My TBR List ~ April ~ Polling is Open! #MyTBRL

My To-Be Read List is a meme hosted by Michelle @Because Reading. I think it's a fabulous idea because it gets y'all in the game and it helps me knock off some of the many, many books on my TBR list. You're more than welcome to join in the fun! I've included the basic rules below but you can click on the graphic above to hop over to Michelle's site where you can find all the details. 

Here's how it works:
On the first Saturday of each month, I will make a post with three books from my TBR List (these books can be already on your ereader or bookshelf OR books you might want to purchase) and add your link on the linky that will be provided on Michelle's post. Y'ALL will help me choose which book I will read next. The following Saturday, I will announce which book won. Then the last Saturday of the month, I'll post my review.

Fun, right?!?

***

In 2018, I'm once again working at catching up on series and y'all get to decide which series I'm going to read each month! :D

This month, I'm letting y'all choose from series that I only lack ONE book finishing! :)


Your Choices Are:


Finding It
Losing It #3

Synopsis
Sometimes you have to lost yourself to find where you truly belong...

Most girls would kill to spend months traveling around Europe after college graduation with no responsibility, no parents, and no-limit credit cards. Kelsey Summers is no exception. She's having the time of her life...or that's what she keeps telling herself.

It's a lonely business trying to find out who you are, especially when you're afraid you won't like what you discover. No amount of drinking or dancing can chase away Kelsey's loneliness, but maybe Jackson Hunt can. After a few chance meetings, he convinces her to take a journey of adventure instead of alcohol. With each new city and experience, Kelsey's mind becomes a little clearer and her heart a little less hers. Jackson helps her unravel her own dreams and desires. But the more she learns about herself, the more Kelsey realizes how little she knows about Jackson.



Struck from the Record
Record #4

Synopsis
Clay Maxwell is a smart, quick witted, sex-driven, manwhore with the good looks to match. Plenty of women have shared his bed, but only one has ever been constant, Andrea.

Their rules were simple. When they're together, it's just the two of them. When they're apart, anything is fair game. And it worked. For ten years.

But one of them has changed the game...

Clay must decide if his player ways are worth losing the one girl who has always been there.




Sinner
Wolves of Mercy Falls #4

Synopsis
found.
Cole St. Clair has come to California for one reason: to get Isabel Culpeper back. She fled from his damaged, drained life, and damaged and drained it even more. He doesn't just want her. He needs her.

lost.
Isabel is trying to build herself a life in Los Angeles. It's not really working. She can play the game as well as all the other fakes...but what's the point? What is there to win?

sinner.
Cole and Isabel share a past that never seemed to have a future. They have the power to save each other and the power to tear each other apart. The only thing for certain is that they cannot let go.



Okay, now vote! And thanks! :D


Create your own user feedback survey

Review ~ Past Imperfect ~ Alison G. Bailey #ShelfLove #TakeControl #TravelingtotheTerminus

Past Imperfect by Alison G. Bailey
Perfect #2
Release Date: February 15, 2014
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Kindle
Rating: 4.5 Bookworms
Challenges: #ShelfLove, #TakeControl, #TravelingtotheTerminus
Goodreads

Synopsis
In Present Perfect, Brad Johnson was sexy, cocky, rich and a complete Smurff**ker. He could afford anything he wanted and could charm any girl he set his eyes on. Everything was laid out in front of him. all for the taking except the one thing he craved and needed. A tragic event forces him to reevaluate his life. When he tries to change, will the people in his life let him move on from his past or will they constantly hold him to the life altering mistakes he's made?

Mabry Darnell is intelligent, ambitious, beautiful, and sassy. Secrets from her past haunt the present causing her to question her actions in order to shield her heart and protect her life.

From the moment Brad and Mabry met, their connection was strong, intense, and electrifying. Both knew they had found the one person who could satisfy what the other ached for. When their pasts collide with their present, will it prevent them from having a future together or will love be strong enough to conquer their demons?

I met Brad in Present Perfect and while he did appear smarmy and I understood Noah's dislike of him, I always felt there was more than met the eye with him. Past Imperfect illustrated all that "more" and I ended up believing my feelings about him were validated. And Mabry - she was just the woman to bring out the best in Brad.

Can a person truly change and leave the past behind them? Can a person prevent the past having undesired effects on their present? I think  these are the two main questions addressed in Brad and Mabry's story. Brad, for all his terrible treatment of girls in his past, truly has changed. It took a tragedy to get him to pull his head out but his childhood didn't lend itself to having empathy. Fortunately for him, the tragic event pulled his inner goodness to the surface. But he had a hard time getting people to forgive him his past.

Mabry experienced a different sort of tragedy and didn't have the support network she needed to cope with it. Luckily she did have a really good friend but it wasn't enough. This tragedy not only brought about an unhealthy coping mechanism in Mabry, it also served to breed a fear in her - one that's prevented any sort of close relationship or real intimacy with anyone but especially men. And although she felt a connection with Brad from the get-go, she fought it tooth and nail.

The relationship between these two could be something so special. They're both willing to accept the other's past and look beyond it. They bring out the best in each other - they want to be better for the other. But Mabry isn't being totally honest. And when the truth is revealed, it'll take a lot of work on both their parts to shore up the foundation of what's developed between them.

ABailey did so well in conveying the ramifications of Brad's past as well as Mabry's. I loved how the common denominator between them came about and how ABailey used it. And I appreciated how respectfully she dealt with the topics of self-harm, depression, and suicide. These are all tough topics and ABailey gave us characters to root for as well as crafting a heartwarming story around the topics and characters.

ABailey delivered a poignant story and now that I've finished the Perfect series, I'm going to go see what else she's written.  =)

Review ~ The Alice Network ~ Kate Quinn #TakeControl

The Alice Network by Kate Quinn
Release Date: June 6, 2017
Genre: Adult, Historical Fiction
Source: Purchased in paperback
Rating: 5 Bookworms
Challenges: #TakeControl
Goodreads

Synopsis
In an enthralling new historical novel from the national bestselling author Kate Quinn, two women - a female spy recruited to the real-life Alice Network in France during World War I and an unconventional American socialite searching for her cousin in 1947 - are brought together in a mesmerizing story of courage and redemption.

1947. In the chaotic aftermath of World War II, American college girl Charlie St. Clair is pregnant, unmarried, and on the verge of being thrown out of her very proper family. She's also nursing a desperate hope that her beloved cousin Rose, who disappeared in Nazi-occupied France during the war, might still be alive. So when Charlie's parents banish her to Europe to have her "little problem" taken care of, Charlie breaks free and heads to London, determined to find out what happened to the cousin she loves like a sister.

1915. A year into the Great War, Eve Gardiner burns to join the fight against the Germans and unexpectedly gets her chance when she's recruited to work as a spy. Sent into enemy-occupied France, she's trained by the mesmerizing Lili, the "Queen of Spies", who manages a vast network of secret agents right under the enemy's nose.

Thirty years later, haunted by the betrayal that ultimately tore apart the Alice Network, Eve spends her days drunk and secluded in her crumbling London house. Until a young American barges in uttering a name Eve hasn't heard in decades, and launches them both on a mission to find the truth...no matter where it leads.

Masterfully written, impeccably researched with characters who leap from the pages and setting so well conveyed I could fairly smell the sea, the countryside, the hyacinths, The Alice Network was engaging, entertaining, and enlightening. I'm eager to devour all KQuinn's novels.

Seriously, y'all. This books is so good! I've been telling Hubs about it - my kids too! - and he finally said:

H: Stop telling me about it or I'm not going to need to read it. 

Me: But you HAVE to read it! It's sooo good!!

The story is told in two timelines - one during WWI and from Eve's POV and the other in 1947, just after the end of WWII and from Charlie's POV. KQuinn did an phenomenal job of tying these two women's stories together and in such a compelling way. I don't really want to say much about the plot because I think reading it as it unfolds is so much more affecting. But here are some highlights from my perspective:

• History
  The historical detail - from both wars - illustrates KQuinn's skill and attention to detail. From the elements of a network made up of female spies to the feelings of those affected by the wars and the disasterous landscape left in the wake of the wars, KQuinn placed me in war-torn France and England during both eras. I must also make special mention of how well she conveyed the feelings of utter helplessness and frustration felt by both heroines at not having control over the lives by simple virtue of being female. I know we've come a long way and still have a long way to go but living during either of these time periods would have been stifling.
• Intrigue/Suspense
  KQuinn kept me turning the pages swiftly with the need to know...was she found out? did she find the person she was looking for? how did she end up in her current predicament? is her bravery/courage rewarded? does she find redemption? And all these questions apply to both heroines!
• Character Development
  I'm a huge fan of unconventional heroines and both Eve and Charlies qualify. They each dug deep and found the courage to go for what they wanted/needed in life. But there's also a few more characters in the novel - Alice and Finn, specifically - who fit the bill. KQuinn did spectacularly in creating these characters and bringing them to life so vividly. The way she brought Eve and Charlie together - two women who needed each other to prove their worth to themselves, to find the redemption they were each looking for, and to figure out a way to move forward in their lives - was creative and well executed. And Alice and Finn were incredibly defined as well, adding to the depth of the story overall.

The Alice Network has everything that makes for good historical fiction. And I can guarantee you'll see more of KQuinn here as I read her backlist.

New Release Review ~ Angels Fall ~ JA Huss & Johnathan McClain (@JAHuss @MisterJMcClain ) #2018NewRelease

Angels Fall by JA Huss & Johnathan McClain
Original Sin Series #2
Release Date: March 27, 2018
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance, Romantic Suspense
Source: I received an eARC from the author. This did not affect my rating and I voluntarily provided a review.
Rating: 3.5 Bookworms
Challenges: #2018NewRelease
Goodreads ~ Amazon


Synopsis
Sometimes angels fall.

Maddie doesn't really owe drug lord, Carlos Castillo, money. So she hadn't taken his threats seriously. Until now. He wants it, whether she owes it or not. And if she doesn't have it in six weeks he's gonna take her as payment instead.

Tyler would save the world if he could. That's a fight that lasts forever. And if there's one thing he's good at, it's fighting. So if Maddie thinks she's gonna deal with an insane drug lord on her own, she's crazier than he is.

She's got a debt she can't pay. He's got more money than he needs.
She's not gonna fall for his charm. He's gonna make sure that happens.

They're destined to be together. Even if Maddie doesn't know it yet. 
Sometimes your soul mate isn't who you'd choose, it's who you need.

Good thing you don't get to choose.

While Angels Fall didn't resonate quite as strongly with me as Sin With Me did, I'm still completely invested in Maddie and Tyler and eager to see where they go from here.

Angels Fall, well I think it suffered a little from that sophomore slump. It did some character building, which was important, but not a lot happened. There was more angst than action in this installment. The angst was courtesy of a very stubborn Maddie and while I appreciate her fierce independence, sometimes it's smarter - proves your intelligence - to ask for and/or accept assistance. She spent a great deal of time digging in her heels and I wanted to shake some sense into her. Tyler spent a great deal of time doing everything he could to earn her trust and that made me fallfor him that much more.

So this time around Huss and McClain pulled me along on Maddie and Tyler's journey and I trust they know where they're going...I just didn't enjoy the ride as much. However...that ending!! OMG!!! It has me chomping at the bit to see what Maddie and Tyler do next. I'm certain there will be more angst, more *ahem* steam, and more action. I'm vibrating in anticipation.

My TBR List Review *March* ~ End of Days ~ Susan Ee #MyTBRL #TakeControl #TravelingtotheTerminus

My To-Be Read List is a meme hosted by Michelle @Because Reading. 

Gah! I'm late posting my review. I'm so sorry! I didn't start reading earlier enough and I was traveling this past week with my two younger kids doing college tours...which meant I was exhausted by the time we made it to our hotel every night so I never got much more than a paragraph read. *sigh* Anyway, here is my review served up with my apologies for my tardiness. :)


End of Days by Susan Ee
Penryn and the End of Days #3
Release Date: March 12, 2015
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopia
Source: Purchased Paperback
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Challenges: #MyTBRL, #ShelfLove, #TakeControl, #TravelingtotheTerminus
Goodreads

Synopsis
After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They're both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn's sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe's past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.

When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?

This final installment was fantastic! Ee managed to end Penryn's and Raffe's story in a pulse-pounding, gritty, and riveting manner. 

Highlights

• Setting
  Ee expertly portrayed not only post-apocalyptic San Francisco but also the desolate, scorching landscape of Hell (the Pit)
• Characters
  Of course, Penryn and Raffe are well developed but Ee managed to instill such life into each of her characters. I felt emotion for or towards each of them - good or bad, positive or negative. She even managed to make me feel empathy for Beliel.
• Action
  There was never a dull moment with action, battles, important decisions being made. I was flipping through the pages quickly in anticipation of what came next.
• Romance
  Even though this is YA Romance-lite, it was enough of an element to count and I enjoyed how the process of falling in love changed both Penryn's and Raffe's perspectives on each other's "people".
• Message
  I'm sure it's always been present but it was more prevalent in this final installment and I so appreciate what Ee had to impart about topics like racism and bigotry and humanity in general. Using what humans survived "the Attack" as well as the hellions and Angels, Ee spoke to how our differences and our flaws are what make us what we are...what make us beautiful and decent. Perfection is over-rated and being perfect - looking perfect - doesn't equate to superiority. And I most appreciated her ability to renew my faith in humanity by bringing a group of humans together with a common purpose and being witness to what is possible when that happens.

I still felt that the actions of the characters were realistic and I liked how members on all sides - human, hellion, and angelic - were able to have open-minds and change their views in regards to some things. Overall, this was an incredibly satisfying ending to Penryn and Raffe's story. I'm only sorry it took me so long to finish it!

Review ~ Unmaking Marchant ~ Ella James #ShelfLove #TakeControl #TravelingtotheTerminus

Unmaking Marchant by Ella James
Love Inc #3
Release Date: February 12, 2014
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Kindle
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Challenges: #ShelfLove, #TakeControl, #TravelingtotheTerminus
Goodreads

Synopsis
Marchant Radcliffe, owner of the exclusive Love Inc. brothel, is no stranger to darkness. He lost his parents in a plane crash and since college has harbored a secret almost too terrible to bear. He keeps his head above water by pouring his energy into his business - and he's thrived, despite the dark blot on his soul.

Then, after ten years of good fortune, Marchant's skeletons start to peek out of the closet, tossing him down a trail of ruin that begins with arson and could end with murder. Because he's kept his struggles private, he has no one to pull him back from the brink.

After a breakup with her longtime fiance, Suri Dalton, daughter of one of Silicon Valley's tech tycoons, has nowhere to go except her BFF's new penthouse in Las Vegas. The last thing Suri is looking for is a man, but after drowning her woes in wine on the flight over, she stumbles into a torrid make out session with a beautiful stranger - who just so happens to be Marchant Radcliffe, playboy and literal pimp.

Despite an immediate attraction, Suri writes Marchant off as exactly the sort of guy she should avoid. Until Love Inc. goes up in flames, Marchant winds up at the bottom of a swimming pool, and Suri is the only one around to pull him out.

What happens when what you see isn't what you get? What do you do when destiny is too alluring to resist and too dangerous to survive?

Marchant is an interesting character - one who's been difficult to get a read on - so I was eager for his story. I'd met him, or more accurately seen him, in the previous installments but he's sort of an enigma. I'd also met Suri previously and when I realized she was going to play a role in Marchant's story I was excited. If anyone needed some happy in their life, it's Suri. Fortunately, or unfortunately, she got Marchant - or they got each other. The result? A compelling read.

Marchant is action erratically when the story begins. He's drinking and smoking pot and gambling...all seemingly in an effort to deal with an anniversary of some sort. It remained difficult to get into his head - to understand him - for quite awhile but what I did understand is that he carries a lot of guilt for several events and feels unworthy of love. But Marchant is just broken. He's fixable and definitely lovable. He only needs someone to get through to him.

Suri is one of those people who want normal and thrives on taking care of people. She's shown that with Lizzy and with Cross. She's even aimed at getting her normal while also taking care of her alcoholic fiance. When she realizes normal isn't going to happen with him - that maybe normal doesn't even really exist - she dumps her fiance and heads to Las Vegas where Lizzy and Cross are...and meets Marchant.

I found Marchant and Suri's story riveting. Not only do they deal with Marchant's behavior but also the tragedy at Love Inc, the brothel Marchant owns, and the fallout as well as the danger coming from an unknown source. is it the gambler whom Marchant owes money? Or someone from Marchant's past? We don't know. And unfortunately I didn't find out as EJames left me hanging. And equally as unfortunate, the final chapter in Marchant and Suri's story isn't available. :(

Unmaking Marchant was fascinating and suspenseful. EJames did well in dealing with a few touchy topics (I'm being purposefully vague here), the ramifications of dealing with these topics on all those involved. I don't typically mind a cliffie but I went into this story thinking this was the final chapter in these characters' lives (it was the final book in the Love Inc boxset I purchased), so it was disappointing that it wasn't. However, I think Unmaking Marchant is my favorite in the series despite the cliffie because Marchant and Suri are so well developed. And so I'll anxiously await the rest of their story...

Audio Review ~ Dark Desires After Dusk ~ Kresley Cole #AudioChallenge #ShelfLove #TakeControl

Dark Desires After Dusk by Kresley Cole
Immortals After Dark #6
Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
Release Date: February 5, 2013
Genre: Adult, Paranormal Romance
Source: Purchased on Audible
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Challenges: #AudioChallenge, #ShelfLove, #TakeControl, #TravelingtoTerminus
Goodreads

Synopsis
A seductive beauty he can never have. Yet can't resist...
Cadeon Woede will stop at nothing to atone for the one wrong that will haunt him forever. But once he secures the key to his redemption, the halfling Holly Ashwin, Cade finds that the woman he thought he could use for his own ends and then forget haunts him as much as his past.

A tormented warrior she should fear, but can't deny...
Raised as a human, Holly never knew that some frightening legends are real until she encounters a brutal demon who inexplicably guards her like a treasure. Thrust into a sensual new world of myth and power, with him as her protector, she begins to crave the demon's wicked touch.

Surrender to dark desires...
Yet just when he earns Holly's trust, will Cade be forced to betray the only woman who can sate his wildest needs--and claim his heart?

It's been a little while since I spent time in the Immortals After Dark world. I've missed it! Dark Desires After Dusk revolves around Cadeon and Holly and the dangers they face while dealing with Holly's rold in a prophecy about the Accession and her being Cadeon's Fated.

Highlights

• Cadeon and Holly
  I've always enjoyed Cadeon the Kingmaker - he's snarky and funny - but getting his whole story helped me understand how he came to be the man...er, demon - he is. And he may be a mercenary but there's so much more to him that he lets on. Holly made me smile. She's this gorgeous math geek who has all these OCD tendencies but once she realizes why she is the way she is - at least in some ways - it's fun to watch her embrace her new self.
• Pacing/Suspense
  The story kept me listening as often as I could with all its adrenaline pumping action. I had to know what was going to happen next, what new hurdle Cadeon and Holly would have to scale, how Cadeon would get himself and Holly out of their latest predicament.
• Humor
  Cadeon provided humor through his reactions to situations he and Holly would find themselves in. Holly was funny at times as well but Nyx - Holly's aunt - that Valkyrie had me rolling with laughter.
• Robert Petkoff
  His narration - the voices and accents for each character which he somehow manages to keep consistent throughout the series - as well as his inflection and pacing...he's just a master! He sets the mood, convey the emotion, makes me laugh as well as gasp. He's definitely one of my all-time favorite narrators!

Dark Desires After Dusk was a more than satisfying installment in the series and I'm eager for the next one!

Review ~ Beautifully Done ~ Riley Mackenzie #ShelfLove #TakeControl #TravelingtotheTerminus

Beautifully Done by Riley Mackenzie
Beautifully Awake #2
Release Date: July 16, 2014
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Kindle
Rating: 4.5 Bookworms
Challenges: #COYER, #ShelfLove, #TakeControl, #TravelingtotheTerminus
Goodreads

Synopsis
Diagnosis: Borrowed time
Treatment: Trust
Prognosis: Beautifully Done

Asher Craig drives fast, flies high, and screws hard. But make no mistake, he's a gentleman.

He learned way too young that we're all on borrowed time. Fair or unfair, you only get one ride. He vows to live for the moment because it's the only time he owns. The past is beyond his control and the future may not exist. With his only loyalties being his family, he thrives for that edge where plunging over is always in the realm of possibility.

When a beautiful familiar face tilts his axis, he re-examines everything and realizes that second chances are overrated and a lifetime of first are irreplaceable. In the end, it's not her medical degree but his trust that needs to prove that the ride together is worth it ... until it's Beautifully Done.

I read Beautifully Awake back in 2013 and I loved it so I don't know why I waited so long to read Beautifully Done and finish this duet. For some reason, Beautifully Done didn't resonate with me as deeply as its predecessor but I enjoyed Asher's story all the same.

Asher grew up with Chase and they're best friends so I'd met him in Beautifully Awake and was eager for his story. Asher's life has been traumatic in many ways - mostly medically - so it's no wonder he lives every day as if it could be his last. Honestly, I rather like his philosophy on life with the exception of his refraining from forming intimate relationships. Asher is a successful attorney, is close with Chase and Lily (who I delighted in getting to spend time with) as well as his family. I appreciated the close-knit relationships he has with his parents and three older sisters and their families. He's a good guy - caring, loyal...loveable.

Talia was a part of the foursome that made up TACK - the band name she, Asher, Chase, and his twin sister Kimi performed under. They were inseparable until the accident that took Kimi from them and then Talia disappeared. Now, nineteen years later, she happens to bump into Asher in a bar in Boston. Talia, now a successful doctor, has a lot to answer for. The question was whether she'd give Asher the answers he was looking for.

So these two were close and maybe wanted more before Talia's disappearance. The estrangement has hurt them both but doesn't seem to have diminished their chemistry or their feelings. But Talia's keeping something from Asher. I didn't really feel that their connection was something that could have lasted nineteen years. I did feel their connection eventually though and the authors did well in illustrating Talia's feelings over the years. I guess it was Asher's feelings that I didn't seem to have been as strong but I got there with him. I enjoyed watching them reconnect, regret all they'd missed and build something deeper and more meaningful.

The incident used to create tension and hurdles for Talia and Asher - well, the main one since there were a few - kinda came out of left field for me. It accomplished its goal - the hurdles - but the circumstances were a little contrived. In the end though, I was completely invested in these two and was bawling my eyes out at the end. I think for that reason alone - that days later I was still emotionally affected - Beautifully Done gets bumped up from 3.5 to 4 Bookworms. 

This writing duo touched on tough topics such as Alzheimer's, cancer, spinal cord injuries, infertility - highlighting their background in the medical field. These elements helped give depth to the story and its characters. I'm glad I finally read this. I have no idea is Riley Mackenzie has written anything else, but I'd read this duo again.