Blog Tour Book Review: Confessions of an Undercover Girlfriend by Kay Marie

Author: Kay Marie
Series: Confessions #2
Audience: +18
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: October 11th 2016
My Rating: 4.5 cups
Source: Author
Blurb (from Goodreads):

So, I'm no longer a virgin sex columnist—thank you, Ollie—but if I thought that was going to make my life easier, boy was I wrong! John is back in town determined to win my forgiveness. Blythe is more ready than ever to take me down. Bridget is totally onto the new twinkle in my eye. And, well, Ollie is just as distractingly delicious as usual.

So, naturally, I have a few more confessions to make.

Confession #1: I came up with what I thought would be the perfect plan to keep my relationship with Ollie a secret—pretend to get back together with John!

Confession #2: It backfired. A lot.

*Disclaimer: I received an eARC from Kay Marie in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or opinion of the book in any way.

I've been super excited for this book to come out, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint.

Confessions of an Undercover Girlfriend picks up right where the previous book, Confessions of a Virgin Sex Columnist, ended, and it kind of felt like I was watching part two of a movie, which was awesome. We don't jump forward in time, weeks or days later, we're right there, when John knocks on the door in the morning after Skye and Ollie's romantic night.

Skylar is still the same girl from before. I love that sex didn't magically change her, it didn't make her have the self-confidence that her co-worker, Blythe has, nor the lack of fear that her best friend, Bridge, is known for. She's still the rambling, clumsy, awkward girl, that can't quite control her fear, and I liked that. We get to see her come to some conclusions about herself, her relationship with Ollie, her friendship with Bridge, and I'm actually proud of her. She kind of managed to make me want to shake her a few times, because her freak-outs in this book were even more epic than in the previous one, but that's her charm, in the end. There's a brilliant scene at the end of the book, where Bridge asks Skye how she manages to live with the anxiety and hyperventilating all the time, and Skye says it takes talent, and it's true. I can understand Skye though. I feel like everyone, myself included, has moments of self doubt, that, when seen from someone else's perspective, can seem strange, or exaggerated, or even annoying at times, but it really does take a special kind of talent to have that inside you and still manage to do all of the stuff you want to do.

I liked Oliver more in this book that before. He kind of grew on me, and I liked that he was willing to let Skye have her little meltdowns and moments of self doubt, and hold her until those moments passed. Sure, there was a moment when I questioned his resolve, but I didn't blame him.

I liked the dynamic between Skye and Bridge. At first I had mixed feelings about Skye wanting to hide her relationship from her best friend, but I eventually got it. She even says is at one point, what if this relationship isn't what she thought it would be, what if she realizes that Ollie is so not the guy for her, why risk a friendship over something that might not be true. But at the same time, I wanted to shake her, because if her best friend really loved her, it wouldn't matter. It shouldn't, and, in the end, it turns out okay. But what I love is that it showed how, even from the one person that we trust with everything and anything, we still get scared of rejection, of judgement. I liked that the book went there.

There were laugh-out-loud moments in this book, one of them involving a drink and someone's face, that made me laugh like a loon. The ending was super cute, and I absolutely adored it. Speaking of things I'd adore, you know what, I'd love to see how Blythe's story ends. I'd love her to get a happy ending, I'd love to see more of her. I couldn't stand her at first, but this book made me like her. I'd definitely read a book about her.

All in all, I really enjoyed reading this book, which was a really great ending to Skye and Oliver's story.

Release Week Blitz: All Laced Up by Erin Fletcher

 

Hello Readers!  Welcome to the Release Week Blitz for

All Laced Up by Erin Fletcher

presented by Entangled Teen Crush!

Swoon worthy hockey players?  Sign. Me. Up.

 

Happy Book Birthday, Erin!!

 

 

Everyone loves hockey superstar Pierce Miller. Everyone except Lia Bailey.

When the two are forced to teach a skating class to save the rink, Lia’s not sure she’ll survive the pressure of Nationals and Pierce’s ego. Not only can’t he remember her name, he signed her bottle of water like she was one of his groupies. Ugh.

But if there’s one thing Lia knows better than figure skating, it’s hockey. Hoping to take his ego down a notch—or seven—she logs into his team website under an anonymous name to give him pointers on his less-than-stellar playing.

Turns out, Pierce isn’t arrogant at all. And they have a lot in common. Too bad he’s falling for the anonymous girl online. No matter how much fun they’re starting to have in real life, she’s afraid he’s going to choose fake-Lia over the real one…

Disclaimer: This book contains a swoony hockey player (and his equally swoony friends!), one-too-many social media accounts, kisses that’ll melt ice, and a secret identity that might not be so secret after all…

All Laced Up by Erin Fletcher Publication Date:  October 10, 2016 Publisher:  Entangled Teen Crush

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Erin is a young adult author from North Carolina. She is a morning person who does most of her writing before sunrise, while drinking excessive quantities of coffee. She believes flip-flops qualify as year-round footwear, and would spend every day at the beach if she could. She has a bachelor's degree in mathematics, which is almost never useful when writing books.

Website | Twitter

 

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Top Ten Tuesday #11: Books You Read Because of Recommendation

Top Ten Tuesday is weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish.

I'm very sure of the fact that about 75% of the books I've read so far, I've read because of recommendations from other people. So without further ado, here are 10 books I read because of recommendations.

1. The first one that comes to mind is Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. I remember I was in middle grade, and the first movie came out and everyone, I mean EVERYONE in my class went nuts. They saw the movie, and then Enya was their favorite artist and I got curious. About a year after that, one of the boys in my class convinced me to watch the movie and then to read the books, and that has been the best decision ever, because I just love Tolkien.

A photo posted by Ruby Jo (@rubys.books) on Aug 12, 2016 at 4:25am PDT

2. I read Castillos de cartón by Almudena Grandes because of a high school friend. I think the title translates into Cardboard Castles, but I'm not sure. I'm also not sure if there's an English translation of this book, but there should be, because this book is amazing. I still get teary eyed when I think of the ending of the book, with two of the characters getting in the car and trying to move on with their lives. It's one of those books that I've read once, but it's burned into my memory forever. I blame Emily, the girl who convinced me to read it, for my obsession with this book, and I'll never forget when and where we were when she first convinced me to read it. Seriously though, thank you, girl!

3. I've told this story a hundred million times, but I'll say it once again: I owe my love of urban fantasy/paranormal romance to a university colleague, who got me into reading Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris.

4. Can You Keep A Secret by Sophie Kinsella was a recommendation from Emily's classmate, Dia, and, like with Emily, I cherish that memory. Dia has been trying like hell to get me to read Game Of Thrones, so I'm thinking I'll probably soon just give up and read it. After all, this next book on the list (and subsequent auto-buy author) is due to her, as well.

5. Is there a bookish list of mine complete without Marc Levy? Spoiler alert: no, it isn't! My friend Dia convinced me to read If Only It Were True by Marc Levy around the time the movie, Just Like Heaven, with Mark Ruffalo and Reese Witherspoon, came out, and I've loved Levy's books ever since.

6. Harry Potter. I got to read this book because of a really good friend of mine, whom I've known since elementary school. He gave me the subway version of the elevator pitch, made me watch the movie, and convinced me to read and love the books.

A photo posted by Ruby Jo (@rubys.books) on Aug 12, 2016 at 11:17pm PDT

7. I read Women Of The Otherworld because of Carmel from Rabid Reads.
8. The Grisha trilogy was recommended to me by so many people, it's really difficult to pinpoint exactly who had the definitive role in convincing me to read it. I am convinced that Meredith from Pandora's Books had something to do with it.
9. I can't remember who convinced me to read ACOTAR, but thanks! I probably would have waited years before reading it, because apparently that's my style LOL
10. The most heartbreaking book I've ever read, Invitation to Waltz, was recommended to me by my dad. Now, over the years, he's recommended many books to me, with varying degrees of success, but this one is very special to me. Just think about it, my dad got me to read my first romance book. Sure, it doesn't have a happy ending, but it's still pretty special to me.

What are 10 books you read because they were recommended to you?

Book Blitz + Giveaway: Confessions of an Undercover Girlfriend by Kay Marie

Confessions of an Undercover Girlfriend
Kay Marie
(Confessions #2)
Publication date: October 11th 2016
Genres: Comedy, New Adult, Romance

So, I’m no longer a virgin sex columnist—thank you, Ollie—but if I thought that was going to make my life easier, boy was I wrong! Johnis back in town determined to win my forgiveness. Blythe is more ready than ever to take me down. Bridget is totally onto the new twinkle in my eye. And, well, Ollie is just as distractingly delicious as usual.
So, naturally, I have a few more confessions to make.
Confession #1: I came up with what I thought would be the perfect plan to keep my relationship with Ollie a secret—pretend to get back together with John!
Confession #2: It backfired. A lot.

Goodreads / Amazon

Sequel to:

—

Meet Skylar Quinn!

Name: Skylar Quinn – Skye to her friends, and well, anyone else who wants!

Occupation: Newspaper assistant and reluctant sex columnist…
Who Is She? Skylar is the main character of Confessions ofa Virgin Sex Columnist! —the story is told in her first person narration. She’s a virgin, a sex columnist, and is, well, pretty much totally anxious about the whole thing. Throw in the secret crush on her best friend’s brother, who also happens to be her new roommate, and you might understand her frequent heart palpitations
Loves: Ollie! No, wait…she used to. She still does? Well, you guys can decide because Skye and I sure can’t! Other loves include coffee, desserts, sugary things in general, reading by the windowsill while it rains, cheesy love scenes, and writing of course—especially when said writing doesn’t include fabricating sexual scenarios for her column.
Hates: High heels, hitting on guys, the never-ending embarrassing moments that seem to plague her life, lying in general (yeah, I see the irony here), and, what did I forget? Oh, right. Ollie!
Guilty Pleasures: Reality television binge watching sessions with Bridget, and, um, secretly watching Ollie flex his biceps out of the corner of her eye!
You can visit my pinterest board now for all of the character images and the original websites where I found them! Thank you!
Pinterest link: https://www.pinterest.com/kdavisbooks/confessions-of-a-virgin-sex-columnist-character-in/

Author Bio:
Bestselling author Kaitlyn Davis writes young adult fantasy novels under the name Kaitlyn Davis and contemporary romance novels under the name Kay Marie.
Always blessed with an overactive imagination, Kaitlyn has been writing ever since she picked up her first crayon and is overjoyed to share her work with the world. When she's not daydreaming, typing stories, or getting lost in fictional worlds, Kaitlyn can be found indulging in some puppy videos, watching a little too much television, or spendingtime with her family. If you have any questions for her--about her books, about scheduling an event, or just in general--you may contact her at: KaitlynDavisBooks@gmail.com
To stay up-to-date with all of Kaitlyn's new releases, sign up for her new release newsletter here: TinyLetter.com/KaitlynDavisBooks

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Tumblr / Wattpad / Pinterest / Youtube / Amazon

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Book Review: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Series: The Raven Cycle #1
Audience: +15
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Release Date: September 18th 2012
My Rating: 3 cups
Source: Amazon
Blurb (from Goodreads):

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue never sees them--until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks to her.

His name is Gansey, a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can't entirely explain. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul whose emotions range from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She doesn't believe in true love, and never thought this would be a problem. But as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she's not so sure anymore.

I know I'm a little late reading this book, as per usual with me and super hyped books, but I figured I should give it a try, especially now that the last book in the series is out.

It's rare that a book confuses me so much, that I don't know what rating to give it. But that's genuinely what I'm feeling right now. I've struggled with writing this review, not because I didn't enjoy reading this book, but because I'm so effin' confused here.

The thing that had me the most confused is the writing style. I won't lie to you, guys, I found this book to be too slow-paced for me. But the writing style made up for it. It was complicated, and yet so simple, beautiful and slightly scary at the same time. There's just something that the way Stiefvater writes hooked me, and kept me keep on reading, even if I didn't particularly root for the main characters. If you follow Stiefvater on social media, if you've read at least one of her blog posts, you've probably noticed that she has a way with words that not many people have, I don't think. And it's the same way with The Raven Boys, and I can see why so many people fell in love with her writing style, because I definitely did.

Now let's go back to the characters. Blue is a strange girl, because she's quite normal, compared to her family. But I found her a bit too... bland, if you know what I mean. She definitely wears her disappointment of the fact that she doesn't have any real powers of her own as you would a jacket or something, so it's really out there, and that kind of made me not be a super huge fan of hers. Also, the fact that she constantly has to take care to not kiss anyone because she might kill them was a bit strange. I understand that her family has all sorts of powers, but are we really sure that that's what's going to happen? Because I have a feeling that Blue might challenge that premonition. She's really careful, a girl that doesn't take a lot of chances, a lonely girl. I definitely enjoyed seeing her relax and enjoy the company of other kids, of strangers, and becoming friends with them, even if they are the Aglionby boys.

Speaking of the boys, I have a confession to make. Ronan and Adam, combined, reminded me of Michael from Rosswell. The TV version, because I haven't yet read the books. I love Ronan, and I kind of like Adam, but they reminded me so, so much of Michael, that I was trying not to swoon. (Michael is my favorite, but that's a different story). I'm super excited to read more about Ronan, actually, to find out about his story more, and understand exactly what it is that he can do, as well as how will this ability influence the events of the entire story. Gansey...yeah, he kind of annoyed me a little bit. Just a bit. I admire his dedication or solving one of history's mysteries, although I'm not sure I understood his motivation. I think there's more to Gansey's story that I hope we get to learn more about in the following books. And Noah, my sweet, sweet Noah. I'm not sure I know what to say about him, other than wow. I definitely want to know more about this mysterious guy.

Halfway through the book, I kind of got to get used to the writing style, and with the pacing, and a little detail that surfaced about one of the four boys hooked me in for good. Let's just say that what was revealed was so unexpected, that it surprised the hell out of me. But it was an interesting detail, and I'm curious to see what exactly will that "provoke" in the future, what consequences does that have on the future of all of the characters.

I saw that people who reread this book, after reading the last one, said that there's a ton of foreshadowing happening in The Raven Boys, so I'm really curious to see what happens in the future. I'll definitely read The Dream Thieves. I don't know when, but I will.

September Wrap-up

Hello my lovely fellow book readers! I'm super excited for October, guys! September is nice and all, but it's October that has my heart during the fall season. Let's face it, it's all about Halloween with me. 

I'm kinda sad to say that I haven't read as much in September as I wanted to. I did have some personal stuff to deal with, that made me not want to read as much during this month. I did manage to read a few of the books I had on my TBR for this month. I admit to getting a bit nuts with the request button on Netgalley, as well with blog tour sign-ups, which is why most of the books I read were extras. Oh well #sorrynotsorry.

I also wrote a few reviews. I'm actually proud of how many I managed to write. I seem to have found my muse again, which is a nice thing. Here are the reviews I wrote:

• Book Review: 1001 Dark Nights: Bundle Six
• Book Review: Playing By Her Rules by Amy Andrews
• Comic Book Tuesday #14: Monstress #3 by Marjorie M. Liu
• Book Review: How To Make Out by Brianna Shrum
• Comic Book Tuesday #15: Monstress #4 by Marjorie M. Liu
• Blog Tour Book Review: Playing It Cool by Amy Andrews
• Book Review: Strung Up by Lorelei James
• Comic Book Tuesday #16: Monstress #5 by Marjorie M. Liu
• Blog Tour Book Review & Excerpt: The Bookshop On The Corner by Jenny Colgan
• Book Review: Lure Of Obsession by Lisa Kessler
• Book Review: The Dom Who Loved Me by Lexi Blake
• Book Review: The Men With The Golden Cuffs by Lexi Blake
• Comic Book Tuesday #17: Monstress #6 by Marjorie M. Liu
• Book Review: A Dom Is Forever by Lexi Blake

I don't have any plans yet as to what to read this month. I do have some blog tours coming up, and I'm continuing on binge reading the Masters and Mercenaries series by Lexi Blake, but other than that I don't have a definitive TBR. I might try to pick up some of the books that are on my Fall TBR. 

What about you guys? Did you read all the books you wanted to read during September? What are your plans for October?