More 90s pop culture!

My off topic post of the day.

The latest release in this "revisiting" of Kurt Cobain's suicide.  

It reads

"Do you Kurt Cobain take Courtney Michelle Love to be your lawful shredded wife even when she's a bitch with zits and siphoning all yr money for doping and whoring..."

I hate that (even if I do find this a little funny because it is so fitting) stuff like this is getting released, now or ever.   Can you imagine what it would have been like if they released this 20 years ago though?  

Well...

I can officially say that I've read everything that Kristen Ashley has written so far.  So, yay.

Nothing innocent here.

So. I have said it before and apparently will say it again.  The whole key to making a taboo relationship of any kind work is making sure that the reader (me) has enough to understand WHY this relationship is happening.  If said relationship lacks depth, then it just comes across as a couple of horny ass people with absolutely no self control whatsoever and in turn makes you not really give a damn what happens to either of them.  30+ year old teacher may go to jail for repeatedly banging his hot, young student?  Aww, poor baby.  You should have kept it in your pants for another year.  Zero sympathy.

Anyway.  I guess that I didn't hate Veiled Innocence.  It, obviously, lacked some serious depth to the story line.  I have no clue of the time line for the book.  Did he wait a week, 6 weeks, 6 months before he caved to the apparently awesome feminine wiles of a troubled 18 year old? No freaking clue. How about if he fell in love with her for something other than her amazing vagina powers? No idea on that one either. I need to know these things.

On the good side of this, I loved how Addison's mania was handled.  The Tick, Tick, Tock did get old after a while, but everyone has their own coping mechanisms in life so it definitely fit with the story.  Her troubles were probably the only other aspect of the book that was well thought out and written.  That and the sex. Lots of that and it was good sex, so that's something.

So yeah, 2.5 stars.  It was an interesting idea, but without any real depth to Addison and Grayson's relationship I can't completely get behind it.

Just let me love you!

Holy Crap.

That was sooo not how the movie ended.  And I am an idiot for not remembering how the movie versions of his books tend to be whitewashed.  I can promise that won't happen again.  

Four out of Five Stars. 

It's the perfect date!

New Jamie McGuire book

Pretty cover.  Now to see if it's better than the disaster (ha, see what I did there) that was the last couple books.  I almost hate that I care to even find out, but I'm still suckered into trying whatever she writes.  Freaking Maddox brothers.  I wish I didn't like you all so much despite your horribly shitty taste in women.

I Call Him Brady Review

So flippin' cute!

I'll be the first to admit that I am a huge sucker for the regular chick hooking up with the famous, hot actor.  So, this one definitely hit the spot with me.

It's chock full of insta-love, which can be grating to some (and yes, it did annoy me ever so slightly) but the rest of the book made up for it.  I loved the snarky humor between Embers and May.  Not to mention little 5 year old Jessa.

<b>"But no one could trump Jessa, who waited for the moment the manager came by to see if we had enjoyed our meal, and then stared him square in the eye to calmly say: "In case you were wondering. This is my mommy and this is my daddy and this is my other mommy because my mom can't make her mind, just like Lindsay Lohan. "</b>

I almost choked to death on my nectar of the gods otherwise known as Dr. Pepper.

Overall, this book is just what you would want when you are looking for a fluffy and hilarious beach type read.  It's quick (as in I finished it in a few hours), cute and funny as hell.

4 out of 5 stars!

Link to purchase on Amazon-->http://amzn.com/B00JUENUYU

Undeniable

3.5 Stars I usually avoid serials like the plague, but the synopsis on this one was enough to make me curious enough to give it a shot. Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed. Too much anyway. Overall, this was a quick and intriguing read. It's only 62 pages, but those 62 pages kept me hooked and that is saying a lot given my attention span. The only major downfall of this for me is the fact that it is a serial. There wasn't really enough time to form any lasting opinions on any of the characters. I didn't get attached to the story of the characters themselves, I just wanted to know what was going to happen. That may work for some readers, especially those who dig the idea behind a serial, but it just frustrates me seeing as how I tend to be more of an instant gratification type person. I assume as the series goes on, we'll get more insight into what makes the characters tick and if the rest are like this, it will be a good ride. That said, I am definitely interested in continuing on with the series. The first book gave me enough that I definitely have the need to know more. Even if it also makes me wish that I could have already had it in a full length novel. That's not really a bad problem to have. Arc provided by Patchwork Press via NetGalley for a fair and honest review

Link to purchase on Amazon-->http://amzn.com/B00JQJ7RB6

Love, in English

I'm still trying to process this book.  I hate being undecided on my feelings.  I am just so confused, in awe, in love, unsure, etc.

I'm still trying to process this book.  I hate being undecided on my feelings.  I am just so confused, in awe, in love, unsure, etc.

So, I've had a week to ruminate on my feelings for this book and I think I have finally figured everything out and can get it out there more clearly.

I struggled with part one pretty heavily.  I never really formed any actual feelings for Mateo, which in turn never was able to understand the why of him being willing to throw away his marriage.  It finally dawned on me today, though, that every other book I have read about this subject has always been in the POV of the "cheating party" in the relationship. We didn't get that here.  It was the outside party, Vera, POV that we saw.  In the end though, that is what made this book so different and so outstanding though. As it went on, I finally started to be able to see all of the pieces that made Vera and Mateo and was able to reconcile my feelings better.  It was all up from there.

Vera was just an astounding character. Karina has always had such a way to create some of the most relatable female characters.  Almost everyone can find something in them that they can relate to themselves.  She really hit it out of the part with Vera for me though. I felt such a connection with her character. The dreams, feelings, troubles, tattoos, loneliness, need to experience more of life..everything. Some of those now, some of those when I was younger.  It felt like we could be the same person at times.  I feel like I say that with all of Ms. Halle's characters, and I probably do, but that also really goes to show her ability to create such complex, yet understandable people.  Vera, though, well she was just something different. Anyway.

I really think it's incredibly hard to accurately portray the emotions that are brought out in these situations.  However, Ms. Halle did it amazingly. Especially in the second and third parts of the books when we were able to see Vera and Mateo outside of their little bubble they created while at Las Palabras.  I spent the entire last two parts on constant verge of an emotional breakdown that I had to hold in because it was ridiculously late at night and I didn't want to wake the husband up with my hysterical sobbing.  The guilt, the guilt over not feeling guilty enough, the love, the struggles, the hope.   Every aspect was just completely nailed.

I don't think I can recommend this enough.  It was a little slow going for me initially, but by the end it was just outstanding.

Kudos for Ms. Halle for stepping out of her comfort zone to bring us this. I'm extremely grateful for it.

5 out of 5 Stars.

Link to purchase on Amazon-->http://amzn.com/B00JMO9W4K

SO.

House hunting sucks.  But do you know what sucks even more?  Buying a house.  It sucks.  I am not a fan. At all.  Zero fan in this girl.  It sends my sanity into a complete tailspin and then has the audacity to interfere with my reading time.  No bueno.  

So, as finish up this initial process of selling my soul to a mortgage company (not to mention finals for school), I'll be lacking in the review department.  

As a temporary parting gift, I'm going to leave you with this. 

To Darynda Jones...

Review (ish)

So, we are heading to Florida to house hunt tomorrow and I have a ridiculous amount of crap to still do. Also, somehow during all of that I still have to find the time to study for another test.  I, at least, managed to finish reading this instead of paying attention during the two hour sad excuse for a meeting, in room that was so hot we might as well been sitting in a million degree sauna while surrounded by a bunch of sweaty Navy guys who stepped directly off the boat, the same guys who apparently all decided to spray on more cologne--as if that would help anything at all. It's been a long day.  

Anyway, in lieu of a review that I'm really not down for writing right now as I still have hours of laundry and studying to look forward too.  

First Grave on the Right. 

Fin. 

Tonight.

Does everyone have that TV show that you really wish that you could have stopped watching a couple of seasons ago, and yet you just can't bring yourself to stop? 

I'm so happy this is the last season.   

Definitely not Starstruck.

Lex Harrington is living a stranger’s life. After high school, she and her boyfriend, superstar quarterback Brad Wakefield, headed off to college, secure in the knowledge of their brilliant future. Then an injury ended Brad’s football career, and he convinced Lex to drop out of school and return home with him, where everything fell apart. 

Because the glossy surface of their relationship concealed a dark truth: years of emotional abuse culminating in Brad’s walking out on Lex and their infant son. At twenty-three, she’s a single mother with no future prospects, struggling to make ends meet while dealing with the aftermath of her destructive marriage.

When Jaron Richards left for college, he vowed he’d never look back. Brad laid waste to his friendship with Lex, leaving nothing to bind Jaron to his hometown. But his unrequited love for Lex has never faded, even as his star has begun to rise, making him Hollywood’s hottest new actor.

Now Jaron is back in town to film his latest movie, and his presence stirs up everything Lex would rather forget. Can they find a way to pick up the pieces and build a future together?

This book's storyline opened up so much potential to be a really good book.  I have been trying to avoid any New Adult books, but this synopsis had me hooked.  I'm a sucker for the celebrity/small town girl story line already, but adding in the element of the emotionally abusive first marriage, I couldn't pass it up when I saw it on Netgalley.  Now I wish I would have. 

The biggest issue with this book was that Lex and Jaron had absolutely no chemistry.  Seriously, zip. It made it almost impossible to get involved in the story. This lack of chemistry also bothered me in the fact that in the end, their relationship came across more of one of convenience for Lex. Even Lex herself had previously said that she never saw Jaron as anymore than a friend prior to their "relationship".  And they had known each other since they were toddlers.  So, color me shocked she suddenly falls in love with the best friend who just so happens to NOW be a rich and famous movie star who is awesome with her kid and is willing to be a father to him right after the kid starts asking why he doesn't have any other boys in his family. There were ways to make all of this believable and seem less like Lex is taking advantage of the person who has loved her his entire life, even when she was in love with an emotionally abusive asshole who happens to be the star quarterback and on his way to the NFL until he blows out his knee, loses his career and promptly bails on her and their son. See where I'm going with this?  You really want to have the benefit of the doubt in Lex, but I was never able to give her that. There just was not enough there. 

I do want to add that Owen, Lex's son, was annoyingly adorable. Three year old boys are cute as hell when they aren't being annoying as hell. The author nailed that aspect of this book.  I also feel that the emotional abuse situation was handled well, in that it showcased a lot of how it happens and the issues that it causes. These things, however, just was not enough to offset the rest of the book. 

At the end, Starstruck definitely did not leave me that way.  

1.5 Stars. 

Arc provided by Sweenix Rising Books via Netgalley for a fair and honest review. 

Happy Caturday!

Spoilers, yo!

2.5 Stars.

Meh. 

Sometimes my need to finish a series ends up being a massive pain in my ass.  Especially when I didn't really care for the first book in the series in the first place.  But you know, sometimes that second book can make up for a first book.  It's happened to me before, so I usually try to get at least two books into a series before I call it a wash unless I completely despised the first book.  

Anyway, Compromising.  

Well, it WAS better than the first book.  That doesn't really mean that it was good though.  My biggest issue with Fraternizing was that it was just too much. So much so that it was just overwhelming to the nth degree.  Compromising, thankfully wasn't that bad. It was still too much though.  

This series is based around the fact that an NCO/instructor (Alex) banged one of his students (Cassie).  Yeah, they eventually fall in love, blah blah, but at the end of the day he he lusted after her and broke the rules. A pretty major one at that, since it was in school AND she ended up in the top of her class.  Even if it was by her own merit (which it was) it still looks shady as hell. And after mucho drama, they get caught and he gets his one way trip to the brig. End scene. 

This is where Compromising picks up. And it gets it's sugar coated happy ending to the fraternization charge a third of the way in.  They both got off completely scot free because of a due process issue. What bothered me in this entire thing is the fact that we never found out why the person who was so dead set determined to get Alex some serious brig time.  That is where this should have focused on.  The fraternization case and the reasons behind it. Not a wee bit of that, case closed, and then the rest around Alex's anger issues and his subsequent deployment. If the author would have cut out one of the kajillion sex scenes in the first book, she could have actually wrapped everything with the actual fraternization case up in one book and called it a day.

 I would have probably really liked it then. 

She's Back!

That epilogue!  Emotions. I have them in. 

I'd like to issue a public apology to Kristen Ashley for my procrastination on reading this.  I'll admit that I was worried considering that I have been highly disappointed in the last few of her releases. I don't know if it's because she had the opportunity to start a new series or what, but my disappointment has been made up for. 

I actually think it's possible that Jake has surpassed Luke & Tate and is sitting mighty fucking (and uncomfortably) close to Joe in my list 'o best KA alpha dudes right now. ::pearl clutch::  I didn't think that was ever going to happen. I feel like I'm cheating on him now.

Don't worry Joe, I'll reread At Peace soon and we'll get reacquainted.  Just give me a wee bit more time with Jake first though..

P.S. I missed you KA! Dig that you're back.  Please don't leave us again.

P.S.S.  Is it wrong to hate Forever Publishing?  Because I do if they are the reason we are missing out on more of this. 

4.5 Stars

My non-book related post of the day.

April is the month of the Military Child.  Because of that, I wanted to share some insight..

My oldest kiddo, who will be 14 next month, will start his 7th school this year and he's only going into the 9th grade.  He's lived in 5 different states (couple more than once) and said see you later to countless amounts of friends and family members.  

He's also been able to live in 5 different states and met numerous different people and made countless friends during that time. Many of those have made significant impacts on his life then and in the future. 

My other two kiddos, thankfully, have led a slightly more stable life as my husband has advanced in his career, with only 3 states with 3 schools, and 2 states with 2 schools, respectively.  

The life of a military kid is a tough but rewarding one.  My brats handle change better than most people I have ever met. As a kid who went to the same school K-12, I have a lot of respect for the challenges they have and I hope that after our next move this summer we can finally give them a break and let them settle. 

So, keep in mind the kids when you think of the military life.  I think they really are the ones who face the biggest challenges and rewards during their formative years because of this life. 

It's Game of Thrones Time!

Mud Vein by Tarryn Fisher

If someone asked me to name one author who has the distinct ability to write such broken, yet beautifully complicated characters, Tarryn Fisher would be the first person to come to mind.  She has such a unique ability to give you a brutally honest depiction of human nature.  It is almost hard for me to read the books she writes. To see so much of myself on the pages in her characters.  That's also why I love to read her books. They never fail to make me think and gives me insight into how others deal with this thing called life. 

At the first glance of Mud Vein, my initial thoughts lead me to focus more on the kidnapping and imprisonment of Senna. That's what the synopsis says after all.  Eventually though, the physical imprisonment plays second fiddle to the emotional imprisonment of Senna.  She has experienced so many things in life that essentially shut her down. The same experiences and people that have contributed to that mud vein. So, while this book is about unraveling the mystery that surrounds her captivity, it is SO much more than that. It's about strength, love, weakness, freedom, hate, self-loathing, fear, acceptance and peace.  It's about life and the gamut of happenings that shape it.  It's about freeing yourself from captivity in many different aspects. It's truth. It's just amazing. 

I wish I could give a better idea on my feelings about this book, but I just can't. It's something that I always experience when I read any of Ms. Fisher's books.  I can never get everything I'm feeling out, much less process it coherently. Her books are always an experience, more than a book. This one even more. It just needs to be read.

My Rating 5/5 Stars. 

"Why are you here?" "Because you are."

It's Happening.

There is nothing like finding out at 2:30 in the morning that a book you have been waiting on for what feels like forever got released almost two weeks early.

Who needs sleep?  Sleep is for the weak and undedicated.

Veronica Mars. Still awesome. (Mild Spoiler(s) Beware)

So, this was mw when I found out that there was going to be a Veronica Mars book series. 

I almost wish I was exaggerating here, but I'm not.  I was so ridiculously excited it was a little embarrassing.  I have a huge, massive, colossal girl crush on Kristen Bell.  I'd probably have a similar reaction to meeting her as when she found out she was getting to hold a sloth. It's kind of ridiculous, but whatever. She's awesome.  Anyway, because of all of this, I opted for the audiobook version of this book since, you know, Kristen Bell was narrating it.  Who better to read a book about Veronica Mars to you than Veronica Mars herself?  It makes the experience all the better and really, this book should only be enjoyed via audiobook in my opinion.  The only thing that would have made it better was if everyone got involved with reading their own characters. Cue brain explosion. 

But I digress.  

This essentially was a book version of the TV show.  It had the same flow, the same snark, the same drama, same awesome family and friends. If you already like the show, you'll like the book.  If you've never seen the show, you'll want to afterward.  It's obvious in everything that the writer of the show was involved.  That was my biggest worry going into the book, that it wasn't going to have the same feel as the show/movie. Thankfully, that wasn't a problem.  It wasn't without flaws though.  

My biggest issue was the seemingly dropped storyline with the cartel. It seemed out of place with how abruptly it ended when it had appeared like it was going to play a major part.  The storyline shifted in a way that it wasn't a massive plot hole, but it still was a bit of a disappointment.  I'm assuming that maybe it will be addressed again in later books though. 

I also missed Logan. Yes, yes he's deployed.  My hubs is in the Navy, so I get it. I still missed him. The Skype sessions made me tear up like a bitch though. Been there, done that. It blows. The LoVe dynamic has always been one of my favorite couplings. I don't think I'll ever feel like I've had enough of them. So, I guess I'll probably always complain about not seeing enough of them.  

I do hope to see some changes and growth in Veronica and Mars Investigations as this goes on though. There is a huge opportunity with this book series, as it isn't held to the same constraints as trying to produce a popular tv show.  So, I'm curious to see what else Veronica can do. 

My Rating 4/5 Stars. 

Book Nerd Problems

Long Hair, Don't Care

Date & Title Reveal!

All of the food!

Everything I had.


Skip to 1:00 in for the absolute adorableness.

Love Me With Lies Sale!

Tarryn Fisher's LMWL series is on sale for $.99 each.  Totally worth every single penny.  If you haven't subjected yourself to the wonderfully miserable form of book torture, take advantage now! 

✦ #1 THE OPPORTUNIST ➜ http://amzn.to/1fJxHgB ($0.99)
✦ #2 DIRTY RED ➜ http://amzn.to/1hphJbP ($0.99)
✦ #3 THIEF ➜ http://amzn.to/1ceYS3K ($0.99)

The Horror, Indeed.

I think this is first book that my dad has ever suggested to me that I did not also love.  I won't say that it was bad, per say, just that it was so incredibly boring until Marlow finally met up with Mr. Kurtz (over 100 pages in) that I thought I would go crazy. Seriously, how does a 133 page book feel like you are undertaking a read of War and Peace & the entirety of the Song of Ice and Fire with a side of the Wheel of Time series?  

I get that Conrad was primarily focused on showing the depravity of people here. Cannibals, slavers, poachers, industry, greed, etc are all used as examples of the downfall of society.  The thing with all of that, however, is that while it is still interesting in it's own special way, it was not written in a way where I even remotely cared. Period. All I wanted was to finally meet Mr. Kurtz and see what all of the hooplah was about. I still don't get it.  Nothing, nada, zip. 

If this book had not be written in 1899, and not been the first of it's kind, would it have been as resounding as it was?  We'll never really know. But I doubt it. 

To finish off this, I'm going to add something additional that I don't say very often. 

Watch Apocalypse Now and save yourself the trouble.  If Kurtz in the book had been anything like Brando's Kurtz, this would have been an entirely different review. 

My Rating: 2/5 Stars.