Friday 19 July 2013

Book Review (247): While It Lasts (Sea Breeze #3) - Abbi Glines

While It Lasts (Sea Breeze #3)

by Abbi Glines

Publication: 25th April 2013

Publisher: Simon And Schuster Australia

Pages: 267

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Age Appropriate: New Adult

Buy It: Dymocks QBD AMAZON BARNES & NOBLE

Set in the steamy coastal Alabama town of Sea Breeze, an interconnected group of older teens hook up, break up ...and much, much more. Cage York has a free ride to college for baseball - or he did, until he got in trouble for drink-driving. Now he has to give in to his coach's demands and spend his summer baling hay. No hot babes in bikinis waiting to meet a Southern boy to make her vacation complete. Just him and the damned cows. Oh and an uptight, snarky brunette with the biggest blue eyes he's ever seen. Eva Brooks planned out her life step by step when she was eight years old. Not once over the years had she lost sight of her goals. Josh Beasley, her next door neighbour, had been the centre of those goals. He'd been her first boyfriend at seven, her first kiss at ten, her first date at fifteen and her first tragedy at eighteen. The moment she'd received the phone call from Josh's mother saying he'd been killed along with four other soldiers just north of Baghdad, Eva's carefully planned life imploded in the worst way possible. Now she has to deal with the arrogant Cage York and his irritating smile. But as the summer bailing hay rolls by, Cage and Eva learn that what they want (and need) may be something they never saw coming.

My Thoughts.

While It Lasts is the third book in the Sea Breeze series written by the wonderful Abbi Glines, continuing on from the first two book, this time around the focus is on Cage and country girl Eva.

Cage has been sent to a farm to prove himself worthy to stay on his baseball team after being arrested for DUI, after being given the option to work at the farm or lose his place on the team, needing the scholarship he's hoping to receive, he chooses the former.

It's there that he meets the farmer's daughter Eva, who eighteen months after the death of her fiancee' is still in mourning, and certainly has no interest in getting involved with anyone, least of all Cage, whom she's not very friendly too at first, but Cage's interest is piqued not used to females not throwing themselves at his feet, he's not known as a man-whore for nothing, having a different female in his bed every night.

It's not long before Cage works his way into her heart and she finds herself falling for him, whilst trying to get rid of the guilt of feeling that she's betraying her dead fiancee's memory, and being told that Cage isn't and never will be good enough for her, but will she listen to her heart and decide for herself or let everyone else make her decision for her?

I loved this couple, I was intrigued by Cage's character in the second book 'Because Of Low' and was excited to pick up his book, I was not disappointed, I felt Abbi picked the perfect match in Eva, I look forward to continuing their story in the upcoming 'Sometimes It Lasts'.

I find myself falling more in love with the series the further I go along, everyone needs to read these books.

I give this 4/5 Stars.

Quotes.

“I'm worried that this is too soon. What if you get tired of having me around all the time? What if I eat your Wheaties or leave my makeup out in the bathroom or what if I snore?"
"I don't eat Wheaties, I hope you leave all your girlie shit laying all over the place so I can see it when you're not there and know you're coming back. And you don't snore. You do this soft purring thing that is so fucking cute I just want to lay awake and listen to you.”

“All I had to do was make this guy happy. I’d take care of his cows and do manual labor
for two and a half months then my coach wouldn’t kick my ass off the baseball team. The DUI, he’d had to bail me out of jail for, would be forgotten
and my baseball scholarship would remain intact. I only had three problems with this plan:
1. No girls.
2. I hated manual labor
3. No girls.”

“Even if I had stayed she wouldn't have ever wanted me. She didn't want me for anything more than a summer fling. I was a way of moving on for her.”

“I'd worried that letting her get too close would break me. Unfortunately, I'd worried about that a little too late. Because I was broken. The Cage I was before Eva no longer existed. As much as I didn't want to admit it, I'd fallen in love with her. I'd allowed someone in and she hadn't want me. I hadn't been good enough. I never was.”

About Abbi.

Abbi Glines was born in Birmingham, Alabama. She grew up in the small town of Sumiton, Alabama where she left the summer she turned eighteen. She didn’t get far… she chased her high school sweetheart down to the coast and she’s been there ever since.

Abbi now lives in the quaint southern town of Fairhope, Alabama with her three children and husband Keith (the high school sweetheart she chased after). Her life is never dull and Keith always makes sure there is another “experience” for them to explore.

Books published by Abbi include The Vincent Boys and the USA TODAY bestseller The Vincent Brothers, Breathe, Because of Low, the USA TODAY bestsellers While It Lasts and Just For Now, The Existence Trilogy that includes the USA Today Bestseller Ceaseless, and The New York Times bestseller and Wall Street Journal bestseller Fallen Too Far. Currently she is working on Never Too Far, the sequel to Fallen too Far.

When Abbi isn’t locked away in her office typing away she is hauling her kids to and from their many social activities. You could say her second job is the Glines Kids personal chauffeur. It’s a rather illustrious job.

Links.

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Cover Reveal: Feeling This - Casey Blue

Feeling This Synopsis

Whoever said life is hard didn’t know the half of it!

Completely devastated when his life is ripped out from underneath him, Jordan Rhodes decides to take a break. A break from everything he’s always known; the country club life-style, his life-long friends and his overbearing parents. He just wants to be free to get lost and not feel the pain he has endured.

Kimber Maguire has been dealt the tough card her entire life. An ailing mom, a sister who refuses to face reality and a yearning for the one that got away, she finds putting one foot in front of the other as her only saving grace. What she really wants is to be free of feeling the pressure that is her life to get lost.

But when Jordan finds Kimber while losing himself, they both discover, sometimes you just need to feel to be found.

Release Date: 14th September 2013

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18176639-feeling-this

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Casey-Blue/542787655758223?fref=ts

Blog - http://caseyblue123.blogspot.com/

Twitter- @CaseyBlue123

Tuesday 16 July 2013

Cover Reveal: Taliesin Ascendant (The Children And The Blood #2) - Megan Joel Peterson

Taliesin Ascendant by Megan Joel Peterson

YA Fantasy

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Megan Joel Peterson lives somewhere between the cornfields of Illinois and fantasy worlds filled with magic. She has a degree in English Literature from the University of Illinois, and has worked a little bit of everywhere over the years. Now she spends her days and nights creating new stories, and thinks writing is the best job she ever could have asked for.

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Book Blast: The Never - Kristina Circelli

The Never by Kristina Circelli
Genre: Fantasy for 18+

“Out of nothing, we create something.”
Arianna has spent her entire life being called a dreamer, an artist who created a world no one else can see. And for her entire life, she has taken the medication that keeps that world – and the one who brought her there – at bay.
Now an adult, Arianna reawakens that part of herself kept locked away in the darkest corners of her mind. When she hides her medicine from her fiancé’s ever-watchful eye, he returns – the shadow in the night who collects her for an adventure known only in her fantasies.
But something is different about this world called The Never. It is no longer the cheerful place filled with light and laughter that she knew as a child. Now, the sea creatures drag their visitors into the depths of murky waters. The natives battle to the death against the tribe of children. And the pirates, led by the feared captain called The Hunter, seek out Arianna for their own sinister plans.
As Arianna goes deeper into The Never, she discovers just what her connection to the land means – and must choose between her life rooted in reality, and the world where anything is possible.

The Never is currently FREE on Amazon, from now until the 20th!! Head over to Amazon to take advantage of the deal!

Chapter 4 - No Longer a Child

She saw him off, making earnest promises to always remember her medication, putting on the happiest face she could manage until his car disappeared down the driveway. Lily the puppy pulled on her new leash, eager to explore her surroundings. Although the sun was setting, Arianna allowed the dog to pull her into the woods, taking her on an evening stroll before they settled in for the night. Lily sniffed at the plants as she passed them, pouncing on flickering shadows and barking at nonexistent figures.
Arianna laughed softly as she watched the puppy play, giving her plenty of room on the leash to wander and explore. She’d always wanted a dog as a child, only to be told by her mother that animals were dirty and not meant to be kept as pets. The refusal only fueled her desire, as did the promises that maybe, if she was good and took her medicine, then a puppy would one day be hers to hold and cherish.
The sun slipped below the horizon, casting the woods in shadows. Arianna glanced over her shoulder and was comforted by the glow of lights in the cabin not too far in the distance. She tried not to wander too far from home at night, knowing what dangers lurked in a forest of heavy brush and wildlife. John didn’t like her strolling through the woods at dark – or during the day, for that matter – so she tried not to upset him by staying close to home.
“A gift of life, to keep death at bay.”
Arianna turned about, searching for the familiar voice. She saw only night and darkness instead. Her heart beat wildly, both at the surprise intrusion and the possibilities of what the voice’s return may mean. “What…what death?”
“Death of love, of heart, of soul.”
She took in a deep breath, grip tightening on the leash. She wanted to see the figure’s face, needed to see it. Lily sensed her new owner’s hesitation and barked once, taking a stance at her master’s feet. “Who are you?” Arianna asked, narrowing her eyes.
“You know who I am. You have known me since you were a child.”
“I knew a child as a child. You sound like a man.” She felt a brush of fingers against her neck, as though a hand was pulling her hair back. She turned but saw only empty air.
“I have watched you, Arianna of the Stars. I have watched you, dreamed with you, grown up with you.”
Lily pulled at the leash and scratched at Arianna’s ankles, eager to get away from whatever was agitating her master. Arianna let the leash slip through her fingers, not noticing the dog as she ran back for the cabin on four wobbly legs and waited on the back steps, whimpering quietly.
Free to wander on her own, the enraptured woman began to walk, slowly passing tree after tree. Her hands grazed over tree trunks, eyes grazed over leaves and shrubs. Moonlight streamed in through the canopy, creating a white glow that softened the night setting. “Who are you?” Her repeated question traveled a light breeze, laughter echoing back at her.
“I am the one you dream of, the one you seek.”
She saw something then, an outline moving through the trees. The figure was watching her, moving with her. If she looked hard enough, she could almost see a face, eyes. Not bright eyes, but seeking, piercing nonetheless. “Who are you?”
Those eyes, dark green and ever watchful, latched on to hers. They followed her as they walked, peering around leaf and branch, staring through the moonlight. “I am the dream. I am the reality,” he answered, voice like a secret spoken in hushed whispers. “I am the eternal. I am the forgotten.” They moved closer together in the woods, yet still at a distance. “I am the always. I am the never.”
Something inside her mind clicked. Arianna paused between two trees, one hand on either trunk. She knew that name. In the farthest corners of her mind, she remembered, and the memory hardened in her gut. Oh yes, she knew, and wished that her mind wasn’t suddenly filled with recollections of salted shores and pale pink skies. “You are not The Never. The Never left me. The Never forsook me. The Never forgot me.”
“No,” came the soothing, reassuring croon. “The Never did not forget you. The Never could not reach you, Arianna of the Stars.”
“Stop calling me that,” Arianna snapped, taking a step back. “Stop pretending to be him. Tell me who you are.”
“I have told you. You must believe me”
She heard the desperation in his request, but ignored it and instead slipped a hand in her pocket. “Have it your way. I know how to get rid of you.” She swallowed the blue pill and he reacted fast, exploding into her line of vision and grabbing her wrist.
“What was that?” he demanded. “What did you take?”
Unable to respond, Arianna simply stared up at him. This was not the boy the remembered, the boy who spoke to her as a child and led her on exciting other-worldly adventures. This was a man, perhaps a year older than her, perhaps even a year or two younger. There was something innocent about his forest green, almond-shaped eyes, and yet, something very sinister in the way he pressed his full lips together in a knowing smirk. His jawline was strong, as were his cheekbones, strong enough to take one of many hits she suspected he was used to enduring, and maybe even encouraged.
He was tan, the tan of a man who spent his days in the sun, with wild hair the color of the setting sun. For the briefest of moments she longed to run her fingers through those thick locks, which hung down to his ears in messy strands. Bamboo pieces decorated his ears, pierced through twice in each.
His clothing, if that’s what it could be called, matched his eyes. His torso was wrapped in a soft, thin shirt that clung to his skin, with wide straps that crisscrossed at his shoulders to reveal finely toned muscle. The deep green of a material Arianna didn’t recognize covered his legs with leaf-shaped designs, ending just below the knees. He was barefoot, which only added to his mysterious aura. Strapped around his waist was a leather belt, with a dagger sheathed at his side.
Boy had most certainly become man.
“What did you take?” he asked again when she only gazed at him. His grip tightened on her wrist, causing her to wince.
“Um…just, just my medicine.”
“Medicine.” He said the word quietly, as though trying to understand it. Then he took her by the shoulders, almost too urgently. “Medicine! You must never take it again.”
Her brow furrowed. “I have to. It keeps me well.”
“No. You must never take it, my Arianna. It is why I could not find you for so long, why we could not be together.”
Arianna hesitated, savoring the feel of his rough hands on her bare skin. She had never known this figure in her dreams as a man, and was fascinated by the creature he had become. “We…we had adventures together, as children?”
He smiled, gently brushing back a strand of her hair. “Yes, we did. You cannot remember them all now, but you will. Promise me you will not take your medicine again. Promise me, and I will return tomorrow to show you what you have forgotten. We will fly from this place, and have our adventures again.”
An internal alarm was triggered, a familiar word, a familiar worry. Arianna ignored it and smiled up at him just before he faded into the night. “I promise.”

A lover of the written word since the time she first picked up a pen, Kristina Circelli shares her passion for fiction in her multi-genre novels.
Circelli is the author of several fiction books, including The Sour Orange Derby, a young adult novel about family and childhood imagination steeped in southern traditions; Beyond the Western Sun, Walk the Red Road, and Into the Shadow Realm of The Whisper Legacy, which centers on Native American cultures and the legends that come to life in the spirit realm; and The Helping Hands, a book that follows a gang of friends who rescue abused children.
Currently, Circelli works as a copywriter, author, book editor, and creative writing professor at the University of North Florida, where she received her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in English. She resides in Florida, with her husband and two kittens.

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Book Review (246): Because Of Low (Sea Breeze #2) - Abbi Glines

Because of Low (Sea Breeze #2)

by Abbi Glines

Publication: 25th April 2013

Publisher: Simon And Schuster Australia

Pages: 290

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Age Appropriate: New Adult

Buy It: Dymocks QBD AMAZON BARNES & NOBLE

Set in the steamy coastal Alabama town of Sea Breeze, an interconnected group of older teens hook up, break up ...and much, much more. Marcus Hardy had hoped to enjoy a year away at college while he put the summer he'd rather forget behind him. But instead, he's jerked right back his home town of Sea Breeze due to a family crisis. The only bright spot to returning is the hot redhead who sleeps over at his place several times a week. There's just one thing though - she's sleeping in bed with his new roommate, Cage York. Willow "Low" Foster needs a place to live. Running to her best friend Cage's apartment every time her sister kicks her out isn't exactly a long term solution. But Cage has a new roommate and suddenly sleeping over at his apartment isn't such a bad thing. Not when she gets to see those sexy green eyes of Marcus's twinkle when he smiles at her like he wants her there. There's one problem though, Cage is under the disillusion that when he's through sowing his wild oats, he's going to marry Low - an assumption Marcus intends to change. But when his carefully laid plans come crashing down with a revelation he never expected, Marcus will have to choose between Low or his family. Because once the truth comes out ...there's no other choice.

My Thoughts.

Because Of Low is the second book in the Sea Breeze series by Abbi Glines. Just as entertaining, charming and unputdownable as the first book Breathe, Glines is a force to be reckoned with.

Focusing on hapless Marcus who was the guy in a love triangle who didn't get the girl in Breathe, and now we get to finally see him win the girl of his dreams in Willow 'Low'.

Since we last saw him, Marcus has had to move back to Sea Breeze from college to help his Mother and Sister deal with the separation of his parents, he has moved in with Cage (known as the man whore) the friend of a friend, and it's through him that he meets Low.

Low is the one girl that Cage will drop anything and everything and do anything for since they were childhood friends growing up, life was hard for both of them and all they ever had was each other, life gives Low another knock when she ends up with nowhere to live, and that's how she comes to stay at the apartment with the two boys.

Straight away on meeting each other you can see the sparks fly, boy these two have chemistry!

But they both come with baggage and with neither willing to divulge to one another their family problems this will eventually blow up in their faces, and while I did guess at the start of the book what the plot twist was going to be, it was done so well that it was still a bit of a shock, such is how good Abbi's writing is.

We also catch up with Jax and Sadie the couple from Breathe, which I was so excited for, and may have squealed a little bit.

As with the last book Breathe, Because Of Low also features POV'S from both the leads Marcus and Low, which I love in a book and really enjoy reading.

While I did love this book, Jax and Sadie still hold the top spot in my favourite couple of the series so far, sorry Marcus but you can't compete with a sexy rock-star!

With quite a lot more characters of whom I'd love to read a book about, I hope this series will carry on for a while yet.

Just like the last book I highly recommend this book, I'm loving this series.

I give this 4/5 Stars.

Quotes.

“Things happen in life and you can’t control them. It sucks and you have to move on.”

“Did you just call me a hottie? And Jax isn’t better looking than me. He’s just famous.”
Amanda let out a loud cackle of laughter.
“No brother dear, Jax Stone is hotness incarnate with or without the guitar and sexy as hell singing voice. You never stood a chance. He was what you call playing with the big dogs. This time you’re definitely playing within your league.”

“I didn't want to see you, but you invaded my world. Every dark corner you found a way in bringing light to the lifeless and lost." Eva”

“Those blue eyes that had stopped my heart the first time she looked at me found me in the crowd."

About Abbi.

Links.

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Monday 15 July 2013

Book Blast & Giveaway: Saved - Lorhainne Eckhart

Saved by Lorhainne Eckhart
Genre: Adult romance
Published May 11, 2013

Growing up I had dreams that one day I'd fall in love, get married and start a family. Then one night I was taken. But I survived, I escaped and I was saved. Eric didn't see me as damaged. He didn't see my baby as a monster. He protected me, he kept me safe ... he saved me.

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Amazon

“Thank you, Captain,” was all she said, but he could feel her stiffen even though he was no longer touching her.
“I’ll be back later to see how you’re doing.” He didn’t know why he did it when he reached down and smoothed back the stray wisps of hair that dangled in her face.
“Remember what I said, Abby: You’re safe here. If you’re hungry, you say something. If you’re scared, tell me. If you’re hurting, you have to speak up. No one is going to hurt you here. I don’t know how to make you believe it.”
She was staring at him now, but for the life of him he couldn’t figure out what was going on in her head. He let out a sigh because there was nothing more he could do here. His hand was on the door, and he was about to yank it open when she said, “Captain, could you do me a favor?” He turned around and faced her and was nearly undone by her eyes, swimming with a sheen of tears.
“Could you keep telling me I’m safe? I think if I hear you tell me over and over, I’ll start to believe it. I think I will.”

2012 was an amazing year in the publishing world for me, and it started with The Forgotten Child, which landed on the Amazon bestseller list for western romance and romance series. With the publication of each novel and short story, each one made its way to the top ten for its respective genre. 2013 has seen me posted in the top 100 authors on Amazon for romantic suspense and mystery/thrillers, police procedural.

Where did it all begin? In 2008, I published my first novel, The Captain’s Lady, a contemporary military romance, through The Wild Rose Press. This year I have a crazy writing schedule with four books scheduled for release and six short stories.

I write three genres, edgy romantic suspense (Walk the Right Road Series), western romance (Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series), and young adult mystery, and I warn my readers to expect the unexpected. I’m the mother of three children, one a special needs child. We live on a small Island in the Pacific Northwest, where I advocate for the environment and the rights of special needs children. Somewhere in my busy schedule, I do find time to write. I encourage you to contact me by email; I do answer every email I receive.

Stay tuned. There is more to come from the Walk the Right Road Series and Finding Love ~ The Outsider Series.

And to my readers and all of you who have shared my stories with your family and friends, a big heartfelt thank you.