Tag: Riley

Posted in New Adult

Choose Us – Caylie Marcoe

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

Final Cover Round 2Synopsis

Riley Logan and Travis Grayson have been best friends for the last fifteen years. She would do anything for him, go anywhere for him…and she has, countless times. Except now. Now he’s asking for too much. Their friendship has reached a breaking point and she doesn’t know how to go back. But as Travis’ personal assistant, Riley spends her every waking moment by his side. 

When a fractured ankle puts Travis’ BMX career on hold he’s given more downtime than he knows what to do with. Always one for excitement, he agrees to become the bachelor on a televised dating show, but only if Riley goes in undercover to help weed through the girls. 

What was supposed to be eight weeks of freedom has turned into eight weeks of hell surrounded by desperate girls all vying for Travis’ attention. He promised her the show would be smooth sailing. He promised he would listen to her advice on which girls should be eliminated. But now he’s breaking those promises and getting way too close to the girl Riley despises the most. 

She shouldn’t care. Except she does. Much to her surprise there is one girl she wants Travis to choose…

Her. 

Will she get what she wants, or will Riley lose her best friend along with getting her heart broken on national television?

4.5 out of 5 stars

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My Review

I stumbled across Choose Us whilst browsing Amazon for new books to download. Spotting the hand holding cover, I had to know what the book was about. A famous BMX’er, his best friend as his PA, a Bachelor type reality dating show and a lot of confusion, jealousy and love mixed all together. Yupp, I had to get this book into my life asap.

It’s safe to say I literally devoured this book, from front to back. I started it on my journey to work and by the time night fell, I was crying, smiling and in love with everything Travis and Riley. Caylie has a writing style that wins you over. You cant stop reading no matter what (I was on edge all throughout work wanting to get back to Travis and Riley) and I had so many emotions, feeling what Riley was feeling, my heart twinging and breaking and sighing at every page.

You will hang on to every page, especially when there are girls competing and fighting for Travis’ attention, none of them knowing that Riley is undercover and reporting back to Travis about them. Friends to lover stories are always my favourite, mainly because of the deep connection they characters have and Travis and Riley are no different.

Choose Us is about Travis and Riley. They have been best friends r 15 years and spend every day together – Riley being Travis’ PA. When an injury forces Travis to rest for 8 weeks, he gets a proposition for be on a dating show. He has one condition to agreeing though, that Riley is one of the girls and reports back to him on the girls. Riley is pissed but she agrees after some hard work.

But as the show goes on and the girls are dwindling, there is one girl who is just out to get Travis for his status and that doesnt go down well at all with Riley. Travis isn’t listening to her and her feelings for him are coming on strong. Now she wants him to pick her but what does Travis do?

Will this cause 15 years of friendship down the drain along with a broken heart of national TV or will Travis pick Riley after all?

I truly loved Riley. She is the type of girl who doesnt have many girl friends but that doesnt seem to bother her. She has Travis and that is enough for her. She’s not the girly type either, but as long as she has her coffee in the morning she can deal with anything. Riley can banter, she can keep up with Travis and she always there for him throughout everything. Not just as his PA but his best friend too. So when he’s injured and his only condition for going on the dating show is if Riley gets to be one of the girls, I could understand her fear, her anguish over being surround by girls wanting Travis’ attention. In one way, she doesnt have any girl friends and isn’t good being friends with girls and secondly, deep down, unconsciously, she was afraid that A) she might loose him to a girl from the show and B) Fall in love with him and C) the girls would find out who she really was.

I enjoyed watching all these feelings rush over Riley though. From actually seeing herself as a ‘girl’ for the first time, feeling like she actually is a beautiful girl and dressing like one too. I liked her friendship with Taylor, one of the girls on the dating show and I liked how close they became. It wasn’t like a competition for them. It didn’t matter who ‘got’ Travis, they actually formed a fully-fledge friendship and I love that Riley had a girlfriend like Taylor. But most of all, seeing Riley’s feelings for Travis creep up on her. Really seeing him for the first time gave her confused feelings for him and I know just how she feels feeling her for best friend. But mix in the other girls, the confusion over what was happening between them and jealousy she felt when he went on one-on-one dates, its enough to push anyone over the edge especially after her birthday in the house and what came after that.

You slowly saw Riley fall for Travis, watched her actually begin to fight in the dating show, fight for Travis even through the pain of carrying on the show and him going off on ‘dates’ still. I felt the uneasiness, the pain of witnessing and hearing about the dates, the fear of losing and loving her best friend and then the heartbreak – god that sucked me right up. How she came undone and the pain shot through my heart whilst I was reading about her walking away. God, I even felt the awkwardness and the heartbreak at the end too, but yano what, I also felt the lightness and the love and the cage being ripped from Riley (and my heart) and I felt the radiating love that both Travis and Riley have for one another.

I told Caylie on Twitter that I want my own Travis. I really really do. There is just something about him that draws you right in and he wont let you go. Travis is sweet and caring and is boisterous – well he is a BMX’er, and he adores his best friend Riley, whom he will do whatever for. When an injury stops him for a few weeks, he becomes the main focus on a reality TV show, along with the help of Riley. He wants her to wig out the bad nuts so he gets the best girl in the end. You know everyone will end up loving him, he’s cheeky and flirty and smirky all wrapped into one and you know you will love him too.

He’s considerate and you know that, like Riley, deep down he has got to have thought about them as more than friends, so to me, it was no surprise when something happened. You watch their relationship change, you see Travis start to confuse himself over Riley, despite her being the one for him and then you watch their banter slow down, watch the drama unfold between them and it hurts to see Travis still go on dates. But fair play to him, he never backs out of contracts and although I wanted him to, I understood why he didn’t, even if it did end up hurting Riley and him and breaking both their hearts.

At times you will want to wring his bloody neck. You will shake your head at him for not listening to Riley, to not believing her when she told him about a certain young lady and shout at him for how he handled everything. But you will cry at the ending, at how much you want them to be together, at how much you need Travis to explain his action and you know, know you will forgive him because what he tells Riley? I wanted to jump into the book and hug him tight and make him say the words to me.

I truly loved reading Choose Us. It’s so refreshing from other books I have read recently. It sucked me in, had me feeling every emotion and I felt connected to Riley and her growing feelings for her best friend but most of all? This is a book I need to buy in paperback and have it on my bookshelf.

Posted in New Adult

Sweet (#2) – Erin McCarthy

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

18113253Synopsis

Jessica Sweet thought going away to college would finally make her free of her parents’ constant judgments and insistence she play chastity club role model for their church events, but if anything, the freedom has made her realize she can’t go home and be a hypocrite anymore. Tired of dodging their questions, she stays at school over the summer and lands in an unexpected crash pad: Riley Mann’s house.

Sarcastic, cocky, and full of opinions, Riley is also sexy personified with tattoos and biceps earned from working as a roofer all day. Not the right guy for her even if Jessica was looking for a relationship, which she is definitely not. But Jessica knows that Riley hides the burden of having to raise his younger brothers behind that grin and as she helps him get his house in order for a custody hearing, they begin to fall hard for each other, and she is forced to question what she’s hiding herself.

Jessica has never had a problem getting naked with a guy, but when it comes to showing Riley how she truly feels inside, her fear of rejection may just ruin the best thing—the best guy—to ever happen to her…

My review of TRUE

5 out of 5 STARS!!

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My Review

“Would you be okay with it if I fell in love with you?”

I thoroughly enjoyed the first book of the series True and you can read my review by clicking the link above. When I found out about Sweet and it being Jessica’s book, I couldn’t wait for it to be out. In True, we see Jessica as a party girl. She likes to go out, have fun and have the attention of guys on her. She was behind the plan to get Tyler to help Rory loose her virginity after Rory accidentally blurts out she has never slept with anyone. We see that Jessica doesn’t associate sex with feelings – as we know she slept with Tyler and doesn’t care that he and Rory are now in love.

I have to say, I absolutely loved this book…more than True. I’m not sure what it was about it but I was besotted with both Riley and Jessica, about them both, especially Jessica’s life as we don’t know about her life back at her parents house. We find out a lot of Jessica and I really liked her; she wasn’t how we know of her in book one and she grows up a lot in Sweet that you cant help but fall in love with her.

Behind her party girl persona, is a girl who hasn’t experienced life like the rest of her friends – especially Tyler and his family. Growing up in a strict religious household has made her do the opposite of everything she has been brought up to do. She drinks, parties, sleeps with guys and if her parents found out, she would be disowned by them. She hates living a lie, but she feels she had no choice in the matter at all. Her parents have dreams of her being a ministers wife, like her mother but she doesn’t want that at all.

She has her own dreams but they seem to be pushed away in favour of her being the spit of her mother and her fathers marriage. Being away from home, she can truly be herself, and that’s why when school is over for the summer, she lies and tells her parents she is going away with a charity, when in fact, she is staying and working all summer before moving into her shared flat….but she has a week of being homeless and with Tyler, his two brothers and Rory going to her fathers for a week, she moves in with Riley….What can happen during that week?

Jessica, as her name states, is actually really sweet. She doesn’t think she is, but the things she does for Riley, to help him out, to make his house a real home. We see her relax, we see her upset, we see her feelings for Riley change and we watch her fall in love. It was so nice to see this side to Jessica, one that makes her real. She can banter like hell with Riley, she can have a laugh and a giggle with him and we can see just how strong that pull is between them, their chemistry sizzling and it was only a matter of time before either of them did anything about it.

Riley is the oldest of his brothers and he will do whatever he can to make sure they are all together. He’s sexy, cocky, gives as good as he gets but behind that persona is someone who works hard to keep a roof over his families head, and he does have a sweet side. He doesn’t like to judge as many have judged his family and although he and Jessica bite at each other, he likes her around. The hard man act makes Riley, Riley, yet when a letter from social services comes through, his walls collapse and he shows his vulnerable and scared side. I liked seeing this from Riley and I liked that he let Jessica in to seeing that too.

The more time they spend together, the more that Riley sees that Jessica is sweet and kind and really thinks of others before herself. Deemed as a party-goer, she truly has a big heart and I think that was one of the reasons that Riley fell for her. She cared about him, about him getting to keep his brother and she was the main core of helping anyway she could if it meant the family stayed together.

The two of them together, when they actually admitted their feelings and ‘the princess and the prick’ gave it a go (Riley’s words) they were super cute. Both had never been in a relationship before so it was new to them both, but they did a pretty damn good job of ‘giving it a go.’ Riley was romantic and you could see how much he loved being with Jessica, how in awe he was of her, of her strength, her courage (with her parents) and determination. Jessica saw through Riley’s big man persona and saw someone who loves hard, who appreciates his family and who loves with everything- the things he would say to Jessica had my heart in a flutter – like the quote above. I CRIED AT THAT PART.

I also understand Jessica’s frustrations with Riley wanting to wait for have sex, as he wanted to win her heart and trust, not wanting a one-night from her as he doesn’t do that. It’s all or nothing. You don’t need the sex for these two to make the book – the little touches and the kissing do it just fine, but it was nice to see them eventually have sex, mind blowing sex which seriously connected them in every way. The wait for them both was worth it!

I love this book and I did smile, laugh, tear up and have my heartstrings pulled a few times throughout the book, but the journey both these characters go through makes them better people. From two people who disliked one another and bantered and bit at each other, you can see that they really are for one another. Everything you thought about Riley and Jessica will be flipped and you will end up completely rooting for them and loving them too.

Here is to waiting for Robin’s book!

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Posted in Jade C. Jamison, Music, New Adult

Everything But (Tangled Web #2) – Jade C. Jamison

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

16029536Synopsis

High school English teacher Erin Lancaster is stuck with the unwelcome job of filling in for the injured cheerleading coach, but she wants to back out when she discovers she has to be auctioned as a date during the annual spring fundraiser. She’s horrified to find her rock star crush Riley Schultz, former frontman of Spawn, will be playing emcee for the event, but she’s even more shocked that he also happens to be the highest bidder for her affections, and sparks fly when she discovers that maybe their attraction is mutual.

Riley’s been in the music business long enough to know that true love is not in the cards for him, but the cute blonde he’s dropped a wad of cash on would be a welcome distraction during his vacation. He has no idea there’s more to her than meets the eye.

Will one week together be enough for them to quell the flames, to enjoy everything but?

Warning: Not for the faint of heart! This book contains explicit sex and naughty language. Proceed with caution…if you dare.

Everything But is the second novel in Jade C. Jamison’s Tangled Web series. It features a little fun with handcuffs, an everything but sex scene that’ll make you giggle and blush, and a lot of heat!

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My Review

“You know Mr Schultz, I was prepared to give you everything…everything but…”
“Love?”
“Yeah…but I think you even got that out of me.”
“Only fair, Ms. Lancaster, since you managed to get that out of me too.”

Erin is an English teacher – in no way is she a cheerleading coach – but that is exactly what she is for a couple of months since the Coach has busted up her leg and is now in a cast from thigh to toe. Reluctantly agreeing to sub the team, their annual spring fundraiser is coming up and Erin, as the sub coach, is dragged into be auctioned off for a date too, much to her dismay.

It’s one thing to be auctioned off but it’s another when Rockstar God Riley Schultz is presenting the auction, especially when Erin has a crush on him and as he’s the highest bid for Erin, earning himself a date with her.

Rockstar Riley has come back into town for a week or so, while his new album is being mixed. His mother – who is on the school committee – has volunteered Riley to be a part of the auction, and although he’d rather sit on his mothers couch watching DVD’s, when he spots Erin, he can’t take his eyes of her and so that’s why he’s the one to win a date with her…at $500!

I absolutely loved the sexual tension in the car on the way home from the date. Especially when Nine Inch Nails’ Closer came on the radio. Bloody love that song and oh my god, it was the perfect song for how Erin was feeling – all hot and bother, and I would have totally felt the same way too!

This story, in my opinion, is about two tormented souls who have been scorned by ex-lovers in the past. Spending the short time together, they both begin to feel something for the other, completely new and scary territory for the both of them as they don’t want it to end up like their previous relationships. They tackle some major issues during the days they spend together – Riley’s family included –  and get to know one another, which makes them fall that little bit more for each other.

Since reading Tangled Web, I was so excited to read Riley’s story and this book was everything and more. Riley has been dragged through so much in his past, from drug taking, groupie sex, alcoholism and generally being a bad boy, but when he meets Erin, who is slightly conservative shall we say, and vows to be celibate after two crappy relationships, everything turns upside down for him and it was a nice change to see some feeling flair from Riley.

Although there is a part where he acts like a jackass, I could see the conflicting ways of his actions. He really liked Erin but didn’t know what she was after from him and so acting so out of character (to her) would make it easier for him to walk away. Hm big mistake there for him but whatever the outcome – from both their actions – they just can’t seem to stay away.

I now come onto the sex. Holy Jesus moley! Every sex scene had me wishing I was Erin, and I’d like to say – Riley can definitely handcuff me any day…I just need to find him first! I could feel the chemistry sizzling between them both and I loved the build-ups to each sex scene. There was so much passion I didn’t know what to do when I was reading it. I was getting flustered!

It has now totally turned out to be one of my favourite books. I was completely captivated by the storyline, especially how they were both afraid of love. Riley and Erin, albeit, seemed to go through so many rough patches during the week, finally came together at the end – pushing past everything that had happened throughout the week, to finally finding that they can’t be without each other, no matter what is put in their path to stop them.