Tuesday, December 2, 2014

TOP 30 Books and Series of 2014 - #30

It's that time of the year again! Time to count down my top faves of 2014. It was not an easy task at all. I had such a hard time, that I had to up it to TOP 30. So for the next 30 days, I am going to list my top books and series (because I just couldn't narrow this list down - so I cheated just a bit). There were so many amazing books and new authors that I found this year. Now my list is narrowed down from books I read from January 1, 2014 to November 10, 2014.
I hope that through this list, you will be able to find some new authors and catch some books that maybe you may not have heard of before.

Unconditional Love by Kelly Elliott

Lark Williams leads a fast-paced life, always on the edge of danger. Running from his past and fighting to keep his present life a secret, he keeps his heart out of reach from love. The walls he built around himself come crumbling down when he meets Azurdee Emerson.

Azurdee lives a peaceful life in the small town of Wimberley, Texas. Her tame world quickly becomes heated as she begins to fall in love with Lark. He’s everything she has vowed to stay away from—dark and mysterious, and not to mention, sexy as hell and full of secrets.

Just as Lark and Azurdee give in to their feelings of love, Lark’s present life threatens the safety of the one person he would sacrifice his own happiness for. When Lark finds history repeating itself, he makes a decision that will forever change both of their lives, leaving one heartbroken and lost and the other fighting to survive.




What I loved about this book was that it was so different than any of Kelly's previous books. Lark and Azurdee were hot, steamy and just oh so damaged in a perfect way for each other. With the perfect blend of action and romance. It was a read that I just couldn't stop thinking about after reading. 


           Amazon: http://amzn.to/1FKSHQC
Kelly is married to a wonderful Texas cowboy who has a knack for making her laugh almost daily and supports her crazy ideas and dreams for some unknown reason...he claims it's because he loves her!
She’s also a mom to an amazing daughter who is constantly asking for something to eat while her fingers move like mad on her cell phone sending out what is sure to be another very important text message.


In her spare time she loves to sit in her small corner overlooking the Texas hill country and write.


One of her favorite things to do is go for hikes around her property with Gus....her chocolate lab and the other man in her life, and Rose, her golden retriever. When Kelly is not outside helping the hubby haul brush, move rocks or whatever fun chore he has in store for her that day, you’ll find her inside reading, writing or watching HGTV.







This series is one of the best, original series I have read to date. I sped thru these books, not able to put them down and the whole concept is ingenious! After a night-shift shooting of a drug dealer in The Coffee Cave, twelve strangers each walk out with more than $100,000 in dirty money, a pact never to meet again, and the chance to start over ….Each book is about each of the people in the coffee shop and what they do after they leave The Coffee Cave that night. Each book is written by a different author and it's a fun and exciting adventure for each and everyone of the characters. The books go from mild to steamy and you can tell what the book will be by the number of coffee cups on the front covers. Love, this series of novella. The perfect quick read!


BOOK 1 - UNFILTERED & UNLAWFUL

Until that night, Sasha "Sugar" Kovac spent her days selling coffee to the co-eds at ASU Rio Verde and her nights trying not to run back to her ex… or join the throngs of girls lusting after her friend, Adam.

But why should Sugar give in to the Harley-riding tattoo artist when his longest relationships haven't lasted more than a weekend?

Sugar's life takes a turn for the dangerous when someone comes looking for the people connected to the Cave shooting and the cash they split. To protect herself and those she cares about, Sugar has to get out of town–and fast. When Adam insists on coming with her, Sugar finds herself holed up in a tiny house with a hot man, a stash of cash, and a lot of secrets.

Can Sugar protect both her life and her heart when temptation is so close? Or is the past she's fled going to catch up with her?


BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1rQP9Ee

BOOK 2 - UNFILTERED & UNKNOWN

Dillon Varga has always craved the spotlight. Now, with his newfound riches, he jumps at the chance to leave his troubled past behind and take a shot at his future. With his best friend Savannah Miller by his side, Dillon hits the neon lights of Las Vegas for a chance at a spot on the hit TV show American Voice. As they both move up in the singing competition, feelings surface between them that make both singers wonder if there might be more to life than just fame and fortune. Together they'll have to dodge the perils of celebrity judges, sexy competitors, and the truth about the past to find the one thing they desire most -- each other.

BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1yEw5z5

BOOK 3 - UNFILTERED & UNSAVED

Hope just wants some peace and quiet and spiritual space when she walks into her favorite coffee shop. What she takes away is a dreadful secret that preys on her mind, driving her away from the comfort of her faith and into the arms of Elijah, a handsome drifter with a ready smile out to sell her investments. But Elijah has a secret too: he answers to a dangerous boss bent on getting his hands on Hope’s blood money. She may have put her faith in the wrong man … or the only one who can help her do the right thing.  


BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1yEwkdj

BOOK 4- UNFILTERED & UNHINGED

Cass Montgomery thought money was supposed to make everything easier. But when she tries to pay off her brother’s racing debts, she finds herself in deeper trouble than ever before as she’s forced to race in the sideshows Wrex controls. With her motorcycle totaled and no way to keep her brother Liam out of the hospital, Cass turns to Dev Coburn, hoping he can get her bike ready to race once more.

What she didn’t expect is how attracted she is to Dev or how much she’s putting him at risk. As the countdown to the final race looms, will Cass and Dev be able to make it to the finish line or will she end up in debt to Wrex for more than money?
BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1y7C1wN 
BOOK 5 - UNFILTERED & UNDONE
Immunobiology student Jess Devereaux is a girl with a plan -- shake loose from her stalker ex, gain her independence from her over-controlling family and, most important for her immediate happiness, seduce her sexy shooting instructor into the wild, raunchy, no-strings-attached fling she's been dreaming of.

Gun-club owner Declan Cavanagh is a guy with a plan -- do whatever it takes to gain custody of his young half-brother from his violent, drunken stepfather, even if it means making cash fast in the bloody cage matches he thought he'd left behind. And he's been doing some dreaming of his own about sweet, smart, sultry Jess.

Then came the gun. The blood. The body on the coffee shop floor, a whole lot of drugs and money, and a pact between strangers to cover up a crime that sees Jess go from college student to killer with the squeeze of a trigger. But someone else knows Jess's secret and is determined to make her pay.

Declan's always been a fighter. Jess is in trouble, and he won't take no for an answer about helping her. Or having her.
BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1A9COQN 
BOOK 6 - UNFILTERED & UNRAVELED
As usual, Violet Laswell's lifelong friend, Allie, had gotten her into a mess. It started out with Allie following tradition by getting Violet drunk for her twenty-first birthday . . . and ended with illegally disposing of a dead body and racking up her very first DWI.

Violet’s first unwitting walk on the wild side lands her in court, and – at her parents’ insistence – rehab. She has thirty days to resolve her non-existent issues with alcohol or she’ll be pruned from the family tree. Ever-helpful, Allie researches the very best and most expensive recovery center in the state, New Beginnings, where twelve-step meetings are mixed with spa treatments and equine therapy.

But Violet's refusal to lie about past step one, admitting that she’s an alcoholic, labels her a “problem case” among the staff, particularly recovery counselor Cameron Wentworth. Violet is a puzzle to Cameron--someone who truly doesn’t have a substance abuse problem, stuck in rehab. He’s perversely drawn to her snarky irreverence for the work he's so passionate about. And Cameron’s grumpy professor persona makes crawling into his lap and asking for “tutoring” seem like a perfectly reasonable option to Violet. But, even though Violet is technically assigned to another therapist, relationships between all staff and patients are strictly forbidden.

Can Violet face her actual addiction – chronic people-pleasing? Can her friendship with Allie ever be repaired? Or does Violet simply need the kind of deep therapy Cameron and his all-too inviting lap seem quite happy to provide?
 
BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1yEwQrT 
BOOK 7 - UNFILTERED & UNDRESSED
Lauren Taylor has always had secrets, but never like the one from that fateful night at the Cave. But at least now she has the cash to stop living the life her parents have always shoved down her throat and pursue her dreams of being a lifeguard in sunny SoCal. But after fleeing her landlocked Arizona university, Lauren soon realizes that reality doesn’t always live up to fantasy.

Problem is, Lauren never learned how to swim—kind of deal breaker if you plan on saving lives Baywatch style. To make matters worse her new swim instructor, Will, is not only smoking hot, but has secrets of his own.

Maybe her parents had been right all along. Maybe it is better to settle for a life without risks than to bare your soul only to get your hopes crushed.
 
BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1B7uVP4 

BOOK 8 - UNFILTERED & UNTOUCHED


For Allison Daniels, starting over means keeping the promise she made to her best friend that she would join a therapy group and quit drinking, cold turkey. Allie signs up for the first group session she hears about—led by a gorgeous ex-marine named Noah—and decides he’d make the perfect AA sponsor-with-benefits, to help her give up her addiction in favor of a safer, more intimate pleasure.

The only problem? Noah isn’t running an AA group—he’s the president of a celibacy club.

Two years ago, to secure visitation with a daughter conceived during a meaningless hookup, ex-marine Noah Porter joined Worth The Wait and took an oath of abstinence. Noah’s restraint is a thing of legend among college co-eds, many of whom have tried and failed to make him break his oath.

But when Allie accidentally joins his club, desperate to quit drinking and put her life back together, he quickly realizes she may be more than even he can resist. 

As Noah shows Allie which temptations to resist and which to indulge, they begin to fall for each other, but the more intimate their relationship grows, the more aware Noah becomes that soon he’ll be forced to choose between loving Allie and raising his daughter…
 

BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1zbbaSp

BOOK 9 - UNFILTERED & UNVEILED

ASU Rio Verde’s star quarterback Blake Malone has a bright future. Destined to fulfill his father’s dream of playing in the NFL, Blake has the perfect girlfriend, Stacy, and what seems to be a perfect life. But beneath the surface, all is not as it seems…

When Blake uses his share of the money to help bail out his friend Misha’s cash-strapped dance studio, Misha is too desperate to turn it down, but he has one condition: Blake must accept free dance lessons in return. And that’s when the trouble begins. Because Stacy isn’t the only one who thinks their new dance teacher is hot as sin.

Stacy is painfully aware that Blake has been hiding something from her, and she’s determined to prove to him that his secret is not shameful. With Misha’s help, Stacy plans to break down all of Blake’s barriers. But will a man whose future career may rest on his ability to conform to his team’s expectations be willing to take a walk on the wild side and embrace everything that he is?
  
BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1v88n8r

BOOK 10 - UNFILTERED & UNDECIDED

In the wake of getting caught with his pants down—literally—ladies' man Joe Cunningham has promised to stay out of trouble while working on his father's senatorial re-election campaign. ​The promise becomes difficult to keep when he discovers that the irresistible woman he spent a mind-blowing night with is actually the daughter of his father's challenger—​Lily Wescott is the definition of trouble. 
After finding her boyfriend in bed with another woman, Lily figures that a hot night in the arms of a sexy stranger will do the trick. But when ​Lily ​somehow ​becomes the ​overnight ​poster child of ​the abstinence movement, she's desperate to put the one-night stand—and Joe Cunningham—out of her mind to maintain her image and help her mother win the primary.

All Lily and Joe have to do is make it through the election without falling into bed together, which proves more difficult than either could have imagined. With both campaigns willing to play dirty, there's more at risk than just losing votes—there's the possibility that both Joe and Lily will lose their hearts.


BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1yExq8W

BOOK 11 - UNFILTERED & UNLOVED

And boy does Whitney need it. After running from her small town—full of small-minded people, and one particular guy with pitifully small dreams—Whitney is an activist with a very big world to save. Eventually her quest brings her to a political rally for Arizona Senator Cunningham, who’s nothing but one huge package of wrong. But after the rally a heated debate leads to even hotter bathroom sex . . . with the Senator’s son. With dirty money in her hands and her sense of right and wrong knocked all askew, Whitney retreats to the place where she knew for sure who she wanted to be.

But the first person she runs into in tiny Creek Wash, AZ is the boy who wasn’t big enough for her. Five years later Nate’s fireman and, as far as she can tell, the town hero. And deservedly so if even half the stories she’s hearing are true. And if those washboard abs and muscular arms are any indication, there’s nothing small about Nate anymore.
 
 

BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1A9DzJF 
BOOK 12 - UNFILTERED & UNCENSORED

The conclusion to the Unfiltered series! Max was at the Cave the night of the shooting hoping to catch the Senator's son in a compromising position. What he finds is the story that could make his name and bring the girl of his dreams back into his arms. 

BUY HERE: http://amzn.to/1y7DOBU





ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Payge Galvin has always wanted to be a writer. She also loves spending time with her friends, so after a few cosmos at the pool with her besties, the idea for her new series UNFILTERED was born. Together the group wrote twelve books about twelve strangers who share a dark secret. . . and who all want to find love—because, really, who doesn't?

Keep up to date on UNFILTERED news by following Payge’s tweets at @PaygeGalvin on Twitter, or keep up with all things UNFILTERED at www.unfilteredbooks.com.

COME BACK TOMORROW FOR #29 
IN MY FAVORITE BOOKS/SERIES OF 2014!


 

 

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