Review: This Thing Called Love by Miranda Liasson

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Synopsis

New York City self-help editor Olivia Marks faces her toughest assignment yet: parenthood. When her sister dies in a car accident, the career-oriented Olivia suddenly becomes the guardian to her four-week-old niece, Annabelle. She also becomes a challenge for Annabelle’s uncle, Brad Rushford, an old flame whose gorgeous green eyes bring Olivia’s fevered memories rushing back.

As the two circle each other in their small hometown of Mirror Lake, Olivia finds that Brad is as sexy and charming as ever—and now he’s the darling of the town as he expands his successful lakefront restaurant. Is his flirting designed to get serious, or to lower Olivia’s defenses to give up guardianship? When she finds out about the turreted, brick Victorian house Brad tours with a realtor and an attractive, no-strings-attached reporter—the same place where he and Olivia shared an unforgettable night years ago—Olivia wonders if he’s looking for a future with her, or planning to start a new life with someone else.

In the first heartwarming Mirror Lake story, steamy trysts and surprising twists lead two people to a future neither one expected.

Review

We’ve all had that one relationship that didn’t work out for whatever reason. No matter how much time passes, that moment if you reconnect, despite how bad things were, your mind feels pain but your heart is anchored by the depth of that question of what if. In This Thing Called Love, the first book in Miranda Liasson’s Mirror Lake series, we are introduced to that possibility and what happens when you open your heart for a second a chance and be fearless to the journey it leads you on.

We are introduced to Brad and Oliva, they have a history together but as with many who were young in love, their paths were separated by circumstances. Olivia, is your typical small town turned big city gal. She has a demanding job that leaves her with no life other than her job. Life has a way of throwing you a curve when you least expect it. Her life gets turned upside down when she gets the devastating news of the death of her sister and her husband. Not understanding why this decision was made, she finds out that she is to become guardian of her 4 week old niece. With no time for a personal life, especially no experience with children, she must try to find answers in the one place she never thought she would. 

All she thought she was going to do was take a couple of weeks off to figure things out. More challenging than she thought and not about to admit that, in her most vulnerable situation, she stumbles upon someone she least expected see. Well, that would be Brad. He just isn’t any guy but “they” who will no matter how much time passes, will always be the guy who was her first love. Having some hardships early on in his life, after his own tragedy with having to take care of his siblings, Brad made a life for himself despite his small town roots. Don’t let all that sappiness fool you. It just so happens that he is the brother to her sister’s husband and strongly doesn’t think Oliva was the right person to take the baby. In fact, he is on a mission to do whatever necessary to convince her to change her mind. Not bitter or anything in regards to the decision of it not being him, he just feels that someone else is a better fit. The only problem is that not only does this interaction stir up the past but get a bit challenging when the present gets blurred with the past leading each other to find second chances, resolution and the awesome journey finding out how no matter how much you try and change it, fate is always destined.

Now, I’m a sucker for an awesome hea and this definitely made me swoon. After reading this debut novel, I’m very excited to read on and see what comes next. Yes, you can predict the obvious of what happens but it’s how you get there that is awesome. I’m very particular with books like this because it can get very predictable early on but this was one of those stories that just makes you feel good early on because it had characters that had a story that you wanted to invest in. It was like, you know where this is going and don’t want to stop because it just felt like such a great read. I thought she did a great job with the characters, giving us substance and a great story to follow. The development of the plot and the flow of the story was well paced, not to fast or slow but kept your interest not to be distracted by the probability of what you think is going to happen. Fun book filled with moments that will make your heart smile, break out the Kleenex at times and most especially have you cheering, especially in the end because who doesn’t love an awesome hea! Definitely would recommend for the gals to add to the list for a nice story.

Review: Close to You by Kristen Proby

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Synopsis

From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Kristen Proby comes the second novel in her sizzling Fusion series.

Camilla, “Cami,” LaRue was five-years-old when she first fell in love with Landon Palazzo. Everyone told her the puppy love would fade—they clearly never met Landon. When he left after graduation without a backward glance, she was heartbroken. But Cami grew up, moved on, and became part-owner of wildly popular restaurant Seduction. She has everything she could want...or so she thinks. 

After spending the last twelve years as a Navy fighter pilot, Landon returns to Portland to take over the family construction business. When he catches a glimpse of little Cami LaRue, he realizes she’s not so little any more. He always had a soft spot for his little sister’s best friend, but nothing is soft now when he’s around the gorgeous restauranteur.

Landon isn’t going to pass up the chance to make the girl-next-door his. She’s never been one for romance, but he’s just the one to change her mind. Will seduction be just the name of her restaurant or will Cami let him get close enough to fulfill all her fantasies?

Review

I knew the Fusion series was going to be amazing after reading the initial debut of Listen to Me. Eagerly anticipating the second book, Close to You was a challenge because Kristen had me so frustrated wondering if I’d missed something. No, I didn’t but she had left me hanging out there until this book arrived. I’m always nervous about the second book in a series but this one I will say I was very happy with. I really took to Cami and my dream possibilities of her and Landon in the first book and thank goodness, dreams come true! 

Close to You, picked up the unanswered questions about what happened to Landon at the end of Listen to Me. I was very pleasantly surprised and excited for the transition of the beginning of a new chapter for him and Cami. For me, Cami is probably my favorite out of the bunch. She is the girl next door type of gal, which for me, I completely connect with. What I love about her is that she is definitely the classic book case of the girl growing up crushing on the older brother of your best friend but then when time meets fate, what’s meant to be comes aligned.

We all wish for the girl to get the dream guy in the end but it was nice for fate to get it right for a change. Cami is that girl out of the bunch that many women will resonate with. What I really loved about them in this book is that Kristen completely took us in their world. I couldn’t put the book down and felt like I was watching and feeling their love develop in front of me. I love how like in the first book, you really feel a part of them, their lives and you really get brought into everything.  Kristen is such an amazing writer of beautiful characters that really connect you and make you completely oblivious to anything but the story unfolding to you on the page. 

I will say that even though the first book was a fantastic introduction to the girls and Addie’s story, this one I loved more because it shined the girl that really isn’t in the spotlight and she got her awesome hea. Their journey pulled at the heart but it was real, emotional and definitely worth the wait to read. I’m being biased because Cami is my favorite to say I liked this book better but I know the other gals with get their time to shine just as great. I can only speculate based on the ending of this book, Riley will be the next gal featured. We’ll revisit this when the next book comes out to see if I’m right. We’ll see for the next additional to the series. Overall, I loved this book and thought it was such a beautiful journey of time and a testament of true love meant to be. I’d definitely recommend this and look forward to the next one

Review: The Full Tank Life by Ben Tankard

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Synopsis

Modern-day Renaissance man and star of Bravo's Thicker Than Water Ben Tankard offers powerful motivation and practical tools to empower readers to find their destiny and create an action plan to unlock it.

As a pastor, pilot, motivational speaker, bestselling Gospel/Jazz musician, and reality TV star, Tankard has a lot of experience with both success and failure. He has learned that our greatest opportunities often come from our greatest disappointments. Today, he is doing what he was born to do, and he knows it didn't happen by accident. Tankard encourages readers to examine seven key elements-Dreams, Environment, Subconscious, Time, Inspiration, Network, and You, sharing his life-tested secrets to help readers find their own way. Including fresh insights on familiar Bible passages, wisdom from Tankard's own setbacks, and laugh-out-loud stories, Tankard shows readers that they too can have a "full tank" life.

Review

If you have ever been in that unfulfilled place in life, where you want more or are at a crossroads with finding your purpose in life, The Full Tank Life can definitely be a catalyst to open your mind and reinvigorate your focus. To be honest, I’m always on the fence with books that promote the next secret to unlocking these answers but I found this book a pleasant surprise because it wasn’t just based on text book ideologies, it came from someone who truly persevered through his own obstacles and whose positivity has been his foundation to his success.

I wasn’t familiar with Ben Tankard prior to reading the book nor had I ever watched his successful show on Bravo featuring his family. After reading his book, I’m definitely going to tune in but more importantly, I found his insight refreshing and encouraging. In this genre of books, in many cases, they tend to become cliché and repetitive. What I loved about this book was how it wasn’t a theoretical step by step but more of a faith-based, experienced, sharing the wisdom learned from the journey book that not only blended his insight but the experiences of others that balanced into a tangible plan of action that can inspire the will of hope to achieve what your destiny is meant to be.  

The Full Tank Life centers around 7 key areas that are based on the word DESTINY. I found that not only inspiring but find it unique and purposeful. They key areas are meant to tap into, motivate and ignite the power to be all that you are meant to be. The book is blended with faith-based stories and concepts and personal commentary to complement each part. Each chapter ends with assignments that you can participate in and inspiration quotes called “BENspirations” that come from him and others whose insights are appropriate to the life lesson. 

Overall, I enjoyed the book very much. For me personally, in my own life struggles to achieve my own goals, this definitely gave me food for thought for being a doer rather than a dreamer. I found it a positive and easy going read that brought a refreshing perspective to this genre of books. It offers some great insight to those that are open to receiving and hopefully takeaway feeling inspired and motivated to fuel their “journey to ascension.

Review: Adorkable by Cookie O’Gorman

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3 Stars

If I had to choose one word to describe this book I would say, fluff. This is not necessarily a bad thing. I did not expect to be reading about tough and dark subjects. Sometimes you need a little fluff; and after having a reading slump, fluff is fantastic. It is a nice ease back into reading. Well, at least for me. 

This may sound weird, but this book was a no commitment- no strings attached kind of read.  What I mean is that you read it and you’re done. There is a very small chance that you will be thinking about the characters or the plot. There are no sequels or prominent character development to draw you back into the book’s universe. Again, this is not a bad thing. Like mentioned earlier, this book is great to get you out of a reading slump. 

Even as a teenager, I enjoyed the premise of two people entering a pretend relationship for whatever reason. It is a simple plot, but if done well it can be very amazing. It is always exciting to watch them slowly realize that they have feelings for each other. 

Even though this trope can be overused and predictable, it never gets old. It is always entertaining to me, and this is the main reason I was drawn to this book. I thought it was done well in this book. I liked that they were friends beforehand, however, I would have preferred if there was not a love triangle. Granted, it was not as prominent but it still felt unnecessary. It sort of came out of nowhere, and I do not think the plot benefited in any way because of it. 

Characters

Sally was not my favorite main character, but she was not my least. I liked how confident she was. She knew exactly who she was. Sally was a dork. I mean this in the most lovingly way possible. I consider myself a dork, and it was nice to read about a character who was one as well. I loved that she was a fan of the X-Men. I watched X-Men Evolution cartoon growing up, so that was another thing that took me back to my younger days. 

One of my favorite things about this book was the references to Pop Culture. To me, it makes the story feel more realistic because it makes it fit perfectly in our world.  I prefer references to common Pop Culture than to an author making their own. It is just easier to keep up with, and we already have a basic knowledge of it. 

Becks was sweet and adorable. He was good to Sally. Their relationship was cute. They were close before the relationship started so we did not need that bonding time. Instead, most of the time could be spent with the characters in cute and light moments. 

However, their reason for breaking up was a little weak. I personally did not think it was that serious, and I was expecting something bigger to break them up. But because of the lack of a huge climax, it did make the book easier to wrap up with a nice little cherry on top. 

Final Analysis

Adorkable is a cute read without any real angst or serious topics. The romance is adorable, however, the miscommunication between the characters is frustrating. But all and all, this book is something that could end the dreadful reading slump. 

Review: Your Mess Is Mine by Stephanie Alba

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3.8 Stars

Overview
I had no idea what this book was going to be about when I first started reading. That’s an advantage but also a disadvantage. It gave me an opportunity to go in completely blind without having an expectations whatsoever. Which was good because then if it didn’t meet them, I wouldn’t be highly disappointed. However, I wasn’t sure if it was the type of book I would enjoy.

After finishing it, I can proudly say that I liked it. The story was completely character driven and also tackled a mental illness. The romance was cute. And it wasn’t a big book, so it could be finished in a night. The pacing felt a little rushed, given the small page count but the romantic relationship was developed nicely. There was one particular relationship that I felt was rushed, but I’ll cover that later. 

I must say there are so many things in this book that happen by fate. Because of the overly coincidental of it all, there needed to be a lot of leeway given, especially at the beginning of the book. I found myself relating it to a Rom-Com several times because of the constant coincidence of the two main characters running into each other. Yes, it had to be possible for the story to work, but it was a little unrealistic. 

Writing
This will be short, but I was inspired by the writing. At 7%, I wanted to stop reading and attempt to write my own story. This isn’t negative; I just liked how descriptions and information were given in the book. The character’s thoughts flowed nicely. It is something that I wish I could do.  I always struggled with what to write next and how to transition from thoughts to actions in a scene without it feeling rushed. Also, I liked how when the characters moved, it felt like you were walking beside them and seeing what they saw.
 
Granted reading a finished book, did inspire me to finish my own writing, but like mentioned earlier the writing is what really pushed me. I don’t want to duplicate what Stephanie Alba did, but I definitely want to focus on ways to make my writing move vivid and smooth, because it really does add to the reading experience.

Characters
There were few characters in this book that were actually purposeful and front and center besides the main character. Because of this, I can’t really base an opinion about the supporting characters. I can say that I did enjoy Hudson’s grandmother. Hudson’s relationship with his grandma was cute. 

I did like the main leads. Margo seemed realistic. She is dealing with some things in this book. I’m glad that as a reader, we got to see them and that it wasn’t pushed under a rug. Also, that it wasn’t made glamorous.  Margo was strong; Hudson was extremely supportive.
Hudson was incredibly sweet and could be in the running to be a Book Boyfriend. However, I felt that he didn’t stand out as much as Margo.

There wasn’t much of a character development on his side, and I felt like I knew him the least. I wish he was flushed out a little bit more because I would love to know more about him. 

In regards to both characters, I felt like there were some missing elements in their backstory. We were told what happened, but sometimes were never really explained or brought up again. 

I enjoyed the romance. It wasn’t instalove; their relationship actually developed as the story progressed which was nice. I loved reading about the little moments they had. The moment when they would watch TV together and just hang out. I think those might be my favorite, because they felt real. And it was just comforting to see them existing together like a real couple. 

I do have a problem with the way Margo and Patty’s relationship was handle. The resolution felt a little rushed. And I didn’t feel this deep emotional impact.  Maybe if it had come later, I would felt a little better about it. But then again, I understand why they author did what she did.

Final Analysis
Your Mess Is Mine is a good book that features a well development romance and two great main characters. The book does cover mental illnesses, but the author does offer a real depiction of it. The book does cash in on far too many coincidence meetings. But all in all, I would recommend.

Review: Soulless (The Immortal Gene #1) by Jacinta Maree

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About the Book

Welcome to Soulless.
We are the generation that laughs at death.

Reincarnation; what was once considered a gift of immortality has become an eternity of nightmares.

Nadia Richards lives in a world plagued by reincarnation, a system of recycling souls where all past memories, personalities and traumatic events are relived daily in disjointed sequences. Trapped within their own warped realities, not even the richest and most powerful are saved from their own minds unraveling. Madness is the new human nature, and civilizations are crumpling beneath themselves trying to outrun it. 

Within a society that ignores death, Nadia appears to be the one exception to the reincarnation trap. Born without any reincarnated memories and with printless eyes, the hot tempered 19 year old quickly becomes the ultimate prize to all those wishing to end the vicious cycle, or for some, to ensure they could evade death forever.

Readers discretion: Adult language, violence and some adult scenes. For mature audiences only.

Review

Sci-fi is and will always be one of my favorite genres. I'm always looking to branch out and read contemporary works and old classics, there's so much to explore and imagine in this genre, and Soulless brings an intriguing philosophical/moral aspect that makes it a stand out among contemporary sci-fi.

This novel fits solidly inside a dystopian sci-do subgenre and is, in fact, very glum. The world is rotted away and turned into a horrible classist hell. It gave me Neuromancer vibes throughout, which is definitely a compliment. The story follows Nadia, a twenty year old with no past lives in a world dominated by brutal reincarnation.

This is a great premise for a novel and one that got me to read it in the first place. Exploring human lives changing in a culture because of soul recycling makes for a very bleak future. If you kill people in one life, your soul is blacklisted forever and you are imprisoned. Sounds a like a moral dilemma to me, Minority Report anyone?

Nadia unfortunately is suddenly the subject of interest by one of the Elite doctors that wants to use her body to find a cure for remembering past lives-- basically he wants to revert humanity back to the ol' ways (i.e.: now). Nadia, on the other hand, does not want to die (which is fair) and escapes with a guy who may be the most desensitized person on the planet. Their dynamic is entertaining, to say the least.

Overall, I think the concept behind the novel drives readers forward in an honest way and makes for a very fast, chilling read. Nadia doesn't come across as the normal "strong female protagonist" trope, which is getting to get tired anyway. She just seems like the most human in a world of non-humans, which makes for an interesting idea to riddle over.

If you like a quick a sci-fi read with some moral and philosophical dilemmas mixed in, pick this puppy up, you won't be disappointed.