Release Day Review: Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne

Posted in 4 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Blurred Lines by Lauren Layne
Series: Love Unexpectedly #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: August 25th 2015
Links: Ebook • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

In a novel that’s perfect for fans of Abbi Glines and Jessica Sorensen, USA Today bestselling author Lauren Layne delivers a sexy take on the timeless question: Can a guy and a girl really be “just friends”?

When Parker Blanton meets Ben Olsen during her freshman year of college, the connection is immediate—and platonic. Six years later, they’re still best friends, sharing an apartment in Portland’s trendy Northwest District as they happily settle into adult life. But when Parker’s boyfriend dumps her out of the blue, she starts to wonder about Ben’s no-strings-attached approach to dating. The trouble is, even with Ben as her wingman, Parker can’t seem to get the hang of casual sex—until she tries it with him.

The arrangement works perfectly . . . at first. The sex is mind-blowing, and their friendship remains as solid as ever, without any of the usual messy romantic entanglements. But when Parker’s ex decides he wants her back, Ben is shocked by a fierce stab of possessiveness. And when Ben starts seeing a girl from work, Parker finds herself plagued by unfamiliar jealousy. With their friendship on the rocks for the first time, Parker and Ben face an alarming truth: Maybe they can’t go back. And maybe, deep down, they never want to.

Guys and girls can’t be just friends. Or not best friends, anyway.
Shit gets too complicated.

I absolutely love reading the friends-to-lovers trope, and add in the fact that Lauren Layne wrote this, Blurred Lines was a total win for me! (I always manage to enjoy this author’s books.) Fun, sexy, hilarious, and so, so sweet, Blurred Lines is a wonderfully heartwarming read about best friends who end up being so much more to each other.

Parker Blanton and Ben Olsen have been best friends since college, and six years later they now live together in an apartment. I loved their friendship – the banter between them is hilarious, but I also enjoyed the more serious, supportive aspect to their friendship. They’ve been through thick and thin side-by-side, and that’s never going to change.

Ben is an eternal bachelor and manwhore, and he’s very firmly anti-relationship. He’s also got some deep-set issues with feeling inferior to others, mainly because of the way his parents have treated him. I found this fascinating about Ben’s character, because it’s not often that I read about a hero who has an inferiority complex. Lauren Layne surprised me with the depth of Ben’s character, which she executed very well. I adored Ben, and my heart went out to him whenever he felt so inadequate at doing anything, especially long-term relationships.

Parker has just gotten dumped by her long-time boyfriend, and she’s looking for someone she can hook up with. She wants to be the girl version of player Ben, but when she tries out some guys, they just don’t work because she doesn’t feel comfortable enough with them. Then she realizes that maybe the perfect person is the player himself, the guy she feels most comfortable with in the world.

What if the right guy to scratch my sexual itch is the one who makes me laugh? The one I can talk to.
What if the right guy . . .
Has been right in front of me?

Parker and Ben begin a no-strings-attached sexual relationship that they can choose to end at any time, all while trying to maintain their friendship. And it does work… for a little while. The chemistry between them is hot, the sex between them is on fire, so everything is going smoothly between them… until Parker’s ex wants her back. Then both Parker and Ben have to confront their newfound feelings for each other or risk losing the most important person in their lives.

There are so many things I want to do to her. Things that I want her to do to me. But when her arms come around me, pulling me closer, all I can think about is being inside her. Being home.

I know when I pick up a book by Lauren Layne, I’m going to get a feel-good, funny, entertaining read, and Blurred Lines is exactly that. It was easy to read, in the best of ways. I didn’t want to put it down – I was invested in the romance and I laughed so much at the humor. My favorite thing about this book is how the friendship between Ben and Parker is so strong, yet their love grows to be even stronger. This book is definitely a must-read for fans of the friends-to-lovers trope!

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

Reading Order: Love Unexpectedly series

#1 ~ Blurred Lines: Ebook • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Good Girl: My Review • Ebook • Goodreads

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24Aug2015

Early Review: Until Friday Night by Abbi Glines

Posted in 2 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Until Friday Night by Abbi Glines
Series: The Field Party #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: August 25th 2015
Links: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The first novel in a brand-new series—from New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Abbi Glines—about a small Southern town filled with cute boys in pickup trucks, Friday night football games, and crazy parties that stir up some major drama.

To everyone who knows him, West Ashby has always been that guy: the cocky, popular, way-too-handsome-for-his-own-good football god who led Lawton High to the state championships. But while West may be Big Man on Campus on the outside, on the inside he’s battling the grief that comes with watching his father slowly die of cancer.

Two years ago, Maggie Carleton’s life fell apart when her father murdered her mother. And after she told the police what happened, she stopped speaking and hasn’t spoken since. Even the move to Lawton, Alabama, couldn’t draw Maggie back out. So she stayed quiet, keeping her sorrow and her fractured heart hidden away.

As West’s pain becomes too much to handle, he knows he needs to talk to someone about his father—so in the dark shadows of a post-game party, he opens up to the one girl who he knows won’t tell anyone else.

West expected that talking about his dad would bring some relief, or at least a flood of emotions he couldn’t control. But he never expected the quiet new girl to reply, to reveal a pain even deeper than his own—or for them to form a connection so strong that he couldn’t ever let her go…

I was really hoping Until Friday Night would have a The Vincent Boys series feel to it, since to-date it’s my favorite of Abbi Glines’, but I struggled with this book. The ridiculous amount sexism from both the boys and girls had me cringing so much. The mediocre writing and characters weren’t very impressive – I was annoyed with them more than anything. I wanted to like this book, but there were too many issues I couldn’t get over.

West Ashby is the popular football-playing jock at Lawton high, but with his father dying of cancer, he’s going through the worst time of his life. His way of grieving is with alcohol and girls, until he meets Maggie Carleton, who understands him in a way no one else can. Maggie has just moved to Lawton to live with her aunt, uncle, and cousin. The thing about Maggie is that she doesn’t speak, not since she witnessed her father murder her mother. So she keeps quiet, observing the world, but meeting West has her opening up more and connecting with someone who feels the grief she keeps inside her.

She had become my lifeline. I wanted to be hers. I wanted her to feel this way about me, too.

Right off the bat, I didn’t like West. Or his jock friends. Why? Because they are all unbelievably, disgustingly sexist. They treat girls like dirt, or like walking vaginas. Seriously, the boys think of themselves as gods, and it doesn’t help that the girls go along with that and treat them like they’re gods too. I’ve talked a lot with a friend who’s read Abbi Glines’ other recent books, and she told me that sexism in her books isn’t uncommon, which is just… sad. Until Friday Night is a young adult book, the first in a brand new series, and it would be awful if young girls read this book and think that the boys’ behavior in it is acceptable. Because it’s not.

Maggie and West start off as friends first – this is probably the one thing I actually liked this about their relationship. I liked that they supported one another, relied on each other, but then… sometimes it felt like West was only using Maggie to cope with his pain. She gave so much to him, and all he did was take, take, take. As bad as I felt for him and his father, he came across as a selfish brat sometimes. He thinks that no one else besides Maggie can imagine the pain of losing a loved one, so he doesn’t even tell his friends that his father is dying, believing that they’re shallow and don’t have any problems to deal with themselves… um? No.

Eventually, Maggie and West fall for each other. The whole book takes place over the course of a month, so they actually fall for each other pretty quickly. Everything in this book is pretty much trope after overused trope. Popular jock falls for the gorgeous new girl who’s so ‘different’ from other girls and so ‘special’. Sigh. It was tedious trying to get through this book, since it’s just so boring and predictable. The only thing I liked was Maggie’s character, but her storyline felt so… unfinished and unresolved. She doesn’t really even deal with her grief, only helps West, so in the end, she almost felt like a secondary character.

With all that said, with all the problems I had with Until Friday Night… I didn’t hate this book. I’ve read worse, and I’ve certainly read better, but long-time fans of the author, who are used to her stories, might enjoy this more than I did.

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

Reading Order: The Field Party series

#1 ~ Until Friday Night: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Under the Lights: Ebook • Hardcover • Goodreads (Aug. 23, 2016)

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24Aug2015

Early Review: Sustained by Emma Chase

Posted in 4.5 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Sustained by Emma Chase
Series: The Legal Briefs #2 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: August 25th 2015
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

A knight in tarnished armor is still a knight.

When you’re a defense attorney in Washington, DC, you see firsthand how hard life can be, and that sometimes the only way to survive is to be harder. I, Jake Becker, have a reputation for being cold, callous, and intimidating—and that suits me just fine. In fact, it’s necessary when I’m breaking down a witness on the stand.

Complications don’t work for me—I’m a “need-to-know” type of man. If you’re my client, tell me the basic facts. If you’re my date, stick to what will turn you on. I’m not a therapist or Prince Charming—and I don’t pretend to be.

Then Chelsea McQuaid and her six orphaned nieces and nephews came along and complicated the ever-loving hell out of my life. Now I’m going to Mommy & Me classes, One Direction concerts, the emergency room, and arguing cases in the principal’s office.

Chelsea’s too sweet, too innocent, and too gorgeous for her own good. She tries to be tough, but she’s not. She needs someone to help her, defend her…and the kids.

And that — that, I know how to do.

I loved this book. I absolutely adored it. Emma Chase has once again wowed me with her brilliant writing and incredibly endearing characters. I had high hopes for Sustained (despite not liking Overruled), mainly because of the blurb. Manwhore Jake falling for a woman with six kids in tow? Um, yes please! I love when there are children involved because they add so much sweetness to the story, but Emma Chase went above and beyond what I expected. I fell for each character (yes, including each of the six kids!) and this book was so funny that I couldn’t stop laughing. Sustained is a wonderful, heartwarming, delightful read that fans of the author shouldn’t miss!

“A knight in tarnished armor is still a knight.”

Jake is one of the best defense attorneys in DC, a man who defends criminals. It’s a tough job, so Jake’s not exactly the most friendly guy around. He’s a playboy who’s anti-relationship and doesn’t ever expect to settle down – but a scare leads him to rethink his idea of banging his way through DC. He’s still not ready for a commitment, but one meeting with Chelsea McQuaid and her newly adopted orphan nieces and nephews changes everything for him.

Chelsea’s life turned upside down when she gained custody of her brother and his wife’s six children. She gave up everything for them, but has never regretted it. I loved this woman, and I loved how much she loved her nieces and nephews. Everything she does, she does with love and with them in mind, even if they can’t appreciate what she’s done for them just yet. The children are still in mourning, but Chelsea’s too busy to even think about mourning herself, much less dating. Until Jake comes along and sweeps her – and the children – off her feet.

The oldest girl–the one who hates her family–lets out a short snort of disbelief. “Did you just ask her out on a date?”
I keep my eyes on Chelsea’s face. “Yeah–I did.”
… Then it’s blond Shirley Temple’s turn. “But you’re so old!”
I tear my eyes from Chelsea’s blush to blast the kid with a grumpy brow.
“I’m thirty.”
The grumpy brow fails to intimidate.
“Thirty!” Her hands go to her hips. “Do you have grandchildren?”

I looooooved how Jake was with the McQuaid kids. He’s so baffled by them, but so protective. He grows to care and love them so much, and how can he not? Each child is such a distinct, adorable, wonderful character. I was so impressed with the way Emma Chase portrayed Riley, Rory, Raymond, Rosaleen, Regan, and Ronan. They’re absolutely hilarious and so full of heart. I honestly couldn’t get enough of them! And, of course, I love Jake with Chelsea. Their romance grows so genuinely and sweetly that it’s easy to fall for their story. Chelsea and Jake honestly made the perfect couple. I also love how much Jake has changed because of Chelsea and the children – I have to give props to the author for Jake’s wonderful character development.

I want her–this fearless, stunning woman. And I want the kids. Those perfect, awful, amazing children–whom she loves with every inch of her soul. I want them to be mine. Mine to hold, mine to protect and teach. Their joy, their laughter, their love. I want to come home to it, bask in it, be the reason for it.
But even more than that, I want to deserve them.
To be worthy.

Jake is a total idiot sometimes though, when his doubts of being good enough and fears of commitment rise. I still love him to death (he’s my new favorite since Drew), but I got super mad at him at those times, so that’s why I can’t give this book a full 5 stars. Otherwise… Sustained was nearly perfect. Emma Chase only gets better and better at writing, especially the male POV – I grew to almost love Jake as much as I love Drew. If you’re in the mood for something funny, light-hearted, and absolutely heartwarming, then go read Sustained! I was entertained the whole time I was reading – I highly recommend it!

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

Reading Order: The Legal Briefs series

#1 ~ Overruled: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Sustained: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Appealed: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3.5 ~ Sidebarred: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads

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24Aug2015

Review Tour + Giveaway: In the Dark by Monica Murphy

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

Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for In the Dark by Monica Murphy!

In the Dark by Monica Murphy
Series: The Rules #2 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: August 25th 2015

The girl next door isn’t what she seems…

Stuck spending the summer with his screwed up family, Gabriel Walker is bored out of his mind and looking for an adventure. And he seems to find it with the hot girl who lives next door. The attraction between them is instant. Electric. Soon they’re spending every stolen minute together. Talk about the perfect summer fling…

Lucy isn’t what she seems. She doesn’t live next door—she’s the girl who’s been hired to house sit for the summer while the family goes on a worldwide vacation. If Gabe wants to believe she’s a spoiled rich girl looking for some fun, she can go along with that. After the summer, she’ll never see him again.

They don’t count on running into each other at college. Now Lucy must keep up the pretense of being a rich girl—and it’s exhausting. She knows she’s falling in love with Gabe and she’s scared he feels the same. Will he still care about her when he discovers the truth?

Buy Links:
Amazon • Amazon UK • Amazon CA • iTunes

I am seriously enjoying Monica Murphy’s The Rules series! I really liked the first book, Fair Game, and I’m glad to say I had a fun time reading In the Dark as well. This is Gabe’s book – the rich, pretty-boy player of the trio of heroes this series is about. Seeing him fall hard for a girl was as sweet as it was sexy. Fans of the first book won’t want to miss this sequel!

Gabe is spending the summer with his family at their vacation house, and he’d rather be anywhere but there. Luckily, there’s a cute neighbor he can’t help but admire every time she comes into view. Gabe is the love-em-and-leave-em type of guy, but he’d give anything for a chance with the girl next door.

I’m not that girl. I’m cautious. Careful. I plot and plan and do what I’m supposed to. I don’t make waves and I don’t cause trouble. One look form Gabe and I want to cause all sorts of trouble.
But only with him.

Lucy has totally noticed the hot, rich boy next door, but she’s not the type of girl to be with any guy. Her mother had her when she was young and instilled the fear of god – aka teenage pregnancy – into Lucy. But when Gabe finally introduces himself, Lucy can’t ignore the serious chemistry between them. But he thinks she has money like him, when in fact she’s not so rich and only house-sitting for a rich couple. She can’t help but go along that ruse, especially since they both agree to have a summer-only fling. And things get seriously HOT between them once their fling begins. Monica Murphy knows how to heat up the pages and I loved how intensely she brought out the sexy and dirty in Gabe and Lucy.

“I get too caught up in you. Every single time we’re together.” He shifts away from me so he can stare down into my eyes. “It’s like you’re the only thing I focus on when I’m with you, Luce. Hell, even when I’m not with you, you consume my thoughts. It’s… wild.”

As Lucy and Gabe spend the rest of summer together, they form a connection. They don’t want to leave each other by the time summer ends but they have no choice. Except, they never expected to see each other again when school starts up. Gabe now wants more between them, but Lucy is still keeping secrets from him. What happens when she wants him but her secrets come out?

I loved seeing Gabe change his manwhoring ways. Lucy was a great heroine who I thought matched well with his character. They’re both charming and relatable characters, so it was easy to enjoy their story. Plus, it’s a hot read – Monica Murphy can’t not write a sexy book! The only complaint I have is that the story sometimes felt too slow. I wanted the book to pick up the pace sometimes, to get to when Gabe finally finds out the truth about Lucy. Other than that, this is another fantastic read from an author I adore! I’m incredibly excited for Tristan’s story now!

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

Reading Order: The Rules series

#1 ~ Fair Game: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ In the Dark: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Slow Play: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

New York Times, USA Today and international bestselling author Monica Murphy is a native Californian who lives in the foothills below Yosemite with her husband and three children. She’s a workaholic who loves her job. When she’s not busy writing, she also loves to read and travel with her family. She writes new adult and contemporary romance and is published with Bantam and Avon. She also writes romance as USA Today bestselling author Karen Erickson.

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

Print copy of Fair Game and In the Dark

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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18Aug2015

Release Day Review: Before We Were Strangers by Renée Carlino

Posted in 3 hearts, Reviews by Lacey

Before We Were Strangers by Renée Carlino
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: August 18th 2015
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

From the USA TODAY bestselling author of Sweet Thing and Nowhere But Here comes a love story about a Craigslist “missed connection” post that gives two people a second chance at love fifteen years after they were separated in New York City.

To the Green-eyed Lovebird:

We met fifteen years ago, almost to the day, when I moved my stuff into the NYU dorm room next to yours at Senior House.

You called us fast friends. I like to think it was more.

We lived on nothing but the excitement of finding ourselves through music (you were obsessed with Jeff Buckley), photography (I couldn’t stop taking pictures of you), hanging out in Washington Square Park, and all the weird things we did to make money. I learned more about myself that year than any other.

Yet, somehow, it all fell apart. We lost touch the summer after graduation when I went to South America to work for National Geographic. When I came back, you were gone. A part of me still wonders if I pushed you too hard after the wedding…

I didn’t see you again until a month ago. It was a Wednesday. You were rocking back on your heels, balancing on that thick yellow line that runs along the subway platform, waiting for the F train. I didn’t know it was you until it was too late, and then you were gone. Again. You said my name; I saw it on your lips. I tried to will the train to stop, just so I could say hello.

After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now I’ve spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half?

There are so, SO many amazing reviews for Before We Were Strangers, but I’m floundering on what to think about it. I loved some aspects of the book, but my overall feel for the book is that it was only… okay. I was expecting something sweepingly romantic (second chance romances are my favorite kind of books) and pretty epic, but what I got disappointed me. I wouldn’t say it’s a bad read – like I said, there were things about the book that I enjoyed very much, but there were also plenty that I couldn’t enjoy. I really, really wish I could have loved this book more, since so many people seem to love it, but this missed the mark for me.

After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now I’ve spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half?
M

I absolutely LOVED the idea of Before We Were Strangers – a chance encounter with a first love you lost touch with for fifteen years, only to meet up again because of a Craigslist ad? YES PLEASE! I thought the premise was so unique and sweet – I expected to fall so hard for this second chance romance, and I did enjoy it in the beginning. It starts off with Matt seeing Grace for the first time in fifteen years and meeting her eyes just as she’s pulling away on the subway. It takes him a while and some courage before he puts up a Craigslist ad for Grace asking her to reach out to him.

I felt it for Grace before I even had a name for it. I might have said the word a million times, but it sounded different now that I meant it. When I thought about what we had, it didn’t matter that it was just friendship. I loved her.

Unfortunately, what brought the book down for me was the big chunk of the book that is set in the past, fifteen years ago. Here, we meet college Matt and Grace – who I greatly disliked. I honestly couldn’t connect with them – their personalities in college were so not what I was expecting, and they clashed with what I thought about them in the present. I felt so disconnected from them and their story, and I just wasn’t invested in their budding romance. College Grace and Matt sometimes came across as irritating, much to my disappointment. The main reason for this was the writing – it was very, very flat. All tell and no show. It’s the kind of writing that’s too simple, with short sentences, and feels slightly choppy. This is the first book I’ve read by Renée Carline so I didn’t know what to expect, but I was disappointed with the writing in Before We Were Strangers. If the writing in this is similar to the writing in her other books, I’m not sure I’d be able to read them. An author’s writing greatly influences the way I perceive a novel, and flat writing means flat characters to me.

Also, the reason why Grace and Matt fell apart for fifteen years was such a disappointment. I wanted a solid reason that would break my heart, but it was only a miscommunication that could have easily been solved that broke them apart.

Time passes, life goes on, places change, people change. And still, I couldn’t get Grace off my mind after seeing her in the subway. Fifteen years is too long to be holding on to a few heart-pounding moments from college.

I do want to point out some things that I actually really liked about this book. After the large two-thirds of the story that is set in the past, we go back to the present, when Matt and Grace reunite. So many things have changed in those fifteen years for them, but the one constant is their love for one another. This last third of the book is definitely the more enjoyable part. I loved the touching way Grace and Matt reconnected, how their love endured so strong and for so long. My heart finally felt SOMETHING for these two characters. If the book had been set mostly in the present, I think I would have enjoyed Before We Were Strangers so much more.

As much as I hoped to fall in love with this, I couldn’t get past the surprisingly mediocre writing and I didn’t connect with the characters. I expected so much more, but I’m probably in the minority for not loving Before We Were Strangers. It was only an okay read for me – it didn’t wow me, most of the book didn’t make me FEEL, and I had too high expectations that weren’t met.

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

Also by Renée Carlino

Sweet Thing: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Nowhere But Here: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
After the Rain: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Swear on This Life: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

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