Happy Friday!

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you all had a fantastic week, and found some great new reads!

I'm still in my book rut and I can't really get into any new books at the moment, so I've been going back to old favourites, namely books by Teresa Medeiros, and rediscovered some fantastic gems. Honestly, if you haven't read her books yet, you NEED too. She was one of the first romance authors I discovered, and her books made me believe in love. If you need something that inspires you, and leaves you in nothing but happiness, honestly, pick up her books.

But, to what you've seen this week! I read an excerpt from Helena Hunting's Meet Cute back in December, and had to read the full book based on that, and came out with very mixed emotions. While I absolutely loved the book, I'll confess that tears were shed as the plot of this story had some tragic undertones that did bring down the mood. While an honestly fantastic, well-written read, I just know that I did struggle with those themes. There's also Sabrina Jeffries first in her School for Heiresses series, Never Seduce A Scoundrel, which was a great historical read. Click on the book covers below to be taken to the reviews.

                           

As mentioned early in the week, unfortunately I did flare up on old writing injury in my left hand, causing some amount of pain when typing so posts have been a little bit shorter from me this week, but hopefully with time to rest, it should be back to normal soon. On the other hand though (ha), I have spent some great time reading, which was greatly appreciated.

As we're coming up to the weekend and I think we all need some cheering up, all printables in the store are now on sale for 50% off, including the reading tracker! Pick up yours by clicking the picture below.

                           
I hope you all have a fantastic weekend, and looking forward to hearing what you're reading!

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Never Seduce A Scoundrel (School for Heiresses Book 1) by Sabrina Jeffries

Lady Amelia Plume has many admirers - it's too bad they're all fortune hunters and fops who can't provide the exotic adventures she seeks. But the ballrooms of Mayfair have become much more appealing since the arrival of Major Lucas Winter, an American with a dark past and dangerous air.

Lucas is brash, arrogant and scandalously tempting. Every thrilling kiss sparks hotter desire, yet Amelie suspects that Lucas has a hidden motive in wooing her. And she intends to discover it, by any means necessary...

Ms. Jeffries is well-known in the world of romance, but I confess to having never read one of her novels before, but I decided to finally delve in, and was happily surprised.

Unlike most contemporary romance fiction, most historical romance fiction still adheres to third-person writing, something this reader greatly appreciates. Added into that, a great plot, along with a believable build between our hero and heroine, makes this a fantastic first novel of her series, School for Heiresses.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel as it has the simple characteristics of a romance novel that make it so great: a strong hero and heroine that have fleshed out characteristics that make us fall in love, a great romance, a build, and adventure - something that sometimes contemporary romance novels forget. I don't always enjoy historical romance novels, but Ms. Jeffries really hits the nail with this novel, providing strong characters who you do root for. Overall, a great first start to the series!

Rating: 4/5

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

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(ARC) Meet Cute - Helena Hunting

Kailyn Flowers was always calm, rational, and controlled-until she ended up sprawled all over Daxton Hughes, the former actor she totally crushed on as a teenager. Then she did the unthinkable: She became a mortifying fangirl in five seconds flat, which may or may not have included professing her undying love. And oddly, he didn’t run away. In fact, their meet cute led to a friendship she never saw coming. Of course, she never saw his betrayal coming, either…

Now Dax needs her help. As guardian to his thirteen-year-old sister, he’s in way over his head. And though Kailyn hasn’t forgiven Dax, she isn’t heartless enough to make him fend for himself, either. Soon their friendly meetings turn into flirty dinner dates, and Kailyn can feel their chemistry is as explosive as ever. But how can she possibly let down her guard again to a guy who has heartbreak written all over him?

While this book has already been published, I was fortunate enough to receive an extended free preview, and I can definitely say I'll be purchasing the full version. Having never read anything by Ms. Hunting, I was drawn in by a great blurb and front cover, and was instantly hooked.

While the story should always be the main feature of any novel, there are also factors that affect your enjoyment of the book, with one of the biggest being formatting. Formatting can make or break a novel, affecting the flow and reader's enjoyment. The formatting of this ebook was smooth and a fantastic flow, causing me to read all of it in one sitting. As soon as I was finished the book, I searched for it on scribd to continue, and while unfortunately not available, I will be searching for it nearby.

To the story itself, I instantly was drawn to both the hero and heroine, both written in an engaging and human way. Without giving too much away, I was slightly discouraged by the continued meet-cute with death bringing our leads together, which seems to be quite common across the romance theme, and something not entirely necessary to bring our leads together. However, for the sake of this plot line, it was needed. 

In the short 40 page preview I was given, there was comedy, romance, and drama and I simply can't wait to read more. 

Rating: 4/5

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

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Happy Monday!

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you all had a fantastic weekend and read some great books.

We're almost officially in August! I'm turning 30 this month (8th August), so this is a bit of a milestone birthday for me. Not quite the one that I'd imagined, but, I think that's the same for a lot of people at the moment. I'll also confess that I've restarted an old hand injury, so typing this week for me will be slow, so expect posts to potentially unfortunately be a little less this week!

I'm still stuck in a bit of a book rut at the moment and I really can't get into a new book. I've turned to one of my all-time favourite authors, Teresa Medeiros, and having a re-read of Nobody's Darling. Does anyone have any recommendations of great books they've been reading lately?

Having said that, I am reading some new books that are coming out next month (one of them below), and those reviews should be with you this week (if not next, depending on how fast I finish Nobody's Darling!).

As if it wasn’t bad enough to be deemed the “most single person” at her magazine’s office, budding reporter Penny has now been tapped to write a series of features called “The Dating Game.” From speed dating to Tinder, old-fashioned matchmakers to up-and-coming “dark dating,” Penny now has to go on a lot of dates. Silver lining: meeting new people should be fun, right? But running into her old rival, George, at her first dating event is decidedly not. Not only does the arrogant know-it-all have zero trouble attracting women, wherever Penny goes, somehow he just. Keeps. Showing. Up.

What are you reading this week?

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Saturday Night Film Night

Who doesn't need a night of just pure happiness? For me, books and films are about escaping into a happy reality. When I'm in the right mood, I do love historical and action films, but a lot of the time recently, I just need something to just make me happy, and that's why this week, I'm watching the Princess Diaries.

Mia Thermopolis has just found out that she is the heir apparent to the throne of Genovia. With her friends Lilly and Michael Moscovitz in tow, she tries to navigate through the rest of her sixteenth year.






I still remember the day that my friend showed me the Princess Diaries series, somewhere at the tender age of 11. I immediately fell in love and continued eagerly reading and awaiting the rest of the series, and reading the rest of Ms. Cabot's works. So you can imagine my joy when this was turned into a film! And then another one came out!

The film doesn't follow the books, something which is actually hilariously addressed in the books by Ms. Cabot, but that doesn't make it any less perfect. Also, you have Chris Pine and Julie Andrews. So, I don't see how they can be anything less than perfect! I have read that there will also be a third film releasing at some point, I'm not sure the full accuracy to this (I've been awaiting the announcement of National Treasure 3 for over 8 years now...), but I'm crossing my fingers!

Honestly, the book series itself is my favourite book series of all time (no exaggeration), and the films are just the perfect cherry on top!

What are you watching this weekend?

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Happy Friday!

We've made it to another Friday! We're officially over halfway done the year now, I don't know how on earth that's happened.

I started out the week letting you know that I was lucky enough to receive an advanced review copy of best-selling romance author Avery Flynn's newest upcoming novel, The Wedding Date Disaster, along with finally finishing designing a book review tracker! The book review tracker has been in the works for some times, as while I do love computers, there's nothing like having it physically in front of you.

If you haven't checked out my reviews this week, click on the picture below to be taken to them:

                          

The Author Spotlight this week was on Teresa Medeiros, one of my all-time favourite best-selling romance authors. If you haven't checked it out yet, click here to find out my favourite books from her, and some great new historical romance reads!

Next week I'm continuing to delve back into my old and loved favourites. I'm still finding it hard to actually get into a new series/author/book at the moment - does anyone have any recommendations?

Happy Friday!

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Boy Meets Girl by Meg Cabot

Meet Kate MacKenzie…idealistic office worker, reluctant deliverer of termination notices and queen of instant messaging. As sweet as sugar. Meet Mitch Hertzog…ever-smiling corporate lawyer, defender of the downtrodden and king of aborted dinner dates. Good enough to eat.

Meet Ida Lopez…cake, cookie and pastry-maker extraordinaire, purveyor of the dessert trolley and goddess of all things mouth-wateringly yummy. As nice as pie.

Together they must battle tyrants and despots to find truth, justice and the perfect double fudge pudding.

I've been a big fan of Ms. Cabot's work since I picked up the Princess Diaries, but for me, this is the book that truly launched her adult romantic fiction works. I have literally never laughed this hard at a book, and will admit that I have re-read this novel a few times, due to the sheer hilarity.

Written in one of the most unique formats I've ever seen, this novel is written entirely through emails from each of the characters, a few diary entries, and notes scribbled to each other, but is one of the most comprehensive novels I've read, and you can truly see our hero and heroine falling in love. If nothing else, read this book simply because of it's writing format!

There just truly aren't enough good things to say about this book. From it's unique writing style, I can say that these characters are truly unlike anything I've ever read and the romance is 100% believable and organic. All of the characters have unique characteristics and truly fleshed out, and a pleasure to read.

Overall, hands down, one of the best books I've ever read, and certainly a favourite.

Rating: 5/5

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

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Author Spotlight: Teresa Medeiros

Welcome to another Author Spotlight! This week I'm going back to one of my first romance authors and one who I will keep going back to over and over, Teresa Medeiros.

I can honestly say that I've read her books over and over. Despite knowing the ending, there's just something so romantic, spell-binding and uplifting about her books that just keep me coming back. While mainly writing historical romance, she did delve into some contemporary modern romance that I'll confess (and it broke my heart) that couldn't keep my interest, but her older novels are just simply magical. 

It's impossible for me to choose my favourite novel by her, so instead, you get three (and I'll admit, I agonized over these three as her novels are just phenomenal *chef's kiss*)!

A Whisper Of Roses

Can a spirited beauty tame a Highland beast?

Born into both affluence and adoration, Sabrina Cameron, the "princess" of Clan Cameron has never met a soul she couldn't charm—until she comes face to face with Morgan MacDonnell, the son of her father's lifelong enemy.

As adults, they are thrown together to end the bloody feud between their families. Morgan spirits the delicate rose of a girl away to his rugged castle, never suspecting that his own surrender will be the sweetest victory of all.

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

Yours Until Dawn

Gabriel Fairchild's valor during the Battle of Trafalgar earns him the title of hero, but costs him his hope for the future. Abandoned by the fiancée he adored, the man who once walked like a prince among London's elite secludes himself in his family's mansion, cursing his way through dark days and darker nights.

Prim nurse Samantha Wickersham arrives at Fairchild Park to find her new charge behaving more like a beast than a man. After their first fiery confrontation, she engages the arrogant earl in a hilarious battle of both wit and wills. Although he pronounces her a "tart, vinegary creature without an ounce of womanly softness about her", he is secretly intrigued by her dry sense of humor, her lack of pity, and the bold way she brooks no nonsense from him. Whenever she is near, he feels the stirrings of a desire he never thought he would feel again.

As Samantha begins to let the light back into Gabriel's life and his heart, they both discover that some pleasures are best explored in the dark.

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

A Kiss To Remember

A daring Regency miss finds her own "Sleeping Beauty" and awakens him with a kiss...

If she is to keep a roof over her siblings' heads, rector's daughter Laura Fairleigh needs a husband. When she finds a mysterious stranger sleeping in the forest with no memory of his name or his past, she decides to claim him for her own.

Little does she know that her fallen angel is really Sterling Harlow, the notorious rakehell also known as the "Devil of Devonbrooke". Too late, Laura realizes she has given him the right to claim not only her home, but her body and her heart. Now she must win the devil's heart to save both their souls.

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

What are your favourite novels from Ms. Medeiros?

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