Articles

Jun 17 2015

Book Review: Amber to Ashes by Gail McHugh

Author: Bibliowhore • Discussion: No Comments

AMBER ^toASHES

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR

GAIL McHUGH

They were a storm I never saw coming, an unforeseen heartbreak on the edge of a dangerous cliff.

In AMBER TO ASHES (Atria Paperback; June 9^th, 2015), Amber Moretti’s life changes in the span of minutes. An orphaned outsider, she is desperate to start fresh the moment she walks onto campus. In the time it takes to cross the university’s dining hall, she meets two men who bring color, air, and light to her darkened world.

They became my addiction, each a needle to my next hit, my high.

Brock Cunningham’s appeal is dizzying, a potent force Amber can’t deny. A green-eyed smooth talker, he instantly attracts Amber. It doesn’t take long for him to consume her every thought, her every breath.

Ryder Ashcroft, a blue-eyed, tattooed, and pierced bad boy, turns Amber off immediately—that is, until he kisses her, stealing a piece of her heart, her soul.

They were as opposite as fire and ice, yet I ached for them equally.

Never knowing she could be broken down in so many unexpectedly beautiful yet petrifying ways, Amber finds herself falling for both men.

Immoral? Maybe. I say undeniable. Uncontained.

But one devastating event changes everything, shattering each of their lives…and Amber isn’t sure she can recover from it.

Book Review

*This was an ARC provided to me for free in exchange for an honest review.

All thoughts and comments are my own.*

My favorite thing in the world is picking up a new book and reading through all the words an author has penned together creating a new journey for me to embark upon. Words are powerful and can reveal the most beautiful or even the ugliest inner workings of someones mind. Gail McHugh has a gift with words and through it they reveal a story in which she has claimed contain many layers of her own reality. Parts of her own story woven together with fictional elements to create a gem that will captivate you from start to finish.

This is the first book I’ve read by Gail McHugh and it definitely won’t be my last. I don’t think I have EVER read a story like Amber to Ashes. I was completely spellbound. I could not put it down. I read it in one sitting by the final page I was dying for more. Addiction, obsession, desire, love, lust, pleasure, pain by the end you’ll have fought a battlefield of emotions and even question your sanity. The physical and emotional turmoil all three characters experience will tear at your heart. Their desires overwhelming at times, torturous and completely unlike any story you’ll ever read. It is not an erotic fantasy come to life, it is a dangerous and desperate yearning that plague these three and may be the beginning of the end for all of them. I was intrigued and as I delved deeper into the story it was hard to form an alliance or choose. I almost felt like I was Amber because I became as torn as she was. Parts of this story at least the arrogance of the two leading men made me a bit suspicious of their intentions at times. This book will mess with your head. Gail’s poetic style of writing leaves you to ponder many painful yet harsh realities of love, life, death and everything in between.

Amber to Ashes is a raw and artfully crafted masterpiece that takes you on a bumpy, deeply emotional, chaotic and passionate journey through the lives of three people whose stories culminate in the mother of all cliffhanger endings. This is a dark and gritty story that will rip you to shreds rendering you absolutely speechless . It is a book you won’t soon forget. One that will seep its way into the depths of your soul and completely own you. It is an all-consuming, fiery, get your heart racing, question your sanity kind of ride. I loved every minute of it and I cannot wait for more. Check out an excerpt here.

Buy NOW

AMBER TO ASHES by Gail McHugh

Atria Books Paperback | On sale: June 9, 2015 | 480 pages

ISBN: 9781476766010, $15.00 | eBook ISBN: 9781476766041, $7.99

Order the AMBER TO ASHES paperback:

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About the author:

Gail McHugh is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Collide and Pulse. She is the mother of three beautiful children and has been married to her husband for fifteen years.

Visit Gail online at:

Giveaway

Enter to win one (1) of ten (10) signed copies of AMBER TO ASHES HERE

Jun 13 2014

Book Review: Never Doubt Me (Judge Me Not #2) by S.R. Grey

Author: Bibliowhore • Discussion: 1 Comment

Release April 27, 2014

(recommended for readers 17+ due to mature content)

Synopsis

Can a tattooed, former bad boy leave his past behind? Can he find lasting happiness with the love of his life?

Gorgeous and sexy Chase Gartner hopes to do just that with Kay Stanton. But when Chase’s troubled teen brother, Will, stays on in Harmony Creek, Ohio—-after an unexpected arrival-—Chase and Kay’s bonds of love and commitment are soon tested.

Chase finds himself caught up in secrets—-and revisiting a past he thought he’d left behind—-when Will makes a number of irresponsible decisions. Despite Chase’s attempts to keep his brother out of trouble, Will’s reckless behavior continues, affecting not only Chase and Kay, but other residents in town…one disastrously so.

But it’s the final, potentially deadly decision Will makes when his girlfriend runs into trouble back in Las Vegas that leads Chase to make a fateful decision of his own. A choice that threatens his relationship with Kay.

Never Doubt Me is a touching, poignant story of love, redemption, and coming to grips with the fact that escaping the past is never easy.

New Adult/Contemporary Romance genres. 2nd novel in the Judge Me Not series.

warning: contains explicit sexual situations, drug use, some violence, and profanity

Book Review

Never Doubt Me is book two in the Judge Me Not series and picks up where I Stand Before You left off. To say I am impressed with Never Doubt Me would be an understatement. This book is outstanding. S.R. Grey is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. Her ability to draw the reader in through her descriptive writing allows you to step into this story as though these are your friends, your family, your loved ones. The words she pens will touch you to your core. You feel the love, the anger, the passion, the fear; every emotion is carefully crafted to make you relate to the respective character and their emotions.

Chase and Kay’s story continue, though there are many bumps along the road. These two continue to inspire me. Their relationship is one I will root for until the very end. Their struggles bring them closer, though there are a few secrets in Never Doubt Me, I think these two may be able to overcome every hurdle thrown their way. With the arrival of Chase’s fifteen year old brother Will, Chase and Kay’s relationship is put to the test.

Will shows up at his house with his sixteen year old girlfriend Cassie in tow. The two have fled Vegas to put distance between Cassie and her stepfather Paul who has continuously made advances towards her unbeknownst to Cassie’s mother. In order to protect her, Will thinks asking Chase for help is a good solution, but this only creates a number of problems leaving Chase and Kay to deal with the fallout. This book starts off rocky, but the beauty of it is the rebuilding of relationships between several key characters — Will and Chase, Cassie and her mom, Kay and her mom, and even Missy and Kay. Addiction still plays a significant role in this book and Chase is hell bent on keeping Will away from the life he has fought so hard to leave behind.

This book is heavy at times, the love scenes are scorching and the relationships are equally endearing and heartbreaking. There are a few unexpected twists and turns and the book ends in a similar fashion as I Stand Before You — with you on the edge of your seat. You’ll want to know what’s to come. I have hope that this story will turn out well and that the characters I’ve grown to love will find their happily ever after. I doubt their happy ending will come easy, but I can’t wait to enjoy the ride. This book is unputdownable and I am eagerly awaiting the third installment, Just Let Me Love You . I highly recommend this to all New Adult/Contemporary Romance fans.

This book was provided to me for free as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and comments are my own.

BUY BOOK #1 NOW:

I Stand Before You (my review)

About the Author

S.R. Grey is an Amazon and Barnes & Noble Top 100 bestselling author. Harbour Falls, Willow Point, and Wickingham Way are novels in the completed Harbour Falls Mystery trilogy. She is also the author of New Adult novels I Stand Before You (Judge Me Not #1) and Never Doubt Me (Judge Me Not #2). Ms. Grey’s novels have appeared on Amazon and Barnes & Noble bestseller lists in multiple categories.

New novels slated for publication in 2014 are Inevitable Detour, a New Adult novel with a Romantic Suspense edge, as well as Just Let Me Love You (Judge Me Not #3).

Ms. Grey resides in western Pennsylvania. She has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree, as well as an MBA. Her background may be in business, but her true passion lies in writing. When not writing, Ms. Grey can be found reading, traveling, running, or cheering for her hometown sports teams.

Author’s Social Media Links:

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Website | Newsletter | Pinterest

GIVEAWAY

(3) eBook copies of NEVER DOUBT ME – Gifted – International

(1) $50.00 Amazon Gift Card (international if they can accept a gift from the US Amazon site via email)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Jun 02 2014

RELEASE DAY EVENT: There’s Wild, Then There’s You (The Wild Ones #3) by M. Leighton

Author: Bibliowhore • Discussion: No Comments

Welcome to our release day celebration for There’s Wild, Then There’s You! Be sure to check out the exclusive excerpt and don’t forget to enter the giveaway

Print Length: 304 pages Publisher: Berkley (June 3, 2014)

ISBN: 0425267822 (ISBN13: 9780425267820) ASIN: B00H87RODE

He’s someone she can’t trust…

She’s someone he thinks he knows…

Violet Wilson is a wallflower. Shy, serious, and accident-prone, she’s got a bad habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The night she’s forced to pose with her friend might just be the worst time of all—that’s when she meets Jet Blevins. She knows better than to get involved with someone like him, but he touches her in ways she never expected, neverwanted before. On the outside, Jet is a typical rocker, an arrogant lead guitarist who unapologetically lives a wild lifestyle. But on the inside, he’s battling demons and using the stage to escape the troubles of his past and the addictions of his present. Until the night he sees Violet standing at the back of the room. She brings his life into focus. She knows his secrets. She’s the girl he can’t forget, and the one thing he craves more than his addiction. But can they ever hope to have a future when their very foundation is nothing but lies?

Series reading order:

There’s Wild, Then There’s You (coming June 3, 2014)

EXCERPT

Jet

“What was all that?”

“What was what?”

“All that posturing down there? Is that why you brought me? To have your own groupie?”

“What? What the hell are you talking about?”

“All the special attention, all the sweet touching and singing to me like that. I’ve never felt more used.”

“I wasn’t using you, Violet.”

“Then what were you doing? You’ve never acted like that before.”

“I didn’t realize it would bother you.”

“It bothers me because you did it as part of your show.”

“Trust me. That had absolutely nothing to do with my show.”

“Of course it did! Why else would you act like that?”

Thoughts of the way Rand was looking at her, of the ways I know he was thinking of touching her, gets my anger fired back up again. I turn toward Violet, stepping in closer, my face inches from hers. “You wanna know why? I’ll tell you why. It had nothing to do with me putting on a show. It had everything to do with that slimy asshole hitting on you. It was pissing me off.”

“What? Because some random guy was flirting with me? That’s ridiculous!”

“Is it? Is it ridiculous that I hated the way he talked to you? Is it ridiculous that it made me want to rip out his eyes out every time he looked at you? Is it ridiculous that I wanted to kill him when you smiled at him?”

Violet shrinks back, away from my anger. “Jet, I’m sure that was just part of the way he does business.”

“The hell it was! He wanted you, and it was eating me up inside. That is why I was touching you. I wanted him to know that you are mine.”

Violet’s voice is soft. “But I’m not yours.”

I take a few long, deep, ragged breaths. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want you to be.”

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About Michelle:

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author, M. Leighton, is a native of Ohio. She relocated to the warmer climates of the South, where she can be near the water all summer and miss the snow all winter. Possessed of an overactive imagination from early in her childhood, Michelle finally found an acceptable outlet for her fantastical visions: literary fiction. Having written over a dozen novels, these days Michelle enjoys letting her mind wander to more romantic settings with sexy Southern guys, much like the one she married and the ones you’ll find in her latest books. When her thoughts aren’t roaming in that direction, she’ll be riding wild horses, skiing the slopes of Aspen or scuba diving with a hot rock star, all without leaving the cozy comfort of her office.

Michelle loves to hear from readers! You can find her (and she will chat your ear off) here:

Website | Blog | FB | GR | Twitter

Jan 10 2014

Hold On Tight (Taking Chances, #2) by Nicola Haken

Author: Bibliowhore • Discussion: No Comments

Synopsis

A figure from Dexter’s past has uprooted all the memories he has tried so desperately to bury… to forget. The terrible events of his past have been blown wide open once again, immersing him a pool of guilt deeper than he’s even experienced before.

Dexter feels powerless. The future he foolishly allowed himself to conceive is falling apart around him and there’s nothing he can do about it. But there’s one thing he can control – one thing he’s an expert at… blocking everything out. Losing all control, Dexter copes the only way he knows how – he dives so far into the well of addiction, the only thing that matters anymore is where his next fix is coming from.

Mission accomplished – there’s no one left. He’s successfully pushed everyone away. Nobody left to care about means no more guilt, right? You can’t hurt people who aren’t there…

But has he really pushed Emily as far away as he thinks he has? She’s given up everything for him – her home, her friends… her whole life. And she doesn’t regret a single thing. But can she save him from drowning, or has he finally sunk too far?

(Not suitable for those under 18 due to language, sexual content and explicit drug use)

Review

Nicola Haken has undoubtedly taken my breath away with both Take My Hand (Taking Chances, #1) and Hold On Tight (Taking Chances, #2). I have fallen under her spell and am completely committed to finishing this series and any other books she releases!!! These books are raw and gritty. They’re incredibly real and oftentimes ugly. The struggles both Emily and Dexter endure make these books both beautiful and heartbreaking. I went through a roller coaster ride of emotions while facing some ugly truths about addiction and self worth. This book gives you a hard and fast reality check. It goes to show you just how easy someone can go from 0 to 10 and just how far one can be pushed before they wake up and say enough is enough. This is no usual love story though their romance is one you cling onto…tightly while hoping for the best. You won’t be sure of the outcome and I will say Nicola cleverly leaves this book in a similar fashion as Take My Hand…with your mouth open searching for the next page!

So what did I really think?

Let’s start with Emily shall we? She is undoubtedly one of the sweetest, most loving people, but she is also incredibly stubborn. She’s so wrapped up with Dexter and his problems that she fails to see her own shortcomings. She pushes everyone aside to tend to Dexter forgetting they may in fact need her as well. I understood her need to stand by her man and all, but she hid from everyone while trying to be the supportive and loving girlfriend. I didn’t actually feel the problem was that she did these things, in fact, I think it is actually what makes her human. My issue is that a lot of her issues were still unresolved. I know, I know, there will be a third book, but Emily just had a way about her that got to me. I loved how the author exposed Emily’s faults while still remaining committed to Dexter and his troubles.

Most people become so engulfed with their own lives, they often fail to recognize the problems others are experiencing. I think this is what I like about Nicola Haken’s writing. She’s raw and not afraid to speak truth. She isn’t afraid to push boundaries and is able to create a passionate and beautiful romance amid turmoil. Her characters are often incredibly flawed with real issues that affect not only them, but everyone in their lives.

Dexter, boy oh boy, did Dexter do a number on my head and my heart. I fell in love with him, but then he went and trampled all over my heart. Somehow he redeemed himself and I managed to fall in love all over again…FYI – I forgive you for the trampling, but I still worry about you. Dexter has an incredibly difficult and dark past. His life has been one tragic turn after another and his choices have led him to what can only be viewed as rock bottom. In Take My Hand, you learn a bit about Dexter’s troubled past and his struggles, but in Hold on Tight you actually experience these struggles first hand and let me tell you, it isn’t pretty. Things get ugly and the author does and excellent job bringing the reader into the world of addiction. This plays a heavy role in this book and I am still in awe of how I was able to envision every single detail as described. This makes me love Nicola Haken’s writing all the more. She took a very heavy, very difficult problem and made you walk through it from all sides…as Dexter, as Emily and even all the supporting characters and how they were affected. This is an incredible follow up to Take My Hand and I cannot wait for books three and four — Lean on Me (#3) and Never Let Go (#4). The story ended in a way that is going to drive you nuts and though I had my suspicions, the ending still got to me.

I highly recommend this book for my new adult/adult fiction/contemporary romance fans. This is an intense book and not recommended for readers under 18 due to language, explicit drug use, and sexual content.

Author Bio

Nicola lives in Rochdale, England with her husband and four children (six if you include the dogs!) She is the author of New Adult/Contemporary romance novels Inevitable, Saving Amy and the Take My Hand series. When she is not busy playing with her imaginary book friends (or talking about them with real life friends!) she can usually be found carrying out her ordinary mum/housewife/all round slave duties. Oh, and if the kids ever ask, she moonlights as the Pink Power Ranger while they’re sleeping…