Cover Reveal: Defying All Odds by Nevaeh Lee

SYNOPSIS: 

The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.

-Ernest Hemingway

Since day one, Celeste Logan has had a string of bad luck—no, scratch that.  Her past is so tragic, anyone would think she’s been irrevocably cursed.  But this is no paranormal story…it’s her real f*cking life.

Fortunately, it’s not all bad and there are people in her life who make it worth living.  Though the past will never be completely forgotten, she has moved on and beat the hell out of the statistics.  But just when it seems things are about as good as they’re going to get, disaster strikes—again.

Can what’s broken be fixed this time, or was she ever fully mended in the first place? And will the past catch up to her, or is the present what Celeste should fear most?

***This contemporary romance novel contains adult subject matter. Not intended for young readers

AUTHOR BIO: 

Nevaeh’s first exposure to writing began in a middle school creative writing class. She was reprimanded for composing a politically incorrect story and forced to re-write about a “safer” topic. Being the writing rebel that she is, Nevaeh always likes to push the envelope a bit and never re-writes, unless her editor insists on it.

When she’s not writing, Nevaeh is a freelance book editor ;). And when she’s not reading, writing, or editing, she can be found spending time with her family, exploring the area around wherever she happens to be living at the time. Even though “home” will always be Texas, she currently resides in West Africa.

AUTHOR MEDIA LINKS:

https://www.facebook.com/nevaeh.lee.16

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7440484.Nevaeh_Lee

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Review Tour: Hate: A Love Story by Laurel Ulen Curtis

Hate: A Love Story

by Laurel Ulen Curtis

Genre: Adult Contemporary Romance

Series: Standalone

Release Date: October 12, 2014

 Roses are red,
Violets are blue.
Life can be messy,
And love can be too.

Most people say that it’s not important where you’re going, but instead, how you get there.

Unfortunately for me, the journey to love was absolutely agonizing. Love and Hate wrestled with my life day after day, year after year, and the only way to stop it was to let one of them win.

Which one?

I fought to love harder. But I loathe my love story.

********

4.5 Stars by Jen Skewes

This book was simply amazing.  It is tragic and yet beautiful all in one.   It tells the story about friendship, loss, love and heartache, with the wit and humor that I love from Laurel Ulen Curtis.

Whitney and Blane met in the 8^th grade and from that moment on they became best friends.  It was just the two of them until Franny came into the mix a few years later.  Whitney, Blane and Franny were the best of friends.  Together the three of them just worked.  They understood each other and were there for each other and they didn’t need anyone else in their little group that they had.  They loved each other as friends and their bond was so strong.  Even when Blane and Franny started dating they were still the three musketeers and never made Whitney feel left out.  They needed each other and in some way balanced each other out.  But sometimes life throws a curveball your way and you are not sure how to handle it. And even the strongest of friendships can crumble right before your eyes.  Whitney sat back and watched her friendship with Blane slowly slip away and no matter how much she tried to be there for him through the heartache and pain, Blane just was not in the right moment to be able to accept it.  And therefore pushed her away only to lose what they had in the end. 

Years later Blane and Whitney meet up again and no matter what happened between them, no matter how longs it’s been sine they have seen each other the feelings are still there. Whit has missed Blane in her life but at the same time she still has reservations about seeing him again mainly due to how things ended between them.   But this is their second chance.  This is Blane’s chance to fight for something that he should have fought for years ago, but at the time was in too much pain to even realize how he felt.  

I loved this story and loved Blane and Whitney.  It is tragic and yet beautiful all at the same time.  We see these characters go through so much pain and hurt before they can find their happiness.  I wanted nothing more than for them to be together.  I saw how much they loved each other even if they couldn’t.  They were soul mates and you felt that from the moment they met.  They had been through so much together and my heart continued to break over and over for them.    There were those unexpected moments that were both painful and tragic.  It was in those moments that I felt the pain and hurt right along with them.  But through the heartache and the pain was also those witty moments that came at the perfect time, almost as if the author knew we needed them.

I loved Whitney as the heroine.  She was loving and loyal and she gave it her all when it came to her friends. At least she tried even if they pushed her away.  But I loved her humor which made her so relatable.  At times thinking things that seems so off the wall but yet we all know that we would be thinking the same think.  Like in a situation where blood is involved and you don’t know how it will end but for a split second you are concerned about the fact that you are wearing a white shirt.  That is Whitney, she may ramble at times but you just love her.  Blane was a great hero.  While some of his decisions hurt I understood them.  I understood where is mind was and at the same time where his heart was. I think he made some decisions based on his love for Whitney and wanting to protect her and feeling that she deserved more.  Because in my opinion deep down, even if they were just friends I think it was always about Whitney. 

Blane and Whitney were meant to be together.  But their journey to get to that happiness was a very difficult and painful one.  I am being vague here for a reason but I don’t want you to think that this whole story is one big heartache because it isn’t.  There are some very sad and heartbreaking moments.  But there are also moments that will make you smile, laugh out loud and make your heart happy.  Whitney’s Gram was such a wonderful addition to the cast of characters.  She was witty and funny and I loved the wisdom that she brought and how much she loved Whitney.  They were very close and she was always there for Whitney when she needed her.  She knew when she needed comfort or just needed a good laugh.   

I have read and loved every one of Ms. Curtis' books but I think that this one may just be up there as her best book.   This one brought out so many emotions.   It is about love, loss, friendship and second chances.  You feel every emotion that these characters are going through.  You want to hug them and hope everything will be ok.  There are moments that were unexpected and may just tear you apart.  But in the end Laurel Ulen Curtis knows how to make you smile.  I loved every part of this story but for me the one thing that I wished for is to have gotten inside Blane's head.    There were so many moments where I wished I knew what he was thinking and what his reasons were behind his actions.  But other than Another fantastic job. 

********

In need of a buddy to read with or support afterword?

During the read: SPOILER FREE: https://www.facebook.com/groups/540907082676874/

After the read: SPOILERS ALLOWED: https://www.facebook.com/groups/287718204755467/

Laurel Ulen Curtis is a 27 year old mother of one. She lives with her husband and son (and cat!) in New Jersey, but grew up all over the United States. She graduated from Rutgers University in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology, and puts that to almost no use other than forecasting for her friends and writing a storm chasing heroine! She has a passion for her family, laughing, and reading and writing Romance novels. She’s also addicted to Coke. The drink, not the drug.

LAUREL’S SOCIAL MEDIA:

http://www.facebook.com/laurelulencurtis
http://Laurelulencurtis.blogspot.com
www.twitter.com/LUCurtisAuthor
www.pinterest.com/Laurelcurtis/
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6912103.Laurel_Ulen_Curtis


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Blog Tour: All Broke Down by Cora Carmack

In this second book in New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cora Carmack’s New Adult, Texas-set Rusk University series, which began with All Lined Up, a young woman discovers that you can’t only fight for what you believe in . . . sometimes you have to fight for what you love

Dylan fights for lost causes. Probably because she used to be one.

Environmental issues, civil rights, corrupt corporations, and politicians—you name it, she’s probably been involved in a protest. When her latest cause lands her in jail overnight, she meets Silas Moore. He’s in for a different kind of fighting. And though he’s arrogant and infuriating, she can’t help being fascinated with him. Yet another lost cause.

Football and trouble are the only things that have ever come naturally to Silas. And it’s trouble that lands him in a cell next to do-gooder Dylan. He’s met girls like her before—fixers, he calls them, desperate to heal the damage and make him into their ideal boyfriend. But he doesn’t think he’s broken, and he definitely doesn’t need a girlfriend trying to change him. Until, that is, his anger issues and rash decisions threaten the only thing he really cares about, his spot on the Rusk University football team. Dylan might just be the perfect girl to help.

Because Silas Moore needs some fixing after all.

4 Star Review by Allison East

So I was a bad girl and I didn't read the first in this series- but that's ok!! I got the feeling that Silas was kind of an ass in the first book- so starting off this book; I secretly knew I was going to either hate him or fall hopelessly in love with him.

All Broke Down's heroine is Dylan. She hasn't had it easy in the past.But looking at her right now, you would never know all the things that she has handled on her own. She loves a lost cause, who doesn't? But the source of her latest lost cause has landed her in jail, in a cell, beside none other than Silas.

Silas might as well be another lost cause for Dylan. Silas' loves are women and football. And he ends up going to jail and putting his football career on the line for some dumb anger issues he has. I really connected with Silas- and he is so damn full of himself. But in this story his arrogance is portrayed in a way that wasn't really annoying, but actually pretty attractive. And super sexy.


I loved both of the characters and the way the characters matured over the course of the story. I loved how Dylan was strong; even though she had a less than stellar upbringing, and way too many expectations. She was a little shy- but was gonna stand up for herself, and didn't let Silas walk all over her. I loved how "n your face"Silas was, and how they complemented each other so well.

The plot and flow of the story are what stood out for me. It moved at a  great pace. At times though, I felt like I wanted to know more, and to know it sooner, but at the same time I also
wanted to take the time to enjoy myself and finish it when I was ready. I just wasn't ready for it to be over.

If you haven't read this series, start with the first book-All Lined up  which I am going to start right now) and then get ready for book this one. Looking forward to more of this series from
Cora Carmack!

Cora Carmack is a twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs (like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too. Her first book, LOSING IT, was a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.

Links:

Website ** Twitter ** Facebook ** Author Goodreads ** ALL BROKE DOWN Goodreads

Amazon ** Barnes and Noble ** iTunes

And don’t forget to grab your copy of ALL LINED UP Today!

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Blog Tour: Beholden by Corinne Michaels

Title: Beholden (Book Two in the Belonging Duet)

Author: Corinne Michaels

Release Date: October 22, 2014

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Catherine Pope got a second chance at love, only to have it ripped away—again. She should’ve known better.

But she dared to hope.

She refuses to let fate take the reins this time. Catherine decides she’s going to fight.

Jackson Cole risked it all. 

He thought this time would be different.

With his loyalties pulling him in two directions—it’s time to make a choice…his past or his future.

Will they be beholden to their fears or will they both fight against their demons and finally find the love they both long for?

4 Star Review by Lisa Kane

Beholden picks up right where Beloved ended. Of course Jackson is alive, but barely so. He is in Germany in a military facility. Mark contacted Catherine who dropped everything to be with him. He is in and out of consciousness, but since we get his POV we know his thoughts. He wants to be able to speak to her, to tell her he made a mistake by leaving, but his body won't let him. So he is frustrated, but can't communicate.

There is a lot of back and forth in the beginning of the book; Jackson's thoughts about his injuries, and Catherine's fears about his recovery and given their history, whether he would even want her at his beside.

"I hope you know how much you own my heart. And I hate you for it. I hate that you've stripped me of my defenses and made me feel, when all I want to do is be numb. Then this wouldn't hurt so damn much. I would be able to grab my bag and walk away. Let you fight your demons on your own."

When he finally regains consciousness, he wastes no time in letting her know he was a total idiot and he needs her to forgive him.

"All I can think about is that you won't be here if I go to sleep. When I opened my eyes and saw you I thought I'd died."
"What? Why would you think that?" I ask confused.
"Catherine, you're my heaven. So I thought I was dead, because that's when I thought I'd see you again."

He is eventually discharged and they can return to the States. Catherine is running ragged; tending to Jackson and trying to put out brush fires at Raven in preparation for the launch campaign. They have things to work out, but Catherine is adamant that honesty and trust are important. No more hiding things from her. Jackson's temper is easily ignited-he is weak and has to rely on her for the most basic activities, not to mention he is sexually frustrated. Although that drought is ended soon enough.

My eyes shift to his and it's suddenly hard to breathe. He rocks back and forth while staring into my eyes as we become one in every sense of the word. Our souls touch, and moisture builds in my eyes from the pure beauty of the moment. Before the tears can descend he kisses them away and I fight the urge to sob. 

I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. Where is the angst, there has to be angst right? And then..at the press release Catherine is going to get a bombshell dropped on her; publicly and in front of the entire world to see. She is devastated and humiliated and furious. Of all the things Jackson could have kept secret from her this may just be the worst.

"No one thought I should know this? As his publicist? As his f#*cking girlfriend? How could everyone let me go into this blind?"

She goes into defensive mode; her feelings for Jackson are on lock down. He grovels, he tries to explain and he gets nowhere. The career opportunity of a lifetime is proposed to Catherine and maybe this is the change that is needed in her life. Will she take it and cut all ties with New York and Jackson?

The build up in Beholden is gradual and then once the truth that Jackson has kept hidden from Catherine is revealed, things move quickly in the book. Neither one of them is without blame-Catherine won't listen to Jackson's explanation and Jackson-well that idiot should have known that the truth would come out. His family and his friends all knew and it was only a matter of time until Catherine found out. But he was afraid he would lose her and ended up losing her anyway. Can they find a common ground living on different sides of the country? Both have much to lose by compromising, and is it worth it in the end?

"Is there anything I can say to change your mind?" I look up at him and a tear falls. "No." He nods once and pulls me tighter. "I'm not going to give up. You're mine and I'm going to win you back. I'm just warning you." 

I love a man who doesn't hesitate to do anything he can to make things right. Jackson will move heaven and earth to get Catherine back. For Laurelin Paige fans, there is even a little reference to Hudson Pierce from The Fixed Trilogy. Nicely played with that move! Sometimes difference can be a breaking point for couples already having problems. Will they be one of them?

The questions swirl in my head. Did he see her naked? Has he seen her face when she comes? Has he known what's it's like to sink into her and bury yourself so deep you don't know where you begin and end? 


Will they every be on the same page, without misunderstandings and lost opportunities? Beholden is a great wrap up to the cliff hanger ending we were left with in Beloved.

Beloved (Book One in the Belonging Duet)

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Not enough.

Catherine Pope has never been enough. Every man she has ever loved abandoned her—from her father to her fiancé. She finally accepted the fact she would never be enough to hold any man’s heart and soul.

Then Catherine met Jackson Cole.

When her world literally collided with the sexy former Navy SEAL, everything she always believed is turned upside down and left scattered. He made her feel alive and desirable, consumed her with fierceness and loyalty—which completely unnerved her. Jackson got her in a way no one ever had, giving him the power to destroy her. 

If she breaks down and gives him what’s left of her battered heart—will he protect it? Or will Catherine become an irrelevant part of yet another man’s life? 

Will she get the one thing that has always evaded her – to finally be someone’s beloved?

Corinne is an emotional, witty, sarcastic, and fun loving mom of two beautiful children. She’s happily married to the man of her dreams and is a former Navy wife. After spending months away from her husband while he was deployed, reading and writing was her escape from the loneliness.

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Review: Sociopath by Lime Craven

The name's Aeron Lore. And you are...? Such a pleasure to meet you, sweetheart. Is that a southern accent? Gorgeous.

You fucking bitch.

Why so surprised? I control a billion dollar fortune. I control the news. Give me five minutes and I'll control you, too. If you could read my mind, you'd probably call me perverted. Unnatural. Manipulative. But I've learned to blend in, to be funny and charming. A predator in a designer suit.

I have no conscience. No shame in taking the things I want. And what I wanted was for Leontine Reeves to sell me her boutique tech firm so I could exploit the fuck out of it. Maybe exploit the fuck out of her, too, because desire haunts me in shades of scarlet, and I desire Leo most of all.

I never meant for this to be a love story. I fought it kicking and screaming, the same way Leo fought me. Now we're bleeding into each other, making a mess. A chaos. There's no control here. And what do monsters like me do when control leaves the building?

We attack.



4 Hardly Sane Stars!
Review by Natasha Gentile

What the hell just happened??  What the hell did I just read? 

Sociopaths make up 4% of the US population.  You’re probably thinking that’s bullshit, that it all got too fashionable after American Psycho and became the diagnosis           du jour.  Truth is, you’re surrounded by sociopaths, but you think most of them are just fucktards.

So I have to say that it took me four days to get through this book.  I, at some points,  had to put the book down and walk away.  It just t.ok me so far out of my comfort zone, I felt I was on another planet. 

This book is about Aeron Lore. He controls a billion dollar company.  He also controls the news.  He also wants one thing -Leontine Reeves.  Ok, he doesn’t really want her at first; he wants her to sell him her company SilentWitn3ss.

Here’s what the mannequins of SilentWitn3ss see when I walk into that boardroom that afternoon: a tall, broad guy with dark blond hair and shameless crater dimples, dressed in a well-cut suit.  I’m hot-Let’s not beat around the bush, sports fans-but you have to peel back the layers to see what’s going on here.  They don’t just see a person.  Behind all that, there’s power and money and suspicion, all of it boiling down to a visceral chemical reaction.  I must somehow turn into trust.  Like Jesus turning water into wine, but more of a religious experience.

Maybe exploit her, too, because desire haunts me in shades of scarlet, and I desire Leo most of all.

Gifts for my special girl, one, two and three.  Lingerie and flowers, indeed.

Come hunting with me grasshoppers.

I’mma catch me a lion.

Well if you put it like that how she can she say no.  Except well , it's Aeron, he doesn’t do anything the kosher way.  In fact he lies, cheats and oh blackmails you into giving him exactly what he wants.  It’s boggling my mind how this book is so insanely well written.  It went back and forth from his childhood to his adulthood and gave you an insight into his mind. 

Oh, hello there.  I ‘m Aeron Lore.  You might recognize me from scenes such as sexually assaulting Leo, or trespassing in Leo’s apartment and assaulting her again.  It’s important that you remember this as you  join me for the next part of the journey.  Important that you understand how things are here in the land of American Dreams. 

OH MY GOD!!!!  So now that he has assaulted her, well assaulted is a very strong word for him. 

I have emotions, sure.  I don’t sit there like a designer sack of potatoes, numb to the rest of the world.  On the contrary, I feel a lot of things, just not for other people.  I’m self-serving.  Impulsive.  I like to please myself, and my desires quiver like dominoes all set up and waiting for the right stroke to make them fall.

So there is always the back story that lays there lingering.  There is something from his past that has made him the way he is, or that has created him to be the man he is.  It makes you always think you know what it is, and then boom, it’s so not what you thought it was.  You are thrown the ringer. 

It was so interesting to read how he tries to fall in love with Leo.  He gets all Alpha on her and no one is more surprised by his actions than Aeron himself.

I have to know.  So I search.

Then I type my other question into Google.  Can sociopaths fall in love?

The words float there.  Just pixels.  I don’t know why I’m so nervous-I’m not a fucking pansy.

I hit enter.

The search spews up articles, and I begin to read. 

So now that he has sent his question to Google, he is ready to give Leo his everything.  Except well Leo, she really is not what you think she is.  Loving yes, she is in love with Aeron, deceptive, yes she is that too.  She’s trying to run from her past, or she’s trying to hid it and bury it.  But what happens when your past comes back to haunt you, and it isn’t just your past, but his as well?

Sociopaths cannot love in the same way as others…but they can and do still fall.

Sociopaths love with an all-consuming, dangerous passion.

The sociopath, who seeks to manipulate all things, may only retain interest in a woman who disturbs the power balance he is used to, rather than one who continues to submit.  If she challenges him adequately, he becomes addicted.  His attachment to her deepens until he believes himself to be in love.

I have to say that this story is a dark romance, and the author lets you know that.  I also must say that I enjoyed her writing style.  It was phenomenal in every single aspect.  Well Done!

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