Review ~ The Hardest Fall by Ella Maise

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The first time you meet someone, you make eye contact. You smile, say hello. Should be simple, if you’re anyone but me. The first time I met Dylan Reed, I found myself making eye contact with a different part of his body. You see, I’m very good at being shy, not to mention extremely well-versed in rambling nonsense and, unfortunately, rather highly skilled at making a fool of myself in front of a guy I’m attracted to.

At the time, I knew nothing about him and thought none of what I said would matter since I’d never speak to him again. Turns out, I was very wrong. He was the star wide receiver of the football team, one of the few players expected to make it into the NFL, and I ended up seeing him all over campus.

I might have also propositioned him, run away from him, attacked him with a cooking utensil…and…uh, maybe I shouldn’t tell you all of it. It’s pretty normal stuff, things you’d expect…from me. Eventually, the time came when I couldn’t hide anymore—not that he’d have let me even if I tried.

Before now, he never knew I was secretly watching him. Now that we see each other every day, he knows when I have a hard time looking away. It doesn’t help that I’m not the most subtle person in the world either.

He smiles at me and tells me he finds me fascinating because of my quirks. I can’t even tell him that I think my heart beats differently whenever he’s around.

He thinks we’re going to be best friends. I think I have a big thing for him, and the more I get to know him, the more I don’t care that I’m not allowed to be his friend, let alone fall for him.

The thing is, that’s exactly what I’m doing—what we’re doing, I think.

Falling.

Hard.

My Opinion

Ella Maise is a new author to me. In all honesty, it was the cover that drew me to this book. It's a sweet cover and sums the book up well. Once I'd read the blurb, I knew I needed to read The Hardest Fall.

This book captured my interest from page one. I started reading it the second it landed on my Kindle, and I kept turning the pages until I realised it was 3 a.m. and I needed to stop since I had to be up at 6 a.m. to travel back home. Not good really.

However, the book was worth the lack of sleep. Zoe and Dylan were a cute couple with just the right amount of spark. I loved Zoe's awkwardness. I could relate well to her and it made me giggle.

One thing I liked most about this book is the relationship was the focus of the book. The author took time to develop the character before they kissed and even longer before they slept together. I'm getting bored of unnecessary sex scenes in books. They generally feel like padding now, but here they were well timed and added to the relationship which had been built. There weren't too many I ended up skimming, and I believed in the characters' emotions.

Overall, for a first time read by a new author I was pleasantly surprised. I'd definitely recommend The Hardest Fall and will have to check out this author's other work.

4

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Review ~ Harper and the One-Night Stand by R. Linda

Title: Harper and the One-Night Stand

Author: R. Linda

Genre: NA Romance

Release Date: April 10, 2018

A few too many cocktails in paradise, and I woke up in someone else’s bed. My ex-boyfriend’s cousin’s bed, to be exact. 

Huge mistake. 

Nate and I agreed it wouldn’t happen again. We didn’t want to hurt Brody. Only it did happen, repeatedly, until I finally found the courage to walk away. 

But I couldn’t ignore the temptation, and I soon found myself back in his bed—or on his floor—stealing secret kisses and forbidden touches, sneaking around behind everyone’s backs.

I tried so hard to resist Nate’s charms, but my resolve crumbled. How could I not be swept off my feet by water towers in the rain and deep confessions on the beach? 

The last thing we want is to hurt anyone, but it is out of our control. And there isn’t a thing I can do except give him my heart and hope he keeps it safe…regardless of the consequences.

My Opinion

I found these books and this author through a Kindle Unlimited free trial last month. Having enjoyed the first two, I was excited to request and get a hold of Harper's story.

For the most part, this book had everything I expected from the first two. The tight-knit group of characters felt as strong as ever and there were laughs and heartbreak along the way.

Harper and Nate were a cute couple. Their story did hold my attention and it was a sweet romance. However, I did feel it took too long for everything to happen. The sneaking around is fine to a point, but it hindered the chemistry once things got past 50% and the characters were still doing the same things. Something bad is inevitable at that point and I questioned the characters' intelligence.

Moreover, it meant too much happened in the end and too fast. Like I said, for the most part I enjoyed this book, but then it ended all of a sudden and let me down. I don't think the ending gave enough satisfaction and resolution. I felt there were a lot of scenes missed out I would have liked to see before the epilogue. For example seeing Audrey, more with Brody, stuff like that. In places this book didn't feel fully fleshed out and it left a lot of lose ends that were only given a couple of sentences to sum them up, which isn't satisfying.

Overall, I did enjoy this book, but the ending ruined it for me. It's still a good series, but I think the other two books were better.

3.5

Review ~ Jacob's Ladder: Eli (Jacob's Ladder, #2) by Katie Ashley

eARC received via Inkslinger PR in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: April 1st 2018

Publisher: Self-published

Description:
One wouldn’t expect a sexy-as-sin rocker like Eli Renard to spend time with a woman just as a friend, but that’s exactly what Emersyn Wallace is to him. Just a friend. Even though she’s matured into a beauty, Eli still doesn’t remotely see his childhood pal as a sex-object. When tragedy brings her back into his world, Eli moves mountains to help Emersyn get back onto her feet by finding her a job as a backup singer for Jacob’s Ladder. At first, Eli is thrilled that Emerysn is along on tour, and he sets out to do his best to help her forget her sorrow through a range of crazy friend dates. But after spending so much time with her in such close quarters, Eli finds his feelings beginning to shift. He no longer sees Emersyn as the once awkward young girl he played some of his first songs with. Soon it’s not only his body that reacts to her, but it’s also his heart. He’s about to learn what a dangerous game it is to dry a widow’s tears.

After losing her husband and singing partner in a tragic accident, Emersyn Wallace spent the last eight months drowning in a sea of grief. With the bills piling up and her family and friends concerned about her emotional welfare, she reluctantly agrees to join the Jacob’s Ladder’s tour. While recapturing her lost love of singing and performing, she finds both comfort and healing in Eli’s gregarious personality and outrageous sense of humor. But as the anniversary of her husband’s death approaches, she finds herself in turmoil over her new amorous feelings for Eli.

Can Eli and Emersyn find the perfect melody to transition from friends to lovers, or will their relationship end out of tune?

My Opinion

I adore best friend to lovers books so this book caught my eye immediately. It took me a while to get around to reading it, since I had so many other books on my tbr pile, but finally I managed it.

Jacob's Ladder was a sweet read. I liked that the author didn't go down the traditional bad-boy musician route. Instead, Eli was a genuinely good guy and an even better friend. He was there for Emersyn through everything and I liked him. Together they made a sweet couple. I will admit that I didn't completely connect with them or their story. It was a nice read, but I felt distanced from it like there was that something extra too pull me in missing.

Overall though it was a pleasant read. For the most part, it was an easy and sweet romance.

3.5

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