Tag: summer

Posted in Anna Bloom, Cover Reveal

COVER REVEAL: Gone – Anna Bloom

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

I’m really EXCITED to reveal this cover because 1) I have been with Anna throughout her writing this and the finished book is AMAZING!, 2) I helped her pick her cover and 3) I just love her. So without further ado, here is the beautiful cover.

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Title: Gone
Author: Anna Bloom
Genre: Mature YA (intended for readers ages 16-19)
Publication: July 28th, 2014
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Synopsis

Rebecca Walters harbours a dark secret, and as the fifty-three bangles she wears on her wrists as a self-imposed sentence of guilt remind her, she can’t even begin to consider moving on. Not after what happened on that night six months ago… a night which she can’t remember and yet managed to change her life forever.
When Rebecca comes across Joshua Adams, man equally haunted by past tragedies, on a moonlit beach, both of their lives are destined to change forever, and when the girl made out of the sun meets the boy made out of the moon and sea, anything can happen… but will the knowledge of their murky pasts bring them together or drive them apart?
Will Rebecca finally be able to claim her freedom? Will she stay and fight to be the girl she found on the sandy beaches of Cornwall or is she destined to keep running and hiding from a past that won’t stay Gone? One thing’s for certain: either way, nothing will ever be the same again.
Pre-Order on Barnes & Noble!

 

Anna Bloom is a contemporary romance writer who writes about life as it happens. Combining a busy schedule of looking after two small children whilst working in a local school and completing The Uni Files series she also spends a lot of time imagining kissing hot guys – all in the name of her art.

                  Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

 

Posted in Emma Hart, New Adult

BOOK TOUR: Second Chance Summer (#1) – Emma Hart (+ EXCLUSIVE Reese POV)

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

Second Chance Summer BLITZ BANNER NEW

Today is The Book Lovers stop on Emma Hart’s Second Chance Summer tour. I will be giving you my 5 STAR review and an EXCLUSIVE Reese POV!!!
Then keep scrollling for an amazing GIVEAWAY!

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NEWSECONDCHANCESynopsis

“You don’t get a love like ours and get to leave it behind.”

Kia James was never meant to return to her hometown of Harlan Grove, Alabama… But she has.
And Reese Pembleton was definitely not supposed to still be in love with her the way she is him… But he is.

Last summer was the summer to end all summers. It was the summer they both fell in too deep to get out, and try as she might, Kia can’t deny that whatever was there between them a year ago is still there. If she’s honest with herself, there’s so much more there than there ever was, but the way her dad walked out six years ago has shattered her belief of that fairytale love every girl craves.

Reese isn’t giving up so easily. His biggest mistake was not chasing after Kia the way he wanted to when she upped and left him without a word. Despite what she says, he knows her better than anyone, and he knows she still wants him the way he wants her. And this time, nothing will stop him from getting – and keeping – his girl.

But nothing is that easy. When Kia’s dad arrives back in town, family secrets come tumbling out she never realized existed. Everything her mom has ever told her about the reason he left is a lie – but how can she trust the man who, by his own admission, didn’t fight for her as hard as he could have?

With her past and present wants and needs colliding, Kia is thrown into the turmoil of the biggest decisions of her life. And she realizes, sometimes a second chance is all you need.

5 /5 stars

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My Review

“I’m the mechanic around here, Kia. If anyone is giving a service, it’s me, and I’m pretty sure you’re next on my to-do list.”

As I always do, I’d like to thank Emma for the dedications in Second Chance Summer. Firstly for the Beta reader and then for the Bloggers. I must admit, I was a crap Beta’er this time around, simply due to not internet connection as I had just moved into my flat, but I did help on the first two chapters, so you better all love them 😛

When I read this book, I fell in love. You all know how much I love Emma and her books are like heroin to me. I will always need more of them because dear god, she knows how to write. How to draw emotions from you, captivate you with her storylines and make you fall in love with her characters. And Second Chance Summer is no exception. All her characters have their own voice, their own personality and it really shines through in this book. You will most definitely be rooting for Reese and Kia (and wanting Adam and Luce – the best friends – to get together too!)

Second Chance Summer is just that. Its about a second chance, about giving in to your true feelings, to stop hiding behind them, afraid of loving. It about forgiving and discovering the truth, its about finding your voice, even through the dark parts and coming out alive at the other side. Kia and Reese had the best summer of their life last year, thye found love in and with each other but that was all ripped away after one night of passion and Kia left – left for New York early and hasnt returned to her home town of Harlan Grove until now. She never, ever thought she would return but something inside her told her too.

Reese has the best summer ever, he finally got the girl, he fell in love so deep that even after she left without a word, then came back a year later, his feelings for her have never gone away. Despite being pissed and mad at her for leaving and not even returning for Christmas, he cant be angry at her, he cant shout at her because that will only make her run again. He still loves her and any girl he has been with was just a distraction from Kia. But now shes back and trying to deny her feelings her him, he is determined to make her see his feelings haven’t gone away, and nor have hers. Nothing will stop him getting Kia back, no matter how much she is fighting it.

I need to start with Reese (Sorry Kia). Get in my bed you sweet, gorgeous, sexy mechanic, you. He feel so deeply in love last summer that when Kia left without a word, he was stumped. He slumped around like a lost puppy looking for his owner, so angry and pissed and sad that Kia just fucked off without a single goodbye – especially as she went a week early. He waited until she came home for Christmas, but she never arrived. And he regrets not going after her, but now shes back, he is pissed but he knows shouting at her will do nothing.

Now shes back and he is determined to make her see she is the one, that nothing has changed, his feelings havent changed and that he still wants her just as badly as he did a year ago – he has been pinning over her and will do anything to make her see he loves her, to make her see that although they are young, she is it for him and he will follow her to the ends of the earth just to have her.

His beautiful soul and his words are what hooked me – and they way he is oh so sexy and dirty (with oil and his mouth) and dear god, how he will cradle Kia when she is crying, how he learned guitar, how to dance and sing, just to show her he can do it, to show her that he will do anything to see her smile and laugh and will do anything to make her blissfully happy.

Behind that cocky and sexy ass, really is a guy whose heart is completely taken by a girl who took it last summer and has never given it back. I cannot wait to read the prequel and the second book of their story!

Kia was a character. From the first page you instantly know how much she hates coming back, how Harlan Grove holds so many good and bad memories for her – especially with an alcoholic mother who couldnt give two rats arses, a memory of her father leaving and never returning and a summer of fun and a summer where she fell in love that leaving him behind killed her but she had to leave. And now she is back and the first person she sees is Reese and she cant cope with her feelings for him – they are just the same as they were a year ago. She knows how hard this summer is going to be having to spend time with him.

Since being away for college, Kia has become sassy and has developed an attitude, which I bloody loved as it meant she could bite back at Reese when he turned on the charm and she should see through him, but he still affected her just as much as he did last summer. But although NY changed her, her vulnerability and the pain and heartache of not just Reese, but seeing her mother, or rather not seeing, and then finding out exactly what happened and why her father left all comes tumbling down this summer and along with not wanting to show her true feelings to Reese, it all gets too much for her.

Reese breaks down her walls and she falls, slowly, but she falls again. But she is afraid of loving him so hard that he will leave her, but Reese, as you will see, will never leave her. You see her find herself again, have fun, fall harder in love and build back the bridges, with her father and kind of with her mother. Second chances are big in this book, but here is to hoping that everything will be sorted out in Third Chance Together, because I need my Kia and Reese together forever!

I loved the secondary characters, Adam and Luce. They are absolutely brilliant best friends, these two banter and fight with each other, Luce is amazing at being there for Kia throughout everything and Adam, oh Adam, he is freaking hilarious, yet at the same time I did want to smack him around the head when he does something so stupid to Luce. I hope there is more of these two, because id love to see a book or even a novella about them – after what happens in SCS.

Emma puts in blood, sweat and tears into her books to make them the perfection they are. She knows chemistry, knows how to make a sassy heroine and a bad-boy-with-a-sweet-side hero along with the amazing best friends and a great storyline. Kia and Reese are a favourite couple of mine and Reese is firmly on my BBF list. I cannot wait to read their summer, see how they fell in love and then see what happens after Kia leaves for college again and how Reese is going to cope without her and try to get to her.

Grab Second Chance Summer and every single one of Emma’s books and become engrossed along with me! PLEAAAASE 😀

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Exclusive Reese POV

Kia walks into the room, her tank top and tiny bed shorts clinging to her body, and my eyes crawl over her in the darkness. The low neck of her tank exposes the curve of her breasts and the shorts show almost all of her legs. Her hair is mussed from her sleep in the truck, and I can see she’s taken all of her make-up off.

And she’s never looked more damn beautiful than she does right now.

She pushes the covers aside and slips into the bed next to me. Her blonde hair fans across the pillow and she gazes up at me with wide blue eyes that are probably the color of the sea crawling up the beach outside.

I look down at her and smile. Her pink lips curve up, and I drop my head down, touching my lips to hers, and creep my hand across her stomach to her waist. Her fingers grip my arm and dig into my skin as I hold her tightly against my body. I run my tongue along the seam of her mouth, teasing her lips, and hers mingles with mine as they part. She takes like toothpaste, minty and fresh, and I get hard as she pushes against me and slides her knee between my legs.

My hand moves to the small of her back and my fingers hook under her shirt, brushing across her silky skin. She wiggles and her body rubs against mine, sending blood rushing straight down to my dick.

“Kia,” I mutter. My lips press to her jaw, kissing a gentle path along the curve of it, and she breathes faster. Her chest rises and falls frantically against mine, and I arch her back and drag my lips down her neck to her collarbones. I dip my tongue into the indent in her skin and suck lightly on her skin, smiling against her when she gasps.

And I wonder what I’m doing.

I want her. I want her so fucking badly it hurts. I want to remember what it’s like to have her lying under me, writhing and gasping all hot and bothered. But she’s had an absolute bastard of a night and that’s the last thing she needs.

What she needs is to be held. She needs to be held so tightly in my arms she’ll finally believe I won’t let go, that I won’t leave her. She needs comfort. Stability. Reassurance.

She needs every ounce of love I can give her.

And her needs outweigh my wants any day.

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6451162About Emma Hart

By day, New York Times and USA Today bestselling New Adult author Emma Hart dons a cape and calls herself Super Mum to two beautiful little monsters. By night, she drops the cape, pours a glass of whatever she fancies – usually wine – and writes books.

Emma is working on Top Secret projects she will share with her followers and fans at every available opportunity. Naturally, all Top Secret projects involve a dashingly hot guy who likes to forget to wear a shirt, a sprinkling (or several) of hold-onto-your-panties hot scenes, and a whole lotta love.

She likes to be busy – unless busy involves doing the dishes, but that seems to be when all the ideas come to life.

Find Emma online at:
Blog: http://www.emmahartbooks.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/EmmaHartBooks
Twitter: @EmmaHartAuthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6451162.Emma_Hart

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Links

Amazon | Amazon UK | Barnes and Noble | iBooks | Kobo

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GIVEAWAYYYYY!!!

KINDLE FIRE HD + £25/$25 GIFT CARD:

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ONE OF TWO SIGNED COPIES OF SECOND CHANCE SUMMER:

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SIGNED COPY OF SECOND CHANCE SUMMER, THE LOVE GAME, AND PLAYING FOR KEEPS, PLUS EMMA HART SWAG:

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Posted in Cover Reveal, Emma Hart

COVER REVEAL: Second Chance Summer – Emma Hart

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

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TITLE: Second Chance Summer
AUTHOR: Emma Hart
GENRE: New Adult
RELEASE DATE: September 23rd

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Synopsis

 From the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Love Game and Playing for Keeps is a story of hope and the beauty of getting a second chance at the kind of love that comes once in a lifetime…

“You don’t get a love like ours and get to leave it behind.”

Kia James was never meant to return to her hometown of Harlan Grove, Alabama… But she has.

And Reese Pembleton was definitely not supposed to still be in love with her the way she is him… But he is.

Last summer was the summer to end all summers. It was the summer they both fell in too deep to get out, and try as she might, Kia can’t deny that whatever was there between them a year ago is still there. If she’s honest with herself, there’s so much more there than there ever was, but the way her dad walked out six years ago has shattered her belief of that fairytale love every girl craves.

Reese isn’t giving up so easily. His biggest mistake was not chasing after Kia the way he wanted to when she upped and left him without a word. Despite what she says, he knows her better than anyone, and he knows she still wants him the way he wants her. And this time, nothing will stop him from getting – and keeping – his girl.

But nothing is that easy. When Kia’s dad arrives back in town, family secrets come tumbling out she never realized existed. Everything her mom has ever told her about the reason he left is a lie – but how can she trust the man who, by his own admission, didn’t fight for her as hard as he could have?

With her past and present wants and needs colliding, Kia is thrown into the turmoil of the biggest decisions of her life. And she realizes, sometimes a second chance is all you need.

Excerpt:

Reese puts his arms out at the end of the truck. “Come on.”

“I can climb down from a truck.”

“I know that,” he replies and shakes his arms once. “But I’m just helping you. You know, being friendly.”

I raise my eyebrows, letting him grip my waist anyway. I put my hands on his shoulders, and he lifts me down, lowering me slowly to the ground. His eyes are on mine, watching me intently, and a small smile plays on his lips. I lick my bottom lip without thinking, and his eyes flicker down. I swallow against the thumping of my heart and force my breath out slowly, resisting the urge to let my body take control.

Reese’s hazel eyes are darker as they meet mine again, and I let my hands slide slowly down his chest. His fingers flex against my waist, like he’s fighting with himself whether to let me go or not.

I breathe a little faster against my will and I see his chest heave once. My fingers graze his stomach and I step back, loosening his hold on me. His hands brush my hips as he drops them from my waist, and I have to stop myself from wrapping my arms around my waist to make up for the loss of him.

“There’s nothin’ friendly about that, baby,” he says in a low voice. “Nothin’ at all.”

I let out a shaky breath. “We’re never gonna be able to be friends, are we?” I whisper sadly. “We’ll never be able to get past whatever it is between us, will we?”

He shakes his head. “I don’t wanna get past it, Kia. Not at all.”

“I can’t have everything. I can’t. It’s always gonna be all or nothing for us, Reese. There’s no in between, there never will be.”

“I’m not asking you fall back into my arms and let me sweep you off your feet,” he whispers, moving some hair from my face gently. “No matter how much I want to, I’m not asking that. I’m just askin’ you to let whatever will happen, happen. I don’t get what good it is with you fightin’ yourself every time.”

“What’s meant to be will be, right?” I shake my head a little in disbelief. “It doesn’t-”

“Work like that?” He raises his eyebrows, his thumb trailing down my cheek and neck. “How do you know if you keep fighting it?”

Goodreads Link:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17698941-second-chance-summer?from_search=true

Giveaway code:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Note from the author:

SECOND CHANCE SUMMER is book 1 of the Chance series, and there is NO cliffhanger. There are loose ends that need tying up in both the second book and companion novels – to be announced – but I have tried my best to resolve the main story line in this book.

Author Photo(1)Author Bio

By day, New York Times and USA Today bestselling New Adult author Emma Hart dons a cape and calls herself Super Mum to a terrible two year old and growing bump, due September 2013. By night, she drops the cape, pours a glass of juice and writes books.

Emma is working on Top Secret projects she will share with her followers and fans at every available opportunity. Naturally, all Top Secret projects involve a dashingly hot guy who likes to forget to wear a shirt, a sprinkling (or several) of hold-onto-your-panties hot scenes, and a whole lotta love.

She likes to be busy – unless busy involves doing the dishes, but that seems to be when all the ideas come to life.

Find Emma online at:

Blog: http://www.emmahartbooks.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EmmaHartBooks

Twitter: @EmmaHartAuthor

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6451162.Emma_Hart

Posted in Promotional Events

***Sizzlin Summer Sale‏***

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

Throughout this past week, 10 authors have put their books on sale for $.99 and today is the last day to grab these awesome books at this price!

Below are a list of the books and the links to Amazon to buy them! Just click them and they will send you straight to the page for you to buy 😉

 

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Title: His Wicked Games

Author: Ember Casey

Genre: Erotic Romance

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/His-Wicked-Games-ebook/dp/B00D8C14AC/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Description:

Trapped with a billionaire in his mysterious mansion…can she beat him at his own game? Lily would do anything to save her father’s struggling arts center—even indulge the strange sexual whims of the brooding Calder Cunningham. A contemporary, steamy take on Beauty and the Beast.

Title: Detect Me

Author: Selma Wolfe

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/Detect-Me-ebook/dp/B00BP18T1U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374115623&sr=8-1&keywords=detect+me

Description:

Detective Mark Harrison has never needed an assistant before. But when artist Nikki Reed walks into his office by accident, there’s a spark between them that neither can deny. They have to be careful, though… every detective has a past, and the secrets in Mark’s could prove deadly to both of them.

Title: April Showers

Author: Karli Perrin

Genre: New Adult

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/April-Showers-ebook/dp/B00DDV2Q96/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374175362&sr=8-1&keywords=karli+perrin

Description:

What happens when your head and your heart pull you in completely opposite directions? April Adams is about to find out the hard way. 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.

Title: Precious Things

Author: Stephanie Parent

Genre: New Adult

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/Precious-Things-ebook/dp/B00D6X6IP4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1374295056&sr=1-1&keywords=precious+things

Description:

When financial problems force Isabelle Andrews to abandon her dreams of attending a top-tier university in favor of community college, she thinks her educational career is over before it’s begun.  But unexpected new experiences and relationships–including her growing attraction to a certain TA–help Isabelle learn that sometimes, the most precious things are found in the last places you’d think to look.

Title: The Modeliser

Author: Havana Adams

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/The-Modeliser-ebook/dp/B00D1AJX0Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374342906&sr=8-1&keywords=the+modeliser

Description:

When Hollywood bad-boy and legendary womanizer Alex Golden’s beloved grandfather dies, he returns to London and is thrown into the path of the women from his past. Alex’s fate is caught up with three women as ambition, lust and love collide against the drama-fuelled backdrop of the film world and it seems the modeliser has finally met his match.

Title: Torrential

Author: Eva Morgan

Genre: New Adult

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/Torrential-ebook/dp/B00DQZQMCQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374355502&sr=8-1&keywords=torrential+eva+morgan

Description:

When college transfer May accepts a bet to get the school’s top competitive swimmer and resident loner Sebastian Crane to open up, she never expects to be so drawn into his life and heart – despite his iciness, and despite his millionaire father’s determination to keep him isolated.

Title: Kiss it Better

Author: Linda Kage

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DQBDJ9E

Description:

Reed has loved Sophia for years; Too bad once he finally gains her attention, all she wants to do is pull the skeletons from his closet

Title: Exposure

Author: Iris Blaire

Genre: New Adult Romance

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CWFAQJQ

Description:

Erotic model by day, biochemistry student by night. Evan Cosette’s secret career is keeping her tuition paid and putting enough money in her account for grad school. Will her new sexy coworker make her famous, or ruin it all?

Title: V Club

Author: Lexi Dubois

Genre: Erotic Romance

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/V-Club-a-novella-ebook/dp/B00A0C9F7W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374634103&sr=8-1&keywords=v+club+lexi+dubois

Description:

Kristen has spent countless nights in V Clubs across the globe searching for her maker and true love, Jake.  Every fiber of her being longs to feel his touch again.  Will tonight be the night she gets her wish, or will someone else take his place in her immortal heart?

Title: The Immortality Clause (The Immortelle #1)

Author: Abigail Hawk

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/The-Immortality-Clause-Immortelle-ebook/dp/B00E0CFO0K/

Description:

For as long as Claudia could remember, she knew that there was something wrong with our world.  The facts just didn’t add up.  For a young law graduate in search of the truth, it was not just a job, it was a means to find out more.  Who are the mysterious Immortelle?  What are they?  And what is their interest in her family?

Posted in Cover Reveal

COVER REVEAL: Good Vibrations – S.L. Scott

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

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Title: Good Vibrations

Author: S. L. Scott

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Age Group: New Adult

Cover Designer: Okay Creations

Expected release date: June 4th, 2013

Cover reveal organized by: AToMR Tours

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I grab her exploring finger just as it reaches my happy trail—a trail that if I let her wander down further will lead us to do things we can’t take back. Things like three-word phrases being confessed that would end me if I was rejected. Things like selfishly wanting to own her body and doing things to her that would make my fantasies blush. And things like making her promises too soon that won’t do either of us any good. She makes me want a future that’s not possible, and one I don’t deserve.

Listening to my ego got me into this situation. Will listening to my heart get me out?

About the Author

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S.L. Scott has a degree in Journalism and is the author of the novels—Naturally, Charlie, and A Prior Engagement as well as several novellas, including Sleeping with Mr. Sexy and Morning Glory–all currently available on Amazon. Pursuing her passion for telling stories, she spends her days escaping into her characters, letting them lead her on their adventures. She is a Contributor to Huffington Post and writes for her own blog along with several other popular sites.

Travelling, music festivals, and surfing are a few of the hobbies she loves, but she doesn’t get to enjoy on a regular basis. She has an obsession with movies, a varied taste in books, and collects Fitz & Floyd teapots. With a memory full of useless trivia facts, and a Keurig addiction, she loves a fun night in with her family as much as a loud night out with her friends.

Scott lives in the lively city of Austin with her husband, two young sons, and two Papillons, enjoying life in the beautiful hill country of Texas.

She welcomes your notes at sl@slscottauthor.com.

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads

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Posted in Cover Reveal

COVER REVEAL: Are You Mine? – N.K. Smith‏

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth
Are you Mine by NK SMITH ebooksm
Title: Are You Mine?
Author: N.K. Smith
Genre: New Adult Contemporary
Expected release date: 7 August 2013
Cover Design by Regina Wamba at MaeIDesign.com
Photography by Poly Mendes at PolyMendes.com
[This is a self-published title so no pre-order purchase links will be available prior to publication.]
Book synopsis:
Human connection? Who needs it?

Ever since she can remember, wealthy but weary Saige Armstrong has felt different from her peers in Pechimu, New Jersey. With only one good friend to her name, she has navigated the complicated halls of high school and is now faced with the timeless question: Now what?

Fox Harrington, a fun-loving, socially charismatic graffiti artist uses his passions to color his world exactly how he wants it. He knows exactly where his life is headed. That is, until he meets Saige.

A summer project links the two together, making a tentative friendship bloom into romance, but despite their affection for each other, fundamental beliefs and ways of thinking threaten to destroy all they have built.

In this tender story of young love, N.K. Smith delivers a striking tale of two people standing on the precipice of adult life.
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TEASER

His weight on me is new and wonderful, and when his lips find mine, I’m sure there’s nothing better in the universe. He moves his mouth lower and his tongue touches the hollow of my neck. I can’t stop shivering. I close my eyes when his lips are back to mine, and I tighten my arms around him.

There’s something frenetic, yet measured in the way he kisses me. It’s not hard to figure out that I’m the wild frenzy, and he’s the calm, dignified restraint. I can’t move much because the weight of him limits me, but I’m able shift just enough to free my legs. It’s instinctive to wrap them around his waist, but that brings about a whole other rush of sensations.

I inhale deeply the moment his lips part from mine, but it’s only a moment of freedom. Fox’s tongue sweeps out over my bottom lip, and it’s all I can do to let out my breath in a slow, but stuttered exhale.

It’s crazy how much I want him. It’s insane how just being with him changes everything.

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NK Smith_picAuthor bio:
Based in the American Midwest, N.K. Smith is a Technical Writer for a Fortune 100 company. The author of the Old Wounds Series, Ghosts of Our Pasts, and My Only, she is a mother of two who finds the time to write very early in the morning when the rest of the world is still fast asleep.
An avid lover of history, art, music, books, and people, she is interested in telling stories that speak to the human condition.
Author contact links:
Posted in Emma Hart, Family, New Adult, Romance

Never Forget (Memories, #1) by Emma Hart

Posted on by Z. Elizabeth

????????????????????????????????????????Synopsis

A city girl.
A small town boy.
A summer they’ll never forget.

Spending the summer at her Grammy’s in Lilac Bay, Devon, is city girl Alexis ‘Lexy’ Edwards idea of hell. That is, until she reconnects with her childhood friend, Jen, and meets Alec Johnson.
Alec is the kind of guy Lexy knows she needs to stay away from. He’s the village flirt, ridiculously hot and very dangerous to her self control. But there’s a problem – she can’t seem to keep him out, even though she knows he’ll break her heart.
As Alec slowly strips away Lexy’s defences and the two embark on a summer romance she never wanted, their feelings grow to more than either expected. But nothing lasts forever, and reality intrudes.
As her world is shaken to it’s core, Lexy’s self made prediction comes true when she discovers she’s spent six weeks surrounded by secrets. Kept out by her family and the only guy she’s ever trusted, she falls apart.
And when Grammy tells her that ‘you might not end up where you wanted to be, but you’ll always end up where you’re meant to be,’ she has to figure out if her meant to be is back home in London, or if it’s been in Devon the whole time

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My Review

“You have to learn …that you might not end up where you wanted to be… But you’ll always end up where you’re meant to be. Maybe Alec is your meant to be”

City girl Lexy used to spend her summers with her Grammy in Lilac Bay, Devon, but it’s been five years since she’s been there and during that time, she’s changed a lot. She doesn’t want to spend two months at Lilac Bay but when an old friend gets in touch, she soon remembers how much fun she used to have at the beach with Jen and now they are rekindling their friendship, it looks like it’s going to be a great summer after all.

But of course, you can’t go a whole summer without adding a boy into the mix and that is where Alec comes along. Handy man to her Grammy for the summer, he’s extremely good looking and very flirty and when he meets Lexy, she resists his charms, due to knowing his reputation from Jen. She doesn’t trust him but he sets out to prove he’s nothing like the reputation he has. That shes the girl he wants to be with.

But when secrets come out, everything changes. Lexy now has to decide if she can trust and forgive Alec for what he was hiding and if she can let him back in, back into her heart.

This is the first book I have read by Emma Hart but it certainly won’t be the last. Never Forget, in my eyes, was perfection. Oh I can’t tell you how much I love the book. From the first page I couldn’t put it down. It had me laughing, crying, and wanting to be in Devon with everyone, because I love Devon and have been to Barnstaple quite a few times and I love it there. Emma Hart’s imagery throughout the book had me falling in love once again with Devon. She made it picturesque, she made me want ice cream and learn to surf and have a great summer on the beach surrounded by friends and boys and of course, get my butt back to beautiful Devon.

Also how awesome is the book cover? I know they say ‘Never judge a book by its cover’ but come on, everyone does that. But I KNEW, even before reading the synopsis that I had to have my hands on this book. The cover is beautiful and romantic and lovely to look at. And the colours displaying romance and warmth and girly feelings that you can’t not look at it and think “Hm let’s see what the synopsis is about.”

The story is one that I instantly knew I had to read.

A city girl and a small town boy who fall in love over the summer. I LOVE these kinds of stories because I am a total sucker for romance and HEA’s.

Lexy isn’t happy that she has to spend two months at Lilac Bay with her family and her Grammy. Don’t get her wrong, she loves her Grammy, it’s just she’s nearly 18 and she would rather stay at home with her friends and using her fake I.D at bars. She’s not happy at all, but when an old friend, Jen, gets in touch, it seems her summer has taken a turn for the better. She knows how much fun they used to have and is glad that she has someone to spend summer with.

Her Grammy’s handy man Alec is a sight that no girl can resist, not even Lexy, even if she does deny that to anyone who asks. Jen – although friends with Alec – tells Lexy about his reputation as a ladies’ man and that in turn makes Lexy know she can’t trust him, so she isn’t fazed by his comments and lets him know that nothing will ever happen between them. She isn’t looking for a summer romance and wants to protect her heart.

But Grammy has other plans and sets it about herself to play cupid. So the more time they spend together, the more that Lexy tries to hold onto her heart but its failing. She’s beginning to see Alec in a new light and it’s scaring her. He’s pushing his way into her heart, but she is with his heart too.

Taking a chance on him, they both open themselves up to each other and fall in love. But then the worst happens and Lexy’s world crushes beneath her. Her family have betrayed her, Alec has betrayed her and the pain is unbearable. Alec and Lexy are heartbroken but he’s determined to make her never forget the time they spent together even if she decides she can’t forgive him for keeping the secret that everyone knew but her.

I have to start off by saying that I absolutely loved Lexy’s whole family. They were amazing to read. They were so close and their banter with one another, oh my, it had me laughing so hard at the things they all came out with, especially Grammy. She’s one hell of a character and was such a great read. I loved everything that came out of her mouth. She seemed like such fun to be around and I would loved her to be my Nan, to give me banter, to tease me and to give me advice when I would be angry/confused/lost/happy – just like Lexy was throughout the book.

Lexy, as her mother called her, was a control freak. She doesn’t want to be in Lilac Bay, she wants to be in London, but day by day, she’s pushing her up-tightness out the window and becoming someone else, someone better. Shes having fun, she’s renewing her friendship with her crazy friend Jen; she’s meeting new friends (and love interest) and is letting her hair down. I loved her journey from being closed up and not wanting a summer romance, to just focus on school to falling in love and letting her defences down. It’s great when you see a character change in them – for the better and grow into the person they were meant to be – just forget along the way.

I have to say, I have a new book boyfriend. ALEC! Oh how you stole my heart from the word get go. He’s confident, cocky, and flirty but he’s also incredible loyal, he’s a sweetheart and he would do anything for his friends/the people he loves. Although he does have a reputation as a bit of a ladies’ man, which is why Lexy was cautious and found it hard to trust him, she too, broke his walls down bit by bit and made him actually have feelings for a girl for the first time. To actually want to be with them and not have them be a one-night stand. I loved watching his journey and growing into himself. I loved watching him fall in love and actually mean it. I loved watching him prove he wasn’t what his reputation deemed him and that Lexy truly was the one person he cared for deeply and the first girl he had ever loved – and will probably only love.

The supporting characters were brilliant. Jen is crazy but loyal and she will tell Lexy how it is but always be there for her. I can’t wait to read her book when it’s out. I know it’s going to be a great one!

Bing, Lexy’s brother. Oh he had me in stitches. Their banter to one another is out of this world. They bicker like siblings do, but you can see that anyone who touches Lexy will get a fist in his face. He’s protective of his little sister but he does love embarrassing her in front of Alec. I would just love for him to be my brother (And I do have a brother). His and Jens book. Well, I can’t wait. I could really see the chemistry between them so I can’t wait to see what happens with these two.

I truly loved the ending. It was reminiscent of her parent’s past and I just cried at it because it was perfect. Perfect for these two who know it’s more than a summer romance and know that they don’t want their love to end at all. What Alec said, oh, I fell in love with him even more. He and Lexy are so right together. They bring out the best in one another and for him to go to all that effort to be with her, I command him!

Emma Hart has written a fantastic novel in Never Forget. You will have laughs, you will cry and you will feel the pain that Lexy felt when her world crushed beneath her. It’s a truly wonderful coming-of-age book. You watch a great family bond become even closer, you watch friendships rekindle, you watch a love affair grow but most of all, you watch two people change right before your eyes, into the best possible person they can be, together and alone.

There were also dual POV’s, so we got to see both Lexy and Alec’s thoughts and feelings towards one another. I love it when an author does this, because it’s mostly the girls feelings we get and we have to guess whether the guy is genuine or not. But Alec’s POV’s were truthful and you could really see how much he wanted to prove himself to Lexy and how much growing up he did. It was real.

I really, really, really recommend this book because one page in and you will be hooked right to the very end. The writing is a breath of fresh air, the plot flows and to be honest, there isn’t enough words to tell you how amazing Never Forget is.

I’d also like to add that I’m super excited for book two, Always Remember, focusing on Bing (I love him) and Jen. It means more Lexy and Alec which is going to be awesome!