Monthly Archives:: November 2013

Friday, November 22, 2013

Review: Wait for You by J. Lynn

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I received this book for free from William Morrow Paperbacks in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review: Wait for You by J. LynnWait for You by J. Lynn
Series: Wait for You #1
Published by William Morrow Paperbacks Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
Source: William Morrow Paperbacks
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four-stars

Some things are worth waiting for...

Traveling thousands of miles from home to enter college is the only way nineteen-year-old Avery Morgansten can escape what happened at the Halloween party five years ago--an event that forever changed her life. All she needs to do is make it to her classes on time, make sure the bracelet on her left wrist stays in place, not draw any attention to herself, and maybe--please God--make a few friends, because surely that would be a nice change of pace. The one thing she didn't need and never planned on was capturing the attention of the one guy who could shatter the precarious future she's building for herself.

Some things are worth experiencing...

Cameron Hamilton is six feet and three inches of swoon-worthy hotness, complete with a pair of striking blue eyes and a remarkable ability to make her want things she believed were irrevocably stolen from her. She knows she needs to stay away from him, but Cam is freaking everywhere, with his charm, his witty banter, and that damn dimple that's just so... so lickable. Getting involved with him is dangerous, but when ignoring the simmering tension that sparks whenever they are around each other becomes impossible, he brings out a side of her she never knew existed.

Some things should never be kept quiet...

But when Avery starts receiving threatening emails and phone calls forcing her to face a past she wants silenced, she's has no other choice but to acknowledge that someone is refusing to allow her to let go of that night when everything changed. When the devastating truth comes out, will she resurface this time with one less scar? And can Cam be there to help her or will he be dragged down with her?

And some things are worth fighting for...

I was a big fan of Obsidian when I read it way back, but this was my first foray into Armentrout’s more adult works as J.Lynn, and wowza! If you thought Obsidian was full of chemistry and sexual tension you ain’t seen nothing yet!

Before there can be great chemistry, we have to have great characters; J.Lynn delivers! When we meet Avery we know that something pretty terrible has happened. Among other signs, she’s cut herself off from her past, including her family, but we don’t know exactly what or what it all entails for a while. Albeit it’s not incredibly hard to guess most of it, it still makes her a bit of a mysterious tragedy which I always enjoy in character arcs. I immediately liked her, too. She’s real genuine with a great sense of humour, a smart head on her shoulders, and she has the same quirk as me about never ever wanting to be late or it’s like the end of the world. Plus, she totally plowed into a hot guy on chapter 1 and then ran away like she was being chased by the devil. She’s my new BFF!

The guy in question is none other than sex-on-a-stick gorgeous, Cameron Hamilton. It may be your cliché “hottest guy ever who has fuck buddies but now wants to settle down after meeting protagonist” story, but for once I simply didn’t care. This book is so addicting, the characters so obscenely compelling – bring on all of the clichés! Me likey! There is absolutely no lack of chemistry, no shortage of passion, and just the right amount of conflict to make us devour every single page. Cameron and Avery don’t quite…. get along at first. Avery not really believing that he’s for real. It’s not that she plays hard to get, but rather she respects herself enough to not want to be someone’s game. (Another reason to love her!) Cameron, however, will do what it takes to prove himself to her. This is the foundation for plenty of amusing scenes, dialogue that cracked me up, and, as you can expect, tons of charm.

There’s also some darkness that intrudes on this romance. We slowly learn of Avery’s secrets after seeing her work through internal struggles from self blame to shame as well as a lot of anger. Even though tragic pasts are nothing new to the NA genre, it’s still a deeply moving storyline that offers psychological depth to the story.

With characters that lure you in and a romance that will make you swoon, Wait For You is a hot and emotionally dangerous roller coaster ride without a harness or breaks! I highly recommend it to every romantic at heart!

four-stars

4 Hot Espressos

Book Girls Don’t Cry: Does Size <i>Really</i> Matter?

Book Girls Don’t Cry: Does Size Really Matter?

Posted by on 11/21/2013 • 37 Comments

Book Girls Don’t Cry is a feature where we will discuss/vent/advise on a bookish topic. This feature is hosted by myself along with these pretty ladies:

 

Do  you like em big? Or not so big?

Sorry – this is not a post about male genitalia *crowd boos*. But now that I have your attention, what’s your opinion on the size of books? Do you like big books (and you can not lie)? Or do you prefer reading shorter ones? Has it changed since blogging?

Am I the only one who, before getting on Goodreads (or blogger) didn’t even know just HOW many great books were out there? So weird how much that changed! Before, the size of a book was not something I even considered. I would browse in…

Let’s Role-Play! A Guest Post by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

Let’s Role-Play! A Guest Post by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

Posted by on 11/20/2013 • 40 Comments

Have you read this book yet? If not you’re definitely missing out! You can find my full review here if you missed it but it’s a awesome read! I’m excited to have the wonderful ladies behind this great novel on the blog for a fun guest post on how they created these characters together! First, in case you live under a rock and missed what this book was all about:

Guest Post by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

Let It Play Out: Role-playing scenes to establish characters

One of the challenges in any story is ensuring that every character her their own very definitive point of view. They need opinions, a backstory, goals and their own personal motivation to do whatever they’re going to do…

Review: Darkest Fear by Cate Tiernan

Review: Darkest Fear by Cate Tiernan

Posted by on 11/19/2013 • 23 Comments

From lack of excitement to a protagonist I despised to a very bizarre romantic arc, I was happy to be done with this one. To paint a quick picture: the only interesting part of this book is in the blurb.

Darkest Fear starts with an intriguing Jaguar Shape-shifting lore that, for the most part, is well crafted. The narrative when in Jaguar form is particularly clever. I was certain it was the promising start of an impressive series, especially when only a few chapters in, something monumental happens. Something ominous that proposes an epic mystery to come. However, once this scene passes we get a whole lot of mundane happenings, from Vivi finding a job, to her day to day life, to detailed scenes of her baking various things. How…

Review: How to Love by Katie Cotugno

Review: How to Love by Katie Cotugno

Posted by on 11/18/2013 • 25 Comments

Don’t let my 3 stars sway you against this one. How to Love is a pretty good book for many reasons. First it touches on a subject I personally have not often come across in books – teen pregnancy. I found this was handled realistically and fairly. I also really enjoyed the way it was told in past and present perspectives, allowing us to slowly unravel the messy, emotionally conflicting details of Reena’s relationship with the father of her child – Sawyer. We learn how it started, but most importantly how much it has changed. How much they both have changed. On that note, the reason I did not love this book despite finding it otherwise engaging: Sawyer LeGrande!

To be frank. Sawyer LeGrande is an ass. Since the story…

Stacking the Shelves (76)

Stacking the Shelves (76)

Posted by on 11/17/2013 • 30 Comments

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews featuring the books we got this week, and I also mention blog news/happenings of the past week. How is everyone’s November so far? I’ve been keeping busy and warm! Who’s going to see Catching Fire this week? We’re going on Friday night and I’m so stoked! I’m also going to need to stay away from Twitter on Friday until the show so I don’t stumble upon many reviews/opinions on it. I want no swayed expectations! BE GOOD, MOVIE!! Ok so yeah, on to some books 🙂

THIS WEEK’S BOOK HAUL: (Click on covers and links below picture for Goodreads)

I received for review:

*Big thanks to Simon Pulse, HarperCollins, and Penguin Teen for…

Fresh Batch (New Releases November 17th – 23rd)

Fresh Batch (New Releases November 17th – 23rd)

Posted by on 11/16/2013 • 12 Comments

Fresh Batch, posted weekly, keeps you up to date on the hottest releases of the upcoming week.

Flavor of the week:

World After Susan Ee Series: Penryn & the End of Days #2 Publication date: November 19th 2013by Skyscape

Goodreads Purchase

In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what’s left of the modern world.

When a group of people capture Penryn’s sister Paige, thinking she’s a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.

Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels’ secret…

Review: These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Review: These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Posted by on 11/15/2013 • 33 Comments

Guys! This is not a story about a girl flying in space in a dress! That’s only in the first chapter. I swear!

Actually, most of this book is a survival story. After a crash land on an anonymous planet, Tarver and Lilac have to find a way to get along and stay alive amongst the wild animals and Lilac’s questionable state of mind. It’s not a fast paced read, but rather a slow trek on this mysterious planet full of whispers, visions, ghosts, and other bizarre happenings. This is what keeps it completely enthralling. You get that constant need to read just one more chapter to try and get some answers as to what exactly is happening in this weird place. Is Lilac going insane, or are the voices…