Rocked by Taryn Elliott

Opening for their idols on their first tour, Oblivion is living the dream. Mostly. Frustrated at being shoved out of his mediator role by their new manager, Deacon McCoy loses himself in brutal workouts. He only comes up for air long enough to refuel—and to tease the deliciously cute chef who makes him crave a lot more than what she's offering on her serving plate.

As the child of roadie parents, Harper Pruitt has heard every pickup line twice. To her, musicians are one step above the scraps on her cutting board. All she wants is to get enough experience to run her own catering company, but Deacon and his bottomless stomach are too tempting to resist. He's far from the typical rock star and before long, she finds herself experimenting with him, inside and out of the kitchen. 

Apron - and panties - optional.

When Harper sees that Deacon’s dream band with his best friends may be turning into a nightmare, she can't walk away. Deacon's so much more than just a peacemaker and the man behind the bass. But she has her own dreams to chase...even if she's starting to think what she's building with him might be the biggest one of all

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Rocked was a well written, intriguing, and hot with a capital H, book.  It was also incredibly drawn out and repetitive book too though, with an ending that left me wishing for something different.

Rocked is centered around the relationship between Harper and Deacon.  Harper is a former roadie and recently graduated chef with a jaded view of the rock 'n roll lifestyle.  Deacon is the bassist of the up and coming band, Oblivion, who isn't your typical just making it big rock star.  The two meet on tour, where Harper is just starting out on her career as a sous chef with the caterers for the tour. Insert sparks between the two here.

 Harper is really hesitant for anything more than a hook up.  She has been there, done that and came home with a t-shirt.  Deacon, however, pushes for more from the start.  It makes for an interesting dynamic between the two.  The biggest problem with this, is that this dynamic just ends up extremely repetitive after a while.  Honestly, there is only so much sex and so much relationship questioning (on Harper's part) that I can take.  I think that we could have done without a few chapters of this book and still wouldn't have lost the understanding on their relationship.  I can't really say that it messes up the book, per se, but that was primarily because I just skimmed a good chunk of the second half.

While the relationship between Harper and Deacon was interesting, I think the band itself was the thing that really made this book for me.  Oblivion is just starting to make it bad, so we really got to see their journey from getting discovered, to touring, to finally getting that record deal and all of the troubles and joys in between.  There is a prequel book that shows how the band got together, but I have not read it yet.  I'd say that it won't affect your understanding of this book, but I plan to check it out anyway just in case.  Anyway.  At times, the band kind of overshadowed Deacon's relationship, but that really isn't a bad thing. Especially since it was the relationship aspect that got so repetitive.

Overall, this book is definitely worth reading.  Be prepared to skim if you aren't into tons and tons of sex and drama, but give it a shot regardless.

3.5 Stars.

*ARC provided via Netgalley for an honest review.

See Through Me Review

*ARC received from author via NetGalley for a fair and honest review. 

See Through Me did not live up to it's potential for me.  There was enough there to make it an incredibly interesting story, but in the end, it just never fully formed as a story and ended all to abruptly. Yes, yes we get warned beforehand that there are two sides of the story, so to expect a cliffhanger.   It wasn't a cliffhanger so much as screeching halt though.

This book tells us the story of Katie and Ash, in present time and through flashbacks from their tween years on.  They both had a rough childhood, in different ways, but found a way to find peace in their friendship and eventual romance. This entire book focused on that, with a little side bit of stalker(ish) drama thrown in.  It was that drama that messed up this book for me.  It reached that grey area where it was not enough to brush aside, but yet not fleshed out enough to understand why it was there in the first place.  I assume that was to draw you into the second book in the series, but it didn't work for me.

In the end, I just didn't have enough to go on, for anything really.  So much happened, and yet none of it was fully formed for me.  I wanted to like Katie and Ash, because I liked the idea of them together, but I never felt like I was able too.  Maybe once we get Ash's story the everything will come together.  Sometimes we really do need two sides of the story.

My Rating--2.75 Stars (because I feel like being difficult tonight)

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