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Review: Daring the Bad Boy

8/23/2016

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Daring the Bad Boy
Endless Summer novel
by Monica Murphy

Synopsis

Annie McFarland is sick of being a shy nobody. A session at summer camp seems like the perfect opportunity to reinvent herself—gain some confidence, kiss a boy, be whoever she wants to be. A few days in, she’s already set her sights on über-hottie Kyle. Too bad her fear of water keeps her away from the lake, where Kyle is always hanging out. 

Jacob Fazio is at Camp Pine Ridge after one too many screw-ups. Junior counseling seems like punishment enough, but the rigid no-fraternizing-with-campers rules harsh his chill. When a night of Truth or Dare gets him roped into teaching Annie how to swim, she begs him to also teach her how to snag Kyle. 
​

Late-night swim sessions turn into late-night kissing sessions…but there’s more on the line than just their hearts. If they get caught, Jake’s headed straight to juvie, but Annie’s more than ready to dare him to reveal the truth.

Review

If you, like me, are a fan of easy, fun, and cute reads - look no further. This book is Young Adult, so there are some steamy parts, but way different than the romance books I usually review on here. It's been awhile since I've read YA actually, so I was a bit worried about getting back on that wagon. I shouldn't have feared it, however, Daring the Bad Boy was truly an engrossing read. 

Annie is the shy, somewhat nerdy girl who is off at camp and tired of being who she is...the good girl. She's trying to get the camp jock to notice her, but to no avail. Jake is a boy going through some hard times since losing his mother. Those hard times cause him to be shipped to camp to be a counselor as community service. Once Jake is there, it's Annie who grabs his attention - but getting involved with a camper is totally against the rules. Miscommunication and misunderstandings ensue. 

I'm not going to say what happens because that is part of the fun! It was such a great read and it's also my first Monica Murphy and I can truly say that I'm looking forward to reading more from her!
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Review: The Seduction of Kinley Foster

8/10/2016

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The Seduction of Kinley Foster
A What Happens in Vegas Story
by Lisa Wells


Synopsis

She needs an erotic education. And he’s just the one to teach her…

Librarian Kinley Foster wants to write erotic romance—the steamy, sexy, curl-your-toes kind of stuff. The problem? She desperately needs a little erotic inspiration. And at a romance convention in Vegas, she finds it…or rather him. The sizzlingly sexy guy who refused Kinley—and her virginity—when she was sixteen.
​

Now it’s time for a little payback.
Literary agent Ian Thompson is a professional. Mentoring an aspiring author is one thing. Giving her a thorough and thoroughly satisfying sexy education is quite another. Especially when she’s as stunning and deliciously curvaceous as Kinley. Yet Ian can’t help himself when Kinley makes him a wager he can’t resist. A wager that will tempt Ian to cross every professional—and every sensual—boundary in the book…

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Hell yeah it is!

Review

I'm totally confused and in love with this book. You know how I get with the books I really enjoy - spoilers...possibly.

I'm in love with it because it has all the tropes and catnip that I adore: kinda friends-enemies-to-lovers, possessive/jealous on both sides, both POVs, the story takes place at a romance book convention (meta!), sassy-geeky heroine, hot-sweet hero, misunderstandings galore, etc. This book was long, well-written, and it made have so many feels. 

Thisis why I'm also confused by it. The story of Kinley and Ian brought about a sense of nostalgia for me which is the STRANGEST feeling I have EVER gotten from a romance read. 

In Seduction, Ian is Kinley's big brother's best friend. Kinley has known Ian since she was a kid (he is 6 years older than her) and has harbored much love for him since then. However, due to some misunderstandings, Kinley has hated him since she was 16 and has tried (and failed) to forget about Ian.

I'm gonna tell you what happened because I need to process it. No worries, skip this part if you want to be surprised, I'll start a new paragraph to continue after this. So, apparently when Kinley was 16 years old, she arrived at Ian's place and promptly tripped into his arms, kissed him, and asked him to be her first. Ian, never forgetting their ages, and that she's his best friend's little sister, tells her "no." Kinley is understandably stung at the rejection, but to make matters worse, a naked girl comes out of Ian's bedroom. I won't tell you who the naked girl is - she's pretty important to the story. 

So - why the nostalgia? Obviously, to me anyway, I did not do what Kinley did, BUT I do remember that age when it wasn't difficult to put yourself out there. Of wearing your feelings on your sleeve, and the decision of placing all your expectations, dreams, wishes, and love in this one person in the sheer hope that the person, who has your heart in their hand, will tell you that they love and want you too. It also brought about the crushing reality that is rejection - in the only way a 16 year old can really understand. 

So this story really took my feelings for a whirl - it's the ultimate kinda-revenge fantasy where everything that wasn't or couldn't be said as teenagers/kids is fair game as adults. It's the ultimate, what if. It also did not hurt that I loved our heroine and hero. Kinley is the perfect amount of sass and romance geek. She is someone who takes her dreams seriously and looks to be better and better with each experience. Ian is sweet, hot, sometimes an arrogant jerk (but not really) who decided to forge his own career path than to fall into the family business. And he's good at it.  Their banter is fun, and even their jabs at hurting the other with memories was interesting to read. 

I loved this story about two people who are oblivious and afraid of their feelings. It's such a human thing to read about. This book kind of broke my rules for what I usually enjoy in romance reads (I don't want to tell you - just think really hard about the stuff that I usually hate in romance books...). 

If you like stories like this, pick this book up. It has skyrocketed to my number one fave for romance reads. I looked into other Lisa Wells books, but did not really come up with any :( Let me know if you find one I missed!



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Romance Read Thursday: To Katie With Love

5/12/2016

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To Katie With Love
by Erica Lucke Dean

Synopsis

Banker Katie James has a serious thing for romance novels. She’d almost rather settle for a fictional boyfriend than risk her heart on a flesh-and-blood man. Besides, the only real guy she’s remotely interested in is her rich, unattainable client, the mysterious Cooper Maxwell.

Looking less like the ultra-conservative man she knows and more like a drop-dead sexy character from one of her books, Cooper crashes Katie’s 29th birthday party. But one too many drinks lands Katie in uncharted territory… Cooper’s bedroom!

Drunk on love, Katie dives headfirst into the relationship only to discover that Cooper is keeping secrets… dangerous ones. As if things couldn’t get worse, her meddling mother makes a surprise visit, digging up a whole new set of problems.

Who would have guessed having an assassin for a boyfriend would be the least of her worries?

Review

I was totally surprised by this book. I feel the need to make that the first thing you read because it is so rare in the romance novel business to be surprised. But - I so was! So - spoilers lie ahead - you've been warned. 

When I first started reading the book, I was really confused, but I just went with the flow. It was funny and the protagonist, Katie, is a romance novel lover. When she becomes involved with Cooper, it totally seems like it's too good to be true. Honestly, I was really starting to believe that he was an assassin. He was super mysterious and...well, secretive. But what he ended up being was so much more interesting! I said this review was fun of spoilers, but I can't let this one go - it's too unique. So, just take my word for it. The novel had a great balance of romance, mystery, and intrigue. I mean, I thought he was an assassin! 

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Review: Loving the Odds

3/17/2016

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Loving the Odds
What Happens in Vegas #14
by Stefanie London

Synopsis

He's a risk she's willing to take...


Risk analyst Bailey Reuben might be in Las Vegas, but the last thing on her mind is sin. She’s there to find her jerk of an ex and get her grandfather’s watch back. Instead, she finds a smoking hot stranger. A stranger with a crazy plan to help her retrieve her family heirloom and get revenge. It’s a bad idea—she calculates risks for a living, after all—but she can’t say no. 


Bad boy PR guru Lance Fulton is all about helping the gorgeous, quirky Bailey. She’s in desperate need of some fun, and pretending to be her new boyfriend is the perfect way to help her see how sexy she is, get the watch, and show her ex what he’s missing. But the more they get to know each other—and the hotter their attraction burns—the higher the probability one of them will end up with a broken heart…

Review

Excuse me while my romance-loving heart gushes warm goo everywhere.

Got a visual? Sorry!

I loved this novella! I usually dislike stories that have an insta-love quality to them (hello enemies to lovers catnip!), but this was a novella so there was a reason for things to happen quickly and I LOVED IT. Seriously - Lance is a cutie and Bailey is a focused woman who realizes she kicks butt. And the whole story takes place at a romance book convention in Las Vegas???? How meta - I love it!

Love love love!

It's such a short story, I don't want to give cute details away, but here are 3 thoughts I will leave you with: one, more romance novels should take place at romance book conventions; two, this story could have been a huge book and as long as the insta-love was drawn out and the characters remained the same, I would have read it through and through; and three, I very much appreciated that the two women in question did not fight over a man, did not even DISCUSS the man, and Bailey actually appreciated the encounter with her. Bravo. 

Oh, and a bonus for using the name Bailey for our female protagonist...love it!

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Review: Playing Defense

3/15/2016

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Playing Defense

a Corrigan Falls novel
by Cate Cameron

Synopsis


Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains adult language, swoon-worthy kisses, and sexy hockey players. It may cause you to watch a hockey game...or ten.
​

Sixteen-year-old Claudia Waring has never kissed a boy. Never been popular. Never been to a hockey game. All that’s about to change. Assigned to tutor Chris Winslow, a prank-loving, gorgeous hockey player, Claudia’s perfectly planned life immediately veers off course. And she kind of likes it. But as fun as Chris is, she knows she'll never fit in his world.

After his latest prank lands him in hot water, Chris has to get serious about school or lose hockey. Not an easy thing for someone as carefree as the defenseman. The biggest problem, though, is how much he wants to help his cute, buttoned-up tutor loosen up a little. But while confidence has never been a problem for him, around Claudia, Chris is all nerves. Why would a girl as smart as her ever fall for a jock like him

Review

There are gonna be spoilers all over this review. I'm sorry - but it's that good. 


Playing Defense impressed me. I don't know if I can describe it any other way. On one side, it is a cute, popular guy-geeky girl romance. A little insta-lovey, but not really because Claudia and Chris both grow into their feelings. The attraction, however, insta-there. There is some talk about sex which is handled very well. Bravo. 

But then there's the other stuff. And the other stuff is what really makes this young adult book so different than others. The other stuff is the part that every young adult book is essentially about, but this one is so wonderfully blatant about it. Claudia is terrified of growing up - and never realized it until she met Chris. Chris signifies what she's been missing since she's so focused on her academic life. Friends, attraction, dating, caring about someone - these are things that Claudia has yet to experience even though she's nearing the end of her high school career. Chris isn't totally unaffected either - Claudia makes him realize that there is more to him than someone who is good at hockey. He learns that it's worth trying even if you think you're going to fail because, as Claudia so perfectly puts it, "Failure is temporary."

Together, Chris and Claudia learn that growing up can mean a different things for different people, but it's worth changing and growing because, even though you get to experience horrible things (you'll understand when you read the book), you get to experience really wonderful ones too.

This book made me think about how I challenge myself - and how I keep myself dormant. It's something I'm going to keep thinking about, and I probably wouldn't have done so at this time, had it not been for this book. I am no longer a young adult - but that doesn't mean I've stopped growing. I recommend this book to people of all ages - it may have teenagers in love, but there are real lessons being taught that are well worth our time. 

Plus it's funny lol
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