Leave Me: Gayle Forman

Like almost every other Gayle Forman book I have read, this one was emotional yet incredibly moving. I came close to crying a few times.

I think I fell in love with this book because the main character was so relatable. I'm pretty sure everyone has had the fantasy of just driving away from their life one day. Well, this main character does. 

After a heart attack, Maribeth ends up leaving her kids and her husband and just.....leaves. She gets sick of cooking, of all the cleaning, of not being able to heal from a serious injury. Maribeth learns about her life while not living in it. Maribeth gets an outside perspective, she gains a friend to lean on, and she realizes what family is all about.

What amazes me in this book is Maribeth's dedication. The whole time she is gone (well, the next town over) she doesn't even talk to her husband. And she admits that it kills her not to know what is going on.

This book was so well written, it was easy to read, but it didn't hook me right from the beginning. It did take a while for the story to pick up, although once it did, I fell in love with the characters. It was hard to read at some points, because it was so honest. By the time she finally admits that she can't do it anymore, and calls her husband, I was practically crying like a baby.

Divine Ecstasy: Setta Jay

Okay, so I'm gonna be completely honest in this review.

As is obvious from the description of each of the books in this series, they are pretty much smut book. And I will totally own up to the fact that that was the only reason I started reading them.

That being said, I'm going to let you all in on a little secret. This series (if you look past all the sex) has an amazing plot. Like, seriously guys.

It starts out with this immortal race, and an elite group of them created to defend humanity against the Gods of old gone fucking crazy. They are charged with keeping the peace, making sure demons and whatnot stay in their proper place. But what happens when one of their race, a non-human, a son of a God goes crazy? Well, he wakes up an evil God, performs crazy experiments, and just generally causes destruction.

In order to continue the peace, the guardians must wake up Hades (one of three good Gods) and ask for his help. But then, he falls in love with one of the female Guardians.

That is what takes place in Divine Ecstasy. Hades falls in love and finds his mate, Sacha. They embark on their new life, with each other. In the meantime, a newly introduced alternate universe type thing comes into existence and guess what? They are also immortal warriors (yeah, I know it's a bit convoluted, just go with it) that want to take the Gods.

And now I'm kinda obsessed with figuring out what is going to happen. In this book there were a lot of answers to questions from previous books that went unanswered.

Hades and Sacha were both characters that I could get behind, I was rooting for them. They make such a great couple, and they take care of each other. I loved seeing Sacha's power grow, and merge with Hades' all-powerful ones.

At this point, most of the Guardians are mated, I think there are only two (three?) left, and I can't wait for it to happen.

It Took A Rumor: Carter Ashby

I'm sincerely surprised at how much I liked this book. I thought that it was well written, with likable characters, and an interesting plot. I haven't really read a book with this premise before, and I found I really enjoyed it.

Ivy was a fun person to read about. She and the Deathridge brothers live right next to each other in a small town, and when a rumor comes out about her sleeping with one of the brothers, she does what she has to in the end to clear her name, but she brings down each of the brothers in the process.

Each of the brothers is keeping a secret, and somehow, they each end up confiding in Ivy. However, each of these secrets she keeps means she can't set the story straight, to do so would mean betraying the brothers.

And man oh man, those brothers. All of them farmers, ripped, tanned, and glorious.

In this small farming community, rumors are spread with no shame. In fact, I do believe there was a website about it in the book that everyone in town reads. 

This book was a touch dramatic, but over all well done. I can't put too much more down without giving something away, so I will leave it for you all to read!

After We Fall: Marquita Valentine

This was a great addition to the series. Now, I thought it was kinda different, mainly because these weren't main characters with loose ends from the other books. They were side characters, who got their own story.

Hunter is a cop, a good one. He is nice and sweet and cares about Evangeline. He takes his time, gets to know her, and always makes sure that Evangeline feels comfortable. 

Evangeline was a phenomenally written character. She also takes her time, gets to know Hunter. I like that this isn't a book where even though the woman was abused, she still falls for the hero in two weeks. 

I also really liked the fact that there were so many animals in this book (cute dogs all over the place, and cats!). 

Evangeline works at a shelter, and slowly gets her life back in order. She regains her confidence, and owns her life.

Overall, it was a good book. I thought that it was well written, sappy and cute (predictable, yes, but still worth reading).

Here it is on Goodreads!

Catching Summer: L. P. Dover

I started this book without having read any of the rest of the series. I realized about halfway through that it actually was in a series, but that they could each be read as standalones.

I found this to be true. There were some characters and maybe some of the plot that would have been better understood if I had read the previous books, but I was able to follow along without problem.

I liked the whole of this book. I liked the characters, even though some of it was over the top dramatic, it was still well written. The heartache that Summer went through and is still experiencing during the book were awful, and sad (yes, somewhat unbelievable) but still made me feel for her.



Despite how much I liked it, it was still a bit blah, although, that may be because of all the recent books I've read. They have all been too much for me to handle, and this one seemed a bit dim in comparison. (Yes, I know I'm way, way behind on finally posting this review.)

I will most likely be going back to read the rest of the series now. I was really interested in quite a few of the characters, and am excited to read the next ones as well.

Here it is on Goodreads!

Dirty: Kylie Scott

As someone who has been a very, very big Kylie Scott fan (namely her Stage Dive series), I had high expectations for this book. And, while this was a decent book, it was no Stage Dive book. I loved the characters in Dirty, but it just wasn't what I hoped it was going to be.

Vaughan and Lydia had a rather rough start, but they were quite comical. I enjoyed watching them banter and get to know each other during the book. The side characters were also great. Vaughan's friends and family were all very likable, and lovable.

I just felt like this book was missing something. Some spark to keep me interested, some hook in the plot, there wasn't as much humor as her previous books. I just didn't feel it.

Despite the fact that I felt it wasn't her best book, it was still good. I will absolutely be reading the rest of the series, but I hope she changes things up a bit.

Here it is on Goodreads!

This One Moment: Stina Lindenblatt

**Copy provided by author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**

Well, I wasn't super impressed with this one. There wasn't anything super wrong with it...it was just a bit boring.

It was well-written, and cute, but just too much like all the others out there. There wasn't anything that made it stand out in my mind.

Now that's not to say I didn't enjoy it. I liked some of the twists that this book took. Nolan and Hailey both go through a long and painful healing process. And, for most of the book, they help each other, are there for each other, that type of thing.

Nolan's story had me connecting with him much easier than Hailey. I'm not sure why, but I felt like his was more real I guess (not to mention unbelievably heartbreaking). Either way, I liked him much more than the rest of the characters in the book.

But there was a lot of no communicating between two people who were wholly in love with each other.

Overall it was a good book, and it was quick to read, so I will continue on with the series. The side characters in here were good, and I hope they get their own stories.