The Life & Times of a Book Addict: New Adult Contemporary

Showing posts with label New Adult Contemporary. Show all posts

Monday, May 8, 2017

Before I Ever Met You by Karina Halle

Publication: April 25, 2017

Publisher: Metal Blonde Books

Source: Bought/Own

I first met William McAlister when I was just a teenager.

He was handsome, had a beautiful wife and was on the verge of success, having just joined my father as his business partner. Mr. McAlister was full of smooth charm, but back then he was barely a blip on my radar. Just a family friend.

Fast forward ten years: I’m 25 years old and a single mom trying to make things right for her seven-year old son. I’ve made some mistakes, grappled with my demons and now I’m back in the city of Vancouver, getting a second chance at a better life.

I’ve started by working for my father’s production company as an executive assistant. My first day on the job and I already know I could have a promising career there.

That is until I see Will McAlister for the first time in a decade.

Now recently divorced and as sophisticated as always, Will has gone from being my father’s friend and business partner to something so much more.

We’re both older, for one thing, and he just oozes this worldly confidence and stark sexuality. Combined with his tall, muscular build and sharp suits, strong jaw and bedroom eyes, Will has turned into one hell of a distraction.

A distraction I’m having a hard time staying away from, considering his office is right across from my desk and I work with him in such close proximity.

But it’s just a harmless crush, right?

It’s just an innocent fantasy of screwing him on his desk, right?

It can’t ever be more because he’s my father’s best friend, business partner, and my boss.

Right?

Wrong.

Before I Ever Met You is a contemporary standalone romance, a light-hearted swoony read that will make you believe in love again

I absolutely loved Will. He was a great character. And even though he had been hurt pretty badly in his marriage, he was so open to trying again with the right person. He didn’t let his experience make him a bitter person. Once he meets Jackie who is now a young woman, he is immediately attracted to her. But she is his assistant. And worse still, she is his close friend’s daughter. The situation practically screams trouble. But staying away may be harder than either one of them had anticipated.

I loved Jackie at first, but as the story progressed, she began to wear on my nerves a little bit. It frustrated me that she was in her head way too much. She overthought everything. It took her too long to realize how much of a great guy Will was for her and her son. Even though she recognized how different her feelings were for Will compared to her bad ex, she still didn’t trust herself to make the right decision.

Before I Ever Met You was a nice slow burn romance that I ending up enjoying quite a bit. There wasn’t a bunch of unnecessary drama or over the top antics or humor, which I appreciated. It was a sweet romance with interesting characters that I couldn’t help but cheer for. This is the first light hearted romance that I’ve read from Karina Halle (I’m used to more of her darker/heavier stuff).

She is a great writer and I hope that she continues to write more stories similar to this one.

RATING: 4½ out of 5

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Thursday, August 11, 2016

It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover Blog Tour & Giveaway!!

Thank you for joining me on my stop of this blog tour!

Publication: August 2,2016

Publisher: Atria Books

Source: Publisher

Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up—she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true.

Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for Lily. And the way he looks in scrubs certainly doesn’t hurt. Lily can’t get him out of her head. But Ryle’s complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his “no dating” rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place.

As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan—her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.

With this bold and deeply personal novel, Colleen Hoover delivers a heart-wrenching story that breaks exciting new ground for her as a writer. Combining a captivating romance with a cast of all-too-human characters, It Ends With Us is an unforgettable tale of love that comes at the ultimate price.

I went into this book fairly blind, which I think is the best way to start it. So I don't want to give away too much info and spoil the story for you.

I will tell you this though, I thought I could read It Ends With Us and not react too much...not get emotional. Turns out I was wrong. There were certain parts in the story where I. Just. Couldn't. I had to take a breather and walk away for awhile.

This book does take you on an emotional journey with characters that are almost too real. I fell in love with them. I wanted to get to know them all. The story grabs you and refuses to let you go until the very end. There were times when I didn't want to stop reading it.

It Ends With Us has the power to change the way you view things and leave you an emotional wreck at the end of it all.

RATING: 4 ½ out of 5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Colleen Hoover is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Slammed, This Girl, Point of Retreat, Hopeless, Losing Hope, Finding Cinderella, Maybe Someday, Ugly Love, Maybe Not, and Confess. She lives in Texas with her husband and their three boys. Please visit ColleenHoover.com.

FIND COLLEEN ONLINE:

Website: www.ColleenHoover.com

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/ColleenHoover

Twitter: @ColleenHoover

Instagram: @ColleenHoover

IT ENDS WITH US

BY COLLEEN HOOVER

http://www.itendswithusbook.com/

Atria Books Paperback | 384 pages | ISBN: 9781501110368 | August 2, 2016 | $16.00

eBook: 384 pages | ISBN: 9781501110375 | $7.99

Grab your copy of IT ENDS WITH US:

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2a6fCwq

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/29F2fWU

Books-a-Million: http://bit.ly/29v3dBz

iBooks: http://apple.co/1PBTd6h

Indiebound: http://bit.ly/29BOZ2V

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1PBT7f1

Google: http://bit.ly/29OkBCI

Nook: http://bit.ly/20aafzY

Now for the fun….the #ItEndsWithUs Contest!

Enter the Rafflecopter to win a signed copy of IT ENDS WITH US and a limited edition Everything’s Better in Boston magnet (trust us, you’ll get it after you read the book)! (3 prize bundles in total) Contest is open until August 26th.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, June 5, 2016

He Will Be My Ruin by K.A. Tucker

Publication: February 2, 2016

Publisher: Atria Books

Source: Publisher

The USA TODAY bestselling author of the Ten Tiny Breaths and Burying Water series makes her romantic thriller debut with this heartpounding story of a young woman determined to find justice after her best friend’s death, a story pulsing with the “intense, hot, emotional” (Colleen Hoover) writing that exhilarates her legions of fans.

Twenty-eight-year-old Maggie Sparkes arrives in New York City to pack up what’s left of her best friend’s belongings after a suicide that has left everyone stunned. The police have deemed the evidence conclusive: Celine got into bed, downed a bottle of Xanax and a handle of Maker’s Mark, and never woke up. But when Maggie discovers secrets in the childhood lock box hidden in Celine’s apartment, she begins asking questions. Questions about the man Celine fell in love with. The man she never told anyone about, not even Maggie. The man who Celine herself claimed would be her ruin.

On the hunt for answers that will force the police to reopen the case, Maggie uncovers more than she bargained for about Celine’s private life—and inadvertently puts herself on the radar of a killer who will stop at nothing to keep his crimes undiscovered.

He Will Be My Ruin is a suspenseful story following Maggie Sparkes as she arrives in New York in order to pack up and go through her best friend, Celine’s belongings after she has committed suicide. Maggie does not believe that Celone could have ever thought about committing suicide especially since she had a job and life that she always longed to have. She questions the Police about their ruling, but they are very doubtful that her death was anything other than a suicide. Even so, Maggie just can't shake the feeling that things don't completely add up. So she takes it upon herself to do a little digging into her best friend’s life. The more she discovers, the more she wonders how well she really knew Celine. And once she inserts herself into Celine’s former life and starts asking questions, she discovers just how far some people will go to leave those questions unanswered.

I liked Maggie and how strong her character was. She was very determined to find out the truth about her friend. Though pretty much everyone else thought she was wrong, she followed her convictions. Even if it meant the answers she would find would not be pleasant.

Even though He Will Be My Ruin wasn’t as suspenseful and I had hoped it would be, the overall story was good. I did sort of guess who the culprit was fairly early on in the story, but there were a couple of surprises and twists thrown in the mix that I did not anticipate, which I liked. If you are in the market for a well written mystery with solid characters, then I would recommend He Will Be My Ruin.

RATING: 3½ out of 5.

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Friday, November 20, 2015

November 9 by Colleen Hoover Blog Tour & Giveaway!!

Thank you for checking out my stop on the November 9 Blog Tour!! If you have yet to read this book or any of Colleen Hoover’s books, I would recommend you do so. Though be warned…you may end up crying at least once. After you read my review don’t forget to enter the contest at the bottom of the post. You can win 1 of 5 prize bundles of one signed copy of NOVEMBER 9 and a pair of #November9 sunglasses! Contest is open until November 30th.

Publication: November, 2015

Publisher: Atria Books

Source: Publisher

Beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover returns with an unforgettable love story between a writer and his unexpected muse.

Fallon meets Ben, an aspiring novelist, the day before her scheduled cross-country move. Their untimely attraction leads them to spend Fallon’s last day in L.A. together, and her eventful life becomes the creative inspiration Ben has always sought for his novel. Over time and amidst the various relationships and tribulations of their own separate lives, they continue to meet on the same date every year. Until one day Fallon becomes unsure if Ben has been telling her the truth or fabricating a perfect reality for the sake of the ultimate plot twist.

The main characters, Fallon and Ben have a unique and funny first encounter. Complete strangers, they end up spending the day together. The connection between them is pretty instant, but their time together is short lived when Fallon leaves L.A. to pursue an acting career in New York. They agree though that they will meet every year on November 9th. The concept reminded me slightly of the movie An Affair to Remember with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. (What can I say...I love classic movies.)

After not knowing each other that long, it is a little surprising that these two can sustain such a friendship and connection with each other over the course of several years. But the more time Fallon and Ben spent together, the more I rooted for them and wanted them to have that epic romance and fall in love.

Fallon is a fun and sarcastic character with a little insecurity mixed in there. Ben, an aspiring writer is charming, quick thinking, and romantic. Want to know more? Then you need to read November 9 for yourself asap!

How Colleen Hoover manages to write book after book filled with good characters and tons of emotion every single time is beyond me. I enjoy her unique writing style and the characters she creates are usually realistic and easy to connect with on some level.

November 9 is romantic, witty, emotional, and sexy. And if you don’t mind embarking on an emotional rollercoaster ride that will leave you wanting more, then I suggest you check it out.

P.S. Visit www.November9book.com for teasers, tour dates and more.

RATING: 3½-4 out of 5.