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Friday, February 27, 2015

Release Blitz and Review: More Than Comics by Elizabeth Briggs

More Than Comics (Chasing The Dream, #2)
Elizabeth Briggs

Release Date: February 23, 2015

Blurb:

They're friends online - but can they be more in real life? 

Writer Tara McFadden has been friends with artist and drummer Hector Fernandez for years, long before his band became famous on reality TV – yet they’ve never met in person. They finally have a chance to connect offline when they’re both sent to Comic-Con to promote the graphic novel they collaborated on. 

Hector's secretly been in love with Tara for as long as he can remember, and once they meet, she sees him in a new light. All the years of longing lead to an incredible night of passion after one of his concerts, but neither is sure if their online relationship can translate into a real life romance – or if this will ruin their friendship forever. 

Over four crazy days at Comic-Con, Hector and Tara must decide if they want a future together. But when their story seems to be over, it’s up to Hector’s entire band to make sure he and Tara get their happy ending. 

My Review: 4 Stars

I loved the first book in this series, More Than Music so I was super excited for this one to come out and I loved this one just as much. This series pulls you in right away and you don't want to stop reading (I started and finished the same day because I just couldn't stop). The characters are likable, they are fun and funny, and they have great chemistry which results in some very sexy scenes. I liked that the characters from the first book made an appearance and the friendships they all have with each other. This series is a quick read for me, but not in a way that I feel like things are rushed or missing. I enjoyed Hector and Tara's relationship and loved that they knew so much about each other without having actually met because of talking online so much (especially loved that Hector remembered something about her that her ex, whom she dated for a year, didn't even remember). Also, I thought it was adorable that they were so nervous to actually meet each other in person after chatting some much. :) I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a great book with humor, geekiness (Comic-Con!!!), sexiness and a lot of heart. -J 

Author bio:

Elizabeth Briggs is a full-time geek who writes books for teens and adults. She plays the guitar, mentors at-risk teens, and volunteers with a dog rescue group. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and a pack of small, fluffy dogs.

Author links: 


Buy links:


Excerpt:
(Hector):

I stopped to examine my work. For the first time I felt like I was able to capture her, the real her, now that I’d finally met her in person.

“Are you done?” Tara asked, trying to sneak a peek.

“Mostly.” I could tweak the thing forever, but it was good enough to show her. Still, I hesitated, taking a moment to add a little more shading to her hair. She’d seen hundreds of my sketches before, along with that other drawing of her, but this one felt more important than anything else I’d done.

“Can I see?” She inched closer to me, her hip nudging against my side.

I relented, unable to deny her anything when she was this close. She gasped as soon as she saw the drawing. “Hector, this…this is beautiful.”

“You like it?”

“I love it. I want to hug it to my chest, that’s how much I love it, but I’m worried I’ll smear it.” She smiled down at my drawing before setting it beside her on the couch. “I’ll just hug you instead.”

Then she was in my arms again, soft, warm, and curvy, and I wrapped myself tight around her. This time neither of us pulled away. Instead, she smoothed her hands along my chest and looked up at me, her rose-colored lips parting. As I stared at her mouth I was tempted to do the thing I’d dreamed about for so long.

I’d never seen a more beautiful girl than her. Never wanted a girl more. Other women had been easy to resist.

But not her.

She was my weakness.

When she didn’t move back, even after the reasonable time had passed for a friendly hug, courage flared in me. I bowed my head and brushed my lips across hers, the softest, lightest touch in case she didn’t want this kiss. I expected her to pull away, to ask, “What are you doing?”

But she didn’t.

She let out a quiet sigh, barely audible against my mouth, and closed her eyes like she was waiting for more. I took that as my cue and gave her another kiss, a real kiss this time. I was still hesitant, half-convinced she would stop me at any moment. This was crossing the line beyond friendship. I wasn’t sure I should be doing it, but I couldn’t help myself either. I’d dreamed of kissing Tara for years and now it was finally happening.

And impossibly, amazingly, she kissed me back.

I’d kissed girls before, but it had never been like this. Kissing Tara was like being kissed for the first time. Her lips were so sweet I wanted to taste her all night. I eased her mouth open softly, sliding my tongue inside, still waiting for her to stop me. I did everything slowly, giving her the opportunity to end it. But she didn’t.

I kissed her deeper. Harder. Demanding more from her.

And she let me.

Then she kissed me, shifting so she was on her knees on the couch and leaning against my chest, almost in my lap. She clutched my face and I drew her in closer, gripping her waist, her breasts rubbing against me through our clothes. My hands dipped down to cup her ass, to slide along her curves for the first time.

I’d suffered through years of lusting after her and now I finally had her in my arms. I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted, needed to touch her everywhere. I had to explore her and see if she lived up to the fantasy in my head. Except after that kiss I knew she would be even better than anything I’d imagined.

When we finally broke apart she whispered my name and it had never sounded so good. “Are you sure those drawings mean nothing?” she asked.

I tensed up, completely caught off guard. “What?”

“I…forget it.” She shook her head, pulling back. “God, what are we even doing?”
I drew in a ragged breath. “Do you want to stop?”

“Maybe…maybe we should.”

It was hard to stop touching her, so fucking hard, but I lifted my hands off her. “Whatever you want.”

She slowly climbed off the couch and yanked down her shirt, which had ridden up to show off her smooth, pale stomach. She looked dazed, like she wasn’t sure what to do. “I…I should go. Before this goes any further.”

I stood, but didn’t say anything. I wasn’t sure how to convince her to stay. Wasn’t even sure I wanted her to stay.

No, that was a lie, as evidenced by my raging hard-on. I was dying for her to stay.

She walked to the door, but once there she paused and turned around. I took a step closer, unable to resist her magnetic pull. She stared at me and I was hypnotized by the way her breasts rose and fell with each of her quickened breaths. I moved even closer, until I was only an inch in front of her. Still, she didn’t leave. It was almost like she wanted me to stop her.

Did she?

“The drawings do mean something,” I confessed.

Her eyes widened. “What do they mean?”

I reached up to cup her face with my hands. My fingers were too big and unwieldy, too rough for her perfect, soft skin, yet I wanted to touch her everywhere.

“That I’ve been dying to kiss you for years.”

I captured her mouth with mine again, showing her exactly how much the drawings meant.

And she kissed me back even harder.





 FYI... ;) 




More Than Comics playlist

Monday, February 23, 2015

Review: Comeback by Catherine Gayle

Comeback (Portland Storm #6)
Catherine Gayle
Book Blurb: 
Nicklas Ericsson is an addict. He’s also a star goaltender with the NHL’s Portland Storm, or he was until his addiction changed everything. Now he’s throwing himself into doing all the necessary things to pave his path to a comeback, both in his personal life and on the ice. Nicky’s run out of options, and now his sister and her children are in Portland. They need help he has no clue how to provide, though, and figuring it out might derail all the progress he’s made.

For a few years now, Jessica Lynch has been running the Portland office for the Light the Lamp Foundation. Between her work and several people from her past, she knows more than she’d like about addicts. One lesson she’s learned is that even when addicts try to turn their lives around, more often than not, they fail. That’s why she takes a hands off approach, keeping her heart well away from the addicts she works with, like Nicky Ericsson.

Nicky’s recovery efforts put him directly in Jessica’s path, and she can’t ignore his very real need for help. Where Nicky is concerned, she can’t separate her emotions. His niece and nephews further complicate her efforts to guard her heart. The attraction between Nicky and Jessica is instant and mutual, but she’s misplaced her trust too many times before. Can he prove that he won't fall back into old habits in time to complete the perfect comeback?

My Review:  5 Stars

I don’t know where to start with this one. I love Catherine Gayle’s Portland Storm series and since we have only had a few glimpses at Nicky (and most of them weren’t the best) I didn’t know how I was going to feel about this book. Not only was I not sure because of how we have seen Nicky, I wasn’t sure since it more than touches on addiction. As the wife of an addict this topic can be very hard on me. So with all of that, let me just say that I LOVED this book. It is beautifully written. The characters have depth and the book really gets you in the feels. I have read books before and have been emotional, but this book was a first for me because I had actual tears coming down my face (so if you are an emotional reader, don’t read this in public unless you want to be asked multiple times if you are ok).

Nicky is making his comeback from addiction, in his professional and personal life. After a rough few years, he finally gets the chance to get back between the pipes for the Portland Storm and he hopes he doesn’t let anyone down this time. On the personal side of things, he has finally gotten to the point where he feels like he can start being honest about his issues and wants to help out more with the Light the Lamp Foundation (Kally’s foundation) since he was helped by a similar program. He has his head on pretty straight and he is in a good place when he is thrown for a loop. His sister, niece and nephews come into town and he isn’t sure if he can handle all that comes with it (I am not going into detail because it is a very large part of the plot and I hate to spoil things for people, but I will say that the tears started to pool here and eventually they just spilled over).

Jessica works for the Portland office of the Light the Lamp Foundation and in doing so she meets with a lot of addicts and having been married to one as well as raised by and with one she has a lot of experience and has been hurt by addicts too many times to count. She has decided that she can never be more than friends with someone with a history of addiction. She is pretty good at keeping that promise to herself, but every time she meets with Nicky about the Foundation she knows that he could test that decision. But when things start to get bad for Nicky she somehow finds herself being the person he turns to when he needs help or just needs to talk. The more time she spends with him, the harder things become for her.

Ok, so I’m stopping there so there are no spoilers, but I will say that the friendship/relationship that grows between these two is great. They seemed to be able to talk to each other about anything and they take their time getting to know each other (asking a lot of geeky questions, which as a geek, I loved). Like I said before it was beautifully written. The beach scene in particular sticks out in my head, it was a great celebration of life and love and it comes across the page beautifully. This book had some humor, some heartache and so much love (Nicky/his niece, his niece/his sister, all the Portland Storm wives) and I want to read it over and over again. Nicky stole my heart. His character, his heart, his humor just got me and I was cheering for him to fight the good fight and show his addiction that he is stronger than it. So now I sit anxiously waiting for Babs’ book and the continuation of the Portland Storm series that I love so much! 

***Let me finish this post by informing everyone that every time I think about this book/see it this pops into my head... Enjoy!!!***


Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Hidden in Lies by Rachael Duncan Blog Tour



Title: Hidden In Lies (Lies and Truth #1)
Series: Lies and Truth
Author: Rachael Duncan
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: February 5, 2015

Who needs love when you have money?

It used to be enough, but now it’s not.

Not since he walked into my life and made me question everything.

Now I want more, but I know that’s impossible.

Things aren’t always as they seem.

My true self is hidden, and that works for me.

Or it did.

I hide in a bed of deception to disguise myself, and I’m good at it.

Or I was.

I’m Elizabeth Fitzgerald.

I’m a Senator’s wife.

And I hate my life.





After a few minutes, he says, “I know there’s more to you, Elizabeth. I can tell there’s someone hidden inside you dying to come out. I can see it in the fake smile you show everyone, including Cal, the way you frown when you’re alone in your thoughts, and the sadness that’s lurking in your eyes. Why are you hiding?”

God help me, but there’s something in the way he speaks to me that makes me want to lay all my secrets and sins bare. He’s soft and gentle, but most importantly, I believe he wants to know more about me. He’s not asking to gain leverage or use it to his advantage, he’s genuinely concerned. And it makes me want to tell him everything. But the rational side of my brain tells me not to, so I reel in this strange impulse to divulge my secrets to a man I hardly know.

MY REVIEW:  5 Stars
What can I say about this book??? OMG, I loved it. It hooked me from the start and I mean from the prologue, not the first few chapters. Elizabeth is the "perfect" wife of a senator. She wears the right clothes, is friends with the right people and says the right thing all the time, too bad it is all façade. Since she learned early in life that love isn't really all you need, she basically made herself into the type of woman a man with money would want. She lands herself a senator, who not only comes from "old money" but each additional generation after that has added to the wealth not depleted it, so they are rolling in it. She doesn't have to work, has a driver, you know all the perks of being uber rich. But with all the perks of being rich, there are also some downfalls, like her "loving" husband who is really a pretentious a-hole and he really doesn't help himself when he decides to run for president without discussing it with her. Oh, and you can't forget that pesky person who broke into their home. So with the upcoming campaign and the break in, Cal (the a-hole) hires protection for his wife. Enter Alex, former military man now doing personal security. The problem with him, Elizabeth is instantly attracted to him (whereas she can hardly fake it with her husband) and he sees right through her façade. He can see how unhappy she is with her life and he wonders why she continues to live this way and if he can help her in anyway.
I'm not going to say much more plot wise because it would just give away too much about the book but I loved how this was written. The characters are real, they are complete people not one dimensional. It's written in such a way that you feel Elizabeth's attraction to Alex, you loathe Cal right along with her, you feel stuck between a rock and a hard place just like she is, you feel free right along with Elizabeth when she gets to just be herself when she is hanging out with Alex. It was a great book by a talented author that left me wanting more (and not in the bad sense where you feel like a ton of things were left out). Just an FYI since some people want to know this type of thing, there is a cliffhanger (and let me just say OMG I didn't see all that coming) that makes you hope that the next book is coming out next week. The book has a little bit of everything (a lot of a few things too), a little bit of humor, some sexiness, some drama, some suspense, and some romance.  I would recommend this book to anyone who likes contemporary romance novels and anyone who likes a bit of suspense in there stories. Actually I would recommend it to everyone because I feel it is a book that you shouldn't miss.      














Rachael Duncan is an Army wife living in North Carolina with her husband and two kids. She grew up in Nashville, Tennessee and went on to graduate from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville with a bachelor’s degree in political science. After working on Capitol Hill for a short time, she realized that a career in politics just wasn’t for her. A couple years later, she rediscovered her love for reading and writing. She’s the author of Tackled by Love as well.





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Thursday, February 5, 2015

Hidden In Lies by Rachael Duncan Release Day

Title: Hidden In Lies (Lies and Truth #1)
Series: Lies and Truth
Author: Rachael Duncan
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: February 5, 2015

Who needs love when you have money?

It used to be enough, but now it’s not.

Not since he walked into my life and made me question everything.

Now I want more, but I know that’s impossible.

Things aren’t always as they seem.

My true self is hidden, and that works for me.

Or it did.

I hide in a bed of deception to disguise myself, and I’m good at it.

Or I was.

I’m Elizabeth Fitzgerald.

I’m a Senator’s wife.

And I hate my life.





Public appearances aren’t the only thing I have to fool. I have to fool my husband into believing I’m the perfect wife as well. He has no clue the contempt I’m starting to feel for him. The anger and resentment grows on a daily basis, but I really only have myself to blame for it. As time goes on, I feel used more and more. I almost laugh at myself at the irony. Aren’t I doing the same thing? Using him for my own reasons? Except my reasons for marrying him got a lot more complicated after one phone call, and now I can’t leave.






Rachael Duncan is an Army wife living in North Carolina with her husband and two kids. She grew up in Nashville, Tennessee and went on to graduate from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville with a bachelor’s degree in political science. After working on Capitol Hill for a short time, she realized that a career in politics just wasn’t for her. A couple years later, she rediscovered her love for reading and writing. She’s the author of Tackled by Love as well.




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