Before We Were Strangers

Title: Before We Were Strangers 
Series: No 
Author: Renee Carlino
POV: Hero and Heroine 
Cliffhanger: No 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 5
Angst: 5
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 5
Hangover: 5
Overall Rating: 5 stars


Category: Second chance romance


Another beautiful love story that spanned fifteen years. I missed reading romance. This book brought me back to it. I loved it. I loved the characters. I loved the angst and the gut wrenching scenes. I read it all in a day. I couldn't put it down. It was captivating and engrossing. This is highly recommended. 

Jezebel and Lying in Wait

Title: Jezebel and Lying in Wait
Series: No 
Author: K. Larsen
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger: Yes in book 1
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 3
Angst: 4
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 5
Hangover: 5
Overall Rating: 4.4 stars


Category: Romantic Suspense


Story of Gabriel and Celeste is so fascinating but I couldn't believe the happy ever after story as I kept on waiting for the shoe to drop. I kept waiting for the grand twist! Little by little the cracks surface and it gave me a mind f*ck.


I was so anxious to finish the book because I really wanted to know how it all turned out.


The grand twist made my heart stop. Oh the betrayal! It was brilliant! I loved it! I wanted to read more!


But then I was disappointed with the sequel. Despite loving the first book so much, the next was such a bore. Although it answered some of the lingering questions, still I couldn't help but feel deflated. I wished I had stopped at the first book.

behind your back and back to back

Title: Behind Your Back (book 1) and Back to Back (book 2)
Series: Two part 
Author: Chelsea M. Cameron
POV: Hero and Heroine 
Cliffhanger: No 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 3
Angst: 3
Plot: 3
Thought Provoking: 3
Hangover: 3
Overall Rating: 3 stars


Category: Romantic suspense


Hero is a bit superficial to my liking. He strikes me as someone so vain and always ready to impress. He’s like a girl obsessed with designer clothes and stuff. It's irritating. He sounds like a trying hard Blair Waldorf. Book 1 didn’t sound like it was written in the male point of view.


In book 1, the heroine kept the hero on his toes. It was thrilling to read when their next tryst would be.


However, book 2 was a bit disappointing. I liked the first book better. This sequel was dragging. When the shoe dropped I felt deflated. The purpose was not worth the effort. It could have been resolved in a different manner. It was hard to accept and unbelievable.


The two books left me in a funk that I wasn't able to read another book for sometime.

When You Make It Home

Title: When You Make It Home
Series: No 
Author: Claire Ashby
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger:
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 3
Angst: 3
Plot: 3
Thought Provoking: 3
Hangover: 3
Overall Rating: 3 stars


Category: feel good love story


The story was just okay. I breezed through it quickly. It was a feel good story. I would have liked it better if the hero didn’t seem too emotional. But it was still OK. I loved the heroine though. A tough cookie. This is recommended if you want something light.

Remember Me This Way

Title: Remember Me This Way
Series: No 
Author: Sabine Durrant
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger: No 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 3
Angst: 4
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 5
Hangover: 4
Overall Rating: 4.2 stars


Category: Psychological Thriller


This book brought me out of my funk. I loved it. It was a total mind f*ck. I read it in a day.


Although I liked the story, there were times when the writing was a hard to understand and a little bit confusing.


I'm recently liking this psychological genre. I can't wait to read more of it.

Dark Places

Title: Dark Places
Series: No 
Author: Gillian Flynn
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger:
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 2
Angst: 4
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 4
Hangover: 3
Overall Rating: 3.6 stars


Category: Murder mystery


Another mind boggling story from this author. Although not as twisted as Gone Girl but still holds it own in this genre. I liked it. It's a bit slow at first and somehow hard to digest but still worth the time to read.

The Man I Love

Title: The Man I Love 
Series: No 
Author: Suanne Laqueur
POV: Hero
Cliffhanger: No 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 3
Angst: 5
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 5
Hangover: 3
Overall Rating:  4.2 stars


Category: unique love story, life long love affair


A love that spanned for years. Somehow it's hard to believe but once you read the story it's palatable and it really can be realistic. A love still as strong even after fifteen years. I liked it. Though most of the time I wanted to shake the hero into his senses. I had a few bumps while reading as I felt some scenes were dragging. But I still finished it and I wanted the heroine to get her happy ending with or without the hero despite what happened. This is recommended.

Paper Swan

Title: Paper Swan
Series: No 
Author: Leylah Attar
POV: Hero and Heroine 
Cliffhanger: No
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 4
Angst: 5
Plot: 4
Thought Provoking: 5
Hangover: 5
Overall Rating:  4.6 stars


Category: Crime, Romantic Suspense


You can never go wrong with this author. She has a way of captivating and pulling the reader into the story. What's great is that the story is nothing new. A few twists but not a far cry from the usual stories like this. What's different is how is is written and how we get to read inside the mind of the hero and heroine. I loved it. I couldn't put the book down. Love this author and love her stories. I also liked that her heroines are not the irritating and weakling types.

Maybe In Another Life

Title: Maybe In Another Life
Series: No 
Author: Taylor Jenkins Reid 
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger:
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 3
Angst: 4
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 5
Hangover: 4
Overall Rating: 4.2 stars


Another great story from Taylor Jenkins Reid. It was so easy to read and relate to. It was interesting and inspiring. I couldn't put it down. I fell in love with both hero.


This story tells us about the consequences of our choices, that no matter what we choose we will end up with whatever was destined for us. It inspired me to live my life no matter what it brings in a positive way. I really needed this sort of story at the moment because I'm feeling pretty depressed lately. It gives us hope and inspiration.

The Kind Worth Killing

Title: The Kind Worth Killing
Series: No
Author: Peter Swanson
POV: Alternating between characters and the heroine 
Cliffhanger: Sort of
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 2
Angst: 3
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 5
Hangover: 4
Overall Rating: 4 stars


Category: Psychological Thriller, Crime, Suspense


A unique story and a very interesting heroine. This is not a love story. It has so many interesting twists. If psychological thrillers are your thing, then this is a must read. I've been drawn to stories like this lately. And it didn't disappoint.


Although my only complaint is that the story ended in an open sort. Where the ending will be what the reader wants it to be. It can go either way. But still I liked it just so as I couldn't get it out of my head.


This is recommended to those who loved the book Marrow.

Asking for It

Title: Asking For It
Series: Yes 
Author: Lilah Pace
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger: Yes 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 4
Angst: 5
Plot: 5
Thought Provoking: 4
Hangover: 5
Overall Rating: 4.6 stars


A powerful and heartbreaking story of two broken characters who found each other and tried to help each other.


Somehow this book reminded me of another great story that I loved so much, The Crossfire series. If you loved it, then you will definitely love this book as well, like I did big time.


I've also read another book with the similar fantasies as that of the heroine, but the story was written half baked and it was pretty boring. This book though was written in a way that it gave justice to the issues surrounding the hero and heroine. It made them real and human with all the flaws that they are trying to mend.


Initially I didn’t have my hopes up in reading this book. I thought that because of the topic this will just be a typical erotica story where I'll get bored with all the sex. I was wrong. The few sex scenes were not written in a dirty way, although it's not arousing because of the setting, and it didn't feel for the heck of it why not insert a sex scene here. The scenes where heartfelt because even though the characters tried to distance themselves, I still felt their connection and their care for each other. As you go along the book you will feel the caring goes deeper and deeper until we know for sure that they indeed love each other. I fell in love with both the characters more.


Although there were quite a few moments where I felt frustrated with the heroine, I felt the hurt of the hero. Though eventually it worked out for them just not for the best.


There are also secondary characters that we can love and there are also those that we can really really hate.


I can't wait for the next book. I can't wait to read how Vivienne and Jonah move forward and find each other.


This book is recommended to those who loved the Crossfire series.

Compulsive

Title: Compulsive 
Series: Yes 
Author: Lia Fairchild 
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger: Yes 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 4
Angst: 4
Plot: 4
Thought Provoking: 4
Hangover: 4
Overall Rating: 4 stars


Category: forbidden romance, therapist, patients, broken, damaged characters


A story of longing and forbidden passion.


This is the story of Daniel and Gray. Daniel, the therapist and Gray the patient. 

21 Stolen Kisses

Title: 21 Stolen Kisses
Series: No 
Author: Lauren Blakely 
POV: Hero and Heroine 
Cliffhanger: No 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 4
Angst: 4
Plot: 4
Thought Provoking: 4
Hangover: 4
Overall Rating: 4 stars


Category: forbidden romance, young girl, older man, marriage, parental issues, friendship


You would think that because of the title this would be another erotic story. Good thing that it's not. The few steamy scenes didn’t need to become detailed for it to be a beautiful and heartfelt story. The connection between the characters is so strong and evident that I felt it in my bones. I especially loved the scene where they were telling each other the lines of the song in Chess. Oh my the thrill of falling in love. It made me visit YouTube and search the song and Chess.


The story not only focused on the forbidden romance between the main characters but also the stolen kisses of one secondary character as well.


The story also deals with parenting marriage issues as well as building lifetime friends. It’s a mixture of everything important in life.


Let me just rant for a little about Kennedy because I don't exactly agree with some of her actions. I didn’t like how she treated Noah and repeatedly hurt him. I get her reasons, it's just I didn’t like how she went about it.


In another light, I loved Noah. I honestly don't think he deserves what happened to him and how she treated him. I would've liked him to make it harder for her though, you know make her beg more. Just kidding. Although the bad things opened more doors for him. I just love his integrity and his loyalty. He is the character that made the story.


This book is highly recommended.


Before I forget I loved the catchy cover and the snippets of the love letter in every or so chapter. It makes you want to fall in love all over again and again.

Made You Up

Title: Made You Up
Series: No 
Author: Francesca Zappia
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger: No 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 2
Angst: 4
Plot: 4
Thought Provoking: 4
Hangover: 4
Overall Rating: 3.6 stars


Category: mental illness, high school life, teenagers


The story is an eye opener for us readers who have no clue what schizophrenia is all about. What happens to persons suffering from it and how we can help them.


The heroine has schizophrenia and this book tells us her adventures. Here she learned to live a somehow normal life, be a typical teenager, fall in love, have normal friends and the usual heart ache.


I honestly thought that the story would be a cry fest. There were many sad parts but good thing that pitying the afflicted is not the focus but supporting them instead. This book also opens us into understanding teenagers more and how to support them as well.


This is not my usual genre but still it was refreshing and I recommend it to be worth reading. 

The Luckiest Girl Alive

Title: Luckiest Girl Alive
Series: No 
Author: Jessica Knoll
POV: Heroine 
Cliffhanger: No 
On a scale of 1 to 5 (highest) stars:
Sexiness: 1
Angst: 3
Plot: 4
Thought Provoking: 4
Hangover: 3
Overall Rating:  3 stars


Category: murder, mystery, high school life, abuse


I really this would have the same premise as that of the book Gone Girl. But it was completely different. Which is a good thing because then it wouldn't have to be known as the book that copied it. Their similarity ends with the mystery aspect of the story. I was expecting more mind boggling twists though. And a more badass heroine. Although the book has a heavy plot, I was wishing for more impact to the twists of the book. It left me wanting for more. The ending also left a bittersweet taste that I wanted more for the heroine. That something wasn't enough.


This book is still worth reading if you want something different. Just a tip, try to get past the first 20% mark and the story will slowly unravel. I almost gave up on the book about that time because it focused on the shallowness of the heroine. There were also instances where the story suddenly inserts another scene from the heroine's memory that leave me feeling confused. There were also times where I skimmed through some scenes because I felt it to be dragging and the writing was a little confusing to understand. Still I finished it and somehow the story ended up just fine.