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Living in Glass Houses by Zoe McNight

I am happy to be closing Zoe McNight’s tour for Living in Glass Houses because I loved this book! What a page turner, and one that really kept me thinking. The story follows three main plot points. There is Jonathan, a college basketball coach who is dating somewhat of a Park Avenue princess. After he meets the new hire at his college, he starts to see what life could be like if he was dating someone with similar interests and background. But he has a choice to make – his princess who makes a bombshell announcement, or the woman who truly thinks he can’t live without. Blair fell in love with her now-husband in college, but his somewhat celebrity status boosted his ego and his wandering eye has turned her jaded. When Blair finally thinks her marriage is in a good place, her past decisions and own indiscretions come back to haunt her. And finally there is Elle, an NYC editor who is in a happy relationship with the man that everyone thinks is her Mr. Right. But Elle can’t seem to move on from a past relationship that ended suddenly and without closure.
I was really fascinated with each character’s story. I will say that I didn’t like Jonathan very much, but his story kept me interested and thinking, and I truly had no idea what his final decision would be. I liked that there was no clear cut ending for everyone. Each character had big decisions to make, and I was truly invested in each journey and how the book would come to an end. The title definitely works; the three friends all seem to judge each other when they need to step back and examine their own lives, and this is a really fabulous contemporary read. I couldn’t put this down, and I give it 5 stars and a spot on my Favorite’s List!

Blog Tour Sign Up: Love At 11 by Mari Mancusi

When Maddy graduated from Columbia University, she was ready to change the world. She’d get a job at Newsline, meet a nice guy, and live happily ever after with a real designer handbag on her arm. Five years later, she’s stuck producing puff pieces for the local News 9 San Diego–where “if it bleeds, it leads.” She’s still single, her family’s falling apart, and so is her knock-off Kate Spade.

Even a promotion–complete with hot camera guy–can’t seem to turn her luck around. After all, the promotion means working with the most narcissistic anchor on the planet and hot camera guy Jamie? Well, he’d be perfect…except for that pesky model/actress fiancee of his.

But just as Maddy’s ready to give up on her dreams, a secret scoop from her favorite knock-off purse guy has her suddenly chasing a huge lead. And Jamie is right by her side–in all the right ways. Can she bag the bad guy in an exclusive expose, put her family back together again, and win Jamie’s heart? Stay tuned…it’s the story of a lifetime.

In My Mailbox: Week of October 28

In Samantha’s Mailbox:

Title: Baby! Baby? Baby?!

Author: Holly Kerr

Received: Via CLP Blog Tours

Synopsis: Thirty-five-year old kindergarten teacher Casey Samms has always dreamed about having her own baby. With her copy of A Young Woman’s Guide to the Joy of Impending Motherhood on her bedside
table, Casey has been steadily wading through the pool of eligible bachelors for years—with absolutely no luck. Now as she bids farewell to a cheating boyfriend and to dating in general, Casey just needs to figure out how to get pregnant without having a man in her life.

Casey immediately discounts her male friends as potential fathers and decides to pursue having a baby the artificial way, even though her sister and friends do their best to try to talk her out of it. But Casey is determined to see her dream come to fruition and begins looking at every male as a potential donor. Just when she is beginning to give the word desperate an entirely new meaning, an old ex-boyfriend, David Mason, saunters back into her life. All Casey has to do now is try to convince him that he is the one who can help her become a mother.

As Casey prepares to realize her lifelong dream, she is about to get the surprise of her life—a surprise that changes everything.

Title: Market Street

Author: Anita Hughes

Received: From St. Martins

Synopsis: Set in San Francisco this book is about the young wife of a UC Berkeley Ethics professor who must choose between her crumbling marriage and the opportunity to open a fabulous food emporium in her mother’s Union Square department store.

Title: Love, Lust & Faking It

Author: Jenny McCarthy

Received: BookSparks PR, Giveaway

Synopsis: New York Times bestselling author Jenny McCarthy gave you the unfiltered ups and downs of pregnancy, motherhood, and marriage in Belly Laughs, Baby Laughs, and Life Laughs. Now the inveterate truth teller gets to the down-and-(sometimes) dirty essence of every man/woman relationship: love and sex.

Meet Tony, Jenny’s first love, the boy of her teenage dreams, and Tubby, her dirty, sexy stuffed teddy bear. Follow Jenny on a whirlwind tour of the world of aphrodisiacs and fetishes, as she explains the importance of playing doctor and other nice and naughty fantasies. Jenny is at her hilarious, no-holds-barred best in Love, Lust & Faking It, sharing stories of her outrageous true exploits—from Playboy centerfold to nightmarish bargain boob job to meeting Brad Pitt—all the while reminding us to always aim higher, be kind to ourselves, believe in true love…and to have lots of fun and sex, without faking it.

In Sara’s Mailbox:

Title: I Kill Me: Tales of A Jilted Hypochondriac

Author: Tracy Tucker

Received: Tracy Tucker

Synopsis: Christine Bacon has a fatal attraction. To all things fatal. A veteran hypochondriac, her near-death experiences are exacerbated when her husband proposes they have a menage a trois with Eleanor, his busty British massage therapist, to “shake things up.” Christine reluctantly agrees (although she is more wholesome than threesome), never expecting just how much she’d be rattled. As her marriage to Richard, a/k/a “Dick,” falls apart, so, too, does Christine, whose fear of her own demise causes her to research every freckle, blemish, cough, bump, lump, tingle and hiccup. She isn’t a doctor, but she plays one on the internet.

There is solace for Christine: in raising daughters Lily and Carli, leaning on her friends, and wearing out the shower massager. In order to heal, she struggles to become her own person and to view her symptoms (and ex-husband) as less malignant, while searching for that special someone who will love her–despite her grave condition.

Novel Spotlight: Mary Indiana by Anneke Campbell

Summary: She’s eighteen and pregnant, but with a twist–the new kid in town’s barely been kissed! Could she really be a virgin? The town doc…

Blog Tour Sign Up: Becoming Mrs. Walsh by Jessica Gordon

Shoshana Thompson is 26 years old, miles from home, and engaged to be married into one of Washington D.C.’s wealthiest families. Andrew Walsh, her fiancé, is Shoshana’s vision of the perfect man. Throughout their engagement, she becomes enamored with his privileged lifestyle.

Rumor has it: when you marry a Walsh, you’re set for life. Her socialite sisters-in-law show her how to live in a Walsh-style world, but just as she is starting to get acclimated, this world introduces her to someone who may shake up her perfect wedding plans.

While Shoshana navigates the tricky world of in-laws and societal wedding planning, she desperately tries to ignore her growing feelings for another man. She knows that exploring this love will threaten her existence as a Walsh. But, when she discovers the feelings may not be one-sided, she knows things are about to get a lot more complicated, especially because this man is absolutely off-limits.

As Shoshana learns, the view from the top is not always the clearest.

Becoming Mrs. Walsh is a story of relationships and the richly layered complexity of family, in-laws, and love.

White Jacket Required: A Culinary Coming-of-Age Story by Jenna Weber

White Jacket Required follows the uber-popular food blogger Jenna Weber, who writes daily on Eat, Live, Run. We follow Jenna as she graduates from college and wonders what to do next. She decides to pursue one of her passions and enrolls in culinary school – but to become a food writer, not a chef of any type. She conquers the rigorous program, gets her first job waking up in the wee hours of the morning to bake bread, is hit head on with an unexpected family member passing and finds love.

This type of book is definitely a first here on Chick Lit Plus but I have been such a fan of Jenna and her blog that I definitely wanted to write about my experience whilst reading her book. Now, let me be up front first and foremost, I have been reading Jenna’s blog for at least two to three years now and already knew most of these things about her, so the book didn’t have too many secrets for me. But, I absolutely loved her honesty and her story telling. I loved watching her pursue her dreams in culinary school and I loved when she recounts her early mornings at her first job. I was also heart broken when she spoke about her brother and his passing. Like I said, I already knew this about her from her blog, but this was told in such a different light and with such intimate honesty that I felt like I was right there with her. While reading, I often wished that we had been friends so that I could have held her hand during those hard times, or smiled right along with her during many of the positive moments in her life. Overall, this coming-of-age story is a really great read – especially if you are into food, because lucky for you, there are recipes found at the end of every chapter, many of which are delicious! A really fantastic read filled with real charm. I highly recommend it.

[Rating: 4.5/5]

The Paternity Test by Michael Lowenthal

I received a copy of The Paternity Test in exchange for an honest review. This book was an eye-opener, definitely something I have not yet read. The main characters are Pat and Stu, a gay couple who has decided they want to try for a baby. They really want to find a surrogate mother and use Stu’s sperm, and find luck upon them when the meet Debora, who seems to be a great fit. But over time, Pat finds himself drawn to Debora and has some difficult decisions to make – and questions to answer.
I found myself with raised brows throughout my reading – especially at the end. The ending was really nothing that I thought it might be, and I wouldn’t say I’m disappointed, but it did bum me out a little. I’m being cryptic, huh? Trying not to give away so much information! I do think that Michael Lowenthal wrote a very honest and emotional read that lets people discover a different lifestyle in the literary world, I found that fascinating. I really enjoyed this book, as I walk away from it entertained, educated, and still thinking about Pat and Stu’s journey.
[Rating: 4]

Future Tour: The Saint’s Devilish Deal by Kristina Knight

Kristina will be on tour October 29-November 5 with her novel The Saint’s Devilish Deal Esmerelda Quinn has been looking for a place to belong…

Author Profile: Judah Lee Davis

Author Name: Judah Lee Davis
Website: http://judahleedavis.wordpress.com/
Bio: After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Auburn University in 2001, Judah Lee Davis has furthered her career as a corporate writer for the past decade. As a result of her training in media writing, her non-traditional writing style is simple, easy-to-read, and accessible to adult readers at all education levels.

Her debut novel, She Tells All, is written from the hilarious collage of ideas that could only come from living in a small town. From strong Pentecostal undertones to vulgarity of the crudest nature, Davis contrasts the war between good and evil as she chronicles the struggles of a promiscuous girl looking for love, (or something similar) in a sleepy southern town.

Her sequel, Every Woman’s Hero, keeps the funny coming with even more laughter, more fun, and an even bigger dose of can’t-put-it-down humor. The final book of the trilogy, the Diary of Dion, tells the entire story from another character’s point of view. It is a weighty look at the problems in the church that ostracize so many and make outsiders feel as if they are not part of the Jesus Country Club.

While Davis is hoping to make waves in the world of fiction with her sexy, hilarious, and thought provoking series, she currently enjoys lavishing her two kittens with an unreasonable amount of affection, spending time with her family, and keeping up with her day job.
See my review from She Tells All!
Visit Judah’s tour page!