Stone Cold Bad book review

Stone Cold Bad
By Tess Oliver
210 pages
4 out of 5 stars
Get it here: Amazon


Description:
Jade
He was definitely trouble, and the worst kind of trouble because he was wrapped up in an incredible package of muscles, ink and heartbreak. A guy like him was the last thing I needed now. A guy like Colt Stone was the last thing I ever needed.

Colt
Emotion, feelings and, hell, even love had been turned off in all of us Stone brothers long ago. Then Jade landed in my life. It was the last thing I ever wanted, to feel this way about someone. Attachments like this were only followed by heartbreak, and I wasn't into heartbreak. I wasn't into f*cking attachments. 


Bad boy Colt Stone has a notorious reputation for being a tough and dangerous heartbreaker. A brutal childhood hardened him to the idea of any type of emotional attachment to anyone. When he becomes the unwitting accomplice in Jade Morrow's escape from an abusive boyfriend, he soon finds that he'll do anything to keep her safe. Has Colt found the one girl who can break through to his impenetrable heart?

When she runs away from her monstrous boyfriend, Jade Morrow has no place to go and no one to turn to. She accidentally lands in the arms of a handsome, tattooed stranger. Colt Stone is as formidable as he is appealing and Jade soon finds that he's equally hard to resist. When her troubled past catches up to her, Jade discovers just how far Colt will go to save her. 

This was a gift from my secret santa ebook gift exchange. It had been on my list for a while and I'm glad I finally got to read it. 
Colt is our typical bad boy

 Hello bad boys we love you as book boyfriends.  Colt has his mysteries and I love him for that.  His first interaction with Jade is her using him as her human shield from her ex's goons. She kisses him hard and one thing leads to another and they're in the closet and his hand is down her pants. I was hooked on him from that moment on!


“A guy like him was the last thing I needed now. A guy like Colt Stone was the last thing I ever needed.” 

The world gets out of control for Jade and she ends up getting hunted down by her crazy ex. When she escapes she finds her way onto a boat and passes out. When she comes too Colt is staring down at her and the fire between them ignites. 
Jade doesn't want to be anyone's possession again. But Colt claims her as his and she has no choice. (Not that she would want to fit it I mean come on!)

“Seeing that guy touch you was too much. I couldn’t stop myself. Before I knew it, I was flying across that bar thinking, he touched you and I was going to have to pound him for it. No one fucking touches you except me.” His mouth came down over mine again. He held me so tightly, I was sure he’d squeeze the breath from me. “Since I had you pressed up against the wall in that closet, I knew that you had to be mine,” he whispered against my mouth.” 

They make a deal to be together till they grow tired of one another. But they both quickly realize that's never going to happen. The chemistry is to strong.

I gave this book a 4 star for only one reason. The huge conflict that the whole book had been leading up too, didn't happen until the last few chapters and I felt like it was rushed. I loved the book as a whole though. Colt is on my list  of favorite book boyfriends. I fell in love with him and never want to let him go. I hope to get around to the rest of the series to find out what happens with the other brothers. One in particular.

I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a steamy get away over the weekend. Curl up with Colt you won't be disappointed.

2016 leaves and here comes 2017

I am so sorry I was away for so long guys!
I feel so bad for just dropping the ball on this blog. But my new job has been keeping me so busy, there there was the holidays.
I had an amazing holiday season though and got so many new books!

My resolutions for 2017 includes doing more book reviews! My goodreads goal this year is to read 100 books. I do plan to surpass that of course. But I am hoping that means at lest 100 reviews! So here is to the new year and the new me!
I am hoping to focus more on my reading as well as my own novels.
So look out here I come.

Spotlight Post. Dragon Queen Designs.

So I sometimes like to do something different on here. Today I am spotlighting a dear friend of mine and her cover design company. Check her page out here: Facebook
I absolutely love this girl and her work is amazing!!
Lets start with this beauty for the amazing J.E.Feldman Check her out here: Amazon

This beauty takes my breath away and its available for $20 Someone needs to go snatch this one up. I see a fairy type book ;) 

But she doesn't just do enchanting fairy like covers. Nope looking for your next Utopia book cover? Look no further get this epic cover for $20

Maybe you're looking for something more contemporary well she's got that too! In fact this cover for the next summer splash hit is $15

Maybe you're writing something a bit sexier? And you want an ebook cover? Grab this one for $5

Maybe you want your hands on a fun fantasy romance cover? How about this one for $10? 

No matter your needs the Dragon Queen is here for you. She's got prices that any Author will love. I know how hard it is to find nice affordable covers. So make sure you check her out!

The Problem with Forever book review

The Problem with Forever
By Jennifer L. Armentrout
480 pages
4.5 out of 5 stars
Get it here: Amazon

Description: Growing up, Mallory Dodge learned that the best way to survive was to say nothing. And even though it’s been four years since her nightmare ended, she’s beginning to worry that the fear that holds her back will last a lifetime. Now, after years of homeschooling, Mallory must face a new milestone—spending her senior year at a public high school. But she never imagined she’d run into Rider Stark, the friend and protector she hasn’t seen since childhood, on her very first day.

It doesn’t take long for Mallory to realize that the connection she shared with Rider never really faded. Yet soon it becomes apparent that she’s not the only one grappling with lingering scars from the past. And as she watches Rider’s life spiral out of control, Mallory must make a choice between staying silent and speaking out—for the people she loves, the life she wants and the truths that need to be heard.

***This will be a shorter review as its spoiler free!***

This book was really good. I was instantly connected to our main character Mallory *Mouse* I found her to be relate-able as someone who has been through a lot of what she has. I had several times i had to put the book down, all because it felt so real. Jennifer wrote the pain so well. 

Rider was almost an instant book boyfriend for me. His connection with Mallory is strong, and apparent from the start. He was there for her through so much and now hes here for her when she just needs a guy. 

Their relationship sparks quickly and its fast and beautiful, but like all good romance books they have their problems. Ex girlfriends, parental units, and friends. All of which make for this book to be amazing. 

I loved the dynamic of  Mallory and Rider. I loved seeing them both grow as characters in this book. And all the side characters played important rolls in the book. I wish there were more books about those characters. 

Check out our youtube review for more details on this book and what we thought of it. 

Beautiful book with beautiful pain.

Thirteen Reasons Why book review

Thirteen Reasons Why
By Jay Asher
288 pages
4.5 out of 5 stars
Get it here: Amazon

Description: You can’t stop the future. 
You can’t rewind the past.
The only way to learn the secret . . . is to press play.
Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker—his classmate and crush—who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah's voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out why. 
                
Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah's pain, and as he follows Hannah’s recorded words throughout his town, what he discovers changes his life forever.

*Spoilers ahead*

Everyone needs to read this book. I'm serious I think every person out there needs to take this book and hide away and read it until they're done. I finished this book in a mater of hours and it still impacts me to this day. 

This book is highly controversial and a lot of people hate it. I for one loved it. As someone who has struggled with suicidal thoughts and depression as well as bullying I get where the character was coming from. 

Hannah made a series of tapes for 13 people explain why and how each of them played a role in her decision to kill her self. We read about Clay who in the end was someone she truly cared about and felt cared about her. She sent him the tapes so he wouldn't feel like he played a role in all of it. 

Hannah gives him a map and a list of places to go if he chooses too, each place means something different to her. 

I read a lot of comments about this book that says "It glorifies suicide." I didn't feel that in fact I felt like it gave a good incite into the brain of a suicidal person. Another comment said "Suicide is because you have something wrong in your brain. Not because you have 13 reasons." This comment kinda annoyed me because its not something wrong always,  a lot of times like in Hannah's case life sucks

“ If you hear a song that makes you cry and you don't want to cry anymore, you don't listen to that song anymore.
But you can't get away from yourself. You can't decide not to see yourself anymore. You can't decide to turn off the noise in your head.” 
― Jay Asher, Thirteen Reasons Why

You can't turn off the words of others repeating in your head.

“I sat. And I thought. And the more I thought, connecting the events in my life, the more my heart collapsed.” 
― Jay Asher, Thirteen Reasons Why

She was bullied and didn't see any other way out. So she took the only way she knew. If people had paid more attention to her maybe she wouldn't have done it. 

“No one knows for certain how much impact they have on the lives of other people. Oftentimes, we have no clue. Yet we push it just the same.”

― Jay Asher, Thirteen Reasons Why   

Everything you say and do affects the people around you. I feel like every teenager needs to read this. Most don't see how their words and actions hurt others. They say something out loud and it gets back to that person it affects them their whole lives. You call a girl fat she will be sitting here blogging as an adult and still think  she is all because you said it out loud once. 

You mess with peoples minds and emotions it doesn't affect you but it affects them. 

Clay hurt so bad for Hannah he had a crush on her, and he felt like if he had just asked her out maybe she would still be here.  I can't say if it would have changed anything, but it may have. Maybe she would have felt the love she desperately needed.

Through all of Hannah's tapes I wished I could have hugged her and told her it would be okay. *Yes I know she's fictional*

 “A lot of you cared, just not enough.” 

― Jay Asher, Thirteen Reasons Why

The words in this book hit hard and its what makes this book so special.  I know a lot of the comments don't like this book and that is their choice. But I feel as someone who has been through what Hannah went through I will never forget this book and how much it hit close to home. This book deals with the tough stuff people would rather pretend never happens. I wish I could put a copy of this book in every teens hands. It may change them and the way they think. 

Slammed book review

Slammed
By Colleen Hoover
352 pages
5 out of 5 stars
Get it here: Amazon

Description: Falling in love can feel like poetry. Or it can feel like a slam to the heart.

Colleen Hoover’s romantic, emotion-packed debut novel unforgettably captures all the magic and confusion of first love, as two young people forge an unlikely bond before discovering that fate has other plans for them.

Following the unexpected death of her father, eighteen-year-old Layken becomes the rock for both her mother and younger brother. She appears resilient and tenacious, but inside, she's losing hope. Then she meets her new neighbor Will, a handsome twenty-one-year-old whose mere presence leaves her flustered and whose passion for poetry slams thrills her.

Not long after a heart-stopping first date during which each recognizes something profound and familiar in the other, they are slammed to the core when a shocking discovery brings their new relationship to a sudden halt. Daily interactions become impossibly painful as they struggle to find a balance between the feelings that pull them together and the forces that tear them apart. Only through the poetry they share are they able to speak the truth that is in their hearts and imagine a future where love is cause for celebration, not regret.

*Spoilers ahead*

Okay let me start of by saying, if you have never read a Colleen Hoover book go get this book like right now. Then get Hopeless and Ugly Love. Trust me. 

Now if you have read Colleen you know full well this woman is a brilliant writer who loves to rip your heart out and smash it! 

T

I will have it known I love Colleen and Regina. 

Our main character Layken or Lake and her family after the unexpected death of her father, move from sunny Texas to cold Michigan. With in moments of pulling up to her new house her little brother has a new friend. Being nine makes it easy for him. She's chasing the boys around the truck pretending to be a zombie. When she hears the boys shouts because they're trapped she rounds the corner she comes face to face with Will. Enter sparks and my heart flying out of my chest!

Sparks fly and Lake and Will are connected. They go on their first date and he takes her to a club *Club N3NE* and they are there for the Slam Poetry night. Lake falls in love with the words and the way people express themselves. She convinces Will to go up and preform. He does a poem titled "Death". His words hit me and I was tearing up as he preformed his poem. 

Death. The only thing inevitable in life.
People don't like to talk about death because it makes them sad.
They don't want to imagine how life will go on without them,
all the people they love will briefly grieve 
but continue to breathe.

He takes her home and she fights everything to not kiss him. He tries so hard to take it slow but the electricity is so strong they finally kiss at the end of the date. This isn't a soft first kiss. This is a kiss full of love and need. Full of everything they're feeling and not knowing they're feeling it. 

The next few weeks are just her and Will and pure happiness. The school comes around. Something else new and scary for Lake. She meets Eddie and the two girls are instant friends. Probably helps that Eddie doesn't really give her a choice just decides that "Hey we're gunna be friends." So school isn't off to a horrible start. She makes her way to her poetry class and runs smack into Will. She instantly thinks he's here to see his girlfriends. Poor Lake its so much more complicated than that. Not only is Will her sexy as hell across the street neighbor that shes falling for. But he's her teacher too!  

Things spiral out of control after this. Will decides that its better that they distance themselves. Of course in his terms that means cut her off completely.  Now before you go and condemn Will, know that he needs this job he is single handily raising his younger brother. 

When the class is asked to write a poem Lake takes all of her anger and writes a poem about Will. She uses just about every word for Jerk known to man in that poem. 

The hot and cold of Will continue for a while until Lake's roller coaster goes even further down hill. She thinks her mom has moved on to a new man already and when she confronts her with it, her world breaks even more. Mom isn't moving on, mom has cancer and is dying. She doesn't have much time left and she needs her kids to know. 

Lake runs to Will and he is there for her as she has her break down. Eddie is also there for her and finally gets her to talk to her mom. 

They mend as best they can and Will and his brother start to come over for the holidays and other things. Its like they're one big happy family but its still so hard. 

When the brothers decide on their Halloween costumes Lake and Will have to go get a tape measure from Will's house. There is a Laundry room scene here that I love so much! The night before Lake had been assaulted and Will saved her because he was jealous.  her heart is happy and it looks like things might be looking up for them. But when she asks Will what this means for them, he shuts the whole thing down again and it rips her apart. Ripped me apart too my heart couldn't take anymore. *Thank you Colleen, so many tissues*

Me 

Colleen 

Lake decides that she's done and will move on. She cuts Will  off and focuses on her Mom spending time with her. But her mom see's it and knows she needs Will as much as he needs her. Even if he won't admit it. 

“I'm serious. You've been doing so much thinking with your head that you're ignoring your heart completely. There has to be a balance. The fact that both of you are letting other things consume you is about to ruin any chance you'll ever have at being happy.” 
― Colleen Hoover, Slammed

Her mom tells her to run to him and show her love. She goes to the only place she can be sure he might be N3NE. She gets up and preforms her poem. 

“I got schooled this year
by
a
boy.

A boy that I'm seriously, deeply, madly, incredibly, and undeniably inlove with.
And he taught me the most important thing of all...

To put the emphasis
On life .” 

I was crying my eyes out by this point. She preforms this beautiful poem and waits for him. But its not like in the movies he doesn't come running up the stage to take her in his arms. She starts to leave when she hears my favorite quote. "That's not a good idea." 

Will is standing on the stage. He was a judge that night and now hes going to preform his poem. 

Life knows. 

Life is trying to tell ne

That the girl I love 

The girl I fell

So hard for?

There's room for her in first. 

I'm putting her first.” 
― Colleen Hoover, Slammed

After both poems they share an epicly magical kiss. The world is right if only for a short time. In the epilogue  they share their first Christmas together since Lakes mom died. She left them one last present and a letter. My heart broke into pieces as I read the letter. 

Don't take life too seriously. Punch it in the face when it needs a good hit. Laugh at it.

This book was perfect it is hands down my favorite read this year. I spent so much of my time crying while I read this book. My heart strings were tugged on and I loved it. I fell in love with Will the moment he opened his mouth.  He is easily in my top 5 book boyfriends now. I had taken way to long to get to this Colleen book but I am so glad I finally read it. Colleen is an amazing Author and she knows how to take her readers on an emotional ride. Slammed will go down as a favorite book that I will reread many times over many years. Will is a boy that I will love forever and always remember.  If you have read this book but none of Colleen's others you have to check out Hopeless and Ugly Love. Both of these tore me apart in a wonderful way. Colleen is an Author that I think everyone should enjoy at least once. 

Everland book review

Everland
By: Wendy Spinale
320 pages
5 out of 5 stars.
Get it here: Amazon

Check out the Booktube review here: YouTube

Description:
London has been destroyed in a blitz of bombs and disease. The only ones who have survived are children, among them Gwen Darling and her siblings, Joanna and Mikey. They spend their nights scavenging and their days avoiding the ruthless Marauders -- the German army led by Captain Hanz Otto Oswald Kretschmer.
Unsure if the virus has spread past England's borders but desperate to leave, Captain Hook hunts for a cure, which he thinks can be found in one of the survivors. He and his Marauders stalk the streets snatching children for experimentation. None ever return. Until the day they grab Joanna. As Gwen sets out to save her, she meets a daredevil boy named Pete. Pete offers the assistance of his gang of Lost Boys and the fierce sharpshooter Bella, who have all been living in a city hidden underground. But in a place where help has a steep price and every promise is bound by blood, it will cost Gwen. And are she, Pete, the Lost Boys, and Bella enough to outsmart Captain Hook?

*Spoilers ahead*


Okay let me just start off by say this book was an unexpected gem. I've always been a fan of all things Peter Pan. But I had never really read anything steam punk, so I was a little worried going in. But  I was instantly in love with this book. Our main character Gwen is trying to survive in a destroyed London. She is in charge of her two siblings and keeping them alive. After the death of her parents.
The majority of humans have been wiped out by an air born disease. (Hello our worlds biggest fear)
The children for the most part are slow at reacting to the disease. But only one child out there is immune. *Or so the stories say*
I will admit that it took me a few chapters before it hit me that Joanna and Mikey were John and Michael.  *Okay I may have been so into it that I forgot it was Peter Pan and not its own setting.*
   When her sister Joanna is taken by Hook himself.  Hook's name is so bloody long that I know why the kids call him Hook. *But the name made me smile*
Hook unlike in other stories is almost the same age as Gwen, who is a teenager in this series.  While she is out the night that Joanna is taken she sees a boy on the roof across the street, and he crows. (Yes I fangirled here) He follows her back to her home thanks to her not really covering her tracks. She reluctantly agrees to go with Pete and Bella. *Peter Pan, and TinkerBell* They offer to help her save her sister. So they take her to Everland, which isn't another world but the deep underground of London. Its a whole other working city, run by who else but the lost boys!
Gwen find out that Bella has the disease and it is rapidly spreading, suddenly saving her sister isn't only about that. Its about saving all of them. We meet Doc who has his own issues but there are instantly sparks between him and Gwen. Of course this angers Pete.
When they leave Everland in hunt of Joanna and Bella who has also left they meet another girl *Tiger Lilly* and she shows them into the back doors of the castle that Hook has taken over. She tells them all about the Doctor there who has been saving children and helping them escape London.
When they find Joanna she is cared for, Bella is still sick because the mysterious Doctor hasn't gotten to her. Doc injects her with Gwen's blood and she starts healing fast.
When the Doctor comes into the room finally it is a shock to everyone, but mostly Gwen that its her mother. They band together to escape London but of course problems arise. Gwen decides to offer herself to Hook, since she's the cure and Pete can't let that happen so he goes after her.
In an epic stand off they fight and Gwen cuts off Hooks hand. *This was a beautiful shock!*
The book ends on a good note, not a cliff hanger but you know there is more to come.
I loved Pete from the moment I met him. And I had one Pan in my mind as a I read. This beautiful face.

This book was unique in that it was written from both Gwen and Hooks POV's . I loved being inside of Hooks twisted mind.  I enjoyed this fun take on Peter Pan. It made the world so unique that it was its own book. I have seen a lot of people complain that it didn't stick "true" to the original story and I have to say I love that she didn't. Wendy took a loved story and made it her own and I love it. I am waiting anxiously for book 2 and can not wait to dive back into this world. It was perfect and magical.
Thank you for such and amazing book Wendy!

"To die would be an awfully big adventure."