Tag Archives: amazing

5 stars, Book Review

Stoned by Layla Frost Review.

Leave a comment

Once upon a time, there lived a witch. A kickass, brilliant, dope as hell witch whose magicks inspired fear and envy. Like all classic fairy tales, her story had the usual goodies. 

Destiny. 

Adventure. 

Missing souls. 

Unfathomable evil, the precarious fate of the entire universe, blah, blah, blah. 

But let’s get back to that witch with the awesome hair… 

Fine, it’s me. I’m the all-powerful witch. And, okay, maybe my story isn’t a classic fairy tale. Not unless I missed the part about Little Red delivering comic books and munchies in her basket and Beauty sleeping off two-for-one margarita night. But I do have a soul mate—my very own Charming. 

Except he’s no prince. He’s a level-headed, by the book, insanely sexy detective. 

And me? 

Well, I’m Stoned. 

— Goodreads — Amazon — Bookbub —
Book Two in The Four Series. See Styx here.

Layla Frost has always been a rebel. A true badass.

Growing up, Layla used to hide under her blanket with a flashlight to read the Sweet Valley High books she pilfered from her older sister. It wasn’t long before she was reading hidden Harlequins during class at school. This snowballed into pulling all-nighters after the promise of “just one more chapter”.

Her love of reading, especially the romance genre, took root early and has grown immeasurably.

In between reading and writing, Layla spends her free time rocking out (at concerts, on the couch, in the car… Anywhere is a stage if you get into it enough), watching TV (the nerdier the better!), and being a foodie. Though she lives in NY (the state, not the city), she’s an avid Red Sox fan.

— Facebook — Naughty Cupcakes Group — Goodreads — My Amazon Store — My Site —
— Twitter and Instagram: @LaylaFWrites — Email: laylafrostwrites@gmail.com —

This book was…
I LOVED EVERY FLGHAHGRT
Layla Frost is…

Write, re-write. Write, re-write. That’s how this review has been going for me. It’s only when I’m just about to go to bed that I think of the perfect words to explain Stoned. Of course, by the time I wake up and sit down ready to write the magical words I’d thought of the night before, it’s like I don’t even know how to English.

I’ve been supremely struggling with words for this. Normally, I do a pretty OK job with them. I mean, I’m not special and English is the only language I know, so I should be able to string together words and write a review that does some sort of justice for this book, this series.

But since I’m apparently English-Deficient, wordy-intolerant if you please, I’m going to do my best… (and since I’m crazy obsessed with all things Nightmare Before Christmas, I 100% said “I’m going to do my best” in Oogie Boogie’s voice. Out Loud.)

Stoned is the continuation of the crazy fantastic The Four series. It’s the second in the hysterical, gut wrenching, original, sassy new take on The Four Horseman Apocalypse tale. It’s filled with steamy sex scenes, prematurely expired ghosts, troubling realizations about fate and our destiny, and an OTT alpha cop to top it all off.

It’s a paranormal romance, bringing the extra-ness of this to the extreme. Between seeing someone and just knowing down to your bones you’re supposed to be with someone, hiding some extraordinary truths, and angels and the devil playing a major role in Juno’s life, falling for the sexy cop who could arrest her for something she had no part in, is not part of the plan.

The calm to her rage, the protective to her wild, Stellan is thrust into a world he didn’t even know existed. Jealousy, possessiveness, thrown into the mix, emotions he’d never felt before, bubble up and over. He’s forced to navigate a world he couldn’t’ have ever imagined. Instead of running for the woods, he embraces it and Juno.

Like with Styx I can’t really discuss too much of the plot without giving away the meat of this story. I guess it could be read as a standalone, since it’s a different couple, but you would understand Juno and the plot-line more by reading Styx first. And then, you can suffer with me when you read the last line and see it’s a FREAKING CLIFFHANGER YOU EVIL EVIL WOMAN.

5 stars, Book Review

Bad Situation by Brynne Asher Review!

Leave a comment

arcblurbbadsituationA group of women walk into a bar…

Sounds like the start of a crude joke, right? Yeah, well, the joke’s on me because I’m investigating the gorgeous one in the heels with the great ass. Jensen Montgomery.

Now I’m treading that area between right and wrong, good and bad, where sin and honor meld to become gray. Not that I haven’t been here before. Hell, I’ve made my career in the gray. I never hesitate going to battle when my gut tells me I’m right. And right now, my gut—among other things—is speaking loud and clear about Jen Montgomery.

She’s in a bad situation. Not just bad—deep and black and ugly.

And I’m about to make it worse. She just doesn’t know it yet.

Warning: This author is also a mom who runs a PG-13 home. This book is not PG-13. If you are under the age of 18, do NOT pick up this book. This author doesn’t enjoy mama-drama of any sorts. Do her a favor and walk away.

— Goodreads — Amazon — Bookbub —

aboutheauthorbrynneasherBrynne Asher lives in the Midwest with her husband, three children, and her perfect dog. When she isn’t creating pretend people and relationships in her head, she is running her kids around and doing laundry. She enjoys cooking, decorating, shopping at outlet malls as well as online and is always seeking the best deal. A perfect day in “Brynne World” ends in front of an outdoor fire with family, friends, s’mores, and a delicious cocktail.

— Facebook — Readers Group — Goodreads — Amazon —

reviewbadsituation1

YAS GURL WHAT. ALL THE FINGER SNAPS. ALL. OF. THEM.

Bad Situation was AH-MAZING. 100 PERCENT. Eli Petit, the half alpha-ahole obsessed with Jensen Montgomery’s butt, was the perfect mix between over protective and workaholic that blended seamlessly with Jen’s workaholic life. He didn’t know he needed a fiesty CFO in his life until a dance that shouldn’t have happened and an arrest that should have been laughed at.

As for Jen, she definitely didn’t think she needed a booty obsessed FBI agent that toes the line, just barely, in her life. Between mergers and acquisitions, philanthropy work, running a company, keeping her crazy family in line, and dealing with an a-hole brother-in-law, she is way too busy. She definitely doesn’t need to add a certain FBI agent, that she shouldn’t be involved with since she’s under investigation, onto her to-do list.

Too bad Eli doesn’t care about rules. He bull dozes his way into Jen’s life and into her heart, and dragged me right along with them. Jen doesn’t lie down and take it though (even though I SO would have okkkkkkk), she’s too smart for that. Though her instincts tell her to give in and call him, her head wins out.

Eli doesn’t listen to what his supervisors say, or what Jen says. He helps her despite the fact he shouldn’t. He falls in love with her even though they shouldn’t have even gotten involved with each other. He doesn’t mind being her dirty secret since it means he can touch her butt (he really is an ass man).

One of the reasons he and Jen work so well together is because they both realize how important their work is. Eli is secure enough that he doesn’t care how much money Jen has, and Jen doesn’t care that Eli is an FBI agent. Their work means they spend a lot of time in the office, but it doesn’t affect their relationship.

Which is all the amazingness.

Before I gush all over myself and just give away the plot, I’m gonna stop myself.

I know this was a crossover-ish book between Paths and Athica Lane, but I honestly didnt’ remember Eli from Paths. Everyone remembers the Montgomerys (cause they’re hella awesome) but I didn’t have time to re-read Paths before Bad Situation.

If you’re waiting for it to be announced, you’ll have to wait until they end of the book. However, if you’re like me, you’ll go OH I REMEMBER NOW when it’s too danged late. If you haven’t read either of those books (SHAME) you won’t have to in order to read Situation (THOUGH YOU SHOULD).

So here I am, reading along like a good little ARC reader, trying to figure out what’s going on when Brynne SHOCKS THE BEJESUS OUT OF ME and then goes and ENDS THE FREAKING BOOK while I’m here shaking like a crack addict going through withdrawl waiting for the next book…

Think Eli will arrest me 😉

ANYWAYS. I’m going to go cry a little bit while I wait for Brynne to feed my totally (un)healthy addiction.

badsituation25star

5 stars, Book Review

Obsessive Addiction by KL Donn Review

Leave a comment

arcblurb

obsessiveI am Crux Malcolm.
And she. Is. Mine.

Have you ever heard the sound of your life ending?
A cell door slamming shut is the best way to describe it.

I killed a man. A bad man.
One who deserved far more than what I gave him.

He looked at her when she was mine.
He touched her when she was mine.
He broke her when she was mine.

I’m getting out on a technicality.
Now, I’ll get to make her mine.

She’ll cry my name each night instead of his.
She’ll feel my pleasure instead of his pain.

I am Crux Malcolm

and it’s my turn to get what’s coming to me…
Farren Hallewell is my addiction and I’m obsessed.

— Goodreads — Amazon — Bookbub —

aboutheauthor285e7-kl2bdonn2bauthor2bgraphic

Krystal is a proud Canadian girl, hailing from Sherwood Park, Alberta. She has a strong dislike for the winter, and a love spring. Married to her husband Steve, for 13 years, they have 4 beautiful red headed spawns ranging in ages 5-12. She has a strong love of coffee, sarcasm, and wine. (Not necessarily in that order either.)
Krystal loves to write about instalove between couples looking for love. She has a passion for contemporary romance and springs into menage as often as she can. Currently, she is working on 2 new series, the Adair Empire a darker, dirtier, and grittier series than what her readers are used to, but boy has she had a ton of fun writing them. The What Happens When series will begin with Anonymous Bride series will begin with Anonymous Bride and continue with untraditional love stories. Bringing you all the good feels, a ton of love, and maybe – if you’re lucky 😉 a surprise baby or two!
With the exception of Anonymous Bride, and Until Arsen you’ll be able to find all her books on all platforms!

reviewobsessive1

I’m not going to lie even a little bit. Writing this review was HARD. I connected with Farren like I did with Ariel (in Luther). I think I’ll always connect with characters that struggle within themselves the way these two have. I haven’t been in either of their situations physically, but I have emotionally.

And with the way K.L Donn writes, you don’t need to have go through anything to feel it anyway.

Obsessive Addiction left me raw and bleeding emotionally, it ripped me to shreds over and over again. Just when I thought it was over, that Ren would go skipping off into the distance with Crux and live happily ever after, I was ripped apart again.

Why? Because KL Donn has to write characters that seem like their broken, only to show you the true strength they have hidden. Despite the evil around them, despite the horrors they’ve seen and been through, inside they are stronger than anyone they’ve ever met.

I mean LORD, I was warned that this might wreck me but I didn’t really believe it. I mean, in most ways I did believe it because I know KL, and I know she loves to kill me, but I wasn’t expecting it still. Even though it was hard, I couldn’t stop reading. I was drawn in from the beginning.

The plot was so different, so unique, I was left obsessed as well. Crux was addicted and obsessed as well. Though Luther will always be my husband, Crux is definitely up there in terms of stealing a piece of my heart.

I loved every single minute of the painful experience that was Obsessive Addiction. In fact, by the end, I was ready to experience more of that pain just to read more of Ren and Crux. And I can guarantee, you’ll want it too.

obsessive35star

5 stars, Book Review

Give In by Layla Frost Review

Leave a comment

arcblurbgiveinlaylafrostI watched her.

I knew I shouldn’t. It was a mistake. Wrong. Forbidden.

A glimpse of heaven before a depraved angel led me to hell.

One email was all it would take to end the torture. A simple email, dropping Eden Wilder from my class and my life.
But I couldn’t do it. I was selfish—taking any bit of her I could.

That’s how addictions start. You give in just a little. Just once. Before long, your obsession has grown into a violent storm, shrouding you in darkness as it consumes your thoughts. Consumes your whole damn life. And everything you’ve worked for is gone.

But you honestly don’t give a f*ck. You’d serve your soul up on a silver platter for your addiction.

And she was mine.

Warning: Recommended for readers 18+ due to strong adult language, themes, and a stalkerific hero who puts the FUN in dysfunctional. Enjoy!

— Goodreads — Amazon —

aboutheauthorlaylafrostLayla Frost has always been a rebel. A true badass.

Growing up, Layla used to hide under her blanket with a flashlight to read the Sweet Valley High books she pilfered from her older sister. It wasn’t long before she was reading hidden Harlequins during class at school. This snowballed into pulling all-nighters after the promise of “just one more chapter”.

Her love of reading, especially the romance genre, took root early and has grown immeasurably.

In between reading and writing, Layla spends her free time rocking out (at concerts, on the couch, in the car… Anywhere is a stage if you get into it enough), watching TV (the nerdier the better!), and being a foodie. Though she lives in NY (the state, not the city), she’s an avid Red Sox fan.

— Facebook — Naughty Cupcakes Group — Goodreads — My Amazon Store — My Site —
— Twitter and Instagram: @LaylaFWrites — Email: laylafrostwrites@gmail.com —

reviewgivein2

This review was extremely difficult for me to write. Not because it was bad… because it was SO EFFIN GOOD that it literally destroyed me. I stalk- er… follow Layla Frost and am in her readers group, so I saw her little “hey this may not be as safe as you want it to be” and got scared…

For those of you who don’t know, when a romance novel is safe it means no cheating; but it goes beyond that. It means, for all intents and purposes, both parties are eunuchs unless around their partners. I need my books to be safe, for many reasons. Numero Uno is that I hate cheating. Gives me anxiety.

So yeah… I was scared.

A little back story…
Eden Wilder is a college student trying to make a name for herself, and she’s on the run. She keeps a low profile, avoids relationships, and gets good grades. She pays her own way for college, which means she works hella hard… as a stripper.

Get that money girl.

Damien Caine is a professor… specifically Eden’s professor. He’s tough on her work, grading it harder than the others. From the beginning, he’s attracted to her. But he also wants to break her, but only to make her better than she was before. Being so much older than her, he stays away from her for as long as he can… until he stumbles upon her side gig.

There are some parts that may make this unsafe for readers. There’s a slight love triangle thingy in the beginning but Damien basically shuts it down. And Eden does too. But there’s also the fact that Eden has to get practically naked for her customers.

Oh, and there’s the little tidbit that Damien is in to BDSM. Not soft core, but not going to sex clubs either. It’s not a “safe word” situation, but a lifestyle. Part of that lifestyle means being harsh on his girl, but it also means taking care of her. Is ha an alpha-hole? HECK yeah. But is he swoon worthy? My response is not internet appropriate.

If you want evidence that I called Layla out for basically wrecking my whole world, I got it for ya. Message me (I’m funny sometimes). But I’m serious. This book wrecked me. It felt like Damien was breaking me down just as much as he was Eden. I wanted to hate him just as much as I fell in love with him. For every bit of a jerk Damien was, he was a just as much a sweetheart. For every bit the hardworking, independent woman Eden was, she was just as much faltering on her own. As much as she was a mature woman, she was bratty.

This book was full of extremes. Extreme sex, extreme love, and extreme touch. Maybe that’s what got me with it. In every taboo novel there’s a level of trust between the partners that has to be there, but with Eden and Damien they had to earn it. They had to earn every single ounce of trust; every step they made towards love was one hard earned.

It wasn’t just the teacher/student trope, or just BDSM, or just taboo, or just anything. It was everything. The slow burn to end all slow burns. A re-read (AND RE-READ) worthy novel that will have you eating out of the palm of Damien’s hand.

Because when you Give In… you might just find your Happily Ever After.

…Also, Layla, I’m gonna need another book from you STAT. I’m hooked, girl. YOU CAN’T LEAVE ME HANGING LIKE THIS OKAY???

givein35star

5 stars, Book Review

The Long Game by BJ Bentley Review!

Leave a comment

arcblurbthelonggameLacey-

Once upon a time, I was the knight in shining armor.
But now my armor is tarnished. Dented.
One botched mission was all it took for this hero to fall from grace.
And that was when I met him- dark, broody, magnetic.
He was broken too. The jagged edges of his pieces cut me, but I thrived on the pain.

Rafe-

I’m no good for anybody.
I know, just ask my family.
But I’m a selfish bastard, so when she walked into my club, I vowed to make her mine.
She was damaged like me. Scarred like me.
But she was also goodness and light.
And my darkness had a way of snuffing out good things.

— Goodreads — Amazon —

aboutheauthor

36828555_219592792013169_1340683108122361856_n (1).png

From her Amazon: I’m a psychic medium, romance author, and cat mom. I shamelessly based my character, Sabrina Rhodes, on myself (write what you know, and all that.) Weaknesses include alpha males and badass babes.
The Intuitive series is a collection of rom-com novellas, and I’m also working on a full-length dark romance novel.
I’m very active on social media, so feel free to stalk me! (Please stalk me, this is a cry for attention.)
Follow me!

—  Facebook — Twitter —  Instagram —  Website — Amazon—  BookBub  —

reviewthelonggame1

The Long Game was easily my favorite of the three Syndicate novels. Rafe captured my heart and Lacey broke it. The premise of this novel was different from the other two, but just as naughty and just as captivating. I wanted more from the very minute I started reading.

Rafael Caruso is not a good guy, he’s not the hero, but he’s definitely not a villain either. His present was shaped by an ugly past, one he believed shaped his future as well. Feeling himself unworthy of love and anything good, he closed himself off from everyone, even his two friends Jensen and Aleksander. Even those two didn’t really get past his firewalls. Hacker, protecting his friends’ businesses, gamer, and also vigilante, his world changes when he meets Lacey Montgomery.

Lacey Montgomery has her own scars and demons. She carries her own weight around, carrying the guilt of a young woman’s death on her shoulders. Sent to take down Rafe, she ends up in his bed and in his heart. When she inadvertently betrays the man she has come to love, she runs away…

…but not for long.

This book is filled with revenge, love, and heartbreak. It is easily my favorite of the three Syndicate novels. It was sweet and erotic, it was dominant and submissive, it had a heart wrenching alpha and a woeful heroine. But as with all her books, for as much as these two are broken, they are equally as strong. They fought for their lives, even when they felt they should give up. They were independent, yet dependent on each other. They were broken, but mended their pieces to fit each other.

And they had AMAZING adult time ;).

thelonggame25star

5 stars, Book Review

Forbidden Miles by Claire Kingsley Review!

Leave a comment

arcblurbforbiddenmiles“Either I was seeing things, or Cooper was stalking down the aisle toward us. In his underwear. Nope, I wasn’t seeing things. It was my nightmare come true.”

Moving back to my family’s winery seemed like a good idea. I can save money, be closer to my family… But I forgot that when you’re the baby of the family—and your three older brothers are basically insane—life can get complicated.

Dating? Forget about it. I’m the forbidden one. There isn’t a bad boy in this town who’s bad enough to go after Brynn Miles. Not with my brothers acting like human chastity belts.

Finding love isn’t my focus anyway. Except… there’s this guy. And he’s kind of amazing. I didn’t see him coming, and it figures I’d fall for the one guy in the world I shouldn’t. He’s T-R-O-U-B-L-E. Untouchable. And just as forbidden as I am.

Am I ready to put my whole family on the line for a fiery case of lust? But what if it isn’t? What if it’s love?

**Each book in the Miles Family series ends with a romantic HEA, but there is an ongoing subplot that spans the entire series. Contains explicit language and content.**

— Goodreads — Amazon —

aboutheauthorclairekingsletClaire Kingsley writes smart, sexy romances. Her books feature sassy and often quirky heroines, swoony heroes who love their women hard, panty-melting sexytimes, romantic happily ever afters, and ALL the big feels.

She can’t imagine life without coffee, her Kindle, and the sexy heroes who inhabit her imagination. She’s living out her own happily ever after in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and three kids.

— Facebook — Amazon — Readers Group — Twitter — Goodreads — Website —

 

reviewforbiddenmiles1

Claire Kinglsey checked every single one of my boxes for a five star review. Alpha male? Check! Safe? No cheating? Check! Instant connection? Check! (Well… sorta…) Drama outside the relationship? Check! Crazy family? SUPER CHECK!

I’ve read one of Claire’s books before, and it made me want to devour every one she’s ever written. Her writing style is amazing. The flow is amazing. She blew me away with Book Boyfriend, but she absolutely AMAZED me with Forbidden Miles.

Brynn is the baby of the Miles family. She’s back home after living at college for the last few years. She’s happy to be back, happy to be near her family again, even if they drive her nuts. She’s funny, mature, and smart enough to have given up her long time crush on her older brother’s best friend.

Well… until Chase sees Brynn for the first time. And not as the forbidden Miles he’s helped the brothers protect and defend. Not as his best friend’s little sister. No, as a woman. And at first he’s all “HELL no I can’t go there” but when he decides she’s worth it? That he needs her in his life? PFFFFT she never stood a chance. Hell, I didn’t stand a chance.

When I say this book had it all, I mean had it all. Chase is a sweet heart, looking for the family he never had. He listens to Brynn and talks to her. He doesn’t treat her like a little kid, he doesn’t ignore her wants and dreams just because of her age. He takes her education as seriously as she does, and he risks his bromance with his best friend to get what he’s always wanted: love.

Brynn is so strong, willing to give up what could be the best thing that’s ever happened to her so Chase doesn’t lose Cooper. Her family is the greatest, but it comes with it’s own issues. But Chase doesn’t downplay her problems because her family is amazing. Each and every interaction they have with each other makes their love grow until nothing could ever get in between them.

Chase and Claire have a bond that couldn’t be destroyed, despite the outside influences that tried to rip them apart. Claire Kingsley brings you a love so sweet, so powerful you want to re read the story over and over again, infusing it with humor and an edge of mystery. Trust me when I say you’re going to want Chase and Brynn in your life. And if you don’t believe me, you’re going to want to read it just to read the epic Chase and Cooper bromance.

forbiddenmiles25star
**All images are from freeimages.com and pexels.com and all fonts are from CreativeMarket.com. For more info on the fonts and images used, please email caitscreatures@gmail.com**
Book Tour

BOOK TOUR for Broken Love Story by Natasha Madison

Leave a comment
Title: Broken Love Story
Series: Love Series #3
Author: Natasha Madison
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: July 10, 2018
Kindle Unlimited

 

Samantha: 
 
I had the perfect life; a husband who loved me, and two kids who were my world. 
 
Until someone else answered his phone and my perfect life shattered. 
 
When he died, I was left with answers he couldn’t give me and a box full of lies. 
 
He left me broken. 
 
 
Blake: 
 
I fell in love when I was fifteen, knowing she was the one. 
 
For five years, she was my everything—my every breath, every heartbeat, every thought. 
 
She made me promise to move on, promise to find love again, but I broke those promises because I can’t move on. 
 
Two broken souls brought together by tragedy and heartbreak. 
Can a broken love story be fixed?
Samantha

Standing in front of the full-length mirror in my room, I smooth down my black skirt. My blond hair is tied up in a ponytail, my cheeks are sunken in more than normal, and the blackness around my eyes indicates I haven’t slept well since this whole thing happened. Since I found out that not only did my husband die, but that he also married someone else. 

I sit on the made bed and look down at my wedding band. My thumb of my right hand touches it, and the lone tear that falls out of my eye lands straight on it. “Mommy.” I look back at Lizzie, who is standing in the doorway wearing a black one-piece dress similar to mine with ballerina flats. 
My mother-in-law went shopping yesterday and bought us all new outfits for today. “We need to put our best foot forward,” she said as I watched her walk in with the six bags. “We can’t let people talk.”

I turned around and walked out of the room, going upstairs. Shutting myself in my bathroom with my back against the door, I cried quietly, trying to hide my sobs. “We can’t let people talk,” I whispered to myself. The hatred I had begun feeling when I remembered my husband.

Lizzie walks to the side of my bed and sits next to me. “I hate this dress,” she says when I put my hand around her shoulder and bring her to me, kissing her head.
“I know, baby,” I whisper, “but after today, it’s going to be all over.”

“That’s what Grandpa A said.” She mentions the name she calls my father-in-law. Grandpa A because you can’t get better than an A. 

“Is everyone ready?” I hear Ethan yell from downstairs. “The limo is picking us up in twenty.”

“Let’s go, baby,” I tell her, getting up and holding her hand while we walk downstairs. My in-laws are both sitting in the kitchen. My mother-in-law in a black skirt and top while my father-in-law has on a black suit. “Where is Daisy?” I ask them.

“Elliot is upstairs changing her. She spilled milk on her dress,” Judy tells me, looking at Lizzie. “You look like such a big girl.” She blinks her tears away.

Elliot comes down the stairs with Daisy on his hip, smiling at me when he walks in. “Okay, you girls go sit in the living room while us grown-ups talk,” my father-in-law says, and the girls both know to leave the room. When he knows they are both out of earshot, he starts. “Today is going to be tough, tough for us all, but we have to stand together. We have to be the family that we are.” I lean against the counter while he talks. “The situation with the other one has been taken care of, and she has been served papers.” I look at him and then at Elliot and Ethan, both of them looking down when our eyes meet. It’s almost as if they feel guilty for meeting this woman. My father-in-law continues, “After all this is done today, we are meeting with the lawyers in person, so we can go over the will, start the paperwork for the insurance, and make sure she doesn’t touch a thing that belongs to him.” I stop listening at this point, turning to look out the window at the backyard.

The swing set that he built in one day to make sure the kids could use it when he left the next day. The patio set he had delivered to us, so I could have somewhere to sit while I watched the girls while he was living with another woman. I shake my head, walking out of the room. I sit on the couch, and the girls come to sit next to me, one on each side. “Today is going to be really hard,” I whisper to them, “but we have to be strong for Daddy.” They both look at me, their eyes exactly like their father’s. “But, if at any time, you need to leave or you need me… I don’t care who is talking to me or who is around; you come and get me.”
“Grandpa A said we had to sit and wait,” Daisy whispers just as Elliot comes into the room and kneels in front of us.

“What is this meeting about?” he asks, smiling at us. The circles around his eyes are just as black as ours. He hasn’t left our house since this happened. 

“Mommy said if we need her that we can go to her,” Daisy says, looking at him and then me, “even if Grandpa A said no.”

He leans in, whispering, “You can come to me too, and I’ll make sure that you get Mommy.” 

“Okay,” Lizzie and Daisy both whisper at the same time, and then the doorbell rings.
We get up, put our jackets on, and one by one file into the black limo that has come to take us to the funeral home. We arrive before everyone else. “We get an hour with him, and then they will open the door,” Adrian says as Judy grabs her tissue and dabs her eyes. 

I look around the funeral home. I’m not sure what I’m looking for, not sure where he is. I haven’t seen him since he kissed me goodbye four days earlier. His last words to me were, “Call you when I can.” That phone call never came.

I follow my in-laws to the big brown door that is closed. “I want to go in before the girls.” Everyone turns to look at me.

“We can keep them in the lobby,” says the lady who greeted us at the door. She told me her name, but I just didn’t listen. 

I nod at her as she turns to ask the girls if they want hot chocolate. Daisy’s eyes get big as Lizzie turns to look at me. I nod my head, giving her permission, so she can go with the woman.
The doors open, and I don’t even know what to expect. I’ve never been to a funeral. Never known anyone well enough to pay my last respects. Judy and Adrian walk in first, followed by Ethan, and Elliot waits with me. I step foot into the room, and it’s so cold that I shiver. The smell of flowers hits me right away, making me turn my head. The number of flowers and wreaths shocks me; the whole room is almost full. Some wreaths blocking others. Rows and rows of brown chairs line the room, all facing toward the front of the room. My eyes land on the brown wooden casket at the front of the room. The open half showing you the white satin inside. I walk down the aisle toward him, and then my eyes land on him. Eric. I can’t take another step forward because my knees give out, and I fall. Elliot isn’t fast enough to hold me up, and my knee lands with a thud. But the pain doesn’t matter because nothing could take the place of the pain in my heart. The sound of wailing fills the room as I look up at my dead husband. 

I feel arms around me; I feel myself lifted; I feel myself almost floating. He isn’t the Eric who kissed me goodbye; he isn’t the Eric who I made promises to; he isn’t the Eric who made all my dreams come true. This isn’t him.

The man with makeup caked on his face isn’t my Eric. My sobs overtake my body as I look at him, expecting him to open his eyes. Expecting something, anything but this. “I want the casket closed,” I say, my voice soft. “I want it closed.”

“Samantha,” my father-in-law starts, “it’s—”

I shake my head. “I don’t want the kids to see him like that,” I say softly. I know that for me they wouldn’t even consider it, but for the girls, they would move heaven and earth. “They need to remember him alive and smiling, not like that,” I say, pointing at the casket.

“Dad,” Ethan says after me, “I agree.” 

“Me too,” Elliot says from beside me. “Close it.”

He just nods at us, then walks to the man standing in the corner. The man looks at him as they have a hushed conversation and then just nods his head. “Do you need some water?” Ethan says to me, and I nod. I don’t bother listening to what else he says; instead, I get up and go to the casket. Standing before the brown box, I look at him, really look at him. You see some bruising under the makeup, and his nose is a little swollen. His hands are folded over his stomach, resting on his black suit. The suit he wore when we got married. Why? I ask him in my own head. Why did you do it? I ask him, hoping I can hear him whisper something to me, whisper anything back. To answer my questions, to give me something; anything to make me understand why he did what he did. Why he left me with so many fucking questions and not one answer. 

The man comes over to close the casket. Eric’s face disappears slowly, the shadow filling his face till the casket finally shuts. “I’m sorry for your loss,” the man says, nodding at me. “If at any time you want it open, we can open it back up.” I turn around now, looking at the chairs that will fill up as soon as the people start coming in. Ethan consoles my mother-in-law, and Elliot stands where we were just sitting, his hands in his pockets. 

“I’m getting the girls,” I tell them and then walk out with my head held high but my shoulders slumped. Defeated is a word that you use so many times not really understanding what can actually defeat you. I know now, my husband dying, him cheating on me, my kids without a father, my dreams of growing old with him gone. Beaten straight down to my core, straight down to my bones. 

I walk over to them as they look up. “Let’s go, girls,” I tell them as they both get up and walk to me. Lizzie takes one hand, Daisy takes the other, and we walk back into the room that holds a piece of our hearts. The room where their father lies, with no answers and no tomorrow.

We stand in that room for four hours while people come up to me and give me their condolences. I nod my head and play the part of the grieving wife. I am the grieving wife, but I’m also the wife whose husband didn’t love her enough to just be with her. The wife who knew her husband was slipping away but couldn’t catch it in time. The wife he said he would love and protect. The wife who stands here between his girls wishing that for one second he suffered horribly. The wife who has to pick up the fucking pieces and lie to her girls about what a great guy he was. The wife who, at the end of the day, just wasn’t good enough. 

We listen as people tell us how amazing he was, how much he loved his family, and how much he loved his girls. The whole time, I’m yelling on the inside, ready to stand in the middle of the room, throw my head back, and yell at the top of my lungs. But I don’t do what I want. I don’t tell them what a fraud my husband was. I don’t tell them that it was almost all lies. I don’t tell them that the day he died, they called his other wife and not me. I don’t tell them that I wasn’t the one with him when he died.

I stand here thinking about this other person—his other wife—and wonder how she would handle this. How she would be with my in-laws. Would she just let them control her and do everything for her? Would she want it to be open and weep for him beside the casket instead of standing next to it? 

I look around the room at all the people who came to pay their respects, and my eyes find someone I’ve never met before. Someone I’ve never seen before, and our eyes connect. His green eyes stare into mine as I watch him nod to me and turn to walk out. As he walks out of the crowded room, I strain my neck to watch his back. I don’t have long to think because Elliot comes up and whispers, “It’s time.”
When her nose isn’t buried in a book, or her fingers flying across a keyboard writing, she’s in the kitchen creating gourmet meals. You can find her, in four inch heels no less, in the car chauffeuring kids, or possibly with her husband scheduling his business trips. It’s a good thing her characters do what she says, because even her Labrador doesn’t listen to her…
HOSTED BY:

 

5 stars, Book Review

Broken Love Story by Natasha Madison Review!

Leave a comment

arcblurb956c1-35239470_1064540333711769_7107813220068360192_nSamantha: 

I had the perfect life; a husband who loved me, and two kids who were my world.
Until someone else answered his phone and my perfect life shattered.
When he died, I was left with answers he couldn’t give me and a box full of lies.
He left me broken.

Blake: 
I fell in love when I was fifteen, knowing she was the one.
For five years, she was my everything—my every breath, every heartbeat, every thought.
She made me promise to move on, promise to find love again, but I broke those promises because I can’t move on.

Two broken souls brought together by tragedy and heartbreak.
Can a broken love story be fixed?

— Amazon — Goodreads — Perfect Love Story — Unexpected Love Story —

aboutheauthor28d32-natasha2bmadison

When her nose isn’t buried in a book, or her fingers flying across a keyboard writing, she’s in the kitchen creating gourmet meals. You can find her, in four inch heels no less, in the car chauffeuring kids, or possibly with her husband scheduling his business trips. It’s a good thing her characters do what she says, because even her Labrador doesn’t listen to her…

— Goodreads — Facebook — Reader’s Group — Amazon —

reviewbrokenlovestory1

Holy crap I wasn’t ready. After reading Perfect Love Story and Unexpected Love Story, I hoped and prayed Broken was about Samantha and Blake. AND HELLO IT WAS. After all my finger crossing and rain dancing in hopes it was this story, I thought I was prepared for their love story.

I.
WAS.
NOT.
READY.

In her way, Natasha Madison seamlessly blended three love stories happening in concert, while simultaneously creating three unique and individual romances that will leave you wanting more. Each piece of the story you read adds a new layer to the lies that one man told effectively ripping apart the lives around him.

If you hated Eric in Perfect, trust me, it gets worse. One minute, Samantha was taking care of her kids while wondering where her husband was, and the next she got a call that her husband was dead. Not only that, he had another wife. Her life as she knew it was over but just when Samantha’s perfect life crashes down around her, she finds a friend in the most unlikely place: Blake. Her dead husband’s second wife’s older brother. Yeah, say that three times fast.

Blake is a compassionate man, who suffered his own loss when he was young. Because of that, he’s broken in his own way. He’s picked up the pieces as best as possible, but it’s not really until he meets Samantha that he realizes what he’s missing. What starts out as extending a helping hand to someone struggling, becomes more. So much more.

To sum it up: ALL THE FEELS. This book had everything! Healing, love, romance, friendship, and (my personal fave) a single mom. Blake steps up in ways that Eric never did. He shows not only Samantha, but also her girls, what love is like. He shows them what a family is supposed to be. This is probably my favorite of the series (though Gabe is still mine!) because of all the stuff we didn’t see in the previous books. Samantha went from a girl I disliked immensely, to a girl I felt bad for, to a woman I want to be when I grow up. Her strength in living life after a tragedy, in trying to mend her broken pieces, in everything was so amazing I admire her.

Basically, you NEED this book. And this series.

brokenlovestory25star
**All images are from freeimages.com and pexels.com and all fonts are from CreativeMarket.com. For more info on the fonts and images used, please email caitscreatures@gmail.com**
5 stars, Book Review

Truly Yours by Mia Miller Review

Leave a comment

arcblurbtrulyyoursWe crashed into each other like the moth and the flame…

For years, we’ve been best friends.
I told him all my secrets and I believed I knew his.

In camp, I thought he was the most beautiful boy in the world.

In high-school, I promised him my virginity.

On our first day of college I had three revelations:

He’s a jerk.

He doesn’t care.

I don’t even know him.

— Goodreads — Amazon —

aboutheauthormiamillerMia Miller started writing as a getaway from a taxing day job in a multinational corp. A lover of all things romance since forever, Mia tries to find a little bit of a love story even in zombie movies. She likes her book boyfriends Alpha and her novels naughty.

Nowadays Mia can be constantly found typing away, with her Dogo Argentino at her feet. Mia brings to her readers books in the New Adult and Contemporary Romance genre.

— Goodreads — Amazon — Website — Twitter — Instagram — Newsletter — Readers Group — Facebook —

reviewtrulyyours2

I gotta admit, making these teasers was SUPER fun. I don’t normally go for bright colors, but Delia brought out the artist in me.

Truly Yours breathes life into the term “second-chance romance”. I’m not usually one for second chance romances for one of two reasons:

  1. Someone was an idiot, which led to HUGE drama and it makes me want to scratch my eyes out.
  2. When they say “second chance” they mean second chance at love in general, where I always believed it meant finding love with the a person for a second time.

When a novel says it’s second chance, I usually skip past it. Either I want to throw the book at someone, or I’m confused as to what made it a second chance romance. But, when my girl Mia Miller announced this book, I couldn’t NOT read it. We all have our exception authors, and while Mia’s debut was only a few months back with Love on Hold, she blew me away. So whatever she writes, I’m bugging her until I can get my hands on it.

Truly is truly (heh) a second chance. Delia and Oscar met years ago at summer camp, when they were both young but infatuated. They became fast friends, opening up to each other in ways they didn’t think possible. They bonded on levels that they were too young to understand. But they lost touch over the course of their friendship, and miscommunication turned their young love into disdain. Fast forward a few years, and now their going to the same college, and the magnet that drew them together when they were younger brings them back. Delia may have started out as a girl infatuated, but she quickly grows to love Oscar as a woman (and I mean, he’s a ginger, who wouldn’t?). But Oscar is hiding a big secret, one that tore them apart when they were younger, and threatens their relationship now.

A perfect blend of past and present, mixing letters and memories for the past, Mia Miller paints a picture of two young adults finding love all over again. She creates a symphony of heartache and forgiveness, blending in topics that are hard to talk about and humor to lift you up. She outdid herself with this novel, and I’m anxiously awaiting the next *insert all the heart emojis here*.

trulyyours35star
**All images are from freeimages.com and pexels.com and all fonts are from CreativeMarket.com. For more info on the fonts and images used, please email caitscreatures@gmail.com**
5 stars, Book Tour

BLOG TOUR for Serenity by Rochelle Paige!

Leave a comment

SERENITY_BLOG TOUR1.jpg

Serenity, the conclusion to the emotional and romantic Fortuity Duet by Rochelle Paige, is available NOW!

Serenity - 5x8_Cream_310(1)

I’d lived a privileged life, in the lap of luxury and surrounded by family. It had felt like I was on top of the world…until tragedy struck.

My sense of loss felt bottomless, and I struggled with it every single day. Finding my path back into the light seemed impossible.

But then I met Faith—she was smart, sexy, and out of my league even though she didn’t have a penny to her name. We grew up in different worlds, but somehow we fit perfectly together.

Except neither of us had counted on learning that our connection was more profound than we knew.

SerenityAvailable now_ku

Download your copy or read FREE in Kindle Unlimited today!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2HXsrJV

Amazon Universal: http://mybook.to/SerenityFD

Add to GoodReads: https://bit.ly/2JKHac8

Serenity scares teaser.jpg

Excerpt:

“You feeling okay?” I murmured in Faith’s ear as I pulled her closer. We were watching a movie, cuddled on the couch together. I was leaning back against the cushions in the corner, and she was between my legs with her head on my chest. But she wasn’t relaxed like she should be after a day out shopping with my mom. She was so damn tense she was practically vibrating with it.

I slid my palms up her arms, pleased as fuck at the goosebumps that followed in the wake of my touch. There was no denying that she still responded to me with the same fierceness she had since we first met. But there was also no denying that something was wrong with Faith. She’d seemed off ever since we got situated on the couch a few hours earlier. I wasn’t sure what was bothering her, but it felt like she was pulling away from me.

When she’d moved in with me a couple of weeks ago, life had seemed as close to perfect as it could get. We had our college degrees. My dad gave me a week off before I started my new job at his company. Living with me meant Faith could continue on for her master’s degree without worrying about money. It was a big fucking deal that she was willing to let me take care of her that way since she was so damn self-sufficient.

My tough girl had finally taken down some of her walls and let me in. She’d even found the courage to admit she loved me.

Out loud.

Repeatedly.

But no matter how often she said those three little words, I still felt like she hadn’t let me all the way in. I figured it’d take time, and I needed to be patient with her. To remember she wasn’t used to being loved by anyone and didn’t know how to handle it.

Normally, I was okay with that. But tonight it was almost as though she was scared. And if my tough girl was afraid of something, then it was my job to make her feel safe. Which would be a hell of a lot easier if I knew what I was up against; only Faith wasn’t giving me much to go on.

FORTUITY_AN_KU

Start the duet with Fortuity!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2F5wXni

Amazon Universal: http://mybook.to/Fortuity

Add to GoodReads: https://bit.ly/2G71HcP

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Rochelle Paige is the Amazon bestselling author of more than twenty books. She absolutely adores reading and her friends growing up used to tease her when she trailed after them, trying to read and walk at the same time. She loves stories with alpha males, sassy heroines, hot sex and happily ever afters. She is a bit of a genre hopper in both her reading and her writing. So far she’s written books in several romance sub-genres including new adult, contemporary, paranormal and romantic suspense.

She is the mother of two wonderful sons who inspired her to chase her dream of being an author. She wants them to learn from her that you can live your dream as long as you are willing to work for it.

RochellePaige

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR:

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

Facebook Reader Group: https://www.facebook.com/ groups/1436132763270558/

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/Ly1Tn

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ RochellePaige1 | @RochellePaige1

IG: https://www.instagram.com/ rochellepaigeauthor/ | @rochellepaigeauthor

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/ author/show/7328358.Rochelle_ Paige

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/ Rochelle-Paige/e/B00HEWGCFY

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/ profile/rochelle-paige