Book Review – Until The Sun Falls From The Sky (The Three series #1) by Kristen Ashley

Book Review – Until The Sun Falls From The Sky (The Three series #1) by Kristen Ashley

 

5 stars!!!

“For eternity. Until the end of days. Until the sun falls from the sky.” 

Woww. Now that’s how you write a f**king awesome paranormal romance!!!

Smokin’ hot and steamy! Original world-building! Strong characters! Page-turning writing! This book has it all!

“All. Fucking. Mine.” he whispered fiercely.

In this world, vampires always have a chosen concubine (either male or female depending on the preference) in their lives who serve to feed them blood for a few years at a time until they are released from service. In return, they are lavishly looked after for their entire lives and greatly respected among the vampire community. Leah comes from a long line of elite concubines. At the Selection (where vampires get to choose their next concubine), she is selected by Lucian – the absolute most Alpha uber-vampire of them all.

Lucian has been watching Leah for the past 20 years. He marked her as his, waiting for the right time to make her his. But he is fed up with the hand-tying rules of the Vampire Dominion that do not allow for vampires to be sexually involved with their concubines and will stop at nothing to to have every part of her. He risks his life to cheats the rules and make it so that she can be  completely his, regardless of how she may feel about it.

Their intense attraction and deep connection to each other is undeniable, but they both have a lot to learn about each other, their worlds before they can completely join their hearts. This is their story.

“I’ve been waiting for you since I knew you existed. But I’ve been waiting for someone like you for five fucking centuries.”

First off, I’ll say that I loved the mythology!! It was very clean and simple – nothing I had to try hard wrap my head around or make any huge leaps of acceptance for. Everything about the world was logical and felt very realistic and was the perfect blend of our world with the supernatural one.

The sexual tension in this book was INTENSE!! *fans self* Seriously smokin’ hot!! There were also a fair number of moments that made me tear up, it has typical amazing KA-style dialogue, (no kidnappings!! lol), and a seriously engaging storyline that just draws right you in!

But let me tell you, this book T.O.Y.E.D with my emotions!! Holy freaking hell! One minute I was intensely angry, then dreamily happy, then swoony, then teary, then furious, then back to happy…  For the first 70%, my heart was yo-yoed back and forth between extreme HATE for the super-controlling-asshat-uber-Jerk Lucian and intense, complete and utter LOVE for the possessive-sweet-caring-protective-swoony Lucian.

Major conflicted emotions here! There were so many things that Lucian did that rubbed me waaaay the wrong way and yet still I utterly LOOOOOOOVED the book!

First off, let me start by saying that I. absolutely. ADORED. Leah!!! She is one of my FAV heroines I have ever read! I had SO much respect for her! I felt that everything she did was justified, reasonable, believable, and totally understandable. She never once made me roll my eyes and it was her strength of character that got me through the tougher parts of this book.  She was so strong-willed, had so much spirit and sass, she was fiesty and brave and never gave away any piece of herself until she knew without a doubt that she also held Lucian’s heart.

“Are you mine?”
“If you give me you, Lucien, then I promise. I’ll give you me.”

As for Lucian… I should say that now, having finished the book,  I LOVE him. Seriously, utterly, swoonily head-over-heels LOVE him! Buuuuut, it wasn’t always so lol…

Is it wrong to want to throttle a ficticional character?!? In the beginning, I found myself intensely furious and frustrated with Lucian. I’d gasp and splutter my way through the chapters with all sorts of “oh. my. god! He did NOT just DO that?!!?!!!” reactions. To say he tested my patience would be a major understatement. I kept going back and forth between melting over something he did and wanting to bitch slap the holy freaking hell out of him!! Major throttling wishes happened! He infuriated me!! He was hypocritical, controlling,  manipulative, enraging, and simply the biggest JERK I’ve ever read in a book.  It came off that he wanted to break her, to control her, and for her to be his ‘pet’. Needless to say, I had a few issues with all of those.  Aaand, that being said, throughout all these feelings, I also couldn’t help but feel seriously intense love for him. You could just tell than underneath all his actions there was a seriously good heart and you just didn’t have the whole picture.

“In fact, when he wasn’t being a jerk, controlling or a pain in the ass, he looked at me…
He looked at me…
Oh hell, he looked at me like I was his life.” 

In many of KA’s books, where the heroine ‘fights’ the hero’s advances, I’m usually always rolling my eyes at their antics and mentally telling them to just get over it. But in this book, I was right there with Leah when she said he hated him. But, see, I was also right there with her when she melted for him too… so conflicting!!

“Don’t try me,” Lucian warned in my head.
“Kiss my concubine ass,” I returned in his. 

As Lucian began to teach Leah about his world and the more she learns about him, the more she sees his kind-hearted side. He really tried his best to get her to learn about and see the world – hoping that she would learn to embrace it.

The more insight we got into Lucian’s life, and his culture, the more understanding I became of his actions and of his world. As much as I thought his behavior was so freaking NOT ok in many situations, I understood that that was his cultural norm and that within that, he was trying really hard to make things work. Throughout everything, the good and the bad, it was impossible to ignore how strongly he cared for Leah. And when he did swoony thing, my heart just melted into a puddle of goo. But, like Leah, I held out on completely loving him until he finally gained, and more importantly, showed respect for her. Very, very important!

Part of what is conflicting comes because it becomes clear that while Lucian thinks he wants to break her, yet at any sign of her spirit actually breaking or being subdued, he feels strong remorse and wants nothing more than to reverse it… it was as if the whole idea of breaking her was a giant test to see if she was really strong enough NOT to break.

“Love is a blanket that keeps you warm not one that traps and suffocates you.”

And then, at about 70% there is a turning point where a) the cultural bindings that were influencing his actions were broken through, and b) certain things came into the light that explained and changed his behavior. And let me tell you, this was seriously STRONG writing because, I kid you not, within a matter of about 3 pages, I literally forgot ALL of my frustrations and any feeling of hate that I may have had for Lucian.  They just disappeared!! Poof! Gone! And after that I had nothing but seriously strong love  for him to the point that I’d say he’s one of my favorite book characters – hands down! In league with Bones, Barrons, Wrath, and all the other big swoony PNR uber-Alphas :)

This book has a big theme of being able to live while showing your true self – about not having to hide yourself behind an ‘image’. And the more you read about it, the more you understand the depth of the concubine/vampire relationship.

“Concubines understand and accept who we are, what we need and they give us more. Not just blood. A safe harbor where we can be who are are.” 

“You live your day-to-day life hiding the essence of who you are; you don’t want to let someone into that life who won’t accept you for that same thing.”

And when it got good and they figured each other out, it was GOOOOOD!! Lucian and Leah were so functional as a couple!! All admitting mistakes, not keeping secrets, opening up to each other, working as a team… just wow. And seriously H.O.T.!!!!! Just non-stop swoony, sexy, funtional perfection!

The ending of the book wraps up this story, but leads right into book 2. There is a Prophecy to by fullfilled and clearly a lot more to the story. I absolutely cannot WAIT for book 2.

If you are a big fan of KA but kind of feel like going back to a PNR, this is a perfect read. If you haven’t yet read KA and you want to try it out, just bear in mind that her heroes do not usually come off as such major jerks as Lucian did in the beginning. This was a bit of an extreme. But as with all KA books (that woman is a freaking genius!!) you can’t help but just melt and fall in love with the hero.

Buy UNTIL THE SUN FALLS FROM THE SKY (Kindle)

until the sun falls from the sky

SERIES READING ORDER

  1. Until The Sun Falls From The Sky - (Amazon) (Smashwords   ~ Lucian & Leah ~
  2. With Everything I am(Amazon) (Smashwords)  ~Callum & Sonia ~

MY COMPLETE RECOMMENDED READING ORDER FOR ALL KRISTEN ASHLEY SERIES

 

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Book Review – Rock Chick Renegade (Rock Chick #4) by Kristen Ashley

Book Review – Rock Chick Renegade (Rock Chick #4) by Kristen Ashley

5 stars!

“I want you. I want to taste you. I want to f*ck you. I want to make you come and I want to hear you moan my name when you do so I know that you know it’s me who made you come.”

“If you ever think of takin’ off, if you ever get scared enough at what I do for a living that you decide you can’t hack it, then you best think again because unless what we have turns shit like everything else in my life, I’m not ever letting you go.”

WOW!! This might be my FAV Rock Chick book yet!! Loooved Vance and Jules’ story! Priceless!

This is the first book in this series that made me cry – there several tear-jerker moments, as well as some heart racing parts that gave me shivers, some really steamy scenes, absolutely priceless laugh-out-loud dialogue and a seriously AWESOME ending… WOW!!

I apologize in advance for all the quotes and the length of this review. I had almost a quote saved from every single page! I’m weak lol, I just couldn’t resist!!

Jules is a social worker who works at a shelter helping street kids. She lost her whole family to tragic circumstances and throws herself into helping those who need it. But when one of the kids on her watch OD’s from drugs sold to him on the street, she turns vigilante. She  finds people who teach her how to fight, who will hook her up with what she needs and ends up earning herself the street name Law because her word is law on the streets.

Vance Crowe ( *swoooooon* ) is one of the uber Alpha members of the Nightingale Investigations team. He’s a gorgeous, sexy-as-hell, Native American badass who no wants to mess with. When he and Jules cross paths and it becomes clear what she is doing and that she is doing it alone, he offers her his protection along with the whole of the Nightingale team.

Vance and Jules have instant attraction to each other. But its is well known that Vance is a player – “He saw, he conquered, he left.” – and Jules is wary about letting him into her life. But those Alpha KA men have a way of getting what they want.

“Those boys got a way about ‘em, Jules. They don’t fuck around. They see somethin’ they want, they get it. They’re fuckin’ famous for it. A woman don’t stand a chance. He seem interested?” 
“…honestly, there’s nothing to worry about. We went our separate ways. I’ll be smarter, I’ll be more quiet, I’ll be –”
“Laid, good and simple. Crowe got a look at you, you’re his.”

And its hard to say no when she just wakes up one morning to him in her bed with her!!

I was snagged around the midriff and thrown back to the bed, my head hitting the pillows, and Vance Crowe rolled his body over mine. I stilled and looked up into his dark, lushy-lashed eyes.
“Oh my God,” I breathed.
“Mornin’,” he said to me, like we woke up next to each other every day.
“Oh my God,” I breathed again.
His hair was not in a ponytail but falling down around his face and shoulders and, I kid you not, he looked like a Native American Warrior God.
“Do I have your attention?” he asked. 

He’s very persistant, but still while being very respectful of her. I didn’t find he was as pushy as the other boys and he puts a lot of trust in her. Watching them come together was really heart-warming :)

“I don’t know what shit you’re working though but I know its there. I know you’d rather not even acknowledge it and definitely don’t want me to be a part of the process. I don’t care. Princess, this is happening beterrn you and me.”
“What, exactly, do you mean by ‘this’? You fucking me?” I snapped…
” Yeah. Me fucking you. In your bed, on your couch, in my bed and anywhere else I can think of. I’m gonna do you on your back, on your knees and you’re gonna ride me. And when I’ve exhausted you and you don’t have those fucking shields up, I’m gonna make you talk to me and tell me what this shit is about and then, maybe, I can help you with it.”

It was so refreshing to see how much Vance trusts Jules’ skills and how he wasn’t quite inclined to want to lock Jules up in a safe house or cuff her to his bed. If fact, Jules was a lot more ‘can-do’ and kick ass than the previous heroines which actually led to a whole different vibe to this book – in a totally good way :)

Vance and Jules are so sweet and adorable though as a couple – maybe even my fav yet (tied with Indy/Lee from Book 1). Neither of them had a very happy start to their life and seeing them together and really being able to appreciate how incredible what they had was just melted my heart.

“Any man is defined by the woman who shared her bed with him… and it works the other way too… if someone like you, someone as unbelievably beautiful as you, as crazy and sweet as you, filled with attitude and courage with her heart in the right place… if someone like you shares her bed with me, then that says something about me….This is it. You and me. No matter what.

The to-die-for band of characters is one of my fav things about this book and this series. KA has brilliantly built up a core group of almost 20 (if not more) characters that you honestly feel like you know personally. Somehow, the names never get confusing, the story never drags or feels scattered and it just ends up being a LOT of personal because how strongly connected you feel to them and how strongly you feel their connections to each other.

They are like one big family made of up every kind of person imaginable from uber badass fighters, to ex-cons, to drug-dealers, cops, book store owners, strippers, waitresses, vigilantes, undercover agents, trackers, street kids… lovers, brothers-in-arms, friends, family… this book has everything. Its just delightful to see them all interact together.

There really was a theme in this book of how family isn’t just the people you were born to. And not only does it say it, but more importantly, it shows it. Beautifully.

And the ending! Gah!! I won’t give it away but just the way it is written is brilliant!!! Normally the whole book is told from the POV of the main girl, but in the ending is told piece by piece from so many different characters depending on whose perspective is most relevant to the moment at hand. Its like, we got to know these characters over the course of the last four books, and now we literally get to see the world through their eyes, in action. It totally read like a movie – I could visualize everything that was happening is perfect detail. LOVED IT!!!!

I’d say the only thing that bugs me about this series is how strongly the women in it fight the affections of the men. For nearly all of them, this gorgeous, larger-than-life, almost god of a badass man enters their lives and wants to be with them and their first reaction is always ‘we need to break up’… sigh. lol. yeaahhhh… but still, they all do come around (some thankfully with less fight than others) and once they have given into the relationship, they have some of the strongest relationships ever so its all worth it in the end.

And I just love KA’s writing style for this series. It really feels like the heroine is telling the story to you, in person. It feels so casual and personal in style.

LOVE this series!!

“No matter what,” he said, his voice fierce and strong and rumbling through me. “You told me I was home to you and I get it. You’re home to me. I’ve never had a home. I like the one I found and I’m not losin’ it. No matter what.” 

 

CASTING:

Buy ROCK CHICK RENEGADE (Kindle)

rock chick renegade 4SERIES READING ORDER

  1. Rock Chick - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Lee & Indy ~
  2. Rock Chick Rescue - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Eddie & Jet ~
  3. Rock Chick Redemption - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Hank & Roxie ~
  4. Rock Chick Renegade - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Vance & Jules ~
  5. Rock Chick Revenge - (Kindle)  (Smashwords)   ~ Luke & Ava ~
  6. Rock Chick Reckoning (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Mace & Stella ~
  7. Rock Chick Regret - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Hector & Sadie ~

For all you hard-core Kristen Ashley fans, the first 6 books of the ROCK CHICK series are now available on PAPERBACK!!!!! *HAPPY DANCE* Here are the paperback links:

♥ #1 ROCK CHICK (paperback)
♥ #2 ROCK CHICK RESCUE (paperback)
♥ #3 ROCK CHICK REDEMPTION (paperback)
♥ #4 ROCK CHICK RENEGADE (paperback)
♥ #5 ROCK CHICK REVENGE (paperback)
♥ #6 ROCK CHICK RECKONING (paperback)

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June Giveaway Winner Announced!!

June Giveaway Winner Announced!!

AND THE WINNER IS >>>>>>>>>>>>>> 

****Tammy Zautner****

Congratulations on your 4 new eBooks!!

Please be sure to contact me within the next 48 hours to get your books.

And thank you to everyone who participated in this giveaway! Hugs to all of you :)

I will be announcing the July giveaway at the end of the month – stay tuned!!

 

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Book Review – What Price Paradise by Katherine Allred

Book Review – What Price Paradise by Katherine Allred

4.5 stars

“I love you,” he whispered. “You’ll have the words every day for the rest of our lives.” 

After finishing The Sweet Gum Tree, I fell so in love with Ms. Allred’s writing that I just had to try another of her books and LOVED  this one too!

It has refreshingly smart and functional characters (both individually and as a couple), funny witty dialogue, a steamy romance, some misty eyed moments (but no crying), some moments that made me laugh out loud, a writing style that just sucks you right into the story and allows you to vividly picture everything that is happening, as well as a very sweet happy ending :)

In a small town, six weeks after having a drunken one night stand with Tate, a guy she has secretly loved for a long time, Abby finds out she is pregnant. Problem is, Tate has a finacee and she is the dirt-poor daughter of the town whore. Tate’s financee is the spoiled, bratty daughter of the richest man in town and is constantly cheating on Tate and breaking up with him- which is what led to the fight right before the night he got drunk. But Tate can’t stop thinking about Abby and the moment she discovers he is pregnant with his child, he refuses to let her go through it alone and, desperately wanting to do the right thing, he takes her home to his ranch and gets her to agree to marrying him. Abby isn’t sure at first and doesn’t trust that he won’t just leave her the moment the child is born – especially since she can’t tell if he is over his fiancee or not. It isn’t easy at first, but despite barely knowing each other, they are both intensely drawn to each other and their attraction to each other can’t be ignored and as they begin to follow their hearts, they also fall begin to fall in love.

“You don’t have to be scared anymore, Abby. We’ll figure something out, I promise. We’re in this together… I told you, thats my baby, my blood. I wasn’t raised to ignore my responsibilities whether they were caused by accident or not…. I’m not going to ignore any baby of mine. So what if my life isn’t turning out exactly the way I’d planned? It’s not ruined, it’ll just be different.”

Finally!!! A guy who doesn’t utterly freaked out over a pregnancy! What a welcome change!

I totally fell in love with Tate. He was just such an all-round, down-to-earth, good guy. He was always trying to see the best in people, always trying to do the responsible, right thing. And of course was totally protective and possessive. I just loved seeing the way he handled the pregnancy. He tried so hard to be as understanding as possible. It wasn’t what he expected, it didn’t at all fit into his life plan, but he never tried to hide it, wasn’t ashamed and didn’t reject her but rather he totally embraced both the situation, Abby, and his unborn child in a very heart warming, swoony way. He never pushed her into anything she wasn’t ready for. But he had to figure out for himself where his heart truly lay – with the fiance he’d convinced him self he loved, or with the woman carrying his child that he found himself undeniably drawn to.

Abby too was a wonderfully refreshing, smart heroine with a lot of inner strength. All her actions were totally understandable and she didn’t make any rash or stupid decisions. I loved how she didn’t just give in to Tate – she made him prove himself to her before she completely gave over her heart. She wanted to make sure that he wasn’t with her out of a sense of obligation but because it was what he genuinely wanted.

“Tate, I can’t promise anything, but I’ll give it a chance. If it looks like it might work, I’ll stay.”

As a couple, Tate and Abby were also delightful to read about – they were just so functional!!!  I loved it!! Sure, they had problems, they made mistakes, but they worked through all of them in a rational, totally believable, non-stupid way.

And seeing them go through all the baby prep together was totally adorable and funny.

“You know that Lamaze thing you signed me up for today? Well… you signed youself up, too… You have to be my coach.”…
“This doesn’t sound too bad… Although I’m not sure how you can teach someone to breathe. Seems it would be a case of either you can or you can’t.”

As with The Sweet Gum Tree, the writing style of this book was just beautiful. The slow build of their romance was heart warming, adorable, steamy and very believable. Nothing felt rushed or out of place – they took things one step at a time…. but like I said, it was much steamier! The pacing was perfect. And it was the kind of story that had me constantly thinking about it when I wasn’t reading it – when I had to stop for the night, I just couldn’t wait to get back to it!

I would highly recommend it for when you are looking for a feel-good book with some depth to it.

My only complaint was that, even though it had a resolved, HEA ending, I still wanted more – A few more chapters before the end and I would have loved it to have an epilogue. Does that make me greedy? lol. Maybe. But still… a little more.

PS. Don’t worry about the book cover – there is no death, dying or cheating despite what the graveyard and the two women hint at… I promise! The graves are his parents’ and the 2 women represent the choice he has between his finacee and Abby…. but the book isn’t all about the love triangle issue. Its clear who will end up together :)

Buy it on: Kindle | Paperback

Also check out this other title by the same author. It’s one of my favorite books in the world:

Read my review here.

what price paradise

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Book Review – The Sweet Gum Tree by Katherine Allred

Book Review – The Sweet Gum Tree by Katherine Allred

5.5 stars

“You’re the only one I’ve ever wanted, Alix, the only one I’ll ever want. That’s a promise.”

Oh WOW  !!! What an AMAZING book!! Love! love! love!!

I’m a mess – it was an intense, utterly riveting book that I literally could not  put down, that kept my heart racing, kept me near tears for a good chunk of it, that had me hanging off of every word that I read, and the story just ripped my heart out but yet still had a very sweet ending.

The writing was beautiful and flowed effortlessly, the characters were vivid, and the story was gripping and sucked you right it from the start.

If you are looking for a captivating, bittersweet, emotional read with a happy ending, this is it!

I started reading this book around midnight after a whole day of traveling expecting to just read for an hour and put it down. Boy was I wrong! I read straight through the night and finished the book around 6am when the sun came up!! I just couldn’t tear myself away from it!

The first half of the book starts out in a small Southern town where Alix, an 8 year-old girl from a very well-respected family who reaches out to help Nick, the 10-year old son of a dead-beat drunk who owns the local salvage yard. She befriends him and over the years, her family shelters him as he and Alix grow closer and closer. Even from a young age, they have a connection that is just so beautiful and powerful.

“…while I was vowing to save Nick, he had taken on the job of being my protector and staunchest defender.”

As they grow up, it becomes impossible for them to deny the love they’ve always had for each other.

“There was only one boy I wanted, and I lived for the times when I could be alone with him. It was simple. When I was with Nick, I was happy. When I wasn’t, I was restless and miserable.”

But when tragedy outside of their control strikes, Nick is forced to leave town. The second half of the book occurs 15 years later when Nick returns home and tries with everything he’s got to put their relationship back together.

This book got me so into it, that when I read these words, ““Then, fifteen years after he left, Nick came home.”, I just felt my heart clenched right up and tears literally just started falling from my cheeks. I just needed  things to be made right again so badly.

“Do you want to know the real reason I came back, Alix? It was because of you. You’re my roots. Wherever you are would be home to me…I’ve never stopped loving you. I won’t give up that easily.”

There is a huge twist to the story with secrets that come out explaining the true reason why he had to leave that had me almost hyperventilating and clutching at my heart.

This story is about powerful love, loss and betrayal, family, second chances, secrets that test the strength of family and relationship bonds, overcoming prejudices, but most importantly its about a very beautiful and sweet love story that start when Alix and Nick were young and never lets go throughout all the years of hardship.

The book was told from Alix’s perspective – almost as if she were retelling it from the end. But I loved how, especially in the first part of the book when she is a child, she explains it through the eyes of child while still giving insight on the side from her adult, mature self.

I just totally fell in love with Nick. He’s was exactly my kind of hero – first he was totally HOT, but what really melted my heart was how protective he was. I just love that quality in a man. And he was just such a GOOD guy – so respectful, always trying to do the right thing, and he was just completely, utterly swoony. I’m smiling as I write this just thinking about him.

But that isn’t to say that he (or Alix) was perfect – they made their fair share of mistakes but the mistakes were understandable… I didn’t always agree with what they did, but I could totally understand why they did it. But the strength of their love for each other won out in the end.

The intensity of Nick and Alix’s love took my breath away at times and while there are a fair number of sex scenes, they are not portrayed very graphically. They are more focused on descriptions of emotions rather than acts.

I think fans of Take This Regret will really enjoy this book, and vice versa.

This book is going on my favorites shelf! Absolutely LOVED it!! A must-read!!

Another recommended book by the same author:

Read my review here.


the-sweet-gum-tree

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Book Review – Rock Chick Redemption (Rock Chick #3) by Kristen Ashley

Book Review – Rock Chick Redemption (Rock Chick #3) by Kristen Ashley

4.5 Stars

Another winner from Kristen Ashley!! You just can’t help but fall in LOVE with those Nightingale boys!!

I’ve been looking forward to Hank’s book since the beginning of this series and I was not dissapointed. I squeed, snorted, snickered and laughed my way through it –   a perfect, fun action-romance read!

Hank Nightingale is basically the ultimate swoooony good guy – he’s a gorgeous, loving, straight-arrow, always-in-control cop with insane loyalty to his family and a huge heart. It was fun to see him come undone by this girl who just walked into his life :)

He meets Roxie when she comes into town to meet her uncle Tex (who we met as a delightful side character – ex-con turned artisan coffee creator – in the first 2 books of the series) who works at the coffee shop-bookstore run by Indy (the heroine from book 1). There, she runs into all the (uber-Alpha) boys from Nightingale Investigations…

“It looked like GQ was having a convention and all the best looking guys had decided to have coffee at Fornum’s before going to seminars on how to cope with being really, unbelievably, fucking gorgeous.”

… but she finds inexplicably drawn to Hank. Its love at first sight for both of them. Problem is, she’s in a bit of trouble trying to ditch her loser criminal ex-boyfriend. Lucky for her, Hanks is a cop and is more than happy to help her out… and take her out to dinner, woo her into his bed, protect her, claim her as his woman and other utterly swoon-worthy things that only a true Alpha can do best :P

“I’m having dinner with Hank but only because he’s persuasive-”
“I bet.”
“Its just dinner. Nothing more…”
“Dinner may be just dinner in Chicago but it ain’t in Denver. These boys don’t fuck around… Indy was livin’ with Lee after ’bout a day. Jet was with Eddie from my count, after less than a week. The way Hank’s lookin’ at you, I’m guessin’ less than 48 hours.”

And of course, it wouldn’t be a proper KA book without its fair share of car chases, kidnapping (s), hostage situations, shootouts, and crazy ex’s, now would it? lol

I seriously loved Hank! I loved how insanely sweet, thoughtful, caring and perceptive he was. He saw right through the emotional front that Roxie put up and into her heart and wouldn’t give up until she believed in them too. I love how he saw how much her previous relationship made her wary to put her heart out on the line again and he was willing to made every effort to show that he was worth it.

Roxie was also a great heroine. She had a fun voice and was stubborn and sassy enough to stand up for herself, but soft and lovable enough to be able to have some seriously heart-melting moments with Hank.

I loved that by this third book, you really feel like you KNOW all these characters personally – you get all their inside jokes and little gestures, and it just totally maximises the fun! I just loved the huge network of characters and all their inter-relations.

“…heard Ally say, “I’m gonna talk to Lee. The minute they find that asshole, I want my turn with him in the holding room.”
“Ally,” said Indy. 
“Sugar, I’m talking to Marcus to-night.” Daisy broke in. “He’s gotta step his shit up. Ain’t gonna be no holding room for Billy fucking Flynn, not if I have anything to say about it.”

The dialogue in this book was awesome – so many laugh out loud moments! Also, we are introduced to new side characters – namely Luke Stark, the seriously HOT member of Nightingale Investigations who until now was recovering from a gunshot wound – I seriously cannot wait until his book! He is h.o.t. !!

And nobody writes family scenes like Ms. Ashley – I swear in all her books, the families just make me grin like an idiot.

“Son, let me tell you something. Even if you don’t care, pretend you do. Honestly, it’s the best way to go,” Dad, the voice of experience, decided to wade in. “She talks about toss pillows. You don’t care about toss pillows. You don’t even know what toss pillows are. Pretend that toss pillows are your highest priority in life.” 

Really, if you just want a fun read full of Alpha males, swoony romance, and lots of action-packed craziness, this is a great series to start.

“This is crazy. You’re crazy. Denver’s crazy. All you boys skipped right over the last century, didn’t you? I think even the last million years. You’re cavemen”

I’m so looking forward to more from this series. I’ve really turned into quite the KA book addict!!

CASTING:

Buy ROCK CHICK REDEMPTION (Kindle)

rock chick 3

SERIES READING ORDER

  1. Rock Chick - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Lee & Indy ~
  2. Rock Chick Rescue - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Eddie & Jet ~
  3. Rock Chick Redemption - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Hank & Roxie ~
  4. Rock Chick Renegade - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Vance & Jules ~
  5. Rock Chick Revenge - (Kindle)  (Smashwords)   ~ Luke & Ava ~
  6. Rock Chick Reckoning (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Mace & Stella ~
  7. Rock Chick Regret - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Hector & Sadie ~

For all you hard-core Kristen Ashley fans, the first 6 books of the ROCK CHICK series are now available on PAPERBACK!!!!! *HAPPY DANCE* Here are the paperback links:

♥ #1 ROCK CHICK (paperback)
♥ #2 ROCK CHICK RESCUE (paperback)
♥ #3 ROCK CHICK REDEMPTION (paperback)
♥ #4 ROCK CHICK RENEGADE (paperback)
♥ #5 ROCK CHICK REVENGE (paperback)
♥ #6 ROCK CHICK RECKONING (paperback)

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Fifty Shades of Grey ~ Casting Ideas

 

ALRIGHTY… its picture time!!

I’ve been keeping tabs on all this casting talk for the Fifty Shades movies and Wow, the more I think about it, the more I think these actors *points below* would be the PERFECT couple to play Ana and Christian. Their names are Lyndsy Fonseca and Scott Elrod.

What do you think of them as Ana and Christian?

Here’s Scott Elrod and here’s Lyndsy Fonseca.

I was looking into some of the Fifty Shades castings and I’ve been really unhappy with all this talk about all these big name actors being considered (Matt Bomer, Ian Somerhaler, Ryan Gosling… just NOT what I imagined)… but then I came across the name Scott Elrod…. and I googled him… and wow… he’s actually really freaking HOT and I think he could pull off the roll – can you imagine him with copper hair and grey contacts? I can!!

Then I read some people considering Lindsay Fonseca as Ana and I’d say that so far, she’s actually my fav name associated with the role by far. And I’ve seen her act and she can do innocent really well. Google them and see for yourself. … I really think they could work!

Also, there is a Facebook group devoted to Scott Elrod as Fifty Shades if you are interested… I’ve always thought it should be a talented UNKNOWN actor cast as Christian and he seems unknown enough that I had no clue who he was but he’s acted enough that he’s clearly not a newbie to the screen… so I guess he’s another possibility… he sure is HOT though, thats for sure! *fans self*

What do you think?

If you agree, please share this link around and maybe some of the people in charge will come across it: http://aestasbookblog.com/fifty-shades-casting-ideas/

 

 

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Book Review – Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park

Book Review – Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park

5 stars.

Wow. I FLAT-OUT LOVED this book!!! 

“…that’s what love does to you. Gut-wrenching, overpowering, crushing, fulfilling, complex, bring-you-to-your-knees love.” 

It was beautiful!! It kept me hooked right from the beginning. It was amazing, heart warming and a little heart wrenching, with light and funny moments, as well as deeply emotional ones. The dialogue was clever and witty and had me laughing out so many times. But this book was not a fluff read – it was deep, touching, and bittersweet. Oh, and it has the best midnight drunken phone call ever! :)

“I’d just have to meet the right guy. Someone who isn’t ordinary. Someone who gets me. Someone I fit perfectly with. I want heat, chemistry, an undeniable connection.”

Julie has a wonderful voice. The story had me smiling from the first few pages.  It starts when Julie moves to a new city for college. The apartment that she rented off of Craigslist turned out to be a scam and she ends up staying with the family of an old friend of her mom’s for the year. The family is kind and loving but Julie senses an undercurrent of something deeply wrong and hurt with them and she can’t stop herself from wanting to help them heal even though she has no idea what is wrong. There is Matt, the hot yet nerdy brother who seems to take care of everyone, Celeste, the sweet and extremely bright 13 year old sister who carries around (everywhere), talks to and interacts with a life-size cardboard cutout of her eldest gorgeous brother Finn who is off traveling the world, to the  absent yet loving parents who immerse themselves in their work. Julie is given Finn’s room to stay in and she connects with him through Facebook and despite having never met him, feelings begin to develop for this charming, fun-loving and deeply caring guy that she just can’t get out of her head.

The characters in this book seemed so vivid. You really get the feeling when reading it that you are experiencing  the story and its partly because of how much it integrates everything into the it – Facebook statuses, emails, private messages as well as the regular dialogue and story. It really helps to immerse you in the story and connect with the characters. You can very quickly garner so much from someone’s Facebook status about their personality that just doesn’t feel the same if you were told it. Most chapters start with each characters’ Facebook statuses and through them, which helps you learn so much about them in a really cute and adorable way.

Matthew Watkins I need an afternoon pick-me-up. I accept cash and/or prizes that can be exchanged for cash. Also, hobbits.

Finn is God If you get off your high horse, you’ll notice that it, too, poops.

Julie Seagle Mixed emotions regarding Twitter continue. Am again facing warnings about unprotected Tweets, but it’s not my fault the condom won’t fit over the laptop. “A” for effort and whatnot, I think.

This book is about relationships. Not just romantic ones, but also about deep family connections. It deals with many painful hurts that the family has experienced and throughout the book we see their healing process as this dysfunctional family puts the broken pieces of their lives back together.

I loved how caring Matt was – how he was always looking after everyone, I loved how quirky yet so perceptive Celeste was, and I loved how flirty and understanding Finn was.

This book made me misty-eyed several, it made my heart race and would often keep a smile on my face for pages on end. I totally felt sucked into Julie’s world – into the affection she feels for Matt and his charming yet geeky personality, to the acceptance she shows Celeste and her strong desire not to give up on helping her heal, and to the growing attraction that she feels for Finn – as she slowly falls in love with him over their online communication. Honestly, I never thought I could fall in love with a character without actually ‘meeting’ them but boy was I wrong!! Finn had me falling in complete ‘swoon’ with him in no time!

The writing is very fluid, the pacing is excellent – there are no slow points and no points where you feel like you missed a big chunk of time, Ms. Park’s storytelling is addictive – I didn’t want to put this books down. Given a choice, I would totally have read it in one sitting!

There is a big family secret that leads to a twist to the end of the book! I had a gut-feeling in the beginning that turned out to be right and I’m curious to see how many of you also guess it :)

The story has a wonderful HEA though – no worries!!

I’d definitely call this book a must-read! I’d highly recommend it! And I think it’s definitely a book that I will be re-reading.

Its YA so don’t expect smut, but trust me, you won’t miss it!

 

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Book Review – Rock Chick Rescue (Rock Chick #2) by Kristen Ashley

Book Review – Rock Chick Rescue (Rock Chick #2) by Kristen Ashley

4 stars.

I gotta say I did like this book, but I didn’t love it nearly as much as the first one.

Jet meets Eddie when she gets a job working at the coffee shop run by Indy (the heroine from book 1). Jet is trying her best to get by working two jobs while taking care of her mother who has suffered from a stroke. Eddie is a cop who works with Lee Nightingale (the insanely HOT hero from book 1). They have nearly instant mutual attraction but while Eddie tries his best to act on it, Jet tries her best to deflect his efforts. Then in walks her Dad who has gotten himself indebted to the wrong lone sharks who are willing to drag anyone into the mess and Jet ends up under Eddie’s protection as he makes it his business to keep her safe.

Eddie was an awesome hero. He was HOT, possessive, protective, patient, caring and everything a hero should be – I absolutely loved him!! But Jet really brought the book down for me – she literally had no sense of self worth and her constant insistence right until the last page of the book that she didn’t deserve Eddie/they weren’t right for each other really frustrated me. I understand where she was coming from – her Dad abandoned her Mom when she was a kid so her faith in men was sorely shaken, but I still wished there would have been a point where she came around so we could actually see more of them as a functional couple. Eddie worked so hard to make them work as a couple (and in the end won of course) but I kinda wished that Jet would have tried a little harder too.

“Eddie, let me go!” I (kind of) shouted.
His arms tightened and he shook me a bit. “It’s not gonna happen!” he shouted back.

As usual with all KA books, we have a wonderful mix of action and romance. And I absolutely LOVED that all the characters from book 1 that we have come to know and love not only showed up in this book, but were integral parts of the story. Also, I loved that the stories of the past couples continue in this book, they don’t just become side characters, its absolutely wonderful to see them moving on with their lives together.

“Let me guess, this one has your protection too? What? Are you building a harem?”

KA is an absolute genius at building a complex network of relationships and friendships that just make me squee! There is a scene at the end where literally everyone works together and it gave me shivers!!

“Holy crap,” I whispered. 
It was like the Justice League of Super Heroes but instead it was the Justice League of Hot Guys.”

Also, with what I’ve seen of the other characters whose books are still to come, I know I absolutely cannot WAIT for their stories and I have heard that their heroines are not annoying so yay!! Mace in particular I have fallen in love with! He’s tortured and dark and broody and HOT *swooon* … must. read. faster. lol

CASTING:

Buy ROCK CHICK RESCUE (Kindle)

rock chick2

SERIES READING ORDER

  1. Rock Chick - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Lee & Indy ~
  2. Rock Chick Rescue - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Eddie & Jet ~
  3. Rock Chick Redemption - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Hank & Roxie ~
  4. Rock Chick Renegade - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Vance & Jules ~
  5. Rock Chick Revenge - (Kindle)  (Smashwords)   ~ Luke & Ava ~
  6. Rock Chick Reckoning (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Mace & Stella ~
  7. Rock Chick Regret - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Hector & Sadie ~

For all you hard-core Kristen Ashley fans, the first 6 books of the ROCK CHICK series are now available on PAPERBACK!!!!! *HAPPY DANCE* Here are the paperback links:

♥ #1 ROCK CHICK (paperback)
♥ #2 ROCK CHICK RESCUE (paperback)
♥ #3 ROCK CHICK REDEMPTION (paperback)
♥ #4 ROCK CHICK RENEGADE (paperback)
♥ #5 ROCK CHICK REVENGE (paperback)
♥ #6 ROCK CHICK RECKONING (paperback)

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Book Review – Rock Chick (Rock Chick #1) by Kristen Ashley

Book Review – Rock Chick (Rock Chick #1) by Kristen Ashley

5 stars!

LOVE LOVE LOVED this hilarious, romantic, action-packed book!!

Pure. FreakingGold.

This is probably the most all-out FUN book I’ve ever read! I mean, how can you not love a book about a smart, independent, sassy heroine and her Badass Extraordinaire hero getting together? huh? Its impossible not to I tell you. Impossible!

I cannot possibly gush enough. This book was BRILLIANT!! It had me flipping pages like mad, grinning endlessly and laughing and squeeing out-loud more times than I could count!

Its insanely well-written. Kristen Ashley has an absolute gift with words. Her writing style is so effortless, you feel like you are right in the head of the main character.

The book is never boring, there is no stupidity from the characters, and the drama in the background compliments the character development of the story rather than complicates it. Its a delicate balance that Ms. Ashley has really perfected!

The story is about India “Indy” Savage and Liam “Lee” Nightingale. Indy’s been in love with Lee since she was five. For reasons’ you’ll learn about, he couldn’t admit he felt the same way until very recently. But they basically grew up together, then Lee went off to join the Army/Special Ops and went from badboy to Badass Extraordinaire and now runs his own detective agency. Fast track to present day, Indy’s friend gets involved in some very shady business involving some illegally grown plants and million dollar diamonds, resulting in people shooting at them with guns and end up being helped out of the predicament by Lee… who of course uses this as the perfect stepping stone to finally get together with Indy.

“What was he playing at?
He told me.
And he told me bluntly.
“I do this thing for Rosie, you sleep with me”
I stared at him, open-mouthed and in stunned silence.
I did, of course, understand what he meant but he explained further.
“Not like last night, we’ll both be naked and sexual acts will be performed.”
My expression didn’t change except maybe my mouth opened wider.
“I’ll expect your participation.”
Holy shit.
“Your avid participation.”
Dear Lord in Heaven.
Eventually, I whispered, “You must be joking.”
He shook his head and watched me.
I dropped my eyes, unable to hold his stare.
“I think I need more coffee,”" 

Oooooo Lee. Liam freaking Nightingale. I love you. There I said it. He’s a wonderful hero – all delicious badass, uberly possessive, don’t-fuck-with-me-or-my-woman, Alpha male. He is YUMMY!!

“Girlie, he is fine. He’s fine times twelve. He’s the definition of fine.”
“I’ve been in love with him since I was five,” I told Tod. 
“I’m in love with him now. I want to have his children, Tod told me.”

I loved that he doesn’t play games,  is open and honest about his feelings and thoughts even to the point of being cocky but never hides anything. What you see is what you get. Oh, and did I mention he’s totally hot?

“Jesus,” he buried his face in my neck. “There’s nothin’ better in the world than hearing you say my name when I’m inside you.” He slid in deeper, filling me. “I’ve been waiting years to be right here.” 

And Indy was feisty, fun-loving, sassy, takes-no-orders-and-won’t-back-down-from-anything, funny, not at all annoying and totally lovable!

And I loved that they had known each other their whole lives instead of just meeting and hooking up. Its gave a familiarity to the characters – and made their fast relationship much more believable.

“I like that we have history and our kids will have a big family and share that history because there was never a time when their Mom and Dad weren’t together.” ~Lee

This book is full of typical KA fun – there are kidnappings galore, car chases, steamy bedroom scenes, swoony moments, outright hilarious moments, drag queen performances, shoot-outs, explosions, a seriously epic food-fight, and of course, a wonderful love story. Also, we get introduced to a bunch of wonderful side-characters who will be heavily featured in the rest of the series :)

I absolutely ADORED this book!! and I recommend it to everybody and anybody! Run and get this book – you won’t regret it!!

Here’s a link to a PDF excerpt for the first 2 chapters of this book (off of KA’s personal site) in case you want to try it out! If you aren’t in love with it by the end of these chapters, it might not be the book for you, but personally, I was in love by the end of chapter 1!

CASTING:

Buy ROCK CHICK (Kindle)

rock chickSERIES READING ORDER

  1. Rock Chick - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Lee & Indy ~
  2. Rock Chick Rescue - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Eddie & Jet ~
  3. Rock Chick Redemption - (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Hank & Roxie ~
  4. Rock Chick Renegade - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Vance & Jules ~
  5. Rock Chick Revenge - (Kindle)  (Smashwords)   ~ Luke & Ava ~
  6. Rock Chick Reckoning (Kindle)   (Smashwords)   ~ Mace & Stella ~
  7. Rock Chick Regret - (Kindle)    (Smashwords)   ~ Hector & Sadie ~

For all you hard-core Kristen Ashley fans, the first 6 books of the ROCK CHICK series are now available on PAPERBACK!!!!! *HAPPY DANCE* Here are the paperback links:

♥ #1 ROCK CHICK (paperback)
♥ #2 ROCK CHICK RESCUE (paperback)
♥ #3 ROCK CHICK REDEMPTION (paperback)
♥ #4 ROCK CHICK RENEGADE (paperback)
♥ #5 ROCK CHICK REVENGE (paperback)
♥ #6 ROCK CHICK RECKONING (paperback)

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