charge guys who could easily make you melt. And when Roxy described his SWAT team outfit, oh my gosh. Soooo hot. Unbelievably hot.

So of course I had fun reading this book. I quickly flew though the pages. Friends, humor, sexiness and hot scenes? Yes please! But there was an undercurrent of seriousness that was within this story. And now that I’ve had a day to think about it, I am so glad this issue was present in Fall With Me. Because it seems as though so many books gloss over the seriousness of this issue or portray it as something that you should desire. But in real life, it isn’t. At all. I am so thankful that I read Roxy and Reece’s story, and I hope that they make appearances in the future books in this series. Especially if Reece is wearing his SWAT uniform!

Reading Order & Links: Amazon (click on covers), iBooks (click on titles) & Book Depository (click on book #) *Each book can be read as a standalone, but best enjoyed in order.*
Wait for You #1 Reviews: Chelsea	Trust in Me #1.5 Cam's POV-Wait for You Reviews: Jen	Be with Me #2 Reviews: Jen
Stay with Me #3 Reviews: Jen Chelsea	Fall with Me #4 Reviews: Jen	Dream of You #4.5 Reviews: Jen
Forever with You #5 Reviews: Jen	Fire in You #6 Reviews: Jen

BOOK TOUR + REVIEW + GIVEAWAY – Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne

August 26, 2015 / Chelsea / 2 Comments

Lauren Layne has not-so-slowly became my absolute favorite author. From the first book I picked up and the many that followed, I have never once read a story that hasn't made me smile in contentment and sigh with satisfaction. Each and every character she creates is unique and quirky, always burrowing a permanent place in my heart. If you haven't read a story by this amazing author, you are missing out on a truly enriching and heart-warming experience. When you pick up a Lauren Layne book, you know that, if nothing else, you will be smiling and laughing all day as the warm fuzzies envelop you. We are so glad to be a part of the Blurred Lines tour and hope you choose to give this one a try-Look below to see my review, a giveaway, and a hilarious excerpt from this beautiful novel.

BOOK TOUR + REVIEW + GIVEAWAY – Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne

Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
In a novel that’s perfect for fans of Abbi Glines and Jessica Sorensen, USA Today bestselling author Lauren Layne delivers a sexy take on the timeless question: Can a guy and a girl really be “just friends”?

When Parker Blanton meets Ben Olsen during her freshman year of college, the connection is immediate—and platonic. Six years later, they’re still best friends, sharing an apartment in Portland’s trendy Northwest District as they happily settle into adult life. But when Parker’s boyfriend dumps her out of the blue, she starts to wonder about Ben’s no-strings-attached approach to dating. The trouble is, even with Ben as her wingman, Parker can’t seem to get the hang of casual sex—until she tries it with him.

The arrangement works perfectly . . . at first. The sex is mind-blowing, and their friendship remains as solid as ever, without any of the usual messy romantic entanglements. But when Parker’s ex decides he wants her back, Ben is shocked by a fierce stab of possessiveness. And when Ben starts seeing a girl from work, Parker finds herself plagued by unfamiliar jealousy. With their friendship on the rocks for the first time, Parker and Ben face an alarming truth: Maybe they can’t go back. And maybe, deep down, they never want to.

Review – An adamant 5 stars!

We begin walking, and the tension seems to fade, and I think we’re back to normal. Back to where we should be.

But then…
Ben slowly reaches out a hand toward me, and I’m confused right up until the moment his fingers brush mine.
The gesture is tentative. Sweet. And maybe just a little desperate for something that neither of us want to name.
Ben-my best friend in the whole world-is holding my hand.

Sigh. I’m biased. So so sooo biased…except I’m not. Every time I go to pick up another Lauren Layne novel, I get extremely nervous. I’ve even gotten to the point where I don’t even read them as soon as I get the ARC (‘cuz you know I’m a stalker for that shit) because I am excruciatingly nervous that ‘this book will be the LL book that doesn’t do it for me.’ Imagine that-My favorite author writing a book that doesn’t make me swoon or giggle or cry. That would surely be the end of me. So, while this book sounded EXACTLY like what I needed, I didn’t rush to read it right away when I received it. I’m weird like that. But, when my two great buddies asked me to read this with them, I literally couldn’t say no. I mean, I can’t say no to an LL book, right? They picked it up and were so excited….but lo and behold, guess who came out of this one with the largest smile on their face and no regrets?? That would be moi…naturally.

BL_Teaser01

When I saw this was a story about friends with benefits, I knew that it would either go strongly one way or the other: I’d either love it or hate it. I’ve never been huge on friends-to-lovers romance-it’s just not something I seek out. I don’t dislike it, per se, but I mostly enjoy when the people don’t know each other at first. But, from the moment I picked this up, I knew it was a winner. I was laughing, smiling, and had so many feels just from two chapters. The dialogue, AS ALWAYS, was so realistic and on point that I could barely contain my ridiculous urges to bust out laughing. The characters were people that I immediately became obsessed with, which isn’t that easy to do-I’m so picky with my leads. And the story was just extremely…lighthearted and effortless. The most genius thing about Layne’s novels isn’t that her stories are as sweet as cotton candy-it’s that within that fluff there are real emotions and tough situations that never fail to make my heart ache and my eyes to well up. The angst is never over done and there is just enough that you don’t feel like you are reading a snooze-fest of a happy book (Because, come on, admit it-books with zero angst these days barely stand a chance-we lubbs the drama). And while my two ~~cynical Sally~~ wonderful wonderful friends found more that aggravated them with the characters and their decisions than joy, I thought it was perfection. But don’t I always?

She’s already moving up the stairs. “Suddenly that D you got in biology is making total sense. You apparently missed the entire section on how hormones work.”
“It just so happens that biology is a specialty of mine,” I call up the stairs.
“Earlier today, you didn’t know what the uterus was,” she calls back.
“I knew,” I mutter.
Mostly.

And here’s what’s funny about that: It’s not like I go in all balls to the wall and say, ‘No matter what, I’m giving this a 5-I mean, it’s Lauren Layne!’ No. I actually am the opposite. I am a fair reviewer and I go in with an open mind for each and every story for each and every author. I don’t play favorites-My mind is strong. But I can’t help what the heart wants.

I feel like Lauren Layne takes thoughts directly from my mind and writes exactly like I would if I had even a little ability to do so. She inserts humor in the most wonderful places to soften harsh blows and….Sigh. Will there ever be a universe where I’m not obsessed with LL? I don’t think that’s possible. Which makes me wonder-I have no idea why 20,000 people don’t jump on this woman’s books immediately upon release. I don’t get it. Certain authors, and I certainly won’t say who, release a book and all of a sudden there isn’t one person on my feed who isn’t reading it-and the sad thing is, I think [some of] these authors don’t have half the heart that Layne does. But that’s just me.

I hold her. I pet her hair. I let her soak my T-shirt with her tears, and supply her with ample tissues to cry into. (She’s not a dainty cryer, this one.)
Whatever the cause, the tears always rip at me a little bit, like there’s this pressure on my chest that I don’t know how to relieve. I mean, all girls’ tears do that.
But Parker’s especially. She’s my girl.

Ben. Oh. Em. Gee. Ben. I didn’t know how I’d feel about my boy at first…but from the minute he held Parker as she bawled uncontrollably, I was hooked. He was mine. I’d totally be his. Even with all of his man-whorish ways, he still always put Parker first-always. Call me a sucker, but Ben Olsen pushed all the right buttons. Best friends from college on, he never let a girl get between him and the person that made him happier than any guy friend could. To sum up?? Ben made my heart flutter and my soul soar…And he really didn’t have to do anything but defend Parker. Man oh man I have problems.

And then there was Parker. A lot of people, from what I can tell, didn’t like Parker and the way she handled many situations. I, on the other hand, felt connected to her. I felt like she was a super realistic character-And I know, I know we all like ‘flawed’ characters and we expect certain behavior, but I don’t think readers really all mean it when they say that. Because, yes, Parker was flawed. She had some issues when it came to making decisions and not being a total hypocrite-she was-but here is the kicker: So am I. A lot of you people might not like me that much if you really knew me, considering I can’t make a decision to save my life. And I am a total hypocrite. What’s good for the goose is certainly not good for the gander, for me, sometimes. I am so bad about that. And I know I’m being a tad extreme comparing myself to this character, but I’m trying to prove a point. Layne’s scenarios are completely realistic, at least to me, because not one of us is perfect. And I know in books we don’t want to read about ourselves, but just look at it from every perspective, ya know?

“There is too a rule about shirts in the kitchen,” I insist. “House rule number fourteen. Speaking of which, where are my house rules?”
“Hard to say,” he says, opening the fridge and glancing at it’s meager offerings before pouring a cup of coffee instead. “But I may have used them to mop up OJ the other day. Or maybe as a coaster for my beer.” He snapped his fingers. “Oh wait, no, I remember. I just plain threw them away the old-fashioned way.”

So…yeah. Another huge win for me. And it’s so shocking to me this isn’t more popular than it is, already, because this might be my absolute favorite by her. But, I say that a lot about her books. That says a lot about this author: No matter how many times I say nothing will ever top one of her books I just read, I always come out at the end of a new book gushing and proclaiming my love for it. So….as I was desperately hiding in the bathroom on my husband’s birthday trying to finish this beautiful, fantastic book, I realized how far I would go to get more Lauren Layne-Making time where there is none (seeing as how I was supposed to be done a half hour prior). So, Lauren, can we please have lunch sometime? I know we’d be the BEST of friends. Seriously. Besties. Call me. 😛

BL_Teaser05

Buy Now!

Amazon | B & N | iTunes | Kobo

Excerpt

Most of the time, having a girl for a best friend is awesome.
Among the highlights:
(1) My color-blind self never has to worry about going out the door looking like a sad clown.
(2) The Brita water filter is always replaced on time.
(3) Parker actually likes doing laundry for fun, and she only complains when I sneak my stuff in with hers about 30 percent of the time.
Oh, and as this morning’s adventure displayed, she’s an excellent excuse when a person needs to rid himself of clingy one-night stands.
But then there are the not-so-great parts. Like when she’s spent thirty-five minutes looking at lamps.
“Just get that one,” I say, lifting my arm to point at a random floor lamp as the noisy, child-filled scariness that is IKEA threatens to choke me.
She barely glances at the one I’ve selected. “It looks like a uterus.”
“What the fuck does a uterus look like?”
“Like that lamp. And honestly, for as much time as you spend rummaging around in women’s panties, you really should get familiar with their parts.”
“Isn’t the uterus the—” I break off, looking for the right word to describe the random memories from eighth-grade sex-ed class.
Parker lifts her eyebrows. “The baby cave?”
Like any normal guy would, I wince. “Christ. Why would I need to know about that? I use a condom.”
“Several of them, judging from the state of your bedroom,” she says, tilting her head to study the lime green lamp shade in her hands. “Do you think this would clash with my bedspread?”
“You’re asking the color-blind guy? Like I have any clue what color your bedspread is.”
“Seriously? Don’t act like you’ve never seen it. Two nights ago you flopped onto my bed in your sweaty gym clothes and it took me two washes to remove the man stank.”
I shake my head. “Poor Lance. Do you make him wear a plastic bag when you guys hook up so he doesn’t get his man stank on your sheets?”
“Lance doesn’t have man stank.”
I frown. “Hold up. If I have man stank, Lance has man stank.”
“No.”
I open my mouth to argue, but instead I shrug. That’s another thing you learn having a girl best friend. You pick your battles.
“You have two more minutes to pick your lamp,” I say. “I’m starving.”
Parker adjusts her purse strap on her shoulder. “Oh, I’m not buying a lamp. I was just browsing.”
I inhale deeply to rein in my women suck rampage when I catch her smirk.
“Oh, I get it,” I say as we move toward the end of the store where we’ll pick up my dresser. “This is payback. You’re mad because I made up that story about you having a creepy doll collection.”
“Actually, it was more punishment for destroying the house rules. I’m totally laminating them next time.”
“Or you could just create an online version and keep them in the cloud like normal people born after 1980.”
I see a little lightbulb go on in her head and almost regret giving her the idea. Not that it matters much. I’ve never really followed her fussy rules anyway, although for the most part I try to not be too much of a dick. The towel incident this morning notwithstanding, it’s like I said, Parker loves laundry. I knew she had extra clean ones stashed away.
“Seriously, don’t get that color finish,” she says, shaking her head at the dresser box I’m about to pull off the shelf.
“Wood is wood,” I say with a shrug, starting to maneuver the huge box onto our flat cart.
“No, there’s old-man wood and there’s modern wood.”
I raise my eyebrows. “Old-man wood, huh? You and your kinky fetishes. Do you make the dolls watch?”
She ignores me, and uses her hip to push the box I’d started to move back onto its shelf. “That one.” She points.
“Espresso?” I ask, reading the label.
But Parker is now typing away on her phone. I shrug, pushing her out of the way so I can get at the box she indicated.
“How about tacos?” she asks, glancing up briefly from her phone.
“I just had Mexican last night,” I say through a grunt as I move the box into position.
“You said I could pick.” She gives me a challenging look, her goldish brown eyes practically daring me to argue with her.
“If it was a unilateral decision, why’d you even ask?”
“Unilateral. Good word. And it was a test. You passed,” she says, trotting to catch up with me as she replaces her phone in her purse. “So how did you and Airhead meet? The Beta Phi party last night? She looked like she was eighteen.”
“Airhead?” I ask.
“It was written on her pants. Literally.”
“Oh, right. Those weren’t her pants. Lindsay left them last week.”
She makes a disgusted face as she pulls her long dark hair into a messy bun. I don’t notice most things about Parker as a girl, because, ya know, it’s just Parker, but she does have some damn good hair. It’s all Victoria’s Secret model–-like, long and dark with lightish streaks running through it.
The rest of her is kind of Victoria’s Secret-ish, too, but other than an initial moment of whoa when we first met, there’s never really been anything between us. I guess you could say I like her too much.
That and she’s dating Lance, and I like the guy. I mean, we’re not best friends or anything, but it’s impossible to live with Parker and not have some sort of friendship with her significant other.
Lance and I stop short of braiding each other’s hair, but we watch games together on occasion. I’d never make a move on his girl—even if I wanted Parker.
Which I don’t.
“So let me get this straight,” she says, as I swipe my credit card through the self-checkout machine. “One of your booty calls leaves her pants, which is weird, by the way, and then a week later, an underclassman sorority girl willingly puts them on?”
I shrug and give her a look out of the corner of my eye. “What’s wrong with that?”
Parker closes her eyes and sort of scratches at her eyebrow. “You don’t tell your mother any of this, do you?”
“Sure, we actually have a family blog, and I list my sexual activity for the week every Sunday. Is that weird?”
She ignores me, pulling out her phone again.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the author – Lauren Layne

Lauren Layne is the 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

hjjk

Follow the tour on Tasty Book Tours!

BOOK REVIEW – Last First Kiss (Brightwater #1) by Lia Riley

August 25, 2015 / Anna

Last First Kiss (Brightwater #1)
by Lia Riley
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
A kiss is only the beginning...

Pinterest Perfect. Or so Annie Carson’s life appears on her popular blog. Reality is... messier. Especially when it lands her back in one-cow town, Brightwater, California, and back in the path of the gorgeous six-foot-four reason she left. Sawyer Kane may fill out those wranglers, but she won’t be distracted from her task. Annie just needs the summer to spruce up and sell her family’s farm so she and her young son can start a new life in the big city. Simple, easy, perfect.

Sawyer has always regretted letting the first girl he loved slip away. He won’t make the same mistake twice, but can he convince beautiful, wary Annie to trust her heart again when she’s been given every reason not to? And as a single kiss turns to so much more, can Annie give up her idea of perfect for a forever that’s blissfully real.

DNF @74% – I swear, I’ve done my best, but I must surrender.

So very meh. Look, my 2-stars rating makes me feel as if I was kicking a puppy, because there’s nothing really awful in this book, and yet it was a complete miss for me. Let’s see what we have, okay?

✔ a non-raging male-lead, Sawyer, perfect if nice cowboys sheriffs who want to take charge of everything are your thing (definitely not mine : I might suffer from the opposite of uniform fantasies – I can’t help, cops, firemen and the likes rub me the wrong way). Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that he’s controlling, no, he is nice, but if I like nice guys (I really do), the fact is… he never made my heart beat faster … or something. I’m sorry Sawyer, it’s not you, it’s me.

✔ an heroine who reminds me of my mum. Kind of : she gives names to birds, loves cooking… See, I love my mum, but let’s say that it didn’t help my involvement in the love-story. Ugh. Yes, it’s as unsettling as it seems.

✔ a … slow romance (not to be confused with a slow-burn, because there’s no such thing as a burn in this book, but everything is tedious at bests)

✔ Annie’s blog entries bored me to death.

✔ I… don’t care. Like, at all. Actually, I only kept going because I wanted to know how the sex scenes were. Yep. That level of disinterest. View Spoiler »They weren’t worth it « Hide Spoiler

✔ Cliché sayings everywhere. I know, I know, we find a great deal of them in the romance genre and if the story pulls me in I don’t mind that much but… Sigh. Ladies, I need to ask : was there A moment in your life when you thought that “your ovaries were going to explode”? I don’t mean another sentence expressing your excitement, no, THAT SENTENCE. Because, frankly? I see it everywhere and I never, ever, thought this – but perhaps it’s only an English saying? It doesn’t even make any sense, scientific wise (yes, it bugs me so much that I’m asking every fucking person I know. My boyfriend just laughed. Sigh)

More generally, I fought the urge to roll my eyes so many times (I didn’t always win). But come on. How in the world am I supposed to react to this :
● “So good, Annie, God, you’re sweet,” he rasped in her ear. “How fucking sweet?”
The shiver that ran through his body entered hers. “Must be all that agave.”
● “The tip of his shaft pierced the water, long, thick and every each a man” REALLY? ~~I laughed so hard at that~~
● “Miss Carson.” Sawyer’s mouth crooked as he ran a thumb under a chin. “You’re under arrest for being too damn cute.” Never heard this before.

I can enjoy cheese sometimes. I really can. For this I need to feel something, though.

✔ The stereotypes playing in this sentence made me cringe : “He stepped forward, clearly meaning business. No way could she refuse without making a scene. She took a hesitant bite, careful for it not to be too-much, she didn’t want to look like a pig“. 1)Saying no isn’t making a scene, thank you very much and 2)God forbid a woman eat a lot. Ugh.

I don’t hate this book. I just – oh, boy.

I’m such a kill-joy.

BOOK REVIEW: Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy

August 24, 2015 / Chelsea / 0 Comments

Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
What if you'd been living your life as if you were dying—only to find out that you had your whole future ahead of you?

When sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis is grim. To maximize the time she does have, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs—however she sees fit. She convinces her friend Harvey, who she knows has always had feelings for her, to help her with a crazy bucket list that's as much about revenge (humiliating her ex-boyfriend and getting back at her archnemesis) as it is about hope (doing something unexpectedly kind for a stranger). But just when Alice's scores are settled, she goes into remission.

Now Alice is forced to face the consequences of all that she's said and done, as well as her true feelings for Harvey. But has she caused irreparable damage to the people around her—and to the one person who matters most?

Julie Murphy's Side Effects May Vary is a fearless and moving tour de force about love, life, and facing your own mortality.

Karma was a bitch, but so was I.

Once upon a time, there was a girl. This girl grew up with her best friend, her partner in crime, and they were inseparable. She was the ring-leader, and he’d follow her anywhere. He’d do anything for her, because he had fallen madly in love with her. They got to high school. They drifted apart. Then one day, her world shattered with the uttering of three simple words: You have cancer. And with the proclamation of these words, the world became clearer. Her world began to focus, align. She would get the boy on her side again. She would start a bucket list. But not just any bucket list-she would make all those who wronged her pay. Her story isn’t pretty. Her story isn’t nice. She manipulates, breaks hearts, and makes people’s lives (or one person’s in particular) a living hell. You will not like her. You will not condone her actions. But you will finish this, and you will sympathize with her. Your morbid curiosity-and longing for the boy to get what he wants-will win out…but you won’t like the harsh reality. I warned you.

Cancer would take away plenty. My hair, my body, my life. What I’d never realized, though, was that there was one privilege to dying: the right to live without consequence.

Wow. I just don’t even know what to say to this?? What a harsh, manipulative, heart-breaking,
addicting book. Never have I read something that conflicted my feelings so much…okay, lies-But it’s been a while! I went into this not really knowing what I was getting myself into. The reviews are dreadfully mixed, ranging from ‘wow this was epic’ to…yeah, I won’t even say it. Alice isn’t a nice girl-of that I was sure of. But the extents she goes to?? I just never…I never expected it. Now, listen to this. It wasn’t even the payback. Sorry, guys, her bucket list was epic. But no, she treated Harvey, her best friend, the boy who has loved her since they were kids, like shit. This? This was extremely hard to handle.

When the girl you loved was dying, it was hard not to let yourself go with her.

Everyone knows I am always on the boy’s side. It’s inevitable-that’s just meeeeee. But in this one, I don’t see how you couldn’t feel horrible for the boy. How you couldn’t fall in love with him and be on his side. He was the kindest person ever-He’d drop everything to help Alice. He’d humiliate himself in front of the whole school to save her. He’d protect at any and all costs, even if he felt like he was losing a piece of his soul-and he did. He really, truly lost a part of himself in this story, and it tore me to shreds. He would sacrifice everything for her…but there’s a point where even the most in love, dedicated guys can’t take the heartache anymore. Naturally this was when I felt like my heart had went through a wood chipper. Enough was enough….but when you’re madly, truly deeply in love with someone, when do you give up? Never.

When I dropped her off, she gave me a quick kiss on the cheek, a small gesture that she knew would appease me. I hated myself for letting it be this way, and I hated her for making it this way. But, really, I loved her, and that hurt the worst of all because I was tired of being her debris.

Alice was a bitch. A manipulative asshole. A vengeful little shit. She was beyond redemption and deserved everything that came her way…but, yet….I understood her. I even liked her sometimes-Go figure. But, as I said, every time she manipulated Harvey I didn’t like her. Anyone that can treat someone that way is disgusting, no matter the circumstances. What she went through was horrible, dreadful, but in no way excused treating someone you love that way. Her bucket list was complete, she was on her death bed, when she finally gets the news any person would cherish and grip onto with their last shred of hope and dignity-You’re in remission. But not Alice-Alice has a lot to atone for…and she’s in deep shit.
Oh shit.
This, I did not expect. This was not on my list.

One thing I must say was that the writing wasn’t quite what I’d expected it to be-It didn’t flow as much as my favorite books have lately and it was missing a lyrical quality I’ve grown accustomed to, but that is probably due in part to the intensity of every page. You weren’t focused on the writing so much as Harvey’s heart breaking into little tiny pieces chapter by chapter, and of course that stunted every line, every paragraph-the lines were blurred, but only because I couldn’t believe what I was reading. It was written in a then and now fashion, which I loathe normally. But as the story progressed, it only served to produce impact-POWERFUL IMPACT…and it made me think the story was perfect as it was and I wouldn’t change a thing.

I’d known her my whole life. Other girls didn’t exist for me in the same way she did. They had been there all along, these feelings; the only thing that had changed was my understanding of them. My whole body finally connected the dots, and I realized that even if we were never together, she’d ruined me and I’d never feel that way about anyone again.

****
On that cold night in January it all slipped into place for me and she became my everything and my everyone. My music, my sun, my words, my hope, my logic, my confusion, my flaw.
I was thirteen years old, and she was all these things to me.
And I was her friend.

So, if stories with a morally ambiguous character aren’t your thing, I’d steer clear of this story altogether. It’s not a sweet story (unless you count Harvey and Alice’s love story), it’s not light or easy or wholly likable…but it has heart. It has substance. And it might or might not be gratifying, in the end….but this story became beyond addictive and had my stomach in knots from beginning to end….And never has revenge tasted so sweet.