Cindy

Review/ The One & Only

Posted on May 20, 2014May 20, 2014 by Cindy

The One & Only by Emily Giffin
Format: eARC
Published by Random House LLC on 2014-05-20
Pages: 432
Goodreads
Genres: Contemporary, Contemporary Women, Fiction, Literary, Romance

Emily Giffin, the beloved author of such New York Times bestselling novels as Something Borrowed and Where We Belong, returns with an extraordinary story of love and loyalty—and an unconventional heroine struggling to reconcile both.

Thirty-three-year-old Shea Rigsby has spent her entire life in Walker, Texas—a small college town that lives and dies by football, a passion she unabashedly shares. Raised alongside her best friend, Lucy, the daughter of Walker’s legendary head coach, Clive Carr, Shea was too devoted to her hometown team to leave. Instead she stayed in Walker for college, even taking a job in the university athletic department after graduation, where she has remained for more than a decade.

But when an unexpected tragedy strikes the tight-knit Walker community, Shea’s comfortable world is upended, and she begins to wonder if the life she’s chosen is really enough for her. As she finally gives up her safety net to set out on an unexpected path, Shea discovers unsettling truths about the people and things she has always trusted most—and is forced to confront her deepest desires, fears, and secrets.

Thoughtful, funny, and brilliantly observed, The One & Only is a luminous novel about finding your passion, following your heart, and, most of all, believing in something bigger than yourself . . . the one and only thing that truly makes life worth living.

Praise for Emily Giffin

“Emily Giffin ranks as a grand master. . . . She has traversed the slippery slopes of true love, lost love, marriage, motherhood, betrayal, forgiveness and redemption that have led her to be called ‘a modern-day Jane Austen.’ ”—Chicago Sun-Times

“Giffin’s writing is true, smart, and heartfelt.”—Entertainment Weekly “[Giffin] excels at creating complex characters and quick-to-read stories that ask us to explore what we really want from our lives.”—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“A dependably down-to-earth, girlfriendly storyteller.”—The New York Times

“Giffin’s talent lies in taking relatable situations and injecting enough wit and suspense to make them feel fresh.”—People

“When it comes to writing stories that resonate with real women, bestselling author Emily Giffin has hit her stride.”—San Francisco Chronicle From the Hardcover edition.

I received this book for free from publisher/pr firm in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I am a huge fan of Emily Giffin’s books and I was thrilled when I heard that she had The One & Only coming out so imagine my surprise when I was offered it to read before the release date?

I was thrilled and devoured this over the weekend. I literally had a hard time to put it down. That is how much I enjoyed the book. If you are a fan of Emily’s other books then you won’t be disappointed and I highly suggest you pick this one up to read asap.

The One & Only takes place in a small town in Texas called Walker and basically everyone sleeps, eats and breathes football. There is alot of football in the book but not enough to turn me off the book.

The main character in The One & Only is Shea. She is a huge foot ball fan and she is also a sports writer. Shea is a free spirit so to speak where she lives her life the way she thinks it should be and is almost content with it. I think Shea feels as though she doesn’t deserve to have the life like her friend Lucy has. Lucy is married with a child and runs her own clothing boutique. Its almost like she is settling for anything but the best.

Growing up Shea never really had a father figure in her life and I think this is where she looked up to Lucy’s dad, Coach Carr. Although Shea I have to admit has taken a little more of an interest in Coach Carr now that his wife has passed away. Throughout the book I literally kept saying no Shea don’t do anything you will regret. Does this go any further or is it just a crush?

Shea does have other love interests in the book and its not all about Coach Carr. When Shea was interacting with Miller I could see where her friends were saying she could do so much better because I honestly don’t think I could go out with someone like Miller. He is a jock and comes off like a dumb jock at times. Then when she hooks up with Ryan who happens to be in the NHL and is hot I was like Shea you so deserve someone like Ryan. He likes Shea because she is a go with the flow girl. Doesn’t question things, doesn’t ask about every detail and is not all into herself like others he has been with.

Will Ryan be able to get Coach Carr off of Shea’s mind? Will he be the one to change Shea’s life and give her all that she needs and deserves?

The One & Only is a perfect summer read in my opinion.

This is my second book of the Book Sparks Summer Reading Challenge and I have to see I feel as though this challenge is going pretty good so far for me considering I usually suck at doing them. Check back next week for my third book in the summer reading challenge.

Did you read this? What did you think? Do you plan on reading this?

I just want to give you a little heads up. All the books I will be reading and reviewing for BookSparks Summer Reading Challenge are all available in your favorite book stores.

Buy the book
 Amazon Paperback: http://amzn.to/1fhEo7N
 Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/1i9jQUR

About the author:
Emily Giffin is the author of six New York Times bestselling novels: Something Borrowed, Something
Blue, Baby Proof, Love the One You’re With, Heart of the Matter, and Where We Belong. A graduate of
Wake Forest University and the University of Virginia School of Law, she now lives in Atlanta lives with
her husband and three young children.

Connect with the author:
 Facebook: http://on.fb.me/QB2sME
 Twitter: http://bit.ly/RGqbwf
 Website: http://www.emilygiffin.com/
 Goodreads: http://bit.ly/QsQvJi

Release Day/ Set Me Free

Posted on May 18, 2014May 18, 2014 by Cindy

Set Me Free

Book Two – The Fugitives

Lucy Tate has spent the last 5 years on the run. That is, until she met Zach, the one guy she couldn’t bear to leave even though it could cost both of them their lives.

Hunted by a crooked FBI agent who killed her parents, Lucy has taken on one disguise after the next. But Zach knows exactly who she is and in spite of mounting evidence indicating her guilt in her parents’ death, he knows she’s innocent.

Convinced that it’s time to put her years on the run behind her, Zach and Lucy vow to fight back, clear her name, and take down the real killer.

With support from Zach’s loyal friends and his uncle, an investigative reporter, they set out on a dangerous mission hoping that the truth…will set them free.

Purchase for $2.99

About the Author

Melissa Pearl was born in Auckland, New Zealand, but has spent much of her life abroad, living in countries such as Jordan, Cyprus and Pakistan… not to mention a nine month road trip around North America with her husband. “Best. Year. Ever!!” She now lives in China with her husband and two sons. She is a trained elementary teacher, but writing is her passion. Since becoming a full time mother she has had the opportunity to pursue this dream and her debut novel hit the internet in November 2011. Since then she has continued to produce a steady stream of books. Recently she signed with Evatopia Press and her first Evatopia book is coming out in February 2014 – True Colors, The Masks Series #1. She is very excited to be trying out new things this year while continuing to publish under her own name as well. She has six books planned for 2014 and is excited about writing each and every one of them.

“I am passionate about writing. It stirs a fire in my soul that I never knew I had. I want to be the best writer I can possibly be and transport my readers into another world where they can laugh, cry and fall in love.”

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Top 8 Books from BEA That I Would Like to Read #3

Posted on May 17, 2014June 2, 2014 by Cindy

Good Morning everyone. This is the third installment of the Top 8 Books From Book Expo America That I Would Want to Read.

Sadly I will be unable to attend this year due to real life events that have happened but I will be there in spirit.

Its hard to believe that BEA is only 12 days away. I am sure the bloggers who are going are getting excited.

Anyways here is my list of the Top 8 Books that I know I will eventually buy when they come out.

Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas
Love Lucy by April Lindner
Glory by Maureen McGowan (book 3)
Hider, Seeker Secret Keeper by Elizabeth Kiem
Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers
Being Audrey Hepburn by Mitchell Kreigman
The Vault of Dreamers
Unraveled by Gennifer Albin

Do any of these titles interest you?

Review/ Undone

Posted on May 16, 2014June 13, 2014 by Cindy

Undone by Cat Clarke
Published by Sourcebooks, Inc. on 2014-05-06
Pages: 384
Goodreads
Genres: Bullying, Social Issues, Young Adult

When a highly sensitive video goes viral, one teen is left dead and another seeks revenge.

Jem Halliday is in love with her gay best friend. Its not ideal, but she's learning to live with it. Until Kai kills himself after being outed in a highly private moment.

All she has left is a series of letters he's left her-one a month, each encouraging her to come out of her shell. But Jem has a different plan. Sure, she'll be more outgoing-whatever it takes to infiltrate the group of Populars who released the video that made Kai commit suicide. And then she'll bring them down.

I received this book for free from publisher/pr firm in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

For some reason I have never read any of Cat Clarke’s books and I’m not quite sure why because from the descriptions I have read I know it would be something I would enjoy reading and honestly after reading this one I know I want to pick up her books and read more.

When I was reading this I wasn’t sure how it would play out in the book and with my emotions because its a heavy and depressing book and I have to say that Cat did a wonderful job with the book and she tackled the subject like a pro.

My heart broke for Kai because no one should ever have to resort to killing themselves. Why can’t we accept people who are different? Why do we feel the need to drag them down even further then they are? My heart also was breaking for Jem because she lost the one true thing she truly loved in the world. I wish someone would have stepped in to help her deal with the loss of her friend, her love.

Undone is told in the past and present. So you will find out a what really happened and what is happening now. It wasn’t confusing at all.

Jem has always had a thing for her best friend Kai but never really said or did anything until they were much older. He was super nice and let her down gently telling her he was actually gay. This of course is heartbreaking for Jem but she never let that change in their friendship because that is the most important thing for her. She will always love Kai and she even accepts that he is gay.

Kai has never really come out to anyone and only a few selected people know and not everyone is so happy about it. I think they wished that he would have just kept his mouth shut and went on with life. For me this was a little hard because I don’t think you should have to hid who you really are.

Everything changes the night Kai and Jem go to a party. A party that I think in the end that both regret going to. I think both Kai and Jem had a little too much to drink. Jem has no idea what happened at the party until the next day when a video surfaces of Kai. Kai is devasted by this and he has no idea where to go or turn to. He can’t deal with it and does the only thing he knows what to do and that is to kill himself.

Jem is done. She is slowly checking out and can’t handle not being with Kai. She is alone and there is no one there for her. You can see that she is thinking of just ending it but the magically Kai reaches out to her with letters he has written her. I think those letters were the saving grace for Jem because she wanted to know why he would do this to here and who would force Kai to do something like this.

The twelve letters he left for Jem to open monthly that offered little missions for Jem to accomplish and of course some of them she didn’t want to do but deep down she did them for Kai and herself. I think Kai wanted another purpose for those letters and Jem took it another way. I think Kai was trying to force Jem out of her bubble and to expose her to new people etc but she took it at a way to intact revenge on those that took Kai away from her. In a way I want to say Jem was obsessed with Kai both alive and dead.

Can a love for someone you truly can’t have become a person’s obsession? I think so and I think this was the case for Jem.

I really enjoyed reading the book and look forward to reading Cat’s other books sometime soon. There is just so many books and not enough time to read them all in.

Blog Tour/ Acting Up

Posted on May 15, 2014May 14, 2014 by Cindy

Acting Up
A Covington Falls Chronicles Romance
By: Kristin Wallace

Blurb:

Addison Covington is the reigning Ice Queen of television. Until her producer husband falls in love with her on-screen daughter and a well-placed punch on national television casts her as the wicked ex-wife. Fired and disgraced, she escapes to Covington Falls, the idyllic Southern town where she found comfort in a time of turmoil as a teenager.

Life is constantly on the brink of chaos for widower Ethan Thomas. Being a single father is one challenge. As a high school principle he also has to deal with hundreds of students and their interfering parents. Now, he’s short one drama teacher and if he doesn’t find a replacement to direct the spring musical he’s going to have a riot on his hands. His childhood neighbor, Addison Covington, could be an answer to prayer. Or one more complication he can’t afford.

Before Addison can say “Casting Call” she’s drafted to direct the high school musical. Soon she’d dealing with some off-key caterwauling, a bitter stepson showing up on her doorstep, and the boy-next-door turned sexiest high school principal she’s ever met. One thing Addison and Ethan agree on is that there’s no room in their lives for romance. He’s got too much at stake, and she needs to reclaim her former glory in Hollywood. In the end, these two lost souls will choreograph a happy ending with the help of Grace, Love and a Curtain Call.

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Acting-Up-Covington-Falls-Chronicles-ebook/dp/B00JUAJKVQ

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/acting-up-kristen-wallace/1119280482?ean=2940149577378

Link to Follow Tour: http://tastybooktours.blogspot.com/2014/03/now-booking-tasty-virtual-tour-for_9.html

Author Info

Growing up Kristin devoured books like bags of Dove Dark Chocolate. Everything from Nancy Drew & Encyclopedia Brown to C.S. Lewis and the Sweet Valley High series. Later she discovered romance novels. It’s no surprise then that Kristin would one day try her hand at writing them. She writes inspirational romance and women’s fiction filled with love, laughter and a leap of faith. In May 2013, Kristin sold her first novel, MARRY ME, to Astraea Press. Publication date to come!

When she’s not writing her next novel, Kristin works as an advertising copywriter. She also enjoys singing in her church choir and playing flute in a community orchestra.

Author Links
http://authorkristinwallace.wordpress.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Kristin.L.Wallace?fref=ts

Rafflecopter Giveaway ($20.00 Amazon or B&N Gift Card or Ebook Copy of MARRY ME)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

(Excerpt 7: Addison tells Ethan that she had a miscarriage during her marriage.)

…“That little stick changes your life, doesn’t it?” Ethan asked, thinking of the moment when his sons were born. The overwhelming love, mixed with outright terror knowing he was responsible for two helpless human beings. After all the disappointments and the losses, to finally hold his precious boys had been nothing short of miraculous.

“It certainly changed mine,” Addison said. “Changed my marriage, too. Looking back, I think that might have been the beginning of the end. Something died between Merrick and me, and we never recovered.”

“No wonder. To suggest something so—” He took a deep breath. “I can’t imagine a world without my boys.”

“That’s what makes you a good man.”

“It’s what makes me a father.”

A dry chuckle escaped. “Ironically, Merrick is going to be a father again, after all. America’s sweetheart is pregnant.”

“What?”

“Angela told me on the set. Gleefully informed me she was two months pregnant and that Merrick was thrilled. He’d already gone out and started buying baby things.”

A key slid into the slot, unlocking another secret in Addison’s life. “Let me guess, that’s when you punched her.”

“Bingo,” Addison said. “All I could hear in my head was Merrick telling me to take care of the situation with my baby when he was doing cartwheels over Angela’s baby. Before I knew it, my arm was swinging.”

“I hope it hurt.”

“Sure did. Felt like I’d slammed my hand in a car door.”

He chuckled. “No, Angela.”

A wicked gleam entered Addison’s eyes. “She screamed. There was blood.” Her smile fell. “It was a great until Merrick called me into his office.”

“I’m sure it doesn’t make the humiliation you suffered go away, but honestly, I think you’re better off without him,” Ethan said. “You deserve so much more.”

“Do I? What if Merrick was right?” Addison asked. “Maybe he had an instinct about me. I’m probably the last person on earth who should be raising a child.”

“Why?”

“Too many reasons to count. I’m an emotional mess, for one. I don’t have a good role model to follow in the parenting arena, and I’ve never been around children. I’m just not good with anyone under the legal voting age.”

Where had Addison gotten the idea she couldn’t relate to children? Another mind game by her jerk of a husband?

“Tell that to my sons or the kids in the play,” Ethan said, folding his arms over his chest. “What about Aaron? He’d throw himself under a bus for you.”

A smile flickered across her face for a moment, but it disappeared almost as soon as it appeared. “So there’s one other option, which is that Merrick simply didn’t want a baby with me. I think I’d rather believe there was some maternal gene missing than accept I was foolish enough to believe he never loved me at all.”

“I thought we’d established your ex-husband is a prize pig.”

“We did?”

He brushed his fingers across her cheek. “I did anyway.”

Addison slipped her arms around his waist. She probably meant the gesture as a hug, but for him, the physical contact set off a chain reaction. Ethan stiffened, knowing he shouldn’t tempt fate or his own suppressed urges.

Oh, who am I kidding?

He didn’t have the strength to push her away.

“You want to know what I thought when I saw you holding Mary?” he asked, pulling her closer, giving in to the magnetic pull.

“I think it would be a bad idea if you told me,” Addison whispered back.

“I thought you were adorable,” Ethan said, ignoring the warning. “Flustered and scared and beautiful.”

Laughing, Addison buried her face in his chest. “I take it back. You’re not a good man. You’re dangerous. I thought we weren’t going to do this anymore.”

“I wasn’t.”

Then he lowered his head, capturing her lips.

Tour Schedule

May 5th- Book Reviews and More by Kathy- Excerpt
May 6th- Room with Books– Promo/Excerpt
May 7th- Readers Realm– Review
(Stop 2) In Between the Lines- Review/Guest Post
May 8th- Racing to Read– Review
(Stop 2) Romancing The Book- Interview
May 9th- The Library Mistress– Guest Post/Review
(Stop 2) The Suburban Eclectic Reviews– Review/Excerpt

May 12th- Romancing the Readers– Promo
(Stop 2) Paranormal Romance and Beyond- Promo
May 13th- Crazy Four Books– Review/Excerpt
May 14th- Girl Meets Books– Interview/Excerpt
May 15th– Christine’s Words– Guest Post
(Stop 2) Cindy’s Love of Books– Promo/Excerpt
(Stop 3) Books with Leti Del Mar– Promo/Excerpt
May 16th– The Phantom Paragrapher– Review
(Stop 2) Sara Walter Ellwood– Guest Post

Chick Advisor Show Case 2014 Event

Posted on May 15, 2014May 14, 2014 by Cindy

I recently heard about this awesome event that is being put on by Chick Advisor.

Chick Advisor has come up with an awesome event called ShowCase. It will include 300 women from 3 cities in 3 stunning hotels and a boatload of free products. ShowCase is like a giant reviewing party we’re bringing to Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.

You have to be a member of the Chick Advisor site ( http://www.chickadvisor.com ) to attend. The tickets cost $25 + GST but it will get you into one exclusive party that is limited to only 100 ladies per city. So that is one exclusive party if I do say so myself.

Here is some more information that I took from the ChickAdvisor site:

While the DJ spins, your gorgeous self will be testing and reviewing products from GOSH, Soap & Glory, Rocky Mountain Soap, Kleenex, No Bleeding Lips, No Dark Shadows, Bourjois, and Skinny Cow with your closest ChickAdvisor pals over tea at the Ritz-Carlton in Toronto and Montreal, or the Rosewood Georgia Hotel in Vancouver.

Of course, all those products you tested will be yours to keep! That’s over $100 worth of free full-sized products. Tickets are just $25 and we have only 100 spots in each city, so go check your calendars and get your tickets now. Our events sell out fast!

Event dates:

Toronto: Sunday May 25th 1-4pm
Ritz-Carlton, 181 Wellington St. W Toronto
**SOLD OUT**

Montreal: Sunday June 1st 1-4pm
Ritz-Carlton, 1228 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montréal
Get tickets for Montreal

Vancouver: Sunday June 22nd 1-4pm
Rosewood Hotel Georgia, 801 West Georgia Street, Vancouver
Get tickets for Vancouver

I am excited because I bought my ticket and will be attending with another local blogger, Amanda from http://lifewithlol.wordpress.com/ and http://myprettydistractions.wordpress.com/

I am hoping to be able to snap all kinds of pictures and will do a post and perhaps a vlog after the event. If your in Toronto. Montreal or Vancouver do you plan on attending? If you do please let me know.

Review/ The Limit

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Cindy

The Limit by Kristen Landon
Format: Paperback
Published by Simon and Schuster on 2011-12-06
Pages: 291
Goodreads
Genres: Action & Adventure, Family, General, Mysteries & Detective Stories, Science Fiction, Young Adult

An eighth grade girl was taken today . . .

With this first sentence, readers are immediately thrust into a fast-paced thriller that doesn't let up for a moment.

In a world not too far removed from our own, kids are being taken away to special workhouses if their families exceed the monthly debt limit imposed by the government. Thirteen-year-old Matt briefly wonders if he might be next, but quickly dismisses the thought. After all, his parents are financially responsible, unlike the parents of those other kids. As long as his parents remain within their limit, the government will be satisfied and leave them alone.

But all it takes is one fatal visit to the store to push Matt’s family over their limit—and to change his reality forever.

I have been doing some major cleaning up around my desk, on my desk, under my desk and my book shelves to get ready for the summer and I thought since I had a stack of quite a few books that I read last year and never got to review that I would do just little mini reviews of them.

I have to say first off that the cover is very different from the one I own. For some reason I like the original one much better then the newer version.

The Limit is set way in the future where every family has a set spending allowance that the government has imposed. If the family goes over that limit their children over the age of 13 are taken away to special workhouses and they are suppose to work of the debit to bring it down.

The main character Matt who is 13 years old is feeling pretty good that he won’t be take because he assumes his family is very good with their spending and is shocked when one day they come for him. Matt has no idea what to expect from these workhouses and is pretty shocked when it goes.

The work house is almost like a tiered system where the smartest kids get the most out of the system. Matt falls in to this category. The rooms on the top floor are pretty posh, they have a pool, all the food you can eat and the freedom to buy anything their little hearts desire.

I have to say when I was reading this I was like WTH….how can they have all this access if their families are in debt? It doesn’t make sense so with that you want to read to find out more about this.

Will Matt figure out what is going on? What will he do when he finds out the truth?

The one thing I find fault with is, why do the children have to suffer for what their parents have done with the money? Its not like the children forced their parents to over spend. I think as the parents and adults we need to teach our children good spending habits and explain to them that their are consequences to their spending money when they don’t have it to spend.

I really enjoyed the book and it was pretty fast paced which I really enjoy.