Review: Beautiful Oblivion by Jamie McGuire

Edition: Paperback
Pages: 336
Publish Date: July 1, 2014
Publisher: Atria Books
Genre: New Adult Romance
Series: Companion Novel
Goodreads Rating: 4.18 (18,967 ratings)

“I was in trouble. Big, disastrous, Maddox trouble.” 
― Jamie McGuire, Beautiful Oblivion

I honestly don't know what to say. I have to admit it was adorable and very emotional but the whole premise of loving two guys who in the end are brothers seems very soap opera to me.

In short summary, Cami befriends Trenton Maddox, despite everyone elses knowledge that he's been in love with her since they were kids she resists all his offers because of T.J. her long time boyfriend who is an FBI Agent (you learn this in A Beautiful Wedding) and who she never sees because he cares more about his job than her. 
After leaving Trent at the airport after he kissed her and confessed that he loves her, she gets on the flight to California to see T.J. During this trip she realises that she doens't love him, she's just been trying to convince herself that the few phone calls and texts make up a good relationship. She leaves him and returns to a very pissed off Trent who is using the silent treatment and picks up girls to try to get over Cami. 
When she finally explains to him that her relationship is over and that she chose him, he comes back to her only to have her push him away. She's hiding a something and he knows it but he just doesn't know what. 
Their relationship grows and after a few devastating events such as the Keaton Hall fire (from Beautiful Disaster) and finally when the two of them get in a car accident, which leads to Trent learning that T.J. is his brother Thomas James Maddox.
It ends happy and everyone lives, blah,blah,blah. But seriously how could he not know that it's his own brother! I thought the family was close, I mean WTF!? 

Overall I want to give this book a good rating because I did enjoy it, their's a lot more back story to all the characters including family abuse, murder accusations, roommates complicated relationships, etc. So I'm going to rate it 3.5 stars. 4 on goodreads. 

Review: Ruin by Rachel Van Dyken

Edition: eBook 
Pages: 238
Publish Date: August 10, 2013
Publisher: Create Space
Genre: New Adult Romance
Series: Companion Books
Goodreads Rating: 4.28 (22,598 ratings)

OMG! WARNING: SO MANY FEEEELS!
I read this whole book dreading the inevitable, the way the book began you believed that he was going to die. And I actually read this book believing that, I figured if I survived Me Before You by Jojo Moyes that I could make it through this. But it's actually a happy ending. Spoiler alert, he doesn't die!!!

This is such a heartbreaking book, reading it from Wes's POV (as well as Kierstan's) and him coping and talking about his impending death. 
Simple summary, if you want a beautiful and sexy happily ever after miracle kind of book then you need to pick this up.
This is by far one of my top 14 of 2014. 

Review: Burying Water by K.A. Tucker

Edition: eBook ARC
Pages: 320
Publish Date: October 2, 2014
Publisher: Atria Books
Genre: New Adult Contemporary
Series: No
Goodreads Rating: 4.31 (113 ratings)

So lucky to have gotten an advanced eBook of this new release and I have to say you won't be disappointed. The beginning novel of her new book series since finishing Ten Tiny Breaths series. 

Burying Water follows Jesse and Alex. It's a complicated story, Jesse's story is of how him and Alex fell in love while she was married to an abusive Russian mob boss, and his story is based in the past. While Alex's or rather Water's point of view is in the present in the aftermath of being attacked and asaulted to within an inch of her life, as well as dealing with the fact that she has no memory, of the attack or anything about herself. 

With the help of Jesse's family, his mother (the doctor who took care of Water) and his father (the towns sheriff), cover up her past and her relationship with their son as their neighboor Ginny takes Water in. With a similar past as what they know of Water's, Ginny sees something in Water as she manages to move forward despite what happened to her. 
Ginny, glued to her house that is bared up to keep anyone out, begins to change for the better. Allowing more people onto her property, and helping Water through learning the truth of who she is. 
After falling in love with the Jesse she knows now, and learning that she had already been in love with him, and lost his baby in the attack by her husband. She manages to continue being the resiliant girl she is, even after Ginny passes - leaving everything to Water - she moves forward, with Jesse of course.

This is one of those books that you won't know the whole truth till the very end. And the change from past to present and POV's makes the story that much better as you see the similarities between Alex and Water as she slowly remembers some - but not all - of her past. 
If you loved the concept of Nicholas Sparks's, The Vow, than you will love this. It's such a powerful and entrancing book, you won't be able to put it down till you get to the very last page. 

Atria Indie Authors Book Signing Toronto!

So happy I got to go to this amazing book signing and meet Abbi Glines, K.A. Tucker, Colleen Hoover, and Jamie McGuire!

Review: Torn Away by Jennifer Brown

Edition: eBook
Pages: 288
Publish Date: May 6, 2014
Publisher: Little Brown Books
Genre: YA Contemporary
Series: No
Goodreads Rating: 4.09 (1,149 ratings)

Wow...that was one heartbreaking read. You get a glimpse into what this book discusses but it won't prepare you for the utter sadness that follows after. 

Torn Away follows Jersey Cameron, a - soon to be - highschool senior, theater tech, sister, and daughter. Living in Elizabeth she is used to the constantly wild weather and thinks nothing of the occasional tornado watch. It's a once in a life time tragedy. With her stepdad on his way home from work, her sister and mother at the local dance studio the sirens start going off. The tornado destroys most of Elizabeth, the highschool, hospital, hundreds of homes...including Jersey's, and of course, the local dance studio. 

“I realized that the worst part of someone you love dying suddenly isn't the saying good-bye part. It's the part where you hope you said and did enough good stuff to make up for the bad stuff. It's the part where there are no second chances, no going back, no more opportunities to tell them how you feel about them.” 
― Jennifer Brown, Torn Away

In the aftermath of the tornado Jersey is determined to stay with her ruined home, knowing that it's where her mother and sister would come to look for her. Her neighbor and long time friend Kolby helps her as best he can. But when he takes her to where the dance studio is - or used to be - Jersey goes into complete denial. Refusing any help she stays in her highly unstable house under the pool table where she hid during the tornado, waiting. 
Soon her step father comes home and finds her, taking her to a hotel with him, but his grief is too much, and since Jersey isn't his biological daughter he sends her off to live with her father, the one who left her at less than a year old. It's a disaster house, barely any food, torturous step sisters, and a father and step mother who hate her. Knowing how unwanted she is, she tries everything to get back home. Discussing plans with her friend she finds out that she missed her families funeral, she finally thinks she's found her way back home but she was wrong. When Ronnie her step father comes back it's not in the way she thinks, he still doesn't want her. Instead he pushes her off to the other half of her family, her mother's parents who disowned her mom. 
As wonderful as they may be to her she still knows what she was told for her 17 years, that they were horrible people who abandoned her and her mother, that they didn't ever care about either of them until her mother died. Jersey finally breaks..falls entirely apart as she is outside during a storm and the sirens sound again. When she makes it back to her grandparents house she breaks. Everything is bare for her grandparents to see. 
It was the final break that will allow her to put the pieces back together. Her grandparents do everything to help and it works. them and Jersey return to Elizabeth temporarily so Jersey can finish her last year of highschool with her friends, she finally goes to her Mom and Sister's graves, speaking to them about how things are now, and how she's going to try her best t make it through. 
Returning to Elizabeth also means returning to see Kolby, with all that they went through he finally asks her out, and that's the end, but it seems like an absolutely amazing beginning. 

I'm wondering if it's even possible to lose "everything" or if you just have to keep redefining what "everything" is.” 
― Jennifer Brown, Torn Away

After reading and loving Hate List by Jennifer Brown I just had to pick this up. And it did not disappoint. Though I spent most of the book reading with a huge lump in my throat trying not to cry, it really holds so much meaning, and Jennifer has an amazing talent in finding a beautiful conclusion to such tragedy.

Review: Infinite (Newsoul #3) by Jodi Meadows

Edition: eBook
Pages: 432
Publish Date: January 28 2014
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Genre: YA Dystopian
Series: Yes
Goodreads Rating: 4.10 (1,736 ratings)

The third and final book in the Incarnate trilogy. I cannot explain how happy I am to finally finish this trilogy. It was beautiful and a perfect ending. Everything and everyone came together, Sylth and dragons, those who rebel against Janan sacrafised themselves to rid him of his plan and the horrible future for Heart. The sacrafises made were not in vain, as their redemption for destroying Janan the Pheonix's allowed them their last life, no more reincarnation, everything will be new. For now though they begin their life again. Ana and Sam together again, may be in different bodies but they are still filled with music and love, their last life spent together and will forever be remembered as heroes for the future newsouls. Ana Incarnate.

“Do you love me?"He spoke without hesitation, without the usual line of thought between his eyes. "Infinitely.” 
― Jodi Meadows, Infinite

August Wrap Up!