Tag Archives: release day review

Release Day Review: Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry

Posted in 3 hearts, Reviews by

Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry

Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry
Series: Thunder Road #2 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: March 29th 2016
Links: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

One moment of recklessness will change their worlds.

Smart. Responsible. That’s seventeen-year-old Breanna’s role in her large family, and heaven forbid she put a toe out of line. Until one night of shockingly un-Breanna-like behavior puts her into a vicious cyber-bully’s line of fire—and brings fellow senior Thomas “Razor” Turner into her life.

Razor lives for the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, and good girls like Breanna just don’t belong. But when he learns she’s being blackmailed over a compromising picture of the two of them—a picture that turns one unexpected and beautiful moment into ugliness—he knows it’s time to step outside the rules.

And so they make a pact: he’ll help her track down her blackmailer, and in return she’ll help him seek answers to the mystery that’s haunted him—one that not even his club brothers have been willing to discuss. But the more time they spend together, the more their feelings grow. And suddenly they’re both walking the edge of discovering who they really are, what they want, and where they’re going from here.

The boy everyone sees but nobody knows is with the girl who everybody knows but nobody sees.

I absolutely love Katie McGarry, have ever since I first read Pushing the Limits, so it pains me to say that I didn’t particularly love Walk the Edge. Overall, it was just an okay read – I really wanted more out of it. I didn’t connect with the main characters all that well, and I got frustrated with the secondary characters. It’s well-written and definitely more on the mature side of YA, but that wasn’t enough to make me love this book. That being said, if you’ve read the previous Thunder Road book and loved it, hopefully you’ll enjoy Walk the Edge more than I did. I was sucked into the MC life just as much as I was in Nowhere But Here, but it was the characters I had problems with.

Breanna is sibling number 5 out of 9, and she’s always been the smart, responsible one that her family takes advantage of and never appreciates. She has a talent that she sees as a curse – she’s able to retain a lot of information in her brain, but she’s been seen as a freak because of it her whole life. It’s only when she starts talking to Thomas Turner, aka Razor of the Reign of Terror Motorcycle Club, that she begins to feel as brilliant as she really is. Breanna is sweet and an incredible girl, but I hated how she let her family walk all over her. I really felt for her character, in between her siblings nearly hating her and bullies at school, but it’s hard for her to stand up for herself, and all the antagonism against her got on my nerves.

Razor has never been the same since his mother’s death when he was a child, but ever since talking to an investigator, he suspects his mother never committed suicide and instead was murdered. Razor doesn’t trust easily, and when his club doesn’t offer the answers he knows they have, he begins to trust even less. But when he’s with Breanna, he can just be a regular boy, and not someone who has heaps of problems in his life.

She’s my girl now and I’ll do anything for her at any time. I’m in love with her.

Even though I didn’t connect very well with Razor or Breanna, I adored the way their romance developed. It’s the perfect bad boy/good girl story – so if you enjoy that trope, I would definitely recommend giving Walk the Edge a try. Hopefully you won’t be as annoyed as I was with all the secondary characters who cause problems in Razor and Breanna’s life. Even though I didn’t love Walk the Edge, I’m super excited for the sequel, Chevy and Violet’s book – I’ve been looking forward to them ever since meeting them in the first book of the series!

3 hearts
lacey

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

Reading Order: Thunder Road series

Nowhere But Here by Katie McGarry Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry

#1 ~ Nowhere But Here: My Review • Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Walk the Edge: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads

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Release Day Review: Felony Ever After (a Domino novel)

Posted in 3.5 hearts, Reviews by

Felony Ever After by Helena Hunting, Debra Anastasia, Nina Bocci, Vi Keeland, Penelope Ward, Leisa Rayven, Liv Morris, Tijan, J.M. Darhower, Belle Aurora, K.A. Robinson, S.M. Lumetta, Katherine Stevens
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: March 22nd 2016
Links: Ebook • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the authors in exchange for an honest review

***13 Authors put their brains together to write ONE story***

Verity Michaels is new to New York City, but even she knows riding in a stolen a cab is not a normal way to meet someone. Damn it if that tattoo-covered would-be felon isn’t everywhere now, and lighting everything on fire under her skirt.

His name is Hudson Fenn, and he’s frustratingly impossible to pin down. He works as a bike messenger, but has the manners of a prince—along with a strange tendency toward breaking and entering. As much as Verity knows he’s not her type, and likely to land her in jail, she can’t help but find her truest self when they’re together.

Can she be brave enough to give Hudson a real chance? Will he be bold enough to reveal the man beneath the ink, or will his secrecy doom their connection? Also, WTF is the deal with Verity’s boss? No less than thirteen of your favorite romance writers have teamed up to tell this sexy, wacky, snort-inducing tale. With them you’ll visit the world’s most irritating office, a VIP room of questionable cleanliness, and the fanciest apartment a bike messenger has ever inhabited, but you’ll still never see this ending coming.

I absolutely LOVED the idea of Felony Ever After! Thirteen authors collaborating on ONE story – I was really excited to see how it would all work out. While I found the story fun but way over the top, the actual execution of it by all the authors more than impressed me. Despite the slightly different writing styles, I nearly couldn’t tell that each chapter was written by someone else, the story moved so smoothly. I would definitely read another book like this!

Verity Michaels gave up her failed dream job as a photographer and moved to NYC to work an office job with a perverted boss. On her way home one day, a gorgeous tattooed man jumps into a cab with her, offering to split the ride, but soon enough ends up hijacking the taxi and bringing Verity home. Is he a felon or a white knight?

“You’re a total criminal, aren’t you?” she asked, but to her surprise, she was grinning ear to ear.
He shook his head. “Have I stolen your heart yet?”
That stopped her cold. She blinked several times. “What?”
“Don’t answer,” he whispered. “I won’t take it until you give it freely.”

Hudson Fenn is more than just his tattoos and his job as a bike messenger, and he’s determined to show Verity that he’s perfect for her. Hudson is sweet, sexy, and hilarious – but he’s still keeping secrets that Verity is dying to know. He’s a bike messenger by day, but what does he get up to at night?

Felony Ever After is over-the-top hilarity. I laughed so much during this book – it truly is a fun read, even if I didn’t completely love it. The story kind of glosses over things, never really delving into the plot, but it’s a quick, entertaining read. Each author writes one or two chapters at a time, and you really can’t tell that much whenever it switches authors. If you’re a fan of any of the authors of this unique anthology, I recommend you give this book a try, if only to experience this kind of collaboration!

3.5 hearts
lacey

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

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Release Day Review: Elastic Hearts by Claire Contreras

Posted in 3.5 hearts, Reviews by

Elastic Hearts by Claire Contreras
Series: Hearts #3 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: March 20th 2016
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review

Victor Reuben.
Most sought out divorce attorney in LA.

Nicole Alessi.
Soon to be ex-wife of Hollywood’s biggest star, Victor’s latest client and his boss’s daughter.

In such a high profile divorce, they can’t afford any extra drama. Luckily, neither one of them has anything to hide.
Unless you count the mind blowing sex they had…
Once…
Twice…
Three times all those years ago.

As long as they leave the past where it belongs, they’ll be fine. But with her wearing those tight dresses and him giving her those heated glances, keeping their hands to themselves is proving to be more difficult than either one of them realized.

It won’t be long before the paparazzi start to smell smoke, and where there’s smoke…

I’m a big fan of Claire Contreras’ Hearts series, so I was so excited when I heard Victor would be a getting his own book! If you’ve enjoyed the previous Hearts books, you should know that Elastic Hearts is a bit different than Kaleidoscope Hearts and Paper Hearts. It’s not quite a second chance romance, so there isn’t as much angst in this book, but it is more of a forbidden love story. While I liked Victor and Nicole’s book, I didn’t really love it as much as KH or PH. I just didn’t feel engaged as much as I wish I did, so that ended up affecting how I enjoyed the story. Still, it’s a well-written contemporary romance, and if you love the Hearts series, you just might love Elastic Hearts too.

“I’ve worked so fucking hard and this case is going to blow it all to shit,” he said, inching his face closer to mine. I stopped breathing. “All because I need this more than I’ve needed anything else in my fucking life.”

We first met Victor Reuben in Kaleidoscope Hearts as Estelle’s older brother. It didn’t seem like he was that much into relationships then, so I was excited to see him falling in love. Victor is one of the most popular and successful divorce attorneys in L.A. and he’s got one more case to handle before he can make partner at the firm he works at. But it turns out that the divorce case he’s handed just so happens to be the daughter of his boss… and the woman he used to hook up with all those years ago.

Nicole Alessi, a costume designer for celebrities, is ready to finish through with her divorce and move on with her life and away from her soon-to-be ex-husband, a famous actor in Hollywood. She doesn’t expect Victor to be handling her divorce, or for the sizzling chemistry and attraction that combusted years ago to still exist today. Nicole always thought of Victor as the one who got away, but he was too anti-relationship back then to truly make something out of a relationship with him. Now, Nicole tries to tempt him into their crazy-hot hookups again, but Victor is very hands-off with clients. But there’s only so much temptation Victor can handle before he once again falls for Nicole’s allure.

Elastic Hearts moved very, very slow. That was my main problem with the book – I really wanted the pace of the romance to move faster. Plus, Victor was too frustrating and hot-and-cold with his feelings for Nicole. I kind of felt bad for her every time he would pull her in, only to push her away. It also took a bit too long for my taste for Victor to realize that he’s not so anti-relationship or anti-love as he thought.

“I don’t stretch. I don’t mold. I don’t conform, and despite what people say about my career, I’m not a liar. So when I tell you I’m in love with you, Nicole, it’s because I’m in fucking love with you.”

I liked this book for the most part, but I wouldn’t say it was anything special or unique. I had to skip forward a bit at some slow parts, but overall, I did have fun reading this book. It’s hot, sweet, and totally sexy – I just wish I could’ve connected better with Nicole and Victor and really FELT for their characters. Nonetheless, even though I didn’t fully love this book, I would still recommend it for Claire Contreras fans and the Hearts series fans. Especially since you’ll get to see a lot of Estelle, Oliver, Mia, and Jensen!

3.5 hearts
lacey

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

Reading Order: Hearts series

Kaleidoscope Hearts by Claire Contreras Paper Hearts by Claire Contreras 

#1 ~ Kaleidoscope Hearts: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#2 ~ Paper Hearts: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
#3 ~ Elastic Hearts: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

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Release Day Review: Love, Chloe by Alessandra Torre

Posted in 4 hearts, Reviews by

Love, Chloe by Alessandra Torre
Series: Standalone
Publication Date: March 14th 2016
Links: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review

Chloe Madison. That’s me. A former NYU princess who fell from grace, right off my pampered Manhattan throne and onto the unforgiving steps of Nicole Brantley, socialite and queen bitch. Now, I walked her dog and mixed her smoothies. Tried to navigate my own problems while fixing all of hers.

I wanted what every New York girl wanted. A career, an apartment, and true love, preferably in a smoking hot package.

It turned out … I’d have to fight for all of it.

I originally read Chloe’s story as part of the Bedroom Blog over on Cosmo, so when I heard that Alessandra Torre would be making it a full-length novel, I was excited! I adored Chloe in the serial, and I adored her even more in Love, Chloe. If you’ve read the serial, most of this full-length novel is the same, just put together in a more cohesive way. If you haven’t read the serial, Love, Chloe is a fun and flirty read that is endlessly entertaining. It reads more like a chick-lit novel than a contemporary romance and focuses on Chloe’s journey more than anything. If you’re looking for a book that’s funny, light-hearted, yet meaningful, I highly recommend Love, Chloe!

I’d spent my whole life trying to impress people. Maybe that was the start of my fall, the last two decades one plush float into the depths of shallow, insecure, hell.
All I know is that when I hit the bottom, I hit hard.

Chloe Madison used to be at the top of the world, a spoiled socialite with more money than she needed. But when she finds out all that money her family has is dirty money stolen by her parents from other people, she becomes homeless and bankrupt. Desperate for money to pay for her NYU tuition to get her diploma, she finds a job as an assistant to Nicole, a condom heiress. But it turns out assistant is basically another word for dog sitter – and Chloe’s pride and ego could not get any lower at this point.

The Chloe of the working class struggles, and struggles hard. In between working for the slave driver Nicole, saving money to afford rent to her new apartment, and staying away from an ex who broke her heart and won’t leave her alone, Chloe experiences a new sort of life where she has to work for what she’s got, and work even harder to keep it. I loved this growth and development to her character – Chloe isn’t without flaws, but she’s a relatable sort of heroine, and you can’t help but connect with her and cheer her on in her journey of self-discovery.

There’s also a bit of romance going on for Chloe – and thankfully it’s not with the ex who cheated on her. Vic was a part of Chloe’s world pre-bankruptcy, and as tempting as it is for her to fall back into that rich, spoiled life with him, Chloe finds the strength in herself not to. On the way of finding herself, she also discovers the kind of man she deserves, and the super of her new apartment just might fit that bill…

I needed to embrace my relationship with Carter and stop being a wimp. Whether I’d told him so or not, I loved him. He made me realize how empty my old life had been. And in his eyes, I saw a future that I wanted more of, a future where I was a better person.
Wow. I might have just become a grown-up.

I really wish we could’ve gotten more of Carter and Chloe, because I adored them together! The story focused a bit too much on Vic and Chloe’s past, so I didn’t feel like we got to know Carter all that well, but I did enjoy the way their relationship developed. And I loved that even though there is romance, Love, Chloe is still very much Chloe’s story, a journey of self-discovery, friendships, financial struggles, and so much more. Alessandra Torre did a fantastic job balancing the hardships of life along with the fairy tale of love, and I couldn’t be more proud of how Chloe is by the end of the novel.

I seriously enjoyed this book. It’s fast-paced, endearing, and so much fun to read. Chloe’s heart-warming story of self-discovery is definitely a must-read!

4 hearts
lacey

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

Also by Alessandra Torre

Black Lies by Alessandra Torre
Tight by Alessandra Torre Hollywood Dirt by Alessandra Torre 

Black Lies: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Sex Love Repeat: Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Tight: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Hollywood Dirt: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Audible • Goodreads
Moonshot: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

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Release Day Review: Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs

Posted in 4 hearts, Reviews by

Fire Touched by Patricia Briggs
Series: Mercy Thompson #9 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: March 8th 2016
Links: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Mercy Thompson has been hailed as “a heroine who continues to grow and yet always remains true to herself.”* Now she’s back, and she’ll soon discover that when the fae stalk the human world, it’s the children who suffer…

Tensions between the fae and humans are coming to a head. And when coyote shapeshifter Mercy and her Alpha werewolf mate, Adam, are called upon to stop a rampaging troll, they find themselves with something that could be used to make the fae back down and forestall out-and-out war: a human child stolen long ago by the fae.

Defying the most powerful werewolf in the country, the humans, and the fae, Mercy, Adam, and their pack choose to protect the boy no matter what the cost. But who will protect them from a boy who is fire touched?

*Library Journal

It’s been a while since I’ve really delved back into urban fantasy, but reading Fire Touched reminded me of all the reasons why I love reading that genre. The Mercy Thompson series is one of my all-time favorites, so being back with Mercy and the gang was pure bliss. What I love most about Patricia Briggs books is that even though we’re this far into the series, all of the characters still grow, still go through their ups and downs, and experiencing all that along with them is one of the best feelings ever.

“You and I,” he said, “will always be okay. I can’t promise anything more.”

Mercy and Adam are back on track after the mess that was his ex-wife in the previous book, but of course, things are never easy for this couple. Tensions are rising between the fae, humans, and werewolves, and Mercy has become somewhat of a leader in keeping the peace. Adam is dealing with dangers that threaten his pack, his territory, and his mate. Beloved old characters return while new ones are introduced – one fire touched boy from “Underhill” needs protection from the Gray Lords who want to use him, and of course Mercy and the pack will do everything they can to help him. Fire Touched is definitely a game changer in the Mercy Thompson series and it’s an installment fans should not miss.

I really loved the way everyone was working together to try to keep a war from breaking out, be they shifters, fae, or humans. Mercy is at the center of it all, the one everyone knows they can turn to because she’s someone they can trust to have their backs and keep her promises. I’ve seriously missed Mercy, who’s one of my favorite heroines ever. It was great to see her so strong and badass, funny and humble. And her relationship with Adam is as strong and steady as ever. Sometimes I get tired of a couple when their relationship lasts through many books, but I don’t think I’ll ever feel this way about Mercy and Adam.

Despite the long time in between books I had to wait, I was easily able to immerse myself into Mercy’s world from the very first page of this book. Patricia Briggs’ writing is as fantastic, action-packed, and thrilling as ever. There was honestly never a dull moment in Fire Touched. If you’re a fan of the series, you already know how amazing these characters are so why wouldn’t you read this book!? If you’ve yet to experience the Mercy Thompson series, I highly recommend it if you love action, incredible and lovable characters, and a brilliantly-written paranormal world to get yourself sucked into. I can’t wait to see what Patricia Briggs has in store for us next!

4 hearts
lacey

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

Reading Order: Mercy Thompson series

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs
 Silver Borne by Patricia Briggs River Marked by Patricia Briggs
Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs  

#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: Ebook • Hardcover • Audible • Goodreads

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