4 Smooches

Synopsis

Every once in a while, you need to get away from it all.

I was a woman on the edge, shaken and shattered after a breakup that felt like it tore my entire world apart.
My best friend, sick of watching me drown in misery and melancholy, harassed me until I agreed to go with her on a week-long wilderness retreat.

She promised days spent bonding and getting in touch with our inner bad-asses. It was supposed to be all about the two of us roughing it and making do with the bare minimum. She assured me we were going to be pushed to our limits in ways that were unimaginable. Neither one of us could have ever guessed just how right she was.

Nowhere in the glossy brochure did it say anything about the fact I was going to have to battle the insufferable but deliciously rugged and sexy trail guide instead of the elements. The brochure also forgot to mention the part that warned when you left civilization behind, there was no place to pack your inhibitions and fears.

I was told that I would be facing a week where the only thing I should expect was the unexpected. However, no one mentioned that I was going to have to fight for my life…and my heart as soon as I ventured into the unknown.

I was a pro at hiding from my feelings but when it came time to face a real threat, one that could change everything, I learned I was more of a no surrender, no retreat kind of girl.

Retreat is a standalone novel, the first in the Getaway series which centers on the hardheaded and brokenhearted Warner brothers and the women that dare to love them.
These boys are very good at putting the wild in wilderness.

Review

Fast paced and action packed, Retreat was very different from Jay Crownovers previous novels. She took a chance on a new type of book and I applaud her for that. I love me a sexy cowboy and Cy was oh so sexy. Retreat was exciting and fun. Filled with steamy moments and heart stopping action.

“Destroyed, Sunshine. This is what it feels like to be destroyed.”

There hasn’t been a Jay Crownover book I haven’t enjoyed and Retreat was no different. I will say the second half of this book was better for me than the beginning but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the beginning. Leo is snarky and strong willed and Cy is broody and unwilling to put up with her city girl antics. The two of them facing off was the highlight of the beginning of the book for me.

‘If this was what falling felt like, I couldn’t wait to do it again.’

Retreat read like an old school Romantic Suspense just like Jay promised and I was constantly eager to see what would happen next. The one thing I would say is that I wish there was more dialogue throughout the whole novel. It’s not that there wasn’t any but I personally would have loved more. Still I loved this sexy cowboy and the adventure he and his little lion found themselves on. Now, I desperately need the next book in this series because the angst for that one is already built up so high and I cannot wait!

~miranda

4 Smooches

Synopsis

“My guardian angel is a drunk.”

 Evelyn Casey’s life is at a standstill. She’s in her mid-twenties, struggling with the dating scene in San Francisco. Nothing seems to be working out, and she’s starting to think that she’ll live out her days in her crummy apartment with her overbearing roommate, Brooklyn. It’s absurd, but sometimes Evey longs for a guardian angel to show up and save the day.

 And then he does. Seriously. His name is Lucian and he’s a guardian angel, been on the job for two thousand years. His sudden presence in her life is both good—he’s brilliant, witty, and warm—and bad—he’s brilliant, witty, warm, and hot as —-. But as perfect as Lucian seems, he’s got problems of his own. He’s taken up drinking and he’s brazenly inserted himself into Evey’s life, going against the greatest cosmic law ever created.

 For Evey, the rules are simple: You are not allowed to hook up with your guardian angel. But sometimes fulfilling your destiny requires a leap of faith, a confrontation with God.

Yes, God as in God.

Review

“What’s going to happen if we are together?”  “I don’t know what will happen, but I’m too scared to find out.”

I am a huge fan of Renee Carlino’s work and when I saw she was writing a paranormal romance I jumped at the chance to read it. I will say that if you are new to paranormal or not a huge fan of that this reads like a contemporary romance with paranormal aspects. I loved getting a glimpse into the complex lives of our guardian angels.

“Great, so my guardian angel is a perverted narcissist.”

Evey and Lucian’s story is complex and hard. They should never have been able to be together. A guardian angel isn’t capable of being with a human, especially the one they are in charge of guarding . . . and yet Lucian loves her with everything he is. Once he exposes who he is to Evey nothing comes easy to them But they love is true so they continue to work to be together despite the devastating consequences.

“Evey, next time, in the next life we’ll be together–that’s how this will be corrected.”

Parts of Lucian Divine had me giggling and parts had me almost in tears. It was a well rounded fast paced story. Overall, it wasn’t my favorite Renee book but I did find it to be a unique and intriguing storyline. I am excited to see what she will bring us next.

~miranda

5 Smooches!

Synopsis

From the New York Times Bestselling author of MISTER O and BIG ROCK, comes a hot & hilarious new standalone romantic comedy…

I’ve been told I have quite a gift.

Hey, I don’t just mean in my pants. I’ve got a big brain too, and a huge heart of gold. And I like to use all my gifts to the fullest, the package included. Life is smooth sailing….

Until I find myself stuck between a rock and a sexy roommate, which makes for one very hard…place.

Because scoring an apartment in this city is harder than finding true love. So even if I have to shack up with my buddy’s smoking hot and incredibly amazing little sister, a man’s got to do what a man’s got to do.

I can resist Josie. I’m disciplined, I’m focused, and I keep my hands to myself, even in the mere five-hundred square feet we share. Until the one night she insists on sliding under the covers with me. It’ll help her sleep after what happened that day, she says.

Spoiler—neither one of us sleeps.

Did I mention she’s also one of my best friends? That she’s brilliant, beautiful and a total firecracker? Guess that makes her the full package too.

What’s a man stuck in a hard place to do?

REVIEW

“My God. This woman. This amazing woman.”

A lump in my throat and tears–of utter happiness–in my eyes, I’ve just finished this book, and my god, this book! If the friends-to-lovers thing is your thing, then Full Package is necessary, required, essential reading. Truly, this is not one to be missed. I’m pretty sure that I haven’t hidden, like at all, my fandom for Lauren Blakely. I’ve been like Pacman chomping on those little dots with the way I’ve been devouring her work this year. I’ve loved every single book, each one, unbelievably, more than the last.

“This feels like something else entirely. Something I haven’t felt in a long time.”

But this book, this fabulous book, struck such a personal chord with me. It did something that generally doesn’t happen to me when I read romcoms—it moved me, it touched me, and it made me so very happy. You see, there are some parallels in this story to my life, and in the day-to-day living of it, I’d forgotten. But boy, let me tell you, while reading this book was I ever reminded of that long ago sweet time. That’s one of the things that reading is all about to me. It’s either to serve as an escape or, as in this case, a reminder.

“…something is happening. Something wild, and crazy, and undoubtedly incredibly foolish. But right now, it feels… like sailing, like flying, like soaring.”

Blakely has put out several male point-of-view romcoms within the last year, Full Package being the fifth. If you haven’t experienced the sheer talent of Lauren Blakely in one of her male POV books, what are you waiting for?! The woman is a genius when it comes to getting into these guys’ minds and conveying what’s going through them as they fall in love. She delivers these stories in such an authentic, realistic and unique voice, and it is unlike anything that I have ever read in any other book or by any other author. These books are magnificent, honest-to-goodness romcom magic. Honestly, I have no idea how she does it and, frankly, I’m not going to ask. I’m just going to enjoy the fact that she can do it, that she does it well and that she does it often.

“…it’s euphoric, it’s electric, the rush I get from smelling her, from moving against her, from kissing her.”

Being inside of Chase’s head as he worked through his thoughts, feelings and emotions about Josie was a delight. I had a perma-grin plastered on my face from cover-to-cover. Everything about this relationship’s build-up – from the incredibly ill-advised ‘friends with benefits’ stage to the brief but still slightly angsty and awkward period – made me happy. The friends-to-lovers thing is so totally my thing, especially, as it was in Chase and Josie’s case, when it’s patently obvious to everyone – except, of course, the hero and heroine – that they love each other, that they’re perfect for each other, that they’re meant to be. Chase and Josie were all of those things. Heart-racing, sometimes even aching, I read this book in sweet anticipation of that axis-tilting, world-shifting moment of realization and, oh boy, did Blakely ever give it to me.

“…the chance to be with the one you want—the one who wants you the same d*mn way—is worth the risk.”

This book was absolutely the full package—it was everything that my romance reading, happily-ever-after-seeking heart wanted this book to be. I loved it so very much. Lauren Blakely’s Full Package gets five smooches from me!

~ Danielle Palumbo

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5 Smooches!

Synopsis

Four lives. Four stories. Four sets of letters. Four brave souls in need of guidance while facing life’s greatest challenges.

The anonymously published Dear Life program is designed to help them step outside of their comfort zones, face their obstacles, and relinquish their demons…and prove their existence.

With their lives teetering between wanting more and losing it all, all four souls dive into the program as a New Year’s resolution, sending them on a crazy, life-altering journey.

Dear Life,

Please be kind.

Yours truly, Hollyn, Jace, Daisy, and Carter.

REVIEW

I’ve had the pleasure of reading a few of Meghan Quinn’s romantic comedies, something she does exceptionally well, over the last year or so. Her sense of humor and her timing are spot on, and her work never fails to get audible snorts of laughter from me when one of her books is queued up on my Kindle and in my hot little hands. Dear Life, though, is not a romcom. Reading the blurb, it was obvious that this was going to be a more serious and emotional book than I was used to from her. I was definitely intrigued by the premise, so in I went, excited about the possibility of discovering a new-to-me side of a favorite author’s talent.

“It’s not easy, you know, to just let something go when there is no closure, when you have it looming over you, eating you alive with every breath you take.”

Four people, stagnant and stymied in their lives by fear and grief, come together—some by choice, some not—to take part in a program designed to help them shake off those shackles and learn to live again. I honestly didn’t know what to expect going into this book, but it definitely wasn’t what I got. The program forced these four people to confront their fears and grief head on through letters written to life, and gave them tools, or assignments, to help guide them in doing that. Those letters were my favorite part of this book—they were raw, angry, harsh and so very real. But it was their evolution, as evidenced by their letters, over the course of the program that really captured my attention and what I found most inspiring.

“It’s time to take what’s been broken and make it right.”

Grief is a tricky thing. Everyone at some point in their lives experiences it, and it affects every single one of us very differently. There are also many reasons why a person may be grieving—and not all of them are related to the aftermath of death. Some people are more adept at taking in emotion, processing it, allowing themselves to heal and then moving on. Some of us are not. Those people get caught up in it, overwhelmed by it and then can’t seem to find their way out of it. In Dear Life, Quinn, through the stories of these four people and their letters, takes the reader not only on a deep examination of a few of those reasons but also along for the ride as each one travels their own personal road to the other side.

“…we were meant to find each other. Help each other.”

Each one of the main characters had a different reason for being there, a different set of circumstances, different responses and reactions, and I found each one of their stories fascinating and riveting. This book was laid out thoughtfully, with each chapter broken into four sections to highlight each of the main characters as their part of the journey is told in their own point of view. I really liked how she did that, it created a certain kind of flow and really helped to wind the stories together. I found it nearly impossible not to devour this book as I read it to get to the next part of each character’s story. I had keep reminding myself to slow down and take it all in.

“It’s never too late to learn how to live…”

I’ve always been a fan of Meghan Quinn’s writing, but this book was fresh and different and inspirational, not to mention that it was so beautifully written. Of course, there are a few moments where Quinn’s legendary levity can be found—I honestly can’t imagine her comedic voice not eventually seeping out onto the pages of whatever it is her talented mind is creating—but it’s definitely not a main component or the primary mode of story delivery in this book. Dear Life showcases Quinn’s serious and emotional side, and if you thought she shone only as a rising written romcom star, then just wait until you read this book. I’m really trying to avoid pigeonholing her here, but it’s those authors who I’ve come to anticipate one thing from and then they totally blow me away with something altogether different that I have most respect for. She absolutely did that for me here. Meghan Quinn and Dear Life get five smooches from me!

~ Danielle Palumbo

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