Tell Me Lies by Carola Lovering Blog Tour

Publication: June 12, 2018

Publisher: Atria Books

Source: Publisher

A thrilling, sexy coming-of-age story exploring toxic love, ruthless ambition, and shocking betrayal, Tell Me Lies is about that one person who still haunts you—the other one. The wrong one. The one you couldn’t let go of. The one you’ll never forget. Lucy Albright is far from her Long Island upbringing when she arrives on the campus of her small California college, and happy to be hundreds of miles from her mother, whom she’s never forgiven for an act of betrayal in her early teen years. Quickly grasping at her fresh start, Lucy embraces college life and all it has to offer—new friends, wild parties, stimulating classes. And then she meets Stephen DeMarco. Charming. Attractive. Complicated. Devastating. Confident and cocksure, Stephen sees something in Lucy that no one else has, and she’s quickly seduced by this vision of herself, and the sense of possibility that his attention brings her. Meanwhile, Stephen is determined to forget an incident buried in his past that, if exposed, could ruin him, and his single-minded drive for success extends to winning, and keeping, Lucy’s heart. Alternating between Lucy’s and Stephen’s voices, Tell Me Lies follows their connection through college and post-college life in New York City. Deep down, Lucy knows she has to acknowledge the truth about Stephen. But before she can free herself from this addicting entanglement, she must confront and heal her relationship with her mother—or risk losing herself in a delusion about what it truly means to love. With the psychological insight and biting wit of Luckiest Girl Alive, and the yearning ambitions and desires of Sweetbitter, this keenly intelligent and staggeringly resonant novel chronicles the exhilaration and dilemmas of young adulthood, and the difficulty of letting go, even when you know you should.

Told from the alternating POV’S of Stephen and Lucy, Tell Me Lies is story that quickly pulled me in. Stephen and Lucy meet while in college together. Lucy is bright with a great group of friends just looking for a fun experience. Enter Stephen, a world class jerk who thinks he can get away with anything. 

It doesn’t take that long for these two to start dating. They end up developing a toxic on-again, off-again relationship filled with lies and cheating.Even though Stephen is definitely not good for Lucy, she can’t seem to understand that. At least not right away. Lucy has blinders on because she thinks she is in love with him. And even if Stephen is flawed, it’s hard to sever ties with someone who gives you butterflies or makes you feel special whenever they are around. I felt that Stephen was just using Lucy. He didn’t really want her, but he didn’t want anyone else to have her either.

Stephen and Lucy are not really lovable characters. But I think that’s the point. The author created these characters that you may not necessarily want to root for, but you can’t stop from wanting to know what is going to happen next. It’s like watching a car accident happen. You know there is going to be some damage and it won’t be pretty, but you can’t make yourself look away from it. And I enjoyed every page. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good contemporary story filled with deceit, drama, and a side of un-healthy codependency. 

RATING: 3 out of 5.

About the Author

Photograph by Kacey Klonsky

Carola Lovering attended Colorado College, and her work has appeared in W Magazine, National Geographic, Outside, and Yoga Journal, among other publications. Tell Me Lies is her first novel. She currently lives in Brooklyn.

TELL ME LIES by Carola Lovering

Atria Books | ISBN: 9781501169649 | On sale: June 12, 2018 | 384 pages | $26.00

eBook: Atria | ISBN: 9781501169663 | On sale: June 12, 2018 | 384 pages | $13.99

Find Carola Lovering Online

Website: www.carolalovering.com

Twitter: @carolatlovering

Instagram: @carolatlovering

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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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City of the Lost (Casey Duncan Novels #1) by Kelley Armstrong

Publication: May 3, 2016

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Source: Publisher

New York Times and Globe and Mail bestselling author Kelley Armstrong delivers us to Rockton, a secret little town in the far north where the hunted go to hide. And where a hunter has now come to play. Casey Duncan once killed a man and got away with it. Since then she’s become a talented police detective, tethered only to her job, her best friend, Diana, and the occasional evening with her sexy, no-strings-attached ex-con lover, Kurt. But then Diana's abusive ex finds her again, despite all Casey has done to help her disappear. And Casey’s own dark past begins to catch up with her. The two women need to run—and Diana’s heard of a place where they won’t be found, a town especially for people like them…

Casey Duncan was one of my favorite characters in this book. She is smart and strong, but she feels constant guilt regarding an event in her past. Her friend Diana, who has an abusive ex, convinces Casey to consider moving to Rockton.

But you can’t just decide to move to Rockton. There is an application process and a thorough screening involved. The town is very very isolated, and once the “counsel” approves your application and you arrive, there is no leaving unless they allow it or if the residents break one of the rules. Living under different aliases, the people living in Rockton are all hiding from something, so no one is who or what they seem. Rockton gave off a small town/wild west vibe to me. Food and water are rationed. Everyone has to work to earn their keep. Entertainment is limited, unless you count the town brothel. And the sheriff keeps a tight lid on everything. Or at least he tries to.

Even though Casey’s past is a little shaky, she is a very good detective. Although Dalton (the sheriff) has made it clear that he does not want her in his town. Wanted or not, she is needed. Casey soon finds out about a rash of grisly murders occurring and takes it upon herself to help investigate. Since the town is surrounded by miles and miles of wilderness, could it be dangerous wild predators? Or could something or someone far more sinister be at work here?

I first fell in love with Kelley Armstrong’s writing when I started reading Omens (The Cainsville Series #1). The world building and the characters are usually strong, interesting, and multi-layered.  And that’s especially true with this book.

The City of the Lost is an entertaining story that captured me from the first chapter. It’s filled with complex and gruesome murders and unique quirky characters. I’m always leery of romances thrown into mysteries, but this one was well done IMO. And it didn’t really have a strong presence in the story. Even though there was always something going on, things never felt overwhelming. There were a number of surprises sprinkled throughout the story. The mystery was cleverly done and the culprit was not easy to guess. I am excited to see what direction Kelley Armstrong takes this new series. And even more excited to read book two, A Darkness Absolute, slated for release on February 7, 2017.

RATING: 4 out of 5.

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