Champagne Toast (Love of My life #2) by Melissa Brown

Champagne Toast (Photo credit: Eph Zero)

Book description:

Kate Armour and Evan Maxwell fell hard and fast for each other while attending college. Their once passionate and loving relationship ended when old scars eventually tore them apart. Two years after their breakup, they’re each struggling to piece together what went wrong in an attempt to move forward.

Kate, a no-nonsense bartender, must face her past while attempting to focus on her future.

Evan is stifled by his bitter heart, which threatens each and every relationship he attempts after walking away from Kate.

Will life offer them a second chance at love or are old patterns simply too hard to break?

Sandy’s Review:

I liked this book more than the first one, I still did not feel attached to the characters.

Kate was her own worse enemy, she knew she had a pattern & shared it with Evan. She created doubt where there wasn’t any before. She also had massive self-esteem issues so she left before someone could leave her.

Evan seemed so trusting of people except for the person he claimed to be the love of his life. After Kate opened up to him and shared her faults he was always looking for cracks. These two characters had no trust in each other or themselves.

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Bouquet Toss by Melissa Brown

Daphne Blake (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Book Description:

Ever since Daphne Harper graduated from college, all of her friends have fallen in love, become engaged and walked down the aisle. Be it a blessing or a curse, Daphne (a hopeless romantic and perpetual single girl) catches the bouquet at every single wedding she attends.

Daphne’s love life is a mess. Her first love, Mayson, haunts her heart and keeps her from pursuing happiness with any man who comes along. As she struggles to move on from the one who got away, Daphne wonders if she will ever break her curse and find her happily ever after.

Sandy’s Review:

I liked this book, I did not love it. I never felt any real connection with the characters. I felt that Daphne’s inability to get over Mayson after everything that he did was unrealistic.  He dated her, left her, came back took her virginity left with no word, and shows up years later at her friends wedding to mess with her head some more.

Once Daphne met Tanner I knew she wasn’t ready for that relationship, she needed to get Mayson ALL the way out of her system.  Her relationship with Maysons mother was not going to allow her to move on and when his mother gave her the ring I wanted to hit her for being so selfish.  I knew she had good intentions but if she didn’t know 100% that the ring was for Daphne then she should have never shown it to her.

Tanner was a good man that was put into a bad situation from the start.  I think if he knew how deep Daphne was into Mayson he may have waited a bit longer to pursue her. He also was right to walk away when he did, she needed to choose between a fantasy in her head or the real thing.  I did like the way she decided to win him back.

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Rule by Jay Crownover

Book Description:

I had loved Rule Archer since the first moment I ever laid eyes on him. He was everything I shouldn’t want and the only person I went out of my way to not try and please. He only saw me as a brat, and an entitled, stuck up princess but worse than that all he saw when he looked at me was his deceased twin’s girl. It broke my heart because as much as I had loved Remy Archer there was never anything romantic between us and no matter how hard I tried to convince myself that loving Rule was a terrible idea, my poor heart just wouldn’t listen. We tolerated each other, barely and had forged an uneasy alliance until one night I had too much to drink and changed the way we were forever. Suddenly life long secrets were no longer hidden and the one thing I always wanted for myself seemed obtainable as long as I was willing to go through hell to hold onto it.

Shaw Landon was a class act and I had no idea what to do with her. She was tied to my family, tied to the person that was my other half so I tolerated her and her haughty attitude when I didn’t have any other choice. What I didn’t know was that a short skirt and too many cocktails on her birthday was going to change my outlook on her for the rest of my life. Some people thought I hid behind all my tattoos and piercings, that I tried to distance myself from my dead twin, Shaw saw through it all and wasn’t scared of what was underneath. We weren’t supposed to be together, weren’t supposed to be anything but uncomfortable acquaintances but that all changed in the blink of an eye. Now I had to figure out just how a girl like her and a guy like me were supposed to be in love without destroying each other. Add in her custom made ex and two disapproving sets of parents and the whole situation sounded like it was more trouble then it was worth.

Sandy’s review:

I really like this book but the characters seemed so familiar. I have read similar stories over and over again; bad boy, good girl, they hate each other, they love each other… They have messed up childhoods that leave them emotionally screwed up.  I just found it very hard to believe that brothers that were so close did not know something so personal about their brother Remy. I also really did not get why Rule hated Shaw so much when they were younger, yes she spent time with his twin brother but is that really a reason to hate someone.  The parents of these characters were so off-putting; Rule’s parents seemed so loving to everyone but Rule and Shaw’s parents were more concerned about status than their daughters safety.

Shaw seemed like a girl that needed to wake up to the fact that she was an adult and could do what she wanted.  Yes, she wanted her parents approval but there’s more to life than living up to everyones expectations.  She was also very naive when it came to protecting herself, once Gabe started blowing up my phone a restraining order would have been put in place. I was happy that they finally got over themselves and decided what they wanted out of life was each other.

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Coming soon…

I’m going to hold my breath until I get some candy! (Photo credit: iLikeSpoons)

Hey All,

I just wanted to let everyone following our blog know that we are finishing up some books and will uploading reviews soon. I just finished Rule by Jay Crownover and I am still kind of processing my feelings about it. My sister Salina is working her way through the Thoughtless series by S.C. Stephens (can’t wait to hear her thoughts on Kellan, LOVE HIM!) and my sister Jen is finishing up Providence by Jamie McGuire (another one of my favorites :D).

Have a great weekend!

~ Sandy

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Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Book Description:

INTENSE. DANGEROUS. ADDICTIVE.

Winter butterfly (Photo credit: @Doug88888)

Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand.

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

Sandy’s review:

I have to say that his is one of my all time favorite books and I cannot wait until they make it into a movie. I have actually bought this book in soft and hard copy versions and purchased copies as gifts.  I even paid my daughter $20 to read it, yes I love this book that much. This book invokes so many emotions in me; anxiety, anger, happiness, sadness, and relief.

Abby Abernathy is a character that reminds me of so many girls I knew who went away to school just to get away from home.  She has this idea if she pretends to be someone she’s not that she can leave her old life behind but of course life does not work that way.  Abby is her own worst enemy, if she was just honest with herself she would save herself from unnecessary pain. She meets the desire of every woman on campus, Travis Maddox.

Travis of course is tall, built, tattooed, and thinks he’s gods gift. When I first read about Travis I thought he was going to be one of those unemotional jerks but he actually gives a crap about the people he cares about.  He has a reputation that he does perpetuate but he’s young, hot, and single so how can you blame the guy. The ending of this book will throw you for a loop and leave you with smile. 🙂

Please buy this book and the next book in the series which comes out April 2, 2013, trust me you will not be disappointed.

http://www.amazon.com/Beautiful-Disaster-ebook/dp/B008JMKN4Y/ref=pd_sim_kstore_1

http://www.amazon.com/Walking-Disaster-A-Novel-ebook/dp/B008J2AH7C/ref=pd_sim_kstore_42

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Fifty Shades of Grey Trilogy by E.L. James

Here’s a quick summary of each:

b&w macro neck tie (Photo credit: ScarletPeaches)

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY: When college student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur

Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating.  The unworldly Ana realizes she wants this man, and Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian’s secrets and explores her own desires.

FIFTY SHADES DARKER: Daunted by Christian’s dark secrets and singular tastes, Ana has broken off their relationship to start a new career. But desire for Christian still dominates her every waking thought. They

rekindle their searing sensual affair, and while Christian wrestles with his inner demons, Ana is forced to make the most important decision of her life.

FIFTY SHADES FREED: Now, Ana and Christian have it all—love, passion, intimacy, wealth, and a world of possibilities for their future. But Ana knows that loving her Fifty Shades will not be easy, and that being together will pose challenges that neither of them would anticipate. Just when it seems that their strength together will eclipse any obstacle, misfortune, malice, and fate conspire to turn Ana’s deepest fears into reality.

Sandy’s review: 

It’s funny how this series has not lost it’s luster for me even after reading it numerous times.  Just yesterday my sister Jen asked me “what was so great about it?”  Without hesitation I told her to look past the hype of a S&M sex book and read the story.   When I first read it I’ll be honest I was curious about the sex in the book, I was pleasantly surprised that after the first few descriptive sex acts that I could just skim over the sex if I wanted to and it wouldn’t take away from the story.  Ms. James did over use “Oh My”, “inner sex goddess”, and Christians jeans hanging off his hips a little to often.

Français : Cravache. Photographie prise à Mississauga,

 

I was glad that even though Ana was a virgin that E.L. James did not make her into some fragile naive woman because of it.  She new exactly what she was getting into when it came to being with Christian and she knew what she could handle. She is an intelligent, strong, and sometimes to her detriment stubborn woman, which a man like Christian Grey needs. Christian is a perceived as a no nonsense elusive billionaire but in reality he’s just a control freak who likes sex. After everything he was put through as a child it’s a miracle he did not turn into a drug addict or serial killer.

As I said before you can skim over the sex parts and still have an amazing story about their pasts; his abusive childhood, her flighty mother and dedicated step-father.  Their present; trying to balance an actual “vanilla” relationship which neither has done before, his ex’s Dom and sub’s and her current weirdo boss.  Along with family drama thrown in here and there.

The ending of this series is so good I could read it over and over again just to put a smile on my face.

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For those who haven’t read 50 shades yet or who have this is an awesome way to approach it
~ Sandy

The Official How To Blog

Alice of Alice at Wonderland has been slogging through the literary anal dribblings of E.L. James for what feels like an eternity. There is only so much “Fair point, well made Miss Steele/Mrs. Grey” and “Laters baby” one can read before one feels as if they’ve been sucked into a Groundhog-Day-like reality of which there is no escape.

If after reading the above paragraph, you still desire to pore through the monotonous ramblings of an author who knows neither plot or character development, then Alice has prepared a handy how-to on how to slog through this pile o’crap.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Have you wondered what all the fuss was about with 50 Shades, but been scared to read it?  Of course you have!  With this simple guide, you can read 50 Shades of Grey and possibly keep your sanity.

How To Read 50 Shades

1. Download it to your e-reader.  Then if someone…

View original post 267 more words

 

Collide by Gail McHugh

Midtown Manhattan, New York City, from Rockefeller Center, 1932 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Book Summary:

A missed first encounter…

Colliding with a second chance…

On the heels of graduating college and trying to cope with her mother’s death, Emily Cooper moves to New York City for a fresh start.

While harboring secrets of his own, Dillon Parker takes care of Emily through her grief. Knowing he can’t live without her by his side, he’s sweet, thoughtful, and everything Emily has ever wanted in a man.

Until she meets Gavin Blake—a rich and notorious playboy who is dangerously sexy and charming as hell. Emily tries to deny the instant connection she feels, but Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome is not inclined to let go so easily. Recovering from his own painful past, Gavin will stop at nothing to win Emily over.

This unexpected encounter compels Emily to question her decisions, forcing her to make a choice that will destroy friendships, shatter hearts, and forever change her life.

Sandy’s review:

Emily has been dating Dillon for a few months and decides to move to NYC but has the good sense to move in with her old college roommate Olivia.  Dillon is a stockbroker who is all about the next big score be it an account or women.  Gavin Blake is of course the millionaire playboy that every female within a hundred mile ratios wants to get with. Gavin see Emily for more than just a trophy piece unlike Dillon who’s all about status.

I felt sorry for her that she defined herself by who she was with.  Throughout the book she is conflicted about who to be with, well the answer is simple my friend, dump them both and be by yourself for awhile but of course she does not do that. This book does one thing I hate it ends on a cliffhanger.  I hope the next book in the series has Emily acting like the strong educated women she is.

The link below is a brief summary from http://www.goodreads.com:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17158596-collide

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Refresher

 

books (Photo credit: brody4)

 

Since this is a new book blog I have decided to do a bit of a refresher on some of the books I have read.  Over the next week I will try to reread as many as possible so I can give a review daily.  While I am refreshing hopefully my sisters will take up the slack with their reviews.  I will review the books I have read in the last week as these will still be fresh in my mind.  So first up will be Collide which I finished last night.  Updates coming shortly.

 

~ Sandy

 

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Addiction….

Books 2008 (Photo credit: // Denise //)

Over the past few months I have acquired a new addiction, Reading.  I just looked at my Goodreads profile and it has almost 100 books on it.  Yes some of these books were from years ago when I read a book here and there but I think they still count.  I started this addiction around the time when I finished my Bachelors degree, I figured I was already reading 50 page chapters each night so why not keep up habit.

One of my best childhood friends, Thanya, was the one who opened my imagination to reading.  At first we started out with the usual Babysitters club and then worked our way up to, at that time, saucy V.C. Andrews series.  After high school I got away from reading until I met my husband.  He introduced me to the romantic and deadly world of Anne Rice and her Vampire chronicles.  I moved onto the Harry Potter series as it was what my children were also reading.

I started attending school in 2009 and I had no time for leisurely reading, it was math, history, business writing, and then tons of technical computer reading. During my last few months of school I started hearing all this buzz about a series called “50 shades of Grey“.  At that time I was doing my psychology electives so I had more down time.  I read the whole series in 3 days and when it was over I felt a loss cause I was so consumed by the characters.  I probably have read that series more than 10 times and yes that’s a bit much but I love Christian and Anna.

My addiction has taken over a good part of my days and nights. My friends and family have taken notice and started asking me about the books I have read or I am reading.   So then I started becoming a book peddler by insisting others read the books that I love.  My sisters are now becoming addicts and we frequently text or call each other yelling, crying, and/or laughing about a book.

We came up with the idea of a book blog after too much time on the phone and too many complaints from our husbands. We hope everyone enjoys our blog.  Please feel free to also recommend books.

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