4.30.2018

Spotlight & Giveaway: Until There Was Us by Samantha Chase

He'll have to play his cards just right for her to take a chance on him… Megan Montgomery has always been careful…except that one time she threw caution to the wind and hooked up with a sexy groomsman at her cousin's wedding. But that was two years ago—so why can't she stop thinking about Alex Rebat? Alex has been living the good life. He loves his job, has a great circle of friends, and doesn't answer to anyone. The problem? There's only one woman he wants and she ran out on him after one amazing weekend. But now that Megan's coming back to town, Alex hopes he can convince her to take another chance on him…and on a future that can only be built together. 

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Fifteen minutes later, Megan felt like a wet noodle as she slid into Gabriella’s car. They’d already called in the massive dinner order, and really, all Megan needed to do was hold the box in her lap until they got to Summer’s. There were worse ways to spend her time.
Once they arrived, Megan was surprised to see that the guys were there already. Zach came out to greet Gabriella, and Alex came out to take the food. When Megan didn’t immediately move to get out of the car, Alex looked at her curiously.
“You okay?” he asked. “Shopping wear you out?”
She laughed softly. “You have no idea. Those two are lethal.”
Zach and Gabriella had already walked into the house when Ethan came out. “Everything okay?”
Alex handed him the box of food with a laugh of his own. “It seems like shopping took a little more out of her than she expected.”
For a minute Megan considered arguing that he didn’t need to talk about her like she wasn’t there, but she was too tired to.
“I can believe it,” Ethan said. “Next time, pace yourself. Summer and Gabriella are like Olympic medalists where shopping and girls’ days are concerned.” With a smile and a quick wave, he was gone.
Alex crouched next to the open car door. “You gonna make it?” he teased.
With her eyes closed, Megan couldn’t help but smile. “Go. Eat Chinese food. Save yourself. Just leave me here to sleep for a day or two.”
“No can do,” he said softly. “If you don’t join everyone inside for dinner, I’ll have to carry you in.”
Turning her head to the side, she opened her eyes and looked at him.
And almost forgot how to breathe.
Damn, why did he have to be so attractive? Here he was after moving furniture and painting all day, and he looked too good for words. She struggled to keep from leaning forward and tasting him. Her mind had to be playing tricks on her because Megan was fairly certain her memory of how Alex tasted and kissed was being overexaggerated.
He leaned in closer—or maybe she was the one who moved. Either way, they were a heck of a lot closer than they had been a minute ago.
Maybe it was the fact that she was feeling extremely mellow or maybe it was the fact that he was too damn tempting to resist. All Megan wanted was to know whether her mind had been playing tricks on her.
Alex whispered her name as he gently pressed his lips to hers.
Oh…
One of Alex’s hands came up and cupped her cheek, and his touch was both arousing and familiar. Megan mimicked his move and marveled in the scratchiness of his jaw, the warmth of his skin. She sighed and moved a little closer, and the kiss went from chaste to inquisitive to a full onslaught in the blink of an eye. She wanted to pull him into the car or have him pull her out onto the driveway so she could feel more of him, but for now, this would have to do—the taste of him and being consumed by him.
No, her mind hadn’t been playing games with her.
There had been no exaggeration.
Alex Rebat was sexy and sensual and completely lethal.
She pulled back because she couldn’t breathe, but Alex’s hand stayed where it was, gently caressing her skin. Megan leaned into it as she tried to catch her breath.
“It’s still there,” he whispered.
Her eyes drifted closed even as she nodded in agreement because she knew exactly what he was talking about.
“I know now isn’t the time, but—”
“Did she fall asleep out there?” Gabriella called out from the doorway with a small laugh. “Come on, Megan! The food’s getting cold!”
Alex stood and held out a hand to Megan. She accepted it and had to bite her tongue to keep from groaning at how good it felt to touch him. He gently tugged her to her feet, and for a brief moment, she was pressed up against him. Slowly she looked up at him and saw the same emotion on his face she knew was on hers.
Desire.
Plain and simple.
It would be so easy right now to reach up, wrap her arms around him, and pull him in for another kiss. As if reading her mind, Alex released her hand and said, “C’mon. Let’s go have some dinner.”
Mutely, she nodded, and they walked side by side into the house.

4.25.2018

Review: Always by Sarah Jio

Always by Sarah Jio
Published: February 7, 2017
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Format: via publisher
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis
While enjoying a romantic candlelit dinner with her fiance, Ryan, at one of Seattle's chicest restaurants, Kailey Crane can't believe her good fortune: She has a great job as a writer for the Herald and is now engaged to a guy who is perfect in nearly every way. As they leave the restaurant, Kailey spies a thin, bearded homeless man on the sidewalk. She approaches him to offer up her bag of leftovers and is stunned when their eyes meet, then stricken to her very core: The man is the love of her life, Cade McAllister.

When Kailey met Cade ten years ago, their attraction was immediate and intense everything connected and felt "right." But it all ended suddenly, leaving Kailey devastated. Now the poor soul on the street is a faded version of her former beloved: His weathered and weary face is as handsome as Kailey remembers, but his mind has suffered in the intervening years. Over the next few weeks, Kailey helps Cade begin to piece his life together, something she initially keeps from Ryan. As she revisits her long-ago relationship, Kailey realizes that she must decide exactly what and whom she wants.

Alternating between the past and the present, Always is a beautifully unfolding exploration of a woman faced with an impossible choice, a woman who discovers what she's willing to save and what she will sacrifice for true love.

My Thoughts
I’m not a real sap when it comes to romance but this one really got to me. It’s the story of Kailey and her fiance Ryan who are happily in love and one night out she sees a homeless guy and then notices that he looks very familiar he is none other than her ex-boyfriend Cade. Cade and Kailey had “it” from the start, their love was intense and passionate but something happened and it ended suddenly leaving Kailey to always wonder what exactly happened to Cade.

Going between the past and now we see their story. We see how they met and how their love was. We see how there was no denying they were meant to be. In the now we see Kailey and her relationship with her fiance and how while she does care for him she could never really love him, she has only loved one man in her life and that was Cade. So when she sees him she is determined to find out what happened to him and why is he homeless. She wants answers as to why he left and broke her heart all those years ago. She soon realizes that this isn’t the Cade she knew years ago she knows there is something wrong and wants him to seek help and figure out what is wrong. After they find out whats wrong she wants to be there for him but keeps it all a secret from Ryan. Soon she must make a choice and either pick Ryan or Cade and while its hard she knows what she must do.

I loved this story way more than I thought I would. Not only did I love the love story but I always loved how it did focus on homelessness and how people just see them as invisible people. I liked how the author brought them to the forefront and addressed the issue. This was first Sarah Jio novel and it definitely won't be my last, I am so glad I chose this as my first. It's a love story I soon won't forget.

4.24.2018

Review: The Summer Sail by Wendy Francis

The Summer Sail by Wendy Francis
Expected Publication: May 1, 2018
Publisher: Touchstone
Format: via Edelweiss
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis
Three college roommates are celebrating a twentieth wedding anniversary by taking a cruise to Bermuda. As the ship pulls away from the pier, everyone is looking forward to lounging by the pool, sipping sunset cocktails, and reminiscing. Abby, the mother hen of the group, will be celebrating her wedding anniversary in style, even as she and her husband keep a secret from the group. Ambitious career woman Caroline happily anticipates several stress-free days away from her magazine job with her boyfriend, Javier, who may or may not be finally inspired to propose. And single mom Lee (annoyingly gorgeous and irresistibly popular in college) hopes she’ll win back the affections of her formerly sweet daughter Lacey, who after her first year in college, has inexplicably become a little bit of a monster.

As the balmy pink shores of Bermuda come into view, tensions simmer, and old jealousies flare, sending the temperature from soothing to scorching in this engrossing tale of three best friends on a vacation they won’t soon forget—but not for the reasons they expect.

My Thoughts
The Summer Sail is the quintessential summer read that focuses on a group of friends whom met at college and have stayed besties from that day on. Abby who is married and has two sons wants to bring together her friends for a week of sun, fun and relaxing on a cruise to celebrate her twentieth wedding anniversary. However, when all is said and done Abby might have interior motives than just a fun friends cruise, it could be something no one ever expected.

While it seems like a great vacation each of her friends is dealing with their own mini problems. Lee is single and has devoted her life to her daughter Lacey who is off in college but doesn’t know how to deal with being alone. It has always just been the two of them and Lee simply can't cut the strings when it comes to Lacey. Caroline is a successful magazine writer and while she has gotten everything she wants career-wise now she now wants nothing more but to get married but she is afraid her boyfriend doesn’t want that but she is determined to get a proposal on this cruise or she might just dump him.

I really did fall in the love with the scenery and got pulled into the storyline, and while I felt something was looming when it was finally revealed to everyone I just didn’t feel the impact I was expecting. I just felt when it finally came out it was rushed all of a sudden. Granted it was towards the end but I just felt like the payoff wasn’t there but overall I liked how we got to know each friend and each had their own storyline. I also loved the message of friendship and how each one had each others backs. They were true friends and would do anything for each other. I also wouldn’t mind a sequel of sorts I thought there was plenty of story that could still be told. This is one read that is a summer must!

Release Day Blitz: Maid for Love by Marie Force


Today we are celebrating the mass market paperback release of MAID FOR LOVE by Marie Force. This is the first title in her bestselling Gansett Island series. Check out the links for the book below, along with other books in the series coming out in mass market paperback this year.

PURCHASE IT NOW!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Chapters Indigo | Booktopia AU

 

MAID FOR LOVE (Gansett Island #1) by Marie Force

Now Available in Mass Market Paperback!

Book Blurb:

She made her bed, but she doesn’t have to sleep in it . . . Single mom Maddie Chester is determined to leave her hometown of Gansett Island. For visitors, it’s a place for fun in the sun, but for Maddie, it holds only bad memories and ugly rumors. Yet no sooner than she’s decided to leave Gansett behind, she’s knocked off her bike en route to her housekeeping job at McCarthy’s Gansett Island Hotel—by none other than Gansett’s “favorite son,” Mac McCarthy. Mac has returned to the Rhode Island beach town to help his father prepare to sell the family marina—and he has no intention of sticking around a minute longer than necessary. But when he realizes he’s badly injured Maddie, he knows he has to do the right thing. When Mac decides to help her heal and care for her young son, he discovers he just may be “maid” for love . . .

Check out Marie's website for a huge release giveaway!

 

Praise for Marie Force and her novels “With the McCarthys of Gansett Island, Marie Force makes you believe in the power of true love and happily ever after. Over and over again.” —Carly Phillips, New York Times bestselling author of the Serendipity series “Force excels at creating characters readers can identify with and care about.” —Booklist


 An Official Military Spouse Book Club Pick

PURCHASE MAID FOR LOVE NOW!


PRE-ORDER FOOL FOR LOVE NOW!

Coming May 29


PRE-ORDER FOOL FOR LOVE NOW!

Coming June 26

-------------------

CHECK OUT THE REST OF THE 

GANSETT ISLAND SERIES

----------------------------

AUTHOR INFORMATION:

Marie Force is the New York Times bestselling author of more than 50 contemporary romances, including the Gansett Island Series, which has sold more than 3 million books, and the Fatal Series from Harlequin Books, which has sold 1.5 million books. In addition, she is the author of the Butler, Vermont Series, the Green Mountain Series and the erotic romance Quantum Series, written under the slightly modified name of M.S. Force. Altogether, her books have sold more than 5.5 million copies worldwide! Her goals in life are simple—to finish raising two happy, healthy, productive young adults, to keep writing books for as long as she possibly can and to never be on a flight that makes the news. Join Marie's mailing list for news about new books and upcoming appearances in your area. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter @marieforce and on Instagram. Join one of Marie's many reader groups. Contact Marie at marie@marieforce.com.  

AUTHOR LINKS:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Newsletter | Goodreads


Join Marie's Reader Groups
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4.23.2018

Release Day Blitz: Lie to Me by Natasha Preston

   
We are so excited to be sharing the release of #1 New York Times bestselling author Natasha Preston's LIE TO ME with you today. LIE TO ME is a brand new standalone contemporary romance lovers won't want to miss--be sure to grab your copy today!
Lie To Me by Natasha Preston
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 23, 2018

 About LIE TO ME
At nineteen, Savannah Dean escaped her family, leaving behind a note and the people who caused her so much pain. Now, she lives on her own and keeps to herself. At nineteen, Kent Lawson’s girlfriend betrayed him, leaving him behind with a broken heart and a whole lot of mistrust in women. Now, he lives on his own and shares himself with nearly every pretty thing that walks by but only for one night. When Savannah and Kent meet, they can’t stand each other. Kent knows she’s hiding something, and he despises liars. And Savannah has nothing but secrets. 

 Add LIE TO ME to your Goodreads TBR here!  

Grab your copy of LIE TO ME today!

Amazon US / Amazon UK / iBooks / B&N / Kobo

       
Don't miss Natasha Preston's other contemporary romance reads!

 About NATASHA PRESTON
UK native Natasha Preston grew up in small villages and towns. She discovered her love of writing when she stumbled across an amateur writing site and uploaded her first story and hasn’t looked back since. She enjoys writing contemporary romance, gritty Young Adult thrillers and, of course, the occasional serial killer. 

4.19.2018

Excerpt Reveal: Lie to Me by Natasha Preston

 

We are so excited to be sharing an excerpt from #1 New York Times bestselling author Natasha Preston's LIE TO ME with you today. LIE TO ME, a new standalone contemporary romance will be released on all platforms on April 23.


About LIE TO ME


At nineteen, Savannah Dean escaped her family, leaving behind a note and the people who caused her so much pain. Now, she lives on her own and keeps to herself. At nineteen, Kent Lawson’s girlfriend betrayed him, leaving him behind with a broken heart and a whole lot of mistrust in women. Now, he lives on his own and shares himself with nearly every pretty thing that walks by but only for one night. When Savannah and Kent meet, they can’t stand each other. Kent knows she’s hiding something, and he despises liars. 


Add LIE TO ME to your Goodreads TBR here!    

Pre-order LIE TO ME today!

Amazon / iBooks / B&N / Kobo


Read an excerpt from LIE TO ME

Wednesday rolls around way too fast. I have a whole evening with Savannah. It’s been really nice these past four days that she’s been out of my life. Yet, the whole time, I’ve been craving the way we snip at each other.
I need help.
I cut my engine outside her building and look up. Apparently, she lives up on the first floor and faces out toward the road.
Is she looking at me right now?
Why I feel the need to get out and buzz her apartment, I don’t know, but somehow, I find myself getting out of the car and walking toward the building. I stop at the front door, realizing that Heidi told me what floor Savannah is on but not the number. Or she might have told me, and I just didn’t listen.
This is a great start.
I’m about to call my sister when I see Savannah through the glass, walking down the stairs to ground level.
Fuck me.
Has she always looked like that?
She’s wearing a pair of dark blue skinny jeans and a grey off-the-shoulder shirt, but she looks sexier than any other woman I’ve ever seen in a little dress.
Why don’t I like her again?
Her steely eyes, looking even more prominent with the color of her top, warily eye me. Our last encounter wasn’t exactly pleasant.
She opens the door and smiles. “Hi, Kent.”
My back stiffens. “Savannah.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind taking me tonight? I can Uber.”
And there it is. This is why she fucking bothers me so much. I feel like telling her to call a fucking Uber then. She always sounds so unsure of herself, like every tiny thing a person does for her is some massive inconvenience. Why?
“It’s fine,” I spit.
She folds her arms, carefully because her fractured arm hasn’t healed. It does take away a little of the dramatic flair she was going for. “Do you need to take a nap before we go?”
“What?”
“You’re cranky.”
“You’re too polite.”
“Being polite is a bad thing?”
I flex my jaw. “Yes.”
“Fine. Get in the car, and take me.”
The intent behind her words is clear; however, I hear it completely different and laugh.
She rolls her eyes. “Don’t be a knobhead, Kent. Take me to your parents’ house, I mean.”
“Knobhead. I’ve not heard that one in a while.”
Savannah takes another long breath. “I really don’t know why I thought accepting a lift from you would be a good idea. In fact, I didn’t. I still think it’s a bad idea.”
“You always follow through with bad ideas?”
“Tonight, I am.”
Fuck yeah. I love this fighting side of her. It’s like, when I rile her up enough, the coverslips, revealing the real Savannah. I’m not sure if she’s hiding something the way Freya was.
“You should work on that. I don’t do anything I don’t want to.”
She tilts her head to the side, fire, and determination in her eyes. “Oh, you wanted me to come tonight? And you wanted to be the one to pick me up?”
“You’re hot when you’re angry, Savannah.”
Actually, she’s hot all the time. It’s just, right now, she’s the whole package.
“You always use bullshit like that to deflect from someone calling you out?”
“You’re the first woman to call me out.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” she mutters.
“Do you want to argue on your doorstep all night or get to my parents’ for dinner? I’m cool with either, just checking to see which way you’re leaning.”
She drops her arms, one still bound tightly in a splint. “I’m hungry.”
“Excellent, let’s go then.”

About NATASHA PRESTON

UK native Natasha Preston grew up in small villages and towns. She discovered her love of writing when she stumbled across an amateur writing site and uploaded her first story and hasn’t looked back since. She enjoys writing contemporary romance, gritty Young Adult thrillers and, of course, the occasional serial killer.

4.18.2018

Review: The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis

The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis
Published: September 20, 2016
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Format: audiobook via Overdrive
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis
Alex Craft knows how to kill someone. And she doesn’t feel bad about it.

Three years ago, when her older sister, Anna, was murdered and the killer walked free, Alex uncaged the language she knows best—the language of violence. While her own crime goes unpunished, Alex knows she can’t be trusted among other people. Not with Jack, the star athlete who wants to really know her but still feels guilty over the role he played the night Anna’s body was discovered. And not with Peekay, the preacher’s kid with a defiant streak who befriends Alex while they volunteer at an animal shelter. Not anyone.

As their senior year unfolds, Alex’s darker nature breaks out, setting these three teens on a collision course that will change their lives forever.

My Thoughts
I didn’t know exactly what to expect from this book but I really liked it. We meet Alex who is trying to deal with her sister’s death and we see what it has done to her family. From the beginning we know that she is a killer, really she is she killed her sister’s killer. We also know that she doesn’t have any remorse, she is simply a cold-hearted killer and she makes no excuses for it.

We see her open herself up to make friends and while she tries to fit in she knows that darkness she has will never go away. She becomes friends with PeeKay and she even falls for Jack but she can't suppress all that anger and she knows those feelings aren’t normal. Meanwhile, Jack is falling for Alex but feels bad because he knows something about the night her sister died and is scared to tell her knowing she may never forgive him. As they get closer Alex wants to be honest with Jack and tell him her secrets but knows if she confesses she will lose him forever. What is she to do?

I found this read dark and at times very uncomfortable to read but I get it. I get that Alex has issues and that it has more to do than just her sister's death. These issues come from deep within her and she has to deal with them. This novel was a good read even though it deals with dark issues but I liked how they were dealt with and its one read that you should take a chance on.

4.17.2018

Review: The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner

The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner
Published: March 8, 2016
Publisher: Crown BYR
Format: audiobook via Overdrive
Rating: 5/5

Synopsis
Dill has had to wrestle with vipers his whole life—at home, as the only son of a Pentecostal minister who urges him to handle poisonous rattlesnakes, and at school, where he faces down bullies who target him for his father’s extreme faith and very public fall from grace.

The only antidote to all this venom is his friendship with fellow outcasts Travis and Lydia. But as they are starting their senior year, Dill feels the coils of his future tightening around him. The end of high school will lead to new beginnings for Lydia, whose edgy fashion blog is her ticket out of their rural Tennessee town. And Travis is happy wherever he is thanks to his obsession with the epic book series Bloodfall and the fangirl who may be turning his harsh reality into real-life fantasy. Dill’s only escapes are his music and his secret feelings for Lydia—neither of which he is brave enough to share. Graduation feels more like an ending to Dill than a beginning. But even before then, he must cope with another ending—one that will rock his life to the core.

Debut novelist Jeff Zentner provides an unblinking and at times comic view of the hard realities of growing up in the Bible Belt, and an intimate look at the struggles to find one’s true self in the wreckage of the past.

My Thoughts
This book is simply amazing! In The Serpent King we meet Dill, Travis and Lydia three friends from a small town who are embarking on adulthood and trying to figure out who they are, who they want to become and hoping that their past doesn't ruin their future.

Dill is trying to get out of the shadows of his father who was a minister and who is now in jail for doing some awful things. Lydia has had the best life out of all of them, she comes from loving parents and has a great future ahead of her. She is college bound and has a future in fashion and can't wait to leave her small town behind but will definitely miss her two closest buds. Travis has had a hard life with a father who is abusive and with both parents who can't get over the death of his oldest brother. Travis is a guy who lives by the beat of his own drum but who has recently met a girl online who accepts him for him and genuinely likes him.

I loved this book so much. I loved the characters who were complex yet so relatable. They were misfit kids who each had their own problems but found solace in each other. All they wanted was acceptance and to feel like they had a chance in this world despite their upbringing. This novel is well written, you felt their pain and you wanted them to succeed. There was one part that truly wrecked me but I won't spoil it for those who haven’t read it but man was I a mess! This book will make you laugh and cry but it also makes you want to cheer for these kids. You want them to live their lives to the fullest and to know that their past doesn’t have to dictate their futures. This is a truly great portrayal of teens and how lives can be in the small town South. This is one book that should be read by all.

4.16.2018

Review: The Husband Hour by Jamie Brenner

The Husband Hour by Jamie Brenner
Expected Publication: April 24, 2018
Publisher: Little Brown and Company
Format: via publisher
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis
Lauren Adelman and her high school sweetheart, Rory Kincaid, are a golden couple. They marry just out of college as Rory, a star hockey player, earns a spot in the NHL. Their future could not look brighter when Rory shocks everyone-Lauren most of all by enlisting in the U.S. Army. When Rory dies in combat, Lauren is left devastated, alone, and under unbearable public scrutiny.

Seeking peace and solitude, Lauren retreats to her family's old beach house on the Jersey Shore. But this summer she's forced to share the house with her overbearing mother and competitive sister. Worse, a stranger making a documentary about Rory tracks her down and persuades her to give him just an hour of her time.

One hour with filmmaker Matt Brio turns into a summer of revelations, surprises, and upheaval. As the days grow shorter and her grief changes shape, Lauren begins to understand the past and to welcome the future.

My Thoughts
In the Husband Hour, we met Lauren who has recently lost her husband Rory who was NHL player and military man. Lauren moves back home to New Jersey to get away from it all and from everyone who wants to know her and Rory’s story. After some time a filmmaker named Matt comes in search of her hoping to have her blessing in making a movie about her husband. Matt’s presence soon shakes up everyone's lives and secrets that didn’t think would surface comes up and people are hurt and lives could be ruined forever. This will either break Lauren forever or it will heal her in a way she never thought possible, all because of Matt.

I really enjoyed this story, at first you think this is just the story of Rory and Lauren which it is but I see it more of Lauren trying to get her life back. She has loved Rory since they were teens so when he passed away it broke Lauren to pieces he was her world so it was understandable that she would try and save this reputation but she soon finds out things about him that will break her image of him. I also loved how her family played a huge role in the story. Her parents had a subplot in this which was also interesting and the dynamics between Lauren and her sister was also very interesting and we get to see how their relationship plays a role in all of this.

The Husband Hour is another winner from Jamie Brenner who gives us characters with such depth that you can't help but get invested in their lives. She gives us a story of love, loss, forgiving but most important one of rebuilding. To pick yourself up after something so devastating takes more courage than anything and that’s what makes this read so wonderfully page turning. Do yourself a favor and take the time to fall into this great novel.

4.11.2018

Review: After Anna by Lisa Scottoline

After Anna by Lisa Scottoline
Published: April 10, 2018
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Format: publisher
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis
Nobody cuts deeper than family...

Noah Alderman, a doctor and a widower, has remarried a wonderful woman, Maggie, and for the first time in a long time, he and his son are happy. But their lives are turned upside down when Maggie’s daughter Anna moves in with them. Anna is a gorgeous seventeen-year-old who balks at living under their rules though Maggie, ecstatic to have her daughter back, ignores the red flags that hint at the trouble that is brewing. Events take a deadly turn when Anna is murdered and Noah is accused of the crime. Maggie must face not only the devastation of losing her only daughter but the realization that her daughter's murder was at the hands of a husband she loves. New information sends Maggie searching for the truth, leading her to discover something darker than she could have ever imagined.

My Thoughts
After Anna is a wonderful suspenseful novel told in alternating perspectives, one told during Noah’s court hearing and the other told showing everything that leads up until now. We start with Noah in court fighting for his innocence after being accused of killing his stepdaughter Anna. We also hear that not only is his accused of the murder but also of molesting her and being a downright awful guy. However, in seeing his past behavior we see that this doesn’t sound like the Noah everyone knows. He was always a respectful doctor who was raising his son after his wife died and now is happily married to Maggie who has recently reconnected with her daughter.

Maggie is a happily married woman who loves her stepson Caleb but is secretly sadden because she hasn’t seen her daughter since she was a baby. Maggie had severe postpartum depression and her ex-husband took their baby away from her and she hasn’t seen her since. Until one day her daughter Anna comes back into her life after the death of her father and Maggie is beyond joy. She never thought she would see the day Anna and she were together again. She soon brings her home to live with her and her new family but things don’t happen as she imagined. She is soon pitted against her daughter and her husband who don’t seem to get along. Anna tells her Noah is coming on to her and makes Maggie throw him out and take her side. From this point on things go downhill and things will never be the same for everyone evolved.

I loved that there were two alternating views, I loved them equally and found myself quickly turning the pages because I couldn’t wait to see what happened next. I will admit I was really unhappy with the Maggie character in the middle of the novel. I felt like she wasn’t giving her husband any benefit of the doubt. I know he was accused of some awful things but my gut didn’t believe in what Anna was saying and the fact that Maggie just simply took her side and never asked Noah anything really got to me. However the last part of the book was really amazing, this was the best part and talk about twist and turns! Man, I never saw what happens next, and it was a really great payoff story wise. I really enjoyed this latest Lisa Scottoline novel she gave us another great read with amazing characters and a storyline that grabs you from the very beginning and a jaw-dropping ending that you soon won't forget.

4.10.2018

Release Day Launch: Mornings on Main by Jodi Thomas

  From the beloved and bestselling author of the Ransom Canyon and Harmony, Texas series comes a powerful, heartwarming story about generations of family and the ironclad bonds they forge. MORNINGS ON MAIN is now available! Grab your copy today!
 

When Jillian James lands in the small town Texas community of Laurel Springs, she’s definitely not planning to stay—except to find a few clues about the father who abandoned her and destroyed her faith in family.

Connor Larady is a single dad, and the only one caring for his grandmother, Eugenia, who has Alzheimer’s. And now he has to close Eugenia’s quilt shop. When Connor meets down-on-her-luck Jillian, he’s out of options. Can he trust the newcomer to do right by his grandmother’s legacy?

Jillian is done with relationships. But as she grows closer to Connor and Eugenia, she must consider giving up her nomadic life for a future with those who need her.

An inspiring family saga that asks us to consider what love and chosen family really mean.

 Grab your copy of MORNINGS ON MAIN here!

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EXCERPT
He held the truck door for her, then circled around and climbed in. “Where to?” “Somewhere quiet. I’ve been surrounded by people all day.” “I agree. The house has been full of friends since I got Gram home. I managed to run most of them off early last night so she could sleep and again this afternoon to let Gram rest a few hours before the quilters swarmed in.” He drove through the Hamburger Hut, picked up malts and burgers, then crossed the bridge to the old part of town. The boards over the water were uneven, rattling her from side to side like a cheap, twirling carnival ride. Jillian raised her eyebrows but didn’t say a word. Where they were going didn’t matter. She was with the one she wanted to be with. She needed to stop worrying about lin­gering memories and just relax. He parked by a three-story building and climbed out. She waited, not sure what to do. The malts and burgers were still on the seat beside her. Surely they weren’t stopping here. This place was scary even in daylight. She didn’t plan on staying around to see how it looked in less than an hour. When he opened her door, he raised his arms to catch her. “Come with me.” He encouraged as if offering far more than a lift down from the high seat. Her legs were plenty long enough to take the step out, but she slid into his embrace. He lowered her to the ground. For moment they were so close they touched as they breathed. She thought he might lean in slightly and kiss her, but he simply brushed his cheek against her hair. “Trust me, Jillian, you’re going to like this restaurant.” He grabbed his raincoat from behind the seat, handed her the drinks and picked up their meal. Following him into the building, she was surprised to see how sound the old factory seemed to be. The ceiling was tall, over twenty feet. Decaying ropes still hung from pulleys, and worktables stood dusty, silently waiting for craftsmen to ar­rive. The windows were high, ribboning the building with natural light. Staying close, she whispered as though she might disturb ghosts, “What did they used to make in here?” “I’m not sure. I think parts of oil rigs were shipped in and assembled here. I don’t know much about it, but there’s an old Christmas tree over there in the corner.” He pointed to a six-foot structure that was formed from a mixture of valves, spools and fittings welded together. “They’re used at oil or gas well sites. I see them in the oil fields around. I’m not really sure why they call them Christmas trees. A roughneck would have to be drunk to mistake this jumble of metal for a tree.” She turned in a complete circle. “Nice restaurant.” “Oh, we’re not there yet.” He pointed to a staircase along one wall. “We’ve got rooftop seating.” Suddenly excited, she climbed ahead of him, her shoes tap­ping a rhythm in double time. At the top, she waited impa­tiently with a malt in each hand. He juggled the bag of burgers as he shoved the heavy door open. They stepped onto the rooftop with no one else around. She could see for miles in every direction. The trees, the fields. Oil rigs, scattered homes and barns, schools and churches. “It’s beautiful!” The sun’s low glow gave everything a golden light. He set the bag down and spread his raincoat out like a ta­blecloth on an air vent cover. “It’s not yet, but it will be.” He pulled up two empty five-gallon buckets to use as stools. She sat the malts down. “You’ve been to this restaurant before.” “Guilty. But I’ve never brought anyone here. Only you.” While he unwrapped his burger, she looked around, point­ing out everything as if he was also seeing it for the first time. “Look how winding the creek is.” “I had no idea there were so many trees.” “Oh, look at those horses running.” She loved the way the evening clouds moved over the land, darkening the hues of the earth in shadow as they drifted. “It’s winter now, not near as pretty as it’ll be come spring.” He set his hamburger beside hers and came to join her near the roof’s edge. “I lease that flat land out to a farmer who plants cotton every spring. That brown dirt will look like a green carpet in a few months.” “I won’t be here in spring.” She let the wind catch her words as she turned away from him and the view. The black tar roof beneath her feet was all she saw now, but she stared hard, willing not one tear to fall. This time. This place she would miss. When she left, Jillian knew memories would be packed in her heart. A year from now, a decade, a lifetime, she’d still remember the beauty of this view in winter and wonder how it looked in spring.  

“Compelling and beautifully written.” —Debbie Macomber, #1 New York Times bestselling author on Ransom Canyon

   
   
About Jodi Thomas
New York Times and USA Today's bestselling author Jodi Thomas has published over 30 books in both the historical romance and contemporary genres, the majority of which are set in her home state of Texas. Publishers Weekly calls her novels "Distinctive...Memorable," and that in her stories "[tension] rides high, mixed with humor and kisses more passionate than most full-on love scenes." In 2006, Romance Writers of America (RITA) inducted Thomas into the RWA Hall of Fame for winning her third RITA for THE TEXAN'S REWARD. She also received the National Readers' Choice Award in 2009 for TWISTED CREEK (2008) and TALL, DARK, AND TEXAN (2008). While continuing to work as a novelist, Thomas also functions as Writer in Residence at the West Texas A&M University campus, where she inspires students and alumni in their own writing pursuits.    

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