Title: Façade
Author: Nyrae Dawn
Published: September 24th 2013 (Forever)
Pages: 304
Can love save them?
After her father commits a crime that shatters her family, eighteen-year-old Delaney Cross is tired of pretending everything is alright. Packing up her car, she sets out to find the people her father hurt. Her search leads her to places she's never been--and into the arms of Adrian Westfall.
To the outside world, Adrian is a sexy, charming ladies man. But his playboy persona is just an act. Secretly his soul is tortured by a memory too painful to share. Only Delaney seems to see through his façade to the real man underneath. And for the first time in his life, Adrian feels he can begin to open up about his past.
Together, Adrian and Delaney share a passionate, carefree love they never expected to find. Yet both still harbor their own secrets. When the dark truth is finally revealed, will it bring them closer together, or tear them apart forever? [Via Goodreads]
My Thoughts:
After read Charade, I couldn't wait to read another book by Nyrae Dawn. I did not expect it all to pan out how it did! It was all so heart-breaking and a tear or two did appear :(
I was really interested in this book before starting it especially since it's about Colt's room mate - and from Charade, we got to see what a party animal he was. But now - Oh. My. God. The build up to the truth being laid out is killer, with an unexpected twist. As well as the two POV narrations, it was interesting to read about Adrian's past through flashbacks and also dreams, it created something quite powerful.
Something that did carry on from Charade is the nicknames. From Tiny Dancer for Chey to Little Ghost for Delaney. Strangely, I didn't really like the fact that Adrian gave that name to Delaney. I felt that that was more of Colt's thing and having Adrian using the same idea for the nickname made me feel like he has something from Colt that I only wanted Colt to have....Anyway...it's a pretty lame excuse for not liking it I know...
Just thinking about it now, the story kinda reminds me of a mash-up of Fallen Too Far by Abbi Glines and My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick.THIS ONE IS A MUST!
Title: Left Drowning
Author: Jessica Parker
Published: 16th July 2013 (Skyscape)
Pages: 399
What does it take to rise from life’s depths, swim against the current, and breathe?
Weighted down by the loss of her parents, Blythe McGuire struggles to keep her head above water as she trudges through her last year at Matthews College. Then a chance meeting sends Blythe crashing into something she doesn’t expect—an undeniable attraction to a dark-haired senior named Chris Shepherd, whose past may be even more complicated than her own. As their relationship deepens, Chris pulls Blythe out of the stupor she’s been in since the night a fire took half her family. She begins to heal, and even, haltingly, to love this guy who helps her find new paths to pleasure and self-discovery. But as Blythe moves into calmer waters, she realizes Chris is the one still strangled by his family’s traumatic history. As dark currents threaten to pull him under, Blythe may be the only person who can keep him from drowning.
*This book is intended for mature audiences due to strong language and sexual content.
Note: due to mature content recommended for Ages 17+
[via GoodReads]
Thoughts:
This book has definitely pushed boundaries. I didn't expect it to be as mature as it was, especially when I'd read Flat-Out Love and Flat-Out Matt which are both, like, PG rating. But the contrast between the books shows that Jessica Parks can write a book with safety and also a book that hangs in danger.
Title: The Perfect Game
Author: J. Sterling
Published: October 2012 (Amazon Publishing)
Pages: 379
Cassie swears that she won't fall for Jack, the hottest guy around. Girls chase Jack everywhere. But with Cassie, it seems that Jack is doing the chasing and as much as Cassie denies the fact that she likes him, she knows there's something more. Before we know it they are together, but being with the top baseball player isn't such a smooth ride as she'd hope. Can she change Jack's old ways?
Thoughts:
Urgh! I don't even know where to begin. I am just SO disappointed in this book!! I had such high expectations after reading some reviews.
I found the scenes in each chapter way too short and there was a definite lacking in description, especially during the beginning of the book making it much harder for me to "connect" with the characters.
