Stealing Our Hearts

In all the many ways I’ve thought of her — imagined her — over the years, I never quite did her justice. She is so much better than any fantasy I ever conjured up, and I have a fantastic imagination. Katie is my wildest dreams and my greatest hope combined into one stunningly perfect package. And I want to open it up so damn badly.

Wow. I don’t think I’ve been as addicted to a story as I was to Ryan and Katie’s in a very, very long time. That was brilliant. Purely, inconsequentially brilliant. God I love J Saman, such a phenomenally talented storyteller. She created two incredibly unique and interesting characters that you, as the reader, can’t get enough of. 

We meet Katie after she’s lost her husband and her child to a drunk driving accident. She is inconsolable, devastated, and quite frankly a little suicidal. I can’t blame her though, her daughter was only 3 and died in her arms while she watched. Anyway, so she’s packing up to move away from the town and places that remind her so much of all that she’s lost. Her mother volunteers her to a road trip with her best friend’s son, who needs a ride to Seattle where he’s starting his company. She reluctantly agrees. We find out that they had met once before when Katie was 6 and Ryan was 10. Destiny. That’s all I will tell you. When you read the story of their first encounter, it’s like a Disney movie. A prince and princess coming together at last as children. Well, twenty something years later and they’ve found their way back to each other, if not by accident then what? Oh yes, fate. They begin this road trip and for Ryan it’s love at second sight. He loved her the moment he met her, at 10 years old. And he still loves her, even if it takes him a little while to get used to the idea. Katie is a whole other ball game. She has a major case of survivors guilt and cannot move on from her late husband. She feels like she’s cheating on him as her feelings for Ryan grow. And then, of course, as any good drama would, this guilt tears them apart. She cannot be with him until she’s able to forgive herself for living without her late husband and child. She needs to move forward with her life, but she can’t if she’s allowing her grief to hold her back. 

Holy crap guys this book was SO FREAKING AMAZING. I was staying up late again and waking up early to read because I couldn’t get enough of the story. I’m so in love with Katie and Ryan’s romance. Ugh so perfect in every way. This is a story about starting over and learning to move forward no matter what life throws at you. It’s about taking the good things when they come and allowing yourself happiness. It was beautiful and I’m so glad I read it. So so so glad. Thank you for another brilliant adventure, Saman. 

“I’d keep you as you are forever if you’d let me.”

Holy mother of hotness!!! This book is SMOKIN’. The perfect, delicious afternoon delight. I read the entire novel in under an hour; like I said, a short and sexy read. Our lovers meet in Brno, a European City while our leading man, Jonathan, is on a business trip. He recently found out that his fiancé was cheating on him with someone at her workplace…so she has graduated in title to ex-fiance. Our leading lady, Ema, is a native from Brno. She is newly single, having just dumped her most recent boyfriend. It’s lust at first sight on both parts. They first see each other in a coffee shop and hit it off. Jonathan asks her to dinner a day later and it’s 3-2-1 lift off. The sex is explosive. I had to turn my fan on, I was legit getting hot reading it. Wow, our author is gifted, that’s for sure. 

We end in a cliffhanger, but it’s honestly not that bad. I know, shocker, coming from me. But it’s a leading cliffhanger. You kinda get an idea of what’s to come so you don’t feel totally left hanging out to dry. What a pleasurable read! I’m so glad our author reached out and asked me to review. I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys authors such a Jessa Kane, Hope Ford, or Ella Goode. The short, erotic reads are always great pallet cleansers and it looks like I’ve found myself a new favorite! Enjoy reading, my friends ❤ 

Prime example of why I’m not a big fan of kids in books. This one completely fizzled out for me once the child was introduced. What is it about kids that does that to me? It’s kinda weird, yeah? Idk. I want kids of my own so I don’t know why it bugs me so much. 

Anyway, the first half of this book was H-O-T to the max. Omg I was obsessed with Harry and Raina’s chemistry. Literally – off the charts sexy. Harry is this super wealthy billionaire playboy turned dad, when his sister dies and he has to take care of his niece. He meets Raina, a sweet and sexy veterinarian after he almost runs a dog over with his car. It’s love at first sight for him. Hard to say for Raina, she’s very shy and it takes her a long time to open up and let her walls down with Harry.   She’s self conscious about her size a bit and the fact that Harry is so wealthy (after she finds out who he is). Harry has already decided that Raina is end game from the moment they end up on their first date. It’s insanely cute. The dating app they were both set up on, and the fact it was a coincidence that they ended up on that first date together. Everything is going smoothly and perfectly until…the other shoe finally drops. And BAM. Harry’s past comes to bite him in the ass and mess everything up. 

Thankfully, Harry and Raina’s love is able to overcome the challenges of his mistakes. But as the reader, I felt a little too jostled. There was already so much going on in their lives, to introduce this HUGE issue and then change the entire dynamic of their relationship because of it? No thank you. I wasn’t the biggest fan. It was definitely a ginormous let down because I was definitely considering this book for my 4 star list, but I have to drop it down to 3 now. I just couldn’t do it. The ending was cute and memorable. I loved how Harry still made Raina the most important person in his life, even through all the other crap.

“Maybe she just needed something to love once more.”

“I wish I could re-write you out of my life, but all your pages are highlighted, dog-eared, and thumbed to death.  I can no longer read you, but you are still my favorite poem.”

What is it about bully romances that triggers me so deeply? Yeah these stories are relatable but, dear god, I feel like I’m being slowly ripped apart, limb by limb, as I read. It’s like there’s nothing redeemable until the very end. There’s no happiness only anger or envy or hate. All very strong, painful emotions. Why do I light myself on fire with these novels? I know. Because there is nothing, and I mean NOTHING, like them. That slow burn, the build up, the all-encompassing knowledge that everything turns out okay in the end; that’s what makes the story. That’s the punch line, the end game, the true gold. 

This one was hard for me. I’ve told you guys before, but just to reiterate, I have a reeeeeeeally difficult time with love triangles or “other women” in books. And the entire Adrianna thing in this story really threw me for a while. Especially the baby part of it all. Oooof. Way to almost destroy my faith in humanity with that one, Shen. I read the ending before I finished the novel because, with stories such a this, usually I have to. When things go from bad to worse, and I feel like there’s nothing left to hold on to, I usually need something redeeming and the happy ending does it for me. Having read Broken Knight before this, knowing Luna and Knight’s story, it really helped me get through the rough patches with Penn and Daria. They were many of them, can’t lie about that. 

I actually listened to this on Audible (my first audiobook ever!) while I was working and man if it didn’t make the day go by quickly! I was completely sucked into and invested in Penn and Daria’s world. This is a tragic yet utterly gorgeous tale of two broken humans that found connection with each other; regardless of if that connection appeared as love, hate, jealousy, or anything else, it was still the same strong emotional tether that tied them together. I hated this story just as much as I loved it. But I think that was the point, right? The characters aren’t always meant to be likable and lovable. They are imperfectly human in every single way. The choices they make and things they do created the world of the Hotholes and their families.  This story is meant to make you feel. Meant to make your insides feel ripped to shreds and then patched back up again. It’s about love and loss and regret and redemption. Fighting and fucking. Losing and winning. It’s damn near perfect, if I may say so. Shen never disappoints, ya’ll. SO here’s to another one of her greats ❤

“You were never a drizzle, Penn Scully. When I fell for you, you came beating down, and I felt you everywhere. You were hail.”

“The most dangerous man is a man in love.”

Emptiness. Blackness. Numbness. Pain. This is me after reading this book. But there is beauty in pain, is there not? My eyes are swollen, my nose is running, my heart is vacant and broken. Please allow book three to heal me. To mend my tattered and shattered soul. I thought Stay With Me would kill me, but it was nothing compared to this glorious, perfect mess of brutal torture. Fiorina paints with her words, sculpts with her phrasing, brings to life with her emotions. “I burn, I pine, I perish!” Yes, I’m quoting The Taming of the Shrew because no one knows heartbreak like Shakespeare. And right now, Fiorina should be compared to one of the greats because I don’t think anyone has made me feel the way she has with Ollie and Mia’s tragically beautiful tale. There were days when I couldn’t put this novel down and there were days when I didn’t dare pick it up. This review is short because as I bleed on to this page, there isn’t much left in me. I’m not sure how much more I can take from our beloved Fiorina. I need answers and I need my HEA. At what cost? How much more can our adorable, sweet Ollie endure? What about our courageous Mia? Is it worth it? Is it all worth it in the end? 

“All I’m saying is I would’ve given her an eternity plus a day past crestfallen.”

How do I feel? What do I think? I’m not sure. I do know one thing: this was one of the best books I’ve ever read. I can’t find the words to thank K for taking the time to write this story down. Put her words and thoughts on paper. She’s ingenious. I’ve come to realize that regardless of what the story is about, I will love it, simply because I love the way she writes. She spends time in the world she creates in each of her novels. She gets to know her characters before she even begins to write. They are fully fleshed out human beings. They are real. They are flawed. They are beautiful. There are choices made and actions taken in every one of her stories that pull you in and suck you dry. Cottrell is a poet, she’s a master of pen to paper, she’s truly an artist. Take the time to read this story, ladies and gentlemen.

“Sunlight isn’t weak, don’t you know? It’s powerful.”

In complete honesty, this novel gutted me. I was left bleeding out, my heart, crushed on the floor beneath my feet, after only reading the prologue. This is a story about pain and loss and heartbreak, but it’s also a story about forgiveness and compassion. It’s about a boy, who loses almost everything and wants for nothing, and a girl with nothing who dreams of everything. It’s their love story, it’s their growth and persistence, that slowly but surly mends your heart. Each time Spencer and Emerson find strength in each other, your soul finds some semblance of hope. Sunlight Girl is an extraordinary tale that won’t ever truly be over. I can’t imagine my life without Spencer or Emerson in it. I’m bound to them now. They own me. I owe everything to our author, K.L. Cottrell, for sharing this with me and asking for my honest opinion. I only hope this review does our tale some justice. 

I want to mention a few things that I really loved about the novel. Firstly, the pop culture references in this novel are BANGIN’. We get everything from Grey’s Anatomy references to lines that sound glaringly familiar to Coldplay lyrics. Every single one of the references are the perfect puzzle piece to continue piecing together this glorious tale.

“It’s never stupid to miss me. I missed you, too. You’re my person.” “Your person?” she breathes out distractedly.  She takes my chin in her hand and tenderly turns my head away from hers. Her lips claim a place beneath my jawline. I rumble in both answer and satisfaction, “Yes.”

I know I didn’t spend much of this review writing about Spencer or Emerson, but just know this: they are both perfectly imperfect in their own way. Emerson is the most thoughtful, kind, and generous character I’ve ever known. Exactly what Spencer needs in his grief. She helps him learn to forgive and heal. When we meet Spencer he is angry and hateful, but his character arc is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. In the matter of a year, he falls in love and forgives himself for his past. They are two peas in a pod, made for each other and it’s absolute perfection to witness. 

It’s important to keep in mind the trigger warnings in this novel. The novel begins with suicide. It’s a huge part of the entire story, so it’s vital that if this is not something you can handle, you don’t read this novel. There is also a variety of other triggers in this: child abuse, adultery and bullying are among the top three. There’s a LOT going on, guys. It’s a long book, but every word is important. That’s another thing I love so much about Cottrell, and another reason why she’s in my top 5 for favorite romance authors.  She takes the time to create an elegant, solid foundation to build her world on. Most people view sex as the most important part of a relationship, that sex is the romance in the relationship. I don’t believe that to be true. Our author doesn’t use sex as a crutch to “make it romantic”. It’s entirely refreshing. It’s new and special. Similarly to the way another one of my favorite authors, Leanne Davis, writes, the focus is on the development of the romance over time. Nothing is rushed or forced. I’m so glad to have read this at this specific time in my life.  As someone who struggles with depression and suicidal ideation, this spoke to my soul. 6 stars go out to you, K. I can’t praise you enough for this masterpiece.

“The fault does not lie with the world when someone has it and throws it away.”

“Sometimes, I think you’re the saddest person I’ve ever met.”

The thing I love most about Leanne Davis’ storytelling, is her ability to write a stellar romance without the necessity of sex. Her stories are raw and real. They rip you open and leave you bleeding out without so much as a backward glance. She writes about real issues, she writes about pain and heartbreak and healing. But above all, she writes with heart. Her love scenes are added bonuses that leave you breathless and craving more. She doesn’t need them, though, and that’s what makes all the difference. That’s what makes her work rise above the rest.

Onto the arduous tale of sweet Lindsey Bains’ abusive life. We learn, in the beginning, that she desperately craved acceptance and approval from her father, she abused herself. She created a picture perfect, all-American solider for her father without so much as a second glance towards her sister who was being abused. She only became a soldier because it’s what her father wanted. Who knows what she would have become had she been allowed to think for herself! We learned that her mother favored Jessie over Lindsey. That left its mark. Then we learned that she got married to a wife-beater, not purposefully, but still. Yep, Elliott beats Lindsey. In every aspect of Lindsey’s life, she allowed herself to be abused by someone, she was hurt over and over again, sometimes without even realizing it. Our author takes the the time to break it all down for us, another reason to respect Davis even more. She doesn’t write about painful situations or circumstances for the dramatic effect. She writes about these things for the purpose of informing her audience. These types of situations are happening all around us, every single day. Turning a blind eye only gives the abusers more power. So yes, Lindsey is abused by Elliott, but she stays with him. She’s afraid, she’s ashamed, she also feels like she deserves it for her ignorance regarding Jessie’s past. And this is how our story begins.

Lindsey goes to visit a very pregnant Jessie, in Washington, for about a month, and she crosses paths with Noah again. They first met in book one, when Will went MIA on tour and Jessie went back to stay with Lindsey while they waited for news on him. At that time, Noah was dating Jessie, but when he realized how in love she still was with Will, they decided to remain friends. Noah is a veterinarian and runs his own clinic, Jessie works alongside him. When Lindsey shows up to visit Jessie, she begins working at the clinic as well. Noah is smitten. He was the moment he first laid eyes on her, but even more so as he gets to know her and she comes out of her shell. She is safe in Washington, where Elliott can’t beat on her, so she blossoms. She begins to come out of her shell and get comfortable in her own skin again. It’s like magic to witness.

Lindsey is attracted to Noah, but the feelings of love don’t come until later on in our book. She takes her time healing and getting back on her feet while she stays with Gretchen (Will’s first wife) after she leaves Elliott. THERE IS A LOT GOING ON IN THIS NOVEL. A huge bomb is dropped, I won’t say what but holy crap, shit is gonna go down in the next few books, most likely. This series is soooooo phenomenal, guys. 

My adoration and devotion to Leanne Davis is intangible, it’s indescribable. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Davis is my all-time favorite romance author. What skill. She paints masterpieces with her words. Read this series. Read the River’s End series. Just read SOMETHING that Davis has written and come join her fan club. She’s the best of the best. The real deal.

“I won’t break, you know.” “But I might,” he whispered back as he rested his forehead on hers.

“You don’t know this, Julia, but I already think of you as mine. Maybe I’ve thought of you as mine ever since I met you, because you touched my heart. I’ll fix this.”

This novel sucked me in from the moment I turned the first page. I said in my review before this that I had been going through a rough patch with books and was feeling really low. I couldn’t find anything to keep my preoccupied brain on task. It was getting annoying and I was starting to wonder if I should take a break from reading for a week or two just to give myself a breather. But then this book happened. Colleen Charles proved that you can’t ever read “enough”, if you truly love it. I’ve read approximately 125 books this year. I am always, I repeat, always in the middle of a novel. It’s my favorite past time and my truest love. I was afraid I’d burnt myself out…not true at all. Thank you, Charles, for proving that to me. All it takes is a strong female and solid plot to suck me in and inspire me.

Julia, our heroine, is a self-starter, head-strong, knockout. She owns her own business and she makes her own decisions and she is proud as hell. As she should be. She’s inspirational. You guys know how much I love a strong female lead. She’s in love with professional hockey player, Adam, who was also her brother’s best friend growing up. At the beginning of our novel, Adam walks in on his brother and his fiancé doing the dirty. It’s an awful scene. He swears off women and drinks himself into a car accident….like I said, it’s rough. Julia hears about his car accident while she’s on a blind date, kindly excuses herself, and runs to his side even though they haven’t seen each other since college. Adam was recently benched because of a knee injury, so this was just adding to the steaming pile that his life turned into. And voila! Our two lovers meet again and and their love story begins.

What’s so inspiring and beautiful about this novel is the chemistry and uncertainty between our two lovers. Julia, although she is strong and a complete badass, still feels nervous and self conscious when it comes to Adam. He hasn’t dated many women that look like her – curvy. Adam is afraid of his feelings. His emotions towards his ex-fiance were what he thought and labeled as “love” for so long, but it’s a totally different feeling with Julia. He doesn’t know how to put into words what he feels. He freezes up a lot or keeps his thoughts to himself which only hurt Julia. The push and pull between them is enticing and exhilarating. What a totally unique and completely captivating read. Oh, and it’s a HEA with NO cliffhanger (thank god). Wonderful job, Charles. 5 stars!

“I’m here,” he said, as he continued the exquisite torture, forcing pain and pleasure into my soul. “I’ll catch you when you fall.”