Just one guy: reading, reviewing, living the dream. I read it all! Particularly a fan of the New Adult genre, most Young Adult, Historical Fiction, and anything Paranormal! Check me out for a review or contact me for a suggestion!
By now you guys have SURELY heard that I am a member of Cora Carmack's Street Team promoting her newest novel All Lined Up! Maybe you have been living under a rock and haven't noticed the preorder links, the Cora info, or the countdown in the sidebar of this page. Well, just in case you're NOT familiar, take a minute to get acquainted with All Lined Up before you get blown away by the big news I'm fixing to throw at you!
New York Times and USA Today
bestselling author Cora Carmack follows up her trio of hits—Losing It,
Faking It, and Finding It—with this thrilling first novel in an
explosive series bursting with the Texas flavor, edge, and steamy
romance of Friday Night Lights.
In Texas, two things are cherished above all else—football and gossip. My life has always been ruled by both.
Dallas
Cole loathes football. That's what happens when you spend your whole
childhood coming in second to a sport. College is her time to step out
of the bleachers, and put the playing field (and the players) in her
past.
But life doesn't always go as planned. As if going to the
same college as her football star ex wasn’t bad enough, her father, a
Texas high school coaching phenom, has decided to make the jump to
college ball… as the new head coach at Rusk University. Dallas finds
herself in the shadows of her father and football all over again.
Carson
McClain is determined to go from second-string quarterback to the
starting line-up. He needs the scholarship and the future that football
provides. But when a beautiful redhead literally falls into his life,
his focus is more than tested. It's obliterated.
Dallas doesn't know Carson is on the team. Carson doesn't know that Dallas is his new coach's daughter.
And neither of them know how to walk away from the attraction they feel.
And just in case for some crazy reason you aren't familiar with Cora Carmack, here's a little about Cora!
Cora Carmack is a
twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something
characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs
(like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful
jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing
her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying
to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too.
She is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Losing
It series.
Alright! So, we know Cora. We know a little about All Lined Up. But what if you wanted to learn more about All Lined Up? How about teasers, quotes, graphics, and *gasp* giveaways? Like that? Guess what, I've got ya covered. Oh yeah! Ever heard of Rusk University Football Fridays? Here's the breakdown. Every Friday until release day (May 13) the Street Team and I are giving you guys some awesome information about Rusk University and the amazing cast of characters that make Rusk U the place to be! So far we've done 4 Football Fridays! Check them out here!
As You can see, we've been a little busy! Well, around here we love to reward our readers and fans with giveaways. My fellow Street Teamers feel the same way! Several of us have teamed up to bring you what is, quite possible, the BIGGEST GIVEAWAY EVER! You read that right! This giveaway consists of books, swag, gift cards, and a whole bunch more! Check out this giveaway here:
Be sure to scroll through all the pictures and add on all the extras to make sure you get all of your possible entries!
This "awesome sauce" giveaway would not be possible without the following Street Team members! Please take a minute to go check out their pages and show them the support they deserve! These guys are amazing and have been a huge inspiration to me while starting my own blog:
Well guys, my day is far from over and I still have lots to do so I will part for now! Be sure to enter the giveaway and be on the lookout for my post very soon about my experience at the AViD event this past weekend! It'll be awesome! Have a great Monday guys!
HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE! Congratulations again on making it through yet another week. If yours has been ANYTHING like mine, you've earned this weekend! Before you start the partying, I have another special edition of OneGuysGuideToGoodReads
to share with ya'll. I know you guys are just as excited as I am so
here we go: it's Football Friday!! As you guys have undoubtedly heard, I
am an avid fan of Cora Carmack and a member of her Street Team,
promoting her newest Rusk University series, starting with All Lined Up, coming at ya on May 13! Just in case you have been living under a rock, I have all the information about All Lined Up available on the sidebar of my blog! Look over here>>>>>
Without farther delay, I present to you week four of Rusk University Football Friday!
This is actually a VERY special #FootballFriday for you guys, because you don't just get to meet one character: you get to meet two! Two of my favorites, in fact! Everyone, meet Silas Moore and Levi Abrams, the bad boys of our story!
Silas Moore
I'm just going to come out and say that Silas was my favorite character in All Lined Up. I really have no idea why of all the characters I liked him the best, but I did! Silas starts out the story as just another one of the Wildcats, with a wild streak for sure. He likes to party and he is down with the ladies. That's where we first meet Silas, as he tries to get friendly with Dallas! Obviously with little success. Silas has a few really great lines and overall, I really liked his character development. It is really kind of hard to say too much about Silas' involvement in All Lined Up without giving away any spoilers, so I guess we will just say that he does change. Silas is one of those characters where your view of him will change completely by the end of the book. I'll just keep it at that. Another HUGE thing I can announce about Silas is that it is a good thing he is my favorite character, because guess what? Cora's second book in the Rusk University series, All Broke Down (expected in October of this year), features Silas as the main male character!
When it comes to a physical description of Silas, this is what we were given:
Silas Moore: Gorgeous; Tall; Messy dark blonde hair; Strong jaw; Eyes that smile; Muscular; All about pure heart in football. Well, I don't generally say much on the physical descriptions, but as soon as I read about Silas and saw his description, I thought of the best actor who fit his description. You guys may know him as the "most awesome Silas I know", Silas Botwin from Weeds, Hunter Parrish. I made this graphic for Silas' character, using my favorite Silas quote from All Lined Up!
And because I like my readers so much, I have another special treat for you all. How about the official synopsis for All Broke Down? The book I just mentioned earlier! Cora just gave us the green light to post it! Here's what we can expect from book two of the series featuring Silas and our new female MC, Dylan (whom Ethan is a VERY big fan of!). Check it out:
In this second book in New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cora Carmack’s New Adult, Texas-set Rusk University series, which began with All Lined Up, a young woman discovers that you can’t only fight for what you believe in . . . sometimes you have to fight for what you love
Dylan fights for lost causes. Probably because she used to be one.
Environmental
issues, civil rights, corrupt corporations, and politicians—you name
it, she’s probably been involved in a protest. When her latest cause
lands her in jail overnight, she meets Silas Moore. He’s in for a
different kind of fighting. And though he’s arrogant and infuriating,
she can’t help being fascinated with him. Yet another lost cause.
Football
and trouble are the only things that have ever come naturally to Silas.
And it’s trouble that lands him in a cell next to do-gooder Dylan. He’s
met girls like her before—fixers, he calls them, desperate to heal the
damage and make him into their ideal boyfriend. But he doesn’t think
he’s broken, and he definitely doesn’t need a girlfriend trying to
change him. Until, that is, his anger issues and rash decisions threaten
the only thing he really cares about, his spot on the Rusk University
football team. Dylan might just be the perfect girl to help.
Because Silas Moore needs some fixing after all.
Check out some of these other amazing Silas graphics by some of my fellow Street Team members!
Levi Abrams
Alright. Like I said earlier, this is a very special week because I get to introduce you guys to two characters! Our second character is Rusk University Quarterback, Mr. Levi Abrams. But wait? Quarterback? What about Carson McClain? Nice catch guys. Well, again, I can't spoil anything, but let's just say that Carson wasn't originally the quarterback for the Wildcats, Levi was. And lets just say to complicate matters that Levi may or may not be Dallas' ex boyfriend. Dallas' very serious ex boyfriend. Ouch. Yep. Levi and Dallas went to high school together where Coach Cole (Dallas' father) was also the State Champion football coach. It was under Coach Cole that Levi learned to be the great athlete he is today. After moving to Rusk. he played a season on the football team, but really was not giving the team the show they were promised. In response to that, Coach Cole is brought on to whip Levi into shape. Unfortunately for all of us, Levi is a douchelobster. Yes you read that right. Levi is not the nicest guy, at all, and is one of my least favorite characters. However, he does play a rather important part in our story. I really can't say much about it, so I think I'll leave the Levi portion of this post short! Guess you'll just HAVE to read All Lined Up to find out more! Check out these graphics made by my fellow Street Team members!
Levi Abrams
Quarterback Rusk University Wildcats
Alright
guys, that's all I have for you on the topic of our guys Silas Moore and Levi Abrams, but
wait,
THERE'S MORE!! Several of the other amazing Street Team members that I
have the great fortune of working with are giving you THEIR take on Silas and Levi! Wanna learn more? Check out any of their blogs below!
Before you leave, how about another awesome giveaway from Cora? Up for grabs this week are a SIGNED advanced copy of All Lined Up! Can't say I wouldn't mind that prize myself! a Rafflecopter giveaway
Just as a reminder. Don't forget that you guys all have your chance to meet Miss Cora Carmack this weekend (as well as Jennifer L Armentrout and Jay Crownover) in Des Moines, Iowa for a special Authors Event panel pertaining to the New Adult genre. I will be there and will have lots of info for you guys when I get back! Check out my post all about the AViD event here: http://oneguysguidetogoodreads.blogspot.com/2014/04/authors-visiting-in-des-moines-event.html
Alright, this has been a long week for all of us and I can't say I am sad to finally see it come to an end, but I have been looking forward to this #FootballFriday all week long. I am so excited to introduce you guys to Silas, my favorite character in All Lined Up. I hope you all have amazing weekends and remember to keep checking back with us here at OneGuysGuidetoGoodReads! This post should put me at a HUGE milestone and I thank each of you for that, I have a surprise lined up to mark the occasion soon! Pre-Order ALU, follow Cora and myself on Twitter, comment, follow, or message me for any more information or just to say hey, I love communicating with my readers! Until next time, Happy Reading!
Hello readers! Ethan here, I am currently reading three books at one time right now to have some awesome reviews for you soon, but I wanted to stop by with a little promo for an FREE event that is going on this weekend where you all have a chance to meet 3 amazing authors. Where can I find out more information about this exciting event, you ask? Well, read on my friends!
Authors Visiting in Des Moines, better known as AViD is a program held through the Des Moines Public Library (that's in Iowa for you geographically challenged folks). The programs bring many amazing authors from around the country to Des Moines to speak on their latest works, as well as meet and greet their fans! Click Here To Learn About AViD
This coming Sunday, April 27, 2014. AViD will be hosting a New Adult Panel. As any of my readers will tell you, I am a big fan of the new adult genre. Plus, it just so happens that one of my all time favorite people, the amazing Cora Carmack will be one of the featured authors! The other two featured authors will be the renowned author, Mrs. Jennifer L. Armentrout and the always unexpected and awesome Jay Crownover! Here's a little bit of information about each of the three authors!
Cora Carmack
Cora Carmack is a
twenty-something writer who likes to write about twenty-something
characters. She's done a multitude of things in her life-- boring jobs
(like working retail), Fun jobs (like working in a theatre), stressful
jobs (like teaching), and dream jobs (like writing). She enjoys placing
her characters in the most awkward situations possible, and then trying
to help them get a boyfriend out of it. Awkward people need love, too.
She is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Losing
It series. Visit Cora's Website Here
Jennifer L. Armentrout
# 1 New York Times and International Bestselling author Jennifer
lives in Martinsburg, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about
her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends
her time reading, working out, watching really bad zombie movies,
pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack
Russell Loki.
Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she
spent most of her time writing short stories….which explains her dismal
grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction,
fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Spencer Hill
Press, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen.
Her book Obsidian has been optioned for a major motion picture and her
Covenant Series has been optioned for TV.
She also writes adult and New Adult romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.
Being native
Coloradan is a source of pride if you ask Jay. She loves all
the things her home has to offer, and that is why she set her books in
this familiar place. Writing about what she knows is why her stories
feature plenty of rock and roll and body modification. Jay has
been a bartender since she was in college, spending over forty hours a
week watching interactions between men and women. This 9 to 5 job
offered great insights into relationships - how they start and how they
evolve in a social setting.
This cutting-edge
author likes to write New Adult novels because she remembers being in
her early twenties and thinking she had it all figured out, only to be
proven wrong time and time again. When she looks back, she see's that
those years defined who she is today, and, good or bad, those decisions
ultimately set her current path.
Where: Des Moines Public Library (Central Location)
(Click here for library information, location, contact info, parking, etc)
Date: April 20, 2014 (this coming Sunday)
Time: 2:00-4:00PM
Like I said guys, this is a great experience to hear three amazing authors discuss the New Adult genre and what we can expect to see from the genre in the future. This is the first authors event I will be attending since starting this blog, so I am really excited to meet these authors and hopefully let you guys live vicariously through me! I will be coming up from Springfield, MO that morning and will leaving that evening to return to Springfield, but I understand that many of my colleagues in the blogging world will be there and I would love to meet each and every one of you! Please don't be a stranger!
Another really special part of this event is that it is the first time I will be meeting Miss Cora Carmack in the flesh! As you guys have heard and seen from previous posts, I am a member of Cora's street team promoting her upcoming Rusk University Series starting with All Lined Up releasing on May 13 (check out links in the sidebar). Be prepared for a meeting of epic proportions.
I will be bringing one of my best friends and One Guys Guide to Good Reads "support staff" member, Megan with me to this event as well. She is also very excited about what the day will hold for us. Like I said before, I hope to see lots of people there and feel free to contact me for more information about the event! Hope to see you all Sunday afternoon!
Happy Easter all! Before I even start this post I have to backtrack a little bit. I know last week I said I was taking a break from reviewing romance novels, well, come to find out that many of my fans actually are really enjoying my reviews of some New Adult Romance from a male perspective. That being said, I will continue to do some NA romance reviews, but don't expect a plethora of them! When I said that the other day I realized there was one more amazing novel that I did not get around to reviewing because I had honestly forgotten that I didn't do one!
Thanks to a little birdy on Facebook in the form of Mrs. Chelsea Fine herself, I realized I had never posted my thoughts on her newest novelBest Kind of Broken. What better time to do it than today when, guess what, you can win yourself a copy! Goodreads is doing an awesome giveaway of Chelsea's newest book and hopefully after reading some info about it, you will run over and sign up for it! You do have to be a Goodreads member (but if you aren't, shame on you, lucky for you, registration is SUPER easy)! Read the info and my review for BKoB and then check out the links at the bottom of the page to register for the Goodreads giveaway! Here we go!
As any of you who have kept up with us here at OneGuysGuideToGoodReads will know, a few weeks ago I gave a really awesome review of Chelsea Fine's Young Adult series, The Archers of Avalon. Check out that review by clicking here! And after reading those books, I am probably one of the biggest Chelsea Fine fans on this planet. I actually read Best Kind of Broken prior to the Archers series, but the blog was not up and running so I couldn't review it yet! Here's some basic info about Best Kind of Broken!
Pixie and Levi haven't
spoken in nearly a year when they find themselves working―and living―at
the same inn in the middle of nowhere. Once upon a time, they were
childhood friends. But that was before everything went to hell. And now
things are... awkward.
All they want to do is avoid each other,
and their past, for as long as possible. But now that they're forced to
share a bathroom, and therefore a shower, keeping their
distance from one another becomes less difficult than keeping their
hands off each other. Welcome to the hallway of awkward tension and
sexual frustration, folks. Get comfy. It’s going to be a long summer.
Also, before we go any farther, watch this video of Mrs. Chelsea announcing Best Kind of Broken to all of her fans. Isn't she awesome?
Okay, down to business. You guys will have to excuse me, I read this over a month ago so I'm trying to go back through it now to refresh my memory about some specifics. There is one thing I can remember about this book without even having to look: This is one of THE BEST New Adult book I have read. No seriously, Stop what you are doing and read that again. I don't say that often, but seriously Mrs. Chelsea, you have given is quite a treat in the form of BKoB! I finished this book and was completely astonished at what I had just read. It wasn't just about the love story. It wasn't about the plot. It was about the complete rawness that this book had. The way it is written is full of emotion and it pulls you in so well. Everything about it screams genuine. There are so many "romance" novels that I have read where the relationship seems completely and ridiculously outrageously unreal. This was definitely not one of those books.
Pixie (female MC) and Levi (male MC) are the coolest couple to read about. By chance, they have both been employed by Pixie's aunt (who owns and operates a Bed and Breakfast) over the summer. They have quite the interesting past so reading about their adventures over this summer while only living a few feet apart is awesome.
Sarah (AKA Pixie) Marshall is a college freshman with a heartaches in her past and is an artist who definitely uses her emotions for inspiration. Levi is just Levi. Only way to describe him. Levi plays... played... plays? Football for the local college team and has faced a few very large obstacles in his family life that are really holding him down. You see, Pixie comes from a broken family and spent most of her childhood "living" with her best friend, who happens to be Levi's little sister. Levi and Pixie were very close throughout their childhood, but after tragedy strikes, their relationship is forever changed. I wont say anything else because it would be a huge plot spoiler, but there is definitely more to the relationship than meets the eye.
The supporting characters are what I think really made this book for me. Ellen, Pixie's aunt and owner of the Willow Inn, is a great addition to the storyline. She acts as a mentor to both Pixie and Levi and gives great advice to the both of them. Matt, Pixie's boyfriend, play a very interesting role in helping Pixie discover herself. A huge host of Inn employees and residents make for several hilarious moments! Jenna, Pixie's college dorm mate and best friend is awesome! And then there's my favorite character: Zack.
Zack doesn't really do anything important, well, yes he does, but it isn't what he DOES that's so awesome, it's his personality. Great with the ladies and full of hilarious anecdotes! Best part, Zack has inherited Marvin. Who is Marvin? Marvin is a goat. Yes, a goat! Zack inherited Marvin from one of his latest female conquests and is babysitting him for the summer. He met the girl at mass. Zack isn't catholic. This is why I loved Zack, cracked me up! The things he would do to get a girl! Marvin pretty much made the book for me, I laughed so hard at the randomness of a goat ever so often. Who doesn't love goats?
But back to a serious note, this book is amazing. I know I always touch a little on the sex scenes in a romance novel and I will just say this about them: they are there, but they are not trashy. Again, like I said, everything in this book seems to be real and genuine, nothing seems forced or unrealistic and I think that's what I liked the most about the whole thing!Another thing I liked about this NA romance is unlike other I have read, Pixie and Levi already know each other. There is already a very strong connection between the characters so there isn't a need for a whole lot of explanation about their feeling for one another. Which doesn't waste any time on our story!
Okay I've said a whole lot more than I intended on saying, but like I said, I REALLY enjoyed this book and plan on reading it again, it will definitely be featured on my "Best Books of 2014...So Far" list that I plan on posting in June! As if I haven't said enough amazing things about Chelsea Fine, I just have to say again: this woman is awesome. I have now read every book she has published and there isn't one that I didn't thoroughly enjoy! I have communicated with Chelsea via Twitter and she is so awesome to her fans, check out her Twitter here!
Alright everyone, the big moment is here. Where can you get YOUR copy of Best Kind of Broken? Well, you can order your own copy from Amazon or B&N by following the links, OR you can win your very own copy in two different giveaways below! First, here is the link to the Goodreads giveaway going on right now:
And just because I REALLY want you guys to check out this amazing book, here is yet ANOTHER chance to win your own copy. Click below to be directed to another review+giveaway being given by my amazing blog mentor Amber over at Grown Up Fangirl! I've said it before, and I'll say it again, you guys have her to thank for this blog, she has been such an inspiration to me! Go read her blog! You won't regret it. Plus check out all of her other amazing giveaways going on right now! Here's the link you need for her giveaway:
(Seriously, I'm not kidding guys, you WANT to read this book. What are you waiting for? Go register now! It's free, free, FREE!!!!)
Alrighty guys, this was kind of a long post, I apologize, but definitely worth the read! Chelsea Fine is one of my favorite authors and I cannot say enough good things about her. One day I WILL meet her! Until then, I'll just continue to rave about her all over the place, no big deal!
Don't go too far readers, I have a HUGE week planned for you guys, including another "Throwback" review of an old favorite of mine, with a huge twist! Be sure to come check us out later this week. Also, be sure to check out the new "About Me" section of the blog at the link above this post! Trying to do a little site maintenance and would love some feedback! Until next time, Happy Easter and Happy Reading!
HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE! Congratulations, you have made it through yet another
long week and the weekend is upon us. Before you jet off for the weekend, I have another VERY special edition of OneGuysGuideToGoodReads
to share with ya'll. I know you guys are just as excited as I am so
here we go: it's Football Friday!! As you guys have undoubtedly heard, I
am an avid fan of Cora Carmack and a member of her Street Team,
promoting her newest Rusk University series, starting with All Lined Up, coming at ya on May 13! Just in case you have been living under a rock, I have all the information about All Lined Up available on the sidebar of my blog! Look over here>>>>>
In case you guys aren't good with math, that's only 4 weeks away! ONLY FOUR WEEKS! Cora and our amazing crew have decided to reward you, the
readers, with a
special treat each Friday. I welcome you to our third Football
Friday! Each Friday until release day I, along with my fellow
Street Teamers and Cora herself, will be giving you guys an insight to
six of the books main characters! Week one, I rewarded everyone with an
insight to our male protagonist, Carson McClain! If you missed that week's Football Friday, check it out here: http://oneguysguidetogoodreads.blogspot.com/2014/04/football-friday-week-one-meet-carson.html. Week two we were introduced to Miss Dallas Cole, female protagonist of our story, you can see last week's post here: http://oneguysguidetogoodreads.blogspot.com/2014/04/football-friday-week-two-meet-dallas.html
Without farther delay, I present to you week three of Rusk University Football Friday!
Week one introduced us to Carson, the star quarterback for the Rusk University Wildcats, week two gave us insight to Dallas, the Coach's daughter. This week, get ready to meet Stells Santos, best friend to Dallas Cole!
Let me just go ahead and paint you a picture of Stella (a la Cora), this is who we are working with:
Outgoing; 5 foot tall pixie; a foot shorter than Dallas; Exotic eyes;
Short dark hair; Perfectly sculpted eyebrows; Olive skin; Pixie haircut;
Unreadable; Asian ethnicity; Art major
Heck of a description right? Stella has made quite the splash amongst the Street Team, primarily because she is one of the funnest characters in the book. The only way I can describe Stella is as the devil on your shoulder. Not in a bad way, but if Dallas is always in control and responsible (mature), Stella is the exact opposite! Stella is the definition of impulsive, which paints quite a funny picture at times. Stella and Dallas share a system, a simple "stamp of approval" system that the two use to rate the actions of each other. Here's a blurb from chapter one of All Lined Up (if you missed the first three chapter excerpt, check out my archive): Alternately, there is the Stella Santos Suck-It-Up-You-Prude Stamp of Approval. That stamp has gotten me [Dallas] into more trouble than I care to list, including Stella's brilliant idea to wrap a house in toilet paper and stick maxi pads to the glass front door. What her plan didn't include was the knowledge that said house belonged to a policeman, who was not keen on being an advertisement for Kotex.
As you can see, Stella is a mess! But for all Stella does that seems a little crazy, she actually ends up delivering a few of my favorite lines in the book. I can't tell you what they are for spoiler reasons, but be on the look out for an entire post devoted to All Lined Up quotes after the book has been released. Trust me, you guys will all fall in love with Stella! She is a spitfire with a story all her own. She takes the term "sidekick" and takes it to the next level. Trust me, Stella is a force to be reckoned with!
Now that we know a little about Stella, take a second to check out these AMAZING graphics made by my fellow Street Team members! They really hit these out of the park!
Alright
guys, that's all I'VE got for you on the topic of Stella Santos, but
wait,
THERE'S MORE!! Several of the other amazing Street Team members that I
have the great fortune of working with are giving you THEIR take on Stella Santos ! Wanna learn more? Check out any of their blogs below!
Before you leave, how about another awesome giveaway from Cora? Up for grabs this week are a SIGNED ARC of All Lined Up AND some ALU Swag! Can't say I wouldn't mind that prize myself!
Hope you have all enjoyed this weeks edition of #FootballFriday! This has been a crazy week at OneGuysGuideToGoodReads, but I have some great stuff lined up for the coming weeks so be on the lookout! Until next time, Happy Reading!
Hello faithful readers! Long time no see! It has been a VERY hectic week for me here and I have not had any time to give you guys some new material, but don't fret, I have still be attached to my Nook ever chance I have had! I have a real special review for you guys today. Get ready, it's a great one!
When I first entered this new world of New Adult literature (thanks to Cora), I was astonished at the number of authors that had already committed to this genre and have worked diligently to get it up and running. Though many authors in this genre are loved and have made a name for themselves, one woman kept coming up EVERYWHERE I turned. That woman? Colleen Hoover. Colleen Hoover, quite possibly the biggest name in New Adult literature right now, and I hadn't even read one of her books. I was talking to my friend, and fellow Street Team member, Amber (from http://www.grownupfangirl.com/) who told me I HAD to read some Colleen Hoover! After looking at my schedule for the coming months, I realized that Mrs. Hoover was going to be present at a couple of the events I will be attending so I figured checking out some of her work was probably a good idea. I had to know what the fuss was about! After getting online and doing some major research into Colleen Hoover and her works, I decided to start at the beginning and read her first series: Slammed. I am fully aware that this is not a new series and that I am probably the very last person to just onto the Colleen Hoover train, but I really wanted to share my thoughts on the work of this extremely influential author! I'll get into series specifics here in a minute, but first, for all of you who may not know much about out author, allow me to introduce you to Mrs. Colleen Hoover!
I love music. LOVE music.
Namely The Avett Brothers, Lumineers, Pink, Eminem. I have eclectic
taste? If you have any recommendations, send them my way!
I'm
addicted to diet pepsi and could tell you in a taste-test which
restaurant it came from. It's a serious addiction, I tell you.
I get stoked whenever I get a message from goodreads saying I have a new friend request...so request me, dangit!
If you want to know when I have new books out or just want to be inundated by random, pointless blog posts, follow me at www.colleenhoover.com. Avoid my Twitter at all cost. It's propaganda.
Mrs. Hoover is the New York Times bestselling author of multiple books now! She actually has an entire second series out now that I will be putting on my "TBR" pile for this summer! You can learn more about Colleen Hoover from these links here:
Okay, Now on to the good stuff. I'll give you the synopses of all three books in the Slammed series, then scroll on down to see my overall review of the series!
Book 1
Following the
unexpected death of her father, 18-year-old Layken is forced to be the
rock for both her mother and younger brother. Outwardly, she appears
resilient and tenacious, but inwardly, she's losing hope.
Enter
Will Cooper: The attractive, 21-year-old new neighbor with an intriguing
passion for slam poetry and a unique sense of humor. Within days of
their introduction, Will and Layken form an intense emotional
connection, leaving Layken with a renewed sense of hope.
Not long
after an intense, heart-stopping first date, they are slammed to the
core when a shocking revelation forces their new relationship to a
sudden halt. Daily interactions become impossibly painful as they
struggle to find a balance between the feelings that pull them together,
and the secret that keeps them apart.
Book 2
Hardships and heartache brought them together…now it will tear them apart.
Layken
and Will have proved their love can get them through anything; until
someone from Will’s past re-emerges, leaving Layken questioning the very
foundation on which their relationship was built. Will is forced to
face the ultimate challenge…how to prove his love for a girl who refuses
to stop ‘carving pumpkins.
Book 3
Layken and Will’s love
has managed to withstand the toughest of circumstances and the young
lovers, now married, are beginning to feel safe and secure in their
union. As much as Layken relishes their new life together, she finds
herself wanting to know everything there is to know about her husband,
even though Will makes it clear he prefers to keep the painful memories
of the past where they belong. Still, he can’t resist his wife’s pleas
and so he begins to untangle his side of the story, revealing for the
first time his most intimate feelings and thoughts, retelling both the
good and bad moments, and sharing a few shocking confessions of his own
from the time when they first met.
In This Girl, Will tells the story of their complicated relationship from his point of view. Their future rests on how well they deal with the past in this final installment of the beloved Slammedseries.
Now that everyone is familiar with the books, I'm going to do like I did for my Archers of Avalon post and talk about the series as a whole. I will be completely honest here when I say I almost did not finish the very first book in this series. Allow me to explain. I am a guy, a guy who occasionally likes to read young adult romance novels (when I can't find a good fantasy/paranormal series), but a guy nonetheless. I am also very much a realist. I was barely 30 pages into Slammed before I almost stopped reading. Layken and Will have a very.... special relationship. Special in the fact that they fall madly in love with one another after knowing each other for 3 days. Yes. You read that correctly. I am totally a believer in love coming swiftly, but I mean hardcore LOVE, love after one date. I immediate was turned off by the fact that I thought I was going to have to read three whole books about some gushy perfect couple and their erotic adventures. I was dead wrong.
I set aside Slammed for a few days, a week actually, and read a few other books. I finally decided to come back to Slammed and I am so glad I did. I quickly learned a few very important things that I was initially very wrong about: their love is not easy, this is not a gushy love story, and there is very little erotic adventure. While that may seem like a bad thing to some people, I love that Colleen was able to give us a great story about young people growing up and assuming the responsibilities of an adult without feeling the need to fill the books series with sex on every other page. In fact, no sex even occurs until the very last line of the second book, and even then, we are just told it happens, no details. Pretty amazing for an author to gain wide acclaim for a series in this genre without having to write detailed sex scenes. For that, I have great respect for Colleen Hoover.
Another thing I really liked about this series was the use of poetry. I am not a fan of poetry, and I had never heard of Slam poetry before this book series, but I was intrigued and have even looked up YouTube videos of it now and think it is very interesting. Mrs. Hoover clearly did her research on this topic. She was able to deliver a huge blow in the emotions department with each slam performed. It was a great way to keep the story going.
The great thing about this series is that it follows the lives of two people who are initially in two very different places in their lives. One, Will, is a college senior (like myself) who is struggling to get settled in life while having to raise his younger brother after the death of his parents and the other (Layken) is a high school senior with her entire life ahead of her. By coincidence, (or fate) the two are joined together and quickly realize their lives may have much more in common that anyone could have thought. I don't want to spoil the series for anyone who hasn't read it, but trust me, it gets good! Sad, but good. I love a book that can present emotions without it feeling forced. I was able to laugh, sigh, and be frustrated alongside Colleen's characters while reading, which made this all the more interesting a series to read.
As per the characters, I found them all to be really interesting. Our main characters Will Cooper and Layken Cohen are joined by Julia and Kel Cohen (Layken's mother and younger brother), Caulder Cooper (Will's younger brother), Gavin and Eddie (Will and Layken's best friends who happen to also be a couple) and are later joined in book two by Kiersten (the next door neighbor girl who is probably my favorite character) and Sherry (Kiersten's eccentric mother). For a three book series we have a relatively small cast of characters which is good in the sense that it gives us more insight to out main characters, but that is also the downfall, we see a whole lot of out main two characters. Every character plays a pretty equally important part in the series so anyone who reads the series will quickly become attached to them all!
The is one book series that I can say is different from others in the sense that I think the second book was actually my favorite. I don't know what specifically I liked the most about it, but I feel like the best parts of the story are in book 2. We see a whole lot of character development from Layken and get introduced to a few really interesting characters. Plus we learn a whole lot more about Will's past which almost ruins what he has with Layken!
The one negative thing I have to say about this series is this: I could have completely done without a third book. Don't get me wrong, I read book 3 and I enjoyed it, but nowhere near as much as I enjoyed the previous two. There are a few reasons for this. Primarily, book 3 is a retelling of book 1 from Will's perspective. If you had JUST finished reading book 1, you are going to be very bored with book 3. I'm all for a retelling, but I found myself skipping pages in this one. Also, book 3 has much more adult content than the other books. This is because the entire book 3 (sans epilogue) takes place over the course of Will and Layken's 48 hour honeymoon (spoiler alert). Again, I really don't feel like book 3 added anything new to the story except that now Layken and Will have an active sex life. Meh. While it was my least favorite in the series, I do understand why it was written. It gave Will a much needed push from previous books which were very Layken-heavy. I feel bad saying anything negative about the series, because I really did like it, but I had to point this out!
Overall this was a pretty good book series and I am glad to have got a chance to read some works by the great Colleen Hoover before I get my chance to meet her in the coming months. I hope you guys check out her Slammed series! Here are some links to where you can find out more information about the series and get your own copies!
I just want to take a second to once again thank all my readers, you guys have kept me going for sure! It's only been 2 weeks, but the amazing response I have received from all of you has really made a guy feel special! I think after this series I am going to take a break from NA Romance for a little while and try to find something that is a little more in my niche! I have a few aces up my sleeves from some ARCs I got this week so maybe I'll have something fun for you later this week! For the time being, Happy Reading to you all!
Good Morning and Happy Monday to everyone out there in the blogger world! Hope you all had a great weekend and are ready for another awesome week! I know it's going to be a great one here at OneGuysGuideToGoodReads, because I have a few awesome things planned for my readers! First up is a real special treat, my very first cover reveal!
Que the dramatic theme....... drum roll...... Today I am here to official reveal to you guys the cover to Jules Barnard's second novel in her Blue series, Blue Crush! I can't say that I have had the time to check out Barnard's series yet, but when I get a chance, I will be checking it out! It's a little outside my "norm", but I am honored to be hosting the reveal this morning. Here's a blurb about the book from Mrs. Barnard herself:
Blue Crush will be released on June 3, 2014!
************************
Blue Crush (Blue Series, Book #2)
On
the cusp of a humiliating breakup from the safe, conservative boyfriend, who
ended up betraying her, Genevieve Tierney moves to Lake Tahoe with her best
friend after college to lick her romantic wounds. Earning cash before graduate
school at one of Lake Tahoe’s lucrative casinos and keeping a safe distance
from cheating jerks seems like a good plan, until she meets the one guy
tempting enough to drag her back down.
Lewis
Sallee is six and a half feet of perfectly sculpted mountain man, who captures
Gen’s attention from the moment he walks in the door. Her play-it-safe approach
to relationships flies out the window as Lewis’s presence awakens a sex drive
she never knew she had. Lewis is in a complicated relationship with one of the
most beautiful women Gen has ever seen, and despite all logical reasons to stay
away—and she’s a logic devotee—Gen can’t seem to control her body’s attraction
to him.
Feeling
like a magnet for the worst sort of guys, Gen’s desperate to win the battle for
self-control around Lewis and put the sleazy casino men pestering her in their
place. To boost her confidence, Gen steps out of her comfort zone and signs up
for the Alpine Mudder, a gritty endurance race. But as she prepares for one of
the biggest physical challenges of her life, her emotional strength is pushed
to its limits when she needs Lewis’s help to train. He tests her willpower and
has her fighting her body’s attraction—with her mind and heart not far behind.
************************
And here's the part you've been waiting for! The cover to Blue Crush!!
For anyone who may be new to Jules Barnard, such as myself, here is a little bit about the author:
About Author Jules Barnard!
Jules Barnard is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. She attended UC Davis, whose college landscape often finds its way into her New Adult novels. She has a Master’s degree and spent many an hour running statistical analysis, until she realized her favorite part of the job was writing reports. She decided to cut out the math and add in some hot guys, and so began her career as a novelist. Jules is a Northern California native living on the coast with her husband and two children. She has no impulse control around cupcakes and credits herself with the ability to read while running on the treadmill or burning dinner.
Jules Barnard, New Adult Fiction Deep Blue - Available on Amazon, Barnes&Noble, Kobo, and iTunes Blue Crush, Releases 06/03/14
Hope you have all enjoyed this first cover reveal at OneGuysGuideToGoodReads! I hope it is the first of many! I'd like to thank Mrs. Jules Barnard for letting me be a part of this awesome day! Everyone get your copy soon! Only a few short weeks away! Until next time everyone, Happy Reading!
