Review Post: Retrieval (The Retrieval Duet) by Aly Martinez

Posted in Books I love, Releasing Now Book Addicts, Review Post by mkcooke

ONE STORY. TWO COUPLES.

The Retrieval Duet by Aly Martinez is a two part series.

RETRIEVAL is NOW LIVE and will bring readers the first part of this emotional second chance romance.

TRANSFER (Part Two) will release on September 27th!

NOW AVAILABLE on the following retailers:

Retrieval (Part One):

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2aMnW74

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/2aW07Yb

iBooks: http://apple.co/2aH2bFb

Nook: http://bit.ly/2cOYcsK

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2aFOVxB

I proposed on our first date.

She laughed and told me I was insane. Less than a day later, she said yes.

It was a whirlwind, but we were happy…

Until we got greedy and wanted a family.

It was a life I couldn’t give her, not for lack of trying. Fertility just wasn’t on our side. We sought out doctors and treatments. Spent money we didn’t have. Lied to our families. Smiled for our friends. Put on a brave face for a world that didn’t understand.

Finally, we were successful…

Until we were forced to bury our son.

We were left broken, battered, and destroyed.

They say love is in the details, but it was the details that ruined us.

This is the story of how I took back what had always been mine.

The retrieval of my wife and our family.

5 Utterly Unforgettable Stars

Let me start this review by saying there are many things I have come to know about myself in all my years of reading. I love me a good book, I love me a good love story even more, and I love me a good romantic suspense book something fierce. There is just something about that level of suspense and mystery being woven together so intricately with the passion and feels of a love story that I truly can’t get enough of. Romantic suspense is probably one of my top five favorite kinds of books to read.

When I found out that one of my all-time favorite authors was writing a romantic suspense duet, I shrieked. No really, I shrieked. It happened. Repeatedly. And it continued to happen through every single page of this amazing book (and Transfer too) because let me tell you something, Aly Martinez writes a damn good book. A. Damn. Good. Book. She exceptionally crafts books that are unforgettable, passionate, gripping, and deeply emotional, hit you in your heart, and steal your breath in the best kind of way books. You feel every single word of what she weaves together, and you don’t stop feeling until well after you’ve read the last word.

The way she weaves together her stories are just that impactful, that meaningful, and that visceral that you can’t stop feeling and experiencing and breathing and living them. And that is just a fraction of what makes her books so exceptional.

So when I found out that on top of everything else Aly Martinez gives me in her phenomenal books, I would be getting a story perfectly woven together with heart racing suspense, jaw dropping mystery, and such a raw intensity that shook me to my core, I shrieked.

I’m sure you understand the why behind that now.

Aly Martinez has such a way with words, with stories, and with characters that is truly in a league of its own. I can never get enough of any of her books, but that was especially true with Retrieval. This book took me. Heart, mind, and soul. It grabbed me with its power, its intensity, and everything it had. And I willingly gave myself over to it, and Roman and Elisabeth’s story from the first page. I don’t think it’s humanly possible to read their story in Retrieval and to not be taken by it.

This story is just too raw, too passionate, and too emotional to not be taken by everything within its amazing pages. I’m telling you, it’s impossible. There is no way you can experience Retrieval and everything you get with Roman and Elisabeth and not feel it, not live it, and not love every single bit of it.

Now since this book is a romantic suspense, I don’t want to reveal much of anything of the actual plot of the story because that would be oh so wrong, and it would take away from what this book, and its unputdownable story, will give you. I can’t ruin this story for you, and you honestly just need to go into it blind and give yourself over to it. Let yourself be consumed by every intense, all-feeling, and memorable moment and word of it. You won’t regret it. Not one little bit. (And in the end, you’ll be beyond thrilled that you gave yourself over to it. Trust me on that one.)

What I will tell you about Retrieval, besides the fact that this book is one of the best books I’ve ever read, is that it will pull at every single emotion you have. The prologue will make you cry. And then there will be so many other deeply emotional moments in this book that will make you cry, and feel all that emotion thick in your heart. Repeatedly. Roman and Elisabeth’s heart wrenching story will pull at every bit of your heart, will make you feel all the feels, and at times it will make you feel like you’re being torn into pieces. And then you’ll be torn again. And again. And again. You’ll feel it all with them, experience every ounce of fight and love and hate and pain and anguish those two share as they try to give it all a second chance.

You’ll feel all of that in your bones, in you’re very being really, and it will hurt, but you know what? It will hurt so damn good. It will break you, but as much as it breaks you, what Roman and Elisabeth share will try to put you back together again too. It will tear at your heart in more ways than one, but it’ll sear you to this story and the journey Roman and Elisabeth go on together even more, and soon that searing will have those torn pieces coming back together in the most mesmerizing and all-feeling of ways.

Retrieval is a story you feel every ounce of, and Aly Martinez brings those feels, the meaning behind them, and the power of it all to life in the most authentic, realistic, and encapsulating way through her perfect crafting of this story and Roman and Elisabeth’s characters.

Now let me tell you that this book isn’t just feels. I mean it’s a helluva lot of feels you’ll not soon forget, but it’s not just feels. It’s also hot. Heart meltingly, grab yourself a fan this very second, I’m as red as a tomato because I’m blushing so hard, hot. Seriously y’all, the heat, the visceral connection between Roman and Elisabeth, and everything they share, both past and present, will melt you in more ways than one. It will also shine brighter and dazzle you more than any fireworks you’ve ever experienced. There is just something about getting a second chance at it all that makes the connection between these two everything and more.

That connection will awe you, it will steal your breath at times, and it’ll have you blushing and possibly drooling throughout most of this book, and that along with the feels you get with Roman and Elisabeth on their journey back to one another, is nothing short of spectacular.

Roman and Elisabeth’s story in Retrieval is one of past regrets, second chances, and of a love so deep, so raw, and so real that it can’t be denied, no matter how hard these two might sometimes try to deny it or fight against it. It is a story of what happens when you pour every ounce of yourself over to the one person who can give you it all, if you only open yourself and your heart to them. This book is the definition of what it means to fight for the heart, the love, and the person who completes you.

Retrieval is a book filled to the brim with a passion so heated, a connection so undeniable, and a love so fierce, that nothing can stand in the way of the love and authentic investment you will feel towards Roman and Elisabeth, and their story together.

I truly think there is no way that you can read this story, and not be wholly consumed by it on every level possible. It is just that gripping, that breathtaking, and that intense that you won’t be able to stop. Every turn of that page will pull you deeper and deeper into the story itself, and what Roman and Elisabeth are sharing. As their story unfolds, and as you start to realize where this story is going, you will feel like your heart is beating out of your chest, you will be practically tearing at those pages to see what will happen next, and you will be feeling and living and breathing it all right along with Roman and Elisabeth and the other amazing characters of this story.

This is a story that will literally consume you from the first word until the very last, and when you reach that last page, you will be beyond ready for Transfer. Trust me on that one. (And just you wait for that book…because if you thought you loved Retrieval, wait until you get your greedy little hands on Transfer!)

Retrieval is everything and more wrapped up into one perfect, all-consuming, and unforgettable package.

It’s a second chance romance that will have you hoping with all of your heart that Roman and Elisabeth will find a way back to one another with their undeniable heat and soul touching love. It’s a story wrought with the best kind of intrigue and suspense and mystery that will literally have you on the edge of your seat, shrieking and gasping audibly from the surprises in store, and will have your heart on fire through every single page. It’s a story you will feel and experience every word of too, and it will have you realizing again and again how talented Aly Martinez is to have created a world, a story, and a set of characters so dynamic, so unforgettable, and so consuming as these ones.

Simply put, Retrieval is the book you need in your life this very second, and I truly can’t tell you that enough. Whether it’s Roman’s distinctive charm and determination, or Elisabeth’s easy to love fire and sass that will sear her to your heart to hers, or the perfect mixture of romance, suspense, feels, and jaw dropping moments galore, this book will give you it all. And then some. It will touch every part of your mind and your heart, and your very soul too, and in the end, you will be completely blown away with what you got within its pages.

Retrieval is the more you’ve been looking for, and it is the perfect opening to this duet. Aly Martinez knocks it out of the park in every single way with this book and her spectacular writing, and the way that this story leads into Transfer, the final book of this duet, will have you needing that book in your life something fierce. Trust me.

You will love this book. You will feel it. You will be taken with everything it gives you, right along with Roman and Elisabeth, and it will mesmerize you in more ways than one. You will be in awe of what Aly Martinez gives you within this book’s pages.

Retrieval is definitely one of the most intense, all-feeling, and captivating books I have ever read, and this book is going straight to the top of my Top Reads list for 2016. (And after you experience it for yourself, it’ll be at the top of yours too.) You need this book and this duet in your life like you need your next breath, and I am telling you, you will love it.

I dare you to not be completely blown away by every exceptional aspect of this book, and honestly at this point I just want to go back and reread it all over again, just so that I can get back within its literal amazingness. (I also really miss Roman and Elisabeth already. Like a lot.)

Retrieval is that good, that unforgettable, and that powerfully intense of a book, and you need to read it this very second.

“Where’d you get beer?” Elisabeth asked as she scrambled from the couch.

“Seth,” I replied, hanging my head and rubbing my eyes.

Jesus, I’d wanted to kiss her. She was being a bitch, spouting shit she didn’t mean just because she was too scared to let me in.

But, even through it, those plump lips were calling to me.

I’d never been able to resist that woman. Despite that we’d fallen apart, it hadn’t changed. The hum for her was still in my veins. It never went away, but for two years, it had been dormant. I’d packed it down so tightly that I’d hoped it had died. But, with one look, my body began thrumming like a live wire.

“Seth?” she asked as she bent over to straighten her tight, black pencil skirt.

It was a rare occasion to catch Elisabeth in something other than a perfectly pressed skirt and a pair of heels. But she’d been sleeping all day. It was wrinkled all to hell and back. The only thing her efforts succeeded in was drawing my attention down to her legs.

Legs that had spent many nights wrapped around my hips as she came while crying my name.

Shit. I should go.

But, after the way she’d latched on to me that morning, I wasn’t going anywhere.

“My assistant,” I answered. “I had him pick you up a bottle of wine, too.”

She blinked. “You have an assistant? Who delivers you beer? And your ex-wife wine?”

“No, I have an assistant who does whatever the fuck I need him to do. And, luckily for us, beer and wine happen to fall into the whatever-the-fuck-I-need-him-to-do category tonight.” She fought back a smile as I finished, “So do gyros.”

“Damn. I need to get one of those,” she mumbled to herself.

I smirked. “Cash my checks and you could afford one.”

It was a dick move, bringing up the money right then. But, despite her expert hand in decorating, that little starter house we’d bought with rose-colored glasses now needed a shit-ton of work.

Her back shot ramrod straight, fury crinkling the corners of her eyes as she snarled, “I’m not cashing your checks.”

I shrugged. “Guess you’ll have to figure out how to get your own wine and dinner after tonight.”

“I think I can manage,” she fired back.

“Suit yourself.” I pushed off the couch and meandered to the kitchen.

I went to the fridge and leaned in, searching for anything I could snack on. With the exception of at least a dozen Tupperware containers, she didn’t have much in the way of a quick bite.

Snagging a handful of grapes from the drawer, I made a mental note to send Seth to the grocery store after he’d delivered dinner.

Popping the grapes in my mouth one by one, I felt her watching me in what could only be defined as silent awe. I decided my best move would be to ignore it. “You know, I should have invented Tupperware. You alone could keep me in business,” I told her, retrieving a beer and then shutting the door.

She scoffed then muttered, “At least then I would have benefitted from you abandoning our marriage.”

Lava fresh off the volcanoes in Hell boiled in my veins.

I cocked my head to the side and questioned, “I’m sorry. Come again?”

“You should go,” she snapped.

Think a-fucking-gain.

“Nah, I’m good. Got any movies?”

I tipped the bottle to my lips, doing my best to calm the storm brewing within me, all while still fighting the desire to take her to the floor, plant myself between her legs, and remind her how that fucking attitude affected me.

Clearly, she had forgotten.

My cock had not.

“Roman, it’s been a crazy day. Please don’t do this tonight.”

“Do what?” I asked, leaning back against the huge, granite island.

She threw her hands out to the sides in frustration. “What you always do.”

“What do I always do, Lissy?”

“This!” she yelled.

I frowned and took another pull from my beer. “Haven’t been in our kitchen, drinking beer, in a long time. I hardly think it’s fair to say I always do it.”

Her eyes nearly bulged from her head. “My kitchen, Roman. This is my kitchen. Not ours. And you know good and damn well that is not what I’m talking about.”

My lips twitched as I pointed the neck of my bottle at her. “No. What I know good and damn well is that I have no idea what the fuck you are talking about. Or why you’re slinging unnecessary and, might I add, undeserved attitude at me like a short-order cook at the bitch house.”

“He did not say that to me,” she whispered to herself.

When I lifted a shoulder in a half shrug, she swung a pointed finger toward the door and yelled, “Get out!”

I grinned, crossing my legs at the ankle. “You always were cranky when you were hungry.”

And that was the exact moment her head exploded.

Want More?

Pre-order Transfer (Part Two)

Releasing September 27th

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/2b3AJ6S

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/2aW0WAf

iBooks: http://apple.co/2beFszd

Nook: http://bit.ly/2c6BYR9

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2aW1So5

Born and raised in Savannah, Georgia, Aly Martinez is a stay-at-home mom to four crazy kids under the age of five, including a set of twins. Currently living in South Carolina, she passes what little free time she has reading anything and everything she can get her hands on, preferably with a glass of wine at her side.

After some encouragement from her friends, Aly decided to add “Author” to her ever-growing list of job titles. Five books later, she shows no signs of slowing. So grab a glass of Chardonnay, or a bottle if you’re hanging out with Aly, and join her aboard the crazy train she calls life.

STALK HER: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

19Jul2016

Releasing Now: On The Ropes Box Set by Aly Martinez

Posted in Books I love, Releasing Now Book Addicts by mkcooke

⭐️⭐️⭐️SURPRISE RELEASE⭐️⭐️⭐️

Now you can get the complete On The Ropes Series for only $3.99 for a very limited time! Price will go up to $6.99 in a few days! Grab this #fighter #romanceseries today!

Now Available!

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/29MYgcq

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/29Myf6N

iBooks: http://apple.co/29RcQOH

Kobo: http://bit.ly/OTRSKobo

Barnes & Noble: coming soon.

**Each book in the series can be read as a standalone**

The complete series. Three full-length novels.

For the Page brothers, fighting was a way of life. Both inside and outside of the ring.

Follow them through hardship, disability, and overwhelming adversity as they fight for the women they love.

Fighting Silence:

Meeting the love of my life at age thirteen was never part of my plan. However, neither was gradually going deaf at the age of twenty-one.

They both happened anyway.

Now, I’m on the ropes during the toughest battles of my life.

Fighting for my career.

Fighting the impending silence.

Fighting for her.

Fighting Shadows:

I was a jaded asshole who fell for a girl with a knack for running away. I couldn’t even walk but I would have spent a lifetime chasing her.

Now, I’m on the ropes during the toughest battles of my life.

Fighting the shadows of our past.

Fighting to reclaim my future.

Fighting for her.

Fighting Solitude:

Liv was everything to me, but she was never truly mine.

That was going to change.

I lost my first love, but I refused to lose my soulmate.

Now, I’m on the ropes during the toughest battles of my life.

Fighting to be the man she deserves.

Fighting the solitude of our pasts.

Fighting for her.

Read My Review of Fighting Silence

Read My Review of Fighting Shadows

Read My Review of Fighting Solitude

Excerpt

Fighting Silence

Prologue

He didn’t budge, but my bare feet slipped, sending me toward the ground. Impossibly fast, Till’s hand snaked out and caught my arm. But I didn’t let his chivalrous gesture douse my fire. I had six months’ worth of words to say to the man I was irrevocably in love with.

“You took what you wanted. Then you left me.”

“Doodle,” he whispered.

I had been perilously close to the edge of insanity, and with one single word, he’d pushed me over.

I lost it completely.

Pounding my fists against his chest, I screamed at the top of my lungs, “It’s Eliza! My name is fucking Eliza! Not Doodle!” I spun to march away, but Till’s arms folded around me, lifting me off my feet to restrain me.

I was miniscule compared to him. There was no use in fighting, but I still kicked my legs, irrationally desperate to get away from him—but only because I knew I couldn’t keep him for forever.

“Stop it!” he growled into my ear. “I know your goddamned name—probably better than I know my own.”

While I was wrapped in Till’s strong arms, six months’ worth of tears fell from my eyes. He carried me to my apartment and guided me back through the window before following me inside. Then he stripped out of his blood-soaked shirt before dragging the blankets down and climbing into the bed behind me. I cried for a while in his arms, even turning to face him, only to cry against his chest. I had missed him so much.

I knew I’d loved Till years ago, but this was more. I needed him in order to function on a very basic level. Together, the world didn’t feel so big and overwhelming. He was my escape—the dream personified.

Till Page was comfortable.

His hands trailed up and down my back as he lulled me until the words fought their way out.

“I couldn’t stop going back,” I announced in a broken whisper. “I didn’t know where you had gone. And for the first time since I was thirteen, I was alone inside my own head. God. It was a scary place.” I tried to joke, but the tears streaming down my face told the truth.

“I’m sorry,” he responded on a sigh. “I couldn’t stay.”

“Why?” I whined, but I curled in closer against his chest, needing to feel him more than anything else.

“I don’t know, Doodle,” he lied.

God! It was such a fucking lie. He knew as well as I did. He just didn’t want to tell me.

“Where did you go?” I pressed further.

There was no way I ever could have expected his answer, but that wasn’t because it was a novel thought. No. His answer was surprising because it was the source of my anguish too.

“The real world.” He kissed my forehead.

STALK HER: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

18Jul2016

Review Post: Unchained (Family Justice #4) by Suzanne Halliday

Posted in Books I love, Releasing Now Book Addicts, Review Post by mkcooke

Unchained

By: Suzanne Halliday

A Family Justice Novel

Synopsis2

Things were supposed to return to normal once Alex and Meghan’s society wedding was over.

Brody, Heather and Bella Mia begin a new life in Arizona while an old friend chooses family over career and leaves the compound for good.

Parker and Angie pick up right where they left off! The quasi-engaged couple continues to bring the laughs as their house-building project turns into a major circus.

The resident grown-ups, Stephanie and Calder, are progressing happily along the road to coupledom when a shocking turn of events throws everyone into a tizzy.

Cam and Lacey’s happily ever after is threatened when a deep cover assignment takes a deadly turn.

But what about Tori and Drae?
Something hasn’t been right for months and no amount of powering through and hoping for a better tomorrow can stop them in time before they hit a devastating marital speed bump.

For Alex and Meghan, their return after an extended Spanish honeymoon reveals just how unchained and off the hook life became during their absence.

And then, there’s the presence of Meghan’s little brother, Finn O’Brien, who’s been banished to Arizona by his exasperated parents.

Come along for a sometimes-bumpy ride as Family Justice turns a page and starts a brand new chapter in their unique story. Expect new faces, inevitable changes, sudden detours, hairpin turns and an obstacle course filled with love, laughter and a few tears along the way.

#FamilyJustice

5 Unforgettable Family Justice Stars

When I sit down to read a book by Suzanne Halliday, there are many things I know that I am going to get within that book’s phenomenal pages. I know I will get a story that is well written, thoughtfully crafted, and that will sweep me up into its grasp from page one with Suzanne’s extraordinary writing magic. I know that I will get dynamic characters that are so wonderfully distinctive and easy to connect to. I also know that I won’t just be reading this story, I’ll be experiencing every word of it. I’ll feel everything these characters do, I will live through that book with them, and in the end I will close that book with the biggest smile on my face because of what I got to experience within its pages.

When I sat down to read Unchained, the fourth book in her Family Justice Saga, I knew that I would get all of that and more, and boy did this book blow me away with everything it had.

Unchained is a story full of family and friends, loyalty and connection, heat and passion, so many memorable moments that are so distinctive to these characters and their world, and more emotion and feels than you can shake a stick at. From the moment I started this book I could not put it down, and I could not stop experiencing every ounce of this book with these characters. Told through multiple points of view, Unchained gives you the fantastic opportunity to jump into the heads of everyone that makes up Family Justice, and I am telling you, you will not be disappointed one bit by what you get with all of them.

To say I have loved and enjoyed reading all of Suzanne Halliday’s books is putting it mildly. To say that I have loved the Justice Brothers is the understatement of the century because let me tell you, once those Justice Brothers, their fierce special lady friends, and their loyal and charming as all get out friends that make up the rest of the family get ahold of you, you will never want to say goodbye to them. Ever. Seriously, I don’t think I will ever get enough of them, their journeys together, and how special and memorable this family, these characters, and their respective intertwining stories are.

Over the course of this series I have gotten to meet and fall in love with each and every one of these characters and the people who fill in the Justice Family puzzle, and I have since become wholly invested in every way possible with all of them. I love these characters. I feel for them. I hope for them. I root for them with all I have. The more I get with them, the more I love them with every piece of my heart, and the more that I just bask in every second I get to spend with them.

Suzanne Halliday gives you the phenomenal opportunity to not only fall in love with these characters, she allows you to see them through so much. She allows you to see them at their highest and lowest. She lets you feel their struggles, and she lets you be there in their moments of glorious triumph. She puts you with them all, heart first, living and breathing and feeling it all, and that leads to an undeniable level of connection and investment to this world and its unforgettable characters.

I have to say that the level of investment I feel with these characters and this world is probably one of my favorite aspects of reading this series. It’s also what has made me love this series so immensely. From the start I have been with these characters through everything that came their way, and then as their stories continued in the Family Justice Series, I became even more whole heartedly invested in everything that they shared together. This series gives you the unique opportunity to not only fall in love with these characters and their respective stories, it also allows you to see how all of those extraordinary stories weave together to create a saga unlike any other.

I am telling you, you will love these characters, you will love how much fight and loyalty and love they have bursting from them, and you will love every single distinctive and unforgettable piece they add to the puzzle that is this story and this exceptional series.

The events of Unchained pick up a bit after we left the Justice Family gang in Sanctuary, and takes you from the desert to the city to everywhere in between with everyone in tow. In this book, everyone is back, and every couple in this series has some new things to face and figure out, along with some new characters and faces that you will love getting to know. Now I won’t tell you too much about this story because I wouldn’t want to ruin the true magic that it gives you with all of these characters, but what I will tell you is be prepared for some twists and turns, some seriously unforgettable moments, and tons more Justice Family wonderfulness that will have you wanting to live out in the desert with them all in no time flat.

This chapter in the Justice Family Saga brings about a lot of changes for almost every single character and person who makes up this fantastic family. You have new jobs, new places to live, new feelings, new relationships, and new questions all woven together seamlessly with the love stories between these characters that I have come to know and love. Suzanne Halliday does an exceptional job of balancing all of these storylines, bringing them together, and creating such a sense of family and connection and love through every page. And though it isn’t always easy for those in the Justice Family, and many of these characters face some trying times in this book and with each other and with their own journeys, it is all highly worth it to get everything you do with them in this book.

Unchained will allow you once again to jump right into the thick of it with Meghan and Alex, Cam and Lacey, Drae and Tori, Calder and Stephanie, Parker and Angelina, Brody and Heather, and will give you a wonderful dose of Finn and Remy too, and through it all you will feel like one of the gang.

I have to say that I loved getting to know those new faces, just as much as I loved being around the ones I’ve already come to know and love. Finn and Remy definitely have some fire to them, and there’s definitely something there between those two that bursts from the page every time they’re together. And while the two of them might not always get along, every moment with them is interesting, memorable, and full of that spark…and I honestly can’t wait to get more of them as their story continues.

Not to be outdone by the new kids on the block, all the rest of the gang of Family Justice will remind you over and over again why you love them all so much. You will fall back in love with their distinctive charm, how much they love and feel for one another, and just how far they are willing to go for those they love. Every moment you get with this family will pull at your heart in more ways than one, and I honestly can’t tell you enough how much I loved and felt this chapter of their story with all of them.

You will laugh and smile right along with these characters and the shenanigans that they get into. You will cry and have a heavy heart with them as they face what comes their way too. You will feel the absolute joy and love that they experience as new things come their way and as they continue to share moments full of love, laughter, and life with each other. You will jump for joy at times with them, and want to hug them harder at others, and through it all you will be with them as they show what family, love, and undying friendship are all about. (And just wait until you figure out how that cover connects into it all…cue heart melting.)

If you have loved this series and getting to know these characters, then I am telling you that you will love and enjoy every word of this book with them. Your love for these characters will deepen, your excitement for what’s to come will exponentially grow, and in the end you will realize how literally amazing this series, its characters, and their journeys within it, truly are.

Unchained was a phenomenal addition to the Family Justice Saga, and through it all I was reminded over and over again why I LOVE this series, its characters, and Suzanne Halliday’s writing so much. This series also continues to remind me again and again why I love series so much in the first place. The level of investment and connection you get with every single character in this series puts these books in a league of their own, and I truly can’t say enough how much I have loved reading every word of them. This book continued that love, and I have no doubt that any more books in this series will have that love growing even more.

If you love an extraordinary story full of love, family, and friendship, and the life changing, heart melting, and all-feeling things that can happen when you have all three, then you need this book and this series in your life. As I sit here writing this review, all I can think about is how much I love these characters with all that I have, and how much Suzanne Halliday has continued to give me unforgettable reading experiences with her amazing characters within this series, along with her other books. I can’t wait for where this series will take these characters, and I have no doubt that Suzanne Halliday will rock my world with whatever comes next for all of them!

Unchained is the whole package, and it is a book you will love. Trust me. There is no way you can read this book and experience what you do with these characters, and not love it, so get to reading it this very instant because the Justice Family is the best and they’re waiting for you.

Unchained (Family Justice Book 4)

http://amzn.to/29TxEnU

FREE on KU

Family Justice Part 1 (Includes books 1-3)

Amazon: http://amzn.to/29NzV2g

iBooks: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/family-justice-part-one/id1107352172?mt=11

Justice Brothers Series Box Set (Books 1-3)

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2a0nO3L

iBooks: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-justice-brothers-box-set/id965711633?mt=11

Suzanne Halliday is a USA Today Bestselling Author who writes what she knows and what she loves – sexy adult contemporary romance with strong men and spirited women. Her love for creating short stories for friends and family has developed into a passion for writing romantic fiction with a sensual edge. She finds the world of digital, self-publishing to be the perfect platform for sharing her stories and also for what she enjoys most of all – reading. When she’s not on a deadline you’ll find her loading up on books to devour.

Currently a wanderer, she and her family divide their time between the east and west coast, somehow always managing to get the seasons mixed up. When not digging out from snow or trying to stay cool in the desert, you can find her in the kitchen, 80’s hair band music playing in the background, kids running in and out, laptop on with way too many screens open, something awesome in the oven, and a mug of hot tea clutched in one hand.

Fun fact: Suzanne is the mother of USA Today Bestselling Author, Ella Fox.

Suzanne’s Website: www.authorsuzannehalliday.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SuzanneHallidayAuthor

Twitter: @SuzanneHalliday

15Jul2016

Review Post: Knot by M. Mabie

Posted in Books I love, Releasing Now Book Addicts, Review Post by mkcooke

KNOT by M. Mabie

KNOT is LIVE!

Links:

iTunes bit.ly/appleknot

Amazon amzn.to/1XUZiCQ

Amazon UK bit.ly/knotuk

Amazon CA bit.ly/knotca

Amazon AU bit.ly/knotau

Nook bit.ly/nookknot

Kobo bit.ly/koboknot

Blurb

He knows everything.
She has all the damn answers.

I’ve always been a free spirit. It’s my nature.
I crave control, but with her it’s far more.

He’s a power hungry climber.
Her wealth could buy and sell me.

It’s too much pressure being the center of anyone’s focus.
She underestimates my desire for her, my need to please just her.

When he’s vulnerable, it’s hard to deny him.
Her crooked smile cripples me.

He hides his demons, but I’m no fool.
She thinks not committing to anyone makes her more honest. She’s wrong.

A man like him deserves someone who can offer that kind of love.
She promises nothing, yet I feel like a king when she says my name.

I never let anyone possess me like he did. Not before. Not after.
My greatest regret was compromising. I should have never held back.

Still, when we’re apart I’m not myself.
I miss the days when she was just down the hall.

He’s better off without me, and it hurts.
The ugly truth is I need her more than she needs me.

Our relationship was born out of lust and curiosity.
The lies we told ourselves killed it.

Together, we found Nirvana.
We learned it was all a mirage.

I ruined him.
I broke her heart.

I keep coming back.
I can’t let her go.

KNOT is a contemporary romance and a complete standalone. It is the first spin-off from the best-selling Wake Series. You do not need to read BAIT, SAIL, or ANCHOR to enjoy this book in its entirety, but if you love angst you’ll enjoy them, too.

To Read a the full prologue, please visit http://www.MMabie.com

5 Unforgettably Reggie & Nora Stars

When you’re a reader, there are many kinds of books you come across. There are some books you read. There are some books you whole heartedly enjoy every word of. There are some books you know you’ll never forget too. There are some books that make you laugh, or cry, or feel angry, or some combination of all three. There are some books that hurt you just as much as it hurts the characters in the story, and there are many books out there that put you back tsdogether again right along with its characters.

Then every once and awhile, you find a book that gives you all of that. All of that, and more. You find a book that you experience every word of. A book that literally takes ahold of you in every way possible, and doesn’t let you go. Ever. Books like that sweep you up within their literal amazingness, pull you in with everything they have, and let you live and feel and breathe the gamut of emotions and moments they have to offer with their characters. These are the books that affect you, that change you, and that give you a reading experience you didn’t even know you needed.

These are the books you truly never forget. The books that move you, that break you only to put you back together in a way you didn’t know was possible, and these are the books that give you it all.

They check every box, they give you everything and the kitchen sink, and in the end they give you a story that was worth feeling everything for, that was worth giving everything to, and that was so worth every lick of investment you gave it and its characters.

Books like that are what I love. Books like that are what I live for. Books like that are why I am a reader.

Knot by M. Mabie is a book like that. It’s a book like that and more. So much more.

It’s a book that you feel, a book that you breathe and take in every word of, and a book that you experience every single second of right along with its dynamic characters. This is a book that will have you within its pages, experiencing every moment of its phenomenal, viscerally emotional, and pulse racing story, as you invest yourself in every way possible in what it’s giving you.

If you think you’ve experienced angst, wait until you read Knot and want to equally throw your e-reader across the room, scream at the top of your lungs in adamant love and frustration, all while simultaneously wanting to hug the book closer to you, as if that will somehow get you closer to these characters and all their feels.

If you think you’ve experienced an undeniably heated and emotional connection between two characters, wait until you read this story and get your hands on Reggie and Nora and all that they will give you. Wait until they make you cry or laugh or melt or swoon or break into a million pieces, and then break those broken pieces of your heart even more. Just. You. Wait. You have never felt a book as much as you will with this one. Trust me on that one.

If you think you’ve experienced a love between two characters that’s worth fighting for, a love worth giving everything to, and a love worth investing everything in, wait until you read this book and are thrown right into the thick of it with these two. That love you get with them will make you and break you and pull at every emotion you didn’t even know you had, just as it does with Reggie and Nora, and through all of that you will be right there with them, in the thick of it, fighting and trying and giving it your all, in hopes that it might work out.

If you think you’ve read a book like this one, think again my friend, and just wait until you experience every wickedly sensual, heart wrenchingly emotional, and exceptionally written word of this book.

Told through the words of M. Mabie’s breathtaking and emotionally laced writing, Knot is a story of what happens when two people, who are seemingly opposite in so many ways, can’t help but be drawn back to one another. It’s a story of second chances and third chances and so many more chances, all of which you will feel in your bones while reading. It’s a story of what happens when two people share a connection so fierce, so alluring, and so life changing that they can’t seem to fight or stay away from it, no matter how much it hurts, and no matter how much they know they will never be the same after experiencing a connection like that.

Knot is a love story about two people who have just about broken each other’s hearts more times than they can count, but trust me they’re really counting, and how despite what they do to one another, they can’t help but be drawn back to each other and that fierce connection they share. This is a story about what happens when you meet the one person who changes everything, when you meet that one person who tilts your world’s axis, and who makes you see and feel and experience everything differently…and ultimately how that equally tears you apart as much as it puts you back together again.

This is a story of what happens before, during, and after a love and heartbreak so strong, so fierce, and so unforgettable that you’re changed permanently. This is a story of what that love and heartbreak can give you, what it can take away, and what it will ultimately leave you with. This is a story of two people, their love, their fight, and their undeniable connection that tears them apart a little more each day, yet at the same time, puts them back together again too.

This is their story. Reggie and Nora’s. How they push each other to places they never thought they’d be, how they break each other and themselves along the way, and how they handle everything that comes to them as they try to figure out what the hell to feel, to think, and to do with all that they share.

Their story is messy and complicated and full of the flaws that threaten every emotion they have, but it’s them. It’s them and it works so damn well because it’s so them. It’s intense, it’s all-feeling, and it’s raw and uneasy to say the least too. There will be so many moments while reading when you’ll need to take a deep breath and just sit there for a hot second because you’ll be that consumed by every feeling and emotion they’re experiencing and sharing. You’ll feel that lump of emotion in your throat for Nora and Reggie, and it will make you think and feel of little else besides them while you’re enraptured within their story. There will be moments when you’ll be tearing up so much and when you will feel your heart literally ache for these two because of all that they’re sharing, all that they’re giving to one another, and how they’re equally breaking as much as they’re coming together.

All of that is what makes this book so good. All of that is what makes this book so emotional and raw and real. All of that is what makes this book so unforgettable.

Knot is their story of love and hate, and every single emotion that comes in between. It is a story you feel every breath and word and emotion of, and let me tell you, even when it hurts, it hurts so damn good.

Their story isn’t easy, and it isn’t for the faint of heart, but it’s worth it. So damn worth it. And I am telling you, this is a book you need in your life. It will hurt you, it will make you, and it will give you it all if you let it, and that is just a fraction of what makes it so exceptional.

To say I was ready for this book is probably the understatement of the century. I have wanted and needed Reggie Warren’s story in my life since I met him in Bait almost two years ago. That is where I met and fell in love with him, and to say I loved that man something fierce it putting it too mildly. That is also when I got my first taste of Nora, and let me tell you, while I have never dipped my foot in the lady pond, I have a serious lady crush on that girl. Seriously.

Nora is the best. So is Reggie. I knew their story would be something I would never forget, but I don’t know if I was prepared for how much I would love their book, how much I would feel it, and how much I would end up living through it all with them.

I might not have been prepared for the level and the intensity of investment M. Mabie gave me with this story and with Reggie and Nora, but you can rest your pretty little head that I went oh so willingly into that investment. As Reggie and Nora fell, I fell just as hard with them. As they fought and gave it their all, I did too, pouring everything I had into those two and what they shared, just like they were. As this story progressed and evolved, and as Reggie and Nora went through every emotional up and down that came their way, I was with them feeling and experiencing it all too.

The level of investment I felt in their story and relationship, the strength of the connection I felt to them both through every page, through every moment of hurt and heart and honesty, and the extraordinary understanding I had with both of them through every turn of the page is all a true testament to M. Mabie’s thoughtful and exceptional crafting of this book, these characters, and their story together.

I could literally go on for paragraphs and paragraphs, and countless more words about how much I loved this book, how much I loved Reggie and Nora, and how much I felt and experienced with them along the way.

I could tell you all about Reggie, his dynamic intensity, his steadfast determination, and the sheer presence that man has.

I could tell you about Nora, her sharp wit, her big heart, and how much that girl feels when she really lets herself go there.

I could tell you about the pulsating connection these two share. How it grows and grows and then grows some more, and how every moment between them is equal parts emotional and visceral and passionate, while being uniquely romantic for them.

I could tell you about how far these two are willing to go for one another, how much they’re willing to do for each other, and what that shows them both and makes them feel along the way.

I could tell you all about their choices and sacrifices. I could tell you about their vulnerability and their honesty that will shake you to your core. I could tell you about their heartbreaks and struggles. I could tell you about their highest of highs and their lowest of lows.

I could tell you about every lick of emotion they will give you, and every bit of emotion they’ll experience for themselves too.

I could tell you about the oranges. I could tell you about the freesia.

I could tell you about their stubbornness and how much you will love them, and hate them, and love them some more for it and what that stubbornness brings them.

I could tell you more about their love, their fears, their doubts, and their hearts that you get to experience firsthand in Knot.

I could tell you it all. I could tell you everything.

But I won’t tell you everything, because that would take away from you experiencing the literal amazingness of what Reggie and Nora will give you within the pages of their unforgettable story.

I could use all the words I know how to use. I could find a way to use every positive adjective under the sun. I could even list every sentiment I could think of to describe what this book gave me. I could count down from a thousand with everything I loved about this book, and I would still need a thousand more numbers to truly encapsulate what I loved about Knot and what it gave me with Reggie and Nora.

I could do all of that and more, and I still wouldn’t even come close to capturing how unforgettable, how emotional and powerful and viscerally real this story is. I wouldn’t come close to capturing what Reggie and Nora share, and I wouldn’t come close to showing you what it’s like to experience their story.

Luckily though, you don’t need my words. You need M. Mabie’s. You need Reggie and Nora’s, and you need everything that they give you along the way in Knot. You need this book in your life. You need its emotions, you need its intensity, and you need its phenomenal words that will give you everything you didn’t even know you needed while it gives you Reggie and Nora.

Let M. Mabie, her phenomenal words, and Reggie and Nora, blow you away with everything they have. Let them make you feel and breathe and live every intense and all-feeling moment, and let the breathtakingly emotional knot of them pull you in oh so tightly to this phenomenal book and their unforgettable story.

It would be wrong not to read this book, and no one says no to Reggie. Ever. Or Nora for that matter. But especially Reggie…so just do yourself a favor and read this book as soon as humanly possible.

You will not regret it, and in the end you’ll get Reggie and Nora, all of their wonderful stubbornness and intensity and emotion, and it truly doesn’t get better than that.

M. MABIE would love to hear from you! You can find her at the following places online:

www.MMabie.com There you’ll find everything you need to know, including how to subscribe to her exclusive newsletters, online store, playlists and fan made teasers.

Facebook.com/AuthorMMabie

Twitter @AuthorMMabie

Instagram @m_mabie

Take the Bait The Most Fun Reader’s Group on Earth

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12Jul2016

Releasing Now: Knot by M. Mabie