FIRST TIME I WON SOMETHING AND IT’S AN ARC OF UGLY LOVE | Ramblings

Towards the last week of May, I entered the Twitter giveaway of Ms. Johanna Castillo (Colleen’s editor) for the ARC of Ugly Love. It was a simple contest wherein I have to retweet a tweet of hers and then I’ll be entered into the giveaway. I gave it shot and only to find out a few days after that I won the contest! WOOT WOOT! 

MY GOODNESS! I’ll get to read UGLY LOVE months/days before the release? Holy shit, yes! I was ecstatic.  From that day on, I was in contact with Ms. Johanna for the updates of the whereabouts of my galley.

The month of June entered and it’s still a no show on my doorstep. *messages Ms. Johanna*

I was getting really worried that it got stuck somewhere and I won’t be able to have it in my hands. I was shitless scared for it was the first time I won something  (IT’S A BOOK THAT I’M EAGERLY ANTICIPATING) and I’d probably end up not being able to receive it. That sucks, right?

Then entered the first week of July, still a no show. *wrings my hands*

July 21 came in. 

And to my surprise, there was a package waiting for me!!!

I was praying to all the Saints for the package to contain the ARC already! Phew, please! I slowly opened it and took a deep breath before I checked the content … AND TADA!!!! Rejoice! Squeals were heard. I was happy dancing around the house. Even my fangirl heart is tapping away inside of my body! 

I CAN'T EVEN DFHASJFIOAS!!! MY CoHo fangirl heart cannot contain
all the feels when I saw this baby! 

WAITING ON WEDNESDAY: UGLY LOVE and OPPOSITION!

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that I or us, readers are eagerly anticipating. 

This week I'm featuring TWO BOOKS by TWO OF MY FAVORITE AUTHORS which are SET TO BE RELEASED ON THE SAME DAY!!! Oh the torture on what read first! Though, the good thing is I've already had the privilege to read an ARC of Ugly Love (I won a copy of it through a Twitter giveaway) and now I can just focus on reading Opposition ... if I'd be able to resist the temptation of rereading UGLY LOVE AGAIN! 

Title: UGLY LOVE 

Author: Colleen Hoover (Website | Twitter)

Publisher: Atria Books

Publication Date: August 5, 2014 

SYNOPSIS

When Tate Collins meets airline pilot Miles Archer, she knows it isn’t love at first sight. They wouldn’t even go so far as to consider themselves friends. The only thing Tate and Miles have in common is an undeniable mutual attraction. Once their desires are out in the open, they realize they have the perfect set-up. He doesn’t want love, she doesn’t have time for love, so that just leaves the sex. Their arrangement could be surprisingly seamless, as long as Tate can stick to the only two rules Miles has for her.

Never ask about the past.

Don’t expect a future.

They think they can handle it, but realize almost immediately they can’t handle it at all.

Hearts get infiltrated.

Promises get broken.

Rules get shattered.

Love gets ugly.

Mark and add Ugly Love on your "to read" list in Goodreads, using this link.

COVER REVEAL: BURYING WATER by K.A. Tucker

I am absolutely thrilled to bring you the cover reveal for K.A. Tucker's BURYING WATER! BURYING WATER is a New Adult Romantic Suspense novel scheduled for release October 7th! This book will blow you away. Get. Ready.

Add BURYING WATER on Goodreads!

  About BURYING WATER: 

 The top-selling, beloved indie author of Ten Tiny Breaths returns with a new romance about a young woman who loses her memory—and the man who knows that the only way to protect her is to stay away.

Left for dead in the fields of rural Oregon, a young woman defies all odds and survives—but she awakens with no idea who she is, or what happened to her. Refusing to answer to “Jane Doe” for another day, the woman renames herself “Water” for the tiny, hidden marking on her body—the only clue to her past. Taken in by old Ginny Fitzgerald, a crotchety but kind lady living on a nearby horse farm, Water slowly begins building a new life. But as she attempts to piece together the fleeting slivers of her memory, more questions emerge: Who is the next-door neighbor, quietly toiling under the hood of his Barracuda? Why won’t Ginny let him step foot on her property? And why does Water feel she recognizes him?

Twenty-four-year-old Jesse Welles doesn’t know how long it will be before Water gets her memory back. For her sake, Jesse hopes the answer is never. He knows that she’ll stay so much safer—and happier—that way. And that’s why, as hard as it is, he needs to keep his distance. Because getting too close could flood her with realities better left buried.

The trouble is, water always seems to find its way to the surface.

SEMI-HIATUS?

Our place was struck by the recent Typhoon Glenda. I'm okay and we're safe. But it ended up cutting off our power lines. They are saying that it'll take three weeks to more than a month before they'll be able to fully restore our electricity here. With this, I'm thinking of taking a break from blogging... 

Though, I'll be popping in just to check in updates or posting some book reviews. I'm only relying to malls for WiFi connection, my Globe broadband for a limited time of surfing the net at home and our generator set for charging my laptop. So yeah, that's it. Here's to hoping that you, booknerds and fangirls out there, will understand my situation.

 

:)  

 

COVER REVEAL: ALL BROKE DOWN by Cora Carmack

I am so excited to get to share the cover for Cora Carmack's ALL BROKE DOWN today! A New Adult Contemporary Romance, and published by William Morrow-an imprint of HarperCollins, this is the second book in her Rusk University Series, and it is set to be released on October 28, 2014! But you can pre-order it NOW! Check out what it's about and then fall in love with this gorgeous cover! 

  ABOUT ALL BROKE DOWN:

In this second book in New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cora Carmack’s New Adult, Texas-set Rusk University series, which began with All Lined Up, a young woman discovers that you can’t only fight for what you believe in . . . sometimes you have to fight for what you love

Dylan fights for lost causes. Probably because she used to be one.

Environmental issues, civil rights, corrupt corporations, and politicians—you name it, she’s probably been involved in a protest. When her latest cause lands her in jail overnight, she meets Silas Moore. He’s in for a different kind of fighting. And though he’s arrogant and infuriating, she can’t help being fascinated with him. Yet another lost cause.

Football and trouble are the only things that have ever come naturally to Silas. And it’s trouble that lands him in a cell next to do-gooder Dylan. He’s met girls like her before—fixers, he calls them, desperate to heal the damage and make him into their ideal boyfriend. But he doesn’t think he’s broken, and he definitely doesn’t need a girlfriend trying to change him. Until, that is, his anger issues and rash decisions threaten the only thing he really cares about, his spot on the Rusk University football team. Dylan might just be the perfect girl to help.

Because Silas Moore needs some fixing after all.

Pre-Order Your Copy Today!

Amazon ** Barnes and Noble ** iTunes

WAITING ON WEDNESDAY: THE INFINITE SEA by Rick Yancey

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that I or us, readers are eagerly anticipating. Here's my pick this week ...

Title: THE INFINITE SEA (The 5th Wave #2) 

Author: Rick Yancey (Website | Twitter) 

Publisher: Putnam Juvenile 

Expected Publication Date: September 16, 2014

SYNOPSIS 

The riveting follow-up to the New York Times bestselling The 5th Wave, hailed by Justin Cronin as “wildly entertaining.”

How do you rid the Earth of seven billion humans? Rid the humans of their humanity.

Surviving the first four waves was nearly impossible. Now Cassie Sullivan finds herself in a new world, a world in which the fundamental trust that binds us together is gone. As the 5th Wave rolls across the landscape, Cassie, Ben, and Ringer are forced to confront the Others’ ultimate goal: the extermination of the human race.

Cassie and her friends haven’t seen the depths to which the Others will sink, nor have the Others seen the heights to which humanity will rise, in the ultimate battle between life and death, hope and despair, love and hate.

Add THE INFINITE SEA on you TBR list in Goodreads. 

BECAUSE IT IS A MUST TO WAIT FOR THE SEQUEL TO THE 5TH WAVE!!! SO YEAH, I PICKED THIS BOOK TO BE MY WAITING ON WEDNESDAY FEATURE THIS WEEK! If you haven't read The 5th Wave, then you better read it already because you are clearly missing a whole lot of awesomeness and a cleverly-written book in alternating POVs! I swear, it'll blow your mind! =)))

COVER REVEAL: BREAKS by Amy Evans

 I am so excited to share the new cover in Amy Evan’s series, The Dolphin Prophecy!!! And I have an awesome excerpt and giveaway!!  

Title: Breaks (Book 3 in The Dolphin Prophecy) 
Author: Amy Evans 
Cover Designer – Regina Wamba 
Release Date – expected Sept. 9, 2014 

Synopsis

When the CLICKS and ECHOES have all been ignored, and the universe can take it no more, the pressure builds below the surface until everything breaks.

 

Cami’s invitation to the elite Australian Surf Carnival is a dream come true, but it’s causing tension with Blake, her parents, and her community.  Her relationships feel as broken and unsteady as their island home where the pin swims below the water’s surface, symbolizing a total lack of safety and balance.  The Elders in The Guard fear for their new generation, so they send Mica and the other twins away with Cami. It maybe for everyone’s protection, but Cami’s angry to not get to break away on her own.

On the other side of the ocean, they stay with the fifth set of twins who moved away when they were little, and learn more about the mysteries surrounding their ancestors and previous island homes. When the threats that they faced on Pinhold follow, Cami must trust her instincts to get the secrets from her past and present that are needed to protect her future. If she fails, the breaks will keep getting worse until everywhere on Earth is damaged in a way that can never be reversed.

BREAKS is the third book in The Dolphin Prophecy series. CLICKS is available for free and ECHOES is brand new and on sale for 99 cents for a very short time.  

Exclusive Excerpt

Sailors call them breaks, those moments when races turn around, when a crazy gust of wind comes along and whip changes your course. Sometimes it's for better, sometimes it's for worse. But the only way to know is to race with the break and see where it goes.

This letter was my break. It was the one opportunity is always wanted,  my best chance to test myself, to do something on my own. I'd worked my tail off for this and the note offered it right up to me exactly as I'd hoped.  A competition spot in the Elite International Surf Carnival on the Gold Coast of Australia. This was my dream come true. And the perfect break exactly when I needed one.

RELEASE DAY LAUNCH: UNTIL WE FLY by Courtney Cole

 

I am so excited to bring you the Release Day Launch for Courtney Cole's UNTIL WE FLY!! UNTIL WE FLY is an amazing NA contemporary romance and the fourth novel in Courtney’s Beautifully Broken Series!!

   UNTIL WE FLY Synopsis

Ex-Army Ranger, Brand Killien, has always been good. 

A good friend, a good soldier, a good everything. .
The problem is, good hasn’t gotten him anything but a crushed heart. 

So after licking his wounds, he decides to move on. And moving on doesn’t include being good anymore. 

Bad sounds so much better. 

Jaded and detached, Brand is determined to never open himself up to anyone again. It’s not worth the pain. Instead, he becomes closed, hardened, aloof. 

But then he’s called back home for a family emergency… a family that he is estranged from. A family that he put out of his mind a long time ago for very good reasons…reasons that involve secrets and pain. Reasons he tried hard to forget. 

But home is where the heart is, and it just might be where Brand finds his again. 

Why? Because home is where Nora Greene is. A fiery, red-headed spitfire, Nora is a thing from his past. A beautiful, feisty thing. When Brand left, she was away at boarding school. 

But she’s back now. 

And she wants Brand, scars and all.

UNTIL WE FLY on Goodreads

FEATURE & FOLLOW FRIDAY (3): PICTURE BOOKS

Happy Friday! 

Feature & Follow is a blog hop hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. Each host will have their own Feature Blog. This way it’ll allow us to show off more new blogs, meet new bloggers and make friends.  

This Week's Question:

What are some of your favorite picture books - either current ones or ones from your childhood?

EXCERPT REVEAL: THE DARE by Rachel Van Dyken

Title: THE DARE (The Bet #3)

Author: Rachel Van Dyken (Website | Twitter)

Expected Publication  Date: July 8, 2014

SYNOPSIS: 

From #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Rachel Van Dyken, comes the third and final book in the New York Time's Bestselling Bet Series...

Boring Beth Lynn has always lived up to her nickname... until she wakes up in a hotel bed next to a sexy as sin state senator she re-connected with at a wedding the previous night.

The biggest problem? She can't seem to remember anything about the night before except for crying into a box of cookies, and she's pretty sure Grandma Nadine slipped something in her drink. And what should have been a one night stand turns into a six day adventure when Grandma whisks them off to Hawaii to save them from the ensuing media firestorm.

Jace isn't looking for commitment -- he believes he made that clear when he left the wedding with Beth. Then again, he can't remember much of anything other than the way her skin felt beneath his hands. Now he's stuck with her at some lame couple's retreat and trying his hardest to fight the attraction only a woman like Beth could invoke.

He doesn't think it can get any worse.

But one spider attack... A donkey ride from hell... And an unfortunate episode with Viagra tea -- and there's one thing Jace knows for sure: He should never have agreed to Grandma Nadine's suggestion in the first place.

COVER REVEAL: ILLICIT DESIRE by Taylor Michaels

ILLICIT DESIRE by Taylor Michaels

 September 16, 2014

BOOK SUMMARY

Raphael is everything I should run away from…

Cora Milan came to Miami to get a fresh start, away from the memories and stigma that followed her and her brother at home. When she’s mugged, Raphael Ortiz rescues her. He’s sexy, successful, and dangerous—Miami’s most eligible bachelor and it’s most elusive. A cartel lord who lives on the wrong side of the law, with only a veneer of respectability. He is the exact opposite of a clean slate, and he makes no apologies for wanting her.

When Raphael forces his way into her life, Cora knows she should run. But the attraction between them is undeniable, and Raphael is a man accustomed to getting what he wants. The more she loses herself in him, the deeper she is drawn into Raphael’s criminal world.

But when her past, and his present collide, both of them will be left grasping for the only thing that can save them from the darkness around them—each other.

WAITING ON WEDNESDAY: BOOMERANG by Noelle August

"Waiting on Wednesday" is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that I or us, readers are eagerly anticipating. Here's my pick this week ...

Title: BOOMERANG

Author: Noelle August (Website | Twitter) 

Publication Date: July 8, 2014

SYNOPSIS 

The first book in a sensational New Adult trilogy from Noelle August

Welcome to Boomerang.com, the dating site for the millennial gen with its no-fuss, no-commitments matchups, and where work is steamier than any random hook-up

Mia Galliano is an aspiring filmmaker. Ethan Vance has just played his last game as a collegiate soccer star. They’re sharp, hungry for success, and they share a secret.

Last night, Ethan and Mia met at a bar, and, well . . . one thing led to another, which led to them waking up the next morning—together. Things turned awkward in a hurry when they found themselves sharing a post hookup taxi . . . to the same place: Boomerang headquarters.

What began as a powerful connection between them is treated to a cold shower courtesy of two major complications. First, Boomerang has a strict policy against co-worker dating. And second, they’re now competitors for only one job at the end of summer.

As their internships come to an end, will they manage to keep their eyes on the future and their hands off each other, or will the pull of attraction put them right back where they started?

Add BOOMERANG on Goodreads. 

RELEASE DAY LAUNCH: HARDER by Robin York

I am so  thrilled to bring you the Release Day Launch for Robin York's HARDER!! HARDER is a New Adult contemporary romance being published by Random House’s Bantam imprint and is the 2^nd novel in Robin York’s Caroline & West Series. This book, y'all.

   Synopsis for Harder: 

In Robin York’s provocative new novel, two young ex-lovers find themselves together again in the shadow of tragedy—and an intense, undeniable attraction. 

Caroline still dreams about West. His warm skin, his taut muscles, his hand sliding down her stomach. Then she wakes up and she’s back to reality: West is gone. And before he left, he broke her heart. Then, out of the blue, West calls in crisis. A tragedy has hit his family—a family that’s already a fractured mess. Caroline knows what she has to do. Without discussion, without stopping to think, she’s on a plane, flying to his side to support him in any way he needs. They’re together again, but things are totally different. West looks edgy, angry at the world. Caroline doesn’t fit in. She should be back in Iowa, finalizing her civil suit against the ex-boyfriend who posted their explicit pictures on a revenge porn website. But here she is. Deeply into West, wrapped up in him, in love with him. Still. They fought the odds once. Losing each other was hard. But finding their way back to each other couldn’t be harder.

   

Amazon *** Barnes and Noble *** iBooks

Advance praise for HARDER: “Bursting with chemistry, emotion, and heart, Caroline and West’s story will take your breath away!”—Katy Evans, New York Times bestselling author of the REAL series “Robin York writes exceptionally real characters in achingly real situations. Harder had a hold on my heart and didn’t let go until the very end.”—New York Times bestselling author Cora Carmack

And don’t miss the first book in the Caroline & West Series….DEEPER!

Advance praise for DEEPER: 

“The perfect new adult story . . . West will make you swoon!”—New York Times bestselling author Monica Murphy “Beautifully written and full of swoony tender moments, toe-curling chemistry, and delicious, twisty angst . . . Stop whatever you’re doing and read this book.”—Christina Lauren, author of the Beautiful Bastard series  

SALE BLITZ: PULLED BENEATH by Marni Mann

What happens when you uncover years of secrets and find out everything you thought to be true was a lie?

Drew Stevens finds her world turned upside down when her parents are brutally murdered. Soon after, she learns she inherited a property in Bar Harbor, Maine, from recently deceased grandparents that she believed had died when she was a baby.

Drew travels north to settle her grandparents’ estate, but finds more questions than answers as the truth starts unraveling. What she didn’t expect to find was Saint, whose reputation is as tumultuous as his past. But the very thing that brings them together is the same thing that keeps them emotionally caged.

With Saint's scars so deep and Drew's so fresh, can the pair heal from their painful wounds or will they be pulled beneath the darkness of their pasts?

Top 5 Things - Drew

1. Aside from Drew’s natural beauty, her sharp, pointed features, the most dominant detail on her face is her eyes. They’re teal and powerful. They’re demanding.

2. Drew’s life seems almost perfect. She recently graduated from college, her and her best friend are about to get an apartment together, she’s pursuing her dream job as a photographer…until her parents are brutally murdered. The only survivor from the attack is Bella, her parents Yellow Lab, who Drew adopts.

RELEASE DAY BOOK BLITZ: GOODBYE TO YOU by AJ Matthews

Goodbye To You

by A.J. Matthews

Release Date: 07/01/14

Swoon Romance

New Adult

Summary from Goodreads:

Europe? Nope. Mexico? Nope. Key West?

Not me. This summer, I'm playing nursemaid to my sister. Yeah, I know. Relatively good looking twenty-two-year-olds don't spend the summer bedside in the cancer ward, but that's the plan - until my sister threatens me with bodily harm unless I get on the plane.

That's when I met him. He likes me. Really likes me. But more than that, he loves my boobs -- like can't get enough. I have no idea how to tell him that they'll be gone soon. Courtesy of a preventative double mastectomy. Yep. That's what testing positive for the breast cancer gene mutation will do to a girl.

But don't feel sorry for me. I'm enjoying him, holding on until the last possible minute, while I muster up the strength to tell him, and watch him walk away.

I love my boobs.

From the way the sultry-eyed, dark-haired, “I wonder if he’s a J. Crew model” god is staring at them tonight from the other side of the large wood and brass-railed bar, I think he likes them too.

Maybe more than I do.

“Hey, Thea, we started with your name.” My friend Bennie slurs a little, which is weird because we just started drinking tonight.

Maybe she’s still hung over from last night.

She slides a shot of clear liquid down the bar, and the bartender slips a salt shaker and a plate of limes in front of Bennie.

Tequila. A drink that makes me do wicked things I otherwise wouldn’t consider.