Curiouser

2 STARS

In the first installment of The Intern by Brooke Cumberland, we meet Cecilia, a confident, driven and resourceful 18-year old girl.

When she was younger, Cecilia was shot during the same brutal attack that killed her father. Ceci never got closure but, being a resourceful girl, she comes up with a plan to unravel the mystery behind her father's death, which involves an internship at a company where she can have access to the files of her father’s murder case. However, Ceci is a high school senior and not eligible for the internship, so she “borrows” her older sister identity to apply to this weekend internship at Leighton Enterprises.



At Leighton Enterprises, she meets Bentley Leighton, 24-years-old, a former model, the owner’s son and soon to be CEO. Bentley is also Ceci’s new boss.
In the first part of this serial we follow Cecilia and Bentley while they "try" to fight their mutual attraction and as Cecilia tries to juggle her "feelings" towards her boss and her plan to find out the truth about her father's death.


First of all, I have to say that I liked the premise and I think the concept was very interesting but, unfortunately, my overall opinion about this book is not a positive one.



“Okay, Veronica Mars,” he scowls. “You couldn’t be more wrong, detective.”

Throughout the story there are some references that suggest that Cecilia is a "little detective" but, unfortunately, she's no Veronica Mars. While I liked the MC's voice in the beginning, I felt like she gradually lost her bravado and some times, her only focus seemed to be her attraction towards her boss.



As the story progressed, I felt that the mystery was put on the back burner and the sole focus was on the sexual tension between Ceci and Bentley, which also felt a bit forced due to an excessive amount of sexual innuendos and several mentions of Bentley’s hard-ons.



Also, their attraction escalated a little bit too quickly and the forbidden aspect about their relationship (already mitigated by their reduced age-difference) could’ve been intensified if they tried to resist their attraction and fight their feelings with more conviction instead of engaging in make out sessions at the office.I think I needed the connection between them to have more depth and not be entirely based on the intense physical attraction between the two.

[cue the boner]



I lost count of how many times the guy had a boner since he met Cecilia, they even address the issue:

“You have no idea,” he growls. “My cock’s been hard for weeks.”
I giggle at the image. “Perhaps you need to see a doctor.”
He aggressively yanks my bra down and pulls my nipple into his mouth. All humor gone.



Bentley, comes across as spoiled and immature and while he was constantly turned on, I was constantly getting turned off by his domineering tendencies and his out of character ‘alpha’ ways.

Another major turn off was a sudden possessive speech triggered by a debate on birth control options. On their first sexual encounter, Bentley guilt-trips Ceci to get on the pill, because he doesn’t want to wear a condom:

“That’s a problem, Ceci. I need to get a condom on.”
I curse the fact that I’m not on the damn pill as he pulls out and backs off the bed. I watch as he walks to his dresser and quickly grabs one from the drawer.
(…)
He strides over to the bed and grabs my hands, pulling me up, so we’re chest to chest. “You get on that pill as soon as fucking possible.”
“I will,” I promise.



Yes, she promises to get on the pill to have unprotected sex with the former man-whore who doesn’t want to wear condoms.







Like I’ve said before, she’s no Veronica Mars.



But, perhaps I should see this as a promise of commitment. You know, the usual possessive behavior that precedes a change of heart from the commitment-phobe...right?

"Because the things I want to do to you—and places I want to fuck you—have no time to roll a damn condom on."

Wrong. The pill is just for the sake of time-management, after all, he’s a soon-to-be CEO, he doesn’t have time for condoms.

The originality of the story ends at its premise, this rant and low rating reflects that.



Finally, while I could be a little curious about the mystery behind Cecilia’s father’s death, (which BTW I don't think it's not going to be difficult to figure it out since Bentley, the former model has a password that any Veronica Mars wannabe could easily guess:

"Modeling.
Access approved." AHA!

), unfortunately, I’m not interested in this kind of romance to keep reading this story.
In the meantime, I just hope she doesn’t get an STD.




ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review

DNF at the 20th Tether (around 40%)


I promised myself I would finish this book but I just can't, I TRIED!

Tethered had a good start but along the way it became a spiral of teenage angst, unnecessary drama, scatological references. oh and let's not forget the "omnipresent" tether:


"We shared a link, a tether, an invisible line that kept us together even when we were apart"


"The long invisible tether tightened. I knew who was coming without having to look. I could feel him. My eyes always find him and he always finds me. I stopped questioning it long ago."



"He would always tug on that tether and I would always return."


"Despite the fact that I also felt that invisible…tether…"


"That tether never did go away and though we weren’t physically closer"





"The tether slackened some now as I felt him approaching me in the crowded hallway at school. "


"The invisible tether slackened. My back was to the door..."

"Did he feel that slack in the tether as I hurried up the driveway?"



"The tether between us feels comfortable, not stretched or twisted"


"The tether hummed with pleasure between us"


"I watched him walk away, pulling on my tether, as the ice-cream melted in my hand."


"That tether, however, was very much intact."


"This time when I felt the tether contracting, I got irritated."


"My tether was stretched to the point of pain."


"I would never doubt the tether again."


"That tether between Emmet and me strummed uncomfortably."


"The tether stretched. It pulled. It twisted. It hurt."



She mentions the tether 47 fucking times.

When she's not mentioning the tether, she's breaking up with the guy.

The book has 500+ pages, my tether to this story is not strong enough to finish it - I'm not masochistic enough for this tether torture.




"We will always be tethered."

4 to 4.5 "Panties were never an option" STARS


Reasonable Doubtby Whitney Gracia Williams was a great surprise!!



It's been a long time since I truly enjoyed an erotic romance, more often than not, I think these stories give less attention to the plot and character development and more focus on the steam, usually, there isn't a good balance between those elements, but this was not the case here.



Reasonable doubt feels like a breath of fresh air in the erotic romance genre, it delivers an interesting and original story with great characters:

Andrew, high profile lawyer and man-whore and while this is nothing new, in this case, despite his ways, cockiness and arrogance, I found this character sexy, mysterious and endearing.





Andrew is one sexy asshole.












and Aubrey, the sassy, smart and sexy law student/ballerina. Andrew's chat buddy and new intern.







I LOVED IT!

Good writing, lovable characters, great chemistry, enjoyable banter, secrets, lies, dirty talk.







A delicious guilty pleasure, this first novella is funny, smart and sexy as fuck.



Short and quickie, a tease that will leave you panting for more.



Read 'Reasonable Doubt but remember:







You will need it.



You will probably be one of us.

DNF at 28%

Beautiful Ink had a really good start, the prologue is a shocker, it really captures your attention and I was impressed with the detail given by the author to the MC work as a tattoo artist. I really liked that but, at some point, it was like the story evolved to your average NA book with a girl running from her past, then in her first interaction with the male MC, she gives him a tattoo, they exchange a few words and somehow it's like BAAM! they establish a deep connection.

That was an insta turn off to me, I really don't mind an insta-attraction when it's done with subtlety, but that "intense" connection between the couple felt unrealistic. Then the writing got unnecessarily descriptive and the guy started dropping some cheesy lines on their second (fortuitous) encounter, after that, it was an insta DNF for me.

1 STAR

"To Professor with Love" had a really unique premise, a student-teacher romance that offered something new: the teacher is a woman. Unfortunately, I quickly found out that this is the only thing positive about this story.

Early on, a number of stereotypes are identifiable in the awful character development : on one hand you have, Noel Gamble, the star quarterback, someone who comes across as a man-whore and a dick but, wait, let’s not forget that he has three siblings to feed – the whole reason he plays football – a sob story to make him more likeable and responsible.

Then we have Aspen Kavanaugh, a 23-year old, serious, tough college professor, who has a genius IQ, a PhD and is someone who went through a terrible experience: a rape - a serious subject that was,once again, approached in an ignorant and irresponsible way, but we'll get to that.
Aspen has low self-esteem, never had a friend in her life (not even a stuffed animal!?)

As one of the secondary characters you have Tanning, Noel’s team mate , who provides this book's first cringe-worthy moment (page 2):

"Another C. I swear Kavanagh is afraid of handing out an A.”
“I got an A.” Sidney Chin, the ultimate teacher’s pet, twisted in her seat to wave her paper merrily in our faces.
Tenning snorted. “That’s because you have tits, honey. I swear to God, Kavanagh must be a dyke. She doesn’t give an A to anyone with a dick, especially if he’s on the football team.”

At first, Noel disapproves of his friend offensive comment but that doesn't mean he doesn't do the same in this moment of pure dumbassery:

"Kavanagh was tiny, and probably too rounded for my taste. Or at least I figured she had chub rolls she wanted to hide. Why else would she wear clothes three sizes too large for her?
(…) She had the sensuality of a nun, and she didn’t seem to like guys at all. Not that I believed she was a dyke as Tenning had suggested. I just viewed her as an anti-sexual being. Genderless. At least, I wanted to."

Am I supposed to like or care for these characters?

Then there's an absence of the taboo element associated with teacher-student romances – the story is set in college and -believe it or not- there is only a 3 year old age difference between them (since she’s a 23 year-old college professor and he’s a 20 year-old junior), but these attenuating circumstances are common in NA/teacher-student romances, it’s rare when the author takes a real risk, even so, this could’ve worked if they had something that resembled a normal interaction between a teacher and a student. The student-teacher relationship dynamics between them is surreal, to me they never felt like a student and a teacher, I guess that they are not aware of that either because once they start the affair, they don’t even try to hide it. This, in my opinion, completely obliterates the forbidden element.

Also, the connection between them never felt believable and it gets even worse when the major turning point for their relationship happens when she’s drunk and practically spills all her feelings to him, along with her entire life story; After this, she goes from “serious professor” to a naive girl with no self-worth whatsoever, pining for the star quarterback:

He could have any girl on campus - prettier, younger, and more fashionable with a personality much more lively than mine.
Wait. Noel Gamble could have any girl he wanted. So why had he chosen me? I wasn't all that and a bag of potato chips.

From this point on, it’s a freaking train wreck: misunderstandings, immaturity, stupid decisions, drama, cliches. But, as you recall I mentioned that the MC was raped when she was younger and as if this wasn’t bad enough, towards the end there’s a scene that is atrocious:



"As soon as our lips lost contact with each other,she'd start in. She’d try to push me away. But I wouldn’t let that happen.

I spun us until I propped her spine against the wall and there I dry humped her through our clothes. The warmth between her legs spread through the layers of cloth and hugged my dick with a dirty tease. When she whimpered and ground back against me, I groaned.Her head slammed back, making me lose contact with her lips.

“Stop,” she breathed, even as her body rubbed against mine.

“Never.” I kissed her throat and peeled down the collar of her shirt.

She shoved at my shoulder, but I kept licking and nibbling, determined to change her mind.

“Noel. I said stop.” When she sucked in a breath, I glanced up. She’d closed her eyes and was biting her bottom lip. I knew her release was coming, so I pushed my hips harder against her, knowing I was hitting her sweet spot, dead on target. In mere seconds, she’d be breaking apart in my arms.

“No,” she moaned, even as she started to come.

“Yes,” I hissed right back, watching her face as she fell apart in my arms. She fought it, thrashing her head back and forth. But I could tell just how hard it hit her when she cried out and strained against me, seeking what she knew I could give her. She took it all, and was left panting and limp when she came back down from her peak. Finally cracking her lashes open, she gazed at me from glassy, dazed eyes.

“You. Are. Mine,” I told her. “I don’t care how many times you break up with me or how many other men you try to take on a date. I don’t care how wrong we are for each other. I don’t care that I’ll never be good enough for you or that we’re risking everything to be together. Your mother would never approve. Whatever. Fuck it all. You are fucking mine. And I’m yours. And we belong together.”

“No,” she whispered.

“Damn it.” Fisting my hand, I pounded the wall next to us. “Yes!”

She jumped, and a tear slid down her cheek. “Noel, stop. Please. Stop. I don’t want this. I don’t want this.”

She wasn’t shoving at my shoulders anymore, but the glazed loss and defeat in her watery eyes undid me.

“Fuck,” I whispered. I stopped pinning her hips to the wall and pressed my forehead to hers.
(...)

“I’m sorry,” I croaked. “Jesus, God, I’m so sorry. I know I crossed the line. So many lines. I know I went way past guy-fighting-for-his-girl and straight into harassment territory last night when I text bombed you, even though I’m still pissed at you for going anywhere with him. How I responded was uncalled for and just...fucked up. (...) Cold hard dread settled in me as I realized what I’d actually done just now. “I forced you to—”
I couldn’t even admit it aloud. But oh, God. I was no better than Zach was. The very idea made me sick.

Scared as fuck of what I was capable of, I stumbled away from her. She must’ve sensed how close I was to completely losing my shit, because she looked at me, and even with her lashes clogged with tears that I’d made fall, she still had the compassion to reassure me. “You didn’t force me, Noel. Not at all.



Am I supposed to close my eyes to this for the sake of entertainment?

This whole scene is fucking disturbing and unacceptable, approaching sexual violence in a gratuitous, superficial way, just for the sake of drama, is wrong.

It should not be used as a cheap plot device.

For all the reasons I mentioned, I give 1 star to this book.

DNF at 41%

After putting this one aside (around 30%) because I was not in the mood for it, today, after reading some other raving reviews, I decided to give it another try. Unfortunately I read about 10% more and it didn't get any better. After that, I read other reviews that pointed out some of the same issues I was getting while reading the first 40% of the book which gave me the insight needed to consolidate my decision to DNF.

I think the "Resurrection of Aubrey Miller" had an interesting premise but from the very beginning I noticed some similarities to other NA books, especially "I Love you to death". This is related to the centrality of the 'death' theme and the similar effect that it has on both MCs. While I understand that the circumstances are different, these similarities and absence of originality affected my interest in the story.

I also felt that the connection between Kaeleb and Aubrey/Raven was a bit forced. I understand why they felt it, but the intensity was a bit unrealistic given the number of years they were apart and how young they were. Also, when I first decided to put the book down the dialogues between them were getting a bit cheezy.

While I could easily overcome these issues if the story/characters captivated me along the way, unfortunately, that never happened. I liked the narrator's voice and the fact that it wasn't overly dramatic but at some point I started to feel like I was being "told" to feel sorry for the MC because of all the tragedies she endured. I like emotional reads and I understand why some readers might find this story inspirational, but as a reader I need a more subtle approach to truly appreciate the character's journey and for that I would need the author to give me more margin for interpretation.

UPDATE:
ON HOLD
After almost 20% of dumbassery, the rant that was forming on my mind was giving me a migraine. I'll go back "50 shades of grey: the Mafia Chapter" when I find the patience for it.

...
Pre-review:
Buddy Read with La-Lionness, Camilla, Alex and Camaro.


FEEL FREE TO JOIN US!(I'll add another voyeur-pony)
thread:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1801802-monster-in-his-eyes---buddy-read-starting-saturday-3rd-may

DNF at the 12th tick tock tick tock (or something)

It didn't work for me. I couldn't connect with the characters or their relationship.I guess this one was more on the smutty side (more emphasis on the teacher-student fuckaroo and less on the teacher student romance).

tick tock tock tik tok

Basically, it lacked depth. Also, the constant f*cking tick tock tick tock got on my nerves and unfortunately the mystery wasn't enough to hold my attention.



tick tock tic tac (sorry for the typo)

...
P.S.Thanks for the gift Mia! <3<br/>

You burn so brightly. I would like to burn with you.



Moved by a sense of adventure and eagerness for new experiences, Vera Miles, a 23 year-old astronomy student from Vancouver, decides to spend her summer participating on a conversational English program in Spain.



Vera is a really refreshing character, believable and relatable, her qualities are not very common among the protagonists of the NA genre: she’s really honest, straightforward, free-spirited girl, she’s also a dreamer, introvert and someone who doesn’t do emotional attachments.

Sometimes you are stuck being the person you are and not the person you could be.

When Vera takes a risk and decides to partake in this program she’s not looking for romance, but among the many colorful characters she encounters in it, is the handsome, Spanish businessman and former soccer player, Mateo Casalles who’s 38 years-old, married and has a five-year old daughter.

Mateo is another great and refreshing character in this genre, he’s really passionate and confident but he’s also really sensitive. Mateo is one of the sexiest and swoon worthy male characters I’ve come across lately.



At first sight, Mateo and Vera seem like total opposites but there is an immediate attraction and the chemistry between them is intense.

I don’t want to reveal much more because this story needs to be fully experienced but you can expect an intense journey, full of emotion where you will feel the depth of the connection between Vera and Mateo, the guilt associated to their growing feelings and the internal struggle, tension, longing and heartache provoked by these complicated circumstances.

You will fall in love with these characters and you will treasure those delicious stolen moments, blissful siestas and some muy caliente activities between them.



The cultural element really enriches this story. The author is able to capture the Spanish lifestyle and share its essence perfectly.



From the beginning, Mateo and Vera’s connection feels pure and genuine and I have to say that for me, their story hit a little close to home, given that my own parents’ relationship had a really similar beginning to Mateo and Vera’s; so being familiar with the complexity of these situations and with the consequences it has on all involved parties, I really need to praise the realistic and flawless way the author approaches it and how it defies some really common stereotypes.

Love, In English is a beautiful, slow-burning forbidden romance and while its realistic quality is one of its greatest strengths, this is also one of the most romantic books I’ve ever read.



Original, superbly written, daring, realistic, funny, sexy, heart-warming, moving and inspirational - Love, in English - has all the qualities that I look for in a romance and for all the reasons mentioned before, it is one of the best NA/contemporary romance novels I've ever read.



ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review
Muchas Gracias Karina✮

4 to 4.5 STARS

'Play' by Kylie Scott is F*CKING AWESOME!!



The second book of the Stage Dive series does not disappoint. On the contrary, I think it’s even better than the first book and it certainly is a whole lot of fun!

In this book we follow Anne Rollins and her relationship with the playful and wickedly sexy ‘Mal’ Ericson – drummer of "Stage Dive".



While the circumstances that bring them together are nothing new in this genre (a fake relationship), in this case, the characters' likability and the connection and chemistry between them is really captivating.

Life’s a song, Anne. Let’s play.



In comparison toLick(1st book), in this story there is less emphasis on the drama and it was just awesome to follow the evolution of the relationship between Mal and Anne - it has a friends-to-lovers feel to it and it is romantic, heart-warming, HILARIOUS and HOT.



I loved it, all the characters are great and well, after reading reading Play, I think you'll probably say...



Play is guaranteed entertainment, a fast-paced and really well-written romance that will leave you wanting more. I really think that the Stage Dive series keeps getting better and I highly recommend it for those who are looking for something fun and sexy to read.

Upcoming release - intriguing blurb:

My name is Catarina.
Or, that’s who I was christened to be, anyways.
I live in a convent. I am a nun in training. A postulant.
I am eighteen years old.

I am a predator.
No one is safe from me.

I am protected.
No one can get to me.

By day one way, by night another. They call on me.

My name is Catarina.
Codename: Night Fury.

No one is safe from me.

I will come for you




"nun in training"? - SOLD!

DNF at 54%

"Against all Odds" had a rather intense start but I felt myself gradually losing interest in this story. One of the reasons for that was the MC - While I understand her vulnerability and empathize with the difficult situation that she was going through, some of her actions were really selfish and overly dramatic, she comes across as immature and shallow and while I could easily overcome this type of character, enjoy the story/ other characters, unfortunately, I couldn't find any of them compelling enough.

Another reason for my indifference towards the couple was the development of their backstory: we get some flashbacks but the main focus is on the turning point of their relationship and until this point (54%) we don't get to see what happened before that(how they met/the beginning of their relationship etc.) and I think I needed to know more about this couple to understand their connection and to care for their relationship.

Before reading I was also curious to see the development of the open-marriage theme but I'm also disappointed with that, I think the approach to this type of relationship and its dynamics needed more depth.

For these reasons, I just couldn't feel the intensity that other readers felt while reading 'Against all odds', instead I was just rooting for some character in this book to suggest some couples therapy or a divorce lawyer to the main couple to end their torment and my growing frustration with this story.

4 to 4.5 STARS

This series just keeps getting better and better.

3.5 *STARS*

Overall, I liked it, but it took me a long time to finish this first book. It was entertaining, especially in the second half and it was interesting enough to make me want to continue the series and hopefully grow to love these characters.

I'm Team Lexi now.