Smokin' Hot Book Blog: July 2015

Showing posts with label July 2015. Show all posts

Sunday, August 30, 2015

Eliza's Review: Him by Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy

10:06:00 AM 4.5 stars, Eliza's Review, July 2015, M/M Romanace, Mini Review, monthly favorites No comments

Title: Him

Series: Standalone

Author: Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy

Release date: 28th July, 2015

Cliffhanger: No

They don’t play for the same team. Or do they?

Jamie Canning has never been able to figure out how he lost his closest friend. Four years ago, his tattooed, wise-cracking, rule-breaking roommate cut him off without an explanation. So what if things got a little weird on the last night of hockey camp the summer they were eighteen? It was just a little drunken foolishness. Nobody died.

Ryan Wesley’s biggest regret is coaxing his very straight friend into a bet that pushed the boundaries of their relationship. Now, with their college teams set to face off at the national championship, he’ll finally get a chance to apologize. But all it takes is one look at his longtime crush, and the ache is stronger than ever.

Jamie has waited a long time for answers, but walks away with only more questions—can one night of sex ruin a friendship? If not, how about six more weeks of it? When Wesley turns up to coach alongside Jamie for one more hot summer at camp, Jamie has a few things to discover about his old friend...and a big one to learn about himself.

Warning: contains sexual situations, skinnydipping, shenanigans in an SUV and proof that coming out to your family on social media is a dicey proposition.

Him was a few reading firsts for me. It was my first time reading MM, it was my first time reading anything from either author and it's the first time I could have have happily swaped my vagina for a penis. No joke! Him was simply Amazeballs! Pun intended.

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Make that two! There are a whole host of stellar reviews for this book and after reading, heck even whilst reading, it's so obvious to see why. Wes and Jaime make falling in love look so easy. The love and unshakable devotion they have for one another combined with the fantastic banter and many a inset-ones-self-in-this-steamy-moment moments make Him a science proven winning read.

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Blog Tour: Calm Like Home by Kaisa Clark

3:00:00 AM Blog Tour, Contemporary Romance, Excerpt, July 2015, New Adult No comments

Title: Calm Like Home

Author: Kaisa Clark

Release Date: July 15, 2015

Genre: New adult contemporary romance

Length: 75,000 words

ASIN: B010BLZE1C

Available formats: ePub, mobi

Alexa Clausen has never fallen. She’s never soared. She’s lived her entire life floating midway between passion and despondency, never experiencing those extremes. But all it takes is one evening with Adam Westbrook to draw her out of her shell, to leave her feeling bold for the first time ever. He is fiery and magnetic. He is gravitational, that inescapable pull no one can avoid. After a few chance encounters, Alexa finally accepts that she can’t stay away, can’t deny the electricity she feels every time he comes around.

But as the intensity between them deepens, she also can’t avoid the subtle hints that Adam is hiding something. His wide smile and radiant eyes obscure some burning secret, some detail of his past that resurfaces to steal his joy. The farther Alexa falls, the more she realizes just how little she really knows about Adam and how far he is willing to go to cover up the truth.

Calm Like Home is a story about love and longing, growth and stagnation, discovering one’s counterpart but losing oneself, and ultimately finding that one person truly has the power to change everything.

“What an emotional roller coaster this book took me on! This book was so well written it was like the story was actually happening to me instead of the main character, Alexa.“

“Calm Like Home definitely gave me a book hangover. I finished the book and had to get my emotions in check before I could start another book.”

“Really, the ups and downs of the story couldn't have been more perfect. Kaisa Clark did an amazing job. The story was sweet at times, but very real and raw. I loved it.”

The early hostess ends up running late so I’m covering the host stand when Damien strolls in through the door. Even in his work uniform, he looks every bit the confident frat boy. He has one hand casually tucked in his pants pocket, the other swinging languidly at his side. His tie is loose at his throat, his light brown hair tousled on his head, lips curled into a relaxed don’t-give-a-fuck smile. He nods towards me at the host stand then saunters towards the back, likely in search of some new prey to poke fun of.

And then there’s Adam, his dark head poking through the doorway. Suddenly the room is filled with him, with his energy, with his light. I drink him in, soaking in every detail. His crisp, white dress shirt fits him perfectly, lightly skimming over the muscles in his chest and arms and tapering where his waist narrows. The lightness of the shirt is the perfect contrast to his tan skin, to his dark eyes.

His gaze slowly sweeps from the floor to my face, and if seeing the four letters of his name earlier was enough to give me butterflies, seeing him now is like being hit by a freight train. It’s been three hundred days and yet everything slams back into me at once. The way his brown eyes sparkle when he smiles, how one corner of his mouth turns up a little higher than the other. And this smile is all for me.

His stride quickens as he approaches and I can’t help myself. My face breaks into an obvious grin, completely full-toothed and pinched-cheeked. So much for playing it cool.

“Look who’s back!” I call out, hearing my voice light up. Being around him instantly lifts me. This is what he does to people; it’s what he’s always done to me.

Full Chapter 1

Kaisa Clark is the author of the new adult novel Calm Like Home. She is passionate about reading and writing and also has an intense love for music, coffee, and dark chocolate. She lives with her amazing husband, sweet dog, and kooky cat.

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SHBB's July Favorites

8:48:00 AM July 2015, monthly favorites No comments

Have you ever been in a reading slump and in dire need of an amazing read to pull you out of the dumps? Well look no further! We girls at SHBB have decided to do a monthly book recommendation page for every romance junkie out there who isn't quite sure what to read next. Patrycja, Eliza and I (Christie) have carefully hand picked our absolute top books for the month of July. Be sure to check the release date on each of them, some may not have been officially released yet! If you don't have these on your to-read list, these are some great goodies for you.