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Saturday, August 30, 2014

Book Look #36 : Biggest Flirts

Biggest Flirts





Tia and Will’s lives get flipped upside down when they’re voted Yearbook’s Biggest Flirts in this sassy novel from the author of Endless Summer and The One That I Want.

Tia just wants to have fun. She’s worked hard to earn her reputation as the life of the party, and she’s ready for a carefree senior year of hanging out with friends and hooking up with cute boys. And her first order of business? New guy Will. She can’t get enough of his Midwestern accent and laidback swagger. 

As the sparks start to fly, Will wants to get serious. Tia’s seen how caring too much has left her sisters heartbroken, and she isn’t interested in commitment. But pushing Will away drives him into the arms of another girl. Tia tells herself it’s no big deal…until the yearbook elections are announced. Getting voted Biggest Flirts with Will is, well, awkward. They may just be friends, but their chemistry is beginning to jeopardize Will’s new relationship—and causing Tia to reconsider her true feelings. What started as a lighthearted fling is about to get very complicated…


Goodreads

~ ~ ~

So what do y'all think?


Friday, August 29, 2014

Southern Sweethearts Tour Stop + Giveaway


Hey y'all! I've actually already read two of these wonderful book and have really enjoyed them! Hope y'all do too. Don't forget to enter the lovely little giveaway in the post!

First up, we have SWEET ON YOU by Laura Drake. Add it to goodreads!

Excerpt (This is one of my favorite scenes!!)

Katya looked around the restaurant. Surrounded by trees outside, the interior was exposed timber and glass, giving The Wild Side the feel of a hunting lodge in the woods. The fieldstone fireplace with its cheery gas log fire and the trophy animal heads on the wall carried out the theme.
“Well? What do you think?” Cam smiled at her from across the linen-covered table, the dimple in his cheek deepening.
“That gazelle looks pissed. I think he wants his body back.” The unblinking stare of the animals on the walls gave her the willies, so she kept her eyes on Cam. Well, maybe that wasn’t the only reason. His royal blue Western-cut shirt showed off his washed-blue eyes. The candlelight fractured in them, and she had a hard time looking anywhere else. He’d taken off his hat when he sat down, but it left a mark in his short, hollow-gold hair. She took a sip of her white wine to cool off. God, if he were on the menu, this place would be overrun with women.
He chuckled, and when the waiter walked over with menus, he held up a hand. “Will you trust me to order?” He gave her a one-sided smile, an eyebrow raised in challenge.
“I guess I’ll trust you that far.”
Not much farther though. She had no doubt that smile had separated dozens of women from their panties. Don’t forget, you don’t belong here. Why did she have to keep reminding herself of that lately?
He ordered something called the Hunter’s Feast for Two. When the waiter walked away, Cam turned his attention back to her. “You drive a hard bargain, Ms. Smith. It cost me dearly to get you sitting across the table from me. Are you sure you aren’t a horse trader on the side?”
She snorted. “I should have warned you, it’s in my blood. My great-great grandfather made enough money trading horses to bring his family to America.”
“Literally?”
Might as well get it out in the open. In spite of the modern push to accept “cultural diversity,” there was still a lot of prejudice against her kind. “I don’t just dress Gypsy, Cam. I am Gypsy.”
“No kidding?” The touch of his regard settled on her. “I know so little about you. Where did you grow up?”
Well, he’d answered her questions. No harm in answering a few benign ones of his. “In DC. But my summers I spent with my Gypsy family, in Chicago.”
“What was that like?”
“It was heaven. I’m an only child. But in Chicago, my huge extended family took me in every summer and folded me into the clan.” She smiled, seeing Grand’s apartment in her mind. “It was like stepping into another world. Like I lived two different lives.”
“When did you join the army?”
“After nine/eleven. A lot of people joined then.”
“I wouldn’t have guessed you for a soldier, but once I knew it, lots of things made sense. Did you like it?”
“I loved it. In a way, it was like Chicago. Another kind of family. We rely on each other under hard times and stressful circumstances. It forges a strong bond.”
“You miss it.”
Once again, his eyes made her nervous, seeing too much. “Something happened over there, didn’t it?”
“I miss it.”
The waiter brought their salads, breaking the pull of his gaze. That gaze made her want to talk, to spill her dark story all over the pristine tablecloth, staining everything.
She lifted her fork. “Tell me about your family. Where are you from?”
They chatted about safe subjects until their meal arrived; a huge platter of unrecognizable meat, without a vegetable in sight. Unless fried potatoes qualified.
He looked it over. “I’m torn. I’m afraid if I tell you what’s here, you won’t eat it, and you’d miss out on some great food. But I don’t want to ambush you either. So you tell me. Do you want to know?”
She picked up her fork, stabbed a deep-fried Rocky Mountain oyster, and popped it in her mouth.
His eyes got big. “Wait, that’s a—”
“Cow testicle, I know.” She licked her lips. “I have to say, it’s better than sheep, but not as good as camel.” She glanced around for the waiter, then back to him. “Do you think they have hot sauce?”

His eyes got bigger. “I think I’m in love,” he breathed.

Okay, next up we have Sandra Hill's SNOW ON THE BAYOU! This book was hilarious. Add it to goodreads!

Excerpt ( I hope y'all love Tante Lulu as must as I do)

Leaning back against the van and spreading his legs so she could fit into the cradle of his hips, Cage realized something in that moment.  He had never stopped loving Emelie.  He kissed the top of her head…she still used that lemon-scented shampoo…then kissed her chin and the knuckles that continued to hold the packet of letters in a death grip.  Pulling a handkerchief out of his back pocket, he used it to wipe the tears off her face and made her blow her nose hard.


          Then, he framed her head with trembling fingers that combed into both sides of her hair, and he really kissed her.  With all the love and yearning he’d built up over the years.  Suppressed emotions exploded in him, emotions he hadn’t even known he’d been suppressing, not this late in the game, anyhow.  He was out of control. 


          Then, Thank you God, she was out of control, too.  Somewhere along the way she’d dropped the letters to the ground and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back with equal fervor.


          There was a roaring in his ears, and his mind went blank.  His body zapped into sensory overload with each of her soft caresses to his neck and shoulders, with the arching of her body against his, with the opening of her mouth to his deep kisses.  


          At one point his palms had landed on her butt and he raised her against his erection.  Sweet!  Sweet agony!


          Women had two surefire weapons when it came to men.  Sex and tears.  Cage was being assaulted by both of them, and he welcomed the attack, even if he would be bullet-ridden in the end.


          At this moment, as he feasted on the woman in his arms, there were no jagged splinters of past betrayals, no dark shadows of regret, no questions of what might have been, or could be.  No anger.  Not even a Toby Keith cynical message of “How Do You Like Me Now?” which he had to admit he’d harbored on occasion in the past.  Just the now.  And now was glorious.


MawMaw was probably watching them through the kitchen window, but he didn’t care.  This was the girl he loved and she was back in his arms.  Nothing was going to stop him now.


          Except something did.


          The slamming of car doors.


          “Yoo-hoo!” someone yelled, and it wasn’t Belle and her boys.  It was that Cajun wackjob Tante Lulu, with pink hair that matched a pink t-shirt proclaiming “I May Be Old, But There Are Parts of Me That Still Zing.”  With her grinning niece Charmaine in a hoochie-mama, leopard print cat suit.  Noticing the direction of his stare, Tante Lulu remarked, “I know.  I tol’ her ta be careful.  That get-up’s so tight, folks will see her religion.”


          Cage pressed his forehead against Em’s, praying that his hard-on wouldn’t be evident.  Em moaned; she had a few thing to hide, too, like her nipples under the thin silk shirt she wore, tucked into a pair of denims.        “We came to help,” Charmaine said, smacking him on the butt as she passed by, carrying a box overflowing with plastic containers of food.


          “Jist in time, by the looks of things,” Tante Lulu remarked.  She was also carrying food.  Looked like one of those lidded cake carriers.  “Best I hurry up with your hope chest, boy.  Guar-an-teed!”

Finally on this tour we have A LOVE TO CALL HER OWN by Marilyn Pappano. Add it to goodreads!

Excerpt


Finally he could slip out of his jacket. His cattle’s blackand-white coats might keep them warm in winter and cool in summer, but he was about to dissolve into a giant drop of sweat. As the rest of the guests came out of the church to say good-bye to the happy couple, he loosened his tie, then saw Jessy, standing in the shade of an oak, arms folded over her middle, watching him.


God, she’d been watching him all through the reception, and him her. He couldn’t say why he hadn’t approached her, asked her to share a piece of cake, talk with him, dance with him. Then his gut clenched hard, his chest tightening, and he remembered: because he would have spontaneously combusted, and wouldn’t that have been an ugly page in Dane and Carly’s wedding album? From the moment he’d walked into the church and seen her sitting there all beautiful and sexy and focused on him, all he could think was, Is it time? Please, can it be time?


He was surprised God hadn’t struck him down where he stood.


It was stupid, he thought as he walked to her. He was thirty-two years old. He’d been married. He’d had sex with his share of women. Hell, he’d had sex with this woman. But he hadn’t known then what he knew now. Then it had been horniness and loneliness, and any woman who persisted until he was drunk would have satisfied. Now it was . . .


Well, he didn’t know what it was, exactly. Important.


They had something special, a second chance for both of them to make things right, to
make each other right. Something to not screw up.




 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hope y'all enjoyed the tour stop!


Thursday, August 28, 2014

Let's Talk About Mr. Darcy

He's had girls young and old alike swooning for year with his brooding personality and swoon-inducing words. Who is the man in question? MR DARCY!


How true this picture is. . .

I think that Pride and Prejudice is the most popular of Jane Austen's books, and you can see why. The story is a classic with the poor girl rising to the heights to society, who doesn't get crushed by the cage that the world puts her in. And she get's a swoon-worthy guy in the end.

I can say this is my favorite of her books. What about you? Who's your favorite Austen characters?


Ten Below Zero by Whitney Barbetti Release Day Blitz + #Giveaway

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Title: Ten Below Zero
Author: Whitney Barbetti
Release Date: August 28, 2014
Genre: New Adult Romance
goodreads
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Synopsis
“In here,” he said, pushing on the skin above my heart, “you're ten below zero. And you’re closer to death than I am.”

My name is Parker. My body is marked with scars from an attack I don’t remember. I don’t want to remember. I choose to live my life by observation, not through experience. While people are laughing and kissing and connecting, I’m in the corner. Watching them live. I’m indifferent to everything, everyone. The only emotion I feel with any kind of depth is annoyance, and I feel it often.

A text message sent to the wrong number proves to be my undoing.

His name is Everett, but I call him rude. He’s pushy, he’s arrogant, he crowds my personal space, and worst of all: he makes me feel.

He chooses to wear all black, all the time, as if he’s waiting to attend a funeral. Probably because he is.

Everett is dying. And he’s spending his final days living, truly living. In doing so, he’s forcing me to feel, to heal. To come face to face with the demons I suppressed in my memory.

He hurts me, he fulfills me, he completes me. And still, he's dying.
 
Excerpt
“Your roommates are nosey,” Everett commented, sitting back on the bed. He reached into the suitcase again. “You would know,” I said, snatching a bra from his hands. Everett shrugged. “It’s underwear. More specifically, it’s your underwear. I’m intrigued.” “Yeah, well don’t get any ideas.” Everett leaned back into the pillows, resting his hands behind his head again. “Oh, but I have a lot of ideas.” He winked at me. I stalked away towards my dresser and began pulling things from drawers. When I turned back around, Everett was holding another bra. “You don’t wear padding,” he commented, his fingers feeling along the lined cup. “No.” “I like that.” My hands stilled. And then I moved them again. “Why?” I didn’t care. Really, I didn’t. “Lies.” I turned around. “Lies?” “I like the truth. In every way.” He seemed lost in thought so I turned back around and packed my things. “Am I really doing this?” I asked myself. “Yes, you are.” I turned around again. “Why?” It wasn’t a question he should know the answer to. But he did. “Because you hate and you love the way I make you feel.” I was naked under his gaze. Skin was just that: skin. But to see your soul stripped, laid bare for the eyes of someone you barely knew – that was terrifying. I’d walk down the street naked a hundred times before I would let someone see what lay underneath. I’d spent my life alone. Bounced from foster home to foster home. When my tastes outgrew my age as a teenager, I traded boys for men and found myself still alone. I reveled in the loneliness. No one could hurt me but me, and did I really care if I hurt me? Did I care? If I found pleasure in anything, it was my lack of feeling. And that’s how I knew, when Everett told me not to fall in love with him, that I wouldn’t. I didn’t love myself. And wasn’t loving someone also loving yourself, the parts that saw the beauty in other people? I didn’t have that part. And I didn’t want it. “I don’t love anything,” I said. “I know.” His eyes were unsmiling.

ten below zero fb cover
 
About the Author
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I am the author of new adult romance novels. He Found Me (May 2014) is the first in a two-part series. Ten Below Zero (August 2014) is a standalone.

I am married with two boys. When I’m not changing diapers or cutting food into tiny bites, I escape to Starbucks for hours. I could drink my weight in their black iced tea.

I love music and have a playlist for everything.

I have about 20 bacon things in my fridge.
 
Connect with Whitney
 
Giveaway!
Signed copy of TEN BELOW ZERO and a $10 amazon gift card.
love 2



Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Sins and Needles by Karina Hale Release Day Blitz + #Giveaway




About SINS AND NEEDLES
Ellie Watt is used to starting over. The daughter of a grifting team, Ellie spent her childhood being used as a pawn in her parents' latest scam. Now she's much older, wiser and ready to give her con artist life a rest. But returning to the dry desert town of Palm Valley, California means one more temptation than she bargained for - Camden McQueen. Once known as the high school weirdo, Camden is bigger and badder than the boy he used to be and a talented tattoo artist with his own thriving business. Ellie's counting on Camden still being in love with her but what she's not counting on is how easily unrequited love can turn into obsession over time. When Camden discovers Ellie's plan to con him, he makes her a deal she doesn't dare refuse, but her freedom comes with a price and it's one that takes both Ellie and Camden down a dangerous road.

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1oODmcZ
Books-A-Million: http://bit.ly/1noiCCl
IndieBound: http://bit.ly/1ysCtJp
Powell’s: http://bit.ly/VL4tbt
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/1ohSY2k





About Karina Halle
The daughter of a Norwegian Viking and a Finnish Moomin, Karina Halle grew up in Vancouver, Canada with trolls and eternal darkness on the brain. This soon turned into a love of all things that go bump in the
night and a rather sadistic appreciation for freaking people out. Like many of the flawed characters she writes, Karina never knew where to find herself and has dabbled in acting, make-up artistry, film production, screenwriting, photography, travel writing and music journalism. She eventually found herself in the pages of the very novels she wrote (if only she had looked there to begin with). She’s hard at work on her next novel.












Rafflecopter link: a Rafflecopter giveaway



I Want It That Way by Ann Aguirre Release Day Launch + Giveaway

IWITW RDL Banner  
We are absolutely thrilled to bring you the Release Day Launch for Ann Aguirre's I WANT IT THAT WAY! I WANT IT THAT WAY is a New Adult contemporary romance and is the first book in the 2B Trilogy Series, published by Harlequin HQN. We are already in love with this series and Ann's characters! Read the excerpt, then go grab your copy today!!
I Want It That Way

Amazon | B&N | BAM | Indiebound | Vroman’s | Book Depository | Powell’s| iTunes

I WANT IT THAT WAY Synopsis: Nadia Conrad has big dreams, and she’s determined to make them come true. But between maintaining her college scholarship and working at the local day care to support herself, dating’s the last thing on her mind. Then she moves into a new apartment and meets the taciturn yet irresistible guy in 1B…. Daniel Tyler has grown up too fast. Becoming a single dad at twenty turned his life upside down—and brought him heartache he can’t risk again. Now, as he raises his four-year-old son while balancing a full-time construction management job and night classes, the last thing he wants is noisy students living in the apartment upstairs. But one night, Nadia’s and Ty’s paths cross, and soon they can’t stay away from each other. The timing is all wrong—but love happens when it happens. And you can’t know what you truly need until you stand to lose it. "A tender, sweet, and sexy story about how life—and falling in love—can never be planned." —Jennifer L. Armentrout, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Wait for You IWITW Teaser

I WANT IT THAT WAY on Goodreads

Read the First Chapter HERE!

EXCERPT: “Where are you from?” Ah, an actual question. That means I can ask one back. “Nebraska, toward the South Dakota and Wyoming side, if that helps.” “I’ve never met anyone from there.” Michigan was a long way from home. “I usually get ‘not in Nebraska anymore’ jokes, and then I have to decide if I’m going to remind them that’s Kansas or play along.” “What do you usually do?” “Play along.” “You don’t like conflict, huh?” He sounded normal tonight, as if talking to me wasn’t an unpleasant chore anymore. That was a relief since I’d come to look forward to these moments with him so much. More, maybe, than I’d like to admit.Right. Friends. I distracted myself by considering his question. “Not if it can be avoided. I’m not what you’d call pugnacious, no. But I like to think I don’t back off important issues. What about you?” “No.” His voice was bleak and quiet. “I don’t. Even when I should.” Wow, that took a dark turn. If I could’ve jumped onto his patio without breaking an ankle or waking Sam, I’d have been down there like a shot. The distance between us seemed intolerable, and from the knot in my throat, I didn’t see how I could live another second without touching him, finding out if his hair was as soft as it looked or what he smelled like. I wanted him in a way I never had before. In high school, I had a boyfriend who played basketball, and we broke up when I left the state. It was a rational decision, and I didn’t miss him that much once I was gone. My freshman year, I went out with a lot of different guys, one date here, two dates there, but I never clicked with anyone enough to focus on them. Sometimes there were hookups with no strings, no expectations. Classes, friends and work seemed a lot more important. The intensity of this attraction was foreign and frightening, if exhilarating. I might already be backing off if I had the faintest sense that Ty was jerking me around on purpose. Wish he didn’t make me feel this way. It’d be so much simpler if I could friend-zone him. I realized I still hadn’t touched his verbal grenade. “We all have things we’d do differently in hindsight.” “What is it about you?” he asked in a wondering tone. “Huh?” “You make me…better. Calmer.” “Like a sedative?” I snickered. It was the least sexy thing a guy had ever said to me, including a junior high squeeze who said my face wasn’t actually that bad. He laughed, too, a sheepish sound. “I didn’t mean it like that. Just…I’m worried pretty much all the time that I’m dropping the ball somewhere, about to face-plant, but when I come out here and hear your voice, everything backs off like ten steps. I can breathe again.”   IWITW Available now       Author PhotoAbout Ann Aguirre: Ann Aguirre is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author and RITA winner with a degree in English Literature; before she began writing full time, she was a clown, a clerk, a voice actress, and a savior of stray kittens, not necessarily in that order. She grew up in a yellow house across from a cornfield, but now she lives in sunny Mexico with her husband, children, and various pets. Ann likes books, emo music, action movies, and she writes all kinds of genre fiction for adults and teens, published with Harlequin, Macmillan, and Penguin, among others.      

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Monday, August 25, 2014

Today is the day the world ends

Okay. Maybe not for y'all. But it does for me. School starts today and I'm already stressed out. Summer was nice while it lasted. Just a few more months until Thanksgiving break.

I CAN DO THIS!!!

Wish me luck.


I LOVE Y'ALL!!! I WILL SURVIVE! I CAN DO THIS. I WILL!

Okay. Off to school. Bye y'all.


ARC Review: Evidence of Things Not Seen by Lindsey Lane

Evidence of Things Not Seen by Lindsey Lane
September 16, 2014
Goodreads
ARC from NetGalley and publisher for honest review

Summary

When high school junior Tommy Smythe goes missing, everyone has a theory about what happened to him. Tommy was adopted, so maybe he ran away to find his birth parents. He was an odd kid, often deeply involved in his own thoughts about particle physics, so maybe he just got distracted and wandered off. He was last seen at a pull-out off the highway, so maybe someone drove up and snatched him. Or maybe he slipped into a parallel universe. Tommy believes that everything is possible, and that until something can be proven false, it is possibly true. So as long as Tommy’s whereabouts are undetermined, he could literally be anywhere.

Told in a series of first-person narratives from people who knew Tommy and third-person chapters about people who find the things Tommy left behind—his red motorbike, his driving goggles, pages from his notebook—Particles explores themes of loneliness, connectedness, and the role we play in creating our own realities.



EVIDENCE OF THINGS NOT SEEN starts with a boy who lives in his head, takes everything all too seriously, but is content- happy even- missing. Nobody knows where he went. I mean, sure everyone has their theories. Along the books ‘plot’ people begin to find things that this boy lost. They connect this to their own life and in a way, they use these as hope and shape their own reality.

Now what I thought of the book. I honestly don’t think much. I wasn’t entertained as much as I had hoped I would be. There wasn’t a real plot. I was wondering where he was the entire book and we never really heard anything from his point of view. It was all from people who had seen, knew or found things he had lost. It was interesting to see how everything connected but this book really couldn’t keep me interested.


Overall, sadly, this book isn’t going to find a place in the books I want to recommend or books I plan to read again.

 Yup. This book (besides the rather epic cover) did nothing for me. I wanted to like it, but, it just didn't happen. 


Saturday, August 23, 2014

ARC Review: Unstoppable by Shannon Richard

Unstoppable by Shannon Richard
Review Copy via Publisher
Goodreads / Amazon 

Synopsis

Some things you don't dare let go . . .
Melanie O'Bryan knows life is too short to be afraid of taking chances. And former Air Force sergeant Bennett Hart is certainly worth taking a chance on. He's agreed to help her students with a school project, but she's hoping the handsome handyman will offer her a whole lot more. Yet despite his heated glances and teasing touches, Mel senses there's something holding him back . . . 

Bennett Hart is grateful to be alive and back home in Mirabelle, Florida. Peaceful and uncomplicated-that's all he's looking for. Until a spunky, sexy-as-hell teacher turns his life upside down. After one smoldering kiss, Bennett feels like he's falling without a parachute. But with memories of his past threatening to resurface, he'll have to decide whether to keep playing it safe, or take the biggest risk of all. 




This was a sweet, fun and light contemporary that was just what I needed. With the utterly adorable small-town, Southern setting and characters you can’t help but to fall for, there’s really not much to complain about.

When Mel (a high school math teacher) finally is able to do a project she’s been wanting to do with her class for a while, she needs some help. Luckily she has oh-so-very swoon worthy Bennett Hale falling head over sneakers for her, even if he doesn’t know it himself. Now, this is both insanely frustrating with the whole “just friends” thing that they are so determined to stick to, especially said man. Gah, I wanted to hit him with a brick in the face a few times. Mel has more patience in these 300-something pages than I’ve ever had in my lifetime. Though, for me, that’s saying almost nothing. That whole “patience is a virtue” thing never really registered in my mind. Like ever.

With the tv show + dinner nights at each other’s houses, the lines become blurred between friends and something more. And with Bennett’s fear of getting close to anyone (and who wouldn’t with the past that he has) feelings get hurt and confusion, frustration and hope become Mel’s bible. When tragedy strikes, things (and by that I mean them) get even more complicated. I know, I didn’t think it was possible either.

Okay. Okay. I love this book. I was so, so, SO sweet. I was giggling through pretty much the entire book. And *takes a deep breath* I almost cried. Me, the girl who didn’t cry in Titanic (but did in TFIOS! Shh. . .tell no-one!) almost cried in this one. Yeah, didn’t expect that one either.

I adore Mel’s friends! I haven’t read the first two books in the series because I saw this could be read as a stand-alone, but now I NEED IT! Also, there were hints of the next book, which I am oh-so-very looking forward to. Anyway, Mel’s friends were SO AMAZING! Especially with the whole “I Didn’t Kick The Bucket List.” Love it! Oh, and Shannon did a list for me too! Look at it people!


So, y’all need to get your paws on a copy of this book ASAP! 


So what are some fun-n-flirty chick-lit books that you've read recently? Any worth recommending? 


Thursday, August 21, 2014

The Beautiful Ashes by Jeaniene Frost ARC Review

Review copy via NetGalley + Publisher
Goodreads
August 26, 2014, Harlequin

Synopsis

In a world of shadows, anything is possible. Except escaping your fate. 

Ever since she was a child, Ivy has been gripped by visions of strange realms just beyond her own. But when her sister goes missing, Ivy discovers the truth is far worse—her hallucinations are real, and her sister is trapped in a parallel realm. And the one person who believes her is the dangerously attractive guy who's bound by an ancient legacy to betray her.

Adrian might have turned his back on those who raised him, but that doesn't mean he can change his fate…no matter how strong a pull he feels toward Ivy. Together they search for the powerful relic that can save her sister, but Adrian knows what Ivy doesn't: that every step brings Ivy closer to the truth about her own destiny, and a war that could doom the world. Sooner or later, it will be Ivy on one side and Adrian on the other. And nothing but ashes in between…



Decedents of Judas are born to betray decedents of David. Now, for those of you who don’t know these Biblical stories, Judas was the one who led Jesus to his death. He showed the guards who he was by kissing Jesus on the cheek. As for David, think of the story of David and Goliath. Remember the slingshot that David (a mortal) killed Goliath (a mortal in the Bible, and a demon in Beautiful Ashes) with? Well, that particular slingshot is very important. Like, really, super important. It can pretty much determine whether out main character’s sister is going to live or die.

Pretty intense, yeah?  

Our story starts with the main characters sister being kidnapped and taken to one of the demon realms. While searching for her, she meets the friendly neighborhood Thor look alike who happens to be the one destined to betray her. He takes her to see an Angel. Yes, a real, live angel. In order to save her sister, she and Thor look alike have to work together to find David’s slingshot.

They have to do this while trying not to get killed by Demons, avoiding the sexual tension and trying not to be complete ninnies to each other. All of which they sort of suck at.

This book. It was entertaining even if I didn’t really like the characters all that much. As a matter of fact, I probably only liked the characters about 5% of the time. Why? Welp. Both of them were just so. . .in denial. I mean I understand why they wouldn’t get close to each other with the whole inevitable betrayal thing, but come on. At least work together. And stooooppp hiding so much.

Ivy, although a strong female lead with her whole I’ll do anything (and I mean anything) to save my sister persona, she still needed somebody. And that somebody happened to come in the form of Adrian, a man with a secret who happens to be drop dead gorgeous. I mean what.

And let’s move onto Adrian, shall we? This boy is so complicated. Are all guys this complicated? If they are, I’m just going to start adopting cats now. Besides this secret, he’s also willing to do whatever it takes to protect Ivy. And deny his attraction to her. Is this attraction the destiny that comes with the betrayal, or something else?


In the end, I’d award this book 3.5 stars. It was an entertaining read with a freaking fabulous cover and a story that will keep you reading even if the characters are a little less than perfect. 

""When it's light versus dark, that doesn't matter. One shadow in a brightly lit room goes unnoticed, but shine a ray of light into even the darkest corner...and everything changes."" (ARC)


Tuesday, August 19, 2014

BookLook #35 : Zodiac

Zodiac





At the dawn of time, there were 13 Houses in the Zodiac Galaxy. Now only 12 remain….

Rhoma Grace is a 16-year-old student from House Cancer with an unusual way of reading the stars. While her classmates use measurements to make accurate astrological predictions, Rho can’t solve for ‘x’ to save her life—so instead, she looks up at the night sky and makes up stories.

When a violent blast strikes the moons of Cancer, sending its ocean planet off-kilter and killing thousands of citizens—including its beloved Guardian—Rho is more surprised than anyone when she is named the House’s new leader. But, a true Cancrian who loves her home fiercely and will protect her people no matter what, Rho accepts.

Then, when more Houses fall victim to freak weather catastrophes, Rho starts seeing a pattern in the stars. She suspects Ophiuchus—the exiled 13th Guardian of Zodiac legend—has returned to exact his revenge across the Galaxy. Now Rho—along with Hysan Dax, a young envoy from House Libra, and Mathias, her guide and a member of her Royal Guard—must travel through the Zodiac to warn the other Guardians.

But who will believe anything this young novice says? Whom can Rho trust in a universe defined by differences? And how can she convince twelve worlds to unite as one Zodiac?


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