Book review: Bittersweet by Sarina Bowen! (@sarinabowen)

Bittersweet (True North #1)
Author: Sarina Bowen
Publication Date: June 14, 2016
Published: Rennie Road Books
Source: Author

My Rating:

If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the orchard.
The last person Griffin Shipley expects to find stuck in a ditch on his Vermont country road is his ex-hookup. Five years ago they’d shared a couple of steamy nights together. But that was a lifetime ago.

At twenty-seven, Griff is now the accidental patriarch of his family farm. Even his enormous shoulders feel the strain of supporting his mother, three siblings and a dotty grandfather. He doesn’t have time for the sorority girl who’s shown up expecting to buy his harvest at half price.
Vermont was never in Audrey Kidder’s travel plans. Neither was Griff Shipley. But she needs a second chance with the restaurant conglomerate employing her. Okay—a fifth chance. And no self-righteous lumbersexual farmer will stand in her way.
They’re adversaries. They want entirely different things from life. Too bad their sexual chemistry is as hot as Audrey’s top secret enchilada sauce, and then some.

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Anything that has quotes or references to Star Wars I’m all about it.

I want a Griff of my own, I wonder if my husband will change for me.

Excerpt Reveal: Say You'll Stay by Corinne Michaels! (@AuthorCMichaels)

Say You’ll Stay
Author: Corinne Michaels
Release Date: June 20, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance

One word.

Stay.

It was all he had to do. Instead, he got on that bus and took my heart with him.

That was seventeen years ago.

I moved on. Marriage. Kids. White picket fence. Everything I ever wanted, but my husband betrayed me and I was left once again.

Alone, penniless, and with two boys, I had no choice but to return to Tennessee. He wasn’t supposed to be there. I should’ve been safe. However, fate has a way of stepping in.

This time around, the tables are turned. It’s my decision. Second chances do exist, but I don’t know if we can repair what’s already been broken . . .


** This book is a STANDALONE **

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A knock on my office door causes me to stop working. “Zach?” I push my glasses up the bridge of my nose and stand. I should’ve known avoiding him wasn’t really going to work when he can roll up any ol’ time he wants. It was only a matter of time. “Sorry to stop by without callin’, but the other night wasn’t exactly the best place for us to talk.” He removes his hat and tosses it on the chair. “I saw you in town yesterday trying to be incognito. Figured we should try to be civil.” Civil? He can’t just show his face when he wants. He doesn’t belong here. I don’t want to see him at all, much less in my home, the one place that’s my safe haven. Damn him for not taking the fucking hint. “Your mother said you were out here. She didn’t throw something at me, so I took that as a good sign.” “What are you doing here?” I stand, slamming my hand on the desk. “My mother may not have thrown anything because she’s a proper Southern woman, but I’m not anymore. I’ve spent enough time in the North to not give a shit if I pelt you in the head with a stapler!” I grab it off the desk and rear back. “Whoa! Whoa!” he says with his hands raised. “I’m not coming to start anything. I just want to see how you are. I’ve missed you.” “Asshole!” I throw the stapler at his head. “You don’t get to miss me!” He ducks as it makes a loud bang against the wall. Zach’s eyes widen as his lips turn up. “Seems all those years watching me play ball taught you how to throw.” I grab the next thing I see. “You apparently sucked at teaching!” “Felicia and I wanted to invite you over for dinner.” He has lost his damn mind. Zach lets out a sigh and moves closer. “I know it could be awkward, but I figured if . . .” “If what? That there’s a chance we could be friends? Hang out even? You need your head examined if you think that’ll happen.” I don’t know if maybe he forgot how we ended things. “Pres,” he chides. “Don’t ‘Pres’ me! You have some nerve showing up here.” “It was a long time ago.” I want to sock him in the face. “Leave,” I demand. Zach walks closer and crosses his arms across his chest. “I’m not leaving until we settle this. I want us to get things out in the air.” “Fine.” I grab the paper clip holder and toss it. I miss again. “That was in the air.”

Corinne Michaels is the USA Today and Wall Street Journal Bestselling author of The Salvation Series (Beloved, Beholden, Consolation, Conviction & Defenseless). She's an emotional, witty, sarcastic, and fun loving mom of two beautiful children. Corinne is happily married to the man of her dreams and is a former Navy wife. After spending months away from her husband while he was deployed, reading and writing was her escape from the loneliness.

Both her maternal and paternal grandmothers were librarians, which only intensified her love of reading. After years of writing short stories, she couldn't ignore the call to finish her debut novel, Beloved. Her alpha heroes are broken, beautiful, and will steal your heart.

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Cover Reveal! The Debt by Karina Halle! (@MetalBlonde)

We are very thrilled to bring to you the cover for THE DEBT by Karina Halle releasing on August 29th

Her life changed in an instant. And he's the only one who could have prevented it. Jessica Charles shouldn't have even been in London when the unthinkable happened. She should have been back at home in Edinburgh, perhaps hanging with her boyfriend, preparing the baby shower for her sister, or teaching her yoga classes. She should have been going on in her normal, dependable life as always. But on that fateful day in August, when a mentally-ill ex-soldier opened fire in public, Jessica's world changed forever. Now single and crippled from the gunshot wounds, Jessica finds herself scared and alone, losing faith in herself and humanity with each agonizing moment that passes. That is until a stranger enters her life. A stranger who makes her live again. Keir McGregor has always been the strong, silent type. Throw in tall, dark, and handsome and you've got pretty much the perfect Scotsman. Except Keir is anything but perfect. He's got a past he's running away from and a guilty conscience he can't seem to shed. But the more time he spends with Jessica, the more he falls in love with her. And the more his secret threatens to tear them apart. He may have been a stranger to her. But she’s never been a stranger to him. 

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Karina Halle is a former travel writer and music journalist and The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author of The Pact, Racing the Sun, Sins & Needles and over 25 other wild and romantic reads. She lives on an island off the coast of British Columbia with her husband and her rescue pup, where she drinks a lot of wine, hikes a lot of trails and devours a lot of books. Halle is represented by the Waxman Leavell Agency and is both self-published and published by Simon & Schuster and Hachette in North America and in the UK. Hit her up on Instagram at @authorHalle, on Twitter at @MetalBlonde and on Facebook. You can also visit www.authorkarinahalle.com and sign up for the newsletter for news, excerpts, previews, private book signing sales and more. FACEBOOK TWITTER GOODREADS AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE

Waiting On Wednesday #55

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Title: Learning to Swear in America

Author: Katie Kennedy

Release Date: July 5, 2016

Brimming with humor and one-of-a-kind characters, this end-of-the world novel will grab hold of Andrew Smith and Rainbow Rowell fans.
An asteroid is hurtling toward Earth. A big, bad one. Yuri, a physicist prodigy from Russia, has been called to NASA as they calculate a plan to avoid disaster. He knows how to stop the asteroid: his research in antimatter will probably win him a Nobel prize--if there's ever another Nobel prize awarded. But Yuri's 17, and having a hard time making older, stodgy physicists listen to him. Then he meets Dovie, who lives like a normal teenager, oblivious to the impending doom. Being with her, on the adventures she plans when he's not at NASA, Yuri catches a glimpse of what it means to save the world and save a life worth living.
Prepare to laugh, cry, cringe, and have your mind burst open with questions of the universe.

I love Rainbow, so this being compared to her is a good sign. I also love disaster movies and this seems something out of a Michael Bay movie. Bring it on!

Top Ten Tuesday! Most Anticipated Releases For The Second Half Of The Year

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish

We're halfway through the year, and I know for sure it's going super fast. Maybe lets wish for it to slow down. 

1. Star Wars: Ahsoka, by E.K. Johnston
Release date: October 11, 2016

I am so excited because Ahsoka is one of my favorite Star Wars characters of the the whole saga. I am still heartbroken that Disney cancelled The Clone Wars (I hope you are reading this Disney) and I loved her appearance on Rebels. I wish Rebels was all about Ahsoka.
There are so many stories to tell about her within the timeline of the two shows and I will read any novel, comic book, or watch any TV series or movie that tells me Ahsoka's story of that time in between.


You can read more about the book here: https://team-ahsoka.com/2016/06/04/w...-novel-so-far/

2. The Sun Is Also a Star, by Nicola Yoon
Release date: November 1, 2016

Natasha: I’m a girl who believes in science and facts. Not fate. Not destiny. Or dreams that will never come true. I’m definitely not the kind of girl who meets a cute boy on a crowded New York City street and falls in love with him. Not when my family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. Falling in love with him won’t be my story.
Daniel: I’ve always been the good son, the good student, living up to my parents’ high expectations. Never the poet. Or the dreamer. But when I see her, I forget about all that. Something about Natasha makes me think that fate has something much more extraordinary in store—for both of us.
The Universe: Every moment in our lives has brought us to this single moment. A million futures lie before us. Which one will come true?

I like the opposites attract story. I am anticipating Nicola's sophomore release because I like Everything, Everything very much.

The cover is really cool too. Look at the detail:

3. Beard and Science by Penny Reid

Release Date: October 2016

I'm hella excited for this one. I just finished the second book and in the back there was a teaser for this. I loved Cletus in the first two books and I can't wait to see what he gets up to in his own. 

He's so blunt yet his brothers talk about how scary he can be. But he also makes me laugh so much. I hope this lives up to the amazingness of the first two. 

4. Twist by Kylie Scott

Release Date: November 22, 2016

When his younger brother loses interest in online dating, hot, bearded, bartender extraordinaire, Joe Collins, only intends to log into his account and shut it down. Until he reads about her.
Alex Parks is funny, friendly, and pretty much everything he's been looking for in a woman. And in no time at all they're emailing up a storm, telling each other their deepest darkest secrets... apart from the one that really matters.
And when it comes to love, serving it straight up works better than with a twist.

Another follow up book. I loved Dirty. I know I'm going to love Twist too. Kylie can't do wrong in my book. And this cover is just so much yum.

Book Review: Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys! (@RutaSepetys)

Salt to the Sea
Author: Ruta Sepetys
Publication Date: February 2, 2016
Published: Philomel Books

My Rating:

Winter, 1945. Four teenagers. Four secrets.
Each one born of a different homeland; each one hunted, and haunted, by tragedy, lies…and war.
As thousands of desperate refugees flock to the coast in the midst of a Soviet advance, four paths converge, vying for passage aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, a ship that promises safety and freedom.
Yet not all promises can be kept.
Inspired by the single greatest tragedy in maritime history, bestselling and award-winning author Ruta Sepetys (Between Shades of Gray) lifts the veil on a shockingly little-known casualty of World War II. An illuminating and life-affirming tale of heart and hope.

"The sinking of the Gustloff is the largest maritime disaster, yet the world still knows nothing of it. I often wonder, will that ever change or will it remain just another secret swallowed by war?" - page 178.

I loved Salt to the Sea. The true events in this historical fiction is sadly a forgotten part of history. I am glad that Ruta wrote this novel so that people will know about the disaster and over 9,000 lives lost (5,000 were children) when the Wilhelm Gustloff sank. I love what she said in her author's note at the end (which I encourage any reader to read before starting the story), "When the survivors are gone we must not let the truth disappear with them. Please give them a voice."

The multiple character POVs was well done. We got to see the war and people's experiences through different eyes. I loved the evolution of the characters' secrets. The introductions were brilliantly done to set the tone: Guilt/fate/shame/fear is a hunter.

The Wilhelm Gustloff sunk in under an hour and so the suspense during the sinking was fast and intense.

I am going to get into some spoilers below. You've been warned.

Emilia was my favorite. My heart ached for her. Anytime someone wanted her to go away she was reminded that because of Hitler's prejudice Poles were unwanted, and I just wanted to take her in my arms to love and protect her.

I had a feeling that August was not really her boyfriend but just a coping mechanism. It was just a gut-wrenching feeling I had that the Russians soldiers raped her.

I was a bawling mess by the end of the book. I was so hoping she would survive and be reunited with her newborn daughter, but when she was back with her momma, baby brother and two best friends I knew... excuse me. I need a tissue because I am crying again.

Blog Tour: The Way With You by Anne Mercier! - Review

 

Title: The Way With You
Series: The Way #2
Author: Anne Mercier
Genre: Coming of Age/New Adult Romance
Release Date: May 23, 2016

My Rating:

Finding a "happily ever after" was hard enough. 

Keeping it is even harder.

Olivia Brennan and Cameron Stone have both gone through Hell and back to finally find their way to each other.  With obstacles set against them, the struggle to stay connected is harder than ever.  Between their academic schedules, Olivia's newfound campus infamy, and a conniving ex stirring up trouble, Liv and Cam begin to struggle to keep what they've worked so hard for.

But when something unexpected fractures their trust, they must decide if they can repair what's left of their fragile love or will they discover that "happily ever after" is just for fairytales?

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I'm walking back to the dorm after class when someone bumps into me—hard. I look over, biting back a curse, and when I see it's Alison, I wish I'd let it out.

"What's your problem?" I bark.

"You. You're my problem," she sneers.

I roll my eyes. "Why is that? Because you want to screw Cam but he's with me? Because Cam made me his girlfriend when all you were to him was a piece of ass? Both of you," I correct when I see Brittany standing beside her.

"You little bitch. I'm going to ruin you," Brittany shouts.

I'm so afraid right now. I know what Alison is capable of—but with Brittany by her side? I can't even imagine. I swallow that fear and pretend. I'm good at that—pretending I'm okay.

"Could you be any more dramatic?"

Alison steps closer. "Watch yourself, Muppet. You're overstepping."

"No. I'm not. I'm minding my own business, living my life, and you nut jobs start with your threatening and bullying. What are you—twelve?" I mock.

Alison's nostrils flare. It reminds me of a bull in a Bugs Bunny cartoon. You know the one? Where the steam comes out of the bull's nostrils because Bugs keeps taunting it? That's the one. I smirk at the thought and Alison's hand comes flying at my face before I can even think.

She slaps me and she slaps me hard—not just once, but twice. The burn, the sting of the slaps hurts like a mofo. I won't cry, but I can't stop the tears that fill my eyes. Damn it. I hate showing her any signs of weakness.

"Feel better now?" I ask, lifting my chin.

She hides the shock well, but I still get a glimpse. I am not the same girl I once was. I'm not sure who I am, exactly, but I'm no longer weak.

She cocks out a hip. "A little. But Muppet? There's a lot worse coming."

I was really really looking forward to this book. I wanted to see the relationship between Cam and Olivia grow. They have gone through so much not only with one another but alone as well.