Thursday, 7 January 2016

Until Now (Just You #3) by Rebecca Phillips


Until Now is the third novel in the Just You series, but can also be read as a stand-alone. A New Adult romance intended for mature readers.

Only two things are keeping Robin Calvert on the right track: the support of her best friend Taylor, and Drake and Lila, her three-year-old twin siblings. Former party girl turned dedicated college student, Robin strives to be a good role model for her younger brother and sister. But when her mother disappears, and her stepfather ships the twins off to live with their grandparents, the stable life she’s worked so hard to maintain comes crumbling down around her.

Without her siblings around to motivate her, she backslides to her old reckless ways—vodka, hangovers, and bad boys who give her nothing but trouble. One bright spot is Jane, the grandmotherly stranger who takes Robin under her wing and welcomes her into her big, loving family. There, she forms an unexpected connection with Jane’s son, Ryan, a divorced single dad whose pale blue eyes make her question her policy against dating guys with kids.

Ryan has baggage of his own, but the closer Robin gets to both him and his family, the more she understands what it truly means to be home.

Kindle Edition, 250 pages
Published October 28th 2014

Terri's Thoughts

I purchased this story immediately upon completion of the first two stories in the series as I was eager to see how the story would conclude.  I was left slightly confused at first.

As warned in the synopsis of the story, this is in the NA genre and can be read as a stand alone.  Ok, I get that as I have read many stories in a series as stand alones without confusion.  What was confusing is that the first two stories are YA and fans of the series may be in for a shock thinking they are going to get more of the same with this one.  Wrong.  This is completely different.  While Taylor and Michael have background roles in this book, it is not about their journey.  I feel that this should not have been marketed as part of this series if only to let the story stand on its own.  It doesn't blend with the rest of the story.

That being said, I was interested to see where Robin's story took us as she was a supporting character in the first two books.  As I am of the correct demographic I was able to make the leap to NA from the relatively clean versions of the previous two books.

I don't know where to start with this.  I had a love/hate relationship going on with Robin.  Her heart was absolutely in the right place when it came to her twin siblings, her head was completely messed up with her own life.  I mean, come on!  you meet a perfect guy who you are obviously attracted to and you just let your life spiral out of control?  I was completely frustrated with Robin's lack of judgement throughout the story.  Don't even get me started on Cody.  I could write an entire blog post or two about the utter slime ball he was which made it even more difficult to support Robin.  It got to the point that when any mention of going to Fusion occurred I wished there was a fast forward button. 

On the flip side, it was love a first site for Ryan and his son.  Of course it was!  The way he was so devoted to his son and did I mention that he was attractive?  The icing on the cake?  He worked in a book store....my total dream man!  His attraction to Robin was obvious at first however as the book evolved I really don't know why he didn't walk away without looking back.  He seemed so centered compared to Robin.  Did I mention that I also loved his mom Jane?  I loved how she was so clearly playing matchmaker.

Now that the series is completed I will say that I wish this story was written in a way that it was not affiliated with the series.  That would have allowed me to judge it on it's own merit.  As a result I didn't enjoy this as much as the others which may not have been fair to the plot.  On its own I most likely would have had a better time with the story.




About the Author


Rebecca Phillips has been a fan of contemporary young adult fiction ever since she first discovered Judy Blume at the age of twelve. She's the author of the JUST YOU series, OUT OF NOWHERE, FAKING PERFECT (Kensington), and ANY OTHER GIRL (January 26, Kensington).

Rebecca lives just outside the beautiful city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, with her husband, two children, and one spoiled rotten cat. She absolutely loves living so close to the ocean.

      

Wednesday, 6 January 2016

Cover Reveal & Giveaway: Debauched by Jennifer Dawson


One night in a moment of sheer madness I confessed my secrets to him. 
All my life I’ve been pretending. Pretending to be the woman I thought I should be instead of the woman I really am.  I’ve been faking it and I am good.  No one has ever guessed.  Except him.  He just looked at me and knew. 

Chad Fellows is not the man I want, but he’s fast becoming the man I need. 

One night in a moment of sheer madness I held her in my arms and let her cry. 
I did the right thing, letting her walk away, no matter how much she calls to the part of me that wants to rescue her.  We are nothing alike, and she’s a mess of complications in a life I’m trying to keep simple. But then I touched her and made her tremble and now I can’t turn away.  

Ruby Stiles is not the woman I want, but she’s fast becoming the woman I need.

Debauched 
by Jennifer Dawson 
Undone #3 
Release Date: April 26, 2016
 

Previous Books in Series

Crave (Undone #1)
Amazon/B&N/Goodreads

Sinful (Undone #2)


Unraveled (Undone #2.5)

 Releases January 19, 2016
Giveaway!
    
Jennifer Dawson is the author of the popular Something New series; spicy, small town romance released with Kensington, and pens the dark and edgy contemporary romance series Undone.    Jennifer grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and graduated from DePaul University with a degree in psychology. She met her husband at the public library while they were studying. To this day, she still maintains she was NOT checking him out. Now, over twenty years later, they are married and living in a suburb right outside of Chicago with two awesome kids and a crazy dog. These days Jennifer can be found sitting behind her computer, writing her next novel, chasing after her kids, keeping an ever-watchful eye on her ever-growing to-do list, and NOT checking out her husband. Jennifer loves connecting with her readers and invites you to check out her website, Facebook page, and join Dawson’s Darlings, her private Facebook Fan group. Sign up for her monthly Newsletter for exclusive insider peeks, new release information and more.
 

Tuesday, 5 January 2016

Review: The Girlfriend Request by Jodie Andrefski

Updating best friend to girlfriend is more than a change of status…

Emma has been best friends with Eli since she moved to his neighborhood ten years ago. Tired of being cast in the role of the girl next door, Emma creates a fake Facebook profile in the hopes of starting an online friendship with Eli, which would hopefully lead to more. Like...way more. From friend request to In a Relationship--it all seemed so completely logical when she'd planned it.

Eli can't figure out what Emma is up to. He’s pretty sure she's the one behind the Facebook profile, but then again, why would she do something so drastic instead of just admitting she wants to be more than friends? And who the heck is this new guy he saw her with? Eli starts to think that just maybe...he missed his chance with the girl next door.

Two best friends, one outlandish ruse. Their status is about to become way more than It’s Complicated…

This Entangled Teen Crush book contains one fake Facebook profile, two best friends who secretly crave each other, and a dreaded sex talk with parents…boy crush in the room included. Pushing a relationship beyond the friend zone has never been so crazy…


ebook
Expected publication: January 11th 2016 by Entangled: Crush
Genre: Young Adult/Contemporary
Kristine's Thoughts:

** I received an advanced readers copy from Entangled: Crush via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!**

Let me start off by saying that I really like a friends first storyline so I was hopeful that this book would give me the fix I was looking for. I wasn't sure how the whole social media aspect would play out, it sounded quite manipulative, but interesting all the same.

The fake facebook profile and therefore the title of the book were misleading and almost a non starter. Somehow Eli knew from the very beginning that it was Emma behind the profile and the fake profile was only very briefly a major part of the story. From there it snowballed to a fake boyfriend that Emma may or may not have kind of liked even though she had been in love with her best friend for years. In other words, it really went downhill. I think I could handle her trying to make Eli jealous but the fact that she got all confused with her feelings after the "fake" date lost me. Everything she was doing was suppose to be because of her feelings for Eli but the rabbit trails made me less than sympathetic and gave her an annoying and immature quality that I wasn't a fan of.

Even though there were all kinds of wrong in this story there were a few cute moments to be found too. Younger fans of this genre would probably enjoy it more than I did. After all, there was crushing, kissing, social media and all kinds of drama to be found. I just couldn't get past the manipulation and immaturity to fully enjoy it. I think if the fake boyfriend and confusion it caused Emma in the story were omitted, the story would have been a whole lot better. That is where it lost me and I just couldn't find my way back.

 

About the Author
I've been passionate about reading since I was a little girl, which lead to a love of writing. I write YA--especially if it involves at least some kissing.

I have my B.S. in Secondary Education-English from Penn State University, and am also pursuing my M.S. in Mental Health Counseling.

I live in a small town in Pennsylvania with my teenage daughter.

Connect with Jodie
 

Monday, 4 January 2016

Cover Reveal & Giveaway: Broken Beat by April Brookshire



BROKEN BEAT
Broken Beat #1
April Brookshire
Releasing Jan 27th, 2016


You’ve heard the story before. A young woman moves to the big city, catches the eye of a rich and powerful man, and they live happily ever after.

Unless they don’t.

Vanessa has learned to live without her happily ever after.  In fact, she no longer needs or wants it. Her heart may have been shattered by the loss of true love, but it’s made her a stronger person. Her fairytale dreams faded, making way for more practical aspirations.

Keenan made a mistake when he brutally discarded Vanessa from his life. Ever since, he’s been in a hell of his own making. The life he’s led for the past several years isn’t one to be proud of and he doesn’t deserve to win Vanessa’s heart once again.

Not that he’ll let anything stop him.





“Keenan wants to see you,” Darius said.

My hand tightened around the glass, at the same time it began to shake. Adding my other hand into the mix, I gripped it until the shaking lessened. “You’re not serious.”

Staring at where some of the water had sloshed out onto my hand, I tried to ignore the rising panic.

“He’s found out the truth,” Darius explained.

My eyes rose to meet is all-too-serious ones. “How?” The word left my numb lips barely above a whisper.

His head dropped to look down at his shoes, but I could still see his hesitant expression from where I sat several yards away. He rubbed a hand through his thick hair. “He asked me to leave any explanations to him.”

My dread morphed into irritation. “That sounds like him. Always needing to have the final word.”

The strain left his features at my comment. “So, what do you want me to tell him?”

I stood, setting my glass down on the coffee table. The view of Manhattan outside became larger as I walked to the large penthouse windows. I stared down below at the tiny people walking on sidewalks and the toy cars moving down the street. Inside here, it seemed as if everything had come to a standstill.

It was impossible to pinpoint any one feeling about the possibility of seeing Keenan again. A combination of anxiety, sadness and defiance mingled with something I refused to identify as anticipation.

I imagined an awkward conversation between Keenan and myself. Rehashing our history wasn’t an event I’d enjoy. So he finally knew the truth and in his arrogance had decided it was time for closure. 

He’d always made all the decisions.

Well, this time I’d be the one deciding the outcome. Seeing Keenan would benefit me in no way. It had taken time, but I’d moved on from the heartbreak of our disastrous ending. All evidence proved Keenan had also moved on. Any conversation between us would come too late.

Not turning from the view, I told Darius, “Tell him it was another lifetime.”


a Rafflecopter giveaway



April Brookshire is the author of the Beware of Bad Boy and Young Assassins series. She also co-authors the Dead Chaos series. She writes in the New Adult & Young Adult Romance and Apocalyptic Urban Fantasy genres.

April lives in a suburb of Denver, Colorado, where she raises her young son. When she isn’t writing, she’s usually reading, but also enjoys attending concerts and plays in the numerous venues of the city.



Release Blast: Hold Me Until Forever by Christina Phillips


Enter to Win a 
$20.00 Amazon eGift Card


HOLD ME UNTIL FOREVER
Grayson Brothers #3
Christina Phillips
Releasing Jan 4th, 2016
Entangled Brazen


She's the only one he wants...and the one he can never have…

Ella Clark has been in love with Alex Grayson forever. She’s tired of being invisible—or worse, being treated like his kid sister. If she can just get him to drop his iron-fisted control for two seconds, she’ll prove she knows exactly how to blow his mind.

Alex has been fighting his attraction to Ella since her should-have-been-innocent sweet sixteen kiss burned down his world. He's damaged, and there's no way he'll ever drag her into his screwed up life. Until she offers him something he's always craved—steamy, no-strings sex inside his exclusive BDSM club. Where she'll be safe from the darkness that haunts him.

Except there's nothing safe about being with Ella, and the more she gives, the harder it is to let her go. If he stays, he risks everything, but how can he walk away from the only woman he's ever needed?



Excerpt

(Ella’s just told Alex that she’s leaving Grayson’s, and Alex has gone round to her apartment to try and talk her out of it…)
 
Guilt twisted through her again. Before he’d taken her into Grayson’s she’d been floundering, her self-confidence still in bad shape after her mom’s asshole boyfriend had cornered her when she’d been fourteen. Her succession of part-time and casual jobs was nothing to brag about, and the only constant in her life had been her volunteer work at the Wildlife Retreat.
 
“I’m not leaving you in the shit. There’s plenty of time to find a replacement for me.”
 
He gave her a smoldering look. Oh, for fuck’s sake… “No one could take your place.”
 
If only he were talking about her as a woman and not his indispensable work colleague.
 
“Hate to say it, but you’ll probably be surprised.”
 
He didn’t immediately deny it, which stung more than it should.
 
“You plan on staying in touch?”
 
She couldn’t tell by his tone of voice whether he gave a damn one way or the other. So much for no one being able to take her place. Looked like he was already over it.
 
Don’t you dare say it. Heat flooded through her, but the words spilled out anyhow. “I might come visit you in your club one night.”
 
At least it wiped that infuriating, unreadable expression from his face. He stared at her as though she’d just grown a pair of horns.
 
“I don’t think so.”
 
It was the note of finality in his voice that really pissed her off—as if he thought she was joking and he didn’t find it funny.
 
“Why not? I think I’d really get off on a night at your club.” Take that. If only she didn’t look so rough. It was hard trying to act like a sophisticated woman of the world when she was barefoot and Alex could’ve stepped off the cover of GQ.
 
“Didn’t know you were into that scene.”
 
“There’s a lot you don’t know about me.” Including the fact I sleep in one of your old shirts. At least he hadn’t recognized it. Then again, it was about three years old. He’d left it here when the brothers had helped her move in, and somehow she kept forgetting to give it back to him.
 
Accidentally on purpose.
 
“I would’ve known about this.”
 
Was he laughing at her? He didn’t look as if he was, but it was hard to tell what he was thinking.
Whatever. She wasn’t backing down.
 
“I might not be hardcore, but that doesn’t mean I don’t like to experiment now and then.”
 
“Define what you mean by ‘experimenting.’”
 
He damn well was laughing at her. What’s the kinkiest thing I’ve read lately? “Ménages.” That’d shut him up. Or turn him on.
 
“You enjoy having sex with two men at the same time?”
 
She glared at him. “You find it so hard to believe that two men would want me?”
 
“That’s not what I find hard to believe.”
 
His quick-fire response took her breath away. Trust Alex to compliment and insult her in one easy comment.
She cleared her throat, which kind of ruined the worldly aura she was going for, but it was better than choking on her own words. “So, does your club cater for that kind of thing?”
 
What was she saying? She’d die if he called her bluff.
 
He didn’t answer right away. His eyes were all dark and smoky and it was suddenly hard to breathe properly. He seemed to be considering her question, which sent prickles of alarmed excitement over her bare skin.
 
“Excalibur caters for almost anything,” he said.

 BUY NOW
iBooks | Amazon | Amazon UK | Kobo | B&N


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Christina Phillips is an ex-pat Brit who now lives in sunny Western Australia with her high school sweetheart and their family. She enjoys writing paranormal, historical and contemporary romance where the stories sizzle and the heroine brings her hero to his knees. 

She’s addicted to good coffee, expensive chocolate and bad boy heroes. Christina is also owned by three gorgeous cats who are convinced the universe revolves around their needs. They are not wrong.


Don't Miss the other Grayson Brothers Romances

Sunday, 3 January 2016

Review: Not Okay, Cupid by Heidi R. Kling

Her wicked revenge, or his wicked heart...

Hazel McCallister loves her life. Perfect grades. Perfect best friend. Perfect boyfriend. Until her perfect boyfriend cheats on her with her perfect best friend. Now Hazel’s in free fall—until her best friend’s brother, Felix, gives her the perfect idea. Reclaim her power by taking revenge on her cheating ex.

Felix James loves his life. Casual relationships. Loads of surfing. He’s as drama-free as they come. But he can’t stand by when his sister steals her best friend’s boyfriend, and the dude insists it was Hazel’s fault. So Felix vows to help turn Hazel into a girl her ex can’t resist—so then she can break his heart.

With an alliance in place, Hazel’s revenge is all but assured. But with each piece of payback, she feels a stronger attraction to Felix, even though revenge will turn her into a girl Felix could never be with. And soon Hazel has to make an impossible choice: revenge...or Felix, the boy who’s stolen her heart.

WARNING! This book contains betrayal, revenge, and that most tempting vice of all, the bad boy you know you can't have.


ebook
Expected publication: January 11th 2016 by Entangled: Crush 
Genre: Young Adult/Contemporary

Kristine's Thoughts:

** I received an advanced readers copy from Entangled Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

The synopsis does a really good job of describing what this book is about. Basically, Hazel discovers her boyfriend and her best friend in a situation that is a little more than friendly and her perfectly planned life falls apart. Help comes from an unlikely source in the form of her (ex) best friends brother Felix, and a revenge plan is made.

Told from both Felix and Hazel's point of view, this story is one that can easily be finished quickly. I found myself enjoying Felix and getting inside his head. What can I say? I'm a sucker for the bad boy who isn't really so bad but maybe just misunderstood. The unusual friendship between the two was a real joy to read.

The revenge plan, in my opinion, was a little juvenile and predictable but I had to remind myself that the characters were teenagers. When I was that age it may have made perfect sense. I would also have liked a little bit more of a resolution with the (ex) best friend.  The story focused more on the budding relationship between Hazel and Felix and a little less on the best friend/sister.

I think that young people will really enjoy this book. The story is cute and younger readers will be sure to  like Felix. This story is perfect when you are looking for something that doesn't require a lot of thought and you are looking for something cutesy. This is the second book by Kling for me and it won't be the last.



About the Author
Heidi R. Kling writes about normal girls in fantastic situations. PAINT MY BODY RED, a romantic thriller about a girl fleeing secrets from home launched November 2 with EntangledTeen, followed by several more novels on various Entangled imprints. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing from the New School, but has been writing books, plays and screenplays since she could practically hold a pencil.

Her first novel, SEA (Putnam), was a Gateway Readers Award Finalist & Northern California Book of the Year nominee, was a Summer 2010 Indie Next Pick and a Goodreads "Mover and Shaker".

Connect with Heidi

Saturday, 2 January 2016

Review: Someone Else (Just You #2) by Rebecca Phillips


When her boyfriend Michael leaves for college, seventeen-year-old Taylor Brogan is determined to make their long-distance relationship work. Together, they've managed to overcome past issues with communication and trust, so they’re confident they can tackle this newest challenge too.

To ease her loneliness, Taylor distracts herself with school, a makeover, and a whole new set of friends. But even with all these diversions, dating long-distance is a lot harder than she ever expected. Her loyalties are tested even further when Dylan enters the picture. He’s the opposite of Michael in every way, and his obvious interest in her—not to mention his lean, athletic body and adorable dimples—makes Taylor want to keep her distance. But she can’t deny her growing attraction to him, especially when her relationship with Michael starts falling apart.

When the inevitable break-up occurs, Taylor begins a rebound romance with Dylan that quickly becomes more than she bargained for. His dark moods scare her, and soon she’s in danger of losing herself to this new life she’s created, a life she’s no longer sure she even wants.

200 pages
Published January 2nd 2014

Terri's Thoughts

I purchased this story immediately after finishing the first in the series as I was eager to see where Taylor and Michael's relationship would go once he headed of to college.

Without going in to the plot as I feel the synopsis pretty accurately details the general direction of the story I will say that this story (and series) really reminds me of what it is like to be in high school.

It deals with relationships both of the romantic and friendship variety and how complex they can be.  It deals with how people may not be who they appear to be on the surface unless you really take the time to discover them for yourself and not judge based on what others say or feel.  It deals with insecurity, dating, sex, inappropriate behavior and parents.

Regardless of your view on any of the above topics, it is something teenagers have to deal with on a regular basis and I feel this series outlines a lot of what they are faced with.  That in iteslef has made this series realistic.

Of course there is a third story in this series and I will be purchasing it as soon as I stop typing.  I really need to know where this story is going to end!

Forgot to mention that it is great to discover a Canadian author that I can put my support behind.  It is nice to see some home grown talent and be able to enjoy their work.



About the Author


Rebecca Phillips has been a fan of contemporary young adult fiction ever since she first discovered Judy Blume at the age of twelve. She's the author of the JUST YOU series, OUT OF NOWHERE, FAKING PERFECT (Kensington), and ANY OTHER GIRL (January 26, Kensington).

Rebecca lives just outside the beautiful city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, with her husband, two children, and one spoiled rotten cat. She absolutely loves living so close to the ocean.