Friday, December 30, 2016

My TOP READS OF 2016: Numbers 25-20





There were so many great books this year. My list this year will include some authors that maybe a lot of you haven't heard of before. My goal was to step outside of the box of my normal reads and open myself up to new authors and genres that I normally don't read. Even with having to take almost 5 months off this year due to medical reasons, I was able to get in a good amount of books, yet still leaving so many on my TBR lists! Hopefully through my list, you'll be able to find some new to you authors.
 
Fated - A.S. Roberts
When naive, British physiotherapist, Frankie Jones, is offered the job of a lifetime, she decides letting go of her grief and moving on is exactly what the doctor ordered. But when she comes face to face with a sexy and irresistible blast from her past, she realises that this time she just can't walk away.

Even if it means stirring up old memories and pain...

Assertive and controlling CEO, Alex Blackmore, is shackled to obligations--obligations he didn't necessarily want. But now that Frankie is back in his life, he knows exactly what he does want--and will have. As their relationship intensifies, Alex's worlds collide and their past resurfaces, threatening to destroy what they're both working toward--letting go and moving on. Can Frankie and Alex fight their demons and embrace the future they're FATED for?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27856762-fated?from_search=true

This year there were a slew of new authors that I was able to meet through doing trailers and A.S. Roberts was one of them that I am so happy to have been introduced to. A debut author, her Fated Series was a page turner! You need to meet the Blackmore brothers! I absolutely love this book and series (so far two in the series). If you like hot alpha males, this is the book for you.

Frankie Jones has been hired to move to New York City from England to help in the rehabilitation of Nathan Blackmore - a motorbike racer and brother to Alex Blackmore, a high powered CEO and a man from Frankie's past she really doesn't know about.

When Frankie finally comes face to face with Alex, she now knows the connection and the hurts from her past come rushing in. What she doesn't know is that Alex has been a part of her life for a lot longer than she knew... and with all the circumstances around them, it's like they were fated to be together.

But things don't always work out the way you want them to... And is Alex all that he said he is?

Such a great story line that kept me turning the pages and so happy that Nathan's story is already published so I could dive right in! If you are on KU - both books are in the program so you can read them for FREE.




Neighbor Dearest - Penelope Ward

After getting dumped, the last thing I needed was to move next door to someone who reminded me of my ex-boyfriend, Elec.

Damien was a hotter version of my ex.

The neighbor I’d dubbed “Angry Artist” also had two massive dogs that kept me up with their barking.

He wanted nothing to do with me. Or so I thought until one night I heard laughter coming through an apparent hole in my bedroom wall.

Damien had been listening to all of my phone sessions with my therapist.
The sexy artist next door now knew all of my deepest secrets and insecurities.

We got to talking.

He set me straight with tips to get over my breakup.

He became a good friend, but Damien made it clear that he couldn’t be anything more.

Problem was, I was falling hard for him anyway. And as much as he pushed me away, I knew he felt the same…because his heartbeat didn’t lie.

I thought my heart had been broken by Elec, but it was alive and beating harder than ever for Damien.

I just hoped he wouldn’t shatter it for good.

A STANDALONE NOVEL that does *not* need to be read in conjunction with any other book. 
  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27856762-fated?from_search=true


I inhaled this booked. I love Penelope Ward and her writing. She has just the right mixture of romance and angst that it's impossible to put a book of hers down once you start.

Damien and Chelsea were magic together - even from the start when the didn't start off on the best foot.

This is a must read that will leave you smiling throughout the book. And the secondary characters - Jade and Ty and the Double D's (I'll let you find out who they are) are just as amazing. And I secretly hope there is a follow up to this book with Ty :)

Go get this book. You'll love it. I promise.
 

No Pants Required - Kim Karr

I, Makayla Alexander, am on a mission to reinvent myself. So when a super hot guy boards the plane and flashes his rock hard abs, I pay attention. When he sits next to me and offers me his nuts, I can’t resist. But when I choke on them and he tells me I need to work on my gag reflex, I realize I might be in over my head.

Before I know it we’re in the lavatory and attempting to join the Mile High Club. Let me just say this...anyone who tells you it’s easy to get it on at 37,000 feet isn’t telling you the truth. After the flight attendant busts us for getting frisky in the air, the only thing that can ease my total and complete mortification is the simple fact that I am never going to see him again.

Hours later, I can’t help but wonder if fate will ever allow me to become a new version of myself.

Because Fate, she’s a fickle bitch.

Case in point...my seatmate is my new next-door neighbor.

Even with the whole fate thing we have going on, we are so not meant to be together. He’s all cool and sexy in that make love not war kind of way. Guys like him are dangerous. With that bring-you-to-your-knees body, that handsome-as-hell face, and that dirty, dirty mouth, I guarantee one glance from him wets every girl's bikini bottoms.

And then there’s me…the quirky girl looking to find herself in California. All I want to do is learn to let loose. Say words like peace and groovy. Bury my toes in the sand. Who knows, maybe even have sex on the beach.

Unable to get him out of my head, I entertain the thought of being more than just friends. I know the idea is absurd. And yet, I go with it. You see Camden Waters gets me. Really gets me. Like no other guy has before.

On this 7-mile stretch of paradise, I decide to keep things simple and just have fun...that is until fate decides to screw with me, again.
 
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27856762-fated?from_search=true


Makayla is ready to reinvent herself and what better way than to leave NYC behind for the beaches of California. Before boarding her flight, her best friend sends her a list of things she needs to do in order to move the reinvention along... who better to start the  with than this mysterious, perfect body, male species that sits next to her in first class. Let the fun begin!

No Pants Required is an oh so sexy, fun to read, leave you swooning, good ole fashion boy meets girl and "can this really be happening to me" story. This whole series is amazeballs and you really need to read it, like now. :)  Each book can be read as a standalone plus the entire series is on KU!
Bedwrecker Available Now - Hollywood Prince Jan 2, 2017
 Blown Away - Brenda Rothert

One year after her fiancĂ© died in a heartbreaking accident, Drew McGovern decides to honor his memory by joining his old storm-chasing buddies on their latest excursion. What she’s not so sure about, however, is whether she’s ready to move on. Drew wasn’t expecting to feel the powerful pull of desire toward Colby’s best friend. But there’s no denying the intensity of their connection . . . or the heat he inspires in the parts of her that are still very much alive.

Aiden O’Neal doesn’t trust himself around Drew. He’s wanted this girl for a long time—long enough to remember the stab of jealousy he felt the first time he saw her in Colby’s arms. Now he’s trying his best to behave himself. But when the wind starts blowing and the adrenaline starts pumping, Aiden can’t resist the urge to claim Drew as his own. Because when it comes to desire, he’s hoping to make lightning strike twice.

 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27856762-fated?from_search=true 

First off, let me say that I am a HUGE fan of Brenda's writing. I have been with her since the beginning and I have to say that Blown Away is her best piece of work yet. I was totally enthralled with the story line and the emotions of Drew and Aiden. I absolutely could not put this book down. I stayed up late and read this all in one sitting.

Drew is ready to finally start her life. After having helped her younger sister and brother graduate high school and move on to college, it's now her time. In less than two months she will be marrying, Colby, the man of her dreams and finally getting away from the mother that stopped caring after her husband died 10 years ago. Colby lives a dangerous life, chasing storms across the tornado alley with his best friend, Aiden... and one night on the way home from a chase, Colby is struck down by a driver while he was changing a tire for a lady on the side of the road.

Now a year later, Drew is ready to do something with her life. The past year she's be mourning the loss of Colby and she's ready to move on. So a chance meeting with Aiden one day, set her on an adventure she never thought she would do - joining the chasing team that Colby was a part of.

Aiden has always lusted after Drew, even when she was dating Colby. It wasn't that he didn't think Colby was good enough for her, he just always had a feeling that Drew could have been his. Now that she was sitting in his truck, day in and day out. He knows that hooking up with Drew could lead to something so much more, something he isn't ready for and doesn't want to put Drew through. But after their time together, things start to change and Aiden starts to see that maybe things could work between the two of them, if only they could let go of the ghosts of the past they both seem to be pulling along with them.

I loved Aiden and Drew. Both had been through so much in their lives, both afraid of what could be next. Colby seems to be the third wheel that will be with them no matter what. The push and pull between these two is through the roof. I loved every minute of this book.
 
Dirty English - Ilsa Madden- Mills

A scarred fighter.
A girl with rules.
One night of unbridled passion.


There are three things you need to know about Elizabeth Bennett: she’s smart as a whip, always in control, and lives by a set of carefully crafted rules. She’s learned the hard way that people you love the most always hurt you in the end.

But then she meets Declan Blay, the new neighbor at her apartment complex.

A tattooed British street fighter, he’s the campus bad boy she’s supposed to avoid, but when he saves her from a frat party gone bad, all her rules about sex and love fly out the window.

She gives him one night of unbridled passion, but he longs for more.

With only a cardboard-thin wall separating their bedrooms, he dreams of possessing the vulnerable girl next door forever.

One night. Two damaged hearts. The passion of a lifetime.
 
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27856762-fated?from_search=true


A sexy retale of Pride and Prejudice

Two broken souls find each other and as much as Elizabeth wants to fight it Declan is the one made for her.

A sexy retake of Pride and Prejudice - leaving you swooning just as much as the original.  I think the trailer can speak to how much I loved this book. And this series is also in KU.


BOOK TWO in the Series

  To Have and To Hold - Lauren Layne

Discovering her fiance is an international con man just moments before they exchange vows devastates celebrity wedding planner Brooke Baldwin's business—and breaks her heart. Now a pariah in Los Angeles, she seeks a fresh start in New York City and thinks she’s found it with her first bridal client, a sweet—if slightly spoiled—hotel heiress. Then she meets the uptight businessman who’s holding the purse strings.

Seth Tyler wishes he could write a blank check and be done with his sister Maya's fancy-pants wedding. Unfortunately, micromanaging the event is his only chance at proving Maya’s fiance is a liar. Standing directly in his way is the stunning blonde wedding planner whose practiced smiles and sassy comebacks both irritate and arouse him. He needs Brooke’s help. But can he persuade a wedding planner on a comeback mission to unplan a wedding? And more importantly, how will he convince her that the wedding she should be planning... is theirs?


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27856762-fated?from_search=true
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I had big hopes for this series after reading From This Day Forward (#0.5) and To Have and to Hold - was everything I was looking for and more. Lauren Layne has a hit on her hands with this series and I just want more and more!

Brooke Baldwin is new to the Wedding Belles - Wedding Consultants extraordinaire of New York City. She's moved across the country from California after the biggest wedding of her career crashes and burns - Her own. She's ready to start over and make a new life and New York City seems like the place to do that.

On her first day she lands one of the biggest accounts - Hotel Heiress - Maya Tyler. What she didn't expect was her overly controlling big brother Seth Tyler to throw kinks and curves into all of her plans. He doesn't know anything about his sister's fiance and he's going to get the facts before his sister walks down the isle... but can he get the gorgeous wedding planner to help him uncover what's really going on?

The sexual tension between Brooke and Seth radiates from each and every page. The push and pull between them keeps the pages turning making you want more and more.
This series is definitely one of my favorite of the year!


READ THE WHOLE SERIES
 

 
Make sure to enter the giveaway for a $25 Amazon GC and come back tomorrow for numbers 19-11!


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