Sunday 16 March 2014

Maybe Someday by Colleen Hoover




Synopsis

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover, a passionate tale of friendship, betrayal, and romance—and the enchanting music that inspires one young woman to put her life back together.

At twenty-two years old, aspiring musician Sydney Blake has a great life: She’s in college, working a steady job, in love with her wonderful boyfriend, Hunter, and rooming with her good friend, Tori. But everything changes when she discovers Hunter cheating on her with Tori—and she is left trying to decide what to do next.

Sydney becomes captivated by her mysterious neighbor, Ridge Lawson. She can’t take her eyes off him or stop listening to the daily guitar playing he does out on his balcony. She can feel the harmony and vibrations in his music. And there’s something about Sydney that Ridge can’t ignore, either: He seems to have finally found his muse. When their inevitable encounter happens, they soon find themselves needing each other in more ways than one…

From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Slammed, Point of Retreat, Hopeless, This Girl, and Losing Hope, Maybe Someday is destined to become another bestseller and long-lasting fan favourite.


Review

“Lines are drawn, but then they fade. For her I bend, for you I break.”

This book is...

Exquisitely written.
Incredibly portrayed. 

Impeccably presented. 

I was WOWED to the sky and back.

There never will be said that Colleen Hoover didn't make my heart stop many times while reading her books. There will never be said that I wasn't surprised by each and every masterpiece written by this incredibly talented author.

Big chunks of my heart are always taken away from her books and I gain another beautiful experience of reading her stories. This is far by her best work. She keeps setting bars for herself to exceed and she does a marvellous job of hitting the target of reaching even further. There are no words said about her that hasn't been repeated by her readers. One of the most common ones are said. I am. BLOWN. AWAY. That is exactly how I reacted. I was stuck at the one word. Three letters. WOW. WOW. WOW. WOW. WOW.


Colleen Hoover impresses the hell out of us all with her magnificent writing skills and story telling ability. She holds on to you with each word, carves out a picture from the edge of each word and never lets go of you even when you are staring at the last page willing for more.


“There are only twenty-six letters in the English alphabet. You would think there would only be so much you could do with twenty-six letters. You would think there were only so many ways those letters could make you feel when mixed up and shoved together to make words. However, there are infinite ways those twenty-six letters can make a person feel…”

Those words made up of those letters is what made me feel a thousand more feelings in one moment, so imagine how this whole book together made me feel, it all adds to being speechless. 


“Desire is easy to fight. Especially when the only weapon desire possesses is attraction. It’s not so easy when you’re trying to win a war against the heart.”

Maybe Someday is a heart-stoppingly story of two people who connects over music and who fall for each other, there is no stopping of it. They can fight it all they want but fate has something else in store for them all. It's their journey of writing music together and expressing their feelings through the lyrics they write. That's all I will say. 

The music that was made exclusively for Maybe Someday by the exceptionally talented Griffin Peterson and co-written by our amazing CoHo, was incredibly impressive. It was beyond what I imagined. I fell so hard for the music. It made reading Maybe Someday immensely beautiful to read. You connect with Ridge and Sydney beyond your wildest imagination. It's soulfully fulfilling. I loved their hearts that came out in their music colouring this awe-inspiring music. The canvas of their lives starting painting this beautiful picture of their souls and weaved into my own soul. Creating this one soul that carries pieces of me, Ridge and Sydney. 

This is one unforgettable journey that I just didn't want to end. I loved, loved and loved this story soooooo much, there isn't that many words combined together that can express my love for Maybe Someday. It was exceptional!

I love Ridge so much! He is far by my favourite CoHo Book Boyfriend. He's this talented and fan-freaking-tasic guy, he strives to be a good person and does so effortlessly. His heart so pure and big that he just envelops you into his world where you have eyes only on him. 

Sydney is a badass. I LOVE THAT. You'll know of it from the very beginning. I have huge girl crush on her. She's fan-freaking-tabulous. I LOVE her! 

So without any further ado my verdict for this superb book. 

6 INCREDIBLY, EXQUISITE MAYBE SOMEDAY STARS


"He’s holding me now as if I’m a part of him—a wounded extension of his heart—and he’s realizing just how much that extension needs to be severed."

Friday 14 March 2014

COVER REVEAL: DIRTY ANGELS by Karina Halle



Synopsis

For Luisa Chavez, a twenty-three year old former beauty queen, a better life has always been just out of her reach. Sure, she’s had men at her feet since she was a young teenager but she’s never had the one thing she’s craved – security. Having grown up in near poverty, her waitressing job in Cabo San Lucas can barely let her take care of herself, let alone her ailing parents. Every day is another unwanted advance, every day is a struggle to survive.

When Salvador Reyes, the depraved leader of a major Mexican cartel, takes an interest in her, Luisa is presented with an opportunity she can’t afford to pass up. She’ll become Salvador’s wife and exchange her freedom and body for a life of riches – riches she can bestow upon her deserving parents. But Luisa quickly finds out that even the finest wines and jewels can’t undo the ugliness in her marriage, nor the never-ending violence that threatens her every move.

Soon, Luisa is looking for an escape, a way out of the carefully controlled life she’s leading. She finally gets her wish in the worst way possible.

As it is, being the wife of Salvador makes her an ideal target for rival cartels and there’s one particular man who needs Luisa as part of his cartel’s expansion. One particular man whose quest for power has destroyed lives, slit throats and gotten him out of an American prison. One particular man who will stop at nothing until he gets what he wants.

That man is Javier Bernal. And he wants Luisa. He wants to take her, keep her, ruin her.

Unless she ruins him first.

***WARNING*** This book deals with drug cartels and as such it contains a lot of sex and violence and some violent sex. It can get pretty ugly, pretty dark and pretty crazy. There is drug use, abuse, a bit of torture and dubious consent. The hero is not a hero and the villains...well, they're even worse. If this sort of thing bothers you, please do not read. This ain't no cupcake farting unicorn kind of book***


Excerpt

There was a strange moment of silence and I concentrated hard, trying to hear more than the obvious. They were all waiting. Waiting for the order. Waiting for the man in charge to speak.

He did.

It came from the left of me. His voice was cool, calm and collected. I didn’t have to see to know who had taken me. The man I’d heard so much about. The man I’d been taught to fear.

“Gentleman,” he said and I could almost feel his infamous eyes on my body, “remove the bag.”

There was a rustle and my face was immediately met with cool air that seized my lungs and bright lights that blinded me. I scrunched up my face, afraid to look, to see. Now it was all so real and I wanted to stay in the dark.

“Who did this?”

Suddenly cool hands were at my swollen cheek and I flinched.

“Who did this?” my captor repeated, an edge to his level voice, his cigar-laced breath on my face.

“Sorry,” Franco mumbled. “It was the only way to quiet her.”

A heavy pause filled the room like deadweight. Finally the fingers came away from my skin and my body relaxed momentarily. I felt the man stand in front of me, bending over so he was in my face, the spicy scent of tea and tobacco emanating off of him.

“Look at me Luisa Reyes.”

Chavez, I thought to myself, I will always be Luisa Chavez.

“Darling, aren’t you curious to where you are?”

“My name is Luisa Chavez,” I said. I opened my eyes to see golden ones staring right back at me. It was like looking at an eagle. “And I know where I am. I know who you are. You are Javier Bernal.”

He raised his brow in amusement and nodded. I’d seen his picture before, on the news. There was only one and that was his mugshot but even in that photo, his eyes made an impression on you. They saw right into your depths and made you question yourself. He was one of the men whom Salvador feared, even though Salvador had more power. He was the one I had been told to watch out for, the supposed reason why I’d always been locked in the compound or escorted by the local police to go shopping.

And yet here I was, tied to a chair in a cold, leaking basement with nothing in it except five cartel members, a video camera and a knife that lay on top of a stool in front of me.

All of that for nothing. I could escape Salvador but I could never escape the cartels.

I had asked for this fate.

“You know why you’re here,” Javier said with deliberation, straightening up in his sharp black suit. He walked over to the stool, swiping up the knife, and glancing at me over his shoulder. “Don’t you?”

I could only breathe. I wanted to look at the others, at Este, at Franco, at the two other mystery men, but I was frozen in his gaze like a cow in headlights.

“What is the knife for?” I asked, my throat painfully dry.

“You’ll find out after,” he said. “It is for your husband. For your Salvador.” He stepped to the side and waved his arm at the camera. “And this is also for him.”

He eyed someone over my shoulder and gave a sharp nod. I heard a rip from behind and a piece of duct tape was placed over my mouth. I squirmed helplessly and the lights in the basement dimmed. The men stepped to the side while Javier went behind the video camera. A white light came off the front of it and bathed me in an eerie glow.

Javier cleared his throat, his face covered in shadow and said loudly, projecting to the camera, “This is Luiza Reyes, former beauty queen of the Baja State and property of Salvador Reyes. Salvador, we have your wife and we have a long list of demands, demands which I know you can meet. I expect full cooperation in this matter, or she dies in the next seven days. If she’s lucky. I’ll give you some time to think about what you’re willing to give up for her. Then we’ll be contacting you. Good bye.”

The light on the camera switched off but the rest of the room remained dim.

“I hope your husband checks his emails often. It would be a shame to have to put this on YouTube.”

There was a smirk on his face at that as he slowly walked toward me, the knife glinting in his hand. His eyes burned through the shadows, then grew somber.

He held up the knife. “I think it’s only going to hurt the first time.”

My eyes focused on the silver of the blade but the terror inside me grew too strong and my urge to breathe through the duct tape became too difficult. My lungs seized in panic, pulsing dots appeared in my vision. I felt a hand on my collarbone, gripping the edge of my blouse and then everything went black.


MEET KARINA


With her USA Today Bestselling The Artists Trilogy published by Grand Central Publishing, numerous foreign publication deals, and self-publishing success with her Experiment in Terror series, Vancouver-born Karina Halle is a true example of the term "Hybrid Author." Though her books showcase her love of all things dark, sexy and edgy, she's a closet romantic at heart and strives to give her characters a HEA...whenever possible.

Karina holds a screenwriting degree from Vancouver Film School and a Bachelor of Journalism from TRU. Her travel writing, music reviews/interviews and photography have appeared in publications such as Consequence of Sound, Mxdwn and GoNomad Travel Guides. She currently lives on an island on the coast of British Columbia where she’s preparing for the zombie apocalypse with her fiance and rescue pup.

Sunday 9 March 2014

Unravel by Calia Read



Synopsis

Six months ago, I was happy. I was simply Naomi Carradine.

One month ago, I was admitted into a psych ward.

Yesterday, Lachlan visited me. Kissed me. And told me that I’m starting to lose my mind.

Hours later, Max haunted my thoughts, reminding me I’m not crazy and that he needs my help.

A few minutes ago, I drifted further from reality, trying to unravel the past.

And now...everyone thinks I’m insane. But, I know he's real, and I know he needs me. 


Do you believe me?


Review

"He holds me and I know I'm safe."

I've been just dying to get my greedy hands on Unravel as soon as I heard of this book. The cover just captivates you in a spell that lured me towards the secrets hidden in this book. I don't judge a book by its cover but it was so gorgeous and it was a plus for Unravel. Than the blurb hit me like a uncontrolled bus in danger of hitting a dead end. I was hooked. Not only that, when I started the book, I held little bit of my sanity that I had disappeared as soon as I start the first line.   

When I got Unravel. I wanted to wait until I could give my undivided attention to this book but my hands wandered and I started reading it. 

Oh man, this book was INTENSE. 

An absolute MIND F**K. 

It gutted me. 

It unravelled me. 

It stole me. 

It killed me. 

It owned my soul.

It was that freaking good. I bow down to the GREATNESS of CALIA READ. She can write so beautifully that I was the little threads loose that unraveled in a mess of emotions. I didn't know where I started and where I ended. If I wasn't so numb I would be sobbing so hard in a corner because Naomi is the strongest soul of all. It may not seem to her but she is. 


"Tell me what you're fighting and I'll fight with you."

There is this quality in Calia's writing that ensnared me in its web of beauty I was glued to it like super glue until the very end. It was so soulful. Gorgeous. That I was stuck forever in this world. It took a piece of me. That I gladly will let it keep. There is a beauty in darkness that always beckons us to its core to find out its secrets but little do we all know that it just wants to trap us in their web of lies, there is no light at the end of the path drawing us back home, once we are stuck, we are stuck forever. That's exactly what Unraveled did, it unravels its secret with outmost care, slowly in its own pace, slowly wrapping around us. We start seeing connections and answers. It's woven so intricately that its mind boggling when truth comes out. The truth is the key in the story that was missing and left clues to find our way to the end of the maze. To the core of the story. 



"Remember that even the purest of souls have darkness in them. It might be hard to spot. Perhaps they've perfect the art of covering it from the world. Or maybe it's hidden in a dark corner of their mind. But it's there. No one in this world is scar free."

Every twist and turn, made me turn and twist on the inside. I was lost in the brilliance of this story. It was executed in such beautiful manner that kept you at the very edge of your seat. I was driven to the brink of my sanity. I even question my own. Naomi’s story entwined with my very own. Unraveling the truth is unraveling your own slowly. 


F*ck the truth. It was the heart that was my worst enemy. It was the one that was going to cut me. Bleed me. It would be the one that would kill me."

This isn't a typical romance, nor is it very dark, its just the story of a young girl coming to terms with what really happened to her. Her struggling to get better and move past the darkness. They layers of this story keeps making you question the foundation of what you are reading and makes this experience a wild roller-coaster ride with bumps and butterflies bats in your stomach. 

I LOVED it. 

READ NOW. You just have to experience it for yourself. 

I loved the characters so much. There was this side character in this story who will not be named you'll just need to figure out who *grinning wickedly* but here's a quote this character who will not be named said:

“God offers to every mind its choice between truth and repose. Take which you please— you can never have both.”

★★★★★
5 UNRAVELING THE TRUTH STARS