Releasing Now: Unlawful Desire by Chelle Bliss

nowavailableTitle: Unlawful Desire
Series: ALFA PI Book #2
NOW AVAILABLE
Author: Chelle Bliss

Synopsis2

No matter how hard I tried to push her away, fate thrust us together again.

Screw relationships. My motto: Hit it and quit it.
Simple worked. Feelings weren’t on the line, hearts weren’t able to be broken,
and I could keep my life simple.

My friends told me to move on and find the “one,” but I wasn’t ready to love again.
Until I met her.
A dirty-mouthed temptress with a killer body that had me questioning everything.
I knew I could ruin her forever, but not without losing myself.
I wouldn’t do it.
But Georgia Phillips was innocent, pure, and total perfection.
I wouldn’t be the one to strip her bare and break her heart.
I swore I’d never call another woman mine, but that was before I almost lost her.
Warning: If you can’t handle a cocky bad boy or a badass chick with a dirty mouth,
this might not be the book for you.

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author

Bliss

Chelle Bliss, USA Today Bestselling author, currently lives in a small town near the Gulf of Mexico in Florida. She’s a full-time writer, time-waster extraordinaire, social media addict, and coffee fiend. She’s written over thirteen books and has three series available. She loves spending her free time with her boyfriend, 2 cats, and her hamster.

Before becoming a writer, Chelle taught high school history for over ten years. She holds a master’s degree in Instructional Technology and a bachelor’s in history. Although history is her first love, writing has become her dream job and she can’t imagine doing anything else.

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Releasing Now: Sweet Obsession by J. Daniels

 

Title: Sweet Obsession

Series: Sweet Addiction #3

Author: J Daniels

Genre: Contemporary/Erotic Romance

 Release Date: September 22, 2015

Blurb

***Author’snote*** Sweet Obsession can be read as a standalone novel.

Everyone knows Brooke Wicks loves to have a good time. She’s not interested in getting serious, settling down, or limiting herself to one man. So when she meets the sexy, irresistible Mason King, she sees another opportunity to let loose and go wild. But the gorgeous Aussie isn’t interested in just a quick fling with Brooke, and if she wants to get into his bed, she’s going to have to do it on his terms.

Loving fast and hard has always been Mason’s philosophy. He doesn’t want a meaningless connection, he wants it all, and he wants it with Brooke. When she makes her one desire known—to hit it and quit it—Mason wages a plan to ensure Brooke keeps coming back for more. Or so he hopes. Getting her

attention was the easy part. Keeping it might be damn near impossible.

Sweet Obsession is where the Sweet Addiction series meets the Alabama Summer series.

 
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My Review

*****5 PHENOMENAL STARS*****

Do you ever start a book, and know you’re going to love it the minute you start it? You go into it anticipating what’s to come, and you feel those butterflies of excitement as you dive right into it all. Then when you reach the end of that first chapter, and you’re hooked and so beyond ready for more, and you start to get that feeling. You know that spark that just ignites you, that enthralls you in every way, and makes it so you HAVE to read more because you NEED to know what happens. That feeling that lets you know this book you’re experiencing heart first is going to give you one helluva reading experience you’ll never forget.

Well I totally had that feeling reading Sweet Obsession by J. Daniels after reading the first page of this amazing, unforgettable, and utterly vibrant book, and by the end of that first chapter, I knew that I was reading what would be one of my top reads of the year, and most assuredly one of my new favorite books.  

Sweet Obsession was the perfect balance of humor, heat, passion, and heart. It is an enrapturing story that is brimming with so many thoughtfully crafted moments that give you so much. You get moments that make you laugh out loud on just about every other page, moments that make your heart melt into a puddle of wonderful emotional goo, moments that bring a certain rosy kind of hue and heat to your cheeks in the most wonderful way, and so many extraordinary moments that you feel every vibrant and varied ounce of.

This book tells the story of one loud mouthed, wonderfully ridiculous, and utterly entertaining Brooke Wicks who I have loved since I first met her character in Sweet Addiction, J. Daniels first book. Along with Brooke you also get Mason King, who will melt your heart along with a few other things about 35 total seconds after you meet him. He’s handsome as all get out, he’s nice and caring times a millions, and he’s an Australian who teaches yoga. You’ve already fallen under his spell, haven’t you? Did I mention that he’s Australian, and comes packing an accent that is to melt for? Sweet Obsession follows these two as the sparks really start to fly. Brooke’s all about the hit it and quit it, while Mason is all about getting to know her and sharing something meaningful. This story follows what happens when the two of them simply can’t get enough, and have to decide what they’re going to do with the world of feeling, chemistry, and connection they share.

Their story is invigorating, passionate, filled with more heat and spark than you can shake a stick at, and has the most superb balance of Mason, Brooke, and all of their glorious words, and the incredible, authentic, and vibrant feelings and emotions they evoke and share with one another.

This book gives you it all, though that isn’t surprising to me in the least because every book that I’ve read by the fantastic J. Daniels have given me it all. Her writing and storytelling ability is out of this world phenomenal, and I have yet to read a book from her that hasn’t left me in awe. What she so fantastically creates and gives you in her mesmerizing stories with her distinctive and engaging characters is something you don’t get in every book you read. Her books, her words, her stories, and her amazing characters are just more, and I realized that once again while reading Sweet Obsession.

I loved this book. Like I love, love, LOVED it with every piece of my heart. I’m pretty sure while reading Sweet Obsession I had the most ridiculous smile on my face because I was just so thrilled with what I was reading with Mason and Brooke. They owned my heart the instant I started, and I honestly think they’ll permanently own some part of my heart for forever because they’re just that memorable. I still can’t stop thinking about them, feeling them, and loving them. They are two of my favorite characters I’ve ever read, and every word I got from this book was lively, all-feeling, and just very very them.

This book was truly unputdownable, yet the more and more I read, the more and more I never wanted it to end because I was hopelessly in love with everything I was reading within its extraordinary pages. It moved me, it made me feel, it made me laugh out loud hysterically immensely, and like every J. Daniels book, there was this effervescent spark weaving its way so perfectly through the story. That spark was vibrant and lively and distinctive to these characters and to this author’s writing style, and it’s part of what made this book so exceptional to read and experience. It’s not just a book you read, it’s a book you feel every outstanding ounce of. It’s a book with characters you breathe in, understand and fall so truly in love with, and one that you enjoy every bit of.

Brooke Wicks has to be one of the most out their female characters I’ve ever read, and her humor sure had my laughing like a hyena more times than I could count, and that is just part of what I loved about her. In Sweet Obsession you get the amazing chance to see a different side to her, a vulnerable side that oozes authenticity in such an endearing way, and I connected so much to her and all that she goes through in this book. I heart that girl something fierce for her unapologetic personality, her feisty spunk, and just her overall wonderfulness. She is such a true gem of a character to get to love, and what you get from her as she reevaluates her love life, what she’s looking for, and as she attempts to figure out what Mason is all about, is truly nothing short of spectacular.

Mason King had me at yeah. Like literally and when you meet his character you’ll totally get that. J. Daniels sure knows how to make a male character that casts one powerful spell, and I fell under Mason’s distinctive and heartwarming one in a nanosecond. He is such a good guy, and that goodness and care emanates from him in the most outstanding way. He’s also so beyond dreamy and will have you swooning at the feelings he gives you with every beautiful and meaning word that comes out of his mouth. And let’s not forget that charm that bursts from this Australian in spades. Basically, Mason is the real honest to goodness package that will have your heart melting and squeezing at everything he says and does and feels on his journey to make Brooke Wicks realize what they could share.

The connection that J. Daniels so thoughtfully and fantastically builds over the course of Sweet Obsession is just a part of what brings this magnificent book to life. She creates a vibrant and mesmerizing spark between Mason and Brooke right from the start, and you feel it build and intensify and evolve over the course of this book in such a way that just pulls you into everything they’re sharing. You feel and experience it all as they are because of how incredibly J. Daniels writes this book. You feel that spark, that distinctive and powerful connection, and you feel that passion and heat continue to build and build and intensify between them until it literally explodes in the most amazing, all-feeling, visceral, and of course, sweetest ways.

Let’s just say that I guarantee by the end of this book you will be loving Mason and Brooke. They have their bumps in the road, and they definitely misstep a bit on their adventure together, but through it all they are their superbly vibrant and unique selves that will have you loving and basking in every single moment you get with them.

Now I think one of my favorite aspects of Sweet Obsession had to be the fact that this book crossed over two of my favorite series ever that J. Daniels has so fantastically created. You have Brooke from the Sweet Addiction Series, which means you get all the fantastic people who come with her. Dylan, Reese, Joey, Jules, Ian, and Billy are all back and they are better than ever. You get the phenomenal chance to see what they’ve been up to since we last saw them all, and I will tell you now that you will love every bit you get from them. Especially from Joey’s character. I could probably write 10,000 more words at least on my heartfelt and unending love on his character. Seriously.

You also have Mason, who you first meet in All I Want from this author’s Alabama Summer Series, which means you also get a bit of Alabama in Chicago in this book. I loved that. I relished in that. Reading this book with so many of my all-time favorite literary characters together in one place made reading this book feel like coming home. It made this book more. It made all the feelings and interactions and moments they all share together that much more spectacular to experience, and I honestly could go on and on about how much I love all of these characters, and how J. Daniels so epically brought them all together in Sweet Obsession.

To say I loved Sweet Obsession by J. Daniels is practically the understatement of the year. This amazing, beautiful, and utterly fantastic book was one that I loved every word of. I could go on for pages and pages about my adoration of it, my heartfelt feelings and love for Mason and Brooke and their utterly phenomenal story, and my unyielding love for J. Daniels outstanding writing and storytelling. This book is hands down one of my favorite books of the year, and it most definitely gave me one of the most enjoyable reading experiences I have ever had.

This amazing book truly gives you it all, and it is not to be missed because what it gives you is fun, filled with life, spark, love, and so much glorious feeling, and when you reach the end you’ll just be basking in the wondrous reading experience Sweet Obsession gave you.

Let Brooke and Mason wow you. Let them light you up, and let you feel every brilliant and lively bit of them, because they truly are something else, something oh so mesmerizing. Let their friends win you over, let their interactions make you smile and feel until it hurts in the best possible way, and let them give you every exuberant bit of everything they’ve got. Let them win over a piece of your heart because you know you want to give it over to their fantastic little selves.

You know you want to, yeah?

Also Available

SWEET ADDICTION SERIES

AMAZON US / UK

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 ALABAMA SUMMER SERIES

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AMAZON US / UK

 author

 

J. Daniels is the NY Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Sweet Addiction series, and the Alabama Summer series. She loves curling up with a good book, drinking a ridiculous amount of coffee, and writing stories her children will never read. J grew up in Baltimore and resides in Maryland with her family.

Author Links

WEBSITE    FACEBOOK     TWITTER    GOODREADS    STREET TEAM

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Releasing Now: After the Storm by Faith Andrews

AfterTheStorm.Ebook

After the Storm

By: Faith Andrews

Buy it from Amazon

Synopsis2

Noah and Willow know not to mix business with pleasure. They’ve both been burned in the past, he thinks she’s too young, and she definitely shouldn’t hook up with her boss. So, they don’t. Instead, they build a friendship, while fighting an obvious attraction.

But when Noah’s called back East after a natural disaster that threatens his home and the loved ones he left behind, he’s forced to face his past with Willow by his side.

Will their turbulent pasts hold them back from giving into fate? Or will the two of them realize that they’ve been each other’s calm before the storm?

Add to your Goodreads TBR —> https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25559886-after-the-storm

afterthestorm6

My Review

*****5 AMAZING STARS*****

When I first met Noah Matheson’s character in Man of My Dreams, the first book in The Dream Series by the fabulous Faith Andrews, I may have swooned just a bit. (Or a lot!) He was definitely a man with a heart of gold, who I instantly fell for. He was just a good guy and you knew it, and while things may not have worked out the way he wanted them to in that book, After the Storm, book 2 in The Dream Series, allows you to see what happened after for him.

This book is set years later and follows Noah and Willow on their emotional journey filled with more ups and downs, and emotional twists and turns than you can shake a stick at. Both of these characters have a world of pain and hurt in their pasts from those they trusted. After the Storm follows the two of them as they first begin fighting the many intense feelings and attractions they have for one another, but soon realize they can’t fight against the intensity and pull of what they’re sharing.

Their story is consuming, emotional, beautiful, and very meaningful, and I loved every magnificent word, every passionate and heart squeezing feeling, and every thoughtfully crafted emotion that I got from it.

It is of no surprise whatsoever to me that I completely loved this book, and every breathtaking emotion it gave me. Faith Andrews is one of my favorite authors, and I know whenever I pick up a story from her, I’m going to get all the feels and emotions, all the passion and heat, and all the hurt and love that makes a book exceptional to read. The way Faith Andrews so fantastically creates and captures all of that fulfills you while reading, and gives you a well-rounded book that will truly blow you away. After the Storm was no different, and I absolutely loved every all-feeling word of Willow and Noah’s story.

What I absolutely loved about After the Storm:

  • Feeling, upon feeling, upon glorious feeling. While reading After the Storm you will feel just about every feeling under the sun because Faith Andrews so phenomenally gives you all of them through her outstanding writing. You’ll feel the hurt and pain, regret and pure sadness, and the emotional vulnerabilities of these characters, but you’ll also feel the hope and elation, the spark and chemistry, and the depth of feeling they begin to share too. You feel it all. Every well thought out, varied, and superbly captured emotion and feeling. Feeling and experiencing that allows you to live through these books with these characters, and it just pulls you into everything that they are going through in the most extraordinary way.
  • Noah’s fight filled journey. As I said, I have loved Noah’s character since I first met him in Man of My Dreams, and his story just solidified that even more. He is just such a good guy, and that goodness emanates from him. He’s also real, and has his own flaws, but those just make him who he is. Over the course of this book and this series you see that Noah is fighting and giving it all he has in order to move on from what he went through. That fight defines him in the best way, and just shows that he is a guy who is willing to give and do it all in order to be exactly where he needs to be. I just loved the charm of his character, and the events of this book allow you to understand his character on a whole new level, while just reiterating again and again how amazing of a guy he truly is.
  • Willow’s heart squeezing story. Willow’s heart squeezing story in this book just about broke my heart so many times because the more I learned about her character and her past, the more I felt for her, the more I loved her, and the more I wanted to just reach in and make everything better for her. Willow is authentic, relatable, and just an easy to love character that I connected with the instant I met her in this book. She’s real and has been through so much, but through it all she keeps pushing through, and I had mad respect for her because of that. The emotional journey she goes on in After the Storm pulled at my heart repeatedly because I felt like I got to see all sides of her. Her vulnerable side, her strong and feisty side, and the side of her that was just looking for someone who cared about her. I loved Willow’s character to pieces in every way, and the goodness of her truly shined through in this book.
  • The building connection. One of my favorite aspects of After the Storm is the fantastic build in the connection that Willow and Noah share. These get off to a bumpy start, with Noah thinking he can’t start something with Willow because of her age and the fact that he’s her boss, and Willow doing everything in her power to show him what they could have if they only gave it a chance. Faith Andrews truly builds a solid foundation to their relationship, with a healthy dose of push and pull that’s sure to get your heart thumping just a bit harder. You get to see Noah and Willow’s heartfelt and spark filled connection build and grow over the course of the story, which allows you to become even more pulled in to everything that you’re reading.
  • Whispers of the past. I loved that both of these characters come into this story with their respective pasts still haunting them in a lot of ways, and how you get to see them trying to overcome all that they’ve gone through. That just adds to the connection they share because they understand that about one another, and they both get how their pasts affect their presents. I loved what that added to Noah and Willow’s story, and getting to see their pasts revealed over the story, especially Willow’s, just connected me more to their characters and everything they were going through. With those pasts you get a lot of feeling and emotion that makes you feel and experience a lot of outstanding and heart squeezing things, and through all of that past, you get one helluva present with these two.
  • The supporting characters who bring it all together. The supporting characters in After the Storm were the absolute best. They were vibrant and fun, and they pushed both Noah and Willow’s characters in some very needed directions. Sloane and Blaze were especially engaging and fun to get to know, and all of their interaction with Noah and Willow never failed to make me think or feel or smile or just take it all in. The dynamic and distinctive supporting character of this book just bring everything together. They bring some seriously enrapturing moments, and all the meaning and feeling that go with them to help make this story the fantastic thing that it is.
  • The evolution and effect of these characters. In After the Storm you get the extraordinary chance to see Noah and Willow’s characters and feelings evolve. You see their emotional evolution, their relationships evolution, and every emotional step in between. You see and fully feel the effect that they have on one another, what they do for one another, and that just heightens how much you feel for them both. I loved taking this emotional and breathtaking journey with them in this story because through it all I could see them evolving and fighting with all they had to get to exact place they wanted to be together and individually. Their evolution is filled with many emotional ups and downs that will have your heart feeling so much, and you will absolutely love them through it all because of the exceptional things you get to experience with them along the way.

While reading After the Storm I felt such a true and heartfelt emotional connection to these characters. Faith Andrews so outstandingly cultivates and crafts that connection, so that you feel as if you’re with Noah and Willow every emotional step of the way. She allows you to become invested in them, their story together, and the journey that they’re on, and feeling that while reading was downright extraordinary to experience. That pulled me in all the more, and just allowed me to realize the meaning and connection and investment I was so truly feeling to everything that I was reading.

After the Storm is a consuming story about two people who know what it’s like to put their trust in someone, only to have that trust severely broken, and what happens when those two reeling souls attempt to find their way together. Willow and Noah’s journey isn’t easy, and it’s wrought with many emotions and feelings that you will feel so deeply in your heart, but through it all it’s a story about what can happen when you give all that immense feeling a chance to get to that beautiful calm after the storm.

This story was just another all-around fantastic read from Faith Andrews that I completely loved. From beginning to end I was completely enraptured within the magnificent pages of this book, and I so truly felt every ounce of the emotionally gripping and breathtaking story that I got to experience with Willow and Noah. Suffice to say, I heart those two something fierce, and every single heart racing, heart squeezing, and heart melting moment that I got with them in this extraordinary book.

afterthestorm2

 

Excerpt

Tilting her head and curling her hair between her fingers, her gorgeous mouth forms a megawatt smile “Wow. Every time I learn something new about you, I’m more and more impressed.”

She’s flirting, I’m not an idiot, but I don’t want to lead her on so I change the subject. “How about you? Were you born in California? I know you went to college out here from your resume, but—”

“There is no but,” she interrupts. “I have the most unexciting life imaginable. I was born and raised in Del Mar. I have two younger brothers, parents divorced when I was little, and Dad lives in Oregon with his new wife, Marcy. I went to college close to home to help Mom with the boys, and Sloane has been my best friend since fifth grade. That’s me in a nutshell. Boring, plain, uneventful. No one cares about keeping up with this Jones.”

I can’t quite read her. She rambled it off so quickly it almost sounds rehearsed. I have nothing else to go on, so I can’t tell if she’s hiding or avoiding something. I don’t pry, because I don’t like talking about my past either. And because of that, I’ve learned to always make small talk and keep the attention off me with flattery.

“I find it hard to believe that there’s anything boring about you, Willow Jones. You’re beautiful and smart and you have the whole world ahead of you.” Nice! Now I sound like her father. It just came out without thinking. I meant it as a compliment—a not too forward one—but by the wearied look on her face, I can tell she took it the wrong way. Damn, this woman brings me close to choking on my own tongue. What the hell?

“I guess you’ll just have to take my word for it since you seem to avoid me every chance you get.” She looks down again, making it impossible to read her face. She was flirting and I misled her with my goo-goo eyes.

Fuck! She found a way to catch me off guard and now I have to backtrack to fix this mess. Getting involved with a co-worker—or any woman right now—just isn’t on my to-do list. “I’m not avoiding you, Willow. I’m just not the guy for you.” I can’t say it’s not taking serious willpower to stay away. It’s hard to always be the good guy. Where the hell is Tori when I need her? I need to be bad. Very, very bad.

Instead of deterring her, my dismissal makes her bolder. Or maybe it’s the second vodka and cran. Willow pouts—intentionally, for sure—and those pretty, glossy lips snatch my attention. It’s so fucking sexy that my dick grows hard against my zipper and I shift in my seat so I don’t bring notice to the bulge in my pants. “Blaze warned me about you, you know.”

“Oh, really?” Now I’m curious. “Please enlighten me on the bullshit my friend’s fed you.” Blaze means well, but he always shares a little too much.

Willow laughs, exposing the smooth skin of her neck as her head falls back. What I wouldn’t give to taste that spot right there. Stop tempting me, Willow. You’re making this—and me—harder than it has to be.

She points a finger in my face, waving it around. “You see, if you’d accept my invitation to lunch once in a while, I could fill you in on all the bullshit he’s told me. But until I hear it from you, I’m forced to believe him.”

“Oh come, on. You’ve been working for me long enough to know I almost never take a lunch break. I eat on the site most days. That’s if I even get the chance. And like I said, I’m not the guy for you.” Keep saying it. It’s bound to sink in.

author

Faith Andrews lives in New York where she is happily married to her high school sweetheart. They have two beautiful daughters and a furry Yorkie son, Rocco. If she isn’t listening to Mumford and Sons or busy being a Dance Mom, her nose is in a book or her laptop. She’s a sucker for a happily ever after and believes her characters are out there living one somewhere . . .

Social Media Links:

Website —> http://www.authorfaithandrews.com

Facebook —> https://www.facebook.com/authorfaithandrews

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Twitter —> https://twitter.com/jessicafaith919

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Releasing Now: Hard Love by Meredith Wild

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HARD LOVE by Meredith Wild

(September 15, 2015; Forever Trade Paperback; The Hacker Series #5)

Wild_Hard Love_TP

Synopsis2

Days after their wedding, Blake and Erica Landon embark on their honeymoon-a journey that deepens their bond and promises to fade the scars of their past. Just when their troubles seem safely behind them, scandal surrounding would-be Governor Daniel Fitzgerald’s election threatens their newfound peace. Back home, Blake finds himself at the center of the controversy, haunted by the transgressions of his hacker past that he has no wish to relive.

With Blake’s freedom at stake and their future in peril, Erica will stop at nothing to clear his name. But when Blake defies the authorities and refuses to seek the truth, their world gradually begins to crumble. Will he let his past win? Or can Erica convince him that their life together is worth fighting for-now more than ever…

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Excerpt

We walked the now familiar path back to our hotel, through the dark uneven streets out of Dublin’s city center. A hint of rain and the lingering scent of the fresh flowers that had been sold on the streets hours earlier filled the air.

I held Blake’s hand, admiring the details of the building architecture framing the old streets, greeting the bright-eyed faces that met us on the sidewalk. It was almost midnight, but our schedule was a mess and I was in no rush to be anywhere as long as we were together. Seeing my old professor again had been a flashback to a simpler time in my life. So much had happened since that first meeting in the Angelcom boardroom that he’d arranged with Max’s initial support. I could have never known then that I’d fall head over heels for the cocky investor sitting across from me…that I’d be his wife. But here we were, bound together as closely as two people could be.

Blake caught me closer to his side and brushed a soft kiss over my cheek. “I like Brendan. I can see why he’s become a friend.”

I smiled. “It seems odd to call him that, but it’s true. He encouraged me to build the business when I had so many doubts. He’s the reason I took the path I did.”

“A path that led you straight to me.” He squeezed my hand. “Lucky me.”

I was lucky too. I couldn’t deny it. But I could have never imagined traveling the road I had.

“You’re quiet. What are you thinking about?” he asked.

I blew out a breath and shook my head. “The business, I guess. I can’t help but feel like I…failed somehow.”

He glanced down at me. “You didn’t fail. You learned.”

I scuffed the sole of my boots against the stones as we walked, avoiding his stare.

“I’ve been around the block a few times, you know. You should trust me.”

I smirked. “That’s why I married you, of course. For your business acumen and wealth of knowledge.”

He lifted an eyebrow.

“And your mountains of money,” I added quickly.

He frowned. “You’re trying to tell me you didn’t marry me for my dashing good looks? I might be insulted.”

I pursed my lips, trying to look serious. “If I had to pick one thing that tipped the scales, I’d say it was your exceptional skills in bed. I think that’s where you really excel.”

“Well then”—he laughed, his eyes twinkling—“at least my purpose is clear.”

He gave my ass a firm squeeze. Laughing, I pushed him away as we approached a street performer who was crooning for the barest of audiences. A small group of French-speaking tourists stood nearby, and an older man, dirty from the streets, sat on the opposite side of the street with a sloppy grin.

We slowed to listen as the tourists dispersed. The song was sad, but rich with love—raw and emotional the way he delivered each verse. Blake turned me to him, bringing us chest to chest. Our fingers laced, his breath warm against my hair, he led us into a simple nameless dance. I swayed toward him and closed my eyes, clinging to his muscular frame the way I clung to every magical moment between us.

Straining for the lyrics through the singer’s thick accent, I caught the verses.

When misfortune falls sure no man can shun it.

I was blindfolded I’ll ne’er deny.

Now at nights when I go to my bed of slumber,

the thoughts of my true love run in my mind.

Another moment passed as the young man’s voice faded into the night. The song was a somber one, made light only by his passionate delivery of it. Like so much of life, the pain was what you made it. He’d made something sad beautiful.

I sighed, still tight against Blake’s chest. His body emanated warmth. His heartbeat was a steady reminder of his support, his love—a force that had saved me, changed me, and healed me in ways I’d never thought possible. He tipped my chin up, the glint in his eyes matching the passion in my heart. He parted his full lips, but hesitated, a wordless moment passing between us.

“I’m going to show you the whole world, Erica.”

“I can’t imagine enjoying a minute of it without you,” I whispered.

He stilled our slow dance, tracing a fingertip over my lips, his countenance now serious in a way that threatened my next breath.

“And I’m going to make you fall in love with me all over again. Every morning and every night. In every city and at the edge of every ocean. I’ll remind you why you’re mine and why I’ve always been yours.”

I drew in an unsteady breath, feeling his promise all the way to my soul. Swallowing hard, I found my voice. “I think you’re on the right track.”

I arched toward him until our lips met. Soft and slow at first, the kiss went deeper, stealing every thought that didn’t revolve around his taste and touch.

We broke apart slightly when a gravelly voice interrupted us.

“Go make love to her, lad, before she changes her mind already.”

Behind us, the man who’d made his home for the night in the entryway of a high-end store offered an imperfect grin, pairing his words of wisdom with a friendly tip of his small bottle of liquor.

I smiled, and Blake, by the dark look in his eyes, seemed to immediately accept the stranger’s challenge.

“I plan to,” he murmured, his tone all velvet and delicious threat. My skin tingled and he took my mouth again with a kiss that promised so much more.

Listen to a clip of the Hard Love audiobook below!!

(Click the link for more information on the Hard Love audiobook! https://soundcloud.com/audible/hard-love)

My Review

*****5 UNFORGETTABLE STARS*****

Hard Love was the absolute perfect conclusion to Meredith Wild’s captivating and utterly phenomenal Hacker Series. I couldn’t have asked for a better ending book for Blake and Erica and their breathtakingly emotional love story. This series is one of my all-time favorites, and what Meredith Wild gave me in each of these books, but especially in Hard Love, left me in true literary awe. As I sit here writing this review, I still can’t believe that Blake and Erica’s story is really over, but what I got from those two dynamic characters in this book is something I will never forget.

Meredith Wild weaves her distinctive writing magic once again in a gripping story that has you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end, has you feeling and fully experiencing every thoughtfully crafted emotion and feeling, and has you realizing once again why Blake and Erica’s journey together is beautiful, authentic, and utterly unforgettable to say the least.

Hard Love is an enthralling, superbly intense, and emotionally breathtaking read that I loved every word of. It’s a beautiful love story, brimming with raw, vulnerable, consuming love that’s depth truly has no boundaries. While reading Hard Love you will breathe in the fierce love that Blake and Erica share, and that love will fill you. It will melt and simultaneously ignite you. It will mesmerize you with every word, and have you feeling every ounce of this book in the most remarkable way. There is something so special and wonderful about the love that Blake and Erica share, and Meredith Wild gives you one last outstanding chapter to relish in all of that love.

The entire time I was reading Hard Love, I was enraptured with Blake and Erica and what they were going through in this story. I felt for them. I loved them so fiercely, and I connected to them on such a real level because of how fantastically Meredith Wild creates and captures their characters. I just got them one hundred percent. I understood them, their thoughts and feelings, their desires, their flaws, and everything that made them the wonderfully distinctive characters that they are.

The events of Hard Love are engaging in every way, and Erica and Blake are faced with one last fight, and one last hurdle to overcome in order to be together. There were so many times while reading where I didn’t know where the next page would take these two, and Hard Love had so many fantastically shocking moments that just pulled me in all the more. The many intense and varied events brought out so much in their characters, and truly allowed me to understand them on completely new level. Obviously I’ve known their characters since Hardwired, and I’ve had the phenomenal chance to see them evolve over the course of the series, but in Hard Love you really get them.

You get them at their most vulnerable at times, and at their fiercest at others. You get the real, honest and raw them, and getting them on that level is spectacular. That allows you such an immense understanding of their characters, their motives, and just how far they will go to be with one another. It brings out such an exceptional level of fight and determination and will power from them both that will have you feeling them every single breathtaking step of the way. Having that well rounded and magnificently crafted understanding of them sets this chapter of their story in a league of its own.

In Hard Love you get to see Erica’s sheer strength and fight come out full force once again. There is such a power to her character, such a determination that defines her in the best way, and a stubbornness that makes you smile, but really exemplifies so much about her. The level of fight Erica has is remarkable, and is just one of the many things I love about her character because she never gives up, she never stops giving it her all, and she never stops fighting for the love that she and Blake share. The events of Hard Love definitely throw her for a bit of a loop in more ways than one, but through it all Erica keeps trying with all her might to get her and Blake to the place they both want to be. I heart that girl something fierce for her unwavering fierceness, and she is hands down one of my favorite female characters ever.

Blake Landon is one of the most intense and dynamic characters I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading. There is such a force and presence to him that just emanates from these books. You feel that fully once again in Hard Love, but what was even more amazing in this book was that you got to see an entirely new side to Blake. You get to see a more vulnerable side, a more raw and visceral side that just pulls at your heart again and again. You really get to see how his past is affecting his present and future, and what that all adds to the story. There are so many remarkable layers to his character, and you get to delve heart first into each and every one of them, allowing you the phenomenal opportunity to see Blake Landon in a way you’ve never seen him before. He’s still the Blake you know and love, but in this chapter of the story you get more of him, and that more is the best.

Along with Blake and Erica, you get one last chance to spend time with the wonderfully distinctive supporting characters that help make this series the spectacular thing that it is. I loved getting to spend time with each and every one of them, even the ones who I sometimes wish I could shake for the things they were doing. They added a magnificent layer to everything that I was reading, and their interactions with Blake and Erica had me feeling and thinking and experiencing so much. I loved each and every one of them for different reasons, but mostly I loved them all because they were them through and through, they brought so much to the story, and they brought out so many immense and incredibly immense things from Blake and Erica. I’ve also got my fingers crossed that at some point in the future we’ll get a little bit more from some of them, because they truly were something else.

One of the many reasons Meredith Wild is a top favorite author of mine is because she creates and evokes so much varied, vibrant, and exceptionally crafted emotion and feeling in her writing that you whole heartedly experience. In Hard Love Meredith Wild gave me so many different moments with Blake and Erica that had my heart melting from all the feels and the depth behind them, had my heart racing from the shocking and riveting turn of events, had it squeezing like crazy at all that they went through, and certainly had it filling with the immense level of love and desire and passion being shared between them. While reading this book, I laughed and I cried, I also smiled more times than I could count, while thinking and wondering so much, and through it all I felt.

I felt the immense level of love and trust that Blake and Erica had for one another. I felt what it was like for them to go through everything that came there way. I felt their fierce level of fight and determination they both had to end up exactly where they wanted to be. I felt and experienced it all because Meredith Wild’s magnificent writing allowed me to feel every single amazing word of what I was reading.

Like I said, Hard Love is the perfect conclusion to this series. While reading this book everything just felt very full-circle and extremely meaningful. Erica and Blake’s hard fought journey together culminates in this extraordinary book, and Meredith Wild hit is out of the park with what she gives you from them as their story epically concludes. Through everything that you read you realize how far these characters have come and evolved from where they started, what it is that they share truly offer one another, the immense level of trust they fought to have, and why their love is so worth fighting for with everything that they’ve got. Hard Love is Blake and Erica and their insurmountable love, and it honestly doesn’t get much better than what you get from them in this book.

I could honestly continue on for with so many more words about how much I loved Hard Love (Hacker Series #5) by Meredith Wild, and why this series will remain a favorite of mine forever. The moment I finished this book, in the wee hours of the morning I might add, I cried. Not because I was sad or because I was so exhausted, but because I realized fully in that moment when it was all over, how much I literally got from Blake and Erica. I got them, who they became individually and together, I got all of their fight and the meaning behind everything they did and said and felt, but most of all I got their love. Their breathtakingly beautiful love that shows the amazing things that can really happen when two people take a risk, throw that caution to the wind, and give themselves fully to another person.

Feeling that so completely and meaningfully after reading Hard Love was nothing short of superb to experience, and is one of the many reasons The Hacker Series is one of the best series I’ve ever read. What you get from this fantastic book, these brilliant characters, and this phenomenal series is every positive adjective under the sun rolled into one extraordinary book that I guarantee will leave you fully satisfied, and in literal awe of every wondrous thing that it so fantastically gave you.  

Check out the other AMAZING books in The Hacker Series:

HARDWIRED by Meredith Wild (May 12, 2015; Forever Trade Paperback; The Hacker Series #1)

Wild_Hardwired_TP

Determined to overcome a difficult past, Erica Hathaway learns early on how to make it on her own. Days after her college graduation she finds herself face to face with a panel of investors who will make or break her fledgling startup. The only thing she didn’t prepare for was going weak in the knees over an arrogant and gorgeous investor who’s seemingly determined to derail her presentation.

Billionaire and rumored hacker Blake Landon has already made his fortune in software, and he’s used to getting what he wants with very little resistance. Captivated by Erica’s drive and unassuming beauty, he’s wanted nothing more since she stepped into his boardroom. Determined to win her over, he breaks down her defenses and fights for her trust, even if that means sacrificing a level of control he’s grown accustomed to. But when Blake uncovers a dark secret from Erica’s past, he threatens not just her trust, but the life she’s fought so hard to create.

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Read My 5 Star Review of Hardwired

HARDPRESSED by Meredith Wild (May 12, 2015; Forever Trade Paperback; The Hacker Series #2)

Wild_Hardpressed_TP

Despite Blake Landon’s controlling ways, the young and wealthy hacker finally won the trust of the woman he loves. Internet entrepreneur Erica Hathaway broke down the walls that kept her from opening her heart and her business to Blake. Ready to start this new chapter in her life, Erica is determined not to let anything come between them, even if that means giving Blake back some of the control he craves in and out of the bedroom.  But when demons from her past threaten their future, Erica makes a decision that could change their lives forever.

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Read My 5 Star Review of Hardpressed

HARDLINE by Meredith Wild (May 12, 2015; Forever Trade Paperback; The Hacker Series #3)

Wild_Hardline_TP

Software mogul Blake Landon has met his match in headstrong Erica Hathaway. While his controlling nature and her independent spirit continue to battle, Blake has no intention of letting her out of his life again. Erica has given Blake her trust and her love, determined that they will conquer any challenges together. But when he demands more and tests the boundaries of her commitment, she is forced to face the dark desires he’s kept hidden. As their bonds grow tighter, their enemies close in. With Erica’s start-up in danger, Blake’s frustration grows as he tries to protect her from those who would ruin her only to get to him. Can their relationship survive when Blake’s enemies cross the line and threaten more than her livelihood?

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Read My 5 Star Review of Hardline

HARD LIMIT by Meredith Wild (May 12, 2015; Forever Trade Paperback; The Hacker Series #4)

Wild_Hard Limit_TP

Blake Landon is a man who has everything-wealth, good looks, and the love of Erica Hathaway. The power couple has been through hell and back, and when life has torn them apart, somehow they have always found their way back to each other, more in love and stronger than ever.  On the verge of making the ultimate commitment, Erica uncovers an unsettling chapter of Blake’s history. As she makes peace with her own past and the family who left her behind, she presses Blake to tear down the last walls between them. Determined to know the man he once was, she opens a door to a world beyond her wildest imagination-a world that has her questioning the limits of her own desires. As danger lurks and dark secrets come to light, will the past destroy their promise of forever?

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Read My 5 Star Review of Hard Limit

author

Meredith-Wild-1873 by Birch Blaze photography

Meredith Wild is a #1 New York TimesUSA Today, and international bestselling author of romance. Living on Florida’s Gulf Coast with her husband and three children, she refers to herself as a techie, whiskey-appreciator, and hopeless romantic. When she isn’t living in the fantasy world of her characters, she can usually be found at www.facebook.com/meredithwild. You can learn more about her upcoming projects at www.meredithwild.com.

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Releasing Now: Paper Hearts by Claire Contreras

paper hearts book tour

paper hearts it's live

Meet Mia and Jensen in Paper Hearts.

This beautiful standalone contemporary romance by Claire Contreras is NOW LIVE! #ClaireWrites

Grab your copy at:

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1KSiifj

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1Lben8Y

iBooks: http://apple.co/1JJXiFm

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1M21cgB

papper hearts cover

Synopsis2I lost her.

No, I didn’t lose her. I threw her away.

She was my best friend.

I was never supposed to fall in love with her.

I was careless.

She was heartbroken.

I thought I was doing fine. But here she is, years later, forced to work with me, reminding me why I fell in love with her in the first place.

And this time I’m going to do everything in my power to never let her go.

paper hearts teaser 1

Excerpt

Prologue

Jensen

I don’t take ownership in a lot of things. I rent an apartment, lease a car, and go to a no-contract gym. I have a wandering heart—an incessant mind. It’s hard for me to look at something and see forever; though I had a forever once.

I let her go, not because I loved her too much to ask her to stay, but because I couldn’t bear to hear her tell me she wouldn’t. Still, every once in a while I wonder.

And nothing is more haunting than regret.

 

Chapter 1

Mia

I used to wonder what I would do if I had the chance to go back in time and right something. Would I take it? Would I look at it as a second opportunity, or would I just let it go, knowing the experiences I went through and learned from?

Discomfort spread through me as I walked into the building of my new, albeit temporary, job. The feeling stayed there, stuck to the lining inside of my uneasy stomach, echoing its way into my mind until I reached the twentieth floor of the building. As I exited the elevator and stepped into the lobby of the magazine, a smiling brunette, who was sorting through a colorful cup of pens, greeted me. Something about her—maybe her fidgetiness, the Lisa Loeb look she had going, or the welcoming smile on her face—made me breathe a little easier.

“How can I help you?” she asked in a singsong voice as she swiveled slightly in her chair.

“I’m here to see Mrs.—I mean, Dr. Zamora.”

“Fran,” she said. “She likes to be called Fran. Are you Mia?”

“Yes.”

The girl smiled and gave me a quick onceover. “Cool. I’m Katie. Let me make sure she’s in. Take a seat.”

I let out a breath as I placed my bag on the floor and sat across from her in a sleek white chair, taking in the vast space filled with photographs shot by people whose work I admired. In an effort to calm my nerves, I picked up one of the magazines beside me and leafed through it, and even went as far as to try to channel my inner zen, remembering what an incredible yoga session I’d had earlier that morning. But nothing worked. That sticky feeling of what did I get myself into? could not be soothed.

It felt like the time I let my twin brother talk me into letting him cut my hair so that we could “really be twins,” and I ended up looking like Peter Pan for two months while my mother cried into her pillow every night. I fished out my phone and contemplated sending him a text. Rob had always been the brave twin, with words of wisdom to get me through these times. But, I’d dug my grave, and now I had to lie in it.

When I ran into my favorite college professor months ago, a local magazine had just published some of my pictures for a special they were circulating. The accomplishment I felt at telling her this dwindled when she asked the dreaded words: what next? But then she offered me the opportunity of a lifetime: to take pictures for a huge magazine, one I probably wouldn’t have had an opportunity to work for had my professor’s sister not been the person in charge of the project. The catch, of course, unbeknownst to my professor or her sister, was that my exboyfriend, The Dream Crusher, wrote for the same magazine. But I’d have been an idiot to turn it down. Regardless of where I worked after this, to have this experience on my resume would be incredible.

“She just got here,” Katie said, jerking me out of my thoughts. I stood quickly, hitching my bag on my shoulder as the glass door to my right opened and a tall woman with an uncanny resemblance to my professor—wild red hair and bright green eyes—walked through it.

I laughed when she winked at me. After she hired me for this job, we started following each other on any social media that allowed for stalking.

“It’s like we’ve been friends forever.”

“Social media will do that,” she responded with a laugh as she turned on her heels. “Let me show you around.”

If Fran were a car, she’d be in fourth gear at all times. By the time she finished showing me around the place and we got back to her office, my legs felt like they were on fire. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the heels I was wearing, or because I had to take four strides to her two. Being short could be a bit of a curse.

“We already got the clearance from W Magazine and are keeping the title ‘What Would You Do With Your Second Chance?’ I’m sure they told you already,” she said as we each took a seat.

They hadn’t told me anything. Not that it mattered. I’d taken pictures for an article with a similar name, but it was for a small, local magazine, nothing of this stature.

“I hope your friends don’t mind that we’re stealing their limelight,” Fran added with a smile. She’d become completely fascinated by the fact that the couple on the cover of the magazine, my best friend and her now-husband, were a second chance love story.

“They definitely don’t mind,” I replied with a laugh. “They wanted to kill me when they saw the magazine in our grocery stores, so replacing it will be a good thing.

” She laughed. “Were they uneasy because they weren’t an official couple yet?”

“Basically. Her brother wanted to kill Oliver … the guy,” I paused to clarify before continuing, “when he found out about the whole thing.”

“But it’s so romantic,” Fran said, letting out a deep sigh.

“I guess it is.”

“Oh, don’t tell me you’re one of those girls!”

“One of what girls?”

“The ones who are all ‘I don’t need a man’ and ‘I hate romance.’” She rolled her eyes, but I could tell she was biting back a smile as she said it.

I shrugged. “I’m not any kind of girl. I don’t need a man, but I don’t hate romance. I think I’m kind of obsessed with romance, really, which is probably why I’m still single.”

Fran laughed loudly. “Funny how that works, right? I’ll tell you what, had it not been for Match, I would have never met mine. I’m sure you don’t need any help finding a guy, though.” She waved the length of my torso as if she was presenting me to someone as some kind of trophy.

“Finding a guy isn’t a problem. Keeping a guy is a problem, and finding the guy is a complete catastrophe.”

Fran nodded in sympathy. “Yep. I’ve been there. But alas, you’ll find the one. You’re young, adorable, funny, talented, and smart. Hell of a combination.”

I smiled and looked away. “One day.”

“Anywho, enough about boys. Let’s talk about work. As I stated in the email, you’ll be taking your headshots today. You don’t need to come into the office every day, but feel free to use our facility for anything you need. I sent you the contact information for the couples you’ll be shooting so that you can schedule their test shots first, and after that, we’ll let you know who we narrowed it down to. We only want to select four couples to feature: two young, and two older. They all have different stories, anyway, so that’ll be fine.”

She paused for a breath as I nodded, taking mental notes. “And … oh yeah, here are the names of the writers working on the special. Carlos and Deborah are regular staff; the other two are freelance, but work with us often. I wrote down their emails and will send them yours now so they can contact you. Sometimes they like to go along for the shoots and do their interviews there.”

My eyes scrolled down the list as I nodded. I stalled when I saw his name. Just words on a page, but they made my heart flip once, twice, and finally nestle its way into the pit of my stomach. I was prepared for this.

“You should meet us for drinks on Wednesday,” Fran said, pulling me out of my thoughts. I was so not prepared for this.

“So I only see them on days that I shoot?” I asked, waving the paper slightly.

“Well, that only happens if they want to interview the people in their element. Otherwise, we only see each other during meetings, and we don’t have many. We’ll be having one this Wednesday over drinks, though, and then again to lay out the final plans.”

I swallowed loudly and nodded. “Okay.”

“It would be great for you to come on Wednesday and meet them,” she said again. I felt like I was on a downward spiral, moving here, knowing this job would mean I would be insanely close to him, secretly hoping that I was, while reminding myself of the reasons I’d avoided him in the first place. I took a breath and braced myself for the inevitable fall.

“Sure. Drinks sound great.”

portrait of the elegant man on dark

author

claire contreras

 

Claire Contreras graduated with her BA in Psychology from Florida International University. She lives in Miami, Florida with her husband, two little boys, and three dogs.

Her favorite past times are: daydreaming, writing, and reading.

She has been described as a random, sarcastic, crazy girl with no filter.

Life is short, and it’s more bitter than sweet, so she tries to smile as often as her face allows. She enjoys stories with happy endings, because life is full of way too many unhappy ones.

Stalk Her: Website | Facebook | Twitter

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Anniversary Post: Worth The Fall by Claudia Connor

 

 

Title: Worth the Fall
Series: The McKinney Brothers #1
Author: Claudia Connor
Publisher: Loveswept
Genre: Contemporary Romance
 Release Date: September 9, 2014
Synopsis2
They meet on a beach. . . . Abby Davis isn’t wearing a skimpy bikini or sipping umbrella drinks, not when she’s busy chasing around four little ones. And Matt McKinney isn’t looking for fun—he’s a Navy SEAL, a grown man with a long list of missions . . . and fallen brothers.

They only have a week. . . . Abby has brought her children to this beach to start over, to give them the enjoyable memories they deserve. Matt’s been sidelined by a combat injury, and haunted by the best friend he lost and the promise he made: to remain a SEAL—focused and dedicated. This leaves no time for what he’s always wanted: a family.

But a week is all it takes. . . . Matt opens her heart while Abby soothes his soul. And though they plan to say good-bye when the week is over, something magical happens on that beach, something neither can forget. Something utterly, completely worth falling for.

Read my review of Worth the Fall

 

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NOTE FROM CLAUDIA
& CHARACTER INTERVIEW

Happy first birthday to Matt and Abby!! I can’t believe it’s been a year since Worth The Fall left the nest of my tiny writing closet and went into the world. I can’t thank you all enough for reading, for sharing, and for loving Matt, Abby, and the kids as much as I do. I hope you enjoyed catching up with them in Worth The Risk and you’ll get another sweet update in JT’s, book Worth It All.

Matt and Abby mean so much to me and Worth the Fall is about falling in love, making choices and taking chances. It’s also about believing you’re enough, believing you’re worthy of what’s being offered. I absolutely LOVE these characters. I spent three years with them before I ever considered writing their story, then almost three more years writing it. Any minute of any day, I can pop into their lives, be a fly on the wall. It’s like watching your favorite movie that never ends!

Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down with Matt and ask him some fun questions. 10 questions, to be exact!

10 questions from Inside the Actor’s Studio:

“Thanks for having me.” Matt sits back in the leather club chair and checks his watch. “I’ve got ten minutes before all hell breaks loose but we’ll do what we can.” *smiles*

1. What is your favorite word?

Hmm…The first word that comes to mind is glubs, Mary’s word for gloves. She’s three now and we were outside the other day and she said, “It’s cold. I weally need my glubs.” Now we all call gloves glubs. Makes me smile every time I hear it.

2. What is your least favorite word?

Vomit. Or more like the phrase, “I just threw up”. I cringe and thank God for my wife who handles things like that way better than I do.

3. What turns you on?

That’s easy. Abby. Everything about her turns me on. Dressed up and in heels, that’s killer. But a t-shirt and sweats does it for me too. Hair down, I run my fingers through it. Hair up, I kiss her neck. Hearing her laugh, seeing her smile, watching her…um…Sorry. *smiles embarrassed and runs a hand through his hair* Your fault for leading my mind there. Next question.

4. What turns you off?

Black licorice, black jelly beans. Always has. My brothers used to put all of theirs in my Easter basket. They paid dearly for that.

5. What sound do you love?

Favorite sound…I guess it’d be the combination of sounds when we’re all out in the backyard and everyone’s happy. Abby and I were just talking about this the other day, how much we love that sound. *wide smile* Even if it only lasts a minute without anyone needing a bandaid or fighting over a swing, it’s a beautiful sound.

6. What sound do you hate?

The alarm clock. Every damn morning. I still wake up around four, a habit from the military, but the alarm says time to get up. Time to leave Abby all warm and wrapped up beside me. Or okay…yeah. *sheepish grin* Maybe she’s not always asleep.

7. What is your favorite curse word?

Fuck. It works. And when I’m alone I tend to let an entire string fly, get it all out. It’s obviously a no-go at home.

8. What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

*thinks for a second, shakes his head slowly* Sorry. I got nothing. I honestly can’t think of a single thing I’d rather be doing. Every house I flip is something new and different. Abby helps me with the details, like what tile goes with what granite, and all that. I’m home in the morning to help get the kids ready for school. I’m here at night for homework, bath, and bed, which can turn into a full scale assault. I honestly don’t think my life could be any better.

9. What profession would you not like to do?

*shrugs* Anything that’s not this.

10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

 
I hope he’d say, false alarm. Like, Hey, Matt. Just checking in, you can go back now. Because the thought of leaving my family is… It’s just not something I ever want to think about.
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author
New York Times bestselling author Claudia Connor attended Auburn University, where she  received her undergraduate and masters degrees in early childhood education, and completed her studies in Sawbridgeworth, England. Always a lover of happy  endings, she enjoys movies, reading, and spending her days putting on paper the stories in her head. She lives near Memphis, Tennessee, with her husband and three daughters.
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Summer of Series: The Edge of Never Series by J.A. Redmerski

Background

Labor Day has come and gone, which means it is officially the end of summer. *Insert tears here.*  That also means that it is time to end my Summer of Series.  At the beginning of this summer I set out to read some of the many unread series that I owned. I had a goal of reading 5 of them, and I ended up reading 4 including the one I’m posting about today. (Check out more on those series here: The Blackstone Affair, The Stage Dive Series, The One Night Series) So I almost made my goal, but really I had the chance to read and LOVE so many of the books that I’ve had forever and have been dying to read! I honestly couldn’t be more thrilled with what I got to read and experience with these books this summer….it was amazing to say the least.

I absolutely loved my Summer of Series, and I wish it wasn’t ending here, but alas summer is over so I guess I must move on to something else. That in no way means I am abandoning the idea of reading all of those fantastic series, it just means I need to find a new name for my series reading endeavor…I’m thinking of calling it Falling Into Series… (Get the fall theme?!) but we’ll see where that goes. I wanted to end my Summer of Series with a series that I have had for forever. Literally. And I think it’s only fitting that not only was this series not on my original Summer of Series list, it’s only two books which makes it more of a duet than a series, but I just couldn’t not read it anymore. So with a little encouragement from one of Author M. Mabie (who is amazing by the way, if you haven’t read her books, do it. I LOVED them all!) I decided to finally read The Edge of Never & The Edge of Always by J.A. Redmerski.

What can I say about these books….I LOVED every spectacular word of them. Wholeheartedly with everything that I had. They were mesmerizing, bursting with vibrancy and feeling and so much meaning, and I was so beyond emotionally invested in everything that I was reading. Camryn and Andrew’s story gave me everything, and I gladly accepted everything they gave me because I was completely blown away by everything that I got from them. These characters are more, their story is more, and just everything about them is more. I loved these books, and I’m so mad at myself for waiting years to read these books. Yes, years!!

I have waited way too long to fall in love with these characters, but I couldn’t be more thrilled with what I got from their characters and from their unforgettable story.

The Edge of Never & The Edge of Always tells the story of Andrew Parrish and Camryn Bennett. Two vibrant, unique, authentic and mesmerizing souls whose paths cross in the middle of nowhere on a Greyhound bus, and what happens when their two distinctive paths begin to intersect in ways they never imagined they could. Their journey together in this series has its ups and downs, twists and turns, and it definitely puts your emotions through the ringer a bit, but through all of that you fall heart first in love with these two characters and just who they are. Their characters are real and messy and they have gone through way more than any one person deserves, and when you begin their story you will begin connecting to them from the very first word and you honestly won’t stop.  I don’t know if I will ever truly stop thinking of these characters in some way, shape or form. They’re that memorable. They’re that consuming. They’re that everything.

Edge of Never

This author does an amazing job of allowing you the chance to get to know them, to understand them, and to fall in love with their characters over the course of this series. You get such a foundation with them both, you get the phenomenal opportunity to get into both of their heads, and you just get them. You get why they think the things they do, why they’ve made the choices the do, why they chose to go on this great adventure with one another, and so much more. You get Camryn and Andrew full force, and it’s the best thing because it allows you the chance to love them fiercely. I cared so much for the two of them, felt for everything that they were going through, and just relished in the connection I felt to them both. I loved their characters so truly, connected with them so hard, and just loved them both to pieces because they were who they were and they didn’t apologize for it one bit.

Suffice to say, Andrew and Camryn are just about every positive adjective under the sun.

Camryn is real and relatable, and has such a determination and fire to her that just makes you love her. You get to know her first in these books, and I felt like she was the closest of friends after reading these books. Andrew is charming and witty, and has that same kind of determination that just sets him apart. He’s highly memorable for so many reasons, much of which comes from the life and goodness that just emanates from him in the most amazing way. These two cross paths in the most unlikely of ways, when neither of them is looking for anything, and yet soon they find that they have found their everything.

Their connection and story begins to build, and build, and build some more in The Edge of Never, and then continues to build and grow and evolve in The Edge of Always. J.A. Redmerski does an utterly fantastic job of creating that build, that tension, and all of the glorious feeling to go along with it. She pushes these characters in the best way, she makes them fight and work and choose, she allows them to grow and evolve as individuals, and that results in something that is nothing short of spectacular. Getting what I did from Andrew and Camryn’s characters was wonderful in every way. These two have such a spirit and drive to them that is so distinctive, and you get to experience that vibrancy and liveliness while falling so hard for their characters.

Their story was mesmerizing and enrapturing to say the least, and the moment I started these books I could not put them down. Along that event filled ride, I got every lick of emotion and feeling and intensity from them both because of this author’s fantastic writing and storytelling. She creates a book and a world that you get to live and breathe and experience everything in. You get every hope and fear, every want and desire, every moment of falling and feeling, every moment that makes your heart literally beat out of your chest. You get everything because J.A. Redmerski thoughtfully crafts and cultivates everything in such a way that you’re there with Camryn and Andrew, living and experiencing it all, and that will just leave you in literary awe with what you get from them.

Edge of Always

What can I say? I loved these books.

I loved the moments that made me laugh, the moments that felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest repeatedly, the moments that gave me hope and tried to heal me right along with Camryn and Andrew. I loved when these characters made me feel, and think, and wonder, and when they just blew me away with who they were. I loved where I got to see them go, how they evolved and changed, and how they stayed the same too. I loved everything about The Edge of Never & The Edge of Always because these books were well rounded, outstandingly written, and just captured every single aspect that makes a book exceptional to read.

When I finished these books, I seriously wanted to kick myself for having waited so long to read them, but in the end I am just so in love with these books and what they gave me. They gave me so much, and I know that I will never forget so many things about these books and Andrew and Camryn’s wonderful little selves. This series was just amazing. Period. I loved every feeling and emotional word, every breathtaking moment, and every single thing I felt and thought and experienced while reading because it just made me fall under the spell of these characters even more. I loved getting to be there through it all with them, and let me just say that J.A. Redmerski gives you every ounce of their story in a way that just works for these characters. Their story will satisfy you in every way, make you feel so much, and will have you loving everything that you’re getting because it is truly something else.

These books are some of the best I’ve read, and what they evoked in me as I experienced them fully is something I will always remember and love. Just like I will always love Camryn and Andrew, everything they went through, everything they fought for, and everything that they are, because all of that is absolutely phenomenal.

These books reminded me once again what books can do for you, what they can make you feel and think and experience, and how they can blow you away in every way if you give them the chance too.

Keep reading below to find out more on The Edge of Never & The Edge of Always by J.A. Redmerski!

**Please be aware that both books in the series are featured below. While the synopsis’, quotes, as well as my reviews for each book are as spoiler free as possible, you might find out more than you want to about Andrew and Camryn’s story if you read too much, so if you plan to read the books, start with The Edge of Never. **

Edge of Never Series

 ~The Edge of Never~

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16081272“Heart always wins out over the mind. The heart, although reckless and suicidal and a masochist all on its own, always gets its way.”  

Synopsis:

Twenty-year-old Camryn Bennett had always been one to think out-of-the-box, who knew she wanted something more in life than following the same repetitive patterns and growing old with the same repetitive life story. And she thought that her life was going in the right direction until everything fell apart.

Determined not to dwell on the negative and push forward, Camryn is set to move in with her best friend and plans to start a new job. But after an unexpected night at the hottest club in downtown North Carolina, she makes the ultimate decision to leave the only life she’s ever known, far behind.

With a purse, a cell phone and a small bag with a few necessities, Camryn, with absolutely no direction or purpose boards a Greyhound bus alone and sets out to find herself. What she finds is a guy named Andrew Parrish, someone not so very different from her and who harbors his own dark secrets. But Camryn swore never to let down her walls again. And she vowed never to fall in love.

But with Andrew, Camryn finds herself doing a lot of things she never thought she’d do. He shows her what it’s really like to live out-of-the-box and to give in to her deepest, darkest desires. On their sporadic road-trip he becomes the center of her exciting and daring new life, pulling love and lust and emotion out of her in ways she never imagined possible. But will Andrew’s dark secret push them inseparably together, or tear them completely apart?

Read My 5 Star Review of The Edge of Never

~The Edge of Always~

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17899696“I guess we are just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl,” I say.
Her eyes narrow. “I’ve heard that somewhere before.”
I smile and point at her briefly. “Pink Floyd. But it’s the truth.”
“You think we’re lost?”
I tilt my head back a little and look up at the stars behind her and say, “In society maybe. But together, no. I think we’re right where we need to be.”  

Synopsis:

Five months ago, Camryn and Andrew, both dealing with personal hardships, met on a Greyhound bus. They fell in love and proved that when two people are meant to be together, fate will find a way to make it happen.

Now, in the highly anticipated sequel to The Edge of Never, Camryn and Andrew are pursuing their love for music and living life to the fullest as they always swore to do. But when tragedy befalls them, their relationship is put to the ultimate test. As Camryn tries to numb her pain, Andrew makes a bold decision: To get their life back on track, they’ll set out on another cross-country road trip. Together they find excitement, passion, adventure-and challenges they never could have anticipated.

Read My 5 Star Review of The Edge of Always

Be sure to check out more about these unforgettable books, and the fantastic J.A. Redmerski at the following links!

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Website

Releasing Now: The Wrecked & Ruined Box Set by Aly Martinez

wrecked and ruined sale

The beautifully emotional Wrecked and Ruined Series is

now bundled into one set for ONLY $0.99!

wrecked and ruined cover

NOW AVAILABLE

**Limited Time Only**

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1KgrJ9H

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1MTmsUm

iBooks: http://apple.co/1KSDiy3

B&N: http://bit.ly/1UbDvXp

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1UbDAdH

Synopsis2

One accident. Four lives. Forever changed.

“It was only a single moment, but it destroyed us all.”

Changing Course After a tragic accident robs him of a future with his wife, Brett Sharp must let go of the past and learn to love again. But what happens when the woman he used to love refuses to accept the woman he can’t live without?

Stolen Course After the loss of his fiancée, Caleb Jones is angry and numb. His only goal is to make the woman who killed her pay. But what happens when everything he knows to be true explodes around him? Who will be left to pick up the pieces, and who will need to be saved from the wreckage?

Among The Echoes After being stripped of her identity, Dr. Erica Hill has long since stopped living. The day she meets celebrity boxer, Slate Andrews, her life drastically changes for the better…and the worse. She’s on the run, determined not to take him down with her, but absolutely unable to let him go.

Broken Course After the fated accident that killed her best friend, Sarah Erickson is left consumed by guilt and self loathing. But can a second broken soul be enough to fill the voids of her own? Or will such scarred pasts prove too much for love alone to overcome?

wrecked and ruined teaser 2

Excerpt

Changing Course

Prologue

Brett

“Sarah, don’t do this. Damn it! Stay with me.” I reach over and gently brush the blood-soaked hair off her forehead.

Even in this horrific moment, I’m in absolute awe of how beautiful she looks. Bleeding and broken, unmoving in my arms, she is still the most mesmerizing woman I have ever laid eyes on. Deep down, I know this is just the husk of my wife. My Sarah would never have done this to herself. More importantly, she would have never done this to me. Maybe it takes this level of madness, but I finally realize that I have lost her completely.

Whether she lives or dies, Sarah is gone. This is not the woman who made me laugh more in seven years than the rest of my life combined. She definitely isn’t the woman I spent years planning a future with, a future that now no longer exists. I feel a heavy weight in my chest at my silent confession, but oddly enough, I also feel a weight lifted off my shoulders. I have watched this woman disintegrate in front of my eyes for almost seven months. Every day, losing her a little more. The light in her eyes fading, while piece by piece and bit by bit, she lost grip of reality. Mentally, emotionally, and now physically, she’s left me.

My Sarah died seven months ago on her way home from dinner, and I will never see her walk back into my life. Suddenly, I can’t breathe. I’m terrified—and not only because Sarah might finally succeed in taking her own life. I’m paralyzed by the realization that my life is spiraling down in a free fall headed straight for misery, and the only thing I can think to do is anchor myself to this dying woman. I love Sarah with all my heart, but I am not clinging to the woman in my arms. Rather, I’m clinging to the life I thought we were going to have together. I have to accept that she isn’t there anymore. Her heart might still be beating, but the bloody, confused, emotionally lost woman I am holding now is only the shell of my first and only love.

“Where the fuck is that ambulance?!” I yell as loud as my cracking voice will allow. Stroking the little bit of her unmarred skin I’m able to reach, I whisper in her ear, “Hang on, baby.” Then I repeat the one sentence I have said almost daily since the tragic event that stole her from me. Maybe I say it for her, maybe just for me, but I know that it’s the biggest lie I have ever uttered. “Just hang on, baby. It’s all going to be okay.”

wrecked and ruined teaser 4

Read My 5 Star Review of The Wrecked & Ruined Series!!!

author

aly martineez

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.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

wrecked and ruined teaser 1

sexy passionate couple showing their affection during a sexual foreplay

Releasing Now: 9 Ways to Fall Anthology

9 ways to fall sale

9 WAYS TO FALL (An Exclusive Collection of NINE Red-Hot Romances by bestselling authors, featuring Alpha Males, Fighters, Rock-Stars, Movie Stars, Sexy Bad Boys and more)

by Lexi Ryan, Kaylee Ryan, HJ Bellus, Cambria Hebert, Aly Martinez, Erin Noelle, Tessa Teevan, Ilsa Madden-Mills, and Tia Louise

What’s unique about this anthology? Well….most of these titles have NEVER been in an anthology and a few are very recent releases, not just first books in a series. The authors really worked hard at making this collaboration ONE OF A KIND!

NOW AVAILABLE

ONLY $0.99

ONE-CLICK NOW – THIS 9-BOOK BUNDLE WILL BE GONE OCT. 1!!!

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1JfDDOF

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1gUhVEF

iBooks: http://smarturl.it/9WiB

B&N: http://bit.ly/1J0oRdk

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1hKKdSZ

Google Play: http://bit.ly/1WCk6xx

Synopsis2

Head Back to School with NINE COMPLETE (Full-Length) Romances from New York Times, USA Today, and Bestselling authors NEVER BEFORE in ONE Boxed Set!!!

NINE new book boyfriends are all here to make you sigh, swoon, and switch panties as you head back to school (or kiss the kids and send them out the door! *wink*)

INCLUDING:

UNBREAK ME, by Lexi Ryan: Returning home to be a bridesmaid in her ex-fiancé’s wedding to her sister, Maggie Thompson, a 21-year old college-dropout, hopes to salvage her long-tarnished reputation and strained relationship with her family. Instead, she finds herself caught in a web of secrets and deception between the man who once promised to fix her and the sexy ex-rocker who gives her permission to break.

LEVITATE by Kaylee Ryan: Just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, you realize your puzzle is unfinished. With one touch you find a piece you never thought you needed. The piece that makes you Levitate.

BLUE by HJ Bellus: Blue Williams shines no matter the circumstance, until one night changes her forever. The beauty is gone, and all she has left are nasty, ugly memories. The man who saved her has a story of his own, with 90 percent of his body scarred. What happens when the Beauty falls for the Beast?

TATTOO by Cambria Hebert: An undercover cop on vacation, a bank teller just doing her job, and a group of bank robbers waiving a gun around. Just when Brody and Taylor think they’ll make it out a tattoo changes everything.

FIGHTING SILENCE by Aly Martinez: I spent my life dodging the punches reality threw at me. I had worthless parents and two brothers who depended on me. Meeting the love of my life at age thirteen was never part of my plan–neither was gradually going deaf at the age of twenty-one. They both happened anyway.

SPARK by Erin Noelle: Desperate to improve his younger brother’s worsening condition, Crew Elliott and his family decide to turn to unconventional treatments and move to Colorado. It is there, in the search for medical marijuana, he finds beautiful, free-spirited Hudson Shavell–a girl who may not only hold the key to heal his brother, but to fix him as well.

COMBUST by Tessa Teevan: When Virgin Queen Andi Kane meets Cohen Wellington, she’s sure he’s The One… She’s never been more wrong. Three years later, he’s the man she never wants to see again, she’s the one who got away, and this time, despite her protests, he’s not letting her go without a fight.

VERY TWISTED THINGS by Ilsa Madden-Mills: He’s a rock star with a past. She’s the heiress who’s lost everything. Welcome to Briarcrest Academy–Hollywood style–where sometimes the best things in life are VERY TWISTED THINGS.

ONE TO LOVE by Tia Louise: Fighting, tattoos, fame, love, LOSS… It’s the one thing Kenny and Slayde have in common, until the night Fate throws them together and everything changes. It’s a story about fighting, about falling in love; and it’s about losing everything only to find it again in the least likely place.

Giveaway

Signed Paperback from the following authors: Lexi Ryan, Kaylee Ryan, HJ Bellus, Cambria Hebert, Aly Martinez, Erin Noelle, Tessa Teevan, Ilsa Madden-Mills, and Tia Louise

Click the link below to enter!!

Share link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/09964f03729/

It’s a Cover Reveal: After the Storm by Faith Andrews

AfterTheStorm.Ebook

 

Expected Release Date – September 21, 2015

 

Synopsis2

Noah and Willow know not to mix business with pleasure. They’ve both been burned in the past, he thinks she’s too young, and she definitely shouldn’t hook up with her boss. So, they don’t. Instead, they build a friendship, while fighting an obvious attraction.

But when Noah’s called back East after a natural disaster that threatens his home and the loved ones he left behind, he’s forced to face his past with Willow by his side.

Will their turbulent pasts hold them back from giving into fate? Or will the two of them realize that they’ve been each other’s calm before the storm?

Add to your Goodreads TBR —> https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25559886-after-the-storm

afterthestorm2

Excerpt

Prologue

Falling for a married woman was never my game plan. I’m a stand-up guy. Being part of a love triangle or a flat out affair—just not my M.O.

I’m the good guy; the one you take home to Mom. The one Dad fawns over because I always say the right thing. I’m a fucking catch. But right now I’m nothing but a rejected loser, because when it comes to Mia Page—or Mia Murphy, as I was reminded by her husband just moments ago—all my morals and practicality mean shit. Mia was the game changer. Mia was the one I’ve been waiting for my whole life. But Mia was not available and I’m a schmuck for thinking she ever was.

Too little, too late. End of the line, buddy. She chose the man of her dreams and you are not him.

The throbbing pain in my battered fist is nothing compared to the aching emptiness in my heart. I was falling for her. Scratch that, I fell. Hard. Mia wrapped me around her pretty little finger—the one with the wedding band screaming a warning—and now I’m left alone, like a chump, without so much as a consolation prize for all the back and forth I endured these last few months. She strung me along and I allowed it because I was happy to have her any way I could. I was that desperate for the dream of the future I longed for, and I truly believed Mia was supposed to be a part of it. I guess some dreams just aren’t attainable, no matter how hard you fight for them.

Running through the events of the last half hour—asking Mia to come to San Diego with me, Declan showing up at the bar and singing to his wife, my fight with him, losing the girl—I don’t know how much more I can take. But as Mia’s best friend Grace’s car pulls away from the curb with Mia and her asshat husband in the backseat, it all sinks in. She was never mine. I know this because Mia doesn’t even give me a farewell glance. She’s too busy tending to her husband’s broken nose. That was my parting gift. The least I could do, if you ask me. My ego is bruised, my heart is crushed, and his face got the brunt of it. Asshole.

But who’s the real asshole here? Me. That’s who.

I should have known better than to accept her invitation the night of the reunion, but I couldn’t help myself. The nostalgia, the alcohol, Mia’s smoking hot body, and the longing in her eyes—I took my chance because she gave me the go ahead.

I should have known better than to get in bed—so to speak—with someone who wasn’t available. Mia found a way to convince me it was okay because she was separated. She made me believe it wasn’t wrong to give in to the curiosity we felt as teenagers and carried around with us for ten years. I thought I had a chance to steal her away from what no longer made her happy.

I should have known better than to ask a married woman to uproot her kids, her life, her home and move across the country with me to follow my dreams. My decision to take her with me wasn’t on impulse. It was well thought out. I put a lot of consideration into our unique situation, poring over every potential setback. But even the best laid plans can get shot to shit by a husband swooping in to serenade his wife and win her back.

What I do know now is that I’m heartbroken for the first time in my life.

I shake my head and rake my hands through my unruly hair. Her car becomes a blur in the distance. She’s gone for good. I’m moving to San Diego without the girl, without the dream, all alone.

I’ve never felt this fucking low.

author

Faith Andrews lives in New York where she is happily married to her high school sweetheart. They have two beautiful daughters and a furry Yorkie son, Rocco. If she isn’t listening to Mumford and Sons or busy being a Dance Mom, her nose is in a book or her laptop. She’s a sucker for a happily ever after and believes her characters are out there living one somewhere . . .

Social Media Links:

Website —> http://www.authorfaithandrews.com

Facebook —> https://www.facebook.com/authorfaithandrews

Goodreads —> http://www.goodreads.com/AuthorFaithAndrews

Twitter —> https://twitter.com/jessicafaith919

Giveaway

Giveaway – 2 ARC copies of After the Storm

Direct Link:

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