Book Review: Cup of Joe by Annabeth Albert

 Title: Cup of Joe (Bold Brew #1)
Author: Annabeth Albert
Publisher: Kindle Publishing
Release Date: February 25, 2021
Format: E-book 

Synopsis:

Sometimes an ordinary Joe is all you need…

Newbie barista Levi Miles is having a bad day in the middle of a bad month. He’s trying to figure out post-graduation life, and a recent breakup hasn’t helped. The one bright spot? The charming blue-collar customer with the simple order and reassuring voice.

Electrician Joe Simmons can make anything light up—except his love life. As he gets older, he remains unsure about what he wants from a relationship. But an innocent flirtation with the fresh-faced barista is exactly what his ego needs.

Levi doesn’t need a boyfriend. Or a Daddy. But bantering with Joe feels so good, and when their tentative friendship takes a turn for the sexy, a summer fling seems fun. Exploring long-held desires brings them closer with each steamy night, and the idea of parting gets harder.

But Levi’s only in town temporarily, and the end of summer is approaching. Both are reluctant to disclose their feelings, but pushing past their fears may be the only way to keep this special thing going. Can they order up a happy ending before time runs out?

Review: 

The first in a brand new multi author MM romance series centering around Bold Brew coffee shop. Annabeth is one of my favorite authors and I was so excited that she was writing a kinky book. Knowing Annabeth's normal style of writing and how fluffy and and low kink her books usually are, I was super excited to dive in. 

I enjoyed how Levi and Joe connected to each and got to explore their kinks together and finding new ones that they didn't know they had. Levi being fresh out of a bad relationship and figuring out what to do with his life outside of graduation, is what made it seem like Joe needed to protect Levi and have a fun time together. Joe being older than Levi, has some reservations about hooking up with Levi at first but then as he gets to know him, they start to get along better. 

I did have one issue that was just my personal issue. No matter what reservations they each had with being together, they got together very quickly and nothing else mattered on how and what they thought in the beginning. Outside of that the kink scenes were nice and steamy and a nice mild dose of kink. Even during the normal breakup scene they actually talked everything out and managed to get back together. With talking things over which needs to happen a lot more in romance novels. 

Overall I'm giving Cup of Joe a 4.5/5 stars and I'm excited for the next installment. 

ARC Review: Cowboy (Busy Bean #2) L.B. Dunbar

 Title: Cowboy (Busy Bean #2) 
Series: World of True North 
Author: L.B. Dunbar
Publisher: HeartEyes Press
Release Date: March 1,2021 

Pregnant at forty-two? Back the cow up...

Harland Bull Eaton has lost many things—his first wife, his beloved mother, those three women he proposed to . . . Oh, and there was that time he almost lost the family dairy farm due to a scandal. He’s losing faith in just about everything, especially love. 

But one night, his friends give him a dare. No commitments. No heartbreak. Just buy that gorgeous redhead a drink. The big-city bombshell he’s set his eyes on swirls him into a tailspin that lands them in bed for a one-night stand he’s pretty sure he’ll never forget. But this time, he swears, he won’t let his heart ride herd on his common sense. 

Recently separated and newly unemployed, Scarlett Russell is at a crossroads. With no other plan than visiting a friend in Vermont, the last thing she expects is a hunky, silver fox offering to buy her a drink. Even less expected is when she raises that offer to “take me to bed, cowboy.” She just wants one night to forget everything gone wrong.

Turns out once won’t be nearly enough. Won’t ever be enough, feeling the way she does. But secrets and an unexpected surprise are a lot to handle . . . unless these two can break a trail to an unexpected happily ever after.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

So this book, this book right here. From the very start I was laughing and enjoying this story. LB Dunbar drew me in from the very first sentence. Bull and Scarlett were a great couple. Seeing both of them being in their 40s and finding their love with each other and the trials that they both had to overcome. Also surprise baby was always worth the read. 

Both of them had so much heartache when they decided to have their one night stand at the very beginning of the book and having never expected to see each other again set everything in motion. Life throws curveballs as both of them quickly learn. Watching them be there for each other no matter what was happening. Both of them deciding that Bull will be part of the baby's life regardless of the situation, the love and respect for one another, was out of this world.

The spicy scenes were well written and the two of them had such great chemistry together both during those moments and the rest of the story in just their interactions with each other and other characters. 

Overall Rating: 4 Stars 

Book Review: The Falling In Love Montage

Title: The Falling In Love Montage 

Author: Ciara Smyth 
Publisher: HarperTeen 
Release Date: June 9th, 2020 

Synopsis: 

Saoirse doesn’t believe in love at first sight or happy endings. If they were real, her mother would still be able to remember her name and not in a care home with early onset dementia. A condition that Saoirse may one day turn out to have inherited. So she’s not looking for a relationship. She doesn’t see the point in igniting any romantic sparks if she’s bound to burn out.

But after a chance encounter at an end-of-term house party, Saoirse is about to break her own rules. For a girl with one blue freckle, an irresistible sense of mischief, and a passion for rom-coms.

Unbothered by Saoirse’s no-relationships rulebook, Ruby proposes a loophole: They don’t need true love to have one summer of fun, complete with every cliché, rom-com montage-worthy date they can dream up—and a binding agreement to end their romance come fall. It would be the perfect plan, if they weren’t forgetting one thing about the Falling in Love Montage: when it’s over, the characters actually fall in love… for real.

Review: 

My first book and review of 2021 everyone. This book was everything, so let's get into it. 

Saoirse was a great character to follow along with, she may not believe in happy endings but watching her fall in love and see how she grew was an adventure and there was a lot of emotions seeing her follow along with the plan to just have fun with Ruby. Ruby to me was the opposite of Saoirse and which is why I felt that they were able to click as well they did. Their chemistry was there and I wanted so much for them. 

The writing was very well done and flowed well. The humor and emotions that went into the story brought it to life, so that it felt like was there with the cast. The story also went into some heavier topics such as early onset dementia and seeing how they was put on the page was well done from what I know of. 

The ending of the book really got to me and I'm not going to say why because of spoilers but it left me emotional in a good way. Its definitely a story about falling in love and realizing how great of a feeling it is. 

Rating: 4 Stars 

Book Review - Leaving Amarillo by Caisey Quinn

Title: Leaving Amarillo (Neon Dreams #1)

Author: Caisey Quinn 

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Release Date: March 17, 2015
Format: e-book

Genre: NA, Contemporary, Romance 

Rating: 5/5

Synopsis:

Nashville meets New Adult in Neon Dreams, a dramatic, sexy series from bestselling author Caisey Quinn, about a country band’s rocky road to fame—and the ambition, dreams, and love of the people who make the music.

Dixie Lark hasn’t had it easy. She lost her parents in an accident when she was young and grew up in a ramshackle house on a dirt road in Amarillo with her ailing grandparents and overprotective older brother. Thanks to her grandfather, Dixie learned to play a mean fiddle, inspired by the sounds of the greats—Johnny and June, Waylon, and Hank. Her grandfather’s fiddle changed Dixie’s life forever, giving her an outlet for the turmoil of her broken heart and inspiring a daring dream.

Ten years later, Dixie and her brother, Dallas, are creating the music they love and chasing fame with their hot band, Leaving Amarillo. But Dixie isn’t enjoying the ride. All she can think about is Gavin, the band’s tattooed, tortured drummer who she’s loved since they were kids. She knows he feels the connection between them, but he refuses see her as more than his best friend’s little sister.

Convinced that one night with Gavin will get him out of her system, Dixie devises a plan. She doesn’t know that her brother has forbidden Gavin from making a move on her-a promise he swore he’d always keep . . . a promise that once broken will unexpectedly change the future for Dixie, Gavin and the band. 

Thoughts: 

For those of you who read a post I had a while ago about my love for NA, this hasn't changed one bit, as it is I thought it would be fitting for me review this one for y'all because I LOVED IT. I mean country music AND a contemporary romance rolled into one!? What's not to love!? Breaking this down into categories now. 

Characters: Dixie Leigh Lark - This girl is a real hellfire and I loved that about her, she knows what she wants and isn't afraid to go for it even if it is Gavin. She's also not dumb enough to allow her personal feelings to stand in the way of what's right for the band. Plus this girl can play a mean fiddle and if her inspiration came from the Greats, then I really have no problems!

                  Gavin - Not wanting to do anything he isn't supposed to that would cause drama, made him a well liked character with me. Yeah I wish he would have man'd up a bit in the beginning and just said it like it was but it was nice to see him come to terms on his own time. His backstory was one that I felt along with it. 

                 Dallas - This man right here! He wants what's best for him and the band and will make sure that they become the very best, even if it does mean pinching money for the longest time. He's the big brother that most people would love to have. 

The plot itself was well written and is honestly one of the best representations of the music industry that I've read, its not all glamour and easy. Its a hard, tough world to catch your break into and Caisey managed to capture that with this band. In reality this novel reminded me a lot of the show Nashville. Yes I am a Nashville addict! The romance was hot and wonderfully written and I don't think I can look at ice cream the same way again. Honestly this has taken a place on my favorites shelf from now on and I will be getting a physical copy because I love it so much.

The ups and downs and the feels all around especially with the ending left me wanting more and thankfully more is what I got with Loving Dallas. Caisey Quinn you have sung one hell of a tune with Leaving Amarillo! I'm going to be starting Loving Dallas shortly because I really do need to know what is going to happen! 

Overall rating is a 5/5 stars!

ARC Review - All It Takes - Sadie Munroe

Title: All It Takes
Author: Sadie Munroe
Publisher: Sadie Munroe
Release Date: June 30, 2015
Format: E-ARC
Genre: New Adult
Rating: 3/5
Amazon

Nineteen-year-old Star Collins never intended to return to her hometown, Avenue. That part of her life ended when she was nine years old, and child services took her away from her hoarder mother. Her mother chose her stuff over her daughter. That part of her life was supposed to be in the past.
But her mother has just passed away and Star finds herself giving up her summer to quietly clean out her old home. She just wants to sell it and move on with her life. However, things aren't going the way she planned. With her dyed-black hair and tattoos, she's attracting almost as much attention from the small town residents as Ash Winthrope, the guy who was just released from prison.
All Ash wants is a chance to start over. He screwed up and he knows it, he's going to have to live with the guilt for the rest of his life. But he's stuck in Avenue until his parole ends, and no one, not even his own parents, wants anything to do with him. Nearly out of money and completely out of options, Ash takes the only job he can, helping Star haul stuff out of her mother's house.
Neither of them expects anything to happen between them, or for their lives to change. But sometimes meeting the right person is all it takes.

 Thoughts:

 All It Takes is one debut into the NA world that I enjoyed. The story was unique because I haven't stumbled upon one that involved hoarding and have the plot centered around on how to deal with the aftermath in a case of hoarding. This topic right here was one that I wasn't sure if would have worked or not and in this case it definitely worked. Even the group of characters were unique, I mean yes they followed some of the few stereotypes that are typical with the NA genre and small town scene but it worked.

Star being one of the MCs has to deal with her mother's house after her mother has passed away and her mother having been a hoarder. Star is the type of character who knows she needs help to clear away all the junk but at the same time, she knows that she can't afford to get as much help as she needs, and she doesn't want the town to know. Overall Star is a strong young woman who has managed to overcome a lot in her 19 years and still knows that she has a lot ahead of her.

Ash on the other hand is trying to put his life back together. It was nice for his story to be told because it gave insight into another topic that I don't see much of in books. He too had a lot to overcome after moving back into town himself, after being away in prison for the last 5 years of his life. Both of these characters and the rest of the cast of supporting characters all played their roles in the ways that made sense and at the same time bugged me that some of them could be so self centered and judgmental.

The plot itself was original with all the hoarding and the being in prison, but what really got me was the ending because I didn't see that coming. Throughout the whole book I was thinking that really nothing major was going to happen and then the next thing I know, a major plot twist was thrown in right before the ending and made my brain go into overdrive trying to figure out what happened and what was going to happen.

Overall this was an enjoyable debut into the NA genre and I can't wait to see what Sadie has in store for her next novel.

Book Review - On Solid Ground - Melissa Collins

Title: On Solid Ground
Author: Melissa Collins
Publisher: M.Collins
Release Date: January 13, 2015
Genre: Adult, Romance, LGBT
Format: Kindle
Rating: 5/5 
Amazon

When Jacob “Dax” Daxton returns home from war, he has to fight a new battle – the one to find his place in the world. The man who normally has a clear path to victory surrounded by brothers in combat is suddenly lost and alone. After meeting Beckett Ridge, a bearded tattoo artist, Dax’s journey begins winding down an unexpected path.

Still reeling from events that shook his foundation, Beck has never been part of anything meaningful. Now faced with responsibilities foreign and daunting, Dax’s broken spirit mends Beck in ways he never even knew he was destroyed.

As both struggle to find balance, they are healed by the comfort they find in one other. On the other side of chaos, they hope to find themselves On Solid Ground.

Thoughts: 

Holy wow! This book totally blew me out of the water so to speak. Both Dax and Beck are complex men and both have had pasts that hit me hard, especially when we see them in the present day and how they are. Dax having been in the army and is now back home, he suffers from PTSD and this was portrayed pretty well. Beck on the other hand has a lot of his own problems, including a sister in rehab and a niece who is under his watch. The chemistry between these two men is also some of the best I've encountered while reading. They just seem to mesh together so well and their relationship is one in which is completely believable and doesn't hurt that they seem to actually care deeply for one another despite everything going on in their lives.

The entirety of the plot was just as amazing as these two men are. The insight from both of them and their back stories was wonderfully written and gave so much and made me feel so much more for them and the struggles they were facing. All the way through the ending it kept me going from page to page and by the time that I finished the book I was crying.

There are messages hidden within this entire book and some very important messages they are. Everything about this novel was powerful and explosive and I didn't think a romance novel could do something like this. I may have picked this book on a whim and I am so glad that I did. This book has left an ever lasting impression on me and I won't forget about it anytime soon. May have just become one of my favorite romance novels of all time. I will definitely be reading some more of Melissa's works as soon as I can.

Blog Tour - The Choice

 Title: The Choice
Author: Allison J. Kennedy
Release Date: May 23, 2015
Publisher: Booktrope
Format: e-ARC
Rating 4/5 Stars

About the book: How do you heal from your past when you're still trapped within it?

I lost myself the night of the party. Just like that, my innocence and my sanity were torn away.

I would like to say that time heals all wounds, but it doesn't. And I would like to say that falling in love is what rescued me, but it wasn't. Nobody told me what to expect in the coming days and weeks and months after conceiving a rapist's child. Years later, my wounds are still just as fresh as the night they were made. It would be so easy to disappear and allow the memories to consume me.

But that's the choice, isn't it? To live instead.

**This book contains rape triggers. Discretion is advised.

 Excerpt:

I squeezed the remaining water out of my hair with a towel as I stood naked before my bedroom's floor-length mirror. I examined a few bruises on my legs and one on my shoulder from where Tyler pinned me down with his elbow. They were yellow and purple and seemed to be fading. I touched them lightly and saw in my mind's eye the entire thing from start to finish, thankful that this time I didn't fall apart.

But nightmares followed me to bed that night just like before. Only this time, I didn't wake up from them. They plagued me from the moment I fell asleep until a sound outside jolted me back to life.

I lunged upright in bed, heaving for breath. Sweat trickled down my face and neck. The room was too dark; it was suffocating me. I reached for my lamp but it wouldn't turn on, so I darted across the room to flip on the light. The power was out. The tree outside crashed against my window with a gust of angry wind. I raked air into my lungs, pressing my back against the wall as I sank to my knees. I couldn't even remember what I had dreamt. I only knew what I felt.

My body shook with each sob, my bare legs hugged tightly to my chest. This all just needed to end. I felt like I was losing my sanity more with each passing hour.

 Review: 
Allison wrote this wonderful read. I know what you're thinking; how is a book about rape wonderful? Well it's wonderful because she wrote this about such a difficult subject and managed to not glamorize anything about it. This book managed to hit me right in the feels because I could feel the pain and the agony right along with her. 

May even ended up pregant with her rapist's child and all I could think of was what was she going to do. It is her choice after all and while this is never an easy subject to read or write about, it hit several points on this.

If you're looking for a book in which will make you feel and explores a subject that is almost never talked about then The Choice is the one for you.

Add to Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25727856-the-choice
Author’s Website - http://www.allisonjkennedy.com/

About the author: Allison was born and raised in the mountains of Oregon, birthed of the crisp, clean air and rainy forests. She now resides in Oklahoma City, though she is still thoroughly attached to her home and finds much inspiration for her stories whenever she has a chance to return. As the spouse of a police officer and a full-time photographer, she is on her toes 24/7.

Purchase Links
Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Choice-Allison-J-Kennedy/dp/1620158051
Barnes & Noble - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-choice-allison-j-kennedy/1121089743?ean=9781620158050