Book Review: Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
Reviewer: Sandy It’s raw, twisted, disturbing. Its life; the bleakness behind the doors, behind the layers of clothes that hides the individuals we all thought…
Book Review: The Karmic Connection by Libby Mercer
I received a copy of The Karmic Connection by Libby Mercer in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
Guilty of nothing more than working too much – or so they say – Adam Stowe is dumped at a “wellness center” in the middle of nowhere by a couple of concerned colleagues. When he meets Lorraine, the beautiful and bewitching yoga instructor, his spirits start to lift, but once he discovers what a flighty fruitcake she is, they drop back down to subterranean levels.
For Lorraine Jameson, Luna Wellness Center was a beacon of solace when her life was falling apart, and she can’t stand the way Adam’s toxic energy is poisoning the peace. He embodies everything negative about the life she discarded eighteen months ago. Despite being fiercely attracted to the arrogant man, she’s determined not to let Adam Stowe anywhere near her heart.
Adam and Lorraine couldn’t be more unsuitable as a potential couple… so why is the universe so dead set on uniting these two?
Review:
Once again, Libby has written another fun and wonderful read. This book is full of really likeable characters that I really enjoyed getting to know Lorraine and Adam. Ironically, this book is very relateable, especially to people who are big believers in what the universe is up to. For two people who seem so wrong together, why is the universe so dead set on putting them together? Sometimes things just work out like that, you know. And, against all odds, things work out. I was so pleased to read the ending of this book and really liked the tone and the pace of the overall read. Overall, this book is enjoyable and really fun. I would highly recommend it.
Rating: 4.5 stars
Book Review: By Design by Jayne Denker
I received a copy of By Design by Jayne Denker in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
She’s got loads of talent, a massive crush–and no confidence. Now she just needs a plan…
Interior designer Emmie Brewster is having one of those…decades. Her overbearing boss believes she’s only qualified to make coffee. Her boyfriend treats her like a booty call. And her widowed father is dating again–more successfully than she is. Then Emmie lands a client who happens to be the hottest man she’s ever encountered. Too bad Graham Cooper is already involved with the kind of woman Emmie longs to be. If only she had the courage…
Emmie’s always been content to dream–about having her own business, her own Mr. Right–but something about Graham makes her want to take action. Maybe it’s time she used her talent for creating beauty and order on herself. She has Graham’s admiration–does she dare go for more? With a little encouragement from her friends, and a lot of newfound motivation, Emmie’s ready to try…
Review:
I must say that I really enjoyed this book. It is a fun contemporary romance with a cast of really likeable and fun characters that have lead really interesting lives. I really enjoyed Emmie and loved watching her grow throughout the book. I loved the relationship between Emmie and her friend, Trish, and enjoyed their crazy banter. Graham is a really solid guy and I enjoyed him as well. Overall, Jayne does a really great job at creating a quick paced story that reads very easily. Very light for the summer time and this book would make a great read lounging pool side.
Rating: 4 stars
Book Review: Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Reviewer: Andrea Summary: The Shadow Fold, a swathe of impenetrable darkness, crawling with monsters that feast on human flesh, is slowly destroying the once-great nation…
On Tour: Somewhere Between Black and White by Shelly Hickman
Shelly will be on tour July 1-22 with her novel Somewhere Between Black and White Romance, humor, family drama, with a touch of Buddhism. Sound…
Book Review: Being Me by Lisa Renee Jones
I received a copy of Being Me in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
I arch into him, drinking in his passion, instantly, willingly consumed by all that he is and could be to me. . . .
Sara McMillan is still searching for Rebecca, the mysterious woman whose dark,erotic journal entries both enthralled and frightened her. Tormented by a strong desire to indulge the demands of her new boss while also drawn deeper into her passionate bond with the troubled artist, Chris Merit, Sara must face a past as deeply haunting as Rebecca’s written words. In one man’s arms, Sara will find the safe haven to reveal her most intimate secrets and explore her darkest fantasies. But is safety just an illusion, when the truth about Rebecca has yet to be discovered?
Review:
I usually read historical or contemporary romance with sex scenes but I have never read anything like what I read in Being Me! From the very first page I was consumed by the story, the characters and all of the secrets they seemed to have. The sex was HOT and Chris Merit made it even hotter!
Of course, I continued to wonder about the missing Rebecca and Ella’s lack of communication while on her honeymoon. We find out about Rebecca but Ella is still missing.
At times, I felt like I was on an emotional rollercoaster with Sara and Chris because they both have secrets they have yet to share; I got a sense that both of them were holding something back.
The book has a great story line and it is more than sex and secrets. The art gallery and the staff there intrigued me as did Chris’ philanthropy. I found that all of the characters were interesting. I am looking forward to the final book in the trilogy.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes mystery, flawed characters, passion and erotic sex.
Book Review: Laws of Migration by Suzanne Frank
I received a copy of Laws of Migration by Suzanne Frank in exchange for an honest review. Summary: Birds, especially the ibis, have always fascinated…
Book Review: Let It Go by Brooklyn James
I received a copy of Let It Go by Brooklyn James in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
Savannah Bondurant, a marriage and relationship columnist for the Savannah Sun Times, just signed her divorce papers. Brody McAlister, the elusive and smoking hot gym boy, has finally recovered from his divorce three years ago. Be it spurred by loneliness or sheer attraction, the two slip into the sheets for a memorable one-night stand. Savannah’s pesky ex-husband continues to try and worm his way back into her life, insisting they remain friends, even though he is living with his jealous new girlfriend. An up-and-coming woodworker artist, Brody has every socialite cougar in town promising him success and riches, for a price, of course. With two advice-giving older sisters, one fiercely single and one seemingly happily married, Savannah learns her parents’ long and successful relationship does not come without its own secrets. Why should she believe in happily ever after? Her constant overanalyzing and skepticism bodes well in her profession as a journalist, but proves counterproductive in her personal life. Divorce, guilt, suspicion, holding on to the past—can Savannah trust in Brody to help her Let It Go…
My Thoughts:
I was eager when Brooklyn contacted me to review her latest book, Let It Go, seeing as how I adored her debut novel. And let me tell you, she does not disappoint. This book is refreshing real and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Not only are the characters realistic, you can feel their genuine emotion and feelings jump off the page. Now-a-days, everyone has either been through a divorce or been close enough to one to know that they are quite tricky to navigate, and Brooklyn does this with ease. Overall, this story flows with ease and is a quick read and very entertaining. I highly recommend it.
Rating: 4 stars
Book Review: Call Me Zelda by Erika Robuck
I received a copy of Call Me Zelda by Erika Robuck in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:
Everything in the ward seemed different now, and I no longer felt its calming presence. The Fitzgeralds stirred something in me that had been dormant for a long time, and I was not prepared to face it….
From New York to Paris, Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald reigned as king and queen of the Jazz Age, seeming to float on champagne bubbles above the mundane cares of the world. But to those who truly knew them, the endless parties were only a distraction from their inner turmoil, and from a love that united them with a scorching intensity.
When Zelda is committed to a Baltimore psychiatric clinic in 1932, vacillating between lucidity and madness in her struggle to forge an identity separate from her husband, the famous writer, she finds a sympathetic friend in her nurse, Anna Howard. Held captive by her own tragic past, Anna is increasingly drawn into the Fitzgeralds’ tumultuous relationship. As she becomes privy to Zelda’s most intimate confessions, written in a secret memoir meant only for her, Anna begins to wonder which Fitzgerald is the true genius. But in taking ever greater emotional risks to save Zelda, Anna may end up paying a far higher price than she intended….
Review:
I have been reading a lot lately about the Fitzgerald’s and their seemingly glamorous lives in the 1920’s, and I was looking forward to reading Call Me Zelda. I enjoyed the spin on this book in that it wasn’t just about the Fitzgerald’s, or even Zelda. We are given the viewpoint of Anna, a fictitious psychiatric nurse that finds Zelda Fitzgerald in her ward one day. Readers go on quite a journey with Anna, as she befriends the increasingly erratic Zelda throughout her hospital stay, crosses paths with the famous Scott Fitzgerald, and essentiality becomes a part of their family. The book isn’t only about the Fitzgerald’s though, as we see Anna struggle with losing her husband to the war and her daughter to illness, to her trying to find love, and then of course – to her trying to understand her relationship with the Fitzgerald’s. This book was quite intriguing, and I loved being able to open my mind to different scenarios. I liked Robuck’s writing and style, so I will be sure to check out Hemingway’s Girl as well!
4 stars
