Blog Tour + Giveaway: Never Stop Falling by Ashley Drew

Never Stop Falling by Ashley Drew

Published: March 1, 2016

Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

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Synopsis

She didn’t expect to fall for her best friend.

He was always waiting to catch her.

Corinne Bennett lives in the moment. Whether she’s skydiving out of an airplane, or setting off on the road to anywhere, she’s ready to dive into the next adventure. That is, if best friend and always-by-the-book Nicholas Kelley doesn’t put his foot down on her wild stunts first.

When Corinne gives in to her growing feelings for Nicholas the summer before their freshman year of college, she takes the ultimate risk, making this one adventure he has longed to explore with her.

But the moment they take that irrevocable leap, a shocking revelation blindsides Corinne, exposing her vulnerabilities, baring her fears, and shattering her beliefs about love. With their future—and most importantly, their friendship—now clouded in doubt, she must decide if love is really worth the risk.

Because when it comes to love, you never stop falling.

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Tour-wide giveaway (INTL)

A signed copy of Never Stop Falling

$50 Amazon Gift Card

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About Ashley

A San Francisco Bay Area native, Ashley Drew currently lives in Los Angeles. When she’s not going cross-eyed after writing for five hours straight, or burying her nose in a book, you’ll find her sprawled on her couch watching General Hospital, having alien conspiracy discussions with her husband over a bottle of bubbly, and dancing to Taylor Swift’s 1989 album with her daughter.

Author links

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Excerpt

There are three super awkward things about this conversation.

One: it’s one thing for a mother to give her daughter the inevitable birds-and-the-bees lecture; it’s another when your dad gives it to you, you’re eighteen, and you pretty much already know how it works by now.

Two: my dad thinks that Nick and I are actually doing…it.

And three: if I’m following this conversation correctly, it sounds as if my dad would actually be okay with it if Nick and I were, in fact, doing it.

How did it suddenly finagle its way into the same sentence as Nick?

“You do realize that everything you’re saying is absolutely over-the-top ridiculous, right?” I act casual, even though I’ve been eyeing the door for the past five minutes, wondering what a Corinne-shaped hole would look like. “Nick and I are friends, Dad. Period. That’s the extent of our relationship.”

Dad squints, drumming his fingers against the countertop. “Well, maybe you think that, but I’ve seen the way that boy looks at you. It surely isn’t the way you look at just a friend.”

Damn. I have to hand it to Mr. Perceptive; my dad is good. He’s seen it, the same thing I saw today—the longing in Nick’s eyes, those hypnotizing olive-green eyes. But seeing it surely has nothing on feeling it—the way his eyes lit up my heart, detonating an unexpected explosion within my soul, my nerves still smoldering from it hours later.

But as good as that felt, Nick is…Nick, my best friend.

“You must need a new pair of glasses.” I chuckle, walking to the other end of the kitchen and grabbing a glass out of the cabinet. “Nick and I are practically siblings. Kissing him would be like kissing a brother!”

Only, that’s a lie. I don’t think kissing Nick would feel like kissing a brother at all. The thought has crossed my mind one too many times now, way more times than what’s considered safe before venturing outside platonic territory. What it would feel like running my hands up over his chest, around his neck, and through his hair, grabbing tight fistfuls of it while pulling those lips to mine for one heart-stopping, mind-blowing, out-of-this-world kiss, as I completely melt into him.

Into those piercing eyes. Those perfect lips. That toned body.

I bring the glass to my lips, only to realize I haven’t actually poured water in it.

Holy shit. I think I just had a Harry Burns epiphany. How the hell did this happen? Nick is my pal! He’s supposed to be the Wayne to my Garth. The Beavis to my Butthead. Not the Harry to my Sally. But the more I sit on it, the more that notion becomes less of the truth, and it shakes me to the core.

Waiting On [157]: The Other Widow by Susan Crawford

Waiting on Wednesday [Wow] is a weekly event hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

The Other Widow by Susan Crawford

Expected Publication: April 26, 2016

Publisher: William Morrow

Synopsis

Everybody’s luck runs out. This time it could be theirs . . .

It isn’t safe. That’s what Joe tells her when he ends their affair—moments before their car skids off an icy road in a blinding snowstorm and hits a tree. Desperate to keep her life intact—her job, her husband, and her precious daughter, Lily—Dorrie will do everything she can to protect herself, even if it means walking away from the wreckage. Dorrie has always been a good actress, pretending to be someone else: the dutiful daughter, the satisfied wife, the woman who can handle anything. Now she’s going to put on the most challenging performance of her life. But details about the accident leave her feeling uneasy and afraid. Why didn’t Joe’s airbag work? Why was his car door open before the EMTs arrived? And now suddenly someone is calling her from her dead lover’s burner phone. . . .

Joe’s death has left his wife in free fall as well. Karen knew Joe was cheating—she found some suspicious e-mails. Trying to cope with grief is devastating enough without the constant fear that has overtaken her—this feeling she can’t shake that someone is watching her. And with Joe gone and the kids grown, she’s vulnerable . . . and on her own.

Insurance investigator Maggie Devlin is suspicious of the latest claim that’s landed on her desk—a man dying on an icy road shortly after buying a lucrative life insurance policy. Maggie doesn’t believe in coincidences. The former cop knows that things—and people—are never what they seem to be.

As the fates of these three women become more tightly entwined, layers of lies and deception begin to peel away, pushing them dangerously to the edge . . . closer to each other . . . to a terrifying truth . . . to a shocking end.

Why I Can’t Wait

Oh this seems so dark and mysterious I love it! I’ve been reading a lot more suspense this year and this one is looks like another winner! The storyline is one that seems like it has endless possibilities and nothing is better than a read that keeps me on my toes!

Book Blitz: Give Us a Chance by Allie Everhart

Give Us a Chance by Allie Everhart
[The Wheeler Brothers, #2]
Published: March 12, 2016
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

Jake Wheeler doesn’t date. He has a one and done rule. Some would say he’s a player but he disagrees. He’s always upfront with a girl, letting her know he’s not interested in a relationship. That is until he meets Ivy.
A talented carpenter who can hold her own on a construction site, Ivy worked for Jake last summer. He asked her out but she turned him down. Now, months later, Jake is ready to try again. He can’t get this girl out of his head and he needs to figure out why. When he asks her out he assumes she’ll say no again, so he’s shocked when she actually says yes.
After the first date, Jake knows he’s in trouble. Ivy is actually someone he could see himself being with, for a lot longer than a night. But what Jake doesn’t know is that Ivy’s only going out with him to prove she’s not the girl for him. She’s dated his type before and doesn’t want to do it again. But is Jake really the player she thinks he is? And if not, is she willing to trust him with her heart?
Author’s Note: Give Us a Chance is a standalone and book two of The Wheeler Brothers, a series of standalone novels that each feature a different brother. Next to Me, featuring Jake’s older brother, Nash, is book one.

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EXCERPT:

Jake

I haven’t even said a word to her and my heart’s already beating faster. I feel nervous, and I’m never nervous. Even when I was doing all those interviews on TV last fall, I never got nervous.
“Hey, Ivy,” I say, trying to sound cool and relaxed.
“No,” she says, keeping her head down as she picks up a piece of sandpaper.
“No what?”
“No, I’m not going out with you.”
Shit. How did she know that’s why I came over here?
“I didn’t ask,” I say.
“No, but you were about to.” She leans down more, lightly sanding the edge of the book in her picture, creating the look of pages. Damn, that’s incredible. I’m seriously amazed by her talent.
“I was just coming over to say hello,” I tell her. “We haven’t talked since the Victorian. How have you been?”
“Good.” She flips her ponytail to her other shoulder, exposing her neck. I’d love to run my lips down that neck. Down that smooth, perfect skin. My eyes shift down to her shirt, a black v-neck t-shirt that fits close to her body.
“Was that it?” She catches me staring at her breasts and stands up, looking annoyed with me. That’s just great. I’ve been here less than a minute and already screwed this up.
“Good? That’s all you have to say?”
She sets the sandpaper down and crosses her arms over her chest. “What do you want to know?”
“How was your Christmas?”
She’s staring at me like that’s the lamest question ever asked. Considering Christmas was weeks ago, it is a lame question, but it’s the first thing that popped in my head.
“Let me guess,” I say, since she hasn’t answered. “It was good.”
She starts to smile, but then quickly shuts it down. “Yeah.” She shrugs. “Actually, that’s a lie. It sucked. But it’s like that every year so…” Her voice trails off and when she sees the questioning look on my face, she explains, “My mom died at Christmas. It was years ago, but still.”
“Shit, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.” I rake my hand through my hair, which I tend to do when I’m nervous or uncomfortable.
“It’s okay. You didn’t know.” She smiles slightly, but then it disappears again. “Well, I need to get back to work.”
Why is she always telling me to get lost? I know she doesn’t have a boyfriend. I need to try this again, using a different approach. Nash and Callie are right. My usual techniques aren’t going to work this time.
“So do you like to eat?” I ask.
It’s such a strange question that she laughs a little. “Yeah. Why?”
“Let’s go out tonight. It’s on me.”
“I told you I’m not going out with you.”
“It’s not a date. It’s just two people eating dinner. You said you like to eat, right?”
“And if I were to say yes, which I’m not, where would you take me?”
I pause to think. “A little place just down the street from here.”
“Titiana’s? The Mexican place?”
“No.”
“Marco’s Italian?”
I shake my head. “No. This place serves American food.”
“Just tell me.”
“It’s a little place called…” I pause for dramatic effect. “Burger King.”
She bursts out laughing, which is what I was hoping for. I wanted to hear her laugh. I like her laugh. “Burger King? That’s where you’d take a girl on a date?”
“It’s not a date, remember? And what’s wrong with Burger King? Flame-broiled burgers. And you get to have it your way. Extra pickles. No mustard. Whatever you want.”
She laughs again. I’ve decided this is my approach with her. Humor. And saying the unexpected. It seems to be working.
“I can’t go there,” she says. “I’m vegan.”
“Really? I didn’t know that. So we’ll go somewhere else. Where do vegans eat?”
“I’m not going out with you, Jake.”
“Is it because of the jacket?” I glance down at it. “Because I have other jackets if this one offends you.”
She gives me a funny look like she doesn’t know what I mean.
“It’s leather,” I say. “I assumed if you’re vegan you don’t like leather?”
“Oh, um, yeah.” She nods. “That’s right. No leather.”
I smile. “So I’ll switch coats and meet you there at six.”
“Sorry, but it’s not happening.” She turns back to her project.
I’ll have to try again later. At least I’m getting somewhere with her. I got her to laugh, so that was a start.

Author Bio
Allie Everhart is a hopeless romantic who writes books about love. Allie has authored fifteen novels, including The Jade Series, a college romance that follows the story of Jade and Garret as they deal with numerous obstacles trying to tear them apart. Her other series, The Kensingtons, is a romantic suspense series. Her standalone romance novels include Next to Me, and her latest book, Give Us a Chance.

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Blog Tour + Giveaway: Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan

Win a Print Copy of

SUMMER AT LITTLE BEACH STREET BAKERY

SUMMER AT LITTLE BEACH STREET BAKERY

Little Beach Street Bakery #2

Jenny Colgan

Releasing March 22nd, 2016

William Morrow

The New York Times-bestselling author of Little Beach Street Bakery and Christmas at the Cupcake Café returns with a delightful new novel-with recipes!-that is already an international bestseller and is perfect for fans of Jojo Moyes, Meg Donohue, and Sophie Kinsella.

For fans of Jojo Moyes and Elin Hilderbrand, an irresistible novel—moving and funny, soulful and sweet—about happiness, heartache, and hope. And recipes.

A thriving bakery. A lighthouse to call home. A handsome beekeeper. A pet puffin. These are the things that Polly Waterford can call her own. This is the beautiful life she leads on a tiny island off the southern coast of England.

But clouds are gathering on the horizon. A stranger threatens to ruin Polly’s business. Her beloved boyfriend seems to be leading a secret life. And the arrival of a newcomer—a bereft widow desperately searching for a fresh start—forces Polly to reconsider the choices she’s made, even as she tries to help her new friend through grief.

Unpredictable and unforgettable, this delightful novel will make you laugh, cry, and long for a lighthouse of your own. Recipes included.

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Chapter 1

“Stop it,” Polly said in a warning voice. “It’s not funny.”

Neil ignored her and continued to beat on the little high window with his beak until she could be persuaded to go over and give him a snack.

He was outside the lighthouse they had moved into the previous month, all three of them together, Polly, Neil the puffin, and Huckle, Polly’s American boyfriend, who has parked his motorbike and sidecar at the bottom of the tower. It was their only mode of transport.

The lighthouse hadn’t been lived in for a long time, not since the lamps were electrified in the late seventies. It has four floors and a circular staircase that ran around the sides, thus making it, as Huckle had pointed out more than once, the single draftiest place in human history. They were both getting very fit running up and down it. One floor held the heavy machinery that had one turned the workings, which couldn’t be removed. On the top floor, just below the light itself, was their sitting room, which has views right across the bay and, on the other side, back toward Mount Polbearne, the tidal island where they lived and worked, with its caseway to the mainland that covered and uncovered itself with the tides.

From these windows you could see the little Beach Street Bakery, the ruined shop that Polly had revitalized when she has moved to the village just over two years ago, getting over a failed business and a failed relationship back on the mainland.

She hadn’t originally expected to do much in Mount Polbearne except sit and lick her wounds until she was ready to head back into the fray again, back to working a corporate lifestyle; hadn’t for a moment thought that in the tumbledown flat above the shop she would come back to life by practicing her favorite hobby – baking bread – and that this would turn into a career when she reopened the old closed-down bakery.

It wasn’t the most lucrative of careers, and the hours were long, but the setting was so wonderful, and her work so appreciated, by both the townspeople and the tourists, that she had found something much satisfying than money: she has found what she was meant to be doing with her life. Well, most of the time she thought that. Sometimes she looked around at the very basic kitchen she had installed (her old flat in Plymouth had sold, and she’d managed to get the lighthouse at a knockdown price mostly, as Lance the estate agent had pointed out, because only an absolutely crazy person could possibly want to live in a draft, inaccessible tower with a punishing light shining out of it) and wondered if she’d ever manage to fix the window frames, the window frames being number one on a list of about four thousand things that urgently needed doing.

Huckle had offered to buy the place with her, but she had resisted. She had worked too hard to be independent. Once before she had shared everything, been entirely enmeshed financially with someone. It had not worked out, and she was in no mood to repeat the experience.

Right now, she wanted to sit in her eyrie of a sitting room at the very top of the house, drink tea, eat a cheese twist and simply relax and enjoy the view: the sea, ever changing; clouds scudding past so close she could touch them; the little fishing boats bobbing out across the water in faded greens and browns, their winches and nets heavy behind them, looking tiny and fragile against the vast expanse of the sea. She just needed five minutes’ peace and quiet before heading down to the bakery to relieve her colleague Jayden for the lunchtime shift.

Neil, the little puffin who had crashed into her life one night in a storm and remained there ever since, did not agree. He found the activity of flying outside, high up, and still being able to see her through the window utterly amazing, and liked to do it again and again, sometimes taking off to fly all the way around the lighthouse and come back in the other side, sometimes pecking at the glass because Huckle thought it was funny to feed him tidbits out of the window even though Polly had told him not to.

Polly put down her book and moved over to the window, struck as she never ceased to be – she wondered if she would ever grow tired at it – by the amazing cast of the sun silvering in and out behind the clouds over the waves, the gentle cawk of the seagulls and the whistling wind, which could turn thunderous on winter days. She still couldn’t quite believe she lived here. She opened the old-fashioned, single-glazed window with its heavy latch.

“Come in then,” she said, but Neil fluttered excitedly and tried to peck in between her fingers in case she had a tasty treat for him.

Jenny Colgan is the New York Times-bestselling author of numerous novels, including Christmas at the Cupcake Café, Little Beach Street Bakery, and Meet Me at the Cupcake Café, all international bestsellers. Jenny is married with three children and lives in London and Scotland.

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Mini Review: The Bridge by Karen Kingsbury

The Bridge by Karen Kingsbury

Published: October 27, 2015

Publisher: Howard

Format: purchased

Rating: 4/5

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Synopsis

New York Times bestselling author Karen Kingsbury delivers her biggest book yet with this heartwarming modern-day classic, an unforgettable love story set against the struggle of the American bookstore. Molly Allen lives alone in Portland, but she left her heart back in Tennessee with a man she walked away from five years ago. They had a rare sort of love she hasn’t found since.

Ryan Kelly lives in Nashville after a broken engagement and several years on the road touring with a country music duo. Sometimes when he’s lonely he visits The Bridge—the oldest bookstore in historic downtown Franklin—and remembers the hours he and Molly once spent there.

For more than four decades, Charlie and Donna Barton have run The Bridge, providing customers with coffee, conversation, and shelves of classics—even through dismal sales and the rise of digital books. Then the hundred-year flood sweeps through Franklin and destroys everything. The bank is about to pull the store’s lease when tragedy strikes. Now the question remains: Can two generations of readers rally together to save The Bridge? And is it possible that an unforgettable love might lead to the miracle of a second chance?

My Thoughts

To be honest I wanted to read The Bridge after I saw the movie on Hallmark during the Christmas holidays and at the end saw it was just part one of two parts and had to know how it ended. When I finished I realized The Bridge is definitely what a Hallmark movie is all about. The Bridge is the tale of Molly and Ryan who meet at college and you know from the beginning they are meant to be. Molly is a rich girl whose family wants her to take over the family business while Ryan is a country boy who wants to be a musician. Becoming friends first they slowly fall in love at the local bookstore call The Bridge. The Bridge is a labor of love owned by Charlie and Donna who after suffering the loss of their child wanted to open a bookstore to help other overcome loss and have someone to be there for them. It’s their love and devotion to others that will help them when they need it the most.

The book is a fast read and I loved the relationship each couple had. While Molly and Ryan had a bit of bump in the road I loved how their love lasted the test of time. I also loved how despite the challenges they had they came together to help Donna and Charlie when they needed it. Charlie and Donna’s story was what I think of when I think of everlasting love. Nothing could dampen their faith or love for one another. While this book was about love what I enjoyed most was the story of faith. The faith that they all had was amazing and encouraging, it showed me that we all must believe in something and that in doing so makes the impossible always a possiblity. This is one story that while faith-based isn’t too preachy but tells us how love and undying belief go hand in hand.

Waiting On [156]: Here's to Us by Elin Hilderbrand

Waiting on Wednesday [Wow] is a weekly event hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Here’s to Us by Elin Hilderbrand

Expected Publication: June 14, 2016

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company

Synopsis

Celebrity chef Deacon Thorpe has always been a force of nature with an insatiable appetite for life. But after that appetite contributes to Deacon's shocking death in his favorite place on earth, a ramshackle Nantucket summer cottage, his (messy, complicated) family is reeling. Now Deacon's three wives, his children, and his best friend gather on the island he loved to say farewell. The three very different women have long been bitter rivals, each wanting to claim the primary place in Deacon's life and his heart. But as they slowly let go of the resentments they've held onto for years and remember the good times, secrets are revealed, confidences are shared, and improbable bonds are formed as this unlikely family says goodbye to the man who brought them all together, for better or worse--and the women he loved find new ways to love again.

Why I Can’t Wait

What can I say it’s not summer unless I read an Elin Hilderbrand book and, of course, this one looks like another winner! I can’t wait to sit back and enjoy this fab read.

Mini Review: How Sweet the Sound by Amy K. Sorrells

How Sweet the Sound by Amy K. Sorrells

Published: March 1, 2014

Format: via free Kindle buy

Rating: 4/5

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Synopsis

From a distance, the Harlan's appear to be the perfect Southern family. Wealth and local fame mask the drama and dysfunction swirling through their family line. But as the summer heats up, a flood tide of long-hidden secrets surface. Devastation from a rape followed by the murder of two family members brings three generations of the Harlan’s together on their pecan plantation in Bay Spring, Alabama. Chief among them is Anniston, who by the time she turned thirteen thought she’d seen it all. But as her heart awakens to the possibility of love, she begins to deal with her loneliness and grief. This tender coming-of-age tale, inspired by the story of Tamar in 2 Samuel 13, shows how true healing and hope comes only from God. Though our earthly family can wound and disappoint, our heavenly Father brings freedom to those long held captive through His mercy and grace.

My Thoughts

How Sweet the Sound is the story of how family secrets and lies can haunt someone way after things are buried…literally. We meet the Harlan family who are highly regarded in their community despite the truth that lies inside their family house. Anniston is the youngest member and in a small span of time she will lose her father, also her uncle and learn the devilish things he has done plus a whole set of family secrets that will rock her foundation to its core.

I won’t say exactly what she finds out because to do so would spoil the whole book but it is the unthinkable and something that has haunted this family for decades. It’s shocking and sad and something that must be broken. We see Anniston grow up and try to put her family back together piece by piece even as some try to continue to cover up the truth for appearances sake. I saw Anniston has a strong person who took it upon herself to stop the cycle and break free of the cover ups in order to live a pure life regardless of what others think. This was a touching, heart breaking story but one that gives you faith that good will prevail. While the subject matter might be tough it’s one that must be told to help others.