5 stars

Book Review – Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

October 31, 2012 by Aestas · 29 Comments

4.5+ stars!!

PURE YA GOLD!!!

I’ll be honest here, I didn’t think I was going to love a book about aliens. That’s why I put off starting this book for so long. Its not that I had anything against them, I just wasn’t sure if they were my ‘thing’, you know?? I was wrong. Horribly wrong. They are SO my thing. Well, at least Daemon is. Holy hotness. He’s just… *fans self*… seriously for a YA book the sexual tension is just out of CONTROL!! I mean wow! I totally loved it!! Honestly, I have no complaints… well, maybe only that the series isn’t finished yet and I freaking want MORE but there’s not much I can do about that except bite my nails and wait no-so-patiently. (2016 EDIT: the series is finished now)

Ok… about the book…

In an effort to ‘start over’ after her Dad dies, Katy’s mom moves them to a small town. And although Katy would much rather spend her time reading books or writing her review blog (yes, she writes a blog. So cool!! Instant bond!), her mom encourages her to get to know the neighbors… and she does. Meet Daemon Black. Gorgeous, tall, and alluring. But after her first conversation with him, she quickly realizes he’s also arrogant, stab-worthy and oh-so-very-very-infuriating.

“He was probably the hottest guy I’d ever seen in real life, and he was a total douche. Go figure.”

“Beautiful face. Beautiful body. Horrible attitude. It was the holy trinity of hot boys.”

But something just feels a little off about him and his polar-opposite warm, sweet, fun twin sister who has befriended her. The way people treat them, little glances, tricks of the light… something about them is different and Katy is about to find exactly what it is.

I fell in love with this book and with the characters from the first chapter. It was fresh, fun and catchy. The dialogue was snappy, the banter was awesome, the story-line was engaging, and there was Unresolved Sexual Tension thick enough to cut with a knife. I mean holyyyy!!

The writing style had an easy flowing pace that never dragged or felt rushed. Honestly, it just a purely enjoyable experience. Total brain candy 🙂

I loved the light feel of the book. The little hints at mystery. The humor. The snark. The intrigue. But despite the ‘alien’ thing, it never felt over-the-top fantastical. And it was quite refreshing to have a new twist on the typical paranormal storylines.

Daemon… I couldn’t help but fall for him. Underneath all the bad boy, arrogant, stab-worthyness was a really gorgeous softie that we got little glimpses of here and there. Oh, and he apologizes!!! I’m such a sucker for guys who are badass enough to apologize and still remain badass 🙂 Even before you read his POV scenes at the end, you can tell that he’s a good guy despite some of his infuriating actions.

But I loved that despite his chemistry with Katy being undeniable, she didn’t put up with Daemon’s crap – not even for a minute. She called him on it, gave him the middle finger on occasion and just because she swooned over him, didn’t mean she just turned into a puddle of goo. She stood up for herself, held her own (I’m thinking about a certain cafeteria scene here involving pasta being dumped on someone’s head) and honestly, never annoyed me.

“Holy Hawt Chemistry, Batman!”

No kidding!! Half the time I just wanted to shove them at each other and be like ‘just kiss already!!!!!’

“Geez, I thought you guys were supposed to be nice and charming.”
He frowned. “What guys?”
“You know, the knight in shining armor and saving the damsel in distress kind.”…
“I’m not your knight.”

This book is a little different than a lot of romances because the main couple aren’t officially a couple for the whole of this book. There is a lot that comes between them. His kind isn’t supposed to mingle with humans and she is a huge liability to him, his family and his people. But events just keep throwing them together and by the end, we do get some feeling of ‘togetherness’ between them. And quite honestly, with his attitude in the beginning, if they had gotten together any sooner, it wouldn’t have felt right.

As for the ending, this is the first book in a series of 5 so there is definitely a lead in to the next book. But there is no nail-biting cliffhanger and although I promised myself that I would only read book #1 to see what all the fuss was about and then stop until the rest came out but I need MORE!!! So yeah… I’ll keep reading them as they come out 😛

Bottom line – definitely add this to the YA to-read pile! 🙂

READING ORDER + PURCHASE LINKS

#1 – OBSIDIAN (Start with this one!)

#0.5 – SHADOWS – Remember, DON’T start with this even though it’s the prequel. Read it after Obsidian!! TRUST ME!!!

Buy on Kindle

#2 – ONYX

#3 – OPAL

#4 – ORIGIN

#6 – OPPOSITION

Book Review – The Golden Dynasty (Fantasyland #2) by Kristen Ashley

October 18, 2012 by Aestas · 15 Comments

I ABSOLUTELY ADORED THIS BOOK!!!! WOW. JUST UTTERLY AMAZING!!!!

Kristen Ashley never ceases to amaze me with the beauty of the books she writes. Seriously, this story is just magical <3

Its a story about two people overcoming extreme cultural differences for the sake of love. There were parts of this book that were gruesome, brutal and sickening, parts that were swoony, heart-melting and utterly precious and ultimately it told a beautiful story about compromise, understanding and acceptance.

The story follows Circe, who went to sleep one night in her bed in Seattle and woke up in a nightmare world. Literally. She woke up in a an alternate parallel universe to ours in a corral with a whole bunch of women, most of whom didn’t even speak her language, who were penned there, half naked, waiting for “The Wife Hunt” to commence.

O_O

The Wife Hunt?!?!

“It was a nightmare. It was a nightmare’s nightmare.”

To call The Wife Hunt brutal would be an understatement. It is a common practice by the Korwahk people with the purpose of finding wives for their warriors. But the way they go about it, to our eyes, from our culture’s perspective, is horrific. They round up the most beautiful women from both their people and others who they kidnap and, at an appointed time, are let loose in the woods and hunted down by the warriors, raped, and thus claimed as that warrior’s new wife.

Now, this is something which under normal circumstances would turn me way the hell off a book. But I had a lot of faith in KA’s story-telling ability and so I spent some time prior to reading it trying to understand or come to terms with it.

I wont say anything here that will spoil the story, but I will try and give a little bit of a general explanation so that in case you, like me, read that description and kinda balk and start backing away while wondering if there was any way in the world you could ever love a hero who would do such a thing, then maybe this will help you understand him a little before the start of the story.

There is a LOT of emphasis made in this book about how this is their culture. The people in their culture (including the women!) are happy with it. They are a prosperous, thriving culture. These are their customs. These are their ways. Yes, to outsiders, and to us, their ways are savage, brutal, barbaric, cruel, take your pick, but to them, this is their world.

And, after the brutal first scene in the book, The Wife Hunt (which, by the way, was not very graphic), things do start to gradually change a little….

“There are some men, no matter what blood flows in their veins or what teachings were drilled into their heads, who are just good men.”

Our hero, Dax Lahn, is one of those men. And for a guy from such a brutal culture, he was actually pretty darn swoony!! And Circe is just an incredible heroine – she is strong-willed, fiesty, sassy, deeply understanding and I instantly felt connected to her character. And not long into the book, it becomes abundantly clear how proud Lahn is of her, of having found a warrior women. And he really does do his best, in his own savage-brute way, of trying to figure her out.

They spoke different languages, came from different worlds, couldn’t understand each literally or culturally and yet they both worked so hard at figuring each other out. It was totally, completely, endearing – the big brutish warrior King and his Seattle chick Queen.

The thing was that regardless of the fact that this was their culture, there was still the issue that that Circe was NOT from it and so Lahn had to learn to make concessions along the way too. And whenever he screwed up, I loved that she totally stood up to him. Which he, in turn, found endearing…. it was all just very sweet.

But, I’ll be honest, some of the stuff that happens in their culture is really hard to accept. Reeeeeeeally hard. Borderline impossible. But I really just tried to go into it with an open mind and realize that a lot of the things that to me, I found demeaning or heartless were really the results of my own culture speaking. Its a hard thing to wrap your mind around.

It helped though, that Lahn just melted my heart. He was just the biggest brute and definitely the kind of guy that nobody messes with and yet, when it came to her, he showed another side where he actually was just the biggest loveable softie <3 And its impossible not to see just how MUCH he cares!!

“This is my vow to you… I am your husband, I will keep you safe and I will do it by keeping my feet on this earth, breathing the air and being there to make you safe. Do you understand this?”

And I absolutely loved that Circe made concessions in a lot of ways to his culture – after all, she was the one who came into his world, but she had a few key things that really didn’t sit right with her (totally understandably!!) and in an awesome way that just made me want to cheer, stood up to him over and over again. Basically, she never lost who she was or her spirit or her character but still found ways to accept him and his culture and compromise.

“Lahn told me that when he claimed me, even in the moonlight, he saw my spirit shining in my eyes and it was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. To me, he was raping me. To him, he was receiving a gift he’d treasure always. This is a contradiction that it is difficult to come to terms with and although it does not heal the pain we felt, a memory seared into our brains, the terror we experienced, I cannot say it does not provide just enough balm to allow me to live with it.”

Once I got over the brutality of their world or rather, just tried to accept their way of life, I was able to fully focus on the epicness of their swoon. And oh my freaking god was it ever EPIC and SWOONY. There would be pages and pages on end where I’d be grinning from ear to ear.

Lahn did do a lot of brutal things, but for some reason, I found myself forgiving him. Not excusing or justifying his actions or even accepting them, but understanding and forgiving him. And the SOLE reason I felt that was was that I could see and sense all along that he was really, genuinely trying to be a good guy by her standards. He was trying to adapt and compromise. And yes, there were times when he screwed up, hmmmm, no, more like where he really effing f*cked the hell up, but he got better, progressively. That was his redeeming quality in my eyes.

And, let me tell you, when this big guy f*cks up. He royally f*cks up. But I loved that he realized it and he was prepared to grovel (well, lol, in a kingly brutish swoony way, but still) to get/earn her forgiveness. A big Alpha guy who is Alpha enough to apologize and ask for forgiveness without losing an ounce of his Alpha-ness (and also, more importantly, learn from his mistake) is the kind of character I pretty much just fall head over heels in love with.

I kind of also think that I might have been more okay with the issues in this book than the last one because despite the brutality of them, they are out in the open. This isn’t about deception or doing something behind someone’s back. This is just about the clear cultural RIFT between two people who come from vastly different worlds.

Yes, its sickeningly BRUTAL, but nothing that happened was meant in any way to harm. To me, despite the horrific brutality of the actions, it made the actions much more forgivable.

“Your king did not break through with me until his touch stopped taking and started giving and until, in our cham, he treated me with kindness. He is the mightiest of Suh Tunak, recognized the battle he had on his hands, analyzed it, created his strategy and then he went about winning that battle using any means necessary. And…my Lahn won that battle. I now lay awake at night waiting for him to return. When he does not, I fall asleep looking forward to the morning when he will wake me with his hands. He is my king, he is my warrior, he is my husband and I am proud to say above all…he is mine.”

One of my favorite things about this book was watching both of them learn each other’s language. KA did an incredible job of creating a believable, beautiful sounding and fairly detailed Korwakh language and I loved that I actually started being able to understand what they were saying without translation. But seriously, when Lahn spoke English, even when he only knew a few words, my heart just melted into a puddle of goo. “Rest, baby.” *swoooooon*

“Oh shit, yeah. He could be sweet.
And that sucked.
“You know what sucks? I whispered to him, doing it because I knew he would have no clue to a word I was saying. “It sucks that you can be sweet and when you’re sweet you’re really sweet. That sucks.”
He didn’t stop tenderly stroking my hair as I spoke but his eyes dropped to my mouth and when I was done, they came back to mine.
Then my heart squeezed when he whispered back, “I don’t understand you, baby.”
There it was again. Sweet.
I lifted a hand and placed it on his chest. He looked down at it but his eyes came back to mine when I spoke.
“Out there, King Lahn is a fierce warrior but in here, my Lahn… kah Lahn is sweet.”
His eyes changed, intensity shifting in when he murmured, “Fierce warrior, sweet.”
I grinned at him. “You’ve sort of got it.”
“Fierce warrior, sweet,” he muttered again.

Honestly, I don’t know what else to say about this book except the scenes in it are epic!!! Everything from ceremonies to rides to contests to executions to tender, beautiful private time to hot intense private time…

I totally fell into this world and into this story. Lahn and Circe’s love was beautiful and romantic and I utterly adored this book despite parts of it being hard to stomach. It definitely made my favorites shelf.

Rating: 5++ STARS!! Can standalone.

* FANTASYLAND SERIES *

Book #1 — WILDEST DREAMS (Frey & Finnie)
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Get the Audiobook | Read my Review

Book #2 — THE GOLDEN DYNASTY (Lahn & Circe)
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Get the Audiobook | Read my Review

Book #3 — FANTASTICAL (Tor & Cora)
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Get the Audiobook | Read my Review

Book #4 — BROKEN DOVE
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Get the Audiobook

Book #5 — MIDNIGHT SOUL
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Get the Audiobook

Book Review – On The Island by Tracey Garvis Graves

October 15, 2012 by Aestas · 17 Comments

Wow. 5++ stars!!

LOVE LOVE LOVED THIS BOOK <3

This is an absolutely beautiful, unique and unforgettable story about survival and love.

One of my top favorite reads ever.

I just finished reading it for the second time. I read it once a year ago and absolutely adored it but it was in my pre-review writing days and so, now that I’ve re-read it, I just wanted to tell you all how much I absolutely adored this story.

Its well-written, riveting and heartfelt. The HEA ending is just perfect with an epilogue that brought the happiest tears to my eyes. I honestly don’t have one single complaint to make about this book.

Its one of those stories that reminds you that true love can be found in the least likely of places and that, no matter what other people think, you should always follow your heart.

When an unfortunate plane crash strands them together on a small uninhabited island in the Maldives, 16-year-old TJ, a high school student in remission from cancer, and his 30-year-old summer tutor Anna are forced to depend on each other for survival as they wait to be rescued.
And wait.
And wait and wait and wait.
Weeks turn to months and eventually to years with no sign of rescue on the horizon.
But as their time on the island passes, Anna is faced with the reality that the boy she came to the island with is now becoming a man.

First of all you need to know that TJ isn’t like most other teens. He feels about twice as old as he is. Seriously, when you ‘meet’ him, you’ll understand. The events of his life have matured him far beyond his years and he so incredibly sure of his feelings that it is guaranteed to melt your heart.

For those of you who are wondering if the age difference makes their relationship feel at all weird, I promise, it absolutely does not. Cross my heart. They don’t get physically involved until he is almost 19-years-old so there is never an ‘underage’ issue. Watching them slowly fall for each other as he got much older was beautifully written, plausibly paced and never rushed. And if you read the book, you’ll see without question that they really, truly belong together.

“I love you, Anna.”
The surprised look on her face told me she hadn’t seen that coming.
“You weren’t supposed to fall in love,” she whispered.
“Well, I did,” I said, looking into her eyes. “I’ve been in love with you for months. I’m telling you now because I think you love me too, Anna. You just don’t think you’re supposed to. You’ll tell me when you’re ready. I can wait.”

The author is a brilliantly gifted story-teller who perfectly captures and portrays intensity of the situation that Anna and TJ went though – depending on each other, supporting each other, saving each other.

The book is told in alternating chapter POV’s between Anna and TJ. It is done very seamlessly allowing the reader a chance to really get into the minds of both the main character – something vital given the nature of the storyline.

Its one of those incredibly written books that you never want to put down – where you are immersed in the story and connected to the characters right from the beginning.

Another thing that you should know is that TJ’s cancer does not come back. This is not a story about that. I’ve heard some people say that that held them back from wanting to read this book so I’d like to dispel that worry here. This is a beautiful love story with a very happy ending!!

If you haven’t yet read it, trust me, its worth bumping to the very top of your lists!!

I know I’ll be rereading it many times for years to come <3

Book #1: ON THE ISLAND (standalone)

Buy for Kindle | Buy for Paperback

Companion novella: UNCHARTED

My Review | Buy for Kindle

Book Review – Down To You by M. Leighton

September 29, 2012 by Aestas · 13 Comments

“Did you think of my lips when he kissed you?… Do you still want me? Because if you do, I’m all yours.”

Buy DOWN TO YOU (Kindle)

This seems to be the “it” book of the moment and now I know why!

Down To You is a wonderful, addictive read that will have your heart fluttering, have you fanning yourself, with just the right amount of angst and a really cool twist… oh, and twins, REALLY HOT, panty-melting twins 🙂

Hmmm, I’m getting ahead of myself here…. k, about the panty-melting twins. Olivia is an accounting student who has moved back to her home town to help her now-single dad out on their family farm. The last thing she’s looking for is another bad-boy relationship. But not long after she moves, she meets Cash Davenport, the bike riding, club owning, seriously HOT, tattooed bad boy who wants her in his bed. Like now. He’s “cocky, sexy, charming. Untamed. Rebellious. Heartbreaker.” And despite her resistance to his charms, she can’t help desperately wanting him…

“You’ve never ridden a motorcycle before?”
“Nope.”
“What kind of bad-boy girlfriend are you?” I ask in mock dismay.
“Evidently a terrible one.”
I swing onto the bike…
“Nah, you just haven’t met the right bad-boy.”

**swoooooon**… but wait! It gets better… The next day, she meets Nash. His twin brother. Yes, twin! As in, identical, GORGEOUS, swoony, and drool-worthy. He’s the good boy, “incredibly handsome, charming obviously intelligent, successful, grounded” – the complete opposite of Cash and the kind of guy she really should be in a relationship with. Unfortunately he’s dating her rich, snobby cousin Marissa who she’s living with, but it doesn’t stop them from being seriously attracted to each other.

“I feel like all of a sudden, my life is a train wreck. And most of the wreckage revolves around two guys. Two guys that, for totally different reasons, are tearing me up inside. Two guys I want. Two guys I can’t have. Two guys I can’t stop thinking about.”

She wants them both. They both are in her head, in her heart and they both make her crazy for them. And they both want her just as badly.

Let me start off by saying that I am not a fan of love triangles. I like knowing who ends up with who right off the bat and I’m not fond of characters wavering back and forth but, for whatever reason, maybe it was the great writing style, or the drool-worthy characters or what have you, I LOVED it in this book. Completely LOVED IT!!!!!

And you know, the funny thing about love triangle books is that usually, even if I like both guys, I always know which guy I want to end up being “THE” guy. You know?? But, with this book, I absolutely did NOT have a favorite. I wanted them both. Completely. Equally…. Seriously, no joke, I could. NOT. choose!!!!!!

“But it’s your rule.”
“I’ll break it for you,” he whispers.“

lol, and as usual, best friends really just give the best advice 😛

“Every hen house needs a cock, but only the special hens can handle more than one. Try ’em out then pick one and stick with it. You’re not old enough to play with two toys at once. That’s cougar territory.”

So… which one does Olivia choose?? You’ll have to read to find out!

And don’t try and find out in advance… its worth the surprise. There’s a really cool twist! I usually go into books knowing some basic spoilers (like who ends up with who, that kind of thing) and with this one, I went in blind (I was trying to be brave and fearless, its a work in progress) but I am SO SO SO happy I didn’t know. And that’s saying something coming from me. So for those of you who are wondering about it, take my advice and don’t go sniffing about for any details… Just read it!! Enjoy the yummy ride!

The story sucked me in and had no slow spots. I’ll admit, there was a moment or two that made me squint an eye skeptically at the page and go ‘hmmmmm’, but nothing that pulled me away from the story.

And about the twist, I’ll say that I didn’t see it coming. I thought it was a possibility, but I dismissed it (silly me!) … If I think too much about it, I’m still not 100% sure how the timelines would all match up and all but its fiction, right? And its hot, sexy, fun, engaging fiction with a story and characters I loved so I’m just not gonna dissect and analyze things too closely. Bottom line, it worked. And I did love the twist. It was perfect for the story.

Guys, the sex scenes in this book… seriously… I”m not kidding here, H.O.T. Like I think I need to go back and reread some of those scenes… wow! They are definitely adult – this is not a YA or NA read!

And yes, the book did end on a bit of a cliffhanger… but I was actually totally fine with it. I honestly found it to be more of a lead-in to book 2 than anything – in fact it was very similar to the cliffhanger in Fifty Shades Darker. One where you felt like the main couple was fine, but there were still bad guys out there…. Don’t let it stop you from reading the book.

But that being said, pleeeeeeease Ms. Leighton, can you please please please release book 2 soon?? *begs* I want MORE!!! 😀

**Edit: just heard from the author that she’s hoping to get book 2 out for early 2013. SQUEEE!!!

I highly recommended this book!! Everyone really has to meet the Davenport twins. Go go go!!

Rating: 4.5 stars!

Click covers to purchase books (Amazon links).

Book review – Creed (Unfinished Heroes #2) by Kristen Ashley

September 28, 2012 by Aestas · 12 Comments

Buy CREED (Kindle)
Buy CREED (Paperback)

5 stars!!! (maybe even 6)

“Born to love you, baby… Die lovin’ you, my Sylvie.”

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! I loved Sylvie. I loved Creed. Their story broke my heart and despite adoring it, emotionally, it ripped my heart out. It was a heart wrenching, tragic, BEAUTIFUL love story about survival of loss…

But you know, the most tragic stories of loss make for some of the most heart warming and MEANINGFUL reunions -every moment of good becomes unimaginably precious. Full. Earned. Treasured…. that what this story is about.

“I’m not what you want, Sylvie, I get that because its the same for you as it is for me. I’m not what you want ’cause I’m what you need.”

When Sylvie was six and Creed was eleven, they met in the woods one night – both trying to get away from the misery wrapped up in their homes. Over the years, their bond is forged and cemented – they helped each other, sheltered each other, supported each other, fell in love, made plans to get away. But on the night they were supposed to leave, Creed never showed. He just disappeared….. Cut to present day, sixteen years later, Sylvie is working for Knight’s business in the security department. When there is a breach, he calls in Creed – not knowing of their connection. Suddenly faced with the man who abandoned her so many years ago and forced into a situation where they have to partner up for a job, Sylvie has no choice but to deal with the past she’s been trying to put behind her… But it all leads to one very important question: Why did he abandon her? What could have happened to make him never show up?

Let me tell you , I was feeling really betrayed and hurt by him at that point. All I could think about was how on earth could he abandon her after everything they’d been through together and promised each other, and not communicate for sixteen years… I couldn’t think of a single reason that would honestly justify that. I went through a period of extreme HURT and betrayal while I was reading. My heart ached. It was a physical pain. I felt ill. It was the strongest hurt I’ve EVER felt from any of KA’s character’s actions.

I was desperately wracking my brain to come up with ANY reason for what he did…. The closest feeling I can describe to what I felt here was how I felt while reading The Sweet Gum Tree. In a word: intense and painful.

But then the reason came out as to why he never showed and it hit me SO hard. Tears were pouring down my face. It was a tragedy of epic proportions. I didn’t think KA would go there, I honestly didn’t, but she did and my heart is still hurting when I think about what happened to him.

It took Creed and Sylvie up until about the half way mark to sort out their past, but once they did, they became functional to an extreme with an intense chemistry and H.O.T.N.E.S.S. off the freaking charts. I mean SERIOUSLY hot. Think make-up sex, but a million times hotter because its making up for sixteen years of heart ache.

I loved Sylvie!!! In a word, she was badass! As one of the protection enforcers for Knight’s business, its literally her job to kick ass. She was just totally one of the guys – an Alpha female not to be messed with . She read, acted and talked exactly like one of the KA men – except with a decidedly feminine twist. I love it!! She took care of herself, no one controlled her. In many ways, she was the female version of Creed.

I loved that they saw eye to eye, stood toe to toe – badass to badass. Sylvie is Creed. Creed is Sylvie. They were born for each other. Made for each other. I loved that even through unthinkable tragedy and years of separation, the love that they’d had since they were children never faded. It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL.

“I loved the man under me in a way that wasn’t just mean to be. It wasn’t a way we were born to be. It was in a way that needed to be.“

Creed melted my heart. I fell really hard for him and just fell deeper and deeper in love as the story went on. He was a tortured badass whose life and heart was tied to Sylvie. When he came back into her life and found out the truth of what had happened to her, it killed me and yet melted my heart how much it hurt him and how strongly he was devoted to working towards replacing her bad memories with good ones, determined to do everything in his power to put their lives back together.

I’ll say that there was a point where I was pretty furious with him and even to this moment, I still don’t agree with a series of decisions that he made after they were ripped away from each other (you’ll know what I mean when you get to it). Its not even that I can understand what he did, cuz honestly, I can’t. But its ok. I recognize that he’s not perfect and I can accept him as such. The circumstances were horrific, tragic and I’m not going to judge how people react in those situations… it still doesn’t sit fully right with me, but that’s ok. You don’t love someone cuz they are perfect, you love them flaws and all… and I can say that I completely, 100% LOVE Tucker Creed. Flaws and all.

Their story is told in present day with flash backs to their past filling in the blanks and answering the myriad of questions that their present day story leads to. I loved how we never got the whole thing at once… we got little snippets here and there that piece together their story… it was really powerful and built up from when they were kids to that fateful day when Creed never showed.

Creed and Sylvie were just two amazingly wonderful people who life had dealt and unthinkably horrific hand of cards. But they were survivors. Reading this story just made me SICK to my stomach, thinking about the lengths that people in this world will go through to steal happiness from others…

They were strong before, but the joint trauma of having gone through what they were made to go through makes them closer than you can imagine. Its about the point of how when you meet that person that is The One, even if the world comes crashing down, there is nothing that can erase those feelings.

“For over twenty-seven years, every day, every minute, every second, I’ve loved you, Tucker Creed.”

When you have precious in your life and are willing to do anything and everything in your power to fight to keep it but have it wrenched away form you, have to live without it – with the ache of it missing from your life. That’s what makes it so that when it’s back, there is not one minute, not one second, not a breath that isn’t precious, priceless, full.

“ You need me. You won’t stay away and you won’t let me go because, baby, you can’t breathe without me.“

I cried a few times throughout this book, but by the end I was crying so hard I could barely see straight. Happy tears of course 🙂 The end killed me in a wonderful way. It was an BEAUTIFUL, PERFECT, GORGEOUS, AMAZING, INCREDIBLE ending… just WOW.

I’m tempted to give this one 6 stars. It was THAT good.

“You’re my world, Sylvie. Always have been. Always will be.”

Lol, funny side note… my husband heard me crying from the other room and came in and took one look at my face and went “Jeez, baby, you do this for fun?!?” hahahaaa I sorta tried to smile and wailed out a pretty pathetic “yyeeeeeaaaaahhhh”

Let me just say that there are a lot of incredibly gifted and talented authors out there, and I mean a LOT. But NO one can write badass like KA does. She truly is the reigning queen of badass.

And speaking of badass, there were some great cameos in this book – namely from Knight and Hawk (yes, Mystery Man Hawk). I really warmed up to Knight in this book. Like REALLY. To the point where I absolutely freaking ADORED him. I loved his relationshipip with Sylvie – how deeply protective he was of her and how much she meant to him. “Bottom of my soul.” *cluthes heart* … I struggled with his book a lot but in this book, I loved seeing how much he had grown, changed, adapted. It was beautiful and heart warming…. and when Hawk (and his gorgeous dimples) make a fantastic, if brief, appearance for the final 90% craziness, I could barely contain my squees 😀

CREED was just a gorgeous, beautiful, intense read. One of KA’s best. I’m writing this a day after having finished the book and my heart is still full to the brim with my love for Sylvie and Creed. Their story was emotional exhausting and deeply satisfying.

I started my review with this line, but I want to end it with it as well. I think its one of the most beautiful lines I’ve ever read. If that doesn’t convey the depth of their love, I don’t know what can.

“Born to love you, baby… Die lovin’ you, my Sylvie.”

5 – 6 stars!!

Buy CREED (Kindle)

** SERIES READING ORDER **

Note: Each book can be read as a standalone and is about a different couple

#1 — KNIGHT
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

#2 — CREED
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

#3 — RAID
Buy for Kindle | Buy in Paperback | Read my Review

Book Review – Games of the Heart (The Burg #4) by Kristen Ashley

September 21, 2012 by Aestas · 3 Comments

“We’re gonna explore this and I hope to God that feelin’ I got is not wrong because I tried time and again to make it feel wrong but all it ever felt was right.”

Buy GAMES OF THE HEART (Kindle)

SO. MUCH. EPIC. SWOON!!! Yet another GORGEOUS, touching, heart warming story about love and family. Seriously, Kristen Ashley can do no wrong! Every time I start one of her books, its like I instantly relax and am at peace and every time I finish one of her books, I am left with the absolute most happy, full feeling. It literally gives me shivers of joy.

Dusty has loved Mike her whole life. But as the little sister of his high school girlfriend, they didn’t exactly have a fairy tale start. Towards the end of high school though, Dusty suddenly went off the rails and left town the moment she was free of school. No one understood why, not her family, not Mike, not anyone… But this was over 20 years ago. Now, when tragedy hits her family, Dusty returns to the ‘Burg and while everyone else seems to blame Dusty for her rebellion when she left town, Mike can’t help but wonder if there wasn’t more to her story than she’s letting on. Mike himself hasn’t had the easiest time of it. After going through an ugly divorce, he is now very wary of trusting anyone in a relationship. And after fighting for full custody of two wonderful kids, he has kept almost every relationship he’s had at arm’s length…. until Dusty 🙂

I have to say that I loved a lot of characters in this book, but my first love actually has to go to Dusty. She was an AWESOME heroine. I. Love. Dusty. There I said it. I still like guys, all the way, but Dusty would be my girl-crush if I were to have one. She was just so laidback and yet totally together! She was upfront about she was and wasn’t afraid to hide her thoughts, feelings or opinions. Totally 100% open. She didn’t hold anything back, told it as she saw it, didn’t back down for anything, wasn’t afraid to stand on her own and a heart of pure gold.

“I was me. I thought what I thought. I liked what I liked. Life was exhausting enough with all the ups and downs and bullshit people kept trying to feed you. Expending that kind of effort for essentially no purpose seemed a ridiculous waste of energy.“

Mike Haines. Another gorgeous swoony Alpha cop. He was thoughtful, HOT, creative in bed and an amazingly swoony macho Dad. “…bossy, alpha, and badass in a good guy up way up top, bad boy underneath…” I totally loved everything about him. I loved that he called her Angel. I loved how safe he made her feel in every possible way. She was a strong, independent woman, but everyone loves the feeling of knowing that someone is 100% there to have their back. I loved that he held her when she cried, but respected her opinions, that he would stand up to her but also wasn’t afraid to admit he screwed up and was wrong. He messed a few things up in the beginning, but his reasons were understandable. His ex took away any trust he had. But he was able to own up to being as ass and any guy who can deliver a heart felt apology that spans a few pages is pretty awesome in my eyes…. He was through and through an Alpha, so he definitely had his bossy, in control moments. But they were in the sweetest way that made my heart melt.

“Are you asking me to marry you, honey?”
“No, I’m tellin’ you by the end of this year you’ll be wearing my rings, bearing my name, and probably, pregnant with my baby.”

The depth of his love, attention and devotion for his kids just made me clutch at my heart and swoon. It was just gorgeous to read. He really was the perfect Dad.

I also loved that right off the bat, Dusty and Mike were FUNCTIONAL!! Yes, with several screw ups, but I loved the way they worked it out. Gah, nothing makes me smile more than a couple who is open and honest with each other – no bullshit, no games, no beating around the bush, who are willing to compromise and do everything in their power to make things work.

“Dreams don’t happen and that’s it. You have to feed them and keep them alive…. I’m not going to be ninety years old, looking back on my life and regretting that I gave up that dream.”
“We’re gonna explore this and I hope to God that feelin’ I got is not wrong because I tried time and again to make it feel wrong but all it ever felt was right.”

And their sexy times were shiver-enducingly hooottttt. He may be a good guy on the outside but he had a fuckhot dirty side too. *faints*

“Thus commenced me learning something new about my childhood crush, good guy, excellent father, responsible citizen, courageous cop Mike Haines.
He could get dirty.”

And SQUEEEE!!! To make the book even more awesome than it already was, we are treated to a secondary romance on the side as Dusty’s nephew, Fin, and Mike’s daughter, Clarisse fall in crazy beautiful love. Its TOTALLY sweet and adorable! Fin stole my heart. I loved how tender and patient, supportive and protective he was. He was gorgeous, natural up and coming Alpha who totally ‘got’ everything that came with being one – the respect, the loyalty, the responsibility and of course, falling hard for his girl … and Rees was a beautiful, yet quiet girl who adored utterly him. What wonderful characters. All of them have gone through deep pain and are in need healing and seeing them all find support, love and family in each other… oh, it just made me melt!!

Honestly, I just wanted to highlight every piece of dialogue the kids were involved in. Absolutely brilliant!!

Said by Mike’s son: “its true. Totally. He’s a guy. He’s single. He’s tall. Trust me, girls all like tall guys, I know this for a fact. And Dad’s tall. And girls tell me he’s hot.” He grinned and finished, “I wouldn’t know, seein’ as I’m a guy but I look like him and I’m smokin’ hot so he’s gotta be hot.” LOL

I gotta say, there is just something about Kristen Ashley’s writing style – the words she chooses, the way she uses them, that just touches my heart SO deeply. Its not just the emotional scenes, its everything. Its because she gets that its a macho guy dad thing to for Mike to stand and hold his arm high on the door to let everyone pass underneath – little, subtle things like that. Her words just make my heart feel full. I don’t know how else to say it but it just feels full to bursting every single time I read one of her books.

And oh. my. gosh. the CAMEOS in this book are off the wall!!! We have scenes with Colt, Cal, Tanner, Mike, and Merry all together. Some beautiful little snippets of Vi & Cal. And a lot of changing perspectives. That isn’t to say that this book isn’t focused, because it totally is, but the little snippets of all the different POVs allow you to more full understand where everyone is at so much better.

And I have to give a little shout-out to Rivera. He’s another utterly swoony cop friend of Dusty’s who honestly made me squee or laugh in every single scene he was in. I’d love to read his back story one day.

“You got the touch, bro, layin’ her shit out then talkin’ Dusty around in a night, cementin’ that shit by sendin’ her flowers. One day, my woman is plotting your murder. Next day, I get asked why she doesn’t get any flowers… Fuck, your killin’ me. I haven’t bought Jerra flowers since I pissed her off when we were datin’ and fell asleep durin’ some crappy-ass movie she forced me to take her to sayin’ that movie was Hollywood’s version of us. How could I fall asleep watching the story of us, she asks. And, bro, if that was us, we are borin’ as shit.”

The pace of the book is very even and calm, but in a way that totally keeps you engaged in the story. It very character driven, and much less focused on intense action or thriller-y bad guys. It still has a whopper of a scary moment at the classic 90% mark where my heart stopped completely. Actually, it felt like whole world stopped, but I figured if I said that, you guys would just think I was being over dramatic. I’m not. I swear. It totally stopped. Buuuut, then the EPILOGUE… majorly swoony!!! Tied up ALL the loose ends, had a beeeeaaauuuutiful HEA for both couples and left me with a huge smile on my face.

Honestly, I don’t know why but I was kind of reluctant to start this series… for some crazy unknown reason (which I am now kicking myself for), I thought that maybe I wouldn’t like this series as much as the others. But I’m tempted to say its actually my fav of all the KA series I’ve read so far. Well, Rock Chick is another fav, but still, this one would definitely be tied. Its absolutely GORGEOUS and if you are for any reason holding off like I did, go go go and start them!! 😀

Unfortunately, I am now at the end of the books that are available in this series, but I KNOW I’ll be dropping anything and everything for book 5 when it comes out. I’m utterly addicted 😀

Rating: 5 stars!!