Review: Making Me Sane by Lindsay Paige

Making Me Sane (Sanity #2) by Lindsay Paige

Release Date: September 7, 2016

Genres: New Adult, Romance

Pages: 256

Source: E-Book, ARC

Goodreads Description:

He was my boyfriend. My rock. The love of my life.

She was my girlfriend. My love. My everything.

He abandoned me.

I walked away.

I hate him, but I love him.

I love her and have nothing but regret for letting her go.

He caused me so much pain; I just can't trust him.

I can't live without her. I will earn back her trust.

He's drawing me in but should I stay?

I'll fight for her with everything I have.

Is there a chance we can go from driving each other mad to making each other sane?

My Review

Thank you Lindsay for the opportunity to read this ARC for my honest review.

Lindsay’s books for me are all about the characters. I’m always drawn into the characters and end up falling in love with them. The characters are always one of if not the most important thing about a book for me. My favorite books are always the ones where I feel like the characters are friends. Then when I come to a second book I feel like I’m catching up with an old friend. Lindsay’s characters are like that for me.

So while this book is about a sad and depressing subject, I enjoy the characters. There is also a happy ending to this book. The whole book is about the character’s struggle to manage their depression and anxiety to the point they’re able to live a happy life. In the end, they get that.

This book picks up one year later from where Driving Me Mad left off and Trace is trying to win Brittany back. He comes up with some clever ideas - much better than the dates and sweet things to do I could think of. Brittany’s heart betrays her brain and she finds herself turning to Trace for comfort several times.

I absolutely loved the ending! In an effort to prevent spoilers, I will just say that it contained two things I love in a book. I also appreciated the fact that we got a full epilogue at the end of the book. A lot a books give you  short little epilogue that leave you with more questions. Not this one.

If the depression and anxiety don't hit too close to home for you and you like romance, I definitely recommend this book!

Check out Lindsay's website to read excerpts from the book at http://authorlindsaypaige.blogspot.com/.

Goodreads/Amazon

Book Release Blitz & Review: The Sex Education of M.E. by L.B. Dunbar

Title: The Sex Education of M.E.

Author: L.B. Dunbar

Genre: Contemporary Romance

 Release Date: August 22, 2016

Blurb

I’m forty, flabby, and frustrated. Don’t get me wrong, I have a good home, a decent job, and great children. I had a loving marriage for twenty years where we had our ups and downs. It wasn’t perfect; but it wasn’t awful. Then he died. 

After the grief took its course, and the reality of my life set in, I grew frustrated. It wasn’t the bills or the struggle to keep my interest in my work. It was life without a man – the only man I’d been with for twenty years. And before you go all feminist on me, it isn’t that I can’t be an independent woman, but there are certain areas where a man is necessary. 

You need a fuck buddy, my friend said.
I didn’t even know what that meant.
Is it friends with benefits?, I asked.
Better, you don’t even have to be friends, she offered. 

Boy, did I need an education in the modern workings of dating, and sex.

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A coming-of-an-older-age novel.
Something new from L.B. Dunbar -- a stand alone!

ADD TO GOODREADS

Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK

B&N / KOBO / iBOOKS

Author Bio

L.B. Dunbar loves the original legend of King Arthur. Inspired by this classic tale, she pulled over to the side of the road to take notes when it hit her that if King Arthur lived today, he'd be a rock star. A lover of fairy tales, myths, legends, and anything with happily ever after, she loves to read and write contemporary romance. Her Legendary Rock Stars series is complete with the final tale: The Trials of Guinevere DeGrance, but the story began with The Legend of Arturo King. She also wrote The Sensations Collection, which includes five stand alones based on the five senses in a small town setting near Lake Michigan. Raised on one side of that lake, she grew up in Michigan, but now lives on the other side, in Chicago. Mother to four, wife to the one and only, and teacher to hundreds of former students, she looks forward to sharing more stories in the future.

Author Links

WEBSITE

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM
PINTEREST

NEWSLETTER

AMAZON
GOODREADS

MY REVIEW

 I went into this book with interest because it was about a woman who had recently lost her husband and was looking to get back out into the dating world. She had met her husband in college and therefore had little experience in the dating world or with sexual relationships. I found similarities in myself and her and was interested to see how she handled it. 

Through her best friend she is put into situations that she's really uncomfortable with. But she finds herself going through with them even though that is totally against her character. I found myself living vicariously through her. If it were me in those situations, I would definitely have baled and run. 

We knew from the start that Merek was hiding something from Emme. But I have to say that the author did surprise me with what he was hiding. Although she did give some clues, I just didn't link them to the truth. 


I have to admit that toward the end of the book M.E.'s insecurities began to frustrate me and I really felt like slapping her.  In the end Merek turns out to be a real smooth talker. He knows how to express his feelings and wants in a swoon-worthy way. I really would like to share something he tells Emme at the end of the book, but I'm afraid of spoiling anything. 

L.B. Dunbar really knows how to write some hot and steamy scenes. If you're into those type of scenes, this book is worth it for those. 

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my review.

Review: Until Now by Laura Ward

Until Now (Not Yet #2) by Laura Ward

Release Date: May 23, 2016

Genres: New Adult, Romance

Pages:209

Source: E-Book, ARC

Goodreads Description:

Focus.
Dean Goldsmith is Indiana University’s star quarterback, and his dreams are about to come true. His undefeated season means he has a legitimate shot at the NFL. If he stays focused. Football comes first.

College senior, Grace Yeates, is determined to defy the odds. She is months away from graduating with a business degree, something no one thought she would be able to pull off. All she has to do is focus on her number one priority. Family comes first.

Distraction.
Dean has no time for distractions, but when a gorgeous, snarky, redheaded waitress refuses to tell him her name, he can’t seem to focus on anything else.

Grace knows she can’t let herself get caught up in a guy, particularly a man-whore like Dean, no matter how charming or sexy. She has two hearts to look out for now and no room for a Dean-sized distraction.

Complications.
Everyone in Dean’s life agrees that Grace is the kind of complication his career doesn’t need. Grace knows that Dean is the kind of risk her heart shouldn’t want. 

But what if the last person you think you need, the one you shouldn’t want, becomes the one you can’t live without? Can their biggest distraction actually be the focus they were missing all along?
 

Notes about the book:

This books is not meant for anyone under 18 as it does contain mild sex scenes.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Book Quote:

"I listened tonight to your pain, and your struggle, and your love. And what I needed to do was to take care of you and you alone. Nothing for me. Just for you. 'Cause, Red? Nobody's done that for you in your whole life."
"Until now. Until me. I'm going to keep on taking care of you because nobody has ever deserved it more than you."

My Review

This was my introduction to Laura Ward's books. I did not read the first book in this series and did not have any problems following the story.

I love books with strong female lead characters and Grace is no exception. She's been dealt a hard hand in life and is doing her best to give her son the best life she can give him. She accepts help only from those people whom she knows well and can trust. She does not know Dean. She only knows of his reputation that precedes him and it's not a good reputation. Therefore, she does all she can to dissuade him from pursuing his interest in her.

Dean is the star quarterback for Indiana University and is headed to the NFL. Because of this he is used to getting what he wants including girls. He is drawn to Grace from the first moment he lays eyes on her. That makes him determined to continue after her until he learns her name. In his efforts to learn her name, he learns much more about her and learns how strong a woman she is. Somewhere along the way he begins to care about her and has to find a way for her to put her trust in him.

At the beginning of the book, Dean is a real douche and not very likable. But he has a strong family behind him and we see right away his protectiveness over his family. To start with girls are just a passing amusement. But as he gets closer to Grace, she becomes the only girl for him and his attitude about girls takes a complete turn-around. It's what made me love him. I love the protectiveness he shows for Grace and his family.

The book also comes with the cutest little boy! I love how he names all the appliances in the apartment. He's also a clever little boy. When scolded by his mother for not wearing pants to the dinner table, he tells her that he is wearing pants - they are just invisible. Plus his name is Finn. How adorable is that?!?

Shortly after reading this book, the first book in the series was free on Amazon. I snatched it up while I could and plan to catch-up on the series. I look forward to the next books in the series!

Check out Laura's website  at http://www.laurawardauthor.com/.

Goodreads/Amazon

Blog Tour, Review & Giveaway: The Midnight Sea by Kat Ross

Welcome to my stop on The Midnight Sea Blog Tour! I'm so excited to tell you about this book. I loved this book! I'm sad that I have to wait to continue the story. Be sure to check out my review and the giveaway below.

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The Midnight Sea by Kat Ross
(Fourth Element #1)
Publication date: May 10th 2016
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Goodreads

Purchase: Amazon

Synopsis:

They are the light against the darkness.

The steel against the necromancy of the Druj.

And they use demons to hunt demons….

Nazafareen lives for revenge. A girl of the isolated Four-Legs Clan, all she knows about the King’s elite Water Dogs is that they bind wicked creatures called daevas to protect the empire from the Undead. But when scouts arrive to recruit young people with the gift, she leaps at the chance to join their ranks. To hunt the monsters that killed her sister.

Scarred by grief, she’s willing to pay any price, even if it requires linking with a daeva named Darius. Human in body, he’s possessed of a terrifying power, one that Nazafareen controls. But the golden cuffs that join them have an unwanted side effect. Each experiences the other’s emotions, and human and daeva start to grow dangerously close.

As they pursue a deadly foe across the arid waste of the Great Salt Plain to the glittering capital of Persepolae, unearthing the secrets of Darius’s past along the way, Nazafareen is forced to question his slavery—and her own loyalty to the empire. But with an ancient evil stirring in the north, and a young conqueror sweeping in from the west, the fate of an entire civilization may be at stake…

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MY REVIEW

I chose this book because by reading the synopsis I really couldn't tell exactly what it was about, but yet it intrigued me. The reason I couldn't understand what it was about was because it is about a made up world and situations. Oh to have this kind of imagination! I believe there are actually made up words in the book. At least they were unfamiliar to me and when I pressed down on them on my Kindle, it was not able to find a definition.

As I started to read the book I was concerned that I wouldn't understand what was happening in the book. It was so foreign to what I have read in the past. I can't help but compare it to The Hobbit. The Hobbit is a book I've heard so much about that I just really want to be able to read it and understand what is going on in the book. However, for some unknown reason I just can't grasp The Hobbit and have never made it very far in the book.

That wasn't a problem with The Midnight Sea. Sure there were bits that I didn't understand completely. But either those bits were explained more later or they just weren't a deal breaker with the story. Once we get beyond the preliminary bits of the story, the book moves quickly. It is so full of action!

I quickly fell in love with the main character Nazafareen. It didn't take me long to like Darius once we're introduced to him. The relationship between these two characters is beautiful! Nazafareen fights their bond to begin with, but eventually learns how strong they can be as a team. It appears as if they will be the "stars" of the Water Dogs so to say. Then a twist is thrown into the book and took me by surprise. 

I will warn you that this book ends on a cliff hanger of sorts. But it's one of the "good" cliff hangers. It's not one of those that leaves you hanging without knowing whether a character is alive or dead or something else big like that. We just have to wait for book 2 to see what the next stage of the rebellion is. I can't wait for book 2! I'm off to stalk (in a good way) the author to get clues about the next book.

Please note that I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour hosted by:

 

Review: The Lightning Luminary by RS McCoy

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for the release of The Lightning Luminary by R S McCoy. Below you will find the synopsis and all the details about this book along with my review. I received an ARC of the book in exchange for my honest review.

The Lightning Luminary
by R.S. McCoy

Genre: Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy

Release date: April 26th 2016

Summary from Goodreads: 

 Talia Stanley may look like the typical wealthy New Yorker, but she's hidden her secrets for more than a thousand years. One of the last surviving members of an ancient race called Luminaries, Talia has suppressed her ability to control lightning in exchange for safety. 

And for generations it worked. Talia's hermit lifestyle protected her from strong Luminaries that want her power. All that changed the day Mason Rathbone walked into her life.

A good-looking artist, Mason is just the guy to get Talia out of her penthouse apartment and show her what it means to live again. But just as she starts to get comfortable, Talia gets sucked right back into her vicious past.

A new paranormal romance novel by RS McCoy, author of the Sparks Saga. 

Add to Goodreads

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MY REVIEW

 This was a beautiful story interwoven with Greek mythology. There is so much going on in the book that it needs to be devoured slowly to take everything in. The story starts off by introducing the main character Talia. However, it quickly introduces you to a slew of other characters that can be difficult to keep track of. We don't see Talia again until nearly a quarter of the way into the book. That worried me some. However, each time we were taken back to a character, we were given just enough of a clue to remind us who this character was. Soon I was able to remember who everyone was. But I'm still full of questions about relationships, history of the characters, and much more. The book ends without a full resolution. However, you can see where the next story will go. This is the only reason I'll forgive the author for the cliffhanger. 

If you like mythology, I definitely recommend this book! I may have to reread it and take some notes before tackling book 2.

Buy Links:

Amazon│AmazonUK│Amazon CA│Kobo│Barnes & Noble│iTunes│Smashwords

                                               About the Author

Rachel McCoy is a Texan living in New Jersey. Between binge watching MTV reality shows and baking gluten free treats, she writes paranormal fantasy and science fiction novels. She is the self-published author of the Sparks Saga trilogy as well as numerous short stories, some of which now reside in anthologies. Back when she lived in the real world, Rachel earned a degree in marine biology, which contributed to her die-hard love of manta rays. 

To connect with RS McCoy (or swap recipes), visit her on her website (www.rsmccoyauthor.com) or check out her Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/AuthorRSMcCoy). You can also join her newsletter to receive release updates, free stories, and bonus extras (http://eepurl.com/YItp1)

  Author Links:

Website│Twitter│Facebook│Goodreads

Blog tour hosted by:

 

Review: The Arrangement by Mary Smith

 

The Arrangement (New Hampshire Bears) by Mary Smith

Release Date: April 28, 2016

Genres: New Adult, Romance

Pages:89

Source: E-Book, ARC

Goodreads Description:


The Arrangement is a novella being released as a part of the Seduced by the Game Cancer Charity Collection. All proceeds will be donated to support cancer research and patient care. More information may be found at: http://www.seducedbythegame.com/

Vance Pemberton is Irish and his only love is hockey. He sleeps, breathes, and lives for hockey. He’s been in Canada for the past two years paying his dues as the League’s Draft quickly approaches. This is going to be his year. He will be drafted. There’s just one other issue he needs to handle as well.

At the age of ten, Dacey Grion was told her marriage to Vance Pemberton had been arranged. Eleven years later, she has finished university in Belfast, Ireland, her hometown. Now, she waits for Vance to return to Ireland, in hopes they can fall in love and move forward.

It’s not until Vance’s secrets about his family and his life that their arrangement is threatened. What is the right thing to do? Is faith and respect for long-held traditions enough to repair the damage? Can their arrangement be saved? 

Notes about the book:

I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a novella and give some more insight into characters introduced in the second New Hampshire Bears book. The action in this book takes sometime before book 2.

Book Quote:

“I'm so selfish in putting my wants and needs before yours. But not talking to you this past week really got me going. I missed hearing your voice and talking with you and then. . ." he stops and looks down at his skates. "Then you showed up at the airport and I knew then I would do everything to show you I care." When he looks back up, there are tears in his eyes.

My Review

When I read book #2 in this series, The Workaholic and the Realist (click title for my review), I was intrigued by two side characters, Vance and Dacey. Then Mary sent me this ARC out of the blue and I was pleasantly surprised to see it was about Vance and Dacey.

Vance and Dacey are in an arranged relationship (think arranged marriage, but starts at a much younger age). They are set to marry. Yet they barely know each other - even though they've been a part of each other's lives since birth. I don't believe I've ever read about a couple that were in this type of relationship. There was also some mystery about them in book two that just made you want more of them.

As the book starts, its glaringly obvious that Vance and Dacey have spent no time getting to know each other. Their relationship is in danger. But you can also see that they care about each other. Then just when you think they are making progress, the author throws them (and you) for a loop! Both characters were unsure what to do in the aftermath. They were loyal to their heritage of arranged marriages and were both deeply disturbed that their arrangement wouldn't work. It was a bit baffling to me. They both felt that the arrangement was their best option. I guess it must be hard to understand if you don't live in this type of world. 

Vance had me calling him bad names and I loved seeing Dacey come out of her meek shell. I still hope we get more of these two.

In addition to learning more about these two great characters, all proceeds from this book will go to a cancer charity. I couldn't find information anywhere on which charity the money will go to. I'm not sure Mary has chosen the charity yet.

Sometime down the road I may offer a giveaway featuring this book. I love the idea of getting a great book in exchange for helping a great charity. If you'd be interesting in a giveaway featuring this book,please leave a comment below. I've tried contests on my blog before. But I just don't get enough traffic and have actually never had anyone enter the contest I've run. So I'm not sure when I'll do such a contest. I'd love to hear from you if you have any suggestions about making my contests/giveaways successful!

Goodreads/Amazon