journey – Z. Elizabeth

BOOK TOUR: Fall from Love – Heather London

Posted on June 25, 2013June 15, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Today is The Book Lover’s stop on the Fall From Love book tour. I will be sharing my review with you.

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Synopsis

Struggling to put her life back together after a tragic mountaineering accident kills her college sweetheart, twenty-one-year-old Holly Treadwell is trying to set aside her grief, forge ahead in school, and find herself again.

When Carter Hansen, a guy who brings back horrible memories from the night of the accident, finds his way back into her life, Holly’s unsure if she should let him in. He terrifies her in more ways than one and invokes feelings in her that she thought were buried forever. Regardless of her fears, she knows she must face him in order for her heart to heal.

Everyone tells Carter that what happened on the mountain that night was just a terrible accident, but even then, he can’t help but carry around the guilt and is unable to forgive himself. He’s drawn to Holly and being near her helps ease his conscience and gives him the release he needs.

As Holly and Carter’s relationship grows, they begin to realize that the more time they spend with one another, the more their wounds begin to heal—her grief and his guilt. But when Holly learns the details about the night of the accident—what everyone has been keeping from her—it will rip open old wounds and tear apart what they’ve both worked so hard to overcome…

4 /5 stars

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My Review

If Holly could rewind that night, she would have never let college sweetheart walk out the door. That night changed everything and since her boyfriend died after a tragic mountaineering accident, she is struggling to put her life back together. With the help of her best friend Jenna, she is trying to put her grief aside and get on with her life. But it’s just hard.

Carter Hansen was with Holly’s boyfriend the night of his death. He brings back horrible memories from that night but he finds a way back into Holly’s life. He just wants to know shes okay and he wants her to know the truth about that night too. Although she doesn’t want anything to dowith him, the more time they have to spend together, the more they become friends. He evokes felings in her she thought she’d never feel, but shes scared.

Carter has seen more death in his life than he should have and even though everyone tells him that night wasn’t his fault, he can’t help but feel guilt and he can’t forgive himself. He needs to forgive himself but he needs Holly to understand the truth of that night first.

What happens when their relationship grows, their wounds begin to heal but Holly finds out about that night? That everyone knew apart from her? Will it tear Holly and Carter apart?

When I saw Fall From Love was having a tour, I literally signed up that very moment. I had read the synopsis and had wanted to read the book asap. As soon as it was gifted to me, that was it. I HAD to read it. I was pulled in from the very first page and from then on, I was sucked in and had to get to the end, to know what was going to happen and see the journey that Holly (and Carter) take, along and together.

Ms. London has a way in which she captivates you within the fiction world. She wrote characters in which you care for. You feel for them, whether it’s to smack them across the head, cry for them, want to give advice or want to be their friend, I felt this way with Holly. Wanting to help her through everything she was feeling, wanting to get her to open her eyes, but then I felt the same with Carter too.

You really do go through the motions. You cry, laugh, swoon, want to beat them around the head, want to shout, throw your kindle down, have your own heart aching, but I love these emotions. It made the book and the pain of what Holly and Carter had been through real.

Carter – I loved him. I can’t reiterate how much I loved reading about him. He’s broken, having known so much about death in his 22 years. He has guilt pouring through him, he has pain pouring through him and since that night of Adam’s death, all hes wanted to do was protect Holly. His caring side showing through. Wanting to make sure she was okay, wanting to save her really from the grief that overtook.

Although consumed with pain, feelings shone through Carter. Feelings that he didn’t really understand but feelings that he welcomed, even if he couldn’t share them. He was a great character, he was funny and sweet and vulnerable too. You wanted to help take away the pain, be there for him, be his friend, be his girlfriend. Help him through the night of Adam’s death that he held onto so badly.

But he was a dipstick at times. He wanted Holly, he wanted her more than a friend but he was scared. Scared of losing her, of losing her if things didn’t work out and scared of telling her the truth. You just wanted to smack him across the head and tell him that Holly wanted him too and to just go for it. You could see the confliction go through him. He had lost so much and if he lost Holly too, it would kill him. The journey he takes, you see him forgive himself, fall in love and revert back to his old self, the person who is happy and loved up. It was a great sight to see.

I loved Holly and her journey. You see her retreating, and rightly so when her boyfriend Adam dies. You see the pain, the grief, the longing for him to be there with her. She just can’t get over the fact that one night he was there, and the next he was gone. Ripped from her. Her pain eats her up.

Her journey is a tough one. She takes it day by day. Some days are good, some are bad, but she proceeds to try and get over her grief with the help of her best friend Jenna and Carter. You see her become stronger day by day, fall in love with Carter, but shes petrified of her feelings. Her feelings for Carter and scared about losing him, as he is too.

There is such a strong connection between them, that they try to ignore it, but they both feel it. With the help of loved ones, she finally breaks down the barrier she has up, she lets go of her pain and the grief she holds onto and although she will always love Adam, she loves Carter. When a certain situation happens, you see just how much she loves him, going to him, waiting for him and showing him that he won’t lose her.

I loved watching her grow, loved watching her become herself again, finding herself, finding love and becoming the strong girl she used to be.

There love was a slow build up. From friends, to best friends, to lovers. It was great to see their relationship move slowly, getting to know one another, falling in love over time. Nothing was rushed, it was taken at a steady pace and even though there were so hiccups along the way, everything turns out fine in the end. Everything is sorted out and they finally succumb to their feelings, after shying away and hiding them for so long. Afraid to change what they had together.

My favourite scene includes Carter and Holly. It involves a night when Carter is mountain rescuing and Holly is freaking out. I’m not going to say anything else about what happens, but it’s a pivotal point between these two and one that changes their whole relationship. For the better or for worse? That is something that you need to read to find out yourself 😉

Jenna and Josh (Carters bff) are amazing secondary characters…okay they aren’t so secondary as they are literally a foursome, they all do everything together. They are so cute and funny together, you can see the love they have for one another and for their respecitive best friend. Jenna is awesome, she is always there for Holly, through thick and thin and she will do whatever she can to make sure Holly can get through Adam’s death and slowly convert back into the old Holly, the one who was full of life. She’s there to help her heal. Josh is the same with Carter. Carter and Josh have been best buds since they were little and have been through so much together. Both friends just want to see their friends happy….with each other as its obvious that Holly and Carter want one another. They say the best things to push them together and I loved Josh and Jenna, together, in their relationship and as friends to the two.

Fall From Love is an emotional journey. A journey of grief, friendship, love and overcoming your past to focus on your present and future. It truly was a great book to read, and I would recommend it to all you lovely people to grab your copy and become engrossed within the story of Carter and Holly. It’s definitely real and heart-clenching and a book that should be read by everyone.

Romance

Kept – Elle Field

Posted on June 17, 2013June 16, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Synopsis

“Did she really just say that? I am fifteen again, except the reality is I am experiencing full parental horror, aged twenty-five. I want to die.”

Life hasn’t quite worked out how Arielle Lockley imagined it would. Becoming the next Coco Chanel was always her childhood dream, but she’s spent the past four years living a dizzying whirl of glitzy parties, luxurious holidays and daily shopping sprees – all paid for by boyfriend Piers – and not doing anything to make her Coco dreams happen.

When the recession hits, it’s not just the economy that takes a tumble and Arielle finds herself living back with her parents, on bad terms with Piers, and having a CV that’s as welcome as a pair of knock-off Jimmy Choos. And maybe it’s the location, but she’s also finding unwelcome thoughts of her childhood sweetheart are popping into her head…

What’s a girl to do? Can Arielle figure out what it is she now wants to do with her life and move on, or will she be doomed to spend the rest of her life dwelling over her worst mistakes, stuck listening to her parents’ embarrassing dinner table talk each night?

4.5 / 5 Hearts

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My Review

I’d like to thank Elle Field for sending me a copy Of Kept in return for an honest review.

Kept is the debut novel for Elle Field and I have to say, I was completely entranced by her book. Albeit, it took me a while to get into it, but when I did, I couldn’t put it down. I loved how Elle set the events of the story, letting us know what was happening before going back to explain how Arielle come to be in the position is in currently in.

I haven’t really read a romance book in a while; New Adult has taken over my life, so it was refreshing to read Kept, read the romance entwined within the book, instead of feeling my panicky self with all the angst that is wrapped up within NA. It was a breath of fresh air and I thoroughly enjoyed every second of Kept.

Ms Field has a way to keep you captivated, wanting to know more about Arielle’s life, wanting to know who she picks, how her life ended up that way and what she is going to do about it. You feel like you go on a journey with Arielle too, by the way she has so much drama and so much pain that she still has harboured inside from her younger years. She’s lost, she had dreams but she never pursued them. It’s a great chick-lit to read, you will laugh, tear up, root for Arielle, ponder over which guy she should be with all the while taking each step with her along the way.

We first see Arielle on the train. She has no money, no train ticket and just a weekend bag. She’s been kicked out of her house by her boyfriend Piers. She then takes us back to the beginning, how she met Piers, how they came to be, what shes been doing the past four years right up to that very moment on the train.

Throughout the book, you see the past and present of Arielle. How to came to where she is now, how it shaped her into someone she didn’t want to be. She had dreams, which took a backburner. She changed but now it’s all about getting her dreams back, she just needs to figure out what she wants to do, and how to go about it.

Piers, her boyfriend, dotted on Arielle but after a bad day, he loses it and kicks her ‘lazy’ ass out. The only place she has to go is her parents house and she doesn’t even want to step foot back in New Forest, it holds too many memories.

But after some guidance, from Piers, her parents and a special fairy godmother, she is trying to get her life back on track, trying to show everyone and herself she can pursue her dreams and make them a reality. Baring in mind she hits some bumps along the way, bumps from her past and it makes her head all fuzzy but in her heart, she knows the right guy is waiting for her, she just needs to sort herself out first.

So what does Arielle do? You’ll have to find out yourself.

I really loved the character of Arielle. Albeit she is a pain in the ass at the start and she is spoilt when you are taken back into the past four years of her relationship with Piers. She see that although she started off strong and spunky and independent when she first met Piers, over time she became a former figure of herself, spending Piers money, buying expensive clothes and holiday and not even bothering to thank him. This is the tipping point for Piers after a stressful day and he kicks her out. You see her vulnerable side break through, with no money, nowhere to really go and with no jobs under her belt, shes lost.

BUT over time, she begins to think about her future, having to work through her past and present, with some advice from her best friend Ob. She has to fight her past, working through her demons from her old teenager boyfriend Noah, who broke her heart. She goes on a journey, transforming herself into someone that everyone can be proud of. She overcomes her past, figures out her present and how to stand on her own two feet without anyone’s help and it made me so proud of her to do this, without anyone’s contributions. In the end she turns back into the independent woman that everyone knew she was, she just lost her way.

What can I say about Piers? I realllllly liked him. He is a gentleman, makes a lot of money and truly loved and cared for Arielle. How they met will have you giggling and what he says to her will make your heart melt. She really is everything to him and he just wants to care for her. BUT, and this is a big BUT, he is one of the reasons that Arielle has never worked during those four years. Because he tells her he will provide for her.

I’m kind of conflicted over him when he kicked her out, because it was his idea for her not to work (If I was told not to work, I would FIND work and not spend his money) and then he calls her selfish and lazy for not having a job. Bit hypercritical don’t you think? But then I can see his point of view, as she became selfish and ungrateful by his generosity. I don’t blame him for needing some time apart from Arielle. She wasn’t the girl he fell in love with.

Despite all this, he still loved her and wanted her back. The time did all the difference to him and to Arielle and he was always there to support her from afar. I think this is why I was rooting for him till the very end.

The supporting characters are brilliant. I completely loved Ob and I do hope that he will have his own book. I’d love for him to find love, seeing as he is married to his job. He made me laugh, he gave some good advice and you can always find him down the pub 😉 Even though he and Arielle haven’t talked for years, it was like they were never apart and that is why I love friendships like this. Arielle and Ob definitely are the best friends despite years apart.

I think my favourite scene is when Arielle is redesigning the shop. That is all I’m going to say but she proves her worth, proves she can do it and proves that with a bit of spunk you can achieve anything you put your mind to. This is one of the reasons I was so proud of her. She took something that was empty and transformed it into something that was popular around New Forest. It was something she loved and was good at. She found her worth.

Kept is a great chick-lit novel. You will be laughing, swooning, rooting for Arielle and end up so proud of her. It was refreshing to read something other than NA and if you need a book to get over the angst, then Kept is definitely the book for you. It has everything to keep you entertained and hooked and Elle Field, I will definitely be checking out more of your books when they are written!

Erotica, New Adult, Romance

ARC: Extreme Love – Abby Niles

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Synopsis

New body. New clothes. New men.

Used to the average Joe, Caitlyn Moore is overwhelmed when the supremely masculine Dante Jones walks into her life and expresses an interest in her. At first she pushes him away, refusing to encourage the attention of a cage fighter. Then she learns Dante has a love ‘em and leave ‘em reputation. What better way to fine-tune her non-existent flirting skills than with a male who won’t stick around? But Dante has no intention of being a practice dummy; he’s out for all or nothing. Now Caitlyn must accept Dante—violent career and all—or let him go.

Dante “Inferno” Jones has one goal: win the Welterweight Championship. At a time when focus is crucial, the last thing he needs is a distraction. Yet Caitlyn Moore becomes a challenge he can’t resist. When the light-hearted pursuit shifts to a battle to win her heart, his focus is shot. Faced with losing the biggest match of his career, Dante must decide if his extreme life also has room for Extreme Love.

4 / 5 stars

Release Date: 30th April 2013

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My Review

*Thanks to the Publishers and NetGalley for approving me to read Extreme Love in return for an honest review*

Caitlyn Moore is used to dating average guy kind of guys so when she is taken to an MMA after party after being dragged to the fight by her friend Amy to meet her new boyfriend, there she meets Dante ‘Inferno’ Jones. One look and he has her hot under the collar, but even more so, he’s interested in too!

She finds out about Dante’s reputation and with her lack of flirting skills she decides to test them out on Dante. He’s not going to stick around after his fight after all anyway. But Dante is fed up of just f’ing groupies, he doesn’t want to be a practice dummy for her flirting, he wants all or nothing. And now Caitlyn has to decide if she can accept Dante, with his violent career – or let him go.

Dante has one goal and that is to win the Welterweight Championship. But first he needs to train extra hard to make sure he can win against Sentori – who plays mind games before matches. He knows focus is crucial and he doesn’t need any distractions. But Cait becomes a challenge he can’t resist. But what happens when winning the championship may be easier than winning her heart?

So I have to say, I am one of those people that firstly judges a book by its cover before reading the synopsis. But can you see why I do this when we get book covers that look that this one?
HOLY HELL it is like sex on a book. It just makes you want to lick his perfectly defined abs and tattoo….okay, I need to stop staring at this cover and get on with the review, because it really was a great book to read.

From the first page you become hooked. It starts off with action, and action that makes you want to read on. And then you feel all the emotions stemming from the characters. You will cringe, you will grin, you will laugh, and you will throw your kindle and shout at the characters. I do this a lot with books, but I get stressed when it doesn’t go my way! But you can see why I threw my kindle as you just wanted Cait to stop messing around and admit her feelings. Will she? You’ll have to wait and find out.

As mentioned, Cait is dragged to an MMA fight with her best friend Amy. She’s under the pretence that Amy’s new boyfriend Brad is working there tonight…she has a shock when it turns out they are watching him work. He’s an MMA fighter. To make matters worse, Cait hates the sport and now she is going to an after party where groupies and testosterone will fill the club. Cait isn’t the most confident person and being around skinny-minnies is making her hyperventilate, especially when she locks eyes with one Dante ‘Inferno’ Jones who makes her heart race.

Dante is fed up of groupies and when he locks eyes with Brad’s girlfriend’s friend, he knows he wants to get to know her. But Amy tells him to go slow, to not rush Cait into anything as shes super shy. He doesn’t want to listen to her though, but soon finds out just how reserved Cait is. Short, blunt answers are not what he was expecting and he knows it’s going to be a challenge to get her to break down her barrier.

With Dante’s future fight being the one he has to win, he has to beat the ass that is Sentori, he knows he has to focus on training, but he can’t get Cait out of his head. Winning the fight may be easier than winning her heart, but he’s determined to help her through her insecurities, to show her that he does want her, that any man would be lucky to have her, as long as it’s him. He’s proud of everything she is doing with her career, proud of the little steps she is taking to change into a new and confident her, but then little push-backs occur and its back to step one. But never does he give up, he wants her to realize just how much she means to him, how much he wants her to be with him.

But what happens when his heart is being to affect his training? The only way for him to focus is if Cait gives him something to focus on, and she goes to completely wrong way about it. But in a way it pushes them together, although trouble is on the horizon yet again for these two. Gosh, can they catch a break already? Will Dante give up at the last hurdle after having enough of chasing Cait or will Cait now be the one to make the decision to go after what she realizes it the real deal?

Firstly, I could really empathise with Cait. I know she got on many reviewers nerves, but try to see it from her point of view. She’s lost a hell of a lot of weight, she’s never had male attention on her and she doesn’t know how to handle it. Plus she’s utterly shy with that attention and she still sees herself as ‘fat Cait’ when she looks in the mirror. I really did admire her strength throughout the book. Although she starts off timid and afraid, she comes out of her closet, she changes herself, and she gains confidence with Dante, with switching up her wardrobe and buying clothes that actually fit her.

Right now I am going through a weight loss program to get rid of my University weight. I’ve lost 2 stone so far, my clothes don’t fit me and I am utterly shy with male attention. So before you all judge her what her ways, think about it from her view point.

Okay, so there are points where you want to shake her and tell her that Dante does really like her, he wants to be with her and support her. And the way she acts would send any guy away for good, but Dante doesn’t go anywhere. I liked that she finally realized this and let herself and her true feelings for him show. With comments about her weight (She’s a size 12) from jealous ex-girlfriends and MMA rivals, she did a great job of trying not to let it show, to let her blasé attitude towards the comments prove that even though they hurt inside, she would never let them know. You really see Cait blossom and grow into such a strong and confident character.

DANTE! Oh sweet, sweet Dante. I fell in love with him, got to be said, and you all will too. Despite his hard exterior, his MMA background, he really is a sweet and caring guy. The second he lays eyes on Cait he knows he wants her, want to get to know her but there’s something holding her back. At first it’s like trying to break a goddamn wall talking to her and he’s not used to that, he’s used to women throwing themselves at him but Cait is different and he likes that about her. Likes that shes not like everyone else but shes a tough cookie to speak to.

His determination to want to get to know her pushes him to try and get through to her. I admired that he wouldn’t give up on her, knew that she would begin to trust him soon and open up to him about her life (which had been a journey in itself). When things happen, he keeps coming back. You could see he really did like Cait, he admired her strength (when he found out about her life), really cared for her and he had never felt this way about anyone before. Going from one night stands to one night stands. To finally find someone who he actually wants and needs to be with, he’s determined to make her see that they are perfect together, despite her hatred and hesitation over his fighting. She hates it.

They both go through a journey, together and alone. Cait goes through one of self- discovery and I admired her so much for breaking down her barriers bit by bit, letting not only her friends in but Dante too. He was a big part of those barriers coming down and I loved him for helping Cait out. Dante goes through a journey of falling in love, of fighting for the women he knows is the one for him time and time again, never giving up. But also he has to choose, Cait or his career….which one will he choose?

I absolutely loved Cait’s best friends Pete and Amy. They were brilliant. They were completely supportive and would kick Cait’s butt into gear not just over her insecurities but over her feelings for Dante. She really liked him but didn’t want to show them because she was scared and she hated his job. They made her see she was beautiful both inside and out, helped her with her confidence in herself and with Dante and helped her break out of her shell. They were the perfect friends for Cait and I’m glad they got their happy ending too.

Abby Niles has written an amazing book in Extreme Love. Her writing flowed, she made the characters have their own voices, she wrote about issues that every woman has been thrown in their life and can relate to, and she damn sure made my fall in love with nearly all the characters – there are a few baddies 😉 but other than that, it was hard to put the book down. I had my kindle stuck in my hands until I finished it. I’ve recently been obsessed with reading books about MMA Fighters and this book definitely did not disappoint my visions of these fighters. Abby Niles wrote the fights in a way I understood what he going on (I’m easily confused) and I was cheering, if not wincing, along with Cait and the other supporters. You do get drawn into this book, not just with the fighting, but with cheering for both Cait and Dante.

Extreme Love is out on the 30^th April and I insist that you all download it. If not for the smoking hot cover, then for the journey Cait and Dante go through. It is a struggle, but they get there in the end.

New Adult, Waiting on Wednesday

Waiting on Wednesday: April Showers – Karli Perrin

Posted on April 24, 2013April 21, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Breaking the Spine. It’s a weekly event that allows all us book bloggers and lovers to talk about what upcoming book we’re most looking forward to reading.

Title: April Showers
Author: Karli Perrin
Expected Release Date: May/June 2013
Goodreads link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17831683-april-showers
[This is a self-published title so no pre-order purchase links will be available prior to publication.]

Synopsis

What happens when your head and your heart pull you in completely opposite directions?

April Adams is about to find out the hard way.

When April enrols at Manchester University, it feels like a whole new life. New city, new house, new friends…new crush.

Isaac Sharpe is the hottest guy on campus – with an even hotter reputation. After a chance meeting, April quickly finds herself wrapped up in all that he is. But what if all that he is isn’t what it seems?

Caught up in a battle between what she wants and what she thinks she needs, April meets Lukas Roberts. Lukas is the security blanket that she craves so desperately, and she finds solace in their friendship – but what happens when she finds more than she bargained for?

April has always been a big believer of fate, but will she learn that she’s in control of her own destiny before it’s too late?

Join April as she embarks on a life changing journey of love and loss, which will have you laughing and crying until the very end.

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Links

Blog link: http://karlijperrin.blogspot.co.uk
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17831683-april-showers
Twitter: @karli_uk

New Adult, Romance

Real (#1) – Katy Evans

Posted on April 23, 2013April 22, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Synopsis

A fallen boxer.
A woman with a broken dream.
A competition…

He even makes me forget my name. One night was all it took, and I forgot everything and anything except the sexy fighter in the ring who sets my mind ablaze and my body on fire with wanting…

Remington Tate is the strongest, most confusing man I’ve ever met in my life.

He’s the star of the dangerous underground fighting circuit, and I’m drawn to him as I’ve never been drawn to anything in my life. I forget who I am, what I want, with just one look from him. When he’s near, I need to remind myself that I am strong–but he is stronger. And now it’s my job to keep his body working like a perfect machine, his taut muscles primed and ready to break the bones of his next opponents . . .

But the one he’s most threatening to, now, is me.

I want him. I want him without fear. Without reservations.

If only I knew for sure what it is that he wants from me?

5 / 5 stars

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My Review

Brooke Dumas is dragged to an underground fighting match by her best friend Melanie one night and the eye of Melanie’s crush is aimed at one fighter in particular – Remington Tate.

Remington, or Remy, is the desire of females across the country. But during this fight and one of Melanie’s many screaming fits to Remy, he flicks his eyes over to the place where he heard Mel shout and catches Brooke’s eye. In that moment, he’s hooked.

Following Brooke after one fight, he has a proposition for her. Join him and his team on the last three months of the competition as his sports rehab specialist. Her attraction to Remy is at an all time high and after mulling over it, she accepts. Now shes touring with this sexy beast of a man and no matter how much she wants him, does he want her that way she needs and wants him?

Brooke is going crazy over the music and the little smiles and interactions she and Remy are sharing and it comes to a point where she needs him before she explodes but Remy is much more reserved, wanting to take things slow until she truly knows who he is and then she will always be his.

When everything is spilled about Remy, Brooke still wants him, still cares about him and will do whatever to keep him. But what happens when a fight goes wrong and Remy is put in danger? Her heart is breaking to tipping point and she doesn’t know what to do anymore. This man, this man who she loves with everything is breaking her and maybe now is the time to walk away?

Will Remy let her walk away or will he fight to keep her his?

I had seen the buzz on Twitter about Real and how everyone was raving about this book and about Remy. So I shifted my butt over to Amazon, clicked the 1-Click button and boom-ya. I’ve mentioned how scared I get to read angsty books but reading snippets of Real just made me decided to man up and open the file up. BY JESUS how glad I am that I read this book. I was sucked in, captivated by every sentence and every page. I felt every emotion from Brooke, especially the first half where I was desperately needing Remy to just have sex with Brooke, but I will come to that later on in my review. I laughed, I was frustrated, I cried, I grinned and I cheered and shouted throughout the book. Make me feel all sort of emotions in your book and make me feel all over the place and it’s an instant love for you and your book – and that is definitely what I feel about Real and Katy Evans.

Real is pure, its raw, it’s dangerous but it’s powerful and you will become hooked with it.

As mentioned, Brooke meets Remy at one of his fights. He catches her eye at the end of one of his fights and when Brooke decides she needs the bathroom; Remy suddenly runs after her and confronts her, demanding to know her name. This is the beginning for both of them.

A few days later, Remy and his team propose to Brooke that she come on the last few months of the competition as Remy’s rehab specialist. This means spending a lot of time with Remy, touching him when all she wants to do his jump his bones. She agrees.

During the months, she becomes closer to Remy, develops deep feelings for him but she wonders if he feels the same way? She thinks he does with the music he chooses for her to listen to, but she doesn’t fully know until one night at a club they all attend. Although Remy wants Brooke, he won’t have sex with her until she knows the real him, all of him and if she still wants to be with him, then she has to be HIS because he doesn’t just want a one-night stand with her, shes stiring emotions in him that he didn’t think he would ever feel.

When she sees and finds out the real Remy, it doesn’t make her leave. She loves Remy and will help him through his illness. As much as she is his, he is definitely hers. But when Brooke does something behind Remy’s back – to try and help her sister out – Remy’s mind is anywhere but on the fight with the snake that is Scorpion and what happens after that causes Brooke to leave. Her heart is broken.

Yet Remy and Brooke are soul mates, they have find the missing piece to their puzzle. Will Remy fight for the love of his life?

I firstly have to say how much I loved that music was an important part of Real – a way that Remy and Brooke could show each other their feelings for one another through the music and lyrics. Each song choice from both of them played a huge part in sharing their feelings without voicing them and music, to me, is a great way to express what you are feelings. Whether happy, sad, angry, there is music for every emotion and Remy and Brooke certainly knew the right songs to play to each other. Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls is one of my favourite songs and every time it was mentioned I would put it on and read that part with it playing. Music really does make a scene more powerful.

Remy is a quiet guy. His life hasn’t been the greatest and music is his release and his way of showing his feelings. No one gets to see this caring, loving side to him apart from Brooke, who brings it out in him. To everyone else, he is primal, animalistic (is this even a word? it is now), protective, a man that women want to sleep with and a man that men want to be (and perhaps sleep with), but despite this side of him, his fighting side, he has a vulnerable side, a caring and a warmth to him. He wants Brooke more than he’s ever wanted anyone and it scares him that he’s feeling these unknown feelings but that is why he is trying to make her see the REAL him, this side that no one apart from his team know about, because he’s scared she only wants him because he is Riptide. He wants her to see him and know all of him, Remy, not Riptide.

He is the typical Alpha-male but despite what is wrong with him; you can obviously see his protection towards Brooke. See how much he loves her through his attentiveness and his music and how much he needs her. He will do whatever to make sure she is protected, wanted, needed, cared for and make sure she is his. You do see his other side, and while it is scary, having Brooke there calms him down, makes him less’ speedy’ and you can tell she has a positive effect on him that no one in his team have even seen. Brooke truly is the girl for Remy.

I also loved that he always looked for her before a fight and smiled a secret smile for her, a smile that heightened their connection and told her that this was for her, this win was all for her.

I am totally on the Remy bandwagon, you so should you!!

Now Brooke. She is a tough cookie, but also fragile at the beginning. We find out that her dreams of being an Olympian were shattered when she not only tore her ACL one, but twice (and the fall is on Yotube) and so now she is a specialist at a sports rehab centre. If she can’t be an Olympian, she will help out teenagers recover and follow their own dreams. This, in my eyes, makes her admirable.

From the moment she laid eyes on Remy at the fight, something inside her sets alight. She’s never had this feeling before, never been so attracted to someone that they make her feel all these emotions. When she goes on tour with him, she realises that Remy isn’t a big communicator and so their commutation is through lyrics and music, picking the perfect songs to express their feelings. But I did love her spunk. She seems a bit shy, but with Remy and her overpowering feelings towards him shes frustrated that he won’t touch her or have sex with her – yes, it is enough to blow up – and that’s exactly what she does. She fronts him and shouts at him asking him what is wrong with her.

Her confidence in what she wants and loves is brilliant to read and she really is a great heroine.

The more time they spend together, whether it’s prepping his body after his coaching or fights or just listening to music, the higher the sexual tension builds for her (and him). I felt every emotion that Brooke was during this period. I felt the longing, the nervousness of touching him, of wanting him or picking the perfect song for him. I went on a journey with her, wanting him, wanting to protect him, caring for him and falling in love with him. Although she’s got broken dreams, she knows that this is where she is meant to be, with Remy.

You see Brooke love fiercely. Not just love for Remy, but love for her best friend Melanie and her sister Nora. She will fight and protect and do whatever for her friends. Her protection and love pours off the kindle and she truly is a strong character. You’d expect Remy to be protective, but just wait until you see Brooke’s protectiveness coming out. Holy hell!

Got to be said, Remy and Brooke got me so hot under the collar and frustrated for the first half of the book before they had sex. As much as Remy wanted Brooke, he wanted her to know all of him and want to want him, not Riptide and find out about him before giving himself to her and giving her what she so desperately wanted. I have to say I really admired that about Remy. Normally the guy would jump straight in but he wanted her to be sure that she would be his when they finally had sex and that she knew what she was getting into with him before he took anything further even though it was killing him to hold back from her.

Also when they did finally have sex, it got my all frustrated once again and stupid me, I read the first sex scene before bed. Yeah I really needed to be hosed down after that. Katy Evans certainly knows how to keep you on your toes with Remy and Brooke being sexually charged for one another. It literally pours of the kindle and into your body. Steamy is such an understatement that I cant even think of a word to describe how I felt reading the two of them together. If anyone can think of a word, please let me know!

Slight spoiler now!

I have to say, picking a favourite scene is pretty hard but there was one part that completely made my heart swell and that is when Remy is ‘speedy’ and he and the team are in the car and he is resting on Brooke, who is running her fingers through his hair and keeping him relaxed. His team have never seen this happen ever, and it just made me feel so many emotions that Brooke had this effect over Remy, to make him act this way for the first time during his ‘episode’. It truly was amazing to read this part and the part after.

Katy did an awesome job with Real. She portrayed the characters brilliantly, wrote them in a way where you see their journey, from start to finish, see them fall in love, see their vulnerable and protective sides and just see them find that piece that has been missing. They found each other and despite their tribulations, they just know that this is the end game for them both. They found that person who they completely fell hard for and who they need next to them.

I will recommend Real a thousand times over. It’s one book that will stick with you for days after (hence why I needed to be in the frame mind to write this review) and Remy will definitely take a piece of your heart along with him. Don’t skip this book; make it a book you read RIGHT NOW!

Whilst writing this review, a song on my Ipod came on. I’m not sure if you are aware of Emeli Sande and Labrinth (If you are American) but they sing a song called “Beneath Your Beautiful” and this song just made me tear up and think about Remy and Brooke’s relationship and their journey. Take a listen to it below. (So lyrics not fit, but the majority – to me – do)

Cover Reveal, New Adult, Romance

COVER REVEAL + BLURB: April Showers – Karli Perrin

Posted on April 20, 2013April 20, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

I am SUPER EXCITED to share the cover and blurb with you. Karli has become a good friend in a short amount of time and I love that she asked me to be a part of this reveal for her because she had been teasing me with snippets from April Showers and to be honest with you, from those short paragraphs I am already NEEDING to get my hands on this book and fall even more in love with Isaac. Yes, I have dips on him. Sorry guys 😉

So without further ado, here is the big reveal 😀 (And i LOVE LOVE LOVE this cover. Kissing in the rain? Swooooon)

Title: April Showers
Author: Karli Perrin
Expected Release Date: May 2013
Goodreads link: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17831683-april-showers
[This is a self-published title so no pre-order purchase links will be available prior to publication.]

Synopsis

What happens when your head and your heart pull you in completely opposite directions?

April Adams is about to find out the hard way.

When April enrols at Manchester University, it feels like a whole new life. New city, new house, new friends…new crush.

April has always been a big believer of fate, but will she learn that she’s in control of her own destiny before it’s too late?

Join April as she embarks on a life changing journey of love and loss, which will have you laughing and crying until the very end.

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Links

Blog link: http://karlijperrin.blogspot.co.uk
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17831683-april-showers
Twitter: @karli_uk
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So what are you all waiting for? Go add April Showers to your TBR list because it is definitely added to mine 😀

New Adult, Romance

Waiting For You – Shey Stahl

Posted on April 2, 2013April 1, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Synopsis

Bailey Gray is tired of her perfectly planned life. Everything about her life has been organized and lived out to the expectations set of her parents. She is the class valedictorian, has perfect grades, the perfect friends, a perfect boyfriend, basically perfect life…or so everyone thought. That’s when she realizes the path planned isn’t always the path chosen.

On graduation day she makes a decision. One that changes everything she thought she knew about her intended future.

On a whim, she runs away with the town rebel, Dylan Wade, in search of the unknown.

Dylan Wade isn’t looking to run away from anything.

He knows what he wants as he’s been waiting on it for years.

On a journey to find the unknown, they discover a friendship they once knew along the open highway and have not a care in the world. Between the yellow and white lines of the heated summer asphalt, a spark draws them together as Dylan’s past and Bailey future try to ripe them apart.

Could it be that Dylan and his GTO are exactly what her perfectly planned life needs?

5/5 stars

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My Review

“Some say a sunset can be too beautiful for words. I’d agree with that. There are a lot of things too beautiful for words for me. To me, it was the earth’s way of saving the best for last.”

Bailey has been raised to be perfect. To be the type of daughter her parents want her to be. Never setting foot out of line. But it comes to a point in your life where you have to stick your fingers up to your parents and say FU, I’m not being this person anymore, I want to be free and that is exactly what Bailey did at her high school graduation. It was like someone had flipped a switch and she just needed to be free from the shackles her family had her tied to her whole life.

Fed up of being controlled by her parents, especially as her dad is the town mayor and expects nothing short of perfection, much like her mother’s attitude, graduation was a humiliation for them both, but I was so proud of Bailey for standing up to them, for ripping that part of her life away and wanting her freedom, to find herself.

Dylan Wade is seemingly nothing of perfection. From losing his mother at a young age and rebelling since then, he is a tattooed bad boy who has been arrested more times than he can count. He and Bailey used to be friends when they were younger, but when appearances meant more to Bailey’s family, she was no longer allowed to see or speak to him. Although everyone judges on appearances and town gossip, even if most are true about him, there’s just something about him that draws you to him, especially Bailey, once again.

Running away together, they slowly build up their friendship once again, as it’s a chance to be free from their town, from their family and just be their selves on this trip, even if they both are just running away from the things in their past and present.

I ABSOLUTELY loved this book. I was consumed by its every being, unable to put it down; needing to read it page by page until the very end. Books that include old friends, road trips and freeing/finding yourself are books that I bloody well love to read. It’s the thought that I’d love to be in that very position, experiencing everything the characters are, so if I can’t do it, then I can live through their trip and experiences.

This was my first book by Shey Stahl, although I have her Racing series on my kindle. I loved the way she wrote this book. She captivated me, had me highlighting nearly every sentence, going on this journey along with Bailey and Dylan and had me going through the motions, from happiness, sadness, sexual frustration and tears. Yes, I did really feel everything Bailey and Dylan were. It was really hard not to, especially as I just mentioned I lived through them during this road trip. The one I truly wish I could go on.

As I’ve mentioned, Bailey Grey has grown up doing everything right. Everything by the rules for so long. Shes sick of having her life planned out, from her school to her boyfriend and friends so during graduation, she flips and just wants freedom. Freedom to be her true self, to be reckless and enjoy her life; live for the moment.

Dylan Wade hates being at home with his violent, drunken father. Since his mother died, nothing has been the same. He was very close to his mother and loved her so much. But now he’s just tired of being in the same house as his father, who occasionally beats him in his drunken state. He wants out and after graduation, he knows now is the time to run away, since watching the girl he’s wanted and waited for, for eight years to finally realize she’s had enough of being controlled.

Asking her to come with him, Bailey doesn’t hesitate and goes with Dylan. On a road trip that neither of them were really prepared for. They both live for the moment. They love hard and go through a journey, both alone and together that you know will eventually end but right now, they are just basking in each other, learning to give up and be free, learning to love and feel. Feel that freedom.

I loved the little things they both unveiled. Dylan loved music. He wrote songs, he played guitar and he sang. But he was very timid about his hobby, timid in the sense that he didn’t want to pursue it as a career, he just loved it enough to want to play in pubs and make enough money to live. Timid in the sense he was enclosed on stage, until he came out of his shell and became engrossed in what he was singing about, losing himself in the song.

Bailey hasn’t known much in her controlled life, she knew enough but nothing about running away, feeling the wind in your hair and not knowing where they were going to end up. But what she did know and loved was photography. I really liked that about her. Taking pictures of sunsets, sunrises, of Dylan… But the sun was her thing. Something no one can take away from her.

“There’s something refreshing about a sunrise, it’s just as unpredictable what a new day would bring.”

Every day for Dylan and Bailey was unpredictable, and every day they fell that bit more in love with one another, showing each other how to be free and alive; sharing that piece of special with one another.

I have to mention the sexual frustration/tension/ pent up desire from both of them. It really got to me. No joke. I was frustrated along with Bailey, wanting and needing something to happen because it was just too much for them to not give in, although there were times when it got frigging steamy although it was Dylan who would pull back. I just wanted him to stop thinking and holding back and just f**k her because god knows they both wanted each other. I would have literally jumped his bones and told him to F**k me or I would find someone else haha. Seriously, it got to Bailey, it bloody well got to me too!!

When the secret came out, I kind of had an inkling about what and who it was about. There were kind of clues throughout the book but it only really confirmed it when it all came out. My heart just broke in two for Bailey and Dylan. Their love was pure, it was overpowering, it was dangerous but it was true love and to have the secret come crashing down upon them, it tore them apart.

The next few pages, I was hurting just as much of these two. Hurting for the secret, hurting for it tearing them apart, hurting for the heartbreak they both had but then I thought that maybe that is what they needed. They needed the pain and break after the intensity of their relationship and their love. A break to think about if they really can’t live without one another and if fate decided to step it, then it truly was meant to be.

I truly loved the journey they both went on. From having lies fed to her, from being controlled all her life, it was breathtaking to watch Bailey take control of her own life, the way she wanted it to be and to be carefree and go with the flow. She was sweet and a bit naive but the road trip and being with Dylan made her feel more alive than ever before and make memories together. Memories neither of them will forget.

Dylan was renowned for his recklessness, but we see the sweeter side of him. The side he doesn’t show hardly anyone. He respected Bailey, not pushing her into anything but just letting her experience everything. Although he had a temper, he really meant well and just wanted to protect Bailey. He loved her so much, since he was seven so I suppose waiting for her to feel the same way before pursuing anything, even though she kept pushing him, was so chivalrous of him. He only wanted what was best for her.

I hung onto every sweet word he said and whispered to Bailey, making me fall in love with him too. The way he wanted her, the way he showed her how to live, it was beautiful. And of course, the way they both experience this trip together, as friends to lovers. Making memories that no one can take away from them, no matter how hard they try.

I can’t mention enough times how much I was absorbed within Waiting For You. I fell in love with the characters, with their experiences, with their freedom, with their love for one another and their memories. It’s an amazing book to read, especially if you loved The Edge Of Never too, which I freaking did. I love the road trip books; there is just something about them.

Definitely a 5 star book.

Family, Jamie McGuire, New Adult, Romance

ARC: Walking Disaster – Jamie McGuire

Posted on March 25, 2013March 25, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Synopsis

Finally, the highly anticipated follow-up to the New York Times bestseller Beautiful Disaster. Can you love someone too much?
Travis Maddox learned two things from his mother before she died: Love hard. Fight harder.

In Walking Disaster, the life of Travis is full of fast women, underground gambling, and violence. But just when he thinks he is invincible, Abby Abernathy brings him to his knees.

Every story has two sides. In Beautiful Disaster, Abby had her say. Now it’s time to see the story through Travis’s eyes.

5/5 stars

Release date: April 2nd 2013

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My Review

I was lucky enough to be one of 250 bloggers to get a copy of Walking Disaster on NetGalley and my gosh, you won’t be disappointed.

Not a sequel, but an alternative perspective of Beautiful Disaster in Travis’ POV, you see everything in W.D, from the way Travis was thinking, feeling, all his emotions, his conflictions about Abby and the scenes from Beautiful Disaster that we wanted to see from his POV. To see when and how he fell in love with Abby, to the moment he realized he needed to keep fighting for her – just like his mother told him all these years ago on her deathbed. You can really see him listening to what she told him. Although we know there are times when he just gave up, he always came back fighting, and that is one of the reasons we love Travis Maddox.

You kind of understand why he is so possessive, why he had anger issues and that he is insecure. Insecure of feeling these things for Abby when all he’s ever done is sleep around and not even considered the thought of loving anyone apart from his family. We never got to see why he was so damn possessive in Beautiful Disaster, but you begin to see this different side to him that we didn’t necessarily see first time around. We got to go inside Travis’ mind and delve into everything that he was afraid of.

I started Walking Disaster and got in about 40 % before realizing I really should have reread Beautiful Disaster first, but then an idea popped in my head. I starting reading Beautiful Disaster up to the point I had read to in Walking Disaster and then I alternated between the two books, getting Abby’s POV and then reading Travis’. It was perfect to read the scenes, right after each other to see both Abby and Travis’ feelings over what was happening. There are also added content in Walking Disaster, as there is in Beautiful Disaster when Travis and Abby are apart from each other. I loved that we got to see them both thinking things over, on their own or with Sheply and America. It made the two books much more alive and you understood why Travis acted the way he did in Beautiful Disaster, now that we got his side of the story.

Walking Disaster is a brilliant book. I loved everything about it. Much like B.D, I fell even more in love with Travis, I suspect like everyone else will when Walking Disaster comes out at the start of April. I know it’s one of 2013 highly anticipated books and it definitely will not disappoint at all. I was hooked, needing to know Travis’ side.

I cried reading to prologue once again, like I had when Jamie McGuire put it online and my heart went out to Travis and his family, losing their mother, whom they loved dearly. I loved the advice she gave to Travis and he certainly never forgot it, not once. He definitely fought hard and loved even harder, and Abby was definitely his one.

Jamie McGuire wasn’t teasing when she said there was extra on Travis and Abby’s story in W.D. I’m not going to spoil it for you at all, but the epilogue is amazing. I was sighing, and crying and giggling at it. You get to see beyond their epilogue in B.D and see that they definitely had the happy ever after that they both totally deserved with one another after all.

THIS needs to be the book you pre-order now, so when April 2^nd hits, you can begin to relive Beautiful Disaster in Travis’ point of view, fall in love all over again with him and see him have his happily ever after.

Erotica, New Adult, Romance, Serenity Woods

ARC: Six Naughty Nights – Serenity Woods

Posted on March 16, 2013August 16, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Synopsis

Six nights to remember, six days to forgive…

Esther is grateful for the strong arms that saved her and her young son from an earthquake. But she wishes their rescuer was someone else. Anyone other than the man who left her pregnant after a holiday fling.

Toby’s carpentry skills take him wherever there’s work, and right now that work is definitely cut out for him. He has to get over the shock that the little boy in his arms is his own son—and convince Esther that he’s always regretted walking away from her.

Esther can’t bring herself to deny Toby his right to get to know Charlie. Besides, with her own home flattened, she has nowhere to go but with him to his apartment…where she discovers a sexy role-playing card game tucked in his suitcase.

When Toby invites her to accompany him to the Northland to attend his best friend’s wedding, the opportunity to explore their still-simmering attraction is too tempting to resist. As the steamy scenarios heat up, they start to realize this is more than a game. But Esther’s hiding a secret that could cause as much devastation as the earthquake…

Pre-order now
396 pages

Amazon UK – £3.04
Amazon US – $4.54

Out 26th March 2013

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My Review

Three years ago, Toby and Esther spent two glorious weeks together in Fiji, where fun and sex were the main course. When the two weeks were up Toby walked away from her, leaving her heartbroken and a few weeks down the line, pregnant.

Now three years later, and in the company of a little boy, Charlie, he and Esther are saved in the midst of an earthquake by no other than Charlie’s dad, Toby, who just so happened to be at the same place, at the right or maybe wrong time.

Toby goes wherever his carpentry skills take him and now he’s in Christchurch. Rescuing the girl who he has always regretted walking away from, it’s a shock to know that the little boy in his arms that he just saved is his own.

Esther doesn’t deny that Charlie is his, nor can’t she bring herself to deny him his right to get to know his little boy. Besides, since her apartment was flattened by the earthquake and with nowhere to go, Toby offers his apartment to Charlie and Esther, which is where she discovers a sexy role-playing card game tucked in his suitcase.

Toby is leaving Christchurch for a few days to attend his best friend’s wedding and he invites Esther and Charlie along with him back to Northland, so he can get to know his son, but also there’s an opportunity to explore their still-sizzling attraction to one another, which is just too tempting to resist.

But as the scenarios heat up, they both start to realize that this is more than just a game. Old feelings are starting to rehash but Esther is hiding a secret that could cause devastation if found out and she doesn’t know whether to spill it or not. It could ruin everything.

I’d firstly like to thanks Serenity Woods for sending me an ARC copy of Six Naughty Nights. You all should know my love for Seven Sexy Sins by now and when Serenity started following me on Twitter, well, I went all fangirl on her and she offered to send me a copy of this sexy book! So here I am, reviewing Six Naughty Nights – the next book in the Love in Reverse series – which was pretty much too hard to put down. Although it did come to a time where I needed sleep and reluctantly had to stop at the next chapter.

For those who have read Seven Sexy Sins, you will know that Toby is a character in that book. The flirty one, the one who everyone teases and it didn’t seem to bother him at all. He’s still the cheeky chap he was in SSS, but we get to see much more of him and his personality. I can’t tell you how many times I laughed at the things that came out of his mouth. He was hilarious.

I love how easy he seemed to slip into the role of being a father, even when he was freaking out about it. He was a natural with Charlie and my heart ached over how much he fell in love with Charlie and how he treated and cared for him even when he had known him for a few hours. It was like he was born to be affectionate and have his own kid to love. He was very family orientated.

Throughout the book, you really see the true Toby appear. Not only is he the cheeky, flirty guy, but he’s sensitive and has insecurities of his own that he has buried deep down because he doesn’t want anyone to know that they do sting when he’s teased. He always tries to get the approval of his friends and family and it pains Esther to see him being treated this way. He’s insecure over his family because he’s the ‘least educated’ one as his two brothers are Lawyers and Doctors.

Despite his insecurities, Toby had a big heart full of love, and he and Charlie were just so cute together. As I’ve mentioned, Toby was a natural; no awkward talking between the two of them and their conversations just flowed, despite Charlie being just over two years old. And for a two year old, he came out with some goddamn funny lines. I just wanted to cuddle him up and have him talk that way with me. He was the most adorable little kid about and you really could tell he was Toby’s son. I also loved how Toby didn’t treat him as a kid as such; he didn’t talk down to him. That way, he and Charlie bantered was hilarious but they also had so many sweet scenes together and the way Charlie just accepted that Toby was his dad, and started calling him ‘Daddy’ brought a tear to my eye.

“You’ve got a big willy.” Charlie observed. “It’s bigger than mine” He studied his own offering.
“Size isn’t everything, dude, or so they’d have you believe.”

I can’t tell you how much I howled reading this conversation.

Esther is a strong, independent woman, but she also has insecurities. Ever since Toby walked away from her after their two weeks in Fiji, she was heartbroken, distrustful and left pregnant. Since then it’s just been her and Charlie against the world. She doesn’t have any family and doesn’t like anyone helping her, rather doing it herself. After Toby’s attempts of getting in contact with her, she ignores them, wanting to punish him for how he left her. She knew how to contact him but she didn’t want to, she didn’t want him back in her life, even if Charlie did deserve to know his dad and Toby deserved to know he had a son. So when she sees Toby in the supermarket as an earthquake hits, and he gets them to safety, she doesn’t deny that Charlie is his when she’s asked.

I loved that Ms. Woods didn’t make Esther withhold the information to Toby. Many books draw that out and after a while you want to scream at them, but Esther was honest and because of that, they could get past one obstacle about their past and power through the rest.

Esther and Toby’s attraction was still pure. It was still as hot as it was three years ago but right now, Esther doesn’t want her feelings to return. She wants them to stay hidden away and not get heartbroken again by Toby. She wants to resist him but she can’t. So when they propose to play the role-playing game while they are in Northland, they try to do the same as Rusty and Faith – keep it physical and not let any emotions get in the way. Oh, why didn’t they listen to Rusty? They have too much history to keep old feelings away and sex is never just physical (for some people), emotions truly do get in the way. The more time they spend together, and the more they play the games, love is inevitably going to get in the way.

Now on to the games. I FREAKING LOVED THEM! Is this game real? I think I’d like to buy it because holy hell, Toby and Esther role-playing…I needed cold water thrown over me everytime they has sex because I was burning up. I loved how dominant Toby was in the bedroom and although Esther hated being the ‘sub’ because of how independent she was, it did turn her on to be dominated. Although she was always insecure about her body every time she was naked, Toby loved every part of her and that made her come out of her shell and play along. She was brilliant and being pushed to her limits playing someone else. Every sex scene was intense and steamy but I reallllllly like the sex scene where he tied her up. It was intense and made her vulnerable but it was also a pivotal point in their ‘relationship.’

Throughout everything that happens with Toby and Esther and when her secret does come out, I felt so sorry for both of them. They loved one another but Esther was determined it wouldn’t work and the secret hurt Toby, but he kind of understood somewhere deep down, why she did it. But the ending! Oh the ending. It was just amazing and I was cheering that everything, truly, would be okay for them both.

I absolutely enjoyed Six Naughty Nights. Serenity Woods’ books always draw me in and there is always an amazing storyline wrapped into the book, where it’s not just about sex, it’s about a connection and their journey together and alone. She makes me care about all the characters and makes my emotions go all over the place, much like her characters. I will always come back for more with Serenity Woods and I am so glad that I got to receive an ARC of this book from her, because I will definitely be recommending this to everyone and saying how great it is.

PS. Much like Rusty, Toby is definitely a new book boyfriend and I really couldn’t decide who I love best. It wouldn’t be fair 😉

Erotica, Romance

Private Practice – Samanthe Beck

Posted on March 8, 2013 by Z. Elizabeth

Synopsis

He’ll teach her how to bring a man to his knees…

Dr. Ellie Swan has a plan: open her practice in tiny Bluelick, Kentucky, so she can keep an eye on her diabetic father, and make hometown golden-boy Roger Reynolds fall in love with her. But Ellie has a problem. Roger seeks a skilled, sexually adventurous partner, and bookish Ellie doesn’t qualify.

Tyler Longfoot only cares about three things: shaking his bad boy image, qualifying for the loan his company needs to rehab a piece of Bluelick’s history, and convincing Ellie to keep quiet about the “incident” that lands him on her doorstep at two a.m. with a bullet in his behind.

The adorable Dr. Swan drives a mean bargain, though. If sex-on-a-stick Tyler will teach Ellie how to bring a man to his knees, she’ll forget about the bullet. Armed with The Wild Woman’s Guide to Sex and Tyler’s lessons, Ellie is confident she can become what Roger needs…if she doesn’t fall for Tyler first.

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My Review

Dr. Ellie Swan or Sparky as her childhood nickname goes, moves back to Bluelick to open a surgery and to be closer to her dad, to keep an eye on him, maybe build a relationship with him. Overhearing that her childhood crush Roger Reynolds has called off his engagement to his high school sweetheart, Melody, she’s determined to make him fall in love with her. But there’s a problem. Roger is looking for a skilled, sexually adventurous partner and that is just not Ellie at all.

Tyler Longfoot is known for his bad boy image, and that is what he needs to shake off if he is to qualify for the loan his company needs to rehab a piece of Bluelick’s history. When he ends up at Ellie’s one night after an incident which leaves him with a bullet in his behind. He needs Ellie to keep quiet about the while incident though, which in turns makes the clogs turn in her head.

She’ll keep quiet, if Tyler will teach her how to be wild in bed. After agreeing, Ellie comes armed with chapters marked in ‘The Wild Woman’s Guide To sex’ and makes Tyler teach her everything. Shes confident that with her new skills, she’ll get Roger and fulfil his needs…but there’s a small catch and that includes falling for Tyler.

When I read the synopsis to Private Practice (and saw the swoon worthy cover) I knew I had to download it straight away. I love the whole girl likes boy, girl wants to impress boy so gets a bad boy to make her more sexy but she ends up falling for said boy and said boy, falls for her too, leaving behind his playboy image. Super love books like this and I love the journey both characters have to make to end up together.

Private Practice, to me, has a kind of Hart of Dixie feel to it. Although I haven’t watched it in a while…the last time Zoe and Wade were sleeping together and George was single (is this still happening?) but this book kind of reminded me of that. Wade is the ‘bad boy’ in HOD and George is the one that everyone loves. Anyway, the setting felt familiar as Private Practice is set in a small town where everyone knows everyone and knows everything and the main character, Ellie is also a Doctor like Zoe Hart and George, like Roger – Ellie’s love interest, is also a lawyer. So yes, there were some comparisons but that didn’t put me off, I actually liked it. Reading about small town romances always makes me want to go visit/go live there and experience them too!

Ellie’s a likeable character. She has bite, can hold her own, but she’s also a little misguided. Perhaps that could be due to the fact that her relationship with her father is non-existent and she still feels, at 28, that she can prove shes grown up and grown into herself. She wants him to be proud but he just doesn’t seem to notice all that much about her. This made me feel sorry for her, because she’s grown up with a father who didn’t pay attention to her, and now, shes moved back to keep an eye on him and to try and make a relationship with him. It was utterly sad that she still held on to him after he didn’t put any effort into their relationship throughout the years. She still wants his love.

Other than that, there were times when I literally wanted to shake Ellie. You can’t use a book to teach you how to ‘do’ sex. Sex is spontaneous; you can’t schedule it because it will feel forced and awkward. I think that’s what made me frustrated at her when it was time to ‘have sex’. I just wanted her to take the stick from her ass out and let loose. I think that’s why I loved it when she was with Tyler. He made her have fun and when it came to sex, even when she kept pressuring him to do this chapter and that chapter; he made her forget everything with one touch. Such a brilliant way to get her to stop over thinking everything and their chemistry together was smoking hot, which in turn made their time together even more heated.

She also seemed a bit naive at times as well. There were so many signs about Roger, she didn’t know what ‘a bunny’ was and she was just blind sighted by what was in front of her the whole time. She wanted the whole ‘white picket fence and kids’ with Roger, but to be honest, she and Tyler had more chemistry than those two did. He was just a fantasy, a little girls’ vision of a fairytale and now she was grown up, she still held onto it. I was actually really proud of her towards the end when she realized she didn’t want the fairytale, she didn’t want prince charming, she wanted the grown up vision, the real thing, and that was Tyler.

Tyler ‘footlong’ Longfoot. Oh my. What can I say about him? He’s hot, hot, hot and wellllll, he’s got a reputation around town as being a bit of a playboy, and because of this, it’s harming his company and jeopardizing the outcome of gaining a loan. He’s a reformed playboy with a rep that he is trying to shake off. But to his friends, he’s incredibly loyal. He’s built a company from the ground up, he’s charitable and by gosh, he owns a motorbike. HELL YES. My kind of guy. A definite new book boyfriend. I love how patient he was with Ellie’s OCD over the chapters of the book and I loved how we saw his journey from not wanting to be tied down to falling in love with Ellie.

He and Ellie can sympathize with each other about their childhoods. They both grew up with mothers and their dad’s were anything but attentive, maybe too attentive when drunk in Tyler’s case but they both knew how it felt to feel abandoned. Tyler is there for Ellie throughout everything with her dad and gives her father an ultimatum which kicks his ass into gear as he knows sooner or later Ellie will cut ties with him.

Tyler is a brilliant person and his and Ellie’s chemistry was off the scale. They both go through a journey of growing up and finding love together, even if that journey takes a while to kick them in the butt and get them to see what’s in front of them, especially Ellie. Together, these two are hysterical, and sarcastic but also caring and these things bring them closer together. Yes, it started off as just sex, but feelings and emotions come into play for both of them, and it seems that they have finally found the one person they were meant to be with. Their sexual chemistry had me needing someone to throw cold water over me and the sex was smoking. I especially loved the outside sex. Oh Jesus, that was so intense and passionate that I was wishing to be Ellie.

So yes, that was one of my favourite scenes. It was the penultimate scene for her realizing her feelings for Tyler and Tyler knew his feelings for her and wanted to show her. But of course, not everything turns out fine. If you want to know how this scene goes, you’re going to have to download this book 😉

The ending had me in stitches when Tyler brought along his own book for Ellie and bookmarked his own chapters, asking her for help. She didn’t understand why he was asking her and told him to ask someone else as she wouldn’t be able to take it. I shook my head over how blind she was, that she couldn’t see what he was doing. It was brilliant of him to do the exact same thing she did to him. I utterly loved the ending. It was brilliant and long awaited.

Private Practice is a sexy read. Its fun and it’s steamy, but it also deals with serious issues with father/daughter relationships. It’s also about finding love, even if it’s not the person you always wanted it to be. It’s with the person who is the real deal, not a fairytale fantasy. I freaking loved this book and you all should read it too. Make Tyler your new book boyfriend.

I definitely recommend Private Practice.