Releasing Now: Fighting Shadows by Aly Martinez

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fighitng shadows live

Flint’s highly anticipated emotional story is FINALLY here!

NOW AVAILABLE

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1HE3kt8

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

B&N: http://bit.ly/1CaD9rN

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

itunes: http://apple.co/1TcpHIa

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

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Synopsis2

I come from a family of fighters. I always thought I’d follow in their shadows, becoming unstoppable in the ring. That changed the day I saved the life of a woman I loved, but could never have.

My brother hailed me as a hero, and my reward was a wheelchair.

Paralyzed, my life became an inescapable nightmare.

Until I met her.

Ash Mabie had a heart-stopping smile and a laugh that numbed the rage and resentment brewing inside of me. She showed me that even the darkest night still had stars, and it didn’t matter one bit that you had to lie in the weeds to see them.

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.

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My Review

*****5 Utterly Fantastic Stars*****

Fighting Shadows Review

Every time I sit down to read a new book by Aly Martinez, I know that I am going to be reading a story that will give me everything. I know I’ll get extraordinary characters I’ll love fiercely, a story that gives and gives and then gives some more, and that I’m going to be feeling every ounce of that amazingly crafted book whole heartedly.

I got all of that and more while reading Fighting Shadows, the second book in her On The Ropes Series.

The instant I started it I knew I was going to love this story. After practically devouring Fighting Silence, I knew that this book would likely win me over in a nanosecond, and boy was I right on that one. Fighting Shadows was phenomenally intense, enrapturing as all get out, with so much outstanding emotion and feeling weaving its way breathtakingly throughout the pages of this book.

When I was reading Fighting Shadows, I wanted to fist pump in the air while simultaneously happy dancing because of what it allowed me to experience with its characters while I was reading. Even when it tried to rip my heart out because of what these characters were going through, I still wanted to happy dance and fist pump because I was so unbelievably connected to what they were going through. That was all possible because of how superbly Aly Martinez wrote and created this book, and Ash and Flint’s characters.

Fighting Shadows tells the story of Flint Page and Ash Mabie, two dynamic characters with some serious pasts and one serious connection, and it follows them both as they explore the ups and downs and turn arounds that their immense feelings bring. This book stole my heart the minute I began reading it. It had it all, and it was all nothing short of wonderful.

What was utterly fantastic about Fighting Shadows:

  • Flint Page’s intensity. Flint Page is one intense man. And that is putting it mildly. You get to experience that intensity full force, and you get to see how that intensity just makes him who he is, and how it effects the choices he makes. That intensity is heated, powerful, and has a very strong stubborn streak, but that just made me love his character more because it just fit him, especially with all that he goes through. That intensity came from him in so many outstanding and remarkable ways, and it just allowed me to see so many different sides to his character. I got every bit of intense Flint Page, and I relished in all of that intensity while reading.
  • Ash Mabie is a girl to remember. Ash Mabie is the best kind of quirky. She’s definitely different, is bursting with life and color and vibrancy, and will say just about the first thing that comes to her mind, even if it sounds completely ridiculous. I absolutely loved that girl to pieces. I loved her because she wasn’t afraid to just be her, and she completely owned who she was. I loved her because there was such an effervescent goodness beaming out of her, and I was in awe of the effect that goodness had on those around her. (Especially Flint!) I also just loved her because she was so unique and so fun, and I hearted that refreshing remarkability something fierce.
  • Holy effing fiery connection. Flint and Ash share a connection that is intense and spark filled, and you will feel it the instant these two come around one another. Their chemistry is off the charts, and I thought the way that Aly Martinez showed that connection and how it developed over the course of the book was fantastic. I also could not get enough of what that passionate and fiery connection brought out in both of them, because that connection, that chemistry, and that heat made Ash and Flint realize a whole heck of a lot. And that was the best.
  • The shadows of the past. One of the many things that made this book so fantastic was the shadows of the past that both of these characters had, especially Flint. The way that his past is explained, the way that that in turn affects his present in the story with himself and with Ash, and then how that past alters the course of this story was just phenomenal. Learning and getting to experience both Ash and Flint’s shadow laden pasts gave me such an extraordinary understanding of their characters. It also led to so many heart squeezing moments for them both where I wanted to jump into the book and give them both a big old hug.
  • All the vulnerability they put out there. Both Ash and Flint’s characters have many incredible instances in Fighting Shadows where their vulnerability emanates from them. Those were the moments that just made this book for me, the moments that seared Ash and Flint and their story to my heart. Those moments when those walls came down, and they put themselves truly out there. It was in those moments that I realized so much about them both because of what they were experiencing and putting out there in those moments of true and utterly breathtaking vulnerability.
  • The fight and determination that defines these characters. As you would probably expect, this book has all kinds of wonderful fight in it. Both of these characters are fighting their own personal shadows that’ll break your heart, their fighting with and for that all-consuming connection they’re sharing, and they’re fighting for themselves and one another. Even in those moments when it seems like what they’re going through is going to do them in, these two fight. They give it all they’ve got, and that is truly amazing to experience and feel. I guarantee you’re going to love all of that fight and what it brings out in both Ash and Flint.
  • Heart bursting moments. There are many moments in Fighting Shadows that will simultaneously break, squeeze, and melt your heart because of what Ash and Flint are going through together and apart. Those moments highlight how fiercely connected you are to these characters and their story to because of what you’re feeling right along with them. Your heart will definitely be feeling every ounce of emotion and feeling thoughtfully crafted in this book. Your heart will be happy, it will hurt like hell at times, and it’ll go to these characters more times than you’ll be able to count, and you will relish in that heartfelt connection you feel.
  • All the authentic charm and gut busting humor. There is humor and charm bursting out of this story. Those humorous moments were the best kind of breakup to all that phenomenal tension going on in this book. That humor and charm had me smiling like crazy and laughing my butt off more times than I could count. Much of that came from Ash, but a lot of it came from Flint, as well as the other wonderfully distinctive characters that make up the authentic world of this book.
  • Page brothers for the win! So I am under the distinct impression that the Page brothers are officially some of the best brothers around. Till, Flint, and Quarry are just amazing. They’re each fantastically distinctive, and their interactions together warmed my heart because you know that these three are just there for each other through it all. Those brothers have such a shared connection through their pasts and what they go through, and it was just extraordinary to fully feel that brotherly love between them again. I can also not wait to get my hand on Quarry’s book after this one. I need his story in my life, like yesterday.

I will never forget reading Fighting Shadows, and what it was like to experience the pure literary magic that it created. I won’t ever forget Ash or Flint, or their fight to overcome the darkness, or their attempts at healing. I won’t forget how much I rooted for them, how much I loved them fiercely, and how much I wanted them to find that light they both so truly deserved. I won’t ever forget anything about this book because that’s how utterly extraordinary it is.

This is a book that stays with you in some way, shape, or form. It stays with you, it makes you feel every magnificently and thoughtfully crafted thing, and it gives you two characters who will permanently own a piece of your heart.

That piece is bursting with the perfect amount of humor, charm and ridiculousness, so much raw vulnerability and authenticity, and more glorious fight and stubbornness than you can shake a stick at. That piece is wholly unique, definitely different in the best kind of way, and vibrant as all get out because that’s what this book is. That’s what these characters are, and that’s what reading and experiencing Fighting Shadows is like.

Something also tells me that the piece of my heart that Flint Page and Ash Mabie now forever own is filled with stars and weeds and newsies and neon green converses. It’s a place where dreams go on for days, and where Eye of the Tiger plays on full blast all day long.

That is one distinctive and beautifully vibrant piece that I will always love fiercely. Once you read this unforgettable book, I think you’ll agree that that piece of your heart that these characters and their story now own is something you’ll always treasure, and will truly never want to let go of. Ever.

fighting shadows teaser

Excerpt

Flint and Ash Excerpt

“Hey, Flint? What time is it?” Quarry asked.

Ash’s smile actually slipped completely. For the briefest of seconds, she appeared almost ashamed.

I dragged my eyes away from her in order to answer his question, but as I looked at my wrist, I had no answer at all.

“Here,” she said as she pulled my watch from her pocket.

What. The. Fuck?

Quarry howled with laughter, and Ash chewed on her bottom lip.

“Explain,” I demanded, wrapping my watch back around my wrist and shoving my wallet in the front pocket of my hoodie.

Quarry filled in the blank. “She’s a pickpocket, dude. You should have seen her when she fell on your lap. It was so fucking fast. She straight-up stole that shit from you, and you had no fucking clue.”

“I didn’t steal it! I was gonna give it back,” she amended uncomfortably. “It was just a joke.”

A joke.

  1. Fucking. Joke.

And just like that, I remembered why I didn’t laugh anymore.

“Was it funny? Stealing from the cripple? You get a good laugh out of that?” I snapped, spinning and rolling myself away. “You know, maybe my judgment of you wasn’t all that off to begin with. Like father, like daughter, I guess.” It was a low blow, but I felt completely betrayed by a woman I didn’t even know.

“Flint, wait. I wasn’t picking on the cripple!”

I fully realized that I had just used the term, but it enraged me that she’d had the audacity to repeat it back to me. Who the hell was this chick? I pushed a hand into my pocket, searching for my keys. Fuck the food. I’d leave her ass there. Hell, Quarry too if he didn’t get his ass to the car.

“Get in the car, Q!” I yelled, only to close my eyes and drop my chin to my chest when my hand never made contact on the keys. “Son of a bitch,” I said as I spun back around.

Quarry was laughing next to her, but Ash’s cheeks were bright red.

“Keys.” I snapped my fingers and opened my hand, palm up.

“Stop being a dick,” Quarry said, casually tossing an arm around Ash’s shoulders.

She didn’t budge as she held my glare.

“Keys,” I repeated, but she remained still.

“It was a joke.” Her chin began to quiver.

For fuck’s sake, I wasn’t in any kind of mood to deal with bullshit from some girl I didn’t even know and was quickly discovering I didn’t care to know, either.

Quarry’s eyes grew wide as she turned to him and buried her cries in his chest.

What the fuck, asshole! Q signed before rubbing his hands over her back.

Her shoulders shook as she let out a loud sob that shocked us both.

“Come on. Let’s sit down.” Q tried to guide her over to an empty table.

Ash refused to look up and tripped over one of the chairs.

“Shit,” Q said, catching her around the waist.

I was just about to roll my eyes when she glanced my way. He was still trying to get her back on her feet and over to a table when her tear-free, bright-blue eyes pointedly glanced in my direction. My head snapped back in surprise, but a smile grew on her face.

Ash was about to put on a show, and with that one look, she had invited me to have a front-row seat.

As she floundered all over Quarry, her hands slid between his pockets and her own. Every noise she made and each time she flailed covered up a jarring movement. She was keeping his mind too busy for it to process all the places she was touching him. Hell, I was only watching her and I could barely keep up.

There was no denying that it was entertaining, but I wasn’t willing to show her that. However, as she accidentally lifted her knee, catching Q in the balls, a laugh erupted from my throat. He cupped his crotch while she apologized profusely and pushed him toward the same chair he’d been dragging her to only seconds before. Just before he sat, Ash swung her arm out, unwinding Q’s belt from around his body before tossing it at me.

“Oh God. I’m so sorry!” she said as Quarry held a finger up to ask for a second to recover. She didn’t wait at all though. Instead, she walked over in my direction; her prideful smile grew with every step.

She pulled my keys out of her pocket and dropped them into my lap. They were quickly followed by Quarry’s phone, wallet, and house keys. Then she snagged his belt off the floor and tossed it over her shoulder.

“It had absolutely nothing to do with you being in a wheelchair. It was a joke and it wasn’t supposed to piss you off.”

“Hey!” Quarry yelled. “That was messed up. You did not have to knee me in the balls to prove a point to him.”

“Oh, that wasn’t to prove a point. That was for bullshitting me. You knew good and damn well that he wouldn’t find it funny,” she said without ever tearing her gaze from mine. “Look, I’m sorry. I don’t have a lot of friends. And I’ve mentally noted that pickpocketing might not be the best way to make new ones.” She shrugged. “Consider it a lesson learned.”

“Three burgers all the way, onion rings, and a shake?” the guy at the counter called out.

Ash arched an eyebrow. “You want it to go, or are we good?”

I didn’t have to drop my attitude. Sure, she’d apologized, but while I might have had a short fuse, I also had a hell of a long burn. However, as she stood in front of me with her arms crossed over her chest and her blue eyes pleading for forgiveness, it magically fell away.

I swallowed hard. “No. We’re good.”

“You sure?” She leaned in, eyeing me warily, but her smile began to grow.

I swear to God it pulled at my lips as well. I fought it. But the harder I tried to keep it restrained, the bigger Ash’s grew. She was stealing my smile. The chick was good! Finally, with an eye roll, I let out a quiet chuckle, which seemed to appease her.

“Good. Now, help your brother get redressed and I’ll make the fancy sauce.” She waggled her eyebrows.

muscular handsome sexy guy with pretty woman, on dark background, glamour  light

Buy The Book

Haven’t read this series yet? Meet Flint Quarry, Till & Eliza

in Fighting Silence

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Amazon: http://amzn.to/1CF0YEq

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1Lhhn62

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iBooks: http://bit.ly/1zbJT0u

 author

aly martineez

Aly Martinez

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

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Review Post: Desert Angel by Suzanne Halliday

DesertAngelBanner

There’s LOVE at first sight ~ Second chance LOVE

And sometimes Fate and Destiny combine to make an eternal LOVE

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DESERT ANGEL

By: Suzanne Halliday

A Family Justice Novel

Synopsis2

Parker Sullivan: Lawyer, Part-time rebel, musician, Alex’s oldest friend

Angelina Marquez: Event Planner for lack of a better description, Full-time piece of work, Alex’s little sister

Home in Arizona after an extended absence, Angie Marquez lands smack in the middle of Family Justice. Crossing continents to take on the planning for Meghan and Alex’s upcoming wedding, her happy return to the home of her youth also has a hidden reason…to either scratch an old itch or put it to rest once and for all.

And the name of that itch? Parker Sullivan.

What’s one more Alpha at this point?

Self-styled badass with a guitar and plenty of brawn artfully disguised as a successful lawyer, Parker Sullivan comes to Family Justice as Alex’s boyhood friend and the keeper of quite a few tall tales from their youth.

He’s also been secretly in love with Angelina Marquez since he could remember.

The problem?  She refuses to speak to him…and for good reason.

Angie’s unexpected return to Sedona brings her and Parker face-to-face for the first time since their clandestine relationship crashed and burned years earlier.

Older, wiser and still deeply attracted to the powerful lawyer, she hoped that they could be friends again. But they had a lot to resolve, it wasn’t that easy and their messy relationship was affecting everyone.

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My Review

****4.5 Absolutely Wonderful Stars****

Suzanne Halliday’s books are hands down some of my favorites. Every time a new book of hers comes out, I cannot wait to get my hands on it, and that is especially true with her Justice Brothers books. I seriously cannot get enough of this series, and I loved every word that I got to read in Desert Angel, the newest addition to her Family Justice Series that follows all the Justice Brothers after the events of their own books.

I love this author’s books to pieces, and I love me some Justice Brothers something fierce! I have loved these characters since I met them, and it was beyond fantastic to get to spend more time with each and every one of them. There is just such a feeling of family to these books, such a feeling of love and loyalty that just emanates from their outstanding pages. The feeling and emotions and just experiences that Suzanne Halliday creates and lets you experience so fully in Desert Angel, along with her other books, is nothing short of wonderful and it just reminds me over and over again why I absolutely love her books.

Desert Angel tells the story of what happens when Parker, one of Alex Marquez’s oldest friends, is reunited with Angie Marquez, Alex’s sister. These two definitely have one heck of past together that you begin to learn more about as their story unfolds. I loved getting to know both of them over the course of this book, and I especially loved how Suzanne Halliday revealed their past over the course of Desert Angel. She did it in such a way that allowed you to feel everything Parker and Angie were sharing in the present tense of the book, while also giving you the background to what got them to where they were together.

You got the past and present weaving together in such an extraordinary way, giving you all of their feelings and desires and connection, all of their worries and doubts, and all of their hopes and wants, as they tried to figure out where they would go from the events of this book.

My favorite part of this book was getting to know Parker and Angie. They had one intense connection, and you could just feel the depth and strength of the pull and connection those two shared. It was heated, it was passionate, and it was bursting with so much glorious feeling. Experiencing Parker and Angie’s connection and draw to one another in Desert Angel just made me truly believe in everything they shared, everything they were trying to figure out, and everything they were fighting for.

Parker is one hot as all get out lawyer that instantly won me over. He was intense and stubborn as all get out, and it was so fantastic to learn all that I did about his character. He totally stole my heart while I was reading this book, and I loved getting to experience everything that happened with him in this book, especially with Angie. One of my favorite things about his character was that he wasn’t afraid to own up to the mistakes he had made in the past. He was honest, with his past and with his desire for Angie, and that completely warmed my heart and made me root for him from the  get go.

Angie was such a fantastic female character to read!! She was fiery and sassy and wasn’t afraid to say what was exactly on her mind. She had some serious spunk, and I definitely connected and respected that immensely in her character. I also just found her to be so easy to relate to when I was reading. I felt so connected to her character and all that she goes through and experiences in this story, and I really felt like I got to feel and understand everything she did because of how phenomenally this author wrote and developed her character. Angie just felt so extremely real to me as I read this book, and I thought she was just an overall strong, well developed, and very engaging female character who I just loved to pieces.

The push and pull between these characters is fantastic and it just brings their characters to life in such an amazing way. The more you read, the more you get to know about them both and what happened in the past. As you read this book you also feel their connection and chemistry building and building, and let me tell you that when it all explodes, it is nothing short of mesmerizing. There were definitely some moments in this book that had me blushing like crazy in the best way. What I loved about feeling and experiencing Parker and Angie’s relationship was that you got to see such evolution in it, that really highlighted the depth of their feelings.

That’s something that continues to blow me away whenever I read one of Suzanne Halliday’s books. She gives you two phenomenal, thoughtfully crafted and dynamic characters, and she lets you get their full story and evolution over the course of their story. You see how they are in the beginning and you become enraptured in their journey as a character, as well as their journey in the relationship they are embarking on. You get to know them, you get to understand them so truly, and you fall seriously in love with their characters and all that they go through. You also get every brilliant thought, emotion, and feeling that goes along with that.

One of my favorite aspects of this book was getting to spend time with all of my favorite characters from this series, while falling in love with Angie and Parker. I loved all of the interaction that these characters had together, and like I said before, Suzanne Halliday just creates those interactions and bonds and friendships in a way that just leaves you feeling whole. You truly get everything from this family of characters, and my heart was so full of all of them as I read and enjoyed this book. Those interactions had me smiling like crazy and blushing like a fool more times than I could count. They also had me laughing hysterically more times than I could count because of what came out of those characters mouths. It also just warmed my heart to see and experience them all together once again. I basked in everything I got with these wonderfully distinctive characters, and I cannot wait for more from this set of unforgettable characters.

I simply love this author’s writing style, and how it pulls me right into the stories with these characters. It’s so easy to feel and experience everything that they do, and to just connect fully to these characters because of how she writes her books. You feel and think and experience everything that these characters do because of how outstandingly she writes her books. I loved how immersed I felt in this book, and it just made this story so enrapturing because I was so fully connected into it in every way.

Desert Angel was just a fantastic addition to this series. I loved getting to know Parker and Angie’s characters, and getting to experience the two of them try to figure out what in the world they were sharing, and where they could go with the feelings they shared. Parker and Angie’s story definitely has some ups and downs and twists and turns, and it is busting with the perfect amount of feeling, desire, and fight for that magic and connection they share.  I completely believed in what Parker and Angie were fighting for (and sometimes against, cough cough Angie) in Desert Angel, and I adored every moment I got with them in this book.

Desert Angel gave me more time with the characters that I love, gave me the chance to fall in love with two new characters who I instantly loved and rooted for, and it allowed me to experience so many wonderful things with all of these unforgettable and seriously charming characters. This book gives you all the heat, some definite laughs, and more love and desire than you can shake a stick at. It gives you everything, and I for one loved every bit.

I seriously cannot wait for more from this phenomenal author, and this fantastic series in the future as they have both definitely become some of my favorites!

 

Buy The Book

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Desert Angel (Family Justice Book 2)

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FREE on KU

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Broken Justice (Justice Brothers Book 1) is FREE on all platforms 

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Always (Family Justice Book 1) 

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 author

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

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Summer of Series: The Blackstone Affair by Raine Miller

Background

I am so excited that my Summer of Series has finally begun! I couldn’t be more thrilled with the first series I chose to read because I practically devoured it (in 2 days!). So without further ado, let me introduce you to The Blackstone Affair by the utterly fabulous Raine Miller.

This series was breathtaking, all-consuming, and had the perfect balance of emotion, feeling, and intensity.

It also had me ready to catch the very next plane to London in hopes that I could find my very own Ethan Blackstone, because let me tell you he will totally steal your heart and win you over about 2 seconds after you meet him. Not to be outdone, Brynne the main lady of the hour, will have you rooting for her, loving her, and feeling so authentically connected to her just as quickly. The Blackstone Affair follows these two dynamic and exceptionally developed characters, as they try to overcome their own trauma laced pasts in hopes of seeing what could happen if they explore the majorly intense connection they share.

What I think I loved about this series the most was that I got to experience everything so fully with both Ethan and Brynne, and I truly got to feel and see their evolution as characters as their relationship progressed. I got to see them at their highest, and I got to enjoy that immense joy and elation right along with them. I felt and saw them at their lowest points, and my heart broke just like theirs did with what they went through in both the past and present. I was also their with them through all the twists and turns and ups and downs that came their way as they tried to make their relationship work.

I loved that this series gives you two extremely authentic, strong willed, and multifaceted characters who had their flaws right along with their strengths.  Two people who had experienced darkness, and were still working through that with everything they had. What Ethan and Brynne both individually went through will make your heart go to them, but it will also make them feel very very real to you as you get to know and fall in love with them.

Naked

I also had the phenomenal opportunity to experience how hard Brynne and Ethan fell because I fell right along with them, heart first into everything that they were sharing. I got their passion, their heat, and their seriously spark filled relationship. I melted at their words. I swooned with them more times than I could count. I also felt all of the heartbreak that came along with those heart melting moments.

These books are written and developed exceptionally. Raine Miller’s outstanding writing allows you to fall right into the story with Ethan and Brynne. Her writing also makes it possible to become as captivated by Brynne and Ethan as they are by each other, and throughout each book in this series you will become more and more connected to them both. You will feel for them, you will care for them, and you will fight like hell for them and for what they’re fighting for. That extraordinary level of connection to this story and book is all possible because of Raine Miller’s magnificent writing. The world she creates in this series through her incredible storytelling and writing feels wholly real, and the minute you begin these books you will be imagining, feeling, and experiencing everything that enchanting and utterly mesmerizing world has to offer.

I felt every word of these books.  I experienced every single thoughtfully crafted and varied emotion weaving its way through these mesmerizing books. I was whole heartedly captivated by these extraordinary characters and their unforgettable story.

The Blackstone Affair was a superbly balanced and beautifully written love story that gives the perfect amount of love and joy, heartbreak and hurt, passion and intensity, and more charm and swoon than you can shake a stick at, as Brynne and Ethan explore the power and beauty of the connection and feelings they share for one another.

Ethan and Brynne, and their story together will blow you away. It’ll leave you in awe with what you get to experience with them. You will love their characters, be rooting for them like crazy along the way, and relishing in all of the fight and determination these two have to be together.

I promise you that this series will consume every part of you. It will steal your heart, and give you so much to feel and experience. It will enrapture you within its magnificence, and you will not want it to end. Ever.  

So if you’re ready, keep scrolling below for more on the breathtaking series, The Blackstone Affair by Raine Miller.

**Please be aware that all of the 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 will probably find out more than you want to about Ethan and Blaire’s story past Naked.  So if you’re planning to start this series start with Naked, the first book in the series, and go no further until you finish that amazing book.** 

The Blackstone Affair

~Naked~

AmazonKOBO | B&N

17182456“That picture changed everything. I was not the same after I saw it and I couldn’t go back to the man I’d been before seeing it either. Not after we met that night on the street. My whole world altered because of a photograph. A photograph of my beautiful American girl.”  

Synopsis:

The first book in the bestselling Blackstone Affair trilogy! Naked desire. Secret Satisfaction. An affair you’ll never forget.

Brynne Bennett has left scandal in her past and is living the good life. An American grad student at the University of London and part-time photographic model, she’s getting back on track with lots of hard work and focus on a career in art conservation. When successful and charismatic London businessman Ethan Blackstone buys her nude portrait, he wants to possess more than just her image. He wants Brynne in his bed, serving him in every way possible. He has no trouble voicing his desires, and he isn’t taking “no” for an answer. 
At first, his dominant nature captivates her, but it isn’t clear if the force of his powerful desire will ultimately awaken or dispel the demons Brynne is carrying inside. There are secrets on both sides of this relationship—huge ones. Can Ethan erase the scars of Brynne’s past so that she can reveal her true self to him? Or will the shadows cast by Ethan’s own mysterious former life destroy their chance at happiness?

Naked is the sizzling, unforgettable story of what happens when a strong woman meets the one man powerful enough to strip away all her defenses, leaving her standing naked and perfect before him.

Read My 5 Star Review of Naked

~All In~

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16141265“I have no intentions of letting you go.” I swallowed hard. “If you come with me you’re signing on for all of me, Brynne. I don’t know any other way to be with you. It’s all in for me. And I want it to be all in for you too.”

Synopsis:

The second part in The Blackstone Affair series! Looming danger. A love worth fighting for. A man who’ll go all in.

Ethan Blackstone has a problem on his hands. He’s broken Brynne’s trust and she’s left him. He’s unwilling to live without her and isn’t giving up—he’s dead-set on getting his beautiful American girl back. The passion between them was explosive, but the secrets they hid from each other are dark and chilling and are powerful enough to destroy their shot at a life together.

With political threats now directed at Brynne, Ethan is running out of time and he’ll need to gather all his strength and agility to protect her from the dangers that could take her away from him forever. Will Ethan be able to save Brynne from a past that keeps her locked in fear? Will he ever feel the warmth of her touch, the solidity of her trust again? This is a love-struck man who is willing to do whatever it takes to possess the heart of the woman he loves. He’ll go to any lengths to protect her. He’ll go all in.

Here is the fiery story of what happens when two people surrender to a love so great it can heal the scars of the past and give way to a life of pure, rapturous ecstasy.

Read My 5 Star Review of All In

Eyes Wide Open

~Eyes Wide Open~

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17623388“The one who had the power to take me apart was also the only one with the power to put me back together again.”  

Synopsis:

The third part in The Blackstone Affair series: A love on the brink of being destroyed. The fight of a lifetime to keep it alive.

Big surprises are on the horizon for Ethan and Brynne as they struggle to adjust to what life has thrown at them. Demons from the past are threatening to destroy the passionate bond they’ve forged despite their vow that nothing will ever keep them apart. A truly devastating loss coupled with the promise of a new hope opens their eyes to what is most important, but is it possible for the lovers to move on from the painful histories that continue to haunt them?

A stalker is still lurking in the shadows, plotting evil amidst the distraction of the 2012 Olympic games in London. Brynne and Ethan are on the cusp of losing everything as the stakes rise. Will they yield to circumstances beyond their control or will they give every ounce of fight they have left to save each other and win the ultimate prize of a life together?

Eyes Wide Open is a passion-wrought story that shows us what pure love can achieve when tested and what the heart can accomplish despite danger and adversity.

Read My 5 Star Review of Eyes Wide Open

~Rare and precious Things~

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17907518“I knew more happiness and love than I’d ever experienced in my life, and now understood how precious it was to have that love.”

Synopsis:

The fourth part in the New York Times bestselling series, The Blackstone Affair: A bright beginning for two damaged souls fighting for their hard-won love, and the promise of a new hope to secure their happily ever after.

Fresh from an idyllic honeymoon along the Italian coast, the Blackstone’s prepare for the birth of their precious baby and the challenges of settling into a new home. But things get complicated when specters from the past reappear to threaten the very foundation of their relationship.

Ethan and Brynne will have to fight harder than ever for each other. Rare and Precious Things is the story of two people who both need the other in order to be complete, but learn just how “rare” their brand of love is when they have to risk everything in order to hold onto it.

Read My 5 Star Review of Rare and Precious Things

Be sure to check out more about these books and the fabulous Raine Miller at the following links!!

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Review Post: Asking For It by Lilah Pace

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Asking For It

By: Lilah Pace

Release Date: June 2, 2015

Synopsis2

“This is who I am. This is what I want. Now I need a man dangerous enough to give it to me.”

Graduate student Vivienne Charles is afraid of her own desires—ashamed to admit that she fantasizes about being taken by force, by a man who will claim her completely and without mercy. When the magnetic, mysterious Jonah Marks learns her secret, he makes an offer that stuns her: they will remain near-strangers to each other, and meet in secret so that he can fulfill her fantasy.

Their arrangement is twisted. The sex is incredible. And—despite their attempts to stay apart—soon their emotions are bound together as tightly as the rope around Vivienne’s wrists. But the secrets in their pasts threaten to turn their affair even darker…

Reader Advisory: Asking for It deals explicitly with fantasies of non-consensual sex. Readers sensitive to portrayals of non-consensual sex should be advised.

 Asking For It My Review*****5 Mind Blowing Stars*****

I don’t know if I’ve ever read a book as provocative, intense, and thought provoking as Asking For It by Lilah Pace. It definitely pushes the limits a bit, and probably isn’t for the faint of heart, but do not let that deter you one bit from this phenomenal book. It is heated beyond measure, exceptionally written, and tells a unique story laced with so many glorious and superbly crafted emotions.

That is just part of what makes this book a truly exceptional read.

The moment I began this book, I was captivated by every enrapturing word, and I could not resist the effervescent pull of it. From start to finish I was hooked into the darkly laced world this book creates, and I couldn’t be more thrilled with what this book and its characters gave me as I read it.

This book will consume you. It will pull you into its enthralling world, and you will be thinking about this story long after you’ve finished it because it is that good. Asking For It will make you question what is happening in this story, what is okay and what might not be so okay, and it’ll break through every single thought you had on the topics and ideas covered in this utterly magnificent book.

Asking For It tells the story of Vivienne, a twenty something who fantasizes about being taken by force. She wants to be dominated. Owned. Claimed. This author does an extraordinary job of showing the many facets to Vivienne’s desires and fantasies. She explains the how and the why, and you just get it. I cannot say enough good things about how outstandingly this author explores the fantasies that Vivienne has, and the many reasoning’s behind them.

As you delve into the thoughtfully crafted pages of Vivienne’s story, you get to know more about her and where her fantasies stem from. I have to say that I found Vivienne’s character to be extremely authentic and downright refreshing because of how honest and open her character is in this book. In Asking For It, you get to see Vivienne at her most vulnerable, in her rawest and truest form, and that is truly remarkable to experience.

There were so many instances in this book where my heart just went to Vivienne because of what she was experiencing, what she was thinking, and what she was going through and feeling as the events of this book and the past unfolded. I loved her, was intrigued by her, felt for her, and just wanted to know everything I could about her as I got to know her character. The more I learned about her, the more I felt so immensely connected to her as she navigates the murky waters of what happens when she finally finds the person who can fulfill those dark fantasies she has.

That’s when Jonah Marks comes into the story, and let me tell you right now that you will not be able to resist the magnetic pull from that man. From the instant you meet his character you will be drawn to the force and power that is him, just like Vivienne is. Jonah is mysterious as all get out, sexy as hell, and he will have you reaching for your fan in no time, but more than that, Jonah is an enigmatic character that will get your heart beating rapidly and your mind moving just as fast.

The moment you meet Jonah, you’ll want to know more about him. You’ll want to know why he is so drawn to Vivienne and the fantasies that she has. You’ll want to know what in life has lead him to sharing similar desires. You’ll also want to know more about his past, who he really is, and why he is that way. Basically, the more you experience Jonah’s strong and seriously engaging character, the more you will want to know every single thing you can about him, and the dark and twisty path that got him to the present of this story.

While this book is told solely from Vivienne’s perspective, I felt that this author really gave me the chance to see the many sides to Jonah’s character in addition to hers. Through the heart racing events that take place in this book, you learn more about him, his motives, and you see the vulnerable side to him as well. The raw, honest, and extremely real side that you see of him in Asking For It is nothing short of wonderful, and allows you some very real glimpses into who in the world Jonah Marks is.

When Vivienne and Jonah begin to explore their fantasies together it is extremely heated. It’s explosive, a bit on the dark side, and filled with the perfect amount of fire, desire, and roughness. The connection between these two characters is magnetic to say the least. It’s vibrant and powerful, and soon they find themselves having more of an emotional connection than they ever expected. They start to really feel things, very real things and very real emotions, and where those feelings takes Vivienne and Jonah is mind blowing and heart pulling.

Their relationship will definitely make you think. A lot. It will make you want to know how the dynamics of it all work. It’ll have you biting your nails like crazy as you wait to see where it’s all headed. It’ll have your heart practically thumping out of your chest as you become more and more consumed by what they’re sharing. Their relationship is different to say the least, but the thoughts, feelings, emotions, and reactions it brings out over the course of this story in them and in you as the reader will completely leave you in awe.

Sheer, all consuming, heart palpating, unadulterated, mind bending awe.

The more I read this book, the more I loved every phenomenal word, feeling, and reaction that it gave me. Asking For It brought up so many thoughts in my mind, and it took over every available space in my brain and heart during and after reading it. That is just one of the many things that reiterated how utterly fantastic this book is in every way, shape, and form.

Asking For It allowed me so many different experiences too. It gave me a plethora of varied and thoughtfully crafted emotions to experience through all of the twist and turns in this story. It gave me so many intense moments, and some seriously shocking “oh my goodness” moments too. (Believe me, there are many moments in this book that will make your jaw drop, and I don’t mean because of the fantasies Jonah and Vivienne are sharing.) It also gave me two dynamic characters and a multitude of outstanding supporting characters that made this story something I truly could not get enough of.

This book definitely pushes the boundaries, but that is just part of what makes it so exceptional. Lilah Pace takes on many twisty, dark, and intriguing topics in this book, and she does so with a superb level of writing, character development, and storytelling. I cannot wait to get my hands on the follow up to this novel. I so look forward to being consumed once again by Vivienne, Jonah, and their intensely consuming story.

Take a leap of faith, and read this phenomenally captivating book. Let it bend your mind a bit, and let it give you something to think about, something to feel whole heartedly, and something that is sure to set your heart on fire repeatedly. It’ll blow you away if you let it. That leap of faith is so immensely worth it, and will give you a story unlike any other. Trust me.

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Review Post: Forget by N.A. Alcorn

Book: Forget (Changing Colors #1)
Author: N.A. Alcorn
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date – 16th June
Synopsis2

Brooke Sawyer is a successful record producer living in L.A. She has endured a lifetime’s worth of pain, but despite everything she’s been through, she still has the biggest heart. She’d do anything for the ones she loves, even putting their needs above her own. 

When she visits Paris for one month, the last thing she expects is to fall in love with gorgeous musician, Dylan Bissette. But he doesn’t know about Brooke’s life back home. He doesn’t know about Jamie.

The best way to keep a secret is to pretend there isn’t one.

~
Falling in love was not part of the plan.
He broke down my walls.
And the moment he whispered, “You’ve wrecked me, Little Wing,” I was done for.
I didn’t mean to fall in love, but Dylan made it too easy.
~
Meeting her was fate.
Pursuing her was a choice.
But falling in love with her was out of my control.
Brooke ruined me for everyone else.
~

Music connects them, but secrets may keep them apart.
This is just the beginning. Changing Colors, Part One

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTTKJ3AErp9tH5NTiRwpQ-AMzfE4Hk_0u


My Review

*****5 Unforgettable Stars*****

Forget by N. A. Alcorn tells the story of Brooke, an American visiting Paris, who meets and starts to fall heart first for Dylan, a half British half French swoon worthy musician. It follows these two as their serious sparks start to fly, and they find themselves having many more feelings than either of them planned for.

I have to say that I loved every single phenomenally vibrant word of this book.

I loved Brooke and how fantastically authentic and truly wonderful she was. I loved Dylan and was completely under his charming spell in about a nanosecond. I loved that I laughed hysterically more times than I could count. I loved all of the varied and thoughtfully crafted emotion and heat and vulnerability that weaved its way so superbly throughout this book. I loved how music played such an integral part to the plot, to these characters, and to all they experience.

I loved everything.

It was just phenomenal to experience from beginning to end, and I couldn’t get enough of Brooke and Dylan and their heart squeezing story. This author’s outstanding writing brought these two and their book world to life, and I for one cannot wait for the chance to spend more times with these utterly amazing characters.

What was absolutely unforgettable about Forget:

  • Brooke’s vulnerability. Brooke was such a fantastic character to get to know, and I loved that I got to know the “real” her over the course of this story. You see many sides to Brooke, the side she puts up to protect herself and then the side that is really her. As you read Forget you will really get to know the real Brooke, aka Paris Brooke, and her vulnerability and rawness will just blow you away because of what it exemplifies about her. She is just so real, and the more you read the more you’ll understand why Brooke is the way she is. When you find out what this girl has gone through, and what she goes through in this book your heart will instantly go to her.
  • Dylan’s bursting with charm. Now Dylan’s charming self practically stole my heart the instant he and Brooke meet. That man is sweet, and seriously stinking hot, and did I mention the fact that he’s a musician? The more you get to know Dylan’s character the more you’ll want to spend time with him just like Brooke because the pull and just magic that is him is irresistible. That man also feels so much, and I loved the instances in which I got into his head to really feel everything that he does. I am telling you now that there is no way that you can resist him, especially when you start to feel and experience what he shares with Brooke.
  • A firework level connection and pull. Let me tell you that these two had an instant connection that this author phenomenally creates. You feel it the instant they meet and their connection just pulls you into them because of the sparks these two share. It is fiery, it is hot as all get out, and it just burns off the page in such a way that brings a certain kind of blush to your face. It also just makes you realize the power of what these two share together.
  • The power of Millie. Now Millie just might be my favorite character in this book, behind Dylan and Brooke of course. I loved that lady and the wisdom and meaning that surrounded her. The words that she shared, the memories she evokes, and just the power that is her is just beautiful and so utterly meaningful. The power of Millie will just warm your heart. It’ll make you think and feel and wonder about the possibilities this world holds, and it’ll make you want to live your life the way that Millie did, with no regrets. Trust me on that one!
  • The magic of Paris. N.A. Alcorn does an outstanding job of capturing the magical city of Paris. That city is almost like a third main character in this book, and I loved that I was fully encapsulated within the magic it evoked throughout this entire book. That magic just brought this book and these characters to life because I felt like I was right there with them feeling and experiencing that vibrant feel of the city with them, which was extraordinary to experience while reading.
  • The questions that come up along the way. Now this book brings up a lot of questions, some of which are answered and some of which aren’t. (But stay tuned folks because there’s a book 2 that I cannot wait for!) I loved how those questions perfectly came up throughout what was happening with Brooke and Dylan. Those questions intrigued me and made me that much more enthralled with what I was reading because I couldn’t wait to figure out what was going to happen next, and if I was going to get an answer to one of those fantastic questions I had. Those questions pull you into this story heart first, and while you don’t get all the answers yet, you do get enough to realize that there is so much more to these characters than meets the eye, especially with Brooke, and that is utterly wonderful to experience.
  • The honesty. Honesty plays an interesting and phenomenal role in Forget. There are so many raw and vulnerable moments from both of these characters where they are both so fantastically honest. Moments where they put it all out there on display for the other to see. Then there are moments where there’s not so much honesty, where you know there is more going on beneath the surface, and those moments are just as telling. Those moments surrounding honesty fit so magnificently into the story, and just illuminated so much about Brooke and Dylan.
  • All the laughs a girl could ask for. Having read all of N.A. Alcorn’s other books, I was none too surprised to find myself laughing hysterically more often than not in this book. Through Brooke’s inner thoughts, her conversations with her best friend Lindsay, and through some seriously engaging moments with Dylan, I could not stop laughing at what was being said. That laughter broke up the tension and build in this book so fantastically, and it just made me love reading this book because of the laughs that it brought.
  • More emotion than you can shake a stick at. This book had an outstanding level of varied emotion in it thanks to the phenomenal writing of this author. You get to feel every single thing these characters do, and even better you understand why they’re feeling it. The level of emotion in this book allows you feel Brooke and Dylan’s story on a whole new level. You hurt with them, you love with them, and you care with them. You feel everything with them and that makes this book all the more extraordinary to read.

Brooke, Dylan, their lively, music filled, and superbly emotional story will have you feeling and thinking and caring like crazy. It’ll give you moments that’ll make you laugh, moments that will squeeze your heart because of what these two experience and go through, and moments that will break you and simultaneously send your heart to these characters because of what they go through.

Forget will give you so much of everything that makes a book an extraordinary read. The way that N.A. Alcorn crafts this story allows you the outstanding opportunity to take it all in and to feel every word of it deep in your heart. When you reach that last page you will literally be counting down the days until you can become fully encapsulated within the magic and connection that emanates so beautifully from it.

This story and Brooke and Dylan will engage you right from the start, and even in those moments in this book that kind of make you want to scream and possibly throw your Kindle clear across the room, you will be oh so happy at what those two and their extraordinary story give you as the reader.

You’ll want to take in every beautiful, mesmerizing, heart squeezing, and lively moment Forget gives you, because what you get is nothing short of amazing.

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author

N.A. Alcorn resides in Northern Kentucky with her husband and son. Never following the norm, her style of romance “flies [outside the box.]” She is the author of the wildly hilarious Infamous Series, and has also delved into romantic suspense with her third release, Covertly Strong.
She loves music, can’t take a proper selfie if her life depended on it, refuses to parallel park, and probably has the most obnoxious laugh you’ll ever hear. If she could live off coffee and Reese’s Cups, she’d be one happy lady.
Procrastinator at heart, N.A. tells herself she’ll meet every deadline. Tomorrow. She’ll finish it tomorrow, she swears.
She loves meeting readers. Always feel free to send her an email or message.
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Review Post: The Best Medicine by Elizabeth Hayley

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The Best Medicine by Elizabeth Hayley

Releasing: June 2, 2015

Synopsis2 The first novel in a sparkling and sexy new contemporary romance series about four best friends looking for love in all the right places—and the one woman who discovers that it takes more than an impeccable bedside manner to make dreams come true…

Lauren Hastings is finally ready to enter the real world. At twenty-six, she’s about to get her master’s in psychology, and she’s well on her way to beginning the career of her dreams—until she suffers public humiliation and has to endure something she thought she’d never have to deal with again: a part-time job.

A gig at Trinity Hospital isn’t exactly Lauren’s definition of a good time, but Dr. Scott Jacobs quickly changes her mind. He’s straight-up gorgeous, and he always gets what he wants. And that includes Lauren. It’s an ideal arrangement for both of them. No strings. Just fun—at least at first.

But feelings quickly begin to run deeper than either Lauren or Scott is willing to admit, causing issues neither of them want to confront. After all, who wants to risk the perfect relationship on something as terrifying, as messy, and as unpredictable as love? BM3

My Review*****5 PHENOMENAL STARS*****

When I sat down to read The Best Medicine by Elizabeth Hayley I knew that I should probably expect some hysterical laugh out loud moments and lines, some searing hot moments filled to the brim with some serious heat, and characters that would engage the heck out of me because of how phenomenally these authors write.

Well, The Best Medicine gave me all of that, and more.

It gave me more humor and wit that had one seriously big smile on my face. (My jaw actually kind of hurt after reading this book because of how much I was laughing and smiling while reading. Seriously.) It gave me more heat and fire and connection between these two characters than I knew what to do with, and that just amplified every single thing they shared in this outstanding book. It also gave me two dynamic, headstrong, and enrapturing characters that I immensely enjoyed getting to know over the course of this book.

Basically, The Best Medicine gave me a whole lot of incredible things, and it is most assuredly one of my top reads for the year.

I loved this book. Every wonderful aspect of it was amazing, and outstandingly written, and just fanfreakingtastic. What can I say? I really, really loved this book.

I LOVED, and I mean loved Scott and Lauren’s story. I felt connected to it while reading. I loved getting to experience this story with them, through both of their eyes, as it allowed me to feel so connected to them and what was happening.

I felt what they felt. I thought what they thought. I experienced the same things they experienced. I laughed at the same things they did, blushed probably a tad more than they actually did, and I sure as hell felt the insanely hot connection between these two. I so totally understood them too. I got their hesitations, their wonderings, their anger, their passion, their connection, their longing, their insecurities. I got it all. Every single wondrous and unforgettable little bit.

Experiencing all of that with these two remarkable characters was possible because of the extraordinary writing of Elizabeth Hayley. Their writing is seamless and fresh and witty, and just allows you to get right into the thick of this story with these characters. Their writing gives you the chance to get to know these characters, layer by thoughtfully crafted layer, and you get the phenomenal opportunity to understand and love them more the deeper you get into their story.

Elizabeth Hayley’s writing gives you the opportunity to fully experience what you’re reading, and there is truly nothing better than that. It probably also helps that this book, like their others is brimming with more charm, humor, sarcasm, and the best kind of ridiculousness than you can shake a stick at.

One thing that Elizabeth Hayley most certainly knows how to do, is create unique and vibrant characters that I love and am practically chomping at the bit to get to know. Case in point: Scott and Lauren. (And ALL OF THEIR FRIENDS!)

Lauren’s character was spirited and vibrant in the most fantastic ways. That girl is real, and honest, and tells it like it is. I had mad respect for her because of that. She’s fiercely determined and sharp as a tack too. She’s also someone who can appreciate being completely ridiculous, and is spontaneous in the best possible ways. I especially loved how thoughtful she was, and how that was exemplified so fantastically throughout this book. Let me tell you, that girl is with it. The more I got to know her character, the more I loved her and wanted to be friends with her. And all of her friends for that matter.

I loved that as the story progressed and I got to know Lauren’s character more, I got to understand more of her past and her personality. Like all of the characters in this book, Lauren has many thoughtfully written layers to her, and it was nothing short of phenomenal to learn more about her, her past, and her choices and the vulnerabilities that came with them. Getting to know her on that level had my heart going to her repeatedly, and just reiterated over and over again how exceptional of a character she was.

Did I mention she’s hysterical, and witty, and kind of the best? Because she’s all that and more. I truly heart that girl something fierce.

Now Scott’s character was one that I was instantly pulled into. There’s definitely a level of cockiness to him and that man is certainly very stubborn, but oh is he charming. He’s also insanely good to imagine in a lab coat. Hot doctor. Need I say more? He is a man who gets what he wants, and he’s definitely got a strong determined side to him. Underneath all of that though is a man with a truly good heart who isn’t looking for any kind of commitment. He likes to keep people at a distant, especially those of the female persuasion, but Lauren gets to him in such a way that brings out so many things about Scott’s dynamic character.

What I think I liked most about Scott was that there was much more to him than initially meets the eye. Scott hides behind a lot of things, and it was simply outstanding to see, learn, and experience the reasoning behind why he made the choices he did. You really get to know a lot more about his past, and why things are the way they are with him. As much as I sometimes wish I could’ve reached in and shook his character for the nonsense he thought and did, because of how his past and feelings are so superbly written, I just got it and him. I knew and understood his character, and exploring those layers of him was just fantastic because it allowed him to feel so immensely real.

Did I mention he’s a really good looking doctor who is bound and determined to melt your heart? And something else for that matter… That man has full on McDreamy status with me.

Lauren and Scott’s relationship, or non-relationship if you ask them, was superb. It had the perfect amount of heat and passion and sexiness to it. These two characters are practically firecrackers together, and when they come together things get sparkly, insanely hot, and explosive within a matter of seconds. All of that chemistry and pull towards one another just heightened everything they shared, and pulled me more into their story.

Reading these two try and figure out what in the world they had going and where it was all possibly headed or not headed was fantastic. Elizabeth Hayley truly captures every single aspect and feeling that goes along with these two trying to figure all of that out. Those two also know their way around some good banter, and they can really go at it with one another, but that’s what just makes them so spectacular.

The Best Medicine is a book that not only gave me Lauren and Scott, but it also gave me the fabulous distinctive people that came with them, aka their friends and family members. Each of those little gems were engaging, and fun, and had me loving their unique personalities. They had me laughing out loud, feeling like I was part of a really cool group of authentic and seriously entertaining people, and they just helped glue every fabulous part of this story together. I for one cannot wait to spend more time getting to know all of them better as this series continues.

Lauren and Scott’s story in The Best Medicine is a lot of things. It’s funny and charming with the right amount of heat that is balanced superbly with a thoughtfully crafted story that just doesn’t quit. In this book Elizabeth Hayley gives you a story with so many incredible aspects to it. The way all of the tremendously well written pieces of these remarkable characters and their outstanding story comes together will just leave you in complete elation because of what it gives you and allows you to experience.

All those feelings. All those heated and passion filled moments. All that realness. All that fun. All those exceptionally written layers.

You get to experience it all, and that’s just part of what makes this book an exceptional read.

The writing duo that is Elizabeth Hayley are two of my favorite authors for a reason. They give you everything in one amazing package. Exceptional writing and storytelling, characters that are just about every positive adjective under the sun, and a reading experience that allows you to escape and fall hopelessly in love with the world and people they’ve so wonderfully created.

The Best Medicine is guaranteed to give you so many magnificent things, but most of all, it will give you a book that will give you one helluva reading experience that you truly won’t want to have end.

And did I also happen to mention that there’s a hot doctor in this book?…

Buy The Book

~The Best Medicine~

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Be sure to check out Elizabeth Hayley’s other books because they are all AMAZING!

~Pieces of Perfect~

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~Sex Snob~

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~Picking Up the Pieces~

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~Perfectly Ever After~

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Read my 5* Review  

~Pieces Series Box Set~

(Pieces of Perfect, Picking Up the Pieces, and Perfectly Ever After) All 3 for one price!

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 To learn more about Elizabeth Hayley and their books check out the following links:

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Review Post: Catch and Release by Ella Fox

catch and release cover

Catch and Release

By Ella Fox

AVAILABLE NOW!

ONLY $0.99

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1HCr2Wa

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

Synopsis2

Love endures all things.

Darby McKenzie’s heart started beating funny the day that she met Trace Chamberlain. She was four, he was five, and that meeting altered the course of both their lives forever.

Trace was born into a nightmare. Before meeting Darby and her family, the only love he ever knew was that of his twin brother. The two of them endured years of abuse that left scars. The permanent kind.

For Trace, meeting Darby was like catching a rainbow. She exploded into his life in a pop of Technicolor that awakened his senses. She wasn’t just his best friend—she was his life. His touchstone, his safety, his heart—she was everything.

Darby had been through it all with Trace and her love for him never wavered for a second. But no amount of love could make Trace believe that he was worthy of her. Knowing that she deserved better, Trace pushed her away, when what he really wanted was to pull her closer. Emotionally destroyed and bitter from the back and forth, Darby finally let go and decided to move on.

Sometimes hitting rock bottom is the only way to understand that you need to change. Realizing that losing Darby means losing everything, Trace sets out to fight for the love of his life.

Is it too late for Darby and Trace to have a happily ever after?

catch and release RD 2

My Review

*****4.5 Fantastic Stars*****

Catch and Release was a beautifully emotionally book that took me on a truly phenomenal journey with these extremely authentic characters. It not only gave me Darby and Trace’s heart squeezing story, it gave me every single thoughtfully crafted emotion and feeling they had. Every one of their doubts and heartbreaks they had along the way. All of their vulnerabilities. All of their ups and downs. All of the moments that defined their relationship. Every single magnificent piece of their journey together.

I got it all in Catch and Release, and I couldn’t be more thrilled with that.

I have been waiting for this story since I read Catch My Fall. That was actually the first book I ever read by this author, and it’s was solidified her as one of my favorites. While falling in love with Mia and Tristan’s story in that book, I got to fall in love with Darby and Trace too. I knew those two had one helluva past, and I was ecstatic to get to experience that in this book.

This book and their past and story gave me so much more than I expected, and I enjoyed every single fantastic word that this book gave me.

What was absolutely fantastic about Catch and Release:

  • Darby is strong as all get out. Darby is probably one of the strongest female characters that I have ever read. She is fiery and sassy, and is as vibrant as can be. That is her through and through, and I relished in getting to read the strong female character that she was. Darby has so much fight in her and that just defines her character in the best way. I loved getting to know her over the course of this book and seeing that strength come out in so many different and magnificent ways. My heart just went to that girl because no matter what she was strong and determined and gave it all she had, and that just made her golden to me.
  • Trace’s heartbreaking past. Having read Catch My Fall, I knew that Trace and his brother Tristan had a horrendous childhood. Catch and Release lets you see Trace’s childhood first hand, and let me tell you, that will just break your heart for him. It’ll also have your heart instantly going to him and his brother for what they endured. As much as it pulled at my heart to read about Trace’s past, I thought it was phenomenal to see how that past in turn affected him as he continued on and with his relationship with Darby. Seeing and really experiencing his character’s past gave me a new and utterly exceptional understanding of his character, which connected me so much into him and his story.
  • The depth of feeling. You really feel over and over again in Catch and Release how deeply Trace and Darby feel for one another. This book gives you the extraordinary opportunity to see Darby and Trace’s relationship right from the beginning and through so many stages. Getting to experience that allows you to fully feel and know how deeply these two feel for one another. When you feel that reading this book it’ll make you hope with all of your heart that these two can figure out a way to make it work because you know how truly and deeply they love each other.
  • Understanding the past. One of my very favorite aspects of this book was getting to understand the past of both of these characters. This book starts at the beginning of Darby and Trace. You get chance to see them grow and develop as individuals. You also get to see how their relationship evolves over the course of the book too. I loved how Ella Fox gave me these characters’ pasts because it allowed me such a magnificent understanding of them both. It also made me fall in love with both of their characters, as well as what they were fighting for. Getting the pasts of these characters is just one of the many aspects that pulled me in so deeply to what I was reading in this fantastic story.
  • The heartbreaking moments. Catch and Release has a lot of heartbreaking moments. Whether your heart is breaking for Trace and all that he has to go through and experience. Whether it’s for Darby and experiencing what it’s like for her to watch Trace go through those things, or when she’s losing parts of herself because of what is and isn’t happening in their relationship. Whether it’s for Darby and Trace as the push and pull in their relationship slowly starts to take its toll. Whatever it is, this book will give you so many heartbreaking moments. You might think it’s strange that I enjoyed reading that, but that heartbreak emotionally connected me to these two from the instant I met them. It allowed me to fight for them, care for them, and just love them wholly. Those heartbreaking moments gave me Darby and Trace at their most vulnerable moments, and made my heart go to them again and again.
  • The level of fight that defines this book and characters. I loved the level of fight that was in Catch and Release. In this story you get many different types of fight from all of the characters. Trace is fighting against what he’s feeling for Darby. Darby is fighting for Trace to realize he is good and whole and so immensely worth it. They’re both fighting with the feelings they share for one another. I have to say it was also just refreshing to read a story where the female character is the one with the fight, the one who tries to help and heal. I love these kinds of stories and that’s just one of the many reasons I loved this book. The fight goes on and on, and the way that fight thoughtfully weaves itself into this story is nothing short of wonderful.

Catch and Release tells the emotional journey of two characters that I just loved to pieces. This story gave me so much of them, and I guarantee that you will fall heart first in love with both Trace and Darby as they try to figure out what could happen if they really gave it a shot.

I really cannot recommend this book to you more. It is beautiful, emotional and just downright phenomenal. Trace and Darby and their heart pulling story will just pull you in, and you won’t want it to let you go.

This story will give you so many emotionally intense moments that will have your heart going to these characters over and over again. You will feel for them. You will love with them. You will break with them. You will try to heal with them. You will fight for it all right along with them.

You will do it all with them, and that is just part of what makes this book an exceptional read.

catch and release RD 3

Buy The Book

Catch my fall

Catch My Fall (Book One)

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1KcahyF

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

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1KqNx0U

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

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1PD4h8N

Blurb

Mia Reeves faith, trust and sense of security were all taken away in the blink of an eye. In need of a fresh start, she settles into a new town and begins to make a new life.

Tristan Chamberlain has always kept girls at arm’s length and he has no intention of changing. He’s caring, smart, handsome, but he’s also dealing with a lifetime of guilt that’s slowly but surely destroying him.

Sometimes what you run from is the one thing that will save you.

Separately, they’re both free-falling. Together, they’re about to find that love can create the strongest safety net of all.

author

ella fox bio

About the Author:

Ella Fox writes like a woman possessed whenever she gets the chance! She is the author of The Hart Family Series, The Renegade Saints Series and The Catch Series.

When she’s not writing, Ella indulges the gypsy in her blood and travels the country. Ella loves reading, movies, music, buying make-up, reading Tmz, Twitter and pedicures… not necessarily in that order. She has a wild sense of humor and loves to laugh. Her favorite thing in the world is hanging out with her family and watching comedy movies.

Stalk Her: Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Email | Website |

Goodreads | Newsletter

Releasing Now: Color Me Crazy by Carol Pavliska

~*~ RELEASE DAY BLITZ ~*~

25412703
COLOR ME CRAZY
by Carol Pavliska
May 26, 2015
Publisher: Entangled: Select
307 pages
#Romance: #Contemporary

Synopsis2
Never fall for a rockstar…
Julian Wheaton views the world through a kaleidoscope of synesthesia, seeing the colors of every sound he hears. His life as an iconic rock guitarist was a stressful psychedelic trip that nearly destroyed him. Now he’s abandoned the rock ’n’ roll lifestyle for the peaceful sanctity of his recording studio, but when fiery Cleo Compton comes to work for him, she brings chaos with her.
Cleo Compton has had her flings with rockstars—and it’s left her wary and bruised. Julian may have those sexy bedroom eyes and drool-worthy tattoos, but Cleo is determined to keep things strictly professional—until Julian turns out to be every dream she’s ever chased. When he risks it all to hit the road with a band again, Cleo fears he’ll return as the one thing she can no longer abide—a rockstar.

— ADD to #GOODREADS —
http://bit.ly/1FlJ8YI

CMC teaser 1

ExcerptJulian tingled all over. His vision was clouded with colors that weren’t even associated with sounds. A guitar would help.

Cleo was killing him. It was time to power through the outer edges of lust and get to the eye of the storm. In other words, to where reality set in and her endless faults irritated him instead of turning him on.

She had moved in under the guise of working until she could get back on her feet. Nobody had come out and said that, but it was the unspoken understanding. Instead, she was working her sweet little ass off and doing a bang-up job. And if that weren’t bad enough, he fucking liked her. And he didn’t want to like her.

He sat on the bed and reached for his faithful Fender. Predictably, it was already plugged into an amp. He liked predictable. He ordered his life around it. And now Cleo had muddied it all up by barging into his life—and his heart— uninvited.

That had only happened once before, and it had been disastrous.

He ran his fingers over the tattoos on his forearm, feeling the small scars beneath the ink. If only everything in his past was as easy to hide.

He leaned back against the headboard, letting the weight of the guitar settle into his lap. If he was patient, a song would come.

At first, it was a single turquoise note, but he quickly teased a rainbow out of it. A few sexy thoughts of Cleo were teased up as well, and he settled the guitar lower on his hips. His head sank back as a melodic strain poured through him. The instrument moaned in ecstasy as he bent a note up, coaxing, enticing, and sweet-talking a candy-apple wail out of it before bringing it down with a shudder.

With Cleo in mind, he tickled the strings and stroked the neck, caressing a deep, mellow tone from somewhere inside the guitar’s polished wood. He raised his hips and built a crescendo, bringing the guitar to a fucking scream. He’d like to make Cleo scream…

Knock, knock. Julian?”

With a pathetic flat wail, he tossed the guitar aside and hastily sat up.

Excuse me,” Cleo said, exploding into a scarlet blush. “I’m sorry…”

I was just playing guitar,” he stammered. Not wanking off.

My Review

*****5 Fantastic Stars*****

Color Me Crazy by Carol Pavliska was vibrant, bursting with good laughs and some serious heat, and had a story that enraptured me within its phenomenally musically and colorfully laced pages.

Basically, I loved every single word of this fantastic book.

One of my favorite aspects of this book was how unique it was. It had so many exceptional aspects that I’d never read before, and that’s just part of what made me love this book so much. One of the most unique aspects of this book was Julian’s synesthesia, causing him to see colors with every sound he heard. That added such a unique quality to this book, and the way this author weaves that into the story is phenomenal.

I could not get enough of seeing the effects of Julian’s synesthesia in Color Me Crazy, and how it not only affected him, but those closest to him as well. That aspect brought out so many interesting things from these characters and especially Julian and Cleo, and it just made me so enraptured in everything that I was reading because I wanted to know more. I had to know more. It was a pull I simply couldn’t resist.

I will admit that I have a soft spot for a book about a rock star. I loved that aspect to Color Me Crazy, and how music weaved its way so superbly into the story and into just who these characters are. This book though, was so much more than a book about a rock star. It was a book about choices, and figuring out what you want and what you want to fight for. It’s about taking risks and giving it your all, and trying to piece together what it is you need.

Color Me Crazy is bursting with passion and color and life. It’s also filled with some hard choices and decisions, realness and flaws. The way that this author puts all of that together creates a story that is superbly balanced and just highly enjoyable to read.

I simply could not get enough of Cleo and Julian’s characters. Let me tell you, those two are two engaging and fiercely spunky characters that you’re just going to love. They cast a lively effervescent spell over the entire story, and it just pulls you in like a moth to a flame. They’re both bursting with wonderfully distinctive personalities, and there is also such a real level of authenticity to them that you experience as you get to know them over the course of this book. Color Me Crazy allows you to see them, flaws and all, and that just makes you love their dynamic characters more because you’re given the outstanding opportunity to see the real them. And the real them is nothing short of amazing to read.

Cleo was such an outstandingly fierce female character. I immediately loved and connected to her character the moment I met her in this book. She was fun and spunky and she gave Julian a run for his money with her fiery personality. She was also extremely relatable, and I loved getting to know her over the course of the story because I felt like I really understood her character and why she felt the way that she did. I also just loved that Cleo was such a fighter. She never wavered and never gave in, and in her own vibrant way she gave it all she had, which just invigorated me as I read this book. It also made me love her to pieces.

Now Julian was pretty much to die for. He was charming, and stubborn, and he could be a butt when he wanted to be, but underneath all of that was a man who was reeling from one heck of a past. As that past thoughtfully comes across in this book, you really get a full picture of the real Julian. Of his flaws, of his vulnerabilities, of his worries. Getting to experience that just made my heart go to him repeatedly over the course of this book. It also helped that that man practically charmed my pants off with what was coming out of his mouth.

The way that Julian and Cleo’s relationship develops over the course of this story makes a world of sense and it just fits the story that is being told. There are definitely some very big ups and downs, and some twists I did not see coming, all of which just pulled me in more to what I was reading. This author does such a fantastic job of showing the connection and feelings that these characters share and that just bursts from the pages of this book. The passion, care, and desire these two share for one another emanates from the story, and it just makes you want to those two to figure out what in the world it is that they’re sharing.

In Color Me Crazy you also get some very engaging and distinctive supporting characters that just add to the overall fantasticness that is this story. Each of those remarkable characters adds their own little piece to the story, and I loved reading their interaction with each other and with Julia and Cleo. Those interactions ranged from hysterical to serious to extremely meaningful, and I loved every moment I got to spend with all of those phenomenal characters.

This story was so fantastically written, and the way Carol Pavliska writes and creates is just magnificent and so enthralling. I loved her writing style and how it just allowed me right into the story with these characters. She also created a story that had me laughing myself silly. I could not stop smiling while reading Color Me Crazy, and I adored how that humor burst from this book and these characters.

While this book gives you plenty of humor, it also gives you more emotion and feeling than you can shake a stick at. The way that this author wrote and created those feelings and emotions allows you to experience them all right along with the characters. That puts you right in the story with them, feeling what they are, fighting the same demons they fight, breaking with them, elating with them, and everything else in between. You feel their fire, every varied and thoughtfully crafted feeling they have, and that just makes reading this story extraordinary because you get to experience it fully.

Color Me Crazy is an outstanding book that will give you so much. It will give you two vibrantly passionate and extremely authentic characters that you’ll love whole heartedly. It will give you a story that will pull at your heart, make you laugh and smile again and again, and allow you to experience everything these characters do. It will also make you fall more and more under the spell that these characters create with every word you read.

This book, this author’s writing, and these characters are utterly phenomenal. They’re truly extraordinary and I couldn’t recommend them all to you more.

CMC teaser 3 (2)

 

Buy The Book

— BUY it NOW —
Amazon: 
http://amzn.to/1ed79Zg

BN: http://bit.ly/1Kq0GEG
Kobo: http://bit.ly/1EUPzPj
iTunes: http://apple.co/1FwJkI5

author

carol-non-head-tilt-300x187

Carol Pavliska began her writing career as a family humor columnist and blogger, a pursuit she abandoned when her children became old enough to realize they were being exploited. To save them from further embarrassment, she turned to writing fiction.
Her debut novel is a steamy contemporary romance, so unfortunately, the kids are still embarrassed.

When she’s not creating unrealistic expectations as a romance writer (ripped abs, dramatic temperaments, and eyes like bottomless pools of Hey Girl), she functions quite nicely in her real world, which consists of a delightfully stable husband and five children.
Carol and her husband, both die hard Red Hot Chili Peppers fans, raise their vegan brood of mortified offspring on a cattle ranch in South Texas. No lie.

To learn more about Carol, visit her website at www.carolpavliskabooks.com, or connect with her on social media:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/carolpavliska
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/carolpavliska
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/CarolPavliska

Summer of Series

Background

Well it is officially summer!

Okay, well technically it’s only Memorial Day, but you catch my drift. This is the day that along with being a day of remembrance, signifies the beginning of summer.

I for one could not be more ready for summer, especially after this horrid winter. I love me some summer something fierce, which may or may not have something to do with the fact that I get 8 weeks off from the tiny humans.

That’s neither here nor there, but suffice to say, summer is one of my favorite times of year. 

It’s when the cookouts start, it’s when you spend your nights seeing more lighting bugs than you can count, and it’s when the pool or beach becomes your home away from home.

It’s also when I get to read until my heart’s content.

In the summer, much of my day or night is spent between the pages of a good book, and that makes me happier than a clam, since we all know I am a book addict.

Now you all know that I hoard paperbacks along with a crazy amount of Kindle books. That’s kind of my shtick. It’s also the whole reason behind this blog’s name, because my book basket is truly never ending.

Well this summer I’ve decided to make a dent in that basket. I’m really going to do it! Or, I’m going to give it the good ole college try, because that basket is insane right now.

Now while I obviously have a plethora of unread paperbacks in my never ending book basket, what you might not know unless you’ve perused the book basket page of this blog, is that I have a ton of unread series.

19 series to be exact.SoS

I own every single book in those 19 different series, some in e-book, but most in paperback. I’ve seriously been dying to read them all because I seriously love me a good series. Always have, always will.

There’s just something about a good series that I just love. Whether the series is 3 books long or 8, whether it focuses on one character’s story or more than one, I adore me a series to pieces.

The series are a random mix of books across a few genres from both traditionally and independently published authors. Most are a wide array of romance, but there’s some young adult thrown in there for funsies too. I’m ashamed to admit that a lot of those books have been calling my book basket home for years, and that many of them are well loved favorites that came out years ago.

I’m so epically behind.

So this summer I am making it my goal to read through some of these series. I am hoping to get through at least a third of them. (Big dreams I know.) What can I say, I’m an optimist!

I’m even being kitschy about it, and giving this endeavor a name: Summer of Series

Along with some cover reveals, release posts, and some other reviews that I can’t wait to share with y’all, this summer will be entirely focused on my Summer of Series endeavor. Each series will have its own post filled with my reviews, teasers, and some of my favorite quotes from the books. To go along with these posts I’m also going to be giving away some books from some of my favorite series ever, so be sure to stay tuned for that too!

Basically, I am devoting this summer to FINALLY reading these book series that have been shouting at me for years! I hope y’all are just as ready for this as I am because I know these series are going to be nothing short of fantastic.

If you can’t tell, I am so effing excited for this summer, and these Summer of Series blog posts!

Expect tons of reviews, some giveaways, and plenty of fun and craziness on here this summer with this series of blog posts.

I have a feeling it’s going to be one helluva summer, so let’s get it started people.

Bring on the series!

gtm

p.s. If you have a series from the picture that you would recommend me starting with, please feel free to comment with your recommendation!

Listed below are the series pictured that will be part of Summer of Series. Click the series title to head to Amazon for that series, and click the author’s name to head to their website.

And the one series that wasn’t even in my Summer of Series originally…

Review Post: First Came You by Faith Andrews

FCYebook

First Came You (Fate series #0.5)

Faith Andrews

~~Buy It Now!!~~

http://amzn.to/1EbbdhM

 Synopsis2

First comes a nickel,
Then comes a shove,

Then comes loss only conquered by his love.

This is the story of my first true love. The story of how the boy next door protected me, became my best friend, stole my heart, and rescued me from my darkest despair.

 ExcerptTommy

Loss. The recurring theme of the last few months.

First it was her parents—my second parents. They treated me like their own even if they had their doubts about my not-so-pure feelings towards their young daughter. Their death crushed me. I couldn’t let Gabriella see it because I had to be her rock. But my heart still clenches tight with hurt when I think about Mr. and Mrs. Rossi no longer living on this planet.

Then came the slow and gradual loss of the girl who means more to me than anything. I watched as all happiness and joy disappeared from her life with that one single phone call. She hasn’t been the same. She’s so distant and cold. Not just to me—to Gina too. We talk about it all the time. How much we miss the old spunky, vibrant Gabby. How we worry about her. How we have to let her go through the grieving process in her own way.

That part’s the worst because I can’t fucking stand watching her push me away. She’s dying inside—broken—and all I want to do is piece her back together. But she won’t let me. She won’t let me do what I know I can. So I bite my tongue and take my anger out on the basketball court or the boxing bag. Seeing me angry won’t send her running back into my arms.

But tonight? This rejection is the worse loss yet.

I’ve managed to smother her—her words—by caring for her. My selfish need to keep her close and protect her have caused her to let me go. For the first time in my life, I understand the pain of a broken heart. She’s the only girl who’s ever owned it, and without her I’m not whole.

When I get back to my house, head hung low like a beaten dog, I toss the red box on the table and watch it skid in my father’s direction.

“You were right. Happy?” I growl.

Swallowing back his beer, he arches a brow. “Told you so.”

Three words I never like hearing—especially from my smug asshole of a father. Instead of pounding my fists into his gray-bearded face, I turn my back to start off to my bedroom. I can make better use of my time by packing.

My old man stops me with a gruff, patronizing laugh. “Boy, your need to fix things don’t work on the unfixable. She’s damaged goods. Don’t waste your time.”

I suck in a deep breath, and tighten my fists so hard my nails dig into my palms. Do not deck your father, Tommy. He’s not worth it. Turning to face him, I stare hard into his bloodshot eyes. “You don’t know shit about me and Gabriella. And I would never give up on her because she’s not a waste of anything. And maybe it seems like things are dark right now, but there’s nothing damaged about the beautiful girl she is and the incredible woman I know she’ll become.”

He takes another pull of his beer, slamming the empty bottle down on the table. “Suit yourself. Throw your life away before it’s even begun.”

Rushing toward the table, I get within inches of his face and growl, “Just because you’re unhappy with the way your life turned out doesn’t mean you have to take it out on me. Stay the hell out of it and save your misconstrued sense of wisdom to yourself. I’ve never needed it before and I don’t count on needing it ever again.”

I stalk off to my room, grumbling under my breath. He’s a misery. Has been for as long as I can remember, and the fact I’m doing things he never could at my age makes him resent his own flesh and blood and the struggles of being a lesser man. And my poor mother is just a naïve victim to his shit.

I’m over it.

I can’t wait to get the fuck out of here. Away from their scrutiny, away from their disapproval. My parents never appreciated my passion for Gabriella and our future. They always told me I was being stupid with my heart by giving it away too soon. They didn’t want to accept that I’d found a kind of love in Gabriella and her family that I lacked here. My parents are decent people, just not loving people. The Rossi’s gave me more.

As I toss shit haphazardly into boxes, I replay so many Gabriella memories in my head with tears burning at the back of my eyes. The beginning—when we were kids and would laugh all day while we played man hunt in the scorching summer sun. The middle—when I admired Gabriella as she grew into a beautiful girl with curves that made my mouth water and lips that made my dick think things it shouldn’t be thinking at that age. The end—is this the fucking end?

firstcameyouteaserone

My Review*****5 AMAZING STARS*****

Even before I started this novella, I knew that I was going to be in for one gloriously emotional story that would probably make me cry, feel a lot, and just experience everything this story had. First Came You made me do all of that and more, and I couldn’t be more happy about getting all of that. It was nothing short of breathtakingly beautiful to experience. Even the tears and heart squeezes this story gave me were oh so worth it because of what they let me experience with these characters.

I’m not going to lie that there was a very small part of me that was a tad apprehensive about reading this story because I knew where it would eventually lead, as I read and LOVED every single phenomenal word of Feel Again, the book that this novella prequels.

Though I did know where Tommy and Gabriella’s story would eventually take them both, First Came You offers the extraordinary opportunity to see where it all began with them. You get the beginning where their magic started. Where their pathways crossed and began weaving together, and where this unforgettable story with these exceptional characters began.

That beginning is wondrous, phenomenally emotional, and life changing in every way.

I loved, and I mean loved every single piece of this novella. Faith Andrews is one of my favorite authors for a reason. Not only does her writing allow you to slip right into the magnificent world that she creates in her books, the way she writes and develops her stories and characters allows you the exceptional chance to feel what you’re reading. You’re not just going to read this story, you’re going to feel it with every ounce of everything you’ve got, and that just pulls you and connects you into everything.

It brings it to life. It makes you feel and think and experience everything right along with Gabriella and Tommy. You feel their joy, their wonder, their longing, and their butterflies. You experience the heartbreaking moments, you cry for them, and you break for them. You also get the incredible opportunity to get them. To understand them, and to love and care for their characters with all that you’ve got. That is everything, and it’s a huge part of why I loved every word of this story.

What Faith Andrews gives you in a story allows you the chance to connect to wholly unique and endearing characters while becoming fully enraptured in their world and enthralling story. First Came You was no different, and just reiterated why I love this author’s books so much.

One of my favorite things about this story was getting to know Tommy and Gabriella better. This novella allows you the amazing chance to see them at so many different points in their lives and relationship. You see them grow and develop and change. You get to see how their feelings for one another evolve and deepen, and that just amplifies everything that you’re reading. It also invests you more and more in the both of them. You will truly feel how deeply these two feel and care for one another. When you meet them and read their story in First Came You, you will just want more of them, more of their magic, and more of the thoughtfully crafted feelings and emotions that come with them.

Gabriella’s character was simply wonderful. She was real and so easy to relate to, and I loved getting to know about how her character came to be who she was in the past and present. Reading about this part of her life was just phenomenal, and I have to say that it connects so well into the story that comes after this one. Gabriella goes through so much in this novella, and experiencing that with her hurt my heart at times, but then at other moments, especially those with Tommy, it made my heart melt right along with hers. Gabriella is such an endearing character that you will emotionally connect to the instant you begin this story. You will love and care and feel for her immensely throughout every page of this story and the next. (This goes without saying, but you must read the next one!! You simply must read Feel Again!!)

Now Tommy’s character pretty much stole my heart from the moment I met him. I shouldn’t be surprised at that though because Faith Andrews knows how to create a male character I practically want to marry the instant I get to know them. Tommy was no different. He was just an all-around good guy with a heart of gold that shined brightly and seamlessly throughout this story. I was just enamored by his character, and I loved getting to know him even though it was immensely bittersweet. My heart broke for him at times in this story, but through all the ups and downs this story threw at him and Gabriella, my heart mainly just went to him and all that he was doing for her. He fought for like crazy for her, he believed in her and in them, and he never stopped pushing for everything he knew they wanted and deserved.

This novella gives you the incredible chance to get to know his character and to realize why he is so important to Gabriella and to the story itself, while also giving you the beautiful foundation to these characters and their stories and their lives. It also just gives you the chance to love Tommy’s character, and even in the moments when my heart almost hurt because of how much I loved his character, it was all worth it because he was so worth it, and Gabriella and Tommy together were so brilliantly worth it.

First Came You is a novella that gives you so much. So much thoughtfully crafted emotion and feeling that you’ll feel deep in your heart. So much love and connection that will grow and grow the more you read. So much of everything that makes a story simply wonderful. This novella gives you it all, and when you reach its end, you will just want to keep feeling and experiencing all of its amazingness.

Faith Andrews gives you one heck of a story with Gabriella and Tommy. It’s breathtaking and beautiful and emotional as all get out, and that is just a fraction of what makes it utterly outstanding. The writing, characters, and story itself will just enrapture you within it all, and in the end you will be thrilled with every wondrous thing it gave you.

First Came You gives you Tommy and Gabriella’s emotionally beautiful journey together. It’s a story that will have you feeling and thinking and experiencing many things, but most of all, it’ll have you believing whole heartedly in the power and beauty of all consuming, deep in your heart, love. And there’s nothing more perfect or wonderful than experiencing and believing in that. Trust me.

Buy The Book

~~Buy First Came You Now!!~~

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Feel Again

(Fate Series #1)

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About Faith Andrews

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 . . .

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