Release Day Review: Believe by Erin McCarthy

Believe by Erin McCarthy

Believe by Erin McCarthy
Series: True Believers #3 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: January 21st 2014
Purchase: Ebook • Paperback
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher (InterMix) in exchange for an honest review

Robin used to be a party girl… until she got black out drunk and woke up in bed with her best friend’s boyfriend. Now she’s faced with being THAT girl, and couldn’t be more disgusted with herself. She can’t even tell her friends the reason for her sudden sobriety and she avoids everyone until she meets Phoenix—quiet, tattooed, and different in every way that’s good and oh, so bad…

Phoenix is two days out of jail when he meets Robin at his cousin’s house, and he knows that he has no business talking to her, but he’s drawn to her quiet demeanor, sweet smile, and artistic talent. She doesn’t care that he’s done time, or that he only has five bucks to his name, and she supports his goal to be a tattoo artist.

But Phoenix knows Robin has a secret, and that it’s a naïve dream to believe that his record won’t catch up with them at some point. Though neither is prepared for the explosive result when the past collides with the present…

I’m so happy to say that I adored this book! Believe was a great addition to the fabulous True Believers series–it’s got a sweet, sexy romance and relatable, likable characters I couldn’t help but cheer for and care for. I was so stoked to read Believe after reading a little snippet at the end of Sweet, and it didn’t disappoint! Believe was everything I expected it to be and more. I might even like it better than Sweet, but just by a hair.

If you’re looking to read a New Adult contemporary romance, I’d have to tell you to read Believe. It’s nothing exactly new, but the characters bring something refreshing to the story, and I’m a huge fan of Erin McCarthy’s writing. The story and romance in Believe is just so sweet and heartwarming, and the main characters have great depths to them. I had such a warm, fuzzy feeling the whole time reading. Robin and Phoenix are just the most adorable couple ever!

Robin is just a normal girl who parties hard, until one day she takes it too far, gets drunk and sleeps with her best friend’s boyfriend. I’ll admit, after reading this, I wasn’t sure I’d like Robin very much, but she grew on me. She holds such immense guilt over her betrayal towards her best friend, that I mainly felt sorry for her. Robin quits partying, drinking, everything, because of her guilt. She even wants to move out of the place she lives in with her best friends because she can’t look one of them in the eyes, until she meets Phoenix. The thing I liked most about Robin is how relatable she is (besides the whole sleeping with her best friend thing). She’s a lost college girl who doesn’t know what she wants to do in life, but throughout the story, she gets a better grip on who she is, and she’s able to shine through her love for art, and especially for Phoenix.

But what I knew was that he made me feel like I could look people in the eye again. He made me feel like I wasn’t going to break into a thousand pieces at any given moment. He made my hands stop shaking and helped my breathing slow down.
He made me feel like a crumbling wall that has suddenly gotten new mortar between each brick and feels stable again.
And if he could make me feel that way, maybe I could make myself feel that way.

Oh my goodness, PHOENIX!! I’m completely head over heels in love with this boy. He’s just so different from other heroes that I read. Yeah, he’s moody, he’s got tats, and he’s got some intense anger issues that he has (mostly) under control, but he’s just so honest and blunt. He’s got no time for bullshit. And he’s not afraid to show his love for his girl. I swooned madly over him. I was intrigued with him from the very beginning, because he was just released from jail. Why was he in jail? You’ll have to read to find out! But I can honestly say that Phoenix doesn’t have a bad bone in his body. This boy is good through and through, and when he shows his sweet side to Robin, I was smiling so much!

“Robin.”
“Yes?”
“I’m no good for you. And you’re probably no good for me. But we’re going to do this anyway, aren’t we?”
I nodded, because looking into his dark eyes there wasn’t any other answer. I couldn’t walk away from him, and I couldn’t let him walk away from me. “Yes. We are.”

Robin and Phoenix both agree to give a relationship a try, even though both of them believe they’re not good enough for the other. Their romance builds up slowly–Phoenix and Robin get to know each other as friends, and eventually it’s just so easy for them to fall in love with each other. I loved reading their story, their romance. They change each other for the better, they love and support each other unconditionally, and it was just heartwarming and romantic to read.

We all wonder when we will fall in love, wonder how we’ll know that our feelings are real, if someone is the right one for us.
Then it happens, and those questions seem laughable.
Because when it’s real, you feel it in every inch of you, every cell, every vein, every nook and cranny. It moves, it rises with each breath, it’s alive, and the world around you becomes sharper, crisper, in focus.
There is no question, only the answer.

I was delighted to see the characters from the previous books in the series appear and have strong roles. Phoenix is, after all, the Mann brothers’ cousin. There are some intense scenes in the book that had me at the edge of my seat, but overall, this was a slow, beautiful romance between two people who grow and learn more about themselves through each other.

4 hearts
lacey

Quotes are taken from the arc and are subject to change in the final version.

Reading Order: True Believers series

True by Erin McCarthy Sweet by Erin McCarthy Believe by Erin McCarthy Shatter by Erin McCarthy

#1 ~ True: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sweet: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#3 ~ Believe: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#4 ~ Shatter: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

Release Day Launch + Excerpt & Giveaway: Savor by Monica Murphy

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We are pleased to announce that Monica Murphy’s SAVOR is now available for purchase! SAVOR is a sexy Contemporary Romance novel in Monica’s The Billionaire Bachelors Club Series, published by Avon Impulse (an imprint of HarperCollins). Go out and grab your copy today!!

Savor by Monica Murphy

Savor by Monica Murphy
Series: Billionaire Bachelors Club #3 (full reading order below)
Release Date: January 21st 2014
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New York Times bestselling author Monica Murphy concludes her sexy Billionaire Bachelors Club series with a fiery romance that refuses to be left at the office…

Bryn James can’t take much more. Smart, sexy Matthew DeLuca is everything she wants in a man, but he’s also her boss—the youngest, hottest vineyard owner in the Napa Valley—and he doesn’t see her as anything more than his shy assistant. That’s all about to change. Armed with a hot new look and an attitude to match, Bryn is determined to catch Matt’s eye… professionalism be damned.
With his winery’s grand reopening approaching, Matt is trying to stay focused, but Bryn is suddenly making it very difficult. He’s always thought her prim demeanor effortlessly sexy, but Matt can’t deny that her transformation is jaw-dropping …and going to make it very difficult to keep his hands to himself.

But when one thing leads to another and suddenly Matt is stripping Bryn bare, he’ll be faced with the biggest risk of his career—and his heart. Can he convince her—and himself—that this might just be more than a no-strings office affair?

Buy Links:
Amazon US • Amazon CAN • Amazon UK • Barnes and Noble • iTunes

Excerpt

“Don’t be so cranky. It’s okay to admit you have a thing for Bryn.” Ivy leans forward in her chair, a secretive smile curling her lips. “I have a feeling she has a thing for you too, you know.”

I do know. And I can’t act on it. Bryn James works for me. She’s my assistant. She’s by my side constantly; we spend more time with each other than probably anyone else in our lives, especially lately what with the winery’s grand reopening approaching. She’s a representative of my business. If I were to fuck around with the help and the relationship fell apart, I’d be in huge trouble. She could screw me over financially every which way by suing me for sexual harassment and I’d be left with a limp dick in my hand and a ruined business.

Yeah. Not going to take the chance. Saw it happen with my father. Not going to let it happen to me.

“It doesn’t matter. Nothing can happen.” I send Ivy a stern look. “And this conversation can never leave this office.” Glancing over her shoulder, I try to see if Bryn is at her desk but the chair is empty.

Thank Christ.

Ivy’s expression goes solemn and she holds up three fingers. “This conversation stays here. Scout’s honor.”

“You were never a scout,” I mutter, afraid she’s making a promise on an untruth. She’ll probably just blab to everyone. Or specifically Archer and Gage. I don’t need to hear their shit.

And I am worrying way too much over this.

She laughs again. “I won’t say a word, I promise. But I need to tell you something, Matt.” She leans in close, her voice dropping. “She’s got a major crush on you. You might not see it but it’s there—sounding in her voice, shining in her eyes, every time she looks at you, talks about you. The way her body turns into yours every time the two of you are together . . . it’s pretty obvious. A body language expert would have a field day with you two.”

Body language expert? What the hell is Ivy talking about? “I have no idea what you’re referring to, but office crushes are just that. Crushes. Harmless attractions no one ever acts on. Period. End of story.”

This is what I keep telling myself. I can’t pursue anything with Bryn, no matter how much I’m tempted to. Not only would it be wildly inappropriate, dating my assistant, but we come from two different worlds. She seems nice and normal, quiet and unobtrusive, and I am anything but. My life has been a circus sideshow for years.

“I get it. You’re trying to do the right thing, and I admire that. So, of course you don’t see anything beyond an efficient assistant in Miss James.”

Well. Ivy’s not too far off the mark. When I first met Bryn, she hardly said two words, kept her head bent when I spoke to her and offered lots of yessir and nosir answers. She had this way of almost blending in with the walls, like she didn’t want anyone to notice her.

So I didn’t.

As we got comfortable working together though, something happened. I’m thinking Ivy had a hand in Bryn’s slow transformation. She actually makes eye contact when she speaks to me, and she’s become somewhat animated. Started to wear bolder colors as well, drawing my attention to her chest though I keep my eyes averted as best I can.

These subtle changes made me notice all of the little things—like the color of her eyes (blue), how her hair looks (like silk and I want to touch it), and the tempting fullness of her lips (they’re spectacular).

Her gaze lingers when she looks at me and sometimes so does mine. Her smile softens, her voice drops lower when she speaks, sparking my imagination. Would she sound like that right before I kissed her? Took off her clothes? Took her to my bed?

Yeah. All of those are dangerous thoughts. I almost prefer the old Miss James. The one who was like the wallpaper—boring and nondescript. Mean to say, but hell, the last thing I need is a distraction.

And she’s become the biggest distraction I’m currently facing. The very last one I need.

Reading Order: Billionaire Bachelors Club series

Crave by Monica Murphy Torn by Monica Murphy Savor by Monica Murphy

#1 ~ Crave: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Torn: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#3 ~ Savor: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

about the author

Monica MurphyNew York Times and USA Today bestselling author Monica Murphy is a native Californian who lives in the foothills below Yosemite. A wife and mother of three, she writes New Adult and contemporary romance for Bantam and Avon. She is the author of One Week Girlfriend and Second Chance Boyfriend.

Website • Blog • Twitter • Facebook • Goodreads • Amazon Page

giveaway

–SIGNED set of the Billionaire Bachelors Club series for 1 winner

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Release Day Launch + Giveaway: Loving Cara by Kristen Proby

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We are so excited that Kristen Proby’s LOVING CARA, the first book in her new Love Under the Big Sky Series, is now available!!

Loving Cara by Kristen Proby

Loving Cara by Kristen Proby
Series: Love Under the Big Sky #1 (full reading order below)
Release Date: January 21st 2014
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In this new Love Under the Big Sky series from a USA TODAY bestselling author, Cara agrees to tutor her former classmate’s nephew—and learns some lessons in love!

Josh King is an expert at running his family’s multi-million dollar ranch in Montana. (And all that outside manual labor has done wonders for sculpting his six-foot-three body, too.) But as sure footed as he is when it comes to the ranch, Josh doesn’t know anything about how to deal with an adolescent boy—so when his twelve-year-old nephew, Seth, is dropped off on his doorstep, looking scared and acting surly as hell, Josh knows he needs help in straightening him out.

Cara Donovan loves her quiet life as a teacher in her sleepy hometown, so she jumps at the chance to make a little money over the summer as a tutor. But when she learns she’ll be teaching Josh King’s nephew, Cara’s sweet summer job gets a little bit hotter. Cara tries to focus all her attention on tutoring Seth, but Josh proves to be a delicious distraction, while Josh’s memories of the shy girl he once teased in high school are nothing like the beautiful woman he’s facing now. Can he persuade her that there’s more between them than a summer fling?

Buy Links:
Amazon • Barnes & Noble

Reading Order: Love Under the Big Sky series

Loving Cara by Kristen Proby Seducing Lauren by Kristen Proby

#1 ~ Loving Cara: Ebook • PaperbackGoodreads
#2 ~ Seducing Lauren: EbookPaperback • Goodreads (Aug. 19, 2014)
#3 ~ Falling for Jillian: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads (Jan. 27, 2015)

about the author

Kristen ProbyKRISTEN PROBY is the USA Today bestselling author of the popular With Me in Seattle series. She has a passion for a good love story and strong characters who love humor and have a strong sense of loyalty and family. Her men are the alpha type—fiercely protective and a bit bossy—and her ladies are fun, strong, and not afraid to stand up for themselves. Kristen spends her days with her muse in the Pacific Northwest. She enjoys coffee, chocolate, and sunshine. And naps. Visit her at KristenProby.com.

Website • Twitter • Facebook • Goodreads

giveaway

–SIGNED copy of LOVING CARA
–(3) ebooks of LOVING CARA

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Release Day Blitz + Giveaway: A Little Too Hot by Lisa Desrochers

A Little Too Hot Blitz

A Little Too Hot by Lisa Desrochers

A Little Too Hot by Lisa Desrochers
Series: A Little Too Far #3 (full reading order below)
Release Date: January 21st 2014
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From USA Today bestselling author Lisa Desrochers comes the third book in her sizzling new adult series.

If you play with fire …

Tossed out of college and cut off by her parents, Samantha West is in pretty dire straits. So when her rocker best friend hooks her up with a job dancing at a gentlemen’s club, who is she to turn it down? Plus, there are rules to dancing at Benny’s: No touching, keep your clothes on at all times, and never get closer than three feet. Unfortunately for Sam, her first private client makes her want to break every single one of them.

Harrison Yates is scorching hot, but he’s got a past that involves being left at the altar not too long ago. Sam is determined to make him forget about his ex, but when she makes her move, it flings her life into a spiral of chaos she never saw coming. Because Harrison Yates isn’t who he seems to be. And his secret will probably get her killed.

“Every page is deliciously breathtaking, wickedly sexy and sensational. A LITTLE TOO HOT is wonderfully unique and a LOT HOT! I am a HUGE Lisa Desrochers fan.”

— KATY EVANS, New York Times bestselling author of REAL

“Lisa is brilliant at creating sizzling sexual tension and impossible circumstances that make the reader hold their breath all the way to happy ever after. Sam and Harrison are more than A Little Too Hot, they are scorching!”

— JAY CROWNOVER, New York Times bestselling author of RULE

“Lisa Desrochers’ best yet! A LITTLE TOO HOT is hotter than hot with all the emotional punch to back it up!”

— SOPHIE JORDAN, New York Times bestselling author

Buy Links:
Amazon • Barnes & Noble • iBooks

You can read the first 3 chapters of A Little Too Hot here!

A Little Too Hot Harrison

Reading Order: A Little Too Far series

A Little Too Far by Lisa Desrochers A Little Too Much by Lisa Desrochers A Little Too Hot by Lisa Desrochers

#1 ~ A Little Too Far: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ A Little Too Much: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#3 ~ A Little Too Hot: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

about the author

Lisa DesrochersLISA DESROCHERS is the USA Today bestselling author of the A Little Too Far series, courtesy of HarperCollins, and the young adult Personal Demons trilogy from Macmillan. She lives in Northern California with her husband, two very busy daughters, and Shini the tarantula. Find her online at www.lisadwrites.com, on Twitter at @LisaDez, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/LisaDesrochersAuthor.

AUTHOR LINKS: 
Website • Facebook • Twitter • Goodreads

giveaway

Win an A LITTLE TOO HOT blurb pack: REAL, MINE, and REMY signed by Katy Evans; RULE, JET, and ROME signed by Jay Crownover; and FOREPLAY signed by Sophie Jordan plus signed swag.

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Release Event + Giveaway: Wish For You by Marquita Valentine

WISH FOR YOU
By Bestselling Author Marquita Valentine

 Wish For You by Marquita Valentine

A Boys of the South Novel, #4
Releasing January 20, 2014
New Adult Contemporary
Amazon | Barnes and Noble

There’s only one place in the world where I feel normal—the roller derby track. When I put on my skates and fasten my helmet, I’m powerful and in charge. I know exactly what to do and what to say. The rules are clear and everyone does exactly what they’re supposed to, penalties are enforced for those who don’t.

But in the real world, I’m far from powerful and in charge. I never know exactly what to do and say. For years, I counted on one person to be exactly who he said he was—my best friend -Wyatt Tanaka.

Only he’s changed. Being a Marine and serving in a war has made him different. Now I want to help him, but I also want to kiss him. And that’s not something best friends do.

Neither of us, it seems, is content being just friends anymore. If we cross that line, change the rules of our relationship, it could be wonderful and everything I’ve ever wanted.

But it might also mean I’ll lose the one person I’ve come to rely on and I don’t think my heart can take it.

about the author

Marquita ValentineNew York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author, Marquita Valentine, writes sexy heroes that make you swoon and sassy heroines that make you laugh. She’s the author of the bestselling contemporary romance series, Holland Springs, and the new adult romance series, Boys of the South.

Marquita met her husband aka Hot Builder at Sonic when they were in high school. She suggests this location to all of her single friends in search of a good man—and if that doesn’t work, they can console themselves with cheesy tatertots. She lives in North Carolina in a very, very small town with Hot Builder and their two children.

Author social media links: Website | Twitter | Facebook

giveaway

–(1) $100 USD Gift Card to Amazon or Barnes and Noble – International

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