Book of the Month - June

I read quite a few books in June although not all was enjoyable but the rest where good if not amazing!

Here's what I read in June:

• Personal Assets (Texas Nights, #1) by Kelsey Browning - 4/5
• Love Story by Jennifer Echols - 2.5/5
• The Substitute (The Wedding Pact, #1) by Denise Grover Swank - 5/5
• Shredded (Extreme Risks, #1) by Tracy Wolff - 2.5/5
• Three Girls and a Baby (Three Girls, #1) by Rachel Schurig - 4/5
• Touch (Denazen, #1) by Jus Accardo - 4/5
• Aimee and the Heartthrob (Backstage Pass, #1) by Ophelia London - 4/5
• Rule (Marked Men, #1) by Jay Crownover - 4.5/5
• Swimming to Tokyo by Brenda St. John Brown - 3/5

And the book of the month goes to..

I adored this book from beginning to end. It was such a light hearted and fun read perfect for a summer read.

What's your book of the month?

Book Review: Love Story by Jennifer Echols

 

(Click image to take you to Goodreads)

Buy: Amazon UK | Amazon US | Book Depository

Format: Paperback

Publishers: MTV Books

Published: 19th July 2011

Pages: 243

Genre: YA, Contemporary Romance, 

Main Characters: Erin, Hunter
Date Read: 2nd June - 11th June 2015

Rating Given:

Synopsis:She's writing about him. He's writing about her. And everybody is reading between the lines.. 
For Erin Blackwell, majoring in creative writing at the New York City college of her dreams is more than a chance to fulfill her ambitions--it's her ticket away from the tragic memories that shadow her family's racehorse farm in Kentucky. But when she refuses to major in business and take over the farm herself someday, her grandmother gives Erin's college tuition and promised inheritance to their maddeningly handsome stable boy, Hunter Allen. Now Erin has to win an internship and work late nights at a coffee shop to make her own dreams a reality. She should despise Hunter . . . so why does he sneak into her thoughts as the hero of her latest writing assignment?
Then, on the day she's sharing that assignment with her class, Hunter walks in. He's joining her class. And after he reads about himself in her story, her private fantasies about him must be painfully clear. She only hopes to persuade him not to reveal her secret to everyone else. But Hunter devises his own creative revenge, writing sexy stories that drive the whole class wild with curiosity and fill Erin's heart with longing. Now she's not just imagining what might have been. She's writing a whole new ending for her romance with Hunter. . . . except this story could come true.

I have had this book sat on my shelf for quite some time now and I have only now gotten to it but now I'm wishing I left it a little bit longer...

This is such a sweet cover that I would have liked but because I don't feel it matches the overall story being told.

I had high hopes for Love Story as I had previously read Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols and adored it but Love Story for me was a bit of a let down. It was so hard to get into this book as it was hard to have any empathy for either of the characters. There was so much hypocrisy in Love Story I found myself rolling my eyes though out. There was a couple of moments when I thought it was going to pick up in the middle of the book but in the end it just fell flat. The romance side of the story was unbelievable as there was no real spark between the main characters plus for most of the book they couldn't stand one another and then all of a sudden they where in love. As for the ending it was far too rushed with no real answers plus I didn't believe in that ending.

I don't think there was one character that I really warmed to and the one that I liked the most wasn't even in it that much. Erin started off ok but as soon as Hunter came on the scene she started to get more and more annoying. Erin came across as a spoilt rich kid even though she was cut off, she was also very selfish as long as she got what she wanted it didn't matter about anyone else. Hunter was also a character that I didn't like as he was such a jerk we did get a better understanding of why he acted the way he did in the end but I just couldn't forgive him in the end.

Overall this book just wasn't for me but that isn't going to stop me from reading more books from Jennifer Echols as I know that she has great books waiting for me to read if Going Too Far is anything to go by.

Showcase Sunday #89

Showcase Sunday is a weekly Meme that I am taking part of. This weekly meme is hosted by Vicky over at Book, Biscuits and Tea.

Click images to take you to Goodreads.

Physical Books

  

 

The top three I got for 3 for £5 at The Works, couldn't find a third one that I have had my eye on so went for Personally... as it sounded like something I would enjoy. The bottom two books I got as I was having a really bad day so thought I would get a couple of books.

Kindle Books Bought

  

I bought these for my kindle when I was having that bad day. The first one was only 99p and the other two was £1.99!

Free Kindle Books

  

 

Kindle Review Books

  

Showcase Sunday #54

Showcase Sunday is a new weekly Meme that I am taking part of. This weekly meme is hosted by Vicky over at Book, Biscuits and Tea and for more info click on the SS image which will take you straight to the blog. Click images to take you to Goodreads.

 

Physical Books

 

  

 

Kindle Books Bought

 

 

 

Free Kindle Books

 

  

  

 

Kindle Books for Review

  

  

BOTM #16

Here is my January Book of the month post. I have done a vlog of the books that I have read and also books that I am going to read in February.

Here's the books that I read in January 2013:

• The MacKinnon Curse: The Beginning by J.A. Templeton (4.5/5)
• Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols (5/5)
• Hollowland by Amanda Hocking (3.5/5)
• The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa (4/5)
• Persistence of Vision by Liesel K. Hill (4/5)
• Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout (5/5)
• Dare You To by Katie McGarry (5/5)
• Devil's Bargain by Rachel Caine (4.5/5)
• Blood and Snow by RaShelle Workman (3.5/5)
• Offside by M.G. Higgins (1.5/5)
• The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead (5/5)
• Last Bitten by Lauren Ash (3/5)
• All Over You by Emily Snow (3.5/5)
• Milo 2.0: Origins: The Fire by Debra Driza (1/5)
• Intuition by J. Meyers (2.5/5)

And the Book of the Month goes to...

This month was a good month of reading so it was really hard to pick a book of the month but in the end I went for The Indigo Spell. I just loved this book and if I could I would give it an even higher rating as I was enthralled by it. To see my review click here.

It's Monday What Are You Reading? #61

It's Monday What Are You Reading is a weekly meme hosted by Book Journey in which we plan our reading week!
(Click on images to send you to Goodreads)

Finished Reading

(Click on title for review)

 

Ruby Blue by Julie Cassar

The MacKinnon Curse: The Beginning by J.A. Templeton

Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

 

 

Currently Reading

 

The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa

Not bad so far but I don't feel as though it's as good as what everyone else has been saying. Hopefully it will pick up as I'm only 100 pages into it.

 

Hollowland by Amanda Hocking

When I first started this I was really enjoying it but then it started to get a bit too repetitive.

 

 

Reading Next

 

Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout

 

Persistence of Vision by Liesel K. Hill

 

 

 

So that's what I have read and planning on starting this week let me know or leave links in the comments below of your reading week plan.

Book Review: Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

Format: Paperback

Publishers: MTV Books

Published: 17th March 2009

Pages: 245

Main Characters: Meg, John

Date Started: 1st January 2013

Date Finished: 4th January 2013

Rating Given:

 

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

HOW FAR WOULD YOU GO?

 

All Meg has ever wanted is to get away. Away from high school. Away from her backwater town. Away from her parents who seem determined to keep her imprisoned in their dead-end lives. But one crazy evening involving a dare and forbidden railroad tracks, she goes way too far...and almost doesn't make it back.

 

John made a choice to stay. To enforce the rules. To serve and protect. He has nothing but contempt for what he sees as childish rebellion, and he wants to teach Meg a lesson she won't soon forget. But Meg pushes him to the limit by questioning everything he learned at the police academy. And when he pushes back, demanding to know why she won't be tied down, they will drive each other to the edge -- and over....

 

 

 

 I had had my eye on this book for a long time so when I finally got a copy I was really happy and thought I was going to read it straight away. Over a year later I have finally read it and I just wish I had read it sooner.

I don't really think much of the cover as it's just a simple one but I still think it's effective. Even though there is just the two people on the cover I feel like you get a sense of what the story is about which I think is good.

I haven't read many contemporary romance books but for the most I have loved them and this is no different and is definitely a new favourite of mine. Usually in the contemporary book it's the boy that's the bad guy but this time around it was the girl which I thought was a refreshing change although there was times when he did get angry but I understood where he was coming from. I also understood where Meg's anger came from which made her a more likable character. The chemistry between Meg and John was sizzling and I just couldn't wait to see where their relationship took them next as one minute they was hot the next minute they was cold. I loved that I never knew what was going to happen next as there was a few revelations that shocked me as I just never saw them coming.

Both Meg and John was great characters that I would have loved to see more of. Meg was the rebel of the story (but for a reason and a pretty good one at that) which shocked me but also made me laugh as her humour just stood out. John was the good guy cop but I did feel like he had a inner rebel just waiting to get out. He also had a bit of a temper but I didn't mind that so much but there was one point towards the end where I felt he needed to stop and think. There was also a few other characters but we didn't get to know much about them which was a shame as I would love to have read more about John's friends they seemed sweet.

Overall a great book and I now can't wait to read more from Jennifer especially if her other books are as good as this one.

2013 TBR Pile Reading Challenge

(Click on the image to join up to the challenge)   Welcome to 2012 TBR PILE Reading Challenge!!!
6 BLOGGERS, 12 MINI-CHALLENGES, 24 BOOKS TO WIN!!!
We all have those books. We buy them, win them, they're gifted to us.. Then we put them up on a bookshelf and there they stay, collecting dust, waiting for the time when we'll finally decide to pick them up..

Join us on a quest to dust off your TBR Pile and read all the books you've been telling yourself you'll read next time you'll get a chance.. This is your chance! And we've got PRIZES!!! :D
  Challenge Guidelines:

1. This challenge will run from Jan 1, 2013 - Dec 31, 2013.
2. Anyone can enter! You don't have to be a blogger, as long as you review the book you've read! (On your blog, Amazon or Goodreads/Shelfari!)
3. Any genre, length or format of book counts, as long as it is a book that's been sitting on your shelf for some time now. Only books released in 2012 and earlier! NO 2013 ARCs and 2013 fresh-off-the-press releases allowed!
4. You can list your books in advance or just put them in a wrap-up post. If you list them, feel free to change them as the mood takes you.
5. When you sign up in the linky, put the direct link to your post about joining the 2013 TBR PILE Reading Challenge. (If you don't have a blog, post about it on Facebook or Tweet!)
6. You can move up levels, but no moving down.
7. Sign-ups will be open until Dec 15, 2013, so feel free to join at any time throughout the year.
8. On the 20th of each month one of the hosts will post a wrap-up. Every wrap-up will have it's unique theme, a mini-challenge, a giveaway and place for you to link up your reviews from this month. For each review you link up, you will get one entry in a drawing of one book of choice from Book Depository. It's open to INTERNATIONALS. The giveaway will be open until the next wrap up post goes up! (i.e. the entire month)
9. If you miss a wrap-up post + giveaway, you can link up your reviews next month. Do not, however, try to link up one review twice - we will be checking ;)
10. December is a wrap-up for the whole year. All the book reviews you linked up January-November + the ones you'll link up in December will be entered into a HUGE giveaway - a box of books.
11. You don't have to follow all the hosts to join the challenge, but you do have to follow all of us to be entered in giveaways!

Levels:(how many books you're planning to read for this challenge in 2013)

1-10 - A Firm Handshake
11-20 - A Friendly Hug
21-30 - A Sweet Kiss
31-40 - Love At First Sight
41-50 - Married With Children

Schedule:

January 20th: Evie @Bookish (www.evie-bookish.blogspot.com)

February 20th: Rachel @Fiktshun (http://www.fiktshun.com)

March 20th: Justin @Justin's Book Blog (http://www.justinsbookblog.com/)

April 20th: Tiffany @Escaping.. One Book At A Time (http://escapingonebookatatime.blogspot.com/)

May 20th: Bonnie @Words At Home (www.wordsathome.ca/)

June 20th: Justin @Justin's Book Blog (http://www.justinsbookblog.com/)

July 20th: Emily @Doodle's Book Blog (doodlesbookblog.blogspot.com/)

August 20th: Tiffany @Escaping One Book At A Time (http://escapingonebookatatime.blogspot.com/)

September 20th: Rachel @Fiktshun (http://www.fiktshun.com)

October 20th: Emily @Doodle's Book Blog (doodlesbookblog.blogspot.com/)

November 20th: Bonnie @Words At Home (www.wordsathome.ca/)

December 20th: This one will be posted on all the blogs. There will also be a huge BOX OF BOOKS giveaway and this time you can link up ALL YOUR TBR Pile REVIEWS you wrote for the entire year!

 

I am going to aiming for the Married With Children! I will keep track of the books that I read on this post. I have put down the books that I am hoping to start with.

 

1. Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

2. Devil's Bargain by Rachel Caine

3. Hunting Lila by Sarah Alderson

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Looking forward to taking part in my first ever Blog reading challenge wish me luck!

Good Luck everyone taking part!

Showcase Sunday #19

 

Showcase Sunday is a new weekly Meme that I am taking part of. This weekly meme is hosted by Vicky over at Book, Biscuits and Tea and for more info click on the SS image which will take you straight to the blog. Click on the titles of the books to take you to Goodreads.

 

 

Books mentioned

Books Swapped
Love Story by Jennifer Echols
The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

Books Bought
Possess by Gretchen McNeil
Storm by Brigid Kemmerer

So that's what I read this week leave me a link to what you received and I will take a look.

In My Mailbox #16

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme that is hosted by The Story Siren. This is where we show what we have either bought or was given throughout the week gone by.









This week I received a couple of swaps from UK Swap Shop over at Goodreads:

Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

I was recommended this book from Goodreads and it sounded so good that I thought I would try and get it. I am looking forward to reading this book.

Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper

I had never read what this book was about but I have always loved the front cover so when I had the chance to have a swap I jumped at the chance. It was only then when I read what it was about which does sound like a different kind of book for me but it does sound interesting.

I also was accepted for a coupe of e-arcs from Netgalley

Dead of Night by Lynn Viehl

I loved the sound of this book so I thought I would give it a try but then I found out that this was number 2 in a series which I haven't tried. Has anyone read the first one? Do I need to read the first one first or could I start with this one?

Illuminate by Aimee Agresti

I actually emailed the publisher for this book as I saw it on Goodreads and it sounded so good but unfortunately they don't post out to the UK but she sent me a link for the netgalley which was already accepted so I was really pleased about that and I can't wait to read it.

What was in your mailbox this week?