Just Last Night by Mhairi McFarlane

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Eve, Justin, Susie, and Ed have been friends since they were teenagers. Now in their thirties, the four are as close as ever, Thursday night bar trivia is sacred, and Eve is still secretly in love with Ed. Maybe she should have moved on by now, but she can’t stop thinking about what could have been. And she knows Ed still thinks about it, too.

But then, in an instant, their lives are changed forever.

In the aftermath, Eve’s world is upended. As stunning secrets are revealed, she begins to wonder if she really knew her friends as well as she thought. And when someone from the past comes back into her life, Eve’s future veers in a surprising new direction...

They say every love story starts with a single moment. What if it was just last night?

Source: NetGalley; ARC generously provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

Having read a couple of Mhairi McFarlane books already and liking them I expected to have the same reaction to Just Last Night. I did not expect how much I would be bowled over by it, though! I was engaged from the first page, the first sentence, even and after that I was reluctant to put it down, especially when I got into a perfect reading groove. 

Eve has a close-knit friend group. Eve, Susie, Ed and Justin are a foursome that go way back to their school days. Overnight, the foursome is dealt a horrific loss and everything turns upside down from there. In the aftermath, Eve accidentally comes across a secret that shatters her and her trust in her friends. Add to that, the Susie's long-absent brother reappears at this time of tragedy. His disconcerting presence brings new problems and only makes her wonder who exactly is trustworthy anymore. In all this anguish that's consuming her, Eve questions everything that she had taken at face value up until recently, including her friendship with her best friend, Susie, and the betrayal that's blindsided her.

I liked how the direction of the story kept changing ever so slightly so I din't know where exactly it was headed. Not only did it bring surprises but it added dimension to the characters. I'm thinking specifically of Eve, Finlay and Susie as Eve's relationship with each of them got curiously complicated. It became so intriguing how much more there was to their history, and Eve's own dawning realization that everything she knows is really one-sided. I was tempted to bring out the popcorn and anticipate the fireworks. It wasn't pretty when all the secrets were eventually forced out to the open but there's Eve, facing them head on. I also liked Finlay's humored responses to whatever Eve threw out. Even if they butted heads at first, there's something inherent that they perceive about each other. What's most striking for me is how impeccably McFarlane describes loss, misery and the loneliness of being on the outside during an emotionally turbulent time in Eve's life. I just felt that she got those feelings so right and they provoked immediate and strong reactions of me.  I especially got that way during conversations between Eve and Finlay. I loved their repartee which was both amusing and insightful. Eve's banter with her friends were also fun and I am always about the banter. Another thing that impressed me was Eve's growing self-awareness. The advantage of Finlay being an outsider means that he sees things from a different angle and guides Eve to recognize her patterns and choices. It's touching how in the short amount of time they're forced to spend together, Finlay and Eve are able to draw each other out of these confined spaces they'd built for themselves, or even allowed for others to define them by those spaces. 

Just Last Night showcases McFarlane 's brilliance at writing about deeply emotional life events, bringing  perceptivity and levity while also respecting the characters' sorrow.  All the messy complicated feelings felt authentic and I was glued to every page of it. (I should add here that there are some disturbing elements/trauma to the story for which I've listed content/trigger warnings below.) I also greatly appreciated the various pop culture references and songs she threw in which aside from being entertaining for me, helped to enhance the nostalgic aspect of the story. As for the ending, I loved it! I thought it did justice to all the characters and I was honestly sad when it was over. I don't get to reread books often but Just Last Night will be on that short list. In only three books, McFarlane has become a go-to, comfort read author for me and I will gladly make my way through her catalog.

~ Bel

Content/Trigger Warning:

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sudden death of best friend, infidelity, panic attack (Finlay, on page), dementia (on page, Finlay and Susie's father), physical abuse (memory; Finlay's recalls their dad did to him), gaslighting (their father convinced family that Finlay was the problem)

The Fixer by Helenkay Dimon Release Day Launch

 

It's release day for The Fixer by HelenKay Dimon! This sexy romance is out now! Check out the book below and grab your copy today!

About The Fixer: He’s known only as Wren. A wealthy, dangerously secretive man, he specializes in making problems disappear. A professional fixer, Wren hides a dark past, but his privacy is shattered when Emery Finn seeks him out—and what she wants from him is very personal.   Some people disappear against their will. Emery’s job is to find them and bring closure. Wren is the only person who can help solve Emery’s own personal mystery: the long-ago disappearance of her cousin. Just tracking down the sexy, brooding Wren is difficult enough. Resisting her body’s response to him will prove completely impossible.   Anonymity is essential to Wren’s success, yet drawn by Emery’s loyalty and sensuality, he’s pulled out of the shadows. But her digging is getting noticed by the wrong people. And as the clues start to point to someone terrifyingly close, Wren will have to put his haunted past aside to protect the woman he loves.

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Exclusive Excerpt: 

She handed him a water bottle and sat down on the opposite end on the love seat, as far from him as possible, which amounted to a half cushion away. “I wasn’t sure you’d come over when I called.”

The bottle made a crinkling noise when he grabbed on to it. “Why not?”

He didn’t mention that she’d used his emergency private number for a nonemergency, so neither did she. “You kind of ran out of here last night.”

Then she’d thought about him all night while Tyler sat there talking about his new job and the new city he loved. Emery had been happy for him, even as a part of her grumbled that it had been so easy for him to move on and never mention Tiffany.

For most of the night she’d been guilty of the same sin. As he talked, her mind switched to Wren. The sound of his voice. The way his muscles felt through his shirt. She certainly wouldn’t have won any Good Friend prize for her mental wanderings.

“You had company. Something and someone else to occupy your time.” Wren didn’t look at her as he set the unopened bottle on the coffee table.

She took in the stiffness of his shoulders and the fact he hadn’t even bothered to take off his suit jacket. He walked in and went to the couch because she told him to have a seat. Very little else had transpired except for her why-am-I-doing-this panicked race to the kitchen for water. “Don’t do that.”

He leaned back on the cushions and faced her. “What?”

Gone was the easy flow of conversation from last night and the touching. Yeah, he didn’t look even a little interested in touching, which was a damn shame. “You sound all haughty and businesslike.”

“You may have just summed up the majority of my personality.” He smiled but the gesture didn’t quite reach his eyes. It looked forced and disappeared right after it happened.

She tugged on the wrapper around her water bottle. Picked at the end until she could rip off a nice long piece. “I don’t buy that. Not anymore.”

His gaze bounced from her hands to her face. “What changed?”

“I don’t even know. Maybe it’s a sense or a hope.” Of course, neither of those explained why the air in the room was all but suffocating her.

“Ah.”

Talk about an unhelpful response. She put the bottle on the table next to his and sat back again, just inches away from him. “Does that mean you get what I’m saying?”

“Not even a little bit.”

She would have laughed at that if the tension strangling her in a bear hug would ease. “Any chance I could get you to take off your jacket? Maybe loosen that tie.”

“You still seem overly concerned with my wardrobe.” But he relaxed a little. Sank back into the cushions and rested his arm across the top.

“It’s like armor.”

His fingers tapped against the love seat. “It’s wool, I believe.”

“Now you’re being a gigantic pain in the ass, just because you can.” The guy could not take a hint. She was dying to get him out of the suit. She could pretend this had to do with wanting to know he was human and to loosen him up. Yeah, there was some of that, but this was really about wanting more from him.

 

HelenKay Dimon spent the years before becoming a romance author as a...divorce attorney. Not the usual transition, she knows. Good news is she now writes full time and is much happier. She has sold over forty novels and novellas to numerous publishers, including HarperCollins, Kensington, Harlequin, Penguin Random House, Riptide and Carina Press. Her nationally bestselling and award-winning books have been showcased in numerous venues and her books have twice been named "Red-Hot Reads" and excerpted in Cosmopolitan magazine. She is on the Board of Directors of the Romance Writers of America and teaches fiction writing at UC San Diego and MiraCosta College. You can learn more at her website: www.HelenKaydimon.com

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BN: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-fixer-helenkay-dimon/1123625444?ean=9780062441300 

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The Boy is Back by Meg Cabot

From Publisher:

In this brand-new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot, a scandal brings a young man back home to the small town, crazy family, and first love he left behind.

Reed Stewart thought he’d left all his small town troubles—including a broken heart—behind when he ditched tiny Bloomville, Indiana, ten years ago to become rich and famous on the professional golf circuit.  Then one tiny post on the Internet causes all of those troubles to return . . . with a vengeance.

Becky Flowers has worked hard to build her successful senior relocation business, but she’s worked even harder to forget Reed Stewart ever existed. She has absolutely no intention of seeing him when he returns—until his family hires her to save his parents.

Now Reed and Becky can’t avoid one another—or the memories of that one fateful night.  And soon everything they thought they knew about themselves (and each other) has been turned upside down, and they—and the entire town of Bloomville—might never be the same, all because The Boy Is Back.

Source:  Advance Copy in exchange for an honest review.

I love Meg Cabot.  I mean, I seriously love her.  She is one of the few authors that I totally fan-girl over and lose my ever-loving mind (sorry Meg!).  I've been a fan almost from the beginning.  But, back in 2002, when the Boy Series began, I was hooked.  If you haven't read The Boy Next Door, Boy Meets Girl, and Every Boy's Got One, you are seriously missing out and should go read them right now.  I was thrilled when I heard the announcement of a new book in the series and equally thrilled when William Morrow provided an advance copy, but there's always that trepidation.  That stomach curdling terror that a reboot or late extension of a series will tarnish a beloved series.  I should have known better.  Meg Cabot never disappoints.

The Boy is Back is hilarious and heartwarming.  It was also nostalgic and reminded me, once again, why I love Meg Cabot so much.  I love the fast-paced and creative writing that comes from a story told through texts, messaging, and emails.  Becky and Reed are the typical Cabot clueless couple surrounded by people who scheme and tease (lovingly) the hapless pair.  As always, the supporting cast of a Cabot book bring comedy and depth.  

I really cannot recommend The Boy is Back and the entire Boy Series enough.  I'd buy a copy for you all for Christmas if I could!  Take a snowy weekend this winter and indulge in a delightful day with this series.  You won't regret it!  For more information go here.  

~ Shel

To the Stars by Molly McAdams Release Week Blitz

We are so excited to bring you the Release Week Blitz for Molly McAdams’ TO THE STARS! TO THE STARS is a contemporary romance novel being published on February 9^th by HarperCollins’ William Morrow Impulse imprint and is the second novel in Molly’s Thatch Series.

 

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      About TO THE STARS: In the second standalone book in New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Molly McAdams’ Thatch series, Knox Alexander must convince his long-time love Harlow Evans that they’re meant to be together. He promised to wait for her. She told him he was wasting his time. Not waiting for him ended up being the biggest mistake of her life. When they were younger, Knox Alexander swore to Harlow Evans that he would wait for her to turn eighteen so they could be together. But that was two and a half years away, and Harlow couldn’t ask him to give up all the fun and thrills of going away to college for her. As the years passed, Knox remained a constant in her life but when her eighteenth birthday came around, Harlow’s heart belonged to someone else. Every day for the last four years, Harlow has been haunted by that fateful choice. And though he may appear unaffected by what happened in their past, Knox has always tried to fill the void Harlow left. But when he comes stumbling back into her life and refuses to leave, will Harlow finally let him into her heart…?    

EXCERPT:  

“Relationship,” Knox huffed. “Low, I’ve told you, you could hardly call it that. Besides, I told her about you before whatever she and I were ever started,” he said. “It’s not my fault she thought I was joking.”

“Well, it’s kind of weird, don’t you think? Telling her, ‘hey, sure I’ll be your date for this group thing, but there’s this girl I’m waiting for, and she’s my priority’, seems like a way to say you don’t want to get too attached at the beginning.”

“But I told her,” he reasoned.

“You’re horrible.”

“Not horrible. I’m just in love with you, and I have a year and a half left until I can have you.”

I gripped at my warming chest and tried to ignore it as I sighed. “I’m going to stop answering your calls whenever you get a new girlfriend.”

“There won’t be a new one, and I know you wouldn’t.”

My eyebrows rose even though he couldn’t see me. “And how do you know that?”

“Because you love me too. Through all this bullshit, you love me, and you need these calls as bad as I do.”

“I do love you, Knox,” I whispered into the phone. It wasn’t the first time I’d told him, and I knew it wouldn’t be the last. “I love you to the moon and back.” My eyes fell to my dresser where my monthly bouquet of red poppies sat. These had come just a few days ago. The card, as always, had read: I’m still waiting for you.

“To the moon?” A deep, husky laugh filled the other end of the phone. “The moon isn’t that far, Harlow.”

“Isn’t it?”

“No. Not far enough.” There were a few beats of silence before he confessed, “I want to love you to the stars.”

My mouth parted and a soft huff slipped past my lips. I closed my eyes and let his words replay in my mind and move through my body as I agreed, “Then to the stars.”

And don’t miss the first book in the Thatch Series…

 

LETTING GO

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About Molly McAdams: Molly grew up in California but now lives in the oh-so-amazing state of Texas with her husband, daughter, and fur babies. When she’s not diving into the world of her characters, some of her hobbies include hiking, snowboarding, traveling, and long walks on the beach … which roughly translates to being a homebody with her hubby and dishing out movie quotes. She has a weakness for crude-humored movies and fried pickles, and loves curling up in a fluffy comforter during a thunderstorm … or under one in a bathtub if there are tornados. That way she can pretend they aren’t really happening.      

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Built by Jay Crownover Cover Reveal

We are absolutely thrilled to bring you the Cover Reveal and Prologue for BUILT by Jay Crownover! BUILT is the first novel in her upcoming Saints of Denver Series, a spinoff of her Marked Men Series, published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins. BUILT is releasing on January 5, 2016! This is a definite one click, friends!

Check out the cover of BUILT!

Preorder BUILT Today!

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About BUILT: From the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men books comes an electrifying new spin-off series,Saints of Denver, featuring all the characters fans have been dying to read about. Sayer Cole and Zeb Fuller couldn’t be more different. She’s country club and fine-dining, he’s cell-block and sawdust. Sayer spends her days in litigation, while Zeb spends his working with his hands. She’s French silk, he’s all denim and flannel. Zeb’s wanted the stunning blonde since the moment he laid eyes on her. It doesn't matter how many smooth moves he makes, the reserved lawyer seems determinedly oblivious to his interest—either that or she doesn't return it. Sayer is certain the rough, hard, hot-as-hell Zeb could never want someone as closed off and restrained as she is, which is a shame because something tells her he might be the guy to finally melt her icy exterior. But just as things start to heat up, Zeb is blindsided by a life altering moment from his past. He needs Sayer’s professional help to right a wrong and to save more than himself. He can’t risk what’s at stake just because his attraction to Sayer feels all consuming. But as these opposites dig in for the fight of their lives, battling together to save a family, the steam created when fire and ice collide can no longer be ignored.

And don’t miss this sneak peek of BUILT! Check out the prologue here!

Prologue

I met her at a bar. 

She had a beer bottle in her hand even though she looked like she should be sipping champagne out of an expensive flute, and that inexplicably turned me on. She was pretty and looked completely out of place in the no-name bar sitting across from one of my longtime friends who also happened to be her long-lost brother. He was the reason she was here. In that split second that I laid my eyes on her I wanted to be the reason she stayed. 

I knew it was rude and that the two of them needed some time together, some time to figure out what they were to each other now that she had blasted into his life unannounced. If I was a better friend I would have left them alone. As it was, I made my way over to the tiny table and sat down. I was covered in sawdust and had drywall mud caked in the hair on my head and on my face, but she didn’t flinch or bat an eyelash when I purposely broke up their party of two and placed myself as close to her as I could without actually touching her. 

My buddy Rowdy St. James lifted his eyebrows at me as I stared at her while he introduced us. Sayer Cole. Even her name was elegant and sophisticated sounding. She was an enigma, this pretty woman that seemed like she should be in any place but this bar with the two of us. She’d showed up out of the blue a couple of months ago claiming to be Rowdy’s half sister, claiming that they shared a father, claiming that all she wanted was to be in his life and have some kind of family of her own. She looked too delicate to be that brave. Came across as way too proper to have said “fuck it all” and picked up her life to move it someplace unknown without being sure of her welcome. She looked like silk, but if my guess was right about her, it was silk wrapped around steel. 

Luckily Rowdy was a good guy. After the shock of discovering he wasn’t alone in the world, and once he realized he had someone tied to him by blood forever and ever, he had warmed up to the idea of having a sister and appreciated that the sister was Sayer.

I liked Rowdy a lot. He was a stand-up guy and a good friend, but I had a feeling I was going to like his newly found big sister even more. In my usual tactless way I asked him without looking directly at the knockout blonde, “So you have a sister? A hot, classy sister?” A sister that was also a lawyer, so beautiful and smart.

I expected a giggle from her or an eye roll at the outlandish compliment, but what I got was a wide-eyed stare of disbelief as eyes bluer than anything I had ever seen on earth danced between me and her brother like she wasn’t sure what to do with herself or with my overt interest in her. 

I thought that I had gone too far, pushed the beautiful stranger too far out of her comfort zone. I was a big guy and knew I looked far wilder and rougher than I actually was. I figured it might be too much for a woman already obviously out of her element and depth to take.

Instead, Sayer surprised me and I could see by the way he stiffened that she surprised Rowdy, too. While she wasn’t exactly overflowing with welcome and warmth, she did ask me about the current project I was working on after Rowdy explained I was a general contractor and had rebuilt the new tattoo shop he worked in. She seemed genuinely interested, and when I told her that my specialty was rehabbing old houses and giving them new life, her eyes practically glowed at me. I wanted to touch her to see if she felt as smooth and polished as she looked. I wanted to leave streaks of dirt on her perfect face to mark the fact that I had touched her, that she had let me touch her. It was a primal and visceral reaction that I couldn’t explain and I liked the way it felt. Liked the weight and heft of it in my blood even if I knew the feeling wasn’t likely to be returned. 

She told me all about a fantastic but crumbling Victorian she had purchased that was falling down around her. She asked me for a business card and I saw Rowdy stiffen across the table. I sighed and rubbed a hand over my already messy hair. I watched her eyes follow the light cloud of dust that escaped the strands. I was great at my job, loved what I did, but I couldn’t do anything with her or for her without laying everything on the line. Especially not with Rowdy giving me the death glare from just a few feet away.

I dug the card out of my wallet, and when I handed it over our fingers touched. I saw her eyes widen and her lips part, just barely. She looked a little dazed when I grinned at her. 

“You take that card, but understand that the man giving it to you has a past.” 

She blinked at me and cleared her throat. “What kind of past?” 

It wasn’t something I liked to tell a beautiful woman when I first met her. It was something I liked to work up to, liked to prove it was behind me, but with this one it seemed like I wouldn’t get that chance. 

“I tell everyone that I do any kind of work for or that considers hiring me on for a project that I have a criminal history. I spent time locked up for a few years, and while I’m not proud of it I can’t deny it happened. I was a hotheaded kid and it got me in trouble, but I’m the best at what I do, so I hope that doesn’t discourage you from giving me a call.” Hopefully for more than some construction. 

Usually I got a concerned frown followed by a hundred questions about what had led me to serving time. I got none of that from the stunning blonde. She tilted her head to the side and considered me silently for a long moment before reaching down and slipping my card in her purse. If anything, I could have sworn she was wearing a look of sympathy when she told me softly, “I see it every day from the inside. Sometimes the system simply gets it wrong.” A slight grin turned her mouth up at the corners, and I wanted to lean over and kiss it. “People make mistakes. Hopefully they learn from them.” 

I don’t know that “wrong” was accurate in my case so much as misguided, but the complete lack of judgment or censure coming from her made me want to pull her into my arms and hold on to her even more. I had made a mistake, a huge one, one that I was forever going to have to carry around with me, but I had learned from it, was still learning from it. That kind of understanding from a total stranger was so rare, especially coming from someone in the legal field. I wasn’t accustomed to someone looking at me and seeing me, just me, not an ex-con loser after I explained where I had been. It was wildly refreshing and attractive. I couldn’t quite get a handle on what made the woman tick, but I would welcome any opportunity she gave me to figure it out. I found her outwardly flawless and pristine demeanor tempting to taint with my dirty hands and ways, and there was something about the way she watched me, the way she turned toward me like she was drawn to me, that made me think maybe I wasn’t alone in the inexplicable pull department. 

Rowdy left and she stayed. 

We had a couple more beers and talked some more about her house and what she wanted done with it. She already hired one contractor but felt like the guy was ripping her off. It happened a lot in the industry, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the guy was taking her for a ride. Spending time with her was easy. She was fun to talk to and really fun to look at. I really wanted to get my hands on her house and of course on her, and I felt like she was maybe, kind of, slightly leaning in the same direction when I made the mistake of asking her about her past. 

I asked about where she had been before she found out about Rowdy and decided to move to Denver so that she could get to know him. I was curious what kind of life she had where she could leave everything behind and not be missed. Really I wanted to know if she had a boyfriend or husband stashed somewhere, but the simple inquiry must have touched a nerve. The next thing I knew she had paid out the tab for both of us and disappeared into the night. She went from glowing and bright to frigid and untouchable in the span of a heartbeat. 

I figured I blew my shot by being too blunt, as always. I assumed she probably did have someone else in the picture and had been friendly and polite only because I was good friends with her brother. I thought I would never hear from her again and was baffled why the thought of that made my chest ache and my heart feel like it weighed two tons. 

Imagine my surprise when she called me and hired me to renovate her house a week later without a bid, without a contract, without even knowing if I was half as good as I claimed to be. 

Of course I accepted, but I knew once I was inside I would need to knock down and rearrange more than just the walls of the house, in order to get at something beautiful and lasting.

  About Jay Crownover: Jay Crownover is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men and The Point series. Like her characters, she is a big fan of tattoos. She loves music and wishes she could be a rock star, but since she has no aptitude for singing or instrument playing, she'll settle for writing stories with interesting characters that make the reader feel something. She lives in Colorado with her three dogs.      

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That's What HE Said Thursday #23

Image courtesy of Kei at The Lovely Pages Review

That's What HE Said is a weekly meme hosted by the wonderful ladies at Chapter Break. It's a chance for us to spotlight and gush over a quote from our current book crush to the object of his desire. We like to pretend it's us ;)

What better way to celebrate our book boyfriends?

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

The Shatter Me series is a great choice if you're looking for something that has plenty of tension. With Ignite Me, I had no idea which way Juliette would go, but I enjoyed the chemistry she had with Warner when she was around him.  ~ Bel

Warner steps so close to me I’m actually afraid to move.

“You once accused me of not knowing the meaning of love,” he says. “But you were wrong. You fault me, perhaps, for loving you too much.” His eyes are so intense. So green. So cold. “But at least I do not deny my own heart.”

“And you think I do,” I whisper.

Warner drops his eyes. Says nothing.

“What you don’t understand,” I tell him, my voice catching, “is that I don’t even know my own heart anymore. I don’t know how to name what I feel yet and I need time to figure it out. You want more right now but right now what I need is for you to be my friend—”

Warner flinches.

“I do not have friends,” he says.

“Why can’t you try?” He shakes his head. “Why? Why not give it a chance—”

“Because I am afraid,” he finally says, voice shaking, “that your friendship would be the end of me.”

I’m still frozen in place as his office door slams shut behind him.

~ Ignite Me (Shatter Me #3)

by Tahereh Mafi

   

     

    

Even In Paradise by Chelsey Philpot

* * * 

When Julia Buchanan enrolls at St. Anne’s at the beginning of junior year, Charlotte Ryder already knows all about the former senator’s daughter. Most people do... or think they do.

Charlotte certainly never expects she’ll be Julia’s friend. But almost immediately, she is drawn into the larger than-life-new girl’s world—a world of midnight rendezvous, dazzling parties, palatial vacation homes, and fizzy champagne cocktails. And then Charlotte meets, and begins falling for, Julia’s handsome older brother, Sebastian.

But behind her self-assured smiles and toasts to the future, Charlotte soon realizes that Julia is still suffering from a tragedy. A tragedy that the Buchanan family has kept hidden... until now.

Once again I was taken by a book on display at the library thanks to the lovely cover and intriguing plotline. I enjoy mysteries that slowly unravel themselves to the reader and this seemed like it would fit the bill.

When Charlotte comes to Julia’s aid after the latter’s night of excessive partying, little does she know how much her life would change as a result. Julia has this mystique about her and Charlotte can’t help but be pulled into her orbit. Befriending her means that her current steady social circle goes by the wayside. Her friends don’t care much for this but Charlotte, or Charlie as Julia calls her, sees nothing wrong with it. Soon these two are inseparable and then Charlie meets Sebastian, Julia’s older brother. Their friendship becomes something more and they both have a hard time knowing how exactly to proceed as she is Julia’s friend first and foremost.

The prologue at the beginning hints at a major secret and resulting fallout. Okay, I know I said I like for mysteries to unravel slowly, however, I kept hanging on for the big reveal even when I’d already kind of, sort of, figured it out. I just thought there’d be more to it to explain the rather curious family behaviour. For example, The Buchanan family takes to Charlie instantly and is quite overwhelming in expectations of her as Julia’s friend, as if appointing her Julia’s guardian. 

When the big secret comes out, Charlie feels as if she has been lied to. I had a hard time with that. Charlie is a new friend, only knowing them for a small while. I felt it was unfair of her to feel that way. I’m not saying the secret isn’t awful – it is – and it does go some way in explaining Julia a little. It's just that I was left with the feeling that this story just stopped short somewhere. Personally, I would have liked more exploration into the family dynamics. This peculiar family is a tight, loving unit and I would have liked a peek into their perspective of the events both before and after Charlie came into their lives. This is of course my preference. May be the intention was to have the reader feel just as Charlie, that she was left adrift and disconnected from these people once things came to light.

All in all, Even In Paradise has a decent premise and kept me engaged. BiblioJunkie Nat actually read some of it and found the tone of it similar to that of We Were Liars.  I read this book in one go and pondered on it over a two-day period. I think your feelings about the ending depend on how strongly you feel about gray areas. Believe me, there are plenty of those in this story. Give it a shot and let me know what you think. 

~ Bel

All Broke Down Release Day Launch

Yowza! We are extremely excited to bring you the Release Day Launch for Cora Carmack's ALL BROKE DOWN!! ALL BROKE DOWN is a New Adult Contemporary Romance novel being published by HarperCollins, and it is the 2^nd book in The Rusk University Series.

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About ALL BROKE DOWN: 

In this second book in New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cora Carmack’s New Adult, Texas-set Rusk University series, which began with All Lined Up, a young woman discovers that you can’t only fight for what you believe in . . . sometimes you have to fight for what you love. Dylan fights for lost causes. Probably because she used to be one. Environmental issues, civil rights, corrupt corporations, and politicians—you name it, she’s probably been involved in a protest. When her latest cause lands her in jail overnight, she meets Silas Moore. He’s in for a different kind of fighting. And though he’s arrogant and infuriating, she can’t help being fascinated with him. Yet another lost cause. Football and trouble are the only things that have ever come naturally to Silas. And it’s trouble that lands him in a cell next to do-gooder Dylan. He’s met girls like her before—fixers, he calls them, desperate to heal the damage and make him into their ideal boyfriend. But he doesn’t think he’s broken, and he definitely doesn’t need a girlfriend trying to change him. Until, that is, his anger issues and rash decisions threaten the only thing he really cares about, his spot on the Rusk University football team. Dylan might just be the perfect girl to help. Because Silas Moore needs some fixing after all.

 

  

Excerpt: 

I think I get it then. That decision I saw in her eyes back in the kitchen. That’s what this, what I’m about for her, too. I’m just another part of whatever rebellion she started earlier today. About doing what she wants, not what’s expected of her. 

“We’re not talking about me, though,” she says. “So you went to meet your friend, and then what happened?” 

She keeps her eyes down as she picks up the gauze and begins winding it snugly around the knuckles of one hand, and then the other. 

“He said the wrong thing.” 

“Which was?” 

“Dylan.” 

Now it’s her that’s pushing too hard. I didn’t want to talk about things with my friends, and I won’t talk about them with her, either, no matter how gorgeous she is. 

“I’ll guess. You were mad about what he did, and he wasn’t sorry.” 

“This isn’t middle school, Pickle. He didn’t hurt my feelings. He said some shit he had no business saying, and it pissed me off. The end.” 

“But you don’t think some of that anger stems from what you feel is a betrayal of your friendship?” 

She finishes taping down the last of the gauze, but doesn’t let go of my hand. 

“I think you’re analyzing me again. Making things more complicated than they are.” 

“And I think you’re just a guy who doesn’t like to admit he has feelings.” 

She drags out the word, teasing me with some goofy smile on her face. I turn my hand over so I can clutch her wrist. I curl my other bandaged hand around her waist and pull her closer. 

“I feel plenty of things.” 

The teasing stops. She swallows. 

“I wasn’t talking about that kind of feeling.”

With her standing and me sitting, I’m eye level with her chest. I see the sharp rise and fall as she sucks in a breath. I want her in my lap again, straddling me this time. 

“Doesn’t mean we can’t talk about that kind of feeling. Or experiment with it.” 

“Is that Stella girl an ex?” 

I cough, surprised. My throat twists uncomfortably, and it takes me a couple of solid breaths to get a hold on myself. 

“Ah, no. Stella and I have never dated.” 

“Have you—” 

“Do you ever run out of questions?” 

“Not ever.” She turns playful again, and I’m done doing this the careful way.

If she wants a rebellion, I’ll be the one to give it to her. I want her against me, and I’m tired of waiting. I pull her forward, insinuating my knees between hers, and her body naturally follows, settling across my thighs. Her lips part, but she catches herself before she gasps this time. I keep her steady with my hands at her waist and say, “I’ll make you a deal. A question for a kiss.” 

Tentatively, she lays her palms against my shoulders. They rest there, her grip light and casual. She ponders my offer for a moment, and it drives me mad that she can do that while our hips are inches away from alignment. 

“Okay then. Are you—” 

I cut her off. 

“Not so fast, Dylan Brenner. I’ve already answered one question. We’ve got to settle up first.” 

I wrap her braid around my hand like I’ve been waiting to do all night, and I use it to pull her head back just enough that I can crush my mouth against hers.

And don’t forget to grab your copy of ALL LINED UP Today!

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About Cora Carmack: 


Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, was a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.      

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