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Review: When I’m Gone by Emily Bleeker

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Title: When I’m Gone

Author: Emily Bleeker

Published Date: March 15th 2016

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Rating:

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Synopsis

Dear Luke,First let me say—I love you…I didn’t want to leave you.…

Luke Richardson has returned home after burying Natalie, his beloved wife of sixteen years, ready to face the hard job of raising their three children alone. But there’s something he’s not prepared for—a blue envelope with his name scrawled across the front in Natalie’s handwriting, waiting for him on the floor of their suburban Michigan home.

The letter inside, written on the first day of Natalie’s cancer treatment a year ago, turns out to be the first of many. Luke is convinced they’re genuine, but who is delivering them? As his obsession with the letters grows, Luke uncovers long-buried secrets that make him question everything he knew about his wife and their family. But the revelations also point the way toward a future where love goes on—in written words, in memories, and in the promises it’s never too late to keep.

My Review:
Outstanding! Emily Bleeker is a New to Me Author, but I saw this cover as a book selection for NerdGirl, and I just connected with it, so I had to pick up this book! I’m completely thrilled that I did, and would not regret reading this.This story connects with the reader on a deep emotional level, as we come into the story with Luke, a grieving husband who now has to raise kids on his own, and he receives a letter from his departed wife. As the letters continue to come, the story and mystery surrounding Natalie comes to light. There’re various aspects of Natalie’s life that Luke never knew about, and one by one, the letters start revealing the pieces to him and making his head spin. We meet Natalie and Luke, along with her friend Annie, and Jessie. Each character is written so well, and so complex that you regularly swap back and forth on if you like the character. As things get brought to light, you’re taken on an emotional rollercoaster, and it makes this book a fantastic read. I was drawn in quickly, read it in a few days, and shed a few tears. I’m impressed with the skill of the author because this isn’t an easy subject or an easy plot to write on, and she blew it out of the water. I loved the dynamic between the characters and the added tension the letters brought.

I would recommend this to fans of emotional stories, as well as mysteries because it’s got great characteristics of both. I loved how this book was slightly similar in concept to “P.S I love You” which I loved in both book and movie form, and the basic letter idea is all that it had in common, but if you enjoyed that book, this would be perfect for you. It tugs at your heart strings, makes you mind race, and makes to think of the big picture of life and death, and how to move on.

Very well done, and I look forward to reading more from this author! Fantastic!

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for honest review. All opinions are my own.

First published on NerdGirl (Proud Member of NerdGirl, Big3) For more information regarding their reviews please visit their Fan Site: www.facebook.com/NerdGirl.NG***

GR

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#5Star #ARCReview of #TruthWitch by Susan Dennard! Pre-Order it NOW! @NewLeafLiterary @torbooks @stdennard

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Quick Stats:

Title: Truthwitch (The Witchlands #1)

Author: Susan Dennard

Genre: Fantasy, YA

Publication Date: January 5th 2016

356 ratings on Goodreads – 4.5 average rating

Amazon Pre-Order | B&N Pre-Order | Goodreads

My Rating: 4ibxdpbyT4ibxdpbyT4ibxdpbyT4ibxdpbyT4ibxdpbyT+

Synopsis:

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On a continent ruled by three empires, some are born with a “witchery”, a magical skill that sets them apart from others.

In the Witchlands, there are almost as many types of magic as there are ways to get in trouble—as two desperate young women know all too well.

Safiya is a Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lie. It’s a powerful magic that many would kill to have on their side, especially amongst the nobility to which Safi was born. So Safi must keep her gift hidden, lest she be used as a pawn in the struggle between empires.

Iseult, a Threadwitch, can see the invisible ties that bind and entangle the lives around her—but she cannot see the bonds that touch her own heart. Her unlikely friendship with Safi has taken her from life as an outcast into one of reckless adventure, where she is a cool, wary balance to Safi’s hotheaded impulsiveness.

Safi and Iseult just want to be free to live their own lives, but war is coming to the Witchlands. With the help of the cunning Prince Merik (a Windwitch and ship’s captain) and the hindrance of a Bloodwitch bent on revenge, the friends must fight emperors, princes, and mercenaries alike, who will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.

Review:

Let’s just take a second to thank Suzie Townsend at New Leaf Literary and Media! I didn’t believe I even had a CHANCE at an ARC of this book, but it appeared in my mailbox, and Suzie is now my fairy godmother! Thank you! 🙂

Before I read the book, i heard the hype. I listened to people fawn over it on BEA vlogs, and I saw Sarah J Maas gave it 5 stars (I was coming off a Court of Thorns and Roses Book Hangover), so I knew I must read it.

You will not regret pre-ordering this book. Not even once. The only thing you’ll regret is that Book 2: WindWitch isn’t ready yet. Prepare to read it in one day and wait.

I loved this book. I didn’t know if I would because the beginning starts out slow. You need to know the world, you need to know Safi and Iseult, and you need to know their powers. The book starts in the middle of some action, which for me is something I love, but though the world building and background is needed, it was slow for me, but I pushed onward. Why? Because I love that this book is feauring two kick ass best friends. Two strong females who would do anything for each other. Soul Mates of the friend variety. That’s rare, and Dennard does it well.

Once you hit about half way, this story will claim your life. It’s going to come first before work, parties, pizza (gasp, I know), movies, Netflix, and sleep. It burrows into your head, and it sits there going “READ ME”

I really couldn’t decide who to love and who to hate in this book. There’s so many diverse characters, male and female, and so many misconceptions and preconceived notions about them that you really have to dig out from under the layers to figure out who is truly good, who is chaotic good (they exist outside of D&D), and who’s truly bad. Dennard really did a masterful job at viewing prejudice from all different angles in this book, and showing what you’ve been told isn’t exactly what’s true.

Now, we discuss the love you/hate you, walking a thin line towards explosive relationship between Safi and Merik. Holy cow, those two. I couldn’t decide if I was firmly on bored, or if I though Safi was crazy at times (she is, but what females aren’t!). They have this dynamite chemistry that you can’t quite pin down, but it’s beautifully written and I’m dying for more! (Add me to book 2’s list ASAP!). There’s a scene where they dance together, and I swear, I didn’t breathe the whole time. Amazing.

I’d like a windwitch (hint hint book 2 & a man) of my own, please and thanks! 🙂

Finally, I loved how steeped in culture and belief this book was. Dennard created a lush and beautiful world, and filled it with myths, legends, religions and so much more. I’m a fantasy girl, through and through, and this ranks among the greats for me! I made a spot next to my Tolkien leather bound edition, and Game of Thrones books, and placed TruthWitch there (It didn’t stay long before my boyfriend snatched it up to read.) This book is well written, amazingly detailed, and it’s just lavish to read. You will get lost in Dennard’s world, and when you resurface, let me know. We can be hungover together until Book 2: WindWitch comes along.

This was one of the best books I’ve read in 2015, and I’ve read many books. It’s up there with Six of Crows, Court of Thorns and Roses, and Red Queen. Dennard is a powerhouse, and belongs on every shelf! I will be hunting down Dennard’s earlier works, as this is my first adventure with her, and I cannot wait for what’s to come! Pre-order your copy now, and get some cool bonus items! It’s worth it! I just one-clicked! 🙂

About The Author

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Susan Dennard has come a long way from small-town Georgia. With a masters degree in marine biology, she got to travel the world—six out of seven continents, to be exact (she’ll get to Asia one of these days!)—before she settled down as a full-time novelist and writing instructor.

She is the author of the Something Strange and Deadly series (from HarperTeen) as well as the forthcoming Witchlands Series (Tor, 2015). When not writing, she can be found hiking with her dogs, exploring tidal pools, or earning bruises at the dojo.

You can learn more about Susan on her website,blog, newsletter, Twitter, or Pinterest.

Also, be sure to check out Tor Teen & New Leaf Literary and Media online!

Hope you’re glad to have me back in the blogging world! I’ve got tons of books to discuss!

Hausfrau: A Novel by Jill Alexander Essbaum – #Review & #Giveaway – @JAEssbaum #hausfraubook

Hausfrau

Release Day: March 17th, 2015

www.hausfraubook.com

Synopsis

“Madame Bovary meets Fifty Shades of Grey.”*
 
Anna was a good wife, mostly. For readers of The Girl on the Train and The Woman Upstairscomes a striking debut novel of marriage, fidelity, sex, and morality, featuring a fascinating heroine who struggles to live a life with meaning—“a modern-day Anna Karenina tale.”**
 
ONE OF THE HUFFINGTON POST’S MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2015

Anna Benz, an American in her late thirties, lives with her Swiss husband, Bruno—a banker—and their three young children in a postcard-perfect suburb of Zürich. Though she leads a comfortable, well-appointed life, Anna is falling apart inside. Adrift and increasingly unable to connect with the emotionally unavailable Bruno or even with her own thoughts and feelings, Anna tries to rouse herself with new experiences: German language classes, Jungian analysis, and a series of sexual affairs she enters with an ease that surprises even her.

But Anna can’t easily extract herself from these affairs. When she wants to end them, she finds it’s difficult. Tensions escalate, and her lies start to spin out of control. Having crossed a moral threshold, Anna will discover where a woman goes when there is no going back.

Intimate, intense, and written with the precision of a Swiss Army knife, Jill Alexander Essbaum’s debut novel is an unforgettable story of marriage, fidelity, sex, morality, and most especially self. Navigating the lines between lust and love, guilt and shame, excuses and reasons, Anna Benz is an electrifying heroine whose passions and choices readers will debate with recognition and fury. Her story reveals, with honesty and great beauty, how we create ourselves and how we lose ourselves and the sometimes disastrous choices we make to find ourselves.

Praise for Hausfrau

“Sexy and insightful, this gorgeously written novel opens a window into one woman’s desperate soul.”—People

“With an elegance, precision, and surehandedness that recalls Marguerite Duras’s The Loverand Anita Brookner’s Hotel du Lac, Jill Alexander Essbaum gives us this exquisite tale of an expatriate American wife living in Switzerland and her sexual and psychic unraveling. Hausfraustuns with its confidence and severe beauty, its cascading insights into the uses of erotic life and the nature of secrets, the urgency of compulsion and the difficulty of freedom. This is a rare and remarkable debut.”—Janet Fitch, #1 New York Times bestselling author of White Oleander

“The realism of Anna’s dilemmas and the precise construction of the novel are marvels of the form. . . . [Hausfrau] is masterly as it moves toward its own inescapable ending, and Anna is likely to provoke strong feelings in readers well after the final page.”—Publishers Weekly(starred review)

“I was mesmerized by this book. Hausfrau creates a complete, engrossing, and particular world where nothing is as easy as it should be, according to the hopeful stories we tell ourselves. It’s a corrective novel, taking character, destiny, and our choices as seriously as a novelist can.”—Sheila Heti, author of How Should a Person Be?

“A racy mix of Gone Girl and Fifty Shades.”—Grazia (U.K.)

*Sunday Express (U.K.)
**Glamour (U.K.)

Review

Grade: B+ (4 stars)

This was just an interesting book, outside of my normal reading but just as interesting and well written. Anna is a native american living in Switzerland, and feeling completely lost. She wants to be a good wife, but she ends up entangled in torrid affairs.

Normally, I like woman who are strong, who know what they want, and are going after it. Anna is not that woman. She’s passive, she’s flawed. Her phycological profile is intriguing, and God, I hated her. I loved hating her, and to be honest, it was refreshing it! It was a gripping well written novel, in which we didn’t love the characters. That takes talent on the part of the author. You’ve gotta have skills if your characters are so hated.

This novel is different, frustrating, wonderful and a breath of fresh air! Very good!

About The Author

Jill Alexander Essbaum’s publications include the full-length collections Heaven, Harlot, and Necropolis, and a chapbook of sonnets, Oh Forbidden. Her poems have appeared in religious journals, hoity-toity journals, online journals, formalist journals, and erotic publications. She is obsessed with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, her five cats, puns, sex, Old Time Radio, and God. And: Words. An associate editor for the online journal Anti-, and a blogger for the Best American Poetry blog, she’s presently at work on a novel vaguely based on the time she spent living in Zürich, Switzerland. She believes most firmly that wit trumps irony, clever beats disaffected, and, in all things, sincerity is key.

Giveaway

One lucky commenter will win a copy of this awesome book! Simply comment on this post and let us know you want to win!!

*Must be US

Giveaway closes in one week! 🙂

Thanks to Penguin/Random House & 20SomethingBlogger for this awesome chance! 🙂 Copy was provided for an honest review.

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#Review & #Giveaway for Queen of Hearts by Kristen Painter! – @Kristen_Painter

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Amazon | B&N | Goodreads

“Welcome to Las Vegas, home of the Sin City Collectors. The job description is easy: Bring the offending supernatural in to the Boss and don’t ask any questions.

Feline shifter Claudette Marchon traded life as a showgirl to become a Sin City Collector, giving up the glamour to earn some serious cash in order to buy her own business. Mission accomplished, she now runs a pawn shop specializing in gems and jewelry.

Life is good until a Collection job requiring her specific skill set lures her back in. The Queen of Hearts, a museum-worthy ruby and diamond necklace has been stolen from the Boss’s private collection and she’s his last hope to do what two other Collectors have already failed to do. Bring in the necklace. And the thief.

But gargoyle Jason Tennant isn’t quite the dangerous criminal Claudette expects. In fact, he’s not a thief at all. He’s former Special Ops and being set up by the real mastermind, forcing her to decide between the man she’s falling for and the man she works for. Proving Jason innocent may risk the Boss’s wrath, but Claudette’s heart says it’s a gamble worth taking.

What’s Collected in Vegas, stays in Vegas…”

Review:

Grade: A+ (5 Stars)

Cianna for Sunshine & Mountains

For a novel set in THE sin city, Painter lives up to the richness that the city embodies. This short novella will make you beg for a novel. Claude is a great character, rough around the edges, tough as diamonds, and fill with just the right amount of sass. She’s a retired collector pulled back into the game for a job that she’s not quite prepared for. I love it, it was lush just like Vegas, and gives you a hangover too, just like the trip! Such a good story. A solid mix of humor, action, and steamy attraction. I love the paranormal characters, and how they slide right into Vegas life, and you start to think… hmmm.. this is totally possible! 🙂 Highly recommend it! It’s the first full story by Kristen Painter I’ve read (I’m in one of her novels but not done) and I will say her voice in this novel is strong, witty and wonderful! Take a change on Queen of Hearts!

*I was given a copy for review.

Currently KP’s got two giveaways going on, so make sure to enter both! 🙂

Goodreads giveaway – Paperback copy of Queen of Hearts!

Massive Swag Giveaway on Facebook

Review: The Stories of Goom’pa: Book 1: Goom’pa and Shine by Vikrant Malhotra – Illustrations by Rachael Mahaffey

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Amazon | Goodreads

Synopsis:

She emerged as innocent as any newborn. The party of starbursts and sparkles came to a standstill. In awe, millions of heavenly beings paused. Shine Star, Princess of the Universe, was the most precious and rare of all creations. As an expression of perfect happiness, thus was the king’s daughter born.

A magical love story unfolds in Vikrant Malhotra’s wondrous debut, The Stories of Goom’pa: Book One.

Meet Goom’pa. He is a Poofy, a small furry creature who resides on Earth in a place called Palidon, on the edge of the Miron National Forest.

His world is a quiet one—until he spies Shine Star, a glorious star in the sky and the daughter of Prime Ray, the king of the universe. Enchanted by her elegance, Goom’pa knows he is willing to do anything to win the love of this celestial beauty.

As the two meet and fall in love, Shine Star’s father worries about his only daughter. Exploiting that concern is the Star Lord, Rath, who wants nothing more than to wrestle control of the universe away from Prime Ray.

Will Goom’pa and Shine Star find a way to be together? Or will Rath’s evil plan doom them all?

Review:

Reviewed by Cianna for Sunshine & Mountains

Grade: B+ (4 Stars)

I mostly enjoyed this book. I felt like it was a a unique idea for a kids book, kinda along the lines of Stardust, but more tamed down. Shine Star is a star and she wants to be with Goom’pa a little Poofy she met in the forest.

First off, I want a poofy! Actually, I’d like a whole tribe to come live in my house, I’d accept it because they sound so darn adorable.

Second, this was a really interesting book, but I did only give it 4 stars because I felt a little lost at times, as the chapters were so short and characters switched so quickly, so I worry if an adult gets lost, how will a little kid fare? That’s really my only critique of the book. I’d love to know more about Poofy’s too, but I’m hoping that might come in a later book. I felt really involved in the story, I was rooting for Shine Star and Goom’pa’s love to win over the villains and work out! There’s a lot more deep meaning to this book then compared to some children’s books. It really deals with the feelings of loneliness, which is a great for a child, because depending on life and situations, child can get lonely easily.

I felt Shine Star was a fun character, she’s always interested in learning, which lead her to Goom’pa, and I think it’s another great message for children. She had a very interesting life, but again, we didn’t get too much of her world and her people in this book, and I’d love to learn more, but her transformation at the end of the book was very beautiful.

Overall, this is a really catchy and well written kids story. It interests the reader, it’s unique, and deals with some deeper themes which would be good for the adults reading as well as the kids listening. I hope in book two we get more from the two worlds and more of their chatacters that flew by too fast in this one!

** I was given a copy from the author & Rebecca’s Reads in exchange for an honest review

Falling for Jillian by Kristen Proby – Review & Release Day – @SignetEclipse @Handbagjunkie @BerkleyRomance

Falling for Jillian by Kristen Proby

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Check it Out!

Amazon | Goodreads | B&N

Blurb

From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Proby comes the third romance in the Love Under the Big Sky series, featuring a veteran struggling with PTSD and the one woman who can help him recover—and learn to love again.

Jillian thought she was a city girl through and through; the fast cars, high fashion, and glamour—she loves it all. But when her ex tells her he’s having a baby with his new wife (after Jillian struggled for years to get pregnant), she hightails it back to Montana to cry on the shoulder of her best friend, Cara.

But in truth, Jillian would rather be comforted by someone else…specifically Zack, Cara’s brother-in-law. Zack is a veteran of the Iraq War who came back to the family ranch to raise his preteen son after the boy’s mother took off. He’s struggling to re-establish a relationship with his son, and warding off the demons of PTSD, which still haunt him. The last thing he needs is bold, brassy Jillian…but why can’t he keep his hands off her?

Review

by Catherine for Sunshine & Mountains

Grade: A (5 Stars)

I so loved this book, I just love anything Kristen writes.  A very sweet love story, Zack and Jillian both have major baggage from previous relationships, in spite of it all they find a true love.  They are so sweet together and Zack is just plain hot.  I love the connection they seem to have from the beginning and the relationship between them two and Zack’s son, Seth.  An amazing book.  I am so hoping that there will be more to this series.
I was given a copy by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

About The Author:

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Kristen is the author of the Amazon and USA Today bestselling With Me In Seattle series. She has a passion for a good love story and strong characters who love humor and have a strong sense of loyalty and family. Her men are the alpha type; fiercely protective and a bit bossy, and her ladies are fun, strong, and not afraid to stand up for themselves.
Kristen spends her days with her muse in the Pacific Northwest. She enjoys coffee, chocolate and sunshine. And naps.

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon

#Review – You Really Got Me by Erika Kelly – Five Star Read!

You Really Got Me by Erika Kelly

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Amazon | B&N | Goodreads

Synopsis:

The first irresistible novel in a hot new series about a rock star on his way up—and the woman he wants to take all the way…

Emmie Valencia has what it takes to be the music industry’s hottest band manager. She just needs to prove it. Determined to discover a killer new band, Emmie is ready to make her move. First stop: Austin, Texas.

As a sizzling-hot lead singer, Slater Vaughn has no trouble raising heart rates—but his band’s been flat-lining for years. When Emmie, his bandmate’s sister, crashes with them in exchange for some free management, her industry know-how lands them a spot in the biggest music festival in Texas. But it isn’t just her business acumen that catches Slater’s attention. Emmie is sexy and warm, and—for the first time in his life—he wants more.

But as irresistible as Slater is, Emmie is done with musicians. In her experience, a man can’t be a rock star and someone to trust with your heart—but Slater is determined to show her he’s both.

Review:
Grade: A (5 Stars)

Oh my!!!  I really enjoyed this book.  It was full of emotional turmoil and finding the one true love of your life.  Emmie and Slater were so good together.  I loved that Slater had it all figured out and knew what he wanted and that Emmie was the one that struggled with her feelings.  This was such  great book.  I loved all the characters, the writing style of the author is outstanding.  I look forward to reading more from this author.  I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves a good emotional read.

Reviewed by Catherine for sunshine & Mountains

**I was given a copy by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

About The Author:

Award-winning author Erika Kelly has been spinning romantic tales all her life—she just didn’t know it. Raised on the classics, she didn’t discover romantic fiction until later in life. From that moment on, she’s been devouring the genre and has found her true voice as an author. Over three decades she’s written poems, screenplays, plays, short stories, and all kinds of women’s fiction novels. Married to the love of her life and raising four children, she’s lived in two countries and seven states, but give her pen and paper, a stack of good books, and a steaming mug of vanilla chai latte and she can make her home anywhere.

#Review – Falling Away by Penelope Douglas – 5 Star Read!

Falling Away by Penelope Douglas

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Amazon | B&N | Goodreads

Synopsis:

Jaxon is the guy she’s supposed to avoid.

K.C. is the girl he won’t let get away….

K. C. Carter has always followed the rules—until this year, when a mistake leaves her the talk of her college campus and her carefully arranged life comes crashing to a halt. Now she’s stuck in her small hometown for the summer to complete her court-ordered community service, and to make matters worse, trouble is living right next door.

Jaxon Trent is the worst kind of temptation and exactly what K.C. was supposed to stay away from in high school. But he never forgot her. She was the one girl who wouldn’t give him the time of day and the only one to ever say no. Fate has brought K.C. back into his life—except what he thought was a great twist of luck turns out to be too close for comfort. As the bond between them grows, he discovers that convincing K.C. to get out from her mother’s shadow is hard, but revealing the darkest parts of his soul is nearly impossible.…

Review:

Grade: A+++ (Over 5 Stars)
Oh my, I’m not sure I can put into words at how good this book was.  We are taken on a very emotional roller coaster ride.  Jax and K.C. are two broken people, hiding from their past and trying to live everyday without be dragged back down.  They are so right for one another, but are afraid what will happen if they give into the happiness they feel.  I just can’t get over how awesome this book was.  I wasn’t fully prepared for all of the emotions I felt while reading this one.  I really loved it.  The author did an amazing job, you go on an emotional ride, but it is so worth it.  Job well done, Penelope Douglas.

By Catherine for Sunshine & Mountains

**I was given a copy by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

About The Author

Penelope Douglas is a writer living in Las Vegas with her husband and daughter. She is the author of the New York Times and USA Today Bestsellers BULLY and UNTIL YOU, and the USA TODAY Bestseller, RIVAL. Look for the next book in the series, FALLING AWAY, coming January 6, 2015.

#Review – Some Like It Wild by M. Leighton – @mleightonbooks @BerkleyRomance #5StarRead

Some Like It Wild by M. Leighton

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Synopsis:

First was The Wild Ones. Now, the next book in M. Leighton’s Wild Ones series… How far will a good girl go for the bad boy she loves? Laney Holt is a preacher’s daughter. A good girl. Her only goal was to get married, have babies, and live happily ever after, just like her parents. Only that didn’t happen. The two people closest to her betrayed her, and Laney’s dreams came crashing down. Now she’s left with an empty space she doesn’t know how to fill. Until she meets Jake Theopolis, a daredevil with a death wish who has heartbreaker written all over him. Jake has no interest in thinking beyond the here and now. All he wants out of life is the next rush, the next “feel-good” thing to keep his mind off the pain of his past. His latest rush? Showing Laney there’s more to life than being a good girl—and that going bad can be so much fun. Her only concern now is how she can ever hope to satisfy the wild side of a boy like Jake. She’s looking forward to trying. And so is Jake. If you love The Wild Ones, you’ll be just as wild for M. Leighton’s Bad Boys series which includes Down to You, Up to Me, and Everything for Us.

 

“Some like it wild, but not me. At least not forever.” ~Laney

 

Review:

Review by Kayla

Grade: A (4.5 out of 5 Stars)

I really enjoyed Some like wild. I have always liked M. Leighton’s style of writing. She did an awesome job on this book. It was well worth the wait for it. I loved the Wild ones so I knew that this book would not disappoint. Laney is the daughter of a preacher. She is a good girl, and her goal in life is to get married and have babies and live that happily ever after. But that doesn’t happen for Laney. People that Laney has always looked to ruin her dreams and now she doesn’t know what to do and she feels very empty. Then Laney meets Jake. He is a risk taker and a heartbreaker. Jake is a living in the now person, and what makes him feel good. When he meets Laney, he wants to show her that life is more than just being a good girl and that life is worth living and taking risks. She is willing to give it a try and so is Jake. Laney had a lot of tension with her father but I think that was understandable under that circumstances. Her father wanted her to get back with her ex fiancé but she didn’t want to tell him that he had cheated on her. No daughter wants to have to tell her dad that. It is hurtful. I really enjoyed this book. It was well written and was a sweet and good read.

**I was given a copy of Some like it wild by Sunshine and Mountains book blog for an honest review.

#Review – The Way Back ‘Round by Brenda Sorrels – @brendasorrels #5StarRead

The Way Back ‘Round by Brenda Sorrels

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Synopsis:

Set in rural Minnesota in the 1930’s, The Way Back ‘Round follows young Jake Frye, who enjoys nothing more than sitting between his father’s legs while driving a wagon team of horses. However, when a large buck juts across their path and pitches Jake from the seat, his mother, tender from a string of miscarriages, reins him in. Jake’s frustration builds and he makes a devastating mistake. Rejected by his mother and wracked with guilt, Jake hops a freight train joining the thousands of men and boys riding the rails during the depression. He meets Franz, another runaway, and they become brothers. Picking fruit in California, and cotton in Texas, they beg at back doors, eat in soup kitchens, sleep in “jungle” camps – all under the threat of brutal railroad “Bulls” who patrol the tracks. While Franz dreams about marrying a red-headed girl, Jake yearns for his family. When a farmer tells them about Roosevelt’s Conservation Corps camps set up to help young men like themselves, they head to California and join up.

 

Review:

Review by Kayla

Grade: A+ (5 Stars)

I was very excited that Brenda sent me a copy of this book to review for her. I loved the Bachelor farmer so I knew that I would love the way back ‘round as well. Brenda has a very unique way of writing and I absolutely love it. This book is set back in the 1930’s in Minnesota. This book follows Jake who enjoys sitting with his father on the wagon with the horses. Jake’s mother is always trying to rein him in and he hates it. As Jake gets more and more frustrated he makes a devastating mistake. Being rejected by his mother and full of guilt Jake gets on a train and rides the rail during the depression. He meets Franz, he is another runaway and they become brothers. They picked fruit in California, cotton in Texas and beg at people’s doors and eat in soup kitchens. They sleep in random places. Franz wants to marry a red headed girl and Jake misses his family. A farmer tells the boys about the Conservation Corps in California and they go to join up. This book has some adventure and heartbreak but it is a wonderful journey through these young men’s lives in the 1930’s. I really enjoyed this book. I highly recommend it. I loved it Brenda! Well done!

**I was given a copy of the way back ‘Round by Brenda Sorrels for an honest review.