Shooting Scars by Karina Halle

"Sequel to Sins and Needles...

...continue on Ellie, Javier and Camden's story.

I know that's a bit vague...

but it's for the best.


My thoughts 

WOW theres just not enough stars for this book!!! There was a great build up. I literally had my hand over my mouth gasping for half the book.




Since reading the first two books I have been 50/50 but after reading this book I am 100% Team Javier. yea he made some mistakes but who doesn't?! 

"Camden is your past... I am your future"

I still have a funny feeling that it is Camden that Ellie is suppose to be with but you can never know with Karina. 

The wheels in my head are spinning overtime to guess the outcome of this trilogy. I have no clue what is coming up and how this will possible end in the finale. 

"I told you that you broke me when you left"

I love Karina's EiT series, and now this trilogy, she has now fully cemented her place in my top 3 favourite authors. please please please I need the last book ASAP.




A trilogy not to be missed!!!

ARC courtesy of the author and publisher"

This Girl by Colleen Hoover

"YES it is Slammed from Will's POV...

My thoughts

Wow it was like reading slammed for the first time. Being already familiar with the story, there were familiar scenes as well as new ones added in. 

I would have liked more present day storyline but I guess these two been through enough, I'm sure Colleen didn't want to torture them any more.

“You want to know my sweet?" I ask her.
She nods.
I kiss her on the forehead. "You. Always you.”

Knowing how the first two books ended I had no doubt this will be a nice happy ever after and I was not disappointed. 

If I didn't love Will enough before in Slammed and Point of Retreat, I'm definitely 100% in love with him now. Such a loveable character. 

It wasn't until I got to the end did I realise that I missed the whole gang (especially the two brothers) and I would have liked to read more about them. 




Loved it.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley
"

Sins and Needles by Karina Halle

"
Ellie is a con artist but plans to give it up...

She returns to her home town...

And reunites with Camden, her high school friend, now a successful tattoo artist ...

She sees the potential is scamming him...


My thoughts

Wow this book was a breath of fresh air and nothing like anything I've read before. 

Ellie being the daughter of con artists has had a troubled time growing up. I felt deeply sorry for her and each flashback holds a significance to the story.

“Beautiful, sad, wounded, and lost,” he continued. “A freak, a work of art, a liar, and a lover.”

And then theres Camden, being the high school freak, he also had his fair share of anguish growing up. You can't help but love them both.

"I hate you, Ellie Watt," he whispered, lips coming closer to mine, "because I still love you after all these years.”

I'm still not sure whether I'm team Camden or team Javier. I think I kinda like them both. Cannot wait to get my hands on the second book in the trilogy x


"

Unteachable by Leah Raeder

5 out of 5 stars

"They met at a carnival...



There is an instant connection...

and then in Maise's senior year...

Evan became Mr Wilke...


My thoughts

I really liked the heroine, Maise has a troubled upbringing but she is pretty straightforward on what she wants.

I felt like Evan and Maise's connection was fairly physical (I'm not complaining!) but at the same time I thought they connected at a much deeper level.

I can't hold on to you. You're like that shooting star. Just a trail of fire in my hands

This is a student teacher relationship but to be honest I felt the main story wasn't revolved around the forbidden romance, rather 2 people with a bit of a messed up past finding each other.

I like that you're kind of fucked up, because I'm kind of fucked up"

A lovely ended but I felt there were some issues left hanging that maybe an epilogue could have solved. Great book x"

Beneath the Burn by Pam Godwin

5 out of 5 stars 

"Jay is a tortured drug addict rock god...

Charlee has been running away from her captor...

They meet by chance...

3 yeas later they meet again...


My thoughts

This book was AMAZING!!! I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Words cannot describe how I feel about this book. From both their past there is a lot going on in this book and I think my heart dropped around the 90% mark. 

“It was funny how a passing of time could rip you apart, and all it took was one freeing moment to solder the pieces back together.”

Amazing writing that had me gasping as each chapter ended. Maybe Laz can have a book? Please 




I would recommend you read the warning in the blurb, some parts are not for the faint hearted.

Content warning: Includes graphic rape, sex, anal, bondage, and violence. Age 18+ only.

A great read if your looking for action packed drama with plenty of gasping moments. 5 amazing stars!!!"

Dear Rockstar by Emme Rollins

"
Travel back to the 80s...

Remember being young and obsessed with the latest music icon?




Yup... That's Sara...

But she takes it to a new level...

To wanting to uproot her life and education to be closer to him...

Then she meets Dale the new kid...


My thoughts:

I thought the first half of the book was very YA. Then the second half kicked in with a few steamy scenes and a bit of drama. I really liked this book and these two were just too cute together.

Sara was completely obsessed with her idol and I wish she open her eyes and see what's right in front of her.

“I know you. Inside and out, Sara. I know you, and I’ve accepted it all. Every bit of the crazy. And I love you anyway remember?”

I have to say I saw the twists at the end coming but that didn't stop me enjoying it. Fab standalone book!!!


"

Frigid by J Lynn

"Uh oh

not another man whore and innocent girl NA book...

Except...

They were best friends since they were young...

And now...

They are stuck in a snow storm...

Alone...




My thoughts 

I'm so glad for once we had two pretty normal characters i.e. no broken past.

Though, Syd had soo many insecurities and her inner thoughts were too much at times, every little thing she seems to second guess. 

“How you’ve always felt?” “I’ve loved you my entire life,” he said, eyes locked on mine. “And I would love you for the rest of my life if you’d let me, Syd.”

I don't see how these two didn't figure it out sooner. It was obvious how they felt towards each other.

“All those times I'd broken her heart, and she was still here.
She was still here.”

Overall

An enjoyable read and would recommend this book for those that like sweet romance with a dash of drama and angst."

Losing Hope by Colleen Hoover

 "

The companion book to Hopeless...

Now we get Holden's story...


My thoughts:

I don't know how Colleen manage to write another book where we get a male POV and turn it into a story we are already familiar with but at the same time refreshing.




I know hopeless quite well so I knew what parts were coming up but that did not stop me from feeling so many emotions from this book. 

My heart was racing from the way Colleen writes and I was right there inside Holdens head. 

“I don't want her to feel nothing when I kiss her. I want her to feel everything.”

A character we didn't know well in Hopeless is Holden's best friend, Daniel. I couldn't remember if he even featured in the first book but I loved him here and I can guess maybe there's a storyline there with somebody who he had an encounter with.

Overall

I loved Hopeless and now I love Losing Hope aswell. This is still a must read if you already read the first book.

ARC received from NetGalley"

Edible by Ella Frank

My thoughts:

Having loved the first two books in the series, I was eager to get my hands on the third book, Rachel and Cole's book. This was one hot book with a load of chemistry and sex scenes. I would have liked a bit more storyline or drama but the hotness that is Cole makes up for it (le sigh!)

Book 1 is still my favourite but I love this book because it is one of those books that gave me a good feeling from beginning til end. I loved the banter with the whole group and I loved the Cole vs Mason showdown. A perfect epilogue to I assume is the end to this series but I'm sure they will appear as cameos in Logan's spin off. Love this series and will definitely be reading more from Ella Frank!

Overall: 

Rating: 5 stars

Hero: controlling, bossy, HAWT

Heroine: lonely, abused past

Type: contemporary erotic

Setting: restaurant

Series: #3 Exquisite series (standalone)

Ending: HEA with epilogue

Recommend: YES!!!

This man Confessed by Jodi Ellen Malpas

"JESSE'S BACK...

For the finale...

Expect confessions...

Drama...

oh no moments...

And don't forget the various degrees of fucking...



One hot book that I will no doubt be re-reading at some point in the future. Everything and I do mean everything is wrapped up and answered from the previous two books. 

If you thought Jesse was controlling before, he takes it to a whole new level in this one. 

“You keep my heart beating, baby, but you can also make it fucking stop.”

Last thoughts
Fab trilogy and what an epic epilogue!!!"

Come Alive (EiT 7) by Karina Halle

5 out of 5 stars

After finishing: 

Phew having left book 6 at a nice ending I was quite worried going into this book... Especially with the reappearance of a certain character. I knew there be trouble for Dex and Perry. Turns out I was worried about the wrong thing. 

Characters:

Everything that comes out of Dex's mouth, I just wanted to highlight it all. But here, we have all his inner thoughts too, which made it extra special. He is definitely back to his cheeky self and boy do I love him more. Perry was just as loveable here. She is having trouble trusting Dex with her heart and to be honest I can't blame her for being more cautious.

The plot:

I thought with some previous book there wasn't enough romance element to the story but I thought this one found the perfect combination of love and in this case investigating a voodoo sect. My blood was definitely pumping with excitement and towards the end I was a bit nail bitingly scared.

Last thoughts:

Winter is too long away for more Dex and Perry and I definitely can't wait with how the last chapter ended. Come Alive has left you wanting more and more. This is one of my favourites EiT books alongside Lying Season and the main reason for this... Dex is just too loveable.

Remember When 2 by T. Torrest

"As soon as I finished:



I need a moment to calm down. My heart was beating like crazy. Argh cliffhanger, in my mind worse than the first! 

The plot:
You know I'm not going to say a word about the plot because if you haven't read the first book, I don't want to spoil it. Lets just leave it as a continuation of a love story between Trip and Layla.

Characters:
I really liked Layla and I'm glad with her decisions in this book. Trip, I Love him Love him LOVE HIM!!! Lisa was a great supporting character and I liked her friendship with Layla.

“I’m sorry about….ever letting you go. I’m sorry for all the time we wasted. I’m sorry for being here with you right now when we can’t do a damned thing about it.”

Last thoughts:
Great writing. I really need the third and final book and their HEA. I think may be my fav book of the year so far x"

Remember When by T. Torrest

 

"

Remember back in school when you had your first crush? 

first love?? 

well...

you can re-live all of it through this book. 


Wow, the emotions and butterlifes in my stomach this book gave me!!!




Exactly my type of book. But...I was expecting a completely different ending to what the blurb said. 

Layla has a crush on the new boy, Trip. The book spans over the whole senior years of high school and I found it very relatable and realistic. It is a sweet book and the ending awwww!!!!

“Be happy. Wherever you wind up. And know that I'll be thinking of you, wherever I am.”

Last thoughts:
Im dying to find out what happened to Trip and Layla throughout the years."

Until Fountain Bridge by Samantha Young

"Yay

We get Ellie's POV...

On some of the scenes that we didn't get to see in On Dublin Street...

As well as before they met Joss...


My thoughts

I was so excited to read this because I absolutely loved Ellie in the first book. We didn't get much of Adam in the first book so I was glad they got their own book. 

"It's painful to read from your perspective but I can't look away."

I felt exactly that!!!

As with most novellas I do wish it was a full length novel, maybe more on post-Joss years or even post-surgery. 

I love Samantha's writing and I had tears in my eyes for Ellie in the end.




LOVED it!!!
"

The Remembrance Trilogy by Kahlen Aymes

5 out of 5 stars 

Wow wow wow... Having just finished it I'm a bit speechless and my emotions are flying everywhere.

First book (The future of our pasts):

Starts off with Julia and Ryan being best friends for 4 years, Ryan finds out that he has to move across the country to attend medical school thus separating them both. This brings them to confront their feelings for one another. 

This book was lovely and sickeningly sweet. I love how their love for one another consumes one another even with being so far apart. The first in the book ended on a major cliffy and at the time I read it I was fortunate enough to have the second one already out. 

The second book (Don't forget to remember me):

Starts with dealing from the aftermath of the tradegy from the first book. Ryan is forced to keep his distance. I don't want to say anymore because I really don't want to spoil this lovely sequel. 

Emotional is an understatement. It was heartbreaking to just think about it. I wanted to just scream at Ryan at times and urge him to just tell Julia but I know it wouldn't have been the same. Julia needed to find out for herself.

Final instalment (A love like this):

The series finale has Julia and Ryan finding time in their hectic schedule for time for one another. When a colleague saves Ryan's life, his new friendship gets between his love for Julia. 

I thought the first half of this book was much like the first book, very sweet and lots of 'I love you's.' They both needed this though with how angsty the second book was. Definitely more sex scenes than the second.

Then, the second half kicked in, although I could feel I knew where the story was going, it was heart wrenchingly torture. I cried buckets. The ending was beautiful and exactly why I love reading romance books. The epilogue... So so beautiful!!!

I don't normally look forward to series follow ups because there is normally a third party introduced to drag the story along. I don't normally look forward to the misunderstandings and miscommunications but this book was an exception. Both Julia and Ryan needed this wake up call. Their love for one another was so strong I knew without a doubt it will work out in the end. 

I think Kahlen did an amazing job with this trilogy. Her writing is beautiful and I can feel so much emotions from it. Yes, there was times I was a bit overwhelmed by how sappy Ryan was but I wouldn't change him any other way. I thought Julia is a strong heroine and I could understand her logic behind her outburst and decisions in this book. I'm not someone that easily cries reading a book but this one had me in tears. 

Overall:

I will recommend this trilogy for those who like a combination of sweet and angst. One of my favourite series that I will no doubt be reading again.

Rules of Entanglement by Gina Maxwell

5 out of 5 stars

The cons:

"I didn't like it that it ended at 94% I was hoping for MORE of Vanessa (Lucie's best friend) and Jax (Lucie's brother). I could see myself reading more of them but unfortunately was cut short! I don't have any other negative thing to say except that although Jax is a MMA fighter, we didn't get to see him in action hot and sweating and bruised up!

The pros:

 I loved how strong minded Vanessa was, I loved Lucie and Reids HEA, I LOVED MMA fighter Jax and mostly I loved the chemistry and banter between the two. The ending was VERY cliche though and I felt like I already watched it in a movie somewhere.

Summary:

With Vanessa's rules she swears by will Jax be able to break through them?

"Always always always... Tell her how much you love her, now and forever, before its too late""

Exquisite by Ella Frank

5 out of 5 stars

Love this:

I'm trying to find something, anything I don't like about this book but I've come up blank. I loved everything about it from the two main characters to the writing to the storyline. I love it when two characters slowly develop feelings for each other and not just fall straight in bed with each other. Though the sex scenes were steamy hot!!! I felt every emotion possible with this book from on the verge of tears to angst to mushy happy. My only critique if I'm really forcing it is I wished the epilogue was a bit longer and more into the future. But it really doesn't matter in this case I loved it all the same.

Storyline:

This started off with Lena loosing her younger sister in a car accident caused by herself. She has since built up walls around herself to guard herself. Fast forward 9 years, Lena is now a doctor. She meets Mason who owns a restaurant and considered most eligible bachelor. From the first moment they met they didn't like each other, in fact they couldn't stand each other. I love it when this happens. I loved their playful banter. Eventually you can guess what happens to them both. What I didn't expect was the second half of the book when... Not going to say anymore! Read it for yourself!

Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

5 out of 5 stars

One of my favourites:

This book is one of my favourites from 2012. Not many books I have re-read more than once and this was one of them. It starts off with Abby in college away from her dark past meets the man whore and fighter Travis. What started off as a bet, they quickly become close friends. Loads go on in this story including fights, hangovers, birthdays, Las Vegas, the list goes on.

Couple:

I really fell in love with this couple. The dialogue between the two of them was entertaining. I so badly wanted it to work out for them. 

Similar storylines:

I think since this book there has been similar storylines but in the end I feel like it all started from this book. Overall it was a book I couldn't put down and love. I can really see this turning into a movie.

One tiny lie by K.A Tucker

5 out of 5 stars

Another college romance:

Honestly I wasn't too gripped at the beginning, I think it was because Ashton wasn't in it much as I would have liked at first but then when the story developed I couldn't get enough. This might seem like your typical college romance where we have the manwhore Ashton and the innocent Livie. But it was so much more, the author did an excellent job in describing just how Livie was feeling and I was literally there with her. When she blushed, I blush, when she was upset, I was there with her.

Manwhore:

As for Ashton, he was just yum!!! I knew there would be reasons behind his manwhore ways. His interactions with Livie made me grin and smile. There was a storyline at the end with Ashton's best friend that I felt was rushed.

Great follow up:

As always with a series follow up we do see cameos of Kasey and Trent, but I didn't see enough of them. The story was engaging and actually very glad with the length of it. Are we going to read more about this series and if so who will be the main characters? I have no clue! An excellent read and would recommend this whole heartedly.

**arc received from netgalley**

Experiment in Terror 4-6 by Karina Halle

5 out of 5 stars

This series was a slow starter romantically for the first three books but these three books made up for it. There was more progress with Dex and Perry and although book 5 was more of a 4 star I thought overall it deserved the 5 star as book 6 ended how I finally hoped it would. Be warned that book 4 and 5 do end as a cliffy. With 3 more books to go in the series (not including the novellas) I wonder how their relationship will play out. By book 6 I'm in love with Dex and so glad his cheeky self and banter with Perry is back. Can't wait for the next one out in June 2013!!