I’m over at AudioGals with a review of Candy Boys by Jo Raven, narrated by Ava Erickson, Joe Arden and Sebastian York. Somewhat uneven MMF erotic romance but really good narration.
Tag: new adult (Page 3 of 17)
Why I read it: I’m a fan of KA Mitchell and I have enjoyed the previous two novellas in the series.
What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Life doesn’t come with a syllabus.
Ethan knows firsthand that long distance is hard on love. If Wyatt is spending his summer at an internship in Pittsburgh, that’s where Ethan will be. Even if it means inventing his own career goal just to find a reason to stay with his boyfriend. He didn’t expect they’d be living in a hot, crappy apartment, with work schedules that keep them apart more than together.
Wyatt’s past has taught him to keep his head down and focus on living through the day. Loving Ethan has him looking to the future for the first time; he’s just not in as big of a rush to get there. It’s hard to trust in happiness when life has been busy kicking you in the nuts.
Together they’re getting the hang of real life, when a new responsibility for Wyatt throws everything off balance. Ethan’s doing everything he can to prove he’s in this forever, while Wyatt is torn between a future with Ethan and a debt to the past. Too bad they didn’t cover this in college.
What worked for me (and what didn’t): Most of Relationship Status takes place over the course of a summer where Ethan and Wyatt are sharing a room in a small apartment together in Pittsburgh while working and interning. Wyatt is interning at a prestigious engineering firm and Ethan at the ACLU – because there is the vague possibility he might want to be a lawyer but mostly because he wants to be near Wyatt. Between their jobs and internships, there is not a lot of time for them to spend together and when things start off, there is some tension between the pair because of the whole “ships passing in the night” thing.
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I’m over at Dear Author with a review of Undeclared by Julianna Keyes. Really liked this one.
Why I read it: I’ve enjoyed this series and Sophie Eastlake is one of my favourite narrators. I picked up the audio on sale recently.
What it’s about: (from Goodreads) Jennifer L. Armentrout, New York Times bestselling author of the Wait for You series, delivers a new novel of first love, second chances, and scorching chemistry between an artistic bartender and the tough, sexy cop who’s determined to win her Roxy’s loved Reece Anders since she was fifteen, so when the straitlaced cop finally surrendered to a steamy encounter years later, Roxy hoped he’d fall for her, too. He didn’t. Or that’s what she’s always believed. But then Reece storms back into her life when the man who injured her childhood friend is out of prison and wanting to make amends—something Roxy cannot do.
The last thing she wants is to go there with Reece again, but he’s determined to prove to her that he’s exactly what she needs. Especially when a sick creep starts messing with her. But what’s more dangerous to Roxy—a psycho after her or the past that refuses to let go and allow her to open up her heart again?
What worked for me (and what didn’t): I’ve actually had this audiobook in my TBL for ages but it hadn’t made it onto my iPod and I’d kind of forgotten about it. Silly me. Sophie Eastlake is one of my favourite narrators and I know I’m going to get a great listen when she’s on board. Plus, I’ve loved earlier books in the Wait For You series.
Fall With You is book four in the series – I’ve got book three – Stay With Me on my TBR but I skipped ahead to this one. It works just fine. There are mild spoilers for the earlier books but romance is largely about the journey rather than the destination so they didn’t bother me.
Why I read it: I borrowed this book from my local library.
What it’s about: (from Goodreads) When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created “perfect” life is about to unravel before her eyes. She’s forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, and he is about to threaten everything she’s worked so hard for-her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend, and the secret that her home life is anything but perfect. Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But soon Alex realizes Brittany is a real person with real problems, and suddenly the bet he made in arrogance turns into something much more. In a passionate story about looking beneath the surface, Simone Elkeles breaks through the stereotypes and barriers that threaten to keep Brittany and Alex apart.
What worked for me (and what didn’t):
I’ve listened to (and enjoyed) Wild Cards (now retitled to Better Than Perfect) by Simone Elkeles and I know she has a reputation for writing great YA romance. So, I’ve had Perfect Chemistry on my radar for a while now but I’ve only just got around to actually reading it.
The story is told in the dual, alternating POV of Alex Fuentes and Brittany Ellis. They both go to the same Chicago high school. The story begins on day one of their senior year.
Brittany is from a wealthy family but her home life is not idyllic. Her father works a lot and is often away, her mother is obsessed with appearances and, apparently, perfection. Brittany’s sister, Shelley, was born with cerebral palsy and is quite disabled. She is confined to a wheelchair and is non-verbal. She can communicate through a computer keyboard which synthesises a voice for her and she does say a few words which are understandable to those familiar with her. She requires constant care but finding in-home helpers is difficult. Brittany’s parents consider sending Shelley away to a facility and Brittany sees this as a terrible option – one which punishes Shelley for being less than perfect and one which is done not for her (Shelley’s) well-being but for selfish reasons on the part of her parents. However, Brittany’s life looks, from the outside, as if it’s pretty perfect. She wears the right clothes, drives a fancy new sports car, is popular – including being the girlfriend of the star quarterback on the high school football team. She keeps her private life very private indeed – very few of her friends even know she has a sister, let alone anything else.
I’ll be posted my favourites out of the DA-reviewed books over there and my favourite audiobooks reviewed at AudioGals will be going up over there – but this is where I mention the books I read and loved and reviewed here. Most of my favourites this year were reviewed at Dear Author or AudioGals as it happens but there were two books which I reviewed only here and which stood out to me so much that they deserved to get a special mention.
Completely different books but both brilliant – and also: Australian for extra bonus points. You can read my review of Summer Skin here and of Illuminae here.
I wish you all the joy of the festive season. However you celebrate, if you celebrate, stay safe and stay strong. Catch you in 2017.
~ Kaetrin ~
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