Publisher: Carina Press

The Weekly Recap (145)

Posted February 10, 2020 by Rowena in Features | 0 Comments

I’ve been a busy bee in the last couple of weeks so blogging has taken a backseat to all of that. Work’s been kicking my butt, but I’ve also had just a bunch of things going on. On top of work kicking my ass every single day, Caiden and his new baby sister Baby Matalasi have been visiting us in California so I’ve been spending a lot of time with the family. Lots of family dinners, family game nights and five crowns.

Caiden, Lasi and their parents are driving back home to Utah right now and already, I miss them tons. It’s been a loud and awesome couple of weeks with them in town but real life hit them hard in the last week so it was time for them to return home and help bury Markus’ brother. I miss that face on the left so much!

I’ve also been really busy with work. I’m a staffing manager at my job and I’m in charge of making sure each job that comes in for my regions (I cover all of the central states all of the states in the middle from Idaho to Kentucky and down to Texas). We get hella jobs in so I’m busy from the time I start work for the day until I clock out. I only have about 24 hours to make sure each job is staffed so I’m constantly mapping projects, checking project manager schedules, checking each PM’s monthly billing and just all manner of crap. I deal with all kinds of people throughout the day from pissed off PM’s to upper management trying to squeeze more work out of us and for the most part, I’m happy with my job. I’ve gotten to know a lot of people, I communicate with people across the country all the time and most of those people are nice and I enjoy making things work. On the other hand, it’s a lot of work. I work a lot. I’m salaried so I can work as much or as little as I want and still get paid the same but I find that I’m constantly wondering about jobs long after I’ve logged out so I’m still trying to find a healthy work and personal life balance. It helps that my bosses are happy with my work and that I’ve gotten another raise so woo hoo for that. It’s a consistent effort on my part to walk away from work so fingers crossed that I figure that shit out because my blogging life has dragged a bunch because I work so much. I miss yall.

Now, onto the books…

What I’m Currently Reading
The Weekly Recap (145)One Last Chance
by Therese Beharrie
Series: One Day to Forever #3
Published by Harlequin, Carina Press on February 17, 2020
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Point of View:Third Person
Pages: 262
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Add It: Goodreads
Reading Challenges:2020 A-Z Challenge, 2020 Goodreads Challenge, 2020 New to Me Challenge

Of all the charity events in all of Cape Town, Zoey Roux had to bump into her husband at this one

Six years ago, Zoey Roux secretly married her best friend Sawyer. But all that did was destroy the best relationship she’s ever had. They went their separate ways, but Zoey never could go through with a divorce. Seeing him again at her sister’s charity event is a shock, but also enlightening: no matter how much she still loves him, it’s time to let him go.

Zoey was Sawyer Wilson’s first love. She broke his heart, but his feelings never died. Love was never their issue—only timing. Seeing her again is a shock: in a perfect world, she would run back into his arms. Instead, she’s asking for a divorce.

But a lot can happen in twenty-four hours: old wounds can heal, first loves can be reunited. And a second chance might just lead to happily ever after.

This book is approximately 74,000 words

One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!

I’ve never read anything by Therese Beharrie but I need to fix that because I’m finishing this up and should be done by end of the day and I really liked this best friends to lover, fake relationship, and second chance romance. She mixes the tropes really well and I adored Zoey and Sawyer so much.

What I Read

The Witness by Nora Roberts (eBook) | 4.25 out of 5
Getting Schooled (The Wright Brothers #1) by Christina C. Jones (eBook) | 4 out of 5
The Kissing Game by Marie Harte (eARC) | 2.5 out of 5
I Wish You Were Mine (Oxford #2) by Lauren Layne (Audio) | 4.25 out of 5
The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa (eARC) | 3.5 out of 5
Yes No Maybe So by Becka Albertalli and Aisha Saeed (eARC) | 3.5 out of 5
Chasing Cassandra (The Ravenels #6) by Lisa Kleypas (eARC) | 4.25 out of 5
P.S. It’s Always Been You, Pt. 1 by Lauren Blakely (Audio) | 3.25 out of 5
House Rules (Uptown #3) by Ruby Lang (eARC) | 4 out of 5
The Upside of Falling by Alex Light (eARC) | 3.25 out of 5

I included all of the books that I read in the weeks since my last weekly recap post and of this bunch, my favorite read was Chasing Cassandra and my least favorite read was probably The Kissing Game. There’s a lot of good stuff in this bunch so you guys should definitely add them to your TBR piles because they’re good stuff.

What I Reviewed

The Kingmaker by Kennedy Ryan | 4.75 out of 5
Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn | 3.75 out of 5
Headliners by Lucy Parker | 4 out of 5
Heartland by Sarina Bowen | 4.25 out of 5
Getting Schooled by Christina C. Jones | 4 out of 5

What I Posted

The Weekly Recap (144)
My TBR Pile: January 2020

What I Got

Devious Lies (Cruel Crowns #1) by Parker S. Huntington
I Think I Might Love You (Love Sisters #1) by Christina C. Jones
I Think I Might Need You (Love Sisters #2) by Christina C. Jones
I Think I Might Want You (Love Sisters #3) by Christina C. Jones

What I Got for Review

First Comes Scandal (Rokesbys #4) by Julia Quinn
Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson
Temporary Wife Temptation by Jayci Lee

P.S. It’s Always Been You, Pt. 1 by Lauren Blakely

What Made Me Laugh

There you have it, my week in review. How was your week?

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The Weekly Recap (142)

Posted November 11, 2019 by Rowena in Features | 6 Comments

I wasn’t feeling too good this week so I spent a lot of it in bed, trying desperately to get better and to also read some damn books. Only one of those things happened and it wasn’t that I read some damn books. By Saturday, I was ready to get out of my bedroom and get out of my house. With my sister Helen being in town, we had us a sister weekend and it was great. All five of my sisters got together for lunch and we laughed the day away and really, it was the bomb. It was the best way to end a pretty crappy weekend, especially after missing three days of work and being all antsy about what I’m going to find when I get to work today.

My Lakers took an L last night so I really need to put last week behind me and turn things around. Wish me luck…

Now, onto the books…

What I’m Currently Reading
The Weekly Recap (142)Open House
by Ruby Lang
Published by Harlequin, Carina Press on November 11, 2019
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Point of View:Third Person
Pages: 165
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Add It: Goodreads
Reading Challenges:2019 GoodReads Challenge

Love can take root where you least expect it.

Tyson Yang never imagined that one day he’d be the de facto spokesperson for an illegal community garden. But when the once-rat-infested-but-now-thriving Harlem lot goes up for sale, Ty can’t just let all their hard work get plowed under.

Even if he is irresistibly drawn to the lovely but infuriatingly stubborn real estate associate.

Magda Ferrer’s family is already convinced this new job will be yet another flop in her small but growing list of career path failures. But her student debt isn’t going anywhere, and selling her uncle’s historic town house and the lot nearby means a chance to get some breathing room.

Ty is her charming rival, her incorrigible nemesis, the handsome roadblock to her success.

Until one hot Harlem night blurs the hard line drawn between them, and the seeds of possibility in this rocky garden blossom into love…

This book is approximately 48,000 words

One-click with confidence. This title is part of the
Carina Press Romance Promise
: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!

I picked up and put down a couple of different books last week so I’m picking up this book today in hopes that I’ll finally get something read. So far, so good. Wish me luck on the rest of the book.

What I Read

Nothing. You guys, I spent the entire week reading absolutely nothing. Nothing is catching my eye and everything I start, I’ve stopped reading. This isn’t a good place to be reading-wise since I’m so far behind in my Goodreads Challenge already so I’m really hoping and praying that shit turns around this week. I can’t keep taking these reading L’s.

What I Reviewed

The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams | 4.25 out of 5
We Met in December by Rosie Curtis | 3.5 out of 5

What I Posted

The Weekly Recap (141)
Top Ten Tuesday: That Autumn Vibes

What I Got

Grumpy Jake by Melissa Blue

What I Got for Review

Headliners (London Celebrities #5) by Lucy Parker

What Made Me Laugh

There you have it, my week in review. How was your week?

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Can’t Wait Wednesday: Flare Up by Shannon Stacey

Posted October 17, 2018 by Rowena in Features | 8 Comments

Can’t Wait Wednesday is hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings and it was based on the meme Waiting on Wednesday that was hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Can’t Wait Wednesday: Flare Up by Shannon StaceyFlare Up
by Shannon Stacey
Series: Boston Fire #6
Published by Harlequin, Carina Press on January 29, 2019
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Point of View:Alternating Third Person
Pages: 384
Add It: Goodreads

Nursing a broken heart while everybody around him seems to be drowning in happiness has Grant Cutter wondering whether staying with Engine 59—or even Boston Fire—is in his future. It’s tempting as hell to pack up what fits in his Jeep and hit the road. But then a 911 call brings the woman who shattered his heart back into his life, and he knows he won’t ever be able to fully leave her in his rearview mirror.

For a few months, Wren Everett had thought the nightmare of her past was behind her and she might live happily ever after with Grant. Until she got the phone call letting her know the time her ex had spent in jail for assault hadn’t cooled his temper or determination that she belonged with him. Cutting ties with Grant was the hardest thing she’d ever had to do, but it was also the only way to keep him safe.

Now that Grant is back, he’s not letting Wren push him away again. And even with the trust issues between them, Wren dares to hope she and Grant might have a future together after all…if they’re willing to fight for it.

I’m really enjoying this series. I love how normal it is and how the entire series follows regular everyday people falling in love with other everyday people. I mean, sure, part of the everyday people couple are firefighters so they’re kind of superheroes in their own ways but I still enjoy this series very much.

You can read my reviews for each of the books here:

Heat Exchange
Controlled Burn
Fully Ignited
Hot Response
Under Control

I enjoyed some books more than others but overall, I’m enjoying each book as they come out. I’m pretty anxious to finally get Grant’s story. I knew that his heartbreak was forthcoming, at least I had a feeling it would happen and I’m pretty curious on how his story plays out. I can’t wait to read his book.

This book comes out on January 29th so we have a few months wait. Mark your calendars!

Pre-Order the Book

Flare Up (Boston Fire #6) by Shannon Stacey
Releases on January 29, 2019
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Books

Boston Fire Series

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Week in Review (83)

Posted March 26, 2018 by Rowena in Features | 6 Comments

This past week was for celebrating Baby Caiden turning 1! He was supposed to spend the day at Disneyland but with the unusual rainy days here in Southern California, that trip got postponed until this past Saturday. We ended up celebrating his actual birthday at Chuck E. Cheeses. The kids had a great time and it was good to catch up over salad and pizza with my siblings so all in all, it was a fun.

The only downer was we forgot to FaceTime with Caiden’s parents in Samoa when we sang Happy Birthday to him and his Mom wasn’t too happy with us, oops.

The rest of the week was pretty chill. We didn’t do much, stayed close to home with all the rain and I haven’t been in the mood to go out so I’ve been hanging with Caiden, reading some books and watching tv and movies.

Now, onto the books…

What I’m Currently Reading

Find the Author: Goodreads
Week in Review (83)The Love Coupon
by Ainslie Paton
Series: Stubborn Hearts #2
Published by Harlequin, Carina Press on April 9th 2018
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 264
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley, Publisher
Buy It: Amazon|Barnes & Noble
Add It: Goodreads

Can you fall in love if you have the right coupon?

Tom O’Connell had a problem. His temporary roommate, Flick Dalgetty was noisy, messy, made of bees and had enough energy to power an amusement park. The problem was he shouldn’t have kissed her.

Flick Dalgetty had a problem. Her landlord, Tom O’Connell was made of granite. He was a big, repressed anti-social ogre, but the man knew how to kiss. The problem was he felt guilty about hooking up and she wanted more.

Until Flick’s gift of thirty coupons, each entitling Tom to one guilt and obligation free activity, from bowling and bubble bathing to morning delight and lingerie buying, removed all the guesswork of being incompatible partners and temporary roommates.

Now the only problem was Flick had to leave and Tom needed to stay and they might be falling in love—and there wasn’t a coupon for that.

Love can be a sexy game until it becomes the only one your stubborn heart wants to play.

I’m taking a break from Ilona Andrews because I need to. I have fallen behind on my review pile (though not far behind) and I need to catch up so I’ve taken every IA book off my kindle for now so I don’t tempt myself to get lost in more books. The first book that I’ve picked up from my review pile? The Love Coupon. I’ve been hearing some good things about this book and this author and this series so I’m curious enough to try it out for myself. I haven’t gotten very far into the book so I don’t really think anything of it at the moment but I’m sure that I’ll enjoy it.

What I Read

Bayou Moon by Ilona Andrews | 4.25 out of 5
Jockblocked by Jen Frederick | 4.75 out of 5

I only read two books but both books were fantastic reads (and re-reads) and I’m stoked for the new week of reads so woot!

What I Reviewed

The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory | 2 out of 5
So Over You by Kate Meader | 4.25 out of 5

What I Posted

My Marvel Movies Project of 2018
Monthly Recap: February 2018
Sunday Spotlight: What a Difference a Duke Makes by Lenora Bell

What I Got

The Coaching Hours by Sara Ney
Suddenly Forbidden by Ella Fields

What I Got for Review

The Fragile Ordinary by Samantha Young
One Small Thing by Erin Watt
When a Duke Loves a Woman by Lorraine Heath
I Flipping Love You by Helena Hunting

There you have it, my week in review. How was your week?

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TBR Challenge Review: Act Like It by Lucy Parker

Posted February 15, 2017 by Rowena in Reviews | 8 Comments

TBR Challenge Review: Act Like It by Lucy ParkerAct Like It
by Lucy Parker
Series: London Celebrities #1
Published by Harlequin, Carina Press on November 30th 2015
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Point of View:Alternating First Person
Pages: 199
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
Add It: Goodreads
four-stars

This just in: romance takes center stage as West End theatre's Richard Troy steps out with none other than castmate Elaine Graham

Richard Troy used to be the hottest actor in London, but the only thing firing up lately is his temper. We all love to love a bad boy, but Richard's antics have made him Enemy Number One, breaking the hearts of fans across the city.

Have the tides turned? Has English rose Lainie Graham made him into a new man?

Sources say the mismatched pair has been spotted at multiple events, arm in arm and hip to hip. From fits of jealousy to longing looks and heated whispers, onlookers are stunned by this blooming romance.

Could the rumors be right? Could this unlikely romance be the real thing? Or are these gifted stage actors playing us all?

I’m struggling to get my life together this month. I had all of these grand plans of all of the books that I was going to read and I didn’t do anything or read much of anything. February’s prompt for the 2017 TBR Reading Challenge was to read a new to me author. Boy was I lucky when Bookish Ames pointed out that I did read a book that fulfilled that prompt. I hadn’t realized. Duh.

I’ve been wanting to read Lucy Parker ever since she came onto my radar. I’ve been seeing so many of my favorite book bloggers singing her praises and I knew that she was going to be an author that I enjoyed so when I opened up Act Like It, I was ready to be impressed…and I was.

Richard Troy is a bastard. He takes no shit from anyone and he doesn’t mince words. He doesn’t tolerate dumbasses and he makes no apologies for who he is. Normally, he wouldn’t care what the tabloids but his bosses on the play he’s working on do and before he knows what’s what, he’s in a fake relationship with his co-star Lainey Graham. The plan is for her to use her good press and big heart to soften his reputation.

Lainey Graham is being forced to play girlfriend to another asshole that she works with and she’s pretty much had it with asshole coworkers being her boyfriends. She just got out of a relationship with the other leading guy in the play and that didn’t end well because the asshole broke up with her by using the tabloids to tell her he’s moved on to someone else. Someone that he was seeing while they were still together. She may not be happy about playing the girlfriend to another castmate but she’ll do it because her bosses want her to.

What started off as something that neither of them wanted begins to change into something they weren’t expecting at all and boy was I here for all of it. I enjoyed getting to know both Richard’s grumpy ass and Lainey’s too nice for her own good self. They were fantastic characters that I just fell in with. The beginning was a little slow but not enough to put me off. I’m glad that I pushed through because these two became such dear characters to me.

Richard was a total asshole and he said and did things that I would never do myself but for some reason, it worked for me. I loved him through all of her assholey behavior. I loved seeing him fall in love with Lainey because even though he softened some, he was still the same asshole we met and fell in love with anyway. Kudos to Parker for making us fall in love with the asshole and not changing the asshole into a sap. That was great.

Lainey was fun to get to know. I love how aggravated she would get with Richard because he was such a jerk. I loved seeing her with her bestie and I liked that she had a life outside of work. I loved when she tries to fix things between Richard and her when she messes up because it really showed how much she cared and really, it just showed the kind of person that she was.

All in all, this was a great first read by an author that I will definitely be reading more from. I definitely recommend Richard and Lainey’s love story. It’s a good one.


4 out of 5

four-stars

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