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Entangled by Ginger Voight

1/31/2014

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I was lucky enough to read and review the first book in this series last week, Enticed.  I loved that book and am very pleased to say the second book, Entangled did not disappoint me:). Ironically enough, I now get to wait for the third book, Enraptured, not so patiently!  

Entangled brings Rachel Dennehy back to LA,  three months after she fled from a disastrous situation abandoning not only Drew Fullerton but his son and her student, Jonathan. Drew's brother, Alex, is the one that convinces her to return for the sake of Jonathan, the one person she swore she wouldn't let down and fail, after failing another child previously in her eyes. 

Upon her return, Rachel is surprised of what had become of Jonathan in such a short time- a spoiled brat that is acting out in the worst of ways because of her leaving and the way his parents are acting. This makes her job even more challenging and she utilizes Alex's home and business to lure him back, while falling for the family unit life they are creating and Alex. It still takes a horrible accident to finally pull Jonathan out of his bad habits though but he still wishes for a family unit that has his dad, Drew, with Rachel in their home again. 

Alex and Rachel begin to fall for each other and discover what it's like to love someone again. They have to keep it secret from everyone for fear of destroying Jonathan though. However, Drew continues to pursue Rachel even with an engagement to the actress, Olivia.  He ultimately forces Rachel to truly choose which brother she wants after a series of custodial changes and her being left alone without Alex and his attempts to sway her choice. 
So which brother will she choose?  Or will she just choose to continue to be only a teacher to Jonathan?
I loved how Ginger kept this story line going. I did feel like,  in some senses, it was kind of predictable but at the same time she kept you wanting to know more and wanting to know every choice made and why. Some of Rachel's logic is understandable but at the same time very extreme. She can seem to be the savior a lot of time throughout the series, but Ginger shows she is very capable of mistakes and large ones that change her path completely. Alex ends up having a completely different side to him than what the first book depicted. He actually works hard every day at his job, is a complete family man, and kind of every girl's dream guy. The competition with him and Drew is ridiculous though and causes alot of awkward situations for family around them and has hurt people. He doesn't hold ground well when he is faced with a difficult situation, like the first book describes and like Drew rightly says throughout the book. Drew is hard to figure out in this book because I felt every move was calculated and planned for him. He makes off the wall comments about love that do not match why he chases after Rachel so much. Usually, he references his need to have a good mother for Jonathan. Again, everything for him felt like a calculated move but seems more of a fear of admitting that he truly loves Rachel too. This book definitely has a love triangle going on but throws children into the mix too. Jonathan in particular is the main focus child wise in this book also, which helps keep the story more realistic, in a sense. However, Rachel's thoughts seem extreme towards the end regarding her life choices and the basis children are for those choices. 

- Jamie

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A Blue Tale by Sarah Dosher

1/10/2014

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I absolutely loved this book. It was a love story but not your typical love story.  This story was about the epic love between Elizabeth “Eli” Blue Savage and Deacon Chastain.  It wasn’t an easy love but it worked for them.

This story had its ups and down. The author, Sarah Dosher, made you feel everything Eli and Deacon was feeling.  They meet, they feel a connection right away, and they fall in love. Her best friend/ex-boyfriend Shaw is in the picture and you think it is heading a certain way and, BAM!, Sarah threw in a twist that I did not expect. Completely didn’t expect it.  It kinda made my mouth drop open. 
Because of this twist, tragedy happens. Eli is heartbroken and that causes her to retreat into herself and mourn the loss of someone very important in her life and she pushes Deacon away.  And because of his undying love for her, he waits and waits.  He decides that, while he will never love again, he needs to let Eli go.  But she doesn’t let him. She is ready to heal and to let him help her.  And their epic love continues.

- Katie

This book was so refreshing! It isn't your typical same ole' same ole' rocker love story. It's different. The storyline, the characters, the dialogue even. I loved that it didnt blend in with every other rock romance. I also loved these characters. Deacon is just...*swoon*. I wasn't sure how I felt about Shaw. I felt like no matter what he said, I just was not trusting him. I understood they had a long-term friendship, but I needed Eli to be with Deacon.
*Spoiler*
Of course, I didn't want what happens to a certain character to indeed happen, but I was happy with the outcome by the end. Oh, and the song Deacon sings at the end - I need that on my Spotify asap ;) Loved this book! 4 stars from me.

<3 Erin

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Mine to Lose by T.K. Rapp

1/9/2014

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I know I’m supposed to write a small review since we’re all 3 reviewing today, but it’s tough. I read Mine to Lose originally in December, and completely fell in love. I fell in love with the story, with the characters, and with the emotions it brought out. I felt like I needed to reread it in order to write a decent review, so that it’s fresh on my mind. I was really worried it wouldn’t be the same the second time around, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. If anything, it was better the second time. 

I completely adore these characters. Ryan and Emogen are two of my very favorites…ever. Ryan is everything you want him to be – Loving, caring, swoonworthy. You probably don't think so when you first start, but give the guy a chance. You'll see he's amazing. He has his flaws, sure (they both do), but in the end, it all comes down to just being with Em, no matter the distance. And Emogen! So strong, in so many different ways.  That girl powers through so many different obstacles throughout this book, and keeps her head up through them all. I love that she stands up to Ryan in the beginning, even with the consequences of that decision. I say that I love this or love that all of the time, but I’m not exaggerating this one. I love these characters and their relationship. They’re the epitome of a couple in love for me. Even with the lies and heartbreak, they just want each other. It’s so simple, yet…not?  Hmm. 

Rapp really pulls out all of the stops as far as emotions go. You feel them all. Think of an emotion – You’ll find it here. That weird tummy/heart flip-flop butterfly feeling? Lots of that in Mine to Lose, but for different reasons. There’s the good flip-flop that has you swooning when Ryan says just the right thing (or maybe a different character…?) There’s the bad flip-flop when you think you know what’s about to happen and you want to stop time (I was screaming at my kindle “No no no! Don’t you do it!”) You’ll be completely heartbroken and angered. Giggling, then crying. And angst. Lots of angst. It covers them all. In the end, I just enjoyed reading this book so much. There were also a couple different touchy subjects covered in the last half of the book, but Rapp handles them with care and I feel like she wrote them in just the right way. Even with those subjects, it never feels like she added them just for the sake of drama. It all flows and it’s never TOO much. 

5+ stars. Go one-click! You won’t regret it.

<3 Erin

To me this book started very slow.  I had a hard time getting into it. I pushed myself to keep going hoping that I would like it and it would pick up and it didn’t.  And then all of a sudden it struck me. I couldn’t put it down. 

When I started it, I thought I knew where it was going.  I kept reading thinking yup, I was right. But in the end I wasn’t.  Things that I thought were going to happen, didn’t happen.  And things I didn’t expect, happened.  

I really liked the main character, Emogen or Em. I liked how honest she was. She told Ryan exactly how she was feeling. She told him exactly what would happen in their relationship when he moved. She did the same with Trey. She could have strung him along. But she didn’t.  She is someone I could be friends with in real life. 

Ryan to me was an ass.  He wanted to do what he wanted to do. There was no talking to him about it. He made the decision to move and told Em after and even after much discussion still would take her point of view into account.  He was going to take this job and it didn’t matter what she said.  In the end, I liked him but I spent a majority of the book not.
  
Trey was a nice guy but he was pushy.  He knew he wanted Em and he was going to get her.  He tried to ease his way in and no matter how many times she said she wasn’t ready, he didn’t care. I understand that he wanted to be with her, but give the girl some time to get over that she broke up with her fiancé.  She’s not going to be ready right away for a new relationship. It’s going to take a while. He was patient but pushy at the same time. But he was a gentleman while doing it.

In the end, I really liked the book. Actually I want more. I want to see where the story goes. I want to see the future.

- Katie

Amazon / Barnes & Noble
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Sex Love Repeat by Alessandra Torre

1/6/2014

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OMG this book! I told my blogmates I wanted to post a review that says “I LOVE THIS BOOK. 18 STARS. GO BUY IT NOW!” but I figured that wasn’t very fair to the author. She’s been a total sweetheart, letting me post this review so much later than promised, so I guess it’s a fair trade to give her more than that lol With this book, it’s maybe the first time I’ve honest to goodness had to sit my kindle down and say, “What. The. Hell. Did I just read?” In a good way, of course. In a shockingly, fantastic sort of way. The best way to describe this book is that it’s like the most addictive drug you can imagine. You can’t put it down and don’t want to for that matter. There is so much going on but it never gets to that point of being TOO much. 

I love that Torre can take something that is erotica and make it into so much more. There’s suspense, there’s mystery, there’s love and heartbreak. For me, not many erotica authors can make you really feel and care about the characters. They always seem like a background for the sex. There is a handful that I love but it’s just always a weird thing for me. I’m the emotional reader. I like to cry and don’t mind the fade to black scenes. This absolutely doesn’t do fade to black but it was okay because she does the sex scenes so well. They’re hot, but it’s not overkill. 

Okay, how to write a review of this book without spoilers. Let’s give it a try…

If you’ve read the synopsis, you already know that this book has a wild storyline. One woman. Two men. They know the other exists but nothing more than that. That’s just the tip of the iceberg from where it all ends up though. You have Madison – gorgeous, surprisingly very sweet, and loves sex. A lot. She also loves Stewart. The problem is that she’s not #1 in Stewart’s life, his career is. Madison is very upfront that she will not sit by and be his #2. Until he’s ready to let her be the priority, she wants more from someone else. Rather than letting her sleep with anyone and everyone, Stewart suggests bringing in a boyfriend. Someone she can go to, have that perfect life with, someone who will take care of her and her needs. It’s just always known that Stewart was there first and it was his suggestion. This arrangement leads to Paul – The hot surfer. As fantastic as Paul is at surfing, his first love is Madison. He would do anything for her and you can feel it from every interaction they have. He’s what every woman would and should want. But Madison still can’t let go of Stewart.  

This book is so tricky because you honestly like them both. You’d think with a crazy, messed up situation like this, you’d have to pick a side right? For me, I couldn’t pick. I knew Paul was what she needed. He put her first. But there’s just something about Stewart that I couldn’t not love. Torre is fantastic at building up both male characters to the point that you really, truly want their arrangement to carry on. Madison mentions throughout the book that one day, she would have to choose. I didn’t want that day to come. I liked it how it was, even though it wasn’t the right thing. Maybe I’m just crazy, but if I was in her shoes, I couldn’t imagine trying to choose between the two men. They’re both so amazing in their own rights.


But that’s just the start of it all. Someone is watching, someone hates Madison and thinks she’s playing both men. This mystery woman has no idea about the arrangement and wants to know why she’s using both guys. But the big secret…that big moment…WTF. Brain = Boom. 

I have to stop there because it will spoil and I don’t want to do that if you haven’t read it yet. Just please…PLEASE…for the love of God, go one-click this book. It will knock you off your feet, but you’ll willingly get back up and scurry to your Kindle for more. It’s just SO good. So good. 

Most unhelpful review of all time? Erin takes the cake. I love this book. I love this author. I loved these characters. I need more asap. More Alessandra Torre! Please? <3

<3 Erin

Amazon / Barnes & Noble
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