Book Review: THE BREAKUP PLAN by Tia Kelly

THE BREAKUP PLAN

 by

TIA KELLY

Standalone: Yes Publication Date: September 12, 2018 Genre: Contemporary Romance, Sports Romance, Women’s Fiction

*****

A man without a plan is a shell without purpose.

Which is why I sat down almost nine years ago and put pen to paper mapping out my ten-year plan. I meant business. Everything that could set me up for a lifetime of joy had to go down on the list, and every day I worked my ass off to fulfill it.

Open my own sports agency. Check.

Earn first million by my thirtieth birthday. I did that a week before I turned 26.

Negotiate the most lucrative contract in Major League’s history. Did that, too. Then went and broke my own record. (Thanks big bro!)

I could go on, but this isn’t about bragging. It’s me admitting in the midst of drafting something that helps shape and mold much of my success, I made a costly mistake.

One day I realized all those entries with corresponding checkmarks are pointless if I never factored into the equation the most important goal of all. Avery.

Perhaps way back then I wasn’t ready to see how much my best friend of fifteen years deserved that number one spot in my life. Maybe I was blind since the whole settle down and get married scenario wasn’t my thing since, well, forever. But now that I’m aware of the role I need her to fill in my life, there’s no such thing as letting go until I can convince her to be mine.

Considering she’s about to marry someone else does make winning her heart a little bit dicey. But if there’s anything you should ever know about me is that I always play to win. And losing Avery is non-negotiable.

The Breakup Plan.

A best friends to enemies romance.

He ruined her wedding day and he'll do it again until she's his..

PURCHASE LINKS

tiawithapen.com/books

*****

MY THOUGHTS

I don’t judge a book by its length but I do expect a complete a story. THE BREAKUP PLAN by Tia Kelly is a short book. It has a good framework but I felt the story was incomplete. Questions were left unanswered and significant life events were not treated with the gravity I would have expected. As a result the story felt disjointed and I was unconvinced about Andrew and Avery as a couple

The author’s writing style flows well and the book was easy to read. There just needed to be more of it. A lot more.

Tia Kelly is the author of contemporary and women's fiction. She is known for her candid way of capturing life, love and relationships… one story at a time.

AUTHOR LINKS

Author Website: www.tiawithapen.com Newsletter: http://bit.ly/TKNewsletter Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorTiaKelly Twitter: https://twitter.com/tiawithapen Instagram: https://instagram.com/tiawithapen Goodreads Author Profile: http://goodreads.com/tiakelly Add Book on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41508689-the-breakup-plan Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Tia-Kelly/e/B00B7AKXGI/



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New Release Book Review: NOT QUITE PERFECT by Rebecca Norinne

NOT QUITE PERFECT

by

Rebecca Norinne

is live

About the Book

I can’t believe I met the perfect man ...

On the ferry to my mother’s wedding, I met the most amazing man—his love of Faulkner notwithstanding. Professor David Carstairs was funny, intelligent, and had the sexiest hands I’d ever seen.

A conversation about classic American literature led to a romantic dinner at his house ... and then a whole lot of dessert afterward. I’d never done anything like that before, but what we had was something special.

Unfortunately, everything came crashing down the next day. Because my supposedly perfect professor? His dad just married my mom, and now he’s my stepbrother!

Thanksgiving dinner just got a whole lot more complicated.

I’ve finally found the perfect woman ...

En route to watch my father marry yet another young gold digger, I met the perfect woman—her hatred of Faulkner notwithstanding. Victoria Witherspoon was kind, witty, and had the most kissable lips I’d ever seen.

We spent the day together, and then stayed up all night exploring each other’s bodies. I don’t do relationships, but for someone as perfect as Victoria, I was ready to make an exception.

If only her mom hadn’t just married my dad, putting the object of all my fantasies firmly in the “off limits” category.

And I thought the holidays were awkward before.

*****

Pick up your copy for $2.99 for a limited time.

Amazon ☛ https://amzn.to/2B53ME9

iBooks ☛ http://bit.ly/NQP_Apple

Nook ☛ http://bit.ly/NQP_Nook

Kobo ☛ http://bit.ly/NQP_Kobo

My Review

Sweet-Mother-Of-All-That-Is-Holy, I need a Professor like David Carstairs in my life … pronto! He is confident. He is erudite. He is gainfully employed. He looks after himself. He is s-e-x-y. He has manners. He is not afraid to voice his feelings. And when he lays eyes on Victoria Witherspoon and their attraction ignites, he becomes a man on a mission to win the woman he loves. He is the thinking woman’s crumpet and I want a bite out of him.

Yet there’s that pesky issue of David and Victoria falling for each other before they discover that her mum and his dad are getting married … making them step-siblings. And it all becomes a bit awkward and problematic when there’s opposition to the union.

I did initially wonder about the angst/taboo level but the book does not go down a dark path. No one is disputing that David and Victoria are not siblings and there is no legality to stop them being together, but I understand the awkwardness such a situation could bring and I think the author’s done a great job of presenting this storyline in an entertaining and humorous way.

I thoroughly enjoyed Victoria and David’s story. It’s a delightful story of two adults acting like adults and working together to overcome the familial opposition they face, and, of greater consequence, their own relationship fears. Their conversations are meaningful, the sexy times provide plenty of zingy feels and their love for each other just oozes off the pages.

Bring on the next Rocky Cove book!

*****

About the Author

USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Norinne writes sexy romance from the heart. Her heroines are bold and headstrong, and her heroes will do anything for the ones they love.

When not banging away at the keyboard, she is watching rugby, enjoying a pint of craft beer, or trolling Pinterest for pictures of pretty houses.

Originally from California, Rebecca currently resides in a small coastal town in Northern Massachusetts where she and her husband are renovating an antique colonial built in the 1700s and trying valiantly not to be eaten alive by mosquitoes.

Find out more at http://www.rebeccanorinne.com.

New Release Book Review (+ Author Giveaway): RUNAWAY GIRL by Tessa Bailey

Title: Runaway Girl

Author: Tessa Bailey

Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance

Release Date: September 24, 2018

Blurb

It’s Naomi Clemons’s big day. Her dream wedding. And she’s outta here.

One moment. A chance meeting of gazes through the church window pane with someone familiar who radiates intrigue. Independence. It’s the final push Naomi needs to realize...she’s boring. A blonde, cookie cutter, well mannered trophy wife-to-be. How can she expect to lead a fulfilling married life when she’s never lived?

Special Forces diver Jason Bristow needs a beauty pageant coach. Not for himself—although the tattooed bruiser could definitely use some charm. For his little sister who he has returned to St. Augustine, Florida to raise. When a beautiful southern debutante lands on his doorstep, she awakens a hunger that won’t be ignored. If only she wasn’t planning on winning back the ex-fiancé she left at the altar…

Despite the potential for ruin, heat continues to build between Naomi and Jason beneath the sultry Florida sunshine, consuming them both. But they’re on borrowed time…and it’s about to run out. 

ADD TO GOODREADS

My Thoughts

RUNAWAY GIRL by Tessa Bailey was so, so good! We met Naomi in Getaway Girl when she was running from the altar but apart from that drastic action, we were clueless as to why. Well, it’s Naomi’s turn and we get a fabulous story about a woman unshackling herself from expectations and taking time to discover who she really is.

I loved Naomi. Her self-awareness is acute and her introspection is painful to read. She knows she’s been raised to be a society wife but beyond this no one seems to care anything about her; she has a duty to perform, and she better well do what’s expected. So often I wanted to reach into the pages and just give her a hug. She definitely needed them.

Jason Bristow has his own demons to tame. He is a military man, eager to get back to his job. However, a family tragedy sees him looking after his younger sister, Birdie, until she finishes high school. He is doing his best but even he realises having the best of intentions doesn’t translate to successful actions.

Jason and Naomi cross paths when she answers his advertisement for a beauty pageant coach for Birdie.  In addition to coaching, Naomi finds herself living on the same property as Jason and Birdie, so they get to see each other often.  And heavens, does it get hot when these two get together; the attraction is beyond palpable! Jason and Naomi are such opposites in so many ways but they just fit. I love these two together and was more than happy to keep cheering them on until they get their happy ending.

I highly recommend this book.  

*****

Purchase Links

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU
B&N / KOBO / iBOOKS

Author Bio

Tessa Bailey is originally from Carlsbad, California. The day after high school graduation, she packed her yearbook, ripped jeans and laptop, driving cross-country to New York City in under four days.

Her most valuable life experiences were learned thereafter while waitressing at K-Dees, a Manhattan pub owned by her uncle. Inside those four walls, she met her husband, best friend and discovered the magic of classic rock, managing to put herself through Kingsborough Community College and the English program at Pace University at the same time. Several stunted attempts to enter the work force as a journalist followed, but romance writing continued to demand her attention.

She now lives in Long Island, New York with her husband of ten years and six-year-old daughter. Although she is severely sleep-deprived, she is incredibly happy to be living her dream of writing about people falling in love.

Author Links

WEBSITE
INSTAGRAM
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
GOODREADS

Giveaway

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New Release Book Review: MAKE ME FALL by Sara Rider

About the Book

Enemies make the worst neighbors, but the best lovers

After losing her job, her home, and her friends in her divorce, Nora Pitts is determined not to make the same mistakes when she starts over in the small town of Shadow Creek, Washington. No more slaving away in the lab at the expense of her social life, and definitely no more men. Ever. But making friends in her thirties is so much harder than she anticipated. And when it comes to her gorgeous yet obnoxious neighbor, it’s a whole lot easier to make enemies.

Eli Hardin doesn’t have a lot of sympathy for his uptight neighbor, until he overhears her so-called new friends making fun of her un-datable status. Suddenly he finds himself volunteering for a date with a woman who’s been leaving angry hate-notes in his mailbox, and in way over his head. Because all it takes is one disastrous date with Nora for Eli to fall hard.

But falling for Eli isn’t something Nora’s ready for—not when he’s her complete opposite, and especially not when he turns out to be the best friend she’s made in Shadow Creek. But as her attraction and her feelings for Eli grow hotter, resisting him might just lead to heartbreak anyway. 

My Thoughts

In MAKE ME FALL by Sara Rider, organised, professional academic, Nora Pitts often clashes with her laidback and carefree neighbour Eli Hardin. Yet he is the one that comes to her rescue and volunteers to take her on a date when her so-called friends laugh at her, claiming that he would never go out with her willingly. Ouch!

And so begins the relationship between the very tightly wound Nora and her happy-go-lucky neighbour. Except first impressions aren’t everything, and the more time they spend together, the more these two find they have in common.

I loved Eli and Nora. They really do complement one another and I enjoyed getting to know them. They are both dealing with personal and professional challenges, and this brings seriousness to their story. However, this is balanced with the many light-hearted and humorous moments that are peppered throughout the book.

MAKE ME FALL is charming and engaging story. For me, it holds the honour of the most unique relationship question I’ve ever read in a romance book: “Do you believe it’s important to wash your feet in the shower?” :-D

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon https://amzn.to/2QsdqnW 

iBooks https://apple.co/2NdDfdx 

Kobo https://bit.ly/2NDPLCq 

B&N https://bit.ly/2CZYuum 

About the Author

Sara Rider writes contemporary romances full of heart and heat about strong women and the men who can’t resist them.

Growing up, Sara Rider dreamed of becoming a professional soccer player. When that dream was squashed by her extreme dislike of running, she decided to do the next best thing: write about professional soccer players. By day, Sara spends her time working in the field of research ethics and daydreams about plotlines and character arcs. She spends far too much time at public libraries and never leaves the house without a paperback or an e-reader stuffed into her purse. 

https://sararider.com/

New Release Book Review: A NORDIC KING by Karina Halle

A Nordic King 

by 

Karina Halle 

Publication Date: September 21, 2018 

Genre: Contemporary Romance

SYNOPSIS

 When I first applied for the job I thought it would be like all the others: working as a nanny for an aristocratic family.

Then I got the job and found out how wrong I was.

Now I’m the new nanny for two adorable little girls who happen to be princesses.

Their father is the widowed King of Denmark.

And my new home? The royal palace in Copenhagen.

Adjusting to my new life isn't easy but the hardest part hasn’t been the girls who still grieve over the loss of their mother.

It’s their father.

Cold, mysterious and moody, with an icy stare that seems to penetrate your soul, King Aksel may have hired me to take care of his daughters but he wants as little to do with me as possible.

Yet the longer I share these palace walls with this man, the more that I’m drawn to him. His chiseled face and sexual swagger are only part of the package. It’s in the long, intense glances at the dinner table, the way we’ll brush up against each other in the halls, the rare glimpses of the man deep inside, like the sun passing through clouds.

But no matter how I feel about him, we can never be together.

You think it's bad enough being in love with your boss?

Try falling in love with a king.

MY THOUGHTS

NORDIC KING by Karina Halle is the story of King Aksel of Denmark and Aurora, the nanny to his motherless children. There were parts of this book that I liked a lot, and other parts left me frustrated.

I struggled to get to the midway point of this book. The interactions between Aksel and Aurora are rare. When they do occur, they are brief and we are generally told of then after the fact. I do understand that both Aksel and Aurora would be placing much on the line to voice their feelings but when they do, we’re close to the 60% mark which I felt came too late.

The latter half was a much better read for me as we finally get to spend time with the main characters together as a couple. They definitely lower the barriers with each other and I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them. I just wish we got there sooner because setting aside the many logical reasons these two might not look like a good match on paper, together, their attraction and suitability becomes obvious. 

I can’t comment on Aksel’s Danish-ness but Aurora’s Aussie-ness is portrayed quite well. We do eat lollies, say ‘bloody’ a lot and most of us would ignore the prime minister, whoever held the title.  

*****

Download A Nordic King today! 

FREE in Kindle Unlimited 

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2pqkG7t 

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2NrGJsN 

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/2DimlWv 

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2HaEWBb

Meet Karina

 Karina Halle is a former travel writer and music journalist and The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author of The Pact, Love, in English, The Artists Trilogy, Dirty Angels and over 20 other wild and romantic reads. She lives on an island off the coast of British Columbia with her husband and her rescue pup, where she drinks a lot of wine, hikes a lot of trails and devours a lot of books.

Halle is represented by the Root Literary and is both self-published and published by Simon & Schuster and Hachette in North America and in the UK.

Connect with Karina

 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorkarinahalle/ 

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2vo9pq4 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorhalle/ 

Join her Reader Group: https://goo.gl/wpCBSS 

Stay up to date with Karina by signing up for her newsletter here: https://goo.gl/Ve4eCh http://authorkarinahalle.com

Book Review (+ Author Giveaway & Excerpt): CABIN 12 by Freya Barker

CABIN 12

by 

Freya Barker

Series: Rock Point Series #2

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: September 13, 2018

Even at thirty seven, with a challenging but rewarding career as a paramedic, Bella Gomez is treated as the baby of the family. It’s made her allergic to anyone meddling, so she chooses to keep mostly to herself. Unfortunately that doesn’t stop her family from inserting themselves in her life. Nor does it deter the one man she knows she shouldn’t get close to from showing up on her doorstep.

Jasper Greene, an FBI agent with the La Plata County field office, doesn’t even know the meaning of family. His team is his family, which is why—when his boss asks him to keep an eye on his baby sister—Jasper readily complies. Even when the sister in question is a spectacularly developed princess with plenty of attitude.

With a shooter on the loose and corruption running rampant, Bella is a magnet for trouble, and Jasper finds himself with his hands full—in more ways than one.

CABIN 12 is another great addition to the Freya Barker catalogue. Without even looking at the book blurb, I know I am going to get a story about mature characters who come with a few dents. They live typical lives like us but often do remarkable things that make me cheer for them.

This book is no exception. In Jasper and Bella, we have two characters who may be outwardly composed but underneath lies a sense of unworthiness. Jasper Greene, a product of the foster care system, leads quite a solitary life. He’s never had a family and does not think he is capable of contributing enough as a partner to have ever tried. On the other hand, Bella Gomez is the youngest in a family whose method of helping involves large doses of interference and precious little listening.

Jasper and Bella know of each other but it’s the suspense element of the story that has them spending time together and learning from each other that not only are they both deserving but they have a lot to offer as individuals and as partners. And let’s not forget the spicy times. These two give us some hot stuff.

I enjoy Freya’s observations about not only romance but of family life. There is plenty of familial interference in this book and it is just so real; there are times of joy interspersed with times you want to tear your hair out.

CABIN 12 is perceptive, thoughtful, sexy and intriguing. It’s well worth reading.

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The ceremony was lovely, and I swear I saw my brother surreptitiously brush away a tear. Something I will file away for future use, should I need some extra leverage. 

Of course I was back on Jasper’s arm, following the newly married couple back to the house, and just like the walk up the aisle, he was silent. A tad unsettling, since what little I know of him, he never seems at a loss for words. The silence felt ominous. 

I’m reminded of that when I spot him coming out of the house, holding a beer bottle by the neck between two fingers, casually making his way over. I look for an escape but am weighed down by Kim’s little boy, who I offered to watch while his parents dance under the strings of lights covering the roof of the rented canopy tent. Exhausted from the long day, Asher fell asleep on my lap in seconds, his warm cheek pressed against my cleavage. There’s no way I can slink away with a sleeping toddler plastered to my boobs.

“Your scar is showing,” he says, pulling out a chair and sitting down, his back to the dance floor.

“Shit.” I try to reach around Asher to tug my dress into place, but part of my skirt is wedged underneath his little butt. 

“Lift him up.” 

Fearing my family will make a scene if they see my injury, I do as he orders, but throw in a scathing look for good measure. A blush quickly replaces it, when I feel the surprisingly rough pads of his fingers brush the skin where my thick thighs are pressed together. My body responds immediately, and I’m suddenly grateful for the little boy on my lap, effectively hiding the evidence. 

Damn that man. I mentally scold myself for responding to him the way I do. It’s like it’s genetically ingrained for me to be attracted to this type of guy. Handsome, charming, charismatic, and easily distracted by the next piece of fluff darting in front of his eyes. It’s not healthy.

“Last thing I expected was to find you sitting here looking like some kind of modern-day Madonna with a child on your lap. I’d figured you’d be partying it up on the dance floor by now.” His raspy voice draws me from my musings, and I’m not quite sure whether to be insulted or flattered right now. 

“And I’m surprised you sat down to join me, I keep looking around to see where you might have left your flavor of the day.” 

Clearly I went with insulted, echoing back what I choose to take as a negative characterization. His eyes go big in his head as he looks around him, appearing confused.

“Flavor of the day?”

“Your date? The tall blonde I saw you schmoozing with at dinner?” 

Last thing I expected was the deep belly laugh escaping from his wide smile.

Freya Barker loves writing about ordinary people with extraordinary stories. Driven to make her books about 'real' people; with characters who are perhaps less than perfect, but just as deserving of romance, thrills and chills, and some hot, sizzling sex in their lives. A recipient of the RomCon “Reader’s Choice” 

Award for best first book, “Slim To None”, and Finalist for the Kindle Book Award with “From Dust”, Freya has not slowed down. 

She continues to add to her rapidly growing collection of published novels as she spins story after story with an endless supply of bruised and dented characters, vying for attention!

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