The Moment of Letting Go by J.A.Redmerski

     Right after college, Sienna Murphy got a prestigious job and gained the stability she’d always craved-until work takes her to the sun-drenched shores of Oahu and places her in the path of sexy surfer Luke Everett. For the first time, she lets her heart take control. Drawn to his carefree charm, she makes a spontaneous and very un-Sienna-like decision to drop everything and stay in Hawaii for two more weeks.

     Luke lives fast and wild. When he meets Sienna, he’s convinced that some no-strings-attached fun is just what she needs. As their nights quickly turn from playful to passionate, Luke can’t deny the deep connection he feels. But there’s a reason Luke doesn’t do long-term. He can’t promise Sienna forever, when the enormity of his past has shown him just how fragile the future can be…

     I was lucky enough to win a contest and get an advanced copy of this book. I have a read a few other of Redmerski’s books, and have fallen in love with every single one of them. This one is absolutely no different. The way she just rips your heart out again and again is something to be expected, and doesn’t disappoint in this novel. The story of friendship and love was perfect. She has a wonderful way of showing how the characters helped to better each other, it was more than just boy meets girl and they both have obstacles to face before they can be together forever. It was boy and girl meet and help each other become better people, form new outlooks on life, and heal parts of themselves that they thought might never be alive within them again, and even if they can’t be together they still grew. It had so much heartbreaking depth to it, it was, at times, hard to read (most especially the parts about the brother). I can honestly say that I will cherish this book and be rereading it many many times over, and you should be sure to look for it when it comes out in August (8/11/15 to be exact).

     For the rating, this book is a solid 5. It had the love story I so hoped for, a beautiful amount of depth, and characters that were amazingly relatable and lovable. The dialogue was funny and cute and realistic, and overall it was just a really good read.

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Cover Reveal for MISCONDUCT (!!!!!) by Penelope Douglas. Plus Giveaway!!

Title: Misconduct

Author: Penelope Douglas

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Release Date: December 1, 2015

Synopsis

Former tennis player Easton Bradbury is trying to be the best teacher she can be, trying to reach her bored students and trying to forget her past. What brought her to this stage in her life isn’t important. She can’t let it be. But now one parent-teacher meeting may be her undoing…

Meeting Tyler Marek for the first time makes it easy for Easton to see why his son is having trouble in school. The man knows how to manage businesses and wealth, not a teenage boy. Or a young teacher, for that matter, though he tries to. And yet…there is something about him that draws Easton in—a hint of vulnerability, a flash of attraction, a spark that might burn.

Wanting him is taboo. Needing him is undeniable. And his long-awaited touch will weaken Easton’s resolve—and reveal what should stay hidden… (*STANDALONE, NO CLIFFHANGER*)

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Penelope Douglas is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Fall Away series. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Northern Iowa and a Master of Science in Education from Loyola University in New Orleans. Penelope lives in Las Vegas with her family.

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Point of Retreat by Colleen Hoover

     Layken and Will have proved their love can get them through anything; until someone from Will’s past re-emerges, leaving Layken questioning the very foundation on which their relationship was built. Will is forced to face the ultimate challenge…how to prove his love for a girl who refuses to stop “carving pumpkins.”

     FIVE FIVE FIVE!!!!! Reading Nicholas Sparks books have scarred me. I was almost extremely traumatized by what I thought might happen in this book, because of how his books have hurt me (he’s good, but he hurts my heart with his books). Thankfully, I was reading Colleen Hoover who always manages to make me happy after causing me to leak profusely from my eyes. This book was the perfect follow up to Slammed. I loved getting to read more of Will’s and Layken’s story. There were quite a few sad/shaky/terrifying parts in this book, and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. I’m not sure if this is a spoiler, but Layken doesn’t get amnesia (see what I mean about Nicholas Sparks ruining me?!). That is all I will say about that. I love how they’re really just the perfect parents, especially considering their situation, and I love the family of friends that they’ve built. I wish I could read more about Eddie and Gavin, but I am so happy with what I got, and I loved every second of what was there for them. I have to start carving pumpkins about this book, or I’ll be giving it all away, but leave this review knowing the book is a butterflying good read. 

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Slammed by Colleen Hoover

     Following the unexpected death of her father, 18-year-old Layken is forced to be the rock for both her mother and younger brother. Outwordly, she appears resilient and tenacious, bit inwardly, she’s losing hope.

     Enter Will Cooper: The attractive 21-year-old new neighbor with an intriguing passion for slam poetry and a unique sense of humor. Within days of their introduction, Will and Layken form an intense and emotional connection, leaving Layken with a renewed sense of hope.

     Not long after an intense, heart-stopping first date, they are slammed to the core when a shocking revelation forces their new relationship to a sudden halt. Daily interactions become impossibly painful as they struggle to find a balance between the feelings that pull them together, and the secret that keeps them apart.

     This book is getting a five. Colleen Hoover is a sadist who loves making me cry (I don’t really mean that. I love her books, and if you follow her on facebook you’ll see that she is too awesome for words). This book was extremely hard to read, mostly because I’m a cry baby and there were a great deal of times I had to read through the tears. The reasons Layken and Will can’t be together are completely and tragically legitimate, which makes it even worse. They both have had, and have to deal with entirely too many things for people their age. This was definitely an emotional read that makes you grateful for what and who you have, as well as a book likely to give you a headache from ugly crying so hard. You would think that by this point I would be more prepared for her books to have that effect on me, but every time I read one of her books I’m not. As an added bonus in this book, all of her chapters start with The Avett Brothers lyrics. If you don’t know them you should probably check them out. I was pleasantly surprised by this, and have been on an Avett Brothers kick since starting it. 

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Dust to Dust by Tami Hoag

     The death of internal affairs investigator Andy Paxton is a potential political bomb for the Minneapolis Police Department….Andy Paxton was gay and he was investigating a possible cop connection in the brutal murder of another gay officer. But Andy’s death looks like suicide, or an unfortunate and embarrassing accident, and the pressure is on from the top brass to close the case as soon as possible. But the investigation’s lead detective Sam Kovac is not convinced the case is as straightforward as it appears. As he digs deeper, it is looking very much like Paxton discovered something that got him killed. And he might not be the final victim.

     I have to give this one another 4. It got pretty intense from middle to end, and there was so much going on I never even tried to guess who the killer was (good thing too, considering I would have been wrong many times over). I want to read the next book just because I want to see Kovak happy (if such a thing is possible, we may never know). We got to see a whole lot more of him in this book, and actually see into his head a good deal (a pretty depressing place to be). I also really want to see Liska's ex to be a good man and start to stick around, or at least let her find someone good. This book wasn't as big a thriller as it was a cluster of death and murder/suicide that was a little too gruesome at times. It kept me on my toes, and I really didn't know what was gonna happen next; nor could I have even begun to predict the ending. Overall I think it was a good story that kept my attention, but it wasn't quite the thriller I was anticipating.
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Ashes to Ashes by Tami Hoag

     He performs his profane ceremony in a wooded Minneapolis park, anointing his victims, then setting the bodies ablaze. He has already claimed three lives, and he won’t stop there. Only this time there is a witness. But she isn’t talking.

Enter Kate Conlan, former FBI agent turned victim/witness advocate. Not even she can tell if the reluctant witness is a potential victim or something more troubling still. Her superiors are interested only because the latest victim may be the daughter of Peter Bondurant, an enigmatic billionaire. When Peter pulls strings, Special Agent John Quinn gets assigned to the case. But the FBI’s ace profiler of serial killers is the last person Kate wants to work with, not with their troubled history. Now she faces the most difficult role of her career-and her life. For she’s the only woman who has what it takes to stop the killer-and the one woman he wants next.

     Gahhhh. This book was pretty terrifying. I have no idea why, but I just had a sudden urge for a good thriller. This one is well worthy of a four. I absolutely loved that I was completely wrong about the killer. I was so far off base it wasn’t even funny. They never even suspected the guy I thought it was. The suspense was great, especially towards the end, but the beginning was a little harder to get into. I’ve read a few of her other books (which gave me nightmares), and I’ve found that I love the way she starts the book like she did in the others I’ve read, from the killers perspective. This book is mildly gruesome, and if you have a really weak stomach, you’re probably going to want to hurl a few times. While it may get graphic, it isn’t as bad as it could be, and I definitely count that in the plus column. I guess this is the first in a series, kind of, mostly surrounding Kovac and Liska, two detectives that I really liked in the story, even if the story wasn’t based around them. I’m interested in seeing where they go, and apparently a glutton for nightmares that are sure to come in the next few books.

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Captive Films Season 1 by Jillian Dodd

     Season One, the first entire book in the Captive Films series, was fantastic.This series follows the Keatyn Chronicles with a lot of the same characters, just quite a few years later. They run Captive Films. They are extremely successful. They are extremely hot. You can buy these by the season (there are six), or if you're smart (which I hope you are) you'll just buy the entire first season and read it like a novel. There is a whole lot of drama, but not like what was in the Keatyn Chronicles. It's not anxiety attack city, it's "Hey, we're older now, still partying, but we have jobs and sex and stuff." These are definitely more new adult than young adult, but still have the magical feel of the previous series.
      This series is well worth the five it's getting. There are so many stories in this novel surrounding the characters, and while it could get confusing if you hadn't read the Keatyn Chronicles (you need to), the different lives these stories follow are done wonderfully well. So many sad and surprising things happened in the years that have passed, and the author does a great job of giving you an overview, while leaving a lot of stuff out at the same time. This basically means that I'm dying for the next book to come out (DYING!!!!)!!!! You don't get any answers about Riley and Ariela, or Dawson and Vanessa, or Knox and Jennifer, but you do see a surprising marriage between Annie and someone I won't mention, and a love affair that lasted between two other characters I won't mention either. March can't come soon enough for the start of the next "season" and you can currently only pre-order it on iBooks (which didn't stop me from pre-ordering it, so I suggest you get on that).
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