Nicole Reads A Lot

so many books, so little time

Nov 20

Sneaking Candy by Lisa Burstein

by Nicole
Title:Sneaking Candy
Author:Lisa Burstein
PublisherEntangled Publishing, LLC
Publication Date:December 9, 2013
Publisher's DescriptionAll I ever wanted was to make a name for myself as Candice Salinas, creative writing grad student at the University of Miami. Of course, secretly I already have made a name for myself: as Candy Sloane, self-published erotic romance writer. Though thrilled that my books are selling and I have actual fans, if anyone at UM found out, I could lose my scholarship…and the respect of my faculty advisor, grade-A-asshole Professor Dylan.

Enter James Walker, super-hot local barista and—surprise!—my student. Even though I know a relationship is totally off-limits, I can’t stop myself from sneaking around with James, taking a few cues from my own erotic writing…if you catch my drift. Candy’s showing her stripes for the first time in my real life, and I’ve never had so much fun. But when the sugar high fades, can my secrets stay under wraps?
My rating:****

 

scandyI enjoyed this book; having never been overly steeped in an academic lifestyle (my courses of study never required as much from me as Candice’s did from her) initially, I wasn’t quite sure what the fuss was about, or why Professor Dylan was such a jerk. Over the course of the novel, as I learned more about Candice, I felt like I understood why she struggled the way she did with how to reconcile her erotic and serious writing, and why she was so messed up over her attraction to James.  At the end of the book I did have a few questions (how did Candy get so many fans in just one month? how is she on people’s favorite author lists on the strength of only one book? what constituted the fraud that required her to give back part of her stipend? how could the whole situation with Professor Dylan have been resolved so quickly? who pissed in her parents’ cornflakes??), but I generally enjoyed the ride. The secondary characters in this novel were a bit underdeveloped and weren’t as well-realized as Candice and James. I found Amanda to be a especially annoying and unforgivably reckless with Candice’s life. James felt a little too good to be true. It’s good that he was able to stick with Candice long enough for her to determine what she wanted but, even though it wasn’t her intention to hurt him or play with his feelings, she jerked him around a lot in this story and I don’t think that anybody could have blamed him for deciding that he didn’t want to pursue a relationship with her.

I like this New Adult book on its own merits, and also because of the refreshing lack of horrific backstory on the part of either main character (distant, disappointing parents and a crappy ex barely rate when compared to some of the truly awful things other NA characters have experienced).

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

2013 4 Star Books Book Reviews Erotic Romance Netgalley New Adult Romance

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Oct 25

Hush, Little Baby by Suzanne Redfearn

by Nicole
Title:Hush, Little Baby
Author:Suzanne Redfearn
PublisherGrand Central Publishing
Publication Date:October 8, 2013
Publisher's Description
"If I stay, he will kill me. If I leave, he'll destroy Addie and Drew." Jillian Kane appears to have it all - a successful career, a gorgeous home, a loving husband, and two wonderful children. The reality behind closed doors is something else entirely. For nine years, she has hid the bruises and the truth of her abusive marriage in order to protect Addie and Drew, knowing, if she left, Gordon would destroy her-destroy them. When, in an act of desperation, she flees, her worst nightmare is realized, and she finds herself on the run with her two young children, no money, and no plan. With Gordon in hot pursuit, there is only one inescapable certainty: No matter where she goes, he will find her. Kill her. And take her children. A riveting page-turner, HUSH LITTLE BABY exposes the shame and terror of domestic violence as well as the disturbing role manipulation and sabotage can play in the high-stakes game of child custody. Suspenseful and unforgettably moving, it's a novel about the unbreakable bonds of family and the astounding, terrifying devotion of a mother's love.
My rating:***.5

Redfearn

I appreciated this book, which is different than other books that I’ve read which have featured domestic violence. For one thing, Jill is not a loner who has been discouraged from having a job, or maintaining her relationships with family and friends; she’s a highly-skilled architect who feels more confident and comfortable in her professional role than with her children. Her husband is not a mouth-breathing alcoholic who is distrusted by all who know her; Gordon is a respected police officer who is well-liked by colleagues and generally regarded as the more natural parent to his children with Jill. So right off, the power dynamics of this story felt fresh to me and kept me engaged. There were a lot of soapy elements to this novel (multiple kidnappings, illness-induced memory-loss, life-threatening illness, etc.), but they never felt cheap. I’m buying this book for my library’s collection and I highly recommend it to people who enjoy suspenseful fiction.

2013 3.5 Star Books Book Reviews Netgalley

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Oct 22

The Perfect Match by Kristan Higgins

by Nicole
Title:The Perfect Match
Author:Kristan Higgins
PublisherHarlequin
Publication Date:October 29, 2013
Publisher's DescriptionWhat if the perfect match is a perfect surprise?

Honor Holland has just been unceremoniously rejected by her lifelong crush. And now—a mere three weeks later—Mr. Perfect is engaged to her best friend. But resilient, reliable Honor is going to pick herself up, dust herself off and get back out there…or she would if dating in Manningsport, New York, population 715, wasn't easier said than done.

Charming, handsome British professor Tom Barlow just wants to do right by his unofficial stepson, Charlie, but his visa is about to expire. Now Tom must either get a green card or leave the States—and leave Charlie behind.

In a moment of impulsiveness, Honor agrees to help Tom with a marriage of convenience—and make her ex jealous in the process. But juggling a fiancé, hiding out from her former best friend and managing her job at the family vineyard isn't easy. And as sparks start to fly between Honor and Tom, they might discover that their pretend relationship is far too perfect to be anything but true love…
My Rating***

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I really enjoyed some of Ms. Higgins’ earlier works, although some of her more recent books haven’t worked for me. I’m not sure what I was expecting from The Perfect Match, but the immediate desire to cringe wasn’t it. I found the first part of this book so excruciating to read that it actually made me a little angry. How could Honor be so dense when it came to Brogan? I had trouble believing that a woman this smart and capable could so wildly misjudge a relationship. I had to put this book down for a while, until my sympathetic embarrassment faded. I was near my mother when I read the dinner scene, and my litany of, “Oh my god, no. Oh, no no no no no. Oh, Honor!” made her ask me what was happening in the book. Nothing pleasant, I can assure you.

Once I got over feeling like my face would never again cool down, I continued to read this book and was genuinely drawn to most of the characters. Goggy and Pop’s relationship kept me in stitches. Honor’s other relatives were strange but obviously loved her a lot. Brogan was mostly lacking in personality, and I felt that his character needed to be better defined. What was this man’s appeal? Hotness is great, but we weren’t given much evidence of his other awesome qualities, and certainly nothing that would explain a love that spanned half of Honor’s life. Tom, on the other hand, was a multifaceted delight, and his relationship with Charlie was one of the book’s highlights for me.

Although this is not my favorite of Ms. Higgins’ books (that would be either The Next Best Thing or Too Good to Be True, depending on my mood that day), I certainly enjoyed it more than I did The Best Man.

2013 NetGalley Challenge 3 Star Books Book Reviews

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Oct 21

One Night with the Laird by Nicola Cornick

by Nicole
Title:One Night with the Laird
Author:Nicola Cornick
PublisherHarlequin
Publication Date:October 29, 2013
Publisher's DescriptionCan true love be born from scandal?

She is young and beautiful and fashionable, Edinburgh's most flirtatious hostess. But within the merry widow beats a grieving heart. Lady Mairi mourns the husband she lost two years before—and no matter how accomplished a lover Jack Rutherford may be, their wanton night together was an encounter of the body only, and Lady Mairi would prefer to forget it.

But when Mairi is threatened by a blackmailer, Jack is the only man who can protect her. As they work together to uncover where the danger lies, their passion reignites. Little by little, the masks they wear burn away, and their most private secrets come to light…
My rating:****

Although the title 9780373777907_p0_v1_s260x420of this book is completely misleading (Jack is NOT a laird), I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

The book grabbed my attention from the beginning. Mairi’s desperate self-loathing was interesting to me, because that type of emotion seems to be the exclusive province of men in romance novels. In fact, Jack’s early and initially unrequited desire for an emotional attachment to Mairi seemed to be what one would normally see from a female character. I loved how these personality traits were just presented, without Ms. Cornick feeling the need to justify or excuse who Jack and Mairi were.

The entire trajectory of their relationship was unexpected, and I loved how they were both a bit prickly and shy of each other in the oddest of ways. Watching Jack come to terms with his love for Mairi was a treat, and witnessing her journey toward reconciling her past and moving forward was similarly entertaining. I know that I’ve read other of Ms. Cornick’s books in the past, but I can’t remember having enjoyed them this much.  I’m going to go through her backlist and see if I like her other novels as much as I did One Night with the Laird.

I’m a big fan of books where falling in love is not the be-all and end-all of the characters’ lives. Mairi in particular had some very serious obstacles to overcome in her own life (emotional and literal) before she could truly accept Jack. The Scottish backdrop figures into this story in only a minor way; this historical novel could easily have been set in England without Ms. Cornick having to rework much of the story. I highly recommend this book to fans of historical romances, especially those with a soft spot for characters who must heal themselves before they can embrace love.

2013 2013 NetGalley Challenge 4 Star Books Book Reviews

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Aug 19

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

by Nicole
Title:Eleanor & Park
Author:Rainbow Rowell
PublisherSt. Martin's Press
Publication Date:February 2013
Publisher's DescriptionSet over the course of one school year in 1986, ELEANOR AND PARK is the story of two star-crossed misfits – smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love – and just how hard it pulled you under.
My rating:****

15745753 I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book this book. Eleanor & Park is  about two teenagers who, for different reasons, don’t fit into their 1986 Omaha, Nebraska setting. Eleanor is too big, her hair is too red, and she dresses too oddly. Park is half-Korean and keenly aware that he is different from not only the people in his neighborhood, but also his immediate family. Eleanor, the new kid in school, starts out not knowing anybody, but she and Park soon bond over their shared love of music and comic books.

Eleanor and Park are believable teenage characters, and never seem fake or too grown up, even though they face circumstances that would be challenging for most adults. Watching them learn more about each other, the world, and themselves was an enjoyable journey, and made me want to read everything that Rainbow Rowell ever wrote. ’80s pop culture is front on center in this novel: Eleanor and Park devour Watchmen and swoon over “How Soon is Now.” Even though this is a young adult novel, it is definitely not appropriate for younger teens; the profanity and subject matter addressed in this book would probably be appropriate for readers ages 16 and up. I would recommend this books to adults, too, especially those who remember ’80s New Wave, John Hughes movies, and acid washed jeans from when they first were popular.

2013 4 Star Books Young Adult

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