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Book Review: The Moment of Letting Go by J.A. Redmerski

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THE MOMENT OF LETTING GO by J.A. Redmerski (August 11, 2015; Forever Trade Paperback)
You can follow the rules or you can follow your heart…
Sienna Murphy never does anything without a plan. And so far her plans have been working. Right after college, she got a prestigious job and gained the stability she’d always craved-until work takes her to the sun-drenched shores of Oahu and places her in the path of sexy surfer Luke Everett. For the first time, she lets her heart take control. Drawn to his carefree charm, she makes a spontaneous and very un-Sienna-like decision to drop everything and stay in Hawaii for two more weeks.
Luke lives fast and wild. When he meets Sienna, he’s convinced that some no-strings-attached fun is just what she needs. As their nights quickly turn from playful to passionate, Luke can’t deny the deep connection he feels. But there’s a reason Luke doesn’t do long-term. He can’t promise Sienna forever, when the enormity of his past has shown him just how fragile the future can be . . .

 

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Book Review

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

Poignant, insightful, and utterly beautiful. I fell deeply in love with this book as is usually the case when I read anything by J.A. Redmerski. This book strikes a chord as it opens the readers eyes to how sometimes we allow ourselves to live completing mundane task after mundane task only to look back and wonder have I actually lived? I love J.A. Redmerski’s writing style and somehow you always walk away with a lesson. This story is heart wrenching and inspiring. It makes you want to live a life filled with all the things that make you happy and free. Would you rather a happy and fulfilling somewhat minimalist lifestyle or would you rather have full pockets and things? 

 

Sienna Murphy has lived without really understanding what it means to live. After securing a high paying job after college she is assigned work in Hawaii. She is only meant to spend a couple of days there, but when things go awry Sienna runs off with seemingly reckless abandon desperately seeking a place to clear her mind. As Sienna carefully considers her life and the direction it’s taken, her moment of solitude is interrupted by Luke Everett. Luke knows what it means to live life on the edge. He knows how fragile life is yet when he meets Sienna he can’t help but feel a glimmer of hope. He takes a chance and talks to her. When Sienna and Luke meet their connection is almost instantaneous and though their interaction is brief it leaves a lasting impression. Luke words resonate loudly causing her to consider meeting him again. 

 

From the moment she meets Luke Everett she’s curious to see life the way he does. She wants nothing more than to get to know him, but she knows trusting him is a risk, one that she is afraid will leave her with a broken heart. Luke, equally afraid, takes a chance on her and she willing steps out of her comfort zone plunging headfirst into his world. Although she knows their time together is limited, Sienna takes a leap. She extends her vacation and decides spending a full two weeks exploring Hawaii as his guest and learning more about him is exactly what she needs. As much as Sienna and Luke would like to forget the world around them and just enjoy their time together they both know their realities and that the clock is ticking. Will they find a way or will they walk away simply learning some very valuable lessons from one another?

 

Written with passion and candor, The Moment of Letting Go displays vulnerability, love and life in an exquisite way. It will leave you absolutely spellbound. Highly recommended for New Adult and Contemporary Romance fans alike. This is the perfect summer read!

 

Happy Reading Lovelies xo 

 

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EXCERPT

 
Then he gets up and grabs my hands from the tops of my bare knees, pulling me to my feet.
“We’re going swimming,” he says. “And we’ll talk more about this later…like on the day your vacation is over and you’re standing at the gate in the airport about to kiss me goodbye.”
“Wow, you really think highly of yourself, don’t you?” I can’t keep the laughter from my voice.
“Damn straight!” he says and pulls me along beside him. “Before these two weeks are over, I can guarantee you three things.” He holds up three fingers as we continue onward toward the water. “One”—he holds up one finger—“you’ll never want to go back to San Diego once Hawaii is done with you.” He holds up two fingers. “Two—that photography love of yours will start to take the place of everything else in your life. And three”—he wiggles three fingers and we stop on the beach where the water can pool around our feet—“you’ll kiss me at least once before you go home.”
I blush hard and it feels like my eyes are bugging out of my head. “I might peck you on the cheek or something, but—”
“No,” he says, smiling and quite serious, “it’ll be a full-on, tongue-dancing kind of kiss.”
I smack him playfully on the arm—something is fluttering around inside my belly.
“Geez!
Luke grabs my hand and pulls me out to the water with him, where we swim and hang out on the cliffs until late in the afternoon. People come and go throughout the hours, sometimes leaving us with Alicia, Braedon, and a few of their close friends to have the area to ourselves for a while before more people show up in intervals.
“Backflip!” someone says just before Luke jumps into the water for probably the twentieth time.
And every time he does it, it ties my stomach up in knots. But there’s something about him that I can’t quite figure out when I watch him leap off the edge of that cliff; it’s not overconfidence or showing off or recklessness, but something deeper, more profound. Maybe it’s a sense of freedom, or a natural high that consumes him while he’s in the air, as if he had been born with a pair of wings that only he can see. But the more time I spend with him, the more intrigued I become. Sure, he’s gorgeous and funny and polite and all the kinds of things—so far—that would make my mom love him to death. But what intrigues and excites me more is how he kind of makes me want to jump off that stupid cliff regardless of how scared I am of it.

jredmerski12[1][1][1][1]About the author:
J.A. Redmerski, New York TimesUSA Today, and Wall Street Journalbestselling author, lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children, two cats and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries. 
Connect with the author!

 

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New Release: THE BLACK WOLF (In the Company of Killers, # 5) by J.A. Redmerski

The Black Wolf Cover

Adult Crime/Suspense/Mystery

Releasing July 1, 2015

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Since devastating secrets were uncovered by Nora Kessler, Niklas Fleischer and Victor Faust have been divided as business partners and brothers. But ultimately Niklas is persuaded to lead a mission to Italy, and he sees it as an opportunity to set in motion forgiveness—or retribution—for his brother’s betrayal.
The mission: play the role of a wealthy German investor and kidnap a beautiful, notorious madam named Francesca Moretti. No stranger to these types of roles, Niklas is the best man for the job, but this time the risks will be much greater as he will not be doing it alone. Izabel Seyfried, still fresh out of a life of imprisonment and sex slavery, could be negatively affected by the things she will see in Moretti’s mansion, and Niklas must keep her in line so she does not blow their cover and get them killed.
But Niklas isn’t the only one who must play a role—Nora takes on the humiliating task of playing Niklas’s slave, and Izabel must play the role of his lover.
On one hand, Niklas couldn’t be enjoying himself more. On the other hand, the emotions that continue to rage inside of him may be too much for him to control, and it may be Niklas—not Izabel—who needs to be kept in line. He cannot forget what Victor has done, and this mission may just be the beginning of his downward spiral.
Can the blood bond that Niklas and Victor share as brothers be stronger than resentment? Or will vengeance dig the blade so deep that their bond be eternally severed?

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Previous titles in the The Company of Killers:
KILLING SARAI (Book #1)
REVIVING IZABEL (Book #2)
THE SWAN AND THE JACKAL (Book #3)
SEEDS OF INIQUITY (Book #4)


 

jredmerski12
About the Author
J.A. Redmerski, New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children, two cats and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.

Website    |   Facebook   |   Twitter   |   Goodreads

 

 
 

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Song of the Fireflies Paperback Launch Day Blitz & More…

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 SONG OF THE FIREFLIES by J.A. Redmerski (September 2, 2014; Forever Trade Paperback; $14.00)


Synopsis

THE TRUTH WILL SET THEM FREE
Brayelle Bates has always been a force of nature. Even as a child, Bray’s wild and carefree spirit intimidated everyone around her. The only person who’s ever truly understood her is her best friend, Elias Kline. Though every fiber of her being wants to stay with Elias forever, Bray can’t bear the thought of him discovering her agonizing history. She’s done everything she can to keep him at arm’s length, including moving away. But their undying bond was too strong a pull to deny, and Bray couldn’t survive without him. Now she’s back home with Elias, and things have never felt more right–until one night changes everything.

 

Elias vowed never to be separated from Bray again. So when she decides to flee in a desperate attempt to escape her fate, Elias knows he must go with her. As the two try to make the most of their circumstance, taking up with a reckless group of new friends, Elias soon realizes there’s a darkness driving Bray he can’t ignore. Now in order to save her, he’ll have to convince Bray to accept the consequences of their reality–even if it means losing her.

 

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Excerpt

When I made my way back to the top, I found Bray wasn’t sitting near the edge of the ridge where I had left her I moved farther out into the clearing with our blankets draped over one shoulder.

“Bray?” I said, looking around.

I brushed it off for a second, thinking she was probably just taking a piss behind a tree somewhere, and I set our blankets on the ground.

But then I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I walked quickly toward the edge and looked over. My heart started to bang against my rib cage. I peered down as far as my sight could penetrate the darkness, but took a step back upon realizing that if she had fallen there was no way I’d be able to see from way up here.

She had to be somewhere around close by. She had to be.

“Bray?” I called out again. “Where the hell did you go?”

Still no answer.

Panic set in quickly. I stood there as still and as quiet as I could for several long seconds in case she was coming through the woods, but I heard nothing. I arranged both hands around my mouth and shouted, “BRAY!” and my voice echoed through the wide-open space. But still nothing. I felt sick to my stomach. She wouldn’t have left like that way out here. And if she did, I would’ve seen her on the path coming down as I was making my way back up.

I ran toward the tree line, searching for any sign of her, for another path she might have taken. I refused to believe that she had fallen off the edge.

Just as I noticed another path through the woods that seemed to head south and I started to go toward it, I heard footfalls in the leaves. I didn’t wait to see if it was her, I ran blindly straight into the woods. A skinny branch slapped me across the forehead on my way, but I didn’t stop.

Bray and I nearly crashed into each other.

“Shit, baby! Where the hell did you go? Scared the hell out of me!” I started to pull her into a hug, but something about her was off and I stopped. She didn’t respond or even raise her head to look at me.

“Are you all right?”

I took her hands into mine. Hers were shaking. Her whole body was shaking.

I cupped her face in my palms and raised her head so that she’d look at me. She was crying, and something in her eyes…I couldn’t place it, but it haunted me. I wondered if she even knew I was standing right in front of her. Her hair was messy, with pieces of leaves stuck within a mass of strands. Dirt was smeared across her left cheek. She looked like she’d been in a fight.

I touched her split lip, where a thin line of blood glistened near the corner. “Bray, you’re scaring me. What happened to you?” I shook her gently and then more aggressively when she still didn’t respond. “What happened? Talk to me!”

Her lips trembled and more tears seeped from the corners of her eyes. And then as if a floodgate had been opened, she started screaming through her tears, “It was my fault! Elias! Oh my God!”

What happened?” I roared, scared for her and for myself, my heart about to burst through my chest.

 

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COMING SOON

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THE MOMENT OF LETTING GO by J.A. Redmerski (April 14, 2015; Forever Trade Paperback & E-Book)
New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author J. A. Redmerski brings us a heart-wrenching, stand-alone new adult novel that fans of her blockbuster The Edge of Never are sure to fall in love with.
In THE MOMENT OF LETTING GO Sienna Murphy finally lands her dream job. It’s everything she’s ever wanted…or so she thought. When she’s sent on a business trip to Hawaii, she meets Luke Everett, a guy who makes her want to forget all her responsibilities and give in to the promise of all the happiness they could have together. As their passion grows, Luke makes Sienna start to question whether the carefully constructed life she leads is really as perfect as it seems. 

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Excerpt 

He kisses me passionately for three brief seconds, his hands gripping the sides of my face, and we’re both breathless when he says, “I wanted to tell you about Landon. I wanted to tell you a lot of things, but I knew you had to go home and none of it would’ve mattered.”
I touch his lips with two of my fingers. “You can tell me whenever you’re ready. I’m here to listen, and I’m not going anywhere. There’s nothing you can say to scare me away. I won’t leave again unless it’s what you want. I still have four days left of my vacation and I want to spend them with you.”
“I want you to stay.”
“Then I’m staying.”
“What about after that?”
“We’ll figure it out.”
He gazes into my eyes, searching for something, I could never know what, but I think he finds it because his lips smash against mine and he kisses me hungrily. I feel my body being lifted into the air, my legs wrapped around his waist, and the air in the room hitting me as he carries me quickly through it, never breaking the kiss. In seconds I feel the comfort of his bed beneath my back and his lumpy pillows I missed so much, around my head.
We strip off each other’s clothes clumsily and Luke is on top of me before I can even catch my breath. But I don’t need my breath when I have his, and his kiss is deep and forceful and it alone makes my body dizzy with need.

 

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 jredmerski12About the author:
J. A. Redmerski, New York Times, USA Today andWall Street Journal bestselling author lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children, two cats and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.
Website   |   Facebook   |   Twitter   |   Goodreads

 

 

 


 

Giveaway 

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Song of the Fireflies Excerpt & Giveaway

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Synopsis 

THE TRUTH WILL SET THEM FREE

Brayelle Bates has always been a force of nature. Even as a child, Bray’s wild and carefree spirit intimidated everyone around her. The only person who’s ever truly understood her is her best friend, Elias Kline. Though every fiber of her being wants to stay with Elias forever, Bray can’t bear the thought of him discovering her agonizing history. She’s done everything she can to keep him at arm’s length, including moving away. But their undying bond was too strong a pull to deny, and Bray couldn’t survive without him. Now she’s back home with Elias, and things have never felt more right-until one night changes everything.

Elias vowed never to be separated from Bray again. So when she decides to flee in a desperate attempt to escape her fate, Elias knows he must go with her. As the two try to make the most of their circumstance, taking up with a reckless group of new friends, Elias soon realizes there’s a darkness driving Bray he can’t ignore. Now in order to save her, he’ll have to convince Bray to accept the consequences of their reality-even if it means losing her. 

62435-addtogoodreads

EXCERPT

When I made my way back to the top, I found Bray wasn’t sitting near the edge of the ridge where I had left her I moved farther out into the clearing with our blankets draped over one shoulder.

“Bray?” I said, looking around.

I brushed it off for a second, thinking she was probably just taking a piss behind a tree somewhere, and I set our blankets on the ground.

But then I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I walked quickly toward the edge and looked over. My heart started to bang against my rib cage. I peered down as far as my sight could penetrate the darkness, but took a step back upon realizing that if she had fallen there was no way I’d be able to see from way up here.

She had to be somewhere around close by. She had to be.

“Bray?” I called out again. “Where the hell did you go?”

Still no answer.

Panic set in quickly. I stood there as still and as quiet as I could for several long seconds in case she was coming through the woods, but I heard nothing. I arranged both hands around my mouth and shouted, “BRAY!” and my voice echoed through the wide-open space. But still nothing. I felt sick to my stomach. She wouldn’t have left like that way out here. And if she did, I would’ve seen her on the path coming down as I was making my way back up.

I ran toward the tree line, searching for any sign of her, for another path she might have taken. I refused to believe that she had fallen off the edge.

Just as I noticed another path through the woods that seemed to head south and I started to go toward it, I heard footfalls in the leaves. I didn’t wait to see if it was her, I ran blindly straight into the woods. A skinny branch slapped me across the forehead on my way, but I didn’t stop.

Bray and I nearly crashed into each other.

“Shit, baby! Where the hell did you go? Scared the hell out of me!” I started to pull her into a hug, but something about her was off and I stopped. She didn’t respond or even raise her head to look at me.

“Are you all right?”

I took her hands into mine. Hers were shaking. Her whole body was shaking.

I cupped her face in my palms and raised her head so that she’d look at me. She was crying, and something in her eyes…I couldn’t place it, but it haunted me. I wondered if she even knew I was standing right in front of her. Her hair was messy, with pieces of leaves stuck within a mass of strands. Dirt was smeared across her left cheek. She looked like she’d been in a fight.

I touched her split lip, where a thin line of blood glistened near the corner. “Bray, you’re scaring me. What happened to you?” I shook her gently and then more aggressively when she still didn’t respond. “What happened? Talk to me!”

Her lips trembled and more tears seeped from the corners of her eyes. And then as if a floodgate had been opened, she started screaming through her tears, “It was my fault! Elias! Oh my God!”
“What happened?” I roared, scared for her and for myself, my heart about to burst through my chest.

Want to read the first 8 Chapters of Song of the Fireflies? Check it out HERE  

 

 

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About the author:

J.A. Redmerski, New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children, two cats and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

 

 

 

 

GIVEAWAY 

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Forever Young Blog Tour

Dawn_Masquerade

MASQUERADE by Nyrae Dawn (January 7, 2014; Forever E-Book; 9781455576333; $3.99)

Synopsis

A biker. A tattoo artist. A love to last a lifetime.

Maddox Cross has always had to be tough. When his father went to jail for murder, the teenager took care of his sister and mother. Now on his own and working security at a night club, Maddox wants to become a tattoo artist-a dream that comes closer to reality when he falls for the hottest, most tatted woman he’s ever seen. She’s wild and beautiful, and Maddox will do anything to be with her.

Bee Malone came to town to open up her new tattoo parlor, Masquerade. Since being kidnapped as a young girl, Bee has had trouble getting close to anyone. But when she meets Maddox, she sees that under his hard biker’s body is the sensitive soul of an artist. What starts out as a sizzling one-night stand soon becomes so much more.

Bee wants Maddox to join her tattoo business, but letting him into her life means revealing all her most intimate secrets. And as the past begins to intertwine with her present, Bee fears their love may not be as permanent as their ink . . .

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Nyrae Dawn_Photo Credit - Cherished Memories Photography[1][1][1][1]Author Bio:

Writing has always been Nyrae Dawn’s passion. Nyrae gravitates toward character-driven stories. She loves going on emotional journeys with characters whether it be reading or writing. And yes, she’s a total romantic at heart and proud.

Nyrae resides in sunny Southern California with her husband (who still makes her swoon) and her two awesome kids.

When she’s not with her family, you can be pretty sure you’ll find her with a book in her hand or her laptop and an open document in front of her. Nyrae also writes adult romance under the name Kelley Vitollo.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads 

 

Excerpt

“Did you bring any drawings?” Bee sits at the chair behind a desk.

I hand her a book, but the second I do, I want to snatch it back. It’s always like that showing someone my work, even though I know it’s good. “That’s just one I had with me. I have more at home.”

She doesn’t answer as she starts flipping through the pages. After a couple minutes of watching her study each page, I start to get jittery. Feel like she’s looking inside me instead of at some pages, so to distract myself, I move around the room, taking in pictures of her work and other tattoos on the walls.

She looks at the book for what seems like an hour before speaking. “These are good. They’re different. Your artwork has a unique style that I haven’t seen before.”

I nod.

“Why do you want to be a tattoo artist?” she asks. The question shows me how serious she is about what she does because no one has brought it up before.

The urge to tell her it’s none of her business surges through me, but I want this badly enough to answer. “Because when I’m around it, I feel more like myself than I probably ever have.”

A brief flash of shock shows on her face, but she covers it quickly. “Good. I won’t screw around with someone who’s playing a game. This isn’t something you do to make a quick buck. Not if you’re working with me, at least. Did you get a chance to actually give anyone ink?”

“No. The apprenticeship only lasted three months before he bailed.”

Bee nods. “That’s good. I actually rather you have hardly any experience—that way I don’t have to train bad habits out of you.”

“I’m not a dog.”

“No one said you were. Chill out, Scratch.”

I tense at the name, but before I can really say anything, she starts asking questions again. “Do you lean toward liking only black work or are you into color too?”

Everything I have so far is only black, but as I look at her again, I see a variety of black and colorful work. “Depends. I don’t want to do only one or the other. I love work with shading too. I’ve seen some pieces that are really incredible just because of the shading.”

She nods and I wonder if that was the right answer.

“I’m not saying you don’t, but this is something you have to take seriously. There are a lot of dumb-asses out there who think it’s all fun, but it’s not. Stuff like being clean and safe is even more important than the picture you put into someone’s skin.”

“That’s a given, isn’t it?”

She grins. “You’d think, but it’s not always like that.”

We’re both quiet after that. Bee glances down at my artwork again. “I’m surprised I even let you in here tonight. It’s important that you know that. I don’t take shit from people.”

One look at her and that’s obvious. Part of me didn’t expect her to open the door for me either. “I’m surprised I came, so that makes two of us.” When she looks up at me, I’m not sure how I feel about the way her eyes take me in. Don’t know what I think about the fact that we have shit in common or that her look is familiar to me. I give it myself.

Bee stands, walks around to the front of the desk, and then leans on it. “If we do this, can we keep things from getting awkward?”

My answer comes automatically. “I can if you can. It was one night. We don’t know each other and I’m never with someone more than once anyway.” I’ve shared this strange sort of honesty with her tonight that makes my body overheat. I want all the words back because they’re a part of me and I don’t want anyone to see who I am, but this is it. Saying these things to her is the only way to get what I want.

“Now that you’ve asked your questions and realize this isn’t a game to me, I need to know if we’re doing this or not.”

Silently she walks toward the door and opens it. I hold in the groan, pissed at myself for fucking this up again and even more pissed that she’s in control.

Bee turns toward me, her blond hair messy from sleep, but it’s another thing she doesn’t care about. It doesn’t take away from how sexy she is either.

“We’re doing this. Don’t make me regret it. Now I need to get some sleep and then we’ll talk tomorrow about a schedule.”

I let out the breath trapped in my lungs. Thanks, echoes through my mind, but all that comes out is, “Cool. We’ll talk later.” Then I walk out the door.

Instead of going home, I head to the high school. It’s such a dumb fucking thing to do, but like I’ve done other nights, I jump the fence and head to the football field. Sitting in the middle of it, I let my eyes trace over the whole thing, trying to remember the time this used to be important to me. And trying not to concentrate on the fact that even though I got something I want, something I need, I still want to take out the fucking world because of everything I’ve lost.

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THE DESTINY OF VIOLET & LUKE by Jessica Sorensen (January 7, 2014; Forever E-Book; 9781455576524; $2.99)

Synopsis

Luke Price’s life has always been about order, control, and acting tough on the outside. For Luke, meaningless relationships are a distraction-a way to tune out the twisted memories of his childhood. He desperately wishes he could forget his past, but it haunts him no matter what he does.

Violet Hayes has had a rough life. When she was young, she was left with no family and the memory of her parents’ unsolved murders. She grew up in foster homes, living with irresponsible parents, drugs, and neglect, and trying to fight the painful memories of the night her parents were taken from her. But it’s hard to forget when she never got closure-and she can’t stop dreaming about what happened that tragic night. To make it through life, she keeps her distance from everyone and never allows herself to feel anything.

Then Violet meets Luke. The two clash instantly, yet they can’t seem to stay away from each other. Although they fight it, they both start to open up and feel things they’ve never felt before. They discover just how similar they are. But they also discover something else: The past always catches up with you . . .

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Jessica Sorensen[1][1][1][1]

 

Author Bio:

The New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Jessica Sorensen, lives with her husband and three kids. When she’s not writing, she spends her time reading and hanging out with her family. 

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads 

 

 

 

 

 

Excerpt

“Maybe you should go get cleaned up first.” She runs her thumb down the side of my lip and the connection sends uninvited emotions coursing through my body. I have to clench my hands into fists, just to keep myself from grabbing her and crashing her lips against mine. She withdraws her hand and wipes her thumb and her finger together. “You have blood on your face and clothes.”

I shrug, smothering the desire to jerk her hand back to me, rip her clothes off and bend her over the hood out of my truck. “I’m fine with looking like a man who just beat the shit out of someone, but if you’re too embarrassed to be seen with me, you can sit in the truck.”

“ ‘A man who just beat the shit out of someone’?” she muses, stopping at the passenger door of my truck, her hand hovering above the handle of the car door. “Or a guy who just got his ass kicked?”

I can’t tell if she’s toying with me or not, but it’s both irritating me and exciting me in ways I didn’t know were possible. Half the damn time I have no fucking clue whether she’s being serious or not. Being a control freak, this should send me running, yet it’s having the opposite effect when it comes to her.

I decide to give her a taste of her own intense medicine, throw her off a little, regain the upper hand and hopefully scare her away. “Are you saying that I’m not tough?” I position myself in front of her, trying to get her to back up into the truck, but she stays still. “Or that I’m not a man?”

“I’m not saying either,” she says with a fervent look in her eyes that nearly sends me soaring through the roof. The more intense I get the more excited she gets, which makes me want to get even more intense. “Although, I’m guessing that despite that fact, you’re still about to show me that you’re both of those things.”

“Is that what you want me to do?” My voice comes out husky. This isn’t working out how I want, my plan of keeping her away backfiring on me. I take a step forward and then another, until I’m pretty much stepping on her feet. She still doesn’t back up and it frustrates me even more. “For me to show you how tough I am or how much of a man I am?”

She presses her lips together, her gaze unwavering, eyelashes fluttering. “I don’t want anything from you, Luke. I’m just simply saying what’s in my head. And the longer you’re around me, the more you’ll realize this.”

The longer I’m around her? Fuck. I reach a hand around the side of her and grab the door handle of the truck. “So you don’t think I’m tough?” I ask.

“I think you want to show me how tough you are and how much of a man you can be,” she says.

I put my other arm on the other side of her, so she’s pinned between my arms. Most girls in this position would back up into the door, but she stands firm, refusing to let me control her like I desperately want to.

“And how would I show you?” I drop my voice to a husky growl, intentionally this time.

“I’m sure you have your ways,” she replies, her gaze flickering at my mouth as I lean forward and our bodies press together.

It takes every ounce of strength not to seize hold of her hips and gently shove her back. Instead, I lean farther in, our lips inching closer. “I do have my ways…” I lick my lips and feel the sting of the cut. It reminds me of everything I just witnessed; with her, with me. I know if I kiss her it’ll more than likely lead to me jerking the door open and throwing her down on the truck seat, right here in broad daylight. I wouldn’t care who saw us. I never do. I’d just want to get this God damn need to regain control out of me, the need she’s putting in me. But then what would happen after it was all over? Would we go get tacos and come back to my dorm and hang out? Yeah, that doesn’t seem at all possible, but neither does screwing her and then bailing. I’m too far into her and I’m not sure how to get away or if I can get away at this point.

I clench my hands into fists as I fight the urge to shut my eyes and kiss her until she can barely breathe. I feel weak the moment I flip up that handle and start to pull the door open because I’m choosing to feel the vile, pathetic feelings of my past—how I did things I didn’t want to do, how my mother messed with my head, how I had no control over my life. I was a puppet. I was weak. I don’t want to be that person ever again.

I wait for Violet to move out of the way so I can get the door open, but she doesn’t budge and I’m the one who ends up stepping back, losing again. It’s an unsettling place I’ve arrived at and I don’t know what to do with it beside drink myself into a stupor and hammer my fist through anything that gets in my way. My body is actually shaking as my mind craves the burning, blissful taste of alcohol.

“So where are we going to get tacos?” She sidesteps around me and hops in the truck, tucking her skirt in as she brings her legs into the truck.

“You pick,” I say as I shut the door.

She smiles a plain, fake smile, not even giving me the benefit of a real one. “It doesn’t matter to me,” she says as I climb into the cab. Then she kicks her feet up on the dash and flops her head back against the seat, looking as calm as can be.

I have to wonder if she really means it. If nothing matters to her, and if she’s beginning to matter to me. 

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SONG OF THE FIREFLIES by J.A. Redmerski (February 4, 2014; Forever E-Book; 9781455555048; $3.99)

Synopsis

THE TRUTH WILL SET THEM FREE
Brayelle Bates has always been a force of nature. Even as a child, Bray’s wild and carefree spirit intimidated everyone around her. The only person who’s ever truly understood her is her best friend, Elias Kline. Though every fiber of her being wants to stay with Elias forever, Bray can’t bear the thought of him discovering her agonizing history. She’s done everything she can to keep him at arm’s length, including moving away. But their undying bond was too strong a pull to deny, and Bray couldn’t survive without him. Now she’s back home with Elias, and things have never felt more right-until one night changes everything.

Elias vowed never to be separated from Bray again. So when she decides to flee in a desperate attempt to escape her fate, Elias knows he must go with her. As the two try to make the most of their circumstance, taking up with a reckless group of new friends, Elias soon realizes there’s a darkness driving Bray he can’t ignore. Now in order to save her, he’ll have to convince Bray to accept the consequences of their reality-even if it means losing her. 

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Author Bio

J.A. Redmerski, New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children, two cats and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.

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Excerpt

When I made my way back to the top, I found Bray wasn’t sitting near the edge of the ridge where I had left her I moved farther out into the clearing with our blankets draped over one shoulder.

“Bray?” I said, looking around.

I brushed it off for a second, thinking she was probably just taking a piss behind a tree somewhere, and I set our blankets on the ground.

But then I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I walked quickly toward the edge and looked over. My heart started to bang against my rib cage. I peered down as far as my sight could penetrate the darkness, but took a step back upon realizing that if she had fallen there was no way I’d be able to see from way up here.

She had to be somewhere around close by. She had to be.

“Bray?” I called out again. “Where the hell did you go?”

Still no answer.

Panic set in quickly. I stood there as still and as quiet as I could for several long seconds in case she was coming through the woods, but I heard nothing. I arranged both hands around my mouth and shouted, “BRAY!” and my voice echoed through the wide-open space. But still nothing. I felt sick to my stomach. She wouldn’t have left like that way out here. And if she did, I would’ve seen her on the path coming down as I was making my way back up.

I ran toward the tree line, searching for any sign of her, for another path she might have taken. I refused to believe that she had fallen off the edge.

Just as I noticed another path through the woods that seemed to head south and I started to go toward it, I heard footfalls in the leaves. I didn’t wait to see if it was her, I ran blindly straight into the woods. A skinny branch slapped me across the forehead on my way, but I didn’t stop.

Bray and I nearly crashed into each other.

“Shit, baby! Where the hell did you go? Scared the hell out of me!” I started to pull her into a hug, but something about her was off and I stopped. She didn’t respond or even raise her head to look at me.

“Are you all right?”

I took her hands into mine. Hers were shaking. Her whole body was shaking.

I cupped her face in my palms and raised her head so that she’d look at me. She was crying, and something in her eyes…I couldn’t place it, but it haunted me. I wondered if she even knew I was standing right in front of her. Her hair was messy, with pieces of leaves stuck within a mass of strands. Dirt was smeared across her left cheek. She looked like she’d been in a fight.

I touched her split lip, where a thin line of blood glistened near the corner. “Bray, you’re scaring me. What happened to you?” I shook her gently and then more aggressively when she still didn’t respond. “What happened? Talk to me!”

Her lips trembled and more tears seeped from the corners of her eyes. And then as if a floodgate had been opened, she started screaming through her tears, “It was my fault! Elias! Oh my God!”

“What happened?” I roared, scared for her and for myself, my heart about to burst through my chest.

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UNDONE by Shannon Richard (February 25, 2014; Forever Mass Market; 9781455544691; $6.00)

Synopsis

Things Paige Morrison will never understand about Mirabelle, Florida:

Why wearing red shoes makes a girl a harlot
Why a shop would ever sell something called “buck urine”
Why everywhere she goes, she runs into sexy-and infuriating-Brendan King

After losing her job, her apartment, and her boyfriend, Paige has no choice but to leave Philadelphia and move in with her retired parents. For an artsy outsider like Paige, finding her place in the tightly knit town isn’t easy-until she meets Brendan, the hot mechanic who’s interested in much more than Paige’s car. In no time at all, Brendan helps Paige find a new job, new friends, and a happiness she wasn’t sure she’d ever feel again. With Brendan by her side, Paige finally feels like she can call Mirabelle home. But when a new bombshell drops, will the couple survive, or will their love come undone? 

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Author Bio:

Shannon Richard grew up in the Florida Panhandle as the baby sister of two overly protective but loving brothers. She was raised by a more than somewhat eccentric mother, a self-proclaimed vocabularist who showed her how to get lost in a book and a father who passed on his love for coffee and really loud music. She graduated from Florida State University with a BA in English Literature and still lives in Tallahassee where she battles everyday life with writing, reading, and a rant every once in a while. Okay, so the rants might happen on a regular basis. She’s still waiting for her Southern, scruffy, Mr. Darcy, and in the meantime writes love stories to indulge her overactive imagination. Oh, and she’s a pretty big fan of the whimsy.

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Excerpt

When Brendan pulled into the shade of the park he saw Paige sitting on top of a picnic table. She was staring down at the screen of her camera, biting the corner of her lip. She looked up at the tree and then back down to her camera, shaking her head. Brendan pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head, grabbed his loot, and got out of his truck. When he slammed the door shut she looked over at him. She turned her camera off and shoved it into a bag that was on the table.

“Hey,” she said, standing up and brushing the back of her orange dress down before she started walked toward him.

“Hi,” he said, walking past her and sitting down on top of the picnic table.

“What are you doing?” she asked, spinning around and looking at him. “My Jeep’s over there.”

“Yes,” he said, grabbing a Coke and popping the top. “But lunch is over here.”

“I thought you were going to change my flat,” she said, frowning.

“I am, after I eat lunch. Care to join me?” he asked, patting the empty space next to him.

“You’re serious?”

“Paige, it’s almost one o’clock, so I’m going to eat. You can either stand there and watch me, or you can split this Cajun turkey sandwich that my grandmother made,” he said, taking the sandwich out of the bag.

She shook her head and smiled.

“You, Brendan King, are a whole mess of trouble,” she said, walking over to the bench and sitting down next to him.

“Good choice,” he said, taking his half out of the bag and handing her the other half. “What are you doing out here?” he asked, taking a bite of his sandwich.

“Taking pictures.”

“For?”

“The tribute program that Mr. Adams wants to start using during the memorial services. He wants to use local pictures instead of the stock pictures that are already in the program.”

“That sounds like it’s right up your alley.”

“It is actually,” she said, reaching for the other can of soda and popping the top. 

“Don’t sound so surprised.”

“Why? That I could actually fit in around here? It does surprise me.”

“Why?”

“I’m not used to this whole small-town thing, where everybody knows everybody and their business.”

“Yeah, that’s one of the things about small towns that sucks,” he said, opening a bag of chips and holding it out for her.

“You can say that again,” she said, reaching for a chip. “Why don’t you have oil stains on your hands? I thought all mechanics had oil stains.”

“I wear gloves,” he said, grabbing a few chips for himself and popping them into his mouth.

“Right.” She glanced down and frowned, reaching out for his arm.

“The tree,” she whispered, grabbing his elbow and pushing up the sleeve of his shirt.

Her soft, delicate fingers lightly traced the lines of his tattoo. It took only one simple touch from her for him to completely lose his mind again.

“I knew I’d seen it somewhere.” She looked up to the oak tree in front of them and then back down to his arm. “Why do you have that tree tattooed on your arm?” she asked, looking up at him.

She must have seen the heated look in his eyes because she let go of him and started blushing.

“Sorry, I just … yesterday when I’d been looking at your tattoo, it just sort of fascinated me, and … and it’s that tree,” she said, pointing to the tree in front of them.

“It is.” He cleared his throat and finished his sandwich. He grabbed an orange from the bag on the table and started peeling it. “My mom loved that tree,” he said, looking up at it for a second. “She would bring me and Grace here all the time.”

“Loved?” Paige asked.

“She died,” he said, turning to look at her. “Twelve years ago from breast cancer.”

“Oh God, Brendan. I’m so sorry.”

“I am too. She was a great woman. Grams still can’t talk about her without losing it.”

“Wait, your mom was Lula Mae and Oliver’s daughter?” she asked, confused.

“Yeah,” he said, looking over at her. “I know a little bit about being the center of town talk too. My dad walked out on us before I was born, and Grace’s dad, well, no one knows who Grace’s dad is. My mom wouldn’t tell anybody. That was a source of gossip for years,” he said, handing her half of the peeled orange.

The orange was still cold from being in the refrigerator. Brendan stuck a slice in his mouth, the juice bursting across his tongue. Paige sat next to him in silence, eating her half.

“How do you do it?” she asked, looking at him.

“Do what?”

“Accept stuff like that? Move on? I lost my job, my apartment, and my boyfriend all within a span of two months and I thought that everything was falling down around me. But you? God, Brendan, you had a girlfriend run off with another man, your dad abandoned you, and your mom she …” Paige trailed off. She looked down at her empty hands shaking her head. “You make my problems look trivial.”

“Paige,” he said, edging closer to her and pressing his thigh against hers.

She looked at him, her hair falling in her eyes. He reached out and pushed it behind her ear, letting his fingers trail down to her chin.

“That stuff happened over a long span of time, and I’ve had years to deal with it. You had to deal with a lot over a very short amount of time, and it didn’t happen so long ago. It isn’t trivial,” he said, rubbing his thumb across her jaw. “One day, you’ll wake up and it won’t hurt as bad. You’ll be able to move on.”

“I think I had that breakthrough a week ago,” she whispered, her eyes dipping to his mouth before they came back up to his eyes.

“Really?” He smiled, moving in closer. “And what was the catalyst for that development?” he asked, moving his hand to the back of her head, his fingers tunneling in her hair.

“A cracked radiator,” she said, putting her palms on his chest.

He brought her mouth to his. She parted her lips and when his tongue touched hers he lost himself. She tasted like oranges, like the sweetest freaking oranges that he’d ever eaten. He wrapped his free arm around her back, pulling her into his chest as he slanted his mouth over hers, deepening the kiss. One of her hands was in his hair, her nails racking the back of his head.

Brendan pulled back and looked at her, both of them breathing hard. He was still holding her face in one of his hands as he ran his thumb across her lower lip.

“That was …” He couldn’t even find the words to describe exactly what it was.

“Yeah.” She looked at him, dazed as she fisted her hand tighter in his shirt and pulled him back to her. And then they were off again and neither of them had any desire to come back up for air for a long time.

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Giveaway 

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REVIVING IZABEL (In The Company of Killers #2) Release Event

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REVIVING IZABEL (In The Company of Killers #2)

By Bestselling Author J.A. Redmerski

An Adult Suspense 

Killing Sarai (In the Company of Killers, #1) is on sale for .99 cents for the release of Reviving Izabel!

Killing Sarai: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo   

 

SYNOPSIS

Determined to live a dark life in the company of the assassin who freed her from bondage, Sarai sets out on her own to settle a score with an evil sadist. Unskilled and untrained in the art of killing, the events that unfold leave her hanging precariously on the edge of death when nothing goes as planned.

Sarai’s reckless choices send her on a path she knows she can never turn back from and so she presents Victor with an ultimatum: help her become more like him and give her a fighting chance, or she’ll do it alone no matter the consequences. Knowing that Sarai cannot become what she wants to be overnight, Victor begins to train her and inevitably their complicated relationship heats up.

As Arthur Hamburg’s right-hand man, Willem Stephens, closes in on his crusade to destroy Sarai, she is left with the crushing realization that she may have bitten off more than she can chew. But Sarai, taking on the new and improved role of Izabel Seyfried, still has a set of deadly skills of her own that will prove to be all she needs to secure her place beside Victor.

But there is one test that Izabel must face that has the potential to destroy everything she is working so hard to achieve. One final test that will not only make her question her decision to want this dangerous life, but will make her question everything she has come to trust about Victor Faust.

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Check out my review of Killing Sarai & Reviving Izabel  

 

Excerpt 

Victor’s car stops at the mouth of the alley, the brakes squealing to a halt on the street. He gets out leaving the door open and rushes toward us.

“I’ve got it under control,” I say and I look down at Andre next to my feet.

I’ve knocked him out, but not for long because he begins to stir awake when Victor grabs him by the backs of his arms and pulls him to his feet.

“You were supposed to lead him to the parking lot,” Victor snaps.

Andre begins to struggle as Victor drags him toward the car.

“I said I had it under control,” I snap back. “You see I’m not the one that ended up on the ground.”

“What the fuck’s going on?” Andre calls out, trying to fight his way out of Victor’s arms.

Victor shoves him in the backseat, face-down, and plants his knee in his back as he secures his hands behind him with a plastic zip tie.

“Get in,” Victor demands.

I do as he says, rushing around to the passenger’s side and shutting the door.

“Who the fuck are you?! What’s going on? Answer me!”

Andre’s voice is vociferous behind me, filling the small space in the car.

Victor turns around against the seat, leans over it at the stomach and punches Andre so hard he knocks him out cold.

“Thanks,” I say as Victor sits back down and puts the car in Drive. “I was about to go deaf.”

“I didn’t hit him for shouting,” Victor says without looking at me.

I glance over at him as he carefully weaves the car down the thin streets lined with tightly packed cars on either side.

“I hit him because he put his hands on you,” he says.

I turn my face toward the side window, hiding my smile from him.

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About the Author  

Born November 25, 1975, J.A. (Jessica Ann) Redmerski is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. She lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.

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Giveaway:

(3) Signed print copy sets of Killing Sarai and Reviving Izabel  – International  

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Killing Sarai & Reviving Izabel Review

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Synopsis 

From the author of the New York Times, USA Today & Wall Street Journal bestselling novel, THE EDGE OF NEVER, comes a story of passion and survival… 

Sarai was only fourteen when her mother uprooted her to live in Mexico with a notorious drug lord. Over time she forgot what it was like to live a normal life, but she never let go of her hope to escape the compound where she has been held for the past nine years.

Victor is a cold-blooded assassin who, like Sarai, has known only death and violence since he was a young boy. When Victor arrives at the compound to collect details and payment for a hit, Sarai sees him as her only opportunity for escape. But things don’t go as planned and instead of finding transport back to Tucson, she finds herself free from one dangerous man and caught in the clutches of another.

While on the run, Victor strays from his primal nature as he succumbs to his conscience and resolves to help Sarai. As they grow closer, he finds himself willing to risk everything to keep her alive; even his relationship with his devoted brother and liaison, Niklas, who now like everyone else wants Sarai dead.

As Victor and Sarai slowly build a trust, the differences between them seem to lessen, and an unlikely attraction intensifies. But Victor’s brutal skills and experience may not be enough in the end to save her, as the power she unknowingly holds over him may ultimately be what gets her killed.

This is their story… 

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 Purchase Killing Sarai, (In the Company of Killers, #1) for only 99 Pennies!!! 

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 This book is slated for release December 10, 2013 

 

Synopsis

Determined to live a dark life in the company of the assassin who freed her from bondage, Sarai sets out on her own to settle a score with an evil sadist. Unskilled and untrained in the art of killing, the events that unfold leave her hanging precariously on the edge of death when nothing goes as planned. 

Sarai’s reckless choices send her on a path she knows she can never turn back from and so she presents Victor with an ultimatum: help her become more like him and give her a fighting chance, or she’ll do it alone no matter the consequences. Knowing that Sarai cannot become what she wants to be overnight, Victor begins to train her and inevitably their complicated relationship heats up. 

As Arthur Hamburg’s right-hand man, Willem Stephens, closes in on his crusade to destroy Sarai, she is left with the crushing realization that she may have bitten off more than she can chew. But Sarai, taking on the new and improved role of Izabel Seyfried, still has a set of deadly skills of her own that will prove to be all she needs to secure her place beside Victor.

But there is one test that Izabel must face that has the potential to destroy everything she is working so hard to achieve. One final test that will not only make her question her decision to want this dangerous life, but will make her question everything she has come to trust about Victor Faust. 

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Review 

It appears J.A. Redmerski and I share the same birth month! Perhaps that is why I am such a fan…hehe. I can appreciate a fellow Sagittarius’ creativity. With the upcoming release of Reviving Izabel, the second installment in the In the Company of Killers series, I wanted to provide a brief review of both Killing Sarai and Reviving Izabel

I don’t think I can adequately put into words my feelings on Reviving Izabel, (In the Company of Killers, Book #2).  In fact, I don’t think I can even do so with Killing Sarai. I received Reviving Izabel as an advanced copy from the author and I dropped everything I was doing to read it…I finished it in a few hours and I am still going through withdrawal hehe. This book is a complex blend of dark and dangerous, sexy, earth shattering, toe curling, and lustful desire. I don’t know how J.A. Redmerski did it, but she managed to make a brutal, action packed book into one of the sexiest novels I’ve read in a while. This book has a little something for everyone and I…LOVED…EVERY…MINUTE…OF…IT!!!!

Let me begin by expressing my heartfelt love for Killing Sarai, (In the Company of Killers, Book #1). The book is so far from what I would’ve expected from J.A. Redmerski, especially after reading The Edge of Never series…yet another book I fell head over heels in love with! I digress. Anyway, after reading Killing Sarai, I never posted a proper review…so I will give you my thoughts on it briefly…it fuckin rocks!!! However, it isn’t all roses and sweet words and a happily ever after! It’s raw, brutal and gritty! The main character Sarai has been sold to a drug lord. She becomes his “favorite” girl and though she is living in hell, she’s certainly treated better than most. She’s protected in a way because of his attachment to her, but Sarai wants out, she yearns to escape and never look back so when an opportunity presents itself via Victor Faust, she jumps at the opportunity. Sarai knows her chances with Victor are about as good as living on the Mexican compound but she needs to take a chance if there is any way she can escape. Things get a bit…messy between the two, but slowly they come to a mutual understanding. Their attraction to one another is intense and the build up is insane, but these feelings are problematic for someone in Victor’s line of work, with Sarai’s life in danger and Victor risking his neck to help her, will these two find a way to help one another while staying in each others lives?

Killing Sarai is an absolute must read. I cannot express to you enough how much I loved it. The only problem I encountered reading it was Reviving Izabel wasn’t even in the process of being written so I had to patiently wait on the continuation of this beloved story! If you haven’t already done so, you have the opportunity to read both beginning December 10th!!!! I highly recommend this book to all readers there is something for everyone.

Now, moving on to Reviving Izabel…. this book is PHENOMENAL! The story continues with Sarai who is trying to pick up the pieces of her life in a somewhat normal manner, her thoughts of being Izabel Seyfried haunt her daily. She’s out for blood and a chance to prove she’s cut out for the life of an assassin. She wants more than anything to prove she can handle herself, especially to the one man that consumes her thoughts daily – Victor Faust. Her commitment comes with a price,  will Sarai aka Izabel be up for the task or will she realize this may not be the life for her after all?

I feel if I go any more in depth with my review, I may reveal too much. I was definitely surprised at a few things that happened throughout the book. There are a lot of twists and turns, scary moments, drama, violence and then there are some ahem..some really hot, really, um :::fans self, opens window, takes a deep breath:::, let’s just say this book is as hot and steamy as it is brutal and dark. I don’t know how, but J.A. Redmerski was able to capture the essence of both a romance and a dark work of fiction. She blended the two together perfectly creating a masterpiece and the perfect follow-up to an already amazing Killing Sarai. These books are must-reads on my list and I recommend them for all readers (ok…except young adults and children…this is definitely a mature read…so make sure you can hang before opening this one!)  

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

 

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The Edge of Always Excerpt & Giveaway

We have an excerpt and giveaway to celebrate the release of

THE EDGE OF ALWAYS

The highly anticipated release by New York Times Bestselling Author

J.A. Redmerski!

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Publisher: Forever Romance
Release: November 5, 2013

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J. A. Redmerski brings us the second book in her heart-wrenching series about two 20-somethings who find each other in their darkest moment.

Camryn Bennett has never been happier. Five months after meeting on a Greyhound bus, she and her soul mate Andrew Parrish are engaged-and a wedding isn’t the only special event in their future. Nervous but excited, Camryn can’t wait to begin the rest of her life with Andrew, a man she knows in her heart will love her always. They have so much to look forward to-until tragedy blindsides them.

Andrew doesn’t understand how this could happen to them. He’s trying to move on, and thought Camryn was doing the same. But when Andrew discovers Camryn is secretly harboring a mountain of pain and attempting to numb it in damaging ways, there is nothing he won’t do to bring her back to life. Determined to prove that their love can survive anything, Andrew decides to take Camryn on a new journey filled with hope and passion. If only he can convince her to come along for the ride…

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 Excerpt 

I turn to Andrew again, waiting for him to spit it out. A cold breeze rushes through my knitted sweater, and I hide my hands inside the sleeves.

“You have five minutes to throw all of your stuff in your bag,” he says, and my heart is beating erratically before he finishes the sentence. He taps his wrist where there is no watch. “Not a second more.”

“Andrew—”

“This isn’t up for debate,” he says. “Go get your stuff.”

I just look at him, face blank.

My theory was right, but I didn’t want it to be. I don’t want to go on the road…I mean, I do…but it’s not right. It’s just not right.

“You have four minutes now.”

“But we can’t just leave like this,” I argue. “It would be rude.” I point at Asher. “And Asher just got here. Don’t you want to visit with—”

“I can visit my big brother anytime,” Asher counters. “Right now, I think you better do what he says or you might end up on the road wearing the same panties for a week.”

A few more seconds pass and I still haven’t moved. I’m in a state of mild shock, I guess.

“Three minutes, babe,” Andrew says and is looking at me with a serious face. “I’m not kidding. Get up there, throw our shit in our bags, and get in the damn car.”

Oh hell, he’s back to his old self again…

When I start to argue again, Andrew’s eyes get all feral-looking, and he says, “Hurry up. Time’s running out!” and he points to the house.

Finally, letting down my guard and going with the moment as much as I can allow myself, I glare at him and say, “Fine.” I’m only agreeing to it because I know he’s trying make things better. But I feel guilty as hell.

Disregarding his playful five-minute demand, I turn on my heels and walk very slowly back toward the house, purposely taking my time, partly my way of silently arguing the situation.

I push open the bedroom door, set my bag on the bed, and start stuffing everything inside of it. Then I go into the bathroom and grab our toothbrushes and various bathroom necessities. I yank our phone chargers from the wall and then my phone from the nightstand and chuck it all into my purse. I make my way around the room, hoping that I’m not missing anything.

Looks like Andrew already packed his stuff at some point and I never noticed.

Then I just stand here, scanning every inch of the place around me but not really seeing any of it. I don’t want to do this, but maybe it’s the right thing.

I hear the horn honk three times, and it snaps me out of my thoughts. Grabbing my bag, I swing it over my shoulder and grab my purse from the bed. 

 

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About the Author

J.A. Redmerski, New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children, two cats and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads

 

 

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Short Excerpt REVIVING IZABEL (In the Company of Killers #2)

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Check out the new excerpt from J.A. Redmerski’s Reviving Izabel –> Short Excerpt REVIVING IZABEL.

Can’t trust anybody,” I say, looking at nothing.

“No, you can’t,” Victor says and I look up, detecting a hidden meaning behind his words. “Now maybe you can understand why I don’t get close to anyone. It’s not just the job, Sarai, people generally cannot be trusted. Especially in my profession where trust is such a rarity that it’s not worth wasting the time and effort searching for it.”

“But you seem to trust Fredrik,” I point out, looking up at him from the couch. “Why’d you bring me here, of all places? Didn’t you learn your lesson with Samantha?”

His expression darkens, stung by my accusation.

“I never said I trusted Fredrik. That is still up in the air. But right now, Fredrik is my only connection inside the Order and for the past seven months he has done nothing to indicate he is untrustworthy. Quite the opposite, he’s done everything to prove that he is.”

“But that doesn’t make it true,” I say.

“No, you’re right, but soon enough I’ll know one hundred percent if Fredrik can be trusted, or not.”

“How so?”

“You’ll find out when I do,” he says.

“Why bother? You just said that trust is so rare it’s not worth the effort.”

“You ask a lot of questions.”

“Yeah, I guess I do. And you don’t answer enough of them.”

“No, I guess I don’t.” He smiles faintly and it melts my heart into a puddle of mush.

I look away from his eyes and swallow down my feelings.

“I’m not safe here,” I say looking back up at him.

“You’re not safe anywhere,” he says. “But as long as you’re with me, nothing will happen to you.”

“Now who’s full of shit?”

He raises an eyebrow.

“You’re not my hero, remember?” I remind him. “You’re not the other half of my soul who could never let anything bad ever happen to me. Trust my instincts first always, and you, if I choose, last. You said that to me once.”

“And it’s still as true today as it was then,” he says.

“Then how can you say nothing will happen to me if I’m with you?”

His expression becomes vacant as if for the first time in his life someone has rendered him speechless. I gaze across the room into his quiet and emotionless face, only his eyes revealing a trace of numbness. I get the feeling that he spoke before thinking, that he expressed something to me that he truly feels but never wanted me to know: he wants to be my ‘hero’, he will do anything and everything in his power to keep me safe, he wants me to trust him fully.

I do.

He walks back over and sits down beside me. The smell of his cologne faint as if he makes it a point to use as little as possible. It makes my head swim with need. I have longed to feel his touch again, to taste his warm lips, to let him ravage me the way he did a few nights before we last saw each other. I’ve thought of nothing but Victor for the past eight months of my life. While sleeping. Eating. Watching television. Having sex. Masturbating. Breathing. Every single thing I have done since he left me in that hospital with Dina, has been with him in mind.

“Do you think Fredrik will tell Niklas where we are?” I change the subject for fear of breaking into him too much too soon.

“I think if he was going to do that,” he says, “he would have told Niklas the little he did know about your whereabouts a long time ago and Niklas would have tried to kill you already.”

“There’s something…off about Fredrik. Don’t you sense it?”

Victor reaches up and touches my wet hair. The gesture causes my heart to speed up.

“You have a good sense of people, Sarai,” he says as his hand moves to my chin. “You’re right about Fredrik…,” the pad of his thumb brushes my bottom lip. A shiver races between my legs. “He is…shall I say…unhinged in a sense.”

My breathing picks up and I feel my lashes sweep my face when Victor’s lips fall upon mine.

“Unhinged in what way,” I ask breathily when he pulls back. With my eyes closed, I sense his scanning the curvature of my face and my lips, and I feel the breath emitting softly from his nostrils onto my face.

Every miniscule hair stands on end when his other hand pushes up my thigh and finds my naked waist underneath the shirt. His long fingers dance against the flesh of my hipbone and then rest there.

I open my eyes to see him staring back into mine.

“Is something wrong?” he asks and his mouth sweeps mine again.

“No, I…I just didn’t expect this.”

“Expect what?” I feel his fingers fit behind the elastic of my panties.

My head is swimming, my stomach a fluttering, nervous ball of muscle. “This,” I answer, my eyes opening and closing. “You’re different,” I add softly.

“That’s your fault,” he says and then his lips devour mine.

He pushes my body back against the couch pillows and falls between my legs. 

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Visit J.A. Redmerski’s Website for info on Reviving Izabel and more!

 

My (Current) Top Ten Fictional Boyfriends

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Bookwhoredom isn’t easy but someone’s got to do it. How could I live up to my name if I didn’t have a series of book boys I’m swooning over all at once. Here’s a list of fictional boyfriends I’m currently obsessed with…they aren’t long winded descriptions of the book just blurbs describing my undying devotion to these fab men! Christian Grey isn’t on this list BUT this is a CURRENT list…I will undeniably find my way back to him! LOL.

10. Jessie Ward – This Man Trilogy (Jodi Ellen Malpas)

Talk about swoon worthy alpha males. I love love love Jessie Ward he is my number 10 pick…I know, I know #10 seems far off but he was a bit too possessive for my liking. I love him but let’s face it he had some batshit crazy moments. HA!

This Man  |  Beneath This Man  |  This Man Confessed

9. Tristan Michaels – Finding Love’s Wings (Zoey Derrick)

Hot movie star…um need I say more? Oh wait, Hot tattooed (and pierced) movie star! Yes, please! ::Fans self:: excuse me while I swoon some more. Tristan Michaels is just hot! Lock me away in a hotel room on a remote island with him any day!  Must read book with a must have book boyfriend!

Finding Love’s Wings

8. Matt Watkins – Flat Out Love (Jessica Park)

Witty, lovable Matt. One of my must read picks is Flat-Out Love and I swear this guy had me swooning from the start. Nerdy and adventurous what a combo.  He’s  the ultimate book boyfriend.

Flat-Out Love  |  Flat-Out Matt

7.  Ryan Christensen – The Love Series (Tina Reber)

Another movie star! Hello…notice a pattern…I’m kind of digging the rockstar/movie star romance. Hollywood IT man Ryan Christensen is hot let’s face it, the man is sex on a stick but he doesn’t want all the glitz and glamour. He wants the girl…loyal, humble and absolutely swoon worthy…what’s not to love?

Love Unscripted  |  Love Unrehearsed

6. Kellan Kyle – Thoughtless Trilogy (S.C. Stephens)

ROCKSTAR Romance! Who doesn’t love them? Kellan Kyle you had me swooning from the beginning and I am still reeling from that experience. I would’ve dropped my man for you too…ok maybe not, but I’d consider it! hehe 😀

Thoughtless  |  Effortless  |  Reckless

5.  Andrew Parrish – The Edge of Never (J.A. Redmerski)

I love, love, love Andrew Parrish. If I had to take a road trip across the country with a random stranger…he’d be my guy! Seriously though, what’s not to love…he is smoldering hot and sweet as candy.  This is the guy you take to bed that will NEVER disappoint, the one you introduce to your parents and marry! The one you want to spend every waking moment with because he’s so flipping perfect! Oh and did I mention he’s also tattooed…I think I’m in heaven! Someone pinch me!

The Edge of Never  |  The Edge of Always

4. David Ferris – Lick (Stage Dive #1)  (Kylie Scott)

Oh dear God, lock me in a room with David Ferris. Accidentally marry me off to him…I promise I’ll never leave! Another ROCKSTAR romance to die for. Hot is not the word for David Ferris…jeez the things I’ve mentally done with him! HA!

Lick (Stage Dive #1)

3. Dean Holder – Hopeless/Losing Hope & Will Cooper – Slammed Trilogy (Colleen Hoover)

Need I say more.

Colleen Hoover creates amazing characters who you fall in love with regardless of gender but Holder, sigh, Holder is something special. And I had to include Will from the Slammed trilogy because, well, I just love him, but since I wanted to be fair to other authors I love. CoHo gets a pass and you get a two-for! Lol.

Hopeless  |  Losing Hope

Slammed  | Point of Retreat  |  This Girl

2. Rush Finlay – Too Far Series (Abbi Glines)

Rush, I love you. Marry me! The End.

Fallen Too Far  |  Never Too Far  |  Forever Too Far

1. Fitzwilliam Darcy – Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)

Need I say more? Classic and timeless! My all time favorite book boyfriend. He will always be #1. I’d give up my bookwhoring for him. LOL.  Mr. Darcy, the elusive Mr. Darcy. I love this book I’ve read it more time than I’m willing to admit and have watched every movie, series or show based on the book. My all time favorite Darcy portrayal is Colin Firth! Best adaptation I’ve seen! And guess what, I might leave my man for Darcy…in fact, I think I have. Quite a few times…while he was present…but shhhhhh don’t tell him!

Pride and Prejudice – there are no excuses for not reading this book, the download is FREE!!!

If you haven’t read any of the books I highly recommend them. Not just because they’re awesome but because the “eye candy,” come on folks you’re readers use your imagination. Seriously though, check these books out. You won’t be disappointed!

Killing Sarai Book Tour & Giveaway!

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From the author of the New York Times, USA Today & Wall Street Journal bestselling novel, THE EDGE OF NEVER, comes a story of passion and survival…

Sarai was only fourteen when her mother uprooted her to live in Mexico with a notorious drug lord. Over time she forgot what it was like to live a normal life, but she never let go of her hope to escape the compound where she has been held for the past nine years.

Victor is a cold-blooded assassin who, like Sarai, has known only death and violence since he was a young boy. When Victor arrives at the compound to collect details and payment for a hit, Sarai sees him as her only opportunity for escape. But things don’t go as planned and instead of finding transport back to Tucson, she finds herself free from one dangerous man and caught in the clutches of another.

While on the run, Victor strays from his primal nature as he succumbs to his conscience and resolves to help Sarai. As they grow closer, he finds himself willing to risk everything to keep her alive; even his relationship with his devoted brother and liaison, Niklas, who now like everyone else wants Sarai dead.

As Victor and Sarai slowly build a trust, the differences between them seem to lessen, and an unlikely attraction intensifies. But Victor’s brutal skills and experience may not be enough in the end to save her, as the power she unknowingly holds over him may ultimately be what gets her killed.

This is their story…

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        Purchase Killing Sarai for Kindle            Purchase Killing Sarai in Paperback

Giveaway

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Excerpt

I raise the gun a little higher, settling the barrel at the back of her head, but not touching it. I don’t want her to be afraid before she dies and although I know she fears nothing, death is something we all fear in our final moment even if only the smallest part of us is conscious of it. I don’t want her to fear it at all and she can’t if she doesn’t know that it’s happening.

“How old were you when you became what you are?” she asks.

Caught off guard by the question and maybe more-so by the shifting of the mood, I hesitate before answering.

“I was nine.”

She sniffles and wipes her eyes with the hand near her cheek.

“You were very young,” she goes on. “I guess in a way like me, you never had a chance to live a life of your choosing. I guess maybe we aren’t really so different from each other.” She pauses. “Except I might be more like your brother than I care to admit. He’s as angry as I am.”

I release my finger from the trigger and slowly, so she doesn’t know, move the barrel away from the back of her head.

“It must’ve been hard growing up with Niklas,” she says.

I set the gun back on the bed next to me and before I know what I’m doing I’m cradling the back of her head in my hand again.”

About the Author

jredmerski12

J.A. Redmerski, New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of THE EDGE OF NEVER lives in North Little Rock, Arkansas with her three children and a Maltese. She is a lover of television and books that push boundaries and is a huge fan of AMC’s The Walking Dead.

Author social media links:

www.jessicaredmerski.com
www.facebook.com/J.A.Redmerski
www.twitter.com/JRedmerski
www.goodreads.com/JRedmerski

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