Monday 18 December 2017

[Blog Tour Review] TEAM PLAYER: A CHRISTMAS ANTHOLOGY


Hello fellow sports romance fans! Have I got an anthology for you! ;)

Check out this new sports romance anthology called TEAM PLAYER from some amazing romance authors!



 Publication Date: December 14th, 2017
Genre: Contemporary/Sports Romance
Source: Received a copy of this anthology in exchange for an honest review.
All opinions are my own.
Click on the image to see an expanded view of the full jacket!
Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2iVSpFW

DESCRIPTION

Hot jocks. We love them all. 

Sexy baseball players. Intense footballers. Sweaty MMA fighters, and sizzling hockey hotties. Score! 

The good news? Eleven bestselling authors have gathered to give you a set of stories focused on the men we love most—sports heroes. We bet you’ll love this thick…book. 

The bad news? The men in these novellas don’t actually exist. 

*This anthology does not contain calories, just eleven original, never-before-seen stories by the following authors: Adriana Locke, Mandi Beck, Charleigh Rose, Kennedy Ryan, LJ Shen, Meghan Quinn, Rochelle Paige, Ella Fox, Kate Stewart, Emma Scott, and Sara Ney. We aren’t responsible for melted devices.
Find the following stories inside: 

Adriana Locke ("Cross" - Fighting)
Charleigh Rose ("Yard Sale" - Snowboarding)
Ella Fox ("Out of Formation" - Football)
Emma Scott ("One Good Man" - Soccer )
Kate Stewart ("Sweeping the Series" - Baseball)
Kennedy Ryan ("Full Court Press" - Basketball)
L.J. Shen ("The End Zone" - Football)
Mandi Beck ("Sin Bin" - Hockey)
Meghan Quinn ("Back in the Game" - Hockey)
Rochelle Paige ("Slapped Into Love" - Hockey)
Sara Ney ("Switch Hitter" - Baseball)

Get your copy and read the TEAM PLAYER anthology today!

(FREE in Kindle Unlimited) 

MEET THE AUTHORS

LJ Shen


L.J. Shen is an International #1 best-selling author of Contemporary Romance and New Adult novels. She lives in Northern California with her husband, young son and chubby cat.

Before she’d settled down, L.J. (who thinks referring to herself in the third person is really silly, by the way) traveled the world, and collected friends from all across the globe. Friends who’d be happy to report that she is a rubbish companion, always forgets peoples’ birthdays and never sends Christmas cards.

She enjoys the simple things in life, like spending time with her family and friends, reading, HBO, Netflix and internet-stalking Stephen James. She reads between three to five books a week and firmly believes Crocs shoes and mullets should be outlawed.

Connect with LJ Shen:
Facebook
| Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram | Newsletter | Website

Kennedy Ryan


Kennedy Ryan is a Southern girl gone Southern California. A Top 100 Amazon Bestseller, Kennedy writes romance about remarkable women who find a way to thrive even in tough times, the love they find, and the men who cherish them.

She is a wife to her lifetime lover and mother to an extraordinary son. She has always leveraged her journalism background to write for charity and non-profit organizations, but enjoys writing to raise Autism awareness most. A contributor for Modern Mom Magazine, Kennedy’s writings have appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul, USA Today and many others. The founder and executive director of a foundation serving Georgia families living with Autism, Kennedy has appeared on Headline News, Montel Williams, NPR, and other outlets as a voice for families living with autism.

Connect with Kennedy:
Facebook
| Twitter | Instagram | Google + | YouTube
 Amazon | Bookbub | Reader Group | Website

A d r i a n a   L o c k e

A contemporary romance author running on coffee and sticky kisses from my rowdy four little boys.

From Indiana, I’m a true Mid-Westerner. Life, for me, is about family, faith, and food. When I’m not running my kiddos around or having a lunch date of fajitas with my husband (and high school sweetheart), you can find me outside. I love a good sunny day almost as much as I love candy, random quotes, and steamy bad boys in fantastic books.

I’m on nearly every social media platform. Please find me on the ones you frequent – I love chatting with readers.



Connect with Adriana:
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Bookbub 
Goodreads | Amazon Alerts | Pinterest | Website

Mandi Beck




Mandi Beck has been an avid reader all of her life. A deep love for books always had her jotting down little stories on napkins, notebooks, and her hand. As an adult she was further submerged into the book world through book clubs and the epicness of social media. It was then that she graduated to writing her stories on her phone and then finally on a proper computer.

A nursing student, mother to two rambunctious and somewhat rotten boys, and stepmom to two great girls away at college, she shares her time with her husband in Chicago where she was born and raised. Mandi is a diehard hockey fan and blames the Blackhawks when her deadlines are not met.

Connect with Mandi:
Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Newsletter | Website

Emma Scott



I write romances with flawed characters, characters with artistic hearts: builders, poets, and writers of various makes and models. I love to write book lovers; those who have found refuge, companionship, and escape in books, much as we do in real life. I like realism, honesty, authenticity in storytelling. I love to write about enduring love, soul-deep love, in as real a setting as I can make, but with big smooshy HEAs. I believe in diversity, open-mindedness, and inclusion. I like sweetness mixed with steam, love conquering all, and above all, hope. Love always wins.



Connect with Emma:
Facebook | Goodreads | Blog

Charleigh Rose


We are a duo of an international best-selling author and a blogger who teamed up to write the taboo, thought-provoking stories we want our audience to have--without filters.

Both Charleigh and Rose are committed to giving you witty, sexy, intelligent novels that will leave you wanting more.

Connect with Charleigh:
Facebook | Goodreads

Ella Fox


When she’s not writing, Ella indulges the gypsy in her blood and travels the country. Ella loves reading, movies, music, buying make-up, reading Tmz, Twitter and pedicures… not necessarily in that order. She has a wild sense of humor and loves to laugh. Her favorite thing in the world is hanging out with her family and watching comedy movies.

Connect with Ella: 

Sara Ney


Sara Ney is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the How to Date a Douchebag series, and is best known for her sexy, laugh-out-loud New Adult romances. Among her favorite vices, she includes: iced latte’s, historical architecture and well-placed sarcasm. She lives colorfully, collects vintage books, art, loves flea markets, and fancies herself British.

Connect with Sara:
Facebook | Amazon | Instagram
Goodreads | Pinterest | Twitter | Website

Meghan Quinn




A BLONDE AT HEART

Born in New York and raised in Southern California, Meghan has grown into a sassy, peanut butter eating, blonde haired swearing, animal hoarding lady. She is known to bust out and dance if “It’s Raining Men” starts beating through the air and heaven forbid you get a margarita in her, protect your legs because they may be humped.

Once she started commuting for an hour and twenty minutes every day to work for three years, she began to have conversations play in her head, real life, deep male voices and dainty lady coos kind of conversations. Perturbed and confused, she decided to either see a therapist about the hot and steamy voices running through her head or start writing them down. She decided to go with the cheaper option and started writing… enter her first novel, Caught Looking. 

Now you can find the spicy, most definitely on the border of lunacy, kind of crazy lady residing in Colorado with the love of her life and her five, furry four legged children, hiking a trail or hiding behind shelves at grocery stores, wondering what kind of lube the nervous stranger will bring home to his wife. Oh and she loves a good boob squeeze!



Connect with Meghan: 

Kate Stewart




Kate Stewart lives in Charleston, S.C. with her husband, Nick, and her naughty beagle, Sadie. A native of Dallas, Kate moved to Charleston three weeks after her first visit, dropping her career of 8 years, and declaring it her creative muse. Kate pens messy, sexy, angst-filled contemporary romance as well as romantic comedy and erotic suspense because it's what she loves as a reader. A lover of all things '80s and '90s, especially John Hughes films and rap, she dabbles a little in photography, can knit a simple stitch scarf for necessity only and does a horrible job of playing the ukulele. Aside from running a mile without collapsing, traveling is the only other must on her bucket list. On occasion, she does very well at vodka.

Connect with Kate: 

Rochelle Page


Rochelle Paige is the Amazon bestselling author of nineteen books. She absolutely adores reading and her friends growing up used to tease her when she trailed after them, trying to read and walk at the same time. She loves stories with alpha males, sassy heroines, hot sex and happily ever afters. She is a bit of a genre hopper in both her reading and her writing. So far she's written books in several romance sub-genres including new adult, contemporary, paranormal and romantic suspense.

She is the mother of two wonderful sons who inspired her to chase her dream of being an author. She wants them to learn from her that you can live your dream as long as you are willing to work for it

Connect with Rochelle: 

MY REVIEW

I tend to try to read anthologies slowly so that I can enjoy all of the stories, and TEAM PLAYER was no exception! In fact, I wanted to enjoy this one even more slowly because it happens to be a collection that's near-and-dear to my heart because of the genre and the fact that it contains a story from one of my absolute favourite authors, L. J. Shen! By now you all probably know I absolutely LOVE sports romances, so it should come as no surprise that I was super excited for this anthology, and I've really enjoyed reading it!

I'm not going to go into each story in specific detail because I personally loved being surprised by them all, but if you like sports romances, or if you've got a soft spot for contemporary romances in general, there's definitely something for you here! There are some good ol' trope favourites, like friends-to-lovers, and second-chance romances, and the stories are all related to various sports, like baseball, basketball, and football! In a lot of cases, I'll admit that I wouldn't have minded a bit more on the sports side because that's an aspect of sports romances that I always love, but even without these stories being sport-heavy I definitely enjoyed every second of the romance in all of the stories! :D

Along with the sports-related goodness, and the classic, favourite romance tropes, this anthology is packed with a bunch of well known romance authors, and if you're a fan of any of them, you'll definitely enjoy this anthology! While the lure of some epic sports romance novellas drew me in, it was L. J. Shen who had me desperate to pick it up. I'm a huge fan of her books, and I loved getting to read one of her novellas here! Most of the other authors are new to me, but I'm really glad that I gave them all a chance because this collection was sexy, riveting, and extremely hard to put down! I did prefer taking breaks between the stories because they're all quite intense to read in one sitting, but I loved every moment of this collection!

If you love romance, have a serious soft spot for sexy athletes, or just want some short, sexy romances with a bit of variety then the TEAM PLAYER anthology is perfect for you!



Who's excited for TEAM PLAYER?
Do you like to read anthologies with your favourite genres or subgenres?
Are you a mega-fan of any of the authors with stories in this anthology?

Tuesday 12 December 2017

Review: MAN HANDS (Man Hands #1) by Sarina Bowen & Tanya Eby

Source: Received an egalley from the authors in exchange for an honest review.
Release Date: December 11, 2017
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Romantic Comedy


DESCRIPTION  

He puts the "screw" in screwball comedy...

BRYNN

At thirty-four, I’m reeling from a divorce. I don’t want to party or try to move on. I just want to stay home and post a new recipe on my blog: Brynn’s Dips and Balls.

But my friends aren’t having it. Get out there again, they say. It will be fun, they say. I’m still taking a hard pass.

Free designer cocktails, they say. And that’s a game-changer.

Too bad my ex shows up with his new arm candy. That’s when I lose my mind. But when my besties dare me to leap on the first single man I see, they don't expect me to actually go through with it.

TOM

All I need right now is some peace and quiet while my home renovation TV show is on hiatus. But when a curvy woman in a red wrap dress charges me like she’s a gymnast about to mount my high bar, all I can do is brace myself and catch her. What follows is the hottest experience of my adult life.

I want a repeat, but my flying Cinderella disappears immediately afterward. She doesn’t leave a glass slipper, either—just a pair of panties with chocolate bunnies printed on them.

But I will find her.

G e t   Y o u r   C o p y   T o d a y!


About the Authors

SARINA BOWEN is a USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance. She lives in Vermont's Green Mountains with her family, six chickens and too much ski gear and hockey equipment.

In 2016, Sarina became a Rita Award winner! The Romance Writers of America honored HIM by Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy with Best Contemporary Romance, Mid-Length.

TANYA EBY is a member of SAG/AFTRA. She is a narrator and has over 500 titles to her credit. She also narrates under the name of Tatiana Sokolov for books that are particularly saucy (AKA erotica books). When not narrating, she’s working on her own writing. Check out her books: Easy Does It, Blunder Woman, Pepper Wellington and the Case of the Missing Sausage, Foodies Rush In,  Tunnel Vision, and Synchronicity. She also has a food blog at dips.tanyaeby.com.

Connect to Tanya: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads | Newsletter

REVIEW

  If there's one form of romantic movie I can never get enough of...it's a romantic comedy, so I'm never shocked to discover just how much I absolutely adore rom coms in book form, too! As soon as I heard about MAN HANDS, I was intrigued! The characters sounded interesting, and the description sounded hilarious! 

Sure enough, as soon as I started MAN HANDS, I knew I was in for a real treat! Brynn was super quirky and I absolutely adored all of her food blogging antics, her love of ball shaped foods, and her "interesting" choice in underwear, but most of all, I loved her personality! I loved seeing her determination and it was amazing to watch her push for what she wanted, and I love, love, loved every single moment she spent with Tom! Their romance was extremely well done...and apart from Tom himself, it was definitely my favourite part of the whole story!

If you can't tell...I LOVED TOM! I'm going to spend at least one paragraph of this review just telling you how much I absolutely adored him. I loved his personality, and his little quirks! He and Brynn were a super quirky pair and I loved that, too! Just like Brynn did, I swooned when he used his power tools, and his strong man hands...hehe seriously. This book really played up the whole power tool, manly-man-using-his-hands angle and I was 100% there for it. I went through a phase where I watched Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and TLC's Trading Spaces mostly for Ty Pennington...so I seriously GOT it. Tom was like an even buffer, super dreamy version of Ty for me, so I was swooning most of this book...add in his chemistry with Brynn and how sweet, thoughtful, and romantic he was, and ladies, I was swooning over this guy from he first time he appeared on the page! 

 I thought the story itself was fantastic! While it wasn't a super heavy story, the romance, characters, and their love were extremely heartwarming and I was constantly laughing, smiling, and fighting to keep a huge grin off my face! Like all great rom coms, MAN HANDS was full of crazy hi-jinks, and Brynn and Tom had some fantastic friends, too...two who will be getting their own story in the new book in this series, MAN CARD. ;) I seriously can't wait for it! I'm super excited for their story, but I also can't wait to get to see bits and pieces of Brynn and Tom through them, too! ;D

Overall, I thought that MAN HANDS was a sweet, sexy, and hilarious read! It’s probably one of the quirkiest romantic comedies that I’ve ever read and I absolutely adored it!!! Brynn and Tom were fantastic and their chemistry was off the charts! I loved that they both had their own eccentricities and I really loved how their relationship built in the story! I'd recommend this one to anyone who loves a great rom com, especially if you also love your main characters with some hilarious quirks! ;)



What do you think?
Does MAN HANDS sound like something you'd like to read?

Thursday 7 December 2017

Cover Reveal: Man Card (Man Hands #2) by Sarina Bowen & Tanya Eby

Hello fellow romantics! 

Do you like to laugh? Do you loveeeee romance? Did you answer "YES" to both of those questions? Well, then like myself, you must love romantic comedies and if that's the case then I've got a couple of books to tell you all about! 

Next week, Sarina Bowen and Tanya Eby are releasing the first book in their Man Hands series, Man Hands....and ladies, I finished it a bit ago and it is hilarious and super sexy! I'll be posting my review super soon, and you can bet I'll be gushing all about it! ;) The sequel, Man Card, is coming next month and I'm so excited for it!!! I hope I can get you excited about it to because today I have the cover to share!!!

Scroll a bit and take a peek!!!




MAN CARD (Man Hands #2) by Sarina Bowen & Tanya Eby
Pub Date: January 15, 2018
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Romantic Comedy

DESCRIPTION

Nothing ventured, nothing banged...
Ash
I still don't know how it happened. One minute I was arguing with my arrogant competitor--our usual trash-talk over who deserves the larger commission. But somehow I went from throwing down to kneeling down...
It can never happen again. I don't even like Braht. He's too slick. He's a manipulating mansplaining party boy in preppy clothes.
So why can't I get him out of my head?
Braht
There are two things I know without question. One: Ash and I are destined for each other. Two: never trust a man with a unibrow.
Ash is my missing my piece. She's the sweet cream to my gourmet espresso. And nothing gets me going faster than her contempt for me. They don't call her the Ashkicker for nothing.
Eventually I'll win her over...if my past doesn't ruin everything first.

P r e - O r d e r   Y o u r   C o p y   T o d a y!




About the Authors

SARINA BOWEN is a USA Today bestselling author of contemporary romance. She lives in Vermont's Green Mountains with her family, six chickens and too much ski gear and hockey equipment.

In 2016, Sarina became a Rita Award winner! The Romance Writers of America honored HIM by Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy with Best Contemporary Romance, Mid-Length.

TANYA EBY is a member of SAG/AFTRA. She is a narrator and has over 500 titles to her credit. She also narrates under the name of Tatiana Sokolov for books that are particularly saucy (AKA erotica books). When not narrating, she’s working on her own writing. Check out her books: Easy Does It, Blunder Woman, Pepper Wellington and the Case of the Missing Sausage, Foodies Rush In,  Tunnel Vision, and Synchronicity. She also has a food blog at dips.tanyaeby.com.

Connect to Tanya: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads | Newsletter


What do you think?
Are you planning to read MAN HANDS when it comes out next week, and are you a fan of the cover for MAN CARD?

Wednesday 6 December 2017

[Cover Reveal] TEAM PLAYER: A CHRISTMAS ANTHOLOGY


Are you a fan of sports romances?

How about anthologies?

Well, I've got something exciting to share with you all!

It's the cover reveal for an upcoming sports romance anthology called TEAM PLAYER from some amazing romance authors! Keep scrolling to see the cover and hear about the authors!



Eleven authors. Eleven Novellas. This is one thick . . . book. 


Christmas just became a whole lot merrier…


TEAM PLAYER, A Christmas Anthology featuring titles by LJ Shen, Kennedy Ryan, Adriana Locke, Mandi Beck, Emma Scott, Charleigh Rose, Ella Fox, Sara Ney, Meghan Quinn, Kate Stewart and Rochelle Paige releases December 14th!

Publication Date: December 14th, 2017
Genre: Contemporary/Sports Romance
Click on the image to see an expanded view of the full jacket!
Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2iVSpFW

MEET THE AUTHORS

LJ Shen


L.J. Shen is an International #1 best-selling author of Contemporary Romance and New Adult novels. She lives in Northern California with her husband, young son and chubby cat.

Before she’d settled down, L.J. (who thinks referring to herself in the third person is really silly, by the way) traveled the world, and collected friends from all across the globe. Friends who’d be happy to report that she is a rubbish companion, always forgets peoples’ birthdays and never sends Christmas cards.

She enjoys the simple things in life, like spending time with her family and friends, reading, HBO, Netflix and internet-stalking Stephen James. She reads between three to five books a week and firmly believes Crocs shoes and mullets should be outlawed.

Connect with LJ Shen:
Facebook
| Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram | Newsletter | Website

Kennedy Ryan


Kennedy Ryan is a Southern girl gone Southern California. A Top 100 Amazon Bestseller, Kennedy writes romance about remarkable women who find a way to thrive even in tough times, the love they find, and the men who cherish them.

She is a wife to her lifetime lover and mother to an extraordinary son. She has always leveraged her journalism background to write for charity and non-profit organizations, but enjoys writing to raise Autism awareness most. A contributor for Modern Mom Magazine, Kennedy’s writings have appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul, USA Today and many others. The founder and executive director of a foundation serving Georgia families living with Autism, Kennedy has appeared on Headline News, Montel Williams, NPR, and other outlets as a voice for families living with autism.

Connect with Kennedy:
Facebook
| Twitter | Instagram | Google + | YouTube
 Amazon | Bookbub | Reader Group | Website

A d r i a n a   L o c k e

A contemporary romance author running on coffee and sticky kisses from my rowdy four little boys.

From Indiana, I’m a true Mid-Westerner. Life, for me, is about family, faith, and food. When I’m not running my kiddos around or having a lunch date of fajitas with my husband (and high school sweetheart), you can find me outside. I love a good sunny day almost as much as I love candy, random quotes, and steamy bad boys in fantastic books.

I’m on nearly every social media platform. Please find me on the ones you frequent – I love chatting with readers.



Connect with Adriana:
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Bookbub 
Goodreads | Amazon Alerts | Pinterest | Website

Mandi Beck




Mandi Beck has been an avid reader all of her life. A deep love for books always had her jotting down little stories on napkins, notebooks, and her hand. As an adult she was further submerged into the book world through book clubs and the epicness of social media. It was then that she graduated to writing her stories on her phone and then finally on a proper computer.

A nursing student, mother to two rambunctious and somewhat rotten boys, and stepmom to two great girls away at college, she shares her time with her husband in Chicago where she was born and raised. Mandi is a diehard hockey fan and blames the Blackhawks when her deadlines are not met.

Connect with Mandi:
Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Newsletter | Website

Emma Scott



I write romances with flawed characters, characters with artistic hearts: builders, poets, and writers of various makes and models. I love to write book lovers; those who have found refuge, companionship, and escape in books, much as we do in real life. I like realism, honesty, authenticity in storytelling. I love to write about enduring love, soul-deep love, in as real a setting as I can make, but with big smooshy HEAs. I believe in diversity, open-mindedness, and inclusion. I like sweetness mixed with steam, love conquering all, and above all, hope. Love always wins.



Connect with Emma:
Facebook | Goodreads | Blog

Charleigh Rose


We are a duo of an international best-selling author and a blogger who teamed up to write the taboo, thought-provoking stories we want our audience to have--without filters.

Both Charleigh and Rose are committed to giving you witty, sexy, intelligent novels that will leave you wanting more.

Connect with Charleigh:
Facebook | Goodreads

Ella Fox


When she’s not writing, Ella indulges the gypsy in her blood and travels the country. Ella loves reading, movies, music, buying make-up, reading Tmz, Twitter and pedicures… not necessarily in that order. She has a wild sense of humor and loves to laugh. Her favorite thing in the world is hanging out with her family and watching comedy movies.

Connect with Ella: 

Sara Ney


Sara Ney is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the How to Date a Douchebag series, and is best known for her sexy, laugh-out-loud New Adult romances. Among her favorite vices, she includes: iced latte’s, historical architecture and well-placed sarcasm. She lives colorfully, collects vintage books, art, loves flea markets, and fancies herself British.

Connect with Sara:
Facebook | Amazon | Instagram
Goodreads | Pinterest | Twitter | Website

Meghan Quinn




A BLONDE AT HEART

Born in New York and raised in Southern California, Meghan has grown into a sassy, peanut butter eating, blonde haired swearing, animal hoarding lady. She is known to bust out and dance if “It’s Raining Men” starts beating through the air and heaven forbid you get a margarita in her, protect your legs because they may be humped.

Once she started commuting for an hour and twenty minutes every day to work for three years, she began to have conversations play in her head, real life, deep male voices and dainty lady coos kind of conversations. Perturbed and confused, she decided to either see a therapist about the hot and steamy voices running through her head or start writing them down. She decided to go with the cheaper option and started writing… enter her first novel, Caught Looking. 

Now you can find the spicy, most definitely on the border of lunacy, kind of crazy lady residing in Colorado with the love of her life and her five, furry four legged children, hiking a trail or hiding behind shelves at grocery stores, wondering what kind of lube the nervous stranger will bring home to his wife. Oh and she loves a good boob squeeze!



Connect with Meghan: 

Kate Stewart




Kate Stewart lives in Charleston, S.C. with her husband, Nick, and her naughty beagle, Sadie. A native of Dallas, Kate moved to Charleston three weeks after her first visit, dropping her career of 8 years, and declaring it her creative muse. Kate pens messy, sexy, angst-filled contemporary romance as well as romantic comedy and erotic suspense because it's what she loves as a reader. A lover of all things '80s and '90s, especially John Hughes films and rap, she dabbles a little in photography, can knit a simple stitch scarf for necessity only and does a horrible job of playing the ukulele. Aside from running a mile without collapsing, traveling is the only other must on her bucket list. On occasion, she does very well at vodka.

Connect with Kate: 

Rochelle Page


Rochelle Paige is the Amazon bestselling author of nineteen books. She absolutely adores reading and her friends growing up used to tease her when she trailed after them, trying to read and walk at the same time. She loves stories with alpha males, sassy heroines, hot sex and happily ever afters. She is a bit of a genre hopper in both her reading and her writing. So far she's written books in several romance sub-genres including new adult, contemporary, paranormal and romantic suspense.

She is the mother of two wonderful sons who inspired her to chase her dream of being an author. She wants them to learn from her that you can live your dream as long as you are willing to work for it

Connect with Rochelle: 


As you all probably know by now...I absolutely LOVE sports romances, so I'm ridiculously excited for this anthology!

Who else is excited for TEAM PLAYER?
And what do you think of the cover?

Monday 27 November 2017

Review: LIGHTER THAN MY SHADOW by Katie Green

Source: *I received a copy of this book from Indigo Books & Music Inc.
in exchange for an honest review*
Publisher: Roar
Release Date: October 3rd, 2017 (Already released!)
Number of Pages: 508 (Paperback)

DESCRIPTION

Like most kids, Katie was a picky eater. She'd sit at the table in silent protest, hide uneaten toast in her bedroom, listen to parental threats that she'd have to eat it for breakfast.

But in any life a set of circumstance can collide, and normal behavior might soon shade into something sinister, something deadly.

Lighter Than My Shadow is a hand-drawn story of struggle and recovery, a trip into the black heart of a taboo illness, an exposure of those who are so weak as to prey on the vulnerable, and an inspiration to anybody who believes in the human power to endure towards happiness.

G E T   Y O U R   C O P Y   N O W !
Amazon US | Amazon Canada | Indigo | B&N | iBooks


REVIEW

After my friend Melissa told us how much she enjoyed this graphic novel during our book club, I couldn't resist getting a copy when I was offered one!

I decided to pick LIGHTER THAN MY SHADOW up after getting home from work, started reading and didn't stop until I'd finished it. The topic is definitely heavy as the book deals mostly with Katie's struggles with anorexia and mental health. It made me gasp and tear up more than once, but no matter how hard it was to face, it is such a hard book to put down. I was desperate to see what would happen next, and I wanted to try to understand what Katie was going through as much as I could!

Katie Green's artwork is wonderful. It balanced the story perfectly, and I could feel the emotion through every single drawing and every page. I'm blown away by this entire book! The fact that it's so personal makes me even more impressed. I don't even know Katie, other than having read her book, and I'm undeniably proud of her. LIGHTER THAN MY SHADOW is an absolute work of art. The story is raw, and incredibly powerful! It'll pull you right in, and the artwork complements it perfectly!

If you're a fan of heavier graphic novels that tackle personal subjects, I think you'll find LIGHTER THAN MY SHADOW just as remarkable as I did! And I also think that you'll be impressed by this book even if you're not big on graphic novels, but you like any sort of memoir dealing with mental health. All in all, I thought LIGHTER THAN MY SHADOW was absolutely amazing! If you've ever dealt with mental health or have simply wanted to understand it better, you need to read this book!


What do you think?
Does LIGHTER THAN MY SHADOW sound like a graphic novel you'd like to pick up?

Thursday 23 November 2017

Siege of Shadows Blog Tour: Review + Guest Post by Sarah Raughley




SIEGE OF SHADOWS (Effigies #2) by Sarah Raughley
Source: Received an ARC from Simon & Schuster Canada to participate in the blog tour and give my honest review. 
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release Date: November 21th, 2017
Number of Pages: 448 (Hardcover)

DESCRIPTION

There’s nowhere to hide.

Not when you’re an Effigy. No matter where they go, Maia and the other Effigies can’t escape the eyes of the press—especially not after failing to capture Saul, whose power to control the monstrous Phantoms has left the world in a state of panic. It’s been two months since Saul’s disappearance, and there’s still no sign of him, leaving the public to wonder whether the Sect—and the Effigies—are capable of protecting anyone.

When Saul suddenly surfaces in the middle of the Sahara desert, the Sect sends Maia and her friends out after him. But instead of Saul, they discover a dying soldier engineered with Effigy-like abilities. Even worse, there may be more soldiers like him out there, and it looks like the Effigies are their prime targets.

Yet the looming danger of Saul and this mysterious new army doesn’t overshadow Maia’s fear of the Sect, who ordered the death of the previous Fire Effigy, Natalya. With enemies on all sides and the world turning against them, the Effigies have to put their trust in each other—easier said than done when secrets threaten to tear them apart.
G E T   Y O U R   C O P Y   N O W !
Amazon US | Amazon Canada | Indigo | B&N | iBooks | Kobo


REVIEW

I'm not even sure where to start on this review...SIEGE OF SHADOWS left me reeling! If you're unfamiliar with this book, SIEGE OF SHADOWS is the sequel to FATE OF FLAMES, the first book in Sarah Raughley's Effigies series. Set in an alternate version of our world where spirit-like monsters called phantoms exist and plague the world, the series follows one main character named Maia. Maia is an Effigy, one of four girls with elemental powers able to fight the phantoms. These books have serious Sailor Moon, Pacific Rim, and Buffy vibes, and it's pretty much perfect for readers who love sci-fi or fantasy, action, and fandom of any kind!

I've been eagerly waiting for SIEGE OF SHADOWS ever since I finished FATE OF FLAMES last year because I've been desperate to know what happens next for Maia and the other Effigies! The first book sucked me in with the epic world-building, and that continued with this one. SIEGE OF SHADOWS has a bit of a time jump, but as the description reveals, it does jump right back into the Sect and Effigies search efforts for Saul. While I wouldn't say that the book is non-stop action, this does effectively pull you in right away and everything looming around the characters keeps you riveted to the page!

Just like the first book, some of my favourite parts of SIEGE OF SHADOWS had to do with the girls' abilities, and I also loved seeing how the dynamics of the characters have shifted since the first book. Maia and the other Effigies: Belle, Chae Rin, and Lake, are all finding their rhythm, they're starting to work better as a team, and it was great to see how their relationships have evolved. I especially loved seeing Maia and Lake together! They had a really sweet friendship going on that I absolutely adored! I also loved seeing them all use their powers! I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll keep it vague, but seeing Maia using more of her powers in this book was definitely something that I loved! It was something I wanted to see more of in the first book, so it was definitely great to see in this one.

 While I was pulled in quickly, I did feel like the middle part of SIEGE OF SHADOWS dragged a little bit. It felt like the Effigies were often in transit and there was surprisingly a lot more detail on their celebrity and public personas than I was expecting. I did enjoy seeing it, but it also left me wanting a bit more of the main plot, so I felt like I kind of rushed through reading the middle a bit. That being said, there were quite of few other things I did enjoy. I loved seeing more of the Sect and the various people involved in it. I loved seeing more of Rhys...I'm a total Rhys fangirl! I do wish that there had a few more solid answers in SIEGE OF SHADOWS, but as it's the middle book I wasn't expecting to have too many questions answered. :P I believe there's only one more book left now, so I CANNOT wait to see the epic conclusion to this series!

Overall, I really enjoyed SIEGE OF SHADOWS! It definitely left me with more questions than answers (as most middle books in a series do), but I couldn't put it down and I absolutely loved the characters and the world-building! I can't wait to see what happens next in the Effigies series!


GUEST POST

SARAH RAUGHLEY ON WORLD-BUILDING


World-building is some of the hardest element of trying to put together an SFF series, especially one of an epic scale. People need to feel like they can immerse themselves in your world, and for some readers, if even one element feels out of place, the integrity of the entire story can fall apart for them. The way I go about creating my world is kind of hard to explain, because it’s not really that systematic. It’s not a step-by-step process. It’s a messy one with lots of revision.

But essentially, I start with one kernel of an idea. For this series, it was the Effigies: four girls with elemental powers who fight monsters, and every time one dies another arises in their place. That’s the core, so now I have to keep asking myself questions: why do they have powers? Where do they and these monsters come from? Do people know who they are, and if so how do people react to them? How has society protected themselves against these monsters? I keep building and building, going back and fixing things were necessary, hacking away old thoughts and replacing until I have something that works.

Then, once I have something in place, I have to decide what to reveal and when, and that can be really difficult. There has to be enough that people can believe your world, but at the same time, for this particular series, who the Effigies are and where they (and the phantoms) come from is really the big mystery that can’t be revealed all at once. So as I write, I’m putting the pieces in place not only to build the world, but to leave a trail that will lead to the big revelations. And of course, the process of world building never actually ends because even as you write, you may come up with new ideas that will help make the world feel more complex and immersive. I think a successful SFF series is when you learn something new about the world with each book.

Now, as a writer, you can’t have everything be perfect, no matter how much others might expect it of you—and no matter how much you might expect it of yourself. Like everything else, you can always give it your all and use the experience to help you build the next world!


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

SARAH RAUGHLEY grew up in Southern Ontario writing stories about freakish little girls with powers because she secretly wanted to be one. She is a huge fangirl of anything from manga to SF/F TV to Japanese Role Playing Games, but she will swear up and down that she was inspired by ~Jane Austin~ at book signings. On top of being a YA Writer, she is currently completing a PhD in English, because the sight of blood makes her queasy (which crossed Medical School off the list).

Connect with Sarah: Website | Twitter | Tumblr


What do you think?
Have you started the Effigies series yet?
If you haven't, does it sound like something you'd like?
And what did you think of Sarah's guest post?

Monday 20 November 2017

Cover & Book Trailer Reveal: COME FROM AWAY by Genevieve Graham

Hello bookworms! 

I don't know about you, but I absolutely adore historical fiction, and one of my favourite authors of the genre happens to be fellow Canadian, Genevieve Graham! Genevieve writes wonderful historical fiction, but she makes them even more special and dear to my heart because she focuses her stories on Canadian history! And guess what, she has a new book coming out soon called COME FROM AWAY

COME FROM AWAY is a companion title to her bestselling book, TIDES OF HONOUR, and I'm ridiculously excited for it!

Today, I have the cover, a book trailer, and a giveaway where you can win an ARC of COME FROM AWAY!!

First things first, here's the absolutely stunning cover:

SYNOPSIS

From the bestselling author of Tides of Honour and Promises to Keep comes a poignant novel about a young couple caught on opposite sides of the Second World War.

In the fall of 1939, Grace Baker’s three brothers, sharp and proud in their uniforms, board Canadian ships headed for a faraway war. Grace stays behind, tending to the homefront and the general store that helps keep her small Nova Scotian community running. The war, everyone says, will be over before it starts. But three years later, the fighting rages on and rumours swirl about “wolf packs” of German U-Boats lurking in the deep waters along the shores of East Jeddore, a stone’s throw from Grace’s window. As the harsh realities of war come closer to home, Grace buries herself in her work at the store.

Then, one day, a handsome stranger ventures into the store. He claims to be a trapper come from away, and as Grace gets to know him, she becomes enamoured by his gentle smile and thoughtful ways. But after several weeks, she discovers that Rudi, her mysterious visitor, is not the lonely outsider he appears to be. He is someone else entirely—someone not to be trusted. When a shocking truth about her family forces Grace to question everything she has so strongly believed, she realizes that she and Rudi have more in common than she had thought. And if Grace is to have a chance at love, she must not only choose a side, but take a stand.

Come from Away is a mesmerizing story of love, shifting allegiances, and second chances, set against the tumultuous years of the Second World War.
 AVAILABLE APRIL 24th, 2018! 
 
Now that you've seen the cover, watch the book trailer:



Direct Link: https://youtu.be/7yWhICLNnTA

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

GENEVIEVE GRAHAM graduated from the University of Toronto in 1986 with a degree in music, never planning to write books. She met the love of her life in a chairlift lineup in Banff and subsequently moved to Calgary where the couple lived for 17 years and raised two beautiful daughters. She began writing in 2007, just before the family moved to Nova Scotia. Her first three novels, Under the Same SkySound of the Heart, and Somewhere to Dream, were international bestsellers published by Penguin US. Graham is passionate about historical adventure, runs an editing business, teaches piano, and raises very silly chickens. She lives just outside Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Connect with Genevieve: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

GIVEAWAY

Enter to win an ARC of COME FROM AWAY:




I absolutely LOVE the cover for COME FROM AWAY! The font, the colours, the scenery, the couple...everything is perfect!!! And once you put it beside Genevieve's two most recent books's covers...it's even better!

LOOK!

Click on the book covers to take you to their Goodreads pages. ;)

What do you think?
Do you love the cover, and did you like the trailer?
Anyone else counting down the days until COME FROM AWAY releases?

Friday 10 November 2017

Blog Tour Review: OFFSETTING PENALTIES by Ally Mathews

Source: Received an egalley to participate in the blog tour and give my honest review.
Publisher: Entangled: Crush
Release Date: November 6, 2017

DESCRIPTION

Isabelle Oster has dreamed of being a prima ballerina her entire life, so when the only male dancer backs out of the fall production, she’s devastated. Without a partner, she has no hope of earning a spot with the prestigious Ballet Americana company. Until hot jock Garret practicing stretches in one of the studios gives Izzy an idea, and she whips out her phone. But does she really want this badly enough to resort to blackmail?

All-state tight end Garret Mitchell will do anything to get a college football scholarship. Even taking ballet, which surprisingly isn’t so bad, because it means he gets to be up close and personal with the gorgeous Goth girl Izzy while learning moves to increase his flexibility. But Izzy needs him to perform with her for the Ballet Americana spot, and he draws the line at getting on stage. Especially wearing tights.

Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains a bit of blackmail, a lot of sarcasm, and an ending guaranteed to melt your heart.
G E T   Y O U R   C O P Y   N O W !
Amazon US | Amazon Canada | B&N | iBooks | Kobo


REVIEW

I'm a sucker for sports romances whether they're young adult, new adult, or straight-up adult! It's been a while since I've read a YA one though, so I was really excited to dive into OFFSETTING PENALTIES and when I'd finished, I was seriously on cloud nine! I thought that it was absolutely perfect! This book was everything that I could have hoped for it to be. Sweet, funny, and just so, so well done!

Garret and Isabelle were amazing! I loved seeing both of their family lives, and I really enjoyed seeing them get to know one another. :D Their romance was utterly adorable, and it developed at a wonderful pace. I thought it was realistic in the best possible way, and it gave me all the feels!

I honestly can't think of anything about this book that I didn't like. I thought that Isabelle was interesting, and her passion for dance and her dream of making it in the dancing world on her merit alone rather than based on her dad's money and prestige was extremely inspiring. And Garret...Garret is my new book boyfriend! He was generous, thoughtful, kind, and just like Isabelle, he was super passionate about his dreams. He was also willing to change his opinion about things and went into everything with an open mind which I thought was fabulous to see. The one sports romance trope that I'm mighty sick of is the one with the alpha male who's hyper masculine and kinda douchey...and Garret broke ALL of those tropes! Isabelle and Garret were both fantastic characters, and I loved that it was so easy to see how they connected and what they had in common! I think it was one of the best flushed out romances that I've ever read in a YA...it was fantastic! And the story was perfect! Super relevant to characters about to head into college, and super easy to look back on to relate to! I can already see myself rereading this one and that's not something I do very often anymore. ;)

Based on my very enthusiastic reaction towards Garret, Isabelle and their romance, it should come as no shock that I absolutely adored OFFSETTING PENALTIES! If you like adorable, swoony romances, definitely add this one to your to-read list! I think it's perfect for both YA and adult romance readers, and I hope anyone who picks it up enjoys it as much as I did! I love, love, loved OFFSETTING PENALTIES and I seriously cannot wait to read more of Ally Mathews's books after this!!!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ALLY MATHEWS lives in Texas with three kids, four dogs, two cats, a rabbit, assorted reptiles, and her husband. When she’s not writing, you can find her reading, binge watching Psych, Scream, Younger, and superhero movies, and letting dogs in and out of the house. She loves to cook but hates to clean up afterwards, and strongly believes that Disney World is truly magical. You can find Ally on her website, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, though she makes no claims of using any of them properly.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest | Goodreads
This tour was organized by Chapter by Chapter Blog Tours.
Follow the rest of the OFFSETTING PENALTIES tour at the schedule, here.


You can enter the tour giveaway for an
Offsetting Penalties Prize Pack + $5 Amazon Gift Card (US), here:



What do you think?
Are you a fan of sports romances?
Does OFFSETTING PENALTIES sound like a book you'd enjoy?

Wednesday 8 November 2017

Review: LONDON BELONGS TO ME (London Belongs to Me #1) by Jacquelyn Middleton

Source: Received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Publisher: Kirkwall Books
Release Date: October 14, 2016
Number of Pages: 394 (Paperback)

DESCRIPTION

A New City A New Start. Same Old Demons.

Your flight is now boarding! Join Alex Sinclair for a life-changing, trans-Atlantic journey. London Belongs to Me is a coming-of-age story about friendship, following your dreams, and learning when to let go … and when to hang on.

Meet Alex, a recent college graduate from Tallahassee, Florida in love with London, pop culture, and comic cons. It’s not easy being twenty-one-years-old, and Alex has never been the most popular girl. She’s an outsider, a geeky fangirl … with dreams of becoming a playwright in a city she’s loved from afar, but never visited. Fleeing America after a devastating betrayal, she believes London is where she’ll be understood, where she belongs. But Alex’s past of panic attacks and broken relationships is hard to escape. When her demons team up with a jealous rival determined to destroy her new British life, Alex begins to question everything: her life-long dream, her new friends, and whether London is where she truly belongs.
G E T   Y O U R   C O P Y   N O W !
Amazon US | Amazon Canada | Indigo | B&N | iBooks | Kobo


REVIEW

As an avid fangirl, I'm always...and I mean, ALWAYS, excited to read books where the main characters love fandom just as much as I do, so when I heard about Alex in LONDON BELONG TO ME, I was extremely excited to read her story! Sure enough, once I started reading the book, I couldn't help but relate to so many of Alex's quirks and her habits!

There were certain things about LONDON BELONGS TO ME that did make it feel like a debut novel to me--mostly with regards to how the character descriptions unfolded, but overall, I really enjoyed it, especially since once I was a couple of chapters in, this worked itself out. I thought that the London setting was absolutely fabulous, Alex's epic geekiness, and her friendships were extremely well done, and the romance was utterly adorable! I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Alex grow, and I love, love, loved seeing her relationship with Mark develop...he was most definitely a keeper! ;) 

As far as the story goes, I thought it was fresh and unique, and I loved seeing all of the theatre elements. I don't see a lot of plays, but I'm a huge fan of musicals, so I really liked seeing Alex's creative process! While I wouldn't have made the same choices as Alex did, I thought that Jacquelyn Middleton did a great job showing Alex's motivations, which made me understand her even if I knew I wouldn't have done the same thing. The secondary characters were also extremely well developed. Even the characters who could've come off as stereotypical, like Alex's "jealous rival" as the description describes (not saying her name to avoid spoilers ;P), were really well developed and dynamic.

Overall, I thought that LONDON BELONGS TO ME was a wonderfully sweet story about a girl learning who she is while also finding her place in the world! It was a fast-paced story with an amazing cast of characters where the setting itself is so vibrant that it became a character itself! This book is perfect for any anglophiles, theatre geeks, or epic fans of the Sherlock and Doctor Who fandoms. ;)



ABOUT THE AUTHOR

JACQUELYN MIDDLETON is an award-winning freelance writer with articles published by several of the most popular magazines, newspapers, and websites in North America including USA Today, Canadian Living, Best Health, Psychology Today, National Geographic Travel, the Toronto Star, Reader's Digest, Chatelaine, Today's Parent, and Flare. She is also the creator of AUTHORS CELEBRATING AUTHORS, a column on her website featuring Q&As with her favourite authors about their books and writing practices. K.A. Tucker, Jill Santopolo, and Penelope Douglas have been among her esteemed guests.

Jacquelyn previously worked in television broadcasting, and lives in Toronto with her husband and Schipperke. She's addicted to Bookstagram, loves London far too much, and has a thing for red Vespas. LONDON BELONGS TO ME, her debut novel, was published by Kirkwall Books in October 2016. LONDON, CAN YOU WAIT? just released on October 26, 2017.


Connect with Jacquelyn: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram


What do you think?
Does LONDON BELONGS TO ME sound like a story you'd enjoy?