Showing posts with label Jamie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jamie. Show all posts

Friday, August 29, 2014

Blog Tour: Why It's Called Falling by Leslie Stephens



Having written off men after being burned too many times, twenty-two-year-old Aspen Williams is ready to finish college and start living her life. She and her best friend head south of the border to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for their dream vacation. This vacation was to be all about sun, fun and girl time … or so she thought. A chance encounter puts her directly in the path of Hollywood’s hottest leading man, Ryan Lark. 

Hollywood stars shine brightly and Ryan Lark is no exception. He is an all-American boy wrapped up in a body made for sin with a face that defined beautiful masculinity. What you don’t see through the glare of the movie screen is a gentle and tender man whose heart and soul have been burned by the very same lights that made him who he is. 

In true Hollywood fashion, sparks fly between Aspen and Ryan. Even though she tries not to, Aspen falls fast and hard with hopes that Ryan feels the same way. But she learns the brutal truth of why it’s called falling in love. 

With more on the line than they both bargained for, will their final scene be a happily ever after?


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Why It's Called Falling was a whirlwind romance.  I would give this book a 3.5 stars.  I do like this story it just didn't pull me in to where I truly fell in love with it.  That would be the only reason I couldn't rate it higher.  It did have a good story line and the author had great a writing style.  This is told in dual POV's of Aspen and Ryan.  It does have an HEA but not an easy one.  I would definitely read more from this author and suggest this book to friends. 

Aspen is on vacation in Mexico and is truly excited because she finally got her parents to agree to let her go.  She is there with her best friend and they are set out to have a fantastic time sitting by pool and drinking and partying.  What she didn't expect was to be trapped on an elevator with the famous movie star Ryan Lark.  He was even more sexy in person and the one thing she realizes very fast is that he isn't arrogant like the tabloids made him out to be.  When they start to make plans to hang out the chemistry between them will explode and neither will be able to not fall in love over there 2 weeks of paradise.  But with love comes consequences and Aspen will find out that even though they love eachother sometimes it just isn't enough.  She is simple college student and he is a movie star it would never work in the real world.  Will there romance end in Mexico... Or will a twist of fate bring them together?  Or will choice make it impossible for them to be together again?

Unfortunately, now I understand why it's called falling in love. One minute it felt like free falling into your own piece of heaven on earth, and the next minute you were crash landing from that same fall-- ASPEN

Ryan is the famous movie star and he finally gets a couple weeks off and decides to go to Mexico.  He is there with his 2 best friends and they all plan to just lay low and have a great time.... maybe a hook up or two but nothing serious.  But when Aspen comes out of no where and doesn't fawn all over him like most woman do, he gets intrigued and has to know more about her.  When there chemistry explodes Ryan knows in his heart that he is falling for this girl..but he also knows that he has a career that needs to be top priority not a romance.. he has been there before and it nearly destroyed the woman he loved before and he refuses to bring another love into his crazy world.  So he chooses to end things when they leave Mexico... but with twists and turns and maybe fate will he see her again?  Will the secret she kept from him pull him closer or tear them apart?

"I don't think you understand how fucking awesome I think you are.  No pretense. No bullshit.  You make me believe that ever after might be possible and you do it without ever trying."-- RYAN

Can these 2 realize that even though they have separate lives that they can find a way to make it work?  Or will too much time pass and too many secrets hold them back?  YOU will need to one-click to find out!!!

Thanks for a good story and I do look forward to more from this author!









Leslie Stephens is a former executive who walked away from corporate America to pursue a passion for writing. After endless hours of reading Contemporary Romance and Erotica novels, Leslie wrote and published her debut novel, Why It's Called Falling in July, 2014. 

In between writing sessions, Leslie transports her two children to their various activities. She can usually be found at a baseball diamond cheering on her favorite 2nd baseman or a high school gymnasium doing hair and make-up for her darling baton twirler.
   






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Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Release Day Blitz: Who I'm Becoming by Shanora Williams



Montana Delray is the most laid back of the popular rock band, FireNine. He’s goofy, charming, blatantly honest, talented, a massive flirt, and extremely handsome. The girls literally throw themselves at him, and he accepts it. He loves the attention. The fame. The parties. His single life.

With so many women to choose from, it’s not in his nature to chase after just one, but when Lauren Harkin enters his life, that all changes. 

Lauren is smart, sexy, confident, and knows exactly how to get under his skin… and although he hates to admit it, he loves it. He wants her in every way possible, but she doesn’t want anything to do with him. Famous FireNine rocker, Delray isn’t the kind of guy Lauren needs to bring into her life. After having her emotions tampered with repeatedly, she refuses to give into someone who will most likely take her for granted and make things worse.

But with much effort and some sexual manipulation, Montana and Lauren come to an agreement neither of them can resist. As their fling carries on, though, everything intensifies, and once they realize it true fear sets in. 

Soon they come to the realization that they care for one another more than intended, and they both know caring for someone other than themselves means opening their hearts. 

The reality they face with each other is totally unexpected and becomes their biggest fear… and neither of them is ready for it.


I pressed the button to my floor and it opened several seconds later. Silence crept between us but it wasn’t an uncomfortable one. It was sort of… nice. After taking nearly decades to find the hotel key in my pockets, I stuffed it into the lock of the door and stumbled inside, laughing at my own idiocy.
She followed in behind me, and I flipped the light switch. A dim light illuminated above her head and she smiled. “Well… you’re here,” she breathed.
“I am,” I said.
“Do you… need anything?”
“Nope…”I paused. “Well maybe just for you to stay.”
She let out a girlish giggle. “Montana, you know I can’t stay.”
“Why not?” I asked, stepping in.
She dared a step as well, angling her head and locking eyes with me. Bringing her hand up, she ran it across my cheek and a faint smile appeared on her lips. “Because it would be wrong of me to sleep with you.”
My dick pulsed. Her voice was smooth and seductive. It was sexy as hell with that accent. “Why would it be wrong?”
“It’s a long story. Just know it would be.”
“Don’t beat around the bush, Princess.”
She smirked. “I’m not. Maybe when you’re sober…”
I laughed, throwing my head back. “I guess that’s never then.”
“Well, then I guess we’ll never have that experience, huh?” She was teasing the hell out of me. Her voice. Her body... so warm and close. Fuck.
What made it worse was how she turned around and walked away, swinging her plump ass in those tight blue jeans. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Big show, right?”
“Yes,” I whispered. I couldn’t stop staring.
“Good…”She opened the door.
“Wait,” I called before she could make it out.
She lifted both brows, glancing over her shoulder. “Yeah?”
I walked towards her, licking my lips. “Tell me your name. I need to know it.”
She lowered her head, biting a smile. “If I tell you my name will you take it easy for the rest of the night?”
“I will… for you, Princess.”
She paused, batting her mascaraed eyelashes while running her eyes up and down the length of my body. Her smoky eyes then met mine, she stepped back, and a warm hand pressed against my chest. She stood on the toes of her high-heels and whispered, “Lauren Harkin. Don’t forget it,” she murmured. “Because if you do, I won’t tell you my name again… you’ll just have to suffer with not knowing the name of the woman that, in every way, intrigues you.”
My eyes stretched.
And she smirked.
And it was right there, in that moment, when she had me. It was in that moment when I realized I had to have her. I had to get her up under me. I had to dick her down at least once. She was begging for it, and my body wasn’t denying it. I wanted her and I wanted her something serious.



Who I Am Becoming by Shanora Williams is the bass player Montana Delray's story.  And I couldn't have been more excited to read it!  Montana was always one of my favorite members of the band FireNine, because of his fun loving, anything goes attitude.  He was always the least serious one of the group, ready with a whitty come-back and looking for a fun, spontaneous time and this book lived up to his larger than life personality!  I would rate this book a 4 and recommend that everyone read this amazing rocker series.  The series itself was so intriguing, each band member having their own trials and tribulations to deal with and overcome, but never faltering from the love and never-ending support that the other members provide.

Montana Delray was all about getting high, getting drunk and getting laid, not necessarily in that order.  He had no need for commitment, or for keeping a girl for anything longer than his orgasm lasted.  He lived by those self-created rules throughout his life, even while watching his fellow bandmates, meet the one and one by one settle down.  Although happy for them, he did not yearn to be a one woman guy.  That would eventually change, as he grows in this book, a fact that he has a hard time accepting and understanding.

Montana met Lauren backstage a year ago, when he propositioned her and she declined his advances, more than once.  He often thought about her and what it would be like to be with her, sexually only of course.  When they meet up again, Lauren looks much different from what Montana remembered, but in a good way.  He approaches her again, hoping to be able to quench his need to be with her.  Lauren is only looking for a fun time right now with no strings attached.  She is well aware of how Montana operates when it comes to the ladies and that is all that she can handle in her life at the moment.  Lauren ends up proposing that Montana come out to meet her in California for a week of no strings fun.  Montana agrees to meet her and get ready ladies because it gets hot hot hot and steamy!!

Montana is confused by the way that he begins to think about Lauren during the week he spends with her, how he reacts to her, and to find that he likes her more than just for the amazingly smoking hot sex that they have.  He wonders if a week will really be enough, but knowing that is what he agreed to, he tries to keep his emotions in check.  But once there time is over, both Lauren and Montana realize that it was more than just a week of passion between the sheets and that there were real feelings involved.  It is only when they decide to be serious and be in a committed relationship that things become real, and the secrets that Lauren is hiding slam to the surface at the most pivotal point in their relationship.  Will it work out for them? Will Montana finally disappoint all of the groupie bitches and settle down with one woman?  You will have to read to find out!

"We were crazy, but the really crazy thing was how we could be crazy together.  How we could go crazy on each other.  How we could do crazy things like fight and make up, and act like none of it ever happened in only a matter of seconds."





Finally, I was whole.
Finally I'd matured and 
become the real me.

Who I'm Becoming was another great story in the FireNine series!  This is one of my favorite rock star series. Another great 5 stars from me.  Shanora Williams has easily become one of my favorite authors to follow and she pleasantly surprises me all the time with her writing style.  This book was just what I needed.. Who wouldn't want to know about the hot rocker bass player Montana Delray???  I have to say when I first started this series I didn't think it could get better each time I read about all the band players and there love lifes but damn if each book just didn't intrigue me more and more.  This is told in a dual POV of Montana and Lauren.  It does end in an HEA.  

Montana is the bass player for the band FireNine and plays by his own 5 simple rules... and he never falters these rules.

1) Get sloppy drunk.
2) Get high as fuck.
3) Mess around with/fuck bitches
4) Pass the fuck out
5) Repeat the following night.
It was a ritual of mine for years.  It's what I loved.  I loved being completely out of it, so out of it that everything blurred together.  You can't focus, because focusing means facing reality.  You can't think because sometimes thinking too much fucks you over in the end.  You just....live.  And living for myself was what I did best.-- MONTANA

Of course he is the typical rock star play boy.. but one woman has always intrigued him and she is the only woman that has every turned him down.  That is what he believes intrigues him because she becomes a challenge to him nothing more.  But why does he want the chase.. But what will happen when after a year she comes strolling back into his life when he has to go to France for another tour and that is where she lives?  When he finally gets what he wants from her why is it not enough... he doesn't understand what is making him crave this woman.. and why one night isn't enough.

Damn... this was insane.  I was insane.  Obsessing over her pussy.  I never felt a need so insatiable.  I never needed to fuck somebody so bad off of a few tempting words.  Whatever connection we were building--whatever I was feeling-- was fucking dangerous but in that moment I did give one shit.-- MONTANA

Lauren is the back stage manager for FireNines tour.  She is currently hiding a secret and this secret isn't something she is willing to share with anyone..it could ruin her..and her career.  Because of this secret she can't trust another man ever again... but she is going to try and have some fun for once in her life.  The perfect opportunity arises when she meets up again with Montana.. yes she turned him down almost a year ago but she is going to just live a little and spend an amazing night with him and be done.  But what happens when one night isn't enough and it turns into her inviting Montana to be with here for a couple weeks when his tour is over.. its just fun right nothing serious....

Why cry over a man as himself?  I showered up, and when I got out I realized why I wanted to cry. Because Montana was a good guy.  He was sweet, charming, and he gave me more fun than I ever thought possible while in Cali.  I didn't think we'd hit it off so well, but we did.  We connected in a way.  Though the sex was out of this world, it didn't top the bond we created.  The constant, mind-blowing sex was just a bonus to whatever we'd molded.-- LAUREN

Just when things seem to be going well with there no strings relationship Montana and Lauren find they do want more.. but insecurities will get the best of both of them and secrets will come to light.  Can there relationship withstand this? Can they find out who they need to become to overcome there pasts and insecurities... or is it all to much effort?  

I laughed as we headed for the exit. "Funny."  And really it was. But knowing that Montana could actually be mine and no one else's made me feel proud.  I knew there were plenty of women he could've chosen from, but he chose me.  Montant Delray, the FireNine bass player with the wicked smile, perfect hair and perfect piercings, wanted me. -- LAUREN

You all have to pick up this entire series.. it is hot and has so many twists and turns... and who doesn't 4 books about hot rockers???  Thank you Shanora and I looked forward to much more from you!


























New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author Shanora Williams considers herself a wondrous, down-to-earth author who’s all about romance, paranormal, and the historical fiction. Coffee and Oreos are her addiction. Reading is a necessity. Whenever she isn’t writing or reading, she’s most likely spending her time with family and loved ones, or watching hit TV series’ on Netflix.



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Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Release Day Launch & Review: I Want It That Way by Ann Aguirre

IWITW RDL Banner   
I Want It That Way



Nadia Conrad has big dreams, and she’s determined to make them come true. But between maintaining her college scholarship and working at the local day care to support herself, dating’s the last thing on her mind. Then she moves into a new apartment and meets the taciturn yet irresistible guy in 1B…. Daniel Tyler has grown up too fast. Becoming a single dad at twenty turned his life upside down—and brought him heartache he can’t risk again. Now, as he raises his four-year-old son while balancing a full-time construction management job and night classes, the last thing he wants is noisy students living in the apartment upstairs. But one night, Nadia’s and Ty’s paths cross, and soon they can’t stay away from each other. The timing is all wrong—but love happens when it happens. And you can’t know what you truly need until you stand to lose it. 


  




"Not all love stories end happily.  Sometimes they just end."

I Want It That Way By Ann Aguirre is a story of perseverance in rising to any situation and making it work, to be happy with your life, no matter what the outside world may think of the choices that you have made.  I give this book 3.5 stars and would recommend it to others who enjoy a good old fashion love story that has a happy ending.

Nadia moves into an apartment building with some friends during college, downstairs from the super hot Ty.  They meet each other on move-in day and he is anything but friendly and welcoming, but Nadia just can't shake the attraction that she has for him.  It was an instant feeling that she has never had before.  Working in a day care while going to class to be a special education teacher, Nadia is focused on her studies and all paths point to the future for her.  That is until her feelings started to change, and it was all because of her connection with Ty.

Ty was a single father who worked during the day and took college classes at night to be an architect.  Often tired and frusterated, he was less than pleased that a group of college kids were moving directly above him and Sam.  He feared that the party attitude that often surrounded normal college students, would interfere with the routine that he and Sam had created for themselves.

Ty can't seem to avoid Nadia even though he has tried time and time again and Sam has grown to love her.  She is the helper in his day care classroom and he becomes attached to her rather quickly.  Ty refuses to let Nadia into Sam's life in any other capacity because he is afraid of what will happen if they don't work out.  Ty and Nadia only spend time together when it is Sam's weekend with his grandparents, and although that arrangement seems to work out in the beginning, it isn't long before Nadia's feelings grown and she wants to take on a more important, permanent role in their lives.  Ty pushes her away, saying that she is too young for such responsibility and essentially breaks her heart.

Will Nadia be able to get over Ty or will she do everything in her power to get him back?  Will Ty give into his feeling for Nadia and finally realizes that he too deserves happiness?  You will have to one-click this book to find out!



 I Want It That Way was a great romance.  It had just enough angst, romance, sexy scenes and even heartbreak scenes.  I would give it a 4 star.  It is told in one POV of Nadia.. but don't worry even though we don't get all Ty's thoughts you will definitely feel his emotions.  Thankfully it does end with and HEA... but it isn't an easy one by any means.

Nadia is college student who just moved in to an apartment with her friends.  On her first day moving in she meets her neighbor downstairs.. but he doesn't seem very happy to be meeting her but helps move some furniture.  He is sexy as sin but there is just something off about him and Nadia is intrigued by this man.  What she didn't understand is that he was there age but seemed more mature... so that made her want to know more about him.  She finds herself sitting on her balcony just to be near him because he has a nightly routine of sitting outside like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders and is trying to relax from it all.   When the nightly routine of just sitting outside turns into finally talking and then more steam when they finally hang out together there world will explode together.

My heart skipped when he leaned into the light, a golden glow from his living room, and our eyes met, more or that hungry- looking. I felt the skim of his gaze over my bare shoulders, on the curve of my cheek and the line of my neck.  I'd swear to my grave it was the night air, but my nipples actually tightened, just from that look.  I licked my lips. He watched me. -- NADIA

Tyler is a single father and swears off any serious relationship with woman.  He does have sex every so often but nothing earth shattering just a release.  His main focus is his son and trying to get through night school to become an architect to make a better life for his son Sam.  When he has new neighbors that move in above him he is more than weary of what they may bring because they are college students and he may be there same age but he doesn't have the patience with dealing with rowdy neighbors.  But he is surprised to find that he is intrigued by the girl Nadia.. no one has made him feel the things she is provoking in him since his ex--who left him after Sam was born.    But something about Nadia will leave him thinking he can have a fling with her while his son isn't around so thats what happens... but Sam knows Nadia and loves her because she is apart of his everyday life with his day care.  

What happens when things get to serious?  Will Ty let his heart have what he wants or does his heart only have room for Sam?  Will Nadia be able to hold back her feelings and walk away and not fight because its a losing battle?  

I saw him below, and my heart opened like a flower.  In the moonlight, he was everything beautiful and broken; I loved him to madness.  There were no brakes for me anymore, just endless rush toward him.  And I'd fall if he didn't catch me.-- NADIA

"I would've robbed Sam of this,"  he whispered.  "Of having more people to love him.  I was so angry at Diana, so sure I could be enough for him, it never occurred to me that he deserved more.  We would've been so fucking lonely without you, and I never would've known.  I wouldn't have noticed when I changed from a tired, grumpy asshole into a bitter old man."-- TYLER

Go get this book now!  This is the first book I have read from this author and look forward to much much more in the I hope near future!



IWITW Teaser


 “Where are you from?” Ah, an actual question. That means I can ask one back. “Nebraska, toward the South Dakota and Wyoming side, if that helps.” “I’ve never met anyone from there.” Michigan was a long way from home. “I usually get ‘not in Nebraska anymore’ jokes, and then I have to decide if I’m going to remind them that’s Kansas or play along.” “What do you usually do?” “Play along.” “You don’t like conflict, huh?” He sounded normal tonight, as if talking to me wasn’t an unpleasant chore anymore. That was a relief since I’d come to look forward to these moments with him so much. More, maybe, than I’d like to admit.Right. Friends. I distracted myself by considering his question. “Not if it can be avoided. I’m not what you’d call pugnacious, no. But I like to think I don’t back off important issues. What about you?” “No.” His voice was bleak and quiet. “I don’t. Even when I should.” Wow, that took a dark turn. If I could’ve jumped onto his patio without breaking an ankle or waking Sam, I’d have been down there like a shot. The distance between us seemed intolerable, and from the knot in my throat, I didn’t see how I could live another second without touching him, finding out if his hair was as soft as it looked or what he smelled like. I wanted him in a way I never had before. In high school, I had a boyfriend who played basketball, and we broke up when I left the state. It was a rational decision, and I didn’t miss him that much once I was gone. My freshman year, I went out with a lot of different guys, one date here, two dates there, but I never clicked with anyone enough to focus on them. Sometimes there were hookups with no strings, no expectations. Classes, friends and work seemed a lot more important. The intensity of this attraction was foreign and frightening, if exhilarating. I might already be backing off if I had the faintest sense that Ty was jerking me around on purpose. Wish he didn’t make me feel this way. It’d be so much simpler if I could friend-zone him. I realized I still hadn’t touched his verbal grenade. “We all have things we’d do differently in hindsight.” “What is it about you?” he asked in a wondering tone. “Huh?” “You make me…better. Calmer.” “Like a sedative?” I snickered. It was the least sexy thing a guy had ever said to me, including a junior high squeeze who said my face wasn’t actually that bad. He laughed, too, a sheepish sound. “I didn’t mean it like that. Just…I’m worried pretty much all the time that I’m dropping the ball somewhere, about to face-plant, but when I come out here and hear your voice, everything backs off like ten steps. I can breathe again.”


Ann Aguirre is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author and RITA winner with a degree in English Literature; before she began writing full time, she was a clown, a clerk, a voice actress, and a savior of stray kittens, not necessarily in that order. She grew up in a yellow house across from a cornfield, but now she lives in sunny Mexico with her husband, children, and various pets. Ann likes books, emo music, action movies, and she writes all kinds of genre fiction for adults and teens, published with Harlequin, Macmillan, and Penguin, among others.