Guest Reviews

Amazon

My First

by

Melanie Shawn

Let's start with My first, I want to say that this was a very sweet read.  I loved Katie and Jason, talk about the perfect couple!!  

Let's talk about Katie, she is an independent and powerful attorney in San Francisco  who gets panic attacks. She starts experiencing more panic attacks when she returns home to attend her best friend's wedding, which she so happens to be the maid of honor.  She fled the town ten years to get away from some painful circumstances.  Her boyfriend Nick died in a tragic car accident and her close and best friend Jason, who so happens to have been in love with Katie since they were in kindergarten tries to get close to her when Nick was in the hospital and they had a night of passion after the funeral.  Katie was in shock after that incident and was embarrassed that she decides to leave Harper's Crossing.  

When Katie returns home, she comes face-to-face with her pain and fears, who happens to be Jason Sloan.  Jason was her knight in shining armor when they were young, the guy oozes all kinds of sexy, and just with his simple touch and soulful eyes are what gets Katie to the edge of madness.  Katie tries stay away from Jason, but it's a task that seems to become difficult as they are the best-man and maid-of-honor at her best friend's wedding.  Katie does realize how much she loves and has always loved Jason as the story unfolds.  Nick just wasn't who she thought he was.

The author did a great job with the chemistry between Katie and Jason.  I liked this story so much that I have to give it 4 stars!!!  Jason is just like the perfect, wonderful boyfriend that you would kill to have.  His attention is always focused on his partner and that's just so romantic :)

~Lorena, Guest reviewer for For the Love of Books~

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Amazon

My Last

by

Melanie Shawn

Riley Sloan is the second oldest of five brothers and he was in the Marines special forces and couldn't wait to start his life after years of dedicating and serving his country.  He was looking forward to visiting his family at Harper's Crossing briefly and taking off to New Orleans as he was a silent partner with some buddies, owning a bar.  Just when he was driving to San Francisco to see an old friend and meet his beautiful little daughter, he gets a call from his brother Jason asking him to go and check up on Chelle.  Chelle was engaged to David, the douche bag.  David cheated on Chelle and was supposedly going to marry an 18 year old girl, who happened to be his secretary because she was pregnant.  So Chelle decided that she needed a little time to herself and went to San Francisco and was staying at Kate's old apartment.  But she wasn't answering calls and Katie started getting worried.

Riley has always had a thing for Chelle but knew he wasn't good enough for her and she happens to be his best friend's little sister so he knows she's off limits.  But when he is asked to check on her, he realizes how much he's attracted to her and ends up staying a little longer than intended to take care of her.  As the days pass, it seems to get harder and harder for either of them to stay away from each other.

When they return to Harper's Crossing, they go their separate ways and he ends up leaving to New Orleans after a few days but realizes that he can't live without her, the question is, is Riley good enough for Chelle and is he really good enough to be a family man and marry Chelle?  

I really think this was a good story.  I loved Riley and even though he didn't think he was good enough for Chelle, I always thought he was ;)  I love Melanie's style of writing and I love how she drags out the stories a little bit because it makes you a little antsy.  I love that in books!!

I definitely give this book 4 stars.

~Lorena, Guest reviewer for For the Love of Books~

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Amazon

Forgiven

by

Rebecca Brooke

I received this book from For The Love of Books to review as a guest reviewer.  Written from two perspectives in the first person really gave the story the depth of hearing from both sides.  Probably most appealing for young adults in the 18-25 year old range, it was fresh and modern as the characters, Caleb and Angie, dealt with their pasts while trying to deal with college and a new relationship.  All of the characters were believable and had distinct personalities which were easy to relate to.  The storyline pulled you in because it had a combination of a lot of elements that are key to keeping the reader engaged.  If you are looking for young first love, conflicts and resolutions, every day activities, and steamy love scenes then Forgiven will do it for you!  Great read!

~Teresa, Guest reviewer for For the Love of Books~

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Amazon

Pieces of Me

by

Ann Garner

"And you carefully gather the pieces of yourself. You collect them together in your mind. The old pieces, the new pieces, the ones that are too shattered for you to tell what they are. You collect them and hold them close."            

Delaney Roberts is trying to get a fresh start and rebuild her life. Her first steps towards independence are moving across country to attend CMU in North Carolina. She's hoping for a clean slate and distance from her painful past and parents that she left behind in Oregon. Meeting her new roommate, Grace Marsh, is a relief. She's friendly, funny, helpful, and has her own car. Delaney and Grace hit it off right away. Grace introduces her to her brothers and friends at a get together at her brother’s place that night. She's not good in social situations, but finds she is enjoying herself with them, especially Grace's brother, Cole Marsh. His black hair, navy blue eyes, tall, athletic build, dimples, and flirty nature stir up an attraction she thought she'd never be able to feel. He flirts with her, "Well Oregon's loss is our gain!" and,  "I told you, sexy brunette, sad eyes. Every guy on campus is going to want you." It seems it's a mutual attraction, but Delaney knows it would never work. She is too broken inside. Regardless of how attracted she is to him, she rejects his advances. She just wants her life to be as normal as possible and have time for her soul to heal. But fate has other plans for Delaney, and Cole is not going to give up so easily on her. Can she trust him with her secrets and the pieces of her broken heart?
"You dream about the day you will no longer be pieces of yourself."                    

 I loved the strength and courage that Delaney shows in this story. Her past is truly horrific, and most would not be able to bounce back and have hope for being normal after what she endured. The Marsh siblings are from a friendly, loving family, such a contradiction to her own hands off, cold parents. They are exactly what she needs to bring love and friendship to her new life. Cole is such a contradiction. A well-known favorite player amongst the female coeds, he meets Delaney and knows she's special. Underneath all the cocky, flirty exterior is a guy who is all about family and knows he's found the girl for him. A sad, poignant story of rising from the ashes. You may never be what you once were, but you can take the broken pieces and make a stronger, wiser you. Great story!    

~Melissa, Guest reviewer for For the Love of Books~