The Paper Swan - Blog Tour & Review

 
Synopsis

They say it takes 21 days to form a habit.
They lie.
For 21 days she held on.
But on Day 22, she would have given anything for the sweet slumber of death.
Because on Day 22, she realizes that her only way out means certain death for one of the two men she loves.

A haunting tale of passion, loss, and redemption, The Paper Swan is a darkly intense yet heartwarming love story, textured with grit, intrigue, and suspense. Please note: This is NOT a love triangle.

A full-length, standalone novel, intended for mature audiences due to violence, sex and language. Subject matter may be disturbing for some readers.

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25797013-the-paper-swan?ac=1

Cover Designed by Hang Le https://www.facebook.com/designsbyhangle?fref=ts

 
Excerpt

I was still peering out of the stateroom window when Damian came in. He stopped in his tracks when he saw me. For one full, glorious second, he wasn’t in control. His gaze swept the length of my legs, over the hip-hugging shorts, and lingered on the swell of my breasts under the scandalous top. Ha! He wasn’t immune after all. He caught the smug look on my face before I could wipe it off, and his eyes narrowed.

Shit.

I took one step back for each one he took forward, until I was jammed up between him and the wall. God, he was intense. And deliberate. And he could say things with his eyes that made my knees tremble. One side of his face was bruised and distorted from where I’d hit him. He grasped both my wrists in one hand and pinned them above me. Every part of me felt flush with the heat emanating from his body, even though that was the only point of contact. He hooked a finger in the ‘V’ of my blouse, tracing the dangerously low cleavage. His touch was so soft, it was barely discernible.

“Skye?” He seemed hypnotized by the rapid rise and fall of my chest.

I swallowed.

“Don’t play with scorpions unless you intend to get stung.” He yanked the neckline apart.

Round, glass buttons popped onto the floor and rolled around like eyeballs, astounded by the sight of my bare flesh.

“We’re harsh and predatory and full of venom.” He gnashed his teeth at me and ripped my blouse in two.

He tore off a strip and bound my wrists. Then he used the hanging trail like a leash and led me to bed. “You’ve been trying to get a rise out of me for days. Now that you have my attention, what are you going to do?” He leaned forward, so close that I fell back onto the mattress, trying to get away from him.

“Or is it that you want me to do all the work so your pampered pussy gets a taste of the other side, but you can tell yourself you didn’t have a choice?” He crawled up over me, slowly, until we were nose to nose.

I felt like hell was about to consume me. I could hear the men outside, gearing up to fill the tanks. Would they hear the sound of my screams?

“Would you like me to invite them in?” Damian secured my wrists to the bed post. “Do you really think you’d be safer with them instead of me?” He tore off another strip, giving me the chance to scream or yell or shout for help. When I didn’t, he tied it around my mouth.

He sank back on his heels, kneeling between my legs, and ran a finger from my neck to the front clasp of my bra. I stopped breathing. He moved on, trailing over my stomach, until he got to the band of my shorts. He toyed with the tab, enjoying the start-stop effect it had on my heart.

“Such a frightened little bird,” he said. Then he yanked my legs around his hips so I was flush with his rock hard arousal. “You should know better than to provoke me.”
 

MY REVIEW:  
After being stuck in a reading slump for a little while, Leylah Attar comes back with another book that I just completely devour. I loved everything about 53 Letters to my Lover and couldn't wait for The Paper Swan and surely it did not disappoint.

The Paper Swan was unique, it was dark, it was intense, it was heartbreaking and it was beautifully perfect. The story will draw you in and take you on a ride from the very first page. This book is full of secrets, lies, revenge and redemption.

Leylah Attar is by far one of my new favorite authors and she just solidified that with her second book. You do not want to miss her books!
 
The Paper Swan Spotify Playlist
http://open.spotify.com/user/leylah.a/playlist/4vPPVlbd49DNnTNr6d04zx

The Paper Swan Trailer 
https://youtu.be/KLg9l_VbcaU

Author Bio and Links

Leylah Attar writes stories about love - shaken, stirred and served with a twist. When she's not writing, she can be found pursuing her other passions: photography, food, family and travel. Sometimes she disappears into the black hole of the internet, but can usually be enticed out with chocolate.


The Paper Swan Book Links

Amazon ➜ http://amzn.to/1erRcxW

Barnes & Noble ➜ http://bit.ly/1LErAem

Kobo ➜ http://bit.ly/1MJrnFg

iBooks ➜ http://apple.co/1gPjxjn

 
Direct Link: https://gleam.io/GugXt/leylah-attars-the-paper-swan-release-week-giveaway

Insider - Blog Tour

Title: Insider (Exodus End #1)

Author: Olivia Cunning

Release Date: June 30, 2015

Find on Goodreads

Toni wants to be an insider.

Logan just wants inside her.

 

She’s finally ready to rock...

Toni Nichols set aside her dreams to raise her little sister, but now she's reaching for the stars as the creator of a revolutionary interactive biography about Exodus End. She’s on tour with the rock band to immerse herself in their world, but how will she ever gain the trust of four veteran superstars who've been burned by the media before? Nobody said this was going to be easy. Then again, good things can come in hard packages.

 

He's always ready to roll…

Adrenaline junkie Logan Schmidt lives for the rush of playing his bass guitar before thousands of screaming fans. When he's not performing onstage or in the bedroom, he's looking for his next thrill in extreme sports. So why does a sweet, innocent journalist get his heart pumping and capture his full attention? Is Toni the real deal or just digging up dirt on his band? Logan’s eager to rock Toni’s world and roll her in the sack, but when she starts to get too close to his heart, she takes her insider look to a place he may never be willing to go.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes

 

“Have a seat, Toni,” Dare offered. He stood and took a gym bag from her hand. He set it on the floor next to the spot he’d vacated, making it clear that Toni should sit next to Logan on the sofa. Logan loved the guy. Such a thoughtful son of a bitch. Toni’s dark eyes, hidden behind a pair of thick-rimmed glasses, scanned the interior of the bus as if searching for refuge. Apparently the seat next to Logan was not it. Dare plopped himself down in the only available recliner and extended the leg rest, as if he had no intention of moving for the night.

 

“Th-thanks,” Toni said, pushing her glasses up her nose with one trembling hand.

 

Logan wasn’t sure what she was so nervous about all of a sudden. She’d seemed perfectly at ease when they’d been interacting with their fans. Perhaps she’d taken his comment about a lamb in a den of wolves to heart. He’d only been teasing, but he found her skittishness endearing in a world where most women threw all inhibitions to the wind when in the presence of any member of his band, much less all four of them.

 

The bus rumbled as it rolled forward. They were on the road again. Toni’s hands flew out as the unexpected movement threw her off balance.

She plopped down beside Logan, perching on the edge of a cushion as if the sofa’s back was made of shards of glass. Logan was pretty sure she was looking for the emergency exit. Her gaze settled on Butch, who was standing next to their driver and running over a strict schedule detailing how to get them to their next show in time while making a promotional stop between venues. Their schedule never had an inch of give. Their manager, Sam, was a genius when it came to getting the band the most exposure, but he had the tendency to believe that because they were a metal band, they were made of iron. They didn’t require useless things like down time and rest.

 

“So tell us more about this book,” Dare said, which was apparently the exact right thing to say to Toni, because her unease evaporated instantly.

 

“Have you seen the new interactive electronic textbooks?” she asked, her eager gaze moving from Dare to Max to Steve.

 

Logan was very conscious of the fact that she didn’t look at him once. He’d thought their attraction was mutual, but maybe not. He scooted several inches closer to her because he saw something he wanted and wasn’t one to sacrifice his personal needs for the greater good.

 

“Textbooks?” Steve asked. “Like for school and shit?”

 

“Yeah, that’s usually where textbooks are used,” she said, a teasing grin on her lush lips. When no one laughed, her face fell. Logan forced a guffaw about five seconds too late. That got his bandmates laughing. Not at Toni’s understated joke. They were laughing at his blatant stupidity. Nothing new there.

 

“I can’t say I’ve even seen a textbook since high school,” Steve said.

 

“These new interactive ones are amazing. Each topic has videos and pictures and links. It presents the information in a way that gets students who are used to constant entertainment excited about learning.”

 

“So you’re writing a textbook about us?” Dare asked, brows drawn together in a confused scowl.

 

“What kind of textbook would that be? A manual on mayhem and debauchery?” Toni cringed when no one laughed at that joke either.

 

Logan guffawed five seconds too late again. He was going to have to pay really close attention to what she said to figure out when she was joking. He didn’t think she lacked a sense of humor, she just looked serious. She’d definitely fit in better at a library than at standup- comedy night.

 

“The publishing company I work for designs and distributes these interactive textbooks,” she said. “Samuel Baily approached us to make an interactive book about the band, the first of its kind. He’s very forward thinking.”

 

That got the band laughing. “You might say that,” Max said. “Sometimes he’s a bit too forward thinking. He’s got every minute of our schedules booked for the next eighteen years. He thinks we’re robots or something.”

 

Toni’s eyes bulged. “Eighteen years?” she muttered under her breath.

 

Surely she knew Max was joking, so why did she look so unsettled? Wondering if he could make her blush again, Logan scooted a few more inches closer to her. His knee brushed her thigh, and she yanked on her skirt. Other than her hands and face, not an inch of bare flesh was showing. He wasn’t sure exactly what she was trying to conceal. Maybe she wasn’t open to his attempts to seduce her. Which made her a challenge. Which, like her tits, he couldn’t resist. Or maybe she had a nice boyfriend at home. His loss.

 

“Speaking of robots,” Steve said. “How are the prototypes of our androids coming?”

 

“Good until they tried to replicate my dick and ran out of materials,” Logan said.

 

Toni’s sudden intake of breath made him grin. That shocked her? Seriously? Too easy.

 

“If they ran out of materials, it had to be due to Max’s giant forehead,” Steve said.

 

“Or your enormous feet,” Max countered.

 

Toni grabbed a pad of paper out of her bag and started writing furiously. Logan leaned against her shoulder to read what had her so excited. She was writing down their conversation. In the margin, she wrote: Keep video camera close at hand when all band members are together. They’re hilarious.

 

He was close enough to feel her body heat and inhale the sweet fragrance of her fruity shampoo. He wondered if she tasted as sweet as she smelled.

 

“For the record,” Logan said in her ear as he pointed toward her notes, “I was the one with the big dick.”

 

Toni leaped from the sofa as if it were on fire. Her gaze darted from one guy to the next, and she pushed her glasses up her nose with the back of her wrist. God, he wanted to take those glasses off, take those clothes off, and do things to her. Naughty, devious, delicious things.

 

“Um . . .”

 

The twin bumps poking against her shapeless turtleneck drew Logan’s attention.

Hard nipples? Did his crassness turn her on? That was all the encouragement he needed to behave inappropriately. Visible nipples also meant that her bra was not padded. There was so much win in that, he should have her name engraved on a trophy.

 

“What’s wrong?” Logan asked. “I won’t bite. But I will nibble. And suck. And lick.”

 

She stared at him with her mouth agape and her eyes wide. Her nipples strained against her sweater, begging him to do all those things and more to the tips of those luscious melons.

 

She glanced down at her tits and immediately crossed her arms over her chest. “Is, um, there a bathroom I can use?”

 

“At the back of the bus,” Dare said, nodding his head toward the end of the corridor.

 

“Don’t take a dump in there,” Steve said. “We stop at rest areas to do that business.”

 

Face flaming, she sucked in a deep breath, turned, and sprinted to the back of the bus. She fumbled with the closet door and when it popped open, a stack of towels that had shifted during transit tumbled out and pummeled her in the face.

 

Logan climbed to his feet to rescue her. He decided to take it easy on her for the moment. He wouldn’t want to traumatize her so much she decided to leave. They both bent to pick up the same towel at the same time and bumped heads. They jerked apart and rubbed their heads in unison. Toni looked up at him, her brown, doe-like eyes watery with tears. He wasn’t sure if they were tears of pain or humiliation, but seeing them in her eyes did strange things to his chest. He wasn’t sure why it was suddenly tight.

 

“It’s okay,” he said, deciding that though it was fun to tease her, he’d better tone it down a bit. She obviously wasn’t used to it, and he didn’t want to harass a woman who wasn’t receptive to provocative flirting. He hadn’t intended to upset her, just wanted to have a little fun and get under that conservative skirt of hers. “I’ll get the towels, Toni. You go ahead and do your business.” He opened the bathroom door for her.

 

She lowered her hand from her forehead to reveal a large reddened bump.

 

Logan winced and leaned forward to press his lips to the lump. She sucked a startled breath into her chest. Shit. There he went crossing the line again.

 

“Sorry,” he murmured. “I always kiss boo-boos.”

 

“I have a pimple on my ass that needs kissing,” Steve called.

 

Logan closed his eyes and shook his head. “One of the things you should consider stressing in your book is how little fucking privacy a man has while on tour with his band.”

 

“I can include that,” she said, “but I think fans are more interested in the size of your dick.” She backed into the bathroom. “I know I am.” She bit her lip before closing the door in his face.

 

 

Combining her love for romantic fiction and rock 'n roll, USA Today Best-Selling Author Olivia Cunning writes erotic romance centered around rock musicians.

Raised on hard rock music from the cradle, she attended her first Styx concert at age six and fell instantly in love with live music. She's been known to travel over a thousand miles just to see a favorite band in concert. As a teen, she discovered her second love, romantic fiction -- first, voraciously reading steamy romance novels and then penning her own. 

 

Facebook | Twitter | Website | Goodreads

 

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Stop! - Blog Tour & Review

 
 
Synopsis

Every life has a different path full of sharp turns, smooth curves, and steep drop offs.Hollis Murphy has a plan—college, career, boyfriend, love, marriage, family. A predictable, normal life. She’s on track until an outside force causes her to crash and burn. They call it an accident, because that’s the only word they know to explain what happens to her. It helps everyone move on with their lives, except for Hollis. She holds on to the belief that she’s been targeted for a reason.

Risher Stevenson is intelligent, caring, sweet, and the hottest boy Hollis has ever laid eyes on. He fits perfectly into her original plan for a normal life. Everyone loves him. Benton Daniels is intelligent, caring, sweet, and the bravest boy Hollis has ever met. He doesn’t fit into her life but gives it purpose and makes it extraordinary. Everyone hates him.

One is bullied. One is tormented. All are judged. How will it STOP?

Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24847312-stop?from_search=true&search_version=service_impr

Release Date: 6/25/15


MY REVIEW: 
Once I saw that Alison Bailey had a new book coming out, I jumped on the chance to read it! After reading and loving her Perfect Series, I knew this author was one that I would continue to add to my Must Read List.

Stop! was a book like no other. It had twists and turns and kept me wanting more the entire time. What I loved about it was the raw, real life issues of dealing with college, coming of age and figuring out who you are while trying to keep true to yourself. With all of the current controversies today, this book really puts things into perspective. 

If you read one book this year, make sure it's Stop! The characters are great, easy to connect with, and makes you feel like you are living their lives with them. Alison Bailey has outdone herself this time and I'm thankful to have been a part of this blog tour!
 
Excerpt

“Name?” she said, impatiently. I was so flustered that for a second I’d forgotten who I was. “Hollis Murphy.”

She scribbled something on a spreadsheet and handed me a packet with my name and the number two hundred ten typed out on the front sticker, which I assumed was my room number.

In a flat bored voice, she said, “Everything you need to know is in the packet. Should you have any additional questions or needs after reading the information, please ask your RA. Have a productive semester. Next!”

Clutching the envelope to my chest, my gaze shifted back down, and I walked quickly out of the office.

As I turned the corner, a loud deep woot! jerked my attention down the hall. I took one step before crashing full force into something solid and warm. Stumbling back, I dropped the envelope. Once my balance returned, my eyes focused on a gray T-shirt with cut off sleeves, stretched across broad shoulders. When I glanced down in search of my envelope, I couldn’t help but spot the narrow hips and round ass covered in black basketball shorts. As I squatted to pick up the envelope, a tanned forearm came into view. My gaze roamed up to find the arm was covered in bulging muscles.

“Oh god, I’m so . . . sor…ry,” I stammered, my cheeks heating with embarrassment.

 “Here ya go,” a deep voice said.

Reaching for the envelope, my gaze inadvertently shot up to the warmest green eyes ever created. His dark brown hair was cut short on the sides, longer on top, and tousled. The perfect amount of scuff peppered his strong jawline, with deep dimples framing a sexy lopsided smile. The air was immediately sucked from my lungs. He wasn’t just hot, he was boy band hot. A deep chuckle drifted down before I realized he had stood up and was extending his hand to me.

Oh boy! I get to touch him.

I slipped my hand into his and felt an immediate jolt of electricity. The muscles in his arm twitched. He felt it too. “Thank you,” I said, as he helped me up.

“I’m Risher Stevenson.”

He was actually introducing himself to me. It had become a habit not to look directly at anyone, especially a stranger. I automatically angled my head down and to the left, to hide the messed-up side of my face. But those green eyes locked me in place. 

“Hollis Murphy.”

“Nice to meet you Hollis Murphy.”

“Sorry again about running into you. I need to do a better job at watching where I’m going.”

The tip of his tongue slipped between his lips before they formed into a slight smirk. Just as he was about to speak, his name came barreling down the hallway.

“Rish! Get your ass down here. We’ve got a ton of boxes to haul in.” A blond-haired guy was standing at the end of the hall.

“I gotta go finish helping my friends move in.” I nodded.

Risher took three steps before turning back toward me. “Don’t do too good of a job.” My eyebrows squished together in confusion.

“At watching where you’re going. I hate to think I won’t get rump bumped again.” He winked before jogging away.

I Sasquatched those shoulders, those hips, and that ass all the way down the hall.


Playlist http://open.spotify.com/user/1244737523/playlist/00lodAPM0R4drzlF2bDJQB

Buy Links

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Stop-Alison-G-Bailey-ebook/dp/B010A8EEXK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1435154556&sr=8-1&keywords=stop%21+alison+bailey

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stop-alison-g-bailey/1056102605?ean=2940151196109&itm=1&usri=stop%21+alison+bailey
Giveaway

$50 Amazon Gift Card

Direct Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/20f584eb22/?

Author Bio and Links

 

Alison was born and raised in Charleston, SC. She attended Winthrop University and graduated with a major in Theater. While at school Alison began writing one-act plays, which she later produced. Her debut novel, Present Perfect, landed on Amazon's Best Seller List and appeared on many "Best Reads of 2013" Book Blogs. The novel won Best Book at the 2014 Indie Romance Convention Awards. Her second novel, Past Imperfect, was published in February of 2014 and appeared on several best books of 2014 lists as well. Presently Perfect, the third and final book in The “Perfect” series was released in Dec 2014 to rave reviews. In March 2015 all the love, swoon, heat, and angst were combined into the Perfect Series Box Set.

Website http://alisongbailey.com/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AlisonGBaileyAuthor

Twitter https://twitter.com/AlisonGBailey1

Instagram http://instagram.com/alisongbailey/

Pinterest http://pinterest.com/alisongbailey/present-perfect-by-alison-g-bailey/

Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7032185.Alison_G_Bailey

Stumbling In - Blog Tour & Review

SYNOPSIS:

Everyone in Sandy Cove knows that Willow Taylor and Max Vincent are like oil and

water. They live to torment one another and if they survive being in the same room together, it’s nothing short of a miracle. Sure, Willow is rich, blonde and beautiful and Max is an achingly hot and talented up and coming rock star—but that just makes it easier for them to hate one another!

Until one night. One drunken night. It was just supposed to be a night of celebration after each of their best friends’, Harlow and Cruz, were reunited. But a few hours of civility leads to one night of unbridled, earth-shattering, cataclysmic sex. It doesn’t help that the details are sketchy in their minds because the off-the-charts after effects still linger. One thing is clear…that night changed everything. 

From that moment on, sabotaging each other’s hook-ups was their primary goal until a truce is made. A pact. No strings attached, no feelings, just more of what their bodies crave whenever they see one another. They both get what they want and no one gets hurt. 

Until someone does. Until love and tragedy gets in the way. The heat between Willow and Max is undeniable but will that spark of desire be enough to sustain them through the pain and heartache that threatens them?

MY REVIEW:

Stumbling In is Book 3 in the Shore Series by MR Joseph and it features Max and Willow's story with a bit of Harlow and Cruz for good measure! I honestly look forward to this series each summer! It's the perfect beach read!

As we know, Willow is Harlow's best friend. She's edgy, blunt, rich and beautiful and after a drunken night with Max, the hot, talented, musician, the two of them vow never to speak of it again. Though their chemistry is undeniable, the pair want nothing to do with each other. After sabotaging each others dates, Max and Willow make a pact to just have no strings attached sex and to keep it a secret from the rest of the gang. When tragedy strikes, feelings come out and nothing will ever be the same.

Without giving anything away, this book reminded me of my own tragedy and took me back ten years. Tears were flowing and I truly felt Willow's pain. Once again MR Joseph has delivered an awesome read! Can't wait to see what she comes up with next!

 

Excerpt From Max-

Stumbling In-The Shore Series Book 3

I go to her and place my hand on her shoulder, and she turns around and I’m faced with the most unexpected thing that I think has ever happened. Willow turns around and grabs handfuls of my shirt and pulls me to her soft, wanting lips. She kisses me, and it’s just not a kiss that breathes lust but it breathes the fire of passion, of meaning. It makes my hair stand on end and leaves the skin beneath electrified. The soft motion of her mouth with mine, the scent of her hair and the taste of her tongue dancing inside my mouth, spins me into oblivion. There’s more to this kiss. I feel it in my bones. I feel it in my soul. She kisses me like we are music. We are the rhythm joining together with the notes and the melody. I grasp the back of her head and thread my fingers in her hair softly. I deepen the kiss and I reach the point where I swim in this moment so deep that I don’t want to come to the surface… and that’s when she pulls away and I know I’m fucked. 

I’m so fucking fucked.

She holds her lips with her long, slender fingers. Her eyes find mine and I’m still lost in whatever that was. I can’t even ask her because I can’t even speak. It wasn’t the normal wanton kiss that happens between us when we just use each other. No, oh no, this was something else. 

“Willow…” She holds up her hand to stop me.

“Let’s just leave it at that, Max.”

I walk past her slowly as I hear the relentlessness of the bus’s horn and slide open the door to her room. I turn around and she’s already back to leaning on the rail. Her body turned to the calm waters. The sun shines down on her bare, bronzed shoulders and the wind picks up and blows her hair around again. It’s the last time I’ll see her in person for a while and after that kiss, my head and something else right at this very moment doesn’t want it to be the last time. It’s not the right time to analyze what that kiss was. Maybe it was a goodbye kiss. A proper send off. The end of whatever we were to each other. Was it a blessing for me to go and see where it goes with Cora? What was that? I’ll tell you what it was. The unexpected.

“I’ll miss you, Willow.” Not being so sure she can hear me, I say it as I walk out the door.  I leave her with my brain consisting of mush and my lips already feeling some sort of loss. 

Most of all… a lot to think about.

AUTHOR BIO:
 

I'm a book nerd turned writer who loves the 'Happily Ever After' mixed with a bit of suspense, drama, and the occasional cliffhanger! My love of books started me on my writing journey. I began writing my first book in July 2012 and since that time I have created 2 series. The first series 'The Reunion Series' debuted in November 2012 and two books followed. My new series 'The Shore Series" debuted in March 2014 and claimed Best Selling status shortly after the release of the first book. There will be 6 Shore Series books in all. I’m also the author of the Romantic Comedy, 39 & Holding. I live in Philadelphia with my adoringly handsome husband, and pretty cute kids if I may say so myself. You can always find me with the Kindle glued to my hands or in my car with the music turned up while
embarrassing my children with my mad car dancing skills.


AUTHOR MEDIA LINKS: 

Goodreads ~ https://www.goodreads.com /author/show/6936575.M_R_Joseph
Facebook ~ https://www.facebook.com/authormr.joseph
Twitter~ @redkar_m
Amazon ~  http://www.amazon.com/M.R.- Joseph/e/B00E7TME2C/ref=sr_tc_2_0?%20qid=1432653313&sr=1-2-ent
Email ~ mrjosephwriter@gmail.com

Beautiful Burn - Blog Tour

Title: Beautiful Burn

Author: Adriane Leigh

Genre: Steamy Student Teacher Romance

Release Date: January 13, 2015

 

Blurb

I've broken him, bent him, and burned him, and each fevered moment was worth every ounce of pain. Auburn Lawrence has loved her English teacher, Reed West, since she was fourteen. Through brainstorming stories, reading classic literature, and plenty of fiery banter, they've forged a bond that neither of them expected. Propelled by a chance encounter after her graduation, they discover just how deep their connection runs, but love requires more than chemistry to flourish. They spend three electrifying summer months discovering each other under a veil of forbidden passion and desperate lust before they learn that the unattainable is often destined to remain exactly that. By the time temperatures dip and snowflakes fly, their relationship will face a deep freeze that threatens to snap the bond they thought they shared, shattering their lives one secret at a time. Intended for mature audiences.  

TOP 5 books your HEROINE loves best and why

You're terrible for asking a book nerd to choose favorites!

Auburn's Top 5:

1. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov...Humbert is a total perv, but the emotional dissolution is fascinating.
2. Bang by EK Blair...because Nina is bad ass and on some level I want to be just like her. Minus the crazy part.
3. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald...*sigh* Unrequited love. Classic.
4. Gabriel's Inferno by Sylvain Reynard...taboo romance, history, travel, what's not to love?!
5. Anything Tiffany Reisz has ever written. Intellectual erotica? I can't get enough.

   

About the Author

Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter | Pinterest | Website

Adriane Leigh was born and raised in a snowbank in Michigan's Upper Peninsula and now lives amongst the sand dunes of the Lake Michigan lakeshore. She graduated with a Literature degree but never particularly enjoyed reading Shakespeare or Chaucer. Adriane is married to a tall, dark and handsome guy, plays mama to two sweet baby girls, and is a voracious reader and knitter.  

Giveaway!

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39 & Holding - Blog Tour

39 & HOLDING

Author: M.R. Joseph

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Standalone Novel

~ SYNOPSIS ~

My name is Greer Walker. Mom of two. Friend. Daughter. Dance instructor. And, let’s not forget—a woman scorned.

For the fourteen years were were married and the twenty years we were together, I devoted my life to my husband. What did I get in return? Heart break, crows feet, stretch marks, and a slew of insecurities.

You see, the douchebag dumped me for a twenty-five year-old, real-life Barbie Doll with a large repertoire of medical enhancements. He crushed my heart. His affair destroyed me. The signs were there-I just chose not to see them.

Finally with my eyes wide open, I vowed to never go through that kind of heartache again. I didn't need someone to make me feel special or beautiful, or sexually charged. Hell, I can take care of that part on my own if you know what I mean. It was twenty years since I last dated-and I was okay with never doing it again.

But…There’s always a but.

The day Nick Costa walked into my life—or rather drove right into it—he made me feel all sorts of things that this woman right here had no business feeling. Lot's of feelings. He made me ask myself questions.

Could I allow someone into my life again? Could I risk being hurt? Could Nick deal with all the insecurities the fallout of my marriage produced?

I am thirty-nine! Can I start all over again? Can I let go of the past in order to have a chance at a future with this man?

You might want to stick around to discover the answers.

For now, I'll be 39 & holding.

~ PURCHASE ~

AMAZON

~ PROLOGUE ~

I was blind. Blind as a bat. I mean I was actually more blind than a bat. At least a bat can see what it needs to see when it needs to see it, or what it wants to see.

I didn't see it and it was right there in front of me.

For months.

I guess I should have really spotted all the warning signs. They were as bright as the lights on a neon sign that hangs above a bar, or a tattoo shop, or a strip club. You know the ones that practically flash in your face and say, “Hey, come on in and open your eyes, moron.” Well, I was not that person. Like I said before, I was blind.

Oh, right, back to the signs. Okay, so the first, let's call this exhibit A. This would be the new job, late nights at the office, and late dinner meetings with clients. Totally acceptable. You have to start at the bottom if you want to make it to the top. I got it. Back then, I got it.

Then there's exhibit B. Last-minute business trips. Yes, spare-of-the-moment trips that required a bathing suit and a crazy looking Hawaiian shirt, and a trip to Macy's for some new underwear. Sigh...yes. Fucking boxer briefs. No more tighty whities with the wet fart stains. I tried to bleach them out for fourteen years. What the fuck was I thinking?

Well, I wasn't.

Let's not forget about exhibit C. See C is a big one. It's the one that made me start to question my sanity. Electronics. They are the devil. If I could rid the world of cell phones or email, trust me I would. They are the spawn of Satan himself. If I didn't have to use a cell phone to keep in constant contact with my kids, I wouldn't have one. But this is the age of electronics and the be all and end all of love, hope, and forgiveness. And don't even get me started on girly, fruity, sexy fragrances. They are the eye of newt in this witches brew of lies and deceit. But I'll get back to that later.

I'm still on electronics. Yes, phones buzzing in the middle of the night and feeling the shift in the mattress as the phone that was buzzing is picked up and taken out of my earshot. I heard the whispers, thinking maybe, God forbid, someone forgot to tell someone about a big audit.

Big audit problems at one a.m. Yeah...audit my ass.

Emails. Ha, ha. Oh, yes. Emails. Such a brainless way of getting information from one person to another via the computer.

Whether for business or pleasure—well in my story it was for someone else's pleasure—it's the cherry on the proverbial top of the sundae in the form of communication or miscommunication. Depends how you see it.

In my case, it was simply the means to the end.

One email. One stupid email that sent my happy home into turmoil and into a tornado of absolute disarray.

I'm not a violent person by nature. I mean, I don't even own a fly swatter and I hate those outdoor bug zappers. Just listening to a mosquito in the summer sizzle as it’s electrocuted by a thousand bolts of electricity...I just hate it. But when I saw the words written in an email to my husband when I accidentally—yes accidentally—clicked on his account, I felt violent.

Ryan,

Can't wait for you to fuck me even harder tonight, baby.

xx- Giselle

Who names their kid that unless she's a princess in a Disney movie or some shit like that?

Giselle. Christ Almighty. That name. I can't even say it without green, acid-inducing vomit rising up in my throat, which will probably be the cause of esophageal cancer somewhere down the road.

But back to the email, oh and my distaste for swatting at innocent insects. Remember me telling you I'm not a violent person? The night I found the email, when my husband of fifteen years was fast asleep in our marriage bed, the man I had been with since I was nineteen and in my final semester as a freshman year in college. Yes, that one with the thick dirty-blond hair. Well…that night he had a little less of it because a clump rested in the palm of my hand after I dragged his sorry ass out of bed by the roots to confront him. The man is dead weight when he's asleep, but the adrenaline I felt that night took over any weakness or guilt of harming another human being, animal, or insect. Ryan Walker was all of the above except for the human part. He was the animal and the insect. If I had one of those outdoor insect buzzy-killing things, I would have thrown him in it and watched his body be charred to a crisp. Like he did my heart.

Sound a little violent to you? The dance instructor turned murderer? I guess you could say violent. I mean I wouldn't have done it...that way. Arsenic-laced cupcakes anyone?

He didn't deny it. After I screamed and cried and clawed at his face—and smashed the laptop jumping on it like a two-year-old—we just sat there in silence. We leaned against our bed like we were two strangers. Not two people that had been together for twenty years. We leaned our backs against the bed we picked out when we got home from our honeymoon. The bed we fucked in, watched movies in, had tickle fights in, and made two amazing children in. Now, it was just holding us up from falling. Me mostly. I learned he fell about six months before that. When he had her in my bed. My husband fucked Giselle, the long-legged, half-French-half-whatever whore, when I was away in Phoenix for a master class in Ballet, in my bed. Did I mention it was in my bed? My loving husband said he had to work that entire weekend and thought it would be better if the kids went to my dad’s because he felt bad he would not be able to spend ample time with them. He would not be able to take Cole to his baseball game or go watch Sophie take her dance class. What a good dad. Thinking of the children before himself.

Enter sarcasm here. Asshole.

Have you even tried to figure out what to do with a broken fifteen-year marriage in one sleepless night? I have. Trust me, you don't look like Miss America after a night of crying and lack of rest. The bags under my eyes—yes there was enough of them to take me to Mexico for a month. And the leftover mascara that streamed down my face, ha, ha, it made me look like Courtney Love from Hole. It's sad really. You think you know someone. You sacrifice for that person, you give them everything, and what they give you in return is heartache.

Do you know what it feels like to have someone tell you they are no longer in love with you? You don't? Truth is, I don't want you to know. I would never want anyone to feel the pain that I have felt. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.

Did you know that your heart actually hurts when you break up? I mean that fateful night I thought I was having a heart attack. Here it was just my heart cracking inside, dying—weeping—in total agony. That's exactly what a broken heart feels like. Doubt me? Think I'm exaggerating? I wouldn't think those things if I were you.

I told him I smelled her in our bedroom but at the time thought it was the scent of the new laundry detergent I had recently bought.

Remember the fruity, girly, sexy scent I told you about? Yeah, well laundry detergent doesn't smell like that. Guess I couldn't smell that well either.

He told me he loved her. I think I would have tried to make it work with him if he would not have told me that. He told me he loved me for being a good mother to our kids, but that he was no longer in love with me.

He left the next day.

Please don't get me started on how my kids reacted. Cole, my thirteen-year-old, bad, I mean real bad. He said he hated Ryan. I told him that was wrong. Daddy just didn't love Mommy and sometimes that happens, but he would always love him and his sister. Sophie, my six-year-old, just asked questions about having two Christmases and then she went back to play with her Barbies.

The first hard thing was seeing his side of the closet empty and his medicine cabinet in the bathroom bare of all his shaving things and colognes. A few days after he left I still smelled his scent lingering in the air, and I have to admit, I clung to it. Inhaled it and kept it in my lungs until they burned with remembrance. I had grown tired of that.

It eventually left. There were no traces of Ryan Walker in my home. Our home. The one we once shared. He gave me the house. I earn enough to keep it up. He pays the mortgage out of guilt I suppose and lives with...oh, God forgive me while I swallow my vomit...okay…I'm back…while he lives with what’s her name.

I got rid of the bed by the way. I wanted to set it on fire like Angela Bassett did in ‘How Stella Got Her Groove Back.’ Torch it in the front yard for all the neighbors to see.

The trash men took it instead. That's what it wound up being. Trash. Like the way I felt. Left out on the curb. Discarded. Replaced.

So here I am.

Greer Walker, thirty-nine, and single after twenty years. My kids are gone most weekends with their dad and one night during the week.

And I'm alone. But that's okay because I won't ever let my heart or my pride be smashed beyond recognition again. I'll be a cat lady once my kids are grown and out of the house. No offense to all the cat lovers out there.

I'm done with giving myself completely to one person. I can do this. I'm a big girl. I'll be okay.

Being single isn't so bad. Being thirty-nine and single isn't so bad.

Soon forty will be knocking at my door and I'll answer it with my head held high. I'll do my best to welcome it.

Forty. The big 4-0. The over-the-hill; the crest of going from a Lamb to a Cougar.

God, I hate that analogy. But it is what it is. I'll hold on to thirty-nine as long as I can.

I'm Greer Walker and this is my story.

~ TEASERS ~

MY REVIEW: 39 & Holding is another book that MR Joseph knocked out of the park! It was fun, witty and completely easy to relate to!

Greer Walker is just about to turn 40 and newly single. Who'd have thought that after 20 years and 2 kids together you'd be thinking about dating again?! Not this girl but once Nick Costa comes driving into her life at full speed, it's hard to put the brakes on!

Nick is a young, hot doctor who teaches Greer about life, love and second chances. I highly recommend this steamy, sexy, funny, light-hearted read for any girl who's 39 and Holding :)

~ ABOUT THE AUTHOR~ 
M.R. Joseph 

I'm a book enthusiast, turned author, who loves all things "Happily Ever After". 

My first book, 'Reunion' debuted in November, 2012. Meant only to be a Christmas gift to my family and closest friends, word got out, and here I am. The second in the series, 'You Belong With Me', released in March, 2013, and the final installment in the series, 'Letters to Luca', released August 2013.

Mom and wife by day, writer of contemporary romance by night, I believe in soul mates, true love, and all that mushy stuff.

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