Monday, November 25, 2013

Long Way Home by Ann Vaughn

I cant even think how to start this review off. I think I was expecting a romance story here-but I got so much more. This book is like The Notebook meets G.I. Jane combined. Once I started reading I did not stop-literally read it in 3 hours. Let's talk about all of the things I love about this book:  

  • third person narration
  • strong female character
  • strong male character
  • sick ba$tards trying to screw with main characters
  • Love that is like the Notebook
  • an awesome plot that made me literally slap my mouth shut with my hand because I was in shock 2 TIMES!
Tessa and Shane have loved each other since kindergarten pretty much.  You know how we always tell girls, "If a boy picks on you it means he likes you?' Well, in this book it's the opposite. Tessa is doing all the picking! It is too adorable. Their relationship blooms in high school and of course that always ruins relationships. I wont give the story away but Shane goes to college, Tessa joins the army-YEAH, talk about bada$$! She does well then works for the FBI. Shane does well too. They end up working together on a crazy undercover mission. Boy do these two have a tough road. Shane is definitely, no questions asked, a book boyfriend. Such a great read. I whole heartedly recommend this for anyone-but especially readers who like strong characters who overcome literally the impossible and stay true to themselves. And of course, to anyone who loves a good love story. 

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Mirage by Ashley Suzanne

WOW! I did not know what to expect when I started this book. Danny, Mira, Skylar and their friends are celebrating one of the happiest milestones in their lives-college graduation. Suddenly, tragedy strikes. You are heartbroken. What I love is Mira is so normal. I feel that her actions and reactions are just like what I would feel or do in that situation. Skylar, oh Skylar. I did really like him but then I just wanted to call him an a$$hole! Talk about a bad boy! Also, I really have not read many books about bikers, so this was a first for me. Maybe bikers are supposed to be badass bordering on a$$hole. Now, I wont give anything away but HOLY PLOT TWIST! I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING AT ALL! It is like a punch in the gut-I'm assuming! Ashley Suzanne scored major points in my book for being so creative with this story! You will be shocked and it is so worth reading! There are so many other things in this book I want to share but cant risk giving anything away. You will not be disappointed. You will be shocked. I finished this book at 4am. I could not fall asleep until 5:30. I just wanted to pull out the computer and write away. And talk about determination, I read this book  on my cracked iphone because I was too comfy in bed to get my tablet! Cracked screen and all this book was a real page turner and I fully recommend it!

And if you are interested in reading this the first 3 people to leave a comment on my blog will win an ecopy of Mirage! 



The Destined Series Order:
Mirage - Book 1
Inception - Book 1.5
Awakening - Book 2
Facade - Book 2.5
Epiphany - Book 3










Mira’s broken and battered. She’s fighting to put herself back together while her heart is trying to forget. Can she continue moving forward with one man while in love with another?


Skylar’s wrestling demons he never imagined in his wildest dreams. The girl he’s been in love with for years finally has feelings for him. There’s only one problem: her heart might lie somewhere else. How long until his will power shatters?



Who will seize Mira’s heart and never let go? Will these feelings ever go away or will they be an AWAKENING?



**Recommended for mature audiences only**



Awakening is scheduled for release on November 30th, 2013!  Please keep an eye on Ashley's Facebook Page and Website for the most current updates!!!

Add Awakening to your goodreads TBR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18400284-awakening


About the Author
Ashley Suzanne is a married mother of three little boys as well as a daughter, aunt, sister, best friend, birth mother, blogger, book whore and author.  Ashley is a native to the suburbs of Detroit, with most of her family living in Kentucky and New York.  
You can usually find Ashley sitting in bed, with her laptop, playing on Facebook, pretending to write, entering giveaways (she’s also a swag whore) or on a football field with her oldest son, Tyler.  Yep, not only is she a football fan, she’s a football mom!
When she’s reading, it’s typically something to do with romance, erotica being her favorite genre.  Ashley co-owns a blog, 2 Chicks and a Blog, with her GBFF Manda.  She’s a total fan-girl over a few authors, Pamela Ann, Brooke Cumberland, SE Hall, Madeline Sheehan, Jasinda Wilder, Angela Graham, CM Stunich and Riley Rhea to name a few.
Ashley has no pets, unless you count her children and she is a little OCD.  Her favorite color is pink.  Her favorite drink is cherry vodka and coke and double chocolate brownies are a must.

Ashley’s debut novel, Mirage, will be self published early September 2013.

Stalker Links:




Friday, November 22, 2013




Riptide by Susan Hayes

Description:


Rory Frazier is destined to be the next leader of Kismet Cove, a secret colony of seal shape-shifters known as selkies. The catch? Rory can only claim his birthright if he and his blood brother Evan Sinclair find a suitable mate.


Jessica Jones has come to Tofino to reclaim her life and move on from the grief of her mother’s death. Jess just wants time alone and space to heal, but kismet has something else in store. After a rogue wave sweeps her out into the frigid Pacific Ocean, Jess is rescued by two handsome men who heat her blood and help to heal her wounded heart.


Time’s running out for Rory and Evan. They need to present the colony with their chosen mate and tell Jess the truth about who they really are. When their secrets are finally revealed, will their newfound love survive, or will the emotional riptide tear the three of them apart forever?



Review:  

Holy Moly! Talk about a spicy read! Not for the faint of heart but definitely for those who want to spice things up a bit. The men on the cover do not do this book justice! Jess returns to a cottage her mother left her that she frequently visited as a kid. Upon her return she meets these 2 hunky, handsome men who both want her. I wont give the story away but-whoa baby! It's not just one of these books that is just XXX each page. There is a good story here. What Jess doesn't know at first is that her boys are shapeshifters. Both Rory and Evan make wonderful book boyfriends! As Mr. Rowling's would say, "They do not disappoint!" 



Enter to Win! 

• 3 copies of Riptide, Kismet Cove 1 PDF, Epub or Mobi
• 3 copies of Windswept, Kismet Cove 2 PDF, Epub or Mobi

a Rafflecopter giveaway


About the Author:

Susan lives out on the Canadian west coast surrounded by open water, dear family and good friends. She's jumped out of perfectly good airplanes on purpose and had lunch next to royalty by accident. She's passionately in love with the written word (and a few of her more hunky creations.)

Writing is her joy, her escape from reality and the only way she knows of to quiet the nagging harridan of a muse she claims the universe assigned to her.


Social Links:  
Website </ span> Twitter</ a> </ b> Facebook </ span> Goodreads 

Buy Links:

Amazon B&N  Bookstrand  Kobo  </ b>

Tour Coordinator:

I ♥ Bookie Nookie Reviews

Please check out the other stops on this tour today:

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This Holiday Party Blog tour is being run in conjunction with the 
Check out the entire schedule of the 18 Holiday Party Blog Tour stops & participating bloggers HERE.


Join the party and win from a prize pool of over 1,500 books and prizes by these generous authors!

This post contains Affiliate Links.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Hunger Game District Looks

Here are my Hunger Game District Looks. I don't think I will be doing any other districts anytime soon. If I do, I'll add them to this post later. Do you have a favorite? 











Sunday, November 17, 2013

A night of fabulousness with Abbi Glines, Colleen Hoover and Jamie Mcguire!

***Warning- This is a super long post!***
On Friday night, these 3 fabulous ladies were at Mohegan Sun Casino! Abbi Glines, Jamie McGuire and Colleen Hoover all on one stage! These ladies are so cool! They seem like the best of friends and each of them has their own personality! I feel like I was more star shocked and need to work on my blogger/journalist qualities. Instead of taking notes and thinking up awesome questions to ask them I was gushing and excited to be in a room full of book boyfriend lovers! We sat at a table with another book lover and it was really nice to see someone else so excited about fictional men other than us! Of course I had to make a T Shirt to commemorate this event and to show these ladies how much I love their creations. Some things I just had to include in the shirt were:

  • "butterflying"
  • "I'll take the Lake!" 
  • "It's pretty impossible to hurt what Death protects." (love me some Dankmar!)
  • A list of Abbi's book boyfriends: of course DANK is #1, then we have JAX!, WOODS, RUSH!, Grant, Leif, Jace and Marcus (he was my least fav). 
Somehow, I mustered up the courage to ask them a question! I asked if they have read each others books and if they have a favorite! UMMM, I wish I was not so nervous because I can't really remember if they had distinct favorites! I KNOW! What a dorkus. BUT, they do read each others book and of course it's impossible not to love these guys. So here are some of my thoughts on these fabulous ladies.

Jamie McGuire- She probably got the least "love" from me. Not on purpose. I fell in love with Travis before I started my blog and was one of the first bad boys I loved. I didn't have any snazzy quotes to put on my shirt. I didn't plan enough to buy an actual book (I have all of her books on ebooks)- I just should have planned better! She was awesome enough to sign my bag though! She has a witty and cool personality. What I love most about her is she has the most humbling story to fame and is so appreciative. Hearing her speak about that just made me respect her even more! And her advice to someone who wants to be a writer: "Start what you finish." :) She meant finish what you start but I just love start what you finish! How appropriate!

Colleen Hoover- Abbi and Jamie described her as "not showing any outward emotion." She seemed to be so calm, collected and easy going! Her books are so deep and amazing that you just cant help but LOVE everything she writes. The plots just keep turning and surprise you. Not to mention Will and Holder are so amazing! Even the poetry in Slammed has touched even me and I am so not a poetry person! "I'll take the Lake" too baby! Not to mention, she actually wrote back to my comment on FB. Extra brownie points in my book! 

Abbi Glines- I would describe her as the diva of the group. Her accent is just too adorable and she is so funny! I just love her! She is one of my all time favorites, EVER. Actually, I have written about her books on my blog more than any other author or book! Even more than my beloved Dex, from EIT!  ------> Abbi noticed my shirt! AND, she favorited my tweet and responded!! Super mega brownie points for Abbi! 



It was such an amazing night and I feel like no matter how much I write it will never show the total awesomeness! Another great thing was their publicist! Even though they signed multiple books for over 2 hours they took pictures with everyone! Their publicist would even take the picture for you! Everyone was just so nice and friendly. It was truly a great night! 



I met Aleatha Romig!

What a fun and exciting weekend! On Saturday I went to the Omni Hotel in New Haven to see Aleatha Romig! This was particularly special because she is the first author who shared my blog and actually wrote back to me on Facebook. Not only that, if you haven't read the Consequences series, please do so. It makes you question your sanity! It was the first time I read a book where I really hated the main character at first and then ended up loving him. It made me question my psychological health! The best part is when we got to the signing we had some quality time with Aleatha! I met her, shook her hand, and was able to talk to her about Tony, my blog and thank her for sharing my blog! She was so cool and down to earth! She took a picture of the shirt I made and put it on fb! How awesome! (Separate post about the shirt here) She gave me some swag to share on my blog! When I get to 100 likes I'll give away one of the signed Red Wing napkins that sealed Claire's fate. I could not be more excited. I feel like I met a celebrity LOL! I asked her how did she get an idea for this story in her head. Her response was she watches a lot of Criminal Minds. Also, this series was not intended to be a "romance" series. It just kind of happened that all of us romance readers took Tony and ran with it! We were lucky to have about 15 minutes of her undivided attention. I wish I would have asked more questions like, "Do you have any plans for another series once you are done with Behind His Eyes." (Tony's POV which she said might make us not like him again) This was definitely one of the top ten experiences in my life...not that I really have a list of them but maybe I should make one!  :) 



Tony's Rules T-Shirt

In honor of Aleatha Romig's author event this weekend I thought we should all become familiar with the rules. What rules? TONY'S rules that is! We wouldn't want to have any glitches, do we? Let's have a look at the rules fresh from the Rawling's Dictionary.

1. Do as you are told.
2. Do not divulge personal information.
3. Actions have Consequences!
4. Appearances are of vital importance.
5. Public failure is not an option.
6. Do not disappoint. 


This was supposed to be posted BEFORE the author event but time got ahead of me! However, I did make a shirt for the book signing. Aleatha loved it and took a picture of it and shared it on Facebook! I didn't realize it would be such a big hit! 

So, if you are finding yourself wanting a "Tony's Rules" T shirt you have 2 options:

 1. You can make your own with some fabric paint and a plain T shirt. 

2. If you do not have good handwriting or are not creatively inclined you can order one from me for $7. 

If you are interested in purchasing a shirt or if you have any questions please feel free to email me at: jcardi123@gmail.com. 

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Phrases that stay with you...

Have you ever read a book or watched a movie that touched you in a way that you took something away from it? Maybe a saying, a thought, a phrase, old sport? Well, it seems the more I read and the more I really enjoy something a little piece of the character stays with me. Some of my favorites are:

1. Twitchy palms- Mr. Christian Grey
2. We aim to please- again, Mr. Grey 
3. Old Sport- Mr. Gatsby (or DiCaprio LOL)
4. Do not disappoint- Mr. Rawlings
5. Appearances are everything- Mr. Rawlings
6. "Butteflying." Will & Lake
7. I love you to the moon and back- OMG, I can't remember which book that is from ! HELP!
8. Soookie- Mr. Bill Compton- you have to say it with the proper accent and exaggerate the O  :)
9. May the odds be ever in your favor- Hunger Games
10. 

What are some of your favorites? Maybe we can compile a pretty good list! 

Anyone remember any sayings from Mr. Cross?

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Let's Talk: Makeup



You might be able to guess what look I was going for when I painted my nails...If you guess Hunger Games you'd be CORRECT! I did this polish weeks ago before I started playing around with Hunger Game inspired make up looks. I figured I would share this since we only have 11 days until the movie comes out! :)
On an un-Hunger Games related note, on my break today I was browsing the drugstore and had to replenish a pink lipstick I gave to someone when I did her makeup. It was a light pink lipstick from Black Radiance. These lipsticks are so creamy and soft feeling on your lips! You can get all sorts of crazy colors and the best part is they are only $1.99!!! Maybeline has lipsticks in similar colors but they are usually $7 and up. What a fun way to try new colors without spending much money. I picked up this fuchsia purply color. I don't really know where I'll wear it but I thought it would be fun!





Saturday, November 9, 2013

Simple Perfection by Abbi Glines

Last week I read Simple Perfection by Abbi Glines. This is book 2 for Woods and Della. Abbi Glines is one of my favorite authors. I usually love all of her books and most of the men, except Marcus. I really like Woods. He is a book boyfriend of course. Although this was a good book it just didn't give me the warm and fuzzies like I normally get from her books. Maybe it was because Della is so insecure about everything. Overall, it was a good book. I just wish I could give Della some confidence. It took way too long for that. Until the next Abbi Glines book!

Let's Talk Makeup: More Hunger Games!

I know, I have been over doing it with the Hunger Game makeup. But it is so fun! Here is a look that is from the Cover Girl promo for District 12. I have to say, I am kind of mad at Cover Girl. Their Hunger Game nail polish is great, no complaints there. But I am disappointed with the eyeliner in the picture below. If they are recommending their products to recreate the look then I would expect them to be fairly close in color. That gold eyeliner does not come close to looking like the yellow on her inner eye area. The eyeliner is a nice color, just not comparable, in my opinion to the picture. I watched
 Jean Francois video on how he got this look. For the eyes I used Milani's runway eyes eyeshadow palette, Maybeline color tattoo, Urban Decay eyeshadow in Gunmetal, and Jordana eyeshadow pencil in white. For cheeks I used Revlon Photoready blush in coral and Milani blush in Rose D'Oro.