Review: Back in the Saddle

My Review:

 Back in the Saddle is a beautiful and heartfelt story about faith, redemption, forgiveness, and relationships. I instantly knew I was going to really love the Double S Ranch and it's occupants. Angelina is tough yet caring and I love how she is the glue that helped mend the Stafford household. But I was worried that it would be hard for her to stay and forget the life she left behind but for good reason. Which was a little worrisome because I think she is the perfect match for Colt. He is a stubborn cowboy and she's just the right woman to keep him straight! Her faith and compassion truly made me care for her and apparently everyone on the Double S Ranch feels the very same way. Colt's father trying to make things right and trying to figure out his newfound faith is both endearing and inspiring. He wasn't the greatest father but he does love his sons and I am really looking forward to getting to see him mend those fences a little more in the following books. I won't go through the details of each character but the whole menagerie had something special of their own to add and all just seemed very real and authentic. In fact if I had to come up with just three words to describe Back in the Saddle they would be authentic, beautiful, and heartfelt. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good heartwarming story of faith and love. 

**I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.**

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Review: The Undoing (Call of Crows #2) by Shelly Laurenston

My Review:

The Undoing by Shelly Laurenston

The Undoing is Jace's story. Yay! I knew I was going to love getting to know Jace's story better after she would hide away with her books in The Unleashing and claimed an adorable little foster pup. I'm happy to report you get a little more puppy time in this one as well. Once again one of my only complaints is the bombardment of names. Which actually wouldn't be as bad if it didn't swap back and forth between first and last names just like book one. I do think it was a bit better though and didn't involve as much explaining of the mythology so was a bit smoother read. The story still has a lot of Crows and Ravens involvement but it certainly was fun for me to get a much better peek into the lives of the Protectors. What can I say? Their love of books speaks to me directly on a very personal level :-) Jace is such a book nerd and introvert that she fits right in with them! It's actually quite hilarious how well they take to her and understand her. The Crows on the other hand could take some hints about not forcing poor Jace into small talk and other unpleasant social interactions. I think Ski and Jace are just perfect for each other! I'm definitely shipping them. Although the books focus more on a different set of characters in each, I think they will make more sense to be read in order. I am looking forward to the next book in this series and think it will continue to entertain and improve.

Great for fans of paranormal/urban fantasy style romances with some mythology (Norse) and action mixed in.

** I received this book from the publisher for review purposes **

Review: Pieces of You and Me by Erin Fletcher

Pieces of You and Me by Erin Fletcher



My Review: 

Pieces of You an Me has a childhood best friends to couple storyline that I always find endearing. Chase and Rylee have good chemistry together. I like the glimpses into their most cherished childhood memories together and thought that the notebooks they did together were so darn cute. There were things that I did not like though. Rylee's friends were very annoying and seemed super judgemental and closed minded. Rylee also never stuck up for Chase or told them to get over themselves. There was also a scene involving them and Chase's father that I found their comments and Rylee's reaction appalling. Also it is mentioned that Rylee gave up all the things she once loved to fit in with these people. I thought maybe once she started finding herself again with Chase that this might be resolved but nope the story never involves her revealing the things that she truly enjoys to them. To me I thought that seemed like a more likely reason she didn't want to have Chase around them. Not only because she wouldn't stand up for him to them but because with him around they would see into the true Rylee that Chase seems to bring out. So for me there were definite ups and downs to this story. I think maybe others who don't let the friends get under their skin may enjoy this one a bit more than I did. Overall the storyline and the couple aspect were good enough that I give it 3 maybe 3.5 stars.

** Thanks to Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with a review copy in exchange for my honest review **

Review: Drive (Hot Rides #1) by Sidney Bristol

My Review: 

Drive is one hot ride of a read! Aiden Dehart is one bad man but also a good guy and he just so happens to be helping the FBI. Okay so that rhymed, sorry about that, anyways...  I was pleasantly surprised at how much I really loved this book. I don't really know much about cars and have never really been interested in the details other than they get me to point b from point a. There is some car talk in Drive but it's not overly done and mostly it just gives me the notion that yes this is one bad car, it looks amazing, and can drive like a dream. I mean I do like the Fast & Furious movies and this definitely had that vibe going so I guess I shouldn't have been as surprised as I was that I enjoyed even the car aspects of the book. But as cool as all that was my main attraction to Drive was Aiden ( I so loved his character ), Madison, and their chemistry together. Aiden was exactly the type of male character to make me swoon... tough, passionate, and yet has a caring heart. Madison was fun too as she had this innocence about her despite being one heck of a roller derby player and a mouth that can definitely get her into trouble. I guess I like characters with multiple layers and that's exactly what I got from this novel. The others on the "team" were pretty cool too and I am looking forward to reading more about them in the following books of the series. So If you like hot guys with hot cars and romance with some suspense then Drive might just be the book for you.  ** I received this book from the publisher for review purposes **

Review: Out Of Play

My Review: Out of Play 

There are so many things to love about Out of Play. For one it has a really cool main character named Penny who is a totally kick-butt hockey player. She is one tough girl and proud of it and shows the boys no mercy. She can be a bit snarky at times which I love of course and really I could go on and on about how much I love Pen. Then insert troubled Bishop, drummer for Burn, and total hottie. He won me over despite his problems and I am really happy that we got the dual point of views in this novel so that I could get to know his inner thoughts. When he starts hanging out with Gramps I totally fell in love with him. Gramps is so awesome ( I love Gramps ). Another of my favorite things is that this isn't just a romance. It's also about family, friends, and finding out who you are, while it also deals with some tougher stuff like addiction, death, and dementia. I will admit that I cried more than once on this one. Overall though it wasn't really a sad story ( except for one part ) as strange as that sounds with it being about addiction. Because more than addiction Out of Play was about finding yourself, making yourself happy, and forgiving yourself and others. 

** Thank you Netgalley and Entangled Teen Publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for review **

P.S. This is on sale for $0.99 right now on Amazon at the link below! 4/11/2016 
I'm not sure how long the sale will last so grab yours now. 

http://www.amazon.com/Out-Play-Jolene-Perry-ebook/dp/B00BQMOG5G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1460384366&sr=8-1&keywords=out+of+play
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review & giveaway French Kiss For Hire episode 5

French Kiss For Hire

Episode 5

By Lizzy Ford, Amanda Lance, Nikki Jefford, Amanda Aksel, Nana Malone, & Morgan Wylie

Luc Du'Mont's exploits as French Kiss for Hire continue as his visa's expiration looms and Serena remains out of reach...

Sensitive and sexy Frenchman, Luc Du’mont, is living the American dream. He’s spent the last four years at university on an acting scholarship. Now, with graduation behind him he’s ready to make his big Hollywood splash.

A debut that has to happen before his student visa expires in two months. Otherwise, he’ll be shipped home to France and all of his acting opportunities will sail with him.

But most importantly, he’ll lose any chance at winning blonde-bombshell Serena Dawson’s heart. As the sister of his roommate she is strictly off limits. But when Serena approaches Luc for kissing advice, what can Luc say other than pucker up?

The kiss leads to much more than Luc ever imagined. When word gets out about Luc’s lip-locking skills and his unemployment leaves him desperate, Luc finds himself with a new career path: French Kiss for Hire.

Except the only client he wants is the one girl he can’t have.

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01B3U619Y

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01B3U619Y

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1089328831

Kobo:https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/french-kiss-for-hire-episode-5

B&N:http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/french-kiss-for-hire-episode-5-amanda-aksel/1123484748?ean=2940152852479

Want to know who wrote episode 5? We’re not telling!

Guess the author who wrote episode 5 and get entered to win a signed paperback from the author! 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Ends 4/19.


My Review: 

I have enjoyed these short episodes of French Kiss For Hire and have had fun trying to guess which author has written which episode. This being the fifth episode there has been quite the build up for Serena and Luc to finally get together. The other books have been pretty innocent in just a bit of kissing here or there but this one has definitely spiced things up a little. My enjoyment of their relationship finally escalating didn't get to last long with a big emotional throw down at the end which has me wondering how things are going to play out for poor Luc in the final book. I sure hope that he gets that happy ending he has been hoping for.

** I received a digital copy of this book in exchange for honest review **

And now you can get started reading for free!

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01B3U5X34/

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/french-kiss-for-hire-episode-1-amanda-aksel/1123320116?ean=2940152788570

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/french-kiss-for-hire-episode-1

Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1079734787

review: Sidelined by Kendra C. Highley

Sidelined by Kendra C. Highley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow, what a powerful novel! This is my first time reading a YA contemporary sports novel and man was I blown away by how invested I became in this story. I've never been super into sports or ever really a part of something so competitive, but I think that Genna is still totally relatable. I think anyone who has ever had a plan for their life and how they think things would be and then have their plans completely shattered can totally sympathize with Genna. It was heartbreaking watching her struggles and I was definitely rooting for her to pull through this.

Although I knew going in that this book was going to be emotional with Genna's struggles from having her basketball dreams taken away from her I did not expect there to be a drug related problem. Being someone who has at one time in her life had to watch a love one struggle with addiction to prescription pain meds this really touched me deeply. I thought that it was very accurate with the character's denial of the addiction, although it was already becoming apparent to others. I also thought that the final realization of how far she would go and what she would be willing to give up for just another pill was rather heartbreaking. I was happy to have some wit, romance, and comradery included to give us some silver-lining through Genna's hard journey to recovery.

Overall a very enthralling YA novel about love, injury, addiction, and recovery, that really tugs at the heartstrings.


** I received a digital copy of this novel via Netgalley for review purposes **