Review: Real by Katy Evans

Real
Katy Evans
Series: Real, Raw & Ripped #1
Publication date: April 8th 2013
Rating: ★★★☆☆

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A fallen boxer.
A woman with a broken dream.
A competition…

He even makes me forget my name. One night was all it took, and I forgot everything and anything except the sexy fighter in the ring who sets my mind ablaze and my body on fire with wanting…

Remington Tate is the strongest, most confusing man I’ve ever met in my life.

He’s the star of the dangerous underground fighting circuit, and I’m drawn to him as I’ve never been drawn to anything in my life. I forget who I am, what I want, with just one look from him. When he’s near, I need to remind myself that I am strong–but he is stronger. And now it’s my job to keep his body working like a perfect machine, his taut muscles primed and ready to break the bones of his next opponents . . .

But the one he’s most threatening to, now, is me.

I want him. I want him without fear. Without reservations.

If only I knew for sure what it is that he wants from me?

Remington "Riptide" Tade is the boxer every woman wants.

What Brooke Dumas isn't expecting is to be included in that list, but when her best friend, Melanie, drags her to one of his fights she can't deny that the attraction is there. Especially not when he sees her on the stands and surprises everyone by smiling and sending a wink her way.

Which is something he does not do, ever.

But it seems like breaking protocol is the theme for the night, something Brooke soon learns when she's called back to his hotel room after the fight is done and ends up being offered a job.

This is Remy's attempt to find something real. To have someone who sees him as who he really is, and not just as the guy who is good at throwing punches. He's tired of people wanting to get closer to "Riptide", but never giving a damn about Remy.

He finds his chance in Brooke, who specialized in athlete rehab in college after having her Olympic dream ripped out from under her feet. She knows the opportunity to work with him as his physical therapist is too good of a deal to say no to, and he even thought he's not surprised when she agrees he couldn't be happier about it.

Accepting his offer means that Brooke has to fly across the country with Remy as a strong and silent presence by her side. She's so aware of his every move that she thinks she's going to go crazy before the tour ends, but it's during those times that she gets to know who Remy is. Or at least a side of him.

They start communicating through music, carefully choosing songs for the other to listen to as they wait to get to their destination. Brooke finds herself more and more captivated by him, and as they grow closer and start sharing more moments outside the confines of a plane, she starts to get a glimpse into the kind of person Remy truly is. Someone who can be incredibly sweet and caring one moment only to have a dark and aggressive edge to him on another.

Real had so much sexual tension I thought I was the one who was going to go crazy. And not necessarily in a good way.

The amount of times Brooke had difficulties in controlling her body's reactions to Remy were troubling. Seriously. Every other page or so we had a comment about soaked panties or weak knees or how hot he was. We get it, alright? He's gorgeous and she wants him. No need to mention it all the time.

That was also one of the reasons why I didn't really buy Brooke and Remy's relationship. It seemed like they were so focused on their mutual attraction that they didn't spend any time outside of airplanes and sharing music actually working on building a connection and developing their relationship.

And the way the author portrayed Remy's mental illness (he's bipolar) was just. Ugh. Ugh.

One, there was the over use of the word "speedy" whenever Remy had an episode. Whether he was manic or depressed, the characters would just say he was "speedy" and leave it at that. Like it explained everything.  Hint: It doesn't.

Two, for some reason whenever he did have an episode his eyes changed from blue to black. As far as I'm aware, suffering from bipolar disorder does not cause dilated pupils. So if you're going to write about mental illness of any kind, at least do your research.

Three, the way the other characters handled Remy when he was manic was to just sedate him and hope for the best. I mean??????? There was no real help given from anyone when Remy so obviously needed someone to be there for him. That was not okay.

And fourth, apparently Brooke had some kind of magical ability to control Remy when he was manic? Because it's mentioned that all she needed to do to was to cuddle in bed with him and he'd be as calm as a kitten. And that was so implausible, especially considering Remy was not being treated for his illness, because mania means that you're feeling like the king of the world and no one can stop you. Not even the woman you have feelings for. Because bipolar disorder is a medical condition that's not cured by resting or love.

So yeah, I gave Real three stars because the entire communicating through music aspect of it all was really touching and sweet and also because the story really had the potential to be something more. Remy's back story was actually really interesting, and maybe if the book wasn't told entirely from Brooke's point of view I would have enjoyed it more. 

Review: Own the Wind by Kristen Ashley

Own the Wind
Kristen Ashley
Series: Chaos #1
Publication date: April 2nd 2013 by Grand Central Publishing
Rating: ★★★☆☆

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Too hot to handle...

Tabitha Allen grew up in the thick of Chaos--the Chaos Motorcycle Club, that is. Her father is Chaos' leader, and the club has always had her back. But one rider was different from the start. When Tabby was running wild, Shy Cage was there. When tragedy tore her life apart, he helped her piece it back together. And now, Tabby's thinking about much more than friendship...

Tabby is everything Shy's ever wanted, but everything he thinks he can't have. She's beautiful, smart, and as his friend's daughter, untouchable. Shy never expected more than friendship, so when Tabby indicates she wants more--much more--he feels like the luckiest man alive. But even lucky men can crash and burn...

I was super excited for this new series because bikers, but in the end I was left with the feeling that something was missing.

But first things first.

Own the Wind is the first installment in the Chaos series and it can definitely be read as a stand-alone, but most of the characters that appear in this book are from Kristen Ashley's Motorcycle Man. Own the Wind is actually a spin-off from that book/universe, so it would be interesting for you to read it first just so you can experience the deliciousness that are men in bikes.

Not that this book doesn't have that too, because it does.

Shy Cage was looking for a place to belong to when he found Tack Allen's Motorcycle Club, Chaos. From recruit to full-member, he proved his loyalty to the Club time and time again, building a reputation for himself as a guy who got the job done and kept things quiet.

That is, if you weren't referring to all the women that came in and out of his room at the Compound.

But because he's known to keep his mouth shut, he's usually the person the brothers call whenever they find that Tack's daughter, Tabby, is about to get herself into trouble.

Tabby grew up around bikers. She grew up with them having her back and always helping her out whenever she needed it, because otherwise they'd have to deal with her dad's wrath. Her dad is the reason why Tabby is off-limits to every member of the Club.

So when Shy learns that Tabby is running wild again, he doesn't hesitate to try and teach her a lesson. It mostly works, but more because he hurt her deeply and less because he made his point. And things only get more complicated when he finds himself caring about Tabby's feelings and her sudden absence from all things Club related.

What follows is Shy and Tabby's relationship throughout the years, how they go from not really liking each other very much to friends and then finally to lovers.

I think I didn't like this book as much as all the other ones was because there really wasn't that much drama? Don't get me wrong, there were some really sad situations in the story, and some scenes where all I wanted to do was grab Tabby and Shy by the neck and force them to confess their feelings for each other, but there wasn't that whole danger vibe the other books had. No Tabby getting kidnapped or shot at or stalked or fighting for her life and all the other dramatic things I like so much.

Even so, Own the Wind still left me wanting more of Kristen Ashley's writing and the world of Chaos Motorcycle Club, and I cannot wait for Hop and Lanie's story in Fire Inside!

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Want to read the first two chapters of Own the Wind?

Kristen Ashley was nice enough to make them available for download here!

Review: Romero by Elizabeth Reyes

This book is part of my 2013 TBR Pile Challenge.

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Romero
Elizabeth Reyes
Series: The Moreno Brothers #4
Publication date: October 24th 2011
Rating: ★★★★☆

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Prim and proper middle school teacher Isabel Montenegro always runs the opposite direction from men like Ramon Romero. A foul-mouthed, uneducated, loose cannon has no place in her careful plans. But instead of running away, Isabel is completely captivated. The intensity of his nature, while a bit daunting, mesmerizes her in ways she can’t begin to understand. She’s unwilling to walk away—even when her instincts are screaming at her to run.

Romero has no idea what he's getting himself into when he first kisses Isabel. Shocked at the passion she invokes in him, he believes he can keep his usual short fuse under wraps. Falling fast and hard for someone so flawlessly sweet only makes him more aware that he’s far from perfect. If she is ever witness to his biggest imperfection, he’s sure she’ll bail. But when her meddling sister does the worst thing imaginable—bring other men between him and his Izzy—that fuse is lit and all bets are off.

Can two people who are worlds apart teach each other how to love, or will the reality of their differences drive them apart? 

I honestly didn't know if I was going to like this one. The idea of taking the focus off of the Moreno brothers to write a story about one of the family's closest friend was great, but I didn't think I was gonna be able to get into it, especially considering the way Romero didn't appeal to me in all the other books. I think that was one of the reasons why it took me so long to read this, but I am so freaking glad I finally did!

Romero was raised by his two uncles and lives a life full of women, alcohol, and parties. He has a bad temper and an even worse mouth, and he makes no excuses for who he is and where he came from. He worked hard to open his own business, and he's seriously proud to how far he's come in life by his own merits.

Isabel comes from a different world than Romero's. Her family has money and sometimes cares more about appearances than happiness, and her sister Pat makes Izzy's life hell trying to control who she dates and what she does. All to make sure their family's name is not shamed.

When Izzy and Romero cross paths, everything turns upside down. Romero learns that sometimes letting his anger get the best of him is not a good thing, and Izzy finds the strength to stand up for herself and fight for what she wants.

We see a lot of sides to all of the characters presented in the story, and I cracked myself up reading about Romero interacting with his uncles. This was a really fun read, and Romero ended up being my favorite book of The Moreno Brothers series so far!

Review: Walking Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Walking Disaster
Jamie McGuire
Series: Beautiful #2
Publication date: April 2nd 2013 by Atria Books
Rating: ★★★★☆

Goodreads - Amazon

Finally, the highly anticipated follow-up to the New York Times bestseller Beautiful Disaster. 

Can you love someone too much?

Travis Maddox learned two things from his mother before she died: Love hard. Fight harder.

In Walking Disaster, the life of Travis is full of fast women, underground gambling, and violence. But just when he thinks he is invincible, Abby Abernathy brings him to his knees.

Every story has two sides. In Beautiful Disaster, Abby had her say. Now it’s time to see the story through Travis’s eyes.

I fell in love with Travis while reading Beautiful Disaster, and when I found out there was going to be a book from his POV I almost died.

The best things about Walking Disaster were the extra scenes at the beginning and end and all the interaction with only Travis and Shepley and Travis and his family. It was the best thing to read about these little moments we didn't get to see, specially because they gave us some background to Travis' character and as to what he was thinking when things happened in the first book.

It was also really easy to get into Travis' head as the story goes along, and Jamie McGuire did a wonderful job in retelling all the events that lead to Travis and Abby getting together and then married. And the epilogue was amazing, with that little snippet of what the future of Mrs. and Mr. Maddox was like!

A little thing that I didn't really like about it was that a lot of the dialogue between Abby and Travis was cut, but I understand that was done so things wouldn't get too repetitive. It was still a wonderful book, and an even better end to the series.

Waiting On Wednesday (3): Thursday Nights by Lisa N. Paul

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

Thursday Nights
Lisa N. Paul
Publication date: May 13th 2013 by Super Dandy Publishing

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Pain can leave even the strongest of people weak and hollow. But when fate brings two weak souls together, will the love they find mend the fragments that are barely holding them together, or will the weight of their past finally cause them to crumble?


Max DeLucca has spent seven years trying to forget the betrayal of his past. He lives his life from day to day never looking forward and never looking back. The walls around his heart keep anyone from getting too close and prevent him from feeling too much…until he meets her.


Her entire life, Janie Silver searched for the kind of love that wouldn’t leave her broken and more importantly, wouldn't leave her behind. She longs for a love that can heal the wounds of her past and give her the future she knows she deserves. She thought she was looking for something that just didn’t exist…until she meets him.


Danny’s on Main is where their story begins. A neighborhood bar where strangers become friends, friends become family and some … become lovers
… it all started on Thursday Nights

I feel like this is going to hurt a little bit, maybe?

And that I'm going to be happy about it?

And judging by the sneak peeks on Lisa N. Paul's author page, is always going to be hothothot.

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Teaser #1 & Teaser #2

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Connect with the author

Lisa's Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter 

Lisa N. Paul is a mother, daughter, sister, friend, reader, writer, blogger, and self-proclaimed comedian—just not always in that order. Ever since she was a little girl, she has devoured books. Falling in love with the Sweet Valley High series at a young age drew Lisa to series books and inspired her to write her own. Thursday Nights is the first book in her Charistown series.

When not writing, Lisa can be found eating french fries and Godiva raspberry truffles, or hanging out with her husband and two sons.

Review: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight
Jennifer E. Smith
Publication date: January 2nd 2012 by Poppy/Litte Brown
Rating: 5 stars

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Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything?

Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. Having missed her flight, she's stuck at JFK airport and late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's sitting in her row.

A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?

I... I don't even know?

Because this book is perfect?

And I loved it?

And I read it all in about three hours because I couldn't possibly set it down?

Hadley and Oliver meet at the airport after Hadley misses her flight for her dad's wedding. Oliver is British, handsome, and happens to be on the same flight as her to London. He's also pretty good at distracting her from her claustrophobia, making her laugh, and stealing whiskey from distracted flight attendants.

The entire story goes by during a period of 24 hours where Hadley spends the entire plane ride talking to Oliver, gets to where she's supposed to be, meets her new stepmother for the first time, and tries to mend her relationship with her father. The way the plot flows is absolutely amazing, involving you with what Hadley is going through and keeping you wondering if she'll ever see Oliver again.

It's a sweet story about family coming together and the statistical probability of love at first sight, which turns out to be great for everyone!

Review: Sins & Needles by Karina Halle

Sins & Needles
Karina Halle
Series: The Artists Trilogy #1
Publication date: January 25th 2013 by Metal Blonde Books
Rating: 5 stars

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Ellie Watt is used to starting over. The daughter of a grifting team, Ellie spent her childhood being used as a pawn in her parents' latest scam. Now she’s much older, wiser and ready to give her con artist life a rest. But returning to the dry desert town of Palm Valley, California means one more temptation than she bargained for – Camden McQueen. Once known as the high school weirdo, Camden is bigger and badder than the boy he used to be and a talented tattoo artist with his own thriving business. Ellie’s counting on Camden still being in love with her but what she’s not counting on is how easily unrequited love can turn into obsession over time. When Camden discovers Ellie’s plan to con him, he makes her a deal she doesn’t dare refuse, but her freedom comes with a price and it’s one that takes both Ellie and Camden down a dangerous road.

I don't even know where to start.

Ellie is a grifter, just like her parents, and after one of her scams goes bad and she's short on money she decides to start her live over and go back to the only place she could call home - her Uncle Jim's house. There will be no more tricks. No more stealing money from people. No more grifting. She's done.

And then she meets one of her old high school friends - her only friend back then, really -, Camden. She's taken aback by how much he changed from the weird freaky kid he was back then to an incredibly attractive young man covered in tattoos, and owner of a successful tattoo parlor in town. Ellie can't pass the opportunity to make easy money, and Camden might just be what she needs to get her life together and get the hell out of that town. So she starts plotting, hoping to use Camden's trust in her to get to his money.

Only things not go as planned when Camden finds out about her plans to scam him and turns the tables on her in on hell of a plot twist. We find out he's not as sweet as we think he is, and he definitely doesn't forget things easily. Especially not Ellie.

This story comes together perfectly, keeping you on edge and guessing the entire time. It was such a refreshing read, with a whole lot different plot from what we're used to finding out there in Contemporary Romance books. The characters interacted and reacted in the most amazing ways to each other, and it all ended with a cliffhanger that left me wanting to punch something!

Review: On Dublin Street by Samantha Young

On Dublin Street
Samantha Young
Series: On Dublin Street #1
Publication date: August 31st 2012
Rating: 3 stars

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Jocelyn Butler has been hiding from her past for years. But all her secrets are about to be laid bare…

Four years ago, Jocelyn left her tragic past behind in the States and started over in Scotland, burying her grief, ignoring her demons, and forging ahead without attachments. Her solitary life is working well—until she moves into a new apartment on Dublin Street where she meets a man who shakes her carefully guarded world to its core.

Braden Carmichael is used to getting what he wants, and he’s determined to get Jocelyn into his bed. Knowing how skittish she is about entering a relationship, Braden proposes an arrangement that will satisfy their intense attraction without any strings attached.

But after an intrigued Jocelyn accepts, she realizes that Braden won’t be satisfied with just mind-blowing passion. The stubborn Scotsman is intent on truly knowing her… down to the very soul.

Not as good as I'd hoped it would be, but still entertaining.

The beginning was a really good one, giving me no idea about what was to come and how everything would pan out. But it did give us a good background as to one of Jocelyn's many issues, something she struggles with throughout out the whole book.

My problem with the story came with Branden and his controlling and possessive behavior. It didn't matter how much he wanted Joss to be his, the way he went on about it was not okay. I also had trouble with how much Joss lied to herself, making some parts of the book annoying to go through.

But even though the story didn't really have anything new when it comes to what's out there on Contemporary Romance, it was still a fun read.