Book Labyrinth

Taking the Ice by Jennifer Comeaux (Blog Tour Review + Giveaway)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Wed, 16 Sep 2015 11:00:00 +0000

Taking the Ice by Jennifer Comeaux
Release Date: August 17, 2015
Publisher: Self-Published
Pages: 166
Series: Ice #3
Review Source: eARC for review through Itching for Books Tours

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Olympic rings and an engagement ring.

Courtney Carlton is ready for both.

She and her boyfriend Josh have skated together and dated for four years, and they’ve reached a critical point in their partnership both on and off the ice. With the Winter Games coming up and their career nearing an end, they are fighting to win a spot on the Olympic team, something Courtney has dreamed of since she was ten years old.

She also has another wish she hopes comes true soon. She’s waiting for a marriage proposal from Josh that she expected to happen by now. Will she realize either dream or will her heart be broken from disappointment?

My Thoughts:
I really enjoyed Taking the Ice and found it to be a very sweet end to Courtney and Josh's story. These two characters make me smile so much and I had a blast reading about their journey over the past three books. What I really enjoyed about this book is how Courtney and Josh have learned to stick together as a couple. There's a real progression in the series, so it's beautiful to watch them working so well together on and off the ice.

By no means does this book show complete perfection in our characters' lives, because Courtney and Josh face challenges and work hard to achieve what they have, but I did think of this book as a Happily Ever After fete. There's still hard stuff going on in their lives, but it was awesome to read about Courtney and Josh going strong as a couple.

Taking the Ice features great skating scenes, great friendship scenes, and a lovely romance. This novella is a great celebration of two careers and a toast to what the future will hold. As this is the third and final book in a series, you'll definitely want to start at the beginning of Courtney and Josh's story with Crossing the Ice. If you wanted, you could go even further back and start with Life on the Edge, which starts off the story of Courtney and Josh's coaches, Emily and Sergei.

Taking the Ice is sweet, fun, and lovely: exactly what you'd expect from Jennifer Comeaux.

The Cover:
Like!

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Amazon.com | Amazon.ca

About Jennifer:
Jennifer Comeaux is a tax accountant by day, writer by night. There aren’t any ice rinks near her home in south Louisiana, but she’s a die-hard figure skating fan and loves to write stories of romance set in the world of competitive skating. One of her favorite pastimes is traveling to competitions, where she can experience all the glitz and drama that inspire her writing.

Where to find Jennifer:
Website & Blog | Facebook | Twitter

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow along with the tour schedule here for more reviews, interviews, and guest posts.

My Favourite Underrated Young Adult Books (Part 4)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 13:00:00 +0000

I hope you've been enjoying this series on my favourite underrated YA novels. Let's continue to champion lesser known and underrated books!

Another reminder that you should definitely check out the #quietYA hashtag, started by @DailyJulianne for tons of great under the radar suggestions.

Here's the 4th and final part of my list, with a reminder that stats were gathered on April 6, 2015 and may have changed since then...

Underrated Young Adult Novels:

Threads and Flames by Esther M. Friesner [409 ratings, 3.89 average]
I read this book for an underrated books event, so it's not a surprise to me that so few people have heard of this one. It is an incredible shame, though, because Threads and Flames is a deeply touching book. It's a novel, but it describes the real-life events of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire and in doing so it also describes what living and working conditions were like for immigrants in NYC in the early 20th century. This book is so hard hitting and emotional, I highly recommend it.

The Princess in the Opal Mask by Jenny Lundquist [617 ratings, 3.87 average]
This is the start of an exciting duology, filled with political factions and plotting nobles. It contains issues of family, friendship, and romance all tied together under the plot about the kingdom. Recommended for fans of Throne of Glass or the Seven Realms series.

The Holders by Julianna Scott [756 ratings, 3.87 average]
Loved the world, the plot, and the narrative voice. This is the type of book where you’re not necessarily surprised by anything that happens, but you love the journey getting there. There’s a total X-Men vibe to this story, but it holds its own with unique characters and story.

Spies and Prejudice by Talia Vance [1,286 ratings, 3.47 average]
Veronica Mars meets Pride & Prejudice. Fun and effortlessly high concept. It's not often you get the contemp YA feels with friends, family, and romance AND an action packed plot with spies and corporate espionage.

Carpe Diem by Autumn Cornwell [1,806 ratings, 3.95 average]
An absolutely hilarious and moving story about traveling off the beaten path and being willing to let go of best laid plans.

Harmonic Feedback by Tara Kelly [2,223, 3.92 average]
A very beautiful and emotionally honest book. The main character, Drea, is obsessed with music and she also happens to have Asperger’s. I liked how the author wrote that the book wasn’t about Drea and her “conditions”, but that it was a book about a person’s journey who happens to have a diagnosis.

When You Were Here by Daisy Whitney [2,912 ratings, 3.83 average]
I'm actually devastated that so few people have read this book. It is gorgeous! So sad and moving, meaningful in both its portrayals of grief and of renewal and hope. Bonus points for: male narrator, an important POC character, a great platonic friendship between a guy and girl, and a fab dog character.

The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman [4,061 ratings, 3.57 average]
If you enjoy foreign locations, treasure hunts, history, and relationships that will leave you reeling (and who doesn't?!), then this is definitely a book for you. This is kind of like a YA Da Vinci Code, but full of emotional intensity and character depth.

Where the Stars Still Shine by Trish Doller [5,757 ratings, 3.83 average]
This is a gorgeous book about family, identity, and making your own choices. I absolutely lovedddd it! I adored the Florida setting, the big Greek extended family, the steamy and sweet romance, and all the layers to this story.

Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready [Book 1: 11,156 ratings, 3.89 average; Book 3: 2,964, 4.18 average]
This book alone is not necessarily very low key -- there's over 11,000 ratings on Goodreads for it. But by the time you get to Shine (Book 3) it's down to only a few thousand, which is a SHAME because this is one of my favourite trilogies. It's epic, it's romantic, it's heartbreaking and hopeful. I highly recommend you read Shade and continue on with the series. It's got ghosts, teenage angst, lots of music love, science/astronomy, and a hot Scot (#TeamKilt, anyone?).

So many good books! You can check out all my recommendations by looking at the Underrated Label on my site.

My Favourite Underrated Young Adult Books (Part 3)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Mon, 27 Jul 2015 13:00:00 +0000

I love all books, but the ones that most need shout outs are the ones that aren't known to a lot of people. So today I'm continuing my underrated YA series with some more little talked about but AWESOME reads.

Again, I also recommend you check out the hashtag #quietYA, started by @DailyJulianne for tons of great under the radar suggestions.

Here's part 3 (with a reminder that stats were gathered on April 6, 2015 and may have changed since then)...

Underrated Young Adult Novels:

Torched by Andrea Colt [392 ratings, 3.97 average]
A fun and swoony contemp romance meets compelling high school set mystery. Loved the two main characters and their interactions so much!!

Behind the Scenes by Dahlia Adler [591 ratings, 4.00 average]
Dahlia has such a dynamic internet presence that it's hard to believe only 591 people have rated this book. This is a Hollywood YA story, one that I think would appeal both to those who normally love and those who normally loathe the typical Hollywood YA books. Cute, charming, swoony, with great friendship and family issues. A perfect YA/NA hybrid.

Searching for Beautiful by Nyrae Dawn [652 ratings, 3.61 average]
Nyrae Dawn always crafts such complex characters who feel truly real. She writes with an emotional honesty that I adore. This book in particular is a great read for any fan of contemp YA, with a fabulous message of finding the beauty in yourself which comes across in such a natural way.

Forget Me by K.A. Harrington [1,231 ratings, 3.73 average]
Forget Me is a straight up contemporary mystery/thriller, which we don’t see a lot of in YA. I loved this book because it was so hard to predict! It could have gone so many ways, and I really enjoyed the journey it took me on. Bonus points: the creepy/eerie feel a lot of the scenes had, and a strong friendship between two females who were unflinchingly loving to and supportive of one another (yes!!).

Mostly Good Girls by Leila Sales [1,298 ratings, 3.50 average]
This book is so delightful, so funny, and so honest. It perfectly captures the angst and humour of being a teenager. Such a fabulous friendship book as well. I highly recommend all of Leila’s books.

Something Real by Heather Demetrios [2,173 ratings, 4.01 average]
This is an amazing contemporary that really spoke to me. It has such great characters, a crazy interesting plot (the main character and her siblings have grown up as part of a reality TV show!), a slow burn romance, and that certain unknowable quality that made it "unputdownable".

If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Wilson [2,873 ratings, 3.99 average]
I’m so surprised more people haven’t read this one! It’s a heartbreaking love story with strong themes involving class and race. I’m sad that it’s still relevant – maybe especially relevant – these days, but the work itself is gorgeously written.

Roomies by Sara Zarr & Tara Altebrando [3,383 ratings, 3.64 average]
I adored what this book had to say about friendship, romantic relationships, growing up, and change. It tells the story of two girls from totally different parts of the country, with very different lives, who are going to become college roommates. This is a great book which features a very meaningful friendship which grows online, and some incredibly well defined secondary characters. I love NA, but this is the type of college related story that I find relatable.

Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker [4,426 ratings, 3.80 average]
This is a book about a lost friendship. A book about a summer sailing trip. A book about family, about romance, about endings and beginnings. If you’re looking for an emotionally satisfying contemp YA, this is one to check out. Bonus awesome: Clem’s little sister Olive, one of the best sibling characters I can remember reading about.

Open Road Summer by Emery Lord [6,192 ratings, 3.94 average]
I am a sucker for stories about people with connections to famous people, so this book where the main character is the BFF of a Taylor Swift-esque figure and goes on tour with her for the summer is kind of like my crack. Reagan is a prickly main character who you can't help but root for. I loved the friendship, the road trip-esque aspect, and the romance. Just soooo much amazingness going on here.

Waterfall by Lisa T. Bergen [Book 1: 12,330 ratings, 4.08 average; Book 5: 705 ratings, 4.45 average]
Again, decently high number of people reading this book, but when it comes to the last book in the series only around 700 have marked it as read. You can see by the high ratings that this book is beloved. Time travel to 14th Century Italy, anyone? I loved the family aspect to the series, the history, the romance – basically everything about this book and the series is done so well.

Just writing about these books makes me want to re-read them!! I hope you'll check out some of these recommendations, and stay tuned for Part 4!

My Favourite Underrated Young Adult Books (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 13:00:00 +0000

I posted Part 1 of my favourite underrated YA books awhile ago, and today I'm back with Part 2. You can check out the first post for my thoughts about the meaning of underrated vs what people mean what they say it. I also recommend you check out the hashtag #quietYA, started by @DailyJulianne for some great under the radar suggestions.

Alright, here's part 2 (with a reminder that stats were gathered on April 6, 2015 and may have changed since then):

Underrated Young Adult Novels:

Apparition by Gail Gallant [190 ratings, 3.84 average]
Canadian set YA ghost story? Yes please! I really enjoyed the writing style of this book. The ghost part was eerie but never truly scary (a good thing IMO). I loved the characters and their relationships. This felt like a real contemporary novel where there just happened to be a paranormal element, which is something I always enjoy.

Another Little Piece of My Heart by Tracey Martin [544 ratings, 3.67 average]
This is a contemp with a great mix of heavy and light emotions. It has a music theme to it, and it tells a great story of boys, family, and growing up. I especially liked that it featured exes who were both to blame for the break-up, and I thought that the author did a great job of telling a “will they, won’t they” story.

Kiss. Kill. Vanish. by Jessica Martinez [640 ratings, 3.61 average]
This book is exciting, romantic, and thrilling. There’s a certain twistiness to the story, a real slow reveal of what happened to Valentina (or Jane, as she’s calling herself in Montreal). I can’t say too much except I was still thinking about this book months after I read it. I truly believe this is the strongest of Jessica’s books yet, and I was a huge fan of Virtuosity as well.

Small Town Sinners by Melissa Walker [1,028 ratings, 3.50 average]
What I wrote in my review for this book: ‘Small Town Sinners’ is an incredibly compelling and touching novel. Melissa Walker offers a very nuanced and non-judgmental examination of religion, belief, and truth. I get that the topic of this novel will turn some people off, but I honestly find it such a relevant and honest novel that a lot of teens may be able to relate to. It's not easy to reconcile faith and modern society, and Small Town Sinners takes on one aspect of that.

Stir Me Up by Sabrina Elkins [1,735 ratings, 3.85 average]
Please ignore the over-used cover models and focus on the inside of this book. This was released as YA, but I definitely consider it a hybrid NA book. It features an aspiring chef and a wounded war veteran. Sooooo much character growth in this book, such an amazing story of finding your path in life, and the romance is absolutely beautiful. When you can do family, friends, and romance well in one book I am a happy contemporary lover.

The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding [2,077 ratings, 3.89 average]
If you’re looking for a book about a complicated mother/daughter relationship I’d highly recommend this one. Also great in this book: teens acting like real teens, show choir/musical theatre, and a cute (nerdy!) boy.

Whatever Life Throws at You by Julie Cross [2,315 ratings, 4.18 average]
Sporty heroine and sporty hero. Swoony, sweet romance. Complicated (but also amazing) family dynamic. I could keep going and going listing all the things Julie Cross has added to this book and done such a good job portraying. I loveddddd this novel and how it made me feel, and it makes me so excited for her hockey book to come out next year.

Shadows by Paula Weston [3,260 ratings, 4.00 average]
This is an Australian novel, and it's been out in North America for about a year and a half now. I highly suggest you drop everything and READ. THIS. BOOK. I'm so serious about this. This very quickly became one of my absolute favourite series. Fabulous characters, including tons of strong females. Epic, explosive chemistry between two of the leads. Wonderful world building and HIGH STAKES for the characters. Plus I love the setting and general tone of the book.

Star Crossed by Elizabeth Bunce [5,178 ratings, 3.81 average]
Such an interesting fantasy read, with fabulous characters and amazing world building. If you enjoy fantasy novels involving magic, court politics, and religion I definitely recommend this one. Celyn (or Digger) is a delightful main character, so strong, intelligent, and loyal.

Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood [Book 1: 10,826 ratings, 3.91 average; Book 3: 1,431 ratings, 4.17 average]
A trilogy about sisters, witches, feminism, and about love in its many forms. I love this magical alternate history. Such a smart, emotional, romantic, feel-the-emotions-in-your-stomach series.

I hope you'll check out some of these recommendations, and stay tuned for Part 3!

Lion Heart Blog Tour: Guest Post from A.C. Gaughen

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Tue, 02 Jun 2015 12:00:00 +0000

Lion Heart by A.C. Gaughen
Release Date: May 19, 2015
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Pages: 348
Series: Scarlet #3

Synopsis:

Scarlet has captured the hearts of readers as well as the heart of Robin Hood, and after ceaseless obstacles and countless threats, readers will finally find out the fate of the Lady Thief.

Imprisoned by Prince John for months, Scarlet finds herself a long way from Nottinghamshire. After a daring escape from the Prince's clutches, she learns that King Richard’s life is in jeopardy, and Eleanor of Aquitaine demands a service Scarlet can’t refuse: spy for her and help bring Richard home safe. But fate—and her heart—won’t allow her to stay away from Nottinghamshire for long, and together, Scarlet and Rob must stop Prince John from going through with his dark plans for England. They can not rest until he’s stopped, but will their love be enough to save them once and for all?

How I Spent My Summer Vacation by A.C. Gaughen

Let’s break it down!

Writing
FIRST, the week of June 8th, I’ll be heading down to New York to start the Boldly Bookish tour! I’m rocking out with Tiffany Schmidt, Trish Doller and Emery Lord, and I’m basically expecting it to be a five-city sleep over. That’s what grown ups do, right?

After that, I’ll have time off this summer--I’ve been working as a teaching fellow for the past year, so that means I get to write—all the time! Which is pretty fantastic, because as soon as I get home from tour, I’m diving into revisions for TERRA, the first book in my new Elementae series that my editor at Bloomsbury just acquired. The first book will be out in 2017, so I need to get cracking!

Life Stuff
I’m hearing wedding bells in surround sound this year. Launch week is also the week of my third of seven weddings this year, but it is by far the most special—my older brother is getting married! So right after launch I’m resting my toes to get ready to dance the whole weekend away. Then I have another wedding in July, and it’s formal so I get to wear a long, pretty dress! Then I can relax until the next wedding in September. Plus Fourth of July and fun stuff in the sun (ok, under a hat and an umbrella and counting the minutes until I’m in the water or air conditioning).

But yes, in general, my summers consist of hiding from the sun, looking like a lobster no matter what I do, and hanging out on a boat (when I’m not jumping off the boat with my rascally, water-lovin’ goldendoodle Lucy!).

Thanks for sharing, Annie! I wish the Boldly Bookish tour was coming near me, because it sounds like it will be awesome. Speaking of awesome, Terra sounds absolutely epic. Everyone, you can add it to Goodreads here.

About A.C.:

I am shamelessly addicted to staying up far too late (it feels like stealing time), diet coke (it burns so good), Scotland (stupid country stole my heart and won't give it back. Interpol has been ineffective for prosecution) and thieves (so I guess I'm not that mad at Scotland).

Where to find A.C.:

Website | Twitter | Facebook

Giveaway:

Prizes = 3 complete sets of the SCARLET series. US Only. Copies will be sent out from the publisher at the end of the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

All Played Out by Cora Carmack (Tour Review, Excerpt, & Giveaway)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Tue, 12 May 2015 11:00:00 +0000

All Played Out by Cora Carmack
Release Date: May 12, 2015
Publisher: William Morrow & Company
Pages: 320
Series: Rusk University #3
Review Source: Edelweiss

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

First person in her family to go to college? CHECK.
Straight A’s? CHECK.
On track to graduate early? CHECK.
Social life? …..yeah, about that….

With just a few weeks until she graduates, Antonella DeLuca’s beginning to worry that maybe she hasn’t had the full college experience. (Okay... Scratch that. She knows she hasn't had the full college experience).

So Nell does what a smart, dedicated girl like herself does best. She makes a "to do" list of normal college activities.

Item #1? Hook up with a jock.

Rusk University wide receiver Mateo Torres practically wrote the playbook for normal college living. When he’s not on the field, he excels at partying, girls, and more partying. As long as he keeps things light and easy, it's impossible to get hurt... again. But something about the quiet, shy, sexy-as-hell Nell gets under his skin, and when he learns about her list, he makes it his mission to help her complete it.

Torres is the definition of confident (And sexy. And wild), and he opens up a side of Nell that she's never known. But as they begin to check off each crazy, exciting, normal item, Nell finds that her frivolous list leads to something more serious than she bargained for. And while Torres is used to taking risks on the field, he has to decide if he's willing to take the chance when it's more than just a game.

Together they will have to decide if what they have is just part of the experiment or a chance at something real.

My Thoughts:
All Played Out is an entertaining novel featuring a very sweet romance. Nell and Mateo don't make a lot of sense at first glance and yet they make absolute sense: they balance each other out perfectly. Nell grounds Torres, opening him up to his real self, and Torres lets Nell get outside herself, focusing on something besides school and rigid plans. I loved how the romance grew between these two characters. I liked their flirting and how they worked together on Nell's list. One of my favourite parts of a romance novel is seeing the two love interests grow together by spending time with one another, and those scenes in All Played Out were truly lovely.

This is a very easy, fun read, but an emotionally satisfying one as well. I liked that even though there were hurdles and issues it wasn't super angsty or drawn out. Basically, All Played Out is a super enjoyable, sexy read. This is a very addictive series, and I'm excited to see where things go next with Stella's book.

The Cover:
So sweet!

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | iTunes

Excerpt from All Played Out --

I groan, and flip the page in my spiral so I won’t have to look at the words anymore. Starting small with the alcohol had been a wise decision. Perhaps I should do the same with other big items on my list. But how did one get smaller than sex and hooking up? I couldn’t just put “kiss.” I’d done that before, and a few more kisses weren’t going to make any difference in my confidence when it came to sex.

Really, it’s the unknown that bothers me. Not just on this list, but in everything. So maybe that’s what I need to get used to.

I skip to the bottom of my list and add …

17. Kiss a stranger

I tap my pen against the page, surveying the words, and decide that kissing a stranger is a good stepping-stone. Then a voice comes from over my shoulder, making me jump up and drop my spiral in shock.

“Do I count as a stranger?”

I press my hand over my thundering heart and turn to face the subject my rumination.

“You scared me.”

“My bad.” Contrary to his words, Torres doesn’t look the least bit sorry.

He bends to pick up the spiral, and I lunge forward to stop him. “Wait! Stop!”

It’s too late. He already has ahold of it, and lifts it up above his head, completely out of my reach. He’s got nearly a foot on me in height, and when I try to jump, I barely get my unathletic self a few inches off the ground.

“Give that back.”

“Hold up, sweetheart. I just want to take a little peek.”

“Don’t you dare! It’s private.”

Frantically, I try to recall what was written on that page as he holds it above his head in an attempt to read.

“‘Go skinny-dipping’?” he says, his eyes dancing suggestively. “Whatever this is ... I like it.”

I step toward him, and he angles his body to the side so that the spiral is farther away, but we’re still close.

“‘Pull an all-nighter.’ ‘Sing karaoke.’ ‘Flash someone.’ Oh, sweetheart, tell me this is a list of things you want to do. Please, God.”

“It’s none of your business. That’s what it is.”

“Unlucky for you, I’m a nosy person.”

He starts to turn the page back, and my heart tumbles in fear. He cannot see the first page. Not ever. I hurl myself at him, practically climbing up his body in an attempt to retrieve my list. And all he does is laugh, and stand there as if there isn’t a whole person hanging on to him.

“Asshole!” I say, pushing at his chest.

“Come on, you can do better than that.”

“Nosy bastard.”

He rolls his eyes. “Well, if that’s all you’ve got ...” He starts to turn the page again, and there’s thunder in my ears, and my lungs feel all twisted up inside my chest.

“Fuck you,” I say once, quietly. Then I repeat it, louder, my voice raspy from fear and exertion. “Fuck you, Mateo Torres.”

And I resign myself to the fact that I’m not going to get my spiral back until he’s had his fill of humiliating me. But to my shock, he bends and picks up my pen from where I’d dropped it when he surprised me. Then he draws a line through something on the paper.

“Congratulations. You’ve officially completed number sixteen. ‘Cuss someone out and mean it.’”

He hands me the spiral, then the pen, before folding his arms over his chest and meeting my eyes with a carefully blank expression. I glance down at the item on the list that he’s crossed out, and I don’t know whether I want to laugh or stab him with my pen. Maybe both.

About Cora:
Cora Carmack is a twenty-something New York Times bestselling author who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She now splits her time between Austin, TX and New York City and spends her days writing, traveling, and spending way too much time on the internet. In her books, you can expect to find humor, heart, and a whole lot of awkward. Because let’s face it . . . awkward people need love, too.

Where to find Cora:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow along with the rest of the InkSlinger PR tour here.

Click on the graphic above or this link to read Cora's announcement about Book #4 in the Rusk University series.

My Favourite Underrated Young Adult Books (Part 1)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Fri, 01 May 2015 13:00:00 +0000

I love all books. I love bestsellers, I love books with buzz, I love indie books, I love lesser known books. There's something special about that last category, though. Those gems that not many people seem to known about. I have to admit that I read a lot more commercial books or books that are well known. It makes sense: after all, those are the ones by authors with a track record or the debuts that get tons of buzz (read: marketing budget from the publisher).

It's hard to say what to define "underrated" as... Dictionary.com defines the word as "to rate or evaluate too low; underestimate." So I suppose that a book could be read a hundred million times, but because of its low rating on Goodreads or Amazon be considered "underrated" by some. But I think what most people mean when they say a book is underrated is that not many people have read it. It doesn't have a lot of buzz -- it's an amazing book that not a lot of people are talking about.

There was an article a few weeks ago that talked about "underrated book series" that YA readers should read. I understand it was from community suggestions, and while I may not have a firm definition on what an "underrated book" is, I do know that if I see a book on the New York Times Bestsellers list or a movie based on that series, it's definitely not underrated.

So in that spirit I've gathered a list of books that I believe are amazing books, well worth reading, that just happen to have a lower amount of ratings on Goodreads. I tried to stick with books that had 5,000 or fewer ratings. Some have more, and some have way less. I've also included a few series where the first book was fairly well read, but by the next (or last) book the numbers went down drastically.

Without further ado, here are my first picks, with statistics gathered the week of April 6...

Underrated Young Adult Novels:

Waiting for the Storm by Marie Landry [108 ratings, 4.20 average]
My heart, it aches. Everyone who is at all a fan of contemp YA stories needs to stop and read this masterpiece. Full disclosure that I consider Marie a friend, but I was reading her books before I got to know her as a fellow Canadian blogger. This is a quiet and emotional story about dealing with grief and change. It’s a great family story, but it also contains an incredibly swoony romance.

Relic by Renee Collins [462 ratings, 3.67 average]
Magical, exciting, and unique. Relic is a Western style alternate history involving magic relics (bones of long dead magical creatures). There’s a mystery which the main character has very high stakes in, and some light romantic elements.

Exile by Kevin Emerson [634 ratings, 3.61 average]
This book has a great concept, and it’s executed beautifully. You have a girl who’s worrying about her romantic relationship, who’s working hard to truly manage a band (she goes to a performing arts high school where this is taken Very Seriously), and she’s helping to solve a mystery involving a dead rocker. Everything is so well done, and I had a blast reading this one.

How I Lost You by Janet Gurtler [801 ratings, 3.78 average]
How have so few people read this book?! I am actually hurt by this. Janet writes some absolutely amazing contemporary YA, reminiscent of Sarah Dessen, Elizabeth Scott, and Deb Caletti. This book is probably my favourite of hers, a great story about a toxic friendship. It features a girl who wants to be a college paintball player, which is definitely something I haven't seen before. It also has a very sweet romance featuring an incredibly nice guy.

Rival by Sara Bennett Wealer [1,231 ratings, 3.65 average]
As the title declares, this is a book about rivalry. It’s about female friendship and the complexities of that, especially in high school. It’s also about a competitive singing group, which is done so well. Bonus points for a full on nerd boy character and awesome mentions of fanfiction and dorky online hobbies.

Rites of Passage by Joy N. Hensley [2,854 ratings, 4.01 average]
Sam is one of the first girls to attend Denmark Military Academy, and her story is not an easy one to read. I was absolutely enthralled with this book, flipping the pages as fast as I could, but I also can’t remember when a book made me more angry -- in a good way, sort of? The author’s writing was so powerful and the treatment Sam receives so despicable that I was practically shaking with anger for a lot of the book. This is a compelling read about an incredibly strong girl (not just talking physically, either).

Breathe, Annie, Breathe by Miranda Kenneally [3,363 ratings, 4.08 average]
I feel like Miranda Kenneally gets pretty good buzz in the YA blogger community for her amazing contemp YA romances. But this book has less than 10% the amount of readers Catching Jordan does, which is a huge shame because it's an AMAZING book. This is another book which portrays grief and loss beautifully. Miranda's books are always smart, interesting, and swoony, but this is really one of my favourites of hers, if not the favourite.

Amplified by Tara Kelly [4,589 ratings, 3.75 average]
Tara Kelly is the best at writing about music. You can tell that she loves it just by the way her characters love and describe it. I loved how lively and fun the band in this book was, and I absolutely adored the romance. Love/hate chemistry and flirty banter? Yes please!

Ultraviolet by R.J. Anderson [6,537 ratings, 3.80 average]
This is a genre-bending read which thoroughly caught my attention. I loved the general setting (Sudbury, ON, Canada) and the more direct setting (mental institution!). I can't really say much more about this book because it has a certain twist to it, but know that it is incredibly interesting and compulsively readable.

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen [Book 1: 14,134 ratings, 4.01 average; Book 2: 3,307 ratings, 4.11 average]
This is a book with a decently high amount of readers where the amount of readers for Book 2 drastically dropped. What happened? Was it readers who didn't mesh with the dialogue style of the book? Was it just less marketing that led people to forget about the series? Either way it needs to be remedied, because while Scarlet is a great book, Lady Thief may be even better. You NEED to read this book where Will Scarlet is actually Scarlet, a girl, with another secret identity under her belt. I'm incredibly excited for the series closer to release on May 19.

I hope you'll check out some of these recommendations, and stay tuned for Part 2!

The Winner's Crime by Marie Rutkoski

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Thu, 16 Apr 2015 13:00:00 +0000

The Winner's Crime by Marie Rutkoski
Release Date: March 3, 2015
Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux
Pages: 402
Series: The Winner's Trilogy #2
Review Source: eARC from publish through Raincoast Books

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Book two of the dazzling Winner's Trilogy is a fight to the death as Kestrel risks betrayal of country for love.

The engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement... if she could only trust him. Yet can she even trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran, and close to uncovering a shocking secret.

As Arin enlists dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end, it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth. And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their crimes will cost them.

My Thoughts:
The Winner’s Crime is an intense sequel to The Winner’s Curse and it is so, so good. It’s very much a second book, in that things don't get resolved, more problems arise, and there's definitely not any happy shipping moments. Despite this, the plot moves forward beautifully and the emotional intensity was at a high for the the whole book.

Kestrel is determined to keep Arin safe by keeping him out of the loop. She plays a very dangerous game, loving Arin and wanting to help him (and his people, by extension), while under the watch of the emperor and the threat of her father. This book is full of courtly intrigue and Kestrel's extreme intelligence in doing everything she can for Arin without him knowing and without getting caught. I would have liked to see Kestrel and Arin working together, but I get why things were the way they were.

In this second book we also see how Arin's people, the Herrani, are surviving and what the Valorians are doing to another people in the east. There’s so much evilness in this empire that is always wanting to expand.

I can’t stop using the word intense to describe this book, because it’s such a perfect descriptor. My stomach was in knots almost the whole time reading The Winner’s Crime. Marie Rutkoski is such a talented writer. Her words are beautiful, and she does an amazing job at portraying the subjugated and the subjugators in a slave based empire. I can’t even explain how highly I recommend this series, and I am on pins and needles waiting for the arrival of the third book (which will hopefully have some happier moments in it!).

The Cover:
Like!

Rating:
[5/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Rivals in the City by Y.S. Lee

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Tue, 14 Apr 2015 13:00:00 +0000

Rivals in the City by Y.S. Lee
Release Date: March 10, 2015
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Pages: 304
Series: The Agency #4
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

In a tale steeped in action, romance, and the gaslit intrigue of Victorian London, Mary Quinn’s detective skills are pitted against a cunning and desperate opponent.

Mary Quinn has a lot on her mind. James Easton, her longtime love interest, wants to marry her; but despite her feelings, independent-minded Mary hesitates. Meanwhile, the Agency has asked Mary to take on a dangerous case: convicted fraudster Henry Thorold is dying in prison, and Mary must watch for the return of his estranged wife, an accomplished criminal herself who has a potentially deadly grudge against James. Finally, a Chinese prizefighter has arrived in town, and Mary can’t shake a feeling that he is somehow familiar. With the stakes higher than ever, can Mary balance family secrets, conflicting loyalties, and professional expertise to bring a criminal to justice and find her own happiness?

My Thoughts:
Reading this book was like coming back to an old friend: it was so good to hear from Mary again. I love James/Mary and how they interacted in this book. I would have loved even more of them together, but I like how the circumstances allowed us to hear a bit from James' POV for the first time. Rivals in the City is about the return of a familiar villain, which brings Mary back into the Agency's fold.

This is much less a mystery than the previous books in the series, as it’s about catching a specific person they already know has committed a crime. The plot allows for some interesting involvement of Mary's heritage and getting some answers about her father's missing years. The book is also about Mary facing her past and considering her future with James. Considering the book description I expected this to be a bigger conflict, but it really only came up a few times.

One thing I found missing in the book was Octavius Jones. I so expected this character to make a return, and I was very disappointed when he didn’t have a presence in the book. I also found the ending to be a little bit abrupt, though it was still a good one.

I was a little disappointed in this book, probably only because I had such high expectations for it after the long wait and after I loved Book 3, The Traitor in the Tunnel, so much. Nevertheless it was still a very decent read, and I think fans of the series will find something to enjoy in it. Mary is an amazing character, and overall I highly recommend this series. It offers a different side of Victorian London than we see in a lot of books, and stars an incredibly intelligent and tough POC lead.

The Cover:
Gorgeous!

Rating:
[3.5/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

The Royal We by Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Mon, 13 Apr 2015 13:00:00 +0000

The Royal We by Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan
Release Date: April 7, 2015
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Pages: 464
Series: n/a
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

"I might be Cinderella today, but I dread who they'll think I am tomorrow. I guess it depends on what I do next."

American Rebecca Porter was never one for fairy tales. Her twin sister, Lacey, has always been the romantic who fantasized about glamour and royalty, fame and fortune. Yet it's Bex who seeks adventure at Oxford and finds herself living down the hall from Prince Nicholas, Great Britain's future king. And when Bex can't resist falling for Nick, the person behind the prince, it propels her into a world she did not expect to inhabit, under a spotlight she is not prepared to face.

Dating Nick immerses Bex in ritzy society, dazzling ski trips, and dinners at Kensington Palace with him and his charming, troublesome brother, Freddie. But the relationship also comes with unimaginable baggage: hysterical tabloids, Nick's sparkling and far more suitable ex-girlfriends, and a royal family whose private life is much thornier and more tragic than anyone on the outside knows. The pressures are almost too much to bear, as Bex struggles to reconcile the man she loves with the monarch he's fated to become.

Which is how she gets into trouble.

Now, on the eve of the wedding of the century, Bex is faced with whether everything she's sacrificed for love-her career, her home, her family, maybe even herself-will have been for nothing.

My Thoughts:
Oh my word!!!! This book was epically good. It put me through the ringer, made me a complete emotional mess. The Royal We took me from giddy to butterflies in the stomach to anxious to angry to heartbroken to hopeful to happy and everywhere in between. I can honestly say this is the best book I've ever read involving royalty and involving dealing with the press and paparazzi.

What surprised me most about this book is that it has some serious weight to it. Just based on the genre you’d expect a story like this to be on the shorter side, but nope, this is an extremely long book. Despite the length I could not set it down: I just kept reading and reading, which shows you how involved with the book I was.

The Royal We is a linear story with five different sections, set at different times. The story starts with Bex meeting Nick at Oxford and their friendship that becomes more. We see different stages of their courtship and all the aspects that come with that. I loved Bex and Nick together but this book made me question whether being with him was worth it for Bex: the expectations, the judgment, the ceremony, the never having a normal life. This is really the big question of the novel: is it worth giving up so much to be with someone you love? & Can you make it through the horrible and still have something worthwhile left?

This book does such a good job at showing us a royal family that we can easily identify as a version of our own, while equally making the characters different and truly themselves. It has some incredibly amazing secondary characters, some you'll love (Freddie!!! Oh gosh, I could go on and on about Freddie), some you'll loathe (Richard!! aka Evil Prince Dad), and some it's so complicated you're not even sure (Bex’s sister, Lacey). I mean, these characters are totally layered and complicated. Even Richard you can feel a twinge of sympathy for at times, though mostly he's just Prince Dick.

If I had one complaint about this book it would be that I wanted more cute Bex/Nick scenes to make up for the angst and/or a longer ending so we could see people’s reactions and how everything went down (do these things missing mean there'll be a sequel? *optimistic*). However, the way it ended was perfect too. It felt like a very Nick and Bex ending, instead of an ending for HRH and Future Duchess Rebecca.

By now it’s clear that this book made me feel So Many Feelings. I just loved every bit of it, even when I was so tense it made my stomach upset or when tears were continually streaming down my face. This is the first book in a while where I've felt SO strongly about loving it. The Royal We is an AMAZING read, one I would highly recommend to all contemporary romance fans, New Adult fans (after all, this book is truly about growing up and finding yourself, making those tough decisions), and to fans of books about royalty and/or celebs. I honestly can’t recommend this book highly enough.

The Cover:
Amazing!!

Rating:
[5/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble

The Truth About Us by Janet Gurtler

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Fri, 10 Apr 2015 13:00:00 +0000

The Truth About Us by Janet Gurtler
Release Date: April 7, 2015
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Pages: 304
Series: n/a
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

The truth is that Jess knows she screwed up.
She's made mistakes, betrayed her best friend, and now she's paying for it. Her dad is making her spend the whole summer volunteering at the local soup kitchen.

The truth is she wishes she was the care-free party-girl everyone thinks she is.
She pretends it's all fine. That her "perfect" family is fine. But it's not. And no one notices the lie...until she meets Flynn. He's the only one who really sees her. The only one who listens.

The truth is that Jess is falling apart – and no one seems to care.
But Flynn is the definition of "the wrong side of the tracks." When Jess's parents look at him they only see the differences-not how much they need each other. They don't get that the person who shouldn't fit in your world... might just be the one to make you feel like you belong.

My Thoughts:
My first thought upon finishing The Truth About Us was “wow!!”. I found it to be a very strong book with an incredibly interesting premise and great character transformation. I think I say this every time I read a Janet Gurtler book, but she does such an amazing job of telling stories that balance friendship, family, and romance. Those are my favourite types of contemporary YA, and I always enjoy what Janet has to offer.

Jess is the main character of this book, and she’s dealing with family issues -- or rather she’s not dealing with them. Bad things have happened and Jess feels ignored, so she just checks out. She acts out and has "friends" who she doesn't really seem to like. Jess is playing this part until she takes it too far and her uber strict dad steps in.

Flynn is someone who is so opposite from Jess in many ways, and yet he's so similar too. There’s a connection there between them that no one else seems to see. Flynn comes from completely different circumstances than Jess, and I think this book is very realistic about how differences of class can matter even now, when there's so much disparity between the two. I understood everyone being concerned about Flynn and Jess, and yet I also raged at how heavy handed people were at trying to keep them apart.

This is the story of Jess and Flynn, but it's also the story of Jess, of her finding her way back to who she wants to be. It’s the story of Jess’s family growing back into place, but especially of her mom trying to move past what's happened to her. I loved how Jess changed as she worked at the shelter, how she learned about the world and connected with people she normally wouldn't. I loved the granddaughter/grandfather banter relationship she had with Wilf, and the sister/brother and friend one she had with Flynn's little brother, Kyle.

The Truth About Us is a truly lovely book that made me feel so many things. It made me feel the butterflies of a crush and the feelings of it becoming something more. It made me feel the anguish over lost friendship. It made me feel disgust at people's horrid assumptions and rage at people thinking they knew everything and trying to control Jess and Flynn.

I highly recommend this book to all fans of contemporary YA, especially to fans of Sarah Dessen, Morgan Matson, and Emery Lord.

The Cover:
Honestly not a fave at all.

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things by Ann Aguirre

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Thu, 09 Apr 2015 12:30:00 +0000

The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things by Ann Aguirre
Release Date: April 7, 2015
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Pages: 334
Series: n/a
Review Source: eARC for review through Raincoast Books

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Sage Czinski is trying really hard to be perfect. If she manages it, people won’t peer beyond the surface, or ask hard questions about her past. She’s learned to substitute causes for relationships, and it’s working just fine… until Shane Cavendish strolls into her math class. He’s a little antisocial, a lot beautiful, and everything she never knew she always wanted.

Shane Cavendish just wants to be left alone to play guitar and work on his music. He’s got heartbreak and loneliness in his rearview mirror, and this new school represents his last chance. He doesn’t expect to be happy; he only wants to graduate and move on. He never counted on a girl like Sage.

But love doesn’t mend all broken things, and sometimes life has to fall apart before it can be put back together again…

My Thoughts:
For a writer who has predominantly made her career in the SF/F category, Ann Aguirre sure knows how to pack a punch in the contemporary genre. I've loved her New Adult stories, and this first contemporary YA offering impressed me just as much. Two things all of Ann's books have in common, regardless of genre, are a well developed protagonist and strong, interesting relationships between characters.

The Queen.. is so many things. It's a fun book, a sweet book, a sad book, a borderline angsty book. It encompasses all of those strong emotions that go hand in hand with being a teenager. Sage is someone who has had an incredibly rough past (things are hinted at, but you don't get a completely clear picture of her past until close to the end), and she's determine to be The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things: someone who is known for being nice and showing kindness to others. She's genuinely a good person, but she's always scared of going back to the scared and angry person she was, so she hides the "bad" parts of herself.

A big part of this book is the relationship between Sage and Shane, and I absolutely adored them. Shane is a little bit damaged from his own less than ideal past, but he's also very sweet and hungry for affection. I think both Sage and Shane are desperate for someone to love them, which could turn out badly, but instead they come together in a very healthy way, becoming a couple who support each other and build each other up. There are so many cute moments between these two, and so many realistic little fights that (shocker for the romance genre) they resolve quickly, using the experience to learn about each other and how to communicate and interact.

Of course this book is also about Sage as a person, learning about herself through this romantic relationship and through new friendships. I especially loved her friendship with Lila and how supportive they were of one another. Sage also has a great relationship with her Aunt Gabby, who she lives with, and what she learns about herself and her environment make this bond even stronger.

I highly recommend The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things to all contemporary YA fans. It's a book which I fell for right in the first couple of pages, and that connection never let go. I mean, I actually burst into tears and got goosebumps at one of the parts close to the end of the book (minor spoiler: the scene when Sage gets the post-it's from everyone else /end minor spoiler), I was so overwhelmed with emotion. Bottom line: this is an incredibly well-written book filled with realistic teenage characters. At this point I think Ann Aguirre could write anything and I would love it.

The Cover:
GORGEOUS!! I absolutely adore it.

Rating:
[5/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Books-a-Million | Powell's | IndieBound

About Ann:
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.

Where to find Ann:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Newsletter | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Excerpt from The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things:

When I walk past the music room, I hear something that stills me in my tracks. People push past; I've become a rock in the middle of a rushing stream, but I can't move. Then someone shoves me from behind, not on purpose, but the result is the same. I slam into the lockers past the classroom and bounce. The underclassmen who were wrestling don't even notice that my brain has stopped firing.

Shane Cavendish plays like it's his reason for living.

I don't write that on the Post-it, of course. That would just get him beaten up even harder. Instead I scrawl, You’re awesome on the guitar, because the jocks might think that’s cool and leave him the hell alone. It's a long shot, as I don't have any particular cred with their crew, but being a musician is pretty spectacular. I can't breathe for how good—how remarkably talented—he is. And I suspect that if he found out anyone was paying attention, he'd stop playing.

Backtracking to his locker will make me late for class, but it's worth it. I stick the note just below the vents, as I always do, but this time it feels weightier, more somehow, like this is a turning point. Shaking off the odd sensation, I dodge into Econ with a mumbled excuse. Sadly, it holds no weight with Mrs. Palmer. Unlike the male teachers, she isn't impressed with talk of 'female problems', so I get my first detention of the year, only the second I've ever had.

Since tomorrow is Friday and I have standing plans with Ryan, I ask, “Can I just get it over with tonight?”

I calculate; school lets out at 2:45. An hour of sitting in silence, and I’m supposed to be at work at four. If I hurry, I can still make my shift at the Curly Q. Which sounds like a diner, but it's actually a hair salon. I'm not qualified to do anything but wash hair, sweep up, and answer the phone, but it's better than fast food. I work two afternoons a week from four to eight, which earns me spending money for the week. Since I'm under eighteen, I get paid fifty cents an hour less than an adult; that makes me a bargain. After detention ends, I’ll just need to ride hard to keep Mildred from yelling at me.

Mrs. Palmer glances up from scribbling down my doom. “Can you get a ride home?”

“Yeah.”

I’ve always got my bike out front, and the town is small enough that I can ride anywhere I need to go from school. This is the one positive aspect of living in a tiny berg like this, especially given my opinion of privately-owned fossil fuel burning vehicles, which covers nicely for my lingering fear.

Four Nights With the Duke by Eloisa James (Review + Giveaway)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Wed, 08 Apr 2015 17:00:00 +0000

Four Nights With the Duke by Eloisa James
Release Date: March 31, 2015
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 384
Series: Desperate Duchesses #8 (#2 By the Numbers)
Review Source: Edelweiss

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

As a young girl, Emilia Gwendolyn Carrington told the annoying future Duke of Pindar that she would marry any man in the world before him—so years later she is horrified to realize that she has nowhere else to turn.

Evander Septimus Brody has his own reasons for agreeing to Mia's audacious proposal, but there's one thing he won't give his inconvenient wife: himself.

Instead, he offers Mia a devil's bargain...he will spend four nights a year with her. Four nights, and nothing more. And those only when she begs for them.

Which Mia will never do.

Now Vander faces the most crucial challenge of his life: he must seduce his own wife in order to win her heart—and no matter what it takes, this is the one battle he can't afford to lose.

My Thoughts:
Four Nights With the Duke is Vander’s story, who you got to know fairly well if you read Thorn and India’s story, Three Weeks With Lady X. Vander is the Duke, and we know he has a bit of scandal in his family -- from the prologue we know very well what it is, and we meet his heroine, Mia. This book contains a couple of tropes, first with the marriage of convenience, but also with blackmail. It makes for an interesting coupling, and the situation makes it so I didn’t blame Vander at all for his attitude at first.

From Mia’s POV we see someone who has been left alone, who’s been jilted, who needs a husband in order to take care of her nephew. It makes her a sympathetic character, but it doesn't fully excuse her actions. I liked when her plans backfired on her to an extent. I liked her, but considering she blackmailed a guy into marrying her, she deserved to get a little back at her.

Mia is also an interesting character because she’s a writer. We see Mia plotting her book and having issues with it, which is very relatable. It was like seeing into a writer’s brain when Mia wanted her publisher to send her other books to read so she could avoid her own work. The thinly veiled references to Julia Quinn's and Lisa Kleypas’ books were so fun to pick out.

In a romance you always want to root for the hero, but it’s also great when the hero isn’t perfect: when he’s making mistakes and doing dumb things. Romance may not always lend itself to total realism, but I always enjoy when the hero seems like he could be a regular person instead of the Best Man Ever. Well, Vander definitely fits into the imperfect hero role. The arrogant assumptions he had at first about how Mia felt made me literally LOL.

Despite how he acts at first, Vander is a very understanding character who quickly gets why Mia did what she did. I loved how he supported Mia’s nephew, Charlie, so well and showed him love right away in a different way than he was used to. Charlie was a great character, which is no surprise, because one thing Eloisa James always does well is secondary characters. I loved Vander’s uncle and how he was a total fanboy over Mia’s books. I also liked what we saw of Thorn and India, and how they were so loyal to Vander.

While I did like Three Weeks With Lady X better, I still thoroughly enjoyed this book. There’s always something so epic and compulsively readable about Eloisa’s books. If you’re just getting into historical romance and haven’t yet read her backlist I highly recommend you do so.

The Cover:
Kind of typical, but I like it.

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble | iTunes

About Eloisa:
A New York Times bestselling author, Eloisa James is a professor of English literature who lives with her family in New York, but who can sometimes be found in Paris or Italy. (Her husband is an honest to goodness Italian knight!) Eloisa’s website offers short stories, extra chapters, and even a guide to shopping in Florence.

Where to find Eloisa:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Be sure to follow along with the rest of the tour on Tasty Book Tours.

A Perfect Ten by Linda Kage (Tour Review, Giveaway, & Playlist)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 11:00:00 +0000

A Perfect Ten by Linda Kage
Release Date: March 30, 2015
Publisher: Self-Published
Pages: 426
Series: Forbidden Men #5
Review Source: eARC from Tasty Book Tours

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Let your hair down, Caroline, they said. It'll be fun, they said.

I know I've closed myself off in a major way in the past year, ever since “the incident” where I messed up my life completely. It's past time I try to live again or just give up completely. But this is quite possibly the craziest thing I've ever done. In a last ditch effort to invigorate myself, I'm standing outside Oren Tenning's bedroom, I just peeled off the sexiest pair of underwear I own, and my hand is already raised to knock. My brother would disown me for doing anything with his best friend, and he'd probably kill Oren. But if I play my cards right, no one will ever know about this. Not even Ten.

Maybe after tonight, I’ll finally get over this stupid, irrational crush I hate having on the biggest jerk I’ve ever met. Or maybe I’ll just end up falling for him even harder. Maybe I’ll discover there’s so much more to my crude, carefree hunk than meets the eye.

My Thoughts:
I definitely enjoyed this book, but I have to admit that my first thought upon finishing it was that the book is a little bit long for the story that it tells. It definitely could have been condensed a bit. That being said, there are tons of great scenes and great characters, and if you’ve been following the series you’ve probably been waiting and waiting for a Ten/Caroline book, and A Perfect Ten was a lot of fun in that regard.

I liked that we get to see behind Ten's mask here. He’s still the Ten you know from previous books (more than a bit crude, tons of swearing, etc), but he’s also a sweet guy, a very loyal guy. We’ve seen glimpses of this before, but it really comes out when he’s around Caroline. You can tell how much he cares about her. Caroline is a character we’ve seen around the periphery of the series, her being Noel Gamble’s little sister. Caroline is super outgoing and a bit crazy, which makes her the perfect match for Ten (or Oren as only she can call him).

I liked this book a lot, but it wasn’t without its issues. There’s the length issue that I mentioned above (okay I really feel like Ten would interrupt here and say “that’s what she said”), but I also felt like the reason for Ten and Caroline staying a secret was a bit overdone (or maybe it just went on for too long?). I think this is because I also found it hard to identify with Noel's reaction to them as a couple, as if Ten wasn't a totally loyal friend to him. It felt a bit out of character for Noel to be such an asshat. On the other hand, I liked seeing a different side to a hero from a previous book.

While I didn’t like this book as much as some of the others in the Forbidden Men series, I still loved the dynamics of it enough to rate it 4 stars. Linda does such an amazing job of writing group scenes and adding in mentions of previous couples. I especially loved following up on Quinn and Zoey (or Zwinn as they become to be known) from With Every Heartbeat. While this wasn't a perfect read, I still enjoyed it quite a bit. It's a very decent New Adult book. I highly recommend the series in general, and I know if you start reading these books you’ll be dying to read this addition to the series.

The Cover:
Like. :)

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | Barnes & Noble | iTunes

About Linda:
Linda grew up on a dairy farm in the Midwest as the youngest of eight children. Now she lives in Kansas with her husband, daughter, and nine cuckoo clocks. Her life's been blessed with lots of people to learn from and love. Writing's always been a major part of her world, and she is so happy to finally share some of her stories with other romance lovers.

Where to find Linda:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Linda Kage's Soundtrack for A Perfect Ten:

It would have to have:

--"Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond - because that's the song Asher sings for the group when Ten demands a song out of him at the end.

--"We Want Some P---y" by 2 Live Crew - because that's Ten's ringtone on his cell phone at the beginning of the story.

It might also have:

--"GDFR" by Flo Rida - Perfect for the scene where Caroline becomes Midnight Visitor because that's when it "goes down for real!"

--"Honey, I'm Good" by Andy Grammer - This would work for the scene where Ten turns down the girl who comes onto him after he hooks up with Caroline.

--"Fireball" by Pitbull - I always imagined a drunk Ten and Caroline dancing to this song on the beach the night they're in Lake Tahoe.

--"Catching Stars" by One Republic - I imagine this song happening during one of Ten's introspective scenes where he's missing Caroline and wishing he could be with her openly.

--"Iris" by Goo Goo Dolls - This just feels like it would fit perfectly in the scene where Ten and Caroline seriously claim their love for one another in her bedroom, right after her younger brothers beat the crap out of him!

--"Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran - Would be a good closer for their epilogue!

And that's the playlist I came up for A Perfect Ten!

Thanks, Linda!! Everyone, be sure to follow along with the rest of the tour on Tasty Book Tours.

Cover Reveal: The Shameless Hour by Sarina Bowen

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Wed, 01 Apr 2015 11:00:00 +0000

I absolutely adore Sarina Bowen and her books, so I am very happy to take part in the cover reveal for The Shameless Hour. Here's a bit about the book, and you can scroll down to view the cover and read an excerpt.

Announcing: Ivy Years #4

The Shameless Hour

by Sarina Bowen

Coming on or before May 1st

The girl who’s had everyone meets the boy who has no one.

For Bella, the sweet-talking, free-loving, hip-checking student manager of the Harkness men’s hockey team, sex is a second language. She’s used to being fluent where others stutter, and the things people say behind her back don’t (often) bother her. So she can’t understand why her smoking hot downstairs neighbor has so much trouble staying friends after their spontaneous night together. She knows better than to worry about it, but there’s something in those espresso eyes that makes her second-guess herself.

Rafe is appalled with himself for losing his virginity in a drunken hookup. His strict Catholic upbringing always emphasized loving thy neighbor—but not with a bottle of wine and a box of condoms. The result is an Ivy League bout of awkwardness. But when Bella is leveled by a little bad luck and a downright nasty fraternity stunt, it’s Rafe who is there to pick up the pieces.

Bella doesn’t want Rafe's help, and she’s through with men. Too bad the undeniable spark that crackles between the two of them just can’t be extinguished.

Pre-order The Shameless Hour at iBooks | Follow Sarina Bowen on Amazon.com |
Sign up for Sarina’s Mailing List

Now, how about the cover?!

So pretty! Bella is sweet, sexy, and vulnerable -- such a perfect image to match the book's synopsis!! And now...

An Excerpt from The Shameless Hour by Sarina Bowen:

I heard the band start to play the classic one-two Merengue rhythm that I’d heard my whole life. On the dance floor, the energy picked up as the geezers began to move to the faster beat.

“Let’s go,” I said, standing up. I offered Bella my hand.

But Bella shook her head. Even worse, she scooted her chair toward the wall.

“Don’t leave me hanging,” I said, my hand still waiting in the air. “Come on now. Nobody puts Bella in a corner.”

On the other side of the table, Bella’s sister snorted into her white wine.

Bella rolled her eyes. Hard. “You did not just quote Dirty Dancing.”

I leaned down near Bella’s ear. “I did. Now get your ass out of that chair, like the girl in the movie, or I’ll have to put you in a fireman’s hold.”

Her mouth tight, Bella stood up. Not one to waste an opportunity, I clasped her hand, tugging her onto the dance floor. When we were right in the center, I put one hand onto Bella’s waist and took her opposite hand in mine. She was as stiff as a piece of wood. “Shake it off, chica. This is supposed to be fun.”

“Your job tonight was to make my life less embarrassing. Not more.”

“I am doing that. We’re going to be the best looking dancers on this floor, and everyone in this mausoleum is going to wonder how I got so lucky as to be here with you. Now listen to this rhythm, okay? Just step to the beat. And let your hips absorb the motion.” I began to move to the music. The merengue is a Dominican dance, and every kid in my neighborhood can merengue before his fifth birthday. It’s just not that complicated.

With nervous eyes, Bella began to move.

“Use these hips,” I prompted, touching the silky fabric of her dress. As I watched, she loosened up a tiny fraction. “Yes! But even more. You look great. I wouldn’t steer you wrong. And think of pressing the balls of your feet into the floor.”

Biting her lip, Bella moved with me.

“That’s it! See? Nothing to it.” Just like that, we had a proper merengue going on.

“Can I sit down yet?” Bella asked.

“Not even close,” I laughed. “See, I knew you could move.”

Bella pouted. “We’ve seen each other’s moves, Rafe.”

She lifted her eyes, and the heat in them went straight to my dick.

Jesucristo. That was the trouble with getting so close to Bella. I was always going to be susceptible to her. Anything she did to remind me of that night was always going to knock me right over.

“Ha.” She said. “I finally found a way to shut you up.” Bella put a little more effort into her merengue then, looking smug.

I'M SO EXCITED FOR THIS BOOK!!!! I love characters that break down stereotypes and go beyond what people initially think of them. We already saw Bella do that in The Understatement of the Year, so I'm thrilled she's getting her own book.

If you haven't read Sarina before, start with the first Ivy Years book, The Year We Fell Down, or the first book in her adult romance Gravity series, Coming in from the Cold. You could also jump in at any book, but I think both series are worth reading in order, from the beginning.

Losing the Ice by Jennifer Comeaux (Tour Review & Giveaway)

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Fri, 13 Mar 2015 11:00:00 +0000

Losing the Ice by Jennifer Comeaux
Release Date: February 23, 2015
Publisher: Self-Published
Pages: 132
Series: Ice #2
Review Source: eARC from author

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Courtney and Josh are in love and excited to finally compete as skating partners. When they take the ice for their first competition, they want to show everyone, especially Josh's family, they are the perfect pair.

But ice is slippery, and one misstep puts all their dreams in jeopardy. Now they must show each other both their love and their partnership are strong enough to survive.

My Thoughts:
Losing the Ice is an exceptional novella. Seriously, it’s just so, so good: exactly what I’ve grown to expect from Jennifer Comeaux. Courtney and Josh are interesting, layered characters, and their story is told through clear, engaging writing. Jennifer is perfect at writing both sweet moments for the characters and total crises. She’s a pro at making her readers feel the emotions of her characters. Whenever I pick up a book from her I completely identify with the characters and feel like I’m on the journey along with them, feeling their anguish and their love.

Another thing Jennifer is great at is writing moments on and off the ice that have to do with skating, training, etc. You can tell that the author is a super fan of skating, because all the descriptions of Courtney and Josh’s work feel real. Admittedly I’m not into watching skating, but I love books about any type of sport, and Jennifer’s works always draw me in to the competition and artistry of skating.

This book is a sequel to Crossing the Ice, which is definitely something you should read to get the full picture of the characters and their situation. Here we have Courtney and Josh partnering in skating for the first time, but it's not at all smooth sailing for them. Beyond skating issues and emotional issues which I won’t get into (because reading about them yourself will be so much more fulfilling), Jennifer has done the most amazing job at creating a character you'll positively loathe. All of Josh’s family is pretty terrible, but no one can beat his mom. I already knew that Jennifer was a pro at writing characters you absolutely despise (see: Elena, for most of Edge of the Past), but Josh’s mom takes the cake, because I can’t find anything redeeming in her. She’s not exactly warm and welcoming to Josh, but she is beyond evil in her dealings with Courtney. As hard as these scenes are to read, I love how they show Josh’s loyalty and how much he’s grown as a character. He stands up for Courtney and he’s strong in his convictions, no longer willing to sit back and let life happen to him.

If you hadn’t already gathered, I absolutely loved this novella, probably even more than the first book in the series. Its short length just made me want more of the characters, so I’m glad that there will be a third book featuring Josh and Courtney. I love these books, just as I loved Jennifer Comeaux’s Edge series. If you haven’t read her amazing novels, I highly recommend you start with Life on the Edge and go from there.

The Cover:
Not bad, but it doesn't reflect how awesome the book is.

Rating:
[5/5]

Purchase Links:
Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble

About Jennifer:
Jennifer Comeaux is a tax accountant by day, writer by night. There aren’t any ice rinks near her home in south Louisiana, but she’s a die-hard figure skating fan and loves to write stories of romance set in the world of competitive skating. One of her favorite pastimes is traveling to competitions, where she can experience all the glitz and drama that inspire her writing. Jennifer loves to hear from readers!

Where to find Jennifer:
Website & Blog | Twitter | Facebook

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to follow along with the rest of the tour on Itching for Books.

Book Blitz & Giveaway: The Hidden Library by Heather Lyons

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Thu, 26 Feb 2015 12:00:00 +0000

We are dying to jump back down the rabbit hole with Heather Lyons' THE HIDDEN LIBRARY! THE HIDDEN LIBRARY is an Adult Romantic Fairy Tale, full of adventure and fantasy and the second book in Heather’s The Collectors' Society Series! Check out the latest fantastic installment in this series that brings you some of the classics with a twist.

The Hidden Library by Heather Lyons
Release Date: February 26, 2015
Series: The Collectors' Society #2

Synopsis:

Sometimes, the rabbit hole is deeper than expected . . .

Alice Reeve and Finn Van Brunt have tumbled into a life of secrets. Some secrets they share, such as their employment by the clandestine organization known as The Collectors’ Society. Other secrets they carry within them, fighting to keep buried the things that could change everything they think they know.

On the hunt for an elusive villain who is hell-bent on destroying legacies, Alice, Finn, and the rest of the Society are desperate to unravel the mysteries surrounding them. But the farther they spiral down this rabbit hole, the deeper they fall into secrets that will test their loyalties and pit them against enemies both new and old.

Secrets, they come to find, can reveal the deadliest of truths.

Excerpt:

We are about to open the conference room door and enter the hallway when he stops. He turns to me, his lovely eyes achingly sincere. “I want to take you on a date when all of this craziness is over. A real one. We’ve kind of gone about this all backwards, haven’t we?”

One corner of my mouth lifts up. “Are you saying you’d like to court me?”

There is no playfulness to his face, no quirk to his own lips. My heart flutters at his seriousness. “Yes.”

He wants to court me.

Too many emotions rush around in a caucus race throughout my body. I have no doubts of Huckleberry Finn Van Brunt’s feelings toward me. I understood them two minutes ago just as well as I did this morning when I woke up and from the night before and from the day in Wonderland where he said, in not so many words, that he was falling in love with me.

I told him he was my north star, and meant it. He countered we are binaries.

He and I . . . We’ve never said those words, though, not the ones that truly spell out fragile, deep secrets of a heart and soul. Words so easily and yet unfortunately uttered by many, be it to express their appreciation of fried bits of potatoes to sports teams on the television. Words offered so frivolously about a variety of subjects and yet can be the most difficult, most painful, most meaningful, most cherished syllables we gift another person.

I have said these words before, to another man. Another man I still love. One I know, in the deepest confines of my heart, that I will love until the last breath escapes my body. A man who courted me in secret and then publicly in the face of astonishment, disapproval, confusion, and, in the end, prophesies.

I have willingly given the man in front of me my heart, though, whether he knows it or not. He now holds it in his hands, and while I pray he is my future, there is still a part of me that bucks in conflicted confusion and delight by this declaration of his.

He wants to court me.

And yet, as sweet and romantic as such a gesture might be, I require no such formalities. My affections for Finn Van Brunt have already solidified into something real and wonderful and meaningful.

Don’t miss the first book in this series, THE COLLECTORS’ SOCIETY!

Purchase the book:
Amazon | Amazon.ca | Barnes and Noble | iBooks | Kobo

About Heather:
Heather Lyons writes epic, heartfelt love stories and has always had a thing for words. In addition to writing, she’s also been an archaeologist and a teacher. She and her husband and children live in sunny Southern California and are currently working their way through every cupcakery she can find.

Where to find Heather:
Website | Author Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

More Than Comics by Elizabeth Briggs

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 14:00:00 +0000

More Than Comic by Elizabeth Briggs
Release Date: February 23, 2015
Publisher: Self-Published
Pages: 163
Series: Chasing the Dream #2
Review Source: eBook from author for review

Synopsis:

They're friends online - but can they be more in real life?

Writer Tara McFadden has been friends with artist and drummer Hector Fernandez for years, long before his band became famous on reality TV – yet they’ve never met in person. They finally have a chance to connect offline when they’re both sent to Comic-Con to promote the graphic novel they collaborated on.

Hector's secretly been in love with Tara for as long as he can remember, and once they meet, she sees him in a new light. All the years of longing lead to an incredible night of passion after one of his concerts, but neither is sure if their online relationship can translate into a real life romance – or if this will ruin their friendship forever.

Over four crazy days at Comic-Con, Hector and Tara must decide if they want a future together. But when their story seems to be over, it’s up to Hector’s entire band to make sure he and Tara get their happy ending.

My Thoughts:
This is a short book, but it's a great story. I mean, when the only real flaw is that you wish you had MORE of the characters, that's a pretty good thing, right? So yes, I would have enjoyed a longer, more drawn out story. It might have been more fun to deal with the sexual tension for a while before things progressed -- a longer period of "will they, won't they", but on the other hand because of the short nature of the book you get to the good stuff fast, and it leaves little time for large amounts of drama. What little drama there was, was resolved fairly quickly in a logical way, which is exactly how I like it.

More Than Comics was a bit more sex focused than I prefer, but the scenes were definitely very hot. I think why I would have preferred less sex, or maybe just more of other parts of the story, is because Hector and Tara had such an amazing friendship. Their conversations and just hanging out together were so cute and fun, so I wanted more of that aspect of the story. I liked seeing their chemistry in more than one way. Another thing I loved was seeing from Hector's POV. He's this ripped guy who could totally be cocky, considering he's insanely successful in two professional avenues and is super gorgeous, but he's actually quite sensitive and he almost has low self esteem in some instances. He doesn't see himself as anything special, whereas Tara sees all the good in him.

This book has a great setting and plot point, being set at Comic-Con. You get to experience some of the panels, signings, and costumes, which makes it a lot of fun. Despite the short length of the book and my wish for more time with these characters, More Than Comics does cover a lot of ground. I obviously liked the romance angle, but I also liked how Tara had to make a huge decision which would impact her future. I liked that she thought about Hector when deciding which job she should take, because it was realistic, but I loved that Hector and his friends showed her how she had to make the decision based on her wants and needs. Overall, this is a great second book in this series, and I wholeheartedly look forward to reading Elizabeth Briggs' next book.

The Cover:
Good!

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Google Play | All Romance | Smashwords

About Liz:
Elizabeth Briggs is a full-time geek who writes books for teens and adults. She plays the guitar, mentors at-risk teens, and volunteers with a dog rescue group. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and a pack of small, fluffy dogs.

Where to find Liz:
Website | Facebook fan group | Newsletter | Twitter

More Than Comics playlist:

As much as I enjoyed this book, I absolutely *loved* the first book, More Than Music. Click on the graphic to find purchase links for this great book:

If everything else hasn't convinced you to check out this book and this series, maybe this will. Here's an excerpt of More Than Comics from Tara's POV:

The lights dimmed and the entire crowd seemed to jump to its feet at once, including me. Fog crept across the stage and a red glow slowly illuminated the darkness. The stadium was silent except for the buzz of excitement, the anticipation for the band about to come out. My chest was tight, my breathing difficult, my heart a speeding train that threatened to derail at any moment.

Just when I thought I couldn’t take any more of it, the room burst into sound with the opening of “Uprising” by Muse. The lights brightened, gradually revealing the band already on stage. Maddie on the right, her fingers flying across her guitar, the fake wind blowing her hair like in a music video. Kyle on the left, rocking out behind his keyboard, his black hair hanging in his eyes. And Jared in the middle, playing bass.

A spotlight flashed on him when he started singing. In person he was even more drop dead gorgeous than on screen, with his tattooed arms, sinful blue eyes, and naughty smile. His voice had a way of creeping into your very soul, and he had this crazy magnetism that made it nearly impossible to take your eyes off him. Especially when he wasn’t playing and could grip the microphone like a lover and croon into it. No wonder so many ladies threw themselves at him.

But while everyone drooled over Jared, my eyes sought out Hector, who had gone shirtless tonight. It was harder to see him in the back, but I could still glimpse his muscular arms and shoulders while his drumsticks danced through the air. He was an animal, pounding against the drums like he was possessed by something, yet somehow never completely losing control.

The big screens beside the stage flashed between the different band members and showed Hector from behind, giving a shot of his smooth back, all those coiled muscles flexing and rippling while he played. Sweat slicked his arms as he poured himself into the music, his drumsticks moving fast yet never missing a beat. He was glorious. Strong. Powerful. And ridiculously sexy.

I wanted to lick the sweat off him, which was sort of gross, but I didn’t care. I’d do it to taste him, to explore that hard, muscular body with my tongue. And my hands. And every other part of me.

I couldn’t deny it any longer. Meeting Hector in person had awakened something in me. I’d always found him hot, of course. And sure, I’d fantasized about him a few times, but I’d never seriously thought of him as anything more than a friend. He’d always been too far away, too off limits, too impossible to even consider. But now he was more than a daydream I tried desperately to ignore—he was a very tempting reality.

Once we’d come face to face a flick had been switched, and I felt something…more.

And seeing him play tonight? That made me want him.

So, yeah. Hector = hot, sensitive, artistic, rock band drummer. Yes please?

Tour Review & Giveaway: When Joss Met Matt by Ellie Cahill

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Sun, 22 Feb 2015 13:00:00 +0000

When Joss Met Matt by Ellie Cahill
Release Date: February 24, 2015
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Pages: 368
Series: n/a
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis:

In the tradition of New Adult superstar Jessica Sorensen, Ellie Cahill’s debut novel is a charming friends-with-benefits story . . . with a twist!

What if after every bad breakup, there was someone to help “cleanse your palate”—someone who wouldn’t judge you, who was great in bed, someone you were sure not to fall in love with? “Sorbet sex” could solve everything—as long as it never got too sweet.

Joss and Matt have been friends since freshman year of college, meeting one night after Joss is dumped by her boyfriend. After a few drinks, Matt humors her with a proposition: that he’ll become her go-to guy whenever she needs to heal a broken heart. In return, she’ll do the same for him. The #1 Rule: They’ll never fall in love with each other. People scoff at the arrangement. But six years later, Joss and Matt are still the best of friends . . . with benefits.

Through a string of boyfriends and girlfriends—some almost perfect, some downright wrong—Joss and Matt are always there for each other when the going gets tough. No strings. No attachments. Piece of cake. No problem. After all, since they wrote the rules, surely they can play by them. Or can they?

My Thoughts:
THIS BOOK. I read a lot of books, so it really means something when it’s been months since I’ve read a book and I still remember not only a lot of details about it, but also how much it made me feel. And this book? It totally made me feel. It was a completely frustrating reading experience at times, because of how long it took the characters to see how good they were together. I mean, they couldn’t admit how they felt to themselves let alone to the other person, so it definitely took a while. But it was gorgeous, swoonworthy frustration. There are just so many good moments in When Joss Met Matt (including non-romantic ones, such as Joss with her cat).

It takes talent to tell a story of flashbacks mixed with the present and I think the author did an awesome job of it. Towards the beginning I kept wanting to know more of the present, but very quickly the book hit a groove and the way things were presented fit so well in the present context. It was amazing to see Joss and Matt’s friendship evolve and experience how they always belonged to one another even when they didn't know it. I completely fell in love with these characters and I loved how they developed throughout the book. It was especially awesome to see Joss grow up, especially when she had the realization about Matt.

Another thing I really enjoyed about this book was that there was a decent chunk of story at the end when we were caught up with the present and got to be along on the emotional journey with Joss. It’s not often that I fall in love with a book that is basically only about sex/romance, but I think I liked the characters and wanted them to be together so much that it worked for me. It was enough about them as individuals growing to a place where they were ready for the relationship that it stopped it from being one dimensional.

Overall I found this book to be a lot of fun. It was certainly frustrating at times, but it was also lovely and funny and sweet. A great New Adult romance.

The Cover:
Not amazing, but okay. I like the title placement.

Rating:
[5/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Praise for When Joss Met Matt:

“Hands down, one of my favorite New Adult reads . . . Ellie Cahill is definitely one to watch!” — New York Times bestselling author Cora Carmack

“This is one of those books that make you forget everything around you. Prepare to be consumed by this story.” — Sophie Jordan, New York Times bestselling author of Wild

“Fun, sexy, and full of amazing chemistry, When Joss Met Matt is an entertaining escape that will leave you smiling with every turn of the page.” — Cassie Mae, author of The Real Thing

About Ellie:
Ellie Cahill is a freelance writer and also writes books for young adults under the name Liz Czukas. She lives outside Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with her husband, son, and the world’s loudest cat.

Where to find Ellie:
Facebook | Twitter | Blog | Instagram

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to follow along with the blog tour on Ellie's site.

Cover Reveal: Sarina Bowen's GRAVITY series

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Thu, 12 Feb 2015 18:30:00 +0000

Angsty Vermont snowboarders, anyone?

I'm so pleased to be sharing the covers for Sarina Bowen's Gravity series. I absolutely adore Sarina's New Adult books, and these adult romances are just as good.

Here's the cover for Falling From the Sky, as well as the synopsis:

Falling From the Sky by Sarina Bowen
Available now!

Synopsis:

She's the woman he doesn't remember. He's the man she can't forget.

Bad boy Hank “Hazardous” Lazarus used to have everything: a gorgeous girlfriend, a career as a freestyle snowboarder and a spot on the US Olympic team. Nine months ago, after a bad crash in the half pipe, he woke up in the hospital, unable to move his legs. Now he’s landed there again, but gravity is not the culprit. With his family pressuring him to try a groundbreaking treatment, Hank self-medicates with too much tequila instead.

Doctor Callie Anders has the courage to restart a patient’s heart with a thousand volts of electricity, yet she’s afraid to risk her own. So she doesn’t confess to the clinic’s newest patient that they met just before the accident, an encounter that he doesn’t remember. Even as their friendship develops, she won’t admit she regrets turning down his dinner invitation, or that her heart stutters every time those inked shoulders roll through the door of the therapy department.

With another Vermont winter coming again, Hank needs a hand out from under the avalanche of his disappointments. If only Callie were brave enough to take the job.

Purchase the book... Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo

Sounds so good, right?? Well, it is. But you don't have to believe only me... here's some more praise for Sarina and Falling From the Sky:

"One of the highlights of my 2014 reading year." —Jane Litte at DearAuthor.com

"4.5 stars. Hank and Callie are an inspiration to love stories everywhere. HOT." — RT (Romantic Times) Book Reviews

"What a book! I’m always looking for different, inspiring, more in my books and Sarina Bowen delivers every time." — The Bookish Babe

"Sexy and heartwarming, Falling From the Sky is a story of redemption, trust and falling in love." — Mandi Schreiner of SmexyBooks

That cover is awesome, but it's only the beginning. Here are the covers for the series and their release dates:

If all that awesome doesn't convince you, here's an excerpt from Falling From the Sky:

“Hi,” Callie said softly. “I’m Doctor Anders. Or Callie, if you wish.”

“Callie,” he cleared his throat. “You look really familiar.”

That wasn’t what she had expected him to say. It would have been as good a time as any to mention that they’d met about ten minutes before his accident, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Who would want to be reminded of that afternoon? “I’ve been here all week,” she said instead. “But we don’t expect you to keep track of the dozens of people who prod you all day.”

“And all night,” he added.

She sat down on a stool next to his bed. “That’s my fault. I need to know that they’re looking at your vitals every three hours. It helps me sleep.” She winked, and was rewarded with half a smile. “Now, quick—before the room is invaded again by nurses’ assistants—how’s your pain? Is there anything you need?”

Hank lifted one hand to his face, and Callie was glad to see it. If his injury had happened farther up his spine, he wouldn’t have been able to do that. With his palm, Hank rubbed several days’ worth of whiskers, which only served to make him look more rugged, while he considered her question. “Let’s see…I need a full rack of Curtis’ ribs, with spicy sauce and a baked potato. And I need to get the hell out of this hospital.”

She nodded obligingly, even though she couldn’t fulfill any of those requests. But if he was talking about food and getting out of here, those were both good signs. “You’ll be transferring to a rehab facility soon.”

“Yeah,” he sighed. His gaze wandered again, his eyes aiming at the window.

“The rehab place will let you sleep through the night,” she said, keeping her voice light. “And you’ll have your own clothes. I hear the food is better, too.”

“Couldn’t really be worse,” he said, turning to face Callie again. His dark eyes locked onto hers, and Callie felt the moment stretch and take hold. He didn’t say anything more, but he didn’t have to. Silently, an understanding passed between them. It didn’t matter if the food got better. Hank Lazarus was in for a shitty time, truly the shittiest time of his life. The distance he’d come these past five days was a descent from the highest high to the lowest low. And there wasn’t a damned thing either of them could do about it.

“Hang in there,” Callie whispered. “This right here is the very worst part.”

He didn’t break their staring contest. “You promise?” he rumbled, his voice pure whiskey and smoke.

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Loving You is Easy by Wendy S. Marcus

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Thu, 05 Feb 2015 13:30:00 +0000

Loving You is Easy by Wendy S. Marcus
Release Date: December 9, 2014
Publisher: Loveswept
Pages: 276
Series: n/a
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

She’s a survivor of the front lines of politics. He’s a wounded soldier returning home from the battlefield. Can they place their trust in the power of love?

Nobody plays the role of perfect politician’s daughter better than quiet, respectable math teacher Brooke Ellstein. But she won’t be caught swimming with the sharks again, not after the son of a wealthy donor sinks his teeth into her and gets away with it. Still, political connections have their perks, such as heading up the governor’s “Support Our Troops” pen-pal initiative—and getting first dibs on the smoking-hot sergeant whose picture shakes her right down to her goody-two-shoes.

When corresponding with sweet, classy Brooke, Shane Develen instinctively hides his commando tattoos and blue-collar roots—and he can tell that she’s hiding something, too. But Shane knows he’s gained her trust when Brooke gives him a blisteringly sexy photo. Then he’s injured in an ambush and a fellow soldier posts the snapshot online. Overnight, Brooke’s reputation turns to ashes. Even though he’s totally wrong for her, Shane shows up on Brooke’s doorstep, determined to set things right—and discovers that right or wrong has nothing on the chemistry they share.

My Thoughts:
Loving You is Easy is one of those books that contains a lot of tropes. The ones I found include: the girl with a mysterious damaged past, the girl with family issues (bonus points: her father is in politics), the injured young vet fresh back from war, and the sex scandal. Now, if I see a book that is too much like every other book out there I get a bit cautious. There's a reason why tropes are tropes, though, and that’s because when they’re done well? They’re irresistible. In this case I loved the characters in Loving You is Easy and I adored the way the story played out. It was deeply emotional -- as in, I had actual tears streaming down my face several times. I could really feel for the characters and their circumstances.

Our main character Brooke is tough. She’s very determined and self-aware. Brooke falls in love with Shane and is willing to wait for him to be ready for the relationship. When Shane comes back from war injured she’s not scared of the situation and is willing to love and support him no matter what. As I mentioned, Brooke has had a hard time with her family, but she’s very strong and brave, distancing herself from a poisonous situation.

Shane first appears to be the typical good time guy, a guy’s guy, but since this is a romance novel, he’s definitely using bravado to cover up the major feels he’s feeling. He doesn’t think he’s good enough for Brooke, and it’s even worse when he comes back injured and his ego is bruised along with his body. On top of that he has PTSD and thinks of himself only as weak. Shane is actually dealing pretty well, considering he has no idea where his life is going now that his chosen career is over, and on top of that he’s dealing with the death of his best friend. He’s pretty strong, considering all of that, but Shane only sees the negative: the weakness of his leg and his vision, the nightmares he has, etc.

I really liked that Shane and Brooke had a background of writing letters and emails to each other for years. This gave them a real chemistry straight away that made sense. They knew each other’s deepest secrets, so it was logical that they worked so well together in person. I got a little angry at Shane constantly thinking he wasn’t good enough, but I liked that even when he was trying to push Brooke away he didn’t go into unforgivable territory. So often “heroes” do and say horrible things in the name of “saving” the woman they love, so I’m glad it didn’t go to that level.

Besides the romance, there’s also a whole side plot about sexy pics being leaked online, which actually turned out to be less of the story than I expected. It’s this huge mess of false accusations of Brooke, who is a middle school teacher, sexually abusing her students. I wasn’t sure how I liked the message overall, about the dangers of false reporting and why it’s so dangerous to use just witness testimony, and also how you automatically assume the guilt of the adult in these situations. It worked in the case of the book, but it seemed a dangerous topic to explore, considering how many actual abusers get off scott-free in situations like this. I was afraid this story line would go to the side when the romantic conflict came to the forefront, but I thought the way it was wrapped up was satisfactory, if a bit convenient.

I loved this story for the most part, and found both the main and secondary characters to be interesting. Brooke’s BFF is kind of insane, but I love their relationship. I’m sure we’re getting a book with her and Shane’s army buddy, considering they were pen pals as well, and had some crazy incident between them. I also thought Shane’s family was a hoot, with his mother being lovely and his one sister being absolutely crazzzy. Overall, recommended.

The Cover:
Not bad.

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble

I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Tue, 03 Feb 2015 14:00:00 +0000

I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios
Release Date: February 3, 2015
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
Pages: 400
Series: n/a
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

If seventeen-year-old Skylar Evans were a typical Creek View girl, her future would involve a double-wide trailer, a baby on her hip, and the graveyard shift at Taco Bell. But after graduation, the only thing standing between straightedge Skylar and art school are three minimum-wage months of summer. Skylar can taste the freedom—that is, until her mother loses her job and everything starts coming apart. Torn between her dreams and the people she loves, Skylar realizes everything she’s ever worked for is on the line.

Nineteen-year-old Josh Mitchell had a different ticket out of Creek View: the Marines. But after his leg is blown off in Afghanistan, he returns home, a shell of the cocksure boy he used to be. What brings Skylar and Josh together is working at the Paradise—a quirky motel off California’s dusty Highway 99. Despite their differences, their shared isolation turns into an unexpected friendship and soon, something deeper.

My Thoughts:
Wow. If you’re looking for a beautifully written book, I suggest you check out I’ll Meet You There. When I first started this book I hadn’t read the description in a while, so I had forgotten that the love interest was a wounded veteran. Considering this character (and the related subject matter) the book got pretty deep and sad at times, but it was so well done.

As much as this is Skylar’s story (more on her later), this is also a book about Josh and his journey. Josh has a lot to deal with: the death of his friend, the loss of his leg, just being home, etc. That’s heavy stuff, but I feel like Heather Demetrios did his story justice and told it with respect. It’s not that I haven’t read books about similar scenarios (Stir Me Up by Sabrina Elkins comes to mind), but Josh himself felt unique and real. I was very moved by his character and his circumstances.

Skylar’s story was also tough to read about at times, and was sadly realistic. Her character deals with poverty, a deceased dad, and a mom with drinking problems. Skylar has had so much responsibility in her life for so long, and just when she thinks she’s getting out for college, things start going wrong. It was sad to read about, but I also liked that it put me out of my comfort zone.

I think what was tough about this book and what was great about this book at the same time is that both characters make bad decisions (or fail to make decisions). They both did things that drove me crazy. For instance, Josh doesn’t seem like a great person for Sky to rely on at times. On the other hand, Sky is often too willing to sit back and use her mom’s situation as an excuse. She’s almost too giving and doesn’t prioritize her own well being. These were great characters, they were flawed characters, and I empathized with and cheered for them even more because of that. I would also be remiss not to mention the chemistry between Josh and Sky. Woah. Like seriously. Major, major sparks.

There were so many other great things about this book, including the setting and the secondary characters. The motel setting was a lot of fun, especially with the themed rooms. The owner of the motel was an amazing character, a steady influence on both Josh and Sky.

I highly recommend I’ll Meet You There to all YA contemp fans, especially to those looking for a moving, meaningful story and an incredible romance.

The Cover:
Gorgeous!

Rating:
[Strong 4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy by Julia Quinn

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Mon, 02 Feb 2015 11:00:00 +0000

The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy by Julia Quinn
Release Date: January 27, 2015
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 384
Series: Smythe-Smith Quartet #4
Review Source: Edelweiss

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Sir Richard Kenworthy has less than a month to find a bride. He knows he can't be too picky, but when he sees Iris Smythe-Smith hiding behind her cello at her family's infamous musicale, he thinks he might have struck gold. She's the type of girl you don't notice until the second—or third—look, but there's something about her, something simmering under the surface, and he knows she's the one.

Iris Smythe–Smith is used to being underestimated. With her pale hair and quiet, sly wit she tends to blend into the background, and she likes it that way. So when Richard Kenworthy demands an introduction, she is suspicious. He flirts, he charms, he gives every impression of a man falling in love, but she can't quite believe it's all true. When his proposal of marriage turns into a compromising position that forces the issue, she can't help thinking that he's hiding something . . . even as her heart tells her to say yes.

My Thoughts:
It’s not surprising, considering this is a Julia Quinn novel, but The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy was absolutely enchanting from the very first page. It was a true delight to pick up a book and right from the beginning want to dive in and get to know the characters and their situations. The Smythe-Smith Quartet has been a very fun series overall, so I suggest reading all of them, but this can easily be read as a standalone as well -- you would just miss out on the fun references to previous main characters.

There’s huge chemistry between Richard and Iris, which makes it difficult for Sir Richard to go through with his original plan. It’s semi-obvious to the reader what's going on behind the scenes in Richard's life, even before we’re completely looped in, but it's very difficult for Iris. She's completely in the dark and feeling like her husband doesn't like or want her. It was interesting to see their relationship progress, because Richard has done a fairly unforgivable thing, and Iris is so confused about what’s going on. It all leads up to a satisfying conclusion, of course, but it's the journey there that's the most interesting.

No matter what, you can expect epic swoons from a Julia Quinn book, and this one is no exception. The author is great at creating dynamic characters with massive chemistry, and secondary characters who leap off the page. While this isn’t my very favourite of hers, I still found it to be a massively entertaining read that any historical romance fan will enjoy.

The Cover:
It's cute, but it looks more like it belongs with the Bevelstoke books, which is confusing.

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

About Julia:
JULIA QUINN started writing her first book one month after finishing college and has been tapping away at her keyboard ever since. The New York Times bestselling author of twenty-four novels for Avon Books, she is a graduate of Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges and is one of only fifteen authors ever to be inducted in the Romance Writers of America Hall of Fame. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family.

Where to find Julia:
Website | Facebook | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY:

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Jennifer Iacopelli's LOSING AT LOVE -- Cover Reveal + Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Sat, 31 Jan 2015 19:00:00 +0000

I'm happy to take part in the cover reveal for Jennifer Iacopelli’s upcoming book, Losing at Love. Her first book, Game. Set. Match, is also having a redesign, so I'll be able to share that will you too. Beyond that, Jennifer has kindly offered up an excerpt from Losing at Love PLUS a giveaway.

And here they are...

Nice, right?? I love the bold colours up against the darker background, and I love how well they represent the books.

Excerpt from Losing at Love:

Stepping into the sunshine, Indy shouldered her bag and turned towards the OBX library, her mind running through the assignments she still had to complete when a shadow crossed over her path, a large body falling into step with her, close, but not touching, their strides matching.

“Jack,” she said, glancing up at him sideways, a small smile threatening at the corner of her mouth.

“Indiana,” he said, echoing back her name, sending a shiver down her spine. He was the only one allowed to call her that, the only person who made the name she’d hated since forever sound friggin’ good.

They walked together without another word, turning the corner that separated the courts from the residential area of the complex, but her stride was suddenly cut off when Jack shuffled his feet, sliding his arm around her waist and pulled her into a shady walkway between buildings. Her bag slid off her shoulder, but he caught it before it crashed to the ground and smashed her laptop to smithereens. He let it settle on the ground gently before leaning over her, forcing her to step back into the wall.

Walls were their thing. Their first kiss had been against a wall in a random hallway at Roland Garros, their second pressed against the wall of their hotel in Paris and now that they were back in North Carolina, they found any excuse to push each other against a wall and kiss until they were gasping for air and their bodies begged for relief. Jack’s lips trailed from her temple, using the wall behind her as an anchor before bending his head to hers. Pushing up onto her toes, Indy met him halfway. She’d never been so grateful for every millimeter of her five feet ten inches as she was when she was kissing Jack. His hands slid through her hair, twisting it around his fingers, then cradling the back of her head, drawing her mouth more firmly against his. Indy brought her hands to his torso, gripping his t-shirt, letting her palms press against the cut of muscle that disappeared into his cargo shorts. The skin on skin contact made his breath hitch, his mouth opening just enough to allow her tongue to slide in, deepening the kiss, before letting her teeth nip at his bottom lip. A groan rumbled in his throat as he stumbled forward, pressing his body full length against hers. He wrenched his lips from hers, trailing his mouth over the line of her jaw to the spot just behind her ear. It was her turn to gasp and her head fell back as she arched into him. No one had ever kissed her there before. Jack smiled against her skin as her fingertips dug into his sides and she let a moan slip free as he focused his attention on that spot, scraping his teeth against it then soothing that small pain with a flick of his tongue. Her hands scrambled to get purchase against his shoulders, desperate for some leverage, anything to help her slide her body against his. Then he was gone, his hand gone from her hair, his mouth gone from her neck and his body inches then feet away. Indy blinked at him, trying to figure out what happened when the voices echoing down the pathway towards them finally reached her ears.

Bending down, he lifted her bag as she ran her fingers through her hair, knowing he’d made an unholy mess of it. “You’re fine,” he muttered, handing her the bag, then keeping the distance between them as a group of junior boys stomped past them, none giving them a second glance.

“You have good ears,” Indy said, biting her lip at the close call. If those boys had seen them, the news would have spread like wildfire through the OBX campus and everyone would have known by the end of the day. She was only seventeen for another few months, but that wasn’t really the problem, seventeen or eighteen wouldn’t matter to other people. She was a young tennis pro, he was an up and coming agent. The last thing either of their careers needed was the heightened publicity of a controversial relationship, even if Jack Harrison was far more of a gentleman than any guy she’d ever met. Sometimes a little too much of a gentleman, truth be told.

Jack shrugged, glancing back over his shoulder again before facing her fully. “I’m sorry about this.”

She reached out and took his hand, “We both agreed,” she said, entwining their fingers together, “it’s just between us for now. It makes sense for the both of us.” Pressing his lips together in a thin line, he nodded, but she knew he wasn’t entirely convinced. “Jack, we talked about this. You said you were okay with it.”

“I just wish it were different,” he said, tugging her closer, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. His hands released hers and dropped to her hips, the edges of his thumbs brushing against her hipbones in slow circles sending shivers over her skin.

“Me too.” She wanted to scream it from the rooftops that this amazing guy was hers. That he had deep green eyes and a smile that brightened them whenever he looked at her. That he was brilliant in ways that she couldn’t even fathom with his degree from Harvard. That he’d fought their attraction for so long because of that ingrained sense of honor, like one of those heroes in a fairy tale, except Jack was real, flesh and blood.

"Have you thought...maybe we should tell Penny?" Indy asked, her fingertips landing on his forearms, gently stroking up to his elbows and back down to his wrists.

Jack let out a heavy breath. "Penny has a lot on her plate right now."

"I know, I just feel funny keeping it from her. Jasmine knows."

"We'll do whatever you want to do. This is your show, baby."

"I don't need a supportive…" she hesitated, almost using the word boyfriend, but that didn't really fit, did it? Not if they were keeping it a secret, "I need honest Jack."

He leaned back, looking her in the eye. "Honest? Honestly, my sister doesn't do well with change. It freaks her out and right now, I'm not sure that the idea of you and me will go over that well. On the other hand, if we don't tell her and she finds out?"

"She'll be pissed."

"Yep."

"Maybe we wait a little longer. We could tell her in London?"

Jack nodded, "Face to face instead of over the phone."

“There’s always Skype,” she said, not really sure if she wanted to know what Penny, the only girl who’d made an effort to befriend her when she first arrived at OBX, would think if she found out she and Jack were together.

“There’s that.”

Indy shook her head. They should do it in person. They should have done it before they left Paris, but Penny had been so devastated by withdrawing from the tournament that it hadn’t felt like the right time then either. “In London. We’ll be there in less than a week. We’ll tell her then.”

“Okay, in London.” They stood there for a moment, just breathing each other in until Jack leaned away. “I’ve gotta go. I have a meeting with a potential new client this afternoon and I’ve got to prep.”

Indy snorted a laugh. “Right, like you don’t already have a complete profile worked up along with potential sponsors to contact if they sign.”

“You know me so well,” he said, leaning around the building, checking the pathway for any more unwanted spectators. “I’ll go this way.”

Indy nodded back in the opposite direction. “And I’ll go that way.”

With a bow, he was gone, around the corner and out of sight, so she turned and adjusted her bag over her shoulder, heading out from between the buildings and towards the library. She’d have about half the time to get her Calc done than she originally planned. Fingertips pressing against that spot on her neck lightly recalling the feel of his mouth and the way her entire body was lit on fire by his touch, it was totally worth it.

“Are you sure that is a good idea?” a voice rang out from just a few steps behind her, the French accent giving its owner away, if the superiority and condescension weren’t enough of a clue. Indy spun around and came face to face with her agent, tall, blonde, perfectly put together in a silk blouse and linen skirt, somehow looking completely cool and calm despite the blaze of the sun. She was in town before they all left for England, mostly to go over her plans for Indy’s future off the court.

A denial formed on Indy’s tongue, but she knew it was useless. Caroline had seen them and it probably just confirmed what she’d suspected for a while. Her agent was damn good at her job and it wasn’t like she and Jack had been super careful about keeping private moments behind closed doors. “Good idea or not, it’s none of your business.”

Raising her eyes to the sky and shaking her head Caroline said, “You are my business, Indiana.”

“How many times do I have to say it? Don’t call me that, and my tennis is your business,” Indy corrected. “Keep your nose out of everything else.”

“It is not that simple,” Caroline insisted, her voice inching up in pitch.

“It really is.” She turned on her toe and walked away, wanting to look back, hoping that Caroline’s brow was furrowed and her hands were on her hips, lips pursed in aggravation. But looking back would ruin the moment because despite getting in the last word, Caroline now had the upper hand and it was only a matter of time before she used it to her advantage.

About Losing at Love:

Grass courts, tennis whites and the fiercest competition in the world. Wimbledon. After two crazy weeks in Paris, the girls of the Outer Banks Tennis Academy are headed to London with just one thing on their minds: winning.

Indiana Gaffney is fresh off a surprise win at the French Open junior tournament. Sponsors are clamoring for her attention, but what she wants more than anything—aside from a wild card to Wimbledon—is to be with Jack Harrison, but international fame and a secret relationship rarely mix well.

When Penny Harrison dreamed of playing at Wimbledon she never imagined agonizing pain shooting through her ankle with every step. With just a month until the tournament and the whole world expecting her to win, she’s determined to play, with or without the support of her coach or the love of her life, Alex Russell.

For the first time ever, no one expects anything from Jasmine Randazzo. After a crushing first-round defeat in the French Open juniors, the tennis world has given up on her, but worse than that, so have her parents, her best friend Teddy and maybe even her coach. With everyone writing her off, can she find it within herself to go after her dreams?

Pre order now!!

To celebrate the cover reveal, Game. Set. Match.is on sale for .99!!

About Game. Set. Match.:

Nestled along the North Carolina coast, the Outer Banks Tennis Academy is the world's most elite training facility. In this pressure-cooker environment, futures are forged in blood and sweat, and dreams are shattered in an instant.

Penny Harrison, a rising female star, is determined to win the French Open and beat her archrival, Zina Lutrova. But when her coach imports British bad boy Alex Russell as her new training partner, will Penny be able to keep her laser-like focus?

Tennis is all Jasmine Randazzo has ever known. The daughter of two Grand Slam champions, she's hell-bent on extending her family’s legacy and writing her own happily-ever-after...until her chosen Prince Charming gives her the just-friends speech right before the biggest junior tournament of the year, the Outer Banks Classic.

With a powerful serve and killer forehand, newcomer Indiana Gaffney is turning heads. She’s thrilled by all of the attention, especially from Jack Harrison, Penny’s agent and hot older brother, except he keeps backing off every time things start heating up.

With so much at stake, dreams—and hearts—are bound to break. Welcome to OBX: Where LOVE is a four-letter word, on and off the court.

Buy the book on... Amazon | BN | iTunes | Kobo

About Jennifer Iacopelli:

Jennifer Iacopelli was born in New York and has no plans to leave...ever. Growing up, she read everything she could get her hands on, but her favorite authors were Laura Ingalls Wilder, L.M. Montgomery and Frances Hodgson Burnett all of whom wrote about kick-ass girls before it was cool for girls to be kick-ass. She got a Bachelor's degree in Adolescence Education and English Literature quickly followed up by a Master's in Library Science, which lets her frolic all day with her books and computers, leaving plenty of time in the evenings to write and yell at the Yankees, Giants and her favorite tennis players through the TV.

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Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

noreply@blogger.com (Ashley @ Book Labyrinth) — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 14:00:00 +0000

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
Release Date: February 10, 2015
Publisher: Harper Teen
Pages: 383
Series: Red Queen Trilogy #1
Review Source: Edelweiss

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Graceling meets The Selection in debut novelist Victoria Aveyard's sweeping tale of seventeen-year-old Mare, a common girl whose once-latent magical power draws her into the dangerous intrigue of the king's palace. Will her power save her or condemn her?

Mare Barrow's world is divided by blood--those with common, Red blood serve the Silver- blooded elite, who are gifted with superhuman abilities. Mare is a Red, scraping by as a thief in a poor, rural village, until a twist of fate throws her in front of the Silver court. Before the king, princes, and all the nobles, she discovers she has an ability of her own.

To cover up this impossibility, the king forces her to play the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks everything and uses her new position to help the Scarlet Guard--a growing Red rebellion--even as her heart tugs her in an impossible direction. One wrong move can lead to her death, but in the dangerous game she plays, the only certainty is betrayal.

My Thoughts:
There is something so exciting and interesting about this book. Right from the time I heard of it, Red Queen was being hyped as a big series to come. Most of the time I end up being disappointed by those, but in this case I absolutely loved it. I was intrigued and excited throughout, and so curious about where the book was going.

Probably one of my favourite things about Red Queen is that there’s a real sense of not being able to trust anyone. It’s a theme of the book, so when you’re reading, that fact is constantly in the back of your mind. You can’t ever be sure who is actually portraying themselves honestly, which makes for a very intense read. Without going into spoilers, there’s definitely some betrayal in the book, and even when you think you see it coming the book it's so well written that you can’t be entirely sure. I kept questioning my instincts and wondering who was really good or bad.

The synopsis of the book compares it to The Selection, which makes sense because of the way the royal court operates and the competition to be the next queen. It had those aspects, but it was a very different book, too. It had a lot of elements that readers might find familiar, but it puts them together in an amazing way. There’s a secret rebellion aspect similar to The Hunger Games and people with different powers like in Graceling. It had a great fantasy genre feel to it with the major class differences: the poor in the slums, the rich in their palaces.

I can’t even really talk about the characters without spoiling things, but Mare is our main character, and she gets swept into a world she’s never dreamed of. Mare starts off a little bit like the Ultra Special Female Protagonist (she’s a pickpocket, she’s a smartass, she gets away with things -- she just fits into that stereotype), but as she’s thrust into the unknown she becomes a lot more interesting. I loved seeing the way she reacted to things, the way she processed her thoughts and feelings.

One big theme of YA literature is being on the outside and not fitting in. I loved that even in this ultra complex fantasy world, our main character was going through the same thing that so many contemporary teens are. In the world of Red Queen there’s the red blood (normals) vs the silver blood (the elite, oppressors, having powers). And then there’s Mare, who doesn’t fit into either category. It sucks for her, but it makes for an incredibly interesting read.

Red Queen is a book with big secrets, intrigue, and action. It’s about fighting the oppressors, something which is made difficult when the people in charge have the ability to control you. It asks important questions, like how can you breed a rebellion when you’re barely surviving? When you’re the ones fighting and dying in an impossible war, when you don’t have enough food for your family -- how can you get beyond that? It asks all these questions and it doesn’t offer up easy answers. Red Queen is a wonderful beginning to a new series, and I’m incredibly excited to see where Victoria Aveyard takes us in the next book.

The Cover:
Love!! Very eye catching.

Rating:
[5/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository