There You Stand by Christina Lee ♡♡♡.5

There You Stand by Christina Lee is the 5th book in the Between Breaths series, and in this story we get to know tattoo artist Cory better, and we meet the mysterious Jude. This is a M/M book, so if you're not ready to read that then this book is not for you.

We met Cory in previous books since he works at RawInk, but Jude is new to us, and he's a mystery to Cory. Cory doesn't think Jude could ever be interested in him, and he's had his heart broken before. But it turns out Jude likes Cory, but Jude has to keep so much of himself hidden, that Cory's not sure if Jude is worth all the work he has to put in.

We watch Jude open up to Cory, and we see Cory deal with the horrible details of Jude's past.

I really enjoyed getting to know these two characters. But I didn't feel much of a connection to either one of them. I'm not sure why, but there was something missing for me. More tension, maybe?

But the story was beautifully written, and I love a good story whether I feel the connection or not. I can't wait to read more of the series.

There You Stand on Goodreads

Assumptions by Melanie Codina ♡♡♡.5

Assumptions by Melanie Codina is the first book I've read by this author. It's another book which was recommended to me by Goodreads because of another book I read.

Assumptions tells the story of Leeann, a physical therapist, who starts to fall for college soccer player Jonathan. She has a rule against dating jocks, but she can't help but fall for Jonathan's charm and good looks.

But throughout their time together they face a few different issues. Some coming from outsiders and some due to Leeann's assumptions.

I enjoyed this easy quick read. There was drama and issues for the couple, but none of them really lasted long. I would say the story was predictable, and the issues the couple had were easily solved. Which made it an easy read.

I would probably read more books by Melanie Codina if something caught my eye. I usually like a book with a bit more tension, but books like these can be good between the tearjerkers.

Have you read anything by Melanie? What did you think?

Assumptions on Goodreads

This is Falling by Ginger Scott ♡♡♡♡.5

This is Falling by Ginger Scott is a book that has been sitting on my Nook for so long, I'm not really sure where I found out about it. I've put it off because I wasn't sure I wanted to read another new adult book about a girl who went through a tragedy where we don't find out what happened until the middle of the story. Been there. Done that. But I'm so glad I picked it up because I was blown away.

This is Falling tells the story of Rowe and Nate. Rowe is going to college a thousand miles from home after being home schooled for two years because of something that has left her damaged in more ways than one. Nate is a baseball player who falls for Rowe the moment he sets eyes on her. And he's willing to take things slow with her, even though he's not sure what happened to her, and Rowe isn't really telling.

So, I normally hate when there's some big secret kept, especially when the story is in first person. It usually doesn't make sense and feels forced, but in This Is Falling, it was perfect to the character. I enjoyed watching Rowe open up and deal with her issues, and watching Nate patiently wait for her and help her along the way was beautiful.

I laughed, cried, and lost a lot of sleep reading this book. I could not put it down! I can't wait to start another book by Ginger Scott, because This is Falling was so good. Her characters were wonderfully written, and she took a difficult situation and turned it into a beautiful story.

Have you read any books by Ginger Scott? What did you think? Any recommendations on what to read next?

This is Falling on Goodreads

Better When He’s Bold by Jay Crownover ♡♡♡♡♡

Better When He’s Bold is the second book in Jay Crownover’s Welcome to the Point series. I surprised myself by loving Better When He’s Bad, and I think I liked this story even more.

Better When He’s Bold tells the story of Race, whom we met in book one (read it if you haven’t already) and Brysen. Race likes the challenge Brysen presents. She gives him the cold shoulder and the impression that she hates the ground Race walks on. Brysen is ridiculously attracted to Race, but has her family to worry about and doesn’t want to get involved with a criminal.

But when someone seems to have set their sights on hurting Brysen, she doesn’t know who else can help protect her except Race. They need to find out who is coming after her before it’s too late.

This was an amazing story. I don’t know exactly how Jay Crownover can convince me to fall in love with these seriously bad guys, who are literally criminals. But she has a way of making them human. They aren’t just looking out for themselves; they are trying to change a world that eats people alive by making it a little more livable, just not in a legal way.

The chemistry between Race and Brysen was palpable and their story was really awesome. I loved getting to know Race better and learning about Brysen.

If you haven’t already, you need to read all of Jay Crownover’s books. This one was especially great! Have you read it? What did you think?

Better When He’s Bold on Goodreads

Play of Light by Debra Doxer ♡♡♡.5

Play of Light by  Debra Doxer was a book I found through NetGalley. And I really did enjoy the story.

Play of Light tells the story of Sarah and Spencer. Sarah leads a fairly boring life until Spencer comes to town. She wants to be good friend to him above everything else, but he makes that difficult with the home life he doesn't want anyone to find out about and his brooding nature. And then everything thing goes to hell when tragedy strikes. They're brought back together 5 years later, and all their demons come back to life.

I thought this was a solidly good story. It was interesting to see Spencer and Sarah grow up together and be pushed back together years later. And their chemistry in the story was great.

The story started in the past, went to the present, back to the past, and then back to the present. I would have liked if the story started in the past and then went to the present. I understand this might be difficult since the characters aren't really established in our minds, but it would have made the story more coherent.

Overall, I think this was a great story, and I would recommend reading it. Have you read any of Debra Doxer's books? What did you think?

Play of Light  on Gooodreads

Inspire by Cora Carmack ♥♥♥

Inspire by Cora Carmack is her first paranormal new adult book. I have really enjoyed many of her past books, and this book was no different.

This book tells the story of muse Kalli. She has spent thousands of years inspiring artists. But she falls for a business guy, Wilder, who, it turns out, is actually an artist too.

Kalli doesn't know how to handle the fact that Wilder is an artist, or her immortality in the face of her desire to be with Wilder.

I really enjoyed getting both sides of the story from Wilder and Kalli. And the story itself was great. I didn't realize until the end of the book that it would be part of a series that focused on the same characters, so I didn't think we get to know Kalli very well. I just didn't feel connected to her as a character because so much of her was a mystery. But I'm hoping as the series continues, we will get to know her better.

I am very interested to see where this story is going and getting to know Kalli and Wilder better. And it's always nice to see more paranormal NA. Has anyone else read this yet? What did you think?

Inspire on Goodreads

Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker ♥♥♥

Ten Tiny Breaths by K.A. Tucker is one of those books I picked up because readers and authors seem to love it. Unfortunately, I didn’t love the book. I thought it was pretty good, but missing a crucial element.

Ten Tiny Breaths is Kacey’s story. After a horrific car accident where Kacey witnessed her parents, best friend, and boyfriend die, Kacey has built a thick casing of armor around herself. But when the uncle she’s living with drunkenly attempts to get in bed with her younger sister, Livie, Kacey moves them from Michigan to Miami to start over.

In Miami, Kacey starts to live her life again. She starts making friends and forms a sexually frustrating relationship with her neighbor Trent. But she still refuses to talk to people about her accident, refuses to get help, refuses to forgive. Everything comes crashing down around her when Kacey finds out Trent has a dark past of his own. And she’s not sure she can reconcile his past with the person she thought he was.

I really enjoyed reading this story. I wanted to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next. And I especially enjoyed the side characters. They were so heartwarming and real. But those things didn’t really make up for the lack of a relationship development between Kacey and Trent. We don’t learn much about Trent so Kacey’s attraction to him appears to be mostly physical. And because of that it was difficult to feel much of anything toward the main characters. It’s hard to feel their joy and pain with them when you don’t feel like you really know who they are. Which was disappointing because the other characters were so well written. Also, if you’re looking for a steamy read, this is not the book for you. The story demanded more in that area, although the lack of it didn’t distract from my enjoyment.

So many people really enjoyed the story that I would give the book a shot. Let me know what you think!

Ten Tiny Breaths on Goodreads

Best Kind of Broken by Chelsea Fine ♥♥♥

Best Kind of Broken by Chelsea Fine is the first book I’ve read by this author. She has a slew of other books, but Best Kind of Broken was on sale and lots of authors were recommending the book on Twitter, so I decided to check it out.

Best Kind of Broken tells the story of Pixie and Levi. They’re both working and living at Pixie’s aunt’s small town inn for the summer. There’s plenty of tension between them, sexual and otherwise. They used to be best friends, but tragedy tore them apart, and now they don’t know how to exist around each other. We watch their struggle through both of their eyes; each story is heartbreaking.

This story took a bit of time to get into. We don’t learn what tragedy tore Levi and Pixie apart for a good amount of the book. We can see that something big and tragic happened between them, but we don’t know what it is. I think this was intended to add tension for the reader, and because the characters themselves are so unwilling to discuss the issue. But I thought it really took away from the story to let the reader wonder what was going on. By the time we learn their secret, I think the reader can figure out most of the details. I just wish we would have known sooner. But I really loved the characters, which is why I really kept reading. Both Pixie and Levi were believable and likeable characters.

The next books in the Finding Fate series have some great reviews; I’m really excited to read the rest of the series.  Even though Best Kind of Broken starts out a bit slow, I would say give it a try. There’s a good story waiting at the end, and it's a series, so there's more to read. Let me know what you think!

Best Kind of Broken on Goodreads