Thursday, October 23, 2014

Blog Tour & Review: Raine by J.C. Valentine

Raine Tour Banner

Raine Cover



Shy. Intelligent. Naive. Statistic. Raine Forester was an average girl leading an average life. She slipped beneath everyone's radar, until Camron Moss, the most popular guy in school, took interest in her and changed everything. Some acts are unforgivable. Raine thought she'd been accepted. She thought she was one of them. She thought she was in love... until one moment made her realize she'd trusted the wrong person. Lies are told, hearts get broken, secrets are revealed, and sometimes, true love is found in the least likely places.


 


Raine was living the dream. A carefully manufactured dream where Jarret was her man, 

they were a family, and most importantly, they were happy.

And they were happy.

Even steel wool wouldn’t be strong enough to scrub the smile from her face. It felt 

permanently etched there, and it was a wonderful feeling.

Splaying his hands over her stomach, Jarret quietly sang the song in her ear, his hot 

breath whispering across her flesh. The lyrics made her flush, but not from embarrassment. The 

naughty, forbidden, intimate words said from one lover to another made Jarret’s desires painfully 

clear. He wanted her, was telling her what he wanted to do with her, to her... and she wasn’t 

saying no.

Her body was responding to his words, every cell lighting on fire with a craving for him, 

and him alone. She shouldn’t want him the way she did. Not after Camron. Not just because of 

whom he was to Jarret, but also because of what he had done to her. He’d tarnished her—body, 

mind, and soul—and she’d never thought she’d be able to put that kind of trust in another man 

again. Especially not so soon.

But Jarret was different. He was unexpected. She thought she’d put up boundaries, 

fortifying them with hated memories, but her walls were no match for someone like him. Jarret 

was the exception to the rule...

...and she was perilously close to falling for him.

Nuzzling her cheek against his, Raine closed her eyes and inhaled the clean scent of 

Jarret’s aftershave mixed with the bitter smell of beer on his breath. She’d never thought she’d 

think the smell of beer was sexy, but Jarret could make anything sexy, and it made her want to 

tear his clothes off and do bad things to him.

Yep, this pregnancy thing was seriously jacking with her hormones. Down, girl.

“You’re so sexy, Raine. So round and beautiful.”

Round? Raine was sure there was a compliment in there somewhere. The edges of her 

dress brushed the backs of her stocking-covered knees as they swayed and Raine listened closely 

to his words.

“If you’d let me, I’d take you right here, right now.”

Eyes snapping open, Raine glanced around. Here, in the middle of a trendy sports bar 

slash restaurant? “The floors are covered in peanut shells.”

“Then we’d do it on a table. They’re sturdy,” he said, turning his face toward hers and 

skimming his lips up her jawline.

A shiver tracked through her. She shouldn’t like the sound of that, being taken on a 

tabletop, so rough and crude and dirty, but she did. It was far too easy to picture it, and that’s 

why she had to make him see reason. “There are people everywhere,” she argued. “They’d see 

everything.”

“Let them watch. Let them see how to take care of a woman. How she moans like she’s 

going to die when her man knows how to play her body like an instrument.”

Oh, God. Clenching her thighs together, Raine had no doubt that Jarret could make good 

on his promises. Something told her that he knew his way around a woman very well, and she 

longed to be under his expert thumb, to experience sex the way it was meant to be experienced.

“You’re drunk,” she said, a low moan escaping her as Jarret ran his tongue up the side of 

her throat. Unbidden, her head lolled to the side, allowing him fuller access.

Chuckling, Jarret kissed the sensitive flesh just below her nape, stroking it with the tip of 

his tongue. “Come home with me, Peach. Let me taste how sweet you are.”




This book takes you on an incredible journey. You will feel the power of self perseverance, hope and strength amongst this work of fiction. I really enjoyed Raine by J.C.  Valentine. It was beautiful, painful and full of drama! Just my type…….

Raine is an  average looking teen girl. She's not super popular or too well known at school. The most popular boy befriends her and starts showing her a lot of attention.  She falls hard for him. What his motives are aren’t clear. He’s moving fast and she is becoming a bit addicted to his charms. Her head is saying one thing and her heart another.

At an after party she finds herself exploring because she doesn’t quite fit in.   She ends up meeting Cameron’s mysterious brother Jarret. The mutual interest can not be denied.  Raine is curious about him.  Jarret is not use to opening up and letting others into his personal space.  Raine finds her self in a serious predicament soon after. She also finds herself alone  in the aftermath of one fateful night.

How did she get to this point in life?  Who can she trust and rely on when her life is a crumbling mess? Can she overcome the challenging hurdles ahead?

Raine finds a beautiful friendship in someone she least expected. Watching the relationship through its ups and downs was heartwarming.
He needed to come home for another Raine fix. She was becoming an addiction. One that he needed to kick before it spun out of control, but he just couldn’t seem to help himself.” – Jarret
“He said the storm was a sign, that my future was destined to be filled with rain. It took me a few years to figure out his meaning, but I think he meant that my life was going to be filled with sadness and disappointments.” - Raine

This book  held my interest. I liked  the dynamics of the cast of characters. Not all were very likable people. They had unattractive traits that made them difficult to like but added a lot of depth to the storyline. The heroine demonstrated a lot of independence in the face of adversity. I truly felt bad for her but admired her courage. The hero was relatable and noble and very generous with his heart and home.

The message of hope and pushing forward under difficult  circumstances  is strongly conveyed. Standing up for what you believe in is easier said then done.  Life isn’t always fair or easy but it is definitely interesting. I give this book 4 RAINING STARS!!!!!



Meet Raine, she is a average girl, shoulder length hair and purple glasses, her parents great believers in God and that all things must be done in the Lord's name and when they aren't done that way you are left to your own devices. Raine was typically shy, she was studious, always followed the rules, and did as everyone expected. For those very reasons, her parents loved her.
 
When the school's hottest football player, Camron Moss, notices her, her whole world changes. She thought she'd finally been accepted, she was now one of them. She thought she was in love until one moment changed her whole life.
 
Jarret is Camron's older brother and he decided that Camron could use his house as a party palace the night of their Senior Prom. Raine meets him by accident when she decides to walk through the house because she had never seen one so enormous or a man so attractive. His black hair shined wet in the sun, dripping down his face and neck to his bare chest and stomach. He was stockier than Camron, defining him as a man whereas Camron's thinner, more chiseled look spoke of his youth and athleticism.
 
"That's my brother. He's one of those brooding types. Girls trip over themselves for that crap." - Camron
 
Needless to say, things happen and prom night doesn't go as planned and Camron turns into the BIGGEST asshole on this fictional planet. I have never heard such hatred spewed from a character before. I seriously wanted to reach inside my kindle and bring his arrogant ass down a notch or two or ten.
 
What do you do when you find out that your relationship wasn't what you thought it was? You end up pregnant at the age of 18. You are disrespected by your parents and thrown on your ass. You confront the father of your child only to be treated like your some kind of whore. WTF.
 
"You all act like you're so perfect, so put together, as if you're better than everyone else. The only thing that makes you different from me is you have more money to hide behind. Well, let me tell you something. I might be eighteen, I might be a single mother, and I might not have a penny to my name, but the one thing that will always bring a smile to my face is knowing that my child won't ever have to be around any of you disgraceful people. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to take more whore ass out of here and find a real dinner." -Raine
 
 
Thankfully Jarret is nothing like his family and he comes to her rescue and
tries to help her. At first, and a few times after she declines but then she is left with no other choice.
 
"I know you still have your heart set on leaving me when this is all done and
over, but, Raine, this is just the beginning. After tonight, you'll be asking yourself how you ever lived without me." - Jarret
 
"Nothing about how I feel about you is right or conventional. In fact, I should send you away right now and spare us both the trouble this is going to cause, but I won't because something inside me tells me there will never be a sweeter, softer, juicier fruit than you, Peach. I know you're not ready for me yet, but when you are, there won't be anything that can stop me from sinking every part of myself into your heat." - Jarret
 
With Jarret, she felt good. She felt sexy, she felt sensual, and she felt
attractive. Her body craved to be touched, teased and tasted. She was familiar with those feelings from hen she dated Camron, but even he hadn't possessed the ability to turn her into a tingling mass of sensations with a single look, or made her nipples tighten with the sound of his voice. And each time Jarret used those powerful lips on her, all the blood in her body rushed south, causing her thighs to clench together against the painful pinch of need coursing through her. -Raine
 
"Peach, the only thing I plan to hold against you is my naked body." -Jarret
 
Will their attraction to each other hold or will his family tear them apart?
One-click today and find out for yourself, you won't be disappointed.



Raine by J.C. Valentine is a book that will tear at your heart, causing you to feel every emotion, every struggle that Raine goes through because she trusted the wrong person to take care the most important thing that she has, her heart.  Only when she lets the bricks fall from the wall she has built a little at a time and actually accepts help from the most unlikely place will she find true love and happiness in the midst of a most unfortunate situation.  This was a 3.5 star read for me and I would recommend this book to others, but with a warning that is also listed in the beginning of the book.  Due to the content and subject matter, this story may not be for everyone.

Raine was a simple girl, not beautiful and popular by high-school standards, but beautiful just the same.  Growing up in an extremely religious family, she did everything she was supposed to when it came to high-school.  All of her hopes and dreams for the future changes when she met Cameron. 

Cameron, the most popular guy in school, a football player from an affluent family in the community, takes notice of Raine one day much to her surprise.  And Cameron continues to surprise her when they start dating but she is smitten with him, knowing that there has to be something special about her if Cameron wants to be seen with her.   Content in her relationship with Cameron, Raine is excited to attend the senior prom with him; dancing the night away, holding each other close, everything she could have ever dreamed the night would be.  Well most of the night anyway, until the arrive at the after party.  Leaving her alone with people who are far from her friends, Raine begins to explore Cameron's brothers house while he is off holding court with his friends.  It is during that exploration that she meets Jarrett, who is anything but friendly to her and she flees the party, sitting outside on the car while she patiently waits for Cameron to come out.  A wish she would later look at and wish hadn't come true.

After forcing sex with Raine, Cameron walks away from her and goes on with his life as if she doesn't exist.  Until she forces her way into his family circle during graduation to tell him that she is pregnant.  Cameron says unthinkable things during that revelation, things that will make the reader want to reach through the pages and slap him repeatedly.  Raine remains strong despite everything being thrown at her; knowing that she has to be the best that she can be for her baby.  Even if that means working to the bone and living in a less than appealing apartment with government assistance because her parents disowned her and she refused to take Cameron's family money.

Jarrett is drawn to Raine from the moment she wandered into his room but he keeps himself away because she was his brother's ex.  He shouldn't be having these feelings toward a girl that is carrying his brother's child.  His instinct is to protect her and keep her safe, although he doesn't understand why.  Jarrett does stay away, until an unexpected run in at the local grocery store.  Seeing her struggling to make ends meet and then her horrific living conditions; he packs her up and brings her back to his home to live.  Raine is struggling with accepting the help that Jarrett is offering because of the way that his family has treated her since the big announcement, but he assures her that he is not his family.

The relationship between Jarrett and Raine blossoms into a friendship that she comes to depend on, having no other support in her life at the moment.  Estranged from her family, not having any friends or support from Cameron who continues to make horrendous comments about her skills in the bedroom, Jarrett becomes a rock to Raine.  As they grow closer together and she grows in her pregnancy, the feelings that each of them have for the other begin to grow beyond friendship.  And this is where the story really takes flight, enrapturing the reader to turn the page in order to find out the ending for these two lost soles that are found with each other.  This is a must read!!


JC Valentine

USA Today Bestselling author J.C. Valentine is the alter-ego of Brandi Salazar, whose enjoyment of tales of romance spurred her to branch out and create her own.
She lives in the Northwest with her husband, their wild children, and far too many pets. As a university student, she studies literature, which goes well with her dream of becoming an editor. Brandi entertains a number of hobbies including reading and photography, but her first love is writing fiction-in all its forms.




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