In The Penalty Box by Lynn Rush and Kelly Anne Blount

 An ARC received for an exchange of honest review. Thank you!

In The Penalty Box is a sweet YA -hockey romance. 

Willow is a figure skater with an injury. She was on a path to win gold metal in Olympic games. Now she doesn't know what to do, when all she knows and loves has taken away from her. So she joins in hockey team to rehab her achilles. Not all of the players want her to in their team, but Brody sure wants to. I liked how strong Willow were, both mentally and physically. 

Brody is the hockey star, the one player all adores. Even the arena has his name on it. On the outside everything seems to be perfect and in place in his life. But that couldn't be more wrong. Brody has his own battles that no one knows about. I liked Brody's way of living, I liked how he put his little brother on first place. 

Willow and Brody meet and sparks fly. Hockey teams coach has stated "no fraternizing" -rule that Willow and Brody do their best to follow. You can guess how well they manage to follow that rule. They had to make decisions that affected people around them. 

This is a sweet YA-romance with little drama.  You can read this book in one sitting, just like I did. Or you can read few chapters now and then, but I guarantee that you'll enjoy this book.

I liked the characters, I liked how much hockey there were in this book, I liked how their life were presented in; their feelings and actions truly felt teenagers. But still being teenagers these characters knew what they wanted and what was important in life, it was wonderful to read about these two. I liked the side characters. I just liked this book, okay?

⭐⭐⭐⭐

In The Penalty Box by Lynn Rush and Kelly Anne Blount

2020

The Not-Outcast by Tijan

Thank you for Social Butterfly PR and Tijan for giving me an ARC to read and review.

Wow. This might actually be the first book by Tijan that I am actually reviewing on my blog. How odd, because I have read and loved multiple books by her. One of my all time favorites is Ryan's Bed, everyone should read that book.

I didn't know what to expect when I started reading this; all I knew is that I get to read Tijan's writing. I like the way she writes and builds the world in her books. You will recognize her writing. She has a very unique style to write, most of her characters have very unique names, too.

The Not-Outcast is a contemporary romance. At first we get to know a little about Cheyenne's past. It was very eye-opening. Throughout the book we learn more about Cheyenne and her condition. I have not read the blurb so I don't know what's revealed in there, but I won't say much. All I am going to say is that I lovelovelove, LOVE, how Tijan writes about hard subjects in this book. 

Cheyenne has loved Cut since the first time she saw him. Now years later they meet officially and nothing has changed. I liked how Cut got a feeling that Cheyenne is his, when he saw her first time. It's like a love at first sight. He felt the need to protect her, which is always a good thing in my books.

The characters had so much chemistry between them, so you could feel the electricity vibrating through your Kindle. I read this book in one sitting. I got so hooked up on it that it's unreal.  This book is really a worth of reading. It tells you story of love and friendship. You don't need much else. But also; this book tells you about the daily struggles that some people go through in their head without anyone knowing. And that's really worth of knowing and understanding. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Not-Outcast by Tijan

2020

Say Hello, Kiss Goodbye by Jacquelyn Middleton

Thank you for Grey's Promotions and Jacquelyn Middleton for giving me an ARC to read and review.

At first I want to say I am sorry that my review is late, but here it finally is. 

I wanted to like this book more than I actually did. There were some awesome things in this book, but then there were few things that wasn't for me. 

The things I liked in this book were the names of the characters; just think about the names; Leia and Tarquin (What awesome names!), how their story begins; in black out at Ikea. It truly shows that you always get something you weren't supposed to get when you shop in Ikea 😁 I liked Leia's profession, she's a fashion designer. I haven't read many books with a character that works in fashion industry. I liked the secondary characters also. I liked how London and New York city played a huge part in this story. London is one of my favorite cities in the world. It was wonderful to read about! 

The things I didn't like so much. The third person POV, I like dual POV, but the third person POV is always a hard for me. Sex, I don't like to read about sex, but hey! Some of us likes to read about that so this might work just great for them. The book was quite slow from time to time and I had to make myself to keep reading.

This book contains many very hard subjects like anxiety issues, depression, alcoholism and few others. For that reason some people might need a trigger warning. The way this book deals with mental health issues was great. A huge thank you for that! You can never talk enough about mental health issues. We need to remove the stigma and this book sure helps to do that. 

These two meet and have a fling. Things happen and time goes on. I don't want to spoil this book, so I won't write anything more. Buy it and read yourself.

⭐⭐⭐½

Say Hello, Kiss Goodbye by Jacquelyn Middleton

2020

Every Sweet Regret by Lexi Ryan

Thank you for Grey's Promotions and Lexi Ryan for giving me an ARC to read and review!

This was my first book by Lexi Ryan. I have heard so many good things about her books that I wanted to read one myself. 

Every Sweet Regret is a second book in Orchid Valley -series. It's possible to read this book without reading the first book of the series. I surely did so. But I think you would benefit for reading the first book before reading this one. 

I rarely read blurbs, but this one I read and I instantly liked the idea of this book. The idea of falling in love without knowing how the other person looks like is ideal. In these days people put so much value to the looks that it feels unreal sometimes. With this way you actually need to get to know each other. You can  never put too much value on good communication. I liked how Kace was forced to get to know other things than just focusing on how Stella looks like. 

I really liked how the story went forward. The pace was steady and it felt like the author hadn't had any problems with her story. Just the way I like 😊

This was a friends-to-lovers and brothers best friend -book. One of my favorite tropes! 

For my liking there was pretty much sex. That's purely on me and is in no way authors fault! I also didn't understand why characters acted the way they did in some points, but that's on me, too. 

Over all, I liked this book. I really liked the way this book is written. Fun and fast read that made you miss summer, sun and pool 🍸 

⭐⭐⭐½

Every Sweet Regret by Lexi Ryan

2020

Varsity Rulebreaker by Ginger Scott

Thank you for Ginger Scott and WordSmith Publicity for giving me an ARC to read and review.

Varsity Rulebreaker is the third and final book in Varsity-series by Ginger Scott. I read the first book, Varsity Heartbreaker, when it came out. Somehow I missed the second book, but I'll read it as soon as possible. 

Once I got into reading I couldn't put this book down. This book has some content in it that makes you think. It explores what's it to be like a woman and play with men. You might get a glimpse  if it's even possible to play a sport that is considered for a sport for men. I really wanted to read this and know how it all will end. 

Hollis is a senior in high school and she loves to play baseball. She is new in Indiana, but in there she can just maybe show that she's more than a coaches daughter and she can earn her spot in team. 

Cannon is a new in Indiana, too. He's there to play ball with his cousin, Zack. It is implied that they play well together. At first it seems that his relationship to his cousin is easy and good, but as the book goes on we get to see more Cannon's thoughts and maybe he's growing a bit, too.

Cannon and Hollis meet and there's attraction between them. A New Years kiss is all it takes from them to be imprinted in each others mind. Too bad that they didn't know they'll be playing ball together.

Zack isn't taking it well that he now needs to prove how good he is. He doesn't like competing against Hollis. Stuff happens, as always. Cannon needs to decide what matters most; love, friendship, family bonds, doing what is right or loyalty? All equally good things, so it might be hard for him to be in between Hollis an Zacks mess.

I really liked the chemistry between Hollis and Cannon. I liked the dual POV. I liked how the sport really was a part of the story, not just a some thing a hero did. I liked how the story went forward. It was easy and happy read with little drama. I can for sure recommend it for everyone who likes YA sports romance-books. A great end for the series, loved the epilogue!

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Varsity Rulebreaker by Ginger Scott

2020

Escaping Eleven by Jerri Chisholm

Thank you for Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for giving me an ARC to review!

Escaping Eleven brings a whole new world to you. It's the world of violence, order and dreams. It's a world where those dreams usually die. The hierarchy is everything in this world.

Eve lives in compound eleven. Four generations ago the earth became to dangerous to live on. They decided to move underground. Now the life underground is all Eve knows. She loves to read and has read everything about life before the ground got uninhabited. Eve lives in the floor nr. 2. In her floor they fight and she's good with it. She needs to decide a profession soon and she's thinking about going pro.

Her latest fight is different, though. Her opponent isn't some punk from same floor. He's a kid from top floor with eyes that show every emotion he has. These two fight, meet, spend time together. Eve is determined to make chances on her life, she wants so much more than the compound eleven can offer to her. Maybe this kid with amazing eyes can change her life.

This is your typical YA dystopian novel, but this label takes nothing away from this story. If you have read The Hunger Games, Uglies, Under the Never Sky or Matched  you'll love this book, too. I have read YA dystopian as long as I can remember, some of those books are better than others, but this is still one of my favorite genres. 

I loved the chemistry between characters, I loved how the story went forward. I loved how this was written. Amazing debut novel!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Escaping Eleven by Jerri Chisholm

Entangled Publishing

2020

Muses & Melodies by Rebecca Yarros

 Thank you for Rebecca Yarros and Kandi Cane PR for giving me an ARC to review.

Muses & Melodies is a part of Hush Notes -series. The other two books are written by Sarina Bowen and Devney Perry. I have not read the other two books and I believe that Muses & Melodies is the third book of the series. 

In Muses & Melodies we meet Nixon, the bad boy rocker with tattoos all over him. (Swoon! Honestly, that's all I needed to know, I was going to read this book. You just got to love these bad boys.) Nixon is fresh out of a rehab and this time he's determined to stay sober. There are demons in his past that are trying to drag him down. The bands manager orders his employee, Zoe, to stay and babysit Nixon.

Zoe is a professional and she's determined to keep things official with Nixon. It doesn't matter how good-looking or how beautifully he plays guitar, she will be professional. She needs to get through this job.

But what can you expect when you're constantly together? These two live together and they travel together. They learn things about each other that no one else knows about. Slowly the lines between them fade away.

I love the way Rebecca Yarros writes. This is a solid book with lovable characters. I loved how there were some familiar places from other books by her. Fast and easy read, but still some serious content to give some depth to this book. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Muses & Melodie by Rebecca Yarros

2020

When You Come Back To Me by Emma Scott

Thank you for Emma Scott and Valentine PR for giving me an ARC to read and review.

When You Come Back To Me is a second book of the Lost Boys -series. It can be read as a standalone, but you will get so much more out of this book if you've read The Girl in the Love Song (and Someday, Someday). 

I was lucky enough to score an ARC of both of the books in this series. I can't thank enough for Emma Scott and Valentine PR for giving me a chance to read this book beforehand! What an amazing opportunity 💜 

The cover of this book is gorgeous. I am absolutely in love with it. 

We meet both of the main characters in The Girl in the Love Song. And in that book I was very curious about both of them, but especially of Holden. The vibes he gives you are something else, something I can not describe. River was left a bit distant, but that works, because in this book we get to see the reasons behind it. 

Holden is the new guy in the school. He's polished, he's smart and a bit reckless. He drinks and asks someone to stab him. He feels like he's constantly drowning in his memories. He doesn't know whether he wants to drown in them or not. He feels like no one can really love him. Every time someone does or says something good to him, his demons shout for him to not to listen. 

River is the star of the school. He's the good guy, who doesn't brag about being with the girls. He's the quarterback of the team and he has a bright future ahead of him. He's way smarter than he lets people to assume. But his life isn't what he wants it to be. His mom is sick and can die at any giving moment. His dad is trying to live his missed life through River. He's just acting his way through the life.

These boys meet and nothing is like it used to be. They struggle to keep away from each other and they struggle to be together. Nothing is easy. River likes to put everyone around him on first place. He thinks about his mom, he thinks about his dad, he thinks about the NFL and how there's no way for him to love another boy if he wants to play football. Holden doesn't really have anyone. I was totally livid with the way his parents had treated him. I can not believe that this is really something that exist in our time. Holden loves the warmth that River can provide him. River loves how he can be absolutely himself around Holden. One of the things Holden says is "You can be okay and completely fucked up at the same. I'm living proof." It hit home. That's how I feel most of the days. And in some way this sentence is the best way to describe both of these young men.

This is coming of age book, like the last book of the series was. I would consider this more NA than YA, mainly because there are some heavy issues on this book. There's a warning of that in the beginning of the book. The feelings that these two young man go through in this book are very true. They feel sad, happy, overwhelmed, depressed, joyful. You name and they have felt it. They struggle with the expectations of their parents. They are trying to decide whether they try to reach goals they are setting for themselves or just listen their parents.  

I liked how they struggled with their feelings towards each other and how their feelings had an influence on their actions. That it's like when you're not so sure about what to do or say or even feel. When all the expectations are weighing you down. When all that has happened on the past are screaming inside of your head that you don't deserve to be happy.

I haven't read many M/M -books and that's mainly because I haven't found ones that feel right. But Emma Scott knows how to write M/M -romance. I adored Someday, Someday and I can honestly say that both of these books are in top two in this genre. 

The way Emma Scott builds the world around her characters is amazing. She keeps the story going on without any problems. There's no way you want to put the book down unless you need to find a tissue to cry on. This book made me cry on so many occasions. I cried, because I was angry. I cried, because I was heartbroken and I cried, because I was happy. 

If you want to read a great, touching, heart breaking and the most beautiful romance there's right now then this is your book. I really understand why everyone talks about this book. 

I believe that this book was supposed to be under a different name, but the title makes so much sense. Amazing story from an amazing author. I can't wait to read the Ronan's story!

Remember that love is love. And believe me, you deserve to be happy!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

When You Come Back To Me by Emma Scott

2020

Heart Bones by Colleen Hoover

Once again a great book by Colleen Hoover!

Colleen Hoover is an automatic one-click author to me. Actually her books are what started my love to go in blind. I think I have been doing that more or less since 2015 when November 9 came out. It's a best way to start reading. I think that I have something around 20 books by her in my actual book shelf, some of them are even signed 💜 I can safely say that she's the reason why I love romance novels. 

Whether you like Colleen's online persona or the things she shares online, you have to admit that she knows how to write. She has really unique style to write. I like how her writing seems "depressing", I don't know if this is a correct word to describe her writing, but I don't know how else to say it. She is very skilled author and she writes books with heavy subjects, such as depression, domestic abuse, cancer, loss of love, family and so on. Those are hard subjects to write about and maybe that's the thing what makes her style heavy. It's like you can feel the heaviness of the words. Like you're carrying the same weight on your shoulders as protagonist does. 

Heart Bones is contemporary romance. I would say it's a NA book. Beyah's world crumples around her so she decides that change of scenery is great before she starts a college at the end of the summer. She leaves her home and heads to Texas to stay with her father, whom she hasn't seen in years. She's determined to keep her head down and just try to survive until the college starts. 

Things rarely goes as planned. Beyah meets the cute next door neighbor, Samson, and even if they have some really big differences as background and wealthiness they both seem to be sad. That sadness is the thing that draws them towards each other. They make plans to spend time together during summer. They are firm about the fact that they keep their summer fling "in shallow end", but as we know you can drown in shallow water, too.

I loved how the title is explained in book. It all makes sense. I loved how content Beyah and Samson were together. I loved the amount of sunrises and sunset in this book. I loved how it took time from Beyah (and Samson) to learn new things about themselves. 

This might not be my favorite book by Colleen Hoover, but this still was a really amazing book. One of the best books I've read this year. I am going to keep reading CoHo books in future, too. When you pick up a book by Colleen Hoover you know that you get a quality book. You get a book with story that goes forward, you get a book that's written really wonderfully and thoroughly edited. You get to meet exciting  characters and sometimes you even get new songs to listen.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Heart Bones by Colleen Hoover

Independently Published

2020

The Duplicate Bride by Ginny Braid

Thank you for NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for giving me an ARC to review!

The Duplicate Bride is a contemporary romance novel written by Ginny Braid. It's written in third POV, which always takes some time from me to get used to. The view switches between Brent and Hope, the main characters and I enjoyed that fact. 

Hope and Jackie are twin sisters. Jackie is getting married, but she has problems at work so she asks Hope to swap places with her and go play Jackie on her pre-wedding festivities. It was supposed to be only for a day, but one day turns to another and then another one.

As soon as Hope arrives to meet Brent and his family, she realizes that everything isn't okay between Brent and Jackie. Brent also sees there's something not right with his fiancee. She used to love jogging and had a strict diet, now she doesn't want to get up early to run and loves to eat everything she doesn't usually eat. Brent struggles with his personal life and it seems that being with Hope helps him to understand himself more. 

All these small changes he notices on his fiancee makes him want to win her over. He really wants to try to make this relationship work. He wants to love her and wants her to love him. They spend a lot of time together and somewhere along the way Hope realizes that she's developing too warm feelings towards his sister's soon-to-be husband.

I especially liked Brent's family. There were multiple fun characters. I wouldn't mind being a part of family like that. The writing is beautiful! I liked that this was a clean romance. The connection between Brent and Hope felt real.

The things I struggled with this book were Jackie (didn't like her at all) and how long the things went on before the secret of twins swapping places comes out. 

⭐⭐⭐½

The Duplicate Bride by Ginny Braid

Entangled Publishing

2020

The Reality of Everything by Rebecca Yarros

Thank for Entangled Publishing, Candi Kane PR and Rebecca Yarros for giving me an ARC to read and review. 

The Reality of Everything is the fifth (and final) book in Flight & Glory -series. I read the first book Full Measures few years ago. It's Ember and Josh's book. Their story continues on book nr. 4, Hallowed Ground, so naturally I read that book soon after finishing the first book of the series. Then there are books nr. 2, Eyes Turned Skyward and nr. 3, Beyond What's Given. Those two books I read last week. I started reading The Reality of Everything right after finishing book nr. 3. I realized that I had forgotten what happened in Hallowed Ground so I did a quick reread and got back to this fifth book. 

It's not necessarily to read the earlier books, but I would strongly recommend it. We get to meet again the couples from other books, they have a role in this book, too. And I can honestly say that it was a good that I had just read all the twists and turns that happened in before this story takes place. It gives you so much more, when you know the background. Sure, you pick something along the way, but if you have time, please read the other parts first. 

In The Reality of Everything we get to meet Morgan again. She has been a side character in earlier books. She seemed this fun character, who always knew what to say and wasn't afraid saying what she thinks. In the beginning of this book we learn that Morgan isn't what she used to be and it's totally fine, since she has been through a lot. She moved to a new town, bought a house on her own and is trying her absolute best to keep up with life. She tries to keep her anxiety attacks at bay, she tries to repair her broken heart. 

Jackson is the next door neighbor. He is gorgeous, single and a awesome daddy to his 5 years-old daughter. There's something in his past, too. He works as coast guard pilot. And he is afraid to reveal this to Morgan.

These two meet and there's this pull. They gravitate towards each other. Sometimes it just happens, you have no power over your own feelings. Heart wants what it wants. It isn't always easy to fall in love. Your heart might already be in there, but your head tries it best to make you think things through.

There are so many beautiful and meaningful moments in this book. I think that this was the perfect ending for the series. This book wraps everything up so beautifully. And once again Rebecca Yarros writes military romances really well, she knows what's she is writing about. This book is all about family, love and friends. This book tells you to trust your friends even when it's hard. They can't help you if you don't tell them what's wrong. Family, whether it's made from friends or relatives, is everything.

I think that my favorite quote from the book was "I'll rip the world apart to keep her safe". I thought it was very well said. I can certainly say that I feel like that towards certain people in my life. Once again Rebecca Yarros' words made me think about my own life. 

You can count on Rebecca Yarros writing a book that will rip your heart out of your chest. Her books will absolutely destroy your heart. But, you can also count on her fixing your heart. She has this amazing talent to put the pieces of your heart back on, she glues the parts together with her writing. And even after you feel that nothing is going to be okay ever again; she has managed to make everything right again. She makes your pieced-together-heart beat again with the rhythm on love. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Reality of Everything by Rebecca Yarros

Entangled Publishing

2020

Beach Read by Emily Henry

This is one of my new paperbacks, which arrived few weeks ago. 

I can't remember who recommended Beach Read for me, but she said something like, the book is perfect for summer reading, easy and funny. The cover of the book implies that, too. But for me this was so much more.

Beach Read is so much more than a funny love story. Sure, it's a love story and maybe it's a traditional love story in some way, but it's so much more. I can recommend this book to almost anyone I know. 

January has it all until his father passed away. She had her career as an romance author. She had her perfect boyfriend and perfect parents. At her father's funeral the secret comes out and she feels that all she has known has been a lie. How she can write about true love and happily-ever-afters, when she doesn't believe those anymore? She's desperate to write a new book, but it's hard, harder than it has ever been. She comes to stay at her dads beach house, well it kind of is hers now. 

Augustus Everett owns the house next to hers. They are of with a bad start. As the time goes on they learn that they know each other already. They used to be in the same college and had the same writing classes. Augustus is also having a problems to write his next book. 

Augustus and January make a deal. Augustus will write a romance novel and January will write "a next Great American Novel". They'll spend Fridays and Saturdays together taking turns to teach other about perks of their genres. No one is going to fall in love. As in the time goes on and summer is about to end it's not easy to not to fall in love. 

The chemistry between main characters is awesome. I really like how they keep each other on their toes. I like the bickering, I like the sweet moments. I like they are able to see the good in each other. They trust each other, that's what everyone wants for their relationship, right?

This is a book about love, obviously. But this is also a book about friends, family, forgiveness, loyalty, lust, adventures and determination. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Beach Read by Emily Henry

Berkley

2020

You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle

I bought few paperbacks for my summer vacation and this was one of them. Read it really fast.

When I started to put this book as "read" in my Goodreads account I found out that I had already added this in my "want to read" shelf back in August 2019. I had no memory of it. That's how unorganized my tbr pile is. 🤣

Love is a mysterious thing. You never know what's going to happen when you let yourself fall in love. Most of the time you don't have a choice. You just fall in love with someone. My best friend just told me that loss is the price of the love. It sounds kind of sad, but I believe it's true. You can't have everything, you lost something and then you find something. 

Naomi hasn't many months before she's marrying the love of her life, expect that it doesn't feel like it. It doesn't feel that Nicholas is the love of her life. It feels like she's pretending. She's pretending to be perfect. She counts her love towards Nicholas on percentages. She believes that Nicholas is perfectly happy with the way things are in their relationship. It isn't until one day they're having a fight that she learns that Nicholas isn't happy either.

This book made me laugh out loud so many times. But then I got frustrated with characters too. Why they just don't talk with each other? Like I stated my previous post; it's important to learn to speak with your partner. Maybe this book is realistic in a way, because it sure isn't easy to start talking about hard topics. The book is told by Naomi's POV so we don't get to see inside of Nicholas' head. I think it would have made this book different. Now we only see things from Naomi's POV and that's kind of the whole point in this book. This book is all about troubles in relationship. We only know our POV in real life too, unless the other tells their POV to us. Now we get to see all Naomi's insecurities, hardships and all those good things. I could see a lot of myself in Naomi. 

What it's to like fall in love again with the person you're going to marry? How hard will it be? How does it feel to let other one see you as in whole? You're deciding to show all of you, not just good parts. How should you act towards your partner when you're feeling down? How you show them you're happy?

This book was a really good read. I enjoyed the funny moments, I felt anxious and happy. This is great summer read, but it sure got me thinking about my own relationship. I believe in true love. I think that there can be more than one true love. I believe in working to make your relationship better. My favorite line from the book was "Being in love is frantic. Fluttery. Falling. It's nervous sweats and pounding heartbeats and a feeling of tremendous rightness.". Because love is that and so many other things. What a great debut novel from Sarah Hogle!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle

G.P. Putnam's Sons

2020

Repeat by Kylie Scott

Wow. I am speechless.

I found this book, because Natasha from Natasha Is a Book Junkie made a Instagram post about one day flash sale of this book. I one-clicked so fast, because hello, have you seen how gorgeous the cover is?! Swoon.

I didn't read the blurb, but it didn't matter. The book is so vividly written. It made my head spin with the best way possible. Just wow. I think this book messed with my head. I am totally in love with Ed. Tattooed guy, who's protective over his girl. What's there not to love?

It feels like I can't form any comprehensible thoughts, let alone type them in here. I am gonna try, though.

Clementine has no memory, because she was brutally attacked. She's trying to learn about her post, who she was, what she liked and all that. She has a tattoo and she's trying to find out who did it to her. She confronts Ed, the tattoo artist, and finds out that he have done more to her than the tattoo. They used to be in love. Ed isn't happy to see Clementine again. But many things have changed. Slowly they start to build their relationship again. Will they find a way to love each other again or will their relationship stay platonic?

The idea of this book is interesting. How much our wants, needs, likes, believes are absolute truths about us? Can we change, can our believes change? Can our favorite color change? How much all the changes we're going through in life are about us and how much they are because of those around us?

Clementine changed a lot after attack left her with permanent memory loss. How would you feel waking up with no memory? It's horrific. I have waken up without a memory. Luckily for me it wasn't permanent. I eventually remembered everything. This book manages to find some good things in memory loss. Like the fact that you get to see movies and read books again like it's your first time. I would love to read few books again for the first time.

Clementine and Ed talk lot about everything, some topics are harder, some easier. But like in every relationship, talking is essential. None of us can read minds, so speak up when you have something to say. That's the thing I'm trying to learn.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Repeat by Kylie Scott

2019

Hate Thy Neighbor by S.M. Soto

Thank you to S.M. Soto and Social Butterfly PR for giving me an ARC to review.

This was a first book by S.M. Soto that I've read. I am incredibly happy that I got a chance to read this book now. I fell in love with the cover when I saw it in Instagram.

Hate Thy Neighbor is an enemies-to-lovers romance. One of my favorite tropes! There's a bit of romcom in there, too. I wouldn't say it's angsty, bu there's some angst in mix. It was a fast read for me. 

I can't remember when was the last time I was so angry while reading. Both of the main characters made me so angry. I questioned the decisions they made almost as often as I swooned over Roman Banks. 

Olivia moves to a new house. It's a first time that she'll be living alone. It seems like she has all her ducks in a row. She is determined to fix all the small things that are wrong in the house by herself. She wants to be independent and at first I can not understand why she is so adamant of it. But as the story goes on and we learn more about her past it makes sense. Olivia makes a few really bad decisions, at least I think so. But don't we all? 

Roman is Olivia's new neighbor. She wants to be polite and have good relationship with him. He's an ass to her. One prank leads to another and soon they are on war. Roman works hard and is determined to reach his goals and this prank war isn't helping him to reach those goals. We all love these a**hole heroes, right?

Slowly and with many setbacks their relationship starts to evolve. What do you need in every relationship in your life? Loyalty, love, caring, kindness, determination, will to fight for each other. You can find those things in their relationship, too. 

I loved the writing. The book is very beautifully written. There were things in this book that I loved. I loved the passion and loyalty. I loved how protective Roman was over Olivia. I loved that S.M. Soto showed that it doesn't matter where you come from, you can always fight to be better; that your past don't define you. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Hate Thy Neighbor by S.M. Soto

2020

I Don't Want You by V. McFarlane

I received an ARC for an exchange for honest review.

I Don't Want You is a debut novel by V. McFarlane. This second-change, enemies-to-lovers book is going to keep you on it's hold. 

Violet loves to write songs for local bands. She doesn't seek for fame and money, she just wants to write music. She doesn't believe in fate or destiny or love that's written on stars. She believes that you need to work for your happiness. I think she might be right. I definitely believe in fate, but that's not all, you still need to do work if you want to reach your goals. So, you go girl! 

Jared is aspiring musician. He has a good heart and I think that he believes in a love at first sight. At least it seems like it. Jared makes his own music, writes songs about true love, soulmates and all those wonderful things that most of us are hoping to find.

Jared and Violet meet, he actually almost hits her with his car. They're living in this small town, where everyone knows each other. Violet is perfectly happy in her hometown, she doesn't want to live. Jared wants it all, fame and fortune, until Violet comes along. They fell in love fast. I love the way how Jared calls Violet "her flower". Swoon. He is getting offered a contract to record an album. He is ready to throw it all away for her. And what does she say; I don't want you.

It's funny how sometimes four little words can make so big difference. It can make your once warm and open heart to cold and closed. It can make your home feel nothing like home. That's why you should always think what you're saying. There are reasons why Violet said what she did, but boy, neither one of them survived without scars.

After three long years they meet again. Jared is a big rock star. Violet works in her family's restaurant. They meet and sparks fly. Jared states multiple times that "I don't want to want her. But I do. I don't want to hurt her. But I do." They need to find a common ground, but what does it take to be happy again?

If you love rock star romance as much as I do; I'll absolutely recommend this book to you. If you love second-chance romance then I'll recommend this book to you. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

I Don't Want You by V. McFarlane

Independently published

2020

Favorites

We all have those, favorites. We have a favorite brand of shampoo, we have a favorite food, we have a favorite drink, favorite shirt, shoes, movie, tv show. The list just goes on.

I have posted about few of my favorite books. But there's no way that I could name only one book. My favorite books depends on my mood, it depends of what kind of books I've read lately. If I am on a romance kick it's highly possible that my favorite books are from that genre. If I'm reading a dystopian book, I'll remember all the good books on that genre has.

I have read thousands of books since I learned how to read. Growing up in a small town almost in middle of nowhere has it's good sides, but it also had it's bad sides. The libraries where nothing like in the big cities. The book stores (there were those when I was a kid) didn't have all the same books as the stores in big cities had. But I always found something to read. 

These days we have so many possibilities. We have e-books, paperbacks, audiobooks. We have libraries, Kindles, stores, online stores. I have ordered books around the world and there hasn't been a time when I haven't been able to find a book. I think that we're living in a readers world. Books are everywhere! You will definitely find a book you like, even if you say you're not a reader. There is a book out there that you'll like, I promise!

Favorite authors. You have those, right? I have favorite authors. I have had favorite authors, whose books aren't so important to me anymore. I think it's part of growing up and changing as a human. Your opinions change, your life changes and the books you read change, too. For now my favorite authors are Rebecca Yarros and Emma Scott. I haven't read every book that Mrs. Yarros has written nor I have loved every book Mrs. Scott has written. I don't believe that there is an author out there whose every book is perfect. That's impossible. There is no way that an author publishes 20 books and I love every single one of those books. I don't think that's the point, even. The reasons why these two are my favorite authors now has as much to do with their way to interact with their readers as their ability write amazing books. 

I admire other authors, too. Some just because of their ability write awesome books. I don't belong to their reader groups or anything. I just love the books they have written. Some authors I admire, because they are not afraid to open their mouths when they face something unfair. I might have not liked their books, but that's okay. 

Leave a comment and tell me what book is your favorite. You can find a few of my favorites in here. I'll try to do a new favorite post soon, maybe something else than a romance.

p.s. here's my IG if you want to check it out.

Kick Push / Coast by Jay McLean

It's impossible to tell how much I love skate boarding books. Too bad that I don't know how to skate at all. 

I have read few books by Jay McLean before. I think that almost everyone has read More Than This and if they haven't they totally should. Just make sure you've tissues nearby. Someone recommended Kick Push and Coast to me, when I stated how much I loved skate boarding. 

Sometimes you have this tiny problem with sports romance books. The book states that the hero plays some sport, but the book doesn't actually show the hero doing anything related to that said sport. The guy plays ice hockey and goes to practice, but we don't get to see what happens there. Do you know what I mean? 

In this duet we got to see what it was to actually skate whether it was for a fun or something you got paid for. That's a huge plus! Well done Jay McLean!

There is Josh (my favorite male name ever, btw 😍), who became a single father at the age of 17. Quite young, right? He has so many good qualities. He's a loving father, who would do anything for his son. He's loyal, funny, good looking (yep, how would I know? Because his good human and that makes him stunning), hard working. It's hard for him to ask help and he rarely does so. 

Then there is Becca. She has most beautiful eyes that Josh has ever seen. Becca doesn't let people in, she has her reasons. She likes to photograph and sees the world in a different perspective thanks to the lens of her camera. 

Becca and Josh meet when Tommy, Josh's son, is 3 years old. They became friends and there is something more swirling under the surface. Something that they finally start to explore. The summer is a short time to get to know to each other and when the summer turns to fall their paths diverge. 

So much more happens, but I won't even talk about it. You have to read the books to find out. These books are a statement of how you can really connect with other person even if you're a young and others say that it isn't real to feel so much towards someone else. These books are about love, about understanding and giving space. These books are about family; kids, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles. But above else, these books tell you a story of friendship. How the friendships changes during the years. 

There were so many good moments in these books.  I am still amazed how Jay McLean can write books that are so depressing and joyful at the same time. She breaks your heart, but fills the pieces with happiness. She's a very talented author. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Kick Push by Jay McLean

2015

Coast by Jay McLean

2016

The Girl In The Love Song by Emma Scott

Thank you for Emma Scott and Valentine PR for this ARC. 

I started reading this book as soon as it came to my Kindle. Sadly I had to work and had some health issues to deal with so I couldn't read the book right away. I was only able to read for few chapters. But now I'm done. I finished the whole book. 

It was so good. I don't even know if it's possible for Emma Scott to write a bad book. Maybe not. 

The Girl In The Love Song is the first book in Lost Boys -series. I think this was a bit more YA than other books by Emma Scott that I've read. But it still works for me. I would love to read the next books of the series, too. 

The book is divided in four sections and it's written in dual POV, which I absolutely love. I love the male POV and it was really cool that we had a lot of Miller's POV in this book. The book starts when the main characters, Miller and Violet, are 13 years old. 

Violet describes herself as a nerdy girl who has a crush for a quarterback. Violet has set her goal in med-school, she works hard to get in. Miller is something else. He's a loner with only few friends, but he's loyal to those he cares about. 

I don't even know what I can tell you about this book without spoiling. I loved how the characters were unsure about their behavior, but really sure about their feelings. I loved how they made bad decisions and good decisions. They struggled, but still went on with living. Because we all know that it's not easy task to grow up. 

Miller is a musician. I loved how Emma Scott has put on links to actual songs that Miller wrote to Violet. We have a chance to listen those songs while reading the book. LOVE IT! And I absolutely loved the songs, especially Wait For Me. Those lyrics will hound me for weeks. 

Violet wants to take care of people, especially Miller. She wants to be a doctor. She takes a good care of Miller. She wants him to be happy. 

I think that this is one of the best coming of age -books I've read for a while. Growing up is messy. This book shows you how messy it can really be. You struggle with your emotions and your relationship with your parents and friends. One day you're over the moon happy and next day you're feeling really low. That's growing up and it's supposed to be hard. But after all what matters the most is the love and hope. The people around you, they matter, too. You matter and your feelings matter. 

If you want to read the blurb, you can do it in here. But once again I urge you to go in blind.

I had all the feelings while reading. Emma Scott knows how to write an emotional book. She can make you cry and laugh, sometimes at the same time, too. This book shows you the ugly side of the humanity, but it also shows you all the good things that people are capable of doing. It shows you that love can hurt even when it's the right kind of love. Life is messy and wonderful, because "life's a journey, not a destination".

⭐⭐⭐⭐½

The Girl In The Love Song by Emma Scott

2020

Cheesy On The Eyes by Teagan Hunter

At first I want to say thank you to Teagan Hunter and Wildfire Marketing Solutions for giving me an ARC to review. Thank you!

Now I need to admit that I had forgotten how funny Teagan's characters are. I have read Texting-series, but I haven't read any book of this series. I might need to change that. 

You know that I don't like blurbs so I won't put the blurb in here, but you can check it out here if you want to. I once again started reading without knowing anything. 

In this book we have Thea and Sullivan. Don't you love those names? I sure do! Thea is so funny, she isn't afraid of what others might think about her (we all should be like that, right?) and she speaks what ever she wants. She's never left speechless. She knows what she likes and works towards getting it. She is young and working in industry that is considered for men. We get to meet Thea's family, too. 

Sullivan is the quiet one. He doesn't like to share his secrets, not even with his friends. He seems pretty wise and he can really read people. His past is left little mysterious, but we get to know his best friends. And let me tell you, they are a bunch of wild boys, who have hearts of gold.

Thea and Sullivan make a deal. Everything is sunshine and butterflies until one of them breaks the rules. 

This book just screams summer read. You want to read this book on the beach. Or in a pizza place. Whatever works for you. I prefer the beach. This is a happy read. I laughed out loud so many times while reading. 

You can read this as a standalone, because there's a different couple in every book of the series, but it kind of spoils what happens to some people of the previous books. I don't mind, I'll read the previous books of the series.

I don't like pizza, but I really liked this book! 

Because this whole Blogger has changed it's demeanor, I can't find my stars anymore. It sucks. Someone help me find my stars, please!

But this book gets FOUR STARS! 

Usually I post my favorite sentence from the book, but now I can't, because it would spoil the whole book. You just need to read the book!

FOUR STARS

Cheesy On The Eyes by Teagan Hunter

2020

edit. Ha, I found my stars. So, here I'll do it correctly.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cheesy On The Eyes by Teagan Hunter

2020

A Five-Minute Life by Emma Scott

I kind of lied in my last post. 

Remember when I said that I'll start reading with A Five-Minute Life? I had already started. Sorry! But on my defense, I started the book this morning and had only read something like 70 pages. I just finished the book.

I love Emma Scott! Her books always makes me cry. Her books melt my heart. She has this amazing talent to make readers feel the same things her characters feel. I know that I've said this before, but it's still true. I was going to say that I've read every book that she has ever written, but then I checked Goodreads and noticed that there's a few I still need to read. I have no idea how I have missed these books. I feel ashamed. 

I bought this book last year after the author stated that she'll release a book with a new cover. I knew this book, but haven't thought about getting a paperback, because shipping from US to here costs a lot. But I fell in love with the cover and had to have the original version. I did not read the blurb then and I did not read the blurb this morning, because I have a distinct memory of someone saying that it's best to go in blind. And as many of you know, I'll try to do that as often as I can. 

So, this book sat in my shelf for almost a year. From time to time I had a thought about reading it. Now after reading it, I really don't know why I waited for so long to read this amazing story. I feel like I need to say I'm sorry for not reading this sooner. 

Like I said, I love Emma Scott. She writes amazing books and gives these stories to us to read. She is really active with her readers. I really hope that someday I'll get a chance to meet her and get my copy of the book signed. 

I actually read the blurb just now. It's as amazing as the whole book. 

Thea lives her life in five minutes at time. She's trapped in her own mind without a way to escape. Jim is living his life in autopilot. He has learned to keep his head down and keep going, not to get too attached people around him. Thea and Jim meet. They get to know each other as much as it's possible inside the walls of Blue Ridge Sanitarium. 

Life isn't easy or fair. I think we all know it, some better than others, but still we all know it. Jim knows it better than anyone else. He's still this man who does everything in his power for others. He didn't let his messy childhood to dictate whether he has a good life or not. Jim is a caring man. 

Thea is trapped inside of her own mind. At the first part of the book we don't get to see much inside of her head. But what we see is amazing. She's a funny girl with amazing talent. In the second and the third part of the book we get to see more of her thoughts. She seems to be very independent and has a strong will. 

Even when everything is good, nothing is promised to us. Everything good can be taken from us in a matter of seconds. This book shows you this, but it also shows you so much more. This books shows you how it's to care about someone, who isn't always in here, content with this life as we know it. This book shows you how important it's to keep your promises or what's more important being right or being fair.  

I honestly don't know what I can write about. I am afraid that I'll spoil this book. I cried at the end of the book. All those feelings the characters felt... I cried so much that my kid threatened to hide my book. This book shows you that when you find love you hold on. 

My favorite quote from the whole book was "The past was done, and the future wasn't created yet. All we had is now." Because it's so true. Truest words I've read for a while, because in the end we don't have anything else than this moment here. Nothing more is promised to us. Please, stay safe.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

A Five-Minute Life by Emma Scott

Independently Published

2019

My book shelf

I have always had a book shelf. Sometimes bigger one, sometimes smaller one.

Every time I move I give away a lot of books. Last time we moved (a year ago) my goal was to fit all my books in one book shelf. And I did it! I was super proud. I suck at selling my books. I like to give them to others and always ask people to give book to someone else. 

I still have books to read. I can't say that I've enough books, because one can never have enough books, right? 😎  You just don't have enough space for your books.

There are very different kind of books on my shelf. There are books from teen years, there are books from the time I only read crime books and there are tons of YA and NA -books. There are dystopian books and romance reads. 

I just counted all the books from my shelf that I've not read yet. I have bought a lot of books, because I've wanted to read them. From some reason I haven't read those books. Every book is something I want to read. 

There are 85 books I haven't read on my shelf. Yep, that's right. 85 books to be read. Maybe I'll need to start reading those books sooner rather than later. 

This self quarantine might just be the thing I need to read all those books. But I am not in quarantine, I am still working. But I have much more free time now, because kids doesn't have practices or games at this time.

But I have to admit that I have much more than 85 books in my Kindle to be read. I am a bit ashamed for that. All that one-clicking I've recently done haven't been helping. 

Now I promise to myself (and you) that I'll start reading books from my shelf. I'll start with A Five Minute Life by Emma Scott. I'll post a review when I've finished the book. 

Too much books

Too many books and too little time to read.

As many of you know this current situation where we're living in is something really strange. Many of us is staying home all time. You would think that being at home all the time you have time to read. But that's not true, at least it isn't true to me.

I still work, because my work is something that needs to be done. After work I try to home school my older kids. So, no time for books.

I have tons of books in my Kindle. I have "bought" tons of free books on Amazon. I am not lying, I got 30 new books in a day. 😁 Too bad that I don't have time to read them. I don't have time to update my blog either, sorry!

But let's admit that this whole  Covid-19 affects my reading mojo. I can't concentrate. I start a book and stop reading after few chapters. Honestly, it sucks. I want to be able to read. I want to travel to different worlds and stay away from this real one from time to time.

Stay home and be safe ♡

Favorites: The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros, Wilder by Rebecca Yarros

I haven't done a favorite post for a while, but now it's time for that and we get to look at two of my all time favorites. 

I had a privilege to meet amazing Rebecca Yarros in London last September. She was one of the authors I really wanted to see at Rare19 London. I had a hard time with my thoughts. My mind was foggy and struggled with words (because English isn't my first language). She was so patient with me. I am eternally grateful for her ❣ I got both of my books signed. And those are the books we're talking about today. This is going to be a long post, so bear with me.

I absolutely love the way she interacts with her readers. I love how content she is with herself. She is so real. I like how she talks about her family, it really shows that she loves her family really much. I hope that one day I could be as good mom as she is. She knows what she's writing. Her style to write is awesome. I can't wait to read Great and Precious Things. It's her latest release, but I haven't read it yet, because I couldn't afford it. But some day 😊

The Last Letter was one of my top reads last year. I didn't read the blurb, so I started crying at the very beginning of the book. If I had read the blurb I wouldn't have cried so much while reading. Right after reading I posted my review on Goodreads with words "I've no idea how to rate this book." And it still fits.  I am tempted to give only one star, because this book broke my heart in a million pieces. But I think that it's also a sign of a great book. If you don't feel anything while reading, is the book worthy enough of your time? So five stars it is. 

I am not kidding when I say I cried all the time while reading. I can not tell anything about the book. I am afraid that I'll spoil it. The book is about Ella and Beckett. At first they write letters to each other then the situations change and they spent time together. This book is a roller coaster of emotions. This book is about love, friendship, family. This book gives you an explanation to words like courage, honor, duty. If you didn't understand the meanings behind these words before, you sure do after reading this book. This book is about to keep going even when times are though. The most important message this book gives you is that you're enough. You can crumble. You're allowed to break down. Just get up and keep going. You're worthy. Never doubt that. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros

Entangled: Amara

2019

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first book I ever read by Rebecca Yarros was Wilder. I love a good college romance and this is one the best ones I've read, even if it's not a traditional one. I don't know if there really is this kind of Study at the Sea -program. But if I were young and in college, I would definitely apply on that program.

The thing is that Leah is a tutor to this student called Wilder. They are in this Study at the Sea - program together. For months to sail international waters, study and see places you wouldn't normally see. Leah has some emotional package with her, she's so damn brave. I don't think that she sees it, but she really is. Wilder on the other hand. He's a star. He's this total adrenaline junkie. He has X Games medals, he has a wild streak. He does all these crazy stunts with his crew. His crew, Renegades, are making a movie at the same time as they're trying to study. There are all this cool stunts and I could see all those stunts. They were written so well that it was easy to image how they ride bikes, go parasailing, jump of cliffs and so on. All those stunts made me want to try something so cool. 

There are a lot of going under the surface. Wilder isn't always as happy as he seems. He has his own demons to battle with. He has been living this life for so long that it tooks Leah to show him that some moments can stay between few people are not meant for the whole word to see. It isn't always easy, sometimes life is hard.

I really love this book. This book is about people you have in your life, whether they are your friends or family. There are times when your closest friends are your family. I love this books honesty. These characters are honest, loyal and passionate about what they are doing. This book is the reason why I finally had the courage to sky dive. (It was freaking awesome, btw. Will do it again!) Wilder states that "Life starts at the edge of fear" and I think it's true. If you do something that scares the sh** out of you; you're twice more proud of yourself after doing the thing that scared you. So do the things that scare you, because it's rewarding. Be brave.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Wilder by Rebecca Yarros

Entangled: Embrace

2016