Review: Everbound by Brodi Ashton

Title: Everbound (Everneath #2)
Author: Brodi Ashton
Published: January 22nd 2013
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

Nikki Beckett could only watch as her boyfriend, Jack, sacrificed himself to save her, taking her place in the Tunnels of the Everneath for eternity — a debt that should’ve been hers. She’s living a borrowed life, and she doesn’t know what to do with the guilt. And every night Jack appears in her dreams, lost and confused and wasting away.
Desperate for answers, Nikki turns to Cole, the immortal bad boy who wants to make her his queen — and the one person least likely to help. But his heart has been touched by everything about Nikki, and he agrees to assist her in the only way he can: by taking her to the Everneath himself.
Nikki and Cole descend into the Everneath, only to discover that their journey will be more difficult than they’d anticipated — and more deadly. But Nikki vows to stop at nothing to save Jack — even if it means making an incredible sacrifice of her own.
In this enthralling sequel to Everneath, Brodi Ashton tests the bonds of destiny and explores the lengths we’ll go to for the ones we love.

I waited pretty long before picking this up, didn't I? I had such a bad luck with my previous reads before Everbound and I wanted to read something I knew I'd enjoy. Well, ladies and gents, Ms. Ashton does not disappoint. Everneath's sequel was action-packed from the very first page and didn't stop surprising with its twists and turns until the very last one.

“I waited for you."

"But it's a race. Why did you wait for me?"

"I always wait for you. I'm always waiting for you.”

Everbound takes us into the world of the Everliving and it was such and original take inspired by ancient mythology and different classic authors, but it came to be something I've never seen before. This world Brodi Ashton has created is wonderfully crafted to these tiniest details and I'm so glad I got to be a part of this. All these challenges Nikki faced in the Everneath were well-written. Oh, and our beloved heroine was up to complete every challenge to save her man and even though some of the challenges were so gruelling they almost broke her physically and emotionally, she never gave up. Nikki Beckett has secured her place among my favorite heroines. She's kick-a!!!

What I loved about Everbound was that we got Cole's history and how he became and Everliving, although, I don't know whether to believe that story anymore. When I started this series, I was so sure I was going to love Cole and not feel a thing for Jack. I couldn't have been more wrong. I adored Jack in Everneath and I loved him in Everbound as well. We got more of his and Nikki's history and it was wonderful to read about. I am completely team Jack. No joke! 

And then we have the ending. Ahhh..!!!!! I was so surprised and taken aback by what went down. I think it was a clever way of ending it. It wasn't fully a cliff hanger, more of a set up for book 3, but I can't help but feel anxious and worried. I was convinced that I knew his motives and that he truly cared about her, but now I don't know what to think. If some of you have any theories, mail me on Goodreads. I'd love to chat about it. I didn't want it to be this way and I have no clue what's about to happen next and even though I dislike the situation we and Nikki were left in, I like the feeling of jumping into unknown with Evertrue. 

Overall, Everbound was hard to put down, I kept turning page after page to find out more. If you enjoyed Everneath, you're bound to enjoy its sequel which was crafted with wonderful ideas, well-written plot and well-developed characters. There were twists and turns waiting on every corner and Nikki is a great heroine to spend time with. The ending sets the tone for Evertrue perfectly even if I'm not happy with the way it happened, I knew it was coming at some point. I hope you guys enjoy(ed) this pretty just as much as I did. Read on, lovelies!

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Meet the author

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Giveaway and Guest Post by Katie Lee, author of What Endures

Today, thanks to this promotional blog tour (full schedule here), I have the honour to welcome Ms. Katie Lee to my blog to talk about what you can do in Harbor Bay, Maryland. That's where a part of the action in her debut novel What Endures takes place and it's a fun place to live for sure. I hope that you enjoy this post and it intrigues you to pick up the novel to see these places more closely. Oh, and if you didn't see the teaser from What Endures, I advise you to stop by this post and read it. It was a gooooood excerpt:)

Title:What Endures
Author: Katie Lee
Published: August 1st, 2013
Genre: Contemporary New Adult
Add it: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon

Jason Kincaid is young, hot and successful.
An All-Star outfielder for the Seattle Mariners, he finally had everything he ever wanted, including a second chance with his high school sweetheart, Megan Williams. But their hopes for a ‘happily-ever-after’ are dashed by tragedy.

A horrific car accident wipes out most of Jason's memories. Unable to recall anything from the last fifteen years of his life, Jason is suddenly adrift, his once charmed life now in ruins. Megan finds herself in the untenable position of having to deal with the fact that the man she’s helping to rebuild his life may look, and even act, like her beloved fiancé, but in reality, isn’t any longer.

Trying to protect herself, as well as Jason, Megan fights the attraction between them. . .to no avail. As their potent connection inevitably draws them closer, Megan wonders,
With the memories of their relationship gone, can love endure? 

DESTINATION GUIDE – HARBOR BAY, MARYLAND

Jolt – Coffee bar. Great coffee, chill atmosphere. Incredible scones. And you’re likely to run into some very cute men!

Delights – Gourmet food store. Amazingly delicious delicacies from around the world and has meals ready-to-serve for those awkward family dinners you don’t want to cook for. Co-owners, Marie Adams and Diana Kincaid, are usually around and odds are, you might find one of their very handsome sons there too.

Harbor Bay City Limits – It’s not really a site but if you’re a baseball fan, this is where you’ll find the huge sign proclaiming that this is Jason Kincaid’s home, although that was more his father’s doing than his. A modest MLB player... who knew?

Kincaid Family Home – If you like those “Home of the Stars” tour, you can do a quick one in Harbor Bay starting at the semi-palatial home of Bruce Kincaid. This is where Jason Kincaid grew up and began playing baseball. Jason might be found here from time to time, depending on how cordial his relationship with his father is at the moment. Speaking of Jason, the best place to find him is –

Jason’s and Megan’s Beach House – It’s a little hard to find because they value their privacy but it’s on the beach and one of the larger houses in the area. Jason and Megan can be found here when they are visiting Harbor Bay and often entertain friends and family there as well. And you might catch one or the other with a video camera, making home movies that might be a bit too revealing!

Baseball Field in the Park – This might seem too vague until you consider that Harbor Bay is still a pretty small town so there’s really only one park with a baseball field. Rumor has it that Bruce Kincaid is lobbying to have the park renamed “Kincaid Public Park.” This park is where Jason began is early training and also where Jason and Megan fell in love. When they are in town, they still hang out there so you just might get a glimpse at the twosome if you time your visit right! (-- Siiri: This is my favorite place since it holds so many great memories for Jason and Megan, plus it seemed gorgeous, so yeah :))

Marina – You get a nice view of the Chesapeake Bay and the gorgeous yachts there. Some of them are even for rent if you have Jason’s bank account! Or you can just rent one of the smaller boats or go on a fishing excursion on the Chesapeake Bay.

Main Street – This is where most of the stores above are located, in addition to a bakery that sells some great cupcakes – perfect for beachside birthday celebrations.

Alley Behind “Delights” – Definitely out of the way but if you locate the little fire escape, you can still see the little set-up Tyler and Megan had when they were in high school. Rumor has it that many heart-to-heart between the two took place here.

Harbor Bay Beach – Straddling a part of the Chesapeake Bay, this small stretch of beach is tranquil and quieter than its cousins on the coast, like Ocean City, MD and Rehoboth Beach, DE. Harbor Bay Beach offers a wide variety of water-based activities including sailing, fishing, and swimming. Or you could just lounge around on the beach and see if you can glimpse some of Harbor Bay’s more famous residents!

Giveaway

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About the Author

Katie Lee has had a lifelong love affair with books. She fell in love with her first book in the second grade and hasn’t looked back since. She first took up writing as a hobby, wanting to craft her own magical adventures, and through the love and encouragement of family and friends, decided to get serious about writing and share her stories with the world.

She currently resides in Maryland in the United States. She works for the government during the day, and her spare time is devoted to writing. She gains inspiration from all sorts of things, but mostly from the fun and adventurous trips she takes when she can. She loves hearing from her readers so drop her a note!

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

Book Blitz and Giveaway: Out of Line by Jen McLaughlin

So this is the week where lots of great New Adult books are being released and, also, Out of Line by Jen McLaughlin is released this week as well. It's on sale throughout the week and you get the chance to win an exclusive prize which I find pretty awesome. Anyhow, here's the blurb and cover and purchasing links and a giveaway down below.

Title: Out of Line (Out of Line #1)
Author: Jen McLaughlin

Published: September 10th 2013

Genre: New Adult Contemporary

Add it: Goodreads

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Desperate to break free…
I've spent my entire life under my father’s thumb, but now I'm finally free to make my own choices. When my roommate dragged me to my first college party, I met Finn Coram and my life turned inside out. He knows how to break the rules and is everything I never knew I wanted. A Marine by day and surfer by night, he pushes me away even as our attraction brings us closer. Now I am finally free to do whatever I want. I know what I want. I choose Finn.
Trying to play by the rules...
I always follow orders. My job, my life, depends on it. I thought this job would be easy, all the rules were made crystal clear, but when I met Carrie Wallington, everything got muddy. She's a rule I know I shouldn't break, but damn if I don’t inch closer to the breaking point each time I see her. I’m ready to step out of line. And even worse? I’m living a lie. They say the truth will set you free, but in my case…
The truth will cost me everything.

Meet the author

Jen McLaughlin writes steamy New Adult books for the young and young at heart. Her first release, Out of Line, is due out September 2013. She also writes Contemporary Romance under the pen name Diane Alberts. She is a multi-published, bestselling author and is represented by Louise Fury from the L. Perkins Agency. Since receiving her first contract offer under the pen name Diane Alberts, she has yet to stop writing.
Though she lives in the mountains, she really wishes she was surrounded by a hot, sunny beach with crystal clear water. She lives in Northeast Pennsylvania with her four kids, a husband, a schnauzer mutt, a cat, and a Senegal parrot. In the rare moments when she’s not writing, she can usually be found hunched over one knitting project or another. Her goal is too write so many well-crafted romance books that even a non-romance reader will know her name.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

So what do you guys think? Does it have the premise to be awesomesauce? The rating on Goodreads seems pretty decent. I'll be reviewing it on September 23rd and be sure to stop by for my opinion.

Giveaway

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Book Haul #24

It was my birthday last week, but I didn't get any books since my friends and family know I read a lot and they prefer to gift me money instead of books that I may have already read or may already own. So.. I got myself a present with some of the birthdaymoney and ordered a bunch on TBD, but I did it just yesterday so they'll be here sometime in September. However, I did receive a little somthing--my gorgeous US paperback of Just One Day by Gayle Forman--and I purchased a few e-books in addition to one review copy. If you've read any of these, let me know so I can push them up on my tbr list and be sure to leave your links below so I can visit you back. Have a great weekend, lovelies!

Physical copies

Just One Day (Just One Day #1) by Gayle Forman

I was a little sad when I saw that they had changed the original cover design for paperback version, but when I held this pretty in my hands, trust me--it's so incredibly gorgeous. Can't wait to read this book!

E-books

Indelible (The Twixt#1) by Dawn Metcalf (arc from Harlequin Teen)

Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay

All Our Yesterdays (All Our Yesterday #1) by Cristin Terrill

Fire with Fire (Burn for Burn #2) by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

Good (Too Good #1) by S. Walden

Broken and Screwed 2 (Broken and Screwed #2) by Tijan

Infraction (Breach #2) by K.I. Lynn

This week's 'thank you' goes to Harlequin Teen and Netgalley.

Oh, and if you haven't yet, take a chance and participate in my birthday giveaway of a book of your choice from my favorite reads. You can find the giveaway here. Good luck!

What did you get this week? Leave your links below and I'll check out your goodies :)

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by The Mod Podge Bookshelf and Stacking the Shelves is a weekly event hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Review: Breach by K.I. Lynn

Title: Breach (Breach #1)
Author: K.I. Lynn
Published: April 21st 2013
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Delilah Palmer has control of her life and outward personality, blocking the truth just below the surface. A façade meant to be normal and hide the scars of her childhood. She’s made a good life for herself, became a lawyer, and is free from the tortured past that haunts her daily. Until he comes along and breaks open the cracks.
Nathan Thorne has a past of his own. On the surface he is loved by all, personable, extroverted; everything Delilah isn’t. Hidden beneath is a dark and tormented man that only Delilah has to power to unveil.
Crammed in a small office together they see through each other’s masks, and the draw becomes too much, igniting an explosive relationship. Holloway and Holloway Law has a strict non-fraternization policy, forcing them to conceal their breach. Despite their efforts, separation becomes impossible, deceptions escalate, and Nathan has trouble coping; teetering on the edge of being overtaken by his past demons.
What secrets does he harbor that could keep him from giving in? What keeps him from healing and moving forward? And Delilah, where does she fit into all this turmoil?
Can they accept love and deal with all the trials that come their way when secrets are exposed? Or will they fall through the cracks of their pasts and be consumed by all that haunts them?

Saw this tagged as adult and erotica on Goodreads and it pushed me away. I enojy adult literature, but erotica not so much. I need more in my stories than just steamy scenes. When I stumbled upon a few reviews that claimed to be heartbroken about the main characters, I was instantly intrigued because so many of my Goodreads friends were adding Breach to their shelves. Plus, who can turn away from a pretty cover ;)

The night after we left the club made me face that fact. How I thought and felt about him changed; he wasn't the asshole I thought he was when I first met him. He was a broken man, and it made me wonder--can two broken souls make one whole person?

The story. We have Delilah as our main character. She's suffered from bullying by her own family. Her dad hated her, so did her stepmom and -brother. They caused her emotional scars that she can't seem to heal in any way. Enter Nathan. He created quite a show with his great looks in their office and gets his very own fanclub among the ladies working there. The only one who isn't showing her cleavage or acting like a love-sick fool is Delilah. After a long night at the office, they get the kinky on and so it begins. It's only a matter of time before someone finds out and the both of them lose their jobs, or worse, they get emotionally attached.

My thoughts. The first part of the book was more of an erotic story fulfilling Delilah's fantasies of being man-handled by a rough, intense guy. Don't get me wrong, it was hot, but definitely to rough for my taste. She had bruises and bites all over her. He had them, too. Their kinky was intense! However, after the first half, it became an emotional story. I would have never guessed that I'd cry over this book. At one point it became too much. I enjoyed their chemistry, notes, texts. I liked how Nathan gave Delilah something she'd never had before and healed her emotional wounds. Until.. It all came crushing down.

You see, Nate has his own demons. We know this from the first moment they meet. However, we don't know everything until before something terrible happens. It was hard to breathe when I found out his secret and everything that happened after that.. I was a mess of tears and heartache. For both of them. Do I agree that this is a normal relationship? NO!!!! I hate how physically abusing it was. I didn't like how Nate was mentally abusing with his words when they had sex, but Delilah wasn't put off by it and was rather the opposite of put off, so I guess that's OK? I don't know.. Whatever floats one's boat, right? (Since a lot of you have questioned the extent of mental abuse during those scenes, I'll say that he didn't like bully her, but to me it'd be humilating to hear those words said to me and it didn't feel sexy at all.)They're so broken that it doesn't seem right that two so broken people can make one whole. They do! I was so surprised by how they completed each other. I have a love-hate relationship with Nate. The fact that he was able to build Delilah's confidence, help her with her demons and heal her was beyond amazing, however, what he did was just.. cruel. I hate him for it.

All in all, it was a surprise for me. I had no idea it would turn out like this and how emotionally invested I would get. This book blew me away with its raw hurt and the emotions came to me with a vengeance. I am so looking forward to the sequel. I need to know what happens. It's not even about want anymore, it's about need. As much as I enjoyed this book, I can't give it that many stars stars. I don't agree with the realationship they were in even if it was consensuous. Plus, the erotica part didn't appeal to me that much either, I wish there would have been less of that and more of the emotional journey these two were on. Anyhow, it's definitely worth exploring. I can tell you right off the bat that this isn't for everyone. You will have hate and maybe even love towards this book as did I, but I can guarantee you that you will have emotions. It's just that kind of a book.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Meet the author

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