Blog Hop Giveaway: Twelve Days of New Adult Hop

The Twelve Days of New Adult Giveaway Hop
Today, Waves of Fiction is excited to join Stuck in Books in this fun Giveaway Hop where several blogs will be showcasing their favorite New Adult books. Check out our picks and be sure enter the giveaway and visit the other blogs for more goodies!

For my stop, I'm featuring a few New Adult books I've recently enjoyed.

For our stop, we are giving away US $10 shopping spree to either The Book Depository, US Barnes & Noble or US Amazon. This giveaway is open internationally to wherever The Book Depository delivers to. Be sure to follow Waves of Fiction on Blogger and Blogluvin to be eligible.

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Be sure to visit the other blogs for a chance to win more book goodies!

Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: Redemption (Huntsville #1) by Alla Kar

Waves of Fiction is excited to join xPresso Book Tours for the Redemption Blog Tour by Alla Kar. For our stop, we have the book details, a review, and a tour wide giveaway! Be sure to enter for a chance to win a US$10 Amazon gift card and eBook copy of Redemption.

Redemption (Huntsville #1) by Alla Kar

Published by: Swoon Romance
Publication date: November 27th 2015
Purchase Link: Amazon
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

His second chance may cost him his sweetest addiction …

The truth about NEVEAH’S cheating fiancée hit hard—but not as hard as her right hook to his jaw. After ridding herself of him she travels back home to Huntsville, Texas to her father and his boxing gym where she grew up. When she finds a beaten man in the woods beside her home, her entire life changes and things get—complicated.

Ex-con RAGE only wants two things—for the man that set him up to release his sister, and for him to burn in Hell where he belongs. After being released from prison, he heads straight to the man that put him there, only to be beaten and tossed in the woods for dead. When he’s found by the most beautiful girl he’s ever met, he knows he’ll have a chance to rescue his sister even though she doesn’t realize she needs saving.

Neveah and her father, nurse Rage back to heath, offer him a job at their gym and quickly find out that he’s amazing in the ring. Without them knowing who he is, he knows he’s been given a second chance to live his life. The only condition is that he has to stay away from Neveah, which is a promise he soon realizes is hard to keep. The feisty southern beauty normally gets what she wants, and Rage wants to give her everything.

With the truth lurking in the shadows, Rage must decide if his sweetest addiction is worth giving up his second chance.

My Thoughts

Wow! Redemption by Alla Kar was hot, fast-paced and all sorts of exciting! I can’t say that the novel was flawlessly written, but it definitely caught my attention and had me rooting for Rage and Neveah from the moment they met! These two characters were a perfect mix with their off-the-charts chemistry and fair share of obstacles.

Rage Cohen has one thing on his mind the moment he’s released from prison, and that is to save his younger sister from the clutches of the drug lord Dexter who was the reason he was imprisoned. When his rescue attempt lands him in a wooden area nearly beaten to death, he knows his breaths are numbered until an Angel crosses his path and saves him.

The last thing on Neveah’s mind is falling in love after being cheated on by her fiancé. When she leaves Phoenix, and heads back to Huntsville, Texas to work at her father’s boxing gym, she stumbles upon a handsome, injured stranger behind her home and knows immediately that a connection is inevitable. However, with Rage’s shady past and his promise to Nev’s father to stay away from his daughter, the odds are stacked against them from the very beginning.

First off, I enjoyed Rage and Nev’s story. Alla Kar has a way of drawing her readers into her novel with fast-paced action, likable characters and steady paced drama that never feels over the top. Rage and Neveah had a ton of chemistry between each other, and I enjoyed Rage’s alpha-male moments that were all well intended. He showed how much he cared for Nev and proved he was willing to sacrifice anything to keep her safe. 

The secondary characters, including Wes, Shelly, Chase and Dante were a perfect compliment the story. I could easily pick up a novel that was dedicated to these characters. 

Overall, Redemption is a perfect fix if you’re in the mood for an exciting novel that’s filled with erotic moments and perfectly matched characters.

3.5 Suns

Author Bio
My name is Alla Kar. I live in the deep south with my fiancé and Chihuahua. I love to write about alpha males, southern gentlemen and swoon-worthy men! :)
Social Media Links

Blog  |  Facebook  |  Twitter

Be sure to enter this Blog Tour Giveaway (INT) for a chance to win:

$10 Amazon gift card + eBook copy of Redemption

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Be sure to visit the other blogs on this tour HERE!!

Waves of Sunday #82 Holiday Edition: Unwrapping Her Perfect Match by Kat Latham

Welcome to our weekly edition of Waves of Sunday where each Sunday we spotlight a book that has been making waves in the book scene or has simply caught our attention causing a riptide on our TBR.

For the next few weeks, we'll be spotlight Holiday reads!

Today we are spotlighting:

Unwrapping Her Perfect Match (London Legends #3.5) by Kat Latham
Published November 11th 2014 by Kat Latham

’Twas a week before Christmas, and at the auction house…

At six foot one, Gwen Chambers has felt like a giant her whole life. She’s a calm, capable nurse saving lives in a busy London hospital, but healthy men give her heart palpitations. When larger-than-life rugby player “Little” John Sheldon convinces her to bid on him in his team’s fundraising auction, she discovers how pleasurable heart palpitations can be.

A rugby player was stirring, with desire no one could douse…

John has wanted Gwen since he first saw her, but when he’s injured in a match just before Christmas he suddenly needs her too. Not only can the sexy nurse help him recover, but she might be able to help him look after his daughter—a shy ten-year-old who speaks only French.

But will it be a Happy Christmas for all, and for all a good night?

From decorating the Christmas tree to ice skating at the Tower of London, Gwen helps father and daughter open up and bond with each other—and she bonds right along with them. But when John’s agent calls with a life-changing offer, Gwen has to decide how far she’s willing to go for her perfect match. Will their first Noël also be their last?

Amazon  |  Amazon UK  |  Barnes & Noble  |  GooglePlay  |  iTunes  |  Kobo  |  Smashwords

Arlene's Thoughts

There's nothing I enjoy more than picking up a holiday book during this time of the year. Unwrapping Her Perfect Match sounds like a great novel to pick up! It has a Christmas auction that includes a handsome hockey player, the possibility of a holiday romance, and the makings of a Christmas miracle. What more can you ask for?? Oh I know!  The chance to read this for free!! I'll definitely be downloading a copy of this book. 

Review: Screwdrivered (Cocktail #3) by Alice Clayton

Screwdrivered (Cocktail #3) by Alice Clayton

Published September 2nd 2014 by Gallery Books

Readers back for a third round of the bestselling Cocktail series will enjoy a madcap romantic comedy about bodice ripping and chest heaving, fiery passion and love everlasting. Plus a dash of paperwork filing and horseshi—wait, what?

By day, Viv Franklin designs software programs. By night, Vivian’s a secret romance-novel junkie who longs for a knight in shining armor, or a cowboy on a wild stallion, or a strapping firefighter to sweep her off her feet. And she gets to wear the bodice—don’t forget the bodice.

When a phone call brings news that she’s inherited a beautiful old home in Mendocino, California from a long-forgotten aunt, she moves her entire life across the country to embark on what she sees as a great, romance-novel-worthy adventure. But romance novels always have a twist, don’t they?

There’s a cowboy, one that ignites her loins. Because Cowboy Hank is totally loin-ignition worthy. But there’s also a librarian, Clark Barrow. And he calls her Vivian. Can tweed jackets and elbow patches compete with chaps and spurs? You bet your sweet cow pie.

In Screwdrivered, Alice Clayton pits Superman against Clark in a hilarious and hot battle that delights a swooning Viv/Vivian.

Also within this book, an answer to the question of the ages: Why ride a cowboy when you can ride a librarian?

My Thoughts

Screwdrivered is the third installment of Alice Clayton’s Cocktail series. This is probably my favorite from the series, and I have to say, Clayton’s hit the perfect stride of romantic, funny and swoon-worthy with Viv and Clark.

Viv Franklin is a romance novel fanatic. She mentally narrates her life through the eyes of a heroine waiting for her knight and shining armor to come rescue her on his dark horse and make passionate love to her. In reality though, she’s a software programmer from Philadelphia who has recently inherited a beautiful cottage from her great aunt. So, she travels to Mendicino, California where she leaves everything behind to begin her new life.

In Mendicino, she learns that a gorgeous, ripped cowboy is in charge of the horses and animals her great aunt left behind, and she immediately casts Cowboy Hank as the main character of her bodice ripper romance. However, then she collides with the local librarian/historian dressed in tweed jackets with elbow patches who also happens to dictate how she can remodel her new home, Viv soon realizes that hunky cowboys might set your loins on fire, but subtle, sexy librarians are much more fun to ride.

I had an absolute blast reading Screwdrivered through Viv’s perspective. Her mental narration of her life in the form of her own romance novel was hilarious! I also enjoyed seeing Viv stumble and make a fool of herself through the story because she handled it all with perfect grace.

The contrasting dynamic between Cowboy Hank and Librarian Clark was perfection! Clark was swoon-worthy in a nerdy, yet dominant sort of way. Cowboy Hank didn’t hold a candle to him in my opinion.

Overall, Screwdrivered is a romantic comedy that kept me entertained the entire time! I loved the dialog, characters and overall plot, which were blended to perfection!

4 Suns

Review & Signed Book Giveaway: The Vincent Brothers (The Vincent Boys #2) by Abbi Glines

The Vincent Brothers (The Vincent Boys #2) by Abbi Glines

Published December 18th 2012 by Simon Pulse

Hot romance is the cure for heartbreak in this sequel to The Vincent Boys.

Getting a boy to fall head-over-heels in love with you isn’t easy. Especially when he’s been in love with your cousin for as long as you can remember.

Lana has lived her life in her cousin’s shadow. Ashton always made perfect grades, had tons of friends, and looks model-perfect. And she’s always had Sawyer Vincent—the only boy Lana’s ever wanted—wrapped around her finger. But now things are different. Lana has a chance to make Sawyer see her, and she’s taking it. If only he’d get over Ashton—because Lana is sick of second-best.

Sawyer’s heart is broken. He’s lost his best girl to his best friend. And then Lana comes to town. Ashton’s cousin has always been sweet and soft-spoken, but now she’s drop-dead gorgeous as well. Sawyer doesn’t know if Lana can heal his broken heart, but spending time with her might at least make Ashton jealous.

What starts as a carefree fling becomes a lusty game of seduction. Sawyer and Lana may have different motives, but their scintillating hookups are the same kind of steamy. . .

My Thoughts
The Vincent Brothers is the second installment to The Vincent Boys, which shifts the story to Sawyer as he attempts to pick up the pieces of his broken heart. This book picks up right where the first one left off when Ashton leaves Sawyer for his cousin/brother Beau. Sawyer is hurt and somewhat jaded, which I don’t blame him because Ash and Beau seem to flaunt their romance quite a bit in this story.

As the summer before college progresses, Sawyer tries to get over his heartbreak and when Lana McDaniel, Ash’s cousin, comes to stay for the summer, Sawyer finds an attractive distraction that has him discovering feelings he never before experienced with Ash.

Overall, I find Abbi Glines storytelling entertaining and easy to follow. I never lost interest in the characters and the drama that surrounded them as the story progressed. Glines does a great job of molding her alpha-male characters in a way that makes them appealing and fun to connect with from the beginning. Sawyer had his moments of intensity, which I couldn’t blame him because he was definitely filtering through a ton of emotional damage from his break-up.

One thing I’ll point out is that it’s difficult to process when the main characters, Ash and Beau, from The Vincent Boys become secondary characters in this novel, they seemed to have lost their appeal in my eyes. I never really agreed with how they came together in the first book, but to see them flaunt their connection and love in front of Sawyer, I felt it was a bit callous, so I didn’t blame Sawyer for his hot headed moments.

I really liked Lana in this novel, probably a bit more than Ash. Lana was sweet, shy and unfortunately second-best. However, as the story continues, she catches Sawyer’s attention and feelings in a way that Ash never did. I didn’t care for how easily Sawyer disregarded her at first, so I commended Lana when she stood her ground and walked away.

Overall, I enjoyed The Vincent Brothers. It brought closure to a few storylines from the first novel, and there was never any downtime in energy or drama. Well done!

3 Suns

I am giving away a signed paperback copy of The Vincent Brothers by Abbi Glines. This giveaway is open to US Residents only. Please fill out the rafflecopter for a chance to win.

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Happy Thanksgiving and Appreciation Giveaway!

Copyright: beholdereye / 123RF Stock Photo
Waves of Fiction would like to wish all of our followers and blog visitors a very happy Thanksgiving. May this day be filled with tons of blessings and lots of good eats! Enjoy! 

In appreciation and gratitude for visiting our blog, we are giving away a bundle of paperback books. Be sure to fill out the rafflecopter and share with us what book or author you're most thankful you came across this year. This giveaway is open to US residents only. Happy reading!

Paperback copy of White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Paperback ARC copy of Better When He's Brave by Jay Crownover
Paperback ARC copy of Miles from Nowhere by Amy Clipston
Paperback Signed copy of Searching for Beautiful by Nyrae Dawn
Paperback Signed copy of Breakable by Tammara Webber

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Review: One King's Way by Samantha Young

One King's Way(On Dublin Street #6.5) by Samantha Young

Publication Date: November 3rd 2015 by InterMix

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

About the book:

The New York Times bestselling author of On Dublin Street returns to the bar where it all began with Braden and Joss for a white-hot new novella full of passion and drama.
 
When he’s not working at the club, Craig Lanaghan looks out for his mother and little sisters. So when it comes to women, all he wants is a good time. But once Rain Alexander walks into his life, there’s no denying that this woman could be worth much more than a one-night stand….

Rain’s lifelong regret is having left her sister Darcy alone years ago with a guardian who turned out to be abusive. So when Darcy’s boyfriend publicly humiliates her in a cruel way, Rain’s overprotective instincts kick in and she follows him to Club 39—where she meets a guy who just might be her perfect match.

The chemistry between Rain and Craig is explosive, but Rain is out for revenge, and refuses to be sidetracked by flirtation. As things between them heat up, she’ll have to make a heartbreaking choice between giving in to the man of her dreams or putting her sister’s happiness first….

Praise for the On Dublin Street series
 
“Really sexy.”—USA Today
 
“Young writes stories that stay with you long after you flip that last page.”—Under the Covers

My Thoughts:

Rain has been frequenting Club 39, hoping to meet up with her sister, Darcy’s ex-boyfriend, and make him pay for the pain he put her through.  She plans to seduce and then humiliate him, but Craig, the sexy bartender and his magnetic pull distracts her from her mission. 

Craig has never had the desire to be in a serious relationship, flirting and hooking up has satisfied his cravings up to this point. That’s until he lays eyes on Rain Alexander.  She’s the epitome of a 1940s pinup girl, gorgeous with sexy curves, and he can’t stop drooling over her. Rain brushes off his advances, but Craig can’t let her be.  When he finds out the reason for her hanging around the bar, he’s determined to foil Rain’s ridiculous revenge plot.

I can appreciate Rain’s motives, who doesn’t want to exact revenge on the jerk who humiliates your sister?  Yet, I don’t think trying to seduce your sister’s ex as part of that scheme would make any sister happy.  What rational thinking woman would come up with that kind of plan? I found it a bit unbelievable, and I don’t really care for revenge plots, anyhow.  I mean, yeah, thinking of revenge, ways to make a creep pay, sounds satisfying, but actually going through with it? To me it’s a waste of time and energy.  The best revenge is living well.  On top of that, Darcy wasn’t even in the picture until the end, so I never felt a strong sisterly bond that would make the emotions behind Rain’s intentions feel real for me. 

I never really connected with or actually liked Rain, so I found it hard to believe that Craig would be any more than superficially attracted to her.  Craig didn’t really push my buttons either, I mean I liked that he was devoted to his mother and sisters, and I definitely liked him more than Rain, but there wasn’t really anything that made me swoon.  

I’m a huge fan of Samantha Young’s writing. Her romances usually have my emotions running from one extreme to another, all the while lighting my panties on fire, but I just couldn’t drum up much enthusiasm for this romance.  I don’t expect to love every book from a particular author, so I’m just going to consider this a fluke; an exception to Ms. Young’s usually brilliant work. 

2 Suns

Review: Breathe (Sea Breeze #1) by Abbi Glines

Breathe (Sea Breeze #1) by Abbi Glines

Published May 16th 2011 by Wild Child Publishing

Sadie White's summer job isn't going to be on the beach life-guarding or working at rental booths like most kids her age. With her single mother's increasing pregnancy and refusal to work, Sadie has to take over her mother's job as a domestic servant for one of the wealthy summer families on a nearby island.

When the family arrives at their summer getaway, Sadie is surprised to learn that the owner of the house is Jax Stone, one of the hottest teen rockers in the world. If Sadie hadn't spent her life raising her mother and taking care of the house she might have been normal enough to be excited about working for a rock star.

Even though Sadie isn't impressed by Jax's fame, he is drawn to her. Everything about Sadie fascinates Jax but he fights his attraction. Relationships never work in his world and as badly as he wants Sadie, he believes she deserves more. By the end of the summer, Jax discovers he can't breathe without Sadie.

My Thoughts
When Sadie White moves from Tennessee to Alabama with her pregnant, single mom, she immediately begins to take over the family responsibility of keeping a roof over their head. That includes becoming the hired help for the famous rock-star Jax Stone. Sadie works hard to prove herself to her new boss Ms. Mary in the hopes that she’ll give her a chance to keep her job throughout the summer while her mom waits to give birth.

During her time at Jax’s house, she runs into him a few times and eventually the hired help and the rock-star strike up a romance that can't be denied but can ultimately put Sadie's job at risk.

After recently diving into The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines, I was eager to try the Sea Breeze series to see if her characters and plot development were just as engaging as my first reading experience. I’m happy to share that Glines definitely has a knack for creating a steadily paced novel that’s filled with an interesting cast and off-the-charts chemistry.

I really enjoyed the dual perspective between Sadie and Jax. Despite Sadie carrying the majority of the narrative, it made the storytelling more engaging to get Jax’s perspective from time to time.

The only element I had a small issue with was with Sadie’s age and her actions with Jax. It would have been nice to age this character not as a minor of seventeen, but easily making her one year older considering the fact that Jax was nineteen and well they get busy from time to time. It didn’t bother me enough to chuck the book, but why couldn’t Glines have made her eighteen?

Other than that, Breeze was an enjoyable and quick read with likeable characters and an engaging narration. I look forward to reading Marcus’s story because I really liked him in this book. On to the next installment!

3.5 Suns

Waves of Sunday #81

Welcome to our weekly edition of Waves of Sunday where each Sunday we spotlight a book that has been making waves in the book scene or has simply caught our attention causing a riptide on our TBR.

Today we are spotlighting:

Corrupt by Penelope Douglas

Published November 17th 2015 by CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

Erika 

I was told that dreams were our heart’s desires. My nightmares, however, became my obsession. 

His name is Michael Crist. 

My boyfriend’s older brother is like that scary movie that you peek through your hand to watch. He is handsome, strong, and completely terrifying. The star of his college’s basketball team and now gone pro, he’s more concerned with the dirt on his shoe than me. 

But I noticed him.

I saw him. I heard him. The things that he did, and the deeds that he hid…For years, I bit my nails, unable to look away. 

Now, I’ve graduated high school and moved on to college, but I haven’t stopped watching Michael. He’s bad, and the dirt I’ve seen isn’t content to stay in my head anymore. 

Because he’s finally noticed me. 

Michael

Her name is Erika Fane, but everyone calls her Rika.

My brother’s girlfriend grew up hanging around my house and is always at our dinner table. She looks down when I enter a room and stills when I am close. I can always feel the fear rolling off of her, and while I haven’t had her body, I know that I have her mind. That’s all I really want anyway. 

Until my brother leaves for the military, and I find Rika alone at college. 

In my city. 

Unprotected. 

The opportunity is too good to be true as well as the timing. Because you see, three years ago she put a few of my high school friends in prison, and now they’re out. 

We’ve waited. We’ve been patient. And now every last one of her nightmares will come true. 

***Corrupt is a stand-alone dark romance with no Cliffy

Arlene's Thoughts 

I don't normally pick up dark romance novels, but Corrupt by Penelope Douglas sounds too enticing to pass up. From the description and early reviews, it sounds edgy, hot and all sorts of messed up. I'm curious how Michael will play a role in the vengeance his friends are determined to dish out on Rika. Corrupt definitely sounds like something I could use to shot my reading palette. I'll definitely give this one a try.

Book Blitz & Giveaway: Out of Chances by Shona Husk

Out of Chances
Shona Husk
(Face the Music #4)
Publication date: November 22nd 2015
Genres: New Adult, Romance

Shona Husk’s sexy new adult series about emerging rock band Selling the Sun concludes this month with a story about a woman who doesn’t want to connect, a man who’s forgotten how and the friendships that save our lives.
Dan Clarke knows he doesn’t have a problem, regardless of whatever his band members, his friends, his family and everyone else thinks. Drinking isn’t keeping him from doing what needs to be done, and it helps keep the anger and pain of his ex-girlfriend’s betrayal at bay. If only she would stay away as well, but, since the band’s return to Fremantle, she’s everywhere-on the phone, in his apartment, at his parents’ house-begging for another chance, reminding him of how good they had been together, holding him hostage to the past. It’s no wonder he needs a beer now and again.
Indigo Matthews is all about control: she trains hard, she works hard and she plays hard. Men are for fun, not forever, and she will never end up like her mother, trapped and miserable. A huge Selling the Sun fan, Indigo knows when Dan wanders into her bar that he is a conquest that she has to make. But their connection is stronger than just sex, and regardless of her credo Indigo finds herself going back for more. Then truths about Dan’s life start to emerge, and Indigo finds herself in the one position she swore she’d never find herself.
A DUI, a drunk one night stand and an ultimatum from the band bring Dan’s life to a halt. Picking up the pieces is something he can’t do alone, and there’s only one person that he trusts to give a damn. The one person that he hurt the most. Indigo.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

EXCERPT:

At the man’s table she stopped, hip cocked to the side. ‘My buddy over there says that you’re no one famous. I think you are.’
He smiled, but it was cautious. ‘Who do you think I am?’
‘I have five bucks that says you’re the bass player from Selling the Sun.’ There was no money on the table, and the guy she was working with didn’t give a damn, but that didn’t stop nerves from pushing her heart harder or her hands from feeling a little slippery on the tray.
‘And if I am?’ He leaned back and his smile broadened.
‘A free beer?’ She put the one he’d ordered on the table.
He nodded. ‘I am.’
‘Prove it.’ Anyone could say that they were.
‘Drivers licence okay? Or do you require a full hundred points?’ He was still smiling as though this was a game. ‘But that will only work if you know my name. Do you?’
‘What kind of fan wouldn’t, Dan Clarke?’
He lifted one eyebrow as he reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out his wallet. He flipped it open, covered his address with his thumb and showed her his name. Daniel Sean Clarke. ‘Happy?’
She nodded, more than happy. Her happy was doing its own happy dance. Now for part two of her daring plan. She’d never slept with any one close to famous, and while she’d fancied Dan from the audience of the concerts, he was here now, right in front of her. She could reach out and touch him. She resisted. Just. ‘What are you doing later?’
‘How much later?’ His blue eyes took on a guarded look, as though he wasn’t sure where this was going.
She didn’t buy that for a moment. He’d broken up with his girlfriend and he must get hit on all the time. Indigo checked her watch. An hour and a half left of her shift. That was probably too long, yet there was no way she could have him out the back of the pub in the middle of the afternoon—no matter how appealing that seemed right now.
‘I finish in ninety minutes.’
‘And then?’ He drew a line in the condensation on his glass, his gaze firmly on her. He was waiting for her to make it clear. Maybe he wasn’t that interested. She could walk away, opportunity taken and declined. But he hadn’t said no.
So she gave a shrug as though the outcome didn’t matter. ‘We do whatever two consenting adults feel like.’
‘Are you hitting on me?’
‘Did I not make it clear enough for you?’ Did he not want to be hit on or was he not as smart as he appeared? She didn’t like either of those options.
Then he smiled and gave her a slow, lingering look that seemed to take in everything, from the top of her head down to her ass. ‘Just checking … I get that free beer while I wait?’
She nodded. She’d kind of promised him that anyway. Was he more interested in the beer than her? She drew in a breath, ready to blow him off at the first sign of rejection. Get in first before she got hurt was her motto.
Dan picked up the glass and took a sip, his gaze still on her. ‘Well, I guess the only question left is your place or mine.’

Author Bio:
Join my new releases newsletter to keep up to date: http://mad.ly/signups/119074/join
SHONA HUSK is the author of the Shadowlands, Court of Annwyn and the Face the Music series. You can find out more information about Shona at www.shonahusk.com or follow her on Twitter @ShonaHusk, or Facebook www.facebook.com/shonahusk
Face the Music, a contemporary romance series, finishes in November 2015 with Out of Chances.
New SFR series coming soon with Desire to Fall.

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Blog Tour Excerpt & Author Giveaway: Built to Last by Elisabeth Grace

Waves of Fiction is excited to join the Blog Tour for Elisabeth Grace's newest novel Built to Last. For our stop, we have the book details, an excerpt, and an author giveaway!

About BUILT TO LAST

At seventeen, the small town of Saltwater Springs had been everything to Scarlett Devereaux—as had her boyfriend Luke. Never had she imagined she’d have to leave them both behind—until the night that changed everything. A decade after skipping town Scarlett returns to start over in the only place that ever really felt like home. But when nothing goes as planned, she’s forced to turn to Luke for help. With a drunk for a dad and a mom making pocket change at the local diner, no one ever thought Luke Garrity would amount to anything. After building a successful contracting business he’s proven everyone wrong professionally, but things in his personal life are upside down. Making it the exact wrong time for Scarlett to return to Saltwater Springs. With a history of devastation and heartbreak between them can Scarlett and Luke make amends, or will secrets from the past threaten the foundation of Scarlett’s new life? Were Luke and Scarlett really built to last?

Read BUILT TO LAST for free on Kindle Unlimited:

Want to win a Kindle Fire? Stop by Elisabeth Grace's website for more information on how to win!

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Review: Wrapped and Strapped by Lorelei James

Wrapped and Strapped (Blacktop Cowboys #7) by Lorelei James

Publication Date: November 3rd 2015 by Signet

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

About the book:

In the new Blacktop Cowboys® Novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Hillbilly Rockstar strange bedfellows find common ground after the lights go down…

Flower child, vegetarian and humanitarian Harlow Pratt and gruff and strapping cattle ranch foreman Hugh Pritchett have been taunting each other for years. Hugh thinks she’s nothing but a spoiled rich girl, and he’s had enough of that life with his ex-wife. Harlow thinks Hugh is an ill-mannered trouble-maker who wouldn't know fun if it bit him on his tight denim-clad butt.

When they’re forced together at the Split Rock Ranch and Resort, everything changes. They might be polar opposites, but working out their differences skin to skin, in the dark, seems to help their incompatibility a lot. But when trouble from both their pasts comes calling, Harlow and Hugh have no one else to lean on. Can they trust one another enough to make it through the hard times together… or will their tentative truce fall apart?

My Thoughts:

Harlow has been involved in humanitarian operations for most of her life, having an inherent need to help people. Most just write it off as a guilt reaction to being the daughter of a very wealthy man, but it goes so much deeper for Harlow than that.  However, three years ago she took some time off to spend the summer with her pregnant sister, Tierney, at Split Rock Ranch, and met a sexy and very broody cowboy, Hugh. Unfortunately, their relationship didn’t end well and Hugh broke her heart. She doesn’t look forward to seeing him again, but that can’t be helped when her father suffers a heart attack and decides to recover at the Ranch with his daughters.

Hugh knows he screwed up big time with Harlow three years earlier. After a bitter divorce, he was plagued by cold feet and fear, and he let that creep into his feelings for Harlow. Now that Harlow has returned, he’s determined to show her just how much she means to him. What he doesn’t know is that in addition to being angry and hurt by him, Harlow’s also dealing with the nightmare she went through on her last mission. 

I love me a sexy cowboy, and Hugh fit that bill perfectly!  Well, present day Hugh did, anyway.  The story is told with flashbacks to the past so we know exactly what went down, and he definitely deserved Harlow’s anger.  The present Hugh doesn’t let his bitter divorce guide his actions anymore.  He’s a passionate, protective and supportive man, everything Harlow needs and deserves.  While Harlow was angry, it’s not long before their mutual intense attraction, and Hugh’s groveling, override her will to stay away from him. Please take note men: Never underestimate the power of groveling!  

Harlow was sweet and a naturally nurturing person.  She gets flack and snap judgments from people when they hear about her humanitarian endeavors, especially when they find out she comes from a rich family, and it was really unfair.  Even her sister and father were condescending over her choices, so I was happy they got some time together to sort out all of that out.  Her relationship with her father is rocky at best, but a healing and understanding take place with their time at Split Rock Ranch.  When I discovered what Harlow’s father did to get her out of the nightmare situation she was stuck in on her last mission, I couldn’t help but soften my feelings for the man. 

There were some fun times and a lot of them involved the Mud Lilies, a group of hot-to-trot older mature women.  These women were a riot from their fashion choices to their impulse control, and use of firearms.

“Reenact William Tell with a cantaloupe and a forty-five, just one time, and everyone looks at you sideways. It’s not fair,” Vivien complained.  “It wasn’t like I missed.”

Wrapped and Strapped was a second chance romance at its best: steamy and hot, but so much more. While Harlow and Hugh worked through their past, there were a lot of deep emotions unearthed.  They connected, and grew as friends in the past, but Hugh’s hang-ups always got in the way.  I enjoyed seeing the change from the past to present and they grew closer even still as they spent long hours working and sleeping together.

4 Suns