Release Day Review: Jock Row by Sara Ney

Posted in 4 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Jock Row by Sara Ney
Series: Jock Hard #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: May 3rd 2018
Links: Ebook • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review

Scarlett is always the sensible one: The sober driver. The planner. The one holding your hair back while you’re worshiping the porcelain gods.

Week-after-week, she visits Jock Row with her friends—the universities hottest party scene and breeding ground for student athletes. And if keeping her friends out of trouble, and guys out of their pants, was a sport, she’d be the star athlete.

Being a well known jock-blocker gets her noticed for all the wrong reasons; just like that, she’s banned from Jock Row. NO GUY WANTS A GIRL AROUND WHO KEEPS THEIR JOCK FRIENDS FROM GETTING LAID.

“Rowdy” Wade is the hot shot short-stop for the universities baseball team—and the unlucky bastard who drew the short straw: keep little Miss Goody Two-Shoes out of the Baseball House.

But week-after-week Scarlett returns, determined to get inside.

I had a huge smile on my face the entire time I was reading Jock Row. I was actually pleasantly surprised by this book – I had expected a good sports romance (it’s Sara Ney, after all), but I wasn’t sure what kind of hero we would be getting. Would he be a douchebag, like Sara’s previous series? Or someone even better? Turns out Rowdy Wade is as sweet as they can come – I adored his and Scarlett’s slow burn romance. Jock Row is perfect for friends-to-lovers fans, for when you want to feel that anticipation of the main characters realizing how much they’ve actually fallen for each other, and moving on to something more. If there’s a college romance you need to read this year, let it be Jock Row!

This is why I keep coming back—this moment right here. The intense way he’s watching me right now, like I’m pretty and interesting, even in these ridiculous clothes. The way his deep voice vibrates in my chest and awakes those damn butterflies every time he speaks.

Scarlett and Rowdy’s meet-cute has got to be one of the most unique I’ve read in new adult romances. Scarlett is not at all a party girl and couldn’t give a crap about them, but she tags along with her friends to Jock Row, where are the jocks live, so she can get out of her apartment. When a few jocks think she’s a buzzkill, they send someone to kick her out of the house (because that’s what they do) – and it’s none other than the baseball team captain, Rowdy Wade. They’re both annoyed at the other but they don’t leave each other either once they step outside the house. Instead, they get to talking, exchanging quips and funny stories, and getting to know each other. Scarlett is relatable and witty, Rowdy is charming and adorable, and the two of them made such an endearing couple.

Take is slow, my brain tells me.
Run with it, and run as far as you can go.
I’m an athlete—a champion.
I play hard and jock harder, and these little games I’ve started with her?
I’m playing to win.

The growth of their friendship felt so genuine and real, and it felt so natural for that friendship to develop into something more. Every Friday for weeks, they’ll meet up in front of the party house just to talk, play games, eat. They are ADORABLE as friends, but as more? It’s combustible. I couldn’t get enough of Scarlett and Rowdy and the way grew to like each other, and then love each other. They had me smiling and giggling because they were just too cute. Right now, I can’t wait to see what else is in store for us in the Jock Hard series!

lacey

Reading Order: Jock Hard series

#0.5 ~ Switch Hitter: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#1 ~ Jock Row: Ebook • Goodreads

Reading Order: How to Date a Douchebag series

#1 ~ The Studying Hours: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ The Failing Hours: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ The Learning Hours: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ The Coaching Hours: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

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30Apr2018

Blog Tour + Review & Giveaway: The Greatest Risk by Kristen Ashley

Posted in 4 hearts, Blog Tours, Giveaways, Reviews by Lacey

The Greatest Risk by Kristen Ashley
Series: Honey #3 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: May 1st 2018

A woman unable to connect, struggling to hide another part of her. A man burning to learn her truth, and make her whole. Through explosive passion and deep exploration, they are about to take the greatest risk of all. But will they be able to take that leap, and come out on the other side together? In this next passionate novel in the Honey series, New York Times bestselling author Kristen Ashley delivers a stunningly romantic and intensely sexy novel that will stay with you long after you turn the final page.

Buy Links:
Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Books-A-Million • IndieBound • Powells

I honestly wasn’t expecting to enjoy – LOVE – The Greatest Risk as much as I did. I love KA but the first Honey book just wasn’t for me and I had to DNF it. I thought I had given up on the series but I couldn’t resist the chance to read KA one more time – and I am SO glad that I read this one. I was swept away by Stellan and Sixx’s story. If you know KA, then you know her books are long-winded, but with TGR, I couldn’t stop flipping the pages to see what would happen next for this fascinating couple. This book won’t be for everyone – it’s erotica/BDSM, but if you’re looking for something that’s unique and outside the box, I highly recommend this one.

“Undeniably mine,” he stated the answer she refused to say. Then he went in for the kill. “Forever, sweetheart.”

Sixx is known as the Ice Princess of The Honey. She’s a badass Mistress that doesn’t let anyone into her heart. She’s got demons and scars from her past, and she’s not about to let them hurt anyone she grows to care for, and certainly not the man she wants but can’t have. But when the man who will become her everything sets his sights on Sixx, there is no way to protect her heart from the onslaught that is Stellan Lange.

“Sweet pussy is worth any hassle. But to earn the attention of a queen . . .” He curled his hand around her jaw and used it to force her to look at him. The touch was dominant, but gentle, and achingly sweet, and when he caught her eyes, he concluded, speaking every word in a way each was laced with steel, “I. Will. Do. Anything.”

I love a good alpha male, and if there’s one thing KA is known for, it’s her alpha males. Now sometimes, they can get a little domineering and overbearing, but Stellan was absolute perfection. I adored Stellan and his determination to win the heart and love of the Ice Princess. He is kind and caring when it comes to Sixx’s heartbreaking backstory, but can be ruthless when it comes to protecting those he loves. He is the perfect Dom for Sixx, capable of handling her need to switch and submit. He’s all in for his queen right from the start, and I loved every minute of him building them the perfect life he knows they are meant to have.

“Be strong for the world, darling, if that’s what you need to be. But here, with me, you can be whatever you care to be.”

I went into The Greatest Risk essentially as a standalone, but I am definitely thinking about going back and trying this series from the beginning again. Sixx and Stellan’s romance held me captivated, their journey towards happiness as beautiful as it is heart-wrenching. My one complaint is that I do wish that the book could’ve explored more of Sixx and her being a switch. I felt like this aspect of her was a bit glossed over when it came to her and Stellan’s relationship, because with him, he was her Master, she was his sub and not a Mistress. But the chemistry itself in this book was a glorious thing. KA knows how to write steam, and she brings her A-game in TGR.

If you’re a fan of the author, I definitely urge you to read this book. I really enjoyed the way KA explored a BDSM relationship between two Doms. She gives her own unique take on the lifestyle, and I’m glad to have read it. I really hope we will be getting more Honey books after this!

lacey

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

Reading Order: Honey series

#1 ~ The Deep End: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ The Farthest Edge: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ The Greatest Risk: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

about the author button

Kristen Ashley is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over fifty novels, including Mystery Man, The Gamble, and Own the Wind. She grew up in Indiana, but has lived in Colorado and the West Country of England.

Website • Twitter • Facebook • Instagram • Goodreads

(1) Paperback of The Greatest Risk by Kristen Ashley
(US Only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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10Apr2018

Release Day Review: Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren

Posted in 6 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: April 10th 2018
Links: Ebook • Hardcover • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Love, loss, friendship, and the betrayals of the past all collide in this first women’s fiction novel from New York Times and #1 international bestselling author Christina Lauren (Autoboyography, Dating You / Hating You).

The story of the heart can never be unwritten.

Macy Sorensen is settling into an ambitious if emotionally tepid routine: work hard as a new pediatrics resident, plan her wedding to an older, financially secure man, keep her head down and heart tucked away.

But when she runs into Elliot Petropoulos—the first and only love of her life—the careful bubble she’s constructed begins to dissolve. Once upon a time, Elliot was Macy’s entire world—growing from her gangly bookish friend into the man who coaxed her heart open again after the loss of her mother…only to break it on the very night he declared his love for her.

Told in alternating timelines between Then and Now, teenage Elliot and Macy grow from friends to much more—spending weekends and lazy summers together in a house outside of San Francisco devouring books, sharing favorite words, and talking through their growing pains and triumphs. As adults, they have become strangers to one another until their chance reunion. Although their memories are obscured by the agony of what happened that night so many years ago, Elliot will come to understand the truth behind Macy’s decade-long silence, and will have to overcome the past and himself to revive her faith in the possibility of an all-consuming love.

My very first 6 star review of 2018 (and the first in a while) has to go to Love and Other Words, a gorgeously written love story by one of my favorite authors, Christina Lauren. I can’t remember the last time I was this wholeheartedly obsessed with a book. I finished L&OW last week and I’ve yet to stop thinking about it. The storytelling was incredible, the blend of past and present seamless. I couldn’t get enough of Macy and Elliot. If there’s one book you need to read this year, let it be this one.

I adore second chance romances – it is one of my go-to tropes, but I admit there have been few and far between that have been done perfectly. With second chance romances, I need angst, heartache, but most of all, I need to believe in the love that still exists. L&OW was everything I wanted in a second chance romance – and also so much more. Told in alternating chapters of Then and Now, we have teenaged Macy and Elliot who meet, connect, become best friends, and fall in love for the first time, alongside their adult counterparts, who reunite for the first time in eleven years and fall in love for the second time.

The way Christina Lauren handled the alternating chapters was stunning – each chapter connected, despite the eleven year difference in timeline. My heart was full from the beginnings of first love between Macy and Elliot, yet I loved even more that the foundations of their all-consuming love was built on friendship. I hurt and hoped for these two characters in the present timeline, as Elliot fights for the only woman who has ever held his heart. I can’t even tell you how in love I am with this man. He’s bookish, nerdy, a writer, and knows Macy is his one and only soulmate. There is no other woman for him, and he is not letting this chance to make her believe in love again go.

I read L&OW in one sitting. I literally could not put this book down, nor did I want to let the characters go by the time I got to the end. Elliot and Macy’s love story of friendship, heartbreak, and second chances absolutely stole my heart. Theirs is a love that is tender, raw, and beautiful beyond words. This book is now my favorite read of 2018 so far – it is pure perfection.

Also by Christina Lauren:

Dating You / Hating You: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Autoboyography: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
Roomies: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

Reading Order: Beautiful Bastard series

#1 ~ Beautiful Bastard: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#1.5 ~ Beautiful Bitch: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Beautiful Stranger: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2.5 ~ Beautiful Bombshell: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Beautiful Player: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3.5 ~ Beautiful Beginning: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3.6 ~ Beautiful Beloved: My Review • Ebook • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Beautiful Secret: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4.5 ~ Beautiful Boss: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#5 ~ Beautiful: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

Reading Order: Wild Seasons series

#1 ~ Sweet Filthy Boy: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Dirty Rowdy Thing: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Dark Wild Night: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Wicked Sexy Liar: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

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29Mar2018

Review: Getaway Girl by Tessa Bailey

Posted in 5 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Getaway Girl by Tessa Bailey
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: March 26th 2018
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review

This unlikely getaway driver never expected to help the mayor escape…

After a six-year absence, Addison Potts is back in Charleston to stir things up. And what better place to make her villainous return than her estranged cousin’s wedding? Only, the nuptials hit a snag when the bride doesn’t show, leaving Addison to play getaway driver for the jilted groom. A groom whose heartbreaking smile and deep, southern drawl she should not be noticing…

Elijah Montgomery Du Pont is the future mayor of Charleston. From his military career to city hall, every detail of his life has been meticulously planned. Until now. His only respite from life’s sudden upheaval is Addison, his new, improbable best friend. She makes him happy. Grounds him. And public disapproval be damned, he’s not willing to give her up. But with an election on the line and public pressure rising, Addison—and the cruel hand of fate—might not give him a choice.

I’ve found a new book to add to my favorites of 2018 list, and Getaway Girl is IT! I absolutely LOVED this friends to lovers romance!! We have a mayor hero who’s self-conscious about his bubble butt and a fierce, dirty-talking heroine who saves him after his bride ditches him at the altar. It’s sweet, incredibly sexy (it’s Tessa Bailey, after all) and all-around the perfect friends to lovers romance – I highly recommend this for those who love trope!

I have a friend. A completely platonic, non-romantic one.
But occasionally I rub one out to her.

When Addison Potts moves back to Charleston and attends her estranged cousin’s wedding, the last thing she expects is be the getaway car for the jilted groom, one Captain Elijah Montgomery Du Pont, candidate for mayor. There’s just something about Elijah that pulls Addison, and she couldn’t resist helping him out. The two strike up the most unlikeliest of friendships – as a candidate for mayor, Elijah is expected to keep up appearances as the perfect Southern gentleman, which he is. Addison, on the other hand, is the black sheep of the family and town. But these two characters GET each other and are able to connect in a way they’ve never been able to connect with anyone else. Somehow, they end up being roommates, then friends… but is there possibly more?

“You own this city now, Mr. Mayor. Right now, that includes what’s under my dress.”

The tension throughout the book was divine. Elijah and Addison connect on the friendship level, yes, but there’s always an underlying sexual chemistry that’s hard to ignore. They struggle not to cross the line into something more, but when their dynamic is fun, witty, and flirty, it’s hard to know where the line even is. Tessa Bailey had me DYING for Addison and the Captain to just do the deed – this is one author who knows how to write sexual tension right. And when the line is crossed… let me tell you, the dirty talking queen doesn’t disappoint. I loved that the heroine was main dirty talker in this case, though Elijah could definitely dish some out too. The passion and intensity between these two was perfection!

“You have my heart. You have my soul. And you’re the first and land person to ever have either one. I love you first. And last. I’ve only got this feeling for you. No one else. Never. Do you hear me?”

If you love the friends to lovers trope, I can’t recommend Getaway Girl enough. I adored the characters, the story had me hooked, and the chemistry was off the charts. I also loved that this was in dual first-person POV. Tessa definitely has a knack for it, and I really hope she gives us more of it! Also… can we please have a story for Addison’s cousin, the runaway bride!?

lacey

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

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6Mar2018

Release Day Review: Burn Bright by Patricia Briggs

Posted in 4 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Burn Bright by Patricia Briggs
Series: Alpha & Omega #5 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: March 6th 2018
Links: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

In her bestselling Alpha and Omega series, Patricia Briggs “spins tales of werewolves, coyote shifters, and magic and, my, does she do it well” (USATODAY.com). Now mated werewolves Charles Cornick and Anna Latham face a threat like no other–one that lurks too close to home…

They are the wild and the broken. The werewolves too damaged to live safely among their own kind. For their own good, they have been exiled to the outskirts of Aspen Creek, Montana. Close enough to the Marrok’s pack to have its support; far enough away to not cause any harm.

With their Alpha out of the country, Charles and Anna are on call when an SOS comes in from the fae mate of one such wildling. Heading into the mountainous wilderness, they interrupt the abduction of the wolf–but can’t stop blood from being shed. Now Charles and Anna must use their skills–his as enforcer, hers as peacemaker–to track down the attackers, reopening a painful chapter in the past that springs from the darkest magic of the witchborn…

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Patricia Briggs is one of the best urban fantasy authors I’ve ever read. I adore her Mercy Thompson series, but the Alpha & Omega series is what I LIVE for. Charles and Anna are two of my all-time favorite beloved characters – the beginning of their romance was slow and sweet, but with each book, they prove just how much they are meant to be mates. I honestly could read about them forever, so to say I was excited about Burn Bright would be an understatement. If you’ve been a fan of the series, you’ll definitely want to pick up Burn Bright.

Ours, said Brother Wolf. She is perfect, our soul mate, our anchor, the reason we were created. So that we could be hers.

I don’t want to go much into detail about the plot because the blurb explains it perfectly. I do want to say that this book shouldn’t be read as a standalone – this is a complex, fascinating paranormal world that Patricia Briggs has created, and it’ll be easier to understand if you start from the beginning. Plus, more Anna and Charles 😉

Anna slipped her hand under Charles’ tee, just at the small of his back, and let her fingers rest against the skin there. Brother Wolf relaxed. Anna made Brother Wolf happier than killing their enemies would have.

The author’s writing always amazes me every time I open one of her books. It reads simply but beautifully, every word holding significance. I love the way she writes all the little details, especially about Anna and Charles, because it makes me more immersed in their world and in love with the characters. It’s usually hard for me to dive back into a series after a year or two wait, but Patricia Briggs is so skilled in bringing me back into the series as if no time has passed. It almost has me not minding the wait… almost.

Anna started to agree but then stopped and shook her head. “No. Then I wouldn’t have Charles. He’s worth all the rest.”
“Charlie?” said Sage. She started to say something else, but she shook her head and gave Anna a rueful smile. “Charlie sure thinks the sun rises and sets on you, that’s for sure.”

Each book in the A&O series is suspenseful and action-packed, and Burn Bright is no different. I loved reading about Charles and Anna again, and already want more of them. This book is a fantastic addition to an incredible series and I can’t wait to see where Patricia Briggs will take us next!

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

Series Order: Alpha & Omega series

#1 ~ Cry Wolf: Ebook • Hardcover • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Hunting Ground: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Fair Game: Ebook • Hardcover • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Dead Heat: My Review • Ebook • Hardcover • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#5 ~ Burn Bright: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads

The Alpha & Omega series is a spinoff of the Mercy Thompson series!

Reading Order: Mercy Thompson series

#1 ~ Moon Called: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Blood Bound: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Iron Kissed: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#4 ~ Bone Crossed: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#5 ~ Silver Borne: Ebook • Hardcover • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#6 ~ River Marked: Ebook • Hardcover • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#7 ~ Frost Burned: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#8 ~ Night Broken: Ebook • Hardcover • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#9 ~ Fire Touched: My Review • Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
#10 ~ Silence Fallen: My Review • Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
#11 ~ Storm Cursed: Goodreads (March 2019)

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